Billy Joel gives record-breaking performance
“We’re all on TV tonight!” Billy Joel (Piano Man) quipped from behind his baby grand piano to the sold-out seats at Madison Square Garden. Clad in a sharp leather jacket and blue jeans, the 78 year-old artist took the stage-…
New Melvins album turns back clock with funky edge
Rating: 4/5 Stars For fans of a throwback, hard-rock style, “Tarantula Heart” by Melvins (“Working the Ditch”) is for you. The album only features 5 songs, but they span over 40 minutes in total. The first two tracks take up…
Taylor Swift leaves fans exhausted amidst release of new album
Rating: 0.5/5 Stars Taylor Swift (“Midnights’’) did not need to do any of this. She has enough industry power and wealth to free herself from the album deals that pressured her before her cultural omnipresence. She has enough of a…
Red flags fly around girl in red
Rating: 2.5/5 stars Singer-songwriter girl in red (“If I Could Make It Go Quiet”) is back after almost three years. The album starts with a song titled “I’m Back.” It basically explains where she has been for the past couple…
Dire Straits frontman, Scottish cowboy Mark Knopfler back in studio
Rating: 3.5/5 stars Not every cowboy is from America. Mark Knopfler (“Down the Road Wherever”) is best known for his role as lead guitarist, singer and songwriter for Dire Straits (“Money For Nothing”). Since Dire Straits disbanded in 1995, Knopfler…
Blue Öyster Cult hauntingly rocks on new album ‘Ghost Stories’
Rating: 5/5 stars The Grammys’ website declares that Blue Öyster Cult’s (“The Symbol Remains”) new album “Ghost Stories” “def[ies] the reaper once again.” The 12-track album consists of nine previously-unfinished songs written by the band and three covers: “We Gotta…
Neil Young, Joni Mitchell return to Spotify after anti-Rogan boycott
It seems as though “The Godfather of Grunge” Neil Young cannot escape his current enemy: Spotify. Following their two-year boycott of Spotify, Young and his fellow Canadian-born folk singer Joni Mitchell have returned their music to the streaming platform. Young…
Stars of bygone era still command respect in new musical ventures
Older musicians have been making a comeback in popular music in the past few years. Kim Gordon, best known as the bassist and lead vocalist for Sonic Youth, has recently released a new album titled “The Collective” a trap album…
Rod Stewart’s tribute to vintage music artful yet incohesive
Rating: 2.5/5 stars Rockstar Sir Rod Stewart has jumped back onto the music scene with the release of his first new album in three years. “Swing Fever,” made in collaboration with composer and bandleader Jools Holland, is a sharp turn…
J.Lo’s ‘This Is Me…Now’ shares open love letter to beau Ben Affleck
Rating: 3/5 stars Valentine’s Day was a very fitting date for the release of Jennifer Lopez’s love letter, her latest album, “This Is Me…Now,” a sequel to her 2002 album “This Is Me…Then.” The album centers around her rekindled relationship…
