Stones Reissue Exile w/Bonus Tracks

When I read that The Rolling Stones' reissue of Exile On Main Street was going to be loaded with bonus tracks, I got excited. My excitement was tempered, however, upon reading that the band were going to tamper with some of the songs.

On May 18th, Universal Music Group is re-releasing the album with 10 never-before-heard tracks, including “Plundered My Soul,” “Dancing in the Light,” “Following the River” and “Pass the Wine". The disc also features alternate versions of “Soul Survivor” and “Loving Cup.”

“I went back in the archives and dug out a load of things,” he says. “I added some percussion and some vocals. Keith put guitar on one or two.” Jagger wrote fresh lyrics for “Following the River,” but other than some light revisions to the other songs, “I really wanted to leave them pretty much as they were,” Keith Richards says.

Why would Great Grampa Jagger record vocals for an Exile-era song now? Just let it be. Put something in the liner notes saying, "We were really fucked up on heroin at this time and never got around to putting vocals on some songs and this is one of them."

And what are the other bonus tracks? The article linked to above only has six of the ten. Are we going to get "Exile On Main St. Blues", "Hillside Blues", "I Ain't Signifying", "Ain't Gonna Lie", or "Travelin' Man"? Were "Potted Shrimp", "Aladdin Story", and "Leather Jacket" done during the Exile sessions or an early version of "Silver Train"? These last four songs were recorded during the Sticky Fingers sessions but the band tended to drag their leftovers from one session to another so there's a lot of tunes to choose from.

Stick Men Coming to Milwaukee

Stick Men, featuring King Crimson alums Tony Levin and Pat Mastelotto as well as Michael Bernier, will be at Shank Hall on 17 May. Tickets are $20.

Iron Maiden: New Album, Tour w/Dream Theater

Mullets will be flying this summer as Iron Maiden announce a new album and tour which will see Dream Theater opening.

Metal legends Iron Maiden have revealed the title of their new album, The Final Frontier and details of their highly anticipated 2010 North American tour, announced Live Nation today. With 22 dates confirmed, the Live Nation promoted tour will open in Dallas, Texas, on June 9 and finish in Washington D.C. on July 20, making it their most extensive North American tour in many years.

And, go figure, the closest they'll get to us here in Madison is Chicago with a show on 18 July at the First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre. Perhaps they'll reward any Cheeseheads who go with an all-star jam on "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son".

Gogol Bordello's Transcontinental Love Devastations

Gogol Bordello have announced the release of their new album, Trans-Continental Hustle, on 27 April to be followed by a tour.

On Trans-Continental Hustle, Hutz’s experience-driven-Gonzo-mania is transformed into a seeker of harmony and understanding. Songs on Trans-Continental Hustle bring the listener straight into the heart of the situation whether it be joining forces with gypsies of Brazil as on “Uma Menina Uma Cigana,” melancholy strike in the midst of carnival near death experiences as on “Sun on My Side” or themes of transcontinental love devastations.

The closest stop for the band to Madison is in Chicago at the Congress Theatre on the 23rd of April.

White Stripes Doc - Under Great Northern White Lights

The White Stripes have a tour documentary that's beginning to make the rounds - Under Great Northern White Lights. Unfortunately, the only showing in anything approaching close proximity to Madison is at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago - today only.

Here's the trailer.

Show #207: Wilco in Madison '10

(Photo found at 77 Square.)

Wilco made one of their routine stops here in Madison last month and during the performance frontman Jeff Tweedy lovingly mocked the audience by noting that Duluth, MN appreciates the band more than we do.

"Last night, the mayor of Duluth made us an honorary Duluth band. And we've only played there twice. How many times have we played Madison? A lot. No key to the city, no certificate, nothing."

This spurred the City Council into action and the illustrious body immediately made the band honorary citizens of Madison. Regardless of whether or not you think such things are a waste of Council time, Wilco certainly play here frequently and as Jesse Russell of Dane 101 noted, the band continues to play in Madison despite all their fame, which is more than can be said for many rock groups.

And so to mark the occasion, here's the first half of Wilco's show from last month. It was at the Overture Center on the 20th.

Setlist:

Wilco (the Song)
Bull Black Nova
You Are My Face
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
One Wing
Shot In the Arm
Sonny Feeling
Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again)
Deeper Down
Impossible Germany
When the Roses Bloom Again (!)
Country Disappeared
Handshake Drugs

Download show

Wilco

There are several clips from this concert on YouTube. Here's "Jesus, Etc."

Show #206: Los Lobos Goes Disney

(Photo from the Daily Bruin.)

Los Lobos have covered a helluva lot of territory in their long career. The ingredients in their musical stew start down at the border with conjunto and other Mexican genres along with blues, R&B, a dash of country, and a good dose of rock'n'roll. Then in 1988 Los Lobos entered the realm of showtunes by contributing "I Wanna Be Like You (The Monkey Song)" to the compilation album Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films. And last fall the band released Los Lobos Goes Disney which includes the above song as a dozen others from various Disney film soundtracks which get the LL treatment.

