The new big thing.
Angel of Rock
West Memphis Three Finally Freed!
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 08/19/2011 - 3:28pmhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/19/west-memphis-three-free_n_93144...
Why I am not embarrassed to say that I am still a Pearl Jam fan:
http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/2011/08/19/eddie-vedder-cheers-as-w...
Just another reason to celebrate PJ20.
I hope everyone is listening to the music they love and celebrating.
Til next time,
AoR
Mount Eerie at The Cedar?
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 08/05/2011 - 6:33pm
There was a time in my life when I didn't sleep very much. Let's call it my senior year of college, though it was really more than that. I worked late and biked to an 8 a.m. class twice a week. Even during the hours that were available for sleep, it just wasn't happening.
I only ever found one thing that could really help me sleep: Listening to Mount Eerie's Lost Wisdom on headphones. I often awoke with one earbud in and the other's cord wrapped around my neck, not sure when I fell asleep.
The album is sad, and yet comforting in a way. The vocal harmony is really lovely (have I blogged about how much I love Julie Doiron yet? Oh. Apparently I have. Five times. ). I don't know what all to say about it other than it really speaks to me, clears my mind, and leads me to dream.
Long Live Radio K International!
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 07/01/2011 - 5:14pm
A week from tonight, The Cedar will host a very special event to celebrate a DJ and Radio Program that have been a critical part of both local radio and the local music scene.
Paul Harding has been a invaluable resource for world music for the past 16 years, broadcasting the latest global music cuts, dusty Jamaican 45s, and pertinent news tidbits every Sunday morning on the University of Minnesota's Radio K. Due to a recent change in station policy, Radio K is moving towards having solely student DJs. This means veterans like Paul are moving on to other things.
I spent three years helping Paul cue up music, review albums, brainstorm themes and record playlists. He is leaving big shoes for cohost Alex to fill, but the need for the program is still evident.
Many Cedar shows pop up on the show's concert calendar and ticket giveaways - these items are ideal sent for fans of global music.
Festival Season
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 06/17/2011 - 6:31pmLately most of my time has been spent thinking about, talking about, and helping plan outdoor music events. Not only do the announcements seem to appear daily for new festivals in the Twin Cities, but nearly all of them showcase the incredible number of talented local musicians we have.
I am happy to say that the West Bank Music Festival to be held on Saturday, August 20 is no different.
The festival will include an outdoor stage with music from 5 p.m. til 10 p.m, in addition to live music in West Bank bars and clubs starting at 10 p.m. You will have to wait and see who is playing the late night slots, but here is the outdoor stage schedule for your perusal.
5 p.m. Surprise guest!
6 p.m. Gramma's Boyfriend
7 p.m. The Goondas
Taking the reins
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 05/20/2011 - 4:25pmA friend told me this week that she has just gotten sick of ordering things. She isn't picky - she'll eat just about anything. She just doesn't want to have to make the decision. She found her solution in eating out with two close friends who knew her tastes well enough to make selections.
I've been feeling similarly indecisive about music. I've been turing to my friends Shuffle Function and Podcast.
One friend that made especially good choices today is the Girl Germs podcast found here. The girls used to have their program broadcast by local college radio station, Radio K but have moved to a purely podcast format. As a struggling drum student, I particularly recommend episode 2, Little Drummer Girls.
That's about all I've got for you today. Hope to see many of you at various Art-A-Whirl activities this weekend.
The New Riot Grrrl
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Sat, 05/07/2011 - 4:10pmThis Sunday The Cedar welcomes tUnE-yArDs, a.k.a. Merrill Garbus, back for what I believe is her first headlining gig in the Twin Cities (please correct me if I am wrong).
This will be the third time I've gotten to see Garbus perform, as she has previously opened for Dirty Projectors here at The Cedar back in 2009 and opened for Xiu Xiu at The Entry in April 2010.
It could not please me more for Ms. Garbus to have just released a new record, to be back at The Cedar this week, and to be generating such great discussion about feminism in rock music.
Age
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 04/29/2011 - 3:51pmI want to grow old like Bill Callahan
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/635500?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="400" height="225" frameborder="0"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/635500">No. 6 Bill Callahan - "Vessel in Vain"</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/retreadsessions">Retread Sessions</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>
and stay young like Polly Jean
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/13796779?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="400" height="300" frameborder="0"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/13796779">PJ Harvey — This Is Love</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/svit6">Vitaliy Siroshtan</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>
Bill Callahan at The Cedar July 1st.
Music Fest
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 04/22/2011 - 4:24pmLast Friday, lapsed blogger Mr. William Call, frequent blog entry inspiration P-tricky and I got in the mini van and headed to Winona, MN for the Midwest Music Fest.
The numbers:
1 festival
1 vehicle without a speedometer
2.5 hour drive, each way
3 friends
3 venues
4 performances
What we knew:
The Black-Eyed Snakes were going to be playing, and we had to be there.
What we didn't know:
The weather was going to revert to winter for the weekend.
The festival would be severely under-attended
We would have a seriously awesome time
The Midwest Music Festival was held over both Friday and Saturday, with many performances in a variety of venues. We only made it for Friday, and ventured to just three different venues, but the whole experience was more than we could have imagined.
A very special week at The Cedar
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Tue, 04/05/2011 - 1:31pm
This here's a Tuesday post amidst a very special week at The Cedar. This week is special because The Cedar stage sees two of my new favorite artists - The Luyas and Sharon Van Etten. But this week is also special because nearly showcases women in music.
I recently read Love is a Mixtape, a wonderful book by Rolling Stone contributing editor, Rob Sheffield. While mostly a personal memoir, the book poses some questions about what happened to music after the 90s. Primarily, what happened to women in rock? Yes, Mr. Sheffield, I tend to think that most musical perfection happened in the early nineties. But I'm glad to say that I have evidence that women are still rocking, including The Cedar schedule this week.
Year-End Madness
Submitted by Angel of Rock on Fri, 12/10/2010 - 5:40pmSeriously, NPR? Erykah Badu's "Window Seat" ? The song that makes every single person I know that hears it go "What on earth is this?"
Badu has made some good music but come on. I would rather hear silence.
Veronica brought the NPR list of 50 Favorite albums of 2010 to my attention. Though there were only 15 artists that I had never heard of, there were fewer still that I would have put on a year-end list of my own.
This sent me on a chase around the internet to try and answer a series of questions:
Which albums, artists or songs would I put on my list? What even came out this year? Am I a Bob Boilen? Can I really not name ten albums from 2010 that I really liked? (True story: He only listed nine).
I found some answers, but not really the ones I was looking for. Meaning that I wont be sharing a top ten list this week.
