Stomping in New Orleans, 2009 Edition

I was down at The Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans this year. So many highlights: the New Orleans Revue ranging from swamp pop to hard-bitten funk; Wanda Jackson's great sense of humor and voice; Cyril and Roy from the Flamin' Groovies tearing it up onstage w/ the A-Bones; Otis Clay roaring out a soul set w/ the Hi Rhythm Section; the Bo-Keys w/ Skip Pitts; and Dale Hawkins w/ James Burton and Deke Dickerson & the Ecco-phonics.

Jon Pareles captured the scene at night one very well -- and outlasted me. I can't wait to see what he writes about night two.

Here's the newest inductee to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, "the sweet lady with the nasty voice," Wanda Jackson on stage:



Here's me w/ original Flamin' Groovies frontman Roy Loney. He may look like a high school science teacher, but dude packs a wallop!



The Ponderosa Stomp exhibition at the Louisiana State Museum was stunning, encompassing Louisiana's rock and roll roots. It even reframes the argument over where rock and roll originated.



Howard Tate, whose 2001 Stomp set catapulted him back into the limelight, sings to the crowd:



Dale Hawkins and James Burton seemed like they were having more fun than just about anybody, with huge smiles on their faces. The P-Stomp has been the site of their only reunion shows since recording together in 1957. "Suzie Q" was a revelation:



I'm exhausted but musically sated.

Experiencing the Rock

In between watching episodes of The Deadliest Warrior while trying to get over my stupid cold I went to see a band from Baltimore called Ponytail with my friend Michael Azerrad at the Music Hall of Williamsburg.



Neither one of us had been to the venue but understood it might look a little something like the Bowery Ballroom. Ponytail hit the stage sometime around 11pm and by that time my cold was really starting to work a number on me so I didn’t know what to expect, if I could have a genuine reaction to the music given my unfriendly sinuses.

Of course when a serious authority in music tells you that a live performance is a “thing,” it’s a good idea to listen. For the record, Ponytail blew me and my nasty little cold away. The experimental guitar work is phenomenal and Jeremy Hyman’s drums are larger than life and Molly Siegel’s garbled, maniacal, feisty, jarring, cotton candy, make no sense voice is impossible to contain. She had me at, uh, well, she doesn’t really sing with words but here she is crowd surfing!

And what would a rock concert be without a little carnage? I think guitarist Ken Seeno got this little bloody number while shredding onstage.

But that didn’t stop him from smiling as it’s all in the name of ROCK AND ROLL!


Overall, it was well worth the effort it took to peel my eyes away from Spike TV for a night while coughing up “lung butter” as my esteemed colleague Chris likes to call it. The battle between the Spartans and the Ninjas, who both sport ponytails, couldn't hold a handle to the awesome performance by the real Ponytail at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on Saturday. Here are a few more photos.




All photos taken courtesy of the iphone.

Auto-Tuned News is the news you should be watching

I know this might be old news (heehee) to some of you, but since I first watched this about a week ago (thanks Bob Boilen), I can't stop singing it, and I feel compelled to share it with as many people as possible. While I love the angry gorilla (Donkey Kong is in his crew!), the best part is Katie Couric.

Foxxy Hills Alive With The Sound Of Dead

As has been evidenced on this blog a few times already, I've always aspired to be a tabloid headline writer, in my next life. The above monstrosity was inspired by yesterday's trip to the Late Show with David Letterman, which had quite the blockbuster lineup of guests: movie star and accomplished musician in his own right Jamie Foxx, Lauren Conrad, recently departed from The Hills, and in the musical guest slot, legends The Dead, featuring Shore Fire client Warren Haynes on guitar and vocals.

The wattage made for larger than usual (and incredibly varied) crowd of fans outside the stage door, here's a shot of the scene as the day kicked off:


And here's the band rehearsing for their performance of "Sugar Magnolia." That's Warren in the center, just under ominous silhouette of the boom camera:


Warren is currently on tour with The Dead, and performing with the Allman Brothers as well, while he finishes up work on an upcoming Gov't Mule album coming this year, with a major tour in the works as well. Watch this spot for more news on that, and in the meantime here's last night's performance for your viewing pleasure:

I laughed, I cried, I This American Lifed

Ira Glass and Mike Birbiglia

Last night I attended the This American Life live taping at NYU, which was "beamed via satellite" to movie theaters across the country. I listen to TAL religiously, so seeing regular contributors Starlee Kine, Mike Birbiglia and Dan Savage (of Savage Love fame) in person was a true thrill. Oh, and Joss Whedon was there, too, singing – yes, singing - some of the DVD commentary for his fantastic Internet musical 'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.' Each act made me laugh hysterically, and I cried like a baby during Dan Savage's devastatingly touching story about his mother.
If you're a fan of This American Life, or if you're a fan of having a good time, I highly recommend going to the encore presentation on May 7 at a theater near you.

