Category Archives: Tunes

In Concert: Josh Rouse

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I enjoyed seeing him so much last year, I jumped at the chance to see him in an even smaller, better venue this year (Old Town). He did not disappoint although he was a bit more low key due to an adult case of chicken pox! Touched on all the albums, including the full She’s Spanish, I’m American EP with Paz Suay joining him on stage. Still haven’t heard him play my favorite song live but oh well, something to live for.

Opener:
Kyle Andrews: Totally cute goofball. “This is a song from my album. That I recorded. In my bedroom.” Nice sounds, cute stage persona. Lots of potential.

In Concert: Low

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The first of five concerts in seven days (thanks to the moron -moi- who plans my life).

Moody and turgid and layered and dense and quite lovely. Just as on their albums. You picture them holed up in their house in Minnesota over the long winters, depressing each other with these dark, deep sounds.

Openers:

Charlie Parr: Really enjoyable. Accompanied by a washboard player. Bluesgrass / folk. Storyteller.

Lonely, Dear: Bizarre.

Best of March.

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Oh dear, halfway through April but so busy watching Buffy that I’m barely blogging. Dearie me.

The best gig I went to in March was on the very first day of the month when I saw Gomez. If they swing through your town on this tour, I highly recommend getting a ticket! They were just brilliant and wonderful and I’ve spent weeks now listening to their back catalog. Really talented musicians. Of course, the night I saw Lupe Fiasco and the Roots was also really fun and I’d have to say they were close runners-up.

The best flick I saw in March was The Lives of Others, the german film that won the foreign language Oscar. But Zodiac was a close second… I meant to see a couple other movies, but wound up cancelling on people due to my extreme slacker tiredness and ridiculous early morning work schedule. So far April is not seeing me in the theater much either so this seems to be a contining problem, doesn’t it.

While I wasn’t at the movie theater much, I did get back on the reading horse in March and the best book I read was “Winter’s Bone” by Daniel Woodrell. It was short and sharp, biting and intense, and I was blown away. I also read some great short stories by Margo Lanagan, some poetry by Claudia Emerson, and “Black Cat”, by Martyn Bedford (the author of one of my all-time faves “The Houdini Girl”).

And as for tunes I listened to in March? Hmmm, that’s a tough one. I was enjoying the new Arcade Fire, especially “Intervention”, a beautiful new album from Great Lake Swimmers, and lots of singles from folks such as Brett Dennen, Bob Evans, Soltero, and Chris Brokaw … and still listening to stuff I bought earlier in the year: Guggenheim Grotto, the Shins, the Fratellis, Explosions in the Sky, and Youth Group.

Random personal highlights: a) I finally uploaded my London pictures to Flickr, although I have yet to get them printed for my mom, despite her asking me every time I talk to her; b) I got my taxes done a month ahead of time; c) went down south for (another) family wedding and got some quality time with lots of my cousins and one of my aunts; d) met Jen & JR!!; e) went to an awesome Cuban restaurant I hadn’t been to before; f) had a random doctor visit to find out I have officially lost 16 pounds on the infamous diet! Wooooooot!!!!; g) got a letter from Rumi, an old, old friend I haven’t heard from in ages (now if only I can find some time in my slackass life to write back!!!); and h) met KC’s new baby Avery (a.k.a. “Mini Coop”) who I had made a quilt for before her birth.

Lowlights? I can’t believe I’m saying this, but looking over my calendar, I’m not seeing any real lowlights. Must’ve been a damn good month! 🙂 Maybe the lowlight is I was only out of town for one weekend, but I still didn’t really get any quilting done. My powers of procrastination = they are mighty!

In Concert: Neko Case

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Truly bizarre concert. She has a big, bad, beautiful voice. Truly spine-tingling. But every song was truncated. Average length in concert = 90 seconds? Very bizarre. Her band is full of musicians who can clearly play many instruments, styles, etc., as they were also the opening band of the night. But during her portion, it was almost as if any bridges, or instrumental parts, or song “breathers” had been cut out. Just verse, chorus, verse, chorus, ABRUPT ENDING. At one point, my friend leaned over and said “Uh, dude? Do all the songs seem really. really. SHORT. Like they just END. all of a sudden.” I said, “Uh, dude? Yes. Yes they do.”

And, as has happened to me at this venue before which is now making me wonder if there’s some secret Christian Coalition behind it all, the end of the concert (and the only songs that were spun out to any length whatsoever) turned into a bible banger gospel session. If I wanted to hear bible music, I’d go to church!

In Concert: The Roots

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Holy fucking crap, do these guys put on an amazing show. I really had no idea what to expect going in, but there’s nothing bad to say about processing in down the center aisle with your brass band playing to start things off, now is there. Huge variety of styles. Did covers, medleys of random hip-hop, R&B songs. Touched on their back catalog. Did slow songs, fast songs, dance songs. At one point, I looked around and it really seemed like I was the only person in the audience who didn’t know ALL the words to that particular song…that happened consistently throughout the night. Widely mixed crowd, all completely absorbed and entranced, on their feet dancing and yelling and totally involved with the tunes. We were blown away.

In Concert: Lupe Fiasco

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Wow, what a super fun kid. Just super super fun. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious fun. Just a DJ, him and his “backup rapper” I will call the dude for lack of a better term, with a few singers coming to the stage for a song here or there. He’s cute and sassy and fun and tells funny stories and dances like just a total goofball.

I bought this album in January after sort of putting it off all fall. Then I hadn’t even listened to it before going to this concert. I’m an idiot.

When we finally find out what rare and incurable disease I am dying from, I want someone to contact the Make-a-Wish foundation and get me half-an-hour on the dancefloor with Lupe Fiasco.