06.29.06
Posted in hot live action - June 29th, 2006 at 1:03 pm by Cricket
We need to start cataloging conversations with cab drivers here, since sometimes they are better than the shows we see. Nashvegas has some strange birds. So the other night my driver is a late 50s/early 60s-ish black guy, listening to Republican talk radio and periodically turning down the sound to discuss what they are saying with me and rail on about how those guys in Washington are no better than the mafia. Okaaaaaaaay. The radio switches to discussion of the new Superman movie and the following conversation ensues:
Cab Driver: So Kevin Spacey, does he play Lex Luthor on TV?
Me: No, just in the movie, someone else plays him on TV.
CD: Is that boy on TV bald for real?
Me: No, I think the actor just shaves his head.
CD: He shaves his head? What does he do when he’s not on TV? Grow it out? Walk around being a bald boy?
Me: I don’t know. I think they probably pay him enough that it doesn’t matter much.
CD: When is Superman gonna fly on that show? Right now, that Clark Kent, he’s afraid of heights, he’s got to get over that, you know?
Me: Yes.
CD: Who else is on that show? Bo Duke, he’s Clark’s daddy on that, isn’t he?
Me: Yes he is.
CD: And he died and that sure made Clark sad. Clark can’t fly when he’s sad, huh?
Me: No, I guess not.
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06.28.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, back catalogue, steve earle, townes van zandt, waylon, lyle lovett - June 28th, 2006 at 2:52 pm by Cricket & Mimi
We each chose five albums that you should absolutely own, listen to, learn and love. “Back catalogue” albums will be a regular deal here, as we explore not only new music, but music you may have missed because you were too busy watching Beverly Hills, 90210.
Mimi’s albums
Step Inside This House - Lyle Lovett
This was a hard one for me. I guess I’ll get around to waxing on and on about all of his records eventually, but let’s start here.
I hear a lot of people saying that the last decent country music was made in the 70’s. Hush your infidel mouths! What you mean is that country radio has sucked for a long time. Yeah, that’s sadly all too true. But it doesn’t mean there isn’t good country music out there.
This is Lyle’s 1998 tribute album to other Texas songwriters. [Mimi, you like an album with Texas songs on it? Shocking.–Cricket]
The three songs forming the “Texas Trilogy” (”Train Ride,” “Bosque County Romance,” and “Daybreak”) written by Steven Fromholz are a masterful lament for the vanished rural lifestyle of two generations ago.
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06.27.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, random, back catalogue - June 27th, 2006 at 1:41 pm by Cricket & Mimi
Six songs by three artists that you should download from iTunes rather than bothering with the entire album right off.
Mimi’s:
Josh Ritter
“Letter From Omaha”–This song is as country as Josh gets. It’s from his first album, which I think I like more than the newer stuff–which isn’t a shock since I have serious prejudices about production (and the overuse thereof). “Tonight, the sugar cane smells like calico, the color of your hair.” This is has a Dylanesque sound.
“Girl in the War”–I think this is his best song. It’s not just topical, but twists the usual Over There wartime trope by making the soldier female. I liked this song much more before I read an interview with him talking about the song. That’s the kind of risks I take for y’all. This track is from Animal Years, which Pitchfork and No Depression are both lauding–the death knell for Josh? Hm.
Joe Purdy
“I Love the Rain the Most” and “Wash Away (Reprise)” both from Julie Blue.
