Delta Spirit - Paradise Boston 11.26.10

Delta Spirit returned to Boston again last night for what seems like the 20th time in the last couple years.  Each time the band has played to a larger and more enthusiastic audience, and that trend continued as the band was greeted by a packed and energetic Black Friday crowd at the Paradise.  As amped up as the crowd was -- at one point frontman Matt Vasquez gave credit to Boston as the "most raucous audience in the country" -- the band managed to match the intensity.  Playing a blistering set of songs ranging from their debut EP to their recent Waits Room EP (plus both full length LPs) Delta Spirit continued to prove that they are one of the best live bands in the country. 

Check out some photos from the show below...

Hands and Knees: James Brown Died On Christmas Day

Visible Voice wishes everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!  Topping our list of things we're thankful for is you, our readers, so here's a little something to get you in the holiday spirit...

If you're like me, it's not so much that you have anything against Christmas music.  The ubiquitous sleigh bells and cheesy holiday imagery warms the cockles in a nostalgic kind of way.  The problem is, we've been hearing the same handful of songs, year-after-year, for our entire lives.  As great as Otis Redding's version of "White Christmas" is, it gets old after a couple listens.  That's why I'm always on the lookout for new songs to add to the rotation during the holidays.

Boston's Hands and Knees is offering up a Christmas 7" that you'll want to make sure is on all of your Holiday playlists.  Where many indie bands come off as hopelessly out of their element when trying their hands at Christmas music, Hands and Knees shake things up and deliver two yuletide gems. 

The A-side, "James Brown Died On Christmas Day", would make the Godfather of Soul proud with its bouncy beat, handclaps and Brown-esque exclamations of "hit me!" and "oww!".  B-side "The Biggest Snowflake" is slower and brooding, spinning a surreal, twisted story about getting killed by a snowflake - I'm thinking it might make a little more sense after a few egg nogs.

The band was gracious enough to let me post James Brown Died On Christmas Day below for download.  Add this to your Holiday mix, then head to the band's bandcamp page to pick up the vinyl or digital version of The Biggest Snowflake.

Hands and Knees - James Brown Died On Christmas Day

Review: Viva Viva - S/T

 

Viva Viva's self-titled debut is just the record I needed, at just the right time.  I spend so much time listening to music, but rarely get a chance to get lost in a gritty rock n' roll record the way I used to.  In fact, I was starting to think I could no longer appreciate the simple pleasures of an overdriven guitar, steady beat and straightforward lyrics delivered with passion.  I guess I just haven't been listening to the right bands.

Viva Viva certainly wear their influences on their sleeves - their sound is an amalgam of the seedier side of the British Invasion mixed with bluesy pub rock (a la The 101ers).  The Farfisa organ that pops up throughout the album sounds like vintage Steve Nieve circa-This Year's Model.  "Sympathy For The Devil's Little Helper" gets its title from two classic Stones songs, but is a heavy guitar and harmonica blues stomp that has more in common with Led Zeppelin.  "Valentine's" driving beat and spiky guitar lead sounds like a long lost relative of Bowie's "Suffragette City", and flat out dares listeners not to dance.  "First Time I Saw Her" has the ragged swagger of a 70s Springsteen classic.  The list goes on.

By now I'm sure I've compared Viva Viva to one or more of your favorite bands.  What's most impressive though, is the band's ability to seamlessly integrate all of these influences into something original and soulful.  Songs that are broken-in and comfortable like old favorites, catchy enough to sing along during your first listen and delivered with enough confidence to make you really believe that this is the greatest rock n' roll band in the world.  It's nice to get that feeling back.  Yeah, you could say I'm sold on Viva Viva. 

Viva Viva - Valentine

You can find Viva Viva's self-titled record at Newbury Comics or download it at the band's bandcamp page.  They'll be in Providence on December 3 with Hands and Knees and keep your eyes peeled for Boston dates.  The band is also up for a BMA - don't forget to vote!

Preview: Boston Music Awards 2010

It's been a big year in Boston music.  The rise explosion of Passion Pit continued as they conquered huge crowds around the world, and Dom burst onto the scene as the next Pitchfork-endorsed buzz band to emerge from the Boston area.  On the Americana side, 2010 saw David Wax Museum triumph at Newport Folk Festival, Kingsley Flood emerge as a country-punk tour de force and Josh Ritter release another masterpiece of an album.  The legendary Harper's Ferry closed its doors for good (kinda) and the Paradise closed temporarily, only to reopen with a new, larger floorplan.  Royale took over the old Roxy space and added another world class venue to the Boston scene, booking a consistently great lineup of artists.  And that's just the beginning. [Ed's note:  oh yeah, and visible voice launched]

The 23rd annual Boston Music Awards will celebrate all of this and more on December 5 at the Liberty Hotel.  With a killer lineup of musical acts that includes Jenny Dee And The Deelinquents, Kingsley Flood, Dom and The Remains(!).  And of course, it wouldn't be an awards show without the awards.  Nominees across 30 categories include Peter Wolf, Amanda Palmer, Josh Ritter, Eli "Paperboy" Reed, Dropkick Murphys, John McCauley (of Deer Tick), The Low Anthem, David Wax Museum, Mean Creek, Bodega Girls and lots more.  Get in on the act and vote for your favorite artists here.

Standard tickets are available for $20 - a great deal for a night full of great music.  VIP tickets, which include access to an exclusive cocktail hour with artists and industry insiders, are $99.  Get tickets here.  Check Visible Voice for full post-event coverage.

