The Chronicles of Michael Christopher
Music • Culture • Film • Travel • Photography • Vinyl
When Shane MacGowan passed in 2023, it seemed as if he was finally in a good place after a life at the other end of the spectrum. The revered frontman for the Celtic punk outfit The Pogues often had his talents overshadowed by drunken antics, with his hard partying ways and drug abuse the stuff of legend. During one... Continue Reading →
It’s rare in music for an artist to have a second act, and even more so to be recognized for their undeniable impact on entire genres. But it does happen, as is the case with Cymande, a footnote British psychedelic funk outfit from the early ‘70s who later found themselves as one of the building blocks... Continue Reading →
“Nostalgia” is always a big buzzword, looking in the rearview when things were supposedly simpler – like right now with the ‘90s. It could manifest as a movie evocative of the decade or one that’s straight-up banking on the legacy of a franchise. Maybe it’s a Britpop band singlehandedly thrusting the genre back into the spotlight. Sometimes, albeit rarely, it’s... Continue Reading →
When I recently began the "Archive" feature here with an interview with The Kills, it wasn't by accident. I was set to talk to them again a few days later, and couldn't find that LA Weekly feature for the life of me. This time around, my chat with Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince was for... Continue Reading →
Welcome to Archive, where I'll be periodically highlighting articles pulled from my files that have either disappeared into the ether of the internet, originally ran in print, or otherwise faded away. Each one will be somewhat thematic, connecting the past to the present day. Today, it's an interview I did with The Kills back in... Continue Reading →
I've been doing the 617 Q&A series over at Vanyaland for quite some time now. Incredibly, it took until just a few months ago, with the electronic duo Phantogram, that I conducted it with more than one person. It's hard enough keeping the pieces to a manageable length with a single interviewee, even with the... Continue Reading →
Sidemen in music are often an underappreciated, faceless lot. You either have to make some serious noise in your career or work with some major names to get any sort of recognition. Earl Slick has done both. The guitarist is best known for performing alongside David Bowie beginning in the early-70s live and on landmark... Continue Reading →
It's been about nine years since I waxed on my affinity for Local H in this space. TLDR: I've followed them since college; they were one of my (if not the) first in-person interviews I did; I've probably seen them more than any other band - save for The Afghan Whigs/Greg Dulli-related projects - and... Continue Reading →
It's hard to contain my nerding out when it comes to bands I absolutely adore, like Phantogram. The electronic rock/pop/psych/indie pair made up of Sarah Barthel and Josh Carter are so damn talented together. More importantly, they seem to have cracked the code of getting better with each ensuing release. Their latest, Memory of a... Continue Reading →
Back in 2023, I spoke with Marty Friedman for Metal Edge. He was touring the U.S. in support of Queensrÿche at the time and told me how it was all a part of his grand plan to reintroduce himself to the country, as he'd lived in Japan for over 20 years at that juncture. Now,... Continue Reading →
