The Mrs. introduced me to Aneesa Strings some time ago, and I thought she was cool – I mean, who doesn’t dig a woman with an upright bass and a great voice? But honestly, it didn’t exactly knock me out. Not in the way that I’d actively seek out her music, it was just a little too much on the tame side for my tastes.
So when she told me Aneesa was coming to town and she wanted to go see her, I figured, m’eh, why not? It was a Friday night show at Yoshi’s, a club we’ve been to many times and despite being located in Oakland, it’s a spot we really, really like.
We decided to make a night of it and made reservations at the restaurant that’s attached to the club – or is it the club that is attached to the restaurant? Anyhow, we’d always wanted to try the food there – a Japanese -Fusion menu – but every time we’d been there in the past we were running up there after work and never had time to make it to dinner before the show. But this time around it was a late show, we’d made reservations at 7:45, and figured we’d have just enough time to eat before her set.
Let me tell you, we were FOOLS for not eating there in the past! Goodness me, the food was absolutely spectacular! I won’t go into all the details as I’m not a “foodie” and this is a concert review, but I will say I had a pork chop that was hands down the best pork chop I’ve ever eaten in my entire life. And I’m no stranger to pork chops… But seriously, everything we had was delicious and the pork chop was out of this world. I’d eat another one right now if I could!!
Aneesa was accompanied by a drummer, keyboard player and a guitar player, a relatively standard jazz band setup. The show started off a little slow frankly, and after the first song I was thinking to myself “I might be a little too tired to sit through an hour of this“, but very quickly things started to heat up.
I’m not gonna pretend to know what songs she played, old or new, I’m not at all familiar with her catalog of work. What I will say though, is that she was a phenomenal artist. Her voice was smooth as glass – at times – and sometimes gritty, when it was called for. Her bass playing was absolutely on point, it was plainly obvious that she and the upright bass were dear old friends. And midway through the set, she switched it up and picked up an electric fretless Fender Jazz bass, and that’s when things really started cookin’!
One particular highlight was her rendition of Sade’s Ordinary Love, which is a song I (and millions of others) love. I have never heard anyone cover Sade and sound good. Never, that is, until Aneesa. She not only did the song justice, she put just enough of a twist on it to make it her own and I was completely taken in by her version. To be able to hold down that impeccable bass groove – if you know you know – AND sing that song, with that depth of soul, beauty and conviction is beyond impressive.
And speaking of impressive, her band was on fire! We were seated about 8 feet from the drummer, who was right up at the front of the stage, and I was able to see every stroke, every kick drum beat, and as a somewhat snobby drummer myself, I just gotta say WOW. He was so fluid and yet solid as a rock. He played so many parts that straight up surprised me, and yet fit the songs perfectly. That’s how I judge a drummer; if I can predict what they’re gonna play before they play it? M’eh. But this guy took all kinds of turns I never expected, while staying completely in the pocket and just grooving. It was very inspiring. Her guitarist was very much in the background, both literally and musically, but he too was great. I don’t know a lot of jazz players, but his playing reminded me of Larry Carlton. Not at all overbearing, just the right amount of spice to compliment the flavor of the songs. Same with the keys, he took a few solos letting us know he had some chops, but for the most part he played in a supporting role, filling in the overall sound. But as an ensemble, she couldn’t have asked for a better band. They played flawlessly – to my ears anyway – never overshadowed the primary artist, and just helped weave a beautiful, sonic tapestry.
Then for the cherry on top, she finished the show with what was perhaps the most unbelievable “mash-up” I’ve ever witnessed as her encore. She launched into a slightly down tempo, gritty, funky version of Come Together by the Beatles, which wove its way into Blackstreet’s No Diggity, incorporated a few bars from a Biggie Smalls track (I don’t recall the particular song title, but it was immediately recognizable) and back to the Beatles. Now, I’m not really a fan of the Beatles, and I’m absolutely not a fan of Blackstreet nor partial to Biggie, but I gotta admit, the musical acrobatics, the sleekness of which they melded the three songs into one, was certainly one of the most memorable moments I’ve seen on stage in a long time. It was a stellar end to an incredible show.
All things considered, I couldn’t have enjoyed the night more. Excellent food, a great vibe and amazing artistry.
Thank you Aneesa for a night full of “WOW!”, and props to your band for playing their hearts out. I’ve seen literally hundreds of shows over the last 40+ years, and last night’s show at Yoshi’s is gonna live in my personal Hall of Fame! It just goes to show, sometimes when you step outside your comfort zone and open your mind and your ears, you get to witness magic. And last night was absolutely magical for myself and the Mrs!
This one was a long time coming folks. As a youth, a tender Freshman in High School, I was introduced to the Sex Pistols and it was one of those musical events that absolutely changed my life. I had already been turned onto College Radio by that time, but the Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks album was unlike anything I’d ever heard in my life and I was forever changed.
Unfortunately for me, the year was 1982 and the Pistols had already imploded and were no more…
A year later I came into possession of a book titled The British Invasion: From the First Wave to the New Wave by Nicholas Schaffer (thanks Dad!) and it was there that I discovered Johnny Rotten of Sex Pistols fame had shed his Rotten moniker, gone back to his given name of John Lydon and started a new band by the name of Public Image Limited. Naturally, I was thrilled, and I set out to find their records. Ha!
Now keep in mind, this was way before the interwebs. The days of record stores like Music Land and Rainbow records and of course Tower Records. And we also had a great used record store in town in an old converted house called Streetlight Records that specialized in punk and New Wave records, European imports and the like, and it STILL took me TWO YEARS to get my hands on the Public Image Limited debut record!
And let me tell you, it was NOT what I expected! Nonetheless, I took my time absorbing it and came to appreciate it in a totally different way than the Pistols’ album.
Over the years I was there for every subsequent album release, and I grew to love the “band” – really a constantly revolving cast of characters – including Steve Vai at one point – with Mr. Lydon at the helm. And the records just kept getting better and better over the years.
But, for whatever reason, I was never able to see them on stage. So they became one of those bucket list bands for me and honestly I never thought I’d get the opportunity as Mr. Lydon hit 70 years old this year and subsequently just went through the passing of his long time wife Nora. The odds seemed insurmountable.
But much to my surprise I caught wind of a new tour coming this year and the minute I confirmed it was true I snatched up tickets. And here I am!
The Rio Theater was a new venue for me, not only my first visit, but the first I’d even heard of it! Which is weird considering I live only about 20 miles from Santa Cruz and come over the hill all the time… But it’s a cool venue, an old converted movie theater, which still has a bunch of seats, for which my old, worn out knees were grateful! The staff was super friendly – generally a given in Santa Cruz, but nice nonetheless. The crowd was a good mix – LOTS of old heads like myself, but a smattering of many generations altogether. Lots of Doc Martens, lots of old punk band T- shirts…my kinda people! Then again, most of the crowd was surprisingly “normal” looking. I suppose growing up in the 70s and 80s in the punk scene, if we’ve made it this far, we’ve got nothing else to prove and can leave the leather jackets at home.
The opening band was Plague Vendor from LA. They are kind of throwback punk band, with a bit of a modernized sound. Not really my thing, but I would have loved them when I was 16… What I will say though is their guitarist was great. He was ripping it up on a hollow body guitar through a tube amp, so for me he automatically gets bonus points! And their frontman was really giving it his all. He was a bit of Iggy Pop mixed with Lux Interior from the Cramps, with the occasional James Brown dance moves thrown in for good measure. He was definitely there to put on a good show for the audience. So, overall, I’d say they were pretty good for what they were, it just wasn’t my kinda jam.
The stars of their band. Not to diminish the rhythm section, but these two were blazing!
When it came to the main event I wasn’t sure what to expect. I figured it would be awesome or a train wreck quite honestly.
Well, the jury is in, and let me tell you they were AWESOME! The band was really sparse – guitar, bass and drums (though both the guitarist and bassist played some keyboards here and there), and they just killed it! They played songs from every era, even pulling out World Destruction, the dance club staple that John did with Afrika Bambaattaa back in the late 80s, and it was absolutely fantastic. Honestly, I had kinda forgotten just how deep their discography goes. They covered a lot of ground and didn’t miss a beat the entire time. That band was on fire! They played a number of their “hits” (LOL) and some deep cuts and just really wowed me quite honestly.
I wish I knew who this guy is, he was AMAZING!
Then John did something I’ve NEVER seen in a live show – he told us he was going to take a smoke break! “Gimme three minutes, and I’ll be right back” he said! He even flashed a pack of Marlboro Reds, just so we’d know he was serious. Only in California!
After the smoke break the band came back on, he thanked the audience for their patience, then promptly tore into the song Public Image. What a re-entry! Truly it was their encore, but it was different, I’ll tell ya that!
If I’m being completely honest, there were a number of songs I was hoping they’d play that they didn’t. But overall I really couldn’t have asked for more. They absolutely surpassed any expectations I might have had going in and I left on the kind of musical “high” that frankly is a bit rare these days.
And I not only got to discover a new venue but I got to cross a band off my bucket list that frankly I never thought I’d have the chance to see. An absolute win for the Boring Old Man!
Thank you Mr. Lydon and much thanks to your stellar band, I took me well over 40 years to see you, but it was undoubtedly worth the wait! I wish you continued success on the rest of your tour.
It just wouldn’t be Summer without a show at the Greek Theater. I went to my first show there (The Truth, The Hooters and Squeeze) around 1985, and it’s been a favorite venue of mine ever since.
Berkeley on the other hand, I’m not a big fan of, but I digress…
This show was courtesy of the Mrs and our daughter, who got the tickets as my birthday present back in early June, so the anticipation had grown for some time. We’d seen Young the Giant before, but despite being fans since their first record, had never had the chance to see Cold War Kids.
And as it turned out, this show was a triple bill, so we were in for a surprise. Listed on the bill was Kenny Hoopla as the opening act, but Kenny was MIA – in his (their?) place, we had a band by the name of Beach Weather open the show.
An ironic side note, earlier in the day we had gone to the beach in Half Moon Bay, and it was decidedly*NOT* beach weather – cloudy as far as the eye could see and a little chilly…
I knew of a couple songs by Beach Weather, just in passing. I didn’t even actually know the name of the band before the show, I just recognized a few tunes when they played them. And I will say, they were a pretty good band. Nothing earth shattering, but a solid, tight “alternative” band with some catchy tunes. The highlight of their show, for me, was the lead guitarist. He played some really unexpected parts, that fit just right, and he was frankly just fun to watch. All in all, it was a good set that left me wanting to dig into their discography.
