Friday, March 30, 2012

Lee Ranaldo Between The Times And The Tides Review

Hey All,

Got a new review up on Glide

Read it Right C'here!!!

It is of Lee Ranaldo's fantastic new release Between The Times And The Tides

We are still really early into the year, but this is easily my favorite album of 2012 so far.  Granted, I love me some Sonic Youth and with their future in doubt an album like this can really alleviate some of that fear. 

There are no bad songs on this one at all, and very few missteps.  If people are not used to Ranaldo's singing style that could be an issue, but anyone who knows his spoken word approach will be fine and actually surprised at his singing on some tunes. 

You can grab the album here, and make sure to catch Ranaldo live when you can. 

Here are a couple of tracks from the album to preview:

"Off The Wall"


"Angles" Live


"Xtina" Live

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Flying Colors Self-Titled Review

Hey all,

Give it a read right c'here!!!!

It is exciting that my first review over at Gotham Rocks has been posted.

It is of Flying Colors Self-Titled first release.  This is Prog-Rock royalty that is going to try to make a play for mainstream audiences (whatever mainstream audiences are these days I guess) with a very poppy front lead vocalist.

This isn't the worst move as Prog fans have always liked layered and soaring vocals, so things won't be that weird for long time Dream Theater fans but Casey McPherson definitely brings a Adult AM vibe in the Train sort of way to some of the more pop tunes here.  ("Kayla", "The Storm").

Certainly worth a listen if you are into any of the players here (who are all extremely talented) or the style of tunes.  Don't be surprised to hear one of these tracks in a commercial or Rom-Com in the next year either...

As for Gotham Rocks themselves, it is a an all around music website/PR company that a friend of mine has been running for a few years now.  Their focus is pretty much locked into the hard rock/heavy metal side of things so if that is your taste keep a close eye on them, especially if you live in NYC.  RtBE are happy to support Gotham Rocks with reviews and anything else, so stay tuned for more collaboration.

Flying Colors is pretty tight on the youtube clips, so peep this Drum Cam video available from Mike Portnoy regarding the songs, and you get a sample of a few of them in there:
 

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Black Keys & Arctic Monkey's Live Review 3-22-12 @ MSG

Blacks Keys
w/ Arctic Monkeys
Madison Square Garden  3-22-12

This was more of a split bill then an opener closer situation as the Arctic Monkeys went on right at the ticketed showtime to a half full "World's Most Famous Arena".  Looking like 50's greasers the 4 piece blasted out a tight, aggressive, arena ready set that was well coordinated and active even if most in attendance did not seem to be into the group.  The strobe light filled "Brianstorm" opened things up, leaving the innovators in the dust before the punk double bill of "Still Take You Home" and "Library Pictures" thundered.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kennyysun
"The View From The Afternoon" was a classic example of the Sheffield spastic fun that the band can produce; messing with genres and still keeping the beat flowing.  "Crying Lightning" had snake like riffs and drums for days, marching and pounding with venom.  Alex Turner seemed a bit bored with the crowd but the group still produced the disco nightmare of "Fluorescent Adolescent" with precision.

A couple of B-Sides closed out the set with "Evil Twin" warming things up before the band rocked out awesomely to "R U Mine?" exiting the arena on a high note after a completely killer set of tunes.         



Next up were The Black Keys with Patrick Carney's drum set moved to the front of the stage so he and guitarist Dan Auerbach could be in the spotlight.  Strolling out to a "Liquid Swords" intro the duo soaked in the adulation but they weren't alone.   The Keys expanded to a four piece for certain songs with bassist Gus Seyffert and keyboardist/second guitarist John Wood who helped out with the opener "Howlin' For You" which was fast paced (a common theme on this night) but exhilarating as the crowd exploded.  It took until then to realize that The Black Keys may be the biggest American band going today, one look around saw fans of all ages singing along and shaking their hips, air guitar and drumming along with the Akron, OH band.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kennyysun
On "Run Right Back" the background players actually shined the brightest as Wood took the lead on the slide guitar parts freeing Auerbach to croon to the crowd about the worst thing that he is addicted too.  Gus and John stuck around also for an older tune "Same Old Thing" which benefited from the new live arraignment before they left the stage to allow Dan and Patrick to get old school for bit.   


"Girl Is On My Mind" had a spacey edge to it as the riffs range around the Garden, even producing a sweet/lazy feeling and "I'll Be Your Man" strutted with confidence as if the song itself knew that it could fill up the venue with only a duo playing it. When Gus and John returned the group focused on their newest release El Camino by playing the "Stairway To Heaven" inspired "Little Black Submarines" and "Money Maker".  The latter was raced through so fast however it lost all the swagger they infused into the studio version making it a much weaker song and that seemed to be a recurring problem on a lot of the newer numbers.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kennyysun
 "Nove Baby" had some killer riffs and a mean ass solo, but never reveled in the shimmy and shake that makes it such a tasty song.  Instead the band seemed to be banging out beats as quick as possible...who knows perhaps they were simply excited to be back playing MSG or maybe they took the intro hip/hop tune a bit too literally and indulged in vices.   Any-which-way, "Lonely Boy" got the biggest ovation of the night and showed off some of the biggest riffs as it closed the bands main set. 


Easily the musical highlight of the night was the first song of the encore and the first song off of their best album Brothers, "Everlasting Light".  The band finally slowed down and eased into the soul that makes them a must listen to, using a giant disco ball to light up the Garden was a pretty cool move too.  The brutal "I Got Mine" was fierce and for most in attendance an apt summation of the night as the band closed out a milestone show.   


Overall the four piece aspect of the group seems to be a bit of an issue for the Keys.  The song writing on the last two albums has obviously benefited from the expanded sound they are producing but they still have a bit of trouble catching the groove live.

The band aggressively and speedily bangs their glam rock tinged blues, but can't seem to dig into the deep rhythms and laid back nuances that elevate the recent albums; it is as if Auerbach and Carney are so used to primal 4-on-the-floor style that they can't let it go.  If they do the band will certainly benefit by letting the songs (and the audience) catch their breath, get their groove on, and enjoy some of the best rock and roll produced in recent years.  Maybe next tour it will all come together.       

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Dinosaur Jr. New Record Update

More exciting news on the Dinosaur Jr. front.  In February we mentioned that Dino Jr is releasing a live DVD from their recent Bug Tours, and today comes official word that the band is almost done with their third reunion album.  Here is an interview from the band before they played SXSW...umm it is different...


Thank god Lou Barlow is in the band for a little bit of speaking ability.  He gave a cool tidbit in there saying that he thinks this is their best reunion album yet.  The last two were sensational and on par (arguably better then) the groups original releases back in the 80's so that is really fantastic news to hear.  BOOSH! 

Even with Barlow in the group interviews are still 90% awkward for Dino Jr.  Well it doesn't really matter when you play songs like this live...

Ah Hell's Yeah...Long live Noiserock!

Monday, March 26, 2012

Dylan Cover #41 Yo La Tengo "4th Time Around"

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's tune is a live cover by Yo La Tengo doing "Fourth Time Around"

Thoughts On Dylan Original:
This is a weird one, as I heard this track after I had already fallen in love with The Beatles "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" and didn't know what Dylan was getting at with this track.  After checking out Wikipedia, I guess I am not alone as John Lennon was all over the map with his reactions to it. The music is the same and the lyrics are a mix of lazy and nonsense, reading into anything Dylan says too heavily can cause one to go mad, but why he chose to do this song so close to when the Beatles had their first lyrical success is a mystery.  social commentary, goof, stoned malaise?  Either way, the song was never one of my favorites and not up to anywhere near the version he was praising or mocking, take your pick.
  
Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
Yo La Tengo are like the grown up Sonic Youth.  Granted they are probably all younger then members of the Youth, but the thought is there...they are the relaxed version; never getting to high or low, but always putting out interesting/weird music.  The band has such a great back catalog of tunes that it is fun to sink back into and listen to their sounds from the mid 90's, and are still going strong with their most recent release 2009's Popular Songs which just may be their best.  A fantastic group that is doing what they love and are still worth catching live or on disk whenever they have a statement to make.  Oh and they just may have the coolest name origin in rock (from Wikipedia):
During the 1962 season, New York Mets center fielder Richie Ashburn and Venezuelan shortstop Elio Chacón found themselves colliding in the outfield. When Ashburn went for a catch, he would scream, "I got it! I got it!" only to run into Chacón, who spoke only Spanish. Ashburn learned to yell, "¡Yo la tengo! ¡Yo la tengo!" instead. In a later game, Ashburn happily saw Chacón backing off. He relaxed, positioned himself to catch the ball, and was instead run over by left fielder Frank Thomas, who understood no Spanish and had missed a team meeting that proposed using the words "¡Yo la tengo!" as a way to avoid outfield collisions.[2] After getting up, Thomas asked Ashburn, "What the heck is a Yellow Tango?".[3]       

