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Mike Huguenor on February 27, 2019
So, Monday was blue. Tuesday and Wednesday were gray. Thursday? Don’t even get me started on Thursday. This week has been quite dreary, indeed. But for The Cure, all that drudgery is worth the wait. “Friday, I’m in Love” is like the key to the entire Cure universe. More than an ode…
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Wallace Baine on February 20, 2019
The Polynesian reggae artist George Veikoso, who performs as Fiji, was born in his namesake country but moved to Hawaii as a teen, which explains the title of his latest project 50th State of Mind. The jam-packed two-disc collection is a kind of retrospective, looking back at his 25-year career and sprinkled…
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Nick Veronin on February 7, 2019
A few years back, as the music blogosphere was taking a deep dive into Simpsonswave—penning think pieces on the YouTube-spawned micro-genre’s visual aesthetics, gauzy sonic textures and potential for conjuring bittersweet, spacey nostalgia—a group of Arizona metalheads were plotting a revolt. Phoenix-based Okilly Dokilly have a decidedly less chill take on The…
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Wallace Baine on February 7, 2019
Pull at the tap root of Nirvana, Soundgarden or Pearl Jam and eventually you’ll get to Mudhoney, the often overlooked pioneering band of the “grunge” era destined to go down in history as Kurt Cobain’s favorite band and primary influence. Maybe because they never got the payday of their most famous brethren,…
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Wallace Baine on February 7, 2019
In case you need proof that reggae is the music of the world, check out the singer known to fans as “Sammy J.” He brings to reggae fans his own musical narrative as a New Zealander with Maori bloodlines and a background in social work. Steeped in the deep soul and R&B…
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Mike Huguenor on January 30, 2019
Oakland’s Sugar Candy Mountain is one of the most recent contributions to the Bay Area’s long and storied tradition of gritty, lysergic rock. This East Bay duo mixes synth pop with swirling psych and elements of tropicalia (check out the castanets on “Crystalline”). The neon boat on the cover of this the…
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Mike Huguenor on January 23, 2019
Along with orange sauce and Sleep, Duster is one of San Jose’s true cultural exports. Labelmates with Modest Mouse and Built to Spill, Duster’s Stratosphere is a belatedly beloved indie rock classic. Slow, spacey and minimal, they found their sound and then proceeded to knock it out of the park. And though…
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Wallace Baine on January 3, 2019
British mope rockers The Smiths lasted only about five years (which, if you think about it, is a heroically long time to have to tolerate the ridiculously glorious lead singer Morrissey). San Francisco’s This Charming Band has been paying loving tribute to The Smiths for about three times as long, albeit with…
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Avi Salem on December 28, 2018
For nearly 40 years, The English Beat has been crossing musical genres and defying the limits of what it means to be both punk rock and British. As one of the first groups in the UK to fuse ska and punk, they’ve continued to evolve their sound through a number of studio…
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Avi Salem on December 28, 2018
That extended stretch of time after Christmas and before New Year’s Eve is a period of great ambiguity for those who are visiting home for the holidays. Presents have been opened, awkward political arguments have been made, family dinners have been eaten, but it’s not yet the new year and the hometown…
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