BUT I DIGRESS: Motörhead, Kimberley Locke, Thin Lizzy – it’s all just music to me
Today, on a walk to the store to purchase waterproof Velcro (nunya biddness), I decided to listen to some music. First up, “8th World Wonder” by Kimberley Locke. Next, “Jailbait” by Motörhead. Finally, “Black Rose” by Thin Lizzy. It wasn’t until some time later that it dawned on me – should anyone judge me based […]
BUT I DIGRESS: Immerse yourself in the vinyl experience and every day is Record Store Day
Record Store Day. This year, it falls on April 16. (Next year, it’s April 15, if you’re a planner). My personal favorite record store is Embassy Vinyl (342 Adams Ave., Scranton). Proprietor R.J. Harrington not only possesses an encyclopedic knowledge of all things record related, he makes recommendations based upon what you ask for and […]
BUT I DIGRESS: Why do so many albums sound so similar? Because they didn’t do their homework
prov·e·nance /ˈprävənəns/ noun the place of origin or earliest known history of something. “an orange rug of Iranian provenance” synonyms: origin, source, place of origin; More the beginning of something’s existence; something’s origin. “they try to understand the whole universe, its provenance and fate” a record of ownership of a work of art or an […]
BUT I DIGRESS: Hey, major labels – subgenres of music are bullshit
Subgenres. In modern music, popular and otherwise, there are too many to name. And I have a problem with each and every one of the contrived, divisive little fuckers. You may well say, “Yes, Fud, you overreactive weenie, but they help identify individual styles of music so the listener can more easily find what they […]
LIVING YOUR TRUTH: Combating hate groups with love is necessary, but is it enough?
It can be extremely disheartening for those who preach love and acceptance to come to terms with the fact that there is so much hate in this world. I do believe that when love increases, hate must decrease, but as I have observed, it is merely human nature to fear and reject the things we […]
THE REAL GIG: A musician must be a jack of all trades to make a living these days
For pretty much all of the 1990s, I played with one band. One band. That was it. When the band wasn’t playing (and we played a lot), we were rehearsing. When we weren’t doing either of those, we were making a new record. We made a new one approximately every 18 months. Between albums, we […]
THE REAL GIG: Why music becomes white noise – the death of the craftsman
Last week’s column certainly got a debate started, which I welcome, so this week, I want to go a little further down the same road. I talked about casinos and tribute bands and the death of clubs in the new environment. The big record deals don’t happen anymore, for the most part, and the ones […]
WILDLY FRUSTRATED: For a premium service, Sirius XM sure feels like terrestrial radio
I purchased a new car last year – I’m talking 2015 new. It gets great mileage, it’s comfortable, and it even has some power behind it. Listen, I’m not a car guy; I could care less about what’s under a hood, and I don’t know any car guy lingo. I’m lucky I know how to […]
THE REAL GIG: The rise of tribute acts and the long, hard road for original musicians
A few weeks ago, my pal Joe handed me a newspaper clipping. Just to get my opinion on it. It wasn’t a political editorial or anything like that. Nothing scandalous. It was a weekly live entertainment listing for our area. If you look at a Northeastern Pennsylvania live entertainment listing from 2016 as opposed to […]
LIVING YOUR TRUTH: Barry Humphries, a.k.a. Dame Edna, may not be relevant, but transphobic comments still have an effect
It seems as though, just when I feel that I’ve heard the worst thing I’ve ever heard, the door to the Dungeon of Transphobia creaks open and out comes another shadow of the past to enlighten us with its ignorance and idiocy. This time, from one Barry Humphries, a.k.a. Dame Edna. If you’ve ever wanted […]
