The man from Waco, jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove emerged on the scene in 1989. Encouraged by no less than Wynton Marsalis, Hargrove was young and sharp enough to be included in the ’80’s “Young Lions” hype (i.e., youthful neoconservative cats in swanky suits). Though mindful of tradition, Hargrove — who’d…
It’s become way too easy to take the Orb’s music for granted at this stage in the electronic outfit’s illustrious career. This new album should make it less so, as it clearly and definitively demonstrates how astounding the Orb’s talent truly is. Anything the Orb puts out now is necessarily…
Earlier this year, Radiohead released its new album, In Rainbows, on its website using a pay-what-you-wish model. A few months later, Nine Inch Nails released Ghosts I-IV employing a similar scheme with more business savvy; there was a tiered scale; prices ranged from free (low-quality digital audio files) to $300,…
If you’re a lover of reggae music, you’ll be happy to know that local station WDJA-AM 1420 (Based out of Delray Beach, has recently switched it’s format to 95% Caribbean music. The station, which previously existed as a banking and financial talk radio is under new management and they’re giving…
In May, we posited that southern hip-hop and Fox News share much in common. Possessing both an anti-intellectual streak and a populist one, they’re beloved by red-staters and hated on by the coastal elites, be they liberals, hipsters, Ghostface or Nas. The piece concluded: If you’re still not convinced that…
The Cool Kids The Bake Sale EP (Chocolate Industries) With frivolous brag lines and clean, minimal beats, the Cool Kids urinate willfully all over the idea of crack narratives and trigger-happy posturing, and are relishing every step of the way. At the pace of a pregnant snail, these two Chicago…
Last year marked the inaugural local installment of the traveling hip-hop extravaganza known as Rock the Bells. Breathing some much-needed golden-age and conscious-type air into Miami’s bling-ridden environs, the lineup featured everyone from Jedi Mind Tricks to Mos Def and Talib Kweli, from Nas to a recently reunited Wu-Tang Clan…
The music festival is nothing new; it’s been around for decades here in the States, whether we’re talking the Newport Folk Festival or current behemoths like Coachella and Bonnaroo. The origin of the relatively recent phenomenon of traveling tours, however — now, that’s a different animal altogether. While some folks…
It’s nearly laughable that this album is being marketed as “previously unreleased.” Bowie’s 1972 show at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium is perhaps one of the most-bootlegged concerts of the rock era, seen by most fans as the ultimate statement of what Bowie offered live in the ’70s. Broadcast on…
It’s fair to say there’s no one who’s more adept at interpreting other people’s songs than Emmylou Harris. Never mind that she’s a superb writer in her own right; Harris’ ability to turn in a performance that’s both intimate and inspired elevates her to a rarified strata all her own…
Katy Perry’s capable of remaking herself for any promising target demographic. In her teens, she delivered achingly sincere contemporary Christian fare that didn’t turn out to be achingly sincere after all, and her One of the Boys persona — flirty, snarky tart — feels equally phony. The production, by a…
It’s fitting that the classic Jamaican powerhouse of Sly & Robbie provides the backing for “El Aire,” the first track on Eljuri’s solid American debut album. The song shows that this Guayaquil, Ecuador-born multi-instrumentalist is comfortable playing different styles, going from reggae to Brazilian-inflected ballads to rock and Latin pop…
I walk into the dark, smoky bar. It’s a full house tonight, and every head turns as I make my way to the front of the room. I pop open my guitar case, brandish a Gibson, and step on stage. I tease the crowd with a little strumming. “This is…
While brother alto saxophonist/bandleader Julian “Cannonball” Adderley garnered most of the fame, cornetist (and a grad of Fort Lauderdale’s Dillard High School) Nat Adderley (1931-2000) undoubtedly planted his own flag in jazz history. Aside from being the right-hand man in Cannonball’s Quintet for decades, Nat composed the perennial standards “Work…
There’s nothing like a good mash-up video to leave a smile on your face. My buddy, Francisco “Keep the Smirnoff Coming” Alvarado just sent me a link to a new video from popular Miami DJ/chef, Tom Laroc, who’s been making a name for himself with his mash up parties at…
It’s no secret that Nas and Bill O’Reilly aren’t exactly best friends. O’Reilly has been slamming rappers for as long as I can remember on his overly popular televison show, the O’Reilly Factor and Nas is one of his biggest targets. Of course, Nas has taken a few lyrical jabs…
Dino Felipe No Fun Demo (No Fun) Hard-to-please, self-righteous Web site Pitchfork gave local musician Dino Felipe’s latest release No Fun Demo a 7.2 out of 10, which for Pitchfork is a-fucking-mazing. Reviewer Marc Masters calls Felipe’s latest effort “his poppiest [release] to date,” adding “Felipe rarely deviates from his…
Word around town is there was an accident at The Vagabond (30 NE 14th Street, Miami) last night. Various sources have told me someone got injured, and then this was posted at 5:56 a.m. by The Vagabond via MySpace: Hello friends, Last night, an unfortunate incident happened where a ceiling…
One Day As A Lion One Day As A Lion EP (Anti-) Even though it’s been almost ten years since the public first heard about Zach de la Rocha working on solo material, fans shouldn’t necessarily worry that his first offering after Rage Against The Machine is an EP. Containing…
Ask Shawn Snyder to summarize the past five years of his life and you’ll find he has a flair for the dramatic. “Grabbing the aspiring beast of a music career by its uncertain horns has amounted to its own rodeo bull-ride of starving artistry,” he reflects. The Kendall-born folk singer…
Portugal. The Man likes spontaneity. The band also likes random punctuation in the middle of its name. You could even say the Alaska-based quartet has a knack for doing things ass-backward. For example: Even though the band writes music while on the road and works out the parameters of some…
For years, the Hooters restaurant chain has aroused both groups of wing-eating dudes and the tempers of militant feminists. Questions have been raised: Are Hooters girls objectified? Are the wings really as hot and tasty as the ladies who bring them? Will they ever get rid of those horrible orange…
