While Uncle Joe is best known as one of America's top Classic Rock historians, throughout his 35-year career he's always been acutely aware of current trends in the music industry. Indeed, Classic Rock itself was the finest new music of its day, composed and performed by artists at their creative peak. For a scholarly insight into today's trends, J.B. presents Rave's Raves.
Rave's Raves are composed by Bruce Ravid, a veteran of Capitol Record's A&R Department and in no way reflect the official viewpoint of Uncle Joe, his staff or management. They are written from Rave's industry viewpoint, originally for friends within the music business, but now shared with the world. New editions appear in April/May, August/September, and December with occasional updates in between. Enjoy!
October 2005
***RAVE'S RAVES #24.1***
RAVE'S FAVES (on the air since August)
The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand (various), The Rolling Stones (various), Go! Team (various), Gorillaz ("DARE"), Morning Wood, New Pornographers (various), Ladytron (various), We Are Scientists, Arctic Monkeys, She Wants Revenge, Paul Van Dyke, Coldplay ("Talk").
Above tracks are the current singles unless otherwise noted. The Strokes seem to have emerged from their sophomore siesta with this tune, which shows them broadening from the "New York sound," which they helped establish. Franz completely avoided their sophomore slump with an outstanding album that is deeper, darker, and harder. The Stones' CD has five or six great tracks and the rest of it is solid. Uncle Joe has been playing most of the best ones on his KLOS afternoon shift. It's hard to get much more uplifting than with the Go! Team from England. They're mostly instrumental and the album is really refreshing. Morning Wood have a cool radio track and one wonders how many other bands wish they'd come up with that name. The New Porns and Ladytron have strong discs that are working to expand their bases. Two new bands on L.A.'s KCRW: Scientists (see live review below) are an L.A. band that relocated to Brooklyn and have a U.K. buzz that is crossing the Atlantic back to the U.S.! Their new single reminds of Hot Hot Heat and the album comes in January. Arctic Monkeys just debuted at #1 in England and are looking like the new band of the year over there. Their "You Know You Look Good on the Dance Floor" is also starting to get import play on a few domestic stations. L.A.'s Indie 103.1 is playing She Wants Revenge, and the track sounds like a harder Interpol. Paul Van Dyke has a nice single on the electronica side. Coldplay's "Talk" is the tune with the Kraftwerk riff that people have been talking about.
LIVE
I was able to catch a whole slew of bands during September and October. The Redwalls played at the Roxy on a show with fellow Capitol/Chicago act OK! Go. The Redwalls rock harder live than they do on their album. They are a strong live band that has enormous long-term potential. I didn't catch the OK! Go set except for their encore, which is the very cool and uniquely choreographed lip-sync of their "A Million Ways." Norway's Royksopp put on a good show at the Avalon. Most in attendance were very enthused, and these guys make much more of an attempt to connect with their audiences than many of their electronic brethren. Fellow Norwegian opening act Annie has good tunes but no stage presence. My need to see Kasabian drove me to attend KROQ's Inland Invasion even though I could only stay for five bands. Considering that they had to fight an 11am set time and poor sound, Kasabian still did a great job. They play well and are good to watch. Fans of their music will really like them live. The same goes for Bloc Party who I saw for the second time. This time around, the crowd was more familiar with their tunes and the band played a bit better as well. Except for "Party at Ground Zero" and a cool cover of Sublime's "Date Rape", Fishbone were merely loud and rough. Having worked with some outstanding synth artists in the '80's, one would think I'd really like The Bravery. I think they're a good band and their set was fine, but they just don't excite me. Arcade Fire were next and they once again put on an amazing show. As I said a couple of months ago, I feel that they are the indie rock story of the year when it comes to playing live. Towers of London snuck into L.A. for a Troubadour gig in front of a mild crowd of industry types. This punk-metal band are fun to watch. I really like their upcoming "On the Loose" single, which is going to be released immanently. I'm glad I hit Melbourne's Cut Copy gig at The Echo. Their interesting album doesn't come close to matching their live energy and likability. If they can improve on their songwriting, the sky can be the limit for these dance-rock dudes. My October Madison visit allowed me to catch The Decemberists at the Orpheum Theatre. This is a perfect band for a college town with their humor, musicianship and easy-going approach. The New Pornographers' gig the following night at the Barrymore Theatre was postponed due to the bass player's appendicitis attack, but that allowed me to catch most of home-town Garbage (minus Shirley) along with a few other local players at Cafe Montmartre as The Know It All Girlfriends vs. The Know It All Boyfriends. The "Girlfriends" were about the ugliest drag queens I've ever seen, and they joyfully banged their way through a number of pop oldies. During their break, the guys shed their dresses and returned as themselves, drinking and charging through various rock classics. Meanwhile, We Are Scientists headlined a late October show at L.A.'s Troubadour. They're talented without much of a stage show, and their single is by far the best tune. Even if "Nobody Move, Nobody Gets Hurt" becomes a hit, I don't think this band currently has enough to completely break through.
...and...
I got to Madison twice and was happy to be on WSUM both times. In September, I co-hosted the Helvete show with Bruce Ravid Music Industry Award Winner, Chris ("Guts") Gutmanis. This is a loud rock show and we featured a long segment on Iron Maiden. During the October stay, I returned for my solo Return of Rave program. Thanks to Chris and station management for these opportunities... The next time you hear from me, the holidays will be upon us and I'll be sending you my Top Five Faves of '05. Have a great two months, and until next time...
RAVE ON!!!
