When I saw Bo Ramsey and the Mystery Lights at the Mill back in May, Pieta was kind of hanging back in the shadows of the dark bar and helping her sister sell some Bo Ramsey merchandise. After the show was over I took the opportunity to ask her about her record label situation. After being signed to One Little Indian for her last album, the brilliant Remember the Sun from 2007 the follow-up Flight TimeEP was released on T-Records, which incidentally is the label she used to release her 2003 EP I Never Told.
(BTW: This EP was impossibly out-of-print and apparently Pieta found another box of these recently and you can buy them on CDBaby— get one while you can!)
Her simple answer was that she was “in limbo.” It certainly occurred to me that aside from the extensive touring and appearances she was making over the last couple of years, that she still wasn’t getting the exposure she deserved for that album.
It was announced today via her MySpace page that she has now signed to Twin Cities folk label Red House Records— which is also the label home for Greg Brown and The Pines. So, it is kind of a family reunion of sorts! All they’d need to do is sign Bo Ramsey and it would be complete!
Also as part of this announcement, we find out that she has a new 7-track EP titled Shimmer coming out on November 10th on Red House and is produced by uber-producer Don Was, who has produced acclaimed albums from Bob Dylan (Under the Red Sky), Bonnie Raitt (Her Grammy-winningest run– 1989’s Nick of Time (3 Grammies), 1991’s Luck of the Draw (3 Grammies), 1994’s Longing In Their Hearts (2 Grammies)) and The Rolling Stones (their last notable output in my opinion– 1994’s Voodoo Lounge, 1995’s Stripped, and 1997’s Bridges to Babylon).
All of this seems to me to be a formula for success, frankly. Switching to a label that is more geared to handle her music, and hiring on a big-gun producer who has worked with artists like her. I hope that Bo Ramsey will still be a big part of this recording even if he isn’t at the helm for this one. He certainly knows his way around a Grammy-winner in the studio, too– just look at his work with Lucinda Williams!
When I started talking to Sean Moeller of Daytrotter.com (who signs his missives as “Mr. Daytrotter” amusingly) in May about his idea of “an RV Tour of Iowa Barns” I was both excited and a little worried, frankly.
Sean said that he wanted to give something back to Iowa– his home state– in addition to raising the awareness of the “recording studio with a website” that is Daytrotter.com to its neighbors.
Indeed, while music geeks like myself have been aware of the freely-downloadable mp3’s of the recording sessions done in the Rock Island-based studio– few others I interact with personally (i.e.: not Internet-based life) are aware of the musical bounty that is Daytrotter.com.
Daytrotter has been compared to the infamous BBC Radio One John Peel Session done for almost 40 years by the late DJ-cum-tastemaker where bands recorded special sessions due to musicians’ union rules which resulted in oftentimes better performances than were captured for their albums. Similarly (though not due to labor rules) Sean and his staff of merry recordists are credited with bringing great bands and artists to the attention of the music community at large by recording special sessions, too.
These sessions, usually lasting a couple of hours are a stripped-down, almost “Unplugged” affair where the acts are encouraged to use the equipment– largely vintage– that the studio has which includes an array of pianos, keyboards, mics, amps and drums.
Many of the bands I’ve talked to who have done sessions at Daytrotter compare the experience to what it might have been like to record at Sun Studios during its heyday. Come in, plug in and record the magic– very much a warts-n-all approach as there isn’t much editing or “do-overs.” In some cases it gives the bands an opportunithy to re-imagine a song already released, or try a new song or possibly a choice cover.
The studio is in a perfect location– Rock Island is near I-80 and any act touring the U.S. will likely be driving by. The bands who are invited to do a session tend to be of the D.I.Y. aesthetic anyway so the inspiration that sometimes comes with improvising a session tends to be captured, making every session a gem.
Sean told me that up until the Daytrotter Barnstormer Tour, he hadn’t done any promotion of Daytrotter to speak of. Certainly, Daytrotter sells itself– any blog who covers the acts that Daytrotter records has linked to them at one time or another.
The idea was a simple one– take a handful of acts who have recorded with Daytrotter and take them on a “Caravan of Stars”– type tour to the towns and cities of Iowa and surrounding states providing a free show to the people. It was not designed to be a massive revenue-generating event– just a way to give back. These free shows would largely be put on in the most iconic of Iowa structures– the barn.
