what Scott Stapp actually did was pull himself up by the bootstraps and prove to the people standing in the Hard Rock that he was a man who has not always been a saint but who cares enough about them that he would sit on a stage and give them every ounce of energy he had to send them home satisfied.
7 Walker's chemistry was magical, both the old and new material came alive, and the intimate setting put the audience right in the middle of it. For Papa Mali, this band might be the greatest project he had been a part of. For Matt Hubbard, it’s a great opportunity to showcase the music scene his talents. For George Porter Jr., it’s a chance to explore a whole new sound. For Bill Kruetzmann, it has already proven that there is surely life after The Dead.
While old-schoolers bemoan the demise of the long-player in the iTunes era, Magnetic Island go back to the future on their debut EP, Out at Sea.
The debut from Tel Aviv guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Yair Yona attempts to bridge the vast span between atmospheric indie instrumentalism and Delta blues slide guitar, and while the result is undoubtedly original, it often comes to rest somewhere in the inter-genre no-man’s land reserved for smooth jazz and elevator music.
Yeah, the Gorillaz threw down and it made for of those shows that went by too fast, as the visual and audio stimulation was non –stop. These studio caressed songs weren’t built for touring, but Gorillaz did a masterful job of reproducing these complex songs into live A+ winners.
While the Aladdin’s sound is crystal clear and is a wonderful place to see a concert, the number of empty seats impacted the energy. Only a third full, the Mazda2 tour could have rolled into the Doug Fir Lounge and blown up. However, “beggars can’t be choosers”, or “haste makes waste”, whatever mom used to say. Mayer Hawthorne and the County are movin’ on up.
A crisp autumn breeze swept the streets just outside the El Rey Theater where indie fans were beginning to gather. Anticipation growing along with the hum of riffs to come emanated from them. They had come prepared to dance their way into the early hours of Halloween. Some people took notice of this special occasion and dressed appropriately. A proven fact as a guy wearing a pig nose walked to the back of the line shortly followed by Minnie Mouse. But these people were not here to see silly costumes, little did they know they wouldn’t have a choice. No, they had come to see Portugal. The Man.
As I listened to Kevin Lyman speak, I couldn’t believe that New Noise Santa Barbara was only in its second year. His conference session was informative and entertaining, just like the others. The founder of Warped Tour engaged his active listeners into the history of his famous tour, and stated that the current music industry is much like it was 15 years ago.
With their second full-length album, Distortionist, the Murdocks harness the raw power of grunge, the energy of punk and the hooks of indie pop while still remaining accessible enough for the modern mainstream.
John Prine is one of those songwriters that makes songwriting seem easy; his words never forced and his wit never ending. Couple that with the simplicity with which he writes and I think most musicians would find his songs easily adaptable and ripe to be covered.
