There’s nothing like nostalgia for the kids TV we grew up with. John Mulaney, the stand-up comic and former Saturday Night Live writer, understands this very well. With his co-writer, Marika Sayer (also from SNL) and songwriter Eli Bolen, he …Read more

 

What does it mean to be punk? To me, it is about bursting over-inflated egos, defying pompous icons, challenging prescribed social roles, and celebrating self expression over conformity. That’s a pretty good summation of Greta Gerwig’s brief in her approach …Read more

Adrienne and I were asked recently to be guests on the Punk Lotto Podcast. Punk Lotto is hosted by two brothers, one in NC and one in Phoenix, AZ. They draw an LP and an EP from a single year, …Read more

    In the past year and a half, I have traveled to Durham many times for Zub Records business. At Christmas break Adrienne and I work on podcasts, but we always make time to see local bands. We’ve had the luck …Read more

 

Favorites from '19: Buz & Muf's Year End Pick Thru The Litter (Commemorative Edition Redux) 

Our fanzine Zub Alert, featured of cool stuff “selected” by the Zub kitties, Buz and Muf, in each issue. We did this last year…

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Thinking about this review, I was realizing that Robyn Hitchcock is one of those musical artists that has been a constant in my life, like The Posies, or Mission Of Burma. Of course, I was aware of the weird beauty …Read more

  I’ve recently reviewed The New Pornographers fine new release In The Morse Code Of Brake Lights (at tinyurl.com/zubpornos). The Vancouver, Canada ‘supergroup’ featuring the songwriting of Carl Newman is one of (if not the) best pop bands of our …Read more

 

What a cracking surprise these stalwarts have brought us! This EP is the most welcome, enjoyable four songs I have heard in a long time. It’s so good to hear Andy Partridge (from XTC - see our podcast at tinyurl.com/zubxtc …Read more

  This is the third time I’ve seen Elvis Costello & The Imposters in the past 363 days. We saw the Look Now tour at the DAR Hall in Washington D.C.in November 2018, and the Costello/Blondie tour at The Anthem in …Read more

 

The Opaque Memoir.  First off, I enjoyed Debbie Harry’s book Face It, it was a breezy read and had a bit of filler, but also some sweet ideas. We just saw Blondie with Elvis Costello recently (tinyurl.com/zubbeastly) …Read more

 

So this is the last installment of my blogs on Ken Burns’ expansive look at Country Music from the 1920s to 1990s. It was ambitious project, not perfect, but in these episodes he must tie together the threads an ultimately …Read more

 

Jojo Rabbit begins with  ‘Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand:’ The Beatles ‘I Wanna Hold Your Hand’ sung in German, played over scenes out of the Richard Lester school of musical movie wackiness. There are montage antics, screens divided into multiple …Read more

  It was great to be back at the big room at The Cat’s Cradle. The Carrboro, NC club, just a few blocks away from the UNC Chapel Hill campus, is a venerable concert space. Getting to see Stiff Little Fingers …Read more

 

I don’t really have a good excuse, but I’ve never seen Redd Kross live. The super power-pop band from Los Angeles has been together, led by older brother Jeff McDonald on guitar and vocals, with younger brother Steven McDonald on …Read more

 

This is the third installment of 4 blogs about Ken Burns’ latest documentary series Country Music. I hope you’ll join me for all four blogs. Anyone with an interest in any kind of music should find food for thought …Read more

I know what I like, so I generally go to shows with bands or artists I’m pretty familiar with, but tonight’s show was different. All I knew about Mudhoney was they were a pioneer in Seattle’s grunge movement, and of …Read more

 

This is the second installment of 4 blogs walking through Ken Burns’ latest documentary series Country Music. I hope you’ll join me for all four blogs. Anyone with an interest in any kind of music should find food for …Read more

This is the first installment of 4 blogs walking through Ken Burns’ latest documentary series Country Music. I hope you’ll join me for all four blogs. Anyone with an interest in any kind of music should find food for …Read more

 

As you might know, I am a pretty serious record collector. Any band that I like from my youth, I usually have all of their records. I was thinking about the New Pornographers, Carl Newman’s Vancouver ‘supergroup,’ and I realized …Read more

 

Everything about King Crimson is weird, wonderful, and different. Would you imagine an old punk like me would be a fan of the ultimate prog-rock band? Weird things happen. Years ago, my dear, departed friend Joey sat me down and …Read more

 

So, here is a quick definition for you:  ca·thar·sis  /kəˈTHärsəs/  the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions. 
"music is a means of catharsis for them"  Similar: purgation  This is, to me, what Bob Mould’s …Read more

 

The Pixies debut album, Surfer Rosa was released in 1988, launching the ‘classic’ Pixies era from 1988 to 1991, with Come On Pilgrim and Doolittle all the way to Trompe Le Monde. It took me a while to warm …Read more

  In my earlier review of Whitey and the 78’s, I mentioned that my friend Russell worked for Whitey for a time. When Russell asked if I wanted to go with him to see two nights of Honky Tonk in two …Read more

  The Figgs are a very, very fine band from Saratoga Springs, New York, who have been together for thirty two years, and in the best way, sound like they have been together forever. They have an almost telepathic connection, vocalist …Read more