Archive
Steven Wilson’s 2nd solo album (2/21 update)
More news to tack onto the original announcement (go here for that). This is also from Steven Wilson‘s facebook page:
Thanks for all the wonderful feedback regarding my new solo record! Sorry, but “Cut Ribbon” once again failed to make the cut – although the 12 tracks / 84 minutes of music I’ve selected for the main release is quite eclectic, it has in common a pretty organic feel, mostly inspired by the darker end of vintage progressive music and some… movie soundtrack stuff (Morricone especially). The sound palette is made up of things like strings, choir, woodwinds, mellotron, organ, piano, fender rhodes, jazz drums, and warmer guitar tones, so the shiny metal attack of Cut Ribbon just doesn’t fit. But the track is all mixed and finished and sounds good, so I’ll find somewhere to release it. Definitely the album will come out on double vinyl too. Love the new Radiohead album! Here’s another still from the work in progress films Lasse is working on to include on the blu-ray version of the album.
~Dan – np: Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light 1
Porcupine Tree – Bonnie the Cat (video)
Check out the new, Tool-esque video for Porcupine Tree‘s “Bonnie the Cat” from 2009’s The Incident…
click for video at Roadrunner.com
It’s weird… the song didn’t even make me think of Tool, but now watching the CGI/Adam Jones–y stop-animation video, the bass line comes through more and the song definitely reminds me of Tool. Hmmm… I’d expect a little more originality from Steven Wilson & Co… well, at least they’re copying a band for which I have a lot of respect.
~Dan – np: Susan Enan – Plainsong
Steven Wilson Cover Versions boxset
Steven Wilson‘s 6th and final Cover Versions is finally coming out…
It comes with a special box to house all six discs. The CDs are available via Burning Shed or Headphone Dust. CV5 & CV6 will be out on 7″ vinyl from Tonefloat when they’re ready. For those that don’t know Steven Wilson… he’s the frontman of Porcupine Tree, co-leader of Blackfield and No-Man, and involved in many other side projects like IEM, Bass Communion, and more…
Two other quick newsbits…
The Maynard James Keenan (Tool/A Perfect Circle/Puscifer) & Eric Glomski documentary about Arizona wines, Blood Into Wine, is hitting limited silver screens in February. A DVD release is scheduled for May 2010. More info over at Blabbermouth.
Radiohead drummer Phil Selway is branching out and going on a solo tour in Italy/Spain/Portugal in March & April 2010. More info over at Paste.
REVIEW: dredg @ Wonder Ballroom (Portland, OR – 8/15/09)
FYI… PHOTOS of the SHOW at the BOTTOM
This was my third time seeing dredg, and the second time this year. Their latest record (The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion) is an amazing album… a definite front runner for album of the year for me. It is inspired by Salman Rushdie’s essay “Imagine There’s No Heaven: A Letter to the Sixth Billionth Citizen.” I gladly made the trek up to Portland, and now that I’d been able to soak in their latest album (it wasn’t out when I saw them in April), I knew much more of the material being played. I was also able to bring my camera… yay!
The first opener As Tall As Lions were really good. The first song, the bassist was acting a bit goofy. I thought it seemed weird, or that he was “overacting.” However, throughout their whole 5-6 song set (35 minutes), he kept it up. Maybe it grew on me, or maybe I changed my mind and felt he really was into it that much (plus he’s got some backing vocal chops). :) Anyway, As Tall As Lions were a 6-piece in this live setting. They’re from New York, and had a good indie rock vibe – nice vocals, nice groove, and good use of horns. The band was way forward on the stage; so my only downside was that I was right next to the drums, which drowned out a lot of their vocals. But, all in all, a very good opener.
