Riff 'N Ralk In The Lab #1

A Quick Interview with The Main Squeeze

Check out the interview here!http://www.themarbleshrine.com/RiffnRalk/The%20Main%20Squeeze%20Interview.mp3

Alex was brought backstage to ask a few questions to a couple members of THE MAIN SQUEEZE . Find out what inane questions he could think of on the fly.

Warning: Audio is pretty loud.

Chetwynd Cassette by Sheepman: The Review

Listen to Chetwynd Cassette on the bands Bandcamp page

http://sheepman.bandcamp.com/album/chetwynd-cassette

"It's pretty different, a style that's emerging out of Montreal right now"  said Adam Gravelle, bassist and keyboard player for this two track release from Sheepman.  He had asked me earlier if I would give his bands new release a listen and I happily obliged, always eager to test my ears on something new.

To be blunt I know nothing about Sheepman, other than that they are likely from Canada if they are making Montreal style sounds.  Apparently the Canadians are doing something besides ripping off American music for once (I kid I kid....) and the result is presented to us in this two track Cassette Tape Chetwynd Cassette.  

Episode 12:

Click here for the episode!

Well after a month Riff 'n Ralk Music Tock is back with 3 new reviews.  Ryan and Alex invited Corey back to tackle a few of summer's hits.  We also get wildly tangential discussing Guns n Roses, Dio, Genesis, and Portishead.

Adrian Belew Power Hour #4 (Finale) Discipline

So we come to the end of our little journey, and in a lot of ways the end of Adrian's journey as well.  Amidst the imploding Talking Heads and souring of the Tom Tom Club sessions, Adrian was looking to do something that did not involve sitting in the middle of four New York art snobs bickering.  Fortunately for him, a better offer did come along.  The ever emotionally charged, yet musically gifted Robert Fripp offered Adrian to join his new band Discipline.  Adrian saw the sinking ship behind him and decided it would be a wise move to make.  Adrian would be joined by session heavy weight and the one of...maybe four people who could play a Chapman Stick Tony Levin, and former King Crimson and Yes drummer Bill Bruford to form what was called a "Rock Gamelon" group.

Corey's July Music Round-Up

[Hey everyone, it's Corey. In what I think will be a great move for everyone, Alex and I have agreed to start hosting my monthly music round-ups here at Riff 'N Ralk Music Tock. You may be familiar with these from my Tumblr blog, and you can check out June's round-up here. Moving forward these will be hosted exclusively on Riff 'N Ralk. Though it is unnecessary to catch up on earlier months unless you want to see what I did and didn't enjoy in the first six months of this year, my ratings do bear some explanation. These will be explained in the key below. These, of course, are just my opinions, and I am wont to change my mind often even after submitting a rating for an album in a given month, so don't take this too seriously. This is mostly to spark discussion and debate, and to showcase highly rated albums you may not have heard of before.]

Wow. What a busy month. It really felt like this one would never end and I listened to a seemingly infinite amount of great singles and new albums of every stripe. July featured two albums which you may have already seen reviews for in my Best of 2013 so far round-up. If not, go check it out here. You also may have already seen my reviews for albums by The Tomas Doncker Band, Marla Mase, and Monks of Mellownah. This has definitely been an exciting summer for music fans, and judging by my list of upcoming albums, it only has more in store for us. Without boring you further though, here's the ratings!

Corey Deiterman's Best Albums of 2013 So Far

We're a little over halfway through the year (okay, more than halfway; when I started this it was the beginning of July) and so far 2013 is shaping up nicely. It's looking like it will be remembered as the year old bands made comeback records, which is fine by me because I've seen some of my favorite bands make their return in a fashion that didn't even embarrass their legacy!

We've also got a lot to look forward to, so this is hardly a definitive list. With so many albums yet to drop, it would be foolish to try to decide on the best of the year yet, so this is only the best so far. Which ones will make my end of the year list? I guess that remains to be seen. But up til now, these are the best candidates to make it.

And note that this is in no particular order. They're all great albums in very disparate genres; why try to compare them against each other? Music isn't a competition.