Duncan Sheik Returns to CSPS Thursday 11/15 With Sunset Sessions Lineup

Posted on November 14, 2012 by mike

Duncan Sheik is making a return to Cedar Rapids tomorrow night. He is making a stop in the area as part of the Sunset Sessions Live tour and also in support of the fact that his Tony and Grammy winning musical Spring Awakening is going to be put on by U of I Arts. Sheik is going to speak at the UI Theatre from Noon to 1 and then he’s performing at CSPS at 7PM along with Austin band Alpha Rev and New Jersey singer/songwriter Laura Warshauer.

I saw Duncan in 2009 at CSPS when he came through Iowa in support of his Whisper House album. He apparently likes to tour with an ensemble– as in 2009, he’s bringing other bands with him. This tour is sponsored by The Sunset Sessions which is an organization that puts on events which are specifically designed to draw together musicians with radio programmers and music supervisors (the people who put your new favorite songs into TV shows, movies, advertising and video games). These days, music supervisors are up there as the leading tastemakers (next to music blogs, ‘natch 🙂 ). This tour is designed as a showcase for some bands that have been featured in these events, so we get to hear some new music from Duncan Sheik, as well as Alpha Rev (who has music all over TV on VH1, Bravo, ABC, The CW as well as film, and Laura Warshauer (who has been recently signed to Def Jam/Island).

Duncan is touring in support of his latest album, Covers 80’s Remixed, which, as the title implies, is a remix album of his 2011 release Covers 80’s, which has him delivering interpretations of his favorite songs from bands like Japan, Psychedelic Furs, The Smiths, The Cure and Tears for Fears.

This promises to be a pretty spectacular evening, frankly– some up-and-coming acts coupled with some 80’s nostalgia delivered from a great songwriter. It can’t miss.

Duncan Sheik, Alpha Rev and Laura Warshauer will hit the CSPS big stage at 7PM. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Details at the Legion Arts Website.

HERE is the Facebook Event for the show.

Landfall Festival Alumni Ani Cordero Brings Her Band Back to CSPS on Saturday 10/6

Posted on October 4, 2012 by mike

One of the great things about Legion Arts is their annual Landfall Music Festival. They manage to fill their stages some of the best world music acts touring the nation. Back in 2010, I had the opportunity to catch one artist that really captured my heart with her boisterous Latin-infused pop, folk and rock.

Ani Cordero has a really colorful history in the music business. In addition to recording a few solo albums as bilingual band Cordero, she has also been a member of Man or Astroman?’s associated band the Gamma Clones and as a founding member of Pistolera. Since 2010, she has been working on her most personal work to date with Sergio Dias of Os Mutantes. Titled Recordar, the self-released album is comprised of covers of songs that were part of the Nueva Cancion movement. Including songs from Latin activists and musicians such as Victor Jara and Violeta Parra the album exhibits the inspiration she found in the movement from her friend and mentor Dr. Juan Allende, nephew of Chilean President, Salvador Allende, who was overthrown in a military coup d’état in 1973.

The album is clearly a labor of love for Ani, and the effort pays off. She tapped in some friends with great musical pedigree to help bring the beautiful recording to fruition: Charles Giordano of The E Street Band, Kelly Pratt from Arcade Fire and Beirut, percussionist for Malian musician Vieux Farke Toure, Tim Keiper, long-time associate of Wynton Marsalis, Omar Akil Little, who also collaborates with world-renowned producer Lee Scratch Perry, and Brent Arnold of Modest Mouse. The album is a fitting tribute to the songs she chose as she delivers the emotion and passion of the songs as if they were her own.

On Saturday night Ani will be bringing the six-piece band she is touring though the midwest to CSPS in Cedar Rapids! When Ani and band played at the 2010 Landfall Festival, some of the crowd in Green Square Park got up and danced– maybe she can coax the usually reserved crowd at CSPS to get up, too?

The show will be this Saturday night, October 6th at 8PM. Tickets are $14 in advance and $18 at the door. For more information and how to order tickets visit the Legion Arts Website.

