Dinowalrus - Falling to the Periphery

An album created by a band with a, simply put, different name like Dinowalrus, is sure to hold something different musically. Their soon to be released album, Fairweather, set to drop September 23rd 2016, is definitely one of a kind. The band congregates loads of influences into one, light and airy yet powerful tone that skillfully uses contradicting sounds to create a psychedelic, electronic rock, punk dance voice. It pulls from a mouthful of influences and the album shows it, but it’s not distractingly busy in terms of instrumentals. One might even call it easy listening. Others will call it party music. And the fact that it’s not easily defined makes the album pretty special.
The group of eclectic musicians from Brooklyn started to dabble with their sound in 2008, releasing several albums and touring with a number of groups including Real Estate, Screaming Females and A Place to Bury Strangers. When asked what inspires their song writing process, they said, “Songs always start with a beat and bass line that moves us in a new and different way than anything we’ve done before, then layers of synths and guitars expand intuitively on top of that, finally vocal hooks and lyrics drop into our heads when we least expect it, usually while lulled into a trance by riding the subway around our hometown of NYC.”
A big part of their tone is the contradicting  instruments. Their drums and bass lines are driving and pushing through measures non-stop. They’re tight, driving and consistent while almost all other aspects of their tracks are at first, unexpected. The synthesizers are legato; long and flowing. Same goes for their vocals. Visually, this album is a gargantuan wall of bass and beats with wisps of melodies and harmonies seeping through the cracks.  From: https://nysmusic.com/2016/09/15/hearing-aide-dinowalrus-fairweather/

Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway - Alice in the Bluegrass

You come from a musical family with your father Jack being a bluegrass multi-instrumentalist and instructor and your siblings Sullivan and Michael being musicians themselves by playing the guitar and mandolin respectively. How would you describe this unique upbringing while being immersed in music from the day you were born?

I grew up hearing music around the house all the time and my dad had all these guitars lying around on the couches and on the walls. He would sit down and play me songs whenever I wanted to hear some of my favorites, which were usually these bluegrass songs my dad would sing. When I was really little, around the ages of three or four, I wanted to play the fiddle, and I thought I was going to stick with that. When I was eight, I asked my parents for a guitar because I was interested in trying it out. I played piano, but it didn’t really stick with me.
I’m the oldest out of my siblings, so I was the first out of us to start playing music and it became a fun way of bonding with my dad. Then my brothers wanted to get in on it too, so they started playing music, and when I was probably 12 or so, we started playing little gigs around town. These were at pizza shops, places where we’d open for bluegrass bands coming through the area and stuff like that.

You just mentioned that you’ve been playing guitar since the age of eight and you’re also the first woman to win the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Guitar Player of the Year Award, so how did this come about and what was your reaction to winning when it happened?

It was kind of a surprise and I actually remember where I was when I found out I was nominated. I was back home in California, and it was 2017 or 2018, so I must have been in my early 20s. I was just kind of scrolling through stuff on my phone and I think people were texting me saying “Congratulations!” while I was trying to figure out what happened. I saw that I had been nominated and I was a bit shocked. I had moved to Nashville in 2015, so it was a year or two after that.
I saw someone saying that I was the first woman achieve the nomination, which was really cool as well. I remember thinking how crazy it was that it’s taken this long for a woman to be recognized on the guitar at the Bluegrass Music Awards. Then after that, I was wondering what was actually going to happen at the ceremony and I ended up winning, which was another big surprise. There were a whole lot of questions about being the first woman to win, but I think for me it was just an honor to be up there at all. I grew up going to those award shows and it felt like the biggest thing in the world to me. I got to see my heroes like Tony Rice and Bryan Sutton win the award, so it was really cool to see my name up there with people I really admired and looked up to.

It must have been a great feeling. Over the past few years, you’ve been performing with your own backing band Golden Highway, so how did this come together and what makes this band stand out for you versus other projects you’ve been involved in?

It really started to come together during the pandemic. I wanted to switch things up, go back to my roots and make a bluegrass record. In the bluegrass world, you’ll often see the name of the artist and then their band name, so I thought that it would be fun to differentiate the record from what I’ve done in the past. From there, I put the band together and we’ve been touring ever since. It’s been really fun to step away from the total solo artist thing and really put a spotlight on these amazing musicians that I’ve been performing with on the road.

From: https://medium.com/culture-beat/interview-molly-tuttle-prepares-to-make-her-return-to-freshgrass-with-golden-highway-cba8b962cc7a

Elton John - Live A&R Recording Studios, NYC 11-17-70 Complete

01 I Need You to Turn To
02 Your Song
03 Country Comfort
04 Border Song
05 Indian Sunset
06 Amoreena
07 Bad Side of the Moon
08 Take Me to the Pilot
09 Sixty Years On
10 Honky Tonk Women
11 Can I Put You On
12 Burn Down the Mission / My Baby Left Me / Get Back
13 My Father's Gun

