The Dead Perform on the View

This morning Phil, Bobby and Warren played a short but sweet rendition of "Friend of the Devil" on The View in New York City. Phil's singing sounds great on this (first time in a long time) and Bobby even throws in a nice little rhythmic solo. Personally, I like Warren playing acoustic leads much more so than his electric ones. His style feels more appropriate on acoustic Dead songs. The boys will be playing 3 shows in New York City before embarking on a huge tour of the States. It's sure to be hot!
Here's the video:

Plants and Animals

I just discovered this band from jambase.com's recent concert review. They are a 3 piece indie-rock outfit from Montreal with a really nice, original sound. Their music is really psychadelic, and not your typical indie-sound (i.e. hushed vocals, strange guitar chords). Anyways, their album Parc Avenue is really quite fantastic, densly layered, and expertly produced. I found a killer video of them playing the album's best tune "New Kind of Love". Check it out

Woodstock 2009?

According to Rolling Stone Magazine, there was potential for a 40 year anniversary of the legendary Woodstock Festival. Due to the current economic shitstorm, the possibility of a massive, possibly multi-million dollar festival simply does not make sense. Frankly, I'm pretty happy about it. Woodstock was not simply a concert, it was a state of mind. It was a public consciousness brought on by the times, societal events and of course, drugs. Woodstock 1999 was a monstrosity. The Woodstock name simply became a product, and the festival itself shared little resemblance to its namesake. Peace and love was replaced by Limp Bizkit and rape. Simpy put, it was a disaster. How could the promoters and organizers of Woodstock 2009 garuntee that such despicable acts of humanity would not occur again. That's right, they can't. This is all for the best, let's let history be history and not try to recreate something that simply cannot and will not ever be able to be recreated. The commoditization of something as beautiful as a music festival is pretty sickening, and we have already watched it happen to Bonnaroo. Whose idea was it to hire Kanye West and Metallica to play anyways? That's just my two sense, take it for what its worth.

Blender Magazine Goes Under

Well this shouldn't really come as a shocker, but Blender Magazine has closed its doors. With huge newspapers like the New York Times struggling to survive, it's no wonder that a magazine like Blender had to shut down. Alpha Media Group has let go of everyone except for editor-in-chief Joe Levy, who will continue to work with Maxim Magazine, Alpha Media's premier magazine. Blender was a great mag, it mixed music and sex super well. Although the cover's often featured promiscuously dressed young superstars, the musical content within was quality. Blender pushed new bands, and had some primo articles on great bands. Hopefully we will see Blender resurface in the not-to-distant future.

Bonnaroo 2009 Additions

Bonnaroo just posted some additional acts for this summer's festivals. In addition to musicians, they also posted the first round of comedians. Check 'em out.

Artists: Public Enemy, Ani DiFranco, the Malian duo Amadou & Mariam, Shadows Fall,Heartless Bastards, Tony Rice Unit Passion Pit. High On Fire, Dillinger Escape Plan, Wailing Souls, The Itals, MURS White Rabbits, Janelle Monáe, Hockey and Pretty Lights.

Comedians: Jimmy Fallon, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog Presents Bonnapoo 2009, Aziz Ansari, Michael Ian Black & Michael Showalter, Kristen Schaal, Arj Barker, Todd Barry, Rory Albanese, Wayne Federman, Nick Thune, Nick Kroll, Kurt Braunohler, Amy Schumer, Kumail Nanjiani and Pete Homes. John Oliver and Rob Riggle will also host An Evening (or Afternoon) with the Daily Show.

The Shins Return To The Road

After taking a year off for baby concieving and movie-starring, The Shins will be hitting the road again. They're playing tons of your favourite venues across the States for almost the entirety of May . Check out these low-key indie rock stars before they retreat back to other non-music related hobbies.

Dates:
Sat 05/02/09 Bellingham, WA W. Washington Univ.
Mon 05/04/09 Seattle, WA Showbox At The Market
Tue 05/05/09 Seattle, WA Showbox At The Market
Wed 05/06/09 Portland, OR McMenamins Crystal Ballroom
Thu 05/07/09 Portland, OR McMenamins Crystal Ballroom
Sat 05/09/09 Oakland, CA Fox Theater
Sun 05/10/09 Hollywood, CA Hollywood Palladium
Mon 05/11/09 San Diego, CA SOMA San Diego
Wed 05/13/09 Richmond, VA The National
Thu 05/14/09 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Fri 05/15/09 Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live!
Sat 05/16/09 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory
Sun 05/17/09 Montclair, NJ Wellmont Theatre
Mon 05/18/09 New York, NY Terminal 5

For those of you not into The Shins, check out this trippy version of "Sleeping Lessons" (shot live) and see if they can't not change your mind

All Good Music Festival

The All Good Music Festival just announced 3 new artists to its already crazy lineup. The festival will take place July 10-12 at Marvin’s Mountaintop in Masontown, WV. The 3 new bands are the infamous Keller Williams, Lotus and BoomBox.

