Icon Fetch

David Lanz spent the last few years immersed in the music of the Beatles – first, with 2010’s Liverpool: Re-Imagining the Beatles, and then it’s followup, Here Comes the Sun from earlier this year. Now, he’s chosen to revisit his most-famous work, 1988’s Cristofori’s Dream. The original album put Lanz on the map, and helped breathe life into the budding New Age genre. For this anniversary project,...

Renaissance formed out of the same Yardbirds’ ashes that sent Jimmy Page to form Led Zeppelin. After several lineup changes, the band developed a reputation as one of the finest progressive rock bands of the Seventies. After breaking up in the Eighties, the band reformed back in 2009 with a new lineup – still fronted by vocalist Annie Haslam and guitarist Michael Dunford. They’ve just released a t...

Hayley Reardon has been writing songs since the age of eleven. She’s already released two EPs of her own music, shared the stage with music legends like Tom Rush, and partnered with anti-bullying organizations like Pacer.org. Now at 16, she just issued her first full-length album, an entire disc of her own music called Where the Artists Go. Tony Peters talks with the singer/songwriter about trying...

Power pop legends Shoes have released their first new album in 18 years called Ignition. It’s their best album yet, full of melodic hooks that will make you wanna crank your volume knob up to eleven. In addition, the guys recently helped compile 35 Years – The Definitive Shoes Collection, their first-ever career-spanning best of. If that weren’t enough, Mary E. Donnelly, a devoted fan of the band,...

Singer Barbara Carr has had a long and interesting career, which began when she signed with the legendary Chess label in 1966, recording singles like “Don’t Knock Love.” But, when her career didn’t take off right away – she walked away to raise a family. But, the music called her back. She and her husband formed their own record label and began releasing albums on her own. A contract with Echo Rec...

Kevn Kinney formed Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ in 1985 in Atlanta, scoring several college radio hits including “Honeysuckle Blue,” and “Power House.” Then came their breakthrough album, Fly Me Courageous in 1991 – the album scored three rock radio hits including the searing title track. Kinney has also led a solo career, recording the excellent Macdougal Blues in 1990. Drivin’ N’ Cryin’’s last studio effor...

Phil Alvin died – twice – while on tour in Spain. Complications from an abscessed tooth put him in a hospital in Valencia, where he flatlined and had to be shocked back to life two times. In typical rock n’ roll fashion, when he finally woke up – he felt perfectly fine. Phil’s band, The Blasters, have their first new record in seven years out called Fun on a Saturday Night. We talk life, death, an...

The British band Incognito has just released their 15th album, Surreal – a mix old school soul, funk, and jazz, with just enough modern-day elements to keep you guessing. Featuring four of the biggest and brightest vocalists from the UK, and fueled by the core band, led by guitarist Bluey Maunick – Incognito recalls a time when R&B bands played with live musicians, whipping their audience into a f...

Harry Shearer stormed his way into rock n’ roll infamy as bassist Derek Smalls in the rockumentary This is Spinal Tap. He’s also been a recurring voice on the longest-running animated series, The Simpsons, hosted the weekly-syndicated radio program, Le Show, and starred in such films as The Mighty Wind. His recordings have been twice nominated for Grammys for 2007’s Songs of the Pointed and the Po...

Edgar Winter wrote one of the greatest instrumentals in all of rock in “Frankenstein.” He’s back out on the road as part of the Classic Rock n’ Blues Tour, which also features his brother, Johnny Winter, along with Rick Derringer, Leslie West of Mountain, and Kim Simmonds of Savoy Brown. Icon Fetch sits down with the multi-talented younger brother to find out why he never picked up the guitar (but...

Beatles’ expert Robert Rodriguez’s latest book, Revolver: How the Beatles Reimagined Rock n’ Roll, delves into the classic album, which always seems to play second fiddle to the record that followed it, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. In addition to covering the writing and recording process, he delves into the band’s decision to stop touring, and the controversy surrounding John Lennon’s c...

Joe Deninzon has been called the Jimi Hendrix of the electric violin, and is the world’s expert on alternative violin technique. He’s just released a book through Mel Bay called Plugging In – A Guide to Gear and New Techniques for the 21st Century Violinist. Joe’s band Stratospheerius also has a new record out – their first in five years called The Next World. A blend of progressive rock, metal, j...

