Real quick y’all. I’ll be regurgitating some tasty concert action from the last month, as well as spurt up some SXSW swankiness going on this week, but in the meantime, I actually have my RPM Challenge album up. Yup, for 2013, I did an album in the month of February. Now, I didn’t have extra time to put some pizazz on it, but I did crank out enough to call it an ‘album’. So there’s that. Head on over to my real life blog for a little more on the process. Check out the tunes rightcheer:
For those of you who don’t know, I run some music related stuff over at h0key.net. Part of what I besides chronicling concerts is actually making music. My schedule fills up fast so more often than not, I run out of time exploring. Enter the RPM Challenge. It’s a February long challenge to produce an album. No strings, no expectations, and no real quality levels. Just make. This year was my second crack at it and it ended being a much different experience. Continue reading RPM Challenge 2013: A Very Different Tune
I workout but I need to stay connected. Connected to the internet? Well, not so much, but it does help. Connected to music? Definitely. It’s the major motivating factor in my, and probably your, workout routine. There’s just so many pains around the delivery that makes the routine hard to manage. Welp, I think I finally found a way to make it easy. And all on the cheap too. Continue reading Sporting Music Technology
Whew, what a rough start to the month of November. A festival and couple of concerts under my belt and I still had energy for one more show for the start of the week. I closed out my marathon checking out White Denim at Antone’s along with some other Bonaroo alumni. Now there were some ups and downs but man, I can watch White Denim play for hours on end.
So this Bonaroo thing had an emcee that was also a comedian on the stand up portion of their festival. I forgot who her name but was, but that was in part to the fact that nobody was really laughing at her jokes. I’ll give her credit, though, she plowed on through with a cute smile and kept the pace of the show moving. Kudos to whomever that was.
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Asherel got on first. So another show and another hard rocking opener. I’ve lucked out to some real curtain jerkers here recently. Asherel had that flavor but more on a blues side. I also really dug the rhythm guitarist mesh hat. I have to admit, my head banged just a wee bit.
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Next up was Maps & Atlases. Who are they? Well think if instead of selling out, Kings of Leon went granola and heavy indie. That’s Maps & Atlases. I definitely got a prog rock feel out of these guys. The sentiment is sweet and calm and everyone should check these guys out.
So this is my third time seeing White Denim. The first time blew my mind and the second one kinda left me wondering what happening. Well, the third time saw them return to form for me at least. Although I have this one nagging feeling.
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They are a jam band and they rock out really well. But the progressions between the songs are the same. I think the same chain of songs first time around was alot like this time. The switch over from Don’t Look That Way At It to It’s Him to At The Farm is way too familiar. Now, it’s not a big deal, but I’d like to see them grow just a bit more and be able to flow between all of their songs. That’s all.
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And that’s my only gripe. I still walked away happy and entertained, even though comedian lady tempered it just a bit. This will be the last time I say this: go see White Denim. It’s fun and you will be happy after as well. Heck, you might as well do it a Bonaroo.
So on November 9th, I was already recovering from both a full Fun Fun Fun Fest and a private whack out with Primus in 3D. It was not enough to keep me home, however, as it was a day for an intimate performance with The Black and White Years at Lambert’s BBQ. The last show for the year for those guys saw the debut of some new songs and a good stream of their known jams. I was there in full tow and got the whole experience.
Okay let me talk about Lambert’s BBQ first. It’s a downtown Austin food joint that somehow had enough room for an upstairs event space. One look at the menu revealed a downtown city expensive meat selection. Nope. I think the drinks might have been expensive but I don’t really remember. The event space had a loud ass PA system so I was happy to hang in the back and not have to pay attention too much.
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On to the tunes. Hundred Visions opened up and they blasted my ears right off. In a good way. Sometimes you just need some straightforward rock and roll and Hundred Visions gave that to me. I really have nothing else to say. The Light That Starts The Day says all that there needs to be said.
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So with some heavy duty riffs out of the way, it was time to get quirky. The Black And White Years got up on stage and kind of awkwardly jerked their way to some funky grooves. I like to think of them as some kind of stuttering 80s break dancer. Sure they may look a little off, but man can they move. It’s most evident on songs like Up! and Steady As It Goes.
They closed out their set with a couple of upcoming songs and we were on our way. I tend forget just how unassuming an small intimate show could be. The smells of the BBQ didn’t distract me too well. Hundred Visions kicked me in the pants and The Black and White Years stood me back up and slapped me silly.