The Passing of “Punk’s Godfather,” Lou Reed

A disbelieving silence seemed to fall over countless fans, musicians, and loved ones as news of Lou Reed’s death was shared on October 27^th. The iconic musician reportedly died from liver disease at his home in Southampton, New York.

It isn’t hard to understand why fans and fellow artists are deeply mourning the loss of Lou Reed, as he was undoubtedly one of music’s contemporary legends. His work spanned the genres of rock and roll, experimental art rock, avant-garde, and glam rock, and he is considered to be instrumental in sparking the entire punk movement.

As writer Andrew O’hehir explains, “Everything about him was deceptive and impossible to pin down, including the fact that this central figure of the 1960s avant-garde and godfather of the punk movement, this force of disorder, negation and subversion, was in many ways the product of an earlier era.” Reed influenced countless artists and musical movements, both as a member of the iconic band The Velvet Underground, and as a solo artist. His style and attitude continue to inspire innumerable emerging and established musicians.

One of Reed’s contemporaries, artist Patti Smith said, “Lou was a very special poet – a New York writer in the way that Walt Whitman was a New York poet…So many of us have benefited from the work he has done. We all owe him a debt. Most of us that owe a debt are not very happy to own up to it. Sometimes you like to imagine that you did everything on your own. But I think with Lou that everyone will stand in line to say thank you, in their own way,” of the way that he influenced her and other artists over time.

Acclaimed director and writer Mary Harron says of his death, “I’m devastated. I always thought he would live forever. Without Lou Reed and the Velvets, would there have been a CBGB’s, a New York punk, any kind of New York underground rock or art scene? Maybe but it would have had a completely different DNA…”

During his career, Lou Reed managed to make an incredible mark on the culture of music like few others have managed to do. His death will continue to be mourned all around the world. 

Image: rollingstone via Instagram

Obscure American Musical Landmarks

The American music industry brings together artists from all over the country, so why do so many people only think of New York, L.A. and Nashville as the major music hubs? There are so many places where some of the best musicians in the business got their start. Here are a few of the most obscure music landmarks:

Every band had to get their start somewhere, right?

Dub’s Lounge, Gainesville, FL

Established in 1964, this hole-in-the-wall bar was no larger than a small house, but became notorious for its topless dancers and famous for performances by a young Tom Petty. When Petty played there, which he sometimes would as many as six nights a week, he played with then band, Mudcrutch. The Eagles were also known to frequent Dub’s Lounge.

10^th Ave and E Street sign Belmar, NJ

This location is the namesake for Bruce Springsteen’s iconic band. The E Street Band’s first rehearsal was in 1972, and they practiced in the garage of the home of keyboardist David Sancious’ mother. Although Springsteen became a household name throughout the band’s history, Sancious also went on to do great work with artists Sting and Peter Gabriel.

The Stooges’ First House, Ann Arbor, MI

The Stooges, which Rolling Stone calls “the most raucous of all rock bands,” got their start in the small Detroit suburb of Ann Arbor. Some say that the group came up with its name while watching “The Three Stooges” at a two-story house they rented. This house is the same place where the band developed its unique, energetic, proto-punk sound that made them famous after the debut of their first record. This landmark is a good example of the obscure locations some bands originated from; many still most associate The Stooges with Detroit instead of Ann Arbor.

Other obscure music landmarks include Chess Records in Chicago, Aerosmith’s first house in Boston, and the Canyon Country Store in Los Angeles where Joni Mitchell, Mama Cass, and Jim Morrison frequented. 

What is “Post-Rock,” Anyway?

 

Stoner rock, folktronica, psychobilly, slowcore, anti-folk, post-classical screamcore death-pop. Okay, that last one I made up. But there are so many obscure contemporary music genres that sometimes it’s hard to keep them straight!

One genre that has been garnering more attention in recent years due to artists that have earned both mainstream credibility and an independent music fan base is “post-rock.” So, it’s not quite rock and roll, but it incorporates the same instruments? It’s the genre that spawned from rock? What is post-rock anyway?

According to All Music, “Post-rock was the dominant form of experimental rock during the ‘90s, a loose movement that drew from greatly varied influences and nearly always combined standard rock instrumentation with electronics.” From this genre, other subsets such as progressive rock and ambient music emerged, both which have excelled in the mainstream market over the last decade.

All Music also explains how, “post-rock was something of a reaction against rock, particularly the mainstream’s co-opting of alternative rock; much post-rock was united by a sense that rock & roll had lost its capacity for real rebellion.” The sound that comes from this departure from rock and roll music is heavily focused on pure sound, melodic hooks, and heavy instrumentation with minimal and sometimes no vocals. Some of the most prominent post-rock bands include Sigur Ros, Stereolab, and Grizzly Bear. Explosions In The Sky is another leader of the genre, one that Pitchfork considers “the last true exponent of turn-of-the-century post-rock -- they never wandered away from drifting instrumentals constructed around loud-soft dynamics and the contrast between soft guitar tones and pounding drums,” something that makes the band a leading example of post-rock.

Do you ever listen to post-rock music? What are your favorite post-rock bands?

Image: Rigmarole via Flickr CC

Unlikely Brilliance or Bizarre Mash-up: Elvis Costello and Questlove Collaborate on "Wise Up Ghost"

 

Over the last few decades, there have been many cross-genre collaborations between musicians that have ranged from genuinely fantastic to downright strange. One of the most anticipated September album releases is also a collaborative effort between rock and roll legend Elvis Costello and hip-hop heavyweight Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson, the drummer and leader of the Roots.

The two performers are incredibly famous within their own musical genres, and neither of them are strangers to collaborations on records. Their own sounds have evolved and developed into deeply meaningful, technically remarkable records over the years, so perhaps their joining forces is simply the stuff of destiny. Costello and Questlove reportedly started collaborating on their album Wise Up Ghost after meeting on the set of Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, where the Roots perform. The record was completed after a year’s worth of experimental sessions, and now we must wait in anticipation for the album’s release on the 17^th. 

What do the critics have to say? Ann Powers for NPR says “the album sounds like the best of Costello's stuff and like nothing he's done before. Working with musicians who've figured out how to apply hip-hop principles to a band dynamic, Costello locates himself within that framework to produce some of the most focused and visionary work of his later career.” The New York Times says that the album “underlines some of Mr. Costello’s bleakest imagery with stark, ominous funk,” and calls both Costello and Questlove “inveterate collaborators and musical encyclopedias.” One thing that critics can certainly agree on is that this album is technically remarkable, and that heavy, sinister themes are carried along by the sensual funk that Questlove employs. 

Costello and Thompson are now among the hordes of other seemingly unlikely musical collaborators like Coldplay and Rihanna, or Lou Reed and Metallica, just to name a few. When two seriously talented musicians join forces, the result has to be phenomenal, right? We’ll soon find out when Wise Up Ghost is released later this month.  

Image: milo43 via Instagram
Image: questlove via Instagram 

Tape Cassettes and Bands and Burgers

Shannon and the Clams cassette tape.

 

 

 

If reemerging trends in punk culture have taught us anything over the last few decades, it’s that the do-it-yourself attitude adopted by the counterculture genre will always take you pretty far. Just take Burger Records, the unassuming record label and partnering store which has achieved immense success in recent years by not following anyone’s rules but their own.

Today, popular music is predominantly controlled by corporate labels, molding the mainstream music industry into more of a marketing business and less of a nod to the good ‘ol days of rock and roll. With this in mind, it seems like the independent labels like Burger are having all the fun, while still doing pretty well for themselves as a small business. Created in 2008 by Sean Bohrman and Lee Rickard, Burger Records was a way for the duo to produce their own music for their power pop band, Thee Makeout Party. Based out of Fullterton, California, the two saw a need for a record shop in their area, and Burger became a platform for a store of the same name, co-owned by Bohrman and Brian Flores.

