Posts by Jack Spilberg

G. Love and his band stopped in San Francisco to throw down a very buttoned up concert at the legendary Warfield Theater.

With his insightful lyrics, quirky look, and unique sound, Brett Dennen has been enjoying a rapid rise to folky rock stardom. After being named one of Rolling Stone Magazine's top ten "Artists to Watch" in 2007, Dennen has kept the momentum going by opening for John Mayer on his summer tour, and then releasing a chart topping new album entitled Hope for the Hopeless. Currently on a nationwide tour following his album release, Dennen caught up with Glide from the road…

Each year the Sundance Film Festival throws a handful of interesting music-themed films into the mix. While the major Hollywood studios might not ever get behind these indie films, they are still definitely worth checking out.

When You’re Strange: Doors documentary featuring new, unseen footage from 1966-1971 narrated by Johnny Depp

The Carter: Love him or hate him, Lil’ Wayne is everywhere, including Sundance with this behind the scenes film about his rapid rise to super stardom over the past year.

READ ON for two more music-related movies debuting at Sundance 2009…

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

Hailing from UK-based shoegazing bands Mojave 3 and Slowdrive, singer/songwriter Neil Halstead recently branched off to focus on a solo album that he dropped this past July. Since signing onto Brushfire Records, Halstead has been racking up critical acclaim while touring extensively. For This Warm December, Halstead contributed an original, somber acoustic track entitled, The Man in the Santa Suit. Halstead shares his thoughts about the holidays and his memories of Christmastime in the UK…

Jack Spilberg: What do you want for Christmas?

Neil Halstead: Time with the family and friends

JS: What’s better, naughty or nice?

NH: I have to say naughty and nice is probably the very best.

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

NH: Fake Christmas trees are less messy I suppose. When I was a kid we would have a little tree that my dad would dig up every year for Christmas, and then replant afterwards. That is probably the best solution. You’ve got to go big in the end though.

READ ON for more from Brushfire recording artist Neil Halstead…

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

Zach Gill – Johnson’s keyboardist, solo artist and front man for the Animal Liberation Orchestra (ALO) contributed to the Brushfire holiday compilation with a solo track on the album and another one with ALO. Gill has been keeping himself busy lately touring with Mason Jennings after releasing an impressive new solo album entitled Stuff. Read on to see what Christmas is all about for Gill.

Jack Spilberg: What’s better, naughty or nice?

Zach Gill: Naughty is usually very attractive at first, but I’ve found that nice works a lot better in the long run.

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

ZG: I like living Christmas trees the most. We have had the same tree for the last few years- she lives outside for most of the year. It is always exciting when we bring her inside for the holidays and decorate her up. She is tiny compared to standard Christmas trees though. If she ever grows too big to come inside we will plant her permanently outside.

JS: What was the best Christmas gift you ever received?

ZG: My parents got me a puppy (a beagle named Frisky) and tickets to see Huey Lewis and the News when I was nine years old. That was a good year.

READ ON for more of Jack’s holiday interview with Zach Gill…

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

On the compilation, Money Mark contributes a quirky track called Stuck at the Airport. Mark is probably best known as the Beastie Boys’ longtime keyboardist. Aside from his contributions to the Beasties, he also tours and collaborates with Jack Johnson, and has released a number of impressive solo albums. Mark’s original material is filled with original and catchy tunes and a unique sound that’s tough to stick a label on. Money Mark shares his thoughts below about electric gingerbread guitars, Rudolph the stoned reindeer, and yummy apple cider…

Jack Spilberg: What do you want for Christmas?

Money Mark: I want a full size gingerbread Fender Telecaster guitar with a red licorice whammy bar- yummy!

JS: What’s better, naughty or nice?

MM: Ever heard of WWBD? “What Would Belushi Do?”

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

MM: Fake aluminum Christmas trees mounted upside down on the ceiling- ha ha!

READ ON for more of Jack’s interview with Brushfire’s Money Mark…

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

One highlight of the holiday compilation is Mason Jennings’ interesting acoustic take on Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. With his original acoustic folk, rock, and country-influenced sound, and intellectually stimulating lyrics, Jennings has successfully cultivated an incredibly loyal base of dedicated and passionate fans over the course of his musical career. Below, Mason shares his thoughts about the holiday season.

Jack Spilberg: What’s better, naughty or nice?

Mason Jennings: I’ll take Nifty. Or Knopfler. Or Knuckley. Or Nascar.

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

MJ: If you believe it is real, it’s real. I like our real tree, same one we’ve had for 10 years.

JS: Who personifies Scrooge the most in the world today?

MJ: I would have to say I do, at least the part about him being a man and changing his ways

READ ON for more of Jack’s interview with Mason Jennings…

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

G. Love was more than happy to contribute to the Brushfire holiday album with his one of a kind, infectious, blues-injected style. Since dropping his hit debut albums in the mid-nineties, G Love has built an army of loyal fans by consistently coming through with fresh material and over a dozen full-length albums. A road warrior constantly on tour, recording, and collaborating with his Brushfire colleagues- G Love truly is one of the hardest working cats in the biz. Below, G sounds off about why he is all about the Christmas season.

Jack Spilberg: What do you want for Christmas?

G Love: I want a new kitchen knife and a knife sharpener, some real fine wine, and a printer so I don’t have to keep going to Kinkos! I also just want to be with my fam and my girl. Barack Obama for president is the best gift of all.

JS: What’s better, naughty or nice?

