Music
Concert Review
Concert Review: Kottonmouth Kings
Hard Rock Café on the Strip, May 3
May 6th, 2013
“Psychedelic hip-hop punk rock” is how Orange County, California-based Kottonmouth Kings like to describe their music. As the veteran band brought the Fight to Unite tour to Sin City, T-shirts and tattoos were prominent among the multi-generational fans at the Hard Rock Café. Read more »
Concert Review
Concert Review: Maps & Atlases
Beauty Bar, May 4
May 6th, 2013
Frontman Dave Davison’s modestly charming commentary on the ability to play outside after 1 a.m. set the mood for a pleasant evening. He was right: Playing outside after midnight is largely unheard of around the country, especially in Chicago, where most of the members of Maps & Atlases are from. With the very first song, the Midwest crew established themselves as technically masterful yet not overly serious. Their new album, Beware and Be Grateful, has received mixed reviews because of its shift toward catchier hooks and away from calculated technicality. Read more »
Concert Review
Concert Review: Viva Ska Vegas
Henderson Events Plaza, May 4
May 6th, 2013
Checkers and plaid and mohawks and mods amid a sea of bright red lipstick made up the look of the audience gyrating to the ferocious keyboard riffs, blaring trumpets and choppy electric guitar strums at that this year’s Viva Ska Vegas. Read more »
Reading
‘Led’ Tablet
'Sound and Fury' turns classic Zeppelin images into a multimedia experience. Is this the future of coffee-table books?
April 30th, 2013
Neal Preston, whose photos grace the hallways and rooms of the Hard Rock Hotel, was Led Zeppelin’s tour photographer in the band’s heyday. Now, more than 30 years later, he’s releasing an e-book for the iPad, Led Zeppelin: Sound and Fury (Warner Music, $10). This is like a traditional book turned up to 11. In addition to photos and text, there are video and audio interviews, set lists and memorabilia (tickets, backstage passes, press releases and Swan Song Records inter-office memos). There’s a forward by Stevie Nicks and testimonials from other bands (Heart, MuteMath, Corey Taylor of Slipknot, etc.) about how much they love to get the Led out. There’s also the fun of swiping and scrolling on a device that would have been unimaginable during those ’70s-era national tours. Read more »
Soundscraper
Horizon's Rising
April 30th, 2013
So I was among the judges at the final round of Hard Rock Rising on April 13. Beginning in January, this global band-battle winnowed thousands of aspiring rockers down to a select 96 at Hard Rock Café locations around the world. The victor of the Vegas competition was Hyperion’s Horizon. This hard-rock quartet has been around since 2010, with the current lineup—Chaz Morris (vocals), Julian Barris (drums), Nicko and Ely Bracamonte (guitar and bass, respectively)—gelling last fall. Hyperion’s Horizon won $500 in cash and prizes, and now it’s up to online voters to choose the best 25 bands (hopefully with Horizon included). Then a panel of music-industry professionals will appoint the grand-prize winner and two runner-ups. The grand-prize winner goes on tour, records an album for Hard Rock Records, shoots a video and gets $10,000 in new equipment and gear. Read more »
Music
Stream of Musiek
Las Vegan Michael Williams is changing the way we watch concerts.
April 30th, 2013
Bottlerock is the next big music festival. The May 9-12 event is taking place in Napa Valley, California, and will feature more than 60 bands, three stages and, of course, food and wine. Highlights include the Black Keys, Kings of Leon, the Flaming Lips, Jane’s Addiction, Alabama Shakes, the Shins, Jackson Browne and Primus. Read more »
Music
Tour Buzz: Paramore, Marina and the Diamonds and Weezer
April 29th, 2013
In late 2010, brothers Josh and Zac Farro of Paramore—who play at the Joint on May 3 ($36)—announced that they were quitting the band they helped found. The band released a statement that emphasized the amicability of the split—“We want Josh and Zac to do something that makes them happy”—and all was well until the Farros released their own statement, which basically accused singer Hayley Williams of distorting reality and using the band as a launching pad for a solo career. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: The Men
The Bunkhouse Saloon, April 24
April 29th, 2013
It was the middle of the week, but that didn’t stop many people from packing the Bunkhouse to watch critically acclaimed quintet The Men perform. Not to be confused with the short-lived, late-’80s rock band, The Men are a relatively new indie punk outfit hailing from Brooklyn, New York. They went through some growing pains in their early career, kicking out a prominent member and redirecting their sound from thrash-core ambience to a more focused, lyrical structure. Now out with their fourth studio album, New Moon, the crew has solidified a well-deserved following. Read more »
Concert Review: Ira Glass
The Smith Center, April 27
April 29th, 2013
Ira Glass’s NPR radio program, This American Life, is tightly produced, approachable and meaningful, and Glass has been generating it week after week since 1995. On stage, Glass is just as brilliant: a blend of stand-up comedian, storyteller, professor and motivational pitchman. Read more »
