Teddy Thompson & Kelly Jones　“Little Windows” 　(Cooking Vinyl)　Teddy Thompson’s musical influences come from this side of the Atlantic, so his first duets album sounds nothing like the British folk rock produced more than 30 years ago by his parents, Richard and Linda.　“Little Windows” does share one thing with Richard and Linda’s music: It’s terrific.　Teddy meshes beautifully with singing partner Kelly Jones, whose background is in California power pop. Their two-part harmony is the lead instru

Willie Nile　“World War Willie” 　(River House Records) 　Willie Nile is loud and proud. While other rockers merely strut around leathered and weathered, Nile takes one giant leap for mankind, glorifying the aging process with the party-hearty song “Grandpa Rocks.” Its featured character depicted in a Clash T-shirt and dirty combat boots. 　Soul mates, seekers -- even seductive sociopaths -- populate the storytelling in Nile’s robust new album, “World War Willie,” coproduced with Grammy winner Stewa

Cheap Trick　"Bang Zoom Crazy... Hello" 　(Big Machine)　Some classic rock bands limp into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on the basis of past reputation. On the other hand, Cheap Trick -- the hard-charging, melodic rockers from Rockford, Illinois -- is racing full speed ahead into the Rock Hall, fueled by its best album in decades.　“Bang Zoom Crazy... Hello” kicks off with a blast of feedback and a classic guitar-bass-and-drum roar on “Heart on the Line,” which would make a great concert opener if

A look into the girl group audition show’s popular appeal

Taeyeon of Girls’ Generation has postponed her first solo concert to spend more time preparing for it, her agency said Thursday.　“We decided to delay the concert to the second half of this year to increase its level of perfection,” SM Entertainment said. Taeyeon (SM Entertainment)　“We’ll announce the rescheduled date as early as possible.”　Taeyeon had initially planned to hold the concert “Taeyeon, Butterfly Kiss” at the Olympic Park in southern Seoul from April 23-24.　Girls’ Generation, includi

American bands Weezer and Panic! at the Disco will be headline acts at the Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival this year, performing alongside big names in the Korean indie scene such as the Koxx and Peppertones. 　On Tuesday, the festival’s website announced the first lineup of bands slated to appear at the event, which is one of Korea’s largest annual rock festivals. It will take place from Aug. 12-14. 　The first lineup features six bands, including Korean indie band We Are The Night and rising Eng

Enjoying growing international fame, producer-singer Dean wants to tell stories that ring true through soulful music

Seven-member boy band BTOB has returned once more with a collection of mellow ballads in the group’s eighth mini-album, released Monday, treading a path slightly different from that of your average, dance-focused K-pop boy band.The title track “Remember That” seeks to bring calmness and solace to listeners in light of the upcoming spring season, the BTOB members told reporters in a group interview Monday. A promotional photo for boy band BTOB’s “Remember That” (Cube Entertainment)“(The title tra

K-pop music producer Shinsadong Tiger has spoken out against rumors alleging he has been brokering prostitution deals between female celebrities and male clients.　“I have never been investigated regarding the recently circulating rumors and have never even been contacted by prosecutors or police,” said Shinsadong Tiger, whose real name is Lee Ho-yang, in a post on Instagram on Sunday.　Shinsandong Tiger is known for writing hits like T-ara’s “Bo Peep Bo Peep” and APink’s “NoNoNo.” He is also the

Singer Se7en has signed on with a major Japanese record label and is set to release a new album in July, three years after his last Japanese single “Arigato.”　The rhythm and blues singer announced that he has partnered with Victor Entertainment at a press conference held in Japan on Sunday, according to Eleven9 Entertainment, the singer’s Korean management agency, on Monday. Singer Se7en (Eleven9 Entertainment)　The deal makes Se7en the first Korean artist to sign up with the Japanese label, whic

Singer-songwriter Sam Kim, the runner-up in the third season of SBS competition program “K-pop Star” in 2014, will release the first part of his debut album Monday.The album, titled “My Name Is Sam,” contains three tracks, “Mama Don’t Worry,” “Seattle” and “Your Song.”Singer-song writer Sam Kim in a screenshot of the clip (Antenna Music)All the three songs were composed and written by Kim, and feature lyrical melodies along with his stories, according to his management agency Antenna Music.The f

2016 TIMF opens with performance by Gyeonggi Philharmonic in ‘Good Friday Spell’