Compiled by Blurt Staff

57 channels and nothin’ on? Not likely. Here’s BLURT’s top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

9:00 AM Syndicated: Rachael Ray: KT Tunstall

11:00 AM Bravo: GLAAD Media Awards: Janet Jackson , Rufus Wainwright , Joss Stone

2:00 PM MOJO: London Live!: Morrissey , Mohair , Wolfmother , Goldfrapp

2:30 PM VH1C: 46664 - A Concert for Nelson Mandela

5:00 PM VH1C: The U.S. vs. John Lennon

6:00 PM RAVE HD: Later With Jools Holland: Paul Weller , Carlos Santana , Anthony Hamilton , Bettye Lavette , John Cale , Sheryl Crow More

8:00 PM VH1C: VH1 Goes Inside Yo! MTV Raps

9:00 PM VH1C: Beat Street (1984)

10:10 PM Sundance: Wetlands Preserved: The Story of an Activist Rock Club

11:35 PM CBS: The Late Show With David Letterman: Esperanza Spalding , Jack Black

11:35 PM NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Ed Harcourt

12:00 AM BET Jazz: Club J Concerts: George Clinton: Live at Montreaux - 2004

12:00 AM RAVE HD: The Dave Fanning Interview: R.E.M.

12:05 AM ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Secondhand Serenade

12:35 AM NBC: Late Night with Conan O'Brien: They Might Be Giants

12:37 AM CBS: The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Duffy [SEE OUR CD REVIEW OF DUFFY’S RECENT ALBUM Rockferry BELOW IN OUR REVIEWS SECTION]

1:35 AM NBC: Last Call with Carson Daly: Moby

Also headed to the Conan O’Brien show in July.

By Blurt Staff

KT Tunstall’s just announced dates for an August tour of America, featuring opening act Martha Wainwright. Said Tunstall in a press release, “I'm very excited to be bringing my vintage electric guitars over to the U.S. for this month, and mixing the acoustic roots of Eye to the Telescope with the more complex driving sounds of Drastic Fantastic.”

Tunstall’s European and North American acoustic spring 2008 tour, dubbed “The Campfire Tour,” “was a huge success,” Tunstall added. “It taught me to enjoy the subtleties of the set as much as the pedal-to-the-metal foot-stompers… My bar has been raised – I’ve realized what's possible…touring (a first album) with a band, seeing how that album can turn into something else on stage, and how we can actually make it better… It’s always been about getting onstage and trying to do a mind-blowing show. And if you’re playing the same set night after night, that means playing around with it, and experimenting with what you've got. It’s not a CD, it's a gig.”

Tunstall will perform on NBC’s Late Night with Conan O'Brien on July 15^th, with American pop-soul icon Daryl Hall.

Of additional note: Tunstall is a founding figure in the launch of Global Cool, an environmental issues action group. Tunstall is also affiliated with The CarbonNeutral Company, partnering with CarbonNeutral in a dedicate-a-tree plan in her native Scotland to offset the carbon footprint of her own career.

KT Tunstall Tour Dates:

August 1        Atlanta, GA @ Atlanta Botanical Gardens

August 2        New Brunswick, Canada @ Moncton Magnetic Hill Festival

(w/ The Eagles, John Fogerty, Sam Roberts)

August 3        West Hampton Beach, NY @ Westhampton Beach Performing Arts

August 4        Northampton, MA @ Calvin Theatre (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 6        Albany, NY @ Empire State Plaza (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 7        Fairfield, CT @ Fairfield Theatre (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 8        Atlantic City, NJ @ Borgata Music Box (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 9        Baltimore, MD @ Virgin Festival (w/ Foo Fighters, Bloc Party, etc)

August 11      Grand Rapids, MI @ Meijer Gardens (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 12      Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues Cleveland (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 13      Columbus, OH @ The LC Pavilion (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 14      Interlochen, MI @ Kresge Auditorium (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 15      Milwaukee, WI @ The Pabst Theatre (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 17      Lyons, CO @ Folks Festival (w/ Jakob Dylan, Missy Higgins, etc)

August 18      Denver, CO @ Denver Botanical (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 20      Salt Lake City, UT @ Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre (w/ Martha Wainwright)

August 22      Reno, NV @ Silver Legacy Resort Casino

August 23      Cle Elum, WA @ Suncadia Resort

August 24      Denver, CO @ Mile High Station

August 25      Aspen, CO @ Belly Up Aspen(w/ Martha Wainwright)

More fun than a barrelful of disco biscuits.

By Fred Mills

It’s July, which means family vacation time, and I know that most of you will be headed to Albany to check out the brand-new Eliot Spitzer Memorial S&M Dungeon. So while you’re up that way, why not pop over to nearby Mariaville afterwards — say, from July 17 – 19 — after your spouse has unshackled you and take her and the kids to camp. Camp Bisco, to be exact. Where the jamband, hip-hop and electronica communities come together to, uh, kick out the honkin’ jams.

As you all know, Camp Bisco is the brainchild of the mighty jamming Disco Biscuits. For their 7 installment they have amassed a roster of talent that includes Snoop Dogg, DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist, MSTRKRFT, III, Tea Leaf Green, RAQ, Telepath, Amplive and loads more. See below for the full lineup. In addition to two regular stages and a late night dance tent, they also just announced that there will now be a third stage this year “open only on Friday and Saturday, will feature a wide variety of electronic DJs, bands, and performing artists - including fire dancers, hoopers, and more.” Check out the Camp Bisco website for full details.

Meanwhile, BLURT and our friends at Music Allies are giving away a pair of tickets to Camp Bisco. Just click on the contest banner that appears at the top of the page and follow the instructions.

Camp Bisco VII Performers

The Disco Biscuits – all 3 nights; Snoop Dogg; DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist; Younger Brother Live Band; MSTRKRFT; SHPONGLE; The New Deal; 2020 Soundsystem; ! ! !; Fiction Plane; The Egg; Tea Leaf Green; Lotus; Bassnectar; Prometheus; DrFameus w/DJ Drizno (EdvsAL); LA Riots; DB; Pnuma Trio; Amplive; Lazaro Casanova; RAQ; Elliot Lipp “Live PA”; Ralph Lawson; Dubwar NYC; Future Rock; Figo; U-Melt; The Bridge; Telepath; Orchard Lounge; Grimace Federation; Strut; Zack Hagan (solo DJ & with Live Band 1050); Jamie McLean; Chameleon Project; Push; Jimkata; Ross D; Justin Paul; Kezner; DJ Everyday; Locality; DJ Punisher; John Overfiend; Sassmouth; Sci Fi; and Otherwise.

Yes, they really do wanna hurt him….

By Fred Mills

Well, if you were following the story over the past week or so, you saw this shit coming, didn’t you? Boy George’s visa has been denied by THA MAN (that would be the American government). In a statement, George said:
 
“I was really hoping that the issue would be resolved and that some kind soul at the US Visa Office would realize that if the police in the UK placed no restrictions on my movements, that should have been good enough for them.  I am very sorry that I will not see all my American fans this year, but I wish them a happy and healthy Fourth of July.  I include the Visa Office in those good wishes and realize they are doing a very difficult job and I just got unlucky.”
 
