Kikagaku Moyo / 幾何学模様 Live At Highway Holidays

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Kikagaku Moyo / 幾何学模様 recently posted a great live session for Highway Holidays.

We featured the song "Kogarashi” by Kikagaku Moyo / 幾何学模様 from the 2016 album House In The Tall Grass on Episode 10 of the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow.

In that post, I noted the band as “Fine purveyors of psychedelic rock from Tokyo, Japan” who has “has quickly garnered international attention.” That about sum it up.

I was able to see these guys live in March of 2019 and all I have to say is that if you get a chance to catch this band live, I highly recommend it. Watch the great live set here.

Grateful Dead at the The Honky Chateau (06-21-71)

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I found this little gem that most of you Heads have probably already seen, while searching the Youtubes for quality Pigpen videos and it’s simply too good not to share.

Credited as a “A Brokedown House Production,” the video switches between color and black and white and edits out any banter or tuning in between songs and is posted in two parts.

Apparently on a whim, the band flew to France in 1971 to play at a canceled festival. But they were housed at Château d’Hérouville, a a residential recording studio in Hérouville, France made famous by Elton John, who recorded three albums at their, (Honky Château, Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player and Goodbye Yellowbrick Road).

Lots of other famous people recorded there, including Marc Bolan, Gong, David Bowie, Pink Floyd, Bad Company, Iggy Pop, Fleetwood Mac. It was also also apparently once home to Chopin and Van Gogh. Though the Grateful Dead did not record there, they did end up playing an impromptu show in the in the backyard as documented by this great high quality video.

The video page doesn’t include the whole set played that night but only about an hour’s worth of material (which is still gold). You can stream the whole show at Live Music Archive. The video post itself doesn’t provide a whole lot of information, though one of the comments gives the following background, from Jerry, (which is easily confirmed as part of a Rolling Stone interview which later became the book: Garcia: Signpost To New Space), and the details jive with Dennis McNally’s account in A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead.

“We went over there to do a big festival, a free festival they were gonna have, but the festival was rained out. It flooded. We stayed at this little chateau which is owned by a film score composer who has a 16-track recording studio built into the chateau, and this is a chateau that Chopin once lived in; really old, just delightful, out in the country near the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, which is where Vincent van Gogh is buried. We were there with nothing to do: France, a 16-track recording studio upstairs, all our gear, ready to play, and nothing to do. So, we decided to play at the chateau itself, out in the back, in the grass, with a swimming pool, just play into the hills. We didn't even play to hippies, we played to a handful of townspeople in Auvers. We played and the people came — the chief of police, the fire department, just everybody. It was an event and everybody just had a hell of a time — got drunk, fell in the pool. It was great."

Dennis McNally recounts the show in Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead. The band was supposed to play a festival in France, but:

“Upon their arrival, the Dead discovered that the festival had been rained out, and after a couple of days of killing time with fine wine and games of gennis at the 450-year-old chateau - the doors were noticeably lower than contemporary people required - they decided to throw a party and invited the townspeople of Hérouville. On the solstice, June 21, the weather cleared and they set up in back of the chateau near the pool, which the children of Hérouville had encircled with hundreds of candles. As Lesh recalled it, their guests included “the police chief, the fire chief, and the mayor . . . No Dead Heads - it was just boogie down . . . a little acid being passed around, not too much, just right, and of course, the Light Sound Dimension (light show) was there, Bill Ham . . . and they played too. We did our set, and they did their set. And they were great - we were all getting real high by that time,” Lesh said laughing. “It was outdoors at the chateau, right around the swimming pool . . . the classic garden party with the G.D. and the LSD. Talk about a piece of San Fransisco transplanted into the heart of France . . . “ Topped off with a round of dunkings in the pool begun by the police chief - Weir exacted the Dead’s revenge, of course, dunking him back - it was among the best parties the Dead had ever enjoyed.”

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This was during the period when Mickey Hart had stepped away from the band after the bad juju that went down with his father stealing from the group and right around the time Lenny Hart was convicted, even though the band declined to press charges. So there’s only one drummer and Pigpen plays minimal keys. It’s a stripped down lineup ready to have fun.

Hank Harrison (estranged father of Courtney Love and one-time manager of the Dead) says in the book The Dead Book: A Social History Of The Grateful Dead:

“The Dead started to play just before the sky got dark, but their entire set was illuminated by bright lights from the Paris socialized television station Link Two, which rebroadcast the event the next week. Their film technique was flawless, as one would expect from a French film team; the camera people were completely unobtrusive on the musicians; the lights bugged Phil a little. Pig Pen just barely recovered in time to sing after downing his two bottles of duty free Wild Turkey… Weir was in fine primal scream voice, and Garcia settled into his trancelike lassitude from which emanates the famous electronic genius that is particularly his.

