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Concert Recap: The Lumineers at the Music Hall of Williamsburg

April 22, 2012 by SusanKColeman

Last night the Lumineers played with openers Chris Pureka and the Kopecky Family Band at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Despite an incomprehesibly disrespectful audience that insisted on nattering away during the openers and throughout the main set, the night was still full of really impressive musical moments.

Chris Pureka shared some gorgeous songs, playing acoustic guitar herself and accompanied by her counterpart’s electric guitar and harmonizing vocals. I’m sure she introduced the gentleman, who joined her onstage, but pretty much anything she said and much of what she played was drowned out by the audience’s loud chatter. Still, her flawless vocals and heart-rending melodies provided a beautiful start to the evening. Her latest CD How I Learned to See in the Dark mixes solid Americana numbers that jump and stomp with quieter, but no less intense songs like the one below:

There’s something in the voice and the apparent sincerity of the words and performance that reminds me of Sinead O’Connor, only without Ms. O’Connor’s often too ardent delivery. Chris Pureka will be playing at the Rock Shop in Brooklyn both tonight, April 22nd, and next Sunday the 29th, followed by a string of dates in California in May. I really look forward to seeing her perform again, hopefully next time in front of an audience that gives her the attention her music deserves.

The next opener was a 6-piece ensemble from Nashville called the Kopecky Family Band. Though they had some energetic numbers that seemed to resonate with the audience, my friends and I couldn’t get into their performance. We found their sound verged too much into schmalzy power-ballad territory, with the band members’ overly emotive performance trying too hard to drive home some deeper meaning. The music and lyrics should speak for themselves, but it seemed that the Kopecky Family Band so wanted to be sure the emotional aspect wasn’t missed, it ended up being layed on a bit too thickly.

Contrast that with the Lumineers, with its three core members playing acoustic guitar, drums and cello, and the addition of others including a keyboardist and bass player. Their sound is simple and almost stripped-down, but there’s no heavy-handedness in their emphasis on audience participation. Singer Wesley Schultz needed only to move away from the microphone to elicit an audience-wide sing-along to the more catchy refrains in a whole set’s worth of memorable tunes. The enthusiasm they generate is even more authentic for their simple delivery and humble response:

The story goes that they tried to make a name for themselves in New York until the strain of working day jobs to pay the rent and lack of progress with their musical career sent them packing for Denver. I’m not sure if they first cultivated their current sound out west, or if they already had such amazing material when based on the east coast. It could be that, when these folks were still plugging away in New York, audiences simply hadn’t been told yet by some hip music press that they were a band to look out for. Perhaps if the chatter had been toned down for a bit while the Lumineers’ members  performed in opening slots for other, better-known bands, they’d have gotten their break sooner. It’s great that New York and the rest of the country and world have now taken notice. I just wish the same consideration would be given to all openers, regardless of the buzz or lack thereof surrounding them.

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Concert Recap: Tools for Timkatec Benefit at Hudson, NY’s Helsinki Club

April 11, 2012 by SusanKColeman

Last night Hudson, NY’s Helsinki Club hosted a benefit concert for the Tools for Timkatec charity in Haiti. The event was organized by Tommy Stinson, founding member of The Replacements and bassist for such well-known acts as Guns ‘N Roses. Tommy acted as MC for the 6 acts that took the stage before him, introducing each, goading audience members to get up and dance, and doing some fancy footwork on the floor himself. There was also a silent auction of various musical memorabilia to help add to the charity’s coffers. It was a really great energy he brought to the evening, and both the performers and audience picked up on his enthusiasm and seemed to really be enjoying the vibe.

Unfortunately, having driven two hours from the city, my friend and I were not able to stay to see his performance. It would have been nice to hear his musical contribution to the evening. All of the opening groups were hand-picked by Tommy, and while some didn’t appeal to me that much, it was cool of him to give several younger and greener acts the opportunity to perform with much more seasoned pros. The club’s website advertised opener Trapper Schoepp and the Shades, as well as Elvis Perkins, who was the main draw for me for the evening.

