Nah, not really. There’s absolutely no movie. Actually, this is a semi-post, semi-announcement, semi-plead-for-input sort of a beast. Here’s what it all boils down to:
I’ve managed to score a press pass for the Austin City Limits Music Festival, courtesy of Blogcritics. This means several things. First of all, it means I’m going to ACL for the second time in as many years, and without having payed for either experience. That’s pretty awesome in and of itself. It also means I can sell my two day passes I’d previously acquired. No, I’m doing any scalping – my friend Nick is picking them up at cost, theoretically in exchange for allowing me to crash at his apartment in Austin.
With regard to all of you internet-people: no, this isn’t a meaningless gloat (though that would be horrifically annoying, huh?). This is where the announcement bit comes in: I’ll be working with the wonderful editors over at Blogcritics to produce a three-part series covering ACL, hopefully published at the end of each day of ACL (Friday-Sunday, October 2-4). Additionally, I’ll be tweeting the whole business, which you’ll be able to follow here. Finally, I’m trying to arrange an interview with Suckers, an indie-rock outfit from Brooklyn, New York. That’ll go up on Independent Clauses, which I’ve mentioned so many times previously that if you haven’t checked it out already, there’s probably something wrong with you.
See all that? I’m earning my keep with this press pass. Don’t think I’m not!
Finally, there’s this: I don’t know all of the bands that are playing. Sure, there’s a list I can look over, and a handy schedule with which to figure out where I should be at any given time, but there are over 100 bands that will be performing over three days. Frankly, I haven’t heard of half of them, and I don’t want to miss any wonderful indie-gems just because I don’t know how awesome they are. Check out my planned schedule below, and if you think I should make any changes, don’t hesitate to let me know!
Aaaaaaaaand we’re back. After an almost-week-long break from the cutthroat world of blogging, I’m back with a vengeance, yo. That being said, I am now of the opinion that taking breaks makes you lazy. It’s been a long 48 hours, so forgive the brevity of this post. Here’s a quick look at some of the more interesting music I’ve been listening to recently:
Boy and the Bird EP
Merykid:
I had the pleasure of reviewing this guy’s album for Independent Clauses. It’s singer-songwriter, but with a fresh sound that evokes the likes of Temposhark and Keaton Simons. His Bird and the Bees EP came out recently; it’s only six songs, but it’s all quality stuff. Continue reading →
This piece was first published on Independent Clauses. Too read my original article, click here.
I’m writing this review from Xishuangbanna, a region in southwestern China. It sits along the Mekong river, not very far from the borders of Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar. It’s hot, humid, and currently raining almost every day – monsoon season and all. You know how it goes. Anyway, the general attitude is very laid-back, not so much lazy as unwilling to move fast in the heat. I like it here. I like sitting here and drinking chilled mango juice, and I like listening to Tortoise’s new album while I’m doing it.
Beacons of Ancestorship is the name. It’s out June 23rd, fully five years after their last release. This thing has been a long time coming for fans of the band, and trust me, there are lots of them. Quick history lesson: Tortoise is a hugely important band. They’ve been around a while. Back in the early 1990s, they helped to create what is now known as post-rock. If you’re not familiar with the genre, it boils down to music that isn’t rock, but is played on rock instruments. It’s primarily instrumental, and almost always experimental. I like to think that post-rock bands don’t create songs, so much as things that grow and develop as the music continues. If that sounds silly, go listen to some music from the likes of Explosions In The Sky or Slint. You’ll know what I’m talking about.
As you kids may or may not know, depending on how regularly you frequent this blog, one of my other time-occupying, thought not necessarily money-paying jobs is writing music reviews for Independent Clauses. They usually cover unknown and unsigned bands, which is good in some respects and not in others. Good, in that I’m always discovering new music I like that nobody has ever heard of. Bad, in that some of them are really, truly, no-way-around-it horrible.
That being said, I’ve got the opportunity to review a relatively big band this week. It’s Tortoise, who have been around for quite some time and were instrumental in helping form and develop the post-rock genre while it was in its infancy. The thought of getting my grubby little hands on this album before most everyone else has got me giddy, and perhaps excessively excited. I don’t post a ton of music reviews to this blog – certainly not all the ones I write for IC – but rest assured, this one will be here. Beacons of Ancestorship is the name of the album; it’s out June 23rd and promises to be great from what I’ve heard so far.
