Archive: 2008

Winter is officially upon us, and this week’s Stormy Monday celebrates the season with a mix of jam-centric seasonal favorites. First is Phish at IT with a soulful Army of One, a tune that never got enough stage time. Even so, Page McConnell’s bleak original sparkled right out of the box, and hopefully it will […]

“I’ll state my opinion any time I fucking choose.”

Those aren’t the exact lyrics to Light Is Like Water, my favorite Jerry Joseph song, but that’s how I’ll always remember the verse from the last time I heard Joseph do it live (sometime around Stockholm Syndrome’s inaugural tour in 2004).

That line sounds exactly like Joseph, the incisive folk-rocker with the serious songwriting chops and the lived-in voice, best known for Little Women, the Jackmormons and numerous other solo projects, not to mention his longstanding association with Widespread Panic. And the song’s overall attributes might describe Joseph himself, as well as his curious career: longwinded, tender, pointed, hopeful, irascible, cynical, soulful—and singular.

Hidden Track caught up with Joseph at a snowed-in tour stop in Salt Lake City late last week. His 2008 is far from over; having revived the Jackmormons name with a modified lineup, he’ll close out the year in his adopted home of New York City, booked for Dec. 29 and 30 at Crash Mansion and New Year’s Eve at the Delancey Lounge. If you’re in the area and haven’t yet made your plans, well, we’d be remiss if we didn’t recommend it.

Hidden Track: In recent years you’ve been doing New Year’s gigs in Portland and also in Costa Rica and other far-flung locales. Why New York for 2008?

Jerry Joseph: Well, I live there, for one. Originally this year we were supposed to do a bunch of Colorado shows and I think one of them was planned for after Panic, but I just wasn’t into it. So we decided to say fuck it and do this and our New York City friends were all holy shit, holy shit. This has kind of been thrown together more last minute than we usually like, so we’ll see what happens. Lots going on in NYC that week and I’d love to say we have the same fanbase as My Morning Jacket [laughs], but that’s just not true. We’ll see what happens—I know it’s been moving pretty quickly but I know a lot of people are flying in for it too.

READ ON for more of Chad’s interview with Jerry Joseph…

Last week,  my shitty cable company finally added MTV’s Hi-Def channel, Palladia, and it rivals sister-station VH-1 Classic as the best cable network for music fans. Just this weekend I got to see highlights from Rothbury 2008, a couple of episodes of Soundstage and Jay-Z’s Storytellers all in glorious HD. Be sure to shout at […]

Each year, moe. and Umphrey’s McGee headline the Summer Camp Festival in Chillicothe, IL and next year will be no exception. For the 2009 edition on May 22-24, moe. and Umphrey’s play each night of the festival and will be joined by Medeski, Scofield, Martin and Wood, Girl Talk, Keller Williams, Dark Star Orchestra, Cornmeal, […]

Underoath, Thrice, Bad Religion, Less Than Jake, NOFX and Anti-Flag are among the dozens of bands confirmed for the 2009 Vans Warped Tour, which begins June 26 in Pomona, Calif., and will wrap Aug. 23 in Los Angeles.Also on the bill for the 15th edition of the tour are Bayside, Bouncing Souls, Chiodos, Escape The […]

The Black Crowes ended an extremely busy and successful 2008 with a bang in San Francisco last night. Chris and Rich Robinson’s band of brothers finished a five show stand at the Fillmore Auditorium with a three song encore featuring legendary bassist Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead. Most accomplished bands would take a rest […]

Dan and his Hot Licks are at it again with a brand-new collection of compelling and witty tunes on his latest CD, Tangled Tales, due out March 24, 2009 on Surfdog Records. Featuring the same swinging music and insightful charm that has endeared him to audiences and fellow artists alike, Tangled Tales features a world-class […]

Morrissey will release “Years of Refusal” in the US February 17, 2009 on Attack/Lost Highway. “Years of Refusal” will be Morrissey’s first studio album since 2006’s UK #1 “Ringleader of the Tormentors”. In February, Morrissey will begin the US leg of his world tour that includes rare intimate club dates. Tour Dates 2/28      Boca […]