The Juliana Hatfield Three - Supermodel

Vinyl makes you sit down and listen. It's way too much trouble to get up to count grooves to find specific songs. So I put the record on the turntable and for all intents and purposes heard Become What You Are for the first time. I realized that all those years ago I had been selling this masterful collection short. Hatfield's girlish voice has an unexpected edge, cutting in the way paper can slice through skin. But her voice is the counterpoint to her true instrument: Hatfield is an adept and impressive guitarist. How did I not notice this? Driven by guitar riffs that veer away from expected patterns, producer Scott Litt keeps the elements balanced but doesn't polish off the rough sonic surfaces, taking a cue from trios like The Police, Nirvana, and Dinosaur Jr. whose sound is more than the sum of its parts, far bigger than guitar + drum + bass should be. These songs, which I was so quick to dismiss in my youth, are deeper and more complex than I originally gave them credit for. They document a time when Gen X-ers were old enough to make their own decisions, but young enough to not regret their mistakes. 
The Nineties were the golden age of the "Supermodel", also the title of the moody, drawling opening track, which exposes the veneer of perfection as a superficial – even degrading – illusion. "The highest paid piece of ass/You know it's not gonna last/Those magazines end up in the trash." It foreshadows the creepiness of reality television and social media influencers: "She's a living doll/and she's famous for nothing at all/She's living life like a dream/With a false sense of self-esteem." Then the ringer: "I wish she'd trade places with me."  From: http://www.apessimistisneverdisappointed.com/2023/01/this-is-sound-brief-review-of-reissue.html 

Steeleye Span - Blackleg Miner

The Blackleg Miner is printed in A.L. Lloyd’s book Come All Ye Bold Miners: Ballads & Songs of the Coalfields (1952). Lloyd commented in the revised 1978 version:
As sung by W. Sampey, of Bishop Auckland, Co. Durham,18 November 1949. George Korson, in Coal Dust on the Fiddle (Philadelphia, 1943) prints what looks like a parody of this song, The Yahie Miners. Korson’s version comes from Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, a well-known changing-post for British and American miners’ songs. The Durham song has become quite widespread since its appearance in the first edition of the present work, and the tune in particular has taken on variant shapes.

Louis Killen sang Blackleg Miners in 1961 oh his and Isla Cameron’s Prestige International album The Waters of Tyne: Northumbrian Songs and Ballads. He also sang The Blackleg Miners a year later on A.L. Lloyd’s project album, The Iron Muse. The Iron Muse sleeve notes commented:
At the height of the miners’ union struggles of the 1880’s and ’90’s, labourers were brought in from other areas to act as strikebreakers. Ballads of the time describe how the colliers hunted the strikebreakers “like hares upon the moor.” When caught, the blacklegs might be stripped and the clothes and tools thrown down the pit shaft. In the dark, a rope might be stretched across the way to catch the non-union man by the throat and fling him down.

Ray and Archie Fisher sang Blackleg Miner in a concert in Edinburgh that was published in 1964 on the album The Hoot’nanny Show Vol. 2. The album’s sleeve notes commented:
Industrial strife in the bitter bad old days of the mines provoked this Northumbrian ballad. Few songs are so completely unyielding in their attitude. The blackleg or the scab—the worker who defies the strike call of his mates—is still regarded as something that belongs under a stone. It is not a pretty song. Indeed, in these more tolerant times, it is a provocative, ugly song. But it expresses in most eloquent terms the genuine emotions of people at bay.

The Ian Campbell Folk Group recorded The Blackleg Miner for their 1965 album Coal Dust Ballads. The sleeve notes gave their source as W. Sampey as above, and continue:
No collection of miners’ songs would be complete without this song, which was so typical of the militant miners’ attitude to the non-union man.

Steeleye Span recorded The Blackleg Miner in 1970 for their first album, Hark! The Village Wait, with Tim Hart singing lead vocals. The album’s sleeve notes comment:
It is strange that a song as powerful and as singable as this should be so rare, yet it has only once been collected, from a man in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, in 1949. Seghill and Seaton Delaval (presumably the Delaval mentioned in the song) are adjacent mining villages about six miles north of Newcastle upon Tyne, but it is difficult to date the song due to the innumerable mining strikes which have occurred. It is, however, interesting as much as it illustrates the violent hatred felt by the “union” men towards the blacklegs. Ashley Hutchings: “This is the most modern traditional song on the album, possibly dating from the early part of the 20th Century, and is sometimes sung by singers from Northumberland. I believe it was suggested by Tim.”

From: https://mainlynorfolk.info/louis.killen/songs/blacklegminers.html 

Sally Rogers & Claudia Schmidt - Mama, I Miss You Tonight

Old friends Sally Rogers and Claudia Schmidt, each with productive and storied solo careers, relish joining forces to make glorious music. Between them, they have over 30 fine recordings, but only three as a duo, most recently Evidence of Happiness in 2012. Radio stations across the country voted their 1987 collaboration, Closing the Distance, in the top 10 most popular albums of the year. Their separate home bases (Rogers in Connecticut, Schmidt in Minnesota) and full teaching, composing, and touring schedules make it challenging to converge. This Ithaca concert is a rare chance to hear them create magic together, with the synergy that comes from shared musicality and a gift for lyrics, instinctive harmonies, passion for social justice, education, and the environment, and radiant joy in the “Tree of Life.” These are energetic, powerful women who revitalize their audiences with a mix of humor, poignancy, and fire. Both drew attention decades back as regulars on A Prairie Home Companion, and have traveled far and wide since then.
Free-ranging and unclassifiable, Claudia Schmidt is fluent in folk, jazz, blues, and world music styles, a prolific composer and great wordsmith, and a soulful player of 12-string guitar and mountain dulcimer. In addition to taking the stage at festivals, big arenas, and house concerts across North America and Europe, she writes and performs in film, television, and theater. She’s an inimitable force. “When Claudia sings a song, it stays sung,” declares Garrison Keillor. A reviewer in the San Francisco Bay Guardian wrote, “Schmidt’s shows are a lot like falling in love. You never know what’s going to happen next, chances are it’s going to be wonderful, every moment is burned into your memory, and you know you’ll never be the same again.”
Sally Rogers is firmly grounded in traditional folk, old-timey, and children’s music, graced with a pure voice and accomplished playing of guitar, banjo, and dulcimer. In her hands, songs, whether original, contemporary, or hundreds of years old, have a timeless quality. Once heard, audiences remember them and take them home to sing in the kitchen, car, or at gatherings. As a born, and now professional, teacher, Sally Rogers’ successful mission is to set the world singing. When she’s not in a schoolroom, she’s likely to be touring across the States, Europe, or China, recording, creating books and videos for children, composing songs for Unitarian and Quaker hymnals, and quilting.  From: https://canaaninstitute.org/mikesmusicblog/sally-rogers-and-claudia-schmidt-in-concert/

