For fans of: Iron and Wine, Parker Millsap & Michael Rose, Bob Dylan, Horse Feathers, The Civil Wars

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From racial oppression to Dust Bowl struggles to Bleecker Street. American Folk has been sung from the mouths of cultural commentaries, usually telling stories of sorrow and an unquenchable longing for a better life. Folk made a huge revival in the 60’s thanks to artists like Simon and Garfunkel and Joan Baez. Now English Folk seems to be firing on all cylinders because of over night successes of bands like Mumford & Sons.

So what’s next for Folk? How do we get a true to form Folk while still having something different to offer? Answer: Shakey Graves.

Shakey Graves’ album Roll the Bones is a diamond in the rough in terms of American Folk in the 2000s. Don’t be fooled, it’s real Folk- banjos, harmonicas, hand claps, and acoustic guitars that have more miles on them than your 15-year-old Wrangler. The album is, perhaps regretfully, recorded in Lo-fi. Authentic? Absolutely; but I admit, being a product of the 2000s, I crave that perfectly mastered sound. Most songs off the album can best be classified as Alternative Country, having a modern twist either lyrically or stylistically.

Out of the ten-track album shine a few brighter than others. Unlucky Skin opens the album with a pastoral banjo pattern intro that quickly picks up its pace then followed by the harmonica’s entrance. Unlucky Skin is an example of catchy music, twisted lyrics. Graves puts his best foot forward with this track creating a good foundation for the album. Not the most creative song on the bill, but one of the most traditional of the album.

Roll the Bones is where the album starts to become more interesting. The musical style is very much backwoods country but uneasy guitar bends and nasal vocals will make you feel you’ve traveled too far away from the comfort of grandma’s cabin. The song itself is fairly bleak: “yeah so struggle all you like/ yeah put up the good fight/ they say someday everybody dies alone.” Strong lyrics are essential for good Folk music. Graves proves his can be cleverly grim without being too morose.

City in a Bottle is a welcomed pit stop of the album. Here we hear Shakey really let his lungs stretch out. His boisterous singing is complemented by New Orleans style horns. The song feels as if you’re in a Deep South brothel. Graves professes: “yeah fix your boots or take me home says quick Monique the freak/ I need an easy dollar are you trick or are you treat/ well if she was six teeth younger and if I had half a mind/ I’d carry her away from that wicked thing outside.”

The rest of the album isn’t without an almost unrecognizable Springteen cover, I’m on Fire. There is also a lazy node to Moonshine in Georgia Moon. No self-respecting Texan would have it any other way.

Track list:

1. Unlucky Skin- 3:18
2. Built to Roam- 3:11
3. Roll the Bones- 4:04
4. I’m On Fire- 2:25
5. Georgia Moon- 2:43
6. Business Lunch- 5:06
7. City in a Bottle (live at 2023)- 3:50
8. Proper Fence- 3:19
9. The Seal Hunter- 2:14
10. To Cure What Ails…- 4:00

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Do you still have a Corey Haim poster on your bedroom wall? Have you completed the Rubik’s Cube? Just can’t part with those leg warmers? Feeling cinematically lost without any hope of a new John Hughes film? Calm down, Principles of Geometry’s Meanstream will help you get through your 80’s withdrawal.

Meanstream is the fourth full-length album from French duo Jeremy Duval and Guillaume Grosso. True to Electronic Music form, the duo ambiguously refers to themselves as J & G. The two met in a recording studio while both working as sound engineers. Since then they have been creating heavy synthesized sounds and captivating grooves.

Meanstream particularly has an impossible to ignore 80’s motif. Some sounds feel like they are directly yanked out of an 80’s film soundtrack. Principles of Geometry’s greatest quality is their ability to create a strong retro style, while crafting their music with a modern technique. This wily fusion makes listeners feel transported without over saturation of antiquated tones or crappy drum machines. Some sounds on Meanstream have a warped or grainy tone to them as if they were created from old synthesizers, but therein lies the genius in them. In an age where we’re constantly trying to craft a better and better quality of sound, Meanstream purposely takes another road. Meanstream will drag you out just far enough to know you’re in some kind of time warp, but will eventually ground you with the contemporary.

Meanstream is crafted almost cinematically. The opening track is a prologue, beginning with ambient sounds and distant electronic drums. The track is accompanied by a woman’s voice describing an opening scene in a film….very Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Nonetheless, the album begins to set a tone for the listener. Yes, the cheese factor is there, but Meanstream doesn’t take itself too seriously. One notable track on the album is Streamsters. The track is constructed as a legitimate song, not just a moving electronic soundscape. There is falsetto singing and an almost tropical vibe. Pretty much Don Johnson in a full white suit.

If you’re looking for something a bit more ambient and emotional, Roanoke is the track for you. This track in particular sounds most like it’s the backing track for an angsty teen 80’s movie, but still, very cool. The track Polysex is closer to EDM as we know it today, but it does mess with snippets of sampled sounds that make predicting the next move impossible. There are many themes to this track. The slow groove and layered vocals create a synthesized R&B feel. Another shining moment of the album is Runner. What makes this track special is how it’s composed. It has a slow tempo with vintage sounds, but the meter of the song erratically changes throughout. It appears as though the song suddenly speeds up without warning, yet the tempo stays the same for the entirety of the song. This entire album is very 80’s, but Runner is as 80’s as it gets. Naturally, the album closes with an epilogue, letting you know that this artistically crafted sound experience has concluded.

I recommend Meanstream for the EDM lover who wants something a little different. When a constant, immovable bass beat and the ever-predictable “drop” just doesn’t do it for you anymore, take a listen to Principles of Geometry.

Track List:

1. Prologue 1:53
2. Lonnie 5:07
3. Streamsters 3:47
4. Dogod 4:18
5. Videostore 3:45
6. Roanoke 4:16
7. Suntunnel 4:43
8. Polysex 4:42
9. Runner 6:15
10. Epilogue 3:59

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For fans of: MGMT, Arcade Fire, Foxygen, The Velvet Underground

Let’s take a trip to Laurel Canyon sometime in the late 1960’s. There is yet a vessel to take us there, but at least our ears can make the journey. Triptides’ new EP, Colors is a serious call back to the sprawling sounds of the flower generation. Psychedelic, warm waves of sound encapsulate the entire feel of the album. The album was recorded in Lo-fi, making the nostalgia truly genuine. The band, Glenn Brigman- guitar, Josh Menashe- guitar, Dylan Sizemore- bass, and Josh Morrow- drums, describe their genre as Psychedelic Dreamrock. The band has a handful of previous singles with two full albums, Sun Pavilion (2012) and Predictions (2013).

The flow of the EP works very well. The opening track, Colors, makes you feel as if you’re cursing down California’s Pacific Coast Highway with the top down heading to catch some killer waves. That’s pretty impressive for four kids from Bloomington, Indiana. The first track sets the stage for the rest of the EP. You’re going to know right away if you dig Triptides’ style or not. There is nothing ambiguous about Triptides’ music, no grand gestures. They are all about steady, old fashioned, rock and roll with a touch of the experimental. Besides the opening track, another highlight of the album is Throne of Stars. The bass line is reminiscent of The Monkees in their heyday. The track gets a bit heavier near the middle with darker ambient sounds while the guitar travels into a minor key only momentarily. Then the song finds itself back into the opening feel, accompanied by the classic “ooo”s and “ahhh”s of the kaleidoscopic style. The EP ends with a slower, introspective track appropriately named Lullaby. This track is a great way to ease off that trip you just took with its mellow tone and almost hypnotizing vocal delivery. Most the album is recorded with distant sounding vocals and soft echoes from the guitar making the EP a bit of a time warp.

Staying true to their retro approach, the band has made limited addition cassettes for the album that includes a high quality download of the EP in the digital format of your choice. These cassettes are a fun novelty item a smart marketing tool for the band. Although, staying true to form, the band should probably be making an eight-track tape for this EP.

