The ladies in this five piece formed their band in July of 2013 and the rest is J-rawk history. It’s not clear why they chose to appear in this video dressed like the luscious lasses on St. Paul Girl beer bottles, but it’s a catchy rock’n roll tune. Crunching guitars with licks, commanding vocals with …
Recently, the Portland Trail Blazers graciously issued me a media pass for their game against the Golden State Warriors. It is the greatest benefit I have received for what is essentially a writing hobby, and if I never receive any other compensation, it will all have been worth it just for this. It is a …
The current owner of the Chicago Cubs, the ultra-wealthy Ricketts family, defied an existing legal contract signed by the former owner of the Cubs, i.e., the Chicago Tribune Company, with Wrigley rooftop businesses by significantly expanding bleacher space in right and left field. The expansion also includes the addition of video screens. These improvements are …
Danny Darko presents his new indie dance collaboration with Canadian teen sensation Julien Kelland.
My Morning Jacket have just revealed their latest track off their upcoming release, The Waterfall entitled “Spring (Among the Living),” accompanied by a captivating visualizer. The band’s seventh full-length album, The Waterfall is set to be released May 4th, 2015 via ATO Records/Capitol Records. This release will mark their first on Capitol Records. Recorded in …
Since proving herself to be one of the UK’s most enthralling and captivating female singers, Ella Eyre has gone from total unknown singer to prolific songwriter and chart-topper, featuring on Rudimental’s “Waiting All Night” and DJ Fresh’s “Gravity” as well as her own hits “If I Go” and “Comeback.” Ella also co-wrote the huge No.1 …
Spaghetti Western Rock and Roll Dance Party from Vienna, Austria? Chick Quest’s debut record, Vs. Galore, is the sound of four people playing sweaty, explosive, danceable rock and roll built on creativity and fun— trumpet and all. It’s feeling the floorboards bounce while dancing to Violent Femmes in a crowded house at 3am, not trying …
I’m five years late to this party, but it’s worth checking out if you’ve yet to hear it. Some inspired hi-fi wag has discovered that when a 45 rpm single of Dolly Parton’s 1974 hit “Jolene” is played at 33 rpm, the slowed-down and deepened result is an entirely new sounding song with prominent bass …
Embers from Norman Tumolva on Vimeo. These Seattle kids do an excellent job on this tune and this video, which was filmed on beautiful Orcas Island… March To May’s Darren Guyaz (guitar, vocals, keyboard) and Beth Wesche (Celtic harp, vocals) first met in December 2012. By March 2013, the folk/indie/Americana duo had co-written their first …
On 12 September 1962, John F. Kennedy famously said during a speech: “We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard…” Side One (and the title track) of Public Service Broadcasting’s new …
Meet Taxi Taxi, two great artists from Stockholm who just started their own label, Delicious Demon Records. The two beautiful ladies are twin sisters, Johanna & Miriam Tewolde Berhan. Their new video, for a power ballad called “Floating Forever,” was filmed on a night out by director Simeon Frohm (previously worked for Swedish artists Dante, …
The soundtrack of Run Free, a documentary based on the true story of Caballo Blanco, is now available. The beautiful collection consists of thirteen original tracks from accomplished Seattle producer, Graig Markel. Markel is a songwriter, producer and sound designer credited with creating the genre ‘Broken Soul,’ a mixture of downtempo rock, and R&B that …
Saturday morning, March 21, 2015, I attended one of seven gatherings around Washington state to address K through eight funding. The event I attended was standing room only at Nathan Hale HS in north Seattle. There had to be at least four thousand educators and parents in attendance who are fed up with lack of …
The start of baseball season is still several weeks away. But in the meantime, your own Spring Training should include watching four particular fabulous baseball films from the 1980’s. Frankly, it’s hard to go wrong with a baseball film; every decade has had great ones. But for some reason, the ’80s were a particularly golden …
Giving up something for Lent? A dessert? TV? Facebook? The 8th-century characters in my novels would envy you. Early medieval Christians took Lent seriously. No meat. No eggs. No dairy. Only one meal a day around 3 p.m., and that was a relaxation of not eating until evening. Pretzels, made with water, flour, and salt, …
