Cormorant flew onto my radar late last year, after reading the articulate writings of lead singer and bassist Arthur von Nagel on MetalSucks. When it came time to assemble end of year lists for 2009, Dan from Bay Area Metal Scene and I agreed that Cormorant’s Metazoa should be one of the Loudest Bay Area […]
I was ‘on call’ for this show. I have read so many love letters from my fellow bloggers about these three bands that I knew I needed to check them out. I’d seen Cynic before and disliked them, but that was a year ago, so I thought maybe things had changed. I tried to get […]
I’m driving back to SF from LA on about 5 hours of sleep, which is actually pretty normal for me, but nonetheless it led me into a long span of introspection on the open road. What am I doing with my life? I’m on the final countdown for an age milestone….and I’m following bands around […]
I’m flying down the 5 at 90 mph, alternating between listening to the bands I would later see that evening and the Juliet, Naked audiobook, Nick Hornby’s latest work, which is, in part, about what it means to be a fan. It would be my first of two nights of Behemoth shows, where I would […]
I live approximately 8 blocks from Thee Parkside, towards the top of Potrero Hill. It’s a weird neighborhood, man…I love it, everything is right there, but once it gets dark there is no one on the street. So my 9pm walk to the dive bar is completely silent. I’m having a moment, viewing the bay […]
Dez Fafara, formerly of Coal Chamber and currently of DevilDriver, is one cool guy. Before the second date of the Bound By the Road tour at Slim’s, I sat down with Dez in the smoke-filled back room of the tour bus to discuss life on the road, upcoming DevilDriver material, and Twitter. HardRockChick: So last […]
It would be my first show of the year, and if this set the tone for the rest of 2010, I’m buckling up now because it’s going to be one hell of a ride. We left off in December, which was a tumultuous month with great shows that were bittered by loss, and I spent […]
It’s challenging to write about what happened to a genre of music in 2009 when it’s as loosely defined as Alternative. What exactly is Alternative music, really? It’s hard to put into words, but our ears can pick it up. And that’s the beauty of music. Early ’90s alt-rock bands Dinosaur Jr., Meat Puppets, The […]
2009: the last year of the first decade of the new millennium. It proved to be a year rife with innovation, comebacks, breakthroughs, and goodbyes in rock music. Thrash metal began in the ’80′s with Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax, who, incidentally, will tour together for the first time in 2010. Their influence can be […]
{ Joan, Lita Ford and the sweeties Runaways have always tickled my fancy:):)!!!! } – Mar 17, 3:15 AM
{ Death in the eyes of dawn is such a classic. Best song to keep my mood up when life gets shitty! Cant wait to be... } – Feb 19, 10:26 PM
{ There are 2 small pits within the stage! } – Feb 16, 12:05 PM
{ good stuff jamie! love your perspective! } – Jan 31, 7:36 AM
{ Was there a pit we couldn't see on TV, or did they let you roam around the periphery of the stage - front and back?... } – Jan 27, 8:10 PM
{ Folk rock followers around the world are celebrating the arrival of their favorite musical genius from the 70's into the digital arena. Shep Cooke has... } – Dec 22, 11:52 PM