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June 2009
Ray Price reschedules Austin show following surgery
Ray Price is out and Mel Tillis in on July 17 at the One World Theater.
Price’s agent Bobby Roberts told the Associated Press the 83-year-old Price was admitted to a hospital in Texas on June 22 for routine medical tests when a colonoscopy revealed a large number of polyps in the pre-cancerous stage. The polyps were successfully removed the next day, according to Roberts. Price is resting at his home near Mount Pleasant.
His show at the One World has been rescheduled for Sept. 25.
Tickets purchased for the original date of the Ray Price & Dale Watson shows will be honored on this new date. Or patrons can get a refund.
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Hot show! Roky and the R. Gamblers
Wednesday, July 15, marks the 34th anniversary of Antone’s nightclub. It’s also headliner Roky Erickson’s 62nd birthday, so it looks to be a special show.
But, wait, what if we threw in Riverboat Gamblers, Austin’s most over-the-top garage band? Plus, you never know who’s going to show up at Antone’s in July.
Tickets are available now at $20 plus service charge at Frontgate Tickets.
Other highlights at Antone’s this month:
Thursday 7/2- Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers with Shurman opening. Two great live acts.
Tuesday 7/7- Help Pinetop Perkins celebrate his 96th birthday. Marcia Ball is among those saluting the last of the original bluesmen.
Saturday 7/17- Hayes Carll is flying in from Canada to play.
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We already miss Vibe magazine.
It is ceasing publication, say the fine people at Daily Finance.
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Guest list giveaway: Electric Touch at Emo’s (indoors)
We’re giving away tickets to see Electric Touch at Emo’s (inside) on Wednesday, July 8.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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EP review: Spoon ‘Got Nuffin’
Spoon
‘Got Nuffin’ EP
(Merge)
A-
I love a good non-album single. They’re almost a subgenre of their own, a cult within the rock ‘n’ roll religion. The format is great — a brief musical comment, no more than three songs, none of the contextual weight of a full album. The only obligations are to be memorable and exist on their own. They hark back to a time when the single, not the album, was the key format. The slow death of the CD has given rise to the individually leaked track, sometimes far ahead of an album, but that’s not quite the same thing. Fugazi’s “Song Number One,” the Cure’s “Charlotte Sometimes” and, say, the Clash’s “Bankrobber” all deserve a place on a nerdy, “non-album singles” playlist. The Smiths seemed to be able to knock them off in their sleep.
Add “Got Nuffin” to that storied list. A driving drumbeat, a droning New Wave bassline, it’s all tension and torsion, with only flashes of fuzzy, spiky guitar solo. Britt Daniel’s high-strung voice flirts with liberation: “I’ve got nothin’ to loose but darkness and shadows/ Got nothing but emptiness and hang-ups.” It’s both classic Spoon and a small twist on their sound and does exactly what a non-album single should do — remind you that the band is still working and still making great music and get you excited for what is to come.
The B-sides are very much B-sides — experiments that escaped from the lab. “Tweakers” is a muddy, ultra-lo-fi mix of a stuttered drum loop and flashes of organ? guitar? It sounds like something that might morph into a higher-rez song in the future. “Stroke their Brains” sounds a heck of a lot like the Strokes and, to paraphrase Ron Burgundy in “Anchorman,” in no way is that a bad thing. None of this small pile of awesome is a bad thing.
Spoon plays three nights at Stubb’s, July 9-11. Information: stubbsaustin.com.
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CD review: Wilco ‘Wilco (the Album)’
Wilco
‘Wilco (the Album)’ (Nonesuch)
B+
Jeff Tweedy’s career thrives on twists. He changes up like a major-league pitcher, sometimes slow (there wasn’t too much aesthetic space between the end of Uncle Tupelo and the beginning of Wilco), sometimes faster (the transition from “Being There” to “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” was quite a leap).
“Wilco (the Album)” (which opens with “Wilco (the Song)”) is the former and probably the better for it.
The past few Wilco albums have had the smell of Big Statement about them. This has been an issue for the band since NPR fans turned “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” into “Sgt. Pepper” for people who remember where they were when the second plane hit the World Trade Center. “A Ghost is Born” got artier and oddly heavier, that live album just smoked and “Sky Blue Sky” had folks looking up Steely Dan clips on YouTube. The title of this new one is fitting: It’s the first Wilco record in a long time that sounds exactly like a Wilco album.
Opener “Wilco (the Song)” rewrites the riff from the Velvet Underground’s “I’m Waiting For the Man” and assures you that Wilco will love you (don’t think we don’t appreciate it champ).
“Deeper Down” feels like creepy ’60s L.A. kitchen-sink pop — you keep expecting Dennis Hopper to wander past with a 17-year-old gal in tow. “You and I,” a nuanced duet between Tweedy and Canadian singer/Sesame Street guest Feist, shimmers and “You Never Know” splits the difference between country-rock and Cheap Trick.
The secret weapon, of course, is still guitarist Nels Cline, who can move from crafty interplay to noise rock heckler-spray in the same song (“Bull Black Noir”) and figure out a way to rectify the Stones idea of country with the Kinks’ in “Sunny Feeling.”
Dear Wilco fans, they still love you.
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CD review: Levon Helm ‘Electric Dirt’
Levon Helm
‘Electric Dirt’ (Vanguard)
B-
Where 2007’s Grammy-winning “Dirt Farmer” ended a 25-year hiatus for Helm, the new “Electric Dirt” is less than two years coming. But where the new album lacks the airy depth and sense of purpose of its predecessor, it’s similarly a labor of love. In fine voice after a bout with throat cancer, Helm leads what sounds like a jam session on songs ranging from blues (two Muddy Waters covers), mountain music (“White Dove”) and dirty dixieland (Randy Newman’s “Kingfish”).
The problem with the covers is that they all pale to the originals. As the last member of the Band still making records, Helm is the godfather of Americana music, but too much of “Electric Dirt” rests on that title. In a sense, this album sounds like little more than an excuse to hit the road to promote it.
But two original tunes from producer Larry Campbell save the record. “Growing Trade,” co-written with Helm, is one of the best songs you’ll ever hear about the plight of family farmers, and “When I Go Away” is a melodic soul stirrer. More time between albums would’ve led to more songs like these.
Helm and his band make their Austin City Limits Festival debut at Zilker Park in October.
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CD review: Regina Spektor ‘Far’
Regina Spektor
‘Far’ (Sire)
B+
What a difference some success makes. “Soviet Kitsch” (2004), Spektor’s first album that anyone noticed, lived up to its title — hipster dross for people who fetishized her Russian-Jewish émigré status. But the follow-up, “Begin to Hope,” was a stunner, a wonderful example of how a jump to a major label can focus a songwriter’s work into something both more mainstream and more odd — she was the sexy, spacey piano gal in the apartment next door, the one you can’t get your courage up to talk to even as you thrill to her odd little songs through the wall.
“Far” isn’t quite as revelatory as “Begin to Hope,” but she still balances the mundane and the profound, the serious and the goofy like a born comedian. She gets into God’s (gods’) head(s) around the time of Genesis on “Blue Lips,” and follows it with “Folding Chair,” on which she imitates dolphin squeaks. Croaks. “Machine” sounds like a machine, which isn’t wise, but “The Wallet” is a great little song about a lost one (“I found a wallet/ I found a wallet/inside were pictures of your small family”). Long may she write about whatever the heck pops into her head.
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Guest list giveaway: Greg Laswell at Stubb’s
We’re giving away tickets to see Greg Laswell at Stubb’s (inside) on Tuesday, July 7.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Goose Gossage on Poodie Locke
Hall of Fame pitcher Goose Gossage flew in from Colorado for Poodie’s Picnic Sunday at the Backyard. The former Yankees reliever met Poodie in 1981 after Gossage named Willie Nelson as his favorite musician in a 1981 New York Times profile.
“They sent me a nice letter inviting me to come out to any show, so when they played Red Rocks I hung out on the bus,” Gossage said. “I’ve been a green fly ever since.”
Gossage, who wore a “No Bad Days” t-shirt with Locke’s silhouette, called Poodie “one of the greatest facilitators I’ve ever known. I met so many great people through him.”
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Poodie’s Picnic sold out!
If you were planning to head out to the Backyard this evening and you didn’t already buy your ticket, you can save your time and gas: Poodie’s Picnic sold out all 2,000 tickets this morning.
In other news, Johnny Knoxville just showed up from the airport. The “Jackass” star was a close friend of Poodie Locke.
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Schedule for Poodie’s Picnic today
The www.stillisstillmoving.com site has posted set times for today’s celebration of Poodie Locke’s life at the Backyard. Willie Nelson, Poodie’s boss of 33 years, is not on the list of performers.
According to his nephew Freddie Fletcher, Nelson is still in Maui, getting ready for his tour with Bob Dylan that ticks off Wednesday in Milwaukee.
Interesting notes: Little Joe will perform with a full band at 4:10 p.m. Cody Canada will perform with Robert Earl Keen and Stoney LaRue- not Cross Canadian Ragweed, at 9:15 p.m. Pat Green will be a surprise guest during Cory Morrow’s 10:45 set.
Locke, 60, died May 6 of a heart attack.
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Spoon! New EP! This Tuesday! AAGGGGHHHH!!!!!
We’ll just take this straight from the horses’ (er, PR firm’s) mouth:
“On Tuesday, June 30th, Spoon will debut its first newly recorded material since 2007’s universally acclaimed “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga.” Merge Records will release the three-song “Got Nuffin” single on CD and digital download beginning June 30, with 12” vinyl version following in July, exact date TBD.
“Got Nuffin” was recorded by Nicolas Vernhes at Rare Book Room. B-sides “Tweakers” and “Stroke Their Brains” were recorded by Spoon.
As previously announced, Spoon will return to its birthplace to commandeer Austin’s Stubb’s Amphitheater July 9, 10 and 11 for SpoonX3, which will feature the live debut of new material from the band’s forthcoming album as well as different special guests nightly, all handpicked by Spoon.”
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Baby, you can drive Elliott Smith’s car
If you need a new — to you — set of wheels, would like to help out some Austin musicians in need and wouldn’t mind owning a piece of indie music history to boot, today just might be your lucky day.
A 1999 Volkswagen Passat once owned by virtuoso singer-songwriter Elliott Smith is up for sale, according to an Austin Craigslist ad posted Tuesday. Pitchfork first reported the news yesterday following confirmation with a representative from Kill Rock Stars, the Portland record label that released Smith’s self-titled album and follow-up “Either/Or.” Kill Rock Stars’ front page has since been updated to reflect the news.
Ashley Welch, the car’s current owner and Smith’s sister, plans to donate all the proceeds from the sale to the Sims Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps provide mental health and addiction recovery services for Austin’s frequently cash-strapped musicians and their families.
“He’s no longer with us, and I think he’d be happy to know that the sale of his car will help other musicians in need,” writes Welch in the ad. “You would have the knowledge that your $4,000 is helping people struggling with depression, drug abuse, etc., and keeping this world a decent place to live in with good music and healthy musicians … Help me help SIMS, feel good about yourself, and get a fun car in the process.”
The gesture is a particularly apropos tribute for the Omaha, Neb.-born and Oscar-nominated musician, who struggled with depression and substance abuse before his death in October 2003. The Sims Foundation is named for Sims Ellison, an Austin musician who committed suicide in 1995 following a long battle with depression.
At $4,000 for an inspection-approved machine, the Passat is a steal, not to mention a lightning rod for musical credibility. Let’s hope it will find a loving local buyer.
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CD review: Foreign Born, ‘Person to Person’
Foreign Born
‘Person to Person’
(Secretly Canadian)
Grade: A-
On their sophomore effort, “Person to Person,” Los Angeles based indie rockers Foreign Born capture a sense of place much in the same way Justin Vernon, aka Bon Iver, did on his 2008 release, “For Emma, Forever Ago.”
While Vernon drew listeners into the depths of his snowy Wisconsin seclusion, Foreign Born paints a picture of life in sunny California. While the album isn’t as dark as “For Emma,” it’s a still filled with a good deal of melancholy imagery.
On the standout “Vacationing People,” when lead singer Matt Popieluch sings, “long days when I’m feeling a dim light shining on my door,” it’s not the Beach Boys’ California that he’s describing. Popieluch’s lethargic, slightly nasal vocals also lend the album a sense of cohesion as the band’s sound varies from bluesy rock to more playful songs filled with layers of up-tempo guitar. It’s these faster-paced tracks, such as “Early Warnings” and “That Old Sun,” when Popieluch takes part in a sort of casual call and response with the rest of the band, that also provide some of the best moments on the album. Recommended for fans of My Morning Jacket and Band of Horses.
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Michael Jackson and the Alamo Drafthouse
Alamo Drafthouse founder Tim League said he and creative director Henri Mazza decided to do a sing-along tribute to Jackson Thursday “almost simultaneously” — and the show at the Alamo Ritz downtown sold out almost instantly.
“I called Henri and said, ‘We gotta do this’ and he said, ‘I’m way ahead of you,’ ” League said Friday. “But we’d been doing the Michael Jackson sing-along for years and did a bunch last year as we were prepping for the ‘Thriller’ dance, so it’s a show we have at the ready with props and inventory.”
League and Mazza decided to do the show about 5 p.m., not long after Jackson’s death was announced. By 6:15 p.m. the midnight show was sold out, sales fed almost entirely by Twitter feeds and re-Tweets.
The Drafthouse has some 2,300 Twitter followers; League has 560 on his personal account.
“The whole day was a strange Twitter experience for me and a lot of people,” League said. “The news shot through. I got so many messages immediately when the news started flying. All of my coverage basically came through Twitter.”
League described the mood inside the 200-seat theater as “a roller coaster the whole night. Everybody there was some level of super hardcore fan, me included. Henri, who’s been the creator of this show, is a big fan and all the time he reiterated, ‘This is not about making fun of this at all. I am a huge fan and if you’re going to mock this experience, then there’s the door. This is a celebration.’ Everyone could get up on stage and dance but when there was a slow song people would get sad. The mood swung wildly. But mostly it was a celebration.”
The Ritz will repeat the experience at midnight tonight and at 10:30 p.m. Saturday.
- A-List photos: Tribute sing-along at Alamo Drafthouse
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Trouble & Bass at Beauty Bar
Some post-midnight photos from last night’s four-hour set by the NYC DJ crew, which drew a big, enthusiastic audience. (Okay, okay — it was a free show.):
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Guest list giveaway: Patrick Wolf at Antone’s
We’re giving away tickets to see Patrick Wolf at Antone’s on Wednesday, July 1.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Michael Jackson: Ten magic moments
It’s been a long time since the focus on Michael Jackson’s life has been on the great entertainer he was and not the human freakshow they called Wacko Jacko. There is great power in death to emphasize the good and so as the self-proclaimed “King of Pop” is remembered, we go back to the time when the weirdest thing about Jackson was that he wore a lone sequined glove.
Wearing a Michael Jackson t-shirt today isn’t ironic.
Ten sensational moments in Michael Jackson’s career:
“I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5 (1969). Here’s where it all started, when an 11-year-old Michael and four brothers from Gary, Ind., rejuvenated a stale Motown with a piano-driven single that still thrills today.
“Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” (1979). Jackson was having a clunky transition into adulthood until he met Quincy Jones while making the flop “The Wiz.” Jones gave Jackson a contemporary adult sound that matched the tuxedo MJ wore on the cover.
Michael performing “Billie Jean” on the “Motown 25” anniversary special (1983). The Beatles had Ed Sullivan and a post-J5 Michael Jackson had this show, when he unveiled his famous moonwalk to an incredulous audience. Nobody complained when Jackson lip-synced; he’s one of the few performers who sold millions of records because of the way he danced.
The video for “Smooth Criminal” (1988). Before the Neverland compound, Jackson’s playground was MTV and this was perhaps his greatest video, though some would select the more famous “Thriller” and “Beat It.”
The Jackson 5 performing “Dancing Machine” on Dick Clark’s “American Bandstand” (1974). The nation got its first true look at what the teen singer was capable of as a dancer. Many of his robotic moves had never been seen before.
“Wanna Be Startin’ Something” (1982). The best, most musically adventurous song on “Thriller,” the album that made Jackson the most famous person in the world. The African chant at the end (taken from “Soul Makossa”) takes the song to a funkily exotic place.
“Ben” (1972). A love song to a rat got Michael his first No. 1 single as a solo performer, although he was still a member of the Jackson 5.
“We Are the World” (1984). Co-written with Lionel Richie, this song raised millions for the poor in Africa and established Jackson as a star above the 39 others, who sang as a choir while MJ did his part solo.
“Never Can Say Goodbye” by the Jackson 5 (1971). A gorgeous ballad, with Michael’s most passionate vocals, this record never grows old. Although “I’ll Be There” was the biggest J5 hit, this one hits deeper.
“Man In the Mirror” (1988). A call for open hearts, this recording best exemplified the caring side of a man whose fame had put up walls. Don’t joke that the lyrics “If you wanna make the world a better place/ Take a look at yourself and then make a change,” are about plastic surgery. Not today.
