Drake Baer
The Killers, ‘Battle Born’ – Album Review
With arena-rock choruses and anthems as flashy as his hometown of Las Vegas, Killers frontman Brandon Flowers has fashioned himself to be something of a glam-pop Bruce Springsteen. In that way, ‘Battle Born,’ the first we’ve heard from the band in four years, is an epically masculine, unapologetically dramatic, thoroughly enjoyable listen — if you can get over the fact that it’s really, really che
Blur, ‘The Puritan’ – Song Review
Britpop icons Blur are back with a pair of new songs. One of those is the searing, electronic ‘The Puritan.’
Flaming Lips, ‘The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends’ – Album Review
Wayne Coyne’s got pull. He and his Flaming Lips, already masters of reinvention, find themselves again in the most unexpected of manners: by way of collaboration. The Lips have assembled a roster of playmates equally rogue’s gallery and who’s who, ranging from the top of the pops to the furthest avant garde
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Smashing Pumpkins, ‘Oceania’ – Album Review
So the Smashing Pumpkins have become a prog rock band. Who could have known 20 years ago that Billy Corgan’s nasal sneer would float over the guitars of ‘The Celestials’ (yes, that’s the actual name of one of these songs), or that the Chicago band would release an album-within-an-album as their ninth release. ‘Oceania’ is a long player that longs for cosmic grandeur — and at times reaches those st
Red Hot Chili Peppers, ‘Brendan’s Death Song’ – Song Review
The newest single from the Red Hot Chili Peppers is an anthem dedicated to a dearly departed friend. It’s half funeral march and half rock ’n’ roll wake.
The Hives, ‘Lex Hives’ – Album Review
The Hives have made a career out of being crazier than anybody else — and with their fifth studio effort, ‘Lex Hives,’ the crowd provoking, guitar twirling, eardrum crushing garage glam-punk Swedes have made the comeback album of the year.
Sigur Rós, ‘Valtari’ – Album Review
Cathartic, ephemeral, hypnotic, rhapsodic: a new Sigur Rós release begets a grand swirl of adjectives summoned to describe the Icelandic band’s minimalist/maximalist symphonics. Back at the end of the last century, the quartet broke the world open
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Nada Surf, ‘Looking Through’ – Song Review
If you’re reading this, there’s a pretty good chance that you know Nada Surf from a certain ’90s novelty hit, the Gen X’er, ‘Reality Bites’-like high school send up ‘Popular,’ which made the band a flash in the alternative rock pan. And, to their credit, the New York band has continued into a 20-year, seven album career. Their latest record, ‘The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy’ — with a title
Radiohead’s ‘OK Computer’ And ‘Kid A’ Get 8-Bit Video Game Music Treatment
In a bout of pixelated perfection, a YouTube user has uploaded 8-bit versions of two of contemporary rock’s most landmark albums: Radiohead‘s ‘OK Computer’ and ‘Kid A.’
Chris Robinson Brotherhood, ‘Rosalee’ – Song Review
The lead singer of the Black Crowes is back with a new band — the Chris Robinson Brotherhood — and a new song, ‘Rosalee.’ Certifiably groovy, the iconoclastic frontman refits a classic jam form. The result bursts out with thick bass lines and choruses.
Bonnaroo 2012 Schedule Announced
What do Foster the People, the Roots, and Bon Iver have in common? They’re all playing just for Bonnaroo 2012 headliners (that’s Radiohead, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Phish, respectively). See the full 2012 schedule here, and check out our Diffuser.fm dream schedule below.
Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong Nearly Filled in for Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose at Rock Hall of Fame Show
We knew that when Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong introduced Guns N’ Roses at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction last April, the crowd booed at the mention of Axl Rose. We didn’t know that Armstrong almost filled in for Rose during a retrofitted GNR set that night.