Blogcritics Author: DJRadiohead

BCRadio Podcast: JaMarcus Russell, NFL Draft, March Madness, Oblivion, and House

DJRadiohead — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 02:48:48 EDT

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Blogcritics Sports Editor Matt Sussman plays "Fact or Fiction" about March Madness, Major League Baseball, David Carr, Randy Moss, and the NFL Draft. Ken Edwards also stops by to talk about the big new title on PS3, Oblivion.

In the opening segment, I yammer about this week's episode of House. If you missed it, Diane Kristine will have the latest for you.

DJRadiohead is Assistant Music Editor and hosts the BC Radio Podcast. He is formerly an award-winning journalist and broadcaster. His podcasts and writing can be found at DJRadiohead.com as well as The Mondo Project.

The Listening Room March 26, 2007: Nirvana, Joan Jett, Paul Westerberg, Genesis, Queen

DJRadiohead — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 23:06:47 EDT

Much excitement as we return The Listening Room to it's standard Monday time slot. Much excitement as we welcome a first-time contributor to this week's installment. Much excitement because as I skim this week's entries, I see a lot of great music worth listening to and discussing.

These may not be the best songs ever, they may not even be our favorites, but they kept us entertained last week. You could do worse than to try a few of them out and see what they do for you.

DJRadiohead: "Milk It" from In Utero by Nirvana

“Milk It” uses nearly every element of the Nirvana playbook. The soft/loud dynamic is used. Sonically, producer Steve Albini's fingerprints seem to be all over this song. The detuned guitars have that very In Utero ambiance. Cobain's guitar doesn't exactly create a melody during the verse, nor does it serve the rhythm. Instead it plinks out nonsensical notes, bathed in the glorious Albini effect. In addition to loving the guitar sounds Cobain and Albini crafted together, Krist Novoselic's bass has the gorgeous boom and buoyancy to it.

I might be alone in this, but I find it brilliant that Kurt Cobain could toss out a line like “Look on the bright side of suicide” with a mix of fury, menace, and humor. Cobain tosses out a string of contradictory lines that sound like nonsense on the surface and a few biting or funny one liners.

You don't have to reinvent the wheel when you have a great formula and a great song. “Milk It” is not a lead song, it's a supporting one. It isn't the reason In Utero is a great album, but In Utero wouldn't be great without it.

Connie Phillips: "We Will Rock You" from Queen Greatest Hits by Queen

Last weekend I accompanied my daughter and other members of her Pony Club to this year's Quiz Rally – A knowledge based competition between all the clubs in the Great Lakes Region. Quiz Rally is much like any other academic competition, except it's a test of horse knowledge. As with most USPC events, part of the process is to teach the kids to work together and perform as a team while having a healthy competitive spirit.

As "our girls" stood outside one of the rooms, waiting for their next phase in the contest, they started the familiar rhythmic Stomp stomp clap! Stomp Stomp Clap! before breaking into the first verse of "We Will Rock You" proving to me it's a timeless and classic song of rivalry. However, like many songs that are associated with sporting events, the lyrics and rhythms are such they get stuck in your head and you find yourself still singing them a week later.

Sterfish: "Nothing Like This" from Ruff Draft by J. Dilla

The title of this song really describes it. Every time I listen to it, it amazes me just how unusual it is. Despite a rough, gritty sound filled with distortion, it is really a sweet love song. Dilla doesn't quite rap on this song and he doesn't quite sing either. The beat has Dilla's always excellent drums but features a trippy, warped beat that reveals itself to (possibly) be country in origin by the end.

It sounds like it shouldn't add up to a great song at all but in Dilla's hands, it does. Maybe that's why I like it so much. It defies a lot of conventions. It's sad that, as far as I know, Dilla never made another song quite like it.

