American Alternative music reviews

This is good pop that took me by suprise. 'So Quick to Say' is a great pop classic, yet it rocks, too. There are a few more likable gems on this disc. There is also another one of their releases available, called 'Awakenings', but 'Confession' is definitely the one to get.

My friend Tom got me into The Last in the early 90's, they are by far one of my favorite bands, good clean surf style/power pop, Going Gone and So Quick to Say are two incredible songs, The Last is more than enjoyable for both their music and their lyrics, it is nice to actually listen to a band that you can sing along with, anyways, check out The Last Awakening while you're at it and if anyone knows where I can get another copy of The Last, LA Explosion, let me know.

Time was when Hardcore meant something. Articles of Faith kicked in the doors of hardcore and made the sound more complex. Adding to the din a more complex song structure, more competent musicianship and song-craft than was the norm at the time. And they never sacrificed the edge. Core is currently the only available AOF rekkid and it's made up of ep's, singles and misc recordings. It's a great bit of history for the fan who missed out on these local (Chicago) releases, and a great bit of music for thems that likes to thrash. Vic Bondi's nail-on-chalkboard voice and songwriting is flying full flannel on all the tracks. It's a good flavor of their early set list and a great harbinger of what was to come with both albums, 'Give Thanks' and the Posumous, Bob-Mould-Produced 'In This Life'. Makes me all misty-eyed and sentimental.

Hey Vic, Bonnie from the old Chicago hardcore scene here to say this music embodied the early 80's so perfectly. It brought everyone together to mosh with its' fast paced racy sound! Definatly well put together.Shows then were filled with kindred spirits, all enjoying one common thing..."having a great time and getting along"!!! In my fond recolections of those days' ...I will alway's recall Vic,AOF, and Big Blue(Vics' house)as the best time for music without segregation.

Back in the late '90s, VH1 actually played music videos and programs that were actually music-related. Now we're lucky if we see one music video, a decent music video at best. Too bad VH1 has become another MTV, has nothing to do with its original intentions when it first came out. One of the better music programs on VH1 was "Crossroads". If I can remember, "Crossroads" featured live performances by popular artists/bands. As a result, the short-lived show resulted in this cd of live performances by Blues Traveler, Melissa Etheridge w/Joan Osbourne (where is she now?), Jewel, and Tori Amos. For me the highlight of this cd is her obscure cover of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire". If anyone can do cover songs and make them sound even better, it is Tori Amos. I also enjoyed Melissa Etheridge's duet with Joan Osbourne on "Bring Me Some Water". Both women really belt it out on one of Melissa's earlier hits. I could have easily lived without songs by the Edwin McCain, Goo Goo Dolls, Deep Blue Something, and Pete Droge (artists and bands that bores me to tears) but otherwise "Crossroads" is a fine compilation of live performances .

OK, put aside the long running joke that anyone who watches VH-1 is too old for MTV. This CD has songs that are on the OLD side, but the versions are unlike anything you hear on the artist's actual CD. "Solitude" is so good it runs chills up my spine. The mix of these two talented artists performing such a beautiful song would be reason enough for me to spend my money on the whole CD. Jewel's version of "Foolish Games" on this CD is the best version I have heard her sing to date. All the artist on this CD have truly showcased their talent. This CD is ageless/timeless, as beautiful singing, touching lyrics, and well composed songs never go out of style. If you want the most bang for your buck, this is the one to buy!

If you love Jeffrey Lee Pierce this is a good CD. The tracks are live and there are extended solos in many of the songs. While not the best Gun Club cd I own, I do enjoy it from time to time and recommend it to anyone who likes "real" music- that is music with feeling, emotion and charm- A few words that describe The Gun Club!

Kid Gongo Powers and Jeffery Lee make any blues outfit, including hendrix , clapton , etc. etc. look like a bunch of math teachers. This is the finest band to emerge from the los angeles punk scene bottom line. And certainly one of the finest from the 1980's.

Originally released in 1986,as this was their fifth 'actual' record(is that all?).Either way,'Date With Elvis' showcases some great rockin' psychobilly for your listening pleasure.Just about every track here kicks ass,like the swinging "The Hot Pearl Snatch","What's Inside A Girl?","Can Your Pussy Do The Dog?","Cornfed Dames"(forgot all about this superb cut),the boot-stompin' "Chicken" and "Aloha From Hell".As with most Cramps releases,'Date...' is most worth repeated spins.Simply a must-have.

This album features the Cramps usual brand of rockabilly influenced punk (or punk influenced rockabilly), with a bit of surf music tossed in this time. This is one of the Cramps better albums. A lot of fun, raunchy songs like the classic "Can Your Pussy Do the Dog?". It even includes a rare lead vocal by Poison Ivy on "Get Off the Road". A must get for Cramps fans.

The cramps are truly original and this album is one of their best. Lux Interior does his best psychotic Elvis imitaion on tracks like "Can Your ... Do The Dog?" and the opening track features Poison Ivy's vibrato pulsing country blues licks. All this and no bass player just pure garage rockabilly punk that kicks you in the head. The lyrics will make you laugh too.

