Category Archives: Reviews

The NewReview In Town

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The NewReview - thenewreview.net

The NewReview - thenewreview.net

For the past couple weeks I’ve been frequenting a new music review website. The NewReview is a site that caters to those who are into a wide array of rock music, ranging from black metal, post-hardcore, punk and an various other sub-genres. Every review is informative, straight-forward and offers a personal edge. I’m normally not one to read a lot of music reviews or frequent any specific website when I am looking for them, but The NewReview has kept me coming back. These guys know their shit. They will tell you if a song sucks and if it’s good, I’m sure Lee will tell you it will shake the dentures out of your grandma’s mouth and make your grandpa fill his Depends.

I first heard about the website via Twitter. I follow Lee on Twitter and saw that the site was up and running. So I gave it a chance and have been reading reviews since it’s launch in September. Each reviewer adds their own spin to every review that they craft. I’ve bought 3 albums thus far-with more on the way-from reading their reviews alone. I’m appreciative of the fact that I feel like each reviewer is on a more personal level with their readers, so it’s as if you had a conversation with a coworker or a friend. I have faith in their opinions and my purchases based on them have proven successful (thanks, guys!).

I often feel like some reviews you read in magazines and on sponsored websites are manufactured and can be fluffed with creative writing and vague opinions. The NewReview team doesn’t beat around the bush. Their reviews will slap you in the face like a ton of cinder blocks or cradle you like a baby, all in the same paragraph. I think I speak for everyone out there when I say that I want the whole meal, not just the wafting aroma when it comes to getting the information I seek (okay, maybe some of you might have put it a little different but you get my drift, I hope).

Who Runs The Joint?

The NewReview consists of 4 guys that all have varying tastes in the spectrum that is rock music:

  • Lee Rochester – Writer and Founder
  • Ben Westerman – Writer
  • Ryan Tallman – Writer
  • Eric Burnet – Writer

Who Designed It?

Being a web developer myself, I was really appreciative of the craftsmanship when it came to the usability and overall appearance of the website. The NewReview was designed by the talented wife of Lee Rochester and owner of the small web design company redheaddesign, Jennifer Rochester. Aside from the website offering an awesome amount of helpful features and immediately presenting the user with a list of recent reviews, the website is aesthetically pleasing and easy on the eyes when it comes to sitting down and reading a bunch of reviews at once (like myself). I often have trouble reading at length on websites but the dark interface, font faces and font size choices help this immensely. Heck, it even tames my ADD and that’s a rarity.

The NewReview has some tools that assist the user in purchasing and sampling the music being reviewed. Every tool is helpful in the decision making process of album purchases and ventures into the minds and music of new artists. There are Flash players that offer sample songs from each album, track listings, cover art, band photos, Amazon and iTunes Store links and other ways to get more information about the band being reviewed. Easily accessible and helpful.

This Concludes Our Broadcast…

The bottom line is that The NewReview is a great website if you’re looking to get some insight on your future rock album purchases. I’m helping promote this website out of personal experience and the success I’ve had with my album purchases based on the reviews I’ve read. When you have a few minutes, check it out! – TheNewReview.net

Pavarotti’s Pizza Dunnellon, FL Review

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A little while back, I decided that I wanted to make a contribution to WorstPizza.com since there were no reviews for any pizza joints in the Ocala and Dunnellon area. So I decided to write a review about my favorite pizza place, Pavarotti’s. Prior to writing my review, I read some of the existing ones on WorstPizza.com just to see what kinds of things others covered. I decided to go above and beyond and wrote about pretty much everything.

You can read my review here – Pavarotti’s Review on WorstPizza.com

Or you can read it on the jump (it’s long)!

Let me first start off by saying that the photo I’ve supplied doesn’t do this pie justice. I took a photo of the fresh, hot pizza after I was served a slice, but for some reason my G1’s camera froze up and the photo I took was never saved to memory. So to suffice, I’ve included a photo of a slice I took home.

Pavarotti’s is a little family owned place located in Dunnellon, FL and is situated in a plaza next to a Sweet Bay supermarket. It’s probably one of about 3 pizza places in town and is the best bet out of all of them, hands down. They actually recently opened up a second location in Ocala but I’ve yet to eat there. I hear business is doing great for the new location though. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere and the service is excellent. All of the staff there are very personable and genuinely friendly. Seating arrangements are comfortable and you’re almost always seated immediately (you seat yourself wherever you please). The general appearance is clean and organized. Nothing too fancy but it gets the job done. The music is a nice selection as well. When we were there we heard Bobby Darin, Bobby Vinton and some Opera. That’s not even close to my era (I was born in ‘81) but for a pizza joint, it’s a nice mix. I brought my mom along since she loves this place as well, so the music was right up her alley.

Today we had a server (Pretty sure his name was George) that I’d never had before and I would say that this was my best experience at Pavarotti’s to date. I’ve eaten there approximately 5 or 6 times, maybe more. It’s only about 8 minutes from my house. Service here is always quick and each server is attentive to your needs, which is the way it should be. Our pizza was out in about 10-15 minutes. They normally have about 2 to 3 cooks in the kitchen and all of their pies are cooked in a stone deck oven.

We ordered an 18” hand-tossed pie with half white (easy on the regatta) and the other half (mine) was pepperoni. I like to keep it simple. The crust on their hand-tossed pizza is some of the best I’ve had in this area. In fact I’d say it’s my favorite pizza crust. It’s perfectly cooked and has a nice consistency. Not too doughy but not overcooked and too crispy. The pizza stays together in your hand perfectly. It gets along well with all of the other elements of the pie. I hate crust that has dark burnt areas spread out along the bottom of the pie. Trust me, I’ve found this to be a common occurrence at a few pizza places in Florida.

The sauce and cheese are excellent as well. The sauce is spread evenly and and you’ll never have any sort of slipping and sliding when you pick up the slice. It’s sweet and tasty. You’ll always be able to taste each individual part in its own glory as you masticate (not THAT, dirty mind). The cheese has a nice taste and doesn’t resemble any sort of processed crap you might get at some other place. It’s guaranteed to compliment your toppings well and hold them in place while doing so. These guys know what they’re doing and would never risk putting some second hand cheese on their pies.

All in all there is honestly nothing I can say that got me down about this place, or ever has. The service is excellent, the pizza is excellent, the restaurant is excellent. Heck, even their soft drinks are awesome. Their Sprite is unbelievable. Some places do a crap job at mixing the syrup in the machine but this was some sort of heavenly Sprite. I think the only thing I could say about their pizza is that it can sometimes be greasy. It depends on your toppings. I got pepperoni so that’s expected.

If you’re not big into pizza, don’t fret. They also have a large dinner menu that includes baked ziti, spaghetti, lasagna, hot and cold subs, etc. Their pasta and calzones are delicious. If you dig Sicilian pizza, try their Sicilian with sliced meatballs and pepperoni. Also, if you’re big into garlic knots, this is the only place I’ve been to around here that serves them and they’re awesome.

Pavarotti’s in Dunnellon, Florida is an impressive little pizza place with a nice menu and I hope my review will get them some more business. They deserve it! I’m gonna have to give them 7 out of 8 slices on this one. I always have a pleasant experience and I love their pizza.