Tag: review
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Hulaween 2014 Review
Co-written with John Anderson
As the changing leaves began to fall and the costume ideas began to flow, Halloween weekend was once again on the horizon. The crisp winds of seasons’ change beckoned us to make the annual pilgrimage back to The Spirit of Suwannee Music Park for The String Cheese Incident’s second annual Suwannee Hulaween. While the festival this year started a day early with a pre-party on Thursday evening, the main focus of Hulaween still centered around The String Cheese Incident’s three headlining performances.
Upon arrival we were greeted by the beauty that is The Spirit of Suwannee Music Park. Nestled along the historic Suwannee River, this unique festival ground provided a premium camping experience unlike any other festival on the east coast, let alone the country. The majority of the park is covered by towering live oak and cyprus trees that provide shade to many primitive and powered camping locations. Given that the park is a permanent fixture, bath houses are scattered throughout the property with showers and flushable toilets. The 800-acre park also provides activities for any attendees who are feeling adventurous, such as canoeing down the river or taking on the full-length disc golf course. However, one of the most unique features of Suwannee Music Park is the ability to have campfires. It is a rarity to be allowed to have campfires at most music festivals, and on this chilly Hulaween weekend we were forever grateful for having a campfire to huddle around.
The festival pre-party kicked off on Thursday as attendees poured in from all corners of the country. Although temperatures were already dipping, a little cold weather wasn’t about to spoil anyone’s good time. We arrived at the park shortly after dusk and breezed right in to meet our friends at our camping spot. We quickly set up camp and headed on over to the amphitheater stage to catch the last bit of Particle before Electron took the stage.
Both bands delivered high energy sets blending electronic with free form improvisation. Electron’s set featured various Disco Biscuits tunes like “Home Again” and “Confrontation” which came to no surprise considering the band includes both Marc Brownstein and Aron Magner of The Disco Biscuits. The highlight of the night came when Electron dropped into a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb” to close out their set. Shortly after, we headed back to camp to build the first fire of the weekend and rest up for the upcoming festivities of the next few days.
It was a beautiful day on Halloween with not a cloud in the sky. It was a great afternoon for some bluegrass as our friends Judah and the Lion took the Amphitheater Stage and played some music off of their new album Kids These Days. Greensky Bluegrass was up next on the main stage followed by a early evening Emancipator set. Scheduling for Hulaween provided almost no overlapping sets which made it incredibly easy to see everyone you came to listen to.
Before we knew it, the afternoon had escaped us, and it was time for The String Cheese Incident’s main event. They opened their first set with a jam teasing the Friday the 13th theme before dropping into the classic staple “Restless Wind.” With the first exploratory jam of the weekend coming up next in “ Joyful Sound.” Cheese continued to build momentum throughout the first set with their spin on the traditional instrumental called “Valley of the Jig.” The set closed out with one of their newest songs“Can’t wait another day,” written by keyboardist Kyle Hollingsworth about the birth of his youngest daughter. From here, Shpongle kept the party going on the Amphitheater Stage while the Main Stage was prepared for String Cheese’s Halloween themed “After-Life” set.
The spectacle of last year’s Halloween set was one of the musical highlights that weekend. This year’s set proved to be no exception and in true Cheese fashion it was certainly a party not many will soon forget. Jason Hann started the set off on the bongo’s with a simple riff that could only be “Sympathy for the Devil.” Bassist Keith Moseley was on lyric duty for the Rolling Stone’s classic before dropping into the Ghostbusters theme that had everyone laughing and singing along. Frontman Michael Kang then worked his way through Bob Marley’s “Time Will Tell” before bringing out the first pyrotechnics of the evening with “Live and Let Die.” Guest singers Rhonda Thomas and Tony White as well as the Antibalas horns kicked it up a notch with a stellar version of Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven. Other highlights of the set included “Don’t Fear the Reaper” “Break on Through” and closed out with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”
“Miss Brown’s Teahouse” kicked off the third set and got the crowd in a groove for a fun version of Kool and the Gang’s “Hollywood Swingin.” This set featured some newer dance friendly tunes like “Rosie” and “You’ve Got The World” and closed out with hard hitting staples like “Way Back Home” and “Just One Story.” Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” held down the encore slot sealing the deal on another excellent Halloween performance from The String Cheese Incident. Following a brief stage change, Thievery Corporation took the stage with their worldly sounds blending traditional middle eastern string instruments with laptops and synthesizers.
Saturday started off with a drastic change in the weather. Brisk winds picked up throughout the afternoon causing the park to make the decision to limit camp fires until the wind died down for everyone’s safety. Although the weather was cooling down, the music was just beginning to heat up as Nahko and Medicine for the People brought a fun filled and inspiring west coast vibe to the Amphitheater Stage and Keller Williams hit the Main Stage. Keller served up some grassy renditions of Grateful Dead classics like “Samson and Delilah” and “Scarlet Begonias” as well as originals like “Kidney in the Cooler” and “Doobie in My Pocket.”
The sun was setting behind the trees as String Cheese took the stage for their second show of the weekend. First set featured sit-ins from Nicky Sanders of the Steep Canyon Rangers and Keller Williams culminating in a short but sweet version of “Franklin’s Tower.” Second set hosted a sit-in from Big Gigantic’s Dominic Lalli on the jazz instrumental “Birdland,” while the highlight of the set for us personally was a cover of the Talking Head’s “Swamp” dropped right in the middle of “Rivertrance.” Bollymunster came in the encore slot as it geared us up for The New Deal on the Amphitheater Stage. The New Deal was a special surprise to be added to the line-up as they called it quits after Jam Cruise last year. Pioneers of the jamtronic sound, The New Deal relies heavily on improvisation and building energy in the moment. It was great to see these guys up on stage playing together and having fun again, and we can’t wait to see them again in the future.
Following The New Deal, Big Gigantic took the stage for their late-night appearance on the main stage. This was a highly anticipated set as their set last year was rained out by a torrential downpour that sent campers running for cover and actually flooded certain parts of the park. Big Gigantic delivered a high-energy set with remixes of popular artists like Wiz Khalifa and Zhu. Frontman Dominic Lalli was personable with the crowd speaking multiple times throughout the set and laid down some soothing sounds on the saxophone while drummer Jeremy Salken held down the beat in what looked like a cow suit.
The party kept rolling with The Applebutter Express as they kick up their set on the Spirit Lake stage at 2:30 AM. The late night bluegrass tunes and their cover of Suwannee veterans The Allman Brother’s “Whipping Post” was top notch. As the evening came to a close, we took in the visual spectacle that was Spirit Lake with all its varying art installations ranging from a jellyfish inspired swing set to humongous burning man art car that spit flames and played music. Perhaps one of the most fun installations at Spirit Lake was the Sonic Forest that had poles scattered about that would create various audible sounds as you passed by.
Sunday morning at a festival always brings about a plethora of bittersweet feelings from the joyous satisfaction of all the fun that has taken place to the sobering realization that it is all coming to an end soon; and we will be left with nothing but a memory as we try to enter back into the real world. The wind had died down and the sky was clear, however Sunday wound up feeling like the coldest day of the weekend. Rising Appalachia who has taken the festival scene by storm over the past year brought their organic and uplifting sounds to the main stage while Dean Ween kept the rock n roll alive on the Amphitheater stage.
String Cheese opened their final show of the weekend with “Sometimes a River;” A feel-good tune sung by bassist Keith Moseley that always builds into an excellent jam. “Close Your Eyes” was up next that provided a jam that ran the gamut of various genre’s before ending up as a fast passed version of The Stanley Brothers “How Mountain Girls Can Love.” “MLT” (My Latin Tune) is a instrumental from Hollingsworth was a welcome addition to the set and it was great to see this song show up during this show, as well as on more setlists as of late. The first set closed out with one of Cheese’s oldest and most popular tunes called “Round the Wheel.” This was the first time this song was dusted off in over a year and it certainly disappoint.
