Archive 2005

TOMMY STINSON ROCKS! (February)

Tommy Stinson has lived a life that is far from ordinary. He could have ended up an ordinary juvenile delinquent but instead he joined the influential alternative band, the Replacements, with his older brother, Bob, when he was only thirteen. He was in a real band as a teenager, not a boy band. Since the Replacements' split in 1991, I really didn't know what happened to Tommy Stinson. I've become a fan of Replacements' frontman, Paul Westerberg's solo work and I knew that Bob Stinson sadly passed away in 1995 but the where abouts of the rest of the "Mats" was a mystery to me. I have since found out that Tommy Stinson has been in two other bands, Bash and Pop and Perfect, and oddly enough has even played bass with a regrouped Guns and Roses. He also has released a solo album, Village Gorilla Head. It's brilliant and rockin. 25 years producing solid music is pretty impressive for someone who isn't even forty yet. 

Village Gorilla Head opens with "Without a View". Over the buzz of a drum machine and strings, Stinson laments "with a poison in their tongues, there's gotta be a better view". "Not a Moment Too Soon" is a melodic rocker that will remind the listener of later Replacements' songs. Stinson mellows out on "Light of Day", a beautiful acoustic ballad where Stinson contemplates "wouldn't want to face the light of day with anyone like I'll face the night with you". "Hey You" mixes acoustic music with pop melodies. "Motivation" is an in your face rocker where Stinson observes "it ought to be illegal taking up so much space". 

I recently saw Tommy Stinson perform live and I was very impressed. It was just him and Perfect band mate, Dave Philips, but this was far from an "unplugged" show. Stinson and Philips tore through Perfect and Village Gorilla Head tracks with the same intensity as if a full band had been there. Stinson had a sense of humor about the audience members that would yell out requests for Guns and Roses songs. He joked about having "the new guy" at every show. The highlight of the show came when Stinson left the stage with his guitar and sat at the bar and played. With the audience huddled around him, it was one of the most intimate moments I have ever witnessed at a show. Instead of just playing for us, it was like Stinson was hanging out with us. Another highlight of the show was when Stinson requested that all of the lights be turned out and he sang a beautiful cover of Alex Chilton's "Nighttime". After a wonderful live show and recorded effort with Village Gorilla Head, I can definitely proclaim that Tommy Stinson rocks! I now need to buy the Perfect and Bash and Pop albums. Thank God Amazon sells out of print CDs used.

REVIEW: HERMANO- DARE I SAY (March)

Hermano debuted in 2002 with their album, Only a Suggestion. The album was a solid effort due in part to a stellar band line up of vocalist John Garcia, Supafuzz leader, Dave Angstrom, and former Afghan Whigs' drummer, Steve Earle. The only real fault toOnly a Suggestion was that it was too short and felt rushed.Dare I Say is a more thought out effort production wise. It also is more experimental musically. 

One of Hermano's greatest strength's is the emotional power of John Garcia's vocals. Over heavy guitars, Garcia's voice can completely hold its own. The heavy rockers like the opener, "Cowboys Suck", "Is This OK?", and the album's closer "Angry American" do not disappoint in giving the album a harder edge. A highlight of the album is "Let's Get It On", a dirty sex romp that guitarist, Dave Angstrom, wrote with his wife, Devil May Care leader, Aleah. 

The album's more interesting moments are the ones that experiment with different musical styles. "Murder One" is a bluesy number that you can almost hear in a western movie. "Life" combines bluesy guitars with heavy guitars. The strangest number on the album is "On the Desert". Over sparse instrumentation and noise, there are periodic vocals that make the song sound like a musical desert, as the title suggests. 

