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09
Sep

new single from The Last Shadow Puppets

By Michael 3 Comments
Categories: Reviews and Video

The Last Shadow Puppets are a collaboration between Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner and Miles Kane (Little Flames, Rascals). Discovering a shared appreciation of early Bowie the two devised an ambitious take on 60′s symphonic-pop whose best moments bring to mind Love meets The Yardbirds with Enio Morricone and John Barry flourishes without sounding pretentious (despite the presence of 22-piece London Metropolitan Orchestra). At it’s worst it sounds like the Arctics with strings, still an interesting proposition. To his credit Turner retains his boyish, angry young Brit vocal style rather than trying to mime early Scott Walker. The second single from their fabulous debut, The Age Of The Understatement, features 2 non-album tracks. My favorite of the two, “Hang The Cyst”, has a nifty psych guitar freakout tacked onto the end that stretches it to twice the length of anything else they’ve recorded so far.

Give it a listen:

Hang The Cyst

Check out a live video of “Standing Next to Me”

You can find more live & promo videos here.

The next single, “My Mistakes Were Made For You” will be out October 20th and will feature an exclusive live orchestrated version of the band’s “Separate And Ever Deadly” plus live cover versions of the Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra classic ‘Paris Summer’ and the Burt Bacharach penned, Love covered ‘My Little Red Book’.

My Mistakes Were Made For You

All this fabulous music is available on Domino Records.

28
Aug

Byrne/Eno streaming beauty

By Michael 1 Comment
Categories: Music and Reviews

Some thirty years after their initial collaboration My LIfe In The Bush Of Ghosts and a clutch of Talking Heads records Brian Eno produced as a de facto member of the band Byrne and Eno are back with a new record called Everything That Happens Will Happen Today. While longtime Eno fans hoping for ambient quirk pop might be disappointed this music, culled from tracks Eno’s been collecting over the last few years augmented by words and melodies provided by Byrne, is full of hope and warmth. In fact, to these ears it sounds closer to the Talking Heads than anything Byrne’s done since they disbanded in ’91. Add guest spots from the likes of fromer Soft Machiner Robert Wyatt (frame drum solo on “Strange Overtines”), ex-Sex Pistol Steve Jones (guitar on no less than four tracks) and Eno’s old Roxy Music cohort Phil Manzanera (“I Feel My Stuff”) and you’ve got a gorgeous new record its creators are calling “electronic gospel”.

The album is available in myraid formats (including a $70 deluxe version) exclusively from their website. You can get a full listing of who does what here.  Why not give it a listen right now:

David Byrne is planning an ambitious tour that will feature material from the three Eno produced Talking Heads records as well as material from the new record. Sadly Eno does not plan on joining him.

Tour dates:

9/16     Bethlehem, PA – Zoellner Arts Center – Baker Hall

9/17     Baltimore, MD – Lyric

9/18     Newport News, VA – Ferguson Center for the Arts

9/20     Atlanta, GA – Chastain Park Amphitheater

9/21     Asheville, NC – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium

9/22     Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium

9/23     Memphis, TN – Orpheum Theatre

9/26     Austin, TX – Austin City Limits (Zilker Park)

9/28     Albuquerque, NM – Kiva Auditorium

9/30     Phoenix, AZ – Orpheum

10/2     San Diego, CA – Humphreys

10/3     Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre

10/4     Santa Barbara, CA – Arlington Theater

10/6     San Francisco, CA – Davies Symphony Hall

10/8     Santa Rosa, CA – Wells Fargo Center For the Arts

10/9     Saratoga, CA – Mountain Winery

10/11   Park City, UT – Eccles Center for the Performing Arts

10/12   Denver, CO – Buell Theater

10/14   Minneapolis, MN – State Theatre

10/15   Milwaukee, WI – Pabst

10/17   Omaha, NE – Kiewit Concert Hall

10/18   St. Louis, MO – Fox Theatre

10/19   Kansas City, MO – Uptown Theatre (Reserved)

10/21   Louisville, KY – Louisville Palace Theater

10/23   Cleveland, OH – Allen Theatre

10/24   Ann Arbor, MI – Michigan Theatre

10/25   Indianapolis, IN – Clowes Memorial Hall

10/26   Chicago, IL – Chicago Opera House

10/29   Toronto, ONT – Massey Hall

10/30   Montreal, QUE – Metropolis

10/31   Boston, MA – Wang Center

11/1     Atlantic City, NJ – Borgata

11/3     Red Bank, NJ – Count Basie Theatre

11/5     Albany, NY – Empire State Plaza

11/7     Pittsburgh, PA – Carnegie Music Hall

11/8     Philadelphia, PA – Tower Theatre

13
Jun

Win a pair of tickets to Totimoshi @ the Hemlock Tavern

By Michael 1 Comment
Categories: Contests and Reviews

File this under “I’ve been living under a rock”. How has this incredible Oaktown band managed to fly under my radar for more than ten years!? Their fifth album, Milagrosa, continues their patent blend of stoner rock, punk, and metal with a nod toward their Latin heritage.

