Monthly Archives: September 2015

HIP Fest presents its third year on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, 9/22-23

By Jay Mazza | Published: September 21, 2015

The New Orleans International Sound Exchange continues its fine tradition of bringing some of the biggest and best names in improvisational and/or free jazz music to New Orleans this week at two separate venues—the Blue Nile and the Contemporary Arts Center.

During the first two iterations of HIP (Hosting Improvising Performers) Fest, the most prominent names for casual jazz fans were the local performers who are typically paired in inventive configurations with the visiting artists. The guest musicians have all been well-known in the esoteric field of improvised jazz, but with a couple of exceptions, virtually unknown to all but the most ardent fans.

This year, two of the four guest musicians are household names in the jazz world. Pianist Vijay Iyer is a MacArthur “genius” grant recipient, multiple Downbeat magazine award winner, and a Harvard professor. Drummer/ composer/ multi-instrumentalist Tyshawn Sorey (pictured at top) tears up every performance and is musically associated with such jazz greats as Wadada Leo Smith, Steve Coleman, Anthony Braxton, John Zorn, Muhal Richard Abrams, and Dave Douglas. Saxophonist Steve Lehman, a young musician who has been turning ears, and Italian pianist Fabrizio Puglisi round out the list.

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Garden State Sound
with Evan Toth

By Evan Toth | Published: September 21, 2015

All jokes aside, New Jersey is a pretty great place. While it has a lot to offer as a state, it also has a rich musical history of which many people remain unaware. Everyone knows Sinatra and The Boss, but there’s much more.

Tune in to Garden State Sound with Evan Toth to explore the diverse music with connections to New Jersey. You’ll hear in-depth interviews with some of Jersey’s best music makers and have the opportunity win tickets to some of the best concerts in the state.

“How do you interpret a Beatle? How can you alter their lyrics and music into your own vision; give them a new sound, or feel? How can one do so in a way that won’t detract from the timeless originals, but yet be unique enough for people to want to hear? Those were some of the challenges facing Paterson, NJ’s John Pizzarelli when he decided to embark upon his latest project, “Midnight McCartney.”

But, it wasn’t really John’s idea, it was Paul’s. Having worked with Paul as a featured jazz guitarist on his 2012 standards release, Kisses on the Bottom the former Beatle was aware of Pizzarelli’s jazz chops and methods of interpretation. So, he sat right down and wrote him a little letter about interpreting his solo work in a jazz setting. When Macca makes a suggestion, you’d best follow suit.

Join us this week as we talk McCartney originals, recording with a legend, and how the miles that separate Paterson from Liverpool aren’t really all that much between musicians.” —EZT

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Cady Groves,
The TVD First Date

By Special to TVD | Published: September 21, 2015

“Some of my earliest memories involve hearing my mom play her old vinyl records.”

“Everything from Amy Grant to Lynryd Skynyrd—she had all the classics. We had a record player in our living room- and I loved when my mom would dust off an old Styx album on a slow Sunday and it would play quietly in the background.

One of my favorite memories is the time my mom and I both made straight As (she was in college getting her degree) and she put on Bette Milder and we danced in the kitchen in our bare feet laughing and celebrating.

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Graded on a Curve: Spooky Tooth,
Spooky Two

By Michael H. Little | Published: September 21, 2015

Spooky Tooth: I don’t know exactly how to start this review of Spooky Two, except by saying that Spooky Tooth has always, at least in my mind, been in a dead heat with Foghat as funniest band name ever when stoned. For the longest time I didn’t know much more than that about them, other than that they featured Gary Wright, the genius who gave us the great “Dream Weaver,” on organ and vocals. Oh, and they also featured Luther Grosvenor, who would go on to change his name to Ariel Bender and play guitar for Mott the Hoople.

I always suspected them of progressive transgressions, but hey—I was wrong, at least on 1969’s Spooky Two. No neo-classical rigmarole for these guys; some gussied up vocal hoohah, yes, but you never get the idea listening to them that they think they’re slumming by playing rock’n’roll and not Modest Mussorgsky. True, they were keyboard heavy, a frequent indicator of prog proclivities, but both Wright and Mike Harrison utilized their keyboards to rock, not to roll up into a little ball in embarrassment they weren’t Wagner.

