1963 was the year of screaming girls, wanna be rock stars, and strangers all squished in a frenzy for their love of none other than The Beatles. In fact, on August 4, 1963 they would be met by more fans than they ever could have imagined when they performed at the Queen’s Theatre in Blackpool, England. There were so many fans that The Beatles, themselves, couldn’t even enter through the performers entrance, and had to find a creative way to get inside…
It is always so great to look back on the milestone events and changes that make all the difference in the long run, and we can appreciate the month of August for holding heavy meaning for the evergreen impact that The Beatles have on this world…
There are plenty of events from 1975 applicable to 2020, but none of what I mentioned are the real reason as to why I am looking 45 years into the past. I’m looking at 1975 because on August 25th, Bruce Springsteen released his climactic cornerstone rock album, Born to Run….
For the excited teen fans and those that simply enjoy good, pop music on the radio, some might be interested to find out that on August 8, 1998, Shawn Mendes, the popular singer and songwriter, was born. The now twenty-two year old Canadian has made a place for himself in the music industry, catering not only to teens and young adults, but to all, with his rhythmic music about all types of love…
While I steer my body through the shimmering heat, my headphones, sunglasses, and mask sealing me off from the world, I think back to another August day when the boundaries of music were buckled and expanded by a man snugly ensconced in his own headphones. He did not know it, but he was about to change the world. The date was Saturday, August 11, 1973. The man was Clive Campbell, also known as DJ Kool Herc…
Well into the COVID-19 lockdown, the official YouTube channel of London-based live radio network NTS uploaded an hour-long live performance featuring Bladee and Ecco2k, two members of the Swedish cloud rap collective Drain Gang. This whole “concert” shows the inventiveness of Drain Gang and it opens up a whole new world of possibilities for inventiveness in the live medium. There’s no telling what kind of creativity other artists could bring to the table if this becomes the new norm…
Finding ways to share one’s music is no less complicated than it was before the digital revolution. But the precarious life of an up-and-coming musician has become ever more precarious in the age of COVID-19…
Weezer’s latest single, “The End of the Game”, is a driving force carefully crafted to continuously propel you forward from start to finish. With steady, heavy power chords guiding you along like a train on a mission, scenic “views” of acrobatic guitar riffs sprinkled throughout to joyously catch you by surprise, and a melody that is both simplistic and infectious at the same time, this song is a seamless blend of Van Halen-style rock and the kind of mood-elevating pop you sing along in the car to with your friends…
1000 Gecs and the Tree of Clues is the latest release from experimental pop group 100 Gecs, and is a follow-up to last year’s 1000 Gecs album, which was one of the most forward-thinking, idiosyncratic, well-conceived, and tightest pop albums not of the year, not of the decade, but of all time…
Napalm Death was on my shortlist of music to find—like an archeologist digging their way toward an ancient tomb. In September of 1989, I finally struck treasure when I pulled a vinyl copy of Mentally Murdered from the racks, holding it up, exposing it to sunlight for the first time…
