Modern Skirts / Skybox at Project LodgeFriday, Nov 20 2009 - 7:30pm

Have you been to Project Lodge (817 East Johnson)? If so, you know what an intimate music environment it provides. This bill looks to be a lot of fun.

Modern Skirts is out of Athens GA. Pop-flavored tunes with catchy hooks, nice vocal harmonies, and interesting changes. I think this will be a fun group to see at the Lodge.



Opening will be Skybox from Chicago ... "careening from Bowie glam to Flaming Lips exuberance without bothering to apologize." Sounds cool to me. They will soon be releasing their sophomore LP - Morning After Cuts - recorded here in Madison at Smart Studios. You can listen to some of their music at this stream.

Show starts with Skybox at 7:30p, and Modern Skirts expected to start around 9pm. Only $7!

Have fun. See Live Music.

Preview: The Fiery FurnacesComing to Majestic Theatre, Nov 13, 2009

The Fiery Furnaces will be returning to Madison on November 13, 2009 to play the Majestic Theatre.

The Fiery Furnaces is a musical vehicle for Eleanor and Matthew Friedberger. These siblings are originally from my own hometown - Chicago, but are now based in New York City. Joining them in this incarnation of the band is Jason Loewenstein on bass and Robert D’Amico on drums, which is the same line-up that we saw in 2007 at the Annex.

They have recently recently released their eighth album - I’m Going Away. I've been listening to this for the past month or so and really dig it. It is probably the most "accessible" (least complex) album they've released to date. But that is not saying a lot! This band has more musical ideas in one track than most bands do in an entire album. Relentless tempo and style changes are hallmarks of their compositions, which are also lyrically rich and complex. And that character is reflected in this album also.

Word has it that the current tour includes no keyboards! Instead, Matthew is playing guitar exclusively. Now, I've got mixed feelings about this because it is rare to see a band led by a pianist of the talent displayed by Matthew Freidberger. On the other hand, I'm curious to see what he does with an electric guitar! Anyway, I promise an experience that you will not soon relive.

Here's a video for a track from the new LP:

The Fiery Furnaces - Charmaine Champagne from Thrill Jockey Records on Vimeo.

I will confess that on initial listen, this song was not one of my favorites on the new album. I like it, but there are four or five others tracks that just slay me. Nonethess, Charmaine Champagne still managed to worm its way into my head and stay there! It's now in heavy rotation on my sound system.

Hope you can make it out for this one!
- Mister Bill

Past Coverage:
madisonmusicreview.com - Photo Review from The Annex 10.11.2007

Pretty Lights!

Regular visitors to Madison Music Review know how much we enjoy Pretty Lights. He had the High Noon jumping when he was in town last June. We saw him again at 10KLF with his new and ultra-cool LED background... And we are very excited to see him again at the Majestic Theatre on Saturday October 24.

Curious about the music? Well he has continued his tradition of providing free downloads of his albums (yes, entire albums!) with his latest - Passing By Behind Your Eyes - which dropped on October 6. You can get it at prettylightsmusic.com


Here's a little demo you might enjoy of Pretty Lights playing with his Monome 128



Now I ask you to look at this tour schedule, and I advise you to get your tickets early!

