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REVIEW: dredg @ Wonder Ballroom (Portland, OR – 11/9/10)
FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM
Call me a focused, but I showed up shortly before dredg‘s 8:35pm start time and left immediately after*. Frontman Gavin Hayes came on and said something along the lines of “we’re hypocrites,” and they kicked into their first song “Ode to the Sun” – a bombastic lead off from Catch Without Arms. I’m not sure what he was referring to regarding the “hypocrites” comment, maybe it was just the mood he was in…
As one of the several openers, they only got an opener-sized slot, but they made the most of it…
Setlist: about 45 mins
- Ode To The Sun
- Same Ol’ Road
- Pariah
- Jamais Vu
- Upon Returning [new song]
- Bug Eyes
- Saviour
- Lightswitch
- Down to the Cellar
Their new album, as of yet untitled, comes out March 29, 2011. If it’s anything like The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion – it’ll be awesome. Great melodic prog-ish rock. Gavin tweeted on Nov 5th that the album was done (with compelling photographic proof):
a few more photos below
The Appropriate Linkage:
- dredg’s Site
- dredg’s Social Media Links (see below)
- My Other Related Reviews~
- Hawthorne Theater (Portland – Apr 2009)
- Wonder Ballroom (Portland – Aug 2009)
- Wonder Ballroom’s Site / Facebook
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*– or perhaps call me dickish… I love music, but I don’t generally enjoy the 4 or 5 band “rock tours” – especially when 3-4 of the bands are underwhelming and the crowd is annoying (see POV video below). I will apologize, as I didn’t give Circa Survive a fair shake (or a shake at all). I’m sure they’re great. Sorry, after a 4 hour round-trip drive, a couple sour beers at Cascade Brewing and dredg was what I cared about. And I’m getting old (rock bands! get off my lawn!). Sorry. It is what it is. If the Circa Survive kids troll my comment section… well, it’s understood.
“POV Rock Concert“
~Dan – np: A Perfect Circle – The Thirteenth Step
dredg PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2010 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution
(click for larger)
Kevin Moore’s “Shine” artwork
As reported about 2 months ago… Kevin Moore (Chroma Key, O.S.I., ex-Dream Theater) is putting out SHINE – the score to the Turkish film Kucuk Kiyamet (2007). The Kickstarter micro-funding goal was easily met, and production is underway. Here is a 6-panel digipack classic Penguin Books-style mock up of the artwork done by Alessandro Falca of Conte di San Pietro:
Alessandro is also currently working on the poster and T-shirt design. The digipack is now finalized and will go to the manufacturer next week. Kevin is hoping to ship preorders late November or early December (2010).
Find out more about the project at:
http://www.chromakey.com/ShineProject/Shine.html
~Dan – np: dredg – The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion
Derek Webb’s worship album – FEEDBACK (an atheist’s perspective)
So, overnight (midnight CST), Derek Webb put out his new album Feedback. I’ve been a fan of Derek Webb since I first got into his band Caedmon’s Call back in 1996. They’re a christian band… and I’ve since “left the church,” as it were. I mentioned this in my review of his show in Portland this past spring… even as an atheist, I find his music to be well conceived and well executed. He’s not a discriminatingly judgmental person. If he writes a judging lyric, it’s usually full of fingers a-blazin’ at himself first.
He also tackles many issues that I think are relevant and important to everyone (not just christians). “What Matters More” from 2009’s Stockholm Syndrome is one of my most favorite songs he’s put out (that album was stellar all around)…
Anyway… back to his new album Feedback. Feedback is a self-proclaimed “worship album.” I first heard about that moniker and was worried. I mean, what does an atheist desire to hear in a “worship” album? Not much, that’s what. I’ve heard many since leaving the church (Jars of Clay, Leigh Nash from Sixpence, other miscellaneous compilations with Derek and/or Caedmon’s Call), and… no offense is meant when I say this, but they really make me cringe. It’s the “subject matter,” and I know it’s not intended for me… so I move on. No harm, no foul.
Well,when I found out it was an instrumental worship album, well, again… no offense is meant, but it made me really happy. I’ve listened to the album in full by now (10pm PST on Nov 1st is midnight CST on Nov 2nd), and I dig it. It’s an “instrumental album based on the Lord’s Prayer.”
Worship is a complicated idea. Arguably, it’s what we all do, 24 hours a day (regardless of what we’re worshipping). And I’m aware of a lot of “worship product” in the marketplace I sometimes occupy. So I was cautious when I first started receiving the coordinates that would lead me to make ‘Feedback’. It was immediately conceptual and ambitious, so much so that I genuinely wasn’t sure I could do it. But this seemed to be the perfect posture in which to create something worthy of being called a “worshipful” piece of art. So I studied, meditated, struggled and prayed my way through this creative process, and it’s easily the most challenging thing I’ve done in my career. But I believe it’s been worth it, even just for the ways it’s stretched both my creative process and my faith as a follower of the Way. –Derek Webb
I could definitely see this being created (and used by listeners) in a worshipful manner. I also love the general aesthetics of it. It’s definitely got some electronic elements, but it has a more sweeping feel as well. Some of it feels like a mix of a happier ambiance of Amiina/Sigur Rós meets an acoustic-electronic bridge in a Sufjan Stevens song meets a gentle Ric Hordinski lyrical guitar solo (I am in a Monk mood). It’s a great quality instrumental album from a man who I loved via his witty voice from the get go. It’s nice to see him expand outside his comfort zone.
While I don’t want to make a big deal about the christian and atheist thing… the slant of the record’s purpose (worship) makes me look at it from that angle. I don’t think it needs to be that way. But in the way the album is framed from a songwriting, production, and marketing point of view… yes, I definitely see this album as a conduit for worship. As an atheist, I take it as a conduit into introspection and the worship of the divine as I see it – music.
Here’s a trailer for the short films that accompany the album:
Find out more at:
http://www.derekwebb.com/
Oh, today is also November 2nd – aka Election Day. Regardless of who you vote for… don’t forget to do just that… VOTE. It’s important.
~Dan – np: Monk (Ric Hordinski) – Quiver
Sean Lennon & Charlotte Kemp Muhl
Back in May 2008, my first post on jazzsick blog (I was transitioning from MySpace blogging) was about Sean Lennon‘s collaboration with Charlotte Kemp Muhl in a project called Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger. Their music has been up on the MySpaces since that May 2008, and it was finally released in physical form this week (10.26.2010)…
Listen to it over here. Check it out on CD or vinyl.
~Dan – np: Charles Mingus – Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus
Over the Rhine – The Long Surrender (virtual listening party)
So, Cincinnati folk-duo Over the Rhine has a new album coming out… it’s called The Long Surrender, and it comes out 1/11/11. If you helped out with the pre-order campaign (mentioned back here and here), they are having a very special internet streaming listening party from Friday, October 8th at 6pm (PST) through Sunday, October 10th at 6pm (PST).
I’d post the link to the streaming-goodness… but I don’t want to get fired as a fan… again.
Look for a mini-review from me sometime next week.
~Dan – np: The Weepies – Be My Thrill
Sufjan’s AGE of ADZ (in its entirety)
The entire Sufjan Stevens‘ album The Age of Adz is streaming over at NPR until its release date (October 12th).
You can pre-order the record here: CD / VINYL / digital
~Dan – np: Sufjan Stevens – The Age of Adz
no free flac torrent of mp3 download here ever. if you like music, support it – buy it
Radiohead might trash new album
As reported in SPIN…
Radiohead finished recording songs for their follow-up to 2007’s In Rainbows, but that doesn’t mean it’s ready to be released. Drummer Phil Selway said the Oxford quintet will return to the studio early next week to “take stock” of their new material — and possibly “throw it all out.” “Maybe we need to go back to the drawing board,” he told the Canadian Press. “It’s all up in the air at the moment.” Selway, who explained that the band has “been working on material on and off for a year,” added that while the songwriting process for In Rainbows was shaped by extensive touring and live experimentation with the songs, the new album “was quite the opposite.”
Fucking teases… maybe “throw it all out” is British for “give it to us for free.” But knowing Thom Yorke, he’s a perfectionist. I bet they’ll scrap it and start over.
Sigh.
~Dan – np: Medeski Martin & Wood – The Dropper
Nellie McKay’s HSMH limited edition
Nellie McKay‘s new album, Home Sweet Mobile Home, comes out next week (Sept 28th)… and a limited edition fan package is available on her site. Autographed 12″ x 12″ litho, physical CD, high-quality mp3 album, four exclusive bonus songs (no indication which ones), and an immediate download of “Bruise the on the Sky.” The entire album is currently streaming over on NellieMcKay.com as well.
Limited edition: NellieMcKay.com ($35)
Regular CD: Amazon.com ($9.99)
Regular digital: Amazon.com ($9.49)
~Dan – np: Medeski Martin & Wood – Combustication
Fiona Apple – new album in Spring 2011?
As reported on Antiquiet…
Last Sunday, singer/songwriter Michelle Branch gushed on Twitter that she had heard a couple of new Fiona Apple songs. Verdict? “Amazing.”
This Modern Drummer article on Charley Drayton mentions that his current projects include “playing, co-producing, and mixing Fiona Apple’s upcoming record, scheduled to be released in the spring of 2011.”
The last new music we’ve heard from Apple was this cover of Cy Coleman’s Why Try To Change Me Now released last year. She released two songs on that soundtrack.
~Dan – np: Puscifer – Sounds Into Blood Into Wine
no free mp3 or flac download torrent here. if you like music, support it by buying it!
Sufjan Stevens – The Age of Adz
Last week they announced the All Delighted People EP. And the week before the fall tour was announced. And today, Asthmatic Kitty announced the upcoming release of The Age of Adz (pronounced Odds), the first song-based full-length from Sufjan Stevens since 2005’s Illinois.
8/27 update: Preview of “I Walked” HERE.
http://asthmatickitty.com/the-age-of-adz
The Age of Adz tracklist
1. Futile Devices – 2:11
2. Too Much – 6:44
3. Age of Adz – 8:00
4. I Walked – 5:01 preview
5. Now That I’m Older – 4:56
6. Get Real Get Right – 5:10
7. Bad Communication – 2:24
8. Vesuvius – 5:26
9. All for Myself – 2:55
10. I Want To Be Well – 6:27
11. Impossible Soul – 25:35
The Age of Adz will drop on October 12th (CD, MP3) with a double-LP following on November 9th. For the next three weeks you can pre-order the CD or LP, and receive an MP3 download on September 28th, two weeks before the release date.
Per Asthmatic Kitty:
“It’s much too soon to cast descriptive lots, but we can say the new album sounds nothing like the All Delighted EP (although it shares similar themes of love, loss, and the apocalypse). Nor is this new album built around any conceptual underpinning (no odes to states, astrology, or urban expressways). We can say it shows an extensive use of electronics (banjos and acoustic guitars give way to drum machines and analog synthesizers), and an obsession with cosmic fantasies (space, heaven, aliens, love), to create an explicit pop-song extravaganza, augmented by heavy orchestration, and maybe even a few danceable moments. Enjoy Your Rabbit meets the BQE. But with songs. Verse, chorus, bridge, backbeat. Gated reverb. Space echo. Get your boogey on. The ‘Adz’ of the title loosely refers to the apocalyptic paintings of outsider artist Royal Robertson (1930-1997), whose work is used for the album cover, interior design, and as general inspiration for the tone of the album.”
Wow… 2010 is the Year of the Sufjan.
~Dan – np: John Zorn, Bill Frisell/Marc Ribot/Tim Sparks – Masada Guitars
no free mp3 download or flac torrent here ever. if you like music, support it. buy it.
Goddamn Electric Bill – Jazz (vinyl)
Jason Torbert, aka Goddamn Electric Bill, is putting out his fourth album soon… this time on vinyl, and this time with our help. He’s started a campaign via Kickstarter to gain enough pre-order support to make the vinyl happen.
There are several different packages including vinyl only, vinyl + bsides, vinyl+ bsides + CD, et cetera. He needs to raise $1,500 by Sept 17th. He’s about half way there as of now, but the project won’t happen if he doesn’t raise enough. For those not in the know about GdEB, it’s a fantastic melodic, organic electronic soundscape. Check out some tunes on MySpace or his video for “Ten Thousand Years” here:
I pitched in… I hope you dig the music and do the same. Let’s make GdEB’s Jazz album on vinyl a reality!
To find out more about JAZZ, click a photo above. You can also ask a question in the comments, email contact@goddamnelectricbill.com, or follow any one of these links:
www.goddamnelectricbill.com
www.myspace.com/goddamnelectricbill
www.facebook.com/goddamnelectricbill
www.vimeo.com/gdeb
www.youtube.com/anthropologymajor
www.twitter.com/goddamnelectric
~Dan – np: John Zorn / Masada String Trio – Film Works XI: Under the Wing
Beats Antique – Blind Threshold
This just in from Beats Antique…
(click for uber-hi-res cover art)
We are very proud to announce the release of our 3rd full length album called “BLIND THRESHOLD“. With 14 tracks the new self-release includes vaporous violins and Danny Elfman-esque dementia; glitchy, laser-guided harmonica provided by Blues Traveler frontman John Popper; and two very different vocal tracks that range between restless pop hooks provided by singer songwriter LYNX to the vibrant Eastern European folk melodies of New York vocalist Eva Salina. All wrapped up into an intricate collection of orchestral textures, heavy beats and sub bass. The new album was mastered by the great producer TIPPER with art and design by Andrew Jones and photography by Sequoia Emmanuelle.
I know we were talking about calling the next album Contraption Vol 2, but we decided to give this one its own name. Contraption Vol 2 will come when its time is ready. We have been waiting to share the art and release date until we had all our ducks in a row We have finally gotten word on the official release date. Blind Threshold will be available online in all major download stores and in physical form from CD baby on Tuesday September 14th !!!
They’re also going out on tour this summer/fall… I’ll be catching them at Eugene Celebration!
- 8/18 – Las Vegas, NV – Wasted Space
- 8/20 – Sheldon, VT – Liberate Music And Arts Festival
- 8/21 – Stephentown, NY – Bella Terra Music Festival
- 8/28 – Eugene, OR – McDonald Theatre – Eugene Celebration
- 9/10 – Clarks Grove, MN – Harvestfest – Harmony Park
- 9/11 – Minot, ME – 1st Annual Dankfest
- 9/17 – Laytonville, CA – Earthdance
- 9/18 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
- 9/24 – Seattle, WA – Decibel Festival @ Motor
- 9/25 – Arcata, CA – Aracata Theatre
- 9/28 – Fargo, ND – The Aquarium
- 9/30 – Madison, WI – Majestic Live
- 10/1 – Milwaukee, WI – Miramar Theatre
- 10/2 – Chicago, IL – Abbey Pub
- 10/3 – Grand Rapids, MI – The Intersection
- 10/6 – New Orleans, LA – Republic
- 10/9 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits
- 10/11 – Mobile, AL – Alabama Music Box
- 10/12 – Birmingham, AL – Zydeco
- 10/13 – Nashville, TN – Exit/In
- 10/14 – Asheville, NC – TBD
- 10/15 – Charleston, SC – The Pour House
- 10/16 – Athens, GA – New Earth Music Hall
- 10/17 – Atlanta, GA – Masquerade – Hell Room
- 10/22 – Allston, MA – Harpers Ferry
- 11/11 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore Cabaret
- 11/12 – Edmonton, AB – The Pawn Shop
- 11/13 – Calgary, AB – Royal Canadian Legion
- 11/14 – Winnipeg, MB – Crescent Wood United Church
For more info, check out http://beatsantique.com/
~Dan – np: Electric Masada – At the Mountain of Madness
there is no free mp3 download or flac torrent here. if you like music, support the arts by buying it!
Nellie McKay HSMH (cover art)
Nellie McKay‘s forthcoming album, Home Sweet Mobile Home, now has cover art and it’s for pre-order on Amazon. It’s out September 28th on Verve.
Dave Douglas on vinyl
So, Expand from Dave Douglas & Keystone – the second in the Spark of Being trilogy – is now up for pre-order. Spark of Being is Dave’s recent collaboration with experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison (read more here). As a cool option, it’s going to be made available on vinyl – a first for Greenleaf Music.
I’ve got mine on pre-order… boxset and now vinyl. Oh, and once pre-ordered… you get to download it, even though its release date is August 24th.
~Dan – np: Dave Douglas & Keystone – Spark of Being: Expand
Nellie McKay – indie film & WBGO interview
Update: You can now order Home Sweet Mobile Home on Amazon
To piggy back off of this recent post about Nellie McKay‘s upcoming album, Home Sweet Mobile Home (out Sept 28), online music source 24bit added…
Before the album drops this fall, however, McKay will record music for and star as struggling New York City singer-songwriter Ramona in Downtown Express, an independent feature film in which her character falls in love with a Russian musician visiting town for a month on a Juilliard scholarship, played by real-life virtuoso violinist Philippe Quint.
She also did an in-studio appearance at WBGO (streaming audio link). She does some tunes and is interviewed by WBGO’s Michael Bourne. It was posted over at nelliemckay.com only yesterday (7/18/2010); so I assume it’s recent – even though it seems very Normal As Blueberry Pie-centric.
~Dan – np: Jon Madof’s Rashanim – Masada Rock
Nellie McKay Announces New Album ‘Home Sweet Mobile Home’ (Sept 28 / Verve)
Update: You can now order Home Sweet Mobile Home on Amazon
This just in about Nellie McKay‘s forthcoming album…
NELLIE MCKAY TO RELEASE NEW ALBUM ‘HOME SWEET MOBILE HOME’ ON SEPTEMBER 28th (VERVE)
Singer-songwriter Nellie McKay’s fifth album, ‘Home Sweet Mobile Home,’ will be released on Verve Records this September. Her second album for the label follows her 2009 release ‘Normal As Blueberry Pie – A Tribute to Doris Day,’ which was selected by The New York Times, Huffington Post and The Village Voice as one of the best of the year.
‘Home Sweet Mobile Home’ is McKay’s first album of all-original material since 2007’s ‘Obligatory Villagers,’ and has the musical wanderlust, lyrical playfulness and sharp point of view that has characterized her music since her breakthrough debut ‘Get Away From Me.’ Songs from the new project were recently debuted during her NYC engagement at Feinstein’s, and the New York Post noted that “songs like “Bodega” and “Caribbean Time” feature whimsical humor and social commentary that blended in beautifully alongside the standards from the Blueberry Pie album.”
The new album, produced by McKay and Robin Pappas, was recorded in Los Angeles, New York, Jamaica and the Pocono Mountains and, even more than her previous albums, combines diverse musical moods and cultures.
“I have no idea how this album happened,” says Nellie. “I guess I was looking for a sound to reflect our shrinking world and the bleed of culture crossing all kinds of borders.” Reviewing a recent McKay show, Stephen Holden from The New York Times described her as a “vocal chameleon,” and that varied musical palette is used to great effect on the 13 songs on ‘Home Sweet Mobile Home.’
McKay has released four critically acclaimed records and appeared on Broadway (winning a Theatre World Award for her role in the revival of ‘The Threepenny Opera’) and on film (acting and singing in ‘P.S. I Love You’). She also wrote and performed the song score for the Rob Reiner film ‘Rumor Has It.’
The Chase Brock Experience recently produced a ballet of her third album, ‘Obligatory Villagers,’ while Nellie is currently playing opposite violin prodigy Philippe Quint in the independent film ‘Downtown Express’ and contributing to the soundtrack for the upcoming Martin Scorsese HBO series ‘Boardwalk Empire.’
Susan Enan house concert review (from last night) to be posted later today…
~Dan – np: Antibalas – Security
Over the Rhine’s The Long Surrender (due 1/11/11)
As posted on overtherhine.com…
Our immense thanks to all of you who helped make the new Over the Rhine record a reality. It’s been christened THE LONG SURRENDER and is currently being mastered.
Tentative release date: 1.11.11.All those who contributed will receive THE LONG SURRENDER well before the official release date, with extras. Look for a complete (long, rambling) update letter next week with much more, but suffice it to say, for now, our experience with producer Joe Henry and his cast of conjurers was nothing short of incredible.
Can’t wait for you to take the ride/hear for yourself.
Perfect release date, if you ask me!
~Dan – np: Susan Enan – Plainsong
Secret Chiefs 3 in the studio
Well, it’s official… Secret Chiefs 3 are in the studio. Per a tweet from Brooklyn-based Studio G / Joel Hamilton, “Secret Chiefs 3 with Joel at Studio G. Rock never confused you so well.” And here’s a picture (from Ches Smith’s FB) to prove that Trey Spruance is there, too. :)
Book of Souls by year’s end? Well, I ain’t hatcheting my counts before they chicken, but I’d say it’s possible…
~Dan – np: Beak> – Beak>
Brandon Boyd of Incubus – The Wild Trapeze
Incubus is heading back into the studio… but this just in…
With a career that’s spanned almost two decades, six albums, a handful of EP’s and DVD’s and a Greatest Hits album which has chronicled it all under his belt as lead singer of the multi-platinum selling band Incubus, Brandon Boyd just released his first solo album entitled, The Wild Trapeze. It’s available for fairly cheap ($10 on CD) with instant download at www.thewildtrapeze.com. The album is also exclusively available digitally on iTunes, et cetera…
Per Brandon…
“This group of songs was born of a very different process than the many my band and I have been employing for our almost two decades at work now. The Wild Trapeze began as pot induced meanderings on my dusty acoustic guitar while Incubus was off of the road, and has slowly been morphing into things that I originally could never have imagined. So much of my identity, both personally and creatively has been attached to and related to Incubus. For better or worse! And I do believe that every person in every corner of the world asks themselves at some point on their ride, ‘Who am I…today?’ The Wild Trapeze is an exercise in self reliance.”
Lofty… I’m sure he’s biased. ;) I’m downloading it now… looking forward to it…
~Dan – np: George Hrab – Trebuchet
no free download or torrent mp3 flac available at all. if you like music, support it by buying it
Ty Tabor’s Trip Magnet & Wally Farkas solo
Two new digital releases showed up yesterday (thanks to Facebook status updates from both gents), both related and both excellent…
Wally Farkas, guitarist of the late great Galactic Cowboys, is putting the final touches on his debut solo album. He’s released the single “Better Than Before” from his forthcoming debut, Past Due (due later this year). This self-penned track shows just one side of what will be a diverse debut album. Also included is the song “Loving Kind,” which was originally recorded by the Peter Green-era of the original Fleetwood Mac and written by one of their brilliant and extremely overlooked guitarists, Danny Kirwan. On these tracks… Wally Farkas – Vocals/Guitar, Ty Tabor (King’s X) – Guitar, Alan Doss (Galactic Cowboys) – Bass, and Darwin Keys (Pushmonkey) – Drums. It’s available on 320 kbps mp3 at Molken Music for only $2.50.
And while you’re there at Molken… Ty Tabor, of King’s X and many side projects, just put out a five-song EP from the upcoming Trip Magnet release. This is a different side of Ty Tabor…somewhere between Xenuphobe (his ambient project with Wally Farkas) and his regular rockin’ studio/solo albums. For a melancholy trip into freakatude, check out Ty’s seventh solo release. An unusual outing for Ty Tabor, this release contains over fourteen minutes of instrumental music, as well as some Ty’s rock vocal numbers. Ty Tabor – Vocals, Guitars, Bass and Randy St. John – Drums. It’s available on 320 kbps mp3 at Molken Music for $7.99.
For just slightly over $10… some great new music!
~Dan – np: Ty Tabor – Trip Magnet EP
-Eyvind Kang
-Frank Zappa
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