Sarah Morris

Last Friday Jen and I went to see Sarah Morris at the 318 Cafe in Excelsior.  We've been to see Sarah a bunch of times.  At the State Fair Heritage stage.  At the State Fair by the BOB FM stage [sooooo brutally hot, particularly after a bike ride up there from Eagan].  At the Aster this last Christmas.  I'm sure I'm missing one or two.  Yeah....definitely.  Because I remember working on my bicycle under the entryway to the house while streaming her concert during the deepest Covid.  Ah...and at the Hook and Ladder for the Christmas concert with the Sometimes Elves - can't forget that one; it was wonderful and there's a poster of her on the boardgame shelf in the dining room.  And we backed her Kickstarter back in 2016 and Patreon her musical lifestyle.  Well....I think my wife would say I backed her even though it's our family Kickstarter account, because she didn't know who Sarah was until I hauled her to stage at the Fair.

You can catch her music over on her Youtube channel.  I recommend checking out some of her "Toilet Tunes" as well as her official videos.  That's the series she started while on Covid lockdown.  Lots of local artists.  By the book, country [she was on the BOB stage after all].  Realistically...a bit more folk, and lounge and variety than just country.  You'll find some toilet tunes that channels Janis Joplin and more. If you go into a show thinking she'll just be country and that means you'll be disappointed, you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised.  My sister in law seemed to be.  She lives in that area so we invited her and her husband to join us.  My brother in law was busy, but she showed up and seemed to have a really good time.  Smart lyrics.  Transcendent voice.  And she really is that small.

The 318 Cafe was a double gig.  She was there with Becky Schlegel. For a while they were doing songs about states that were warmer than Minnesota [it was the night it was like -16F by the time we got out], but transitioned into warm places they'd written songs and some warm thoughts about songs Becky had written on request for anniversaries and birthdays.  Pretty cool to have your own song.

I did enjoy that the library behind them lit up a little while into the show as a pair of janitors started evening cleaning.  It was like one of the coffee shop screensavers my wife plays on Youtube while reading.  A couple of guys coming and going from shelves of books as they dusted and vacuumed, all set to music.

;

Gayageum

This is pretty cool.  Luna Lee playing Another Brick in the Wall on a gayageum via Laughing Squid.  Per Wikipedia a gayageum has 12-21 strings, up to 25, and 21 is common in North Korea.  You can get a 25-stringer on Amazon for about $4,000.  And $63.25 in shipping.

http://laughingsquid.com/a-brilliant-version-of-pink-floyds-another-brick-in-the-wall-played-on-a-traditional-korean-gayageum/

The Creeper Creeps

My co-worker has been releasing some of his tunes on YouTube.  Yesterday I came home and found my daughter playing this one, so he's famous at our household, if no where else.  For your enjoyment, The Creeper Creeps (Steve).

A musical week in review - middle school band concert and The Sudden Lovelys

Thursday was Eryn's band concert.  She was one of four oboes.  For their section solo, they put on purple leis.  We sat next to Diane (Jenny's mom) and her family and talked about Minecraft and programming.  My poor wife was in the midst of a geek convo.



I couldn't get a good picture of her from where I was sitting, but here she is.  It's obvious she's playing an oboe at least.  She's been growing her hair out.  I'm not sure how she can even see the music.


Wednesday night we went to see The Sudden Lovelys (Danny and Paige) at Dusty's for a pre-release show of their CD release, Brave and Alive.  I wish we could have been at the Icehouse official release Saturday night, but it's a bit late for Eryn and we like to take her along because she likes them so much.


Dusty's was where they played together for the first time and it was certainly an intimate setting.
There's no zoom on this photo and I was eating an egg-topped dago and fries during their set.  The news songs are great with the studio recording and today I finally got to hear them on a device that wasn't couple to built in computer speakers.  The Kickstarter-backed studio recording makes a real difference in the quality of the sound.


If you haven't caught their video for Gone is Time, here it is.  And go support some local artists and buy Brave and Alive (and their other albums).

