Jeez, I've been pretty bad about updating here lately :-/ School & work beckon! I'm just popping in to remind you of the concert calendar we're maintaining over at Draw Us Lines. We try to stay up to speed with the bands/venues that we recommend, but surely we can't be aware of everything, so let me know via email about any events that should be included! Specifically, tomorrow night (Wednesday, March 2, 2011) there are a couple interesting shows happening in the Bloomfield/Garfield area.
At the Brillobox, you can catch The Seedy Seeds, The Wine, the Women & the Bomb, and Robin Vote. It's not easy to describe the sound styles of The Seedy Seeds since they've managed to fused banjo and other folk instruments with electronic pop melodies and synthesizers and male/female vocal harmonies, which leaves me with too many adjectives to fit together, so I'll just steal the term "Appalachiatronica" from an old Idolator article. I've been streaming a bunch of tunes from their Bandcamp page lately and I think it would be interesting to see them put these together live. Playing with them are two Pittsburgh bands. The website of The Wine, the Women & the Bomb is pretty but kind of uninformative due to the prose that's straight out of a high-minded fantasy novel (including a Nietzsche quote, even), but the songs streaming on their Bandcamp page give off a solid rock vibe: lots of guitars and drums, intricate rhythms, forceful vocals, etc. Robin Vote described themselves as "glam-jazz" and "doom-folk" in a feature on Pgh Music Report; I can't claim to know much about those genres so I'll let their songs speak for themselves (as well as the novel whence the band name.) All in all, seems like a crazy interesting mix of genres and styles; this should be a good show. Tickets are $7 at the doors (open at 9:00 pm). Here's a video for The Seedy Seeds' song "Drive Me To The Center".
At Garfield Artworks, you can catch Verona Red, Wine & Spirit, and Boulevard of the Allies. They just released a new EP, Pound, that you can stream on Bandcamp. After listening to it a few times recently, I can say that you wouldn't be wrong in saying that Verona Red have some bluesy/swing stylings, but there's some roots rock 'n roll in there, too, and it sounds like it would be pretty exciting to see at a "cozy" venue like Garfield Artworks. Local openers Wine & Spirit and Boulevard of the Allies (a truly local name, even) fit that bill, similarly; based on the songs I listened to today, they seem to draw from the same kinds of Midwest/Southern blues influences with some upbeat swing and rowdy rock 'n roll. Can't go wrong with that. And hey, Pgh Music Report did a feature on Boulevard of the Allies recently, too, so check that out. Tickets are $5 at the doors (open at 8:00 pm, 18+, BYOB). Here's a video of Verona Red playing their new song "Kitchen Song".
I'm not sure if I'll make it to either show due to life and such, but feel free to comment here if you're planning on going or did actually go and enjoyed yourself. Cheers!
Showing posts with label jam video. Show all posts
Showing posts with label jam video. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Cover jam of the day: "I'm Set Free"
Artists: Woodpigeon & Weathered Hand, and Yo La Tengo (covering the Velvet Underground)
Song: "I'm Set Free"
A big part of the reason I love the VU is that they can play a song like "Sister Ray", a 17-minute hard-rockin' jam of a tune about a busted drug-addled orgy in a NYC hotel room, but they can also play a gorgeous, flowery tune like "Sunday Morning". It's almost not fair that they had the talent and wherewithal to flip-flop like that from song to song on their recorded output, but sobeit. The reason I bring this up is that it is Sunday morn-.... well, it's Sunday afternoon, but I started thinking about this while it was still technically morning, and I was out late last night to see Deerhoof and then hang out drinking with some friends, so cut me some slack. But I was just sitting here sipping coffee and scanning Google reader and Facebook and I saw that Daytrotter had posted the VU song "Sunday Morning" on their Facebook page, appropriately enough, and then I starting thinking about similar sweet-sounding songs of theirs and then I remembered I found this Woodpigeon cover on their blog a few weeks ago and have been meaning to share it, and then I found this YLT version when I typed "I'm Set Free" in Banshee since I forgot they even recorded this one! Yikes, that's a lot of thinking, but the conclusion is that you get to hear/see three different versions of this song.
The original has some nice, soft, melodious guitar strumming from Lou and Sterling, plus Lou's lead vocals and some backing "oohs" and "aahs" leading into the choruses (from Doug Yule, I'm guessing), and all the while Mo's metronomic drumming alternates from fast/loud to slow/quiet in just the right way to match the mood of the song. It's perfect and uniquely VU-ish.