Complete Lineup:
Ben Harper and RELENTLESS7
Bob Weir & RatDog
moe.
Umphrey’s McGee
STS9
Dark Star Orchestra
Keller Williams
Les Claypool
Yonder Mountain String Band
Lotus
Tea Leaf Green
Buckethead
The Bridge
SOJA
Steve Kimock Crazy Engine
Donna the Buffalo
The New Mastersounds
BoomBox
Todd Snider
Bassnectar
Lake Trout
Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk
Hill Country Revue
Cornmeal
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave
Fear Nuttin' Band

Marco Benevento Interview Part 1: The Album

Marco Benevento's latest album "Me Not Me" is certainly one of the best of 2009. It's littered with amazing cover tunes, and a handful of Marco originals. I recently spoke with Marco about the album. Here is what he had to say.

“Me Not Me” has received a ton of press. Was there a sense of urgency towards recording and releasing the album right away in order to keep the momentum of “Invisible Baby” alive?

Marco: There was no conscious effort to release this in the fresh wake of Invisible Baby to keep the momentum alive. I had two days off on our tour (May 2008) and we decided to record some of the newer originals and covers and ka-blammo--I had a new record. I guess I'm going through a "flood" period of recording, producing and composing. I'm working on a new record for the trio right now! And Joe and I are recording and writing new music, Garage A Trois (my band with Stanton Moore, Skerik and Mike Dillon) will be releasing a record soon too. For the trio, I think there will be a lot of casio tone dance party tracks on the next record as well as lots of circuit bent traffic and of course some acoustic piano too.

Bryce Goggin is known for working with artists such as Phish and Akron/Family. Did you find that his production methods translated well to the sonically dense album you were trying to create?

Marco: Don't forget TV On The Radio and Pavement too!!! I just get along with Bryce. His studio is close to my apartment! We both accept each others creativity. I think we get inspired by each other too. I trust his opinion and ideas, he digs the thick, crazy, mangled sounds that I bring him. We just drink a lot of coffee and eat good food, turn on some old tape machines, reamp instruments, and crank up the Optigan and laugh and try not take stuff too seriously. We have a blast mixing and putting the final touches on my edits.

With so many tunes in your musical canon, was it difficult to narrow “Me Not Me” down to just 10 songs? Were there any cover tunes you recorded that did not make the record?

Marco: Fearless by Pink Floyd didn't make the cut. Not sure why. We'll probably get it out there as a bonus track at some point. We were just about to record "Strangers" by The Kinks, but we aborted the mission and wound up recording my new untitled tune (at the time), that eventually became "Call Home." I wanted to record "Kissing the Lipless" by The Shins, but I don't remember why that didn't happen -- anyway - it's not difficult to choose which tunes to record or to keep on the record for that matter. The really good ones always rise to the top and it's almost obvious which ones are the keepers.

It seems a lot of artists are recording cover albums lately, with Vetiver releasing “Thing of the Past” and Phosphorescent releasing “To Willie." Do you have any moral qualms towards profiting off someone else’s songs?

Marco: Recording other people's music has be going on since recording was invented, so the concept has been around for a while; in folk music, jazz music, classical music, in all music. And I've always wanted to make a record of covers, maybe mixed with some originals. I guess that came from my jazz background. What's funny about the whole "profit" mention in your question is that the person who wrote the song is profiting from me recording it. For example, I have to pay Beck Hanson for "Sing It Again," Jim James for "Golden," etc. Ultimately there is not qualm. It's a great feeling to be able to play a song you love that you find so moving, even though you didn't write it. And ideally your own song should sound like it came from somewhere else, like it reminds you of something, or sounds like another song, a cover. I find that putting cover tunes on "your" record helps the listener connect to what you like to listen to. And maybe it brings you into a new circle of listeners as well.

Your original composition, “Mephisto”, has taken many different forms throughout your career. The Duo version is a slow jazzy ballad, while the version you played with the MK Groove Orchestra was big band and fast tempo. Was it difficult to conceptualize another version of “Mephisto” that would sound different and original?

