While remaining faithful to the original recordings (a wise move, in this case), Zakk and his band do manage to put some of their individual touches on this material.

Santa Ana, CA’s Bloodstains are back with their first full Lp and it’s an absolute corker!

While that pressing has sold out, a 2nd vinyl pressing (with a beautiful 11×17 poster) as well as a cassette and CD version have now been released, making it easier for fans who want a physical copy of this release to get one.

I sat down to talk to legendary guitarist Brinsley Schwarz last September over Zoom to talk about his recently released 2nd solo album Tangled. During the course of our hour-long chat, we covered everything from the heady days of touring with Parker in the early ‘80s to his recent solo albums along with musings on topical issues such as COVID and even Steely Dan and James Bond.

Suffice it to say that if you have any passing interest in indie or alternative rock or if you are a R.E.M. fan who’s somehow missed it all these years, you need to hear this.

Known as well for their incendiary live shows that featured banging steel percussion on oil cans, metal pipes, and other unusual items that earned them a cult following amongst fans of industrial music back in the ‘80s, this 2 CD/2 LP edition features the original album on the first disc with pre-Tragic Figures recordings when they were known as Africa Corps featured on disc 2.

Different from any of their previous or subsequent musical projects, yet very much bearing the hallmark of their respective styles, Hitsville PA has a mysterious, unique quality redolent of the literate indie-pop both excel at.

He’s created something well worth hearing and not just for obsessive Smoking Popes fans.

Included are 4 studio tracks and 9 live tracks, all among the best American no wave/post-punk material of the era.

Barcelona, Spain’s Lost Tapes unveils a video for a shimmering and delightful indie pop number from their upcoming EP via Sunday Records.

As the night closed with a stunning “Visions of Johanna,” we were transported back out into the Brooklyn night knowing that we’d once again witnessed an absolute master of his craft.

The audience, in turn, gave him rousing applause at every turn, keeping him onstage at moments when others would’ve walked out awaiting applause for an encore. Visibly moved by this response, he vowed to come back to the U.S. sooner. We can’t wait.

By choosing to focus exclusively on Chameleons material, though, he made me and the rest of the crowd very happy!

For the encore, we got another full set of covers (including an additional encore) and material from other Luna albums.

If a welcome home reunion show could be more triumphant, I don’t really know how. I was blown away.

Far from a spent force, at 70, Parker is still an artist well worth your time, particularly in a live setting.

These legends are making vital new music every bit the equal of anything in their catalog.

Still, Swervedriver got a good crowd reaction and managed to play the best set I’ve ever seen them play

Comprised of some of New York’s best session musicians and dedicated to his manager and girlfriend Anya Phillips (who passed away from cancer in 1981), this differs from his previous work, but not enough that fans who are unfamiliar with it shouldn’t hear it.

The album’s first great stretch of songs starts with the 3rd track, the lilting ballad “Halls of Sarah,” ending with a vocal hook utilizing Case’s astonishing voice that is destined to get stuck in your head for days afterwards.

Songs that sound like whimpers on the original Lp like “Even the Odd” and closer “January’s Little Joke” were as powerful as the immortal singles such as the aforementioned “Obscurity Knocks” and “Only Tongue Can Tell.”

After reissuing Nick Lowe’s first two solo albums in 2008 and 2011, respectively, Yep Roc have expanded their reissue campaign to include his entire ‘80s catalog.

This self-released, four-song 2015 EP, now over a year old, is simply stunning.

This is particularly true on the the the brilliant B-side “Summertime,” which any fan of female-fronted noise-pop will spin over and over again.

One can think of The Notekillers as the precursors to the type of noise rock prominent in the ’90s on labels such as Amphetamine Reptile as well as instrumental power trios of that era such as Don Caballero.

Now comes this welcome reissue, which is on beautiful 180 gram yellow marbled vinyl and includes an insert with liner notes, lyrics and rare photos along with a full-color poster.

But influence aside, this is 28 minutes of the finest skronk you will ever hear and that is the real reason to track this down.

Philly’s own Pretty Greens are in fine form on their sophomore release

All in all, this is a hard-charging, up-tempo record with only small breaks in its mood (“Candidate” is an example). It’s also worth noting that Marr is gaining confidence as a vocalist.

It all culminates with “The Golden Age of Bloodshed,” a track that is perhaps the finest in his entire discography.

Speaking of veteran artists making some of the best music of their career, here is the best Stiff Little Fingers album since at least 1982’s Now Then

Mould is in his mid 50s and at the very top of his game now.

However, the film instead chooses to focus on the music and on Bisi’s life story.

You don’t have to go to music school to be a musician and so it’s the same thing. You don’t have to take writing classes to be a writer!

In short, this is one of 2014’s best albums and perhaps La Sera’s best work yet.

For the encore, they closed with an incredible version of “Coming Down” which featured Dee Dee bringing down the house with her vocal acrobatics. What a treat!

