Weekly Spin
.jpg) When you think of one of the biggest influential bands to hit the rock scene that has inspired artists such as David Bowie, Hendrix, Cream, and Bono, the obvious answer is The Who. From guitar smashing to roaring lyrics, the infamous (half of) the band is back after 24 years with their new album “Endless Wire.”
Die hard fans have been waiting. They are undoubtedly ecstatic. But they’re also probably thinking whether or not The Who they knew is still as good as it once was. The two remaining members of the original band, guitarist/song writer Pete Townsend and front man Roger Daltery have made a comeback evoking the memorable sound and philosophical lyrics the band once produced decades ago. But the ultimate question is: do the two still have what it takes to make The Who?
Saturday Night Rating: 3.5/5 stars (Universal; 2006) |
 Post-hardcore/emo stalwarts Thursday are currently on tour with Rise Against, Billy Talent and Circa Survive. The band released their second album on Island records (City by the Light Divided) this year, marking the band's fourth album total and their most varied and powerful effort to date. We caught up with Andrew Everding (keyboards) and Tucker Rule (drums) of Thursday on November 3rd at the Wiltern... |
Weekly Spin
 Warning: if you don’t like insanely catchy rock songs getting stuck in the recesses of your mind, be wary of The Kooks’ “Inside In / Inside Out.” You know you’re listening to a great song when you can’t get it out of your head no matter how hard you try. “Do you want to see the world? Do you want to see the world? Do you want to see the world in a different way?” Yup. It’s so good it’s driving me crazy. The album is loaded with said tunes including, “See the World,” “Eddie’s Gun,” and “You Don’t Love Me.”
Saturday Night Rating: 4/5 stars (EMI; 2006)
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Review of the Week:
(Lewis Hollow; 2006)
Saturday Night Rating: 4.5/5 stars |
Review of the Week:
(Saddle Creek; 2006)
Saturday Night Rating: 4/5 stars |
Review of the Week:
(Sub Pop Records; 2006)
Saturday Night Rating: 4/5 stars
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Mountain View, CA
Just days prior, I had dreams of a 2006 version of Seurat’s Sunday Afternoon on the Grande Jatte, with a huge stage replacing the lake, skinny jeans instead of those skirts with the big butts, and images of my friends pastel and pixilated. I imagined a gorgeous summer afternoon slowly turning into evening to the sounds of some of my favorite bands, and I really couldn’t think of any place I would rather be. Beck, Muse, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were just a few of the bands playing at the Download Festival at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View last weekend, and I’m sure they alone would have been enough to fill the numerous seats and the massive lawn with all their devoted fans. |
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A Super Massive Success Story... Need a favor from your friends at Saturday Night Magazine? You got it! We’re going to dispense with the clichéd pleasantry of making a Muse joke or play-on-words, such as “Random Muse-ings” or “An a-Muse-ing Read.” Instead, we’re getting down, dirty and into the goods right off the bat with Muse’s bassist. |
 In the heat of battle, many a man once screamed to show now mercy! But in the heat of the moment of a magical tune, such a saying really has no credence, especially if the said song is one of the new tunes from Mercy Fall, single handedly one of the hottest bands currently touring all over these great United States. We at Saturday Night Magazine recently sat down with Mercy Falls lead songwriter for a long and lengthy talk about life, love and pizza delivery. |
Exclusive Interview
Before it became an aesthetic for the hipsters and a marketing tool for the labels, the phrase “indie rock” actually meant something: independent rock. Built to Spill are hailed as godfathers of a scene led by Death Cab and Modest Mouse, but they occupy a space all their own. Talking with singer Doug Martsch, it’s clear that Built to Spill continue to set the standard for independent rock, and this should be no surprise, since they’ve always set the bar on their own terms. |
Exclusive Interview
Bands associated with the word “emo” get a lot of shit—so much shit that at times, I almost feel sorry for them. The word brings to mind the worst self-pitying, woe-is-me outlook on life, severely cloying in its narcissism—it really makes me want to cry sometimes. Taking Back Sunday might get some drubbing from their many detractors, but it certainly doesn’t faze them. |
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No bluffs about it, the SNMag poker tournament went all in!
On November 1, working closely in conjunction with the card sharks at Absolute Poker, SNMag hosted the “Wednesday Night Showdown,” a free online poker tournament pitting 624 participants from all over the state against each other. The top ten players were lucky enough to receive a free seat (worth $225) at the AP $100,000 Guarantee Weekly Poker Tournament. The top five, in addition to the free tournament entry, were deemed especially lethal and received cash prizes.
5th Place: $100 cash prize
Selina Norton
“The funny thing about this is my husband has been playing for a long time and he wanted to win this tournament really bad, but he came up short (24th) and I won. Now I have bragging rights over him.”
4th Place: $200 cash prize
Michael Vitorino
“I think of strategies while I work out at the gym. This tournament gained me entry to the 100k tournament, and I came 32nd, winning $500.”
3rd Place: $350 cash prize
Max Chang
“This was my first online poker tournament. My friends Sahil Amoli and Chris Barker helped train me for the tournament.”
2nd Place: $500 cash prize
Dan Bunce
“I hold the fifth highest shot in the state bowling tournament.”
1st Place: $1,000 cash prize
Adam Schaffer
“I play a lot of poker on Absolute Poker and I am a big Cleveland Cavs, Indians and Browns fan, as well as the Buckeyes!”
Interested in being apart of the SNMag’s next tournament? Then keep yours eyes glued to our website (www.snmag.com) for our poker extravaganza, to be announced online sometime soon!
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 The comic masterminds of Broken Lizard fill a frosty mug full of Beerfest! On August 25, Broken Lizard, the comedy troupe quintet behind Supertroopers, will unite the world by combining two universal pastimes: the Olympics and beer. Beerfest tells the story of two brothers who travel to Munich to pay respects to their late grandfather. Naturally, they stumble into a secretive underground beer-drinking competition and form the first national American beer drinking team to try to take the gold. We sat down with the Broken Lizard boys to ask them all about beer, college and beer.
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 With a superiority complex and a lot of hot women in his bed...
Aaron Eckhart, who enjoyed recent success with Thank You for Smoking, talks to us about his recent ‘endeavors’ with Helena Bonham Carter in Conversations with Other Women and his upcoming feature based on the novel by James Elroy, The Black Dahlia. |
 The NHL in LA has been shaky for the past few years, to say the least. But the future is starting to get a lot brighter for our beleaguered hometown hockey players. Change after change after change is leading to some new terrain for the team. The coaches and players are ready for battle. In short, the Kings are back. Of course, what would you expect with such a roster of wide-eyed fresh faces? Saturday Night Magazine takes you all access. |
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