Speaking to God in Public

My two favorite albums of 2016 are by Chicago rappers.  Here’s the kicker: Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo and Chance the Rapper’s Coloring Book are gospel albums.  West insists that “this is a God dream.”  Chance avers that “I speak to God in public.”  Their testimonials aren’t negated by the inclusion of raps about inebriation, pride, lust and avarice.  The name of this site indicates that I’m sympathetic to their imperfections.  As a person of faith, I neither seek nor require categorical spiritual validation from artists.  Nevertheless, the praise songs on The Life of Pablo and Coloring Book inspire me.


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I reviewed a Florence + The Machine concert.

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KCUR published my review of Go, the new album by the underappreciated Kansas City musician Krizz Kaliko.

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I reviewed Andrew W.K.’s concert on Saturday.

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I logged eight hours at the Westport Roots Festival.  Here are my notes for The Kansas City Star.  I also wrote a preview of the annual event.

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I write weekly music previews for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine.

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I admire Logan Richardson’s momentous homecoming concert at Plastic Sax.

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The Kansas City rapper Gee Watts created a video for ”Hallelujah”.

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The eponymous album by the young Tuareg band Imarhan is exciting.  Here’s a video for the title track.

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I’ve long appreciated David Bazan.  Blanco is RIYL: despair, the Magnetic Fields, lo-fi synths.

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Black Mountain might be trolling on IV.  RIYL: Dio, ‘80s nostalgia, the Tubes.  Here’s ”Mothers of the Sun”.

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I don’t enjoy playing the role of a fussbudget, but Robert Glasper's revision of Miles Davis’ music on Everything’s Beautiful is a bummer.  RIYL: Erykah Badu, jokers who like to shout “remix!”, Marcus Miller.

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A Love Electric’s exciting Psychmonde is RIYL Chris Whitley, drugs, Ziggy Stardust.

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I’ll cop to liking Otep’s dystopian pop-metal.  Generation Doom is RIYL: Nine Inch Nails, Hot Topic apparel, Korn.   Here’s ”Down”.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

David Murray: An Appreciation

Although the designation doesn’t have any impact on my estimation of the man, I’m glad that Henry Threadgill won a Pulitzer Prize yesterday.  In his self-congratulatory report, Howard Reich notes that Ornette Coleman was awarded a Pulitzer in 2007.  David Murray could be the next titanic jazz saxophonist and composer to be similarly honored.  Perfection, Murray’s new collaboration with pianist Geri Allen and drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, is the latest entry in a massive discography that was already loaded with thrilling music.  Unlike the output of most supergroups, Perfection doesn’t disappoint.   With a previously unrecorded Coleman composition as its centerpiece, the album shot past Logan Richardson’s Shift as my favorite jazz release of 2016.


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I reviewed a concert by the Bad Plus Joshua Redman at the Gem Theater.

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The most recent rounds of the weekly music previews I write for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine are here and here.

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I wrote an extended show preview about the Tedeschi Trucks Band for The Kansas City Star and Ink magazine.

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The Kansas City rapper Gee Watts created a video for ”Grammys”.

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Gib Guilbeau, an integral part of the West Coast country-rock revolution, has died.  (Tip via BGO.)

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Phil Humphrey of the Fendermen has died.  The group’s version of “Mule Skinner Blues” was a  hit in 1960.  (Tip via BGO.)

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Loyalty is good.  Nostalgia is bad.  That’s why I don’t entirely trust my affection for Deftones’ Gore.  Combining Boy-era U2 and Disintegration-era the Cure with thrash elements makes my heart go pitter-patter, but I’m inclined to dismiss the approach as a cynical parlor trick.  Pals who suggest that I need to get in the “right frame of mind” to properly appreciate Gore are undoubtedly right, but I’m on a straight-and-narrow tip at the moment.  Here's "Prayers/Triangles".

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Hayes Carll’s Lovers and Leavers is a spot-on evocation of the moment in the 1970s when Billy Joe Shaver, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker and Guy Clark were at their artistic peaks.

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The Black Sabbath cover that serves as the colossal title track of Charles Bradley’s Changes is the album’s best song.  RIYL: O.V. Wright, emoting, Wilson Pickett.

