BUZZGRINDER

Go Celebrate Fireworks Day

Sean Cannon — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:00:55 +0000

Since it’s Fourth of July weekend around these parts, everybody needs to take a moment to remember how lucky Americans are that they have the freedom to wear skin-tight jeans and dye the tips of their hair pink while listening to mashups and double-fisting cans of PBR. Ah yes, only in America.

Only in America. Enjoy the fireworks, and the freedom.

Ash - Return of the White Rabbit

Sean Cannon — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:00:20 +0000

All of the bad stuff that happens to the protagonist could have been avoided if he just would’ve stopped using Windows. If you don’t believe me, just watch around the 1:46 mark. It was the real source of all his torment.

Poor guy.

Ash - Return of the White Rabbit

August Burns Red - Constellations

Jay DiNitto — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:00:45 +0000

The third full-length release from August Burns Red on the perennially hit-or-miss Solid State Records will meet all artistic expectations if you’ve heard a few seconds of their previous work. Some have said they diversified their sound, but for most metalcore bands, “diversity” just means the vocalist figured out how to scream in another register and a guitarist found their delay pedal.

The release isn’t terrible; they play as competently as any top-notch veterans in rock music (drummer Matt Greiner is noteworthy as usual), and the songs themselves to be specifically designed to elicit maximum freakout response at their live shows. The crippling hobble in August’s songs is the relentless ADD-infested song structure: entry-level Meshuggah breakdowns, a foray into double-tempos and power chords mixed with a random single note here or there, and multi-tracked screaming about something not being what it should be. The more they change things up, the more every individual song’s sonic output becomes mix-and-match with another song’s output. Nothing is allowed to breathe or become absorbed; it all has to be jettisoned for the next idea to sniffed.

True, this criticism can be made about a lot of metal bands that are critically praised, but when August Burns Red does it, it just falls flat. There’s an unteachable knack of songwriting in aggressive/technical music they apparently haven’t found yet. While there are definitely some salvageable pieces in Constellations, there’s too much cruft surrounding the drowning glittering things that they are ultimately passed over and forgotten when the next interchangeable metalcore riff surfaces.

A Grand Design: Delain

Jay DiNitto — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:00:16 +0000

Delain - April Rain
Release date: June 30, 2009
[amazon.com]

I feel for session musicians. They get second billing while some moderately-talented floozy flops on stage to relative glory. When I saw this, I thought it was cool that at least some of the band was silhouetted on the cover. Then I found out it was an actual band, and the one who started it is one of the detached shadows you see in the back. Something went wrong somewhere, but maybe that’s just how it is when your website is found at a .nl top-level domain.

What Old School Country Troubadours Do It for You?

Sean Cannon — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:00:35 +0000

You know what kills me? I’ll tell you what. When scene kids and trust-fund hipsters admit to enjoying a little classic country and western, it’s only for the kitsch value. Sure it’s fun when irony is involved, but really it’s just for rednecks and idiots.

So when you talk about putting someone like Johnny Cash or Townes Van Zandt in the same stratosphere as Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen — well, you get laughed at. Oh sure, they’ll appreciate it when it can be labeled folk, but they’ve got no love for the twang. Sometimes that’s even the case when you’re talking to somebody who the alt-country scene today. Sad, really.

I’m lucky enough to live in a city where the scene has an appreciation for it, and I know more than a few folks who I can geek out with while discussing The Flying Burrito Brothers and Buck Owens. But the afforementioned phenomenon is still far too prevalent here and around the country.

But enough with the ranting. I just want to know what classic country troubadours do it for you. Hank Williams? Chet Atkins? Bobby Bare? Louvin Brothers? Lefty Frizzell? Gram Parsons? Waylon Jennings? I need to know.

Harlem Shakes - Strictly Game

Sean Cannon — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:00:54 +0000

I almost gave up on this video for Strictly Game. I thought, “How can this Harlem Shakes video be so bad? There’s no way they thought they could get away with that whole posting a bunch of stupid pictures all the way through deal.”

Then I figured it out. Sorry for doubting you, Harlem Shakes. Egg on my face.

Harlem Shakes - Strictly Game

Andrew Bird, St. Vincent Pairing Up for Tour

Sean Cannon — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:00:32 +0000

It’s hard for me to think about how it’s possible to see Andrew Bird and St. Vincent together and not leave smiling. It’s practically like watching a baby eat cupcakes while playing with a kitten and a puppy set to Fill Me Up Buttercup. So even a stick in the mud like myself isn’t immune.

Which is why I’ll be heading up to Bogarts for the Cincinnati date on their tour together. I’ll come out of there grinning ear to ear. Puppies.

Andrew Bird - Scythian Empires
St. Vincent - The Strangers

*Andrew Bird only
# St. Vincent only

Does Anyone Care What Dolly Parton Has to Say About Michael Jackson?

Sean Cannon — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 18:00:32 +0000

I guess maybe Dolly Parton and Michael Jackson were friends because they had about the same amount of plastic surgery, but I’m not really sure why Parton felt the urge to vlog about him. Or why she expected anyone to care.

Then again, she did record Jolene before she got all cracked out from her addiction to botox and collagen — so that counts for something.

What I really want to know is this, though: Where are the Crystal Gale and Tanya Tucker vlog tributes to Billy Mays?

Photos: Patterson Hood, Will Johnson at Headliners

Sean Cannon — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:00:30 +0000

So Patterson Hood and Will Johnson both threw down at Headliners, and they were super nice dudes to boot. I also got to talk to my boys Jim James and Craig Pfunder about bluegrass, butts and Thomas Merton afterward. Needless to say, it was a lovely evening.

Patterson Hood - I Understand Now
Will Johnson - Just to Know What You’ve Been Dreaming

Springsteen Joins Gaslight Anthem on Stage at Glastonbury

Sean Cannon — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:00:17 +0000

So Bruce Springsteen joined The Gaslight Anthem on stage to perform The 59 Sound during Glastonbury. What a shocking pairing. It’s like that time Joey Ramone did a set with The Huntingtons, only more obvious. Yes, more obvious.

Gaslight Anthem - The 59 Sound (acoustic on Alt. Press)