Music

Getting Into the Mood

Alison Sudol leads A Fine Frenzy quietly into the spotlight Alison Sudol’s soft voice creaked from the ear of my phone, sounding positively under the weather. “I got really, really sick,” says Sudol with a cough after I ask her how the nationwide tour she’s on has been going. “A…

Great Expectations

Thursday, The Fall of Troy, The Dear Hunter Boardwalk “¢ Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009 Words & Photos Russ Wonsley Looking at the lineup for last Thursday night’s show at Boardwalk, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had heard of The Dear Hunter from close friends but had never taken…

Natural Charm

Matteo’s Pizza & Bistro 5132 Arden Way Sacramento, California Words & Photos by Josselin Bassaldu Oh, October. You are like that boring friend that you forget is so interesting until they let loose and entertain the hell out of you. How about them apples, October? You make them so sweet…

Creativity Without Borders

Gift of Gab at Home in the Unknown It is hard to believe it’s been nearly 20 years since rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel formed Blackalicious within the walls of Kennedy High School and later went on to form Soulsides Records after meeting DJ Shadow at Davis’…

One for the Dudes

Our Hometown Disaster delivers the goods on full-length debut Local punk outfit Our Hometown Disaster wants you to know that they aren’t fucking around on their full-length debut, The Good Life, out Oct. 10, 2009. “We’re not pussies, we’re not fakes, we’re real guys with real experiences and that comes…

Even Computers Get the Blues

Mike Skinner Readies the Final Streets Album Mike Skinner (aka The Streets) was apologetic when he called in a half-hour late for our interview. However, it wasn’t the vast time difference between us and the United Kingdom or a simple disregard for scheduling that contributed to his tardiness. Skinner was…

Strange Beds

Vienna Teng makes moves on tour and with her new album A lo-fi drum track shuffles at a medium volume as Vienna Teng presses the record button on a looping station that rests on the top of a gorgeous, midnight black grand piano. A familiar face for Teng, Alex Wong,…

Flipside of Fame

Gym Class Heroes’ Disashi Lumumba-Kasongo on His Quiet Life in the Spotlight Often the inception story of Gym Class Heroes revolves around its founding members, drummer Matt McGinley and frontman Travis McCoy. It’s the fabled story of high school friends who met in gym class, started a band and kept…

All the Pieces Fit

Tides of Man are ready to spread their music to the masses Sometimes the best things in life happen spontaneously. Two strangers bump into each other and end up falling in love; a lunch break spent in a new café opens up an unexpected career opportunity; a stray dog or…

Feels Like Home

Pocket for Corduroy Reunites, Ponders Next Step Long before Nevada City, Calif. attained national notoriety as a hotbed for the anti-folk scene of the mid-’00s—a breeding ground for the disciplined howls of the Russian River kids—the city’s musical landscape thrived not unlike that of the monolithic post-punk scene in Sacramento….