GL: Naughty with a lil’ bit of nice

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

GL: I was raised with real trees but now that I’m feeling more environmentally responsible I suppose I will go with a fake tree!

JS: Who in the Brushfire family most reminds you of Santa?

GL: That would be me. I like to give presents and I especially love to sing carols for whomever I can get to listen. I have a cool Christmas song on the new Brushfire holiday record called Christmas Baby, but stay tuned for the G. Love Christmas record coming next year!

READ ON for more of Jack’s interview with G. Love…

Mason Jennings and Animal Liberation Orchestra front man Zach Gill took to the stage last week at San Francisco’s legendary Fillmore Theater. Gill, on apparent hiatus from both ALO, and his duties on the keys as part of Jack Johnson’s band, started the night off with a full set of original solo material. His onstage […]

Behind the high profile facade of a mega rock star- Incubus front man Brandon Boyd hides a big soft spot for charitable causes. Boyd and his fellow Incubus band mates recently created the Make Yourself Foundation, and have raised well over a million dollars for worthy causes including the Red Cross, Surfrider Foundation, Heal The […]

A true hidden gem in the LA singer/songwriter scene, Gaby Moreno is beginning to make her presence felt with her unique, soulful, and sultry sound. Since bravely venturing out from her homeland of Guatemala at an incredibly young age, she’s promptly made an impact by being the first Latin artist to win the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and releasing her debut full length album, Still the Unknown.

Gaby scrapped together the following clip exclusively for the Hidden Track:

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmkYCM_mYRA

Gaby sounds off below on her impressive Guatemalan roots, unique musical style, and what we can expect from her next…

Jack Spilberg: I found it interesting that you learned to speak English by listening to soul and blues musicians like BB King, Robert Johnson and Nina Simone. Do you still listen to these kinds of musicians?

Gaby Moreno: Oh absolutely, I’m stuck in those old soul jazz and blues records. Every time I listen to them I find something new that inspires me. My favorite Nina Simone record is her very first one, titled “Little Girl Blue”. It’s hard to believe how young she was when she recorded it. What a voice!

READ ON for more of Jack’s exclusive interview with Gaby Moreno…

We’d like to welcome yet another new member to our ever-growing Hidden Track staff, Jack Spilberg. Jack’s a longtime contributor to Glide’s main site where he’s written about Lyrics Born, Brett Dennen and Jack Johnson among others. Enough with the prelims, here’s Jack’s first column…

As a part of last summer’s Jack Johnson’s Sleep Through the Static Tour, a series of really slick-looking, limited edition concert posters were drawn up by select artists. According to Johnson’s site, the posters were printed up in numbered editions of only 300, and sold during the concert stops. You were lucky if you happened to score one of them during the tour, as they are not available for sale anywhere else right now. A full set of signed posters will supposedly be auctioned off sometime soon- check back on the site for a chance to place a bid.

It is not surprising that many of the artists involved with this concert poster art project are tied to the surf scene. While many of the designs have an organic, surfer-art vibe, there is a nice mix or urban and underground artists who give the poster series a more eclectic vibe.

Here’s a look at 12 of the 15 posters in the full set and links to the artists’ sites…

Chivo: http://www.mybrowncoat.com/

READ ON for more Sleep Through The Static tour posters…

Outside Lands boasted what was quite possibly the most impressive lineup for a summer music fest this year. Lyrics Born faced some heavy competition for attendee attention as he was scheduled right up against The Black Keys and Beck. Those within earshot though were irresistibly drawn in by his charismatic rhyme style and infectious groovesthat the Lyrics Born band has become well known for.

At the tail end of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, up and coming acoustic singer/songwriter Brett Dennen made an appearance at the festival’s Music Café. The audience was almost completely silent as the baby-faced musician delivered an engaging performance packed with intellectual, yet still catchy lyrics and beautifully smooth melodies.

Quannum Record's Honeycut opened for DJ Krush at Club Mighty, a San Franciscan after-hours Mecca, for a special pre-Halloween appearance. Krush has been touring the US supporting a new and highly acclaimed live DVD release, and gracing fans with rare appearances across the country.

DJ Shadow announced a completely impromptu concert a few weeks back for a hometown audience in San Francisco at the legendary Fillmore Theater. The show quickly sold out; partly due to the fact that Shadow has only performed in the Bay area three times since his latest album (The Outsider) was released last fall.

With way too many questionable tracks between the truly magical gems, Mos Def’s True Magic falls a bit short of his more impressive works like Black Star or Black on Both Sides.

Formerly a high profile skateboarding professional of the eighties and nineties, Tommy Guerrero continues to transition his notoriously smooth style, creativity, and technical ability from the pavement to the studio as he settles deeper into his newfound career as an increasingly respected solo artist. On From the Soil to the Soul, he pushes his unique, jazzy, guitar-driven sound into a mature new realm.

Toss out all your expectations of what a DJ Shadow album should sound like, as this latest effort is like nothing he has come through with before. With a mix of songs from all ends of the musical spectrum; including hardcore rap, blues guitar, psychedelic folk, Coldplay-tinged ballads, and experimental atmospheric soundscapes, this schizophrenic collage of an album is overwhelmingly eclectic to say the least.

Most who attend Lollapalloza opt to not take risks and b-line back and forth to the main stages to check out the headliners: Death Cab for Cutie, Thievery Corporation, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Gnarls Barkley. While that strategy is all good and fine, you end up missing some phenomenal acts throwing it down on the smaller side stages. For the masses that inevitably missed some of these up-and-coming acts, we will provide a down and dirty breakdown for you here.