Old News and Other Current Events

Here at rowjimmy.com, as we’ve pressed into the new year, I’ve continued to maintain my high standards of neglect. So, today, I’m going to fill you in on a slew old music news as well as a couple of current items.

“Why old news?”
C’mon, it’s not as if anyone is reading this to get the latest scoop.

So, what’s new?

 

Phish Summer Tour:

06/04 – Nikon at Jones Beach Theater – Wantagh, NY
06/05 – Nikon at Jones Beach Theater – Wantagh, NY
06/06 – Comcast Center – Mansfield, MA
06/07 – Susquehanna Bank Center – Camden, NJ
06/09 – Asheville Civic Center – Asheville, NC
06/16 – Fox Theatre – St. Louis, MO
06/18 – Post Gazette Pavilion – Burgettstown, PA
06/19 – Verizon Wireless Music Center – Noblesville, IN
06/20 – Alpine Valley – East Troy, WI
06/21 – Alpine Valley – East Troy, WI

Pretty cool little run if you live on the East Coast. The Asheville show is pretty small (fewer than 8000) but the St. Louis show is crazy small (approx. 5000.) Good luck to those trying to get into that one.

If those dates don’t suit you, do not despair. Word is that West Coast dates are pending for late Summer. Also, watch for the Bonnaroo line-up to be announced on Feb. 3.
Edit to add: Red Rocks, too!

The lottery for Phish Ticketing is open now. Click here to get in on the action.

 

 

 

‘The Dead’ will be hitting the road this Spring on what’s become a somewhat controversial tour. The so-called “core-four” (Lesh, Weir, Kreutzman, Hart) have hired Warren Haynes to sling the lead guitar and Ratdog’s keyboardist to fill out the stage, replicating the favorably reviewed line-up from the recent Barack Obama fundraiser.

The controversy arises from the ticket prices. While not “Rolling Stones” high, tickets for this tour are nearly double what Phish is charging for their shows. Add to that the outrageous “VIP” bundles that sell “premium” seats along with special entrances, posters and a private cash bar for nearly $500 per person. The pre-sale has already begun and tickets ARE selling but, I’m afraid that you won’t see me at the local shows.

 

Instead, I’m planning to catch Keller Williams whose Winter > Spring solo tour gets underway this week. I taped his annual Xmas SPCA Benefit last month am had a great time. You can stream and download the show here.
Check out Keller’s website for more music, tourdates, tickets and more: http://www.kellerwilliams.net.

 

 

 

Speaking of taping, I’ve had the pleasure of taping several local bands in my neighborhood venue over the past few weeks. Prize Money, from the Charlottesville area, and Seven Minutes, from Richmond, played a hot rock show at The Loft in Fredericksburg, VA. The following week, local reggae band, The Transmitters made the walls sweat as they, accompanied by a three-piece horn section, danced through two great sets of original reggae laced with a couple of old favorites. I’ll see about posting streams from each show up here soon.

 

 

Lastly, I just got word that The Decemberists are offering a free mp3 of a song from their upcoming album, The Hazards Of Love. The song is entitled, “The Rake” and is available at http://www.decemberists.com.  Also, be sure to check out their singer/songwriter, Colin Meloy, this afternoon on World Cafe on XPN (http://xpn.org)

 

Thanks to Here Comes The Flood for the Decemberists tip!

New Year, Old Habits

So, 2009 is here and I haven’t even bothered to write to congratulate you for surviving ’08.

Let’s recap, shall we?

My son was born in May.
The United States elected an African-American to the Presidency.
Phish announced a reunion.
And some other stuff happened, too.

That about sums it up, right?

Anyway, I’m mostly writing this to see if I can manage to post from my new iPod. If you’re reading this, it worked.

Oh, and where will that image show up, I wonder? It should be a cute shot of Emmet from our Holiday Card photo shoot. (I think it comes up below this here text so I’ll stop typing.)

Writing… 

(The following is transcribed from a pocket-sized notebook.)

I used to tell people, “That’s just my job to pay the bills, feed the kids and all that. That’s not who I am.” But that’s really just a line. I’ve probably said that more to convince myself than anyone else.

“No,” I’d tell them. “I’m actually a writer. I write fiction, lyrics, whatever.”

But it’s all bull.

I do, sometimes, compose such things but, as the saying famously declares, “A Writer Writes.” Wannabes,  like myself, who go a month at a time without so much as a journal entry, are not writers. We are our jobs first and the act of writing is *gasp* a hobby. It’s a hobby that I’ll not likely convert into a future or even so much as a past-time because I lack the discipline to put a pen to paper more than once in a while. It’s not as if I don’t have ideas or passions and the time is there if I am willing to take it; it’s just that the easy path is so damned appealing.

