At 12, Eddie Chacon was playing in a band with future Metallica bassist Cliff Burton and future Faith No More drummer Mike Bordin. Summer monopoly Four acts monopolised the NZ #1 number-one spot between 6 September 1992 and 4 April…
We’re still sorting albums this week, and up to T. Can you tell the real Trout Mask from its replica. I’m ineligible because I made it. There was a three-way tie last week, with Rich Kamerman, PowerPopMax, and UK…
It feels as though Taylor Swift has been around forever, but she released her seventh album, 2019’s Lover, while still in her twenties. Swift started young, releasing her 2006 debut at 16, and has used her marketing savvy to keep…
“In 1965, it took some guts for men to walk around with shoulder-length hair and high-heeled Chelsea boots. Doing that and calling your band The Fairies may have bordered on the suicidal.” Credits PERSONNEL/NICK WYMER: vocals * MICK WEAVER: lead guitar *…
When they formed The Police in London in 1977, Stewart Copeland, Sting, and Andy Summers were all veteran musicians. Copeland had drummed for progressive rock band Curved Air, Sting had played in the jazz fusion band Last Exit, while Summers’…
We’re back to sorting albums this week, and we’re up to S. Fortunately, many famous albums start with S. Can you tell your Sour from your Surrealistic Pillow? I’m ineligible, although embarrassingly, I muddled Superfly and Shaft when I…
Texas-born Miranda Lambert occupies her own zone between the current mainstream country and the more rootsy sounds of Americana. As she explains, being a major-label artist involves compromise. I love raw albums. I’d love to record an album in a…
Two new records from indie stalwarts. Lucy Dacus edges closer to the mainstream with the genteel Forever is a Feeling. Meanwhile, Dan Bejar continues his erstwhile path, mellower but unmistakably Destroyer. Lucy Dacus Forever is a Feeling 2025, 7/10 From…
Justin Bieber has released some top-notch singles. ‘Yummy’ isn’t one of them. Justin Bieber Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber was discovered via YouTube. His mother uploaded videos of Bieber singing onto the video platform. Eventually, entrepreneur Scooter Braun saw one.…
Congratulations to Tony, who won last week’s R album challenge. Let’s take a break from sorting albums this week and guess which half of the decade songs belong to. Remember that 1985 is in the decade’s second half – more…