Dare I Say is not for the faint-hearted. The lyrics are violent and even the album's cover is creepy featuring a little boy pulling a gun on someone. The album is good because it is heavy and edgy and because of John Garcia's powerful vocals. I miss hearing drummer, Steve Earle, playing with Hermano, but former Supafuzz drummer, Chris Leathers, is a perfect replacement. As a Supafuzz fan, this album reminded me of them and made me miss them more. For Supafuzz fans who are wondering if there is life after Supafuzz, this album is your answer that there is.

REVIEW- TORI AMOS- THE BEEKEEPER (April)

As with Tori Amos' past two albums, Strange Little Girls andScarlet's Walk, The Beekeeper is a feminist concept album. The album is divided into six gardens where Amos deals with a different aspect of femininity.
 

In "The Orchard" garden, Amos uses the metaphor of fruit bearing to discuss motherhood. On the beautiful "Ribbons Undone", Amos reflects on the innocence of her own daughter and her relationship with her mother. In the "Roses and Thorns" garden, Amos contrasts the beauty of spring in "Sleeps with Butterflies" to the beauty of the cold, English sea, in "Jamaica Inn". Also included in this garden is the impressive "Marys of the Sea". Amos discusses the journey of Mary Magdalene according to the Gospel of Mary, a lost book of the Bible. In the "Rock Garden", Amos gets funky on "Hoochie Woman" and does gospel on "Witness". The "Desert Garden" contemplates death. "General Joy" discusses women's roles during war. On "The Beekeeper", Amos faces her mother's mortality. 

The Beekeeper is a beautifully packaged album and it deals with a lot of interesting themes. My biggest problem with the album is that it is too long and it deals too many different themes. The album is nineteen tracks which is difficult to have that many songs on one album and have the album be consistently good. While the album has good moments as discussed, the album's weaker moments are songs such as "Original Sinsinuality" and "Barons of Suburbia". These songs are Amos' weird new-age feminist views of spirituality which she has already discussed and better on previous albums (ie "God" from Under the Pink). The album's weakest moment is "The Power of Orange Knickers". Amos has stated that this song is about terrorists but I still do not see the connection between terrorists and this weird and silly song title. Amos could have devoted the entire album to each of the garden themes. Women in spirituality, mother/daughter relationships, death, and war are too many topics to adequately address in one concept album. The Beekeeper has its good moments but it overwhelming to the listener as a concept album. 

REVIEW: BEN FOLDS- SONGS FOR SILVERMAN (May)

Ben Folds hasn't released a full-length album since 2001's Rockin the Suburbs, his first solo album after the Ben Folds Five disbanded. However, Ben Folds has been a busy man. He released three EPs (Speed Graphic, Sunny 16, and Super D) which featured new tracks and some great covers and a live album, Ben Folds Live. He also participated in The Bens EP with Ben Lee and Ben Kweller. Folds has returned with his full length release, Songs For Silverman. 

Ben Folds is the master at mixing serious subjects with his quirky observations and humor. The first single, "Landed", is a musical masterpiece featuring Folds' signature piano over lush strings. In this song, Folds tries to rekindle an old romance by admitting his faults and pleading "come pick me up, I've landed.". Another highlight is Folds' sweet tribute to his daughter, "Gracie". Like "The Luckiest" from Rockin the Suburbs, Folds is sweet without being cheesy or overly sentimental with observations like "You nodded off in my arms watching TV. I won't move you an inch even though my arm is asleep". "Late" is a bittersweet tribute to the late singer, Elliott Smith, who committed suicide in 2003. Folds sadly laments "The songs you wrote got me through a lot. Just wanna tell you that but it's too late". 

The album does have some lighter moments with Folds' quirky humor. In the break up song, "Give Judy My Notice", Folds proclaims, "Judy, I won't be your bitch anymore" that will remind Ben Folds Five fans' of "Song for the Dumped". On "Trusted", Folds finds that his diary has been read and observes "seems to me if you can't trust, you can't be trusted". "Jesusland" is a biting commentary on suburban life. 

