Andrews Rock Blog

Asia is a funny band. While they were the first supergroup of the 1980’s and sold a ton of records with their self-titled debut, history does not look back fondly on the combination of John Wetton (King Crimson), Carl Palmer (Emerson Lake and Palmer), Geoff Downes (Yes and The Buggles), and Steve Howe (Yes). A lot of people (include Yes fans of which I am one) despise the band for their pop leanings and their blatant attempts at commercialism. The original line-up fell apart by 1985, leaving Downes holding the reigns with a revolving door of other faceless players until 2006 when the group reunited and successfully toured theatres and halls around the world. I saw the band when they hit the Docks (now Sound Academy) last year. While the gig was sparsely attended (blame the long weekend and some poor promotion), the band performed well, playing their “classics” along with songs from their previous groups.

With that success, Asia decided to head back into the studio to record “Phoenix”, their first album with the original line-up in 25 years. Recorded in the wake of heart surgery for John Wetton and Carl Palmer, the album is in shops today. A few months back I heard a few new tunes that were streaming, and honestly, they just seemed boring to me. Kind of like how all their earlier stuff sounded to me too. There really is quite the difference between all the bands the members have been in and what Asia is.  The songs from the past are just “ok” in my book. But I’m clearly in the minority, since the band has been selling out venues on their tour in support of “Phoenix”. And credit to Asia, they’ve even managed to score some major label support for the album when other, more high profile acts are losing theirs.

Check out new songs “Never Enough” and “An Extraordinary Life” from Asia’s “Phoenix” and let me know your thoughts.  You can also use the band’s name for today’s bonus code.

Rock and roll and reading. Two of my favourite things. I’ve spent many a Sunday afternoon with the tunes playing softly in the background while I laze away with a good book in hand. Like yesterday, when me and the missus listened to the first of three shows from the Grateful Dead “Winterland 1973″ box set. She did her taxes and I read the book “Heart-Shaped Box”, the debut novel from author Joe Hill. The reason I bring this up is because the book combines rock and horror, another one of my favourite things.

A ghost story released last year that recently arrived in paperback, “Heart-Shaped Box” is the story of rock star Judas Coyne. Picture him as a cross between Glenn Danzig and James Hetfield. He’s depraved and into the occult, so when he’s got the chance to own his very own ghost he jumps at the chance. Of course chaos ensues.

There’s tons of rock references throughout the book; the title, for one; Coyne’s dogs are named Bon and Angus, for another. It’s got some decent scares, and is fairly creepy throughout its 300+ pages. If you like ghosts, rock, and reading I’d say ”Heart- Shaped Box” fits the bill pretty well. It recalls the best work of Stephen King, which makes a lot of sense if you look into author Joe Hill’s background. I’ll say no more. As for today’s bonus code, Joe’s last name is what you’re after.

I was surfing around the ‘Net today and visited one of my favourite sites - RollingStone.com. Today, writer/reviewer/rock journalist extraordinaire David Fricke posted his latest “Fricke’s Pick”, where he discussed seeing a performance by a Swedish band named Graveyard (ooo, scary) at the South By Southwest Festival. Curious, I googled their myspace and took a listen to a few songs the band has posted.

Wow.

Suddenly I was in a time warp back to the early 70’s stoner, headphone rock. The sound of the vocals, the overall production of the material is just such a throwback, but in a good way (and doesn’t that picture above really recall a young Black Sabbath?). Like the Panic At The Disco album I wrote about a few days ago, the guys in Graveyard are clearly wearing their influences on their sleeves, and they seem to have the chops to pull it off. I found the three songs on their myspace good enough to make me want to track down the album.

I’ll post a low quality video below for you to peruse, but I would recommend visiting the band’s myspace here to hear some clearer and cleaner tracks. Take a listen and let me know what you think.  You can also use the band’s name as today’s bonus code. And thanks to David Fricke for turning me (and maybe you) onto some cool new music!

There was a time when Bryan Adams was cool. I swear it’s true. I remember it. Early 80’s. I was 6 or 7. “Reckless” ruled the charts. The battles between him and Corey Hart for Canadian poster boy supremacy were legendary. “Into The Fire” was a solid album too, especially the title track and “The Heat Of The Night” Those were the days.  But then he had to go do that frakin Robin Hood song. From there it became a slow, steady decline into mediocrity. Sure there have been moments throughout the past 20 years - “Back To You” from Unplugged, “The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You” (what the hell, I liked it). But while Bryan is still considered a Canadian favourite at home (even though he relocated to England years ago), his presence in the U.S. has been virtually nonexistent for years.

