Concerts: September 2007 Archives

The White Ghost Shivers perform at the Continental Club

White Ghost Shivers photo gallery

So if you ever find yourself in Austin during SXSW or ACL, don't limit yourself to the official events. There are some great bands playing all over at aftershows, showcases that feature music frequently better than at the actual show.

A no-miss venue is the Continental Club on South Congress. I saw James McMurtry, Alejandro Escovedo, the White Ghost Shivers, Red Stick Ramblers and Raul Malo. All great acts putting on great shows.

McMurtry is renown in Austin for his brand of protest folk, Escovedo goes from the softest folk to the hardest rock with ease, the Shivers show why ragtime was the punk rock of the 20's, the Ramblers put on a fine Cajun bluegrassy show and Malo puts out a unique mix of lounge and rock. This all in three nights in the same place.

Check all these bands out at your leisure. Some good stuff.

Bob Dylan rocks the Austin crowd

Photo gallery of day three

Well day three of ACL finally brought the moment almost everyone had been talking about all week with the performance of Bob Dylan. It didn't seem to matter your age, background or even musical tastes, but if you at the festival this year by gum you were going to see the man and be able to say so. So when Bob hit the stage at 8:30 Sunday night, pretty much a capacity crowd of 65,000 people were there to see him.

At first it seemed like the sound mix was off, then you realize that no, that is just his voice. Being a little too close didn't help as the sound folks were going to make sure the surrounding hills of Austin were going to rock along with the Zilker Park crowd, so the performance was fairly amped up.

A fan said "He is either going to be spot on or suck," and much to the delight of the crowd it was the former. Being a total Dylan noob myself I can only say the band sounded great and Dylan seemed to be genuinely interested in turning in a top-notch performance, it being Austin and all.

"Bob Dylan, you rock my face off!" a fan was heard to say. A 20-something fan, no less, thus confirming his cross-generational appeal.

Starting the day, I caught the best band to experience alternate reality to, which was the acidjazegroovyfunk band known as STS9, or Sound Tribe Sector 9. There I saw the two best t-shirts of the day, "Stop Plate Tectonics" and "The drinking will continue until morale improves."

Ben Kweller, returning to the same stage of last year's proficient nose bleed, delivered his up-pop to a delighted crowd. Grace Potter, unknown to me, delivered a hugely rousing set with amazing energy in the tent, affirming that catching heretofore unknown acts is the most revealing part of the festival.

DeVotchKa had some classical violin in their songs that was unique to the festival. Midlake delivered their hit Roscoewith aplomb and provided a nice chill groove overall. Taking their picture I did hit my limit of bearded young guys in t-shirts and guitars limits, but it was time to go photograph Lucinda Williams so it didn't matter much.

Lucinda belts out Come On and practically sounds like Janis doing so. She does a new song about a honeybee, Joy, and great covers of Riders on the Storm and Fats Domino's I live my life.

An unexpected hit of the festival, playing a mid-sized stage but with a headliner sized crowd was New York Regina Spektor. Probably due to the catchiness of her hit Fidelity, but totally deserving of the crowds love, she came out somewhat overwhelmed by the crowd size and couldn't stop smiling for half of her set. Her effervescence and cool, lovely voice combined with cuteness and best smile of the festival made fans of anyone lucky enough to see her. One song sounded like it wouldn't be out of place in a musical like Mary Poppins and I mean that in a good way.

Wilco and My Morning Jacket did battle from opposite ends of the park, probably causing a fair amount of decisive trauma for fans of both groups. I opted to see Billy Joe Shaver instead and was glad I did. He has written a lot of great country songs for others and seeing him perform his own was a treat.

Then, after a bit of Austin's own Ghostland Observatory and their very unique dance sound, it was off to see the legend and close out another great year at a great festival. For those of you who are still hoping to see some pictures you'll have to wait one more day, as Austin, making me have so much fun, has once again kept me from doing all the work I should have. Check back soon for an updated page with links to photos of nearly all the bands that have been written about here. Rock on.

David Sprague

Paolo Nutini woos the crowd at ACL

Photo gallery of day two

The music today at ACL shows why this festival is so much fun. Highlights from Paolo Nutini, Sara Hickman, Trent Summar, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Arcade Fire and Muse demonstrated the strength and diversity of music available currently, and, at least for one day, accessible all in one place.

Walking by a set by Back Door Slam, it became obvious that the guitar greatness of Stevie Ray Vaughn washed far beyond the shores of Austin's Town Lake to the shores of the Isle of Man, an island in the Irish Sea. Other influences for these guys are Ray Charles and Jimi Hendrix. Rock on kids.