They played for three hours, and during this time the workers and the fire department and little children lit hundreds of candles and placed them around the pool as if it were a religious shrine… a Lourdes or place of healing waters. As the party progressed, the candles were extinguished by the bodies of of various drunken celebrants being thrown in the pool by other drunken celebrants. The Dead played louder and louder; the locals had never heard anything like it before and they were delirious.”

Dangerous Minds says:

“Some parts of the Grateful Dead’s show at Hérouville were broadcast by ORTF on the Pop 2 TV show on July 24, 1971. A second portion from the set was broadcast on November 27, 1971. The video below is from a bootleg compilation of those two broadcasts that’s been going around for the past few years on Dime a Dozen and other torrent trackers.”

I’ve already provided a link to listen to the whole show for yourself here, but in case you weren’t paying attention, here it is again.

Video Tracklisting:

  1. Morning Dew

  2. Hard To Handle

  3. China Cat Sunflower

  4. I Know You Rider

  5. Deal

  6. Black Peter

  7. Sugar Magnolia

  8. Sing Me Back Home

There is another video that includes sections from this live video along with the interview segments featuring Jerry found at the end of this video. You can head over to Youtube and watch that one for yourself if you’d like as it doesn’t seem to include any additional live footage.

  • Visit the Grateful Dead’s official website.

  • Follow the Grateful Dead on Facebook.

  • Follow Grateful Dead on Twitter.

  • Stream the entire show at Live Music Archive.

  • Purchase Grateful Dead music on Amazon.

  • Purchase A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead by Dennis McNally at Amazon.

  • Purchase The Dead book: A social history of the Grateful Dead by Hank Harrison at Amazon.

Can // 'Sing Swan Song' (1973)

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I don’t know anything about this video other than what the official Can facebook post says:

“Such a pleasure to hear «Sing Swan Song» playing live. It was in 1973 at Bataclan in France.”

Perhaps you know more? Maybe you don’t. Either way, what a treat to have this video. Prime Can in their prime.

I assume that if you’re here at this particular music blog, you are already familiar with Can, but on the off-chance that is not the case, here’s what I said about them for the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow Episode 26:

“Experimental group Can was founded in Cologne, Germany in 1968. Describing themselves as an "anarchist community"and largely ignored conventional methods, instead, constructing their music through improvisation and editing, using the studio itself as an instrument. Though the band did not enjoy much commercial success during their span, they are continually regarded as a highly influential group among rock, avant-garde and electronic musics. Though the group had a rotating lineup, drummer Jaki Liebezeit was a constant and “is credited with the band’s name, stylised in capital letters and standing for “Communism, Anarchism, Nihilism.”

Mdou Moctar: Hopscotch Music Festival (09/07/19) // NYC Taper

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Once again we are incredibly indebted to the fine folks over at NYC Taper. This time, for capturing one of my current favorite artists, Mdou Moctar (Read more about Moctar at my post here).

Read my recent post about Moctar here and hear “Tarha” by Mdou Moctar, from the ‘Blue Stage Session,’ featured on Episode 43 of The Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow here. In the meantime, here’s NYC Taper’s notes for the show:

“On the final night of the Hopscotch Music Festival, our buds at Kings curated an eclectic show that featured two recordings we have already shared (Moon Duo and Boogarins), a superb set from “house” band Birds of Avalon, Kid Millions, and another very special international guest, Mdou Moctar. Hailing from a small village in Niger, Moctar has received international acclaim as one of the best-known Tuareg guitarists. If you’re not familiar with the Saharan brand of rock music, or you have no idea what that means, let me put it more simply: this guy shreds like Jimi Hendrix. His latest LP, Ilana, the Creator was recorded in Detroit, and is already making its way onto early “best of 2019” lists for obvious reasons. Moctar’s work is special not only for its technical virtuosity but for his willingness to expand upon the genre’s conventions, as well as focus on original music over standards and covers. These four songs will give you a taste of what Moctar is about, but really, do yourself a favor and head to Sahel Sounds to get educated not only about his work, but the variety of 21st century African artists they represent. (Jesse Jarnow wrote an excellent piece about the label here). And keep your eye on those “best of 2019” lists — I know Mdou Moctar is making mine.

I recorded this set with onstage Schoeps MK5 microphones, MBHO microphones back at the soundboard, and a soundboard feed. The sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Thanks to Mdou Moctar and his management team for letting us share the recording.

