With the 59-track Day of The Dead album due out on May 20th, the band at the center of it all has plans to share their music with the world. The National, who started this tribute album concept years ago and watched it burgeon into a massive Grateful celebration, will hit The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and perform some Grateful Dead music for the occasion.The National are slated to perform some Day Of The Dead music next Monday, May 9th, so be sure to set your DVR! While the album doesn’t come out for two more weeks, a handful of tracks have already been released. You can watch “Terrapin Station,” the only track to surface with a video, below: The full incredible tracklisting for this tribute album is listed below for your enjoyment.Day of the Dead TracklistThunder (Vol. 1): 01. Touch of Grey – The War on Drugs 02. Sugaree – Phosphorescent, Jenny Lewis & Friends 03. Candyman – Jim James & Friends 04. Cassidy – Moses Sumney, Jenny Lewis & Friends 05. Black Muddy River – Bruce Hornsby and DeYarmond Edison 06. Loser – Ed Droste, Binki Shapiro & Friends 07. Peggy-O – The National 08. Box of Rain – Kurt Vile and the Violators (featuring J Mascis) 09. Rubin and Cherise – Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy & Friends 10. To Lay Me Down – Perfume Genius, Sharon Van Etten & Friends 11. New Speedway Boogie – Courtney Barnett 12. Friend of the Devil – Mumford & Sons 13. Uncle John’s Band – Lucius 14. Me and My Uncle – The Lone Bellow & Friends 15. Mountains of the Moon – Lee Ranaldo, Lisa Hannigan & Friends 16. Black Peter – Anohni and yMusic 17. Garcia Counterpoint – Bryce Dessner 18. Terrapin Station (Suite) – Daniel Rossen, Christopher Bear and The National (featuring Josh Kaufman, Conrad Doucette, So Percussion and Brooklyn Youth Chorus) 19. Attics of My Life – Angel Olsen 20. St. Stephen (live) – Wilco with Bob WeirLightning (Vol. 2): 01. Bonnie “Prince” Billy: “If I Had the World to Give” 02. Phosphorescent & Friends: “Standing on the Moon” 03. Charles Bradley and Menahan Street Band: “Cumberland Blues” 04. Tallest Man on Earth & Friends: “Ship of Fools” 05. Bonnie “Prince” Billy & Friends: “Bird Song” 06. The National: “Morning Dew” 07. Marijuana Deathsquads: “Truckin’” 08. Cass McCombs, Joe Russo & Friends: “Dark Star” 09. Nightfall of Diamonds: “Nightfall of Diamonds” 10. Tim Hecker: “Transitive Refraction Axis for John Oswald” 11. Lucinda Williams & Friends: “Goin’ Down the Road Feeling Bad” 12. Tunde Adebimpe, Lee Ranaldo & Friends: “Playing in the Band” 13. Local Natives: “Stella Blue” 14. Tal National: “Eyes of the World” 15. Bela Fleck: “Help on the Way” 16. Orchestra Baobab: “Franklin’s Tower” 17. Luluc With Xylouris White: “Till the Morning Comes” 18. The Walkmen: “Ripple” 19. Richard Reed Parry with Caroline Shaw and Little Scream: “Brokedown Palace” [ft. Garth Hudson]Sunshine (Vol. 3): 01. Real Estate: “Here Comes Sunshine” 02. Unknown Mortal Orchestra: “Shakedown Street” 03. Hiss Golden Messenger: “Brown Eyed Woman” 04. This Is the Kit: “Jack-a-Roe” 05. Daniel Rossen and Christopher Bear: “High Time” 06. The Lone Bellow & Friends: “Dire Wolf” 07. Winston Marshall, Kodiak Blue and Shura: “Althea” 08. Orchestra Baobab: “Clementine Jam” 09. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks: “China Cat Sunflower – I Know You Rider” 10. Bill Callahan: “Easy Wind” 11. Ira Kaplan & Friends: “Wharf Rat” 12. The Rileys (Terry and Gyan Riley): “Estimated Prophet” 13. Man Forever, So Percussion and Oneida: “Drums – Space” 14. Fucked Up: “Cream Puff War” 15. The Flaming Lips: “Dark Star” 16. s t a r g a z e: “What’s Become of the Baby” 17. Vijay Iyer: “King Solomon’s Marbles” 18. Mina Tindle & Friends: “Rosemary” 19. Sam Amidon & Friends: “And We Bid You Goodnight” 20. The National With Bob Weir: “I Know You Rider (live)”
Phil Lesh & Friends Announce New Year’s Eve Run In Hawaii
Phil Lesh & Friends have announced a two-date run through the tropical paradise of Hawaii leading into the 2017 New Year celebration! Join the Grateful Dead bassist in Kahalui on Thursday, December 29 at the Castle Theatre with very special friends (and family), including Grahame Lesh on guitar, Scott Law on guitar, Ross James on guitar and pedal steep, Alex Koford on percussion, and Jason Crosby on keyboard and violin. He’s got the same lineup joining him on Saturday, December 31, 2016 at the Hawaii Theatre in Honolulu.Reserved seating is available for the Kahalui show at $140, $120, and $95, with tickets going on sale on July 1st at 10AM HST right here. There is also reserved seating available for the Honolulu show at $145, $125, $100, $80 that go on sale July 1 at 9AM HST right here. Check out the full poster below!
