Monday, February 28, 2005

The Backstreet Boys Are Back!

Just when you began to get nostalgic for cheesy 90's boy bands, The Backstreet Boys return. The Boys new single is to be released in March, followed by an album due in June.

Their last album, 2000's "Black And Blue", sold 5.4 million copies. But the original prepubescent fans that grew up listening to them in the 90's have moved on. Most are no longer teenagers. They have started college, careers and families.

The Backstreet Boys challenge to create enough interest among old fans and/or recruit new ones, is an uphill one to say the least. It's doubtful that many self respecting, twenty-something coeds are going to be rushing out to buy the new album. Especially when even admitting to being a former fan carries with it such guilty pleasure.

Unless someone can convince a new generation of teenagers that Boy Band music is still cool, Backstreet may be out of luck. Your average 14 year old has scarce memories of them and would be reluctant to hang up a poster of a pop group who's members are mostly over 30.

Very few Bubblegum Pop Stars survive once their fan base matures. Notable exceptions are Michael Jackson and George Michael. Britney Spears seems able to hold on to her fame, though it may be due more to "car wreck" interest than anything else. You know a crash is eminent so you can't stop watching.

The Pop Highway is littered with the remains of teen music idols. They come and go so quickly it's difficult to remember their names. Like many others, Boyz 2 Men, New Kids On The Block and Tiffany were once the hottest acts around. Their notoriety now comes only as answers to music trivia questions.

We'll find out soon if The Backstreet Boys prove to be the exception to the rule.

- DJ Craig

Friday, February 25, 2005

Dance This Mess Around

You may remember a song from The B-52's first album called, "Dance This Mess Around". In the song, Fred Schneider encourages the listener to, "do all 16 Dances!".

The funny thing is, there are only 8 Dances actually mentioned. They are:

the Shu-ga-loo
the Shy Tuna
the Camel Walk
the Hip-o-crit

the Coo-ca-choo
the Aqua-velva
the Dirty Dog
the Escalator

But how do you do them?

Of these, only the "Camel Walk" can be readily found by searching the internet.

Place one foot in front of the other, bend at the waist and lock hands behind back to represent your camel hump. Walk slowly, raising the head and chest with each step.

I did find references to the "Twist, Jerk, Monkey, Pony, Swim, Mashed Potato, Skate, Hitchhiker, Egyptian, Shimmy, Temptation Walk and Locomotion".

But no "Shy Tuna" or "Aqua Velva" dances. And what about the other 8 dances?

Something to think about next time you're doing "The Time Warp" or "Shag."

- DJ Craig

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

New Releases

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day:

Live from Dublin- The Chieftans


Great remix from the Vegas Retrowavers:

Mr. Brightside (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duke Mix- Single)- The Killers


Anachronistic Punkers Finale:

What Became of the Likely Lads EP- The Libertines


Sum 41 add their edge to this remix:

Get Back (Sum 41 Rock Remix- Single)- Ludacris


The Electrolounge Masters are back:

The Cosmic Game- Thievery Corporation


Goo Goo Dolls Lite but still tastes good!:

Always Leave the Ground- This Day & Age


"Loungey" House beats:

Lotus- Nomad


Recommended Downloads:

Jerk It Out- Caesars -

An Honest Mistake- The Bravery

Beautiful- Moby

Mr. Brightside (Jacques Lu Cont's Thin White Duke Mix)- The Killers

Walking With a Ghost- Tegan and Sara

-DJ Craig

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Preoccupied With 1985?

It may be time to dust off your old Members Only jacket and crank up the music!

Witness the explosive rise of "Retrowave" bands. These are new bands that sound like they're from the 80's, but they're not. The Killers, The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse and others are having massive success with their synth driven, post punk influenced rock.

Covers Tributes

Recent 80's Covers include Jessica Simpson's update of Berlin's "Take My Breath Away", Katrina Carlson's Cars cover, "Drive", "The Boys Of Summer" by The Ataris, "Blue Monday" by Orgy, No Doubt's "It's My Life" and Johnny Cash's Depeche Mode tribute, "Personal Jesus".

Don't You Forget About Me!

Original 80's artists are enjoying a revival as well. The Cure, U2, Erasure, Duran Duran, Blondie, Social Distortion, Morrisey, The Bangles, R.E.M., Elvis Costello, Sting and Red Hot Chili Peppers have all released new material in the past year.

