The Truth About Music

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

New Music to Fill Your iPod (or Zune)

By Harris posted March 31, 2009 at 09:16

Let’s be real, no one actually owns a Zune but either way a few special people have been asking for a guide to new music. Although The Truth About Music goes into extensive detail about a lot of new music some people just want to know what to listen to and I’m here for you. The following is a quick list of some of the best new music I’ve put on my computer in the last few months, enjoy. AnarborLatest Album: Free Your MindFor people who like: Fall Out Boy or Cute is What We Aim For“The lack of overproduction is something that is generally avoided by others in the genre such as Cute Is What We Aim For or Fall Out Boy. The vocal stylings of lead singer Slade Echeverriea are much more in line with these bands however.” For More Check Out ‘Anarbor Attempting to Re-Write the Book [...] Continue...
Crazyness in the Form of Two Polls!!

By Harris posted March 30, 2009 at 22:46

I know what your asking yourself right now. Are their really two polls up at the same time? Well kids, the answer is yes. I have overlapped my polls because I really want to know what you think about some key topics. The older of the polls is now located 2nd on the page and is in regards to the pending Blink 182 tour. The other, located right at the top of the page is in reference to Green Day and their impending move to the theatrical stage which you can read about by clicking here. As always, thanks so much for supporting The Truth About Music and if you have some free time, tell some friends about us. Continue...
Here Come The Boo’s: Green Day’s Latest Move

By Harris posted March 30, 2009 at 13:20

Despite the fact that the words “sell out,” are no longer allowed on The Truth About Music because of section 3.6 of the Truth Constitution, I have decided to report on some news that will probably get a trio of pop punk legends in some dire trouble with their die hards. Green Day has given the thumbs up to a theatrical version of their rock opera “American Idiot,” the multi-platinum 2004 release. As the New York Times first reported, the play will be directed by Michael Mayer who won the Tony Award as the director of “Spring Awakening.” Billie Joe Armstrong always said that it was his dream for this rock opera to make it to the stage in a similar manner to The Who’s “Tommy,” did over 30 years ago. The Truth About Music is never here to simply report this news but comment on what it means to [...] Continue...
Is Ben Folds the Greatest Performer of Our Generation?

By Harris posted March 29, 2009 at 11:36

Greatness comes around once in a while and when it enters your presence you just know. My question after seeing Ben Folds and his band for the second time last night, is he the greatest performer of our generation? Of course you have the greatest performers of our parents generation who would include Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and Michael Jackson but who fills that void for us? I think he might be the answer. Opening the show with a mix of “real” and “fake” songs (for an explanation of “real” and “fake” read “Ben Folds: Rockin the City, and the Suburbs)” from his latest album “Way to Normal,” he quickly moved the show through a fast paced look at the last 15 years of music. During all of it, Ben always remains cool onstage, explaining his songwriting process, how he achieves certain sounds, all with a little humor. Ironically enough [...] Continue...
The All American Rejects, Reject Album

By Harris posted March 28, 2009 at 00:33

Following up a truly great album is hard for any band. We will found out later this spring how Green Day will follow their biggest release to date and we already know that bands such as The Killers and Maroon 5 have been unable to match the success of their breakout albums. The All American Rejects released their first major album (2nd album overall) in 2005. The album went on to have great success, yielding three amazing singles which helped the album go double platinum (2 million+) in the United States and reach #6 on the Billboard 200. Album number three from the band came out in late 2008 and was met with very mixed reviews. You can read my full review of the album from December by clicking here. I thought the album was mediocre at best and continued the legacy of having good singles but a lack of [...] Continue...
Music Business Theory 1.2

By Harris posted March 27, 2009 at 02:10

In case you were wondering, music business 1.1 was an article about Axl Rose and his lack of publicity following the release of Chinese Democracy. That lesson has been a hard one to deal with for Axl and although this new theory deals with the music end rather than the business end, it should hold true. Listening to a band for the first team brings about all different emotions. Your gut reaction might be “these guys are tight,” or “this is terrible,” or “what an awesome solo,” but through and through this is your first impression and will generally help you make decisions about future purchases related to the music. For some bands the centerpiece is a guitarist (AC/DC), others have an incredible lead singer (Journey) and for others still the thrill is in an entire package (Led Zeppelin). For this theorem I am going to focus on the lead [...] Continue...
Harris’ Song of the Week: Shakin’ In My Shoes by Van Atta High

By Harris posted March 26, 2009 at 09:45

Stemming from New Jersey is nothing new in the music world. It seems that every band and their mother are from the nuclear waste dump of the country, it must be all those toxic fumes producing some really fucked up lyrics. This past week a new gem may have emerged from among the piles of toxic garbage and that band is Van Atta High. Despite this bands apparent inability to retain members (4 of 5 are new to this record) they seem to have a feel for writing solid songs and have dominated their home state. With a national distribution deal now in place the band could be ready to take the big national step. Their latest album titled “Doin’ Something Right,” is now in stores and definitely worth a listen if your into the combination of whiny voices and poppy choruses. My favorite song on the album is my [...] Continue...
Pictures: Dropkick Murphy’s by Popular Demand

By Harris posted March 24, 2009 at 23:20

Last night the Dropkick Murphy’s rocked Webster Theater in downtown Hartford. The venue was filled to capacity and the electricity in the air was really increddible. Rarely does a band take over a city the way these guys did. Even for someone not familiar with the majority of their music, I can with out a doubt say that they put on one hell of a show. Here are some pictures from it: Continue...
Finally Back in the Swing of Things

By Harris posted March 23, 2009 at 15:48

Hey everyone, it has been way to long since I sat down to write on a consistent basis. Now that I am back in Hartford, and not in New York, my life should allow for some more articles. Although my birthday was over the past week and I was thrown a surprise party the biggest shock of my weekend occurred while listening to satellite radio. Being all about pop music, my Sirius is always set to Hits 1, their top 40 station. Occasionally they run (play) a feature called who’s next, which is essentially what the next big songs will be and it features artists who’s careers are about to explode. To my happy surprise I heard not one but two artists that I had interviewed and written about in the past few months. This is sort of like critiquing art when it first comes out, and then the painting [...] Continue...
Spring Break

By Harris posted March 20, 2009 at 01:10

So, although I have had a lot of spare time over spring break, my time has not been spent blogging or writing in general. I do apologize for this and will be back to more full time writing in the coming days. In the mean time I wanted to let you know what I have been listening too. The Urgency is a band that has been around for a few years and is set to release their newest album at the end of April. This album is incredible and I will be reviewing it in the coming weeks. If you get a chance check out their Myspace. Also, with all the talk these days about twitter, I wanted to know what you thought of the trendy site. Please answer the poll and use this time to check out some older articles and leave some comments. Thanks again for all of [...] Continue...