Songs For Silverman is a good album because it is another wonderful showcase of Ben Folds' songwriting. Musically, the arrangements are excellent and demonstrate Folds' talent as a pianist. The album is good lyrically because Folds can balance sweetness on serious subjects and still show is quirky sense of humor. This album is another example of Folds' brilliant talent as a songwriter.

REVIEW: WISHING CHAIR- UNDERDOG (June)

Most underground local bands don't make it to a second album. Folk duo, Wishing Chair, from my home state of Kentucky have done the impressive and just released their sixth album, appropriately titled, Underdog. Wishing Chair's releases are impressive largely in part to Kiya's Heartwood's gift for songwriting. On Underdog, Heartwood perfectly balances personal tales with larger political views. 

The album opens with "One Real Song" a personal commentary on being in traveling band. Heartwood laments, "I was dreaming of crayolas and Saturday cartoons but it's three hundred miles and we got another show to do". "Fieldtown Road Construction" continues the theme of the weary band on the road observing "seems like I'm always an outsider, I'd like to be remembered as a friend". "Highway Lullaby" is a peppy road song leading to the question, "who knows where the road will lead." "Sidewalks" is a beautiful ballad where Heartwood confesses mistakes but makes the simple, beautiful request, "I just want to walk you home". 

Underdog is also an overt attack on the effects of the Bush administration in America. In "Outlaw Wedding", Heartwood puts a face on the heated debate in America over gay marriages. She openly discusses her marriage to Wishing Chair partner, Miriam Davidson, and proclaims "all your hate can't determine how we love". Heartwood uses to history to speak out against the war in Iraq. On "Sue Mundy", Heartwood uses the story of Confederate guerrilla in the Civil War, Sue Mundy, to make the observation on war in general, "Now God knows that war's a sin, no one's righteous in the end". "Adagio" is a haunting song where Heartwood weaves the accounts of a former cellist for the Sarajevo Opera, Vedran Smailovic. She repeatedly chants "how can they bomb, while I play". In "Bully Circus", Heartwood's calls Bush's vision of America, "the united states of greed, forget the constitution, super sized democracy". 

Being an outsider is a definite theme of Underdog, whether it is being far from home or feeling alienated by the government. The album is a good listen because of how Heartwood draws the listener in with her storytelling. Regardless of whether you agree with Heartwood's political views, there are different elements of the album that the listener can identify with. Kiya Heartwood and Miriam Davidson open their hearts on this album and the effect resounds true.

THOUGHTS ON THE MATS (July)

After seeing both Tommy Stinson and Paul Westerberg live this year, I have had a renewed interest in the Replacements' music. I have read a lot of opinions on the legacy the Replacements left and what has become of the members of the Replacements, a lot of which I don't necessarily agree with. So here are my thoughts.

On The Albums... 
Almost everything I have read about the Replacements ranks Let It Be as the Replacements' best work. While I think that Let It Be was a turning point for the Mats, Tim and Please to Meet Me are the definitive Mats albums. "Bastards of Young", "Left of the Dial", and "Alex Clilton" are the songs that defined the Replacements as a band. While these two albums had the solid rockers, Westerberg proved that he could write a good ballad and not be cheesy with "Here Comes a Regular" and "Skyway". The songwriting had matured on these two albums. While I don't think that Don't Tell a Soul and All Shook Down are bad albums, these two albums showed a band that was not working well together and would have been better as a starting point for Westerberg's solo career. I can't even listen to Sorry Ma Forgot to Take Out the Trash because the songwriting is so immature and is not representative of what the Mats became. I don't even own a copy of Stink for this reason. 