Paolo Nutini, the Scottish singer with an Italian name, showed why he is the new James Blunt of sensitive guy music. Singing from the heart, he woos the girls and makes the guys jealous. Early in his set he did an unexpected cover of Moby's Natural Blues, but pulled it off gracefully, moving back afterwards to his own material. At first it seemed he was continuing last year's trend of covering Gnarls Barkley, then the realization that his version was a cover came. With the beer company supplied fans in full flutter due to the heat, Nutini finished his set sounding sometimes like an old man with no teeth singing, but I mean that is a charming way.

Proving you can be a serious artist AND do kids' music was Sara Hickman, tearing up the stage with I'm just an optimistic fool, a protest song of sorts of someone who knows they are idealistic but refuses to back down. Her Torture is Wrong bumper sticker showed she wears her politics on her sleeve, but she can also do traditional singer-songwriter material as she introduced a song she described as written as the eighth song of 38 written after a breakup.

SoCal local boys, Cold War Kids, from Fullerton, turned in some great indie rock, including the emotionally wrenching We Used to Vacation, a painful look at the effects of alcoholism. After this song they had their hooks into those in the crowd that might have been unfamiliar with their work.

Those familiar with Polyphonic Spree will probably recognize St. Vincent, also known as Annie Clark. Her style is a bit Bjork like, without the annoying edge. (to some) An excellent singer, she also has a great guitar style, even busting out a bit of Jimi Hendrix flavored Star Spangled Banner. Check out Paris is Burning or Not Now, two of her best. You'll definitely be hearing from her and you can catch her in LA opening for The National Sept. 28 at the Wiltern.

Describing his music as "Farm Rock", Trent Summar could show some rock outfits a thing or two about performance energy as he kicked it up a notch or five during his set. The red-headed country boy from Tennessee likens his style to "that intersection where Chuck Berry rock and George Jones country converge." He had his cowboy hat flying off, climbed the sides of the stage, slung mike stands around, spitting out some outrageously good country sounds while supported by his excellent band, The New Mob. Anyone who thinks country is slow or boring needs to check out his record Horseshoes and Hand Grenades.

Next up for me was Kelly Willis, who some say would be chose Austin's homecoming queen if there ever was an election. Her sweet voice could melt teflon off a frying pan, and she showed why she is one of Texas' favorite songbirds. This year's Translated from Love has the unexpected cover of Iggy Pop's Success on it, showing her versatility and willingness to take chances.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah put out some engaging indie sounds, with a singer whose voice entrances some, but repels others. They are very good live, which explains why they have three sold out shows at the Troubadour Tuesday through Thursday. Providing some quirky pop, like Satan Said Dance, they verge on Talking Heads territory.

Headliners closing out the night were Arcade Fire, who recently had a greatly anticipated show at the Greek, and Muse, who played one of the smaller stages here last year but received the headlining spot Saturday after the White Stripes canceled. Both bands turned in excellent shows, with visuals on top of visuals and music to match. Muse does the arena rock thing with a lot of intelligence and the Fire also bring something more than ordinary to the table. Overall, another great day in Austin.

Amy LaVere performs Friday at ACL

Photo gallery of day one

Day one of the Austin City Limits Music Festival was marred by a fire that broke out in a large truck, critically burning two workers. The fire also burned some portable toilets, sending a massive column of black smoke up over the festival. Patrons, ever the gracious type, completely accommodated emergency crews, moving back quickly and even helping to set up perimeters.

Pete Yorn, whose set interrupted by the fire, provided just the right up-chill music to allay any fears of festival goers. The L.A. based singer is on tour with Crowded House, who turned in a fine set later in the day.

Louisiana's Amy LaVere, now based in Memphis, showed that powerful things can come in small packages by playing her stand-up bass that is much bigger than she is. LaVere, who played the role of Wanda Jackson in the Johnny Cash based film Walk the Line, charmed the crowd with numbers from her new album Anchors and Anvils and moved easily between country and blues. She also won the best song title of the day award with "Killing Him didn't make the Love go Away." She apparently had never had anyone doing sing for the deaf during her shows so asked the interpreter to show her what the title looked like after the number was over. She also did a female take of Dylan's "I'll remember you" that was quite sweet.

Peter Bjorn & John, known as PBJ to the initiated, have been touring for two years non-stop, and thus were very comfortable on stage. But they do carry the burden of having a song so catchy that folks just can't wait to hear it, "Young Folks," otherwise known as "that whistling song." Two of their tour mates joined them to give it an added twist, with Melanie Draisey of Clientele providing the female verse and chorus. The crowd seemed pleased. And they closed out their set with a great version of "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)" showing why that 1978 song is such a Buzzcock's classic.

