A Late Edition to Saturday Night's Card

My man Roberto forgot to include what bodes to be a lumbering, textured Southern rockshow when Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit take the stage at Club Cafe at 10:30 on Saturday.

Admittedly, Jason and the Unit weren't on my radar until the new album recently dropped and my fiance's cousin gave 'em a shoutout on her Facebook feed. That said, I've seen his former band, the Drive-By Truckers open for a bunch of acts and fondly recall them as one of my favorite bands to see open for another good band. High praise, I know.

His most recent voyage post-Truckers sounds good on album and will very likely sound good live, too. This town loves the Truckers so I expect the Cafe to brim it's capacity, warmly welcoming Isbell back to the 'Burgh.

It should also be noted that Lawrenceville's own Good Night, States (WYEP's 2008 Pick for Top Local Artist) is playing the early show (7:30) at Club Cafe. Not a bad double-bill. Except that you'll have to buy separate tickets to see both shows.

Good insights about his creative process and nice acoustica from Isbell here:

Battle Royale: Kweller & the Watsons vs. Tokyo Police Club

Once again, there’s a lot of good music in town this weekend, and I’ll be missing it. “C'est la vie”, says old Chuck Berry.

I complain a lot about Pittsburgh getting passed over on tours I’d love to see, or about how all the good shows are on Mondays or other random weekdays. But I have to say that this winter/spring is seeing a pretty solid lineup. In fact, so solid that there are serious dilemmas on the horizon… Kweller with the Watson Twins or Tokyo Police Club? Josh Ritter or Heartless Bastards and Gaslight Anthem? Those are tough questions, kids. And on Saturdays, no less!

Anyway, my personal recommendation for this Saturday goes to Ben Kweller and the Watsons, if only because it’s a great double-bill. Mr. Kweller’s new CD, Changing Horses, has gone more than a little bit country, and successfully. You can still expect plenty of high-energy pop to fill out his live set, though. And with the saccharine tones of the Watson Twins to warm Diesel’s clubby heart, it should be a feelgood night all around.

In fact, given that Diesel tends to shut shows down early on the weekends to make room for the meatheads, and that TPC are the headliners over in Millvale, you can probably catch both shows, all of which should make for a nice little Saturday.

Downloads:

Ben Kweller - "Sawdust Man" (Mediafire link)

The Watson Twins - "How Am I To Be?" (Mediafire link)

Tokyo Police Club - "Juno" (Mediafire link)

New Neko Case streaming

Like every great indie darling with a new release this year, Neko Case is offering an early stream of next Tuesday's Middle Cyclone via NPR. I'm really digging it. But what I'm really digging is this album cover. Come on! How completely awesome is that?

The story behind it is apparently that Miss Case didn't want her image on the album art, but her label, Anti-Records, insisted on it, so she went all out. Well played, Neko. Well played.

You know you like it.

I was a bit bummed when I looked out the window to see rain this morning. But then I stepped out the door, raised my umbrella, and this gem came up on the walkman. All was good in Pittsburgh.

I think they played the Rex last year. I'm suddenly sorry I missed it.

Download:
The Proclaimers - "500 Miles" (Mediafire link)

Sealing cracks for a Pavement reunion?

1. Stephen Malkmus said in the January 22 Rolling Stone that a Pavement reunion was a possibility.

2. Four of the five Pavementeers jammed together for Bob Nastanovich's wedding last weekend.

3. Rumour hath it that Malkmus played a bunch of Pavement covers last night.

4. That's sort of a stupid headline I went with.

5. That is all.

Download:

Pavement - "Secret Knowledge of Backroads" (Mediafire link)

Morrissey cancels first leg of US tour; Pittsburgh safe

Florida got screwed though, apparently for the second time now: http://www.morrissey-solo.com/article.pl?sid=09/02/26/1825251.

That's just how it has to happen when you get that much sunshine. Everything must balance out in the end.

A beautiful day in the neighborhood

Photo: Darrell Sapp, P-G

Say what you will about that smug little groundhog up there in Jefferson County, but one thing's for sure: he doesn’t know shit about meteorology. Then again, he’s apparently not all that bad considering the competition. My friend Google tells me that Phil’s accuracy rating is between 30% and 50%, which actually is not far behind the average TV weather forecaster.

Anyway, it is gorgeous out there today. Go walk across a bridge or something, just in case 2009 is one of Phil’s good years. You can check out the progress on the Fred Rogers statue over on the Northside (pictured above).

Downloads:
M. Ward – “Here Comes the Sun Again” (Mediafire link)
Belle & Sebastian – “Another Sunny Day” (Mediafire link)
Wavves – “Gun in the Sun” (Mediafire link)

Video: Avett Brothers cover "Glory Days"

We're big fans of the Avetts here at SITKOT. They'll be at the Homestead Carnegie Library in June. Today, they're on the old internet doing "Glory Days" as part of the Hangin' Out On E Street project.