Sound The Horn

The blistering opening track from Milagrosa is a perfect example of how effortlessly the band shifts from blazing, tight riffage to moody late 70′s drama metal and back without missing a beat.

Singer/guitarist Tony Aguilar explains the thinking behind the band’s first conceptual record: “I wrote most of the songs as an imaginary fight between love/compassion and hate/violence. I wanted to relay the stories as one choice versus the other both in the lyrics and melody, like on the song ‘Milagroso,’ where I say ‘the fields of hate that turn our fate the putrid stench the violence at hand/decisions towards compassion to be made by each and every hand’”. Sounds like something I’ve been looking for lately… They also appear to have finally put an end to the Spinal Tap parade of drummers.

The new record, produced by Page Hamilton of Helmet, comes out July 8.

CONTEST:
Titomoshi is playing at the Hemlock Tavern in San Francisco on the 21st with fellow locals Grayceon & Hurry Up Shotgun. I have a pair of tickets for the first person to email me at mlubenow@gmail.com with the English translation of their new record’s title.

Tour dates:
8 July: San Francisco- *Record release @ 12 Galaxies w/ Big Business & Triclops
25 July: San Francisco- Benders w/ Hail Satan
5 August: Tempe, AZ – the Sets w/ Nebula
6 August: Albuquerque,NM – Ralli’s 4th St. Pub w/ Nebula
8 August: Austin, TX – Red 7 w/ Nebula
9 August: Dallas, TX – Granada Theatre w/ Nebula
10 August: Houston, TX – Rudyards Beer Bar w/ Nebula
12 August: New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jacks w/ Nebula
13 August: Birmingham, AL – the Nick w/ Nebula
14 August: Jacksonville, FL – Landshark Cafe w/ Nebula
15 August: Orlando, FL – Backbooth w/ Nebula
18 August: Atlanta, GA – Smith’s Olde Bar w/ Nebula
19 August: Wilmington, NC – Soapbox w/ Nebula
20 August: Virginia Beach, VA – Jewish Mother w/ Nebula
21 August: Washington DC – Black Cat w/ Nebula
22 August: Philadelphia, PA – the Khyber w/ Nebula
23 August: Baltimore, MD – Otto Bar w/ Nebula
24 August: Boston, MA – Church of Boston w/ Nebula
25 August: NYC, NY – Knitting Factory w/ Nebula
27 August: Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop w/ Nebula
28 August: Lansing, MI – Mac’s w/ Nebula
29 August: Columbus, OH – Ravari Room w/ Nebula
30 August: Chicago, IL – Reggie’s w/ Nebula
1 September: Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon w/ Nebula
6 September: Portland, OR – Ash St. Saloon w/ Nebula
10 September: Hollywood, CA – Viper Room w/ Nebula
11 September: Long Beach, CA – Alex’s Bar w/ Nebula

29
May

More twang in the mailbox

By Michael 0 Comments
Categories: Reviews

Carlene Carter and Justin Townes Earle have a bit in common. Both have fathers who, aside from being country music legends, overcame serious drug habits and both have battled their own drug addictions. Both also have fine new records out.

Imagine you’re the son of Steve Earle and you’re named after Townes Van Zandt. No pressure there… Justin’s debut, The Good Life, is straightforward, subdued country with a shuffley swing feel that’s perfect for recovering on a Saturday morning but his sweet voice sounds more like the dulcet tones of George Jones then his father.

Hard Livin’
Ain’t Glad I’m Leavin‘

The good folks at the Hear Ya blog have a live session up here.
Buy The Good Life from Bloodshot Records.

Stronger, the first record in over twelve years from this country rock survivor sounds more mainstream than Earle’s record, thanks in large part to the production by ex-Doobie Brother John McFee. But that doesn’t keep this from being a welcome comeback. Carlene’s in fine, soulful voice and the lyrics (all self penned), full of redemption and hard fought victory, are some of her best and most personal work.