Thoughts on Cover:
Delicate with organs acoustic guitars soft brushed snares and a heavy bass line make a sweet musical foundation for this tune to float along on.  There are amazing layers of sound throughout that allows the musicians to vamp on all different sorts of keys, scales and wanderings adding a fresh sound to things.  The major downside seems to be the lyrics themselves and the song structure.  The really cool organ/keys lead outro is fantastic and perhaps a more "jammy vibe" could help elevate things, but I got a feeling those tossed off words would still weigh things down.  The song just isn't that substantial overall but as far as covers compared to the original go:  

Grade: B

Wilson's Take:

Janasies Take:
 

Thursday, March 22, 2012

RTBE Interview with: Run Dan Run

This will be an on going project of interviews with various artists. Today's guest is Dan McCurry from Run Dan Run.
Earlier this year I had the pleasure of reviewing the bands newest release Normal for Glide Magazine, Dan McCurry was nice enough to get in touch and we conducted this interview to follow up on some things.  Enjoy!

Rock The Body Electric: For people just finding out about you guys can you tell us your history as Run Dan Run?

Dan McCurry of Run Dan Run: We first began in 2006 as a recording project without any immediate intention of being a band. Nick Jenkins (the drummer) and I got together over a college spring break and recorded 3 songs of mine in the wee wee hours of the morning. We were pretty excited about what came out of that and showed Ash Hopkins, a local recording whiz kid at the time, who was also excited about it. From there it took about 6 months to actually all play a show together officially as a band. I am not sure why it took 6 months. Anyhow, from there we began playing a lot around town and regionally, recorded our debut album, toured a bit along the east coast from MA to MS, recorded an acoustic EP, toured a little more, etc. I would say that 2006-2009 we were pretty busy. Things slowed down for us 2010-2011 during which we recorded our sophomore album Normal. Now we're a bit more active again though not in all the same ways.

RtBE:  Your acoustic EP 27 Coming St. give a stripped down version of the band that sounds intimate and direct, what was the inspiration to recording live in a living room?  

Dan McCurry: We play pretty well together and I think at the time we were just feeling tired a little with the rock 'n' roll sound. I have a nice living room with a nice old upright in it, actually the piano from my childhood. It just seemed like the thing to do at the time and I think it was. It may happen again, it may not. It is a recording of the moment for the moment. It is entirely different from our full-lengths Basic Mechanics and Normal. 
 RtBE: Normal is your newest release and your second full length, it sounds confident and as if the band is growing, how did this recording process go? 

Dan McCurry: It was a bit spread out. We started in June 2010 with a live drum session. We tracked 8 mics on drums but still played live in the same room, the 3 of us, with our guitars/keys running direct through the headphones so they weren't recorded. we wanted to get the right energy of playing together but still retain the clarity of tracking individually.


In this first session we tracked drums for 6 of the 10 songs on the album. After that I worked on the tunes on my own and built things up. Then we did a 2nd live drum session tracking the other 4 tunes on the album. I did more work on my own, then caught up with Ash Hopkins to record his guitar and bass parts once I had the songs pretty well mapped out. Once he did his parts I was able to wrap things up. 

We all got together another time or two to go over mixes and track a few random parts but from that point it was pretty well done. So basically it is recorded in this patchwork style. We all live in different states now so this is pretty much how we have to do things. We like to let things stew a bit rather than knock it all out in a 3 week studio session. There really are too many little parts and layers to track in a matter of a few weeks anyhow. Also we have our own gear, pretty decent stuff, and do it all ourselves, minus mastering. I prefer this method honestly. Gives us more freedom to experiment.
 


RtBE: On both the 27 Coming St EP and Normal you seem to juxtapose sweet sounding musical backing with some cutting lyrics that wouldn't be out of place on a much more aggressive album, why do you guys take this approach? 

Dan McCurry: I suppose I am just not much of a love song writer. I figure there are plenty of other writers doing that and doing it well so I choose to write about the subject matter that is a bit darker and harder to handle, the stuff we all think about but don't care to talk about. That's my own approach to writing.
 

RtBE: I need to ask about "Lovesick Animal" off of Normal, it is still one of the catchiest songs I have heard this year, what was the inspiration behind it?

Dan McCurry: Glad you asked! I don't think I've been asked this question before. This is probably the oldest song on the record written in 2007 after a break up. It somewhat analyzes both the situation and the mindset of the ex-gf, her hang ups, my own mindset, that sort of thing. It then all boils down to making the statement that really we're all lovesick animals (demonstration by all of the spoken parts, people admitting "I've been a lovesick animal" followed by the screamed chorus from about 8 people? I'd have to count). There may or may not be some sexual connotation in there, I don't know.     
 


RtBE: All the instrumentation in that track is wonderful, sometimes it feels like indie bands will just add sounds/instruments to be quirky, but this track pulls it all together, who is playing on it? 

Dan McCurry: Oh gosh! Well, 17 people total contributed to this track! Most people either spoke the line "I've been a lovesick animal" while a few screamed the chorus (same lyrics, gotta be resourceful). I played guitar, keys, & percussion & of course sang. Ash Hopkins did some more guitar work & electric bass. Nick Jenkins played the drums and some percussion. Our friend Kevin Hackler aided by playing trumpet parts and John Kotab stepped in to lend some sweet trombone action. There isn't a person who participated on this song that didn't contribute either a spoken, sung, or screamed vocal to it. This track was a monster with 100+ tracks to the session. The additional vocal contributions came from Mike Mewborne, Joe Suthers, Alex Muller, , Amanda Mae Monson, Elise Porter, Karis West, Amanda Lewicki, Julie Naleda, Cindy Barnet, Giovanna Allegretti Hopkins & Megan Elger.
 

RtBE: Labels always tend to suck, but are a necessary evil when it comes to reviewing albums, you guys seem to embrace the indie label and your local scene, also are you OK with dance-able white indie rock?
 

Dan McCurry: We certainly embrace the label indie. I think we relate to it because it is both a sound (non-commercial, non-glazed-over-pop-BS) and a mindset. As far as "dance-able white indie rock" goes, if it relates to someone, I am fine with it. We're certainly trying to be relative. We're not trying to be in-accessible, though we're also not trying to chiefly be accessible as that will just produce a load of crap.  



RtBE: What's next for Run Dan Run?

Dan McCurry: Well, we're still working on a few music videos for the tracks on the album, still following up with press, setting the occasional show, etc. Things are generally a little harder to coordinate though as we're spread out a bit, myself in Charleston, SC (our home base), Ash Hopkins in Durham, NC, & Nick Jenkins in New York City. We've gained a bit more momentum with this album and I hope we can follow up with a third album in the near future. 


We have plans to release a b-sides in the next 6 months I believe. There are a few tracks that haven't made an album for one reason or another but are lovely songs that we'd like to share. Plus I figure if they sit too long they die and become irrelevant. Also, we're working on building up our own label, Hearts & Plugs, so that is a bit of a 2-way street; we're giving it some cred and it then gives us some clout, and vice versa. Our album is the first for the Hearts & Plugs catalog and we'll be soon releasing our friends The Lovely Few's album The Perseids next month as the 2nd release. Due to circumstances and distance, we have to carve our own path. Some steps we take might be a little out of order but it is what works best for us at the time. Either way though we'll be taking steps and staying busy I am sure.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Album Review: Stereo Crowd- The Urban Alternative EP

Stereo Crowd
The Urban Alternative EP
**and1/2 out of *****

Combining Rock and Hip-Hop has always been a dicey mix, for every success like the classic first high profile attempt "Walk This Way" to the Limp Bizkit era most would like to forget things are never easy.  More recently The Black Keys rolled out BlakRoc to modest success and that is the road Stereo Crowd seems to traveling all be it with a more pop friendly, party flair. 

The first track "I Got It" starts up the celebration grooves by mixing genre's fairly successfully with multiple MC's, wah-wah guitars and dirty south bounce flow/feel.  There are multiple big choruses here over crunchy guitars and digital squeaks like on "Who Do You Love" (which takes nothing from Bo Diddley) before the group focuses on more rock oriented numbers like the straight up "Can't Wait Anymore" with its "Hey Hey Hey" singalong.  There is a tougher 70's soul edge with "You Always" whose lyrics aren't much, but the musical tone is engaging and makes up for it.  "Up and Away" plays like a Trombone Shorty outtake that could be expanded upon.        