Check out more great Springsteen covers, including takes by Ted Leo, Wyclef Jean, and others as part of this ongoing series here.

Phoenix announce new album, release new single

Their lyrics are stupid; nobody's arguing that.

They haven't cured that fault on this new single, but that's okay, because it was never really a fault at all since a) they're French, and b) their awkward lyrics actually might make the songs hookier. This latest is no departure from the last record, save for some mildly heavier electronics.

The new record is due out May 25 and will be called Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, which, you have to admit, is a pretty great title.

Download:
Phoenix - "1901" (Mediafire link)

Concert Review: M. Ward at Sixth and I

I’ll start by saying that I’ve never been disappointed walking out of an M. Ward show before, and this past Saturday’s disappointments were quite minor, so let's get them out of the way: Washington's historic Sixth and I synagogue can’t handle the reverberations put out by a rock band; and, Ward stopped well short of the venue’s 11:00 curfew. That said, Ward sounded great during the solo acoustic set that kicked off his performance, and he managed to pack 19 songs into barely 75 minutes (those who thought Leo Kottke talked too much might have appreciated Ward’s taciturn stage presence as much as his guitar chops).

Onward with the positive: Ward came to play, and his band rocked as cleanly as the venue’s echoing walls would let them. Ward began things with only his acoustic guitar and a harmonica, which he riffed on for a quick minute before leaning into the mic with a great lyric to open the show: “My heart is always on the line.” Not too long thereafter, he demonstrated his talent for rearranging classics by juxtaposing covers of Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” against Robert Wilkins’ “The Prodigal Son” without a hint of dissonance. That timeless spirit in Ward’s music was present throughout the night in tunes like Buddy Holly’s “Rave On,” She & Him’s “Change is Hard,” and Ward’s own gospel rocker, “To Save Me.” One after another, the songs stirred and blended like tea and honey.

Throughout the night, Ward’s understated guitar heroics were on full display, but were decidedly less understated on the set’s two instrumentals “Duet for Guitars #3” and “Bean Vine Blues #2,” the latter a blazing cover of Ward’s own guitar hero, the late John Fahey.

While not one to distract from his musicianship with banter, Ward still got a few laughs out of a jovial (if stoic) audience. Early on, perhaps sensing the absence of Rachel Blumberg behind the kit, Ward introduced his new drummer, saying, “I know what you're all wondering... you want to know who’s that on the drums.” (Turns out it was Scott McPherson, who ably stood in for the double drummers Ward toured with last time around.) Later, upon returning for an encore, Ward dedicated Daniel Johnston’s “Story of an Artist” to everyone who planned to stay home and watch the Oscars, an ostensible wisecrack whose ironic punchline was revealed only in the bittersweet tale of the song it introduced.

Finally, closing the concise show with the lively “Magic Trick,” Ward managed to end the night with another good bookending lyric, “…and that’s it!” Unfortunately, that was it. Here’s the well-chosen setlist:

Solo on guitar/harmonica:
1 Fuel for Fire
2 One Hundred Million Years
3 The Prodigal Son
4 Let's Dance
5 Duet for Guitars #3
6 Lullaby + Exile (w/ Mike Coykendall whistling)

Full band:
7 Epistemology
8 Chinese Translation
9 Fisher of men
10 Bean Vine Blues #2
11 Post-War
12 Poison Cup
13 Undertaker
14 Rave On
15 Change is Hard
16 Never Had Nobody Like You
17 To Save Me

Encore:
18 Story of an Artist (solo on piano)
19 Magic Trick (w/ full band)

Aslo, I should mention the ceiling there is really cool:

TV on the Radio announce Pittsburgh date

A return to Pittsburgh is significant for TV on the Radio because it's right here in our lovely town where TVOTR leader Tunde Adebimpe (a graduate of Shadyside Academy) and Kyp Malone (of Moon) first connected years before they would meet again in a chance encounter that ultimately brought Malone into the Brooklyn-based band.

If you missed them last time they passed through Mr. Small's before all the hype around Dear Science picked up, they'll be back around for you on May 11.

White Stripes on Conan O'Brien

Notes before the weekend

There’s a lot of great music in Western PA this weekend. If the suggestions at right don’t float your note, City Paper has the comprehensive listing here as always.

Me, I’m on my way to Washington for some Matt Ward and an opener I’d never heard before today, Vivian Girls. A few thoughts: my perusal of the mp3 aggregators shows nobody seems to be revved up about "Epistemology," which is without question my favorite track off Hold Time (which is admittedly stellar from start to finish). Am I missing something, or does this tune just kill it? Also, Vivian Girls are pretty sweet.

