Otis Redding - Live in London & Paris

Artist:
Otis Redding
Review:
Otis Redding didn’t simply “play concerts.” The soul giant was a
human Mount Vesuvius: He erupted. Redding was at the height of his
fame in March 1967, when he played these two brief shows in London
and Paris. (He would die in a plane crash in December that year.)
And the audience’s reaction is ecstatic — it’s a fair bet
that few of these Europeans had ever witnessed a spectacle quite
like Redding and the all-star Stax house band, Booker T. and the
MG’s and the Mar-Key horns, tearing into…

Rating:
4 Stars

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Premature Evaluation: Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul

Pushing Noel off a stage in Toronto might bruise the erstwhile Oasis mouthpiece’s ribs (maybe even his spirits) and causes the band to cancel a show or two, but nothing can stop the slow processions toward a new Oasis album. These things will arrive here/there for the rest of our lives, right? The big question: Do the songs sound at all like the teach NYC busker versions? The other question: Is it better than the Verve’s Forth? No and yes: The songs sound better coming out of Oasis than the buskers and, yes, it’s better than Forth (just in case you wanted to keep your psychedelic Brit rock pecking order in good shape). But does that make it any good?

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Download the Secret Machines’ New “Atomic Heels”

New York’s Secret Machines are about to drop their third album of psychedelic epics anchored by monster drumming. The trio’s self-titled record — their first effort with new guitarist Phil Harnats, who replaces Ben Curtis — comes out October 14th and you can download the ear-smashing “Atomic Heels” right now:
“Atomic Heels” [right click and select “save as”]

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Kid Rock Wows Fans in L.A.

"I want you to know there’s no tape recorder here tonight, no backing tracks," Kid Rock told the crowd of mock-Playboy bunnies, spaghetti-western cowboys, and C-list celebrities Thursday night at Los Angeles’ Gibson Amphitheater. "This isn’t American Idol. This is American badass!" Indeed.

Earlier, before Rock entered the amphitheater, some words appeared on the jumbotron screen behind the band: "Where’s Kid?" Thus launching us on a mini-search party. Is Kid in the tour bus with the strippers? Nope! Is Kid outside? Don’t see him. Is Kid in the Waffle House? Certainly not. So where’s Kid? Cue Journey’s "Don’t Stop Believing" on the house speakers — it’s the, "born and raised in South Detroit" line that appeals here — and Rock bounds onstage in a glorious white jumpsuit that would make Madonna jealous.

Opening with country-rap hybrid "Rock N Roll Jesus," Rock darted down the catwalk, his microphone spending equal time tucked into [...]

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Tom Morello: The Nightwatchman

What? Tom Morello’s electrified six-string blasts and squeals formed the bedrock that anchored frontman Zack de la Rocha’s righteous fury, making Rage Against the Machine one of the most exciting bands of the 1990s. You wouldn’t necessarily know it now, though. Morello has traded his guitar heroics for earnest folk rock as the Nightwatchman. There’s a sense of danger here, sure — "Whatever It Takes," off his new record The Fabled City, is a call to revolution: "I’ll meet you now wherever you are / I’m here until the frontline breaks," he sings. And even his stage name calls to mind a sort of aesthetic vigilantism. But Morello’s mimicking of Tom Waits’ and Bruce Springsteen’s vocal intonations while throwing Public Enemy-style firebombs is discomfitting. Political justice, at least for Morello, is better served by shredding out Pennsylvania Avenue-splitting guitar anarchy onstage with Rage.

More on SPIN.com:
>> Tom Morello, Zack de [...]

