Video Du Jour: Justin Townes Earle

Here’s a video trailer for Justin Townes Earle’s new record, Nothing’s Gonna Change The Way You Feel About Me Now, which will be released March 27 on  Bloodshot Records.

Download the title track at Justin Townes Earle’s official website.

Party Hard! Time for SXSW

Andrew WK is going to be all over Austin this week

A few years ago, I made the mistake of taking my wife and kids to a free “side party” at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin.   It was a band from Canada, Priestess … and as they came on stage, before anyone strapped on an instrument, even before the introduction, one of the band members said, “We are going to fuck you!”  At that moment, my wife and daughter decided to wait in the car.

So here we are again, at the beginning of another big SXSW week in Texas, with an estimated 3,000 (lowball estimate) music acts set to perform, the city of Austin is beckoning.  When you get close enough, when you can smell the barbecue and almost taste the beer, the city leans in and whispers in your ear: “We are going to fuck you.”

Ho ho.  So we are going to jump right in.  We hope to see those crazy British rock-and-rollers the Jim Jones Revue, and we would kind of like to see Japandroids, Surfer Blood, The xx, Oh No Ono, Fucked Up, Dr. Dog or any of the other “buzz” bands appearing but realistically we may wind up seeing only one from the list above.  When I mean “we,” I mean my 15-year-old son and myself, plus my college-freshman daughter and her boyfriend.   That will tend to limit the field substantially.

Well, Andrew WK is playing about seven different venues during SXSW,

Court Yard Hounds

including a (scheduled) 3 a.m . show Saturday morning at the South by South Mess festival.  We’re gonna be there for that.  Jakob Dylan, with Neko Case and Kelly Hogan singing backup, will play a few spots including Rachael Ray’s big party at Stubb’s.  Pop folkie darlings She & Him, Justin Townes Earle and Bob Schneider are also on that bill – along with Andrew WK.  We’ll try and hit that one too.  Some other big names – like the Court Yard Hounds (two-thirds of the Dixie Chicks), Alejandro Escovedo, Ray Davies, Harper Simon (son of Paul) and Muse – are gonna play too. We have no chance in hell of seeing any of those (except for Escovedo, who will bring his Orchestra to play a big free South by San Jose show Friday night).  There’s a big outdoor gathering, the Mess with Texas party, and Saturday’s lineup includes over-the-top cartoon rockers Gwar, Crystal Antlers, Japandroids and our partyin’ buddy Andrew WK.  Yeah!

Tell you what – we’re gonna hit some of those, take a few photos and maybe some video and get back to you Saturday and Sunday.  If you’re coming down, go here or here or here to get a lineup of all the free stuff.  If not, check out our SXSW preview:

MP3: “Basic Space” by The xx

MP3: “Swim (To Reach The End)” by Surfer Blood

MP3: “No Epiphany” by Fucked Up

MP3: “Delight” by Court Yard Hounds

MP3: “Shooting Star” by Harper Simon

MP3: “In The Sun” by She & Him

MP3: “Nothing But The Whole Wide World” by Jakob Dylan w/Neko Case & Kelly Hogan

MP3: “Art Czars” by Japandroids

MP3: “Ladykiller” by Priestess

MP3: “Rock and Roll Psychosis” by the Jim Jones Revue

MP3: “Party (You Shout)” by Andrew WK

Official SXSW website

30 Days Out’s SXSW survival guide

Live: The Pogues, Houston

It wasn’t St. Patrick’s Day but Thursday night sure felt like it – or something like a wild, drunken Irish party – as the legendary Pogues rolled into town to play at the House of Blues.  This punk-Irish-rock unit hasn’t visited Texas in 20 years but here they were in all their glory and best of all, they were led by dissipated frontman Shane MacGowan, singing and smoking and drinking and slurring right where he belongs.

To see MacGowan in the flesh is to wonder how this man is alive at all. Obviously damaged by decades of boozing and whatever, MacGowan is a serious mess.  But he is also the brilliant songwriter who created the great songs that the Pogues are famous for.  And they rolled out one after another Thursday night: “The Broad Majestic Shannon,” “Sunny Side of the Street,” “A Pair of Brown Eyes,” “A Rainy Night in Soho” and so on.  As I said, brilliant – and MacGowan, magically, sang with growing strength as the nearly two-hour set wore on.  Was it the frenzy of the (obviously) alcohol-fueled crowd, or was it the glass of liquid he kept sipping (gin? vodka? water?) during the set?

Review: “Townes,” Steve Earle

Ever since he broke onto the scene in mid-1980s with Guitar Town and his brand rockin’ country, Steve Earle has always been misunderstood by Nashville, but not by me. To me, he’s always been great.  On his latest CD, Townes, he honors the man he calls the “best songwriter to ever walk the earth,” Townes Van Zandt, with a performance that is as good as it gets.

Texas Music

              

It’s springtime in Texas, and the bluebonnets have blossomed brilliantly along the miles of highways in the state.  And as the dust settled after the big South by Southwest (SXSW) festival we find a handful of worthy releases from artists in the Lone Star State.

It’s no secret that Steve Earle is a huge fan of fellow Texas singer/songwriter Townes Van Zandt.  In fact, Earle once said “Townes Van Zandt is the best songwriter in the whole world and I’ll stand on Bob Dylan’s coffee table in my cowboy boots and say that.”  So now Earle backs up his words with a whole album of Van Zandt songs, Townes, coming out May 12.  The two met way back in 1972 when Van Zandt heckled Earle during one of his very first shows.  I can see where that would lead to a beautiful friendship.

MP3: “Pancho and Lefty” by Steve Earle

Already out is Midnight at the Movies, the excellent new album from Justin Townes Earle (guess whose son).   This is the second solo album from a kid who knows who he wants to be, and to me he sounds like he wants to be an excellent songwriter and a man who can sing rings around a honky tonk song.

MP3: “Mama’s Eyes” by Justin Townes Earle

The Flatlanders are, of course, the trio of Texas super-songwriters Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock and Joe Ely.  These boys from Lubbock have achieved legendary status on their own, and reaching similiar notoriety as a collective (even though they formed the band way back in 1972).  Hills and Valleys is their third album, and it’s proof positive that some good things are worth waiting for.

MP3: “Homeland Refugee” by the Flatlanders

Cool Covers

 

Went to see this movie, The Watchmen, over the weekend.   So did a lot of other people, apparently – it’s the No. 1 movie right now.  This dark, violent superhero tale was pretty entertaining and had some fairly good choices of music on the soundtrack: “All Along The Watchtower” by Jimi Hendrix, “The Sounds of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel and a hilariously elongated version of Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A’ Changin’ ” over the opening credits montage.

But the most ear-catching tune is the one that plays as the closing credits roll: a rockin’ punk version of Dylan’s “Desolation Row” by My Chemical Romance.  The band is supposedly recording a followup to their hit album The Black Parade, and it’s been said the new work will be more “punk rock” than normal.   If their version of “Desolation Row” is any indication, it ought to be a fun listen.

MP3: “Desolation Row” by My Chemical Romance

Review: Roots Rockers

Don’t know if you are going to hit the road this summer, but if you do don’t forget to pack a radio.  That would be a cheap entertainment addition for any $4-a-gallon road trip and if you avoid Clear Channel-owned stations you might get lucky and hear some new stuff.  While exploring America, try and explore “Americana,” usually found on the left side of the FM radio dial.