Pico: "Korn Dutch" from Live In Tokyo by Lettuce

Nothing works better at getting a Friday afternoon attitude on a Monday morning than some James Brown inspired funk-jazz jams. And who better than to provide those jams than a supergroup consisting of Soulive's keyboard player and guitarist along with John Scofield's drummer from Uberjam, Adam Deitch? It's played live, which is how jam music is meant to be played. "Korn Dutch" contains just enough interesting chord changes to take the tune beyond the generic and offers plenty of solo space. Eric Krasno in particular rips on guitar. The JB-like horns add the cherry to the sundae.

Mark Saleski: "Bad Reputation" from Bad Reputation by Joan Jett

You might be shocked to learn that TheWife™ has a favorite television show: American Chopper. The only way this can be explained, since neither of us gives one hoot about motorcycles, is that she thinks one of the Teutels is hot... I do NOT want to know which one. Seriously.

Anyhoo, the show has been using "Bad Reputation" in a promo. I'd seen it a bunch of times and my weakness for old power pop/punk took hold.

Honestly, this song, in all of its Runaways/Ramones goodness, just can't be turned up too loud.

Mat Brewster: "Knockin' On Mine" by Paul Westerberg from 14 Songs

I got this album from the $3 bin from my favorite local record shop back in high school. It stayed in heavy rotation in my car for months, and started my long lived love affair with the Replacements. The record starts with a flash and a bang on this song, and I must admit I spent many years after owning it, trying not to be first to laugh, as to prove I, as Paul sings, "didn't get the joke."

It's been ages since I gave it a listen, but for whatever reason I pulled it off the shelf earlier this week, and it's been making me all nostalgic and happy ever since.

Glen Boyd: "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" from Wolfgang's Vault by Genesis.

So I guess I'm going to cheat and do this two weeks in a row, since I got away with it last week. The thing is that as long as Wolfgang's Vault keeps adding shows like this on a regular basis, I simply can't help myself. What we have here--again newly added to the Concert Vault just this week -- is an ultra rare live performance of the complete Lamb Lies Down On Broadway rock opera from Peter Gabriel and Genesis.

Recorded at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA on 01/24/1975, this has long been considered to be the holy grail for fans of the prog-rock, pre Phil Collins era Genesis. Collins is still here of course, behind the drums where in my personal opinion is the place he really belongs in this particular group.

The recording here is absolutely incredible, and on songs like "Hairless Heart" and "The Lamia," the musical nuances -- particularly those between keyboardist Tony banks and guitarist Steve Hackett -- will simply make you melt in your seat. For those who can't afford the version on the pricey Genesis Archives 1967 - 1975 box-set, this truly is the Grail.

Michael Jones: "All These People" from Oh My Nola by Harry Connick, Jr.

For his latest musical offering, Harry Connick, Jr. went back to the studio and recorded two albums meant to pay tribute to his hometown, as well as to serve notice that all thoughts of New Orleans do not have to be sorrowful. Instead, he offers the ideals of hope, history, love, and understanding. Of course, as those of us from Louisiana are want to do, he added a lil' bit of Langiappe to his albums, by making sure they were just as equally filled with beautiful music as they were with beautiful intentions..

The song I've found myself listening to over and over, a stunner of a track entitled "All These People," comes off of the more lyrical of the two releases, Oh My Nola. Blessed with additional vocals from Gospel legend Kim Burrell, the song (one of only four Connick-penned originals on the album) is just this wonderful slow-burner of a musical elegy dealing with the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. I just... well, let's just say that I just love everything about this song, all at the same time that I mourn the thing that inspired it.

As a side note, the companion album to Oh My Nola, the mainly instrumental Chanson du Vieux Carre, is an amazing album in its own right. If you have the chance and opportunity, buy both albums and sit back with your headphones and visit the music of Harry Connick's (and my own) heritage.

March 20, 2007: BCRadio Podcast - March Madness, PS3, 300, Johnny Depp, Blues Music Awards

DJRadiohead — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:07:36 EDT

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I'm joined by Gaming Editor Ken Edwards and Sports Editor Matt Sussman on this week's show. Suss and I compare brackets and talk about the March Madness basketball tournament. Ken Edwards has the latest on six new, exclusive PS3 titles and lets you know which ones you need to buy... NOW!