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Austin tributes to Michael Jackson
There are sure to be more. Here are the ones we know about so far:
The Alamo Drafthouse, which helped organize a “Thrill the World” dance record earlier this year, is having a special edition of its Michael Jackson sing-along around midnight tonight (Thursday, June 25). UPDATE: this event is technically sold out.
Michael Jackson songs, “the jams that got us through the ‘80’s,” will play tonight (Thursday, June 25) at Red 7 Wreck room (the free lounge side of Red 7). DJ Mark Twistworthy will spin the tunes from 10 p.m. to 2a.m. No cover, some drink specials.
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Michael Jackson dies
Update: LA Times reported at 5:15 p.m. CST that Michael Jackson has died.
Earlier: TMZ, Los Angeles television station KTLA and other news outlets are reporting Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital this afternoon in cardiac arrest.
KTLA says the singer was not breathing when Los Angeles EMS crews arrived, and that paramedics performed CPR en route to UCLA’s hospital.
Joe Jackson told TMZ his son “is not doing well,” while another, unnamed family member said the world-famous performer is in “really bad shape” and that relatives are rushing to his bedside.
Additional updates as more information becomes available.
The Alamo Drafthouse, which helped organize a “Thrill the World” dance record earlier this year, is having a special edition of its Michael Jackson sing-along around midnight tonight.
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Trouble & Bass, tonight
Definitely looking forward to tonight’s show at Beauty Bar by NYC DJ crew Trouble & Bass. Wanna hear what I’m so excited about? Download this thumping free promo mix: http://www.sendspace.com/file/x37edr.
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Weekend picks: Killer punk, Latin funk and a tribute to a fallen friend
FRIDAY
Sweatbox 16th Year Anniversary at Emo’s. For 16 years now, Sweatbox has been the punk rock studio in Austin. Hundreds of killer bands have recorded there. Friday night’s show features with Tia Carrera, Cause for Applause, Insect Sex Act and more. Saturday’s show features Sugarshack, Gospel Truth, Hex Dispensers and more. 9 p.m. Each night is $8 advance, $10 door. — Joe Gross
Also recommended
- John Vanderslice at the Parish
- Leftover Crack, Trash Talk at Red 7
- Seela at the Hole In the Wall
- The Orb at the Mohawk
- Car Stereo (Wars) Last Show/Going Away Show at the Beauty Bar
- Guitar Shorty at the Continental Club
- Hollywood Gossip at the Scoot Inn
- Split Hoof, Amplified Heat at Room 710
- The Distant Seconds at the Creekside Lounge
- Chant at Elysium
- Grimy Styles at Flamingo Cantina
SATURDAY
Grupo Fantasma at Threadgill’s South. They’re one of the best live dance bands in Austin and possibly one of the great Texas bands. A chance to see Grupo’s poly-rhythmic, 11-piece Latin funk is always cause for celebration. Or at least heavy, sweaty dancing. 9 p.m. $15. — J.G.
Also recommended
- Ben Kweller, Jones Street Station, Murdocks at Emo’s
- Reivers reunion at Nutty Brown Cafe
- Eliza Gilkyson at Cactus Cafe
- Belaire, Cryptacize at the Mohawk
- The Upper Crust, Gentlemens Social Club at Red 7
- The Lemurs at Club DeVille
- DJ Mel at the Beauty Bar
- Red Leaves at Back Alley Social
- Stone Dakota, We Were Wolves at Trophy’s
SUNDAY
Poodie’s Picnic at the Backyard. Willie Nelson’s longtime stage manager Poodie Locke died unexpectedly of a heart attack last month. This is a show of how much he was loved and how badly he is missed. Joe Ely, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Billy Joe Shaver, Carolyn Wonderland, Reckless Kelly, Billy Bob Thornton and many more will be on hand. Willie has not been announced, but you never know. $20. Music is 2 -11 p.m. — Michael Corcoran
Also recommended
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R.I.P. Sky Saxon
Sky Saxon, founder of the brilliant ’60s garage band the Seeds, died Thursday morning at St. David’s Hospital.
The newly minted Austinite, born Richard Marsh, was hospitalized Monday with what doctors suspected was an infection of the internal organs, but cause of death has not yet been released.
Saxon fell ill last Thursday, but performed at Saturday at Antone’s with recent Austin collaborators Shapes Have Fangs.
Sky’s wife Sabrina Saxon posted news of his passing on Facebook this morning: “Sky has passed over and YaHoWha is waiting for him at the gate. He will soon be home with his Father. I’m so sorry I couldn’t keep him here with us. More later. I’m sorry.”
We are sorry as well.
Saxon was the founder of the Seeds, one of the all-time great first-wave garage rock bands. If the Rolling Stones was the sound of five British guys trying to imitate Muddy Waters and Howlin Wolf and failing in new and strange ways, ’60s garage rock was the sound of American kids trying to imitate the Stones and (similarly, brilliantly) missing the mark.
The Seeds fell together in 1965 around a core of Saxon and guitarist Jan Savage with keyboardist Daryl Hooper and drummer Rick Andridge. The bands’s first couple of singles — ‘Can’t Seem To Make You Mine’ and ‘Pushin’ Too Hard’ — are ’60s punk classics, snotty and fuzzy and brief. Check out their first two albums — ‘The Seeds’ and ‘A Web of Sound,’ both from that magic rock year 1966 — for perfect examples of proto-psychedelic roar.
After a few more records, Saxon broke up the Seeds in 1970, joined the spiritual commune the Source Family, adopted the name Sunlight and played with the Source Family band YaHoWha 13 now and then.
He continuted to make albums since with various lineups, distributing his music via the Internet at www.skysaxon.com. He came to Austin in March for the second annual Psych Fest and never really left, according to his publicist, keeping a very low profile until recently.
We profiled him here in March.
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Guest list giveaway: Austin360 presents Built By Snow at Stubb’s
We’re giving away tickets to see keyboard wizards Built By Snow and ambient indie rockers The Soldier Thread performing as part of the Austin360 concert series tonight.
Email us at events@statesman.com before 5 p.m. to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Sky Saxon in critical condition at St. David’s Hospital
Newly minted Austinite Sky Sunlight Saxon of garage rock legends the Seeds was hospitalized Monday at. St. David’s, according to a statement from his publicist.
Saxon, whose legal name is Richard Marsh, is in critical condition in the ICU. Doctors suspect an infection of the internal organs; further tests are pending.
Saxon fell ill last Thursday, but performed at Saturday at Antone¹s.
Sky¹s wife Sabrina Saxon encourages fans and friends worldwide to send cards and balloons of encouragement, love and support to Sky at his room in the ICU. (No flowers.)
Check out http://www.facebook.com/sabrinasaxon for updates on Saxon’s condition.
Please send cards and balloons to:
St David¹s South Austin Hospital
901 West Ben White Blvd.
ICU-10 (Richard Marsh)
Austin, Texas 78704
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Jim James of My Morning Jacket to release George Harrison tribute
The six song EP, “Tribue To,” will be available July 7 for download at the MMJ frontman’s Web site and will be in stores Aug. 4. One track from the album, “Behind That Locked Door,” is currently streaming on the site. According to a press release, James recorded the songs shortly after Harrison’s death in 2001. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary
In other news, James has teamed up with M. Ward, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis to form Monsters of Folk . That album will be released on Sept. 22. The group hasn’t announced tour dates yet.
“Tribute To” Tracklist:
1.) Long Long Long
2.) Behind That Locked Door
3.) Love You To
4.) My Sweet Lord
5.) Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)
6.) All Things Must Pass
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Pogues coming to Stubb’s Oct. 28
Holy cow.
Complete with Shane McGowan.
Oct. 28 at Stubb’s.
Pre-sale tickets on sale now through the Pogues site. No word on tickets for the rest of us.
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That soft thump you hear is your head exploding when you gaze upon….
Soviet-era Russian album covers!
(Thanks to the great Maura Johnston at Idolator for the hook-up.)
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The final days and nights of Room 710
Here are some highlights of what’s going on at Room 710 the final month. Check out http://myspace.com/room_710 and http://www.room710.net for more updates. Again, this isn’t all of them, just a few highlights.
July 4
Jazzus Lizard
Aartfystte (members Brown Whornet)
MC Terroristic (members Foot Patrol)
Baby Got Bacteria (many members, many bands)
Says 710 owner Asher Garber “It’s as close to a Brown Whornet show as this place will again get.”
July 7
Two-piece night (band members, not fried chicken)
The Vitamins (Erik Conn of Tia Carrera and bassist Jamie Mills)
Full Stride
Damage Pants
July 7 (7/10 at 710)
Scott H. Biram
Pure Luck
Woods Boss
7pm: Supersonic Uke
July 11
Cat Scientist (one-off reunion show)
Strange Attractors
Churchwood
tba
July 25
Austin extravaganza starting at 9 p.m.
The Dicks
Pocket FishRmen
Tia Carrera
the Open Casket (ex-Motards)
Make Austin Weirder Fest day show begins at 3 p.m.
Crapulence
Damage Pants
Obnosticon
Awesome Death
more
July 12, 26
Bullet Proof
Says Garber, “In house, all vinyl, all styles DJ, a.k.a. ‘The Future’”
More to come.
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103.5 BOB-FM: The home of robots.
As most Austinites know, 103.5 BOB-FM is the local “BOB” format station. It’s a variety hits format, which means a mix of ’60s, ’70s ’80s, ’90s and some ’00s here and there. (In Austin, it seems to like the 80s an awful lot.)
It’s an automated format, which means that there’s no DJ but features mildly localized station bumpers.
The shtick is you never know what you’re going to hear. Which is true, more or less, but it also means that you REALLY never know what you are going to hear, to the point that I like to think that the station is run by slowly-rusting robots who a) are still trying to figure humans out and b) need to update their bumpers.
Let’s take b) first. Heard a bumper the other day that said something along the lines of “Bob got this album at Sound Exchange” Then the station played Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida,” a song released in 2008, five years after Sound Exchange closed its doors.
Oops.
Then there’s a).
On Sunday, I heard a bumper that said something about “Happy Father’s Day!” or some such comment. OK so far.
Then the station played George Michael’s “Father Figure.”
Ew.
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CD Review: Isaac Hayes, “Hot Buttered Soul;” Big Star, “#1 Record/Radio City”
Isaac Hayes
‘Hot Buttered Soul’ (Stax)
A-
Big Star
‘#1 Record/Radio City’ (Ardent)
A
Memphis will always have something to say. It can’t help itself. It’s the birthplace of the second half of the 20th century, for Elvis’ sake.
There are times when it seems more fertile than other times, but Bluff City is still producing thrilling material even now (see also power pop genius Jay Reatard, Three Six Mafia’s recent moment in the sun or pretty much everything about underground rock label Goner Records).
But there was a time when Memphis seemed to have everything to say and couldn’t say it fast enough. From the late ’50s to the early ’70s, Memphis was king, making some of the coolest music in the world.
Two reissues arriving this month reflect Memphis’ diversity, its penchant for off-handed musical complexity, its gift for making classics.
In 1969, Isaac Hayes was better known as a top-flight Memphis songwriter and producer than a recording artist. He had already cut “Presenting Isaac Hayes,” a jazzy, mostly improvised solo album with Booker T. and Duck Dunn called to no notice (it’s aged well, however). The follow-up, “Hot Buttered Soul” made history, from its iconic cover of Hayes’ bald head to its four-long-tracks format to its mind-bending closer, the 18 minute “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” the psychedelic properties of which are expanded on at length by My Morning Jacket songwriter Jim James in this edition’s liner notes.
“Hot Buttered Soul” all but invented progressive R&B and, from the driving, oft-sampled piano grooves on “Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic” to the rebooting of “Walk On By” to the 10-mintue intro to “Phoenix,” it holds up brilliantly.
Three years later, Big Star were rethinking their genre as well. But as R&B was getting more progressive, Alex Chilton, who had cut some amazing blue-eyed soul with the Box Tops, was ditching his gritty croon for a much-higher register and Beatles worship with Big Star.
There’s some mighty mannered music on “#1 Record” and “Radio City,” some of the most self-conscious guitar pop ever made, but also some of the flat-out best.
“The Ballad of El Goodo” and the gorgeous “Thirteen” embody a romantic longing that’s awfully hard to capture without vanishing into your own navel, and “In the Street” and “When My Baby’s Beside Me” are parking lot anthems for the ages.
Amazingly, “Radio City” is even better — tighter, more fully realized. Chilton still can’t quite get his head around the opposite sex (From the immortal “September Gurls” “I loved you, well, never mind/ I’ve been crying all the time” — buck up, son!) but he sure knew his way around a tune. “O My Soul,” “Mod Lang” and “Back of a Car” are still inspiring lonely boys to make the most beautiful rock they can.
And these are just three tiny pieces of the universe Memphis has given us. Long may there be something in the water.
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Guest list giveaway: ‘Love, Janis’ at Zach Scott Theatre
We’re giving away tickets to see the musical “Love, Janis” chronicling the life of Janis Joplin at Zach Scott Theatre.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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DVD review: Plastic Ono Band in Toronto ‘69
John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band
‘Live In Toronto ’69’ DVD (Shout Factory)
B
This is a 50-minute film by D.A. Pennebaker about the night a sitting Beatle went to Toronto to play with his idols and unveil “Give Peace a Chance.” Wearing a white suit, the fully bearded John Lennon is in vibrant voice as he sings the likes of “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” backed by an especially flashy Eric Clapton on guitar.
But Yoko Ono steals the show. (Words I never thought I’d type.) This DVD opens with “Bo Diddley” by its namesake, followed by “Hound Dog” by Jerry Lee Lewis and “Lucille” by Little Richard. But it ends with the primal screeching, gutteral moaning and staccato yelping of the music world’s most hated woman. Now, THAT’s rock ’n’ roll!
Ono’s otherworldly mashup of sounds on “Don’t Worry Kyoto” gave birth to experimental rock. But the true artist gets even bolder, braver on the mood piece “John, John (Let’s Hope For Peace),” instinctively intoning over guitar feedback, while the crowd no doubt thought they’d been dosed.
At times, Lennon looks a tad uncomfortable at the pop music deconstruction, and he clowns a little when “John, John” goes on too long. But Ono is so focused that she loses any self-consciousness. It’s a powerful performance.
“Live In Toronto” is a flimsy package, devoid of extra footage and the like. But it solves the mystery of what Lennon saw in the strange little Japanese artist. Ono spends most of the classic retreads sitting under a white sheet, but when she emerges, it’s with a revolutionary new way to rock.
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Jay Bennett died of accidental overdose, coroner says
It looks like former Wilco songwriter/member Jay Bennett died of an accidental overdose of the prescription painkiller fentanyl the Champaign County coroner said Wednesday. Fentanyl is a synthetic opiate used to treat chronic pain.
Bennett died May 24 at his Urbana, Ill., home. He had noted on his MySpace site that he was facing hip-replacement surgery.
Bennett left the storied band after their 2001 breakthrough “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.” Wilco’s new album “Wilco (The Album)” arrives in stores June 30.
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Interview: Scott Miller
Scott Miller shapes sin and salvation into breathing highway poetry on his recent album ‘For Crying Out Loud.’ Restlessness fully obliges reflection only once: Miller’s gorgeous Patty Griffin duet ‘I’m Right Here, My Love.’ ‘I met Patty through a mutual friend before she moved to Austin,’ the former V-Roys leader says. ‘Last year I toured with her for a good four months. It was a no-brainer to have her sing on the record.’ Miller performs Wednesday (June 24) at the Continental Club and Thursday (June 25) at the Cactus Café.
American-Statesman: Seems like self-financing your new record was a smart idea.
Scott Miller: Yeah, I opted off Sugar Hill, and a lot of people told me I was stupid. But I took the guitar and vocal demos, made handmade covers for them and put them up (for sale) on my Web site. That increased my Web site traffic, because people were coming on right as we put them up to pick their covers. You know, at 20 bucks a pop, everyone gets an individual one signed and numbered and there’s my 20 grand to make a record.
Do you think creative fundraising like that is the future of the music business?
Totally. As an independent artist, I can reach my consumers through the Internet. Record labels are gonna be like buggy whips. There’s just no need for them anymore. Today, it’s not about making more money, but keeping more money.
Of course, there still can be an argument made for signing to a label.
Well, sure, if you’re gonna swing for the fences. If you’re gonna be selling millions and you’re willing to give up your rights, then by all means, man. Never stop anybody from dreaming.
Your latest blog ends with meeting a coal lobbyist in a bar. Is there a song in there?
No, man, that was probably just me getting kicked out of a bar in D.C. (laughs). You know, my mom’s from Kentucky, and I thought I was talking from somebody back home. As we got further into the conversation, I realized that, no, he went to a private school in Connecticut and just has his schtick down. He was a lobbyist for mountaintop removal. That’s a big deal where we’re from.
Influence from Woody Guthrie makes sense, but what about Steve Martin? You have photos of both on your Web site.
