Welcome

“The Governors are an up and coming four piece from New York City that spend many nights polishing their craft in the dark bars and clubs of NYC. Raised on a healthy diet of rock and roll, The Governors recall a time when American rock and roll meant something, before soft shouldered pretty boys gave it a bad name. I do mean rock in the grand sense of the term-sharp melodies, a couple of hooky progressions, and a balanced presentation. Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Various Artists : Lillith Fiar Volume 2

Sadly enough it is the end of the line for the immensely popular and entertaining Lilith Fair. Fortunately because it was so popular the organizers are able to bring you highlights of some of the performances. Volume 2, released in May of this year features 14 tracks from the second summer of shows.

This compilation starts off on a high (no pun intended) note with Sinead O’Connor’s “Fire Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Market Street Compilation

What a novel idea! You have a great jazz club with an assortment of eclectic talent sharing their music with an appreciative audience, so why not record the experience and share it with the world? Well that’s exactly what the management of Café Du Nord in San Francisco have done with Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Music For Our Mother Ocean 3

If you buy one CD this fall, buy this one for many reasons. Obviously, as I will tell you in a minute, the music is great and so is the artist roster, we’ll get to that later.

MOM #3 is the third installment of a compilation project which raises money for the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to preserve the world’s oceans, waves and Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Pokemon Soundtrack

Unless you’ve been living in a very deep cave lately, you’ve undoubtedly have heard of this Pokemon stuff.

If you’re over 18 like yours truly, you probably have no clue whatsoever what the fuss is about. But if you’re a youngin’ you probably DO know what the heck it’s about and you’ll probably love the soundtrack as well. Albeit TEEN popdom, the Pokemon CD is chock full of the newest and Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Punk-O-Rama 4

Summer seems to be the best time for punk rock, don’t ask me why, but it is. Summer also brings concerts and music festivals and this year is no exception. We’ve got Ozzfest, Woodstock ‘99, Lilith and of course the always fun Vans Warped Tour. To celebrate summer and this event, Epitaph records has released another installment in the “Punk-O-Rama” series, this one is volume 4 and it’s jam packed with 25 fast and furious punk rock gems. And the best part is Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Live Review: Governors at the Elbow Room, NYC

Old News

The Governors have definitely impressed me with their performance at the Elbow Room, NYC, on December 30th. I didn’t really know what to expect, being that I wasn’t very familiar with the band before that night. All I can say is that they have true talent- between the mix of the jazzy keyboard, startling drumming, and infectious guitar playing, the Governors know what they’re doing. Lead vocalist Vito Barbiera has the ability to intricately weave his keyboard and Continue reading

Posted in Music History | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Reggae On The Rocks

Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado has got to be one of the coolest venues to see live music ever (even Dave Matthews!) Being a big reggae fan and reggae sunsplash veteran, I would have loved to been at this show and It seems What Are Records does this every year! They’ve got old school ska -rock steady like Justin Hinds and the Dominoes, hard core/rasta icon HR from the legendary Bad Brains teaming up with the drum & bass boys from Sublime. Not to mention African & Haitian artists binding together to bring Jah message to the masses. Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Sex-O-Rama II

Utter crap. This to spare you in case you were truly curious if this was good authentic 70s porn music. It’s not – Not good OR authentic. In fact, records like this make me want to leave the music industry for TV evangelism because it’s less slimy and calculating.

Dig it: They use porn chick Jenna Jameson on the front cover, print a full 9 paragraph biography / resume about her life on the inside, and say not one word about the funk music genre that porn music spawned in its 1970s heyday. Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists : Songs For The Brokenhearted

Basically a collection of love songs and anti-love songs, Brokenhearted is an awesome concept for a compilation. Mostly indie bands, the emotions run from despair to happiness to rage. Teen Heroes provide the jubilent, punk-inspired “Misery”. One Hundred Words for Snow (who, sadly are no longer together) contribute “Closure at Terminal Fourteen”, equally full of brash energy as it is of melody. Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Various Artists – Sony Music 100 Years: Soundtrack For Century

Well, this is my first time reviewing a box set, and what a place to start! This really does cover a full century’s worth of music, from 1890 to the present.

This sucker covers every base imaginable on its’ 26 CDs. The box also includes a 300+ page book with essays galore by the top writters in music journalism, along with awesome photos, annotations and graphics galore, like old LP center-label designs on the discs themselves. If Continue reading

Posted in Music Reviews | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment