Spring is Coming 2!

Louis follow up:



Say Israel Kamakawiwo'ole 3 times fast.  It's too much fun.  As is this song.  Kamakawiwo'ole has an equally heart-warming, sunshiny sound to put a rainbow in the sky and a smile on your face.  And there is ukelele.

Spring is coming!

And I say to myself...



Louis Armstrong is the greatest.  Ey Satchmo!  Get in my pocket.  The man warms my soul through my eardrums.  I'm really saying "I love you."

Perkins on Tour Again!

Elvis perkins in Dearland made me nervous at their Music Hall of Williamsburg show in December when Perkins said it was their last show of the tour, and they weren't sure when they'd be going on tour again.  It was a major relief when I received an email with a handful of Spring dates.  Perkins (sans Dearland) is joining Norah Jones on tour!   The man is shooting upward at an alarming pace that concerns my wallet.  Last summer I saw him with Dearland for $3.  Last year the band went for ~$15.  Soon tickets with Perkins' name on it will be going for $30-40.  I'm calling it, so keep an eye out.  You'll be able to tell how far they've come by the increase of stage size and location next time they play Bonnaroo or the Newport Folk Fest, etc.

The rest of Perkins' spring dates WILL include his Dearland mates (whose instrumentation and general energy adds a great epic-osity to Perkins' already mind-blowing goodness).  In addition to two NYC dates for the entirety that is EPID, the band will also be playing the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival weekend.  The festival's lineup is comprised of an insanely massive list of great talent that includes Simon & Garfunkel.... Enough said. 

Mar 20 Chicago Theatre w/Norah Jones Chicago, IL (Elvis solo)
April 23 Bell House w/Dawn Landes Brooklyn, NY
April 24 Bell House w/TBD Brooklyn, NY
April 30 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival NO, LA
Ticket Link: http://www.nojazzfest.com/tickets/
May 06 Saenger Theatre w/Norah Jones Mobile, AL (Elvis solo)
May 08 Orpheum Theatre w/Norah Jones Memphis, TN (Elvis solo)
May 09 Alabama Theatre w/Norah Jones Birmingham, AL (Elvis solo)
May 11 Thomas Wolfe Aud w/Norah Jones Asheville, NC (Elvis solo)
May 12 Ovens Auditorium w/Norah Jones Charlotte, NC (Elvis solo)

Wildbirds & Peacedrums LIVE

I saw the Swedish duo live Friday night at the intimate Bowery venue, Mercury Lounge.

The show was opened by the Loom, an enjoyable crew that sounded like a mix between the night's headliner and Beirut (at least when it comes to the trumpet's definition in their tuneage). I can see how their stuff could be really great, altho the sound levels were poorly mixed at the show, and there appeared an occasional dissonance from some of the instrumentation as well. Regardless, they're definitely worth a listen.

As for the main attraction: Mariam Wallentin's voice does things that Mariah Carey probably wished she could do when she was at her vocal best (you may think I exaggerate, or you may think "apples and oranges," but I certainly prefer one to the other). Her sometimes smoky, sometimes smooth, always incredibly-ranged voice-box jumps around like an absurdly graceful jackrabbit, simultaneously sabotaging you emotionally with unexpectedly long and wonderfully placed pauses. Same goes for Wallentin's husband and drummer bandmate, Andreas Werliin. His rhythms violated all kinds of expectations, calming at one moment, and exploding the next, suddenly changing tempo while the audience wonders how the couple could collaborate on such avante-gardely timed music. Their internal clocks must have been linked like those interactive Tamagotchi Connection pets, reading the sheet music in the other's souls, following some soundless metronome connecting their hearts. Ok, too much, I know. But I couldn't get over it. How did they know when to play off of each other in such a destructured song? Miriam probably just told Andreas to wait a long time in silence before coming back in, but I like the tamagotchi idea better (for a number of reasons, including my romantic soul as well as my "you know you grew up in the 90s when..." nostalgia. It's Aaaaaaall Thaaat!).

And I must mention the instrumentation. Other than Miriam's vocals & the vocal fx put on it, the harmonica is the only non-percussive instrument on the stage, making a single appearance the entire night. Granted there are some pre-recorded backing tracks, but there is an unbelievable excellence in the barely-melodic (when at all) instrumentation of this music still refreshing your soul, sending out calming energy. What a paradox: the stage being wholly comprised of percussion, and the breaks and changes in tempo promising theorists that the music will be incapable of being followed. It should induce anxiety, but instead the notes of the steel drum pair with the brushing of the snare to take you to a dreamy rainforest in which you can hear the music of giant raindrops softly bursting on leaves and branches, high and low, washing away your troubles and revealing the beauty of the world in its most natural state. Both heavy and uplifting, it washes away any negative auras as a heavy rain, theoretically bleak, washes away the dirt and disgust, leaving rainbows and fresh smells and the sparkle of morning dew.

