3rd Bass Reuniting - my latest from Esquire.com . . .

Here's my latest music piece - and my first for Esquire.com. On the reunion of the mighty 3rd Bass . . . read it here . . .

In the spirit of Xmas, I give you . . . Electric Wizard!

Read my Metalunderground review of this killer new sludge-doom opus from these Brits . . . Merry Metal Christmas to one and all . . .

Year-End Lists and Have a Metal Xmas!

If you haven't yet made your way to Big Shot magazine's revamped site, now is the time. The New York-based dance glossy that I write for on the regular recently went web-only and Big Shot honcho Darren Ressler has given the site a slick makeover that kicks major ass. Check out my year-end list below and read all Big Shot writers' lists here

Dave Wedge
The lines between pop and underground dance music continue to be blurred. Just listen to the latest hits by Usher, Ke$ha or Taio Cruz. Many of these would have been considered straight up house a few years ago. Today they’re on Seacrest’s Top 40 countdown. Is this a bad thing? I don’t know. Frankly, if I’m in the kind of place that’s playing Top 40, I’d much rather hear some decently produced housey-pop than cliché-ridden poser rap or Nickelback. Madonna was the first modern pop star to embrace house but now no pop artist puts out a single without a string of remixes from a who’s who of the dance music glitterati. Shit, superstar DJs like Dave Audé, Jason Nevins and Liam Keegan are making a living off remixing hot new pop tracks. As a result, much of the best electronic music of 2010 has an undeniable pop edge while most of the year’s best blend genres to deliver eclectic dance floor gold.

Here’s my favorites of the year, many of which boldly spit in the face of convention and inspire with bold creativity:

1. Shit Robot / Cradle to the Rave
New York club legend delivers his 10 years-in-the-making debut and smashes it out of the park. The electro-pop glory of “Take ‘Em Up” gets my vote for track of the year.

2. The Glitch Mob / Drink the Sea
Like The Prodigy and The Chemical Brothers, these L.A. kids know how to put on a live show and embrace the idea of an electronic-based “band.” And if “Take ‘Em Up” ain’t the song of the year, then “Drive It Like You Stole It” sure as shit is.

3. Skrillex / Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites
Former hardcore kid Sonny Moore gives us a veritable buffet of electronica hybrids, from house to dubstep to alternative hip-hop to electro. Can’t wait to hear what he comes up with next.

4. Deadmau5 / 4 x 4 = 12
He’s quickly becoming the second most recognizable mouse in entertainment but no sellout here. Deadmau5 brings the heat on instant classics like “A City in Florida,” “Everything Before” and the spine-tingling “Sofi Needs a Ladder.”

5. Chromeo / Business Casual
Speaking of dudes unafraid to inject a little pop into their mix, this Montreal duo brought in La Roux for a track and kept it sexy. “Don’t Turn the Lights On” and “Night by Night” are near-perfect electro-pop party anthems.

6. Uffie / Sex Dreams and Denim Jeans
A disciple of Peaches and Princess Superstar, Uffie combined Miami bottle service swagger with French touch. The result is a sweaty electro-pop orgy.

7. Swedish House Mafia / Until One
Like Rush on turntables, this holy triumvirate of deck demons inspire awe while remixing everyone from Justice to MGMT to Daft Punk to Robyn S.

8. Miami Horror / Illumination
Searching for that perfect mix of disco-house and indie-tronica? Look no further than these Australians, who gave us the gorgeous “Sometimes,” a soul-soothing lounge jam more addictive than that Miley Cyrus salvia smoking video.

9. Holy Ghost! / Static on the Wire EP
The nu-disco-fired title track was one of the tracks of the year while you simply can’t hit the repeat button fast enough every time you hear “Say My Name.”

10. Felix Cartal / Popular Music
Representing Dim Mak, this Vancouver DJ/producer’s latest has power, melody and a thunderous dance floor thump.


And in the spirit of Xmas, here is my list of the best metal Christmas songs from the also newly-revamped DigBoston website . . .

Story of the Day: Dude Takes Halloween Wayyyy Too Seriously . . .

Guy dressed up like a Baseball Fury (from "The Warriors") and (allegedly) split some lady's head open with a bat. Insane. Courtesy of Boston Herald:


Cops: Furies poser from ‘The Warriors’ bashed victim’s head
By Colneth Smiley Jr.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010 -

A savage Halloween attack by a face-painted, wigged thug in a baseball costume left a woman with 50 staples in her scalp, law enforcement said yesterday.

Carmen Picardi, 39, was arraigned yesterday at Boston Municipal Court on charges of mayhem and armed assault with intent to murder and is being held on $75,000 bail.

On the night in question, he was dressed as a “Furies” gang member from the 1979 cult-movie classic “The Warriors,” police said.

Read the rest here . . .

Lasagna Rage

Can't make this stuff up . . .

Video of the Day: Digitalism "Blitz"

Enjoy your Monday . . .

City Hall Food Fight! and Menino= Brett Favre

Food is all the rage at Boston City Hall these days, along with speculation over Mayor Thomas M. Menino's future.
Here's a bit of a piece I did for the Boston Herald this week, showing that the city has blown more than $130,000 this year alone on catered meals for city workers, despite massive cutbacks and layoffs.


City workers feasting with taxpayer dough

By Dave Wedge
Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Taxpayer-funded raviolis, pizza and gourmet sandwich platters are being gobbled up by “belt-tightening” City Hall and school workers as they chow down on catered meals from no-bid contractors including donors to Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s campaign coffers.

The $130,000-plus in free lunches this year alone hit the table as the cash-strapped city was laying off teachers, custodians, library workers and others to close a budget gap.

Records reviewed by the Herald show taxpayers picked up the check for:

A $2,600 lunch at the swish Ames Hotel in January for Mayor Thomas M. Menino to welcome new city councilors;
$6,100 for a pair of breakfasts for teachers in the Department of English Language;
A $5,000 “professional development” teachers seminar at Lombardo’s in Randolph, which included a “corporate express coffee break” and a “chef’s display” of turkey and tuna sandwiches;
$1,225 in meals for cops at strategy meetings for the Boston Celtics playoff run; and
Regular catered meetings at up to $200 each for School Superintendent Carol Johnson and her principals.

Read the rest here . . .


And in today's follow-up, the janitor's union, which has been hit hard by layoffs, says the food tab is "insane" . . .