Just so we’re clear, you won’t see political-themed posts here unless they somehow relate to good news about music. This is a music blog, after all.
And this post is about music. President Obama yesterday signed into law the Better Online Ticket Sales Act (the BOTS Act), which makes it illegal for secondary ticket sales markets (i.e., StubHub, Live Nation) to use robot programs to snatch up massive amounts of tickets for shows and then resell them to fans at ludicrous rates. It’s also now illegal for secondary ticket sellers to not stop “bot” programs they have in place or claim ignorance of “bot” programs being used by their company when evidence shows otherwise.
This is great news for those of us who enjoy live music or theatre. The stories of bands like Radiohead seeing tickets to their shows going to scalpers rather than fans are commonplace by now. Lin Manuel Miranda of Hamilton fame has decried such ticket scalping methods as “killing Broadway.”
I don’t know when this law will start being enforced, but it should change the ticket buying game in time for the 2017 music festival and MLB seasons, let alone the remainder of this year’s NFL, NHL, and NBA seasons next year. Granted, many resellers will risk or gladly pay the fine as a simple cost of business since they’re making millions off inflated ticket prices, but some will think twice.
TEMPLES TO HEADLINE DESERT DAZE CARAVAN, FEBRUARY 22-MARCH 17
FIRST NORTH AMERICAN TOUR IN SUPPORT OF NEW ALBUM, VOLCANO,
OUT MARCH 3RD ON FAT POSSUM
(photo credit: Ed Miles) Temples, the English four-piece consisting of JamesBagshaw (vocals, guitar), TomWalmsley (bass, backing vocals), SamToms (drums) and AdamSmith (keys), will release their new album, Volcano, on March 3rd via FatPossum. Today, they’re excited to announce they’ll be headlining the 2017DesertDazeCaravan, kicking off Wed. Feb. 22nd in SanFrancisco and taking them all over the west coast, south, and south west before the tour wraps up Fri. March 17th in Dallas. This is Temples’ first North American tour in support of Volcano after selling out multiple venues stateside this past fall where they previewed new material for the first time. All new dates are listed below, with tickets available for purchase herethis Friday. Watch/Listen/Share:
“Certainty” video — https://youtu.be/h6zdVaAe0OE
“Certainty” stream — https://soundcloud.com/templesofficial/temples-certainty/
Temples perform “Certainty” on Last Call With Carson Daly — http://bit.ly/2gX2nkr
“Certainty” (Franz Ferdinand Remix) — http://bit.ly/2gDdiAn
Temples Tour Dates (new dates in bold): Sun. Jan. 22 – Hebden Bridge, UK @ The Trades Club, Heavenly Weekend Wed. Feb. 22 — San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel (Desert Daze Caravan) Fri. Feb. 24 — Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom (Desert Daze Caravan) Sat. Feb. 25 — Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s (Desert Daze Caravan) Sun. Feb. 26 — Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre (Desert Daze Caravan) Tue. Feb. 28 — Felton, CA @ Don Quixote’s (Desert Daze Caravan) Wed. March 1 — Nevada City, CA @ Miners Foundry Cultural Center (Desert Daze Caravan) Thu. March 2 — Pomona, CA @ Glass House (Desert Daze Caravan) Fri. March 3 — Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy and Harriet’s (Desert Daze Caravan) Sat. March 4 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Regent (Desert Daze Caravan) Sun. March 5 — Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up Tavern (Desert Daze Caravan) Sat. March 11 — Phoenix, AZ @ Downtown Phoenix [VIVA PHX] (Desert Daze Caravan) Fri. March 17 — Dallas, TX @ Trees (Desert Daze Caravan) Thu. March 30 – London, UK @ The Electric
Alt / grunge rock legends Dinosaur Jr. have announced tour dates for 2017 in support of their new album Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not. Catch ’em if you can!