Boy George has a South American tour in September and a 25-date tour across the UK in October of this year. North American dates will reportedly be rescheduled for Winter 2009.

You can read our prior coverage on the Boy George brouhaha HERE, HERE and HERE.

Have a cigar, boy, Roy Harper’s back catalog going back into print!

By Fred Mills

Just issued by Koch is a collection of early titles from legendary UK folk-rock singer/songwriter Roy Harper — who, if you’ve been paying attention over the years, has had his praises sung by everyone from Led Zeppelin to Pink Floyd to Joanna Newsom. This marks the first official US release of albums previously only available as imports. Freshly restored and repackaged, they are released on Harper’s own Science Friction record label in exclusive distribution partnerships with Cadiz Music in UK and KOCH Entertainment in US.

Last week Cadiz issued four albums from Harper’s catalog via KOCH:

• Stormcock: from 1971, it’s re-released in a case-bound book and has been cited as a major influence by Johnny Marr and Joanna Newsom.
• Counter Culture: A double CD best-of compilation.
• Jugula: collaboration with Jimmy Page from Led Zep.
• Flat Baroque and Berserk:  featuring such songs as “Don’t You Grieve,” “I Hate the White Man,” and “Another Day.”

Additional forthcoming Harper titles to be released later in 2008 include: The Green Man, The Dream Society, The Unknown Soldier, and Death or Glory.  

In a statement, Harper noted, “I am delighted that Koch is releasing my albums in the USA. I was particularly impressed that Michael Rosenberg is a fan of my music. I am looking to come over to tour in 2009 with my new album.” Added Michael Rosenberg of KOCH, “Roy Harper is one of the most important songwriters of the rock era, period.   I’ve been a fan of his for decades, since discovering his music as a teenager.  Needless to say, we are thrilled to be working with him.”

About time old cricketer Harper returned to the American crease, eh?

Incidentally, if you go to Harper’s MySpace page, check out his blogs — he’s got two lengthy entries where he writes about the Stormcock album. Fascinating stuff.

Dig it — “both a Strat articulation and enough low-end heavy metal sound”…

By Blurt Staff

First we bring you news about the Stevie Ray Vaughan miniature Stratocaster. Now we’ve got the scoop on Fender’s new Billy Corgan Stratocaster — and this one is freakin’ full-sized, just right for your inner Smashing Pumpkins shredder. Read on….

Produced to Corgan’s exacting specifications.  The new Billy Corgan Stratocaster is an especially modern take on the iconic Fender Strat^® model, built especially for a high-gain sound and designed to create Corgan’s signature mid-’90s buzz saw tone.Fresh off the success of 2007’s critically-acclaimed and gold-certified Zeitgeist album and massive world tour, Corgan teamed with Fender to create the guitar he’s always dreamed of.  The guitar features three DiMarzio pickups (two of which are custom-wound for the instrument), a string-through hard-tail bridge, jumbo frets, a satin nitrocellulose lacquer finish and a vintage tweed case.  It is offered in an Olympic White finish, with a black pickguard or Black finish with a white pickguard, reflective of Corgan’s signature style.

“The versatility of this instrument is what impresses me and is why I’m really excited about this model,” Corgan said. “This guitar has both a Strat articulation and enough low-end heavy metal sound to get the ‘Sabbath’ out of the guitar I want.  My greatest go-to guitar got stolen at a Pumpkins club date in 1991, and I’ve always struggled since then to find a guitar that was my guitar.  I’m really pleased with this model’s versatility, which I need because I’m playing music from a 17-year period of the Pumpkins’ history—from spacey early stuff to grunge to all-out cyber metal, then back to ballads.”

“Billy owns a lot of vintage Strat guitars, but he was looking for a primary ‘go-to guitar,’ said Justin Norvell, Fender marketing director for electric guitars.  “Billy was very hands-on. We were bringing prototypes into the studio and rehearsal space while they were tracking the record, and did the fine-tuning on the specs while they were out on tour. Playing live and in the studio are two completely different things, so Billy wanted to be sure it met his needs in both arenas, so we worked together to make sure it was perfect.”

Perfect, we are sure of it.

Debuts on Anti- on July 22.

By Fred Mills

One Day As A Lion has just signed with Anti- Records to release their One Day As A Lion debut EP on July 22. Who, you ask, is One Day As A Lion? It’s Zack de la Rocha, from Rage Against The Machine of course, on vocals and keyboards, and drummer Jon Theodore.

From the band:

“One Day As A Lion is both a warning delivered and a promise kept.”

“A defiant affirmation of the possibilities that exist in the space between kick and snare.  It’s a sonic reflection of the visceral tension between a picturesque fabricated cultural landscape, and the brutal socioeconomic realities it attempts to mask.  One Day As A Lion is a recorded interaction between Zack de la Rocha and Jon Theodore from Los Angeles, California.”

“The name is taken from the infamous 1970 black and white, captured by legendary Chicano photographer George Rodriguez featuring a center framed tag on a white wall in an unspecified section of Boyle Heights.  It reads: ‘It’s better to live one day as a lion, than a thousand years as a lamb.’  This record is a stripped down attempt to realize this sentiment in sound.”

The band is so new it only got a MySpace page active last week, and both it and the official website don’t offer much info other than what we’re reporting here. No music samples yet, so keep checking back.

Track Listing:

01 - Wild International

02 – Ocean View

03 – Last Letter

04 – If You Fear Dying

05 – One Day As A Lion

Compiled by Blurt Staff

57 channels and nothin’ on? Not likely. Here’s BLURT’s top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

8:00 AM Biography: Loretta Lynn

9:00 AM HBOC: Blues Brothers (1980)

10:00 AM Great American Country: Master Series: John Hiatt

11:00 AM BET Jazz: Dizzy Gillespie: A Night In Tunisia

12:30 PM MHD: SoulStage: Erykah Badu

1:30 PM FUEL: Check 1, 2: Matt Costa

3:00 PM VH1C: Storytellers: Billy Idol

4:00 PM FUSE: Steven's Untitled Rock Show: Shwayze , Katy Perry , Lordz

5:30 PM Noggin: Yo Gabba Gabba!: Sugarland , Biz Markie

8:00 PM RAVE HD: Later With Jools Holland: Beck , Doves , Kubb , David Sanborn , M. Ward , Jools Holland

10:00 PM FUSE: Loaded: Lil' Wayne

11:35 PM CBS: The Late Show With David Letterman: Donna Summer

12:00 AM RAVE HD: From The Basement: Thom Yorke , Envelopes , Albert Hammond, Jr.

1:00 AM Oxygen: Singles (1992)

1:30 AM VH1C: The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash (1978)

1:35 AM NBC: Last Call with Carson Daly: Local H

American kids stoked on volume, velocity and punk-fueled vigor.

