Standing in a blue suit under a white hat that would fit an 1890’s carnival barker Elvis Costello told the crowd, “I thought being in Fort Lauderdale I would just sing my songs about love and fidelity. But that would be a short set.” On the final night of his…
Some critics accuse Lil Wayne of lyrical atrophy. They blame fame or sizzurp or Nicki Minaj for the loss of his intricate wordplay. But I wonder if Wayne is just one of many artists who’ve matured, evolved, you might say, from the complexities of youth to the more essential expressions…
The wild and unpredictable characters who make up Atlanta four-piece the Black Lips have often claimed the band’s recordings and live shows are an attempt to uncover the roots of punk rock. “Nothing’s more punk than gospel music,” assures bassist Jared Swilley. “The screams they conjure up, you can’t beat…
Tegan and Sara assure the world that “Everything Is Awesome” while Atlanta sister duo Larkin Poe reminds us how important it is to “Play On.” Going by these two pairs, it’s clear that the future is open for some singing siblings. Both girls are set to open up for the…
Do not stop dancing. Maybe you haven’t heard (and maybe you live in a padded, soundproof room with no internet, a busted TV set, and boarded-up windows), but that annual 144-hour dance marathon known as Winter Music Conference and Miami Music Week is about to swarm South Beach, downtown, Wynwood,…
Despite coming to prominence more than 40 years ago, the infectious sound of KC and the Sunshine Band still seems to be everywhere these days. Denizens of the dance floor still express delight when the DJ throws on a KC classic like “Shake, Shake, Shake (Shake Your Booty),” “Get Down…
California psych-rock band Cobalt Cranes is only a few weeks into their nonstop national tour touting last year’s fuzzed out Days In The Sun, but already members have been wowed by some of the places they’ve visited. Still weeks ahead of their South Florida stops on March 27 at Propaganda…
My suspicion probably stems from watching Borat too many times, but I have trouble believing that Eugene Hütz really exists. The lead singer of Gogol Bordello claims to be from the Ukraine with a Gypsy lineage. His band brands itself as gypsy punks merging an accordion and violin with the…
By Tracy Block AURA Music & Arts Festival is the brainchild of two South Florida musicians who became hugely successful event curators. The hard work and dedication of Daryl Wolff and Cameron Ferguson attracted a record-breaking crowd of 5K to the grounds of the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park…
Two bands responsible for some of the finest drunken-karaoke performances of all time are gracing the massive stage at Coral Sky Amphitheatre (most recently known as Cruzan Amphitheatre). Journey and the Steve Miller Band will be keeping rock ‘n’ roll at its most wailing and folksy alive and kicking in…
That debate on whether your favorite little-known musician was selling out by striving to expand their reach toward mainstream popularity seems antiquated these days. Some would call it so 20th Century. But there are still pockets in certain subcultures where authenticity and integrity are major reasons to support an artist…
Maybe it’s the glasses, but ever since Elvis Costello burst on to the scene with his 1977 album My Aim Is True, the British New Waver has dabbled in a wide range of activities that have nothing to do with strumming a guitar and shouting “Pump it Up” into a…
“‘Bluegrass is going to be big this year’ is what I heard when I started playing around 1964, and every year after that for 20 years!” John McEuen of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band recalls. And while “big” remains a relative term, he notes there has been an upward trend…
Writers all over have been complaining that they can’t find information on L.A. band Corners. “I’m not really sure what that all means,” said the band’s lead singer and guitarist, Tracy Bryant. He spoke to New Times by phone as the band drove from Des Moines to Milwaukee, where it’d…
“Jittery, Zeitgeist, wither by the watering hole” is not from a Shakespeare sonnet but rather the second line from an Aesop Rock song. As you could guess from that one snippet, the New York-raised, San Francisco-residing Aesop Rock spent some time with a thesaurus. The rapper made his name in…
Reverend Peyton is the first to admit that the name he gave his outfit — Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band — is somewhat misleading. “We’ve had so many soundboard people ask us over the years, ‘How many channels do you need? I don’t know if our board is big enough!’…
By Tracy Block There’s not much quite like AURA Music & Arts Festival. Though in its sixth incarnation, for the past three years, this celebration of all things art, sound, mind, and body has returned to Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park in Live Oak, Florida. It’s a time and…
West Palm Beach’s annual five-day downtown cultural jamboree, SunFest, returns in 2015 with what we can honestly call an impressive lineup. Each year (for 33 years), the list of performers serves to satisfy the tastes of more than just the 20- to 25-year old raver crowd. Organizers always are clever…
There is a commanding, outwardly visible shift that starts to happen to a Girls Rock Camp attendee. It takes place somewhere around midweek. Terminal shyness, remnants of self-doubt, and any sour notes start to fade as more important things like song structure, sisterhood, and powerful stage swagger gain significance. “If…
Surely there should be a certain trepidation about Berry Gordy’s Motown: The Musical, since it is based on the famed founder’s 1994 book To Be Loved: The Music, the Magic, the Memories of Motown. Motown’s story is not an easy one to tell and has further been complicated by some…
Arts Garage, the cultural funhouse in Delray Beach, is once again putting on its annual fundraiser, Grunge & Glamour. But this time, the team is doing things a little differently. The president of Arts Garage, Alyona Aleksandra Ushe, said the event was moved from the fall to February 28 to…
When we spoke with Tom Johnston of the Doobie Brothers, the singer and guitarist was relaxing in Miranda, California. Not that he had much downtime; Johnston just came back from Orlando and next the band was on to stoping that included Boston, Texas, California, then a rock cruise with Alice…
