AltWeeklies Wire
Stewart Erlich of WadiRum Finds His Voicenew
Spending time alone in the desert has long been thought to be a spiritual experience. The Jews wandered for 40 years. Jesus endured the devil for 40 days and nights. In Stewart Erlich's case, it was more like a long weekend with a nasty bout of the stomach flu, but life altering, nonetheless.
Boulder Weekly |
Dylan Otto Krider |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Listening to Mudvayne's Latest is About as Enjoyable as Being Castratednew
If The New Game is a sign of things to come, then it is game over for Mudvayne.
Tucson Weekly |
Jon Hobson |
12-11-2008 |
Reviews
Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson Give Us Some Authentic Roots Musicnew
There's very little that's "alternative" or precious about Rattlin' Bones, a thick slab of traditional American music.
Tucson Weekly |
Jarret Keene |
12-11-2008 |
Reviews
Delta Spirit: Music That Lastsnew
Delta Spirit concludes its latest tour -- and hopes to avoid further legal entanglements.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
There's Still Something About Death Cab for Cutienew
Most bands these days may not know how to record to multi-track cassette tapes, or how to build a fanbase without MySpace or Facebook. Death Cab for Cutie knows all of this well, and the reissue of Something About Airplanes is a sign of the times.
Tucson Weekly |
Annie Holub |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Gift Guide: Box Sets for Music Loversnew
One can't help but direct a hearty "bah humbug" at cynical record companies which are trying to sell us music we already have, albeit in deluxe repackaged formats, with all sorts of bells and whistles such as retrospective booklets full of essays and photos, and nifty fetish-quality boxes. But some of these boxed sets also happen to be really cool.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
12-11-2008 |
Music
Tags: box sets, gift guides
Fennesz's Latest is a Hair's Breadth from Ambient Territorynew
Ostensibly an avant-gardist, guitarist and laptop musician Christian Fennesz has become a traditionalist of sorts in recent years -- his music now has much in common with Brian Eno's ambient recordings of the late '70s and early '80s.
Washington City Paper |
Brent Burton |
12-11-2008 |
Reviews
Elliott Murphy's Second Actnew
The literate rocker comes home for a rare U.S. appearance.
New York Press |
David Freeland |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Elliott Murphy
Ben Vida brings His International Noise Convention to Brooklynnew
Like a musical conjurer, Ben Vida coaxes a remarkable array of instruments to take on lives of their own and reveal their extraordinary songs. For his third full-length record under the moniker Bird Show, Vida continues his obsession with an exotic assortment of music makers.
New York Press |
Amre Klimchak |
12-11-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
John Legend Expands Sound on Latest Releasenew
John Legend is known for making music that goes straight to your heart — or the heart of the one you love. He hasn't lost that feeling, but he's expanding his horizons on his latest release, Evolver.
Creative Loafing (Charlotte) |
John Grooms |
12-10-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
The Georgia Blues of Mudcat's Music Go Deepnew
Singer, guitarist, and bandleader Danny "Mudcat" Dudeck is revered for his raw and edgy guitar playing and singing in his hometown of Atlanta. He's a man comfortable with playing complicated slide guitar and belting out a few rhymes about bad love, booze, and life's hard experiences.
Charleston City Paper |
T. Ballard Lesemann |
12-10-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
E-40's Latest Already Sounds Like an Anachronismnew
A self-anointed hip-hop "ambassador" who's made most of his fortune in other industries, 40 takes few risks with his music. When he finds a successful formula, like the "hyphy" style that shaped his 2006 album My Ghetto Report Card, he'll beat it past the point of death.
East Bay Express |
Rachel Swan |
12-10-2008 |
Reviews
California Honeydrops Brings a New Sensibility to Old Styles of Musicnew
Unlike mainstream revivalist acts like Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, or Raphael Saadiq, of late, the Honeydrops aren't dredging up old trends in order to make a concept album or a nostalgia-based soundtrack.
East Bay Express |
Rachel Swan |
12-10-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: California Honeydrops, Soul Tub!
New York's Longwave Just Wants to Have Funnew
It's a surprise just to hear how much Longwave has changed since the days of its 2001 debut Endsongs, when the band was stylistically lumped into the New York scene with emerging garage-rock superstars The Strokes, but the bigger surprise might be that this record exists at all.
Chicago Newcity |
Andy Seifert |
12-10-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Longwave, Secrets are Sinister
Max Ochs Still Works and Sings For Social Justicenew
By all rights, Max Ochs should be bitter. His college buddies, John Fahey and Robbie Basho, had more well-known and critically lauded musical careers. And the rare instance when Ochs does receive attention from the press, there's always an obligatory reference to his more famous cousin, Phil.
Baltimore City Paper |
David Dunlap Jr. |
12-09-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
