It's Alive Media

10/31/2024

Thx to Hobart and Eric at MAGNET Magazine for this exclusive video preview from the upcoming Skin Yard 7x7” box set from C/Z Records. Video directed by Victor Krummenacher (Camper Van Beethoven/Monks of Doom/Tge Thurs Mind).

Almost eight months after Pearl Jam released Dark Matter, the best mainstream rock record in recent memory, the band’s proto-grunge roots will have their moment with the decidedly uncommercial Skin Yard Select (C/Z). Available December 2, the limited-edition boxed set scatters 14 Skin Yard tracks ...

10/31/2024

Thx Eleni and Coachella Valley Weekly for this Peter Jesperson review and preview!

By Eleni P. Austin If you were a fan of Punk, New Wave and Alternative music in the ‘80s and ‘90s, the name Peter Jesperson should ring a bell. The Minnesota native made his bones managing the wildly influential Minneapolis record store Oar Folkjokeopus, worked as a club DJ and also founded the ...

10/31/2024

Thx to Calo News & Sergio Munoz for this interview with Perla Batalla

Author’s Note:

10/30/2024

Please donate if you can.

I received word from my good friend Jeff Runnings yesterday that he has been diagnosed with a very serious and advanced stage of cancer, and is currently preparing to undergo treatment for his condition. I knew that he was having health concerns for some time, but none of us knew the extent of what he was dealing with until now.

Jeff, as some of you know, has been the vocalist and guiding force behind the band For Against, whose music I have loved and worked with off and on since the mid-1980's, and in the ensuing decades he has recorded many albums of excellent and moving songs. In fact, we recently signed an agreement to release his next solo album titled "Piqued" on Independent Project Records, which is currently in pre-production and should be released sometime in mid-2025.

For anyone who appreciates the music that Jeff has given to the world and would like to give back, friends of his have set up a GoFundMe page which I will link in the comments below. For those unfamiliar with Jeff's music I'll also link to a Pitchfork review by Ned Raggett of the box set reissue of the first three For Against albums that was released by the Captured Tracks label in 2013, which is an excellent overview of For Against's early music and why it is important. And then once you read about it, go search out the music and give it a listen -- it's all available at all the usual places on the virtual plane.

Sending my warmest and most heartfelt wishes to Jeff for his speedy recovery and return to health.

10/25/2024

Check it out!!!

Out now: Greg Lisher, Underwater Detection Method.

Greg Lisher is a familiar face to most fans of made-in-California alternative/indie rock, but Underwater Detection Method finds him moving in a totally new direction. While not his first solo record, Camper Van Beethoven and Monks of Doom fans likely will be surprised by the music on this new album - while there are some guitars, it mostly features keyboards. Underwater Detection Method brims with the feeling of discovering a new artist for the first time, and surely promises to surprise a few people.

10/23/2024

Thank you to AndersonVision for this news about the upcoming Skin Yard 7x7” box set!

C/Z Records, the influential independent label that has championed underground music since 1985, is thrilled to announce the upcoming release of a limited

10/23/2024

Thanks Michael & Big Takeover Magazine for this Greg Lisher review. Out Friday on Independent Project Records

Guitarist Greg Lisher is best known for his long tenure in Camper Van Beethoven, as well as his work in the CVB spinoff Monks of Doom. But he’s hardly idle when those groups aren’t working. His fourth solo album, Underwater Detection Method puts the man known for quirky postpunk and art rock in ...

10/22/2024

Thank you Troy at AndersonVision with this news about the new Skin Yard Select 7x7” box set!

C/Z Records, the influential independent label that has championed underground music since 1985, is thrilled to announce the upcoming release of a limited

10/22/2024

Many thanks to Only Three Lads - Classic Alternative Music Podcast for this interview with Steve Wynn

**NEW EPISODE ALERT! Listen wherever you get podcasts or go to https://linktr.ee/onlythreelads. Drop your list in the comments!**

Because we're readers and whatnot, this week we get literate on y'all and discuss some of our favorite rock n' roll memoirs. Our Third Lad knows a thing or two about great rock memoirs, because he just published one...singer, songwriter, guitar hero, baseball aficionado, and now author...Steve Wynn from The Dream Syndicate!

His memoir, I Wouldn't Say It If It Wasn't True, is out now from Jawbone Press, covering his earliest days as a kid in LA falling in love with music, and down the road that took him to and through the first era of The Dream Syndicate. As a companion to the book, Fire Records simultaneously released Steve's first new solo album in 14 years, Make It Right, featuring songs that were inspired by the process of writing his memoir and reflecting on his life, from his beginnings in "Santa Monica" to present days on "Roosevelt Avenue". Steve is currently touring the eastern part of the US, with west coast and European dates to follow in early 2025, promising "a night of songs and stories" that you won't want to miss. Keep up on the latest news at https://stevewynn.net.

