After a successful and tasteful resurgence, the reunited original line-up of Gang of Four has been cut in half, as bassist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham have quit due to time constraints. Allen posted an amicable missive on his blog, explaining his decision: “At the beginning of April, I decided that I could no […]

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Elvis Costello’s been very public about his annoyance with making records in today’s iPod culture of instant consumption, so to acknowledge the impending death of the compact disc, Costello has issued his new record, Momofuku (explanation here), in only digital and vinyl formats. That’s right, no CD’s. So, he’s taking care of the hardcore fans […]

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Tom Waits is such a bad ass. For one thing, you never have to worry about hearing a Tom Waits song played during a commercial for nachos, as he is staunchly against using his music to sell products. The cryptically funny troubadour rarely tours, but I was lucky enough to catch him on a rare […]

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As was widely reported last week, The Cure plans to release four new singles on the 13th of each month leading up to the release of its (surprise, surprise) as-yet-untitled 13th studio album in September. First up on May 13th is “The Only One”, which is backed by the non-album b-side “NY Trip.” Each single […]

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After weeks of sold out shows in Europe, Damon Albarn’s opera, Monkey: Journey to the West, makes its way stateside for a brief run at Charleston’s Spoleto Festival May 22 – June 8. Tickets range from $25 to $65 and the opera will be held at the Sottile Theater at the College of Charleston. Here’s […]

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If you’re a Throwing Muses fan or at least even quasi-familiar with Kristin Hersh’s solo material, then you’re well aware that her mental anguish is serious if not altogether frightening. Well, Hersh has made strides battling mental illness over the past two decades, and she’s put together a spoken-word performance piece entitled “Paradoxical Undressing”, which […]

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Crafting the follow-up to last year’s stupendous Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? isn’t intimidating in the least for Kevin Barnes, despite the fact that Fauna’s emotional bloodletting practically destroyed his sanity. Turns out not much has changed, even with all the accolades and success, as Barnes recently told Rolling Stone, “Every day, I wake […]

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