The Truth About Music

"What's hot, what's not, and whats next in pop music"

Crazy Few Days

By Harris posted February 28, 2009 at 15:00

Anytime I don’t write a post in a period spanning more than 36 hours I feel the need to explain myself. I have had a lot of things going on that have just kept me away from my desk for so long. Last night my band “The Small Town Revival,” visited from New York, as we performed at the ‘Up Til Dawn,’ fundraiser at the University of Hartford. The event, run by Alicia Farrell was extremely successful and a great time. From now, until next Monday (March 9th) my life will be consumed with concerts and music related stuff. Tonight at the University of Hartford, the amazing contemporary rock band We The Living will return to give a special performance inside the Hawks Nest. This Thursday, me and a colleague will be traveling into Manhattan to attend the Music and Money music business seminar hosted by Billboard. Now it gets [...] Continue...
Harris’ Song of the Week: The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows by Brand New

By Harris posted February 26, 2009 at 09:21

This weeks song of the week has duel meanings for me. I have been writing for quite a while now and have really never given any insight on my past. All throughout high school I was in a band with a group of guys I would pretty much trust to do anything. Although we did very well on the local scene, we were never really able to break out and when college struck we went our separate ways. Although we still keep in touch, and have moved on to new projects, that band will always be in the forefront of my musical career. On that somber note, The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows was one of the first songs that we learned. It was considered an awesome achievement when we were able to stumble through it, having duel singing, and mastering the pause towards the end. Even in [...] Continue...
Cash from The Cab talks Rihanna, Bamboozle and Hit Singles

By Harris posted February 26, 2009 at 00:06

When you think of music and Las Vegas, four things should come to your mind; Barry Manilow, The Killers, Celine Dion and Panic at the Disco. Ok maybe those aren’t the first things you think of, but they very well should be. Amongst these legends, another is looking to break off the strip and into every bedroom in America, The Cab. Taking pop vocal influences and blending them with rock through the decades, The Cab has already established their hit capability and now look to continue their rise to the top. If you are sitting here reading, thinking that you don’t know The Cab, stop. During the past few months “Bounce,” and “I’ll Run,” have been climbing radio charts faster than the wheels of a brand new slot machine. After naming “Bounce,” my song of the week many weeks ago and the #20 song of 2008, it was great to [...] Continue...
Album of the Moment: Carnival Vol II: Memoirs of an Immigrant

By Harris posted February 25, 2009 at 00:11

Rules are meant to be broken and just because the title would usually say lyrics of the month, doesn’t mean this won’t be fun too. Although many readers, and music listeners are at the point in their musical journey were full albums just don’t appeal to them. I have a 17 year old sister and a 50 year old dad, neither of which has listened to a full album in years (if ever). With this in mind I would like to tell you to give it a shot. There are those times in life when a certain album just starts playing and right now, I am having one of those moments. The album is Wyclef Jeans, Carnival, Vol. II: Memoirs of an Immigrant released back in 2007. To me this is one of the greatest works in the category of hip-hop ever recorded. Combining an incredible mix of guest accompaniment [...] Continue...
My Oscar Picks and the Results

By Harris posted February 23, 2009 at 15:34

Below are the winners in the categories I picked for the this years Academy Awards. In bold are the picks that are correct. Best PictureSlumdog Millionaire Best DirectorSlumdog Millionaire Leading ActorSean Penn in “Milk” Leading ActressKate Winslet in “The Reader” Supporting ActorHeath Leadger in “The Dark Knight” Supporting ActressPenelope Cruz in “Vicky Christina Barcelona” Animated Feature Film“WALL-E” Original Screenplay“Milk” So, among the eight categories I chose to pick from, I was 6 for 8, missing both actress categories. To see my original picks see ‘And the Oscar Goes to’ How did everyone else do in your picking of the oscars? Did anyone score better than 75% Correct? Continue...
The Oscars, The Good, The Bad and the King

By Harris posted February 23, 2009 at 10:54

Is it possible that every morning, after the Oscars are done, the red carpet is folded up and the stars have all returned, I will be writing this very same article year after year, for decades to come? I certainly will be unless changes are made, and made fast. According to the New York Times, this years Academy Awards were the lowest in recorded history, and it is even reported that more people tuned in to watch man discover fire than to see the cast of Slumdog on stage winning Picture of the Year. The point I’m trying to make here is that it’s time to trim the fat. We already know the formula, the Grammy Awards did a few years ago. It’s about more performances, less awards and in turn, less drawn out speeches. I know that the Academy is about the movies, and that they feel not to [...] Continue...
Live From the Oscars

By Harris posted February 22, 2009 at 13:49

Instructed to by my good friend from Yorktown, The Truth About Music will be doing a live tweet during the Oscars. My twitter account is “Sportsmeetmusic,” and feel free to reply or leave comments here during the awards. The live feed will consist of all my opinions, banter and commentary on the proceedings, tune in tonight at 8:00 PM (EST). Continue...
The Newest Nickelback Impostors

By Harris posted February 22, 2009 at 11:02

There’s a difference between being in the same genre as other band, and being in the same band as another band. Since Nickelback first successfully fused hard rock and country into the blend most people first saw with “Silver Side,” the bands 2003 release, many imitators have sprung up. Although these bands are not directly ripping into Nickelback, they are clearly, and without a question copying the style. Everything from the guitars to the vocals is eerily similar to the original band. Ironically there have been quite a few instances where others have succeeded. My question is why? All though groups such as Daughtry and Theory of a Deadman sound close to if not exactly the same as Nickelback, what separates them? The genre of hard-country is dominated by songwriting. The only bands that reach even modest fame, are those that write a few killer singles to accompany mediocre albums. [...] Continue...
The Best of the Up and Coming’s

By Harris posted February 21, 2009 at 12:44

Stemming from my home state of New York, Paging Grace is a brand new contemporary rock from Long Island. They combine really strong epic vocals, with a melodic blend of instrumentation. Listening to their EP, “All You’re Made Of,” it is clear that the sound for this band is present, and the songwriting in general is solid. In a similar to style to The Fray or One Republic, Paging grace is lead by lead singer Chris Trent, who also plays piano on stage. Chris is able to sing with the same grace on the recordings that he does on stage. The best song on the LP for me is the title track, “All You’re Made Of,” with many of the other songs falling short of this great rock anthem. During the live performance, I was also drawn to this song, but a cover of Matchbox 20’s “How Far We’ve Come,” [...] Continue...
And The Oscar Goes To…

By Harris posted February 20, 2009 at 16:49

Although this is the Truth About Music, I do consider myself a movie buff. I have an extensive DVD collection and try to see as many movies I can. In this light here are my 2009 Oscar predictions: Best PictureThe Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonFrost/NixonMilkThe ReaderSlumdog Millionaire Best DirectorThe Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonFrost/NixonMilkThe ReaderSlumdog Millionaire Leading ActorRichard Jenkins in “The Visitor”Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon”Sean Penn in “Milk”Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” Leading ActressAnne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married”Angelina Jolie in “Changeling”Melissa Lea in “Frozen River”Meryl Streep in “Doubt”Kate Winslet in “The Reader” Supporting ActorJosh Brolin in “Milk”Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder”Heath Leadger in “The Dark Knight”Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road”Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” Supporting ActressAmy Adams in “Doubt”Penelope Cruz in “Vicky Christina Barcelona”Viola Davis in “Doubt”Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” [...] Continue...