Monday, June 4, 2007

14 U.S. Soldiers Killed Over The Weekend

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Fourteen U.S. soldiers were killed by bombs and small-arms fire in Iraq over the weekend, the U.S. military said Sunday, as factional violence continued to ravage soldiers and civilians alike.

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Unedited Alex McMurray intro and interview

I didn't know New Orleans music before Alex McMurray, just like I didn't know rock before Nirvana. I had heard it, of course, at parades and various private celebrations, but it wasn't until I dug in with him and other ubiquitous musicians on the blooming '90's scene like Jonathan Freilich, Kevin O'Day, and Rob Wagner, that I understood how loose, colorful, funny, and genre-boundless it could be. Whether it was playing with All That at The Dragon's Den, Tin Men and Royal Fingerbowl at The Matador, or by himself at the Circle Bar, McMurray was a large part of my local awakening.

Over the years McMurray has established himself as the most talented songwriter in New Orleans. Like any poet McMurray is adept at describing the cracks in between the human experience, but his empathy for eccentrics and fuckups is really where it's at. Through his heartbreaking character studies he's been able to expose the beauty in people's imperfections and the way they disintegrate. Luckily for us, he peppers his songs with wry humor and is also able to celebrate the bouncier aspects of life, an example being the song "Cabral."

Those of you that enjoy his wicked lead guitar playing as much as his lyrical and compositional talents will love to know McMurray has more outlets than ever for soloing. Since sought-after performers like Freilich and O'Day have lost some of their bands to Katrina, I think I can confidently say that McMurray now plays with more groups than any other local musician--solo, Tin Men(the most genre-defying and unique local band), The Geraniums, 007, Happy Talk, Schatzy, and the Folk Rock Trio.

All this from a guy who isn't even supposed to be here. McMurray moved to New York in October of 2004, but after being encouraged by recently deceased Royal Fingerbowl record producer Keith Keller to return to New Orleans, McMurray and his wife, Kourtney, did just that in February of 2006.

"'Cause we're crazy," said McMurray over the phone recently in his half-serious, half tongue-in-cheek tone. "If you could do the stupidest thing you could think of, that would be it. Keith said 'you gotta be a part of the rebirth, blah, blah, blah,' and then the fucker croaks on us." Something to know now before we get into the mid-May interview I had with McMurray at his Bywater home is that you have to learn how to listen for the sentimentality that trickles through his grizzled veneer. Since returning he and his wife have become cultural leaders, creating Chazfest and the Fifth Season Summer Tuesday Nights, wherein the couple has and intends to continue showing movies on a screen in the beautiful backyard of The Truck Farm.

During the interview we focused on his new album, Guano and Nitrates, officially credited to The Valparaiso Men's Chorus. This is the chorus of local men he put together to sing as his band recorded sea chanties in November of 2004 at The Mermaid Lounge. The genesis for the idea came when McMurray sang sea chanties as Cap'n Sandy at Tokyo Disney in late 2002. Since the CD Release Party for the album at The Saturn Bar was such an out-of-control, drunk, rollicking success, look for more performances from the chorus in months to come.

Thanks to Kourtney for entertaining me with water, books, NPR(Andrei Codrescu!), footage of the CD release party, and a tour of the backyard while I waited for McMurray to join me for our interview.

AG: Kourtney told me you have a really interesting story.

AM: It's not that interesting. It's just that I was at Freedom Fest Sunday at the Circle Bar. I was standing there on the sidewalk. We had just played, with Luke(in The Happy Talk Band). This guy turns around and punches me in the face.

AG: Outta nowhere?

AM: He just wheeled around and clocked me.

AG: You hadn't been talking to him or anything?

AM: No. I've seen the guy around. I don't even know his name.

AG: In cold blood?

AM: He thought that I had spit on him.

AG: Oh.

AM: He said, "Dude, why'd you spit on me?" Well, there's people out there with water pistols. They had a water balloon launcher and water pistols and all sorts of shit like that. The guy, I guess, got squirted and he thought that I spit on him, so he turned around and fuckin' clocked me. Look at my lip. He turned my head all the way around and really fucked up my neck.

AG: What'd you do?

AM: I just stood there. I didn't fall down. I was in such shock that I was like, you know, "What?!" I guess most guys would have hit him back or something. After I thought about it for about thirty seconds I was, "Wait, I should go kick this guy's ass." It was the weirdest...

AG: He didn't apologize or anything.

AM: He did, of course. He apologized profusely, and all this. I still think it was a little bit overreacting, don't you think?

AG: Yeah, to not even ask, "Hey man, why'd you spit on me?"

AM: He just turned around and...

AG: The life and times.

AM: I was afraid you were gonna come over with some photographer or something.

AG: Are you still at the point where you get nervous onstage?

AM: Yeah, only if I'm singing. If I'm not singing, it's no problem. But, if it's songs I wrote, yeah.

AG: Even at the Wednesday night Circle Bar gigs that you do a lot?

AM: Yeah, I do.

AG: Cause sometimes you look detached.

AM: There's a lot of different factors involved. Who's in the audience? I get more nervous when there are people I know there. If it's people I don't know, I'm more relaxed.

AG: That makes sense.

AM: I get uptight when there are people there who are there every week. I'm like, "Oh, man, I have nothing new for these guys." That's a drag.

AG: Maybe they don't want anything new.

AM: But I feel like I owe it to them to at least have one thing that's different. That's the good part about that gig. It should force you to always be working on something new...

AG: Honing.

AM:...but unfortunately, the way I arrange my life, normally the first thing to get jetisoned is my own thing. There are all these other things that I'm doing. What kind of an idiot puts on a musical festival during Jazzfest? You're a working musician and you play, in like, six bands, and then you put on a festival?

AG:(laughing) You're trying to make it easy on yourself, obviously.

AM: What's the matter with me, you know?

AG: I think it's great. It seemed like it really worked out.

AM: Yeah, it worked out, but the night before Chazfest I was at my gig Wednesday night and I was looking at the clock, wondering when I could get outta there. I was operating on two hours sleep. And I had Joe, Doug, and Jonathan there. My mind was somewhere else. This was the Jazzfest gig. This was the gig I've been doing for years, and it should be a big night in my musical career, but it was the last thing on my mind. At that point, there's no point in bitching.

AG: It's already in motion.

AM: It's already happening. Make the best of it, that sorta thing.

AG: I wasn't there the year before, but there must have been more people this time around.

AM: There was a bigger turnout. Not by a whole lot, but there was more. The first year we had rain for four hours. As soon as it started, it started to rain. It didn't make people leave. It just made people not come. People had a great time, though. There was a lot more stress the first year. This year, it seemed like more of a machine. We switched it on, and it just sorta ran itself.

AG: So, next year, it'll be that much easier.

AM: (Laughs)Yeah, you'll see. Next year. Yeah, OK.

AG: Oh, no? Is that it?

AM: It could be. If we're gonna do it again--it's too much work for no money. It would have to be profitable. The amount of work that Kourtney did. The graphic design. Designing the postcards and the t-shirts and the ads and the signs. She works on that for months. It's gotta be done months in advance to get in the publications. The website and all this stuff. You spend a lot of time on the phone. Like me, I get the stage together, the sound together, book the bands, and you know, get the toilets. Stuff like that. We both work on it. It's a pretty tough racket.

AG: Even with the door, were y'all still in the red?

AM: If we lost money, it was insignificant, but if we made money, it was also insignificant. To do it next year...

AG: Maybe some real sponsors.

AM: Real sponsors and legit permits and we gotta make a lot of money. It's too much work. It was a great time and a great party, but I kinda need money(laughs).

