We're Rubber, You're Glue

by | Jul 24, 2008 | News

Last October, when the Valley Advocate published my first story about the development on Northampton’s Hospital Hill and the demolition of the historic buildings there, I naively thought it might get at least get a reaction from those I was writing about, if not...
Behind the Beat: Sounds Yucky

Behind the Beat: Sounds Yucky

by | Jul 24, 2008 | Music

As the music industry undergoes a giant sea change, traditional, well-established archetypes are shifting along with it. Record labels are becoming marginalized as new distribution models—for both traditional and digital media—continue to evolve. The role...
CD Shorts

CD Shorts

by | Jul 24, 2008 | Music

Daniel OuelletteMonsterland—The Revenge of Daniel(independent)Daniel Ouellette is an example of why the proliferation of home recording studios may not necessarily be a good thing. Over a bed of staticky techno beats and what sound like keyboard demo loops,...
Soundcheck: Underground Entertainment

Soundcheck: Underground Entertainment

by | Jul 24, 2008 | Music

In the 1920s, the subterranean location and numerous exits of the Mole's Eye—then the downstairs lounge of the Brook's House Hotel—made it perfect for a speakeasy. The liquor-laden shelves behind the bar were safely sequestered behind a locked...
Nightcrawler: Full Disc Closure

Nightcrawler: Full Disc Closure

by | Jul 24, 2008 | Music

The politicos love their "Super" Tuesday. And February's annual "Fat" one is, of course, Mardi Gras. But Platterpus Records proprietor Dave Witthaus can recall a time when any given Tuesday was an event at his record store; dozens of people...