The Foo Fighters should rename themselves The Old Standbys. No band produces as consistently at a decently high level. Dave Grohl and company can’t be accused of not doing their part to keep rock and roll alive. For a quarter century, they’ve waved the flag of uncomplicated guitar rock,…

It’s usually too much to ask for: a legitimately good new chunk of music standing on merit alone from the guy who could’ve retired 40 years ago and still been called the world’s greatest living songwriter today. Paul McCartney is 78 years old. He doesn’t have to make records anymore.…

We decided not to show you Mark Wahlberg’s most famous photograph from back in the day, because it makes us feel insecure. I’m sorry I have to be the one to tell you this, but you’re old. You’re so, so very old. For example Friends is making a nostalgia-fueled…

R.E.M’s ‘Monster’ is getting the 25th anniversary deluxe tissue treatment this week. In the early ’90s, R.E.M. was like our furry, little emotional support animal. The erudite alt-rock band from Athens, Georgia burst into the mainstream of American music with their jangly 1992 release, Automatic for the People. The…

Last week I finished the yearlong journey through the last half-century of music. It was quite the project; 52 weekly columns each taking on a year and culminating in the best five songs of 2018. Then RIFF’s editor, Roman, asked when I’d have this week’s column in. So… I…

You know how the music you liked as a teenager sticks with you, and you remain a fan for life? Those songs take you back to a simpler time when you were discovering your tastes and personality, separate from your parents,’ for the first time. What I’m saying is…

Photo: Che Holts Usually this column is the top five songs of each year. Sometimes, in an especially good year, I bend that and make it the top 10. This week has nine. The reasons for this are threefold: First, the longlist has 23 songs on it and that’s…

We’ve reached 1991 on our quest to list the best five (or more!) songs released each year. And guess what—1991 is one of the best years in modern music. Between Metallica’s eponymous black album and Nirvana’s groundbreaking Nevermind, that was two spots right off the top. And neither of the other…

Baby Nirvana Good news! We’ve made it to the ’90s in RIFF Rewind. OK, yeah, it’s still technically 1989. But any list that includes Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails and Faith No More’s “Epic” is basically the ’90s, right? In fact, I was surprised by the latter two of those…

The Sonics, Courtesy. Do you know The Sonics? How about Nirvana? The Cramps? Pearl Jam? The White Stripes? All of those other artists know the Sonics and would likely not exist if it were not for their influence. The seminal, and possibly first, garage band has returned from a…