And if you missed Ira Glass on the Colbert Report on Wednesday, check it out here:

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The Coachella Awards

I had an awesome time at Coachella this past weekend. Way too much to get into detail (Its definitely possible to go back in time, do it all over again and see a completely different lineup of bands. So much to see!) so I decided to do a little awards list:

Loudest band: My Bloody Valentine. Though The Hold Steady had my ears ringing for a good 24 hours.
Band that should have been turned up to 11: Black Keys. Just not loud enough on that main stage.
Artists that made me dance the most: MIA
Artists that made me the saddest: The Cure. So that’s a job well done for them.
Band I had never heard but am now obsessed with: Dr. Dog, The Aggrolites
Best use of pyro: The Killers
Best hat: Conor Oberst

Best stage props: NASA

Best art instillation:

Best dressed: These guys

Sugar Sugar, plus some Sweet and some Sunshine

It's not all cheesecake around the Shore Fire offices...sometimes it's an amazing carrot cake with cream cheese frosting from the peerless Sugar Sweet Sunshine in NYC's lower east side, as was the case today when we celebrated Chris Taillie's annuals. Happy Birthday Chris!!

Booker T and The Roots kill at The Highline

I wish i had some pictures of this, but my camera was out of batteries.

Last night, following an appearance on Jimmy Fallon, Booker T. sat in with The Roots during their weekly jam session at the Highline Ballroom. It was, quite simply, amazing.

Booker was on point during the opening jam session, backed up a quartet of up-and-coming young rappers, and really stretched his legs on the classic Booker T. & The MG's song "Melting Pot" (which the Roots have covered in the past). As they were playing "Melting Pot," Black Thought dropped the lyrics to Kool G. Rap's "Men At Work". The capacity crowd went crazy for it.

But it didn't stop there- Booker T. stayed on as Grand Puba of Brand Nubian came up for two songs, including 'What Goes Around', which is one of my favorite raps from the 90s, and "Slow Down" (with the band covering the beat from Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians' "What I am"). Booker T. wound things up after John Forte, formerly of the Fugees, came out for 3 songs.

Seeing one of my musical idols perform with a handful of my OTHER music idols was definitely a 'holy cow' type moment.

Booker is on Fallon for one more night tonight. Don't miss it!

Hanging with Booker T at Jimmy F

Had the honor of hanging with Booker T and his wife Nan at the Jimmy Fallon Show yesterday. It was my first trip to the show and with the studio across the hall from Conan's former digs, I felt like I was in some bizarro alternate universe. Left was right. Right was left. It was crazy. But I adjusted.

Booker T obviously had no problems, as he sat in with the Roots, performing songs rom his killer new LP 'Potato Hole' and classics like "Green Onions," and schooling Jimmy on the finer points of the Hammond B3. Watch the entire episode here.

Booker T returns to the Jimmy Fallon Show tonight and tomorrow. Tune in!

Janelle Monae opens for Of Montreal, then they sing Bowie

Last Friday, I saw Of Montreal play the third and final show of their stint at Music Hall of Williamsburg and I'm still recovering. (As you may recall, they're on of my favorite bands ever.) I may be prone to hyperbole, sure, but this was one of the best concerts I've ever seen, thanks in no small part to opener Janelle Monae.

Janelle has worked with Outkast, which isn't surprising- she kind of sounds like a female Andre 3000 and has equally impeccable style. On stage, she dances like she's possessed by James Brown, too. She rocked. She also painted onstage (generously giving the still-wet piece to an audience member), which was an unexpected oddity that worked surprisingly well (I mean, she was opening for Of Montreal, so that was pretty tame compared to the shenanigans they pull during shows).

Anyway, the pictures I took of Janelle don't really do her justice, so this is from Brooklyn Vegan:

And then it was time for Of Montreal. I think I snapped this shot during their first song while performers presented a bizarre Christmas morning scene. The whole set was a top notch, A+ concert experience, but it was a dream come true to hear them play "Requiem for OMM" during the encore.


Better still, though, was when they brought Janelle back out to sing David Bowie's "Moonage Daydream". I don't have any pictures of that, sadly. I was too busy singing myself hoarse.

