Curfew

My responses to a meme initiated by The Guardian and prolonged by NPR Music.

1) What was the first song you ever bought?: "Shining Star" by Earth, Wind & Fire. Why?  Why not?  It's still my jam.

2) What song always gets you dancing? "Mother Popcorn" by James Brown. Why?  My knees aren't broken.

3) What song takes you back to your childhood? "Daddy Sang Bass" by Johnny Cash. Why? I was reared on that stuff.

4) What is your perfect love song? "So In Love" by Curtis Mayfield. Why? The sound and the sentiment.

5) What song would you want at your funeral? "Aguas de Marco" by Antonio Carlos Jobim. Why? "It's the mud, it's the mud."

6) Time for the encore.  One last song that make you, you. "Bring the Noise" by Public Enemy.  Why? The contradictions.  The rage.  The mayhem. Chuck D's self-importance.  Flavor Flav's humor.


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I reviewed Monday's John Hiatt concert.

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New Iris Dement!  Amazon offers snippets of her forthcoming album Sing the Delta.

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New CES Cru!

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New OFWGKTA!  Here's Hodgy and Left Brain's "La Bonita".

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An update on South Park Mexican is headlined "Should Hip-Hop Artists Be Allowed to Release Albums From Jail?"  As a guy who once repped SPM albums, I believe the answer is "yes."  (Via S.S.)

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I admired Merrill Garbus before I watched her new "What's In My Bag?" segment.  I love her now. 

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I adore Bob Dylan's "Duquesne Whistle".

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ShowYouSuck performed at KJHK.

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"Hi-fi?  Why, sure- you bet!"  A 1957 stereo demonstration infomercial is amazing.

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I heard Johnny Winter's 1974 rendition of "Stray Cat Blues" for the first time the other day.  That's evil going on.

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Tom Ryan, an occasional commenter at There Stands the Glass, has died.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Fela Tribute at the RecordBar

When I learned that Hearts of Darkness was participating in a tribute to Fela Kuti, my initial reaction wasn't entirely positive.  I wondered how the event would differ from every other Hearts of Darkness show.

But that's not fair.  Kansas City's Hearts of Darkness has always offered a unique twist on Fela's Afrobeat.  And Shelf Life, the band's new album, documents the collective's ongoing evolution.  Besides, the Fela tribute combined the forces of Hearts of Darkness and the People's Liberation Big Band.   I wasn't about to miss the opportunity to see members of two of my favorite bands collaborate on the music of one of my heroes, so I dragged my sorry carcass to the RecordBar on Sunday.

After paying the $7 cover with a fiver and eight quarters (I'm busted), I was instantly energized by the vibrant music.  Here are a few observations:

*While I missed the beginning and the end of the performance, the number of musicians on stage numbered between 14 and 19 depending on the selection.
*Alas, the audience- including the musicians waiting for their turn to play- numbered about 60.  I understand that HoD's performance the previous night at Knuckleheads drew several hundred people.  Perhaps fans were simply worn out.
*Most of the audience sat during propulsive renditions of the most inviting dance music of the twentieth century.  I don't get it.
*The break between sets was less than fifteen minutes.  Kudos to enthusiastic bandleader Bob Asher!
*Seeing Micah Herman and Jeff Harshbarger standing next to one another on stage gave me an inordinate amount of joy.
*Other notable participants included Brad Cox, Stan Kessler, Mark Lowrey, Rich Wheeler, Brad Williams and Arny Young.


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I wrote a fall jazz preview for The Kansas City Star.

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I wasn't able to catch much music while I visited Oregon last week.  Here are my notes on one excursion.

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"Leather On" is a track from Mike Dillon's forthcoming album Urn.

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"This is a cement, concrete-reinforced vault!" Chad Kassem of Acoustic Sounds just kills me.

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Carry On is a new tribute album to the late Teisha Helgerson.

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New P.O.S.!  I hope We Don't Even Live Here is as good as Never Better, my #2 album of 2009.

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Freaks partial to both Tool's videos and the music of Erik Satie will want to know about Hauschka's "Radar".

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The video for Gizmo's "Red Balloon" is remarkable.  RIYL: Robert Glasper, Sonic Youth.

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Ty Segal's new song "The Hill" is stupendous.  RIYL: Nuggets, drugs, 1968.

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I panned an El Ten Eleven performance several months ago.  Is  "Thanks Bill" the band's retort?

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She's a Keeper uploaded two new songs.  RIYL: Jason Mraz, Mumford & Sons.

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Enrico Rava plays Michael Jackson on the new album On the Dance Floor.

I'm all about Gummy Soul's Bizarre Tribe: A Quest to The Pharcyde.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here and here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Von Freeman, 1923-2012

Jazz giants Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus and John Coltrane are rightfully celebrated.  The heart and soul of jazz, however, lies in the lives and legacies of musicians like Chicago's Von Freeman and Kansas City's Ahmad Alaadeen.  As Howard Reich's essential and astounding remembrance indicates, Freeman was more of a hometown hero than a universally hailed legend.  That doesn't mean that Freeman wasn't brilliant.  His ancient-sounding tone on the old-fashioned tenor battles on the pictured album gives  me chills.  While Frank Catalano holds his own, Freeman's out-oriented concepts are stunning.  I also love "Doin' It Right Now", "Vonski"'s brawny debut album as a leader.  Here's essential interview and performance footage from last year.  His rendition of "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" from the same gig will break your heart.  Freeman died Saturday.


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I absolutely adore 'Round Midnight, the entirely conventional new swing album by Scott Hamilton and Harry Allen.

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The EPK for Stevie Stone's new album makes a strong case for the commercial viability of the Strange Music artist.

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XV's Popular Culture figures to make my year-end best-of list.  Here's "making-of" footage.

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Hey jerks, why didn't any of you turn me on to Mandali?

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Thanks to Good Music Alert, I'm aware of the new album by Curumin.

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Kansas City Click: Hermon Mehari is at the Majestic on Tuesdays.

Guardian Alien appears at the RecordBar on Wednesday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Turbonegro- Sexual Harrassment

In spite of the content of my previous post, I'm not too proud to admit that sometimes music chooses the listener.  In a perfect world, I wouldn't even be aware of Turbonegro.  The sleazy punk/metal band is just plain filthy.  And I love it.  "You Give Me Worms" reflects the content of the new album Sexual Harassment.  Other choice tracks are titled "Dude Without a Face," "Shake Your Sh*t Machine" and "I Got a Knife."  Recommended if you like whiskey, drugs, prison, sex and prison sex. 


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Marvin Hamlisch has died.

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Kyle James' Bars$Daze is not exactly politically correct.

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I can't believe that I saw the 2011 video for the Good Foot's "House" for the first time this week.

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Let the witch hunt begin!

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I don't care what anyone says- I'll always love Randy Travis.

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Tim Finn wrote a remarkable story about the travails of the Architects' Keenan Nichols.

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Kansas City Click: Beaver Nelson plays a matinee at Davey's on Saturday.

The Beaumont plays host to Helmet on Sunday.

Brad Leali returns to the Blue Room on Monday.

A very funny man appears at the Midland on Tuesday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Frank Ocean- Channel Orange

Finally!  A couple people with remarkably good taste were confounded that I didn't share their enthusiasm for Channel Orange.   "It's exactly your thing," I was repeatedly told.  One friend described the Frank Ocean album as a combination of Prince, Outkast and R. Kelly.  Yep- that's precisely my thing.  I stuck with it and began to appreciate the way "Crack Rock" swings, the literate flourishes in "Super Rich Kids" and the unrequited lust of "Pyramids."  The juxtaposition of André 3000 and Eddie Hazel-style guitar on "Pink Matter" also impressed me.  The entire project finally clicked a couple days ago when I rearranged the track order.  The album is sequenced all wrong.  My version of Channel Orange begins with "Bad Religion."   I haven't been a member of the cool kids' club for years, but finally tuning into Channel Orange provides me with no small degree of consolation. 


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Here's my review of Drowning Pool's under-attended concert at the VooDoo.

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Johnnie Bassett has died.

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The Pitch's annual music showcase is always fun.   The best bands I saw Saturday were Making Movies and Radkey.  Diverse's hip hop set inspired speculation at Plastic Sax.

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You're really blowing it if you've never attended one of the People's Liberation Big Band's monthly performances at the RecordBar.  Sunday's gig was astounding.

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Grenadina's new six-song EP Pretend For Me is available as a "name-your-own-price" download at Bandcamp.  RIYL: L7, K Records.

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Unusual items are in the bags of Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks.

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"Hell Broke Luce".

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Kansas City Click: Frank Hannon of Tesla appears Tuesday at Jerry's Bait Shop in Lee's Summit.

White Violet plays at Czar Bar on Wednesday.

White Wizzard is at Riot Room on Thursday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

What's That Noise?

