Funny they’re calling this union of nü-metal refugees (and one newcomer) the “Fall Brawl” tour, since none of the bands could really be associated with the hateful, ultra-aggressive wing of the nü-metal movement so rightfully maligned and hardly missed. Even while they were sucking up to mentor Fred Durst (from…

Hi, this is Michael Sweet from Stryper. I’m either rockin’ a stage or deep in prayer right now, so leave your name and a brief message and I’ll call you back. [beep] Yeah, hi, Michael, it’s Jesus Christ. Sorry not to have ever gotten back to you, but I’ve been…

“Welcome back to The Insider, I’m Pat O’Brien! Thanks to The O.C. , indie rock is hotter than ever! And nowhere is it more sizzling than in, get this, Nebraska, where upstart Saddle Creek Records is home to several acts on the verge of stardom. One of them is a…

“Frances, Frances Bean . . . what are you doing up here, sweetie?” “I was just going through Daddy’s tapes, Mom. I wanna pick a song for the new album, too!” “Okay, honey, but we’ve only got room for three unreleased tracks, all right? The other 19 are coming from…

Here are a few interesting facts about San Francisco’s John Vanderslice: 1. He eats a vegetarian burrito every single day; he’s been doing so for more than eight years. 2. He once wrote a song called “Bill Gates Must Die,” then punk’d numerous national media outlets by crafting an amusing…

Dear God, Blag Dahlia here, from scum-punkers The Dwarves. We’ve been around 20 years and I’m getting a little older now, so there’s a few things I think I need to get square with you. I’m sorry for putting blood-splattered naked women and a midget holding a dead rabbit on…

Anyone who’s been following Atmosphere — the Minneapolis indie hip-hop act comprising MC Slug and DJ Ant — over the past 10 years likely isn’t too surprised by the sarcastic title of the duo’s fifth full-length, You Can’t Imagine How Much Fun We’re Having. In the conflict of man versus…

Miss Hildebrandt’s fourth-grade reading class, 9:30 a.m. ” . . . very good, Sarah. Emily Dickinson was a fine choice. All right, Jeffrey, what poem have you brought in for us today?” “This is a new one I found called ÔFoxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo,’ by Jimmy Pop Ali.” “Hmm, I…

If there were a Grammy for “Best Song Title by a Duo or Group with Vocal,” Seattle quintet Minus the Bear would’ve easily taken the statue every year since its 2001 inception. Among the potential winners: “Thanks for the Killer Game of Crisco® Twister,” “Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey…

Andrew: What are you listening to? Sam: The Shins, you know them? Andrew: No. Sam: You gotta hear this song, it’ll change your life, I swear. Andrew: Hmm, the song is skipping really bad. Sam: Oh, crap, look, there’s a big scratch on the disc! Andrew: Oh well. Sam: Wait,…

C’mon, A.J., pick up the damn phone, Nick thought to himself. “Hello?” “A.J., it’s Nick, what’s up?” “Hey, Nick, how’s it goin’? Wait a sec, lemme mute the TV . . .” “Whatcha watchin’?” “Oh, just this thing on the History Channel about Hitler invading Russia and how he fucked…

In Memoriam: Destiny’s Child (1990-2005) The multi-platinum pop-R&B trio Destiny’s Child died of an unspecified illness at GM Place in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday, September 10, 2005, following a long farewell tour. Friends, family, and several thousand fans were on hand to say their final goodbyes to the trio, which…

Screw the Crüe — for our money, the single most iconic moment of the ’80s sleaze-metal era is that scene in The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years in which belligerent W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes floats in a swimming pool in full stage leather, swearing and dumping…

Modern U.S. life sure is rubbish, asserts Koufax singer Robert Suchan on his Kansas-based quintet’s third album: We’ve got a cheater for a president (“Back and Forth”) conning the nation through a war (“Blind Faith”), but ignorance reigns supreme because the education system is a joke (“Why Bother At All”)…

Well, stick a boot in my ass and whistle “Dixie,” I do believe Toby Keith has gone soft! Seems like only yesterday the linebacker-size Oklahoman was the biggest, baddest mofo in all of country music — favorite of rowdy rednecks from coast to coast; godsend to U.S. Army recruiters; mainstay…

It’s perfectly fine to be gay (Rob Halford) or a doddering old fart (Ozzy), but there’s simply no crying in metal, unless maybe your drummer bro gets run over by a U-Haul trailer in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. That’s why Megadeth front man Dave Mustaine is still a bit of a punch…

For the past six years, The Briefs have been sticking Seattle’s mopey indie-rock ass with a healthy shot of ’77-style punk rock, and the fun is quickly spreading nationally. The quartet’s sound pledges allegiance to such forebears as the Ramones, the Buzzcocks, the Vibrators, and the Rezillos — their style…

It’s a morbid business, but most practical editors in the journalism racket have a folder filled with pre-written obituaries all ready to go for seriously ill, soon-to-be-departed public figures of import. John Prine undoubtedly found his way into some of those folders in 1998, when he was stricken with cancer…

Nearly a decade ago, exceptionally talented skins man Jimmy Chamberlin was the black sheep of the Smashing Pumpkins family, finally getting drummed out of the group (and publicly shamed by his bandmates) after a particularly egregious 1996 run with Racehorse Charlie that resulted in the overdose death of Pumpkins touring…

Scout Niblett is the nom de indie rock of one Emma Louise Niblett, a native of Nottingham, England (though currently residing in Oakland, California), whose raw, ranging, unhinged blues moans and wails place her in the same ballpark as fellow Brit Polly Jean Harvey, circa Rid of Me. Like ol’…

Technically speaking, Embrace is the egg to Coldplay’s chicken, yet given the frenzy over Chris Martin and the Three Other Guys, it wouldn’t be surprising if people also started calling U2, Pink Floyd, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart “the next Coldplay.” Not the short-lived ’80s emo outfit fronted by Ian MacKaye,…