Category — Concerts

So, the 4th of July is tomorrow and with that fast approaching I thought I’d post about some more political stuff crossing over into the music world.

It appears that Jeff Tweedy of Wilco fame will be doing another Obama Benefit.

“Technically billed as “Jeff Tweedy & Friends,” the Chicago singer/songwriter will take the stage at his hometown’s Park West venue alongside Otis Clay on July 11 for a night of music benefiting the Obama Victory Fund. The Illinois senator will make an appearance as well, so if you’ve got a couple hundo to spare, head here to purchase a little piece of the future (and a ticket to a benefit concert).”

Again, a cool way of getting involved and doing something if you care to. Happy 4th of July.

Source.

Much-loved stoner/doom band Boris have recently embarked on their most comprehensive North American tour and are riding high on the success of their latest Southern Lord record “Smile”.

Guitar World related site, MetalKult, has great video footage of Boris at a one-off New York City show the band played just recently.

The video showcases the band playing the songs “Statement”, “Laser Beam”, “Buzz-In” and “Pink” with the guitarists playing a double-beck guitar, as well as a Gibson SG custom. Well worth checking out if you’re a fan.

Boris: North American Tour Dates

Boris with Torche, Clouds
07/01/2008: Baton Rouge, LA - Spanish Moon
07/02/2008: Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds
07/03/2008: Orlando, FL - The Social
07/05/2008: Atlanta, GA - The Earl
07/06/2008: Carrboro, NC - Cat`s Cradle
07/08/2008: Washington, DC - Black Cat
07/09/2008: Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
07/10/2008: New York, NY - Webster Hall
07/11/2008: Cambridge, MA - The Middle East

Boris with Torche, Nachtmystium
07/12/2008: Montreal, QC - La Sala Rosa
07/13/2008: Ottawa, ON - Barrymore
07/14/2008: Toronto, ON - Lee`s Palace
07/15/2008: Buffalo, NY - Tralf
07/16/2008: Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
07/17/2008: Pittsburgh, PA - Diesel
07/18/2008: Detroit, MI - St. Andrews Hall
07/19/2008: Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall
07/20/2008: Chicago, IL - Pitchfork Music Festival at Union Park

Boris with Torche, Lair of the Minotaur
07/22/2008: Omaha, NE - The Waiting Room
07/23/2008: Lawrence, KS - Granada Theatre
07/25/2008: Denver, CO - Marquis Theater
07/26/2008: Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
07/29/2008: Seattle, WA - Neumo`s
07/30/2008: Vancouver, BC, Canada - TBA
07/31/2008: Thu Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theatre
08/02/2008: San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
08/03/2008: Los Angeles, CA - Echoplex

OK, hipsters, get ready cause all the acts and the set times have been announced for Chicago’s Pitchfork Music Festival.

“Only individual day tickets for the 2008 Pitchfork Music Festival remain, and they’re going fast! Snag yours while you still can via TicketWeb for the sweet price of $30 each.”

The end of the Day 1 bill has No Age, and then Animal Collective closing things out as headliners.

It appears that on Day 2, the last 3 bands are Dinosaur Jr, Cut Copy and Spoon. This is surprising to me as I thought Dinosaur Jr would play after Cut Copy, but this is probably a testament to just how popular Cut Copy is now.

Check out the full lineup, with set-times and more over at Pitchfork.

A few months back Noel Gallagher of Oasis remarked to the press that he felt it was wrong for Jay-Z or any hip-hop artist to be headlining the main stage at Glastonbury. Jay-Z, in turn, responded back in the press by defending hip-hop in general.

When Jay-Z’s set commenced, he strapped on a Fender strat and “strummed” along to Wonderwall by Oasis and proceeded to sing the song very out of key, as a sort of “screw you” to Noel Gallagher.

Now, I feel like I should comment on this after having read some people’s responses on sites like Stereogum. It is kind of cool that he came out and basically mocked the Oasis song, but he obviously can’t actually play guitar and it just looked stupid seeing him pretend to play. Also, they just put on the album version and he sang along to it, like someone would in their car.

I dont know, to me it just seems lame. Jay-Z did get a lot of great critical response from the performance, but also some critics saying it started to wain mid-way through. To me, this kind of proves Noel Gallagher’s point in a way. Not that hip-hop shouldn’t be a festivals, but that in my opinion, hip-hop just isn’t very good live.

Check out the video here.

Whoever Weezer’s PR person is, they sure do a good job of getting the band out promoting their new record and tours. Weezer has recorded a set with AOL Sessions, re-working a lot of songs with acoustic guitars, unplugged.

The band recorded acoustic/unplugged versions of “Pork and Beans” and “Troublemaker” as well as “Why Bother” from their classic Pinkerton album, which is performed very well.

The band also performed 3 Red album b-sides, which were available previously. “Miss Sweeney,” “It’s Easy,” and “King” were the songs, they also participated in a Q&A about the Red album, which I’m sure fans will find interesting.

Check it all out here.

The Cure has been playing live again recently and releasing new songs as singles. The band is out again pre-promoting the upcoming release of their new album on September 13th.

Now, courtesy of Stereogum, one of the new songs is available for your viewing pleasure via YouTube.

