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Hip-hop from Hell

Horrorcore salutes Ice Cube and Alice Cooper
Depraved hip-hop is the biggest thing to hit trailer-trash America since sliced meds.

By CHRIS FARAONE | October 29, 2009

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

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

Real Guitar Heroes

Zing go the strings at the Colonel’s Super Dooper Guitar Party
Johnny "The Colonel" Maguire's legacy is carved in stone around these parts, from his shredding with the Amazing Royal Crowns to his Lucky Diamonds and, most recently, a re-gathering of his beloved Cobra-Matics crew.

By CHRIS CONTI | October 13, 2009

Lowe life

Nick Lowe on growing up and growing old in the music business
Nick Lowe is a rare creature, a punk rock founding father who has endured and evolved gracefully.

By MICHAEL ATCHISON | October 07, 2009

Lights, camera, action rock!

Monty Are I — from Cranston to Island/Def Jam
Keep the Cristal on ice until further notice from Steve Aiello, lead singer/guitarist for Monty Are I, who just released their "official" major label debut, Break Through the Silence on Island/Def Jam.

By CHRIS CONTI | October 07, 2009

On the town with ProTown

Hip-hop heads fill the Bucket
Last Friday, a hip-hop showcase courtesy of upstart label ProTown Records, founded by Provy rap vets Romen Rok and DJ Al Bums (among others), invaded the Grant Building in Pawtucket, and the showcase was a rousing success.

By CHRIS CONTI | September 29, 2009

Doing what comes naturally

Tallahassee make timeless old town music on Wolfe Moon
Tallahassee make timeless old town music on Wolfe Moon

By CHRIS CONTI | September 22, 2009

Whiskey. Beer. Rock 'n' roll!

Girl Haggard and Hank Sinatra Jr. join forces and raise hell
Country-fried rawk quartet Girl Haggard have already achieved the goals founder Aaron Jaehnig drafted up when the bigman bassist and bartender-about-town formed the band with Hendersonville, Tennessee native Mandy Allan back in January.

By CHRIS CONTI | September 15, 2009

Off the record?

Ten albums to get . . . while we still have albums
Pity the album. After a half-century of embarrassingly public body issues, our essential rock unit has not entered the new millennium looking very healthy. EPs are way more in vogue, MP3s have intangibility on their side, and 12-inches just sound impressive.

By MICHAEL BRODEUR | September 14, 2009

The Big Hurt: Don't look back in anger

The best of times with the worst of bands
"You don't know what you've got till it's gone," Janet Jackson once famously sampled, and how true it is. Only now that Noel Gallagher has left in a firestorm of brotherly acrimony can I truly take stock of my feelings toward Oasis.

By DAVID THORPE | September 08, 2009

Better all the time

Get these Beatles reissues into your life
In 2006, Apple/EMI released the Beatles-soundtracked Cirque du Soleil companion piece Love , which mashed together songs from the band's repertoire in stunning remastered sound.

By ZETH LUNDY | September 08, 2009

The Empire strikes back

AS220's loose and lively revue
The Empire Revue is a monthly event at AS220, happening every first Sunday at 8 pm, as predictably as political malfeasance and as reliably funny, only without the urge to strangle the perpetrators. It's only eight bucks, which is still cheaper than a movie, they like to remind us, and way cheaper than a trip to the Borscht Belt, they might add.

By BILL RODRIGUEZ | September 02, 2009

In the red

SEXCoffee amp it up on The Morning After
A handful of Phoenix readers questioned the parameters of what exactly defined a "Breakthrough Act" in our recent Best Music Poll, decided in dominant fashion by alt-rock quartet SEXCoffee. What exactly constitutes a band playing together for six years as finally "breaking through?" Well, it isn't titled "Best "New" Act," if that helps.

By CHRIS CONTI | September 02, 2009

Up for the challenge

Rhythmafia: a new breed of mashup
Rhythmafia have been on the scene for about four years, and in that relatively short time the Providence natives — Rob Cinami (drums and backup vox), Jamie Kearns (guitar), Zack Chagnon (bass), and frontman Sam Montes — have successfully delivered a blatantly unique sound through the course of three albums.

By CHRIS CONTI | August 25, 2009