Well, after Jimmie Rodgers, Woody Guthrie created it all, didn’t he? As a singer-songwriter, I went through all the stages. I was in the middle of farm country Virginia and it was like, ‘Love Woody Guthrie.’ Then I went from Woody to Dylan to John Prine. It was the natural progression. Woody was not the simple Okie that he portrayed, you know, he was a smart artist who hated fascists. Steve Martin: Name me an album and I can recite it from start to finish, word for word.
You hooked on anyone right now?
Right now, I’m on a big Los Lobos kick. You could argue a point for Credence being the best American rock band, but I’d say Los Lobos just for the consistency. I have never heard anything bad.
Scott Miller performs at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday (June 24) at the Continental Club, 1315 S. Congress Ave. Tickets are $8 at the door. 441-2444. Miller performs at 8:30 p.m. Thursday (June 25) at the Cactus Café, 24th and Guadalupe on the UT campus. Tickets are $10 at the door. 477-6060, texasboxoffice.com.
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Sunny Day Real Estate coming to Austin!
All four original members of the Seattle rock band Sunny Day Real Estate - Nate Mendel (bass), William Goldsmith (drums), Dan Hoerner (guitar,vocals) and Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar) - will reunite group for a U.S. tour starting Sept. 17.
On Sept. 15, Sub Pop will re-issue LPs and CDs of their landmark debut “Diary” and the band’s second full-length album, commonly known as “LP2” (or “The Pink Album” for its entirely pink cover) in remastered versions with bonus tracks and new liner notes albums.
The band plays La Zona Rosa Oct. 7. Tickets are not yet on sale.
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Live shots: Jenny Lewis at Stubb’s BBQ
Bret Gerbe FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
- Photos: Jenny Lewis at Stubb’s BBQ
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Guest list giveaway: ‘Love, Janis’ at Zach Scott Theatre
We’re giving away tickets to see the musical “Love, Janis” chronicling the life of Janis Joplin at Zach Scott Theatre.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Live review: Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson
In order to make up a date at the Cactus Cafe that was canceled in September due to travel worries surrounding Hurricane Ike, Australian singer-songwriters Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson drove all the way from Boulder, Colorado to the Cactus for two sold-out shows Monday night. Coming this far out of their way, you just knew these shows were going to be special and the early set had everything fans could’ve hoped for- minus her KGSR chestnut “Cry Like a Baby.”
There were some songs, such as the show-opening “Rattlin’ Bones,” from the couple’s duet album of the same name, that featured Chambers and Nicholson equally. There were some numbers, including the standout “Once In a While” and a cover of Bap Kennedy’s “Long Time Comin’,” that found Nicholson alone on stage. Chambers did a solo turn on “The Captain,” which she introduced as the only song she’s played in every concert she’s ever done.
And then there was Kasey’s dad Bill Chambers, who added mandolin and steel guitar shadings and sang a newish song called “Southend Song.” Father and daughter also did a moving and precious song about where babies come from.
For 90 minutes the stage dripped with humor and charm. Kasey’s vocals of angelic fire were just right all night and when she blended with Nicholson’s voice, a slightly raspier James Taylor, one “One More Year” the mix was perfect and powerful.
Amidst all the different combinations of the trio, three moments brought out the most goosebumps: 1) when Kasey merged “Lost & Found” into “Not Pretty Enough” about 25 minutes in 2) her delicately powerful cover of Cindy Walker’s “You Don’t Know Me” and 3) the set-ending love song “Gone Long Gone” by the O’Kanes.
The other thing worth mentioning is that Chambers and Nicholson have tremendous chemistry, with Kasey doing most of the talking between songs and Shane throwing out droll toppers. Before she did “The Captain,” Chambers talked about buying a cool, oversized ring a few days earlier. “Shane looked at it and said ‘What were you thinking? You can’t play guitar with that?’” she said, flashing the ring at the audience. Then, looking back to see that Nicholson was out the back door, Chambers pulled off the gaudy piece of jewelry. “I can take it off now, without him saying ‘I told you so,’” said Chambers. “All the songs we’ve played so far have been at about half the normal tempo.”
With the framed photographs of their two children sitting on a stool between them, Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson did more than just play music and sing songs Monday night. They created a spirit of togetherness, of being in love, and of using music as the purest form of expression. They could’ve used a couple more fast songs like “Last Hard Bible,” but the 150 lucky folks at the Cactus Monday night should have no complaints.
I imagine the late show was even better, for even as this couple had left it all on the stage for an hour and a half, they seemed to be having such a good time that it was as if they were just getting started.
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CD review: ‘Beautiful Day’ by Charlie Robison
Charlie Robison
‘Beautiful Day’ (Dualtone)
B+
For all the talk about this being Robison’s divorce album, it’s the strong singing, the tangle of guitars and the driving production, not the lyrics, that make this the Bandera native’s best album to date. On his first album in five years, Robison gets his swagger back. “Feelin’ Good” may come close to trampling worn Pat Green territory, but Rich Brotherton’s mandolin and Robison’s happy-go-lucky vocals, give it the neccessary freshness.
Although Robison addresses the ex most blatantly on the title track, with its telling “I promise you she’s never gonna get fat” line, and most bitterly on “Yellow Blues,” his choice of covers lets Keith Gattis and Bobby Bare Jr. do much of the dirty work. “Down Again,” from “El Cerrito Place” writer Gattis, could be the album’s sharpest focal point, the way Robison’s voice seems to tap into the band’s moody magic.
This is an album you play all the way through. The songs intertwine to tell something about the singer he can’t fully convey in conversation, with the four-song string of “Reconsider,” “Feelin’ Good,” “If the Rain Don’t Stop” and “Middle of the Night” especially good at revealing a peaceful, uneasy feeling.
In the end, though, it’s how it sounds, not what it says, that gives this LP its most therapeutic quality.
Robison will appear at Waterloo Records Tuesday at 5 p.m. to celebrate the album’s release.
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Live review: St. Vincent’s ACL taping
For any remaining naysayers who doubted the prodigious shredding ability of ethereal singer-songwriter Annie Clark, better known under the nom de plume St. Vincent, second-guess no more.
While the Tulsa-born artiste rose to national prominence on the strength of her haunting, otherwordly voice and playful lyricism, her sophomore album released in May, “Actor,” retains that elegance while also showcasing Clark at her most rollicking.
And while national audiences will get a taste of New St. Vincent on her Wednesday night appearance on the “Late Show With David Letterman,” they’ll really see Clark cut loose this fall, with the broadcast of her Saturday night performance for the 35th season of “Austin City Limits.”
Taking to the hallowed stage for the first time, Clark tore through an hour and 15 minutes of material, primarily from “Actor” with occasional digressions from 2007 debut “Marry Me.”
Although Clark’s full, angelic voice was on regular display, it was the night’s instrumental freakouts that most stood out. Cutting viciously into an energetic guitar solo on highlight “Actor Out Of Work,” Clark was a whirlwind on stage, accompanied by — uncharacteristically for “Austin City Limits” — a swirling display of psychedelic rainbow lighting.
Clark was ably assisted by an impressively versatile backing band, which incorporated saxophone, violin and a number of woodwinds into the mix and added muscle to her sparer songs, like low-key opener “Marry Me.” The group proved especially propulsive on the dark, driving “Marrow.”
The show even boasted a slight concession to venue with an appearance by one of St. Vincent’s more popular covers — the Beatles’ “Dig Me A Pony” — on the basis that Austin is, as Clark put it, “a bit of a blues town.” With the band taking a brief hiatus, Clark tore into the “Let It Be” highlight solo, playing up its potential as a trippy guitar showcase.
Though the evening was light on banter, Clark appeared at ease and excited on stage, making a stellar performance appear strangely effortless. Later that night on Twitter, she described both audience and staff as “120 percent delightful.”
The feeling, of course, is mutual.
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CD review: Dinosaur Jr.
Dinosaur Jr.
“Farm”
(Jagjaguwar)
C+
When alternative rock trio Dinosaur Jr. reunited in 2005, they joined a rarified club that boasted such luminaries as Mission of Burma, Gang of Four and the Pixies. All were ‘80s rock iconoclasts who had languished on college radio and the wee hours of the morning on MTV in their heyday, only to return as musical deities.
Even more than their contemporaries, though, J Mascis, Lou Barlow and Murph bounced back with surprising strength on 2005’s “Beyond,” a textured, energetic rocker with surprising depth. That bravado is less evident on “Farm,” their ninth effort and the kind of album that might have charmed you in 1989 but fails to leave much of an impression today.
The album’s first half packs the requisite crushing guitar, high-end fuzz and distortion, with pleasant pop melody “I Want You To Know,” a perfect template for “Farm”’s low-key pleasures. But the album drags with a series of second-half ballads — at nearly 8 and 9 minutes, respectively, “Said The People” and “I Don’t Want To Go There” barely have enough meat for songs half as long. Only the bouncy, upbeat “See You” breaks the tedium. “Farm” is far from a misfire, but with its bog-standard alternative rock numbers it lacks the surprises that made “Beyond” such an unexpected gem.
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Musicmania Top 10 for the week ending June 21
1. UGK ‘UGK 4 Life’ (Jive)2. Eminem ‘Relapse’ (Aftermath)
3. Lil’ Keke ‘Love By Few Hated By Many’ (Universal)
4. Slim Thug ‘Boss Of All Bosses’ (Koch)
5. Juicy J ‘Hustle Til I Die’ (Hypnotize)
6. Gucci Mane ‘Murder Was The Case’ (Big Cat)
7. Will Downing ‘Murder Was The Case’ (Peak)
8. Teena Marie ‘Congo Square’ (Stax)
9. Rick Ross ‘Deeper Tha Rap’ (Def Jam)
10. Keri Hilson ‘In A Perfect World…’ (Interscope)
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Guest list giveaway: John Vanderslice at The Parish
We’re giving away tickets to see John Vanderslice at the Parish on Friday, June 26.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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CD review: ‘Fondo’ by Vieux Farka Toure
Vieux Farka Toure
“Fondo”
(Six Degree Records)
B
Every impulse of Mali’s pop music scene moves towards a new sound: one that mixes the nation’s ancient musical traditions with a cutting-edge sensibility affected but in no way dominated by Western influences.
It’s in that context that Vieux Farka Toure’s second album, “Fondo,” arrives.
This is the first disc featuring songs written almost exclusively by the son of the late, great legend Ali Farka Toure, and the highly awaited album succeeds on a couple different levels.
The focused production by Toure and Israeli bassist/producer Yossi Fine keeps the strands of an ambitious, wide-ranging project tied tightly together. Aggressive percussion is strapped in the background behind droning guitar lines often drenched in reverb, with Toure’s signature Jazz Chorus-amplified lead lines blazing over top.
The consistency allows the startling diversity of “Fondo” plenty of breathing room. Toure moves well beyond the bounds of the “desert blues” pioneered by his father.
Soul-infused rhythms set the stage for ringing pull-off lead lines in the opening track “Fafa.”
In “Ai Haira,” a thick rumba and low-register droning guitar line propel Toure’s lead guitar.
The record picks up momentum with “Souba Souba,” which begins as a brooding, cyclical blues number that would feel equally at home deep in the delta or the desert, and leads to the spare, exultant chant that gives the track its name.
“Sarama’s” aggressively layered percussion achieves the fullness of a house beat without the aid or artificial stamp of electronics, and “Wale” filters a Malian traditional through the desert blues.
But the album shows its conceptual underpinnings most clearly in the aptly named “Mali.” Singer Afel Bocoum, a onetime collaborator of Ali Farka Toure’s, sings along with Vieux. In the meantime, psychedelic, Hendrix-evolved electric guitar lines contrast with the rapid-fire strains of the ‘ngoni, a small but powerful West African stringed instrument.
The album’s strength, however, is also the source of its shortcomings.
The production is a little too tight at times, too restrained to allow the sheer power of Toure’s live performances to come alive. The exuberant “Cherie Le” comes close, but in the end misses the opportunity to allow Toure’s considerable guitar chops fully to the forefront. The dub-inspired “Diaraby Magni,” probably the album’s best just-plain-fun track, still feels like it’s holding back.
What “Fondo” achieves is a convincing portrait of a young musician with a deep pedigree and experimental fearlessness. It is an impressive breakthrough album to be sure, but more than anything feels like a promise of greater things yet to come.
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Guest List Giveaway: Suzanna Choffel at Stubb’s BBQ (inside)
Jay Janner AMERICAN-STATESMAN
We’re giving away tickets to see local artist Suzanna Choffel at Stubb’s BBQ (inside) on Monday, June 22.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Guest List Giveaway: Jenny Lewis at Stubb’s BBQ
We’re giving away tickets to see indie folk rocker Jenny Lewis at Stubb’s BBQ on Monday, June 22.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Pearl Jam to do ACL taping Oct. 3
The day before they headline the Austin City Limits Music Festival, Pearl Jam will tape an episode of the namesake TV show. With a capacity of 320, it looks to be the toughest ticket for an “ACL” taping since Coldplay in 2005. Show producer Terry Lickona said to check the www.austincitylimits.org closer to showtime for ticket giveaway info.
“I sure wish the new studio was ready for Pearl Jam,” Lickona said, referring to the 2,750-capacity venue being built on West Second Street across from City Hall. “We’d still have to turn away people, but not quite as many.” Construction of the $40 million Austin City Limits Theater is expected to be completed in October 2010.
Also added to the coming 35th season of ACL are Allen Toussaint, who’ll tape his ACL debut June 30, and M. Ward Aug. 5. Again, check the web site for ticket details.
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Feel free to spend 75 quid on the 13th Floor Elevators box set guilt-free!
Roky Erickson manager Darren Hill said Thursday that yes, Roky’s financial interests are being accounted for with this amazing-looking “Sign of the Three Eyed Men” 10 CD set.
I personally can’t afford this little slice of heaven right now (75 pounds is about $120, which is not at all bad for what you get, frankly) but holy cats, it looks fantastic. It was assembled with input from Elevators biographer Paul Drummond.
Hill said Erickson is getting royalties from the box set, recoupable against an advance paid by Charly, the British label that released the set.
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Council delays vote on music department
[From the Statesman’s City Beat blog]:
The Austin City Council delayed voting on a city music department this morning, and likely will do the same with an ordinance that would make cutting down large trees more difficult.Council Member Lee Leffingwell said he was going to ask that the “heritage tree” ordinance, scheduled to be voted on tonight, be delayed. Two related but less controversial tree ordinances are still scheduled to be voted on this evening.
The council also voted to delay creating a city music department amid concerns about its cost. Council Member Laura Morrison’s office said the two staffers for the music department would come from now vacant positions, and Morrison said the office is “absolutely a critical step to maturing as a city that supports live music.” Morrison’s office said the music department would not affect the city’s general fund, which pays for services such as police, parks and libraries.
But Council Member Sheryl Cole said the city needed to analyze the proposal more determine if the cost would be too much. She asked for a delay until Aug. 6. It’s the council’s policy to grant delays when requested by council members. The council did not take public comment on the delay.
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Guest List Giveaway: Xavier Rudd at La Zona Rosa
We’re giving away tickets to see Aussie singer-songwriter Xavier Rudd on Saturday, June 20 at La Zona Rosa.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Martha Vaughan 1928- 2009
Martha Vaughan, who supported her young sons’ love of blues music at an early age, passed away Saturday, just two days before her 81st birthday. The Vaughan brothers’ father Big Jim passed away in the 1980s.
Martha Vaughan’s funeral is Thursday in Dallas at the Laurel Land Funeral Home (6000 South R. L. Thornton Freeway; (214) 371-1336).
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations to pet rescue organizations be made in Martha Vaughan’s name.
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Your A-List: Best Pop Singer/Group
Bob Schneider is not only Rachael Ray’s favorite Austin musician, he’s just been voted the Your A-List best pop singer/group, winning in a landslide with 36 percent of the vote.
Whether it’s his Monday night singer-songwriter shows at the Saxon Pub, his funk workouts with the Scabs at Antone’s or his Bluegrass Massacre project at Threadgill’s, Schneider is the king of clubs, doing it day in and day out for years.
Others receiving votes
- Scorpio Rising, 16 percent
- Okkervil River, 13 percent
- Voxtrot, 5 percent
- Black & White Years, 5 percent
- Trish Murphy, 5 percent
- Wideawake, 4 percent
- Alpha Rev, 4 percent
- Nelo, 3 percent
- Kacy Crowley, 3 percent
- Dan Dyer, 2 percent
- Moonlight Towers, 2 percent
- Darin Murphy, 2 percent
- Shearwater, 1 percent
- Rite High Flyers, < 1 percent
- Noah Kelly, < 1 percent
- The Bad Rackets, < 1 percent
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Review: Grizzly Bear at the Parish
Brooklyn-based indie breakouts Grizzly Bear were last in Austin for South by Southwest, when they played a showcase at the Central Presbyterian Church. It was an intimate affair, with well-connected fans sitting cross-legged in the aisles, fighting for space.