AG:(laughs) Well, if people liked it enough, maybe you could raise the admission next year and people'd be willing to show their appreciation by paying it.

AM: Yeah, and maybe less bands. We gotta raise the profile of the thing, and that means corporate sponsors, which makes it kinda ugly. It's kinda tacky. Maybe we could get Abita to provide the beer.

AG: That's not so bad.

AM: That's not so bad, except a lot of people don't like the taste of Abita beer. Maybe Southern Comfort. Somebody was talking to me about some local company--New Orleans Rum. Things like that. We gotta know how to walk the fine line between solvency and tackiness.

AG: Why did it take you so long to release the sea chanty CD?

AM: Well, we recorded it right after I moved to New York. I moved to New York in October of 2004, and then we came back for Thanksgiving, and there had always been this talk of doing a sea chanty record, and Henry Griffin had this film project on me at Disney--interviews with me about this job. Out of the movie came the idea to record--I had had the idea in Japan to record these songs, but with the New Orleans thing, like with Carlo Nuccio playing drums. Get 20 drunken guys. I know exactly the guys I need for this job. They all showed up, and they all were great. So, it was basically a film project that begat a CD project. So, we did the recording at The Mermaid right before it closed, right before Thanksgiving '04. Jeff(Treffinger) did a mix, Clint(Coker) did a mix. There were these mixes, and the guys in the chorus were bitching at me because the chorus wasn't loud enough. I played it for Jonathan(Freilich), and he said(McMurray doing an amazingly spot-on Freilich voice imitation), "Oh, man, what is this? There's not enough chorus." I wanted more chorus, too. Anyway, at this point, The Mermaid was gone, and we had these mixes that weren't really happening, and, of course, August of 2005 rolls around. After that the sea chanty record went on the backburner. I was in New York, Jeff was in Texas, and Clint was somewhere, and we don't have a mix that people are happy with. It was all on analog tape--half inch tape. We had two rolls of tape. It was the last tapes e could get and the last tapes for purchase in Orleans Parish in 2004.

AG: How could it be the last tape?

AM: We got it from this store that was the only place you could get it, and it was closing down. We wanted to get six, but they only had two left, so we had to do only one take of every song. We had to decide then whether this was the take.

AG: Maybe it was better that way because you were more focused.

AM: Yeah. As you could tell by the record--very focused.

AG: I heard the record release party was less focused.

AM: The record was a testament to mayhem. But, it got done. It was great. Anyway, we had to do a transfer from analog to digital. We were gonna mix it on the machine, but the machine was mechanically flawed. It changed speeds, it had noise in it. Over here we transferred it to digital. After that we started doing mixes over here with Jack Neely, who runs the studio, and Ben Mumfrey. Ben did most of it. Then, it's gotta be mastered and artwork.

AG: Yeah, that makes sense. Everybody took a year after Katrina just to get back on track, so it makes sense.

AM: To me--it is a long time--but to get it done any faster, it would have to been done before Katrina, and I would have had to have been living down here because the mixes were coming in the mail, drips and drabs.

AG: How important was alcohol to the recording? I have this image of you plying the chorus with alcohol so you would get more of this drunken, all-for-one feel.

AM: It was definetely part of our focus. You can't have the yo-ho-ho without the bottle of rum. The overall gestalt was that we were gonna do it at The Mermaid, we were gonna be in a bar. It's gonna take the greater part of the evening. We're gonna start around five and then go 'till we're done. The guys would be able to come and go. It would be very loose that way. We'd learn the song and do it until we figured we got a good take, and then we'd move onto the next song. Meanwhile, there's a film crew, and everyone's drinking. The last tune we did was "Rio Grande." It was one of those moments where the chorus had had it. Half of them were outside...

AG: "When is this gonna be done?"

AM: Yeah.

AG: Or were they just too drunk?

AM: They were just too drunk and just worn out. I'll never forget that. There was a buzz, this terrible buzz. One of the microphones that was picking up Jonathan Freilich. He played a guitar solo on it. The mic on his amp had such an audible buzz, but nobody caught it.

AG: Because the voices were so loud?

AM: No, because, I guess because Jeff was wasted in the control room(laughs). There was so much mayhem that it got overlooked. That was like a nightmare, trying to get the buzz off the track.

AG: How did you decide to augment the way you traditionally see a sea chanty performed with more of this New Orleans sound?

AM: It's a natural thing. Me, Chaz, and Matt, The Tin Men, we were performing so much, we were sick of each other. For a sea chanty record--first of all, electronic instruments almost can't do it, even though I played an electric guitar. The tuba is a natural fit, the washboard seems like a natural fit, even though it's probably something you'd never see on a boat. We had pennywhistles, Rick Trolsen on trombone. The sea chanty purists would want nothing to do with this because trombones are way out, but we have bass drum and tuba, so it's kinda like a brass band approach to things. We also had accordion, fiddles, which are very traditional. We just wanted to get all these different flavors together and let it rip. When I was in Japan, I remember walking around, doing my job, which was walking around this restaurant playing "Drunken Sailor." One day I was playing it really fast, 'cause nobody's listening. I'm walking around in costume. They're all Japanese, and they don't understand a thing I'm saying. I'm playing with a swinging feel, the way it is on the record. I was like, "Man, when I get back home, I'm gonna get Carol Nuccio on this, and Matt Perrine, and we're gonna do this." I guess that was the genesis of the idea. The impetus was to do the songs with New Orleans instrumentation.

AG: I think it's much better than just doing the thousandth traditional sea chanty CD. You put your own slant on it.

AM: We're waiting to see how it fits into the sea chanty canon.

AG: There are webpages. I've seen webpages devoted to sea chanties.

AM: I've been to those sites.

AG: When I picture you performing in Japan, for some reason I picture you performing onstage, but no, you performed in a restaurant?

AM: I worked at a Donald's Boat Builders--was the name of the restaurant. No, it was called The Cape Cod Cookoff. The show was in a big, big dining hall with picnic benches, and on the stage was this half animatronic, half live action show. It was two shows alternating. One was Donald's Boat Builder's. It was Donald, Goofy, and Mickey trying to build a boat with all this mayhem going on around them. The shows were about seven minutes long. The other show was the Chipmunks doing something up there. There was a big boat on hydraulics with steam piped in and music--the voices were piped in. The people would get in costumes and just go up there and move around.

AG: Was it good?

AM: I never got to see it. Cause I would do five minutes in the restaurant between the Chipmunks show and The Donald Duck show. It was five minutes exactly. You had to time your set to be done exactly at five minutes. There were these audible cues you could hear. The boat was righting itself, preparing for the next show, and you could hear this hydraulic sound. You knew you had about fifteen seconds, so you wrapped it up. I was walking out the door as the music hit for the next show. You did it six times a day for six months. For the next fifteen minutes, I'd walk around outside in front. I was what they called an "atmosphere musician." When you go to Disneyworld and you see Mickey...

AG: Engaging the people.

AM: Yeah. I'm out there to be atmosphere. I'm in character. I had the sea captain costume. The boots, string tie, vest, pea coat, and hat. After fifteen minutes--I had a stage manager who would follow me around--he'sd say, "It's time to go in," so we'd find this secret passageway that led to the backstage.

AG: Were you familiar with the sea chanties on the record before you left for Japan?