I have only one two real reasons to dislike them, the first of which is the guy who sings the high notes in the horribly titled (what a cliché!) heavy metal epic “Evil Woman,” which was written by Larry Weiss, the same guy who gave us the great “Rhinestone Cowboy.” I have never heard anything like those stratospheric vocals, and I will literally pay never to hear them again. They make TV commercial superstar Lil’ Sweet sound like a baritone. Which is a pity, because the song is a long and cool demonstration both of the band’s keyboards and guitar chops. Oh, and the second reason? The Wright-penned “Lost in My Dream,” a subpar Procol Harum song which evolves from something barely listenable to a pretentious nightmare that builds and builds, with vocals being piled on vocals while the singer goes on about how “somewhere in the frost in the sea of my mind waits my destiny.” Dude, that’s not frost; that’s Foghat! And I don’t know about you, but I fear the Dream Weaver is not far off.

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TVD’s Press Play

By TVD HQ | Published: September 21, 2015

Press Play is our Monday recap of the new—and FREE—tracks received last week to inform the next trip to your local indie record store.

Sarah Williams White – Winter Sun
Whisperer – 1709
Living Dead Girl – Simulation
Thrushes – Joan Of Arc
Lilly Wolf – Promises and Plans
Kinsey – Youth
Royal Outsiders – Night Still Long
Thin Lear – Second Nature
La Luz – You Disappear
Darkbloom – Family Fortunes

TVD SINGLE OF THE WEEK:
Line & Circle – Out Of Metaphors

Banda de los Muertos – Cumbia De Jacobo
Skin & Bones – Pointing & Laughing
HiRollers – Bring Me Down
A-Trak ft. Andrew Wyatt – Push (E.A.S.Y. Remix)
Autograf – Running
lux.impala – Short Sword
Fine Cut Bodies – The Sandman’s Lullaby
Miami Horror – Sober (feat Queen Magic)
Shotty – Love Mess
Matt Nash & Felix Leiter – Heartbeats

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In rotation: 9/21/15

By TVD HQ | Published: September 21, 2015

Vinyl Records Enjoying A Comeback In New Orleans And Nationwide: “‘We’ve been open for about six years, and we sell I’d say on average anywhere between one and two-thousand albums a month,’ says Lefty Parker, Manager of Euclid Records on Chartres Street in the Bywater.”

Vinyl Music Comeback As Sales Increase, Music streaming may be the popular way to listen to music but the humble vinyl is enjoying a quiet resurgence: “Having a vinyl gives you a more tangible relationship with the actual recording, that digital actually can’t.”

‘It’s all about the ritual’: Local vinyl fans talk new love for old medium, “At a time when iPhones and the Internet have made music more accessible than ever, the decade-long boom in vinyl sales might confuse some. And yet, boom it does. For the fourth consecutive year, national vinyl sales reached record highs in 2014, topping 9 million units sold for the first time in 20 years, according to Nielsen Ratings. Since the start of the decade, vinyl sales have increased by over 220 percent…”

Spinning right around: Area record stores benefit from vinyl boom: “‘You can get everything from Merle Haggard to Tupac,‘ he said. ‘Vinyl is important because of the nostalgia of it. People who had a Kiss album in 1977 and gave it away to a thrift store are coming back in here to find that album they had. It’s a revival of the youth.’”

Music Matters: Wilkes keeps the music going at Vinyl, “The coolest person in Chris Wilkes’ world is his older sister, Krista. Growing up, she introduced him to a world of music beyond his radio. In middle school, he dove into her record collection. ‘And it just went from there,’ he said.”

It’s the vinyl countdown… The return of HMV to Workington has been welcomed by music lovers, film fanatics and gaming aficionados across West Cumbria. “I was disappointed when HMV closed and it’s nice to think that they could be successful. They have come back at a good time.“

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TVD’s The Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel

By Jon Sidel | Published: September 18, 2015

Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

For a third consecutive year I’m in Nashville for the Americana Music Awards. It’s a music conference like SXSW, centered around an awards show presented the legendary Ryman Auditorium. The music echoing thru the Ol’ Opry, is a pleasant mix of country, blues, folk, soul, and rock ‘n’ roll. There are achievement awards—cool, young, “rootsy” artists like Shaky Graves, Houndmouth, and Sturgill Simpson are represented, as well as tons of old dudes and chicks with cool vintage guitars! Even Don Henley took a bow.

