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The Goldhawk Bar: R.I.P.

The Goldhawk Bar & Lounge in Hoboken - for years the epicenter of Hoboken's local music scene - has announced it will be closing on July 11. The Goldhawk, with its weekly open mic and low-key acoustic showcases, offered a place where local bands could meet, experiment, and polish their craft. Its presence will be sorely missed, and we extend our best hopes and heartfelt thanks to Fran Azzarto and the staff for all they've done for local music over the past six years. There will be several farewell performances to say good-bye to the venue:

Tuesday July 7 - The Fave
Wednesday July 8 - Val Emmich
Thursday July 9 - Marc Gionnotti/ Rob Nicholas/ Dave Calamoneri and Karyn Kuhl
Friday July 10– Skanatra


The Goldhawk is located at 936 Park Ave. at 10th Street in Hoboken.

From Pop Punk Geek To Nerdy Movie Star: The Strange Journey of Egghead's John Ross Bowie

Joe Evans III catches up with John Ross Bowie, who you might recognize from TV sitcoms, feature films, and television commercials. But long before his face started showing up on screen, you could find him playing in the brainy, catchy and sadly out-of-fashion pop-punk trio Egghead. This particularly worm has turned though; not only is Bowie finding success in his new career, but his old pop-punk band is suddenly in demand again, and will be performing Wednesday, June 24th at the Lit Lounge in Manhattan before heading down to Baltimore to play at the 2009 Insubordination Festival. Read Joe Evans III's interview here...

YOUR FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS
by Tris McCall

Tris asks the questions that few critics want to face about When I Hit The Ground, the debut album by Ace Enders & A Million Different People, and finds some surprising answers. Is it emo? Irrelevant. Is it brilliant? Undoubtedly. And do grownups need to pay attention to the Bard of Hammonton, NJ? What do you think? Read Tris' review here...



ACE ENDERS:
Post-Emo But Still Emoting

Ace Enders, former frontman of Jersey emo pioneers The Early November, returns with Ace Enders & A Million Different People, a brilliant collection of captivating anthems that replace emo's whining nihilism with the fresh new perspective of hope.


Read Jim Testa's interview here...

10 FOR $10 TOUR:
Hardcore Bands Fight The Recession With A Return To The Sunday Harcore Matinee

The 10 For $10 Tour brings together hardcore bands like Madball, Poison The Well, Vision, Terror, Bane, and Death Before Dishonor for a bargain night of  non-stop moshing. Ten bands at every stop, and every ticket only $10. Of course, band-aids and splints are extra.

Jason Walsh has all the gory details here...

THE REVELATION RECORDS STORY:

Steven DiLodovico provides an intimate and in-depth interview with Jordan Cooper, the man who started Revelation Records and spearheaded a revolution in the American punk subculture. This 5-part interview tells the story of how a small DIY label helped change the face and sound of Hardcore - the business, the bands, the venues, the moshpits, and the music.

Read Steven's interview here...

 

JERSEY BEAT VIDEO:
Cymbals Eat Guitars - "Cold Spring"
Live at Music Hall of Williamsburg - 6/13/09



ALKALINE TRIO:
Complete Control

Deb Draisin catches up with drummer Derek Grant of Chicago punk icons Alkaline Trio and talks about their relationship with their major label, the current state of punk, and how these 12-year veterans of the punk rock wars keep finding new sources of inspiration.

Read Deb's interview here...

 

 

GREEN DAY
21ST Century Breakdown
(Reprise)

Album of the Year... Or Flop of the New Millennium?

We thought Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown was important enough to get more than one opinion... so we elicited reviews from three generations of Green Day fans - midwestern veteran punker chris Mattern, Jersey college student Tim Norek, and editor Jim Testa.

Read their reviews here...


BERN & THE BRIGHTS: Ethereal, orchestral... real

Deb Draisin talks to Montclair's Bern & The Brights, described as a female-fronted Radiohead for their intelligent and elegant and elegant soundscapes. Read Deb's interview here...


Visit the Buddy & Hopkins Online Store for Hilarious T-Shirts, Mugs, Stickers & More!

GUEST EDITORIAL: Too Old To Rock N Roll?