T. Rex - The Slider

In 1969, Marc Bolan published a folio of poetry titled The Warlock of Love. By that point, the man born Mark Feld had already been the guitarist of mod-rock band John’s Children (for all of four months) before turning his attention to folk-rock duo Tyrannosaurus Rex. Together with bongo player Steve Peregrin Took, the group released albums with titles like My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They’re Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows and Unicorn. Bolan mostly sat cross-legged style on stage, strumming an acoustic guitar, singing with such heavy affect that his future producer Tony Visconti was certain he was French, not English. None of these endeavors turned him into a star. But the last line of that folio portended what was to come: “And now where once stood solid water/Stood the reptile king, Tyrannosaurus Rex, reborn and bopping.”
The very next year, Tyrannosaurus Rex was reborn. Bolan stood up, plugged in a Gibson Les Paul, replaced Took with Mickey Finn, and began to enunciate each syllable with lip-smacking aplomb on the band’s first single as T. Rex. Propelled by handclaps and a strutting gamecock of a guitar lick, “Ride a White Swan” climbed up the UK charts to No. 2. T. Rex was bopping. So much so that The Warlock of Love sold over 40,000 copies, making Bolan a best-selling poet.
When T. Rex’s second single “Hot Love” shot straight to #1, Bolan dabbed some glitter on his cheekbones before a “Top of the Pops” performance. As Simon Reynolds recalled in Shock and Awe: Glam Rock and Its Legacy, that performance was “the spark that ignited the glam explosion,” confessing himself to “being shaken by the sight and sound of Marc Bolan...that electric frizz of hair, the glitter-speckled cheeks...Marc seemed like a warlord from outer space.” With 1971’s Electric Warrior, T. Rex topped the charts and was poised to break in the U.S., where “Bang a Gong (Get It On)” reached the top 10. For a glorious, nearly two-year reign, England was caught up in what the music mags would call “T. Rextasy.”
What magic ingredients led to this transformation? Theories range, but this band pic offers a clue. Bolan wears a Chuck Berry tee, while Finn’s shirt proudly proclaims: “Enjoy Cocaine.” Stripping their sound back to the giddy early days of rock’n’roll while indulging in coke’s nervy stimulation, T. Rex very suddenly manifested the biggest screamfest since Beatlemania. Visconti deemed Bolan’s genius be in skipping over the Beatles’ influence entirely, instead reaching back to the ’50s: “He emulated Elvis, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, that was his little trick. It was ingenious.”
Recorded in March and released in July of 1972, The Slider marked both the zenith and imminent approach of the cliff’s edge for T. Rextasy. Recorded in a dilapidated castle in France, it captured Marc Bolan as the King of Glam at the absolute height of his powers. Think Nadia Comăneci in 1976, Prince in the ’80s, or Ronnie O’Sullivan running the snooker table. T. Rex could do no wrong during that span.
As such, every wrist flick and downstroke on The Slider rings out like an act of god. Each cast-off line from Bolan’s notebook transforms into a profound edict from on high. And every cut—be it pop perfection or half-sketched—gets spun into cotton candy by Visconti and the backing vocals of Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan (better known as Flo & Eddie), harmonizing their nasal voices towards new adenoidal highs. The Slider exudes confidence to the point of becoming delirious and drunk on Bolan’s own self-regard, careening between bawdy, brash Little Richard lop-bam-booms, weirdo machismo rock, and ethereal acoustic ballads, while line by line Bolan toggles between profundity and inanity, melancholia and nonsense.  From: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/t-rex-the-slider/

