Archive for June, 2013

Vinyl

Something Else! sneak peek: Jon Oliva, “Father of Time” from Raise the Curtain (2013)

Jon Oliva promised that his upcoming solo album, which will also feature the last unused music written by his brother and Savatage co-founder Criss Oliva, would be something completely different You May Also Like: How Savatage’s ‘Streets: A Rock Opera’ Provided a Life-Changing Moment

Vinyl

Beto Hale, featuring Tony Levin – Rebirth (2013)

It would be easy enough to pigeonhole Beto Hale’s new album as Beatlesque. After all, it includes work from two former Fab collaborators, including bassist Tony Levin. But Rebirth distinguishes itself from that easy comparison You May Also Like: No related posts.

Vinyl

‘What Black Sabbath does is a lost art’: How Rick Rubin convinced a band to rediscover itself

Producer Rick Rubin recognized something about Black Sabbath. It wasn’t just that none of their inheritors make records like the band’s earliest triumphs anymore. Even the co-founding members themselves hadn’t lately. You May Also Like: Why Black Sabbath Went Out on a High Note With ’13’ Why Black Sabbath’s TonyRead More

Vinyl

Houndmouth – From the Hills Below the City (2013)

This isn’t about singles, isn’t about a moment in time — a passing thought. No, Houndmouth’s From the Hills Below the City is an experience, expressed through the currency of relationships not encounters, constructed as a narrative. You May Also Like: Greg Brown’s ‘In the Hills of California’ Finally ReproducedRead More

Vinyl

Please don’t call Cream’s Ginger Baker a rock drummer: ‘I’m a musician who plays music’

“Where did they get the rock drummer bit from?” Ginger Baker asks, both dismissively and rhetorically.

Steely Dan Sunday, "Book of Liars [Live]" (1995)

Steely Dan Sunday, “Book of Liars [Live]” (1995)

At first, Steely Dan’s inclusion of a Walter Becker solo track might seem like an unusual choice – but not really.

Best of May 2013: The Band, Deep Purple, the Beatles, Toto, Steve Hackett/Ray Wilson, John Frusciante

Best of May 2013: The Band, Deep Purple, the Beatles, Toto, Steve Hackett/Ray Wilson, John Frusciante

May was dominated by both the Band and the Beatles — two titans of the 1960s whose legacies continue to intrigue and delight successive generations of music aficionados. You May Also Like: No related posts.

Vinyl

The Nth Power, “Spirits” from the Basic Minimum Skills Test EP (2013): One Track Mind

Like The Endangered around this time last year, I came across a EP from a band just getting off the ground that stands out from the current crop of emerging acts You May Also Like: Mike Dillon & Punkadelick – ‘Inflorescence’ (2023)

Vinyl

George Benson – Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole (2013)

George Benson’s chart successes in the 1970s and ’80s as a breezy R&B crooner have largely obscured his initial promise as a boss jazz guitarist with a intelligent, liquid tone — an heir to Wes Montgomery’s throne. You May Also Like: Harry Benson – ‘Paul’ (2022): Books Paula Cole –Read More

Vinyl

Something Else! sneak peek: Black Water Rising, “Show No Mercy” from Pissed and Driven (2013)

Black Water Rising’s self-titled debut album was one of my favorites of 2009, and one of the best pure hard rock records that I’d heard in a long time at that point. You May Also Like: How Black Sabbath’s Self-Titled Debut Invented a New Genre of Music Why Black SabbathRead More