On Tour
Throughout much of its history, bluegrass music has been lumped into the category of Country music; however, the last two decades have brought bluegrass out of the shadow of Country with bands like Leftover Salmon, String Cheese Incident, Infamous Stringdusters and The Avett Brothers, and in the process has won over throngs of younger fans with a sort of “New Grass Revival.” You can now officially add another band to that list – Cincinnati, OH’s Rumpke Mountain Boys. With their first new release since the departure of bassist Travi
On September 29th, a man once lost to obscurity in the `70s and rumored to be dead played to a sold-out crowd at Bimbo’s 365 Club, performing those same songs that were forgotten decades ago. There are a few thing wrong with this picture.
The same day I saw Slash in Oakland, he tweeted “@slash: If u made the faces u make whilst playing lead guitar to people in everyday public life, they would have u committed. #fact iiii]; )'” That night he played a show at The Fox Theatre with Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators, and I saw those faces firsthand. He’s right.
Dr. Dog is one of those genre-defying bands whose sound is difficult to describe to someone who hasn’t heard them before. There is no other band that they can easily be compared to. It’s indie rock mixed with 60’s psychedelia, splashed with some punk and funk and soul. The result is a delicious musical cocktail, as anyone who attended their show Tuesday at the Boulder Theater can attest to.
Trudging into the Independent on yet another cold, appropriately misty San Francisco night, I was quite honestly exhausted and wishing I was in my bed. While I had been wholly captivated by Father John Misty at Outside Lands last month...my bed was so warm. However, I made the adult decision to stay and enjoy the show. Thank God I did.
I was beginning to worry about the health of rock and roll. I grew up on mid-late 70s rock. At that time rock was the music, [along with disco,] that was really the 'pop' of the day. A lack of Internet and MTV surely helped assist this reality. My reality, anyway. I lived in a number of areas as a little kid where -- regardless of demographic -- the main music blaring from one's house would be blues-rock-based.
The Congress are living the last American adventure. They've been on the road in support of their debut record, Whatever You Want, for months. They've been hauling a trailer full of equipment from city to town, looking for a place to spend the night, just trying to make a living. "Every night we're in a new city. We don't know anything about the venue. We don't know anybody." Says guitarist Scott Lane. "Or we know everybody. It's crazy."
Nursing a cold and wanting to escape a chilly summer night in San Francisco, I ducked into Café du Nord to hear some music from the roots of America. Pokey LaFarge and the South City Three played an invigorating set in the cozy basement venue. A former speakeasy, Café du Nord is the perfect venue to see a band that calls back to early 20th century music.
Rattling floorboards and seats caused by the stomping of a rowdy crowd is a common occurrence at sporting events. Such a regularity becomes rather out of place at a concert venue however, as was the case for The Head and the Heart’s sold out Boulder show. Hollers and whistles accompanied the vibrations during the set, at its finale, and held out through to the encore.
The way the Alan Evans Trio was formed was an act of fate. Guitarist Danny Mayer was drawn to Alan Evans first as a fan of the legendary group Soulive and then a musical connection was established that only magnified when they linked up with organ player Beau Sasser. Firstly, the combined energy that these guys have together is mind blowing.