After a short break, the final headlining set was upon as The String Cheese Incident took the stage to lay all the cards out on the table. “Colliding” kicked off the set, a newer electronic influenced song that has really blossomed into a fun song since debuting three years ago at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. Up next was the Paul Simon tune “Late in the Evening” which was a first time we have seen this song performed. Our favorite part of this song was the a cappella break down ending that saw each member of the band contributing to different vocal themes. Songs like “Look At Where We Are” and “Naïve Melody” reminded us to savor the moment and reflect back on everything that had taken place throughout the weekend while the heavy hitter “Texas” closed out String Cheese’s performance; a song which culminates in arguably the best ending ever.
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead closed out the festival on the Amphitheater Stage with a wonderful set of Grateful Dead tunes. JRAD, as it is often abbreviated, is comprised of keys player and long time collaborator Marco Benevento, Tommy Hamilton of Brothers Past on Guitar, Bassist Dave Dreiwitz known most notably from the band Ween and Scott Metzger from Particle on Guitar. These guys cruised through classics such as “Truckin” and “Uncle Johns Band” before dropping into a quick tease of Led Zeppelin’s “No Quarter.” The alarming accuracy and precision of these guys became apparent in the more rare tune “Crazy Fingers” before lighting up the night with a remarkable rendition of “Help on the Way”>”Slipknot”>”Franklin’s Tower” to close out a great weekend of music. This set really shed some light on how timeless the music of The Grateful Dead is and how their spirit lives on in this community nearly 20 years after the death of Jerry Garcia.
It’s pretty apparent that Hulaween may have found its new home at The Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park. It provides enough space to fit everyone comfortably while still curating an intimate feel, which is a rarity for many of today’s music festivals. While the park plays host to numerous festivals throughout the year with a wide range of musical genres, Hulaween may just be one of our favorite Suwannee fests. Although Hulaween weekend has just ended, we have already marked our calendars and we are counting down the days until next year when we will once again spend Halloween with The String Cheese Incident and about 8,000 of our closest friends.
Cory Branan: ‘The No-Hit Wonder’
I’ve never really been a big fan of contemporary country. However, Memphis native Cory Branan may have converted me. Here’s my beef with country music – it either transforms a mud-caked truck or a morning fishing trip into an emotional upwelling, or there’s too much boom-boom for my speakers. There is nothing wrong with country music and nothing wrong with a barn party with a little Kenny Chesney on the side; it’s just not my cup o’ Joe. Maybe, I’m just listening to the wrong country music (I’m totally open to some recommendations). But Branan seems to transform the genre with his fourth album, The No-Hit Wonder, and I can’t help but admire when someone brings something new to the table.
First, Branan’s voice is so simple and smooth; you can’t help but turn each song into a duet. Second, the album is so versatile! It opens with some classic honky-tonk inspired rhythms. “You Make Me” and “The No-Hit Wonder” follow a simple melody with simple lyrics that make the songs easy to enjoy, and the exuberance embodies the country spirit: good times and good people. “The Only You” has a singer-songwriter vibe that features soft acoustics and a piano that brings to mind Mumford & Sons.
Branan continues to keep his style unique and fresh with “C’mon Shadow,” which opens with what sounds like a ukulele, and “All I Got And Gone.” Both show a slower, sweeter side of the album. “All The Rivers In Colorado” is a personal favorite with its flowing melody and harmonization, as Branan sings, “All the rivers in Colorado couldn’t wash you off my mind…”
The album ends differently than the way it started. The No-Hit Wonder ends with “The Meantime Blues,” a song that displays a rare style and is beautifully accomplished. “The Meantime Blues“ is perfectly sublime and appropriate for a lazy summer day when you’re sitting in your hammock, sitting on a dock, or sitting on your couch.
Cory Branan will be an essential name in the singer-songwriter genre and will surely be a more than one-hit wonder. The No-Hit Wonder comes out tomorrow on Bloodshot Records.
