Fans of early Queen will flip for Live at the Rainbow ’74

By Steve Newton I f***in' love early Queen. That crazy guitar tone Brian May had on the band's self-titled 1973 debut album was unlike anything I'd ever heard before. It kinda freaked me out, in a wonderful way. The fantasy elements and heavy prog stylings of the 1974 Queen 2 concept album also won me over big time, and … Continue reading Fans of early Queen will flip for Live at the Rainbow ’74

That wild ’70s weekend when Kiss brought the glam and the Pistols brought the punk

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 5, 1996 By Steve Newton The Rocket really nailed it. The Seattle music paper’s latest cover sports hilarious caricatures of Kiss’s Gene Simmons and the Sex Pistols’ Johnny “Rotten” Lydon, under the headline “Geezers of Rock”. A prune-faced Lydon is depicted with bloodshot eyes, slobbering all over himself, wearing a button … Continue reading That wild ’70s weekend when Kiss brought the glam and the Pistols brought the punk

Steve Earle on jail, addiction, execution, and other lighthearted topics

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 8, 1996 By Steve Newton So I’m sitting there by my phone, sipping a coldie and patiently waiting for Steve Earle to call. His manager has set up the “phoner” himself and guaranteed me that Earle will call from Dallas after his Lollapalooza gig. I’m raring to find out how his … Continue reading Steve Earle on jail, addiction, execution, and other lighthearted topics

A cringe-inducing Ozzy cashes in on the genius of riff-master Tony Iommi in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, AUG. 1, 1996 When Ozzy Osbourne called off his June GM Place show after two-and-a-half songs, the excuse given for his voice lapsing into a pathetic-sounding croak was first described by the concert promoter as a “vocal seizure”, and then by his record label as an “allergic attack”. But … Continue reading A cringe-inducing Ozzy cashes in on the genius of riff-master Tony Iommi in Vancouver

Ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist John Sykes on Blue Murder, Bob Rock, and the Little Mountain sound

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 16, 1989 By Steve Newton By now, most every rock fan in Vancouver must be aware that many of North America's best-selling bands--Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, and the Cult to name a few--have been making their latest chart-topping records right here in town. Little Mountain Sound on West 7th has been the … Continue reading Ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist John Sykes on Blue Murder, Bob Rock, and the Little Mountain sound

Even Limblifter has trouble topping the Odds’ power-pop at Foxfest ’96

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 25, 1996 By Steve Newton The folks at CFOX radio have been jubilantly claiming that “the Fox rocks!” for quite some time now, but as any Vancouverite with cable hooked up to their tuner can tell you, it’s really the stations out of Seattle that can rock you like a hurricane. … Continue reading Even Limblifter has trouble topping the Odds’ power-pop at Foxfest ’96

The Scorpions and Alice Cooper bring melodic ’70s-style hard-rock to Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 11, 1996 By Steve Newton It was such a scorcher last Sunday (July 7), I found it impossible to pull myself out of our plastic kids’ pool and get down to the Coliseum in time for the start of the Scorpions/Alice Cooper concert. I completely missed the 25-minute opening set by … Continue reading The Scorpions and Alice Cooper bring melodic ’70s-style hard-rock to Vancouver

Ozzy Osbourne suffers “asthma attack” onstage in Vancouver, stops show during third song

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 13, 1996 By Steve Newton Heavy-metal maven Ozzy Osbourne has overcome plenty of adversity during his more than 25 years in the hard-rock biz—from life-threatening bouts with booze and drugs to the airplane-crash death of guitarist Randy Rhoads—but he wasn’t able to prevail over the "asthma attack" that forced him to … Continue reading Ozzy Osbourne suffers “asthma attack” onstage in Vancouver, stops show during third song

One band ain’t enough for Limblifter and Age of Electric’s Ryan Dahle

After spending seven years in Age of Electric, brothers Ryan and Kurt Dahle still weren’t feeling fulfilled, so they started up another band.

The Refreshments chickened out from calling themselves Pop Enema

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 27, 1996 By Steve Newton When Arizona rockers the Refreshments were starting out, they would do most anything to get a crowd interested. They used to play gigs in shower caps, water wings, and senior’s sunglasses, and give away candies and chocolate milk to first dancers. Hey, you gotta go that … Continue reading The Refreshments chickened out from calling themselves Pop Enema

I Mother Earth guitarist Jagori Tanna pays tribute to Santana on new Scenery and Fish CD

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 23, 1996 By Steve Newton If you happened to walk into a house party while the last song on the new I Mother Earth CD was playing, you could be excused for taking a big swig of your beer, raising it in a toast, and proclaiming: “Man, that Carlos Santana can … Continue reading I Mother Earth guitarist Jagori Tanna pays tribute to Santana on new Scenery and Fish CD

Ontario’s Buffalo Brothers pay the price for that sweet Hammond B-3 sound

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 16, 1996 By Steve Newton The members of London, Ontario, rock quartet Buffalo Brothers come from all over the largest of the Canuck provinces. Drummer Glen Gamble grew up in Brantford, bassist Jeff Fountain hails from North Bay, keyboardist Michael Bonnell calls Sault Sainte Marie home, and singer-guitarist Shaun Sanders is … Continue reading Ontario’s Buffalo Brothers pay the price for that sweet Hammond B-3 sound