In my opening monologue, I touch on the Blues Music Awards, 300, and we talk about the latest news on Glosslip.

Music Review: Barrelhouse Buck McFarland - Alton Blues

DJRadiohead — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 14:22:11 EDT

I love learning history. I particularly love it when history and music collide. I get all Indiana Jones and reach for my debit card as I go racing through the Amazon jungle in search of lost treasure. I'm pretty hardcore that way. Indy deals with snakes in a motherfucking temple. I deal with more choices than my Visa will allow and impatience as I wait for my treasure to arrive.

My study of the blues has been every bit a history lesson, and I have been rewarded with real some good booty. Each discovery opened a new web of possible roads to travel. I've told the story a million times, but with the release of Barrelhouse Buck McFarland's Alton Blues, it bears repeating.

My path to the blues began with a fascination with the Rolling Stones. In listening to the early Stones records, I came to realize many of their earliest cuts were covers of Chuck Berry songs and blues standards. I stepped from the Stones to Chuck Berry, and from Chuck Berry to the Chess label. Through the Chess label, the possibilities exploded into myriad avenues and I continue to walk down them, one by one.

This journey has introduced me to more than a new genre and its lineage. My understanding and knowledge of periods of American history has deepened by being exposed to the blues. I have also added volumes of knowledge of music history, a priceless experience because music continues to be one of the great passions of my life.

Alton Blues is a historic treasure of a record and it almost never got made or released. This album is culled from sessions recorded in 1961, eight months before Barrelhouse Buck McFarland died, and 46 years later it has finally been issued. Alton Blues captures the sound of a Depression-era bluesman recorded on comparatively modern equipment. In addition to the glorious music on this album, there is a five-minute spoken word track, featuring Buck telling stories of his days traveling and playing music with, among others, Petey Wheetstraw. Fortunately, Robert Koester understood what an extraordinary opportunity this was and he resisted the temptation to tinker with or modernize McFarland's sound.

He recorded for Decca and Paramount in the '20s and '30s and there is no record that he recorded anything else until these sessions in 1961. It is difficult to imagine when listening to these recordings that any of his power or passion diminished in the years between those early sides and what was recorded during these later sessions. It is equally difficult to believe he passed away eight months later.

McFarland's voice combines the falsetto of a Skip James without the spookiness and the rasp of Ray Charles without the smoothness and definition. As for his piano style, his left hand is the rhythm section banging out the kind of insistent rhythm a bass and drum kit would have provided for his vocal and right-handed piano melodies.

“Four O'Clock Blues” and the other tracks with vocals are reminiscent of early John Lee Hooker sides in that the sole instrument, guitar for Hooker and piano for McFarland, focuses more on rhythm and timekeeping than impressing listeners with chops and solos.

The technology used to capture these sessions are undeniably better than when he started, but even today's technology would probably collapse in any attempt to capture the power in a song like “Barrelhouse Buck.” Limitations in recording and mastering technologies have dulled the jagged sound of Buck hammering the keys. If you listen carefully, you can tell this is a song designed to bring the house down at the end of a weekend set in a rowdy bar. Both takes of “Alston Blues,” named for his St. Louis suburb hometown of Alston, Illinois, have a shuffling groove to them. Cuts like “Alston” and “Buck's Blues” earn him the “Barrelhouse” moniker. These are parlor blues, saloon blues. “Alston” and “Buck's Blues” are portals to another time and place.

I don't want to discourage anyone from reading about history, but albums like this remind us books are not the only source to learn about the past. Remember, grasshoppers, Indiana Jones put down the books every once in a while, too. Personally, I prefer my spin on adventure to his. All he ever wanted to do was find old things to put in a library. Alston Blues is much more than an ancient artifact. Don't put it in the library. Put it in your CD player and on your iPod and let the past live again. History is cool, with or without those motherfucking snakes.

