LoC: Black Clouds > Restless Wind
May 3, 1999 might not be an important date to many of you, but it is to me. On this day, Oklahoma saw some of the worst tornadoes known to man. Along with my family and friends, I survived. But not everyone was so lucky…
The following day I traveled from Oklahoma City to Tulsa to catch a show of the String Cheese Incident and Gov’t Mule co-headline tour. Along I-44, I saw more destruction than I had ever witnessed — with the exception of the Federal Building. An entire outlet mall was demolished along with gas stations, homes, and everything else that was in the way of the F5 that struck that day.
Wind has an awesome power. I think we can all agree on that. My grandfather once told me a joke that goes something like this:
Question: Why is it so windy in Oklahoma?
Answer: Because Texas blows and Kansas sucks.
If you don’t get it, then you either know nothing about geograpy, or Big 12 sports. (Side note: I’m a OSU Cowboys fan, big props to the Pokes for almost handing it to the Sooners yet again — better luck next year!)
READ ON for more of Land of Confusion – Black Clouds > Restless Wind…
Televised Tune: On The Tube This Weekend
Earlier this year rock veterans ZZ Top put out a fantastic DVD featuring footage shot in their home state of Texas during their 2007 world tour. ZZ Top Lie From Texas contains all of the blues-rock favorites you love including La Grange, I’m Bad I’m Nationwide, Pearl Necklace and 14 others. Friday [all times Eastern]: […]
The B List: 10 Best Archival Releases of ’08
We’ve reached December which means it’s time for every website, blog and music fan to start putting together their best of lists including us. Each week in December, I’ll present a new B List featuring my favorites of the year. Here’s a list of my ten favorite live archival releases of 2008…
10. Widespread Panic – Carbondale 2000
Release Date – 06/10/2008
Highlights – Jack, Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys, Chilly Water
The Skinny – Widespread Panic finally opens up their vault to release a fantastic show featuring the late Mikey Houser.
Where You Can Sample This Disc – Imeem
READ ON for the Top Nine Live Archival Releases of 2008 featuring albums from Ween, Frank Zappa, The Clash, Neil Young and much more…
Kermit + LCD Soundsystem = Masterpiece
This could be my favorite viral video of the month… [youtube]fXFfcubPYEE[/youtube] [Directed by Simon Owens, HT – MBV]
Pullin’ ‘Tubes: Remembering Frank Zappa
Today marks the anniversary of Frank Zappa’s death in 1993 and the music industry hasn’t been the same since. We would love to hear what Frank would’ve thought about Napster and the download revolution, but he was taken from us after succumbing to prostate cancer. There’s still so much interest in FZ’s music as fans […]
Bloggy Goodness: R.I.P. Odetta
We are a couple of days late on this, but we wanted to report on the passing of music and civil rights legend Odetta, of heart disease at age 77. Dubbed “The Voice of Civil Rights Movement” and “The Queen Of American Folk Music” by Martin Luther King, Jr., she help to inspire a generation […]
Review: Lotus and Telepath @ Irving Plaza
Words: Carla Danca
Photos: Jeremy Gordon
This past Saturday night in New York City, two of Philadelphia’s finest jamtronica bands, Lotus and Telepath, held court at the sold out Fillmore NYC at Irving Plaza. With dozens of young fans (16+ show) milling about looking for extras Telepath got the night off to a blazing start.
The three piece keyboard, bass, and drums mixed in music and beats from India and Africa, packing the floor early with the faithful eager to celebrate the holidays. The band ran through an upbeat 45 minute set, which included a Jingle Bell Rock tease and a callout to those dressed in Santa outfits and glow charms. A few in the crowd even noticed Mike Rempel of Lotus joining in and playing his unplugged guitar just off stage, no wonder as he and band mate Chuck Morris had sat in the night before in Pittsburgh.
Finally it was Lotus’s turn to take the stage. After road testing their newest material in Boston, St Louis, Denver, San Francisco, New Orleans and more than a dozen other cities and over 40+ shows, the band showed what a difference a few months can make. Kicking off with the ever-evolving fan favorite Bellweather, Lotus interspersed new tunes with old and turned the main floor into a tightly packed sweatbox of delirious fans. The second set highlights included Age of Inexperience, Shimmer & Out, and of course the encore, Hammerstrike, which ended with Jesse Miller grabbing his keyboard and thrusting it upward in delight. READ ON for more Lotus goodness…
Review: Dark Star Orchestra @ Nokia
In what’s become an annual tradition, quintessential Grateful Dead tribute act Dark Star Orchestra returned to the Nokia Theater in New York City on the Friday and Saturday of Thanksgiving Weekend. We couldn’t have asked for a better way to help burn off the Thanksgiving Turkey doldrums than with a recreation of the epic Red Rocks ’78 two-night stand. The group was joined by former Grateful Dead vocalist Donna Jean Godchaux MacKay for a number of tunes each evening adding to the fun.
[All Photos by Adam Kaufman]
I hit the second night of the run where the band made one of my favorite Dead tapes of all-time come to life: July 8, 1978. After hearing that DSO had covered 7/7/1978 on Friday night we were all pretty sure we were in for 7/8/1978 which was confirmed when they started Bertha. The lovely Godchaux MacKay added some nice harmonies before leaving the stage at the end of the song. I expected Donna to sing with the band the whole night, but she sang on less than half of the songs. The majority featured Lisa Mackey, who normally sings Donna’s parts with DSO. It was pretty weird to see both real and recreated Donna tag in and out all evening, but it seemed to work for the band.
READ ON for more of Scotty’s review and Adam’s photos from the Nokia…
The Disco Biscuits Return To The Road
After taking the past four months off to finish recording their new album, the Disco Biscuits return to the road on January 16 for what promises to be a full year of touring. Things are heating up for the untz-tastic quartet, who travel to Jamaica for next week’s Caribbean Holidaze and celebrate New Year’s with […]
Intermezzo: Live Nation Taps Blockbuster
The war between industry giants Live Nation and Ticketmaster continues to heat up with the news that ticketing newcomer Live Nation has struck a deal with Blockbuster to sell tickets at roughly 500 Blockbuster locations. Video stores have become a relic in these Netflix days, so kudos to the world’s largest video rental chain for […]