Music In Review

The term “lo-fi” has often been used of late as a loose tag, category or reference to a scene within the independent music scene. Even though bands such as Guided By Voices, Pavement and Sebadoh became the poster children for the term (among others), it goes back to a special D.I.Y. tradition in ’50s R&B/rock […]

When country singer/songwriter Dwight Yoakam arrived in Nashville in the late ’70s, he was shunned by the music industry for being too “honky tonk” or “hillbilly” (a tag that Yoakam embraced, titling one of his albums Hillbilly Deluxe). Yoakam subsequently headed to Los Angeles, closer to the Bakersfield side of country. Labeled an outsider, Yoakam […]

Was there a better way to end a day of sun, oysters and beer? Doubtful. Humboldtians lucky enough to have snagged tickets packed the Arcata Theatre Lounge for a sold out, post-Oyster festival double-bill featuring the all-female Led Zeppelin tribute band Zepparella and local ’80s metal killers Magnum. One thing was for sure: Eardrums would […]

Fresh from the breakup of the San Francisco-based pop band The Nerves, whose song “Hanging on the Telephone” would later become a hit by Blondie in 1978, singer/songwriter Peter Case drifted south to Los Angeles and its region’s burgeoning D.I.Y. music scene. Case formed The Plimsouls, named after the British term for “sneakers,” in 1979 […]

New York-based singer/songwriter Nina Nastasia released a steady stream of intimate folk-based recordings starting with her 2000 self-released debut, Dogs, slowly drawing in a growing number of admirers, most notably legendary British deejay John Peel and musician/engineer Steve Albini. The Shellac guitarist/vocalist/engineer has “recorded” every one of Nastasia’s albums, including her superb sixth full-length release, […]

The Band had a unique way of blending disparate forms of American music, including horn arrangements that distilled equal parts orchestral and New Orleans marching band (largely due to instrumentalist Garth Hudson’s contributions). Later, Kurt Wagner’s Lambchop, Neutral Milk Hotel and Vic Chesnutt skewed musical categories even further with their own eccentric presentations of Americana. […]

The marriage of ’60s garage, pop and girl groups has roots in the pre-punk street glam of The New York Dolls, with The Ramones, Blondie and Mink DeVille following soon thereafter — each in their own unique style. London’s Thee Headcoatees, featuring Holly Golightly, Memphis’ The Hellcats, Barbara Manning’s San Francisco Seals and Boston’s Mr. […]

The Canadian-based band The New Pornographers, led by songwriters A.C. Newman and Dan Bejar, staked its reputation on delivering smart pop songs. From their 2000 debut, Mass Romantic, the talented core group, including vocalist/songwriter Neko Case, has remained intact. They’ve enlarged the troupe, adding guitarist Todd Fancey and Newman’s niece, Kathryn Calder, on vocals and keyboards […]

Listening to Distant Relatives, it’s easy to imagine Damian Marley and Nas being related — they perform as though they’ve spent a lifetime playing together. No wonder. They’re both internationally successful and respected artists who celebrate their African heritage, especially on this latest effort. Damian Marley, of course, is also known for being Bob Marley’s […]

The tradition of siblings in rock and pop often doesn’t bode well. Bad blood has risen from the Everly Brothers to Ray and Dave Davies of The Kinks to The Black Crowes’ Robinson brothers. To have two set of brothers in a single band is a bit over-the-top. However with the Brooklyn-based The National, the […]

British singer/songwriter Holly Golightly is a miner of songs. Often an admirer of lost, obscure melodies, she likes to leave the dirt and dust on instead of polishing them off. Welcome to Medicine County, Golightly’s mythical, gothic landscape, located somewhere in the U.S. South. This is Golightly’s third record with “The Brokeoffs,” which is essentially […]

Mere days after Icelandic musician Jónsi and his band departed for their North American tour to support the album Go, the Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted. With a scream Eyjafjallajökull (made up of three Icelandic words: Eyja for island, Fjalla for mountain, and Jökull for glacier) bellowed ash and soot darkening the sky and clouding most of […]