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BRETT MILANO

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Van Morrison

Keep It Simple | Lost Highway
You might call this the Van Morrison equivalent of Bob Dylan’s Modern Times .

By: BRETT MILANO | March 11, 2008

Back in print

The return of Big Dipper
In a quiet basement in suburban Concord, singers/guitarists Gary Waleik and Bill Goffrier and drummer Jeff Oliphant are about to turn back into Big Dipper.

By: BRETT MILANO | March 05, 2008

The Fleshtones

Have a Good Look | Yep Roc
It’s not enough for a great live band to create a strong, sweaty groove in the studio: they’ve gotta write the songs, too.

By: BRETT MILANO | March 05, 2008

Continue To Enjoy the Figgs, Volume 2 | Stomper
It makes sense that one of the Figgs’ best recent songs, “Regional Hits” (included here), celebrates those pop gems that are known only to a select few.

By: BRETT MILANO | February 26, 2008

Bowin' away

Cello Chix at the Lizard Lounge, February 8, 2008
Of all the CD-release parties ever thrown by Boston bands, the Cello Chix’ show for their new, self-released Under the Covers featured the best Jethro Tull medley.

By: BRETT MILANO | February 12, 2008

Ringo Starr

Liverpool 8 | Capitol
Ringo Starr has never made an album that’s less than entertaining, and there aren’t many Beatles you can say that about.

By: BRETT MILANO | January 28, 2008

Twang and burn

Sarah Borges lights a roots-rock fire
When Sarah Borges performs in roots-music hot spots like Nashville and Austin, they don’t ask about her country credentials or her alt-rock background.

By: BRETT MILANO | January 14, 2008

Terry Adams

Rhythm Spell | Clang!
NRBQ are still on hiatus, maybe for good, but leader Terry Adams’s latest solo set has the sound and the style of a vintage Q album.

By: BRETT MILANO | December 17, 2007

Born again

The return of Scarce
When fondly remembered bands get back together, they usually say they’re just playing a couple of shows and not thinking about the future.

By: BRETT MILANO | December 11, 2007

Still rockin'

The Middle East Celebrates 20
“You remember what happened — I threw a fuckin’ party that got too fuckin’ big.”

By: BRETT MILANO | November 13, 2007

The band time forgot

The shocking truth about the Outlets
The Outlets’ Rock 1980 really wasn’t recorded 27 years ago. It only should have been.

By: BRETT MILANO | November 14, 2007

Garage-rock heaven

The Sonics, Cavestomp! at Warsaw, Brooklyn, November 3, 2007
Of all the rock bands who have ever reunited, the Sonics waited the longest.

By: BRETT MILANO | November 05, 2007

Heart

Dreamboat Annie Live | Shout! Factory
Heart are fast becoming the world’s best classic-rock cover band.

By: BRETT MILANO | October 22, 2007

Bunny Ranch

Luna Dance | Transformadores
These garage-rockers from Coimbra, Portugal, get the music exactly right, and the quirks of language only make them more endearing.

By: BRETT MILANO | October 15, 2007

Man of the People

Stevie Wonder, Bank of America Pavilion, September 20, 2007
Given the scope of Stevie Wonder’s accomplishments in the ’60s and ’70s, you’d expect him to be writing symphonies by now.

By: BRETT MILANO | September 24, 2007

Fallout joys

When the Nirvana explosion rocked Boston
In his newly published The Sound of Our Town: A History of Boston Rock & Roll , Phoenix contributor Brett Milano explores the evolution of the local music scene.

By: BRETT MILANO | September 18, 2007

From prog to pop

Genesis, TD Banknorth Garden, September 11, 2007
Much of the set came from the post-Gabriel, pre- Touch era, when Genesis mastered their orchestral soundscapes.

By: BRETT MILANO | September 18, 2007

The Subdudes

Street Symphony | High Street
It wouldn’t be a Subdudes album without a couple of accordion-led tunes or a soul ballad.

By: BRETT MILANO | September 12, 2007

Taking charge

Shepherdess puts Hilken Mancini in the lead
If Hilken Mancini’s ego were bigger, her new album would be billed as the career breakthrough.

By: BRETT MILANO | September 10, 2007

Wall of shame

A definitive life of Phil Spector
In a moment of weakness, he licensed the Ronettes’ “Be My Baby” for an ad for the erectile-dysfunction drug Cialis.

By: BRETT MILANO | August 22, 2007

Magic numbers

The mysterious allure of 27
“I like that Stone Roses song,” one of them noted. “You know the one I mean — ‘I Wanna Be a Door.’ ”

By: BRETT MILANO | August 14, 2007

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