Ok, enough romanticism. I know this post got a little out of hand, but now that I've calmed down, please take me seriously when I say it really would benefit you to catch them live.

They Say It's Your Birthday!

Happy belated (by 1 1/2 hours) birthday to my favourite Beatle, the late, great George Harrison.

Harrison brought the Indian music influence to the band (after falling in love with the sitar) and greatly increased Americans' awareness of Indian culture in the 60s (attn: Hare Krishna Movement). Acknowledged as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Harrison added the "Ah, look at all the lonely people" to "Eleanor Rigby." Where would that song be without that line?? He penned the beautiful Beatles tunes: "Here Comes the Sun," "Something," "I, Me, Mine," and "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," to name a few. Old George's awesomeness didn't stop there. In the 1980s he participated in the forming of the supergroup, The Traveling Wilburys. His bandmates included Jeff Lyne (of Electric Light Orchestra), Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, and Bob Dylan. Yes, when I say "supergroup" I mean "SUPERGROUP!!!"

In honour (thank Britain!) of our beloved George, I give Harrison, along with the rest of the Fab Four, singing himself a birthday song:



And "Within or Without You," a song that represents a major influence on Harrison, which majorly influenced (in a beautiful, evolutionary way) the US through Harrison (get your sitar on, man!):



And I just can't leave of one of my favorite Beatles songs, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps:"



Happy birthday, Harrison. Thanks for the music.

Notables:

1. Jason Schwartman is amazing. Great actor & writer, as well as a great musician. Some were aware of his role as drummer in the band Phantom Planet, but his new solo project, Coconut Records, is a definite winner. In addition to the most excellent track, "West Coast" (as can be heard in the following video endorsing an excellent project called "Opening Ceremony" that you should look into):

non plus one final from Tracy ANTONOPOULOS on Vimeo.

he also wrote the theme song for his HBO series, "Bored to Death." My lack of HBO has prevented me from watching the show, but the theme song is excellent!



2. I just learned (ridiculously late), that Johnny Marr, the guitarist of the Smiths, joined Modest Mouse in 2006, guitaring it up on the album "We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank," and touring with the band through 07. Go Marr! I love consistent awesomeness. He's currently the guitarist in the new band, the Cribs. I caught a couple tracks, which weren't bad. Still I have yet to form a strong opinion. It's nearing my bedtime, so the time is limited and the attention waning.



3. Jimmy Page (of Led Zeppelin), Jack White (of the White Stripes) and the Edge (of U2) have gotten together on a music documentary. I'm excited. To the Edge-haters out there, give the thing a chance. I can't imagine how this much greatness can end badly!

Wildbirds & Peacedrums

I've been in need of some playlist refreshment from over-saturating myself with good stuff. Not to mention I need to recharge myself in the way that only an excellent concert can do. So I went to Bowery Presents website, picked out the bands with upcoming shows and interesting names, and gave them a listen to plug myself in. Enter Wildbirds & Peacedrums. The name of this Swedish duet alone is music to my ears. It calls to mind images of brightly sunlit dark green forests, colorful feathers, and heavy percussive puncuation. An excellent juxtaposition of polar opposites, heavy and light, dark and bright, that blend perfectly without losing any of its flavor. This is not a melting pot, nor is it oil & water. It's chocolate covered pretzels...perfectly complimentary to bring out the best in what wouldn't exist without the other. Yes, it's wonderfully fantastical. I am correct, sir! The singer has a Feist-y thing going on (especially in the second of the tunes I posted), but somehow she makes it interesting. Maybe it's the backdrop upon which she sings her melodies, or the quirks she throws in just when you think she's too close to coffeehouse acoustic. Eitherway, it makes me want to Billy-Elliot in a less graceful, but much more fun, fashion. Have a listen or two:

Bluesy Native American chanting & drumming wonder:


This is the semi-watered down version, but it's still good.


The great thing about "My Heart" is this: all the recordings are practically the same, no matter which you choose to listen to, but still somehow they have enough variation so that if you listen to one, it's more pop, another is jazzier, and yet another is heavier blues. Whatever your mood, there's a version of the same song to please you. Unless you're looking for death metal. I don't think they swing that way, sorry.

ENJOY!