Beach Weather
Cold War Kids were next up, and boy did they deliver!! I can remember hearing their first single on the radio, nearly 20 years ago, and being totally knocked out by it. So much so I took the leap of faith and bought the CD (Robbers & Cowards) for the one song. And I was so glad I did! That record is really a masterpiece. If you’re not familiar with this band, look them up. They are special. I don’t know how to describe their sound, as nobody really sounds anything like them. The best I can come up with, is if Talking Heads decided to play Americana music, you’d wind up with Cold War Kids… Or something along those lines. Great songwriting, excellent musicians and a very distinctive voice. Really an exceptional band. And like I said, in the live setting they really delivered! They played a little bit of everything from across their catalog, and the entire band was on point. Quite honestly, it was much better than I had dared hope for. Absolutely a highlight of my 2026 concert run thus far!
Cold War Kids bringin’ the goods!
The headliner of the night was Young the Giant. As I mentioned, we’d seen them before and I had really enjoyed them, much more than I thought I would, actually. They were another one of those bands that I knew a lot more of their songs than I realized. I guess they were somewhat low-key alt-rock superstars. We’d gone to that show for the opening band, but we were pleasantly surprised by Young the Giant, and they wound up on my heavy rotation playlist for quite some time afterwards.
Young the Giant
Unfortunately, their show this time around was a little underwhelming. Not to say it was bad, it just wasn’t as good as the last time. The sound wasn’t quite as crisp for starters. Their vocalist spent an inordinate amount of time yapping between songs, which in my not-so-humble opinion brings down the energy of the show. Their drummer seemed neutered -for lack of a better phrase – this time around. And to be honest, their newer material just doesn’t hit me the same way the music from their first few records does.
All that being said, it wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t great. Musically, all the guys were playing well. Visually, the lights and the stage setup were great. All the elements were there. But for all the sparks, the fire just smoldered and never really built into a burner. That being the case, we decided to call it early and left before the encore… I’d certainly go see them again, but I’m not exactly going to seek them out.
All things considered, it was a fantastic night. The Greek Theater is a spectacular venue, we heard a LOT of great songs played by a lot of great musicians and even if YtG had an off night, they still put on a show, it wasn’t a matter of them phoning it in. And yes, Cold War Kids rocked the joint and delivered an outstanding set that left a huge smile plastered across my face. That set alone made our trip to the East Bay well worth the effort. I sincerely hope I get a chance to see them again!
Well folks, last night was an eye opening experience. My entire perception of an entire genre has been turned upside down.
As my repeat readers may have picked up on, I like my music played by musicians on actual instruments. Lately I’ve had a growing disdain for the trend of using backing tracks and other electro-wizardry to fill the sound on stage. Nothing brings joy to my ears more than an electric guitar channeling through a piping hot tube amp (if you know, you know) and digital music kinda leaves me flat.
And don’t even get me started on the whole DJ as Performer thing. I’ve seen few on stage, and every single one of them has been as exciting as watching paint dry. Seriously, watching somebody play records and twiddle knobs? That’s got to be one of the dumbest trends in music ever.
Quite frankly, that’s what I thought I was walking into last night. This show was picked by the Mrs., and I knew a few songs by the artist, but I didn’t have any expectations that I would enjoy the show.
And after the opening act, my preconceived notions were reinforced. I never caught his name. I’ll stand by the ol’ if you’ve got nothing nice to say, don’t say anything and leave it at that.
But then the main act – RJD2- came out. Right off the bat, I knew something was different just by the gear set up he was using. I’m not going to pretend to know what all he was using up there, but it was definitely not your standard two turntables and a microphone setup. He had two sampler pads in addition to the turntable setup and who knows what else, and he played all those things with all the passion and precision of a master musician. It was extraordinary. Honestly, I’ve never seen anything like it.
His compositions were extremely complex and deeply layered. His choice of instrumentation was unique compared to his contemporaries in the genre. He somehow took bits and bytes, loops from all directions, and threw it into his digital blender to make it come alive. It was almost as if every finger was its own musician, with his brain as Conductor. It was astonishing. To put it mildly, I was shook.
I really don’t even know what else to say. I don’t know enough about the genre to make comparisons. I don’t know the HOW of it all, what sort of musical sorcery he conjured to make it happen. All I know, is I really, REALLY enjoyed it. And I’m open minded enough to admit, I’ve been wrong to cast such a wide net of derision over an entire genre.
So, big thanks to RJD2 for an amazing night and the eye and ear opening experience. I was unexpectedly surprised and quite delighted with his entire set.
This morning I was scrolling through my feed on Reddit and came across an interesting topic. The question was “What is the Greatest American Band?”
Wow. That’s a head-scratcher! Lots of comments, and things got a little snarky, as Reddit often does. Nonetheless, a lot of people made good cases for a variety of bands – some bands I hadn’t even thought of. But it got me thinking, how does one “rank” such a thing? The number of songs and/or albums on the charts? The amount of radio play? Record sales numbers? Duration of the band? Cultural significance? Innovation? Influence on artists that came later? All valid touch points to be sure, but what makes them great? And of all the greats, who is the greatest?