Upcoming releases from Billy Idol, The B52-s and X should make for an interesting 2005.

For more info on the 80's Revival go to:

DJ Craig- The 80's

Thursday, February 17, 2005

Radio, Radio

In case you missed it, the guys from Hot Hot Heat were on "Loveline" (106.7 KROQ) last night promoting their new single, "Goodnight Goodnight".

Of course, the real star of Loveline has been and always will be none other than Adam Corolla. His extemporaneous rants about all things wrong with modern society never fail to entertain. As always, Dr. Drew plays the perfect straight man to Adam's inspired ravings. All while helping callers with their relationship problems. Loveline is on weekdays, 10 p.m. to 12 a.m.

On the AM side of the dial, XTRA 690 and KMPC 570 have traded programming. 570 will now be the home of So Cal's sports talk leader as well as talk radio mad scientist Phil Hendrie, formerly of KFI. 690 will now play swing and vocal standard faves.

I almost thought the new Indie 103.1 FM music programmers had lost their minds last week. Indie's fresh attitude and non-commercial alternative rock programming was interrupted by,,, were my ears deceiving me?,,, is that Frank Sinatra?

Yes, it was and with no apologies. Just to show that they can play whatever they want, Indie plays, "The Furious Frank at Five". Every weekday at 5 p.m., in between songs from the likes of Green Day and The Killers, Indie proudly spins a Sinatra tune. Indie's musical sense of adventure and willingness to take a risk is unmatched.

Indie 103.1's resident crazy uncle, former Sex Pistol guitarist Steve Jones, takes over their airwaves daily with an eclectic mix of music you are not likely to hear anywhere else. And Jones' between song banter is as funny as anything you'll hear on radio. Keep up the good work, Mate!

DJ Craig

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

New Music Releases!

John Lennon's transcendent song, "Across The Universe" took center-stage at the 47th annual Grammy awards Sunday night.

An all-star ensemble including Bono, Stevie Wonder, Alison Krauss, Steven Tyler, Alicia Keys and Brian Wilson performed the song, which is now available to purchase exclusively on iTunes. Proceeds will benefit UNICEF's tsunami relief efforts.

80's teen idol Deborah (aka Debbie) Gibson is back with her new single, "Naked". Quite an appropriate title as the 34-year-old has just shed her clothes for Playboy's March issue.

Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20 has released a new single entitled, "Lonely No More".

90's Alt rockers Better Than Ezra are back with their new single, "A Lifetime".

Retrowavers The Bravery have released an outstanding new song, "An Honest Mistake".

Seven live album releases are available from The Stray Cats 2004 European tour.


Other new releases of interest:

"Goodnight Goodnight"- Hot Hot Heat

"The Melting Moon"- VHS or Beta

"Open Arms" (Urban Remix)- Tina Turner


Trivia Note: That song used in the new iPod commercial is none other than "Jerk It Out" by Caesars. It's an addictively catchy tune!

Rock On,

DJ Craig

Monday, February 14, 2005

The Grammy's

Our Top Story-

At last night's Grammy awards, Maroon 5 wins Best New Artist!

But don't rush out and buy stock in Maroon 5's record company just yet. Let's remember some of the past Best New Artist Grammy winners. They include:

Paula Cole beating out Puff Daddy 1998

Milli Vanilli 1990 (revoked)

Christopher Cross won in 1981. Also nominated that year- The Pretenders.

Debbie Boone 1978

Starland Vocal Band 1977 (Remember their big hit, "Afternoon Delight"?

And of course in what could be the most embarrassing moment in Grammy history...

A Taste Of Honey won over Elvis Costello in 1979!

To be fair, The Grammy's did also give this award to:

Bobby Darin 1959

The Beatles 1965

Crosby, Stills & Nash 1970

Sade 1986

Sheryl Crow 1995

Nora Jones 2003

Still, their record of consistently choosing truly significant New Artists is spotty to say the least. That's at least partially because The Grammy's sets themselves up for failure.

By regularly nominating artists like Hanson, Billy Ray Cyrus, Corey Hart and Glass Tiger for this award, they increase the possibility of making what turns out to be a bad decision.