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Weezer @ Madison Square Garden, NYC 9/24/08

Last night was something like my 40th set of music in under a week, and it came on the heels of my second night with My Bloody Valentine (Roseland was amazing). But still it was never in danger of being overlooked: Wednesday was my first evening with Weezer, and Weezer’s first with Madison Square Garden (Rivers called it “a dream”). For both of us, though, it was some years too late. That’s not for any reasons of performance stamina or proficiency on the band’s part: when the material is right, Weezer’s infectious, vulnerable pop is powerful as ever. Which is saying something. Namely, it’s saying a Weezer show is as good as its setlist. And mostly last night’s selection was pretty OK: the show opened with the Blue album’s “My Name Is Jonas,” and quickly hit my money spot (i.e. anything off Pinkerton) with “Pink Triangle.” (Singing “I’m dumb she’s [...]

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Hype Monitor: Glasvegas, Elzhi and Grouper

Every week, Hype Monitor wades through the most buzzed-about bands all across the Internet.

The Band: Glasvegas
The Buzz: Latest UK saviors of rock gird their echoey guitar pop with a strong undercurrent of soul.
Listen If: You wish those old Motown singles were a little more keen on the distortion pedal.
Key Track: “Daddy’s Gone,” where vocalist James Allen does Ronnie Spector by way of Billy Bragg over “Be My Baby” tom tom hits.

The Band: Elzhi
The Buzz: Satellite Slum Village member gives hip-hop its soul back, turning out tough rhymes over grainy R&B productions.
Listen If: You want Kanye without the ego, with beats that are more throwback than throw-it-all-against-the-wall.
Key Track: “Guessing Game,” which keeps an electric guitar sample twitching for nearly six minutes while Elzhi spells out the anatomy of rhyming.

The Band: Grouper
The Buzz: Avant-artist Liz Harris brings the noise, swaddling ethereal pop songs in gurgling clouds of distortion.
Listen If: You [...]

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Stereolab’s Tunes Bubble & Bounce in Austin

Singing in both English and French, vocalist Laetitia Sadier and this London-based group of music vets continued their epic ambient-electro legacy last night at Austin’s La Zona Rosa. Stereolab’s professionalism and transcendent tunes won over an all-ages crowd dressed in business suits, jeans, and even a skeleton costume, who hung on every word and bobbed and swayed to each burbling swell and propulsive Moog bounce.

More on SPIN.com:
>> Artist of the Day: Stereolab
>> Stereolab Unveil U.S. Tour

Stereolab performed a solid mix of tracks, beginning with a trio of short poppers off their latest release, Chemical Chords, including the swift rhythms and upbeat melodies of "Neon Beanbags." They then eased into heavier 10-minute jams — like "Percolator" off Emperor Tomato Ketchup — from their mid-’90s albums, sounding more urgent with a cacophony of heavy guitar and synthesizer. Throughout the show a projection reel blasted out-of-focus, looped montages displaying paint splotches and kaleidoscope [...]

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Mercury Rev

What? Mercury Rev will release their seventh and eighth albums September 30 in two very different ways. Hailed by critics as a return to form, Snowflake Midnight, the act’s proper full-length release, showcases Mercury Rev’s brand of dreamy, psychedelic pop while delivering poetic and accessible lyrics that feel timeless in their flow and delivery. The band again enlisted longtime friend, part-time band member, and knob-twiddler extraordinaire Dave Fridmann to handle production, and his studio wizardry has helped polish Mercury Rev’s thunderous drums and atmospheric guitars.

Though Snowflake’s companion album, the full-length Strange Attractor, has been kept under tight wraps, Mercury Rev have explained that while recording Snowflake Midnight they felt the songs were taking two different pathways and should thus be divided into to separate releases. A double CD was considered, but ultimately the band settled on two completely independent albums. Strange Attractor — which features ambient, mostly instumental, less poppy [...]

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A Clip From Kanye West’s Alligator Boots

Earlier we gave you good non-puppet-related news from Camp West, so here’s some bad puppet-related news from Camp West: Watch a preview of the project. It features Kanye in the nightspot, hitting on puppets, acting as hype man to a puppet playa doing a rap about women bringing their “baby to the club.” Bad idea jeans.

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