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06.25.06
Posted in cricket spazzes, lucero, back catalogue - June 25th, 2006 at 7:55 pm by Cricket
I wrote this whole review of the new Allison Moorer album, Getting Somewhere and just scrapped it. I’m not happy with album and I just can’t get behind writing a bad review for someone I generally love. And since we’re all about the love here at HCT headquarters I guess I’ll just move on to something else. [Yeah, that was a rough call, I agree. Maybe next time, Allison, we’ll pimp you out then.—Mimi]
You know what I love? Lucero. As anyone who knows me can attest to, I have not shut up about this band for a while now. And yet I’m shocked to find not everyone (including some of my friends) is still listening to them. So what’s to be done? The new album, Rebels, Rogues, and Sworn Brothers isn’t due out until September 26th. I could review their recent re-release of the Attic Tapes? Or perhaps review of 2005’s Nobody’s Darlings? A summary of their career thus far? No, if you want a summary of their career you either already own or need to get the DVD Dreaming in America. And picking a single album to review? Too hard for me to choose. So instead how about my top ten favorite Lucero songs? Yeah? Okay!
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Posted in hot live action, hank iii - June 25th, 2006 at 7:39 pm by Cricket
[This was written by our own esteemed Miss Daisy, herein lie her (mis)adventures in seeing Hank Williams III for the first time—Cricket]
On the way to the Hank III show, me and my roommate, Luke, had a conversation on the merits of assembling a team that included a pirate, a ninja, a cowboy, and an Amazon. (Originally, Luke tried to tell me that with the pirate and the ninja we didn’t need a cowboy, but whatever. That one is for me.) [That one is for all of us. Where would we be without cowboys?—Cricket] Luke said we need one more guy. A sort of leader/figurehead, if you will. Someone like Mr. T. I suggested MacGyver, what with him being, you know, MacGyver and all. [What is this team for? Mutual destruction?–Mimi]
Luke: No, we need Mr. T in case we need some arc welding done!
Me: What? Why in the world would we need arc welding done? Besides, you don’t think MacGyver could figure that shit out?
But I mean, c’mon, right? Arc welding? That’s just crazy and illogical.
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Posted in corb lund, talk to us - June 25th, 2006 at 5:11 pm by Mimi
Vindication is one of the best feelings in life. I have a history of liking artists who later turn out to be Scientologists or who do things like insult their fans while black-out drunk. So the fact that Corb Lund is dryly hysterical, not full of himself, and an actual, honest-to-God cowboy makes my month.
When I talked to him about what it means to be a Canadian cowboy, Corb was spending a week or so of downtime at his home in the Edmonton area (Edmonton is a city in Alberta, which is a province in the western part of Canada. Canada is the country north of America on maps—just to be clear.). He’s been touring pretty solidly for the last couple of years in Australia, Europe and the States. Cricket and I saw him in Nashville a week before I talked to him, and you can tell that they’ve (The Hurtin’ Albertans) worked the kinks out of their routine. [Yes, it was very smooth and totally unkinky.—Cricket]
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06.24.06
Posted in mimi hates on pop country - June 24th, 2006 at 12:03 pm by Mimi
Oh, Hallelujah, just what the industry needs!
This is one of those stories that creates extreme conflict for us. On the one hand, labels merging just makes the Beast that much worse and will lead to a juggernaut, creating a stalemate between two Big Players that is really about profit rather than making music (wait, check, that’s already happened). On the other hand, this means that, maybe, hopefully, artists will shift their focus from getting a deal with the purveyors of pap and crack and cast their eyes towards minor and independent labels who will let them retain artistic control and make decent music that means something. [Maybe this is when the country bands and not just the punk and ‘indie’ bands will start taking Hank III’s advice: You don’t have to go spend $200,000 on a studio and be in debt for the next four or five years. It’s a $500 machine. Being in a studio isn’t going to make people like your stuff better. Do it yourself. It ain’t that hard. It’s just songwriters and a jam room. It’s the ultimate songwriting tool. (from here).—Cricket]
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06.23.06
Posted in random - June 23rd, 2006 at 8:51 pm by Cricket
Mimi: *looks at my feet as I’m complaining about sweating into the soles of my flip-flops* Did you cut your toenails when you’d been drinking?
Me: What? Uh, yes?
Mimi: Hahahahaha! You mocked that Bobby Pinson guy’s song about doing that and look at you!
*both collapse into laughter*
That, my friends? The high point of our night.