Since then the band released the “Veckatimest,” the wildly successful follow-up to 2004’s “Yellow House,” have had their praises sung by just about every blogger and music critic on the planet and even covered “Graceland” (check out an mp3 of the performance here) at a Paul Simon tribute concert that also included appearances by Gillian Welch and Simon himself.
This time around they played the Parish to a crowd that was no less enthusiastic (although probably a bit more tipsy).
Opening was Here We Go Magic, a lo-fi psychedelic project led by Luke Temple. Fans of Grizzly Bear and bands such as Animal Collective will want to check out HWGM for its blend of folky rock songs and layers of percussion, vocal loops and other effects. Temple saved two standouts from the band’s self-titled debut, “Fangela” and “Tunnelvision,” for the end of the set. On “Fangela,” he did too good a job mimicking his muted studio recording; the song suffered a bit as a result. “Tunnelvision,” on the other hand, was sharper; members of the band sang the looped parts rather than producing them on a laptop.
Grizzly Bear set the tone for the evening with a pumped up “Southern Point” and “Cheerleader,” both from “Veckatimest,” and a discordant “Lullabye,” from “Yellow House.” The songs are simultaneously gentle and aggressive, with quiet folk tunes that erupt into noisy jams with haunting harmonies and catchy, not-quite-country rhythms.
The noisier side of the band won out for much of Tuesday’s set, with both Droste and Rossen elevating more sedate numbers with aggressive guitar work, especially the bluesy “Little Brother” and “Fine For Now.” Coupled with spacey lighting, it almost felt like a rock show. The punch of the rougher moments, of course, wouldn’t have been as moving without well-placed quiet, including the sleepy “Colorado,” as well as “He Hit Me,” a dark love song on which Droste’s smooth vocals absolutely shined.
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Police: Noise complaints should go to 311, not 911
In light of a call to 911 complaining about live music at Shady Grove on Thursday, we asked police whether people should use 911 or 311 to make such a complaint.
“We ask that people use 311 for non-emergency situations,” police spokeswoman Veneza Aguinaga said.
She said that if people abuse 911 or call multiple times for non-emergencies, they could be investigated.
“We set up 311 so we don’t tie up 911,” she said.
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Weekend picks: Proggy complexity, death-defying rock and surefire Austinites
FRIDAY
St. Vincent at the Mohawk. Her new album, ‘Actor,’ is one of the year’s most divisive. Those who love it’s strange proggy complexities really love it (and that includes a lot of critics). Those who can’t get down with it find her extremely precious music hard to take for more than a song or two. And everyone agrees she a very, very good guitarist and very, very skinny. 8 p.m. $13. 912 Red River St. 482-8404. (She also plays a free in-store at 3 p.m. at Waterloo Records.) —Joe Gross
Also recommended
- Screeching Weasel at Emo’s
- Dikes of Holland at Beerland
- Lair of the Minatour, at Red 7
- Steve Earle at the Paramount Theater
- Belligerent 86 at Room 710
SATURDAY
The Meat Puppets at the Parish. The fact that this band is even still around is a minor miracle. Bassist Cris Kirkwood’s heroin addiction nearly killed him a couple of times, including an altercation with a security guard that resulted in a gunshot wound and jail time for Kirkwood. But here they are and the band’s new album ‘Sewn Together,’ has received mostly positive notices. Like I said, a miracle. With Retribution Gospel Choir and Service Industry. 8 p.m. $15. — J.G.
Also recommended
- Phobia, Unholy Grave at Emo’s
- Sunset Rubdown at the Mohawk
- Coma in Algiers at Club 1808
- DJ Mel at the Beauty Bar
- Don Chani at Flamingo Cantina
SUNDAY
The Gourds at Nutty Brown Cafe & Amphitheater.I’m sure it gets a little boring after a fashion, but as long as the Gourds remain one of the most sure-fire live acts Austin has ever produced, we will continue to tell you to go see them. $10, kids younger than 18 get in free. Show at 5 p.m. — J.G.
Also recommended:
- Mosquito Bandito at Beerland
- Gas Mask Attire at Room 710
- Josh Hoge at Stubb’s
- Victoria Noll at the Hole in the Wall
- James Hyland at Momo’s
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Big guitars coming home
Remember all those oversized, decorated guitars that were around town in 2007 as Gibson’s “Austin Guitar Town” project? They were sold at auction to raise money for Austin charities.
Austin businessman Milton Verret paid $120,000 for eight of the guitars, but has just announced that he’s donating them to the city of Austin. Mayor Will Wynn will accept the donation during his final City Council meeting at 5:30 p.m. tomorrow. The “Big Guitars” will remain on display at City Hall until they are moved to their permanent Austin locations in a couple months.
The artists and their permanent venues include:
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“Music Capital” by Sharon Roy Finch, Austin City Hall.
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“Austin Music Flows” by Debra Prather Samples, Austin Bergstrom International Airport.
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“Keep Austin Weird” by Sara Hickman, Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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“La Guitarra” by Delfin Escalante, Mexican-American Cultural Center.
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“Piece of My Heart” by Tracie Sutton, Zachary Scott Theatre.
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“Por Vida” by Kathy Marcus, Daugherty Arts Center.
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“Livestrong” by David Minder, Austin Convention Center.
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“Musician” by Howard Weliver, George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center.
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Iron and Wine to play the Paramount
Ralph Barrera AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Highly literate, deeply evocative singer-songwriter Sam Beam aka Iron and Wine will perform a solo acoustic set at the Paramount Theater on Monday, July 27. The show is a benefit for the Midwives Alliance of North America. (Beam’s wife, Kim, is a practicing midwife.) Glen Hansard of The Swell Season and The Frames will open. Tickets are $35 - $56 and go on sale on Saturday, June 20. More information.
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Austin punk map
A non-Austinite has produced this map of punk-friendly venues, record stores and veggie/vegan eateries in town. Nifty. (Thanks to the folks at webang.blogspot.com for the heads-up.)
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Here’s the Lollapalooza grid.
For those who are going to the C3-produced festival Aug. 7 to 9, here is the grid.
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Guest List Giveaway: Meat Puppets at the Parish
We’re giving away tickets to see 80s rockers the Meat Puppets at the Parish on Saturday, June 20.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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Remembering Tina Marsh
Tina Marsh — bandleader, vocalist, composer, dreamer, founder of the Creative Opportunity Orchestra — was the creative beacon of the Austin jazz scene for the past 30 years. Her music and her life were defined by the breadth of her artistic curiosity and depth of her compassion.
“Creativity poured out of her like the scent of honeysuckle. It came naturally,” said Val Marsh, Tina’s younger sister, during the last days of the singer’s life. “She pushed the envelope, pushed us all to see the beauty around us, to experience the moment in a way that is deep and knowing and peaceful.”
Marsh died of cancer Tuesday at her Austin home, where she spent her last days surrounded by family and friends, collaborators and admirers, whose lives were touched by her fanciful spirit as well as the themes of peace and possibility, humanity and transcendence, expressed through her art. She was 55.
As the leader of the Creative Opportunity Orchestra, Marsh was the champion of eclectic big-band jazz that often ventured into the avant-garde. The band’s most acclaimed recordings — such as “Migration” or “The Heaven Line” — were nowhere close to commercial successes. But what set the orchestra apart was its sense of daring, the social and spiritual undercurrents, and an emphasis on community.
Marsh’s creative interests were not confined to the Creative Opportunity Orchestra, however. She created, arranged and performed music for the choreographer Sally Jacques; recorded an intimate solo album of arias, ballads and standards; and staged an eclectic annual jazz series. She also conceived a popular multidenominational holiday program of music and culture called “Circle of Light” — which has been performed in Austin schools for more than 10 years and involves dozens of Austin musicians.
As she demonstrated in her treatment of a song such as Ornette Coleman’s “Lonely Woman,” Marsh was in equal measure a “vocalist” and “singer.” She could scat, but her wordless vocal lines were more sophisticated than that. Marsh used her voice as an instrument to convey literal effects — the coo of birds, the flutter of wings — and in other contexts approximate the figurative: turbulence, vastness or longing.
Marsh was born in Annapolis, Md., and raised in a military family. After seeking her fortune in New York, Marsh “discovered” the beauty of jazz following her move to Austin in the late 1970s and never turned her gaze from it again. She is survived by her mother, Dorothy Marsh; her sister, Val Marsh; and two sons, Clay and Zeke Zimmerman.
“I’m no expert,” Val Marsh said. “But when I sing and reach a pure note, I feel as close to God as I can get. And I know Tina was doing that all the time. It was like her constant prayer or chant or meditation. But beyond that, she had the genius and capacity to carry an audience with her.”
Photo by Mark Matson FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
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De La Soul brings “3 Feet High…” anniversary tour to Emo’s
Calling all Jennys - or anyone who’s a fan of De La Soul and old-school hip-hop.
The pioneering New York trio will bring the tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of the straight-up fantastic “3 Feet High And Rising” to Emo’s on Aug. 1. Not just a normal tour, this joint will feature a 10-piece Rhythm Roots Allstars band, which will come as close to filling in for “3 Feet…” producer Prince Paul as we can imagine.
Tickets available here.
Pretty much the alpha and omega of conscious, fun-time rap, “3 Feet…” was the first rap record to skillfully use between-song skits and used talking fish in a bathtub as a narrative voice. Clearly, this was some next-level stuff.
If this is all new to you, it’s probably best to the backpackers and dedicated hip-hop heads scramble for tickets to what should be a show for the ages. But for goodness sake, check out this video for “Me, Myself and I” and start the dive down an amazing rabbit hole. Get wise;
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One 911 call - and an expired permit - silenced Shady Grove concert
Only one call was placed to 911 on Thursday complaining about KGSR’s “Unplugged at the Grove” concert series at Shady Grove restaurant, police say. The concert was shut down after it was determined that the restaurant’s permit to host live music had expired May 23.
Scott Trainer, a member of the city’s Live Music Task Force, placed the call from his home nearby. In the call, the music from the concert can be heard.
A call to Trainer’s office has not been returned.
A live music permit allows the owner of an outdoor music venue to produce sound no higher than 85 decibels when measured along the property line.
Responding to the public outcry over the silencing, Austin City Council Member Mike Martinez said he plans to introduce a resolution to retroactively extend active outdoor music venue permits.
Under the plan that Martinez will push at Thursday’s City Council meeting, venues would have until Sept. 1 to renew a permit that was set to expire between March 21 and June 18 or the venue’s original renewal date, whichever comes first. The extension would apply to venues in the Central Business District and to certain downtown venues.
This essentially gives Shady Grove, located on Barton Springs Road, a reprieve from its sound and permitting issues.
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Austin and Memphis: A comparison
Among the interesting numbers cited by Bob Mehr in an article that compares the live music scenes in Austin and Memphis is that music in Austin has almost three times the economic impact as music in the birthplace of rock n’ roll.
A longtime attendant at South By Southwest, Mehr displays a real feel for this place that distinguishes his piece from other Austin music roundups. It’s a good read.
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Live Review: Santigold at Stubb’s
Santigold (a.k.a. Santi White) was all smiles as she transformed Stubb’s into a sweltering hour-long dance party on Monday evening. She and a super-tight new band fired off killer versions of nearly all the tracks on her 2008 self-titled debut, a few cuts from her Diplo mixtape and her recent collaborations with Jay-Z and Major Lazer.
With the crowd already delirious from 100 degree heat, Santigold came correct, igniting hearts and minds with her second track, the Switch & Graeme remix of “You’ll Find a Way.” The cold, relentless breakbeats pushed long, low-end waves through the huddled dancing bodies. Santigold’s step dancers (They’re from Texas!” Santigold declared) moved in synchronous lock step, hyping the crowd with their robot moves appearing as if Santigold had uploaded a hard-funk program into their shared hard drive.
Santigold’s music is absolutely infectious, using reggae and dancehall vocal phrasing during show highlights “Creator” and “Shove It,” creating moments where electro and jackknife beats, blips and squeaks crescendo into an electronic squall that washes away workaday worries.
Hailing from the same Brooklyn music scene that birthed Afro-punk indie rockers TV on the Radio, she is (unfortunately) the only well-known African American woman in indie rock and her combination of polyrhythms, danceable backbeats accenting the 1 and the 3, indie rock conventions - along with bling and black cultural cool pose - is unique.
These deconstructions of indie rock’s musical and cultural hegemony are no accident; A Wesleyan University graduate, she double-majored in music and African American Studies. She’s played in bands, written songs and produced artists for more than a decade.
The charisma and force of her Monday evening live show hints that, like her friend and fellow dance music innovator M.I.A., Santigold is on the cusp of breaking out of the underground.
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Stax reissues Stevie/ Albert ‘Session’
Stevie Ray Vaughan idolized many vintage blues guitarists, but no one influenced his early style like Albert King. So when SRV joined King for a December 1983 live taping of the Canadian TV concert series “In Session,” the sparks flew, with love and respect.
On June 30, Stax Records will reissue “In Session,” which sold about 300,000 copies on its original release. With the exception of “Pride and Joy,” Stevie’s only vocal on the session, the material was from King’s repertoire, which the 29-year-old Vaughan knew inside and out.
In the liner notes, Austin writer Dan Forte writes, “Hearing Stevie pay homage, the pride in Albert’s eyes was impossible to hide and the gamesmanship of the situation clearly brought out some of his best playing. But in this congenial battle of the titans, no holds were barred, no weapons disqualified.”
“In Session” is the duo’s only known recording together.
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Ticket giveaway: Peter Murphy at Emo’s
We’re giving away tickets to see seminal goth-rocker Peter Murphy’s Secret Cover Tour at Emo’s (outside) on Thursday, June 18.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow. For complete contest rules email events@statesman.com.
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George Strait to open Cedar Park Center
A new addition to the Austin area’s music and entertainment scene, the Cedar Park Center opens September 25.
And they’re bringing in the big guns for the grand opening. Academy of Country Music Artist of the Decade and Grammy winner George Strait will headline the opening event in what the Cedar Park Center promises to be the first of many memorable events.
“George Strait is a country music legend and a Texas treasure and we are thrilled to have him open Cedar Park Center. Opening this state of the art facility with an artist of this magnitude demonstrates our commitment to bring the best entertainment in the world to the Greater Austin Area,” said Tommy Hicks Jr., Vice President of Hicks Holdings, LLC.
Tickets for the kick-off event go on sale at 10:00 a.m. this Saturday, June, 20, at all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 800.745.3000 and online at www.ticketmaster.com and www.cedarparkcenter.com.
More details on the Cedar Park Center from the press release:
Located at the intersection of New Hope Drive and Toll Road 183A, north of Austin, Cedar Park Center will be a multi-use facility, with 6,800 seats available for hockey and 8,700 for concerts and other events. The Center will have 24 suites (including four party suites) and 545 club seats with a private club lounge. A retail site of 17 acres is adjacent to the facility grounds for mixed-use development that will include 91,000 square feet for retail and 91,000 square feet for commercial, developed by Hicks Cedar Park, LLC.
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Live Review: Yanni at the Erwin Center
Some local musicians are going to have a hard time coming to terms with this fact, but Yanni’s big band is tighter than 99.9% of the bands in Austin.
Friday night at the Erwin Center, the formerly mustachio’ed Greek pianist Yanni (born Yannis Chrysomalis) entertained thousands at the Theatre at the Erwin Center, coolly, confidently directing some stellar musicians as they performed songs from his 30-plus year career.
The show opened with a nod to Yanni’s most historic performance locations with images of the Acropolis, the Taj Mahal and the Great Wall of China projected on translucent scrims surrounding the stage.
After the trance-inducing instrumental opening, Yanni emerged to deafening applause, surrounded by an orchestra featuring more than 10 stringed instruments, horns, harp, guitar, keyboards, drums and percussion.
The “Yanni Voices” tour (named after his recent album) is by far the most accessible music Yanni has ever created. His ethereal and classically-influenced instrumental songs were reinterpreted and updated with lyrics penned and performed by four young vocalists: Nathan Pacheco, Leslie Mills, Ender Thomas and 20-year old dynamo dancer/vocalist Chloe.
This tour was different than anything Yanni’s ever done. He rarely took solos, instead providing a background soundscape as he directed the remarkable musicians and vocalists that brought his band to life.
Some of the melodies were memorable - “Change” and “Before the Night Ends” - but the blocking, choreography and featured musician solos created the show-stopping moments. Yanni’s first and second chair violists, Samvel Yervinyan and Ann Marie Calhoun, stole several portions of the concert during their solos and their violin duals.
The stage show’s sexiness was undeniable. All four gorgeous vocalists delivered blush-inducing dancing — vocalist Chloe even took a turn with an interpretive, sensual writhe atop Yanni’s grand piano which was nothing less than an aural and visual aphrodisiac.
Although Yanni got lumped into New Age category he came to nearly define years ago, the self-depreciating band leader threatens to break out from this enormous pigeonhole with this tour. And if there is an enormous rise in middle-aged adults having late-in-life children 9 months from now, blame Yanni.