August 2005
***RAVE'S RAVES #24***
RAVE'S FAVES (on the air)
Franz Ferdinand, The Rolling Stones, Bloc Party (various), Kasabian (various), The Vacation, 22-20's, Green Day (various), Arcade Fire (various), Beck ("Girl"), Hot Hot Heat, Death Cab For Cutie, Madness, Dandy Warhols, Goldfrapp, Royksopp(various).
All of the above are singles unless otherwise indicated. So many promising bands disappoint the second time around, but if Franz' "Do You Want To" is any indication, their fans will really love their harder, darker release in October. This tune has enough hooks to fill a closet. How about the new live-sounding Stones tune? Their whole album is supposed to be like that. This is the first time Mick and Keith have actually written together since "Exile on Main Street." Bloc Party, Kasabian, and Green Day continue to have CD's at or near the top of my list. L.A.-based The Vacation are being championed by our Indie 103.1 and the U.K.'s 22-20's are a blues-influenced rock band being played on Indie and KCRW. Death Cab's soothing single is garnering lots of local radio requests. This band may be ready to blow up. As a big fan of the Dandys' last two albums, I'm starting to like their "Smoke It" and hope the rest of their disc will grow on me as well. They like to throw curve balls with their unpredictability, so their albums become acquired tastes. Goldfrapp now has four Faves in a row, and I'm liking lots of the new Royksopp. Honorable mention goes to the Foo Fighters' new "DOA", some cool Spoon tracks, and also to Avenged Sevenfold, who blew people away on the Van's Warped Tour. Expect bigger things from Sigur Ros this time around, as taste makers are embracing these eclectic Icelanders. We Are Scientists are a cool U.S. band getting a U.K. buzz. Watch for their October release.
HELD UP BY HIP HOP?
For way too long, hip hop has been by far the dominating genre in music, but could it be that it is actually hurting the music business? The ailing record industry certainly needs this sales volume, but perhaps hip hop has been so huge that it has actually suffocated the development of other types of music. At least this year has seen more rock albums top the charts; and it's encouraging that more and more indie rock songs continue to turn up in commercials, TV shows and, movies.
SABOTOZZ FEST
Over 45,000 people were forced to endure one of the most surreal and disgusting concert events as Ozzy's people sabotaged Iron Maiden's set at the L.A. show. Sharon Osbourne has admitted that she had the PA cut three times, was behind the "Ozzy" chants over the PA at the beginning and end of Maiden's set, and had daughter Kelly provide a kid with the dozens of eggs that he hurled onto the stage. This juvenile stuff could have easily incited a riot. Sharon couldn't have appreciated the fact that across the country Maiden consistently got better reviews and stronger crowd reactions, or that many fans were leaving during Ozzy's sets. She's unhappy with some things Maiden's Bruce Dickenson said onstage. As Maiden manager Rod Smallwood said on the band's website, "If I had any sort of problem or misunderstanding with a band working on a tour we were involved in, I would go and talk to them or their manager — not wait until the end of a tour and assault and ambush them. Or was that really it?" Maiden played through this mess and the crowd was fantastic. After the debacle finally ended, Sharon actually came on stage to announce that Bruce is a "prick." She made an ass of herself and summarily made enemies out of thousands of booing fans, many of whom soon left the venue. Maiden persevered with their usual class and professionalism. They're some of the nicest rockers ever to grace a stage, and their integrity has never dipped below 100%. At the huge Carling Weekend Leeds Festival six days later, Bruce and the band rose above the drama and had nothing to say about the Osbournes.
LIVE
Jack White's protege Brendan Benson played at the El Ray in Hollywood. He's an unassuming guy with good songs and a good band but it all started to sound alike by mid-set. Robbers On High Street preceded Brendan. They achieved Fave status in my last edition and are a talented, likeable group. Robbers didn't play with enough presence to hold the crowd but I hope they improve with more time on the road. The 22-20's (see Faves above) headlined a sold out gig at the Troubadour. These guys are a solid blues rock band that will also benefit from U.S. touring. Also on the bill was the L.A. band Marjorie Fair who have a good song getting some local airplay. Unfortunately, no other tunes stood out and their set was listless. Gigs I missed but heard great things about, included British bands Kasabian and Hard-Fi. I loved Arcade Fire's show earlier this year and they continue to knock people out wherever they play.
80'S COLLEAGUES
Following their Ozzfest tour, Iron Maiden headed back to England for headlining stints at the Reading and Leeds Festivals. Following a few more shows, they'll take a few months off before starting a new album after Christmas. While in L.A., they were inducted into the Guitar Center's RockWalk of Fame. About 1,000 fans turned up. The Knack played before 20,000 enthusiastic people at Japan's Fuji Festival and have two L.A. shows over the late August/early September period. Missing Persons' Dale Bozzio has kept their profile up with performances on "Hit Me Baby One More Time," "Jimmy Kimmel Live," and on tour. The Church have released an unplugged disc with acoustic versions of their hits and other tunes.
...and...
When I first heard the concept for reality show "Rock Star: INSX," I was embarrassed for this great band. Having given it more thought, I now subscribe to the theory that it's a positive career move for them. Rather than finding a singer on their own and recording a comeback disc that might have merely "escaped" from a label, millions of people will know the new singer and there will be a larger fan base. The show itself is pretty good. I've watched a bit and feel the new vocalist should be Marty or Mig... That's it for this time around. Let me hear from you, and please put "Raves" in the subject line to make sure that I see and reply to your email. Take care of yourselves. Until late October...