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I've seen Stellastarr* twice now and both times I've thought that the band's the real deal—melodic and ethereal, and miles beyond their contemporaries and the post punk purveyors they're lumped alongside in the press.
Stellastar* is back this month with their new release, "Civilized" and play The Rock and Roll Hotel this Friday night. And you, lucky TVD reader, have an opportunity to be right next to us, ON us, because we've got a pair of tickets to put in your hands.
Because we're givers, we're going to make it even easier for you guys to enter our weekly giveaways here at TVD. Staring today, you can Twitter your entries into any contest via regular Tweets or direct message via Twitter to us. Of course you can still enter in the comments below, but we need some contact info if you choose to do so.
It's a subtle way to get you guys to follow TVD on Twitter where we're often giving away additional tracks, new and old, not featured in the daily blog posts. And don't worry - it's pertinent stuff, not what we ordered in for lunch here at TVD HQ. (Not to mention, we could give a shit that The Real World's filming around the corner. So there's that.)
So, Stellastarr*! Friday night! Rock and Roll Hotel! A pair of tix with your name on 'em! Get at us!
Anyone who has done any real living has a dark side...
The old man used to call it burning the candle at both ends. I'm not sure what I'd call it, but I am sure that I've seen 3 a.m. too many times with just a coffee cup of whiskey and these songs to keep me company.
Am I out on a limb when I state unequivocally that Girl Loves Distortion might be the last and best band conjuring what I’ll call the ‘sound of DC?’ (Yea, Go Go notwithstanding.) The polyrhythms, the lacerating guitar lines, the twisty bass below have all been rumbling under the surface for a number of weeks now at TVD HQ and lucky us, we get to catch them tomorrow night when the band plays Fort Reno alongside Godisheus and Laughing Man.
GLD are releasing the brand new ‘You Better Run, Your Highness’ on vinyl this month (via Etxe Records) and as such we caught up with guitarist Christopher Goett who CLEARLY embraces the medium.
"Vinyl. Is there really any other way to experience recorded music? We don’t’ think so. The sound quality is unparalleled: deeper lows, warmer range of tones, great expression of nuance. In today’s times music quickly slips into the ether . . . it becomes a part of file sharing, compressed on a convenient iPod, or streamed online somewhere. We aren’t snubbing our noses at these modern twists and turns on the music listening experience. Most of us own an MP3 player for the convenience of it – particularly when riding the Metro around town or when we are on the road touring.
However – the thing about listening to vinyl is that it is a very deliberate experience. We aren’t trying to multi-task to something when dropping the needle down on our favorite piece of wax. It is a conscious decision to absorb the collection of songs presented by the artist. It is a tactile as well as an aural experience: perusing the artwork, pulling out the vinyl, placing it on the turntable, dropping the needle, flipping the record, etc.
Girl Loves Distortion was absolutely psyched to hear about our record label (Etxe Records) pulling the trigger on releasing our new album (You Better Run, Your Highness) on vinyl. In fact, Etxe Records has really put together a nice vinyl package - heavy grade, multi-color clear vinyl, and reverse-board LP jackets. It is record we put together thinking about vinyl, and we are hoping vinyl nerds out there like us enjoy it."
Also catch GLD this Friday, July 17, at The Trash Bar in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The band also headlines their own CD/Vinyl release party for the new ‘You Better Run, Your Highness’ on Friday, July 24 at The Velvet Lounge with Trophy Wife (DC), Thee Lexington Arrows (Baltimore), and Fangs Out (Toledo.)
We've been singingthe praises of Elizabeth & the Catapult for some time now, but if you're STILL among the unconverted we have a pair of tickets to catch the band this Thursday night at The Rock and Roll Hotel to, y' know... get you to see things our way. Clearly.
And, because we're givers, we're going to make it even easier for you guys to enter our weekly giveaways here at TVD. Staring today, you can Twitter your entries into any contest via regular Tweets or direct message via Twitter to us. Of course you can still enter in the comments below, but we need some contact info if you choose to do so.
It's a subtle way to get you guys to follow TVD on Twitter where we're often giving away additional tracks, new and old, not featured in the daily blog posts. And don't worry - it's pertinent stuff, not what we ordered in for lunch here at TVD HQ. (Not to mention, we could give a shit that The Real World's filming around the corner. So there's that.)
So, Elizabeth & the Catapult! Thursday night! Rock and Roll Hotel! A pair of tix with your name on 'em! Get at us!
You know, I’ve always liked this room. With the lights out like this, the street lights just flood through the trees and slither up the walls. See? Oh yea, when it rains, there’s no better bay window, I tell you.
OK, sure – I’ll have another. No, you sit, I’ll turn the record over.
