2008

No matter how much success a musician has found or how many sold out shows that person has played over the years, he or she should never forget what got them to the top of the mountain: the fans. The hard-working, 9 am – 5 pm fans who pay good money to attend shows, buy merchandise and, at least before the digital revolution, buy albums.

On Saturday night, my wife and I trekked up to the United Palace Theater in New York City to see Van Morrison, an icon and legend in the music world. The man has put out enough albums to fill a CD rack and has played the best venues around the world for the last 30 years. He knows what he is and the fans know too. He’s a musical genius. A guy with a voice so smooth and silky, it can hypnotize you. He’s funky and jazzy and has one of the most distinct voices in all of music. He is almost mystical. But he’s also clueless.

Fans, including my wife and I, shelled out anywhere from $80 to $350 for tickets and fees to see Morrison perform for a mere 92 minutes on Saturday night. The set was mind-blowing. A fusion of jazz, funk and rock with just enough lullaby to melt you into your seat, Morrison crafted a setlist of mostly newer material and selections from his forth-coming album filled with life and eclectic punch. It was a wonderful set of music. But it wasn’t enough. With a ticket time of 7:30 SHARP (The word SHARP actually appeared on the ticket), Morrison was off the stage and probably on his way to a nice steak dinner before most New York City concerts even get started. It was 9:02 pm and he was already giving a half-hearted bow to the crowd. Read on to find out why Luke thinks Van isn’t the Man…

Today marks the debut of yet another new HT once-in-a-while feature, Blips. Blips is our version of an emerging artists column where we’ll highlight some of the new (not Vampire Weekend) bands that have just started showing up on our radar that might just spark your auditory nerve.

We’re not seeking to turn on the hype machine, but rather just to pick out some bands that still only cost you five or ten samloleans for a solid night of fun. If you’re anything like me and know the URL for the IRS’s “Where’s My Refund?” site by memory, these might just come in handy.

Turbine

I caught Turbine at the Knitting Factory a couple weeks ago as part of a typical four band evening. I don’t even remember who we were there to see, but I do remember these guys. Upon hearing their name for the first time, they will probably catch you off guard as the name Turbine makes me immediately think trance-fusion, livetronica or whatever that shit is called these days, but it’s really a burning bluegrass-tinged guitar, an integral, festive harmonica, and versatile drums and bass. Upon seeing one live show, plowing through a few shows on the archive, and spinning through their MySpace page, you can quickly sense that this band is a group of creative songwriters with a love for a whole slew of genres.

There’s no mistaking that this band will evolve, because in just a short 3 years or so, they already have. They terrain covers bluegrass, country blues, straight-ahead rock, and yes, there is some Untz as well.

Read on for more Turbine, as well as three other new bands you need to hear…

Lifted from an October 2007 interview with our very own Ace:

AC: Let me switch gears again…I thought the Gathering of the Vibes solo set you played in 2002, if I may cloak my objectivity here for a minute, was one of the most fucking perfect acoustic sets of music I’ve ever heard. Do you have these yens to do get out and do some more solo shows?

RG: Yeah, I like it. And that is a show that I’m proud of — it was a defining moment. Kind of like an “I’m here to stay” kind of thing. That might be why it was what it was; there was a lot riding on it. Yes, I like it, and I’d like to do more of it, whether it’s incorporating it into the AoD set or solo shows or whatever. In fact, it’s something I discussed recently, and I would like to do more of it.

In the comments section, myself and Paul Robinson (Owner of The Stone Church) chime in to comment on the interview and express their hopes to see a Reid Solo tour in the future.

04/10/08: Tin Angel, Philadelphia PA
04/11/08: Iron Horse, Northampton MA
04/24/08: Higher Ground, South Burlington VT
04/25/08: Sullivan Hall, New York City NY
05/01/08: The Stone Church, Newmarket NH
05/02/08: Harpers Ferry, Allston MA

These dates mark Reid’s first ever “official” solo tour. Click here for a ZIP file of 320kb MP3s of the SBD from Reid’s Solo Set from Gathering Of The Vibes 2002.

Reid on for four amazing clips of Genauer performing solo and an interview…

We’ve got yet another new festival to tell you about, and this one takes place nine miles from Denver. The inaugural Mile High Festival will feature five stages of music

It’s not every day we can compare and contrast Death Cab For Cutie and Phish, so we’re gonna take our shot while we can. We were shocked when DaveO forwarded

There is a new sheriff in town. As of now, Battlefield Earth is but a deputy alongside Gigli and Little Nicky. The new worst film in the history of the world is Across the Universe. Call me a sensationalist; I don’t care, this movie sucks – A Tour De Manure.

Like any self-respecting music fan, I creamed in my pants when I heard about the release of a new coming-of-age story in the late 60s set entirely to the music of the Beatles. I mean, what could go wrong. This sounds like a recipe for a masterpiece. Let’s fire up the bong and head to the theater right? WRONG.

In all my haste and excitement, I overlooked one very important detail. The movie is not set to the music of the Beatles, but rather the movie is entirely comprised of the actors and actresses performing the music of the Beatles. In other words, it’s a musical. Read on for more of Rupert’s rant about Across The Universe…

Well the Tea Leaf Green fans have done it…and that is awesome because ballot-stuffing is encouraged here at Hidden Track. Turns out Trevor really is the best one to sing “I Am An Old Woman”…Seriously though, nice turnout! DGold, the person who had TLG on his radio show in the first place to play this song, said he listened to all eight versions and ended up casting his vote for Susan Tedeschi – you sir are why we do this.

Onwards to Volume 5, this week we’ll be listening to interesting renditions of Paul Simon’s 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover. Paul Simon is very guarded when song meanings are attempted to be extracted from him, and this single from his album Still Crazy After All These Years is no exception.

Read on to get DaveO’s tale of the tape on this week’s song and competitors…

We’ve given Rhino Records and the Grateful Dead tons of shit in the past for their lack of releases, but now we’re gonna give them some props. That’s because Rhino