Leave it to Enrique Iglesias to channel lust into a dance hit all about f-ing. The Spanish singer just has this impossible-to-pinpoint, irresistible charm that excuses his chauvinistic qualities and makes him radio gold.But at least he knows he’s a pig, and this is the second song where he implores…
New Riders of the Purple Sage are famous for their rambling brand of California country music, which is a lot like the original Southern stuff sans the vocal twang. Lumped in with artists like Dwight Yoakam, Merle Haggard, and Buck Owens, they re-create the collective “Bakersfield sound” of the ’50s…
Bruno Mars sure has a way with the ladies. His song “Just the Way You Are” has become an anthem for females everywhere, as the number one hit implores women (and, well, anyone) to stay true to themselves and not give in to changing for the object of their affection…
Following in the footsteps of Jake E. Lee and Randy Rhoads would seem an unenviable task, but Zakk Wylde proved he was more than up to the challenge, serving as Ozzy Osbourne’s lead guitarist for a two-decade, five-album stretch from 1987 to 2009. Along the way, Wylde formed his own…
I was going to get an “I Hate Social Distortion” tattoo, but I didn’t, for a couple of reasons. First, just about every tattoo artist loves the band, and I didn’t want hepatitis C. Second, I was afraid my T-shirt would cover up the “I Hate” part, and people would…
I can’t imagine it makes Mr. Raymond IV very happy, but Auto-Tune may have saved his career. It’s not as though he were about to disappear off the pop music map or anything, but when you’ve already sold 40-some million albums, any album that doesn’t dominate your genre’s landscape isn’t…
You may think that the days of punk songs sounding just like those of The Ramones are over. Not so. The Qt up a bit, and throw in some surf-y sounds. That sound is packaged for digestion with fast-paced, two-minute songs. The New Hampshire-based band (note the irony: New Hampshire…
There’s a little 80s darkwave goth kid inside all of us, so we were elated to get a serious fix Saturday night at Sanctum, everyone’s favorite local vampire disco. From Q Lazzarus to Concrete Blonde to Janet Jackson, DJs Dan and Noiz.Fkr went way beyond the stereotypical retro darkwave tunes…
Maybe you read Spin magazine’s October feature about how Kings of Leon remain defiantly popular despite the fact that everyone who knows anything about music thinks they suck?Maybe you also recognized the first quote in the piece was from a post on Up On The Sun. The quote has since…
Brian Coughlin, guitarist for local indie pop band Kinch, is famous.After The Thermals, whom Kinch play with Wednesday, November 17 at Rhythm Room, announced they were looking for fans to bring Furbies (those cute/creepy little toys) to shows, Coughlin decided to create a flier for the show based on his…
What’s Selling is now a battle of the best, a local music duel of sorts. Stinkweeds and Zia are going head to head with indie versus hard rock, rap and hip-hop.Which of two record stores had the best compilation of top 10 albums this week?…
Lots of people are eagerly awaiting Michael Jackson’s posthumous record Michael, which will be released December 14.So am I.But after listening to a pre-released single, “Breaking News,” I have my doubts that the recording was untouched after Michael passed away. It sure doesn’t sound like the song is 100 percent…
Oh, Kesha.It’s difficult to decide whether to commend or shake your head in disbelief at the pop singer based on her song, “We R Who We R.” Horrible spelling aside, Kesha actually wrote the number one debut song in response to recent teen suicides among gay youth. She wanted a…
Artist: Casket LifeTitle: Building a Better DisasterBasics: The band’s MySpace page reveals a fun little tidbit about the process of recording Building: “One year ago we recorded a record. It’s a pretty good record called “building a better disaster”. So we’ve been all stoked and chillin and getting pretty drunk and…
You can’t get more classic rock than Tom Petty and there’s no Tom Petty album more classic than 1979’s Damn the Torpedoes, which has just been reissued in a two-disc deluxe edition. The very foundation of a career that would lead Petty and his band, The Heartbreakers, into the Rock…
It’s not often you get to watch ice hockey the same time a rocking band performs, but that’s exactly what you’ll get at the Ice House Tavern this Friday, November 12 when Hung Dynasty takes the stage.The bar’s live music stage is attached to the Arcadia Ice Arena, and appropriately,…
When you think about that special brand of reggae rock popularized by frat boys in the ’90s, bands from Hawaii are not the first to come to mind. Still, Pepper, probably the most famous trio to emerge from Kailua-Kona, has managed to make a name for themselves in the genre…
The Thermals are an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon. But who isn’t an indie band from Portland these days? The novelty-tinged charm that used to go with repping the Rose City has diminished over the years. The Thermals, however, never quite bought into the clichés attached to so many…
If you listen to one of Tim Kasher’s breathless indie-rock ballads and think to yourself “That reminds me a little of Bright Eyes,” well, no shit. Like Bright Eyes chief emoter Coner Oberst, Kasher grew up in Omaha and attended Catholic boys school while honing his musical chops. Later, he…
Though Melanie Safka may have fallen under the mainstream radar some time ago, she and her distinctive vocal style have remained a part of the collective consciousness. She’s best known for “Brand New Key” (a song that every outspoken pre-teen girl should listen to, to feel both independent and unabashed)…
Smashboxx in Old Town has been open for a couple weeks now, and the crowds couldn’t be bigger. We paid a visit to the “sports bar by day/lounge by night” this past weekend and witnessed a throng of the skinny and the stylish both inside the place and outside on…
Poor Lily Allen. Her pop music hiatus is now very understandable, considering how much drama she’s dealing with right now.Here’s a quick recap of the 25-year-old singer’s woes: First she suffered from being somewhat of a one hit wonder in 2007. Then in 2008, she suffered a miscarriage with Ed…