Here is the Facebook Event for the show.

Here is some video I shot of Ani and band at the Landfall Music Festival in 2010:

Codfish Hollow Presents… A Democratic Barnstormer featuring Pieta Brown and David Zollo 10/6/12

Posted on October 1, 2012 by mike

Anyone who knows Tiff Biehl knows that she is a Democratic Activist of the first order. You might not know it to see her roaming the barn making sure everything is in working order during the magical Daytrotter Barnstormer shows that have taken place at their wonderful live music barn venue called Codfish Hollow just outside Maquoketa, IA. These shows have included bands like Dawes (twice), The Walkmen, Local Natives, Delta Spirit, and many others, culminating in an amazing show with Counting Crows this year on the 4th of July.

But, before Tiff had car vanity license plates that said BARNSTRM, she had plates that said OBAMA.

She decided that she wanted to bring her skills pulling together these Barnstormer shows with her passion for the Liberal agenda of the Democratic Party. So, we get another Barnstormer show at Codfish Hollow– specifically to raise money for Iowa House representative Tom Schueller (District 58) and Former Governor Vilsack’s wife Christie Vilsack (running against US Congressman Steve King in District 4) Also to help register the youth vote and Stand with Women and the LGBT community. An amazing example of a grassroots approach to making change.

A lineup was quickly gathered that should prove to make this another in a series of historic shows. Heading the lineup is Eastern Iowa artist Pieta Brown, who is said to be pulling together a band specifically for this show, joining her on the bill is another Eastern Iowa legend David Zollo. Along side them will be six other bands: The Blackberry Bushes Stringband, Subatlantic, Barnstormer triple alumni Brooks Strause, Fire Sale, River Glen Trio, Nate Gordon & Jay VonBruchhaeuser.

In addition to this impressive lineup of bands will be craft vendors, the old farm house will be open as an art gallery, plus the regular features of Codfish Hollow shows like hayrides from the parking lot, fire rings, and lots of great food. Congressman Bruce Braley will be speaking at 7PM as well.

The event will start at 2PM on Saturday, October 6th at 2PM and will run until the music runs out. Tickets are $25 until Midnight Friday night and $35 the day of the show. Children under 14 get in free. You can get your tickets HERE, or Melodie Schueller (563-357-0080) or from Tiff , from Osterhaus Pharmacy in Maquoketa, or at the Democratic Headquarters on Main street in Maquoketa!

RSVP to the event at Facebook HERE.

New Hiss Golden Messenger Album “Lord I Love The Rain” Expands on Bonus EP – Out 10/28

Posted on September 30, 2012 by mike

I wasn’t expecting a new release from Hiss Golden Messenger so soon after the release of the brilliant Poor Moon. Though I guess it has already almost been a year since it’s limited vinyl release on Paradise of Bachelors, but in that year Poor Moon received a reissue of sorts in April as a CD on Thompkins Square giving it the distinction of being one of the few contemporary releases on the label.

For the pre-order campaign for Poor Moon, MC Taylor tried a kind of Indiegogo/Kickstarter approach by providing tiered bonuses, which included a digital download of a live recording, and a 6-track EP called Lord I Love The Rain that was made up of solo acoustic tracks from Bad Debt, and a “conceptual soundtrack” called He Wore Rings on Every Finger. It was a welcomed, if a bit uneven collection of songs serving as bonus content.

This week it was announced that Lord I Love The Rain would get an expanded and improved treatment to serve as a bridge to the “proper” follow up to Poor Moon titled Haw to come out March 2013 on Paradise of Bachelors. This release will be produced by the German label Jellyfant in a limited run of 600 with only 240 making their way to our shores. The LP is mixed by Scott Hirsch of HGM and mastered by Anthony Puglisi who has done an amazing job with a few of the last vinyl releases in the HGM catalog. The cover will be Folkways-style paste-on jackets designed by Brendan Greaves, with liner notes by folklorist, curator and guitarist Nathan Salsburg. Brendan also designed the LP jacket for Poor Moon.