The Listening Room March 20, 2007: Jerry Cantrell, Amy Winehouse, Brand New and Giant

DJRadiohead — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 14:00:03 EDT

A day late and... a day late. I've got nothing. It was bound to happen sooner or later, that a weekly edition of The Listening Room would slip from Monday to Tuesday. I have a good excuse this week. You can read my excuse and consider it a supplement to this very installment of The Listening Room. Your compliance is appreciated.

These may not be the best songs ever, they may not even be our favorites, but they kept us entertained last week. You could do worse than to try a few of them out and see what they do for you.

DJRadiohead: "Psychotic Breakdown" from Degradation Trip Vol. 1 & 2 by Jerry Cantrell

I guess that tells you everything you need to know about my mental state of the last week then, doesn't it? Alice in Chains fans know how much Jerry Cantrell meant to the sound of the band, but it is almost scary to listen to tracks like this. Jerry will never be able to fully summon Layne Staley's vocal powers, but he can mimic them a bit and he does on this song. Layne's energy is certainly lurking here and Jerry has rarely sounded better. His layered, detuned vocals and detuned guitars have an integrity and power the nu-metal clones that followed never got right. "Psychotic Breakdown" would have been hugely popular if it had appeared on an AiC record.

Mark Saleski: "Rehab" from Back To Black by Amy Winehouse.

I've had two musical whiplash experiences recently caused by seeing performances on the television. The first was due to Lily Allen and her appearance on Saturday Night Live. She played "Smile" and my reaction was something like: What The Hell Was THAT?!

Similarly, I caught Amy Winehouse on David Letterman's Late Show. Out comes a woman with a straight-lined dress, heels, giant hair and mega-makeup. I have no idea what this is going to sound like. She launches into "Rehab" and I am transfixed. With a big 'ole horn section and backup singers, Winehouse sounds like the evil side of Diana Ross. Or Something.

Michael Jones: "Sowing Season" from The Devil and God are raging inside me. by Brand New

For weeks I'd been staring at this interesting looking cd cover, only to shake my head and decide not to purchase it. I'd never heard of the band, you see, and buying it simply because I thought the cover was interesting... weird, right? Eventually, I caved (the relatively low price helped) and bought it. I'm so glad I did.

The music enwrapped in the artwork has turned out to be one of the best I've heard so far, this year. Dark lyrics, gorgeous melodies that rise and fall at the whim of whatever emotion the song is trying to channel, all serve to make this a complicated and complete album. That's a rare word, these days.

"Sowing Season" starts off with this slow and melancholy give and take with the vocals and a soft guitar melody, only to explode into this heavy crunch of emotion and sound. Sure, there is nothing new about having dynamics in a song, but such things are standards because they truly work when they're done correctly. Brand New, on "Sowing Season," without a doubt, has it down pat. Just a killer opening track to a wonderful album.

Ian Woolstencroft "Innocent Days" from Last of the Runaways by Giant

This is a prime slice of classic 80’s hard rock, all big guitars and big choruses (not to mention big hair). At it's heart is Dann Huff, providing both screeching guitar and emotive vocals.

Picking a track from Giant’s debut wasn’t easy, it’s packed full of great songs but this one kind of summed up my feelings. This album and others like it were the soundtrack to my late teens/early twenties, a time when anything seemed possible. “These are the innocent days” sings Dann Huff and you know what? He was right.

Glen Boyd: "Live At CBGB's New York, NY 08/11/1979" from Wolfgang's Vault by The Patti Smith Group.

So I'm not sure if this really qualifies for The Listening Room or not, but this week an amazing show from Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductee Patti Smith was added over at Wolfgang's Vault, and I can't stop listening to it.

Starting off with an incredible reading of "Land" from Horses that segues seamlessly into "Land of 1000 Dances", Patti and the boys are extremely loose throughout this two hour set. The best parts come toward the middle with a four song sweep that begins with "Dancing Barefoot," moves quickly through "Space Monkey" and "Privilege" from Easter and then winds up with a ferocious "25th Floor," which finds the band sounding particularly muscular. There are also several choice covers here, ranging from John Lennon's "Cold Turkey" to the Yardbirds "For Your Love" (with Lenny Kaye on lead vocals!). The Patti Smith Group of this period was renowned for it's live performances, and this one is no exception.

