I posit that as a music journalist, you aren’t working these days unless you are writing about the proliferation of Pop-Punk bands. For this music journalist, it proves that I am not immune to the generation gap; rather a victim of it. My generation’s vantage point saw Punk as fringe and never intended for mass…
Category: REVIEWS
CD and DVD reviews
RANDOM STABBINGS & ARTLESS CRITIQUE, MAY 2009
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Sweet, Action: The Sweet Anthology (Shout Factory Records) With one purchase you can become a true 70s-arena-rock know-it-all instead of some underwear-fouling young poseur looking for attention from your hopelessly distracted parents. Riding a rail between prog and glam at the height of their fame, Sweet (or “The Sweet” if you have nothing…
Jean-Pierre Simons, Sentimentally…To Africa
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The multi-cultural and multi-dimensional artist known as Jean-Pierre Simons brings us one diverse piece of work. The title track “Sentimentally…To Africa” brings it all back to Simons’ roots as a young man growing up in Cameroon. He says during the song, “Everything is bringing me back to Africa” and you really feel his…
Beyond From Within, Beyond From Within
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The record industry has without a doubt become an industry in flux. The standard formula for making a record, marketing that product and reaping the benefits of its sale still apply, it’s just that these days it isn’t the only formula out there. Steve Andrews, the one-man entity behind Pennsylvania’s Beyond From Within, is testament…
Kicksville, The Singles – Season 1
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Welcome to Kicksville. Your tour will last roughly an hour and will consist of an episodic journey into a genre-bending society. Before diving into Kicksville’s The Singles — Season 1, take a look at the art inside the CD booklet. Each track has a corresponding cover by illustrator Andy Ewen, with the recurring themes of…
RANDOM STABBINGS & ARTLESS CRITIQUE, APRIL 2009
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Bell X1, Blue Lights on the Runway (Yep Roc Records) You know you’re in for a flurry of dishwasher-safe accountant-rock when an album’s first single (“The Great Defector”) uses Doors organ as its major weapon, but this Irish crew do have bigger plans than stealing a few fans away from Broken Social Scene. Note that…