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Council to consider resolution to extend outdoor music permits
Responding to the public outcry over the June 11 silencing of Shady Grove’s “Unplugged at the Grove” series, Austin City Council Member Mike Martinez said he plans to introduce a resolution to retroactively extend active outdoor music venue permits.
Under the plan that Martinez will push at Thursday’s council meeting, permits that were set to expire between March 21 and June 18 would have until Sept. 1 or the venue’s original renewal date, whichever comes first, to renew. The extension would apply to venues in the Central Business District and to certain downtown venues.
This essentially gives Shady Grove a reprieve from their sound and permitting issues, which came to a head last week when police were forced to shut down “Unplugged at the Grove” after a noise complaint from a neighbor.
Shady Grove’s permit to host live music expired May 23, which is why the restaurant was told to stop rather than quiet down.
Also Thursday, council members will consider a resolution to create a City of Austin music department. The resolution, sponsored by Council members Martinez, Laura Morrison and Randi Shade, directs “the city manager to allocate city resources, including staff, to centralize city programs and activities related to supporting Austin music.”
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Wither Radio Room?
- Photos: The Radio Room during SXSW 2009
Speaking of venues, Transmission Entertainment announced several times the imminent opening of Radio Room, a Sixth Street venue on the site of the old Bourbon Rocks. Although the inside and outside rooms were used during SXSW, the club shows no signs of life.
“It’s been on hold as we reduce the scale of our original project,” owner Michael Terrazas said. The original idea was an outdoor live music venue with a 1,000 person capacity and an indoor stage with a capacity of about 300.
“We want to keep the 300 cap interior room, but also make it a cafe with Wi-Fi so it can be used all day,” Terrazas said. “Right now we are in the permitting stage to get a kitchen and food prep areas.”
Terrazas, a partner in Transmission Entertainment, also owns Club DeVille. He says the scale-down was largely financial. “We would have needed new bathrooms and a significant investment in the sound and lights.”
He said he hopes the new space will be open this year and up and running long before SXSW 2010.
(Pictured: These Arms are Snakes performing at the Radio Room during SXSW 2009. Photo by Kelly West AMERICAN-STATESMAN)
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Room 710 is (probably) dead, long live ….. something else, maybe
Tammy Perez FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
- Photos: Clubs on Red River Street
Although it looks like Room 710 owner Asher Garber will seek bankruptcy protection for the Red River Street club/business entity on or before Aug. 2, he still wants to stay in the club business in the same location.
“It takes about $35,000 a month to break even and the last few months have come in at around $25,000,” Garber said Friday about the club. “South by Southwest can only cover so much.”
But Garber says he’s talking with outside investors to reboot the 710 Red River St. location.
“I’m excited about a new beginning in the same building,” Garber says. “It’s not going to be live music-centric in that we won’t have live music Monday through Thursday, but I hope to be able to compete for more road acts.”
Garber intends to keep the stage and to make some sort of smoking court by pulling the outside wall in, a la Bull McCabes. (Garber has frequently said that the smoking ban contributed to Room 710’s demise. Not only did club co-founders/bookers Woody and Adriana Weideman leave 710 after the smoking ban started in September 2005, but unlike Beerland, Beauty Bar, Emo’s, Mohawk and many more, 710 didn’t have a space where you could smoke and drink at the same time.)
The reboot likely will keep the new room viable as a venue for SXSW.
“But it’s no longer going to be a practice field for new bands,” Garber said. “That’s the big change.” If things go well, Garber says the new venue would be open six to eight weeks after Room 710 closes.
Which raises on oft-debated question in Austin: Are there too many clubs?
Momo’s owner Paul Oviesi says no. “I think there’s room for everyone,” he said Friday.
There will be fewer on Red River Street. Spiros is closed, Emo’s Lounge is no more, and Room 710 will likely vanish, at least for a while. Whether Room 710 regulars — both patrons and bands — migrate to, say, Red Eyed Fly, Headhunters and Beerland remains to be seen.
For his part, Beerland owner Randall Stockton thinks the club scene has too many players. “Yes, it is oversaturated,” Stockton says. “Especially when you add in non-Sixth-and-Red-River venues and factor in increasingly limited parking downtown.”
And he feels the pinch of Transmission Entertainment (Mohawk, Red 7, Club DeVille) and C3 Presents (Emo’s, Stubb’s), who book many of the touring bands who come through Austin. “Those two groups do an amazing job, but when there are three amazing road shows on any given night, it makes it harder to convince consumers to see local bands,” Stockton said.
“I also think a good portion of the Austin music audience is surprisingly apathetic,” Stockton said. “They’ll go to a big festival or a big road show, but they don’t go to a tremendous amount of trouble to see local stuff, which is where the difficulty parking downtown comes in. I’m very sympathetic to what Asher is going through.”
Room 710 will have a mini-festival — 7-10 Days of Room 710 — starting Thursday.
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CD Review: Sarah Jarosz, “Song Up in Her Head” (Sugar Hill)
Rebecca Scoggin McEntee FOR AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Sarah Jarosz
“Song Up in Her Head” (Sugar Hill)
A-
Here’s something you don’t see every day: A co-production credit for a young woman who not yet 18 when this album was recorded last year.
Then again, a Sarah Jarosz doesn’t come along all that often, nor do you hear debuts as self-assured yet filled with room for growth, as “Song Up in Her Head.” (For the record, Prince was 19 when he recorded his debut, “For You.”)
The Austinte/ Wimberly gal has been playing the Old Settler’s Music Festival for years and was signed by Sugar Hill after a set at Colorado’s Telluride Festival in 2007. This is the real deal we’re looking at, eleven originals and two covers (a hypnotic version of the Decemberists’ “Shankill Butchers” that destroys the original and a pass at Tom Waits’ “Come On Up to the House”) that reveal a sophistication that’s striking for a woman of her age.
Journeys and leave-takings fill the detailed songs, blending traditional bluegrass chops with a sound both progressive and traditional: “Public transportation’s my private ride, yeah/ but I’ve found my wings and I’m ready to fly.”
Jarosz plays mandolin and clawhammer banjo, opening the album (and the title track) with an almost Dylan-esque image: “The Virgin Mary/all dressed in blue/sings ‘My First Lover’/ for an audience of two.” The ballad “Edge of a Dream” takes stock: “Almost eighteen a real lady now, I’ll keep tryin to figure this life out.”
The instrumentals “Mansinneedof” and “Fischer Store Road” bob and weave, Jarosz and mandolin player Mike Marshall locking up and spinning off in the former, Jarosz putting her clawhammer banjo up against dobro god Jerry Douglas in the latter.
Nobody should be all that surprised if we’re listening to the next Alison Krauss. Or maybe Prince.
“Song Up in Her Head” is released nationally Tuesday.
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Review: White Rabbits at Emo’s
Reviews of Brooklyn’s White Rabbits typically contain some mention of the role that Spoon’s Britt Daniel played in producing their sophomore full-length, “It’s Frightening.”
Daniel’s influence is certainly evident on the album: liberal doses of jingly acoustic guitar here and there with spacy sound effects filling in the gaps.
But it’s not necessarily fair to compare the band to Spoon. Whereas Spoon has allowed the influence of dub and Motown into their work, the White Rabbits have taken a less subtle path with drums leading the way.
The band’s performance Sunday night on Emo’s inside stage (which seemed a bit small for all six members) was similarly percussion-forward with Jamie Levinson and Matthew Clark both contributing to the drum-wallop that anchored the hour-long set.
Vocalist Stephen Patterson (who shares singing duties with guitarist Gregory Roberts) even got in on act during the encore, though he mostly stayed seated, where he complimented the drums with pounding left-hand keyboard lines.
The set included songs from “It’s Frightening” as well as the band’s debut album, “Fort Nightly.”
On “Lionesse,” a song from the new album that’s vaguely reminiscent of the James Bond theme, Patterson, feet flailing, whipped himself into a frenzy nearly worthy of Jerry Lee Lewis.
It was also during this song that the band did the best job of approximating the various electronic pings and whirs that pepper the album, elements that got lost at other points in the night amidst a more aggressive rock sound.
Of the new songs, “Percussion Gun,” is a clear standout and a crowd-pleaser, a powerful number that allows the band to showcase its strengths, but also a song that highlights the fact that the band is still evolving. As evidenced by their live performance, the White Rabbits are clearly already very good at what they do, but “Percussion Gun” hints at an even brighter future.
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Journey coming to the Erwin Center
Journey plays the Frank Erwin Center Sept. 29. Opening will be Night Ranger.
No, I am not making this up.
This is the first time Journey will play Austin with singer Arnel Pineda, whose discovery via YouTube video by guitarist Neal Schon has been well documented.
Tickets ($39, $59, $79) go on sale 10 a.m. Saturday (June 20) at all Texas Box Office Outlets. Charge-by-phone at (512) 477-6060 or 1-800-982-2386 or order online at TexasBoxOffice.com.
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Ticket giveaway: Me Without You at Emo’s
myspace.com/mewithoutyou
We’re giving away tickets to see Philadelphia’s Me Without You tomorrow night at Emo’s.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow.
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Musicmania Top 10 for the week ending June 14
1. UGK ‘UGK 4 Life’ (Jive)
2. Eminem ‘Relapse’ (Aftermath)
3. Slim Thug ‘Boss Of All Bosses’ (Koch)
4.Paul Wall ‘Fast Life’ (Asylum)
5. Pleasure P ‘Introducution Of Marcus Cooper’ (Atlantic)
6. Gorilla Zoe ‘Don’t Feed Da Animals’ (Atlantic)
7. Rick Ross ‘Deeper Than Rap’ (Def Jam)
8. Gucci Mane ‘Murder Was The Case’ (Big Cat)
9. Keri Hilson ‘In A Perfect World..’ (Interscope)
10. SPM ‘Last Chair Violinist’ (Dope House)
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Bonnaroo scene report #5: Okkervil kills!
“We are from the state of Texas and the city of Austin,” Okkervil River frontman Will Sheff announced near the end of an astonishing set that did our burg proud. “Lost Coastlines,” with an extended banjo intro by Lauren Gurgiolo, had the crowd of about 2,000 clapping their hands over their heads, and the closing couplet of “Our Life Is Not a Movie” and “Unless Its Kicks” caused waves of delirium.
Sheff has developed quite a flair for dramatic pause and effect, with “A Girl In Port” building to a climax and “John Allyn Smith Sails” delivering mightily on the seque to “Sloop John B,” which Sheff sang like this is the last show of a tour. The crowd sang back parts of “For Real” as Sheff rocked out on his acoustic.
But Sheff and his Arcade Fire-like band of multi-instrumentalists were just as dynamic on quieter moments, creating grandiocity without big strokes. Sheff dropped imaginary walls and curtains around the confusingly-named “Other Tent” (as opposed to “This Tent” and “That Tent”) on a solo acoustic “A Stone.” As Sheff sang “You love a stone/ You love white veins/ you love hard grey/ the heaviest weight/ the clumsiest shape/ the earthiest smell/ the hollowest tone” the rest of the fest was drowned out by the boldly naked moment.
Among the other highlights was “Westfall,” from the first record, which moved back and forth between “Paint It Black” by the Stones.
Pure and simple, Okkervil River destroyed on the last afternoon of Bonnaroo. Their fans sang every word, the passersby stopped passing.
Talking to Sheff after the set, he said the band was nervous, yet energized, by the presence of Bruce Springsteen at stage right for the entire 90 minutes. “The Boss” complimented the Okkervillians and hung out with them for awhile. “He told us how much he’s been enjoying touring these days,” said Sheff, “because there’s only so much time.” Springsteen was later spotted taking in Neko Case’s set.
(Ed. note: Springsteen also joined final night headliner Phish on stage for performances of Mack Rice’s “Mustang Sally” and his own tunes “Bobby Jean” and “Glory Days.”)
Okkervil River tapes “Austin City Limits” for the first time Thursday. Then they’ll go into the studio to make an album with Roky Erickson.
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Bonnaroo scene report #4
ASSOCIATED PRESS
It’s probably hard to freak out producer Don Was, but when Robert Earl Keen opened his set Sunday with an amazing version of “White Room” by Cream, Was had to make sure he wasn’t hearing things.
Was had just played a set on bass with Todd Snider that was alternately hilarious, tender, angry and sane. With just Snider’s acoustic guitar and Was’ standup bass, the duo had every hand in the air at “This Tent” during “Stuck On the Corner,” with it’s “Hell, Yeah” crowd response.
Snider did some new songs from the album “The Excitement Plan,” with a tune about Dock Ellis pitching a no-hitter on LSD in 1970 resonating especially.
Keen joined Snider on the latter’s “Corpus Christi Bay,” which is on Snider’s new album. It’s a song about giving into the elements, which seemed well-placed on this final day of the country’s biggest, craziest music fest.
Right now, Erykah Badu is making it hard to write, not just because the bass is making my laptop vibrate. Sounds like she’s really fired up- and so is the crowd- so let’s see if I can get some of that.
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Bonnaroo scene report #3
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Hate when they change the rules about where you can and can’t go. Now already I know I’m coming off as a snob, because, well I am when it comes to big outdoor festivals. After 34 years of reviewing shows, I just can’t do the sun-stroked behemoth without some sort of special access and at Bonnaroo they have this cool deal where they vacate the first 50 yards in front of the main stage after each set and then let diehards line up for a place in the pit. With the kind of pass I had, I was able to join the action up front for Al Green and the Beastie Boys.
But before Saturday evening’s Wilco set, that was off: no artist badges allowed up front. The word was that reps for Bruce Springsteen, who came on next, wanted to clear the area of S.I.P’s (sorta important people). Wilco came out rocking, but not enough to move me from the next county, so I went back to Gov’t Mule at the other main stage. The Mule was on some weird cover mission, like maybe they’d lost a bet with Phish and had to play such worn tunes as “Helter Skelter,” “Creep” by Radiohead and Neil Young’s “Southern Man.” It was an experiment that worked for awhile.
Saturday morning I dropped my laptop on my bare foot and my big toe was as black and swollen as Kanye’s ego, so I called it a day early and drove back to Nashville. I thought I was done with the ‘roo, but on Sunday my big ‘un made a remarkable recovery and I was back on I-24, headed 66 miles to Manchester, Tenn.
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Bonnaroo scene report #2
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Alejandro Escovedo had never heard of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog before today’s press conference with the Robert Smigel puppet, plus Tift Merritt and Elvis Perkins. Escovedo’s now a fan. Some Triumph highlights:
“This place has more stages than syphilis.”
“I saw alot of underarm hair at the Ani DiFranco set. I thought one woman had a Yorkie in a headlock.”
“On Monday this place will smell better… when it goes back to being a hog farm.”
Host Andy Langer said to Escovedo and Perkins, “Did you ever think you’d be on a panel with a dog?” to which Triumph exploded, “Tift Merritt is a very beautiful woman! How dare you?”
*”Jimmy Buffett is here? This place really is eco-friendly. There’s nothing like recycled music.”
*”Phish broke up five years ago, They could’ve played three songs in that time. The original script of the Gettysburg Address was ‘Four Phish songs and seven years ago.’”
“Is there anything that Phish fans can’t make out of hemp- besides deodorant?”
“So many Bruce Springsteen fans have come from New Jersey. You can tell because of the smell of weed mixed with Axe body spray.”
“It’s a different time. At Woodstock three babies were born. Here three babies were traded for a case of Dasani and a meat pie.”
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Bonnaroo scene report #1
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The big buzz Friday night at Bonnaroo- Tennessee’s much muddier, trashier, druggier version of ACL Fest- was that Nas came out and did a new song with the Beastie Boys called “Too Many Rappers.” I missed it. Missed it because the Beasties- who are the Pearl Jam of hip hop because their irrelevance hasn’t hurt their concert draw - were pretty lame in the first half hour and I couldn’t see it getting any better. Loved the energy, but you know an act’s not special when the audience is the best part of their show.
DJ Mix Master Mike opened the set with some turntable trickery on Led Zep’s “Misty Mountain Hop,” then the whiny trio came out with instruments strapped and played a punk song called “Time For Livin’, as the young crowd went intergalactic. But after about twenty minutes, with a walkthrough of “Sure Shot” and inferior takes on “No Sleep Til Brooklyn” and “Shake Your Rump,” it was time to ditch these frauds for some real musicians, David Byrne and his band on the other main stage.
The thing about music in a field is that you want to know every song and the man in white delivered with Talking Heads classics such as “Born Under Punches,” “Life During Wartime” and “Once In a Lifetime.” Could’ve done without the cheesy aerobic dancers, but Byrne and band certainly kicked it hard. “This ain’t no party/ this ain’t no disco” never rang truer than in this setting of mud-paddies and sunburned zombies.
Best thing I saw all day was Al Green’s set before the Beastie Bores. “I know what you’re all thinking,” the legend said at one point. “Does Al still got it? Can he lay it down like he used to?” Then Green held a bending falsetto note for about 10 seconds on “Tired Of Being Alone.” This set, accented by a pair of wild dancers, five backup singers, a full horn section and dozens of roses thrown to the audience, was much better than Green’s set at ACL a couple years ago. Even a cheesy Stax/ Motown medley that touched on the Four Tops, Otis Redding, the Temptations and Green’s idol Sam Cooke, didn’t slow down the soul train a comin.’ He’s a Tennessee stud and he brought it all home.