This was a bill so strong from top to bottom that we braved the icy tundra and slippery roads to make it out to this show.

Whatever format you like will suffice, though, as the more I play it, the more I also think that this is Dum Dum Girls’ best work to date.

All in all, this book is a terrific read and I had trouble putting it down, barreling through its 400 or so pages quite quickly. If you are a former City Gardens patron or a fan of the ’80s and early ’90s underground music scene, this book is for you.

In summary, I have a feeling I’ll be listening to this one year-round as this is not just a holiday novelty record.

Other than a general sense of fun that is communicated through the grooves, what also makes this such a great listen is Ali’s hook-filled songwriting.

If slightly bigger crowds are a sign of things to come for the band, then it is well-earned as the new album is great and their live show just keeps improving.

Though the title of their brand new album is I Hate Music, this past Tuesday’s show at Union Transfer proved (as if they need any at this point) that in fact the exact opposite is true.

As such, there are six tracks, five of them shimmering, psychedelic pop that sounds like a lost time capsule from the mid to late ’60s.

The joy just permeates their very essence as they even stayed at the merch table after the show to chat with fans and sign posters and album booklets.

Though the A-side is terrific, the B-side “Who Have I Become” might the best song that Best Coast has ever recorded.

The New Mendicants is the new project of Joe Pernice and Norman Blake.

Billy Bragg’s first album since 2008’s Mr. Love and Justice is a mesmerizing masterwork from one of the finest songwriters of the best three decades.

Sure enough, the set was an excellent mix of both Lps, not favoring one or the other, and the band was in sync.

So what about the actual music? Well, if you’ve never heard The Big Boys, this might be a good place to start.

Despite the liberal genre-hopping, this is a cohesive effort that really works and there’s little confusing it for anyone else’s vision.

The bottom line is that if you ever have a chance to see The Night Marchers, don’t miss them!

What a show, what a night and what a testament to Mould and his band that they still kick so much butt after all these years!

It’s rare that two artists of such quality share a Free at Noon bill.

For this go-round and perhaps to stick to theme of the documentary, Stabb and company were intent on replicating a 1982 style set.

Starting with the instrumental “Mango” and playing a set that mostly comprised material from their earliest days, Dag Nasty was just on for the entirety of their short but incredible set.

The musicianship is just off the charts and I love the 3-4 part harmonies in some of the songs as well.

Imagine a mild-mannered, 70-year old singer-songwriter in dark black sunglasses and a leather vest saying this stuff and you’ll get an idea of the weird, but cozy vibe of the show.

I took out my earplugs so I could hear their set in all of its glory and turned to a friend afterwards and said “wow”.

Newman was in fine spirits, joking with the crowd on numerous occasions between songs and even giving detailed (and very personal) explanations for the lyrics on songs like “Come Crash” and the aforementioned “The Heartbreak Rides”.

Keith Morris was in fine form, hounding the stage like a screaming banshee and living up to his verbose and confrontational reputation.

I think the speakers are still smoking from the heat generated by the version of “Aly Walk with Me” that was played and it’s over a week later!

All in all, I think this may be Dum Dum Girls’ finest moment up to this point.

Maximo Park played a fantastic set spanning their four albums, wisely focusing heavily on just-released new album The National Health (perhaps their career best) and their debut A Certain Trigger, by some measure their best records.

As the encore ended with the classic “Makes No Sense At All”, we left exhausted but utterly blown away by the absolutely great show we had just seen.

They opened up with “She May Call You Up Tonight” and followed it with “I’ve Got Something on My Mind” and “Pretty Ballerina”.

Finally! This is what Alternative Tentacles should’ve done all along with this material.

Oh well. I’ll stick to their records and hope for a better, tighter show next time.

This is a tome well worth reading not just for Yo La Tengo’s fans but anyone interested in indie rock’s travails from the late ’70s beginnings to today.

The set culminated with what I think is their greatest song to date, the stunning “Up All Night”, the closing track on The Only Place.

It’s fitting that Swedish free jazzers The Thing, a band named after a composition by Don Cherry, have now collaborated with his stepdaugher Neneh Cherry.

This was the Radiohead of the 2001 Amnesiac tour and the 2003 tour for Hail to the Thief, turning insular, jotty compositions into jaw-droppingly tight and powerful arena rock and it was a thrill to have them back!

What a difference four and a half years makes, or does it?

If Graham can just be as expressive on stage is he is on record and with proper sound, this band could be as dangerous and exciting live as they are on record.

Stamey’s interestingly-titled “Collide-oOo-Scope” and Holsapple’s moving “She Won’t Drive in the Rain Anymore” end the album on a huge high note before going into the finale title track.

When Barbato broke a string on B-side “Behind Your Eyes”, for example, they used the occasion to turn the song (only a little over two minutes on record) into an extended, impromptu, droning jam.

Still, that’s half of the four song demo and it as well as the four newer songs sound MUCH better than said demo.

