T-Sides B-Sides: The Unbearable Lightness of Ween
It is with great delight that I welcome back Vincent “V-Sides” Rendoni to educate us on a band yours truly admits to knowing little to nothing about: Ween. Focusing on their magnum opus, The Mollusk, he presents a solid case on why they matter — sure to leave the unfamiliar and even some skeptics with...
8 Pictures, 88 Words, 8 Minutes & 8 Seconds from 88BOADRUM in NYC on 08.08.08
Drummers receive a lot of flak. Wild and tumultuous, bands go through drummers as a Lothario does women. They are compared to animals and stereotyped as stupid. Oh, come great 88BOADRUM, asking us to fall in love with drummers again! Coupled with an electronic composition, singer, guitarist and bassist, 88 drummers thumped into the night...
Lost MP3 of the Week: Huey Lewis & the News, “I Never Think About You”
During the spring of my junior year of college, I listened to Huey Lewis nonstop. One day, while working on the campus newspaper, I was sorting through the shared music of the local club offices and put on “I Want A New Drug.” The song was an apt anthem for how I felt about the...
T-Sides Elsewhere, August 7th Edition
I know what you’re thinking. “But Taylor, you just did one of these!” And… you’re right. But there’s a lot happening in T-Sides land right now, such as: I attended the Yeasayer/The National SummerStage on Monday night and wrote about it for my friends over at EarFarm. And remember that Wolf Parade concert review? Well,...
Wolf Parade @ Terminal 5, Thursday, July 31st
The first time I saw Wolf Parade, they were opening a secret Modest Mouse show at Webster Hall in 2004. I knew nothing about them, but they impressed me just as much as Modest Mouse had. Four years later, they’re still impressive: probably moreso than the band that fostered them into the spotlight. Terminal 5...
Lost MP3 of the Week: De La Soul, “Rock Co. Kane Flow (Feat. MF Doom)”
In 2004, I managed to land an internship at the Grammys. More specifically, the Seattle branch of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), the professional organization responsible for the Grammys. Four or five internships later, it’s still one of my top two favorites, because I felt like I was making a difference...
T-Sides Elsewhere, July 30th Edition
Bullz-Eye: I covered as much of Siren Fest as I could. Bottles of water consumed: 6. Sunburns received: 5. Popdose: I reviewed Shine A Light, Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones concert documentary, the all over the place Love As Laughter album, Holy, the Notwist’s excellent Neon Golden follow-up, The Devil You + Me, Joan as Police...
It’s Here, It’s Finally Here!
In honor of the release of The Dark Knight, a movie which yours truly has been hotly anticipating ever since that first official picture of Heath Ledger as the Joker leaked over a year ago, I give you… R. Kelly: “Gotham City” (download)
Billy Joel @ Shea Stadium, Wednesday, July 16th
In New York, baseball is akin to religion. To many New Yorkers, Billy Joel is, too. So it was no surprise when it was announced that Joel would play the last concert at the New York Mets’ Shea Stadium. And so, the themes of the night were, of course, New York and baseball, and Joel...
Fleet Foxes @ Bowery Ballroom, Wednesday, July 9th
When the Fleet Foxes performed at Bowery Ballroom last week, frontman Robin Pecknold had a cold. But unlike a downtrodden, silent Frank Sinatra, the audience might have never known it if no one had told us (either the Dutchess or the Duke – the openers – mentioned it in their stage banter, as did Pecknold...
Dengue Fever & Rachid Taha @ Central Park SummerStage, Saturday, July 5th
Of the many things that can be said about the performances of Dengue Fever and Rachid Taha at Central Park’s SummerStage, the biggest link between the two is a good performer’s ability to keep the audience entranced when they don’t speak the same language. Dengue Fever are American based, but to complement the group’s Cambodian...
Liz Phair @ Hiro Ballroom, Thursday, June 26th
She might be from Chicago, but when Liz Phair came to New York City’s Hiro Ballroom, she was treated like a hometown girl. In a city where the sex lives of its women have been turned into national entertainment, her fem-rock opus Exile in Guyville is not just embraced, it’s understood. Wearing a vest with...
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