Background: Unlike the TV on DVD genre, concerts have really not been promoted all that much in the last ten years of the format's existence. The reasoning behind the lack of true marketing support is unclear but few concert experiences translate well to the small screen, albeit shows like Shakira from late last year have proven the exception. The music for so many concerts these days are either lip synched or horribly weak compared to the polished efforts of music CD releases and there are so few performers with enough stage presence to pull it off in a decent fashion that even a die hard music lover like me is not enamored with the genre but every once in awhile, a concert gets my interest, such as Olivia Newton-John and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: Live at the Sydney Opera House that came out a few months back. ...Read the entire review

The Product:
They are one of the truly original acts in all of rock and roll. Their music is more important to the modern sound of current pop culture than all the punk bands and rappers combined. They rebelled against the standard guitar/bass formula for founding a group, and instead, relied on electronics and synthesizers to satisfy their muse. The result is some of the most important, innovative noise in the entire lexicon of resonance. Still, they are seen as sort of an enigma, a hermetically sealed entity functioning within their own little Teutonic world. To this day, Germany's Kraftwerk remains one of the seminal acts of the rock era, and their lack of public presence has only made them more mysterious. So imagine the surprise of fans world...Read the entire review

"Woo-hoo!"
- The only Blur lyric most Americans know

For the uninitiated, Blur is, in the minds of many, the beginning of Brit-pop: A distinct genre that blends arena rock energy with heavy guitar distortion and an outsider mentality. The band has had one hit single with "Song 2," (best known for lead singer Damon Albarn yelling the aforementioned lyric at the top of the chorus) and one semi-hit with "Girls and Boys." In fact, Albarn may be best known here for his work as lead singer of the cartoon rock band the Gorillaz.

Starshaped is a documentary/"road movie" that follows the British band on tour at the beginning of its career (even before "Girls and Boys"), intercutting performance material with home movies of the band drinking, talking nonsense and, in one memorable scene, vomiting.

These types of "day in the life" are very difficult to review. The tour foot...Read the entire review

The Program

So there I was, 11 years old and on my way to computer camp, when...

...when I first heard Iron Maiden . This was during the summer of 1982, on the long-lamented K102 radio station in Miami, Florida, at or about 8:30 in the A.M., in a Checker sedan heading north on the Palmetto Expressway. I was a young but eager headbanger, having listened to my fill of Kiss, Van Halen, Judas Priest...Read the entire review

Movie: Music is one of the most subjective areas of entertainment to review. Some people enjoy the disco divas like Kylie Minogue, others the hard-hitting rockers like Pat Benatar, and still others the new age style of Berlin. Depending on how much you enjoy the particular artist, the specifics tend to matter less than in a general movie review so take the following with an extra large grain of salt. I obtained a copy of Sarah Brightman: Harem: A Desert Fantasy for review and found it interesting on a few levels, here's what I thought:

The show was a special made for television that was filmed all over the Middle East, including Egypt and Morocco. The DVD compliments the audio CD by providing a number of lush v...Read the entire review

The Videos

Music videos have become so ubiquitous that we take them for granted. We automatically assume that every song should and does have a video to accompany it. It could be argued that music videos have been around for nearly a century, as footage of bands performing songs has been captured on film and broadcast on TV for decades. But, it wasn't until the 1970s that the idea of making a little movie to go along with a song began to take hold. And, of course, it was in the 80s, with the advent of MTV that this idea began to become widely accepted.

One band which helped pave the way for this concept was the British pop group, Duran Duran. With their pin-up good looks and their penchant for vivid imagery, Duran Duran created a body of videos which not only helped to make music videos an accepted art form, but set the standard for years to come. The newly released DVD ...Read the entire review

Coldplay...you either love 'em or hate 'em, but they're popular enough to be in the music business for the long haul. Like all music artists who have achieved their level of international success, they've got a very sizeable and rabid fan base. Not everyone likes them, but it's safe to say that they're one of the most popular imports from the UK in recent memory. Their music isn't anything the world hasn't heard before…it's just good, catchy British rock. So far, they've released two studio albums: 2000's Parachutes and last year's A Rush Of Blood to the Head. Not wanting to sound like a record-shop snob, I can say with confidence that I liked their first album better. Still, that doesn't count for a lot here…both albums are fantastic releases, each with their own strengths.

