My End of the Year Movies, Music, Shows, and More
By Fred Garrison

 New album releases in the past few months have been fairly dull.  Considering The Dave Matthews Band's disappointing Crash, everything else should have been wonderful.  It wasn't.  The Presidents of the United States made me sick with II, the clone of their self-titled first album, only with slightly more moronic lyrics.  Also, in an additional dishonorable mention, No Doubt's whiny Gwen Stefani made me cry with their worst album to date, Tragic Kingdom.  But why mention the other groups who made me ralph, when I might just do it again?  The surprising refreshment this year was a fairly new group, Rubber Chicken Knuckles, with their hard-edged alternative-style The Telephone That Ate San Francisco.  It made me think that possibly rock isn't going down hill after all.  Nah.  Nothing's that good.