Indeed, this does suck, but it's not like we didn't see it coming.
This is the moment all of us hoped would never come. After plugging away at this for the past two years, it’s become pretty clear that operating woxy.com as a stand-alone Internet "radio station" is not going to cut it...Barring something exceptional happening in the next two weeks, we will silence our broadcasts on Friday, September 15th.
Belgium's #1 sibling DJ duo Soulwax (aka 2 Many DJs) are back with a brand new release, Nite Visions, and a full North American tour next month. The new record is said to be "interpolations and reinterpretations of tracks taken in most part from their highly acclaimed ‘Any Minute Now’ album– replayed and reworked, twisted to work on the dancefloor and a homage to the extended 12” format." The corresponding tour is said to bring about "as much debauchery that you can fit into one evening." Well, well, well...we shall see. The Nite Visions tour hits Double Door on September 17th. In the meantime, bump this preview track on your bangin' laptop speakers:
Download: Soulwax - "Miserable Girl" (MP3)
Some might want to lump Gran Bel Fisher into the pool of popular singer/songwriters on today's airwaves, but to do so would be a mistake. He has a unique voice and intelligent songwriting that sets him apart from the likes of a Daniel Powter or a James Blunt. Gran Bel Fisher, a rocker from Ohio writes reflective songs that soar, supported by a strong baritone voice, sweeping piano and twangy guitar. With the difficult task of opening for UK soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae, Gran Bel Fisher and his cohort Josh Krajcik on additional guitar delivered a well-suited set of songs off of his recent LP, Full Moon Cigarette. A great debut collection of well-written, thoughtful piano ballads as well as classic rock-driven tracks akin to The Doors and Led Zeppelin.
Gran Bel Fisher spent the majority of the set behind the 88 keys, however he did step up next to Josh to perform a few songs on guitar. It definitely helps to have a talented guitarist like Josh Krajcik on your side, together they created a smooth clash of interwoven guitar, that came crashing together so perfectly on the song "Dazey Day". There was mellow, understated eloquence on "Bound by Love", where Fisher's vocals reveal glimpses of Jeff Buckley. Though, it was the closing song "Full Moon Cigarette" that really stuck a chord with me, further exploring his ethereal vocals and carefully plotted piano opening, it was easy to hear his vision come to fruition as the song progressed. This was a fine outing by a promising young songwriter, and one who has a maturity to his music well beyond his years.
You can catch Gran Bel Fisher when he comes back to Chicago on September 24th @ Schuba's with Ari Hest.
Setlist:
Far Cry
Moment
Edible
Crash and Burn
In Dreams
Bound By Love
Dazey Day
Full Moon Cigarette
Corinne Bailey Rae has an impeccable, soulful voice that separates her from the crowd. She has the performance intensity of Fiona Apple, in terms of the deep seeded emotion that she pours into her songs and that powers her gorgeous voice. She is fully committed on stage, shifting from the humble smile after an applause to a quiet seriousness as she embodies her songs. She has the beauty and the depth of Billie Holiday, and a variety of influences from Led Zeppelin (she even covered "Since I've Been Loving You") to Erykah Badu, that makes her such an amazingly well-rounded singer/songwriter. Such a beautiful show.
You can preview her self-titled debut, Here .
I don’t usually talk about the venue of where a band plays, but indulge me on this one because I’d never heard of Memories in the five years I’ve been living in Chicago and steadily attending shows. It’s located on the NW side of the city around 4100 North Cicero and is, literally, a neighborhood bar. For every negative thing was an equally random positive thing. It’s regulars were the opposites of hipsters. Behind the bar (stocked with only a couple of selections of beer) was a list of people who were no longer allowed in the club, which included two previous bartenders. (It sort of begs the question, “What exactly does one have to do to get kicked out?”) There was no soap in the women’s bathroom but instead a giant framed film poster of Magnolia (which, of course, is one of the best films of all time). It’s smoke-inhalation-poor-light-atmosphere made the wait almost unbearable. Yet, the house music between band sets was perhaps the best mix of pivotal punk rock music I’ve heard in this city including songs from X, The Clash, The Ramones, The Germs, and more.
