Music
Indie rockers Snow Patrol (who performed at Avalon last Friday) are from Northern Ireland but formed the group in Scotland. Their fourth full-length album Eyes Open (Interscope) which they released on May 1 has only reached number 34 on the U.S. charts, but it was number one on the UK and Ireland charts.
When a band is as new and as hyped as Wolfmother, there are two factors that determine whether it will have lasting power. The first is live performance – can the band translate the energy of a hit record to the stage? The second is the all-important subsequent album.
The only constant in Neil Young’s decades of pointed political songs is that he’s bound to do some more, sooner or later. At times he responds to headlines. Other times he calls up distant historical events. He can tackle broad social changes or personal issues he’s been turning over in his head. He’s cozied up…
Okay, here’s the short version of my take on The River in Reverse (after an inadequate 1 1/2 listens):
By James Marcus At its best, an opera about the death of Spanish writer Federico Garcia Lorca is a tour-de-force. Ainadamar, an opera by Osvaldo Golijov. (Deutsche Grammophon) For most composers, geography is destiny. Even Schoenberg — whose innovations were supposed to release music not only from its tonal prison but from the local idiom…
A worthy present for Mozart on his 250th birthday: an original, sometimes eclectic, and mostly well-written book about the composer and his operas. “Mozart and His Operas” by David Cairns. (University of California Press) By Mark Kroll Mozart mania is back. In fact, it never left and don’t say I didn’t warn you. We are…
This year marks the 250th anniversary of Mozart’s birth and just about every classical performing group is paying tribute. Enterprising souls are marketing everything from standard keepsakes to off-the-wall Mozart items. Mozart Salami, anyone? “Mozart: The Early Years, 1756-1781″ by Stanley Sadie. (Norton) By Mary Ann Nichols Among the more erudite celebrations of the event…
Bruce Springsteen’s latest album, widely billed as his homage to folk music, is a tribute to Pete Seeger “We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions,” Bruce Springsteen. By James Marcus It’s hard to pin down exactly when my Bruce Springsteen problem began. As a teenager I worshipped the guy, and still recall a blistering 1977 show…
The current kings of sly-clown fox-rock, Eagles of Death Metal and Electric Six know how to put the fun back into rock and roll. The Eagles of Death Metal, “Death by Sexy” (Downtown); Electric Six, “Senor Smoke” (Metropolis Records) By Milo Miles Rock and roll used to be a joke. The most dangerous joke in…
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