It’s not yet 8pm on a Friday night and we’re home. Not just at home but already back home. This is what happens when you pick a show out of the hideous weekly paper based on proximity to your house. See we’ve had really good luck with songwriter’s showcases in Nashville so far. Yes, we were feeling lazy; no, we will never pick something based on proximity again. [Sidebar, we were gonna go to the Bluebird, but it’s fucking an asston of miles from where we live, and we’re going to visit my family tomorrow, so we’re lazy. Look where that got us.–Mimi]
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06.22.06
Posted in cricket spazzes, hot live action, avett brothers - June 22nd, 2006 at 7:44 pm by Cricket
MySpace is like sticking your hand in a murky pond and pulling it out all covered in slime and dead bugs and yet I can’t stop going there. It’s insidious crack. Please let’s talk about anything else.
I know! What’s hilarious, cute as a bug on a leaf and has six legs? The Avett Brothers live! Yeah, I’m fairly sure I should be fired for that joke, but since I’m not willing to fire myself, I think I’m pretty safe. [WTF is that comment? Wow. Lame.–Mimi]
This past Sunday the Avett Brothers stopped by Grimey’s Records to play a little post-Bonnaroo show. This worked out great for me because almost all the bands I really wanted to see at Bonnaroo are playing at Mucklewain except the Avett Bros, and since I’ve seen them now, I feel somehow complete. Miss Bunny, Mimi, and I hauled ass down to see them, and I do mean hauled as Bunny was driving and she was a race car driver in a former life. [I’m thinking demolition derby.–Mimi] It’s one of the ten thousand things I love about her. She likes to get her g’s in where she can. I think we got some extra g’s this weekend just from being around the bouncy energy of the Avett Brothers.
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06.21.06
Posted in cricket spazzes - June 21st, 2006 at 11:39 pm by Cricket
So we randomly find people here in Nashville, mostly doing our beloved country (and sometimes the country we hate). Sometimes people doing other things. Like Joshua Scott Jones. You’ve already read about him, now you can hear him (zipped file, please right click to download and save file as). Listen, then tell us how much you love it, then go tell him how much you love it.
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Posted in hot live action, dale watson - June 21st, 2006 at 5:05 pm by Mimi
They moved the Grand Ole Opry. It was once walking distance to the Broadway bars now it’s in the suburbs and situated facing a sprawling shopping mall–a mall where none of the stores even sell cigarettes. I could draw red circles around this and a huge black arrow pointing to it so people will ponder the symbolism of that, but instead I’ll just bitch about the Sameness of the South nowadays.
When I was growing up, my hometown was all crumbling cement with weeds growing up between the cracks. My house had one of those old-fashioned driveways that was really two parallel concrete slabs with grass in between them. Because of the humidity, the war with mildew was lost sometime before European settlement. Everything had a feeling of creeping decay, with all the buildings built right after WWII or earlier, stretching back to colonial days; dogs laying in the middle of the street untended and panting; wisteria strangling trees with their beautiful vines. People sat on their porches and hollered across the street, sitting up until late at night to play Hearts or Bridge.
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06.16.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, cricket spazzes, dale watson - June 16th, 2006 at 11:12 am by Cricket
Are you reading this site and you don’t already love Dale Watson? Let’s fix that. His most recent release is Whiskey or God, and it’s as fine as his huge back catalog of previous releases (all of which you can find listed here).
Dale’s been around for a while, consistently making good music–good country music. He sings the mainstay themes: drinking, women–good and bad–heartache, and hard work. His voice is an incredible baritone that just reaches in and pulls at something behind your bellybutton.