Eagle*Seagull is a seven piece band hailing from Lincoln Nebraska. Although their self titled record was released on the Paper Garden Records label, they do share some similarities in terms of sound with other bands from the Nebraska area on Saddle Creek. I think in some ways it would be wrong to categorize their music as “emo,” but mainly because that genre has gotten a bad wrap as of late. (At one point, it may have meant more expressive and emotional but people now tend to dismiss it as whiny white boy music from my experience.)
It would be accurate to say that the vocals of Eli Mardock are often pained and visually intense, with a strong resemblance to Robert Smith of The Cure. “Your beauty is a knife I turn on my throat” is one glaring example and their album is perhaps a touch more emotional than the average indie rock fare. Simultaneously, you sense a real layered sound, between the guitar and keyboards especially. In addition, Britt Hayes is an especially skilled drummer with a great sense of how to make even the quirkier rhythms work.
Live, their forty minute set seemed to go by way too fast. Highlights included “Photograph,” “Your Beauty is a Knife I Turn On My Throat” and, at the very beginning of the set, “It’s So Sexy.” Many of the songs were sped up a bit and even the more emotional songs came off as catchy and dance music for those who like post- pop. The violin playing of Carrie Butler added a real special touch to the songs as well. As an additional treat, they played a brand new song that began with a dreamy opening and sped up with increasing momentum featuring the lovely female vocals of Carrie Butler. You can hear their songs by visiting their Myspace page. Also, check out the side project of guitarist and backup vocalist Austin Skiles called Bright Calm Blue if you’re looking for a harsher sound more reminiscent of Cursive or The Blood Brothers.
Anyway...here's the clips we ran last year:
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Kanye does Chicago proud once more
If you missed it this weekend, Crooks and Liars has the video clip of Kanye West's teleprompter-defying speech at the live Concert for Hurricane relief.
"I hate the way they portray us in the media. If you see a black family it says they are looting if you see a white family it says they are looking for food...George Bush doesn't care about black people."
Apparently, NBC wasn't too pleased with Kanye's improv, Crooks and Liars reports that his remarks were edited out of the West Coast feed of the broadcast.
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Kanye/Dubya Remix
I generally don't use Wonkette as a source to find hot new Mp3's, but yesterday on the site I found this genius Kanye West "George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People" remix by The Legendary K.O.
Check out the timely soundsystem banger set to Kanye's "Gold Digger" single here. You can also pick up a matching ironic faux-vintage t-shirt with the "George Bush Doesn't Care About Black People" slogan here. Hey, who said politics wasn't any fun??
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Yo, FEMA raps!
Of course, we here at RFC strive to be fair and balanced in our reporting, so we'd be remised not to present this hot rap joint from the Fed's point of view. Click here to bump the "FEMA for Kidz Rap" as featured on the FEMA.gov website. In case you don't have any speakers close, here's a sampling of some of the rhymes that FEMA MC Scott J. Wolfson is spittin':
Beach Boys - Pet Sounds [40th Anniversary Super Deluxxxe Edition Gold Plated Audiophile CD/Dolby Digital 5.1 DVD/Hi-Res 96kHz/24-bit PCM stereo Laser Disc/Dolby HX Pro Stereo Cassette/Mono 8-track/4-Disc Quadraphonic 180-gram LP set in limited edition fuzzy package] (Capitol)
First 1000 copies also include actual locks of Brian Wilson's hair. Check out Stereogum for exclusive preview bonus material.
Bob Dylan - Modern Times (Sony)
Sorry, no Hi-Res 96kHz/24-bit PCM stereo mixes available here. However, if you pay a few more bucks for the "bonus edition," you get also get a DVD with 4 videos.
M. Ward - Post-War (Merge)
Merge records sez: "The fifth M. Ward album and his most absorbing yet. Its songs unravel their world-wearied tales of life, love, and human kindness with an innate and special grace, helped in part by the very talented friends who join him on this record, such as Neko Case and Mike Mogis, as well as old "Monsters Of Folk" touring buddy Jim James (My Morning Jacket)." Hear the new material for yourself live next Friday (9/8) at Metro.
The Roots - Game Theory
The Roots' join the Def Jam roster and earn 4-star credentials from The Guardian, who say its their best work yet.
