Alex Salcido

Spring-ing into action

books, Concert Listings, Music

Last things first if you’re into Devo (and if you’re not, why read this blog?): there’s a free The Beginning Was The End book event tonight at the OTR Stillhouse, courtesy of our friends at the Mercantile Library.

Details and the free registration link are here. I’ll see you there – I’ll be the guy wearing the Energy Dome.

Let’s take a gander at the music shows coming our way.

Tomorrow night, catch Mom Jeans at Bogart’s

Thursday:

  • Colin Hay is coming all the way from the Land Down Under to the Taft Theatre
  • Brandy Clark and Hayes Carll play the Ludlow Garage
  • Less Than Jake (no relation to Better than Ezra) plays Bogart’s
  • Too Many Zooz (more like too many z’s) plays Madison Theater
  • Bumpin’ Uglies and Bikini Trill play Madison Live

Friday it’s time for a Come to Jesus session. Jesus Jones, that is, at Ludlow Garage.

On Saturday, Alex Salcido of The Harmed Brothers plays Camp Springs Tavern, and the Madison Theater hosts the jam band Spafford. (No relation to Susan Stafford, the original letter-turner on “Wheel of Fortune.”)

Blues dude Noah Wotherspoon plays the Rabbit Hash General Store’s “Sunday Music Behind the Stove” series on 3/21 – music starts at 2:30.

Breaking news: this coming Monday, we’re shutting down our music blog.

Beach Fossils are at Bogart’s next Tuesday, 4/2 with Nation of Language.

TC Superstar plays a free show at MOTR next Wednesday, 4/3.

I really hope their band name is a tribute to T.C. the true superstar of “Magnum, P.I.” (apologies to Larry Manetti).

Shows next Thursday, April 4th:

  • Raul Malo of The Mavericks brings his amazing voice to Ludlow Garage
  • Chicago Farmer & the Fieldnotes play Southgate with Joe’s Truck Stop
  • Camp Springs Tavern hosts their bi-weekly Bluegrass Jam

On Friday, April 5th:

  • William Fitzsimmons plays Southgate
  • The Rabbit Hash String Band will be at Plain Folk Café in Pleasant Plain, OH
  • Badfish (a tribute to Sublime… or to gas station sushi) plays the Madison Theater

Ludlow Garage hosts Dave Mason’s Traffic Jam on Saturday, 4/6.

The Tillers play the Rabbit Hash Music Behind the Stove series on Sunday, 4/7.

Supremely talented singer/songwriter John Moreland plays Ludlow Garage on Thursday, April 11th.

That same evening, Brothers Osborne play the Mike Brady.

Hot Ticket Alert!

The Violent Femmes are playing the old Annie’s on Friday, May 17th. Not only that, but they’re playing their first two albums cover to cover!

Get yer tix here.

And come November 3rd, Drive-by Truckers will be bring their Southern Rock Opera Revisited Tour to Bogart’s. Let there be rock!

Tickets for that gig go on sale to the general public on this Friday.

Podcast Promo/Hot FREE Ticket Alert!

If you’re old enough to remember the 1990s, and if you’re even slightly into music, and you appreciate great writing, you really owe it to yourself to check out the 60 Songs That Explain the ’90s podcast.

Rob Harvilla, a senior staff writer for The Ringer, spends each episode breaking down a single song from the ’90s. Actually, he spends about half of each episode on a series of digressions, often about his time growing up in northern Ohio in the 90s, before finally getting to the featured song. And the digressions are great – brilliantly written, completely engaging, and typically hilarious… and the humor is usually self-deprecating.

Rob’s written a book to accompany the podcast, and he’ll be talking about both at the OTR Stillhouse on Friday, April 26th. Better yet, list member Jay Stowe will be conducting the interview!

It’s yet another freebie from our friends at the Mercantile Library. Sign up here. (Unfortunately that event is the same night as the Guided by Voices/Wussy show at Madison Theater, so I’ll have to cut out early to get across the river in time for Wussy’s set.)

Speaking of Wussy…

They’ll be playing a trio house concert (Chuck, Lisa, Mark) at Casa de Dubbatrubba on Friday, May 10th. If you’re keeping score at home, this’ll be their third home show at my home. Much to my utter delight… and my wife’s ever-increasing odds for sainthood.

Hot tunes

Waxahatchee’s new album Tigers Blood is fire.

The album’s songs got their live debut during a club show at the Empty Bottle in Chicago – check out some clips in this Stereogum article. (Hat tip to list member Joe Sampson for the link.) And here’s an interview with Katie Crutchfield in Pitchfork.

Cleveland’s own Dave Hill is right up there with Rob Harvilla on the writers-who-are-hilarious-and-musically-inclined scale. (Check out his books Parking the Moose, Tasteful Nudes and Dave Hill Doesn’t Live Here Anymore for proof.) Dave’s also a musician, and his band Valley Heat has a rockin’ new single out.

Here’s to Music Moms

I’m not a fan of The Facebooks, but I loved this post from Buffalo Tom bassist Chris Colbourn (and the comment from his bandmate Bill Janovitz):

(Hat tip to list member Lisa Collins for bringing it to my attention.)