On the less effective side, "Wish I Had A Girl Like You" sounds like a one note number until Kalae All Day does a sped up rhyme to make things interesting amidst the riff's.  "Wrongly Accused" could have been a good mix of raw rock and rap, but vocally the wrong choice was made with the lead, a guest MC could have added some grit.   

Overall the EP ends up being a mixed result like things often are when these two genre's dance, however the band seems more ready to through down these cuts in a live setting and there's no doubt the riffs and bass-lines would play better in a crowded club then on the stereo. 

______________________________________________________________________
Here are a few Youtube clips of the NYC Group, Stereo Crowd:

"I Got It"


"Up and Away" Live


Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Glide Review - Craig Finn - Live 3-8-12 Music Hall of Williamsburg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bandfan

Hey all

Got a new review up over on Glide

Read it right C'here!!!!

It is of Craig Finn's solo show from 3-8-12 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg

What was initially shocking was the lack of bodies in the venue.  The house was barely populated and the upstairs was completely closed off.  Finn played a few shows in town leading up to this one, but a Thursday night in Williamsburg?  I thought for certain would bring out a crowd and that simply wasn't the case. 

The Hold Steady are an RtBE favorite and Finn is major reason why, what is interesting however on his solo album and even more so in the live setting isn't Finn's songwriting that shines bright it is the lack of an upbeat backing band that feels lacking. 

The absence of Tad Kubler's massive arena riffs and upbeat low end from the band seems a little jarring even for Finn who still oddly gyrates on stage but over much tuned down tunes.  Finns songs are great, maybe not his best ever, certainly enjoyable, but the over the top rock that redeems his bleak tales is no where to be found. 

The backing Some Guns on this tour are suitable musicians but the energy level is a 4 at best compared to a Hold Steady show even on a off night which is the 8-10 range.  What pleased me the most during this concert was when Finn left all the backing aside like on the new "Dennis and Billy", the fact it was about 2 upstate boys didn't hurt either.  His song writing completely rings honest with me and that is high praise, so I enjoyed the show, but it was obvious not everyone in the crowd was in the mood for this type of show.

Oh and the less said about the opening front man from Virgin Forest, the better...instead here are a few videos from Finn's Stop in Brooklyn on this tour:

"Balcony"  And yes that is RtBE yelling out "Amen"


"New Friend Jesus"
       

From a different show, here is the earlier mentioned "Dennis and Billy":

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Bowlive III "A Change Is Gonna Come"

The good people at Calabro Music sent RtBE this pretty god dam soulful video of Soulive closing out their Bowlive III event this year, peep it and weep:



Wow, some rich soul there, Sam Cooke would be proud of Ledisi, Nigel Hall, Derek Trucks, and the rest of the crew assembled.  For more info on each night of this event make sure to check out Royal Family Records, and keep supporting great music. 

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Live Raconteurs DVD To be Released in June

Today just got a little bit more Boosh with this announcement:
The Raconteurs will to release Live at Montreux DVD
On June 18th Eagle Rock Entertainment will release "Live At Montruex 2008" a DVD/Blu-Ray of The Raconteurs entire performance filmed in High Definition at the festival in 2008.  The release includes performances off of both Broken Boy Soldiers and Consolers of The Lonely, a full track listing is below:
Tracklist
1. Consoler Of The Lonely
2. Hold Up
3. You Don’t Understand Me
4. Top Yourself
5. Old Enough
6. Keep It Clean
7. Intimate Secretary
8. Level
9. Steady, As She Goes
10. The Switch And The Spur
11. Rich Kid Blues
12. Blue Veins
13. Many Shades Of Black
14. Broken Boy Soldier
15. Salute Your Solution
16. Carolina Drama

Our friend Scott over at Hidden Track first clued us into this, but we have been all over The Raconteurs since their birth and eve more lately with our NYPL post.  To say RtBE is looking forward to this is a massive understatement, our neighbors are going to need thicker walls when we start pumping this... And any excuse to post more live tunes from the best American Rock and Roll Band out there today (or whenever they play) is welcomed in our book.  Enjoy: 

"Blue Veins"


"You Don't Understand Me"
 

"Salute Your Solution"


quick side note, it is cool to see the guys who wrote it have just as much trouble with the lyrics as my band did when we tried to cover it...GREAT tune, lots of lyrics to get through...

