The Jesus of Cool plays to "his people" at the Great American Music Hall on October 10.

By Jud Cost

Nick Lowe, the self-proclaimed "Jesus of Cool," strolls onstage at the Great American Music Hall, a stringbean toting an acoustic guitar, decked out in two-tone shoes, a pink and black pop-over shirt with short sleeves rolled up, drainpipe Levi's pegged to 12-inches at the cuff and a cat chain hanging from his slim suede belt. Not really. But I bet he has something like that tucked away in a trunk in his attic.

Tonight he wore a more age-appropriate outfit: brown slacks and a brown shirt. He eyeballs a maxed-out sit-down crowd through specs with those thick black plastic sidebars. His voice is a littler mellower these days, something you'd expect from a guy who's been around long enough to have played in pub-rock bastions, Brinsley Schwarz, 40 years ago. But one thing hasn't changed: Nick Lowe has written songs that will last forever. And he played quite a few of them tonight. (Read the review of his latest album here.)

"It's a pleasure to play before my own people, at last," says Lowe with a wide grin. "Although I suppose there may be a few of you who just wandered in for a drink." He's been opening shows for Wilco lately, "playing for Wilco's people," he says. "Haven't been in that line of work for a while." Lowe has only one favor to ask of his devotees: Please no handclapping to take the place of the missing rhythm section. "It's something I've heard too much of," he says, "some seriously bad white-man handclapping." Singing the missing backing vocals, he insists, is perfectly OK. "Send it to me," he urges, and he got just what he asked for.

"I'm only paying back womankind for all the grief I got," trills Lowe in his ironically titled "I Trained Her To Love Me." It's great to hear "Heart," one of the highlights of the only official album cut by the short-lived Rockpile, a band that included both Lowe and Dave Edmunds and who played San Francisco's Warfield Theatre only once, in 1980. The down and out ballad "Lately I've Let Things Slide" finds Lowe bumping into Kris Kristofferson at the laundry hamper, both fumbling around for their cleanest dirty shirt. The biggest reaction, so far, greets Lowe's only American hit, a top ten number from 1979, "Cruel To Be Kind," which Lowe plays with the flair and agile beauty of a matador.

"Here's a song by an old friend," says Lowe before a stunning, ultra-quiet reading of Elvis Costello's "Alison," slowed down to a dead crawl that makes it all but impossible to remove those pretty fingers from the wedding cake. Then he flicks the switch to add instant reverb to a Lowe track (Dave Edmunds made it famous) that borrows a few coats of Cajun shellac from Chuck Berry's "You Never Can Tell." "I Knew the Bride When She Used to Rock And Roll" is a perfect little short story in two minutes and change. ("Well I can see her now in the tight blue jeans/Pumpin' all the money in the record machine/Spinnin' like a top, you shoulda seen her go/I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll.")

Like any savvy veteran who's been around for the long haul, Nick Lowe knows his bombshell set-closer better than anybody else. You have to mentally fill in the missing Rickenbacker 12-string, but nothing can dampen the nerve-jangling effect of one of the 25 best songs in the entire history of pop/rock music: "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love & Understanding." It's a devastating work that strips away all vestiges of irony, sarcasm and cynicism like industrial-strength acetone eradicating anything that comes from a cheap can of paint.

It would have been nice to hear another of Lowe's best, "Marie Provost," the Hollywood Babylon-derived tale of the silent-screen star who was eaten by her pet dog. Or any number of the man's classics - "So It Goes," "American Squirm" or "Heart of the City" - but the old cliché holds especially true for Nick Lowe. He could stand there and sing the contents of the menu from a Bulgarian restaurant and it would sound pretty good. With a dollop of sour cream and a shake of paprika, even better still.

[Photo Credit: Dan Burn]

Lust... desire... etc.


By Blurt Staff


Although from the looks of things it appears that a good chunk of the upcoming Lulu album by Lou Reed and Metallica has already leaked (check this link for proof), the combined musical camps are proceeding with plans to release it on Nov. 1.

Meanwhile, they just posted a pretty nifty trailer to the album, so check it out. And watch for the next issue of BLURT, due on newsstands in a few weeks - we've got a big Loutallica special lined up for ya.

Album and book from the Memphis maestro also to be accompanied by a rare U.S. tour.

By Fred Mills

Throughout the ‘80s and most of the ‘90s, the name Tav Falco's Panther Burns struck fear in the hearts of roots-rock purists while thrilling those of us who instinctively grasped the musical linkages of punk, rockabilly and blues (with a smattering of art-rock's deconstruction ethos). The Memphis-based Falco, along with his merry band of upstarts (Alex Chilton was an early member) toured steadily and issued a string of now-classic albums, among them 1981's Behind the Magnolia Curtain, 1985's Sugar Ditch Revisited and 1992's Life Sentence in the Cathouse.