On Bob Stinson... 
I think that Bob Stinson was crucial to the Replacements' early sound but I also think that he was a very tragic figure whose life was plagued by addiction and mental illness. While all of the Mats very obviously had drug and alcohol problems, Bob was the one who could never control his addiction. Paul and Tommy seem to have matured the older they have gotten but Bob never could grow up. I can understand why he was ultimately fired from the Mats for his problems. I think that Westerberg, in particular, wanted for the Mats to be taken seriously as musicians and for Bob the band was a big party. I can see how this would cause problems creatively within a band. Bob Stinson's life after he left the Mats up to his death in 1995, was a tragic story of someone who could never get his shit together and kept holding on to a memory of being young without responsibility. While I respect Bob Stinson as a musician and for his contribution to the Replacements, I can't glamorize his memory either. 

On Paul Westerberg after the Mats... 
From some of the reviews I have read, there seem to be a lot of people who think that Paul Westerberg went soft in his old age. His solo work is different from the songs that he wrote for the Replacements but that is to be expected. He has grown as a songwriter and views the world different at 45 than he did at 20. I think that Paul Westerberg still has had a lot to say in his solo work. I would be very concerned with him as an artist if he was still writing songs like "Tommy Got His Tonsils Out" now. Some his solo albums are better than others but I think he is still can write a better song than most of the songs that are on popular radio. Regardless of what you think of Westerberg's solo work, he is awesome to see live. He perfectly balances his solo work with Mats favorites. It is worth it just to hear him revisit songs like "Left of the Dial" and "Alex Chilton". 

On Tommy Stinson after the Mats... Tommy has gone from a brat who lived the rock star life at too young an age to a talented musician and songwriter in his own right. I feel like I am probably one of the only Mats fans who supports his decision to join Guns N Roses. Tommy has the very soul of a rock star. He deserves to be in a band that plays arenas and has pyrotechs on stage. Guns N Roses wasn't a bad band back in the day either. Tommy would have been a fool to turn down the opportunity to play in a descent band with a larger fan base out of principle that he might have "sold out". I found it hard to believe at first that he actually was a member of Guns N Roses. When I saw a DVD of Guns N Roses' Rock in Rio appearance, I discovered that Tommy rocks with Guns N Roses. His role in Guns N Roses is just as much a part of his musical identity as The Mats or Bash and Pop or Perfect are. 

On a slightly unrelated note, I was very saddened to hear of the recent death of another Minneapolis musician, Karl Mueller from Soul Asylum. I don't know a lot about Karl Mueller but I do know that I have enjoyed the music of Soul Asylum that I heard. I don't care if some think it was their "sell out" album, Grave Dancer's Union rocked!

REVIEW: PETER SEARCY- TRUST FALLS (August)

Over a year ago, I reviewed Peter Searcy's Couch Songs and wondered when his other album, Trust Falls, would be available to everyone. The wait is finally over. Trust Falls is finally available. 

Trust Falls was written while Searcy was going through a divorce so breaking up and moving on to other things are common themes throughout the album. The album opens with the rocker "Ready" which is about an aging rocker finding excitement in starting a new chapter of his life. Relationships going sour are the themes of "Silence" and "Come Over". On "Silence", Searcy observes "never knew that silence could be so loud until I met you." On "Come Over", Searcy laments "don't know why I called but I did" and "(tries) not to say anything to piss you off today". "One Thing" breaks the dark tone of the album. It is a sweet ballad where Searcy proclaims "if you can believe in one thing, believe that I love you, even if I don't really know how I'm suppose to". "Happy For a While" is a funky number where over a drum machine, Searcy wonders if we "ever can be happy for a while". "Down Again" is another great rocker where Searcy proclaims "I don't want to bring you down again". 

A nice addition on the album is Butch Walker, formerly the frontman for the Marvelous 3. He plays on the tracks and produced "Come Over" and "Down Again". I think his influence on the album makes Trust Falls a more rocking album. 

While I think that Trust Falls is a good album, it is hard to compete with Searcy's solo debut, Could You Please and Thank You. Could You Please and Thank You was one of those rare album that every song was solid and the songwriting was diverse. My only gripe with Trust Falls is that many of the songs are too similar musicially and thematically. I would recommend Could You Please and Thank You as Searcy's best work but Trust Falls and his acoustic album, Couch Songs, are nice companions to this album.