PRETTY LIGHTS ON TOUR
08.09.09 – The National – Richmond, VA **SOLD OUT**
09.02.09 – Lyric Theatre – Oxford, MS **SOLD OUT**
09.03.09 – The Sky Bar – Auburn, AL **SOLD OUT**
09.04.09 – Athens Arena – Bogart, GA **SOLD OUT**
09.05.09 – Belly Up – Aspen, CO **SOLD OUT**
09.12.09 – Trinumeral Festival – Horseshoe, NC
09.18.09 – Symbiosis Gathering – Groveland, CA
09.21.09 – Bama Theatre – Tuscaloosa, AL **SOLD OUT**
09.23.09 – Rhythm &Brews – Chattanooga, TN **SOLD OUT**
09.24.09 – Amos’ Southland – Charlotte, NC **SOLD OUT**
09.26.09 – Diesel – Wilmington, NC **SOLD OUT**
10.01.09 – Fox Theatre Boulder – Boulder, CO **SOLD OUT**
10.02.09 – Aggie Theatre – Ft. Collins, CO **SOLD OUT**
10.03.09 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO **SOLD OUT**
10.12.09 – Belly Up Tavern – Solana Beach, CA
10.14.09 – Key Club – West Hollywood, CA**SOLD OUT**
10.15.09 – The Independent – San Francisco, CA **SOLD OUT**
10.16.09 – Nocturnum – Eureka, CA**SOLD OUT**
10.17.09 – Nectar Lounge – Seattle, WA**SOLD OUT**
10.18.09 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR
10.21.09 – The Varsity Theater – Minneapolis, MN
10.22.09 – Miramar Theatre – Milwaukee, WI
10.23.09 – Park West – Chicago, IL
10.24.09 – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WI

Dark Party will get the evening started. You will like them too!

Cheers,
Mister B.

R.E.M. Live at the Olympia

R.E.M. will release Live At The Olympia in Dublin on Oct 27, 2009 (Warner Bros.) The two-CD set features 39 songs from the band’s “working rehearsals” for their 2008 album Accelerate.

The material was tested over five nights before capacity Dublin crowds, and this release presents different incarnations of the songs before the final Accelerate versions. The band also performed many fan favorites from their early albums too.

Guitarist Peter Buck characterized these sessions as their “experiment in terror:”

“Every second we were playing something we didn't know all that well. Which was kind of good — there were all kinds of terror elements going on during that show."

This looks like it will be a good recording to add to the collection.

I saw this video and thought I'd share it. I can only imagine how much fun it was to be at these shows. Hope you enjoy it too!

Living Well Is The Best Revenge

Pretty Lights

Pretty Lights just announced his Fall 2009 tour plans. We last caught him at 10KLF and he just tore the place up... A favorite set for many!

Derrick Vincent Smith will be joined on this tour by live drummer Cory Eberhard as well as the sweet new video and lighting rig. Catch him, if you can...

08.29.09 – The National – Richmond, VA
09.02.09 – Lyric Theatre – Oxford, MS *
09.03.09 – The Sky Bar – Auburn, AL *
09.04.09 – Athens Arena – Bogart, GA *
09.05.09 – Belly Up – Aspen, CO @
09.12.09 – Trinumeral Festival – Horseshoe, NC
09.18.09 – Symbiosis Gathering – Groveland, CA
09.21.09 – Bama Theatre – Tuscaloosa, AL
09.23.09 – Rhythm & Brews – Chattanooga, TN
09.26.09 – Diesel – Wilmington, NC
10.02.09 – Aggie Theatre – Ft. Collins, CO
10.03.09 – Odgen Theatre – Denver, CO +
10.12.09 – Belly Up Tavern – Solana Beach, CA R
10.14.09 – Key Club – West Hollywood, CA R
10.15.09 – The Independent – San Francisco – CA R
10.16.09 – Nocturnum – Eureka, CA #R
10.17.09 – Nectar Lounge – Seattle, WA #R
10.18.09 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR #R
10.21.09 – The Varsity Theater – Minneapolis, MN X
10.22.09 – Miramar Theatre – Milwaukee, WI X
10.23.09 – Park West – Chicago, IL D
10.24.09 – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WI D
10.25.09 – Bluebird Nightclub – Bloomington, IN D
10.27.09 – Headliners Music Hall – Louisville, KY D
10.28.09 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN D
10.29.09 – The Valarium – Knoxville, TN D
10.30.09 – The Orange Peel – Asheville, NC D
10.31.09 – Ann Street Shed – Charleston, SC
11.03.09 – Crowbar – Tampa, FL A
11.04.09 – The White Room – Miami, FL A
11.05.09 – Engine Room – Tallahassee, FL A
11.07.09 – House of Blues – New Orleans, LA A
11.10.09 – Granada Theater – Dallas, TX A
11.11.09 – La Zona Rosa – Austin, TX A GA
11.12.09 – George’s Majestic Lounge – Fayetteville, AR G
11.13.09 – Newby’s – Memphis, TN G
11.14.09 – The Masquerade – Atlanta, GA G
11.17.09 – Cat’s Cradle – Carrboro, NC G
11.18.09 – 9:30 Club – Washington DC G
11.19.09 – Fillmore NY @ Irving Plaza – New York, NY G
11.20.09 – The Note – West Chester, PA G
11.21.09 – Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA G