By Fred Mills

Radio Silence A Selected Visual History of American Hardcore Music is a forthcoming book from MTV Press documenting, via striking visuals, the rise of hardcore. Remember that? No, this ain’t some quaint nostalgia trip as most so-called revivals tend to pan out.

Rather, the 224-page book, according to the publisher, “documents an era when musicians and fans booked shows, photographed bands, started record labels, designed album covers and published zines themselves… Over 500 images of rare records, t-shirts, fanzines, illustrations and photographs of Black Flag, Big Boys, Rites of Spring, Agnostic Front, the groundbreaking fanzine Ulysses Speaks and much more.”

Authors Nathan Nedorostek and Anthony Pappalardo get assists from Dave Smalley, Jeff Nelson of Minor Threat and photographer Mark Owens, and the whole deal carries a distinctive whiff of you-are-there. Maybe some of you actually WERE there. (Remember when Rollins came out with his long hair just to piss everybody off?) Revisit it on Oct. 7. And you can check out the official website too.

"I mean.. we get shit from the local idiots just because we're putting out a record, can you believe that?" letter from Kevin Seconds to Ian Mackaye



"Hardcore was a reaction to punk...we made it faster, tougher, harder and better and changed it, morphed it made it unique and American..."  Dave Smalley, DYS, Dag Nasty

[Bad Brains at Viceroy Park, Charlotte 1-16-82 photo credit: Rusty Moore, Loud Fast Photo — check his website at www.loudfastphoto.com]

Meanwhile, let’s take a look at a Minor Threat live video of “In My Eyes,” shall we?

Also, if you hang out at YouTube searching for MT videos you can come across some pretty funny debates and flamewars between a bunch of dumbasses debating punk, hardcore, and whether Minor Threat was better than Rage Against the Machine!

All that and a link to an MP3, too!

By Fred Mills

Damien Jurado drops his new album Caught In the Trees Sept. 9 on Secretly Canadian. Not so coincidentally, that same week he heads out onto the road with with bandmates Jenna Conrad and Eric Fisher. You can read more about the album and check out an advance MP3 of the tune “Gillian Was A Horse,” by going to our June 20 news item on Jurado.

Damien Jurado Tour Dates:

9/7/08 Sacramento, CA - Harlow's
9/9/08 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
9/10/08 San Francisco, CA - The Independent
9/12/08 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
9/13/08 Seattle, WA - Triple Door
9/25/08 Chicago, IL - Schubas
9/29/08 Cambridge, MA - TT The Bear's

9/30/08 New York, NY- Mercury Lounge

10/1/08 Brooklyn, NY - Union Hall

10/2/08 Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel
10/3/08 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Chapel

10/4/08 Columbus, OH - Milo Arts

[Photo Credit: April Brimer]

New album Before the Quiet just out too.

By Blurt Staff

Controlled Bleeding, one of the earliest American acts to pioneer industrial music, is celebrating its 30 year anniversary with a free download of “Wall of China Love Letters,” the second track on Before the Quiet ( MVD Audio). Oddly, although the song was recorded in 1978, the abrasive, bouncing, instrumental could be a musical blueprint for the bands coming out of Williamsburg’s disco punk scene. See below for the MP3.

Although Controlled Bleeding has been and always will be lumped into the genre of old school industrial music, their earliest inspirations were steeped in the first wave of New York City punk bands like The Dictators, Dead Boys, the Ramones and the brooding technical brilliance of King Crimson, Mahavishnu Orchestra and Henry Cow. Before the Quiet,  a collection of music from the early formations of the group, infused with the hunger and intensity of youth, clearly illustrates the collision of these seemingly opposing influences. Recordings from 1978-1982, assembled by main man Paul Lemos capture the different early eras of the band. The album is an incredible peek back into the early days of "anything goes" alternative music.

Check out the band (and its many side projects):

Controlled Bleeding: www.controlledbleeding.com

Controlled Bleeding MySpace: www.myspace.com/controlledbleeding

Breastfed Yak: www.breastfedyak.com

Skin Chamber: www.skinchamber.com

Fat Hacker: www.fathacker.com

[Photo Credit: Paule Saviano]

“Wall Of China Love Letters”

Followup to critically-hailed 2006 platter.

By Fred Mills

BLURT faves the Cold War Kids will be dropping their new album  in September via Downtown. The album title is tba, but it’s the followup to 2006’s acclaimed robbers & cowards. Meanwhile, they’ll be prepping for a tour that officially starts September 20 in San Diego but will be preceded by a few festival warm-ups.

They've also posted a brand new in-studio video clip on their website: http://www.coldwarkids.com

Hey, long as you are thinking about the band, check out our little story on bassist Matt Maust’s book project.

 

Cold War Kids Tour Dates:


08/22/08    Outside Lands Festival, San Francisco, CA
 08/23/08    Sunset Junction Festival, Los Angeles, CA
 08/24/08    Les Schwab Amp, Bend, OR
09/20/08    Street Scene, San Diego, CA
09/27/08    Wonder Ballroom, Portland, OR
09/28/08    Richards on Richards, Vancouver, Canada
09/29/08    The Showbox at the Market, Seattle, WA
10/01/08    The Neurolux, Boise, ID
10/02/08    In The Venue, Salt Lake City, UT
10/03/08    Boulder Theatre, Boulder, CO
10/10/08    Fine Line Music Café, Minneapolis, MN
10/11/08    Vic Theatre,  Chicago, IL
10/14/08    Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA
10/15/08    Webster Hall, NYC
10/16/08    Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY
10/17/08    Theatre of the Living Arts, Philadelphia, PA
10/18/08    Nightclub 9:30, Washington, D.C.
 10/20/08    Cat's Cradle, Carrboro, NC
10/21/08    Mercy Lounge, Nashville, TN
10/23/08    Lola's, Ft. Worth, TX
10/24/08    Emo's Alt. Lounge-Outside, Austin, TX
10/25/08    Warehouse Live, Houston, TX
10/26/08    Voodoo Music Experience, New Orleans, LA

Solo tour from Kurt Wagner to follow.

By Fred Mills

It’s one of the more idiosyncratic album titles of the year thus far, but then, it’s by one of Americas most idiosyncratic combos. 'OH (ohio)' is by Nashville-based Americana eclectics Lambchop, and it’s due Oct. 7 from Merge.

According to Merge the record wax co-produced by the group's songwriter/vocalist  Kurt Wagner and part-time 'Chopper Mark Nevers, at the latter's Beech House studio. It features eleven new songs all written by Wagner, “notably the soul folk of ‘ Slipped Dissolved and Loosed,’  the galloping rhythms and chiming guitar-piano interplay of
‘ National Talk Like a Pirate Day,’  and the funky ‘ Popeye’  —  that have come to be a Lambchop hallmark.”

In a statement, Wagner commented on his group and its many changes over the years,  saying, "The last few years have been about a distillation of the collective into a core band: Tony Crow (piano), William Tyler (guitar), Matt Swanson (bass), Alex McManus (guitar) and now Ryan Norris (keyboards, guitar) and Scott Martin (drums). This is their sound, and it's Lambchop's sound. But Lambchop more and more has become a vehicle for my songs and myself as an artist. I've fought against that interpretation for twenty years, but now I've just given up trying to fight it anymore."

