Ray Withrow's Page

Attention Breaking Blog Readers! Find All Your Favorite Stories in Rock Daily

Hello loyal readers of the Breaking Blog! *Rolling Stone* is moving all of the Breaking stories you're used to finding here into the Rock & Roll Daily Blog. You'll still find our weekly Breaking stories, Hype Monitor, MP3 downloads, videos and those other stories on new artists and music you love — just at a different address. Follow this link to go directly to Breaking stories in Rock & Roll Daily, or just head on into the Rock Daily blog and dig around for yourself. Thanks for reading, and we'll see you over there!

Breaking: Anya Marina

**Who:** Anya Marina, a pixie-ish Michigan-born California gal who ditched a sputtering film career (*100 Girls*, anyone?) to become a local disc jockey. Honing her songwriting chops by immersing herself in music all day allowed her to claim the San Diego local open-mike crown; a song on the *Grey's Anatomy* soundtrack called "Miss Halfway" scored her a national audience. **Sounds Like:** The dozen songs on *Slow & Steady Seduction: Phase II* are a mixture of Liz Phair sex appeal and Boswell Sisters cabaret with a dash of Jung. "You can have a side to you that's overt and raw, but usually it's reserved for the bedroom or your innermost thoughts of your mind," she tells *Rolling Stone*. "Some artists are used to going there and that's part of their shtick. I didn't want to put on airs." She credits the intensity of her singing on "Afterparty At Jimmy's" to turning out the lights in the studio and taking her shirt off. "It was fun; it was nice." **Vital Stats:** • Marina's father is a Jungian psychologist who, instead of asking how her homework was coming along, would probe her about how her relationships were developing. If he were to ask her that question today, the answer would apparently be: slowly. Marina was recently on her fifth date with a guy who was trying to talk through why things weren't working out between them. "It was a fucking three-hour long conversation," she says. "I'm thinking 'dude, you've never even tried to kiss me and we're talking about why we're not dating.' Sometimes you can't talk it out. Just shut the fuck up and throw me on the bed."

Hype Monitor: Hatcham Social, Benjy Ferree and Cynic

*Every week, Hype Monitor wades through the most buzzed-about bands all across the Internet to find the ones you need to hear now.* **The Band:** Hatcham Social **The Buzz:** U.K. outfit revives the old sound of Scotland, bringing back clanging chords, loose percussion and loopy vocals. **Listen If:** For you, Orange Juice is more than just a morning beverage. **Key Track:** "Wild Creatures," where swooping vocals run loop-de-loops around vibrant, violent guitars. **The Band:** Benjy Ferree **The Buzz:** Weirdo concept rock from D.C., big banging guitars and huff-n-puff vocals, like Broadway gone bonkers. **Listen If:** Your chief requirement for pop music is unpredictability. **Key Track:** "Dog Killers," a big, noisy rave-up wrapped up in grainy, grimy guitars.

Breaking: Vivian Girls

Who: The Vivian Girls, three Brooklyn-via-New Jersey gals who went from forming to opening for Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo to landing on year-end critics' list in just over a year. Sounds Like: With 10 songs clocking in under 25 minutes, their debut album is a flash flood of surf punk, girl group croon and heavy reverb. Inspirations like the Wipers, Nirvana and the Shangri-La's are evident on songs like the poppy but abrasive "Going Insane" and super-catchy "Where Do You Run To." "When we started out, we just wanted to be a really, really fast band with really short songs," guitarist-singer Cassie Ramone jokes. "That was our original game plan. Now we're trying to write songs that are longer than two minutes. We're aiming for two-and-a-half minute songs." Vital Stats: • Ramone and bassist Kickball Katy formed the band in 2007 after first meeting in high school. "We met at a Weezer concert," Ramone says. They recently recruited Katy's college friend Ali Koehler to step in as drummer. Cassie Ramone got her nom de rock after what she calls an obsession with the Ramones' Rock N Roll High School, while Katy's nickname has a more mysterious origin. "In 2002, I went to college and joined the Super Secret Kickball Society," Katy says. "But I can't talk about it."

Glasvegas Douse Nirvana's "Come As You Are" in Fuzzy Drone on New Cover

Scottish band to watch Glasvegas know how to drone, and they do it well on this new cover of Nirvana's "Come As You Are." If you've ever wanted to hear the Nevermind track on 'ludes, now is your chance: the quartet slow the tempo without sacrificing the song's drama, amping up the reverb without losing their guitars in mush. Check it out here: [Listen]