Love it – 5/5
Party in the Park 2014
Party in the Park took over Centennial Olympic Park this Saturday, May 17th to a huge crowd of flower headband adorned teens, hipster parents with well-dressed hipster children and drunken college students alike. The weather had cleared up perfectly, amidst horrid rumors of yet another rained out outdoor Atlanta event.
Aside from an already impressive lineup featuring the likes of Girl Talk, MGMT, The Joy Formidable, Minus the Bear and Stokeswood, Party in the Park featured a food village including vendors from Chick-fil-A and Papa Johns and an exclusive tent by the Party in the Park sponsors, the one of a kind Desperados tequila flavored beer.
The Desperados Tent, conveniently located in an ideal concert viewing space, was open strictly to those over 21 years old and featured a graffiti artist and various acts throughout the night – including sword swallowers, acrobatic dancers, and hula-hoopers in full body makeup.
Desperados, the new beer by Heineken, is blended with tequila barrel-aged lager. This mixture tones down the bitterness typically associated with beer and adds a smooth, sweet flavor because of its spirits influence. Desperados is perfect for a night out with its unique style, taste and dynamic packaging.
The crowd was enjoying themselves laying in the grass, in the Desperados tent or just arriving during Stokeswood high energy, easy-listening set that suited the mood instilled by the beautiful weather and environment of Atlanta’s day long festival in the park.
Desperados in hand, I joined the crowd seated on the grass and waited for Minus the Bear to take the stage. The crowd welcomed the Seattle, Washington natives with loud cheers. Starting their set off with “Summer Angel” off their 2010 album, Omni, Minus the Bear brought loud energy and a twangy guitar sound to re-energize the crowd. Mid-guitar change, Jake Snider welcomes the crowd and tells us how excited he is to be back in Atlanta—with a few references to the legality of pot in Washington with answering whoops and cheers thrown in—and proceeds to play a crowd favorite off of their 2005 album, Menos El Oso, “The Fix.”
Dave Knudson brought an amazing energy whenever he took center stage with an equally incredible response from the crowd, especially during his guitar solo in “The Fix.”
Minus the Bear ended their set with “Pachuca Sunrise,” which Jake Snider delivered beautifully.
Hailing from North Wales, The Joy Formidable was next to take the stage. With Ritzy Bryan as lead vocals and guitar and Rhydian Dafydd as bass and backup vocals, the two create a powerful force of energy and put on a fervent performance. Matthew James Thomas intense drum-banging added to the loud punch the band brought on. Overall, the Joy Formidable put on a powerful punch, playing crowd favorites like “Maw Maw Song” and “Whirring” and got me even more pumped to see one of my favorites, MGMT.
MGMT’s performance was everything I expected it to be – trippy visuals, a seemingly half-lucid Andrew Vanwyngarden and a performance that was exuded then filtered through a kaleidoscope of whimsical talent. Whether you were standing in the middle of the crowd in right by the stage or lying on the hill faraway watching MGMT’s performance as the sun set, both experiences would have been equally blissful.
By the time “Kids” came on, I had gotten to the lying down part of the show. When the first few notes were played though and recognition swept the crowd, everyone around me ran towards the crowd because of how infectious the energy was.
One of my favorite parts of MGMT’s performance only lasted a few seconds, but its simplicity and beauty was mind blowing. While some of the band members were changing out their instruments, Vanwyngarden began strumming the chords on an acoustic guitar to Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Dream” and sang a few lines of the timeless song.
Last to take the stage was Gregg Michael Gillis, better known as Girl Talk –and I say that loosely, because Girl Talk as well as about 50 festival-goers all took the stage together. Girl Talk was hidden behind two inflatable sneakers and a huge table, but his energy was explosive as the stage was filled with guys and girls dancing. The entire crowd was dancing and jumping along to the entire set – his first in three years.
Aside from the rambunctious, and sometimes inappropriate, ramblings of the hype man, British Nick, Party in the Park was one of the first outdoor Atlanta event in a while to deliver on all fronts – good drinks, an excited crowd, beautiful weather and amazing music all day.