Watching this year’s awards I was drooling over master guitarists and their tasty vintage axes—Dave Rawlings (with Gillian Welch), Greg Leisz (with Lucinda Williams), Marc Ribot’s acoustic, and Keb Mo’s fitting tribute to Lucille (“long gone”) B.B. King’s guitar—all point toward the city of Nashville as the “home of the guitar” moving into the 21st century.

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TVD Live: Riot Fest Day 3 at Douglas Park, 9/13

By Dave Nebel | Published: September 18, 2015

Walking onto the Riot Fest grounds for the final day, you could sense the energy and anticipation amongst the seemingly biggest crowd of the fest. After 2 muddy days, the grounds were finally leveling out, the sun came out to stay, and it was clear both the bands and the fans intended to go out on a high-note.

Riot Fest staple Andrew W.K. made his fourth straight appearance at the festival, and as always he came to party. With the help of his thrashing band, he lifted the spirits of the audience with his uniquely inspirational heavy metal. He took various moments to give motivational advice, and when he wasn’t pumping up the crowd he could be seen in a cyclone of hair and head banging. Andrew just knows how to put on a show, and songs like “She is Beautiful” and “Party Hard” caught the ears of even the newest fan. It just wouldn’t be Riot Fest without Andrew W.K.

To be honest, I was excited all weekend to see Rodrigo y Gabriela, and their set was nothing short of incendiary. Creating relentless galloping rhythms and virtuosic symphonies of sound, the acoustic duo delivered an incredible performance which left the crowd in awe. While Rodrigo Sanchez might come off as the front-man with his rapid fire licks, it’s really Gabriella Quintero who can blow your mind away. Her ability to use her acoustic as a complex percussive machine while simultaneously creating an orgy of beautiful chordal strumming bliss might just make you forget to breathe or blink. The group was also able to show off their heavy metal influence (much to the crowd’s enjoyment) by charging through covers of Megadeth’s “Holy Wars…The Punishment Due” and Metallica’s “Battery” and “Orion.” It was simply one of the best sets of the day.

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TVD Live Shots:
Death Cab for Cutie and Explosions in the Sky at Merriweather Post Pavilion, 9/13

By Richie Downs | Published: September 18, 2015

The first real sign of the coming autumn weather reared its head at Merriweather Post Pavilion on Sunday night for a stellar performance by Death Cab for Cutie and Explosions in the Sky.

While audience members sported hoodies and bundled up in blankets on the lawn, post-rock band and Austinites, Explosions in the Sky warmed them up with what would be a great start to an incredible evening of songs.

When Death Cab took the stage around 9PM , the crowd’s anticipation level was at an all time high. The band opened their set with “No Room in Frame,” a track from their new album, Kintsugi, released in March of this year. Performing in perfect form, Death Cab sounded as razor sharp as I’ve ever heard them live—the band’s signature sound and the crisp vocal tone of Ben Gibbard spot on, minus any degree of variance from their recordings.

Their setlist included: “Photo Booth,” “The Ghost of Beverly Drive,” “Picture in an Exhibition,” “You Are a Tourist,” and “You’ve Haunted Me All My Life.” For their encore they performed “I Will Follow You Into The Dark,” “A Movie Script Ending” and “Trasatlanticism.” Death Cab’s current US tour will feature stops throughout the States before the band heads to Europe in November.

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TVD Recommends: Super Sunday Showdown and 6th Annual Black and Gold Kickoff Party on Saturday, 9/19

By Jay Mazza | Published: September 18, 2015

With the Saints first home game scheduled for Sunday afternoon, Tipitina’s is the place to be on Saturday night for amazing night of live music and to support a great cause. The event is a fundraiser for the Bo Dollis, Sr. (pictured above) Memorial Fund of the New Orleans Musicians’ Assistance Foundation. A huge roster of musicians and special guests will be on hand.

The Wild Magnolias, the groundbreaking band founded by Dollis Sr., and now fronted by his son, Gerard “Bo” Dollis, Jr., are the headliners. Poet and spoken word artist Chuck Perkins is the Master of Ceremonies.

