Atlanta Music Guide

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Zac Brown Band's Thanksgiving Playlist

Local rising stars The Zac Brown Band have a "featured playlist" on Myspace Music.  The band put together their favorite songs for drinking cider and hanging with family and friends this Thanksgiving.  On the playlist, you will find some pretty classic tunes, from Crosby, Stills and Nash, James Taylor, and Jeff Buckley... Worth checking out for sure!

Music Man--Grumpy Old (music) Man

I go to see four or five different unsigned bands every single week. That doesn't make me cool, it's my job, it's what I do for a living; I go to shows. What makes me cool is that I show up on time for virtually every one of them. Now that I think about it maybe that's not cool, it's actually the polar opposite of cool. Doesn't matter, the fact is I don't want to miss any part of the show if at all possible. If I'm going to make the effort to see a band, chances are I REALLY want to see them which means I want to be there from the beginning. What if I were to miss the song that got my attention in the first place? What if the singer comes out and does a mind-blowing rendition of Radiohead's "No Surprises"? What then? I'd be a little ticked, that's what.
But what really gets under my skin is when a band says they're going on at say, 9:00, but they don't actually go on until say 10:00. It's ok if it's not really the band's fault. Maybe they're playing the StarBar which routinely runs an inexcusable minimum of an hour and a half behind (I'll save my thoughts on that for another time). But normally the band knows perfectly well that they are not in fact going on at "9", they're just saying that to make sure everyone gets there on time. I know, I was in bands for a long time and I did the same thing. The problem is that when you're out and about trying to catch as many shows as possible, you're sometimes forced to leave another show a tad early just to be sure you make the other one on time. And when that happens nothing is more infuriating then finding out that the band you went to see hasn't even sound checked yet.
It seems like that has been happening more and more, and I'm kind of over it. Bands: The smart, and dare I say "cool" thing to do would be to tell everyone the actual time you are going to hit the stage. If they miss the first half because they were late then that's their problem. Your show should be good enough that people want to get there early for it. Or it should be such an amazing performance that for the rest of the night the person who is late hears about from those who were smart enough to get there on time. Make people want to be at your shows, and don't earn a rep for lying about set times. I know this makes me sound old and crotchety, and perhaps I am, but I've wasted more time watching bands set up their gear during what they told me was their set time than I care to recall. Word to the wise, be honest about when you're going on stage, especially when you're still trying to earn fans.

Current Listening:  Glasvegas, School of Seven Bells

Its Tuesday. You know what that means.

Tuesdays = New Music!

This week's new releases range from local rock to cocky rap... to Scott Weiland acting like Gwen Stefani.  Here are the noteable releases, that you might want to check out.

Kanye West- 808's and Heartbreak: A bit more singing than rapping as seen in singles "Love Lockdown" and "Heartless". Many are calling this "a bold new sound" and "a bit darker than past albums."

Scott Weiland- Happy in Galoshes: Long in the works solo album for STP/Velvet Revolver front man. His last solo recording was released in 1998. Weiland is backed by the members of No Doubt on this one.

Death Cab For Cutie- Something About Airplanes (Deluxe Edition): Yes, this album came out in 1998, but not like this. Celebrating the 10 year anniversary, the band is re releasing the album, in Deluxe Edition form. Includes the band's first Seattle live show on a separate disc.

Shawn Mullins- Live at The Variety Playhouse: Atlanta is home for Shawn Mullins, and The Variety Playhouse is one of his fav spots to play.. So why not make that the setting for his first live release.  A "greatest hits" compliation of sorts, featuring all of his best hits, and some hidden gems for the die hard fans.

Check back every Tuesday for updates on what albums have hit stores and what we think might be worth checking out!

Ryan Adams Returning to Atlanta... Hopefully WITH His Voice

On October 17th, Ryan Adams' and the The Cardinals, were supposed to play a full concert at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park.  Instead, Adams played for about an hour, complaining that he was losing his voice and did not like the way he was sounding.  Then he abruptly left the stage and never returned.  Fans were irritated, venue staff were perplexed at what had just happened, and no one seemed to have very many answers.  Would there be a rescheduled date? Was that it for the show? Is this a joke?