Download the complete show: [FLAC/ALAC/MP3]

Stream the show here.

Further details and setlist:

Mdou Moctar
2019-09-07
Hopscotch Music Festival
Kings
Raleigh, NC USA

Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard + Schoeps MK5c (onstage, XY)>KC5>CMC6 + MBHO MBP603a/KA200N (at SBD, PAS)>Aerco MP-2>>Sound Devices MixPre6>24/48 polyWAV>Adobe Audition CC>Izotope Ozone 5>Audacity 2.3.0>FLAC ( level 8 )

01 Iblis Amghar
02 [tuning]
03 Ilana
04 Afrique Victime
05 Tarhatazed

Please consider supporting NYC Taper for all the great work they do in making so much terrific music available.

You Had Me At Tuareg Guitar: 2019 Albums From Mdou Moctar and Tinariwen

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Sometimes known as “Desert Blues.”

Sometimes known as “Saharan Rock.”

Sometimes known as “Tuareg Guitar.”

Whatever you call it, there is a style of music closely associated with the Tuareg people (Kel Tamashek) and the geography of the Western Sahara desert, from Morocco extending to Mali. Steeped in its stark, unforgiving geography, and a political climate to match, the music is a derivative of blues rock and relies on open tunings and repetitive, droning, of patterns played over skittering percussion often creating an effect that many might equate with psychedelic rock. Many of the lyrics are centuries old poems and stories passed down from one generation to another. It is often highly political and is always rooted in its time, place, and people. The Tuareg people are one of the largest confederations of African Berbers and have often had to fight for their own survival and identity, whether against French colonialists, or the Malian, or Nigerian governments.

Cooked up in the sunbaked desert and under breathing the air of political struggle, “Desert Blues” often reflects the shimmery simmer of the desert heat; the very fight just to survive somewhere that seems to be actively working against you being there in the first place, which of course extends to the political struggles endured by these resilient people. The Blues isn’t just about being Blue, it’s about the fight to keep on living despite what life may bring. Often reflecting the nomadic nature of its creators, Desert Blues can be both transcendent and imminently urgent; joyous and defiant all at once. You have to live where you find yourself, even if you know you’ll be moving along soon. The fantastic label Sahel Sounds (home to Mdou Moctar) describes the music as:

“Tuareg guitar has become one of the most popular folk music in the contemporary Sahara. Originally political ballads, created in exile in Libya, today the sound has expanded to encompass everything from introspective love songs, blistering psychedelic rock, and synthesizer and drum machine. At its core, the music still relies on poetry to transmit a message, carried by the pentatonic solos of a guitar.”

The music has gained popularity over the years, in large part riding the visibility of artists like Bombino, Tinariwen, and now Mdou Moctar. Both Moctar and Tinariwen released fantastic albums in 2019 that deserve to be listened to, not just heard.

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In fact, Mdou Moctar released two albums this year. The first, was released to less fanfare and has largely flown under the radar, but in January, 2019, Jack White’s Third Man Records released Moctar’s ‘Blue Stage Session,’ a live album recorded in 2018 at Third Man Cass Corridor in Detroit.

This live set preceded Moctar’s proper studio debut, ‘Ilana (The Creator)’ which appeared three months later, in March, 2019, but the ‘Blue Stage Session’ is no less important, featuring several tracks that didn’t make it on to the later studio album, including opener ‘Tarha,’ which explodes with repeated psychedelic swirls and pounding percussion, displaying that this Moctar is not just a studio musician but a live force to be reckoned with. Much has been made about Moctar’s backstory which bears repeating if you haven’t already heard it: Moctar was raised in a strictly religious home where music was forbidden. But, much like the little boy in Coco, Moctar would not be deterred, fashioning a clandestine guitar for himself out of a piece of wood strung with brake wires from an old bicycle. He practiced in secret for hours and is a self-taught guitarist of the highest caliber.

That determination and zeal is woven throughout this live performance. This is someone who is playing because he has to. There is an urgency to the music and reminds us all of the importance music can play. It can help us rise above our circumstances while also preserving the story of the struggle to be heard. Moctar combines traditional blues with Saharan tunings and charges at the listener with guitar shreddery that doesn’t shred just to show off but because it’s in his soul.

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The live ‘Blue Stage Session’ release was followed in March 2019 by Moctar’s full-band studio debut ‘Ilana (The Creator).’ The studio album succeeds in large part because it is able to capture that sense of joyous urgency made apparent in the live set. Lots of bands are great live but struggle in the studio, or vice versa, but Moctar shows that, despite his self-taught nature (or maybe because of it?), he is adept at both.

