Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Beat.
8EEZ Playlist: Culture Club
Hello, hello. Pip, pip cheerio, Tea time, two lumps! Okay, yes, I am purposely sounding British for a reason. My first 'list entry (with assist from my virtual BFF Oates) from the 80s British invasion is a four-man band from London, UK, who formed in 1981. The gimmick? A white guy, black guy, Jewish guy and...George?
By Carlos Gonzalez8 years ago in Beat
Joseph, The Rockies, and the Desert
I woke up on the top bunk, hungover, smelling to high heaven and in desperate need of a shower. I rolled off the bunk and began digging around to find my tooth brush, which was, of course, nowhere to be found. There were beer cans strewn across the floor of the bus as well as two dirty pans from a chili we’d made the night before. That Walmart parking lot had very quickly become our home for the night. The chili was vile. It was our third day on the road at that point and we had yet to play a single show. Money was tight and so we found a Walmart just south of a bend in the Mississippi river in western Illinois and found the cheapest canned chili and pre-cooked rice that they sold. It was a solid gel with a very striking resemblance to dog food that I had to shake profusely just to get out of the can.
By Jonas Lewis-Anthony8 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: Cyndi Lauper
Greetings one and all. This latest duelling 'list is a fun one all right. One of my favorite iconic singers of the 1980s and also for my buddy Oates (we're both Quakers; wink wink). Astoria, Queens-born Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper is her full name. We all know her by her stage name — Cyndi.
By Carlos Gonzalez8 years ago in Beat
Is Punk Rock Dead?
Is punk dead? Has punk changed its face a million times? Has its ethos and independent spark fizzled out? Well with pop music ruling the scene, it could now be a dead genre. Of course, we don’t want its sound to dissipate, or its character thrown to the wolves, we want punk to thrive and become great again.
By Mark McConville8 years ago in Beat
8EEZ Playlist: Pat Benatar
Hey there, hi there, ho there. The latest duelling 80's playlist by me and my friend Oates (on account we just love oatmeal for breakfast), casts the spotlight on one Patricia Mae Andrzejewski, a Brooklyn, NY native raised in Long Island who dropped out of Juilliard to marry her first husband, despite having the chance to become a major star in the world of opera. Lucky for us...her Beverly Sills aspirations came to a grinding halt - and we've been thankful ever since.
By Carlos Gonzalez8 years ago in Beat
Green Day: American Idiot—A Saving Grace
In 2004, a band from California revitalized their careers with a record which sent shockwaves through the industry. That band was Green Day, an act predominantly hooked to punk, a group of aging rockers looking to latch onto the prize once more. The prize would be acclaim from critics who thought the band was derailed, falling wayward, giving up. But they were rekindling their brand as punk showmen.
By Mark McConville8 years ago in Beat
King James Brown
King James Brown is a man that pays tribute to the original James Brown ( May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) whom we know as the Godfather of Soul. He is gone but not forgotten. King James Brown performs and sings James Brown's songs. It's almost like having the original James Brown back again. King James has the Godfather's look and image. He has a voice and sounds like James Brown. King James also moves like the Godfather of Soul.
By Gail Nobles8 years ago in Beat
