DCMusic

Written by Fumo Verde

Ween fans will dig this one. At the Cat’s Cradle, 1992 is a two-disc set, the first a CD recorded live at the Cat’s Cradle in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on December 9, 1992. At this time the band included Gene Ween (vocals & guitar) Dean Ween (vocals & guitar) and at bass and drums Yamaha Digital Audio Tape Deck. That’s right, Ween fans, with Kirk Miller as live sound engineer and Paul Monahan as tour manager, this was one of the first tours after signing with Elektra Records and the band were still just Dean and Gene. The second disc is a DVD, which is one hell of a bonus. It contains shows caught live at Vera in Groningen, Netherlands and Staches in Columbus Ohio.

(Read the full post Music Review: Ween - At the Cat’s Cradle, 1992 (CD/DVD)…)

Some albums are meant to be listened to, to be savored and digested through careful analysis.  Then there is the background music CD, which contains sounds meant to compliment a quiet evening at home or to set a calm, romantic mood.  Jazz pianist Marcus Johnson’s side project FLO, or For the Love Of, creates such accompaniment with their three newest CDs: FLO: Romance, FLO: Chill, and FLO: Standards.  Relaxation remains the goal of the project, and if you desire music that serves as a mood enhancer rather than as an attentive listening experience, FLO fulfills that requirement.
(Read the full post Music Review: FLO - Romance, Chill, and Standards…)

Pop music in the 1960's sometimes seemed to be all about bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and others — an era that came to be known as the British Invasion. But there was also a secondary effect. Many of the American groups scrambling for success during that period found themselves - consciously or not - emulating the British bands. In some cases, they were so good at it that fans just sort of assumed the group was British — or at least they did until they got to know the guys a little better. The Beau Brummels had a name that certainly sounded English, and their clothing and haircuts seemed to suggest it too, but they actually started in the Northern California area.
(Read the full post Retro Redux: The Beau Brummels’ Answer To The British Invasion…)

When the house lights go down to start Ludacris’ Theater of the Mind, an ensemble cast takes to the stage and delivers a performance that is mostly comedic, sometimes sharp, sometimes funky, and often very entertaining. Unfortunately, Luda’s sixth studio album lacks a certain punch and finds the artist often forcing himself into sharp corners that don’t quite fit.

At his best, Ludacris is a great rapper for creating sweltering club bangers focused around clipped beats and his Southern drawl. His contributions to pop music have been significant and have even scooped him some Grammy Awards. But on a deeper level, Ludacris struggles to escape the alcove of party rapper.

(Read the full post Music Review: Ludacris - Theater of the Mind…)

Music is, in large part, about the joining of various components of sound to form something along the lines of sonic bliss. Sometimes a seemingly perfect set of components is made even richer with the addition of another, while other times the addition spoils the soup. In the case of the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra’s Where or When, adding a little something extra provides scrumptious spice for the broth.

The Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra was started by Mark Buselli and arranger/trombone player Brent Wallarab in 1994. The idea was to formulate an entirely instrumental group, but art has a way of wandering where it wants to go.

(Read the full post Music Review: Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra - Where or When…)

Arild Andersen may not be the first name that comes up when one thinks of the greatest living acoustic bassists, but he’s at least earned the right to be considered somewhere on that list.

A player of expansive range, lyricism and velocity, Andersen’s list of credits as a sideman reads longer than Charles Manson’s rap sheet. He’s gigged with notables from George Russell and Don Cherry, to Bill Frisell and Nils Peter Molvaer. And then there’s his stint in legendary Eurojazz saxophonist Jan Garbarek’s band through the fellow Norwegian’s formative years and much of his initial peak period of the early seventies.

Since the mid-1970s Andersen himself has recorded as a leader, like Garbarek, almost exclusively for the ECM label.

(Read the full post Music Review: Arild Andersen - Live At Belleville…)

Loretta Lynn is one of the few female veteran artists still performing on the circuit. She has announced dates for her shows almost throughout the entire year. The tour gets on the road with a performance in Hilton Head Island, SC on the 16th of January. After that she is going to visit a couple of cities for concerts nearly every month up to November.

Loretta is quite the country icon, and was top of the charts in the �60s and �70s, before she took a hiatus to take care of her ailing husband.

(Read the full post Loretta Lynn 2009 Tour Announced…)

Taken from the long-running German television series Rockpalast, which continues to air at the time this article was written, this DVD contains two different incarnations of the classic Southern rockers. The main concert features Lynyrd Skynyrd headlining the Loreley Festival on June 23, 1996. At this point in time, the remaining original members of the band are keyboardist Billy Powell, guitarist Gary Rossington, and bassist Leon Wilkeson. Johnny Van Zant, brother of Ronnie who died in the fateful airplane crash of October 1977, has been the lead singer since the band reformed in 1987.

Skynyrd, a band that seems so authentically an American band, and more specifically a Southern band, transcends geography and nationality with their brand of triple-guitar rock.

(Read the full post Music DVD Review: Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama: The Rockpalast Collection…)

With thanks to the late Layne Staley I try not to plan the funeral before the body has died but there's only one Tuesday left in 2008 and there's nothing I'm in a hurry to go out and buy. Three years down the road I may come across a 2008 album I missed and want to amend this list, but for now, for better and worse these are my Top Songs of 2008.

The best thing about this list is no song from my Album of the Year appears on it. As odd as that may seem, it underscores my reason for naming it my Album of the Year (we'll get to that discussion soon enough).

What follows is a list of the best songs I heard this year.

(Read the full post Best Songs of 2008: Raconteurs, Black Keys, Bittersweets, Dave Carter, Jon Foreman, Glen Phillips, B.B. King, Oasis, Ryan Adams, Phil Keaggy…)

In this two-part episode from season one of the highly successful Nickelodeon series The Naked Brothers Band, Nat and Alex Wolff face off against a California punk-rock group in a charity contest. But there's another battle going on as well. Nat's bandmate Rosalina (Allie DiMeco) has a crush on the other band's lead singer. This doesn't sit too well with Nat who has his own set of feelings to deal with. Thus the battle ensues not only between the bands but for Rosalina's heart.

This series has been a huge success among the pre-teen set and it's easy to see why. The music is fun and infectious. The stories are charming and hit upon the things that concerns viewers the most.

(Read the full post DVD Review: Naked Brothers Band: Battle of the Bands…)