Check out free tracks by some of our favorite BMA-nominated artists below:

Viva Viva - Valentine
Dom - Living In America
Josh Ritter - Change Of Time
David Wax Museum - Born With A Broken Heart (Live at the Paradise)
Kingsley Flood - Roll Of The Dice
Mean Creek - The Comedian
 

New music: Mariage Blanc - Whatever You Say I Am

I get a lot of emails from publicists, labels and bands and it's rare that the music they are so zealously promoting is worth listening to, let alone writing about.  Mariage Blanc is one of the exceptions when the email actually made me want to listen to the music, and the songs made me want to share it with you all.  I had not heard of the Pittsburgh band, but after listening to their self-titled album once-through, the songs felt like old favorites.  Catchy AM-radio inspired pop that features chimey guitars, electric piano and plenty of hooks (plus sleighbells!) - if that sounds like it's up your alley I recommend checking them out. 

Listen to a free track below, and hit up the band's bandcamp page for another free download.

Mariage Blanc - Whatever You Say I Am

Air Waves + Sharon Van Etten - "Knockout"

 

Nicole Schneit (Air Waves) and Sharon Van Etten are both Brooklyn-based indie-folk songstresses.  If Sharon Van Etten's moody odes to love and loss are best consumed late at night with a bottle of something strong, Air Waves is the sunnier, happier morning hangover cure.   Van Etten's recently-released Epic is one of our favorite albums of the year so far, and Air Waves' upcoming debut LP Dungeon Dots, out November 30 on Underwater Peoples, is one of our most anticipated releases of the rest of 2010.  Check out a track from Dungeon Dots below.  "Knockout" is a catchy folk-pop should-be-hit that features background vocals from none other than Sharon Van Etten.

Air Waves - Knockout
Sharon Van Etten - Don't Do It

Dawes: Royale Boston 11.6.10

I distinctly remember listening to Dawes for the first time back in early 2009, just before the band opened for Delta Spirit at the Middle East in Cambridge.  As I did my due dilligence the night before the show, the obligatory myspace opening band research, something clicked when I first heard "When My Time Comes".  The soft arpeggiated intro building to a plainspoken verse and finally exploding in an anthemic, breathless refrain, an ambiguous mantra:  "When my time comes / Oh oh....".  The listener is left to fill in the blank of exactly what happens when our time comes (our moment to shine, redemption, death?)...and that's exactly what makes the song so easy to connect with.  It's a personal anthem, and I was instantly hooked. 

To be honest, I don't remember much about Dawes' set that night - except for the fact that I was impressed with the performance, enough so to pick up the album.  I later saw the band open for Langhorne Slim at a sweaty TTs, and then again headlining at Great Scott.  That show sealed the deal, I swore I would never miss a Dawes show in Boston.  Road warriors in the truest sense, Dawes tours constantly and leaves everything on the stage - as with all truly great live bands, their live performances completely transform and transcend the album versions.  A review and live recording from that show at Great Scott became the first ever post on visible voice. 

Now, almost 9 months later and with a triumphant Newport Folk Festival performance under their belt, Dawes returned to Boston again last week for a headlining show at Royale.  Still touring behind their debut North Hills, the setlist included most of the old favorites as well as a number of new songs from their upcoming LP (scheduled for a 2011 release).  The band was on fire right out of the gate - opening with "My Girl To Me" followed by "When You Call My Name".  The first new track of the night came next and was also one of the highlights - "If I Needed Someone" is propelled by a driving beat, Alex Casnoff's keyboard fills and a chorus that's impossible not to sing along with.  After that opening, the rest of the show was mostly a blur.  Another late highlight was the 1-2 punch of "Peace In The Valley" (that guitar solo!) and "When My Time Comes" to close the main set.  Frontman Taylor Goldsmith's always-impressive guitar work was especially firey, the rhythm section was in lockstep and the harmonies were perfect (well, perfect enough for rock n' roll, that is).  Before leaving the stage after a two song encore, Goldsmith promised to be back in Boston again in the upcoming months and I have no doubt the crowd will be even larger next time - and I know I'll be there.

Complete live recording of the show is available for stream/download below.  The sound quality is generally excellent (improves a bit after the first song), despite a bit of crowd chatter.  Also, thanks to the dude who decided to make an obscene comment directly into the mic during "If I Needed Someone" - classy.  Enjoy!

Dawes
Royale Nightclub - Boston, MA
November 6, 2010

My Girl To Me
When You Call My Name
If I Needed Someone
That Western Skyline
How Far We've Come
Love Is All I Am
Time Spent In Los Angeles
Bedside Manner
Fire Away
Peace In The Valley
When My Time Comes
Little Bit Of Everything
I've Got A Feeling

Lossless zip available upon request - comment if you want the link (and include your email address).

Photos from Dawes and Peter Wolf Crier at Royale

New music: 1900s - Babies

Chicago indie-pop band The 1900s just released their second LP Return of the Century last week.  Catchy 60s-inspired pop, gorgeous harmonies and more than enough melodic/instrumental twists to make it interesting.  Check out a free track from the album:

The 1900s - Babies

Stream or download the full album at the band's bancamp page, and check them out at the Middle East Upstairs next Sunday (11/14) with Tunng.

Video for "Amulet", the lead track off Return of the Century:

The Love Language - Heart To Tell (video)

The Love Language's Libraries is one of our favorite releases of the year.  The shimmering-yet-scruffy sophomore effort exceeded our high expectations, proving that Stuart McLamb could grow as a songwriter while still retaining the qualities that made the band's debut stand out - catchy songs, heart-on-sleeve honesty, and a lo-fi take on Wall of Sound arrangements. 

The band has just released a video for standout track "Heart To Tell" - check it out below, along with a video we shot of the band at TT The Bears in July: