February 8, 2012 in 06, 09, 10, 12, 17, 2, 25, 28, 3, 30, 50, 9, 99, a, after, age, all, am, an, and, Are, around, as, at, Austin, Ball, ban, band, bands, Bass, beginning, big, bite, black, blue, bonnaroo, book, bouncing, Burn, but, by, ca, california, can, center, City, comes, community, concert, Crowd, dance, davis, DAW, Day, Day., down, Drums, electric, en, Encore, end, Eve, Eyed, FEAT, fee, festival, fi, finish, First, FOR, four, Free, Friend, From, Funny, Germany, get, gin, give, glow, golden, Good, grace, great, Groove, ground, Guitar, hampton, hi, high, How, ice, in, into, is, IT, IX, jam, jammin, jamming, jazz, John, Joy, King, know, las, Last, late, Led, let, light, Like, LITTLE, live, live music, long, lot, love, MA, Made, MI, mike, mix, mixing, mod, Much, Music, My, nc, New, News, NH, night, no, nothing, ny, of, on, one, op, Open, opener, opening, out, PA, Part, Phish, photos, play, player, Pop, post, Pot, pro, producing, production, Pt, quartet, rad, radio, radiohead, read, rock, roll, row, rs, Say, SC, set, show, Shows, So, Something, song, Soul, sound, SPAC, St, stage, stars, state, steve, street, studio, tab, Taste, That, the, theatre, third, times, to, Too, tour, Trip, tropical, two, underground, us, va, van, velvet, venue, view, vocal, WA, WAITING, Walk, war, Way, ways, we, Weed, Ween, with, words, years, You, Your |
Words by: Dennis Cook | Images by: John Margaretten
Wilco with White Denim :: 01.28.12 :: San Jose Civic Auditorium :: San Jose, CA
A gallery of photos from the 02.01.12 Davis, CA show at the Mondavi Center For The Performing Arts is below review!
 White Denim :: 02.01.12 :: by John Margaretten |
While most of the polite, clean cut crowd waiting outside the recently reopened San Jose Civic were there for Wilco, I had come primarily to see handpicked opener White Denim, simply one of the fastest evolving, fully switched-on young bands working today. While this Austin, TX-based quartet play very different music than the headliner, theres a shared spirit of exploration and openness that marks both bands which makes the pairing just good sense, an acknowledgement of congruities and a nice lil gift to Wilco fans, most of whom seemed to be hearing White Denim for the first time this night.
The band tiptoed in with Street Joy, taking advantage of an audience of inclined to shut up and listen to music after years of leaning in to hear what Jeff Tweedy and company had to say. The tenderness and rising ache of this standout from last years stellar D album moved into a spacey whoosh, controls set directly for the heart of the sun, and within two pieces White Denim had already illustrated one of their greatest strengths a head-scratching knack for switching gears swiftly and seamlessly. James Petralli (vocals, guitar), Joshua Block (drums), Steven Terebecki (bass, vocals) and Austin Jenkins (guitar) moved with a strange, compelling mixture of youthful herky-jerky energy and limber, almost athletic musicianship. Theres almost a prog-rock ethos at work but infused with punk/post-punk attitude. By the third tune, the four-piece were interlocking and lunging with such empathy that the whole enterprise ceased to be a compilation of elements and simply breathed as a whole, a rock n roll animal with thick fur and glimmering teeth.
 White Denim :: 02.01.12 :: by John Margaretten |
There is no doubting the hunger inside White Denim, and a coveted opening slot for one of Americas biggest bands is precisely where they belong right now. More than half a decade of honing their sound, bouncing around indie labels, and trudging from SXSW to Timbuktu in search of an audience has produced a band, as witnessed in San Jose, on the verge of their next evolutionary leap a move that is likely to take them from the clubs theyve largely inhabited into small theatres and beyond. At the moment, their music is struggling a bit to adapt to the larger spaces this Wilco tour finds them playing, but it was exciting to see them realize the potential reach their music possesses in real time at the Civic. Mixing together scraps of Tropicalia, tasty soul jazz licks and propulsive Velvet Underground-isms, they showed how familiar elements can be repurposed into original shapes. And just when one would think theyd settled into big groove, an unexpected curve would whiff by our ears, one suddenly tossed into, say, the updated 60s pop of No Real Reason (a boffo ballad off the recently issued Takes Place In Your Work Place EP) or taken deep into the recesses of burly group jamming. White Denim is a trip worth taking, and the boisterous round of applause as they finished their set spoke to a growing number of folks ready to jump on board wherever they might be traveling.