The Bo Dollis, Sr. Memorial Fund was set up in conjunction with the New Orleans Musician’s Clinic to support the health needs of the black Indian community of New Orleans. The Mardi Gras Indians of New Orleans are iconic culture bearers who have struggled for decades with health care. The proceeds from the show go to the Bo Dollis, Sr. Memorial Fund, which has been established by the Dollis family and the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic to ease financial burdens of active, masking Mardi Gras Indians in times of dire need.

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Graded on a Curve: Creedence Clearwater Revival, At the Movies

By Michael H. Little | Published: September 18, 2015

The Aquarian imprimatur stamped upon the late sixties has always had its flip side. Not everybody was wearing a peace symbol or singing, “Come on people now/Smile on your brother/Everybody get together/And try to love one another right now.” The songs of urban dread of The Doors, the Manson Family murder spree, and Altamont all made it abundantly clear that not all was cool in the turned-on family of man. Call it the Satanic Element. And one of its chroniclers was that great but underrated band, Creedence Clearwater Revival. They sang of dark omens and of terrified flight; they were the dour prophets, as were The Doors, of the dark side of the era of peace, love, and music.

Of course, they had their lighter side—they’re the folks who gave us “Lookin’ Out My Back Door” and “Down on the Corner,” after all—but when I think of them I think of their darker tunes, the ones that evoke bad juju and ask apocalyptic questions. “Who’ll Stop the Rain” sang John Fogerty, and that rain wasn’t literal, it was the precipitation of negative vibes that had washed away the innocence of a generation. Ditto the rain that fell in “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” It was uncanny and foreboding, that rain falling on a sunny day.

I love Creedence, always have, in part because they were so humble; they were never sexy, never got their proper props—all they did was write succinct and timeless songs, sort of like Tom Petty has been doing for so long. From Fogerty’s harsh growl to the band’s disciplined approach to making music—no free-form jams for these guys—they were utterly distinctive, and there was no mistaking them for anybody else.

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In rotation: 9/18/15

By TVD HQ | Published: September 18, 2015

Nola Mix Record Store Opens On Magazine: “A new record store is opening on Magazine St. The shop, Nola Mix Records, is throwing a grand opening celebration on Saturday, September 17th from 6 to 9pm. Free music and drinks will be available. Music will be provided by local DJs Kazu Mai, Brian Boyles, Quickie Marty Mart, Tony Skratchere, Rik Ducci, and Million.”

Vinyl’s Modern Return To Glory Is Being Powered By Antique Machines: “The hardest part of making a record is actually making the record.” That insight into the world of vinyl record manufacturing sums up the New York Times‘ new profile on Vinyl makers–the men and women sweating it out to help fuel resurgence of wax records.”

Spin Doctors: The owners of Garageland are making an investment in Spokane’s music scene, “First, Garageland — with its CBGB-inspired sign — is a record store. The place will be other things, too: a vintage clothing and furniture outlet, a bar and a restaurant. But before those parts of the plan are complete, Wandler and Cox, both 44, have opened the shiny record-store portion at the front of the house — may as well have revenue flowing in while waiting for the liquor license, they say. They’re shooting for a fully operational store by November.”

Black Friday 2015 gets its own Record Store Day: “The main Record Store Day (RSD) for 2015 took place back in April – and saw vinyl sales up 742% – but you’ll get another chance this year to pick up some special edition vinyl on Black Friday. The people behind RSD are promising “a huge selection of limited-edition collectibles, special vinyl releases, reissues and more” for Black Friday 2015.

Vinyl Scratches: “‘The good news is that everyone wants vinyl,’ says Dave Hansen of Independent Record Pressing, which uses six presses dating back to the 1970s to keep up with the growing demand. The bad news is, his company recently spent $5,000 to manufacture and replace ‘an obsolete screw in one machine.'”

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TVD Live: Riot Fest Day 2 at Douglas Park, 9/12

By Dave Nebel | Published: September 17, 2015

PHOTOS: BRIGID GALLAGHER | After a bit more rain overnight, Riot Fest returned for its second day with even muddier grounds, but with even more excited fans. The crowd came from near and far and could be seen sporting Doc Martin boots, studded jackets, and dyed mohawks. The place was ready to party. While Saturday Riot Fest usually means overwhelming crowds, the openness of the new location allowed for a more free-flowing feel which created a much more relaxed vibe throughout the beautiful day.

