Jazz bassist Dave Holland has played with many of the luminaries of the music—such as Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk—in his forty-five year career. He is not a musician that sits still and rests on his past accomplishments, however. He’s always looking for new musicians and sounds to bring his ideas to light. His current [...]
The official title of the annual happening that takes place at the Trumansburg Fairgrounds every July is the Grassroots Festival of Music and Dance. But, hey, we’re from here, so we just call it Grassroots. Need I say more for you to generally know what to expect? I think not. The specifics of this year’s [...]
Clawing at the Limits of Cool
Clawing at the Limits of Cool explores the collaboration between Miles Davis and John Coltrane, two of the most famous and important jazz musicians, ever. Even though I’ve listed Kind of Blue—their most famous work together—hundreds and hundred of times, the book provided me with me insights and ways to [...]
In 2006, Neko Case released the album that has defined her career so far—“Fox Confessor Brings the Flood.” This album was critically acclaimed (it landed on almost every year end best of list), was adored by her current fans, and turned a whole lot more people onto her music. She toured extensively in support of [...]
I was a mere lad when The Clash played their epic gig at Shea Stadium, opening for The Who on October 12, 1982. Technically speaking, I was just shy of my 12th birthday. I wasn’t yet loyal to any one band and was just starting to figure out the music scene and my place in [...]
Delta Spirit released one of my favorite albums of last year. They fit into that amorphous rock, folk, Americana milieu. That isn’t to say they’re derivative, because they aren’t. From the first notes of “Ode To Sunshine,” the band’s debut on Rounder Records, it shows us its—well—spirit of music. Recorded live in a cabin, the [...]
Due to being in Detroit, being struck down by the flu, and the election, my focus on music has been somewhat diminished—and this is certainly uncommon for me. However, during my illness, I received Samantha Crain’s amazing EP, The Confiscation. This singer and guitarist is just 21 years old, but writes like a much more [...]
Anyone listening to “Alternative” music in the mid to late 1990s, heard Soul Coughing and the unique lyrics of its leader/singer/guitarist, M. Doughy. Well, as most of you know, the “M” stands for Mike who left Soul Coughing in 2000 amid difficult personal and band circumstances. Getting clean and renting a car and logging 9000 [...]
The Gaslight Anthem is a band from New Jersey that combines melodic punk (think Social Distortion) with the storytelling of Bruce Springsteen. While location is important for most bands, it is especially true for this quartet due to the comparisons they have drawn to Springsteen. To me, the major points of comparison lie in the [...]
So here’s a quick down and dirty list of my favorites from 2008. There in no particular order, though.
Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago
The Low Anthem: Oh My God, Charlie Darwin
Frightened Rabbit: The Midnight Organ Fight
Delta Spirit: Ode To Sunshine
Bjorkestra: Enjoy!
The Clash: Live at Shea Stadium
Ra Ra Riot: The Rhumb Line
The Watson Twins: Fire Songs
Beck: [...]
If you’re not from Upstate, NY (And by this I don’t mean Westchester County!) you probably have no idea that Syracuse has a pretty active music scene. If you’re from Upstate, you likely think that its emphasis is on the blues. And while the blues certainly has a strong base in Syracuse—punk and indie music [...]
Man, I am still buzzing for the killer Billy Bragg (See my interview here) show at the State Theatre in Ithaca, NY this past Saturday. It was with out a doubt one of my top shows. It was Billy playing his guitar—mostly electric, but some acoustic as well—on a simple black stage. And I want [...]
Billy Bragg was born in Essex England in 1957, under the name Stephen William Bragg. He released his first album, Life’s a Riot with Spy Vs. Spy, in 1983 and has been performing and recording ever since. Due to his 30-year-long, 12-album career, it’s difficult to decide what to highlight. Fortunately, I got a chance [...]
Portishead has recently released Third, their first album in a decade. And jumping back into Portishead’s world ten years on, three things are immediately clear. The first is, I’ve missed them more than I realized. Secondly, the band’s music has been incredibly influential. Lastly, they still sound amazing. And this sound—this combination of voice, samples, [...]
Yesterday on my way to the office, I stopped at the Ithaca Bakery for a bagel. While waiting in line, the Simple Minds song “Alive and Kicking” was playing. Wow, I hadn’t heard anything from Simple Minds in years. And honestly, I can’t say that I’ve missed them.
But, I was taken back to 8th grade [...]
“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash . . .” It has been 40 years since Johnny Cash walked onto the stage in the Folsom Prison cafeteria and said these words, kicking off his historic and groundbreaking concert. There is a great deal of myth surrounding Johnny Cash, much of it promoted by The Man In Black himself. [...]
Like many others who look to the Internet to find new music, I found Selkirk, Scotland’s Frightened Rabbit on YouTube. It was a grainy-filmed live version of their song, “My Backward Walk” (more on that song later) with a short intro consisting of The National’s track, “Fake Empire.” I was totally blown away. I had [...]
”Whether it’s jazz or punk or anything else, you have to fight against the purists who want to narrow the definition. That’s what kills music because it stifles it to death.”
”The way you get a better world is, you don’t put up with substandard anything.”
It was just before Christmas in 2002 that I heard the [...]
In honor of the Watson Twins being added as the opening band for his October 18 show at the State Theatre, here’s a review of their great debut album, Fire Songs.
Most people know The Watson Twins—Chandra and Leigh—from their playing with Jenny Lewis on the album Rabbit Fur Coat. And the sisters work on that [...]