Japanese rock band Imari Tones has released Atomic Live!, recorded near Fukushima, the site of a destructive earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accident, to send a message about the dangerous situation in Japan. The recording took place in November 2014. The band was touring Japan with an American rapper named Gallery Cat as part of The …
I’m really starting to love this tune and the accompanying vid. Give them a chance, they’ll grow on you. Despite only one EP and two singles under their belt (Diamond Waves 12 EP, “Sunny Afternoon” and “Tell It To The Wind” 7) Josefin Öhrn + The Liberation are on a blazing roll. To celebrate their …
A version of this tune featuring American Idol finalist Jennifer Hudson has appeared on a high profile commercial for American Family insurance, in the process reawakening interest in this tune, at least for me. The original was released in 1970 by a family group from Chicago, the Five Stairsteps (just as, a year earlier, the …
Jammin’ to Motorhead right now… Aftershock… a 2013 release that demonstrates rock prowess. So… Read yesterday in the Wall Street Journal about US cities that have the highest viewership ratings for various sports. Greensboro NC has the highest for NASCAR. Not necessarily a surprise there. Buffalo ranks #1 for NHL. Louisville tops the college basketball …
Spencer Tarring pioneers a sound that defines not only a record label and a DJ, but an entire city. With Shanghai often hailed as the showpiece of China’s booming economy, Spencer Tarring is undoubtedly the driving force of a music scene often imitated the world over, but since his arrival in 2009, never duplicated. An …
22-year-old Stockholm-Barcelona based singer and songwriter has just released a video for her recent single, “Lunar Lights.”
Wintergrass is described as a family-friendly Bluegrass music festival, with concerts and dances at 4 different stages. There are also music education programs for kids and adults, workshops, impromptu jams, and a chance to see and hear some great music. One of my favorite folk/bluegrass artists, Sarah Jarosz, was playing several sets, but I was …
In the Washington Post – Minnie Minoso, White Sox and Baseball Icon, dies; President Obama joins in tributes I have, surprisingly enough, a great Minnie Minoso story. There was a time when you could, theoretically, get an autograph from a major leaguer simply by writing to him. It seemed to work about 25 percent of …
45 years ago today, 2/28/1970 – Van Morrison released the Moondance album. I jotted down a few thoughts on what I think in 2015. Van Morrison’s second Warner Brothers album is so good; it arguably could have been a ‘best of’ collection. One of those rare records in which there’s no bad tracks. At least …
I’ve never understood the fascination that my friends have for ABBA. My ABBA compilation, would be a 4 song EP. Their music is a piece of chalk marinated in vinegar. However, I have a soft-spot for the 1975 Frida ensam (“Frida Alone”) LP. Sung all in Swedish, it includes versions of Bowie’s “Liv på Mars?” …
Saturday night February 21 Reagan Youth headlined an all out punk show at Seattle’s foremost punk venue El Corazon. I head south the 12 miles from my home only to realize I’d left the house without my ID and had to drive all the way back to retrieve it. DOH! So unfortunately I missed the …
Bob’s Burgers is my favorite show of all time. Every night except Sunday I forego whatever’s on now in order to re-watch and re-enjoy the utterly perfect first season of Bob’s Burgers. On Sundays I patiently wait for whatever new episode of Bob’s Burgers awaits me. Sleater-Kinney is one of the most stupendous rock’n roll …
As a father of two boys, I devoted much time with them in the back yard and at the park playing baseball. When I constructed a flower box in the back yard, I also built a pitching mound. Since my boys and I loved baseball, I was delighted to be involved with them not only …
The late Lesley Gore was on the epochal T.A.M.I. Show; that’s epitaph enough for any pop star from the 60s. Here’s her full set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0y1Rr5kPII My favorite was “She’s a Fool,” with its unforgettable, unexplainable backing vocal hook of “shacka doula.” When you’ve got Quincy Jones producing and Claus Ogerman arranging, you can turn otherwise …
Here are four old guys from Stockholm who do a great job with this Breeders cover: While writing and rehearsing original material for their upcoming album, Frog Bouquet – Covers From Our Space, Stockholm’s finest rock rangers The Stuff also explored the deep vaults of the last 45 years of music history. Each week in …