For example, the Grateful Dead were mentioned by a LOT of people. Now, I’m not a huge fan of them, but I grew up with them as a constant feature on FM radio. And I did see them live at least half a dozen times, quite possibly more, and Dead shows were unlike anything I’d seen before, or since. There is a small army of people whose lives revolved around that band, some of them for decades. Their music is drawn from folk, bluegrass, C&W, jazz and rock and roll- all very American stuff. Their cultural significance cannot not be overstated. That being said, their albums didn’t make much of a mark on the charts. You didn’t see them on variety shows or American Bandstand or the like. They got on MTV very, very late into their career. A strong contender, but are they the Greatest American Band?
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were another widely recognized band up for consideration. Their music, from beginning to end just oozed Americana. Honestly, these guys tick a LOT of boxes. Longevity? From the late 70’s through 2017. Albums and singles on the charts? Check. MTV video awards? Check. Influence? Absolutely, undoubtedly. Radio play and MTV? Every day for decades. Influential? Check. Die-hard fans? Yep. Heck, they even got a star on Hollywood Boulevard! As a fan of theirs since the very beginning, I’d certainly lean their direction in voting them in for the Greatest American Band.
But then somebody brought up Van Halen… OK, stop the presses. While Van Halen didn’t exactly tear up the charts with their albums, you couldn’t listen to rock radio from 1977 until… yesterday? without hearing a Van Halen song. David Lee Roth, while not the world’s strongest vocalist, is widely considered to be one of the greatest showmen to ever grace a stage. He was kinda the standard by which all others were judged for a very long time. And Eddie? Good grief, the man REDEFINED rock guitar and inspired tens-of-thousands of kids to beg their parents for a guitar. His innovation with the guitar hardware even, is unparalleled. He became a living legend with the release of their DEBUT album, and then kept getting better! One could argue the entire “hair metal” genre wouldn’t have even existed were it not for the influence of early Van Halen. And while you might think the world would be a better place without hair metal, that is a magnitude of influence unmatched in rock and roll. The kind of influence that might garner the title of Greatest American Band.
Then there were dozens of others, from the Beach Boys (whom I LOVE) to the Eagles (whom I generally loathe) to Lynyrd Skynyrd (I like a lot of their stuff but wouldn’t say I love any of it) and a bunch more that all had some outstanding qualities, but I would never have considered the greatest… Credence Clearwater Revival, the Doors, both the Allman AND Doobie Brothers, R.E.M., the Ramones…it was an impressive list of impressive bands, to say the least.
I guess when you boil it all down, there really is no “greatest band”, American or otherwise. It’s really subjective and in the ear of the beholder. But what I can say, with all sincerity, is that we Americans have been absolutely blessed with a plethora of amazing, supremely talented bands and decades of awesome music. Our country has produced some of the most innovative bands the world has ever known. And we often take that for granted.
For the record, the very first band that popped into my head when I first read the question was Stone Temple Pilots… Ok, I hadn’t had my morning coffee yet, so cut me some slack. I hadn’t taken all the touch points into account. After more consideration (and caffeine!) I came to the realization that STP might possibly be my favorite American band, but they had stood on the shoulders of Giants, who certainly would be worthy of the title more than them. But after careful consideration I have come to the conclusion that there really is no such thing as a Greatest when it comes to music. But as long as musicians are out there trying to be the greatest, all of us with ears to listen are the true winners!
Thanks for stopping by! Now, go listen to something!!
Last night I was unwinding after dinner and scrolling through YouTube when I came across a young-ish lady doing a reaction video for the song “Time Stand Still” by Rush. Lately I’ve been getting a kick out of seeing the younger gen’s reaction to classic rock songs, but the ones featuring Rush I find are particularly entertaining. That band seems to absolutely blow the minds of everyone under 40, and it’s fun to see. It reminds me of hearing them for the first time as a kid. I can still remember the first time I heard “Tom Sawyer” – it was the summer between 7th and 8th grade for me – and I was forever changed that day.
Out of curiosity, I clicked on the vid wondering what this youngster was going to think of this particular tune. I’ve watched a number of Rush reaction videos, but I’ve never seen one for that song. I don’t think I’ve even heard that song in a few decades. After the first measure of the song I was transported back in time…
When that record came out, I was 18 or 19, I can’t exactly recall. At the time I was working delivering pizzas (back when that was pretty much the only food you could get delivered to your door!) and just having the time of my life. I had a great group of friends, I was doing exceptionally well with the ladies, my band was picking up steam getting some radio play, a few write ups in the local weekly paper and good gigs, I was going to see other bands play or going out dancing a couple nights a week, going to parties, just living life like only a teenager with no real responsibility can. A lifetime of untold possibilities lay ahead of me. And eating all the pizza my heart desired! My “delivery van” was exactly that – a 1968 Dodge A100 van, with the old dependable slant-6 and 3-on-the- tree which I had outfitted with a cassette deck, a pair of speakers in the front doors and two 6×9 speakers in the back and that setup would sing! But I digress…
Anyhow, back to Rush…
I remember having that album on repeat (it was an “auto-reverse” cassette deck after all!) as I was driving around delivering pies until I nearly wore the cassette out. While no one would argue that was their best record, it was their latest at the time and I was a huge fan of the band so naturally I had to absorb every note, every rhythm, every drum fill. But what I never really paid any attention to was the lyrics.
