Though Norah Jones built her reputation with a string of soccer-mom friendly albums, the singer-songwriter doesn’t want you to think that she’s not hip. In fact, it seems that she wants to hammer that point home by teaming up with “IT” producer Brain Burton, aka Danger Mouse, for her latest studio album Little Broken Hearts, which hits stores on May 1 via her longtime label Blue Note Records. While Jones and Burton originally began working together on the record back in 2009, it wasn’t until the duo reconvened last summer, when Jones came armed with a stack a emotionally charged songs steaming from a break up, that things came together. Jones will headed out on a 32-date world tour that kicks off on May 25 with a gig at the Olympia Theater in Paris, and includes a stop at the world famous Ryman Auditorium on June 24 and a hometown gig at New York City’s Central Park Summerstage on July 3.
If you’re not into a night with Norah Jones, then maybe you’ll be interested in hitting one of these recently announced tours…
Brooklyn-based indie-rock act Grizzly Bear have been critics’ darlings for the better part of the last decade, releasing three full-length albums of their enchanting brand of lush, psychedelic-tinged folk-pop. After spending significant amounts of time on the road over the last few years, the band’s singer and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Rossen- the guy who’s not Ed Droste – was looking for a way to get his creative juices flowing again, telling Rolling Stone, “When you spend so much time touring around, you can lose perspective on what you’re trying to do. All the sudden, I had no idea what to do or what to make or anything.” Armed with a new batch of songs, Rossen, who also records with his like-minded side-project Department Of Eagles, began recording tracks mostly by himself in a series of rehearsal rooms and small spaces around New York City.
Last Tuesday, Rossen released his solo debut EP Silent Hour / Golden Mile via Warp Records, which also happens to be the home to his full-time band. The five-song set consists of hauntingly stark and deeply personal songs, which is no surprise judging from the emotional head space that Rossen was seemingly in at the time he wrote them. Last week, venerable indie-site Pitchfork released this beautifully shot video of Rossen performing the track Saint Nothing in a church. Let’s check it out…
Normally music documentaries focus their attentions on a band, or a event or a genre. With that being said, there is nothing quite normal about Ginger Baker, who is the subject of the new doc Beware Of Mr. Baker. The 92-min doc, which was four years in the making, tells the story of legendary, influential and cantankerous drummer, who is best known for his time as a member of Cream and Blind Faith, but also recorded with everyone from Fela Kuti to Johnny Rotten’s post-Sex Pistols project PiL to space-rock band Hawkwind.
Baker’s influence on rock music can be seen in the reverence paid by the impressive list of drummers who appear in the film, which includes Neil Peart (Rush), Stewart Copeland (The Police), Mickey Hart (Grateful Dead) and Marky Ramone (The Ramones), as well as slew of his former band mates like Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood. The film recently took home the Documentary Grand Jury prize at this month’s SXSW Festival. Let’s take a look at the trailer…
Some novels seem tailor-made for adaption to the big screen, while others are considered sacred tomes to which people have a deep attachment. So I was feeling a bit of trepidation when I found out that Jack Kerouac’s influential and iconic semi-autobiographical travelogue On the Road, was finally headed to the big screen, after years of failed attempts to turn it into a feature film. What the new flick does have going for it is that the two leads, Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty, are played by relatively unknown actors, rather than big name Hollywood stars. Judging from this trailer, director Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) has seemingly captured the spirit of the signature work of the beat generation. Take a look…
When we look back at the music trends that have developed over the first decade-plus of the new century, one of the big stories will undoubtedly be reunion-mania, with bands from across all genres deciding it was time to give it another go. Well, that may be well and good for acts like Pavement, Van Halen and God Street Wine, but at least one band plans to buck the trend and stay retired – The White Stripes. In the latest issue of NME, which features Jack White on the cover, the singer-songwriter-guitarist-producer-record label owner told the venerable music mag, “Absolutely no chance. I couldn’t see any reason to ever do that. I’m not the kind of person that would retire from baseball and come out of retirement the next year. I mean, if we went to all the trouble of telling people we’re done, we meant it, you know?”
While that’s a pretty definitive “no,” White did leave the door ajar just a bit to get back together with his old band mate Meg, saying, “If we were forced to change our mind about that, I can only imagine being the reason (sic), like if for some reason we went bankrupt or something or needed the cash, which would be a really sad thing, I would probably be issuing an apology along with the announcement of the show dates!”
List Time: 20 Best Uses Of Bob Dylan Songs In Film
Finally, earlier this week the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame announced the presenters for their annual induction ceremony, which will take place on April 14 in Cleveland. This year’s class, which may be one of the most diverse in recent memory, includes everything from blues to singer-songwriters to funk-rock to hip-hop, as well as some legendary producers.