Meanwhile, in the press tent, KGSR’s Andy Langer, who’s been moderating panels at Bonnaroo for three years, stoked up some controversy when he led alleged comedian Janeane Garofalo into some unexpected Obama-bashing. Today, Langer’s got a panel with Triumph the Insult Dog and Alejandro Escovedo. I can hear it now: “Your brothers were in Santana; what happened to you, man?”
Other Austin acts playing the biggest annual U.S. festival include Okkervil River, Belleville Outfit, Heartless Bastards and Dan Dyer.
There are a lot of huge differences between Bonnaroo and ACL: there’s no Ferris Wheel, for instance, at Zilker Park. And the garbage on this 700-acre farm near Manchester (about an hour drive from Nashville) littered the chilling fields for much of the day. But the main diff is the air of decadence at Bonnaroo that makes ACL come off like a family affair. Instead of a kiddie stage, there’s a ribald comedy tent at Bonnaroo. And full body painting is everywhere.
I guess this is what would happen if the hundreds of acres in Zilker Park not used to ACL Fest were set aside for campers. Something else we, thankfully, don’t see: festgoers walking around holding rolls of toilet paper.
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Noise complaint shuts down Unplugged at the Grove
Update: Shady Grove’s permit to host live music expired May 23, a factor that played into the owner’s decision to shut down KGSR’s “Unplugged at the Grove” series Thursday, a police spokeswoman said Friday.
A live music permit allows the owner of an outdoor music venue to produce sound no higher than 85 decibels when measured along the property line.
Police spokeswoman Veneza Aguinaga said officers spoke with Shady Grove’s manager and the person who complained Thursday and determined that the restaurant’s permit had expired. The restaurant was asked to shut down until its permit is renewed, Aguinaga said.
She did not know how loud the music was Thursday but said the 911 call-taker could hear the music as the person was complaining.
Earlier: For the first time in its 16-year existence, KGSR’s “Unplugged at the Grove” series at Shady Grove was shut down Thursday night after a noise complaint from a neighbor. Shady Grove owner Mike Young said the restaurant is in the process of applying for a variance that will allow a ceiling of 85 decibels. According to the current noise code, Shady Grove is classified as a restaurant that must comply at 70 decibels.
Thursday’s opening act Sahara Smith was in the middle of her set when Austin Police showed up with a decibel meter and ordered the show stopped. Headliner Jimmy LaFave never played in front of a crowd estimated at 600. “Unplugged” booker Marsha Milam said the complaint came from a neighbor who told Shady Grove management that he’d call the cops next week, too.
“We’re gonna be back with live music next Thursday and the Thursday after that,” vowed Young. “I’ll pay the bands even if they only play five minutes. We’re not gonna give up the fight.”
The police also showed up at last week’s Gourds show at the Grove and issued a warning.
Young said the variance for “Unplugged” may not go before the city for more than a month.
“I think this neighbor saw a window where he could shut us down so he did,” said Milam. “We’re legitimately going through the permitting process, but it takes time.”
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Sonido Boombox back on ME TV tonight
It’s been nearly a year since ME Television audiences have seen the Latino music show Sonido Boombox. It’s been even longer since they’ve seen host Paul Saucido.
But that’s changing. Sonido Boombox, along with its original host Saucido, returns to the ME TV airwaves at 10:30 p.m. today (Friday June 12).
“There are not a lot of people out there that have Paul’s energy and enthusiasm for what they are doing,” said Kevin Connor, vice president of Music & Artist Relations for the station. “He’s a rare talent.”
It seems the return of the show came as a stroke of good luck and Saucido’s perseverance.
“I approached Paul to see if he wanted to do some Latino reports during the month of May for Latin Music Month,” Connor says. “I thought he might want to do that and promote Saucido Slant. He did a great job with that assignment.”
Back in 2005, ME Television took over the struggling Austin Music Network’s Channel 15 (on Time Warner Cable). Part of its mission is to promote Austin and touring bands that come to town.
Saucido Slant (www.saucidoslant.blogspot.com) is Saucido’s blog, which was born after his stint at ME TV and where he writes about the Latino music industry as well as showcases interviews with artists and music videos.
Though Saucido, who originally is from Los Angeles, was officially laid-off in August 2008, he continued to work on a variety of projects that kept him connected to the local Latino music scene. It was through this work and the opportunity that Connor provided that set up the circumstances for Sonido to return with an official sponsor: Sazón, a local Mexican restaurant on South Lamar.
“You have to be inventive in today’s economy to get things done, and Paul is really good at it,” Connor said.
The show will be taped every Wednesday at the restaurant during happy hour, with Peligrosa DJs providing music in between interviews with weekly guests.
“I feel great that Sazón is our sponsor, not only because (owner) Margarito (Aranda) is a great guy, but because he gets it, he loves music,” Saucido said.
ME TV laid off most of its on-air staff last year.
“It’s really tough. We’re continuing to program good variety of music and promoting cool events,” Connor said. “We’re trying to weather the storm. We’re holding on.”
Saucido is the only ME TV VJ to return to the station since the layoffs.
“It’s the first show to return. I hope it’s not the last,” Connor said. “I hope we can use this as a model to get our VJs back or other good people who haven’t been on before.”
The stations programmers do see a light at the end of the tunnel.
“One of the things that is happening right now is that we’ve had a great surge of Austin videos,” Connor said. “In the last couple of months we’ve seen very good videos from a lot of musicians including Boxing Lesson, Bright Light Social Hour, and Ume. These are as good as some of the national videos we get.”
Connor points out that technology is making it easier for local directors like Jose Jones to produce high quality videos at more affordable budgets. He predicts more quality videos will attract more audiences.
For now, Saucido has found a way to get Latino music videos back on air. This week, his show features an interview with Ozomatli’s Will-Dog as well as a great line-up of local musicians,
Sonido Boombox, which will change to a weekly programming instead of daily, will continue to invite Latinos from all areas of the arts, not just music.
“That’s always been the Sonido tradition, to bring focus to the (Latino) community”, Saucido said.
Sonido Boombox airs on at 8 p.m. Fridays on Time Warner Cable Channel 15. Encore presentations will air at 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. Saturdays; 6 p.m. Sundays; 2 p.m. Mondays; and 10 a.m. Tuesdays.
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Ticket giveaway: Camera Obscura at Antone’s
myspace.com/cameraobscurabandWe’re giving away tickets to see Scottish indie pop band Camera Obscura at Antone’s on Monday, June 15.
Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter. You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in the email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow.
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David Allan Coe has medical emergency, cancels Emo’s gig
Emo’s announced on their Web site and via Twitter Thursday evening that David Allan Coe had a medical emergency and was forced to cancel his Friday show. No other details were forthcoming.
The rest of the bill (Paula Nelson Band, Pimpadelic and Honky) will still play the outside stage. The show is now $10 at the door and two free drink tickets will be given to everyone who bought advance tickets. (But be sure to still tip your bartender even if the drink is free. That’s just polite.)
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McLagan remembers Little Thailand owner Simcoe
Musician Ian McLagan tries to schedule his flights back into town so he’ll arrive during the hours that the Little Thailand restaurant, about seven miles east of the airport, would be open. He didn’t just go there for the great Thai food, but to hang out with jovial owner Dick Simcoe, who had a bar in the back of the restaurant.
“It always felt like you were guests at his home,” McLagan said. “If Dick was in England he’d own the pub that everyone wanted to go to.”
Simcoe passed away Thursday morning from the effects of stomach cancer. His 75th birthday was to be tomorrow.
“I have no regrets,” Simcoe said last week, after doctors told him he didn’t have long to live. “I had a vision and I followed through on it.” The restaurant he owned with wife Surin was the first Thai restaurant in Central Texas, opened in 1981 in a trailer outside the back gate of Bergstrom AFB.
After Bergstrom closed, the Simcoes moved Little Thailand in 1995 to its current location under the Garfield water tank in Del Valle.
“I just love to be around people,” Simcoe said last week of his natural hosting ability. “I feel blessed to have seen the smiles of so many good, good people. That’s what I’ll remember most.”
“He was a remarkable chap,” said McLagan, “with a great family.” McLagan and his late wife Kim were regulars since moving to Manor in 1995. “I wrote a song about coming here with Kim on the drive from my house. The lyrics were all finished by the time I got to Little Thailand.”
That song “Date With An Angel” is on McLagan’s 2004 album “Rise and Shine.”
Besides being a great host, Simcoe was known for his vintage jukebox and his recipe for Thai bloody marys. “I brought a friend there once and Dick made her a bloody mary,” said McLagan. “After she’d had a couple sips I asked her how she liked the drink. Meanwhile, Dick was scribbling something on a piece of paper. She said, ‘It’s the best bloody mary I’ve ever had’ and Dick gave me the piece of paper that said the exact same words. He was such a character.”
Simcoe was surrounded by family in his last few weeks, including daughter Luanne of San Francisco, who had barely left her father’s side in the four months since he had his cancer diagnosis. “He meant the world to me and I will cherish the time I spent with him for the rest of my life,” Luanne Simcoe said.
The funeral will be Saturday at 3 p.m. at Harrell Funeral Home (443-1366) in South Austin. Simcoe is survived by wife Surin, who will keep Little Thailand open with her sister Malee, and eight children.
- From the archive: Near the airport, a Thai pad
- Photos: Little Thailand
- Sign the guestbook
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Weekend picks: Brooklyn indie rock and shoegazey buzz
Ringo Deathstarr
FRIDAY
Recommended
- Yanni at the Erwin Center
- Brothers and Sisters at the Continental Club
- Beautiful Supermachines, Distant Seconds at the Mohawk
- Golden Boys, Tia Carrera at Room 710
SATURDAY
Ringo Deathstarr at Stubb’s. Despite a dicey name and reference points (Jesus and Mary Chain, Spaceman 3) that are practically public domain at this point, this shoegazey act’s buzz continues to build. Their EP is now available on wax via the boutique label Fandeath, which has featured records by the far heavier Clockcleaner and Drunkdriver, giving Ringo Deathstarr a new and slightly more dangerous context. Songs are pretty decent, too. 9 p.m. $8. - J.G.
Also recommended
- Viva Voce at the Mohawk
- Holy Rolling Empire, Car Stereo Wars at the Beauty Bar
- Full Service at Flamingo Cantina
- Devin the Dude at Lamberts
- Gaelic Storm at Threadgill’s World Headquarters
- Lost Bayou Ramblers at Continental Club
- Full Service at Flamingo Cantina
- Charlie Robison at Nutty Brown Cafe & Amphitheatre
SUNDAY
White Rabbits at Emo’s. New York indie rock brimming with verve and gumption. Their new album, ‘It’s Frightening,’ released last month, boasts production from Spoon big man Britt Daniel and Spoon producer Mike McCarthy. Expect a lot of well-meaning head-nodding from the crowd. With the Subjects, the Boxing Lesson. 10 p.m. $10. - J.G.
Also recommended
- Belle Epoque at Emo’s outside
- A Bullet For Pretty Boy, Tonight Is Glory, A Stained Glass Romance, Fire From the Gods, December Skyes at Red 7 (early show, doors at 5 p.m.)
- Wheels on Fire at Beerland
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Riverboat Gamblers, Twilight Singers contribute to ‘Purple Rain’ tribute
For a cover story on the 25th anniversary of Prince’s movie and album “Purple Rain,” SPIN magazine commissioned “Purplish Rain,” a tribute album featuring such artists as Austin act the Riverboat Gamblers, Of Montreal and former Shudder To Think frontman Craig Wedren.
Frankly, the Gamblers being on here is an excuse for me to link to the completely bonkers cover of “When Doves Cry” by the Twilight Singers with former Prince singer/gal-who-doesn’t-know-that’s-not-Lake-Minnetonka Apollonia.
(Man, remember when Shawn Smith was a Twilight Singer? I miss that guy.)
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Q&A with Edwin McCain
Eleven years ago, Edwin McCain’s epic ballad “I’ll Be” topped charts and instantly became a wedding night standard.
However, fortifying its popularity soured the South Carolina native as his career ascended. “Being on the set of Regis and Kathy Lee just made me ill,” McCain says. “I felt like such a sell out. I knew I was doing it for all the wrong reasons.”
The 39-year-old songwriter, whose recent collection “Nobody’s Fault But Mine” salutes his soul influences, appears tonight at One World Theatre.
American-Statesman: This is your first time at One World Theatre, right?
Edwin McCain:Yeah, but we’ve been hearing about it. We play other high-end listening rooms like the Birchmere and Wolf Trap in Virginia, and it sounds exactly like the kind of place we love.
Their idea is to increase cultural awareness through music.
I can’t say enough good things about that. When the focus is about providing an atmosphere for people who enjoy art, it can only benefit experiences across the board.
As a traveling songwriter, how have you seen music bring people together
Well, music’s the one indestructible thing that I know. It survives every situation, and it’s the one thing that everybody agrees on. Music transcends all the barriers. I’ve seen it work in the most inexplicable ways when people are grieving or are in trouble.
To have someone think enough to put together a venue like One World Theatre is proof of what music can be instead of what it ends up being reduced to.
Did you have an influential teacher with a similar mindset?
I had several. The first was a choirmaster named Bob Powell. He writes church hymns. He’s the one that taught me about pitch and then put me out front doing solos in the choirs. He had me doing operettas as a soprano falsetto (laughs). Later, I discovered a whole cadre of art house musicians who are a subculture existing on the content of their work instead of the publicity machine.
How does all this play into your recent covers album?
Well, I grew up in Greenville, S.C., and a friend of mine’s father was a musician. He sort of demanded that we ignore our Cheap Trick and listen to soul music. My favorite band since I was 10 years old is Earth, Wind and Fire. From there I picked up Sam Cooke and Wilson Pickett and Marvin Gaye and Al Green. I didn’t look into Little Milton until later, after I was with Atlantic.
Speaking of which, it’s well known that you’re more comfortable as an indie artist
Yeah, I wasn’t really suited to the major label thing. I absolutely hated the publicity stuff. I made myself feel better about it because I was providing a nice living for a number of employees, but inside I hated every second of it.
Sacrificing that financial backing must be hard, though.
We don’t make money like we used to, but (being independent) is a wonderful, fulfilling challenge that I adore. I love music more because I understand how precious it is to me. I wouldn’t change my experience with the major labels because it gave me appreciation that I probably previously lacked. But I’ve been given a new lease on life, and that’s not something most people get. It’s not lost on me at all.
Edwin McCain performs at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. tonight at One World Theatre. 7701 Bee Cave Road. Advance tickets are $20-$75. 436-0881.
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Ticket giveaway: White Rabbits
myspace.com/whiterabbitsWe’re giving away tickets to see Brooklyn-based indie rockers White Rabbits at Emo’s (inside) on Sunday, June 14. Email us at events@statesman.com before midnight to enter.
You MUST include your full name, email address and daytime phone number in email to win. Winners will be drawn randomly and notified tomorrow.
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CD Review: BettySoo, ‘Heat Sin Water Skin’
BettySoo
“Heat Sin Water Skin”
(self-released)
B+
The first voice you hear on “Never Knew Love,” the first track on “Heat Sin Water Skin,” BettySoo’s third album, is not BettySoo’s clear, sometimes bluesy soprano. Rather, it’s producer Gurf Morlix, making the sort of guttural “uhhhh” you associate with a dude who just woke up with the flu. Then steady swinging drums, distant electric guitar, then BettySoo’s voice, Morlix’s voice here and there as a percussion instrument.
It sounds like a small thing, but Morlix’s voice, and by extension his production, sets up a bit of a dialogue in the music, gives Soo’s music something to push against, something too few singer-songwriters have.
Soo’s voice seems to have two settings: biggish (“Never Knew Love”) and lithe (virtually everything else). “Just Another Lover” teams direct and bitter romantic ache (“Someplace warm where you once fit in/ invisible, expendable as oxygen” with a mournful violin, acoustic guitar and a spare rhythm section. These are exceptionally well-arranged songs, as easily equal in precision to, say, Patty Griffin or Alison Krauss (it doesn’t seem a sucker’s bet to think both were influences).
She even has the guts to cover Hank Williams’ “Lonesome Whistle” to close the album, giving it a smart, clean reading. She may think of her self as “Never The Pretty Girl,” but to take on St. Hank for your finale takes a confidence that speaks volumes
BettySoo appears at 11 a.m. today (June 11) on KUT. She appears at at 9:30 a.m. Friday on KGSR. Her album release show is 8:30 p.m. Saturday at the Cactus Cafe.
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Review: Matisyahu and Les Claypool at Austin Music Hall
Tuesday night’s “double feature” of Matisyahu and Les Claypool at Austin Music Hall proved an apt combination for two unique musicians who have more in common than an initial listen might suggest.
