A True Fairy Tale
The story of
Jobriath — the openly gay ‘70s glam artist who called himself rock’s first “True Fairy” — is a tale told in reverse. Born Bruce Wayne Campbell, the Philadelphia native was a beautiful swan treated by the biz as an ugly duckling.
Manager Jerry Brandt — the evil stepmother in this narrative — overhyped his protégé, calling him the next Elvis, the next Beatles;
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Secret Weapons
Cabaret/drag artist Joey Arias — currently starring Off-Broadway in Arias with a Twist
— takes over today’s Modern Tonic to rave about Semi Precious Weapons’ new album, We Love You.
Every once in a while you come across a record that you connect with almost immediately.
We Love You barges right out of the gate, like “This is Semi Precious Weapons!” Listening to it reminds me
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In the Belly of the Whale
Like Noah Baumbach’s
The Squid and the Whale — the 2005 film that inspired its name —
Noah and the Whale work some tunes that are equal parts bitter and sweet.
The British folk-rockers showcase lead singer Charlie Fink’s manic-depressive approach to a tune on their debut,
Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down (out today). Bright arrangements balance weighty narratives as catchy
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A Winning Bette
Bette Midler’s new compilation album,
Jackpot! The Best Bette, is a mad pu-pu platter of songs that have taken the pop icon from her born-in-a-bathhouse beginnings in the 1970s through her sticky-sweet Disney movie comedies (and, yes,
Beaches), all the way to her current gig as a reigning deity — alongside fellow queens Cher and Elton John — on pop culture’s Mount Olympus,
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Down to Earth Angel
If the title of her sophomore release‚
Down to Earth (out Tuesday)‚ doesn't spell it out for you‚ this lyric will make it clear that
Jem is no diva: “Becoming a bitch is not what I got into music for.”
The Welsh-born L.A. habitué doesn't front with her music. The 12 sumptuous tracks of her follow-up to the international hit
Finally Woken meld funky banjos to an early-70’
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Go West
Who’d expect trip-hop's depressed dandy to kick-start an album with a blues song called "Puppy Toy?" Or for it to swing like Sinatra in Vegas? That’s exactly what
Tricky does on
Knowle West Boy, named for the dreary Bristol, England housing project where he grew up.
Could trip-hop’s greatest architect be ready, at 40, for good times? Oh, he's still a dark, contrary mother:
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