I almost became "that guy" last week.  Every music fan has watched people turn around at the door of a tavern when they realize that the room is dominated by loud musicians.  I almost joined that contemptible club last week.  Hungry and with an hour to kill before going to a different live music venue for a five-hour show, I stopped at Czar Bar at 6 p.m. to partake in its air conditioning, ice water and food.  A band was launching into a matinee performance.   With more than a little trepidation, I stayed to check out the emo-ish band The Author and the Illustrator.  I liked 'em.  My hamburger and fries were also very good, although at $13 plus tip, I'm far more likely to go out of my way to catch the Author and the Illustrator than splurge on another meal at the establishment on Grand Boulevard.


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I'm still assessing the merits of The Cherry Thing.  I have no such reservations about Neneh Cherry's eclectic playlist.

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Sara Gazarek has jokes.

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It's a wonder that Foxygen didn't title its new album Through the Past, Darkly (Vol. 3).

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My friend Steve Wilson is interviewed about his band the Liquor Buddies.

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Here's the new video for Stik Figa's "Cornerstore."

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"Welcome to Nookie Wood." (How I love John Cale!)

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The comment thread at Tim Finn's review of a Big Time Rush concert is a thing of beauty.

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The Mailbox, a weekly Kansas City-centric music program hosted by my friends Michael Byars and Chris Haghirian, is one of my favorite podcasts.  That said, my taste in music only overlaps with Chris' about ten percent of the time.

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Kansas City Click: Look for me at the following shows: Drowning Pool returns to the VooDoo on Friday.

The Pitch Music Showcase is Saturday.

The People's Liberation Big Band celebrates its fourth year at the RecordBar on Sunday.

My Morning Jacket headlines at Starlight on Monday.

(Original music by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Christian Scott- Christian aTunde Adjuah

I love jazz that sounds like tomorrow rather than yesterday.  Christian Scott's new album Christian aTunde Adjuah fits the bill.  It's precisely what I want to hear from a young American jazz ensemble.  The musicians are clearly aware of hip hop, contemporary R&B and indie rock even as the music they play can't be mistaken for anything but jazz.  Instead of being cluttered with a plethora of guest features, it's recorded with Scott's working band.  I heard the double album for the first time yesterday, but I'm confident that Christian aTunde Adjuah will find a spot on my year-end Top Ten album list.  Here's the EPK for the album.


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My review of last week's concert by Los Lobos, Making Movies and Maria the Mexican angered many readers.  For the record, Los Lobos was once my favorite rock band.

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Bill Doss of Olivia Tremor Control has died.

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Saint Vitus will perform at the Granada in October.  I've never seen the influential metal band.

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Several sets from last weekend's Newport Folk (ahem) Festival are available as free downloads from NPR.  I'm enjoying digital versions of performances by Charles Bradley and the Alabama Shakes.

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I just discovered that the Persuasions recorded at least one album of Dead covers.  Their version of "Ripple" is lovely.

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Longtime readers of There Stands the Glass won't be surprised to learn that the new collection of material from Terje Rypdal makes me weak in the knees.

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DJ Booth offers three remixes of Tech N9ne's "Blur."

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In case anyone was wondering, I'm still not over "Call Me Maybe."

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Wrath and Ruin- Mouth of Oblivion

A member of Wrath and Ruin gave me a CD copy of Mouth of Oblivion during a metal show last winter.  Put off by the Kansas City-based metal band's use of keyboards, I set the album aside.  The recent passing of Deep Purple's Jon Lord and the prevalent use of keyboards by metal bands at this summer's Mayhem and Warped tours inspired me to give Mouth of Oblivion another chance. 

Surprise!  The keyboards are now one of my favorite elements of the band's debut release.  Synths add a melodic cohesiveness and counter the intentionally abrasive guitars.  The entire project seems to be wheeled around the epic "The Bug", the album's strongest track.  But I also appreciate raging songs like "Strength of Materials" and "Sedna", a Hearts of Space-style mood piece.

While Wrath and Ruin probably wouldn't have cracked my best-of-2011 list had I given it a fair shake last year, I'm glad it's part of my soundtrack for the scorching summer of 2012.

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I can't abide Deerhunter, but after seeing Bradford Cox's What's In My Bag? segment, I may have to reevaluate my bias.  The dude's down with both Carl Perkins and Pere Ubu. 

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My discovery of the week is Carter Sampson.  RIYL: Gillian Welch, red dirt.

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I found an examination of "copy-left" issues in Brazil fascinating.

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"Indie rock veterans Death Cab for Cutie got $150,000, while country singer Dierks Bentley pulled down $120,000,"  according to an interesting report in the Chicago Tribune about a city-funded festival.

