Video: The Ettes - "No Home"

The Ettes have released a video for one of my favorite songs by them, "No Home." Y'all know I'm a fan of this band. If you haven't had a chance to see them live, I highly recommend it.

www.theettes.com
www.myspace.com/theettes

Video: HYMNS - "Appaloosa"

Hymns have released a video for their infectious song "Appaloosa." The stop motion video was directed by Thomas Risch. Check it out below and if Hymns happen to be playing near you, check them out. They're an excellent band to see live.

www.hymnsband.com
www.myspace.com/hymnsband

The Donnas Take New York By Storm

The Donnas: March 24 @ Highline Ballroom, New York, NY

The Donnas kicked off their East Coast mini-tour at New York's Highline Ballroom Wednesday night. I'm a long time fan so I was looking forward to checking out this show. I wasn't disappointed. The ladies rocked the hell out of NYC. The only thing that would have made the show better was a few more songs!

The Donnas, Brett Anderson (vocals), Allison Robertson (guitar), Maya Ford (bass) and Amy Cesari (drums) took the stage to a packed and exuberant crowd. This was my first time seeing the band with guest drummer Cesari. While I missed seeing Torry Castellano rocking out back there, I quickly became a fan of Cesari, who drummed her ass off. She and Ford are a rhythm force to be reckoned with.

The band launched into their set and immediately, the audience was singing along word for word. There was a young lady behind me who sang every song, word for word at the top of her lungs. Normally, that would have gotten on my nerves a bit but, she was so into it, you couldn't help but get caught up in her excitement. It's been a little while since I've been to a show that housed so many hardcore fans.

Anderson is a true frontwoman, interacting with the crowd, getting everyone pumped up, clapping and singing along with her. Robertson is ascending to a bonafide guitar goddess. She was tearing through lick after lick, a blurring mass of hair (I think I got more photos of her hair than anything else!) in constant motion. They played a solid set of crowd pleasers. But, the crowd became deafening when the band launched into "Fall Behind Me" and the one two punch of "Strutter" and "Take It Off" to end the night.

In a world that is sadly still too dominated by men when it comes to rock music, The Donnas are among the few successful all female rock bands that balance being beautiful women and rockin' out just as hard and well as the boys. And, rock out they did. Not once did they let up, giving an adoring crowd one hell of a show.

Visit Facebook for more photos.

www.thedonnas.com
www.myspace.com/thedonnas
www.facebook.com/thedonnas
www.twitter.com/the_donnas

Gorevette Brought Detroit Fun To NYC

Gorevette: March 24 @ Highline Ballroom, New York, NY

After a disappointing opening act, Detroit's Gorevette took the stage at the Highline Ballroom Wednesday night. They kicked things into high gear and got the crowd singing and dancing along.

Vocalist, the legendary Nikki Corvette, danced around the stage in stocking feet and smiling while dishing up their fun brand of pop garage punk. Guitarist Amy Gore (Gore Gore Girls) tossed out fierce licks all the while looking like the bad ass, cool, guitar chick that she is. While we're on the looking cool thing, some people just look that way, without effort, Gore is one of those. The slightest move, had fans cheering her on. And if you were in the audience on that side of the stage, then you likely experienced the mad crush of fans that made their way up front to get closer to her. The band was rounded out by Gore's fellow Gore Gore Girl, Lianna Castillo (bass) and Al King (drums) rocking infectious rhythms.

Gorevette turned the room into a party. Personally, I could have done with a few more songs. You couldn't help but have fun during their set. They were the perfect lead in to the nights headliners, The Donnas. They're definitely a band to check out live ... fun will be had, if not, something's wrong with you.

They have an EP out, Lustfully Yours. Check it out.

www.myspace.com/gorevette

Russian Vogue Overwhelmed By Highline Stage

Russian Vogue: March 24 @ Highline Ballroom, New York, NY

Russian Vogue took the stage Wednesday night on the bill with The Donnas and Gorevette after a fun DJ set by Miss Guy. This may be a first for me but I have to say, I found Miss Guy's spinning more interesting than the band. I've never said a DJ was more interesting than a band before.

