I Hope Your Ears Bleed » austin city limits

Wilco on ACL Tonight

Nathan — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 12:07:56 +0000

Hello my friends and loyal readers. I realize that if you have the television on tonight that you undoubtably be watching college football all evening. But in case of a blow-out, I thought I would give you all a back-up option. Wilco is going to be playing on the famous Austin City Limits television show on PBS. Should be a great show to watch. I haven’t been able to see them live yet, but I have caught several of their performances on late night television which have each boosted my appreciation for this super talented band. They have been closing a lot of their tours lately with a cover of Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released.” If they do it again tonight you’ll surely be in for a treat. Here is a preview of what you most likely get to see in the encore.

Wilco and Fleet Foxes – I Shall Be Released (Bob Dylan)

ACL Preview: Colour Revolt

Justin — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 12:07:41 +0000

I wish I could put into words what Colour Revolt means to me. But I can’t. Unfortunately, when you come to this blog you expect to read a little, therefore I am expected to write a little. If I don’t then my editor fires me, and then I am out of a job. But since I am not getting paid for this I guess its not that big a deal.

Anyhow…

Rather than pour out accolades (which you will undoubtedly read with a grain of salt since you already know how I feel about them) I will merely let the music speak for itself. Here are three songs from Colour Revolt that I think are most telling of their musical styling.

The first song is off of their self-titled EP, which I consider one of the best EP’s ever put out. I honestly listened to these 6 songs over the course of 2 years more than any other album or artist. The sheer aggression in their sound is incomparible. Even the most hardcore of hardcore metal bands fail to capture the aggression that Colour Revolt acheives on this EP.

Colour Revolt-Change Your Face or Change Your Name (removed 2/13/09)

The second song is from their newest release (March 2008) “Plunder, Beg, and Curse”. After 2 years of waiting and anticipating their first full length album under the name Colour Revolt (they released an album under the name “Fletcher” in 2003), I will admit I was a little nervous. I was afraid that I had hyped up this release too much and that it could never match the expectations that its predecessor demanded. Fortunately, this was not the case.

Colour Revolt-Swamp (removed 2/13/09)

This last song is another off “Plunder, Beg, Curse”, but just to show you their brilliance and range I am going to include a version they did for Daytrotter.

Colour Revolt- Naked & Red (removed 2/13/09)

Colour Revolt- Naked & Red (Daytrotter Session) (removed 2/13/09)

And since this is a preview for a live music event, I thought I should also include a live performance.

I hope your ears bleed the colours of the rainbow.

ACL Preview – Beck

Brady — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 11:06:06 +0000

Beck, everyone’s favorite beat-dropping Scientologist, is all set for his headlining gig on the second night of ACL Fest this year. Hot off the heels of the critically acclaimed Modern Guilt, which showcased a more somber, decidedly sparse soundscape, the musical chameleon will visit Austin before meandering his way through a string of shows in the chilly Northeast. It seems likely that Beck’s live act will very much resemble his new aesthetic; in a recent Pitchfork interview, when asked if the stage puppets from last tour would make a reappearance, Beck answered gravely that the new tour wouldn’t feature “anything [he] felt was a gimmick”. Bummer! But puppets or no, Beck’s performance promises plenty of great tunes, new and old.

Since his smash hit “Loser” in 1994, Beck has explored nearly every persona known to popular music, and this artistic schizophrenia makes him one of the most exciting musicians of our time. A conscious effort to invent, to avoid creative complacency, drives Beck’s career, and I urge anyone attending the festival this year to grab the closest piece of lawn around. It will be arguably the best show of the weekend. Have fun!

Here is one of our favorites off of the new album.

Beck – Walls

And here is a fun cover of the late great Daniel Johnston that I just recently stumbled upon. Hope your ears bleed.

