If you need any further proof that Phish bassist Mike Gordon loves the road, consider that he just finished an intense, three-week Phish run and less than a week later
Two months from tomorrow, on January 4th, the MSC Poesia will depart Ft. Lauderdale filled with music fans and musicians who are about to have one of the best vacations of their lives. The reality of how quick Jam Cruise 9 is approaching hit home today with the release of the schedule. For five days the music goes from afternoon until extremely early in the morning with some sets due to end at 5 in the morning.
As many people told me before my first Jam Cruise last year – this trip is a marathon not a sprint. The schedule allows you to pick and choose your spots. Luckily for me, there don’t seem to be any major conflicts, though getting from venue to venue on the boat couldn’t be easier allowing you to sample all of the acts if you want the equivalent of a musical poo-poo platter.
Big Sam’s Funky Nation gets the coveted sail away slot as they will perform on the evening of January 4th as the boat departs Port Everglades. HT contributor and turntablist extraordinaire Wyllys closes things out on January 8th – actually the morning of the 9th – as the Poesia pulls back into Ft. Lauderdale. READ ON for a look at the Jam Cruise 9 schedule…
Michael Franti & Spearhead w/ Bobby Long @ Terminal 5, October 28
Say what you will about Terminal 5 and all of its quirks and issues, but there does come that rare time that the multi-level industrial venue affords fans an extraordinary experience that you can’t get anywhere else. This past Thursday night, with the unique pairing of Bobby Long and Michael Franti & Spearhead, anyone who spent their Franti set up on an upper level looking down on the stage saw what I saw: a bird’s eye view of Michael Franti’s gigantic bare feet.
[All photos by Rob Chapman]
At 6’6”, Michael always looms like a giant over the crowd from the stage, and even more so when he takes a seat on the stool for an acoustic ballad, but holy shit, those feet from above look like naval bases out to sea.
A fitting allegory perhaps, as with the release of his latest hit factory studio release, the Sound of Sunshine, Franti & Spearhead officially make the jump to larger than life. If All Rebel Rockers broke the seal to mainstream success, the Sound of Sunshine turned on the spigot. Many longtime fans take this as a negative, and cite the newer material of hope over strife as a sellout or even a losing of religion, but for fans who just want to go out, dance, and listen to some good festive music, Franti’s live still show offers plenty to enjoy. READ ON for more about last Thursday’s show…
God Street Wine guitarists Lo Faber and Aaron Maxwell are set to perform at Mexicali Live! in Teaneck, NJ on Friday night. The pair throughly rocked Sullivan Hall a few weeks
By now, anyone who follows sports on the interwebs probably already caught a glimpse of this excellent Randy Moss tribute by DJ Steve Porter, the mastermind DJ behind the Allen
In this installment, Brian Bavosa dons his thinking cap for an inside look into Phish’s 2010 musical costume: Little Feat’s Waiting for Columbus…
This past weekend, Phish successfully concluded their 2010 Fall Tour with a three-night stand in Atlantic City, NJ. Pulling out both “tricks” and “treats” for all, things culminated with a nearly 6-hour (!!!) performance on Halloween night at the historic Boardwalk Hall, complete with a second set rendition of Little Feat’s classic 1978, Double-Live album, Waiting for Columbus.
[All photos by Regan Teti Marscher]
However, before the musical costume itself was performed – with the help of percussionist Giovanni Hidalgo and members of the Antibalas and Dap-Kings horn sections, Phish had a few scores to settle on the 29th and 30th, with some rockers, tongue-in-cheek humor and a a complete throwdown that saw them seriously get the Led out. Now, while I could easily turn this installment of the column into a three-show mega-review, as many may have seen me do in the past on my Phish tour beat, I will instead let the music do the talking for this past weekend and focus on how and why Phish arrived at the choice of Little Feat, and why it makes more sense than you think.
Now, to fully understand what Halloween means to Phish, and the elaborate thoughtfulness that starts months in advance, one must also consider at the very core, each and every choice in the musical costume tradition has essentially represented something about the band themselves, as individuals and a collective whole. Oh yeah, there’s the wild speculation, theories, sneaking around, misdirection and pranks, but you must also consider more than just the obvious factors and ingredients, as it all boils down to what is “in the fabric,” as drummer Jon Fishman says about this year’s selection. In short, it was there all along, even if it is not glaringly apparent, as I feel Columbus might seem to most fans on the surface.
READ ON for more of Postcards From Page Side…
So, how do you follow a magician? If you’re seminal Southern rockers Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ you immediately turn to your hits. Their set opens with the incomparable Dixie anthem “Honeysuckle Blues” then soon thereafter the near-riot inciting “Build a Fire,” and now the revelers on Tybee Island are completely captivated.
The mad hatters from Los Angeles, California swept into CMJ this year on the back of their upcoming documentary, “Everyday Sunshine” which was screened for a select few before the bands night onstage. The seven member strong Fishbone wove their way through a night of hits and misses in front of a rambunctious crowd at the intimate Le Poisson Rogue down in the village.
A fierce trio that plays power punk music with a DIY gritty edge, Screaming Females has produced a complete and exciting record with their newest release Castle Talk. The group has a knack for producing catchy riffs and choruses before scuffing them up with enough tempo changes and feedback so the proceedings never become too sweet.
Interpol have announced details of an upcoming tour of North America. Beginning the jaunt in Vancouver on January 27, 2011, the group will finish the 13-date gig-run in New York