AM: No. I tried like hell to find sea chanty records. This was in 2001 that I first became aware of the job. It was Adam Shipley(from Tipitina's) that put me in touch--he's from Florida, so he knows the guy who books for Disney. He called Adam and said, "I need a guy who can play banjo or guitar and sing sea chanties," and Adam called Glenn Hartman(from The Klezmer All-Stars). He said, "Glenn, who do you think we should get for this?" Glenn said, "Why not Alex," and after Adam stopped laughing, Glenn said, "No, really. Call Alex. I betcha he'd do it. It's just weird enough." So, there was a website called songsofthesea.com. I went to that. It's still up. It's got a different name, now(contemplator.com/sea). They had these MIDI files. If you took a Casio keyboard and played "Blow The Man Down" through it, that's what it would sound like(McMurray imitates it by singing the "Blow" melody like a Wizard of Oz munchkin). You could read the lyrics and hear the tune, so you could pretty much tell how the line goes, though there's no singing. Just the melody. So I went through all these tunes, and I went to amazon.com and found one record--it's called Men's Corral. It was Burl Ives corny. It's lovely in a weird way. I liked the record. It's the only one I could find. It's really not folk music. It's like something for a recital hall.

AG: Was it a little bit too put together?

AM: It sounds like a 20-to-30 man chorus with four parts--basses, baritones, tenors...Very clean, refined, spohisticated arrangements of these tunes. I'm in the dark here. I ask Shipley to ask Disney, "Please, what are the tunes?" They're like, "Oh, don't worry about it."

AG: You wanna do your research. You wanna do a good job.

AM: I'm freakin' out. They didn't give me hardly any time. They hired me, and then I became nonplussed, and they were like, "We don't need you." Three months later, they're like, "DO YOU WANNA DO THE DISNEY JOB?! CAN YOU DO IT?! WE NEED TO KNOW NOW." Ok, but can you give me 24 hours? "OK, BUT 24 HOURS." Less than a month from then, I was on a plane. So, I'm trying to do all this research. They're like, "Don't worry about it. They'll show you what to do in Japan, on the other end." And I'm like, "That sounds fishy to me. That doesn't sound right." I gotta find--there's no sea chanty records on amazon.com. In 2002, none. At least, I couldn't find any. I looked everywhere. Then, I did this MIDI thing. I tried to learn--I did a video audition. There were three that I knew. I got the job, so those three weren't that bad. I did all this crazy preparation, visas and what not, get on the plane, get to Japan. Orientation meeting, and then finally I meet with the director of the show, who's Japanese. There's a translator and the other Cap'n Sandy, John, a 64 year-old guy from Gainesville, Florida, who knows over 350 sea chanties.

AG: There you go.

AM: Yeah, but--I sit down and they say, "Play a sea chanty." John is chomping at the bit to play a sea chanty, and I'm like, "I gotta make something up." I played the three that I knew, but I hardly remembered those. I was playing my own tunes.

AG:(laughs)

AM: I played a song that I wrote.

AG: Did you pass it off as a sea chanty?

AM: Well, Cap'n John, he knew I was full of shit, but he didn't say anything. He was like, "Well, I never heard that one before."

AG: You're like, "Shut up, Cap'n John."

AM: No, I said, "I must have different records than you." So, anyway, it was struggle, but I got a twenty minute show together. I got five minutes for the inside, which needed to be gangbusters, and then I got six more shanties for outside.

AG: Let's talk about the record a bit more. On the song, "All For Me Grog," there's a breakdown in the middle, where things fall apart and you say, "C'mon motherfucker!" Was that planned?

AM: Yeah. Our arrangement included this tuba solo. In the tuba solo, Matt(Perrine) pretends to fuck it up by doing it a half step sharp or flat, I forget. And he catches himself. So, it's a gag.

AG: And you yell at him.

AM: Yeah, me and Chaz scream at him. In the full-on Valparaiso Men's Chorus arrangement, we did that. It was very effective.

AG: Did the chorus know it was coming?

AM: Of course. "Ok, Matt's gonna fuck up the solo. Scream at him."

AG: That's great. Why are you called The Valparaiso Men's Chorus? Is it because of Valparaiso, Chile?

AM: Yeah, Valparaiso was a famous, some would say infamous, Chilean seaport. It was a major port of call for sailing, merchant, whaling ships. What they exported there was bat shit, guano, to get the nitrates out of it to make saltpetre(potassium nitrate).

AG: Now I understand the title.

AM: Yeah, Valparaiso is mentioned in a lot of sea chanties. "We're off to Valparaiso/Around the horn." When you go around the horn, you're inevitably gonna end up in Valparaiso.

AG: I'm gonna completely get off the sea chanty topic. I love what you do with The Geraniums and the color you add to their music. I know Jeff Treffinger(of The Geraniums and The Saturn Bar and Truck Farm) made your solo record, and he's played on your songs, as well, but how did your collaboration with The Geraniums come about?

AM: The Geraniums have had a couple of color guys throughout the years, whether it be on harmonica, fiddle, or trombone. I'm not sure how I got picked to do it, but one day Jeff said, "Hey man, would you come play with The Geraniums?" And I've always been a huge fan. I said, "Of course." I jumped at it. They used to play at the Circle Bar on Sunday nights when I used to bartend there. For a coupla years. They'd play, and there'd be no one there. I could sit in with them because there was no one to serve.

AG: So, you already knew the songs...

AM: No, I had heard them, and some of them I still really don't know. I kinda mess them up. I don't really know the titles to them or anything. It helps that they're all in D. There are a couple that aren't in D. It kinda hurts, in a way. Like, "What am I gonna do with D this time?" I love Jeff and Brendan's songs.

AG: There's still no one that shows up. How do we get more people out there?

AM: They don't do anything to promote themselves. They do nothing. I think it's a gag with them, that they do so little. They get their Tuesday gig, and that's the end of it. They show up, and they play.

AG: They don't really care, or...

AM: I guess...they do care. I've seen them when there's been people. Not a lot of people, but people. They get pumped and excited. Why don't you do something about it? Why don't you get a MySpace page? I don't know. It doesn't help that the tunes are kinda offbeat and dour. But, they are one of the unique things in this town. No one does anything like The Geraniums. It's really good. The songs are rich lyrically.

AG: When are you gonna come out with another solo or Tin Men record?

AM: That's the $64,000 question. I guess I've got enough tunes that I could do a record. It's also a question of money. There was talk for a while to get a label like Yep Roc to finance it. They didn't bite. 'Cause financing a record by yourself--it's doable because I did it, but you amass credit card debt doing that. I'm still paying it off.

AG: So, why would you do it again if you're still paying it off?

AM: Yeah. Money's a big factor. I'd like to get something by the end of the year. If I don't have something by the end of the year, then I've lost the plot.

AG: Seems like Tin Men is more of a every-two-years type of group.

AM: Yeah, but the Tin Men haven't been playing much. Matt's really busy with Bonerama.We've got a couple ideas for records. We might do a record that's all by one composer, or we might do one record that's all composed by us. We always have a record that's originals and unoriginals. We have moxie. We'll put our heads together one of these days and figure it out.

AG: Y'all perform Dirty Dozen's "Blackbird Special" live. That's my favorite song y'all do live, probably because the way y'all do it has such a concentrated anxiety to it.

AM:(laughs) Yeah, for me it is. It's a very difficult song to play. It's one of the most taxing tunes, for me, anyway. And there's not even any singing.

AG: Did you have any specific approach when covering it? Are you more of a traditional person when covering songs, or are you more of a non-traditional person, where you can veer off the beaten path a bit?