The Woodpigeon & Weathered Hand version is even softer and quieter, played on acoustic guitar(s) and viola (I think), sans drums, but adding a little bit of electrified guitar during the solo. I've really enjoyed all of the Woodpigeon albums I've heard so far; they play wonderful folk-tinged pop songs and the singer's voice is lovely. I don't know anything about Weathered Hand, but I will be sure to investigate in the near future. Looks like they've combined forces here to create a wonderful cover version, brimming with wistful, ethereal vocals and folksy strumming and beautiful strings. It's also perfect for Sunday morning/afternoon listening. Check out a live version of them playing this song here.
The Yo La Tengo version is a bit more in line with the original version than the previous one, but just hearing Ira Kaplan sing these lyrics is pretty cool, in my book. I notice that they almost entirely scrapped the drums on this one; I can only hear some soft tapping every once in a while in the beginning and they build a little bit as the song progresses, but not by much. I like their take on the guitar part and solo, too, and Georgia's backing vocals wafting in from the background is lovely. Genius + Love = YLT, indeed, and here's your evidence.
Be sure to check out Woodpigeon and buy some albums
, I highly recommend them (especially Die Stadt Muzikanten
). And while you're at it, check out some other random cover versions of this song I happened to stumble on while writing this up: Beck & Thom Yorke [live], Terry Bickers & Bradleigh Smith, Arthur & Yu, Evan Dando (from the Lemonheads) [live]. I actually really like that last one by Evan Dando, especially how he starts to sing the guitar solo (haha) and then plays it.. I should have wrote about that, but I just found out. Anyway, there are tons more out there. Comment and share some good ones!
Song: "I'm Set Free"
A big part of the reason I love the VU is that they can play a song like "Sister Ray", a 17-minute hard-rockin' jam of a tune about a busted drug-addled orgy in a NYC hotel room, but they can also play a gorgeous, flowery tune like "Sunday Morning". It's almost not fair that they had the talent and wherewithal to flip-flop like that from song to song on their recorded output, but sobeit. The reason I bring this up is that it is Sunday morn-.... well, it's Sunday afternoon, but I started thinking about this while it was still technically morning, and I was out late last night to see Deerhoof and then hang out drinking with some friends, so cut me some slack. But I was just sitting here sipping coffee and scanning Google reader and Facebook and I saw that Daytrotter had posted the VU song "Sunday Morning" on their Facebook page, appropriately enough, and then I starting thinking about similar sweet-sounding songs of theirs and then I remembered I found this Woodpigeon cover on their blog a few weeks ago and have been meaning to share it, and then I found this YLT version when I typed "I'm Set Free" in Banshee since I forgot they even recorded this one! Yikes, that's a lot of thinking, but the conclusion is that you get to hear/see three different versions of this song.
The original has some nice, soft, melodious guitar strumming from Lou and Sterling, plus Lou's lead vocals and some backing "oohs" and "aahs" leading into the choruses (from Doug Yule, I'm guessing), and all the while Mo's metronomic drumming alternates from fast/loud to slow/quiet in just the right way to match the mood of the song. It's perfect and uniquely VU-ish.
The Woodpigeon & Weathered Hand version is even softer and quieter, played on acoustic guitar(s) and viola (I think), sans drums, but adding a little bit of electrified guitar during the solo. I've really enjoyed all of the Woodpigeon albums I've heard so far; they play wonderful folk-tinged pop songs and the singer's voice is lovely. I don't know anything about Weathered Hand, but I will be sure to investigate in the near future. Looks like they've combined forces here to create a wonderful cover version, brimming with wistful, ethereal vocals and folksy strumming and beautiful strings. It's also perfect for Sunday morning/afternoon listening. Check out a live version of them playing this song here.
The Yo La Tengo version is a bit more in line with the original version than the previous one, but just hearing Ira Kaplan sing these lyrics is pretty cool, in my book. I notice that they almost entirely scrapped the drums on this one; I can only hear some soft tapping every once in a while in the beginning and they build a little bit as the song progresses, but not by much. I like their take on the guitar part and solo, too, and Georgia's backing vocals wafting in from the background is lovely. Genius + Love = YLT, indeed, and here's your evidence.
