The new CD by Black Taj, featuring Steve and Dave from Polvo, is out now. I'll give a review once I get my hands on it.

The Spinns have a new album!

They're one of my favorite local bands. Check their new stuff on myspace, then go buy their CD.

A review of Damian Marley's "Welcome to Jamrock"
(Universal)

It can't be easy to distinguish yourself in a family full of musical visionaries, but Bob Marley's youngest, Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley, sure is giving it a good try. After winning the Grammy for 2002's Halfway Tree, and after penning one of the most explosive reggae hits of the summer, the menacing anti-violence anthem "Welcome to Jamrock," Marley returns with an album that lives up to the single's promise.

The album erupts right off the bat with "Confrontation," which builds from spoken word dialog by Bunny Wailer (along with recordings from Haile Selassie and Marcus Garvey) into a pounding indictment of war in general, and the war in Iraq in particular. Other stand outs include "Pimpa's Paradise" (with Black Thought and Stephen Marley), a cautionary tale about a casualty of hip-hop's bump-and-grind video culture; "All Night," in which Marley sings about trying to keep up with his insatiable lady over a loping Skatalites sample; and "For the Babies," an Asian-influenced anti-abortion song that takes men to task for abandoning their pregnant girlfriends.

Marley gets quite a bit of help from friends and relatives, including his late father, on several of the tracks. Bunny Wailer, Nas, Black Thought, Bounty Killer, Eek-A-Mouse and even Bobby Brown put in appearances. Marley's brother, Stephen, co-wrote and performs on many of the songs. And at least two songs include "interpolations" or samples of work by Bob Marley himself. But while Marley isn't shy about celebrating (or cribbing from) his father's legacy, the end product is his alone.

Sanctuary Records closing

Here's an e-mail my friend Dave Rogers sent out. Dave is a great guy, and any band out there would be lucky to have him on the road with them.

Thanks,

Karen

Hello everybody, if you haven't already heard the news Sanctuary Records is closing their Raleigh NC location. That means as of Friday 10/14 me and many of my co-workers here will be out of a job. That's right - to all the bands and managers that wanted to put me on the road - I'm now available! At the very least you'll find me in the photo pit. Anyway, I do want to stay in touch with many of you and as I begin my search for the next gig keep me in mind. My contact info is below. Cheers!
>
>Dave Rogers
>dave@away-team.com
>919-539-2239

The Red Alert ran my review of The Rosebuds!