Marco: Not at all. As a matter of fact I first wrote that tune on the piano and I always wanted to record it with a bass player and a drummer. I've been fortunate to hear it in all sorts of different contexts: on the Rhodes with my band from 1999 The Jazz Farmers, on the Wurlitzer and Hammond with Joe, a big band with MK Groove Orchestra. I actually felt like Mephisto needed another try with Matt Chamberlain, Reed Mathis and the PIANO! I really like the groove Matt came up with so spontaneously in the studio. The big band version came to fruition after I had a dream (on an airplane) about a high school marching band playing it up-tempo. I told them about it and they literally made my dream come true.

Is “Friends” a song you have played before with your Led Zeppelin cover band Bustle in your Hedgerow, or is it brand new to the Trio?

Marco: Joe and I used to play it at The Knitting Factory, and then it became more of a B list tune over the years. BUT it fits perfectly with the trio. There's lots of room for rhythmic play and harmonic freedom over the solo section at the end -- AND - the tune is just awesome - I love Zep ! Never played it with Bustle in Your Hedgerow...... Yet!

You are one of the artists at the forefront of expanding and evolving psychedelic music as we know it. Amongst your use of feedback and your wide array of effects pedals, you also utilize what you call “circuit bent toys”. Can you give us some more detail regarding these toys?

Marco: Just You Tube it--no seriously circuit bending is taking off! They have circuit bending conventions in NY and many other places in the world! I met Tom Stephenson, a circuit bender in Chicago and my life officially started! In short, it's a toy with a pitch knob (custom made by the circuit bender) or a switch that has interrupted or diverted the flow of signals or circuits - hence the name "circuit bender." I love the lo-fi, clitched out sounds that they almost accidentally make!! That's why the song "Now They're Writing Music" has that title--sometimes in the middle of the night they turn on and make there own music!

At the beginning of May I will be sitting down with Marco once again to discuss the tour supporting "Me Not Me" and a whole lot more. I encourage everyone to buy Marco's album. You can find it on amazon.com ( http://www.amazon.com/Me-Not-Marco-Benevento/dp/B001O2ZVTS/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1237826777&sr=8-1 ) and itunes ( http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=303264210&s=143441 ). Stay tuned for Part 2 of the interview.

Here are some sweet videos of Marco's show at the Bell House in New York City. The Trio that night consisted on Andrew Barr on drums, Marc Freidman on bass. Joe Russo, Marco's partner in crime for the Benevento Russo Duo was also on hand to add some extra percussion. Brad Barr opened the show, adding guitar work on a few tracks. With The Slip boys at hand, as well as Joe, you'll see just how amazing the show was.

"RISD" featuring Joe Russo and Brad Barr


"Heartbeats" featuring Joe Russo

Ticketmaster's Phishy Phlub

Ticketmaster has ONCE AGAIN released highly sought after tickets early to the public. Last night they released tickets to Phish's late summer Red Rocks run a week earlier than scheduled. Fans were outraged when they learned that there tickets would be nulled, but they would be receiving refunds for their purchase. Moreover, Ticketmaster has finally done something for the fans, giving everyone who purchased these early tickets $50 gift certificates. Ticketmaster had this to say regarding the flub:

Unfortunately, the tickets that you ordered from Ticketmaster for performances of Phish scheduled at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre between the dates of July 30th and August 2nd, 2009 were put on sale inadvertently, allowing you to order tickets before they were supposed to have been released for sale to the general public. The sale of these tickets prior to the scheduled onsale date was the result of an inadvertent error on the part of Ticketmaster. While we strive to be perfect, errors do occur, albeit rarely. Per our stated policy and our practice Ticketmaster refunds purchases in such situations and cancels the tickets. In this case, while we asked the credit card companies for an authorization code at order time, we did not and will not charge your card for the purchase price and have canceled your order for tickets.

In addition, we’d like to show our sincere regret for this error by providing you with a gift certificate in the amount of $50.00 that is redeemable for any purchase for tickets to qualifying events on Ticketmaster.com or through our call centers as long as your order was in accordance with our standard order guidelines. You should receive this gift certificate in the next two weeks.

We are sorry that we were not able to provide you with the tickets you ordered and hope that we will have the chance to serve you better in the future. We encourage you to visit Ticketmaster at the scheduled onsale for Phish at Red Rocks currently scheduled for Thursday March 26, 2009 at 12:00 pm MT.

