It may come as a surprise for fans to learn just how little most musicians tend to have with their back catalogue and the reissuing of it. Greatest hits packages, for example, are often one of the endeavors with the smallest amount of artist involvement; usually the stop-gap measure of choice for record labels to reinsert an artist on new release racks, greatest hits and best-of comps simply collect the songs everyone knows and occasionally tuck in a few bits...
Merry Christmas Junkie! Oh wait – i'ssnot Christmas yet, izzit? Naw, it jus' feels'at way cuz, now dat Halloween's ova, dat's where da music bizness is lookin' next. An' I already got a coupla Christmas songs'at I found'is week! Kin you believe it? Ah well, it's weird, but all'at means izza world is gonna tip a little on its axis, anna buncha extra stuff is gonna start fallin' offa trucks. Yessir, it's comin' up onna most wonderful time o' da...
At this point, Anthrax has been bringing the noise for thirty years now and, because the band has never really stopped, one would think they might begin to slow down. Running hard can take its toll over time – voices get raspy and hands may grow sore – but guitarists Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano, drummer Charlie Benante, bassist Frank Bello and singer Joey Belladonna have found a new way to stay tight and rock hard every night: by touring...
Few bands embrace and convey the rock ‘n’ roll spirit like Deer Tick. They have also managed to include some introspection to round things out a bit. On their fourth album Divine Providence, the required ingredients are all still there; beer, irreverence and a bit of debauchery – check, check and check. But there’s also a bit more. With a wonderfully gravelly voice, singer John McCauley takes listeners through his days as a touring musician, with all the booze and...
In the Nineties, if you knew who Melt Banana was you were in the minority and were probably a small group of underground hardcore enthusiasts or on a Slap a Ham Records 7” mailing list. Melt Banana has managed to survive the years and gain a wider audience. Maybe because of their stylish spazz and experimentation in hardcore, the band has outlived the legion of tough-guy hardcore bands that refused to go beyond what was expected of them. Now, almost...
It’s been over forty years since the acid wave swept through music and gave birth to a genre dependant on mind-altering drugs and extended jam sessions. Unlike ska and swing, psychedelic rock hasn’t had a resurgence…but why not? With driving guitars which are, by turns, loud and melodic along with bold and haunting vocals, this is music with a fan base which could totally belong in the mainstream. Black Angels are proudly of the psychedelic genre. Epic and dark and mysterious,...
After almost forty years as one of the most influential Heavy Metal bands of all time, the mighty Judas Priest announced earlier this year that their "Epitaph" tour would be their last and, after witnessing the tour's stop at the Sleep Train Pavilion last week, I can honestly say that the band will be going out on the same level that they have been on since day one – on top. For this farewell tour, Judas Priest will be playing...
Some artists can elicit a very strong reaction from listeners, even after just a few bars. When Neil Young appears on the radio, for example, one camp of listeners embraces his non-traditional style and finds comfort in his elaborate vocal intensity while others race to turn the station as quickly as they can and by any means necessary. I imagine Jolie Holland has a very similar polarizing effect. With her fifth studio album, Pint of Blood, Holland stays true to...
After thirty-five years and a path marked by both line-up and label changes, it could never be said that The Damned don't still cut a bedeviled image on stage. Currently backed by longtime, on-again-off-again guitarist Captain Sensible, keyboardist Monty Oxy Moron, bassist Stu West and drummer Pinch, Damned singer Dave Vanian took the stage at Slim's in San Francisco on October 29, 2011 and showed concertgoers how gothic a punk band can be. Now celebrating their thirty-fifth anniversary, The Damned...
The mixture of music on Alesana's fourth LP (first for punk stalwarts Epitaph), A Place Where The Sun Is Silent, is unlike that of any one band I’ve ever listened to before. By that I can say that Alesana sounds like a melange of several different styles and influences, all of which come together into a cohesive union – right up until the band overreaches and falls, awkwardly (more on that later). Alesana have been labeled a post-hardcore band and...