Watch Bob Weir Join Donna Jean Godchaux, Steve Kimock & More For ‘Scarlet Begonias’
Last night, Donna Jean Godchaux brought together the Heart Of Gold Band to perform a tribute to Jerry Garcia on his birthday. As the show took place at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, CA, it was no surprise that Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir made an appearance with the band. He does partly own the venue after all!The Heart of Gold Band included Steve Kimock, Greg Anton, David MacKay, and Mookie Siegel, joining forces with Donna Jean Godchaux. Watch as Weir joins them for a lofty version of “Scarlet Begonias,” courtesy of Adrienna Monique on YouTube.Setlist: Heart of Gold Band at Sweetwater Music Hall, Mill Valley, CA – 8/1/16Lonesome And a Long Way From Home djDon’t Ask Me Why djDon’t Fight It djShowboat ms *Scarlet Begonias bw dj * +Ship of Fools dj +West L.A. Fadeaway bw * + >New Speedway Boogie dj bw * +Set 2 10:40pm – 12:05amSugaree djDarkness, Darkness djThe Harder They Come djCrazy Fingers dj >JamWatching The River Flow dj *Isn’t It a Pity ms (w/Hey Jude jam)Tore Up Over You dj * (w/Kimock on backing vocals)* w/Brian Godchaux on fiddle+ w/Bob Weir on guitar & vocals[Setlist via Deadheadland]
Tom Hamilton, Aron Magner & More To Play Bruce Springsteen Tribute Show
Tom Hamilton‘s American Babies has announced a special tribute to Bruce Springsteen on Friday, September 16th at The Ardmore Music Hall outside Philadelphia, PA. The show, billed as “Philly Is The Boss: A Night Celebrating The Music Of Bruce Springsteen” will feature Disco Biscuits keyboardist Aron Magner.Hamilton and his band are no strangers to playing the Springsteen. In June, they rocked Brooklyn Bowl as “Brooklyn Is The Boss.” You can listen to full audio from that show here. Visit the Ardmore’s website for tickets.
Listen To Bob Dylan’s Long-Awaited 30-Minute Nobel Lecture In Literature
In April, folk hero Bob Dylan accepted the 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature in April while in Sweden during a small ceremony restricted to a dozen or so people. His acceptance of the prize has been nontraditional to say the least, with the singer-songwriter skipping the celebration gala earlier in the year and taking months to even acknowledge his winning the prize in the first place. On top of that, the literary world was shaken when Dylan won the accolade, causing a rift between purveyors of more traditional writing and those with a more freeform understanding of what literature is. However, today, Dylan has finally delivered his Nobel lecture, which is a requirement for the musician to collect the 8 million kroner (approximately U.S. $900,000) in prize money.Read Bob Dylan’s Nobel Prize Acceptance SpeechDylan’s lecture was delivered in the form of a thirty-minute long recording, during which the songwriter-cum-poet outlines how classic literature has affected his own song writing as well as delving into some folk traditions and how he’s internalized them. Dylan starts off by talking about seeing Buddy Holly when he was a young man, and how this performance (and the subsequent gift of a record at the show) opened the floodgates for him as a musician. From there, he talks about the folk vernacular and how he’s always understood the rhetoric commonly found in these songs. However, he then notes that in his quest to write music that was uniquely his own, he frequently called on his grammar school reading of classics, noting that he took those books with him when he started composing lyrics.At the center of the video are three classic novels: Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front, and Homer’s The Odyssey. Over a background of quiet piano music, Dylan outlines the various themes found in each of these books, which he notes have worked their way into his into many of his own songs. For Moby Dick, there are a plethora of common themes and ideas calls out, frequently noting Melville’s tendency toward allegory, both Judeo-Christian or pagan, as well as the themes of good and evil and, on a surface level, how people react differently to the same experience. Dylan introduces All Quiet on the Western Front as a “horror story” and a “whirlpool of death and pain,” outlining the loss of innocence as well as life during wartime. He then darkly notes, “I never wanted to read another war novel again, and I never did.”Watch Patti Smith Perform Bob Dylan In His Place At Nobel Prize GalaFor the final book that Dylan speaks on, he talks about the ancient Greek epic, The Odyssey, outlining the mystical tale and the adventures of Odysseus. While the epic poem was written is believed