The second night of Butch Walker’s month-long Wednesday night residency at Hollywood’s Hotel Café was quite a bit of a party. I’ve lived in LA for close to a year now, but I still get excited at celebrity sightings, and Butch’s collection of famous friends did not disappoint me in the slightest. In attendance that night were Jeremy Piven, Derrick Whibley(of Sum 41 and Avril Lavigne-marriage-drama fame), and not in the VIP section but in the crowd with the rest of us plebians, Alex Solowitz, best known for his portrayal of Mickey Parke in the faux MTV boy band 2ge+her. Damn, I love Los Angeles.
Tonight, Butch would be treating the crowd to a live, stripped-down rendition of The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker and the Lets-Go-Out-Tonites. He played the album straight through, no deviations aside from his usual shtick; references to the ‘97 hit “How Bizarre” by OMC, comparing his riffing and soloing to every Led Zeppelin song that ever existed, while consequently singing “baby, baby, baby, baby!” much like Robert Plant does on every other Led Zeppelin song. You know. The usual.
He did make up for missing a song the previous week, treating us to “#1 Summer Jam,” and resolving to not miss a single song from The Rise and Fall… Pausing for a minute in the musical revelry, he talks about the forgiveness that his hardcore fans give him for his wackiness, refers to himself as being compared to Jason Mraz with tattoos, and tells us how sometimes, he wants to be filthy, stinkin’ famous. And then things happen like the YouTube video of him recording his version of “You Belong With Me” from the previous week, and he gets torn the hell up, and he realizes that he likes his little bubble. And he loves his hardcore fans. It’s good to be loved.
Getting close to the end of the album, Butch pulls out his big political song, “Paid to Get Excited,” and flat out admits that he had no idea what he was thinking when he wrote the album. Or why he wrote a political song. After playing through the first two verses and choruses, he also admits, “I don’t even like this last song! So I’m gonna do something different,” and segues into Dramarama’s “Anything, Anything,” which is a KROQ favorite and absolute staple.
In my mind, that was the cover of the night. However, soon after, Walker busts into Pulp’s “Common People,” and I honestly think I was one of five people in the entire audience who knew the song. Still, as great a song as it is, I’m not sure if it was Butch’s best choice for a cover. Shatner did it better.
Finally, the highlight of the entire night was the unintentional encore. As he’s leaving the stage for the night, someone holds up a cake with a candle in it and the crowd begins singing “Happy Birthday,” as Walker’s 40th birthday was on the Saturday to follow. That just set him off in a rockin’ mood and he did not want to stop. Calling up Hotel Café regular, Jim Bianco, the boys jam a little bit more, treating the crowd to the title track off of Jim Bianco’s latest album, Sing. I will totally and completely admit to loudly singing the harmonies from the crowd on that one. Continuing on, the boys bust out into a cover of Prince’s “Kiss” with Ari Gold himself, Jeremy Piven, joining them on the drum set….sans cymbals and with woodwhacks instead of sticks.
I have yet to be disappointed by one of these shows these month. I know that everything says its sold out, but they’ve been selling a small number of tickets at the door. Come on down and join the fun, and GET THERE EARLY!!!!!
The Hotel Café in Hollywood has become known for it’s intimate setting and drawing the greatest singer/songwriter acts in the industry. Butch Walker is no stranger to this kind of setting, nor to the Hotel Café. In the month of November, he’s inhabiting the stage every Wednesday night, playing his solo albums from start to finish.
From the time I re-located to Los Angeles, I had been incredibly eager to go to a show at this now notable venue, and with great luck, it happened to be Butch: an artist I’ve been known to obsess over, following him across state lines for shows. It had been a couple of years since I’d been to a show of his, and my excitement mixed with a bit of nerves, not knowing if I could expect the same dynamic experience I’d been privy to in the past.
I was anything but disappointed. On November 4, Butch Walker treated fans to a performance of his 2nd solo album, Letters. If you’re familiar with the record, you don’t really need to be informed of the setlist. Save for “#1 Summer Jam” and “Thank You Note” he played every track. And fans also needn’t be worried about anything that happens onstage. Walker still possesses all of the talent and humor he always has.