One of the local bands that has received the most buzz this past year has been The 1900s. Baring a sound that's as classic as their name, this indie pop sextet (an octet if you count "the birdz") has garnered comparisons to such legends as The Zombies and Love. RFC recently caught up with lead singer Edward Anderson to find out more.
When you write songs, is it a collective process or is there someone who usually ends up taking the lead? Are you careful to give everyone input or would that just get too challenging with such a large band?
It depends on the song. Everyone steps up when needed.
You've said in previous interviews that many of you in the band have similar music tastes and backgrounds, but has there ever been any great moments when someone puts on an album that no one else has ever heard before?
A few months ago Charlie started playing the song "Roscoe" by Midlake in his car. I nearly lost my shit when I heard it. It sounded so fucking incredible I just couldn't believe it. A few days after becoming obsessed with "Roscoe" we learned that we were going to be opening for Midlake at the Mercury Lounge in NYC. That was a big moment. Another great moment was when we all first got together and we listened to the entire Belle & Sebastian catalog (but skipping "Chickfactor") and masturbated the whole time to it.
You've said before that you chose than name the 1900s because of nostalgia for the century past. If you could change one thing about our present day what would it be?
Nothing.
Similarly, what are your feelings about the future of both the world and music in general? Is it something you look forward to?
You have no choice but to move ahead unless you want to kill yourself or drink and do drugs until you lose all touch with reality... which is what some of our songs are about...which can be found in the future on our album…which is something to look forward to.
What is one great thing about being a part of the Chicago music scene?
My favorite thing about being part of the Chicago music scene is getting wasted and hanging out with all these crazy people who play music in this city. Just shooting the shit, talking a little business, and hearing about all the great stuff they're up to. Songwriters and musicians are not usually very stable or normal people, which always makes things interesting. I really get so excited when I hear that these bands are doing well, and I'm usually kicking down their doors for them to give me copies of their new records. On the practical side, we've been lucky enough to befriend very amazing and talented people who are willing to go out of their way to help us, which has ruled - and we haven't even had to give away too many bj's.
Not too long ago, you toured for your EP Plume Delivery outside of Chicago and I was wondering how you found the experience of opening other cities up to your music?
If a band plays in the forest, and no bloggers hear it, does it make a sound?
On the other hand, New York was much more enthusiastic than I'd imagined. They liked us for the reason I thought they would hate us: we don't stand on stage looking bored and trying to seem cooler than we actually are. We just go for it, and I guess that was refreshing for them. Overall, this is an area we need to explore much more, the road is still green for us.
"Patron Saint of the Mediocre" seems to be the real stand-out track on Plume Delivery. Was there anything special about the way this song was created or a special inspiration for it?
That's certainly our most debated song so far, and it was something we wrote as a band. We've gotten tons of reviews saying that "Patron Saint" is the weakest on the Plume Delivery EP cuz of its length and wankery. For others it is the standout track. I'm in the middle; I think it probably could have been done a little better, but in the end its shambly-ness is kind of the point. Originally I sang the song, but pretty much on the last day of recording I had Jeanine give it a go - a great move because her voice has a base sensuality to it that kind of feels like an unholy seduction, which is prefect because the song is about holy seduction.
Friday, September 8
9:00pm - !!!
8:00pm - Ted Leo + Pharmacists
7:00pm - Girls Against Boys
6:00pm - Supersystem
5:00pm - The Shipping News
Saturday, September 9
9:00pm - Shellac
8:40pm - Big Black
7:45pm - Manor Astroman?
6:50pm - Scratch Acid
6:30pm - Sally Timms
6:00pm - Negative Approach
5:40pm - PW Long
4:55pm - Didjits
4:35pm - Jon & Kat (Mekons/The Ex)
3:50pm - Killdozer
2:55pm - The Ex
2:35pm - Tim & Andy (Silkworm)
1:50pm - Pegboy
12:55pm - Uzeda
12:00pm - The New Year
Sunday, September 10
9:00pm - Calexico
8:00pm - Pinback
7:00pm - CocoRosie
6:05pm - The Black Heart Procession
5:45pm - Brick Layer Cake
5:00pm - Seam
4:40pm - Tara Jane ONeil
3:55pm - Three Mile Pilot
3:00pm - Enon
2:00pm - The Monorchid
1:00pm - Quasi
12:00pm - Arcwelder
Time Out Chicago has an interesting short interview this week with our beloved local rock show poet laureate Thax Douglas, who will soon be officially leaving the Windy City for greener pastures in New York. Asked about the lack of support he felt he's received here Thax sez, "Yeah, that's basically why I'm moving. They're tolerant, but not supportive. Bands are - and most venues - but Chicago is under the stronghold of this "indie-stry" - type crowd."
