If you’re ever in need of a good gift idea, this random assortment of music for this week’s Friday Mix Tape comes from my little brother’s Christmas gift this past
With the square footage at about 1/3 of that of the big brother version in Cleveland and a hefty price tag of around $30 a head ($26.55 in person, $29.55 online), skepticism is taking its toll on the New York City Annex of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
While there has been plenty of publicity and marketing, the place probably opened at the worst possible time: right in the headwinds of a big ass recession. I admit, I was one of these folks who had been dying to check it out since the opening back in December, but kept getting deterred by the price tag. Well, it’s worth the $30. In fact, the price tag helps the experience, because it’s not the least bit crowded. You pretty much get free reign over the place, which really heightens the experience.
In simply looking at pictures and reading reviews of the new digs, you miss two key elements of the Annex. The first is that the technology is jaw-droppingly high quality and really creates more of an experience than simply a memorabilia museum. For starters, the entire tour is guided by a headset provided by high-end audio company, Sennheiser, which automatically senses exactly which exhibit you are near and plays the corresponding music. So, in essence the entire visit is complemented by excellent music selections. You will definitely get goosebumps and very possibly tear up at times.
READ ON for more of Ryan’s review of the R&RHOF Annex…
The Jayhawks – Blue
Tonight’s a big night both for Conan O’Brien and White Stripes fans. Jack and Meg White will perform together this evening for the first time since 2007 as the last
Finding new Phish soundboard recordings has proved as elusive as finding weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The Phish organization has done too good of a job locking their vault
TV On The Radio have announced the dates of an extensive North American tour this spring. The band will kick things off in Louisville, Kentucky on May 12 and hit
Conor Oberst and The Mystic Valley Band have revealed details of their forthcoming album. ‘Outer South’ is due out in the US on May 5 and features tracks written by
Superfly Productions is proud to announce the 2009 Superfly during Jazzfest concert series. Series events will take place April 24 through May 2 at several signature New Orleans venues, including
This is a no-frills DVD from the no-frills Akron, Ohio duo. We catch them in their live element and thus fans will rejoice and haters will not be swayed. The Black Keys play a compact set that – encore included – just breaks the hour mark, no guests, and no major surprises, just straight ahead white boy blues/hard rock. Dan Auerbach shaggily fires off riffs and vocal grunts on fan favorites “Stack Shot Billy” and “10 am Automatic” and drummer Patrick Carney crushes his foot pedal into dust on the thunderously jammed out “Busted”. The sound is excellent here with Carney’s floor tom vibrating through the screen while the fluid segue between “Set You Free” and “ThickFreakness” screeches. In the end, no doubt there is fiery playing however, there just doesn’t seem to be much variety and the set ends up feeling like one long song. Visually the direction and the lights are major players, Lance Bangs who uses more tight shots and close-ups to accentuate Auerbach and Carney than wide stage shots, a few crowd pans are tossed in, as well, to break it up. The editing was heavy, but not hyper-spastic – a mixed bag overall. The lighting, on the other hand, is flawless and inventive, cascading over the sold-out house, playing havoc with lenses and creating fantastic visuals, Mike Grant should be commended for his work here. There are only a few extras, three “official” music videos, some behind-the-scenes-footage, as well, but the live set is why fans are buying it, especially if they caught the Keys on this tour. It will definitely stay in the collection but this effort would seem to play better as a background disk at a party than a sit-down-to-be-studied concert film.
Say what you will about the classic-rock cribbing Kid Rock, but the one-time Phish collaborator will indirectly be responsible for creating 400 new jobs in his home state of Michigan.