Here’s to the faithful departed

R.I.P. Karl Wallinger (The Waterboys, World Party) and Eric Carmen (The Raspberries, cheesy movie soundtracks).

Video above courtesy of list member Todd Butler.

Album Cover of the Week(s)

Nothing says “raising hell” like a crewcut, a sports coat, and a piano singalong.

’tis the season… to ROCK!

Concert Listings, Music

Wow, can you believe it’s December already? I don’t think I’m ready for the “holiday of savings” or the “sale-a-bration” or the “December to Remember” or whatever other slogan some poor junior copywriter has to come up with (until s/he’s replaced by A.I.).

But I AM ready to rock… always. (And Alvvays!)

Let’s take a gander* at the upcoming shows.

*no relation to the Christmas goose… we hope, because if he is, we have some bad news to deliver.

Tonight:

  • Braxton Brewing’s Dark Charge release day features live music from Tracy Walker, Zeb South and Jeremy Short
  • Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real are at Bogart’s
  • Ben Levin 3 plays Wiedemann’s
  • Camp Springs Tavern has an evening with Alex Salcido (of The Harmed Bros.)
  • Ludlow Garage hosts Aja: a Tribute to Steely Dan
  • Ramblin’ Rob’s “Dead to the Core” show at Annie’s is a benefit for WAIF-FM
  • NoahIMean? and Tobotius of Animal Crackers host a turntable workshop at the Music Resource Center (tickets)

On Sunday, Jason’s Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening will be at the Greg Brady (because Greg was a rock god too!).

Want your own Johnny Bravo moment? On Tuesday, you can be a movie star! Jerry King & the Rivertown Ramblers will be playing a FREE show in the Southgate House’s Revival room. And the honky tonkers and rockabilly boppers in the crowd might end up in a movie, because the show is being filmed for an upcoming documentary. (More here.)

The Preservation Hall Brass Band plays a Creole Christmas show at Memorial Hall on Wednesday, and Meshuggah will be rocking the Jan Brady.

Pop (or bluegrass) quiz: “Kentucky Thunder” is:

  1. the street name for off-brand Oxycontin.
  2. Ricky Skaggs’ backing band.

Trick question… it’s both! But only #2 will be playing Memorial Hall (with Ricky) on Thursday.

That same evening, Steel Panther plays Bogart’s and Thunderstruck (“America’s AC/DC”) plays Annie’s.

On Friday:

  • Ben Levin plays Element Eatery
  • Ludlow Garage hosts Christmas with the Celts
  • Carriers play live at Music Resource Center

Next Saturday‘s smorgasbord:

  • Heartless Bastards play the Woodward
  • You can see Pigeons Playing Ping Pong (the band at the Madison Theater, or the YouTube channel from the comfort of your own home)
  • Welshly Arms will be arm’s length away at Madison Live
  • Mike & the Moonpies play Southgate, with Justin Wells and Erin Viancourt
  • LEZ Zeppelin will be in Ludlow Garage

On Thursday, 12/14, you can catch Tab Benoit and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band at Taft, or see A John Waters Christmas at Ludlow Garage.

On Friday, 12/15, Over the Rhine kicks off a three-day stand at Memorial Hall. (Sunday 12/17 show is at 4 p.m. for those who want to catch a show, catch the early bird special at Bob Evans, and catch a full night’s rest.)

Other 12/15 shows:

  • Pink Talking Fish (a fusion of Pink Floyd, Talking Heads and Phish) plays the Madison Theater
  • Bone Thugs-n-Harmony plays a hip-hop holiday show at the Ovation
  • Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits hosts an Olde English Christmas at Ludlow. That show might be BYOB:

On Saturday, Dec. 16th:

  • Mike Oberst & Justin Cefalu play Camp Springs Tavern
  • Motherfolk plays “A Very Motherfolk Christmas” at Bogart’s
  • The Atlanta Rhythm Section is so into the Ludlow Garage
  • Woodward Theater hosts a screening of Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr.

And on Sunday, 12/17, you can jazz up your life by seeing Ben Levin at Schwartz’s Point.

I’ll have a Blue(s) Christmas without you

Speaking o’ young Ben Levin, he’s hosting a great lineup of Blues artists for a good cause on Solstice evening:

I’ll have a Blue Christmas without Shane

R.I.P. Shane MacGowan of The Pogues. Worst teeth, best songs.

Stop me if you’ve heard this before…

Guided By Voices has a new album out. Nowhere To Go But Up is merely their 39th studio album, and only the third of this year.

And guess what? It rocks! Check out the Paste review. I love this line from it:

To be a Guided By Voices fan is to be happy within your place orbiting around a flaming sun that, somehow, still burns as aggressively as it did in the early 1990s.

Pat king, in his Paste review

Geddy Lee Effin’ Rocks!

Geddy wrote a memoir. This CBC interview is well worth watching. Here’s a quick clip where Ged talks about being a part of Canada’s premier power rock trio (suck it, Triumph!):

Album Cover(s) of the Week(s)

Seems like a kids album, right? Guess again, my friend:

If you have an especially keen eye (or too much time on your hands), you might’ve also noticed the song entitled “Marty Feldman Two Step.”

This album seems pretty innocuous too… I was afraid to check out the track list.