Some of the songs have a slightly slower tempo which does not hinder from the music’s urgency but does allow for the guitar playing to shine through as the real star. Moctar’s repeated patterns draw you in with their drone-like qualities, but it’s also clear that this music shares a lineage with the choogle-boogie of John Lee Hooker, early ZZ Top, and others. The studio allows the songs room to breathe while also retaining their spontaneity (the album was largely recorded live in the studio). Recorded in Detroit at the tail-end of touring, the band was cohesive and tight yet the compositions don’t lose any of their spaciousness or immediacy. The added production of the studio is minimal and the tracks were then taken back to Niger for final production.

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While Moctar’s music draws focuses a self-taught guitarist, Tinariwen is a Desert Blues collective. The same swirling, insistent guitars and driving percussion are present, but the focus is never on a single player. Watch a short documentary about the band and the new album here.

Tinariwen was was formed in 1979 in Algeria, but returned to their native in the 1990’s after a cease-fire. Perhaps more than anyone else (possibly with the exception of Bombino?) Tinariwen have been at the forefront of bringing Tuareg guitar to the world’s attention. The group has done this by relentless touring including Denmark’s Roskilde Festival and high-profile fans including NPR and others.

Tinariwen has also held closely to a collaborative approach throughout its history, not just within the group but drawing from outside as well. On ‘Amadjar’ Tinariwen’s ninth album, collaborators appear on many of the tracks. For example, five tracks here feature Warren Ellis of The Dirty Three and Bad Seeds fame and there are other notable collaborators including Willie Nelson’s son Micah on ‘Taqkal Tarha’ and Cass McCombs on closing track ‘Lalla’. The band recorded these tracks in the camper-van turned studio in Southern Morocco (watch the video featured here).

The tempos are often slower than Moctar’s but the music is no less insistent, driving, or mesmerizing, swirling in and out of complex patterns forming a droning effect that rises like the desert shimmer but, like the desert, doesn’t want you staying in one place for too long. This is music shaped by and for life’s journey, as difficult as it often is. This shimmering swirl lays the perfect foundation for someone like Ellis, who's violin punctuations serve as a counterpoint for the electrifying solos of a songs like the album’s second track ‘Zawal.” The vocals throughout the album are often presented in a call and response pattern which draws the listener in to a collaborative experience evoking the desert haze and the joyful fierceness of living. Noura Mint Seymali’s vocals soar above ‘Amalouna’ but never leave us below. We hear in the choir-response and we feel her short but piercing vocal solo. The danger with bringing in collaborators is that a group might lose their own sense of identity, but ‘Amadjar’ finds Tinariwen bringing their collaborators along for the journey rather than finding themselves drowned out. This is, without a doubt, a Tinariwen record and it is a very good one.

The album’s acoustic guitars, violin and even mandolin remind us of the folk/rural nature of the music’s origins, but it is always insistent music, perhaps because of the nomadic nature of its creators; it is driven by urgent percussion, even when the vocals feel calm, even joyous. It is this struggle between transcendence and imminence, between the journey to wherever is next and finding one’s self on that journey that has always been at the heart of Tinariwen’s music and ‘Amadjar’ finds the band, perhaps content with the journey, but not standing still by any means.

Live Celebrations of Deep Listening With 75 Dollar Bill, Dire Wolves, and Joshua Abrams And Natural Information

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Today I wrote Deep Listening by pointing out three of my favorite 2019 releases: I Was Real by 75 Dollar Bill, I Control The Weather by Dire Wolves, and Mandatory Reality by Joshua Abrams And Natural Information. To accompany that release and to help you understand if you’re not familiar with those artists, here is a live video from each artist.

First, here’s 75 Dollar Bill with an expanded lineup at Roulette, Brooklyn 7/1/2019 performing the title track to their newest album I Was Real. Believe it or not, this lineup features Joshua Abrams!

Linuep from left to right:

  • Karen Waltuch - amplified viola

  • Talice Lee - amplified violin

  • Sue Garner - electric bass guitar

  • Che Chen: electric 12-string guitar

  • Rick Brown - plywood crate, percussion

  • Joshua Abrams - double bass

  • Lisa Alvarado - harmonium

Next up, we feature a 2018 live set from Dire Wolves (Just Exactly Perfect Sisters Band) at the 17th Annual Outsound New Music Summit (7-27-18). This video documents three live pieces, and this particular lineup features:

  • Sheila Bosco - drum kit

  • Brian Lucas - bass

  • Jeffrey Alexander - guitarmagoria + moog + wooden sax

  • Arjun Mendiratta - violin

And rounding out the set, we feature a live performance by Joshua Abrams And Natural Information Society. Believe it or not, the shortest video today features the artist who usually features the longest pieces. Here is Joshua Abrams And Natural Information Society, at “ICA Philadelphia.” No other details were provided about this performance.

Medeski Martin and Wood Live at The Georgia Theater (09/18/93)

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We’re pulling from the live recording stash again today. This time, going way back to a great sounding 1993 Medeski Martin and Wood soundboard recording. This is early material and the group is in fine form. I’ve had this CD for probably close to 25 years. It was one of the first ones I traded for through the mail after switching from cassettes to CDRs. Enjoy!

Medeski Martin & Wood

Georgia Theater, Athens, GA

Saturday, September 18, 1993

The notes that came with the show read as follows:

- One Set -

01. [10:07] - It's A Jungle In Here >

02. [09:12] - Beeah

03. [06:30] - Syeeda's Song Flute* >

04. [08:55] - Worms > Open Outro >

05. [11:48] - Chubb Sub

06. [09:44] - Bass Solo > Bemsha Swing/Lively Up Yourself [@1:57]

07. [11:41] - Listen Here+

08. [15:04] - Moti Mo, 'Billy Speaks' [@13:41]

* spills over onto start of following track

+ Beeah teases c.6:43-7:03

Enjoy.

  • Visit Medeski Martin and Wood’s official website.

  • Follow Medeski Martin and Wood at Facebook.

  • Follow Medeski Martin and Wood at Twitter.

  • Purchase Medeski Martin and Wood’s music at Amazon.

  • Download the show as a zip file.

Baba Sissoko: Amadran

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Baba Sissoko’s Facebook page simply says:

“Born in Bamako (Mali), Baba Sissoko is the undisputed master of tamani (the original talking drum).”

Sissoko’s official website adds:

“Born in Bamako (Mali), Baba Sissoko is the undisputed master of tamani (the original talking drum), that he started to play since he was a child (thanks to the teaching of his grand-father Djeli Baba Sissoko and Djeli Maka Sissoko and Djatourou Sissoko) and from which he is able to extract all the notes simply with a one, natural movement. Baba Sissoko plays also ngoni, kamalengoni, guitar, balaphon, calebasse, Hang and… he sings!”

Sissoko recently released his new solo album Amadran and I’ve really enjoyed it. Minimal accompaniment lets the songs shine. Sissoko says of the album:

«I dedicate this album to my family, all the Sissokos in the world!
There is just one Sissoko family, wherever you are (Mali, Senegal, Gambia or Guinea), if your name is
Sissoko, you are part of the same family, because we are all descendants of Fakoli!
Fakoli was a prince and one of the founders of the Mandinka Empire. He was a man of his word, who was
very involved in the social scene. As a legacy, he passed down to us all of his energy and force. As his
descendants, we all received a piece of him. My family received culture, tradition and music!
My grandparents who were also my best buddies, Djeli Djatourou Sissoko, Djeli Makan Sissoko, Djeli Baba
Sissoko, had all lived with the energy and force of Fakoli, humanly, culturally and musically speaking.
I had the chance to know all of my grandparents and I learned a lot with them at the beginning of my
childhood. I grew up with my father Djeli Madou Sissoko, a great Ngoni player; my mother Djeli Mah
Damba Koroba, traditional singer; and with my uncle Mama Sissoko, a great Ngoni and guitar player, who
completed my training and showed me the way to my mission. My family left me a baggage full of songs
and I can live anywhere in the world with my musical experience.
In our family we start to play music with the Tama, and then we learn how to play the Ngoni. The Tama and
Ngoni are all instruments of the Sissoko family and belonged to us even before the birth of the Mandinka
Empire.
For me, this album is a journey, a souvenir…it’s life! This album comes from my heart and I recorded it
with all the love and respect that I have for my family because I learned from them that the most beautiful
things are the simplest ones.
This music and album are timeless.»

Baba Sissoko

Watch the video for the title track.

Watch the video for ‘Baba Ka Foli’.

  • Visit Baba Sissoko’s official website.

  • Follow Baba Sissoko at Facebook.

  • Follow Baba Sissoko at Twitter.

  • Support Baba Sissoko at Bandcamp.

  • Purchase Baba Sissoko’s music at Amazon.

Raquel Denis: KJZZ Tiny Desert Concert

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Back in September I had the privilege of participating in a panel discussion for a live Makers and Mystics podcast recording. One of the other panel members was Raquel Denis. Raquel is an Arizona poet, musician, artist and activist and I was encouraged and challenged by her voice and I was blown away by the performance piece she shared.

Denis recently met with local NPR station KJZZ for a live performance. KJZZ says:

Some of us are lucky to be professionally talented at one thing, whether it’s a sport or dance or photography, but few of us are lucky enough to be that talented at multiple things.

Raquel Denis is a practicing poet, writing about her life as an Afrolatina in Arizona and the experiences her community faces, and she is now about to put out her first EP as a musician.

The Show had the chance to speak with Raquel in a green room at the Van Buren in downtown Phoenix for a Tiny Desert Concert.

  • Follow Raquel Denis at Facebook.

  • Support Raquel Denis at Bandcamp.

Uncle Tupelo (05/01/94)

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Wilco week continues by pulling more from my live show stash. This time we get to bask in the infamous glory of Uncle Tupelo’s last show. A whopping 31 songs. All killer, no filler. Well, except that the last two songs here ‘Stay Free’ and ‘Wherever’ don’t seem to be part of the show, but they’ve always been on the discs I have and I’m not sure their lineage. They’ve just always been a part of this set for me so I’ve simply passed this show along to you as I’ve had it for lo, these many years.

Enjoy.

The notes that came with the show read as follows:

This is the legendary final Uncle Tupelo show. Haven't seen it posted here before, and it is a thing of beauty, so here you are. Enjoy!

Source: SBD (lineage unknown)

Quality: A

Uncle Tupelo

The Final Show, St. Louis, 01 May 1994

Disc 1: (64:34)

01 No Depression

02 Chickamauga

03 Watch Me Fall

04 Grindstone

05 Satan,Your Kingdom Must Come Down

06 Fifteen Keys

07 The Long Cut

08 Anodyne

09 New Madrid

10 Slate

11 Atomic Power

12 Postcard

13 Gun

14 High Water

15 Acuff Rose

16 True To Life

17 We've Been Had

18 Give Back The Key To My Heart

Disc 2: (57:53)

01 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

02 Whiskey Bottle

03 Looking For A Way Out

04 Gimme Three Steps

05 Sandusky

06 Steal The Crumbs

07 Nothing

08 Life Worth Living

09 Willin'

10 Truck Drivin' Man

11 Effigy

12 Stay Free

13 Wherever

Loose Fur 12.07.02

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Loose Fur

12.07.02

St. Ann's Warehouse Brooklyn, NY

Loose Fur was (is?) a Jeff Tweedy side project with Jim O’Rourke and Glenn Kotche. They put out two albums, 2003’s self-titled release and the 2006 follow-up Born Again in the USA.

I have a few Loose Fur shows but I pull this one out to listen to more than the others because it’s a longer show than some of the others and the songs get a little more room to breathe here, and, I just really like this version of ‘Chinese Apple’ and I dig the longer ‘Chelsea Walls Theme’. This was night two of a two-night stand. I also have night one if you’re interested.

Enjoy.

Nels Cline With Medeski Martin And Wood

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In 2014, Wilco’s Nels cline partnered with Medeski Martin and Wood to record and release Woodstock Sessions, Vol. 2. Allmusic says of the release:

“Medeski, Martin & Wood have always played well with others. They did a string of great records in collaboration with John Scofield, and many of their albums have had invited guests; DJ Logic was practically an adjunct member for a while, and they even play on an Iggy Pop album (not exactly Iggy's finest moment, but that's another matter). Nels Cline also plays very well with others. Collaboration and improvisation were his stock in trade since long before he picked up the Wilco gig, and he continues to actively guest and collaborate while leading his own Nels Cline Singers. As good as the albums with Scofield were, Nels Cline is a very different type of player, and his affinity for effects really opens up the possibilities as far as pure sound. Cline can move from spacey ambience to raging leads to swirls of electronic-sounding madness and beyond. Pairing them seems like a great match on paper but it's even better recorded live in a studio with a small invited audience. Perhaps the most amazing thing is just how well Cline fits in with MMW's M.O.”

In honor of Wilco Week here at Holiday at the Sea, here is an excellent video of a full 2016 set featuring Nels Cline with Medeski Martin and Wood live at the Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI Lugano in Switzerland as part of the Cully Jazz Festival.

Enjoy!

  • Visit Wilco’s official website.

  • Follow Wilco on Facebook.

  • Follow Wilco on Twitter.

  • Purchase Wilco’s music at Amazon.

  • Visit Nels Cline’s official website.

  • Follow Nels Cline at Facebook.

  • Follow Nels Cline at Twitter.

  • Purchase Nels Cline’s music at Amazon.

  • Visit Medeski Martin and Wood’s official website.

  • Follow Medeski Martin and Wood at Facebook.

  • Follow Medeski Martin and Wood at Twitter.

  • Purchase Medeski Martin and Wood’s music at Amazon.

Wilco Live at Grant Park (07.04.01)

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As we celebrate Wilco Week here at Holiday at the Sea, here is a live show I’ve held on to for years. This one features Wilco live at Chicago’s Grant Park as part of the “Taste of Chicago” festival.

The band was in fine form for the home town crowd and his was originally broadcast on WXRT FM and the sound is good, but the real reason I’ve held on to this one is that it was Jay Bennett’s last show with the band.

Enjoy.

Setlist:

01. I Am Trying to Break Your Heart
02. War on War
03. A Shot in the Arm
04. She's a Jar
05. I'm Always in Love
06. Airline to Heaven
07. Feed of Man
08. Remember the Mountain Bed
09. California Stars
10. Kamera
11. Ashes of American Flags
12. Red-Eyed and Blue
13. I Got You (At the End of the Century)
Encore:
14. I'm the Man Who Loves You
15. Sunken Treasure
16. Outta Mind (Outta Site)

Garcia Peoples, “One Step Behind” (Live)

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To celebrate getting my copy of the new Garcia Peoples album (the second this year behind the fantastic Natural Facts), One Step Behind, here is a 48-minute live performance of the title track at the band’s album release show at Nublu in New York.

The band’s label (the reliably groovy) Beyond Beyond is Beyond says on Facebook: “Um, our dude Bryon snagged the whole 48 minutes of Garcia Peoples “One Step Behind” last night at Nublu. Have a gander! The amazing Bob Malach rippin it on sax!”

Byron Whitley says at the video’s YouTube page: “48 glorious minutes of Garcia Peoples’ “One Step Behind” record release show at Nublu in NYC with Tom’s dad, Bob Malach, sitting in on sax.”

Garcia Peoples present us with something we don’t get to see that often any longer; a band creating itself as it goes. In the throes of pre-packaged pop and when everyone has to have an “image” and a “sound,” it’s exciting to hear a band that sounds excited. Garcia Peoples have allowed themselves to musically mature in public.

Their 2018 debut ‘Cosmic Cash” came out of the gate strong and garnered a lot of well-deserved attention. Their name and vibe definitely caught the ears of many heads. But could they jam? And the live tapes showed a band working out and through its sound. Earlier this year, the band released Natural Facts which proved that they were maturing and finding their voice. But could they jam?

The band’s third album in a year-and-a-half, ‘One Step Behind’ has the feel of a band with something to prove. The album sticker says as much: “Whether or not you thought you knew Garcia Peoples’ music, One Step Behind is something new and beautiful, for new heads and old.” Jesse Jarnow’s liner notes echo the sentiment: “Welcome to the sound of Garcia Peoples at full speed. Without losing a ray of sunshine or a drop of dew, One Step Behind is the first major statement by the malleable Brooklyn sextet.”

Yes, they can jam and Garcia Peoples should not feel like they have anything left to prove. I can’t wait to see where the music takes us. One Step Behind is a terrific step forward.

  • Visit my post “Garcia Peoples: October 3, 2019 Nublu.”

  • Follow Garcia Peoples at Facebook.

  • Visit the show’s page at NYC Taper.

  • Visit the page’s show at the Live Music Archive.

  • Support Garcia Peoples at Bandcamp.

  • Purchase Garcia Peoples’ music at Bandcamp.

Hamza El Din With The Dead

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This post originally appeared at the now disappeared Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow website on June 26, 2018 and is now posted here for posterity and because who doesn’t need more Hamza El Din With The Dead in their lives, right?!


In September 1978, the Grateful Dead traveled to Egypt to play three shows at the base of the Great Pyramid of Giza, under the gaze of the Great Sphinx. 

The shows were the culmination of a band of seekers being drawn to places of power. In many ways, the shows were Phil Lesh's personal project. He says: 

"it sort of became my project because I was one of the first people in the band who was on the trip of playing at places of power. You know, power that's been preserved from the ancient world. The pyramids are like the obvious number one choice because no matter what anyone thinks they might be, there is definitely some kind of mojo about the pyramids."

The shows also lived out the ideal of international collaboration, The Dead were famous for having other people sit in, from jazz musicians like Ornette Coleman to Nubian Sudanese composer, oud player, tar player, and vocalist Hamza El Din (Listen to "Did Nura Remember (Gillina Nura)" by Hamza El Din. From the 1965 album Al Oud featured on Episode 02 of the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow).

El Din had already garnered international recognition by this time, having played the Newport Folk Festival in 1964 and we are happy to feature his 1965 track "Did Nura Remember (Gillina Nura)" on Episode 02 of our podcast. 

