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Jack Rabid

Jack Rabid's Big Takeover

Big Takeover #64, Decemberists cover, out on the stands! / Sample Quotes

NEW YORK – Jun 23

Once again the big news is that Big Takeover #64 Spring 2009 issue with The Decemberists on the cover (and concluding part twos of our awesome Death Cab for Cutie, Sloan, and Devo interviews) is now on the stands. / “That [‘60s British folk] generation was really into discovering the centuries-old songs that had to deal with really dark and violent themes of romantic and sentimental love. Particularly Anne Briggs, Maddy Pryor, June Tabor—an essay could be written about feminism and the British folk revival, and how a lot of the women artists were arranging songs where rape figured pretty prominently—and I don’t know why that is. I think it was an interesting way of highlighting how different the relations between the sexes were in the 16th century, the 17th century, and how violent the culture that people were living in was.”—COLIN MELOY


The Power of Music Compels You!

Greg Bartalos

The Damned with The Bellrays and Electric Frankenstein - The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza (New York, NY) – Thursday, May 14, 2009

BROOKLYN – May 21

33 years and counting, the Damned remain an unstoppable force.

Sound Fix

Steve Holtje

Sonic Youth - The Eternal (Matador)

BROOKLYN – Jun 10

SY has a great sound, and even when the lyrics are silly or lackadaisical, Lee and Thurston’s distinctive guitar timbres push all the right buttons. They invented this sound/style, and despite all the bands influenced by it over the past three decades, they’re still the best.

Wax-Covered Earplugs

Tim Bugbee

Van Der Graaf Generator with Strawbs - The Regent Theater (Arlington, MA) - Tuesday, June 23, 2009

BOSTON – Jun 28

Prog rock lives, with emphasis on the rock…no Roger Dean-inspired fantasies here.

Downloader Frolics

Chuck Foster

The Dark Warriors of Persia: Aras, De Mysteriium & Sorg Innkallelse

NEW YORK – Jun 28

I begin my series on Middle Eastern black metal with three bands from Iran.

File Under: Alt. City

Chris Stroffolino

Slanted & Enchanted: Not The Album But The Book(Exclusive Video Interview with author Kaya Oakes))

OAKLAND – Jun 10

So Slanted & Enchanted is not exactly “A tragedy of epic proportions!” More of a problem comedy—too realistic to offer the patriarchal cathartic moneyshot. Or, as Kathleen Hanna puts the wait for the Next Big Indie Thing—“It’s almost like this pregnancy where the baby never gets born. I feel like it’s been as if ‘The baby’s coming! The baby’s coming! And it’s five years later. And the woman weights three hundred pounds…and is not having the kid.”

JapaneseGod JesusRobot

Matthew Berlyant

Interview: Bob Mould (part 5)

PHILADELPHIA – Jun 26

I wouldn’t wanna go back to the Husker Du mentality, side 2 of Zen Arcade. That’s not really good for anybody’s health.

Shadowtime

Kristen Sollee

Blacklist - Midnight of the Century (Wierd Records)

NEW YORK – May 25

Blacklist’s medium is a message not only of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, but of geo-politics, socio-cultural dynamics, and revolt.

High Bias

Michael Toland

The Bats – The Guilty Office (Hidden Agenda)

AUSTIN – Jul 3

The New Zealand quartet’s seventh album isn’t as jangly as I remember them being; it’s a moody proposition with songs that require multiple listens to sink in.

Static From My Heart

Dave Heaton

Bubblegum Lemonade - Doubleplusgood (Matinee)

PHILADELPHIA – Apr 22

It’s a rush of noise around good-old-fashioned pop melody, and of course wrapped up at once with wishes, dreams, and hopes.

Children Must Have Rock n Roll

Rachel Pesin

The Whip - Bowery Ballroom (New York, NY) - Wednesday, April 1, 2009

NEW YORK – Apr 14

Last week I saw The Whip at Bowery Ballroom and, as expected, they killed it.

Pop Overdose

Suzanne Baran

The Bad Eliots: Fame From a Bottle

LOS ANGELES – Jan 21

Some say a band is “selling out” if they promote themselves and their tunes via commercials and ads.