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Kansas City Click: Deadbeat Darling tops Saturday's bill at the Riot Room.

The Temper Trap perform at Crossroads KC on Monday.

Girl In a Coma are at the Riot Room on Monday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Hobby Rockets, Treehouses and Red Abalone

The embedded video documents a visit the members of the new Kansas City-based fado band Fado Novato paid to a luthier.  It offers a peek into a world about which I know very little. Observations:

*The Raytown-based luthier Dave Bucher is a fascinating guy.  Anyone who enjoys KCPT's Rare Visions & Roadside Revelations will appreciate Bucher's folk art and scholarly musings.

*The video serves as confirmation that Shay Estes is indeed responsible for the rainout of last year's Prairie Village Jazz Festival.  (Kidding, Shay- I'm just kidding.)

*This is an ideal example of how musicians can (and should) incorporate social media into their day-to-day interactions.

*That said, I can't wait to hear Fado Novato perform.


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I wrote a poorly received review of last night's Tenacious D show.

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Can you believe that I'd never been to a James Taylor concert until last week?  Here's my review.

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Tech N9ne's "Caribou Lou" has achieved gold status.  (Tip via RH.)

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I'm excited about Christian Scott's new album in spite of his hubris-filled EPK.  Here's corresponding live footage.

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How do you compel me to purchase a physical version of an album?  The latest reissue of Liquid Swords contains "a full wooden minature (sic) chess set, which can be played on the chess board printed and contained directly on the inner lining of the box."

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I reviewed Pat Metheny's new Unity Band album at Plastic Sax.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

Review: She's a Keeper at Yardley Hall

The processed air inside Yardley Hall was deliciously chilly on Friday.  As I spend a lot of time exposed to this summer's extreme heat, the promise of air-conditioning lured me to the free She's a Keeper concert at Johnson County Community College. 

I hadn't seen the teen-dominated band since April and the chance to hear it in an acoustically pristine environment intrigued me.  Along with approximately 250 people, I learned that it's progressing nicely.  While the 45-minute set indicated that She's a Keeper hasn't grown out of its adorably awkward stage presence, the band has three strong vocalists and a terrific sense of melody.  Uninitiated readers are encouraged to watch the excellent video for "Stupid Heart" to experience the band's tremendous promise.

If the musicians asked me for advice, I'd tell them to quit listening to anything made in the new millennium.  It's obvious that the members of She's a Keeper take inspiration from Mumford & Sons and the Lumineers.  That's fine, but the band would do well to study American Beauty, Pink Moon, Astral Weeks and a stack of albums by John Hurt, Sonny Terry, the Hot Club of France and Lonnie Johnson.  An injection of blues and swing would help further distinguish She's a Keeper from the thousands of new acts plying a similar terrain.

Then again, She's a Keeper doesn't need my guidance.  Even after being told that the recording was available as a free download, members of the audience purchased 30 CD versions of a live EP after Friday's show.  The band's rabid fan base ranges in age from 5 to 65.  I can't think of another locally-based act with such broad appeal. 


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My five favorite performances at the Mayhem Festival on Tuesday were by Motorhead, Slipknot, Conflicts, Dirtfedd and Betraying the Martyrs. Here's my review.

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I'm looking forward to seeing if my gigantic melon appears in the background of the new PBS special featuring Joyce DiDonato's with the Kansas City Symphony.  The soundtrack is available at iTunes.

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Aficionados of sloppy garage rock need the Dirty Nil's Summer Mix-Tape.  It's free at Bandcamp.

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Paper Tiger's "Gold Pass" has served as my theme song for the past week.

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Kyle James is featured on thePhantom*'s "Sotally Tober".  The track is obviously inspired by Tech N9ne's "Everybody Move".  (Via Tony's Kansas City.)

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image of She's a Keeper by There Stands the Glass.)

Kitty Wells, 1919-2012

Kitty Wells has died.  "One by One", the greats are leaving us.  While I never took a liking to her moralizing, I'll miss her classic honky tonk approach.


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I still haven't come to a conclusion about the merits of the collaboration between Neneh Cherry and the Thing.  Here's instructive live footage.

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Say what you will about the Gathering of the Juggalos- I'm genuinely impressed that the 2012 edition will include Danny Brown, George Clinton, the Geto Boys, The Game, Warren G, Raekwon, the Fat Boys, Kool Keith, Master P, DMX and Tech N9ne. 

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Why is Baroness suddenly a socially acceptable metal band?  I've liked Baroness live and on record for years, but it's weird to see the band suddenly championed by the likes of NPR.

