Year: 2003

Here we have a straighter, post-Beatles, ‘60s derived Pop-Rock. Every word is clear and centred, and as the title implies they’re usually concerned with the view from a more mature perspective: Bringing Up Baby and […]

This Seattle four-piece brings to mind the Pretty Girls, who you might remember from last issue. The foundation is slightly different. The Hearts’ cinderblocks are those denizens of Rhino’s D.I.Y.: UK Pop volumes, with more […]

The Background: I never found much of interest in the Archers of Loaf, the former band of Eric Bachmann, who is, basically, Crooked Fingers. And when the first CF album showed up at the old […]

An aptly titled record. Although it came out in the spring it has a decided autumnal spirit to it. The opening number, Stumbling Through The Dark, (co-written with Matthew Sweet, but without his inclusion, though […]

There was a time when a band like the Blondes, being based out in L.A., would have been snatched up by some major label (this was in the days before that was synonymous with multinational) […]

Miracle Mile is basically the nom de plume of one Trevor Jones, an English singer-songwriter-guitar player whose vocalizing is somewhere between latter days Paul Weller, Rodney Frame and the gingerly aspect of Elvis Costello. (Aided […]

After last year’s teaming up for a set of unreleased, “too far out” Pete Miller ‘60s tunes, here’s another joint effort, made of Chris Earle’s brand new songs and overlooked by Big Boy Pete’s studio […]

If you remember two issues ago I heralded Avril Lavinge’s Sk8ter Boi as something other than the usual mass-marketed dross. It’s since gone on to be a pretty substantial hit. Coincidentally, it seems, Arista’s sister […]