A Hawaii-born singer/songwriter records an album in Nashville and gives it a Japanese name. Such is the cultural complexity that folk artist Simone White brings to the table with her upcoming release, “Yakiimo.” While journeying through the U.S. with her folk-singer mother and sculptor father as a child, White must have been bitten by the travel bug because rarely has she stayed in one place for too long, calling Seattle, Pairs, London, New York, and finally, California home at one point or another. Must be hell to try to keep her on your Christmas card list, but at least you never have to worry about the nomadic artist taking too long between tours. She’s currently on the road in Europe with Victoria Williams and will be traversing the U.S. in early 2010 in support of “Yakiimo.”
Five months separate me from my next birthday, but I already know what gift will be at the top of my wishlist. Scottish indie rock band Frightened Rabbit has announced that they will be releasing their third LP, “The Winter of Mixed Drinks,” in March 2010, just in time for this blogger to blow out her candles. Discovering the group’s sophomore album, “The Midnight Organ Fight,” was one of the musical highlights of 2008 for me, and if you need a second opinion on how great that release was, I’ve got four for you: Village Voice’s Pazz & Jop Poll, The Onion, Magnet, and Pitchfork all considered it one of the best albums of the year. The group will be releasing the first single off the new album, “Swim Until You Can’t See Land,” next month, and you can check out the video below. A full North American tour is also being planned for the album’s release, so I guess I already know of two presents I’ll be soliciting from family and friends come springtime. I’m so easy to buy for.
Apparently the old adage “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” applies north of the border too. The members of Canadian punk rock band Living with Lions got their musical start living with, well, each other. While cohabitating in a house so rowdy, it required a name (“Dude Manor”), the Vancouver quintet divided their time between partying and utilizing the basement’s jam room. Actually, it probably wasn’t so much a division of time as it was multi-tasking: partying while making music. A case of beer is still the sixth member of the band when it comes time to write, and apparently the situation is working out pretty well for everyone involved as Living with Lions is currently on tour in support of their first full-length release, “Make Your Mark.”
Ever listen to a song and think, “I like what I’m hearing, but would really appreciate some form of corresponding visual whereby I could fully immerse myself in this wonderful little nugget of artistry”? Happens all the time, right? To help you bring your eyes up to the same happiness level as your ears, LA-native Robert Francis has created a video for the single “Nightfall” off his recently released sophomore album, “Before Nightfall.” Check out the video and make sure to see Francis perform while he’s out on tour with Brit folk rockers Noah and the Whale. You can also read our interview with Francis HERE if your eyes need more to do after watching the video.
Oct 28—Majestic Live Madison, WI
Oct 29—Lakeshore Theater Chicago, IL
Oct 30—Crofoot’s Pike Room Pontiac, MI
Oct 31—The Horseshoe Tavern Toronto, ON, Canada
Nov 2—Mercury Lounge New York, NY
Nov 3—Mercury Lounge New York, NY
Nov 4—Mercury Lounge New York, NY
Nov 9—The Fly London, United Kingdom
Nov 10—Camden Enterprise London, England, United Kingdom
Nov 11—L’Etage Paris, France
Nov 16—Rams Head Live! Baltimore, MD
Nov 17—9:30 Club Washington, DC
Nov 21—The Trocadero Philadelphia, PA
Dec 12—The Wiltern Los Angeles, CA
For more info on Robert Francis check out:
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If you aren’t catching Rob Zombie’s show at the Palladium on Halloween night or taking the little ghouls and goblins trick or treating, you might want to check out L.A. buzz band Nico Vega perform at Club Nokia with Chevelle. The trio released their debut full-length on MySpace Records earlier this year, and you may have already heard their latest single, “Gravity,” playing on the old FM radio. The New York Post has compared the stage presence of the trio’s frontwoman, Aja Volkman, to Janis Joplin and Karen O, and if you don’t think those are big shoes to fill, you must be a clown. Show some support for a hometown band, and if LA isn’t your hometown, you can still catch the group on the road as they traverse the country bringing their bluesy rock to the masses.
In order to spare Rob Zombie the tedium of answering the same questions about his upcoming album and tour over and over again, a conference call interview between the rocker and media folks across the country was coordinated by his people (I hope I can have “people” some day. Do you want to join my peoplehood?). We each had the opportunity to ask the artist one question and were encouraged to use his answers to others’ questions for our stories. Unfortunately, I didn’t catch the name of the first interviewer, so I couldn’t give them credit, but be sure to check out the pages/magazines of the others (and if you know the name of the first interviewer, please let me know!). I particularly enjoyed the question that elicited a Slurpie analogy from Mr. Zombie. That is not something you hear every day.
Hey guys and girls. Check out our list of today’s notable album releases. I’ve let you know which ones have me excited. Why don’t you return the favor in the comments?
Devendra Banhart, “What Will We Be” — I once listened to an entire EP of Banhart’s on the wrong speed on my record player (“White Reggae Troll”), and then spent the rest of the evening contemplating whether I liked it or not. He’s one of the few artists that I could make this mistake with, and I love him for it. Always interested to hear what he puts out.
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This weekend, LA Music Blog ventured east to the San Manuel Amphitheater in San Bernardino, CA to attend the Cypress Hill Smokeout music festival and marijuana expo. I can safely say that the caliber of live music we saw was well worth the time on the 210. In addition to headliners Cypress Hill, Slipknot, and the Deftones, we caught performances by Sublime, Pennywise, Method Man & Redman, Kottonmouth Kings, and Immortal Technique. Festival hosts Cheech and Chong even treated the audience to a performance, and really, what marijuana-related event would be complete without those two icons? The festival was a two-day celebration of music and munchies, performances and pot, songs and bongs…you get the idea. Check out our photos and notes from the event below, and if you went to the fest (and remember any of it) let us know what you thought in the comments.