 Wilco :: 02.01.12 :: by John Margaretten |
So, what about Wilco? Having never seen them play outside of a festival set at Bonnaroo a number of years ago, I honestly had no real expectations despite the countless glowing reviews of friends and critics firmly under the bands sway. While always admiring of their studio work, Id never made the leap to actual fandom, always kept at bay by Tweedys thin, modernized Dylan voice and something in the lyrics that just never snagged my emotional center. That said, I was assured by folks I trust on such matters that seeing Wilco live would reveal their true glory. Thats a lot for any band to live up to but I tamped down high expectations and just listened intently as they took the stage.
Opener One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley’s Boyfriend) is a patient build, very much the child of Dylan at his expansive, poetic 1960s best, and featured some of the most controlled, lovely playing I have ever heard. Seriously, it and all that followed showcased some of the most beautiful, technically savvy, intuitive playing Ive ever witnessed in my long years of concert-going. While the source material and the focal point within Wilco simply may not be my personal bag, there is no denying that the players in this band are phenomenal, each serving the songs with near-penitent devotion and focus, producing an ineffable glow to Wilcos music in San Jose – something that cant really be pinned down in clumsy words.
 Jeff Tweedy :: 02.01.12 :: by John Margaretten |
More than the actual content/subject matter of the lyrics holds sway. Theres little doubt that Tweedy and his cohorts are striving towards larger understanding, the rock show used as a form of community building that pushes towards common understanding of our shared imperfections – which is sort of funny coming from such a thoroughly professional production, where things began right on time and unfolded with a practiced grace in every element lighting, stage design, sound. There was NOTHING imperfect about this night, which at times made certain numbers feel a touch too rehearsed, too familiar, too comfortable. For all the echoes of Bobs freewheeling days down to the blazing musicianship of dudes like Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper Wilco came off as all-pro, all-the-time to me. Maybe because Im not part of the cult, Im less charmed by Tweedys quirks and between song banter, which mostly struck me as vaudeville moderne, a stage device an intensely personal artist has mastered in order to ply his trade. And Im not saying I wasnt charmed along with everyone else in the Civic, only that my years of watching countless rockers at work gives me an instinct for whats really happening in the moment and what comes from a well-studied playbook. This band is WELL aware of the Pavlovian bells to ring on faves like Handshake Drugs and Jesus Etc. and shook them loud and clear this night but for my own tastes, I kinda wish theyd dance on the edge a bit more like new one Art of Almost, which lit up the beginning of their set with Radiohead worthy electricity and chrome-plated futurism, or even the sprightly Nick Lowe/Rockpile-esque pop of I Might, which avoided the mid-tempo pacing they favor on a few too many songs.
In the end, walking back to my car as the encore wrapped, I came to the conclusion that Wilco is undeniably one of the best outfits operating today, as classy and well formed as anything America has kicked up since rocks first great swell in the 50s/60s. Its unlikely Ill become a fan anytime soon but its hard to imagine anyone with an appetite for fundamentally perfect rock not digging a great deal about this band.