An "indie-stry" - type crowd? Good one, Thax! However, I wonder if he's referring to the crowds at the shows or just the local scene in general? Reading this interview kind of got me thinking...is Thax actually good at what he does or was he really just a nuisance all this time? I've seen him a million times, but probably only actually listened to his poems a handful of times. He's been such a ubiquitous figure at shows I think I just started just to tune him out after a while. It's like, "oh boy...here comes Thax again," and then I would either drift off or turn away and go back to talking with my friends. If anything, the local scene being "tolerant but not supportive" was probably just due to overexposure. However, I'd be curious to hear from actual poetry aficionados out there if they think we're truly losing an underappreciated local treasure or whether we should start warning venues in New York immediately.
Thax's Chicago farewell tour started last night at the Sub-T and continues through September 4th. Check out www.myspace.com/thaxdouglas for the complete itinerary.
Ok...not really, but we did just get in this great new track from Jeremy Enigk's (that's pronounced ee-nihk, by the way) new solo record, World Waits, which won't be hitting store shelves until October. Enjoy!
Download: Jeremy Enigk - "Been Here Before" (MP3)
Some things are better left unseen. I'm a firm believer in this, especially when it comes to reunion tours. Going to see a band who hasn't played in years (or even decades) always seems like an exciting prospect, but the shows almost never live up to expectations. Inevitably, the band is not going to sound as good as you remembered (selective memory or not), and then there's the visual shock of seeing the heroes from your youth suddenly fat, gray and balding. It seems all these reunion shows ever do is shatter any sort of fan-boy mystique I've built up in mind about an artist. It's a sort of grown up equivalent to discovering that not only is Santa Claus not real, but the guy in the suit all those years was the creepy old guy from down the street that always smelled like cough syrup.
Nonetheless, upon hearing that World Party was touring the States this summer and coming to Chicago, I couldn't resist. Essentially a one-man band consisting of music savant Karl Wallinger backed by various supporting members over the years, World Party has always been somewhat of an obscure favorite of mine ever since high school. Not so much obscure in the fact that the band was completely unknown and never sold more than 100 records at a time, but obscure on the level that I never really knew anyone else that was a fan. Occasionally I'd run into someone who had heard of Goodbye Jumbo (World Party/Wallinger's commercial and critical breakthrough), but I sure as hell have never been able to debate with anyone about what are the best tracks on Egyptology (World Party's major-label swan song from 1998). Not only has World Party been a cult favorite of mine for all of these years, I realized they were one of only a very select few of favorite bands that I had yet to see play live. Needless to say, I had to throw any reservations out the window and check out this performance.
To be fair, this was hardly a "reunion." World Party was always just a performance moniker for Karl Wallinger, so it's like not the band ever broke up. However, this was Wallinger's first appearance in Chicago in about 8 years or something and World Party had literally dropped off the face of the Earth for the past 5. Unfortunately, it was not a planned vacation for Wallinger. In February of 2001, he suffered a massive aneurysm that put him out of commission for two years. As a fan, I really should just be happy that the man is still alive, let alone able to tour. However, I still couldn't get past how bad he looked at this show and how fat...err, I mean flat this performance was.
