Better Than Noodling

My latest column for Hidden Track takes a look at Canadian rockers - Sam Roberts Band - check it out here.

Self-Promotion

Here's my latest review for Baeble Music - Cat Power's performance at Terminal 5 - give it a read here.

Self-Promotion

Here's my latest review for Baeble - Kelley Stoltz's Circular Sound - head here.

Better Than Noodling

My latest column for HT is up, this week I offer up the dreamy, indie-pop of Nada Surf - check it out Better Than Noodling: Nada Surf.

Speaking of Hidden Track with Ace's departure from daily posting I've been asked to take over doing some of the writing and editing duties there, which I've graciously accepted. Not sure what that means for HFTB at the moment, but make sure you head over to Hidden Track for some great content.

Langerado Schedule

For those of you headed down Hippie Spring Break (aka Langerado) the full schedule has been revealed so you can start planning how your day is going to go - head here.


Hidden Track is also running a contest to give away some free passes, but the contest ends tonight at Midnight EST - so click here to enter.

Bloggy Goodness

Here's what some other people have going on....

Tired of Vampire Weekend yet? Well Earvolution caught the second night of their Bowery Ballroom stand - check out their review here.

While I'm ready to head back to Manchester again this year, Hard To Find A Friend writes a Dear Bonnaroo letter about their disappointments with the line-up - read it here.

I'm Losing My Edge reviews Made In The Dark the new release from electro-popsters Hot Chip - click here.

This week's edition of Tuesday's Gold over at Muzzle Of Bees features MP3s from Nada Surf, Lightspeed Champion, Kelley Stoltz and more - head here.

The Late Greats have some new music from JFJO new album - which hits stores on April 11th - give it a listen here.

Finally the latest edition of The Take-Away Shows features psychedelic-freak-folksters the Animal Collective - watch it here.

As also head on over to Hidden Track for their daily distractions and check in Uncensored Interview while you're at it too.

Mixology

In honor of the Bonnaroo line-up announcement this week's Mixology features the music of some of the acts who will be playing there for the first time....

Bonnaroo '08 Line Up Revealed

The initial line-up for the '08 addition of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival has been revealed, here ya go (via NME)....

Pearl Jam
Metallica
Jack Johnson
Kanye West
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
Phil Lesh & Friends
My Morning Jacket
The Allman Brothers Band
The Raconteurs
Willie Nelson
Death Cab for Cutie
B.B. King
Sigur Ros
Levon Helm and the Ramble on the Road
Ben Folds
O.A.R.
The Bluegrass Allstars Feat. Luke Bulla, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer and Bryan Sutton
M.I.A.
Umphrey's McGee
Iron & Wine
Yonder Mountain String Band
The Swell Season
Talib Kweli
Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi’s Soul Stew Revival
Gogol Bordello
Broken Social Scene
Robert Randolph’s Revival
Rilo Kiley
Mastodon
Lupe Fiasco
Against Me!
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
Pat Green
Ozomatli
Tegan & Sara
Solomon Burke
Drive-By Truckers
!!!
The Avett Brothers
Israel Vibration
Abigail Washburn & the Sparrow Quartet featuring Bela Fleck
A Very Special Acoustic Performance by: Phil Lesh, Larry Campbell, Jackie Greene, Teresa Williams
Aimee Mann
Ladytron
The Fiery Furnaces
Orchestra Baobab
Ghostland Observatory
Jose Gonzalez
Dark Star Orchestra
Minus the Bear
Donavon Frankenreiter
Lez Zeppelin
State Radio
Battles
Jakob Dylan
Two Gallants
The Sword
Vampire Weekend
Little Feat
Nicole Atkins
The Felice Brothers
Mason Jennings
MGMT
The Lee Boys
Black Kids
Serena Ryder
Steel Train
Grupo Fantasma
Back Door Slam

Comedians
David Cross
Janeane Garofalo
Zach Galifianakis
Jim Norton
Brian Posehn
Mike Birbiglia
John Mulaney
Michelle Buteau

Happy Fat Tuesday

With all the craziness of Super Tuesday and the big Giants victory parade I almost let Fat Tuesday slip by without honoring it with some New Orleans funk. So here's The Meters with a "Look-Ka Py Py," "Jungle Man" combo for what the YouTubes are telling me is from a Dr. John television special from back in '74....