While I relished the idea of a collection of hip bands selected by Daytrotter playing for free in quirky barn venues, I was concerned about the turnout or how the promotion would work. Of course I’d do what I could from playbsides.com and I was spreading the word every chance I got– but having been in bands in the 90’s and knowing a bunch of regional bands over the years I’m well aware of the fickle tendencies of small town audiences. There is an addage shared extensively about the success of a band in Iowa and how many cover songs they do. My hopes were that that hip indie-lovin’ crowd existed where they hadn’t 20 years ago. Plus, the bands he picked were largely unknown– I didn’t know any of them (except Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin) before the tour and I follow the site!
So, did the tour go as planned? Given the really short window Sean gave himself to pull bands, transportation and venues together it was an astonishing success! On July 6th Sean had all of the details sorted out to post to his site. It would run five days starting July 26th and have Local Natives– a Silverlake, CA band as the one constant act. The other acts would dovetail in and out of the lineup as their schedules allowed.
I managed to catch two of the shows– the one in my hometown at Mooney Hollow Barn, and the West Liberty, IA show at the Secrest Octagonal Barn.
Mooney Hollow Barn Show – Sunday, 7/26/09
The Bellevue show didn’t have the attendance that we would have hoped. Sean was hoping for at least 100 people per stop, and the promotion for the event locally wasn’t extensive. I had a carload of friends coming in from Cedar Rapids and I knew that my family was going to show. The Bellevue Herald that week had a front-page article on the show and I think there were a couple of other places, but it was a Sunday-night show so that is usually a tough night for a draw.
As many times as I had driven past Mooney Hollow Barn on Hwy 52 with its iconic silo with the fiddle painted on it, I’d never actually been in it. It is an amazing venue– a barn converted to a dancehall in the late 70’s it enjoyed a pretty constant flow of middle-tier country acts until it closed in the early 90’s. It holds about 600 people and has a poured concrete dancefloor with the venue logo on it. The stage is outfitted like the Grand Ol’ Opry and has posters of some of the acts that had played there over the years. It has a two bars and a kitchen, so you can get food there, too.
It was a great place to see these bands, and every one of them commented on how cool Mooney Hollow was. The crowd was receptive and excited to see the bands and showed the bands their appreciate. Beer was cheap, and the crowd was ready for the show.
The first band up with a new band out of Chicago called Stranger Waves. They were raw, punky pop and kicked things off in high-gear. They played a 45-minute set running through all of the songs on their EP that they just recorded. Humorously, they needed to bust out their laptop to burn CD’s to sell to folks, but I think they sold a few! This was the only stop on this tour they played, but I think they were going to play some Chicago shows with Catfish Haven after their Madison stop. Certainly a band to watch!
Next up was Paleo, who did a solo acoustic set that was astonishing. Super low-key, but the guy is a gifted songwriter. I thought that this must have been what it was like to see Dylan when he played the coffee shops in New York City at the beginning of this career. He took a break in the middle of his set to let a girl he was touring with named Natalie Jean (from Flagstaff, apparently) play a small set of songs. She did a couple of original songs and a cover from The Wizard of Oz. A pretty girl with a pretty voice– I can’t find anything about her anywhere. I gave her a business card, maybe she’ll reach out to me.
From San Francisco, originally from Canada is Daniela Gesundheit aka Snowblink who brought with her a small band. Her Gibson SG with vestigial deer antlers seemed to convey the earthy-yet ethereal sound of Snowblink. She used two mics– one with a more dry mix, and the second mic an avalanche of reverb. I still have a major crush on the song “Stand Where A Fruit Tree Drops The Things It Doesn’t Need” from her newest release Long Live. She encourages audience participation on percussion, and she handed out bells to the crowd, which was neat. She invited the crowd to jingle along.
