Other Lives-Live!

Other Lives took their intricate studio production to the live stage, and play it with added emotion. I have spoken about my love for this band in a blog before, and I was really looking forward to the show. They played in The Urban Lounge, which is a small club, and it was the perfect setting for a band like Other Lives. When they were quiet and stripped-down, Other Lives never lost their intensity, and kept the audience always engaged. But when hit the climax of their songs is when the music and show became transcending. All the members of the band played multiple instruments and exceptionally talented. I was surprised that such a deep and detailed sound came from only five band members. But when I watched the band members switch from instruments most of the time in the same song, I was deeply impressed and grew and even deeper appreciation for the band. NPR and KCRW have both been raving about this band, and I hope that more people will find this band, and enjoy their music as much as they people who know of them do.

The Rosebuds-Live!

The Rosebuds played a fun, grooving set that got everyone up and moving on Friday night. I hadn’t heard of The Rosebuds before and didn’t find out that they were playing with Other Lives until that day. Since they were touring with Other Lives, I guessed and hoped that they would be good, and I was both happy and surprised by them. They are made up of guy and girl couple, which is accompanied by a violin player and a drummer. As they played their catchy and harmony filled songs, anyone that had been sitting got up to move. Their harmonies were what really drew me in to the music. Ivan Howard and Kelly Crisp have been together since 2003 when they came out with their first album. They had an aparrent chemistry and their voices blended perfectly. It was a fun finish to the show, and I am excited to hear more of their music.

Dry The River

Dry The River is looking like they could be the next big folk-rock group. With bands like Mumford and Sons, The Avett Brothers, and RayLaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs getting a lot of attention, Dry The River is following there path with a slightly more rock feel.  In an interview with the band,  the lead singer said that they all came from heavier bands and wanted to go to a more folk direction in this band, but it always started turning more into rock. It is the lead singer’s high tenor that emits emotion throughout all the songs. Their songs start off slow and sound like typical but beautiful folk songs, but songs like No Rest and New Ceremony have such huge and catchy finales that set them apart. They have yet to release a full album, but have already been touring, and have just recently released a couple singles. Unsurprisingly they have been getting much attention, even though they are such a young band. With this amount of attention so early, they seem to have a bright future ahead.

Explosions in the Sky-Live!

Explosions in the Sky brought a dynamic and highly charged show to 25,000 in Salt Lake City. After the release of their sixth album, Take Care Take Care Take Care, Explosions has been touring and playing at music festivals promoting their album. They have been long been acclaimed for their intense performances. Yet, they still keep a sense of intimacy while they are playing for thousands of fans. Explosions is originally a four-set band, with three guitarists and one drummer. For this tour though, they added a bass player. They are an entirely instrumental band, and have been since they started. One of the guitarists, Munaf Rayani, said that they thought about having lyrics for about a half-second before they decided they wanted just an instrumental band. Many of the bands songs are at least six or seven minutes long and some are over the double-digit mark. With these long and sweeping songs, it is easy to get lost in them. They take you for a journey and you are almost exhausted after. The whole show, Munaf Rayani only spoke twice for the band; at the beginning, and at the end. There were no long pauses between songs, just and hour and fifteen minutes of sonic bliss. Because they played one song right after the next, every song seemed like a chapter in their story that they were sharing with you. There an unbelievable and inventive band that plays every song with an incredible amount of passion and bring this emotion with every note.

No Age-Live

No Age is a fuzz-rock band that opened for Explosions In The Sky on Thursday Night. I had only listened to a few No Age before the song, and I was kind of unimpressed, but hoped they would put on a good show. They did have a lot of energy and had fun, I just couldn't get past my dislike for the music. The guitarist put his distortion has high as it would go and played every song that way. His bar chords for every song were almost indistinguishable underneath the distortion. The drummer and also singer's yelling-singing seemed the same for every song, but I couldn't hear it very well over the guitar and drums anyway. After listening to their studio songs, I found that I liked it much more than their live performances. When I was able to hear the lyrics and the singing a little bit more, I could start enjoying their high-octane punk more. They did bring a lot of energy to their show, and had a lot of the crowd moving. Many people enjoy this kind of music, and I am sure many people enjoyed their show last night. It just wasn't for me.

Death Cab for Cutie-Codes and Keys

Death Cab for Cutie have just recently come out with a new album following the same style and footsteps of their album before, Narrow Stairs.  Death Cab for Cutie have long been indie-rock darlings, and are still growing on their seventh album. Since their mega-success on the album, Plans, they have gained millions of fans, but also lost some due to their switching record-labels. Ben Gibbard, the lead-singer, was always an avid protestor of Major Record Labels, until the band signed with Atlantic Records. Although many early fans were upset with this signing, the band has stayed true to their sound, and continued to make wonderful albums. Codes and Keys is full of fun poppy songs, and is a perfect summer album. With Ben Gibbard's always on-point lyrics and incredibly catchy singing, I have found myself repeatedly singing many of the songs.  In their seventh album, they are still finding ways to make their music fresh and different. They have been one of alternative-rock's biggest band for a few years, and they look ready to stay.

