You’ve all seen Star Search, that cheesy show from the ’80s and ’90s where contestants like Rosie O’Donnell, Sawyer Brown and Sam Harris (anyone remember this mulleted crooner who had a ridiculous winning streak with his ear-piercing rendition of “Over The Rainbow”?) compete for a chance at superstardom, prize money and a recording contract. Thankfully, […]
Zach Hanner
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Dilated Peoples
While the rest of the nation was swaying to the blunted g-funk of Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, the trio that comprises L.A.’s Dilated Peoples was keeping their ears to the street and their fingers nimbly diggin’ in the record crates. MCs Raaka-Iriscience and Evidence along with DJ Babu produced and wrote tracks for such […]
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Emma Gibbs Band
The surfeit of bluegrass-flavored Grateful Dead-ish bands over the last 10 or 15 years has virtually insured that not a single one of them has an original sound. Sure, acts like Phish thrived in that arena, but they could also play Pink Floyd’s The Wall from end to end–the jangly mandolin sound was only a […]
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Looking For Fun in All The Wrong Places
The singsong notes of the calliope bob through a perfect fall night as kids squeal with delight and terror. The sweet scent of fried dough hovers and carnies attempt to lure suckers to their lopsided games of chance. At the far end of the New Hanover County Fair and Cape Fear Expo stands a tent. […]
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Money Mark
Taking things apart is one of the keys to Mark Ramos-Nishita’s creative process. The L.A.-raised keys master received his first keyboard, a Fender Rhodes, as a teen and immediately set about dissecting it, much to his parent’s chagrin. But it was only a few years later that he got a call–one that would change his […]
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The Strokes
As the pungent aroma of cigarette smoke drifts across the space of an East Village club, the band, clad in cooler-than-thou vintage finds and top-dollar designer gear (scored for free, of course–singer Julien Casablanca’s father founded Elite Models) works the crowd and mesmerizes. And while the feel of the room and the sound of the […]
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The Crystal Method
One gets the feeling that while recording their latest homage to organized noise, The Crystal Method may have partaken of a tad too much of their namesake substance. Following on the heels of ’97’s window-rattling Vegas (which spawned the club/rave/GAP commercial hit “Busy Child”), Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland spent four years touring and assembling […]
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One Nation Under A Groove
Loose-limbed breakdancers float effortlessly just above the ground, the high-pitched squeak of their tennis shoes echoing off the project walls as beats from the back of an SUV rattle the car windows and chest cavities of the onlookers. Elsewhere, the rhythmic pounding of pebble-grained synthetic leather on asphalt punctuates the verbal and aerial assaults on […]
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Dillon Fence
Why the members of Dillon Fence aren’t sitting at home watching their own episode of Behind the Music is a mystery only mindless record executives can explain. After three full-length albums and tours opening for the likes of Hootie and The Black Crowes, the band, tired of the road, called it quits. Obviously, their batteries […]
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Metal Machine Music
Imagine yourself seated in a crowded theater in Berlin, circa 1927. The film you’re watching is a silent masterpiece, directed by an innovator of the still young and unformed medium. The images are enthralling, weaving together a tale of flesh versus machinery, thought versus labor. While visually stunning, the piece is undermined by the jingle-jangle […]