The Stargazer Lilies: ‘We Are the Dreamers’
The Lilium ‘Stargazer’, or the Stargazer lily, is an oriental lily characterized by its vibrant pink color and very fragrant aroma. And as far as The Stargazer Lilies are concerned, it seems to be the musical equivalent of the poppies from the Wizard of Oz; once under their influence, you don’t feel like doing much of anything but laying staring at the sky, wafting gently along as if in a dream.
Previously of Soundpool, John Kep and Kim Field have left the faster tempo of their previous shoegaze tunes behind them while stripping and slowing down the sound to create The Stargazer Lilies, self-described as “butterfly wings, slowly beating guitars enveloping the listener, ethereal breathy female vocals floating on a melody, rocked out bossa nova beats and bad ass bass throwing down the rhythm.”
The We Are the Dreamers album cover is made up of lilies and leaves, with a misty, hazy gossamer filter. I spent a good amount of the time I was listening to the vinyl gazing at the cover itself. Inside is a similarly flowery page in bright pastels and organic hues overlaid with the whimsical and pensive song lyrics that make up the album. The record itself is a rich pastel-pink with the signature lilies in the center.
“We Are the Dreamers” starts the album off at a leisurely pace with an ambling melody and hypnotic vocals, singing “with stardust in our eyes, the clouds are at our feet, we are the dreamers, wide open are the skies.” The tune is soporific, as is the majority of the album, and feels like taking a trip to the land of the Elves in Middle Earth (hoping everyone gets my Lord of the Rings reference.)
“Del Rey Mar” continues the dream sequence of the album with a psychedelic, more acoustic number reminiscent of the 60s or Xanax daydream in a field of lilies.
The album doesn’t have much in the way of variety and is more like one long dream sequence than anything, with the exception of the slightly more upbeat “Light of Day,” which sees a slightly faster tempo and slightly heavier guitar.
Don’t make plans to be active while listening to “We Are the Dreamers;” you’ll more than likely end up laying on your couch thinking of some field somewhere in some hazy utopian forest clearing. It’s optimistic and introspective, and definitely soothing. Its angelic vibe rocks like a lullaby, gently soothing and warmly embracing the soul with some talented guitar work thrown in. Honestly, while it may not be the catchy music you get ready to on a Saturday night, it’s the perfect jam for a Sunday morning hangover.
“We Are the Dreamers” was released in late 2013 via Graveface Records, and you can catch it at your local vinyl store.
Cherub: ‘Year of the Caprese’
I don’t know what it is, but I’ve noticed a huge wave of bands (usually all white) with major 90’s R&B influences popping up all over the place. From HAIM to Daft Punk, this resurgence has become the new trend in dance music, and Cherub is no exception. They’re new album, Year of the Caprese, out today, is drenched with 80’s and 90’s nostalgia. It’s hard to listen to it without picturing scrunchies and neon swim suits.
Hailing from Nashville, TN, Cherub’s two-member line up consisting of Jordan Kelley and Jason Huber gained recognition with their dance club hit, “Doses and Mimosas” and through word of mouth about their uproarious live performances which earned them a slot in major music festivals like Lollapalooza, South by Southwest and Bonnaroo. They’re electro-pop funk sound promises a party, but they’re album sounds more like something on your pre-party playlist. A gateway drug, but far from the hard stuff that will get you waking up in a Mexican hospital with no shoes.
Year of the Caprese, to me, sounds like atmosphere dance music, or chill grind wave, if that’s even a thing. But if it’s not, then at least Cherub can say they paved the way for something other than another excuse for frat guys to start going to music festivals. While the beginning beats and synth-pop influences hook you into the song, it never climaxes, the beat never drops, the full out dancing never starts. It just stays leveled throughout the entire song – really throughout the entire album.
Seeing how they got their notoriety from their live performances, I can see how songs like “Disco Shit” and “<3” could be much livelier and more beat-driven on a live stage with hundreds of people singing along. But I doubt I will ever find out since backward hat-wearing guys grinding girls in crop tops brings back horrible middle school dance memories of my South Florida youth.
