Some people try to be witty when they say that such-and-such noun or adjective is their middle name, but in the case of Babyshambles frontman and ex-Libertine Pete Doherty, he can say “trouble” is his middle name and no one will find it cheeky. In fact, they’ll probably nod their heads in a knowing way and mutter “too true.” More »
The guys from Grizzly Bear must be so happy right now. They are being name-checked by every Tom, Dick and Harriett who wants to sound cool and current. Heck, even Jay-Z has been mentioning them so he won’t look like an old geezer.
But unlike some of the more recent indie breakthrough success stories, Grizzly Bear can actually be found doing work in more mainstream environments. For example, in the movies. More »
In my geek perspective, I’ve always thought of music collaborations between artists as similar to the crossover team-ups of comic book heroes. And in a way it does feel the same. A successful collaboration between artists is uplifting and, dare I say, gives off a vibe of something legendary happening. We’ve seen that in the now-mythical collaboration between Aerosmith and Run DMC or Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye. Of course, there are also collaborations that make you go “hmm.”
One such collaboration would be the pairing of Lady Gaga – the current queen of weird – and indiesynth darlings Passion Pit. The collaboration between the two happened with the Passion Pit remixing Lady Gaga’s new single Telephone. Yes, the same Telephone single that also features Beyonce. And no, this is not some bootleg or unauthorized remix. This is an OFFICIAL remix. Talk about a genre-blurring collaboration!
Either Lady Gaga’s got really cool music taste, or The Passion Pit guys sees something in Gaga that I don’t (aside from the theatrical strangeness of course). I do admit that Lady Gaga’s songs are infectious (I sometimes find myself just suddenly singing “p-p-p-poker face, p-p-poker face”) so there really must be some kind of mutual admiration thing going on here.
Let’s face it. The music business can be such a brutal mistress. To use my imaginary wife Heidi Klum’s catchphrase, “One day you’re in, the next day you’re out.” A lot of wonderful bands are now out of work because they are not selling millions and earning a lot from touring. And these are artists that are truly talented, not like the hacks that are dominating the airwaves right now. Yes, I’m looking at you Fall Out Boy. More »
Ok Go caught the attention of listeners and netizens with their video Here It Goes Again. The music video, which featured the band performing a choreographed routine using treadmill machines, was an instant hit among viewers and became a huge viral hit when it was released in 2006. But what will you do if the very thing that made you famous is now being restricted? More »
If you’re a rock documentary freak like me then you’ll be eagerly anticipating watching two new documentaries revolving around two intriguing artists. More »
A friend of mine who, like me, is a huge M.I.A. fan informed me more than a year ago that M.I.A. announced in one concert that she is retiring from the music business. Of course, it was news that shocked and disappointed us. M.I.A. is one of those artists that brought something fresh and exciting to music and for her to retire with just two albums under her belt was such a tragedy. I refused to accept the news, however, and thought to myself that either M.I.A. may just have said it as a spur of the moment outburst and will come to rethink her decision soon enough.
And it looks like she did. More »
Santigold’s self-titled debut album (Santogold) was my personal soundtrack for 2008. Her album was on constant rotation on my stereo system at hom and on my iPod whenever I’m out or driving. Her hip-hop/electro-clash/rock mashup was an inspired creative work that made people take notice of her talents. More »
Radiohead is arguably one of the most significant bands of our time. And they’re also one of rock’s most consistent.
Radiohead has never failed to produce an album that has both impressed critics and fans — and yes, I will even include the mainstream-courting debut album Pablo Honey. Their release timeline is also commendable — they always release an album in between two to three years, with the time between Hail to The Thief and In Rainbows (about four years) the longest gap in between albums. More »
It’s 2010! Another year full of possibilities. For this year, I am filled with hope that more awesome music releases will be unleashed on us — the music loving public.
But if there’s one thing that I also fervently wish for 2010 is the death of emo. More »
