Month: March 2011

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Massive Tour Alert: Casey Neill and the Norway Rats

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The first time I saw Casey Neill was at the Mercury Lounge in the East Village, somewhere around 2008, when he was one of the opening acts for New Model Army. (There were three; one of the other ones was an instrumental Goth band. It was, as you might be gathering, quite an unusual evening.) In any case, he played this song . . .

Casey Neill - We Are The City

. . . and it immediately became one of my favorites, because, if you’ve ever wondered what the DNA of New York sounds like, there it is. This is the city I am homesick for when I am wandering on far distant shores.

The BIG NEWS that I have for you today, ladies and gentlemen, is that he has gathered up his band, the Norway Rats, and they are hitting the road on a scale not seen since 2007, making numerous stops in the Mountain West and also at South by Southwest. He (and they) will also be playing some Pacific NorthWest shows in April and May before swinging  East later in the spring, but in the meanwhile: Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Arizona and Texas, get your calendars out!

CASEY NEILL AND THE NORWAY RATS – MARCH 2011 (featuring Jesse Emerson-bass, Chet Lyster-guitar, Derek Brown -drums on the way there, Ezra Holbrook-drums on the way back)

Tues March 8th – MISSOULA, MT @ Badlander
208 Ryman Street 9pm $7, 21+, opener: David Boone & The Controls
Presented by Stoneflyproductions

Thurs March 10th – DENVER, CO @ Lions Lair
2022 E. Colfax Ave. 8pm with Moe Purdue and Brian Rodgers

Fri March 11th – COLORADO SPRINGS, CO @ the Triple Nickel
9pm, 21 and over, $5 (also appearing The Broken Spoke and Gabriel Rozzell)
26 South Wahsatch Avenue

Sat March 12th- DENVER, CO @ Scruffy Murphys (during St Patricks Day Parade)
7:30pm in the tent (all day St Patricks Day throwdown) 2030 Larimer Street

Sun March 13th (EVENING)- FORT COLLINS, CO @ Avogadro’s Number
7:30pm $8 605 South Mason Street

Sun March 13th (DAYTIME)- LOVELAND, CO opening for SOLAS! @ Rialto Theater
short acoustic set opening for our pals in the Irish supergroup.
228 East Fourth Street $25 advance, $29 day of show

SXSW SHOWS – ALL FREE NO FESTIVAL BRACELET REQUIRED!!

Thurs March 17th- AUSTIN, TX @ THE VORTEX THEATER / BUTTERFLY BAR
7pm set, St Patricks Day Party 2307 Manor Road

Fri March 18th – AUSTIN, TX @ Threadgill’s 12:30pm set
Burnside Distribution Party, our PDX cohort Fernando will also be performing at this legendary outdoor BBQ joint and music mecca. Many more. 301 West Riverside Drive

Fri March 18th – AUSTIN, TX @ Flipnotics Cafe 3pm set
301 West Riverside Drive   The yearly Flipnotics Party hosted by Matt the Electrician

Sat March 19th- AUSTIN, TX @ Yard Dog Art Gallery Party 3:30pm set
This notorious SXSW Party features an amazing lineup starting at 11am. Wilco side project the Autumn Defence, Mark Eitzel, Steve Wynn, Jon Langford of the Mekons and Scott McCaughey & Peter Buck’s adhoc collective the Minus 5 (which Ezra will drum for and Casey will sit in)

… OUT OF TEXAS AND BACK ON THE ROAD…

Wed March 23rd – ALBUQUERQUE, NM @ Low Spirits Bar and Stage
2823 2nd Street NW 8 PM www.ampconcerts.org
www.brownpapertickets.com/event/142929 $10 advance, $15 day of show.

