Singer/songwriter David Berman is as much of an ironist in life as he is in art. Note that after landing in rehab following a Xanax overdose (an act with sardonic aspects of its own), he belatedly embraced Judaism — a belief system he’d never taken that seriously despite his band’s…
Husband-and-wife team Jason Hammel and Kori Gardner seemingly make gorgeous indie pop songs as easily and casually as the rest of us shower in the morning. Much has changed since their duo Mates of State’s 2006 debut on Barsuk, Bring It Back; they have moved to New York and had…
The Electric Bunnies’ music makes me feel like I’m beating off to pornography while my wife sleeps in the same room. Good thing I ain’t married and can enjoy the Electric Bunnies in public. Wow! It’s a solid follow-up to the Eskimo seven-inch. This four-track, vinyl-only EP is an excellent…
Timb has heard all the jokes. At 6-foot-3, with bleached-blond hair, morgue-pale skin, and a wardrobe full of industrial fetish attire, the Fort Lauderdale-based singer can be a magnet for wisecracks whenever he steps out on the town. His attire, along with the massive four-inch boots he typically wears, causes…
So there’s already way too much blog fodder out there on Lil Wayne so I’ll keep this one short. A couple of days ago I was watching Wayne’s new video for “A Milli,” which was literally shot on the way to another video shoot and I admired the balls that…
Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis Two Men with the Blues (Blue Note) Did music really use to be less complicated, or does it just seem that way? Maybe it’s just that life used to be less complicated, and music is simply a mirror of its times. Or something like that…
Here’s some trivia to bandy about when you’re having conversation over cocktails. Ask who can name a band that’s still intact 30 years after its inception. Better yet, ask how many they can name that still have the entire original lineup. The Stones? The Who? The Allman Brothers? Nope. These…
The setting was Orlando at the peak of the ’90s rave scene. Underground dance culture was arguably at its best, and inside the famed club Edge, the electro group known as Rabbit in the Moon consistently concocted an auditory and visual experience unlike anything most dance fans had ever experienced…
To me, the word hurricane conjures up thoughts of fruity rum cocktails, utter destruction, and complete inconvenience (not necessarily in that order). I’ve seen news footage of the devastation leveled by Hurricane Katrina, and I can’t ignore local whispers of the extended power outages Wilma caused. Frankly, I don’t have…
(Travis McCoy, from mtv.com) Yesterday’s Warped Tour stop at Maryland Heights’ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater wasn’t all sunburns, music and fun for one of the bands. Gym Class Heroes front man Travis McCoy was arrested after tussling with a fan who had been heckling him during his band’s day-closing set. Sergeant…
The Electric Bunnies Chewing Gum (Florida’s Dying Records) The Electric Bunnies’ music makes me feel like I’m beating off to pornography while my wife sleeps in the same room. Good thing I ain’t married and can enjoy the Electric Bunnies in public. Wow! It’s a solid follow-up to the Eskimo…
When I was young, my parents took me to Hawaii. I remember wholesome family fun there, swimming in the ocean and visiting some volcanoes. We checked out both Maui and Oahu, but all in all, we didn’t do anything more exotic than drink from a coconut or search for seashells…
Lil Wayne is not batshit insane. Let’s be clear about that. Despite the fact that he regularly refers to himself as an extraterrestrial, seems to have an utter disregard for authority or his own health, and kisses his surrogate father on the mouth (a practice that has the rampantly homophobic…
There’s a sense when you’re watching Punchanello perform that he’s simultaneously the most loved and hated MC in the room. Watching him onstage instantly puts a smile on your face. And his long, Samsonesque locks and ability to freestyle story raps better than most people can write them is impressive…
In an interview earlier this year with the Independent, Seun Kuti bluntly stated, “I’m crazy. My father was too.” There’s something heartening about the progeny of a famous musician clearly stating an alliance with his elders, but the youngest son of Fela goes even further than simply picking up the…
One of the best things about Midwest hip-hop is that it’s not beholden to any one sound. Detroit-based lyricist Asylum 7 and his production partner, Eddie Logix, recently dropped a solid 16-track album that purposely shifts among various beats and rhyming patterns without even remotely sounding like they’re jocking anyone’s…
In a fond tribute to his hometown, producer Ramon “Radius” Norwood dedicates each of the 11 instrumental entries on Neighborhood Suicide to an area in the Windy City. Unless you’re Radius, his productions won’t paint a portrait of Chicago for you, but Neighborhood’s sample-built blends of chimes, strings, and vocal…
Sometimes rap music is like an ice cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day. If you’re going to be out cruising around in the sun, it’s best to have some driving music by your side to help you not think about the heat. Fort Lauderdale’s Swazy Styles recently…
Coldplay has a lot riding on its fourth release, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. Not only is the band’s viability at stake; the survival of EMI (Capitol’s parent company) depends on its sales. So perhaps that desperation to move units aided in the decision to hire…
Miami/Hialeah punk stalwarts Guajiro are never ones to shy away from a little controversy. The band’s affable frontman, Will Lopez, has been talking for months about recording a pro-Obama song because he feels like no other local acts are doing anything to get people stirred up for the presidential race…
Here’s something to get you excited for tomorrow’s IHEARTCOMIX/Scion tour shebang at the Vagabond tomorrow night. On the bill are Radioclit, Drop the Lime, and of course, IHEARTCOMIX founder Franki Chan (who’s no stranger to Miami decks). Download Franki Chan’s mix for the new Iheartcomix two-disc sampler for free, by…
A few of us over here at Crossfade (okay, mostly me) were excited about the upcoming Boy George gig scheduled for July 25 at Club Cinema in Pompano. So, um, I was totally bummed out when I just received an official missive from Boy George’s camp announcing that the entire…
