For whatever reason, in music, as is the case in just about any other line of work, some days don’t glue themselves to the long term memory bank like the others. However, on any given night, certain indescribable circumstances can converge, lightning-and-a-bottle can be captured, magic can happen, and an unforgettable live music experience is forged deep into the hippocampus for both the fans and artists themselves. These are the concerts, life events, and peak professional moments we hoped to capture in this feature by asking a few standard questions about the year in music to some of our favorite artists.
This little corner of the Internet would not be possible without the hard work and support of the people below. We’ve got an eclectic confederation of folks keeping the wheels turning at LMB NOLA and we hope you enjoy reading our memories from the year in music.
Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey is bringing their latest record, The Race Riot Suite, on the road and they’ve been playing a slew of dates already ahead of tonight’s return to the stage up north in Arcata, CA. From what I saw of this band at this year’s High Sierra Music Festival, I will not be missing their show this Saturday night at Boom Boom Room (even if it’s after a long amazing day of free music in Golden Gate Park for Hardly Strictly Bluegrass).
Read on for the remaining dates on the tour… >>>
Like New Year’s Eve, Halloween is another holiday that a lot of bands choose to celebrate in style. There’s just something about mixing the live concert experience with all the fun and choas of Halloween that really brings out the freaks. While most bands typically play into the Halloween vibe in some way, touring bands often approach Halloween as an opportunity to really create a unique live music event. Just as we did with our New Year’s Eve concert round-up, we’ve compiled a list of Halloween concerts that will be going on this weekend (see below for the long list).
We have also noticed a few bands that are taking a similar approach to Halloween as Phish by doing some sort of “musical costume” and either covering another band’s music or playing a full show of thematic covers. Here are a few of the more interesting “musical costumes” we’ve seen announced this year:
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The live music universe is a world filled with ebbs and flows of energy; when things get busy, they really get busy and then there will be a down period. Suffice to say that in Chicago, right when that 90 day limit Lollapalooza puts on its performers finishes, October is busy. Everyone is touring. In addition, there have been a number of announcements of late pertaining to New Years Eve. So gathered here is a pretty solid compendium of who’s playing where on December 31st. The venue link will get you to ticket information for the mentioned shows.
- San Francisco may be the queen of NYE this year with eight shows slated for 12/31/08. Tea Leaf Green is setting up at Mezzanine while ALO will be at The Independent. The two heavy hitting shows are Les Claypool and Zappa Plays Zappa at the War Memorial Opera House while George Clinton and his crew will finish what The Greyboy Allstars start at The Warfield. That’s a tough decision.
- In CO, Widespread Panic and Yonder Mountain String Band are holding down the Pepsi Center, while Lotus will fill the Fox Theater up in Boulder.
- If San Fran’s got quantity then Atlanta has got the quality. STS9 sets up at The Tabernacle for another four night run; this has become the gold standard in NYE shows. Band of Horses has got two nights at the Variety Playhouse. Just up the road in Athens, Perpetual Groove plays the Georgia Theater.
- Chicago’s got two nice shows: Umphrey’s McGee moves their annual romp to the Auditorium Theater and at the Congress Theater, Justice will be making sure the hipsters get down — note: this is a DJ set.
- Some great jazz acts are heading home for the New Year’s. Soulive will be at the Paradise in Boston, Galactic will “laissez les bon temps rouler” at Tipitina’s Uptown and Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey heads home to the Blank Slate in Tulsa, OK.
- In New York, the home of New Year’s Eve, the big show is My Morning Jacket at Madison Square Garden. Yet, the Disco Biscuits will drop the heat on Nokia Time Square Theater for five nights and Gov’t Mule is playing the Hammerstein. Late night, the Duo and Surprise Me Mr. Davis will keep you up until the wee hours at B.B. Kings.
- The show of the evening may be Brothers Past making their return at The Note in West Chester, PA. Word is that this will be their last show. It is sold out, so have fun those of you attending; I caught a late night NYE show back in ’05 – ’06 and it was fire. Still the best cover of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” I’ve ever heard.
You guys thinking about New Years Eve yet? Drop a comment about the shows that are making you giddy with anticipation. Keep each other informed and we’ll pick up the slack. Hope everyone had a great weekend.
