The Royal Order of Rabbits is a “happy” cult started by Gram Rabbit. The cultists are followers of the band, and you’ll probably recognize them as the people with the sedate grins and bunny ears, if you should ever happen into a Gram Rabbit show. And really, after hearing Cultivation, a listener should be able to understand why the cult of The Royal Order of Rabbits was started. Much like a cult, Gram Rabbit’s second release will only appeal to a select few.
The major …

Lately I’ve been reading Bob Dylan’s memoir, Chronicles. It’s fascinating stuff, of course; a vivid, evocative portrait of the artist’s formative years. But what really gets me is the way he tells it. Dylan’s prose — the breathless rush of words, the exuberant citing of influences from Hank Williams to Balzac — perfectly captures the feelings of a young, hungry, and unbelievably talented poet, hurtling forward to his artistic peak.
At times the youthful folksinger seems literally aflame with a kind of Biblical portent: …

Alright, it’s official: I, Zachary Colin Hoskins, am too goddamn old for the Vines.
It’s an announcement, frankly, that I’ve put off for too long. My feelings of ambivalence for the Australian “garage rockers” have been brewing beneath the surface since before the release of their second album, 2004′s Winning Days, but I’ve ignored them out of a kind of rosy-colored nostalgia. See, the Vines were one of the two or three bands who, in the summer of 2002, made me really, passionately care …

I’ve said it once; I’ve said it a million times – there is an art to releasing an interesting and good live album. Look at the Reigning Sound’s recent Live at Goner Records; that record is absolutely necessary for any Reigning Sound fan, as well as anyone who has wanted to get into the band. It does a fantastic job of capturing the rock and roll howl of Greg Cartwright and the high-energy sounds of the Reigning Sound in concert. But enough about one …

Yesterday, the Pea Pod staff attacked Clear Channel’s underwater fortress. Aaron took advantage of his diminutive stature by climbing into a heating duct. He crawled through the castle walls until he came upon the secret radio control room, which was filled with guardian robots. Aaron poked his head out of a ceiling vent and coated the robots with molten lead. In the uproar that followed, the rest of us Podders were able to shoot, stab, and knee-face-bash our way to …

Okay, Indie Kids, let’s play Imaad Wasif trivia. We’ll start with the easiest question: what extremely popular (well, in indieland) band is Wasif touring with? Yes, you with the horn rims and asymmetrical haircut. No, the one to your left… Correct! It would be the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
Now, name two of the three bands he’s been associated with before this solo release. Okay, you, the girl in the Sesame Street shirt who needs to eat a sandwich…Oh man, you totally nailed all three. He …

Okay, let’s all just get it off our chests right now: Interpol is played out. Way back in 2002 and 2003, hipster college kids across the world were losing their virginity to the rainy day gloom of their vinyl copies of Turn Off the Bright Lights. Everyone was cutting their hair asymmetrically and wearing empty gun holsters while playing their bass guitars. But now it’s 2006, and Interpol’s hype has fizzled out. Neither their site nor Matador’s has any information on what exactly …

These days, let’s face it, an original rock’n’roll story is harder to come by than ever. We’ve heard ‘em all by now; if VH1′s Behind the Music and E!’s True Hollywood Story didn’t get to our heroes first, then they’ve been recycled and repackaged by rock’s own mythmaking cults, from Hendrix, Dylan and the Beatles to Kurt Cobain, Johnny Thunders and the Velvet Underground. Which is precisely why Greg Whiteley’s New York Doll — a documentary that tells the heretofore untold story of …

Some great voices are instruments of artistry. Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye — these are all composers, pop artistes; their legendary vocals just one element of their equally legendary visions. Other great voices, however, are something else entirely: they, themselves, are the instruments. Otis Williams belongs decidedly to the second category. A founding member of legendary soul quintet the Temptations, his powerful, melodic baritone sounded great on classics like “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” and “Just My Imagination”…but it was arguably …

I spent the entire month of October 2004 wondering if I had wasted $35 (plus Ticketmaster convenience charges) to see a band better remembered through their records. It’s not as if I assumed the Pixies reunion would be horrible, but for me purchasing a Pixies ticket was more about being able to say, “Well, at least I saw them.” Despite the fact that there were no rumors or reports of the Pixies fighting, there was always the possibility that my show could be the …