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Yeah, I like Aesop Rock.  Wanna make something of it?  Here’s a live reading of ”Lazy Eye”.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Beach Music

My biggest concern while spending a few days in the California sunshine has stepping on a stingray.  The blissful environment wreaks havoc on my sonic acumen.  Of all the music I hear on the beach and on the boardwalk, the only two styles that sound right are contemporary country/pop hits like Florida Georgia Line's "Cruise" and classic West Coast hip-hop like Snoop Dogg's "Up Jump Tha Boogie".  I have little doubt that had I been raised in this environment, my interest in jazz would be negligible and my knowledge of ska would be deeper than the Pacific Ocean.


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Here's my Local Listen feature about Quixotic for KCUR's Up To Date.

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D/Will created a video for "Meeting With God."

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Gee Watts' latest video is "Gator Dance/Dreams".

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I prefer Richard Reed Parry's new classical album Music For Heart and Breathto the output of Arcade Fire.  RIYL: Nico Muhly, string sections, Terry Riley.

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The guys in Deltron 3030 reveal what's in their bags.

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Sean Jones' im.pro.vise never before seen is a fine mainstream jazz album.  RIYL: Orrin Evans, tradition, Wynton Marsalis.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: F*cked Up- Glass Boys

I've seen at least three variations of the same exchange on my social media feeds.  After a fan raves about the new Bob Mould album, one of his pals dismisses the positivity by suggesting that Hüsker Dü was superior.  Who has time for nostalgia when F*cked Up just released Glass Boys?  Without ever sounding like it's aping its predecessors, F*cked Up combines the melodic rage of Hüsker Dü with Pete Townshend's rebellious theorizing. I'll blow the dust off my collection of Hüsker Dü vinyl on the SST label once I've had my fill of Glass Boys, but I don't anticipate that happening anytime soon.


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I reviewed Rockfest on Saturday.  And for the record, my report noted the Aaron Lewis incident that subsequently became a meme. 

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My notes on Sunday's performance by Ingrid Laubrock and Tom Rainey are at Plastic Sax.

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Here's a new video for a track on the Gee Watts album I reviewed at There Stands the Glass on April 12.

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A cameo by Music Millennium's Terry Currier makes Bob Mould's "I Don't Know You Anymore" my favorite music video of 2014.

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Not surprisingly, the new compilation Wheedle's Groove: Seattle's Finest In Funk & Soul 1965-75 is excellent.

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Just when I begin to think that I'm completely over mainstream jazz, Theo Croker's AfroPhysicist saves the day for swing.  RIYL: Dee Dee Bridgewater, your father's jazz, Roy Hargrove.

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Blu's Good to Be Home may be a good album, but I just can't deal with the knob-twisting production.  RIYL: 9th Wonder, annoying modulation, Digable Planets.

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The release of Me. I Am Mariah… The Elusive Chanteuse is testing the limits of my love/hate relationship with Mariah Carey.

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Black Stone Cherry's blend of Southern rock and metal has long appealed to me, but the new album Magic Mountain isn't very good.

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A few tantalizing moments on Meshell Ndegeocello's Comet, Come To Me cause me to marvel that she's not more popular than Prince.  The worst moments remind me of why she remains a cult artist.  RIYL: Janelle Monáe, arty dance music, Daft Punk.

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The guys in Parquet Courts put great records in their bags.

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Owen Pallett's In Conflict is an accessible entry point for anyone looking to investigate the avant/pop/classical composer's work.  RIYL: Ned Rorem, art galleries, Arcade Fire.

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It's nice that Dave and Phil Alvin put their differences aside to perform the songs of Big Bill Broonzy on Common Ground.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Gee Watts- 199X

Gee Watts is obsessed with Kendrick Lamar.  And why not?  Lamar is arguably the most important rapper alive. He also gave Watts' career a kick start by contributing a few bars to the Kansas City rapper's track "Watts R.I.O.T." last year.  Unfortunately, Watts' new album 199X sounds like an extended homage to Lamar's groundbreaking album Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

Worse still, Watts isn't even the star of his own album.  The poetry of Purpose on the tracks "Mourning Soul" and "Hide & Seek" provide 199X's best moments.  Only on the sorrowful "Hide & Seek" and the hip-hop collage "Deeper Than Rap" can Watts' true potential be easily discerned.

