Few rock historians would call Bill Haley’s “Rock Around the Clock” the first rock and roll song. (Many would give that honor to Jackie Brenston’s 1951 “Rocket 88,” co-written by Ike Turner, produced by Sam Phillips, and later covered by Haley.) When asked to date the beginning of the rock and roll era in popular…

Modest Mouse have created a “linguistic remix generator” for their new album Strangers to Ourselves: it creates an audiovisual experience pairing text you provide with images and music from the album. Meanwhile, frontman Isaac Brock posted a track-by-track album commentary on Spotify. (Pitchfork) Read Leah Garaas’s review of Strangers to Ourselves, and grab tickets to see Modest Mouse…

Photographer Bridget Bennett is sharing photos and stories from her first-ever SXSW experience. Watch for more updates from Bridget this week and weekend, and listen to The Current on Friday from noon to 6:00 p.m. for a live broadcast of the Public Radio Day Stage concert at SXSW. It’s a festival of standing in lines,…

As the last weeks of March approach, all eyes are on Austin’s South by Southwest Festival. For Jim Anderson, a dedicated music fan from the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis, the conference itself isn’t even the real draw. Instead, he seeks the music on the periphery of the festival—the artists in little-known clubs and dive bars…

On Saturday’s sunny afternoon I met Kelsey, a Milwaukeean who’s been on The Current’s staff since August, and asked whether she could have guessed a year ago that she’d be standing on a street corner in South Minneapolis, waiting to go to an attic-bedroom ratpop show. Kelsey shrugged, and we walked up to a house with TVs in…

In one of the most epic goofs made in recent memory by a major news organization, the Associated Press initially identified Robert Durst—the millionaire who’s been arrested on murder charges after being featured in the HBO documentary series The Jinx—as “the former Limp Bizkit frontman.” The following day the AP issued a correction: “The Associated Press reported…

Frankie Lee: American Dreamer Frankie Lee will be celebrating the release of his American Dreamer video at the Turf Club on Saturday. This will be sort of a visual EP, a la Beyoncé: five new songs, five new videos. Above, Frankie Lee performs a song from his 2013 release Middle West. Har-di-Har: Har-di-Har Har-di-Har are husband…

Kendrick Lamar‘s new album To Pimp a Butterfly was released last night on iTunes and Spotify, a week ahead of its scheduled release date. Later this morning, it was taken down from iTunes—and then, in another reversal, it was made available again. It now seems to be out for real, and listeners are digging it. (Billboard) Prince and 3RDEYEGIRL played…

Sarah Jane Perbix officially expanded her piano studio to become “Sarah Jane’s Music School” on March 1 when the school moved into a cozy location in Northeast Minneapolis. The new location at 2522 Central Ave. suits the school’s new goals and plans for development. The space is cheerful with colorful accents set against an interior brick wall,…

As vinyl sales surge—growing over 50% last year nationwide—the annual Record Store Day is becoming an increasingly massive event for music lovers, whether or not platters are their preferred platform. Locally, this year’s Record Store Day (April 18) will be highlighted by the annual block party at Hymie’s Records as well as a Replacements reissue…