Email Author Christian Schaeffer

2007 Stories by Christian Schaeffer

• Moody Blues

  published July 11, 2007

  In hindsight, it's not too surprising that the Moody Blues became the poster boys for those cursed PBS Pledge Drives (which seem to dredge... More >>

• Bruce Hornsby

  published July 11, 2007

  Bruce Hornsby's big singles in the '80s, particularly "Every Little Kiss" and "Mandolin Rain," brought a little bit of the heartland into... More >>

• If I Should Fall from Grace

  published July 11, 2007

  Of all the local albums to be released in the past year — hell, the past five years — one of the best is Grace Basement's New... More >>

• Local Motion: LaPush

  published July 4, 2007

  homespun For LaPush, it seems like Modern Blues sounds a lot like modern rock. Of course, the... More >>

• Parts and Labor

  published July 4, 2007

  Brooklyn's Parts & Labor takes the atonal screeches and errant atmospherics of experimental music and corrals them into a big, buzzy,... More >>

• The Deserters/The Box Social

  published July 4, 2007

  The guys in the Box Social aren't exactly breaking their necks to create a new strand of rock & roll — they're happy to sing slightly... More >>

• Rock of Ages

  published June 27, 2007

  For the past twelve years, the Trip Daddys have been one of the city's best-loved bar bands, sweating through furious sets of... More >>

• Homespun

  published June 20, 2007

  Peat Sounds, the second album from the Pubes, clocks in at just over 23 minutes, just enough time to cram in fourteen spry,... More >>

• Local Motion: Zelienople / Learn, Artist!

  published June 20, 2007

  The Chicago trio Zelienople brings the patience of slowcore to the hazy, echo-laden world of shoegaze. The band's releases are often... More >>

• Homespun

  published June 13, 2007

  Led by singer and guitarist Brian McClelland, the Maxtone 4 has been threatening to become the city's best power-pop band for the past few years.... More >>

• Jonatha Brooke

  published June 13, 2007

  Jonatha Brooke began her musical life in folk-duo the Story, and by the mid-'90s she was releasing solo albums that placed her clarion,... More >>

• The Figgs

  published June 6, 2007

  For twenty years the Figgs have played smart, sharp power-pop with the brashness and impetuousity of young punks. There's a gritty,... More >>

• Squeezing Out Larks

  published June 6, 2007

  Graham Parker isn't an angry young man anymore. He's an angry 56-year-old. One of the most independent and prolific voices in rock & roll,... More >>

• Future Clouds & Radar

  published May 30, 2007

  Robert Harrison labored valiantly as the singer and guitarist of Cotton Mather, an Austin pop band that's still referenced in hushed tones despite... More >>

• George Benson

  published May 30, 2007

  As an ace jazz guitarist with a husky, syncopated voice, George Benson straddled the line between Quiet Storm R&B and adult contemporary... More >>

• 2007 RFT Music Showcase

  published May 30, 2007

  My second day in St. Louis after moving here to become the RFT's music editor happened to coincide with the 2005 Music Awards presentation... More >>

• Drink by the Light of he Moon

  published May 23, 2007

  It's a scientific fact: Alcohol tastes better when it is consumed outside. Chemists and mixologists have yet to determine why this is, but the... More >>

• Local Motion: Leslie Sanazaro

  published May 23, 2007

  Pianist and singer Leslie Sanazaro has performed with local act Polaris and continues to sing regularly with So Say We All, but recently... More >>

• Homespun: The Conformists

  published May 23, 2007

  Three Hundred starts off with an untitled track consisting of 30 seconds of silence. It's hard to know whether the Conformists meant this... More >>

• Homespun: John Boy's Courage

  published May 16, 2007

  Todd Sarvies, lead singer and songwriter for John Boy's Courage, has a voice made for modern-rock radio. His whisper-to-a-scream range can handle... More >>

• Homespun: Superfun Yeah Yeah Rocketship

  published May 9, 2007

  Corey Goodman, the brain behind one-man-band Superfun Yeah Yeah Rocketship, has referred to his act as "electro-comedy," which is as good a term... More >>

• Local Motion: Stag Night: Live at Leeds

  published May 9, 2007

  It may not have sold as many copies as Frampton Comes Alive or Cheap Trick's Live at Budokan, but the Who's Live at Leeds... More >>

• Skeletons & the Kings of All Cities

  published May 9, 2007

  Formerly known as Skeletons & the Girl-Faced Boys, Skeletons & the Kings of All Cities inject post-rock sensibilities into traditional pop... More >>

• Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers

  published May 2, 2007

  As leader of the mid-'90s band the Refreshments, Roger Clyne toed the line between MTV-ready alternative rock and jokey slacker anthems. (The... More >>

• Homespun: Various Artists

  published May 2, 2007

  It's fitting that this disc, which functions as the latest issue of the 52nd City literary magazine, bristles with different styles and... More >>