Also, Rolling Stone has it that the No Line on the Horizon leak this week wasn’t a leak at all—Universal’s Australian branch accidentally started selling the digital tracks two weeks early! Is that ridiculous? Yes. Almost as ridiculous as David Fricke’s five-star rating of the album. Due respect to Mr. Fricke, but this thing is no Joshua Tree. It’s not even All That You Can’t Leave Behind, which the Stone gave only four stars. Once again I must be missing something. Maybe my i-stethoscope just isn’t quite on the cultural heartbeat lately.

Downloads:
M. Ward – “Epistemology” (Mediafire link)
Vivian Girls – “Where Do You Run To?” (Mediafire link)

U2 - “No Line on the Horizon” (Mediafire link)

New Dylan album expected in April

Photo: Mark Seliger

While not announced officially, Isis is reporting that Dylan has a new album wrapped up and on the way to market. Not too many details, but it sounds as though this one was born out of sessions for a movie soundtrack that somehow yielded thirteen new songs, ten of which will be included on the record. Also, at least a few players who are not part of Dylan's curent band played on the album, including Mike Campbell of the Heartbreakers and David Hidalgo of Los Lobos.

Conchords resume flight

Flight of the Conchords got off to a slow start this season for me. I’ve laughed a bit, but not like I’d hoped to until this week. The first four episodes came off as draft outlines with songs forced sporadically into predictable moments of awkward dialogue. They didn’t really give Bret and Jermaine (or Murray, Mel, etc.) ample room to exercise their comedy chops, and the jokes seemed punchy.

Luckily, with episode five this week, the Conchords got back into their groove and slipped their two best songs of the year--“Too Many Dicks” and “Carol Brown (Ex-Girlfriends)”--into the season's funniest episode yet. Evidently director Michael Gondry (Eternal Sunshine...) had a heavy hand in this latest episode, so we're hoping that he sticks around for a few more.

Random music news

In other words, I got nothin’.

P-G: River City Brass Band fighting to play on

Trib: Promoter eyes mid-size venue for Station Square

Trib: Bloomfield Bridge Tavern plans grand reopening

AP: Agreement reached on Internet music royalty rates

NY Mag: Leaked: New U2 Album

Wash Post: Why Digital Music Companies And The Labels Have So Much Trouble Getting Along

Download:
Modest Mouse - "Nothing New" (Mediafire link)

Video: M. Ward on Letterman

Download:
M. Ward – "Never Had Nobody Like You" (Mediafire link)

Video: Willie Nelson on Letterman

NIN announce tour with Jane’s Addiction

Fifteen years ago, Nine Inch Nails and Jane’s Addiction were easily among my top five bands. According to Trent Reznor, they’ll be joining forces for a tour this summer, with what sounds like all four original members of Jane’s. Trent writes on nin.com:

"I reached out to Jane's to see if they'd want to join us across the US and we all felt it could be a great thing. Will it work? Will it resonate in the marketplace? Who knows. Are there big record label marketing dollars to convince you to attend? Nope. Does it feel right to us and does it seem like it will be fun for us and you? Yes it does."

One more question: Will they come to the Burgh?

I think NIN at the Civic Arena was actually one of my first concerts sans parental chaperone. The Manson fans who there for the opening act totally freaked me out, and after the show we made a wrong turn and got lost in the Hill District while my then-16-year-old friend was driving with only his learner's permit. Good times.

Download one of my all-time favorite covers:
Jane’s Addiction – "Sympathy" (Mediafire link)

UPDATE: As of 2/24/09, it appears they will not be coming to Pittsburgh, or even Pennsylvania for that matter.

M. Ward on the smallscreen

Since M. Ward won’t be passing through Pittsburgh this spring, unless you’re making the trek to DC this weekend you’ll have to settle for a few small-screen appearances.

You can check him out tomorrow on the web when he performs at 7:00 pm EST at www.npr.org. The session will be followed by an interview (or a “chat” as Irish folks and, apparently, NPR like to call it).

And/or, set your Tivo, DVR, VCR, or whatever you need to do to catch him playing tomorrow night on Letterman (11:30 pm EST).

New Music: February 17, 2009

There’s a ton of new music out tomorrow. Largehearted Boy has the rundown on just about every worthwhile thing under the sun and then some, so I won’t bother, except to say that what I’ve heard of The Spirit of Apollo kicks ass, The Century of Self is definitely better than I expected, and, of course, Hold Time promises more the total awesomeness you’ve come to expect from M. Ward (though I can’t yet say if he’ll deliver). Also, on LB’s recommendation I’ve been listening to Alela Diane's To Be Still today, and it is sweet as cane.