She could sing the phone book and frankly I’d be OK with it, but thankfully the songs here are rich, melodically developed, rewarding and very soulful.

This feels like a natural progression from Castle Talk and is the band’s best album to date.

Nevertheless, we got a very short, 35-minute set that concentrated mostly on Interstellar with a few tunes from her 1st album thrown in.

Real Estate is a band with a very particular, mannered sound and they have to sound right to be fully effective.

If the rest of their proposed new album will be as good as this tune, then I’m already looking forward to it!

Audience members sung every word and there wasn’t one song that stood out in that regard that everyone was waiting for.

Stylistically, “Please Be My Third Eye” is a bit of a red herring as it’s much more up tempo than most of the material here.

This will be one of my favorite albums of 2012 and heralds the emergence of a brilliant talent in her own right,

Stinson projects a rock star aura that looks, breaths, feels and sounds just like the The Rolling Stones, The Faces and others of that ilk.

Although I’ve lived close to it for almost 6 years, this was my first visit to the venerable University of Pennsylvania frat house and venue.

Anyway, she more than lived up to the accolades with an hour long set that was focused almost exclusively on material from Tramp.

Despite the numerous guest stars, make no mistake. This is very much a Sharon Van Etten album.

Though there are light r’n‘b touches on a few of these songs, this is ultimately a singer-songwriter album and a great one at that.

Clearly this is an album made by 40 somethings instead of 20 somethings.

Though others may disagree, I think that this album is a mix of good and not so good.

Hermes’ lengthy and detailed tome reads a bit like the proto-punk diary From the Velvets to the Voidoids except that it covers virtually all of New York City’s then burgeoning musical styles between 1973 and 1977.

This is exactly what it says it is.

This album belongs in the same conversation as other classics of the genre and time period like Love’s Forever Changes and The Zombies’ Odessey and Oracle.

This collection is like manna from heaven for fans of this amazing, chaotic, passionate post-hardcore band.

An embarrassment of riches, this limited-edition collection plays not only a great outtakes album, but like one of their best albums period.

Honestly, it was my first time seeing them and I thought they were great from the first few notes.

Instead of a “normal” show with a headliner and an opener, this was something altogether quite different.

Bells were the surprise of the night and honestly stole the show for me.

Thankfully, this performance more than justified the $30 ticket price.

A concise description of the third track, the cleverly titled “Cyst and Decease”, would be “Captain Beefheart in Space”.

An idea that started a few years ago has led to a 7” on Matador.

This Lp pulls no punches and sounds as good in 2011 as I imagine that it must have in 1982.

All this would be enough, but as a bonus we get the first official version of The Faith’s 1981 demo.

With all that said, what about the music on here? Well, it’s amazing.

Their set was short but sweet.

So how did Wild Flag fit into this context? Quite splendidly.

Just from a creative stand point, to put myself out there like that was the scariest thing I’ve probably ever had to do and then to play it.

Within a few seconds of their set, I had beer spilled on me.

When I started listening to this album, I couldn’t stop playing it. Weeks later, I STILL can’t stop playing it. It’s that good.

ALL, on the other hand, were amazing.

Of the many times I’ve seen Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, I’d never had the chance to see them in such a great-sounding and intimate room.

This more stripped-down iteration fit in perfectly with the gentle, quiet vibe of this seated show

In fact, one could argue that he just keeps getting better and better.

This is really the recording debut of a new incarnation of the band.

Improved songwriting, musicianship and stage presence contributed to what was by far the best Vivian Girls live set I’ve ever seen.

Thurston’s set in the beautiful but very poorly ventilated church sanctuary drew heavily upon his recently released solo Lp Demolished Thoughts.

Singer Steve Polcari acted as if almost a quarter of a century hadn’t passed, jumping around all over the stage and showing off the energy of a frontman half of his age.

Still, this had the feel of a band playing to a bunch of friends and family and that’s basically what it was. It was an afternoon show to boot, so that made it even more family-friendly.

Opening with Bad Moon Rising‘s “Brave Men Run (in My Family)”, the first five tracks were a flurry of ’80s highlights.

There’s an old saying. It’s a cliché, but a true one. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. If you think about it in a different way, in the early ‘80s for a hardcore band and especially for a straight-edge band facing additional pressure in terms of not conforming to society’s standards on that level, it was unbelievable in terms of the odds.

At the end of his set, opening band The Gerunds came on stage and they proceeded to crank out two highlights of Reynolds’ tenure with ALL.

Wild Nothing played to a sold-out and jam-packed room at Johnny Brenda’s

Mainly, much of the book deals with Mould’s struggles to come to grips with who he really is.

This is surf-punk mixed with some psych and even new wave influences.

In other words, the new songs fit in so perfectly with the old stuff that The Smithereens should be commended.

For starters, this was the fourth time I’d seen them at the First Unitarian Church since early 2007.

All in all, there seemed to be a lot of love between artists on this evening as OFF! were specifically selected to open the tour by Dinosaur Jr and the mutual admiration and respect is always comforting to see.