Claypool - bass virtuoso and founder of the eccentric alt-rock trio Primus - wasted no time displaying why he’s been voted the best player in popular music among both critics and musicians multiple times. Claypool’s hands slapped, sliced and popped his bass strings with machine-like precision. Finding the deepest pockets between grooves, Claypool’s fingers danced around diminished chords and minor triads; he basically delivered a musician’s clinic in modern techniques for creating some of the funkiest, sickest, most whacked out basslines.
Expanding upon the feel of the Isley Brothers’ seminal song “Fight the Power,” Claypool’s set closer “One Better” re-contextualized the groove into a heady rock-funk-hybrid jam. Claypool’s bass solo during the middle section of “One Better” proved one of the best I’ve heard; certainly jazz giant Charlie Mingus would have been proud.
(Gentle reader, if you do no other thing today, YouTube the video for Claypool’s set closer “One Better.”)
“Matisyahu … you’re the real deal,” Claypool said graciously after noting that Tuesday’s show was the last night of their tour together.
Unfortunately for Matisyahu, much of the audience either had a curfew or had to work early Wednesday because the half-full Music Hall really thinned out by the time he was midway through his set. Undaunted, Matisyahu incanted his muse, delivering a muscular set that combined reggae, hip-hop and rock in a fusion mode akin to the most inventive moments of both Sublime and 311.
Matisyahu’s ability to infuse his lyrics with themes from his Hasidic Jewish faith, as well as everyman self-empowerment anthems from Bob Marley and dancehall reggae stars of the late 1970s, resonates with a vast segment of audience that loves underground and “real” hip-hop, some being the same trip-happy kids who enjoy following Phish and the offshoot fragments of the Grateful Dead.
The audience members who did stick around were treated to an extended version of Matisyahu’s breakout top 40 hit “King Without a Crown” and an encore wherein Claypool returned to the stage, beating out submissive grooves on his Whamola (a single string bass instrument descended from the washtub bass) while Matisyahu beatboxed with dexterity. The collaborative encore highlighted Claypool’s and Matishyahu’s common strengths: the ability to make fans of both hip-hop and rock shake off the grit of the material world and get lost in the liberating groove of all things funky.
Matisyahu setlist
(Song titles for some of the new tracks could change; Matisyahu new album “Light” drops Aug. 25, 2009.)
Chop ‘Em Down
Close My Eyes
Warrior
Smash Lies
One Day
Youth
My Beating Heart (with Trevor Hall)
I Will Be Light
King Without A Crown
Encore
Beatbox session (with Les Claypool on Whamola)
Lime Tree
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Live shots: Gomez at Stubb’s BBQ
Jorge Sanhueza-Lyon AMERICAN-STATESMAN
- Photos: Gomez at Stubb’s BBQ
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NARAS announces Americana music catagory for next year’s Grammy Awards
We have lost the polka prize, but gained something that, say, the Gourds could win.
NARAS, the governing body of the Grammy’s, have announced that next year’s awards will mark the debut of the Best Americana Album category and a corresponding American Roots Music field. Both the new award and category will debut at the 2010 Grammy Awards.
If a band from Texas fails to win this, please know we won’t be angry, we’ll just be very, very disappointed.
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Video: Mos Def on Letterman
With his new album “The Ecstatic” in stores today, rapper Mos Def kicked off his late night television circuit tour last night with an appearance on Letterman where he ripped “Quiet Dog” while rocking a timpani (holla!). Mos Def will be on Jimmy Fallon with the Roots tonight. The rapper will also make his debut appearance at ACL Fest in October.
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Luckenbach is ‘Pickin’ for the Record’
Did you know there is a Guinness World Record for Largest Guitar Ensemble? Well, there is. And it’s not held by the Gypsy Kings. Actually, it’s held by “the Germans,” according to a press release we received today.
Regardless of who holds the record, it seems like Texas should own the damn thing. That’s why the Kerrville Folk Festival and Cheatham Street Warehouse have teamed up with historic Luckenbach to break the record while benefiting the Voices of a Grateful Nation Project, a group that assists the troops and their families.
OK, the details. The record as it stands now is 1,802 guitar players picking simultaneously. So, the folks in Luckenbach are calling on all guitar players, even those who can only play a handful of chords, to register to break the record and then head out to Luckenbach on August 23 to try and set the bar so high that nobody can top it.
The current record was set while the aforementioned 1,802 pickers played “Smoke on the Water” on June 26, 2007, in Leinfelden-Echterdingen, Germany, led by the band Party Blues in Bb. Oh, the Germans. What fairly simple tune should the Texas group select as its record setter? “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys”? “Home on the Range”? Or, maybe the obvious, “Luckenbach, Texas,” led by Willie Nelson or Shooter Jennings? Register by July 15 at the Voices of a Grateful Nation Project Web site.
Check out what appears to be video of the current record holders doing their thing.
The video below seems to be of a group in Poland trying to claim the record earlier this year. And failing. Hmm. I smell a controversy. If anything it may be the Guinness Record of people butchering the lyrics of a Deep Purple song. (Be the 17th person to ever watch it … now!)
And now, just for grins … Waylon and Willie and the boys …
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CD Review: Sonic Youth, “The Eternal” (Matador)
Sonic Youth
‘The Eternal’
(Matador)
Grade: A-
First, the past: With nearly 20 years on a major label behind them, Sonic Youth has headed over to indie titan Matador Records. This is a bit of a homecoming, as Matador co-owner/Austinite Gerard Cosloy used to run Homestead Records, Sonic Youth’s home for the clanging album “Bad Moon Rising” and killer follow-up EP “Flower/Halloween.”
The band then split for SST Records, where they made two classic albums of avant-rattle ’n’ hum (“Evol” and “Sister”) before making “Daydream Nation” for Enigma Records.
In 1990 they headed to Geffen, and the rest was alt-rock history. They made some good albums, some bad ones and generally aged with dignity.
Now, the present: “The Eternal” clatters and thrums with the juice of a band making a punk rock record for the first time in a long time.
Though it isn’t far afield from the sound they settled into around 1998’s opus “A Thousand Leaves,” which packed about 45 brilliant minutes into 75, “Eternal” is shot through with the energy and chunk of their roots in New York’s No Wave scene. Grimy thrust powers album opener “Sacred Trickster,” “Antenna” draws on the slightly mellower, interlacing guitar wave of their recent albums, while album closer “Massage the History” shows them doing what they’ve always done best: stretching out on free-floating sound-forms, bumping guitars into each other, finding a groove they can wander around, taming the noise, pointing it where they want it to go.
No other crew of 50-year-olds sounds like them.
No other crew of 50-year-olds has ever sounded like them.
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CD Review: Viva Voce, “Viva Voce” (Barsuk)
Viva Voce
‘Rose City’
(Barsuk)
Grade: A-
“Rose City” is the fifth full-length release from Portland, Ore.-based indie rock duo Kevin and Anita Robinson, aka Viva Voce. Like their other work, the album, a cohesive set of hazy songs with surf and psychedelic rock elements, benefits from vocal contributions of both Robinsons. Written and recorded in one month, “Rose City” sounds fresh and spontaneous without feeling thrown together.
In a sense, it’s also a study in contrasts, especially on the title track, when Anita sings “I wanna go back where it’s gray and green and the protest songs have tambourines.” She’s poking fun, but there’s also a tinge of sentimentality there that adds an extra charm.
Likewise, on the repetitive “The Slow Fade,” Kevin sings “the fading melody, it’s like you and me/now it’s gone, gone, gone” over a thumping piano and a soaring blues-rock guitar; it’s both a lament and a recognition of the beauty in the fleeting nature of life and music.
(Viva Voce plays Saturday at the Mohawk.)
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CD Review: Dirty Projectors, “Bitter Orca” (Domino)
The Dirty Projectors
‘Bitte Orca’
(Domino)
Grade: A+
The past seven years have been a long, strange trip for Dave Longreth, the experimental musician behind Brooklyn’s Dirty Projectors. The ever-developing group has seen 18 members, a multitude of sounds and a concept album about Eagles frontman Don Henley. It’s fitting, then, that “Bitte Orca,” the delightful culmination of Longreth’s aural wanderings, is a long, strange album, a quixotic journey across an impressive array of musical landscapes. It’s also the band’s best album yet and one of 2009’s most dazzling listens.
Deftly exploring pop music’s nooks and crannies, “Bitte Orca” stubbornly resists categorization. Longreth yields vocals to the astonishing Amber Coffman and Angel Deradoorian on lead single “Stillness is the Move,” a lilting R&B masterpiece that evokes equal parts M.I.A. and ’70s Motown. The hand-clap-underscored “No Intention” has the steady beat of a reggae number, while closer “Fluorescent Half Dome,” all sweeping strings and church organ, recalls gospel hymns. With a sound that varies wildly from song to song, touching equally on folk, rock and avant-pop, “Bitte Orca” refuses to stand still. Six-and-a-half minute epic “Useful Chamber” alone contains more ideas than most blog darlings’ whole careers. Those who expect easily categorized music may be bewildered, but for listeners willing to invest time plundering its considerable depths, “Bitte Orca” yields a cavern’s worth of hidden treasures. —
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American Idol auditions in Dallas!
Are you the next American Idol?
The FOX television show just wrapped its eighth season, but Season 9 audition dates have been announced and Dallas is on the list.
Registrations are June 24-25 with tryouts on June 26.
If you’re planning on hopping the highway to stardom (that would be I-35 North) by auditioning, please e-mail droe@statesman.com. We might want to follow you up there for a future story.
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Interview: Passion Pit
(Passion Pit at Emo’s in March during South by Southwest. Photo by Benjamin Sklar/For the American-Statesman)
Boston-based indie pop group Passion Pit have had a big year. Feeding on momentum from last year’s much-hyped EP, they released their debut full length, “Manners,” in May to critical acclaim, selling more than 10,000 copies in the first week and landing the band a spot at No. 51 on the Billboard Top 100 album chart. They are in the middle of a non-stop tour that includes sold-out dates in the United States and Europe. They’ll also perform at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in October. We caught up with Passion Pit drummer Nate Donmoyer and keyboardist Ayad Al Adhamy before their recent sold-out show at Emo’s.
American-Statesman: You’ve been selling out shows across the country. Why do you think people are so excited to see you?
Adhamy: People tell them to be excited. We have a really awesome publicist. It’s a word of mouth or word of Internet thing. It’s nothing we’re doing.
Donmoyer: … It’s our first tour through a lot of these towns so it’s still a litmus test, an ‘are these guys worth our time?’ kind of thing. It’ll be a few more tours before they’re actually here to see us.
Adhamy: We met these two girls yesterday in Dallas that said they were doing a Passion Pit Texas tour, coming to all three shows (Dallas, Austin and Houston). I’m really humbled by that.
Donmoyer: They don’t have jobs, so they can follow us around.
‘Manners’ sold more than 10,000 copies in the first week it was released. Were you surprised?
Adhamy: Floored, absolutely floored.
Donmoyer: I was expecting maybe 500.
Adhamy: I had friends e-mailing me, and they were like, oh my god, you’re in the billboard top 100.
Donmoyer: It’s some alternative reality we just clicked into.
Adhamy: We just graduated college and we’re still kids.
Donmoyer: It’s like what’s wrong with the world? Because why would we be in the top 100?
Adhamy: Actually, I disagree, because Eminem is No. 1. If he’s No. 1, then I don’t want to be No. 1. Eminem’s going to hate us now.
What have been listening to while on tour?
Adhamy: One of my favorite things is napping and waking up and seeing Nate driving to classical music and violin concertos. We all have music degrees so we’re pretty knowledgeable about that kind of thing.
Donmoyer: The new Phoenix album has been on repeat for like four months. We wish we made it.
How have you adjusted to the Texas heat?
Adhamy: I grew up in the Middle East, so I would expect to be used to it, but no, I never got used to it. It never gets comfortable. Except there, I can’t walk outside in my glasses. Here I can wear glasses, but it’s so sticky and warm when you’re setting up and carrying gear. It’s good exercise, though.
Donmoyer: In Boston you can drink and it’s freezing, so you don’t really notice. Here it’s four beers and you’re lucky if you don’t pass out on stage. That’s what happened during SXSW. I basically passed out.
Adhamy: I came straight from England (to SXSW) and was kind of stressed out, so when I flew in that morning I said, ‘This is glorious, I’m going to have a whiskey. I’m going to have four whiskeys!” Then you start eating and you have to set up, and the stage was makeshift out of balsa wood or something, like a trampoline. The laptop fell like seven times, keyboards fell, the bassist got hit in the face with the microphone.
Did you have time to see any other bands during SXSW?
Donmoyer: Grizzly Bear. My girlfriend lives in Dallas and she came down. It was the one band we wanted to see, and there were 300 people in line. I thought, what a terrible end to our time at SXSW, sitting outside waiting. I looked at my wrist, at my artist pass, and told the bouncer ‘I’m playing right now, I’m in Grizzly Bear,” and they were like “Oh yeah yeah yeah,” and they cleared a path an everyone just walked to the front of the stage and we watched the whole set.
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Review: Animal Collective at Stubb’s
By any reasonable measure, Animal Collective has hit it big with a certain strain of experimental pop music.
The Brooklyn-via-Baltimore trio sold out Stubb’s days after the concert was announced. Their newest album, “Merriweather Post Pavilion,” has sold more than 100,000 copies.
The Stubb’s crowd Friday night - part jam band fans, part Red River hipster kids, part frat-and-sorority looking folks and part parents waiting for the concert to be over to take their kids home - seemed pretty into every note, even maintaining a respectful silence (more or less) at the show’s quieter moments. This seemed no small feat considering just how chatty Austin crowds tend to be.
But it’s hard to think of a band this popular with a point of view this difficult to discern. Most of the music from members Avey Tare, Panda Bear and Geologist was a gauzy electronic haze replete with sound effects, bent nature sounds and vague synths. Heavily reverbed vocals wandered in an out of the mix. The music was most effective when it was song-shaped or asserted itself rhythmically. Rave culture was very clearly part of the vibe, but chewy drums and techno blips kicked in too rarely. Too much of the set erred on the impressionistic; these guys were going to make you work for the meaning in their haze.
This is too bad: “Merriweather Post” has sold huge because of the stacked harmonies and ever poppier structures. This performance gave away or ignored too much of what makes the Collective individuals.
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Review: Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy at Mohawk
Bonnie “Prince” Billy is nobody’s favorite musician. People don’t know the names of his albums. People don’t know the lyrics to his songs. They know him only as that guest musician on that other musician’s album, or as that oddball character in that indie film (he acts under his real name, Will Oldham), or merely as that wildly bearded, mysterious bald guy.
“Texas sweat is thin and insubstantial,” Billy said Friday at Mohawk, ensconced in humidity. He let on that he’s from Kentucky, which is so far from the epicenter of hip that it redefines the very term. “We Hoosiers bleed sweat,” he said.
Billy was speaking to a sold-out crowd that conveyed his widespread influence by virtue of the local musicians who comprised it. Bill Callahan. Christian Bland of the Black Angels. And siblings Black Nasty and Pink Nasty, both of whom have collaborated with Billy.
Six backing musicians—two drummers, the rest on guitar, violin, accordion and upright baby bass—swept Billy across the span of alt-country. They played only a couple of songs from his eminently accessible new album, “Beware.” Other songs were sparse and Gothic, with Billy, the consummate dramatist, waiting until the nanosecond before they fell apart in silence to deliver his lyrics. Other songs still were filthy and rocking, with Billy writhing his arms, hands, and head about in total communion with the music.
The tales he told were of virtue and sin, of the human condition, and of the complicated relationships between man and woman. One of them was “The Girl in Me.”
“There’s a girl in me,” Billy sang, “that makes me wear bright colors when I walk the streets.”
“There’s a man in me,” violinist Cheyenne Mize countered, “that wants to dominate you and put you in your place.”
If this particular song was any indication, there remained no mystery about it: Billy’s just down with his feminine side.
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Here’s a recording of the Jesus Lizard’s first set at All Tomorrow’s Parties
Perhaps needless to say, if they deliver like this at Fun Fun Fun in November, there will be many, many happy, sweaty folks in Waterloo Park.
I guess they’re the best live rock band on the planet again.
Here you go. Thanks to Henry Owings at Chunklet for the link and the effort.
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Review: New York Dolls at Emo’s Friday
Lead mouth David Johansen seemed a little tired Friday, but hey, his band’s first album came out more than 35 years ago. And I’ll never get to see the decadent, departed Johnny Thunders play — the closest I’ll ever get is hearing the guy who taught him guitar: Sylvain Sylvain.
And Friday was as close as I’ll ever get to seeing the real New York Dolls, which is now DJ and SS, two surviving original members, and three other guys, including guitarist Steve Conte, who basically wouldn’t have had a career — or a look — without the drag queens of protopunk, the band that was a mammoth influence on everyone from the Sex Pistols to the Clash, Hanoi Rocks to Guns N’ Roses.
