Mississippi metal band Cathercist takes its music — but little else — seriously. The grueling path of an upstart, touring hard-rock band is taxing to be sure, with sweaty dudes packed into cramped vans and scraping by from city to city with just enough cash to put gas in the tank. But the five-piece has […]
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Rewind This!
Josh Johnson’s documentary chronicles the VHS format from birth to death, and those for whom the words on its “Be Kind Rewind” sticker remain a way of life. In 94 minutes, he covers a ton of ground: the Beta vs. VHS showdown, the porn explosion (pun intended), the dawn of sell-through tapes, the lost art […]
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Break point
Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore — the married couple behind Denver indie pop act Tennis — didn’t expect much to come of the humble band the two formed after a seven-month sailing trip; they expected nothing, to be precise. “When we were starting out, we didn’t have any plans or ambition to turn this into […]
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Kings of leon sing about Okie ties
In a recent feature on the making of “Last Mile Home,” the band’s contribution to the film, the Grammy-winning alt-rockers detailed the song’s inspiration. “We’ve been offered movies that they’ve spent $300 million to make. We’ve said no to it, just because we had no connection to the movie,” bassist Jared Followill told The Huffington […]
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Dreaming big
Guitarist Tony Smith and drummer Justin Wilson — founding members of alt-rock outfit Sleeper Agent — found that they lacked a spark after a couple of lackluster gigs around their hometown of Bowling Green, Ky. But upon discovering dynamo frontwoman Alex Kandel at an open mic night singing Adele covers, Sleeper Agent soon became the […]
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Jingle Bell Rockabilly
His big band is back again, ready for another sold-out night of big-band jingle jangle as only guitar rocker Brian Setzer can deliver. He’s done so from the late-’70s rebirth of rockabilly with him at the wheel — The Stray Cats — to the 10th anniversary of his Brian Setzer Orchestra’s Christmas Rocks tour. “I […]
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Scream queen
Photo: Christopher Patrick Ernst Marissa Paternoster, leader of Screaming Females, has a message for all would-be rock journalists out there: actually listen to their music before comparing them to other female-fronted rock bands in an attempt to take a shortcut. “When we first started playing, critics would often compare us to Sleater-Kinney, a band that […]
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Fair to Midlake
Sometimes, all it takes for a band to become the next big thing is one little break that will propel them from cult curiosities to mainstream teen-screams. After a decade and a half in the indie scene, Denton, Texas, act Midlake is poised to become the next chart-topping rock crossover with both a new record, […]
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Pop. punk
Guitarist Ivan Lip and singer Chris Bug — the two figureheads behind New York act Pop. 1280 — formed a band for the right reason: They hated almost everything and everyone around them. “We didn’t like many bands in New York City or in general, really,” Lip said. “There’s so many things going on, and […]
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Choir ‘Boyz’
Theatergoers around here sure have been getting a strong dose of religion lately. First came Godspell from City Rep, and now Pollard Theatre Company is presenting Altar Boyz. Going to the theater these days reminds us sinners that we’re backsliders. In Altar Boyz (Gary Adler and Michael Patrick Walker, music and lyrics; Kevin Del Aguila, […]