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The Lemon Twigs on Their Brotherly Balance, Unorthodox Love Songs, Elton John Praise
Brian D’Addario, 23, and his brother Michael, 21, were still teenagers when they signed with legendary indie label 4AD and released their debut album as The Lemon Twigs, co-produced by Foxygen’s Jonathan Rado. The Long Island siblings are both singer-songwriters and multi-instrumentalists who expertly evoke the sound and spirit of ‘60s and ‘70s rock at its most melodic — and they’ve already impressed heroes like Todd Rundgren and Elton John. But their recently issued third album, Songs for the General Public, is the kind of confident step into a brighter spotlight that its title implies — the sound of former teen prodigies now in the prime of their talents. Brian D’Addario spoke to SPIN about how their new album contrasts with their last effort, the whimsical 2018 rock opera Go To School, ...
Go Behind the Scenes of Kygo and Donna Summer’s New “Hot Stuff” Music Video
On Friday, September 18th, Kygo released the latest in his line of tribute remixes. This time, the Norwegian producer took on Donna Summer‘s 1979 classic, “Hot Stuff.” Alongside the reimagination, he also released a music video featuring the stars of Netflix‘s Outer Banks, Madelyn Cline and Chase Stokes. Filmed in North Carolina over the summer, the production company behind the video, Lighthouse Films, captured the spirit of decades past to help set the background for the single. Before, during, and after the release of the music video, they shared behind-the-scenes footage of the filmmaking process. It’s interesting to note how Lighthouse transformed the modern-day setting into a nostalgic paradise using props and lighting effects. Also notab...
Jaguar’s XJR9 Is a Bonkers British Racer and Le Mans Legend
Sir John Egan, the man who pulled Jaguar out of the state-owned morass that was British Leyland, was a shrewd salesman. He knew Jaguar had enough money to launch the XJ40 sedan in 1986, but not a lot more. He realized the company’s long-term future, therefore, lay in persuading one of the global auto giants to fund the ongoing R&D needed to improve the XJ40 and build a replacement for the aging XJ-S, as well as invest in the news that Jaguar would be returning to Le Mans in 1986 with a factory-backed team, and aiming for an outright win, delivered exactly the sort of image-building media coverage Egan wanted. Built and developed by Tom Walkinshaw’s TWR Racing Team, and painted in the distinctive purple, white, and yellow of the team sponsor, the Silk Cut Jaguar XJRs became ...
2022 Jeep Wagoneer: What We Know About the Full-Size SUV
Where Does the Wagoneer Fit in Jeep’s SUV Lineup? That’s the big question among observers, and a key clue is hiding in plain sight right on the Grand Wagoneer concept: a lack of Jeep badging. Like the new Ford Bronco “family,” Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer will serve as a subbrand under the broader Jeep umbrella. Both will sit atop the Grand Cherokee in the lineup, and both will use the same Ram 1500-based platform and three-row layout. How Will Jeep Differentiate the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer? Since we haven’t seen the production version of either the Grand Wagoneer or the regular Wagoneer, and only a concept version of the former, we don’t know for sure. But we can certainly fill in the blanks based on what Jeep has inferred. We’ve referred to th...
Jaguar’s Late 20th Century Woes: From Failed Le Mans Bid to Management’s Missteps
The 1955 Le Mans race is grimly remembered for Mercedes driver Pierre Levegh’s horrific crash on the pit straight, which claimed the lives of more than 80 spectators. But it’s an event that also deeply affected Jaguar: The only son of company founder Sir William Lyons, John, was killed in a car crash en route to the race. John Lyons was just 25 years old when he died, and it is by no means certain he would have succeeded his father at the helm of Jaguar. But the lack of a successor is often cited as one of the reasons Sir William abruptly decided to merge Jaguar with the British Motor Corporation (BMC)—the company that owned Austin, Morris, MG, Riley, and Wolseley—in 1966. The delicate, six-month-long merger negotiations put the XJ13 program on hold, a fatal delay that meant it...
NASCAR at Le Mans: When a Dodge Charger and Ford Torino Raced in Europe
“They’re going to run what? Where? For how long?” This was likely a common reaction when it was announced that two full-figured NASCAR stockers were going to compete at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1976. Wasn’t that a race in a faraway land called France, contested only by funny little furrin’ cars? No, not since 1966, anyway, when Henry Ford II went there with his all-conquering GT program and the notion of trumping Enzo Ferrari at his own game. The result was the original four-peat: back-to-back factory wins in 1966 and 1967, plus two privateer victories by the Gulf-Wyer team in 1968 and 1969 (in the same car, no less). Sportsman/driver/car-builder Briggs Cunningham tried it a decade and a half before, with creditable results including a third overall. Goodnes...