Anyway, they just weren't my cup of tea but there were others that enjoyed them. Personally, I thought they lacked stage presence and the singer sounded like he was screaming to be heard over the guitars. They played well enough but honestly, I can only kind of remember one song, something about a werewolf or silver bullets ... okay, "kind of remember" is obviously stretching things a bit.

I'm sure they're nice guys but I would have rather Miss Guy to have continued. At least I remember what he played. The only thing that would have made Miss Guy better is if he had gotten on stage.

Russian Vogue were kicking things off for two high octane bands. Sadly, they dropped the ball in the momentum building game. Perhaps in a more intimate setting I would have enjoyed them more and they would have seemed less overwhelmed.

russianvogue.com/home.html
www.myspace.com/russianvogue

ResidentBand Features Killola

Episode 25 of ResidentBand features one of my faves, Killola. If you don't know already, Killola has hit the road, yay! Their Buy The Milk Tour 2010 will bring them to NYC on Tuesday, March 30 at The Studio @ Webster Hall. Don't have tickets? Well, what are you waiting for? Go fork over some moolah and get yo'self some tix! They kill it live ... 100% guaranteed fun. Check out the episode below.

Oh, and they have a new record coming out. It's called Let's Get Associated. There are two purchase options ... the basic version and the we don't mind spending a few extra bucks to support a band who has given their fans a crap load of music for free version. Okay, that's not what they call it, they call it the "massive pre-order pack." You can pre-order it over in their store, HERE!

killola.com
twitter.com/killola
www.residentband.tv
www.myspace.com/residentbandtv

Doppelganger, Des Roar & Dead Sparrows To Play Webster Hall, 4/5

Doppelganger will be playing over at Webster Hall on April 5 as part of their "No Cover Mondays" happening. Also, taking the stage that night are Des Roar and Dead Sparrows. Go check it out, you won't regret it.

www.myspace.com/Doppelgangerisyourfriend

Video: American Bang - "Whiskey Walk"

American Bang released a video for their song "Whiskey Walk." They won me over with their live performance when I saw them last year supporting Juliette Lewis. That night they were, all up in your face, straight up fiery, whiskey drinking, kick your ass, foot stomping, Southern boogie and swagger rock 'n' roll. Check out the video below.

www.americanbang.com
www.myspace.com/americanbang
facebook.com/americanbang
twitter.com/americanbang

Robert Plant And The Band Of Joy To Tour US & Release New Record

Robert Plant is hitting the road. A 12 city North American tour has been confirmed so far. The tour begins in July and will preview material from his upcoming record which is set for release late summer, early fall via Rounder. The tour and record will feature the same musicians,The Band of Joy, Patty Griffin (vocals), Darrell Scott (multi-instrumentalist/vocals), Byron House (bass/vocals), Marco Giovino (drums and percussion/vocals) and co-producer Buddy Miller (guitar/vocals).

Tour dates are below ... no NYC dates yet.

Says Plant: “It’s been a blast working on these new songs…and I’m enjoying such creativity and vitality. It’s been a remarkable change of direction for all of us and as a group we all seem to have developed a new groove.”

In recent weeks Plant has been in the studio working on the planned release, which will be his first since Raising Sand, the multi-platinum, 6-time Grammy® winning collaboration with fellow Rounder artist Alison Krauss. Krauss has most recently been recording with her longtime band Union Station, and will be touring with them this summer. The pair do not expect to announce a new album or tour in the coming year, though when asked about the collaboration, Plant says: “Oh yes, Alison and I get together quite often…and sometimes we dance.”

