Archive: 2010

Azure Ray fans have been eagerly anticipating their return, despite the lengthy wait. Taylor and Fink certainly delivered in many ways on Sunday at the Independent, but at times their musical weaknesses (lack of experimentation, crowd connection and risk-taking) became particularly apparent in the live setting. Even so, it was a thrill to see them back together again.  The show was a night of real emotional catharsis, and a great way to bring Taylor and Fink back into the indie music fold.

New Jersey-bred jam legends Blues Traveler came to Brooklyn Bowl this past weekend for a pair of sold out performances at our favorite venue in New York City. The shows were a homecoming of sorts for the band, which cut its proverbial teeth at joints like the Wetlands Preserve and Nightingale’s during the late ’80s and early ’90s before finding commercial success.

[All photos by Rob Chapman]

The quintet was joined by quite a few guests over the course of the weekend including Paulie Z from Z02, Lisa Bouchelle, Chris Barron of the Spin Doctors, Matt Whyte of Earl Greyhound and John Cusimano of The Cringe. Even Rachel Ray, Cusimano’s wife, was in the house and left the band some deviled eggs, which we’d imagine were yum-o.

Photographer Rob Chapman was in the house for Saturday’s show. READ ON for a batch of Blues Traveler photos from Brooklyn Bowl by Rob…

Longtime GSW devotee Lynn Kestenbaum has directed and produced a 15-minute documentary about God Street Wine’s reunion shows in New York City this past July featuring interviews with nearly all of the band for our friends at State of Mind. Take a peek at this fantastic flick…

God Street Wine Brung Back

In other God Street Wine news, guitarists Lo Faber and Aaron Maxwell performed an acoustic set last Friday at Mexicali Live! in Teaneck, NJ. READ ON for the setlist, audio and video from the performance…

For the third year in a row, the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival brings elements of a summer festival indoors for the Chicago winter. Over the course of three days from December 3-5, a diverse roster of artists will perform at a trifecta of Chi-town venues including the Double Door, the Congress Theater and Lincoln […]

We’re still abuzz from Phish’s fantastic interpretation of Little Feat’s seminal 1978 live album Waiting For Columbus that we wanted to continue to pay tribute to the highly influential, yet somehow criminally underrated band.

This week we’re placing that act’s classic trucker anthem, Willin’, into the squared circle – a song that has been rumored as the reason that Lowell George was asked to leave Frank Zappa’s Mothers Of Invention, and thus the impetus for the formation of Little Feat. The track originally appeared on the band’s self-titled debut sung in a sparse, talking, country-blues style by George and featured Ry Cooder backing him on steel guitar. The definitive version of tune was reworked for Little Feat’s sophomore release Sailin Shoes, and given the full band treatment with country-rock harmonies and some great piano work courtesy of Billy Payne.

Contestants:

The Black Crowes have no problem wearing their influences right on their sleeve with the band owing a great debt to Little Feat’s potent mix of rock, soul, gospel, jazz, country and funk. The Robinson Brothers & Co. have been covering Willin’ consistently since all the way back in 1992, with Chris channeling the ghost of Lowell George. Source: 2009-11-07

As an added bonus, here’s The Crowes with John Popper and the members of Wilco from a HORDE tour stop on August 27, 1995…

READ ON for more covers of Willin’ from the likes of moe., Uncle Tupelo, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Dylan, The Byrds and others…

If you’ve heard a recording or watched videos of Buffalo Springfield’s first performances in 42 years at last month’s Bridge School Benefit, it should come as no surprise that the group is exploring a potential summer tour. The joy and enthusiasm came through in the band’s music as they delivered two wonderful sets at the […]

Bruce Springsteen will make a rare appearance on late night TV on the November 16th episode of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Fallon, a longtime Springsteen fan, will welcome The Boss to perform songs from his new box set – The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story. Bruce will also sit for […]

Something tells me it’s been a while since anyone around here has watched a Beavis & Butthead clip, so today we’ve got a classic – Blues Traveler’s Runaround. Surprisingly, Butthead actually knew the band prior to watching the video and drops them a name check, despite their falling outside his musical wheelhouse of bands like […]

Dead Kenny G’s @ Blue Nile, October 31

Contemporary jazz aficionados Skerik, Brad Houser and Mike Dillon have spent the better half of their musical careers contorting the face of jazz music. The three musicians have contributed to several projects (Critters Buggin, Garage A Trois) each initiating a full spectrum of sonic chaos, while heroically taking a stand against smooth jazz and expediting the genre to the grave.