Around 2002, however, Falco moved to Europe, and for the last decade Stateside sightings have been decidedly rare, although the Panther Burns still continued to operate with Falco at the helm and the addition of musicians from Paris and Rome. So now word arrives that a new TFPB album is en routed titled Conjurations: Séance for Deranged Lovers, due out Oct. 25 via The Cosmodelic Organization.

Falco has also completed a new book, Mondo Memphis: Ghosts Behind the Sun, published in November by Creation Books, who describe it thusly:

Tav Falco's sprawling study of Memphis begins with the Civil War massacre at Fort Pillow, the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1878 and the grisly murders of the Harp Brothers. Falco traces these legends of Reconstruction-era Memphis to an equally brutal twentieth century underworld - Beale Street kingpin Jim Canaan, Edward Crump's political machine, the Dixie Mafia, and others. Also included are revelatory dialogues concerning the city's many music legends, from rockabilly icons Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Charlie Feathers to more underground figures such as Jim Dickinson and country blues wailer Jessie Mae Hemphill. Interwoven with these accounts is an autobiographical history of Falco's own time in Memphis, including his involvement with performance art ensemble Insect Trust, working with pop/rock maverick Alex Chilton, and the formation of his seminal rock and roll band, Panther Burns. With over 80 illuminating photographs, mostly previously unseen originals by Falco, and many printed in duotone or colour. 300 pages, illustrated throughout.

And to mark both the album and book, he's hitting the States with Panther Burns for a US tour starting Nov. 9 in San Francisco and wrapping Dec. 1 in Memphis. He'll be doing a mixture of live shows and book readings, so you can check out the details below.

NOV. 9 - SAN FRANCISCO

Book Reading: City Lights Bookstore at 6:00 PM. 

Concert: Thee Parkside at 9:00 PM

NOV. 10 - LOS ANGELES

Book Reading: Stories Bookstore at 7:30 PM. 

Concert: EchoPlex at 9:30 PM. 

NOV. 11 - AUSTIN, TX

Book Reading: End of an Ear Bookstore at 4:00

Concert: Emo's at 10:00 PM. 

NOV. 12 - MEMPHIS, TN

Book Reading: Goner Records at 4:00 PM

Concert: Hi-Tone Lounge at 9:00 PM. 

NOV. 13 - NEW ORLEANS

Book Reading: Euclid Records at 5:30 PM. 

Concert: Siberia at 10:00 PM. 

NOV. 14 - NEW HAVEN, CT

Concert: Café Nine at 10:30 PM. 

NOV. 15 - NEW YORK, NY

Concert: Rodeo Bar at 8:30 PM. 

NOV. 16 - BROOKLYN (Dumbo)

Book Reading: Powerhouse Arena at 6:30 PM. 

DEC. 1 - MEMPHIS, TN

Book Reading: Burke's Bookstore. 

Book Reading: Brooks Museum of Art.

Does not sound like breakfast cereal gone mad, but rather one of the classic Mothers lineups going mad...

By Blurt Staff

Forty years ago today on October 11, 1971, FRANK ZAPPA & THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION performed two marathon, full-length shows at New York City's famed Carnegie Hall.  On hand were FZ with Mark Volman, Howard Kaylan, Ian Underwood, Don Preston, Jim Pons & Aynsley Dunbar. A four CD box of the music is now being released by the Zappa Family Trust via Zappa.com.

Headed by Zappa's widow Gail the ZFT administers exclusively the extensive and iconic legacy of the Composer, Musician, Bandleader and Filmmaker. Zappa was posthumously (he passed away in '93) inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997.  

"Carnegie Hall...warts and all...on Vaulternative Records...in glorious mono," as the ZFT describes it. Gail Zappa says, "We tweaked and we tweezed and did everything possible to be certain this does not sound like a breakfast cereal gone mad somewhere in the Van Allen Belt.  I am happy to say The Mud Shark Legend Continues."

Just in time for your Christmas shopping... that's not exactly a boogie van they're tooling around in, eh?

By Blurt Staff

The Black Keys' new album El Camino will be released December 6 on Nonesuch Records. Produced by Danger Mouse and The Black Keys, the 11-track album was recorded at singer/guitarist Dan Auerbach's Easy Eye Sound studio in the band's new hometown of Nashville during the spring of 2011.

In advance of the release, the album's first single, "Lonely Boy," will be released on October 26. The complete track list is below; further details will be announced shortly. Pre-orders of El Camino begin today at www.theblackkeys.com and www.nonesuch.com and include a download of the single, which will be delivered on October 26. 

