Label: Arclight Records Released: June 12, 2007 Most stoner rock bands love Black Sabbath and Tia Carrera is no different in that respect. What sets them apart, aside from sheer technical prowess and experimental intuition, is that Black Sabbath isn’t the primary trick in their bag. They meld Sabbath’s heaviness with Hendrix’s psychedelic grooves and Greg Ginn’s free jazz punk…. Read more »
Label: Island Records Released: July 24, 2007 Frankly, I’m not sure why this is the great lost performance. Surely, in a career as long as Johnny Cash’s, there were many performances that didn’t get recorded or where the tapes were lost. Obviously, this is the one that managed to get itself found, but that only makes it the found performance,… Read more »
Label: PRC/Universal Released: August 21, 2007 In 1999, A New Found Glory released Nothing Gold Can Stay, a sappy pop punk album that made me feel the pain of being 17 again. Sure, some of the lyrics were over-dramatic and the vocals were whiny, but the album connected with me even though it was written for kids ten or so… Read more »
Label: Jump Start Records Released: June 19, 2007 My first reaction to Giving Chase’s A Cheap Print of a Masterpiece was that it was appropriately named. A cursory listen to the first few tracks seemed like just another band traveling down that worn and rutted road of screamo. Certainly they have all the elements, but a better listen also showed… Read more »
Label: No Idea Records Released: May 9, 2007 A superficial listen to Bridge and Tunnel’s debut EP gives the impression that they’re just one of many bands out there now in the mold created by Hot Water Music, with passionate songs and a raw and catchy yet complex sound. So many bands have run with that and just taken a… Read more »
Label: Shout! Factory Released: August 14, 2007 I’ve always loved the Bangles. Even the big sellout of Different Light still had the sweet harmonies and sixties jangle that I loved in their days in the Paisley Underground. I don’t operate under the illusion that bands often recapture their prime when reuniting, but I did expect an energetic show and an… Read more »
Label: Facedown Records Released: July 24, 2007 This is not an entirely new album, nor is it a re-issue. Rather, it’s a re-recording of War of Ages’ first album with a bonus track. I hadn’t heard the original recording, but the band felt it didn’t do the songs justice and opted to take another shot. If the recording quality was… Read more »
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings Released: July 31, 2007 As the liner notes describe, all across the country on a Saturday night music and good times go hand in hand and always have. American roots music, from bluegrass to zydeco, has been an influence on modern music as well as a vital part of life for many, many people. It’s the… Read more »
Label: self-released Released: 2007 I first heard of Irritant at Rock of Ages. I was expecting Good Evening from the Machine to be a bit heavier, but it turns out to be more on the hard rock side of metal. It took a couple listens to adjust, but once beyond my preconception, I found the album to hold quite a… Read more »
Label: Shout! Factory Released: August 21, 2007 John Lennon once said, “If there wasn’t a fight, it wasn’t a good gig.” So, what is it if no one even moves? Lennon was clearly arguing that a sterile show is never good and sterility is exactly the problem with SXSW Live 2007. The DVD is a collection of songs from shows… Read more »