The track list pulls more from Joe Jackson‘s past as opposed to Rain (the only album recorded with this lineup).

So what, might you ask, differentiated this year’s visit to World Cafe Live from their two previous Philadelphia appearances since their 2008 reunion?

Everything you’ve heard about this book, and for that matter, about Jack Grisham himself in his younger years, is absolutely true.

Frontman Jack Grisham had a maniacal, almost demonic grin on his face the whole time and was clearly enjoying himself on this evening.

Simply put, there’s no other band like them in the entire universe.

This is definitely recommended for fans of the softer, more adult-oriented and mature side of power-pop.

One song is called “Naked Reagan”. If you get the reference, you’ll love this.

Costello and his band took the stage and blazed through four songs, opening with “I Hope You’re Happy Now”.

Featuring just Eleanor on lead vocals and Matt on piano and backing (and occasional lead) vocals, this was Fiery Furnaces stripped down to the core.

He also tackled Hüsker Dü‘s “Could You Be the One”? and Lungfish’s “To Whom You Were Born”.

The performances of “Graffiti,” “No Pain No Gain” and “Late Night” completely obliterated their recorded versions.

For me, this album was a real grower.

The encore consisted mostly of guitarist Tom Watson singing a set of Minutemen classics.

On the surface, the pairing of veteran singer/songwriters Jill Sobule and John Doe seems, well, odd. In reality, though, nothing could be further from the truth.

Much more dynamic, energetic and confident as a live band now than in their earlier days, Pains are now a bona-fide headlining act.

The show hit its peak with “The Disillusionist” featuring Kilbey’s off-mic vocals at the end of the song.

She wowed the packed house with a set comprised mostly of epic showstoppers like “A Crime” and “Don’t Do It”.

This was a unique night featuring children with a median age of 12 or 13 singing classic punk songs.

This show was somewhat of a disappointment, though it was far from bad.

If there was any thought that the years since then would diminish their performance one iota, those thoughts were squashed by the crushing opener “Teenager in a Box”.

I think it’s safe to say that everyone in the small room was sufficiently blown away or at the very least impressed.

The show just never seemed to get off the ground.

To be blunt, they came out of the gate and just completely dominated.

Still, it’s a miracle to even see him perform at all and the show was competent and fun.

This stuff is raw, in-your-face hardcore punk that also doesn’t skimp on the melody and catchiness to go along with its youthful energy.

Had the album been released in this form, I would argue that it would had just as much of an impact upon the scene.

Openers Wild Nothing completely stole the show, though a much smaller (and very young) audience was on hand to view their set.

I just hope that it doesn’t take them another five years to come back here!

This is, amazingly, the first released music by former Jawbreaker and Jets to Brazil vocalist/singer/guitarist/songwriter Blake Schwarzenbach since 2002.

I was pleasantly surprised when they played “Losing My Edge” as I know they don’t typically perform it live and haven’t for years.

To say that Superchunk is a great live band may be the understatement of this young century.

I was left satisfied, though of course wondering what it would’ve been like to have seen them in the ’90s and in a smaller place.

Everyone left happy, satisfied and slightly (or not so slightly!) drunk!

With no opener and wasting not a second, they opened with “Raw Power”, which led right into “Search and Destroy”.

I have to confess that though I love NEGATIVE APPROACH, I’m disappointed with the release.

This was as close to the real thing as we’re ever likely to get given the relations between DEAN WAREHAM and his GALAXIE 500 bandmates.

Even more exciting, he announced the possibility of writing new songs with the new lineup.

Still, for as tired as the past few days had made me, it was worth it to witness this once-in-a-lifetime event.

After a rousing introduction by JACK RABID, THE AVENGERS ripped into “We Are the One“and just dominated from that point forward.

Though the prospect of PETER MURPHY fronting NINE INCH NAILS is interesting on its own, what’s even more interesting is the song selection.

Although I’ve seen many frontmen do this sort of stuff, this didn’t feel forced. He seemed to be genuinely possessed at times.

Thus, when I heard that they would be playing one of the best-sounding venues I’ve ever been to, World Cafe Live, I was stoked.

This is a complete bonanza for STOOGES fans.

Simply put, this show was an absolute blast!

The encores, consisting of singles released in 1977 and 1978, just killed. These included “Promises,” “Love You More,” “What Do I Get” and “Orgasm Addict”, the amazing set closer.

Watching THE JOY FORMIDABLE perform was like being in the eye of a hurricane. In other words, they live up to the hype and then some.

But on this night, it was the encore that really thrilled.

John and Exene were both in fine form, joking with the audience liberally and telling stories about each song beforehand.

To say that this was an epic Feelies show would definitely be an understatement.

All of a sudden, the crowd stood, clapped, cheered and a good time was had by all.

“Lucky Day” belongs in the same canon as the very best of HANK WILLIAMS or MERLE HAGGARD.