Trapper and his brother Tanner Schoepp handle most of the singing, with some really lovely harmonies that lend a sort of country twang to their rock ‘n’ roll sound. Their Facebook page also lists band members Graham Hunt, David Boigenzahn, and Jon Phillip, but there were only four present last night, so I’m not sure if their constellation changes between recording and touring. Regardless, they had a big, mature sound (yes, for ones so young) that certainly bore influences from their native Wisconsin but also from groups like the Replacements or even Bruce Springsteen. The songs tell stories, the music makes you want to move, and there’s a lot of talent in the voices and instruments, so hopefully these guys will go far. Below is a YouTube clip of the title track from their latest (and I believe third) CD Run, Engine, Run:

Before heading back home, my friend and I stopped at the merch table and each bought a CD and chatted a bit with Trapper himself. Very humble, nice guy, obviously very excited about touring with Tommy. It’s always a tremendous treat to be looking forward to one specific act and find a supporting act that can be added the constantly growing list of bands to watch out for. Trapper Schoepp and the Shades will definitely be one of those groups I’ll make a point of seeing whenever they play in the area. And I was pleased to listen to the CD today and hear much of the engery from the live show translates to their recorded material.

But the highlight of the night for me was Elvis Perkins. It was an exciting moment when my friend and I realized his band (the “Dearland” in Elvis Perkins in Dearland) would also be playing with him, having initially thought it would be a solo set. With so many groups playing yesterday evening, it was clear there would not be a headliner-length set or even a full supporting band set from any of the acts. But, not having seen these guys perform together in almost two years, whatever they played, no matter how brief, was going to be greedily lapped up. The set started with the beautifully rambling “While You were Sleeping” (a great, very literally rambling version of the song here), by Elvis solo. The third song brought the rest of the group to the stage – Nick Kinsey on drums, Brigham Brough on bass and Wyndham Boylan-Garnett on guitar and keyboards. They had a fifth member, also on keyboards and jingly things, but unfortunately I didn’t catch the name of the additional member.

What struck me the most was how much fun they all seemed to be having. And why wouldn’t they? With Nick beating the hell out of his marching band-like bass drum during “Doomsday,” all I could think about was the first time I saw them perform that song under the tent in Newport during the 2009 Folk Festival, dancing and singing with the rest of the crowd, even though I didn’t know the words. Having come a little late to the Elvis Perkins fold (that Newport show was the first of theirs I’d seen), the scarcity of performances and new material of late has been disappointing. I had only really been grabbed by the music about a year before the appearances dwindled and then disappeared. Perkins has played infrequently over the last two years, mostly for charity concerts, like the one last night, or in Brooklyn last year for Dave Godowsky’s noncert benefit for public school music education. And I have a great deal of respect for his lack of presence in the social media, other than in the form of references by people like me, who are wondering what he’s doing these days, whether he has actually retired from music or is just taking a breather. But, his bandmates, who now have their own group, the Diamond Doves, tweeted this last night: “Elvis Perkins in Dearland rides again.” I’m really hoping that was meant as an indication of more to come, rather than simply a commentary on the night’s collaboration.

Here’s Elvis Perkins in Dearland doing “Shampoo,” which was also performed last night:

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Concert Recap: Daughter at the Mercury Lounge, NYC

March 9, 2012 by SusanKColeman

The band Daughter played this morning at The Cutting Room Studios in New York for a session that was broadcast live on KEXP. As soon as the group had finished, morning DJ John Richards proclaimed them his new favorite band (the video below was swiped from Richards’ Twitter feed). If they could have that effect on someone sitting in a DJ booth 3,000 miles from where they were playing, you can imagine the impact when seeing them live on stage, not 4 feet in front of you at the tiny Mercury Lounge in the Lower East Side.

Their singer has a lovely, feminine, but strong voice. Her guitar playing made me think of classical training. This was not some band that relied on the familiar C, G, A min, F progressions, capoed at third or second fret to add variety. I tried to follow the chords, but couldn’t. The two guys in the band had their own unique talents, one bowing his electric guitar to eerie effect, the other playing drums and bass simultaneously. They all seemed genuinely taken aback by the warm reception they received at their first headlining show in the U.S. Especially after the numbers “about death” or “about the end of the world.”