REVIEW- GREG DULLI'S AMBER HEADLIGHTS (September)

After the Afghan Whigs broke up in early 2001, Greg Dulli started working on a new bunch of songs. In January 2002, Greg Dulli's close friend, Ted Demme, passed away. Dulli was in a completely different place creatively after Demme's death and the songs he worked on in 2001 were shelved. He later went on to write The Twilight Singer's album, Blackberry Belle. Fans wondered what happened to the group of songs written in 2001. The answer is the newly released Amber Headlights. 

Like most of Dulli's work, this album sounds completely different from Dulli's other works but has themes of excess. The album features songs that have been previously released but it by no means is just an album of "left over" songs. The album starts out strong with the b-side from the Blackberry Belle's "Teenage Wristband" single called "So Tight". The song is as Dulli described in an interview as a "pimp" song with a driving drum beat played by Happy Chichester. I knew that Happy was a great guitarist and piano player, I had so idea he could play drums this well. Dulli typical theme of excess continues in the rocker "Cigarettes" where he declares in the opening line that the "cigarettes are going to kill me". This rocker could be a perfect match to the Whigs' song, "Blame Etc" from Black Love. "Domani" is a song that starts off slow and funky and builds to a big song in the chorus. This song was featured on the Twilight Singers' EP, Black is the Color of My True Love's Hair. "Wicked", featured on the DIWmagazine sampler, is a creepy song where Dulli proclaims "this world is wicked, I fit right in". The album closes with the quiet, "Get the Wheel". This song is Dulli solo on piano and became "Follow You Down" from Blackberry Belle. 

Dulli's songwriting is solid on Amber Headlights but the album's weaker moments are in production. On "Black Swan", Dulli shares vocals with Nikki Crawford and on "Pussywillow", he sings with Petra Haden. Both of these songs are good musically but the vocals instead being harmonized sound like two people trying to sing over top of each other and are disjointed. 

Amber Headlights is a good listen because it shows another side of Greg Dulli creatively. It flows like a full length album rather than a b-sides compilation. It just is not in the league musically as Dulli's other works like Blackberry Belle but it is a good work for the fans.

SATELLITE RADIO IS WHERE IT'S AT (October)

I had become discouraged with local mainstream radio. Where I live, your choices in radio stations are adult contemporary, country, and classic rock. That's it. Considering that I don't really care for any of these genres, I started looking into satellite radio. I did trials of both XM and Sirius and found that whatever type of music you like, satellite radio has it. I ultimately chose Sirius for my satellite provider. These are the things I love about Sirius. 

-No commercials. When you're listening to local radio, you hear the same commercials over and over again. Some stations' commercial breaks are so long that you could listen to a song in its entirety on another station and the first station is still having a commercial break. With satellite radio, there are no annoying commercials interrupting the music. 

-No morning shows. I hate radio talk shows, especially morning shows. I do not want to listen to lame interviews and relationship tips right when I wake up in the morning. Where I live, it is very difficult to find a station that is playing just music between 6 AM and 10 AM. Every station has either its own lame local morning show or even worse a syndicated lame morning show like Bob and Sherri. On satellite radio, there are no talk shows unless you chose to listen to a talk radio station. It's freedom of choice. 

-First Wave. It's a sign of my age, but I love 1980's alternative music. R.E.M., The Cure, The Smiths, The Replacements, The B-52's- these bands were the true alternative bands. They were alternative before "alternative" music was a genre or a marketing term. They paved the way for other bands who were outside of mainstream radio. I love the "First Wave" channel because it is dedicated to this era of music. Plus they also play some of the really obscure 80's new wave songs like Nik Kershaw's "The Riddle". My only gripe is that they don't play the Replacements enough. How can you recognize the ground breakers of alternative music and forget the Replacements? 