AM: The arrangement we do is the All That arrangement, the Davis Rogan version. That's a tune we used to do with that band. Me and Matt were in that band together for a while. I guess when The Tin Men got started we had all the Fingerbowl stuff, 'cause Matt was in that band, and we had songs of mine that weren't Fingerbowl tunes that we knew. We had all this Washboard Chaz stuff, and we had All That. We used to play a few brass band tunes that we knew from All That. It was like, "Ok, it'll be funny, we'll take this brass band tune and do this weird, not so fat instrumentation."

AG: Kinda like doing "Immigrant Song," like y'all do. You get everybody to turn their head and go, "Are they doing what I think they're doing?"

AM: We have performed Motorhead's "Ace of Spades."

AG: Nice.

AM: We're gonna get together and practice that again. We did it once during the Kids Camp at The Big Top. It was great.

AG: That's gonna be a hit. I've talked to you in passing about getting Royal Fingerbowl back together, and you've said people don't care, but the people I've talked to say differently.

AM: Well, you know, those 14 people are still around.

AG:(laughs) That's exactly what you said last time.

AM: Whenever someone asks me about the Fingerbowl, I always talk about those fourteen people. And the fourteen people really loved it.

AG: (laughs) But, that's not enough to make any money, is it?

AM: Whenever I feel like making that seventy bucks, we'll go out there and do it. We could probably get those fourteen people out to Carrollton Station. Or, maybe we could fill up the Circle Bar.

AG: You know, you might find those fourteen people brought one friend each, and then all of a sudden, there's 28.

AM: But, you see, these fourteen people are like those guys in the army jackets.

AG:(laughs) The curmudgeons?

AM: The guy in the army jacket at the end of the gig that wants to ask you about your gear. "What year amp is that? '64? That's what I thought."

AG: And, you're a little creeped out?

AM: Well...

AG: I got it.

AM: We did a party a year or two ago uptown. Becky Lloyd said, "I really want the Fingerbowl." I said, "Ok." It's not impossible.

AG: Are you able to make a living as a musician in New Orleans?

AM: I have. For ten years I didn't have a job. Since we've been back we've been kinda--we did a little work for Jeff on this house here. We painted that place--me and Kourtney. My friend has a rental property on Congress Street. It had Katrina problems--lost a lot of the roof. It needed to be gutted, blah, blah, blah. He's living in New York now. I supervised that for him. I don't know if I can make a living. The last month has been--I've made a living this month.

AG: So, it's month to month?

AM: You talk to guys, you know that summertime's gonna be slow. You gotta line up your ducks so you can make it through the summer, which is the slowest time. It's good to get out of town.

AG: Is that what you're planning on doing?

AM: Jonathan is kinda arranging for a trip up to the Northwest. He's got some contacts up there. He's gonna play some shows with Skerik. I've been invited to go up there with Kourtney. She's got this class she's been teaching, and she would have some time between them, before the next one starts. We might go up there for a couple weeks. I might do something in the northeast. I normally go up there once or twice a year, do some solo shows. There's this party I play every year. My father's up there. We can stay with friends, stay for free. Duking it out down here can be really demoralizing.

AG: I could imagine. You've been playing for so long, and I'm wondering if you've ever gone through lulls where, out of frustration, you've thought about giving up writing and performing and recording?

AM: Sometimes you get frustrated. Never to the point where I've said, "Fuck it, I'm gonna get a straight job." Sometimes you say, "Fuck it," but you don't really mean it. The good times are really great, and the bad times are really bad, but overall, it's a good life. I have no other skills. I dropped typing my freshman year of high school to take music theory. The first job I tried to get outta college, working for Tulane, was installing phone lines. I had to take a typing test. And I was sitting there taking this typing test, pecking and pecking. I was an English and Philosphy major, so I had to write a hundred papers...

AG: But you still didn't know how to type properly. I'm the same way.

AM: Typing a paper was like an hour a page. And that was going as fast as I could. That irony. I'm reminded of that all the time.

AG: Recurring players in your songs are drink and water, patrons of which tend me to be misfits or lonely. I was wondering if you have a soft spot for curmudgeons or the unwanted.

AM: Yeah, I think everybody can relate to that as a romantic notion. Loneliness, sentimentality, ne'er do wells, drinkers, brawlers, people in the bar. Saloon society. Sometimes I make up my mind not to write about these people anymore, but it's sort of inevitably goes back to that sphere.

AG: Because you live in that atmosphere, as well?

AM: I don't know. I work in bars. I used to go to bars a lot, more than I do now. I used to live at the R Bar. I'd get done playing and go to a bar. I could never go straight home.

AG: Wind down?

AM: Yeah.

AG: Just like everybody else.

AM: Yeah, but I don't do that anymore. I used to spend a lot of time at Markey's. I got outta that group, ya know. I haven't written too many songs in the last year, and the ones I have written really have nothing to do with it at all. I wrote a song about Cabral, Otis, this recurring guy, the two Katrina songs. I'm working on a song for Chaz to sing in The Tin Men. I'm trying to write a dance number. It's baffling to me.

AG: Do you think New Orleans is more forgiving of the socially inept?

AM: Absolutely.Yes. This town's got its own social code. People tolerate lateness. They know you can't be expected to do things early in the morning. Half the people you know are in bands or work in bars or restaurants. The bon vivant factor is high. You've heard the expression, "If you can't make it here, don't leave"?

AG:(laughs) That's great.

AM: New York has their saying, and we have ours.

AG: Eccentrics are celebrated here.

AM: Yeah. What's gonna happen to all the guys that hang out at stores, drinking Busch beer all day? I see these guys floatin' around town, waitin' for the bus. You can do it. The people that float around the Circle Bar--the homeless guys. The train station is right there. It's a pretty forgiving town...There's this couple that's been going through my songs, and they're still together, but they're terrible for each other.

AG: You can't figure out why they're still together! They've been through things and stood by each other.

AM: They just get into so much trouble together. There's something primal about their love that I find fascinating.

AG: It doesn't make any sense.

AM: This couple, they should really get out the bars and go take care of their kids. These beautiful losers--Leonard Cohen.

Dylan's "It's Alright Ma(I'm Only Bleeding)" Live from 1965



Temptation's page flies out the door
You follow, find yourself at war
Watch waterfalls of pity roar
You feel to moan but unlike before
You discover
That you'd just be
One more person crying.

So don't fear if you hear
A foreign sound to your ear
It's alright, Ma, I'm only sighing.

"I Am The Walrus"

Friday, June 1, 2007

Muse's "Take a Bow"



Corrupt
You're corrupt
Bring corruption to all that you touch
Hold
You behold
And beholden for all that you've done
And spin
Cast a spell
Cast a spell on the country you run
And risk
You will risk
You will risk all their lives and their souls

And burn
You will burn
You will burn in hell, yeah you'll burn in hell
You'll burn in hell
Yeah you'll burn in hell
For your sins

And our freedom's consuming itself
What we've become
It's contrary to what we want

Take a bow

Death
You bring death, and destruction to all that you touch
Pay
You must pay
You must pay for your crimes against the earth
Yeah hex
Feed the hex
Feed the hex on the country you love

Now beg
You will beg
You will beg for their lives and their souls

Now burn
You will burn
You will burn in hell, yeah you'll burn in hell
You'll burn in hell
Yeah you'll burn in hell
You'll burn in hell
Yeah you'll burn in hell
For your sins

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Eric Dolphy's Musical Orgasm



This clip makes my head wanna explode. Or maybe I could get slingshot into the sky. The beginning is funny. Dolphy's sitting there, unimpressed, like, "Whatever, dude."

Monday, May 28, 2007

Bowie's "The Heart's Filthy Lesson"

Bowie's "Hang Onto Yourself"

Bowie's "Loving The Alien"

What is that? INXS sucks? No, you suck!


