Friday, January 08, 2010
Thursday, January 07, 2010
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Now This Really Shreds!
Looking for a way to get rid of all that holiday trash?
Check this beast out.
Merry Christmas from the TruStar family
Monday, December 14, 2009
Not Just A Pretty Face
Maya Gabeira
Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 1 November, 2007 : – - Given her background, you’d expect Maya Gabeira to be a politician. An activist, perhaps. Or even an academic. But that’s hardly the case. The daughter of Fernando Gabeira, a famous political dissident and founder of the Brazilian Green Party, Maya has avoided the country’s turbulent politics to negotiate another equally treacherous environment: the ocean.
And it’s not your average beachbreak we’re talking about here. Maya, you’ll be intrigued to learn, is all about big waves. How big? Really freaking big. “I get this incredible adrenaline rush every time I see a rising swell,” says Maya. “There’s no way I’m gonna stay on the beach if the waves are pumping – it makes me really excited and I just gotta get out there.”
It’s this kind of attitude that led Maya to win the Women’s Best Overall Performance in the 2007 Billabong Global Big Wave Awards, bagging 5,000 bucks and a truckload of kudos in the process. For those in the know, the award is hardly a surprise, as the twenty-year-old Rio de Janeiro local has gained notoriety for riding some of the world’s hairiest waves.
Her recent roster includes all the heavy-hitters: Mavericks, Waimea, Todos Santos, as well as the horrendously sketchy and shark-infested Dungeons, in South Africa. Where does she find the courage? “Surfing big waves is reflective of your attitude towards life. I think it’s something you learn at home. My dad has a really strong character, is incredibly bright and I’ve learned a lot from him.”
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Burke's Law
Gene Barry
1919-2009R.I.P.
One of the coolest guys on TV when I was a little nipper. (pre-James Bond)
LOS ANGELES – Gene Barry, who played the well-dressed man of action in the television series "Bat Masterson," "Burke's Law" and "The Name of the Game," has died at age 90 of unknown causes, his son said Thursday.Gene Barry essentially played the same character in all three series, which spanned the 1950s to the 1970s. Always fashionably dressed, the tall, handsome actor with the commanding voice dominated his scenes as he bested the bad guys in each show.
In the first of the three, the Western "Bat Masterson," he was a frontier dandy who rarely resorted to gunplay, choosing instead to beat his rivals senseless with a gold-handled cane.
This is the first episode of the first season. Series ran from 1961 to 1966.
"Who Killed Holly Howard?"-
Name That Hat!
OK folks, I need some help..... I know, I know "He needs LOT'S of help".
I'm working on my Christmas list for Santa and one of the things I really want is a hat like this one that Woody Harrelson wore in the movie 2012. I don't know what the style is to give anyone a clue. (I know, Santa knows all that stuff!) It's embossed or broqueted around the lower 3-4"
If anyone out there can help a poor alter boy out I would be eternally grateful. (or at least until the year 2012)
T
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
It's A Killer
On a tip from BruceF, who commented on The Civil Tones post, I checked into Crispy's more recent group, Killer Filler. This is the treasure I found.
You can also find their CD "Filler Up!" over at Fat City Guitar Lounge. (http://fatcitycigarlounge.blogspot.com/2009/06/killer-filler-filller-up.html)
Kick This Bucket
The Civil Tones
Soul Bucket
1998
Re-post (This is one that needs to be heard)Even though this album has been posted up here before and over at D'Boss' Fat City Cigar Lounge it needs to be out there as much as possible for all to hear. One of my favorites. Make it yours.
Review:
The Civil Tones are back! The boys from St. Louis stocked the pond full of soul-soaked R&B instrumental grooves and pulled out some fresh catches. The Civil Tones mix together southern soul from the 60s (stuff you might find on old Stax or Hi records labels), early funk, latin grooves, and surf sounds, with arrangements that take sudden twists and turns in tempo, feel, and style. Hey, and they don't have a pretty-boy, ego-inflated lead vocalist to get in the way, but take the most melodic and catchiest parts of their Hammond organ, bass, guitar and drums to fuel the "Civil Tone" sound.
OK, enough talkin', now put Soul Bucket in that CD player and start groovin'!!!
