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2009 Great Albums: Dan Deacon‚ Marco Benevento‚ Akron/Family and more...
Mike McKinley
March 20, 2009
2009 started with a serious ass kicking in great albums. It was only a few days into January when Marco Benevento's Me Not Me and Dan Deacon's Bromst landed in my mailbox.

Deacon's Bromst is brilliantly symphonic. Adam King had a great interview with him for the cover story of our latest issue. Read the free digital issue or pick up a copy here. You can stream Deacon's album in its entirety at NPR.

I reviewed Marco's album in the latest issue (check out page 34) and he also gave us a song by song synopsis of the album (page 12). His imagination is soaring on Me Not Me. Check out his renditions of My Morning Jacket's "Golden" and Deerhoof's "Twin Killers."

Golden - Marco Benevento

Twin Killer - Marco Benevento

Akron/Family's Set 'Em Wild‚ Set 'Em Free is set for release May 5th on Dead Oceans. They're going to be the next cover story of State of Mind due out in May‚ so luckily‚ I've already had about a month with this album and have talked with the band a couple of times. They're evolving in a very healthy way, and this record is so good that I can't stop listening to it. Listen to the first track "Everyone Is Guilty."

Everyone Is Guilty - Akron/Fam...

So far‚ these are my tops of 2009.

And there are more that have moved me brightly:

The Felice Brothers Yonder is the Clock is a crusher - seriously deep.

JFJO's Winter Wood (download for free) is great new sonic territory from a band that never stops evolving.

Bishop Allen's Grrr… is super catchy and addictive.

Phosphorescent's To Willie gets me everytime (check out the interview).

And it's only March... Farm - Keeping Busy in the Cave
Mike McKinley
March 18, 2009
After releasing their stellar album The Cave last fall (see Ryan Lowell's review here), Farm have been quiet but busy. They've been writing new material, which they will debut on Exposure on WRUV on April 1 from 8-10pm and play at the Monkey House in Winooski, VT on April 3.

Multi-instrumentalist Bryan Dondero from Grace Potter & the Nocturnals (Update: formerly of GP&N) has been playing with the band lately and will be joining them for the show on April 3.

Here's a demo of "Tree Escape," a new song by Farm's Jedd Kettler. For more information visit Farm's site.

"Tree Escape" -- Farm

Who are Phish and Why Are They Out to Destroy Me?
Adam King
March 17, 2009
So our hometown heroes have just announced the second leg of their summer tour. As I sit here contemplating the validity of having a carbomb before work on St. Patrick's Day, I think of the thousands of dollars I have spent on seeing this band over the past 15 years... all the student loans I could have payed off, the nicer cars I could have driven, the focus on establishing some sort of legitimate career for myself. And yet despite all of those forsaken blessings, I'm still trying to figure out where the hell I'm gonna find the cash to see some of these shows. Here's the new dates:

Red Rocks - June 30, June 31, July 1, July 2
Yes, despite the town of Morrison, CO banning Phish from ever playing there again in 1996, the clouds have parted and they're letting the chaos ensue. Can anybody say "small Colorado town in desperate need of income"?

Shoreline - August 5
I was awaiting a court hearing in Ohio last time Phish played here and swore to myself I'd go the next time.

The Gorge - August 7, August 8
My first time was in 2003 and it blew me away, but gathering the funds for this West Coast spurt just seems next to impossible. With no yet talk of an end of summer festy, this weekend will probably be the next best thing.

Chicago - August 11
So there.

Darien Lake - August 13
Quite possibly. Always fun to ride the rollercoaster before the show.

Hartford Meadows - August 14
My old stomping grounds. Hell yes.

Merriweather Post - August 15
The tour ride from hell. I'll gracefully decline so I can be in tune for the tour closer at...

SPAC - August 16
Maybe the summer New England spot.

And oh yeah, here's the shortest first-hand Hampton review you'll read, (since this website needs at least one).

Hampton Friday - Fluffhead felt great. First set went forever. Nobody presumed the David Bowie would come after the Squiming Coil. No words were needed to be spoken. Kinda like, "Hi, we're Phish and we're gonna show you why we used to be the center of the universe." Backwards Down the Number Line (the new one) was too sappy. Luckily, Tweezer emerged and the building started to collapse. A dozen disco-balls came down for Harry Hood and it was the greatest I've felt during that song since 1995. YEM flubbed a little, but the dance party that developed was one of those moments. Kuroda was beyond classic form all weekend, and during the vocal jam I definitely thought the mothership was ascending. After the night of Phish Greatest Hits, my buddy Colin said, "It felt like Phish Prom Night" and Seth Yacovone said, "It's like going to see the Dead in 1984 and they play Europe '72." It felt great. It was all back. I saw visions of an eternally empty wallet in my future.

Saturday - Runaway, Melt, Reba, Ice - All sounded super tight, but nothing strecthed as much as I would have liked. Second set Rock and Roll, Ghost were hot - Wolfman's was maybe the highlight of the weekend. Shit got digi. Mike's Groove never went where it will this summer.

Sunday - Page on keytar for Frankenstein. Disease killed, 2001, Moma, Slave, definitely felt like old times.

The lot, the shows, the after-parties in hotels. It was all there. Page was easily the allstar, taking a clav solo every shot he had. Not too many surprises - I think I've seen all these songs at least 30, 40 times. But the band is back, and hot, and tight. So, don't be afraid. Bob Dylan Talks About His New Record Together Through Life
Mike McKinley
March 16, 2009
Bob Dylan's new record‚ Together Through Life‚ is coming out on April 28th. He talks about it with Bill Flanagan on his web site - check it out.

His last three albums -- Time Out of Mind, Love & Theft, and Modern Times -- are fantastic. His songwriting voice and style feels as if it's aging perfectly with him. It should be interesting to hear how this one sounds.

In other Dylan news, he is going to be one of the headliners of Rothbury Festival taking place July 2-5, 2009 in Rothbury, Michigan. Other acts include The Dead, String Cheese Incident, Willie Nelson & Family, The Black Crowes, and many more. See the full lineup here. James Brown or Photosynth - which video is more mind blowing?
Mike McKinley
March 16, 2009
This morning James Brown's Love Power Peace came up on my iTunes. Yeah, that's right, way to make Monday funky. About ten years ago I listened to this record to death - arguably James Brown's best band. I pulled this live gem from Paris 1971 out a few months back after I came across a thread on a message board titled, "Mind Blowing Video." So, of course, I clicked in the thread and started reading. The first link by the thread's originator went to this tech web site, TED and showed a video of a presentation. Here's the description: "Blaise Aguera y Arcas leads a dazzling demo of Photosynth, software that could transform the way we look at digital images. Using still photos culled from the Web, Photosynth builds breathtaking dreamscapes and lets us navigate them." I watched and yes, the presentation on the potential of this software was "mind blowing." Here, take a look.



The next post was by a different person and it went to this James Brown clip of the first two tracks off of Love Power Peace, "Brother Rapp" and "Ain't It Funky Now." I love the fact that this was a response to the Photosynth video, making my appreciation for human interaction on the interwebs grow deeper. So, I'm not sure, but I think this video of James Brown is more mind blowing. Look at those moves. Look at the way he gets Fred to play. And Bootsy. And then his organ solo to end it. You're kidding right?! This band is so hot. OK, OK, my hands are where you can see them. Looky:



Good god, right? What do you think? More mind blowing: Ridiculous software or ridiculous James Brown?

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