Check out their outrageous video for “Doses and Mimosas” released today!
Tour Dates:
May 29 – Las Vegas, NV; Our Big Concert presented by X107.5
May 30 – San Diego, CA; X-Fest presented by San Diego 91X
May 31 – Los Angeles, CA; KROQ Weenie Roast
June 1 – San Francisco, CA; Live 105 BFD
June 7-8 – Ozark, AR; Wakarusa
June 12 – Manchester, TN; Bonnaroo
June 21 – Denver, CO – Westword Music Showcase
June 22 – Dover, DE; Firefly Music Festival
June 26-29 – Rothbury, MI; Electric Forest Festival
June 28-29 – Pilton, UK; Glastonbury
July 18 – Salacgriva, Latvia; Positivus Festival
July 19 – Bern, Switzerland; Gurtenfestival
August 1-3 – Montreal, Canada; Osheaga Festival
August 15 -17 – Somerset, WI; Summer Set Music & Camping Festival
September 6-7 – St Louis, MO; LouFest
The Wonder Revolution: ‘WOW’
Rocks, trees and other organics are the driving force behind The Wonder Revolution’s new LP WOW, and the genre of “wondermusic” it strives to create. Whimsical sounds and capricious melodies are the heart of the album, blended together in a seemingly made-up-on-the-spot way, winding along like an abandoned mountain road.
The album, which features a musical relationship between revered Kansas guitarist David Lord and Les Easterby of The World Palindrome, is set to be released May 27 via Air House Records and seeks to “inspire wonder” with its tunes. In an interview with Impose, Lord revealed, “the creation process is a type of wonder experience formed with a similar mindset as when I explore the forest, gaze at the sky or am able to do anything and be in the moment, with some distance from mental chatter.” The album certainly reflects these inspirations and feels very much like a musical accompaniment for a night sky or summer sunrise.
Clear, honest vocals and acoustic guitar melodies are speckled with the sounds of birds chirping, children playing and nature itself on a record that wisps lazily along like a leisurely summer breeze. With no distinct beat or regular meter, the adventitious melodies are sometimes like lullabies, on such tracks as “Breathing With a Butterfly” and “Tree Woman,” but pick up slightly on more upbeat tracks like “Pixie Mountain” and “Cloud Wonder Sky (Outside In).” However, the music never moves too swiftly, retaining its languid pace throughout the record.
Lord’s guitar skills are an overwhelming force on the album, showcasing his dexterity and creativity. On “Wonder Lensed,” his unique combination of unusual tuning and classical playing style produces a casual, dreamy sound that is complimented by vocals reminiscent of Bon Iver’s on For Emma, Forever Ago. Abandoning standard song structure, “Wonder Lensed” feels like a passing thought or fleeting feeling.
Micajah Ryan, who has worked with the likes of Bob Dylan and Guns N’ Roses, engineered the album, creating an encompassing sound that fills empty spaces with the sounds of life itself. Lord attributes everything he knows about recording to Ryan, and his heavy influence on the album is apparent.
WOW feels like a lackadaisical stroll through a fairy-inhabited wood, with no destination in mind. There’s not a lot of variety in the sound, but it’s intoxicating. If you’re not careful, it may lull you into a world of dreams and wonders, somewhere outside in the forest, wavering between sleep and consciousness.
Recap: Athens Slingshot Festival
With over 70 bands spread out among 12 different venues, 40 artists, a technology panel, a comedy night, sold out 1,000-person shows, and after parties, it’s safe to say that Slingshot Festival 2014 was a success. With the numerous acts and artists, it’s difficult to summarize, but we’ll hit some of the highlights of the weekend.
The festival kicked off Wednesday night with a performance by Tinariwen, a desert blues band from northern Mali. These guys could not have been a more unique start to the festival. The energy from Tinariwen was contagious, and the contrast between the band’s traditional dress and modern instruments was striking. Their harmonies were stunning, and despite the communication barrier, the passion in their performance was felt by the packed-out Theatre.
To top off the great start to Slingshot, Creature Comforts previewed – and quickly filled to capacity – their lovely new space. The after party featured DJ List Christee, better known as Kevin Barnes. Barnes provided an excellent after party soundtrack to break in Creature Comforts in the best way. Thanks to Dos Equis, free beer was provided, and danceable beats from KB pleased the partygoers.
Thursday was predominantly art exhibits at Creature Comforts, Bulldog Inn and Lamar Dodd School of Art. One art exhibit by Christopher Nelms and Ted Khun, at Bulldog Inn particularly stood out, involving 40 pounds of bananas, vodka shots, and karaoke. All of the art exhibits throughout the week were each completely unique and spanned a wide range of mediums.
Friday was a packed schedule, and it was tough to decide what to go to with the abundance of options. Lera Lynn graced the Morton Theatre with her style of rootsy Americana. During a few technical difficulties, she even gave an impromptu tap dance to entertain the eager crowd.
The New West records showcase was at the Caledonia Lounge, and all were exciting up-and-coming artists. Dega performed their synth-heavy compositions, which featured dreamy vocal harmonies, making quite the impression on the crowd for what was only their third live performance. Ruby the Rabbitfoot followed with her soulful, organic style of indie pop. Ruby had great stage presence and kept the crowd entertained with her quirky comments in between songs.
Powerkompany packed out The World Famous later in the evening. The cinematic electropop trio filled the room with powerful and convicting vocals the crowd seemed to enjoy.
Friday was also Japan Nite, featuring five bands from Japan performing at New Earth Music Hall. Peelander Z was the headliner for Japan Nite, and did not disappoint. The energy of the “action comic” punk group was electric, and the crowd responded with chanting, crowd surfing, and joining the band on stage.
The 40 Watt, had three of Athens favorite bands: Programs, Elf Power, and Space Trucks. Urban Outfitters sponsored free Weaver D’s, and there were several sightings of Michael Stipe, so clearly it was a true Athenian experience.
Kishi Bashi headlined Saturday night at the Georgia Theatre. As usual, it was a high-energy show featuring unique music. Kishi Bashi, with frosted tips and friendly smiles, revealed a handful of new songs, while making sure to play fan favorites like ‘Bright Whites’ and ‘Manchester’. The show was visually appealing as well, featuring an art piece that was progressively altered throughout the performance.
Following the Kishi Bashi show, much of the crowd moved down the street to The Green Room, where Washed Out treated the house to a DJ set, complete with trippy projections and experimental rhythms.
To end the night there was a second after party at Creature Comforts, more free beer and even more dancing. Slingshot brought Athens a multitude of international and local artists, with so much to see and experience we cannot imagine what Slingshot will bring in the coming years.
Kristin Hoffmann: ‘New Directions’ EP
Kristin Hoffmann recently released a follow-up EP to her full album, The Human Compass. The EP, New Directions, is comprised of three remixes to songs from the previous album. While the EP attempts to transform her ethereal Renaissance pop songs into something more electronic, it fails to realize the true purpose of a remix, which is to take an old song and shed new light/offer a different perspective by adding and subtracting certain qualities.
The original album has some undeniably beautiful piano melodies. Add Hoffmann’s distant, ethereal vocals and you’ve got a catchy pop tune, right? Unfortunately not. One of the qualities that the original album lacks is the presence of a single catchy hook or pop-ish melody. While melody is certainly important in any remix, it often does not have to drive the track like it does in most pop songs. With this in mind, I was hopeful that the three remixes could offer something that the original album did not.
With the exception of the “Ghosts” remix, New Direction doesn’t do much for the original tracks. While the songs do manage to maintain their prettiness, there isn’t much there electronically. I kept wondering when the track was going to “hit,” and then the song ended. For me, the piano and the vocals only carried the tracks for so long until I started drawing comparisons to Evanescence minus the crunchy guitars.
