Incubus broke out big in 1999, closing out the millennium with Make Yourself. The multi-platinum album combined heavy riffs, FX-pedal wizardry, hip-hop-inspired beats and a frontman who could really sing and proved the commercial potential of the nü-metal sound. That same year, Jimmy Eat World released Clarity—a sleeper hit of an album that is now seen as one of the group’s best and a harbinger of the early-aughts pop-emo movement. Both bands share the bill at Shoreline this week and are sure to put on a hell of a show for those looking to relive the glory days of Y2K rock & roll. Continue reading »
Dave Matthews gets hated on a lot. So does 311—for the rap rock thing, for the often-ridiculous lyrics, for the signature PRS guitars and for those white-dude reggae vibes. Back in 2014, they were listed as one of Rolling Stone’s top 20 “Frattiest Bands” listicle. But what if the Grateful Dead had been around in the age of infinite internet snark? Would they too have made that fateful list? After all, their concerts were as much about partying as they are about the music and they have an obscenely sprawling catalog that rewards an obnoxious kind of super-fandom. Continue reading »
This year, Kendrick Lamar ran away with the title of best rapper alive. Drake may be richer, Young Thug may be bolder and the Migos may better reflect the modern sound of the genre. But since Kanye West cut his show short in Sacramento, no hip-hop artist feels more important than Lamar, a reputation that he earned with Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City, reinforced with To Pimp a Butterfly and cemented with his most recent album, DAMN.
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Yousif Kassab on August 10, 2017
Twenty years into their career, it’s clear that Atmosphere will go down as one of the best underground hip-hop groups ever. The Minnesota duo’s early albums feature a quick-witted Slug using his silver tongue to couple glib remarks with intricate and braggadocious rhymes, all while producer Ant drops some seriously dope beats. But as Sean Daley and Anthony Davis grew up, so did their music. Slug turned his lens inward, admitting his faults and drawing on his experiences as a father. All the while Ant’s production has only grown more sophisticated, and the pair now tour with a full band. Continue reading »
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Bill Kopp, Yousif Kassab on August 10, 2017
From classic jazz to the cutting edge, there’s so much to see at San Jose Jazz Summer Fest. Here is a round-up of great performers taking stages all over downtown San Jose this weekend. Continue reading »
It was late and I wanted a smoke (I know, I know—I should quit) but the urge was too great, so I took a seat on the patio and inhaled the sweet relief of nicotine and early onset lung cancer. I usually don’t sit on the porch late at night, as the wafting smoke tends to attract stragglers who can’t afford the obscene price of a pack these days. But little did I expect to see you out of the corner of my eye, trudging along at a slow enough pace to suggest you were in a trance. I didn’t think much of it until there was a lightning-quick flick of your hand, and then another. I peered in close and realized I wasn’t hallucinating—you were actually wielding a set of nunchucks. I never thought much of “scared straight” tactics, but for at least one night you got me to quit real quick and go back inside.
I Saw You is an anonymous “man on the street” column. Email your rants and raves about co-workers or any badly behaving citizens to [email protected], or send to 380 S. First St, San Jose, 95113. Submissions should stick to about 100 words.
When hip-hop heads lovingly refer to the “West Coast sound” or Prince fans regale his potent pairing of musical prowess and sartorial eccentricity—or when a kid in suburbia picks up a bass after hearing “Give It Away” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, or a new Talking Heads convert is pulled into the fold after watching the synth-punk-worldbeat collision in the new wave band’s seminal concert film, Stop Making Sense—it all leads back to one far-out dude from Plainfield, New Jersey. Call it the six degrees of George Clinton. Continue reading »
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Yousif Kassab on August 9, 2017
This year marks the tenth edition of the Outside Lands music and arts festival, which means it’s just short of its big double-digit anniversary. The festival isn’t saying goodbye to its prepubescent years without a fight. The lineup this year is full of artists with albums of new material to play—with the likes of Solange, Gorillaz, Little Dragon, A Tribe Called Quest (R.I.P. Phife Dawg) and Fleet Foxes all making appearances. Metallica and The Who will be there as well. … You know, as the chaperones. Continue reading »
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Yousif Kassab on August 9, 2017
Music is typically a pursuit for the ears, but some songs occupy a time and place. Just as the olfactory sense can bring back vivid memories of things past, music has the power to transports listeners to new places. Los Angeles producer Mndsgn (pronounced “Mind Design”) conjures smoke-filled rooms and dimly lit house parties with his spacey R&B and jazz-influenced compositions. His latest LP, Body Wash, is a magenta-tinged, 16-track journey into a psychedelic bubble-bath. Continue reading »
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Yousif Kassab on August 9, 2017
Some music is just universal. No matter what kind of day you had, or how subconscious you might feel, once you hear it you have to move. The work of Seattle producer Sango falls in this category. His newest project, De Mim, Pra Você is a combination of baile funk and light trap, informed by years of tinkering with and sampling Northern Brazilian funk sounds like the ones found on standout track “Que Nada.” His set at The Ritz will likely bounce between these influences and a more laidback, hip-hop inspired sound like the one found on single “Dance for Blessings.” Continue reading »