The point I'm about to make sounded so much better in my head a couple hours ago. I've lost the fat, and I'm down to the tasty morsel, if it is even that. I rediscovered INXS today, and I found out that I like them. I wouldn't have thought this yesterday, but it's true. I converted my head--my mean, snobby head. I showed my head that it's not important anymore whether I was supposed to like INXS or not when I was in high school. It's not important whether I thought they were a crappy dance band with no substance or grit. And, sure, INXS is pretty glossed over, but today I found that they write hella good pop rock songs. And a touching ballad, here and there. And that's all that matters. I have hopefully conquered all those that would "p-shaw!" at me if I told them I like INXS. I move onto the next band that I've programmed myself not to like, hoping to remove even more of the discriminatory black from my heart.

US Air Guitar Championships at The Parish HOB June 23rd




I encourage all of you to sign up for The US Air Guitar Championships New Orleans Regional at the Parish Room of the House of Blues on June 23rd. I'll be there performing. Now I just have to figure out what I'll do. Maybe some Tom Morello? Zakk Wylde? Win the regional and get a free trip to the US Finals in NYC. Win the US Finals and get $1,000 + a free trip to represent Team USA at the Air Guitar World Championships in Finland. Click on the title link to register.

Sunday, May 20, 2007

Stinking Lizaveta, FabChannel.com, and Concert.Tv


Every once and a while, I come upon a band that has cut up my favorite music, re-arranged it, and offered it back to me in a different package. It's music that existed in my mind before I even knew it was there. Stinking Lizaveta plays such music. They call themselves "doom jazz," a moniker that warms my heart. Yes, what I've been waiting for, someone to bring together doom metal and freakout jazz. The instrumental band is a ten year-old trio of guitar, bass, and drums that are just as likely to sludge out and riff away Van Halen style as they are to deconstruct themselves into dreamy, boundless excursions. Click on the title link to go to fabchannel.com, where you can watch a scarily recent concert of theirs. Also visit concert.tv for more concerts.

Friday, May 18, 2007

Purge

The Iraq war always lies at the bottom of a daily stack of worries in my mind. But, when I do think about it, usually as a result of cnn.com, my face flushes, my breath shortens, and my skin tingles. Lately, I've been purging this anger and frustration with the help of Rage Against The Machine, Americana rocker James McMurtry, and Oakland metal group Totimoshi. Each artist(s) has spoken out against this administration and the war, either in their lyrics or publicly.

I saw a great bumper sticker today. It said: "Forget Iraq. Rebuild New Orleans." It's exactly how I feel. How much easier is to play G.I. Joe and the hero than to actually do the less glamorous job of dealing with domestic poverty, outsourcing, and the public school system, not to mention New Orleans, which is still struggling? Do I even need to say that? Are you people fucking clueless? Have you come down from Washington and looked at this place lately? FUCK!!!

We can't afford to police the world with so many problems at home. Why let fear get the best of us and be so pre-emptive about the terror concern? It's not about that, is it, though? It's about the oil, and meanwhile, our citizens, our boys, are dying over there, one by one, day by day. And there's no end in sight.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

A Cry For Help

I have only myself to blame. In the hopes of maybe hearing some Rage, Tool, Nirvana, or Pearl Jam, I tune in to 104.1. Instead I hear crap like Godsmack, specifically "Voodoo," which has lyrics like "I'm not the one who's so far away/When I fell the snake bite enter my veins." I've gotten angry at a lot of ridiculously banal nu metal lyrics, but for some reason, these really set me off. What the hell is he talking about? He sounds like a third grader who doesn't have the proper vocabulary to express a feeling of numbness or detachment. Instead, the third grader just says "far away." Not to mention that song is terrible. Lord, keep my testosterone in check and allow me no need to turn to 104.1. Please keep my dial on 91.5, 90.7 or 870 AM. Amen.

Tuesday, May 8, 2007

LIVENEWORLEANS.COM PRESENTS WORLD LEADER PRETEND, ROTARY DOWNS, AND THE JUNIOR LEAGUE SATURDAY THE 12TH AT ONE EYED JACKS

The title says it all. World Leader Pretend hasn't played in town in over a year, and Rotary Downs won't play again until September, so get your asses in gear and get out there Saturday.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Just Crazy Enough

Only in New Orleans would a funk band win for "Best Rock Band" at an awards ceremony. Last night at Gambit Weekly's Big Easy Awards, Bonerama beat out Bingo! and Morning 40 Federation. Aren't rock bands supposed to be dangerous, subversive, exciteable, and rebellious? What do those factors have in common with 40 to 50-year-olds who re-hash the (admittedly awesome)hits of yesteryear("Crosstown Traffic, "The Ocean")?

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Domino Sound

I went into the Domino Sound Record Shack for the first time today. It's a relatively new store on Bayou Road(coming from downtown on Esplanade, take a right at Broad and another right at Bayou Rd. and it's in that first block on your left) that specializes in vinyl, local and national. No CD's, and when I asked the owner if they had a e-mail list, he gave me that snotty, "I hate computers" look. I bought a R.E.M. tape for $2 and a "Best of Ric Records" tape for $3. Ric Records was an old local R&B label that put out Irma Thomas, Eddie Bo, and Al Johnson, among others.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Matt Cameron drum solo

Matt Cameron, currently of Pearl Jam and formerly of Soundgarden, is one of my favorite drummers. Click on the title link for the Wikipedia article on him.

Broven's Rhythm and Blues in New Orleans


I'm about 2/3rds of the way through John Broven's Rhythm and Blues in New Orleans. It's pretty good, considering it was published in '73 and written by a British guy. Broven is not a good writer, in that he has no style or eye for transitioning, but the information he passes along is pure gold for anyone wondering about that period in New Orleans history. He gives you knowledge, but he also helps you mold whatever you already knew into a new form with the context he provides. It's funny how things were so much more singles oriented back then. Click on the title link for a short description of the book.

Will Ferrell's "The Landlord"

Cats are magicians, too


Click on the title link for the unthinkable: cats perfecting invisibility.

Why aren't we out-crazying the Japanese?

I'd take soccer demolition derby over Howie Mandel anyday. Watch and enjoy.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

Blonde Redhead


I recommend the new Blonde Redhead album, 23. Click on the title link for the All Music review.

Tin Men, Underrated Albums, and Electric Six


I was on the street Thursday, and a guy passing by stopped me and said he had friends in from out of town. He asked me where he should take them Friday night. I asked him if they had seen Rebirth before, hoping he would say yes. He said no, so I reluctantly told him to take them to Rebirth, knowing that that's the requisite first stop on any visitor's list. But, I really wanted to tell him to go see The Tin Men, because they have more of an eclectic New Orleans sound than most bands out there. What I mean is, "They sound exactly like New Orleans sounds in my head." The amount of genres they mix might be unparalleled locally.


UNDERRATED ALBUMS


Weezer--"Maldroit"
Ben Folds Five--"The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner"
Stephen Malkmus--"Face The Truth"


QUOTE I'M ENJOYING


"Mr. President make a little money, sending people you don't know to Iraq/Mr. President, I don't like you, you don't know how to rock"--Electric Six, "Rock and Roll Evacuation"

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Keith Moore R.I.P.

Keith Moore, son of Deacon John and a local musician, painter, sculptor and trash artist, died yesterday of a gunshot wound. Click on the link below for the Times-Picayune story and on the title link for an old Offbeat story on Moore.