Track listing:
1. Colors 3:49
2. Destiny 4:24
3. Throne of Stars 3:55
4. Moonbeams 4:06
5. I Didn’t Know 4:04
6. Lullaby 4:20

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Woodstock, a town already saturated with musical history was about to host a man who can best be described as progressive rock’s luxuriant magician, Les Claypool. Claypool hasn’t lost any momentum since the early 90’s with the beginnings of Primus. He proves himself to be a real musician’s musician that truly seems to not be afraid of anything.

On the brutally frigid night on February 28th a ragtag group of fans piled into Woodstock’s Bearsville Theatre for a night of good ol’ fashioned country music. Well…not really. Fans came to see progressive rock performed in a way no group has ever quite done before. Due de Twang’s sound is a bit like blue grass meets old school country meets Django Reinhardt. The songs are countrified version of Claypool’s music from previous groups. The album, Four Foot Shack, is half comprised of covers of country songs such as Stompin’ Tom Connors The Bridge Came Tumblin’ Down and Jerry Horton’s The Battle of New Orleans. The rest of the album is a collection of songs from Primus and various other groups that Claypool has been a part of.

The night began by two attractive, mild mannered women dressed in 1950’s style dresses taking the stage with a guitar and ukulele. They sweetly began addressing the crowd to establish a polite rapport and in their southern accents introduced themselves as the Reformed Whores. The crowd loved their brutally honest comedy and obvious irony of two sweet southern gals swearing like sailors and playing songs like Drunk Dial, Birth Control, and Girls Poop Too. Thanks to the intimate venue, the girls were able to ask a young man in the front row about his sexual accomplishments.

After the Reformed Whores finished their raunchy set. A glowing faux fireplace was then fixed on stage between two amps and chairs. The crowd pushed up tighter together in preparation for the two gentleman that would perform next. The crowd, which varied in age, roared together when Claypool and guitarist Bryan Kehoe came on stage. Claypool sat down, reached to the table to the right of him and took a sip of what looked like a very stiff screwdriver. After pulling the drink away from his lips, he made a face that proved that it was. The duo began the set with Buzzards of Green Hill, a cover from yet another Claypool experience, Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade (Frog Brigade). The song has a traditional baseline walk, yet Claypool seems to effortlessly contribute his traditional flair to the reworked song.

Claypool is a true showman and loves to interact with fans close to the front of the stage. He also flippantly, and comedically, stops during songs for a funny quip then without loosing a beat jumps right back into his groove. They continued with the Stompin’ Tom Connors cover, The Bridge Came Tumblin’ Down followed by a crowd pleasing Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver.

One of Claypool’s in between song rants focused around how cold it was in Woodstock that night (12°F) and the effects that leaves on a man’s sperm count. This digression led into the Jerry Reed cover, Amos Moses. Next they played Booneville Stomp. Originally a song off of Claypool’s solo album, it fits nearly perfect into the style of Duo de Twang. Leaving one to ponder if the song should have been written in that style to begin with.

The concert progressed and Claypool began to tinker on his steel plated resonator bass and began to play something vaguely familiar, yet the crowd didn’t completely grasp it at first. He continued to play as he leaned into the mic and said in a subtle, almost serious voice, “This is the most famous thing I’ve ever wrote.” The piece of music began to transform into something much more obvious as the crowd began to kick themselves for not realizing sooner. It was a short little tease of the South Park theme.

They continued next with a surprisingly good Staying Alive originally made famous by the Bee Gees. Claypool has a great ability to almost mock a song but also show reverence for it at the same time. The Duo was joined by Reformed Whores for the performance of Pipeline (The Ventures). The song quickly became a battle of the sexes with a bit of a sing-off. Claypool requested only the girls sing a phrase of the song followed by the men. Word to the wise: while standing in the second row of a Les Claypool concert, always sing when told to do so. Myself and one other girl were called out for not taking part. We were booed. It was awful.

