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The Festival Review: Outside Lands 2010

Posted on August 31st, 2010 (11:07 pm) by Bo Smothers

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Still just an infant in the world of multi-day music festivals, Outside Lands just celebrated its third birthday in Golden Gate Park with over 60,000 concert-goers a day as guests. With the likes of Kings of Leon, Furthur, Phoenix, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes, Al Green, Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, The Strokes, My Morning Jacket, Cat Power, Empire Of The Sun and Wolfmother, among others, there to play the gig. The food, which catered to literally every craving, from Venezuelan maize carapas, to pork vermicelli bowls, all the way to gourmet pulled pork sandwiches. All much better than the usual pizza and ice-cream birthday fare, and the party favors consisting of free iTunes samplers, buzzing ears and great pictures, were a hit. It turned out to be a pretty good party.

Outside Lands 2010: Day Two

Posted on August 23rd, 2010 (9:17 pm) by Bo Smothers

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It’s the second day of Outside Lands, and by God, has the cavalry arrived. Whereas yesterday, the crowd for the first show I caught, Pretty Lights, didn’t even stretch to the control/camera tent, today, standing in the same spot, there wasn’t a break in the crowd across the entire Polo Field. No grass to be seen, just a sea of trendily dressed young men and women, with the occasional grungy punk kid thrown in for good measure; all the burnt-out hippies from yesterday gone after catching Furthur. It seems that as far as single day tickets go, Sunday took home the big money, which, considering the much improved line-up was no surprise.

Outside Lands 2010: Day One

Posted on August 19th, 2010 (2:15 pm) by Bo Smothers

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One of the greatest feelings in the world is entering a music festival in full swing. Standing from the vantage point afforded by the entrance as hipsters, city people and hippies stumble, run and meander past you, it’s hard to contain your excitement as the stages, art and various booths nearly overwhelm you with possibility. The jam-packed schedule promises a day full of music and companionship, as the aroma of various smokables wafts over from the crowd and promises also a parade of beatific fucked-up concert-goers, who, depending on the depth of their inebriation, are often as entertaining as the bands themselves.

The End and the Future of Recorded Music: Clashes with the Law

Posted on August 13th, 2010 (4:31 pm) by Joseph Bogen

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In last week’s column, I took a look at the ways online music file sharing has advanced since the days of Napster. After taking a quick look at all of the available resources out there, it became clear to me that the currently available free music resources eclipse the paying options. Even when you take money out of the equation. This is especially true for audiophiles like me who currently have no option for purchasing lossless downloads of their favorite music.

Pavement: Island of Such Great Complexity

Posted on August 11th, 2010 (12:06 pm) by Bradley Hartsell

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I recently saw something while in Chicago that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. As Pavement opened another set of their reunion tour, this one being “Cut Your Hair,” I noticed a guy in front of me, flanking to my left. He had long blonde hair and a beard, and had to be in his early thirties; he looked like a perfect candidate for “Pavement Changed My Life in the 90s.” In the middle of the song, he looked back, staring off with a distinct look on his face. He was excited, but of course everybody was excited. This guy, though, had a look of disbelief and sheer joy unparalleled by anything I could muster up. It felt like he was somebody who bought Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain when it first came out. Like somebody who was there when the news broke that Pavement were done playing music.

An Interview with Josh Farrar & The NowhereNauts

Posted on August 9th, 2010 (4:45 pm) by Tim Gilman

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Rules to Rock By is a story of a girl torn from her hometown of Brooklyn (as well as her successful band) only to move to the relative wasteland of Providence, Rhode Island and be forced to start a new band. Despite its tag as a Young Adult book, Rules to Rock By caters to older audiences as well. Younger readers will be able to commiserate with Annabelle and her experiences: Having to move against her will, feeling abandoned by her parents, and her experiences with bullying, among others. Older readers will find much to love about Rules to Rock By thanks to its numerous references to semi-obscure bands and other pop culture touchstones.

An Interview with Broken Social Scene

Posted on August 4th, 2010 (1:46 pm) by Korvas Black

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We sat down with Andrew Whiteman, lead guitarist and core member of Broken Social Scene and founder/frontman of Apostle of Hustle, a few hours before BSS took the stage on the first night of the 2010 Pitchfork Music Festival. We talked about his musical origins and influences, how his experience of making music has changed over the years and where he sees it going in the future, and the supreme importance of poetry. Read on for the full interview.

Track One Side One: Ay Distress

Posted on August 2nd, 2010 (4:49 pm) by John-Ross Boyce

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Let's lay down a hypothetical: You're a raging, unrepentant spouse, about to spend the upcoming day/week/month/season of Major League Baseball in a whiskey-fueled haze. You need the perfect album, something that truly belies the feeling of being blackout wasted: the way everything sounds like your head is underwater; the muddy staccato of your steps, a stomp slathered in molasses; a feeling of spontaneity wherein you travel from the penultimate crest of total elation down, down, down to the lowest point in the trough of despair; and of course, the unshakable sense that your quotidian living is as a CD on repeat 99 times – less than an hour passed and already you feel like you're again boarding the front car on this depraved ride. Guzzle, black out, repeat. Out of the myriad albums available, there is one you should pick as the Virgil to your stumbling, belching Dante - No Silver/No Gold, by The Baptist Generals.

The Festival Review: Pitchfork 2010

Posted on July 31st, 2010 (4:27 pm) by Korvas Black

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Love ‘em or love to hate ‘em, nobody can deny that Pitchfork is a major force in indie music. July 16th, 17th, and 18th in Union Park here in my beloved adopted hometown of Chicago saw the publication bring together some of the best known (and unknown) indie acts around for the fifth annual Pitchfork Music Festival. Modest Mouse, LCD Soundsystem, and the recently reunited Pavement headlined a day each, bolstered by rising stars such as Sleigh Bells, Lightning Bolt, Neon Indian, and Wolf Parade. It wasn’t the biggest festival at 45 bands on three stages over three days, but it may have had the densest lineup of talent of any roster this year. If you like indie music and you like festivals, you’d be hard pressed to have found a better one this year.

The End and the Future of Recorded Music: Kids These Days

Posted on July 29th, 2010 (11:41 pm) by Joseph Bogen

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I am missing one major qualification for my column. For seven years, I downloaded no music. When I resumed, it was only to download legally recorded and shared concert recordings.

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