UYRL

In his brief liner sketch on this album of Townes Van Zandt covers, songwriter Steve Earle writes: “I always read everything Townes told me to read. All of us did; we who followed him around, or simply bided our time in places along his migratory path, for we were indeed a cult, in the strictest sense of the word, with Townes at its ever shifting center.” While what it was he read isn’t worth spoiling here, it’s the last part of that long sentence that really matters. Van Zandt inspired a cult, and an even bigger list of pale imitators. Earle may lionize the man and the artist (hence the tribute record), and may have even begun as an imitator, but he became something else entirely — an iconoclastic (and iconic) artist and producer in his own right who can interpret these songs as such.

It was a triple dose of low-to-no-fi garage rock as all the bands on the bill had three members.

The constantly in motion and always rocking Vivian Girls have worked their way to headline status in two years of existence. It's welcoming to see bands getting better at being live performers after constant touring.

The setlist:

• All the Time
• Surfin' Away
• Walking Alone At Night
• The End
• Such A Joke
• Never See Me Again
• When
• Out for
• Second Date
• Wild Eyes
• Can't Get Over You
• Tell the World
• Damaged

The three gals have cranked up the intensity with the live shows. Some of the new songs they are dropping into the set have long stretches of jamming which allows them to loosen up and rock out. For those who already know, a typical Vivian Girls song is a blink and you miss track, that clocks in around two minutes. Now that they are headline worthy, with an ending song going into all sorts of crazy, screeching directions. Just when the feedback fills the rooms, the girls switch instruments to continue the chaos.

As a fan of retro rock, you get to name drop a bunch of classic and obscure 50s/60s/70s motorcycle rock bands when comparing them to other bands. I've always said the Shangri-Las and The Vipers. Then you can out namedrop other music snobs. Bikini Kill .. urrr .. Fuzzbox..... 

Times New Vikings rule again. The Ohio-based garbage rockers don't look like much and their gear look like they been salvaged for a fire, but they are never boring. Like Vivian Girls, their songs are mangled, distorted rock tracks where vocals are drowned out by the lack of fidelity. It's all part of the plan. The edge that the Vikings have are the quirky, basic low budget keyboard tones. I loved them at Siren Festival last year and glad I got to catch them cranking out the static.

Stupid Party fit right into the fold tonight. They are very straight forward garage/post-punk trio. They won't set the world ablaze, but you know, they all can't be masters of the modern lo-fi garage genre like Vivians and Vikings.

This is one of my all time favorite albums. It’s quite a masterpiece. Then again most Bob Marley albums are. This one got  an almost magical vibe to it, no pun intended. It has 11 incredible songs. It’s fair to say this album placed Bob Marley and the Wailers on the US map in 1976. Thanks to this album they broke into the US charts for the very first time and the rest as the saying goes is history.

R.I.P. Wayman Tisdale, former NBA forward and jazz bassist, who died last week at age 44 after a two-year battle with bone cancer. The 6′9″ Olympic gold medalist, who began his recording career in 1995, released eight albums, all of which made the Top 10 on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz Albums chart. His most recent album, 2008’s Rebound, topped the chart.

Going back to last Friday, Curiosity led me to see Rodriguez, a largely unknown, but somewhat legendary singer-guitarist from the last 60s and early 70s. I came into the show knowing very little about the man and hearing only a few potent songs. Now, I'm reading what I can about the man and listening to two recently re-released albums.

Sixto Rodriguez is a Mexican born, Detroit-raised music man who's mellow psychedelic songs from the hippie era will make you think of Donovan. He released two albums, Cold Feet (1970) and Coming from Reality (1971) that never took off in the states. So, the man return to a life outside of music, which included being a teacher, gas station attendant and day laborer. Meanwhile, his music was a smash and an inspiration in South Africa.

Fast forward to the internet age, an online campaign started by a fan sought the where abouts of Rodriguez. Rumors floated that he had died or was living on the streets of Detroit. Thanks to people like DJ David Holmes, the makers behind the Heath Ledger movie Candy and Light in the Attic records, Rodriguez is being discovered by a new legion of music fans.

Now, Rodriguez gets to tour the the U.S. and the world. At Bowery Ballroom, a modest crowd turned up to see what some may consider a living legend. The first thing you notice when the 65-year old musician as he walks on stage is that the man is blind or partially blind. Once the man and his excellent backing band (who are 40 years younger than him)  plays, you forget all that and get lost in the man's music. The guy embodies the aura of the 60s, with easy-going style and laid-back singing. On top of that, he imparted his words of wisdom to the crowd. Consider it I-Rodriguez instead of I-Ching. He said, "The secret to being in a lasting relationship is saying 'Yes, dear'" or "The secret of life is breathing in and out." Not earth shattering advice, but it's all a part of his gentle personality.

He best known song is "Sugar Man" which is tale of drug taking and drug dealing. In fact, he only recorded 25 songs. The ones to check out are "Only Good For Conversation," "Like Janis," "Heikki's Suburbia Bus Tour" and  "Halfway Up the Stairs".

So awesome are Philadelphia's The War on Drugs. I've been a fan of their lone album, Wagonwheel Blues, that was released via Secretly Canadian. They are one of those band that if you asked five people to describe their music, you'll get five different answers. Their do have a troubadour style in their music similar in style to The Walkmen. The three piece touring version of The War on Drugs do play with a lot fury and bite. Adam Granduciel, also of The Capitol Years, is the driving force of the band with Bob Dylan-esqe vocals. On record, Kurt Vile, a solo artist in his own right,  contributes to the writing and guitar playing

It would be a mistake to just call them Dylan rip-offs because the music is full of grandeur with spacey electronics thrown into the music. It makes some of their songs epic in nature. Check out a "Needle in Your Eye #16" because it has a great, open-road drive that you wished never ended.

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