Blackout Beach is the solo nom de guerre of Carey Mercer (from Frog Eyes and Swan Lake), and Skin of Evil is his second full-length. Skin of Evil is remarkable
After marching together at the Democratic National Convention and playing together at both the DNC and the RNC, Boots Riley (the Coup) and Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine, the
Alternative rock did not begin with a bang but with a Murmur. In 1983, a band from Athens, Georgia made its full-length album debut. The band was R.E.M.; the album
Not content to follow in his father, Fela Kuti’s footsteps, Femi Kuti continues to expand his musical palette with his latest studio release, Day By Day, a hybrid of Afro-pop,
Over the years Mark Kozelek of Sun Kil Moon and his earlier band, Red House Painters, has gained well deserved praise for his extraordinary songwriting. At the same time he
As we eagerly await the lineup for this year’s Warren Haynes’ X-Mas Jam, Rave HD gives us a chance to watch high def footage of the 2006 concert. Dave Matthews,
Well, we’ve reached the end of Dead week around here having covered a decent amount of ground. We hope you’ve enjoyed the clips we dug up as we look forward
Do you remember that fad/game in the eighties, ‘Six Degrees Of Kevin Bacon’? It was based on the supposition that anyone in the world could be connected to any other human (presumably the queen of England) being by six steps or degrees. The game was to connect any other entertainer to Kevin Bacon in six steps. Mark Mothersbough, from Devo, was in a Neil Young movie called Lost Highway. Kevin Bacon and his brother performed as the Bacon Brothers at a benefit concert with Neil Young. See, it’s easy.
The challenge for me tonight was to connect Mickey Mouse with The Grateful Dead. It was a lot easier than I thought. All I had to do was get to the Aladdin Theater in time for the opening act and it was game over. Allow me to explain.
Tonight’s double bill at the Aladdin started with one Matt Morris. Morris hit the stage with a wide smile, an acoustic guitar and a great attitude. He announced that this was his first time ever in Portland and had put a lot of thought into his first song, placing a certain importance on the first note of first song he played in our fair town.
That song was Chief, a story song involving enjoying the street all day. The audience took notice right away, his voice getting our attention and his words keeping it. I have read of comparisons to Rufus Wainwright and Jeff Buckley, but I got more of a Kenny Loggins vibe from his performance. Maybe it was the beard, but he connected right away with a Portland crowd that wanted to be entertained. After the first two songs someone shouted out “Sing about pain, Brother”. With perfect timing, he shot back “You guys don’t know my music yet, (his only release to date, an ep Backstage From Bonnaroo and Other Acoustic Performances is five songs deep) so you shout out ‘themes’.” He called this the first ‘Interactive” concert he had ever done. Changing the set list to match our whims, he played about pain (Bloodline) and then greed (Money).
READ ON for more of AJ’s Joan Osborne/Matt Morris review…
After spending most of his illustrious career as a sideman, drummer/ singer / songwriter / producer Rich Pagano spent the last two years writing and recording his first solo project. Pagano, who’s best known as the drummer and voice of John Lennon for the Fab Faux, has just made a three-song EP featuring tracks from his soon-to-be-released full-length album available to fans for free at Faux’s shows and by mail at RichPagano.com.
We spoke to Rich about his new album just after the Fab Faux delivered an awe-inspiring performance of their Psychedelia! show at Radio City Music Hall in the band’s hometown of New York City to celebrate their 10th anniversary.
Scott Bernstein: Are you recovered from Saturday’s show [The Fab Faux @ Radio City Music Hall]?
Rich Pagano: It’s funny. The whole thing started sinking in yesterday. I was so deep in, I never really saw the videos that were projected behind us. To see the YouTubes now, it looked like a great show.
SB: It sure was.
RP: You were there?
SB: I was, I went with a buncha people. Some of them were Beatles diehards the rest just knew the hits, but everyone had a great time. On my end, I was happy to see that there were some rarities thrown in. It’s not everyday you get to see a spot-on rendition of Flying.
RP: It’s All Too Much is my favorite tune, and I don’t know why we don’t call it more often.
READ ON for the scoop on Rich’s solo album and playing in the Faux…
As I write this piece, I’m on a bus returning back home from what has been a completely eye-opening experience. I had the opportunity to chaperone a trip for ten students over my university’s fall break. No, we didn’t go to the binge-drinking capital of the South — Panama City, but instead travelled to a little community called Cranks, Kentucky. Cranks, along with the rural communities of eastern Kentucky and western Virginia make up one of the poorest, most underdeveloped areas in our country. At the beautiful foothills of Appalachia we were on a mission to help along the construction of a home for someone who we had never met.
The group of students traveling on this trip represents, to my best guess, the patchwork quilt of America. They all come from very different walks of life. Pakistani, African American, small-town white kids, a young mother, and Christian. I could go on and try to pigeon hole these kids but there is simply no need as they all came together to do something constructive (quite literally) with their long weekend away from the hustle and bustle of their studies. This past weekend has single-handedly restored my faith in the youth of America, and I’m VERY proud to have been a small part of something this special. READ ON for more…