I can ride this train each night to the end of the line with my ipod screwed into my ears and eyes closed, copping a few extra minutes of sleep. That’s cake. Inspiration strikes when it’s ready and I’m not so lazy as to ignore it but I’m also not so motivated as to keep the ink flowing in hopes that additional wit might sneak onto the page.

I’ve written a few good songs in 2008. That’s my honest (if not modest) opinion. I wonder, however, if I couldn’t have written a few more had been I writing on the regular as I did many years ago. Always, when I have been more diligent as a writer, have I produced a greater volume of presentable material. The amount of dreck increases too but, to sit idly and wait for quality to fall out of the sky seems remarkably ego-maniacal.

And so, as I made a New Year’s resolution several years ago to make no further New Year’s resolutions, I am hoping and aspiring (but not resolving) to write more in 2009. This goes for all formats: this little book, my blog, song lyrics, love letters, and epic diatribes to politicians and old friends.

I won’t aspire to be a better or successful writer- just, simply, a writer. I will endeavor to undo the silence of my apathy and give textual voice to the thoughts, questions, and images in my mind. 

Plus, there’s that cycle of dirty song parodies that I’ve always wanted to write…

-jmh

Favorite Albums of 2008

It’s that time of year again when we share with you what didn’t suck about 2008. This list is a subjective list of favorites rather than some attempt to objectively detail the supposed “Best”. As an objective reviewer, I get bored so allow me to tell you about ten great records that will continue to get some play as we go into 2009. after which I’ll mention a few additional good records and some stinkers, too! 
(Listed in alphabetical order.)

 

Beck – Modern Guilt

 Beck

This one, I reviewed at length earlier this year. It is still one of my favorite Beck albums and a highlight of the year. Read the full review here: http://www.rowjimmy.com/archives/136

Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago

Bon Iver

This record slays me. Largely acoustic, it is passionate, smart, and heartbreaking. Recommended for rainy days in a window seat…

Deerhunter – Microcastle

Deerhunter

I was aware of Deerhunter but had never heard their work until (I think it may have been) NPR’s All Songs Considered that turned me on to this album. Part of me thinks that this may be as close as we’ll ever get to a followup to My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless. The guitars wash in waves over the listener in just the right way. The songs fade and give way to one another in a mindful succession that insists (but does not require) a straight-through listen. When the title track,  “Microcastle”, kicks in after two minutes, I challenge you to sit still and unaffected. The inclusion of an entire second album is a wonderful bonus.

Dr. Dog – Fate

Dr. Dog

Building on the late works of The Beatles and the early works of The Band, Dr. Dog has created a stunning album of ear-catching melodies and striking lyrics. Explorations of spirituality, romance, and the weight of time fill this record along with some terrific playing and singing. This is one of those records that I can listen to again and again and I have been doing exactly that since I first came across it.

Continue reading →

Friday Morning Rant

I just have to get a little something off my chest.  I have a long, weekday, commute.  It involves trains (real, diesel, trains), subway, and a bit of walking and driving on each end.  It makes for a long day and, for better or worse, permits me contact with a great many people.  From the nice folks whom I see daily on my train to the random newspaper vendors/coupon pushers/donut salesmen outside the subway stops.

It is to the latter collective, specifically those at Foggy Bottom, that I address my next thoughts:

At seven a.m. on Friday morning, it is not appropriate to wish me a nice weekend.  You want to wish me well?  How about, “good luck crossing the street on the way to work” before we get all ahead of ourselves and talk about the weekend.  I still have to survive the morning and the afternoon before I can even begin thinking about the weekend because, if drop my focus for a minute, some asshole in a truck is going to come around the corner and ruin my whole day.  And my weekend.  That could be either a figurative or a literal truck.  Who knows.  If I’m busy thinking about drinking beers on Sunday afternoon, I may never know what hit me.

So you save your “Have a Good Weekend” for some one who has Friday off.  Maybe for the college student struggling with her suitcase en route to the airport, or the hospital patient in the paper gown and robe who’s smoking a cigarette and leaning on his IV stand.  Perhaps you could call up someone in Asia where it’s already afternoon and their weekend is actually upon them. Or, maybe, you could save it for me, when I’m hauling ass home tonight. You’ve almost made me more paranoid than usual as I go through my morning; worried that my next step will be upon a land mine of weekend work.

Thanks a lot.

 

Thank you for hearing me out, folks. 

Be careful out there.