The Strokes have placed Angles on full stream on their website (Click). One week from today, this new venture will be in the public's hands. As a Stroke fanboy from the get-go 10 years ago, I wait with baited breath. A four year hiatus with numerous solo acts (Albert Hammond's two albums, Fabrizio's Little Joy, Julian Casablancas - Phrazes for the Young, and Nikolai's NickleEye), the band is back together. After reading the review of 2006's First Impressions of Earth and the subsequent cover story in SPIN, I feared the worst. I was reminded of reading about the Beatles circa Abbey Road and the White Album. The boys of NYC are no Fab Four, but they were just as disjointed. Recording their parts individually with engineers and the like rarely being together as a band in the studio. Tensions were high. SPIN stated that this sounded like the last Strokes album. I agreed... While technically savvy, F.I.O.E. was a mess. Polished in many ways but in the end it seemed like lipstick on a pig. Nothing cures tensions like a lengthy Tour.... I was sure they were done. Apparently, we were wrong.
As I await Angles, I find myself back in 2005/6. Has absence made the heart grow fonder? For them? For me? For anyone? The recording process went down much like they did in '05. The band got together in the studio in NYC or in upstate NY at Hammond's place. The common theme was the lack of a lead singer. Julian was never in the studio as a creative force. In an attempt to lessen his hold on the "wheel" of the band, he stepped back. There are other creative voices at work in this group, and he let them speak. While the band laid down the tracks upstate, Julian was on tour promoting his solo debut. Later, he would step into famed Electric Ladyland studios in Manhattan to record vocal tracks that would be sent as digital files to the rest of the band. This situation had to make for a frustrating process. Lead guitarist, Nick Valensi, was the lone member without a solo effort. Did he like the idea of going rogue?
Well the new album almost here - until then here IS 
Hallelujah! it's about time! It's out May 3rd- they're playing the Ryman on Friday the 13th of May!!!! Tickets on sale this Friday, February 4th.
One of my favorite bands of the 00's is also one of the most overlooked - Little Barrie. A vintage blues/classic rock trio in the vein of Spencer Davis Group (minus the horns) or Cream before them, Little Barrie debuted in 2005 with their Edwyn Collins produced album, We Are Little Barrie. Check the review on AllMusic.com. Barrie Cadogan is the front man. After years as a studio guitarist in the UK and a touring guitarist for many solo acts (Collins and Morrissey to name a few), Barrie put together his own group. Their music and sound are nothing short of spectacular. Great riffs, classic sounds, & very tight production make it all go down easy. At the end of the day, they're just cool. It's music that hip dads and hipster sons can find common ground. Designer, Paul Smith, didn't miss them apparently (here). They're from his hometown, Nottinghamshire, UK. Their second album, Stand Your Ground, came around in 2006/2007 with a little more fanfare from the press. Critical acclaim but no fanbase - happens all the time. Now they've been relegated to international releases. Their new album, King of the Waves, was just released in Japan. I have acquired it via the interweb. Nothings changed. They're still rocking. No one notices, but I advise you to give them a listen. They're a great addition to your iPod.
Here's a sampling from their first 2.
In February 2008, I went through Dr. Joshi's Holistic Detox. 21 days. Whitney and I slaved through 3 weeks with no red meat, dairy, sugar, processed foods, wheat, pasta, nuts, white rice, bread, fruit (except bananas), limited vegetables (nothing of the nightshade family...tomatoes, potatoes, peppers etc), no fish except oily fish (you can have salmon, thank God), caffeine, etc. It's 21 days to revert your body from our normal acidic diet to a more alkaline pH. It sucks at first and temptation abounds. It basically should be called the no friends, anti-social detox, because eating out with friends is either impossible or a backbreaking nightmare. You have to drink warm water with lemon juice in the morning, snack in mid morning and mid afternoon, and drink some crazy ginger root/herbal tea/ grapefruit madness on your 7th and 14th day all the while making 3 squares that fall into the rules of Dr. Joshi. Based out of London, he was Princess Diana's personal physician and has been Gwyneth Paltrow's guru for years (she's not in shape at all.....she's Country Strong).
real temptation except for the chocolate all around the house and the workplace food.... You gotta take your lunch to work. You also have to get up at the crack of dawn everyday to prepare your breakfast and your lunch for the day (boiling water, chopping veggies etc). This weekend will be the true test of wills that I never faced in Boston. Tonight, I have Dental Study Club which entails of a nice steak dinner (curses!). I can't wait for my colleagues to hear me request the vegetarian option..... Friday night is the kicker. JP's Mexican restaurant birthday celebration.... crap. My favorite food on earth with have to be tip-toed around like never before. Have you ever gone to a Mexican restaurant and not touched the chips? If so, you have a problem and don't need to be in a Mexican restaurant in the first place! I'm going to have to be that guy (GIRL). "Can I have a piece of chicken, beans, no cheese, red sauce or tomatoes of any kind?" - YUM! No margarita, salsa or Negra Modelo either? Shoot me. I'll let you know if I survive.
Tennis - Cape Dory (January)
Denver's Indie Rock married couple ala Mates of State make their debut after EPs in 2010
Iron & Wine - We Kiss Each Other Clean (January)
Sam Beam's major label debut
The Decemberists - The King Is Dead (January)
Overly dramatic theater club rock - Are you excited!
Cold War Kids (January)
Bar-room low end rock
Tapes n Tapes - Outside (January)
can the Minnesota Indie blog darlings reclaim the former glory? doubtful
Telekinesis! - 12 Desperate Straight Lines (February)
Death Cab's Chris Walla is back to produce the sophomore effort
The Go! Team - Rolling Blackouts(February)
Lead single, "Buy Nothing Day", features Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino
Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Slumberland (March)
More from the NYC group worshiping at the altar of Robert Smith and Johnny Marr
REM - Collapse Into Now (March)
Athens boys forge ahead
Peter, Bjorn & John - Gimme Some (March)
Swedish pop trio try to re-claim the glory of 2007's Writer's Block (will there be a whistle?)
The Dodos - Time to Die (March)
folk/arsty, percussion heavy trio return after touring with New Pornographers last year
Jeremy Jay (April)
wannabe Lou Reed is back with more coolness and skinny jeans
The Black Lips (April)
gar-age rock forged in the veins of Mark Ronson - can't wait
Fleet Foxes ?
who knows when and one can hope
The Strokes ?
production is through and they claim to be holding to the original March release plan...
