B-Sides

The summer festival season is shaping up to be a crowded one, but if there is one  that stands apart from that pack  it’s Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival which will be held this upcoming weekend of June 21-23 at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCa)  in North Adams, Massachusetts. The festival which is presented […]

One of the most prestigious and well organized live music gatherings in the world, the Coachella Music and Arts Festival got underway Friday, April 12th. Music fans from across the globe, lucky enough to possess the coveted tickets, (that sell out almost as soon as they go on sale), gathered under classic spring time California […]

Nashville singer-songwriter Brad Mackeson says that when it came time to release his first recording, one plainly called “Nostalgia, “ he confidently declared he wasn’t ready to introduce himself to the music world with that effort. “ I didn’t think Nostalgia was a pure expression of myself. I didn’t know who I was as an artist and you could tell” recalls Mackeson.

With a band name like Taddy Porter, you might picture a six pack of something seasonal that costs around $8.99. However, after listening to the hard rocking soul of a band rightfully coined Taddy Porter, you’ll think more of Otis Redding, Bob Seger and a little Alabama Shakes.  Not many bands can actually pull of sounding like their influences with sincerity and confidence, but this Stillwater, Oklahoma quartet nails it.   And what’s even more appealing, these youngsters look nothing like the aged veterans they sound with a polished groove/stomp atop earthy vocals that howl of legitimacy.

It never works this quick for most bands, but somehow brother Ryan and Taylor Lawhon made the record deal thing happen pronto.  In March 2012, the Lawhons uploaded three original songs to a Bandcamp page under their initial moniker KO KO, the name of a boat they considered buying in the Newport Harbor. They had tracked the music on a laptop in the bedroom of their home, utilizing everything from guitars and bass to keyboards, synths, and organ.  Growing up on their mother’s eclectic taste in new age music, it’s no surprise that the brothers captured their sound as more organic than outrageous.

The world may not be as large as it seems.  When a small town band from San Luis Obispo County has the opportunity to open up for Aerosmith, almost anything is possible.  PK, a group of five young guys, has appeared in Rolling Stone, become MTV Buzzworthy and was featured on Fuse TV, all within the span of two years.  Their steady rise to musical success is evident, but the close friends who met back in high school are still your regular boys next door.

Ari Hest doesn’t like to think of himself as a veteran pop rocker but after seven full length albums he admits, “Weird to call myself that, but I suppose it fits.” From his six albums, three EPs, and "52" in 2008, an innovative project whereby he wrote, recorded and released a new song every Monday for a full year, “prolific” might be an understatement when describing Hest.

POND share three of their six members with notable Aussie psych band, Tame Impala. Fans of either band will no doubt love the other, yet the bands remain separate in sound, energy, and approach. Similarities and differences accounted for, both bands are talented and are making names for themselves world-wide. Glide caught up with guitarist, Jay Watson, before POND opened for Oberhofer…

Having acquired a large following in his area, playing CMJ and set to play SXSW, Austin, Texas singer/songwriter Shakey Graves (aka Alejandro Rose-Garcia) is not easy to ignore. Playing as a one-man show, he takes the stage with his makeshift kick drum attached to a vintage suitcase, low-fi twanging electric guitar and gritty voice, playing heartbreakingly raw and sincere music that can easily win any crowd over. Recently, we caught up with Alejandro and discussed his recent tour, acting career, improvisational performance style and much more…

As confident on accordion, saw and banjo as he is on keyboard or guitar; Nicolay’s music fuses elements of all his influences through literature, music, film and travel, but on his Kickstarter-funded third release Do the Struggle he goes to even darker places courtesy of industrial beats and an overall incensed theme.

Enter Venice Beach’s Terraplane Sun who define raw vintage with a compelling mix of psych blues which spawn a modern take on the Doors while honing an edgy organic rock flair that creates a bond between Teva and Chuck Taylor.  With instruments that include mandolin, lap steel, trombone, harmonica along with gritty guitars, soulful keys and ominous vocals, it’s no wonder that band has created such an intriguing relationship between the fans and band, as evidenced by its successful residency in July at LA’s Satellite.

It must feel good being Mark Tremonti right about now. Among the 20th century’s most respected guitar players, he is sitting on top of the world with not one but three bands: Creed, Alter Bridge and his new power trio Tremonti. Not bad for a heavy metal loving math nerd who once worked at Chili’s.

They weren’t looking for gold or a spiritual revelation, but for These United States,  renowned for their frenetic touring pace, the road almost serves as a bodily function- it just happens.  What also happens in their loose limbed brand of rock is a whole lot of wailing, banging, screaming, rocking, stomping, aching that combines the raunchy blues of Exile in Main Street with the modern rock folk of Deer Tick.

Right The Stars is fronted by Los Angeles singer/songwriter and producer Rich Jacques. He recently produced Kina Grannis' album Stairwells, the first single "Valentine" has 13 million youtube hits and the second "In Your Arms" has almost 7million. He’s also been working with ABC Family writing and recording songs for Tyler Blackburn including the first single “Find A Way.” Jacques had quite a lot to share when we recently spoke with him.

Talk to any aspiring artist and you can bet that they would sell every scrap of hair off their head (and nostrils for that matter) for any kind of big break.  For Field Report, perhaps it was a series of well-received gigs in March at South by Southwest or maybe it was opening for Counting Crowes this past summer or was it was once being in band with some guy Justin Vernon?  The funny thing is, Field Report never even played a show before this year’s SXSW; there must be something in the lyrics.

Mother Feather, best known for their wild performances, salacious costumes and liberating dance-rock, are becoming quite the concert attraction with the esteemed Nova Festival under their glittery-spiked belt and an upcoming show at the Brooklyn Bowl on September 8th.  The label of NYC’s best live band is competitive territory, but Mother Feature deserves serious props with its spectacularly visual and musically inspiring stage offering.

Russian-American singer-songwriter and pianist Elizaveta released iTunes Sessions EP on July 17, 2012, joining the ranks of the notable artists who have put out these EPs over the years.  Available exclusively on the iTunes Store, these six songs have been bundled with six videos from the session

While Winnipeg might not exactly feel like a fertile music scene to those that live outside the Canadian prairie, Imaginary Cities formed from the small community of musicians and creative folks that encourage themselves to play in up to five bands at a time.  Primary songwriters Marti Sarbit and Rusty Matyas met and formed in Winnipeg as Sarbit’s soul-powered voice immediately captured multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Rusty Matyas’s attention at the Cavern, a Winnipeg bar where Sarbit was fronting a Motown cover band and Matyas had come to mix the sound.

XNY Singer/songwriter Pam Autuori and drummer neighbor Jacob Schreiber began their relationship with dueling sessions against the wall of their adjoined apartments until finally deciding to work together, forming Little Liars in 2010. Recognizing quickly that New York had the better scene, they changed their identity to XNY and relocated to the city. Their debut album, Through the Walls dropped in early June an the band provided me with a very entertaining history this past week.

In just two years, the band went from playing small venues to performing at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards and festivals like Austin City Limits.  We spoke to guitarist Jacob Tilley about the band’s recent success, their influences, and what is like to play with such a diverse group of musicians.