Last, I can’t imagine who’s looking for Incredibad on vinyl, but if you are then The Lonely Island will have it tomorrow just for you.

Download:
M. Ward – "Never Had Nobody Like You" (Mediafire link)
Adela Diane - "White as Diamonds" (Mediafire link)

Video: She & Him on Spectacle

She & Him stopped by Spectacle this week. The interview starts at 3:05, and they perform “Change is Hard” with Elvis and the band at about the 6:30 mark. Matt’s new record, Hold Time, is out this Tuesday.

Full Nelson Weekend

Whether you’re checking out Jilted Brides or Modey Lemon tonight, the Wiyos or Paul Luc tomorrow, whether you’re in the mood for love or on the lamb from lonesome town, let Willie guide you through the wind and rain this weekend. Two great new records:

Phosphorescent – To Willie

Matthew Houck’s songlist might not meld so well as a mixtape of Nelson originals, but as covers linked by Houck’s sleepy vocals and mellowed out backing band, the album stays true to Willie’s laid back personality while straying just far enough from his country roots to keep things fresh. All in all, it’s a great nostalgic tribute to the masterful songwriting that began Nelson’s career. Standouts include “I Gotta Get Drunk,” “When We Fall,” and “Reasons to Quit.”

Willie Nelson & Asleep At the Wheel – Willie and the Wheel

Not to be outdone by his admirers, Willie teamed up with Asleep at the Wheel to offer what’s being billed as a salute to western swing. While it might be viewed as step backwards for Nelson, I’m one to think that’s not such a bad thing for a guy whose experimental side has gotten ahead of him on more than one occasion. If you’re looking for something to pick you up amidst this weekend’s drear, you might pass on Phosphorescent’s sedated salute to the Redheaded Stranger and instead seek out some sunshine in the real thing. Favorites: "Sweet Jenny Lee," "I'm Sittin' on Top of the World," and "Hesitation Blues."

Downloads:
Phosphorescent – “Reasons to Quit” (Mediafire link)
Willie Nelson - “Hesitation Blues” (Mediafire link)

It’s Blitz / It’s Windy As Hell

Apropos of what’s happening in our world this afternoon, I offer a few downloads and suggest to you that:

No. 1, the wind is indeed howling, and days like this always get “Isis” stuck in my head (unfortunatley, Jack White skips over that key lyric in this cover version, but whatever); and

No. 2, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (who, incidentally, I first heard when they opened for the Stripes) announced some details about their next record.

Of note: it will be called It’s Blitz; production duties will be shared/divvied up by David Sitek of TV On the Radio and Nick Launay, who produced the YYY’s last studio effort; the band promises a “different” sound; and the cover art is pretty cool (see above).

Downloads:
White Stripes – “Isis” (Dylan cover) (Mediafire link)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Isis” (Mediafire link)

Jilted Brides At The Warhol Friday

We’re a little behind the curve on this one, but given our mission we’d be slipshod not to mention the Jilted Brides’ CD release party this Friday at the Warhol. The City Paper and POP City both recently covered the Australian transplants, so we’ll just point you there:

POP City – Jilted Brides: From Australia to Pittsburgh
City Paper – The Jilted Brides celebrate new CD at The Warhol

Listen to the Jilted Brides here.

New local venues on the horizon

The local papers (Trib here / P-G here) are reporting that PNC Entertainment Group (apparently unrelated to the bank) has filed an application with the City Planning Commission to resurrect the amphitheatre at Station Square, which has been closed since the summer of ‘06.

As the articles mention, the Chevrolet Amphitheatre left Station Square to develop a new venue at Sandcastle on the Monongahela. I’m a bit confused, though, as to why the P-G article reports that the venue at Sandcastle never opened; I attended the Pittsburgh Irish Festival there last fall. In fact, I watched a few of the Festival’s headliners perform on what seemed to be a completed amphitheatre stage, and it was a pretty cool place to catch a show: a grassy hill sloping toward the river, a meandering sidewalk leading to a concession and picnic area among some trees—a huge improvement, in my opinion, over the chainlink-enclosed pavement parking lot behind Station Square.

Let's hope that if this plan goes through, the developers put a little more effort into it than just throwing up some fences and a temporary tent and raising a stage frame beside the railroad tracks. I always considered the old Station Square amphitheatre the city’s worst venue, as its sole boon was ease of access.

Happier news comes from across the Ohio: not only does it appear that the North Shore riverfront amphitheatre should be open by summer 2010, but it’s also being reported that Toby Keith is interested in adding a link to his chain of I Love This Bar bars alongside the amphitheatre. Yeehaw. Both the North Shore and Station Square amphitheatres are projected to hold about 5,500 people. The northernmore of the two sounds like the nicer design, and if the financial mêlée between man and money, mud and machine known as the “bore to the shore” ever sees the light of Heinz Field, access to both would be comparable.

Despite any reservations about returning to the asphalt desert behind Station Square, I’m hopeful that competition from both shores will help to bring more mid-sized acts to the Burgh and keep ticket prices (reasonably) low. My curiosity remains piqued, though, as to the future of that stage by the waterslides. It’s on the Mon, mon.

Video: Heartless Bastards on Letterman

Our flatter, more midwestern neighbor, Ohio, had a big day yesterday, with Akron’s Dan Auerbach releasing a stellar first solo album and Dayton native Erika Wennerstrom making her national television debut with her now-Austin-based trio, Heartless Bastards. As expected, they rocked the place, performing "Out At Sea" off their new full-length, The Mountain. Here's the video evidence:

Van Morrison talks Live Astral Weeks

We’re a little more than a month out from St. Patrick’s Day, so get ready for the deluge of Irish music likely to flow through here in the coming weeks. Let’s kick it off with a link to Paste’s brief interview with Van the Man (whose Irish Heartbeat will be featured among SITKOT’s upcoming list of top St. Paddy’s albums).

The interview focuses on Morrison’s classic Astral Weeks, which is getting a sort of live re-release with several of the the original players this February 24. Morrison had this to say about the remake:

“I wanted to do this material the way I had always heard it in my head—orchestrated with a full sound. It was time. These were written prior to ’68 over a period of five years. It took a lot of hard work. I wanted these songs to have a large string section for the original, but I could not afford it at the time.”

Read the full interview at PasteMagazine.com. Here he is doing “Sweet Thing”:

Ryan Adams serves up one (last?) slice

A few weeks back, Ryan Adams declared his intention to retire from music. In typical Adams fashion, though, he didn’t let that stop him from releasing an EP of love songs this week, Extra Cheese.

Unfortunately, aside from the cover art there's not much to get excited about. Despite Adams’ prolific past and the countless unreleased tracks known to be floating around out there, there’s no new material here, unless you count a studio version of the longtime live favorite “Hey There, Mrs. Lovely” (which technically did get a previous studio treatment on the quasi-bootleg Destroyer Sesssions). If that’s enough for you, it’s available exclusively through iTunes. Here’s the tracklist:

1. Two
2. Blossom
3. Answering Bell
4. Evergreen
5. My Love for You Is Real
6. Desire
7. Hey There, Mrs. Lovely

Download:
Ryan Adams – “Hey There, Mrs. Lovely” (off Destroyer Sessions) (Mediafire link)

Hold Steady: Sequestered in Muppets

The Hold Steady recently announced a documentary DVD and a first-ever live album coming out April 7, titled A Positive Rage. These guys are amped about it:



Download:
The Hold Steady – “Sequestered in Memphis” (Mediafire link)

Andrew Bird "The Giant of Illinois" Streaming

A new Andrew bird studio track is streaming (today only) on the Dark Was the Night MySpace page. The track is part of a forthcoming compilation album produced by members of The National to benefit the Red Hot Organization, an international charity dedicated to raising funds and awareness for HIV and AIDS

Andrew Bird has been performing the Handsome Family’s “The Giant of Illinois” live for a few years now, but this is the first studio take I’m aware of. I hate to say that it’s better than anything on his recent Noble Beast, but I’ll at least say it would have been a perfect closer for the album. It’s a beautiful song. At least it’s being put to good use.

If you haven’t been following the daily streams over the last month, that’s okay: the Dark Was the Night discs are out next Tuesday. Here’s the indiestar-studded tracklist:

DISC ONE:
"Knotty Pine" - Dirty Projectors + David Byrne
"Cello Song" - The Books featuring Jose Gonzalez
"Train Song" - Feist and Ben Gibbard
"Brackett, WI" - Bon Iver
"Deep Blue Sea" - Grizzly Bear
"So Far Around The Bend" - The National
"Tightrope" - Yeasayer
"Feeling Good" - My Brightest Diamond
"Dark Was The Night" - Kronos Quartet
"I Was Young When I Left Home" - Antony with Bryce Dessner
"Big Red Machine" - Justin Vernon + Aaron Dessner
"Sleepless" - The Decemberists
"Stolen Houses (Die)" - Iron & Wine
"Service Bell" - Grizzly Bear + Feist
"You Are The Blood" - Sufjan Stevens

DISC TWO:
"Well-Alright" - Spoon
"Lenin" - Arcade Fire
"Mimizan" - Beirut
"El Caporal" - My Morning Jacket
"Inspiration Information" - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings
"With A Girl Like You" - Dave Sitek
"Blood Pt. 2" - Buck 65 Remix (featuring Sufjan Stevens and Serengeti)
"Hey, Snow White" - The New Pornographers
"Gentle Hour" - Yo La Tengo
"Amazing Grace" - Cat Power
"Happiness" - Riceboy Sleeps
"Another Saturday" - Stuart Murdoch
"The Giant Of Illinois" - Andrew Bird
"Lua" - Conor Oberst with Gillian Welch
"When The Road Runs Out" - Blonde Redhead & Devastations
"Love Vs. Porn" - Kevin Drew