Beck – True Love Will Find You in the End

ACL Preview – A.A. Bondy

Nathan — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 12:07:03 +0000

He’s just another name on the never-ending list of acoustic folk singer-songwriters. Or is he? Scott Bondy, like my last ACL highlight, has totally reinvented himself for his newest release. The former frontman of the 90′s grunge-rock outfit Verbena, who now performs under the moniker A.A. Bondy, has just released his first solo effort, American Hearts. And I am here to tell you that this musical transformation is worth your attention, especially if you are planning on attending the Austin City Limits music festival. I am having a hard time putting into words why this guy stands out among the ever-growing mass of aspiring musicians armed with nothing but an acoustic guitar. How about this. His music sort of exudes a similar sense of honesty and sincerity you get from guys like Ray Lamontagne, Ryan Adams, and Bob Dylan. Not really sure what that means, except for that I think that he deserves some of the respect that these guys are getting.

In all seriousness I think one of the easiest ways for me to describe him would be an American version of Fionn Regan. I can’t believe that it took me this long to hear one of the best alt-country albums of the past decade. Had I heard it just a couple months earlier, it would have had a real good shot of making my top ten list. So please check it out. I have here for your listening pleasure, the title track from American Hearts and then a traditional track he recorded for Daytrotter that he heard from a guy named Blind Willie McTell. I have no doubt that after hearing these songs that A.A. Bondy will end up on your must-see list for ACL.

A.A. Bondy – American Hearts (removed 2/13/09)

A.A. Bondy – You Got To Die (Daytrotter Session) (removed 2/13/09)

“When you hear this song, I hope your ears bleed.”

ACL Preview – City and Colour

Nathan — Mon, 19 May 2008 04:50:28 +0000

so i had mentioned about a month ago, when the acl lineup was announced, that i would start writing about the artists i think you would like to see if you were to attend. well here is my first attempt at fulfilling that promise. i actually found this band through the austin city limits web-site. i had never heard of them before, and come to find out it’s not actually a “them,” rather, it is a guy named dallas green, who used to be the lead singer of a band called alexisonfire, and this is his first attempt at a solo project. now if you have heard of alexisonfire (pronounced “alexis on fire”), you might be surprised that i would be writing about this guy, cause i am pretty sure they are a hard-core band that is way out of my taste. but this new project of his can be easily categorized as an acoustic singer/songwriter gig. his sophomore release, bring me your love, which just came out earlier this year, is done so well and and his voice sounds so confident in this role, one would assume that he’s a veteran of the indie-acoustic scene. but i think it is only a matter of time before he becomes a staple in the indie geeks ipod. so if you are lucky enough to attend acl this september, make sure to catch city and colour. you won’t be disappointed.

here is the music video for the first single, and probably my favorite track off of the new album.

and one for the road. i hope thine ears bleedeth.

city and colour – body in a box (removed 8/28)

Austin City Limits Lineup Out

Nathan — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 22:40:50 +0000

so i opened my inbox this morning and to my delight, i discoverd that acl has announced its 2008 lineup. which in my opinion is something to get excited about. they have the foo fighters headlining which i found to be an odd pick and not one that i would have made. but the rest of lineup is pretty stellar. it’s not that i don’t enjoy the foo fighters, i think dave grohl is incredibly talented, his music for the most part doesn’t fit the mold of what acl has been about in my opinion. but i am sure that they will put on a great show. i had many friends that saw them this spring in fayetteville and they all seemed to enjoy it. but here is a list of some of the other bands that i am excited to see on the lineup this year.

robert plant & allison krauss

beck

david byrne (former lead singer of the talking heads)

john fogerty

conor oberst and the mystical valley band

patty griffin

tegan & sara

iron & wine

band of horses

the swell season (these are the guys that did the soundtrack to the movie “once”)

jakob dylan and the gold mountain rebels

okkervil river

vampire weekend

drive-by truckers

jose gonzalez

jenny lewis

m. ward

mgmt

colour revolt

and those are the just the ones i am most excited about, in my opinion this is the best lineup they have brought us yet. so for those of ya’ll who have never been to an austin city limits music festival before, this is the year. and for those of ya’ll who weren’t convinced to go just by reading this list over the next severalmonths i will do an artist spotlight on all of the bands that i love that will be performing at acl this year. so look forward to that. but for now here is one of my favorites to hold you over. i hope your ears bleed (but not too much)

foo fighters – my hero (removed 8/28)

{democracy:4}