Steve Rainone steps on the Jersey Beat soapbox and asks what's wrong with a few wrinkles or gray hairs. With so many aby boomer icons still rocking stadiums this summer, isn't it time we stopped asking how old a performer is, and just look at the performance?

Read Steve's editorial here...




FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK:


 
  Screaming Females - Power Move (Don Giovanni Records)
     
  Billy Raygun - "Seasick" EP (John Wilkes Booth Records)
     
  A Love Like Pi - Atlas & The Oyster (Thriving Records)
     
  Beep Beep - Enchanted Islands (Saddle Creek)

View the complete Editor's Desk article...  

FEATURE REVIEWS:

POISONED HEART: I Married A Ramone by Vera King (Phoenix Books)

Chris Mattern plods through this biography of the most misunderstood Ramone written by his ex-wife Vera, which Chris says is filled with self-serving and contradictatory views of the couple's tumutuous relationship, and very few new facts about our favorite punk band.
Read Chris' review here

 

THE ANTLERS - Hospice (myspace.com/theantlers)

Staggeringly beautiful, heartbreakingly sad, the Antlers' Hospice takes the lush layered production of classic shoegaze and brings it into the 21st Century, with one of the most moving albums of 2009.

Read Paul Silver's review here...


SONIC YOUTH - The Eternal (Matador)

Sonic Youth's return to indiedom also marks a return to the ethereal soundscapes of their early career - not ambient, insists Paul Silver, but intense soundscapes that still showcase the band's fascination with dissonance and unique tunings. But this time around, you can lay back and unwind to it.

Read Paul Silver's review here...


ELVIS COSTELLO - Secret, Profane, Sugarcane (Hear Music)

The versatile Elvis Costello takes on country/bluegrass on his latest album and Noah WK says it's a complete success, beautifully flavored with banjo, mandolin, and other string instruments but still infused with Costello's impeccable vocal phrasings. Read Noah's review here...

 

SUMMER READING: A Tortured Life, and A Sonic Scene

Phil Rainone reviews A Pure Drop - The Life of Jeff Buckley, a no holds barred account of the singer's tragically short life, and Sonic Boom: The History of Northwest Rock, which traces garage and punk rock from "Louie Louie" through "Feels Like Teen Spirit."

Read Phil's reviews here...

 

JERSEY BEAT COLUMNS:

LET'S PARTY WITH NOAH WK

Vinyl!!! Noah checks out a cool new 7-inch compilation from the new indie label Merman Records with cuts by Fear of Lipstick, The Roman Line, Regal Beagle, and Neutron Bombs. He also checks out the debut 7 inch EP from Barrakuda McMurder, the new project featuring the Steinways' Grath Madden, and an Album of the Year contender with Dream Homes from the pop-punk supergroupd Dear Landlord.

Read Noah's column here...


THE QUINLAN CHRONICLES
by Rich Quinlan

Bam! Pow! Rich gets a double punch of classic hardcore from the legendary L.A. band Flipper with the live album Fight bristling with past hits and the new studio album Love, both records Rich says you need to hear. He also reviews the twangy, southern-fried rock'n'roll of Terry Anderson and the Olympic Ass-Kicking Team and a breakout 7inch from Neckties Make Me Nervous.
Read Rich's column here...

THE WORLD ACCORDING TO WAWZYRNIAK - by Joe Wawzyrniak

Weehawken singer/songwriter Julian Peterson gets things off to a rousing start with the sweet and soulful funk of his debut solo album. Joe also grooves to new albums from Jason Lytle, Sean Bones, and Annabel. Things stay local with strong releases from Hoboken's Hudson Rail Company and Jersey City's Copacetic, and the column finishes up with energized pop-rock from Synthetic Elements and Drug Rug.

Read the complete column here...

THE SILVER LINING by Paul Silver

Paul Silver delivers a mammoth dose of pop, punk, metal, and whatever with this month's column, including new releases by Brian Bond, the Broomstars, Chairlift, Detournement, Goes Cube, The Great Unwashed, Hoots & Hellmouth, The Magik Markers, Rik Mercaldi, Money/Paper/Hearts, The Oranges Band, Player/ Kommander, Push-Pull, R00K, and Sharon Von Etten. Read Paul's column here...






