I have found the world’s first and only time machine.
While I might be tempted to see if Jesus was a cool dude, my first setting on the dial is July 31, 2004. Why a random day from my 14th year? That, my friends, is Dispatch’s last concert ever. It wasn’t until a few years after that summer day that I first heard of Dispatch.
I wish I could be "dispatched" into concerts of music's past.
And that is when I started compiling the Time Machine List.
I have this Time Machine List running in my head. It’s a list of bands I would to have loved to see play, either when they were still together or at a different time in their musical career. The List ranges from bands that broke up recently, before I “discovered” them – like Dispatch, to bands that were gone long before I got here – like the Grateful Dead, to bands I believe hit their prime long before I found them – like Taking Back Sunday (think TBS circa 2002, the Tell All Your Friends era), to Beethoven.
Bands that recently broke up before I ever had a chance to see them live are at the very top of the List. Discovering them, and then discovering they broke up a mere few years ago blows. Like listening to the Beatles, you know that you never had a chance. You were negative years old, not even thought up yet, when they were touring. But someone like Dispatch? Damn, they are on the Time Machine List in a major way. (more…)
No Doubt performed at The Warped Tour and The Bamboozle music festivals.
In the spirit of top five lists, I’ve got another list this week…
TOP FIVE MUSIC FESTIVALS!
One slight problem: I have not attended enough festivals to have a “Top Five Festivals I Have Attended” list, so we’re going to have to settle for a “Top Five Festivals I Have Attended/Dream of Attending” list.
This list, once again, is in no apparent order.
1.Bonnaroo
Sadly, I’ve never been. The headliners this past year: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Phish, Beastie Boys and Nine Inch Nails. Bonnaroo seems like one of those types of festivals where there is something for everyone. You like jam? Phish – for two nights, by the way. Rock/hip hop? Beastie Boys is your band. Industrial, instrumental brain-warp? Go see Nine Inch Nails. And finally, for those of you who are old school, Bruce is your man.
The Worst Thing About Bonnaroo: From what I’ve heard, ticket prices. Not exactly your cheapest option.
The Best Thing About Bonnaroo: Variety. Oh so much variety.
Animal Collective has always been about stages. First, the outfit was very experimental with Spirit They’re Gone, Spirit They’re Vanished and Danse Manatee. The “freak-folk” label came with Sung Tongs and Feels. Strawberry Jam was the first step to minor “accessibility.”
Ditch all those meaningless descriptions with Merriweather Post Pavilion, Animal Collective’s latest release. This album is simply a magnificent piece of art.
Have you ever logged on to Ticketmaster and have your jaw hit the keyboard after seeing the ticket price for one of your favorite bands? Well, I haven’t yet, but I do know ticket prices as a whole are on the rise. Despite a record $3.1 billion made in concert business this year, as reported online by Entertainment Weekly, ticket sales declined for the third year in a row. This means “the average ticket price rose $7 this year; a ticket for any of the top 100 tours would have set you back an average $57,” reports Entertainment Weekly.
After 8 hours of sitting in front of a computer screen at work, I was ready for a veggie burger, Corona, and some live music. Thankfully, I had two neon-orange tickets in my purse to see Lykke Li at Café 1001, and Brick Lane happens to be home to some killer BBQ. A few weeks back I’d been devastated to learn that Lykke’s big London gig was sold out and thought I might have to venture as far as Manchester to see my favorite Swede (members of Ace of Base, excluded). Luckily, Miss Li was added to the line-up of East London’s first Concrete and Glass festival, right in the heart of my favorite weekend hangout.
I met up with one of my girlfriends amid the typical throngs of young folk hanging out off Brick Lane where the laid-back, end-of-summer atmosphere was contagious. Oh, and the burger? Perfect, thanks for asking. After an hour or so of trying to blend in among the British, we gradually made our way to a small room closed off from the comfy couches and mood lighting of the second-floor lounge. The Scandinavian affair kicked off with Finnish musician Kimmo Pohjonen playing a style I’d call farmhand-noise-rock (?). Actually, Mr. Pohjonen has his own name for this artistic project, as he’d aptly dubbed his May U.K. tour of the same ilk Earth Machine Music. Back then, he recorded, sampled, and performed on British farms with local farmers and farm implements. He reprised this sonic style for the Concrete and Glass show, albeit in a much smaller space. Throughout his performance, he threw his whole body into playing his accordion over blaring samples while neon stage lights put me into a daze.
He then essentially brought the farm to the city when he invited two farmers on stage who started placing potatoes on a conveyor belt (below).
This was soon eclipsed by a guy who entered the stage wielding a chainsaw — a sight I unfortunately missed while visiting the loo. Upon my return, there was a guy making a beat by hammering against an anvil. The whole set was like nothing I’d seen before and made for a pretty fascinating spectacle. Not sure I’d sign up to hear another half-hour of it just yet, but I certainly respected the guy for the process behind his show.