Thurs March 24th – FLAGSTAFF, AZ @ Charly’s Bar (in the Weatherford Hotel)
8pm 23 N. Leroux Street

Fri March 25th – DOLORES, CO @ The Dolores River Brewery, 100 S. 4th St.
with special guest KATYA CHOROVER (exSeattle and now four corners area songwriter extraordinaire, Casey is co-producing her new CD and Jesse and Ezra both have played on the tracks…)

Sat March 26th – SALT LAKE CITY, UT @ Piper Down
1492 South State Street

APRIL/ MAY – West Coast band shows & East Coast solo shows
April 30 – Arcata, CA Humboldt Brews
May 6-Eugene, OR Sam Bonds Garage with Sassparillla
May 7 – Hood River, OR Double Mountain
May 13- Portland, OR Secret Society Ballroom

SOLO EAST COAST TOUR
May 25- Boston, MA Club Passim
many more TBA

FACEBOOK – http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Casey-Neill-and-The-Norway-Rats/128221115191
YOUTUBE CHANNEL – www.youtube.com/caseyneill
TWITTER:  www.twitter.com/caseyneill

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Notable Shows in the Greater Cleveland Area

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Shows worth checking out this week in and around Cleveland:

The Beachland Ballroom & Tavern

  • Fri, Mar 4| 8 PM (7 PM door)
    Beachland 11th Anniversary Weekend
    Wayne “The Train” Hancock
    California Speedbag
    $12
    Tavern | All Ages
  • Sat, Mar 5| 8 PM (7:30 PM door)
    Beachland 11th
    Anniversary Weekend:
    This Moment In Black History
    Wussy
    Cloud Nothings
    The Modern Electric

    Hosted by:
    Miss Firecracker
    Charles Peachock

    Special Advance 2 for $11 Admission!
    (Limited number available)

    Free Downtown Soulville After Party in the Tavern
    @ Midnight-ish!

    $8
    Ballroom | All Ages

  • Sun, Mar 6| 9 PM (8 PM door)
    Beachland 11th Anniversary Weekend
    The Parting Gifts
    The Jay Vons
    Little Bighorn (members of Coffinberry, Prisoners)
    $10
    Tavern | All Ages
  • Tue, Mar 8| 8 PM (7:30 PM door)
    Gifts From Enola
    If These Trees Could Talk
    Purse Snatcher
    $6
    Tavern | All Ages

Grog Shop

  • Thu, Mar 10| 8 PM
    Obits
    Jaill
    Wooly Bullies
    $10

Now That’s Class

  • Sat, Mar 5| 9 P< 13th Annual Queens of the Iron Mic Aaqila Indica Mz. Crazy Tee Rain the Quiet Storm Neshia-Nee Dominique Larue B. Jorda Ms. Moone Ebonie Lane Marvelous Miles Early Girl $7
  • Sun, Mar 6| 9 PM
    Koffin Kats
    Benedict Arnold
    Rockabye Ransom
    Gunfire Getdown!
    $8

Happy Dog

  • Fri, Mar 4| 9 PM
    Bird Names
    Milk & Cookies
    Beardo Bandini
    The Mummified Bat

Kent Stage

  • Fri, Mar 4| 8 PM
    Joe Diffie & NewFound Road
    $25
  • Thu, Mar 10| 8 PM
    Twista
    $18

The Tangier

  • Sat, Mar 5| 9 PM
    Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
    Laura Varcho
    $35 / $45
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Rachel Brooke: I Can’t Sing Anything That Wasn’t Sung Before

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It took me a while to come around to country music on the whole. Sure, I had some questionable dalliances with country artists in my youth. You would have found Oak Ridge Boys and Randy Travis tapes stacked in with my Duran Duran and Depeche Mode tapes. And my mother’s housework was often accompanied by Kenny, Dolly and Alabama when she wasn’t playing the Rolling Stones, Pat Benatar and the Pointer Sisters. But I soon became the kind of person who, when asked what kind of music she listened to, answered, “Almost everything… except country.”

Then, eventually, I was turned on to the country music of the 1940s and ’50s. Ernest Tubb, Hank Sr., Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash… you know the bunch I’m talking about.

On her second solo album, Down in the Barnyard, Rachel Brooke’s music hearkens back to this time in country music when the keys to success were a steady rhythm, a clear and honest voice and a good story. But, like myself – and like many of you reading this, Brooke has probably spent a little more time in her life cozied up to Joy Division than kicking back with Merle Haggard, and this adds a quirky edge to her songs. With her eyeliner, black bob haircut and murder ballads, she appeals just as well to goths as to lonesome cowboys. Had she been recording when I was discovering classic country, younger me would have wanted to be her. Hell, current me kind of wants to be her.

Check out a couple of her songs below, then check her out live.

Rachel Brooke – The Barnyard

Rachel Brooke – City of Shame

 

Rachel Brooke Official Website

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Rock and Roll Dreams Come True: Meat Loaf at Irving Plaza, 2/23/11

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This is Evan Watson , of Evan Watson & The Headless Horsemen . He’s a bluesman from Indiana, though right now his home base is in Tarrytown, NY. I saw him last week when he opened for Meat Loaf at Irving Plaza (!) by himself, minus his Horsemen, and, while I’m not much for the blues, I could tell he would be delicious for people who like fancy picking over a steady slow roll. He’s also got a fantastic rumble-growl voice to go along with all of that, so, blues enthusiasts: you should check him out.

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And here is where I have to back up and explain that, for all I was on “spring break” last week, by Wednesday I was inexplicably thin-skinned and heartsore, and in dire need of some cheering up. Meat Loaf at Irving Plaza turned out to be exactly what I needed. I have to explain also that Irving Plaza is tiny, or at least, it is significantly smaller than the places Meat Loaf normally plays, in the sense that it only fits 1,200 people. (I normally see punk bands there; this show was one of the few times I wasn’t the oldest person waiting in line.) The last time he was in town he was at the United Palace Theater, which is somewhere around 3,000 people.

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Anyway, not only was it an amazingly intimate show, he also played my favorite song, which is You Took The Words Right Out of My Mouth. Though I suppose if I’m being honest they’re kind of all my favorites. He also did a rousing Bat Out of Hell as the third song of the evening, and I tell you what, there is nothing that makes my black little heart expand three sizes like 1200 people singing along at the top of their lungs. It makes Meat Loaf happy, too:

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At one point during You Took The Words Right Out of My Mouth he gave up on singing and started conducting the crowd:

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In addition to the old stuff, he also did three songs from his new record, Hang Cool Teddy Bear, including Los Angeloser. The riffs were big and the melodies as catchy as ever; I was surprised when he said the record hadn’t done well. Then again, I was also surprised to find out there was a new record, which, uh, maybe part of the overall problem there.

The other highlight of the evening was Paradise By The Dashboard Light, which is really a piece of theater disguised as a song. Patti Russo, his long-time duet partner, displayed her usual excellent comic timing throughout the piece.

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Here’s a better picture of her, from earlier in the show:

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In summary: it was a fantastic evening, and I walked out into the freezing night with sore knees and warmed heart, refreshed and ready to deal with the rest of my week.

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Bits: Eddie Kirkland, TV on the Radio, Conrad Plymouth, Chip Tha Ripper, Jessica Lea Mayfield

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  • Bluesman Eddie Kirkland was killed in a road accident this passed Sunday. Our hearts go out to his family, friends and fans. I’m glad I had the pleasure to see him live this past autumn when he opened for the Gories.
  • The first track to be revealed off of TV on the Radio’s forthcoming album, Nine Types of Light, can be heard on the 107.7 blog.
  • Our friends Conrad Plymouth, accompanied by Strand of Oaks, did a set for Folkadelphia. It will air tonight between 6 and 8 PM ET.
  • Cleveland’s Chip Tha Ripper has a new mixtape, Gift Raps, at Rap Radar. Digging it as I type…
  • Kent, Ohio’s Jessica Lea Mayfield made her Letterman debut (with brother David Mayfield, formerly of Cadillac Sky, currently of the David Mayfield Parade, accompanying her) last Friday. Check it out below.