Tag Archive | "jenny lewis"

Bumbershoot 2010: Jenny and Johnny on the Starbucks Stage

Bumbershoot 2010: Jenny and Johnny on the Starbucks Stage

has collaborated with pretty much every musician known to man. Okay, I’m being hyperbolic, but the latest pairing of Lewis and her Scottish singer-songwriter boyfriend makes a whole lot of sense.

Rice and Lewis met when he joined Lewis’ touring band back in 2006 for her debut album Rabbit Fur Coat, and he’s been extensively involved in the production in all of her music since then. So we know they obvious mesh well, musically. And it certainly showed at the Monday evening – with their retro pop songs with a soul much older than the two of them.

The crowd danced along to the early -esque songs while Lewis gave Rice goo goo eyes from across the stage. It was nothing less than adorable, while being completely and totally pleasing to the ears as well. It’s quite fitting that their debut album together is called I’m Having Fun Now. Not that we weren’t having fun before, but it sure helps the crowd feel the love when you can see it right there on the stage.

Go to http://jennyandjohnnymusic.com/

Posted in Concerts, Festivals, Local Scene, Music News, SeattleComments Off

Jenny (Lewis) and Johnny (Rice) touring, offer free download

Jenny (Lewis) and Johnny (Rice) touring, offer free download

of and her man, Johnny Rice, whom you may have already seen open for her, have a new project and new tour.

Tickets are already on sale for several of these special shows; full dates are below. Unfortunately, this means we’re going to have to wait even longer before we ever get new Rilo tunes.

For a free track download of Jenny and Johnny visit: www.jennyandjohnnymusic.com.

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9/1 Santa Cruz, CA @ Rio Theater (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/2 San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall (on sale Sun 6/28 @ 10a)
9/3 Oakland, CA @ The New Parish (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/5 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/6 Seattle, WA @ Festival (on sale now)
9/8 Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room (on sale Fri 6/25 @ 10a)
9/11 Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/12 Minneapolis, MN @ Cedar Cultural Center (on sale Fri 6/25 @ Noon)
9/13 Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall (on sale Fri 6/25 @ Noon)
9/14 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom (on sale Fri 6/25 @ 10a)
9/16 Washington, DC @ Black Cat (on sale Fri 6/25 @ Noon)
9/18 Boston, MA @ Agganis Arena (opening for Pavement – on sale now)
9/19 Brooklyn, NY @ Williamsburg Waterfront (opening for Pavement – on sale now)
9/21 Hoboken, NJ @ Maxwell’s (on sale Sat 6/26 @ Noon)
9/22 Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero Theater (w/ Superchunk – on sale now)
9/23 Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/24 Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
9/25 Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge (on sale Sat 6/26 @ 10a)
10/3 LA, CA @ Palladium (opening for Belle & Sebastian – on sale now)

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MP3 Minute: Kevin Barker “You & Me”

MP3 Minute: Kevin Barker “You & Me”

 

Despite just releasing his debut solo album, You And Me, Kevin Barker is far from a newcomer to the scene. For the last few years he’s been recording, touring and collaborating with , , and , to name just a few. Now he has assembled an unbelievable group of musicians for You And Me. Produced by (, Devendra Banhart), the album features (Wilco), Joanna Newsom, (, ), (The Shins), and (Vetiver, ).kevin barker

In college, Baker became interested in the fingerstyle guitar playing of and . He began to write songs and recorded under the name for , , and in the UK. He then moved to Brooklyn where he attended film school at Columbia University and began playing with Devendra, Antony, and Vetiver.

Coming in at just under four minutes, the title track of his new album (listen & download below) is a soft and sweet cut showcasing Barker’s smooth vocals as he sweetly sings, “There’s a dream I see / Running down to the sea / It’s you and it’s me.” A great lulling track, perfect for a snowy Saturday night by the fire with a cup of tea.

Kevin Barker – “You & Me”

You & Me will be released by in January.