For the uninitiated, NEGATIVE APPROACH were possibly the greatest hardcore band ever.

As much as I enjoyed JAY REATARD’s set on this evening, SCREAMING FEMALES were so good that they may have stolen the show.

We were also treated to a cover of “The Godfather”, a song by singer PETER CORTNER’s late ’80s band DAG NASTY.

SURFER BLOOD, on the other hand, were a complete revelation.

In fact, Speed is Everything may be the Lp of JEFF PEZZATI’s life and as a huge NAKED RAYGUN fan, I don’t say that lightly.

And the coup de grace was BLACK FLAG’s “My War” with guest vocalist TIM SINGER! Wow!

The darker lyrical content may be typical for a sophomore album, but this is no sophomore slump.

MARK BURGESS live in Philadelphia on Tuesday, August 11th. Read on!

During the encore, TV SMITH proceeded to come out with Jay and his band and they proceeded to play a mini-set of four ADVERTS songs,

“I wouldn’t wanna go back to the Husker Du mentality, side 2 of Zen Arcade. That’s not really good for anybody’s health.”

My neighborhood was turned upside down. I live right in the epicenter of Obama world. It’s a huge difference.

I DJ, so I have to spend a lot of time listening to music.

It would be nice, instead of waiting 18 months to put out an album, to just be able to put out 7” singles.

Now I’m back on the guitar on a more consistent basis and I have a satisfactory outlet for the electronic stuff.

It was oriented a bit more towards their punk-era material than towards their ’80s post-punk/goth incarnations since I love both of those periods.

I am a massive XTC fan so it was mind blowing! I went over to his house in Swindon and we sat in his garden shed writing songs with our acoustic guitars.

Even better were selections from 2002’s Blacklisted, her career zenith.

This time, instead of being combined on one CD, 25 O’Clock and Psonic Psunspot are split into two separate discs, each with lots of bonus tracks.

The show really gained strength, however, when he switched to his trusted electric guitar.

Food, Inc. is powerful enough to be to the local/organic/sustainable food movement what An Inconvenient Truth was to concern about global warming.

It’s some of the best power-pop I’ve ever heard and fans of the period and sound should run, not walk, to get this.

We got “The Town Halo”, arguably the finest song in A.C. NEWMAN’s solo catalog, as the closer.

Everything suddenly fit a little louder, a little more energetic and we were along for the ride!

Dear Catastrophe Waitress is one of the most moving works of fiction I’ve ever read.

I think that what I’ve learned is that if you sing off-key and that’s just what you do, you have to work with that and let it be part of what you do instead of trying not to.

I think that I was chosen because we all get along. That was it. I made it a point not to ask any questions about MINOR THREAT and I think that helped.

What I love about that solo on “Here’s to You” is that it really pissed DOUG CARRION off.

I think that in their own way JUDAS PRIEST is one of the world’s great disco bands.

Kung Fu Necktie has a cozy size, selection of great beer on tap, terrific sound and a cozy vibe. I could definitely get used to this place.

THE DICKIES take absolutely nothing seriously, but still leave you humming their songs with hooks that last for days on end.

I can’t think of a single song from The Age of Quarrel that they didn’t play.

They played a cover of the SPARKS classic “Angst In My Pants” as a tribute to RUSSELL MAEL, curator of that evening’s mix CD.

SPEEDO knocks back Corona after Corona and is extremely obnoxious towards the audience, but in a really funny way.

TED LEO pours his soul into everything he does and this fact cements the connection with his rabid fanbase.

BRIAN WILSON’s music positively beams with “Love and Mercy”, which is part of why his best work is timeless.

By the end of the night, I was covered in sweat. I felt as if I’d just finished watching a show at City Gardens back when I was a teenager.

SONIC YOUTH were terrific despite playing virtually the same setlist as they played last month.

They played virtually all of 45s Singles and Under, so any casual fan would’ve been satisfied with the show.

If there were any surprises, it was that they played so much material from The Bends.

For the second and final encore, it was a return to the older, more straight-ahead rockers.

ROGUE WAVE came out for an encore and proceeded to play THE SMITHS classic “What Difference Does It Make”.

I don’t want to have to wait another 20 years to see them again!

KING KHAN AND THE SHRINES were just pure, animalistic, rocking garage punk fun!

It started raining during JAY REATARD’s set, but it didn’t matter. In fact, it might have even made it that much more intense.

Despite being absent for “Bring the Noise”, FLAVOR FLAV emerged right before they were set to perform “Don’t Believe the Hype”.

I never got to see BAD BRAINS or D.O.A. in their prime, but this must be similar.

Playing all of Daydream Nation last year must have really sunk in as SONIC YOUTH played nearly a third of that amazing record.

After DEVO got the ubiquitous “Whip It” out of the way early on, then we really got the good stuff.

VERSUS was a reminder that the marriage of distortion and noise with super sweet melodies and quiet/loud dynamics will never go out of style.

