A beautifully shot video for Future Islands’ Seasons. Next up, Painted Palms has a new (somewhat mediocre) video for Forever, but I am liking the new album, and that 5 o’clock stash. Finally we have Peter Morén (Peter, Bjorn & John) with Say My Name.
The bonus today is Mary J. Blige showing she’s still got it, with Disclosure for F for You .
It’s hard to believe it’s been almost 3 years since I saw JD Samson & MEN, but since then, they have a new album out that’s better than their last. I have high hopes for this show, particularly being in the Tavern, and with two strong local openers The Very Knees and Blisse, you should get there early!
Their upbeat, and uptempo music is an easy win for a great show. Check it out below… It’s been a while since I’ve seen a show at Wilbert’s, so I’ll be glad to get back there and see what’s changed (and grab a bite to eat).
One week before I host my next house House Concert - I was able to head over to a random house in University Heights to catch Alec Ounsworth, the lead singer of one of my favorite bands (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah). He’s using that Undertow service to host an all house concert tour - what a great idea. This show left me thinking even more highly of Alec and his talent. His voice in this setting was amazing… Getting to hear CYHSY songs in this new format was a real treat.
While Emancipator Ensemble was technically headlining this show, it was Odesza that put this show on my map. I did my research and was prepared for a great show by all the bands on this night. For me, it was also a fun night to have a great group of friends with me. We basically missed Real Magic opening, as we were having a blast in the bar just checking out and interacting with the interesting attendees to this performance. I did peel away finally to catch Odesza and they sounded great. Not quite the full-on dance show I was expecting, but there was definitely a groove to enjoy and dance to. Here’s a clip:
What surprised me about Emancipator were all the traditional instruments on stage! These guys also didn’t have any staged vocal microphones - at all. They did have one handheld for the occasional communique. But if you’re in the right headspace, they put out a great vibe. Did I mention this show had hoola hoopers as well??
All said & done, there was dancing this night, which is all I was really hoping for.
This was a kind of last minute show… I already had other plans, but have been hearing buzz about this new Man Man album. I listened and liked! Had some Modest Mouse elements that I’ve been missing… I also saw a clip of their live show which looked wacky - so it was totally worth popping in on to see what was going on.
Missing the openers, we were greeted with a nearly packed house at the Grog Shop! Love that we Clevelanders can make it out on a cold, blustery - and quite snowy - Thursday night! As for the show, these guys have Spirit! …and costumes. I can really appreciate the variation in beat and structure …and the crazy. Wish I were a little more cozy with the songs in advance, but I’d still give them a 7 on the DAKS scale.
And of course no pictures came out from my perspective, but this one probably catches the vibe in the room.
Check it out: http://research.google.com/bigpicture/music/
Google launch Music Timeline feature, charting the history of popular music | The Line Of Best Fit
"Google have today unveiled their new Music Timeline function, which allows users to track the entire history of popular music.
The timeline charts the emergence of different genres over time, marking out key releases and artists that contributed to their rise.
Drawing on popularity statistics from Google Play listens and purchases, you can track how popular different artists of different decades and genres are – even searching within the back-catalogue of a specific artist."
(Continued... Google launch Music Timeline feature, charting the history of popular music | The Line Of Best Fit)
It’s always a treat when Beachland hosts some pop/dance/electronic music. Friday night the place will hopefully be dance central with both Odesza and Emancipator performing. I’m more familiar with Odesza and have been really enjoying their stuff lately.
Emancipator is also quickly winning me over with a track like this…
As for the very first opener, anyone who covers Robyn is cool in my book… so get there early!
Finally - my first show of 2014. I scoured to find this show by Mikaela Davis, who I found mostly because any young woman touring with a full-size harp would catch my attention. I liked what I heard, but the real draw for me was our own local Leah Lou & the Two Left Shoes - who blew me away the last time I saw them opening up for Laura Stevenson in May. But first… Leah Marra opened the show. A strong voice and some serious talent. All she needs is a little more comfort and conversation on stage…
For Leah Lou & the Two Left Shows, I was so excited for that performance, and was so busy capturing some video, I totally forgot to take pics. Unfortunately the video didn’t come out all too well, which is a shame because they pulled off a killer Michael Jackson cover. :-/
Mikaela finished the night… For me, following Leah was a hard act to follow. She & her band were good. The harp was nice. More than anything, it was just great to be back at a show.
For this week’s Video Day, things just get a little weird. I love everything Austra does, except maybe this video for Hurt Me Now. Next is The Hidden Cameras with some odd-ball flash backs in time. Chris Garneau with a new video for Winter Song #1, a song that beautifully represents Winter… but the video, I’m not sure whats going on there.
Bonus, we’ll keep things interesting with this new video by gay rapper, Cakes Da Killa for Goodie Goodies.
I’m excited to have my next house concert planned! Save the date of Friday, January 31st. Austin Craig will be my 5th House Concert. Austin is a singer/songwriter from Akron (I believe) - at least Akron felt like his home town when I first caught him opening for Joe Pug at Musica. It didn’t take me long before I thought he would be great for my next show. I then got to catch him again at the Beachland. I think you guys will really like him.
Same rules as always. All proceeds go to the artist. I’ll have beer. Bring food if you’d like to share. Please RSVP on FaceBook - or email me at thezenderagenda@gmail.com. Hope to see you there!
