Tag Archives: Alternative Rock

Mark Lanegan's Bubblegum will be one of 2004's best albums.

Lovedrug’s “Pretend You’re Alive,” or as I started to think of the CD, “Pretend You’re Radiohead,” has a promising first minute, but the thin, snarly vocals aren’t my cup of tea – they come across as affected, rather than animalistic a la (say) Perry Farrell or Ziggy Stardust-era Bowie. But …

HELMET returns after a seven-year absence in September with Size Matters. This makes various internal organs hurt in anticipation. Check out sneak previews of the vicious riff of See You Dead” and the nutty rudeness of “Speak and Spell” right here. The new Helmet is Page Hamilton (vocals, guitar), Chris …

The Hives’ Tyrannosaurus Hives comes out today and it rocks the rectum. I talk about the band, the record and their place in the latest rock ‘n’ roll revival on MSNBC.com: Rock ‘n’ roll gets back to basics: Little bands like the Hives at center of genre’s latest resurgence Rock …

I really love the Brooklyn alt rock/Latino hybrid band Cordero, led by singer Ani Cordero. I reviewed their live show and first record here. If anything, the band’s secod album – Somos Cordero, which delves more deeply still into Latin rhythms and Spanish language songs – is even better than …

Formed by erstwhile members of At the Drive-In – singer Jim Ward, guitarist Paul Hinojos and drummer Tony Hajjar – Sparta is all emo-y and whatnot: check out the swirling, pointillist guitar and melodic emotionalism of “Breaking the Broken,” the first single off of Porcelain, the band’s second album, due …

Late last year Genesis Breyer P- Orridge announced the reactivation of the legendary Psychic TV. More good news: they have regained their master recordings and are reissuing same, and are playing live dates in just over a week: Sat. 6/26 – Washington, DC 9:30 Club Sun. 6/27 – Pittsburgh, PA …

The Pixies have lots going on – they rocked Coachella, are playing in Europe now, a couple of Lollapalooza shows later this summer, then head out on a North American tour in September. And now they have brand new song – their first new one in 13 years – out …

Though it is the music that will be the final arbiter, this has all the earmarks of a happy ending: Founding lineup’s first new studio album in 19 years due out in October 2004 on Epic Records. Band works with hit making R&B and alternative rock producers New York, NY– …

It all began with a heads-up from our pal Scott Matthews of Andromeda, who alerted me to the chewy goodness of director Tobias Perse’s extraordinary stop-motion animation video of NYC indie-rocker Sam Bisbee’s classic song “You Are Here,” utilizing polaroids and half a stick of gum, available for consumption and …