Walk Off the Earth

Last Thursday after Code Freeze, Eryn and I went to Walk Off the Earth at the Varsity Theater on their Gang of Rhythm Tour.  We were supposed to go with Mean Mr. Mustard, Klund, and Mrs. Klund.  Instead, Mean Mr. Mustard cancelled because his wife was sending him to California so she could have some quiet time.  And then, day of the gig, when my wife was supposed to drop Eryn off to meet me (I was already all the way up by the U of MN for the conference - having aforementioned burrito with the Ohio State hockey team at Chipotle), the Klundseses sent me a text message (or maybe it was an email - it was a technology blur) telling me that the weather was dubious and they were staying in the safe, warm bosom of St. Peter (something about family too - which I hope worked out for the better) and I should find alternate attendees.  On short notice, I just told Mrs. Scooter to park and we could all go as a family.

So, in the bitter cold (I'm glad we didn't have to wait in line outside the Varsity like Ming, Kyle, Leonard, and I did for the Suicide Girls), we traipsed across Dinkytown to see Walk Off the Earth and their two opening bands: Camera 2 and Parachute (Eryn really liked Parachute - she bought a CD).  It was a good concert.  Particularly as Klund had purchased tickets upstairs in the mezzanine.  We didn't get chairs, but we did get some standing room against the table running around the edge, so we had a mostly unobstructed view of the bands.  Except for a small pillar that required some leaning left and right to optimize the view.  The main floor was packed by the time WOtE went on - almost front to back.

Walk Off the Earth was great.  Excellent set.  Good job of engaging the audience without it feeling forced.  Good vibe.  Good fun.  Eryn (and I) had a great time.  And there were couches in the Mez for my wife to relax on and listen to the music, so she had a great time as well.  No standing-room-only for three hours.

Here are my kick-ass pictures...

From the opening acts.  The chandelier in the foreground took quite a beating when Walk Off the Earth cut loose large balloons for the audience to bounce around for thirty-plus minutes.  We were a little worried it was going to fall on someone's head.  Not because they'd get hurt.  But because they might stop the concert for a while if someone great a chandelier hat.  Eryn liked it when the lead singers from the opening acts crawled up on their amps.  She assured me she doesn't need an amp that big.


I've come to the conclusion my iPhone camera isn't optimal in all cases.


This is how far away we were.  It's not as far as it looks.  But that pillar was as big as it looks.  I think that's why the two folks who originally had the spot vacated and waved Eryn over to take their place.


But see...not so bad.  Walk Off the Earth doing their thing.  Not their five people on one guitar thing, but their thing.  They were much better than their opening acts.  A real treat to listen to and quiet the show.  Someone asked me to describe them (at work) and I said, sort of like Arcade Fire but without quite the level of pretentiousness.  My wife hates Arcade Fire and she liked Walk Off the Earth, so perhaps that's not fair.  They're not a flavor of Arcade Fire.  Much better.


Ditto (WOtE doing their thing). I'm disappointed I didn't catch a picture of the ukulele or Sarah Blackwood jamming out.


I believe Gang of Rhythm is Eryn's favorite song.

L7

It never occurred to me to look up the history of some of the bands whose songs we used to play so often on Rockband and Rockband 2.  But today I was listening to The Current and they played Pretend We're Dead by L7. So I looked up the band on Wikipedia, and was treated to these amusing anecdotes in the controversy section:

During their performance at the 1992 Reading Festival, the band experienced "technical difficulties with their audio equipment" and were forced to stall their set. Quickly, the rowdy crowd grew restless and began throwing mud onto the stage. In protest, lead vocalist Donita Sparks removed her tampon on-stage and threw it into the crowd yelling "Eat my used tampon, fuckers!". Sparks has remained unapologetic about the incident. This has been referred to as one of the "most unsanitary pieces of rock memorabilia in history". 

In 1992, Sparks again created quite a stir[citation needed] in Britain when she dropped her pants on live television, appearing nude from the waist down, during an L7 performance on the UK variety program The Word. 

