It seems that we are safe from the new Circle Line or whatever was
in Switzerland that the New York Times referred to as as "the Large
Hardon Collider” - I can only assume that someone has put hardon
into their spell check dictionary! Seems it has a touch of
dysfunction problem now. There was a lot of speculation about
whether we were all going disappear into a black hole but actually
I'm not in the least worried. As soon as it was switched on the
weather cleared up and we had a few days of what is called "Indian"
summer last week. Of course that has finished now and it's more
like spring with sunshine, a brisk breeze and heavy showers.
High School Soul - The New Duncan
Imperials (Chicago, IL, USA)
From their Pravda Records album
End of Phase One. Due for release next
Tuesday, 7th October
It's hard to believe it now, but before 1989 no band had ever
combined the explosive elements of white trash culture, Dada art
and Chuck Berry. There was a gaping hole in the fabric of popular
entertainment and the New Duncan Imperials sewed it up. Springing
to life in Chicago almost 20 years ago, the band startled the club
scene with its overpowering live show and reckless disregard for
boundaries, confronting unsuspecting crowds with a blizzard of
gloriously heavy riffage and free-association lyrics that ran the
course from the Brady Bunch to Friedrich Nietzsche.
The NDI saga began in Chicago in the spring of 1989. Bored with the
straight-ahead approach of the band they were in, Pigtail Dick
(guitar and vocals), Skipper Zwackinov (bass, balloons, and vocal),
and Goodtime Dammit (drums, drums, drums) began playing for laughs
in the basement of Pigtail's mom's house. "She really, really hated
us," Goodtime recalls. "That's when we knew we were onto
something." The band focused on laying strange yet sharp lyrics.
"Most of our songs were about food, or driving, or how to prepare
intricate chicken dishes while driving," says Skipper. "A lot of
people didn't get it, but the ones who did loved it." Their first
gigs, noisy slugfests in cramped dives around the seedy parts of
Chicago, are now the stuff of legend. It wasn't long before the
band was the toast of the town, and soon one of the most
widely-read rock critics in town, Bill Wyman of the Chicago Reader,
had anointed them "The Best Band in the City." The Chicago Tribune
followed suit (adding the word "live" to the title), and the boys
were in business.
www.newduncanimperials.com
www.myspace.com/newduncanimperials
Hell - Jen Lowe (Conneticut,
USA)
A real struggle to know which song to play next from Jen's album
From this end of the
Hallway. The entire album is beautifully crafted and Jen"s
vocals are right in your ear (well it works for me). Of particular
interest is the percussion. I could seriously have played any
track, indeed I did a few times before picking one entirely at
random!
Jen Lowe is a sincere songwriter who writes straight from the
heart. Her lyrics are direct and thoughtful, as she wastes no
time getting the heart of the matter. Having been a full time
touring percussionist and drummer with many national acts, Jen's
sense of the song writing process is strong.
Her blog reports that "I am going to be playing my annual
Butterfly Stitcn gig on Nov. 8th at Lumberjacks Camp Ground for the
Womens' Festival held there. This means I will be back in town. I
am looking for a gig for Friday night. House concert perhaps? Holla
if you got something."
www.jenlowe.com
www.myspace.com/jenjenlowe
Down to the River - Kompoz
(Florida, USA)
I just came across this exciting use of web and digital technology.
Kompoz is a social workspace for musicians.
Use it to compose new music with other artists around the world.
Got an idea for a song? Record a track. Upload it. Then invite
others to add drums, bass, vocals or anything else! All music is
created under the open licenses of the Creative Commons. Just like
this show. The only problem is that I don't know who was involved
in the track!
www.kompoz.com/
With all my heart - Marcela
(from who knows where?)
A remarkably low tech recording of a very simple song - it just
works.
From her Number 2 album - that's the title, No. 2
I"ve been trying to find out more but to no avail. I hope we can
discover something through Jamendo where you can download that
track and a couple of others. If you know any more, please let me
know. As you'd imagine, no website and no MySpace so no
links. Can you help out?