Side note: I never really pay attention to lyrics. There are exceptions of course, but to my ears singing registers as a type of melodic percussion, like a piano or a xylophone would, and it really doesn’t matter to me WHAT they’re saying. Which is kinda ironic, as I wrote lyrics for my bands for a decade or more and but with rare exception I don’t really care for strictly instrumental music…
Now, this particular “Reactor” was really focused on the lyrics of the song and spoke at great length about them, dissecting the meaning, etc., and I gotta tell ya, the words to that song hit me like a ton of bricks. After the initial flashback I had hearing the music, the words – that I’d never paid any attention to over several hundred plays nearly 40 years ago – it was like my entire adult life flashed before my eyes.
I can understand why they’d be meaningless to a teenager. There is no context, no life experience to give meaning to the words. But as a Boring Old Man?!? Frankly, it was a little overwhelming. If I’m being totally honest and transparent, it made me “feel a certain way” as the kids say. It wasn’t just nostalgia. It made me look at my life through a completely different lens. It hit home. Hard.
Maybe it’s just me. Quite frankly my life has been a shit-show these last few years. Untold stresses, aging and ailing parents, job losses, losing friends to illness, or just distance, becoming more isolated, losing the “fire” that made life exciting and just trying to hold it all together without blowing a gasket… And looking back, wondering what that teenager with the old van and the blaring stereo would think of what “the real world” would turn out to be. Not that it’s been all bad, there have been some good times too. Most of them, at least over the last few years, have been recorded for posterity right here on this blog. It’s been an eye-opening experience, totally unexpected and honestly, not all that welcome.
They say growing old ain’t for sissies and I always took that as meaning when the knees go, and your back hurts and you gotta get up to pee in the middle of the night. But the worst pain? That’s gotta be regret. It’s an absolutely brutal affliction. There’s no turning back the clock and undoing what’s been done, and that’s a hard pill to swallow. And time seems to move faster with each and every passing day. As much as we might wish it were so, time cannot stand still.
Now, thanks to Geddy, Alex, Neil, and some random lady on YouTube I’m in a deeply introspective head space, one that I never would’ve guessed could possibly be brought on by a 40 year old, nearly forgotten song.
Life can be strange sometimes…
I turn my back to the wind To catch my breath, Before I start off again. Driven on Without a moment to spend To pass an evening With a drink and a friend
I let my skin get too thin I’d like to pause, No matter what I pretend Like some pilgrim — Who learns to transcend — Learns to live As if each step was the end
Time stand still — I’m not looking back — But I want to look around me now See more of the people And the places that surround me now
Freeze this moment A little bit longer Make each sensation A little bit stronger Experience slips away…
I turn my face to the sun Close my eyes, Let my defences down — All those wounds That I can’t get unwound
I let my past go too fast No time to pause — If I could slow it all down Like some captain, Whose ship runs aground — I can wait until the tide Comes around
Make each impression A little bit stronger Freeze this motion A little bit longer The innocence slips away…
Summer’s going fast– Nights growing colder Children growing up — old friends growing older Experience slips away…
As my readers know I’m a lifelong music fanatic and to this day I’m still trying to keep my finger on the pulse of the latest and greatest. On the one hand, with the advent of YouTube and Spotify, it’s never been easier to indulge in this practice. On the other hand, using these tools brings so much disappointment, so much faster than before!
Don’t get me wrong, there has always been musical disappointment in my life, this isn’t really anything new. I can remember hearing a song on the radio and being immediately hooked by it. Waiting days to hear it again. Maybe a couple weeks goes by, and a few more listens before you even find out who the artist is, because the DJ finally said the name over the air. Now you’re a few weeks in, you’ve got this great new song stuck in your head, you finally know who the artist/band is, so you head down to your local record store to snatch it up, only to find they don’t have it in stock. Maybe the album hasn’t been released yet, maybe they only had a few copies and it’s sold out so you have to wait a few more weeks. The anticipation builds and builds. You find yourself wishing they’d play it on the radio again, preferably when you’re at home so you can tape it from the radio to have something to tide you over until you can get your paws on the actual album. Then finally, FINALLY, after weeks of waiting and searching and waiting some more you finally find it in a store, slap down your hard-earned cash and now you’ve got your hands on the record. You race home to drop in on your turntable and listen to every song, every note, while devouring the album’s liner notes to find out everything you can about this new band…and after all that, it turns out the song from the radio, the song you love, is the ONLY good song on the record! Ugh! So much build up, so much excitement, and it all comes crashing down… It’s happened to me more than a few times, and the disappointment is great, but at the same time you’ve had an adventure, maybe spent time with your buddies trying to track it down. Maybe you got to talk to the cute girl working at the record store… It was all part of the game. And even if the record kinda sucked, you still had that one great song. The thrill of the hunt and whatnot… And, fortunately, the opposite was often true. You’d hear “that song”, go through all the rigamarole and find out the album is astounding. Sonic euphoria, from start to finish. And those moments my friends, made up for the few clunkers over the years.
But nowadays, things are much different. I still listen to “terrestrial radio” from time to time, but 99.9% of what I hear are the old familiar tunes. It’s been well over a decade since I’ve been turned on to a new band from the radio. I read different blogs that have a focus on music, I read a ton of articles from various musical publications to try and suss out what’s new and exciting. My wife and daughter are both music fans and I always take suggestions from them. And of course there is the almighty algorithm that knows what we’ve listened to before and makes suggestions as to what we might like… Nine times outta ten it’s not something I like, but every once in a while the algorithm strikes gold for me. And lately – say over the last 18 months – I’ve been reading a lot of threads on Reddit that are music-related (Side note – I can’t really “endorse” Reddit, there is so much on there that sickens me, but if you stay away from politics and “social issues”, there is actually a lot of entertaining and/or useful stuff there. All the threads I follow are either music, automotive or local-to-me stuff and I studiously avoid the rest of the bile…). Anyhow, I keep my eyes peeled for new bands that get a lot of notice and once I see a certain band or song mentioned more than a few times, I’ll go check them out for myself.