I'm not sure how much the band toured in support of the Disney album but I grabbed this recording which is of a concert for kids that features most of the album plus the odd track like the "Handy Manny Theme Song" (I had to look this up – it's a Disney TV show) and the obligatory "La Bamba". It was from their 30 January 2010 matinee show at Royce Hall on the UCLA campus.

Setlist:

Heigh-Ho
Cruella De Vil
The Bare Necessities
I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)
Handy Manny Theme Song
La, La, La
Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
Oo-De-Lally
Bella Notte
Route 90
Grim Grinning Ghosts
The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room
Not in Nottingham
Guantanamera
La Bamba/Good Lovin'/La Bamba

Download show

Los Lobos

I wasn't able to find any footage on YouTube from this performance but did find them doing "I Wan'na Be Like You (The Monkey Song)" at the Fillmore on an unknown date.

Show #205: Huun Huur Tu

(Photo from The Rex Report.)

A little over a week ago I attended a concert by Huun Huur Tu down at the Stoughton Opera House. (You can read my review here.) I was suitably impressed and sought out any HHT bootlegs I could find. Luckily, there was a handful to be had including this one which is the first show of their current North American tour.

The tour kicked off on 7 February in Hollywood, CA with a free performance at Amoeba Music Store. Carmen Rizzo did not add his electronic treatments at this gig. This is a really nice audience recording. The setlist I have is tentative and any corrections are welcome.

Setlist:

Prayer / Oske Cherde
Saryglar
Altai-Sayan Tandy Uula
Chiraa-Khoor
Kongurei
Odugen Taiga

Download show

Huun Huur Tu

Shemekia Copeland @ Majestic Theatre, 27 February 2010

Last Thursday it was off to the Majestic to see Shemekia Copeland. It had been just under a year since her last visit to Madison and it was nice to see her back so soon.

As with her show last March at the High Noon Saloon, she drew much of the set from her latest album Never Going Back. And one of the highlights from the show had to be the song from which the album gets its title, "Never Going Back to Memphis". It burns slowly against a calypso-like beat with some great dynamics giving Copeland ample time to really let it loose and belt it out. Other new songs were the gospel rave-up "Big Brand New Religion" and "Born a Penny".

But the show wasn't a complete replica of her last stop here. She relayed to the audience that after her show at the High Noon, someone had told her that she forgot to play "Ghetto Child". The slow gospel-flavored song is from her very first album Turn Up the Heat and it proved to be one of the standout moments of the night. In the middle of the song she stepped away from the mic to the edge of the stage to sing out the chorus. It was a spine-tingling moment.

We probably won't see her again for a couple more years but I am certainly looking forward to it.

Madison's own Cash Box Kings opened. I'm generally ambivalent about them but when Chicago southsider Oscar Wilson joined the band onstage, I became a fan. He adds a grittiness that the band otherwise lacks. They have a new album out now or will be soon which I'm going to have to give a listen.

Huun Huur Tu @ Stoughton Opera House, 27 February 2010

The Stoughton Opera House scored a real coup by getting the Tuvan band Huun Huur Tu to play there Saturday night. They even dragged along their friend L.A. electronica muso Carmen Rizzo who added his talent to their latest album Eternal. And to the credit of people in the area, the place had a very nice crowd which I'd estimate to be in the area of 250 who come out to see a unique hybrid of Tuvan music & throat singing and electronic beats.

Joel Shanahan of the A.V. Club Madison has a good review up and I'm going to steal some of his information.

The night began with "Orphaned Land". Rizzo provided a drum loop with the four band members playing on top of it. Honestly, it didn't do much for me and I was hoping that either the electronic elements became less obtrusive or that there would be all acoustic interludes. Luckily both came to fruition. The second song also featured Rizzo but his loop and synth embellishments were more restrained and fit with Huun Huur Tu’s omphaloskeptic mood piece much better. For the remainder of the first set, it was the band alone. After the intermission, the band returned with Rizzo once again taking to his electronics while the two encores were acoustic romps by the band.

Everyone juggled assorted instruments throughout the night. Radik Tyulyush, the newest member, alternated between the igil, a two-stringed instrument and one bows, and Tuvan flute. On the other side of the stage sat Alexei Saryglar who, when not playing the Tuvan equivalent of a bass drum with a string of bells strapped atop it, also played the igil. Sayan Bapa acted as emcee as well as playing doshpuluur, igil, and acoustic guitar. The doshpuluur is a Tuvan lute with three strings. Lastly, we have Kaigal-ool Khovalyg who played igil.

While all band members added their voice and, if memory serves, it was only Saryglar who did not do any of that magical throat singing which involves making two or more notes simultaneously, it was Khovalyg who did the most throat singing. Indeed, he did a solo piece which Bapa described as something to be sung from a Tuvan mountain top that was at once soothing and otherworldly. I believe they did "Yellow Horse", a performance of which from 2006 is below.



Igil aplenty here while Bapa's hands on the doshpuluur remind me of watching Les Claypool's bass gymnastics. Saryglar's percussion work is exquisitely simple yet more effective to my ears than most of the drum loops. I'm not trying to bash Rizzo here because I did like a lot of his Western electronic additions but there were also times when I felt that they were overdone and added a thick layer of sound when a patina would have been better. Fusing Western music with that of some other non-Western culture is tricky business and there are just times when drum boxes and synthesizers distract from songs that require a more plaintive, organic touch. Having said all that, Rizzo's contributions in the second set were, in my opinion, better than the first. They blended with the band better and evoked more of a Tuvan mood than one of Los Angeles.

I'll join Shanahan in hoping that the folks down in Stoughton book more world music.

Wilco to Become Honorary Madisonians?

Not to be outdone by a bunch of blue-faced drunken Finns up in Duluth, the Madison city council is set to deliberate over whether or not to make the guys in Wilco honorary citizens of Madison.

After receiving some admonishment from the rock band Wilco at their sold-out concert at the Overture Center last week, one City Council member is setting the record straight on the city's fondness for the frequent musical visitors by declaring them honorary citizens of this fine city.

"Last night, the mayor of Duluth made us an honorary Duluth band," Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy informed concert attendees on Saturday. "And we've only played there twice. How many times have we played Madison? A lot. No key to the city, no certificate, nothing."

Jesse Russell at Dane101 describes his Saul of Tarsus experience with the issue here. He makes a good point: Wilco didn't drop Madison from its touring itinerary when they hit the big time. Well, as big time as Wilco got, anyway.

Phish's Trey Anastasio to Induct Genesis into R'n'R HoF

Genesis are being inducted into the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame this year, although Peter Gabriel is bailing on the whole affair. It's too bad but not a big deal.

However, I thought it was interesting to read that Phish's Trey Anastasio was going to have the honors.

We’ve got big news about Big Red this morning, as the former 70 Volt Parade lead singer will induct Genesis into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in New York City on March 15. Anastasio has long professed his love for The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway and other early Genesis LPs and has cited the band as an influence.

I never knew he was such a big fan of The Lamb. However, I did know that Phish drummer Jon Fishman had professed his love of prog in the past.

Rush: The Documentary

A documentary with the rather bland title Rush: The Documentary may be released as early as this spring.

Rush are prog rock legends and will be inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame next month, so it's kind of hard to believe there's never been an official documentary made about them.

But that will change with Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen's aptly titled Rush: The Documentary, which could be released as early as May 18, according to Rush fansite Power Windows. No official announcement's been made yet.

The Toronto filmmakers are known for previous work like Global Metal and Heavy Metal: A Headbanger's Journey. They've been given exclusive access to the band's personal archives, according to Prog magazine, which also reports Rush: The Documentary will feature interviews with artists like Trent Reznor, Tool, Foo Fighters, KISS and Billy Corgan, who've all been inspired by Rush.

Hopefully there will be some time dedicated to all the air drummers at Rush concerts who can do "Tom Sawyer" in their sleep.

UW Metal & Prog Society

77 Square's cover story this week is a profile of these folks:



They are members of GRAMPS - Glorification Realization Appreciation of Metal and Prog Society - at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Welcome to the Glorification Realization Appreciation of Metal and Prog Society, aka GRAMPS. At a time when folk-rock and hip-hop rule the college scene, this growing society of metalheads and prog rock geeks at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is fueling the local scene for what they consider a marginalized genre.

Sophomores Max Rock and Aaron Bartholomew founded GRAMPS last year when they couldn’t find anything like it at a student org fair. The members meet socially, write a zine called Pantheon, play in bands, take field trips to out-of-town concerts and book bands on campus. The group started with 15 or 20 people. Now it claims a mailing list of more than 100.

“It’s very easy to get metalheads out to a show. Madison’s got a great metal community. They’ll come out to any show, any (sub)genre. There are very few purists,” said Ty Christian, Lords of the Trident’s lead singer.

Also of note is an upcoming gig here in Madison featuring Milwaukee-area chamber progsters Far Corner.

GRAMPS is planning a major show on April 17 in the Memorial Union, tentatively featuring Sleepytime Gorilla Museum from Oakland, Calif., plus local acts Far Corner, Erebus and Lords of the Trident.

Show #204: Peter Gabriel in Madtown Part 2

Last week I received a request for the second half of the Peter Gabriel show from 1982 here in Madison and I am happy to oblige. The first part is here.


(Photo by Carlos Policella.)

This was recorded on 30 November 1982 here in Madison, Wisconsin at the Civic Center. It's a good soundboard.

Setlist:

Intruder
I Go Swimming
Lay Your Hands On Me
Solsbury Hill
I Don't Remember
San Jacinto
On The Air (Cut)

Download show

Peter Gabriel

Here's PG doing "The Rhythm of the Heat" in 1982.