Holly & The Reivers - Willy O'Winsbury

The natural worry for live music fans, when you hear one of your favourite live acts is going to record music, is ‘is it going to sound as good recorded as it does live?’ Known for their ferocious live shows, Holly & The Reivers are an excellent live act; full of multi-part vocals, precise folk musicianship and lovely and interesting asides. If only in terms of capturing their energy, recording their debut album must have been a challenge. 
“We were a bit worried when we went in to record the album,” confirms singer and guitarist Holly Clarke, who makes up the band with Merle Harbron (vocals, fiddle) and Bertie Armstrong (vocals, banjo), “but we also knew we could play well so we were pretty confident it would come out okay.” And come out okay it sure does. Taken over 11 tracks, Three Galleys is a treat for lovers of the darker elements of folk. Accompanied by wonderful musicianship and stunning three-part-harmonies, the trio’s album tracks its way across some of the most iconic parts of folk, with each song breathing fully to capture the expanse of their surroundings – it’s like listening to a live Cormac McCarthy reading. 
“The album’s an amalgamation of all of the elements we love about folk,” continues Clarke, “which for us means that it’s heavily into ‘folk horror’ aspects, so imagine the sound of The Wicker Man soundtrack which is creepy and eerie in places.” 
Choosing tracks which fall into the ‘folk horror’ realm, Three Galleys has a deliberate narrative theme; songs such as The Bold Marauder and Walking Boss drawing out elements of protest and punk that are deeply rooted in the more defiant aspects of folk. 
“For the debut record we’ve chosen songs we really believe in. So songs like Bold Marauder are protesting war and Bleary Winter talks about lamenting the loss of England’s land. With the current times and ideas of war, and of the right to roam movement, we felt like these were good songs to not only showcase beautiful folk songs but also showcase messages that are still really vital today.  Another song, Willie O Winsbury, is a 400 year old song about Queer love – again these are great pieces to connect with but also to show that there is still much to fight for and to be angry about.”
Whilst album launch dates are still being figured out (“we’re really keen to do some local live album dates but there’s a few things to still be worked out”), the trio’s talk has already moved on to album two and what comes next. “We feel like this is just scratching the surface of what we want to make, but we’re really happy with the record and want to create new atmospheres as soon as we can.”  From: https://narcmagazine.com/interview-holly-the-reivers/

Marvin Gaye - Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)

Marvin Gaye was in full cry in 1971. Seized with a new passion to create music of deep lyrical meaning, and to sing about the issues affecting a troubled world, he perfected the art of doing that in the context of a huge-selling album and singles from it. The album, of course, was What’s Going On, and on October 9, the latest 45 from it, Marvin’s “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler),” took its bow on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Best Selling Soul Singles chart.
The What’s Going On album had been released in May, four months after the title track had signaled Gaye’s dramatic new change of direction. That single was an R&B No.1 for five weeks that spent three weeks at No.2 on the pop survey. Then early July brought the second single, “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology),” a two-week R&B champion and pop No.4. “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” completed a remarkable trinity. It climbed to the R&B summit for a two-week run that meant Gaye had spent nine weeks atop the soul chart with three singles from What’s Going On. 
Strange to think, then, that Motown boss Berry Gordy didn’t exactly embrace Gaye’s new direction, and was distinctly wary of the “What’s Going On” single in particular. Until Gaye’s audience showed that they were with him all the way, that is, and that they loved his new role as a soulful social commentator. As writer Ben Edmonds observed in the 30th anniversary edition of the album in 2001, the subjects on Gaye’s agenda remained all too relevant then, and all the more so now. “The music alone would assure What’s Going On of immortality,” he noted, “but its messages still bristle with urgency. Told from the point of view of a returning Vietnam soldier, its portraits of disconnected Vets, drug addiction, ecological disaster and economic desperation are so much our own that this 1971 recording now sounds like prophesy.”  From: https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/marvin-gaye-inner-city-blues-song/

 

Corpo-Mente - Scylla

Just slightly over four years ago, the eccentric soul behind Igorrr (who goes as Gautier Serre in real life) pulled what I like to call a ‘Casualties of Cool’. By that I mean that just like Devin Townsend, Serre poured his deepest innards into a strongly emotional side project which showcases feelings and moods above everything else. And just like Devin’s foray, Corpo-Mente is a stark departure from what we are used to hearing from Serre.
Corpo-Mente is truly something special, regardless from which angle it is viewed. Stylistically it’s difficult to pin down – as any proper record is – but if I’d absolutely have to say it’s something then it would be that it’s kind of an acoustic/modern classical frame that is filled to the brim with operatic vocals and a strong trip-hop aesthetic, all of which is then painted with a zestful handful of glitchy electronic shades and splattered with just a dash of Igorrr’s characteristic black metal.
The flow and composure of the record is quite thoughtfully laid down with a truly progressive mindset. This reverberates with exuberance in really every moment. The listener isn’t just entertained but rather immersed in a dark, gloomy, and visceral territory where emotions are incarnated and roam free. This particular trait is enhanced thousandfold by Laure Le Prunenec’s vivid and dynamic vocal delivery. I’m not only talking about how her technical prowess is absolutely on point, but also about how every pulse is perfectly articulated. There are very few vocalists that reach anywhere near this level, and for that, Laure’s contribution is an integral part of what makes Corpo-Mente so special.
I would be remiss if I wouldn’t mention how the production value gives extra depth in nuance to the entire trip. It adds that extra pinch of color which is sometimes missing on albums that are equally well crafted. This attention to detail is what separates a really good record from a masterpiece. Corpo-Mente is by no means a show of technicality or intricate composition, quite the contrary; it is an elegant display of how soul-stirring properties can emerge from something relatively simple. It successfully conjures an entire realm around the listener with an effortless grace and that is where its mettle lies. Such records are the ones I personally live for, regardless of the form or style they come in. All I hope is that Corpo-Mente doesn’t remain a one-album-wonder like so many other amazing projects.  From: https://everythingisnoise.net/features/a-scene-in-retrospect-corpo-mente-corpo-mente/

