Archive: 2008

Ever since those four lads from Liverpool landed at Idlewild Airport, British bands have been a major part of rock history. Honoring the Brits, this week’s Grousing The Aisles honors three of the best acts to emerge from Britain in the ’70s.

We start with the David Bowie tribute from Jam Cruise, which features members of moe., Phish and the Greyboy Allstars among others musically rimming The Thin White Duke. Next, we take a look at Elton John’s legendary Christmas Eve concert from 1974, and, finally, we let you know about an amazing compilation featuring The Police playing blistering versions of all the tunes from their reunion tour.

Oh! You Pretty Things: Jam Cruise Tribute to David Bowie DAUD [FLAC, MP3]

Photo by David Steinberg

The best music to come from Jam Cruise over the past few years has stemmed from the all-star tribute jams that have emerged. On Jam Cruise IV, certain members of Umphrey’s McGee formed the Brain Damaged Eggmen with a few members of the Disco Biscuits to pay tribute to The Beatles and Pink Floyd. Then members of the West Coast bands on board Jam Cruise V combined forces to form the Sounds of San Francisco to honor the bands from that city. This year, a group of musicians channeled David Bowie under the moniker Oh! You Pretty Things. The first tapes from their gig have emerged, and they sound pretty damn good.

Oh! You Pretty Things combined the talents of Al Schnier, Jon Fishman, Jans Ingber, Ron Johnson, Robert Walter, Jeff Austin and a few other special guests who made cameos. During their public rehearsal the band decided to play a short, tight set at the actual gig instead of a solid long set, and the band delivered, dropping fantastic versions of 16 Bowie classics. Some of the songs are played straight, while others such as Let’s Dance are jammed out a bit. Hopefully a soundboard of this classic performance surfaces soon, as the quality of the recording isn’t as good as the quality of the performance — the strong winds which hindered the taper. Read on for much more GTA…

Fire up the back room at Satriale’s Pork Store: We jokingly discussed increasingly confirmed East Coast Coachella‘s menacing impact on the definitely confirmed Vineland festival. But the New York Times this morning advanced the story, casually mentioning that both New Jersey festivals are tentatively scheduled for the weekend of August 8th – 10th. Is it […]

Radiohead tonight will debut many of the songs off In Rainbows in front of a live audience on London’s Brick Lane. Fans have been queuing up outside the intimate venue — Rough Trade East — for the free show, waiting for their chance to be among the first people to witness the new material in […]

Widespread Panic may not have much in common with Brad Pitt (aside from the equal good looks of Dave Schools and Pitt), but the band and the actor share a deep love for the city of New Orleans. And now Panic’s helping Pitt’s Make It Right program by offering downloads of the band’s new single, […]

Hot on the heels of 2006’s profound and critically acclaimed solo journey From A Late Night High-Rise, ambient folk/rocker Matthew Ryan enjoys the company of longtime band Vs The Silver State for his eleventh release Matthew Ryan vs The Silver State (MRVSS), out April 1, 2008 on Brooklyn indie 00:02:59. MRVSS is an arrival that’s […]

One of L.A.’s most daring producers, Daedelus weaves together a true "love-sound" that falls between honeyed melodies and avant-electronics .He chops and splices disparate acoustic sources into incredible works of staggering resonance. Contrasting IDM styled cut-ups with childlike arrangements from the 30s and 40s, he has refined a style that has no imitators. Exactly the […]

The ever-prolific trumpeter, arranger, composer and bandleader Steven Bernstein is back with his latest recording Diaspora Suite, the fourth installment from his critically-acclaimed  Diaspora series on Tzadik Records. True to the high standards set by its predecessors, Diaspora Suite further evolves the concept of radical Jewish music, however, this time around Bernstein contributes all twelve original compositions. The music was recorded in one day during […]

The Black Angels hold an enhancement for that lurking guitar drone that turns their songs into blissfully psychedelic sensory overload, gauzy blues, and industrial-edgy shoegaze. What about all that critical posturing about the Black Angels turning "drone into an art form"? It’s one hundred percent accurate.

Medeski, Martin and Wood might seem one of the last viable prospects to share one of Levon Helm’s Rambles at his studio/barn in Woodstock. But it’s the joy of playing, far more than chosen musical style, the former Band drummer shares with these three contemporary jazz wizards.

When I headed over to Perez Hilton last night for the latest batch of Britney news, I received a nice shock. Turns out the Queen of all Media had quite the scoop about a competitor to the new Vineland festie. Hilton broke the news that Goldenvoice, the folks behind the Coachella Music Festival, are planning […]