I’ve known James Perry for over two decades and I’ve been a fan of his music just as long, from the bedroom cassettes he made in high school to his playing in various San Francisco Bay Area bands and now, finally, his first (not counting the Internet-only release Stuck) full-length solo album, Now You’re Gone.
With additional help from a circle of friends that includes San Francisco cellist and chanteuse Erica Mulkey (a.k.a. Unwoman), Dane Johnson (of Vie Victus), his Deathline International bandmates the Count (0) and Steve Lam, among others, Now You’re Gone is a rich and emotive blend of rock, electro, metal and lush orchestrations.
I was fortunate enough have heard this project from its genesis, sitting in James’ house when he played me some of the earliest demos of the songs. Before I drove across the country last summer, he threw together a “rough cut” for me to listen to in the car. So I was familiar with a lot of these songs before I actually got my hands on the real, honest-to-goodness final product. But wow, is it worlds apart from what I had previously heard.
It’s hard not to be biased, so I decided to talk to James about Now You’re Gone and let him tell you what it means, what it’s all about, and how it came to be… (more…)
Somewhere between Burlington and Denver, Asheville and Brooklyn. In a Between the Rainbow bus, the disco van, and the drum circle. Beyond the hula hooping sistas and the guy with the didgeridoo. Just past the hemp jewelry, the h3tty crystal wraps, the miracle seekers, the dreadies with the ice cold sammies and kind veggie burritos, you might find intrepid writer J.J. Colagrande. He’s been on the road for a long time and he’s taken his experiences on Phish tours, at the music festies, and in the vibrant culture and community that goes along with it into his first novel, Headz.
Headz is a rambling, ambling read – told through the point of view of different characters – “Heads” themselves from all over the country. Their collective paths all leading to Soldier Field for “Oracledang” — and what’s “Oracledang,” you ask? Why, it’s only the biggest festie of them all. (more…)
As people gather to celebrate the life of Jerry Garcia during the first week of August, I wanted to share a mix of tunes. Instead of the usual suspects like “Eyes of the World” or “Ripple,” I dug a little deeper and found some stuff that was a little off the beaten path.
You can read my “Jerry Post” from last summer here.
Enjoy the tunes and I’ll meet you back here next week.
““You need music, I dont know why. It’s probably one of those Joseph Campbell questions, why we need ritual. We need magic and bliss, and power and myth, and celebration and religion in our lives and music is a good way to encapsulate a lot of it.” - Jerry Garcia
The double album turns 30 this year. In upcoming installments of Test of the Boomerang, ‘ll be taking a look at the album’s creation, live spectacle, aftermath and legacy. In this first installment we’ll be looking at the long-storied origins of the album and sharing the band’s original demo recordings.
I. Origins
It’s one of the most repugnant tales in rock history: The final show of Pink Floyd’s “In the Flesh” tour, July 6th, 1977 in Montreal. Roger Waters had had quite enough. Floyd was performing in a stadium, fans were setting off fireworks during the quiet numbers, the sound was lousy, and finally, out of the roiling sea of people, a fan, imploring the band to play “Careful With That Axe Eugene,” clambered onto the stage, only to have Waters spit in his face.
Pink Floyd had come a long way from the spirited whimsy of “See Emily Play” just 10 years prior. 1977 saw the release of Animals – a visceral and venomous five-song diatribe on class and culture. After the worldwide success of Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here, the grislier Animals showed Roger Waters exerting himself more and more as band leader and the weightier themes on their new album suggested a pretension that was very unlike the zen parable simplicity of Dark Side’s best moments or Wish You Were Here’s built-in nostalgia. (more…)
The 2009 Dead made their last stand on July 4th at Rothbury. The second year of the Michigan festival was a rousing success and the Dead’s solid show was a definite highlight. While the band got off to a shaky start on their spring tour, they proved their mettle beneath the Independence Day sky rockets.
Now if there was only a fall tour to start getting fired up about.
You can get the boards of the Rothbury show at dead.net and you find several excellent audience recordings on Etree.
Today we’re looking at some rehearsals and soundchecks from the ’90s, but I do have some pretty remarkable recordings of Jerry Garcia in the studio from 1969 for your downloading pleasure. Enjoy.
Sherman, set the wayback machine for September 1990. (more…)
Columbia/Legacy has just released a glorious two-disc edition of Babatunde Olatunji’s 1959 masterwork, Drums of Passion, one of the most profoundly influential records ever. Before Passion there was no such thing as “world” music, just the industry of “exotica” records from guys like Les Baxter and Martin Denny, who created the music and ambience of “faraway lands” in an air-conditioned recording studio. There were scholarly field recordings for anthropological purposes, but when John Hammond signed Olatunji, a Nigerian drummer, it opened a portal to an entire world of beat, rhythm, passion, spirituality, and movement.