San Jose Setlist
One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley’s Boyfriend), Art Of Almost, I Might, Bull Black Nova, Side With The Seeds, California Stars, Red-Eyed and Blue, I Got You (At The End Of The Century), Born Alone, (Was I) In Your Dreams, You Are My Face, Impossible Germany, Box Full Of Letters, I’m Always In Love, Jesus, Etc., Capitol City, Handshake Drugs, War On War, Dawned On Me, A Shot in the Arm. [Encore]: Whole Love, Walken, I’m A Wheel
2/1/12 – Wilco and White Denim @ Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts (Davis, CA) View Photos
White Denim Tour Dates :: White Denim News
Wilco Tour Dates :: Wilco News
JamBase | Golden State
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Tags: america, ban, dance, hampton, jam, John, light, mike, night, Pot, quartet, rad, studio, view, wilco
February 3, 2012 in 10, 12, 2, 28, 3, 30, 4th, 9, a, age, all, Also, am, an, and, Are, as, Asheville, at, Ball, ban, band, bands, big, black, blue, blues, brother, brothers, Burn, by, ca, can, cat, center, chicago, chris, community, contest, creek, dance, dances, David, down, dragon, Drums, Education, en, end, Eve, FEAT, fee, festival, fi, fire, FOR, Fred, From, Gary, get, golden, Gus, hall, hampton, hi, home, ice, in, International, into, intro, is, IT, jam, jar, jazz, John, King, Lake, las, late, Led, leo, let, live, lol, MA, Made, MI, Michael, moon, Much, Music, My, name, Nat, nc, New, News, NH, night, no, ny, of, on, one, op, organ, out, PA, Part, Phish, Piano, Pop, pro, Pt, rad, rant, rasta, raz, rs, rubblebucket, sara, SC, simon, So, SPAC, spring, St, Stab, stars, step, steve, story, street, tab, That, the, theatre, to, Too, us, va, van, WA, Way, we, Web, with, You |
COOL LINEUP GATHERING IN BLACK MOUNTAIN, NC IN MAY
 Taj Mahal |
LEAF | Lake Eden Arts Festival is excited to announce the Performing Arts lineup for Spring LEAF 2012, taking place May 10-13, 2012 in Black Mountain, NC. Headlining the 34th festival are Blues legend Taj Mahal, Afrobeat progeny Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, and New Orleans institution Preservation Hall Jazz Band. In addition to Taj, several other artists will be helping to celebrate Blues Traditions [including and one more special Blues Folk lineup addition TBA], with support in part by a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts. Art Works. From the dark, smoky clubs of Chicago & St. Louis, all the way down through the Hill Country and into the bayous of the Deep South, audiences will be introduced to an sampling of Blues artists, intermingled with the usual diversity of cultural names and faces one can expect from LEAF.
Tickets and volunteering opportunities are available through LEAFs website or by calling the LEAF office at 828.686.8742. Tickets are sold in advance only.
Spring LEAF 2012 Performing Arts Lineup
Taj Mahal
Seun Kuti & Egypt 80
Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Corey Harris & The Rasta Blues Experience
David Bromberg
The Red Clay Ramblers
King Britt Presents Sister Gertrude Morgan
Golden Dragon Acrobats [China]
Rubblebucket
Red Baraat
Sarazino [Ecuador]
The Black Lillies
Nuala Kennedy Band [Ireland]
Town Mountain
Zansa
Msafiri Zawose [Tanzania]
The Beast
Also celebrating Blues Traditions with:
Pop Ferguson Gaye Adegbalola w/ Roddy Barnes Homemade Jamz Blues Band Cary Fridley & Down South Captain Luke & Cool John Ferguson Shane Pruitt Band
Brookside Dance Hall in motion with:
Contra dance w/ Lift Ticket & The Horse Flies Late-night techno contra w/ Technophoria feat. DJ Shel-D Callers Beth Molaro & Brian Hamshar Cajun dance w/ Feufollet Salsa dance w/ Montuno Family dance w/ Phil Jamison Dance workshops from Ira Bernstein, Maria-Guajira, Ted & Kimberly Ross
Tony Cedras South African All-Stars Brothers in Christ feat. C.D. Big Nasty Jazz Band Chikomo Marimba Band Molasses Creek Goldstein Family Band Skinny Legs and All Tom Hecks Trebuchets Blue Fairy Troupe Dances of Universal Peace 40 Fingers & A Missing Tooth Tall Bike Freak Michael Mooney Lemira Percussion Ensemble
LEAF in Schools & Streets youth performances led by:
Amy Hamilton Ben Gradison Gary Bradley Lisa Zahiya Erinn Huntley & The Anam Cara Theatre Company Josh Batenhorst & ArtSpace Urban Arts Institute Melanie MacNeil & The Asheville Hoops Troupe Imhotep Nina Ruffini Kenya Webster Zulu Connection
…and favorite LEAF traditions, including:
Unifire Theatre Aerial Trapeze Academy Chessmaster Robert Frederick LEAF Poetry Slam w/ James Nav Welcome Drums w/ Larry McDowell LSS Youth Poetry Slam w/ Beth McDonough & Simon Wolf Drum Circle w/ Steve Townsend Storytelling w/ Sarah Eshan Morning Piano w/ Robert Thomas Didgeridoo w/ Jarrett Leone LEAF Fiddle & Step Dance Contests Workshops & Jam Sessions …and much more!
