Se negli Anni Novanta avevi a cuore certa musica non potevi fare a meno di amare i Teenage Fanclub, band in tutto e per tutto scozzese che però aveva come marchio di fabbrica un suono saldamente americano. Sulle riviste leggevi che quelle melodie radiose e quelle chitarre così dense erano ereditate da tali Big Star , uno di quei nomi per i quali vedevi spendere spesso la parola "seminale", ma all'epoca non c'era molto tempo per approfondire. Io li recuperai molto più tardi, già in anni di Soulseek, e rimasi colpito da come canzoni di quarant'anni prima avessero ...

Top ten - seriously - snow-related stories of all time: 1. One of Snow Patrol gets arrested 2. Gary Lighbody announces an extra band 3. A snow day edition of What The Pop Papers Say - presumably written on a day when it had snowed. 4. Gennaro Castaldo predicts Snow Patrol's first number one with Chasing Cars (It got to six.) 5. Young Jeezy's snowman tshirt creates drug panic 6. On a snowy day, Gordon Smart is reduced to running old snaps of Simon Cowell 7. Mariah Carey claims she frolics in the snow in a bikini 8. Former Snow Patroller ...

Big Deal is what happens when a young guitar teacher and his student bond over Sonic Youth Alex Chilton and Freaks and Geeks 12 feedback-laced psychodramas delivered through hooky drumless tunes specked with horny guilt-ridden duet harmonies "Can't do my homework/Can't concentrate" purrs Alice Costelloe on "Homework" then wonders "Where...

A timely reminder of what Chilton wanted to become.

Posted at 12:45pm, 1/17/2012 Our new album release list for the coming week goes up every Tuesday. Check out what's dropping January 17th, grab mp3s and catch up on what you missed from previous weeks. Tuesday, January 17th: Andrew Bird: Norman (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) vinyl [ mp3 ] Ani DiFranco: Which Side Are You On? [ mp3 ] The Big Pink: Future This [ *new mp3* ] Deerhoof and David Bazan: Deerbazan [ mp3 ] Ernest Gonzales: Natural Traits [ mp3 ] Guided By Voices: Let's Go Eat the Factory [ *new mp3* ] Matthew Dear: Headcage EP [ *new mp3* ] Peaches: The Teaches of Peaches reissue ...

High time for some more recent stuff around here. Got Is Growing Faith a tad too late for my end of year list, but otherwise White Fence's second outing could have been a contender. Fingerlickin' lofi jangle that alternately took me back to Alex Chilton, Skip Spence, Syd Barrett, and a plethora of bands on New Zealand's famed Flying Nun label. Grow faith, y'all. And then there's Israel Nash Gripka, whose Barn Doors And Concrete Floors I haven't even fully digested yet. I do know that standout track Louisiana is one tough piece of steaming ...

Medium Cool featuring Alex Chilton : Like Someone In Love [ purchase ] When I think of Alex Chilton, I think of at least half a dozen different voices. There's the horny teenaged, weary beyond its years, husky voice of the Box Tops' “The Letter.” In the famous Big Star years there was the vulnerable, love-struck voice of “I'm In Love With A Girl,” the joyous, giddy voice of “September Gurls,” and the burned out, utterly despairing voice of “Holocaust.” In his early solo years there was the sleazoid, sex tour guide voice of “Bangkok.” Later there was the winsome but ...

Alex Chilton - The EMI Song (Smile For Me)

In 1970 Alex Chilton was fed up with is role in the Box Tops and still a year away from Big Star. The music he made that summer was a bridge to the future

In 1970 Alex Chilton was fed up with is role in the Box Tops and still a year away from Big Star. The music he made that summer was a bridge to the future

Posted at 2:00pm, 1/10/2012 Our new album release list for the coming week goes up every Tuesday. Check out what's dropping January 10th, grab mp3s and catch up on what you missed from previous weeks. Tuesday, January 10th: Alex Chilton: Free Again: The 1970 Sessions Giant Sand: Is All Over the Map remastered [ mp3 ] Mark Lanegan: The Gravedigger's Song vinyl [ mp3 ] MUTEMATH: Odd Soul vinyl Patti Smith: Live in Germany 1979 Snow Patrol: Fallen Empires [ mp3 ] Waylon Jennings: Burning reissue Released Last Month: Amy Winehouse: Hidden Treasures vinyl Benni Hemm Hemm: Ff Ekki Cc vinyl ...

The only new music I plan to pick up this week is the Alex Chilton compilation Free Again: The 1970 Sessions, which contains several unreleased tracks. The week is heavy with vinyl and reissues, notably the remastered edition of...

(Detailed playlist , with listening links.) 1. Bert Jansch - "3 a.m." - A Rare Conundrum (Drag City) 2. Shintaro Sakamoto - "Something's Different" - In A Phantom Mood 7-inch (Zelone) 3. Harpoon Forever - "Blue Jay" - Life-Size Cut-Out (no label) 4. Ron Kadlec - "The Sea" - Brace Yourself (Tiki) 5. Jean-Claude Vannier - "La Girafe Au Ballon" - Electro Rapide (Finders Keepers) 6. The Monkees feat. Neil Young - "You and I" - Instant Replay (Rhino) 7. The Zoltars - "Embarrassed" - Casual Victim PIle II: Austin 2011 (12XU) 8. Dan Melchior - "Red Nylon Valance" - Red Nylon Valance 7-inch (Sdz) 9. Beau Brummels - "Are You Sure?" - Listen To The Voices ...

Ever since I stumbled upon a Big Star CD at a now defunct record store, I fell in love with their jangly guitars, catchy lyrics and Alex Chilton.  The singer first gained fame a member of The Box Tops, but in the 1970s he formed one of the greatest powerpop bands of all time: Big Star. [...]

Some years ago, my brother lamented the classic rock formula that dominated the commercial radio in his regional hometown. “And even when they have a "special" program,” he complained, “it’s the same bloody playlist, but in a different order!” As noted elsewhere in recent media reports, the same obsession with classic ’60s and ’70s hits and memories continues to saturate the airwaves. Local content requirements are met via a well-practised formula of somnolent smoke and nostalgic mirrors; classic rock pays the advertising bills better than ever. Despite this, it’s unlikely you’ll ever turn on a commercial radio ...