to be written in the 8th century BC, Dylan speaks on the ability of modern audiences to relate to the text: “In a lot of ways these things have happened to you. You too have had drugs dropped into your wine, you too have shared a bed with the wrong woman, you too have been spellbound by magical voices — sweet voices, with strange melodies. You too have come so far, and have been so far blown back. And you’ve had close calls as well, you’ve angered people you should not have. You too have rambled this country all around, and you’ve also felt that ill wind — the wind that blows you no good.”After outlining these literary connections that have frequently worked their way into Dylan’s songs, the Nobel Prize winner’s final note is almost at odds with the former twenty-something minutes of his speech. Deconstructing his own work and these other literary text, he speaks on the unimportance of the messages in texts or songs, saying, “If a song moves you, that’s all that’s important. I don’t have to know what a song means. I’ve written all kinds of things into my songs, and I’m not going to worry about it — what it all means.” As the quiet piano in the background tapers off, after noting that “Lyrics are meant to be heard,” Bob Dylan quotes Homer, “Sing in me old muse, and through me, tell the story,” as the final thought of his speech.You can listen to Bob Dylan’s Nobel Lecture in Literature below.
EXCLUSIVE: Oliver Wood Talks New Album, Storytelling, & The Wood Brothers’ Origins
The Wood Brothers have been making music together for the last twelve years. Their new album, One Drop of Truth is the most fun they have had in the studio, or rather multiple studios, in a long time. Oliver Wood, who is reluctant to call himself a storyteller, likes to think of their music as gospel music—the kind of music that is hopeful. No stranger to writing about darkness though, Wood finds hope in those dark places, and the songs they have written for the record are ambiguous enough to resonate universally. Live for Live Music spoke with Oliver Wood about metaphors, hopefulness, and growing up. Check out the interview below as well as the group’s touring plans for the next few months! L4LM: How did you and your brother get to really start playing together?Oliver Wood: Well, we got to playing together as teenagers. There was a small window of about two years where we were both proficient enough as musicians to play together. We had a four-track recorder. We would jam in the garage—kid kind of stuff but we were really into it. That was early on.I left the house first and went to the East Coast and eventually ended up in the South. I live in Nashville now, but I used to live in Atlanta; I moved there in my early twenties. My brother, when he left home, he moved to the Northeast—first to Boston then to New York. As late teenagers and young men, we completely separated, so when we really started playing together again as The Wood Brothers, or rather started thinking about creating The Wood Brothers, that was another fifteen years down the road.What happened was, I had a band in Atlanta the whole time called King Johnson. Chris had Medeski, Martin & Wood. We toured around as well and never had the success that Medeski, Martin & Wood had, but we worked hard. That’s where I learned how to do what I do now. It was after my brother and I became fully formed musicians that we started playing together.L4LM: What was it like when you and Chris played together for the first time professionally after having gone separate ways?OW: Medeski, Martin & Wood and King Johnson did a co-bill where we opened for Medeski, Martin & Wood. Keeping in mind that we hadn’t actually played music together in years, we had grown apart as brothers really. We were living in different parts of the country, we had different friends and different musical circles, so when we had this show together, it was a big reunion.Chris asked me to sit in, and I played a few songs with them. It just felt so natural to stand next to him and to play with him, and I just fit right in—it was so comfortable. It opened our eyes. Chris says, “It’s like looking in a mirror.” We had the same instincts. It wasn’t just about the music at this point, it was about growing up. We had grown apart as brothers, but we had also grown up and gotten rid of our baggage and competitiveness and all the other things brothers might have.Medeski, Martin & Wood with Oliver Wood – Lincoln Theatre – Raleigh, NC – 3/6/2007[Video: greg tincher]L4LM: And that show led to The Wood Brothers?Oliver Wood: Well, then we started making an effort. Whenever we could get together, we would play and start