Hungarian journalist/novelist Arthur Koestler once said that the real moment of truth or “the sudden emergence of a new insight, is an act of intuition. Such intuitions give the appearance of miraculous flushes, or short-circuits of reasoning.” Such an impartial explanation of moments and events which prove to have remarkable significance is wildly romantic and attractive and, now in 2011, Jesse “Boots Electric” Hughes has reached his moment of truth with the release of Honkey Kong – the singer's first...

"You can yell out "Afghani Sands," we just won't be able to play it!" Give me the ten-dollar punk show any day. Yes I know, you prefer the production value, the lights and the pyrotechnics of a world class arena concert, but to experience a sweaty loud punk band in a sweaty loud bar, well the idea itself makes me giddy with anticipation. The Great Scott is quickly becoming my favorite music venue (not that I'm incredibly experienced with the...

How does a fantastic but small band try to get big in a hurry and fill its new-found stature? That's precisely the question Slow Club tries to answer on Paradise, their sophomore full-length. When Yeah So, Slow Club's debut LP, came out two years ago (last year in the US), it's likely that no one was more shocked than the band itself as a series of licensing deals got them a foothold in several foreign markets (in Canada, “When I...

The history of unlikely combinations is a lengthy and celebrated one for those with unusual tastes (peanut butter and cucumber, chocolate ice cream with lemon syrup on top and pizza with pepperoni, italian sausage and green olives are personal favorites), but few more bizarre and potentially disastrous musical combinations spring to mind than Lou Reed collaborating with Metallica. Seriously – the possibility of the premier auteur of such dry-eyed emotionally distant ballads as “Perfect Day,” “Walk On The Wild...

If any artist has earned the right to name a record Covering Ground, Chuck Ragan is deserving of that honor, with hundreds of thousands of miles covered over nearly the last two decades. Set for release on September 13th, Covering Ground is singer/songwriter Chuck Ragan’s third full-length studio record, though he has released seemingly countless singles, 7-inches, live records, collaborative splits, and appeared on numerous compilations. Ragan will be covering ground this Fall in support of the record with tour...