Anna Creech: "Prisoner of War" from Life Beneath The Sun by Michelle Mangione

By the time I finish reviewing a CD, I usually have one or two songs that I keep coming back to over the next few days and weeks. The most recent is Michelle Mangione's "Prisoner of War." The song begins minimally with an acoustic guitar and Mangione's voice, backed with a little bit of accordion. As the song shifts into the chorus, a little percussion is added, and then electric guitar. The build-up of instrumentation is classic acoustic pop-rock, and it does a good job of following the lyrical ebbs and flows. Every time this song comes around on shuffle, my ears perk up and I can't stop bobbing my head along with the beat. The whole album is good, but for some reason the combination of lyrics and music keeps drawing me back to this track in particular.

BMA Music Review: Otis Rush - All Your Love I Miss Loving, Live at the Wise Fools Pub, Chicago

DJRadiohead — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 20:28:19 EDT

Editor's Note: This review is part of a series of albums and artists nominated for the 2007 Blues Music Awards (full list of nominees). This album is nominated in the Historical Album of the Year category.

I am a big believer in the idea of putting your money where your mouth is. I wrote a few months back about giving up my free copy of Guster's Ganging Up On the Sun, an album I declared to be the best of 2006, and went out and bought a copy of my own. This entire series of reviews of albums and artists nominated for the 2007 Blues Music Awards can be traced back to one album: Otis Rush - All Your Love I Miss Loving, Live at The Wise Fools Pub, Chicago (that album title is almost long enough for a U2 record). I got out my checkbook and joined the Blues Foundation within days of learning this album was nominated for a BMA.

Someone at Delmark should get a raise for releasing Wise Fools (as well as Junior Wells' Live at Theresa's). It is a shame the tapes of this show sat around in the vaults for so long. This is live Chicago blues at its very best! The sound quality is a little less than pristine and shiny but it is still excellent, and in its own way these slight shortcomings add to the authentic feel of the album and the moment. These days, live albums are remixed, remastered, and cleaned up, smoothing over any of the blood, guts, and intensity of a performance. Wise Fools has not been fussed over and you really have the feeling this is what he sounded like on that January night.

There is nothing particularly special about this night and that, in turn, is what makes it special. This is not the sound of a band going through the motions to make a live album in order to get out of some record contract. Adding to that feeling of authenticity is Rush's backing band. Bob Levis, Bob Stroger, and Jesse Green spent many nights on stage behind Rush, and that time together established these guys as a powerful blues force. There are no guest appearances from celebrity friends, although Alberto Gianquinto sits in on electric piano and sax players Chris "Barcelona Red" Mason and Rawl Hardman sit in at the end of the show. This is the sound of a professional band, singing for its supper. The band is tight, performing because this is what they do and they're damn good at it. They didn't go to any extra trouble because they didn't have to- they weren't trying to dress up a pig. Some backing bands demonstrate their prowess by competing for and sometimes stealing the spotlight- with or without the blessing of the star. Other sidemen prove their worth by never bring any attention to themselves at all, by always playing the right note at the right time with the right feel. This performance sounds like one Otis Rush and his band delivered hundreds of times and that's what makes it special, that's what makes it a fitting nominee in the Historical Album of the Year category.

This performance was recorded around the time of his studio album Cold Day in Hell, which was released sometime in 1976, presumably after this January show. Rush, Levis, Stroger, and Green had either just finished cutting the album or would soon head into the studio. Five of the 12 tracks from Cold Day were performed for Wise Fools, including a re-recording of his classic "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)." Missing from the set is "I Can't Quit You Baby," a Willie Dixon-penned song he made a hit well before Led Zeppelin, but there are many Rush live albums that do include it. It is not terribly missed here, even though it is a great song that he performs well.

