Rapper Common is one of hip-hop’s most contradictory figures and his new album, “Finding Forever,” does little to set the record straight. The disc has him battling himself, dueling with what he knows will sell versus his artist’s instincts. Continue reading
For their debut album, New York rock quartet Interpol created a Joy Division-inspired songwriting template that rivaled the music of their mentors. Five years later, the band continues to rely on the same mold for its new album, but its latest reproductions no longer live up to its exhilarating-ly gloomy predecessors. Continue reading
With summer ending, the media’s 40th anniversary retrospectives on the Summer of Love have nearly run their course. Before it’s over, a new documentary — released on DVD — aims to reawaken the public’s consciousness to an ’60s psychedelic-rock talent whose often overlooked in these remembrances. Continue reading
Soundbytes Music Column 