tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81760372024-03-14T03:59:28.447-04:00The Oak RoomMusic and musicians in Raleigh-Durham-Chapel HillMarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.comBlogger169125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1190821663891212162007-08-17T14:00:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:18.702-05:00Max Roach 1924-2007<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RsXoLunLeII/AAAAAAAAAC4/uIBoa8MRcj4/s1600-h/maxroach1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RsXoLunLeII/AAAAAAAAAC4/uIBoa8MRcj4/s1600/maxroach1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5099737441255520386" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Max Roach:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/07%20Conversation.mp3">Conversation</a>" (from <span style="font-style: italic;">Deeds, Not Words</span> 1958. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Deeds-Not-Words-Max-Roach/dp/B000000YH2">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/Max-Roach-Deeds-Not-Words-MP3-Download/10585878.html">download</a>)<br /><br />The great jazz drummer Max Roach died yesterday. (Born in Newland, NC, so there's the "local music" connection I'm hanging this post on.) He was a real innovator in a way that's hard to appreciate when so many have followed in his footsteps. Most notably in his solo pieces, he treated the drumset as an <span style="font-style: italic;">instrument</span>. Rather than displaying mere technical flash, Roach created themes -- melodies, really -- and structured his solo around them just as a trumpet or piano player would. You can hear this in "Conversation" which I've posted here.<br /><br />What's particularly impressive to me is the way he continued to stretch his boundaries throughout his life, working with a <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DEED61339F934A15755C0A960948260">full-blown percussion ensemble</a>, a brass quintet, <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE4D81238F93BA25755C0A961948260">a string quartet</a>, gospel choirs and hip-hop artists. It's also worth noting how effectively he used his music and his celebrity to advocate for civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s.<br /><br />On a personal level, he was a key figure in opening my eyes and ears to jazz in particular and a wider range of musical possibility in general. In high school, when I was still at the stage where Neal Peart seemed like the pinnacle of percussion prowess, Roach gave a clinic that I attended. I was completely awed by what he could accomplish with nothing more than a high-hat.<br /><br /><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY"></a><object height="350" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/H8syiOwwVyY" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="350" width="425"></embed></object>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-40345482994718712792007-07-13T14:54:00.001-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.062-05:00Vacation's Almost Over<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RpfOBzMCvDI/AAAAAAAAACw/g_aC_LEq8og/s1600-h/beach.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RpfOBzMCvDI/AAAAAAAAACw/g_aC_LEq8og/s1600/beach.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5086760834454174770" border="0" /></a>Back soon. Enjoy some summer songs for now.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Red Collar Company:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/05%20Bring%20On%20The%20Summer.mp3">Bring on the Summer</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Rockin' the Blocks</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> compilation 2005.)<br /></span>You might could still get a copy of the Rockin' the Blocks CD if you bug the folks at <a href="http://www.downtowndurham.com/">Downtown Durham</a>. This was an early incarnation of <a href="http://www.redcollarmusic.com/">Red Collar</a> -- Jason plays a mean harmonica!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Work Clothes:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/Fort%20Bragg%20Summers.mp3">Fort Bragg Summers</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >These Are the Shoes We Wear</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2005. <a href="http://www.fractured-discs.com/workclothes.html">Buy it</a>. <a href="http://www.workclothesmusic.com/">Web site</a>.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Chris Stamey (with Yo La Tengo):</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/07%20The%20Summer%20Sun.mp3">The Summer Sun</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >V.O.T.E.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2004 <a href="http://store.yeproc.com/album.php?id=371">Buy it</a>.)</span>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-41330086556252803482007-05-11T13:00:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.223-05:00Justin Roberts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RkShhn8x4GI/AAAAAAAAACo/S9fYNYCDZ4E/s1600-h/justinroberts.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RkShhn8x4GI/AAAAAAAAACo/S9fYNYCDZ4E/s1600/justinroberts.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063349480102944866" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Justin Roberts:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/09%20One%20Little%20Cookie.mp3">One Little Cookie</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Yellow Bus</span> 2001. <a href="http://justinrobertsmusic.com/shop.php">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10883/10883017.html">download</a>)</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/02%20Day%20Camp.mp3">Day Camp</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(From <span style="font-style: italic;">Way Out</span> 2004. <a href="http://justinrobertsmusic.com/shop.php">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10895/10895565.html">download</a>)</span><br /><br />Well, I definitely did not expect to get scooped on this by <a href="http://www.indyweekblogs.com/scan/">Scan</a>, but Rick Cornell had a <a href="http://www.indyweekblogs.com/scan/best-bets/not-just-kid-stuff/">very nice post</a> about <a href="http://justinrobertsmusic.com/">Justin Roberts</a>, who performs at the <a href="http://www.artscenterlive.org/">Carrboro ArtsCenter</a> tomorrow (5/12) at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Rick's exactly right -- Justin makes kid-themed music that adults will get a lot out of as well. His most recent albums -- <span style="font-style: italic;">Way Out</span> and especially <span style="font-style: italic;">Meltdown!</span> -- are really wonderful pop with sophisticated and interesting arrangements and production. Whereas on the early albums he was sort of a kids' music James Taylor, he's developed into more like a kids' music Brian Wilson. (Honestly, I think he's gone about as far as he can go in that direction -- I love Meltdown, but if he goes any further in that direction, it'll be overdone.)<br /><br />Rick even called out "One Little Cookie" which has always been one of my favorites as well. One of my wife's favorites is "Day Camp", which has a nice Violent Femmes feel to it. Click <a href="http://justinrobertsmusic.com/radio.php">here</a> to launch Justin's radio player, where you can hear a couple of other songs, starting with the excellent "Our Imaginary Rhino" from <span style="font-style: italic;">Meltdown!</span><br /><br />I'll be at the 11:00 show tomorrow, the third one we've seen at the ArtsCenter. Justin puts on a great show even when it's just him and a supporting musician. (I'd <span style="font-style: italic;">love</span> to see the full Not-ready-for-Naptime Players band someday, though!) The early show's sold out, but it looks like you can still <a href="http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/eventSearch.jsp?event_id=4020&cobrand=artscenterlive">get tickets for the afternoon show</a>. If you've got kids, go see this show!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-66450069468088705962007-05-04T14:06:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.532-05:00Un Deux Trois<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rjt3V38x4FI/AAAAAAAAACg/6_gDb6XBu5s/s1600-h/undeuxtrois.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rjt3V38x4FI/AAAAAAAAACg/6_gDb6XBu5s/s1600/undeuxtrois.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5060769823960719442" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Un Deux Trois:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/01%20Everything%20That%20is%20Happening%20is%20H.mp3">Everything That Is Happening Is Happening</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Lovers EP</span> 2007. Buy it <a href="http://holidaysforquince.com/webpages/shop.htm">here</a>.)<br /></span><br />Just a quick post to say how much I've been enjoying the newish EP from <a href="http://www.myspace.com/undeuxtroisband">Un Deux Trois</a>. It's a low-key set of songs from Heather McEntire of <a href="http://bellafea.com/webpages/newsnew.htm">Bellafea</a> and Jenks Miller of <a href="http://www.myspace.com/intheyearofthepig">In the Year of the Pig</a>. I don't know either of those bands terribly well, but this sounds nothing like I'd expect from a combination of the two. While they both strike me as far more raucous, Un Deux Trois is stripped down and acoustic. The casual nature of the music belies the fairly somber tone of the lyrics, which are generally either regretful or angry (though the last song, "45 rpm", offers rueful acceptance of a less-than ideal situation: "We're not in love but it sure feels nice.")<br /><br />I'm glad I spent some time considering the lyrics, since they are pretty poetic. I'm especially fond of the scene depicted in "Everything That Is Happening Is Happening", with its heat-weary refrain of "I just want you to come clean" and the marvelously ambiguous closing line: "There's nothing like regret to keep you on your knees."<br /><br />McEntire and Miller are playing separately at <a href="http://www.305southdurham.com/">305 South</a> in Durham tonight as part of a big CD release show for <a href="http://www.burlytime.com/">Burly Time Records</a>, a label launched by the Indy's Grayson Currin. Burly Time has new CDs from Miller as <a href="http://www.myspace.com/horsebacknoise">Horseback</a>, <a href="http://www.bowerbirds.org/">Bowerbirds</a>, and <a href="http://www.myspace.com/megafaun">Megafaun </a>(seemingly the remnants of DeYarmond Edison, a band I enjoyed but never got to write about). A very nice lineup, and I'm looking forward to hearing them. Also on the bill tonight, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/desark">Des_Ark</a> and <a href="http://www.myspace.com/pykrete">Pykrete</a>. That's a lot of great music -- and a free show to boot!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-78508961545581988212007-04-27T13:53:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.694-05:00Nathan Oliver<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RjIs0H8x4EI/AAAAAAAAACY/yOtq0xfgHJM/s1600-h/nathan_oliver.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RjIs0H8x4EI/AAAAAAAAACY/yOtq0xfgHJM/s1600/nathan_oliver.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5058154605489283138" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Nathan Oliver:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/01%20Black%20Ship%20White%20Sails.mp3">Black Ship White Sails</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/08%20No%20Name.mp3">No Name</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Nathan Oliver</span> 2007. Buy it <a href="http://www.poxworldempire.com/merchandise.htm">here</a>.)<br /><a href="http://www.myspace.com/nathanolivernc">My Space</a> :: <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/nathanoliver">ReverbNation</a><br /></span><br /><a href="http://www.nathan-oliver.com/">Nathan Oliver</a>'s self-titled debut CD is a little gem of well-crafted, folkish pop songs. UNC dental student Nathan White enlisted a fine cast of musicians to flesh out his creations, including Lee Waters (Work Clothes), Matt McCaughan (him again -- Rosebuds, Portastatic, etc), and the production skills of Zeno Gill. <br /><br />I'm not sure that the dental student thing is that relevant to the music, but I suppose that spending that much time staring into people's mouths might twist your perspective a bit. And there is something pleasingly off-center about this album, from the sonic quirks that make this more than generic guy-with-guitar rock (I guess that's viola on "Black Ship White Sails"?) to the obscurely dark tone of the lyrics. White ranges from quiet, acoustic numbers like "Sleep Song" -- mainly guitar, but still there's a <span style="font-style: italic;">noise</span> in the background that complicates things -- to straight-ahead rockers like "Greys and Blacks". In between, he nods to the Violent Femmes ("Old Slow Poke") and reimagines the Ace of Base song "All That She Wants" in a bleakly haunting manner. But amidst all this, White has some lovely pop songs, and the two numbers that I'm featuring highlight that craft.<br /><br />Nathan Oliver plays Sunday night (4/29) at <a href="http://www.caverntavern.com/">the Cave</a> in Chapel Hill, opening for <a href="http://myspace.com/thetrolleyvox">the Trolleyvox</a>. They don't have any more shows on their calendar after that, so check them out now!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-3410518345425255262007-04-23T13:13:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.847-05:00The Rosebuds: Night of the Furies<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rizf1kpgVPI/AAAAAAAAACQ/fmMlXu5GtxM/s1600-h/rosebuds.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rizf1kpgVPI/AAAAAAAAACQ/fmMlXu5GtxM/s1600/rosebuds.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5056662593094046962" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Rosebuds:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/04%20Get%20Up%20Get%20Out.mp3">Get Up Get Out</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/03%20I%20Better%20Run.mp3">I Better Run</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Night of the Furies</span> 2007. <a href="http://www.mergerecords.com/catalog.php?method=band&query_band_id=2&">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/11024/11024079.html">download</a>)</span><br /><br />I've been giving the new <a href="http://www.therosebuds.com/">Rosebuds</a> music time to sink in before I say anything about it. It's quite a departure from their previous albums, most easily glossed as "Rosebuds-go-new-wave". Given my real fondness for their prior output, I felt like I owed them more than my initial, knee-jerk "I don't like this" response. So I've listened to it plenty, and thought about it a lot. I've come to see some good things about it, but it's still not really doing much for me.<br /><br />There are certainly some continuities here. Ivan Howard still has a knack for melody and nice bits of la-la-la/ooohhh-ahhh. The lyrics and overall tone carry on the darker vein the band had opened up on <span style="font-style: italic;">Birds Make Good Neighbors</span>. Really, I think the lyrics are pretty interesting -- the overall album has a sort of Southern Gothic/Faulkneresque feel to it, with the relentless pull of grim fate hanging over the proceedings.<br /><br />But earlier Rosebuds albums bounced along with a charming casual energy -- Ivan's jangly guitar, Kelly Crisp's organ, shuffling drums -- and an overall organic feel. Night of the Furies, on the other hand, is dominated by 80s synth patches and drums that are either programmed or processed so much they might as well be. Bass is far more prominent, and the guitar is pulled way back. A few changes are welcome -- it's good to hear Kelly taking more lead vocals, and the occasional touches of piano are nice -- but on the whole, the production just doesn't work for me.<br /><br />And I do think it's the production more than the songs themselves, which as I noted above, have strong lyrics and a good melodic core. I wish this version was a remix album and I could hear the originals. Failing that, I suspect that they open up a bit live, especially with a fine drummer like Matt McCaughan on board. There are some live performances from SXSW <a href="http://www.lullabyes.net/blog/2007/03/rosebuds-031707.html">here</a> and a video <a href="http://music.yahoo.com/promo-29644410-162-20060410">here</a> (via <a href="http://www.indyweekblogs.com/scan/wire/good-rosebuds-stuff/">Scan</a>) that seem to confirm this idea.<br /><br />I'd like to think my reaction is more than simple <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockism">rockism</a> or reactionary change-is-bad sentiments. Maybe it's a bit of both, since I do feel like the production puts what could be some compelling songs at a bit of an emotional reserve, and I keep trying to imagine what they would sound like as "old-school Rosebuds songs". Maybe I'm just wrong -- <span style="font-style: italic;">Night of the Furies</span> seems to be pretty well-received in most quarters -- but to my ears, this is a misstep by a good band. I'll definitely be looking to see what happens next.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Update 5/4:</span> <a href="http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A104450">This review</a> gets at a lot of what I was trying to say, in a much more articulate manner. Thanks Robbie!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-81679337275747267632007-04-06T12:26:00.001-04:002008-12-13T00:30:19.927-05:00Callum Robbins Benefit at BCHQ on Saturday<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RhZlhVbutMI/AAAAAAAAACI/fzPGXe3KEns/s1600-h/BCHQold.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RhZlhVbutMI/AAAAAAAAACI/fzPGXe3KEns/s1600/BCHQold.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5050335655506130114" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fin Fang Foom:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/In%20Harms%20Way.mp3">In Harm's Way</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">With the Gift Comes the Curse</span> 2005. <a href="http://www.lovitt.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_music_info&products_id=38">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10858/10858282.html">download</a>)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Red Collar:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/04%20Used%20Guitars.mp3">Used Guitars</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Hands Up EP </span>2007. <a href="http://www.307knoxrecords.com/store.html">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/11008/11008400.html">download</a>)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Caltrop:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/Dr.%20Motherfucker.mp3">Dr. Motherfucker</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Caltrop</span> 2006. <a href="http://www.caltropnc.com/">Buy</a>)</span><br /><br />There's a couple of good causes you can support by attending this show tomorrow night. First of all, you can help a cool fledgling performance space in Durham, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/bchq">Bull City HQ</a>, get off the ground. It's great to see a grass-roots place like this spring up, and I certainly hope they can make a go of it. (Especially in light of <a href="http://groups.google.com/group/alt.music.chapel-hill/browse_thread/thread/268a943e6ae0fac9/f61de2e7a2f499be#f61de2e7a2f499be">this fascinating discussion</a> and the closure of a couple of <a href="http://www.bickettgallery.com/home.html">fine</a> <a href="http://www.kingsbarcade.com/">venues</a> in Raleigh lately.) They could use a good turnout.<br /><br />This show in particular is a benefit for Callum Robbins, the fifteen-month-old son of "<span class="q">DC punk rock icon, J. Robbins", who was has a brutal disease called <a href="http://www.smafoundation.org/">Spinal Muscular Atrophy</a>. I don't really know Robbins' work in bands like Gvmt Issue, Jawbox, and Channels, but I have kids, and thus huge sympathy for parents dealing with such a serious -- and expensive -- problem. This show is part of <a href="http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/41942-mission-of-burma-jawbreaker-travis-morrison-contribute-to-callum-robbins-benefit-comp">a much wider effort to help support Callum</a>, and you can certainly <a href="http://www.desotorecords.com/cal/index.shtml">make a direct donation</a>, but seeing this show would be a great way to kick in as well.</span><br /><br />So, the music: I've <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/search/label/Red%20Collar">said my piece</a> about <a href="http://www.redcollarmusic.com/">Red Collar</a> before. They are great -- don't miss their tour blog for some interesting thoughts about the SXSW experience. I don't know the other bands well at all, but Fin Fang Foom (<a href="http://www.myspace.com/finfangfoom">MySpace</a>/<a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/finfangfoom">ReverbNation</a>) seems to do some interesting, moody post-punk/math rock stuff. I think the title of their 2001 release <span style="font-style: italic;">Texture, Structure, and the Conditions of Mood</span> is pretty evocative, though the little that I've heard of their later work sounds a little less raucous and thus (to me) a bit more interesting. I'll have to investigate further. <a href="http://www.myspace.com/caltropband">Caltrop</a> puts out some complex metallic rock that's more interested in being heavy than being fast. Red Collar's probably the odd man out here -- they are far more straight-ahead rock than the other two -- but there's definitely some interesting music on tap. Suggested donation $5; starts at 8; 723 N. Mangum, Durham.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-89493406571200035712007-03-30T15:33:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:20.118-05:00Don Dixon<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rg0TUd5_S8I/AAAAAAAAACA/Puz5E6VXV2U/s1600-h/dondixon.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rg0TUd5_S8I/AAAAAAAAACA/Puz5E6VXV2U/s1600/dondixon.