It is tough to choose highlights when there are no low spots, but I have some favorite moments. His cover of B.B. King's "You're Breaking My Heart" is fabulous. The version from Cold Day in Hell is good, but there's a little more fire in this live version. "Mean Old World," another song from Cold Day, features the signature stop/start riff he used countless times on various songs. Rush rarely toured with a piano player, likely due to the expense of another mouth to feed and the added equipment, but this show was recorded at home in Chicago. As such, Gianquinto's electric piano helps this stand apart from other Rush live sets and is particularly effective on "All Your Love (I Miss Loving)." For pure guitar power, the fiery solo on "It Takes Time" and "Motoring Along," the instrumental closing track both stand out. Overall, this and So Many Roads: Live in Concert are the definitive live albums in Rush's catalog. No blues fan should be without either.

I went into my exploration of the blues a virtual blank slate. I knew a few names, I knew a few songs from having heard them covered by rock artists inspired by the originals. Beyond that, I knew nothing. I heard Rush's version "So Many Roads, So Many Trains" from the Chess Box Set, and that song alone made enough of an impression I went looking for more. I still can't explain the power of the hold his music has on me, but I had a dream about him a few years ago. Some music is banal enough to induce sleep. Rush's music is powerful enough to stir me from sleep.

All Your Love I Miss Loving Live at The Wise Fools Pub, Chicago Set List

Please Love Me
You're Breaking My Heart
All Your Love (I Miss Loving)
Will My Woman Be Home Tonight
Mean Old World
Woke Up this Morning
High Society (Society Woman)
It Takes Time
Gambler's Blues
Feel So Bad
Sweet Little Angel
Motoring Along

Phillips and WCG Announce WCG Phillips amBX Challenge

DJRadiohead — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 18:55:44 EDT

Phillips Electronics and World Cyber Games announced a three-year partnership and the creation of the WCG Philips amBX Cup Challenge. The World Cyber Games is one of the top international gaming competitions on the planet. The amBX hardware will now be integrated into select gaming stations at the many WCG sites worldwide and gamers will now have a chance to put their skills to the test in this new Challenge.

Unfamiliar with the amBX hardware? Designed by Phillips, the hardware is a collection of peripherals designed to add to the sensory overload of today's increasingly intricate games. The amBX PC gaming peripherals enhance light effects, sound effects, as well as vibration and air effects. If the experience of virtually beating the hell out of your opponents was not enough, now it is going to look, feel, and sound even more amazing.

I am sure critics of the gaming industry are thrilled that games with violent content are now going to feel even more real, and feel more real in head-to-head competitions. However, responsible gamers with double-digit IQs capable of distinguishing between reality and make-believe have got to be excited. Not only will this hardware make playing the game more intense, it will up the intensity of the competitive aspect of the WCG.

The Challenge will be held at WCG sites all over the world and players will compete on systems armed with the amBX hardware. The winner takes home the Phillips amBX Cup.

More than one million players from more than 70 countries participated in last year's WCG and more than 24 million people watched the WCG finals, the first-ever live satellite broadcast of such an event.

I'm not surprised that one million people around the world competed against one another. I have been known, on occasion, to boost the self-esteem of strangers by allowing them to destroy me at Madden. What I can't imagine is watching people play video games on TV. Think about it. My XBox 360 is connected to my TV. I could just play instead. Granted, the amBX Challenge is about PC gaming, but I think you can follow my logic. Then again, were I a network executive, I would have laughed at and fired anyone suggesting I televise poker tournaments. I guess it shows it what I know when it comes to the entertainment tastes of the world.

BCRadio March 13, 2007: American Idol, March Madness 2007, and 'Home' for the PS3

DJRadiohead — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 23:07:30 EDT

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It's a big week on the show once again this week. On this week's show, we talk a little bit about 24, The Listening Room, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

I am also joined by Eric Olsen to discuss American Idol, Ken Edwards to chat about the PS3, and Matt Sussman returns to argue with me about March Madness.