Other than a blog from Cardinals band members apologizing and explaining that the entire band had been feeling a bit under the weather, fans really had nothing to go on... But now there is hope.

Adams is set to return with The Cardinals at The Fox on March 20th. and get this... It will be FREE for the fans who attended the October 17th.

To get into the Fox for free you will need to exchange your tickets in person at the Verizon Box office or mail them in (The Fox: 660 Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30308, or Verizon: 2200 Encore Parkway, Alpharetta, GA 30009).  You can also call 404-733-5012 with any questions.

No Doubt in '09!

No Doubt has posted on their official website that the band will, in fact, be packing up the babies and going on tour in 2009.  In lieu of waiting on a new album to be ready, the band is going to take it on the road. How exciting!

The news was posted on their website as a comical iphone chat conversation between the members of the band (clever, clever!) as well as a new photo of the band and updated website. They have decided to take the writing and recording process on the road, gaining inspiration from playing their old tunes and seeing the fans again. 

No Doubt has been staying busy since its hiatus started in 2004.  Gwen Stefani has welcomed 2 babies, 2 solo albums, a clothing line and countless other projects to the world.  Tony Kanal has been staying busy producing, most recently producing 2 tracks on Pink's new album.  The band will have several songs featured in the newest installment of the Rock Band video game series. And last but not least,all of No Doubt, minus Gwen, is comprising the backing band for Scott Weiland's album Happy in Galoshes, which is actually being released tomorrow. 

The band also started work on recording and writing a new No Doubt album earlier this year, but put that on hold for a bit during Gwen's second pregnancy.  So they might already have some new material to take on the road.  No dates or cities have been released, but hopefully those will soon be posted. Keep your fingers crossed for an Atlanta date! or two. (ok, so maybe that is being greedy...)

8 outlets for Ticket Alternative!

Eight Ticket Outlets for TA

Ticket Alternative now has 8 convenient ticket outlets for you to purchase tickets in person. Ella Guru  - Elizabeth St in Little 5 Points/Inman Park CD Warehouse - Barret Parkway in Kennesaw CD Warehouse - Buford Drive at the Mall of Georgia CD Warehouse - Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth CD Warehouse - Duluth Hwy in Lawrenceville CD Warehouse - Alpharetta Hwy in Roswell Fantasyland Records - Peachtree Road in Buckhead Decatur CD  - Ponce De Leon Ave right in the heart of Decatur The service charge in store is only $1.50 per ticket which in most cases is cheaper than buying online! So, support your local music stores this holiday season and pick up something from them while you're purchasing tickets.

CD Review: George Duke -- Dukey Treats

George Duke
Dukey Treats
BPM/Heads Up International

4 stars

by Al Kaufman

George Duke is to be excused if he chooses to revisit the days of yesteryear, for he was a major player back in the day of old school funk, and if anyone can make it fresh again, he is the man.

Duke is a titan in the jazz and funk world, harking back to the '60s when he played with everyone from Al Jarreau to Sonny Rollins, and from Nancy Wilson to Frank Zappa. He later went on to produce albums of artists as diverse as Barry Manilow, Jeffrey Osborne, and Anita Baker. He even spent some time as musical director of Saturday Night Live, all the while releasing his own monumental jazz and R&B albums (over 30 in his 40 year career).

Frustrated with restraints put on him and other artists by major labels, Duke started his own label, BPM (Big Piano Music) in 2000. It has given him the ower to do what he wants, and right now he wants to relive the days when funk mattered; when it shook the system as much as it made people shake their collective booties.

While Dukey Treats obviously recalls the golden age of funk and soul, it remains fresh and relevant. Songs such as "Everyday Hero" have the strength and upbeat atitude of Sly and the Family Stone, while the intergalactic cosmic funk of "A Fonk Tail" seems pulled straight out of George Clinton's funkadelic brain. "Listen Baby and "Right on Time" reach back to the smooth soul of the '70s, complete with melodic background vocalists.