LEAF is a non-profit organization established to build community and enrich lives through the Arts locally and globally with festivals, community events, and arts in education programs. LEAFs mission is Connecting Cultures & Creating Community Through Music & Arts. LEAFs three branches include the twice-a-year festival, LEAF in Schools & Streets, and LEAF International.
LEAF in Schools & Streets: Empowering Youth Through Festive Arts in Our Local Community.
LEAF in Schools & Streets (LSS) is an educational outreach program matching artists with youth in schools and communities for hands-on workshops, residencies, interactive performances and mentoring that includes opportunities for youth to perform with the artists at LEAF- and beyond.
LEAF International: Empowering Youth Globally Through Cultural Music Traditions.
LEAF International (LI) empowers youth globally through musical traditions to create self-esteem, skills, connection, and community. Connecting youth to THEIR local cultural traditions with local teaching artists, local instruments and costumes.
Tags: age, bands, contest, country, golden, gus, hampton, intro, nat, rant, storytelling
February 3, 2012 in 12, 2, 2b, 3, 31, 50, 9, a, acoustic, after, Again, Against, age, all, am, an, and, Are, as, at, away, ban, band, bands, Bass, beginning, book, brother, brothers, brown, Burn, but, by, ca, can, cat, center, Chant, charlie, City, classic, community, Crazy, Crowd, dance, does, Dust, en, Encore, end, Eve, expo, fee, fi, First, FOR, four, frank, Friend, From, front, gain, Genre, get, gin, glow, Good, great, Guitar, hampton, hi, How, ice, in, inspired, into, is, IT, IX, jam, John, kids, King, know, las, Last, late, Led, Like, live, live music, long, lot, love, MA, Main, metal, MI, mix, moon, Music, My, Nat, nc, New, News, night, no, ny, of, on, one, op, organ, out, PA, Part, Phish, play, player, Pop, pro, Pt, rain, raz, read, reggae, rock, room, row, rs, San Francisco, SC, set, show, Shows, So, Something, song, sound, SPAC, St, stage, start, Starting, stick, sticks, style, super, tab, That, the, to, tone, tour, track, Train, two, us, va, van, venue, vocal, WA, war, Waste, Way, ways, we, Weigh, with, words, years, You, Your, Zero |
Words & Images by: Annelise Poda
Authority Zero and Voodoo Glow Skulls :: 01.20.12 :: Slims :: San Francisco, CA
 Authority Zero by Annelise Poda |
Authority Zero and Voodoo Glow Skulls brought their co-headlining tour to Slim’s, and they rocked the place late into the night with their speedy, grinding guitar riffs and melodic, clear toned ska interludes. The weather on the night of this show was the classic San Francisco mixture of sudden wind and rain, and everyone arriving through the door fit somewhere on the scale of damp to soaking wet, and all very ready to warm up with a drink and some punk rock rowdiness. Ska is a genre that hasnt gotten a lot of love from the mainstream music industry in recent years, but the zealous enthusiasm of the crowd at Slims proved that the Bay Area punk scene is still packed with wild fanatics, singing the words to every song and getting sweaty while crashing into friends in the pit.