DINOSAUR JR. TOUR DATES (new dates in bold) Sat. Dec 10 – North Adams, MA @ MASS MoCA Thu. Jan. 12 – Sydney, Australia @ The Metro w/ Luluc Fri. Jan. 13 – Newstead, Australia @ The Triffid Sat. Jan. 14 – Miami, Australia @ Miami Tavern Sun. Jan. 15 – Byron Bay Nsw, Australia @ The Northern Wed. Jan. 18 – Perth, Australia @ The Capitol Thu. Jan. 19 – Adelaide, Australia @ The Gov Fri. Jan. 20 – Thornbury, Australia @ The Croxton Sat. Jan. 21 – Thornbury, Australia @ The Croxton Mon. Jan. 23 – Auckland, NZ @ The Studio Thu. Jan. 26 – Nagoya-Shi, Japan @ Club Quattro Nagoya Fri. Jan. 27 – Tokyo, Japan @ EX Theater Rappongi Mon. Jan. 30 – Osaka-Shi, Japan @ Club Quattro Osaka Thu. Mar. 9 – Montreal, QC @ Corona Theatre Fri. Mar. 10 – Toronto, ON @ The Danforth Music Hall Sat. Mar. 11 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall Sun. Mar. 12 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom Mon. Mar. 13 – Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall Thu. Mar. 16 – Bloomington, IN @ Bluebird Fri. Mar. 17 – Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre Sat. Mar. 18 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room Sun. Mar. 19 – St. Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall Wed. Mar. 22 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall Thu. Mar 23 – Nashville, TN @ Cannery Ballroom Fri. Mar. 24 – Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre Sat. Mar. 25 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse Tue. Mar. 28 – St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre Wed. Mar. 29 – Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room Thu. Mar. 30 – Orlando, FL @ The Beacham Theatre Fri. Mar. 31 – Jacksonville, FL @ Mavericks Sat. Apr. 1 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
Imagine you flew from Guatemala to Chicago to see a band and they only played four songs (including the encore), but you were ecstatic by the end of the show. This is what happens at Earthlessshows.
My friend, Paul, and I went to see Earthless, Ruby the Hatchet, and Marmora at the Empty Bottle. It was my third time seeing Earthless and Paul’s first. We hadn’t seen either of the opening acts. Paul and I are big fans of Earthless and their mostly instrumental cosmic rock, and the Empty Bottle (which was sold out) would be the smallest venue in which I’d seen them so far.
We met a couple who drove in from Wisconsin to see them for the first time. We all talked about the number of songs we’d get to hear from Earthless. They played four the first two times I saw them, so Paul and I were betting on at least three. The couple from Wisconsin hoped for four, and they were correct.
First up were Marmora – a Chicago four-piece that blended stoner rock with punk. Paul knew we were in for something groovy when their lead guitarist came out wearing a “Got blunt?” T-shirt.
Marmora – rocking hard despite having a rough day at the office.
Marmora had been through a rough day. The lead singer had screwed up his ankle, they mentioned having some sort of vehicle trouble earlier, they accidentally set their gear in dog poop while loading the van, the drummer’s foot pedal broke (thankfully, they had another), and the lead singer broke a string on his guitar. They put on a good set despite all that, and their rhythm section is particularly good.
Ruby the Hatchet put on a fine set of witchcraft rock with song titles like “Pagan Ritual” and “The Unholy.” They have a great organ player who brings a cool 1960’s vibe to their power. Their lead singer commands a room and her hand gestures as she soaks in the band’s sound might as well have been learned from Dr. Strange.
Ruby the Hatchet casting spells on all of us.
Earthless walked on stage with no muss or fuss. They said hello and then unleashed. A brother-sister duo from Guatemala were next to me and told me how they’d come to the States to follow Earthless on their current tour. They were big fans of stoner / doom metal. The brother, David, told me he’s been reaching out to stoner metal bands in hopes of convincing them to tour in Guatemala, where there is no stoner metal scene according to him. He and his sister had a great time, although his sister couldn’t understand why the audience wasn’t dancing more. “American audiences are so fucking stiff,” she told me.
She probably changed her mind by the time a fight broke out in a mosh pit started by some dude high and / or drunk out of his mind. I saw her grab the guy by the face while he was being dragged out by fans and security. Earthless, meanwhile, were too busy detaching the roof from the Empty Bottle and rocketing into space to notice or care. All three of them were on fire, but I must mention that this was the hardest I’ve seen drummer Mario Rubalcaba play so far. He beat his kit like it stole his skateboard.
That’s not a disco ball above Earthless. It’s a small moon they pulled down from the heavy gravity of their set.
Their first song, “Uluru Rock,” was 25 minutes long. The second, “Violence of the Red Sea,” was 15. The third, “Sonic Prayer,” was a half-hour. They came back on for a quick encore – a blazing cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Communication Breakdown” that lasted under five minutes and left everyone stunned. “I liked them before,” Paul said. “I like them even more now.”
Walking back out into the low 30’s weather after getting our faces melted was jarring, but it felt great. We’d been elevated. I’ve always said that Earthless chose that name for their band because their music can’t be confined to this planet. They proved that again in Chicago.
