Music | Thursday, August 17,2006

A little goes a long way

The Archie Bronson Outfit’s second full-length most definitely rocks

Is it dirty art rock or arty dirt rock? Rock music you can dance to or dance music you can rock to? Whatever you want to call Derdang Derdang, the Archie Bronson Outfit’s second full-length, the

Music | Thursday, August 17,2006

Vinyl Static

A Legend in his own time

By Marissa Monson

SINGLES ONLY John Legend has doled out the first single from Once Again, the yet-to-be-released 2006 follow-up to his Grammy-winning debut Get Lifted. “Save Room” finds the dapper piano

Music | Thursday, August 10,2006

Vinyl Static

Erase Errata slide in where riot grrrls leave off; A Tribe Called Quest in Chicago; Outkast "collaborates"

By Marissa Monson

CD exchange Experimental electro-punk trio Erase Errata released their third album, Nightlife, on July 25, unleashing a collection of punk tracks that slide in where riot grrrls such as Bikini Kill le

Music | Thursday, August 10,2006

Enlightened thumping

What does Logic have to do with Zen?

By René Spencer Saller

The title of DJ Logic’s new album is a stumper: What does logic, the science of abstract reasoning, have to do with Zen, a Buddhist philosophy that honors direct intuition through meditation? De

Music | Wednesday, August 2,2006

Not good enough to be awful

Midlake goes for the quaint, agrarian, and the obtuse

By René Spencer Saller

Midlake is from Denton, Texas, the same smallish town that spawned Centro-matic, but you’d never guess it by listening to The Trials of Van Occupanther. With its soft and inviting beds of acoust

Music | Wednesday, August 2,2006

Vinyl Static

Yo La Tengo will kick your behind; Tabakin hits town on Saturday

By Marissa Monson

SINGLES ONLY By no stretch of the imagination does Yo La Tengo look cool. The Hoboken, N.J., trio doesn’t subscribe to any hipster conventions — nary an ironic mustache or trucker cap to b

Music | Wednesday, July 26,2006

Focused on the essentials

Jazzman Liberty Ellman is no obnoxious hot dog

By René Spencer Saller

Ophiuchus Butterfly is guitarist/composer Liberty Ellman’s second full-length for Pi Recordings, which is fast becoming one of the most interesting labels on the independent jazz scene. (Though

Music | Wednesday, July 26,2006

Vinyl Static

The Ditty Bops play the Hilton on Sunday, and other shows of note

By Marissa Monson

The Ditty Bops love to ride bikes. Instead of jamming into a cramped van for their 2006 summer tour, the jazzy duo decided to put shoe to pedal and log some miles on a couple of two-wheelers, and they

Music | Wednesday, July 19,2006

Building a better Park

With a new album and a new lineup, Springfield's favorite indie rock band hits the road

By Marissa Monson

The small makeshift rock club overflows with fans. Kids line the walls, standing on ledges and leaning in to cop a view. The lead singer strikes the first chord on his guitar. The crowd moves and brea

Music | Wednesday, July 19,2006

Self-loathing as art

Lisa Germano excels at singing about being fat, trashed, and duped

By René Spencer Saller

Lisa Germano’s publishing company is called Emotional Wench, a name that is, to quote Homer Simpson, funny because it’s true. In the annals of indie dysfunction, few singer/songwriters hav