-80's Music. This is another sign of my age. Though I understand that the 1950's, 1960's, 1970's are important to music history, I was not a part of these generations so I don't feel nostalgia for these decades. I did grow up on 80's music and pop culture. It is like my generation's "oldies". I love the "Big 80's" channel. These are the songs I grew up on in the early MTV days. I especially feel nostalgic hearing all of the original MTV veejays, with the exception of JJ Jackson (RIP), on this station. Another 80's guilty pleasure is the "Hair Nation" channel. Laugh all you want but Def Leppard, Guns N Roses, and Poison rocked back in the day. I love that "Hair Nation" pays tribute to the sometimes forgotten genre of the 80's- hair metal. 

-Alt Nation. While I prefer 1980's and early 1990's "alternative" music, this is a really great station for discovering new bands. I've heard several bands here that I probably would not have heard elsewhere. They are very cutting edge on playing new music by more mainstream alternative bands. For example, my local radio station has just added Weezer's first single from their album, Make Believe, to their play list. "Alt Nation" is playing the fourth single off of Make Believe. 

-The Spectrum. I don't like classic rock channels. "The Spectrum" goes beyond classic rock stations that are geared to a specific decade. The Spectrum recognizes the history of rock music and plays all decades of music. On "The Spectrum," you are never sure what you will get. You could hear the Beatles, The Police, and new U2, all in the same hour. The variety is what makes this channel. 

-It's all about variety. These are just some of my favorites on Sirius. Sirius and XM offer a wide enough range of channels that whatever your musical tastes, there are channels for it. Satellite radio is not restricted by play lists like local radio stations so you don't hear the same thing over and over again in a day. Plus, there are not FCC restrictions so the music and talk is uncensored. These things make satellite radio much cooler than local radio.

REVIEW: LIZ PHAIR- SOMEBODY'S MIRACLE (November)

On her 1993 debut, Exile in Guyville, Liz Phair established herself as a ground breaking artist with smart and sexually frank songs. In 2003, Liz Phair released her self titled album that contained her biggest radio hit, "Why Can't I". Old fans cried "sell out" but I found it to be some of her better work, balancing radio-friendly pop songs with the edginess of her debut. Unfortunately, her follow up, Somebody's Miracle, is far from a "miracle" of an album.

The biggest problem with this album is that Phair is trying too hard be a commercial success. Most of this album sounds like numerous other Top 40 pop songs. Songs like "Count on My Love" and the title track are written at the level of a Kelly Clarkson song. Nothing is edgy or thought provoking about these songs lyrically. Phair's voice even sounds out of place on some of these songs. Phair is best known for the monotone quality of her voice. On "Wind and the Mountain", Phair tries to hit some high notes that don't match her voice and it sounds forced. 

However, there are a few good moments on the album. "Table for One" is a great song lyrically about the loneliness caused by alcoholism. "Got My Own Thing" is a declaration of independence where Phair boasts "I don't have to wait for a miracle". The opening track, "Leap of Innocence" is a descent opener where Phair observes "everything about us had an innocence but everything around us was changing". 

On the first single, "Everything to Me", a frustrated Phair questions "are you ever going to be that real to me, everything to me". On "Everything to Me", Liz Phair observes "I bet it makes you laugh, watching me work so hard to reach you". Somebody's Miracle unfortunately doesn't reach her fans musically. I'm sure Liz Phair has grown since Exile in Guyville. However, I wish that she would shoot more for the substance lyrically of her prior works instead of trying to have a hit album. This album doesn't really please anyone in the process.

THE COOL AND UNCOOL OF 2005 (December)

The Cool

My Favorite Albums 
-Greg Dulli's Amber Headlights (see my review) 
-Ben Folds- Songs For Silverman (see my review) 
-Weezer- Make Believe 
-Wishing Chair- Underdog (see my review) 
Honorable mention: Two 2004 releases that I purchased in 2005 that turned out to be my favorite CDs this year- Tommy Stinson's Village Gorilla Head and Green Day's American Idiot. Both of these albums showed a new level of maturity in songwriting for these two artists. Green Day completely deserves all of the praise that they have received this year. 

