Lily Allen performs at The Fox in Oakland on Oct. 8 2014. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. Lily Allen went from being a “buzz” artist to having some widely talked about public issues with alcohol, to “wardrobe malfunctions,” and was even accused of having some racist imagery in a song meant to…

Jimi Goodwin of Doves. Courtesy. Doves may have been inactive since 2009’s “Kingdom of Rust,” but multi-instrumentalist and singer Jimi Goodwin is back at it with his first solo album, “Odludek,” and “Oh! Whiskey” is like chicken soup. Actually, I don’t like chicken soup. Make that tomato soup on…

Yesterday I wrote about my opinions on recent film soundtracks. Well, here’s an outstanding song used for a Bonnie and Clyde miniseries on A&E. I’m a fan of how Nico Vega has been putting out great tunes under the radar, and this is certainly another one.

The National performs at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley on April 26, 2014. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. Don’t hate on me, but I’m into the whole “Hunger Games” thing. A friend dragged me to the first movie, and I thought it was all right; enough to get me to read the…

Eminem and Rihanna, “Monster.” Surprise! The first couple of new songs Eminem has released are (improbably) catchy. This one is bound to get radio airplay, similar to Eminem’s last collaboration with Rihanna. Note from future Roman: “You think?”

Rudimental, “Free.” Featuring Emeli Sandeeps and Nas. This Rudimental song has been out for a while, but the video is new. I like the dramatic extremes featured. Here’s some more info from Atlantic Records: “… video featuring inspirational extreme sports athlete Jokke Sommer, best known for pioneering flying in a…

Frankie Rose, courtesy. Frankie Rose wasn’t on my radar until “Street of Dreams.” This song isn’t just ’80s-influenced, it could easily be from that decade. Can you hear the similarity to Aha’s “Take On Me” or the bass from Billy Idol’s “White Wedding?”

Ha Ha Tonka performs at The Fillmore in San Francisco on March 24, 2017. Alessio Neri/STAFF. Ha Ha Tonka, the Missouri southern indie rock quartet, is back with its fourth album, “Lessons,” and judging from the lead single, it’s another upbeat, mandolin-soloing effort. The album was inspired by the…

White Lies. Ever wonder what a child of Depeche Mode would sound like? Or if the Editors decided to speed things up a bit? Or if the National got synthy? White Lies’ third album, “Big TV,” (in stores Aug. 20 on Harvest Records) is a smorgasbord of appealing touches…

CHVRCHES perform at the Fox Theater in Oakland on April 18, 2016. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. How does a band I do not particularly care for endear itself to me? By covering a song from a band I do particularly like, of course! The cover of a Haim song by CHVRCHES…