Thirty years ago yesterday, the Sex Pistols ended their ill-fated U.S. tour with this show at San Francisco’s Winterland - a venue which would close later that year (marked by a New Year’s Eve finale show by the Grateful Dead - available on CD as The Closing of Winterland).
In early January, the Pistols embarked on [...]

[Read more →]

I had December 27th marked on my calendar since early November. A Joe Strummer Tribute & Benefit in my own hometown? Yes please! I headed down to my favorite small club in Phoenix, the Rhythm Room, and caught the last two bands, the Jeff Dahl Band and headliner Glass Heroes. Keith Jackson is the lead [...]

[Read more →]

Well it was inevitable I guess. My 20-month old daughter, you see, had shunned modern technology, and had embraced the Compact Disc ®. So much so that every time she set foot in our loft where the racks of my CD’s were so meticulously displayed, she would stoop to her knees, and begin to explore [...]

[Read more →]

Saturday evening this little site popped up touting the new release from a group calling themselves The Foxboro Hot Tubs. By Sunday morning buzz was setting the internet ablaze that this was another one off side-project from Green Day (some of you may well recall the 2003 release by The Network). Brimming with 60’s inspired [...]

[Read more →]

This Thanksgiving, my family and I received an unwanted guest, in the form of a stomach virus. Evil shit, I tell you. If someone can tell me how it’s anatomically possible to puke motor oil, I’d like to know!
But worry not: inspired, witty, highly entertaining posts will return from my neck of the woods soon. [...]

[Read more →]

This is a couple of weeks old, but worth a look for those who haven’t seen it. This is the Sex Pistols on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno singing “Anarchy in the UK” (Ron Paul was the guest that night).  It’s a good version, mind you, but isn’t this not supposed to happen?
Could appearing [...]

[Read more →]

If you’ve been checking in with Ickmusic for a while, you know by now that I can’t go very long without a Clash or Joe Strummer post. So without much setup, here’s a great audience recording of a late 1978 gig at London’s Lyceum Ballroom. Find out a lot more background on the show at [...]

[Read more →]

If London Calling was the Clash’s masterpiece, Sandinista! - a three-LP, multi-genre assault on the senses (and the follow-up to London Calling) - was its stoned out red-headed stepchild. Thirty-six songs strong, Sandinista! was their chance to completely let loose and record whatever it is they felt like recording. I like the way The All [...]

[Read more →]

If you’re north of the border in Toronto or Vancouver, you may be familiar with Ford Pier. Ford plays a variety of instruments, and has played with a load of different bands up in Canada…the Hard Rubber Orchestra, the Buttless Chaps (yes!), the Sadies, the Rheostatics, and many others. He was actually a member of [...]

[Read more →]

On to another UK punk band formed in 1976, a band I had quite frankly never heard of until yesterday (thanks melchman for bringing in their debut CD). Wire was right there though, putting out a brand of art punk / post-punk that influenced later artists like Henry Rollins, REM, and the Minutemen, [...]

[Read more →]