Next up was Wildbirds & Peacedrums, a Swedish male-female duo (kind of like a flip-flopped Mat and Kim set-up with more soul and less synth) who brought hair-rasing vocals and thundering drums. Singer Miriam Wallentin even used her towering high-heels as a percussive instrument. Resourceful and effective, I’d say. My only criticism was that I couldn’t make out any distinct lyrics within her crooning.
After one of the longest sound-checks I’ve ever endured, Lykke Li finally hit the stage. Dressed in all black with knee-high boots and her signature scarf wrapped around a high bun, this girl was ready to “Dance, Dance, Dance.” And dance she did. Perhaps it was her captivating stage presence that really solidified why I like her so much. You see, it’s been a while since I’ve connected this much with a female artist. Not to knock my Cat Powers and Feists, but Lykke Li has an energy I haven’t experienced yet with another “indie” female soloist. Certainly a far cry from the generic lyricism of Colbie Caillat or Sara Bareilles or the sexpot sensationalism of Katy Perry, she’s somewhere in between the hip-hop singer you’d expect to shake it under the spotlight and the folkie singer-songwriter who strums her way through an intimate acoustic set. With Lykke Li, you get witty and relatable lyrics from a young female perspective, a blend of organic and electronic beats from a commanding band, a little dose of foreign charm, and of course — those killer moves.
During her set, she hit up most of the big ones from her debut, Youth Novels, giving tracks like “Little Bit” and “I’m Good, I’m Gone” the four-star treatment they deserve. About three-quarters through the set, her guitarist kept audience members on their toes when he started playing one of this year’s most memorable riffs, that of “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.” Lykke dove into about half of the Vampire Weekend hit with ease, and my mind began to wander at the thought of an amazing collaboration (Ezra Koenig, take note. Peter Gabriel, too.) Now, if I had been manning the set list, I would have selected the raw intensity of “Tonight” any day over the boring drone of “Complaint Department,” but I’ll let that one slide. To end the show, Lykke brought out her badass cover of A Tribe Called Quest’s “Can I Kick It?”
If I you’re asking me, I say….yes you can.
~Julia Askenase
P.S. Check out this video of Lykke Li and Bon Iver singing “Dance, Dance, Dance” in L.A. Jerk editor-in-chief Katie Allyn may very well faint.
Local singer/songwriter Rob Stewart and his band H U E L A(formerly Rob Stewart and Co.) have been making lots of noise in the alternative scene around Syracuse.I got a chance to speak with Stewart over the phone about everything from his influences, to spirituality, to why New York City is a place you must live, at least for a little while.
How did the band come about?
Well I’ve been playing music ever since I was about 15.And I’ve always had songs kicking around and basically about three years ago, I studied music in college but I studied classical and I studied theatre and all that, and I never really pursued my songwriting until a few years ago I really started to strike out and try to do it and I needed a band.I was sort of joking around with my sister and I asked her if she wanted to play bass and she had never played bass before, but she said yeah so I started practicing with her and I had played with another drummer from here in town – Nick Irvine – so I asked him if he wanted to play and that’s pretty much how the band started.Before that I was just kind of playing open mics and kind of doing solo stuff around town and then once I started with them we started doing more, kind of playing bigger venues and things like that.
You list more than three members on your MySpace page.Who are those extra players?
Basically how it is right now, we’re the core of the group, the three of us.I’m trying to think of a good name for it but I call them “supplemental personnel”.They sort of enhance our live show as needed.For instance back last summer we did a live recording at funk n waffles so we had Eli play keys, he’s a producer from here in town, and this guy mike Watson from anorexic beauty queen play guitar.So basically we’ve got core members but its kind of like, I don’t know an example of another band that does it, but we’ll get other people to play with us for bigger shows and ultimately it would be nice to have more permanent members, maybe a 5 piece.So if you know anybody man…
You list a lot of big name influences on your MySpace page, but who have you been listening to lately?
I’ve been on a big Elvis Costello kick for the past few years and just really, really dig his music. He’s just an amazing songwriter.My Morning Jacket is a current band that I’m really, really into.Those are a couple of the big ones.I’d say Elvis Costello’s Blood and Chocolate.There’s another guy who isn’t really that well known but he’s one of my biggest influence his name is Michael Knott, Southern California songwriter, has put out probably like 30 albums under different band names and different projects and stuff.He’s a really amazing dude.
Off of that, what’s the last song you heard that you wished you had written?
That’s a good one man, shoot.Man that’s a good question.You know what? Actually there’s another band that I’ve been listening to that I didn’t mention and they’re called Dr. Dog from Philly and they have a song and its called, I think its called “My Old Ways.”They came out with a full-length album I think in 2007.Yeah, “My Old Ways.”I mean to be honest with you I usually don’t think I wish I had written that song, I guess I try to just write good songs myself but this is probably the closest.I heard this whole album and I’m like “Man, I wish I had written that album.”Have you heard them, man?Dude it sounds funny, it sounds like a Sesame Street segment or something, but honestly, if you get a chance, check them out.I was skeptical at first just from the name alone.You think its gonna be some weird like prog rock where they throw food at you or something but its like really good music – kind of Beatles influenced indie rock.