Shifting gears again, we got the R&B tinged rock from Chicago’s Catfish Haven. This was when things got back on to the party groove. These guys set up, plugged in, and damn near burned the barn down with their set. I had been listening to their new album Devastator regularly to get ready for their show. Two standout tracks from that amazing album are “Set In Stone” and “Play the Fool” I played it that weekend for my family to get them in the mood for the show. I can’t say enough about this band– they are like an update of Motown act Rare Earth. Everyone was on the floor shaking ass, which is the way it should be. In the middle of the funky mahem they pulled out a cover of “The Breakup Song (They Don’t Write ‘Em)” by The Greg Kihn Band and I thought the roof was going to cave in!
Their set was done too early– they didn’t do “Play the Fool” and the crowd wanted to get more songs, but they stuck with the agreed timeslot and let Local Natives get set up. That is one of the impressive things about these shows– they get done pretty early, so even if it is a week night show, you get home at a decent time.
I was a little concerned about how Local Natives was going to follow the sheer rawk power displayed by Catfish Haven. Well, once the band got set up I didn’t worry any longer! Local Natives was the surprise of the evening for me (and pretty much everyone else). Two songs into their set, and I turned to my friend Al from Bellevue and said “WTF are we seeing!?!” I was astonished by how polished they were– spot-on harmonies and percussion-heavy arrangements. It was like seeing U2 before they got all PopMart and Blackberry– when they were hungry. The band performed with such commitment and emotion– I hadn’t seen a band perform like this in years. Their album Gorilla Manor has been delayed a couple of times, and it should be coming out in October. The set closer “Sun Hands” is nothing short of insanity on stage– raw emotion. They are playing a bunch of shows at Spaceland in LA this month before they tour Europe again. If you get a chance make sure you catch this band while the tickets are still cheap.
After Local Natives was done, people hung out for a while buying merch finishing beers. A bunch of us were seriously considering driving to Madison for the next night’s show. Thankfully, the 2-hour drive home sobered me up enough to just wait to hit the West Liberty show that Tuesday.
Secrest Octagonal Barn – Tuesday, 7/28/09
My wife and daughter didn’t make the Sunday show in Bellevue, but I convinced them to make the West Liberty show– it was less than an hour’s drive from Cedar Rapids so it was pretty easy to commit to. The only bummer for my wife was that she wanted to see Catfish Haven and their last show was in Madison the previous night. This show had Snowblink and Local Natives from Bellevue, and substituted Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin and Hip Hop MC Mac Lethal to the bill. I was vaguely familiar with SSLYBY through Daytrotter and only had a couple of minutes to listen to the Daytrotter session for Mac Lethal, but it sounded pretty good, and I knew that he was part of a group of MC’s that was getting some buzz.
The barn as described was an Octagonal barn and was a facility one could rent out, so it was set up for audiences, and the show ended up being in what would be considered the hay loft on the second floor.
The show was supposed to start at 6:30PM so we raced down there, and found out that things were running late and they hadn’t even set Snowblink up– who was the first act in this lineup.
My daughter was pretty happy to see Snowblink, and their sound is pretty much up her alley. The set was very similar to the Bellevue show which included a Snowblinkish version of “Jolene” by Dolly Parton, which was pretty cool. This time, however, they invited members of Local Natives to come on stage to help with percussionAfter the show, she went up and introduced herself to Daniela and they talked briefly about a possible show at Coe College in Cedar Rapids.
By the time Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin hit the stage there was a pretty large crowd, over the 100 desired, I think. They ripped through their set with good energy, I wasn’t as familiar with their songs, but I’d definitely see them again.
To shake things up, Sean put Local Natives up following SSLYBY leaving Mac Lethal as the last act of the night. I was really excited for Sherry and Rae and Rae’s friend Chelsea to hear Local Natives because I was so amazed by their live show.
They didn’t disappoint– in fact during their tribal percussion the floor started bouncing a bit unnervingly. I tried to reassure myself that this barn had been here since 1883 and withstood storms and the weight of hay for most of those years and a little bit of bouncing from a crowd of people wouldn’t be a challenge.
Their set was pretty similar to the Bellevue show and ended with “Sun Hands” which is an excellent way to end their set. I tried to capture the energy of that song in the picture above– the band is all over the stage for that song. I know that Local Natives made a bunch of new fans that night.
