Most Popular
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For women in Iraq, the terrorist could be the guy working beside you
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Why did Judge Linda Teodosio fire a model detention officer?
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How do you pass No Child Left Behind . . . when you don’t speak English?
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It took one drunken punch outside a Lakewood bar to end Matt Hockey’s life
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The Kickdrums may be hip-hop’s next big beatmakers. And they work out of a closet in Avon
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Why did Judge Linda Teodosio fire a model detention officer? (5)
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It took one drunken punch outside a Lakewood bar to end Matt Hockey’s life (4)
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Capsule reviews of current area theater presentations. (3)
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Education at Its Worst (83)
Confessions of a White Hat cubicle farmer
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For women in Iraq, the terrorist could be the guy working beside you (3)
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A mystical shaman, returning bandmates, and grinding riffs renew thrash kings Testament
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Feist has sung with a lot of Canadians. Unfortunately, she missed out on these classics.
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While Trent Reznor broods, Saul Williams celebrates a musical experiment
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Ministry calls it quits. But it has one more tour to get through first
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Singer-songwriter Chris Allen grows up on new CD by turning up the volume
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Last Night in Cleveland: The Black Keys
09:32AM 05/08/08 -
Restaurant of the Weekend: Trip out at Tommy’s on Mother’s Day
08:45AM 05/08/08 -
Cavs-Celtics: You can only hope to contain Boston's go-to extra-terrestrial
07:45AM 05/08/08 -
$13 at ... Saucy Bistro
07:12AM 05/08/08 -
Cleveland Clinic offers free yoga to soothe the embittered nurse
05:23AM 05/08/08
What we are writing about
- alt-country
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Recent Articles By Andrew Clayman
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Dead Meadow makes an L.A. record the classic rock way
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The New Pornographers try to keep a loaded roster on the same page
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Kimya Dawson
Friday, April 11, at the Grog Shop.
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Sun Kil Moon
April (Caldo Verde)
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Explosions in the Sky’s post-rock instrumentalists have no use for words
National Features
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The Pitch
We (Heart) Matt
The Shawnee Mission East class of '08 loves its gay homecoming king.
By Jen Chen -
Village Voice
The Cro-Mag Diaries
Remembering the brutal life and times of John "Bloodclot" Joseph, New York hardcore icon.
By Rob Harvilla -
Seattle Weekly
Being Gary Busey
Everybody thinks Jeff Swanson is somebody famous. And he does nothing to dissuade them of the notion.
By Aimee Curl
The Bad Plus
Tuesday, May 13, and Wednesday, May 14, at Nighttown, Cleveland Heights.
By Andrew Clayman
Published: May 7, 2008
With its flair for covering popular rock anthems, Minneapolis jazz trio the Bad Plus could easily be mistaken for gimmick peddlers. But while it's true that playing a Radiohead song will always get you some automatic crossover cred, the Bad Plus' take on "Karma Police" still beats the holy hell out of Christopher O'Riley's hot-selling new-age rendition. Pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson, and drummer David King have released four albums as the Bad Plus, each combining an elite, technical jazz prowess with freewheeling rock spirit. So a song like "Smells Like Teen Spirit" winds up sounding like a Miles Davis outtake, and Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" gets transported from an '80s dance hall to a smoky '50s jazz club. The familiarity of the tunes draws you in, but the way they're reimagined will make you forget you even know the originals. Oh, and just for good measure, the Bad Plus writes its own songs too. Sink your teeth into the big crescendo of "Lost of Love" from 2005's Suspicious Activity?, and wonder why Radiohead hasn't gotten around to covering it yet.