Hazmat Modine - Dead Crow

Hazmat Modine are a maverick New York band who are shifting from Americana to global influences with remarkable results. Founded by singer-songwriter, guitarist and impressive harmonica-player Wade Shuman, they are distinctive both because of their range and their line-up: two harmonicas are matched against a three-piece brass section, guitar, steel guitar and percussion. The songs here are often blues-based, but always different; the opening Mocking Bird starts like a slow work-song and builds into rousing, harmonica and brass-backed folk-blues, while Two Forty Seven is a finger-clicking burst of brassy R&B, and the title track is an exercise in poetry and blues. The cover songs are equally original, and include a cheerful, spoken treatment of Irving Berlin's Walking Stick and the harmonica-backed 70s soul of I've Been Lonely for So Long. But the collaborations are even better, with Kronos Quartet adding their strings to the cheerfully rhythmic blues Dead Crow and Benin's Gangbé Brass Band bringing African jazz influences to Cotonou Stomp and the slinky Child of a Blind Man, where Natalie Merchant provides lead vocals. A brave and unexpected record.  From: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/may/26/hazmat-modine-cicada-review 

Bosnian Rainbows - Eli

In March 2012, The Mars Volta released its sixth studio album, Noctourniquet, following a lengthy three year recording period. Only 19 tour dates were announced in support of the release, of which 18 were in Europe and one in Israel. Following the tour's completion, Rodríguez-López moved back to his home town of El Paso, Texas, and subsequently formed Bosnian Rainbows with frequent collaborator Teri Gender Bender of Le Butcherettes, Mars Volta drummer Deantoni Parks and Nicci Kasper, who previously worked with Parks in Kudu and also as the writing duo Dark Angels. Regarding the band's conception, Rodríguez-López noted, "I found myself lonely and bored. So it's like, 'OK, new phase — let's get into it and let's create a dialogue. Let's find some things out.
Rodríguez-López subsequently put The Mars Volta on hiatus (although the band dissolved four months later) in order to focus on a more democratic project, stating, "It’s a band — that's something I haven’t been in for over eleven years. The Mars Volta was my baby: I started the group; I named it; booked all our tours — it became known as my family, not my band. I had to be in control of everything and I was really fucking domineering with everybody, not just musicians." Rodríguez-López elaborated, "Doing films has taught me to be a collaborator, since it’s such a large medium, you couldn't do it on your own if you tried, you know? And also hanging out with all my friends, Jim and Tony and Paul, the At the Drive-In guys, and being in that headspace again, life puts you exactly where you need to be. You can try and pull away from it, but it will always remind you where your path is. So yeah, this past year has been a really illuminating experience for me."
In September 2012, Bosnian Rainbows embarked upon its first tour under the banner of the Omar Rodriguez Lopez Group, with Rodríguez-López noting, "The tour was booked five months before it happened, and it was going to be another solo tour, and then at some point, I decided to start a new group and have a team effort. So it got booked one way, but I try to make it clear every night that this is a new group, and these are the names of the players, and “thank you.”" The band chose to rehearse in Hamburg at Clouds Hill Studios, owned by Rodriguez-Lopez's longtime friend Johann Scheerer. During the rehearsals Bosnian Rainbows recorded a live session, which was released on 10" vinyl and DVD as a part of Live at Clouds Hill limited edition box set in December 2012. After the European leg of the tour they returned to the studio to record their self-titled debut album, with production by Scheerer.
Regarding the band's influences and aesthetic, Rodríguez-López noted, "These are very much shorter, more to-the-point songs [than The Mars Volta's]. They still have spaces that stretch out, but what I mean to say is that it’s all the same influences that have been in most of my writing and all the people in my bands’ writing. Can is there, Siouxsie and the Banshees is there, Gang of Four is there, all the Led Zeppelin, whatever... all those things are there, it’s just different elements of those things. You make it shorter. It’s stripped down, it’s starker. The very melodic side of Can; the very textural side of Siouxsie. You take all those elements, and you take elements that maybe you weren’t exploring as much before.  From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosnian_Rainbows

 

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tarkus

"Tarkus" is the title track of Emerson, Lake & Palmer's second album. The progressive rock epic lasts 20:42. It was the longest studio suite by the band until the three impressions of "Karn Evil 9". The name "Tarkus" refers to the armadillo-tank from the William Neal paintings on the album cover. The artist has explained that the name is an amalgamation between 'Tartarus' and 'carcass' (hence the name being written in bones on the album cover). Consequently, the name refers to the "futility of war, a man-made mess with symbols of mutated destruction." The song "Tarkus" supposedly follows the adventures of Tarkus from his birth, through a fight with a manticore, which he loses and concludes with an aquatic version of Tarkus named "Aquatarkus". Keith Emerson, when asked what work he is proudest of, named his "Piano Concerto" (from the Works release) and "Tarkus".  From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarkus_(suite)

Ani DiFranco - Worthy

We are looking forward to having you at MASS MoCA, Ani. When you’re on tour, do you explore the city where you’re playing? 

We don’t have a lot of days off, but whenever we do, then I have time to wander around and check a place out. On show days, I’m pretty ensconced with interviews and setlists. Making a setlist takes me a weirdly long amount of time, just trying to figure out what the flow is going to be like. I’m usually in the venue most of the day.

Your setlists vary depending on the venue? 

Yes, definitely. A rock club will be more rock and roll, and then in a seated theater, I can bring out the chill stuff. This spring is the first time I’ll be touring with my latest album, Unprecedented Sh!t. I haven't played any of those songs live.

I listened to the album again last night and really enjoy it. I'll ask you about that a little later. We have daughters who are a similar age, 17. How do you think your daughter’s life is different than when you were that age?