Vetiver - Tight Knit

Andy Cabic and company follow Vetiver’s 2008s covers album “Thing of the Past” with “Tight Knit”, an album featuring ten original songs. The tone of this album is bright and happy. Really, really happy. Simply put, “Tight Knit” puts a big smile on my face every time I listen to it. And I have listened to it over and over again, hearing something new on every listen. This is one of those special albums that feels like home. The overall vibe and lyrics of the album connote the special memories in life. A beautiful summer, or an evening by the fire at the cottage. I can not emphasize the warmth of this album enough. Cabic has created something special with this album. “Tight Knit” opens with “Rolling Sea” a mellow acoustic folk-diddy with warm fuzzy piano work and of course, Cabic’s unique and heartwarming vocals. “Everyday” is an upbeat, uplifting tune juxtaposed with lyrics about love and loss. It’s the perfect tune for lying around on a sunny Sunday afternoon. “Down From Above” is a lush song, rich with acoustic guitars, keyboards and hushed vocals. It is a quiet whisper of a song in an otherwise bright album. It undeniably reminds of me The Slip’s “Suffocation Keep”. It’s a gentle lullaby, fitted perfectly into this spectacular album. “On The Other Side” kicks off with a drum machine beat that you just can’t help but bob your head to. The arrangement is sparse and simple, but the harmonizing bluesy guitar riffs and easy-wah wah tinged solos are the perfect touch to this great tune. Cabic nods to the rock and roll doo-wop of the 1950s on “More Of This”. This track has the catchiest chorus on the album, and the guitars are full of twang. “Another Reason To Go” is a funky track which features some killer horns and keyboard work. It’s amazing how Cabic’s plaintive voice works so well with such a wide range of rock styles. His voice is really one of the most underrated in rock and roll today. The last track on the album, “At Forest Edge” is the standout. It creeps up, growing steadily louder and louder, much like Traffic’s psychedelic “The Low-Spark of High-Heeled Boys”. The pounding but distant drum beat helps set the tone for this LSD-tinged song. Cabic’s voice acts as both the background and lead vocals, in a call and response fashion that you just can’t help but get lost in. The slide-guitar fades in and out of the song. It grows and it crawls is a mesmorizing fashion. Cabic’s gentle vocals are melodic and dreamy. “At Forest Edge” is modern psychadelia at its finest; a reinvention of what defined music of the 1960s and 1970s. For those who have followed Vetiver, this is THE album. A full realization of what their sound has been growing to. This will likely be one of the best, but most-overlooked albums of 2009.

Phish Summer Tour

Riding the momentum of their Hampton reunion gigs, Phish has announced a pretty extensive summer tour.

06/04/09 Thu Nikon at Jones Beach Theater Wantagh, NY
06/05/09 Fri Nikon at Jones Beach Theater Wantagh, NY
06/06/09 Sat Comcast Center (Great Woods) Mansfield, MA
06/07/09 Sun Susquehanna Bank Center Camden, NJ
06/09/09 Tue Asheville Civic Center Asheville, NC
06/10/09 Wed Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
06/12/09 Fri Bonnaroo Music Festival Manchester, TN
06/14/09 Sun Bonnaroo Music Festival Manchester, TN
06/16/09 Tue Fabulous Fox Theatre St. Louis, MO
06/18/09 Thu Post Gazette Pavilion Burgettstown, PA
06/19/09 Fri Verizon Wireless Music Center Noblesville, IN
06/20/09 Sat Alpine Valley Music Theatre East Troy, WI
06/21/09 Sun Alpine Valley Music Theatre East Troy, WI
07/30/09 Thu Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO
07/31/09 Fri Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO
08/01/09 Sat Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO
08/02/09 Sun Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO
08/05/09 Wed Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View Mountain View, CA
08/07/09 Fri The Gorge George, WA
08/08/09 Sat The Gorge George, WA
08/11/09 Tue Toyota Park Bridgeview, IL
08/13/09 Thu Darien Lake Performing Arts Center Darien Center, NY
08/14/09 Fri Meadows Music Theater Hartford, CT
08/15/09 Sat Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia, MD
08/16/09 Sun Saratoga Performing Arts Center Saratoga Springs, NY

Rothbury Festival 2009

The last big festival announcement is finally here. Bonnaroo has Phish and Bruce Springsteen so its only natural that Rothbury has The Dead and Bob Dylan. Not to mention the rest of the lineup is monstrous. This year it seems that Bonnaroo will almost be on-par with Rothbury (June 2-5), and making your decision will really come down to a few choice preferences and knowing that Bonnaroo is probably the most commercial and expensive festi (food and drink wise) to hit. Keep in mind Rothbury was making huge additions to their lineup as the festival drew nearer, and I'm talking big name artists. Here is the lineup

