CD by Lightspeed Champion. Domino Recording. It is a surprise to initially hear Lightspeed Champion’s debut, Falling Off The Lavender Bridge, especially for those who may be familiar with the UK singer/songwriter (whose real name is Devonte Hynes) from his former band, The Test Icicles, whose jagged thrash punk was near-chaotic. Then again, this recording […]
Music
Coverage of the music scene in Humboldt County with upcoming shows from locals and out-of-town acts, reviews, interviews and more.
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Universal
His name is Tilmann Otto, but he’s best known as Gentleman , the No. 1 reggae performer in Germany. He was born and raised in Cologne, the cultural center of the Rhineland — not exactly a place that comes to mind in connection with reggae. "There’s a big scene there," says Gentleman, who is in […]
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Tim Catlin
Live performance Feb. 2 at the San Francisco Arts Institute Tim Catlin’s CD Radio Ghosts, released last year, doesn’t make for good driving music. Unless the listener is Roman Polanski or David Lynch sizing it up as soundtrack material, this is music best reserved for the live experience. Devoid of any ascertainable melodies, Catlin’s work […]
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In the Future
CD by Black Mountain. Jagjaguwar Records. Three years ago Black Mountain’s eponymous debut crashed onto the indie scene and immediately captivated both press and fans. Their quick success secured them an opening spot for Coldplay and landed them on the soundtrack for Spider-Man 3. For any band rising to such a level from virtual obscurity, […]
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Swan Lake
Ballet performance by Saint-Petersburg State Academic Theatre Feb. 17 at the Arkley Center for the Performing Arts Those of you who went to the Arkley Center for the Performing Arts on Feb. 17 to see Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet, Swan Lake, might have failed to notice that while you were watching the graceful drama unfold […]
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The Nightfeeders
CD by Nudity. Discourage Records. Chances are that if you’ve been grooving to the likes of Acid Mothers Temple, Earthless and Wooden Shjips, or taking advantage of the recent slew of psych/space rock reissues, then Nudity is more of what you’re looking for. The influences are easy to spot, and as the band will tell […]
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Unpredictable Individual
CD by Garth Vader. January 2008 saw the release of Mr. Garth "Culti"-Vader’s second album Unpredictable Individual. Rebellious and independent, the album is the evolved expression of a talented hip hop artist firmly centered in the place he lives. Garth represents California, specifically Humboldt, and of course the roughneck weed-growing culture, in more than 20 […]
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Del McCoury Band
Live Feb. 8 at the Van Duzer Theater If a creek could gather itself together into human form and walk onto a stage to pour forth its voice it would sound like the Del McCoury Band. There, the clear, crisp water pattering over hard rocks, merry and relentless as Rob McCoury’s banjo headed pellmell toward […]
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Bandemonium!
We’ll start by forgiving the fact that the Mardi Gras/Carnaval Blow-Out and Dance Extravaganza coming up this weekend is on a Saturday, even though Mardi is French for Tuesday. Who wants to (or has time to) party on a Tuesday, what with work and all, even if it is Fat Tuesday? And we’ll overlook the […]
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In Pursuit of Happiness
He’s the master of the psychedelic funk he branded funkadelic, the spacey Captain of the Mothership. With James gone, you could say George Clinton is the funkiest man on Earth. The music he made with various iterations of his bands Parliament and Funkadelic was sampled left, right and sideways to become the basis of hip […]
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Book by Sherman Alexie. Little, Brown Young Readers A diary is kept, usually in secret, as a means of disclosing one’s true feelings. To publish a diary during one’s lifetime is simply social suicide. Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,however,is meant to portray the fictitious observations and drawings of a boy, […]
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EMC
Live Jan. 27 at the Red Fox Tavern. Last week offered a stunning collection of hip hop shows — more touring legends than anyone could possibly see in seven days. The competition for fan dollars was stiff and many folks had to choose between conscious star Mr. Lif, Masta Ace’s new supergroup EMC and LA […]