In addition to remixing the songs from the EP for this release, it also gains some additional tracks, loses a track and gets re-sequenced into an album where one side is made up of the Bad Debt lo-fi recordings, and the second side is made up of full-band songs in a kind of Rust Never Sleepsfashion. The new songs are a couple of covers– “The Revenant” from Michael Hurley, and “Tell Everyone” by Ronnie Lane, plus an instrumental “War” on the full band side, and “Karen’s Blues,” “He Wrote The Book,” “Roll River Roll” on the solo acoustic side. On the changes made for this release Taylor said, “We weren’t satisfied with the original version [of the EP], especially “Bright Phoebus” which was just flat and dumb. So it’s really nice to get another crack at it. I think the whole collection hangs together nicely. It’s nice to have the physical divide of sides A and B to separate the lo-fi from the higher fidelity [songs.]” Having listened to the collection a few times, I completely agree. The collection goes from being a kind of odds-and-sods to a release that works as a whole.

Side A
Karen’s Blues
He Wrote the Book
Roll River Roll
Father Sky
Westering
Fox and His Friends

Side B
Born on a Crescent Moon
The Revenant (Michael Hurley)
War
You Never Know
Tell Everyone (Ronnie Lane)

To get in on this rare release, you can pre-order from Taylor and Hirsch’s label Heaven and Earth Magic for $20 plus shipping, which is a pretty good deal. Plus, you get a copy of the split 7″ with Elephant Micah for freebies! You also get three songs you can download right away, and will get a link to download the rest of the release when it comes out on October 28th.

CLICK HERE to get the details and to order Lord I Love The Rain.

You can listen to three of the tracks here:

While you’re at it, you should check out the Hiss Golden Messenger Daytrotter session!

(Upcoming Show) Nellie McKay at CSPS in Cedar Rapids on 9/27

Posted on September 26, 2012 by mike

It’s difficult to summarize Nellie McKay’s very diverse career. Since the release of her first double album Get Away From Me– which is how I first heard her- she’s released four more albums, had a painful breakup with her record label, starred on Broadway, acted in a couple of films, and generally exhibited her resistance to staying in any one place for very long. Irrepressible, unsinkable, unbelievable Nellie McKay.

When I saw her in 2008 at The Dakota in Minneapolis with my wife and daughter (where the above picture was taken) she stayed primarily at the piano with a few ukelele tunes and performed a few songs from a proposed politically-themed musical that I’m not sure was ever produced.

So, when I heard that she was coming to our wonderful CSPS Hall, I was very excited to see her again– she draws from a very rich palate and Cedar Rapids will be guaranteed a very unpredictable and rich musical experience. Not to be missed, frankly.

The show will be at 7PM, and tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Visit the Legion Arts website for more details.

And, if Nellie’s flight gets in on time, she’ll be doing an interview with Gordon Paulsen on KCCK at approximately 4:20PM. Tune in on the radio at 88.3 FM in Cedar Rapids, or online at KCCK.org.

While you’re at it, you should check out Nellie’s Daytrotter.com session!

The Pines at CSPS Tonight! New Video for “All The While” (Friday, 9/7/2012)

Posted on September 7, 2012 by mike

I think Cedar Rapids is getting a little spoiled! Red House Records band The Pines is back at CSPS tonight for the third time since it reopened in 2011! For the show in February the audience was graced with a surprise guest– Benson Ramsey’s dad Bo Ramsey!

Whether or not Bo will make a surprise visit again tonight remains to be seen, but either way The Pines are a band not to be missed and the beautifully remodeled CSPS are the perfect location to see them. Be sure to grab the Pines’ latest album Dark So Gold which was recently pressed in vinyl!

The show will be at 8PM at CSPS with the doors probably at 7PM. Tickets are $14 in advance and $17 at the door. For more information visit CSPS website.

The Pines also recently released their second video from Dark So Gold. Produced by Jonathan Chapman.