Olatunji made a string of albums for Columbia through the ’60s; the Legacy edition includes 1966’s More Drums of Passion and a slew of bonus tracks. He became an ambassador of African drumming and culture, and his acolytes include everyone from Cannonball Adderley to Afrika Bambaataa, Carlos Santana to Mickey Hart.
Hey gang, welcome back to another edition of Test of the Boomerang. Happy summer solstice. I hope you all get a chance to enjoy these long summer days with some sweet tunes, either on the road or on your patio. Festival season is in full swing and rather than try and cover everything, we’re going to take a look at a few notable shows from the past month or so. We’ll call it “Best of the Fests” or something clever like that. Pass me a beer and let’s get to the music!
Warhead Boogie>New Jam, Saddle of the Sun, Little Bit O’ Me, Fisherman’s Blues, 1759, Long Way to Go
encore: Railroad Earth
You may have heard about the terrible storm that tore into DelFest on Saturday, May 23rd. It destroyed the stage area and Railroad Earth’s late-night set was moved into a indoor multi-purpose room. The band delivered one solid set the previous day, but after the terrible events of the 23rd, the band played one of their most intimate and heartfelt sets ever.
Highlights include a 25-minute suite of “Warhead Boogie” into “New Jam,” guest appearances by Jason Carter and Ronnie McCoury, and a sweet “Railroad Earth” encore. Tim Carbone wrote over at his blog:
“That night when we encored with Railroad Earth at the late night show, I never meant it more when I sang…. Oh Mama, ain’t it good to be alive! It surely is… it surely is.”
Go check it out HERE. Also here’s some goodness from 5/29/09Â — a good chunk of that night’s way cool version of “Like a Buddha.” Enjoy! (more…)
In the wake of Graham Nash’s box earlier this year, and of course Neil Young’s behemoth Archives, Crosby, Stills & Nash (Neil Young appears only on one song) Demos is a pretty modest little disc. A cross-section of hits in their embryonic, home recorded states. It almost feels like a missing chunk of the old CSN box set. Almost. Nothing here feels too oblique, nothing too archaic or for-completists-only. Crosby’s early takes on “Almost Cut My Hair” and “Deja Vu” are especially interesting in their early arrangements. Graham Nash’s “Sleep Song” and Stephen Stills’ “My Love Is a Gentle Thing” crank up the intimacy factor on these recordings and “Be Yourself” and “Music is Love” retain their summery sing-along feel. (more…)
The Dead wrapped up their 2009 tour with two solid shows back home at Shoreline Amphitheater and then an end-of-the-tour barn burner at The Gorge in Washington. The tour started a little ragged back in April, but after the band worked out the kinks, they appeared to be in fine form. Each night of the tour featured a “dream show”-worthy setlist and made me almost nostalgic for an old school predictable setlist – devoid of such treats as “Viola Lee Blues” and “New Potato Caboose.”
All kidding aside, Warren Haynes has proven himself to be truly the hardest working man in show business. He became the nucleus of this new Dead machine, and his playing could be gently delicate in an “ice petals revolving” kind of way one moment and then full-on warp-drive ferocity the next. Also Jeff Chimenti proved himself night after night sitting at the keys. His tasteful, crystalline playing was spot-on. Hope he’s got good life insurance.
You can get soundboard recordings of the tour from Dead.net and finally the “core four” have allowed the Live Music Archive to host Audience recordings of concerts from the 2003-2004 incarnations of The Dead as well as the Barack Obama benefits last year. There are some sweet sounding AUDS out there and its fun to have access to those ‘03 and ‘04 shows with Jimmy Herring and Joan Obsourne.
Perhaps one day some soundchecks and rehearsal tapes will also surface, but for now, let’s look at the following bits of archaic lore… (more…)
Man, I miss California. I really do. I don’t miss paying exorbitantly high rent. I don’t miss the collective panic that sets in whenever it rains and being in a mountain shack without power for ten days. I just miss the West – my ancestral homeland. Feeling that unconscious sense of being where I belong- ocean before me, mountains behind me, and good Mexican food.
Northern California band Izabella do a great job at helping to ease that feeling of displacement. A warm, sweet and heady blend of jam rock, funk, and soul that is totally steeped in the warm vibes and deep roots of the West Coast.
Now with a solidified line-up of Sean Lehe on guitar and vocals, multi-instrumentalist Brian Rogers on percussion, guitar, bass and lead vocals, Murph (no, not that guy!) on bass guitar, Sam Phelps and Jeff Coleman as the four-handed keyboardist and Lucas Carlton on the skins, Izabella is the culmination of years of jamming in the garage with various bands, jazz combos, burgeoning jam units. Juggling the daily obligations like families, day jobs, school while playing out as much as humanly possible. It’s a dedication and a musical relationship that reinforces the band’s groove on record, and is the electric undercurrent in their live performances – over 200 since late 2006. (more…)
