It’s Uncle Neddy‘s mix tape time, so let’s all gather ’round the campfire and listen to what this dedicated daddy of two has for us this week… It’s Father’s Day on
Our main man Danfun‘s been all over the place. Today he supplied us with photos of last night’s less-than-stellar Booker T & the MGs with Sharon Jones show, a night removed from his experience at Akron/Family at the Bowery Ballroom. His brief review and pictures from Tuesday’s show follows below…
Over the past few years, Akron/Family has stood out as one of the few bands I’ve tried to outwardly push on everyone I meet. People often ask me in return to describe their sound, and I generally have a very hard time doing so. Most of my description compares them to some sort of mythical rock beast that would shoot red-hot rock ’n roll from its mouth instead of fire. I usually get funny looks.
But Tuesday’s show opened my eyes to what it really is that these guys do so well: everything. A typical show features all kinds of singalongs, wild noise freakouts, tight energetic jams, a stage full of fans playing all types instruments, a four-piece horn section, additional drummers, a crew of back up singers and four musicians with serious chops. It’s tough to tame this mythical rock beast.
Read on for more of Dan’s review and photos from the Bowery show…
We’re switching up two of our regular departments this week to better accomodate last-minute readers heading off to Bonnaroo. So Grousing The Aisles will be seen tomorrow, and today we present this special Wednesday edition of The B List, as we continue with our nonstop coverage of this weekend’s festival.
Our coverage kicked off yesterday with HT Bonnaroo Reporter and Shakedown Mayor TJ’s thoughts on the biggest conflicts of the festival. We follow that up today by listing 10 bands that fly under the radar — you may not have these bands circled on your printed calendar just yet, but we think you should:
American Babies (Saturday 12 pm, Sonic Stage)
I caught this semi-supergroup‘s warm-up gig at the Knitting Factory on Monday night, and it’s clear these guys are ready to make the leap. Brothers Past guitarist Tom Hamilton has put together a ridiculous backing troika — brother Jim on bass, Scott Metzger on guitar and Sir Joe Russo on drums — for his incredible songbook. American Babies features killer musicianship, fantastic vocal harmonies, great lyrics and tight chemistry — now, as my friend Mike says, all they need is fans. I’m pretty sure these guys are the only band playing in this time slot, so you’ve got no excuses not to head to the Sonic Stage and get blown away by a band you didn’t know was there. You’ll be singing Invite Your Friends for weeks. –AC
Apollo Sunshine (Thursday 10:15 pm, Other Tent; Friday 1:30 pm, Sonic)
You’ll excuse us for pimping one of our favorite bands yet again, but Apollo Sunshine will be “flying under the radar” until they start playing theaters and arenas. The band’s music mixes terrific songwriting with incredible harmonies, and most importantly, the ridiculous chops of each member of the band. An Apollo Sunshine set hits upon many different emotions and genres, leaving spectators drained of energy by the end of the show. This summer marks a hiatus of sorts for the boys; they plan to head into the studio soon after Bonnaroo. If you are looking for a unique musical experience, look no further than Apollo Sunshine. Listen to this Bach from 4/22/07 and hear for yourself. –SB
Read on for eight more must-see, under-the-radar bands playing Bonnaroo…
Keller Williams and Michael Franti will descend upon the same location this weekend, which can only mean one thing: There’s a festival goin’ down.
The Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival kicks off four days of festival mayhem on Thursday, and we’d like to begin our coverage with a look at some of the bigger conflicts on the schedule. Tough decisions are inevitable at any festival, especially one like Bonnaroo that has music playing constantly on or in its 76 stages, tents, outhouses, vestibules, phone booths and kiosks. And considering this year’s lineup is riddled with insane talent, the conflicts seem to pop up every hour.
