It Doesn't Suck

Pete Doherty has been a favorite of judakris. He’s like a trainwreck, you can’t look away. So I was at the library the other day and noticed that for £1 I could rent Babyshambles’ new CD, Shotters Nation. While I didn’t want to make the investment to own it, I was curious to hear what all the fuss was about. As I look through the CD booklet I take note that Kate Moss has some writing credits on this thing. The first song, “Carry On Up The Morning”, was definitely my favorite. I listened to Shotters Nation from start to finish on my commute into London and it did get tedious in the middle, but then got better towards the end. Curious no more, it can go back to the library.

P.S. Let’s talk about band names for a moment (we probably need a whole separate post about this) but The Libertines was an awfully cool band name. Babyshambles? Give me a break.

Glam Metal Pioneer and Next Generation Rocker Die of Unknown Causes.

Quiet Riot lead singer Kevin Dubrow, 52, was found dead yesterday by friends in his Las Vegas home. The cause of death is unknown at the time of this posting. Fellow bandmate Frankie Banali posted a short statement on www.frankie-banali.com asking that friends and fans "respect my privacy as I mourn the passing and honor the memory of my dearest friend Kevin DuBrow." A lot of us will remember that Quiet Riot's 1983 album Metal Health was the first metal album to hit number one on the Billboard Charts paving the way for other metal bands to break into the mainstream of America.

Warped Tour screamo vets Hawthorne Heights lost their guitarist Casey Calvert last Saturday. The 26 year-old was found dead on the band's tourbus before a Washington D.C. gig soundcheck. The cause of death is unknown. Via the band's website, HH asks that we respect the memory of Casey by not perpetuating any gossip related to his passing. You can see the entire post at www.hawthorneheights.com/.

Judakris offers its condolences to everyone touched by these unfortunate events. -K

Spoon on Sound Opinions

I was pleasantly surprised to hear Spoon featured on the latest Sound Opinions episode. I listen to Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga often during my weekend commutes and it is by far my favorite album of 2007. Check out the podcast. --J

All the Guys in the Audience Want to Be Him, and All The Girls Want To…

I don’t think that there is anything left for me to see at a Foo Fighters show. This was the biggest and most impressive, with the craziest audience.

The stage looked kind of spare compared to their last tour, but there was a long walkway that led to a round covered smaller stage in the middle of the floor of the arena. Mid-way through the show, the cover came off of the smaller stage and the band moved there for a set of about five acoustic songs. They were joined on that stage by some of the musicians that played on the acoustic tour including Pat Smear. Every effort was made to acknowledge and play to everyone in the audience, including the people in the nosebleed sections, and the crowd went wild.

They played for two and a half hours, which led me to wonder if Taylor Hawkins is human. He is absolutely amazing! While the crowd loves Dave (girls were wearing Mrs Dave Grohl shirts next to me) I thought it was Taylor’s night.

The setlist covered all of the highlights, including a lot of stuff from the first record. The most amazing part of the night was when Dave mentioned they wanted to do something special since they were in London and just then two people starting to walk out to the stage. When I saw the silhouette I knew who it was instantly. Brian May and Roger Taylor from Queen joined them and they performed 39 from A Night at the Opera. Not only did we get to see these two legendary performers, but we got to witness Dave and Taylor gushing all over them, they are such huge fans.

As I left the arena, I realized it has been ten years since I saw them perform in Huntsville, Alabama at Big Spring Jam in front of a crowd that might have been as big as one section of seats in the huge O2 Arena. Seeing them at the height of their fame last night in a country that adores them was a nice note to end on. As they say in the UK, well done!

At the end of the night, Dave said to the audience, "I wish I could make out with each and every one of ya". Okay, so maybe there IS something left to see. --J

Serj Tankian at the O2 Arena - Unnecessary

Okay, I’ve never been a huge fan of System of a Down but I don’t hate them. They have had a few interesting singles but as far as I am concerned, a little goes a long way. Serj Tankian, their lead singer was the supporting act for the Foo Fighters last night at the O2 Arena. He has a solo record out and it was bizarre. My housemate N went with me to the show and he had never heard of System of a Down. I said to him that this should be interesting because Serj had an operatic strange singing style for traditional rock music and that he was very political. N asked me, are they an American band? I said yes, but that they had strong family ties to another country, I was thinking Serbia but after doing some research this morning, realized that they were of Armenian descent. After a few songs, N leaned over and said, are you sure he’s American? We both laughed. N said the set reminded him of the Eurovision song-writing contest that takes place every year. The music had a Balkan feel to it. Because Serj came out in a top hat and coat, when he was dancing, I thought I was at a wedding reception. At times N and I were laughing out loud. --J

Favourite Worst Nightmare

VH1’s Best Week Ever had this hilarious bit about the Arctic Monkeys when their debut album was released. It was all about how people thought they were cool in the States if they name-dropped them, but no one had actually heard their music. I picked up the latest record recently out of curiosity since they are everywhere in the UK. It’s unexpected. I gifted K one of the tracks from the record, “Only Ones Who Know”, which has a dreamy feel to it. Her response was something like, “that doesn’t suck”. I had forgotten that she was unimpressed with the single off the first record. It made me smile. --J

Lyrically, are you serious?

