Category: Rock (Page 120 of 241)

Chapters: Wife

September 26, 2008 / James B. Eldred

Okay, look…I like Joy Division. I really do. But as a people, we need to move on. Following in the steps of Editors, Interpol and She Wants Revenge, Chapters is the latest in an increasing number of bands who believe that Joy Division is a genre of music. Throughout their five-track EP Wife , the band clings to the memory of Ian Curtis like a noose clinging to a neck of a strung-out rock star. Snare-heavy mixes, grinding guitars and intense snarky vocals are all present in spades. And if getting hung up on a singular band for your sound wasn’t enough, they also stick to the common Joy Division themes of broken relationships and broken love. But while Curtis was fond of self-loathing, Chapters seem to project their despair and the result almost comes of as misogynistic at worst or just annoying and whiny at best. Find another late 70s/early 80s British act to crib. guys. How about Ian Dury & the Blockheads? We need more of that. (Chapters 2008)

Chapters MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

Seen Your Video: Morningwood, “Sugarbaby”

September 25, 2008 / David Medsker

Leave it to New York’s Morningwood to make another video that stands out from the pack. “Nth Degree” was an instant classic with its references to album covers past, but their latest clip, “Sugarbaby,” goes in a different direction. Three words: sex with puppets.

All right, this version doesn’t actually show any puppet sex, but there is a quick cut that suggests the guy in the limo was about to receive a happy ending, if you know what I mean. And psssst: if you go to the YouTube page this video is on, you’ll see a link to the uncensored video. Haven’t watched it yet, myself. I just ate lunch.

Can’t get enough Morningwood? You’re in luck – they’re on Letterman tonight. And they don’t even have an album to promote yet. They’re still in the studio. Hurry the hell up, guys.

External Music, Rock, Rock Babes, Seen Your Video, Videos

Hills Rolling : Something Delicious

September 25, 2008 / Captain Capm

Trey McGriff is Hills Rolling, and on his second album under the moniker he has not only made one of the most compact releases of the year (nine tracks at 27 minutes), but also one of the most enjoyable. Opening track “I Wake Up” instantly reminds one of a great old Lou Reed tune, with its two-chord verse structure before melting down into a tasty, beautiful bridge. “Need It” is all retro and fuzzed-out with its garage band riffage – a new dose of Nuggets for the new generation. “Nothing Like Good Times” treads into Teenage Fanclub territory with its pretty acoustic guitars and lyrical pursuits. “Aditude” is electric, danceable, and just plain good rocking fun. McGriff is never flashy or tries anything he can’t. This is fun, smart pop that anyone can enjoy. Certainly one of the best DIY indie releases to come around in a while. Snap it up now, please. (Whiskey Child Records)

Hills Rolling MySpace page

CD Reviews, External Music, Pop, Rock

Steal This Song: Medeski, Martin & Wood, “Free Go Lily”

September 20, 2008 / David Medsker

It’s embarrassing to admit this as the senior editor and supposed leader of Bullz-Eye’s music section, but this is the first song by Medeski, Martin and Wood that I have ever heard. You’d think that I would have accidentally heard one by now – and who knows, maybe I have – but once you take a position like this, and the publicist emails start coming in, it’s very easy to lose track of what you should be listening to, as opposed to what you are listening to. Heck, I still haven’t listened to Supergrass’ new album, and I love Supergrass. Right now, I have to focus on the new Jack’s Mannequin to get a review ready for next week, and man, am I disappointed with it so far. So sterile, and way too whiny. But that’s another story for another day.

So a rep asks if we’d post a new track from Medeski, Martin and Wood, and I say “Hell yes,” because it’s about time I heard something from them. They were lumped in with the HORDE tribe early in their career, and since I don’t listen to many (ahem, any) of those bands, I just tended to avoid them. This song, “Free Go Lily,” though, is pretty fun, like something Vince Guaraldi would come up with while jamming with some friends and a case of scotch. The band’s new album, Radiolarians I, hits shelves September 30. I, for one, am looking forward to hearing more.

Medeski, Martin & Wood – Free Go Lily

Downloads, External Music, Jazz, Rock, Songs

The Wanteds: Failure Looks So Good

September 19, 2008 / Jeff Giles

Emo has become so pervasive (and so mall-friendly) that it’s developed a bad rap over the last five years or so, but anyone who weathered the bored detachment and smirking irony of the ‘90s could tell you that a little impassioned screaming isn’t such a bad thing once in a while. The best of the emo bands understand what Springsteen always has: Even if rock & roll can’t really save your life, sometimes it really feels like it can, and that’s enough to get you through a few dark nights of the soul. Tommy Harrington, frontman for Portland’s Wanteds, gets it, and even if he isn’t the greatest singer in the world – or whichever city block he happens to be standing on at any given moment – and his songwriting isn’t always up to par, he’s got the blood-curdling intensity thing down pat, and that – along with the band’s penchant for playing loud, live, and just long enough to keep from wearing out its welcome – rescues Failure Looks So Good from the Vans rock ash heap. Harrington says the record makes him feel the way he did when he heard Appetite for Destruction and Nevermind, which is a hell of a lot more than it’ll do for you, but you can’t fault him for his chutzpah, and he’s got the right idea. Lord only knows what he’ll write about if Harrington ever finds what he’s looking for, but in the meantime, this is a record well worth turning up. (Ultra Mookie 2008)

The Wanteds MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock