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3-08-05 Blur 2-04-05 James 1-14-05 Catherine Wheel 12-07-04 Justine Frischmann 11-06-04 Tanya Donelly |
Blur by Mike Chen They began their career as Seymour, became tabloid fodder with Parklife, watched things crash around them with The Great Escape, and are forever associated with yelling �Woo hoo.� The tale of Blur, from their art school backgrounds, to their tabloid excesses, is a strange one indeed. Through it all, Blur remains largely unappreciated � particularly in the United States � despite leading the Brit pop charge of the mid to late 90s. James by Mike Chen For music fans, the name James is either ambiguous (James Taylor? James Brown?) or synonymous with Manchester greatness - spiritually driven rock music wrapped in lyrical beauty and indie passion. If they�re in the latter category, James stays near the top of the Mancunian Hall of Fame next to The Smiths, New Order, and Joy Division. Unfortunately, most people may only recognize their biggest mainstream hit �Laid� and its subsequent (and highly unnecessary) cover version tacked on to teen flick American Wedding. Catherine Wheel by Mike Chen For those in the know, Catherine Wheel was one of those "woulda, coulda, shoulda" bands that seamlessly combined great songs with unlimited potential. And yet, for some unknown reason, they never found sustained success. Despite having a handful of songs plastered on modern rock radio during the 90s - including the anthem �Black Metallic� - and having the backing of MTV for the their Happy Days album, Catherine Wheel never broke free of the club/theater touring circuit. It's a shame too. As their fans already know, Catherine Wheel wrote some of the best songs of the past decade. Justine Frischmann by Mike Chen Justine Frischmann witnessed the highest of rock n� roll highs and the lowest of drug addiction lows. Yet, she�s still here, she�s still sane, and she�s got a damn level head about the whole thing. More Tanya Donelly by Mike Chen �I�m...happy with a small cult following and the artistic freedom that comes with that,� she said in 1998. But she has not always been this way. Her musical journey spans two decades of highs and lows. Full column |
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