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5047711999698357186" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don Dixon:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/04%20Roommate.mp3">Roommate</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/09%20ICU.mp3">ICU</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Entire Combustible World in One Small Room</span> 2006. <a href="http://www.125records.com/shop.html">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/11000/11000809.html">download</a>)</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.dondixonmusic.com/">Don Dixon</a> has a long history of involvement with great southern rock music. In the 1970s, he was a member of <a href="http://www.arrogance.us/index.htm">Arrogance</a>, probably the first of North Carolina's should-have-made-it-big bands (and mentioned in <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2004/09/north-carolina-rock-project.html">just about the first post I ever wrote</a>, though I didn't know much about them back then). Subsequently, he produced R.E.M.'s <span style="font-style: italic;">Murmur</span> with <a href="http://www.mitcheaster.com/audio.html">Mitch Easter</a>, and worked on other records in that vein by <a href="http://www.chrisstamey.com/">Chris Stamey</a> and others. He also released a couple of well-regarded pop albums in the 80s and 90s.<br /><br />Last year, Dixon put out his first new recording in a while, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Entire Combustible World in One Small Room</span>. Each of the songs is a slice of life taking place in a single room -- it's less of a concept album than one with a nice device to ground the songwriting and unify something about the point of view. As Dixon notes, "the the rooms are almost characters in the songs" themselves.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Combustible World</span> is full of smart songwriting, and the great production that you'd expect from someone with Dixon's track record. It strikes me as similar to late-80s/early 90s Elvis Costello -- sharply observed songs and interestingly arranged music that covers a pretty diverse range of styles in the course of the album. "Roommate" is one of the most straight-ahead pop-rock songs on the album, the story of a girl who can't really admit to herself that she's fallen in love with her roommate. "ICU" stands out to me since I'm always a sucker for interesting percussion sounds. The album has plenty of other good stuff, including a cover of Let's Active's "Room With A View".Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-68667838970506956342007-03-16T09:32:00.000-04:002008-12-13T00:30:20.288-05:00Noisy Rockshow feat. the Nein, Maple Stave, Sorry About Dresden<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rfqbh3juUrI/AAAAAAAAAB4/nvssLAQrJL0/s1600-h/TheNein.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rfqbh3juUrI/AAAAAAAAAB4/nvssLAQrJL0/s1600/TheNein.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5042513738946466482" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />The Nein:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/04%20The%20Vibe.mp3">The Vibe</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Wrath of Circuits</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2005. <a href="http://www.sonicunyon.com/thenein/">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10854/10854600.html">download</a>)</span><br />"<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/08%20Decollage.mp3">Decollage</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Luxury</span> 2007. <a href="http://www.sonicunyon.com/thenein/">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/11006/11006011.html">download</a>)<br />(<a href="http://www.myspace.com/thenein">MySpace</a> :: <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/thenein">ReverbNation</a>)<br /></span><br />I'm still absorbing <span style="font-style: italic;">Luxury</span>, the latest release from Durham's art-punk quintet <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thenein">the Nein</a>, but since they are part of a great line-up in a free show at <a href="http://local506.com/">Local 506</a> tonight, it seems like a good time to give them at least a nod. If nothing else, the show should be <span style="font-weight: bold;">loud</span>, including not only the Nein, but <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/maplestave">Maple Stave</a> and a rare appearance by <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/sorryaboutdresden">Sorry About Dresden</a>. I saw Maple Stave at Troika last fall -- their recordings don't do justice to the racket they make! But it's not "nothing else", of course, because the guys in Maple Stave have the technical proficiency to pull off their complex songs, and Sorry About Dresden carry on the classic Chapel Hill indie rock tradition in fine style.<br /><br />I'm still mulling over <span style="font-style: italic;">Luxury</span>, so I don't have a detailed analysis. (Not that I'm ever much of an album-review guy...) Although I'm generally enjoying it, it's a good bit more experimental than <span style="font-style: italic;">Wrath of Circuits</span>, and I haven't been able to give it a close enough listen to work out what I think of this shift. As <a href="http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A46042">these</a> <a href="http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/11501/the-nein-luxury/">reviews</a> note, this time around, the songs were built from the ground up with tape effect/sample guy Dale Flattum on board (rather than grafting his contributions onto already-written songs), which makes for a more varied and ambitious sound. As with most challenging music, its appeal is not as obvious on first listen. We'll see how it shakes out for me in the long run, but hats off to the Nein for pushing their sound in unexpected directions.<br /><br />I've posted one song from each album, not because they're particularly representative of either one -- they're not at all, really. But they do sum up something about the difference between the two. In one sense, they are similar to each other, with some spacey sound effects and great pounding percussion. But "Decollage" is more out-there, walking the edge of falling apart.<br /><br />I've been experimenting with <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/theoakroom">my Reverb Nation account</a> a little bit this week. As a music-oriented social networking site, they have MySpace beat badly in terms of technology and general experience. I suppose the main "drawback" is that you can't customize the appearance of your page, but given the nasty layouts so common on MySpace, I'm not so sure this is a negative at all. In any case, one thing you can do is assemble a mix from various artists and plug it into your own site. So here's a sampler of the various bands at Local 506 tonight -- you can download most of them for yourself if you go to Reverb Nation.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><img src="http://www.reverbnation.com/widgets/buffer.gif" height="4"><br/><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.reverbnation.com/widgets/player/widgetPlayer.swf?emailPlaylist=playlist_29220&backgroundcolor=EEEEEE&autoPlay=false" height="228" width="434" wmode="opaque"></embed><br/><a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/c./a4/15/962/Artist/0/User/link"><img alt="The Oak Room" border="0" src="http://www.reverbnation.com/c./a3/15/962/Artist/0/User/res.gif" /></a><br/><img src="http://www.reverbnation.com/widgets/buffer.gif" height="4"><br /></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-75851297080317419252007-03-09T08:00:00.000-05:002008-12-13T00:30:20.559-05:00Crunchy power pop from Stratocruiser<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RfF59H4x5AI/AAAAAAAAABc/wZukyKsyAw8/s1600-h/Stratocruiser.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/RfF59H4x5AI/AAAAAAAAABc/wZukyKsyAw8/s1600/Stratocruiser.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5039943549000475650" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Stratocruiser:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/03%20Starched%20White%20Shirt.mp3">Starched White Shirt</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Revolutions</span> 2006. <a href="http://cdbaby.com/cd/stratocruiser3">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10988/10988426.html">download</a>.)</span><br /><br />Not a lot of time for posting this week, but I'm committed to keeping this thing rolling. So let me just say that I've been really enjoying <span style="font-style: italic;">Revolutions</span>, the recent release from Chapel Hill's power pop/classic rock quartet <a href="http://www.stratocruisermusic.com/">Stratocruiser</a>. While I question the necessity of their Led Zep cover, their originals carry on in a fine Cheap Trick-T Rex vein. Great for air guitar! I'll offer up one song here; you can listen to a few more on <a href="http://myspace.com/stratocruiser">their MySpace page</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Also:</span> shows to see this weekend: On Friday, the <a href="http://broadstreetcafe.org/events/view_entry.php?id=436&date=20070309">Rock for a Cure show at Broad Street Cafe</a> featuring Red Collar (great show last week, guys!), Can Joann, The Relatively Calm, Saunter, and Jeff Crawford. On Saturday, the grand opening of Bull City HQ, featuring Dead Elephant Bicycle, the Future Kings of Nowhere, Beloved Binge, Eberhardt, and Mandarin Dynasty. (Chaz has to be Durham's MVP this year -- great record store, key Troika guy, and now spearheading this new performance space. Great work!) Wish I had time to say more about these, but perhaps I'll come back to some of these bands soon.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-17609348964614132712007-03-01T09:09:00.000-05:002008-12-13T00:30:20.728-05:00Red Collar EP release<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Recgd7NakQI/AAAAAAAAABM/ybcRg8Gfc1E/s1600-h/Redcollar.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; ;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Recgd7NakQI/AAAAAAAAABM/ybcRg8Gfc1E/s1600/Redcollar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5037030406719443202" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Red Collar:</span> "<a href="http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/3/1/837497/04%20Used%20Guitars.mp3">Used Guitars</a>" (from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Hands Up EP</span> 2007. <a href="http://www.307knoxrecords.com/store.html">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/11008/11008400.html">download</a>)<br /><br />There's a lot of good stuff happening for Durham's <a href="http://www.redcollarmusic.com/">Red Collar</a>. They've put out a great EP on <a href="http://www.307knoxrecords.com/">307 Knox</a> and have a release show this Friday at <a href="http://www.soundscripturestudios.com/305southdurham/index.html">305 South</a>. Even better, they got a slot at the <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/main/sxsw2007">Reverbnation showcase at SXSW</a> later in the month. Couldn't happen to nicer folks.<br /><br />The EP features two songs that the band has had up on MySpace for a while ("Used Guitars" and "Witching Hour") and two that are new (to me) ("Hands Up" and "Stay"). As I've noted earlier, the music is smartened-up punk, and the lyrics are thoughful and sensitive to the plight of folks on the verge of being crushed by forces beyond their control. The disillusion of "Used Guitars" is compelling -- listen to Jason Kutchma spitting "We can't be everything we wanted to be" as the song winds up -- while "Stay" manages to find a glimmer of hope in amidst creditors and auditors. In addition to the well-crafted lyrics, the music is pretty smart as well: "Hands Up" makes the most of a nifty pair of interlocking guitar parts, and the "Stay" gets a jolt from some jumpy odd-time sections.<br /><br />Grayson Currin <a href="http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A45230">gives the EP a thoughtful look</a> in this week's <span style="font-style: italic;">Independent</span>, and the <span style="font-style: italic;">Daily Tar Heel</span> has a nice <a href="http://media.www.dailytarheel.com/media/storage/paper885/news/2007/03/01/Diversions/Red-Collar.Live.Pro.Wrestling.Rock-2750548.shtml">conversation with the band</a>. (I already thought Jason was pretty cool, but to know that he covered "Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?" in a former band takes the cake...)<br /><br />So, the CD release show at 305 South on Friday is $5, which also gets you a copy of the EP. There's another show at the <a href="http://broadstreetcafe.org/">Broad Street Cafe</a> the following Friday (3/9), a benefit for the Leukemeia and Lymphoma Society. Among others on the bill is <a href="http://www.canjoann.com/">Can Joann</a>, a band that carried the promise of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Aiden Grace EP</span> into last year's strong release, <span style="font-style: italic;">Hurt People Hurt People</span>. Here's hoping Red Collar can follow the same trajectory.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-84356803382215571682007-02-23T10:41:00.000-05:002008-12-13T00:30:20.908-05:00Spider Bags: rowdy, sloppy country rock<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rd8vMI4RBcI/AAAAAAAAAAg/pjEOok6EDTQ/s1600-h/spiderbags.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_i1-042pDXaQ/Rd8vMI4RBcI/AAAAAAAAAAg/pjEOok6EDTQ/s1600/spiderbags.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5034794794011919810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Spider Bags:</span><br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/04%20Blood%20For%20You.mp3">Blood For You</a>"<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/06%20So%20Long%20A%20Rope.mp3">So Long A Rope</a>"<br />(from <span style="font-style: italic;">A Celebration of Hunger</span> 2007.)<br /><br />So what does it take to rouse the Oak Room from its hibernation? Well, a great country rock CD in the mail seems to do the trick. I had heard rumblings that Chapel Hill's <a href="http://www.myspace.com/spiderbags">Spider Bags</a> had signed to a label, but hadn't really been keeping tabs on the news -- so it was a real treat to find their upcoming <a href="http://www.birdmanrecords.com/">Birdman Records</a> release <span style="font-style: italic;">A Celebration of Hunger</span> in my mailbox when I got home yesterday.<br /><br />As I noted when I wrote about Spider Bags previously, they pull off an appealing mix of rock and country/roots influences -- not neccessarily the most ground-breaking stuff if you've listened to stuff from Bloodshot Records, but pretty rousing all the same. I haven't seen them live, but I bet they're a real good time -- a lot of it sounds like music to break beer bottles to. I posted a rowdy singalong, "Waking Up Drunk", <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/06/rootscountry-smorgasbord-at-local-506.html">the first time I wrote about these guys</a>, so this time I'm showcasing a little more range. "So Long A Rope" is a little more mellow but still quite rootsy, while "Blood For You" turns down the country a bit and ramps up the rock.<br /><br />Locals can catch Spider Bags at <a href="http://www.caverntavern.com/">the Cave</a> on March 10 (with like-minded NYC twang-rockers <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thecoydogs">the Coy Dogs</a>); if you're attending <a href="http://2007.sxsw.com/">SXSW</a>, you can see them at the <a href="http://2007.sxsw.com/music/showcases/club/Club%20de%20Ville.html">Birdman showcase</a> on March 14.<br /><br />(And by the way, boo to SXSW for not sorting bands by state this year, but the crew over at the Daily Tar Heel's Diversions blog is <a href="http://apps.dailytarheel.com/blogs/dive/?p=431">keeping track of the local folks making the trek to Austin</a>.)Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1166130359654570842007-01-05T08:00:00.000-05:002007-03-01T14:10:16.476-05:00Grasshopper<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/575290/grasshopper2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/575290/grasshopper2.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Grasshopper:</span><br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/Ex-Sunbeam.mp3">Ex-Sunbeam</a>"<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/I%20Used%20to%20Sing%20Along.mp3">I Used To Sing Along</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Just Like You</span> EP, 2006. Buy a copy <a href="http://www.ahhgrasshopper.com/merch.html">here</a>.)</span><br /><br />I think I first noticed <a href="http://www.ahhgrasshopper.com/">Grasshopper</a> when they played a couple of shows with <a href="http://redcollarmusic.com/">Red Collar</a> [<a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/09/red-collar-post-punk-and-longest-oak.html">previously</a>]. They have some similarity in sound (particularly "Ex-Sunbeam"), but Grasshopper seems to have a bit more pop in the mix. Good indie rock (and if that phrase means anything as a stylistic description, it's something like this) from a Chapel Hill trio. Sometimes I don't have much else to say but "I like this music", and this is one of those times.<br /><br />Hear a couple of demos at their <a href="http://www.myspace.com/grasshopperband">MySpace</a> page, or at the super-slick <a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/grasshopper">ReverbNation</a>, a quite cool (and locally-based) music social networking site. (<a href="http://www.reverbnation.com/theoakroom">The Oak Room</a> is there too.)Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1166629191919316042006-12-20T08:00:00.000-05:002007-07-13T15:14:27.171-04:00Christmas Mix<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/25478/peanutschristmas.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/25478/peanutschristmas.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br />"<a href="http://www.thebrantleyfamilyband.com/xmas06/MorningStar.mp3">Morning Star</a>" (The Brantley Family Band)<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/Christmas%20Time%20Is%20Here.mp3">Christmas Time Is Here</a>" (Thad Cockrell and Roman Candle)<br />"<a href="http://www.trekkyrecords.com/mp3/merrylittlexmas.mp3">Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas</a>" (Trekky Yuletide Orchestra)<br />"<a href="http://www.poxworldempire.com/poxmp3s/gerty-littledrummachinegirl.mp3">Little Drum Machine Girl</a>" (Gerty!)<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/01%20Oh%20Its%20Christmas.mp3">Oh It's Christmas</a>" (The Rosebuds)<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/Feliz%20Navidad.mp3">Feliz Navidad</a>" (The dB's)<br /><br />Well, I meant to run this as a series all week, but that's not happening. Here's a mix of old and new Christmas music from local bands. A quick rundown of what's what:<br /><br />This year, Jim Brantley (currently with <a href="http://www.bullcitytheband.com/">Bull City</a>, formerly of <a href="http://www.thebalanceband.com/">the Balance</a> and <a href="http://home.nc.rr.com/ashleystove/">Ashley Stove</a>) put out his third <a href="http://www.thebrantleyfamilyband.com/xmas06/">on-line Christmas card</a> (here's <a href="http://www.thebrantleyfamilyband.com/xmas05/">2005</a> and <a href="http://www.thebrantleyfamilyband.com/xmas04/">2004</a>). They tend to be a mix of the lovely and the silly, and this instrumental version of the Moravian hymn "Morning Star" is definitely the former. (Check this <a href="http://www.thebrantleyfamilyband.com/xmas04/SilentNite.mp3">death-metal "Silent Night"</a> for the latter!) The <a href="http://www.oldsalem.org/">Moravian influence</a> is pretty strong around Winston-Salem, and since Jim's from around there, as am I, this one makes me happy.<br /><br />"Christmas Time Is Here" is an original song, not the Vince Guaraldi classic from <span style="font-style: italic;">A Charlie Brown Christmas</span>, but it's a great collaboration between Triangle expat <a href="http://www.thadcockrell.com/">Thad Cockrell</a> and still-local <a href="http://www.romancandlemusic.com/">Roman Candle</a>. This is a new addition to the expanded re-release of the <a href="http://chrisstamey.com/">Chris Stamey</a>/<a href="http://www.thedbsonline.net/">dB's</a> <span style="font-style: italic;">Christmas Time</span> album; the charmingly loose dB's cover of "Feliz Navidad" is from the original. (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Time-Again-dBs/dp/B000IAZNDG/">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10968/10968233.html">download</a>)<br /><br />At some point before new-wavers <a href="http://www.gerty.org/">Gerty</a> morphed into <a href="http://www.myspace.com/theexmembers">the Ex-Members</a>, they recorded a Christmas CD, which is the source of "Little Drum Machine Girl". If you are thinking of Beck's "Little Drum Machine Boy", this is a more straightforward adaptation of the traditional song, but with some Gerty flair.<br /><br />One of two local benefit compliations released this year, <a href="http://www.trekkyrecords.com/">Trekky Records</a> <span style="font-style: italic;">A New Old-Fashioned Christmas</span> is a surprisingly (to me) conventional <a href="http://www.trekkyrecords.com/xmasfront.html">collection of traditional holiday songs</a>. I know it says "old-fashioned" in the name, but I didn't really expect the conventional song selection and straightforward arrangements from members of <a href="http://www.thenever.org/">the Never</a> and the other Trekky bands. It's good stuff, though, and I love this version of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", one of my favorite Christmas songs. Proceeds benefit the <a href="http://nmss.org/">National Multiple Sclerosis Society</a>, so buy a copy <a href="http://store.trekkyrecords.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=21&products_id=83">here</a>.<br /><br />The other benefit compilation is <a href="http://www.hollyraleighchristmas.org/">Have a Holly Raleigh Christmas</a>, which is for the benefit of local high school music programs. (Read more about it <a href="http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A40477">here</a>.) I haven't actually gotten my hands on this one, so the sound quality of the Rosebuds song is poor, but hey, it's <a href="http://therosebuds.com/">the Rosebuds</a>. This sounds exactly like what you would think the Rosebuds singing about Christmas would sound like. (If anything, it's a bit of a throwback to their earlier songs, given the somewhat more somber tone of their recent album.) Buy a copy <a href="http://www.grma.org/cubecart/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=2">here</a>, or shop in Raleigh (list of merchants <a href="http://www.hollyraleighchristmas.org/">here</a>).<br /><br />So, Merry Christmas (or other appropriate seasonal wishes). Don't look for much from me next week, but New Year's resolution number 1 is to get back on a regular weekly schedule with this thing.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1165589431009292702006-12-07T21:00:00.000-05:002006-12-08T09:50:31.056-05:00Calico Haunts<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/599488/calicohaunts.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/1503/180/1600/599488/calicohaunts.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Calico Haunts:</span> "<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/New%20Pinebox%20Blues.mp3">New Pinebox Blues</a>"<br />"<a href="http://filexoom.com/files/2006/11/8/42967/Recollection.mp3">Recollection</a>" <span style="font-size:85%;">(demos)</span><br /><br />Well, a month off is about enough, I guess. Apologies to anyone who missed me. (Perhaps there was someone...)<br /><br />Using my tried and true on-the-bill-with-a-band-I-already-like technique, I checked out <a href="http://www.myspace.com/calicohaunts">Calico Haunts</a>, who play with <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/06/rootscountry-smorgasbord-at-local-506.html">Spider Bags</a> at <a href="http://local506.com/">Local 506</a> tonight. They are one of those MySpace-only bands, so I don't know much about them, but the music sounds good. The demos on their My Space have a sparse, time-worn folky sound reminiscent of Gillian Welsh's <a href="http://www.fastatmosphere.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=FASTATMOSPHERE&Product_Code=GW-CD-TIME"><span style="font-style: italic;">Time (The Revelator)</span></a>. Even the titles have a whiff of anachronism about them ("New Pinebox Blues", "Laudanum Bottle") Their list of influences/sounds like suggests that they might have a little more fire in their bellies than these recordings suggest (citing, for instance, Neil Young and the Kinks), and I'd be interested to hear that thrown into the mix based on these promising beginnings.<br /><br />So that's tonight at Local 506, a free show no less, with <a href="http://www.myspace.com/spiderbags">Spider Bags</a>, who definitely do have a fire in their belly (maybe whiskey) and some fine new songs to stream on their My Space, plus the apparently-not-online Stone Fox.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1162400416912481722006-11-01T08:00:00.000-05:002006-11-01T12:11:59.593-05:00Contest: Roman Candle Tickets Giveaway<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/romancandle.8.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/romancandle.8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div> <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />Roman Candle:</span> "<a href="http://www.indyweek.com/music/0621/New_York_This_Morning.mp3">New York This Morning</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.indyweek.com/music/0621/Winterlight.mp3">Winterlight</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >The Wee Hours Revue</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2006. <a href="http://search.insound.com/search/showrelease.jsp?p=INS30618">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10942/10942402.html">download</a>.)</span><br /><br />Well, another week of ridiculous busyness, and consequently, little time for blog business. But there is this:<br /><br />You may <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/06/roman-candle-finally.html">recall my enthusiasm</a> when <a href="http://www.romancandlemusic.com/">Roman Candle</a>'s <span style="font-style: italic;">Wee Hours Revue</span> was released earlier this year. Apart from the saga of its convoluted route to finding daylight, it was a compelling collection of heart-felt, rootsy rock songs. It's been nice to see the group get <a href="http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/38313/Roman_Candle_The_Wee_Hours_Revue">applause</a> from <a href="http://www.romancandlemusic.com/bostonglobe.html">other</a> <a href="http://www.romancandlemusic.com/pastemag.html">quarters</a>since then. (And thanks to that Pitchfork review for highlighting the soul influences on the album, which I sensed but for whatever reason didn't put my finger on.) The whole album has worn well for me -- it just fits so nicely, it's pretty much the musical equivalent of an old, comfortable flannel shirt. "New York This Morning" is one of the songs that always sticks out to me when I listen to it. It's one of the more overtly country/roots influenced songs, so in one sense not entirely representative, but the evocative lyrics and the warmth of Skip Matheny's voice bring it to the forefront for me. "Winterlight" is perhaps more typical -- full band, Logan Matheny's shuffling drums, a bit of harmonica thrown in.<br /><br />They've been all over the place in the past month, but are back in North Carolina at the <a href="http://catscradle.com/">Cat's Cradle</a> next Wednesday (11/8). I've got two passes to the show to give away, so drop me a line (oakroom @ gmail . com) by Monday (11/6) if you're interested. Your chances are doubled if you attach a picture of your Halloween costume.<br /><br />Also on the bill for this show are Chicago's <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thechanges">The Changes</a> and Ireland-via-LA's <a href="http://www.myspace.com/laroccamusic">La Rocca</a>. I don't know much about either one, but a quick listen suggests that they'll fit fine alongside Roman Candle. But the hometown kids are the stars of the show. See you there!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1161795018693776672006-10-25T18:00:00.000-04:002007-03-30T15:46:46.018-04:00Return of the Pan Pan<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/panpanseafood.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/panpanseafood.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Erie Choir:</span> "<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/7IK67ZKXQ/Pan+Pan+Where+Did+You+Go.mp3">Pan Pan, Where Did You Go</a>?"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Rockin' the Blocks</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> compilation 2005)</span><br /><br />I've got no time for anything right now, but here's a quick update. <a href="http://www.eriechoir.com/">Erie Choir</a> posed the question "Pan Pan, Where Did You Go?" in a cute song on a Durham compliation called <span style="font-style: italic;">Rockin' The Blocks</span> last year. (Still tracking down a copy, though these folks claim to still have some.) The answer can be found <a href="http://www.thedurhamnews.com/110/story/3512.html">here</a>. It looks like the new Erie Choir CD will be out soon, as they have a release show scheduled at <a href="http://www.local506.com/">Local 506</a> on Nov 11. (They <a href="http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=27910794&blogID=182306823&MyToken=4e481719-8c4e-43e2-b704-6cd79b99711b">don't seem entirely certain</a> of that, though.) Looking forward to it!<br /><br />Also, congrats to Cindy, who was the <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/10/annuals-cd-release-show-and-contest.html">winner of the signed copy</a> of <a href="http://www.acefu.com/artist.php?bid=301">Annuals</a>' <span style="font-style: italic;">He Be Me</span>. If you missed them last week, they're at Local 506 as well next Monday (10/30) with blog-beloved <a href="http://www.myspace.com/tapesntapes">Tapes N Tapes</a>.<br /><br />More next week, I hope, when thing are a little calmer.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1161204950151199142006-10-18T19:00:00.000-04:002006-10-18T16:55:50.190-04:00Troika Preview III<div style="clear: both;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br />Friday night's <a href="http://troikamusicfestival.org/">Troika festival</a> shows (schedule <a href="http://troikamusicfestival.org/schedule.html">here</a>) are pretty diverse, and I can't say that there's one that really stands out as clearly better than the rest. There are quite a few bands that are really great, but they're mixed in with others that I'm not at all familiar with (or, honestly, just aren't my thing). This is supposed to be structured so you can wander from one venue to another, and this looks like a good night to do just that. Here are some highlights:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.305southdurham.com/">305 South</a> starts off the evening with two acts that are new to me, but impress me on a quick first listen. <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.myspace.com/thefuturekings">The Future Kings of Nowhere</a> play a brand of acoustic punk they call "'acousticore,' music for people who are angrier than Peter, Paul or Mary, but nicer than Henry Rollins." Lots of energy here, which isn't terribly surprising given that half the band seems to be <a href="http://www.myspace.com/midtowndickens">Midtown Dickens</a>, who seem to be the living definition of "spunky". <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.myspace.com/shipwreckermuzak">Shipwrecker</a> is one of those bands that gives you nothing but a couple of songs on MySpace to go on, but the songs are good, so I guess that's all right. Another acoustic act, a bit more sedate and country-influenced. Something about the music reminds me of the vaguely anachronistic style of the Decemberists, though they are really not that much like them overall. Can I say "C&W sea chantys"?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Future Kings of Nowhere: </span>"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/6O7E3DVV5C/Never.mp3">Never</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from EP 2006? Buy a recording <a href="http://www.myspace.com/thefuturekings">here</a>.)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shipwrecker:</span> "<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/6O7E3DVV5C/Dark+Edge+of+the+Da....mp3">Dark Edge of the Da...</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(2006 demo. The last word of the title is a mystery -- tag your MP3s, people!)</span><br /><br />The next two acts at 305 South are more than worthy -- I'm a long standing fan of the <a href="http://prayersandtears.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers</span></a>, and <a href="http://www.mountain-goats.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">the Mountain Goats</span></a> are superb (plus we get to claim them as local talent). <a href="http://www.wearemanman.com/">Man Man</a> hasn't done much for me, though, and I'd be awfully tempted to head off to the Marvell Event Center to see the twisted country of <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.myspace.com/spiderbags">Spider Bags</a> and the lo-fi pop genius of <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.schoonermusic.com/">Schooner</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Prayers and Tears: </span>"<a href="http://buhananrecords.com/fullalbums/bh014_prayersandtears_redux_ep/prayers_and_tears_-_redux_-_04_-_raining_in_darling.mp3">Raining In Darling</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from Redux EP 2006. Download that free <a href="http://prayersandtears.com/redux_ep.html">here</a>; buy other PTADS stuff <a href="http://www.buhananrecords.com/catalog-bh009.php">here</a>.)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Mountain Goats:</span> "<a href="http://www.themountaingoats.net/mp3/CoronersGambit_OriginalTake.mp3">The Coroner's Gambit (Original Take)</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(courtesy <a href="http://www.themountaingoats.net/">this fan site</a>. Buy Mountain Goats stuff <a href="http://4ad.com/themountaingoats/?cache=true">here</a>.)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Spider Bags:</span> "<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/9C25VGQAUX/Waking+Up+Drunk.mp3">Waking Up Drunk</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >A Celebration of Hunger</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2006. Unreleased, apparently)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Schooner:</span> "<a href="http://www.schoonermusic.com/mp3s/RockyP/make%20me%20mad.mp3">Make Me Mad</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from Tour EP. Buy Schooner stuff <a href="http://www.poxworldempire.com/merchandisecontent.htm">here</a>.)</span><br /><br />But then I look at the lengthy list of bands at <a href="http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=51909820">Ringside</a> that night, and I don't know many of them that well, but the reliably beautiful <a href="http://northelementary.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">North Elementary</span></a> and the ass-kicking old school metal of <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.myspace.com/thecolossuswillcrushyou">Colossus</a> make me wonder if I'm missing something over there as well. There's quite a lot of ground to cover between the two, so while some of the other shows are stylistically consistent, this one seems like a total grab bag. It's a moot point, since I won't be attending any of these shows (damn work), but it's a pleasant dilemma to consider...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">North Elementary:</span> "<a href="http://northelementary.com/downloads/NE-LYFT-09-Ships_As_Friends.mp3">Ships as Friends</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Lose Your Favorite Things</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2004. Buy it <a href="http://www.sit-n-spinrecords.com/">here</a>.)</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Colossus</span>: "<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/6O7E3DVV5C/01+Bubba+Zanetti.mp3">Bubba Zanetti</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from 2006 demo. Maybe you can get it at the show?)</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Previous Troika Posts:</span><br /><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/10/troika-preview-okkervil-elvis-and-dkd.html">Troika Preview: Okkervil, Elvis, and DKD</a><br /><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/10/troika-preview-portapleasant-ocollar.html">Troika Preview: Portapleasant O'Collar</a>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1161109826899574612006-10-17T19:00:00.000-04:002007-03-01T14:09:48.337-05:00Troika Preview: Portapleasant O'Collar<div style="clear: both;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br />Back to the insanely great lineup of the <a href="http://troikamusicfestival.org/">Troika Music Festival</a>, which kicks off in Durham tomorrow night. Clearly, the notion of actually writing about each of the fourteen shows was utterly unrealistic. So let's try this: focus on one show each day of the festival, with maybe some other commentary thrown in.<br /><br />Wednesday's <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/10/troika-preview-okkervil-elvis-and-dkd.html">already covered</a>, but I'll note that the other show that night is the one I'm excited about and planning to attend. I've written about each of the bands on the bill previously (Bull City/the Balance <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/06/meet-bull-city.html">here</a>, Maple Stave <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2004/12/maple-stave.html">here</a>, A Rooster for the Masses <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/08/rooster-for-masses-dancy-policital.html">here</a>, and the Honored Guests <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/04/honored-guests-new-record-new-sound.html">here</a>), and had at least some online communication with all of them. So I'm looking forward to seeing their shows, and saying hello as well.<br /><br />So Thursday night, then. Many worthy candidates, but I'm going to focus on the lineup of Red Collar, <a href="http://www.pleasantmusic.com/">Pleasant</a>, Jennifer O'Connor, and <a href="http://portastatic.com/">Portastatic</a> at the Duke Coffeehouse. Like the Okkervil River show on Wednesday, this is the "big-name" show, but I have been absorbing Portastatic's latest release, <span style="font-style: italic;">Be Still Please</span>, over the past few days, and am generally in awe of the consistent quality of Mac McCaughan's output over such a long period of time. Either Merge Records or Superchunk by themselves would be a pretty impressive achievement, but Portastatic has really flourished as an outlet for his songwriting in a remarkable range of styles. Perhaps I'll come back to a full-blown review of <span style="font-style: italic;">Be Still Please</span>, but in brief: striking a musical middle ground between the fairly rocking <span style="font-style: italic;">Bright Ideas</span> and the string-laden soundtrack album <span style="font-style: italic;">Who Loves the Son</span>, what really strikes me is the compelling package Mac makes by sinking sorrow and regret (and sometimes bitterness) amidst such pleasant music. "Song for a Clock" concludes the album with a welcome bit of everyday grace.<br />"<a href="http://www.toolshed-media.com/ts/portastatic-sour-shores.mp3">Sour Shores</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/3U0L3BPC2X/09+Song+For+A+Clock.mp3">Song for a Clock</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Be Still Please</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> 2006. <a href="http://www.mergerecords.com/catalog.php?method=band&query_band_id=5">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10964/10964397.html">download</a>)</span><br /><br />I've already written <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/09/red-collar-post-punk-and-longest-oak.html">my magnum opus</a> about <a href="http://www.myspace.com/redcollarmusic">Red Collar</a>, so not a lot of new commentary now. It's great to see them on this bill -- go early to check them out. (They <a href="http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&amp;amp;friendID=42223634&blogID=179922888&MyToken=ed938e25-6c4c-4dcd-a7f4-f7ca9380d54e">seem to be waffling</a> over releasing a great EP or a good full-length. I say, "Let's hear some of these new songs already!)<br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/7GEWRC8O1F/Used+Guitars.mp3">Used Guitars</a>"<br />"<a href="http://ww2.redcollarmusic.com:81/RedCollarAcousticLiveonWXDU.mp3">Why You Knocking (live on WXDU)</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pleasantmusic.com/">Pleasant</a> is one of the longer-standing entries on my ever-growing list of "I really need to give them listen" bands. Launched in 2000, they are old-timers by most local standards. They strike me as very much a "Chapel Hill band," with a lot of the casual quirkiness that marked the big names of the 90s. In order to give them the fuller consideration they probably deserve, I'll have to actually pick up their album (rather than listen to samples on the website), but they're a nice addition to this bill.<br />"<a href="http://www.pleasantmusic.com/music/mp3_folder/welcome_come_in.mp3">Welcome Come In</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.pleasantmusic.com/music/mp3_folder/you_there.mp3">You There</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Awkward as a Beehive</span> 2005. Buy it <a href="http://www.pleasantmusic.com/order/shop.htm">here</a>.)</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.jenniferoconnor.net/">Jennifer O'Connor</a> is new to me. I don't know if the acoustic singer-songwriter "Today" or the more aggressive electric "Exeter, Rhode Island" is more typical of her material. I favor the latter.<br />"<a href="http://www.matadorrecords.com/mpeg/jennifer_oconnor/jennifer_oconnor_today.mp3">Today</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.matadorrecords.com/mpeg/jennifer_oconnor/jennifer_oconnor_exeter.mp3">Exeter, Rhode Island</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Over the Mountain...</span> 2006. <a href="http://search.insound.com/search/showrelease.jsp?p=INS30068">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10948/10948839.html">download</a>)</span>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1161050969685882562006-10-16T22:00:00.000-04:002006-10-17T10:49:41.476-04:00Annuals CD release show and contest<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/annuals.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/annuals.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div> <div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-size:78%;" >Photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldking/sets/72157594272598535/">OldKing</a></span><br /></div> <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Annuals:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.acefu.com/MP3s/brother.mp3">Brother</a>"<br />"<a href="http://www.acefu.com/MP3s/annuals-dryclothes.mp3">Dry Clothes</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">He Be Me</span> 2006. Buy it <a href="http://www.acefu.com/catalogue.php">here</a>.)</span><br /><br /><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/03/annuals.html">Way back in March</a>, I was pretty excited about Raleigh's <a href="http://www.myspace.com/annuals">Annuals</a> when they played at SxSW. Little did I know that they were on the cusp of <a href="http://www.idolator.com/tunes/track-marks/track-marks-how-annuals-became-this-weeks-biggest-band-in-the-world-198585.php">a whole lot of attention</a>. They signed to New York label <a href="http://www.acefu.com/artist.php?bid=301">Ace Fu</a>, got a whole lot of love from bloggers (and <a href="http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/37458/Infinite_Mixtape_25_Annuals_Brother">Pitchfork</a>), and -- after a CD release show tomorrow night (10/17) in Raleigh-- head out on the road with the likes of the equally blog-beloved Tapes 'N' Tapes, the up-and-coming Evangelicals, and the flat-out spectacular Calexico.<br /><br />They garner lots of comparisons to the Arcade Fire and Broken Social Scene, which seems accurate in terms of the ambition of their music -- the songs have an epically expansive sonic palette, coupled with a yearning sincerity to the lyrics. I've only just gotten hold of <span style="font-style: italic;">He Be Me</span>, their Ace Fu debut, so I can't say for sure what I think of Grayson Currin's suggestion <a href="http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A38600">here</a> that its complexity and scope run a little wild at times. I suppose this sort of Romantic passion runs the risk of self-indulgence in some cases, but I admire Annuals for going all-out. In the doses I've heard so far, the results are compelling.<br /><br />You can hear a few samples of what I'm talking about above. But suppose you'd like to hear the whole thing for yourself? You can buy it or download it, but (thanks to the kindness of the folks at Ace Fu), I actually have a signed copy of the CD to give away. Send me an e-mail (oakroom @ gmail.com) and mention the Annuals contest -- I'll pick the winner by the end of the week.<br /><br />The CD release show is tomorrow night (10/17) at <a href="http://www.brewerync.com/main/news.php">the Brewery</a> in Raleigh. Also on the bill are <a href="http://www.thenever.org/center.html">the Never</a> (<a href="http://search.netscape.com/ns/boomframe.jsp?query=oak+room+never&page=1&offset=0&result_url=redir%3Fsrc%3Dwebsearch%26requestId%3D1f9118241a548244%26clickedItemRank%3D4%26userQuery%3Doak%2Broom%2Bnever%26clickedItemURN%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Foakroom.blogspot.com%252F2006%252F07%252Fnever-again-ambitious-pop-rock-concept.html%26invocationType%3D-%26fromPage%3DNSCPResultsT%26amp%3BampTest%3D1&remove_url=http%3A%2F%2Foakroom.blogspot.com%2F2006%2F07%2Fnever-again-ambitious-pop-rock-concept.html">previously</a>), who may well be Annuals' equals in terms of drama and amibition (they made a concept album, for cryin' out loud!), and Tom Yoder, who's not from around here and I know nothing about. As the picture at the top of this post suggests, Annuals seem to pack as much dramatic stimulation into their stage show as they do their recorded music, so it should be a good time.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1160596361544387642006-10-11T20:00:00.000-04:002006-10-11T15:52:41.786-04:00Troika Preview: Okkervil, Elvis, and DKD<div style="clear: both;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/snipshot_e3qhtsxf8.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br />OK, after considerable throat-clearing, it's time for me to actually write something about next week's <a href="http://troikamusicfestival.org/index.html">Troika Music Festival</a>, held at various Durham sites on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. (Full schedule <a href="http://troikamusicfestival.org/schedule.html">here</a>.) But, boy, is it daunting. So much good music in such a short time -- lots of bands that I know and am fond of, quite a few that I've been meaning to pay more attention to, some that are brand new to me. If I had nothing to do for the next week, maybe I'd try to pull off a <a href="http://seeyouinthepit.com/">See You In The Pit</a>-like look at every damn band...but that's not happening. Let's try a little show-by-show breakdown and see how far I can get.<br /><br />I guess the Wednesday (10/18) show at the <a href="http://www.duke.edu/web/coffeehouse/">Duke Coffeehouse</a> is the "headline" show of the night. (Though I'll be going to the other one...) It has the out-of-town guests of the night, anyway: <a href="http://jound.com/okkervil/main.html">Okkervil River</a> and Elvis Perkins are joined by <a href="http://www.myspace.com/davidkarstendaniels">David Karsten Daniels</a>, a member of the local <a href="http://www.buhananrecords.com/">Bu Hanan</a> collective.<br /><br />Daniels and his compatriots in <a href="http://www.thephysicsofmeaning.com/">the Physics of Meaning</a> and <a href="http://www.prayersandtears.com/">the Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers</a> have made some fascinating music over the last couple of years (as well as the late <a href="http://www.gomachinemusic.com/">Go Machine</a>), so hopefully the release of his new album, <span style="font-style: italic;">Sharp Teeth</span>, on <a href="http://fat-cat.co.uk/fatcat/home.php">Fat Cat Records</a> next year doesn't result in any distance from that group. According to Daniels, the record features "a lot of singers, a lot of drummers, a lot of horn players, and a deep love of dynamics and repetition," though the two samples streaming at his <a href="http://www.myspace.com/davidkarstendaniels">MySpace</a> don't sound quite that expansive. They seem to be a continuation the sparse, acoustic sound of his earlier work. In my <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/02/david-karsten-daniels.html">previous post about Daniels</a>, I made a vague Iron & Wine comparison, and although I admit it may have partly been the beard, the hushed vocals of a song like "Jesus and the Devil" had something to do with it as well. Since those aren't downloads, here's an older song that isn't all that far removed from them.<br />"<a href="http://www.buhananrecords.com/mp3/david_karsten_daniels_-_siamese_hearts.mp3">Siamese Hearts</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Angles</span> 2004. Buy it <a href="http://www.buhananrecords.com/catalog-paypal.html#BH005">here</a>.)</span><br /><br />Although the three artists on the bill make a nicely complementary group, the evening does get louder as it goes on. Elvis Perkins is perhaps a more conventional singer-songwriter than DKD, his sonic world a little more forgiving and a little less harsh, but there is a certain bleakness that they share, for instance on Perkins' "Ash Wednesday", the standout track of the ones I've listened to in preparing this post.<br />"<a href="http://elvisperkins.net/mp3/ASHWEDNESDAY.MP3">Ash Wednesday</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(I guess no album to buy? Download more <a href="http://elvisperkins.net/song.html">here</a>)</span><br /><br />And then the much-blogged Okkervil River, who can be acoustic and folky at times, but also can rock out a little bit (albeit in a rootsy, folky way). Again, though, there's a thread of sadness (approaching desolation) that runs through the songs (at least on <span style="font-style: italic;">Black Sheep Boy</span>, the only album of theirs that I've spent much time with). I just came across a new single while pulling links for this post, so let's point to that as well: "The President's Dead" is actually kind of peppy (hmm), starting as a folk song and bursting into a few seconds of pop towards the end. I like the way the verses just keep coming and coming, riding the rise and fall of the melody without pause.<br />"<a href="http://www.scjag.com/mp3/jag/forreal.mp3">For Real</a>"<br /><span style="font-size:85%;">(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Black Sheep Boy</span> 2005. <a href="http://jagjaguwar.com/onesheet.php?cat=JAG080">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10858/10858066.html">download</a>)</span><br />"<a href="http://www.scjag.com/mp3/jag/thepresidentsdead.mp3">The President's Dead</a>"<br />(from <span style="font-style: italic;">The President's Dead</span> single 2006. <a href="http://jagjaguwar.com/onesheet.php?cat=JAG101">Buy</a>)<br /><br />So, this all starts at 9:30 on Thursday. Good music, if not exactly uplifting. Bring your own beer to cry into.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1160011848676618402006-10-04T22:00:00.000-04:002006-10-04T22:43:11.466-04:00Shakori Hills<p align="center"><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/shakorihills.jpg"><img style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/shakorihills.jpg" border="0" /></a></p> Well, it really is festival season around here, no? I was all set to (finally) get around to talking about next week's <a href="http://www.troikamusicfestival.org/">Troika Music Festival</a>, when I was prompted with the reminder that this week features the <a href="http://www.shakorihills.org/performers/">Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival</a>, four days of assorted rootsy/folky/country/jammy music. It's worth a look.<br /><br />There's a lot of good stuff here, and it would take a few days to really sort through everything. Instead, you'll get what you got for Sparklefest last week -- a fairly random sampling of some things that look and sound good at first glance, and a strong encouragment to go check it out for yourself. (Oct 5-8. See <a href="http://www.shakorihills.org/tickets-info/">here</a> for more info.)<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.saludoscompay.com/">Saludos Compay</a></strong>: I really enjoy Latin stuff like this in a Buena Vista Social Club vein. (A comparison I imagine they get sick of, but what are you gonna do? That's what it sounds like!)<br />"<a href="http://www.erichlieth.com/saludoscompay/samples/Pintate%20Los%20Labios.mp3">Pintate Los Labios</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.thebiscuitburners.com/">The Biscuit Burners:</a></strong> a more-or-less bluegrass sound, but with a variety of contemporary influences. I love the silvery banjo tone on this song -- nothing like Bill Monroe!<br />"<a href="http://www.thebiscuitburners.com/music/CowandSake.mp3">Cow and Sake</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.divinemaggees.com/">DivineMAGgies</a></strong>: dunno about the typographical hijinx in their name, but they sound great. Two strong female vocalists, making music that ranges from the rockish end of the Indigo Girls spectrum to this, a lovely Celtic-inflected folk song.<br />"<a href="http://www.divinemaggees.com/nc3.8mb.mp3">North Carolina</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.jenniestearns.com/default.html">Jennie Stearns:</a></strong> there's a good bit of singer-songwriter stuff on the bill here. This strikes me as a pretty good example of the form.<br />"<a href="http://www.jenniestearns.com/SeasonOfDreams.mp3">Season of Dreams</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.lumii.org/">Luminecent Orchestrii</a></strong>: They've obviously put some work into this description, so it would be a shame not to quote it: "Romanian gypsy melodies, punk frenzy, salty tangos, hard-rocking klezmer, haunting Balkan harmony, hip-hop beats and Appalachian fiddle, all eaten and spit out by two violins, resophonic guitar, bullhorn harmonica and bass." This is cool stuff.<br />"<a href="http://www.lumii.org/mp3/Luminescent_Orchestrii_-_Taraf_Hijacked_192k.mp3">Taraf Hijacked</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.quetzaleastla.com/home.html">Quetzal</a></strong>: They don't even have anything available to download, but this is too good to leave out. Go to <a href="http://www.myspace.com/quetzal">their MySpace</a> and listen to this eclectic rock en Espanol. Such a party!<br /><br />Finally, a selection of local folks I've written about before:<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.bombadilmusic.com/">Bombadil</a></strong> (<a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/07/bombadil.html">previously</a>): Nice to see that my description of them as "a slightly less-redneck version of the Gourds" has gotten cleaned up a bit and put in their press material -- it was in an Independent article, and is on the Shakori Hill site!