Robert Plant and the Band Of Joy Tour Dates:
July

• 13 - Memphis, TN - The Orpheum Theater
• 15 - Little Rock, AR - Robinson Center Music Hall
• 16 - Tulsa, OK - Brady Theater
• 18 - Albuquerque, NM - Sandia Casino Amphitheater
• 20 - Phoenix, AZ - Dodge Theater
• 21 - Tucson, AZ - Anselmo Valencia Amphitheater
• 23 - Dallas, TX - Meyerson Symphony Hall
• 24 - Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
• 26 - Austin, TX - Stubbs Waller Creek Amphitheater
• 28 - Mobile, AL - The Saenger Theatre
• 30 - Clearwater, FL - Ruth Eckerd Hall
• 31 - Miami, FL - Bayfront Park Amphitheater

www.robertplant.com

Newport Folk Festival Announces Line-Up

A partial list of artists for this years George Wein's 2010 Newport Folk Festival was announced today. The festival takes place on July 30 - 31 and August 1 in Newport, RI. Tickets go on sale Friday, March 26 at 10AM HERE.

FRIDAY, JULY 30 ~ 8:00 pm International Tennis Hall of Fame, 194 Bellevue Avenue

• Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers
• Tim O'Brien
• Sarah Jarosz

SATURDAY, JULY 31 ~ 11:30 am – 7:00 pm Fort Adams State Park, Harrison Avenue

• John Prine
• Andrew Bird
• Brandi Carlile
• The Low Anthem
• Yim Yames of My Morning Jacket
• Doc Watson & David Holt
• Calexico
• Dawes
• Nneka
• O'Death
• Liz Longley
• Blitzen Trapper
• A.A. Bondy
• Sam Bush
• Horsefeathers

SUNDAY, AUGUST 1 ~ 11:30 am – 7:00 pm Fort Adams State Park, Harrison Avenue

• Levon Helm’s Ramble on the Road
• The Swell Season
• The Avett Brothers
• Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
• Richie Havens
• Justin Townes Earle
• Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
• The Preservation Hall Jazz Band
• Punch Brothers with Chris Thile
• The Felice Brothers
• Tao Seeger Band
• Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons
• Ben Sollee & Daniel Martin Moore
• Pokey LaFarge & the South City Three

www.newportfolkfest.net

William Brittelle & Sarah Kirkland Snider To Premiere Upcoming Releases Live, 4/3

William Brittelle and Sarah Kirkland Snider both have upcoming releases. Brittelle will release his Television Landscape in June, while Kirkland Snider will release her Penelope in September. Fans of both will be in for a treat when both premiere the upcoming releases live. Head on over to The Bell House in Brooklyn on Saturday, April 3 to witness it. Last year, early versions of the works were performed as part of New Amsterdam Record's Undiscovered Islands series. Both works have now been completely re-worked and will feature new performers. Check out Sarah Kirkland Snider's "This Is What You're Like" featuring Shara Worden below in the MP3 Grab.

William Brittelle's Television Landscape (June 2010) is an apocalyptic-yet-hopeful mixed-genre concept album from composer/performer William Brittelle. A classically trained composer who was once frontman to NYC punk rock band The Blondes, Brittelle's sophomore album showcases Brittelle's uniquely extensive experience with classical, jazz, and rock music, with influences for Television Landscape varying from Prince's Purple Rain, Michael Jackson's Thriller to the complete orchestral works of Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy. The music on the album is fully notated in every regard, featuring ornate string arrangements, epic guitar solos and jazz horn sections all performed by critically-acclaimed musicians/members of The Long Count, So Percussion, Alarm Will Sound, NOW Ensemble, The Brooklyn Youth Chorus, Dirty Projectors collaborator Matt Marks and more.

Sarah Kirkland Snider's debut album Penelope (September 2010) is a haunting 60-minute song cycle for female voice, chamber orchestra, and electronics composed by Sarah Kirkland Snider, featuring vocalist Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond and highly acclaimed chamber orchestra Signal, conducted by Brad Lubman, and sound design by Michael Hammond. A deft blend of Snider's classical training and strong interest in indie rock, pop and folk music, Penelope is a genre-defying work that moves organically from moments of wistful string and harp reflection to dusky post-rock textures with distorted drums and guitars, always buoyed by a strong sense of melody. Derived from a multimedia-theater piece co-created by Snider and acclaimed playwright Ellen McLaughlin, the work centers on a woman whose long-missing former husband turns up at her door, traumatized by two decades spent in an unnamed war. To restore his memory, the woman reads aloud from Homer’s “Odyssey.”