Your MySpace page says your music is “infused with the real power of Jesus.”Is there a religious element your music?
Yeah, well that’s a topic of much conversation with me.To me it does because I follow Jesus and I believe that he saved me from my sins through his death on the cross and just changed my life.Yeah I believe his salvation is real and it’s for everyone.It really touches on every level of my life so inevitably it touches on my music, too.The thing is I don’t really write songs that are overtly gospel songs.I hardly have any songs that even mention God or Jesus per say but I think to me my songs are written from a Christian world view so everything I say is influenced by that life.So even if I have a really depressing song, I guess my hope is that there’s some level of hope in there.There’s something there that’s underlying that if you take it all together that it points to God.And even the are some songs I’d say that if I sat down and explained them to you could see how they are talking about God and God’s work in my life or someone else’s life but its not totally obvious.I think just cause its coming from me.I’ve had this conversation before with other people and its like well is it Christian music?Yeah its Christian music cause I’m a Christian but not necessarily because there’s an overt message, spiritual or biblical message.You know the songs once in awhile they’ll mention.I just wrote a song called “Ode to City” which I just put up on the MySpace page, and it’s about trying to find God in the big city. That’s a little bit more direct.
I’ve read that “huela” comes from “consuela,” the feminine form of the masculine “consuelo.”Is this where you got the name?
Dude that’s cool you looked it up man.Yeah that’s actually the meaning that I like to say most often.But to be honest with you it came to me in a dream and I’m not making it up.I actually had been praying for a band name because it was just so hard to think of one that everyone agreed on and that I actually liked and I had a dream that somebody designed an album cover for us and that was the name. You know how words are kind of a jumble in dreams?It was kind of like that but I knew that it said “huella.”Huella with two Ls is Spanish for footprint but I didn’t want it to be like I don’t know, I didn’t want it to be specifically a Spanish word so I did it with one which actually is short for “consuela” which is the Spanish name for a “constellation.”So I really like that and it actually is a female version of the male name “Hugh,” which means “bright spirit,” so I kind of had a dream about it and then I looked it up so I didn’t really know the meaning before I had the dream.But it just worked out to be something that was kind of meaningful.
Were there any other possible names before H U E L A?
Yeah.Some pretty ridiculous names like Panda Mountain, but it’s like you can’t do that.There were a couple others too – Cap in Hand, that was one, and I was pretty close to choosing that one.
Did you have the final say in choosing the name?
I tried to make it as much of a band thing as possible but, as it is now, I always want things to be as much a democracy as possible, but I end up making a lot of the final calls, but I did make sure that everyone liked huela before I changed the MySpace page and that stuff. Before hand I was just going by my own name, Rob Stewart, but I just didn’t really like it.
Yeah you can’t really make that dream story up.
Ha-ha, I mean I was like “C’mon, it came to me in a dream, I gotta use it!”
What’s it like playing with your sister [bassist Naomi Kerlin]?
Its crazy with siblings and I don’t know if you’ve experienced it.Like you’ve lived your whole life together and yet somehow you find that at one point you don’t really know them that well, after you grow up and everything.I love being in the band with [Naomi] because you know we get to hang out and stay in contact and even though she’s got a home and husband and everything we still stay in touch and that’s awesome.And also there’s just something about being able to sing and play with my sister.I’ve had my other sister sing with us too which is awesome.It’s just something about the voices.People have said that our voices blend well together.I think its just because of genetics – we have the same vocal makeup.There’s nothing like singing with her.It’s really awesome.
What was it like living in New York City on your own?
Well mostly in New York City I was just trying to stay alive and keep the roof over my head and keep food on my plate and God really provided for me while I was down there in a miraculous way, more than once, but it was tough.Being an actor is tough and being an actor is a challenge.I was able to do a few plays down there and get a little bit more training, actors training.To be honest with you I think that I wasn’t totally focused.I think I was divided because I really wanted to do music too so I think that maybe split my focus a little bit so I don’t know.It was fun.I worked with some really great people and just the life learning experience I think it was worth it and New York City is amazing.I got to do a few interesting roles, just in small theatres, but I highly recommend living in New York for some period of time for anybody.
Like something everyone should do before they die kind of thing?
Yeah I wouldn’t say it as a strict rule but its something that I always wanted to do.I always wanted to live there for at least a year and just experience the city and be around masses and masses of people.Its funny I went down there for acting but I think that quite a bit of my songwriting has been influenced by the city, and its still happening.I still have songs that are coming out of myself from the city.It was a tough experience in a lot of ways but it was a really great experience.
What does the future hold for H U E L A?
The main thing right now is getting people to hear our songs.Get this new recording done and then just get the songs out in every possible avenue.It would be nice to look at recording labels or whatever but mainly we want to get the music and out there and just play shows for people.The future I think is to just play around as much as possible and just get our music to as many people as possible.
[Check out H U E L A at myspace.com/huelamusic and youtube.com/user/HuelaMusic]
