Before he became Patti Smith’s lead guitarist, Lenny Kaye compiled the 2 album set, Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era. Released in 1972, the two-LP set covered American garage rock and psychedelia from the years from 1965-1968, and…
Alex Chilton was already a star when he joined forces with the Icewater. Icewater’s members – singer/guitarist Chris Bell, bassist Andy Hummel, and drummer Jody Stephens – had been playing in Memphis garage-rock bands. Despite the city’s heritage of blues…
Congratulations to tangerinetrees99, who scored the fastest time in last week’s musical instrument quiz, and well done to everyone who scored 100% (or got close!). Also, Tony from Mumbling About deserves kudos for scoring 100% in the tough Paul Westerberg…
This week we look at 2020 releases from Wales, Russia, and North Carolina (via Ghana). Enjoy! Kelly Lee Owens Inner Song Welsh musician Kelly Lee Owens sang in her school choir and played bass, but didn’t pursue electronic music until…
Against all odds, Phil Collins made a strong start to his tenure as Genesis’ lead vocalist. Recorded after Peter Gabriel left to pursue a solo career, 1976’s A Trick of the Tail was an impressive record. Collins couldn’t replicate Gabriel’s…
Kyoto math rock band Tricot’s 真っ黒 (Pure Black) was the first 2020 album I reviewed on this site. There have been other excellent records this year, from HAIM, Owen Pallett, and The 1975, but 真っ黒 is now facing its most…
Congratulations to John from , who scored the only 20/20 in last week’s quiz about Women in Music. This week we’ll see who knows their musical instruments – most of these are straightforward, but there were a couple I found…
Neil Finn grew up in the provincial town of Te Awamutu, New Zealand, and joined his brother Tim in the art-rock band Split Enz as a teenage guitarist. When they switched gears to new wave pop, Neil provided their most…
I recently participated in an album draft, run by Hans from Like everyone else I picked 10 albums, but I used mine to also tell a story about music fandom. Here are ten albums that broadened my horizons about…
Congratulations to dark horse Luca, who scored 15/15 with the fastest time in last week’s Album Covers by Description Quiz. This week you need to identify the female artist from four options starting with the same letter. It’s one of…