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I review a new album that leads off with a track by the People's Liberation Big Band at Plastic Sax.

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El-P produced Milkdrop's "Game Changer".

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Kansas City Click: It's not the heat- it's the deathcore.  I'll see you in the pit at Mayhem Festival on Tuesday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Steep Canyon Rangers- Nobody Knows You

I've spent a great deal of time listening the Avett Brothers, the Yonder Mountain String Band, Old Crow Medicine Show and other newgrass and alt-folk acts in recent weeks.  There was a time when I would have considered such deviations from traditional bluegrass heretical.  No more.  As someone once croaked, "I was so much older then- I'm younger than that now."  So when I hear "real" bluegrass today- and the Steep Canyon Rangers' new release Nobody Knows You qualifies as a traditional bluegrass album- I'm initially inclined to get excited only by unconventional production tricks on songs like Nobody Knows You's "Between Midnight and the Dawn."  After a few spins, however, the songs steeped in tradition became my favorites.  I also appreciate that a couple of the love songs are written by a guy who clearly understands the complexities of relationships.  Bonus- there's no sign of a certain comedian. 


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God bless Public Enemy.  Check out "I Shall Not Be Moved".

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I've given Frank Ocean's Channel Orange a cursory listen.  It struck me as a less obnoxious version of Rhymes-with-Snake's Take Care.  I'll try it again when I'm in the proper frame of mind.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

High and Outside

What a difference a day makes.  Along with Diverse, Hearts of Darkness and a passel of DJs, Making Movies performed for over 1,000 people at Crossroads KC on Friday.  Less than 24 hours later, the band played another free concert at Barney Allis Plaza that seemed to have been sponsored by the Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association.  While a couple dozen passerby stopped to listen, I suspect that my companion and I were the only people who showed up in the 100+ degree heat specifically to hear the band.  The massive scale of the venue made the turnout especially awkward.  Yeah, it was hot.  But Making Movies is worth a little discomfort.  While I've been championing the band for some time- the promotional clip for "Tormenta" topped one of my Top 25 Kansas City Videos of 2010 list- Making Movies has developed into an even sharper act during the past year.  The band's Chevy Music Showcase spot reflects its vitality. 


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Andre Williams likes to remind people that he's a bad motherf*cker.  He's right. Here's my review of his appearance Friday at the RecordBar.

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The 2012 edition of Warped Tour was my favorite in years.  My review is followed by a list of my ten favorite performances of the day.

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Ben Kynard has died.

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Talk about a bad look.  Check out "Billionaire", the music video by M.E., the wife of Ephren Taylor, Jr.  Read The Star's report on Taylor's appalling story.

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K is for Kanda Bongo Man.

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Kansas City Click: The Knux play Czar Bar on Tuesday.

The Farewell Drifters return to Knuckleheads on Wednesday.

Nicolay and the Hot at Nights perform at the Blue Room on Thursday.

(Original image of Making Movies' performance by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: R. Kelly- Write Me Back

Dear Kellz,

I"m writing you back. 

I realize we got off to a rocky start almost twenty years ago when I refused to stop calling you a cheeseball.   I've since realized that calling you out for being a goof is no more productive than complaining about the summer heat in Kansas City.

Even so, I'm compelled to whine about Write Me Back.  How could you have released the album in its current form?  You're backed by what sounds like chintzy karaoke tracks.  Had you featured a live band like the Roots, Orgone or the in-house group at Daptone, Write Me Back would have been the album of the year.  The songs are amazing.  (Weird, but amazing.)  And the MJ thing happening with your voice has never sounded more spectacular.

Yet until you pull it together, I'll continue to roll my eyes every time I hear someone refer to you as the King of R&B.  Oh, how you disappoint me!  Cheeseball. 

Your unforgiving fan,

B 


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Farewell, Andy Griffith.  Thanks again for introducing the world to the Dillards.

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Yomo Toro has died.  Here's There Stands the Glass' 2009 appreciation of Toro. 

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Perusing old Yomo Toro recordings led me to Jose Miguel Class.  Man, it really doesn't get any better than that.

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Godemis is looking good.

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I remain very pleased with my work at Plastic Sax.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.  And on Monday you'll find me at Warped Tour.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

The Sound of One (Grisly) Hand Clapping

The members of the Grisly Hand should hope that the adage about a rising tide lifting all ships isn't true.  Two of Kansas City's most popular like-minded acts played their farewell shows last weekend.  