UPDATE: Here are a few tracks for your listening pleasure:

Kings of Leon Announce Pittsburgh Date

Very shortly before I moved from San Diego to Pittsburgh about four years back, a friend turned me on to Kings of Leon. My Mazda and I rocked Aha Shake Heartbreak all the way across the country, and ever since then I’ve been waiting for the Followill boys to pay a visit to our fair city.

Finally, they’ll be at the Palumbo on April 22. Tickets go on sale this Friday through—who else—Ticketmaster.

And huge bonus points for the show: The Walkmen will be opening. Quite honestly, I'm not sure who I'm more excited to see.

Downloads:
Kings of Leon – “I Want You” (Mediafire link)
Lykke Li – “Knocked Up” (Kings of Leon cover) (Mediafire link)
The Walkmen - "New Country" (Mediafire link)

Ticketmaster One Step Closer to World Domination

Reuters is reporting this morning that Live Nation's board of directors has approved a merger with Ticketmaster. The deal had already received the OK from Ticketmaster's board. According to the article, the merger would integrate Ticketmaster's ticket sales and artist-management with Live Nation's extensive network of venues, promoters, and even fan-club operators.

Last week, The LA Times quoted Bruce Springsteen as saying this about the potential merger:

"The one thing that would make the current ticket situation even worse for the fan than it is now would be Ticketmaster and Live Nation coming up with a single system, thereby returning us to a near monopoly situation in music ticketing. Several newspapers are reporting on this story right now. If you, like us, oppose that idea, you should make it known to your representatives."

Between the Boss, the FTC, and karma, the industry giants would seem to have the cards stacked against them. Unfortunately, investors seem to be betting on the deal. Woe is Eddie Vedder.

More Local Love

Any Pittsburgh music lover (and/or regular DVE listener) worth his rocksalt should have a healthy appreciation for the great Donnie Iris. Ron over at Old Mon Music had a great post on the local legend over the weekend, which you can—and should—read here.

I Heart Pittsburgh

This Valentine’s weekend, show a little love for the hometown as two great local acts will be performing in the ‘Burgh.

First up on Friday, the Modey Lemon will be bringing home their dirty blues-rock with a show at Brillobox in Lawrenceville. A one-time staple on the local scene, this is the band’s first hometown show in almost a year. Here’s a POP City video piece of the band talking about the generic “garage rock” label that’s been applied to them and their feelings on staying true to their Pittsburgh roots:



Then, slow things down a bit on Saturday night and celebrate Valentine’s Day with a slice of some homegrown Americana, courtesy of Paul Luc. Luc will be playing an intimate show at Club Café on the Southside, and he won’t be alone; via his website, Luc advises listeners, “While I may write the songs, make no mistake, we are a band.” Understood. Check out the band performing “Shores” in the studio here, or download a few tracks below.

Downloads:
Modey Lemon – “Milk Moustache”
Modey Lemon – “We Move in Waves”
Paul Luc – “How I Live”
Paul Luc – “Turn Around”

Wilco DVD Gets Early Release at Indie Stores

Doing their part to support Record Store Day this April 18, Wilco have announced that their forthcoming live DVD, Ashes of American Flags, will see an early release on that date exclusively in independent record stores around the country. Frontman Jeff tweedy told Billboard:

"Nothing beats browsing in your favorite store, listening to music, finding something new or old that you've been searching for, being ignored by the store clerks, all that. And without these stores, there's just no way Wilco would still be around. They've been with us from the very beginning, through thick and thin. Even if I wasn't in a band, I'd still support Record Store Day. It's a great thing and I'm glad we could do something special with them for our DVD."

The DVD was filmed during the band's 07-08 tour. Reports suggest live footage will be limited to shows in Tulsa, Nashville, and (possibly) Chicago, so don't hold out any hope for reliving their killer set at the Palumbo Center. Look for it at Dave's Music Mine.

Also, a new studio album is expected in the next six months, accompanied by a spring/summer tour beginning in the southern states (during which they'll be stopping by Bonnaroo along with just about everyone else you could possibly want to see live this year). For now, here are a few new ones since 2007's Sky Blue Sky:

Downloads:
Wilco – “Wilco, the Song” (live on Colbert Report) (Mediafire link)
Wilco – “One Wing” (live at Lollapalooza 2008) (Mediafire link)

Concert Review: Lyle Lovett & John Hiatt

For a tall Texan with a worn face and a crooked smile, Lyle Lovett is not the man of few words that one might expect him to be. Taking the stage at the Carnegie Music Hall last night with his good friend, John Hiatt, Lovett was the first to speak, starting off slow with a simple “Howdy.” Hiatt jumped at the opportunity to play to the crowd early, and one-upped Lovett with a salutation more familiar around these parts: “How yinz do'n?” Of course, the audience approved.

With that, Hiatt kicked the night off with “Perfectly Good Guitar,” his fatherly reprimand of Nirvana and their penchant for destroying their instruments. Lovett followed that up with a lengthy ramble about Hiatt's personalized guitar picks, a friendly TSA agent in Denver, and the duty of rock guitarists to keep alive the myth that they lead the sort of lives the rest of us wish for. Finally, Lovett took to his own guitar on “Skinny Legs,” a great upbeat western tune to open his catalog.

This pattern—Hiatt song, banter, Lovett song—set the mold for the night and was rarely broken thereafter, giving the audience a special opportunity to observe two of America's best songwriters discuss and digress their way through a loose set of alternating performances. Sometimes two consecutive songs would share a common theme, sometimes not. Nearly always the banter was led by Lovett’s questions, which wavered between thoughtful and comic, sometimes both.

Several times during the 2:25 set, the discussion turned to food. Hiatt—whose daughter is a college student in Pittsburgh—is no stranger to local traditions, and explained to Lovett that around here folks eat their sandwiches topped with fries and coleslaw, an “economy of motion” as he called it. Hiatt compared it to the way southerners put peanuts in their RC Cola, while Lovett observed, "Of all the things you hold most dear in the world, why keep them from one another?" Later, they joined forces on “Keep it in your Pantry,” Lovett’s lighthearted lament about what Hiatt calls “infoodelity.” As Lovett explained, “At no time ever in a healthy, committed relationship should one person be having more fun than the other.”

Unlike Lovett, Hiatt took the opportunity to debut two new songs: “Go Down Swingin'” and “Kick the Tin Can Home.” The former was as heavy as its central character, and was decidedly more successful than the latter, a playful dismissal of modern technology. When asked by Lovett what he looks for when “trying out” a new song, Hiatt answered him straight: “Support.”

Between banter, the songs themselves offered a wonderful study in contrast, as it was apparent what very different songwriters these two masters are. While Lovett pens heavily literate verses and slyly clever choruses, Hiatt's lyrics are far more conversational and generally more decipherable. Hiatt, who borders on prolific, fills his songs with narratives and memorable refrains that come off as raw and unfiltered. Lovett, for his part, has released comparatively few original numbers over the years, but seems to have labored more seriously over each word, its motivations and meanings. Despite the differences, it was amazing how well their songs—and even voices—complimented each other's when juxtaposed and performed only with acoustic guitars. Hiatt's rockier tunes, when stripped down, fit perfectly against the southwest landscape of his companion's country blues, and his forceful playing added lively interludes to several of Lovett’s songs, including “Cute as a Bug,” “I will Rise Up,” and “My Baby Don’t Tolerate,” which featured an extended, meandering blues solo by Hiatt which was huge on feeling, even if somewhat less so on proficiency.

They closed out the main set with an impassioned duet of the Texas prison hymn “No More Cane” before returning for an encore of each man’s best known songs, “Have a Little Faith in Me” and “If I had a Boat.”

Setlist:
1 Perfectly Good Guitar
2 Skinny Legs
3 Seven Little Indians
4 South Texas Girl
5 Crossing Muddy Waters
6 Family Reserve
7 Tennessee Plates
8 Cute as a Bug (w/ Hiatt on guitar)
9 Go Down Swingin' (new song)
10 I Will Rise Up (w/ Hiatt on guitar and backup vocal)
11 Icy Blue Heart
12 North Dakota
13 Kick the Tin Can Home (new song)
14 Home Is Where My Horse Is
15 Drive South
16 Keep it in Your Pantry (w/ Hiatt on guitar and sharing vocals)
17 Tiki Bar Open
18 Nobody Knows Me
19 Thing Called Love
20 My Baby Don't Tolerate (w/ extended Hiatt guitar solo)
21 No More Cane (duet)

Encore:
1 Have a Little Faith in Me
2 If I had a Pony

Hiatt/Lovett

Fleet Foxes release video for "Mykonos"

Everyone's posting on this today, but why should I let that stop me? As you surely gathered from the headline, Fleet Foxes put out a video for "Mykonos." I like the origami angle, which comes courtesy of artist Sean Pecknold, brother of the Foxes' leading man, Robin (Sean is name-checked in "Blue Ridge Mountains"). He's done work on past Foxes videos, and this one falls pretty much in line with those.

Also, Robin Pecknold recently put out a fantastic take on the old English ballad "The Fause Knight Upon the Road" under the name White Antelope, which is well worth a listen. Stream it here or download it here.


Mykonos from Grandchildren on Vimeo.


Mykonos making of from Grandchildren on Vimeo.

Lyle Lovett & John Hiatt Ride Into Oakland (or, Not All Country Music Sucks)

Photo: Rollin Riggs, NYT

For most of my life, I hated country music. I owned a Johnny Cash greatest hits collection I’d picked up at a truckstop back in high school, but beyond that I knew nothing of the genre except for the polished, twangy crap I’d encounter on the upper ends of the FM dial, and that never did it for me, and still doesn’t. Eventually I got turned on to Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn, and some other classics, but even those I saw as something separate from "Country" as I perceived it. Then I saw Lyle Lovett and His Large Band on Conan O’Brien one night just about ten years ago. I bought Cowboy Man a few days later, and have slowly been converted.

You still won’t find me tuned in to Froggy for more than a song or two at a time, and I still can’t stand most of what I hear when I flip past CMT, but—as with most genres of modern music—some of the best stuff misses the mainstream, and Lyle Lovett is no exception.

His songs are what I want American music to be. They speak truths to the suppressed vagabond in me, as if molded out of Texan clay and carried across prairies by horseback before being dusted off and presented with a crooked smile in a soulful timbre. He can write them funny or sad, shallow or deep, folk or western... he can write them as well as or better than anyone else trying their pen at country music these days.

It is perhaps the fact that his songs grow from something more than straight country roots that separates his music from that of his contemporaries who sell millions more records and hear endless airtime across most of the nation. Lovett draws on gospel, rockabilly, mariachi and more. When backed by his Large Band, his songs could hardly be called unpolished, yet there is something much rawer in them than you’re likely to find on a Kenny Chesney record. When accompanied only by a guitar, his songs at first sound simple, but develop into compositions far more complex than the ballads of the Keith Urbans and Brad Paisleys out there.

Sure, I paid to see Urban in concert last summer, and I’ve been known at times to slip a Toby Keith track into a jukebox lineup. But those songs don’t hold a farmhouse candle to Lyle’s, and it bears repeating that I would never have opened my ears to them at all had I not purchased Cowboy Man a decade ago.

When Lovett came to town on Valentine’s Day three years ago with Guy Clark, John Hiatt, and Joe Ely at his side, he swiftly stole the hearts of a few in the audience (possibly including my fiancé's) with his desert-dry wit and a heartfelt rendition of “In My Own Mind” that shook the air. So it is against all reason that tickets are still available for Thursday’s show at the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland, but it's with good reason that I'll be there.

(And don’t think I’ve forgotten that the masterful John Hiatt will once again be at Lovett’s side tomorrow night. The New York Times had a great piece on him a few months back, which you can read here.)

Downloads:
Lyle Lovett – “I’ve Been to Memphis” (Live in Vienna, VA, 7/7/97) (Mediafire link)
Lyle Lovett – “This Old Porch” (Live in Vienna, VA, 7/7/97 w/ Robert Earl Keen) (Mediafire link)

Album Review: It's Not Me, It's You

If half of all pop sounded half as good as Lily Allen, my dial wouldn’t move from B-94 (if B-94 is even still around). Lily’s new album, It’s Not Me, It’s You, is set to drop in exactly one week, but as per the recent norm she’s streaming it today on her MySpace, so that’s where I’m dialed in right now, and loving it.

Though the sound is no huge departure from Alright, Still (that’s a good thing), Not Me packs in some great, unexpected touches. My favorite might be the banjo interlude on “Not Fair,” an open break-up note born out of sexual frustration. Lyrically, Lily’s as pithy and funny as ever, and just slightly more introspective—charming to the max.

Only one disappointment on first listen: my favorite tracks (“The Fear,” “I Could Say,” and “Who’d Have Known”) are the same three that Lily put out months ago as demos. I love all three though, so that’s not really a complaint or critique.

Unfortunately, as with so many successful mid-size acts, the closest Lily will get to Pittsburgh on her brief U.S. spring tour will be D.C., a drive I’ve historically reserved for the likes of Wilco and M. Ward. Sorry, Lily. I could say I’ll be there for you but, to borrow a phrase, "that would be a lie, and quite a pointless thing to do."

SITKOT rating: 47 out of 57

Download:
Lily Allen – “The Fear” (demo, released as “I Don’t Know”) (Mediafire link)

Seis.

Downloads:
Dirty Projectors – “Six Pack” (Mediafire link)
Filligar – “Lot Six” (Mediafire link)
Explosions in the Sky – “Six Days at the Bottom of the Ocean” (Mediafire link)