Omar Dykes is celebrating 50 years in the music business with the release of a brand new album, his first with his band, the Howlers in eight years, I’m Gone. We talk with the blues survivor about hooking back up with many of the musicians that’ve played with him over the years, his unique recording technique (no rehearsing allowed!), and the release of his first-ever career retrospective, Omar &...

Sam Phillips has released eight critically-acclaimed studio records, she’s scored the music for the Gilmore Girls TV series, and she acted alongside Bruce Willis in Die Hard With a Vengeance. But, of all the great work she’s put out, many people continue to gravitate toward her 1994 album Martinis & Bikinis, which earned a Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Performance. Produced by then-husban...

The Last Summer on Earth tour, featuring four of the best bands to emerge from the Nineties, is coming to a city near you. Featuring Barenaked Ladies, Blues Traveler, Big Head Todd & the Monsters, and Cracker, the tour is sure to be a highlight of the summer concert series. Icon Fetch talks with Chan Kinchla, guitarist for Blues Traveler, about the bands on the tour, the release of their brand new...

Dave Alvin’s 30-plus year career has had a lot of twists and turns. He helped form roots rock pioneers the Blasters with his brother Phil, he joined the punk band X near the end of their existence, and has led an acclaimed solo career. Many of his songs have become hits for other people, most notably “Long White Cadillac,” later a hit for Dwight Yoakam. In 2011, Alvin released Eleven Eleven, which...

Steve Barton helped lead the San Francisco band Translator to such underground hits as “Everywhere That I’m Not,” and “Come With Me,” before calling it quits near the end of the Eighties. He’s since gone on to release several solo albums. His latest, Projector, is his most personal – Barton sings and plays all the instruments on the record, which deals in large part with the recent passing of his...

The dB’s released four critically-acclaimed albums throughout the Eighties, jam packed with melodic hooks. But for some strange reason, the band never achieved the commercial success they deserved, breaking up near the end of the decade. Then, a funny thing happened – word began to spread about how good those albums really were, and they started fetching high bids on Ebay. To meet the demand, Coll...

Dance sensation Natalie Nylon has quite a diverse background – she studied classical and music theater at a young age. Then, as a teen, she sang and played bass in a punk band before moving from her Pennsylvania home to the bright lights of LA. Nylon began experimenting with synthesizers, hooking up with producer Miko – the result was several singles that topped the European dance charts. Nylon is...

Lukas Nelson, the son of country music legend Willie Nelson, is stepping out of the shadow of his famous father, due in large part to his energetic live shows. His band, Promise of the Real, rocked over 200 dates in 2011 alone. They’ve shared the stage with the likes of Dave Matthews and B.B. King. Despite the incessant touring, Nelson found time to write and record the band’s second full-length,...

Cassidy led the all-female band Antigone Rising for eight years, receiving critical acclaim and developing a rabid fanbase. But, she left the band after their major label debut. Now, she’s returned with a new name – Boheme – and a brand new album, Follow the Freedom, which showcases her soulful vocals and melodic songwriting. She’s also got help on one of the tracks from none other than the reclus...

Bassist Mike Watt stormed out of San Pedro, California in the early 1980’s with the influential punk power trio the Minutemen; blending elements of funk, jazz and classic rock into the hardcore scene. The tragic death of his close friend and bandmate, D. Boon, put an end to that great band and sent Watt into depression. Eventually, he re-emerged with the help of Sonic Youth, playing on several of...

Scissormen take blues back to its raw basics: guitar and drums. Yet, it’s amazing how much intensity the band brings in its live show. It doesn’t hurt that singer Ted Drozdowski is one hell of a fantastic slide guitarist, who’s been known to stroll whatever room will have them, standing on tables to reel off another searing solo. The band has just issued a CD / DVD combo called Big Shoes: Walking...

Richard Meltzer was one of the first rock critics, penning the first full-length book on the subject, “The Aesthetics of Rock,” in 1970, while reveling in much of he excesses of the day. He wrote for many of the seminal magazines, including the Village Voice, Crawdaddy, Creem and Rolling Stone. He also had a long association with Blue Oyster Cult, co-writing several songs, including “Burning For Y...

Dave Getz is the drummer for one of the most important bands of the Sixties’ San Francisco music scene, Big Brother and the Holding Company. Their album, Cheap Thrills, recorded with Janis Joplin, stands as one of the finest examples of psychedelic rock, and still sounds fresh today. Sony / Legacy has just issued Live at the Carousel Ballroom 1968, a vintage recording of the classic lineup, just a...