Kevin Barker: myspace

Posted in mp3 MinuteComments (2)

Destry – It Goes ON

Destry – It Goes ON

There are albums that are so overproduced that they lose all their authenticity. There are albums that are just right, and then there are those albums that are almost there. With just a little more studio time and mixing, former ner would have an amazing little album in her catalog with It Goes On, the first album from Darosa’s new band . destry

On a first listen, It Goes On sounds a little like folky b-sides from ’s first album – with Darosa’s voice paralleling ’ softer tone. But with a couple more rounds you can see the potential that’s been brought together with Destry. “Don’t Forget Me” and “Home Isn’t Home” are probably the strongest examples of how this record is so easy to listen to. That’s exactly what it is – likeable folk pop.

The couple times Destry breaks away from the similar sound comes in the middle of It Goes On. “Trouble,” a bluesy track that shows the rich lower tone of DaRosa’s voice with a haunting bass line that sounds like walking down a dark, wet street and wind blowing through the trees. Right after comes the piano-laden title track, which is a cross between a ballad and a waltzy folk song. It would fit perfectly into the repertoire of pop songs that often provide the backing track on “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Let it be known that It Goes On came together as members sent demos back and forth, which is why it is such a simplistic and sometimes rudimentary first effort. Like I said before, if members had gotten together to properly collaborate and write the album, the plain shells of songs would have flourished into something even more beautiful. More producing would help Destry separate itself from its more established predecessors.

But as a first effort, It Goes On works on the most basic level – it’s pleasant to listen to.

Track Listing:
01. Don’t Forget Me
02. So Far Away
03. Leave the Lights On
04. Big Mouths
05. Trouble
06. It Goes On
07. Home Isn’t Home
08. I Made A Mistake
09. Sing My Song
10. Took the Money
11. Tearing It Apart

Destry: website | myspace

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Amy Millan @ Mercury Lounge, NYC

Amy Millan @ Mercury Lounge, NYC

isn’t what you might expect from a Canadian alt-rock, indie siren with two cloistered, -rending albums tucked under her seemingly fragile wings. The songs off heamyr sophomore solo album, Masters of the Burial, are hushed and harrowing impressions culled from the absence of what once was, evoking a kind of visceral desire to sing the loss, a feeling that has one easily captured. Despite the delicacy of her sound, on stage at the Mercury Lounge in New York, Millan’s performance was nothing less than an emboldened call to arms for the lone, broken, and estranged…read: a sardined bunch of thirty-somethings on a late Thursday night who actually bought albums by and in an actual, like, “record store” way back when, who have been sweating sad indie rock for more than a decade, and didn’t start thinking country was cool when came along in high-waisted denim short-shorts.

Commanding the stage with her husky, earthen vox, dug-up folk-inspired live performance, and cache of consummate stage companions, who create rich, old Western- style weavings of sound with banjos, drums, and an upright bass, Millan gave one of the most honest performances I’ve seen in a very long time. This was a show without show if you know what I mean, no pretense, just truthful, honest to song, music torn from the scrapbook of her soul. Millan was humble, down to earth, and gave the vivid impression that the songs were almost seeping from the cracks in her gristly skin. Millan live is like sipping moonshine at dusk, on a good friend’s porch, catching hints of the magnolia tree around the bend…it’s just like being home.

Masters of the Burial, her latest release, is available now on Arts & Crafts records.

Amy Millan: website | myspace | Masters of the Burial review

Posted in Concerts, New YorkComments (1)

Download Land of Talk – “May You Never”

Download Land of Talk – “May You Never”

 

knows a powerful female voice when they hear one. They helped launch the career of , have been the home to the phenomenal ladies in and their sister label Team Love boasts the gang vocals of the tap-dancing gals in . The latest female-fronted band to join the roster, , is no different. Singer lives up to the legacy of the Saddle Creek gals. SP_DP_Gate_Cover_rev

If you missed out on the talk about Land of Talk, no worries. We’ve got you covered. You can download a new off the group’s forthcoming Fun and Laughter EP. The song is called “May You Never.” Just right click and save as to download or stream on our site.

