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Initially, we placed Sara Haze in the attractive-blond-marketing-ploy album pile due to pictures of her posing on the beach. Then we listened to the album, and like finding a somewhat healthy meal at a fast-food restaurant, we were surprised. Sure, her voice isn’t the strongest, but there’s earnest in there and it’s complemented by her skills on the piano. And her new album, My Personal Sky, doesn’t dip into the Top 40 sound all that easily (though it’s a shoe-in as background music for... Read Full Story

From the 52 Shows editors: Every once in a while, we get someone to participate in our ongoing Turn the Page project , where we ask musicians to write about an experience on stage. Below, we have an entry from one of our recent finds, Anniversary Club. As we tell people before they do these, all we ask is that the write-up be honest. Enjoy. (And apologies for taking a while. The site was down for some reason). Millhill Basement, Trenton, NJ, Jan 23rd 2010 Trenton, NJ is a tough... Read Full Story

It’s nice to hear of someone trying to go up against Colin Meloy of the Decemberists in the literary-indie folk song world. With Anniversary Club , we get a 4-song concept album called “the devil you know” about a civil war soldier from Texas named John Worth. The band is the brainchild of Chris Stowe and the new album does not require any previous knowledge of historical facts. Instead, Stowe takes the backdrop of a country getting torn to shreds to tell the story of love, separation and... Read Full Story

Maybe I have something for Irish chicks, but there’s a certain unshakable quality to Fight Like Apes that is immediately enticing and draws a listener in. Maybe it’s because the anger and rage I hear in the song “Lend me your face” is exactly the kind of sentiment I embrace on Valentine’s Day. So rawk out…and be sure to mock the couples who think this is the only time of year to show love. Fight Like Apes – Lend Me Your Face Shows Feb 17, 2010, The Mercury Lounge, New York, NY Feb... Read Full Story

“Some people say…at the end of the day…that there’s a life that’s magnificent…” Those are some lyrics from The Uglysuit ’s “The Magnificent Life,” which you can hear below. I dunno if it’s the fading pangs of a hangover or the fact that one is given a sense of clarity after a friend’s bachelor party, but this song really makes sense to me right now (and no, I can’t explain why). It also gives an excuse to start our SXSW (or the music event I never get to go to) watch list a bit early this... Read Full Story

There’s been something of a hiatus around here at 52 shows, which can be attributed to the holidays, a new PS3, a new Netflix account and cheering on Conan as he sticks it to NBC. Clearly, the resolution for 2010 (and it’s twenty ten) is to listen to more music than I did last year. Posting is secondary, which is still an improvement from the abysmal display of blurjourlism (a blog masquerading as music journalism). And now, on to my love of firsty firsties. These are names that use... Read Full Story

Mad at Tebow for dominating college football ? Then maybe you should screw Florida State by stealing Weezer from them. In what has seemingly become a new trend in marketing, Weezer is asking fans to vote via Facebook application to help them decide which college they should play at for free. If it worked for “Paranormal Activity “… And as it’s alluded to in the opening line, Florida State is currently in the lead with more than 10,000 votes, half of which were done by Tim Tebow on his... Read Full Story

David Gray: Making it acceptable for anyone to engage in PDA whenever his music is played The Wang Theatre in Boston is an impressive place, with its vast lobby and impossibly high orchestra sections (there are three people). It has staged plays, musicals, opera singers and probably a few world-famous drunken rock stars. All of this makes the appearance of Lisa Hannigan all the more magical. We wrote about her this past February on the strength of her song “Lillie” and the accompanying... Read Full Story

David Gray: Making it acceptable for anyone to engage in PDA whenever his music is played The Wang Theatre in Boston is an impressive place, with its vast lobby and impossibly high orchestra sections (there are three people). It has staged plays, musicals, opera singers and probably a few world-famous drunken rock stars. All of this makes the appearance of Lisa Hannigan all the more magical. We wrote about her this past February on the strength of her song “Lillie” and the accompanying... Read Full Story

I’ve been listening to an album this weekend and I know it doesn’t do the musicians who are on it justice. This is usually the case with a recording of a live performance, but there’s something different with this album. For one thing, the entire thing is free . The album comes from a documentary by Bob Moczydlowsky, which features 72 musicians either performing or talking about life on the road. While I haven’t seen the film yet (it’s at some festivals at the moment), I can appreciate... Read Full Story