All that could change with the arrival of his new album “11″. Released in Canada a few weeks ago, “11″ topped the charts, thanks to all the soccer moms and Bryan’s extended family. It also did fairly well in Europe. But “11″ has yet to be hit stores in the U.S.. That’s coming up on May 13th, when it will be sold exclusively at Wal-Mart’s and Sam’s Club across America, the same deal the Eagles put together for the release of their latest “Long Road Out Of Eden”. That particular album has gone on to sell an amazing 7 million copies in the states, so maybe we’re about to see a resurgence of Bryan Adams popularity down south. Judging by the sounds of first single “I Thought I’d Seen Everything”, anyone who loves mid-tempo tunes will be beating down the Wal-Mart walls.

Take a listen to “I Thought I’d Seen Everything”. When you wake up, use the number 11 as your bonus code. 

Have you heard of Mudcrutch? Did you know they’re coming back? Unless you’re a die-hard Tom Petty fan you probably don’t know who they were, are, or that they were around before. You see, prior to Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers making it big back in the late 70’s, Tom was in another band…Mudcrutch, alongside future Heartbreaker guitarist Mike Campbell and keyboardist Benmont Tench. Petty sang and played bass, while the rest of the line-up was filled out by guitarist Tom Leadon and drummer Randall Marsh. The band released one single before calling it quits. A few songs appeared on the 1995 boxset “Playback” and the rest, as they say, is history. Until now.

Tuesday April 29th will see the release of the debut album from Mudcrutch. Petty and his former bandmates went into the studio last August to record an album of new and old tunes. We started spinning the new tune “Scare Easy” today, which sounds like these guys have been playing together for years.

Keep your ears open for it, and use the band’s name for today’s bonus code.

Ok, full disclosure. Before Saturday afternoon I couldn’t name a single song by Panic At The Disco. The only things I knew about them were that they were somehow affiliated with Pete Wentz and Fall Out Boy, and that for their new album “Pretty.Odd” they removed the “!” from their original name “Panic! At The Disco”. So I am not even close to being an authority, or expert on these guys. In this case, I may not even be qualified to “review” an album of theirs. But I’m going to, because “Pretty.Odd” is one of the most surprisingly enjoyable albums I’ve listened to in months.

Heading in with no expectations at all, I was greeted with a totally retro psychedelic rock experience clearly patterned on The Beatles and “Sgt.Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band”. Opening track “We’re So Starving” is sonically and lyrically a total take-off of that classic album opener, down to the way it flows into “Nine In the Afternoon”. The beginning of “When The Day Meets The Night” harkens back to the classic sitar-sound of George Harrison, with a catchy and totally uplifting chorus to hook you in. Horns and strings show up throughout the entire album (recorded at, you guessed it, Abbey Road Studios), adding a lush, full sound to the production that is thoroughly retro but that still feels contemporary. I’m not saying this album is as good as anything the Fab Four ever did - far from it. There isn’t any song that holds a candle to anything on “Sgt. Pepper’s”, but it really is a pleasure to listen to, just like the best Beatles albums. Make that the best albums generally. 

What boggles my mind is that the guys in Panic At The Disco are kids! The ages in the band range from 20-22, and they’ve created an album that feels like the work of artists twice their age. It’s pretty impressive stuff, especially if you’re into the bands obvious influences on this album. The fact that Panic At The Disco is signed to a major label and putting out an album like “Pretty.Odd” should be applauded. And then played and played again.

Check out fthe unabashedly Beatles influenced video to first single “Nine in the Afternoon” below.  

Man, I’m beat today. Poor sleeping, long days, and lots of rock. Last Saturday I had a chance to see Jon Anderson from Yes at the Music Hall. I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed the show. Jon played a solid mix of solo and Yes songs, and he was in fantastic voice. I’m looking forward to checking out Yes when they return to town in July, and hope the muscle of the band won’t overwhelm his voice. Then there was the Rolling Stones movie “Shine A Light” this past Wednesday night, which you can read my review of in the previous post.

Keeping nusy meant I didn’t have a chance to got through the ton of music waiting for me - new offerings from the Raconteurs, Muse (live), Panic At The Disco, Dream Theatre (hit collection), and R.E.M. I’ll try and post my review for ”Accelerate” over the weekend; it’s definitely worth a listen. 

Tomorrow (Saturday) Samantha and I will chat with the guys in Airbourne prior to their sold out gig at the Mod Club. You’ll be able to catch that on the Jack Nation Countdown TV Show (Saturday afternoons at 4 on City TV) coming up in a few weeks. If you haven’t had a chance to see what these guys look like, check out the video below (you can also use the band’s name as this weekend’s bonus code). Jeff and Carly had a phone interview with the band’s frontman Joel O’keefe and he was frakin’ funny. I can’t wait to see what he’ll be like in front of a tv camera. I’ll let you know. 

