Super cool boxed set that spans the years 1968 to 1975 and features a treasure trove of...uh...treasures; demos, unused mixes, alternate versions of songs, and a 1973 concert recorded in Memphis. "Back Of A Car" people! "Back Of A Car!"
It's been 20 years since the last solo release from the Kiss axeman, in case you were keeping track. I can hear the contemptuous snorts a mile away, but it was Ace's 1978 solo record that kicked some rock and roll butt, not Gene's, Paul's or Peter's.
Violent Femmes' leader returns with a very poppy solo effort featuring members of The Bogmen. I'd also like to add that Yep Roc Records has consistently put out fantastic records.
Hornsby gets back to the sound that put him on the map after some musically, if not commercially successful projects with Christian McBride and Ricky Skaggs. Eric Clapton guests.
International superstar and multi-media mogul, JAY-Z confirms the most highly speculated date in recent music history. Friday, September 11, 2009 is the official release date for the eagerly anticipated Blueprint III. The follow up to JAY-Z's instant classic Blueprint (2001) and the critically acclaimed Blueprint II (2002); Blueprint III is the final installment in the Blueprint series. Blueprint III is a Roc Nation / Live Nation release distributed through Atlantic Records. ''This project is all about pushing the envelope. Being an independent artist, I have an incredible freedom to utilize my unique existing relationship with Live Nation and revive partnerships with great creative teams.'' (What they said.)
MARK KNOPFLER - GET LUCKY
Mark Knopfler seems to be in a very melancholy mood on his new release "Get Lucky," with only two songs, "You Can't Beat The House" and "Cleaning My Gun" getting above a mid-tempo, and only slightly at that. But that's ok because Knopfler sounds at home on this quiet, and occasionally beautiful, collection of songs. Please enjoy a stream of "Cleaning My Gun" here.
After a shakey, three-song start that tries to fit in everything Living Colour is known for -- heavy metal, hardcore, rap, funk, and R&B -- Vernon Reid and the gang settle down and let the songs do the talking. This is the best thing they've done since their 1988 debut.
Raven presents for the first time on a comprehensive anthology covering the career of one of the great cult artists of American rock n roll: Roy Loney and the Phantom Movers. This is an exhilarating, multi label collection, 28 tracks, and 77 minutes of red hot rock n roll.
This band sounds like all the bands they aspire to be, a little bit of Radiohead, a little bit of Queen and a little bit of Yes. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I really like what I heard of "The Resistance."
Please check out more of the same, as well as some recent concert reviews and lots of music at my blog, Burning Wood.