My Favorite Songs 
Thanks to satellite radio I was exposed to a wider range of songs for this category. 
Ben Folds- Landed 
Weezer- Beverly Hills
 Weezer- Perfect Situation 
Green Day- Holiday 
Green Day- Wake Me When September Ends 
Augustana- Stars and Boulevards 
Better Than Ezra- Our Last Night 
Tori Amos- Sleeps with Butterflies
 Fountains of Wayne- Maureen 
Liz Phair- Everything to Me 
Rise Against- Swing Life Away 
Hot Hot Heat- The Middle of Nowhere 
Straylight Run- Existentialism On Prom Night 
Nine Inch Nails- Only 
U2- The City of Blinding Lights 

My Favorite Show 
Tommy Stinson at the Dame in Lexington, KY 2/9/05 
Honorable Mention- Happy Chichester at Live Wire in Georgetown, KY 8/12/05- It got to the point where my best friend and I were the only ones left in the audience but I would like to thank Happy for being a complete pro and still putting on an amazing show. 

Coolest Technology I Discovered 
Satellite Radio- I continue to hope that this willreally takes over because the music and selection is so much better than local radio. 

Coolest Way to Market a Band 
My Space- Great website that has taken off this year. A lot of the bands I discuss here have links and I discovered new bands. There is even a CD out through My Space. A major plus is that it is also free. 

Best Music Movie 
Walk the Line- Johnny Cash was country music before it was commercial. He gave a voice through his music to the outcasts. Joaquin Phoenix and Resse Witherspoon's performances are awesome and deserving of the critical praise. Plus Joaquin Phoenix bears a striking resemble to another man in black- Greg Dulli. 

The Uncool

Rereleasing music as if it was new. I normally am a fan of Better Than Ezra. However, I found their latest release, Before the Robots, to be disappointing with the exception of the second single, "Our Last Night". I liked the first single, "A Lifetime", however Better Than Ezra marketed this as a "new song". It actually had already been released on their 2001 album, Closer. Did Better Than Ezra know that Before the Robots was so mediocre that they had to bring back an old song to sell it? I like the song but I thought that this was a cop out to bring this song back as the first song from their "new album". I liked Vertical Horizon's single, "Forever". Unfortunately, this song was not new but from a reissue of their mediocre 2003 album- Go. I have no idea why Vertical Horizon felt a need to reissue this album. It was far from the quality of their hit album, Everything You Want. That is why it didn't sell, reissuing it will not change that. Vertical Horizon should not have appeared again until they had a real "new" album. 

Rock Star: INXS. This was a disgrace to Michael Hutchence's memory. I will never view INXS as a serious band again after this publicity stunt. Rumor has it that Van Halen is thinking about having an edition of this show. Please stop this garbage now! 

The Lexington club scene- The Dame brought salvation to the Lexington music scene. Why would you fix something that wasn't broken? That is what happened when the Dame's manager was forced out by his partners, causing most of the staff to quit. Then the city Lexington built "high rent" apartments around the Short Street Lounge causing them to lose their building and close. High on Rose closed. I am seeing some new potential in Lexington clubs but these losses and changes were devastating to a music scene that was not in real great shape to start with. 

The "Where in the Creative Process" Winner- I liked Gwen Stefani's single, "Cool". However, "Hollaback Girl" was one of the most annoying songs I heard. Why did people like a song with lyrics as silly as "this shit is bananas/B-A-N-A-N-A-S". Yes, I get it- Gwen can actually spell bananas but where in the creative process did lyrics this silly and a cheerleading theme become ideas for a song? 

Most Disappointing Album- Liz Phair's Somebody's Miracle.