Lineup:
The Dead
Bob Dylan and His Band
The String Cheese Incident
Willie Nelson & Family
The Black Crowes
Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley & Nas
STS9
G. Love & Special Sauce
Gov't Mule
Broken Social Scene
Yonder Mountain String Band
The Disco Biscuits
Les Claypool
Cold War Kids
John Butler
Chromeo
Ani DiFranco
Matisyahu
Guster
Girl Talk
Femi Kuti & The Positive Force
MSTRKRFT
Martin Sexton
Flogging Molly
Railroad Earth
The Hold Steady
Toots & The Maytals
Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys
Brett Dennen
Zappa Plays Zappa
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Shpongle DJ Set
Son Volt
Jackie Greene
Soulive
Man Man
Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band w/ Tony Rice
EOTO
King Sunny Adé & His African Beats
Lotus
Kid Cudi
STS9 Live PA
The Glitch Mob
Davy Knowles and Back Door Slam
Pretty Lights
Moseley, Law, Sipe & Droll
Rebelution
Quannum All Stars ft. Lyrics Born, The Mighty Underdogs, Gift of Gab & Lifesavas
Toubab Krewe
Sam Roberts Band
Hill Country Revue
Kyle Hollingsworth Band
Lipp Service
2020 Soundsystem
Break Science ft. Adam Deitch
The Hard Lessons
The Low Anthem
Underground Orchestra
Future Rock
The Macpodz
Steppin' In It
Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad
Chris Pierce
Rachel Goodrich
The Ragbirds
Four Finger Five

High Sierra Music Festival 2009

HSMF is often overlooked but is actually one of the oldest and most important festivals. They announced their initial lineup today.

Lineup:
John Butler
Umphrey's McGee
Ani DiFranco
Disco Biscuits
Galactic
The Del McCoury Band
Steve Kimock Crazy Engine feat. Melvin Seals
The Wailers
Tea Leaf Green
Ollabelle
Mike Farris and the Roseland Rhythm Revue
ALO
Vieux Farka Touré
Dr. Dog
Devil Makes Three
The Travelin' McCourys
The Lee Boys
Cornmeal
Bonerama
Marco Benevento Trio
McTuff feat. Skerik, Joe Doria, Andy Coe & D'Vonne Lewis
Skerik will also appear as an artist-at-large
Joe Craven and Sam Bevan Duo
Joe Craven will also appear as artist-at-large and emcee
Nathan Moore
Fareed Haque and The Flat Earth Ensemble
Pretty Lights
Everest
Dusty Rhodes and the River Band
Pimps of Joytime
J-Boogie and Dubtronic Science
Poor Man's Whiskey
Living Folklore

The Allman Brothers Band 40th Anniversary Beacon Run

The Allman Brothers Band just finished up night 2 of their 2009 Beacon Theatre Run. This year's theme is "In Memory of Duane Allman" and the guests will all relate to Duane is some way. They may have been musicians who influenced him, who recorded/played with him or who were influenced by him. So far guests have been Taj Mahal, Levon Helm, Johnny Winter and Los Lobos. Rumour has it members of The Dead and Eric Clapton will be stopping by as well.

Here is a spirited rendition of The Band's "The Weight" featuring Levon Helm and Taj Mahal from night 1 of the run.

More Festivals For The Season

The summer is quickly approaching and more and more festival lineups are being announced. Today the Bear Creek Music and Art Festival lineup was announced which is a bit strange. This unique festival does not take place until November, but early bird tickets are on sale.

The Bear Creek Music and Art Festival will return to Live Oak, FL from November 13-15Two shows from a number of artists including: Galactic, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, Lettuce, The New Mastersounds, Porter Batiste and Stoltz, DubConscious and Zac Deputy. The Slip—a band that has only performed three shows since mid-2007—will also make a rare appearance. Other acts currently scheduled to appear include: Perpetual Groove, Steve Kimock and Crazy Engine, Hill Country Revue, The Benevento -Russo Duo, Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue, Garage A Trois, Fred Wesley and the New JB's, Lotus, The Pnuma Trio, Bonerama, The Ryan Montbleau Band, Surprise Me Mr. Davis, Break Science featuring Adam Deitch, Brock Butler, Eric Krasno & Chapter 2, Good Enough For Good Times, The Heavy Pets, Pnuma Live PA, On The One, Nate Wilson Group and Pimps of Joytime.

