September 11th, 2025
Prince & The Revolution's 'Purple Rain' Gets a Splendid "One Step" Single LP Cut from a hi-res transfer of original EQ'd analog master, this reissue creates spectacular three-dimensionality from a bright, glossy '80s productionBy: Michael Fremer
Purple Rain arrived in 1984 two years after 1999, Prince's first big critical and commercial success. With songs like "Little Red Corvette" and the title track, It was the record that established his stardom and eventually in the year 1999, it was certified quadruple Platinum. Following his passing in 2016 it again charted, peaking at #7—better than when it was originally released.Quick aside: I was in Minneapolis on April 21st, 2016, the day Prince... Read More
July 23rd, 2025
Turnstile- "Never Enough" Is More Than Enough Grab your board and lace up your shoes, "Turnstile Summer" is underway.By: Michael Johnson
I think I was 18 or 19 years old the first time I heard Title Fight play. I remember standing in the hot summer Texas sun at the Mohawk on Red River street waiting for Converge to play, and all of a sudden this group of unassuming kids in loose-fit denim from Kingston, PA took the stage. They were followed quickly by a cohort of 20 or so teenagers that took over the crowd with the kind of energy that made damn sure everyone knew that we were watching the greatest punk... Read More
October 7th, 2023
Luaka Bop Reissues Pharoah Sanders’ 1977 Rarity ‘Pharoah’ A reasonably priced deluxe box set spotlights the legend’s post-Impulse! classicBy: Malachi Lui
Pharoah Sanders’ 1977 album Pharoah is one of beauty and contentment, of family and love. You could even call it relaxed, a term unfit for his other 60s and 70s classics. The story behind it, however, is one of bitterness and disappointment—a complete contrast to the record’s majestic sound.The saxophonist, who’d not entered the studio for at least three years, found himself and his band in a large, concrete room with minimal adornment and a rather primitive recording... Read More