MATTERN OF FACT: By Chris Mattern

Chris is fascinated by the early emo stylings of Hot Water Music on the reissue of their classic No Division CD, then enjoys some new music from beguiling industrial rockers Fashion Bomb, beer-swillin' boot-stompin' country/rock hybrids Yesterday's Ring, Detroit hardcore punks Forced Anger, and a new punk compilation of Chicago bands from Johann's Face.

Read Chris' column here...

 

JOHNNY PUKE SAYS SO...

Johnny raves about the new release from old friends NoFX, has some doubts about the first solo effort from Hot Water Music's Chris Wollard, and hails In The Red's new release a real breakthrough.

Read Johnny's reviews here...


METAL AS ALL HELL by Dan Siano

Dan raves about the new release from Mastodon, calling it both the band's most accessible and yet most ambitious release to date. Dan also reviews new releases from the Earache label including Cauldron, The Haunted, Insect Warfare, and The Boy Will Drown.

Read Dan's column here...

PUNK OR NOTHING by Richard Allsop

Richard raves about the debut CD from NJ's One Short Falls, saying it "could easily provide the perfect punk rock party soundtrack, donning the structures of ska, surf, New York snot, micro ballad and momentary acoustic sweetness while maintaining their seemingly innate frenetic tendencies throughout." He also raves about the debut 7 inch EP from NJ superground Psyched To Die, featuring ex-members of the Ergs!, For Science, and Hunchback.
Read Richard's column here...

POP VULTURE by Phil Rainone

The freaked out rockabilly of Los Straightjackets gets Phil twistin' and shoutin', as do New Jersey's Young Werewolves. Phil also dives into three releases from the punk label Dead Beat Records: The old-school politically barbed punk of Le Face, the post-Industrial drone of Mac Blackout, and the raunchy German punk of Lights Out. Phil reviews the new "Sessions" EP from Mimi Nowak and talks about her participation in the South Amboy music scene centered around The Blue Moon Cafe. Read Phil's column here...

THE QUIET CORNER
by Robert Barry Francos

Robert Francos's Spring round up includes releases by Kevin Devine & The Goddamn Band, Andy Bilinski, Dominick Carino, Caterpillar Book, Cobra Verde, Shane Cooley, James Dalton, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Jeremy Jay, Nashville Pussy, the Situationists, Kurt Vile, and lots more.

Read Robert's column here...


WOWIE ZOWIE: Psychedelia & Beyond
by Rick Kutner

We welcome Rick Kutner and Wowie Zowie, which brings you the best in psychedelia, power-pop, and glam. In this column, Rick reviews new releases by Anoraak, The Hellacopters, Gil Mantera's Party Dream, MGMT, Old Ghost, the Sales Brothers, and Zombi.

Read Rick's column here...

POP PUNK!
By All Ages Dave Dillon

Dave Dillon likes the new EP from Dead To Me, which features ex-members of One Man Army and Western Addiction. And he really likes the demo from NJ hardcore-punks Psyched To Die, featuring members of such local faves as the Ergs, For Science, and Hunchback. He also reviews the new 7-inch from midwest punks Be My Doppelganger, and a CD from Massachusetts' Fake Boys.Read Dave's column here...

THE LIFE OF RILEY:
Reviews by Mike Riley

Mike Riley has nothing nice to say about Lagwagon - "utterly generic and uninspired," for starters - but he does like the solo debut of frontman Joey Cape. Mike also sounds on the reissue of Earth Crisis' seminal Breed The Killers, and new CDs from La Vieja Guardia, The Welch Boys, and Virgins.
Read Mike's column here...

DAVE RUN IT REVIEWS

Longtime Jersey Beat contributor Dave Run It hands down his judgment on releases by Static Radio NJ, The Safes, and The Offramps.

Read Dave's reviews here...


PAST INTERVIEWS & FEATURES:

Jersey Beat CD Reviews:

   


JerseyBeat.com is an independently published music fanzine covering punk, alternative, ska, techno and garage music, focusing on New Jersey and the Tri-State area. For the past 25 years, the Jersey Beat music fanzine has been the authority on the latest upcoming bands and a resource for all those interested in rock and roll.


 
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