writing some things, and that just gradually led to The Wood Brothers as a fun side project. It evolved slowly and gradually but surely into a bigger enterprise where we started playing shows, made an album, and got a record deal. So we are on our 12th year of The Wood Brothers.L4LM: So, you established yourselves as individual musicians, each wrote a different story, and then the music brought you back together.OW: Yeah. It’s kind of neat. We went out, had our own experiences, and got our own life lessons and music lessons by just living out in the world and playing music. We formed these personalities that were also musical personalities. Anytime you combine musical personalities, you get new recipes for things, and that’s what we felt like we were doing.L4LM: You’ve said the new record One Drop of Truth was the most fun you ever have had making an album and that it is the most “Wood Brothers” album you have ever put out. What makes this album so authentically “Wood Brothers?”OW: Partly, just the older you get as a person, you mature and learn and grow and become more of yourself. I think that as a musical unit, we are just discovering more and more what we sound like and what feels good and authentic. You eventually just understand who you are and you get more comfortable with yourself. In a musical way, that also happens to a band, so I think just doing it for a while and working together, we have learned how to be us within the band and as a band.The reason the album was so fun to do was the way we did it. We produced it ourselves, and we spread out the process over a year. After we wrote a song, we recorded it not too long after we wrote it—as opposed to compiling all the songs and recording it over a two- or three-week time. We took our time and felt no pressure to make or record an album, so we went in there and focused on the song. We gave each song our attention for a couple days and then came back to it. That process felt much less stressful and much less of a compromise than recording it all in a few weeks. In this case, each song got its own attention and love.L4LM: For the song “Strange As It Seems”, was it purposefully ambiguous? The lyrics feel like they can pertain to any type of relationship.OW: Very intentional. I think that song was inspired by an idea: What if you could approach your romantic life in a dream? Like, you get all dressed up to go meet somebody, and you go to bed and encounter someone in a dream world. So then, the question is why do you want to do that? Is it someone who is dead? Is it someone who actually exists? Is it someone who you already know? It’s very ambiguous, but I saw it in very visual terms.I imagine it to be some weird cool movie abstract, where I imagine someone actually doing that—a fully clothed person getting in bed, which is an image from the song, and turning off the light. Instead of going out on the town, you are going into this dream world that you prepare yourself for. This is the first song that I have written that came with visuals, and we are conceiving of a video for it, which I am very excited about.L4LM: With the political climate and overall sense of hopelessness felt by many, do you think some of that energy went into some of the songs you put on this album?Oliver Wood: Yeah I think so, though not consciously—speaking for me, and, of course, I am not the only one who wrote music and words for this; we all collaborated quite a bit. I know that whatever you are going through in your life, whether it is personal or you see it unfold in the world, that stuff seeps in.We have a lot of metaphors on this album that have to do with water, whether it’s a flood or a hurricane or an overflowing river, teardrops, the One Drop Of Truth title. Some of the things about water make for great metaphors because it is such a life-giving thing, but it is also such a powerful thing that you can’t control. It can often make you feel a loss of control, especially if you are talking about a flood or a storm. We literally saw that this past year in the world with the crazy hurricane season we had. Figuratively, we have political hurricanes and storms and upheaval that have stressed a lot of people out too. The literal and the figurative tend to seep in there.L4LM: Do you guys consider yourself storytellers?OW: Storytellers, I never felt like storytellers like a John Prine or somebody that I think is a master like Randy Newman, I never thought of that. I guess I don’t know what other kind of music there is. I am really a fan of the ambiguous side of things, and I love mythology. I feel like mythology and religion and everyday stuff is all tied