El Camino follows the most successful two years in The Black Keys' career. In May 2010 they released their breakthrough album, Brothers, to widespread critical acclaim. Debuting at #2 in the U.S., it went on to win three Grammy Awards and an MTV Video Music Award, and topped numerous year-end lists, including iTunes, NPR, and Rolling Stone. Brothers, which included the hit singles "Tighten Up" and "Howlin' for You," has been certified Gold in the U.S. and U.K., and Platinum in Canada. Worldwide sales are now over one million and counting.

Drummer Patrick Carney said of the band's recent success, "We've taken the long road to get where we are. It's pretty cool to be in your early 30s making music with your best friend. We've experienced everything from driving a thousand miles to play for no one to winning Grammys." Auerbach further describes the band's dynamic, "We don't talk before we play. We don't practice before we record, we just fly by the seat of our pants." He says of El Camino, "I think where this record is going to shine for me is playing the songs live. This record is more straight ahead rock and roll-raw, driving, and back to basics."

TRACK-LISTING

1. Lonely Boy

2. Dead and Gone

3. Gold on the Ceiling

4. Little Black Submarines

5. Money Maker

6. Run Right Back

7. Sister

8. Hell of a Season

9. Stop Stop

10. Nova Baby

11. Mind Eraser

Have a happy New Year's Day from Robert Pollard, Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Greg Demos, Kevin Fennell with Jimmy Pollard: Let's Go Eat the Factory to be released via Guided By Voices, Inc.

After a fifteen year hiatus, the "classic line up" of Guided By Voices finished off its year-long reunion tour by recording an album of 21 new songs, making a deliberate effort to return to what bandleader Robert Pollard calls the "semi-collegial" approach of iconic GBV albums like Bee Thousand and Alien Lanes. Let's Go Eat The Factory is some kind of return to form: sprawling, variegated, and yet still recognizably and coherently Guided By Voices in both its literal and mythic senses.

Choosing to eschew the recording studio, Let's Go Eat The Factory was instead manufactured in the living rooms, basements, and garages of various long-time bandmembers.

Some tracks were recorded more-or-less live at Mitch Mitchell's garage, where the band would often practice back in the early- and mid-90s. These sessions comprised Mitch, Bob, and Jimmy Pollard, Bob's brother and long-time collaborator, who, though never a part of the touring ensemble, always played a crucial role on the classic-era releases. Some tracks were improvised over acoustic jam sessions at Greg Demos' house. Many were recorded at Tobin Sprout's place in Wherever, Michigan, and later lovingly fucked with in order to achieve the proper level of weirdness. Band members switched instruments (e.g. Bob plays drums; Mitch plays drums; Jimmy Pollard plays bass; Greg plays lead guitar; Toby plays pretty much everything; etc.) and Bob gladly accepted input from the rest of the band. Tobin Sprout wrote or co-wrote and sings on six out of the 21 songs.

The aesthetic is very much in keeping with Guided By Voices, but in some unexpected ways (more prevalent use of keyboards and samples, for one thing) the 21st century can't help but poke its nose into the resulting music. Devoted fans of Bee Thousand will not be disappointed in, for instance, the demonically tuneful "Chocolate Boy," or the relentless chug of "We Won't Apologize For The Human Race," which Tobin Sprout describes as "Peter Gabriel singing 'I Am The Walrus.'" Other standouts include "Doughnut For A Snowman," which Pollard calls "the goofiest, twinkliest song I've ever written," or "Spider Fighter," a Tobin Sprout number that was in fact the first song title conceived for the new album, and which features a piano coda that Pollard likens to "a Pete Townshend demo for Lifehouse."

Stream the 4 live songs right now.

By Blurt Staff

Dead Can Dance fans may have noticed a significant spike in activity over at the band's Facebook page during the past couple of months - numerous posts, links to video clips, etc. And recently at the official band website the news appeared, somewhat cryptically, that there is a new album and world tour "coming 2012" although that seems to be the extent of the details. (Keep track at the site and the Facebook page no doubt.)

Meanwhile, at the site you can receive a free 4-song live EP simply by submitting your email, and the songs - Nierika, Babylon, Compassion, The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove - are also streaming for your immediate listening pleasure...

Gov't Mule, Los Lobos, Phil Lesh, Bela Fleck and more to come...


By Fred Mills


It's an annual holiday tradition: the Warren Haynes Christmas Jam, held each December at the Civic Center in Asheville, NC. Today the first round of artists who will be performing at the 23rd installment of the Jam were announced:


Haynes' band Gov't Mule (returning to the concert stage after nearly a year's hiatus), Phil Lesh & Friends, Los Lobos and Bela Fleck.