Changing gears into a soulful direction, I wandered off to see The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker based on a friend's recommendation. The group was doing some explosive 50's and 60's R&B ala James Brown, and Walker was up to the task. That is the beauty of this festival. Tired of Rock? Wander over and see some country. Tired of that? Go see some soul. That gets old? Go see Queens of the Stone Age or the Killers. You get the idea.

The inexplicably named Manchester Orchestra provided a heavy bass drone, making you want to listen even if you weren't familiar with their music. Don't expect Beethoven or Bach, this band is more Death Cab for Cutie. The somewhat haunting "Where have you been?" provided a highlight for their set.

A few large raindrops from some welcome clouds came down during Crowded House's performance, cooling the crowd with the cool group. The venerable band seemed to please old fans and probably made some new ones. Neil Finn explained they were happy to be ending their current tour with the reunited group in Austin, a well-known loving cradle of pop music. Many had never seen the House, as they hadn't really existed since '96. This year they reformed and have been touring, but as lead Neil Finn explained, their members were about to be scattered to the wind of the far reaches of the globe, including Los Angeles, New Zealand, England and beyond.

M.I.A., AKA Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam is Sri Lankan and Brit, and brought her blend of hip-hop, electronica and grime whose music belies its politicized lyrics. At first blush it might sound like the latest dance floor pap, but listen to the lyrics and you'll hear references to the Tamil Tigers and the PLO. The crowd seemed at first unfamiliar, but warmed quickly for a set at least, the Dell stage was turned into a hip European nightclub. A friend has said he had seen her on Letterman the night before and she didn't do much, but she turned in a workout video performance Friday. Her second album Kala was recently released.

James Hunter, another Brit, but a soul singer instead of dance floor diva, got the crowd going with steady guitar playing and a personality you just want to like. His aim is for classic blues, R&B and soul, and provides a 50's backdrop that is anything but nostalgic pap.

Gotan Project provided a big highlight for the day, with Argentinian tango seamlessly interwoven with electronica and dance dub, mesmerizing the crowd and even freezing the photographers in the pit from taking pictures for a moment. The stage draped in white provided a classical environ where a full 10-piece group, including a string section, a bandeon and a classical guitarist. Formed by members from Argentina, France and Switzerland, the group truly is the definition of international. They showed by they are a KCRW staple and why "Il tango es en musico de vida."

Bjork impressed in a funky gold and black dressed and wearing face paint that Mel Gibson might have worn in Braveheart if he was warring the Pixie nation. Her quirkiness appeals to some, annoy others, and confounds most. But with so few stateside appearances, everyone wanted to see her and she did not disappoint, singing tunes from her latest "Volta." Spectacle? Yes. Spectacular? Depends on your point of view, as she is definitely an acquired taste, but no one can deny her uniqueness.

Up today are LA's Cold War Kids, Blue October, Arctic Monkeys, Damien Rice, Arcade Fire and Muse, among many others. Check back Sunday for more coverage. And for pictures. I've got to have SOME fun you know.

Austin skyline

Fellow music lovers, starting tomorrow, we will begin coverage of the Austin City Limits Music Festival, coming at you from the great state of Texas. The festival, like South by Southwest, is starting to create spin-off events like The Sound & the Jury, a virtual battle of indie bands with the prize being a place on the Dell Stage at ACL, and Hot Freaks!, a two-night indy music show featuring bands handpicked by seven of the most influential music bloggers. (not this one.)

The Sound & the Jury whittled submissions down from 600 bands, to 100, then to the final five and they will be playing live tonight at Antone's in the heart of downtown Austin. Tune into tomorrow to find out who won, and where you should go to catch the sharpest of cutting edge up and comers. My picks? Golden Bear or Homer Hiccolm & the Rocketboys.

Hot Freaks! features bands selected by Los Angeles's own blogger An Aquarium Drunkard, as well as bloggers from Dallas, Paris, Lexington, KY, Toronto and Brooklyn. Should be a good time to discover some new musical gems that the really hip bloggers are already onto.

So sit back and relax, while we do all the walking in the Texas sun for your listening pleasure......

David Sprague

If you were Beyonce on a World Tour, how would you top yourself. How would you exceed people’s already high expectations of what “Beyonce” stands for?

You dance your ass off for 2 hours straight, that’s how. Then again, that may have been already part of our (the common people’s) expecations.

But it wasn’t any less thrilling when witnessed live at last night’s concert at the STAPLES Center. Throwing in a little bared midriff, some surprise guests, and a WHOLE lotta hair flinging, Beyonce was downright Army-like in her all-that-she-could-be-ness. Or should I say, B-ness.

Shall I start from the top?