Johnny Marr – The Messenger (Sire Records, 2013) Over his tenure with The Smiths, and in the two and a half decades since that band split, Johnny Marr has built a reputation as the greatest guitarist of a generation. His…
Author: Patrick A. Reed
ESG: Live at Bowery Electric, 1/30/13
In the late 1970s, four young sisters from the South Bronx formed a band and began to perform around New York City, starting with talent shows and quickly moving up to nightclubs and discotheques. They produced a completely unique form…
Single Reviews: Luscious Jackson, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Veronica Falls
Luscious Jackson – Are You Ready? (self-released, 2013) Luscious Jackson were one of the great genre-bending pop groups of the 90s, turning out folk-inflected trip-hop, harmonic disco torch songs, slither-funk party raps, and whatever else they felt like. They were…
Album Reviews: Czarface (7L/Esoteric/Inspectah Deck), Jamie Lidell
Czarface- s/t (Brick Records, 2013) Czarface is a new project that features the dynamic rap duo 7L and Esoteric joining forces with Inspectah Deck (of Wu-Tang Clan) to produce fourteen tracks of action-packed boom-bap, and it’s an inspired combination. The…
Hip-Hop Comics: Ron Wimberly’s Prince Of Cats.
Ronald Wimberly’s Prince Of Cats hit bookstore shelves last September, and I picked it up immediately, took it home, and read it that evening. Now, half a year later, I’m still turning it over in my head, constantly revisiting it,…
Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde: Live at SOB’s, 1/31/13
I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this tour. Four of the original architects of The Pharcyde’s debut record, performing the entire album live onstage, twenty years later. I was trying to keep my expectations tempered with a healthy…
Pop Culture Library: Disney’s Song Of The South, Star Trek Unauthorized, Doctor Who Memories
Who’s Afraid Of The Song Of The South? (And Other Forbidden Disney Stories) by Jim Korkis (Theme Park Press, 2012) This new book by Jim Korkis (a sequel of sorts to his essential The Vault Of Walt) is a welcome…
Album Reviews: Pillowfight, Karthala 72
Pillowfight – s/t (Bulk Recordings, 2013) We open with a creepy organ line that could be scavenged from some forgotten low budget horror film. A strutting beat kicks in over the top. A voice joins, purring a decisive kiss-off in…
Shuggie Otis: Live at The Highline Ballroom, 1/10/2013
In 1974, 21 year-old blues guitarist and session musician Shuggie Otis released his third solo record, titled Inspiration Information. It consisted of 9 tunes: dreamy hazy psychedelic soul ballads, downtempo funk driven by primitive drum machines, ethereal wisps of song…
X and The Reverend Horton Heat: Live at Irving Plaza, 11/30/12 and 12/1/12
It’s always cause for excitement when X come to town. And this time around, with The Reverend Horton Heat sharing the bill, the atmosphere in Irving Plaza pushed past simple enthusiasm over seeing a concert, and into the realm of…