Also– you should check out the latest Daytrotter.com session from The Pines–

Click Here

Gayngs Related Minneapolis Band Poliça to Play Voices Warehouse in Dubuque 9/25

Posted on August 26, 2012 by mike

What does one do when Ryan Olson, the mastermind behind the Minneapolis Supergroup Gayngs suggests that you start your own band? Well, if you are Channy Leanagh (née Casselle) formerly of Minneapolis folk band Roma di Luna and one of the vocalists in Gayngs– you take the suggestion and help. Olson took some of the songs that Channy had been writing and added some of his own electronic wizardry– a process similar to how he grew the Gayngs album. Olson then called in some other musicians he had worked with the vision of creating not just a solo Leanagh project but a complete band.

The unique formula of Poliça (pronounced POE-LISA) takes the vocoder fetish from Gayngs (and Bon Iver for that matter) and layers it over a no-guitars lineup of electronics (mostly handled by Leanagh in a live settng), insane bass guitar by Chris Bierden of Twin Cities Indie Psych band Vampire Hands, and twin drummers Drew Christopherson (of Olson’s bands Digitata and Blunts) and Ben Ivascu (of Olson’s bands Building Better Bombs and Marijuana Deathsquads). Mike Noyce of Gayngs and Bon Iver guests on a couple of tracks, too. Poliça brings a significant pedigree to the table and the results are impressive– a very trip-hop electronica sound reminiscent of Portishead in my opinion.

Since Poliça released their debut album Give You The Ghost on February 14th on Olson’s Totally Gross National Product label (on CD and LP) they’ve been touring seemingly non-stop in the US and Europe. They played Iowa City in February as part of their album release shows, so it’s pretty interesting that they will be back in Eastern Iowa playing the Voices Warehouse Gallery on September 25th. Voices is a really special venue down in the Warehouse district of Dubuque. Beautiful exposed brick and pipes with a well-worn wood floor housing interesting sculptures, prints and paintings. I’ve seen a couple of shows there– Tortoise and Bo Ramsey and both were cozy personal shows.

Poliça played “Dark Star” on Jimmy Kimmel last week, and it was announced that they have signed to Mom + Pop Music (home of Andrew Bird, An Horse, Sleigh Bells) who will reissue the album and have already released a remix EP for “Dark Star.” All really great news for the band who will be opening for Bon Iver’s upcoming four-night run at Radio City Music Hall, which is just before the Dubuque show.

Opening the show will be Canon Blue, aka Daniel James. James’ new album Rumspringa is a orchestral/chamber pop album that was recorded while on tour with Efterklang. Check the audio out on his site– beautiful stuff.

Tickets for Poliça and Canon Blue are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. The show starts at 8PM. For more information check out the Voices Warehouse website.

Check out Polica’s Daytrotter Session Here.

(Upcoming Show) The Mighty Men of Dawes Return to Iowa – The Englert, Iowa City 8/19/2012

Posted on August 12, 2012 by mike

Since the last time California band Dawes graced a stage in Eastern Iowa in 2010 they’ve been busy. Last year they released their sophomore album Nothing Is Wrong, got their video for “Time Spent In Los Angeles” added to VH1’s Top 20, tapped as his touring band by Robbie Robertson (and backed him on Letterman!), toured seemingly non-stop around the world both headlining and in support of bands like Mumford & Sons as well as hitting the festival stages at Coachella and Lollapalooza.

After being spoiled with a bunch of performances in 2009 and 2010 (three Barnstormer shows, RIBCO, Barn on the Fourth in Maquoketa, Gabes) we’re excited to have the band back in Iowa with what should be an amazing show at the beautiful Englert Theater in Iowa City next Sunday, 8/19. Joining them is fellow Barnstormer and Daytrotter.com alum Nathaniel Rateliff.

Here is video I shot of “So Well” from when Dawes played Gabes in Iowa City in August of 2010:

This promises to be one of the great shows of this year, so don’t miss it. The crowd will be packed with Barnstormer regulars ready to welcome the boys back, so the crowd will be bringing the love and if past experience dictates, the band will respond with an amazing show.