On Sunday October 31 the three resurrected smooth jazz in the form of the Dead Kenny G’s. Dillon (drums, percussion, vocals), Houser (bass, baritone sax), Skerik (sax, keys) and friends performed the genre’s revitalized incarnation at The Blue Nile in New Orleans.

As one would expect, fans were decorated in their Halloween best, reeking havoc in the name of a good time. Dillon, Houser and Skerik all sported deadly costumes (complete with buoyant curls) of smooth jazz poster boy, soprano saxophonist Kenny G. The musicians played to the audience’s enthusiasm with a dissonant trifecta of saxophones; Skerik, Houser and friends experimented with a bizarre blend of acid jazz full of restless squawking while Dillon monkeyed with his drums. READ ON for more…

Jeff Daniels at the McGlohon Theater, Charlotte, NC 10.28.10.

No one can accuse Kristian Hoffman of playing it safe. Rather than aping the trends of current pop music, Hoffman draws his influences from 60’s rock and pop, theater and even vaudeville on Fop. Hoffman imagines himself a modern-day David Bowie and spends large portions of the album trying to live up to that self-billing. At times it works – such as in the glam rock of “Mediocre Dream” – at times, not. 

Glassnote Records is excited to announce the details of a brand new EP from Mumford & Sons, Laura Marling and their collaborative recordings with a collective of Indian musicians, the Dharohar Project, for release on December 7th, 2010. The British artists embarked on a unique tour of India in December 2009, spending a number of […]

The String Cheese Incident releases the first installment of their brand new live archival series, Rhythm of the Road, which will highlight the band’s most celebrated concerts with re-mastered limited edition releases. Titled Rhythm of the Road: Volume 1, Incident in Atlanta – 11.17.00, this first offering on the historic show’s ten-year anniversary. 2000 was […]

In terms of musical culture, the Roman calendar could not accurately document when the 70's turned into the 80's. The explosion of experimentalism that ran through rock, jazz and pop during the latter part of the 60's morphed into strange and not always so wonderful things in the two ensuing decades. Still, there were those artists who confronted that stance, often in marked contrast to their previous efforts, offering work that’s still worth listening to (and reissuing on compact disc) today.

A giddy, anticipatory vibe pervaded the Atlantic City boardwalk before the first of the final three shows of Phish’s Fall Tour began. Under heavy skies, bemused, early-arriving heads wandered the wide, wooden pathway looking for tickets and sipping beers. In a surreal twist, emanating from the loud outdoor casino speakers was none other than the Grateful Dead and select Phish tracks — the weekend-long soundtrack to chilly strolls from hotel rooms to Boardwalk Hall.

If I can praise only one guitarist this year, I have to shout out Luther Dickinson. The man knows how to cause shivers to run up your spine with his slinky drop down blues riffs via a slide. The man has GOT IT. And lucky for The Black Crowes they are allowing him to plow the field with his on fire solos in such an unassuming manner you’d swear he wasn’t even there.

  Ween have decided to play a few West Coast tour dates. The fellows will be kicking things off in Vancouver and then drops down to coast hitting up Seattle, Portland, Oakland and Los Angeles Tour Dates: January 24 – Queen Elizabeth Theater, Vancouver, BC 25 – Paramount, Seattle, WA 26 – Crystal Ballroom, Portland, […]

Sigur Ros’ Jonsi has announced details of the release of a live album and DVD. ‘Go Live’ is due out on November 29 and features a live 14-song album, plus a 73 minute live performance, which was captured at London’s 3 Mills Studios in March. For more information, visit Jonsi.com. The tracklisting for ‘Go Live’ […]

Queen will re-release all of their 15 studio albums next year. The band have signed a long-term agreement with Universal Music Group to release the albums, thereby ending their 40-year partnership with EMI. Each of the re-releases will be remastered and repackaged, as well as featuring additional content. Queen‘s first five albums, ‘Queen’, ‘Queen II’, […]

After a 13-year hiatus, the industrial band Swans has a whole lotta touring to make up for, including Europe, more U.S. dates and a jaunt Down Under followed by, well, more tour dates. The band’s rise to early fame illustrates a path less taken by most groups. Known for playing extremely loud during its early […]