The Pretenders announced today they will be the latest artist to be part of the iTunes "Originals" series. The Pretenders edition will be available exclusively at the iTunes Store starting December 23.  On top of this release the band has released a digital holiday EP which features a new recording of the band’s classic "2000 […]

U2’s new album, No Line on the Horizon, will be released by Interscope Records on March 3. It’s the Irish rock band’s 12th studio album and their first release since 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. The new album was completed after studio sessions in Fez, Morocco; Dublin, Ireland; New York; and London. Longtime […]

I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t be happier to put the last full work week of 2008 behind me. I’ve been burning the candles at both ends and my tank is near empty. Before I take off, I’ve got more one more post to do: Friday Mix Tape. I went personal with this […]

As I was trolling through YouTube looking for some tasty clips for our second Grateful Dead themed week, I stumbled across a rather interesting video of a young Joni Mitchell performing the Bobby cowboy classic Me & My Uncle – a song that up until now, I had always thought was a Dead original. After […]

It’s been a while since MMW’s home base of NYC has gotten some love, so we were very excited to find this piece of news on the band’s website… Medeski Martin & Wood haven’t forgotten about New York City! Shortly after the the new year, MMW will announce 3 shows to take place in three […]

The great Animal Collective leak saga continues with the news that the email from band member Brian “Geologist” Weitz was a hoax. Someone hacked Geologist’s email address and sent off that email. Last night, Bradford Cox of Deerhunter/Atlas Sound weighed in on the situation on his blog. We’re sure all of these stories on every […]

Jack Johnson and an assortment of musicians on his Brushfire Records roster pitched in to create a debut holiday album called This Warm December.

Hailing from UK-based shoegazing bands Mojave 3 and Slowdrive, singer/songwriter Neil Halstead recently branched off to focus on a solo album that he dropped this past July. Since signing onto Brushfire Records, Halstead has been racking up critical acclaim while touring extensively. For This Warm December, Halstead contributed an original, somber acoustic track entitled, The Man in the Santa Suit. Halstead shares his thoughts about the holidays and his memories of Christmastime in the UK…

Jack Spilberg: What do you want for Christmas?

Neil Halstead: Time with the family and friends

JS: What’s better, naughty or nice?

NH: I have to say naughty and nice is probably the very best.

JS: Which do you prefer, real or fake Christmas trees?

NH: Fake Christmas trees are less messy I suppose. When I was a kid we would have a little tree that my dad would dig up every year for Christmas, and then replant afterwards. That is probably the best solution. You’ve got to go big in the end though.

READ ON for more from Brushfire recording artist Neil Halstead…

Eagle Rock Entertainment’s Classic Albums series looks at the genius behind Pink Floyd’s game-changing release, Dark Side of the Moon. Friday [all times Eastern]: Live From Abbey Road: Suzanne Vega [Sundance 9PM] A Colbert Christmas: Elvis Costello [COM 11PM] Late Show w/ Letterman: Leona Lewis [CBS 11:35PM] Saturday: Documentary: Moog [Showtime Next 11:10PM] Austin City […]

U2 have announced their new album ‘No Line on the Horizon’ will be released on March 3rd, on Interscope Records. The track listing has not yet been revealed but reportedly three of those 50 to 60 songs the band recorded for Horizon include the title track, “Moment of Surrender” and “Unknown Caller.” The album was […]

Van Morrison has announced that he will release the recent live recording of his ‘Astral Weeks’ album via EMI Music in the US in early 2009. The veteran singer re-recorded his landmark 1968 album during two live performances at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles in November. "I brought these records to EMI because they […]

Rachael Yamagata is revved up. "I just have to tell you, I love you all sexually," said Yamagata to the equally charged crowd at her sold out Bowery Ballroom show.

Iggy Pop and Moby are set to star in a new vampire film called ‘Suck’. The music legends help tell a tale of vampires and the music business, reports The Guardian. Moby plays character Beef Bellows, the lead singer of a band called Secretaries Of Steak whose fans throw meat at them during their gigs. […]