Next up was Mac Lethal. He was having to make do as a one-man show as his DJ/Producer was not able to make this show, so he commented about having to stop his set to switch songs. I think that he is a really skilled MC, but I got the definite idea he was a bit uncomfortable following these bands– certainly he wasn’t able to showcase the constant energy of his regular set having to mess around with his sampler. For whatever reason, his set had more negative tone to it than the other bands. He started his set talking about driving around lost that day and seeing a monkey doll hanging from a noose in a tree and dove into a tirade about that. Certainly, if he saw that it is pretty bad, and there is some of that in the in the sticks of Iowa. Not that I’m opposed to some pissed off MC’s, but the vibe of his set was markedly different than the rest of the show. He commented on the other acts performances being great a couple of times describing Local Natives show as effectively handing Jesus his pink slip, which I thought was pretty funny. One track I thought was pretty good was one called “Black Widow.” I need to spend some more time with his catalog and maybe see him in a different setting before I’d ever dismiss him as an artist.
I heard that the following night he collaborated with Local Natives– I would have loved to see that. I like MC’s fronting live bands, and I think the right combination can make for a powerful performance.
As I write this, Sean has started to “leak” the information about another Barnstormer run in October. Starting on October 8th and going to October 13th, the show will hit three of the barns from the July run– Maquoketa (10/10), Bellevue (10/11) and West Liberty (10/12). This is great news! The Biehls, who generously lent their barn in July had over 200 people at their show! We have enough time now, to really build the buzz for the Bellevue show, and I’m sure West Liberty will get the crowd from Cedar Rapids, Davenport and Iowa City again.
The bands confirmed so far is a band from California called Dawes, who recalls The Band, CSNY and a little CCR and has amazing harmonies to boot! Christopher Denny is a folksy balladeer who’s voice sounds a lot like Nashville Skyline-era Dylan. Another band committed is Milwaukee band Maritime who has a jangly UK pop influence like Smiths or the Alarm. Again, bands I’d never heard of, but already becoming a fan of. For repeat performers we get the dreamy, wonderful Snowblink (yay!) and Paleo. Apparently there will be other acts added as well.
Sean Moeller is one of those rare guys who just seems to know how to jump headlong into a project like the Daytrotter Barnstormer Tour and catch lightning in a bottle. He trusts that the people of state he grew up in will come out and support it. The buzz is growing, too.
So, if you have any possible way to get to Iowa to any of these shows– do it. If this run of shows is anything like July, it is something you will remember for a long time. Good people, great bands in barns.
Daytrotter Barnstormer 7/26/09 at Mooney Hollow Barn Slideshow
Daytrotter Barnstormer 7/28/09 at Secrest Barn Slideshow
One of our favorite albums from 2008 was the debut release from New Zealand artist Phillipa “Pip” Brown who performs as Ladyhawke (yes, after the Rutger Hauer film of the same name). Released on Modular Recordings– also the home of Cut Copy– it launched four very successful singles in “Magic,” “Back of the Van,” “Paris is Burning,” and “My Delirium.”
How this record managed to not have a U.S. release before now seems unimaginable, but September sees the release of Ladyhawke in CD and LP on Universal/Decca Records in a Special Edition with bonus tracks.
Coinciding with this release is Ladyhawke’s first US tour which as luck would have it brings her to the Midwest in Chicago and Minneapolis. This tour is being sponsored by celebrity mud-slinger Perez Hilton under the “Perez Hilton Presents” banner. This questionable vehicle aside, Hilton seems to have the good taste to include Pip in the lineup of otherwise unfamiliar (except for Ida Maria, I guess) acts.
The tour stops at The Metro in Chicago on Saturday, September 19th and Minneapolis at the Fine Line Music Cafe on Monday September 21st. Both stops have the same lineup– Ladyhawke and Ida Maria as co-headliners and Semi-Precious Weapons from NYC and French electro-pop musician Sliimy.
The tour seems to be providing a fairly wide selection of artists and music (at least within whatever Hilton’s tastes are). At least in the Chicago and Minneapolis stops, we have dancy late 70’s/early 80’s new wavy rock from Ladyhawke, punky indie rock from Ida Maria, Semi-Precious Weapons sounds like The White Stripes-gone-Glam (a good thing, I think), and Sliimy provides a French-pop perspective.
