Fuzzy Bits: February 26, 2006

Reader recap and response
For those of you who've posted comments, first and foremost let me thank you again, as I love getting feedback from readers. To respond to some of the comments I've been getting and also from friends that have frequented the site, I'd like to let you all know that each of my reviews are on a full 100-point scale. Personally, I'm very reluctant to give scores higher than 90 unless I know with relatively great certainty that come the end of the year it will be competing for being one of the best albums all year long. With KT Tunstall's album I had no intentions of being harsh or anything of the sort, I absolutely adore her sound and I think in a couple of years she'll be a household name, but I think that her album-- like many other debuts-- is somewhat inconsistent, hence why it received the score it did. Also, in regards to the Super Bowl XL performances, I really wanted to write about them afterwards but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. There was nothing good about it, the "Star-Spangled Banner" rendition performed was painful to say the least, and while Aretha Franklin doesn't have nearly the vocal chops she used to, I don't think anyone could have saved it after Aaron Neville started singing. The problem with the Rolling Stones performance was pretty simple, they "jammed" way too much. I put jam in quotes because in essence it really wasn't jamming as much as it was watching everyone play the same riff for an additional five minutes long after the real song has ended so Mick Jagger can dance around the stage in his all too confining latex jumpsuit. They would've been much better off had they played more songs and simply trimmed down the amount of time on each of them to about the same length as their studio efforts. I can't believe that the Stones really have lost their touch (as a matter of fact, I popped in Four Flicks after watching their performance to convince myself of this), but I suppose we'll all know for sure after their tour is over.

Meet Your New Favorite Band: The Arctic Monkeys
If you haven't heard this name at least a dozen times already, I'm betting you will at least by spring break. This hugely anticipated album sold in record time over in England, and looks to be doing about the same here. After trying repeatedly to listen to them, I really don't get it. Falling somewhere between The Libertines and Franz Ferdinand with a touch of Sex Pistols, all of which are great bands to be compared to, but the outcome just isn't all that impressive. There are moments where musically, they are relatively interesting, but then the vocals or lyrics screw up an otherwise decent song. I just don't know what to make of these guys, but if it works, it works, right?

Sex Pistols do their best impression of themselves by vulgarly turning down Rock 'N Roll HOF honor
In the only fashion that Johnny Rotten and co. know how, the Sex Pistols angrily wrote on their website that they wish no part of the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame festivities, much less be inducted. Whether or not that will prove to be the case when the event occurs on March 13 remains to be seen, but if nothing else, it's good to know that age has not changed them one bit.

Coldplay set to follow up X&Y (Hopefully it won't be zzzz...)
As much as I love Coldplay, I have to say that X&Y left me a little cold, and bored... and sleepy-- but hopefully that will change with the next album. They've been working on their new songs while touring and have been performing them during soundchecks, and also for the first time Coldplay is planning on working in a single studio that will be built in London for their personal use. Looking to be more experimental this time around, it seems like from their interview with NME.com that they are indeed looking to push themselves a bit farther than they did with X&Y, and that's definitely a good thing.

Bob Dylan announces some dates for the spring
Touring with Merle Haggard, it looks like Bob Dylan could be doing a lot more touring if the rumors of him working on a new album are indeed true. Either way, I can pretty much guarantee that these aren't the only venues that Mr. Dylan will be playing, so there's hope for all of us over in the midwest and east coast. The dates are as follows:

04/01 - Reno, NV - Reno Events Center
04/03 - Stockton, CA - Stockton Arena
04/04 - Santa Rosa, CA - Grace Pavilion
04/05 - Bakersfield, CA - Rabobank Arena
04/07 - Las Vegas, NV - Aladdin Hotel & Casino
04/08 - Sun City West, AZ - Maricopa County Events Center
04/10 - Tucson, AZ - Tucson Convention Center

Editors touring with Stellastarr* to promote upcoming album
With their debut album The Back Room finally coming March 21, Editors will be extensively touring with the equally talented Stellastarr*. Be sure to check these guys out! Here are the dates:

03/20 - Boston, MA @ The Roxy
03/21 - South Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground - Ballroom
03/22 - Montreal, QC @ Cabaret du Musee Juste Pour Rire
03/24 - Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre
03/25 - Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theater
03/26 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom (Stellastarr* only, headlining show)
03/27 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom (Stellastarr* only, headlining show)
03/28 - Brooklyn, NY @ Warsaw
03/29 - Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
03/30 - New York, NY @ Webster Hall (Editors only, headlining show)
04/01 - Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero
04/02 - Baltimore, MD @ Sonar Lounge
04/04 - Norfolk, VA @ NorVa
04/05 - Carrboro, NC @ Cat's Cradle
04/06 - Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club
04/07 - Orlando, FL @ The Social
04/08 - Miami, FL @ Studio A
04/09 - Saint Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre
04/11 - Nashville, TN @ Exit In
04/12 - Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
04/13 - Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
04/14 - Covington, KY @ The Mad Hatter
04/15 - Columbia, MO @ Blue Note
04/16 - Chicago, IL @ Metro – Smart Bar
04/18 - Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe
04/19 - Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre
04/21 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theatre
04/22 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
04/25 - Vancouver, BC @ Richard's On Richard's
04/27 - Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
04/28 - Portland, OR @ Dante's
04/29 - San Francisco, CA @ Mezzanine
04/30 - Indio, CA @ Coachella Festival