Burger Records has garnered a lot of attention over the last few years in the independent music scene for its dedication to making a mark on the music industry in ways that pay homage to sensibilities of the past. This means producing albums with a DIY attitude, creating cassette tapes and 7” vinyl records, being inclusive, and just having a good time. The label is known for supporting often young, local bands with a lot of talent and a love for rock and roll. Subgenres of rock like garage rock, power pop, and punk pervade the label’s overall aesthetic, which mirrors the kind of music favored in underground scenes.

Cassette tapes and vinyl records certainly won’t make Burger or its signed bands a lot of money, but that’s actually sort of the point. Burger Records allows for inclusiveness for listeners, a closed gap between fans and musicians, and exposure for artists who don’t have any desire to succumb to mainstream standards. Burger has represented and helped produce music for more than three hundred bands, many of which tour often and play at a number of popular festivals like increasingly influential South By Southwest. Bands like King Tuff, JEFF the Brotherhood, Quilt, and Audacity bring the fun, and attitude back to rock and roll, and Burger couldn’t be a better label to collaborate with them. 

Images: burgerrecords4life via Instagram

Rolling Stone Magazine’s Controversial Cover Story

Image: Bobbi Bowers via Flickr

Since its first issue was published in 1967, Rolling Stone Magazine has been a leading force in investigative journalism paired with articles about music, entertainment, and counterculture. As the music industry has changed immensely since rock and roll’s heyday (also arguably Rolling Stone’s most notable era as a cultural icon in its own right), the publication has evolved as well, though still permeates media with oft-controversial articles and features.

In the aftermath of the tragic 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, Rolling Stone, like hundreds of other media outlets, published an article about alleged young terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, which has sparked unbelievable controversy. The magazine featured an article called “The Bomber: How a Popular, Promising Student Was Failed by His Family, Fell Into Radical Islam, and Became a Monster,” paired with a self-taken portrait of Tsarnaev donning a t-shirt, tousled hair, and a relaxed expression. Within moments of the magazine cover popping up on Rolling Stone’s website, the Internet was buzzing with commentary, much of it outraged and impassioned. 

Rolling Stone is no stranger to controversy. From its earliest days the publication has featured fearless writing from the infamous Hunter S. Thompson, articles about drugs, sex, and counterculture, the darker side of musicians, death and suicide; even murderers have graced its cover. Magazine subscribers and those unfamiliar with its normal content were appalled by the cover photo, which many say “glamorizes” Tsarnaev, when the victims should be receiving fame. Boston residents and even the city’s mayor, Thomas Menino, wrote to the magazine to show their disapproval, and thousands of people urged others to boycott the magazine for its obvious attempt to make a profit from a tragedy. 

 Image: Vegabondblogger via Flickr

 Rolling Stone has stood by the article, written by contributing editor Janet Reitman, as well as the cover photo, which boycotters seemed to forget made the front page of The New York Times and countless other publications. The magazine has made statements about their ongoing commitment to reporting on the most important contemporary issues and publishing compelling articles, and despite a push to boycott the magazine, Rolling Stone’s sales for the issue featuring Tsarnaev have more than doubled.

Is alleged terrorist Dzhokhar Tsarnaev simply another figure that is as important to write about as John Lennon, Charles Manson, or Snooki, three other notable cover stories that Rolling Stone has featured? How do you weigh in on the controversial cover?

Pearl Jam’s ‘Lightning Bolt’ Marks Tenth Studio Album

From the band's official website

Pearl Jam is one of the enduring bands to arise from Seattle’s grunge-music era of the 1990s, and fans will be happy to know that the rock group has no plans of slowing down. Over the last couple decades, the band has evolved from a young grunge act to a bona fide rock and roll legend in the music industry. Pearl Jam’s sound and style remains unprecedented, and their dedication to their craft is embodied in a commitment to creating new records.

It’s been more than twenty years since their first album was released, and the band has recently announced an upcoming tour to coincide with their tenth studio album, set to drop in October, 2013 in the U.S. The group’s much-anticipated new album, Lightning Bolt is being released on Monkeywrench/Republic Records, and was produced by Brendan O’Brien. Lightning Bolt is Pearl Jam’s first studio album since their highly acclaimed Backspacer, released nearly four nears ago in September, 2009.