Four diverse acts for under $30! The ticket prices seem to vary. If you get the Minneapolis tickets from Ticketmaster, they are a flat $25 (no fees!), but if you get the tickets from The Fine Line boxoffice, they are $18. The Metro tickets are $17.50 from Metro on line (plus fees). So, visit the sites to find out the best way to get tickets.
Here are the other dates for the Perez Hilton Presents tour:
September 10th – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
September 12th – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
September 13th – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of the Living Arts
September 14th – Boston, MA – House of Blues
September 16th – New York, NY – The Fillmore @ Irving Plaza
September 17th – Toronto, ONT – Opera House Concert Venue
September 19th – Chicago, IL – Metro
September 21st – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Café
September 22nd – Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall Ballroom
September 23rd – Kansas City, MO – The Beaumont Club
September 25th – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
September 26th – Salt Lake City, UT – Club Sound
September 28th – Seattle, WA – The Showbox @ The Market
September 29th – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
September 30th – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore
October 2nd – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
October 3rd – Hollywood, CA – Avalon
You’d think that as many times as I’ve reported that Wye Oak was going to play in Iowa somewhere, I’d have seen them at least once! They even played here before the release of their new album The Knot at some performance space in Iowa City some months back, which I also missed.
And so it is that Wye Oak will be back playing the Mill in Iowa City just over a year from the last time they played there! As it turns out, they will be taping another Daytrotter session, too!
Wye Oak will be playing The Mill on Sunday September 20th. Doors are at 8PM, $6 cover. Opening will be Chicago band Netherfriends, and Iowa City singer Alexis Stevens.
I saw Garaj Mahal guitarist Fareed Haque last November as part of the Kirkwood Community College Performing Arts Schedule. He did a “master series” class at the college in the afternoon and performed with the Kirkwood Jazz ensemble and the C.R. Jazz Big Band that evening. Fareed is a noted Jazz guitarist in addition to his role in Garaj Mahal and has releases on Blue Note, Haven, and Pangea– which is Sting’s label. The show was great with Fareed providing entertaining stories and commentary in between the songs. In addition to his accomplishments as a musician, Fareed is also a professor of Jazz and Classical Guitar Studies at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb where he lives and owns The House Cafe.
Garaj Mahal released their latest album w00t in 2008.
Certainly, don’t miss an opportunity to see Garaj Mahal in one of Cedar Rapids’ newest restaurants.
The ever-touring machine that is Cracker will be making another stop in Eastern Iowa at the end of this month at The Mill in Iowa City. Cracker is touring behind their new rocking release and debut on 429 Records Sunrise in the Land of Mint and Honey. Their stop at the Mississippi Moon bar in Dubuque in February was great– they played a handful of the new songs, but I’m hoping to hear more of the new album in a live setting.
The show will be at 9PM on Sunday, 8/30 with doors at 8PM. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased here. The opening act is garage rock band The High Strung.
In what would seem to be an intersection of coincidences, a band out of New Jersey gaining a lot of indie-lovin’ blog praise will be playing a barn ballroom outside of my childhood home of Bellevue, IA.
Roadside Graves is a seven-piece band serving up a hearty stew of folk and rock with a heapin’ helpin’ of rootsy country with a pinch of Celtic reel to taste. Listening to their new album My Son’s Home on Autumn Tone, I’m impressed how this band packs all of these flavors in. But, as with any good stew, the longer it sits, the flavors mingle for every spoonful (hmm… it must be time to eat). Music blogs reach to define this band and include references like Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue, Springsteen, John Prine, Son Volt– and certainly all of those influences are heard.
Mooney Hollow Barn is a music institution in Jackson County, IA. Built in the 1930’s, it was a farm until 1977 when it was converted into a place to have monthly barn dances. In the 1980’s Mooney Hollow Barn played host to many Nashville legends including Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb, Faron Young, Porter Wagoner, Kitty Wells, and Bill Anderson. Bill Anderson will be back to the Mooney Hollow stage 27 years after his first appearance on 9/19. In 2006 Kevin Petesch bought the barn reopened it after being closed for five years.
