It's a very peculiar sensation to know that history is occurring around you. I felt that way back in 1991 when I first heard "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on the radio, as suddenly the entirety of the "hair metal" movement of the '80s was wiped off the musical map, loser of a war that it never even knew was coming. I can only imagine that people like Muddy Waters felt much the same way when Elvis Presley and the forces of rock n' roll wiped the blues out of the minds of America's youth, just like that. »»
A good documentary about the Blues that just happens to mention Led Zeppelin. »»
The first time I heard Cold War Kids' excellent "Hang Me Out to Dry", thinking that they sounded like at any second they might lose the rhythm and devolve into some ponderous, off-key Radiohead-worship. That they continue to hold onto that steadily bouncing groove throughout the track and match it with a loose Bono-ish warble is part of what made them the apple of every blogger's eye for about 5 minutes. ... »»