If you’ve made it this far through your life without having heard this guys, shame on you. They’re awesome, post-rock trailblazers that are all about mixing and matching musical genres. Think jazz meets trance/electronic meets post-rock.
I just submitted my review to IC, and I’ll repost here once it goes live.
This piece was first published on Independent Clauses. You can find the original article here.
Nothing More
Nothing More’s new release The Few Not Fleeting is coming out this upcoming Saturday. I had a chance to visit with lead singer Jonny Hawkins about the album and the processes behind it. The physical interview is below. I also compiled a video, which can be seen here.
Nothing More has had a lot of changes in lineup. Can you tell me a little about the band’s history?
We didn’t quite get it right the first six times around, so seventh or eighth time’s the charm for us. The core of the band was always Mark Vollelunga, Josh Kercheville, and me, Jonny Hawkins. We went through bass players and singers like fast food, basically.
We finally teamed up with Daniel Oliver a little after Josh Klaus parted ways with the band. That really formed I think the real core of the band right there. Then we got Travis as our singer and released Madhatter’s Bliss, and after that, we got Trey Graham as our singer when he got off tour with Kelly Clarkson, and released Save You/Save Me. And I think Save You/Save Me was our first big push, in regards to touring, and playing with 30 Seconds to Mars, and Burden Brothers, and on the Warped Tour – stuff like that. Then things went south with our singer Trey. The whole time through all these people we never really quite felt like it was there yet, like it had sunk in and… I don’t really know how to describe it; it just didn’t have that peace.
Josh Kercheville ended up leaving the band, which was a big blow too, so that left it to Mark and Dan and I. I can honestly say I don’t think we’ve ever been happier creatively, through the writing process, playing live… I play all the drums on the album, but we hire a drummer for shows. He’s on contract for now, I don’t think I’m ready to give up all the drumming right yet, but I can say I’ve never been with somebody that I’ve been as open to the idea about potentially joining the band. He’s an amazing guitar player, drummer, writer, artist, so he brings a lot to the table.
How did you go from being the drummer to being lead singer?
I got kind of into a depression in the last year. I had a lot of stuff going on in my life with my mom and cancer, and Trey – we parted ways and it felt like the band wasn’t going to go anywhere. And I had this revelation that I told Mark one night. I was like, “I want to sing for the band.” Let me say this: first of all, my biggest fear has always been speaking in front of people. I would lose sleep in high school if I had to speak in front of the class the next day. I wouldn’t sleep the whole night! So the idea of getting in front of hundreds of people and singing was enormous. Second of all, I couldn’t sing. I was not a singer, I’d been a drummer my whole life.
I was like, I’m afraid to be in front of people and I can’t sing. That’s not a good combination for a lead singer, right? But I felt very passionate about music.
So the last year all the guys were like, “All right. Jonny, we believe in you, even though it sucks right now and you sound like crap.” I’m lucky to be with guys that… we know each other well, we believe in each other to the point of, even if it doesn’t make sense now, we support each other. And they supported me and believed in me, and I never could’ve done it if they hadn’t been there and believed in me. Continue reading →
I don’t generally repost the music reviews I write for Independent Clauses on here, but this is a special case. I’ve been watching Nothing More perform for about five years now. This Saturday, they’re releasing their sixth album, entitled The Few Not Fleeting. Below is my review.
Upcoming 2009 album The Few Not Fleeting by Nothing More pulls you in, and it pulls you in fast. It has great continuity over the course of the album; the whole thing is a stunning emotional journey. For the uninitiated, Nothing More plays progressive/alternative rock; their sound is equal parts 30 Seconds to Mars, Coheed & Cambria, Dredg, and Fair To Midland. This San Antonio-based rock band has been around since 2000, and they’ve been busy the whole time, mostly playing across Texas and Louisiana, including performances in the Taste of Chaos tour in 2007 and Warped Tour in 2008. The Few Not Fleeting is their sixth release.
Consistent across the songs on the album are a thick, richly blended sound from guitarist Mark Vollelunga and bassist Daniel Oliver, strong lead vocals by Jonny Hawkins and excellently harmonized backups, and perfectly matched drums, also by Jonny Hawkins (interestingly, Jonny transitioned from drummer to the role of lead singer over the past year; a temp drummer fills in at live shows). Production value on this CD is quite good, especially for an independent band. Despite all this, what I found most striking about the album are the lyrics; they are all inspired by things the band has gone through. It lends a genuine quality to their performance.
“Gone” is my favorite track for the album. It opens with an ethereal electronic effect, and quickly transitions to Nothing More’s more typical guitar riffs and pounding drums. Over everything else, Jonny sings about the pain of his mother’s death; “I wish I’d never seen cancer / I’d die just to find that answer.” The emotional impact is practically overwhelming.
Rock anthem “Fat Kid” gives the album a helpful mood swing to the positive. Its tongue-in-cheek nature and rebellious nature are great fun, and when the chorus rolls around, you’ve just got to cheer. Lyrics proclaim, “I’m gonna rule the world, steal your girl / Not bad, not bad for a fat kid.” It’s an energetic song, celebrating the triumph of the underdog. Who doesn’t like that? I’ve had this album for a couple weeks now, and every time I hear the song I start singing along. If I’m alone, I might even dance. Continue reading →
This is a video I threw together to complement a CD review + interview that I wrote for Independent Clauses. After the pieces have been published on IC, I’ll repost them here. If you’re into prog/alt rock, Nothing More is worth a listen. Their latest album, titled The Few Not Fleeting, drops in five days on February 21st.
This piece was first published on Blogcritics. You can view the original article here.
I’m a sucker for percussion ensembles. They’re classical, jazz, and avant garde all rolled into one. More often than not, they’re experimental, and eager to push the envelope. Mainstream examples include such productions as Stomp and Blue Man Group, but trust me, there’s way more to percussion ensembles than push brooms and painted men banging on tubes. That being said, when the University of Houston Percussion Ensemble released Not Here, But There, an album that has been in the works for some time now, I jumped at the chance to hear it.
Not Here, But There
The album opens with a bit of a bang – “Sprint” is a fun and energetic piece that features a strong marimba section, accented with the use of tambourine, snare, and bass drum, among others. It sets the tone for the rest of the work.
The title track, “Not Here, But There” is an incredibly dramatic piece. Starting off soft and almost haunting, it methodically gains energy and increasingly complex instrumentation as the song progresses. As with all songs on the album, marimba forms the backbone of this arrangement. Above that, use of wood blocks, chimes, and timpani provide powerful accompaniment and tone. A sequence of powerful crescendos and decrescendos solidified my opinion of the song.
Later, Not Here, But There gains some levity with “Circus Plenus Clamor Ingens Ianuae Tensae,” a lighthearted piece with amusing bits of technique sprinkled throughout. “Hohner,” a tribute to percussionist Robert Hohner, takes a completely different direction. It opens in pure chaos – cymbals, noisemakers, and gongs explode for a good twenty
five seconds and then disappear, only to forcefully reappear again and again. Over the course of the song (weighing in at over 14 minutes), the tones varies drastically, from the chaotic beginning, to a portion at 4:03 that was described to me by one of the members of the ensemble as “the pirate part,” to a section of interacting timpani and marimba that alternates between sounding joyous and frantic. Continue reading →
This review was first published on Blogcritics. You can see the original article here.
I’ve got a confession to make: before writing this review, I hadn’t heard any music by Phoenix Rising. Their work isn’t the sort that I tend to play on a regular basis. That being said, I’m thoroughly impressed with what I’ve heard, and I’ve enjoyed getting a feel for their style over the past several days. They sound like classical music if a hippy jazz musician got his hands on it. Phoenix Rising primarily plays new-age and ambient, but also throws in bits of classical, jazz, and world music. Continue reading →
My name is Brian Murff, and Tech + Lifestyle is my blog. I’m a freelance writer / tech blogger, and I spend altogether way too much time on my computer. This is a product of that time. Tech+ Lifestyle may or may not cater to nerds, geeks, gamers, techies, hipsters, hippies, treehuggers, headbangers, and whatever else I feel like writing about.
If you’ve got any questions, or want to rant about how much I suck, or say how wonderful everything is that I write, contact me at techpluslifestyle@gmail.com