The music pushed this weird image into my head – remember that cute girl from junior high school? The one with the extensive orthodontial hardware in her mouth, who would only smile when she was quite certain no one was looking? Her perennial sullenness made her unpopular with the popular crowd. But, at those times, when you’d catch her in a sweetly un-self-aware moment, you’d fall in love. Daughter felt to me like that dark little misfit, who at times this evening allowed us to see her smile.

They play tomorrow night in Brooklyn at Glasslands. Go see them if you want to fall in love.

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Concert Recap: Carolina Chocolate Drops at Pace U. in NY

March 4, 2012 by SusanKColeman

The Carolina Chocolate Drops played the Schimmel Center for the Arts at Pace University in downtown Manhattan Friday night. The band now consists of founding members Dom Flemons and Rhiannon Giddens along with Hubby Jenkins, who joined about 2 years ago after the third founding member left the group. Always on stage with them Friday was Leyla McCalla on cello, and also joining them for a few numbers here and there was Adam Matta on beatbox.

Each time I’ve seen them play now, there’s been a new member added. They’ve done a masterful job of finding folks who complement their sound extremely well. Having been blown away by their performance a couple of years ago in Peekskill, NY, when Hubby Jenkins was brand new to the outfit, I was at first a little disappointed last summer in Newport when I saw that Matta had joined to provide a beatbox rhythm to their banjos, fiddle, mandolin, acoustic guitar and bones (more on the bones later). It didn’t seem like a sound that would work within the Chocolate Drops’ genre, but the beatbox added the perfect modern percussive beat to the old blues and black string band numbers. The originators would certainly have grooved to this updated sound. The rhythms were solid without being overbearing or drowning out the twang of the string instruments. I also caught Matta and Rhiannon Giddens a short while ago in Red Hook, NY, as part of the group Sonic New York, where they were joined by Sxip Shirey and Joe “Bass” Dejarnette. Once again, all very versatile and amazingly talented folks. The highlight was an Irish tune with Giddens on vocals and Matta on the beats. I believe that number is included in the NPR link below from the Newport Folk Festival performance last summer.

And Friday night cellist McCalla brought those low, mellow tones and a lovely backing vocal, thereby rounding out the sound to wonderful effect. They focused on songs from their new CD “Leaving Eden,” but threw in some of the older numbers as well - crowd favorites that offered the opportunity to join in the singing. Though the Schimmel Center is a very nice venue, it would have been even better to see this act in a room with no chairs and plenty of space for dancing. Dom and Rhiannon got up and moved to the music – we should have been doing the same.

I think what I like best about these folks is the love they have for a type of music, which might be lost if it weren’t for groups like them, ensuring the legacy will be carried on. Before each number, one of the band members provides the background to the song, telling who originated it, who they learned it from and why it’s important to them. They throw out names of artists I’ve never heard of, but the repeated references to the players, who made it into their 90s before passing in recent years, just reinforce the importance of what the Chocolate Drops and groups like them are doing to keep this sound alive.

The instruments too are just as important as the music being played on them. At one point, Giddens brought out a banjo that dated back to the 1800s. It had a deeper, richer sound than its more tinny, modern counterpart. I can’t imagine where else one could hear such a thing played live on stage. And the bones – both Flemons and Jenkins work those things, double-handed, like flamenco dancers brandishing castanets. Somehow the clacking of the bones can lend a joyful sound to the upbeat numbers, and a mournful rattle to the bluesier tunes.

For a taste of this group, check out the outstanding set they played last summer in Newport on NPR.

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Band to Look Out For: Deep Sea Diver

February 22, 2012 by SusanKColeman

Heard these folks on KEXP this morning – Deep Sea Diver. They have a soulful, yet upbeat, optimistic sound.