together in some intricate way. I consider it more like gospel music in a way that it’s hopeful. Even the songs that have darkness to them are hopeful.L4LM: When I think of The Woods Brothers music—and I used the word storytelling, but its the whole vibe—it feels like something you should gather for.OW: I like that. I like songs and I like how music in general connects. That is what music if for: to connect the disconnected parts of us, with each other and ourselves. I think that is what is happening subconsciously a lot. I want to write something somewhat universal that connects people. Even if it is a dark and scary thing, if everyone can relate to it in their own way, then we have connected.L4LM: You guys are heading west starting in Phoenix?OW: Yes. We are going to the West Coast, and then I think we’ll come back east eventually. I don’t think we have done much of the Midwest since last spring, so it looks like we have a few eastern dates and a lot of midwestern dates coming in the spring. The festivals will start up in the late spring too.With The Wood Brothers tour recently started, you can check out the band’s upcoming dates below!Upcoming Wood Brothers Tour DatesFeb 22 – Belly Up – Solana Beach, CAFeb 23 – The Fonda Theatre – Los Angeles, CAFeb 24 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CAFeb 25 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CAFeb 27 – Kate Buchanan Room – Arcata, CAFeb 28 – Southern Oregon University @ Music Recital Hall – Ashland, ORMar 01 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, ORMar 02 – Neptune – Seattle, WAMar 03 – Neptune – Seattle, WAMar 15 – Iron City – Birmingham, ALMar 16 – Robert Kirk Walker Theatre – Chattanooga, TNMar 17 – Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, TNApr 11 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MNApr 12 – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WIApr 13 – Vic Theatre – Chicago, ILApr 14 – Vic Theatre – Chicago, ILApr 15 – The Pageant – Saint Louis, MOApr 17 – Taft Ballroom – Cincinnati, OHApr 18 – The Ark – Ann Arbor, MIApr 19 – The Vogue – Indianapolis, INApr 20 – Bijou Theater – Knoxville, TNApr 21 – Songsmith Gathering – Brevard, NCApr 22 – Tuck Fest 2018 – Charlotte, NCMay 19 – Dominion RiverRock Festival – Richmond, VAMay 24 – Pop’s Farm – Axton, VAMay 25 – Red Rocks Amphitheater supporting Devil Makes Three – Morrison, COMay 26 – Rooster Walk 10 – Martinsville, VAMay 27 – DelFest 2018 – Cumberland, MDJun 21 – Telluride Bluegrass Festival – Telluride, COJun 23 – Funhouse Fest – Williamsburg, VAJun 29 – Wolf Trap – Vienna, VAJul 08 – High Sierra Music Festival – Quincy, CAJul 20 – Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival – Oak Hill, NYOct 13 – Hillberry Festival – Eureka Springs, AR
Dark Star Orchestra To Play With Jerry Garcia’s Wolf Guitar In Boston This Week
On Friday, Dark Star Orchestra had some special news for Boston fans with the announcement that lead guitarist and vocalist Jeff Mattson will be playing with Jerry Garcia’s iconic “Wolf” guitar during their upcoming show on Thursday at the Wilbur Theatre. Given that the band will have Wolf on hand, they intend to make use of their special gift for the evening. The group recently hinted to fans that they’ll be recreating a Grateful Dead show in Boston during which Jerry played the Wolf guitar.Dark Star Orchestra Taps Donna Jean Godchaux For Red Rocks DebutGarcia’s legendary Wolf guitar was auctioned off last June at the Brooklyn Bowl for a whopping $1.6M winning bid from Brian Halligan, the HubSpot CEO and co-author of Marketing Lessons From The Grateful Dead: What Every Business Can Learn From The Most Iconic Band in History. The guitar was auctioned off to benefit the Southern Poverty Law Center, with the previous owner matching the winning bid, making for a whopping $3.2M donation at the end of the night. The auction also served as the vehicle for an all-star performance billed as Joe Russo’s Friends With Benefits that saw Neal Casal, Scott Metzger, Tom Hamilton, and Cass McCombs all get the chance to play Wolf before it went to its new home.However, Wolf’s new owner, Brian Halligan, is clearly generous with his recently purchased prize guitar. In the time since, he’s lent out Wolf to a number of musicians, including to Joe Russo’s Almost Dead’s Tom Hamilton, who played it throughout a show in December. This tradition of generosity and keeping the music of the Grateful Dead alive and authentic will continue on Thursday when Jeff Mattson performs with the lauded instrument. You can snag tickets for Dark Star Orchestra’s upcoming Boston performance with Jerry Garcia’s Wolf guitar here.
The String Cheese Incident Destroys Rainy Red Rocks Finale, Busts Out “I’ll Fly Away” [Photos]
Last night, the String Cheese Incident played the final night of their three-night run at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheater, and the seventh and final show of a well-received and quintessential SCI Colorado run. Last weekend the Barefoot Boys played two-nights at Telluride’s The Ride Festival before moving to two-midweek shows at the newly renovated and re-opened Dillon Amphitheater, in Dillion, Colorado, and concluding with three creative masterpieces at Red Rocks. Sunday’s show was the epitome of String Cheese creativity, and even a downpour during a beautiful “Cedar Laurels” couldn’t stop the Red Rocks crowd from boogying the night away.String Cheese Incident kicked off the first set in old-school style with “The Hobo Song” into “Road Home”, an appropriate way to start in the state that the majority of the band members call home. Michael Kang seemed to be loose and on fire from the get-go, hammering away on mandolin as Bill Nershi cruised through quick bluegrass solos on acoustic guitar. Continuing in the bluegrass theme, bassist Keith Moseley stepped up to the mic, leading the sextet through a breezy take on “Doin’ My Time”. Moseley nailed the lead as Kang and Nershi continued to up the ante, tossing solos back and forth to each other, gradually building up to a smoking peak.A massive “Restless Wind” was up next, Kang hopping between mandolin and the fiddle as they worked through the ‘Round The Wheel tune. There’s no one in the game that switches it up between instruments as easily and smoothly as Michael Kang. The backbeat that Michael Travis and Jason Hann provide for their bandmates allows for the organic improv that Cheese has mastered over the years to flow effortlessly. String Cheese Incident’s roots run deep in Colorado, and last night’s (never miss a) Sunday show spectacle was a highlight of their entire seven-night run.“Restless Wind” led way to “Manga”, a recently debuted Jason Hann tune honoring the legendary Cameroonian musician, Andre Manga. The rain started to come down as Travis’ opening drum breakdown for “Cedar Laurels” rang out. Kyle Hollingsworth got things going, spinning through solos on the organ as Nershi switched over to electric guitar and dove headfirst into blissful jam-territory. The rain kept pouring down as String Cheese Incident brought set one to a close with “Eye Know Why”, Hollingsworth leading the way on vocals. Kang and Nershi wailed away on the song’s main theme in perfect synchronicity, picking up the pace in hopes that Mother Nature would ease her rainy wrath—and she did.With the bad weather in the rearview mirror, String Cheese Incident came back out for the second set, opening with “Vertigo”, another new “Sound Lab” tune debuted earlier this year. Mixing things up with old and new material seems to be working like a charm for the SCI boys, and Red Rocks seemed extremely receptive to their song selection throughout the weekend. Keith Moseley’s drippy opening bass line to “Round The Wheel” became louder, with Hollingsworth joining in, setting the mood for the remainder of the phenomenal Sunday show. Nershi’s opening line (“I’ve been waiting for the snow to fall”) got the crowd singing along, as some of the band members’ kids hula-hooped on the side of the stage. From there, Hollingsworth, Kang and Nershi, settled into a funky groove before appropriately dropping into “100 Year Flood”.“100 Year Flood” was an on-the-money call by the band, with Nershi and Moseley sharing vocal duties throughout the song, shining brightly. Former Elephant Revival member Bonnie Paine joined the band on “My One And Only”, off of 2017’s Believe. Hollingsworth and Paine’s vocal arrangement was beautiful, setting the mood for the remainder of the evening. As Paine exited the stage, the heavy opening riff for “Howard” washed over the crowd, before Hollingsworth tickled his way into the jumpy groove of the chorus. “Howard” went deep, giving Cheese a chance to end a memorable and remarkable weekend with intricate improvisation.A smooth segue from “Close Your Eyes” into “Valley Of The Jig” brought set two to a close, before String Cheese Incident welcomed back Paine along with Bill Nershi’s wife, Jillian Nershi, and members of Rising Appalachia, who took care of the shows opening duties earlier in the night, to the stage. The female-heavy guest entourage assisted on vocals for a massive bust out of the widely recorded gospel standard, “I’ll Fly Away”, last played by Cheese on 7/22/2007 at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA.For a full list of upcoming String Cheese Incident dates, head to the band’s website.Below, you can view a beautiful photo gallery of SCI’s roaring Sunday night show at Red Rocks via photographer John Verwey.Setlist: String Cheese Incident | Red Rocks Amphitheatre | Morrison, CO | 7/22/2018Set One: The Hobo Song, Road Home, Doin’ My Time, Restless Wind, Manga, Cedar Laurels> Eye Know WhySet Two: Vertigo, Round The Wheel> 100 Year Flood, My One And Only*, Howard, Close Your Eyes> Valley Of The JigEncore: I’ll Fly Away^*= w. Bonnie Paine (Elephant Revival)^= w/ Jillian Nershi, Bonnie Paine, Rising Appalachia membersString Cheese Incident | Red Rocks Amphitheatre | Morrison, CO | 7/22/2018 | Photos: John Verwey Load remaining images
