The Cure (Band)

The Problem with An Under Cover Weekend

The Riverfront Times has a long, long, long history of promoting the An Under Cover Weekend shows. On the surface it's a cool event that seems to support our huge pool of local talent. It's nice to see local bands in any showcase together, especially one where everyone is working together to try to ... More >>

The Six Best Renditions Of "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me"

As we mourn the passing of Hal David, the lyrical genius on the Burt Bacharach/Hal David dream team, we also revisit his timeless contributions to music. Here are the six best renditions of one of his best songs, "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me." See also: Hal David, Songwriting Part ... More >>

The Six Best Rock Songs With Turntables

Remember when the turntable was considered a legitimate instrument in a rock band? Neither do I. But there are rare instances where DJ scratches are not a dealbreaker in a non hip-hop context. Here are the six best rock songs featuring turntables. Let us know your favorites and we'll REEEEEEEEEEEEMI ... More >>

Mission of Burma's Roger Miller Talks About the Band's Weird Death and Weird New Life

In the past decade, there have been so many indie-rock band reunions, and so many song-by-song recreations of now-classic albums, that the whole scene threatens to take on the tacky air of a 1950s or 1960s nostalgia revue. Only a very few of these reunited bands have managed to get back together and ... More >>

Six Best Sophomore Albums By One Hit Wonders

In the business model of the one hit wonder, the commercially unsuccessful follow-up album is essential to the tag. Had the second album not flopped, the artist would be at least a two-hit wonder. Many folks assume that these artists are only worthy of a single dose of limelight, but some have prove ... More >>

From The Beatles To Arctic Monkeys: How The Five Waves Of British Invasion Stack Up

This and that Union Jack dress that Ginger Spice wore are just part of a list of uncomfortable moments in British invasion history.​Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner looked dapper and distinctively British on the cover of SPIN's recent Success Issue. The slight singer sports a skinny suit th ... More >>

Too Hot To Live Winter Music Mix: Ten Songs To Lower Your Temperature

Refreshing! ​Finally, we seem to be on the other side of this week's bout of soul-shredding heat. Summer's all well and good, but the Beach Boys weren't singing about an endless summer where it feels like 115 degrees. Their summers were a good 30 degrees cooler than what we've been experiencin ... More >>

She Wants Revenge

9 p.m. Tuesday, June 7. The Firebird, 2706 Olive Street.

Cold Cave

8 p.m. Thursday, May 19. The Luminary Center for the Arts, 4900 Reber Place.

New Release Highlights for April 5, 2011: the Raveonettes, the Kills, Cold Cave and More

(New albums are typically released on Tuesdays, i.e., today. What can you spend your hard-earned pennies on this week? Find out below.) ​*Cold Cave, Cherish The Light Years The Guardian says of Cold Cave's latest: "'Take me to the future. I'm ready,' sings Wesley Eisold. That may be true, but ... More >>

A Reagan-era bacchanalia succumbs to soggy nostalgia in Take Me Home Tonight

Last Collector Standing: Les Aaron of the Point's New Music Sunday on T. Rex and His DJ History

The number of chain record stores nationwide has dwindled. However, St. Louis has become an unlikely safe haven for indie record shops as well as for DJs who prefer to spin the black circle instead of scrolling their iPods. In this weekly column, we'll focus on personal portraits of St. Louis' recor ... More >>

Ten Songs Colder Than Old Man Winter

Wikimedia Commons​While the Snowpocalypse largely missed the St. Louis metro area, the aftermath of the sleet-storm lingers, in the form of frigid temperatures, bitter wind chills and icy roads and pavement. This is the perfect time of year for hot tea, wool blankets -- and cold, cold music. T ... More >>

Review: My Chemical Romance at the Pageant, Tuesday, December 14

Todd OwyoungGerard Way of My Chemical Romance​Near the end of My Chemical Romance's very-sold-out show at the Pageant, the band took a break and left vocalist Gerard Way and touring keyboardist James Dewees alone on the stage. Way, sporting simple black pants, boots and a T-shirt, clasped the ... More >>

Review Photos Setlist: Kings of Leon Remains Poop-Free in St. Louis, Saturday, September 25

Todd OwyoungKings of Leon's Caleb Followill at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater. More photos here.​Let's just get this out of the way now: pigeon shit, pigeon shit, pigeon shit. No rock concert has been stigmatized by bird feces as much as last evening's Kings Of Leon performance at Verizon W ... More >>

Last Collector Standing: Jack Probst on Wooing Girls with Mixtapes, Seeing the Cure As a Young'un and How Of Montreal Changed His Life

The number of chain record stores nationwide has dwindled. However, St. Louis has become an unlikely safe haven for indie record shops as well as for DJs who prefer to spin the black circle instead of scrolling their iPods. In this weekly column, we'll focus on personal portraits of St. Louis' recor ... More >>

Lower Dens

9 p.m. Saturday, August 21. 2720 Cherokee, 2720 Cherokee Street.

Setlist Review Photos: Adam Lambert Transcends American Idol at the Pageant, Sunday, August 8

American Idol's taken a beating this year. Besides the usual drama with its judges, interest in the show appeared to be dwindling. In fact, its results-show finalé drew its lowest ratings ever. Perhaps what Idol again needs is a personality like Adam Lambert. The season eight runner-up lived up to ... More >>

Interview Outtakes: Cary Brothers on DIY Music, the Hotel Cafe's Magic, Katy Perry's Hidden Past and Why the Thompson Twins Rule

Heidi RossCary Brothers​Tonight, singer-songwriter Cary Brothers will be performing at the Old Rock House with fellow troubadour Greg Laswell and up-and-coming band Harper Blynn. (The latter is also functioning as the house band for the night.) The show starts at 9 p.m. and tickets are $12. ($ ... More >>

St. Louis Gothic Celebrates Ten Years Tonight at the Complex with the Twilight Garden

myspace.com/thetwilightgardenmyspaceTodd Loomis of the Twilight Garden​DJ Skeletal (a.k.a. Joel Lovins) has been the go-to guy for industrial and gothic music in River City for a decade, and tonight he's celebrating ten years on the scene with an anniversary blow-out at The Complex. Lovins sta ... More >>

Eight Bizarre TV Commercial-Song Pairings, As Inspired by Red Stripe's Frankie Goes to Hollywood Re-Write

Image via​On Monday, Red Stripe premiered a new ad for its delicious, delicious beer. The video clip features the Red Stripe Ambassador -- shades of the Old Spice smooth-talker, perhaps? -- dancing to a Stephen Marley-produced, reggae cover of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's '80s synthpop hit "Rel ... More >>

Show Review Photos Setlist: The Temper Trap and WarPaint Leave the Pageant Crowd Satisfied, Wednesday, June 9

Todd OwyoungWarPaint at the Pageant, Wednesday, June 9. More photos here.​Reaction to the Pageant double-bill featuring the Temper Trap and WarPaint generally fell into two categories: "I love those bands!" or "Who?" Still, a respectable crowd filled the venue's main floor for the brief, just- ... More >>

Review Setlist: Hum Doesn't Let Nostalgia Get in the Way of a Good Rock Show, Saturday, May 22 at the Old Rock House

Annie Zaleski​It's a good rule of thumb to keep expectations low for a reunion show, especially if it's one involving a band that doesn't play together very often. That way, if a group is particularly good, you can be pleasantly surprised. If band is only okay - or, heaven forbid, terrible - y ... More >>

Artgasm: This Weekend's Art Openings, May 7 - 9, 2010

Do you love kitchsy Japanese cartoon cats? Do you also love the spare realism of Edward Hopper? Well, you're in luck this weekend as Leslie Holt's Hello Modern Art debuts at phd gallery. Her miniature replicas of classic art pieces, updated with the adorable bow-adorned Hello Kitty in ... More >>

Photos Review Setlist: Tegan and Sara and Holly Miranda Bowl Over a Packed Pageant, Friday, April 2

The only people having more fun than the Pageant's audience last night were Tegan and Sara Quin. The twin sisters blasted through a fantastic 25-song set which touched on their entire career, thrilling the packed venue. Photo: Todd OwyoungTegan and Sara last night at the Pageant. See full slideshow ... More >>

Tegan and Sara find that Sainthood suits them quite well, thank you very much

Ben Folds and Robert Smith Owe Steve Jobs a Drink

Robert Smith isn't smiling. But he should be.​So, if you've been on the Internet at all today, you'll know that Apple unveiled its tablet iPad this morning. The excellent blog Slicing Up Eyeballs posted the promo video for the device and pointed out that at 1:15 or so, the background music is ... More >>

Ten Things to Do This Weekend for $10 or Less, October 2-4, 2009

You could say it was the Best week of 2009, and there's plenty to do this weekend for less than $10. Here it is, your affordable weekend preview. Looking for concerts this weekend? There's plenty of them posted in our weekend concert calendar.​Muny Show 4.0 at Star Clipper (Friday)If you're itchin ... More >>

Tonight! Hot Cha Cha and the Natural Selection at Cicero's MP3 Fun

Bryon MillerHot Cha Cha, in the flesh​Cicero's hosts a riotous bill of epic proportions tonight. First up are long-distance-locals the Natural Selection. If you missed our feature a few weeks ago -- or missed the band's show then -- here's your chance to catch the act's funk-da-fied dance party ag ... More >>

Aaron's Thing of the Week - 22/07/09: The Saturn Suicide Show

A couple of years ago, there was quite the competition among the major car companies, and it led to a true golden age for us all. It wasn't some sort of race to see who could make the safest car, or the most fuel efficient, or even the most stylish. No, the war I speak of was a quieter sort, a ... More >>

Show Review Photos: MSTRKRFT, Santigold, Trouble Andrew and Amanda Blank at the Pageant, Saturday, June 13

Around 1:10 a.m. or so, MSTRKRFT dropped bits of Daft Punk's "Da Funk" into its DJ set. The crowd - or what was left of it - at the Pageant naturally went apeshit, fueled as much by free Bacardi drinks as it was by the French techno-funk. And sure, at that hour, nothing is better than hearing an awe ... More >>

Yourself and the Air

8:30 p.m. Thursday, January 8. The Bluebird, 2706 Olive Street.

65daysofstatic

p.m. Sunday, May 18. 2 Cents Plain, 1114 Olive Street.

The Mary Onettes

9 p.m. Wednesday, May 14. Bluebird, 2706 Olive Street

Charlotte Sometimes

8 p.m. Wednesday, October 24. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard.

Interpol

Our Love to Admire (Capitol)

Korn

MTV Unplugged (Virgin)

The Rapture

7 p.m. Thursday, May 10. Pop's (1403 Mississippi Avenue, Sauget, Illinois).

Kick out the jammies.

A toddler and her dad road-test alt-lullabies for B-Sides, while the Downtown Trio adds jazz and pizzazz to local TV staple the Fan Show.

Tired of the same old bars? Try this handy-dandy guide to some new (and not-so-new) nightlife hotspots.

We've even included a key!

2006: The Year in Music

Week of December 28, 2006

Grant-Lee Phillips

nineteeneighties (Zoe)

What Were the First Concert and the Last Concert You Attended?

Published the week of July 26-August 1, 2000

Leona Naess

Comatised (MCA)

This Week

Highlights from RFT's "Calendar"

Perfect Circles

The RFT music editor advises you on his favorite music of 1998

Sound Checks