I already hate myself for writing this, so no comments please. Also, I would like to state for the record that it’s all amy’s fault. She got me hooked on the smack (This particular smack = Britney Spears’ new album),…

Two Saturdays ago, I turned on my computer to hear my external storage drive make a horrific grinding noise, cough politely and die, taking with it nearly 10 GB of music. This was a nasty blow. I have to admit…

You’ll get no argument from me when I say that fans of Tori Amos’ work are nothing short of dedicated. Borderline obsessive? Maybe. Regardless, I know that there are a lot of happy fans right now who are in possession…

“Deep House Dish” is one of Saturday Night Live’s more popular recurring sketches of the past few years. When it debuted in 2005, it was an absurd send-up of house, techno, and Euro-pop music that bore little resemblance to America’s…

What I am about to say will hurt me much more than it will hurt Sarah McLachlan, but here goes: Sarah’s new album is full of some of the most uninspired lyrics since Britney found “Bombastic Love,” and the business-as-usual…

Written by Danielle I have a soft spot for bands containing a single female member who is not the lead singer (i.e. a female in a band who plays in instrument and is not a front woman backed up by…

Written by Danielle Sometimes working with a big name producer (or two, or three) can be more of a curse than a blessing. Case in point: Nelly Furtado’s new album, Loose. Sure, she managed to reel in Pharell Williams (No…

Time has changed Natalie Maines. The once-perky lead singer for the Dixie Chicks has perhaps grown up, or been affected by motherhood, or been dulled slightly by controversy. Whatever it is, it makes for a completely different concert-going experience. On…

I’m sure we’ll all remember 2004 as the first year the music industry finally admitted to actually increasing their profits and yet still claims that file sharing is destroying their business. Because those massive mergers of conglomerates had absolutely nothing…

The release of Songs from Instant Star Two gave me an opportunity to test out a theory I had when I reviewed the first soundtrack volume – does it make a difference when you hear the soundtrack for television episodes…

…when you have a vendetta against the male gender. As most women know, getting all dolled up (or, alternately, slutted down) to go out dancing can serve several different cathartic purposes. There are the times when you just need to…

After seeking out Velocity Girl’s Simpatico! album for the umpteenth time at work, I wondered why I often go back to it, forsaking so many other tracks on my iTunes. And I started to think about my other fallback albums…

I’m sort of mad at Pink. See, the first time I listened to her new album, M!ssundaztood, I got a distinct early-80s vibe from it. In fact, I felt very strongly that if one were to discover a long-lost John…

Way back when there really was a discernable difference in “alternative music,” I came across this odd little television show on MTV. I would rush home on Mondays to watch the tape I’d set the night before – 120 Minutes…

For some people there is a certain piece of music that will forever typify a specific moment in their life. It can be years, even decades later, and a familiar chord progression will sound. Before you even realize it, you’re…

I’m not one who typically goes for song remixes. While many of the more hardcore fans are protective of their favorite artists and feel that remixes are bastardizations of their music, I’m just not a big fan of house or…

Messrs. Timberlake and Chasez, take note: Robbie Williams is your future. Once upon a time, when the boyband phenomenon was in its infancy stage and *NSYNC hadn’t even begun their European schooling, five young men from England sent hordes of…

[Caveat: It is true that Meredith Edwards’ CD, Reach, is the first release from Lance Bass’s management company, Free Lance Entertainment. It is also true that Meredith was one of the opening acts for *NSYNC on the East Coast leg…

Written by Velma I have, in my music collection, a rather impressive assortment of movie soundtracks, a good half of which are from cinema I wouldn’t dare see. There’s also the On the Line soundtrack, worse than the movie, if…

The thing about a first impression is that you can only make it once. In my opinion this holds true with bands. I usually find myself going back to albums that really made a lasting impression on me the first…

I’ve had The Postal Service’s Give Up since before it was released. And have I gotten off my lazy ass and written a review? Well, obviously not. So what’s possessing me to do this now? Eh. You know, the usual:…

Next up in our fallback album series – new writer Schroeder: The Beatles – Let It Be This is my original fallback album. Let It Be is considered the black sheep of late-Beatles; slapped together by Phil Spector after the…

America, your head’s too big, croons Morrissey on the first line of his new album You Are The Quarry, and it’s reassuring to know the guy hasn’t lost his bite after all these years. Honestly, I think it would be…

I can tell from the first listen what kind of relationship I will have with a CD. One of two things happens: I will instantly bond with the album, or I will remain uncommitted until several more listens – after…

Written by Becka A recent article in Alternative Press magazine focuses on Simple Plan’s knack for not only creating chart topping pop-punk, but also America’s desire to hate them for it. Now, I’m not that big of a fan of…

I have something to say today. It may sound blasphemous, but it is something I can no longer keep to myself. The best concerts I have ever had the privilege of seeing were not put on by *NSYNC. This is…

My initial struggle with this review was to find somewhere between “Damn, he’s got impressive rhymes” and “DAMN, he’s hot” – both of which I feel strongly about. Yes, Eminem’s got the dimples to make ladies swoon. But he’s also…

Written by P. E. Nelson Having been largely ambivalent toward *NSYNC during their 90s heyday, JC Chasez’s recent solo release is less to me a continuation of a career closely followed, than it is a chance to get a better…

I always get kind of tense when an artist I like releases a new album. There’s little chance that anything new will stand up to the tried and true favorites that I’ve played countless times – either to cheer me,…

The Go! Team Great American Music Hall San Francisco April 27, 2006 Let me say right off the bat and for the record that The Go! Team live is just as high-energy, fun and off the wall as their album…