A ROB DICKINSON show wouldn’t be complete with at least a few dips into the Catherine Wheel catalog.

Thankfully R.E.M. were able to translate the energy of their new album Accelerate onto the stage.

Overall this night was a smashing success. My only regret is not being able to see their show the next night!

Focusing entirely on their excellent new album, songs like “No Lucifer” sounded as if the band had found some setting for post-punk circa 1982.

Each performance ranged from quiet, reflective and almost meditative to short, fast bursts of dissonant noise.

Accompanied by musicians on bassoon, harp and clarinet, it felt more like a classical recital than a stereotypical rock concert.

Simply put, everything about this show was perfect. HOT CHIP put on the best show I’ve seen all year.

In summary, this show pleased both the diehards and the casual fans alike.

BEACH HOUSE’s live show doesn’t sound much different from the records and they played a nice, slow set.

If BOREDOMS ever come near you, don’t hesitate to see them. There’s no one else on earth even remotely like them.

The two-drummer setup reminded me of THE FALL circa 1982-1983 or BUTTHOLE SURFERS in their prime.

I thought that this show was, in the words of MISSION OF BURMA, good not great.

My second trip to Danger Danger Gallery was quite unlike the first.

It still feels great seeing BOB MOULD doing what he does best, even if the novelty has worn off a little now and it’s feels familiar.

For the past week, I’ve been listening to this record almost obsessively, so I feel compelled to give it the full review treatment.

Knowing to expect the unexpected, we definitely got our money’s worth in that department from PHANTOM ORCHARD.

The only drawback was that the set was short, but their energy and enthusiasm made up for it.

The sound wasn’t the greatest, but playing in divey places fits their brand of scuzzy, lo-fi noise rock.

The Dolls failed to take advantage of their brief momentum by dulling the temperament of the crowd with what seemed like an endless amount of songs from their last album.

All in all, I think NO AGE sounds better live than they do on record.

After seeing them, I’m glad I went, though I can’t say there were too many surprises.

BOB MOULD just completely shredded, reminding me of the very first time I ever saw him play live.

Even with all of her recent success, she is still determined to do things on her own merits, even if that means playing in out of the way venues.

The energy, enthusiasm and the overall rapturous joy of the both the musicians and the audience was just contagious. This was my Eureka moment!

At the book’s heart lies the notion that any kid with a dream could escape to New York and became a star, even a minor one.

However, what really irks me about him is his distaste for anything he perceives as non-mainstream.

Although rumors persist of a FEELIES reunion, this night’s show was as close as one could get.

At age 58, Nick is recording some of the very best music of his career.

Several years after their first reunion shows, it was a different scenario, but just as satisfying.

It was a fitting end to a great festival that I look forward to attending in the future.

THURSTON MOORE played guitar with YOKO ONO for a few songs, thus paying tribute to an underrated and massively influential artist.

The first night was booked in conjunction with All Tomorrow Parties. Thus, the three acts performing played classic albums in order from start to finish.

I highly recommend seeing Sicko and furthermore, I hope that its ideas resonate with those who may not have considered them before.

Tthe day started off promising enough, sunny skies hiding what was to come.

With music happening simultaneously on three different stages, it’s almost impossible to catch it all, but we did the best we could.

Overall, despite its shortocmings, this was one of the best ELVIS COSTELLO shows I’ve seen in the last ten years.

It was nice to see THE KNITTERS in much more agreeable circumstanes as opposed to the last time they played here in Philadelphia.

Despite drunken morons and sound problems, GRAHAM PARKER and his newest backing band put on a stellar show full of fan favorites.

Despite my complaints about the show’s pacing, seeing THE STOOGES live is always a terrific experience.

The rough, gritty and realistic feel could make one believe that it was in fact a documentary.

If Henry Fool sounds far-fetched, it’s absolutely nothing compared to its sequel.

I would highly recommend seeing this film if you’re a fan of NIRVANA or KURT COBAIN.

Hearing “Kingdom of Love” and “Not Dark Yet” back-to-back were the highlights of the evening. I was absolutely mesmerized during both of them.

Guitar Romantic doesn’t have a shred of ironic, detached cool; instead it’s about some kids being completely and totally in love with rock and roll.

It’s always a treat to hear JAMES MCNEW’s falsetto and to hear IRA KAPLAN wail mercilessly on his guitar.

Please turn your cell phones off. No one cares what band you’re seeing and how cool you are. Just sit back and enjoy the show.

Opening with “We are the One”, they hurled one grenade after another in the forms of “Car Crash,” “I Believe in Me,” “Open Your Eyes” and others.

The first show by the dB’s in a year and a half was immensely enjoyable despite the rustiness of their playing.

I was disappointed, but I nevertheless await their next appearance in town as I hope the choice of venue and atmosphere is better-suited for them.

This was no ordinary LOU REED concert. This performance of Berlin in its entirety was a once-in-a-lifetime event.

THE EX build up tension throughout every single song, but they don’t ever release it.

