D.A.R.K. L to R: Andy Rourke, Dolores O’Riordan, Olé Koretsky. Photo credit: Jen Maler A Great and Emotional Loss in The Death of Singer Dolores O’Riordan by Brad Balfour The late singer Dolores Mary Eileen O’Riordan was the kind of rock ‘n’ roll babe that we all were inspired by: one who was sensitive and yet powerful, compelling and compassionate, sexy but not frail. In the song “Zombie,” her performance embodied so many of the virtues that made her group the Cranberries th

Kiefer Sutherland Kiefer Sutherland Hits the Road Kiefer Sutherland, highwayman and guitar-slinger?  Yeah, it surprised us too. Not that an actor is a frustrated musician, you hear of that all the time.  However, much like the inscrutable secret agent Jack Bauer from 24, which cemented Sutherland’s stardom, his sidelight as a singer songwriter seems to have been top secret. Even more surprising, his coming debut album Down in a Hole seems to be a country record.  Not current

Melanie in 2012. Photo by Maddy Miller. Melanie’s Brand New Key by Ronald Sklar Look what they’ve done to her song, ma: they’ve made her a pop icon. During the early 1970s, the underground press misunderstood Melanie, but above ground, her fans and future generations did not. Brought up in New Jersey with the full, non-mainstream name of Melanie Safka, she wrote and performed her own songs. This in itself was a new phenomenon in pop music, but that she was a woman wowed the m

Charlotte Martin CHARLOTTE MARTIN A SHORE THING by JAY S. JACOBS Everybody wants to be loved.  That’s why we do most of the things we do in life.  Even more than most, people in the arts crave acceptance.  However, sometimes it is enough to just get a strong reaction. Case in point, Charlotte Martin.  With the release of her first major label full-length CD, On Your Shore, (she had also released the acclaimed EP In Parentheses and an indie album) she has been getting rapturou