<br />"<a href="http://www.duke.edu/~dpm7/jellybean.mp3">Jellybean Wine</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.thenever.org/center.html">The Never</a></strong> (<a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/07/never-again-ambitious-pop-rock-concept.html">previously</a>): <a href="http://www.myspace.com/annuals">Annuals</a>, <a href="http://www.indyweekblogs.com/scan/record-reviews/are-annuals-going-to-blow-up/">who might be blowing up</a>, are taking the Never on tour, which can only be good. In addition the Shakori Hills performance, look out for a multimedia presentation of their ambitious concept album, <em>Antarctica</em>, on October 14 in Chapel Hill.<br />"<a href="http://www.trekkyrecords.com/mp3/cavity.mp3">Cavity</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.theoldceremony.com/">The Old Ceremony</a></strong> (<a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/03/old-ceremony-pop-noir.html">previously</a>): their "pop noir" seems to have a bit more of the former and a bit less of the latter on their new release, <em>Our One Mistake</em>.<br />"<a href="http://www.djangohaskins.com/toc/audio/papers_in_order.mp3">Papers In Order</a>"<br /><br /><strong><a href="http://www.myspace.com/twodollarpistols">The Two Dollar Pistols</a></strong> (<a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2004/10/two-dollar-pistols.html">previously</a>): one of the bands I was excited about way back when, and I still love their honky-tonk sound.<br />"<a href="http://www.yeproc.com/download.php?file=4065374641.mp3">Runnin With The Fools</a>"Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1159378686257414322006-09-27T13:15:00.000-04:002006-09-27T13:38:06.283-04:00Sparklefest Part Two<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/logo2006.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/logo2006.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br />Just a quick spin through some of the other bands at this week's <a href="http://www.justplainluckyrecords.com/sparklefestmain.html">Sparklefest</a>. I don't know much about them, so this'll mainly be links and songs that sound OK at first listen.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theuppercrust.org/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Upper Crust</span></a>: baroque-themed AC/DC, if that's your thing. Kind of ridiculous-looking, but I assume that's the point.<br />"<a href="http://www.reptilianrecords.com/reptilian/music/The%20Upper%20Crust%20-%20Let%20Them%20Eat%20Rock.mp3">Let Them Eat Rock</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.myspace.com/danielresko"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Daniel Resko/Yellow Pod:</span></a> no download for this one, but the songs on his MySpace sound pretty good. Less power, more pop.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.cogburns.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Cogburns:</span></a> Self-described as "post millennium Garage Surf Punk".<br />"<a href="http://www.cogburns.com/mp3%27s/bob/Cogburns%20-%20Southern%20Daisy.mp3">Southern Daisy</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theshazam.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Shazam:</span></a> I think they are Sparklefest mainstays, and no wonder. This is more-or-less what I'm looking for in the power pop sound.<br />"<a href="http://www.theshazam.com/audio/The_Shazam_Squeeze_The_Day.mp3">Squeeze the Day</a>"<br /><br />No offense to the other bands, but I'm out of time for this week. Cheers!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1159299193253783882006-09-26T18:00:00.000-04:002006-09-26T16:35:24.720-04:00Sparklefest Preview: power pop and more<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/logo2006.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/logo2006.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br />The <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/04/sparklefest.html">last time I wrote</a> about the annual local festival <a href="http://www.justplainluckyrecords.com/sparklefestmain.html">Sparklefest</a>, it seemed to be showcasing a fairly coherent style of music, which (depite some protests) might as well be called power pop, in particular melodic garage rock kind of stuff. A quick glance at this year's lineup seems far less cohesive, at least among the groups that I'm familiar with. I think the best way to sum up the theme this year might be "GUITARS!" Three nights of guitars kick off Thursday night at the <a href="http://www.the-pour-house.com/events.cfm">Pour House</a> in Raleigh.<br /><br />Here's a quick look at a few of the featured bands.<br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.snmnmnm.com/index.html">SNMNMNM</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">:</span> a quirky group whose sound owes more than a little to They Might Be Giants, especially in the nasally, slightly nerdy vocals, whimsical lyrical topics, and subsitution of a tuba for a bass guitar. Also, the accordian.<br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/43CTV43FSC/4525747_9225fc61.mp3.mp3">Danielle</a>" (from <span style="font-style: italic;">Exploderama</span> 2005. <a href="http://www.snmnmnm.com/shop.html">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/artist/11585/11585262.html">download</a> SNMNMNM stuff.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.myspace.com/parklifeband"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Parklife</span></a>: draws on a variety of tropes from classic, 80s, and 90s rock, including the expected-from-the name Blur. "San Jacinto" has some of the breadth of sound and amibition of mid-80s U2, which I mean as a compliment.This is a band that I keep meaning to dig into, but somehow keeps getting put on my back burner. I need to fix that. (Their main site has apparently been Haxx0r3d!)<br />"<a href="http://mp3.groovo.org/3pm/parklife-sanjacinto.mp3">San Jacinto</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.tigerthief.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tiger Thief</span></a>: another band that's been on my radar lately -- they've been playing out a lot and in pretty good company. I haven't given them the attentive listen they deserve, but "Jet Set Girls" is an entertaing blast of unpolished energy.<br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/43CTV43FSC/74348704_c25b8468.mp3">Jet Set Girls</a>"<br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bullcitytheband.com/">Bull City</a>: yep, these guys <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/06/meet-bull-city.html">again</a>. Their EP is available to download in full, and it's good stuff that builds on the promise of <a href="http://thebalanceband.com/">the Balance</a>.<br />"<a href="http://www.bullcitytheband.com/EP/02%20Hurricane%20Eleanor.mp3">Hurricane Eleanor</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.stratocruisermusic.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stratocruiser</span></a>: I've noted their crunchy, Cheap-Trick influenced rock <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/07/stratocruiser-crunchy-guitar-pop.html">before</a>. They have a new album, Revolutions, which is more of the same -- in this case, that's good. No downloads from that, but you can hear a few tracks <a href="http://www.myspace.com/stratocruiser">here</a>.<br />"<a href="http://mp3.groovo.org/3pm/stratocruiser-CopyshopGirl.mp3">Copyshop Girl</a>"<br /><br /><a href="http://interbridge.com/shalini"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shalini</span></a>: Shalini Chatterji is the wife of famed producer/Let's Active founder <a href="http://www.mitcheaster.com/">Mitch Easter</a> (who's also on the Sparklefest bill). The music has more of a hard-rock edge than that might lead you to expect, but it hits a nice Blake Babies kind of note. The bass player here is <a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/09/velvet-vintage-southern-power-pop.html">Velvet</a>'s Jane Francis, by the way.<br />"<a href="http://interbridge.com/shalini/audio/synthesize.mp3">Synthesize</a>"<br /><br />That covers most of the bands that I have at least a nodding acquaintance with. Time permitting, I'll come back tomorrow and at least link some music from some of the others. (Though I must say, quite a few of these bands are not down with the MP3 sharing -- get with the program, people!)Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8176037.post-1158932100974120572006-09-22T12:00:00.000-04:002007-03-30T15:46:46.034-04:00A Rooster for the Choir: couple of new songs<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/eriechoirfeet.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/400/eriechoirfeet.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/1600/RoosterForTheMassesFeet.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1503/180/400/RoosterForTheMassesFeet.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">A Rooster for the Masses:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/8TTUQFSGXE/Damn+Homie.mp3">Damn Homie</a>"<br />(new song. <a href="http://www.aroosterforthemasses.com/">Buy</a>/<a href="http://www.emusic.com/album/10934/10934229.html">download</a> the <span style="font-style: italic;">Gallo Rojo</span> EP.)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Erie Choir:</span><br />"<a href="http://www.ezarchive.com/oakroom/AlbumSpace/8TTUQFSGXE/Picture+Equals+Proof.mp3">Picture Equals Proof</a>"<br />(from <span style="font-style: italic;">Slighter Awake</span>, forthcoming on <a href="http://www.sit-n-spinrecords.com/home/">Sit-N-Spin</a>.)<br /><br />This week has not been conducive to listening to/thinking about music, so in lieu of anything thoughtful (I know, but that's usually what I'm aiming for), here are a couple of new songs from bands that I've written about before that have floated out into the MySpace in the last week or two.<br /><br />"Damn Homie" lowers the synth level and ups the guitars from the songs on <a href="http://www.myspace.com/aroosterforthemasses">A Rooster for the Masses</a> <span style="font-style: italic;">Gallo Rojo</span> CD. It's a fine addition to their small-but-solid canon, though I might prefer a bit more clarity in the vocal mix. "Picture Equals Proof" is likewise a slight departure from <a href="http://www.myspace.com/eriechoir">Erie Choir</a>'s general MO in that it's a little peppier than I tend to think of them.<br /><br />Neither of these bands have shows this weekend, but they'll both be playing next month as part of the stellar lineup of Durham's <a href="http://www.troikamusicfestival.org/">Troika Festival</a>. I'll come back to this soon. First, though (if I can manage it), I'll post early next week (rather than my usual late-week schedule) about some of the bands playing at <a href="http://www.justplainluckyrecords.com/sparklefestmain.html">Sparklefest</a>.<br /><br />Previously on the Oak Room:<br /><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2006/08/rooster-for-masses-dancy-policital.html">A Rooster for the Masses</a><br /><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/06/erie-choir.html">Erie Choir<br /></a><a href="http://oakroom.blogspot.com/2005/04/sparklefest.html">Sparklefest</a>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18028718490778557958noreply@blogger.com2