During the opening moments of 199X, Watts admits that he "feel(s) like I might have let the town down."  I can't speak for anyone else, but he let me down.  I'm not about to jump off Watts' bandwagon, but I'm convinced that he has much more to offer than than can be heard on the disappointing 199X.


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I reviewed Dream Theater's concert at the Uptown Theater on Wednesday.

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I love the fact that there's a song titled "'02 Boschee".  Unfortunately, I don't love Chase Compton's composition.

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Slowly Rolling Camera created an appealing video for "Dream a Life".  RIYL: Portishead, jazz that's not jazz, Soul II Soul.

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Cloud Nothings' Here and Nowhere is RIYL: Japandroids, college radio in 1987, Fugazi.

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Free Aesop Rock!

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I think Steel Panther is hilarious.  (I'm a 14-year-old boy at heart.)

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I realize that it's an ignorant thing to suggest, but Tinariwen's Emmaar is a bit, um, samey.  RIYL: John Lee Hooker, repetition, Ali Farka Touré. 

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Originality isn't the strong suit of Black Label Society.  I adore Catacombs of the Black Vatican anyway.  RIYL: Ozzy, sledgehammers, Slash.

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Ibibio Sound Machine's self-titled album is RIYL: Angélique Kidjo, world parties, Antibalas.

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I'm unable to resist the charms of Tune-Yard's "Wait for a Minute".  RIYL: Graceland, tomorrow, Reflektor.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

The Top Ten Kansas City Music Videos of 2013

The Grisly Hand's "Country Singles" joins Making Movies' "Tormenta" (2010), Hidden Pictures' "Anne Apparently" (2011) and SSION's "Earthquake" (2012) as the obvious choice for There Stands the Glass' top video of the year by a Kansas City-area artist.  I added current YouTube view counts to provide a bit of context regarding the relative popularity of each act.

1. The Grisly Hand- "Country Singles" (481 views)

2. Tiny Horse- "Ride" (877 views)

3. Tech N9ne- "Straight Out the Gate" (3,986,084 views)

4. Josh Berwanger- "Time Traveler" (1,414 views)

5. Krizz Kaliko- "Why Me" (276,203 views)

6. Cowboy Indian Bear- "Let It Down" (98 views)

7. Gee Watts- "Nasty" (45,963 views)

8. Minden- "What's More Than Appropriate?" (1,250 views)

9. The ACBs- "Television" (4,372 views)

10. Rich the Factor- "I'm Hustlin'" (121,029 views)

I conducted similar exercises in 2012, 2011 and 2010.

Album Review: Philip H. Anselmo & the Illegals- Walk Through Exits Only

A friend asked me if I liked Nine Inch Nails shortly before the band's concert at the Sprint Center a couple months ago.  I explained that Trent Reznor's anger is quite different from my anger.  My form of rage sounds like Walk Through Exits Only, the 2013 album by Philip H. Anselmo & the Illegals.  Anselmo, of course, is best known as the front man of Pantera.  That only hints at the extreme mayhem of his latest recording.  The title track contains my new catchphrase- "Everybody ruins music- not just me."


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I reviewed the Kenny Barron Trio at the Folly Theater on Friday and Alejandro Fernandez at the Sprint Center on Saturday.

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Chico Hamilton has died.

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"Truly a facile and completely meaningless list."  That's the verdict of a commenter regarding a listing of my twenty favorite jazz performances of 2013.

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Kansas City's the Architects has long been one of my favorite bands.  The excellent new Border Wars: Episode 1 is RIYL: Craig Finn, Joe Strummer, Gaslight Anthem.

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The video for She's a Keeper's "Plattsburg" was released earlier this month.  RIYL: the Lumineers, Plattsburg, foliage.

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The video for the Grisly Hand's "Country Singles" is a hoot.  RIYL: Roger Corman, the Boulevard Drive-In, Red Sovine.

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Tech N9ne made a video for "Hiccup," a song from his new metal EP.

