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The never-ending soap opera of THE LIBERTINES carries on and on...

If you need to play catch-up, back in June, Libertines co-frontman Pete Doherty basically disappeared from the line-up. Didn't show up for a European tour, and the band has since been soldiering on without him, while the usual rumours of drug abuse and depression swirl about. And now this week comes word that on Friday, Doherty was arrested for breaking & entering a basement flat in London. According to NME, Doherty was bailed out with a hearing scheduled for August 11. All this as the band is preparing for the US release of their debut album in just a few weeks.

Super Furry Animals - Phantom Power
Review by James Freeman

I got my copy of the SFA "Phantom Power" DVD in the mail today [I decided I didn't want to wait until September 9, so I ordered a UK copy].

You could be forgiven for forgetting what a huge deal Jane's Addiction was the first time around, especially if you weren't there. They certainly haven't done anything since their 1991 demise to help keep our memories fresh [especially the atrocity that was "Kettle Whistle"] - though the first Porno for Pyros album does come close. Unfortunately, new album "Strays" does little to amend that. However, it's a vast improvement over, say, "Songs Yet To Be Sung" or the god-awful "Rexall".

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Transit in Philadelphia
July 9, 2003

For those of you in Philadelphia who haven't been to Transit, it's a neat place to see a show. Once we were finally let in around 9:15 there was a DJ who was spinning Bauhaus, early Cure, New Order, and other classic New Wave/Alternative tunes. The way Transit works - at least for the 21+ crowd - is that you can drink downstairs with the DJ and then the band will come on later upstairs. So around 10:45 my friends and I head up to get a good spot for seeing the stage. BRMC was set to come on around 11:00 with no opening act.

This weekend was my third Glastonbury, and my first one that found me completely and utterly nostalgic ahead of time. My first Glastonbury was as a fence-jumper in 2000 (though "fence jumper" isn't entirely accurate when you walk directly through both fences without any resistance), and from the stories we'd heard, my friend and I took the refugee route. We brought a tent, the clothes on our back, a roll of toilet paper, and our food supplies for four days - a loaf of bread, a block of cheddar, 3 carrots, and a bottle of Jack Daniels. We were filthy, cold, and generally out of our minds with sleep deprivation, but we saw an unbelievable amount of bands. Afterwards, I loved the festival, but it would've taken a lot of consideration before going through all the bodily abuse again. Last year was my first going for work matters - the tradeoffs were that I had to be pinned to the office for stretches of time each day, but it also meant that I got free backstage access. I wasn't as prepared as you'd think, bridging the gap between "refugee" (tiny shitty tent, block of cheddar, disposable camera) and "privileged set" (actual backpack, contact solution, air mattress, internet connection). As you'd expect, I had a significantly better time with a bit of experience under my belt, so the lead up to this year's festival made me wax nostalgic over what's essentially a 4 day summer camp for music-obssessed grownups.

And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
Dante's
Portland, OR
June 24, 2003

Before getting down to the nitty gritty of the actual gig, there has to be something to be said about Dante's in Portland. I try to avoid going to Dante's like the plague. On a past experience, I was supposed to be on the guest list. When I arrived, the brain surgeons at the door couldn't find my name. I am surprised they found anyone's name as they looked at their list(s), which consisted of scraps of paper, old napkins, the back of menus. Very tight run ship! On this occasion, I managed to get INTO the show. Dante's is a crowded sweatbox with little to no ventilation. The red lighting throughout does nothing to make it less creepy. It is somewhere between a church basement, and a tired old steakhouse from the 70's

Liz Phair has done it again, but perhaps not for the reason she hoped for. Her new album has caused quite a stir on basically every indie mailing list and message board that exists. Between bad reviews (ahem, Pitchfork ["It's sad that an artist as groundbreaking as Phair would willingly reduce herself to cheap publicity stunts and hyper-commercialized teen-pop."], AllMusic ["...such sentiments sound painfully trite coming from a 36-year-old woman"], and let's not forget The New York Times [" In the world of "Liz Phair," banality wins the day"]) and interview after interview where Liz goes on about money and sales "I wanna sell some records, goddammit" (Rolling Stone, 03/20/03). She is not being portrayed in the best of lights...

Sprites - Starling, Spiders, Tiger and Sprites
(March Records)

Once upon a time in D.C. a bunch of self-professed computer nerds started making music. With songs like "The Downside of Computer Camp", "I Have the Password To Your Shell Account" and "Robot Trouble"... these were not your average skateboard punks trying to hammer out a tune. The band was Barcelona. From from the death of one thing spurned another as Jason, Jen, Ivan and Christian aren't making music together anymore. The first offshoot to arise on record is Sprites. (Those of you who were paying attention have already heard a Sprites song on our Flirt compilation... and may have also noted The Positions formed by another former Barcelona Boy.)

 Hidden Cameras
Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
14 June 2003

There are some things in this world that words simply cannot describe in their full glory. Unfortunately for this review, The Hidden Cameras live show and, in fact, the Hidden Cameras in general is one of those things. I'll do the best I can, though.

First off, a little bit about the band. It is the brainchild of Joel Gibb, though in the live setting all eleven members are equally crucial to the performance. Gibb describes their sound as "gay church folk-music", and I suppose that's as accurate description as you're going to get. I certainly can't think of a better one. At any given point in time during a full-band Hidden Cameras show, there is so much going on on-stage [and even off-stage, more on that in a bit] that you can't help but feel at least slightly over stimulated. And it's fantastic.

ADAM ANT has gone nutters again. It was about a year ago when we first learned that the 80's pop icon had been committed to a mental ward following a bust-up in a bar, where Ant waved a gun and threw weighty objects at patrons. Well, now he's done it again, as reports are coming in that Ant smashed a neighbor's window AND dropped trou in a bar... and once again, he's currently being confined in a mental ward. Poor guy. Time to go play "Vive Le Rock" and hope he gets through this rough patch.