June 2011

Phil Lesh and The Levon Helm Band @ Midnight Ramble, June 17

Part of the joy in seeing live music is the never-ending quest to find the ideal balance of music, setting, sound and ambiance which results in the creation of life long memories. While no concert event can ever be considered “perfect”, on Friday night, June 17, Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble with Phil Lesh set a remarkably high bar and perhaps even set the parameters for concert perfection.

Tucked cozily into the Catskill Mountains in the fertile music grounds of Woodstock, NY, not even a stone’s throw from the legendary Bearsville Studios, is Levon Helm’s private residence with a barn cum recording studio. Guests navigate a long winding driveway and are warmly greeted by a staff seemingly more intent on welcoming and befriending their guests than anything else.

Driveway Driving In

Barn from the Outside

Upon entering the studio, the majestic beauty of the natural surroundings outside are almost eclipsed by the grandeur & elegance of the studio. Carved between the wood beams, exposed stone, folding chairs and benches, was an intimate stage that appeared mysteriously within reach of every one of the 300 guests in attendance. Created by laying a large Oriental rug on top of the barn-board floor and surrounded with guitar & instrument stands perched on a stone hearth in front of a large fireplace, the stage was set for another night of the “Midnight Ramble”.

READ ON for more about Friday’s special Midnight Ramble…

We’re saddened to report that saxophonist Clarence Clemons of the E Street Band has died today from complications of stroke he suffered last Sunday. Clemons has been a member of

Cake @ The Ogden Theater, June 14

Words: Jonathan Kosakow
Photos: Matthew Speck

A backyard smoke machine clouded the stage for Cake, who entered the room at The Ogden Theater Tuesday night following a stern pre-recorded warning against photography, and a comically long musical intro that may or may not have been borrowed from a mid-90s Saturday morning cartoon. They wasted no time before launching into the instrumental Arco Arena and the crowd pleasing Frank Sinatra, but even so early in the show it seemed that John McCrea and company were a little overtired.

[All photos by Matthew Speck]

The audience, though, didn’t really seem to notice. Since their first album way back in 1994, Cake has played the hidden hero to so many. In those years, they have put out only six studio albums – before this year’s Showroom of Compassion, the most recent was seven years ago and is easily their least popular. But the music never disappeared from the memories and cassette players of our generation. When it was announced that Cake would be playing two nights in Denver, a shout of excitement rang out so loud you may as well have thought they were putting Fraggle Rock back on the air, and the tickets for both shows sold out well in advance.

The spacious yet intimate, grungy Ogden Theater filled up quickly with a crowd heavily made up of the under-30 generation. It seems almost every Cake fan is similar in certain respects – quiet and sensible, but with a bit of a dark side. And this was proven as most fans quietly sang along to their old favorites of sex and pent-up anger, Italian Leather Sofa and How Do You Afford Your Rock ‘N’ Roll Lifestyle.

READ ON for more about Cake in Denver…

Now listen here: You see that little man down there? The one with the adjustable wife-beater and pleated parachute pants…do you see what he is doing? He’s absolutely murdering that bamboo

The past two Phish shows were webcast live straight from the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, GA through LivePhish.com. We asked our followers to tweet photos of their #couchtour setups at us