Chatting with
Jayme
Gutierrez who is based in Spain during the week. He has oput
together a great little video as part of a competition. Now there
are three things I"d really strongly suggest that you do:
1. Go to the YouTube link
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLpLXXzY6ec and check out the
video. I'm sure you"ll be impressed.
2. Rate the video by clicking on the relevant
star just below the player window. That's what will help Jayme in
the competition but then,
3. Add a comment to make connection with Jayme
and then Share by clicking the Share button. I bet there"s someone
who would love to see it, and vote!
www.myspace.com/jaymegutierrez
Cookin' with Cohen - David Bennett
Cohen (New York, USA)
"Mr. Cohen isn't the average hippie gone Wall Street, he's also a
certifiably smokin' barrel house rumba boogie-woogie piano player
in the James Booker/Professor Longhair/Dr. John vein."
More specifically he provided the distinctive keyboard sound for
Country Joe and the Fish way back in the 60s. Over the years, he
has played and/or recorded with The Blues Project, Mick Taylor, The
Luther Tucker Blues Band, Elvin Bishop, Hubert Sumlin, Melvin Van
Peebles, Happy and Artie Traum, Arlen Roth, Eric Anderson, David
Blue, Tim Hardin, Norton Buffalo, Jerry Miller, Jimi Hendrix,
Johnny Winter, Buddy Miles, John Cippolina, Huey Lewis, Michael
Bloomfield, Bob Weir, John Kahn, Johnnie Johnson, Jimmy Vivino, Jay
Owens, Debbie Davies, Byther Smith, Bobby Kyle, Rocky Lawrence,
Johnny B. Gayden, Sandra Feva and others.
www.davidbennettcohen.com/
Heartbeat - Melissa Ferrick
(Boston, MA, USA)
Acclaimed indie folk singer-songwriter Melissa Ferrick released her
9th album
Goodbye Youth on
her own label
Right On
Records September 16TH, 2008. The album will be sold
exclusively at digital retail and on tour per Melissa's request.
"Touring is my livelihood, and indie retail is dead. It seems like
the younger my fans get, the harder it is to get them out of their
houses so I decided to give them two options to buy my new album:
1. Stay in your bedroom and download the new album, or 2. Get out
of your computer speakers and have a tangible experience."
The album is available on iTunes.
www.melissaferrick.com/
Bonita - The Pimps of Joytime
(Brooklyn, NY, USA)
The genre-defying Pimps of Joytime pay homage to funk, afrobeat,
latin and hip hop, combining loops and live playing in a way that
is seamless and infectious. The joyful noise you'll hear is a heady
musical gumbo sure to get you moving. Their eclectic debut album
High Steppin' is available
now on Wonderwheel Recordings.
Native New Yorker Brian J founded the group in the eclectic
confines of Brooklyn in 2005. As lead singer, guitarist and
producer, Brian J whips the tracks into shape flanked by a 5-piece
band.
www.pimpsofjoytime.com
www.myspace.com/pimpsofjoytime
Dragonfly - Luthea Salom (New
York, USA)
Sunbeam Surrounded by
Winter is the new bittersweet album from part Spanish and
part Canadian singer/songwriter Luthea Salom, produced between NY
and Skopje, (Macedonia) by Malcolm Burn and Luthea herself. This is
her second album and it's evocative, immediate, poetic, luminous,
personal, innovative and though rooted in different cultures, it
has a clear identity of its own.
This new work of 12 original songs (plus one cover -
Rebel Rebel by David Bowie) doesn't
only reflect the surprising energy of this devout guitar player but
also her original and free spirited melodies, all lead by a sultry
and at the same time, cutting voice that can sometimes be soft and
sweet and others sour, but always painfully honest.
www.lutheasalom.com/
www.myspace.com/lutheasalomsongs