Wagner added that he is planning a U.S. solo tour around the release of 'OH (ohio).'

Woodstock veteran brings the noise with extensive tour.

By Blurt Staff

July 29 brings a new Richie Havens album, Nobody Left to Crown (Verve Records). Here’s the scoop from the label:

Gifted with one of the most recognizable voices in popular music, Richie Havens has a soulful singing style that remains as unique and ageless as when he first emerged from the Greenwich Village folk scene in the early 1960s. It's a voice that has inspired and electrified audiences from the Woodstock Music & Arts Fair in 1969, to the Clinton Presidential Inauguration in 1993 - coming full circle with the 30th Woodstock Anniversary celebration, "A Day In The Garden", in 1999. Richie Havens is not a man to easily abandon his hopes for a better world. "We are at the dawn of major change", he declares with a broad smile. Nobody Left to Crown is his heartfelt and unwavering contribution to these fine aspirations.

For over three decades, Richie has used his music to convey messages of brotherhood and personal freedom. With more than twenty-five albums released and a touring schedule that would kill many a younger man, he continues to view his calling as a higher one. As he told The Denver Post, "I really sing songs that move me. I'm not in show business; I'm in the communications business. That's what it's about for me.”

:

Richie Havens Tour Dates:

July 05 Guilfest Surrey England
July 06 Solidays Paris France
July 11 Bluesfest Windsor Windsor ON
July 12 Bluesfest London Downtown ON
July 20 Stephen's Talkhouse Amagansett NY
August 02 Newport Folk Festival Newport RI
August 03 Sleeping Bear Dunegrass and Blues Empire MI
August 07 Brooklyn Academy of Music Brooklyn NY
August 08 Reach Performing Arts Center Deer Isle ME
August 09 L. L. Bean Summer Concert Series Freeport ME
August 10 Nashua River Valley Folk Festival Lancaster MA
August 25-26 Mohegan Sun Casino Uncasville CT
August 29-31 Rhythm Festival 2008 Clapham, Bedfordshire, UK
September 05 The Ohio Theater Cleveland OH
September 06 Beverly Arts Center of Chicago Chicago IL
September 13 Tupelo Music Hall Londonderry NH
September 19 Le Poisson Rouge New York NY
September 20 Events Center at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts Bethel NY
September 26 Infinity Hall Norfolk CT
September 27 Jonathan's Ogunquit ME
September 28 Higher Ground S. Burlington VT
November 21 The Sellersville Theater Sellersville PA
November 22 Patchogue Theater Patchogue NY
November 28-29 Stone Mountain Arts Center Brownfield ME
December 11 Rhythm & Brews Chattanooga TN
December 13 WorkPlay Theatre Birmingham AL
January 16 One World Theater Austin TX
January 23 Anthology San Diego CA
January 24 The Palmdale Playhouse Palmdale CA
February 06 The Firehouse Coffeehouse Littleton MA
February 07 Veritas Auditorium Chicopee MA
February 20 Kirkland Performance Center Kirkland WA
February 28 Mariner Theatre Homer AK

Compiled by Blurt Staff

57 channels and nothin’ on? Not likely. Here’s BLURT’s top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

9:00 AM Biography: Mavericks: Honky Tonk Angels w/Patsy Cline , Loretta Lynn , Shania Twain , Ray Charles , Judy Collins , Kris Kristofferson

10:00 AM VH1C: BBC Crown Jewels: In Concert: James Taylor

12:00 PM VH1C: Aftermath: The Station Fire Five Years Later w/Twisted Sister , Tesla , Aaron Lewis , Winger , Eric Martin , John Rich

2:00 PM Biography: Mavericks: Honky Tonk Heroes w/Johnny Cash , George Jones , Toby Keith , Hank Williams Jr. , Waylon Jennings , Willie Nelson

2:00 PM MOJO: London Live!: Morning Runner , Richard Hawley , Primal Scream

4:00 PM FUSE: Steven's Untitled Rock Show: My Chemical Romance

4:50 PM MAX: Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny (2006)

5:30 PM Noggin: Yo Gabba Gabba!: Mya , Mark Mothersbaugh

6:30 PM ETMC: Standing in the Shadows of Motown

8:00 PM FUSE: Purple Rain (1984)

9:00 PM FUEL: The Daily Habit: Islands

10:00 PM RAVE HD: Later With Jools Holland: The Cure , Jackson Browne , Anita Baker , KT Tunstall , The Futureheads , Embrace (UK)

10:00 PM VH1C: NY77: The Coolest Year In Hell

10:00 PM Sundance: Live from Abbey Road: Panic at the Disco, David Gray & Suzanne Vega

11:00 PM MOJO: London Live!: The Charlatans

11:35 PM CBS: The Late Show With David Letterman: The Republic Tigers

12:00 AM VH1C: The Night James Brown Saved Boston

12:35 AM NBC: Late Night with Conan O'Brien: The Kills

1:35 AM NBC: Last Call with Carson Daly: Cloud Cult

What’s next, a documentary and a box set? Er, never mind…

By Fred Mills

First they rob his grave, then the steal the gravestone — Ian Curtis’, that is. The iconic Joy Division vocalist had his life and legacy disinterred in two recent films, Anton Corbijn’s Curtis biopic Control, and Grant Gee’s Joy division documentary Joy Division, and now we’ve learned via a BBC report that the memorial marker at Curtis’ grave was taken sometime between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

Curtis, who died in 1980, was buried in Cheshire in the Macclesfield Cemetery, and thieves took the marker which bore the legend Ian Curtis 18-5-80 Love Will Tear Us Apart. According to a police spokesman they have no leads in the case. “This is a very unusual theft,” he noted, however, “and I am confident that someone locally will have knowledge about who is responsible or where the memorial stone is at present."

Good point. And it’s not exactly the kind of thing you’re going to be able to flog on eBay, now, is it?

A representative from the Macclesfield Borough Council added, "I'm shocked this has happened. Someone's gone to a great deal of trouble to remove the memorial stone and I hope our appeal will help return it as soon as possible."

By the way, just kidding about that grave robbing remark above: both Control and Joy Division are outstanding films that do both Curtis and his band proud. And c’mon folks — return the goddam stone. That’s pretty low.

Arthur Lee & Co. finally get the documentary treatment.

By Blurt Staff

Due in stores July 22 is Love Story (Start Productions), a documentary of the late, great band Love by filmmakers Chris Hall and Mike Kerry. We’ve got an advance look at the film and you can read a review of it in our DVD section.

Before you check out the review, don’t miss the clip of the movie trailer we’ve nabbed for ya right here!

Love Story promo

Nashville nabob of non-negativity flips the bird at complacency.