Enthralling Jones at Living Room

Diana Jone's was enthralling last night at the Living Room where the Nashville-based singer and songwriter channeled a by-gone Appalachia. You can love songs on record, but there's just no substitute for watching as words pour out of a pure-voiced singer's mouth...I was entranced with Jone's plaintive singing and lyrical gift for a story. You must listen (carefully please) to Henry Russell's Last Words right now!

Diana's set was mostly drawn from her new Better Times Will Come (May 19 on Proper American), a quiet, searching album that's already making big waves in the UK.

Here's me (left) with Diana and radio guru Brad Hunt, and below that with Proper honcho Lisa Best.

Amy Speace has killer style

We all know the saying that great minds think alike, but on Monday, Shore Fire client Amy Speace, Diana D'Angelo and I proved that great minds sometimes dress alike, too. Having the chance to meet with Amy on Monday was a bright spot in an otherwise gloomy, rainy day here in Brooklyn – we talked about Amy's brilliant new album 'The Killer In Me,' Jersey pride, her experiences teaching songwriting and her past work as a Shakespearean actress. I got to geek out a bit with her on the latter subject, though thankfully she didn't make me read her the sonnet I'd attempted to write about 'Killer.'

Shore Fire's Diana D'Angelo, Amy Speace, and I get a kick out of rain boots

I got a second dose of Amy later Monday night at her killer (yes, pun intended) set at The Living Room. Amy shared a hilarious story about meeting 'Project Runway' star and fashion guru Tim Gunn on an airplane recently, which nearly caused me to fall off my chair due to excessive jealousy. I certainly like to think Mr. Gunn would approve of our galoshes.

Juniors, Again? Oh Yeah, Baby, Juniors Again!

Boy are we spoiled, working just blocks away from the famed Juniors in downtown Brooklyn. It means that when the birthday person, in this case Nick Baily, is hankering for cheesecake, it's a breeze to get it. And I can personally vouch that's it's even easier to chow down (nap time anyone?). Anyway, Happy Birthday Nick Baily!


Here's the ritual "viewing of the first cut."

Ball of Confusion

This morning as I waited on the subway platform for the A train at Hoyt and Schermerhorn Streets, I was distracted by a man singing at the top of his lungs (and out of tune) The Temptations' 'Ball of Confusion' which presumably was playing through his headphones. What happened next I found both odd and beautiful. Another man, a total stranger to the lead singer, walked right up to the first man, gave him a pound, and finished singing the line. They went back and forth, line for line for a good minute before wishing each other a good day and walking off in different directions.

Was it the awesomeness of the song that made this odd event occur? Or was it the relevance of the song's lyrics today that brought them together?

And the beat goes on.

Anne Heaton Woz Awesome at the Living Room

Anne Heaton played a typically gorgeous set at the Living Room here in NYC last week, but the packed club included one atypical audience member: Apple computer co-founder/former Kathy Griffin paramore/recent Dancing with the Stars contestant Steve Wozniak. Turns out The Woz first saw Anne open for Jewel in 2004 and has been a fan ever since.

TOP SHOP OPENS IN SOHO

The line, almost there!


Kate and I waiting patiently.


This weekend we headed to Soho to hit up the newly opened Top Shop. The line wrapped around the block, we waited for about 30 minutes before getting into the fashion mecca. The four floors full of clothes, shoes and accessories were buzzing with shoppers. For opening weekend they had DJs spinning, free manicures, hair styling and $5 Top Shop gift cards. The Kate Moss line has some gorgeous dresses and the shoe department had some really funky heels. I left with a mint green cargo jacket and a cute navy and white stripped dress. The store wasn't quite as magnificent as the Top Shop in Oxford Circus but don't get me wrong I am super excited it's finally here and word from one of the salesclerks, the candy shop is coming soon!

Crowds Gathered For Diana Krall at Winter Garden

Diana Krall squeezed in a lot of activity in the last two days including a stunning performance taped for Letterman where she resembled Veronica Lake in a gorgeous black down (check it out this Friday, April 3rd) and a live performance on Regis & Kelly this morning.

But the highlight was definitely a free live performance with her amazing quartet of Anthony Wilson, Jeff Hamilton, and Robert Hurst and a 36 piece orchestra with Alan Broadbent conducting at the beautiful Winter Garden in the World Financial Center.

Check out this crowd! The police even had to turn people away.

April 1 News From Yep Roc

Received this press release early today from our friends at Yep Roc Records:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Yep Roc to Officially Add Letter ‘K’ to Company Name - Yep Roc(k)

Yep Roc HQ (Chapel Hill, NC) - For an explanation with full details, watch the video press release here: