Legendary Music Photographer Mick Rock Has Died


Mick Rock a.k.a. ’The Man Who Shot The 70s’ who created some of the most iconic shots of bands in music history, has died. He was 73. The news was broken by his family on social media. No cause of the death has been announced. In addition to a stint as David Bowie’s personal photographer, the native of Great Britain show iconic rock music acts such as Queen, T. Rex, Syd Barrett, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and The Stooges, The Sex Pistols, The Ramones, Joan Jett, Talking Heads, Roxy Music, Thin Lizzy, Geordie, Mötley Crüe, and Blondie. We send our sympathy out to his friends and family at this time. Read their statement about Mick’s passing and lifeswork below.

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NEW MUSIC FRIDAY: January 8th, 2021 New Music Releases


Purchase And Stream All The New Music Released Today!

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Season 2 of The Boys Features the Rolling Stones, Talking Heads, Goo Goo Dolls, U2, and Billy Joel


The anti-heroic Superhero series, The Boys, based on the popular comic created by Garth Ennis (Preacher, The Punisher) and co-created, designed, and illustrated by Darick Robertson (Wolverine, HAPPY!) just saw the first three episodes released to Amazon Prime Video this week. As was the case in season one, the show is a blur of action sequences, bloody gore, cursing like a sailor, sand social commentary, and smart musical choices. Already heard in season two so far are The Rolling Stones (“Sympathy for the Devil”), Talking Heads (“Psycho Killer”, U2 (“Where the Streets Have No Name”, Goo Goo Dolls (“Iris”), and Billy Joel, who was one of the signature artists heard in season one (“Pressure”, “Piano Man”, “You’re Only Human”). The first three episodes and the post-show hosted by Ayesha Tyler are all streaming now. New episodes arrive every Friday through early October. Continue reading


The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Shares its Punk and New Wave Collection


During this time of self-isolation and quarantine, we are all just looking to keep entertained and our minds busy. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame thankfully is answering the call, sharing their treasure trove of content from their history. They have shared their Punk and New Wave Collection to watch their YouTube playlist and archival stories from Ramones, Talking Heads, Blondie, Patti Smith Group, The Clash, The Stooges, The Sex Pistols, Lou Reed, and Green Day. The Rock Hall also has history lessons on the genre for rockers of any age!Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Pearl Jam – Gigaton


The inevitable march towards environmental destruction and a certain perma-tanned incumbent of The White House have lit a spark under Pearl Jam, in part inspiring new album Gigaton (Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records). “The lengths we had to go to then, to find a place Trump hadn’t fucked up yet” Eddie Vedder spits on ‘Quick Escape’, a moody, mid-paced rocker about an environmentally ravaged future. The restrained and subtle power of ‘Seven O’Clock’ is another reaction to modern America, saying that now is not the time for despondency given the situation and “sitting bullshit as our sitting president”.Continue reading


ALBUM REVIEW: Human Impact – Human Impact


Comprising members of Unsane, Swans and Cop Shoot Cop, New York quartet Human Impact embrace all of those bands’ qualities and add a rebellious Noise element which belies the middle age quickly enveloping the protagonists. Debut album Human Impact (Ipecac Recordings) sees that collective maturity provides a focused, prowling edge.Continue reading


Watch David Byrne Perform Talking Heads’ Classic “Once in a Lifetime” on Saturday Night Live


Alternative rock and punk legend David Byrne was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live (SNL) last night, and set the small screen ablaze by performing his classic song from his Talking Heads days, ‘Once In a Lifetime’. The show was hosted by comedian John Mulaney. Talking Heads had been a guest at the height of their fame last in 1989, but Byrne has been a musical guest over the years. Bynre and his group also performed ‘Toe Jam’. Watch the official videos below! Continue reading


Bowie, Blondie, The Doobie Brothers, Gary Numan, Peter Gabriel, Talking Heads, Red Rider Music Heard in Mindhunter Season 2


If you are like us, you spent the weekend binge-watching Season 2 of the amazing Mindhunter series on Netflix. The followup to the Emmy Award-winning 2017 series is a drama based on the real events of the founding of the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Produced and sometimes directed by David Fincher (S7ven, Fight Club, Zodiac) and starring Jonathan Goff, Holt McCallany, and Anna Torv, the main characters are FBI profilers and they interview serial killers and investigate cases during the show. As they did in season one, the music of the time plays a huge role with the soundtrack, sound design, songs heard in the show. Music in season two features artists such as Blondie, The Doobie Brothers, Peter Gabriel, Talking Heads, Willie Nelson, Marianne Faithful, Pretenders, The Brothers Johnson, Boston, Joan Armatrading, Kenny Rogers, Red Rider, The Police, Patti Smith Group, Christopher Cross, Sammy Davis Jr., Gary Numan, Pat Benatar and more. Even a Charles Manson song is heard in Episode 5 which features Manson himself portrayed by Damon Herriman, who also plays Manson in Quentin Tarantino’s current film Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. Jam out to this playlist!Continue reading


Exclusive Video: Spirit In The Room – A Tropical Hell Hole


spirit-in-the-room-band-2016-ghostcultmagGhost Cult is bringing you the exclusive première of Los Angeles rock act Spirit In The Room today for their new single ‘A Tropical Hell Hole’. Watch it below: Continue reading


Kylesa – Exhausting Fire


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Ever think you could compare 70s New wave to Savannah Psych-Sludge outfit Kylesa? No, me neither…

A new Kylesa album used to be a huge event in the Quinn household until 2010’s Spiral Shadow (Season of Mist) showed a mellowing of the lambent, crushing anger, introducing more of the band’s progressive drift. Two albums later and it’s sadly obvious that the band is continuing the journey further from their harsh roots.

Exhausting Fire (Season of Mist) isn’t devoid of bulldozing riffs: opener ‘Crusher’s entrancing verses displaying the customary steel which fires up a laconic, Blondie ballad-style chorus highlighting the increasing melody in Laura Pleasants’ voice. The ensuing ‘Inward Debate’ is Philip Cope’s first foray into action, immediately infusing the sound with a buzzing anger: yet his performance in ‘Moving Day’ is more indolent, an almost spoken-word delivery, Pleasants’ honeyed backing and jangling hookline giving way to a fuzzed coda.

This is a less inventive, softer Kylesa, seemingly happy after all these years to plough a furrow without traversing the path of discovery. Briefly howling leads and a growling riff awaken the dreamy, drifting ‘Falling’, the kind of track the band are becoming more well-known for. The Talking Heads-esque ‘Night Drive’ is a cool evocation of the cosmic violence of the Spiral Shadow era, a lazy Prog infused with swelling, pulsing power. ‘Blood Moon’ however, is more indicative of the second half of the album, its blend of Asian-influenced MOR and bludgeoning Punk feeling tired and occasionally flaccid: a tiredness which the insouciant, Nirvana-like ‘Growing Roots’, only occasionally tempting with spiralling swells, further highlights.

Closer ‘Out of My Mind’ sees more of those terribly wearisome vocals – in all honesty, the biggest problem here – destroy a gradual pogo-fest. It’s by no means dire, just desperately disappointing and lacklustre. Here, it seems, we have a once-crushing colossus now older, battered by tough times, and content to peddle uninspired stodge which eclipses many other bands’ output, but insults Kylesa’s legacy and name. Intermittent flashes of dazzling, indelible former glories save us from a worse fate. Exhausting Fire? Exhaustion seems not a million miles away…

 

5.5/10.0

PAUL QUINN