1990’s shoegaze / alt-rock maestros Failure have begun a PledgeMusic campaign to offer a live album from their October 2016 tour (which, sadly, I missed). They played their outstanding album Fantastic Planet in its entirety and chose the best versions of each song from the tour for this live record.
In case you don’t know, Fantastic Planet is one of the best records of the 1990’s and a masterpiece of engineering. You deserve to hear it, so jump on this campaign before all the signed stuff is gone.
THE PITCHFORK MUSIC FESTIVAL 2017 ANNOUNCES HOLIDAY SALE
BEGINNING NOVEMBER 28, 2016JULY 14-16, 2017 AT CHICAGO’S UNION PARK
The Pitchfork Music Festival will return to Chicago’s Union Park next summer for its twelfth year. The 2017 event will run from Friday, July 14 through Sunday, July 16. This year, the festival is announcing a holiday sale beginning Monday, November 28. A holiday 3-day pass will be available to purchase for $140 for a short amount of time. Once those are gone, three-day passes will be on sale for the regular price of $165. Single day tickets will be available for $65. A layaway option for regularly priced three-day passes will also be offered, where you will be able to pay the $165 price over three installments. This offer will expire on March 1.
The Pitchfork Music Festival continues to be one the world’s most welcoming and exciting festivals, consistently dedicated to striking a balance between discovery and celebration. Stay tuned for the lineup announcement, as well as much more from Pitchfork Music Festival 2017!
Pitchfork is the most trusted voice in music. Over the last 20 years, Pitchfork’s online magazine has defined how music is covered in the digital era, leading The New York Times to call it “the most prominent brand in online music journalism” and TIME Magazine to recognize it as one of the world’s 50 best websites. In addition to setting a new standard in music coverage, Pitchfork has developed a global reputation for its music festivals. Chicago’s Pitchfork Music Festival has been held every year since 2006, and in 2011, Pitchfork launched Pitchfork Music Festival Paris, bringing its vision of the live music experience to Europe. In 2015, Pitchfork was acquired by Condé Nast, joining a family of brands that includes The New Yorker, Wired, and GQ, among many others, enabling growth in the U.S. and beyond.
I was bummed that I missed Riot Fest in Chicago this year, and one of the reasons was that I missed Bleached‘s set there. I discovered Bleached earlier this year DJ’ing for WSND and really enjoyed their new record, Welcome the Worms.
Luckily for me, Bleached were playing in Cleveland at the Grog Shop on the night my wife were there for her birthday road trip. The Grog Shop is a nice venue. My wife described it as one of her favorites of all the places I’ve dragged her to this year. It’s roomy, but not cavernous. Just avoid the Ace pumpkin cider.
First up on the bill were Hunny, a pop-punk outfit from L.A. with a lot of guitars and swagger. They sounded like Green Day if Green Day decided to keep playing mid-size venues instead of writing Broadway musicals.
Hunny
Bleached played second, and they killed it. A batch of Millennial girls started a tiny mosh pit as soon as Bleached put down the first chord. They opened with “Keep On Keepin’ On” from the new record and tore through other tracks like “Trying to Lose Myself Again” and “Wasted on You” from Welcome the Worms and “Looking for a Fight” and “Outta My Mind” from their first record, Ride Your Heart (review coming soon).
Jessica Clavin had a definite Suzi Gardner / L7 power in her guitar work, and bassist Micayla Grace was on point. Drummer Nick Pilot did a great job, and even swapped his drums for Jennifer Clavin’s guitar (while she took over kit duties) at the end. It was a solid set that won them a lot of new fans.
Bleached
Last up was Beach Slang, which was only singer / guitarist James Alex that night for reasons unknown. He played a loud, wild set of punk anthems and even invited audience members to join him on stage to play with him. Two people did, picking up a bass guitar and getting behind Bleached’s drum kit for one track – and doing well for being an impromptu rhythm section. Mr. Alex had a lot of fans in the crowd who went wild for his new material.
James Alex of Beach Slang.
It was a good night of rock. I hope you were there.
We made the 5-hour drive to Pittsburgh through the rain and got in a nice romantic dinner before settling in at Howlers – a local rock / dive bar in Pittsburgh to see Elephant Stone. My wife and I have been fans of theirs since we first saw them at Levitation Austin in 2013, and I was eager to hear tracks from their new album, Ship of Fools, live.
We had to wait a little while, however, because we were surprised to learn there were three bands playing before them. The first was a local hero – Paul Labrise – who played in a rock three-piece that laid down a good mix of surf, rockabilly, and garage rock.