Here is the full list of inductees, and who will be inducting them…
Beastie Boys – Chuck D of Public Enemy
Small Faces/Faces - Steven Van Zandt
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Chris Rock
Laura Nyro – Bette Midler
Donovan - John Mellencamp
Freddie King – Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill of ZZ Top
Don Kirshner – Carole King
Tom Dowd, Glyn Johns and Cosimo Matassa – Robbie Robertson
Miracles, Gene Vincent’s Blue Caps, Buddy Holly’s Crickets, James Brown’s Fabulous Flames and Hank Ballard’s Midnighters – Smokey Robinson
We’ve compiled all of this week’s tour date announcements in one handy column…
We’re consistently impressed with The Roots and their ability to somehow find the time to not only be the hardest working band on late night, but also record and tour. If they’ve figured out some secret formula to slow down time or duplicate themselves I think we’d like to know about considering we all log time at full time jobs and manage to crank out content. Even when the Philly-based hip hop crew has some down time they manage to keep themselves busy, as on June 2 and 3, they will host their 5th annual Roots Picnic. The two-day event, which will take place at the Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing in their hometown, will once again feature an eclectic line up that leans heavily towards hip hop mixing classic, mainstream and underground acts like De La Soul, Kid Cudi and Shabbaz Palace, as well as a slew of indie-centric acts with St. Vincent, tUnE-yArDs and a DJ set from LCD Soundsystem front man James Murphy all on the bill. Both single and two-day passes are currently on sale.
If you can’t make it to Philly to party with The Roots, then maybe you’ll be able to hit one of these recently announced tours…
This isn’t the first time that we’ve written about today’s Pullin’ ‘Tubes subject, The White Buffalo. Last year, Ryan joking referred to the alter ego of Jake Smith as Mr. Irrelevant, for holding the distinction of being the last act listed on Bonnaroo’s 2011 lineup. While it’s safe to say that the distinction probably did hold true, as most ‘roo attendees probably had never heard a note from the singer-songwriter, those that did show up to his two scheduled sets at Bonnaroo’s two smallest stages – the On Tap Lounge and Sonic Stage – most likely walked away mightily impressed from his much buzzed about performances. With the recent of release of Once Upon a Time in the West, it’s now time for a wider audience to sit up and take notice of the music of The White Buffalo.
What will immediately will stand out when you first sit down and listen to the music of The White Buffalo is Mr. Smith’s voice. There is no avoiding it, so let’s just get it out of the way, he’s a dead ringer to Eddie Vedder, possessing the same croaky, whiskey-drenched growl of the Pearl Jam front man. Once you put that behind you, there isn’t much of a similarity with the seminal grunge act, as The White Buffalo plays a gutsy brand of country-rock that owes a great debt to Neil Young and evokes imagery of a dusty rough and tumble border town. The White Buffalo have a handful of a spring dates scheduled, which includes a stop at the Fox Theatre in Boulder on March 24. Let’s check out the music video for the album’s lead single, Wish It Was True…
You’ve got to hand to the folks over at The Onion’s AV Club. Since debuting their Undercover series back in 2010, they’ve gotten an impressive array of indie-rock bands to come and tackle songs from the likes of Wilco to Neutral Milk Hotel to Starship to Hall & Oates. The pop culture-centric site has once again invited 26 bands to come into their offices to tackle a song from a predetermined list, which this time around has everything from Harvey Danger’s Flagpole Sitta to Steely Dan’s Rikki Don’t Lose That Number to The Arcade Fire’s Rebellion (Lies). Once a song is played it gets crossed off the list, so the earlier in the process a band swings through the better the selection.
Last week The AV Club kicked off their third installment of the highly enjoyable series, with recent touring mates Sharon Van Etten and Shearwater getting the first crack at current list. The duo, at the suggestion of The AV Club staff, took on Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around, a song originally penned by Tom Petty and intended for Hard Promises, but given to Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac fame, who included it on her 1981 solo debut Bella Donna. Let’s check it out…
At some point tomorrow while you’re enjoying your St. Patrick’s Day festivities, we highly suggest giving a listen to something other than obligatory U2 and Van Morrison that will be emanating from just about any bar, restaurant or coffee shop that you walk into. While nothing against those two acts, we’d like to point you in the direction of the legendary Irish folk act The Chieftains, who are celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2012. Earlier this year the band released their latest studio effort Voice Of Ages, an excellent collection that saw The Chieftains collaborate with an all-star roster of modern roots, folk and Americana musicians – which included the likes of The Decemberists, Bon Iver, Lisa Hannigan and The Punch Brothers.
