Friday, February 26, 2010

Upcoming Show: My Morning Jacket @ the Merriweather Post Pavillion, MD 5/1/10


Just got tickets for this show today. I'm beyond excited to see these guys again. This is one of only a handful of shows announced thus far so I'm lucky it's close by. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band, who Jim has collaborated with in the past, is the opening act. Since I'm bound to go on a MMJ listening kick now, here's a session from London in 2008 to check out.

My Morning Jacket - From the Basement
1 - Thank You Too!
2 - One Big Holiday
3 - Touch Me I'm Going To Scream, Pt. 1
4 - Librarian
5 - Touch Me I'm Going To Scream, Pt. 2

Download - MMJ - From the Basement

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Boot: Ben Gibbard @ the TLA, Philadelphia 5/9/07


I stumbled across this show a couple years ago. I'm a big fan of his work with both The Postal Service and Death Cab For Cutie. He's a tremendously talented songwriter and lyrically he's one of my personal favorites. This show's setlist mixes Postal Service, Death Cab, and solo material along with a few interesting covers.

Track Listing:
1 - To Sing For You (Donovan)
2 - Brand New Colony
3 - Title & Registration
4 - Crooked Teeth
5 - You Remind Me of Home
6 - Why You'd Want to Live Here
7 - We Will Become Silhouettes
8 - Photobooth
9 - talking
10 - I Was a Kaleidoscope
11 - Casino Blues
12 - Passenger Seat
13 - Soul Meets Body
14 - Palmcorder Yajna (Mountain Goats)
15 - 405
16 - The Sound of Settling
17 - Such Great Heights
18 - A Lack of Color
19 - All Apologies (Nirvana)
20 - Thriller (Michael Jackson)
21 - I'll Follow You Into the Dark

Download - Ben Gibbard - TLA - 5/9/07

Sunday, February 21, 2010

New to Me: Freelance Whales

Hailing from Queens, NY, Freelance Whales' debut album "Weathervanes" releases on March 16th. I've heard a couple songs and I like what I hear so far. I especially enjoy the variety of instruments they incorporate. They've got a show coming up in Philadelphia on March 5th I'm hoping to check out.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Concert Review: 2 Skinnee J's @ the Recher Theatre, MD 2/13/10


The official billing was "An Evening with 2 Skinnee J's-An Acoustically Charged- Tell All Brawl". After years of seeing the J's electrified it was interesting to hear acoustic versions of their songs. The intimacy and interaction this type of show allowed was totally worth it though, and that was the band's plan all along.

Lead singer Special J, guitarist Lance Rockworthy, and bassist Eddie Eyeball walked amongst the crowd playing their instruments, pouring out glasses of wine, and trading off vocals with fans. The middle of the show turned into a Q & A session giving the audience a chance to ask the band some hilarious personal questions. We got to hear about tour antics and the band's early days; spending the better part of the 90's touring in a remodeled short-bus, and having to crash at concert goers homes when they couldn't afford hotels. In the latter part of the show Special J invited fans up on stage to sing and play guitar along with them.

The only shortcoming was co-vocalist J. Guevara's absence. We found out via Q & A question "Where the f@*k is the black guy!?" that J. Guevara is now living in Spain and couldn't attend. That didn't stop the J's from arranging to have him join in and sing a song live via satellite(cough pre-recorded cough)though.

Since disbanding a few years ago, fans have been fortunate enough to see a reunion show every year or two. As long as they continue to do their thing consider my calender marked.

Boot: Vampire Weekend - Morning Becomes Eclectic 2009


Vampire Weekend recently released their 2nd album titled "Contra". I was a bit unsure about it after hearing the first 2 songs that were released: Cousins and Horchata. After listening to the ablum as a whole a couple of times however I was won over. It's definitley worth picking up. The following is a radio spot they did while promoting the new album.

Vampire Weekend - Morning Becomes Eclectic, Los Angeles, CA 2009
1- Intro
2- Ottoman
3- White Sky
4- Cousins
5- Run
6- Interview
7- California English
8- M79
9- Holiday
10- Horchata

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Concert Review: Alberta Cross @ the Khyber, Philadelphia, PA 2/8/10


Fortunately the show fell in between the two blizzards that recently hit our area so the show was able to go on. I first heard Alberta Cross on XPN and then proceeded to buy their 1st album "Broken Side of Time". The album is pretty solid and shows a lot of potential. The sound and energy from the album translated really well into their live performance. Lead singer Petter Stakee has a unique voice that adds a lot to their songs. I was glad to find that it held up well at a live show.

The opening bands were equally as impressive. Hacienda wore me out just watching them rock out and leave everything they had on stage. They've toured/worked with Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) and Dr. Dog, and the influence/experience definitely shows. Philly area locals The Josh Olmstead Band also put on a high energy performance. Their jammed out version of the Beatles' Dig a Pony stood out to me.