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/neworleans/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1176268304309540.xml&coll=1

I wanna recognize that Keith was a passionate supporter of local electronic music. He and his passion will be missed. Keith's annual Noizefest will be held at Michael Patrick Welch's house on May 6th. Look for MPW's obit on Keith in next week's Gambit.

Free tickets to Electric Six tonight

E-mail your full name to jason@liveneworleans.com for free tickets to Electric Six at the House of Blues tonight.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

The High Hat Club?


Has anyone heard of or have any info regarding the old Hi-Hat Club? Is this a mission for Blake Pontchartrain?

The Rusty Nail goes acoustic


I'm starting to realize why The Mermaid Lounge was kicked out of its space. I don't think that neighborhood wants music anymore. According to an e-mail sent to me and a bunch of other promoters and musicians, The Rusty Nail, a new venue whose building also housed The Mermaid, will be going acoustic as a result of neighborhood noise complaints. The e-mail sent by owners Todd McNulty and David Brown:

"Dear bands and promoters,

The Rusty Nail is facing forced changes regarding our musical performances. As you all may know by now, we have been strictly monitoring our noise levels due to complaints from our neighbors at the Cotton Mill condominium complex. We have changed the entrance from the front doors to the side door which has not remedied the situation. We will be moving the entrance once again to the alley door which will prevent any inside noise from being directed towards the Cotton Mill. Also, and this is the main point for you all, we will become an acoustic music venue. This means no amps or large drum kits. What we are going for is acoustic instruments, (still to be amplified through the PA when necessary) hand drums or very small kits (3 pc. or less) with brushes or dowl rod (muted) sticks only, upright basses preferred since no amps are allowed, more piano players and solo, duo, or trio acts will be sought. I can't tell you how much I regret sending this, especially to the bands that are booked and can not comply to the new format. I know this will take some time, but if you are booked for a gig already, please let me know if you can make these changes and keep your gig. Otherwise, let me know, also, if you can't and I will apologize profusely. Please understand that we face losing everything we have put into this if we do not take drastic measures at this time.

Our best regards to all of you,

Todd McNulty
David Brown
The Rusty Nail"

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

The Greatest


A couple days ago I started to move backwards through Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums ever. Of course, I'm only gonna be able to check out the ones I can hear on Rhapsody. I've already scared my girlfriend twice. The first time was when I said I was listening to the Eurythmics, and the second was when I said I was listening to Cyndi Lauper. Both times she just kinda paused on the other end of the phone, as if to question my masculinity without saying a word. I had to explain my project, and I even ended up defending Cyndi Lauper's music. How could I have ever thought that I'd be defending Cyndi Lauper, to a girl, no less? Click on the title link for the RS list.

So, the other day I was enjoying ZZ Top's Tres Hombres , and by reading up on the band, it seems like the critics didn't really get them. ZZ Top is a bluesy, boozy, bar band that just happens to include one of the best blues guitarists alive and an impenetrable rhythm section. They're not trying to re-invent the wheel. They're just trying to rock out the boogie, and if you think it's catchy, too, well then that's great. Have you heard "La Grange" lately? If you're in a band, you can interweave the bass and drums, but how can you hope to mesh like the guys in ZZ Top? Man, how awesome would it have been to be in ZZ Top and be able to just roll over audiences with your tightness? ZZ Top is gonna be at Jazzfest this year. Rock!

I met the devil today

As I was putting up posters at Nashville and Magazine today, I was approached by an old woman in a frenzy. The whole encounter was pretty ridiculous from the get-go. She was yelling at me from a distance, which I reacted to by being extra calm. I'm sure it made her look even more crazy, considering I was just standing there, sans emotion, reasonably digesting what she said. This woman had gray, pulled-back hair and seemingly rotten, wooden teeth(she looked like a scourge of Satan). She had a bunch of posters that she had just torn down under her arm, and she was telling me that I was polluting the neighborhood. She was really worked up, which I couldn't understand. Maybe she was nervous because she thought I was gonna give her trouble. I hope that was it, because if she was really that blood boiled about someone putting up posters, then I've lost a little hope for the city. These are the same people that fought against the street musicians in the Quarter and specifically, Jackson Square.

So, this woman said her bit, and I said, "Don't you care about local musicians?," but she wasn't hearing that. She just kept spouting about how it's illegal, to which I said, "It doesn't matter if it's illegal or not." Of course, she countered with, "Right, it doesn't matter if you run a stop sign or a stoplight," but I don't think she got my point. What I failed to say, because I realized she was set in her mind, was that it doesn't matter what's illegal. It matters what is right. Without live music, this town becomes any other town. Who does she think keeps live music afloat here? It's the people that work the publicity, book the shows, put up the posters, write the articles, sweep the venues, etc. She might as well be living in Metairie or Kenner or Covington or LaPlace. I wish she would. We need support here. Not NIMBY'S.

Click here for Louis CK's hilarious take on gay marriage

Monday, April 2, 2007

Fu Manchu. This video is silly, but it rocks. If you want to see a stoner rock version of "We're Not Gonna Take It," then you should watch it.

Fu Manchu playing "Hell on Wheels" live

Fu Manchu tomorrow night at the HOB


311 is kinda like Fu Manchu. Both bands turn out kick ass live shows no matter how many albums it's been since they released your favorite album or hit their peak. I'm listening to Fu Manchu's new album, "We Must Obey," and it sounds fuckin' amazing. The songs aren't groundbreaking or anything better than their last release, but the actual engineering is awesome. The group continues in the same punkier direction, but with the bigger fuzz-on-steroids production, it sounds as if someone forgot the volume was at 5 for the last album and corrected the situation by turning it up to ten for this one. Fu Manchu plays at the HOB Parish room tomorrow night. Click on the title link for an interview I did with drummer Scott Reeder in December 2004.

The least you can do is a buy a 10 speed.


I'm tired of seeing grown men riding children's bikes. Either these guys are going for some sort of stunted growth, low-rider gangsta look, or they just watched "Gleaming The Cube" one too many times. Remember pizza delivery dude Tony Hawk and his rag-tag group of bmx buddies? Yeah, you know what I'm talking about. Either way, cut it out.

Thursday, March 29, 2007

I love you, Rock and Roll Confidential.

Rock and Roll Confidential targets the awesomely retarded band photos that float around cyberspace. Click the title link for hilarity.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Gloriousnoise.com interview with Elliott Smith archivist Larry Crane


On May 8th, Kill Rock Stars will release New Moon, a compilation of rare and unreleased Elliott Smith songs from his Either/Or and Elliott Smith era. Click on the title link for an interview with Larry Crane, Smith's archivist, about assembling the 24 song comp.

Click here for Gambit writer Alison Fensterstock's take on this year's SXSW

Peyton Manning's hilarious SNL United Way spoof

There aren't a lot of things funnier than watching kids get mercilessly attacked by a volleyball or football. Just ask Adam Sandler("Billy Madison") or Peyton Manning. I have a whole new respect for Manning after watching this clip. Click on the title link to get there.

The Buoyant Sea, Guitar Lightnin', My Graveyard Jaw, and White Bitch at The Mother-In-Law Lounge tonight


My friend Davitt Terrell, a.k.a. The Buoyant Sea, is celebrating his birthday tonight by bringing together his favorite local musicians at the Mother-In-Law Lounge. Expect sets by Guitar Lightnin', White Bitch and Ray Bong, and My Graveyard Jaw, along with music spun by DJ Lingerie. The shindig starts at 9.