Be sure to check out Woodpigeon and buy some albums
, I highly recommend them (especially Die Stadt Muzikanten). And while you're at it, check out some other random cover versions of this song I happened to stumble on while writing this up: Beck & Thom Yorke [live], Terry Bickers & Bradleigh Smith, Arthur & Yu, Evan Dando (from the Lemonheads) [live]. I actually really like that last one by Evan Dando, especially how he starts to sing the guitar solo (haha) and then plays it.. I should have wrote about that, but I just found out. Anyway, there are tons more out there. Comment and share some good ones!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Jams of the day: Yo La Tengo opening tracks (all of 'em!)
Artist: Yo La Tengo
Songs: "The Cone of Silence", "Clunk", "Barnaby, Hardly Working", "Can't Forget", "Detouring America With Horns", "Big Day Coming", "Decora", "(Thin) Blue Line Swinger", "Evanescent Psychic Pez Drop", "Nutricia", "Return to Hot Chicken", Everyday", "Nuclear War Version 1", "Beach Party Tonight", "Shaker", "The River of Water", "Stay Away From Heaven", "Today Is The Day", "Tighten Up", "Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind", "What'cha Gonna Do About It", "Here To Fall"
Albums: Ride The Tiger, New Wave Hot Dogs, President Yo La Tengo, Fakebook, May I Sing With Me, Painful, Electr-O-Pura, Camp Yo La Tengo, Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo (Disc 1 & 2), I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One, And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out, Nuclear War EP, Summer Sun, Prisoners of Love (Disc 1 & 2 & 3), Today Is The Day EP, Yo La Tengo Is Murdering The Classics, I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass, Fuckbook, Popular Songs
I love teaching math, but at the same time, grading exams is a total drag. I put up with it because it's a big part of what I enjoy, but I wish there was a way to just forgo the whole shebang and assess students based on something else. Like personal opinion. Or height. Just kidding. Sort of.
So last weekend, I had to grade a boatload of exams for the class I'm T.A.ing and I holed myself up in my office or the study room and banged 'em out. But I needed the perfect music for it. Typically, I opt for something on the instrumentalish side, so I can pay attention to the words and numbers and symbols I'm reading. In the past, I've had marathon sessions of Deerhunter, Sigur Ròs, and Sonic Youth, but this time I opted for Yo La Tengo. In the process, I realized that part and parcel of having a long list of stellar albums to their credit, the opening tracks on their albums tend to be outstanding examples of the mastery of their instruments and the variety of sounds they can produce with them. So I present to you, dear reader/listener, the opening tracks to every single Yo La Tengo album, ever, in chronological order. I did not listen to all of these during my grading session, so take my claim of stellarness with a metaphorical grain of salt. But still, thinking about the fact that all of these are from one band is mind-blowing.
"The Cone of Silence", from Ride The Tiger (1986)
"Clunk", from New Wave Hot Dogs (1987)
"Barnaby, Hardly Working", from President Yo La Tengo (1989)
"Can't Forget", from Fakebook (1990)
"Detouring America With Horns", from May I Sing With Me (1992)
"Big Day Coming", from Painful (1993)
"Decora", from Electr-O-Pura> (1995)
"(Thin) Blue Line Swinger", from Camp Yo La Tengo EP (1995)
"Evanescent Psychic Pez Drop", from Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo, Disc 1 (1996)
"Nutricia", from Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo, Disc 2 (1996)
"Return to Hot Chicken", from I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One (1997)
"Everyday", from And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out (2000)
"Nuclear War Version 1", from Nuclear War EP (2002)
"Beach Party Tonight", from Summer Sun (2003)
"Shaker", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Scintillating Senescent Songs: 1985–2003, Disc 1 (2003)
"The River of Water", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Scintillating Senescent Songs: 1985–2003, Disc 2 (2003)
"Stay Away From Heaven", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Outtakes and Rarities 1986–2002 (2003)
"Today Is The Day", from Today Is The Day EP (2003)
"Tighten Up" [Archie Bell and the Drells cover], from Yo La Tengo Is Murdering The Classics (2006)
"Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind", from I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)
"What'cha Gonna Do About It" [Small Faces cover], from Fuckbook (2007) [released under the name Condo Fucks]
"Here To Fall", from Popular Songs (2009)
Note: I skipped over a couple of film score albums/compilations, a handful of EPs, and a bunch of singles. Sorry. That's partly because I don't have those files and don't feel like seeking them out on the interwebz, and partly because this list was already enough of a labor of love to compile/produce. I love this band, don't forget that, but goddamnit they're prolific!
[If you have mp3s of the missing tracks and want to send them to me so I can YouTube-ify them and make this list satisfy all completists then, by all means, let me know! Also, if there's a broken/misdirected link, let me know; I'm bound to have screwed something up.]
Songs: "The Cone of Silence", "Clunk", "Barnaby, Hardly Working", "Can't Forget", "Detouring America With Horns", "Big Day Coming", "Decora", "(Thin) Blue Line Swinger", "Evanescent Psychic Pez Drop", "Nutricia", "Return to Hot Chicken", Everyday", "Nuclear War Version 1", "Beach Party Tonight", "Shaker", "The River of Water", "Stay Away From Heaven", "Today Is The Day", "Tighten Up", "Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind", "What'cha Gonna Do About It", "Here To Fall"
Albums: Ride The Tiger, New Wave Hot Dogs, President Yo La Tengo, Fakebook, May I Sing With Me, Painful, Electr-O-Pura, Camp Yo La Tengo, Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo (Disc 1 & 2), I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One, And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out, Nuclear War EP, Summer Sun, Prisoners of Love (Disc 1 & 2 & 3), Today Is The Day EP, Yo La Tengo Is Murdering The Classics, I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass, Fuckbook, Popular Songs
I love teaching math, but at the same time, grading exams is a total drag. I put up with it because it's a big part of what I enjoy, but I wish there was a way to just forgo the whole shebang and assess students based on something else. Like personal opinion. Or height. Just kidding. Sort of.
So last weekend, I had to grade a boatload of exams for the class I'm T.A.ing and I holed myself up in my office or the study room and banged 'em out. But I needed the perfect music for it. Typically, I opt for something on the instrumentalish side, so I can pay attention to the words and numbers and symbols I'm reading. In the past, I've had marathon sessions of Deerhunter, Sigur Ròs, and Sonic Youth, but this time I opted for Yo La Tengo. In the process, I realized that part and parcel of having a long list of stellar albums to their credit, the opening tracks on their albums tend to be outstanding examples of the mastery of their instruments and the variety of sounds they can produce with them. So I present to you, dear reader/listener, the opening tracks to every single Yo La Tengo album, ever, in chronological order. I did not listen to all of these during my grading session, so take my claim of stellarness with a metaphorical grain of salt. But still, thinking about the fact that all of these are from one band is mind-blowing.
"The Cone of Silence", from Ride The Tiger (1986)
"Clunk", from New Wave Hot Dogs (1987)
"Barnaby, Hardly Working", from President Yo La Tengo (1989)
"Can't Forget", from Fakebook (1990)
"Detouring America With Horns", from May I Sing With Me (1992)
"Big Day Coming", from Painful (1993)
"Decora", from Electr-O-Pura> (1995)
"(Thin) Blue Line Swinger", from Camp Yo La Tengo EP (1995)
"Evanescent Psychic Pez Drop", from Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo, Disc 1 (1996)
"Nutricia", from Genius + Love = Yo La Tengo, Disc 2 (1996)
"Return to Hot Chicken", from I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One (1997)
"Everyday", from And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out (2000)
"Nuclear War Version 1", from Nuclear War EP (2002)
"Beach Party Tonight", from Summer Sun (2003)
"Shaker", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Scintillating Senescent Songs: 1985–2003, Disc 1 (2003)
"The River of Water", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Scintillating Senescent Songs: 1985–2003, Disc 2 (2003)
"Stay Away From Heaven", from Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Outtakes and Rarities 1986–2002 (2003)
"Today Is The Day", from Today Is The Day EP (2003)
"Tighten Up" [Archie Bell and the Drells cover], from Yo La Tengo Is Murdering The Classics (2006)
"Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind", from I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)
"What'cha Gonna Do About It" [Small Faces cover], from Fuckbook (2007) [released under the name Condo Fucks]
"Here To Fall", from Popular Songs (2009)
Note: I skipped over a couple of film score albums/compilations, a handful of EPs, and a bunch of singles. Sorry. That's partly because I don't have those files and don't feel like seeking them out on the interwebz, and partly because this list was already enough of a labor of love to compile/produce. I love this band, don't forget that, but goddamnit they're prolific!
[If you have mp3s of the missing tracks and want to send them to me so I can YouTube-ify them and make this list satisfy all completists then, by all means, let me know! Also, if there's a broken/misdirected link, let me know; I'm bound to have screwed something up.]
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