In 1999, the band raffled a one-night stand with drummer Dee Plakas at a London gig.

Update: even better, you can enjoy a bit of it live on YouTube!

Sudden Lovelys, Brian Laidlaw, and Paul Doffing

Saturday night, Eryn, Pooteewheet, and I went to the Northeast Social Club for dinner, and then to the Ritz to see Paul Doffing's album release.  The Sudden Lovelys were playing as part of the event, and Eryn had been asking if there was a way to see them that didn't involve a bar at 9:00 p.m.  I have to say, seeing three very good acts perform in the Ritz Theater with only a few dozen other people around, and the bar open and serving Sweet Child of Vine...that's definitely the way to enjoy music.

Brian Laidlaw was on first and played a number of tracks from his album wolf wolf wolf.  There were a lot of great songs, and Eryn particularly liked a number of them, including The Last Known Whereabouts of Amelia Earhardt, which includes some rather peculiar lyrics about poets, although you can't find them on his site.  Ashley (Ash) Hanson sang with him, and they harmonized well together.  I've never heard the Dusty Porch Sisters sing before, but perhaps I'll have to watch for them performing locally.

Brian said he plays at The Amsterdam in St. Paul.  He  has an  upcoming performance with Alicia Wiley who I went to see at Barbette, but the acoustics weren't that great.  So I'm looking forward to hearing her at a venue designed for sound.

The Sudden Lovelys performed next.  Eryn's favorite moment of the night was when they changed up their set to play a special request and played Dirty Rotten Apples, which she'd asked for between sets. Paige and Danny make me appreciate that local singers in person almost always sound exactly like they do on their albums, if not better. Eryn jammed along to most of their songs, even though it was almost 10 p.m.
And Paul Doffing was the man of the evening. I'd never heard anyone play a 12 string guitar before. It was absolutely beautiful. Particularly on the acoustic songs, his fingers crawled all over the strings. Made me appreciate exactly how far it is from my puttering around to being amazingly good. Peshtigo Fire, despite the fact that he told a story that has Eryn constantly talking about P-shit-go Fire, is excellent and you can hear it on his site. And it's not too often you can add a song about great fires of Northern Wisconsin to your list of music. Eryn kept her eight-year old self up until after 11:00 p.m. So that should give you an idea of how much she liked it.

The Head and the Heart

I'm late to the game, but I really like Lost in My Mind by The Head and the Heart (you can download two of their songs for free at their site):

The Sudden Lovelys

I did my first Kickstarter funding the other night and sponsored a musical duo and an calendar project by Altered Aesthetics. The duo, The Suddenly Lovelys, raised the money they needed, as I received 3 CD & 3 records (yep, records) in the post today, personally signed with a thank you. They've created three albums this year. That's a lot of music. I'm very interested to go see them at the Acadia next Wednesday if anyone is interested. Dirty Rotten Apple:

Stereo

On the way home today I was listening to Floyd's Another Brick in the Wall and realized as I stopped the convertible at the stop light that the fidelity was absolutely amazing. The sound of the children hubbubbing was downright creepy. Then I realized they were being supplemented by real children playing in the church playground near the car. Fortunately, I could see no meat grinder.

99 Problems

For Ming. He and I went to a late showing of Fright Night on Monday and 99 Problems by Hugo was the closing tune. It's a cover of the Jay-Z tune - definitely needs to be loud with lots of bass. And no, this isn't a clever cover for Ming and I going to No Strings Attached, which also featured the song.

The Muppets and OK Go (for Eryn)

Wombats

My song of the moment, The Wombats Anti-D

The Horrible Crowes

I'm not sure yet if I like their other music, but this song is great. The Horrible Crowes doing "Behold the Hurricane", a side project by Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem.

Jubilation Day

This was on CMT this morning. Sometimes having background noise on is great when it delivers up something worth listening to. A great song and a funny video by Steve Martin (yes, The Jerk Steve Martin).

