rawk Archive
10 Jul 2019
Don’t Forget All About It: ‘Nazz Nazz’ at 50
Building upon the disparate influences of Philly soul, Jimi Hendrix, the Who and Laura Nyro, Nazz was quite a unique group. Though today the foursome is remembered chiefly as the […]
06 Jul 2019
Album Review: Aura Blaze – The Sparkling Black
Well, well: this is unexpected. The press on this album suggested something in the vein of Pink Floyd; oddly, one act I don’t hear in this music is Floyd. But […]
02 Jul 2019
Stranger by the Minute: Porcupine Tree’s ‘Stupid Dream’ at 20
Porcupine Tree began as a ruse; Steven Wilson concocted a backstory for a fictitious band. But the prodigiously talented multi-instrumentalist crafted music to go with the legend, and thus the […]
01 Jul 2019
Mike Mills’ Rock/orchestral Hybrid
Note: I’ve written a number of pieces ( links: [1] [2] [3] ) based on interviews with former R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills. Here’s another. — bk Mike Mills is best […]
30 Jun 2019
Andrew Scotchie: All in the Family
At only 25 years of age, guitarist, singer and songwriter Andrew Scotchie has a thriving music career. A prominent fixture of the Western North Carolina music scene, Scotchie and his […]
28 Jun 2019
Your Most Valuable Possession: Ben Folds Five’s ‘…Reinhold Messner’ at 20
North Carolina-based Ben Folds Five came on the scene in 1995 with their self-titled debut album. The Chapel Hill band had been together two years, honing their unusual (in a […]
25 Jun 2019
Still Reigning King of the Twang Bar: Adrian Belew’s ‘Mr. Music Head’ at 30
By 1989, Adrian Belew was well into the high-profile phase of his career, one that continues to present day. The guitarist’s star had been in ascension since being discovered by […]
24 Jun 2019
Live from Laurel Canyon: Songs and Stories of American Folk Rock
In the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles, a mere two miles from Hollywood Boulevard, there exists a relatively secluded region called Laurel Canyon. Beginning in the middle 1960s […]
14 Jun 2019
Humble Pie’s Mid ‘70s ‘Joint Effort’
A new release of little-heard Humble Pie music, Joint Effort documents a strange period in the lifespan of the British hard rock group. Made not long after its lead singer […]
13 Jun 2019
California Guitar Trio Takes the Instrument Someplace Else
Acoustic guitar trios are nothing new. But in the hands of the musicians calling themselves the California Guitar Trio, the instrument is approached in a unique way. And the sounds […]