They opened with “Looking for a Kiss” from the wayback machine, and the set struck a balance between catalog chestnuts and selections from their surprisingly good new album, “Cause I Sez So.” It’s classic Dolls: scuzzy and greasy, influenced by (and at times borderline stealing from) blues-rock, glam, Stax soul, girl groups and more. Thunders got a shout-out with a swatch of his “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory,” I heard a little Howlin’ Wolf and “Trash” was delivered both in the original 1973 version and as a reggae song, as the band re-recorded it on “Sez So.”
In spite of his apparent fatigue, Johansen looks good for a gentleman of his years and Sylvain was, characteristically, a goofy poof of energy, as was Conte. The two guitarists have an undeniable chemistry reminiscent of the original lineup, gotta say.
Also gotta say, apologies to the sound man, from where we were standing — pretty much dead middle in the big outside room — the sound was very muddy, but that was almost appropriate: This was, after all, never a band that overvalued technique.
By the time they got to the second tune of the encore, “Personality Crisis,” I had a thump in my chest and a lump in my throat. True, you can’t put your arms around a memory, but you’ve got to embrace these guys for their heart and staying power.
Prides of Austin Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears opened with a good, long set that effectively threw down the gauntlet in terms of energy and technique. Lewis is the best R&B shouter in decades, and that band is ferocious. If those cats can’t move you, you don’t need a night on the town. You need a defibrillator.
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Learn to market your band
The Austin Music Foundation is holding free marketing classes for bands the next two Monday nights at the Hilton Garden Inn.
From the press release:
“Creating a consistent, accurate and unique artist image is the cornerstone of marketing your band. However, winding a common thread through all your marketing materials and efforts isn’t easy. Join Austin Music Foundation and Constant Contact for a series on branding and communicating with fans in the 21st century.”
The sessions with instructor Rachel Wyatt of Wyatt Brand PR start at 7 p.m.
To register email kim@austinmusicfoundation.org.
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Video and review: Ozomatli at Republic Square Park
It’s hard to walk away from an Ozomatli show without a smile on your face, but that smile gets even bigger when the show costs you just a few cents, at the most.
In grand Ozo-style, the boys —Jiro, Mario, Asdru, Justin, Raul, Uli, and Wil-Dog— packed and rocked the park on Wednesday during a free concert at Republic Square that benefited Blue Dog Rescue. Organizers asked for a minimal, as little as 25 cents, donation for the rescue group at the front gate.
Ozomatli, who returned to Austin just before they set out for their European tour which kicks off on the 27th of this month, had an entire audience up on their feet, swaying, grooving, dancing and singing along to just about every song they play. The guys started the evening with “City of Angels” and continued their set with some of their more popular tunes, including “After Party”, “Love and Hope”, “Ya viene el sol”, “Cumbia de los Muertos”, and much later with “Chango”.
The nearly 2,500 folks that gathered surpassed organizers’ hope to get at least 2,000 people into the park for the show.
“The show was so cool. Those guys don’t have a rock star bone in their body. They are so fun to work with”, said Marsha Milam, one of the organizers with Solar Powered Concerts who confirmed the attendance numbers.
It’s that humbleness that makes Ozomatli so accessible to everyone. Early into the show, Raul (guitarist) asked the people who in the preferred enclosed seating area if they would mind that other people come into the area to bring as many people close to the stage as possible. No one denied his request. (And perhaps Austin’s generosity is what makes this city one of the band’s favorite spots to play, as Uli acknowledged during the show.)
As is tradition, the Cali boys ended the show by abandoning the stage and leading a conga-like line with the audience, although unlike other times in Austin, this line ended at the band’s tour bus for a pre-gathering of folks that would end up at the after party. Organizers were so satisfied with the turn out, that already they are hoping to bring them back next year. And without a doubt, the fans will be there.
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Weekend picks: Rockabilly respect, anthemic rock and complex black metal
(Pictured: The Constantines ASSOCIATED PRESS)
FRIDAY
Tribute to Ronnie Dawson at the Continental Club.The Blonde Bomber, who died of throat cancer in 2003 at age 64, was one of the most beloved acts in the history of the Continental, ranking up there with Alejandro Escovedo, Toni Price, Redd Volkaert and Southern Culture on the Skids. This will be a night of utmost rockabilly respect, with the Jungle Rockers and Nick Curran, plus Dawson’s A-Team of Tjarko Jean, Shaun Young, Kevin Smith and Lisa Pankratz playing for the Waxahachie Wildman with the soul of gold. $10. — Michael Corcoran
Also recommended
- Animal Collective at Stubb’s
- New York Dolls, Black Joe Lewis at Emo’s
- Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy at the Mohawk
- Dale Watson at the Broken Spoke
- Radio La Chusma at Flamingo Cantina
- Alejandro Escovedo at Antone’s
- VAST at Elysium
- Ladyfinger, the Archibalds at Beerland
SATURDAY
Constantines at Emo’s. These Canadians weld together many different times of anthemic rock - Fugazi’s roar, Springsteen’s earnestness, the Clash’s fervor. But their newest album, ‘Kensington Heights,’ finds them slowing down very slightly, finding their center, dealing with adulthood. I’ll be the guy yelling out for ‘Draw Us Lines.’ With Crystal Antlers and I Was a King. 10 p.m. $10. — J.G.
Also recommended
- Bruce Robison at Broken Spoke
- Mika Miko at Red 7
- Au Revoir Simone, Antlers at the Mohawk
- Dikes of Holland at Beerland
- Afrofreque at Lamberts
- Girl in a Coma at Emo’s
- Carolyn Wonderland at Threadgill’s
- Brave Combo at Jovita’s
SUNDAY
Wolves in the Throne Room at Emo’s. Perhaps the most nuanced and complex black metal band in the States, this outfit hails from Olympia, a town known for its progressive punk scene. Detailed, complicated songs, thunderous drumming, howling, trancelike guitars, black metal’s juggernaut rhythms: it’s all there. A phenomenal band operating at the peak of its power. With A Storm of Light and the Roller. 10 p.m. $10 advance, $12 door. — J.G.
Also recommended
- J.D. Souther at Threadgill’s
- Will Taylor and Strings Attached at Opal Divine’s Penn Field
- Jon Dee Graham and James McMurtry at Continental Club Gallery
- Matt Powell Trio at Momo’s
- Black Square at the Red Eyed Fly
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Girls In a Courthouse
Singer Nina Diaz and bassist Jenn Alva of Girl In a Coma will attend a preliminary hearing for their felony assault on a peace officer charges June 9 at the 209th State District Court in Houston. The band will play at Fitzgerald’s that night.
Kent Schaffer, the pair’s attorney, said the Grand Jury probably won’t hear the case until September, when GIAC wraps up a summer tour. Although Diaz and Alva are not required to testify in person before the Grand Jury, Schaffer said they’ve decided to.
In the case against Diaz, 21, and Alva, 29, two off-duty police officers hired by Chances nightclub in Houston’s Montrose district, charge both women with striking the officers while being detained.
The incident started when Diaz and her boyfriend engaged in horseplay that one of the officers thought was a fight. Schaffer said that when the officer threw the boyfriend up against the bar, Diaz protested and said ‘he didn’t do anything!’ The defense attorney said he has witnesses that saw the officer backhand Diaz.
“Jenn saw that and came running from the other room when she was tackled from behind by the other officer,” said Schaffer. “She fought him off until she saw that he was a police officer.”
Chances nightclub manager Nick Vastakis told the Houston Press in April that he backed the officers’ version, saying that Diaz “was hellbent on going to jail.”
We’ll keep following this story, as well as what’s been happening on the musical side. GIAC plays Emo’s main room Saturday.
(Booking photos provided by the Harris County Sheriff’s Office)
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The story behind: Gomez’s ‘Airstream Driver’
We talked with Gomez drummer Olly Peacock when the band was here during the South by Southwest Music Festival in March. ‘Airstream Driver’ is on the band’s recently released ‘A New Tide.’ Gomez plays Monday at Stubb’s with J.J. Grey and Mofro. $18. stubbsaustin.com.
‘The lyrics for ‘Airstream Driver’ were actually pieced together,’ Peacock says. “I’d written the song at home and I took it to the studio when we were working late at night. I needed some words, so we Googled ‘Red Red Meat,’ because we were working (producer) Brian Deck, who used to be in Red Red Meat. We thought just for a joke we’d take some lyrics and use them just for the time being, and in the end they were just so befitting we kept them. That was an interesting way to do a collaboration - without someone actually wanting to collaborate. The lyrics are totally obscure to others, but they fit. It was an interesting lyrical excursion.’
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Scoot Inn goes country Thursdays
The East Side hipster hangout Scoot Inn has been hosting SCOOTENANNY! for a few weeks now, but tomorrow’s lineup could be the strongest yet. Rosie Flores joins Scoot regulars Dave Insley’s Careless Smokers, plus there’s Ramsay Midwood’s backwoods ditties and Doug Kent & the Homewreckers.
The Scoot Inn is at 1308 E. 4th street at Navasota. Show starts at 9 p.m.
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Counting Crows to play Austin Music Hall Aug. 3
Tickets go on sale 10 a.m. June 6 for Counting Crows, Michael Franti and Spearhead and Augustana at Austin Music Hall Aug. 3.
In addition to their own sets, the three bands will jam together for a set.
Check out austinmusichall.frontgatetickets.com for details.
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CROZ.FM archive site features vintage Wille, SRV shows.
This website features a whole mess of sets that were once radio broadcasts, among other things.
Boy howdy, is it an Austin music/classic rock/blue fan’s dream.
Here is the link for the Stevie Ray Vaughan stuff.
Here is the link for the Willie Nelson stuff.
You could spend a few months rooting around this site.
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Steamboat reunion show at Threadgill’s
Steamboat booker Danny Crooks has put together a line-up of classic Steamboat bands to play Threadgill’s South June 14.
Bands start at 3 p.m. and go to 10:30 or so. The line-up includes:
3:30 p.m. - Rhythm Child
4:30 p.m. - MC Overlord
5:30 p.m. - Dah-veed
6:30 pm. - the Alice Rose
7:30 p.m. - Vallejo
8:30 p.m. - Sister7
9:30 p.m. -Johnny Goudie & the Little Champions
Tickets are $10 advance through FrontGate, $15 at the door. This year’s proceeds go to HAAM.
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Arc Angels to play free concert 6/24
Right after playing 12 sold out shows in London at Royal Albert’s Hall opening for Eric Clapton, the Arc Angels are playing the free Solar Power concert series at Republic Square (422 Guadalupe St.)
The show, which starts around 6 p.m., will be the last of the series this year.
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The book of Spoon (well, the chapter of Spoon)
Galleys have begun to circulate for “Our Noise: The Story of Merge Records” (Algonquin Books) by Merge founders Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance with journalist John Cook.
Mostly an oral history of the label and the founders’ band, Superchunk, the book also devotes chapters to the label’s bigger bands, including Arcade Fire, Neutral Milk Hotel, Lambchop and, yes, Spoon, tracing the band from before the “Telephono” days to their hit-making present.
Inspirational quote: “(After ‘I Turn My Camera On’ got some radio play) at Spoon shows you’d all of a sudden see these mainstream girls doing sorority-girl stripper dances to it instead of the indie rock head-nod.”— radio promotions guru Karen Glauber.
Word!
The book hits shelves in September.
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Final thoughts on Pachanga Fest
“I’m tickled with the turnout,” Pachanga Latin Music Festival organizer Rich Garza said Monday. “So is Alex.” Alex is Alex Vallejo, Garza’s partner for the festival, which drew about 3,600 fans to Fiesta Gardens on Saturday. The festival, marking its second year, kicked off at noon, and plenty of parents with kids could be seen noshing on Brazilian barbecue or hanging out at the “Niños” tent.
Garza was especially pleased with the location’s layout — a footbridge divides the park in half and prevented sound bleed from one end to the other. This worked brilliantly for the headliners. “The fact that we had Mexican Institute of Sound and Michael Salgado at the same time and that there were so many people walking back and forth between the two was really trippy and fun,” Garza said. “… I was kind of thrilled with the way that sort of completed the circle, balancing the traditional with the alternative.”
The biggest concern was parking; no large lots were available and everyone parked on the street. Parking would have become a problem if turnout had been much higher. “There was a lot of concern about parking and quite honestly I haven’t heard complaints, from either patrons or the neighborhood,” Garza said. “It seemed to work out OK, but we will be talking to the parks department about how to do things next year.”
There are definite plans for the festival to return; Garza said he hopes to Fiesta Gardens: “If they have us, we’d love to do it. But I think we definitely turned the corner this year.”
What are YOUR thoughts? Tell us in the comments section.
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Musicmania Top 10 for the week ending May 31
Slim Thug ‘Boss Of All Bosses’ (Koch)
Eminem ‘Relapse’ (Aftermath)
UGK ‘UGK 4 Life’ (Jive)
Lil’ Keke ‘Loved By Few Hated By Many’ (Universal)
Rick Ross ‘Deeper Than Rap’ (Def Jam)
Method Man/Redman ‘Blackout 2’ (Def Jam)
Mddl Fngz ‘Smoking With The Enemy’ (Primo)
Paul Wall ‘Fast Life’ (Asylum)
Electrik Red ‘Vol. 1-How To Be A Lady’ (Def Jam)
Jadakiss ‘Last Kiss’ (Def Jam)
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CD review: Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses
Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses
‘Roadhouse Sun’
(Lost Highway)
Grade: A-
The reason Ryan Bingham songs sound so good on the car radio is he makes movin’ music. Listen to “Roadhouse Sun” on your computer and your legs will dance under the desk. This dense and driving album, the prematurely hoarse 28-year-old’s second on Lost Highway, will send you out for a six-pack or at least a ride with the windows down. Gotta get out of the house and play it loud!
Although he’s a former West Texas bullrider signed to a Nashville label, Bingham is no country act. His dust-choked vocals might prompt easy comparisons to Tom Waits, but Bingham isn’t really of the singer-songwriter variety, though he has a way with words. He’s a rocker in a cowboy hat, pure and simple, working in sonic textures as thick as a mix of hard living and hard partying.
The album establishes its Southern rock roots early, with opening track “Day Is Done” going from a wispy tease to a gutbucket rocker in about 15 seconds. “When the day is done/ I was born a bad man’s son,” Bingham sings, as Corby Schraub’s slide work approaches the fervor of sacred steel. Smart move to record with his touring musicians, who tear it up night after night and earn the front cover credit.
Drummer Matt Smith is a steadying force throughout, driving mandolin-flavored songs such as “Tell My Mother I Miss Her So” and “Country Roads” to keep the album’s tempo lively. There’s an underlying rage to “Roadhouse,” brought up top on the epic-sounding couplet of the politically charged “Endless Ways” diving into “Change Is,” with its furious twist of vocals and guitars.
Tender moments come with the solo acoustic “Snake Eyes,” which Bingham delivers with dramatic flair, saying more with his voice breaking than with the lyrics about what it’s like when all the love is gone. “Rollin’ Highway Blues” is another acoustic track seemingly placed just so the rockers don’t run into each other and break something.
Producer Marc Ford (ex-Black Crowes), who also helmed previous LP “Mescalito,” deserves credit for creating a thick sound that doesn’t slow things down, even on the thudding “Bluebird,” a song that never had a chance.
Bingham will play a solo acoustic set Thursday, opening for the Flatlanders at the Texas Union Ballroom. After rocking out to “Roadhouse,” I’d much rather see him with the band.
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CD review: Black Moth Super Rainbow
Black Moth Super Rainbow
‘Eating Us’
(Graveface)
Grade: B+
With the current influx of synth-friendly indie bands, it’s a good time to be Black Moth Super Rainbow, a rural Pennsylvania-based psychedelic outfit with a distinctly darker and more twisted sound than many of their disco-leaning peers. For “Eating Us,” their fourth album and first hi-fi recording, they recruited psych producer extraordinaire Dave Fridmann, whose production credits include the Flaming Lips, MGMT and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, among many others. The result is a polished and spacey mix of electronic and organic sounds: vocoder vocals and eerie synth effects atop human-powered drums, tambourine, guitar and even banjo. Add to that disturbing lyrics such as “neon lemonade/eat my face away,” and a few upbeat moments (“Tooth Decay”), and you get a chill-out album for fans of mind-melting dystopian visions.
(Black Moth Super Rainbow performs at the Mohawk Tuesday night with School of Seven Bells and Balmorhea. $10 adv, $12 door)
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Waxploitation DJs are now Soul Happening DJs
- The A-List: Soul Happening at Club DeVille, 05.29.09
As we reported in early May, the dusty-fingered crate diggers behind the long-running Waxploitation parties, have decided to change their name. The identity shift followed a good year of pressure from the L.A.-based Waxploitation record label/artist management company. Our favorite funky vinyl fanatics announced at their Friday gig at Club DeVille that they will now operate as the Soul Happening DJs. The name is a logical choice as they’ve long branded their events, which tend to feature obscure booty-moving grooves from artfully excavated 45s, as Soul Happenings.
“By default, we will be the Soul Happening DJs,” DJ Gabe Vaughn wrote in an email. “That name has been with us almost as long as Waxploitation, so the familiarity is definitely key.”
