To refer to J. Scott Franklin as the Tom Waits or Alan Ginsberg of Cleveland is kind of a stretch, don't you think? Yes, these poems that he wrote over several decades and took years to fine tune are quite good and the music, composed and arranged by members of Infinite Number of Sounds and performed by a number of quite talented musicians (Mr.. Franklin played trumpet on a couple of tracks maybe) is a stellar accompaniment to anything it would be a backdrop for, but I think you went overboard in your comparisons of an amateur poet with some promise to those who are legendary. Of course, you are entitled to your opinion and I respect that. We are living in a time where a review has to be compared to *something*... it would behoove most critics in general to be less careless in making these comparisons in order to be taken seriously and to be seen as being credible.

I have to say that was the most retarded review I have ever heard regarding Solo Flyer. Fellow writer Nate was there - I'd like to hear his take on the gig.  I find it odd you say SF was the "low point" of the evening - when clearly every time Mint or Shade mentioned them - the crowd went wild.  Also are you blind and deaf too (or just dumb) the crowd moved up close when SF was just setting up! Not to even mention the reaction and energy that was give and take between the crowd and the band. SF was clearly the crowd favorite that night. And as good as This is Exploding was, you clearly felt sorry for them having to go on after SF.  The set was tight and had lot's of energy. If you want slow down - let's cry music, try Sarah McLaughlin. I love her music - but clearly SF is a fun, pop type band.

Your review about them (Solo Flyer) was ignorant.

Jeri- I appreciate your feedback. Obviously, you are a fan of Solo Flyer, or friends with them, and I understand you sticking up for them. However, reviews are opinions, that's what I do as a writer. I go to shows and make an observation. Solo Flyer was a low point for me in the show. I was not impressed with them, they sounded like a lot of other bands out there now, and simply didn't appeal to me. That's not to say they didn't appeal to other people. Yes, there were people at the show who liked it. However, a review of a show reflects what the writer thought, not what the crowd thought. If you want to write nice reviews about bands you like, then you should seek out a writing career.

In regards to your comments that I felt sorry for This Is Exploding following Solo Flyer, that was far from the truth. This Is Exploding played an amazing set and blew Solo Flyer away. Also, just so you know, in regards to the Sarah McLaughlin thing...I didn't say I wanted "slow down, let's cry music" (though I do enjoy slow music, as well as fast music), but sometimes too much energy can be annoying, that's all.  In closing, I simply didn't like the band's music. It wasn't an all out attack on Solo Flyer, just an opinion from the writer covering the show. 

re: why do you listen to that crap?

I just read this article on your website. I wanted to comment with my childhood memory of the first time I realized that most people listened to crap. I remember being a kid watching American bandstand on TV where every week they would have this song rating part of the show. They'd play some mediocre new mainstream dance song and some person would rate it -whether they liked it or not. I remember every week Dick Clark would ask why they liked the song. Every single week the response would be, almost invariably, as if they were reading a cue card, "it's got a good beat. I can dance to it." Dick Clark used to get so frustrated with this response. He would ask if there was anything else at all they liked about it, any other factor. Always the response would be "no", or "I dunno". So... this liking of crap's nothing new. Back then I wondered how people could be so mindless about something I found increasingly more important and meaningful. I thought everyone was like me and found music to be a necessity of life and not just background for a supermarket shopping experience. Of course, now as adults, we can all say "to each their own" and mean it. I guess some people are more concerned about handbags or something. Cool website! I got linked to it from CD Truth's website. I'll be back.  take it easy!  Lisa

I'll make it short:

- your reviews are the best I ever read (especially the movies)
- the colors of your site, especially the green on black text, is a pain in the a...eyes - it almost made me puke (no joke, I got really sick from it after a view reviews)
many greetings from Hamburg, Germany
 

This is Tony, form Coffinberry.  Just dropping a line to say I was happy to see a print version of the web-site.  So many formats, so little time.  Anyway, cool to have stuff like that around.  Kudos.