AltWeeklies Wire
Conservative Pundits Whine as Barack's Hip-Hop Supporters Opinenew
Dozens, if not hundreds, of underground rappers from all over the country have strongly resonated with Barack Obama's message. The Bay Area hip-hop community in particular has been solidly behind him, as evidenced by the popular "Obizzle Fa Shizzle" T-shirts seen around town.
East Bay Express |
Eric K. Arnold |
05-08-2008 |
Music
The Oakland Opera Finishes Duke Ellington's Only Operanew
If you didn't know Ellington wrote an opera at all, you're not alone. Hardly anyone's ever had a chance to hear Queenie Pie.
East Bay Express |
Sam Hurwitt |
05-08-2008 |
Music
Beth Wood's Nighttime Visions Have Led Her to Success and a New Albumnew
Beachcomber's Daughter sounds like a de-twanged Dolly Parton mixed with the FM radio vocalists Wood listened to on her bedroom radio.
Fort Worth Weekly |
Jimmy Fowler |
05-08-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Janelle Monae Seems Like the Freak of Every Weeknew
Less the "black Bjork" than heir to Arthur Lee's black rock throne, Janelle Monae preps for blastoff.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Kandia Crazy Horse |
05-08-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Janelle Monae
Kaki King's Sound is Crisp and Cleannew
Dreaming of Revenge has a certain airiness, like the sound of a wide-open space.
Tucson Weekly |
Annie Holub |
05-07-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Kaki King, Dreaming of Revenge
Mark Eitzel Pours His Heart into Every Tracknew
The Golden Age offers more of the same fatalistic and beautiful songwriting that has made Eitzel the Gen X answer to Leonard Cohen.
Tucson Weekly |
Jarret Keene |
05-07-2008 |
Reviews
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin Wants 'to Stick to What We Know'new
Pershing is a series of endearingly articulate, metaphor-laden conversations with complicated girls -- artsy, spiritual, ambivalent.
Tucson Weekly |
Linda Ray |
05-07-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Kathleen Edwards Brings Sharp Wit and Charm to Her Alt-Country Creationsnew
Over the course of her three studio albums, the 29-year-old singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist has become adept at evoking melancholy, love, heartache, beauty, compassion and righteous rocking in a seemingly effortless fashion, although she probably exercises great care when crafting her songs.
Tucson Weekly |
Gene Armstrong |
05-07-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Warpaint' Seems to Be an Artistic Fork in the Road for the Black Crowesnew
Now that they have established their return, they can either go back to hiding an album of fluff behind a couple of quality songs, or they can try to one-up themselves and reach for their potential to put out a great album.
Jackson Free Press |
Rob Hamilton |
05-07-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: The Black Crowes, Warpaint
Underground is On Topnew
Underground hip-hop has seen a resurgence in respect and quality. This year started off as a stellar year for the artists that like to stay under the radar. So let's take a look at some of these lesser-known albums.
Jackson Free Press |
David Dennis |
05-07-2008 |
Music
Leona Lewis is Like Whitney Houston for 2008new
On the plus side, she seems like a nice, self-effacing person who hasn't yet learned to browbeat her associates for handing her a lukewarm Red Bull. Her exotic features play well on VH1, but as a singer, she's strictly a cut-rate generic brand.
San Antonio Current |
Gilbert Garcia |
05-07-2008 |
Reviews
Tejano Conjunto Festival Offers a History Lessonnew
When Juan Tejeda launched the festival in 1982, he was consciously battling negative stereotypes about conjunto, and eager to prove that this music deserved to be regarded as art.
San Antonio Current |
Gilbert Garcia |
05-07-2008 |
Concerts
3 Doors Down Go To Krypton and Backnew
Emerging from small-town Mississippi, 3 Doors Down burst onto the post-grunge alternative-rock scene in 2000 with hit single "Kryptonite" from the band's first album A Better Life.
Jackson Free Press |
Jeri Lynn Ostrander |
05-07-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: 3 Doors Down
Why Southern Hip-Hop Is the Same as FOX Newsnew
Though FOX News and Southern rap both have anti-intellectual appeal, there's more to the story than that. Rather than simply pandering to the red-state masses, they have tapped into powerful populist sensibilities in areas that didn't previously have a national voice.
Manic Hispanic Coversnew
Americans recording Mexican songs: The bueno, the bad and the muy ugly.
Tags: covers