So many loyal fans attended Oriole Post's final gig at the RecordBar that ordering a drink was an ordeal.  Knowing it was my final time hearing the ensemble, I made certain to appreciate the Americana act's strengths- fine fiddling, sweet vocals, strong bass work and tasteful drumming.  Oriole Post was very refined.

Because The Wilders were a much rowdier band, my mad dashes to the bar wouldn't have seemed so out of place had I attended its farewell show at Knuckleheads.  Reports indicate that it was a rapturous affair. 

Will the Grisly Hand claim the forlorn fans of the Wilders and Oriole Post?  Or will the dissolution of the two stylistically similar acts cause the entire old-timey/bluegrass/trad-country scene to collapse?


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At the intermission of last night's People's Liberation Big Band show, a friend suggested that I should post a link to the  Tiny Desk Concert of frequent Kansas City visitor Allison Miller.  It's astounding.

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Hey, D'Angelo- you and your band blew everyone off the stage at last night's BET Awards.  So why can't I link to a proper site?  Please allow me to be your manager. 

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I dig Mike Stern's new album. 

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Kansas City Click: Black Cobra play the Riot Room on Monday.

Russian Circles play the Riot Room on Tuesday.

The Shades of Blue big band are featured at Berkley Park on the Fourth of July.

(Original image of Oriole Post by There Stands the Glass.)

I'm With Emily

The indignant outcry that greeted Emily White's infamous essay for the blog of NPR's All Songs Considered annoyed me.  While I've spent tens of thousands of dollars purchasing prerecorded music, I have no animosity towards members of a generation that don't see the point in buying music.

As a child I dedicated my allowance to the purchase of 45s at Red X in Riverside, Missouri.  I began working when I was ten, which allowed me to by albums by the likes of Wings, Aerosmith, Elton John and Stevie Wonder.  Even when I was making minimum wage, I budgeted $10 a week for new music.  That money went a little further during my stint as a clerk in a record store.  My friends and I swapped cassette recordings of our collections.  (File-sharing isn't exactly a new concept.)  The first compact disc I purchased was a two-fer reissue of Marvin Gaye's What's Going On and Let's Get It On.

During college I became a serious collector of record labels like Homestead, SST and Twin/Tone.  When I caught a performance by Camper Van Beethoven in the basement of a dormitory at the University of Kansas in 1985, I purchased Telephone Free Landslide Victory.  That band's David Lowery wrote a widely disseminated scathing retort to NPR's White.

Lowery's screed about the difficulties faced by artists in 2012 isn't wrong, but it ignores reality.   When guys like me throw in the towel, it should be pretty clear that the traditional acquisition of prerecorded music has ended forever.  My stockpile of  albums and compact discs is too big to count.   And it's still growing.  A couple days ago I dropped a dollar on an a vinyl copy of the Mel Lewis Orchestra's 20 Years at the Village Vanguard and last week I picked up a stack of compact discs at San Diego's Access Hip Hop. 

Here's the clincher- I haven't played the latest additions to my collection.  I listened to those same recordings on Spotify instead.  I pay the streaming service $10 a month.  It's not ideal, but it's a lot more desirable than dusting off my copy of Earth, Wind & Fire's "Shining Star."


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I enjoyed Wednesday's Def Leppard, Poison and Lita Ford concert.  Here's my review.

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Kansas City's Mon EG raps that he wants to "bring the eighties back" on "Rocstar".  The video was aired on BET's 106 & Park last month.

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"The biggest concert to ever hit the city!" goes down Saturday at Club Skyline.

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Sam Bush is a "freshman senior".  Give that bluegrass musician a reality show, stat!

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Kansas City Click: I'll be at the RecordBar's matinee show on Friday.

I hope Gucci Mane takes his shirt off Saturday at Club Skyline.  (See above.)

I'll return to the RecordBar Sunday for PLBB.

Black Cobra hits the Riot Room on Monday.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

All's Fair

With a great deal of trepidation, I took a flyer on the San Diego County Fair while in California in last week.  Accustomed to quaint livestock shows, scouting displays and sketchy carnies at similar events in Kansas and Missouri, I cringed at paying $10 to park and another $12 to enter the fair at the Del Mar track.  My skepticism was unfounded.  While I saw plenty of goats, 4-H exhibits and creepy carnival barkers, San Diego's version of a county fair is hardly forlorn or dusty. 

The musical smorgasbord was amazing.  In addition to several stages featuring cover bands, a stunning array of international acts perform at the festival every day.  I caught Lonestar and Eric Burdon. 

Lonestar performed on a massive Coachella-sized stage for an audience of about 3,000.  As much as I'd like to loathe the band for its undeniable influence on Rascal Flatts, I can't deny the power of songs like "No News".  I dug 'em in spite of myself. 

