It might be regarded as an inconvenient truth but, looking at the state of modern rock, it's hard not to notice that songwriting and the themes employed have grown a little stale. Since Nirvana broke into the mainstream twenty years ago, it has become common to hear bands stick safely within pop forms (verse-chorus-verse indeed) but tease listeners by daringly adding a few offbeat or underground proclivities to twist their sound and make it attractive to proudly counterculture-identified types. This...

As fashionably jaded as some music fans and critics are prone to being in the new millennium, some things are undeniable. Some sounds just have that THING which you'll feel from the first beat of the first song; it'll hit you and move you. That sound can compel you to do something – either make you swing with it, make you dance, just bob your head in appreciation or want to get intimate with the one you love – or...

After having a sour taste left in my mouth by the remastered reissue of Ozzy Osbourne's stellar solo debut, Blizzard Of Ozz, it was with trepidation that I put the remastered edition of Diary Of A Madman into my Discman to review it. I'd had my world rocked by the reissue of Ozz alright, but not in all the right ways; there were many remixed/remastered successes on that album, but the few missteps made were frustrating enough that they threatened...

Every two years when Black Lips re-surface, each new recording is slightly more polished than the last and each manages to sound as though it cost nothing make. Sometimes it costs a lot to sound cheap and, with in-demand producer Mark Ronson at the helm of their new opus, the trashy garage sound synonymous with the Lips was in question. However the result is perfect with Ronson’s diverse musical taste fueling the integrity of their signature sound. 

Arabia Mountain’s subject...

'Ey youse,Awright, I'm runnin' late today (sue me) so I'll keep this short so ya can make wit' the thievin'. Yer gonna thank me though – ya filthy junkies youse – cause I got some good, good shit this week! Check it out – I scored the new Raekwan tune! Pilfered it right out from unda his nose! Somebody hadda do it – he's been suckin' for a coupla years – but this new tune's solid man, total double live...

On July 12th, 2011 Chicago's The Cool Kids will release their long-awaited full-length album, When Fish Ride Bicycles on Green Label Sound. When Fish Ride Bicycles features 11 brand new songs and finds Mikey Rocks and Chuck Inglish working with the likes of Ghostface Killah of the Wu Tang Clan, Bun B, Mayer Hawthorne, Asher Roth, Travis Barker and more. Recording began with Pharrell Williams at Miami's South Beach Studios in December 2010 resulting in Williams' production of album closer...

When Rammstein stormed The Oracle Arena in Oakland on May 18, 2011, photographer Raymond Ahner was there to catch all the fire and brimstone-breathing, coal mining, Germanic ecstasy of the event. Click here to see the view his camera lens got – it's not to be missed.Artist:www.rammstein.com/ www.myspace.com/rammstein www.facebook.com/Rammsteinwww.twitter.com/#!/latestrammsteinPhotos:Raymond Ahner's photo essay of Rammstein's show at Oracle Arena, May 18, 2011 Albums:Most of Rammstein's catalogue remains in print and...

Artist: Black Lips Album: Arabia Mountain Label: Vice Records Every two years when Black Lips re-surface, each new recording is slightly more polished than the last, each managing to sound as though it cost nothing make. Sometimes it costs a lot to sound cheap, and with in-demand producer Mark Ronson helming their new opus, the trashy garage sound synonymous with the Lips was in question. However the result is perfect with Ronson’s diverse musical taste fueling the integrity of their...

Some records just seem to be naturally predisposed to coming on strong at their start and leaving listeners to feel a little cheap and dirty at the end. That isn't always a bad thing – there are occasions when a little light BDSM is just what the doctor ordered to turn a crooked frown upside down – it's just not a common topic that comes up during polite dinner conversation. That unspoken, pleasurable torment is the thing that will make...

My Morning Jacket records have always been "creepers" for me; meaning that they take a while to "sink in" and be fully appreciated. This is not a complaint as I thoroughly enjoy being surprised by what I missed in earlier listens and further enjoy the moment of epiphany where the album suddenly emerges. This "creeper" characteristic has become even more prominent in recent years as the band has strayed far away from the mellow, reverb-heavy sound of their earlier work...