R.E.M.‘s second album, 1984’s Reckoning, carried a curious phrase on the LP’s spine: “File Under Water.” It was a designation, an in-joke or even an alternate title that referenced the running theme of water in the album’s lyrics, from “Seven Chinese brothers swallowing the ocean” to “These rivers of suggestion are driving me away.” When R.E.M. released […]
Billy Joel was about halfway through his eighth studio album, The Nylon Curtain, and sensing the creative strain. He turned that feeling into the album’s lead single. “The pressure I was writing about in this song wasn’t necessarily music business pressure. It was writing pressure,” Joel told MTV’s Night School in 1982. “I said, ‘I […]
The Cult has released a new song titled “A Cut Inside” and revealed the full track listing for their new album Under the Midnight Sun, which arrives on Oct. 7. You can listen to the new song and see the full track listing below. “A Cut Inside” is the second song released from Under the Midnight […]
Not long ago, producer Giles Martin wasn’t sure four-track-era Beatles albums like Revolver could be properly remixed. The tech, he said then, wasn’t there yet. “That’s a good example of, ‘How do we do that?’” Martin told Rolling Stone in 2021. “How do I make sure that John [Lennon] or Paul [McCartney]’s vocal isn’t just in […]
“I’ve tried to make something indescribable,” Billy Corgan told MTV in 1998, previewing the retooled sound of Smashing Pumpkins‘ polarizing fourth LP, Adore. A noble mission — but also a difficult one: The album’s folky reveries and cushy electronics didn’t fit the Pumpkins mold of the previous seven years, leaving behind the proggy guitar solos, virtuoso drumming and […]
The Beatles‘ long-awaited Revolver box set will be released on Oct. 28. The super deluxe edition of the reissue (five-CD/four-LP) includes a new mix of the album by producer Giles Martin engineer Sam Okell, sourced from the album’s original four-track master tapes. The new audio was developed with the assistance of the sound team at Peter Jackson’s […]
If Document was the turning point for R.E.M., then “The One I Love” served as the hinge. Released as the lead single of their fifth LP in August 1987, the song became R.E.M.’s first Top 10 hit by the end of that year. Even in the context of the album, “The One I Love” marked […]
It was an emotional night at Wembley Stadium in London on Saturday (Sept. 3), as fans and rock stars alike came together to honor late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. “Ladies and gentlemen, tonight we’ve gathered here to celebrate the life, the music, and the love of our dear friend, our bandmate, our brother, Taylor […]
Guitarist Joe Satriani, ex-Alice Cooper band member Nita Strauss, Extreme’s Nuno Bettencourt and drummer Kenny Aronoff are among the rockers who’ll appear on the new album Symphony of Sinners & Saints Vol. 2. The project is the brainchild of composer Kitt Wakeley, combining the power of hard rock with the emotion of classical music. The first […]
Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine admitted he was “blown away” by the cyber sex scandal that ultimately led to the dismissal of bassist David Ellefson from the band. In May 2021, graphic exchanges including virtual “masturbating encounters” between Ellefson and a then-allegedly underage girl were leaked online, leading many to accuse the bassist of “grooming.” He […]