Twin Peaks Strive for Rock and Roll Glory at Wonder Ballroom in Portland, OR (SHOW REVIEW)
Rock and roll is an increasingly rare commodity these days. One of the few bands taking a tried and true approach to guitar rock and actually drawing crowds is Twin Peaks. In September, the Chicago band released their fourth studio album Lookout Low, and on Friday, November 8th they hit Portland, Oregon’s Wonder Ballroom in […]
I Was There When: Steve Miller Band, Boz Scaggs & James Cotton Offered A Course in The Blues – Springfield, MA 1974
An equal mix of curiosity and anticipation compelled me to go see Steve Miller this early summer day at the Springfield Civic Center, Springfield, MA, USA on May 10, 1974. And it’s safe to say the greatest contributing factors were the presence on the bill of Boz Scaggs and James Cotton. I knew full well that […]
Grateful Dead: Dave’s Picks Volume 31: Uptown Theatre, Chicago, IL. 12/3/79 (ALBUM REVIEW)
Dave’s Picks Volume 31 continues the unofficial campaign to to nurture the reputation of the late Brent Mydland. Not that the keyboardist/vocalist/songwriter needs his honor restored; in his essay within the booklet inside this three-CD package, chief archivist David Lemieux goes to great lengths to rightly describe how the late keyboardist/vocalist/composer reignited the chemistry within […]
John Cale, The Black Angels, Beak and More Blow Minds on Day 3 of LEVITATION (FESTIVAL RECAP)
Saturday evening’s LEVITATION lineup was the centerpiece of the festival. The Black Angels performed with their idol, John Cale. A founding member of The Velvet Underground, Cale’s song, “The Black Angel’s Death Song” is the inspiration for the local neo-psych rock heroes’ moniker. The band was perhaps more excited about finally booking Cale for the […]
Flaming Lips, Russian Circles, Black Mountain Top Day 2 of LEVITATION in Austin (FESTIVAL RECAP)
As Austin psych rock festival LEVITATION rolled into day two of the venue-based event, more fans, bigger acts and more cold weather contributed to an impressive array of performances on Friday, November 8th. The Flaming Lips were one of those marquee artists who appeared on the Stubb’s BBQ stage following sets by Mercury Rev and […]
Tsunami Bomb Deliver Strong Messages Through Big Rock Sound With ‘The Spine that Binds’ (ALBUM REVIEW)
When you see that a band is releasing its first new album in 15 years, you probably have a lot of questions. What has the band been up to in all that time? Why did it take so long to put out a new album? Those are valid questions of course. However, when you hear […]
Power Trip, Kikagaku Moyo, JJUUJJUU, Jonathan Bree, Minami Deutsch Top Day One of LEVITATION (FESTIVAL RECAP)
The 11th edition of LEVITATION, the psych rock music festival launched by The Black Angels and The Reverberation Appreciation Society from Austin, Texas in 2008, kicked off a full weekend of shows on Thursday, November 7th. Sold-out sets by Power Trip, Japan’s Kikagaku Moyo and Minami Deutsch plus an eye-opening slot by Jonathan Bree made […]
Happy 70th Birthday Bonnie Raitt (Watch Live PBS Soundstage ’74)
‘Greener Grass’ Is A Neon-Saturated Suburban Fever Dream (FILM REVIEW)
If you’re looking for a Fellini-like take on American suburbia, Greener Grass is for you
‘Sessions’ Captures Pond’s Evolution in the Live Setting (ALBUM REVIEW)
Since forming in 2008, the Australian psych-rock collective known as Pond has had a revolving cast of musicians and shares quite a few members with Tame Impala. In addition to multi-instrumentalist Jay Watson playing full time for both bands, Kevin Parker used to be the drummer for Pond and continues to produce their albums. Pond […]