James Vincent McMorrow-Early in the Morning

James Vincent McMorrow's debut album is a stirring, and raw wonderment. McMorrow has been receiving high-praises for his album, and is being thrown into the same category as Bon Iver and Damien Rice. It is not surprising since he has the same same haunting voice and stripped down instrumental. Robin Hilton of NPR, also said that his voice sounds like a mixture of Antony Hegarty and Ray LaMontagne. Two people with very different and distinct voices, but after listening to the song, I fully agreed with. Just as Justin Vernon of Bon Iver went to a secluded cabin to write For Emma, Forever Ago, McMorrow went to his sea-side cabin in Ireland to write his album. In an interview with KCRW, McMorrow said he wasn't planning on making a record when he went his cabin. He wanted to remove as many distractions as possible. While living in this seclusion, he started writing songs that would eventually go into this album. McMorrow is also receiving high accolades for his intense and intimate shows. He is currently on tour promoting this album.

Danger Mouse and Daniele Lupi-Rome

Fresh from his most recent collaboration of Broken Bells, Danger Mouse produces another masterpiece collaboration album. Five years ago, Danger Mouse and Daniele Lupi decided to make this album five years ago, after finding out they both had a strong love for spaghetti-western music. As a lover of the movies and the music of Once Upon A Time In The West, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. I think these spaghetti-westerns have some of the most and haunting and beautiful music.
Danger Mouse has been one of the music industry's most sought-after producers after he made the Grey Album; which mashed-up Jay-Z's Black album, and The Beatles' White album. After, Danger Mouse was also the producing half of Gnarles Barkley with Cee-Lo Green, and Danger Doom with rapper MF Doom. Daniele Lupi is an Italian composer and arranger. I wasn't familiar with his music before this album, but if his other music is anything like Rome, I'm sure it will be lovely. On this album Jack White and Nora Jones also lent their voices to a few of the songs. Jack White, who over the last decade has given us the most explosive and undying rock of the last decade, is fantastic in his small part on the album. His lyrics on Two Against One, also fit the theme of the album impossibly well. No woman would be more perfect for this album than Nora Jones. Her smooth and sultry voice is the perfect compliment to the classical guitars and the deep rich bass. It came as no surprise to many that such a beautiful album came from these artists. After listening to this album on repeat, I have started wearing a poncho, started smoking a hand-rolled cigarette, and have started talking in a raspy voice. "You see in this world, there's two kinds of people, my friend; those with loaded guns, and those who dig."

Bon Iver-Bon Iver

After the overwhelming success of Bon Iver's first album, For Emma, Forever Ago in 2008, Bon Iver has recently come out with a new self-titled album. For Emma, Forever Ago was one of the most acclaimed albums of recent years and was one of NPR's Top 50 albums of the decade. The story of how the lead singer, Justin Vernon, wrote the album is a legend now. After breaking up with his girlfriend, Emma, he went to his cabin in the woods of Wisconsin with just his acoustic guitar, and For Emma, Forever Ago was the astonishing product. With such heart-breaking and beautiful songs like Skinny Love and For Emma, many wondered how he could ever top or even maintain the same level on his next album. In between these two albums Bon Iver also came out with a four-song EP, titled Blood Bank. Three of these songs were classic Bon Iver, but one song, Woods, was an auto-tuned masterpiece that reminded me of Imogen Heap's Hide and Seek. When Bon Iver released their single Calgary, I knew he would be going in a more experimental and multi-layered direction, rather than the acoustic-based first album. I loved Calgary and was painfully anxious and excited for the album to come out. The album did not disappoint me, and I fell in love with it instantly. While guitars and drums make up much of the album, it is far from a simple guitar and drums rock or folk. This is where Justin Vernon's genius songwriting shows. He adds so many beautiful instruments and unique sounds, every song requires repeat listens. The best and most well-recieved albums of the year are all albums that require repeat listens and slowly unfold. Such as, Radiohead's King of Limbs, James Blake's self-titled album, Bright Eyes' The People's Key, and last year's Sufjan Steven's Age of Adz. Which was my favorite album of the year last year. Many of these bands have successfully changed their style and grown just like Bon Iver is doing on this album. Justin Vernon is an incredibly talented musician and songwriter, and this album has cemented his place as a vital member of the future of music.