In the meantime, artists that never even got nominated include U2, REM, Sting, The Goo Goo Dolls, Madonna, Moby, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eminem, Outkast, Usher and the list goes on.

So, will Maroon 5 go on to gain legendary rock stardom or quickly fade from view to become another forgotten piece of music history trivia?

If the past is any indication, don't bet on the former.

All The Best,

DJ Craig

Sunday, February 13, 2005

Radio Rant

Today's trivia question:

Besides being major players in Southern California music radio, what do these stations have in common?

KBIG (104.3FM)
KHHT "Hot 92.3" (92.3FM)
KIIS (102.7FM)
KOST (103.5FM)
KYSR "Star" (98.7FM)
KCBS "Arrow 93" (93.1FM)
KROQ (106.7FM)
KRTH (101.1FM)

The Answer:

They are ALL owned by just two companies!

That's right, with a few exceptions, Clear Channel Communications and Infinity Broadcasting have a virtual monopoly over rock/pop music on our airwaves here in So Cal.

While these huge entities have every right to make a buck, they do so at the expense of diversity, inventiveness and the very spirit of adventure that is responsible for creating great music in the first place.
The playlists of their stations are unchallenging, formulaic and predictable.

They do pull in ratings and obviously there is a market for what they have to offer. Just like there is for Big Macs. But for those who like their music a little more progressive, eclectic and cutting edge, Southern California music radio is all but unlistenable.

Now before you decide to shove knitting needles in your ears or spend all your money on satellite radio, there is hope on the horizon. Two recent additions to the So Cal radio scene are Indie 103.1 FM and FM949 at 94.9 FM. These stations refuse to focus on "flavor of the month" Blink 182 or Limp Bizkit sound-a-like bands.

Their more diverse playlist mix includes established artists like Elvis Costello, X, The Police and others along with newer, cutting edge bands. You might hear Green Day, The Killers and then Devo. Or Sonic Youth, The Strokes and then Gary Numan.

Their sound is more like free form, alternative rock radio. Kind of liike the way KROQ used to be back in the 80's. In fact, many of the bands that originally put KROQ on the map before KROQ dropped them from their playlist, can now be heard on Indie 103 and FM949.

The trick is, neither station has a super strong signal. They may be difficult to hear in some areas. On the upside, both Indie and 949 offer their programming via the internet. If you are near a computer, you can listen whenever you like. Here are the live streaming website links:

Indie 103

FM949

Give it a shot next time you are sick of "Big Mac" radio!

Happy Listening,

DJ Craig

Saturday, February 12, 2005

Valentine's Dance

Just finished a Valentine's event in RSM. Great party with lots of dancing!

Ended the night with Sam Cooke's classic, "Cupid".

Latest downloads:

Walking With Ghosts- David Wright
Love Again (Radio Edit)- Vivid
Vibrate- Petey Pablo & Rasheeda
Surrender- Lasgo
Get Right (Featuring Fabolous)- Jennifer Lopez
Soldier- Destiny's Child & Lil Wayne
She Will Be Loved- Maroon 5
Since U Been Gone- Kelly Clarkson

I'm addicted to "Walking With Ghosts". It's an ethereal, hypnotic, piano based piece that's good for chilling out to.

Friday, February 11, 2005

Changes!

Have been working hard revamping my website at
DJ Craig.Net
Updated everything including new page layout, content, links and added new pages. Fresh info. on Party Music, Reception Planning and Customer Comments. There is even a whole section on 80's music including what your favorite 80's artists are currently up to!

Cheers,

DJ Craig

Latest music downloads added to DJ Craig's library:

Bring Em Out- T.I.
Get Back - Ludacris
My Funny Valentine- Chet Baker
What Happens Tomorrow- Duran Duran
A Man and a Woman- U2
Yahweh- U2
Old Habits Die Hard- Dave Stewart & Mick Jagger
Rich Girl- Gwen Stefani & Eve
All This Time Still Falling Out of Love- Erasure
Scream- Billy Idol
Cruel to Be Kind- Nick Lowe
Candy Shop- (Clean Version) 50 Cent
Caught Up- Usher
My Prerogative- (X-Press 2 Radio Edi) Britney Spears
Only U- Ashanti

PS

PS Happy Valentine's Day weekend!