By Blurt Staff

Whattaya get when you cross a smart-mouthed, literate singer-songwriter with the current social and political climate? Why, a new Todd Snider album, of course! Peace Queer, due out August 19, is, in Snider’s words, "a record of brevity, humor and hope." It’s the followup to 2006’s The Devil You Know, which wasn’t exactly short on brevity and humor and hope either.

The overtly political Peace Queer takes a bit of a left turn for the outspoken Snider, beginning with the cover photo, which depicts Snider being held at gunpoint by a shirtless hippie. "Clearly, anyone who looks at the photograph can tell that I had been abducted by an international league of peace queers and forced to write protest music. You know, for their cause," says Snider.

The eight tracks on Peace Queer include a Civil War sea shanty, a cover of CCR classic "Fortunate Son," a spoken-word number, a rocket-fueled meditation on contemporary culture ("Stuck On The Corner"), and a Fred Sanford-ish funeral dirge. The emotional centerpiece of the album is the wistful "Ponce Of The Flaming Peace Queer."

"Peace Queer is a six-song cycle, starting with a song called ‘Mission Accomplished’," Snider explains. "In six sentences, the record goes like this: Here’s the kid being told everything’s going to be great. Here’s the reality of that. Here’s that kid when he comes home a sad and banged-up and angry winner. Here’s the breakdown of why I think that’s happening. Here’s the guy in our culture that I think is causing that to happen, and it’s not a president. And then here’s what I think is going to happen to that guy. And then we roll credits."

On Peace Queer, those credits include Patty Griffin, Kevn Kinney, Don Heron, Doug Lancio, Will Kimbrough and others.

"Things happen in this album besides you being told that war is wrong, with a beat," Snider says. "I don’t know that war is wrong. I just know that I’m a peace queer, and I’m totally into it when people aren’t fighting, in my home, at the bar where I hang out, or in a field a million miles away."

Track Listing:

1. Mission Accomplished (because you gotta have faith)

2. The Ballad of Cape Henry

3. Fortunate Son

4. Is This Thing Working?

5. Stuck On The Corner (prelude to a heart attack)

6. Dividing The Estate (a heart attack)

7. Ponce of The Flaming Peace Queer

8. Is This Thing On?

Keepin’ it real across Europe, Australia and the Shire…

By Fred Mills

Underground hip-hop legend Lyrics Born dropped Everywhere At Once (Anti-) recently and is headed out on tour for an extensive trek across Europe and then to Australia.

And now there’s a video for first single “I Like It, I Love It.” For the vid Mr. Born teamed with Neon’s Nabil Elderkin and John Pina (Common, Kanye West, John Legend), and he portrays a wizard, a hippie and Mr. T, among others. You can check it out below, after the list of tour dates.

Lyrics Born Tour Dates:

4 July                         Belfort, France          Eurokennes Fest
5 July                         Werchter, Belgium   Werchter Fest
6 July                         London, UK              O2 Wireless Fest
10 July           Lisbon, Portugal       Lisbon Alive Fest
13 July           Rotterdam, NL          North Sea Jazz Fest
14 July           Vitoria, Spain                        Vitoria-Gasteiz Jazz Festival
16 July           Montreux, SWI          Montreux Jazz Festival
18 July           St. Polten, Austria    Nuke Festival
19 July           Bern, SWI                  Gurten Festival
20 July           Camden, UK             Dingwalls
21 July           Brighton, UK             Komedia
22 July           Edinburgh, UK         VooDoo Rooms
23 July           Nottingham, UK       The Rescue Rooms
24 July           Bristol, UK                 Thekla -
26 July           Manchester, UK       Mint Lounge
27 July           Liverpool, UK            Carling Academy 2
30 July           Ultrecht, NL               Tivoli
31 July           Amsterdam, NL        Melkweg
3 August        Byron Bay, AU          Splendor in the Grass Festival

5 August        Hobart, AU                Republic Bar
6 August        Adelaide, AU                        Electric Light Hotel
7 August        Perth, AU                   Capitol
8 August        Melbourne, AU         The Espy
9 August        Sydney, AU               The Forum
22 - 24 Aug   San Francisco, CA Outside Lands Festival -- Golden Gate Park

"I Like It, I Love It" video by Lyrics Born

“Wading in worse cacadoody than ever…”

By Blurt Staff

This just in…The Zappa Family Trust will make available the long-out-of-print Frank Zappa Beat The Boots series next Tuesday, July 8. But don’t rush out to your CD store: the material, 148 tracks in all, will only be available digitally at iTunes, Amazon, etc.

Interestingly, these will be the only authorized Frank Zappa albums available on iTunes.

Gail Zappa said in a statement, "Even though the polar caps are melting away at such a horrendous rate we will probably never need boots again except for wading in worse cacadoody than ever, you can finally get these Beat the Boots on iTunes just in time to be reminded of Liberation of another sort on the 4th of July."

The whole deal was set up through TuneCore, of whom Zappa noted, "We chose to use TuneCore because it's the fastest and easiest way to get Frank Zappa's music into iTunes, while keeping all of our rights and royalties in the process."

Jeff Price, CEO of TuneCore added, "Excited? What are you kidding me? It's Frank Zappa!"

Originally conceived by Frank Zappa as a way to outsell bootleggers, the original eight-album box set Beat The Boots I was released in July, 1991 on Rhino. It was followed in June, 1992, by another seven albums, marking Beat The Boots II. Though the albums were later released individually on CD, they went out of print and routinely fetch high prices on eBay.

Albums to made available starting July 8:

As An Am (Beat The Boots I)
The Ark (Beat The Boots I)
Freaks & Motherfu*#@%! (Beat The Boots I)
Unmitigated Audacity (Beat The Boots I)
Anyway The Wind Blows (Beat The Boots I)
'Tis The Season To Be Jelly (Beat The Boots I)
Saarbr¸cken 1978 (Beat The Boots I)
Piquantique (Beat The Boots I)
Disconnected Synapses (Beat The Boots II)
Tengo Na Minchia Tanta (Beat The Boots II)
Electric Aunt Jemima (Beat The Boots II)
At The Circus (Beat The Boots II)
Swiss Cheese/Fire! (Beat The Boots II)
Our Man In Nirvana (Beat The Boots II)
Conceptual Continuity (Beat The Boots II)

Compiled by Blurt Staff

57 channels and nothin’ on? Not likely. Here’s BLURT’s top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

8:30 AM VH1C: The Prince of Paisley Park

9:30 AM VH1C: BBC Crown Jewels: In Concert: Stevie Wonder

10:30 AM VH1C: BBC Crown Jewels: Chuck Berry

1:00 PM MHD: Scissor Sisters Live at the O2 Arena

2:30 PM FUEL: The Daily Habit: Islands

3:00 PM RAVE HD: Soundstage: Peter Frampton

4:20 PM Encore Drama: American Hardcore

5:00 PM Sundance: Runnin' Down a Dream: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

7:00 PM MOJO: London Live!: Placebo , Jenny Lewis , The Watson Twins , Matt Willis , Feeder

9:00 PM MOJO: London Live!: Duffy , KT Tunstall , Foals , We Are Scientists

9:00 PM NBC: Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular: Natasha Bedingfield , Kenny Chesney , Katharine McPhee , Jordin Sparks , Gavin DeGraw

10:00 PM CBS: Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular: Rascal Flatts , Boston Pops , Keith Lockhart/Boston Pops

11:00 PM VH1C: Styx: One With Everything

11:35 PM NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Tristan Prettyman

12:00 AM VH1C: Bob Dylan - No Direction Home

1:35 AM NBC: Last Call with Carson Daly: Katy Perry

[Pictured: Katy Perry]

Beer, barbecue and BLURT -- it's the American way, yo!

