Well hey hey, my my. According to Rust Never Sleeps' website, the band "is a unique, live rock show that celebrates the music, and musical career of Neil Young. Based in the Greater Boston area, Rust Never Sleeps pays tribute to Neil Young and his music the best way they know how... with integrity." Marlborough Patch asked drummer Jeremy Esposito five questions before the band hits the stage on Friday. Marlborough Patch: Why Neil Young?JE: Neil is a major influence on all of us. We love his music. MP: Does anyone in the band have hair like Neil Young?JE: Yes … our fearless leader … Kenny …

I find it difficult to pretend to be objective when reviewing a new release by the Drive-By Truckers. To declare them simply my favorite band would be a gross understatement. I've travelled hundreds of miles to see them live, had my living room walls covered with their posters, and had my heart broken when Jason Isbell and the band parted ways. The day they release a new album is my favorite day of the year (at least, it certainly seems like an annual event). So this past Tuesday was an extra special event for die-hards like myself, as it saw the release of both the band's  excellent new …

Rural Alberta Advantage: "Departing" will be released March 1st. The video for the first single, "Stamp" has already been released in advance of this long-awaited follow-up to 2008's critically acclaimed debut, "Hometowns," a beautiful collection of folky-electro-pop-Americana tunes. The band can be seen locally March 9th at The Middle East Downstairs in Cambridge.   Drive-By Truckers: "Go Go Boots" will be released February 15th. Also released on the 15th will be the Barr Weissman-directed DBT documentary "The Secret To A Happy Ending," which chronicles the band's tumultuous 2005-2006 period…

As comedian Patton Oswalt once put it, "Jason Statham has never been in a great movie. He's also never been in a boring one." Never has this been more true than in his latest action flick, "The Mechanic." A remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson movie of the same name, Statham stars as assassin for hire Arthur Bishop, who works for a rather powerful and mysterious assassination bureau. Shortly into the film, the CEO of this company convinces Bishop that Bishop's mentor, Harry McKenna (Donald Sutherland) has double-crossed their organization, and also convinces Bishop that he is the only one fit …

"Dye It Blonde", Smith Westerns' follow-up to their very, very lo-fi 2009 self-titled debut, sees the brash, babyfaced Chicago quartet clean up their glam-pop/rock sound considerably, and the result is one of the first standout albums of 2011. Losing none of the sugary, poppy, dreamy sound of their debut, their sophomore album (and first on Fat Possum Records) is all big hooks, soaring guitar riffs, and sing-along choruses. The substantial increase in production values helps magnify just how good these kids are at writing a song that ends up getting stuck in your head for days. Still in high …

For the last two months, Joy Asia on Rt 20 in Marlborough has been the home of the Happy Ending Comedy Night every Thursday evening from 8:30-11 p.m., providing area comedy fans a chance to see up-and-coming local comics perform, and also giving folks who think they got what it takes, a chance to show their stuff during the open mic session that concludes each Comedy Night.   Already well known around town for its lively karaoke nights, Joy Asia's foray into the local comedy scene was the brainchild of local businessman Bernie Novitch, owner of Collector's Paradise, located at 771 Boston Post…

1.  Counting Crows - Recovering the Satellites I firmly believe that Counting Crows are one of the most underrated popular bands of the last 20 years, and I believe that this album, their sophomore effort, is their finest work to date.  It's also the perfect album when Mother Nature decides to dump a foot-and-a-half of snow on you, as she did in Marlborough this week.  "A Long December" is the ideal winter singalong anthem, and the rest of the album seems to follow suit.  The melancholy mood of the fourteen tracks are the perfect companion to the shorter, colder, darker days of winter.     2…

The Decemberists' follow-up to 2009's ambitious, sprawling folk-rock opera "The Hazards Of Love" sees the band take a decidedly different, simpler, more straightforward direction that will undoubtedly be welcomed by some fans and reviled by others.  Gone are the epic tales of swashbuckling mariners, doomed Victorian-era love affairs, wood nymphs, and Chinese trapeze artists.  "King" seems free of any particular concept at all, and it's ten tracks clock in at a mere 40 minutes, the shortest of any of the band's studio albums.    The first track, "Don't Carry It All", sets the stage for the …

First, a caveat. I wouldn't dare claim that these are the five greatest albums released in 2010. Rather, these are the five albums that continually kept me coming back for another listen, that I couldn't get out of my head, the albums that were the soundtrack for my year. Without further adieu: Free Energy - "Stuck On Nothing"Pure pop-dance-rock glory from start to finish, this debut album from the Philadelphia quartet manages to be a both a breath of fresh air and a blatant homage to the classic rock that inspired it. Produced by LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy, the band succeeds admirably at…