In October, El Din returned the favor and played with the Dead at Winterland:  "El Din opened the show solo, offering his divine percussion before the Grateful Dead slowly emerged to join him for an ecstatic rendition of “Ollin Arageed”, a number based off a Nubian wedding tune, before embarking on a soaring half-acoustic, half-electric jam."

Watch "Ollin Arageed - Egypt 9-16-78:

Listen to the Dead with Hamza El Din 10/21/78:

  • Visit Hamza El Din .com

  • Follow the Hamza El Din fan page at Facebook

  • Purchase Hamza El Din's music at Amazon

  • Visit the Grateful Dead’s official website

  • Purchase Grateful Dead music at Amazon

  • Listen to "Did Nura Remember (Gillina Nura)" by Hamza El Din. From the 1965 album Al Oud featured on Episode 02 of the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow.

Garcia Peoples: October 3, 2019 Nublu

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As I mentioned the other day, I am very grateful that the Live Music Archive exists. If you’re not familiar with the Live Music Archive, you should really rectify that situation.

I’ve also extolled the virtues of NYC Taper and asked you support what they do, but I’m going to do so again. Please support them so they can continue making shows like this possible (browse posts at this site tagged with “NYC Taper” to see what I’m talking about.

It occurred to me the other day that I haven’t posted about New Jersey’s Garcia Peoples and I couldn’t believe that was possible, so I looked and it was not only possible, it was the sad, sad reality. I couldn’t think of a better way to break that trend than with this VERY recent (10/03/19) show at New York’s Nublu. NYC Taper says:

“Let’s get real here: You already know we love Garcia Peoples. I’m getting this recording to you less than 24 hours after it occurred. So if you want to know our opinions on GP and their shows, read any number of other reviews on this site. I’m here to tell you the basics:

  1. This is part of a month-long residency at Nublu . Buy tix to the other shows here.

  2. These shows celebrate the release of their latest LP on Beyond Beyond is Beyond, One Step Behind. Buy it here.

  3. Garcia Peoples are good peoples, and they rule. See items #1 and #2.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK4Vs on the right side toward the front. The sound is excellent. Enjoy!”

  • Follow Garcia Peoples at Facebook.

  • Visit the show’s page at NYC Taper.

  • Visit the page’s show at the Live Music Archive.

  • Support Garcia Peoples at Bandcamp.

  • Purchase Garcia Peoples’ music at Bandcamp.

Tortoise Live At The Dead Pigeon

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I’ve been continuing to go through some of the live concert recordings I’ve kept over the years. I got rid of a ton during one of our moves, but I also kept a ton. This 1995 Tortoise show from The Dead Pigeon in Muncie, IN.

It’s been amazing to me how many of these lives shows I get excited about sharing, thinking that it might be a nice addition to the internets, only to discover that it already exists thanks to the Live Music Archive. I am severely thankful that the Live Music Archive exists and it certainly saves time in posting some of these shows.

Enjoy this 1995 gem.

Dirty Three's Lyrical Instrumentals

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An Australian instrumental trio that’s not Silver Ray. You didn’t think I’d be able to post about Silver Ray without posting about Dirty Three today, did you? And this doesn’t even mention The Necks.

Dirty Three is one of my all-time favorite bands and consists of Jim White (drums), Mick Turner (guitar), and Warren Ellis (violin). Don’t let this sparse lineup fool you, the group plays huge instrumental pieces drowning lyricism.


Here’s the group’s 2012 Tiny Desk Concert.

Here’s the group performing “Distant Shore” in 1998.

Silver Ray: Swirling Cinematic Instrumentals

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An Australian instrumental trio that’s not Dirty Three (or the Necks), Silver Ray play sweeping, swirling, urgent pieces with piano, guitar and drums. The group consists of Cam Butler (guitar), Julitha Ryan (piano/keyboards), and Brett Poliness (drums). They put out four albums on Pharmacy Records, the last of which being (I think) 2008’s “Homes For Everyone.”

I don’t believe the group is active any longer but those four albums are all really solid and worth your time hunting down.

Here’s “Trail of Deception” from “Homes For Everyone”

Here’s “True Believer” live in 2004.

  • Visit the group’s page at Pharmacy Records.

Kurt Vile: "(bottle back) Documentary"

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From the Youtube page:

“In early September 2018, on the eve of the announcement of his latest album, 'Bottle It In' (celebrating its one-year anniversary this October), Kurt Vile – along with friends and fellow musicians – decamped to the Catskill Mountains in upper state New York to rehearse, prepare and ponder the year’s road ahead.”