Alternative music, cult films, and pop culture explored through a Gen X lens — with reviews, interviews, and a deep-dive podcast.
Jerry Cantrell Brings Career-Spanning Firepower to Emo’s It was a packed house at Emo’s on Saturday. The crowd spanned generations, but there were strong 90s vibes, when heavy alt-rock dominated the musical landscape. That said, Jerry Cantrell wasn’t here to coast on nostalgia from his work with Alice in Chains. That was just one piece […]
RIP Ozzy: 11 Alternative Rock Bands Influenced by Ozzy Osborne and Black Sabbath. The late vocalist’s influence went far beyond metal, as ’90s alt-rock can attest to. Ozzy Osbourne was a force of nature. He was the face and voice of heavy metal, the godfather of the genre, influencing thousands of other metal bands between […]
The 15 Best Rock Albums of 2024: the best in alternative, metal and more from a year that sorely needed musical solace. 2024. What a year, huh? I’m personally worn out from it and dreading 2025, but I take my pleasures where I can find them, and music remains a source of solace for me […]
Jerry Cantrell’s ‘I Want Blood’ Review: Alice in Chains vocalist/guitarist shines on a sullen yet gorgeous new solo album. Jerry Cantrell is one of the most consistent and tasteful songwriters in the business. His work in Alice in Chains shows a distinctive talent for off-kilter sonics, emotive vocals, and a sublime mix of heaviness and […]
Greg Puciato ‘Mirrorcell’ Review: ex-Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist indulges his love for 90s grunge and 80s new wave on sophomore solo album. The Dillinger Escape Plan may have broken up in 2017, but former frontman Greg Puciato has still been plenty busy. In the ensuing years he’s released two albums from his electronic project The […]
35 Albums Turning 30 in 2022: The Best Albums of 1992: a list of the best alternative, metal, hip-hop, indie and experimental releases from 1992. Last year I boldly declared that 1991 was the best musical year of the 90’s. And I still stand by that. But by damn, 1992 is a very close second. Whereas […]
RIP Mark Lanegan: His Essential Playlist: We celebrate the late singer’s legacy with a 30 song Spotify playlist. Today, the music world lost a titan, the gravelly voiced, inimitable vocalist Mark Lanegan, has died at the age of 57. While the details are scarce (the singer had been suffering after a long and treacherous bout […]
Greg Puciato ‘Child Soldier: Creator of God’ Review: ex-Dillinger Escape Plan powerhouse vocalist explores diverse sonic terrain on solo debut. Greg Puciato has been an artist drawn to extremes, and he’s stated as much in the press release for his debut solo album Child Soldier: Creator of God: “This record is me declaring ultimate freedom. […]
Albums Revisited: Stone Temple Pilots’ Core Turns 30: Looking back on STP’s blockbuster (yet polarizing) début. “Overnight success” is an often offensive term when describing a band. No group gets it together their first night out. It’s the incubation process that counts, and some bands get an earlier break than others. Stone Temple Pilots were often […]
Concert Review: Deftones at Austin360 Amphitheater: San Diego metallers slay on a balmy night in Austin, TX. [rating=5] Just a little year over a year since their triumphant 2016 set at SXSW, San Diego’s Deftones returned to Austin last night–making a stop on their 2017 tour with Rise Against and Thrice. After co-headliners Rise Against finished their (with […]