The band finished the concert with D’s Diner (Frog Brigade) and the Primus classic, Jerry Was a Race Car Driver. The encore consisted of American Life, Silly Putty, and the strangely wonderful version of Alice in Chains’ Man in the Box.

All in all, that blistering cold night in Woodstock was a great experience for Les Claypool fans. Most people in attendance that night grew up listing to Claypool, proving his fans very loyal. They would follow that tall, strange, top hat wearing man anywhere.

Set List:

1 Buzzards of Green Hill – Les Claypool’s Frog Brigade
2. The Bridge Came Tumblin’ Down- Stompin’ Tom Connors
3. Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver- Primus
4. Amos Moses- Jerry Reed
5. Booneville Stomp- Les Claypool
6. The Battle of New Orleans- Jerry Horton
7. Rumble of the Diesel- Les Claypool
8. South Park Theme- Les Claypool
9. Stayin’ Alive- Bee Gees
10. Pipeline (w/ Reformed Whores)- The Ventures
11. D’s Diner- Les Claypool’s Frog Brigade
12. Jerry Was a Race Car Driver- Primus

Encore:
13. American Life- Primus
14. Silly Putty- Primus
15. Man in the Box- Alice in Chains

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For fans of: Eddie Vedder, Gaslight Anthem, Parker Millsap

Bruce Springsteen’s latest studio album, High Hopes is both a battle cry for the future while recalling themes from the past. The album’s new material is anchored by older tracks, American Skin (41 Shots) and The Ghost of Tom Joad are reworked and refreshed, thanks to some help from Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello. Morello leaves quite a fingerprint on Springsteen’s 18^th studio venture, appearing on 8 of the album’s tracks. Morello filled in for Steven Van Zandt during some tour dates while Van Zandt was filming (Van Zandt moonlights as an actor). Springsteen was quickly inspired to work with Morello on some tracks. Their collaboration is what led to Morello’s hefty contribution to the album. Also appearing on High Hopes is E Street Band’s dearly missed Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici, due to outtakes from previous albums appearing on High Hopes. Stepping in as Clemon’s touring replacement, and credited saxophonist on High Hopes is Jake Clemons, Clarence’s nephew.

In addition to revisited songs from Springsteen’s repository, there are three covers: Tim Scott McConnell’s title track, High Hopes, The Saints’ Just Like Fire Would, and Suicide’s Dream Baby Dream. In reality, Springsteen’s new effort can be a bit confusing at times. There are brooding tracks like Down in the Hole and The Ghost of Tom Joad juxtaposed with High Hopes, Dream Baby Dream, Heaven’s Wall and This is Your Sword that have themes of persistent hope. It seems half the album drags you down while the other half reassures you to keep pushing forward. The album seems to lack a consistent statement. The obvious crutch with High Hopes is that the older, reworked songs from Springsteen career are what carry the album.

But let’s give the Boss some credit. Inconsistent album flow or not, both songs of desperation and songs of determination are what Bruce does best. There are some adversities with this album, but it’s clear Springsteen is trying to venture away from the rallying anthems of the 80’s. Creatively, Springsteen has shown that he has the courage to lose sight of the shore and that’s what any self-respecting artist who’s had a career as sustainable as Bruce’s should do. Just like any Springsteen work, most songs have strong, blue-collar narratives that are both vulnerable and honest. Springsteen has always been a master storyteller, and in that regard, High Hopes doesn’t disappoint.

Track Listing:

1. High Hopes- Tim Scott McConnell*
2. Harry’s Place- Springsteen*
3. American Skin (41 Shots)- Springsteen*
4. Just Like Fire Would- Chris Bailey (The Saints)*
5. Down in the Hole- Springsteen
6. Heaven’s Wall- Springsteen*
7. Frankie Fell in Love- Springsteen
8. This is Your Sword- Springsteen
9. Hunter of Invisible Game- Springsteen*
10. The Ghost of Tom Joad- Springsteen*
11. The Wall- Springsteen
12. Dream Baby Dream- Martin Rev / Alan Vega (Suicide)*

*with Morello

Released January 13, 2014

Duration: 56:26

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