The Listening Room March 12, 2007: Watermelon Slim & The Workers, In Theory, Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, Dwight Yoakam

DJRadiohead — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 23:26:01 EDT

If I had been forward thinking, I would have tried to be in the mood to listen to something from one of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees. As it turns out, none of us had that kind of synergy or forethought going. Still, we have one of the more diverse collections of songs to grace this series since its inception and that doesn't suck.

These may not be the best songs ever, they may not even be our favorites, but they kept us entertained last week. You could do worse than to try a few of them out and see what they do for you.

DJRadiohead: “Black Water” from The Wheel Man by Watermelon Slim & The Workers

I told you in the Blues Round Up that Watermelon Slim's new disc, The Wheel Man, is in stores April 17. There is nothing about having connections that doesn't rule. I got an advance of Slim's new album and I listened to it from beginning to end three times within the first 12 hours of having it in my possession.

His current self-titled release leads all BMA's in nominations with six. The Wheel Man might actually be a stronger album! I don't want to tease too much of my upcoming review, but here is the quick skinny: the best songs from the self-titled record might be a bit better than what's on The Wheel Man, but this new album is a more consistent listen from beginning to end.

As I write this, I am listening to “Black Water.” There are some really cool songs with that title. Charlie Musselwhite's unbelievably good Delta Hardware has a great song by that name, Meat Puppets have a good one, and then there is the Doobie Brothers' classic. Add this cut by Watermelon Slim to that list by pre-ordering a copy of The Wheel Man. This is easily going to be one of the best blues releases of 2007.

Connie Phillips: "New Medication" from This is It by In Theory

I've been listening to In Theory's soon-to-be-released This is It in preparation to feature them as an upcoming Band of the Week. They have a modern rock and mainstream pop sound, and their first single, "New Medication" is extremely catchy.

Inspired by a friend's struggle with alcoholism, it's ambiguous enough to be open to interpretation and could be a wake-up call for anyone suffering a loss and trying to self-medicate. It's a polished and solid-rocking track, and just a slice of what promises to be a break-out record.

Mat Brewster: "Easy Plateau" from 06/03/05 by Ryan Adams and the Cardinals

Sounding more electric, more rock, and more like the Grateful Dead than the countrified version on Cold Roses, Ryan Adams and the Cardinals kick out the jams to open this astounding show in Clifton Park, NY. Every instrument is crisp, and clear, and turning like a well oiled machine, which is pretty spectacular considering the the band has only been playing together for less than a year. People have killed for less magnanimous openings.

The rest of the show aint bad either.

Tom Johnson: "Hyperballad" from Trio by Wasilewski/Kurkiewicz/Miski

Having installed some new speakers in my truck, and having spent far too much time doing so, I needed to take a drive to both pick up dinner and test out the speakers. Frustrated and tired, I also just needed to get out and not think about anything for a little while.

Choosing just the right music with which to try out those new speakers isn't easy, but after a few songs, I settled on just the right one, a cover of Bjork's "Hyperballad" by this nearly unpronouncable Polish trio.

Freed of vocals, the tune here allows the band to emphasize the underlying melodic beauty while maintaining some room for them to explore. Of course, for my needs at the time, it sounded gorgeous, but most of all, it simply soothed my tool- and stress-weary nerves.

Ian Woolstencroft: "Buenas Noches from a Lonely Room (She Wore Red Dresses)" from Buenas Noches from a Lonely Room by Dwight Yoakam

This is just about the perfect country song. It’s got all the right ingredients – love, betrayal and murder. A sparse production really shows off Dwight’s vocals and Pete Anderson’s guitar provides excellent accompaniment. Yoakam’s nasal twang may be an acquired taste but it’s hard to imagine anyone else singing this tale of a scorned husband’s revenge on his philandering wife. All very un-PC of course but then so many of the best country songs are.