The Wanee Festival June 5-6 was announced a little while ago as well. This festival will be hosted by the legendary Allman Brothers Band and has one of the strongest lineups thus far.
THE ALLMAN BROTHERS, Gov't Mule, The Doobie Brothers, Toots And The Maytals, Little Feat, Umphrey's McGee, Susan Tedeschi, The Wailers, Drive-By Truckers, Bill Kreutzmann featuring Oteil Burbridge and Scott Murawski, Keller Williams, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Jorma Kaukonen, Jaimoe's Jasssz Band, Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, The Lee Boys with Oteil Burbridge, Hill Country Revue, Devon Allman's Honeytribe, Bonobos Convergence, Mocean Worker, Blowing Trees, Special Friday Midnight Set with The Derek Trucks Band

Rothbury has yet to announce its initial lineup, but is surprisingly selling early bird tickets.

Marco Benevento 2 Part Interview Soon To Come !

Big news! I will soon be conducting an interview with the indie jazz-rock genius Marco Benevento. This interview will consist of 2 parts. A preliminary interview will be posted soon and the 2nd half of the interview will take place in Montreal on May 6 where the Marco Benevento Trio will be playing for its first time! Stay tuned, its sure to be a great read(s)!

Phish Hampton Night #3

The idea of Phish reuniting sat funny in all of our guts at first. Of course we all wanted it, and most fans dreamed of it. In our heart of hearts we knew Coventry was not the end. How could it be? What group of musicians THAT talented with that much love and adoration for their fans would let their legacy end in such an anti-climactic way. Thankfully, not Phish. The 3 nights at Hampton were big. The boys had something to prove. Although the jams weren't necessarily long, they were tight and well played. Flubs were had, but isn't that why we always loved Phish? Just like us, Phish makes mistakes, but it also knows how to correct them. Coventry was a mistake, but thankfully March 6-8 at Hampton was its solution. This summer's tour should be legendary. With that being said, I bring you the final set of the much anticipated Phish reunion run.

Set One:
Sanity
Wilson
Foam
Bathtub Gin
Undermind
AC/DC Bag
My Friend, My Friend
Scent of a Mule
All Of These Dreams
Maze
She Thinks I Still Care*
Army of One
Tube
Cars Trucks Buses
Free
Frankenstein**

Set Two :
Down With Disease^
Seven Below
The Horse >
Silent In The Morning
Twist
2001
Moma Dance
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Wading In The Velvet Sea
Slave To The Traffic Light

Encore :
Contact
Bug
Tweezer Reprise

Phish Hampton Night #2

Annndddd the madness continues with night 2 at Hampton Colisseum. Tonight the boys continue to go balls out playing monsters like Run Like an Antelope, Ghost and the classic threesome of Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove. How could tomorrow night's set be any better? I'm sure they will surprise us.

Setlist:

Set One:
Back On The Train
Runaway Jim
Brian & Robert
Split Open and Melt
Heavy Things
Punch You In The Eye
Gumbo
Reba
Mexican Cousin
It's Ice
Halley's Comet
Beauty of a Broken Heart*
Guelah Papyrus
Lawn Boy
Run Like An Antelope

Set Two:
Rock & Roll
Limb by Limb
Story of the Ghost
Piper
Birds of a Feather
Wolfman's Brother
Prince Caspian
Mike's Song >
I Am Hydrogen >
Weekapaug Groove
Character Zero
Encore:
A Day In The Life

Phish Hampton Night #1

Phish's first show in 5 years in now officially in the books and it was a monster. The boys played for over 4 hours long with the first set clocking in at around 2 hours. They brought the heat, playing more of their intricate compositional pieces and less of their honky-tonk country jams. It's clear that Phish is serious this time around and are ready to give back to their devoted fans who have stuck with them through the thickness of the 90's and the undeniable thinness of the 2000s. The full show will be available via livephish.com for free in mp3 quality tomorrow morning.
Here is the set list in full, it is simply mind blowing, a truly epic show.

Set One:
Fluffhead
Divided Sky
Chalk Dust Torture
Sample In A Jar
Stash
I Didn't Know
Oh Kee Pah Ceremony >
Suzy Greenberg
Farmhouse
NICU
Horn
Rift
Train Song
Water In The Sky
Squirming Coil
David Bowie

Set Two:
Backwards Down The Number LIne
Tweezer
Taste
Possum
Theme From The Bottom
First Tube
Harry Hood
Waste
You Enjoy Myself*

Encore:
Grind**
Bouncing Around The Room
Loving Cup

Pitchfork Fest Initial Lineup

The 2009 Pitchfork Music Festival which will take place in Chicago's Union Park from July 17 to July 19 has a stellar initial lineup. The iconic indie-rock festival will feature:

Friday - "Write the Night: Set Lists by Request"
Built to Spill
The Jesus Lizard
Yo La Tengo
Tortoise

Saturday
The National
Pharoahe Monch
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

Sunday
Grizzly Bear
The Walkmen
Vivian Girls

Phish Hampton Run For Free!

This weekend is a big weekend. For most folks out there, March 6-8 is just like any other regular weekend, but for some of us, this weekend is extremely special and about 5 years in the making. For those of you who guessed it already, the Phish Hampton reunion run is this weekend and even though I was unable to get tickets, like so many of you out there, hold your head up because Phish has not let us down. The boys will be giving away the Hampton shows for free so we can live the experience in the comfort of our homes. Some of you may have wished for a webcast of the shows but for one reason or another, the boys have chosen to go a different route, and I for one am still very gracious. Big Red had this to say: "We really wanted to show our gratitude to all the Phish fans for their support and the overwhelming response they've had to these shows. It's going to be an amazing celebration and we only wish everybody could be there,"
Phish will be recording the Hampton shows in a mobile multitrack studio, and mixing the shows overnight for immediate delivery on LivePhish.com

Saturday couldn't come any sooner, but I guess we will all just have to wait. My guess on first song is officially Down With Disease.
I leave you now with a killer version of Sample in a Jar from the new Clifford Ball DVDs that were just released. Enjoy!

The Duncan Davies Trio: Interview

Late this afternoon I sat down with the boys of the Duncan Davies Trio for "Back In 15 Minutes’" first interview. The band which is made up of Duncan Davies (lead guitar and vocals), Liam Cohl (bass and vocals) and Lewis Spring (drums and vocals) were more than ready to partake in their first relaxed interview without MTV or Entertainment Tonight shoving huge cameras into their faces. We discussed how the band met, the current state of the music industry, how Kurt Cobain was a shitty guitarist and of course, Duncan's decision to be featured on MTV’s "The City". Although Davies has received a lot of press due to his cameos on "The City", he is truly a talented guitarist and a spectacular singer. Childhood friends Cohl and Spring also provide the perfect rhythm section to compliment Davies’ interesting blend of folk/pop/jazz rock.
Here is the full interview with The Duncan Davies Trio.

Lucas = me, the interviewer
DD = Duncan Davies
LC = Liam Cohl
LS = Lewis Spring


Lucas: How did you guys meet and end up playing music together?

DD: Me and Lewis went to public school together and have known each other since we were about two or three years old
DD: We ironically tried to start a band when I was in grade 6 and Lewis was in grade 5 and we realized after our first practice that we were in a little over our heads, and that fell by the way side
LS: We actually share a mutual friend who is now our manager. He called me up and asked if I wanted to play drums for this guy Duncan and I said oh yah I know Duncan from way back in the day and so that’s how we came back together
Lucas: So it was a simple twist of fate. Who were your main musical influences growing up?
LC: I listened to lots of old folk and country music. Lots of Pete Seeger, Merle Haggard, all the classics and of course all the classic rock. Lots of Pink Floyd.
LS: I’ve always been a rocker. I fell in love with John Bonham and he’s always been my idol, but like these guys, I like to listen to everything like jazz, Miles Davis, The Fleet Foxes which are awesome. They might be my new favourite band, Neil Young too of course.
DD: I’ve always been into the singer/songwriters. The dude that could sit there with a guitar. Van Morisson, Jackson Brown and the list goes on and on.

Lucas: Yah of course. So what have you guys been listening to on the road, at least on the drive over here today.

DD: We put in road mix 1,2,3 and let them go, its everything from jazz to reggae to classic rock.

Lucas: Any favourite albums of 2008?
LS: The Fleet Foxes album definitely
Lucas: Yah that’s probably one of the best of 2008.
LC: Ahh I have no clue, my favourite album of 2008 was released in 1961.
DD: We don’t listen to that much contemporary music. I’ve been discovering older artists like JJ Cale, The Flying Burrito Brothers

Lucas: So you’re on a journey back into the classic rock archives. How do you guys feel about the old trend of college bands playing on campuses being replaced by DJ and electronic acts?

LC: I think it really sucks because that whole evolution of bands, the process that allows bands to get good and build a following has been eliminated. It’s become incredibly tough for a band to sustain itself throughout college and throughout a city and to be able to cover their expenses and to keep everyone happy, even just to get shows now is tough. Actual bands playing at bars were once upon a time more prevalent than a guy just standing on stage with a Mac and an iPod.
LS: The people want to hear a wide variety of music and often the bands can’t provide that. This generation has excess energy and short attention spans, one tempo and one volume just isn’t sufficient anymore. They love going out and getting wasted and nobody has the patience to sit down and listen to a full 5 minute song.
LC: A full song? Try a full album! Something like Dark Side of the Moon could never do now what it did when it was released.
Lucas: Different generation, different drugs.
DD: The number of people who are out there and who are willing to sit down and listen are still huge and there are enough people who are still willing to listen to the lyrics and feel something and make a connection to it. You may just have to get through the masses of hip hop fans before you get to them.
LC: There’s also 10 times as many people on the planet now to potentially be an audience but there could be twice as many people into electro now then there were 5 years ago, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t break through to the crowd.
DD: In the last however many years there have also been bad musicians who because of MySpace and the internet have been able to make it big.
LC: Yah who put no time into practicing and can just post a cut of a song. The Kurt Cobains of the world. Although he was a great lyricist and a great leader of a movement at the time he was a friggin awful guitarist.
DD: Yah he was a piece of shit player.

Lucas: Obviously the music industry is in the midst of a pretty big rough patch right now, do you guys have any interesting distribution methods for your up-coming album? Radiohead gave their album away for free and a lot of bands are following that trend, what do you guys plan on doing?

LC: Basically we plan on taking people’s money and putting our album in their pocket even if they don’t want it.
Everyone laughs
DD: we want to explore as many veins and arteries of distribution as possible. Giving it away on MySpace, selling it on iTunes, selling the CDs, if you want to listen for free on the internet it will be there too. We understand that a lot of people don’t want to pay for the album if they can get it for free and why should they want to. A lot of people are going to want to hold the CD and put in their car in their CD player.
Lucas: There is something to be said for having the tangible record, the momento, the notion of building a physical collection to pass on.
DD: Absolutely and we will see what our fans think.
Lucas: Any thoughts on the current state of the music industry right now?
DD: It’s a really exciting place to be right now, it is really up to the new generation of musicians and entrepreneurs to put the pieces back together and for us the internet poses that obvious problem but also gives us an innumerable amount of possibilities as well.
LS: I have no idea what popular music is anymore. At one point Britney Spears and the boy bands were clearly pop music but now Radiohead is doing awesome and The Fleet Foxes are blowing up too.
LC: There are billions of people around and a billion different things to listen to.
Lucas: The definition of popular music now is certainly not as universal as it once was.
LC: There are so many different microcosms within popular music. There’s hip hop popular music and techno popular music.
Lucas: And of course there is still the same top 40 hits that get played in the club every weekend and people would call that popular music, but today it is up to the individual to define what popular music is to them.
LS: And electronica is popular now, but a band like Radiohead is a real band still plays their instruments and uses electronic music as a creative tool within.
DD: I would like real music to come back
LC: Like big bands that know how to sing together and play together well and know how to interact with each other. When everyone knows how to play together there is no better sound than that.

Lucas: So Duncan, being on MTV’s “The City” was probably a tough decision for you to make
DD: Nope.

Lucas: Are you afraid the critics will attack you for choosing to be on a “reality” tv show. Do you think they will question the credibility of you and your music?

DD: Anyone who is trying to judge the integrity of the music based on the “reality” of the television show…I mean, where are your brains at?

Lucas: Are you afraid you’re going to ostracize some old fans by being on the show or you’re happy with the potential to make a ton more by using the show as a device.

DD: Really its about sharing music with people and if people to choose to listen to it and if people believe to stand for the things we represent, that’s fine, we just want to connect to people and we want to connect to them.

Lucas: Have you seen a different crowd at shows now that you have been on MTV?

DD: Certainly a lot more of the……..summer of 92s
LS: A lot more cougars, the older ladies

Lucas: To me it seems like a more than logical decision to be on a show where you can potentially reach a ton of viewers especially given the current state of the music industry.

DD: Well its weird, I wasn’t cast on the show, I didn’t get chosen to promote the music. There was this situation with my relationship with the girl that was the preface and that was how it all began, it wasn’t a planned publicity stunt or anything.

I took a few pictures during the soundcheck, and the band's manager said he would send me a few tracks from the show in a few days depending on how the mix came out, so stay tuned for that!

MGMT & The iPhone

On my daily hunt for music news, I came across this rediculous cover of MGMT's "Kids". This unique version by The Mentalist's is played on iPhone applications they have downloaded. Some of the instruments include ocarina, retro synth, minisynth and digidrummer lite. The lyrics of course are provided by the girls, not they're super cool phones.