The convoluted career of Burdon has always confused me.  His set on a smaller stage for an audience of approximately 2,000 contained a mishmash of material.  I hadn't witnessed a Burdon performance in about 15 years and I'd forgotten how many memorable songs he's recorded.  I almost lost my mind hearing his classic versions of material like "When I Was Young".  Crazy. 

Back on the ag front, I learned that the sale and purchase of raw milk is legal in California.  That's it- I'm moving.

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I reviewed last night's Scissor Sisters and Rye Rye concert.

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I reviewed a Lukas Nelson show a couple weeks ago.

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How is it that I didn't know about the Stepkids' "Legend In My Own Mind" until today?  (Thanks, Russell Jelinek!)

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I recognize that it's just one cliché after another, but I adore Lita Ford's new Living Like a Runaway album.

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Big Moon Ritual makes it clear that Chris Robinson loves American Beauty and Sailin' Shoes as much as me.

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The goofy smirks on the faces of the vocalists as the Hood Internet cover the Pretenders' "Back On the Chain Gang" delight me.

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It was love at first listen when I heard the late Manuel Galbán's Blue Cha Cha this morning.

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Kansas City Click: See what you missed last week here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

I Just Met You and This Is Crazy: Music Midway in 2012

Unless I go all-in during the second half of 2012, it looks as if my streak of taking in at least 365 shows each year will come to an end on December 31.  Even so, much of the music I've heard in the first six months of 2012 has consoled and inspired me.

Now that most music is instantly accessible, I've listened to well over 200 new albums in the first half of 2012.  Limiting the list to 25, consequently, was difficult.  I appreciate the otherwise consensus picks like Beach House's Bloom, but the albums listed below have given me the most pleasure.  Here's a Spotify playlist of my top picks.

While the entries on my album and show lists have provided unspeakable thrills, my song list is lackluster.  Where are the undeniable singles of 2012?

The 25 Best Albums of 2012 (so far)
1. Lee Fields & The Expressions- Faithful Man
2. Hahn & Hauschka- Silfra There Stands the Glass review.
3. Meshuggah- Koloss
4. Brody Buster Band- Will Die Young Ink magazine review.
5. Death Grips- The Money Store
6. Robert Glasper- Black Radio
7. Esbjorn Svensson Trio- 301 There Stands the Glass review.
8. Killer Mike- R.A.P. Music
9. Jack White- Blunderbuss
10. Project H- Become Light Plastic Sax review.
11. Charles Gayle Trio- Streets There Stands the Glass review.
12. Big K.R.I.T.- Live From the Underground
13. Pat Metheny- Unity Band
14. Norah Jones- Little Broken Hearts
15. Behzod Abduraimov- Prokofiev, Liszt & Saint-Saëns
16. Heems- Nehru Jackets
17. Steddy P- Better Make Room There Stands the Glass review.
18. Saint Vitus- Lillie F-65
19. Krizz Kaliko- Kickin' & Screamin'
20. High on Fire- De Vermis Mysteriis
21. Bobby Womack- The Bravest Man in the Universe
22. Sly & Robbie- Blackwood Dub
23. Enter Shakira- A Flash Flood of Colour
24. Ted Nash- The Creep
25. Capybara- Dave Drusky There Stands the Glass review.

The 25 Best Live Performances of 2012 (so far)
1. Enrico Rava- Winningstad Theatre Plastic Sax review.
2. Vivica Genaux and Europa Galante- Folly Theater There Stands the Glass review.
3. CS Luxem- FOKL Center There Stands the Glass review.
4. Matt Otto Quartet- Westport Coffee House Plastic Sax review.
5. Tord Gustavsen- Queen Elizabeth Hall Plastic Sax review.
6. Bobby Watson with the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra- Unity on the Plaza
7. The Dubliners- Royal Albert Hall There Stands the Glass review.
8. Testament- Midland Theater Back to Rockville review.
9. Philip Glass and Tim Fain- Helzberg Hall There Stands the Glass review.
10. Trivium- Liberty Memorial Park
11. The People's Liberation Big Band- RecordBar Plastic Sax review.
12. Danzig- Uptown Theater Back to Rockville review.
13. Tech N9ne- Midland Theater Back to Rockville review.
14. Leon Russell- Knuckleheads Back to Rockville review.
15. Mission of Burma- RecordBar
16. Gipsy Kings- Midland Theater There Stands the Glass review.
17. Nnenna Freelon- Folly Theater
18. Suzanne Vega- Yardley Hall Back to Rockville review.
19. Alaturka- Kansas City Academy Plastic Sax review.
20. Taj Mahal- Knuckleheads Back to Rockville review.
21. Mutemath- Beaumont
22. Eddie Money- Old Shawnee Days There Stands the Glass review.
23. American Head Charge- Beaumont Back to Rockville review.
24. Brandon Draper World Jazz Quartet- Polsky Theatre
25. Neveready- Belmont Park