The highlight of the night may have been during “Uncomfortably Numb.” The crowd was delighted with an entirely new arrangement, featuring Butch playing the mandolin (a first for me to see, and I’ve seen him 14 times” and a segue into a cover of Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me.” It was also exciting to see him take the one-man-band approach, consistently working a bass drum with one foot and switching between an array of guitars spread over the stage.
And what would a Butch Walker show be without the entire audience softly singing along? Proving that he’s completely aware of this fact, Walker turned the mic on the audience for “Best Thing You’ve Never Had,” letting the crowd sing the entire song while he played, like group-live-band-karaoke. The sing-along spectators also saved his ass at one point, when he couldn’t remember the words that started the ultimate apology song, “Promise.” As he vamped the opening chords, a pensive yet blank look washed over his face as you could see him struggle to remember the lyrics, until a fan audibly prompted, “Well, I fumbled…!” But that kind of slip-up comes off as irrelevant when grading the quality of a Butch Walker show. It’s only remembered as a funny moment and proves how devoted his followers are.
Next week, Butch Walker will play through The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker and the Lets-Go-Out-Tonites. I will be there with bells on, trying not to become my old fan-girl self as he plays all the way from “Hot Girls in Good Moods” to “When Canyons Ruled the City.” And hopefully, you will be too.
Many of us are familiar with the brilliance ofAndrew McMahon. I, for one, am unsure I would have made it through my freshman year of college without Something Corporate’s Leaving Through the Window album. I can’t tell you the countless times I curled up on my bed during my first semester, missing my friends and family in Michigan as I tried to grow acclimated to my new life in Pittsburgh with “Cavanaugh Park” on repeat. I remember being in awe the first time I saw the band live at Duquesne University, McMahon’s piano drenched in a swirl of blue murals derived from the cover art from North. I have put songs from his first release with Jack’s Mannequin, Everything in Transit, on endless amounts of mix tapes and CDs. When I fell on hard times in Pittsburgh and decided to leave Steel Town for the West Coast, “Swim,” off of the band’s most recent album, The Glass Passenger, was one of the only things that kept me convinced that I’d be ok. Andrew McMahon’s work has always been touching and brilliant and sometimes entirely too adept at hitting you where it counts.
Those of us familiar with his work had also already heard the heartbreaking and heartwarming story of his battle with Acute Lymphatic Leukemia. However, the documentary “Dear Jack” shows it to us in a much more intimate way. Having the fortune of seeing the screening of “Dear Jack” with Andrew’s family and friends, I could not feel more blessed that I got to share the event with the people closest to him. Walking into it, I was sure the film would be a tearjerker, and I wasn’t wrong. But at the end of it all, I realized something. This movie is not a sappy weep-fest. It’s a love story–in more ways than one.
From the very beginning, it’s easy to see that it’s a love story between a boy and his music. Throughout the entire length of McMahon’s battle with ALL, you almost wonder if the disease or the lack of being able to perform is causing him more pain.
It’s a love story between a boy and a girl. Early on, we’re introduced to Kelly, the young woman who would eventually become Mrs. Andrew McMahon. With her sugar-sweet smile and freckles, it’s easy to see why he fell for her. It’s also absolutely heart-wrenching to see journal excerpts declaring how much he misses her as the film details the havoc that touring, the illness, and various other factors wreaks on their relationship.
It’s a love story between a boy and his family. One of the most touching moments in the flick is seeing an incredibly frail and gaunt Andrew pour his heart out in a song written for his sister, “There, There Katie,” just before receiving a bone marrow transplant from her. He states that he was never incredibly close to his family at one point, but they are an ever-present feature in the movie, surrounding him with the love and hope he needs to get well.
Finally, it’s a love story for life. Much of the documentary consists of self-shot camcorder clips of Andrew in the hospital, waxing philosophical, shaving his head, losing his hair to chemotherapy, joking with his family, being with Kelly, and brushing his teeth. All of it a video scrapbook of wanting to remember life, just in case it was taken away from him.
I spoke with Andrew for a moment after the film. He told me it was his first time seeing “Dear Jack” with anyone else. “I felt incredibly exposed,” he says with a nervous smile, his arms folded in, hugging himself. But I guarantee he was also feeling incredibly loved afterward, surrounded by his family and friends (which apparently includes Pauly Shore, I might add), receiving a wealth of hugs, being told how beautiful his story was. I couldn’t agree more. “Dear Jack” is even more touching than anything McMahon has given us with Something Corporate or Jack’s Mannequin. It will easily evoke the desire to begin your own love affair with music, family, life and then some.