Now, I recognize that I’m a “boring old man”, and not everything is going to be to my liking. And frankly, being more from the alternative/punk world of music, I know there is going to be a lot of stuff that simply doesn’t do it for me. And that’s fine. But I’m also astute enough (as far as music is concerned at least) to pick up on things that are special, or impressive, or dare I say groundbreaking that leads to my understanding of why a certain artist or band is gaining notoriety.
A great example of this is the band King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. If you were to believe the folks that post on Reddit, they are hands down the greatest band to ever pick up instruments. I have seen dozens upon dozens of posts extolling the virtues of this band, recommending them to anyone that has ears. Seriously, their fan base is RABID and all in. So naturally, I had to check them out. And while the music was not MY thing, I completely understand why a lot of people have gone mildly insane over them. Those guys can play! The music is quirky, kinda jam band meets jazz combo, meets psychedelic, with a little Zappa thrown in. It’s weird, it sounds like nobody else I’ve heard and I totally get it. I just don’t find myself sitting around listening to that style of music. I would however go see them live, I’m sure it’s an experience. And I’m thrilled that such a band exists in a world full of computerized, boring, unadventurous music. I hope that they achieve massive success and have a long, fruitful career. I sincerely mean that, even though I will rarely listen to them.
On the other hand, there is a relatively new band that I swear I see their name daily, a band called Geese. So after seeing them mentioned so many times for several months straight, I decided I needed to check them out. And I’m left shaking my head in disbelief. THIS? This is what has everyone in a tizzy these days? I honestly can’t think of a positive thing to say about them, and yet the “general public” hails them as the greatest band since the Beatles. I simply don’t get it. To me, calling them mediocre would be giving them more credit than they deserve. I went through their Top 10 songs on Spotify, each one of which has well over 5 million streams (one of them was over 20 million!) and I couldn’t get through more than a minute of any of them. Just messy, atonal dreck as far as I’m concerned. And yet, they are massively popular right now.
Then I jumped over to a song by Kendrick Lamar. I’ve known his name for a long time, I’ve heard him featured on other hip-hop artist’s tracks, and to me it was just… M’eh. Not horrible, but nothing special. But again, he’s hugely popular. Most of the kids my wife and daughter teach LOVE him. So anyways, I’m reading this gushing review of this one particular song, how it’s so amazing that the listener (and writer of that piece) is now inspired to seek out music in a whole other genre than hip hop, because this song just broke down barriers and made something completely new and ground breaking. So I’m thinking, OK, he’s been around a while, perhaps he’s grown as an artist, this sounds like something I need to hear. Uh, no. It was so flippin’ boring I couldn’t believe my ears. I’ve heard that “same” track a hundred times, and 20 of them did it better. There was nothing ground breaking. Stylistically it was the same regurgitated, uninspired nonsense that hip hop has devolved into over the last 2 decades. It was the Toyota Corolla of hip hop tracks.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Hip hop is NOT my main thing, I’m not nearly as well versed in that genre as I am in several others, but I do have a fair amount of it in my CD/record collection. I’ve been a drummer for a hip hop group, I’ve done recording sessions for another hip hop group, I would say that yes indeed, this late-50’s Northern Cali Anglo is indeed a fan of hip hop. But a lot of the very popular, successful hip hop artists leave me scratching my head. Jay-Z is arguably the most successful artist in the genre of all time, and I cannot stand his music. (FWIW, I can’t stand his wife’s music either!) I think Tupac is highly overrated. There are a great many artists that have become wildly successful that I think are terrible. This is nothing new. But it got me to thinking, is today’s music so dull because the kids and 20-somethings that are making today’s music had such terrible music to emulate and be inspired by?
I could be wrong, but it seems like the bands of the 60’s took their influences of say, Gene Vincent, Buddy Holly and the like, and pushed the boundaries into something wholly different and dare I say, better. If you listen to early Beatles or the Who, their music isn’t that far removed from “rock around the clock” type of tunes, but by the end of their respective run, they were putting out records that would’ve been unimaginable to Bill Haley and his cohorts. Or take the riff-heavy classic rock of Montrose and Deep Purple, add in some punk ethos and swagger and you get Soundgarden or Alice in Chains. Of course there were always middle-of-the-road bands that did their thing, but weren’t pushing the boundaries – say Foreigner or April Wine for example, but they still had talented musicians and solid songwriting and could put out a good, cheap thrill of a song on the regular. Nowadays, not so much.