By Fred Mills

Here's wishing all our readers a happy and safe 4th of July. Remember: Bush and Cheney may think it's their America, but it ain't. It's YOURS. Take it back in November.

Or else you won't be able to enjoy such patriotic delights as Grace Potter, of BLURT faves Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, natch, literally draping herself in the Stars & Stripes for all of US.

Break out those flannels and Docs, kids, and party like it’s, uh, 1989…

By Blurt Staff

Next week in Seattle it will essentially be SUBPOPattle — the venerable record label’s much-touted 20^th anniversary will be marked by a series of concerts and other events. Not only will current Sub Pop acts like Flight of the Conchords, Mudhoney, Iron and Wine, Fleet Foxes, Kinski and Wolf Parade be performing, several key early Sub Pop combos will be reuniting for the bash — among them, Green River and The Fluid.

There’s also a special comedy night, an oral history presentation about the label and a Sub Pop deface-the-Space-Needle happening. Below you can read the latest info direct from the label.

BLURT will be on hand too: our Seattle correspondent Gillian G. Gaar will be filing daily reports from ground zero, so watch this space for the details as they unfold.

***

From Sub Pop:

On the eve of a full week which Sub Pop Records has devoted to celebrating 20 years of Sub Pop Records, the Seattle label is herewith announcing further details on its related events, releases and commemorative intoxicants. We have added Obits and the Constantines to the SP20 Festival lineup (full revelry schedule below – DAY ONE SOLD OUT!), created a beer in our own honor, chosen the beneficiaries of the various SP20 revelries, made plans to deface a classic Seattle landmark, and also re-launched the much-loved Sub Pop Singles Club! Self-absorbed? Maybe. But, it’s our birthday.


LOSER PALE ALE
Celebrating 20 years of celebrating Sub Pop Records, with beer. Specifically this beer: Brewed with Pale, Munich, Crystal and Cara-hell malts. Elysian Brewery’s Head Brewer, Dick Cantwell, created this special blend to be sold on draft at all SP20 events, as well as in bottles at select Pacific Northwest stores.
 
SP20 BENEFICIARIES
All of the bands/artists/comedians participating in our various 20th anniversary revelries have agreed to play for free in the hopes of raising a bunch of money to give to a bunch of worthwhile organizations. Herewith the list of these organizations:
 
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society/ Farm Sanctuary/ National Coalition for Homeless Veterans/ The 924 Gilman Street Project/ Knowmore.org/ The Children’s Garden Network/ Kiva – micro-lending/ Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation/ Red Cross International Response Fund/ Radio 1190/ The Katharine House Hospice/ The Bridge School/ The Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation/ Free the West Memphis Three/ The Darcy Davidson Cancer Fund/ Foundation for the Advancement of Midwifery/ First Place/ Northwest Film Forum/ The Maasai Cultural Foundation/ 826 Boston/ The Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation/ Lance Armstrong Foundation/ Hope for the Warriors/ National Multiple Sclerosis Society/ Accelerated Cure Project/ PAWS/ National Breast Cancer Foundation/ Emergency Food Network/ The Bellur Trust/ Head & Hands/ KEXP
 
For more information visit: http://www.subpop.com/channel/news/sp20_who_gets_the_money
 
THURSDAY – JULY 10, 2008
Seattle Institutions Unite in Celebration of Seattle and Its Institutions! Sub Pop will professionally deface THE ACTUAL SPACE NEEDLE with some wildly expensive, professionally designed by professionals, self-congratulatory sloganeering.
@ 12 PM (Space Needle - 203 6th Ave N)

Oral History Live! An Evening w/ Sub Pop Founders Bruce Pavitt & Jonathan Poneman @ 7 PM (JBL Theater at EMP|SFM - 325 5th Avenue North)
Sub Pop founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman celebrate 20 years of the label’s history by sharing their experiences from their early days releasing Soundgarden and Nirvana, to present success with bands like The Shins and The Postal Service. Jacob McMurray, senior curator at EMP|SFM, will conduct the interview. Free to EMP|SFM members and The Recording Academy members; $5 general public, 206.770.2702 or 1.877.EMP.SFM1.
 
FRIDAY – JULY 11, 2008
SP20 Comedy Show
@ 8 PM (Moore Theatre - 1932 Second Avenue)
David Cross, Patton Oswalt, Eugene Mirman, Todd Barry, and host Kristen Schaal will, we’re hoping, devote some of their material to jokes at Sub Pop’s expense. We’re hoping this mostly so we can steal these jokes and use them ourselves later. Whatever the content of their sets, these are all experienced, comedy professionals and you should plan accordingly. Tickets for SP20 Comedy Show on sale now at Moore Theatre Box Office, Ticketmaster outlets, at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 206.628.0888.
 

SATURDAY – JULY 12, 2008
SP20 Festival
@ 11 AM (Marymoor Park – Redmond, WA)
Flight of the Conchords / Iron & Wine/ The Vaselines/ Mudhoney/ Low/ The Fluid/ Fleet Foxes/ Pissed Jeans/ The Helio Sequence/ Seaweed/ Eric’s Trip/ Constantines/ Obits! THIS SHOW IS SOLD OUT!!

Gutter Twins, Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth (Feat. Tad Doyle)
@ 9 PM (The Showbox at the Market - 1426 1st Ave Seattle)
Advance tickets available at Showbox at the Market Box Office, open Monday through Friday, 11am to 6pm, $2.00 service charge per ticket, CASH ONLY. Tickets also available through Ticketmaster outlets, at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 206.628.0888.
 
SUNDAY – JULY 13, 2008
SP20 Festival
@ 11 AM (Marymoor Park – Redmond, WA)
Wolf Parade/ Green River/ Beachwood Sparks/ Comets on Fire/ Red Red Meat/ No Age/ Les Thugs/ Foals/ Kinski/ TBA/ Grand Archives/ The Ruby Suns
Tickets for Sunday at the SP20 Festival on sale now at Ticketmaster outlets, at Ticketmaster.com or by calling 206.628.0888.

[Pictured: (top) The Fluid; (middle) Green River

Racist N.C.finally kicks the bucket after much anticipation.

By Fred Mills

North Carolina’s Jesse Helms, a key architect of the racist, homophobic, oppressive and oftentimes just plain illegal strategies employed by the Republican party, died on July 4 (today) at the age of 86. Natural causes were cited; in the years since leaving the Senate he’d suffered from a number of ailments associated with aging, most recently receiving a diagnosis of vascular dementia.

