Musings on the past and present state of music, film, and pop culture. Get off my lawn.
Albums Revisited: Guns N’ Roses ‘Appetite For Destruction’ Turns 30: celebrating GnR’s raunchy, landmark début on its 30th anniversary. There has been a long-running theory that Nirvana killed hair metal. The story goes like this: their groundbreaking smash album Nevermind’s frayed and raw aesthetic (and the group’s shabby fashion sense) made every poodle-haired, shrill voiced […]
For Generation X, Chris Cornell’s Death Is Infuriatingly Sad: Soundgarden frontman’s death at 52 hits a tragic, yet familiar, nerve. I did not want to wake up hearing that Chris Cornell, one of the best singers of my generation has died. It didn’t seem real at first–but these things never do. It’s become a chilling, […]
Albums Revisited: The Cure’s ‘Wish’ Turns 25: a look back on the band’s best-selling, yet oddly overlooked 1992 album on its 25th anniversary. 1992 saw a musical landscape still basking in the sounds of Seattle. Thanks to Nirvana’s Nevermind, grunge and heavy alt-rock were the flavor of the day, making the alternative college music scene quite […]
25 Best Albums From 1991: the greatest and most revolutionary records from 25 years ago. Something was in the water in 1991: maybe it was the end of the Cold War, the start and end of the Persian Gulf War, the Rodney King beatings, a rejection of Reaganomics and the moral majority, but kids were ready for […]
Albums Revisited: Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ Turns 25: celebrating Nirvana’s generation defining album on its 25th anniversary. I’ll never forget the fall of 1991. I had recently transferred to a new college. It was out-of-state and I didn’t know a soul. It was terrifying, but also liberating: I was far away from my folks and anyone who […]
Albums Revisited: Pearl Jam’s ‘Ten’ turns 30: our own Diamond Dave Dierksen looks back at the grunge underdog’s iconic debut thirty years on. By David Dierksen On August 27, 1991, Pearl Jam released their début record Ten. And no one really gave a shit. A little under a month later, Nirvana released Nevermind. And still, […]
The Melvins ‘Basses Loaded’ Review: doom metal legends showcase their four-string collaborators on rocking new release. [rating=4] The Melvins continue to be the biggest workaholics in rock and roll. The sludge metal giants are back with Basses Loaded (Ipecac Recordings), their seventh(!) album this decade. Whereas most Melvins’ album titles are gleefully obtuse, Basses Loaded is a […]
Garbage ‘Strange Little Birds’ Review: veteran alt-rockers return with their best album since 2001’s ‘Beautiful Garbage.’ [rating=4] If generic 21st century pop depresses you, Shirley Manson feels your pain. The Garbage vocalist expressed her frustration with modern music in the press statement for the band’s new album Strange Little Birds: “I’m aching for some dark and dismal. […]
MTV’s ‘120 Minutes’ Turns 30: a look back at the crown jewel of MTV programming on its 30th anniversary. Last week marked a nostalgic milestone for fans of alternative music: MTV’s 120 Minutes turned 30. The 30th anniversary flew under the radar, fitting for a show that felt like a secret society for seekers of a […]
Kurt Cobain: Montage Of Heck Review: director Brett Morgan redefines the rock documentary with stirring results. [rating=4] Most rock documentaries about fallen musicians follow a standard template: talking head interviews on said person’s influence, and torrid stories of decadence and tragic decline. But it often feels incomplete due to second hand accounts. The new HBO documentary Kurt […]
