The Avett Brothers have a lot of explaining to do. After all, the band has spent the majority of its career building a fan base almost solely on touring, releasing albums independently (more like self-released, actually), and garnering little airplay on the radio. Then, the boys suddenly jump ship to Columbia, record with Rick Rubin of all people, and decide to release an album almost devoid of the bluegrass roots that fans have come to know and love. This is...

Sometimes, after so many years gone and creative turns made, it becomes nearly impossible to discern where exactly a musician began his creative arc. In some cases, listeners simply come to expect a clean artistic slate upon the announcement of another album from some musicians; with a history of change already on the books, the assumption that the artist in question might repeat himself is a sucker bet. The game is going to change and is going to do it...

Ah, what a year 2009 was for music. By all accounts, the climate was a delicate one as the music industry sought to streamline itself in accommodation of a new, digital generation which meant re-tooling services, re-thinking promotional strategies and working out the finer points of how a multi-million-dollar endeavor was going to sustain itself. In some circles, it was a harrowing time that called for the making of hard decisions but, if looking at the selection of great albums...

It's hard to believe that it's been nineteen years since NoFX released The P.M.R.C. Can Suck On This (the second time) and, even at that, who could have known what it would lead to? That six-song 7” (which boasted a photo collage of Tammy Fay Bakker pegging then-husband and televangelist Jim Bakker on the cover of the first pressing) was poorly recorded, hastily assembled and modestly noticed, but it was also the first notice issued by a record label that...

Artist:Fat Wreck Chords label site Fat Wreck Chords unofficial wiki Downloads:Against Me – "You Look Like I Need A Drink" – (demo) later re-recorded for Against Me! as the Eternal Cowboy Anti-Flag – "Turncoat" – The Terror State Descendents – "'Merican" – Cool To Be You NoFX – "It's My Job To Keep Punk Rock Elite" – (demo) later re-recorded for War On Errorism Rise Against – "Heaven Knows" – Revolutions Per Minute The Dickies...

Those moments when a band realizes its potential are the ones that seem to make everything worthwhile aren't they? When a band first gets noticed, it's usually for a reason – be it because of talent or timing – but every fan knows (or hopes) that, one day, the dings and imperfections in that early sound will get hammered out. After that, the band will eventually achieve a sort of serene moment where they produce music that speaks to those...

Recently, Weezer released their seventh studio album Raditude, which could have been more aptly titled “The Curious Case of Rivers Cuomo.” As bands get older, they mature; either setting or bucking trends with original wordplay and instrumentals. Cuomo and his band, however, seem to be tripping backwards in the sound-time continuum. Just like Brad Pitt, Weezer seems to get younger sounding every day. And their music is feeling the growing pains. Their debut release made them underground rock darlings. Songs...

There's a certain satisfaction to be had when, without really having to work hard to look for it, things just go right. Especially in the realm of pop music, such a charmed experience doesn't always happen easily; on any given day, any band can regale audiences with stories of the tormenting and frustrating events that accompanied or surrounded the creation of their most recent album. Things do not often just fall into place and there can be some hard, nerve-wracking...

The eternal tragedy of rock history is just how little mention The Stranglers get in any tome that talks about the punk and rock music which crashed out of the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. Bands like the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Buzzcocks always get ample examination and there's no arguing the validity of those bands' contributions but (with the exception of The Clash maybe), in listening to them,  it's easy to conclude that a lot of...

It's incredible how much musical values can change depending on what genre a band gets classed under. Obviously retro styling is almost universally abhorred in pop unless such trappings are used to instill a sense of irony, while rock tends to revere them. In punk, whenever a band looks back to either check where their motion is headed or pull a little more than their share of old school information to the forefront, the reception can be very touch and...