Barnstormer 5 at Chaseland barn. New Wilmington, PA

8/30/2011
       I guess it makes sense that the Barnstormer tour takes place in rural barns but it still seemed like an odd place for a concert to me. But as it turns out the Chaseland barn turned out to be the perfect venue for a great night of alternative rock/ alt country music. I was truly surprised by the quality of all the bands on the tour and the unique setting just added to the experience.

I missed the first band (Hacienda) to play but got there in time to catch most of Doug Paisley's set. Paisley is an alt-country singer from Toronto and this was his first night on the Barnstormer tour. Paisley has a warm voice and a folk/country sound that recalls fellow Canadian Gordon Lightfoot.

Princeton was a little too '80s for me with their multiple keyboard setup but I did like their dry ice effects although I initially thought the barn was on fire. Later in the night the lead singer got trashed and began screaming and yelling and running around the Chase pool until someone dumped him into it. Rock and Roll.

Wildfire was my favorite band of the night. Their raw power and vocal harmonizing reminded me of Arcade Fire. The lead singer did the whole show in some kind of medical boot because apparently he had broke his foot recently.  I had about a 30 minute chat with the band after the show. Like Doug Paisley they are from Toronto and were completely mystified about how people can bear to live in rural Pennsylvania.

I have a soft spot for White Rabbits since the band was initially formed in Columbia, Missouri although they are based out of Brooklyn now. I liked their sound although the plunky keyboard playing of the lead singer reminded me too much of  Coldplay.

Christopher Paul Stelling finished off the night with a strong acoustic set. His best moments were when he harmonized with his girlfriend (?) and her hippie hat. I enjoyed their take on this Hank Williams classic.

Lyle Lovett, Stage AE, Pittsburgh PA

8/23/2011
     On a whim I decided to check out my old friend Lyle Lovett at Stage AE in downtown Pittsburgh last Tuesday and was pleasantly surprised by both. I have been a fan of Lovett since his great album Pontiac and saw him about 8 years ago over in Station Square. Back in those days Lyle traveled with his "big" band which was composed of an entire horn section for his ventures into big band type jazz and rhythm and blues. These days he travels with his "large" band which is still quite extensive with multiple vocalists but no horn section. The sound wasn't quite as rich but the band still sounded great.
    This was my first trip to Stage AE, the new mid-sized venue in downtown Pittsburgh and for the most part, I found it to be a great venue. It was much smaller than I had imagined it (this show was set up outside, they can turn the stage around for indoor shows as well) but the stage was large and there were lots of of drink vendors and nearby bathrooms, always important. One complaint about the venue is that it bumps up against Heinz Field and you could literally hear the sound bouncing off the stadium and creating an echo effect. Lovett even commented on how annoying it was during the show. This probably isn't a big deal with heavy metal or rap acts but for music like Lovett's it created a distracting reverb sound. I got one not great video of Lovett and part of the band and I will include it because it is my favorite song of his: If I Had A Boat.

If I had a boat
I'd go out on the ocean
And if I had a pony
I'd ride him on my boat
And we could all together
Go out on the ocean
Me upon my pony on my boat

If I were Roy Rogers
I'd sure enough be single
I couldn't bring myself to marrying old Dale
It'd just be me and Trigger
We'd go riding through them movies
Then we'd buy a boat and on the sea we'd sail

Frenchman Street and the French Quarter, New Orleans, LA

This was my second trip to New Orleans in less than a year and as usual, it didn't disappoint. On this particular trip I tried to spend more time in the sophisticated Frenchman Street area of the Quarter because eminent music critic Colin McGuire of PopMatters and The Frederick News-Post fame met me to check out the musical scene. But as is my habit I wandered the whole Quarter and found some of the best music on the sidewalks but we also managed to see well known NOLA personalities like Kermit Ruffin and John Boutté.