I guess the biggest difference is the smartphone. She's growing up in a whole other way, in a whole other world than those of us who were pre-internet creatures. I feel very grateful to have known the world before that. It sort of contracted from three-plus dimensions to two. She has her own world there in her headphones and with her phone and TikTok, which is typical of this generation of kids. I feel like these devices—having the world in your pocket—is expansive in some ways because you certainly are aware of much more than maybe we were at 17 just entering the world. But I feel it's also a deterrent to actually going out there and striking your own path in the world. It’s an intimidating amount of information. Anything that a young person could think to do, they can pull their phone out of their pocket and see somebody who's doing it better than anyone ever has. And I feel like that makes kids feel like, well, why would I bother? I can't be that pretty or that good a dancer or that smart of a designer or whatever it is. I feel like it's almost a repressive force. That’s just coming from my mother's instinct. It seems like a lot of young adults seem wary to leave the house and go try to do something.

What stands out most when you were 18 and on your own in New York City? 

New York was so different back then, in 1989, when I moved there. It was much rougher around the edges, more dangerous and edgy, but really fascinating, really vibrant. With money comes cleanliness and safety and convenience and all those things, but it also dulls down the spirit of a place. I'm also happy that I'm old enough to have known the old New York, where there were found sculptures everywhere and still chickens running around the Lower East Side, squats and artists and a less shiny and moneyed and rat race-feeling city. It was rough. Even though I grew up in the city in Buffalo, landing in New York at 18 was daunting. I had a sublet for two months, and I didn't know a soul. I had to get work. I had to figure it out real quick. I remember I cried a lot. It felt cold to me at first, but I was determined. I acclimated, and, of course, I fell in love with it. I would live again in New York in a heartbeat. 

What would you tell your younger self? 

I would mostly petition her to be more patient, to take more time doing everything. I was very driven and very determined. For whatever reason, I was flinging albums into the world twice a year, just churning out songs and throwing them against the wall and seeing what stuck. I would advise her to take more time—there’s no hurry—and even step back from making music, from making albums, from being on stage more than I did. I think it would have served me and my art, and in that sense, my audience, for me to remove myself and rebuild myself and regenerate my own cells more than I did.

Your kids must think you're so cool. 

I guess I'm doing okay in that regard. They're not mortally ashamed or embarrassed of me. It's amazing how little relevance the culture of one's parents has to their culture and their world. When I joined the Broadway show, I went up a notch with my daughter.

She got to experience New York and see her mom on stage, so I can understand why. Did you grow up wanting to be a musician? 

Yes, when I was nine, I started playing guitar, and right away it was the best medicine I'd ever had. It was the most healing thing to sing and to play guitar and to make music. Instantly, I wanted to do it and not stop. I didn't have a big plan for myself. I just knew that this was the best thing I found in terms of making art for me.

What did you listen to growing up? 

A lot of folk singers, so to speak. singer-songwriters of the ’70s, ’80s; I was fortunate to have a lot of them live and in person in my life.

How did that come about? 

When I was just a kid starting to play guitar, I made friends with this fellow in Buffalo, Michael Meldrum. He was a singer-songwriter, a troubadour playing in all the bars and running the open mics. I became his shadow. Another thing that he was doing was booking concerts. He had what he called the Greenwich Village Song Project, and he would bring songwriters in from the city. So, I met and hung out with a lot of them. I saw all of them play. The model for music was something you do. He and I would sit around and sing and learn songs and play together, and I would play with him at all his little shows. Growing up, it was more of a social act, which, I think, is the genesis of music and what it really is. So, I had a good, long beginning of the essence of what music is.

From: https://www.berkshiremag.com/post/10-minutes-with-ani-difranco

Gothic Chicken - Overthrow

Pink Hedgehog Records put together Gothic Chicken, a psyche-pop super group with members from The Lucky Bishops and Cheese; Marco Rossi (Guitars), Alan Strawbridge (Bass ), Tom Hughes (Keyboards), and Luke Adams (Drums) with all members contributing to vocal duties. The production here is high quality, a mix of Schnauser and Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd on the big opener “Overthrow.” Next the baroque pop gem “And As For Me” is like a Left Banke composition with smooth harmonies, but it dives into prog-land shortly after the chorus. This follows through for many songs, setting up a solid melody and then going ADD with it by flying into a Zappaesque direction. Gorgeous composition sets-ups like “The Mousetrap” and “Priest Hole” will demand repeat listens. “Westward Ho?” is another amazing gem; like a lost 10cc track floating through Pepperland. If you like psychedelic rabbit holes, this is an excellent album to turn on and tune in to. Highly Recommended.  From: https://www.powerpopaholic.com/2016/01/gothic-chicken-and-javier-escovedo.html

 

Kings & Beggars - Rosa das Rosas Medieval Show

 Kings & Beggars - Rosa das Rosas Medieval Show - Part 1

 

 Kings & Beggars - Rosa das Rosas Medieval Show - Part 2

 

 Kings & Beggars - Rosa das Rosas Medieval Show - Part 3

 

Kings & Beggars ensemble was found in march, 2008 in Lviv by Anna Vasylchenko. The ensemble's line-up has changed several times since then but now it’s stable and active and musicians are devoted to the same idea. Ensemble plays European early and folk music, which was enjoyed by the noble people at the royal court and the simple people in the cities and villages – this where the name “Kings & Beggars” came out. Ensemble repertoire is quite rich: from XIII century songs, ballads and dance melodies of XVI century to folk music from different European countries (Ukrainian, Irish, etc). Repertoire includes works from such known codex’s as Cantigas de Santa Maria, Cantus Buranus, Llibre Vermel de Montserrat, etc. It’s also includes a lot of English, French and Italian dances from XIII, XIV and XVI centuries. Kings & Beggars is working with musicians from Ukraine and abroad, also with historical dance collectives and re-enactors clubs. By this time the ensemble had taken part in many festivals of medieval culture, and in many other art events, concerts and tournaments.  From: https://sakingsandbeggars.z6.web.core.windows.net/  

 

The Fiery Furnaces - Ex-Guru

For those out of the loop, the Fiery Furnaces are the brother/sister duo of Matt and Eleanor Friedberger. It wouldn't be a stretch to say they're one of the most critically acclaimed and highly praised rock bands playing today. Last year, their two releases, EP and Rehearsing My Choir, made them the only artist on the College Music Journal's year-end chart with multiple records, at numbers 22 and 191, respectively. With two red cats stamped on my hands (the mark of being under 21 at the Cat's Cradle), a digital camera, and a spot to sit close to the stage against a graffiti-tagged wall, I was ready for the show to start. Eleanor Friedberger, the main vocalist, showed up on stage in an all white outfit with a very energetic start to the show. The man behind the music, Matt Friedberger, was playing only guitar this time around (no keyboards like on the albums) and a bassist and drummer who were both very impressive backed them. The mood was established early with the familiar tune "Asthma Attack" and an impressive up tempo version of "Straight Street" before diving into songs from their newest record, Rehearsing My Choir.
While the show wasn't the pyrotechnic phenomenon that is a Kiss show, it wasn't supposed to be. They proved that they have even more depth than their albums show and bring something more to the table live than just carbon copies of their songs. Luckily, I was able to talk to Matt Friedberger on the phone about the tour and upcoming albums.

I know it's early in the tour, but does it feel any different from past tours?

Well, we played Charlotte and we're in Florida now. We haven't played any shows here yet, but we're playing different places this tour. Besides that, you know, it's not much different. It feels different for me because I'm not carrying around a keyboard with me.

Yeah, I noticed that. The last time I saw you, about a year ago, you played a lot more keyboard and the bassist was playing a synthesizer, so it was sort of a different feel. Is there any reason you're not playing any keyboard?

No big reasons. It's a way to make it a different experience. We're sort of in-between records, I mean even though Rehearsing My Choir isn't that old, we're in-between that and Bitter Tea. It seemed more appropriate to me to just play guitar.

Is Bitter Tea going to be more guitar-based like what you're doing with the guitar live or is that just something your doing on tour?

Oh no, it's all keyboards, a lot of pianos, organs, and synthesizers. Well, some guitar, but heavier on the others.

Similar to what you did on Rehearsing My Choir?

This record has drums and drum machines, unlike Rehearsing My Choir. And the songs have choruses and it's not really narration like the last album was but more songs with repeating choruses, the same lyrics and what not. Does that make sense?

Yeah, definitely. Did you know when you were recording Rehearsing My Choir that the versions you were going to be playing live were going to be so different than the way they were in the studio? They seem much more consciously rock.

Live, you have the drums so it's natural to make them louder. You know, we try to make them into rock songs. I thought that would be fun. Live, there are drums and no Grandmother, so you've got those differences and so that was fun, to change them live.

When you sit down to write a song, what are your personal goals-is it to write something people will like or something they'll think is weird or unique?

[laughs] I think you just have to try to feel fulfilled, personally. It's not like writing for a goal, but you just have to try to satisfy yourself. So, no I don't write for someone to listen and think it's good or bad, but just that it is for me, if that makes sense.

This summer you have some solo albums coming out, are they going to be a lot different than the music you write for the Fiery Furnaces or is it similar?

To me, they sound completely different because I wound up singing. One record is all songs and one record is a story record. On the story one I sort of have this ghost language which is something that happened because I wanted an excuse to use a lot of backwards vocals [laughs]. It's more like Rehearsing My Choir in that there's a story but no narrating. The other is just songs. It's a much louder rock record.

Finally, I guess I was just wondering if the band name, The Fiery Furnaces, comes from the Bob Dylan song "Jokerman."

Oh "Jokerman," no, the name comes from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I was watching and the dad says he's going to put the car in the Fiery Furnace and I knew it was a biblical reference. The idea of fire and brimstone I just thought sort of just fit for a rock band, plus my last name is Friedberger and there are two of us [in the band] so you have the two F's. And the plural of Furnace just when you say it seems sort of hard and tongue-twisting.

From: https://www.piratemedia1.com/archives/article_1015d0af-bf60-55cc-bd49-39af76679842.html

The Holy Family – Inward Turning Suns

The Holy Family are the latest band from David J Smith (Guapo, The Stargazers Assistant, Miasma & The Carousel Of Headless Horses) and features long time cohorts Kavus Torabi (Cardiacs, Gong, The Utopia Strong, Knifeworld, Guapo), Emmitt Elvin (Chrome Hoof, Knifeworld, Guapo), Sam Warren (Guapo, Thumpermonkey) and Michael J York (Coil, Current 93, The Utopia Strong, Teleplasmiste, Guapo, The Stargazers Assistant, Cyclobe). The band originally came together as Guapo to improvise new material in an old country house in England but it quickly became apparent that this was not a Guapo album.
David J Smith - "I guess if I had to try to put it into words it's my attempt at a musical interpretation of a very trippy and psychedelic murder mystery tale, or otherworldly dream / hallucination".
The band have explored a broad range of style across kosmiche, psyche, electronica, zeuhl, acid folk. It's a heady shamanic trip across altered states that grooves and rocks.  From: https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=11898

The Fast Camels - Blissful Serenity

How would you describe your sound?

