Walking back to Owen Residence Hall from her theater audition on a warm August evening, freshman in undecided liberal arts, Lya Boeger, noticed a hoard of upperclassmen surrounding her newest
Some music is forever tinged with sadness: (Sitting On The) Dock Of The Bay, released just three days after the death of its singer Otis Redding; Nirvana’s Unplugged album, a signpost that no one could read until it was too late. And now, perhaps, Big Big Train’s Welcome To The Planet, announced before the shocking death of the band’s singer David Longdon in November last year and released after. Under such circumstances it’s tempting to pull on the surgical gloves and examine the album in forensic detail, searching for prescience that almost certainly isn’t there. Indeed, those looking for some sort of foreshadowing will run up against a problem almost immediately: Welcome To The Planet is an album that bursts with life. Opener Made From Sunshine is as effervescent as its title suggests, with Longdon singing of Cloud 9 and blooming magnolia trees while horns parp cheerily. It’s almost ludicrously upbea
And a Happy New Year to you too. We start 2022 as we ended 2021, with vivid proof that new music continues to thrill, with musicians the world over conjuring up magic week after week. Even over the Christmas break – traditionally a barren period as far as new releases go – rock didn't stop rolling. So below are our first Tracks Of The Week of 2022 – don't forget to vote at the foot of the page – but first, here are our final winners of 2021. In third place were The Moon City Masters with Send It On, while These Voices by the Kris Barras Band came second. Our final winners of the year? The Hellacopters.