Mark Ronson is a sought-after turntablist who’s worked with such diverse artists as Macy Gray, Jay-Z, and comedian Jimmy Fallon. The stepson of guitarist Mick Jones of Foreigner, Ronson spent the first eight years of his life growing up in England. Having played guitar and drums from an early age, it wasn’t until moving to New York City with his
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The Swedish indie pop artist Lykke Li Zachrisson (better known as Lykke Li) grabbed the attention of international bloggers in the early 2000s with a handful of catchy, retro-chic singles made available on her MySpace profile. Armed with sensuous, barely there vocals and backed up by a quirky, bass-heavy, electro dance sound (courtesy of producer Björn
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There may have been other “retro” rock acts before him, but Lenny Kravitz was one of the first to not be pigeonholed to a single style as he touched upon such genres as soul, funk, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, folk, and ballads over the years. Born in New York on May 26, 1964 (his mother
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LCD Soundsystem debuted with Losing My Edge, a single that became one of the most talked-about indie releases of 2002. A self-effacing spoof of the outrageous pissing contests that often occur whenever music geeks cross paths (“I was there at the first Can show in Cologne,” etc.) laid over a puttering electronic beat with the occasional bursts
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Meaning “red-haired one” in French, La Roux is the synth pop project of flame-haired singer/songwriter Elly Jackson and keyboardist/producer Ben Langmaid. Before they collaborated,Jackson, the daughter of actress Trudie Goodwin, grew up listening to folk artists and singer/songwriters like Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell, and drew inspiration from their sounds for her early music. However, Jackson‘s style changed as she got
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Buzzy glam rock fashion plates Ladytron came together in a jet-set miracle in mid-1998. Daniel Hunt and Reuben Wu, who lurk in the background playing rhythm boxes and keyboards in the band, settled in Liverpool after a spate of DJ work in Japan and world travel, including a train trip in Bulgaria where they met vocalist Mira Aroyo.Helena
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Soon after the New Zealand band Two Lane Blacktop (named after theMonte Hellman movie) broke up in 2003, guitarist/vocalist Pip Brown moved to Sydney, Australia. She worked with several bands in the area, including Teenager and Pnau, before launching her own act in 2006. Adopting the name Ladyhawke (named after the Richard Donner movie), she handled instrumental duties herself and
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During the mid-’70s, Germany’s Kraftwerk established the sonic blueprint followed by an extraordinary number of artists in the decades to come. From the British new romantic movement to hip-hop to techno, the group’s self-described “robot pop” — hypnotically minimal, obliquely rhythmic music performed solely via electronic means — resonates in virtually every new development to
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In the span of three short years, Kanye West went from hip-hop beatmaker to worldwide hitmaker, as his stellar production work forJay-Z led to a major-label recording contract and, ultimately, a wildly successful solo career. West paired his beats with tongue-twisting raps and a self-assured, flamboyant personality. His dapper fashion sense set him apart from
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Kasabian took the British press by storm in the early 2000s by mixing traces of the Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, and Primal Scream with Oasis-sized confidence and DJ Shadow-influenced electronics. Named after Linda Kasabian, Charles Manson‘s getaway driver turned state witness, the Leicester-based group also stole a page from the Bandby moving into a remote farmhouse to brew its music. Communal life
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When Tears for Fears sang “Kick out the Style/Bring back the Jam” in “Sowing the Seeds of Love,” one can imagine the lads in Kaiser Chiefs raising their mugs of ale in agreement. Comprised of vocalist Ricky Wilson, guitarist Andrew White, bassist Simon Rix, keyboardist Nick Baines, and drummer Nick Hodgson, Kaiser Chiefs resurrected the mod spirit of the Jam in “I
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12th Aug 2010