William Brittelle's Television Landscape and Sarah Kirkland Snider's Penelope
Live World Premieres
Expanded new versions featuring Shara Worden, Signal, members of Alarm Will Sound, NOW Ensemble, So Percussion, Long Count and more
Saturday, April 3rd
7 PM
The Bell House - Brooklyn, NY
$12 in advance, $15 at door HERE

MP3 Grab: Sarah Kirkland Snider featuring Shara Worden - "This Is What You're Like"

Website: William Brittelle, Sarah Kirkland Snider

One Night Only ... Ash To Play NYC

New York, rock band Ash will play one show in the US and our lovely city is hosting it. They'll be rockin' the stage down at Santos Party House on Saturday, April 3. You can grab tickets HERE. You don't want to miss this one. Who knows when they'll find their way back to a NYC stage folks.

And if for some reason you didn't already know, Ash will be releasing a compilation record, A - Z Vol. 1, which features songs A - M of their 26 single A - Z project as well as bonus material. The limited edition CD/DVD version of the compilation will feature a tour documentary that will also be available on their site soon. Check out the documentary trailer below.

www.ash-official.com
www.myspace.com/ash
twitter.com/ashofficial
www.facebook.com/ash

The Donnas Tomorrow, 3/24 @ Highline Ballroom

New York, where are you going to be tomorrow night, Wednesday, March 24? Personally, I think you should be over at the Highline Ballroom to rock out with The Donnas. To get you in the mood for tomorrows show, check out the video below. Me, I'm blasting The Donnas catalog in preparation.

www.thedonnas.com
www.myspace.com/thedonnas
www.facebook.com/thedonnas

Newport Jazz Festival Announces Line-Up

The artists for The CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival were announced today. The festival takes place August 6 - 8 in Newport, RI. Tickets go on sale Friday, March 26 at 10AM through TicketMaster and www.newportjazzfest.net.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 6 ~ 8:00 pm
International Tennis Hall of Fame, 194 Bellevue Avenue

• Jamie Cullum
• Grace Kelly

SATURDAY, AUGUST 7 ~ 11:30 am – 7:00 pm
Fort Adams State Park, Harrison Avenue

• Chick Corea Freedom Band with Kenny Garrett, Christian McBride & Roy Haynes
• Jamie Cullum
• Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra
• Ahmad Jamal
• Jazz Mafia’s Brass, Bows & Beats
• Anat Cohen
• Newport All-Stars with Howard Alden, Randy Brecker, Randy Sandke & George Wein and special guest Bob Brookmeyer
• Mark O’Connor’s Hot Swing
• Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society with special guest Bob Brookmeyer
• Fly: Jeff Ballard, Larry Grenadier & Mark Turner
• JD Allen Trio
• Julian Lage Group
• Trio Da Paz with Harry Allen
• Rez Abbasi’s Acoustic Quartet
• Berklee Global Jazz Institute Septet

SUNDAY, AUGUST 8 ~ 11:30 am – 7:00 pm
Fort Adams State Park, Harrison Avenue

• Herbie Hancock
• Chris Botti
• Wynton Marsalis
• Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra
• Amina Figarova
• Conrad Herwig’s Latin Side of Herbie
• Jon Faddis
• Ken Vandermark’s Powerhouse Sound
• David Binney Band featuring Brian Blade, Craig Taborn & Eivind Opsvik
• Marshall Allen-Matthew Shipp-Joe Morris
• Jason Moran Bandwagon with Jenny Scheinman
• Ben Allison Band with Jenny Scheinman, Shane Endsley, Steve Cardenas & Rudy Royston
• Gretchen Parlato
• Matt Wilson Quartet

TICKETS & OTHER INFORMATION

All Tickets for the CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival go on sale Friday, March 26, at 10:00 am on-line, by phone and by mail. General admission tickets (single-day passes only) also can be purchased in person at the Newport Visitor Information Center, located at 23 America’s Cup Avenue.

