If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Noah Sheldon Split Single is Jason Narducy's project, featuring his Bob Mould Band and Superchunk bandmate Jon Wurster on drums and R.E.M.'s Mike Mills on bass. While their previous two singles sounded like songs that would come from a Superchunk related project, "Satellite" is completely different. "Satellite" is a straight up power ballad. It's going to give you some serious 1980's flashbacks, and you might expect to hear Adam Curry's voice introducing it. Ok, that might be an extreme comparison, but it's what would have happened if your favorite 90's alt-rockers embraced the 80's power ballad with their hearts fully on their sleeves instead of rejecting them outright. It does end with a killer 90's style feedback outro before any of us can get too emotional. Jason Narducy says of the new song and video: “‘Satellite’ was the first song I wrote for this album.  The lyrics are about searching for connection which is somet...

Photo by Joe Losurdo Jason Narducy's (Bob Mould Band, Superchunk, Verbow) project Split Single features Mike Mills (R.E.M.) and Jon Wurster (Superchunk, Bob Mould Band) this time around. If hearing about members of all of these bands collaborating sounds glorious to you, there is no chance you're not going to adore their latest single. "95 Percent" sounds like a slightly more classic rock version of Superchunk. It's an absolute anthem, written as if Superchunk were planning on rocking football stadiums instead of decent sized clubs.  In a press release, Jason Narducy says of the new song: “As a liberal person, I can get tripped up by my tendency towards empathy. Part of me wants to believe that politicians are earnest in their efforts to help all Americans even when I know they are not. So it can backfire when I get hesitant and confused but overall I think it's positive because I never fully trust ANY of them. I'm 95 percent committed and 95 percent suspi...

Bob Mould has been one of those artists I've been meaning to check out for years, and on Sunday I finally got the chance. His Sunday night set at The Paradise will definitely be one of my live highlights of the year. Mould's 23 song set was absolutely perfect for fans of his entire catalog. It was 26% Husker Du, 17% Sugar, and the majority being his solo work. As a whole section of the 80s alt-rock lifers will only play new solo material so they don't just become a nostalgia act, Mould embraces the nostalgia while also proving his new material stands up to the classics. I wasn't expecting anything from his days with Sugar, so that was a very pleasant surprise, particularly "If I Can't Change Your Mind." And his Husker Du work is just the definition of classic. "Something I Learned Today" was my personal highlight of the set. For anyone questioning the quality of this solo work, just check out "The End of Things" from his excellent n...

When I think of John Denver covers, J Mascis doesn't exactly come to mind. Nevertheless, here is a video for his track off the John Denver tribute album, The Music Is You: A Tribute to John Denver. I expected this to fall into his more acoustic work, but it's a plugged in version that would fit right in on a J Mascis and the Fog album. Sharon von Etten provides backing vocals, and of course there are multiple guitar solos that would melt the glasses off John Denver's face. The video features Aimee Mann and Jon Wurster as Denver fans that find love on a John Denver dating website. And puppets, because why the hell not, right? "Prisoners" by J Mascis and Sharon Van Etten from Aimee Mann