Videographer Tim Marrinan was at Treasure Island Fest with some of the year’s biggest acts. Click on the image to see a video interview with buzz band Passion Pit and footage from the fest.
Whether he’s performing a DJ set or appearing with a full band, Moby has always been able to deliver his music with a very sincere and natural approach. His show at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco on October 15th was a great example of those two qualities coming together in a very easy and earnest way. This was one of three California shows which Moby has decided to donate the revenue to the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence. After handling a few technical hiccups which came across as more endearing than disruptive, Moby led the crowd on an impressive tour of his nine studio albums and 20-year career.
Performing with a full band for the first time in recent memory, Moby has managed to put together an impressive set of groovy chicks and bald dudes on stage. Moby was joined by Hagar Ben Ari on bass guitar, Joe Goretti on drums and Claudia Chopek on violin. Most impressive were singers Inyang Bassey and Kelli Scarr who also saw action on keyboards. Performing live versions and sometimes doubling up Moby’s trademark soulful samples, Bassey and Scarr were powerful and organic forces behind the mic. Knowing the strengths of his bandmates, Moby was perfectly content to take the back seat and let one of his singers belt out some seriously searing lead vocals while he rocked the Gibson SG or assaulted the conga drums.
The show drifted through tranquil and emotional orchestrations from Moby’s current release Wait For Me including, “Pale Horses,” “Shot In the Back of The Head,” “Wait For Me,” “A Seated Night,” “Walk With Me” and the mournful and slightly off-key lament “Mistake.” The vocals of Scarr were both potent and tender, especially on ”JTLF,” with it’s images of hopelessness and vulnerability: “We heard the rain on the window like a simple waste of time. We heard the sirens wailing like the world had lost its smile.” The album, seemingly recorded on the fly and with no trace of studio over-engineering or effects-rack wizardry, came through in the live show as fluid, poetic and refreshing.
While Wait For Me is filled with beautiful and cathartic tracks, some of the most appreciated moments from the show included the more raucous anthems and gospel-inspired hooks from the 1999 album Play and the 2002 release, 18. The crowd, singing along to music which is not really built for that type of crowd participation, jammed to Bassey’s incredibly soulful vocals on “Honey,” “Extreme Ways,” “Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?” and “Natural Blues” and bounced happily along to “a stupid little song” called “Bodyrock.” Although I was a bit disappointed not to hear Bassey’s smooth take on “Sunday (The Day Before My Birthday),” high-points included Moby’s “unlikely Top 40” hit about a “dystopian, amoral, post-apocalyptic” world, “South Side” as well as a hazily captivating version of “When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die.”
Though I’m not sure what all of the ingredients are or how exactly he does it so well, Moby continues to deliver lives shows which are spontaneous, spiritual and liberating. Somehow, I don’t think he would have it any other way.
Before I delve into the infinite amount of praise I have oozing out of every orifice forStarfucker, I would like to emphasize the brilliance of this particular show. Sure, the Echo is somewhat small (a hole in the wall to be more precise), but the energy was incomprehensible. It was quite possibly the only show that completely captured my attention since I began writing for PopWreckoning almost a year ago. Even the openers were inappropriately enthralling, which is difficult to find amongst relatively unknown indie acts. And Starfucker is no exception, considering their sizeable “hipster” following is quite impressive for a band with a mere two years in the music industry.
Starfucker was preceded performance-wise by fellow Oregonian act Deelay Ceelay. Their set was startlingly unique, and was comprised of two drummers, layered over eclectic electronica, intensified further via artsy, psychedelic slideshow and flashing strobe lights. It seemed quite ironic for the Echo to have been one of the initial venues for the underground rave scene because Deelay Ceelay completely and totally captured that essence in their trance/drum and bass vibe: a vibe that could possibly be referred to as a melodically induced narcotic. The highlight of their performance was an up-tempo trance remix of TI’s “Whatever You Like” that energetically and climatically set the stage for the entrance of our beloved Starfucker.