I know for a fact that people get caught up in the era of music that defined their teen years. It’s scientifically proven. And I absolutely love the music of my generation, it will always and forever be special to me. But I kept gleaning onto new stuff for decades after my school years and hoped to do so forever, it just seems that music has lost a big part of what made it special over the last decade. Not that I haven’t discovered some great new bands in the last decade, I absolutely have and I am grateful for it! It’s just that the music that is getting so much attention these days would never have even seen the light of day back in the 80’s or 90’s. Musically, we seem to be in the Cream-of-Wheat era… Bland, bland, bland…
Music used to be exciting, sexy, somewhat dangerous maybe, it made you FEEL something. Most of today’s music just makes me feel bored. I’m excited by the fact that post-Covid people seemed to regain some interest in guitars and drums and actual instruments as opposed to computers, but we’ve lost that “it” factor for the most part. I hope this latest generation that is starting to put out records is just another starting point, and we see a resurgence of daring, exciting music. I’m encouraged by a lot of youngsters making “reaction” videos to classic rock and such, they seem genuinely blown away by much of what we took for granted growing up because it was as close as the FM dial on the radio. All day, every day. Will we ever see another band like the Who, or U2, Primus, or 311? Bands that took the past and all their influences, threw it in a blender and came up with something wholly unique and mesmerizing? I certainly hope so! It’s ironic that in an age where recording and releasing music has never been easier, when the Gatekeepers of the past are long gone, that musicianship and songwriting are at such a low point. If nothing else today’s artists need to pick it up to inspire those coming up behind them.
I’m not really sure where I’m going with all this. This piece kinda took a turn, and turned into a tangent with no real direction or resolution. I guess I should just consider it an “old man yells at clouds” post. If you’ve made it this far, I appreciate you. Please leave a comment with a band/artist/song from the last decade that knocked your socks off. I could use some inspiration!
Way back when, in a time where there were these places called “record stores”, one of the greatest amongst them were Tower Records. Tower Records used to print a monthly magazine
noun
1.a periodical publication containing articles and illustrations, typically covering a particular subject or area of interest.
that was all about bands and Records and whatnot. One of the things I used to love about that magazine were the letters section where readers would send in things to the magazine – sort of a “comments” section, but it actually took effort and had to be chosen by the editor for print…
Anyhow, one of the reader driven things was called “Desert Island Discs”, essentially a list of the 10 albums you’d want to have if you were stranded on a desert island. I guess if the Professor on Gilligan’s Island could make a radio out of coconut shells, then we could figure out how to make a record player… But I digress.
I used to love that feature and it helped me discover a lot more new music. Either someone would list a record you loved, and that would pique your interests toward other albums on their list, or there would be an overwhelming amount of people that would list the same record over and over (the Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd or the Beatles White Album for example)
Back then I was discovering so much new music – having discovered punk rock and new wave – that my Desert Island Discs would change from month to month, if not day by day. It was impossible to pick a Top 10 because I’d hear stuff for the first time every week that just blew me away. (Thank you college radio!!!)
But now I’m old, and while I still search out and love new music, it doesn’t generally hit me in the same way, where it just knocks my socks off. I mean back then (say from 1978 – 1990) not only were you hearing new styles of music, we were getting SOUNDS that had never been heard before thanks to synthesizers and drum machines, and then turntables were being used as instruments which gave way to digital samplers, not to mention new, wild guitar effects coming on the scene, electronic drums and sequencers. It was the Wild West of music in those days and I was captivated. Obsessed, really.
Anyhow, something I came across online recently triggered the memory of Desert Island Discs and I thought I’d put mine down for posterity. While this is a vastly different list than it would have been in, say 1982, certainly a few of these albums would have been on my list back then too. Perhaps I’ll come back and revisit this in a few years to see how it’s held up.
So, without further delay, here are my Desert Island Discs, as of January 2026. In no particular order…
London Calling by The Clash
Look Sharp! by Joe Jackson
Tropical Gangsters by Kid Creole and the Coconuts
Spring Session M by Missing Persons
Bloodletting by Concrete Blonde
Music by 311
Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too by New Radicals
Ten Women by Wire Train
Tim by The Replacements
Dancin’ Undercover by RATT
Ok, this was considerably more difficult than expected… here are some honorable mention albums I must include:
Hippie Castle by Magic City Hippies, Diamond Life by Sade, The Knife Feels Like Justice by Brian Setzer, Who’s Next by The Who, Love by The Cult…
Who am I kidding? I could do this all day. I suffer from acute music addiction I’m afraid!
Anyhow, everything I’ve mentioned above comes highly recommended. Go check something out you’ve never heard before, who knows, you just might find a new favorite! And please, as I am a FIEND for new music, drop me a suggestion in the comments to check out. I like stuff all the way from Chick Webb in the 1930’s up to Sombr’s latest release from 2025, and tons of stuff in between. I’m all ears, so let me have it!
Paul Gustave Simonon was born this day, December 15, 1955. Not a well known name, but profoundly influential in my life as the bassist for my favorite band of all time, The Clash.
The folklore of the Clash says that Paul was chosen for the band simply because of his look. When he joined the band, he didn’t even play bass. In fact, it’s been said that guitarist Mick Jones actually wrote the notes on the fretboard so Paul could find his way around. True? Who knows? Suffice it to say, he BECAME an outstanding bassist over the years and had a hand in making some of the most important records of my lifetime.
Paul always seemed to simply exude “cool” to me as a kid. He wasn’t particularly flashy, he wasn’t often in the spotlight, but he was a presence. There was just something about him that was magnetic. I don’t know what “it” is, but he had it!
It is startling to see he is now 70 years old! It makes sense, seeing as I was only 9 when the first Clash album came out, and I was 12 when I first heard them with the release of London Calling. I was positively obsessed with the Clash in my teens and 20’s, and I still listen to them quite often in my late 50’s. As most of my readers will know, I’m a huge music nerd and music has been the biggest thing in my life for the last 4+ decades. I love lots of music, I’ve been influenced by countless bands and artists, but if I had to pick one band to listen to for the rest of my days, undoubtedly it would be the Clash.
So, cheers to you Mr. Siminon! Without you and your mates, my life would be immensely different. Thank you for your work all those years ago, and for the lasting, profound impact you had on this (formerly) young musician. I owe you a debt of gratitude. You may have come from humble beginnings, but you were a giant in my eyes (and ears!). Well done Sir!
I first discovered Balthvs in July of 2024 and was immediately hooked. So much so, that when Spotify sent me my “Year in Review” for 2024, Balthvs was my number one most-listened-to artist of the year and my Top 10 songs included 5 of theirs! And I’d only known of them for 5 months at the time.
Now, I love a lot of newer bands. I’m not none of those crotchety old coots that proclaims all new music is garbage and gets stuck on an ever-repeating playlist from my high school days. But it has been years, decades maybe since a band just completely turned my head inside out with their music. I’ve been telling anyone that would listen that they are the best band out there right now, insofar as their creativity, their musicianship and their unique sound and compositions.
At it turned out, the band – which hails from Bogota, Colombia – happened to be playing in my area about a week after I discovered them, but I had other commitments and couldn’t attend. Then a short while ago they were back in Menlo Park, CA but at the time I didn’t have two nickles to rub together and could not afford the tickets, so I missed them again. Then much to my surprise and delight I learned this past Tuesday that they were playing in Santa Cruz Thursday night! At the Catalyst no less, one of my favorite clubs EVER!
Being a “school night”, I couldn’t get the Mrs. to attend, but she encouraged me to go solo and boy am I glad I did!!
My fascination with Balthvs is primarily due to their guitarist, Balthazar Aguirre. I’m telling you right now, this young man is a legend in the making. The band is often labeled as a “psychedelic funk trio”, but that only (barely) scratches the surface. Balthazar plays everything, every genre you can imagine, magically intertwined to create something altogether unique. His playing is like water. It flows, it bubbles, it swirls, it rushes, occasionally it erupts! I’ve never seen or heard anyone like him. His playing is absolutely enthralling. And his tone, the actual sound of his guitar, is positively gorgeous. Just amazing. Seeing him play live, I felt like it was one of those moments you hear old geezers talking about – “I saw Jimi Hendrix back in 68” or seeing Stevie Ray Vaughn in some smokey bar before he hit it big. This wasn’t just a concert, a run of the mill club show, this was an EXPERIENCE. There are a handful of guitarists out there that you know who it is immediately when you hear them play, whether you recognize the song or not…Eddie Van Halen, Steve Vai, Adrian Belew, Stevie Ray, David Glimour… Balthazar is in that class. Seriously. All its gonna take is one song to crack the shell, and the whole world will know this man. He is an exceptional talent. A vessel. One of those guys where it’s hard to tell where the man ends and the instrument begins, as they seem to be one in the same…
Yep, my camera still sucks. Balthazar Aguirre, a legend in the making!!
And for all the fan-boying I’m doing about the guitarist, let me tell you the rhythm section was pure fire! To be perfectly honest, I never paid much attention to the drums and bass while listening to their records. Sure, it was groovy and tasteful, but also pretty subdued on record, where the guitar certainly takes center stage. But live? WOW!!
Drummer Santiago Lizcano was a machine! He is not some off-the-shelf drum basher, just keeping a beat. There is absolute mastery of his instrument as well. Tight, solid grooves, killer rudiment-laden fills and percussive elements, and his flow from one style to the next was seamless and frankly, very impressive. I was honestly blown away but how good he was and astonished that I hadn’t picked up on his immense talent from the records. I have an entirely new perspective on his playing and a newly found deep respect for his talent!
Founding member and bassist Johanna is currently off the road on maternity leave, and her spot was filled by Vanessa Cejuo who was spectacular. She was so solid, so groovy and she kept throwing in just dashes of spice – not playing everything by the book – but adding just enough ‘extra’ without being flashy or trying to stand out. It was really impressive bass playing, just locked in and holding it all together. Exceptionally tasteful. Bathvs found a PERFECT fill in for Johanna. As someone that has struggled finding competent bassists for the past 40+ years, this too was an amazing feat!!
Their set was amazing, from start to finish. They played about an hour and ten minutes, playing all my favorite songs of theirs, a couple I hadn’t yet heard and even a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Breathe”, which was both a bold choice and wonderfully executed.
Then they came back for a 20+ minute encore, which included a rendition of Pipeline, the classic surf rock tune by the Chantays. Very apropos for Santa Cruz!
What can I say? I went in a fan of Balthvs and walked out a super fan! I’m so glad I went, it was the best show I’ve seen in years. I’m not kidding when I say Balthazar Aguirre is a legendary guitarist, he’s just not being recognized for it. Yet. It was a magical night and even though I’m facing a 10 hour work day on 5 hours of sleep, I have ZERO regrets about making the trip over the hill to see them. I hope it’s the first of MANY Balthvs shows for the Boring Old Man!
Do yourself a favor and go listen to Balthvs. If you have ears that work, you’ll find something to love about them!
The Boring Old Man 