Super Tuesday

If you live in one of the twenty-four states that are having primaries today I urge you to go out and take advantage of the democratic process by voting.

Better Than Noodling

Week three of my column is now up on Hidden Track where they've let me once again impose my musical agenda on you good people, so head on over - Better Than Noodling: Okkervil River.

I Love Tuesdays

Here are the purchases for the week....

Nada Surf - Lucky

Jack Johnson - Sleep Through The Static

More Road Trips

Kind of slow news day, so let's go with this story about the latest release from the Dead's vault - Road Trips: Vol. 1, Number 2. The two CD set is culled from the band's 1977 swing through the Southwest - read about it here.

For a limited time you'll be able to sample the goods too (well the first disc at least) - give it a listen here.

In other Dead related news for those of us not fortunate enough to be out on the West coast tonight's Deadheads For Obama show the folks over at iClips will be simulcasting it starting around 7:30 PM PST - head here for more info.

Music Video Mondays

Since Tom Petty rocked it last night during halftime, let's go with one of his classic videos from the 1980s. Here's "Won't Back Down" which features Ringo Starr on drums....

Deadheads For Obama

Head here for more info.

Radio Bonnaroo Giving Line Up Clues?

The Weight has a great post up on the somewhat cryptic messages that have been playing on Radio Bonnaroo that many seem to believe are clues to who will be on this year's line-up - read their thoughts here.

Here are the messages:

Clue #1 "There is more than one Manchester."
Clue #2 "Memphis isn't Albany"
Clue #3 "Clouds taste this way"
Clue #4 "Some Herrings are red, Jimmy"
Clue #5 "Hard Substance, Soft Substance"
Clue #6 "Janis Joplin's reserves will be preserved"
Clue #7 "Rumors are just rumors, but twist them sideways, grow your humor hair and they become a more yen reality. No, this is not about Fleetwood Mac"
Clue #8 "It's not sour, what is sowed in the earth"
Clue #9 "Three certain birds, add one"
Clue #10 "Look to the center of Europe to get the sound, but the band comes form all around."
Clue #11 "Here is another clue for you message board people. Open up the church and you will see the steeple. Some of your guesses have been way off but correct for the wrong clues. Now I must cough."

So let the guessing games begin. Thoughts? Leave your guesses in the comments section.

Word on the street is the initial announcement will be this Wednesday so sit tight and get out your decoder rings in the meantime.

Mixology

This week's edition of Mixology is all about drinking, enjoy.....

Bloggy Goodness

Here's what some other people have going on....

NewmRadio is Blog Jammin' to Indie, The New African Prog with videos from MGMT, Vampire Weekend and Black Mountain - check it out here.

Coventry kicks down a download of Ween's performance at Toad's Place from last Thursday - head here to grab it.

How about some jazzy-tinged Americana? That's how Here Comes The Flood is describing the debut album from The Belle Outfit - give them a listen here.

You Ain't No Picasso has a boatload of covers done by Of Montreal. The eclectic grab bag features everything from Europe to M.I.A. to the Talking Heads - click here and start grabbing them.

In honor of tonight's Lost premiere (finally some new TV to watch) The Late Greats have some Driveshaft for us - head here.

Finally Some Velvet Blog is declaring Erykah Badu's new video the best of this young year - it's pretty damn cool - check it out for yourself here.

And as always head on over to Hidden Track for their daily distraction and check in with Uncensored Interview while you're at it too.

At The Brew

I'll tell you Starbucks knows their audience when it comes to putting out music. Their latest in-store exclusive album will be a live compilation culled from Simon & Garfunkel's November 1969 tour - to be aptly titled Live 1969. The tour was the last for the duo for over a decade and featured selections that would come to make up their final album Bridge Over Troubled Water - read about it here.