Despite the heartbreaking news that the boys will soon be shifting monikers, their reason for doing so is feasible. With the recent onslaught of exposure (Target commercials, Weeds, etc) a mellower name wouldn’t send the wrong message to an ignorant audience (even though their name is absolutely perfect for them). The change was imminent though, these boys have a lot of potential that obviously has not been taken seriously by most as of yet, and their name shared a good portion of the blame. Enthusiastically charming, Starfucker presented us with a radiant array of indie/electronica ecstasy coupled with a ridiculously charismatic stage presence. What more could you ask for? Their next show is scheduled for their hometown, Portland, Oregon! on Halloween, and will probably be twice as epic as my experience at the Echo. If you’re in the area, you should definitely check it out.
The band leaves for the European leg of their tour at the end of November after a show in San Francisco on November 7th.
March 20, 2006, started like any other Monday: got up, got ready, go to class, meet up with friends. But this Monday did have an extra buzz of excitement. After class, a few of my friends and I were planning on heading to Lawrence, Kan. from our school in Omaha, Neb. to see Andrew McMahon’s new band, Jack’s Mannequin perform. Even the blizzard that started forming in the early afternoon wasn’t going to hold us back.
Snow was constantly beating against the window, but we just held our coffees close and spent the car singing along with songs from “Konstantine” to “Bruised.” We talked about our crushes on McMahon. His hair, his eyes…that voice! We knew he had suffered some struggles the past year, but in the car, It hadn’t really hit us…
Our excitement only grew as we stood at the front of the packed venue and the backdrop with the JM scribble and white stars was revealed. This was it. We were going to see our beloved pianist at last.
The a Capella recording of “Holiday from Real” blasted over the speakers. First the guitarist, then the drummer and finally Andrew appeared and in unison, they switched the recording out for the real thing and began strumming chords and hitting keys.
This is when it hit me that this concert could have been stopped by a force more powerful than the blizzard we drove through. The lush hair of McMahon we had seen in pictures was gone. A shorter, thinner brown was scattered on his head. He was always thin, but now even more so, his cheeks more hollowed. And, since I was front row, what hit me the hardest was seeing his beautiful, long fingers on the keyboards. Cracked and creased nails were making contact with the ivory keys, bent from sessions upon sessions of chemo. This show could have not happened, and that sent a shiver down my spine. This was his first show outside of California since he had been diagnosed with leukemia. Looking at him then, it was evident that since his days in Something Corporate, a lot had changed.
What hadn’t changed was his energy. When he reached the line, “Fuck yeah,” it practically shook the venue with how long and loud McMahon and the crowd shouted it. It wasn’t just a line in the song. It was a “Fuck yeah, I beat this cancer. Fuck yeah, this show is happening. And fuck yeah, you can bet there will be more. So yeah, fuck yeah, we can live like this. We can find hope.”
That hope is something McMahon is hoping to pass on. Three years later, McMahon is doing a solo tour and releasing a documentary of that dark period in his life called “Dear Jack.”
“As far as the documentary, I hope there is a strong element of truth and relatability, as far as the people who have struggled through a similar circumstance, feel like it is an honest portrayal of what happens in those rooms and in the life of somebody dealing with [cancer],” says McMahon. “From there, obviously, it is to instill hope in people and let them know that even though it is a sickness they are dealing with, and altogether different, that a very hard situation can yield a positive result. I guess part of me hopes just that people find hope in the film.”
The film is officially released on DVD on Nov. 3. Three special screenings will take place at the Landmark Theater in Chicago on Oct. 8, the IFC Theater in NYC on Oct. 22, and a TBA theater in Los Angeles Oct. 28.
McMahon says he is a little nervous for people to see the film for the first time, “I have mixed feelings about it. For me, putting out records, a lot of times the feelings that are attached to an album, you put them to bed. With this documentary, the intention was to release it well over a year ago and even before Passenger. Unfortunately, I wasn’t in the position to be incredibly objective about the film at that point. We kept going through edits and not really getting all the way there. I think the fact that it is sort of behind me at this point, I can finally feel like this is my past and it was a part of my life, but not the life I’m living anymore. It was almost essential that I got past that before we could put it out and I could look at it objectively and say what I liked and didn’t like about the movie. With that said, it never really drummed up old feelings for me as much as it has let me say goodbye to them. I’m trying to look at this as a way to close a chapter in my life. Nothing else.”
