Last month, Feist released Metals, the long-awaited follow-up to her breakout album The Reminder. It was perhaps the most anticipated release of the year for Arts & Crafts from perhaps their most prominent artist. It is a great album and the subject of this installment of Label Year.
Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving! One more thing to be thankful for is a new Weekly Roundup. Here we go!
In 1975 Charles Mingus and Company performed a concert in Montreux that knocks me flat every time I watch and rewatch it. The band mates are George Adams (tenor sax/vocals) Don Pullen (piano) Jack Walrath (trumpet) Dannie Richmond (drums). The piece of video I have attached is a portion of Sue's Changes – which is a tune Mingus penned for his wife, Sue. We at TWD love us some Mingus and in particular I lose my cool a little bit every time I revisit this concert footage. George Adams is an absolute beast in this performance for his range, attack, velocity, guts, and imagination. It's a staggering work of jazz and fit enough for today's Episodes in Virtuosity.
Read More...
The Texas Guitar Quartet is comprised of Isaac Bustos, Jonathan Dotson, Alejandro Montiel and Joseph Williams II. Their full bio is contained within the article and their accreditation is both enviable and impressive. These are musicians of the finest caliber endeavoring to bring their art into the world with the support of artists and patrons like you. Their new album will be entitled Red and will feature an arrangement of JS Bach's 3rd Brandenburg Concerto, the world premier recording of Antoine de Lhoyer's Air Varié et Dialogué, three works from Isaac Albeniz arranged for the quartet by their own Alejandro Montiel, the Egmont Overture from LV Beethoven as arranged by Isaac Bustos, and finally a new work composed by Joe Williams entitled Red.
The TxGQ is a beautiful and articulate music ensemble. I believe in musicians like them, and I want to believe in a music community that helps to support the arts and artists as they work to express themselves and make the world a beautiful place one concert at a time. Please consider donating to this project and pass on the link to spread the love. As the man says, "From the heart, may it go to the heart." -LV Beethoven
Read More...
Lee Morgan (1938-1972) was an American jazz trumpeter whose career and life had all the hallmarks and stereotypes of a great Bop musician. He recorded prolifically, developed the genre stylistically and technically, struggled with drugs, and was ultimately shot and killed by his common law wife Helen More (Morgan) while prepping the stage for a concert.
His record The Sidewinder (1963) is one of my favorites from the artists long list of works, and is commonly considered to be part of the core curriculum for jazz listening.
Lee Morgan: The Sidewinder
Read More...Jonny Corndawg has his first music video out from his newest album Down On the Bikini Line. The video is a montage of found photographs and videos which have been compiled and arranged by Sean Dunne and Kathy Gatto. I think the found object approach to this music video is both inventive and appropriate. Jonny's music has a sort of nostalgic feeling to it and being privy to someone else's memories in conjunction with this great song makes for a fun video. Also, what I enjoy is the inherant absurdity in these photographs. I find a new favorite each time I watch, but there is a ridiculous mother and son cigarette bonding photo that probably takes my cake. Hit up the Holler Back! feature and let me know which photo you liked the best.
If you're a daytrotter person, Jonny also just released a new episode with Futurebirds as the backing band. Check that out here. You can also get more Corndawg on Facebook and Twitter.
Read More...
Get ready because a baker's dozen of songs and videos is coming at you in this latest Weekly Roundup!
One of my favorite new discoveries of 2011 is EMA. She has a 7-inch coming out for the great song "Marked," that features an equally great b-side called "Angelo." Read on to listen and order.
Lightyear, the new project from Lauren Zettler, has an EP out called All of the Miles and will be performing tomorrow night (11/18/11) at the show room of Piano's. Read on for details about the music and the show!
It's hard to believe that I could ever look at a 60 gig ipod and feel bored, but it happens. I'm sure you've been there too. So let me throw something at you that might get you out of the box and refresh your tired ears. David Smooke is a composer, musician, professor, blogger, birder, and badass. He is also extremely interested by toy pianos and posted a wonderfully thoughtful and intriguing article on the ever engaging NewMusicBox -the online magazine for the American Music Center.
Read on for a full link to the article as well as videos of his pieces Half the Way Down and Toy With Me. Both of which feature the toy piano and might seem a bit more accessible after reading the artists thoughts and seeing them isolated and in action. You'll also get information about Uncaged which is the 3 day toy piano music festival in NYC where David Smooke will be performing.
Read More...