Tracklist:
1 Soul Bucket
2 Tubed
3 Joe Flamingo
4 Sarcasm
5 East of East St. Louis
6 Papa Burger
7 Road Rage
8 The Return of Sugar Dumplin'
9 Wings for Wanda
10 A Short Hello and a Long Goodbye
11 Billy Juarez
12 Strawberry Hill
13 Soul Bucket (Southside)
Monday, December 07, 2009
Friday, December 04, 2009
Your Such A Stupid Girl
Neil Young and Crazy Horse
Having apparently exorcised his demons by releasing the cathartic Tonight's the Night, Neil Young returned to his commercial strengths with Zuma (named after Zuma Beach in Los Angeles, where he now owned a house). Seven of the album's nine songs were recorded with the reunited Crazy Horse, in which rhythm guitarist Frank Sampedro had replaced the late Danny Whitten, but there were also nods to other popular Young styles in "Pardon My Heart," an acoustic song that would have fit on Harvest, his most popular album, and "Through My Sails," retrieved from one of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's abortive recording sessions. Young had abandoned the ragged, first-take approach of his previous three albums, but Crazy Horse would never be a polished act, and the music had a lively sound well-suited to the songs, which were some of the most melodic, pop-oriented tunes Young had crafted in years, though they were played with an electric-guitar-drenched rock intensity. The overall theme concerned romantic conflict, with lyrics that lamented lost love and sometimes longed for a return ("Pardon My Heart" even found Young singing, "I don't believe this song"), though the overall conclusion, notably in such catchy songs as "Don't Cry No Tears" and "Lookin' for a Love," was to move on to the next relationship. But the album's standout track (apparently the only holdover from an early intention to present songs with historical subjects) was the seven-and-a-half-minute epic "Cortez the Killer," a commentary on the Spanish conqueror of Latin America that served as a platform for Young's most extensive guitar soloing since his work on Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere.
Tracklist:
1 Don't Cry No Tears
2 Danger Bird
3 Pardon My Heart
4 Lookin' for a Love
5 Barstool Blues
6 Stupid Girl
7 Drive Back
8 Cortez the Killer
9 Through My Sails
Monday, November 30, 2009
Baby You Can Drive My Car
The Cars
The Cars Deluxe Edition
1999
Ripped @ an ass-haulin' 320
5% Recovery
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Review by Greg Prato
Back in 1996, Rhino Records had plans for a Cars rarities disc entitled Prototypes, which was to include their entire first album in demo form, as well as other rarities from all eras of the band. And even though Ice magazine ran a story on it and a track listing was set, the album never saw the light of day for reasons unknown. Three years later, Rhino reconsidered (helped by a fan write-in campaign), and issued a similarly assembled package, The Cars: Deluxe Edition. A two-CD set, it contains their classic 1978 self-titled debut in its entirety (an album you just can't hear enough), while the second disc presents the complete album in demo form, with an additional five early demos of previously unreleased compositions tacked on at the end. Diehard fans will have a feast with disc two, the demos for such radio standards as "My Best Friend's Girl," "Just What I Needed," "You're All I've Got Tonight," and "Bye Bye Love" capture the songs in their rawest form -- akin to what they must have sounded like back in the band's club days. Out of the five unissued songs, two are instant classics (the amiable "Wake Me Up" and the red-hot rocker "Hotel Queenie"), while "They Won't See You" proves interesting, despite an underdeveloped chorus -- which is forgivable, since these are demos, after all. [Note: since a demo version of "Good Times Roll" couldn't be found, a live take from 1978 is used on disc two.]
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Tracklist:
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1 Good Times Roll
2 My Best Friend's Girl
3 Just What I Needed
4 I'm in Touch With Your World
5 Don't Cha Stop
6 You're All I've Got Tonight
7 Bye Bye Love
8 Moving in Stereo
9 All Mixed Up
10 Good Times Roll [live/demo version]
11 My Best Friend's Girl [demo version]
12 Just What I Needed [demo version]
13 I'm in Touch With Your World [demo version]
14 Don't Cha Stop [demo version]
15 You're All I've Got Tonight [demo version]
16 Bye Bye Love [demo version] Ocasek 4:07
17 Moving in Stereo [demo version]
18 All Mixed Up [demo version]
19 They Won't See You [#/demo version]
20 Take What You Want [#/demo version]
21 Wake Me Up [#/demo version]
22 You Just Can't Push Me [#/demo version]
23 Hotel Queenie [#/demo version]
Dude! Where's The Water???
The Aqua Velvets
Nomad1996
Ripped @ a gritty 320-
Review by Hal HorowitzDespite their watery name, the Aqua Velvets don't spend the bulk of this album riding the waves. In fact, the title and desert cover art seem to point in the opposite direction. And although they still obviously love reverb and twang, the band, led by guitarist Miles Corbin, proves it is more diverse than previous albums might indicate. Sure, there's plenty of Duane Eddy/Ventures licks, but the Aqua Velvets introduce them to a world music palette. This is surf-influenced music that transcends its previous limitations. To emphasize that, the disc kicks off with the spaghetti Western atmospherics of the title track before the group gets its collective feet wet in "Surf Nouveau"'s more straightforward, Shadows-style approach. But they really wander off the beach on the bongo-infused slow burn of "Snorkle Mask Replica," where backwards tapes provide an eerie backing for the multiple, overdubbed guitar solos. Ennio Morricone is referenced often here, especially in the dusty "Return to Paia," a high, lonesome mood piece. "In a Spanish Mood" is just that, with a vague flamenco groove that snakes through drum-less percussion with Corbin's echo-heavy solo. With one foot on an American surfboard and the other on foreign soil, the Aqua Velvets show they are ready to push the envelope of their often constricting field without abandoning it. The closing tracks tread water, swimming in calm seas, yet not really going anywhere, although the reggae rhythm of "Shrunken Head" is a calm coda. But Nomad is an eye-opening, if not quite groundbreaking album in a genre that has far too few of them.
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1 Nomad
2 Surf Nouveau
3 Smoking Panatelas on the Blue Mediterranean Sea
4 Holly Tiki
5 Snorkel Mask Replica
6 Return to Paia
7 Ho'okipa
8 In a Spanish Mood
9 Nervous on Neptune
10 Summer at Dreampoint
11 Shakahoochie
12 Shrunken Head
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Get it HERE
What Do You Get When You Put A Corvette and A Gore Girl Together?
Some things are just meant to be. When the legendary Nikki Corvette arrived with equally revered rock critic Robert Matheu at a Gore Gore Girls show in Los Angeles, he instinctively knew that she and bandleader Amy Gore would be natural compatriots. Both women have toured the world, rejecting trends and gimmickry to play the authentic, powerful rock n’ roll they’ve made their religion. They became friends that night, not industry associates but real pals. When Corvette relocated to her native Detroit for family reasons, she and Gore began to spend time together, spending hours talking about music while hanging out by the record player. With members of each woman’s bands in different cities, they originally conceived the idea of doing a punk cover band, playing their favorite songs from bands like the Buzzcocks and the Damned. That soon changed when Nikki brought her tune “Lustfully Yours” to the table. Amy Gore, a formidable guitarist and writer, began writing songs specifically for Nikki that carry on the ‘Shangri-Las meets Ramones’ v sound she is famous for while incorporating lyrics rejecting the artificiality of current feminine ideals (“Fake It”) and making stand for the hedonistic fun of dancing, cars and staying up all night. “Rock n’ roll, above all else, should be fun,” said Gore.
The new tracks are compiled for The Lustfully Yours EP on Strange Girl Recordings, available Tuesday, January 26th on itunes USA and Internationally, Rhapsody, Napster, eMusic, IMVU, LimeWire Store, Amazon MP3 & Amazon on Demand.
Space Trackin'
JamiroquaiA Funk Odyssey
2001
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Review by MacKenzie Wilson
After the jarring reception of 1999's Synkronized, Jamiroquai constructed A Funk Odyssey, something more polished and slick inside the band's own brand of funky disco-rock. Jason Kay and keyboardist/songwriter Toby Smith perfected a maturation that was left keyed in Travelling Without Moving but left open-ended on Synkronized for a wide scope of musical delight. A Funk Odyssey taps into various illustrious grooves of the Latin world, classic rock, and mainstream club culture, and Jamiroquai is tight and eager to make everyone shake their groove thing in their own light. The first single, "Little L," beams with Kajagoogoo-like synths while warping into a funk-driven hue of orchestral whirlpools, but Jamiroquai allows the band's extroverted and unattached personality to shine on the worldbeat-tinged "Corner of the Earth." Kay strips aside all disco humor and grandeur for something personally inviting, something that's heartfelt too. A Funk Odyssey sparks classic enthusiasm, and it feels good. Dance music is not just a design, it's something far more tangible, and Jamiroquai surely captures a fierce desire to make it more emotional on the band's own level.
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Tracklist:
1 Feel So Good
2 Little L
3 You Give Me Something
4 Corner of the Earth
5 Love Foolosophy
6 Stop Don't Panic
7 Black Crow
8 Main Vein
9 Twenty Zero One
10 Picture of My Life
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Get it HERE
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Let These Little Dittys Pierce Your Brain
The Coffin Daggers