Click here for a review of 00Dougs

Monday, March 26, 2007

Rotary Downs "Sing Like The Sun"

Rotary Downs for President

Hennessy, Rhapsody, and Rolling Stone are offering up a free recording session to the band that gets the most votes in their online competition. Click on the title link to vote for hometown rockers Rotary Downs.

Nostalgia


I'm listening to Elton John's Greatest Hits 1970-2002, and "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" takes me right back to a feeling of childhood security and calm. My parents must have played that song a lot when I was growing up. Another artist that I associate with childhood is Hall and Oates. "Private Eyes" and "Kiss On My List" are like time machines. I'm not sure I would have such an affinity for this stuff if I hadn't grown up around it. The good feeling it gives me automatically gets me around any usual criticisms of cheesiness or it sounding dated.

Sunday, March 25, 2007

They say this cat Paul Webb is a bad mother...SHUT YOUR MOUTH! I'm just talkin' 'bout Paul Webb. THEN WE CAN DIG IT!


Paul Webb is my favorite local metal musician. He writes metal that I like. It's intricate, sometimes beauteous instrumental metal. But, it also kicks ass. It's A.D.D. like math metal but also anthemic and grandiose enough in sections to attract an AC/DC fan. Webb doesn't get enough recognition around town, so go check out solo compositions on his MySpace page(click the title link) and then go to the Music Exchange at Louisiana and Magazine and tell him how much you like his music.

Gov't Majik tonight at The Dragon's Den















This is what DJ Soul Sister said about Gov't Majik in her nola.com blog:

"With a name like Gov't Majik: The Dirty South Afro-Beat Arkestra, this New Orleans band is attempting to cover a heap of musical ground.

'Dirty South' gives it that obligatory New Orleans groove connection. 'Arkestra' conjures images of avant jazz freakster Sun Ra flying through Saturn. And, of course" Afro-Beat refers to the hypnotic sounds that Nigerian superstar Fela Kuti created with a series of 1970s and 80s albums. Influenced by African-American funk, West African highlife music, and Nigerian jazz rhythms, Afro-Beat is energetic, extended, improvisational dance music that makes sense in New Orleans.

A dirty south Afro-Beat orchestra is an ingenious idea.

True to the form of Fela, whose own Afro-Beat band sometimes swelled to 100 musicians and dancers, the number of Gov't Majik players will be massive. Past GM shows have boasted 10+ musicians, including horns, percussion, synthesizer, drums, bass and guitar..."

Please go check out this band tonight. Click on the title link to get to the band's MySpace page.

Ray Davies performing "Oklahoma U.S.A." in March 2006

Muswell Hillbillies


For me, at least, there are few things better in life than getting blindsided by a great album I didn't know existed and couldn't have expected to exist. I'm listening to The Kinks 1971 album, Muswell Hillbillies, and I'm loving it. This is my kind of country rock. It's distinguished, subtle, and it doesn't take itself seriously. Muswell Hillbillies is a nice flipside to The Stones' brand of honky tonk, which can be a little too dirty for me, sometimes. "Oklahoma U.S.A." is the first genuinely powerless and sweet barrelhouse song I've heard. Click on the title above to read a review of the album.

Friday, March 23, 2007

The Physical Overdraft Came From Greater Willpower

The band that I just joined, The Junior League, is nominated for Best Emerging Artist in The Big Easy Awards. So, that's pretty awesome, even though I had nothing to do with it. For those that don't know, Joe Adragna, the lead singer/guitarist, is the mastermind behind that band. He writes all the songs, plays all the instruments in the studio, and makes all the phone calls. Next Saturday March 31st at The Circle Bar it's the WTUL CD Release Party with The Black Rose Band, The Junior League, MC Trachiotomy with Lefty Parker, and Broken Smokes.


NOISE FEST


I encourage everyone to go out to The Big Top Saturday afternoon and night for the annual NOISE Fest. This is the place to check out what's best in local avant, electronic, ambient, and noise. The show starts at 4 with the Uptown Cajun All-Stars and ends at 10 with Electrical Spectacle. Tickets are $8. Bands include Electrical Spectacle, Chef Menteur, Potpie, Helen Gillet, Ray Bong, The Buoyant Sea, Archipelago, and more.


BLAIR


There's gonna be a lot of Carrollton Station incest going down at Blair's EP Release Party Friday night at One Eyed Jacks. Lucy Gossett, Alex Smith, Keith Ferguson, Arthur Mintz, Theresa Andersson, and Andy Wagner will all have their paws on either Blair's music or Jon Michael's set, which precedes Blair's. These guys are silly. I expect the good and the unexpected.


CALEXICO


I'm pretty excited that Calexico is coming back to town so soon after their last One Eyed Jacks date. Their music is so sharp and measured. It can sound so languid and dry that it transports me. On April 27th at the Republic, Blair will open for Calexico.


LIVENEWORLEANS.COM PRESENTS CALEXICO AND BLAIR
Friday, April 27th
Republic
$20


The first five people that can answer this question will get free tickets to the show: What band were the two main members of Calexico in before they formed Calexico?


PEEPING TOM


I'm a little suprised I'm not hearing more chatter about Peeping Tom's show at the House of Blues on April 2nd. Mike Patton is gonna be there. Dan The Automator is gonna be there. Have you guys heard the songs? Here's a link to the whole album: Peeping Tom


BIG BLUE MARBLE


According to Big Blue Marble drummer Stu Schayot, the band had a great couple of shows and a good time all around at SXSW this last weekend. Congrats to Big Blue Marble for landing a headlining spot at French Quarter Fest this year. They play on April 12th from 6:45-8. Other performers of note include Glasgow!, The Zydepunks, The Tin Men, Country Fried, and Gal Holiday. Everyone else playing is exactly who you'd expect to be playing.

Concert Picks for this weekend

FRIDAY, MARCH 23RD


One Eyed Jacks--Blair EP Release Party with Jon Michael


SATURDAY, MARCH 24TH


Circle Bar--Mod Dance Party

House of Blues--Shannon McNally

Rock N Bowl--Tab Benoit

One Eyed Jacks--The Public


SUNDAY, MARCH 25TH


Circle Bar--Stoner Rock Sunday

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

NOISE Fest Saturday at The Big Top


Don't miss the NOISE Festival on Saturday afternoon at The Big Top. This is the place to check out what's best in local avant, electronic, ambient, and noise. The show starts at 4 with the Uptown Cajun All-Stars and ends at 10 with Electrical Spectacle.

Eracism?

I'm down with Erace and their efforts to improve racial relations through community meetings, but even they list the thousands of bumper stickers they've handed out as the #1 thing they've done--not the meetings. As if the bumper stickers do anything but let white people make it seem like they're not racist. I hate when people are self-congratulatory about things they're not doing(like being racist). Everyone is racist. There are degrees, but don't tell me you've never treated a person differently because of the color of their skin. The bumper stickers aren't changing anything. The meetings are. But, how many people who have stickers have actually gone to a meeting? I'm sure it's more of a hassle than puttng a sticker on your car.