He’s had a rough recent few years including the loss of his girlfriend and subsequent, tragic depression, but he’s back and going strong. I think the pain he’s suffered has affected his music–it’s deeper, a little sadder than it was before. A new stage in the life of a true artist. On the new album both “My Heart is Yours (To Hell and Back)” and “I Wish I Was Crazy Again” will just break your heart when you realize they’re about his real life. Much like the songs on Every Song I Write Is For You, these songs really reveal the depth of hurt that he’s suffered. He’s sharing something fundamental about himself with his audience and that takes more than just talent–it takes courage. Don’t worry, there’s also a little fun mixed in with the pain. And his move from Texas to Baltimore to be closer to his family doesn’t seem t have hurt his ability to make soul-reverberating twang.
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Posted in random - June 16th, 2006 at 10:58 am by Mimi
Is there some point of pride in Nashville to have the worst website possible? Why is it that fourteen year olds could make–for free–better websites than festival organizers can seem to pay for? Why does every artist’s myspace copy burn my eyes out with lack of apostrophes or misspellings?
There is a market here for motivated, net-savvy fangirls. Please apply at MySpace, we will point the way.
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Posted in cricket spazzes, CDBaby - June 16th, 2006 at 1:17 am by Cricket
In an attempt to distract myself from all the bug bites, I will ramble on about the things on my mind right now. Pass the calamine and we’ll get started.
So we have a MySpace page for the site now. I’m ambivalent about it. On the one hand we’re already finding bands we wouldn’t have otherwise. On the other, GAH! MySpace. I hated it on principle before and now even more. Half the time it doesn’t work. And I loathe it so much that I can’t help but hate myself a little when I find myself obsessively checking it. I love technology and I’m lost without the internets and yet MySpace just doesn’t make that much sense to me. In a way it’s just nothing, just people linking endlessly to each other. Not really hooking up or anything (though, yeah, there’s that) but mostly it’s like being in the hall at junior high and trying to walk by all the popular kids. I hate junior high. MySpace is ugly.
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06.15.06
Posted in mimi hates on pop country, some albums we done liked others we ain't - June 15th, 2006 at 11:37 pm by Mimi
Huh. Ok. So I just told Cricket that I think she might need to start checking me on a regular basis to make sure I haven’t lost all objectivity or ability to think critically. [Yeah, I think I need to check you for a lot things, but then I’m not sure I’m a good judge of anything either. Certainly not responsibility.–Cricket]
I got this album off of iTunes for various reasons, but the most important being that I felt like I should give it a listen considering the write-ups I read about it being “real country” and “old fashioned” and suchlike.
I think what those reviewers were feeling when they listened to this album was Jamey’s voice. Holy hell. Not just throw-back but low-down, dirty, hitting the right country vibe down in your fillings and liver. Maybe your panties, too. [I recall drunkenly thinking the other night that Jamey might honky-tonk enough for me and I wasn’t wrong. The voice does hit you a little in the panties, doesn’t it? This is a man who has listened to a lot of Waylon. I can respect that.–Cricket]
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Posted in a little bit rock and roll - June 15th, 2006 at 11:15 pm by Mimi
We met up with a recently relocated singer/songwriter named Joshua Scott Jones the other night. He gave us his demo. We were (naturally) dubious and not looking for much.
Considering the recent success of acts like Josh Ritter and Joe Purdy and the “rediscovering” of Jeff Buckley, Joshua has a great shot to ride the up-beat, romantic-voiced, pop-folk wave that seems to have no crest in sight.
His voice is somewhere in between Adam Levine and Julian Casablanca, and for a lot of folks (read: chicks and guys into guys) the rest of his sound or song construction will be set-dressing. The thing is, Joshua isn’t just some lame-ass guy who thinks maybe playing music might be fun until he finishes his MBA.
When I mentioned to him that his demos show promise, but also show that he’s holding something back, he said that he wants to let go and just be, but that’s it’s a daily struggle. The fact that he’s aware of that, aware that he’s got a way to go and that he wants more than just a record deal and pussy, that he wants to grow as a person, as an artist, I think this is key. Getting in touch with one’s inner rock star isn’t easy, yo. He’s had glimpses of it, but he’s still figuring it out–on a personal and artistic level.