“As far as the singles go, “The Only One” was poppy, lovey, not offensive and “Freakshow” just kinda was. We haven’t heard a recorded version of “A Perfect Boy.” Same goes for new concert opener, “Underneath The Stars,” which is my favorite of the new material: A cascading, spacious, classic-sounding six-minutes-and-change slow builder that would’ve made sense, at least texturally, on Disintegration.”

I have to agree with them here, as this song features that classic Cure guitar work and has the ambiance that made all of their best songs work so well.

Check it out…“Underneath The Stars” live.

As I reported last week, Weezer came up with some different ideas regarding live shows. The band set out on a handful of dates promoted by radio stations in select cities.

The idea was to have all sorts of different people come out and join the band in choosing and playing songs. Particpants could bring their electric guitars, acoustics, or whatever other instruments they wanted.

The results of the Portland, OR Hootenany stop were documented by radio station 94.7. Check out some video here…

Weezer: Hootenany Portland, OR

The tenth Voodoo Music Experience will be happening this year, Oct 24-26 at New Orleans City Park. The festival is starting to release an impressive lineup of big name acts.

“Death Cab For Cutie, Erykah Badu, Wyclef Jean, Panic At The Disco, Joss Stone, Lupe Fiasco and Dashboard Confessional are among the top names joining headliners R.E.M., Nine Inch Nails and Stone Temple Pilots.”

“Billboard.com can reveal that the event will also feature performances by DeVotchKa, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Cold War Kids, Ghostland Observatory, Joseph Arthur, Old 97’s, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, the reunited Shudder To Think, the Gutter Twins, Thievery Corporation, Tokyo Police Club and Man Man.”

“Among the dozens of local and/or non-rock acts set to appear are the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Irving Mayfield’s New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, the New Orleans Bingo! Show, Ozomatli with Chali 2na, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Kermit Ruffins, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, the Iguanas, Bonerama, Marc Broussard and King Britt, the latter staging a tribute to local legend Sister Gertrude Morgan.”

Weekend passes for the event are priced at $115. Three-day VIP passes will sell for $450 and both go on sale Monday, June 23rd.

Personally, I feel that there really aren’t that many bands I’d like to see but the lineup does boast a small number of unique acts. Besides solid headliners, R.E.M. and Nine Inch Nails, I’d love to see the reunited Shudder To Think and wouldn’t mind seeing Death Cab For Cutie, as I’ve never seen them live before. I think one of the most interesting thing about this festival would be the local talent. Usually, you look at festival lineups and every single one lists the same artists. It’s nice when a festival makes a point to add some local flair to its lineup.

Source.

It seems while other bands are taking a novel approach to releasing albums, Weezer are taking a novel approach to touring. The band will be launching a full scale tour this fall, but this summer fans can expect something altogether different.

“Now, via a post on their website and the handy video you’ll see, Rivers and co. have laid out a few more details of the “Hootenanny” on us, and even offered up a little guitar lesson.

“The first date is today in Phoenix, with the city’s own The Edge 103.9 (”Adam All Morning, Alternative Rock All Day”) handling the contest. Winners are implored to “bring an instrument (or at least your voice and hands)”– and any instrument will do, it seems– to the private locale and prepare those power chords. The performance will be recorded for future airing on the radio station.

The song selection for each gig will more than likely change with every new date, but here’s Phoenix’s spate: “Pork and Beans”, “Island in the Sun”, a cover of Radiohead’s “Creep”, “Say It Ain’t So”, “El Scorcho”, and, of course, “Beverly Hills.”

This seems like a cool idea for fans of the band, I can especially see younger, newer fans being really into this. If you win, you can bring your strat, tele, les paul, or whatever instrument you want. I’m just curious to see how this will turn out. Should be very intereting, good ol’ Weezer…

Source.

The Melvins are gearing up to tour this summer, in support of their new Ipecac Records album “Nude With Boots.” The band is once again paired with Big Business for the album and tour and they will also open each show on the tour separately.

I came across a pretty good interview with Buzz Osborne, lead singer/guitarist and songwriter of The Melvins. In it, he discusses some of his influences when making “Nude With Boots” and his general view of the band’s recorded output and history.

You can check it out here…

Buzz Osborne Interview @ Synthesis Radio.

Melvins Tour Dates:

06-16 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
06-17 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
07-16 Santa Barbara, CA - Velvet Jones *
07-17 Sacramento, CA - The Boardwalk *
07-18 San Francisco, CA - Slim’s *
07-19 Reno, NV - Club Underground *
07-21 Modesto, CA - Fat Cat *
07-26 Seattle, WA - Showbox at the Market
07-29 Teton Village, WY - Mangy Moose *
07-31 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
08-03 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon *
08-04 Chicago, IL - Double Door *
08-05 Detroit, MI - Small’s *
08-06 Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop *
08-07 Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom *
08-09 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club *
08-10 Northampton, MA - Pearl Street *
08-12 New Haven, CT - Toad’s Place *
08-13 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg *
08-15 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar *
08-16 Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle *
08-17 Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn *
08-18 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club *
08-20 New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks *

*w/Big Business opening.