• Best of Lists,  BritPop

    Mark’s Top Five of 2013

    Time to once again tap into my inner Cusack and reveal my Top Five Albums of 2013. 5. Antiphon by Midlake After the departure of lead vocalist and founding member Tim Smith, Midlake has been born again with a much more powerful…

  • Pop

    Song of the Summer

    With this being the 4th of July week, we are officially at the height of summer so it’s time for THE SONG OF THE SUMMER!! Even though it came out at the very end of last year here in America…

  • Rock

    Their Flag is Planted Deeply in the Ground

    The very talented and thankfully local band, American Revival is back with a new lineup and new EP called Thank Ya Kindly. Folks, the lads have done it again. It’s a North Woods corker! From the first few wonderful seconds of the opening…

  • BritPop,  Live

    The Power and Mystique Of Minneapolis

    On the fourth song into their set in the Main Room at First Avenue last night, Tom Chapman, lead singer of Battle, East Sussex’s Keane, realized he was going to have a personally transformative evening. It was during the devastating…

  • Hip Hop

    Lifting My Mind in the New Year

    It’s always cool to kick off the new year with some fresh music. It’s even better when it’s some local boys! Lifted Mindz are a five man, hip hop crew that I first heard during a break of the Orange…

  • Best of Lists

    Mark’s Top Five Albums of 2012

    For my top five albums of the year, we begin with something I didn’t think I would like but then did. And then loved. And then became obsessed with to the point of nausea. But a good nausea. Folks, I’m…

  • Rock

    Mark’s Top Five Tracks of 2012

    Channeling my inner Cusack via Nick Hornby, here are my Top Five Tracks of 2012. 5. “Don’t Stare At The Sun” – Richard Hawley Haunting and evocative of another time, this song has been stuck to me for the past…

  • Rock

    Autumnal Delights (Richard Hawley)

    With only a few weeks left until the official end to autumn, I thought it appropriate to return to the that magic mix of music and this time of the year. It seems like kismet for today considering it hit…

  • Bruce Springsteen

    We Take Care Of Our Own

    Yeah, that’s right, Bruce. We sure do. Fuckin’-A right we do. That’s why you just helped us elect the right guy for president a week ago. You are amazing. You are wonderful. You are a fucking monster. And it was…