In other Paul Simon news the singer-songwriter will be playing a series of shows with some great special guests including David Byrne at BAM this April called Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon. Here's some more info....

BAM presents Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon, three unique engagements --all part of a series celebrating and exploring the music and lyrics of Paul Simon. Inspired by locales ranging from the Mississipi Delta to the townships of Johannesburg, the extraordinary music of Paul Simon will be part of BAM's Spring 2008 season in April. The three programs include Songs from The Capeman, Under African Skies, and American Tunes and will include performers such as Oscar Hernández and The Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Claudette Sierra, Obie Bermudez, Ray de la Paz, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Hugh Masekela, Milton Nascimento, Kaïssa, David Byrne, Luciana Souza, Cyro Baptista,Olu Dara, Grizzly Bear, The Roches, and others including Paul Simon. Phil Ramone is the musical advisor for Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon.

"We are so pleased that Paul agreed to let us do this series. He is a true New York City and BAM artist--courageous, pioneering, and deeply heartfelt. His unique storytelling through music has touched the world. There is an elegance to his music," commented BAM Executive Producer Joseph V. Melillo. BAM President Karen Brooks Hopkins added, "Paul Simon's vast body of work over 40 years warranted a new kind of retrospective. BAM wanted to give audiences over an extended period of time the opportunity to experience the totality of his talent and contribution to popular music."

Tickets for the Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon engagements go on sale Feb 11 (Feb 4 for Friends of BAM and Visa Signature cardholders). For ticket information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100 or order online at BAM.org.

The first event of the series, Songs from The Capeman, (April 1-6), will be a concert staging of the 1998 Broadway show The Capeman that includes the doo-wop, rock and roll, and Latin rhythms of a special New York musical era. The music of The Capeman was written by Paul Simon with lyrics by Paul Simon and Derek Walcott. The Capeman is based on the life of Salvador Agrón, a Puerto Rican teenager convicted of murder in 1959. Grammy-nominated Oscar Hernández and The Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Latin Jazz vocalist and original Capeman cast member Claudette Sierra, Latin Grammy-winning artist Obie Bermudez, Salsa and Jazz singer Ray de la Paz, and Paul Simon are confirmed to appear with more artists to be announced. This engagement will also feature a special appearance by Little Anthony and the Imperials.

Under African Skies (April 9-13) rekindles Paul's passion for the rhythms of South Africa and Brazil represented in the Grammy Award-winning, critically acclaimed albums Graceland and The Rhythm of the Saints. Simon will be joined by South African trumpeter and composer Hugh Masekela, Brazilian singer/songwriter Milton Nascimento, Cameroonian vocalist Kaïssa, David Byrne, Brazilian songstress Luciana Souza, and world renowned Brazilian percussionist Cyro Baptista. Simon's band will include: Jay Ashby (trombone), Anthony Cedras (keys & accordion), Steve Gadd (drums), Jamey Haddad (percussion), Jim Hynes (trumpet), Bakithi Kumalo (bass), Vincent Nguini (guitar), and Andrew Snitzer (saxophone). Many of which were members of his original Graceland band. Mark Stewart will be the musical director for Under African Skies.

American Tunes (April 23-27) will be a revisit to the quiet railway stations, urban sounds, and immigrant dreams covering a wide range of songs throughout Paul Simon's brilliant career. American bluesman Olu Dara, Brooklyn-based indie band Grizzly Bear, and harmonic trio The Roches and others to be announced will all be performing along with Paul Simon.

Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings

Back in September after catching the Counting Crows at Farm Aid, I declared it was time we all admitted our love for August And Everything After - and to stop hiding it under hipper bands on your iPod. During their set Duritz and Co. debuted a new tune, and talked energetically about their upcoming release. Well after several delays their new album Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings - their first in five years - will hit stores on March 25th.


The album is a double-disc with Saturday Nights being more of a rock record and Sunday Mornings leaning towards the acoustic, folk infused stuff. Take a listen to selections from both discs...

"1492" and "I Dream Of Michelangelo"

You can also download both tracks here (as a Zip File).