On Wednesday night The Low Anthem, who also appear on the album, joined The Chieftains at the Ed Sullivan Theater for their appearance on The Late Show With David Letterman, where they performed the traditional Irish folk tune School Days Over. Let’s check it out…
A couple of years back, many of us around HT headquarters fell in love with the hazy lo-fi sunshine pop sounds of Crazy For You, the debut album from Best Coast, which landed at number 24 on our top albums list for 2010. Fronted by Bethany Cosentino, the So-Cal-based band were at the forefront of the “chillwave” movement, whether they liked that distinction or not. On May 15, Best Coast will release their sophomore Jon Brion (Fiona Apple, of Montreal, Punch Brothers) produced effort The Only Place via Mexican Summer. The band will head to Austin for SXSW this week to drum up some advance press, playing a number of industry showcase parties, and will then head out for a lengthy world tour that kicks off with hometown gig at The Wiltern in Los Angeles on May 5, which will feature both JEFF The Brotherhood and Those Darlins holding down the opening slots.
If you’re not into a night with Best Coast’s brand of lo-fi pop, then maybe you’ll be interested in hitting on of these recently announced tours…
Earlier this year Andy Kahn threw down a B List that featured his Top 8 Upcoming Albums For 2012. Among the crop of records he highlighted, which included the likes of The Shins, of Montreal and Paul McCartney, was Break It Yourself, the seventh studio album from Andrew Bird. The violin playing-whistling enthusiast has had an interesting path that led to his recent critically acclaimed success. Graduating with a degree in violin performance from Northwestern in 1996, Bird’s self-released first solo album Music of Hair that year was steeped in sounds of traditional American and European folk music – that included nods to bluegrass, klezmer and jazz. Following a stint collaborating with the Squirrel Nut Zippers (who deserve credit as the forerunners to the current Gypsy punk movement) on two studio albums, Bird formed his own band aptly named Andrew Bird’s Bowl Of Fire. The band, which included members of Squirrel Nut Zippers, put out three albums full of the pre-war jazz and swing influenced music, with doses of everything from zydeco to folk to blues to Latin music thrown in.
After disbanding with Bowl Of Fire in 2003, Bird signed to Ani DiFranco’s Righteous Babe Records, putting out his first true solo album since the mid-90s with Weather Systems. The album saw a rather radical shift in Bird’s approach as he began to move towards, for lack of a better term, an indie-folk sound that favored lush, densely-layered, dreamy melodic arrangements, which featured his now trademark whistling throughout, and one that has carried him through a string of releases ever since. For his latest studio effort, Bird headed to his studio barn in Western Illinois, recording most of Break Your Self live with a full band, giving the record a bit more of an organic feel. Let’s check out this live in-studio performance of the album’s first single Eyeoneye…
Andrew Bird will kick off the U.S. leg of his world tour on March 14, with an appearance at NPR Music’s SXSW Showcase at Stubb’s BBQ in Austin, Texas. The tour also will include a two-night stand at New York City’s Beacon Theatre on May 4 and 5.
There are justly no shortage of tributes planned around the year-long celebration of Woody Guthrie’s 100th birthday. Woody’s centennial is being marked by a series of exhibits, conferences, school programs and tribute concerts all celebrating to the legacy of the iconic and influential sociopolitical singer-songwriter. While these events will likely examine most of his recorded works, New Multitudes features a new set of music composed by Jay Farrar, Jim James, Will Johnson and Anders Parker, culled from Gutrie’s journals from his time living in Los Angeles – two distinct and different periods in his life that saw him live on Skid Row and later in his life in Topanga Canyon.
Let’s check out this in-studio performance of the James’ sung track Talking Empy Bed Blues…
Yesterday, unbeknownst to us, we missed the fact that March 8th marked the 44th anniversary of Bill Graham opening the legendary Fillmore East. The venue, located on Manhattan’s E. 6th Street and 2nd Avenue, which was then known as the Lower East Side, hosted just about every important and influential rock act from 1968 to 1971. The former Yiddish theater, opened with a meaty, impressive triple bill of Big Brother & The Holding Company, Tim Buckley and Albert King on that late winter night.
[Signpost Marks The Spot - Photo by Gyre - Used Under CC3.0]
With the Allman Brothers Band set to kick off their annual Beacon run tonight, it seemed only appropriate to honor the anniversary of the Fillmore East with a tune from the Southern-rock act, who recorded arguably one of the best live albums of all time – At Fillmore East – there. Check out this nine-plus minute version of Dreams recorded at the iconic venue on September 23, 1970…
Over the last few years the brewers at Dogfish Head have rolled out a handful of their “uniquely off-centered ales” that have had a direct correlation to the music world – honoring Miles Davis, Robert Johnson and Pearl Jam with their own beers. For their latest crossover, the Milton, Delaware-based brewery has teamed up with Dan The Automator to create Positive Contact, “a hybrid of beer and cider based on Dan’s favorite ingredients and Dogfish Head’s innovative brewing practices.” The hybrid beverage was named in honor of a track off off Dan The Automator’s own collaborative project with Del Tha Funkee Homosapien and Kid Koala – Deltron 3030.
