Recent Articles in Interviews
Placebo on the Gentleman’s Art of Never Dropping Your Guard
Chalk it up to lucky number thirteen, in terms of years and longevity, that is. Placebo has gone well past the decade mark with album sales of over ten million to release sixth record Battle For the Sun, one of their most passionate and upbeat to date. 2009 finds the band armed with a fresh [...]
Silversun Pickups: Switch Off the Panic and Swoon
Of all the places to meet California’s Silversun Pickups on a casual Saturday morning, the recent Sentimentalist Magazine photo shoot with the band has to come out on top, at least in the areas of coziest and most unusual. It was SXSW 2009 in Austin, and our friend had graciously offered her plush loft just [...]
The Morning After Girls: Life Into Art
The morning after girls, recent New York City transplants from Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, first piqued my interest with a set that stood out for its shimmering onslaught of mystery, when they opened for The Dandy Warhols at NYC’s Webster Hall during a 2005 U.S. tour. Some years later, with three EPs and an album [...]
Great Northern Trips the Light
Rachel Stolte, half of the songwriting duo behind the Los Angeles-based band Great Northern, swears that after over five years of constant shows and tours, playing live is still what keeps the band most inspired. “It’s like arrested development,” she says, pausing for dramatic effect, “you get to go out and play and rock every night, and have drinks!”
The Rakes Klang It Up
It makes sense that The Rakes’ newest release, Klang, recorded in a Communist radio station in East Berlin, was a precise piece of work that was edited and re-edited until the band felt it was just right. The Rakes make hyper-smart songs brimming with bits from history and daily life and always manage to seek out the extraordinary within the mundane.
Doves: A Kingdom Evolves
It was quite the honor to chat with Jez Williams, 1/3 of British powerhouse Doves. Having been around for almost two decades, it’s hard to believe they’re only on their fourth album, but when the boys like to record, they go to town. Another town, or village, (a converted farmhouse in Cheshire, England, to be exact) hiding away crafting a sound that has claimed and enchanted fans worldwide.
Tinted Windows: Not Donning Capes
An amalgamation of 90’s music royalty, Tinted Windows is inserting catchy ballads and fun rhythms back into pop music. This new “super group” is a fusion of Taylor Hanson, James Iha from Smashing Pumpkins, Adam Schlesinger from Fountains of Wayne and, oddly enough, Bun E. Carlos from Cheap Trick. Though this collaboration of musicians may seem unexpected, Tinted Windows have produced an album full of charisma, generated by super pop and novelty.
Patrick Wolf is Having a Debbie Harry Moment
Not only can Patrick Wolf successfully change musical directions but he can successfully change hair color and look just as good. His double-album release of this summer’s The Bachelor and part two, The Conqueror (due in 2010) is something of epic proportions, but after the wonderment of 2007’s The Magic Position, I would expect nothing more from Wolf.
Coachella 2009: Saturday, Day 2, April 18, 2009: M.I.A., The Killers
Saturday was definitely crazier than Friday. Even though Friday was sold out, it seemed more tame because crowds had just driven in from work or were trying to “do” the Coachella festival while working from their blackberry on site. It’s not always that easy to find the stamina to rock after putting in your nine [...]
A Pre-SXSW Chat with London’s The Chap
Mega Breakfast indeed, old chaps. I first stumbled across London pop quartet The Chap and their startlingly uplifting song, “Proper Rock”, while rifling through mp3s of seas of international acts playing SXSW 2009. Not only did they stand out for their witty, Flight of the Conchords-like lyrics, but their keen, almost dadaist, sense of play. [...]