Last week the inaugural Daytrotter.com Barnstormer tour stopped in Mooney Hollow bringing with it a line up of some of Daytrotter’s favorite acts. It was this appearance that brought Mooney Hollow to the attention of Roadside Graves who were looking for an overnight stop on their tour between their Milwaukee and Chicago appearances (and I bet a Daytrotter session in Rock Island just south!).
Somehow the idea of this newer band standing on the Mooney Hollow stage playing their unique blend of country, rock and folk in the same place the old guard of Nashville greats is comforting. “Will the circle be unbroken,” indeed!
It would be worth the trip to see this amazing barn, and possibly check out the sights in this great little Mississippi River town.
Click Here to listen to “Far and Wide” by Roadside Graves from My Son’s Home
Click Here to listen to “Ruby” by Roadside Graves from My Son’s Home
Daytrotter.com— the purveyor of freely-downloadable mp3’s of sessions recorded by a wide-range of artists and bands– have decided that they want to take a handful of their favorite acts on a mini-tour through some Iowa towns with a stop in Madison (just because they love that place!). These shows are FREE and ALL AGES. All the bands are hoping for are some new fans, and possibly sell some merch.
It is a move which gets its tradition from the “Caravan of Stars”-type tours that happened during the 50’s and 60’s where bands would roll through a bunch of cities stopping of at ballrooms across the midwest– back when places like Melody Mill in Sageville, IA outside Dubuque would get bands like Johnny Cash, The Ventures, and the Everly Brothers. If the bands didn’t tour like that, these little towns and cities wouldn’t have been able to get this kind of entertainment.
Daytrotter reached out a couple of months ago looking for barns they could play in– I made a couple of suggestions, and one of the stops will be just outside my hometown of Bellevue, IA at Mooney Hollow Barn!
While exchanging e-mails with Sean from Daytrotter, he said that some of the impetus of this tour is to let people in Iowa know about Daytrotter. Certainly when I’m talking to folks I know about this they have no idea what Daytrotter is– even though the work that they do is world-reknowned and has been accurately suggested to be the successor to the BBC Peel Sessions!
I’ve said on more than one occasion that we Iowans should be proud of Daytrotter and its “little studio and website that could” success!
Hopefully, this will be successful enough that this becomes a yearly event!
The lineup of bands is pretty interesting and varies slightly for each of the five stops. However, San Diego band Local Natives will be performing at all of the shows. From this lineup, I was familiar only with Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin and Paleo. Someone Still Loves You is a great indie pop band from Springfield, Mo that has done two Daytrotter sessions already (which is how I found out about them initially) and Paleo is known as the “song a day for a year” guy. So, it will be interesting to hear those acts in a live setting. Snowblink is a pretty dreamy type of music driven by the breathy vocals of Daniela Gesundheit.Snowblink has been compared to Cat Power, and I hear that. Catfish Haven is a surprising R&B powerhouse from the Windy City that reminds me of Mad Dogs and Englishmen-period Joe Cocker, frankly. I can’t wait to see them in a live setting! DAYUM! They’re going to be at the Bellevue stop, which is super-duper! Mac Lethal is an MC from Kansas City, MO. He has a great flow that reminds me a lot of Chief Xcel or Chali 2na.
So, a pretty wide swath of indie goodness represented. I’m going to hit the Bellevue stop and shoot some pix and provide some coverage. If you have the ability and are in the region, stop out to one of these shows!
SCHEDULE:
July 25
11 am — Davenport, Iowa: Morning performance at the Bix 7 road race course at the turnaround: 110 McClellan Blvd. (Performing — Local Natives) Local Natives Daytrotter Session
Tortoise is in L.A. and they are busy. They play a sold out show at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, but they are doing a couple promotional appearances ahead of the show. Yesterday Tortoise returned to the KCRW show “Morning Becomes Eclectic” to perform a 43 minute set and interview. The show included three songs from Beacons of Ancestorship, but also included two earlier songs that I haven’t heard on tour in a while!
Tortoise kicked things off with “High Class Slim Came Floatin’ In” followed by “Prepare Your Coffin” from Beacons, and then did “The Suspension Bridge At Iguazú Falls” from T.N.T. and “Djed” from Millions Now Living Will Never Die. The band wrapped things up with “Minors” from Beacons, which was unfortunately cut short. The interview with the band mostly surrounded how the band works together collaboratively on their music, which was cool.
Today (July 9th) Tortoise makes an in-store appearance at the Hollywood Amoeba Music location, which they will stream from their website. The show should start at 6PM Pacific Time (8 PM Central, 9 PM Eastern, etc.). Tortoise is also featured on Amoeba’s “Music We Like – Handpicked Titles for $10.98 or less” sale.
Click Here for the Amoeba.com information on the Tortoise In-Store Live Stream (At this point the stream has been taken down, but there are pictures from the session).
On the heels of a victorious two nights at the Rothbury Festival over the Independence Day weekend, the mighty men of Umphrey’s McGee will resume their typically packed Summer tour schedule which runs through September and includes three Iowa dates! Next week they play Des Moines at the Simon Estes Riverfront Amphiteater on Wednesday July 15th, and at the gorgeous Capitol Theatre in Davenport on Thursday July 16th. I’m planning on hitting the Davenport show.
Actually the states surrounding Iowa are served very well during this run as well with KC on July 17th, two nights at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin on July 18th and 19th followed by 10K Lakes. After a full-band break filled with side-band shows, and full band two-nighter in Urbana at the Canopy Club, we get Umphrey’s back in Council Bluffs, IA at the new Horseshoe Casino venue Whiskey Roadhouse.
In other cool Umphrey’s news– as part of the month of June bonus downloads that you can get with the purchase of the Mantis CD, the band provided a tribute to Michael Jackson in the form of three Michael Jackson covers mp3’s. The first mp3 was from Richmond, VA on 6/25/09 on the news of the passing of the King of Pop the band did a very straight version of “Billy Jean.” The second mp3 is a cover of “The Girl Is Mine” from their 11/3/06 Madison, WI show. The last track is a medley of snippets of Michael Jackson “teases” from the last weekend in June following his passing. More information from the band’s excellent blog, where you can listen to the track yourself!
BTW: All of the free post-release downloads are still available, so if you don’t have Mantis yet, it is well worth the purchase and is one of my favorite albums of 2009.
– doors: 6:00 pm
– show: 7:00 pm
– co-headlining with Matisyahu; with Matisyahu to play first, and Umphrey’s to start at 9:10 pm
– tickets are available through LiveNation.com
– doors: 7:30 pm
– show: 8:30 pm
– co-headlining with Matisyahu; with Umphrey’s to play first, and Matisyahu to play at 10:45 pm
– tickets are $28.50 and on sale through Ticketmaster.com
Rumsey Playfield – Central Park, New York, New York
– doors: 5:30 pm
– show: 6:15 pm
– co-headlining with Matisyahu; with Umphrey’s to play first, and Matisyahu to play at 8:30 pm
– tickets are $35.00 and are available through Ticketmaster.com; tickets will also be available at the Bowery Box Office with no service charge
– late-night set on the All Good Stage
– other bands include: Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, RatDog, moe., STS9, Dark Star Orchestra, Les Claypool, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Tea Leaf Green, among others
– ticket information can be found through www.allgoodfestival.com/buytickets.htm
Non-Umphrey’s Show – 30db Marvin’s Mountaintop, Masontown, West Virginia
– 30db is Brendan along with Jeff Austin
– Golden Crane Stage
– other bands include: Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, RatDog, moe., STS9, Dark Star Orchestra, Les Claypool, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Tea Leaf Green, among others
– ticket information can be found through www.allgoodfestival.com/buytickets.htm
– doors: 12:30 pm
– show: 2:30 pm
– one set, on the West Stage
– other bands include: Widespread Panic, the Black Crowes, and the Black Keys
– ticket information can be found through Ticketmaster.com
– doors: 5:30 pm
– show: 6:30 pm
– co-headlining with Matisyahu; with Matisyahu to play first, and Umphrey’s to play at 8:30 pm
– All Ages
– tickets are $25.00, $35.00, and $75.00 (VIP), and are available through crossroads.frontgatesolutions.com
262.642.4400
– doors: 6:00 pm
