Let's jump right in: I'm torn between starting this post with "this Lemolo album is seriously haunting me" and "Lemolo could totally beat up your favorite synth-y indie dream-core band" because they're both true. In the case of the former, I find myself humming harmonies absentmindedly at varying points in my days and nights, wondering […]
Okay, not only is the track list insane, but I'm a sucker for a sweet graphic: How gorgeous is that? Seriously. And check this out, straight from Starbucks: Everyone loves a love song. We approached some of our favorite artists and asked them to cover a tune that's touched their hearts. The result is Sweetheart, […]
It's a common practice among music critics and fans alike to make lists. Here, in tribute to the Seattle label's 20 years of not going out of business, are my favorite 20 releases from Sub Pop from the past two decades. I encourage you to check out their catalog and provide yours, too. For my […]
Show Date: June 26, 2008
There is no other band I'd travel to see. Scratch that. There are few bands I would travel out of state to see. I haven't seen Death Cab play since 2006, when they rocked a sold-out show at the Key Arena. That was my first real taste of their celebrity, and of the new people […]
The first track off Rogue Wave's forthcoming album is available to preview at Spin Mag's site. "Lake Michigan" contains most of the familiar element of RW's style, though something a bit funky is going on with Zach's vocals (I think just a lot of vocal track layers). The handclaps, waltzy tempos, and quirky guitar parts […]
Bay Area quartet Rogue Wave are set to release their next album, Asleep At Heaven’s Gate, on Sept 18. But they’ve left Sub Pop’s roster, instead releasing this third endeavor on Brushfire Records—which is owned by Jack Johnson, he of posi-vibe, frat-rock fame. I don’t flat-out hate Johnson’s music, but I am surprised at this […]
{Imaginary writer Stella recently had to opportunity pick the brain of Rogue Wave's frontman and songwriter Zach Rogue. What follows is a prime example of what happens when you send a musician questions via email and they answer on their "downtime." Sarcasm, or all truth? Insightful, or completely goofy? You decide for yourself, but we're […]
Show Date: September 11, 2005
From the outside, and to a girl used to checking the Lusty Lady marquee before entering the Showbox, Chicago's Empty Bottle doesn't look like much. There is a worn PBR sign above the door (it's been there from uncool to back again), and a Laundromat across the street. In my post-show haze, I look through […]
It's been a mighty long time since I deferred to the almighty Dictionary Definition Tool to start a piece of prose. It's a trite trick I normally don't consider (my former j-school professors would have a heyday with the thought of it), but in the case of Rogue Wave, I've made an exception. The band […]
I kept trying to give Rogue Wave’s debut a listen on a recent vacation to SoCal and Vegas, and it seemed impossible. I was constantly distracted from the music, my focus not able to concentrate. Once it was in my stereo at home, on a finally cooled off day in Seattle {a climate very similar […]
