making senses of it all

17.8.08

Concert Review: Bon Iver

Bon Iver
Exit/In
8.11.08

Everything about Bon Iver's recent Nashville show - from the showcasing of the new song "Blood Bank" to the crowd participation on "The Wolves (Act I and II)" to the encore acoustic version of Sarah Siskind's "Lovin's For Fools" with Sarah Siskind helping out - felt fresh and special, unique and momentary.

In constrast to his often dark and broody music, Justin Vernon seemed the image of youthful exhuberance and proved jovial and amusing yet candid and sincere. I felt like my friends and I had caught the band in the midst of what must be a magical time in their lives. Fresh off opening dates for Wilco and in the middle of a headlining club tour that will soon venture overseas, these guys are having the time of their young lives, and what's really amazing is the fact that their joy has overflowed into the evening's energy and in that brief moment their joy was ours.

Who would have thought that such a remarkable and unique, but fragile and momentary album could be coupled with a similarly original performance?

From the overflow:

Backstage Sessions in Nasville (March '08) - Flume mp3
Backstage Sessions in Nasville (March '08) - Creature Fear mp3
(Thanks to the Backstage Sessions at IT'S HARD TO FIND A FRIEND)

The Siskind Cover - "Lovin's For Fools":

New Wilco Alert!

I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS - Heather Browne's fantastic and prolific music blog, has just posted 2 live tracks of NEW Wilco tunes!

The tracks - One Wing and Sunny Feeling - exhibit the now characteristic and magnificent blend of maturely alt-pop sensibilities in Tweedy's songwriting and the sparkling highlights of Nels Cline's tone-tasticly jazzy guitar fills and Mikael Jorgensen's tastefully meandering piano. In other words, artistic arrival! They're having so much fun now, and the music is really thriving and developing to the benifit of all their fans. Hopefully, a follow-up to 2007's Sky Blue Sky isn't too far away.

Visit WilcoWorld.net
Wilco's Myspace
Stream a recent show or three from the Roadcase.

(Thanks Heather!)

St. Louis University's MoCRA celebrates 15th Anniversary!

The Museum of Contemporary Religious Art
St. Louis

To celebrate its 15th anniversary, the MoCRA has scheduled two upcoming exhibitions:

Fall 2008
Pursuit of the Spirit
Sept. 21 - Dec. 14, 2008
"Pursuit of the Spirit will set works by over 40 artists in dialogue with each other, exploring broad themes as the Sublime, Mother and Child, Sacred Spaces, and Image and Text."

and

Spring 2009
Good Friday
"Good Friday will present the suffering and death of Jesus as the springboard used by 24 artists to present their own personal reflections on the meaning of suffering, death, compassion, and unconditional love."

the MoCRA
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11.8.08

Concert Review: Conor Oberst

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band
Mercy Lounge, Nashville, TN
8.8.2008

I must preface this review by saying that I was not a particularly ardent Bright Eyes, or Conor Oberst fan. After this show, however, I most certainly am.

I'd caught bits and pieces here and there and really enjoyed his collaborations with M Ward and Jim James (I AM FUEL, YOU ARE FRIENDS' Monsters of Folk) and 2007's Cassadaga, but I really couldn't call myself a fan... well, not until this weekend's show in Nashville.

Admitting my woeful lack of experience with all things Conor Oberst, I found the fresh batch of songs from his new self-titled album so much more carefully crafted and accessible than anything I had heard from him before. While oft or over-stated, his status as this generation's "Bob Dylan" seems more and more plausible in light of this new material. Though a less than appropriate tag, his credentials as a poet in the order of St. Bob are quite cemented now.

Visit ConorOberst.com.
...and Oberst's myspace.
Stream the album here.
Buy the album at Merge.

Another promising discovery proved to be the songwriting and accompaniment skills of Nik Freitas - the lead guitar player for the Mystic Valley Band, Oberst's support. Apparently, Freitas is a good friend of Oberst's and also some of the talent featured on Team Love Records (also featuring Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins, the Felice Brothers, etc.). I enjoyed his live contributions and plan to get his solo work... Sun Down (mp3s available for download).

Visit NikFreitas.com
...and Freitas' myspace

30.7.08

Damien Hirst update...

BEAUTIFUL INSIDE MY HEAD FOREVER
Sept. 2008
Sotheby's London

Just when you thought that Hirst couldn't up the stakes on a human skull covered in approximately 8,000 flawless diamonds, here he comes again... with The Golden Calf, the truly monumental centrepiece of a new collection of formaldehyde works. Hirst's magnificent show from last summer - "Beyond Belief" created all kinds of new expectations and opportunities for contemporary art, but his recent decision to take a collection of work straight to the auction house (completely by-passing the established gallery system that has handled the sale of artworks for more than century now) has many pundits up in arms. The jury is still out on whether or not Hirst can pull this off. He stands to make, by most accounts, upwards of £65 million. We'll find out if his evil plan actually works in just a couple monthes. Sotheby's is holding the auction and providing unprecedented arrangements for the collection. (Details here.)

Official Press Release

In the meantime, we can listen to the critics make their predictions and oogle over some of the most bizarre specimens of his practice to date.

View some fantastic images from the collection.
Read Maev Kennedy's "Golden calf, bull's heart, a new shark: Hirst's latest works may fetch £65m... Artist bypasses galleries and dealers to go straight to Sotheby's auction".
from THE GUARDIAN

Read Roger Bevan's "Damien Hirst is Rewriting the Rules of the Market, Part I".
Read Sarah Thornton's "Damien Hirst is Rewriting the Rules of the Market, Part II".
both from THE ART NEWSPAPER

Damien Hirst's OTHER CRITERIA

23.7.08

Bon Iver on Daytrotter, while supplies last...

Bon Iver - Daytrotter Sessions

Hurry over to Daytrotter - one of my favorite online spaces for great indie music - to download (while supplies last) or stream a great four song acoustic set from Bon Iver!

Bon Iver has to be my favorite discovery of the last several years. No kidding; Justin Vernon and company create an amazing and eclectic blend of somber acoustics and stirring neo-soul evocations.

As explained there, the set for Daytrotter demonstrates how much the somber tunes on For Emma, Forever Ago have really evolved and taken shape over their recent time on the road as a touring band. Don't miss it.

Check out 'Skinny Love' from Jools Holland:

Visit the myspace.
Buy it!

16.7.08

Lovely Links!

Would you like to know where you can get great indie music for free and help artists at the same time?

Go immediately to NoiseTrade and make your selections!

They have a host of great artists on offer including...