Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Bombass Groove of the Week #5



No words from me today. This is Iggy Pop on James Brown and "I Can't Stand It '76."
The one that flipped me out - I still remember being in the car, hearing it - is "I Can't Stand It." He was down to fuck the chorus, fuck the melody. This is barely a riff. But he pushes the group along like the coxswain on a Roman galley: Stroke, motherfucker, uh!
Amen, brother.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Temple of the Dog (briefly) reunites


For a brief moment this week, Temple of the Dog reunited on stage. The band, formed in 1990 after the death of Mother Love Bone frontman Andrew Wood, released their eponymous record in 1991. Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard from Mother Love Bone joined Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell and drummer Matt Cameron, along with guitarist Mike McCready and vocalist Eddie Vedder, making his debut on record. If these names seem familiar it's because all members excluding Cornell, are now Pearl Jam. (Cameron has been Pearl Jam's drummer since 1998.) I can't think of another supergroup that didn't form as a supergroup. When Pearl Jam dropped their debut in the summer 1991, Temple of the Dog became a big deal.

At their recent show in Los Angeles, Pearl Jam brought Chris Cornell out on stage for "Hunger Strike." Click here for their full performance of "Hunger Strike." Another Seattle moment materialized at the end of the show when Alice in Chains lead guitarist Jerry Cantrell took McCready's place during their performance of "Alive."

Great day to be a grunge fan, no?