NEW ON THE SCENE: JOSH X-AN-TUS!

R&B newcomer Josh X-an-tus is wowing audiences across the nation with his new single, “First Time,” from his highly anticipated debut album, Can I Live. The classically trained pianist already has a major buzz about him thanks to his single, “Let’s Ride,” with rapper Jadakiss. The hood love anthem was featured as one of the top ten favorite videos on MTV. X-an-tus is now slowing it down with a beautiful ballad about the blossoming of young love and making love for the first time, wh

Morning Walk
EXPECTATIONS Well, first and foremost the film itself comes as a bit of surprise. With zilch information about this project, in spite of the presence of Anupam Kher and Sharmila Tagore, it is impossible to build any expectations for the music. Also, it appears to be an offbeat subject hence diminishing any hope that one has from a popular score. Jeet Ganguly, who was once a partner with Pritam for the music of Mere Yaar Ki Shaai Hai and Tere Liye, comes solo for creating the music of Morning

Jade Music: 99 Essential Chants
A Catholic Life is proud to again support the efforts of Jade Music in the promotion of sacred and holy music. I have attended beautiful Masses with outstanding orchestras as well as simple, elegant Gregorian Chant at St. Agnes Parish (St. Paul, Minnesota) for example. And, I am proud to continue promoting sacred music. In the past I have reviewed Anthology: Chants and Polyphony from St. Michael’s Abbey , Into Great Silence: Office of the Night , Marriage of the Heavens and the Earth , In

Stephen Vitiello & Molly Berg “MBSVGorilla v2” From the…
Stephen Vitiello & Molly Berg “MBSVGorilla v2” From the album The Gorilla Variations Up now on his website — stephenvitiello.com — is a segment of score Stephen wrote with Molly Berg for an installation by Eder Santos. No visuals are included, but the sound is deserving of its own audience — light bells, like some digitized wind chime, ring their way through backward masked guitar, rough whistles suggesting the sound-art equivalent of “outsider” technique, and wisps of less i

Music Review: The High End Of Low - Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson’s latest album The High End Of Low is another great listen, musically underrated, and yet again taken over by everyone’s obsession with the shock value of their lyrics. Some critics had labelled The High End Of Low as going back to their older records like Mechanical Animals , partly to do with the return of bassist Twiggy Ramirez. And in part, they’re right. This album has some of the faster, more electronic sounds associated with early albums. But I was happy to fin

Elvis Costello - Secret, Profane & Sugarcane (Hear Music)
Hardly a day goes by that we hear about another performer leaving their chosen career trajectory and taking a swing at country music.Some of these travelers deeply feel the need to honor the history, the tradition, of the genre. They also bring something new and interesting to the sound. Then there are the carpetbaggers. The ones who’s career have a justly stalled and are looking to find a new audience in a genre they mistakenly see as an easy get. They carry with them the foul stench of mediocr

LIL WAYNE’S TRIBUTE TO KOBE BRYANT…NO HOMO!
Rapper/ESPN blogger Lil Wayne released a new song on Wednesday honoring No. 24 of the NBA Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers. The song talks about his dominance on the court. Speaking of, will Lakers beat the Magic tonight? The team will play against their opponent in Orlando tonight. Although the Magic has been struggling these past two games, my prediction is that they will win tonight being on their own court…What do you think? Listen to “Kobe Bryant” here:

Cartel – Chroma (CD)
With vocals like “One For The Kids”-era Yellowcard, Will’s vocals match well with the supersonic instrumentation laid down by Nic and Joseph (guitars), Kevin (drums) and Ryan (bass). Tracks mesh well with each other; there is nary even a breathe between “Say Anything” and “Honestly”. While there might not be the sizzling guitar solos and outright technical prowess of the technical emocore bands (those influenced by bands like Converge), the dynamic in which the band works allows for a cohesive s

Casket Architects – Dance On The Death Nerve (CD)
I don’t know, for some reason I thought that Casket Architects were going to play a style of music that was not related to the hard rock meets punk blend that first assaults listeners during their opening track to “Dance on the Death Nerve”, “Turbine Vaccine”. Throwing in a shrill guitar line and a blend of elements from Bad Religion to Avenged Sevenfold to the Refused, Casket Architects are a band that wow listeners quickly on this disc. The band’s theme (“Casket Architecture”) is much more nua

Music Review: Placebo’s Battle for the Sun
by Rick Rockwell Alright, any album that starts with a song entitled “Kitty Litter” immediately has this critic’s attention. Thus opens Placebo’s sixth album Battle for the Sun : a 13-track outing that veers from grungy, post-punk stylings to experimental indie rock. (The electronic bonus track version comes with an additional track, “In a Funk.” The limited edition box set also includes yet another bonus studio track, “Wouldn’t It Be Good.”) Battle for the Sun plays like a raw open wo