The nights mayhem began as an organ track of vampire inspired music played through the speakers as the six-members of the Voodoo Glow Skulls swaggered out onto the stage. They grabbed their instruments and shredded out the distorted, well-known riff of Ozzy Osbournes Crazy Train, and the crowd pushed to the front of the room and against each other, the beginning stages of a mosh pit already forming. The metal guitar was cut short as the Glow Skulls horn section came in and rushed the band away into their set. Frontman Frank Casillas jumped across the stage clad in a menacing Mexican wrestler mask, with his two brothers Eddie and Jorge Casillas flanking him on either side with their breakneck speed guitar and bass playing.
 Voodoo Glow Skulls by Annelise Poda |
The Voodoo Glow Skulls have had a lot of time to perfect their stage show after their formation in 1988, and they have since mastered the art of balancing great instrumentation with an intense stage presence. Frank constantly sang out Spanish and English lyrics in different styles, from choppy ska vocals to heartfelt, drawn out wails at song peaks. Jorges bass parts were my favorite part of the music, as he really utilized the whole fretboard and picked out winding, dynamic lines that drove the songs forward and pushed people to dance harder. Trumpet player Mark Bush and trombonist Brodie Johnson played fast and scaling notes in perfect unison, adding that raw, brassy element that bumps the tracks up to the next boisterous level. The audience was most excited about hearing Charlie Brown, Shoot the Moon, and the bands upbeat ska cover of I Wanna Be Like You from Disneys Jungle Book, which had everyone singing along. The band dedicated one of their last songs to Jose in the Slims kitchen for always cooking them great food when they came through the Bay Area, which I thought was one of the best dedications Ive heard at a show. He waved through the swinging door from the back as they rocked out in his honor.
Authority Zero wasted no time once they had set up on stage, starting right out with the heavy rocking crowd favorite A Passage in Time. The boundless energy of the bands deep voiced singer Jason DeVore contagiously hit the rest of the audience and both the band and their fans seemed to be fueled by Four Loko for the entire show as the surf punk tunes bled out from the stage. DeVores rich voice mellowed considerably during the few slower and more reggae influenced songs of the night, which provided a cool contrast to his usual forceful singing that spares no lungpower. He mentioned that this was their seventh show of a 50-date tour, and that his voice was already strained. He definitely does not hold back in any way, and its what makes people go so crazy at Authority Zero shows.
 Authority Zero by Annelise Poda |
Other popular songs were Over Seasons and their last song Superbitch, where DeVore gathered everyone who said it was their first show ever at the very front of the stage. He said that your first show experience is something that really sticks with you, and that he wanted to make it a memorable night, noting to one of the guys, You look terrified! Seeing those kids being pushed up to the front by their friends reminded me how great the feeling of community is amongst colliding strangers at punk shows, and when the band takes it upon themselves to make it a welcoming night for newcomers it heightens that happy, adrenaline-infused feeling exponentially.
The set ended and the crowd immediately started chanting for an encore. DeVore came back out and did a couple acoustic songs to promote their new live album, Less Rhythm More Booze (released January 31). DeVore demonstrated his lyrical prowess when singing the Irish drinking song Rattlin Bog, where he spat out words faster and impressively faster as the music progressed. Everyone clapped along and it was a great way to end the night while showing a different side to Authority Zero.
If this all sounds like a good time to you, theres a good chance this tour will be in your city on one of the many upcoming dates. So, grab your Vans slip-ons and get ready for a rowdy night in the pit with some great veteran ska-punk heavyweights.
Authority Zero Tour Dates :: Authority Zero News
Voodoo Glow Skulls Tour Dates :: Voodoo Glow Skulls News
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Tags: acoustic, chant, charlie, crowd, dates, gain, kids, love, metal, Music, organ, super, van