Carolina Chocolate Drops at the Cedar Cultural Center March 28th and 29th
I know it’s almost March, but I just pulled the tickets out of my wallet and realized that I had neglected to write about the Carolina Chocolate Drops that are coming to the Cedar Cultural Center again! I know the Chocolate Drops are not a rock band, but seeing that they have repeatedly packed the Cedar in Minneapolis as well as surprising the astute ears of New Yorkers at Joe’s pub in NYC, they certainly ROCK. Seeing them is a carnival for the senses! Rhiannon Giddens’ voice is the perfect combination of true talent and training, it’s silk. While Dom Flemons and Justin Robinson grace us with their striking voices, it’s their ability to play various instrument (banjo, fiddle just to name a couple) to perfection that is most striking. These three take their influences from the foothills of the Carolinas, but don’t interpret that as some hillbilly sound. This string band has mastered this genre as well as Elvis has Rock and Rock. The feeling that the crowd gets when seeing them is incredible! People dance in the isles, the young, old, male, female, and hey I saw a couple of “goth” kids in the back attempting a jig (not kidding)! Don’t bet on getting tickets at the door, if previous years are any indication, they will most likely be sold out. Read more…
posted February 27th, 2009 at 5:34 pm Concert Announcements
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) announced today that it has laid off approximately 20% of its workforce, yet another sign of a crumbling BIG music industry. To most this will fall on indifferent if not welcoming ears, but let’s not ignore reality. Thirty-One folks lost their jobs, and in the current economy that sucks, no matter how you spin the affair. Yet is this any surprise? The RIAA has been pursuing a policy of increasing individual college student debt for the last decade via small claims lawsuits. All in the name of protecting an industry model that has become too antiquated to function even within a strong economy, let alone a faltering one.
Rancid is coming!!!! I can feel my patch and button laden jean jacket clawing out from under one of many piles of clothes! Granted they are not the headliner, but that doesn’t matter. These boys have been putting on a great show since the 90’s and I’ve been to most of them in the Twin Cites (I may have missed a few in the fifteen years that I have going to shows). If the past is any prediction this show will once again prove that Punk never died, we’ve just been content with the POP 100 force feed. Rancid is predicting the release of their new record this spring while they tour with Rise Against for a couple of months. In true punk fashion Rancid is proud to help Rise Against and the Riverboat Gamblers pave their road. June 26, 2009 at the Myth, Rise Against headlines on the shoulders of giants, Rancid.
It’s been at least a few years since I’ve seen The Idle Hands. You know, all that moving away and hermitic business I went through. But the band is still plugging away hard with a new single and performance on 89.3 The Current this weekend. Check them out this Sunday on The Current’s local show at 5PM. You can also download their single for free 
It snowed heavily here in Minnesota the last 24 hours, and I am again prepping myself for another (x3) frigid excursion against the elements, armed with nothing but my shovel. Small joys! A notification of another touring band coming to the Twin Cities. Just what I need to keep me from the cold, if only for a moment longer! Murder by Death is not what you (or I) may imagine. Many might assume a metal band, but not so. The four piece out of Bloomington, Indiana is a solid rock band with some strangely southern flavor. In fact, check out the tune below. I hear a bit of the Man in Black in there. Beautiful!
There is a movement occurring, some call it “minimalist,” I just call it good. Whenever I listen to an old Creedence Clearwater Revival album I hear it. John Fogerty, yes, but what I am really speaking of is that raw recorded sound minus all the digital mumbo jumbo we’ve began suckling on the last decade or so. I don’t know what Centro-Matic’s approach was in the studio, and at risk of offending them, I really don’t care. I just love the outcome. Someday I’ll get around to recording my first album and perhaps I’ll go back to listen to some of their recordings and take some notes. I’ll listen to John Fogerty too.
In a new interview conducted by 
Recent Comments