Click here for my review of The Good, The Bad, and The Queen

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Concert Picks for this week

THURSDAY, MARCH 15TH


Chickie Wah Wah--Cabral, Freilich, Garrison, and McMurray

Circle Bar--Davis


FRIDAY, MARCH 16TH


Tipitina's--The Dynamites


SATURDAY, MARCH 17TH


d.b.a.--Iguanas

Dragon's Den--Impulss MC battle

Le Bon Temps--Mike Dillon Trio

Republic--Diplo

Rusty Nail--Klezmers


SUNDAY, MARCH 18TH


House of Blues--The Walkmen

Republic--The Good, The Bad, and The Queen

Snug Harbor--Mike Dillon and James Singleton

One Eyed Jacks--Afterhours with Greg Dulli


MONDAY, MARCH 19TH


d.b.a.--Jeff and Vida

Republic--Cold War Kids

House of Blues--RJD2

One Eyed Jacks--Black Lips


TUESDAY, MARCH 20TH


d.b.a.--Vidacovich Duo with James Singleton

One Eyed Jacks--One Man Machine and Buoyant Sea


WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21ST


House of Blues--Public Enemy

Gratowski, Blair, and The Bally Who

I saw German saxophonist Frank Gratowski, guitarist Rob Cambre, bassist and percussionist Bill Hunzinger, and drummer Endre Landsnes perform at the Hi Ho Lounge last night, and it was pretty great. If I find the beat in that kind of freakout, avant, free jazz kind of show, I feel like I've cracked a code. It's somehow doubly rewarding to rock out to such nebulous music.

The quartet set up in a circle on the ground floor of the club and played three long(15 + minutes each) songs. The show started with Gratowski and Hunzinger adapting to each other. The playing was violent but not loud. Hunzinger picked around the bridge of his double bass in spurts while Gratowski matched him with horn blasts. Though each player in the group was supremely liberated in their technique(Cambre played with a bow, Landsnes played with brushes and mini cymbals, and Gratowski used an alto, a soprano, and a long sax I didn't recognize), Hunzinger seemed a little nuttier than the rest. He had a whole set up of alternative percussion that consisted of foil, mini cymbals, metal, and woodblocks. It was cool when he wrapped the bridge of his bass in foil, afterwards picking at it with his bow to make strange noises.

The whole set was improvised, though the players did a very good job of slowly building the songs until they exploded near the end. The songs were normally loose and searching at the beginning, progressing until everyone had sped up and turned up, resulting in a frenzy. Though from watching the show it was obvious why Gratowski was lauded and that he could probably play anything he put his mind to, it shouldn't be ignored or passed over that we have one of the best drummers in the world right here in our own backyard. Landsnes is no Elvin Jones, but he's only in his early 30's. He's already gotten so far with such raw talent that I could see him progressing much further.


DAN THE AUTOMATOR


It's official. Dan "The Automator" Nakamura, known for his work with Gorillaz, Kool Keith, Cibo Matto, Dr. Octagon, Blues Explosion, Deltron 3030, Handsome Boy Modeling School, and Galactic, will perform as a member of Peeping Tom on April 2nd at The House of Blues. Dub Trio opens.

LIVENEWORLEANS.COM PRESENTS PEEPING TOM FEATURING MIKE PATTON AND DAN THE AUTOMATOR PLUS DUB TRIO
Monday, April 2nd
House of Blues
8 p.m.

Be one of the first five people to name three other bands Mike Patton has been in and you'll get free tickets to the show. E-mail your full name with subject title "Peeping Tom" to jason@liveneworleans.com.


THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE QUEEN TICKETS


Speaking of tickets, we have free tickets to The Good, The Bad, and The Queen Sunday night at the Republic. Just e-mail your full name to jason@liveneworleans.com with subject line "The Good, Bad, and The Queen"


BLAIR


I got a listen to Blair Gimma's new four song EP, and I enjoyed it. She sounds better on record with a full band than she does alone. Live is a different story. Her solo acoustic sets can be powerful.

Combine her heartwrenchingly angelic voice with catchy melodies and you've got a...winning combination.

"Allow myself to introduce...myself!"

The first song reminds me of Liz Phair, while the second is sadder and more country-like, complete with locomotive brush beat. On the third, the prowess of her backing band comes into play. The color on this EP is beautiful and subtle. Either much time was spent on the arrangement, or someone did a really good job mixing it. The mixer was Mike Napolitano, and it was produced by Keith Ferguson. The line-up:

Blair--vocals, guitar
Keith Ferguson--guitar, keys, percussion
Adam Campagna--guitar, keys
Arthur Mintz--percussion, trombone
Peter Harris--double bass
Dwight Breeland--pedal steel

I may be crazy, but I feel like Blair could push her voice a little further. Even though she can hit those high notes, she could sound even better. I bet she's one of those people whose voice gets better with age.

The album was recorded at Piety and mastered by Bruce Barielle. Expect to hear it on TUL.


WORLD LEADER PRETEND


New World Leader Pretend demos are available for consumption at myspace.com/wlpband.


THE JUNIOR LEAGUE


I'm the new drummer for The Junior League. The next show is March 31st at the Circle Bar for TUL's CD Release Party. Also performing will be Broken Smokes, Lefty Parker with MC Trachiotomy, and The Black Rose Band.


THE BALLY WHO


The Bally Who's first full-length release, "Keep on Dawn," is a monster. It's 15 tracks and 78 minutes long. The longest is 10 minutes.

For two guys, Rene and Jacques Duffourc, that have existed on the outside of New Orleans consciousness, this CD is quite an accomplishment. I hesitate to lay too much hyperbole on it, because I'm a little too close to it and because I've only listened to it four times, but DAMN!

I knew these guys were capable of this. I remember seeing a play around '98 or '99 in the theatre at Canal Place. I was taken with the pre-recorded soundtrack. It sounded like the flip image of Radiohead--all the quality but just different enough to not seem derivative. Jacques had done it, and since then, I've been waiting to hear something like that soundtrack again. This release doesn't sound like the soundtrack, since there are two people involved, but there are still traces of Radiohead and Pink Floyd in it. This record also sound-checks TV on the Radio and Queen. Oh, man, the ridiculous harmonics and bombast of one guitar part is very Brian May.

Rockin' metal guitar moments are rare. Rather, "Keep on Dawn" is mostly hypnotic and ambient, without going too far into electronica never-never land. Guitar is always present, but there are many layers and effectsand atmospherics on top of it. This album is a mantra. Phrases and words repeat over and over. It's motivational and inspirational, but it also focuses heavily on love and the regret that comes along with it.

This is a very New Orleans album. Sounds from cars riding on the underpass, parades, storms, and even Nagin's infamous WWL interview litter it.

The highlight of the album is when Bryan Spitzfaden reads a verbatim account from runner Roger Bannister about his world record. The monologue plays over music that mirrors the happenings in the tale. And, actually, the whole album has video that accompanies it. I believe the band will release it with video.

The song is about how people can accomplish the impossible if they have the will. The song makes my hairs stand on end.

I can't say when the album will be out, but look for it in the next two months.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Dan The Automator added to Peeping Tom bill!

It's official. Dan The Automator will be joining Mike Patton at the House of Blues when LiveNewOrleans.Com Presents Peeping Tom on April 2nd. Click the title link to see Peeping Tom performing "Mojo" on Conan.

Click here for my review of Mathcore and Venom-type metal bands

Click here for my new C.C. Adock review

The Good, The Bad, and The Queen's "Kingdom of Doom"

Win Tickets to The Good, The Bad, and The Queen

Send your full name to jason@liveneworleans.com to get free tickets to The Good, The Bad, and The Queen on Sunday night at the Republic.

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Rock N' Roll Jeopardy

Since I'm a music dork, I've been playing Rock N' Roll Jeopardy today. And, since I'm even more of a dork, I've been writing down what answers I get wrong so I can go back on Wikipedia later and research them. This is what I've had trouble with:

rick nelson and the stone canyon band
ray parker, jr. and raydio
pat benatar
ben e. king
eagles, desperado
learn order of police albums
learn difference between boyz ii men and bell biv devoe
toto
los lonely boys
james ingram
peter cetera

Click on the title link if you wanna play for free online