Leading up to the August 2014 release of the 200th issue of Classic Rock, the 199th issue of the UK magazine featured an in-depth Rival Sons cover story, as well as the Rock 'n' Roll Excerpts Vol. 1 bonus disc. The ten song Rival Sons' compilation disc, which opens with "Open My Eyes", the first single from the Great Western Valkyrie album, provides a glimpse of the Long Beach based group's lean on the high times '70s…
In what has become an Umphrey's tradition, the band followed up a legendary Red Rooks performance with an intimate Colorado theater show. With palpable energy filling the room well before the first note, the Boulder Theater crowd knew they were in for a treat. Never ones to leave anything on the table, Umphrey's pulled out a set list with a slew of songs that hadn't seen the light of day in Colorado for years. Rock it in the comfort of your living room in stunning HD. Hold on tight. Rage. Rest. Repeat…
The vihuela, a small guitar-like instrument with six or seven courses of double strings, is less familiar than other members of the Renaissance lute family. Only four original examples exist, and modern players who have mastered the instrument's intricacies and the breadth of its repertoire are few. This release by Japanese player Yasunori Imamura should introduce many listeners to the vihuela's riches. The music here was mostly or all written between 1536 and 1557, during (and just after) the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V in Spain. The music includes some by the first composer to write down music for the vihuela, Luys Milán (ca. 1500-1561), and what's even more interesting is how the music stands at the beginning of a progressive trend that would last a century and a half: the use of ground basses to structure a larger composition.
As a bonus to accompany their annual calendar, Blues Images adds a disc of classic 1920's blues. Featuring Pre-War classics from Blues masters such as: Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe, Willie Lofton, Henry Thomas, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Blake, Mississippi Sheiks and others.
As a bonus to accompany their annual calendar, Blues Images adds a disc of classic 1920's blues. Featuring Pre-War classics from Blues masters such as: Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe, Willie Lofton, Henry Thomas, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Blake, Mississippi Sheiks and others.
Rodrigo y Gabriela's 9 Dead Alive is their first album of new material in five years. Written, arranged, and co-produced by the pair, they deliberately attempt to forgo the Latin influence in their music in favor of an all-rock (albeit still acoustic) approach – which marks a return to their pre-recording roots in heavy metal. (That they don't entirely succeed is part of what makes 9 Dead Alive so compelling.) Each tune was composed for a different inspiration: authors, philosophers, activists, scientists, and a queen. The set was exquisitely recorded in Mexico by Fermin Vasquez Llera. There isn't a dull moment in these 41 minutes. "The Soundmaker," for 19th century luthier and guitarist Antonio de Torres Jurado, commences with Rodrigo's knotty riff and Gabriela's chugging rhythmic vamp.