I have to laugh, all the years I sat here alone it’s actually nice to have some company. Thanks for stopping by. I mean that.
I've been obsessively repeating Bruce Springsteen's "The Wrestler" all morning. The party line is that he wrote this song for the film of the same name (If you haven't seen it, do), about Mickey Rourke's Randy "The Ram" Robinson. But the song can just as easily be heard as a lament on Springsteen's own struggle to stay relevant after 37 years.
Go ahead, make all the relevant criticisms of The Boss - He's a one trick pony. He's repetitive - only 2 of his 15 records depart from his tried and true arena rock template. He's technically a shitty singer. He's technically a shitty guitar player. He's become a caricature of himself. Levy them all, I can't argue. But the fact is that the man has a unique ability to tap into that level of human emotion that actually resides below despair better than any artist I've heard. He is actually able to write from the perspective of people so bleak, the rest of us can't even fathom their desolation.
It's a talent that has kept me coming back for more despite all the things that should have driven me away. But he can't shake me, because in my opinion there are only 2 acceptable answers to the question - "Who is the greatest American songwriter?" Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.
My old landlord Big Andy would tell you I made a pretty solid career of it a while back. Red wine, brooding candles, late nights, quiet music played loudly. And nightly.
You dredge up more with angst and ache than on the dance floor I’ve always thought. Little pin pricks of emotive melodies that’d do a porcupine proud. Triumphs, disappointments, loss. Impossible situations work themselves free. A bellyful of ache becomes a sweet soup for two. And gee—look...the wall needs to be painted.
So, hey... take a seat. I’ll slide over. Might as well open another bottle. We’re in for a long night.
The lovely ladies on Charlie's album covers always got our attention.
Charlie was a British rock band that got occasional FM airplay in the late ’70s.
Charlie's music had plenty of sharp lyrics, lots of hooks and crisp vocals. A bit like ELO mixed with Foreigner and just a dash of Queen, if you need a guide. It was a bit deceptive, though. It often sounded sunny when the subject matter was anything but.
Take today's tunes from "Fight Dirty," Charlie's 1979 album.
"Killer Cut" voices the desperate need to write that one great single to make it in the music business ... and then get the radio to play it. Which is exactly what happened.
"Heartless," about a woman who's just that, and "Runaway," about a girl who at 16 already has seen and done too much, seem rock video-ready, if not rock opera-ready.
So, surprise! I’ve been thinking a little about Michael Jackson lately. I know, I’m nothing if not a pop culture vulture.
And as to take a sweet, sweet dive into Lake Me (the shallow part) I was reminded that MJ was ultimately sandwiched in between a lot of other stuff on MTV after he broke down several million barriers and solidified himself as a pop culture AND African American icon. (And fuck you, Bill O’Reilly. Just suck it.)
So, while MJ was working his magic with my subconscious, I was consciously listening (and watching on MTV) quite a playlist from different corners and found myself, as MJ sang, remembering the time. And perhaps now you shall too.
Even if you’re a regular here at TVD, you may not know there’s a gatekeeper of sorts. But there is – hi, I’m Jon (your host) and as such the email in-box gets filled to the rim with very nice solicitations for coverage. And thank you, we love hearing from y’all.
But, ...how do I put this...sometimes the acts in the in-box, to use a summer analogy, just ain’t ripe yet.
In stark contrast to the aforementioned, Annie Crane’s arrival in the email reminded me of the crystal clear voices that used to echo through my folks’ house in NJ. The radio was continuously tuned to WQXR-FM, the radio station of the New York Times, which ostensibly is (was?) a classical music station but on Saturday evenings would air a show called ‘Woody’s Children.’ Woody, as in Guthrie, his ‘children’ as in the folk music legend’s prodigy.
But only the best of the best would make the airwaves then. So, if ‘Woody’s Children’ is still being aired (and if QXR is still around—I read that the Times was considering its sale) then Annie Crane’s a natural fit. Got that ‘QXR?
"When I was 19, my family of 6 picked up and moved to Manhattan from Rochester NY. We were moving from a 3 story house to a 3 bedroom apartment whose most raved about feature was a window in the kitchen. My mom, being the minimalist that she is, made it her mission to get rid of everything she deemed “not worth lugging to NYC”. In this category she put her & my dad's hefty record collection. Yes... it’s true. She sold them in the neighborhood garage sale along with our old dolls, trophies, roller blades and bunk beds. I was appalled when I went home (to my new home) for the summer from college. It was just before that 19th year of my life that I started falling hard for the wonders of vinyl.
The record player I got back then & still use today is my portable vintage player... it looks like an old suitcase until you open it up to find a 3 speed record player inside. It’s pretty sweet. I’ve lugged it from Rochester to Toronto to Manhattan to Brooklyn and back again. And as I’ve moved from place to place, I’ve carried with me my milk crates of records. Forever hounding estate sales, thrift shops and stoop sales, I think I’m trying to rebuild that collection so thoughtlessly discarded and experience it with the zeal of fresh ears.
There are few times I can think of when I’m as content as when I’m at home listening to my records while putting and puttering. The crackle and waver, the flip from side one to side two, listening to Pavarotti & Frank Sinatra in the same way that my grandma did - moments of captured nostalgia.
From my record crates, I am currently enjoying: Paul Simon: Paul Simon; Aretha Franklin: Queen of Soul; Joan Baez: Blessed are... ; Neil Young with Cray Horse: Everybody Knows this is Nowhere; Odetta Sings Folk Songs; Doc Watson: Memories"
I worry too much about the big picture. I get in the way of myself often, focusing on direction rather than the immediate. I worry that the immediate’s fleeting and direction’s deflection. I follow the numbers too closely. Where are they coming from? Where are you coming from? Why am I putting in all this time? Why is everyone so quiet? The downloads exceed bandwidth. I’m planned out weeks in advance. Sometimes it’s by the seat of the pants. Sometimes it lands in my lap and I just give ‘em away. I’m uploading. I’m downloading. Processing. Color correcting. Fact checking. Checking syntax. Saying what I mean but barely.
In the name of . . . . music.
I’d say that’s 'it' but after yesterday’s MJ spectacle, love him, hate him, or someplace in the center like me—it’s the one common denominator between us. Some say love, or life, even liberty—but that’s horseshit. The grace notes are binding.
We are not true / We are not pure / We are not right / O but still I'll steal to you at night / Too selfish by half / Too ugly by far / But when your songs have been sung, come to me / Rumours are rife / And winter blows cold / Reminds me of such wretched times / And yet all the same / I will never deign / To think ill of you / When all's well / My love is like cathedral bells / Amongst all the dross / The lies and the grief / There are so many things you just wouldn't believe / But amongst all the dross / The lies and the grief / When all's well / My love is like cathedral bells
After the past two weeks or more of covering the covered here at TVD, I’m thinking one could literally fashion an entire blog around cover songs.
Who knew? There’s a zillion of them. Some good, some bad—undoubtedly the worst offender being the pop/punk cover of something tried and true. (Hello Mr. Dando.)
More rare it seems are the stellar songs that have gone uncovered—ditties of distinction untainted by the cover treatment afforded lesser compositions. So, this week we’ll shine a light on a handful of tunes you burgeoning bands and songwriters could take a cue from. Because we WANT you to succeed.
TVD: building careers in music, one coffee house at a time.
After a full eleven weeks of vinyl giveaways leading up to Record Store Day 2009 earlier in the year, it turns out that it’s now been quite a while since we slipped an LP into an envelope and shipped it off to one effusive and over-the-top commenter/contest winner. But our friends at Blackheart Records have come to your rescue.
We’ve got our hands on the brand new Girl In A Coma LP, "trio b.c." (which has been on mega-heavy rotation here at ol’ TVD HQ) to give away to an aforementioned over-the-top commenter. And, I should add the cover’s been signed by the full band in black(heart) Sharpie. Because they—and we—are looking out for your cool collector’s items. (See that Ash giveaway last week?!)
We’ll give you a full week on this one to plead your case in the comments section for the LP (with some sort of contact info please!) We’ll choose a winner on 7/7, so get to it!
But not to let some press buzz be the only thing out there, the Darlins have hit the road this summer AND hit our area once more with a show this Tuesday night (7/7) at Iota. And right you are—we've got a pair of tickets to put in your hands.
Typically, we ask you to rant and rave in the comments to win the tix and actually this time it's no different. But we'd like to award the pair to the cleverest commenter who has a suggestion OTHER than this method to win the crazy prizes and stuff we're giving away each and every week now.
So, get out the pens and paper kids, the sliding rules, the protractors and what ever else you got to see Those Darlins this Tuesday. Help us out and we'll help you out. Remember to leave us some contact info too! We'll choose our winner on Tuesday morning.
We're closing up shop a little early this week in advance of the long weekend—but not without first turning the 'Parting Shots' over to our friend Virginia who's conjured up quite the appropriate theme for the Fourth of July holiday and the summer season:
"June 20 was International Surfing Day, if you didn’t know, and in honor of that fine holiday and of course the 4th of July, we are going to listen to some Surf music, the soundtrack for summer at the beach. So, grab your board, let’s catch some tasty tunes.