Live a Little marks a stylistic return to their first two albums and as such, this show drew heavily upon their second album, the 2001 masterwork The World Won’t End, along with the new album.

They were hooting, hollering, singing along and even DANCING to all the songs. It was no mere pose and without pretension, but rather pure, unadulterated joy!

For the record’s 10th anniversary, AMY RIGBY payed tribute to herself by playing all of the songs on her debut album, in order.

For all its perceived ‘difficulty,’ the new album was very well received.

I don’t know what planet ARI UP is on, but it’s a rather interesting one.

Quite simply, they played one of the best, most jaw-dropping shows I’ve ever seen in my life!

The performance was less about subtlety, layering and mood than about in-your-face rocking.

“The Story of Yo La Tango” was so intense that I’m surprised the roof didn’t cave in after all the feedback and noise IRA KAPLAN generated.

Although they were technically the openers, THE DEARS were the real stars of this free lunch-time show that was broadcast live on WXPN.

THE LONG WINTERS have never had much luck in this town. Fortunately, this was not the case on this evening as they drew a fair number.

Songs like XTC’s “Making Plans for Nigel” are stripped of their anger, angst and passion and are instead transformed into bossa-nova ditties.

Singer BETH DITTO sounds like a ‘60s soul shouter, and it’s almost impossible to take your eyes off her.

This was my favorite show of the year so far. RADIO BIRDMAN just completely knocked my socks off.

Hopefully we won’t have to wait another twenty-seven years for them to come back!

This footage depicts a downtown Manhattan far removed from the expensive, trendy place it is today. Instead, it was dirty, carefree and cheap, attracting many artists, including many who are still active today.

Shellac was absolutely incredible. At times the fact that Albini and Weston trade off vocals reminded me a lot of the sadly now “on hiatus” Fugzai.

After this performance, I had to listen to my copy of GI again to remind myself of why I went in the first place!

MAYO THOMPSON, dressed in jogging pants, leaped around the stage like a man half his age, gazing upon the audience with a slightly mad look.

The venue felt like a raging inferno, but somehow it seemed appropriate for SLEATER-KINNEY’s final show in Philadelphia before they go on an indefinite hiatus.

It turns out that some drunken, small-minded fools decided to throw a PINK FLOYD poster at the band!

They opened with the great B-side “Lust in the Movies” and ran through all of their singles in a short, thirty-minute set.

On a quiet Tuesday night, Midlake showed why they’re one of the best up-and-coming bands in the US today.

While JENS LEKMAN is an entertaining, charismatic and funny performer, he has the annoying habit of radically rearranging his songs in a live setting.

It was worth sweating bullets in the insufferable heat of the First Unitarian Church basement to witness another great MISSION OF BURMA show.

The set was truly like a force of nature in terms of its intensity, power and passion.

All in all, it was a fantastic night of Swedish indie-pop, covering both the noisy and the gentle ends of the genre.

Touring behind their fantastic new album, Glaswegian twee-pop torchbearers CAMERA OBSCURA played a terrific, hour-long set.

JOE JACKSON is not only a legendary British singer-songwriter, but he was a resident of New York City for over twenty years.

The chiming majesty of the BAND OF HORSES brand of indie-pop was definitely impressive in a live setting despite some setbacks.

After listening to their debut album Give Me A Wall for months, I was expecting a sonic assault. And they didn’t disappoint.

They went on at about 10:30, and by 11:45 or so it was all over. However, they were so loud, catchy, fun and intense that it still felt draining afterwards, in the best possible way.

Playing to an at-best half-full TLA, Irish punk legends STIFF LITTLE FINGERS still put on a blistering, high-energy show.

I wish that the bill would be reversed, with ROGUE WAVE headlining, as should clearly be the case based on talent!

Along with the band, MARK E. SMITH seemed in excellent form, enthusiastically mumbling and slurring his way through an hour-and-fifteen-minute performance.

Alongside the requisite hits they included unexpected surprises, like their version of Memphis standard “Green Onions.”

The place was full well beyond capacity, and it was almost impossible to move, let alone dance, but it didn’t matter.

FILM SCHOOL let out blasts of noise that would’ve made their early ‘90s influences proud, thus further clearing out the unfortunately already small crowd.

On this evening, the show started off with the orchestra performing about 35 minutes of music from Il Sogno. After that, Costello came out and sang for the remainder of the show.

Although it isn’t quite a reunion without BILL MILLION there, it was still great to hear GLENN MERCER and company tackle FEELIES classics.

Although I’m not old enough to have followed him throughout his 30-year career, this show was my 19th time seeing Parker play live since I first saw him play in 1996.

They set up their equipment on the floor, so the only people who could see them were those who stood right near them.

The passing of GRANT MACLENNAN of THE GO-BETWEENS is especially sad because it seems like he had so many great years of music-making still ahead of him.

The day started off with Terrastock mainstay TOM RAPP, a former member of ‘60s group PEARLS BEFORE SWINE.

