The side project is an established rock phenomenon. Distanced from the bread-and-butter band, one can engage in pursuits that might not fit the profile of the mothership group. The late Jerry Garcia played bluegrass banjo with Old & In the Way, and the Mekons’ Jon Langford played big rock riffs…
After striking gold on her very first attempt with “Heartbreaker,” an anthem for outrage, Pat Benatar’s grip on the charts was as firm as her spandex outfits from the early ’80s on. “I Need a Lover” (written by the then-unknown John “Cougar” Mellencamp), “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” “Treat…
Are you rabid for Rancid? Craving the Clash? Or, perhaps, sick for some Social Distortion? Do the Circle Jerks yank your chain? If you answered yes to any of the above, grab your golf cap and chain wallet, because it’s time for Time Again. On its debut album for Hellcat…
All right, all right… it’s true. Wayne “The Train” Hancock’s voice sounds more than a smidge like Hank Williams’ (maybe that’s why Hank III is such a fan). But the truth of the matter is, the critics who have at times suggested Hancock’s little more than a Williams imitator don’t…
Martin County isn’t the sort of place where you’d expect to find a hotbed of post-jazz musical innovation. But don’t tell that to the Stuart trio of Alan Martinke, Billy Gilmore, and Jessiah Weston, collectively known as Aquaphonics. Aquaphonics is first and foremost a jam band. It’s got a heavy…
In the beginning (meaning this past February), there was the ’50s Sock Hop Party at Maguire’s. Then came the ’60s Garage/Soul Party in April. Now, Low-Fidelity Events brings us another decade closer to the modern era with its ’77 Punk Pogo Dance Party. But the parade of leather jackets and…
It’s been a rough couple of years for Delaware emo-core stalwarts Boy Sets Fire. Since the release of the band’s major-label debut, 2003’s Tomorrow Come Today, the quintet has lost a bass player and a record deal. With a new lineup and a return to indieville, you’d think it would…
It’s melodic, it’s anthemic, it’s smart, it’s louder than hell: It’s the new heavy metal, and Pelican is one of its foremost purveyors. Formed in the early ’00s from the ashes of Tusk, another acclaimed, high-volume project, the Chicago quartet fuses sprawling, low-end drone with wickedly interwoven guitar parts and…
L.A. Guns frontmen come and go like participants in a gang-bang. After longtime vocalist Phil Lewis left the group in the mid-’90s, Chris Van Dahl stepped in to handle microphone duty. Then came Ralph Saenz. Then Jizzy Pearl. And then, at the start of the new millennium, the Guns went…
“There’s no culture in the United States like New Orleans,” says Papa Grows Funk’s John “Papa” Gros. And he would know. Since forming in 2000, the quintet has been a fixture on the New Orleans music scene, drawing raves for its relentless jams, boundless energy, and Meters-quality funk. On tour…
Just in time for the subtropical splendor that is springtime in South Florida, Tiki Torch Night returns to the Mai-Kai in Fort Lauderdale. After the venerable, ready-made paradise took a nasty hit from Hurricane Wilma, avid tikiphiles worried that the Mai-Kai had hosted its last luau. The storm damage, it…
Ach, laddie — it’s time fer some bonnie jigs an’ reels with Scotland’s kilt-wearin’ crazies, the brogue-spewin’ boyos knoon as Hagus Magagus! Actually, though they’re named after the traditional Highland dish of stuffed sheep’s stomach, this insanely talented trio is from Broward, not Blairgowrie, and their speciality ain’t exactly fiddler’s…
Many folks maintain that jazz is the one uniquely American form of music, but what about bluegrass? Perhaps its connection to what some perceive as “hillbilly culture” keeps it slighted, but bluegrass, an earthy and complex music, was born of American confluences of Irish and British folk ballads, early country…
When Oakland band the Locals discovered they weren’t the first ones to come up with their name — a Chicago band led by an Yvonne Doll already had dibs — they had no choice but to change it to something, um, less shitty. Rechristened the Matches, the punk-rock band in…
It’s so easy (and predictable) to dog the cover band: They’re murdering the songs that made rock ‘n’ roll great. But then again, the best rock ‘n’ roll bands are really cover bands at heart. AC/DC guitarist Angus Young channels Chuck Berry so closely, you almost forget he’s not as…
Ever wondered about the ethnographic background of the rapper known to the world as Bubba Sparxxx, née Warren Anderson Mathis? Those without cable might think he’s black, since they were rocking him hard on 99 Jamz right up until the Big Lip Bandit exclaimed, “This dude is white!” Since his…
Given our sun-splashed, beachy landscape and huge population of Caribbean expats, you’d think Broward would be crawling with jamtastic live reggae bands. As you probably noticed, it ain’t. Aside from the dancehall DJs sequestered away in clubs west of 95 and a few cover acts at cheesy tourist bars, Fourth…
Every once in a while, the good stuff (i.e., the real thing) actually makes the charts and even gets to stick around for a spell. Take Alan Jackson, one of the photogenic “hat hunks” following the wake of Garth Brooks’ ascendance. The more cynical might pigeonhole Jackson that way, but…
2005 was a banner year for John Ralston. It started off humming when the Lake Worth-based singer-songwriter finished and released Needle Bed, a brilliantly sullen album of upbeat Americana strumming, shuffling rhythms, and sugar-sweet hooks that qualified as one of the best local releases of the year. Soon thereafter, the…
In case you had any doubts, dancehall-pop quartet T.O.K. is the living, singing proof that boy bands are an international phenomenon. Hailing from Kingston, Jamaica, longtime homies Bay-C, Alex, Craig T., and Flexx came together a couple of years ago as a doo-wop and a cappella group but quickly took…
Age, they say, brings wisdom. It also brings Social Security checks, which Delbert McClinton will qualify for when he turns 65 next month. Hell, the Texas-born singer is so unapologetic about growing older that he’s adorned the sleeve of his latest CD, The Cost of Living, with past driver’s licenses…
Standing somewhere between the root pop of Poi Dog Pondering and a Louisiana zydeco outing, Donna the Buffalo serves up a simmering blend of Cajun, folk, rock, and even country-tinged fare. The road-tested group has woven these influences together for nearly two decades at festivals and dance halls across the…