Have an excellent weekend!

I had a chance to catch a preview screening of the new Rolling Stones film “Shine A Light” last night, directed by the one and only Martin Scorsese. I’m a pretty big Stones fan too be sure (I did a 17 hour line-up to see the band at the Phoenix back in 2005) and I was looking forward to seeing the band back on the IMAX screen (their 1990 Urban Jungle tour was featured in 1991’s AT THE MAX). I was also a little suspect as to how good the band would perform for this particular gig at New York’s initmate Beacon Theatre. While the club show I saw in 2005 was spectacular, the subsequent stops I witness on the Bigger Bang tour were just ok, with the Ottawa show being sub-par, likely the worst time I’ve even seen the Stones perform.

The beginning of the film is intriguing, as director Scorsese tries to co-ordinate set-ups and set-lists with Mick Jagger. It gives you just a bit more context to what it was actually like putting the movie together, rather than a straighforward concert film a la “Let’s Spend The Night Together”.  But once the concert portion gets going, it’s virtually non-stop music, with an occasional blast from the past interview segment.

As for the performances, I’d say “Shine A Light” is as close to capturing the Stones in the 21st century as you can get. From my experiences, it takes the band a few songs to really find their groove, and in the film there’s no exception. “Jumpin Jack Flash” and “Shattered” are a little sloppy and slow, but by third song “She Was Hot” the band starts to really cook. It’s great watching and hearing the interplay between Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards. The guitar “weaving” that the guys have mastered after 30+ years of playing together is something special.

A few highlights - Charlie Watts’ sigh at the end of “Shattered”; Mick and Keith sharing the mic on “Faraway Eyes”; Keith’s own vocals on “You Got The Silver”. Over the last few years Keith has spent more time scat-singing, so it’s a real treat to hear him belt it out like he means it. Buddy Guy and Jack White make guests appearances, along with Christina Aquilera, who stands toe to toe with Mick during ”Live With Me”.  Speaking of which, Jagger really is the definitive rock frontman, even into his 60’s. He’s a ball of energy that can’t be contained, and he puts his all into the performance.

As a music guy the only thing that really bothered me during “Shine A Light” was a trait that occasionaly comes up in concert films. If the camera is focusing on Ronnie Wood playing a solo for instance, his guitar immediately comes up front in the mix, but once the focus is elsewhere the guitar dissapears too. Maybe it’s just me, but I found that a little distracting and made me wish for a better music mix.

At the end of the film, which closed with one of the better versions of “Satisfaction” I’ve heard from the Rolling Stones, all I was thinking was “do you think they’ll do it again?”. If Mick, Keith, Charlie, and Ronnie can continue to deliver like they do in “Shine A Light”, I wouldn’t be surprised.

Take a listen to the version of “Live With Me” from the flick and then enter this bonus code: LIVEWITHME

I’m pretty sure Jack White is actually the future of rock and roll. I know it’s been said before, that’s it’s almost become like a catchphrase. But the longer he’s around, the more I think he’s the guy that will define rock into the future. He’s been accepted by critics and fans, he’s got two bands (White Stripes and Raconteurs) that both sell albums, and he’s jammed with true musical icons (the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan).  Now to cement his standing, he’s made the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine with both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.

I’ve got a copy of the Raconteurs album which I’ll be reviewing towards the end of the week. In the meantime, check out first single “Salute Your Solution” and give us your opinion on Jack White - as good as they say, or not even close. Then use his last name for today’s bonus code.

When my wife and I married this past August the one band that seemed to get referred to the most in the various speeches throughout the evening was Rush. My mom mentioned them, I mentioned them, I’m sure my best man did. I never thought that when I would get hitched that Rush would be a core part of my wedding. Talk about a surprise.

Speaking of surprises, Alex Lifeson is promising some surprises on the next leg of the “Snakes and Arrows” tour. Here’s what he told Billboard:

“We thought we should maybe revisit some older songs we’re not playing currently or haven’t been in the last little while. So we changed out a few songs in the set. We’re gonna keep it loose and maybe kind of bounce back and forth.”

Personally, I’m hoping for a full blown version of “Xanadu”. What do you say, guys? Geddy? Alex? Neil? I know you’re reading.

In the meantime, what would you like to hear when Rush roll into the Molson Amphitheatre Wednesday July 9th?

Check out this classic version of Xanadu and then use it as today’s bonus code: