What to do when there’s too much good music?

There are THREE places I want to be on Friday night. All with impeccable music. There is music going on right this second that I don’t want to be missing at the Ancient Mariner in Manitou Springs- local Inaiah Lujan’s solo act (which, gloriously, I’ve already caught a few times), and Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship from Omaha, Nebraska. Thankfully, I’ll be able to catch the touring band Saturday at the Triple Nickle, along with my bestie Jake’s new band, Melting Temple. I can’t wait to hear their new digs, as they have no recordings released yet. So tonight, I am saving up my energy after an exhausting, yet refreshing, 21-miles on the bike, with a temperature of 93 degrees, a 20 mph headwind/crosswind, and 35 mph gusts. I’m way too pooped to leave this chair, and I need to hydrate in preparation for the festivities to come.

ONE- the Modbo’s 2nd birthday party.
I already know I shouldn’t go, even though my co-worker’s son Andy Tanner is playing, and I always love his music. Also, my friends in The Changing Colors will be playing. Both sets of musicians will be playing special arrangements of their songs, accompanied by orchestra students. I know it will be a great event, this is the Modbo we’re talking about. But there will be people there to avoid, if they stick to their Facebook invite RSVP’s, and since there are TWO more places to be, why ruin my night?

TWO-
My friends’ band The Ghost of Michael Clark is playing, and two of my friend’s from his other band, The Haunted Windchimes are sitting in. Aaron Fanning, part of both the Ghost of Michael Clark and The Changing Colors, is playing with Solagget at LIVFest in Wichita, Kansas this weekend, so I’ll catch those two acts next round when he’s back on the scene. The Ghosts are playing before Hymn For Her at the Zodiac, which is just 4 blocks away from the number THREE place I want to be, so I’ll probably be able to catch at least part of their set.

THREE-
The 4onthefloor and The Evening Rig are playing at the Triple Nickel. They are friends with my pals in The Color Pharmacy and when they recommend a band, I listen. I checked out 4 on the Floor’s Facebook page, and guitar sound on the song “Workin’ Man Zombie” grabs me right off. It sounds a lot like the guitar sound on the Black Keys Brothers album, which, who doesn’t love that album? I hear a dobro on “Bricklayer” favorite instrument of local Grant Sabin. This show is sounding like it will be a boot stompin’ good time.

On to The Evening Rig. The first song that hooks me opens with a strong banjo and slide guitar on “In Spite of All That’s Happened”, a slower song. The singer’s voice on another song, “A Girl Important” reminds me of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s Howl album, until the female singer’s voice pokes through, sharp like a violin solo. With titles like “Playing House” and “Goddamn I Could Use a Drink,” I think I’ll get along mighty fine with these boys.

Joshua James

I stumbled on to Joshua James a few months ago during darker hours and the words to this song grabbed me. While the sickness doesn’t have the same hold on me anymore, his voice is still smoothly delicate and beautiful. It’s an older song, so maybe I’m late to the party. His record label is Northplatte Records, and this does send a pang through my body, remembering the summer we spent driving back and forth to visit North Platte, Nebraska, when my dad worked for the Union Pacific Railroad (it was probably the Missouri Pacific then.) Miss you, Dad.

From Joshua’s bio on his Facebook fanpage:

I miss the cover of a warm nebraska night.
I miss falling all over myself behind broken down buildings.
I miss listening to the rain fall.
Lightning always reminded me of summers.
I wish I still had belief.
I have always seen beauty in boldness.
I wish you.

I love the blend of the 2 vocal parts on the second verse, as well as the banjo solo in the bridge. You can hear a slide guitar on the live version of this song played in Chicago at the Beat Kitchen (July 19, 2008).

Lyrics:

Pain don’t go
You remind me of a winter storm
Faith don’t grow
When they said you’ve been sold

If I stay, don’t go

Pain don’t go
You remind me of a summer storm
Faith don’t grow
When they said you’ve been sold

Be sure to check out more of his music at his website.

Nathan McEuen: Tonight’s show was brought to you by the letter N.

Nathan McEuen, Pueblo, Colorado, June 4, 2011

Like any seasoned musician, he’s lived in a few places: Colorado, California, and soon New York. He likes to say he did time in Utah. Of course, the frequent question a Utah native has to answer: are you Mormon? Well, he has 7 siblings (or are you one of 7 siblings?), if that suggests anything to you. His cat Kitty has been to almost as many places as him- 30 states, with the help of his lovely girlfriend, Kate, who’s been on the road with him for the last 3 years.

If Nathan hasn’t played a town near you, chances are he will soon. For the last 5 years, he’s been on the road about half the time, playing 100 shows a year. About 20 per year are with his dad, John McEuen, of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. But, like anyone following in their parent’s footsteps, he’s not trying to fill those big shoes, but “create his own footprint on a well-worn path.” In other words, don’t try to compare the two.

We have some time to kill between the soundcheck and the start of the show, so we take a walk out back. The light is perfect for photos, the sun is in its magic hour, and lingering smoke from fires in the area have left the atmosphere with a red tinge. He’s a little nervous at the attention of a photo shoot, and slips into mock-dance club mode, complete with angular arm positions and beats.

Speaking of smoke, Nathan once saw Tony Danza tap dancing in his local “pharmacy” in Malibu. He struck up a conversation with him about it, and Nathan slips into an effortless imitation of the Italian New Yorker: “Yeah, I had to pick it up for a show back in my 30′s.” This alone foreshadows a fun show.

Despite living in Malibu and encountering famous musicians from time to time, having a touring musician as a father must have had some perks. For his encore song, Nathan does his own rendition of Folsom Prison Blues. He introduces it as a song by a person he met when he was 13, and saw it performed with June and the band. I’m not sure anyone else I’ve ever met holds such bragging rights.

While I knew Nathan had played at the previous weekend’s Meadowgrass festival, I somehow missed him, but some of my friends caught his act and raved about him. When I heard he was playing in Pueblo, I made sure to catch him, despite having to leave Bluegrass on the River. I made the right choice.

Nathan McEuen

He opens the show with a song written by his cousin Jaime Hanna, (of the duo Hanna-McEuen, comprised of Jaime, and Nathan’s brother Jonathan), called Fool Around. Nathan’s brother Jonathan also appears on Nathan’s second album, Grand Design: “a nostalgic sound with a hip spin – Future Retro Folk Rock.”

Nathan is breathing easier during his set, partially due to the lower elevation after several shows north of Pueblo, and partially due to his version of a Taj Mahal song going off well. In addition to singing and playing some guitar and banjo well, and other completely boring stuff like that, Nathan does an excellent beat box, and another entertaining voice effect.

The tweet from his twitter feed “Nathan and his imaginary band” makes a whole lot more sense now. His backup trumpet player looks like he was rescued from a life of sobriety on Sesame Street.

Nathan's backup trumpet player, he's quite the ladies man

I highly suggest catching one of his shows if you can. Not only will you be entertained, but he’s a great musician as well. If you’re into the alt-country/Americana/folk genres, you won’t be disappointed.

Check out his cds for sale on cdbaby.com.

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Meadowgrass Music Festival, La Forêt, Black Forest, Colorado

This weekend was the best weekend ever. At least two of my friends agree. And we’re doing it again next weekend. This weekend was spent in La Forêt. That’s français for The Forest. Black Forest to be exact. That’s where the Meadowgrass festival was held, for the third year in a row.

Friday I arrived in time to catch one of the last acts of the night, a Zydeco band named Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band. They definitely left me with a hankering for some cajon food. I would say gumbo, but I’m allergic to shrimp, so I’ve never tried the stuff.

Horse Feathers was one of the best acts there, the lead singer’s voice reminds me a lot of the lead singer from the Great Lake Swimmers, who played the same festival last year. I caught GLS at a show in Denver the year prior, tickets to which were a birthday present. If you like Great Lake Swimmers, you’ll like Horse Feathers. All the guys were pining away for the talented female cellist. They also had a musical saw as part of their act, that was interesting to watch! It always amazes me to see people playing an instrument by ear, and I can’t imagine it is easy. Same goes for the theremin, and the cello as well, since it is fretless.

Sons & Brothers choked me up, surprisingly. They are local favorites, and on the Western Jubilee’s record label. While I’m just a young whipper snapper, their stories about little girls and ponies tugged at my heart strings just a little bit. But don’t tell anyone.

The campfire jams were definitely the highlight of the weekend, hosted by the local trio The Changing Colors. Also present were members of the local groups Grass It Up and Burn the Maps. Some of the members of the larger groups (such as Yarn) stopped by, but didn’t have insturments with them, to my (possibly faulty) recollection.

Friday night’s jam session turned into an amusing battle of the bands. Locals Joe Johnson, The Haunted Windchimes and The Changing Colors took turns leading songs, with a crowd of pickers strumming along with them as song leaders called out the chords. One of the more memorable songs came from Mike Clark (mandolin, harmonica, vox for the Haunted Windchimes, as well as his other projects, The Ghost of Michael Clark and The Jack Trades). He was accompanied by Desirae Garcia (uke and vox) and Chela Lujan (banjo and vox) (“the girls” as they kept being referred to) from the ‘Chimes with a call and answer song that was practically shouted. It started with “Well, I’m Gonna Build a Boat.” No one wanted to concede the fight, and Joe Johnson did an awesome job with capturing the complete attention of the crowd, as well as The Changing Colors, who won in my book, especially since they played the last song of the night both nights. Check out this amazing recording of them by Kevin Ihle: Now, who would want to follow that?

Kevin also recorded quite a few of the other artists at the festival, look for them on youtube. My friends were excited to see Damien Jurado, and we were all a little star struck to see him laying on the couch in the green room as we sat across from him at the fire place as we waited for the Haunted Windchimes to take their turn with Kevin. Luckily, there was a rock column outside that we could discuss the difficulty of (5.8, but what about in flip flops?) with Patrick Anderson, pedal steel player for the Broken Spoke (as well as for The Ghost of Michael Clark, along with Aaron Fanning, cellist for The Changing Colors). Poncho, as he is also known as, is a route setter at a local climbing wall. We also discussed the mathematics professor John Gill, who is thought to be the founding father of the sport of climbing. We had already covered the most important people in American art history (Rothko) and literature (Walt Whitman), along with nuclear power the night before, so it was extrememely fitting that we finally covered him. Dr. Gill also happened be in the department at the university I received my mathematics degree from. I unfortunately missed the opportunity to take a class from him, as he retired after my first year, and I was a civil engineering major initially. I think my rock climbing-fanatic friends Vanessa and Paul may have though.

Night 2 of the campfire, local Sarah Rose did a great cover of Sunglasses at Night, and the trombone player from another band covered the synth part from across the outdoor ampitheater, amusingly. The Windchimes did a rendition of Madeline Adams’ “Shotgun Wedding.” I love the lyrics.

Don’t you wish you was a baby
Don’t you wish you was a baby again
You had a fine mama, fetch you milk from the palm of her hand

Ain’t it mighty, awful mighty
Sleep and suck until your thumb runs dry.
You had a fine mama, fetch you milk from the white of her eye

Chela, Mike and Desirae of the Haunted WIndchimes, on the way to watch Joe Johnson's set Saturday morning

You can catch the Windchimes again in Pueblo this weekend at the Bluegrass on the River festival. The line up on the main stage is available below:

River (Main) Stage FridaySaturday Sunday

10:00am	-	Fulton County Bluegrass	Bluegrass Patriots
10:45am	-	Stray Grass	High Plains Tradition
11:30am	-	Blue Pepper Trio	Ashleigh Caudill & Narrow Gauge
12:15pm	-	Long Road Home	Stray Grass
1:00pm	-	Bluegrass Patriots	The Rifters
1:45pm	-	Sons & Brothers	Sons & Brothers
2:45pm	-	Palmer Divide	Haunted Windchimes
3:30pm	-	Blue Canyon Boys	Long Road Home
4:15pm	-	Ashleigh Caudill & Narrow Gauge	The Ackermans
5:00pm	-	Mountain Holler	Acme Bluegrass
5:45pm	-	High Plains Tradition	Lonesome Traveler Band
6:30pm	-	Dinner Break and Stage Setup
7:00pm	Haunted Windchimes
8:00pm	The Ackermans	Ryan Shupe & the RubberBand
9:00pm	Ryan Shupe	Saturday Night Dance
10:00pm	& the RubberBand	with
11:00pm		The Rifters

Pillars and Tongues- fall into a collective trance

Pillars and Tongues (Chicago, IL)

House concert, Colorado Springs, CO
Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

When I first meet Mark, the lead singer, he is jokingly commissioning a portrait from one of our hosts on the rear deck of the house we are at. I won’t divulge all of the details, but he will be wearing nothing but cowboy boots, and holding a Dortmunder Gold, a favorite craft beer from a Michigan brewery. He envisions a houseguest sitting down in his house, with this painting looming over them, perhaps above the fireplace. Chuckles abound at imagining the uncomfortable expression visible on the houseguest’s face. I’m envisioning eccentric old Mr. Burns from the Simpsons.

When the show starts, I am seated on a couch with nothing between them and me. There is a table covered in a red Native American throw, with some sleigh bells and several small brass percussion objects on top. Some look like bowls, and I’m wondering if they are or will be filled with water. Beth’s borrowed violin comes in, followed by a bass guitar, and some looped electronic sounds, and finally, 3 part harmonies. Ben, the bassist/percussionist hasn’t been feeling too well after a bout of food poisoning, and his voice sounds a little less honeyed than the other two.
The performers are setup in front of the stone fireplace, and the guests are seated on the hardwood floor in the living room of our host. It’s the 5th time they have been to Colorado Springs this year, and the second time the Pillars and Tongues trio have played at this house. There is a reverent mood, as if we are taking part in a sacred ceremony. The lyrics are nearly unintelligible, and I’m not sure they aren’t in a foreign language, I could swear I hear French words. Even if they are in English, the words speak more to the soul than to conscious thought.

I am enthralled with what I later learn to be a harmonium. It looks like an antique camera in the front, with buttons and organ keys in the back. The faster the bellows are stoked, the more it sounds like an organ; slower and it sounds more like an accordion. It is beautiful to watch.
The guests are completely silent and still for the first 3 or 4 songs, and the performers thank us after each song, for listening so intently. When thanked in return for playing, Mark tells us not to thank them yet, it’s like thanking them in the middle of a story that isn’t finished yet. He jokes about it being the first time he’s had lentils onstage (Dinner was delicious, Bill! I want your recipe.) and his mbira being out of tune. I notice the violin and bass tuning down to drop D for a song, almost unnoticeably, it is done so swiftly.

Harmonium

They get back into it, and soon, most of the guests’ eyes are closed; only those at the rear fringes still have open eyes. It’s as if a fog has rolled in from the front of the room, traveling to the back. We have fallen into a collective trance. I hope we don’t wake up anytime soon.

Watch for The Pass and Crossings EP, to be released in June.

Listen to this! Palms_to_Tell Right click to download, or click to play in your default application.

Lyrics: (printed in the poster for the digital download, I would assume there are lyrics with the cassette and vinyl formats. I love it when I don’t have to look up lyrics on a website! I wish that a pdf of the lyrics were included with the download of any digital album, listen up bands!)

Your breath could resolbe
a thousand harrowing pains,
your mind design release
from a thousand conceit’s pangs.

Tend to all
tend to all
reading Portuguese palms
and tarrying, contrary
in moaning light,
where she moans,
that lighted tone
owed to wrestling everything–
no rest for wrestling everything–
no rest for wresting hands
though the cresting demands
a moment’s pause;
moving in your breath
and shaped of your design–
the palms to tell.

Tend to all
tend to all
tend to all.

You can also check out the live recording of this same song. If you are ever in Chicago and in need of a soundman, look up Mike Usrey.

Shuffle time!

Time for one of those Facebook things- put your music player on shuffle and list what comes up. No forwarding!
I had a really awesome one going while I was walking my dogs today. It was mellow and matched the weather perfectly. It was a little too cold and windy, I didn’t see a single other person out.

‎1. Adventures in Solitude- The New Pornographers
2. Chasing A Ghost- The Head and The Heart
3. 1 in 10- Cameron Rafati
4. Fidelity- Regina Spektor
5. Dearly Departed- Devotchka
6. Rococo- Arcade Fire
7. Paradise Cove- Pete Yorn
8. This Book Is A Movie- Spoon
9. Burying Luck- Minus the Bear
10. Marry Song- Band of Horses (ok, this wasn’t it, this was what was playing on my roommate’s when I walked in the door. 10 was not mellow either! Swinging From the Castles- AWOLNATION. I CAN’T WAIT FOR SUNDAY!!!!!!)

Congrats to the Color Pharmacy

Lots going on in Color Pharmacy’s world. Congrats on opening for Ted Leo and for being on the news!

Is this thing on?

So today, this site is unexpectedly going live. One of the bands found my post on Google. I wouldn’t have my launch any other way. Life is sometimes messy and out of our control, but it’s way more fun if you roll with the surprises.

Expect the look of this site to change very soonly. Press the like button for updates of Facebook, and you’ll see a little sneak peak of what’s to come.

Foster the People

Have you heard of them yet? They played a sold out show in Denver @ The Walnut Room on March 30th 2011. One of my Denver friends had enough foresight to get tickets early. Thankfully, they are coming back and playing the Bluebird Theatre on June 8th.

The song that is being played on alternative radio is called “Pumped Up Kicks.” The chorus reminds me of MGMT. My, my, aren’t they beautiful?
Check it out: