August 27, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
School Of Seven Bells – Dust Devil School of Seven Bells – “Dust Devil” Incorporating the influence of better early-90s shoegaze acts like My Bloody Valentine and the Cocteau Twins, this trio (made up of former Dallasite/ex-Secret Machines member Ben Curtis and twin sisters Claudia and Alejandra Deheza) recently released their latest record, Disconnect from… Read more »
August 26, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
R.E.M. – Fall On Me R.E.M. – “Fall On Me” From their fourth album Life’s Rich Pageant, this song expresses so much of the sound that made R.E.M. legendary: Peter Buck’s ringing guitar, Michael Stipe’s cryptic lyrics, and Mike Mills’ fantastic background vocals. Stipe sings references to acid rain, Galileo, and the leaning tower of… Read more »
August 25, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Josh Ritter – “The Curse” This song, about the love between an archaeologist and her mummy, was the song that broke Josh Ritter out of a writing slump. After his last record, he said in an interview, he was out of ideas, until this story-song hit him in the middle of the night and eventually… Read more »
August 24, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Beck – “Lost Cause” After attaining critical acclaim and commercial success with his breakout Mellow Gold and the followup Odelay, Beck took a left turn, beginning with 1998’s Mutations and into 2000’s Prince-influenced Midnite Vultures. On Sea Change, however, heartbreak stopped him dead in his tracks, as his breakup from longtime girlfriend Leigh Limon inspired… Read more »
August 23, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Deer Tick – “Twenty Miles” This band, from Providence, Rhode Island, is mainly built around the vocals of John McCauley, who incorporates country and rock influences into his writing and sound. After Rolling Stone proclaimed their second record Born on Flag Day the “Country-Rock breakthrough of the year”, they joined tours with Neko Case and… Read more »
August 20, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Crash Test Dummies – And It’s Beautiful Crash Test Dummies – “And It’s Beautiful” The upside to having a monster hit is that you gain a new audience that you can continue to impress. Though the spotlight has gone elsewhere since their single “Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm”, from 1993’s God Shuffled His Feet, Brad Roberts… Read more »
August 19, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Mavis Staples – You Are Not Alone Mavis Staples (with Jeff Tweedy) – “You Are Not Alone” Though the Wilco frontman approached the legendary voice of The Staple Singers about working together in 2007, it took them nearly three years to make it happen. Tweedy brought seven songs to the studio, writing three more during… Read more »
August 18, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
The Swell Season – “Low Rising” Most artists try to get their music into movies as a marketing tool, rather than trying to actually star in the movie themselves. Though he had a small part in 1991’s The Commitments, Glen Hansard’s role in the indie breakout Once turned out to be a career changer, as he won… Read more »
August 16, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Citizen Cope – “I Couldn’t Explain Why” Clarence Greenwood built his career as Citizen Cope the hard way, surviving label shuffling and building a loyal audience through relentless touring. This song, from his latest self-released record The Rainwater LP, showcases the sound that he has made his own: a combination of acoustic guitars, live breakbeat-style… Read more »
August 13, 2010 by Jeff Giddens
Whiskeytown – Don’t Be Sad Whiskeytown – “Don’t Be Sad” This song, from 2001’s critically acclaimed Pneumonia, was released after the band had broken up. Produced by Ethan Johns (Counting Crows, Ray Lamontagne, Kings of Leon), this swan song is considered by many to be the finest example of Ryan Adams’ early songwriting and his… Read more »
