Ben Folds Five is releasing The Sound Of The Life Of The Mind, the group’s first album of new music in 13 years. The music’s genesis took place via a
It's the last weekend in June, the time of year when Phoenix dwellers rethink their reasons for living so close to the mouth of hell and are looking for the closest place to cool off or at least forget about how hot it is, and because it is Saturday, several dedicated music buffs or at least the die-hard young and hip of downtown Phoenix ventured out to the increasingly beloved Crescent Ballroom to drink, dance and sweat.
In spite of its unfortunate name, Happy Birthday are indeed one of the most talented and overlooked acts on the Sub Pop roster. If you haven’t checked out their excellent dB’s-gone-DIY self-titled debut from 2010, especially if you are a lover of scrappy power pop, you should straightaway. Used copies are going for something like 16 cents on Amazon, so jump on that shit with the quickness while those prices last. And if you find yourself loving the melodies from these Birthday boys from Brattleboro, Vermont, there are two solo project spinoffs of the band well worth checking out. King Tuff is the nom-de-plume of one Kyle Thomas,
Heady sounds generated by a hirsute bunch, The Chris Robinson Brotherhood’s Big Moon Ritual might seem a contrived throwback to a past long, if the music didn’t sound like it came perfectly natural to them.
Best known as the drummer for Def Leppard, Rick Allen recently took an artistic swing in another creative direction. Instead of banging away with a pair of wooden drumsticks, he picked up some lightsticks and in place of sound he gave birth to colorful images, a process that invigorated his passion. With eleven of his pieces now on display at his website, Allen recently took MY ROOTS on a journey through his art-inspired beginnings just prior to the start of Def Leppard’s current tour with Poison and Lita Ford.