This first video was taken on Frenchman Street outside of d.b.a.'s. It is an excellent clip featuring a street brass band of two generations. The man in the white shirt playing trumpet is the father of four of the boys playing although he informed us that they all have different mothers. It is a long clip but watch the whole thing as it gets better as it goes along.

This a clip of John Boutté of Treme fame at d.b.a's. He gave a great performance and was one of the highlights of the trip. He did sing the Treme theme song at the end of the show but the crowd was too thick by then to get a video.

Another street band--this time a drum corp. 

Okay, I included this video even though the visuals aren't very good because it features Kermit Ruffins playing at his home base Vaughn's. The video quality is bad because they have no stage lights in this place and it turns into a dark swamp after about an hour. We talked to Kermit for about 15 minutes before the show which was a thrill.

I included this clip because this is a good example of a Cajun band singing in their traditional French slang dialect.

A nice little jazz combo on Bourbon Street of all places.

Dwayne Dopsie and the Hellraisers are always fun to watch. This clip is interesting because it was taken in the middle of the Red Dress Run for charity which is why there are so many men in the bar in red dresses. In case you were wondering.

Nice funk band upstairs at The Blue Nile on Frenchman Street.

More Dixieland oriented jazz--again on Bourbon Street of all places.

This jazz combo was recorded in the early evening at The Spotted Cat on Frenchman Street. It was a nice club that I had never been to before.

As always I end most days at NOLA with a visit to the Bonoffs--a long time zydeco favorite of mine.

Bob Dylan and Leon Russell, Nautica Pavilion, Cleveland Ohio

8/6/2011

Bob Dylan  and his band perform at Nautica Pavilion on the West Flats of Cleveland.

      Bob Dylan and Leon Russell both gave great performances last Saturday on a hot and muggy night in Cleveland. The show took place at the Nautica Pavilion on the West Flats (I know it has some new corporate name attached to it but I long ago stopped trying to keep track of such things),  The first that I noticed is what a great facility Nautica is and how much more impressive it is visually and acoustically than any similar sized venue in Pittsburgh..  I dare to say it is even better than AE Stage which I have not been to yet. I assume this simply because AE Stage is  an example of the new "black box" style of mid-sized arenas--functional but uncomfortable. At least from an aesthetic point of view there can be no comparison.
   The night began with an energetic set by Leon Russell. After clearing out a few frogs in his voice his singing was up excellent and his band was obviously enjoying playing in a larger venue than they are probably accustomed to playing. As always Leon's piano playing was superior but the one unnerving thing about his performance was that for some reason he took off his sunglasses for the last few songs. I can't remember any picture taken in the last 30 years that actually showed Leon's eyes so it was an eerie experience (I was in the second row so I could see them clearly). He looked a little like a large hairy Yoda.
   After an efficient break down and set up Bob Dylan's band took the stage about 30 minutes after Russell finished. The first thing that was unique about this show was that the entire band was dressed in beige suits although  Dylan maintained the same look he has had for the last few years with his porkpie hat and dark suit. Amazingly, I recognized the first five songs Dylan played and I even understood a vast majority of the lyrics. Unlike the charging blues band sound of the last few time I have seen Dylan, this time the band seemed to be going for a rockabilly, almost country sound. This allowed Dylan to focus less on his crummy keyboard and guitar playing and more on his singing which was typically croaky but almost melodic in spots. The most interesting thing about Dylan's performance was that he seemed almost jauntily happy, dancing at the  keyboard and smiling through several of the songs. I have seen him  when  he seemed visibly annoyed at the proceedings but on this night, he obviously was enjoying the crowd and the band. At one point he and the entire band burst into  laughter at what I suspect was a blown conclusion  to one of the longer songs. All in all a great night for music and as always at a Dylan show, an intriguing and unique crowd to watch during lulls in the music. No videos this time. The intellectual property police were working overtime. They wouldn't even  let me text during the concert. I did manage to sneak the pirate photo you see above.