With their new-found international ...Read the entire review

Movie: From the late 70's to the mid 80's, one siren ruled the airwaves above all others and her videos played constantly on MTV. That singer was, of course, Pat Benatar. Perhaps more than anyone in history other than Madonna, the new cable television network pushed her career to the peak of pop culture, making the diminutive singer an icon for hordes of fans. Her vocal abilities were vastly superior to the rest of the singers of the time (she was a trained opera singer) and the initial body stockings and leotards she wore during concerts didn't hurt either. In short, the combination of sound, visual appeal, and stellar production, backed by her band (including the lead guitarist who became her husband, Neil Giraldo), were exactly what MTV needed to grow into the mega-corporation it is today.

Over the course of the last 24 years, Ms. Benatar has released 26 videos and there have been a coupl...Read the entire review

The Movie:

Track listing: Cold Cold Heart, Nightingale, One Flight Down, Seven Years, Feelin' the Same Way, Come Love, Something Is Calling You, Come Away with Me, What Am I to You?, Painter Song, Lonestar, I've Got to See You Again, Bessie Smith, Don't Know Why.

This DVD features a performance from jazz artist Norah Jones (winner of five Grammy Awards this year) at the House of Blues in New Orleans in 2002.


The DVD

VIDEO: EMI presents this concert performance in 1.33:1 full-frame. After a shaky, hand-held opening, I'd feared the worst, but once the performance starts in, this turns out to be a terrific presentation. Sharpness and detail are terrific, as the picture offered great clarity and detail in both close-ups and long shots.

Flaws were minor, if slightly noticable at times. Some very minor shimmering appeared in a couple...Read the entire review

Tracks:1. A Little Less Conversation [JXL Radio Edit Remix]
2. Way Down
3. Burning Love
4. The Wonder Of You
5. Suspicious Minds
6. In The Ghetto
7. Crying In The Chapel
8. (You're The) Devil In Disguise
9. Return To Sender
10. She's Not You
11. Good Luck Charm
12. Can't Help Falling In Love
13. (Marie's The Name) His Latest Flame
14. Surrender
15. Wooden Heart
16. Are You Lonesome Tonight?
17. It's Now Or Never
18. Stuck On You
19. A Big Hunk O' Love
20. (Now And Then There's) A Fool Such As I
21. One Night
22. Hard Headed Woman
23. Don't
24. Jailhouse Rock
25. (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear
26. All Shook Up
27. Too Much
28. Love Me Tender
29. Hound Dog
30. Don't Be Cruel
31. Heartbreak Hotel

Bonus Tracks:
32. Burning Love [A:B Test]
33. Return to Sender [A:B Test]
34. (You're The) Devil In Dis...Read the entire review

Kylie Minogue is an Australian dance diva who started performing in 1987 with her remake of the song, The Locomotion. I vividly recall that infectiously fun tune as well as the video that lit up MTV for months on end. Kylie's success in the USA on later songs was mixed until her recent smash hit off the Fever album. Over the last 15 years, I've seen her go from the cute little girl next door to one of the sexiest babes making music. That she's also performed in a handful of movies, had some of the most energetic concert tours in the business, and started her own line of lingerie seems like icing on the cake. She is truly a renaissance woman compared to those who've followed in her footsteps.

The Movie

Kylie Fever 2002 is a concert film of this babe recorded in Manchester England which follows up last year's, Live in Sidney, with a bigger budget, more energy, and an even more outrageou...Read the entire review