The Ten Best Singles of 2011 (so far)
1. Esperanza Spalding- "Black Gold"
2. Nas- "Daughters"'
3. Carly Rae Jepsen- "Call Me Maybe"
4. Lady Antebellum- "Dancin' Away With My Heart"
5. Eric Church- "Springsteen"
6. Gocho- "Si Te Digo La Verdad"
7. The Black Keys- "Gold On the Ceiling"
8. Bassnectar- "Vava Voom"
9. Kellie Pickler- "100 Proof"
10. Scissor Sisters- "Only the Horses"

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: In the Heights

I almost walked out on In the Heights.  Although spending a perfect evening at the lovely Starlight Theatre is a classic Kansas City experience, my sense of disappointment threatened to get the better of me Friday.  I'd hoped that the celebrated musical would be less contrived than this.  The hip hop and salsa elements of In the Heights didn't just allow the flawed production to get a pass- the hopelessly hackneyed show was a finalist for the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.  That's embarrassing.  Still, my $10 ticket was a bargain.  At that price, I might even endure this monstrosity in July.


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Herb Reed of the Platters has died.  He was born in Kansas City.

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The Washington Post's obituary of Bob Welch refers to his "poorly received" jazz album. Man, is it… unusual.

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I've enjoyed bits and pieces of the live stream from Bonnaroo this weekend.

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Anyone up for a road trip to Knotfest in Council Bluffs?

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 If the blues wasn't in one of its cyclical troughs in popularity, Sue Foley would be a star.  Here's her new video with Peter Karp.  The duo will appear at Knuckleheads in July.

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The collaboration between Bela Fleck and the Marcus Roberts Trio is an inspired idea.  Too bad about the album cover.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)

Review: Eddie Money and The Clocks at Old Shawnee Days

I wanna go back cause I'm feeling so much older.- Eddie Money, "I Wanna Go Back"

Three large-scale fashionable pop music events transpired in Kansas City last night.  The Shins and Foster the People were among the acts at Buzz Beach Ball.  Wiz Khalifa and Yelawolf were scheduled to appear at Dancefestopia.  Jennifer Holliday was among the headliners at a gay pride festival.  

In a mildly pathetic but cost-conscious decision, I opted to go back thirty years to catch Eddie Money and The Clocks at Old Shawnee Days on Saturday.

I was giddy at the rare opportunity to hear The Clocks, a Wichita-based "new wave" band that had a minor hit in 1981 with "She Looks a Lot Like You".  I don't recall seeing the band back in the day.  I regret to report that I was disappointed.  Instead of a set of power-pop gems, the band favored sentimental songs that I associate with the likes of Quarterflash and the Motels.  I hadn't realized that the power-pop of "She Looks a Lot Like You" was atypical of the band's style.

Eddie Money, conversely, was a pleasant surprise. Wearing a personalized Royals jersey and backed by a solid band with a bar band feel, Money made old hits like "Baby Hold On" and "Gimme Some Water" sound shockingly vital.  Money is still a goofball with a shaky voice, but his genial personality immediately won me and the audience of about 2,500 over.

I wondered why the Brooklynite repeatedly complimented the "shawties" in the audience.  I eventually realized he was actually addressing the people of Shawnee.  I shared his affection.  The six dollars I spent on delicious custards represented my only expenditure on the gorgeous evening.

Thanks, shawty!


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The suburban festival also featured country artist Rickie Lee Tanner.  I enjoyed his covers of mainstream country hits, although I gasped at his introduction to "Wave On Wave."  "Any Pat Green fans in the house tonight?" Tanner queried.  Green was performing a few miles away at Crossroads KC.

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An enthusiastic report by Patrick Neas altered me to the debut album by the Kansas City area's Behzod Abduraimov.

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Kansas City Click: Buck 65 plays the Riot Room on Sunday.

The RecordBar hosts Grass Widow on Monday.

Seether opens for Nickelback at the Sprint Center on Tuesday.

A set by She's a Keeper precedes the Royals game on Wednesday.

(Original image of the moon over Old Shawnee Days by There Stands the Glass.)