Even his family is joining the public in seeing it for the first time. McMahon wanted to protect them from having to watch it over and over because it is a hard thing for them to watch.
“Dear Jack” is directed by Corey Moss and John Morrisoe. McMahon and his family shot most of the footage from the start of his getting sick and diagnosed to the concerts post recovery. He even had the camera in the hospital when the doctor told him he had cancer.
“It coincided with sort of the same period of time that a transit kind of happened. It was the first time that I had been away from Something Corporate. I was separated from my girl. I was kind of out on my own for the first time. I was documenting that extensively. I had been filming my every day for nearly six months before the circumstances that led me to the hospital. I had a real rapport with the camera. During the day or at the end of the day, a lot of the time, two or three times a day, I would sit down with the video camera and say here is what’s going on today. Here’s where I am on the record. Here’s where I am in my head space. It became this close friend of mine.”
“In turn, when I was put in the hospital, I hadn’t found out I was sick right away. I just found out I had bad blood work. I remember my instinct at that moment. I called my tour manager because I was in the city and had to go to the hospital in Jersey kind of holed up on a day off. I asked him to bring me my keyboard and my video camera. That was it. It became this sort of thing. I look back and I see some of the comments that I was making and I felt somehow obligated to continue that documenting and continuing that documenting, what I had started to document, even though it had taken this dark turn. That’s why I did it. I didn’t expect anybody to see it, to be perfectly honest. It became this art therapy thing for me, I guess.”
McMahon says he would love to see the film more publicly broadcast, but might have a hard time finding a home for it. “The music channels seem like the most sensible place for something like this, but at the same time, sort of the heaviness of the movie itself, I’m not necessarily sure it would make the most sense on those channels for that public.”
This challenge only adds to McMahon’s nervous excitement to get the film out.
“It is a strange thing. I’m more curious how people will see it from a film standpoint because that’s how I relate to it. It is a pretty heavy film, and the alternative would be anything but. It is a pretty truthful piece at that because we weren’t expecting it to be released and this movie is kind of shot from my perspective. It is definitely a firsthand account of the event.”
This firsthand account and loose string of interviews with family and friends called for the film to have an extra element. It called for a narrator and McMahon could think of no one better than Tommy Lee.
“We brought Tommy in for a couple of reasons. 1. He has a great voice. 2. He was a regular installation in my home movies at that point. He came and visited me in the hospital. He was on the phone with me. I was working on my record with him before I got sick and was working on his record as well. He was able to bring an extra face to this and add some variety than just have some celebrity involved in the narration. In the same sense, he was very much a part of my life at that time, so it kind of worked out all for the best I think.”
So while there are no concrete plans to air the documentary beyond the three theatrical showings, fans do have the DVD release to look forward to on Nov. 3 and pre-orders are already getting exclusive content. There’s even a mini-solo acoustic tour happening right now with just Andrew McMahon and his guitarist Bobby Raw performing a few songs mostly from the Jack’s catalogue, but also dipping further into the Something Corporate well.
“We wanted it to be for the core fans, for the people who saw me tour during that period of time. It is special.”
The special stripped down tour began Sunday, Oct. 4 in Denver and continues through Oct. 29 in California. McMahon will also appear at the screenings of “Dear Jack” and provide a Q and A session following the shows.
Tour Dates:
Oct. 4 – Daniels Hall / Denver, CO
Oct. 6 – Varsity Theater / Minneapolis, MN
Oct. 7 – Lakeshore Theater / Chicago, IL
Oct. 10 – The Southgate House / Newport, KY
Oct. 12 – Highline Ballroom / New York, NY
Oct. 14 – Arts at the Armory / Somerville, MA
Oct. 15 – World Cafe Live / Philadelphia, PA
Oct. 18 – Sixth & I Synagogue / Washington, DC
Oct. 19 – Bowery Ballroom / New York, NY
Oct. 25 – Swedish American Hall / San Francisco, CA
Oct. 27 – House of Blues / Anaheim, CA
Oct. 29 – Troubadour / West Hollywood, CA
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