I've always been intrigued by other "best of" lists, but this year I decided to take it to a whole new level. I e-mailed a handful of bands that I've seen this past year in order to unearth what exactly captivated them in '07. As music listeners, it is our duty to take a keen interest in our favorite musician's influences. After all, they rocked our little world, might as well see what rocked their little world. Therefore, this is an act of paying it forward to those hardworking, underpaid musicians who truly made a difference within the music scene this year. more ›

Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton What Is Free to a Good Home? Last Gang Records released, July 24, 2007 Emily Haines' (of Metric) latest EP What is Free to a Good Home? is by far her greatest solo work to date. I've always felt that her debut full length Knives Don't Have Your Back was hit or miss, mostly the latter. I expect a lot from Ms. Haines. The songs just weren't as hard... more ›

Our pals over at Austinist have been doing a bang-up job of Internet sleuthing, Googling, and MySpacing to confirm over 500 bands that will play SXSW even though the Austin music festival refuses to cooperate. After taking last week off because we were sure SXSW would release their master plan, we now return as there seems to be no end in sight to the band list embargo. Many indie labels and some marquee acts... more ›

The Nightwatchman (Rage Against the Machine's Tom) @ The Hotel Cafe more ›

Babydaddy, Jake Shears, Ana Matronic and the rest of the Abba-esque Brit dance group Scissor Sisters are finding just as much success here in the states as they did early last month in the UK where they debuted at #1. The follow-up to 2004's eponymous freshman offerring did extremely well here in LA last week due to several factors: they headlined a sold-out show at the Shrine last Thursday, they appeared on Indie on... more ›

Tony Bennett - Duets: An American Classic (Columbia) Richard Cheese - Silent Nightclub (Surfdog) Natalie Cole - Leavin' (Verve) Al Di Meola - Consequence of Chaos (Telarc) Enigma - A Posteriori (Virgin) Dizzy Gillespie's All-Star Big Band - Dizzy's Business (MCG Jazz) Amy Grant - Time Again ... Live (Word) Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton - Knives Don't Have Your Back (Last Gang) Hedley - Hedley (enhanced; Capitol) Alan Jackson - Like Red... more ›

Last night we were invited to see Emily Haines of Metric play her solo album for the first time in Los Angeles at the Viper Room. We weren’t familiar with Metric’s catalog and had only been to one Metric show before that resulted in a Metric fan strong-arming us out of the way of the stage resulting in our subsequent departure. That being said we went in not really knowing what to expect. We... more ›

The hot babes have invaded LA today. Over at Hollywood & Highland they're throwing a free show with some bands that are easy on the ears and eyes, and then down the road at the Viper there's Metric's singer Emily Haines doing a solo performance to support her solo cd. If that's too sweet and mellow for you, the Knitting Factory is screening the new DVD of Bad Brains' 1982 CBGB shows -- and... more ›

Metric is a band that breaks the mold. They regularly pull off the difficult task of creating edgy, satirical songs like "Combat Baby," Monster Hospital" and "Glass Ceiling" that are catchy and politically charged. The fact that they can pull off this balancing act is a credit to the band's relentless goal to stay true to the music. As guitarist Jimmy Shaw states in this interview, the band is never satisfied with their own work.

Their recent effort, "Live
It Out,"
is no exception. Emily Haines' voice moves between a whisper and a wail one "Empty" as she
proclaims: "I'm so glad that I'm an island now / Sickness was fixing me
some /
Coughed out my heart in the last stall / Now that the damage is done / I never
miss it at all." Unapologetic lyrics
like this restore our faith in rock. Metric are: Emily Haines (vocals/synths), Jimmy Shaw (guitar), Josh Winstead (bass) and Joules Scott-Key (drums). The band just wrapped up a series of dates in San Francisco, LA and San Diego. In the midst of this tour, Jimmy Shaw took time out of his schedule to talk to LAist. Continue reading to see what makes the band tick.

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