Everyone's a Critic
Way back in ancient history — the ’60s — I was living in San Francisco, and one of my favorite ways to spend a sunny day was driving the winding road to Stinson Beach. I …
Blak and Blu, the debut full-length from Gary Clark Jr., has an aggravated hive of buzz about it. With premier slots at music festivals and a well-received EP, Clark has the weight on his shoulders …
Most artists 35 years into their career have long since slipped into something more comfortable, like complacency. Not so for Paul Weller, as his latest, Sonik Kicks, proves he continues to push his own musical …
As part of an on-going concert series sponsored by Filter magazine, Divine Fits rolled into San Diego for the first time with a free set for anyone willing to brave a late Monday night. Though …
When it comes to writing catchy tunes and melodies that get buried deep in one’s skull, not many bands do it as well as Dr. Dog. Their performance at 4th&B proved that they're also a …
The famous title track scared the shit of me as a kid, still alarms me, and was, of course, meant that way. The “aqualung,” I’ve finally decided, signifies the title wino’s capacity to live under …
If anyone were to give credit for making it “cool” to play banjo again, that credit would be due to Mumford & Sons. Since appearing on the Grammys in 2011 with Bob Dylan, the quartet …
Peter Gabriel arrived in San Diego to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his commercial breakthrough album So. Beginning with a short yet stunning acoustic set that featured such highlights as “Shock the Monkey” and “Come …
The pop tendencies of 2009's Merriweather Post Pavilion have been put on the back burner for AnCo's latest release. It's not a bad thing, but c'mon, a little pop can never hurt. What does hurt …
Opening act Washed Out showed how a 1980s synth-pop sound, so in vogue these days, works well live. Despite the mumbled vocals, the textural polyphony of chillwave synthesizer tracks sounded marvelous through the amphitheater’s crystalline …
Eighties pop star Adam Ant finally made it to town after his rescheduled February date. Brothers of Brazil played an energetic opening set of Bossa Nova rock and then “Ant music” hit the stage with …
“It’s very short, as I recall,” said the resident jazz expert in my life, about McCoy Tyner’s piano solo in this half-hour spiritual yearning — recorded in 1965 but not released until 1968, a year …
Ukulele-based covers might seem to bypass an essential element in the Replacements’ mix of yearning with bravado — Paul Westerberg and Co. were rockers, albeit of a power-pop persuasion. But Nashville-based duo Bright-Little-Field’s homespun approach …
Slash slithered into town with Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators and slayed a sold-out House of Blues with a high-octane, ear-splitting performance. It was evident from the first two songs, "Halo" and "Night Train," that …
On his 35th studio album, Tempest, there are times when Bob Dylan still has his storytelling style going strong but also moments when he sounds like a frail parody of himself. Most lyrics are commendable …
The big question when seeing Dinosaur Jr. is always "To earplug, or not to earplug?" On this night at the Belly Up, I decided to strike a happy medium. I set up camp at the …