Racer Andy Pilgrim Recalls His First 24 Hours of Le Mans
Even though this year’s race will look a little bit different, without the thousands of fans lining the stands, Le Mans itself is still the same 8.5 notorious miles of straights, chicanes, and flat-out corners. Just ask Andy Pilgrim, who has raced at the 24 hours of Le Mans six times in his career and knows the track as well as anyone. But his first memory of racing at the famed street circuit has nothing to do with racing at all. It has to do with bacon. It was 1996 and Pilgrim was behind the wheel for New Hardware Racing, a New Zealand-based team that was running a Porsche 911 GT2. Being his first appearance at Le Mans, Pilgrim wanted to get to the track nice and early—only he made the mistake of showing up a bit too early. MotorTrend is the EXCLUSIVE PLACE in the U.S. where v...
The Reissue Section: September 2020
The whole reissue concept didn’t come across my obsession desk until my first tour of duty at SPIN as an editorial intern in the fall of 1997. One of my tasks during my two days in the office — back when it was on 18th St. near Academy Records — was opening the editors’ mail. I’ll never forget ripping open Sealed Air envelopes for Charles Aaron and just being so amazed at all this cool stuff he’d get sent to him. Now, this was during the time when both Rhino Records and the Sony Music catalog division, Legacy Recordings, were really busting out the big guns: We’re talking the soundtrack to Zabriskie Point with a bonus disc of rarities from the Pink Floyd sessions, that gang of Miles Davis reissues that included Dark Magus and Live-Evil. Island Records released the legendary Lee ...
The Unlikely but Plausible Way the Suzuki Jimny Could Come to the U.S.
The Suzuki Jimny is the tiny four-wheel-drive SUV that we absolutely love, and maybe even more than we really should. Automotive writers and critics have gone wild about it, but by any dispassionate analysis, the little Jimny sales case—where it likely wears a high price in a niche segment—is marginal in this country. If the sales justified homologating it here, wouldn’t someone find a way to do it? Suzuki might be gone as a seller of passenger vehicles in America, but surely there’s a partnership possibility with a company that remains in our market. Hey, wait a minute, there is! Toyota owns a stake in Suzuki. A small one to be sure, but a real one. And with the introduction of the Ford Bronco and the subsequent elevation of the dearly departed FJ Cruiser into the realm of a m...
Scottish Musician Launches Record Label for Prison Inmates
Over the last decade, singer-songwriter Jill Brown has spent time hosting songwriting workshops at HMP Barlinnie, Scotland’s largest prison. Through her work, Brown took notice of the positive impact of music on the mental health and well-being of inmates in Scotland’s correctional system. The experience has now led her to develop a record label of her own, specifically geared toward recording ex-convicts and the incarcerated. Aptly titled Criminal Records, the label was born out of Brown’s desire to give inmates a voice. Brown posits that it’s difficult to lock someone up and expect them to come out changed without having introduced something positive while they are still in prison. She ultimately believes music could be the answer to help...
What does a Cloud-Connected Africa look like?
Sourced from ZDNet. With a region as large and as vast as Africa, it is difficult to imagine a fully connected continent where every individual across all demographics and every business across all sectors can harness the power of cloud computing. Yet as technology continues to drastically change how we conduct our lives and connect with the world around us, this notion of a cloud-connected Africa becomes far more plausible and realistic. In fact, many of us are already utilising cloud-enabled technologies on a daily basis. From cloud-based productivity apps to collaboration services like Microsoft Teams, the cloud is seamlessly integrating into our everyday lives. A future where a healthy cloud ecosystem is supported by integrated and innovative technologies is much closer than we t...
Shelby vs. The World: How Carroll and Co. Conquered Le Mans
After dominating Corvettes in the 1963 domestic series, Carroll Shelby set his sights on Ferrari and winning the World Manufacturers’ Championship. This was easier said than done. Shelby’s Cobra roadsters excelled on the road courses in North America, but weren’t aerodynamic enough for the long straights and sweeping curves of the European circuits. A coupe version of the Cobra was needed to compete with the sleek World Champion Ferrari 250 GTOs. Of all the projects undertaken at Shelby American, the creation of the Cobra Coupe was one of the most challenging. Starting in October 1963, the company had 90 days to design, engineer, build, and test the coupe prior to Daytona in February 1964. See all 16 photos Peter Brock (right) designed the Cobra Daytona Coupe. Here, he ch...