Land of Talk – May You Never

The Fun and Laughter EP includes four new songs and three videos. The hard copy comes with original art by .

Track Listing:
01. Sixteen Asterisk
02. May You Never
03. As Me
04. A Series Of Small Flames
05. The Man Who Breaks Things (Dark Shuffle) – Video
06. Troubled – Video
07. Some Are Lakes – Video

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Oct. 27 – Casbah / San Diego, CA
Oct. 29 – Spaceland / Los Angeles, CA
Oct. 30 – Cellar Door / Visalia, CA
Nov. 2 – Cafe Du Nord / San Francisco, CA
Nov. 4 – Doug Fir Lounge / Portland, OR
Nov. 5 – High Dive / Seattle, WA
Nov. 6 – Nightlight / Bellingham, WA
Nov. 7 – Biltmore Cabaret / Vancouver, BC

Land of Talk: website | myspace

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Xylos – Bedrooms

Xylos – Bedrooms

Allowing me to be a bit brash for a moment, consider yourself lucky you’re hearing about this band now, well ahead of all your other friends who “remembers when” this and that band was hand printing stickers. will be your new favorite band. Xylos, a group that is composed of East Coast darlings, and who recently hit the “Bands To Know” L Magazine list, introduces themselves with a five song EP. And if you don’t pick it up immediately, you should be ashamed of yourselves.xylos

They call it Bedrooms, but the album art features a skinny little thing in a bikini standing shy alone on a beach. As one giant 24 minute feast, it plays beautifully and can keep up with your musical A.D.D.

In fact, there are so many different sounds and influences—Spanish guitar, electronic, world beats, -like swooning, shakers, auto-tune, heavy and soft acoustic—that it should be all wrong. Except the approach is so slight and tender, that even those slow songs come out romantic and whole.

“In The Bedroom” opens with a sticky sweet rhythm and electronic accoutrement, a little like a good —in fact, if Discovery hadn’t overkilled it with such ridiculous vocal manipulation, they would sound as damn good as this Xylos tune. It’s not a boring first impression, even though the track carries much of the same sound, it’s a good sound, and the end hints at drummer ’s talent.

If the opener was beachy, “Wrapped In A Page” is a foggy autumn evening on a porch in the mountains. Still lingering, still bringing about a newer noise with strings floating throughout. The xylophone and percussion do a quirky duet leading to an epic verse where dubbing and boy-girl proclamations give you goosebumps. And although “Yellow Flip Flops” sounds like a sunny one meant for a walk along Long Beach Island, we hear birds, some 70s folk, and that Jenny reference I mentioned (though singer has a better composition to work with). And once again, wait for the end. There’s an impressive solo bout that reminds me of a riff. But pleasantly, not in that condescending, lame way. By the time “This House We Built” and “Testament” arrives, you’ll understand how the EP is mood-based, never pinned down with a certain theme or heartbreak.

The album was a basis for frontman ’s haikus. And hell, if that’s what it takes, plus a group of childhood friends, a Craigslist post, and talented four (not one) songwriting minds entangling perfectly together, than expect more genius out of the English department.

I recently read that was so young (let’s hope they throw a killer one-year anniversary party this month) that they come across as amazing but raw; that they hadn’t found their sound yet. And I want to scream as loud as I can that if they change, I walk.

If you need more, like I did, there are some demos available on MySpace. They also drop their first full-length in the fall, to be followed with massive touring of the UK and our States. Pay attention—you’ll want to be front row, and those of you that are constantly awaiting the newest indie darlings, watch for who they bring to open.

Bedrooms is available now for on the band’s website. Get it here!

Xylos: website | myspace

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Heartless Bastards Announce Huge Summer Tour, Tape Set for Austin City Limits TV Show

Heartless Bastards Announce Huge Summer Tour, Tape Set for Austin City Limits TV Show


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