Pennywise took the stage in the late afternoon, and delivered a powerful set of classic punk rock. Their speed punk stylings stirred up various spirited circle pits, and lead singer Jim Lindberg’s voice was able to cut through with surprising ease as he sang of political corruption and social justice. The banter between Lindberg and guitarist Fletcher Dragge was constantly comedic and entertaining (including a comment that they had Donald Trump backstage doing blow). It was clear these guys have been in the business for years and knew how to put on a show. Closing out with their anthemic “Bro Hymn,” the crowd and band shared the catchy vocal theme to put an exclamation point on a solid set of music.

Drawing in a massive crowd, Merle Haggard brought his honky-tonk twang to the Riot Stage and created a unique and thoroughly enjoyable musical experience. One might have thought Merle would be out-of-place at the generally high-intensity fest, but the crowd latched onto the show’s energy immediately and Merle’s relaxed and confident stage presence created an infectious comfort throughout the crowd. A definite highlight of the day.

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TVD Ticket Giveaway: Landmark Music Festival for the National Mall, 9/26–9/27

By Jimmy Palmer | Published: September 17, 2015

As we noted last week upon the launch of the first of our 3 Landmark Music Festival ticket giveaways, it’s often said that Washington, DC lacks for very little. It’s literally ground zero and the epicenter of national and international politics, there’s nightlife from the urbane to the DIY, and a thriving cultural and arts community—yet there’s a discernible absence of a festival scene in DC proper along the lines of say a Lollapalooza or Austin City Limits. Sure, there are any number of smaller enclaves self-promoting shows and specific scenes that are thriving—just nothing to the scale of “America’s Front Yard.”

Enter the Landmark Music Festival, content to not just throw a huge party for DC but to aid in the restoration and preservation of its host, the National Mall. As the organizers C3 Presents—who actually produce the aforementioned Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits (among others)—explain on the festival’s website, “The National Mall is more than just our country’s premier national park. It’s America’s Front Yard, the world’s window into the American story, and home to some of our nation’s most recognizable monuments, memorials and historic moments. It represents our country’s collective voice, its heroes, and its timeless values. But today, the National Mall—and all that it stands for—are at risk.

The Trust for the National Mall—an official partner of the National Park Service—is leading the charge to restore and improve the National Mall and honor its ideals for future generations through the new Landmark Campaign. Landmark Music Festival kicks off this monumental national campaign to bring awareness and funds to America’s Front Yard—all in a single Festival weekend unlike any other.”

We have four pairs of tickets left to give away leading up to the inaugural shindig on the Mall, and for the second of 3 giveaways we thought to introduce you to some of the bands making the trip across the country for Landmark. Next week in our third installment we’ll treat the international acts who are headlining the festival.

Posted in TVD Washington, DC | 32 Comments

TVD Premiere: Destroy This Place, “Macho

By Roger Catlin | Published: September 17, 2015

They’ve got the whole music history and pounding automotive industry behind their Detroit roots, but when the band Destroy This Place recorded recently up in bucolic Easthampton, Mass., at Sonelab Studios with Justin Pizzoferrato, they got a whole new texture to their crunch. It makes itself known right away on appropriately fearsome new Destroy This Place single, “Macho,” which we’re proud to premiere at these premises.

Pizzoferrato had worked with Speedy Ortiz, Dinosaur Jr., and Sonic Youth and amid the studio’s various fuzzboxes and vintage keyboards was an old bass owned by Kim Gordon and Mike Watt. Murph from Dinosaur Jr. even came along to play with the band, using what the guys call, “some weird percussion thing we’ll call a cowbell though it wasn’t really that at all.”

Mostly it was the band itself. Featuring former members of Thunderbirds Are Now! and New Grenada, Destroy This Place sounds like snarling, brawling bad asses but look like a bunch of upstanding suburban dudes who are just about to take the trash out on their weekly duties. This makes them disarming, especially when the thick snarls of guitars by Ryan Allen and John Nelson begin to rattle windows with Monday Busque laying it down on bass and Sean Sommer banging away on drums.