I do feel as though New Directions more successfully captures Hoffmann’s ideas and the original album’s ethereal goals, but it is unfortunate that the EP lack the sort of electronic punch that remixes need to be cool remixes that are worth a listen. Hoffmann sings about “a distant lullaby” in “Ghosts,” and that seems to be what this endeavor is: A distant lullaby that is too far away to serenade us to sleep, but just enough to keep us awake, like the ticking of a fan or the dripping of a faucet.
Children of the Stones: ‘The Stars and the Silence’
Extended Play, the first EP released by the collaboration of Mark Van Hoen (of Black Hearted Brother, Seefeel, Locust, Scala) and Martin Maeers, has proved only to be a tease- the best is still yet to come.
Children of the Stones is the new project from Van Hoen and Maeers, and they will release their upcoming LP, The Stars And The Silence, on March 25th. Joining them on this album are Rachel Davies (Esben & The Witch), Neil Halstead (Slowdive, Black Hearted Brother, Mojave 3, solo) and Al Forrester, plus Angus Finlayson, amongst other friends. For over 30 years, Van Hoen has been creating and innovating the electronic music genre. With the help of vocalist Maeers, it seems that The Stars And The Silence is the next step in the right direction and perhaps just what electronic music needs.
Where the EP, Extended Play, displayed a bleak sadness, The Stars And The Silence explores a lightness that can be found within the shadows of love’s darkness. “Love’s Last Loss” is a subdued and humbled testament of what was and a realization of a love and life that will no longer be. The composition of this first track is somewhat a cut and paste of appropriate sound bits, bleak glitchy transitions, oceanic dream, and mournful raw emotion. “Love’s Last Loss” is an appropriate choice as the start of this album as it introduces the listener to Van Hoens’ use of technology as a catalyst for creativity and expression.
The Stars And The Silence takes an upbeat turn with “Out of Reach.” As one of the more uptempo compositions of the album, this track is reminiscent of songs found on The Postal Service’s 2003 album, Give Up. The title track, “The Stars & The Silence” follows and maintains the form of a mystic lullaby that hypnotizes the listener into a dreamlike state which was first introduced on Extended Play.
“Just Like Coming Down” is a seductively somber track with heavier downtempo wobble. It is easy to immerse oneself into this track and, as the title of the song suggests, allow the vibrations to bring the mind, body, and soul completely down. The eight track on the LP, “Every Word You Say,” has similar vocal and musical composition to the song “Guiding Light,” found on Extended Play. Where as “Guiding Light” is disjointed with low monotonous vocals and overpowering electro beats, “Every Word You Say” is is more united and cohesive.
One of my favorite tracks on this album was the triumphantly dark “Toward the Umbra.” Similar to the undertones conceived in many MUSE songs, the composition of this song sets the tone of go forth and conquer, Musically I found this track to be the most commercial of all the tracks found on The Stars And The Silence.
Overall, The Stars And The Silence was a pleasant surprise. The variation and play of technology keeps this LP interesting and entertaining and I look forward to more releases from this collaboration of artists.
The Stars and The Silence will be released on March 25th.
Craig Bicknell: “Hymmmn”
Craig Bicknell’s new single “Hymmmn” is meditative and soothing. The track starts with a simple humming. I wait for lyrics but none come. The track is composed of layers of “hums”, “ooh’s” and “ahh’s” and seamlessly grows.
This is the beginning of Bicknell’s “Hymmmntronica”, a new style composed of intermingling sounds. The track begins to grow with more harmonizing “hum’s” but becomes lighter. Electronics are present, but not to the point of overpowering the main attraction. The piece reaches highs and lows and even combines the two. Bicknell can layer soft on soulful to create a beautiful melody of “hums.”
It’s odd quoting a sound rather than a lyric, but for Bicknell it works. More layers create more depth, and the listener becomes totally relaxed, and I can’t help imagining the movement of mouths. The track carries an airy, southern feel, like a hymn. The track is that of a contemporary composition; it ends with the same, simple humming to complete a piece with an opening and a closing.
Yet, I wish it would go on. In fact, after listening to the track several times, the melody stuck in my head like lyrics, and I continued to repeat the humming cycle even after the track had ended.