The Bitter End
To Change Your Heart

That last track features some sweet autoharp that would make her mother June proud. Buy Stronger from Yep Roc records.

20
May

New music

By Michael 1 Comment
Categories: Reviews

The Gossip – Live In Liverpool
When oh when are we going to hear some new music from The Gossip? Their last record, the fabulous Standing In The Way Of Control, came out almost 3 years ago and they’re still flogging it on Letterman. At least we have a new live record to tide us over. This raw, ferocious set was recorded last summer where Beth & Co seem to be spending all their time with their NBF’s in the UK. All their garage/dance punk faves are included along with covers of Aaliyah (meh) and Wham! (thumbs up!) The band’s primal live act is captured in all its intensity with far better sound than 2003′s Undead In NYC. Beth Ditto’s feral R&B howl is in full effect and the band is hyper-tight.

My two favorite tracks so far:
Standing In The Way Of Control (obligatory at this point)
Yr Mangled Heart

The Little Ones – Terry Tales & Fallen Gates EP

I saw The Little Ones open for Quasi at Noisepop earlier this year and just couldn’t get behind them. Maybe I was too prepared for Sam Coomes’ morose musings to let in a little sunshine. My loss. The second EP from these LA popsters is so damn cheerful and sparkly my mouth hurts from smiling so much. Fans of The New Pornographers will be glad they picked this one up.

New Branches

Hard Place – Get Your Hopes Up
Despite the fact that Nathan Shafer is replaced by Ashley Huizenga the second release from this LA/SF glitchy disco tinged glam throwback act is pretty close to their debut EP from ‘04. Think The Cars meets CSS or Bonde do Rolê. Adding a female foil to Freddy Cristy’s sleazy Sparks lounge act is an interesting move and from the looks of the photos on their myspace page their live act is quite a spectacle. Another bold (and hilarious) move is posting negative reviews of their debut.

Last Goodbye

14
May

New music/dvd from The National

By Michael 0 Comments
Categories: Reviews


So what does The National do after releasing one of the hottest records of last year? Well of course they enlist old pal and current La Blogotheque auteur Vincent Moon to direct a movie that’s kinda about the making of said record but also about, if I may quote from Beggar’s Group USA, “how music is made today — not with classic rock bravado, or debauched indulgence, but through novelistic attention to detail, a collective implosion of personality, and worried worried nights”.

But a simple dvd won’t slake the thirst of all those new fans clamoring for more material so you have to slap an odds and (surprisingly few) sods ep to go with it. Bravo! Moon’s movie “A Skin, A Night” and accompanying The Virginia EP comes out next Tuesday, almost a year to the day after their fantastic Boxer full length.

The Virginia EP tracklist:
1) You’ve Done It Again, Virginia (w/ Sufjan Stevens, previously unreleased)
2) Santa Clara (UK b-side)
3) Blank Slate (UK b-side)
4) Tall Saint (demo)
5) Without Permission (unreleased cover of UK alt. folkster Caroline Martin)
6) Forever After Days (demo)
7) Rest Of Years (demo)
8) Slow Show (demo)
9) Lucky You (from last year’s Daytrotter session)
10) Mansion On The Hill (live Springsteen cover)
11) Fake Empire (live)
12) About Today (live)

Check two of my favorite tracks so far:
You’ve Done It Again, Virginia
Without Permission

It’s all more of their distinctive brand of after hours indie pop that feels like the bastard love child of Tindersticks and Spoon. A couple of the demos sound to these ears like full fledged songs ready for release, particularly “Forever After Days” while others are intimate sketches recorded in the Dessner home. The live tracks include the Springsteen cover that’s been all over the international network lately and a robust 8+ minute version of “About Today”.

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I host the Cuppa Joe show on KALX in Berkeley every other Wednesday from 6 to 9 PM. You can tune at 90.7 or online by clicking HERE ------------------------------------------- NEXT SHOW: October 28 FUNDRAISER SHOW!! ------------------------------------------- Check out past playlists HERE
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Quick note about the tunes

The mp3s on this blog are to give folks a little taste. Imagine they're those little pouches on the bag your Sunday paper comes in. You know, the one's with a packet containing just enough toothpaste to brush your teeth once or twice. They are left up for a limited time. If you find something you like support the artists by dragging your friends to their shows and/or buying their CDs/records/schwag. If you are the artist (or their label/representative) and don't want an mp3 on here, please email me (mike@nowhearthismusic.com) and I'll remove it posthaste.
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