* w/ Emancipator
@ w/ Savoy
+ w/ Lifesavas
R w/ DJ Rootz
# w/ Chicharones
X w/ Prepschool
D w/ Dark Party
A w/ Alex B
G w/ Gramatik

Links of interest:
Past MMR Preview

Del the Funky Homosapien"The Funk is on the House"

Check out Del's stimulus plan...



You can get your funk stimulated by Sir DZL when the FunkMan Tour hits Madison at the High Noon Saloon on May 9th. Also performing: Mike Relm, Bukue One, Serendipity Project

The Winter DubtacularMajestic Theatre

The Winter Dubtacular

w/ The Drastics, Roots Collective & The Takebacks

January 24th, 2009 - 8pm

The Winter Dubtacular will transport you from the frigid Wisconsin tundra to a tropical paradise of sea and sun. Providing entertainment will be Chicago's leading Dub crusaders THE DRASTICS. Assisting with the musical heatwave will be Madison's ROOTS COLLECTIVE and THE TAKEBACKS. WORT's Tropical Riddims host DJ FRP will be spinning throughout the night.

Don't worry about quelling a grumbling stomach as Jamerica will be catering the event with fantastic Jamaican cuisine. For the drinking class we will also be featuring numerous umbrella topped tropical drink specials. And on the big screen, we'll have your favorite beach movies (Weekend at Bernies, anyone?).

Entrance is $10, but if you show up in beachwear we'll knock off $2.

Doors open and food is served at 8 p.m.

Advance tickets are available at www..majesticmadison.com

Vic Chesnutt with Elf PowerHigh Noon Saloon - 01.31.2009

The Afromotive at Der Rathskeller - Free!

The Afromotive

Free Show at Der Rathskeller
on Saturday, December 6th
9pm - All ages

Are you ready for some Afrobeat music? (. . . Always!) Well the Afromotive promises to satisfy your need to get dancing, when they bring their funky afro-beat to Madison on Saturday, December 6th for a free show in Der Rathskellar in the Memorial Union.

They are a nine piece ensemble based in Asheville, NC and includes thirty-third generation djembe player Adama Dembele from Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa. He brings his vast musical background to the Afromotive - where they combine these traditional West African rhythms with their own upbeat funky vibe.

This promises to be a fun show, and a perfect antidote to the winter blues... Check 'em out!

www.theafromotive.com

Win Tickets for 10KLF '08 - 10,000 Lakes Music Festival

Thanks to the kind folks at 10KLF, Madison Music Review is pleased to have TWO general admission festival tickets with a Campground Vehicle Reservation available for one of our lucky readers for the 10,000 Lakes Festival on July 23-26, 2008 in Detroit Lakes MN.

All you need to do is send us an email with "10KLF" in the subject line, and we'll take it from there. Just one entry per person, please! A random winner will be chosen and announced on June 15th.

You may recall that Mister Bill and Ankur went last year, along with family and friends, and had a great time. It's a very chill festival, a beautiful setting, great crowd. You can re-visit that coverage [here].

We are returning this year - and are excited about the artist line-up - Phil Lesh & Friends, The Flaming Lips, Michael Franti & Spearhead, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, Mickey Hart Band, Leftover Salmon, EOTO, Panjea with Michael Kang, JJ Grey & MOFRO, New Mastersounds, Everyone Orchestra, Dark Star Orchestra, Cornmeal and many more.

I hope you are able to join us too because this is one of the best camping fests around.
--- Mister Bill