March 14th & 15th at the Beachland Ballroom & Tavern
Cellar Door Rendezvous 2014 Announced | Cellar Door Cleveland
"Cellar Door Rendezvous is a Cleveland music festival focused on one thing only- Cleveland music. With 18 bands total, the festival boasts an impressive roster of some of Cleveland’s best artists, including The Lighthouse and The Whaler, Ohio Sky, Seafair, Captain Kidd, So Long Albatross, The Commonwealth, Thaddeus Anna Greene, NOMADS, and more."
(Continued... Cellar Door Rendezvous 2014 Announced | Cellar Door Cleveland)
A Cass McCombs double-header! First he assembles an odd collection of found video - that works. Next up is his video for Brighter, featuring Karen Black. Next up is Midlake’s video for the Old & the Young.
Bonus: Cazzette’s got something special with Run For Cover. The pigeons kinda make me feel like I’m back at my apt. back on Chester Ave.
One of my favorite Video Days in a while… Destruction galore on Ezra Furman’s “I Wanna Destroy Myself”. Wampire has a great visual video for Giants. Ha Ha Tonka experiences love in the afterlife with Dead to the World.
This bonus is from a new-to-me band called Hedley. Not a bad song, not a bad torso.
The last show for the year was seeing Roger Hoover & the Hurt at the Happy Dog - and I can’t imagine a better way to finish off the year. I would consider Roger Hoover as one of the first local performers that I fell in love with (his music I mean). Though I’d have no problem swooning for his raspy, earthy voice. And he’s just an all-around great guy, who still remembers me after all these years. Oh, and I was thrilled to see the Happy Dog was packed for him!
Wow, how time flies when there aren’t many concerts (and it’s the holidays). I still have 2 shows from 2013 to catch up on. This Aqueous show was a recommendation by a friend, to see a band of boys that can jam. Services as advertised. What I wasn’t expecting were all the hula hoopers - amazing.
Sure, technically Broccoli Samurai was the headliner, but we didn’t stay much longer. No offense guys.
Saturday, February 15th! I can’t say there are any blockbuster music acts, that I know of now… but definitely some of our best local bands will be showing their stuff. Read the details below.
Brite Winter Announces Expanded 2014 Lineup | Cellar Door Cleveland
"From its fledgling beginnings in the Flats to its eventual move to Ohio City, Brite Winter Festival has spent the last five years continually expanding. This year the festival of lights and sounds ambitiously boasts more than 70 artists scattered throughout four outdoor stages and six indoor stages.
In what will be the festival’s third year taking over the West 25th strip, the most significant change in scenery is the shift to the main stage hosted at Market Avenue / Market Square Park, a move that pulls it from the tucked away area behind the Old Angle and places the festival activities front and center. But Brite still commands the flipping of unconventional spaces and local businesses into venues, this time bringing Ohio City newcomer TownHall into the picture."
(Continued... Brite Winter Announces Expanded 2014 Lineup | Cellar Door Cleveland)
You may be aware that I’m a huge Sin Fang fan… That only continues with his newest, and more electronic KEXP performance! Check it out (just ignore his awkwardness):
I’ve been dying to see what would happen with the Bop Stop. It was too nice of a venue to sit unused.
The Music Settlement to settle into Bop Stop building on Cleveland's West Side - Cleveland Business News - Northeast Ohio and Cleveland - Crain's Cleveland Business
The Bop Stop jazz club on Detroit Avenue near downtown Cleveland will get a new hop in its step as it becomes part of The Music Settlement, a University Circle institution that offers music therapy, early childhood education and music instruction.
Music Settlement officials announced they have accepted a donation of the 4,100-square-foot Bop Stop building, 2920 Detroit Ave., and everything in it, including sound and lighting equipment, and tables and chairs. The donors are Ron Busch and Anita Nonneman, who built the Bop Stop at the Detroit Avenue location about 10 years ago. (They had closed Bop Stop's West Sixth Street location in October 2000 prior to the move to Detroit Avenue.)"
The LP Is Back - hypebot
The vinyl album LP continued its unlikely comeback in 2013, with sales in the United States reaching 6 million units. As opposed to CD sales which declined 14.5% and digital album sales which stagnated, LP sales grew by 32% from 4.55 million units in 2012. Overall album sales suffered an 8.4% decline, slumping to 289.4 million from 316 million units in 2012."
(Continued... The LP Is Back [CHART] - hypebot)
Another non-day-specific Video Day! I’ve actually been enjoying Lorde so far, and here’s her new one for Team. Next is another tour video (!) by HAERTS for This Is Wings. Finally we have Disclosure with Voices ft. Sasha Keable
Bonus this week goes to Pink Frost - who has an addictive video for Ruins. Great stuff.
Another change for the new year. I’m going to be dropping the “Tues” in “Video Tuesday”. Tying these to a specific day is just silly really, which I guess is why it started in the first place (back in 2010). We’ll just go with “Video Day” from now on, and put them up whenever I have some videos to share with you guys. Here’s the first:
Francis and the Lights for Like A Dream was a (very worthy) Blood Orange recommendation. Next up is Noah Gundersen who has an adorable music video for Ledges. And speaking of adorable, Brett Detar has a new video for Tried to Hate the Angels.
Bonus: Daft Punk’s new-ish one for Instant Crush
All good websites deserve a good icon set… you know, that bevy of images representing your identity on a bunch of social media sites, etc. TZA is a great way for me to experiment with these new tools and services. Follow along…
(actual links to each of these are located just down to the right)