The original Surf music was from Southern California -- Orange County before it was The OC, in fact -- in the late 50s and early 60s. The undisputed King of Surf Music is Dick Dale, a surfer and musician who started playing in the late 50s at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa Beach, where he defined the Surf sound: straight up 4/4, instrumental rock & roll, with the melody, usually in a minor key, flat-picked on lead guitar with generous doses of pitch bending and reverb, courtesy of the Fender Stratocaster, which had been in production only a few years then, a little sliding up and down the neck, mimicking popular steel-guitar Hawaiian music, on top of a Fender Precision bass, another radical new instrument at the time, rhythm guitar, and lots of back beat. With trumpet, sax or keyboards occasionally thrown in for sonic color, Surf music was an attempt to push the new electronic instrumentation to evoke crashing waves, the adrenalin of surfing, and the totally bitchen surfing life.
Dick's first single, with his back-up band the Del-tones, was Let's Go Trippin' in 1961, but probably his best known recording these days is Miserlou, a Greek folk tune that Dick recast as a Surf anthem in 1962 and that Quentin Tarantino featured in 1994's Pulp Fiction.. Let's Go Trippin' spotlights a nice slide and lots of reverb and is generally considered the first recorded Surf tune, but Miserlou shows off Dick's manic staccato picking and the wild energy of Surf at its best.
The Chantays were also from Orange County, California. Formed in 1962 by five high-school friends, guitarists Brian Carman and Bob Spickard wrote and the band recorded Pipeline, another Surf great that became a number one single. Pipeline is a surf reef break located on O'ahu's North Shore; Pipeline evokes waves breaking over a nice driving bass line and is a classic of Surf sound.
Further North in LA, the Surfaris, formed in 1962, recorded Wipe Out in 1963, which ran up to number two in the charts. Opening with the sound of a surf board breaking followed by maniacal laughter and continuing with some pretty high energy drumming and a straightforward lead, Wipe Out is one of the best of the genre.
And no discussion of Surf music would be complete without the Ventures. From way up the west coast in Tacoma, Washington, the group was formed in 1958 by two construction workers who found common interest in playing guitar. Don Wilson and Bob Bogle starting playing local clubs, eventually adding Nokie Edwards as lead guitarist, and Skip Moore on drums. Their first record, Walk Don't Run, had a tough start but eventually climbed to number 2 on the charts, becoming a national hit in 1960. While The Ventures did not consider themselves strictly a Surf band and Walk Don't Run predates Let's Go Trippin', the melodic electric guitar leads, classic rock formation and high energy epitomize the Surf sound.
While Surf music was pretty much eclipsed by the British Invasion in 1964, it's impossible to overestimate the influence it had on rock & roll worldwide, particularly the musicianship of Dick Dale and Nokie Edwards. An unknowable number of young people learned to play guitar copying them or playing along with "Play Guitar with the Ventures", a series of instructional albums so popular they showed up on the Billboard top 100. Dick Dale additionally worked with Leo Fender from the late 50s through the 60s to push Fender guitar and amplifier technology into greater volume and distortion ranges, which had a tremendous impact on later heavy metal music.
Some of the original Surf musicians still perform. The Ventures, in fact, have never really stopped performing or making records -- they have been extremely popular in Japan since the 70s. Sadly, Bob Bogle passed away June 14 this year. Dick Dale still plays, as do The Chantays, and The Surfaris.
Lots has been left out here: the many other bands who contributed to the instrumental style and added more great tunes of their own -- the Bel-Airs and the Lively Ones, for example, the great Surf pop vocal music of the Beach Boys and Jan & Dean, and the funny Surfin' Bird by the Trashmen and Papa-oom-mow-mow by the Rivingtons. I hope this small introduction of the style, though, is encouragement enough to follow the links here and discover the great canon of Surf music."
Some people just seem genetically predisposed to music making I often think. Be it the cheek bones or some other piece of physicality, some stuff’s just preordained.
Such is the case with St. Louis’ Living Things who swept through DC last week and played a storming set over at The Rock and Roll Hotel. TVD chatted with Lillian Berlin, the band’s lead vocalist and it seems that he TOO has a predisposition—for vinyl:
"When I search for vinyl I usually end up in a Salvation Army. Albums with titles like Sammy Davis Jr. Sings Jewish Folk Songs, you can only find these classics at your local Army. If I am going for something more mainstream I opt to log on to eBay or hit Vintage Vinyl in St. Louis where I am from, or Grimes in Nashville and Amoeba in the City of Angels. In the end I never get to hear my vinyl collection much, because I am either on the road, on a plane or in the studio with my brothers. Which is when the evil iPod goes into effect..... When I am at home I seem to not want to jam out to the record player cause music is making my ears bleed all day...”
I've seen Stellastarr* twice now and both times I've thought that the band's the real deal—melodic and ethereal, and miles beyond their contemporaries and the post punk purveyors they're lumped alongside in the press.
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