Pearl Jam “Home Shows” Raise Over $11 Million To Fight Homelessness In Seattle
Last Wednesday, the iconic ’90s rock act Pearl Jam began their brief U.S. run of “Home” and “Away” shows, which kicked off with a pair of performances in their native Seattle, WA, marking the band’s first shows in their home city in five years. Following Wednesday night’s performance at Safeco Field, for their second and final performance at the arena on Friday night, the group continued the trend of inviting out special guests and offering standout covers in addition to selections from their more traditional live catalog.As promised, the band used the two “Home Shows” to raise money for the city’s homelessness. According to Seattle’s KOMO News, the band’s efforts raised over $11 million for the cause, with 90% of the proceeds going to King County organizations.As frontman Eddie Vedder shared via the Pearl Jam Facebook page on Friday following Wednesday night’s success,There’s a bit of magic that happened in a relatively short amount of time and that is that a coalition of volunteers and organizers, businesses and government. We all got together and got them together and they started having conversations and started elevating the discussion and the empathy became action and in a very short amount of time because they are incredibly good minded people and with your help supporting this endeavor we were able to raise eleven million dollars as a starting point to eradicate what is a complex issue. And it’s a complex issue.In the video below, Pearl Jam’s Stone Gossard and Mike McCready talk with youth advocate Azia Ruff about what success looks like to them for #TheHomeShows initiative. You can be a part of solving this crisis. It’s going to take all of us. Click here for more information.“This is what those ‘Home Shows’ can do,” explained Marty Hartman, director of Mary’s Place, to the KOMO News. “Literally, bring more people home, out of those cars, out of those tents, up off the sidewalk and give them a safe space to be and get them into their forever home.”Mary’s Place, one of forty organizations that will receive donations from Pearl Jam, is a non-profit that provides temporary housing to homeless women, children, and families. They officially opened the doors to their first private shelter on Wednesday, with 219 beds, an expansive kitchen, a medical facility, special quarters for those with special needs, and space dedicated to children and teens.“Up until now, we’ve been in buildings that are slated for demolition,” Hartman continued. “This is the first time we’ve ever bought anything. This is our first home purchase.”In addition to Pearl Jam’s efforts, over 80 Seattle restaurants joined the campaign and donated a portion of their Wednesday sales to Pearl Jam’s Home Away fund.“Businesses in Seattle want to do the right thing and I think this provides an opportunity to do so, to make a difference,” explained Sara Nelson, co-founder of Fremont Brewing.In May, the City Council will have their debate on whether or not to tax some of the city’s biggest businesses in order to provide more affordable housing.“A lot of businesses jumped on board because we do want to be part of the solution,” Nelson continued. “And I think that its great that this is coming in the wake of that big battle to show that we can come back together as a community.”[via KOMO News]
Phish Closes Out Fall Tour With A Stellar Saturday Night [Photos]
Load remaining images On Saturday night in Las Vegas, Phish landed a knock out in the fourth round of their instant classic Halloween run. Each night has been more inventive than the last and has set a new expectation for America’s favorite Vermont-based Scandinavian prog-rock aficionados.“Moma Dance” opened the final evening at the MGM Grand Garden Arena the same way it kicked off the tour in Albany’s Times Union Center just over two weeks ago. The Story of the Ghost track found Trey Anastasio coming in hot–playing with a carefree and kickass attitude. “Kill Devil’s Falls” was up next and found its way onto a setlist for only the third time in 2018. After one dance tune and one rocker, “Roggae” produced a tranquil, thought-provoking vibe to the room as Page McConnell layered his grand piano over Mike Gordon’s thick bass. After a standard “Water in the Sky,” Gordon, dressed as a member of Kasvot Växt, got his chance at lead vocals for “555.”A laser focused “Tube” was knocked out of the park for the third time this tour as McConnell shared Clavinet funk that Anastasio bounced right back at him by way of heavy pedal effects and delays. The band took the “Tube” jam to a breezy, blissful place usually not associated with the funk monster. A well-executed return to the stupendous ending of “Tube” gave room for another chill first-set ballad in “Farmhouse.” “Mike’s Song” finally found a seat in Vegas on night four and left further proof that the quartet was collaborating on another level.McConnell slammed down on the Hammond B-3 to accentuate Anastasio’s stone-skipping riffs moving into