I don’t really have much interest in all the Brit girl soul singers (Adele and her ilk). After Amy Winehouse, they all sort of sound the same to me. But I do love a female singer, who can belt out a song. Too many of the folk or indie gals come across as tentative and sweet, singing in paper-thin voices about their senstative little hearts. This singer reminds me a bit of P.J. Harvey, who has moments of brilliance, but often loses me with her weirdness factor. They’re supporting The Shins on some upcoming gigs in the Midwest, so they’re bound to generate a following. Hoping they make their way to NY sometime soon.

Thinking of other female singers who are unafraid to let their voices soar:

I first heard of Neko Case when I saw her opening for Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds many years ago at the Beacon Theater. I love her brassy, red-headed way and her clear as a bell voice. Her music has tremendous variety, and she’s a very funny, smart cookie to boot. Here she is on NPR’s Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me.

Then there’s Brandi Carlile:

She’s a tiny little thing with a voice she must be pushing up from the heels of her boots, the sound is so full. She lets the gravel and dirt rattle around in her tone before wiping it all away to show you how beautiful and angelic it can be. Her CD The Story is one of my absolute favorites for singing along to in the car.

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A Book for Every Reader, or A Reader for Every Book

February 19, 2012 by SusanKColeman

Last night I finished The Commitments by Roddy Doyle. A little while back, Annie Cardi, one of my favorite bloggers, posted this entry about first novels she’d like to call her own. She pointed out Doyle’s skill at portraying music in the written word. As music plays a pivotal role in my WIP, I grabbed The Commitments from the library and was thoroughly charmed by this little book.

And I’m not kidding when I refer to it as a little book. At only 165 pages in a fairly small page format, and many of the pages filled with onomatopoetically vivid descriptions of the Dublin soul sound as pictured here, it’s a quick read. But in that very short time the reader has to get to know band manager Jimmy and his motley gang of working class wanna-be musicians with names like Outspan, Deco and Joey The Lips Fagan, Doyle does a tremendous job of hooking us in and making us feel the grooves they’re laying down. Certainly, it’s not a style everyone would be comfortable reading (if not, watch the movie, which is also amazing), especially with the use of dialect and rampant cursing, but this was just another example of the idea that struck me earlier this week, that for every type of book, there are bound to be scores of willing readers.

What really drove that point home was a post on Amy Keeley’s blog, offering a review of a book she’d picked up as part of her reading group on Goodreads. Though she didn’t use up much space to vent about the book, she did link to another reader, who shared her opinions on the poor quality of the style, structure and plot development. I too cringed at the examples of over-the-top gooey sentimentality, yet it’s clear loads of people do go in for this kind of thing: what to some readers is cliche-riddled, overly dramatic, intentionally dense writing, is to others brilliant, unique and captivating.

The reasons for reading are as numerous as readers themselves. Many want to be entertained, and what counts as entertainment to some could be thought of as boring, trite or silly to others. Some want to be educated, informed, enlightened, challenged or dictated to, while others simply want to lose themselves in character and story. The key is not to be all things to all readers, but to understand that segment of the population the book would appeal to and go after it. But, whereas some would recommend writing to a specific target audience, keeping the marketability of your book in mind at all times, I’d say that the focus should be on the writing itself. Because no matter how brilliant some people think your writing is, there will be just as many other folks who haven’t the stomach for it. If you love what you’re doing and work at your craft, you’re bound to find readers, who are as passionate for what you do as you are about doing it.

Using some of the wonderful self-editing hints and tips mentioned in one of my earlier posts, I’ve actually become very excited about the editing process, as the prose is now coming across as tighter and more concise. Once unnecessary words and phrasing have been thrown out, a better quality of writing, with more finely-tuned images and less fluff takes their place. Section one will be done by the end of this month, and after my readers have given me their comments, I hope to post a scene or two here, just to see if I can get any feedback from a wholly different (and indifferent) audience.