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Posted in mimi hates on pop country, fan fair, hot live action - June 15th, 2006 at 2:20 pm by Mimi
What more needs to be said about a show where Billy Ray Cyrus was the best act?
That quip is actually mean to Billy Ray, because he was surprisingly charismatic, charming, and willing to mock himself for the pleasure of the crowd. Yes, I am a giant hater, but, hell, trust me, you’d enjoy seeing him live, too. [The Bon Jovi hair was a little frightening, but the set was surprisingly enjoyable.–Cricket]
But to start from the start.
To get the people from the downtown, outdoor venues across the river to the Coliseum, the festival hires buses and the concert-goers stand in a line to be loaded onto these buses in groups. One bus after another people shuffle up the steps and settle in for the several block trip.
I have never seen anything like that before. The trip is not a long walk. In fact it’s a nice walk to the Coliseum from the downtown corridor of Broadway and 2nd Avenue where the other concerts were performed and the in-doors signing shenanigans and the Gaylord are.
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Posted in mimi hates on pop country, fan fair, hot live action - June 15th, 2006 at 1:46 pm by Mimi
Fan Fair is full of yahoos, which is a surprise to exactly no one but the yahoos themselves. If you’ve never been to Branson, Missouri, or Stone Mountain, Georgia, or Asheville, North Carolina, I’ll give you a rundown of the sorts of people we’re talking about here:
Imagine a crowd. This crowd is full of middle class and working class white people who eat mayonnaise and say things like “bless her heart” in a very disingenuous way. They wear rebel flag t-shirts and think that the brand of car they drive is of the same priority as the church they attend. They might not be overtly racist anymore, but give them a few beers and they proudly explain their opinions on the right and wrong kind of immigrant. You probably know tons of people like this. Now, imagine the entire downtown of Nashville crammed to the breaking point with only those people, and you’ve got a good idea of the yahoos at Fan Fair.
There were a few stand-out oddities in the crowd, like the random Asian family and the two or three black people who were either artists or media, but you can sort of fill in the blanks here.
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Posted in mimi hates on pop country, fan fair, hot live action - June 15th, 2006 at 1:45 pm by Mimi
After I saw Jerrod Niemann, I realized Cricket had called me about fifty-six times while I was getting a sunburn on the part in my hair and sweating to death (three bottles of water, two of cups of coffee, and a bottle of Gatorade, and I didn’t have to pee once, that’s how hot it was). We then engaged in the sort of retarded-ass phone tag only possible between two idiots with cell phones in a crowd. The details of us not being to find each other in an area about the size of a football field is boring even to me, so I’ll spare you. [Too bad we didn’t think about text messaging until the next day. Apparently heavy drinking does make you stupid. Who knew?–Cricket]
After we found each other, there were shenanigans relating to us negotiating the yahoos and me having to buy a new, non-black t-shirt at Cotton-Eyed Joe’s, but eventually we found our way into the Convention Center.
Oh, baby.
See, I could tell you all about the wackadoodles we saw in there, but it would sound made up, so instead… oh hell! I took all these pictures with my phone, and since I’m really dumb they didn’t come out. Instead, I guess, I will have to describe things with words. How lame.
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Posted in hot live action, corb lund, kane, jerrod niemann - June 15th, 2006 at 9:04 am by Mimi
It just dawned on me when I was standing in the kitchen searching for the can opener we don’t own that I still haven’t posted the review of Fan Fair. That isn’t because it’s not (mostly) written but because I’m waiting on some pertinent information from someone. Not that you even care about Fan Fair if you’re reading this anyway. But, you know, I can ramble on as much as I want here.
I *do* think we’ll spare you the review (mostly) of the nighttime concert because there’s no need for me to subject you to my extreme fangirling of Brad Paisley or our hatred of Martina McBride. I think that post might be limited to me discussing Josh Turner’s smile and how Craig Morgan might be the Devil.