Be sure to pick up the August issue of Little Village Magazine where I have an interview with Taylor Goldsmith. You can read the whole issue online HERE.

Tickets are $16 in Advance and $18 the day of the show and are general admission.

Details are HERE.

The Pines – Dark So Gold Released on Vinyl 7/17

Posted on July 14, 2012 by mike

Red House Records officially announced this week that they have pressed The Pines’ latest album Dark So Gold on vinyl, available Tuesday, July 17th.

This is the second vinyl release from Red House Records since they decided to get back into the vinyl game with Pieta Brown’s One and All release. That release was a beautiful 180g pressing with a variation on the CD cover art. I was concerned that they weren’t going to continue doing vinyl when Brown’s Mercury album didn’t get the same treatment. Though there has never been an official statement about it, I suspect that the One and All vinyl didn’t sell as many as they’d planned.

When I talked to the mailorder folks at Red House, I expressed how happy I was that this album was getting a vinyl release, they commented that they felt this was a good one to release on vinyl. I also learned that the cover art matches the CD, and the center label has a black and white photo of the band.

Dark So Gold is easily one of my favorite releases for 2012, and my favorite Pines release to date. I wrote a review for Little Village Magazine in February.

For The Pines latest release, Dark So Gold, they’ve broken out the box of the same paints and brushes as before and laid to canvas landscapes made of soft-focused, almost half-remembered dreams. To the observer, only the smallest details of the picture are revealed—a conversation perhaps, a late-night glance to the sky, a heartfelt emotion lingering. As we reach for meaning we fill in little bits of ourselves.

You can read the full review here.

CLICK HERE to order your copy of Dark So Gold from Red House Records for $15 plus shipping and includes a digital download card. The record will be available at Pines shows as well.

More Daytrotter Vinyl Goodness! Daytrotter Presents No. 1: The Civil Wars & The Lumineers

Posted on June 21, 2012 by mike

Though obviously not the first foray into vinyl releases by the gem in the crown of Rock Island, IL known as Daytrotter.com, it is the first of what I hope will be a long-running series of split releases of Daytrotter Sessions. There have been a few releases that have sported Daytrotter lineage– notably the 2011 Nathaniel Rateliff Live 10″ (still in the store!), the Iron and Wine/Low Anthem split plus some 7″es that included a track here and there.

The most recent release was announced this week, and is a split of Grammy Winners The Civil Wars backed with The Lumineers. This release is being touted as “Daytrotter Presents No. 1” and is available for pre-sale right now. The really nice aspect of this is although the ordering window is until July 3rd, Daytrotter is going to press as many as are ordered! Talk about a really nice way to accommodate collectors while also preserving limitedness! The vinyl will be pressed in 180g vinyl and will bear the trademark Johnnie Cluney representations of the two groups.

The album will be $35 plus shipping or $26.25 plus shipping for folks who support Daytrotter by subscribing as I do. Between this discount and the discount for the Barn on the Fourth of July Counting Crows show tickets, I’ve already paid for my year of subscription. But, if you are still on the fence about subscribing– if you buy a 1 year subscription for yourself of a friend, you get this record for free (well, you have to pay for shipping)! In fact, this is the cheaper route anyway, since the subscription is $24, you effectively save $2.25 off of the regular member price!

I’ve listened to both the Civil Wars session and the Lumineers session, and both are simpatico– beautiful acoustic folk sessions. A delightful way to kick off this series.

What sessions would you like to see in future installments of Daytrotter Presents? I’d like to see Gary Clark Jr., The Pines, Pieta Brown, Umphrey’s McGee, Moby (that version of “Ring of Fire” is fantastic!), Cowboy Junkies, a Dawes double!… The list goes on… Your votes in the comments!

Click Here to buy a subscription to Daytrotter and get the free Daytrotter Presents No. 1 (by July 3rd)

Click Here to buy Daytrotter Presents No. 1 without a membership purchase.

Time to play b-sides

Mike Roeder muses over things musical

Author Archives: mike