You all have no idea how happy this makes me.
Download their new song, a cover of “See and Don’t See” by Marie “Queenie” Lyons, via the widget below. Meanwhile, I’ll continue marking off my jailhouse calendar until I get to see them in September.
I’ve been fighting (and losing to) the flu for nearly a week now, and because of that, I very sadly missed Patrick Sweany’s recent CD release show for That Old Southern Drag at the Zephyr Pub in Kent, Ohio, this past Friday (if anyone who did attend the show would like to contribute a review and/or photos, please let me know – contact information can be found to the right), so we’re missing the final big event of Patrick Sweany Month here at NTSIB.
And as I’ve mostly been listening to comfort music (the Godfathers, the Parting Gifts, the Dirtbombs and the Black Keys… I may have a skewed sense of comfort) when I haven’t been laid up on the couch, watching old movies and making my own music (i.e., whining about being sick), there’s not been a lot of new music intake going on here at NTSIB HQ. And the closest I can get to a live performance right now is via television. So, I give you my favorte televised performance to date: the Afghan Whigs’ fierce cover of Barry White’s “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe”, performed at an MTV-hosted party for the film … Continue reading
Once upon a time, in the relative infancy of rock ‘n’ roll, rock instrumentals were such a popular form that some artists were dedicated entirely to instrumentals and some who, while having a few songs with vocals, built their reputation on instrumentals – artists like the Ventures, the Fireballs, Duane Eddy, The Surfaris and Dick Dale. In time, the popularity of rock instrumentals faded until today when it seems like rock instrumentals are mainly the domain of dinosaurs and noodlers.
Here are a few of my favorite rock instrumentals, ending with what I hope is a glimmer of hope for the future of good rock instrumentals.
Link Wray was a man ahead of his time. A stone cold and cool greaser with a dangerous sound, you can still hear his influence today on some of today’s music. If cool has a soundtrack, Wray’s 1958 hit “Rumble” is definitely a featured number.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NAq4HyoNe4?fs=1]
Released a year later, it’s difficult to believe that “Sleep Walk” by brother duo Santo & Johnny could even exist in the same universe as “Rumble”. It’s a dreamy piece with some of the most evocative guitar ever recorded.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogxTQXAgY3Q?fs=1]
In the late ’50s and … Continue reading
Craig Wedren
Given my long-standing love for Greg Dulli (generally referred to in my world by his proper name: Greg fucking Dulli), it was a given that I would jump on tickets to this special acoustic show, Dulli’s first solo tour. When it was announced that Craig Wedren of Shudder to Think would be opening, my eyes nearly rolled back in my head. In the later 1990s, before bands began breaking up and band members died, my holy triumvirate of music was topped by the Afghan Whigs with Morphine and Shudder to Think anchoring the other corners. I was fortunate enough to see each of these bands play before tides turned, and I cherish the memory of those shows. To be able to check in with the frontmen of two of those bands in one night was a special treat.
Wedren looked exactly as I remembered seeing him back in 1997 when Shudder to Think toured in support of 50,000 B.C.: fresh, lean and handsome with a spectacular smile and a sparkle in his eye. Mixing his solo … Continue reading
I find myself drawn to the music of Ohio artists. It could be some innate loyalty to or a sharing of basic ideas with my fellow Ohioans. Or it could be that Ohio turns out more excellent music per capita than the rest of the world. I may be biased, but I’m going with option B.
Die, Sloopy, Die is a tribute to great Ohio bands of the past and present. The name is an anti-tribute to our official state rock song “Hang On, Sloopy” by the McCoys because, while it is awesome that we were the first state to declare an official state rock song (and, so far, we are one of only two states to do so, Oklahoma having declared the Flaming Lips’ “Do You Realize??” their official state song), we chose one of the lamest songs it was possible for us to choose.
The Afghan Whigs
“Ladies, let me tell you about … Continue reading