Monday, March 12, 2012

Dylan Cover #40 Fistful of Mercy "Buckets of Rain" Live

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's tune is a live cover by Fistful of Mercy doing "Buckets of Rain"

Thoughts on Dylan Original:
From our first cover version of this tune:  Dylan's mid career masterpiece closes out with this song and to me it always seemed tacked on whimsically.  After going through a ton of raw emotion with "Idiot Wind" and other tunes, Blood on the Tracks finishes with this ditty.  Honestly never one of my favorites, it acted more as a palate cleanser and a sweet one at that.

Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
I wasn't too keen on this group when they got started, and haven't gone back to them for any particular reason since then.  Perhaps it was the timing having their release so close to the excellent Monsters of Folk collaboration, but Harper, Arthur and Harrison while all supremely talented haven't resonated much if at all with me.    

Thoughts on Cover:
A crisp upbeat straight ahead rendition with beautiful harmonies and a great violin sound.  This is a lighthearted tune and the group kept it that way and by amping up the pace a bit made things tidy and speedy.  Crisp and clean like a good lager on a summer day, well done:

Grade: B

Wilson's Take:

Janasie's Take:

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Glide Review - Howlin' Rain - The Russian Wilds


Hey all,

Got a review up on Glide.

Give it a Read Right C'here!!!

It is of Howlin' Rain's newest The Russian Wilds

This is a thick album and one that I am not completely sure I have a formed opinion on.  I know that sounds strange, but sometimes albums need to unfold and this one is not easy to see with only a few listens...Initially things were not good, the excess and over the top arena from '75 was too much for me.

Going back I found somethings to like, particularly "Dark Side" and "Can't Satisfy Me Now".  They are far and away the simplest tracks here, also the best.  The 8 minute wandering tunes just don't do it for me and I like those kind of jams. 

Who knows maybe this will show up on RTBE's best of list at the end of the year...or maybe it won't get played again...time will tell.  Grab the album here and check out some musical samples below.     

"Phantom In The Valley"


"Self Made Man"

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Album Review: Carolina Chocolate Drops -Leaving Eden

Carolina Chocolate Drops
Leaving Eden
**** out of *****

Grammy winners don't mean all that much these days but when a group of young black string players take home the Best Traditional Folk Artists award it makes you take notice.  Following up their award winning album Genuine Negro Jig, finds the Carolina Chocolate Drops in an odd space as founding member Justin Robinson has left the band, tiring from touring life.  Founding members Rhiannon Giddens and Don Flemons have filled his spot in an unusual way bringing in  3 players: cellist Leyla McCall, beat-boxer Adam Matta and multi-instrumentalist Hubby Jenkins.

While they have increased their numbers they certainly haven't overloaded their sound and by turning to bluegrass/folk producer extraordinaire Buddy Miller things are as lean and organic as ever on Leaving Eden.  Mixing in Traditional songs with originals that can stand tall next to the old tunes provides for an impressive collection, and we are not just talking American traditional here as one of the highlights is the beautiful playing on the groups cover of Hannes Coetzee's "Mahalla" written in South Africa.

When the group does dip into the south or "Old Timey" music there are lots to showcase, the call and clapping of "Read "Em John" as well as the fiery picking displayed on "Po Black Sheep" and the opening "Riro's House" are just the start of things.  The production shines on "Kerr's Negro Jig" as there are only 2 things being played, a 5 string gourd banjo and the crickets outside; the nature infused track might smack of gimmickry somewhere else but not here.  The jazz singing displayed by Giddens on Lew Pollack and Jack Yellen's "No Man's Mama" is shiver inducing as she proclaims her independence while the spiritual vocal tone undertaken on the title track and disk closing "Pretty Bird" is just as exciting.            

The strong originals are an added delight showing true talent from these players as they dip into the blues with "West End Blues" play a mean ramble with disk highlight "Boodle-De-Bum-Bum" and even try their hand at breaking into modern day, mainstream CMT with their "Country Girl".  It will be interesting to see if this song takes off like it should in those realms and propel the band to even bigger heights, but as it stands the group is on firm ground singing and playing in a tradition that still can produce awe and revery.

