“This is the weirdest night of my life,” said Nicole Atkins, mid-song, as two nearly six foot tall males pranced ballerina style in front of the stage. As Atkins nailed the alternating croons and belts of her emotional powerhouse “A Little Crazy,” the bearded men sashayed back and forth, legs extended, arms reaching toward the sky,…
Every year, I do a rundown of my picks for the Best Albums of the Year. Sometimes I rank them. Sometimes I don’t. I do what I want. In no particular order, here’s what kept my ears happy this year: Blood Orange – Freetown Sound Blood Orange, aka the London-born New Yorker Dev Hynes, is no…
In the mid-Seventies, David Bowie briefly lived in Los Angeles while recording his 1976 album Station to Station. Shortly after joining Beck for a pre-Grammys performance of “The Man Who Sold the World,” Dave Grohl and Pat Smear hit up some of Bowie’s famous LA haunts for Playboy, as the two drove around in a…
Earlier this week, Miguel performed an intimate show at Los Angeles’ Bardot, where he paid tribute to David Bowie with a silky smooth rendition of “Space Oddity.” Backed by a lone acoustic guitar, Miguel eventually transitioned to his Wildheart single “Waves.” Miguel. The music he’s created over the years, I don’t really listen to it. But the fact…
David Bowie passed away at the age of 69 to a cancer he was battling for 18 months. You can read more about it here, as well as read some tributes posted and tweeted about him. Bowie was a true original; he was one hell of an artist with a keen vision and fearless ability…
Much to the chagrin of my friends, family and whoever else happens to be within earshot, I still haven’t been able to stop talking about this year’s Firefly Music Festival. Now that real life is happening once again (booo), my head is finally clear enough to jot down some thoughts on what I saw, who…
Every now and then, contemporary popular culture yields a work that proves coming of age tales can be done without agonizing clichés and melodramatic urgencies; that maybe…just maybe, a “teen movie” doesn’t have to be so juvenile after all. Last year’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a shining example of a story brave…