The second opener Rx Bandits may as well have been a co-headliner (maybe they were billed as such). It seemed as if tons of the crowd were there to see RxB. They started the set with all four members on drums, which was fun. One of the highlights of their 70 minute set was their lead guitarist and their drummer. Their drummer had a dirty Daniel Johns (of Silverchair) look, and was kicking the crap out of his drumkit. And their lead guitarist didn’t have the most “rock” stage presence, but he seemed like he could fit in a really into a shredder band… he played some really complex underlying scales, all while having a nonchalant look on his face. :) Their vocalist reminded me physically as Brett McKenzie (from Flight of the Conchords). And vocally, he seemed like he could fit in a jamband meets reggae/punk band. Their bassist looked like he also fit in a jamband, and he had a very nice groove and bounced around the stage a lot. It was an odd mix for a group, but it worked. I’ll definitely see them if they swing through Eugene. I took a few pics of RxB, but they didn’t turn out… oh well… next time…
Dredg came on right at 10:50pm and blasted into the trio of songs that kicks off The Pariah, The Parrott, The Delusion. They seemed a little toured out (only compared to the last show in April). They still put on a great show. Gavin (singer/ lap steel), Dino (drums/ keyboard), Drew (bass) and Mark (guitars) were joined by a second guitarist for a few songs (I didn’t catch his name). He played with them on Pariah, Drunk Slide, and Information. Great 85 minute set. Here’s what they played…
Setlist:
- Pariah
- Drunk Slide
- Ireland
- Ode to the Sun
- Catch without Arms
- Same Ol’ Road
- Saviour
- RUOK?
- I Don’t Know
- Δ
- Bug Eyes
- Information
- Light Switch
- Zebraskin
- The Tanbark is Hot Lava
- The Canyon Behind Her
- Down to the Cellar
- Cartoon Showroom
No encore (again), but perhaps that’s their M.O. I’m not putting my usual “a fave of the night” notations by any song, because, quite frankly, it was all amazing. At the end of Down the Cellar, the crew took Dino’s drum kit away one piece at a time at the end, with him ending on piano and no drums around him. That was fun.
The only song I really wish they played but didn’t was “Gathering Pebbles” (from their new one). I could play that song on repeat all day…
As much as I can get across in words, dredg is quickly becoming one of my favorite bands. Rarely does an opener hit me, and ever since I saw dredg open for Coheed & Cambria (a few years back), I’ve been an immediate fan. Their latest is their best yet, and their other albums are great as well. I’d recommend picking The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion up on CD, vinyl (from the dredg store), or if you are silly… on mp3 (why go for the lower quality folks?). :)
dredg “Information“
The Appropriate Linkage:
- http://www.dredg.com/
- http://www.myspace.com/dredg
- http://www.myspace.com/rxbandits
- http://www.myspace.com/astallaslions
- http://www.wonderballroom.com/
~Dan – np: Dub Trio – New Heavy
DREDG PHOTOS
all pictures (cc) 2009 Daniel Temmesfeld,
you may use freely under a creative commons attribution
(click for larger)
Higher Resolution (6 pics)
Limited to 1200 pixels wide or tall (31 pics)
McKay, Porcupine Tree, Mulvey & Bazan news
Music news that I care about seems to be hitting often lately…
Nellie McKay‘s album that was supposed to be out “last fall,” will finally be out “this fall.” No album name, but we at least have a street date – October 13th. There’s not much more content over at the Direct Current Music website; so I hope they are right on this one… .COM, .NET, and .ORG have failed to provide any corroboration. I hope “this fall” doesn’t turn into “next fall“… yet again.
