Brandi Carlile Announces New Album & Tour

Between the lovely Neko and extremely talented Samantha Crain, some of my favorite albums of the year have been by female artists.  Not only do both of these girls have amazing voices, but they also write all of their own songs. Another girl that fits all those categories is singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile.  I haven’t had the chance to hear this record yet, but if her first to records are indicators of what we should expect, she’ll join Neko and Sam in the top half of my year end list.  The new record, Give Up the Ghost doesn’t have an official release date yet, but I’m sure it won’t be too long, because she sets off on the “Give Up the Ghost Traveling Show” on September 10th.  If you’ve never listened to Carlile before, here is a short little playlist for you with one of my favorites from each of her previous full-length albums and a great live cover song.

The Give Up the Ghost Traveling Show Dates

Sep 10             Salt Lake City, UT                   The Depot

Sep 11             Boulder, CO                            Chautauqua Auditorium

Sep 14             Kansas City, MO                     Beaumont Club

Sep 15             St. Louis, MO                          The Pageant

Sep 16             Indianapolis, IN                        Egyptian Room at the Murat Centre

Sep 17             Cincinnati, OH                          Madison Theater

Sep 21             Madison, WI                            Barrymore Theatre

Sep 23             Minneapolis, MN                     The O’Shaughnessy

Sep 25             Chicago, IL                              House of Blues

Sep 28             Ann Arbor, MI                         Michigan Theater

Sep 29             Toronto, Canada                      The Mod Club

Oct 1               Northampton, MA                    Calvin Theatre

Oct 2               Boston, MA                             House of Blues

Oct 3               New York, NY                        Beacon Theater

Oct 6               Philadelphia, PA                       Keswick Theatre

Oct 7               Washington, DC                       9:30 Club

Oct 8               Baltimore, MD                         Rams Head Live

Oct 10             Atlanta, GA                              Tabernacle

Oct 11             Birmingham, AL                       Workplay Soundstage

Oct 12             Fayetteville, AR                        Town Center

Oct 14             Tulsa, OK                                Cain’s Ballroom

Oct 15             Santa Fe, NM                          The Lensic Performing Arts Center

Oct 16             Tucson, AZ                              Rialto Theatre

Oct 17             Los Angeles, CA                      The Wiltern

Oct 20             San Francisco, CA                   Fillmore

Oct 22             Portland, OR                            Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall

Oct 24             Seattle, WA                             The Paramount

New Third Eye Blind EP

Third Eye Blind is coming out with their first new material in over five years.  That is right.  I was still in high school the last time these guys released an album.  And you can make fun of me all you want, but I am looking forward to hearing the new EP, Red Star. These guys might just be the epitomy of pop candy. They are the kind of stuff that when taken in small doses can get you on a real high. But too much of them will make you sick. The first single is pretty ridiculous, but I enjoyed it none-the-less.  Don’t get me wrong, they sucked it up when I saw them open for Counting Crows, and they aren’t even in the same league as most of the artist we write about on here. But that doesn’t mean they can’t provide a great time with a song that has a killer hook, a catchy melody, and a sing-along chorus.  Again, be careful to take this in small doses…or your ears might literally bleed.

Third Eye Blind – Non-Dairy Creamer (removed 2/13/09)

Olympics Playlist

There are a few things that get me to sit on my butt and stare at a television set all day long and not regret doing so.  And on that short list along with March Madness and the World Cup, is the Olympics. The Olympics is the most recent addition to this list, because 2004 was the first time I really watched the Olympics.  And then I only really watched it because I wanted to spend time with this really hot girl I liked (who I later decided to marry). Anyway I decided that this event was worth of a post.  So here is my post in honor of the opening ceremonies for the Olympics.

So China in my opinion really raised the bar when it came to  the opening ceremonies.  I really enjoyed watching the theatrics of it all.  They continued to just wow the crowd and the millions watching all over the world.   So in honor of the events that have taken place and are going to be happening for next couple of weeks, I have created a little olympic-style playlist for you all. If you like you can leave a comment and vote for your favorite songs and then maybe I’ll hand out some medals. Anyway. Here is the playlist. Hope your ears bleed.

1. The Neighborhood – China Boy (removed 2/13/09)

2. Counting Crows – Holiday In Spain (removed 2/13/09)

3. Beirut – Postcards From Italy (removed 2/13/09)

4. James Taylor – Mexico (removed 2/13/09)

5. Five Iron Frenzy – Oh, Canada (removed 2/13/09)

6. Wilco – Impossible Germany (removed 2/13/09)

7. Jets to Brazil – Sweet Avenue (removed 2/13/09)

8. The Shins – Australia (removed 2/13/09)

9. Spoon – My Little Japanese Cigarette Case (removed 2/13/09)

10. The Beach Boys – Surfin’ U.S.A. (removed 2/13/09)

Counting Crows – Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings

i had some high expectations for this album. i had the opportunity to see the crows play live last august on the minor league baseball park tour, which was absolutely incredible. adam duritz is an amazing performer. during that show, he played a couple of songs from the new album and then described to us the theme around which their then upcoming album was based around. the album, released back in march, is a concept album. the first half, called saturday nights, duritz said was about the sin and the debauchery and just about screwing up, and then the sunday mornings is more about dealing with the effects of those saturday nights. and he said that the music of each would fit with its corresponding theme. one of the ways they went about achieving this is by having two different guys produce the separate halves of the album. gil norton, who produced the foo fighters most recent and jimmy eat world’s futures, did the first six tracks (saturday nights) and the closer. and then brian deck, who produced iron and wine’s most recent and josh ritter’s animal years, did the rest (sunday mornings). so obviously i was really excited about this idea, especially about the sunday mornings part, because i typically like more sad and melancholy songs. but saturday nights wasn’t quite as rock n’ roll as i expected. and i expected saturday mornings to be more stripped down and to have a more somber tone in sound. and so far i love the saturday nights and have been slightly disappointed with the sunday mornings, which is not the reaction i expected to have. but if my past experience is any indication of how i will respond, i’m sure i will grow to love the sunday mornings just as much if not more. because some of my favorites, such as anna begins and raining in baltimore took many many listens before they became my favorites.

i was surprised though as i listened to the lyrics to see the way that duritz decided to portray the different times. i just assumed that he had bought into our culture and would see the fun, and the fulfillment that goes along with the saturday night lifestyle and then not until sunday morning did i expect him to deal with the reality and the loneliness of it all. but i think the characters living in this saturday night world are dealing with the despair that they are succumbing themselves to by seeking fulfillment in all the wrong places. and then sunday mornings they are looking back with regret in a more raw and subdued state of mind. in no way can this album be described as cheery. there is no hangin’ around-like pick me up track. but that is ok with me and i think that this is definitely going to be an album that i will enjoy for years to come.

counting crows – los angeles (lost during a site crash 7/23)