The Killers have released a new record and I had to take a look at its contents on iTunes. They cover the Kenny Rogers classic, “Ruby Don’t Take Your Love to Town”. In fact, many have covered this song. Cake’s version ends with someone shouting “this is bullshit” which slightly lightens the mood of the song. I had forgotten how dark the lyrics to this song were, my God!

You've painted up your lips
And rolled and curled your tinted hair
Ruby are you contemplating
Going out somewhere
The shadow on the wall
Tells me the sun is going down
Oh Ruby
Don't take your love to town

It wasn't me
That started that old crazy Asian war
But I was proud to go
And do my patriotic chore
And yes, it's true that
I'm not the man I used to be
Oh, Ruby I still need some company

Its hard to love a man
Whose legs are bent and paralysed
And the wants and the needs of a woman your age
Ruby I realize,
But it won't be long i've heard them say until I not around
Oh Ruby
Don't take your love to town

She's leaving now cause
I just heard the slamming of the door
The way I know I've heard it slamming
Some 100 times before
And if I could move I'd get my gun
And put her in the ground
Oh Ruby
Don't take your love to town

Oh Ruby for God's sake turn around

Wow. --J

Long-Haired, Freaky People Need Not Apply

Sometimes you want your parents to know what you do in your free time and sometimes you don't because you just know there will be commentary and you will feel compelled to justify whatever it is. I love my dad. I've always been proud of him, but he's definitely a commentator. He's a Republican retired army officer/pilot who thinks everyone just needs to buck up and go to work. I definitely got my work ethic from him. I got my love of music and celebrity from my mom, who is the polar opposite of him. She was a former dancer who loved Mick Jagger, Janis Joplin, and The Doors. When I was 14 she took me with her on a whirlwind weekend trip to the states to see Bon Jovi headline at Giants Stadium (we were living in Germany at the time. Yes, mom was and is a HUGE Bon Jovi fan). When all of us girls would engage in an animated Genglish conversation/chorus in the kitchen you would usually hear my dad, who seemed in a constant search for peace within the house, yell "QUIIIIIEEETTTTTT" from the living room. Dad has never suffered fools much and to him this includes flashy, self-absorbed artist types. My mother, my sister, and I all lived for shows like Solid Gold and movies like Flashdance. We were fascinated by celebrity and drama and obsessed with pop music. My dad loved gardening, peace, Milwaukee's Best (because it was cheap), and Willie Nelson. We loved Olivia Newton John, Andy Gibb, Cher, and the Go Gos. Kind of different. But no matter. My dad learned a long time ago that he would have to be the easy going one in order to survive life in the house. He also realized that he could peacefully protest by dishing out sarcastic commentary. This he and my brother did often when I was growing up. They are still never want for a comment. As expected, I often set myself up. For example, the other night I was sitting in my dad's office using his photo printer to print off pictures from a recent show I had covered. My dad was standing behind me browsing the pictures. I could sense that he was dying to make a comment. When you're in front of the stage you're dependent on the lighting and will end up with several misses. Dad observed how dark some of them were and so I told him that you're not allowed to use flash when you're in front of the stage as it might be distracting to the artists. Of course, as I'm saying all this I begin to regret opening my mouth at all. "Aw, the little darlings" he said.

And there it was. -K

Dead!

No, these aren't concert tickets. As my MCR ticket sat unused at the box office of the O2 Arena, I was on a train heading north for work. The closest thing I got to MCR tonight was listening to them on my iPod as I tried to drown out the screaming baby sitting in front of me. --J

The Last Waltz - Unexpected

Several months ago my brother S was reminding me how I needed to sit down and watch The Last Waltz. I borrowed his copy and then I drove home and started packing to move to England. This movie has travelled in my suitcase to England, back to the States in September, and back to England again. A few weeks ago suffering from insomnia I put it in and was captivated. Not only did I like the music more than I expected, the interviews were really good. Sitting in the dark in my room listening to Levon Helm’s southern drawl soothed my homesick soul.

If you haven’t seen it, check it out. --J

The Look

By chance, they released some additional tickets for MCR’s last UK date of The Black Parade tour. I went to buy one for the show on the 15th in London and found that you cannot purchase tickets and have them waiting for you at the “will call” window nor can you have them mailed anywhere but your billing address, which at the moment is in the U.S. Rather than risk having the ticket sent to the States and then have H mail it to me in time for the show, I thought I needed to find someone to buy me the ticket as I gave them the cash. So who would I ask? I know my boss the best, so I said to her that while I knew this went beyond her supervisory duties, would she be willing to buy this ticket for me and she agreed. I headed to her office, money in hand and we went through the transaction. I got the look twice:

1. Because I was going to go to this show by myself.
2. Because at my age I was going to see a band called My Chemical Romance.