Do you check out ?uestlove’s afro-pick or Lily Allen’s rack? Bob Weir’s short shorts or Wolfmother’s hype? Hula hoops at SCI or heady crystals at STS9? To help you make these calls, we’ve asked longtime Ace associate, TJ, who’s headed down to Tennessee tomorrow night for a glimpse of the madness, to weigh in with what he believes to be the 11 most difficult time-slot decisions of the festival.
TJ will be covering this festival for us all weekend with live reports from the field, so make sure to check back every 10 to 12 minutes for the next few days…
Thursday
Rodrigo y Gabriela vs. Tea Leaf Green
TJ says: Despite the incredible job RyG could do on Graham Nash’s Immigration Man, I see them getting their visas stamped but falling to the Green regardless.
Friday
Tortoise vs. The Richard Thompson Band
TJ says: Both eclectic, both underrated. The time slot dictates this one –- at 2 am I go Tortoise; but, this 2 pm slot is Richard Thompson all the way.
Kings of Leon vs. Gillian Welch
TJ says: I dig the Kings, but trendy hipster bands are a dime a dozen at Bonnaroo this year. There’s only one Gillian Welch and one David Rawlings on the lineup.
The Roots vs. The Black Keys
TJ says: I’d like to say I was representin’ OH and pick the boys from Akron , but Ohio doesn’t really claim Akron anyway. The Roots will allow you to get yo funk on like few bands at the festival this year, which is nice. Hell, this slot’s so packed I may call an audible at the line and pull a split-squad session with Lily Allen and Manu Chao.
SCI vs. STS9
TJ says: Thank God for SuperJam. Seriously.
Read on for TJ’s biggest conflicts (and winners) on Saturday and Sunday…
It’s Uncle Neddy‘s mix tape time, so let’s all gather ’round and listen up… Let’s finish the week with a nice random batch of live music from this year, with a
The speed with which tapers have been uploading shows online is mind-boggling. Last night’s Phil & Friends set from Mountain Jam ended less than 10 hours ago, and already it’s available from etree for your downloading pleasure (thanks to taper extraordinaire Rob Clarke). For all your other Mountain Jam news, check out our weekend post and head on over to the official Mountain Jam Blog.
Now let’s check out some other hot links from around the world wide web:
And as usual on Monday mornings, whether dastardly rain-soaked or otherwise, read on after the jump for a selection of setlists from the weekend — this week, predictably, is Mountain Jam heavy, but we’ve also got some sets from Bright Eyes, Page McConnell, The Police, Van Morrison and many more…
A report in Monday’s New York Post cited Liv Tyler as the source of a rumor that her father Steven will be leaving Aerosmith due to the way the band’s been treating him.
Jack Bruce, who based on aging looks alone may actually be Robert the Bruce‘s grandfather, broke the news this week that Cream will definitely be playing at least one show
Our caretaker mix tape manager Neddy is back on the case this week…and while he makes his way upstate with his family unit, we’ll post this missive from his outbox: “Memorial
My work colleague and HT commenter, HP Anything, has asked me five times when we’re gonna cover the Silversun Pickups. Luckily for us, our man Danfun caught ’em at Webster Hall the other night, and he filed this report…
I discovered the Silversun Pickups by accident a few years ago. I went down to Pianos to see the Brian Jonestown Massacre, and SSPU just happened to be opening for them that night. Obviously at the time I was completely unfamiliar with any of their songs, but I was blown away by their performance.
SSPU frontman Brian Aubert’s energy and stage presence were amazing that night. But it may have been their ’90s grunge-meets-modern indie rock sound that really hooked me. My being a huge fan of ’90s grunge rock, I loved how the Silversun Pickups sound derives directly from this sadly bygone era.
Last night’s Webster Hall show marked my fifth time seeing SSPU, and this was the biggest show of theirs that I had seen. At first I was a little surprised to find it sold out in advance, but with all the buzz around this band lately, I guess it’s actually to be expected. The room packed and anxious and ready to see the band in its newfound bigness, SSPU treated the capacity crowd to a great show.
Read on for more great photos of the Silversun Pickups at Webster Hall…