– show: 7:00 pm
– opening for the Dave Matthews Band
– tickets are available through LiveNation.com – note that Wednesday, June 10, is No Fee Wednesday through LivevNation when purchasing Lawn tickets
262.642.4400
– doors: 6:00 pm
– show: 7:00 pm
– opening for the Dave Matthews Band
– tickets are available through LiveNation.com – note that Wednesday, June 10, is No Fee Wednesday through LivevNation when purchasing Lawn tickets
– doors: 12:00 pm
– show: 6:00 pm
– Main Stage
– ticket information can be found through www.10klftickets.com
– everyone who purchases tickets here will automatically be entered in a contest for a pair of VIP upgrades
– please enter the promo code “MANTIS” for $10.00 off General Admission and $25.00 off VIP tickets
Non-Umphrey’s Show – North Indiana All Stars Soo Pass Ranch, Detroit Lakes, Minnesota
– doors: 12:00 pm
– show: 11:30 pm
– North Indiana All Stars are: Jake, Joel, and Kris, along with Willie Waldman (trumpet) and Tony Franklin (bass)
– Barn Stage
Non-Umphrey’s Show – The Omega Moos 1572 North Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60622
773.489.3160
– doors: 9:00 pm
– show: 10:00 pm
– The Omega Moos are Brendan and Ryan along with Darren Shearer and Jamie Shields of The New Deal
– with DJ Wyllys to open
– 21 and over
Non-Umphrey’s Show – Kris Myers Project 2105 South State Street, Chicago, Illinois 60616
312.949.0120
– show: 8:00 pm
– post-Lollapalooza show: Kris, along with Vijay Telisnayak on keys, John McLean on guitar and Bryan Doherty on bass
– with Consider the Source
– 21 and over
– admission is $8.00
– doors: 10:45 am
– show: 10:15 pm
– closing set on the Main Stage
– other bands include: Ozark Mountain Daredevils, The Avett Brothers, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Railroad Earth, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Lotus, Tea Leaf Green, Cornmeal, and others
– ticket information can be found through http://www.mulberrymountainmusic.com/tickets.asp
970.482.4420
– doors: 7:00 pm
– show: 8:30 pm
– All Ages
– tickets are $28.00 in advance, $30.00 day of show, and are available through Umphrey’s Ticketing and through Ticketweb.com
– doors: 2:00 pm
– show: 3:00 pm
– with the Black Eyed Peas on Saturday; other artist include the Allman Brothers Band, Drive By Truckers, the Doobie Brothers, Citizen Cope, and Michael Franti
– tickets are available through www.jazzaspen.com
225.383.7018
– doors: 8:00 pm
– show: 9:00 pm
– 18 and over
– tickets will be $17.50 in advance, $20.00 day of show, and will be available pre-sale through Umphrey’s Ticketing Junly 10 at 12:00 pm
888.402.5837
– doors: 7:00 pm
– show: 8:00 pm
– with Telepath to open
– All Ages
– tickets will be $17.50 in advance, $20.00 day of show, and will be available pre-sale through Umphrey’s Ticketing July 10 at 12:00 pm
512.263.4146
– doors: 8:00 pm
– show: 9:00 pm
– with Telepath to open
– All Ages
– tickets will be $17.50 in advance, $20.00 day of show, and will be available pre-sale through Umphrey’s Ticketing July 10 at 12:00 pm
214.978.BLUE
– doors: 8:00 pm
– show: 9:00 pm
– with Telepath to open
– All Ages
– tickets will be $17.50 in advance, $20.00 day of show, and will be available pre-sale through Umphrey’s Ticketing July 10 at 12:00 pm
520.740.1000
– doors: 8:00 pm
– show: 9:00 pm
– All Ages
– tickets will be $17.50 in advance, $20.00 day of show, and will be available pre-sale through Umphrey’s Ticketing July 10 at 12:00 pm
When I saw Bo Ramsey and the Mystery Lights at the Mill back in May, Pieta was kind of hanging back in the shadows of the dark bar and helping her sister sell some Bo Ramsey merchandise. After the show was over I took the opportunity to ask her about her record label situation. After being signed to One Little Indian for her last album, the brilliant Remember the Sun from 2007 the follow-up Flight Time EP was released on T-Records, which incidentally is the label she used to release her 2003 EP I Never Told.
One of our favorite albums from 2008 was the debut release from New Zealand artist Phillipa “Pip” Brown who performs as 
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