Drew Sturgeon: I’d say we have quite a distinct but varied sound. The 60s Psych/Freakbeat influences are clear but we’ve stayed true to producing records exactly how we feel at that moment and try not to reproduce a pastiche of our favourite era of music! In this album in particular, we have kept a live and almost raw energy in the majority of the tracks which was our intentions from the get-go! We pride ourselves on melody, harmony and interesting arrangements!

Would you like to talk a bit about your background?

The Camels have been releasing records now since 2007 (The Magic Optician album) when Neon Tetra Records signed us for a one album deal! We started off as a little Glasgow band playing the circuit but that album opened a few doors! None more so than being the only act from the UK to be selected for the 40th anniversary of Monterey Pop! Sadly, our trip was sabotaged by a former member and left the band in disarray for a long sullen spell leading to a chaotic turnover of band members. Because of several line-up changes, our 2nd release, Deadrooms & Butterfly Dreams was released 7 years later in 2014! Since then, we’ve been in a real good place with a solid base and the same 5 members. Mark (O’Connor) and I started the band and found an interesting connection through the love of music, humour and drive to create and write together. The Tales of the Expected album (2016) lead us on to successful tours of Mainland Europe and the USA before recording and releasing this LP, Full Of Strange.

When did you decide that you wanted to start writing and performing your own music? What brought that about for you?

I began writing songs years before ‘The Fast Camels’. My older brother was my main influence musically as he had a tremendous music taste and record collection fortunately for myself! He also taught me guitar and is a fine songwriter in his own right! So, before I met Mark, I did have a fair number of songs in the bank but I also found that collaborating opened up so many doors and has many more advantages. We tend to paint pictures in our heads lyrically for our own enjoyment whilst performing and there’s a real fun factor in our writing hence why we’re still at it!

What does the name “Fast Camels” refer to in the context of the band name?

Ha, that I’m not exactly sure? I know the reason why we’re called The Fast Camels but not sure you’d understand even with my explanation! Just think of Camels eating sand to save someone…

How do you usually approach music making?

There are 3 main procedures in my eyes and all songs take different routes. Probably around 90% of them begin with Mark or I having an idea, meaning melody, chords, a riff or a lyric. Sometimes a bit of everything. We then jam the idea out in one of the houses, my on acoustic, Mark on electric and pen the song in a session to the point where we have a decent arrangement. The 3rd part of the procedure is the most satisfying when you enter the studio with the band and you hear it all come together! Everyone has pretty much a free reign to put their own parts and ideas down and we’re always open to suggestions. Mark and I write the majority of the songs but Joe and Andy both contribute also.

What are some bands/musicians that have a big influence on you?

On me, there are so many! Love and Arthur Lee are an obvious influence and it was dream-like to perform with their guitarist Johnny Echols in the States! Was a mind-blowing experience not only covering songs of Love but our very own on stage with the man! More recently, I’ve discovered the album Scott 4 (Scott Walker) which blew my mind and I’m still hugely into all the 60s scene bands from The Who, Kinks, Beatles, Stones, Byrds, Jefferson Airplane to artists such as Neil Young and Syd Barrett.

Do you often play live?

Yes, we like to play Glasgow at least once a year and like I say, traveling is a lot of fun with this current line-up, so we always find ourselves playing Liverpool, London and other locations in the UK. No doubt, plans will be in place for another trip abroad! We probably should play more festivals to boost popularity but we are very much an indoor band in my eyes. Those are the best gigs to attend anyway.

Let’s end this interview with some of your favourite albums. Have you found something new lately you would like to recommend to our readers?

Here’s my current top 5:
Forever Changes – Love
Scott 4 – Scott Walker
The Who Sell Out – The Who
Vol. 3 – A Child’s Guide To Good & Evil – West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band
Younger Than Yesterday – The Byrds
For something new, I would recommend See You in the Next World – The Vapour Trails and watch out for fellow Glasgow band, ‘The Poachers’ who are currently recording their first album!

From: https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2019/12/the-fast-camels-interview.html

Tautumeitas - Dzied Papriekšu Brāla Māsa

It has been more than 20 years since Latvia freed itself from Russia and Communism; there’s a generation that’s grown up in the heady air, and the six women of Tautumeitas (evidently pronounced Tautu-MAY-tas to avoid an offensive word) are among them. They’re part of the second Latvian folk revival – the first was part of the 1970s cultural resistance against the Russians – and their debut is full of joy, eagerly grabbing the country’s tradition and pulling it into the 21st century.
They bring big arrangements and choruses to the tradition, but keep the multi-part polyphonic singing that’s at the heart of Latvian music (historically performed by women). Instrumentally, on top of their own violins and accordion, there’s jaw harp, bass, and some electronic programming that gives plenty of punch to the sound. Even before this CD appeared, the band was already known in their homeland through a track put together by producer Reinis Sējāns, which was used in a TV documentary on Latvian history.  From: https://www.rootsworld.com/reviews/tautu-19.shtml