funoka

Rock and roll has always been about rebellion and nonconformity. Since its inception in the 1950s, rock has been the music of choice for those who don't fit into the mainstream. Even the way we finance our dreams is changing. If you're looking for a way to break free from traditional banking and take control of your finances, consider a 1000 dollar loan. These loans are designed for people who don't fit the traditional mold, and they can be used for just about anything you need to fuel your creative spirit, whether it's buying a new guitar amp or covering some unexpected expenses. So turn up the volume and take charge with a $1000 loan.

Post-Beatles Gems?

Posted by funoka

Oct 072014

As I was trying to forget the Nationals’ 18-inning crusher of a loss the other night, I caught up on some old email accounts and see that iTunes has picked four post-Beatles songs for a free download. They chose:

John Lennon’s “Love” (Plastic Ono Band)
Paul McCartney’s “Call Me Back Again” (Venus and Mars)
George Harrison’s “Let It Down” (All Things Must Pass) and
Ringo Starr’s “Walk With You” (Y Not).

Not bad, but can Rock Town Hall do better than iTunes? My challenge “To You”: What are some of your favorite deep cuts from the Fab Four after the breakup?

Does This Sound Like 1984 to You?

Posted by funoka

Aug 282014

Ryan Adams has an EP out that you can stream above. Minneapolis is buzzing a bit about it, because it’s supposedly a nod to The Replacements circa 1984. I can sort of hear it, can you?

Late Summer 2014 Rock Resurgence?

Posted by funoka

Aug 072014

Well, well — Tom Petty has his first album ever to debut at #1 on the Billboard album chart. It’s a pretty low bar these days, and there are all kinds of tricks (like giving away album downloads when you buy a concert ticket) but, hell yes! #1 baby! Clapton comes in at #2 with his JJ Cale tribute. What is this? 1977?

Petty’s “Hypnotic Eye” sounds OK by me — I have not listened to it 50 times yet — but I’m liking it. Also this week, Spoon put out a new one that seems promising for the long haul. Jenny Lewis has a nice new album that I probably will listen to 50 times at some point this year.

So — I’m pretty optimistic about R-O-C-K-ers (yeah, of a certain age) right now.

P.S. Stream Sinead’s new one at NPR’s First Listen, too!

Minnesota All-Stars

Posted by funoka

Jul 102014

As the eyes of the baseball world prepare to gaze on Minneapolis and Target Field next week, why not watch this mini-doc on Minnesota music to get in the mood?

They are doing a nice job of keeping “the stars” on First Avenue nice and fresh, although I think the gal in Babes in Toyland is way off on the timing of when they started painting them on the side of the club.

Cool Concert Posters

Posted by funoka

Apr 242014

Hope they sell t-shirts of this one!

I used to have a lot of concert posters, but they’ve all been trashed. Some of my favorites were ones I would rip off the walls of the 9:30 Club in DC or at First Ave in Minneapolis. I remember a Jason & Scorchers poster that was particularly cool back when they were a hot new band. I think the only one I still have is a signed Amy Rigby poster from her Diary of a Mod Housewife anniversary tour of a few years back.

This Replacements poster is one I will have to track down. Unless life gets in the way, I plan to head back to the Twin Cities for this show.

Does anyone collect concert posters? What are your favorites?

The Mucked Up Early Who Albums

Posted by funoka

Apr 152014

This may be well-known around these parts, but Chris Charlesworth is re-running a Crawdaddy piece on his blog that The Who tweeted out this week. He says:

The Who had blazed a trail with their state-of-the-art amplification but as home stereos became more sophisticated in the early seventies their records somehow lacked the clarity of their rivals. To remedy this, for the Who’s Next sessions they bypassed Kit Lambert in favour of the technically more accomplished Glyn Johns, who produced nine tracks of such sparkling clarity that The Who sounded like a new band.

It always bugged me as a kid that Beatles and Led Zep albums just sounded better than The Who albums that were released about the same time. Now I see that the finger is pointed at Kit Lambert. Does anyone know if there are any good remastered versions of the early albums to be found?

Senses Working Overtime?

Posted by funoka

Feb 192014

A review of the new Beck album in The New Yorker by Sasha Frere-Jones says:

After listening to “Morning Phase” almost fifty times, I can’t find a single thing wrong with it.

The new album, which is streaming free on NPR right now, may be great, but I have streamed it only four times. I guess I’m blown away that the reviewer gave it 50 spins. I like to give new albums a good shot, but I usually throw it in the towel after five spins, if I’m not getting it. A recent exception is Bowie’s The Next Day. It took me a bit to warm up to it, it but I really like it now. But, I don’t need 50 plays to figure out if I’m going to like the new Springsteen odds & sods collection, or an Americana release, like Lydia Loveless.

My questions are: How many spins do you typically give a new album before making a judgement? And have you ever listened to any record 50 times in a short period of time?

I look forward to your responses.

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