Image: 

Mick Arieta via Flickr

Preceding the announcement of a new album, the band revealed a massive 24-date North American tour, which kicks off in early October in Pittsburg, PA, and is set to end in Seattle, the city where the band first formed, in December. Other stop along the way include major cities like Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, and New Orleans. The band is famed for their ability to play incredible sets to a packed audience; their promotional tour for Lightning Bolt promises to be one of their best tours to date. 

For more information about Lightning Bolt and Pearl Jam’s upcoming North American tour, visit the band’s official website.

Crying Baby All the way to Broadway

Janis Joplin was a rock and roll powerhouse during her lifetime, her signature voice and style has earned the late artist an enormous adoring following that continues to flourish even after her death in 1970. Her raspy, unruly vocals, combined with influences from rock, soul, the blues, and country music make Joplin a truly unique artist. 

Joplin’s life and work has been commemorated in many ways over the last few decades, and the newest immortalization of the singer is fashioned in the form of a play, set to hit Broadway this fall. The show’s producers said that the musical, entitled “A Night With Janis Joplin,” will start previews at the Lyceum Theatre starting in September, 2013.

Image: Portland Center Stage via Flickr

 

“A Night With Janis Joplin” is an adaptation for Broadway, written and directed by Randy Johnson. The musical was previously performed as “One Night With Janis Joplin,” premiering in Portland, Oregon in 2011 and since touring in other cities. The original play stars actress Mary Bridget Davies as the exuberant and iconic singer, who beat out over 150 other women for the role. Davies is set to play Janis Joplin again in the Broadway rendition of Johnson’s play.

Fans of Joplin’s work can expect to enjoy a live onstage band during the performance, and will recognize famous songs like “Summertime,” “Cry Baby,” and “Me and Bobby McGee,” amongst many more of the singer’s signature songs. A Los Angeles Times review of the original play called it a “cosmic collusion of persona and perception, this electrifying concert musical resurrects the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll with the sort of seismically sensational results normally encountered at stadiums and pop festivals."

“A Night With Janis Joplin” on Broadway promises to be a tremendously entertaining tribute to the iconic singer. Visit the show’s official website to learn more.  

Rock and Roll Rebels of the Twentieth Century

In the twentieth century, Rock and Roll music was revolutionized by artists who pushed the boundaries of what that genre could be. Musicians often inserted radical politics into their songs, creating controversy by making important social commentary. Rolling Stone Magazine just released their list of 15 Rock and Roll Rebels , a sparse list, but an important one that highlights a few of the many powerful voices in punk, grunge, and folk rock. These often intersecting genres propelled iconic Rock and Roll musicians into infamy for their rebellious nature.

The magazine's list doesn’t honor rock stars who gained notoriety for trashing hotel rooms and being bawdy, eccentric musicians, but rather, those who weren’t afraid to challenge social norms through music. One artist who made the list is Elvis Costello, who once said, “My ultimate vocation in life is to be an irritant.” His musical style, originally formed from punk ideals, is what remains rebellious; Costello has mystified fans and critics by continuing to change his style of music.

Photo credit Flickr

The only female to make the list is Irish singer-songwriter Sinead O’Connor, who gained a rebellious reputation for her outspoken opinions about the government and organized religion. Rolling Stone wrote, “she will forever be remembered for shredding a photo of Pope John Paul II on the October 3, 1992 episode of Saturday Night Live...to protest the Catholic church's long suppression of evidence of sexual abuse among clergymen.”

Kurt Cobain of 90s grunge band Nirvana, also made the list. The magazine explains that “In his short life, the bandleader made it his duty to challenge beliefs – both his fans' and his own.” He often questioned society’s treatment of marginalized groups in lyrics and in interviews, which wasn’t always received well by fans. An artist who died young, Cobain is most rebellious for his beliefs, and his impact on the grunge rock genre.

Other notable names to make the list of Rolling Stone’s 15 Rock and Roll Rebels are: The Clash, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Fela Kuti.