Named after a key track on the first album, Positive Contact is a 9% ABV hybrid of beer and cider brewed with wood-pressed Fuji apples, roasted farro, a handful of cayenne peppers and a late dose of fresh cilantro. This sweet-and-sour Belgian-ish brew is a light straw color with fruity, cider-like notes. The cayenne and alcohol give it a warming finish.
The beer will be released in a dynamic box set of six 750-ml champagne bottles, with a 10-inch vinyl EP of four new Deltron 3030 remixes created exclusively for this project, and a list of Deltron 3030-inspired recipes from a small group of renowned chefs (see below). Invite some friends over, rock the album, drink the beer and whip up a multi-course meal. It’s a house party in a box.
Finally, a few weeks back we shared the trailer for Big Easy Express, the new documentary about the unique Railroad Revival Tour, which will premiere at this year’s SXSW. The 67-minute Emmett Malloy directed doc will get its first official screening on Saturday, March 17, and will be followed by a special acoustic performance from members of the Mumford & Sons, Old Crow Medicine Show and Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. Well, in the spirit of the tour yesterday it was announced that the flick will get an additional screening later that day on the football field of Austin High School, which will also include a full on concert from both Mumford & Son and Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, with OCMS members sitting in. The event will be open to SXSW badgeholders with event sponsor MySpace giving away 10,000 tickets, which will be distributed to fans who RSVP via MySpace.com/BigEasyExpress. MySpace will webcast the concert live and offer an HD version the following day. The Big Easy Express will return in 2012, with an announcement of the bands and the route to be revealed in the coming weeks.
In 2006, a handful of UK artists launched a monthly night of music at Notting Hill Arts Club in West London that they dubbed Communion, to help promote and cultivate a scene for up and coming independent artists. Those monthly showcases helped to launch the careers for the likes of Mumford & Sons, Laura Marling and Noah & The Whale, while expanding to hosting shows not only across the UK, but internationally as well, along with founding their own record label. Looking to further their presence in U.S., where they already have monthly residencies in Brooklyn and San Francisco, Communion has lined up a packaged tour across the States titled Austin To Boston Tour. Kicking off as billed in Austin at SXSW, the tour will feature Ben Howard, The Staves, Nathaniel Rateliff and Bear’s Den.
If Communion’s Austin To Boston tour isn’t hitting a city near you, then maybe you’ll be able to grab tickets to one these recently announced tours…
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros:Spring Tour (5/4 – 6/1)
via Warp Records, which also happens to be the home to his full-time band. The five-song set consists of hauntingly stark and deeply personal songs, which is no surprise judging from the emotional head space that Rossen was seemingly in at the time he wrote them. Last week, venerable indie-site Pitchfork released this beautifully shot video of Rossen performing the track Saint Nothing in a church. Let’s check it out…
, but given to Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac fame, who included it on her 1981 solo debut 
. Let’s check it out…
, the debut album from 
via Mexican Summer. The band will head to Austin for SXSW this week to drum up some advance press, playing a number of industry showcase parties, and will then head out for a lengthy world tour that kicks off with hometown gig at The Wiltern in Los Angeles on May 5, which will feature both JEFF The Brotherhood and Those Darlins holding down the opening slots.
, the seventh studio album from 
that year was steeped in sounds of traditional American and European folk music – that included nods to bluegrass, klezmer and jazz. Following a stint collaborating with the Squirrel Nut Zippers (who deserve credit as the forerunners to the current Gypsy punk movement) on two studio albums, Bird formed his own band aptly named Andrew Bird’s Bowl Of Fire. The band, which included members of Squirrel Nut Zippers, put out three albums full of the pre-war jazz and swing influenced music, with doses of everything from zydeco to folk to blues to Latin music thrown in.
. The album saw a rather radical shift in Bird’s approach as he began to move towards, for lack of a better term, an indie-folk sound that favored lush, densely-layered, dreamy melodic arrangements, which featured his now trademark whistling throughout, and one that has carried him through a string of releases ever since. For his latest studio effort, Bird headed to his studio barn in Western Illinois, recording most of Break Your Self live with a full band, giving the record a bit more of an organic feel. Let’s check out this live in-studio performance of the album’s first single Eyeoneye…
– there. Check out this nine-plus minute version of Dreams recorded at the iconic venue on September 23, 1970…
