And a fine way to officially kick off the 2010 festival season. Among the performers: Billy Bragg, Dr Dog, The Mountain Goats, Leatherface, Rogue Wave, Delta Spirit, Senses Fail, Anti-Flag, Dead Prez, Kimya Dawson, Samiam, Torche, Strike Anywhere, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Dr. Octagon AKA Kool Keith, Small Brown Bike, Portugal. the Man, Black Sheep, Danielson, Coalesce, Man Man.

By Blurt Staff

The second annual Harvest of Hope Fest (HOH Fest) has announced the initial lineup for their multiple-stage music festival that will take place March 12th - 14th in sunny St. Augustine, FL. The festival serves to raise awareness and provide financial support for the Harvest of Hope Foundation, a charity organization that aids migrant farm workers across the country.

HOH Fest is the first multi-day concert of the 2010 festival season and uniquely different than many other festivals that will be happening this year. Last year, over 17,000 attendees took in over 100 punk, indie-rock, hip-hop, alt-country, folk, and blues bands.

This year's line up showcases a diverse roster once again with national and international acts including Billy Bragg, Dr Dog, The Mountain Goats, Leatherface, Rogue Wave, Delta Spirit, Senses Fail, Anti-Flag, Dead Prez, Kimya Dawson, Samiam, Torche, Strike Anywhere, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Dr. Octagon AKA Kool Keith, Small Brown Bike, Portugal. the Man, Black Sheep, Danielson, Coalesce, Man Man, forgetters (Ex-Jawbreaker/ Against Me!), plus over 150 more artists joining together to raise awareness to the plight of migrant farm workers! Harvest of Hope Fest is the only festival of its kind that has such a large group of musicians donating their time and performances to charity.

Harvest of Hope Fest is located on the 90-acre St. John's County Fairgrounds, just a short distance from historic St. Augustine and its beaches, and is within an easy drive of Daytona Beach, Jacksonville, Orlando, and Gainesville. Ticket information, camping info, etc. at www.harvestofhopefest.com.

Three-day tickets are on sale now and will rise in price as the festival draws closer. From January 14th through February 11th, tickets will be available at the early-bird price of $39.50. From February 12th to March 11th, they will jump to $49.50. Walk-up 3-day tickets will be $60.00. Single day tickets will be available for $25.00/day in advance and $35.00/day weekend of. Three-day camping passes are also now available at $19.50/person. A small number of VIP passes are available at $99.50 per person. The VIP pass includes access to the VIP camping area, a three-day festival pass, and extra goodies to be revealed at a later date.

Proceeds from the charity fundraiser festival will benefit the Harvest of Hope Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides emergency and educational aid to some of the hardest working and often overlooked people keeping our agricultural economy moving - migrant farm workers. Harvest of Hope distributes funds to migrant farm workers and their families to help pay for food, medical services, clothing, rent, educational scholarships, and more. For more information on what Harvest of Hope Foundation does to aid migrant farm workers and how this grass roots foundation gained the support of a vibrant and diverse music community, please visit www.harvestofhope.net.



Confirmed Harvest of Hope Fest 2010 lineup as of 1/14/10:

Billy Bragg, Dr. Dog, The Mountain Goats, Rogue Wave, Delta Spirit, Senses Fail, Anti-Flag, Man Man, Dead Prez, Kimya Dawson, Torche, Strike Anywhere, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Sea Wolf, Dr. Octagon aka Kool Keith, Dead Confederate, A Wilhelm Scream, Portugal. the Man, Samiam, Leatherface, Dead to Me, Fruit Bats, Bear in Heaven, Freelance Whales, Cobra Skulls, Small Brown Bike, Glint, Danielson, Twin Tigers, Black Sheep, Coalesce, Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band, James Husband (of Of Montreal), Signals (ex-The Mae Shi), Ortolan, Mercury Program, Off With Their Heads, The Loved Ones, Past Lives, forgetters (ex-Jawbreaker & Against Me!), Andrew Jackson Jihad, Assholeparade, Defiance Ohio, Chris Wollard & the Ship Thieves, Bomb the Music Industry!, Dear Landlord, Young Livers, David Rovics, The Riot Before, This Bike is a Pipebomb, Des Ark, Ben Davis & The Jett$, Shellshag, Weatherbox, Holopaw, Hawks & Doves, Angelo Spencer, The Blacklist Royals, Lemuria, The Measure [sa], Paul Baribeau, Algernon Cadwallader, Your Heart Breaks, Fin Fang Foom, Yula Beeri, The Future Virgins, Good Luck, The Mezingers, Capsule, Ben + Vesper, Jon Snodgrass, Austin Lucas, Mike Hale, Street Eaters, O Pioneers!, Army of Ponch, Virgins, Gatorface, Protagonist, American Cheeseburger, Savage Brewtality, Brainworms, New Bruises, Tubers, Cory Branan, Look Mexico, Whiskey & Co., Worn in Red, Ninja Gun, Grabass Charlestons, FIYA, Spanish Gamble, Anchor Arms, How Dare You, Slow Claw, Heads Held High, The Casting Out, Low Red Land, The Itchy Hearts, Yardwork, Panthro UK United 13, Mumpsy, The Beauvilles, The Tim Version, Tiltwheel, Dan Padilla, The Future Now, D.P., City of Ships, Only Thunder, Sloane Peterson, Too Many Daves, Pretty Boy Thorson, Lost Hands Found Fingers, Nut Nut, Ornate Escape, and Mike Bernos.

