Tomorrow has the makings of a pretty great Sunday. Los Campesinos! will be throwing a party at Varsity Theater in Minneapolis and the Parenthetical Girls are kicking off the night (ahem.. show up early). I talked with Ellen Campesinos! (bassist) recently, and boy is she cool. Check out our conversation below! Psst..it's a long one, but she was really fun to talk to. When starting a new tour, what are the biggest apprehensions you have? I think in regard [...]
On this Counting Crows side project, personality is overshadowed by rote competence. Say what you will about Counting Crows, the divisive band that shares members with Tender Mercies, but you'd never mistake that band for anyone else. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for this by-the-numbers side-project. Despite the spot-the-classic-influence appeal of even the Crows' best work, its lifts are in service to a singular band identity tied to both a distinctive front man and unique instrumental interplay. On Tender Mercies' recorded debut, guitarist Dan Vickrey revives...
Happy Birthday to Warren Zevon, whose graveled voice I never truly appreciated until his final album was released just before his death in 2003. Known for his pithy, sardonic wit in song and social commentary - enjoy every sandwich , his oft-quoted insight on dying which would later become the title for the first of two posthumous tribute albums, is a terse encapsulation of that observational mastery which shines through his back catalog - the man who released just twelve studio albums in 35 years was nonetheless a respected mainstay of the rock circuit, celebrated by his [...]

photos by Dave Lichterman If it's any indication of the kind of local bands selling out 1,000 seat venues in Seattle, then undoubted "soul" is the new "grunge." The up-and-comers this year seem to be setting aside last year's grass-stained multipart harmonies for the heart-wrenching if not spasm-inducing fusion of gospel, R&B and rock 'n' roll that, when performed by the greats like James Brown, Stevie Wonder, and Aretha Franklin, we call "soul." In fact, those are the greats idolized and masterfully emulated by Chewelah, Washington-bred Allen Stone , who just sold out two consecutive [...]

MTV reports that President Obama has "a wish list " of campaign supporters for his upcoming 2012 run for re-election and points to a document obtained by The Tennessean . The list includes, among others, Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend, Jay-Z, The Roots, Counting Crows (?), the Band Perry (??) and a boatload of other celebs, CEOs, musicians and Jonas Brothers. According to MTV, the Obama camp has not confirmed (or denied!) any of this, so keep that in mind as you scan this random smattering of a list. Despite the image, Lil [...]

La campaña del 2008 del presidente de los Estados Unidos Barack Obama se ganó la ayuda de muchos integrantes del mundo del arte. Para su campaña de reelección de este año, parece que acudirá a ellos nuevamente. La lista de músicos que potencialmente podrían apoyar esta nueva campaña se filtró a un diario de Nashville la semana pasada. Entre los 194 nombres se encuentran Arcade Fire , Vampire Weekend , Will.I.Am , Jay [...]

South By Southwest will go down on March 9-18 this year—with the music portion happening from the 13th to the 18th—and they've started to roll out the list of performers. As is the case with Coachella 2012 , the line-up is a great one. With plenty of indie acts to get excited about and a few big names sprinkled in, SXSW is looking like a good time to see some of your faves and discover some new acts while you're at it. As CoS points out, Festival Outlook has the full list of confirmed [...]

Is Obama a huge Maroon 5, Glee , and Black Eyed Peas fan? Maybe, maybe not — but he does want their endorsement on his 2012 re-election. The Commander-in-Chief already has stars like Lady Gaga on his team, but that didn't stop him from releasing a "wish list" of celebrities he'd like on board as he bids for a second term. Amongst names we might easily expect to find here, such as B.o.B., Jay-Z, and Alicia Keys, there are such diverse acts as Arcade Fire, Lady Antebellum, the Jonas Brothers, Janelle Monae, Ricky Martin, Regina Spektor, and [...]

Sometimes I feel like that sad sack from the Alka Seltzer commercials of 70s advertising immortality. I can't. believe. I listened. to the whole. thing. And while the feeling I get from From the Vanishing Point isn't one of acidic regret, this forgettable effort by Midwestern alt-rockers Red Wanting Blue nevertheless leaves me feeling glutted as if on copious amounts of bland, mass-produced fare. This is not as surprising as it is still disappointing from a band who has managed to keep their act together for twenty years. RWB had a decent gig in [...]