I'm a Martian

I just feel I should share this based on my love of Marvin T. Martian: I'm a Martian.

Lyrics:
Every time you see me, you earthlings turn and run.
I don't know what your problem is.
I'm really super fun.
I'm a Martian!
Not a great white shark.
I'm a Martian!
I play frisbee in the park.
Come over to my party.
It's not that long a trip.
You'll be glad you made the journey
for my seven-layered dip.
I like sharing cheese pizza.
You see, I'm not so bad.
Do you like little puppies?
I make them in my lab.
I'm a Martian!
I hope for you know ill will.
A Martian!
Does someone need a chill pill?
My name's Marvin, I'm a Martian!
La-la-la-la-le-la-la-lee-lee-lo
Let's share a lemon soda.
And talk about our feelings.
But don't insult my helmet
'Cause then I'll hit the ceilings.
I've got a laser!
And it's pointed at your planet.
It's my laser!
So don't take me for granted.
I'm a Martian!
Boom-shaka-laka
I'm a Martian!
Shaka-laka-boom.

What I'm Listening To Lately

The Decemberists, Rox in the Box


Arcade Fire, We Used to Wait


Seether, Country Song


Mumford and Sons, The Cave

Dark Floors

It's been raining here quite a bit (during today's Art o' Whirl, I believe we were within 10 miles of a tornado), so I've been doing my bicycling inside on the trainer.  That means 70-80 minutes of Netflix which, despite the joys of being able to stream, means finding something worth watching.  Sometimes, a difficult proposition.  Netflix recommended a horror movie to me the other day, Dark Floors, so I thought I'd pedal with it.

What I didn't realize, was that Dark Floors is built around a Finnish metal band, Lordi.  When I think of Scandinavia heavy metal, I think death metal (the extreme metal article on Wikipedia is more descriptive).  What I don't think about is glam rock.  And if you draw the lines.  Glam rock.  Finnish.  Movie.  You get an idea about  how bad we're talking.  Sort of like if Kiss made a horror movie.  Wait...they did.  Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park. But they were supposed to be the good guys, not the monsters.


I'd like to a share a bit of their music so you can get a feeling for how creepy the movie wasn't. This is the theme song to Dark Floors. Beast Loose in Paradise. If you can get as far as the chorus, and you're like me, you'll wonder why it sounds like something out of Footloose.


So I looked up some of their other videos. Here the scary band member, Mr. Lordi, terrorizes cheerleaders. Hardrock Hallelujah seems to be taking the Michael Jackson Thriller path, but with an Asian, because there are only about 2 neekeri (that's the derogatory term I learned in class at school. We were told we should frown at people who said it and use "tummaihoinen" instead) in all of Finland. Fun fact, there was a mini explosion of dual-raced people in Finland after they hosted the Olympics in '52, at least according to my Finnish teacher.

And here is Lordi in a song about loving a Monsterman. You know it's super scary because they're terrorizing a little girl who turns out to be a monster herself! That's new...


Apparently Lordi had a Renaissance after playing on Eurovision. Their performance must have been spectacular because they had the best scores ever until Alexander Rybak (no relation to Mayor R.T. Rybak of Minneapolis that I can discern) came along with his song Fairytale. So Lordi...as scary as they are supposed to be in their movie...scares Europeans less than Alexander Rybak's eyebrows.

Jason Charles Miller with Felicia Day

As part of my interest in all things Felicia Day, I noticed this video she's in for Jason Charles Miller's, "You Get What You Pay For." A pretty good song and video, even without her crawling under the hood of a pickup.

Some late Christmas tunage

Nathan Fillion (of Serenity) shared this link for North Point's iBand:


Which in turn led me to this post at Fandomania about 12 Songs for a Geeky Christmas. I like Chris Hardwick's hair band tune "All I Want for Christmas (is to Rock) by Sniper" (very Jack Black), the microphone with Christmas Balls and the Axel Rose shimmy are nice touches.

And I think Kyle's nephew will appreciate the Doctor Who cast singing a Christmas Carol: