Brian Varney | Lollipop Magazine

Mystery Train – Images of America in Rock ‘n’ Roll Music – Review

September 1, 2009

Originally published in 1975, Mystery Train is seemingly the last Marcus volume that is neither awash in academic incomprehensibility nor about Bob Dylan.

Roadsaw – See You In Hell – Review

January 1, 2009

The recording sounds great, guitarist Darryl Shepard brings his unique, burly guitar tone, and Riggs sings like a rock star from a bygone era.

Johnny Winter – Live Through the ’70s – Review

January 1, 2009

Widely considered one of the finest rock guitarists of his time, the opportunity to see him play makes this an ideal gift for the guitar nerd in your life.

RPG – Worth the Weight – Review

September 1, 2008

The punk-rock energy of the first Saints album and the monstrous brawn of the MC5 with the rock-steady R&B timekeeping of classic AC/DC.

The Way-High Men – Let’s Get Arrested! – Review

May 1, 2008

The cover is gonna make you think Supersuckers. Still a bit tentative, so the level of attack isn’t quite what it should be, but the raw materials are present.

The Irish Brothers – Freedom Is a Lonely Thing – Review

May 1, 2008

Nice guitar sound and playing, the songs themselves are simple and likable, and I’m always a sucker for a raspy voice.

The Rock & Roll Film Encyclopedia – Review

February 1, 2008

A film guide whose focus is rock & roll-based movies. A reference guide for folks in search of music-based feature films, bio-pics, documentaries, and the like.

Roller Derby – The History and All-Girl Revival of the Greatest Sport on Wheels – Review

February 1, 2008

A brief, breezy history of the sport’s beginnings, its descent as a result of TV, and its rebirth as the sport for the PBR-swilling rockers and Goth girls.

If You Liked School, You’ll Love Work – Review

February 1, 2008

A collection of five short stories. Find it in hip record stores that have a small fiction section with Bukowski, Kerouac, Burroughs, Palahniuk, and Rollins.

Everything I’m Cracked Up to Be – Review

September 10, 2007

Small-change artist, signed to major label in post-alternate rock feeding frenzy, suffers growing pains as she realizes just how major record labels work.