“I’m so blessed to / have spent the time / with my family and the friends I love/ with my short life / I have met so many people I deeply care for”
These final chanted lyrics of Yeasayer’s “Red Cave” go a ridiculously long way in summarizing exactly what my recent trip to Chicago for the fifth annual Pitchfork Festival meant to me. While I’d been to the fest several times in the past (the first three, actually), this marked the first time that a huge group of old friends (LBHS stand up!) were able to meet up and enjoy the city and the music and the drunken shenanigans together. (Pictured at right: Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips; all photos by R. Kevin Rose.)
What’d I learn? well, for starters… we are all official members of the POSI-ADULT CREW. Not straight edge — not even close — but definitely upbeat and affable. Positive, if you will. A group of kids raised on (amongst many, many other things) Bad Brains’ “P.M.A.”, Seven Seconds, Dag Nasty, Gorilla Biscuits, etc., who grew into a geographically dispersed crew of adults … all of us still kinda “Screaming For Change” in our own unique ways. (LOTS MORE PICS AND SHENANIGANS AFTER THE JUMP) Read the rest of this entry »
Some of you might be surprised that music isn’t my primary motivation for going to this weekend’s fifth annual Pitchfork Music Festival, but seriously, folks … that’s the god’s honest truth. I mean, I’m definitely hyped about going and checking out a handful of the bands playing there, but what has me most excited is a get-together with a group of old friends who’ll be congregating in Chi-town for the fest. A motley crew to say the absolute least. Let’s just hope none of us get arrested this weekend – unlike that other Chicago adventure that ended with my boy getting thrown in the pokey for public nudity! Three-plus days chock full o’ friends, libations, hot dogs (not really, well, kinda … I’ve never been to Hot Dougs!) and music … it just can’t come soon enough! Read the rest of this entry »
Ian Svenonius (ex-Nation Of Ulysses, Make Up, Etc) is, was, and will always be one of my favorite “voices” of underground culture. His critique and commentary “RE: the transformative capacities of music / art / aesthetics” pretty much always inspires. Whether it be through song, prose and/or the series of interviews he’s done on teh Internets over the last couple of years, Soft Focus, Svenonius is always advancing a dialogue that’ll stimulate both thought and laughter … often simultaneously.
Anyway, I’m pretty jazzed about Season 3 of Soft Focus and the subjects — Mike Watt, Steve Albini, Jennifer Herrema, Ted Leo, Jello Biafra, Etc — he has lined up for it. Check out Part 1 (of 4) of his interview with Stephen Malkmus, after the jump … Read the rest of this entry »
One of my favorite rock bands of the last coupla years, these Georgia sons are playing a coupla one-off headlining gigs after a run of dates opening for the almighty Dinosaur Jr. (and a co-headlining European tour w/ A Place To Bury Strangers directly before that) … and we were lucky enough to land one!
I didn’t get to see Dead Confederate’s set in support of Manchester Orchestra in late ‘08 at Orpheum … but I do know they absolutely laid waste to a New World Brewery crowd the day after their Langerado set earlier last year.
The band’s sound: an intoxicating blend of alt-country, grunge, psych, etc; think My Morning Jacket meets Nirvana meets Pink Floyd. Sure, you’ll dig their authentically Southern (ie: slide geetars, trucker hats, unpretentious stage presence, etc.) vibe … but that’s probably not what you’ll focus on. Instead, you’ll just get lost in the ROCK.
What’s up Loafers!?! Real quick, before we get to the content … just wanted to say hi!!! Y’know, introduce myself, all that jazz, as I’m finally gonna start contributing here on Tampa Calling. I’m Jack. I promote shows and select tunes (w/ my boy DJ Archaea) and I’ve actually been heading up my own blog as well for a minute now. Anyway, here it is: my first post, copied directly from the aestheticized >>> blog and focused squarely on the out-of-towners playing this Saturday night at Creative Loafing’s Sensory Overload 4 point 0.
ELIOT LIPP = Over the last 5+ years, Mr. Lipp has consistently produced some of the world’s finest Electro / Glitch-Hop, for a handful of the hottest labels in the game (Eastern Developments, Hefty, Mush, etc.). His music is marked by an obsessive exploration of the place where analog synths and software-based composition meet, his sound almost immediately recognizable (a quality all-too-rare in Electronic Music) — rich and relentlessly melodic lines laced over funky breaks and broken beats. He just released Peace Love Weed 3D on his own Old Tacoma imprint; highly recommended for fans of PREFUSE 73, DABRYE, DJ SHADOW, Golden-Era Hip Hop, etc.
