This was my third time seeing Yo La Tengo this year — and overall — and I’ve got to say, this was up there with the first time I saw them. Of course, I’d have loved a long set, but you can’t have everything. It was only marred by the antics of Guided By Voices guitarist Mitch Mitchell, who found it necessary to run across the stage, leading Yo La Tengo’s tech-hand to get a bit aggressive with the guy. Can’t blame him.
Archive for the ‘Media’ Category
PHOTOS: Matador at 21: Belle and Sebastian
Having returned from the city of, well, a bunch of things I don’t really enjoy — to see and experience a bunch of things I do enjoy — I thought it may be prudent to post some photos from my experience. Here are some shots of Belle and Sebastian, and I have to say: What a set! The group opened with “I Didn’t See it Coming,” and you know? It was masterful. The first track from their new album made for a great live opener.
PHOTOS: The New Pornographers in Salt Lake City, Utah
The New Pornographers performed in Salt Lake City, Utah, at a free concert in Pioneer Park. The concert was part of the Twilight Concert Series, and acts booked this year include Modest Mouse, Matisyahu, Beirut, and more.
PHOTOS: Reel Big Fish in St. George
Third-wave ska outfit Reel Big Fish made their first appearance in St. George in ten years; to see them again was a real treat for the young St. George audience. Here are some photos for your viewing.
PHOTOS: Harper in Cedar City
Apologies for the spotty posting the last week — some unforeseen circumstances (I now need reading glasses, and operating for extended periods without them is intolerable) have caused a bit of a slow-down. Thanks to our friend Steven Swift, Cedar City musician and artist, we’ve got some photos from the Harper show at Groovacious last night. Check out his photostream on Flickr.
Revolver Records thrives amidst record store closures
T.J. from Revolver Records from MusicGeek.org on Vimeo.
T.J. Jordan has a bold goal: to run the last record store in existence. When T.J. Jordan opened Revolver Records on Sept. 1, 2007, most people would have written it off as a pipe dream destined for failure. Two years later, Jordan and his staff are thriving at the Phoenix-based record store.
The store’s success, Jordan said, is down to one thing: It’s appealing to music lovers in search of something new.
“The people who come into record stores are coming in because they want something unique,” he said. “They’re not coming into to buy the latest Lil Wayne record. The only way record stores are going to stay in business is by appealing to the people who actually want to buy records.”
Wes Anderson flexes musical muscle in The Royal Tenenbaums
Wes Anderson, film director known best for emergent classics like The Royal Tenenbaums and Rushmore clearly knows what he’s doing with film — but can we say the same about the use of music in his films?
The Royal Tenenbaums proved definitive in capturing the feel of music in a Wes Anderson film; by now, it has become a trait of his cinematic auteur theory. The overarching style — especially as it’s exercised in the film — is most crisply defined by the Mutato Muzika Orchestra’s rendition of the Paul McCartney-penned classic, “Hey Jude.” Replete with harpsichord, the track defines the mood and feel of the film as a whole.
While we may be able to attribute much of the musical consistency across Anderson films to the use of the Mutato Muzika Orchestra — the Mark Mothersbaugh-helmed production company has also made at least some appearance on Anderson’s Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, and The Life Aquatic — we can pinpoint some other important attributes of Anderson films that extend beyond Mutato Muzika.
Drum legend Lenny White to release new solo album
Lenny White with Stanley Clark 1976 Credit: Tom Marcello
Lenny White, best known for his work on drums in fusion jazz outfit Return to Forever, is readying his first release in ten years as band leader. Anomaly, White’s effort, comes off the back of a worldwide tour in 2008 with Return to Forever and a 2009 tour with Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke — together, they make up three-quarters of the group’s 2008 tour.
“We need to restart a revolution so that we can take back the music and stop the fluff,” White said in a press release from publicity group Big Hassle. “I’m hoping that this new album is a representation of that ideal.”
White’s most recent effort includes collaboration with Pink Floyd alumnus David Gilmore and former bandmate Stanley Clarke, as well as other musicians from jazz and rock music alike.