Fans of the genre have a new gem on their hands and hopefully the group will inspire new listeners everywhere to dig back into tradition.   
_____________________________________________________________________
You can grab the album here from Nonesuch Records and follow the band here.  Make sure to catch them live and in the mean time here are some musical samples for you:

"Boodle-De-Bum-Bum" live on NPR


"Leaving Eden"


"Run Mountain" Live

Monday, March 5, 2012

Dylan Cover #39 Henry Lim "Red River Shore"

In this ongoing Monday Series we will be exploring various artists versions of Bob Dylan song's. Today's tune is a live cover by Henry Lim and The Camarade Quartet doing "Red River Shore"

Thoughts on Dylan Original:
 Recorded for Time Out of Mind, only Dylan himself knows why it didn't make the final cut for the album.  It was officially released on Tell Tale Signs and is a disk highlight.  Lazy and wandering it has a good feel to it.  The legendary Jim Dickinson said when it was recorded that it was "the best song there was from the session."  Coming from a man like him and an album like that, it speaks volumes.  

Cover:


Thoughts on Cover Artist:
I had not heard of Henry Lim before stumbling upon this excellent cover, but after doing a quick search and finding his homepage I may have to start paying a bit of attention to him.  A music library staff member who is playing a full string version Bossanova from The Pixies live this April?!  Yup, that is someone I could get down with, to bad I can't make the show out in LA, but I will definitely be checking youtube for clips.  

Thoughts on Cover:
Well thought out and constructed this version is a joy.  Nothing mind blowing in the arrangements, all though the plucking cello is a really nice touch that pops up.  The singing of Lim is rich and string vibrations are true.  An excellent way to hear this tune.

Grade B

Wilsons Take:

Janasie's Take:
Tell Tale Signs was a real treat, covering material that spans the length of the last great period in Dylan's career (until the next one).  "Red River Shore" was absolutely one of the highlights.  I had never heard this version before, but I really enjoyed it.  Maybe as much as the original, which is saying a lot.  Henry Lim has captured the spirit of the song and I loved the string arrangement.  Wish I had been in that room, seems like a cozy little spot.

Friday, March 2, 2012

Friday Funday: Beasties Post Script

There is a whole lot to digest from yesterday's Beastie Boy post, so in the spirit of good times, RtBE posts a video made by friends, starring friends and uploaded by friends that captures that true B-Boy Spirit.  We present to you on this Friday Funday:

Beastie Revolution.


Jesus, How young....and they have over 2000 hits, some weird people out there I tell ya, great work fellows.

Enjoy your weekend.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Full Beastie Boy Concerts! Free Downloads and Video!

Sometimes the Internet is great.  OK, a lot of the time.  In October we came across what we thought was a Youtube oddity, apparently not.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bakameh
A few weeks back when posting about Dino Jr's new DVD I stumbled across a full concert from the NYC Hip-Hop trio the Beastie Boys from Glasgow in 1999.  RtBE has previously mentioned our high regard for this group but this was something else.   

I was floored, having caught this tour back on 8-24-98 out on Long Island still think of that show as a career highlight for the band.  Touring behind their last (at the time it was just next) classic album Hello Nasty the group was energized anew with electro-beats and funky loops, but there was one huge addition.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fabiovenni
Having Mix Master Mike on the turntables amped the groups live set to new heights as he kept them on their toes with unique changes and tunes ("Shimmy Shimmy Ya" in "Sure Shot" is just one example). He still did the best thing I have ever heard with "Tom Sawyer", and that includes whatever Rush does to it...Enough chatter though, thanks to siamesepuppy you can now watch a show from later in that tour in all it's frantic energy below:



Think that is all?  Not Even Close!  While doing a bit of research I found an amazing site that offers free Beastie Bootlegs to fans, insane!  So I can relive the 8-24-1998 show that I loved, you can get audio from this kick ass Glasgow performance or anything else you want...This site is truly a treasure trove for fans, Boosh!

And just to continue on this huge Beastie kick, how about another FULL concert on Youtube, this one from their more recent 2007 Tour when they played the Exit Festival in Serbia...Un-fucking-real.  Thanks to  Luda Zena1228 for posting:


Wow that is a lot to digest...best of luck tackle all that goodness this weekend.