I don't mean to mock the afflicted, but I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Wallinger walk on stage. He literally has become a pudgy and gray old man. It may not have been so disconcerting (the guy is now 49 years old after all) if it weren't the fact that all of the press photos for this tour and the domestic release of his Dumbing Up record earlier this year still depicted a skinny and suave Wallinger who looked only slightly older than the man from the "Is it Like Today?" video. I probably could have got over my superficial hang up a lot easier if it weren't for the fact that the performance was every bit as disconcerting as Wallinger's physical appearance. There was just no spark; it felt like I was watching a World Party tribute band or something. The vocals sounded pretty much the same and the band essentially played everything note for note, but there was that emptiness you get when watching a dorky cover band happily bounce from hit song to hit song without any change of tone or emotion. As much as I'd like to put all the blame on this backing band that clearly was assembled only recently for the purpose of touring America, Karl certainly was not without blame himself. Overall, the energy and spirit wasn't there, and at one point he actually had to bust out a lyric sheet and performed a song ("Here Comes the Future") karaoke-style with a piece of paper right in front of his face.
The one highlight of the night, though, seemed to be completely unscripted. At the beginning of the set there was a guy in the crowd who was shouting out requests for "Thank You World." Around the middle of the set, Wallinger actually obliged the request (I'm pretty sure I heard him mumble, "this next one's for...") and proceeded to play it solo acoustic-style. Judging by the somewhat awkward body language of most of the band members during the song, this wasn't just Wallinger dedicating something that was already in the planned set list. As it became apparent that he was, in fact, going to play the entire song and not just a short acoustic snippet, the band eventually started to lightly noodle along. Adding credence to my "the supporting band sucked" theory, this mostly solo performance was by far the most inspired moment of the night to me.
There's no doubt Wallinger's serious ailment drastically affected both his physical and mental capabilities and more than likely he's still trying to recover from it. As much as it is a huge accomplishment for him to be back on the road, I still would almost rather he had followed the Brian Eno-school of recovery (i.e. don't tour anymore, dive even deeper into studio work) rather than playing out the rest of his days on the rock star senior circuit that could eventually reduce World Party to playing state fairs and casinos. That being said, I still wish Karl and Co. all the best and I still would highly recommend picking up the "new" record, Dumbing Up, which also includes a great bonus DVD containing the entire World Party video anthology.
SET LIST:
Put the Message in the Box
Is It Like Today?
What Does It Mean Now?
When the Rainbow Comes
Best Place I've Ever Been
I Thought You Were A Spy
She's the One
Love Street
Who Are You?
Here Comes the Future
Vanity Fair
Thank You World
Sweet Soul Dream
Is It Too Late?
Way Down Now
(Encore)
It Is Time
Ship of Fools
Click here for the complete photo set
Alog is atmospheric and dreamy with minimalist music that has slowly added effects to it in order to create something complex as it is simplistic, which is to say that it’s something you have to listen to for awhile to understand why it works. It is, to be sure, music you have to be patient for. While it is rewarding, it is not easily accessible. I cringed at first when I saw band members Espen Sommer Eide and Dag-Are Haugan come out with laptops because there’s a certain aesthetic to watching people play an instrument vs. pressing a keyboard button (which I guess is why we don’t have rock shows inside offices). In addition, fellow Norwegian artist Kim Hiorthøy had unfortunately done just that when I saw him live a couple of years ago opening up for the lovely Mum. Even though I had enjoyed Hiorthøy’s music that night, I felt a little disappointed overall.
Luckily, I was put at ease right before Alog’s set when two guitars were also brought out; both a regular guitar and one without a headstock were used. In addition, a Thndtrix (which is an instrument invented and hand built by Alog) was used which looked like a small box and sounded a little like a fuzzy electronic theramin to me. Another instrument that was used was a midi-based sax that controlled various samples on the laptop, which I found interesting both in theory and in practice. In one song, there was almost a heart beat-like sound and in another the guitar tunings were slowly tweeked during the song to remind one of a slowly adjusting camera whose image goes in and out of focus. At times, it was a surprisingly organic feeling electronic symphony. Check out the bizarre but captivating video to Alog’s "Secret Flash" by clicking in the center of their website. Check out their songs by visiting their Myspace page
No conversation about the LA independent music scene would be complete without mention of Earlimart, one of the East Side's brightest and most influential mainstays.
And beyond Earlimart's significance as a band, lead Aaron Espinoza is also known for his production and engineering work (The Breeders, Grandaddy, Irving) and helping start The Ship collective, a group of local bands who not only practice and record at the nautically-themed studio in Eagle Rock, but ... gasp, is this really the every-crumb-for-himself City of Angels?! ... help each other out.
