Email Author Michael Batty

1997 Stories by Michael Batty

• Riff Raff

  published June 4, 1997

  Who Loves Lucy? Last Friday night, master taste-maker Seymour Stein was seen feasting lavishly at Yuet Lee, and it wasn't just because he has a... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published May 28, 1997

  And Now a Word From the Billboard 200, as of May 24, 1997 No. 1: Spice Girls, Spice. Hot Shot Debut: Hanson, Middle of Nowhere. Greatest Gainer:... More >>

• Recordings

  published May 28, 1997

  Cheap Trick (Cheap Trick/Red Ant Entertainment) Before we bog ourselves down in the bubble gum, let's get the disclaimer out of the... More >>

• Divine Hammers

  published May 21, 1997

  The Breeders, Lutefisk, Paleface Great American Music Hall, Tuesday, May 13 It wasn't enough that the Breeders-Lutefisk-Paleface... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published May 21, 1997

  A Note From the Music Editor Thanks to those of you who read into my blues essay a couple of weeks back, and who are still offering... More >>

• Recordings

  published May 14, 1997

  Radar Bros. (Restless) Whether or not you'll want to pick up the Radar Bros. self-titled debut depends on how you feel about those... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published May 14, 1997

  Selvin Watch (The Special Edition) When Riff Raff talked to Chron Entertainment Editor Liz Lufkin recently, we were mostly curious about one... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published May 7, 1997

  Soft-Boiled Riff Raff likes it when boomers try to be hip. Exposes them as poseurs. Take the new Lively Arts column in the Chron. News tidbits on... More >>

• Recordings

  published April 30, 1997

  Skeleton Key Fantastic Spikes Through Balloon (Capitol) Back in my college days of yore (the late '80s, at New York University),... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published April 30, 1997

  What Embargo? Early last month, local jazz fusion outfit Mingus Amungus were offered a rare opportunity to travel to Havana, Cuba, where they were... More >>

• Stalemate

  published April 30, 1997

  Once, I was puttering through some mediocre bass guitar at a party with a drummer who at least claimed to have spent time with Jodie Foster's... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published April 23, 1997

  Back to Nature, Techno Style For all those lovely, flamboyant queers, trannies, lesbians, and straights who have been at a complete loss since... More >>

• Recordings

  published April 16, 1997

  Frank Zappa Have I Offended Someone? (Rykodisc) Have I Offended Someone? probably won't offend anyone. In fact, it is hard to... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published April 16, 1997

  Must Be One of Those Nine-Digit Jobbies "From the first explosive I-got-you-in-my-sights delivery of charismatic frontman Stephan Jenkins, to the... More >>

• Bowel Story

  published April 16, 1997

  Patient By Ben Watt Grove Press 178 pages; $21 One of the charms of Patient, an autobiography by pop star Ben Watt (of... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published April 9, 1997

  Ciao Catino After nearly a decade of promoting shows for Bill Graham Presents and its subsidiary club branch, AKG (responsible for the Fillmore... More >>

• Recordings

  published April 9, 1997

  Tarnation Mirador (Reprise) Local western crooner (and archaeologist) Paula Frazer has taken her pet "project" Tarnation to some... More >>

• Recordings

  published April 2, 1997

  Lutefisk Burn in Hell Fuckers! (Bong Load Custom) Imagine yourself in a homemade rocket. Reaching down to the spacestereo... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published April 2, 1997

  Henry's Special Tea Party RSVP How thoughtful of DreamWorks to send Riff Raff a CD bearing Henry Rollins' mug, titled Interview Disc. The back... More >>

• Get Your Bearings

  published March 26, 1997

  With more than 700 bands and 5,000 registrants for the four-day South by Southwest (SXSW) music conference March 13-16, the airplanes shuttled... More >>

• Recordings

  published March 26, 1997

  Ednaswap Wacko Magneto (Island) Here're some Ednaswap "factoids" to help you come to a purchase decision: 1) The name comes... More >>

• Riff Raff

  published March 26, 1997

  "In-A-Gadda-Da-Oswald" is the title of the gloriously tacky Photoshop manipulation seen below, which has bum-rushed every soft corner of e-space... More >>

• Recordings

  published March 19, 1997

  Serge Gainsbourg Comic Strip Couleur Cafe Du Jazz Dans Le Ravin (Mercury) The music industry's cartoon... More >>

• Nooner

  published March 12, 1997

  Noise Pop '97: Fluf, PeeChees, Decal, Frogpond Bottom of the Hill Saturday, March 1 Dismiss, if you like, the whole idea of... More >>

• Recordings

  published March 12, 1997

  Starfish Frustrated (Trance Syndicate) Frustrated, by Austin hardcore/post-punk/ditty-pop range finders Starfish, offers a... More >>