If you read classic-rock god Eric Clapton’s new autobiography, “Clapton: The Autobiography,” it won’t take you 238 pages to realize why he’s a guitar player and not a writer. Continue reading
2007 / Book Reviews / Music
Tag Archives: review
Review: Indie-Rock Group Stars Almost Lives Up To Name
Canadian indie-rock combo Stars bowled over many in the hipster nation with their last album. The band’s latest disc builds on this success, demonstrating an expanded musical vision, and comes tantalizingly close to making good on their name. Continue reading
Review: Bruce Springsteen’s Latest Tries To Rekindle Old E Street ‘Magic’
After two albums apart, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are back together again for the Boss’ newest record, “Magic.” The disc emphasizes the factors that likely feed Springsteen’s own conflicted feelings about his much-loved backup group and have sparked their periods of estrangement. Continue reading
Review: PJ Harvey Draws Simplified Song Sketches With ‘White Chalk’
At the same time that PJ Harvey earned a spot as one of the poster children of the ’90s alternative nation, she also established that she’s an artist determined to go her own way. But despite this, it’s still somehow surprising how dramatically she gives herself a musical makeover for her latest disc, “White Chalk.” Continue reading
2007 / Live Reviews / Music
Concert Review: Flaming Lips Employ New Toys, Tunes To Celebrate Summer’s End
Oklahoma-based psychedelic rock troupe the Flaming Lips utilized an arsenal of new stage gimmicks as well as their newest songs to pull off a confetti-drenched celebration of summer’s conclusion on Saturday night in Madison. Continue reading
Review: 50 Cent Hopes Hype Will Sell Repetitive New Record
If you believe rapper 50 Cent’s beef with fellow superstar Kanye West really exists, you deserve to be shot nine times. Their alleged rivalry, inflamed by the fact that both released albums on the same day last week, is pure marketing hype aimed at papering over the fact that 50’s new disc, “Curtis,” is a disappointing retread of his thug-hailing past. Continue reading
Review: Ben Harper’s ‘Lifeline’ Needs Help
Listen to any of his albums and it’s clear that jam-band titan Ben Harper remains a devotee of the classic-rock gods. His new album, “Lifeline,” however, signals that Harper has now crossed over from loyal fan to unconscious plagiarizer. Continue reading
Review: M.I.A. Restores, Reimagines Hip-Hop’s Original Mission
Rapper M.I.A.’s slightly gaudy, polyrhythmic and electro-studded debut, “Arular,” was a pristine example of hip-hop’s global reach. Her new disc is even better and will put to rest any doubts about her hip-hop cachet. Continue reading
Review: Common’s Arty Impulses Lose To Killer Hooks On New LP
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
Review: Interpol’s New Album Is More Of The Same
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
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