We recently spoke with Espinoza about all of these things. And more.
Hi, Aaron. So, you just released a limited edition 7" on Suicide Squeeze Records with two songs off of your new album and an exclusive track for them. (And their new 10th anniversary two-disc cd comp has that extra track on it, too.)
You’ve said in a previous interview that you when you're engineering you want the music to sound like the time you had while making them, whether you were drunk or sober or sad or happy or rich or poor.
What were you during these three songs?
Let's see... Pretty much drunk, happy and rich!
How’s the rest of the album coming along? What was your experience creating and recording these songs?
Well, it's pretty much finished… just a few more songs to mix. This record was pretty difficult. It's taken the longest to finish (write and record, etcetera). About 9 months officially. Kinda like a pregnancy.
It definitely has been very up and down for us in the past year. Getting out of our deal with Palm, shopping for a new deal, getting two deals, losing two deals, huge writers block, losing band members, gaining band members, getting engaged!, getting beat up by the bouncers at El Cid.
The list goes on and on. Good and bad.
How are they different from your earlier albums? Would you still call it end-of-the-movie music?
I dunno... Maybe more like between Act II and Act III music. A bit more pivotal? A turning point in the story. I don't know.
It's been really great to get to the end of this thing. Through all the hard stuff the band endured, it's made us closer, creatively and personally. It's much more of a collaboration between Ariana, Joel and I than ever before. Pretty great.
When’s it due out?
Well, as these things go... We are still currently unsigned, so don't know the exact answer for that question. We’re hoping very early next year. The sooner, the better.
How did The Ship collective come together?
In the beginning (in 1998), it was a necessity for us. We needed a place to record, rehearse, and hang out. That's what The Ship studio basically was... Earlimart, Irving, Pine Marten, Silversun Pickups. Nobody was making records for us back then.
And early on... not a lot of people came to the shows, so we became our own little support group. Recording, playing together, crying on each others shoulders. That sorta thing.
Now I think The Ship has changed a bit. The bands and artists and friends associated with it have all gone on to do a bunch of great stuff outside of our little group. Silversun and Irving don't always record at the ship, The bands tour nationally and internationally, bunches of people come to the shows.
Everybody has found some level of success within their own thing [and] I think that's great! I think that was the whole point of starting this in the first place.
How do you balance out your time between your engineering work and your own music?
I'm trying to do a bit more of the engineering/producing stuff lately. When Earlimart released Everyone Down Here and Treble, we toured constantly for three years. That kinda took me out of the studio for a while. Now we've got some down time before the next release, I'd like to record some other bands or have more bands working at the ship besides Earlimart. I guess I just try to find time between making Earlimart records and driving from California to New York over and over.
What’s your favorite song that you’ve ever worked on? Why?
That's tough... I really have a fond memory of working on this e.p. that was a Grandaddy/Earlimart collaboration. It was a lot of fun and not fun all rolled into one.
It was really about working with people really close to me: the Grandaddies and the Earlimarts. Just a real big weird family. The idea was that the members of Earlimart would work on a couple of Jason Lytle's songs and vice versa.
I think it was a total of five very long days at The Ship. A couple years ago now, maybe? But there was this one tune that Lytle had I Heart California, and it was so fucking good. Period.
It was really really fun to watch/record Davey (Earlimart) playing drums on the song and Ariana (Earlimart) singing back ups in an Arnold Schwarzenegger-style voice, "I love California." It's seriously so so fucking good. I hope that e.p. comes out soon.
But that's a whole other conversation.
What’s next for you?
The finish line.
Last question: Who are some of your favorite bands in LA right now?
Besides the obvious... I like Giant Drag, Tigers Can Bite You, and The Eagles.
That's all. Thanks for your time, Aaron.
Now, here's the title track off of the Answers & Questions 7" on Suicide Squeeze Records.
Download: Earlimart - "Answers & Questions"
Also released on this busy new releases Tuesday is an impressive live comp from Seattle's KEXP. Don't think it's available at any stores locally, but you can pick it up on KEXP.org. Here's the complete track listing:
Live at KEXP Volume Two
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