There will be a festival office in the Newport area where tickets can be purchased in person at a later date. For general information, craft vendor information or to leave a message for festival staff, call the festival hotline at (401) 848-5055.

www.newportjazzfest.net

Hockey Left Me Feeling A Bit Cold

Hockey: March 15 @ Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY

Hockey, the band, not the sport headlined the Bowery Ballroom on a bill that consisted of The Postelles and The Constellations. They were the band I knew the most about when I ventured down to the LES venue for a night of music. Having never seen them, I was interested to see what they were about live.

Well, I like Hockey. But, I discovered something. I'm not as much into them live as on record. Of course, some of my live Hockey experience could be colored by the annoying chick with the big purse who damn near gave me a concussion flailing around, had the gall to take a wad of nasty chewed up gum and stick it to the front of the stage, the stage that people in the front row lean and brush against, like it was a perfectly civil thing to do. Oh and in an act of pure class, she reached out and groped singer Ben Grubin (did I spell that right?!) at some point. Normally, I'd say she was just an overly excited young girl but she looked about thirty-five at the very least. And, though I don't condone violence, the young lady next to me looked like she wanted to punch the chick and I kind of wish she had.

The band worked hard. And, the sold out crowd was loud and enthusiastic. Musically, things were fine but vocally, after a while everything started to sound rather similar. So basically, I went from I like these guys to, they're okay. Perhaps in a less annoying situation I'd feel somewhat differently, who knows. In the end, I was left feeling a bit let down. Judging by the rest of the crowd and their reaction, I'm probably the only one.

www.hockeyband.com
www.myspace.com/hockey

The Constellations, Hypnotic Hair & Cowbell Love

The Constellations: March 15 @ Bowery Ballroom, New York, NY

The Constellations from Atlanta kicked things off Monday night at Bowery Ballroom on a bill that included The Postelles and Hockey. When they first walked onstage, I thought, well aren't they a mismatched looking bunch of folks. But, you can't judge music by appearances most of the time so I was curious to hear what they sounded like.

Frontman Elijah Jones at times reminded me of a cross between Eddie Vedder (channeling Sly Stone and minus the pretentious air), Rob Thomas if he went rogue and some random hip-hop guy ... pick a non-hardcore one and insert name here. Then there were the two dudes that looked like Marshall Tucker escapees, a hipster looking guy who loved the hell out of his cowbell, two chicks with extra short dresses, the guy hidden behind the chicks that looked like he might have some pot to sell and a drummer I couldn't see. If they should happen to come across this description, they'll likely say WTF?! Exactly! That was my thought when I saw them. Then, they played.

Their music was a variety of genres ranging from straight ahead rock, to hip-hop, to soul, to dance with some Latin tinges. They mixed it all together and it worked well and they worked the stage hard.

I was on the verge of being hypnotized by bassist Wes Hoffman's 'fro glowing and shimmering according to the stage lighting. That is, until keyboard guy Jamie Gordon busted out the cowbell and proceeded to fascinate me with his enthusiasm. Can I be a cowbell player groupie? I'm just sayin', I'm down with the cowbell y'all. And, so nobody feels slighted, I'll mention the rest of the band by name. There's Ryan Davis (guitar/keyboard) the pot connection looking guy; Jason Nackers the drummer I couldn't see; Trevor Birdsong (guitar) one of the Marshall Tucker escapees; and, Alaina Terry and Shabnam Bashiri (backing vocals/percussions) the chicks with the extra short dresses. For the record, I have no idea if Davis has any association with pot well, other than knowing how to spell it ... hopefully.

All was going well and I was getting my groove on but then ... oh yes, there's a but! But then, they got to the last song which I got along with well enough at first. But, near the end, it kinda went wrong for me. I found myself wanting to scream out and beg, for the love of God, make it stop! Other than that, it was a high energy, enjoyable set.

www.myspace.com/theconstellations
theconstellationsmusic.com