Wow I saw the Tar babies many many times from 1984 to 199? and a well they were the best man. OK, OK at the Willie Street fair they played in a dusty bowl of dirt in the mid day sun and I was cooked. This CD apparently their last is pretty fried, I mean Bucky Pope is obviously quit frayed at this point but it is indeed a summit type situation kinda like if hendrix would have died in early 1970 instead of late 1970. Keep on Buckin'.

Tar Babies is the most innovative band of its genre to have emerged from the 1980s. The band managed to coddle the rapt attention of refined ears on every single one of their albums. There is no such thing as a bad Tar Babies song. I began listening to the Tar Babies when I was 17. I am now nearly 34, and when I listen to the album "Death Trip" these days, certain lyrics strike me in a novel fashion due to some subtle, profound idea captured through pure poetics of language. I would recommend this album or any Tar Babies album to any person of any age or walk of life. This is music that will help a person restore their sense of youth.

Tar Babies are awesome. Any of their SST releases as well as this one are worth dying for. Acid Jazz meets punk way before both were reborn. Buy them all. NOW!

I'd call this one 3 1/2 stars, if it were possible. FreeWorld's a solid band, and manages, oddly, to be a young-sounding and -acting group, despite having been around aince 1987. In some ways, FreeWorld is more of a musicians' convention than a solid band, as their line-up is very fluid in way that they've turned into a feature rather than a bug -- old members never really seem to leave, related bands and musicians constantly show up to jam with the group, and it has an extended "family" of players that can honestly call themselves part of FreeWorld that numbers into the dozens. Which is the problem with this album, really: not much of that makes it onto the plastic. It's a fun album, whimsically written and solidly, tightly performed. But it pales next to the live show. I give it four stars, because it can call to mind seeing them live (every weekend, for nearly a year). If you've never seen the group (and its extensions and various iterations) perform, call it a three. Except "Boogie Finger." That's a five. Good song.

The best expression of where music is going in the next millenium. A must have from soon to be megaband!

I gambled on this disc, which i only really wanted for Helmet's "Impressionable", which is a great track. There are many good tracks, more notably "Before I Kill Again", "Lesbian Nun", and "Gremlin Stomp". Most of the songs are under 3 minutes, so the longer songs seem to drag ("Capital Hillbillies" and "Euthanasia"). If you like Helmet or early H�sker D�, this CD should be right up your alley.

tired of the commercial crap being propagated across the airwaves... this will cleanse the palate

The best song on the CD is the hit single Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me).

Train is the best sounding rock band I have ever got to see live. Since seeing Pat Monahan (lead singer) on the "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" show I have fell in love with their music. The next day I started by buying the two CD's that were out at that time. Since then my collection has grown considerably, even owning the rare and hard to find CD's. This is a MUST hear band. You will not be disappointed. Train, I Love You!!!

This is not a best of, I wouldnt even call it a good introduction to the band. It has some good songs on it, mostly from "Up on the sun" and "Meat puppets II", but it also have a lot of lame stuff. I dont understand why songs that were not good enough to be on the albums originaly, suddenly classifies to be on the "best of". Im talking about songs like "On the move", "Burn the honky tonk down" and the last four songs. I also dont think that the mixture of punk, metal and country works on the same album, but I guess Derrick Bostrom just tries to show the variety of the band. Songs like "Looking at the rain" and "Get on down" I find very irritating and should not be on the album. Nothing from the 90's is on this album (because of legal reasons) which is a shame. "Forbidden places" and "Too high to die" are two of their best albums in my opinion.

This is a best of. I would call it a good introduction to the band. It has some good songs on it, mostly from "Up on the Sun" and "Meat Puppets II" but it also has a lot of other great stuff. I understand why songs that were not good enough to be on the original albums suddenly are classified to be on the "best of". I'm talking about songs like "On the Move", "Burn the Honky Tonk Down" and last last four songs - all fantastic. I also think that the mixture of punk, metal and country works well being on the same album together; Derrick Bostrom knew what he was doing when attempting to show the variety of the band's work. Songs like "Looking at the Rain" and "Get on Down" I find very cool and help to make this compilation a good listen. Blah blah *no 90s stuff* blah blah *personal preferences* blah blah. Buy it, it ain't too bad at all.

Yep 5 stars. I know that you already have over 80% of this if you're a big MP fan. I know that it's more of a sampler than any real best of deal. But... it has "New Leaf". The last track on the album derives from the last incarnation of the band, the Royal Neanderthal Orchestra era... fortunately they were disuaded from using that awful band name. New Leaf is from the Golden Lies era (which was an amazing album, still is in fact) "New Leaf" is better even than any of the songs on that album, or at least as good as the best 1 or 2... better than most songs ever really. So for that, this lp gets 5 stars. It also has no tracks from Monsters, but 3 demos from Monsters, which shoulda been on the Monsters reissue, but instead they're here.... they're decent.