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Porcupine Tree just put their newest one, The Incident (due out 9/15 in the U.S.), up for pre-order. Much like Steven Wilson’s Insurgentes, this one has a deluxe edition that would make the Pope curse. It looks freakin’ gorgeous (and huge)…
On the pre-order page there’s a video of PT frontman Steven Wilson talking about what’s to be included. Oh, it’s a’spensive, but it makes sense if you’ve ever read this “1,000 True Fans” article by Kevin Kelly. Not to say that only the “true fans” will buy it, but, well… anyway, the article is a good read…
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One of my favorite singer-songwriters Peter Mulvey is coming through the PacNW in November. One Portland date that I may try to make, and one Eugene date that I will make. He’s also got a new one coming out (in September on Signature Sounds). It’s called Letters from a Flying Machine…
(click for larger)
Here are his 2009 tourdates (as of now):
- Mon 08/10/09 – Saugatuck, MI – Saugatuck Center For The Arts
- Wed 09/09/09 – Grand Rapids, MI – Wealthy Street Theatre
- Thu 09/10/09 – Kalamazoo, MI – The Strutt
- Fri 09/11/09 – Lansing, MI – Creole Gallery
- Sat 09/12/09 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
- Tue 09/15/09 – Buffalo, NY – 9th Ward
- Sun 09/20/09 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Caffe Lena
- Thu 09/24/09 – Cambridge, MA – Lizard Lounge
- Fri 09/25/09 – Cambridge, MA – Passim Folk Music & Cultural Center
- Sat 09/26/09 – Northampton, MA – Iron Horse Music Hall
- Sun 09/27/09 – Norfolk, CT – Infinity Hall
- Fri 10/09/09 – Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theater
- Sat 10/10/09 – Evanston, IL – SPACE
- Thu 10/22/09 – The Hague, Netherlands – Transvaria
- Fri 10/23/09 – Bakkeveen, Netherlands – De Slotplaats
- Sat 10/24/09 – Bemmel, Netherlands – Top
- Wed 11/04/09 – Seattle, WA – Tractor Tavern
- Sat 11/07/09 – Portland, OR – Alberta Street Pub
- Sun 11/08/09 – Eugene, OR – Sam Bond’s Garage
- Thu 11/12/09 – Felton, CA – Don Quixote’s Int’l Music Hall
- Sat 11/14/09 – San Diego, CA – Acoustic Music San Diego
- Fri 11/20/09 – Burlington, VT – UVM Recital Hall
- Sat 11/21/09 – Framingham, MA – Amazing Things Art Center
- Tue 12/01/09 – Fairbanks, AK – College Coffeehouse
- Wed 12/02/09 – Fairbanks, AK – College Coffeehouse
- Thu 12/03/09 – Tok, AK – Fast Eddy’s
- Sat 12/05/09 – Anchorage, AK – Snow Goose Theatre
- Sun 12/06/09 – Palmer, AK – Vagabond Blues
- Tue 12/08/09 – Kodiak, AK – Golden Anchor
- Fri 12/11/09 – Denver, CO – Swallow Hill Music Association
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(photo by Ryan Russell)
no, the Office’s Jon Krasinski is not hitting the road with Mr Bazan
And as reported earlier, indie-rocker David Bazan is hitting the road with a band (but not to be mistaken as a “Pedro the Lion reunion”). Announced yesterday on db.com (but unofficially announced at the Eugene house show the other day), he’ll be in Portland in November (the day before Peter Mulvey, actually). Anyway, here are the Bazan band members and tour dates. Eric Elbogen: guitar (Say Hi), Andy Fitts: keyboards + guitar (Aqueduct), Casey Foubert: drums (Richard Swift, Sufjan Stevens), and Blake Wescott: guitar (long-time Bazan collaborator).
- 10/01 – San Francisco CA – Independent
- 10/02 – Costa Mesa CA – Detroit Bar
- 10/03 – San Diego CA – Casbah
- 10/04 – Los Angeles CA – Troubadour
- 10/05 – Tucson AZ – Solar Culture
- 10/07 – Austin TX – Mohawk
- 10/08 – Denton TX – Dan’s Silverleaf
- 10/09 – Memphis TN – Hi-Tone Café
- 10/10 – Murray KY – Lovett Auditorium / Murray State
- 10/11 – Birmingham AL – Bottletree
- 10/13 – Orlando FL – The Social
- 10/14 – Atlanta GA – Drunken Unicorn
- 10/15 – Chapel Hill NC – Cat’s Cradle
- 10/16 – Washington DC – Black Cat
- 10/17 – Philadelphia PA – Kung Fu Necktie
- 10/18 – New York NY – Bowery Ballroom
- 10/20 – Cambridge MA – TT the Bear’s +
- 10/21 – Montreal QC – Il Motore
- 10/22 – Toronto ON – Lee’s Palace
- 10/23 – Pontiac MI – Pike Room
- 10/24 – Chicago IL – TBA
- 10/25 – Champaign IL – Highdive
- 10/27 – Madison WI High – Noon Saloon
- 10/28 – Minneapolis MN – Turf Club
- 10/29 – Iowa City IA – The Picador
- 10/30 – Lawrence KS – Jackpot Saloon
- 10/31 – Omaha NE – Slowdown
- 11/01 – Denver CO – Hi Dive
- 11/02 – Salt Lake City UT – Kilby Court
- 11/05 – Vancouver BC – Media Club
- 11/06 – Portland OR – Mississippi Studios
- 11/07 – Seattle WA – Neumos
all dates with Say Hi
+ TW Walsh in Boston
Yep… this is gonna be one packed fall of music for me. Yippie!
~Dan – np: Drain STH – Freaks of Nature
Porcupine Tree / Larry David & Woody Allen
UK progrockers Porcupine Tree have a new album coming out in September, and it now has a name: The Incident. It’s out September 21st on Roadrunner Records in the United States. It’ll be a double-album: first CD being the (cough) 55-minute title track. The 2nd CD being an EP-lengthed featuring these four songs: “Flicker,” “Bonnie The Cat,” “Black Dahlia,” and “Remember Me Lover.”
My fandom of Steven Wilson’s songwriting (examples: Stupid Dream & Lightbulb Sun) will probably lead me to gravitate to the 2nd CD, but we shall see. Their counterpart in the prog world, Dream Theater, can’t write their way out of a wet paper bag (when it comes to a “song”)… so at least Steven tends to do that every once in a while…
As previously reported, Porcupine Tree hits the road with King’s X and That1Guy this fall (two favorite artists of mine). I’ll be at the That1Guy-opened show in Portland, OR.
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Larry David is a busy man. As previously reported, the 7th season of Curb Your Enthusiasm is underway (and will host all major members of the Seinfeld cast). Larry’s feature movie from writer/director Woody Allen is hitting the streets this June/July. Here’s a trailer for Whatever Works:
~Dan – np: Celldweller – The Last Firstborn Remixes
O.S.I. #3
Updated (3/9/09): go here… https://jazzsick.wordpress.com/2009/03/09/more-osi-details/
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Well, I just checked chromakey.com and osiband.com just last week. No updates since 2006.
Now this from Blabbermouth…
OSI (OFFICE OF STRATEGIC INFLUENCE), the project featuring FATES WARNING guitarist Jim Matheos and ex-DREAM THEATER keyboardist Kevin Moore, has spent the past several months working on its third album. According to Moore, “Gavin Harrison (PORCUPINE TREE) is playing drums on this one; he’s nearly done tracking and it sounds great. Along with guitar, Jim is handling bass this time. I still get to sing but may get some help.”
For those not in the know, Kevin Moore‘s Chroma Key is my favorite band ever. This is not hyperbole. Dead Air For Radios is my #1 favorite album ever. O.S.I. is essentially a rockin’ continuation of Chroma Key for me.
(Kevin / CK promo shot)
I’m stoked. I don’t care that it snuck up on me. O.S.I. #2 snuck up on me as well… it makes for a happy present. Now, if I can only convince Kevin to tour Chroma Key or O.S.I.
I suppose watch this blog space for future news… or this one…
~Dan
-Eyvind Kang
-Frank Zappa
Amazon.com mp3 downloads
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This blog and concert photos therein are licensed under a Creative Commons License. Available with Attribution for Non-Commercial, Non-Derivative Use.
