Label: Drive-Thru Records Released: October 16, 2007 Trampoline is aptly titled, because the album has a lot of bounce and not the teeny-bopper kind of bounce either. This bounce is the combined force of Steel Train’s energy and elasticity. The band’s biggest influence is perhaps the Beatles (and who would complain?) and they draw on everything from early jangly pop… Read more »
January 23, 2008, Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, Baltimore, Maryland Everyone remembers Ladysmith Black Mambazo for their contributions to Paul Simon’s Graceland, but the group, formed in the late 1950s in South Africa, has had a prolific recording career to which many people are oblivious. As an a capella group playing traditional African music, there isn’t a huge market for their… Read more »
Label: self-released Released: Like many great punk records, this one’s almost over before it starts. While this isn’t quite great, it does cover all the hardcore bases: fast, loud, aggressive. The four song demo clocks in at just 5:39, but it lets up very little over that time. Bad Habit draws a lot from Minor Threat with just a slightly… Read more »
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Released: January 29, 2008 I attended a memorial service for a coworker’s husband a few years ago. The chapel was small, and the service was filled with speeches and laughter and the occasional gut-wrenching sob from the front of the room. It was touching, but as someone who didn’t know the dead man, it was relatively mundane…. Read more »
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Released: March 23, 1999 Lead Belly is widely considered one of the greatest influences on modern American music, yet I know few who actually listen to him. That doesn’t diminish his influence, but it does call into question whether he is directly relevant today or a generation or two removed. The follow-up question would then be, if… Read more »
Here’s some particularly bad news for anyone who likes good music and/or good movies: Geoff Tate (of Queensrÿche) and Candice Night (of Blackmore’s Night) will make their acting debuts together in House of Eternity. After hearing recent releases from both of them, the movie theater will feel like a house of eternity unless they can both act better than they… Read more »
Label: Bad Reputation Released: January 15, 2008 For those not familiar with the Gypsy Pistoleros, they play sleazy, gritty glam with a touch of Latin flair (although not quite as prevalent as they sell it, it certainly amounts to a lot more than just some Spanish lyrics). Unlike the many bands from the hair metal heyday of the 80s that… Read more »
You can stream Slingshot Dakota’s Golden Ghost for free over at ThePunkSite.com. It’s only available until January 27th, so hurry up.
Label: Rhino Released: January 8, 2008 When I first saw Kimya Dawson several years ago opening for They Might Be Giants, there was nothing that made me think that her music would eventually be the soundtrack to a successful movie. Don’t get me wrong, I liked her…a lot. She can’t sing, she can’t play, her songs are simple, yet she… Read more »
Label: Deep Elm Records Released: August 27, 2007 Anything with any post-punk influence is bound to be pretty angular, but Free Diamonds take it to a new level. They focus on rhythm to the point that everything, voice included, is a rhythm instrument, giving the entire album a very polyrhythmic effect along the lines of Sound Affects-era Jam and the… Read more »