Music

Young Galaxy

by Greg W. Locke March 24, 2011

After a few years of lineup changes, lengthy tours, spotty hype, all sorts of goofy Canadian awards show nominations, two studio records on two different labels (that both almost crossed over into the indie mainstream), Montreal-based art-rockers Young Galaxy just released their third – and already best reviewed – record, Shapeshifting to much attention in [...]

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R.I.P. Ice Cube

by Greg W. Locke March 18, 2011

When you’re 12, that strange twilight year before the teenage puzzlement really sets in, priorities other than how many marshmallows you can cram in your mouth or how late you can stay up into night begin to matter more. Sneaking a Mountain Dew – or Bud Light – from your neighbor’s garage becomes more nerve-racking, [...]

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Summer Speakers Mixtape Deluxx

by Greg W. Locke May 29, 2010

What’s that you say? It’s warm out? You like the sun? It makes you feel special and happy and hopeful and free? Cool. We’re happy for you. We’re so happy for you that we made you three hip-hop mixtapes made perfect for the oncoming summer. You’ll love them. We know it. You’ll love them so [...]

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Our Buck 65 Mixtape Series

by Greg W. Locke March 29, 2010

Note: I didn’t include anything from the great, great Square album, because my copy is only cut into four long tracks. There are at least 15-20 actual songs on the record, but I don’t know any of their names and wouldn’t even know for sure where they begin and end. The record plays through like [...]

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Lil’ Wayne’s Armpit

by Greg W. Locke February 3, 2010

An undeniable phenomenon often functions as a rare rendering of pop culture that is frequently, bless it or not, a good way to document a culture at a given time and place. I’m a true blue, all-around creative culture geek, the type who even believes there is more to be learned about society from Lindsay [...]

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Pavement, Reunited? Huh?!

by Greg W. Locke January 29, 2010

So, in case you somehow haven’t heard, a little band of slackers are ganging up to once again spread their musical apathy far and wide. To anyone who paid close attention to the video footage of the band’s final stage appearance together in 1999 (this on the Slow Century DVD), this news may seem like [...]

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Manning Up for the Bonnie Prince

by Greg W. Locke March 29, 2008

My fingers hit the keys, one after another, each doing their part to write a hope I knew I couldn’t properly cover. I wanted it, and I knew that if I got my “wanted it,” I’d be an apprehensive mess. Round and round my head spun: to step up and be a man or to [...]

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Letter and a Mixtape

by Greg W. Locke January 29, 2008

To J. Henderson, my feedback-loving friend, I’m relieved to hear that you’re doing well. You’ve definitely paid for your recent successes with grief-wrought pain, fortitude and a stadium-full of pondering. Pretty Kathryn Calder-looking girlfriend with cool glasses, taxi cab-yellow moped, job at Ruth’s new ballpark and, best of all, a brownstone in Park Slope that [...]

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Christmas Mixtape

by Greg W. Locke December 24, 2007

While working at various music stores through the years I was subjected to a whole lot of really bad music. (For the record, I also discovered quite a bit of good stuff.) Every company I ever worked for (save Wooden Nickel) had the same holiday tradition of forcing their employees to play Christmas music around [...]

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The Beatles, Post-Beatles

by Greg W. Locke November 29, 2007

One of my greatest personal finds of 2007 was a dough-faced, doe-eyed guy named Paul McCartney; you know the one, the Beatle with the biggest smile and proudest post-shag mullet. Due to a lack of substantial news this week, Ease spent a good amount of time daydreaming about the upcoming Down the Line 2 show [...]

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