The soul is just as buttery on his topical songs, such as "Sudan (It's a Crying Shame)" in which Duke is more matter of fact rather than pedantic. On "Somebody Laid It on Us," he name checks another soulful sex symbol who was not afraid to get political when he sings, "Marvin told us long ago/Asked us what the hell is going on?/Said war is not the answer/Only love can conquer hate and wrong."

But Dukey ultimately leaves us with a positive message. Intentionally sounding like Earth, Wind & Fire's classic "September," "Are You Ready" sends the message of global peace, respect, and tolerance, all while keeping your hips shaking.

This has it all; songs for love and songs for laughs, and songs for your head as well as your feet. Forty years later, Dukey can still bring the funk.

George Duke plays Variety Playhouse on Monday, November 24th. 8 pm $32.50/$35 door.

CD Review: The Gay Blades -- Ghosts

The Gay Blades
Ghosts
4 Never Records/Triple Crown

2 stars

by Al Kaufman

Everyone knows people who are smart, but not nearly as smart as they think they are. These people also tend to not be nearly as funny as they think they are. But they sure as hell think they are smarter and funnier than you. Meet Clark Westfield and Puppy Mills, the duo that make up Gay Blades.

Westfield and Mills have given themselves the nicknames "The Aristocrat of Crime" and "The Snitch," respectively. They call their music "trash pop," and have song titles like "Bob Dylan's 115th Nightmare" and "Why Can't I Grow a Beard?". All in all, it sounds promising, if they were clever enough to back up all their bravado. But, as much as they will deny it, they don't.

There is nothing remotely trashy about their music. What The Gay Blades offer is straight ahead, guitar-based emo rock. It's not bad, but nothing startling either. Potentially amusing songs, such as "We Wear Mittens" and "Robots Can Fuck Your Shit Up" end up being poor similies for relationships gone bad. They sing mostly of ex-girlfriends who all seem to be remarkably self-centered. Project much?

There are a few good lines in here. From "Hey She Say" comes this charming non sequiter: "Oh she moves in colors and I know that Doppler has something to do with it/A red shift happens and now I can't get her alone/It's how I get off."

The jazzy "Prologue for the Pure of Heart" offers a nice change of pace, and Westfield's whines sound a bit more sincere when he croons, "It's too fucking early for you to be in songs I write."

Ghosts ends with dance remixes, or, as they like to say "en-dance-d" (get it?) bonus remixes of two earlier tracks. Their remix of "O Shot" (originally a straight ahead rocker) sounds like it was done by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, while "Compliments Can Kill" just adds a techo backbeat. Either way, the joke is fun for a moment, then wears thin. However, it is easy to imagine Westfield and Mills laughing just as hysterically the 50th time they heard each take as they did the first time, all the while congratulating themselves on their cleverness.

The Gay Blades play an all-ages show with A Heart to Shatter, Confiid, Young Coyotes, and Chanticleer Fox at Swayze's Venue in Marietta on Friday, November 21, 7 pm. $10

The Conflicting Demons of Ryan Adams

Ryan Adams & The Cardinals
Cardinology
Lost Highway Records

**

By Kevin C. Madigan

When he's good, he's great, and when he's bad, he's atrocious. The self-obsessed and over-prolific David Ryan Adams has already delivered 11 albums this decade, and there's a box set on the way, and even a book, Infinity Blues. The newly released Cardinology could be viewed as a microcosm of his career - woefully uneven, as a whole, but people seem to be interested in him, for better or worse, regardless of what he does. Perhaps he could be a little more discerning in his choices rather than churning out new product so often. In a recent blog, Adams referred to an “always awkward public who nameless and faceless will trash me no matter what my efforts.”

There are some distinctly trite lyrics here, particularly in the song “Magick:” "So turn the radio up loud and get down...let your body move/Let your body sway/Listen to the music play/It's magick, it's magick." Adams is capable of much better work than that. (What's with the silly spelling anyway? Leave that vacuous nonsense to Prince and his ilk).

On the other hand, “Sink Ships” is more like what we have come to expect from him (“A gray ghost prowls/In the back of my mind/While the sun is out”) as is the final track “Stop” in which he sings: "There is a darkness/And there is a light/And there is a choice for a balance to be made/Every night a weakness must be found.” It would behoove Mr. Adams to follow his own advice.