2010 was an incredible year for music, and it was truly difficult choosing the top ten albums of the year. Of course, there are some wonderful works missing, but that is the challenge of the top ten. Each of our writers had a different ballot, but this will hopefully reflect (as well as it can) the divergent tastes and opinions of our staff as well as a slice of 2010′s best. Read More »
Before I listened to Eux Autres’ album, Broken Bow, not only did I know nothing about the band or their style of music, I also had no clue as to how to even pronounce their name, let alone what it meant. Upon investigating the band’s website, I found out that the French phrase, “Eux Autres” is pronounced “ooz-oh-tra” and that it translates to, “Them Others.” Although I don’t have a (major) problem with the French, it seems odd that an American band from San Francisco would use a French name to describe itself, but pas important! I put that confusion aside and listened to the album. Read More »
This is it. One of your last chances of the semester to finish those Four Lokos you’ve been stocking up on ever since you heard they are going to stop distributing them. This is not a finals playlist. Leave the mellow, boring acoustic music for next week. Let’s take a breath, enjoy the present, and rejoice in the fact that it is still the weekend before you stay in to study. Enjoy yourself while the most exciting thing in your life is not the walk to Lauinger Library. Encompassing the old and the new, this playlist will get you in the right mindset. You shall not read or type when you listen to this playlist. You shall play it loud, VERY LOUD. Crank up that volume, get rowdy, get naked, get ignorant, get belligerent.
Smoke beer, get fucked.
Straight from the heart of Oakland, California comes Zion I’s new EP, Atomic Clock, a ticking timebomb just waiting to burst onto the Rap scene. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing Zion I, a duo of producer/DJ AmpLive and MC Zumbi, they might be described as a more Rap-based Black Eyed Peas, employing heavy keyboard beats and socially conscious lyrics which promote good intentions, such as love and unity. If you’re already a fan, just kick back and enjoy Zion I’s best piece of work to date. Read More »
It’s hard not to feel guilty when, after reading a news story or listening to a class professor rehash the Illegal Downloading Debate, you sit down at your iTunes library (or whatever Zune equivalent you’ve got going on) and try to determine how much of your music you legitimately purchased. If you’re like most kids I know, the answer is pretty close to zero.* There are some bands you really love and want to support, but according to your library, you have all seven of their albums but didn’t shell out a cent for any one of them. It’s kind of a problem. The thing is, at about a dollar-per-song, your library would be worth three or four grand by this point and you never, ever could’ve paid for all that.
With LimeWire shut down and the Beatles’ entire catalog now available on iTunes, it’s never been a more appropriate time to take a look at your options. We’re here to counsel you through your ethical impasse and help you sort out all the pros and cons of getting music illegally or taking the high road—and the hit to your bank account.
Now I know why they always say, “Never judge a book by its cover.” I know I have a tendency, not necessarily to choose CDs based on the album artwork, but to let the pretty pictures on the case affect the way I hear the music. I really like the skewed shot of the sun setting through tall, California palm trees on the cover of the Wallburds’ EP, (With A U); it led me to think I was about to hear seven awesome, laid-back tracks about the beach, romance, and/or summertime. While that happened to be the case with a few of the songs, the great photography set me up for some disappointment with the Wallburds’ actual music.
Simply put, Nothing Fits is pure amped-up mayhem. It’s an album that demands being played loud… very loud. Tyvek has released a collection of twelve don’t-give-a-fuck raw, fast songs. The heavily distorted, frenetic sound each track gives us the impression that they raged hard with some Four Lokos, and got really pissed off and destructive after the wonderful beverage summoned the aggressive wolf that lives inside us all. Read More »
Smoke swirls. A blurry forest of softly lit trees gleams on the backdrop. The lights dim. A reverent hush and eerie stillness falls over the sold-out 9:30 Club. A strangely dressed, shadowy figure crosses the stage to the center mike like a mythical creature, feathery. A lone falsetto, pure and natural, slices through the suspension, wavering ever so slightly, gaining strength till it rings out. An acoustic guitar joins in harmony. Together they echo off the walls and envelop the room.
