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Days of the New

The orchestral stylings of Rustic Overtones 2.0
When drummer Tony McNaboe delivered the burned copy of Rustic Overtones’ new full-length album, he tucked it inside the packaging of the re-released and re-mastered Long Division.
By SAM PFEIFLE  |  November 05, 2009
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Tegan and Sara | Sainthood

Sire (2009)
Tegan and Sara have always been background music for staring wistfully out a coffeeshop window, in a strange city, alone, hung over and/or going on no sleep, wondering what the fuck went wrong.
By BARRY THOMPSON  |  October 28, 2009
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Running with the Devil

Making a connection with Brown Bird
The surge of locally-harvested folk/roots/Americana acts flourishing in Rhode Island continues.
By CHRIS CONTI  |  October 29, 2009
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Bold and beautiful

A Fine Frenzy emerges, swift as a shadow
Alison Sudol, the LA-based artist who records and performs as A Fine Frenzy, just loves it when I bring up the first show of her first-ever tour.
By MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG  |  October 27, 2009

Haunted Shipyard

Jodi Explodi deliver ghosts of Halloween past
Guitar World recently gave credit to KISS for turning “party” into a verb.
By SAM PFEIFLE  |  October 28, 2009
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Annie in Wonderland

St. Vincent gives an otherworldly performance on Actor
There wasn't much to know about St. Vincent when I first happened upon her in concert, in the middle of July 2007.
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY  |  October 21, 2009
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The Big Hurt: Release yo’ delf

The week in horrendous press releases
Every slow pop week has a silver lining: it’s a great chance to catch up on the thrilling world of useless press releases.
By DAVID THORPE  |  October 22, 2009
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Newport’s rock royalty

The diePods — straight outta the City by the Sea
If 75orLess Records CEO (and Six Star General bassist) Mark MacDougall decided to host an East Bay Desert Sessions, the diePods would be the 3 am headliner.
By CHRIS CONTI  |  October 21, 2009
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Boycott Blues | Irony

Brick (2009)
Here’s one way to interpret the title of the debut disc from Boycott Blues: on one paw, he’s a street cat who says “fuck it” for a fast ducat; on the other, this Roxbury beast laments the residual effects that come from poisoning his people and advancing cyclical oppression in the “concrete Congo.”
By CHRIS FARAONE  |  October 14, 2009
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Review: Castanets | Texas Rose, the Thaw and the Beasts

Asthmatic Kitty (2009)
Although based in a rustic, country-western sound, Ray Raposa's Castanets are irreverent, using familiar elements like pedal-steel guitars and gospel choruses in defiant ways.
By MICHAEL PATRICK BRADY  |  September 15, 2009
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Gus Gus | 24-7

Kompact (2009)
Letting the music take control is a primary tenet of the dance-floor ethos — but that's only because dance music is by nature submissive. Even at its most sonically rich, dance music remains a utility, and even when it demands your attention, it does so in service to your good times.
By MICHAEL BRODEUR  |  September 15, 2009
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Stars aligned

Cult heroes and superstars dot the region's fall concert calendar
The days are growing shorter, the magazines are (well, barely) getting larger and meatier, and the first batch of cider doughnuts is on the way real soon: all sure signs of autumn, as is the bountiful crop of prestigious concerts coming our way this season.
By CHRISTOPHER GRAY  |  September 16, 2009
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Review: The Stone Roses | The Stone Roses (Legacy Edition)

Silvertone/Legacy (2009)
The Stone Roses' 1989 debut LP has been deified by such dubious tastemakers as the NME and Oasis's Noel Gallagher — and the rest of us really like it too.
By ZETH LUNDY  |  September 15, 2009
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Band of outsiders

The Beatings are at home under the radar
The Beatings got back from their eighth US tour the day before, but they’re already reconvening over at frontman Eldridge Rodriguez’s misplaced little two-story beach house in Lower Allston. I do a double take on the way through the cute picket fence.
By MATT PARISH  |  September 09, 2009
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Jay Reatard | Watch Me Fall

Matador (2009)
Jay Reatard is the Lil Wayne of the Memphis garage-rock scene.
By MIKAEL WOOD  |  August 25, 2009
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David Bazan | Curse Your Branches

Barsuk (2009)
The "Christian music" tag is still a puzzling cross on David Bazan's back. Sure, he writes a lot about Christianity, but he mostly sticks to its failures in the face of depression, death, and doubt.
By JAKE COHEN  |  August 25, 2009
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A. A. Bondy | When the Devil's Loose

Fat Possum (2009)
I just don't get most of alt-country — what is it even alting us out of at this point?
By MICHAEL BRODEUR  |  August 25, 2009

Hoolies + Howlies + Dusty Rhodes

Dig the roots
On THURSDAY (the 20th), Westerly's finest blues-roots crew THE HOOLIOS play a hometown gig at the revamped and renowned Knickerbocker, and have locked up the third Thursday of every month through '09 (401.596.4225).
By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF  |  August 18, 2009
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High-powered hybrid

Roz Raskin and the Rice Cakes set sail on  The Friend Ship
"It's pretty much impossible for us to have a predictable sound," said Rosalind Raskin earlier this week while discussing The Friend Ship (Moose Proof Records), the full-length debut from Roz Raskin and the Rice Cakes ( MySpace.com/RozRaskin ).
By CHRIS CONTI  |  August 18, 2009
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Moving on up

Jaye Drew proves herself a smooth operator
In the R&B and soul the very talented vocalist Jaye Drew purveys, you need something real, a grit and substance that allows you to rise above sentimental pap and make people actually give a fuck about you. She finds — and shows — just that on A Moving Train, her debut full-length.
By SAM PFEIFLE  |  August 12, 2009
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Best Music Poll 2009 concert

A 40,000-person group hug
Stream audio of all the bands' performances, watch video highlights, download interview podcasts, browse concert and behind-the-scenes photos, and share your own photos and videos at the  Boston Phoenix Web site  or  WFNX's site.  
By CARLY CARIOLI  |  August 11, 2009

Music Seen: Man-Witch CD-release at Geno's


Anyone who doesn't like Man-Witch either didn't watch enough Saturday-morning TV as a kid, or is an incurable sourpuss.
By DAN CLARK  |  August 05, 2009

Ziggy lives!

And FH13 offers a little bit of everything
Club Hell starts the weekend off THURSDAY (the 6th) with an early-bird experimental rock show featuring Houston's SCALE THE SUMMIT (currently on tour opening for Dream Theater) with Cranston's CALIFORNIA SMILE , who are reportedly finishing a new record.
By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX STAFF  |  August 04, 2009
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Solid foundation

A promising debut from Big Tall Buildings
When Big Tall Buildings guitarist Jared Mann sent in a disc of six demos earlier this year, the raw potential behind songs "Natalie" and "Something with a Semicolon" had me dropping monthly emails on him with the subject header "WHERE'S THE ALBUM?"
By CHRIS CONTI  |  July 29, 2009

Making waves

Six Star General invade Newport
A packed weekend begins THURSDAY (the 30th) when the ladies take over at the Hi-Hat, with MELISSA FERRICK and locals Seriously Fierce (aka Heather Rose and Keturah) opening, call 401.453.6500.
By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX MUSIC STAFF  |  July 29, 2009
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Regardless of the cost

Tony McNaboe testifies on sophomore release
If you were concerned that the return of Rustic Overtones would mean the ends of their various side projects, it’s clear now that was a fruitless worry.
By SAM PFEIFLE  |  July 22, 2009

Tower of Song Festival, Eric Bettencourt, and the Outsiders

Sibilance
This is shaping up to be one of the best summers in a long time when it comes to outdoor and festival-type shows.
By PORTLAND PHOENIX STAFF  |  July 15, 2009
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Feel-good hits of summer

Wheat's strange beauty
Life is unabashedly beautiful for Wheat founders (and Taunton natives) Brendan Harney and Scott Levesque. That sentiment echoes throughout their latest release, White Ink, Black Ink (The Rebel Group) — which is surprising considering their track record with major and indie labels over their dozen years in the business.
By CHRIS CONTI  |  July 14, 2009
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Back in action

Multitasking with Senior Discount 
Veteran punk rock quartet Senior Discount returns to the live circuit this weekend, starting with the big Lupo's/WBRU Block Party on Friday and an early-bird slot at Club Hell on Saturday. And national retailer Hot Topic has invited the band to play a string of acoustic shows around New England throughout the summer (check  myspace.com/seniordiscount  for the full schedule).
By CHRIS CONTI  |  July 08, 2009

Gossip | Music For Men

Columbia (2009)
Working with master minimalist Rick Rubin, Gossip have lost more than the "The" from their name, as they've pared down their sound while amping up the pop and R&B-isms of their earlier work in this clear and earnest bid for the big kahuna.
By DANIEL BROCKMAN  |  July 07, 2009

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