Posted in Books, Novel #1, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

Concert Recap: Other Lives at the Bowery Ballroom – Upcoming NYC Shows

February 18, 2012 by SusanKColeman

It was one of those wonderfully unseasonably warm days today. While walking around in nearby Van Cortlandt Park, I starting tallying up all the wonderful music I’ll be fortunate enough to see over the next few weeks/months. Having just attended a brilliant performance last night by the band Other Lives, I became giddy at the thought of the shows yet to come, both from bands I’ve become obsessed with and ones I’ll be seeing for the first time.

Other Lives’ sound is lush and rich, full of varied but precise instrumentation. Each member seamlessly switched from violin to guitar, trumpet, keyboard, bells, cello, percussion, harmonium etc., somehow getting to their instruments just at the right time in every song. Their CD Tamer Animals is a gorgeous reproduction of their sound, but seeing them live was an altogether different and wonderful experience. Watching the set up of keyboards, effects, laptop and other electonic gear, I was a little concerned that the “music” would come off sounding too artificial. But all the band members were consummate musicians, and it didn’t seem as though much of their sound came from prerecorded tracks. The vocals too wove in perfectly with the flowing phrasing of their songs. The lyrics aren’t always easy to discern, but to me, that just adds to the sort of mysterious, sultry effect of the music. The band was drafted to open for Radiohead during an upcoming tour, so they will be gaining even more exposure by playing to what will certainly be some huge crowds. And, as an extra little treat, Wyndham Boylan-Garnett of Diamond Doves and Elvis Perkins in Dearland fame joined the group onstage during one of the last numbers to contribute his tromboning skills. He and/or his mates Brigham Brough and Nick Kinsey have been appearing as back up for bands such as My Morning Jacket (at Madison Square Garden, no less!) and The Felice Brothers. Good for them for getting on with their musical careers, now that Elvis has been M.I.A. for some time. (Elvis, your fans want more. Please.)

This is the title track from Other Lives’ Tamer Animals from their Live on KEXP session:

Looking ahead, I can hardly believe the spate of wonderful live performances in and around the city. Tomorrow night the Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Jesse Harris is playing a free show at the Rockwood Music Hall on the Lower East Side. This will be my first time to that venue, so I’m excited about that. I’d seen Jesse Harris last spring during what seems to be a now defunct concert series (if two concerts can be considered a series) called the Noncert. It was a nice enough idea, to raise money for music education in Brooklyn public schools, but it doesn’t seem that the organizer has been able to keep it going. Shame too, because the sets I saw that night last April with Jesse Harris, Martha Wainwright and Elvis Perkins were pretty amazing. Jesse Harris just writes nice songs, plain and simple. So, I’m looking forward to seeing him again:

On Friday the 24th, one of my absolute favorites, Josh Ritter, will be playing a small benefit for the New York charity Housing Works. I’ve been a huge fan of Josh’s for several years (and have harbored a 13-year old’s crush on him since that first concert at the Paramount in Peekskill, New York) and am so excited to see him perform again. I met him this past June at his book signing (musician, singer, songwriter, published author…sigh), and can still conjure up the tingle I experienced when he gave me one of his famous bear hugs. He’s just a lovely individual with such incredible enthusiasm and joy for what he does. I always leave his shows feeling uplifted and happy. Can’t wait to see his wonderful smiling face next Friday.

In early March the Carolina Chocolate Drops come to the city, bringing along their foot-stompin’, hand clappin’ brand of old-time string band music. I only needed to hear one of their songs on WFUV to realize that I had to see them live. The performances I’ve seen (also in Peekskill and at last year’s Newport Folk Festival) have knocked me out – it’s impossible to stay seated when a song like this is coming through the speakers at you:

I was in that crowd, getting down with my bad self in the sun and dust. It was spectacular.

March also brings The Head and the Heart as well as First Aid Kit, whose praises I’ve already sung on this blog. April’s concert announcements are coming fast and furious, and tickets have already been purchased for Of Monsters and Men and the Lumineers. The latest addition of interest is Alabama Shakes. Get a load of this voice:

Holy crap, I can’t wait to see them. Makes the noise, expense, aggravation and stress of living in New York City worthwhile.

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