During our conversation, we also cover:

•The Paisley Underground - the LA neo-psych scene that also spawned The Bangles, Three O'Clock, The Rain Parade , Green on Red, and The Long Ryders!

• The lasting legacy of their classic 1982 debut The Days of Wine and Roses!

• What's in store for the out of print Dream Syndicate records Medicine Show (1984) and Ghost Stories (1988)?

• The 21st century return of the Dream Syndicate!

• Living with a drummer! (Don't worry, it's his wife Linda Pitmon, not Tommy Lee...)

• Little Steven's Underground Garage Cruise!

• Baseball! His supergroup The Baseball Project with Linda Pitmon, Scott McCaughey from Young Fresh Fellows / The Minus 5 and Mike Mills and Peter Buck from R.E.M. Also, who is Steve rooting for during the 2024 World Series?

You won't want to miss this...and we wouldn't say it if it wasn't true.

Thanks to Josh Mills from It's Alive Media for the coordination.

Proud members of the Pantheon Podcasts family.

10/17/2024

Thx to Kirsten at Nippertown for this Steve Wynn preview!

Although only a few people witnessed it, Steve Wynn’s performance at Valentine’s Music Hall in December 2001 has achieved legendary status — at least for me and the 20 or

10/12/2024

Thank you Bill Kopp for the kind words about Peter Jesperson’s “Euphoric Recall” on his Musoscribe blog.

Along with the other ways in which they can function, memoirs often serve as score-settling endeavors. A memoir can represent an opportunity for its author to say I-told-you-so, run a victory lap, explain away poor decisions or bad acts and/or generally have the last (or highest profile) word on a p

10/10/2024

Thank you Wayne Robins, Critical Conditions Substack & PS Audio for this Perla Batalla piece!

Happy 90th Birthday, Leonard! The ease and comfort which Perla Batalla brings to Leonard Cohen songs on A Letter to Leonard Cohen: To a Friend sounds so intimate and personal that it had to be an inside job. In many ways, it was. The album was released to streaming services in time to celebrate Cohe...

10/08/2024

Thank you Bart & Newcity for this Steve Wynn preview & interview for his upcoming Chicago show!

With an upcoming memoir and album, Wynn will jam with the city and audience as sort of a triple threat—it will be a night of storytelling and songs—with a bit of reading and Q&A, facilitated by Chicago’s own indie-guitar hero Rick Rizzo of Eleventh Dream Day.

10/08/2024

Thursday! Head on out to Randy Now's Man Cave for a very intimate Steve Wynn hoedown!

10/02/2024

Ya gotta go NJ!!

10/01/2024

Thank you Klemen and It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine for this interview with Peter Jesperson!

Peter Jesperson’s Euphoric Recall lays bare the gritty truth of the music biz, showcasing his fervent advocacy for artistic integrity while serving up a hopeful message for the countless artists grappling with the harsh realities of the industry. Peter’s journey into the Minneapolis music scene ...

09/26/2024

Take a listen

Out now: ‘All Things Japanese’, a new single from Underwater Detection Method, the upcoming album from Camper Van Beethoven and Monks of Doom guitarist Greg Lisher (link in comments).

Expect music shaded with elements of art rock, ambient, dub and prog conjuring an inspired fusion that manages to split the difference between the melodic and the experimental. Underwater Detection Method is out on 25th October.

09/26/2024

Thank you Bart and Newcity for this great Steve Wynn preview / interview for his upcoming Chicago show!

Air performs "Moon Safari" at the Auditorium, plus four other spectacles worth leaving home for.

09/26/2024

Thank you KEXP & Shil K. Patel for this great session with Dengue Fever

09/26/2024

Check it out!

Out now: ‘All Things Japanese’, a new single from Underwater Detection Method, the upcoming album from Camper Van Beethoven and Monks of Doom guitarist Greg Lisher (link in comments).

Expect music shaded with elements of art rock, ambient, dub and prog conjuring an inspired fusion that manages to split the difference between the melodic and the experimental. Underwater Detection Method is out on 25th October.

09/23/2024

Thanks to Wayne Robbins for this Perla Batalla interview!

Happy 90th Birthday, Leonard!

09/23/2024

Thank you "New Day" on Fox 8 for having Peter Jesperson & Tommy Stinson on air prior to their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame event for Peter's "Euphoric Recall" book discussion last week!

Rock and Roll Hall of FamePeter Jesperson & Tommy Stinson book signing event! Learn more about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame here.

09/23/2024

Thank you Official: Lydia Lunch & Lydian Spin for having Peter Jesperson as a guest on your podcast! Love this interview!

Peter Jesperson, is a legendary figure in the music world—DJ, label founder, tour manager, and lifelong music enthusiast. He is best known as the former manager of  and founder of , Peter joins Lydia and Tim to talk about his journey through the industry and his memoir , which is a deep ...