It was as if the birth of Nirvana had never happened. It was as if music never stopped being fun. And catchy. And above all, horny. That’s the power of Lita Ford, Poison and Def Leppard. Maybe I had been living in Colorado too long. Maybe I had been too accustomed to concerts featuring Brooklyn-based […]
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Map quest
Having formed at a Chicago art school, alternative-rock outfit Maps & Atlases has never shied away from lofty goals or pushing itself creatively. In the early days, that meant making math rock fun. Now, it means channeling the members’ inner Marty McFly. “It’s tough to make an album that exists out of time,” singer and […]
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Still whipped
Photo: Joshua Dalsimer The planet is heating up, running out of fossil fuel and getting stingy with clean air and water. World nations seem chronically on the verge of global economic collapse. Crazed gunmen and suicide bombers make daily headlines. Literacy is down, obesity is up and Kim Kardashian is a household name. Humanity, meet […]
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Red-hot rock
Photo: Jason Tanaka Blaney When Ohio rock act Red Wanting Blue got booked to play Norman Music Festival this past spring, the band members worried about whether they’d be able to impress the crowd. “These people have seen everything,” lead singer Scott Terry said. “I’ve never been close to a tornado, but most of these […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Metal man
You’re probably familiar with the phrase “less is more.” Whether you subscribe to this credo is another matter. But Oklahoma City-based designer and sculptor Larry Pickering believes there’s an undeniable truth in simplicity. “I’ve always been a simple person,” Pickering said. “I like simple colors. I like natural colors. I’m driven by that. I can […]
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In orbit
Photo: Chris Phelps In the winter of 2010, things were looking pretty good for Austin, Texas’ The Rocketboys. Then half the altrock sextet walked out, worn out and abused from the exhausting tour schedule that got them to that point. The Rocketboys looked doomed to crash and burn. “There was a lot of not knowing […]
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Mayhem fest
Oklahoma City outfit Chronicles of Mayhem isn’t like most metal bands. The four-piece is just about as concerned with shaking your hips as melting your face. “I like music that is accessible. There’s great music that is so highly technical and impressive because of that musicianship, but it can get lost in the crowd,” guitarist […]
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Fablecar — Fablecar
“Diamond Slice” sounds like a song that Pink Floyd would have written in 1999, had the band been recording then, thanks to a “Money”-inspired groove. The following anthem, “Threes,” hits more in line with Interpol — or, maybe more appropriately, Joy Division. With the ease that it’s executed, I can only imagine this is where […]
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Tuff enuff
Few album covers capture a sound as well as King Tuff did on his self-titled disc in May: A demonic bat clutches a Gibson guitar in one claw, a wizard’s wand in the other, with “King Tuff” scrawled across the creature’s chest in a font that merges “Puff, the Magic Dragon” with The Dark Crystal. […]
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No joke
Rapping might have started off as a joke for Oklahoma City native Waylon Clark, who performs as Warrbuckss, but he’s gotten seriously good. “I started when I was young, just freestyling to make people laugh. I would DJ house parties and rap to instrumentals for fun,” Clark said. “About three years ago, I started taking […]