interview Archive
09 Apr 2024
Santa Cruz’s Kaleidoscope Music Festival
California has a long tradition of music festivals. From Monterey Pop to Coachella, festivalgoers have had many opportunities to enjoy the best that popular music has to offer, all in […]
08 Apr 2024
Marnie Stern: Tapping Back Into a Solo Career
The string-tapping method employed by adventurous musicians isn’t new, and it wasn’t devised by Eddie Van Halen. Some 200 years ago, composer Niccolò Paganini used the technique on his violin. […]
22 Mar 2024
The Chocolate Watchband is Still Rocking
Legendary garage band’s story isn’t over yet They’re far from a household name, but among aficionados of sixties garage and psychedelic rock, the Chocolate Watchband is spoken of in reverent […]
21 Mar 2024
No Compromise: The Sound of Shakin’ Street
The following is a liner note essay I wrote for Scarlet, a brand-new archival release from Liberation Hall Records. It’s a document of the band’s August 1979 set at San […]
20 Mar 2024
The Contractions: Kicking Ass, Taking Names
The following is a liner note essay I wrote for 1980, a brand-new archival release from Liberation Hall Records. It’s a live set drawn from the group’s 1980 dates at […]
19 Mar 2024
Blackburn: Band of Brothers (Part 3 of 3)
Continued from Part Two… Soul music figures into the Blackburn Brothers’ mix as well. The lyrics of “Bobby’s Blues,” the new album’s opening cut, display a social consciousness reminiscent of […]
18 Mar 2024
Blackburn: Band of Brothers (Part 2 of 3)
Continued from Part One… Many Paths Converging Into One For their own musical journeys, the four Blackburn brothers each built upon their father’s foundation. “I got a great start from […]
17 Mar 2024
Blackburn: Band of Brothers (Part 1 of 3)
An edited version of this feature appeared previously in Living Blues. Four brothers are carrying their storied family musical tradition into present day and the future. The legendary Underground Railroad, […]
14 Mar 2024
Still Got the Mojo: A Conversation with Foghat’s Roger Earl (Part 4 of 4)
Continued from Part Three… With regard to a life in music, what’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? I left school when I was 15. I’d been working after […]
13 Mar 2024
Still Got the Mojo: A Conversation with Foghat’s Roger Earl (Part 3 of 4)
Continued from Part Two… 1977’s Foghat Live was even a bigger smash than was Fool for the City. It came out during that period when everybody put out a live […]