She said, “You like going to these things?” I laughed and said, “I just need to go see some screaming Americans next week”. I don’t know why I felt so guilty. It’s not as if she walked into the room and I had a needle hanging from my arm. A woman I work with proudly announced last week that she was flying to Rotterdam to see Take That in concert for cryin out loud! I mean she is TRAVELLING to see them. Oh well, when I have ticket in hand, I won’t care what others think. --J

When You're Exactly Where You Want To Be

The other day J told me about the photograph exhibit called Bruce Springsteen: The Boss Revealed. She mentioned that there was one photo in which Bruce was jumping up onstage and the audience's faces were captured; that there was one woman in particular who looked like she was having the time of her life. Let me guess which one she meant! -K

Clapton: The Autobiography - J's Review

Just as K was buying the new EC autobiography, I had just finished reading the final excerpt that had been published for three straight weekends in the London Times. As soon as I could get my hands on it, I would. The things that struck me about the book were:

1. Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominoes is by far my favourite EC work. I often listen to that record from start to finish. I would think that if you wrote such heartbreaking lyrics for someone that you were in love with, if you were then with them, that would be it. Happiness. Not so. Ladies, it’s another example of the grand gesture being very misleading. I really felt for Pattie Boyd.
2. He is a man who needs man time and maybe this is a result of his maternal abandonment issues. But now he now has four daughters. That may be an example of a divine plan.
3. As an artist, he does not seem as driven to create something original as much as he wants to honor a tradition that already exists.
4. Every once in awhile when I read something a little detail in the book that shouldn’t be a big deal starts obsessing me. Towards the end of the book he buys a boat and has to borrow money to do it, which is a first for him. Now he had a world tour coming up so I’m sure there is no loan now, but I started wondering, is he going to be okay financially?
5. He freely admits not giving his all during live performances a number of times, mostly due to his addictions. I know the same could be said for a number of artists, but that always makes me uncomfortable.
I agree with K, you don’t have to be a fan to enjoy the book.

Clapton: The Autobiography-K's Review

Recently, I was sitting in an airport at 6:00 AM watching CNN. It was just me and the cleaning team. CNN happened to be running a repeat episode of Larry King Live with Eric Clapton as guest who was promoting his new memoir Clapton: The Autobiography (Broadway). I ended up purchasing the book as soon as it was released. By the time I finished the book, I felt as though I had devoured it.

Its narrative voice has a cadence of a storyteller. As I made my way through each chapter, I kept imagining that I had sat down next to a man on an airplane and begun to hear a life story. In this memoir, Clapton proves himself worthy as a spokesperson for recovery by refusing to glamorize the road and the lifestyle. He definitely comes across as a self-absorbed musician, of course, but he also reveals a human frailty that I did not expect. In about 352 pages, Clapton, comes to grips with his childhood, his self-inflicted pain, and the redemption he deserved by finally finding a woman with whom he could start a family. In fact, if there was a slow part of the book, it would be the last couple of chapters in which he and Melia marry and settle down into family life. Honestly, that's not a bad way to end a memoir. Don't we want to know that a man who has made countless bad personal decisions finally got it right?

What I find interesting is that he quietly moves through musical collaborations like Cream and Derek and the Dominoes without any grandeur. If I hadn't thought about the unforgettable music that came out of these collaborations, I would have thought they were nothing overly significant at all.

I would recommend reading it. Even if you aren't a fan of Clapton or the blues, it's still a fascinating read; if not for the demystification of one man who was once referred to as God, for vignettes involving George Harrison, John Lennon, and other well known artists. -K

Gimme Gimme (Burp) Gimme ...

Judge me if you will, but I LURVE the new Britney song Gimme More. I don't want to, but I can't help it (even if J thinks the "more"s sound like burps, haha). But, I have to ask, doesn't it sound like a Kylie Minogue song? Vocals and all? Maybe that's what I like about it so much. I've had a weird girly crush on that woman since the 80s! -K

Oh Amy. Sweety. Why?

This makes me so upset for her. Despite the shape she's in, her voice is still so rich and sexy. I need for her to get it together! -K

Justice - Cross

I have never been a fan of the electronica genre, but something made me want to give French duo Justice a listen after reading comparisons to Daft Punk and the fact that they are somewhat controversial because they unabashedly use the Judeo-Christian cross symbol as part of their repertoire. Blender refers to Justice as "an electronica act for people who think electronica sucks"(Issue 64, Nov '07). Daft Punk's Discovery came to mind because that was a cd that unexpectedly blew me away back in 2001. It became part of an L.A. trip soundtrack that same year. Four years later, an acquaintance of mine and I were driving down to Alabama to attend a New Year's Eve party. Five hours into the trip and two more to go we had run out of conversational topics. I put in Discovery and suddenly we were smoking, laughing our asses off at and talking shit. To this day, that album is an instant party reviver, no matter who's in the room.

Anyway, I bought Justice's latest release, Cross (Ed Banger Records), and gave it a listen. Genesis is a fantastic opening track, but as the album progresses I feel like it's trying to be Discovery with a stronger rock influence (incidentally, the band is managed by DP's manager). The Kubrick element could have totally been my gateway into loving the material, but it was a disappointing trip into electronic filler music. I have to give it an Unmoving. -K

Frampton Gets Photoshopped

I don't really know what to say to this, but one of my coworkers photoshopped another coworker's face onto this classic Frampton album cover. hahaha! -K