So this took longer than I thought it would to get around to writing up, but I've got to get something posted before too much time passes and I forget how awesome it was. Because this show was exactly that - AWESOME. I arrived at the Urban Lounge early - the tickets said the show started at 9pm, so I rolled up about 8:30. Not a soul was there; the doors were locked up and the 'Open' sign was off. So I chilled in the car, listening to Polar Bear's eponymous album (because I ...
Polar Bear: Polar Bear Year: 2008 click here for the artist's site It was March of this year when I heard Polar Bear's 2005 album Held On the Tips of Fingers . I found it completely moving; it was overwhelming. I didn't think that anything would surpass what I thought about their sophomore effort. However, when I heard that they were finally releasing a follow-up this year, my interest was beyond piqued - and my curiosity was rewarded tenfold. Part of what I found so im...
11 May 2008. 1:57pm. Ever since I heard her play for the first time I was captivated by her - her wild hair tossed about her head, the strange way she would sort of strut while she would play. But most of all, I was entranced by the music - the vibrant, enchanting music. Hiromi. Finding out exactly where she was playing and when was no small feat. You would think that googling the Vic Jazz Fest would yield results - and you'd think exactly wrong. But after some concerted effort, I f...
19 Apr 2008. 11:34pm. The sun burns hot and heavy as I walk slowly down the densely-populated Rambla, cautiously weaving my way through the crowds to the large statue overlooking the sea. My bangs are sweaty, clumped together and sticking to my forehead. (I really do need a haircut - I'm shaggier than I've ever been in my life. Plus, why is it that my brow sweats more than any other single part of my body? I think it's the need to dissipate all that extra heat bu...
In Rainbows By: Radiohead Year: 207 Click here for the artists site Radiohead caused ripples in the music world with the release of their new album, hoping for the good faith of their fans to ride the success monkey. The album was released online, at whatever price you feel compelled to pay. (See the article here for more info.) While that resulted in over ten million dollars in revenue, it was also downloaded from their website nearly 20 million times. (Ye...
All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone By: Explosions in the Sky Year: 2007 Click here for the artists site Rather than suffering the normal characteristics of post-rock (which were by-and-large invented and perfected by such greats as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Mogwai), the constant ebb-and-flow of pulsating melodies, building to a climax and then abating, Explosions in the Sky's newest disc creates a new breed of post-music, focusing on the melody's strength, rathe...
Coward By: Made Out of Babies Year: 2006 Click here for the artists site It seems that most female rock vocalists fall into three categories. One is the whiny, petulant voice, featured in so many pop-rock or alternative rock bands, that sounds so much like every other voice on the radio, telling you about how hard her life is, or how hot she thinks you are, ad nauseum, forever and ever amen. The second is the power vocalist, star of just about every metal ban...
FIRST OFF: I understand if you don't like my comment and want to delete it; but you should either 1)give me fair warning first, or 2)tell me why you've deleted what I felt was a pertinent comment. (Hey Aeryck, I'm talking to you, ass.) ON TO THE MAIN EVENT: Earlier this morning I was listening to a local radio show, Radio From Hell, and they did a poll of some of the listeners that I found absolutely enlightening. The poll dealt with the music people had on their mp3 players, and w...
News today is that there's a lady in Minnesota who finally stood up to the record companies' ridiculous and draconian copyright rules. And what does she get for it? 220,000 dollars in fines. For 24 songs she supposedly downloaded. Yeah, that's a little over 9,000 dollars a song. Now, I understand that the record companies' goal was to make an example of the single mother of two, but she maintains her innocence - that she was neither involved in downloading or uploading music. An...
I don’t know why people don’t think of me as metal. But they really don’t. There are so many times that people meet me, even get to know me a little bit, and still think that I’m a “classical music all the time” kind of kid. I still remember working at a local taco joint five or six years ago, and one day it was my turn to pick the radio station as we opened up the store in the morning. I turned the radio to the closest thing I could get to metal in Utah. The manager’s jaw dropped....
The Galilean Satellites By: Rosetta Year: 2005 Click here for the artists site Few albums are as all-encompassing as Rosetta's latest release, The Galilean Satellites . Usually, an album by a band, even in the case of incredible releases, is just that – an album, a record to listen to at will. The Galilean Satellites isn't an album, or record – it's an event. One that you should seriously pencil time in your schedule for. On first inspection, and whi...
Blood Inside By: Ulver Year: 2005 Click here for the artists site Few bands have changed as much or as consistently as Ulver. Norway’s wierdnoid black-metal-cum-folk-metal-cum-ambient-cum-electronic group has never been content to duplicate a sound. This is a band that created one of the most raw, poorly-produced and vivid black metal albums, Nattens Madrigal , the group that produced one of the strangest spoken-word poetry ambient albums, Themes from William Blake’s Mar...
Alaska By: Between the Buried and Me Year: 2005 Click here for the artists site Between the Buried and Me . Sounds like it should be one of those emo bands that wears their pants too tight, their hair too black, and their pouts too . . . pouty. Certainly doesn't sound like the name of a blistering progressive metal band. Yet . . . that's exactly what Between the Buried and Me is. Blistering, progressive metal. And it's just awesome. Alaska has everything a goo...
i'M SITTING HERE AT MY DESK WITH MY MEDIA PLAYER ON RANDOM IN MY rUSH COLLECTION, PLAYING EVERY ALBUM THEY'VE EVER RELEASED AS WELL AS A COUPLE BOOTLEGS. Rush is the greatest band in the world. Because I said so.
I stumbled upon this website this morning, Love God's Way . Now, I'm not one to get mad at Christian fundamentalists who put up websites to promote their message, but this one specifically made me laugh. These people are super-anti-gay. I mean, super. Want proof? The "minister" of this "church" has a "band" (all of these hypothetical statements). Their best song is a little ditty they call "God Hates Fags". (You want to see the video of this atrocity? Check it out here .) What ...