the biggest bust out of the night in “Lifeboy.” Now that the deflated Curveball ticket holders have received their money back, the band felt it was okay to sing about not getting refunds and used this calming and soulful tune as the fluff between a “Mike’s Groove” sandwich–which hasn’t happened since 8/13/96 at Deer Creek. In a generation of Phish where the first set is as noteworthy as the second, “Weekapaug Groove” was an excellent choice to close out Set 8 of the all-star 2018 Halloween run. Chris Kuroda used his light rig wizardry to shine a multitude of colors on an ecstatic, behind-the-stage crowd while Anastasio closed out the high energy fan-favorite with a “Call to Post” quote.After a first set peppered with some of Phish’s more poetic pieces, the band returned for the final set of the run with a no-nonsense, grittier approach during “Carini.” Moving the sound from dark to spacey, Anastasio layered a hollow, echoey effect over Gordon’s meaty bass as Page hopped back and forth between organ and clav. Fishman’s alter ego from Friday night returned in the form of Bob Weaver and added chilling “Death Don’t Hurt Very Long” lyrics to the 13-minute lumpy-headed tune. “46 Days” was played with added vigor and displayed a full-of-life band not quite ready to get off of the road.“Scents and Subtle Sounds” took the third spot and immediately nose-dived into interstellar Type II terrain. McConnell reminded the audience why his nickname is “Chairman of the Boards,” following a pedal-happy Anastasio as the core of the jam became light and bubbly. To close out the 15-minute “SASS,” the band shifted gears, creating an eerie tone that would kick off “Crosseyed and Painless.” Locked and loaded, Phish remained glued together during the heart of the Talking Heads cover jam and produce a filthy groove that got asses shaking. Whacking away at the cowbell, Fishman set up a cosmic connection with his bandmates as Kuroda casted sharp blue and white beams of light above the stage–creating a welcome party for an alien abduction.Now that the entire room felt like they were inside of a spaceship, “2001” kept the Saturday night sizzling, but didn’t achieve full lift-off outside of its usual flightpath. “Possum” produced more sweat dripping and air guitar playing from the crowd, but the true gem of the night was still to come. To bring Sin City’s ninth set to a close, the band unleashed a standout “Split Open and Melt” for the ages. A patient Phish allowed for some phenomenal crystallization to occur during this slow-building and diverse Type II titan. McConnell and Gordon etched deep synth and heavy bass during the first chunk of this haunting jam. Anastasio pounced around on his pedals to move the 21-minute piece into a more ambient space that eventually would exit the solar system before returning back to its usual constructs as if nothing had ever happened. Fans new and old were left face-planted, ass-handed and elevated before giving their favorite band one last applause to end another noteworthy second set.To express their gratitude and offer one more ballad to the appreciative crowd, “Wading In Velvet Sea” peacefully opened up the two-song encore for a show that nobody wanted to end. Closing on a rock note, “Character Zero” pumped up the arena one last time and Trey quoted the famous Bob Weaver by thanking the crowd “so fuckin’ much.”When someone tells their coworker, parent’s friend, distant relative or Tinder date that they are a Phish fan, they are likely to get bombarded with an abundance of questions. “Wait, you’re going fishing? Deep sea or freshwater? Don’t they just play the same song? They are like the Grateful Dead right?” What outsiders don’t understand is that the dedicated fan base spends their hard earned money and vacation time on so much more than a trip to a new city. Standard American party holidays like Halloween and New Year’s Eve are more like family reunions or life-changing monumental occasions. Where 100 shows would sound preposterous for the average music fan, it is simply a bookmark for members of the Phish community to begin their next 100 shows. They have strategic approaches for ticket purchasing, tour mapping, hotel rewards point, and secret dance moves. The conclusion of the 2018 Fall Tour in fabulous Las Vegas is yet another example of why fans continue flocking together across the globe in search of the next great “it” moment. Spectators at a Phish show aren’t just watching a concert, they are members of a community that celebrates faceplanting into rock.Only 54 days left until the first of four nights at Madison Square Garden…but who’s counting?Check out a gallery of photos from the show below via Phierce Photo by Keith Griner.Setlist: Phish | MGM Grand Garden Arena | La Vegas, NV |11/3/18SET 1: The Moma Dance, Kill Devil Falls > Roggae, Water in the Sky, 555 > Tube > Farmhouse, Mike’s Song > Lifeboy > Weekapaug GrooveSET 2: Carini > 46 Days > Scents and Subtle Sounds > Crosseyed and Painless > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Possum > Split Open and MeltENCORE: Wading in the Velvet Sea, Character ZeroPhish | MGM Grand Garden Arena | Las Vegas, NV | 11/3/18 | Photos: Phierce Photo by Keith Griner