The Best of David Bowie 1980/1987: Sight & Sound Virgin By now, the amount of hits compilations released by David Bowie must outnumber his various personas in his long, storied career. But each successive one seems to up the ante, if not in terms of track selection, then certainly in the crispness of […]
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Rocky Votolato
yle=”MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt”>Track three, “Before You Were Born,” is more upbeat, with a country shuffle, fast guitar picking and a reverby vintage Telecaster twang. The last song on the CD, “Silver Trees,” is beautiful and lonesome, with a crying harmonica punching and piercing through acoustic guitars. At least half the songs on the disc […]
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No singers wanted in Maserati
The members of Athens, Ga., four-piece Maserati forego vocals in favor of bringing their expansive melodies and muscular, yet intuitive percussion to the spotlight. They blend ambient rhythms and modern dance rock with a Seventies groove to create highly emotive tracks on its latest release, “Inventions for the New Season.” “When we have an idea […]
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Fountains of Wayne
Traffic and Weather Virgin In the fourth and latest offering from the Fountains of Wayne, the band doles out more of the amusing storytelling and blimp-sized hooks that have made them America’s reigning deities of power-pop. And yet the approach is starting to wear thin. It starts out promising enough. “Someone to […]
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George Benson hopes to keep jazz alive
George Benson already was one of the best guitar players in the history of jazz before he finally achieved his 1976 breakthrough with “Breezin’.” Currently he’s on tour with his latest album, the Grammy-winning “Givin’ It Up,” a collaboration with legendary vocalist Al Jarreau which includes covers of some jazz classics. By stocking up with […]
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Hellogoodbye builds following with online popularity
California-based indie-pop band Hellogoodbye began at Huntington Beach High School during 2001, when lead vocalist/guitarist Forrest Kline teamed up with keyboardist Jesse Kurvink to produce its brand of heart-on-sleeve synth-pop songs. “I wasn’t a bro or a surfer, and that’s what was the primary at the school,” Kline said. “The first couple years of high […]
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Cheyenne returns to Norman to finish new album
Indie-folk act Cheyenne had recorded some tracks in New York that the members weren’t satisfied with, so front man Jennings came back to Norman to fill out the rest of the album. Here, he tapped the talents of musician friends, including former bandmate Ryan Lindsey, and to record at Chad Copeland’s Black Watch Studios. “It’s […]
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Jazz festival honoring musicians of past, present
The Charlie Christian International Jazz Festival has been around for 22 years, honoring former and current jazz artists. “We have every reason to have the festival in this area. It is where it should be because this is where our roots are,” said Anita Arnold, executive director for Black Liberated Arts Center Inc., producer of […]
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Psych-rock Willowz bringing harder edge to shows
For better or worse, the garage-rock act The Willowz has been lumped in with the California psychedelic scene. “I think it’s heavily related to the way we look,” said vocalist and guitarist Richie James Follin. “We do occasionally do drugs, but we’re trying to make music we like to listen to and that’s not boring […]
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Japan band Melt-Banana out to make noise
“We are Melt-Banana from Tokyo, Japan!” Now imagine that phrase being yelled at you by a tiny Japanese woman fronting one of the heaviest, loudest and most pugnacious rock bands you’ve ever seen. That’s the way every Melt-Banana show starts. “I think it is a normal way to introduce ourselves as a band, isn’t it?” asked […]