*
Billy Block’s Western Beat.
12th and Porter has a Tuesday night review hosted by Mr. Billy Block showcasing unsigned, ill-promoted, and up-coming talent.
You can see why we went.
But you’re making the wrong assumptions here, actually.
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06.14.06
Posted in hot live action, cory branan - June 14th, 2006 at 12:32 pm by Mimi
Dear lord. On so many levels.
Before I launch into this review, I’m gonna complain about something totally unrelated. Then I’ll complain about reviewers, fangirls, and the internets.
I grind my coffee in the morning in one of those little Mr. Coffee grinders with the press-down button on the top. I don’t do this because I’m hip or from Seattle (unlike someone around here who doesn’t even barely drink coffee), but because my family are hillbillies and have always bought coffee beans. Why that is, I have no idea, other than they didn’t know they could buy it preground? When I was younger, before the whole movement for “freshness” and crapola like that, they were the only people I knew who bought coffee beans. Anyway, so they still do and therefore I do. I guess that’s sort of like how I’m a Baptist I guess.
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06.12.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, kane - June 12th, 2006 at 11:55 pm by Mimi
Warning: This review is free of actual critical content.
You know how there are those things you’re completely aware of liking in a way that is totally irrational and bubbly and maybe a little psychotic?
Welcome to my house, buckle up tight, everybody sings and drinks and laughs and gets high. (– “House Rules”)
G-D it, I frickin’ hate MySpace! Why is it such a piece of crap? ARG! Ok, panic in the disco averted there, I found it: http://www.myspace.com/kanecountry
This is the band that has converted more people to country music than any other I’ve ever heard of. You’re sitting there, eating your Cheetos, wondering who the hell these people are and why that dude’s got duct tape on his hat (why didn’t you think of that?).
But it’s all good. They aren’t on the radio (as of now), sort of like most of the bands you hear about on Hardcore-Troubadours. So far Kane has yet to release a major label album (rumors state this will happen shortly), but they are the best band you’ve never heard of. Even my mother loves them (and she thinks Toby Keith’s hot, so keep that in mind). [Keep it in mind for what? Toby Keith comparisons? Or that even people with no taste like Kane? I ain’t insulting your mama, but, c’mon — Toby Keith? – Cricket]
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Posted in fan fair, hot live action, kane, jerrod niemann - June 12th, 2006 at 10:07 pm by Cricket
The air conditioning is broken. Hopefully the storm rattling around outside will cool it off a little until the central air is fixed and we can live like civilized people again. Until then I’ll just swelter over my computer with my heat-swollen fingers and tell y’all more about Fan Fair.
Friday began as one of those days. You know, where you just miss everything, can’t catch a break to save your life, you’re late for work, and your car won’t start.
We showed up for the autograph and fan club convention style fiasco at the Convention Center at 4:10 only to find out it closed at 4:00. We trudged up a hill to get there in the heat, after moving crap into our apartment for hours on end. We hit every outdoor stage just as the dinner break between sets was happening. Plus, I don’t think we were really prepared for how many people would be roaming around in ridiculous t-shirts (”My mommy says I’m special,” “Redneck Woman”) and cowboy hats. I mean, I get it–it’s hot, there isn’t shade to be had anywhere, you need a hat for that. Hell, I’d wear a hat for that, except I didn’t have one and wearing one at Fan Fair seemed so de riguer that it would have been like going to a concert wearing the shirt from the band’s last tour. [That was my joke, whore.–Mimi] In short, the kind of thing sane people just don’t do.
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06.09.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, cricket spazzes, two gallants - June 9th, 2006 at 6:52 pm by Cricket
This is Americana. The band has been called a “reinvention of Americana,” a “folk duo,” “blues-based,” and a myriad of other things, including indie rock, that just don’t sum it up for me. Sure, I can agree with “blues-based” in the sense that much of American roots music stems from roughly the same handful of sources and styles, and that necessarily includes blues. But one can say that the Rolling Stones and the White Stripes are blues-based and simply saying that tells you very little about the music.
The Throes and the recent What the Toll Tells are the current releases from Two Gallants. Adam Stephens and Tyson Vogel are young guys from California that seem to be filled with the lost lonesome sound of old-timey Appalachia. If you believe in the transmigration of souls or the collective spirit of a culture, this band might be strong evidence for you to prove your point. [Sounds like indie rock to me.–Mimi]
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06.08.06
Posted in cricket hates on pop country - June 8th, 2006 at 1:10 am by Cricket
Rascal Flatts, man, I can not turn on CMT for more than 7.3 minutes (I did too time it, you don’t know, shut it — and yes I watch CMT, it’s good to know what you’re up against) without seeing this band in videos or commercials or just there, doing nothing, taking up space, wasting minutes of my life. I hate them on principle. They aren’t country music. They have the appearance of a crappy manufactured adult contemporary boy band that couldn’t even get anyone attractive to show up for the audition, but are perhaps crappier than that appearance. Even Amazon.com, in their generally bland and inoffensive reviews, calls Rascal Flatts “soft rock masquerading as country.” Which really is my whole damn problem with Rascal Flatts and mainstream pop radio country. It’s without soul, without real twang, without heart, without substance.
Their name irritates. It’s just words pulled out of a hat that some exec at Disney thought sounded cool (I have no proof of this, but you believe me, right?). [It’s more like they needed more soundtrack for Gilmore Girls. I assumed all along this was another WB act, but they’re not — so this is a concerted effort by all the big labels to kill us. — Mimi]
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06.05.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't, corb lund - June 5th, 2006 at 8:23 pm by Mimi
I pause in my Brad Paisley obsession to introduce you to the best damned Albertan cowboy singer around. [How many Albertan cowboy singers are there? — Cricket] [Clearly you never been to Canada, Cric. Which is odd since you’re a Yankee, isn’t that next to Canada? — Mimi]
If you’re not Canadian, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of Corb Lund, which is sad for your sorry ass.
Corb Lund is another gateway drug country band that a lot of non-country-listening friends of mine like in spite of themselves. I think that’s probably because, being Canadian, he doesn’t twang. He also, unlike a lot of non-Southerners (looking at you, Keith Urban), doesn’t put on a fake accent when he sings.
An idiot I know called several of the tracks on this album “novelty” songs. A POX ON HIS HOUSE. The problem with dealing with folks who know nothing about country music is that they don’t understand that what pop-fans hear as a novelty song is sort of shorthand in country circles. Songs that sound novelty to pop-listeners and hipsters are really just very marketable country songs in the tradition of “Boy Named Sue” and “Friends in Low Places.”
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06.02.06
Posted in some albums we done liked others we ain't - June 2nd, 2006 at 8:21 pm by Mimi
Gonna be honest. I expected the absolute worst from this album because they appeared in One Tree Hill, and how I know that, well, we shall never discuss. [Please, if only you’d stop discussing it. — Cricket]
I think what’s happening to me here (aside from being confused) is that this is one of those albums that is a lynchpin in some marketing extravaganza (not unlike the cross-marketed Rascal Flats album) and so it’s not going to suck, because it can’t (unless it’s Toby Keith, in which case it doesn’t matter who produces tracks — well, you know the drill).
Does Michelle Branch really have that awesome, cowgirl tat? If so, well, I will rethink my entire view of her. [Pffft, anyone with money can get a cool tattoo. It takes real balls to have bad tattoos. — Cricket]
Obviously, I hate the overt pop songs, as should all right-thinking people, because the world does not need any more pop-country girl singers putting on a twang and singing about dirt roads and choking my radio up with Avril-does-Nashvegas. “Cigarettes” is a perfect example of this sort of song. Ah, no. Now this will be a huge hit and I will have to suffer through that for a year.
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