Paul Labrise (on guitar) and crew.
Following them were One Day Steady – who were only on the second date of their current tour. They played loud, enthusiastic that reminded us of Green Day, Fall Out Boy, and a little bit of Red Hot Chili Peppers for good measure.
One Day Steady
The Tilt Room were another three-piece, but this one played Americana / acoustic jams and didn’t mess around. They got on stage, blasted through a short set, and sounded good.
The Tilt Room
Elephant Stone got on stage after 11:00pm and ended up played a shorter than normal set due to the late start time. It was, nonetheless, impressive as always. This is the smallest venue in which we’ve seen them, and hearing tracks like “Andromeda,” “Manipulator,” and “The Devil’s Shelter” in such a space was uplifting. Many of the members of the other bands stuck around for their set and were impressed by their sound and efficiency.
Elephant Stone
We got to chat with Elephant Stone frontman Rishi Dhir, and it was great to finally meet him in person after a couple years of seeing them in Texas and swapping Tweets. He gave us a hug before and after their set, which was (unbeknownst to him) the best birthday gift he could’ve given my wife – as it was officially her birthday by the post-midnight end of their set.It was a fine set at that, and shame on you if you missed it. Catch them on this tour if you can.
Set list, albeit there wasn’t time for them to play every song on it.
I knew this was a triple bill I couldn’t miss. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Death from Above 1979, and Deap Vallywere playing the Chicago House of Blues all in the same night. That’s a killer lineup. Any of the three are worth seeing alone, but all three on the same night. It’s a no-brainer.
First up were Deap Vally, who I’ve wanted to see since I missed their set at Levitation Austin in 2013. They came out to a large crowd and, no exaggeration, stole the show.
Deap Vally killing it.
They opened with “Make My Own Money” and powered through prime cuts like “Gonnawanna,” “Walk of Shame,” and “Royal Jelly.” Guitarist Lindsey Troy and fill-in drummer Lia Simone (formerly of A Place to Bury Strangers and Les Bucherettes) rocked so hard that I felt bad for DFA 1979 who were to follow them. Ms. Simone played like she’d been playing the tracks for years. It turns out she’s longtime friends with Ms. Troy and full-time drummer Julie Edwards, so Ms. Simone practically knew the chops already when she jumped behind the kit. Everyone within earshot of me was talking about their set even after the end of BRMC’s, proclaiming Ms. Troy’s “bad ass” attitude and Ms. Simone’s excellent kit work.
Lia Simone, yours truly, Lindsey Troy
Death from Above 1979 were no slouches, mind you. Their crazy light show was perfect for their loud fuzz-rock. How drummer Sebastien Granger can sing lead vocals while playing those insane drum licks is a mystery to me, but he makes it look easy. Jesse Keeler wanders the stage like an enraged Rasputin and plays as heavy as the mad monk’s legend. A crazy, aggressive mosh pit broke out during their set. I got in for one song, still happy to mix it up with the youngsters.
Death from Above 1979 going bonkers.
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club closed out the night and, as usual, put on a great show. “Let the Day Begin,” “Beat the Devil’s Tattoo,” “Conscience Killer,” “Red Eyes and Tears,” “Cold Wind” (a personal favorite) and “Ain’t No Easy Way” were all crowd-favorites. Any worries anyone might’ve had about drummer Leah Shapiro’s health (who underwent brain surgery in 2014 for Chiari malformations) were dashed because she unloaded on her kit like a machine gunner.
The only bummer of the set was some sort of equipment malfunction on Peter Hayes’ side of the stage. The band had to alter some of their song selection, and the broken thing (my guess is a bad monitor) apparently was never properly fixed. They closed with a winner – “Whatever Happened to My Rock and Roll” – and had no encore due to the faulty gear.
BRMC’s appropriate lighting for “Red Eyes and Tears.”
It was a good rock show despite the early exit from BRMC – one of the best rock bills I’ve seen in a long while, in fact.
Keep your mind open.
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One night only! Detroit’s Echo Fest has announced another great lineup for the psychedelic rock festival. Returning to the newly renovated Magic Stick, Echo Fest boasts Nik Turner’s Hawkwind, Holy Wave, Wolf Eyes, Rogue Satellites, Heaven’s Gateway Drugs, Nest Egg, festival curators Sisters of Your Sunshine Vapor, and many more cool bands.
It’s a great way to spend the day, so get your tickets now.