Blah blah blah… Well, you can read elsewhere the various tributes, testimonials and commentary on Helms, his life and his legacy. A quick check of Google news lists, as I write this, 531 items on Helms, and I’m not going to waste any more of my time on him than I have to. Besides, this is a music portal. But the Helms passing IS significant.  Speaking personally, as a native North Carolinian, I was forced to endure the Helms “legacy” for most of my life, and it wasn’t an enjoyable experience. My father was also a politician, so I think I understood a lot of what Helms was about — he was a venal, bigoted, mean-spirited opportunist who, as an ultraconservative, stood for everything that I was against. Most likely he stood for a lot of the things all you music lovers out there are against, too.

Is it wrong to speak ill of the dead? Not this time, baby. I once pledged in print that if I ever have the chance to piss on any graves, it would be Richard Nixon’s — and Jesse Helms’ grave, when he dies. I can’t wait. I remember how, back in the '80s, in the pre-Internet age, I had a lot of overseas musical correspondents, and inevitably, when the dialogue turned to my living in North Carolina and the arts, culture, etc. of the state, Helms' name would come up. It was almost as if foreigners' perceptions of N.C. had been largely shaped by the public image of Helms, at the time probably the state's most famous (infamous) citizen, and I frequently had to explain that we Tarheels weren't all backwoods, racist, Bible-thumping oafs.

(Ironically, but sadly, what goes around, comes back around: funny how nowadays foreigners' perceptions of the U.S. are largely shaped by their images of Bush and Cheney...)

"My legacy will be up to others to describe," Helms once said, in a latterday interview.

How about contributing to the ruination of America? How’s that for a description, Jesse. Fuck you, you cracker motherfucker. Rot in hell.

It’s appropriate Helms kicked on July 4. Maybe as we draw closer to the November election, we can mark this day as the true beginning of a new era for our country. I just wish he'd died earlier, in time for the Harp magazine election special that we (my fellow BLURT-ers) published just before the demise of Harp. I would have gladly penned a Helms “memorial.” Consider this it, then.

Separated at birth? Making my point are (L) Jesse Helms and (R) Dick Cheney.

Four songs feature guests Alejandro Escovedo, Tom Morello, Roger McGuinn and the late Danny Federici.

By Fred Mills

Bruce Springsteen’s got a new digital EP, Magic Tour Highlights, due next week, July 15, from Columbia. It will be available at all the usual digital download stores. Included are four audio tracks with four accompanying videos, all recorded live in concert during the Magic tour.

What’s unique about these particular songs is that, while the Boss is backed up by the E Street Band, each one features a special guest star, respectively, Alejandro Escovedo, Tom Morello, Roger McGuinn and the late Danny Federici (in his final appearance with the band prior to his death). Of additional note: On sales of these downloads, the artists, songwriters, and music publishers are waiving all of their royalties, and Columbia Records is donating all of its net profits, to the Danny Federici Melanoma Fund. The iTunes Store is donating their first year's net profits as well.

Track Listing:

1. "Always A Friend" (performed with Alejandro Escovedo)
Recording Date: 04/14/2008 (Houston, Texas)
2. "The Ghost of Tom Joad" (performed with Tom Morello)
Recording Date: 04/07/2008 (Anaheim, California)
3. "Turn Turn Turn" (performed with Roger McGuinn)
Recording Date: 04/23/2008 (Orlando, Florida)
4. "4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" (Danny Federici's final performance
with the E Street Band)
Recording Date: 03/20/2008 (Indianapolis, Indiana)

Incidentally, the videos for both the Escovedo and Morello appearances are posted at Springsteen’s official website…

Meanwhile, Bruce & Co. return to the States at the end of this month to kick off the final leg of the Magic  tour. Those dates are as follow:

7-27 East Rutherford, NJ - Giants Stadium
7-28 East Rutherford, NJ - Giants Stadium
7-31 East Rutherford, NJ - Giants Stadium
8-02 Foxboro, MA - Gillette Stadium
8-15 Jacksonville, FL - Veterans Memorial Arena
8-16 Charleston, SC - North Charleston Coliseum
8-18 Richmond, VA - Richmond Coliseum
8-19 Hershey, PA - Hersheypark Stadium
8-21 Nashville, TN - Sommet Center
8-23 St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center
8-24 Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
8-30 Milwaukee, WI - The Roadhouse at the Lakefront

His strongest effort since Sea Change.

By Blurt Staff

The new Beck album, Modern Guilt, hits stores tomorrow — highly anticipated, it’s produced by Danger Mouse. We’ve got an advance review of the platter in our CD reviews section below penned by our resident Beck-o-maniac Zach Herrmann, who says, in part, “Modern Guilt packs a lot of surprise into less than 35 minutes… This is about as sparse as he has been on album, both in length and in instrumentation – just one of the many reasons Modern Guilt marks his strongest effort since Sea Change.”

And after you’re done chewing on that, check out the video for “Modern Guilt”:

40 bands, 5 stages, 3 chords, 2 nights… and the truth!

By Fred Mills

The first annual Mile High Music Festival takes place in Denver (Out Fields At Dick’s Sporting Goods Park) on July 19 and 20, and the lineup of over 40 artists includes Dave Matthews Band, headlining the first night, and Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, for the second night; plus John Mayer (recently reviewed by BLURT), The Black Crowes, O.A.R., Michael Franti & Spearhead, Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Steve Winwood, Spoon, Flogging Molly, Colbie Caillat, One Republic, The Roots and others. (Colbie Caillat? WTF?!?)

Visit the Mile High website  to view stage times for the complete line-up. Included as part of the event will be five stages (some tented), food from many of Denver's top restaurants, an artists' village, misting tents and more. Doors will open at 10:30 a.m. each day, with performances commencing at noon and ending at 11:00 p.m. Single-day and 2 day passes are on sale now at the website; ticket prices are $150.00 (plus service charges) for a 2-Day Pass, with a limited number of Single Day Tickets available for $85.00 (plus service charges) while supplies last.

More details, from the festival’s organizers:

Also recently unveiled is the Festival's "Carpool to Mile High" Contest. Patrons are being encouraged to "Go Green" by carpooling with four or more people in one vehicle.  Here's how it works: Make a fun and noticeable sign in your car window telling everybody who can see, that you are carpooling.  Sign must in include the words: "Carpool to Mile High".  When you arrive at the Festival go to the 64^th Avenue entrance and follow signs to Carpool Parking.  In addition to premium, close-in parking, you will be automatically entered to win VIP passes and access to a MHMF artist meet-and-greet for everyone in your car.  Winner's license plate numbers will be announced on the Main Stage video screens at 5 PM both days, and prizes will be redeemed at the Merchandise Tent.  All cars admitted in the carpool lot will be entered to win.

Also just announced, Colorado based not-for-profit Conscious Alliance will host a Food Drive at the Mile High Music Festival to benefit Food Bank of the Rockies (www.FoodBankRockies.org). All patrons donating 10 non-perishable food items, or $10.00, will receive a limited edition Conscious Alliance/Mile High Music Festival poster by rock artist Randy Bishop.  Volunteers will be stationed outside the festival's main entrances, where patrons can exchange their donations for a voucher that is redeemable at the Conscious Alliance booth inside the venue.  For more information on Conscious Alliance and the work they do, please visit www.consciousalliance.org.

Go see Grace Potter & the Nocturnals this summer…it’s your patriotic duty.

By Fred Mills

BLURT faves — and erstwhile HARP heroes — Grace Potter & the Nocturnals are on the road all summer. No surprise there. Their version of The Never-Ending Tour has ‘em doing some east coast and Midwest dates and will keep ‘em busy through early August. Assorted festival appearance dot the itinerary, naturally, and in October they’ll also be featured at the Voodoo Music Festival in New Orleans.

Grace Potter & the Nocturnals Tour Dates:

Jul 5 2008        12:00A

            Charlottesville Pavilion w/ The Black Crowes           Charlottesville, Virginia

Jul 6 2008        12:00A

            Penn’s Peak w/ The Black Crowes     Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania

Jul 8 2008        12:00A

            Metropolis w/ The Black Crowes       Montreal, Quebec

Jul 11 2008      6:00P

            All Good Music Festival         Masontown, West Virginia

Jul 12 2008      12:00A

            Massey Hall w/ The Black Crowes     Toronto, Ontario

Jul 18 2008      6:00P

            Snowbird Ski & Summer Resort        Snowbird, Utah

Jul 19 2008      4:00P

            Grand Targhee Americana Festival w/ Lyle Lovett & Martin Sexton & Derek Trucks - Susan Tedeschi             Alta, Wyoming

Jul 20 2008      2:45P

            Mile High Music Festival        Denver, Colorado

Jul 23 2008      12:00A

            Cain’s Ballroom w/ The Black Crowes           Tulsa, Oklahoma

Jul 24 2008      7:00P

            The Crossroads           Kansas City, Missouri

Jul 26 2008      12:00A

            The Shoe at Ceasars Indiana w/ The Black Crowes   Elizabeth, Indiana

Jul 27 2008      7:00P

            Orbit Room w/ The Black Crowes     Grand Rapids, Michigan

Jul 29 2008      12:00A

            House of Blues w/ The Black Crowes            Cleveland, Ohio

Jul 30 2008      12:00A

            House of Blues w/ The Black Crowes            Cleveland, Ohio

Aug 1 2008     12:00A

            Sleeping Bear Dunegrass Festival       Empire, Michigan

Aug 3 2008     5:50P

            Wolf Trap w/ The Black Crowes        Vienna, Virginia

Aug 5 2008     7:00P

            Byham Theater w/ The Black Crowes            Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Aug 6 2008     12:00A

            The Madison Theater w/ The Black Crowes   Covington, Kentucky

Aug 7 2008     7:30P

            Birdy’s            Indianapolis, Indiana

Aug 8 2008     12:00A

            The LC Amphitheater w/ The Black Crowes             Columbus, Ohio

Aug 9 2008     8:00P

            Chameleon Club w/ Hoots and Hellmouth     Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Aug 10 2008   6:30P

            All Points West Festival         Jersey City, New Jersey

Aug 16 2008   5:30P

            Burlington Waterfront            Burlington, Vermont

Aug 24 2008   12:00A

            Outside Lands Festival           San Francisco, California

Sep 7 2008      5:45P

            Britt Pavilion w/ The Black Crowes   Jacksonville, Oregon

Sep 13 2008    7:30P

            Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival            Fredericton, New Brunswick

Sep 25 2008    7:00P

            Wilbur Theatre            Boston, Massachusetts

Oct 24 2008    9:00P

            Voodoo Music Festival           New Orleans, Louisiana

Oct 24 2008    9:00P

            Voodoo Music Festival           New Orleans, Louisiana

Jan 4 2009       12:00A

            Jam Cruise 7    Florida Belize and Mexico, TBD

[Photo Credit: Johnny Buzzerio]

Much-loved string virtuoso also performed with symphonies.

By Fred Mills

On Thursday, July 3, Noel Sayre, violinist for the groundbreaking Columbus band the Black Swans, passed away. Sayre, 37, had been at the Southern Ohio Medical Center on life support and in critical condition since almost drowning in a nearby community pool on Tuesday. In a report published by The Columbus Dispatch a sheriff’s department spokesman was quoted as saying the cause of death “appeared to be a massive heart attack.”

Sayre, originally from West Virginia, had a degree in music from Ohio University, had performed with several symphonies and also gave violin lessons. In the early ‘90s he played with Columbus’ Pretty Mighty Mighty, then on New Year’s Eve of 1995 he got together with singer-songwriter Jerry DiCicca to form the Black Swans, and the band went on to release two albums (a third was in the works) and tour the U.S. to huge critical acclaim.

In addition to the Swans, Sayre recently played on an album by 1970’s country-funk songwriter Larry Jon Wilson. Released last week on Sony in the UK, Larry Jon Wilson is slated for a domestic release his fall on Hacktone and is already notching both critical praise and kudos from the likes of Rick Rubin and Will Oldham.

A memorial service is being planned in Huntington, WV on Saturday July 12. Donations are being accepted to pay for the expenses. You can contact the Black Swans at theblackswansband@gmail.com for details on the service and how to make donations.

Yesterday evening, DiCicca sent out an email to fans and friends of the band to provide a more personal account of his friend and bandmate Sayre. It’s a very insightful, moving portrait of Sayre, and parts of it are worth reprinting here:

Noel and I began playing music together on New Years Eve of 1995, opening a show for the Yips and the Bassholes at Bernie’s Bagels in Columbus, Ohio. We split $100 for that gig, and so began a partnership that quickly became a strong and lasting friendship that the Black Swans based themselves upon.

We were always more Heckle & Jeckel and Penn & Teller than Simon & Garfunkel, as we shared an idea about music as art, posing as entertainment, that we explored over hundreds of gigs and several recordings. Musically, I always stood in Noel's shadow and Noel always felt he was my shadow. We spoke in code, a short-hand, that sometimes alienated others and sometimes amused them. We were kindred spirits in many ways and couldn't be more different in others. He was quiet and articulate, rowdy and beyond shy, hyper intelligent and incredibly
dense. I think I knew him better than anyone and it is safe to say there was a lot I never saw. It is shocking to think he will no longer be a part of my physical life. We both imagined that we'd be standing on stage together when we were 80, an appropriate age for our favorite tempo.

Too, I'm happy to say he already recorded his parts for the next Black Swans album and, as always, played with intelligence, humor, and a transcendent pallet of emotions.

Noel taught me a lot about myself. As we played witness to one another, we stuck to our guns, charting each others growth as a person and a musician. We went through a lot together, good and bad, always expressing ourselves in different ways, but never an unkind word was exchanged, always caring and supportive. I can't imagine my life or music without him.

BLURT would like to extend our deepest condolences to Sayre’s family (we are told he only had a cousin surviving him) and to DiCicca.