Glen Boyd: "Untouchables" from Livin' Like Hustlers by Above The Law

Before gangsta rap became the commoditized, made for mass consumption product (and subsequent convoluted mess) that it is today, it's earliest records from the mid to late eighties could be great little lessons in musicology. On many of these original West Coast jams--especially those produced by Dr. Dre--you could find little snippets of everyone from Sly and The Family Stone to Ramsey Lewis, sandwiched in between all the rhymes about pimpin' hos and poppin' caps.

On this track from the Dre produced debut album from Above The Law, rapper Cold187um rhymes about his hustling skills comparing himself and his crew to the "Untouchables" of the original Chicago gangster era, backed by this great jazz version of "Light my Fire" by ---? And that's the question. I've been racking my brain trying to figure out where this jazzy version of "Light My Fire" used by Dre and ATL came from ever since I pulled it out of the CD rack earlier this week. It's also been used as a music bed during bits on the Howard Stern Show.

So this is as much of a query as it is a recommendation. Can someone help me identify this? This one's for all you BC jazz buffs. Saleski?

Pico: “Strange Meadowlark” from Pink Elephant Magic by Joanne Brackeen

My ears perked up at the opening notes of this song: it's long been my favorite composition from the Dave Brubeck Quartet's all-world Time Out lp and it's probably the most overlooked. Brackeen goes solo piano on it (which is what Dave did for the first minute or so on the original, anyway) and gives the beautifully lilting waltz a heartfelt rendering.

Brackeen herself has been inexplicably unnoticed. Her note-perfect interpretation of “Strange Meadowlark” is the kind of reward awaiting the curious for digging just a little bit beyond the big names and the big songs in jazz.

Michael Jones: "Hourglass" from Internal Revolution by Diecast.

Until seeing them open for Sevendust last Friday I'd never heard of Diecast. After seeing them tear up the stage, though, I found myself rushing to the merchandise booth in order to pick up their cd. By the time it took me to work through the line, amazingly, Paul Stoddard (the lead singer) was there signing autographs. Very cool, right?

Even cooler is the fact that I've been spinning my autographed copy of Internal Revolution nearly non-stop since that night. For a band relatively new to the spotlight that opening for Sevendust will shine upon them, Diecast is an amazingly tight and talented band. Stoddard's voice screams and soars over the dual guitar attack of Jonathan Kita and Kirk Kolaitis while Dennis Pavla (drums) and Brad Horion (bass) hold down a fierce rhythm section.

Of all the songs on the album, however, "Hourglass" has become my favorite. Fueled by a chugging guitar attack, Stoddard's lyrical assault on the idea of how living forever and watching the world decay is not such a good thing, is flat-out wonderful rock and roll thriving out on the metal edge. Great song on a great album, period.

BCRadio Podcast March 6, 2007: Happy Birthday, BCRadio Podcast

DJRadiohead — Tue, 6 Mar 2007 22:26:54 EST

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It's the anniversary show, boys and girls! BCRadio turned 1-year old this week. Can you believe it?

This week's show is a good one, featuring five good minutes with Eric Olsen. EO and I talk about the show, about me, about you, about all of us- mostly about me. Naturally, this is my favorite segment. We also talk a little bit about the Oscars and put this year's Academy Awards to bed.

Also joining me on the show is Dawn Olsen. Dawn and I cover Mayor Rudy and his kids, Ann Coulter and John Edwards' hair, and even manage some time for American Idol.

This week, we are also joined by our own Duke De Mondo.

As I did in the show, I want to thank publicly all of our loyal listeners and my regular guests:

Eric Olsen
Dawn Olsen
Eric Berlin
Phillip Winn
Joan Hunt
Matt Sussman
Mark Saleski
Mary K. Williams
A.L. Harper
Jon Sobel
Sal Marinello
Ken Edwards
Duke De Mondo

Without these fine folks and the others who have participated, I would not have a show and I wouldn't want to keep doing this one. They really are, all of them, the best and I have had a great time doing the do with all of them.

Thanks for being here.