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Here's a video for Gee Watts' "199x (Sixteen Nineteen)". (VIa Demencha.)

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I shed a tear when I learned that Turntable.fm was closing up shop.  Although I logged on just a couple times in the past year, I was addicted to the socially-driven music streaming site a few years ago.

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Am I the only person who thinks that Blood Orange's Cupid Deluxe sounds like an unholy alliance between Wang Chung, Sheila E. and Don Henley?

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After Blue, Tierney Sutton's tribute to Joni Mitchell, features the Turtle Island Quartet.  RIYL: Karrin Allyson, Elvis Costello's The Juliet Letters, Laura Nyro.

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Lily Allen's send-up of pop culture  on "Hard Out Here"  is very amusing.

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Matthew Shipp's Piana Sutras is RIYL: Cecil Taylor, math, Thelonious Monk.

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Jean Grae is back with a vengeance.  RIYL: De La Soul, Erick Sermon, Black Star.

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There's something about Brandy Clark's 12 Stories that doesn't sit well with me.  RIYL: John Prine's first album, Guy Clark, Mary Gauthier.

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The man-on-the-street discussion about music on Pharrell Williams' channel is both interesting and frustrating.  There are really cool people (3:16), utter twits (6:16) and a guy who almost made my day (3:00).

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Eric Revis' City of Asylum is sublime.  The album by the trio of bassist Revis, pianist Kris Davis and drummer Andrew Cyrille is RIYL: all things out, Charles Mingus, Paul Bley.

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I'd like to thank the commenter at the previous There Stands the Glass post who shared a bit of good ol' Grampa Jones.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Concert Review: The Pitch Music Showcase

The annual Pitch Music Showcase is one of my favorite events of the summer.  Friday's party was no exception.  Here are the three best things I took in during the three-and-a-half hours I spent in Westport.

1. Gee Watts at the Riot Room patio
I was charmed by the way in which the young rapper adapted his performance to the pitifully meager audience of about a dozen members of his entourage and 20 unrelated onlookers.  He set the tone by referring to the intimate setting as a "poetry reading."  Although he performed a few off-color selections like "Nasty", his low-key delivery on wrenching material like  "Premature Hate" floored me.  Between selections, Watts shared his views on God, capitalism and friendship.  He even broke down one or two of his songs in the style of Rap Genius.

2. La Guerre at the RecordBar
I've seen Katlyn Conroy perform several times as a member of Cowboy Indian Bear.  I've also enjoyed her recordings.  Not until I witnessed her sing for about a dozen people at the RecordBar, however, did I grasp that her voice is a truly magnificent instrument.

3. Info Gates at the Riot Room patio
Info Gates, a hip-hop producer, songwriter and performer, was joined by Ubiquitous, Godemis and Les Izmore.  It looked and sounded a lot like this.


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I reviewed Saturday's concert by the Killers, Queens of the Stone Age, Gogol Bordello and the Virgins.

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Strange Music continues to crank out product.  "Why Me", is a track on Krizz Kaliko's new Son of Sam album, his fifth in six years.

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Mills Record Company provides a nice analysis of the significance of the Get Up Kids' Four Minute Mile.

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Mary Halvorson's stellar set at last weekend's Newport Jazz Festival is available as a free download.  RIYL: Henry Threadgill, Marc Ribot, Charles Mingus.

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I'm looking forward to hearing this week's new releases by Gary Burton, the Civil Wars, Chick Corea, Iwrestledabearonce, Christian McBride, Old Crow Medicine Show, the Polyphonic Spree, Elvis at Stax: Deluxe Edition, Revocation, Terje Rypdal, Beating The Petrillo Ban: The Late December 1947 Modern Sessions and Mutazione - Italian Electronic & New Wave Underground 1980 - 1988

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Kansas City Click: Amon Amarth open for Rob Zombie at Cricket Wireless Amphitheater on Monday.

The Floozies perform Tuesday at Crossroads KC.

T.J. Martley performs with Bill McKemy and Matt Leifer at Unity of Kansas City North on Wednesday.

John Velghe & the Prodigal Sons appear at Knuckleheads on Thursday.

(Original image of Gee Watts by There Stands the Glass.)