Monsters of Folk
Monsters of Folk
Shangri-La Music
By Al Kaufman
Supergroups are often hit-or-miss affairs. For every successful Traveling Wilburys (George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne), there are two or three extremely disappointing Thorns (Matthew Sweet, Sean Mullins, and Pete Droge). Monsters of Folk would certainly fall in the former category.
Continue reading "CD Review: Monsters of Folk -- Monsters of Folk" »
We love Decatur CD. Not only do they sell music from great bands, as well as tickets for our own Ticket Alternative, they also sell hip music-focused books for A Cappella Books. And they have a great instore coming up for two different books:
Two authors, one night!
On Memorial
Day Friday, May 22, at 7pm, we're happy to be hosting our latest author in-store
appearance with A Cappella Books. The two books being featured are Eric
Segalstad and Josh Hunter's The 27s and
David Janssen and Edward Whitelock's Apocalypse
Jukebox. Here is some explanation of these two interesting
tomes:
The 27s
The 27s is the grandest story of rock &
roll, firmly ingrained in popular music and culture yet the saga somehow slipped
through the cracks of time; until today. If you're reading this you probably
know that Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain's lives were
cut short at age 27, but the same fate happened to thirty other musicians. Sure,
they weren't all equally famous, but every one of them pushed rock in new
directions, leaving lasting legacies that continue to inspire fans and
musicians.
No chapters, just one complete story that unfolds over 312
pages bursting with color and original illustrations, quotes from interviews,
curious coincidences, riveting revelations, and a myth greater than them all.
It's a story about modesty & excess, fame & loneliness, success &
defeat, struggle & perseverance, and life & death.
Apocalypse Jukebox
From hellfire hymnals to
anarchic rock and roll, Apocalyptic
Jukebox reveals our collective fixation on disaster, revelation, and
impossible salvation.
American popular music has always been preoccupied
with the end of the world, be it the Second Coming or a natural or nuclear
disaster. In Apocalypse Jukebox, Edward
Whitelock and David Janssen uncover both the paranoia and hope that thread
through the nation's history and surface in its music.
From the books's
opening scene--a terrifying 1883 meteor s hower in the American South--a sense
of doom is palpable. And it is this deep foreboding that shadows every
development in North American popular music. The authors examine a remarkable
diversity of apocalyptic influences, focusing in particular on such performers
as Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, John Coltrane, Devo, R.E.M., Sleater-Kinney, and
Green Day.
Not bad, huh? The authors will be here at good old Decatur CD at 7pm on Friday,
May 22. They'll be reading from, signing and selling the books. Warren is also
prepping a monster of a mix that will feature selections from both books. We'll
have some beer as well. It's also Decatur Art Walk night, which kicks
off the Decatur Arts Festival weekend. Should be a blast.
So you're having a baby. Or maybe you already have one. And it's getting to that time when you've got to teach your wee one the basics of the English language. But you're cool and hip, and don't want to do the usual "A is for Apple" routine. So what do you do?
Well never fear, Paste is here, ready to put your hipster worries to rest. The "Signs of Life in Music and Culture" magazine has just released An Indie Rock Alphabet Book. With entries like the above one for V - Vampire Weekend - you can rest assured that your toddler will grow up wearing skinny jeans and sporting an ironic mustache.
Paste is also hosting a party at Decatur children's bookstore Little Shop of Stories this Sunday, January 25 at 3 p.m. - for more information click here.
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