As usual there will be plenty more announced, and there will also be ancillary events such as the Pre-Jam Jam held the night before at the Orange Peel and assorted events in and around the downtown area. You know Uncle Blurt will be attending. Meanwhile, VIP packages go onsale Thursday, Oct. 13, followed by the regular pre-sale on Tuesday the 18th. (Full public onsale is Oct. 21.) Go to the Christmas Jam site for details.


As always, proceeds from the Haynes Jam will go to Habitat For Humanity. To date, Haynes has raised over $850,000 for the charitable organization.

Abetted by opener Caitlin Rose, the Earle-Isbell express rolled into the Aladdin Theatre in Portland, Ore., on October 5 and blew the lights out.

By Tim Hinely

Terrific triple bill on a rainy Wednesday evening in Portland.  I caught Caitlin Rose's last few Portland stops (both at the Doug Fir) and both were quite charming due to Rose's aw shucks nature and great sense of humor (and gorgeous voice, too). Here she had the full band (a combo of the two bands I had seen previously) and played most of the songs off of her latest full-length (Own Side Now).  She seemed to win the crowd over by the set's end, many of whom didn't know who saw. 

Up next was former Drive by Trucker Jason Isbell who played this time with the same lineup he had previously minus guitarist Browan Lollar. The previous set wasn't necessarily bad but on this night Isbell and Co. owned the stage. Blasting out a 45 minute set of pure guts, heart and determination. While the rest of the band including bassist Jimbo Hart, keyboardist Derry Deborja and drummer Matt Pence all got down and dirty it was Isbell himself who definitely seemed to be in more of a zone on this night. Whether he was strumming his acoustic guitar with folkier material or he was cranking out Hendrix-esque leads (there was more of the latter, plus they covered Jimi's "Stone Free" as an encore) he was on on this Wednesday night. Prior to the Hendrix encore they wowed the crowd with a cover of R.E.M.'s "The One I Love" and a killer version of their own "Codeine."  Suffice it to say, don't miss ‘em next time they're in your neck of the woods.

It was a new lineup since the last time I caught J.T.E., too. Though I missed him last year at Mississippi Studios (sold out) I had caught him the previous year at Doug Fir where he was aided only by a banjo player Corey. This time, the well-dressed Earle (love the bow tie sir) was flanked by a flaming red-haired violin player (didn't catch her name) on one side and stand-up bassist Bryn Davies (decked out in 50's style platform shoes and a lovely print dress) on the other. The set was mostly tunes from his latest record Harlem River Blues as well as a few new songs and a few from his previous record Midnight at the Movies.  The real standouts on this night were "They Killed John Henry", "Halfway to Jackson", "Workin' for the MTA" (just J.T.E and his acoustic guitar, minus the two ladies), "Christchurch Woman" and a packed house for "Harlem River Blues' in which most members of the two opening bands came out and joined J.T.E. on stage and added handclaps and backing vocals, a special moment in the set.

Earle is a unique performer, he has his own guitar playing style as well as his little strut across the stage and will always tell a story in between songs. At one point near the beginning of the set, Earle was telling a story to which a heckler yelled out "Whatever!" and Earle shot back, "Whatever? What are we, in fuckin' middle school?!" to which the crowd roared with laughter and the heckler suddenly got quiet. Earle had the crowd eating out of his hand and it's easy to see why, he's charismatic, talented and he improves with each record and each new tour. Forget being Steve's son, he's the real deal on his own.

That's a big load o' vinyl....

By Fred Mills

As previously announced, Calexico has been readying a massive vinyl box - 12 LPs comprising 8 albums originally released as limited edition mail order only tour CDs - titled Road Atlas 1998-2011.  It's finally here, with orders being taken at the band's website; the estimated ship date is Nov. 22.

So whattaya get? It's impressive, as the video trailer suggests (full disclosure: yours truly was involved, but don't let that scare ya away):

*Hand Numbered Vinyl Box Set
*Limited Edition 1,100 Worldwide
*12 Vinyl LPs (Four Single LP Albums, Four Double LP Albums) + Bonus MP3s
*40 Page Book - Photos, Handwritten Notes, New Liner Notes
*Screen Printed Linen Wrapped Slip Case

Albums:

Road Map LP
 (originally released on CD, 1999)
Travelall LP
 (originally released on CD, 2000)
Aerocalexico 2LP
 (originally released on CD, 2011)
Scraping 2LP
 (originally released on CD, 2002)
The Book And the Canal 2LP
 (originally released on CD, 2005)
Toolbox LP
 (originally released on CD, 2007)
Ancienne Blegique . Live In Brussels 2LP
 (originally released on CD, 2008)
Circo . A Soundtrack by Calexico LP
 (originally released on CD, 2010)