Email Author Dan Strachota

2004 Stories by Dan Strachota

• Sandycoates

  published December 15, 2004

  Sometimes the Moore Brothers' music sounds too precious. Yeah, it's nice having our very own version of Simon & Garfunkel, but occasionally the... More >>

• The Flatmates

  published December 1, 2004

  Britain in the mid-'80s was a horrific place to be, what with Thatchernomics, race riots, and the mainstream goop of synth-pop and miserablist... More >>

• The Legends

  published November 24, 2004

  Jesus Christo, what's up with Sweden? Every single band that comes out of Volvoland -- from the Hives to the Concretes to Ace of Base -- makes pop... More >>

• Dosh

  published November 10, 2004

  I like to think of instrumental hip hop as background music for alternative-universe waiting rooms. Instead of easy listening, lite rock, and... More >>

• Psapp

  published November 3, 2004

  The problem with a lot of electronic music is that it either takes itself too seriously or not seriously enough. Psapp offers the perfect solution... More >>

• A Hero Comes Along

  published October 20, 2004

  Following a decade of groundbreaking work, the Quannum Projects crew has reached iconic status in the world of underground hip hop. Maybe it's... More >>

• The Concretes

  published October 20, 2004

  The Concretes were reportedly named after the most prevalent building material in their hometown of Stockholm. A better moniker for the... More >>

• Hear This

  published October 20, 2004

  The Drive-By Truckers are the kind of band that makes big-city sissies wish they'd grown up in the South. And for those who did, the act's... More >>

• Fatboy Slim

  published October 13, 2004

  As much as you may hate to admit it, Fatboy Slim is a genius. From his own sampledelic songs to his slamming remixes, the British producer has an... More >>

• BeatBox

  published October 13, 2004

  In this year's "hot" issue, Rolling Stone named Buck 65 "hot indie rapper." As usual, Rolling Stone doesn't know dick. As... More >>

• The Libertines

  published September 29, 2004

  The most amazing thing about this British quartet's second album is that it got made at all, considering how co-singer/guitarist Pete Doherty has... More >>

• Hear This

  published September 22, 2004

  It makes sense that Now It's Overhead would choose a Magnetic Fields cover ("The Book of Love") to complement the single for "Wait in... More >>

• Electrelane

  published September 15, 2004

  Alert the pretension police, get out the Sartre Memorial Billy Clubs, load up the hogwashed paddy wagon: Electrelane's second album, The Power... More >>

• Moving Units

  published September 8, 2004

  The members of local noise-pop trio Dealership are resting backstage, when Oakland's Mile High Club owner Lisa Nola sits down next to them.... More >>

• BeatBox

  published September 8, 2004

  Twenty years in Everything But the Girl, five years with Lazy Dog, a near-fatal encounter with a rare immune disorder, a sinewy body that can wear... More >>

• Mystic Chords of Memory

  published August 25, 2004

  What do indie rockers do when all the amp-lugging, floor-sleeping, and Denny's dining begins to ring hollow? If you're Chris Gunst, one-time... More >>

• The Frenchmen

  published August 11, 2004

  Forget about Green Day, Rancid, and the Offspring -- the best pop-punk came from mid-'80s English acts like the Wedding Present, the Shop... More >>

• Department of Eagles

  published August 11, 2004

  If you're going to call yourself Iron Chrysalis and Butterfly Emerging, you'd better make music that's damn good and weird. Luckily, the two New... More >>

• Voodoo Chile

  published August 4, 2004

  The '60s were full of talented songwriters whose lives were as psychedelic as their music. S.F.'s Skip Spence -- an original member of both... More >>

• Approach

  published August 4, 2004

  On the beginning of "Hey Y'all" -- a track from Approach's Ultra Proteus full-length, a buffed-up version of his 2002 debut EP -- the... More >>

• SoundsGood

  published August 4, 2004

  Most rap crews put out a single first, before pressing up a whole album. Lawrence, Kansas, duo SoundsGood flipped the script, releasing the... More >>

• Hear This

  published August 4, 2004

  You love natural disasters, admit it. If you could, you'd stand in the eye of a hurricane, a six-pack and a bong in hand. You'd walk on stilts... More >>

• The Delays

  published July 21, 2004

  Listening to this Britpop band's debut CD is like enjoying a perfectly dry martini, only to discover that the olive is rotten. Playing the part... More >>

• Yesterdays New Quintet

  published July 21, 2004

  Yesterdays New Quintet isn't comprised of five people. The act is all Madlib, the Los Angeles producer who seemingly never sleeps. How else to... More >>

• Beat Box

  published July 21, 2004

  At the risk of sounding clichéd, or worse, sounding old, MTV isn't what it used to be. Why, back in the day it used to show actual music... More >>