“Terrastock is not an indie-rock A&R feeding frenzy. Bands and artists are there at the personal invitation of the organisers because we love their music.”

At times, it was almost like one beautiful, cascading, repetitive groove which just pulled us listeners into its vortex and didn’t let go.

Hitting the stage at roughly 10:00 PM, they opened with a jaw-dropping version of “Chris Michaels” from their 2004 tour-de-force Blueberry Boat.

I automatically have a bias against this show from the start, even though I’m curious to see it.

On record, Editors display songwriting chops out the wazoo, despite drawing inevitable (and lazy) comparisons to Interpol.

Since they’re continuing the tour behind their sole album Bang Bang Rock and Roll, most of the material played was from that album.

VOXTROT played a slightly abridged set, hampered by technical difficulties, that nevertheless cemented their status as one of the best up-and-coming bands in the country.

For the uninitiated, The Go! Team’s music encompasses everything from early ‘70s soul, old-school hip-hop and garage rock to modern-day electronica and indie-rock, all under one umbrella.

Playing their first US tour dates in over 15 years, THE POGUES tore through the last night of their four-night stand.

This show represented a trio of DC veterans more famous for their celebrated older work trying to break out of those boxes.

They proved that their previous reputation as a shambling, inconsistent and awkward live band is well in the past and out of date.

Backed by a gigantic screen projecting all sorts of weird, psychedelic images throughout their performance, the concert felt more like a ‘60s “happening.”

Playing their first New York club show in 13 years, New Zealand indie-pop quartet THE BATS was awe-inspiring.

All of this is understandable, since Metric gives off an incredible amount of energy onstage. Every song seems like it’s twice as heavy and one and a half times as fast.

SISTERS OF MERCY played a lackluster show that made me wish that I hadn’t spent $45 plus service fees to see them.

Rob still has an amazing voice and he wrote some of the best songs of the ‘90s!

While these songs from Belew’s solo albums were fairly dull, with too much guitar wanking, the King Crimson songs were another matter altogether.

They played all the classics, including “You Can’t Be Funky,” “Boom in the Night,” and their most well-known song, “Too Many Creeps.”

The show was no different from the one a few months back, in that the setlist consisted entirely of songs from their landmark first four LPs.

FIELD MUSIC sounded great, especially considering that they were playing with THE DIGGS’ equipment; apparently they had to lie to customs officials about their reasons for visiting our country.

Despite the fact that the set consisted of so much new material, KAREN O had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hand…

They also came out with a guitarist, bass player, and a live drummer as well.

The piece built throughout the course of each of its four movements, pulling the listeners into a hypnotic trance of brutal, repetitive rhythms.

MISSION OF BURMA took the stage and proceeded to play what was by far the best show of the three times that I’ve seen them.

From the first moment she opened her mouth to sing, over the strains of “Run Devil Run,” we knew we were in for something very special.

Opening with a song from his old band TARKIO, COLIN MELOY played a combination of songs from THE DECEMBERISTS catalog, covers, and new songs.

Is the leap in venue size from the 200-capacity Mercury Lounge to the 500-capacity Bowery Ballroom in just two months time a sign of their growing popularity or mere hype?

An Eitzel solo performance is most compelling because of the many excellent songs he’s written over the years.

If you pay to go see a performance, what’s the point of talking all the way through it?

The highlight of these new monologues is a piece where ERIC BOGOSIAN plays an aging ex-rock star whose wild days are behind him

This show was a rare opportunity to see BEN GIBBARD of DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE play solo in an intimate venue, much smaller than the larger halls and theaters his band normally plays.

Right after midnight (and a complimentary champagne toast), YO LA TENGO took the stage to ring in the new year in true party fashion.

Having seen them twice before, I knew to expect a full-scale girl-led power-trio with a no-wave influenced assault.

YO LA TENGO’s annual Eight Nights of Hanukkah, during which they play a show on each night of Hanukkah at Maxwell’s, is a must-see.

If you have a chance to see VOXTROT play, I highly recommend it. With good looks to match their terrific playing and memorable songs, I predict big things for them and hope that they come back soon.

Rock School is a documentary about music teacher PAUL GREEN’s Philadelphia-based school of the same name, which teaches children ages 9-17 how to play rock music.

Headliners X came on and just dominated. I’d never seen them with the original lineup before, so this was a real treat for me.

Playing all of her legendary first album Horses to celebrate its 30th anniversary and recent reissue as a double CD set.

ROGUE WAVE’s Descended Like Vultures is currently one of my favorite albums and one of 2005’s finest offerings.

I’d never seen The Clientele before, but I’d heard that they were similar live to what their records sound like. It turns out that…

I went to go see a triple bill of Daptone Records artists at Southpaw this past Saturday night. I missed the 1st band, but managed to catch

I’m very excited to be writing for the online version of The Big Takeover since I believe that we should have an online presence that rivals sites that post new items daily, like Pitchfork.