Paint it bland. Cut from the same cloth as Counting Crows, Hootie & the Blowfish and others of that ilk, this Columbus, Ohio-based outfit suffers from an everyman-ness that might be charming on the bar circuit but proves less so on record. Despite some well-written material and competent performances, Red Wanting Blue ultimately sounds bland -- the kind of group that's perfect for an independent film soundtrack: familiarly inoffensive, offensively unmemorable. Leader Scott Terry does a credible Eddie...

I'm stopping 20 miles short of calling this list a "best of" list. As the stacks upon stacks of cds in my computer room would show, there's so much music from 2011 I didn't hear that it's impossible for me to gloss this list anything other than a collection of some my favorite albums from the year. Everything on the Essential Listening list is worthy of your money and ears but as a blog owner I am obligated to bring you one of these lists at the end of every year so here is mine as I felt [...]
A few quick EP reviews before the ball drops on 2011... Kurt Baker "Rockin' For A Living" EP Former lead singer of The Leftovers , Kurt has made a big splash with an album of cover tunes, and now his own material wows us on Rockin For A Living . This EP proves to be one of the best of 2011, opening with "Just Forget About It" with a memorable chorus similar in style to classic Elvis Costello. The handclaps and harmonies [...]

It's not every day that you see a rework of a Counting Crows song. But when you stop and take a listen, you'll see why we chose to post this track. Hamburg based producer Oliver Schories is known tech house and deep house sets. He has a style that's warm and subtle, which is evident in this rework. Some of you may remember the original song from the movie, Cruel Intentions . The slow, romantic, piano driven song is the perfect backdrop for a nice soft beat. While this one won't get you on the [...]

There are a few running themes you've hopefully picked up on. Not to knock the Christmas canon (well, not just to knock it), but I've always been more interested in new Christmas originals. We've had something like 700 years of Christmas music and yet most people seem to keep going back to the same well over and over. When performers aren't doing the same popular ones, they're being daring by going with the same lesser-known songs that everybody else does when they're aiming for variety (see more details here ). Another point is [...]

So here's the alphabetic by album title list of some of the fine recordings it's been my pleasure listen to in one form or another during the last twelve months, as ever there's a crossover on some albums due to differing release dates in the UK, Europe and the US and the pre-order / fan funded releases effect. LP's The Black Lillies - 100 Miles Of Wreckage Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know Austin Lucas - A New Home In An Old World The Cute Lepers - [...]

Si eres de los que piensa que la música country sigue siendo solo apta para el Estados Unidos rural, entonces tal vez deberías plantearte escuchar un poco más lo que grupos como Tender Mercies tienen que ofrecer. A lo largo de los años el estilo ha ido evolucionando y ha ido bebiendo del blues o del pop hasta llegar a convertirse en un género con una entidad propia marcada, pero muy tolerante ante cualquier influencia. Tan es así que el country moderno ya poco recuerda a aquellas melodías alocadas hechas con banjos para bailar en el saloon. [...]

Winter comes early in New England. We hoard pellets for the stove, sandbagging the porch against the coming months; we watch our breath before us as we pack it in, and smile, and huddle into our coats. The crate of winter sweaters and scarves takes its ceremonial place by the door, ready for travelers duty-bound to brave the frozen world. Frost covers the windshield when we wake, and makes the brown-gold grass crunch and twinkle in the light of a bright full moon. Though the solstice doesn't arrive until late [...]
From Counting Crows songwriter and guitarist Dan Vickrey comes Tender Mercies , a self-titled album chockfull of country-rock goodness. Opener "Safe and Sound" kicks off with warm guitar and gentle vocals that catch and hang on the long notes, an accurate sample of what's to come. There's nothing particularly innovative here, but that's not to say that the album isn't good. On the contrary, Tender Mercies is an easy listen, sliding through your speakers on smooth guitar and a touch of late afternoon sunshine. There are some country-style lyrics [...]

Apparently Snow Patrol's "Run" isn't the only surprise cover version we'll be hearing from Leona Lewis. In the interim between her fall single "Collide" and her upcoming third album (due out in March 2012), the UK songbird will release Hurt: The EP this Friday (December 9) — in the UK, at least — according to Amazon UK . Included on it are the following covers: Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt", Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris" and Counting Crows' "Colorblind". Who knew Leona had such eclectic taste?

and the LEONA LEWIS is thanking you for telling it like it is when she released that shiteous COLLIDE mp3 earlier this year, poor charting position resulted in the she-singer pushing back the release of album number three till spring of 2012. and as a ta-tah to you, the LEWIS has outta da blue, put a covers EP up on Amazon. she called HURT , is a 'present' because you knocked some sense into her record label because of the delay, is unleashed laters this week (Dec 9) and her tracklist is : [...]