Death Cab for Cutie

Reader's Poll: What's the Deal With Christian Music?

So you are disgusted, angry, and outright righteously pissed that your beloved 103.7 is gone with the wind, replaced by 24 hours of Christian music. Gone are your usual playlists full of Wilco, Soundgarden, Sheryl Crow and Death Cab For Cutie, not to mention your favorite DJs and personalities. Th ... More >>

Defying Ambiguity: Jandek & 5 Other Curious Cult Musicians

As a musician, there are many reasons behind choosing to remain an ambiguous character in the public eye as opposed to taking in all of the public attention one can. Choosing to remain ambiguous or elusive is sometimes a decidedly defiant statement, sometimes even a backwards-marketing tool, or is s ... More >>

The More You Know: 5 Music Web Sites To Add To Your Bookmarks

The true power of the Internet is information. Don't get me wrong; free music, photos of kitties, Ryan Gosling memes, and pornography are all wonderful, but it's information that's the real star even if we take it for granted. It's changed the way people do reports in school, made us think we're sma ... More >>

Sing Me a Story: Five Rockers Whose Work We'd Like To See On Broadway

Rocks Off has had musicals on the brain lately. Between Once, featuring music by The Swell Season, dominating the Tony Awards and Rock of Ages, featuring music by the cream of the '80s hair-metal crop, hitting theaters tomorrow it's been a pretty good week for musicals that aren't cut from the tradi ... More >>

True Believers and Other Local Releases

Not A List: Your Favorite Musicians As Food

Sometimes an idea comes from the basest regions of your brain. Sometimes you think of something so stupid that you need to share it with your art director. Sometimes the snow comes down in June, and sometimes the Sun goes 'round the Moon, right? Anyone with a Tumblr who isn't addicted to free porn ... More >>

In Prog We Trust: Five Progressive Rock Bands You Hate, But Shouldn't

There are some forms of music that struggle to find critical acclaim while others are loved by critics but universally dismissed by the public. Then, there is another group that, despite a loyal and sometimes massive cult following, are disliked by critics and everyday music fans alike. Meet prog-r ... More >>

OH HAI 2012: Ten Indie Tunes To Ring In Your New Year

Nothin' like a brand-spankin', shiny new year. It's a time to reflect on the past twelve months and for the next twelve, make ridiculous resolutions (drink and drive less, limit walks of shame to two per week, pay child support, stop cutting own bangs, eat more fruit...snacks) we know we won't keep. ... More >>

Last Night: Death Cab for Cutie at Verizon Wireless Theater

Photos by Marc BrubakerDeath Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard.​Walking up to Verizon Wireless Theater last night, we ran into a crowd of cigarette-puffing couples and soccer moms with tattoos waiting in line to see Death Cab For Cutie. The crowd proceeded to form lines to grab $10 beers and pile in ... More >>

A Scorching Playlist For This Massive Heat Wave

Oh God... Will it ever end?​This morning a childhood friend of Rocks Off's who happens to be moving back to Houston texted us to say "64 degrees as I leave LA this morning. Better relish this moment 'cause I won't be experiencing this again for a while." To which we replied "Fuck no you won't ... More >>

Out Today: My Morning Jacket Back In Form, Vedder's Ukulele Slays

​This week brings a new My Morning Jacket album, an Eddie Vedder ukulele outing, the umpteenth Dave Matthews Band live collection, and Ozzy's past barks at the moon. We are just now hitting the busy summer release period, so these blogs in the next few weeks will be getting jam-packed. In th ... More >>

Out Today: Other Things Besides Born This Way... Seriously

​This past weekend was magical, what with Rocks Off finally getting to see Foo Fighters play songs from Wasting Light and all. You may remember that we have been wanking over Light since it came out in April, but it's really good. Best rock album of the year? Maybe, unless Jack White or Josh H ... More >>

Skip the Charades

Cold War Kids look to movie directors for guidance.

Top 10 Recent TV-Show Soundtracks

​A few choice adjectives come to mind when musing on bawdy Eastbound & Down character Kenny Powers. "Inspiring" is not one of them. However, as Rocks Off watched this week's season finale of the side-splitting HBO series, we were pleasantly surprised as we heard indie troubadour Kurt Vile's a ... More >>

Ten Songs You Never Want To Get Caught Singing Out Loud

The absolute worst version of "You Are So Beautiful" you've ever heard. Trust us.​Some songs are catchy as hell, yet if you're one of those people who sometimes unconsciously sings out loud to yourself in public, there are some you'll want to avoid. Here are a few tunes which, when sung aloud, ... More >>

The Shameless Chef: A Fistful of Breakfast

I love pre-diced ham. I'm a busy guy, I can't be using and then washing off knives all day.​You can't mention the concept of breakfast without someone near you piping up that it's the most important meal of the day. Well if it's so damn important, how come I sleep straight through it 95% of th ... More >>

Rid Of Me And Other Great Albums With Truly Hideous Covers

​MGMT's new album, Congratulations, comes out in April! We're excited. MGMT's 2008 debut album, Oracular Spectacular, was fantastic, and we can't wait to hear what they've got in store for the follow-up. We're positive it will be awesome, as those weird-ass kids are only going to get weirder as th ... More >>

One Wolf

Love and Theft

The decade with no name left behind plenty of memorable music.

He Said She Said: "Fuck You Owl City" and the other Worst Songs of the Decade

Sweet Jeebus, this decade had some awful pop music. You would think the Lord would spare us a little in light of all the terrorist attacks and hurricanes we got this past period. Where the past ten year cycles had disco, new wave, and classic West Coast hip-hop to sate the aural thirsts of Top 40 li ... More >>

Summer Stock

Papermoons

Pump Up the Volume

St. Louis post-punks So Many Dynamos are ready for battle with The Loud Wars.

Going Viral

The infestation of classic-rock threatens the cultural legacy of an entire generation and must be stopped.

Aftermath: DeVotchKa at Warehouse Live

Photos by Mark C. AustinIt's always nice to see a band that respects its elders, and Denver's DeVotchKa has taken Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic" promise "I wanna rock your gypsy soul" to heart. Finding the seam between Old World traveler tunes and contemporary indie-rock, the quartet (and a ... More >>

Remembering Martin Luther King Jr. in Song

In the Name of Love

The Year in Albums

Ra Ra Riot, Walter Meego

XM Nation: Catching Up and Moving On

FLEMING'S OLD-FASHIONED

Numbers' 30th Anniversary

Single File

The Blog of Lists: 25 Vegan Musicians

Confessions of a Classic Rock Whore, or One Man’s Journey

Polite Conversation Can Be Boring

Our Nightfly correspondent breaks out the faux-hawk

Our top DVD picks for the week of April 11

Pretty Girls Make Saves

As video games go indie, Wack imagines a few likely pairings

Bunnyface Killahs

A veteran Liverpudlian rock band and a kung-fu-obsessed Staten Island MC have more in common than you think

Pop Rocks

Ten albums that'll snap and fizz in your ear buds all winter long

Death Cab for Cutie

Plans

Elf Rock

The Decemberists bring their magic-realist, Picaresque new album to town

Marrying the Mainstream

White men learned to dance, and the emoting was as thick as the eyeliner on the year's best pop-rock records

Marrying the Mainstream

White men learned to dance, and the emoting was as thick as the eyeliner on the year's best pop-rock records

Playbill

Horrific Haikus

Death-metal band names make for fun magnetic poetry

Paradise Found

Two years ago, the Velvet Teen took the road less traveled, and that has made all the difference

Dweebs Shall Inherit the Earth

Seattle's Death Cab for Cutie is four geeks with chic

Walla Confusion

Death Cab for Cutie sees itself as just a guitar band. You might not agree.

Grunge Residue

Death Cab for Cutie