It's simple: Put down the guitars and pull out the credit cards instead.

By Fred Mills

First things first: here's what you CAN do, just in case you don't feel like wading through the op-ed portion of this news item (which I've conveniently included below, following the break). These are reputable, professional organizations with extensive experience in planning and mobilizing humanitarian aid and you can feel secure in donating to them:

The Red Cross

Go to the official site to donate and meanwhile follow them on Twitter for updates on disaster relief progress along with details on their current fundraising. You may have heard that can you make direct $10 donations via your telephone by simply texting haiti to 90999 -  you'll get a reply text telling you to confirm by replying YES, and then there will be a subsequent thank-you confirmation. What's very cool about this is that no fees will be diverted to your cellphone carrier, and to date they've raised about $5 million; this has proven an immensely popular and easy method, needless to say.  It also appears that MasterCard (and hopefully other credit card companies) are waiving their usual transaction processing fees for donations to Haitian Aid Efforts.

AmeriCares

At their official site they indicate they've amassed about $3 million worth of medical aid and have already deployed about $2 million worth of supplies from their Amsterdam warehouse.

Oxfam International

Oxfam International is a confederation of 14 like-minded organizations working together and with partners and allies around the world to bring about lasting change by working directly with the impoverished and victims of injustice, and part of their efforts involve responding to emergencies such as this.

Partners In Health

This is the group that, as we reported yesterday, the Arcade Fire is familiar with and is urging people to send in their donations. According to the Fire's Win Butler, "Partners in Health's clinics are in situated the surrounding areas and haven't been damaged, they are mobilizing their resources towards the capital, setting-up field hospitals to treat the injured on the ground. Also, Paul Farmer (the founder of PIH) is at the UN and has access to the best information on where to direct the money."

UNICEF

The United Nations Children's Fund is one of the longest-running advocacy and relief organization for impoverished kids around the entire globe. According to UNICEF, "Expert estimates suggest that 46 per cent of Haiti's nearly 10 million people are under 18 years of age," so that should tell you something important right there.

Doctors Without Borders

This is an international medical humanitarian group and they've been on the ground from the outset in Haiti, dealing with the massive surgical needs of the earthquake's aftermath. While one might think what the organization needs right now is more doctors, there's a note on their website indicating they aren't equipped to immediately send new volunteers to the country as their thing is to respond swiftly using their immediate, existing pool of medical workers. So obviously what they need from us are donations.

The bottom line is, you can choose one or more of these or any designated organization of your choice, but the important thing is to donate, and now. Click on the links above to access their websites. On to the op-ed...

**********************************

Yesterday I was talking to a couple of musician friends about the Haiti earthquake and one of them said, "We should put together a benefit concert. What do you think?"

No, I replied. Instead, just make a direct donation.

Whenever there's a natural (or even man-inflicted) disaster that calls for humanitarian efforts, the music community instinctively tends to respond, as it has been responding ever since George Harrison organized the concert for Bangladesh, through the Band Aid/Live Aid era, and as recently as 9/11 and Katrina. Benefit concerts, benefit recording projects, etc. are and in many cases should be the norm, and I've been involved in a number of them over the years. What's sometimes lost in the glow of good deed-doing, however, is the lack of immediacy these events and projects have unless they can be mounted on a fairly substantial scale - we're talking bringing in the U2s, the Springsteens, the McCartneys, the larger than life personalities who can get the general public caught up in the spirit of giving.

Today it was announced that George Clooney is getting a telethon together to air on MTV networks, and of course he's got the kind of star wattage that can make a difference. Other celebrities are using their influence to also make a difference.

Most of us are not celebrities however, and while fundraisers on a local level are appropriate precisely on that count, e.g. a tragedy or an issue that has to be addressed locally, by all means, musicians, promoters, clubs, journalists, etc. should get involved. But when there's something like what's happened in Haiti, a local benefit concert can't possibly address the immediate needs in any meaningful way, other than to make the participants feel good about themselves and possibly spur others into more extensive action. In this instance, "think global/act local" isn't sufficient - the scale is just too immense.

Don't get me wrong: I'm not blind to the fact that if it were possible to coordinate hundreds or thousands of local benefits specifically for Haitian relief, a good deal of money might be raised. People tend to get "benefit fatigue," however, and such local efforts generally fall far short of being more than panacea-effective.

So in this situation, what charities such as the Red Cross, Oxfam International, Doctors Without Borders and Partners in Health really need IS. YOUR. DONATION. NOW.

That's right now. Not later, after door receipts from the fundraiser down at the local club are tallied. In fact, if every penny that would otherwise be used on printing, advertising, overhead, gasoline... hell, beer and booze and bar tips, too!... was simply diverted to an individual donation, you'd bring in tons more money for the relief effort.

Does a public show of compassion do any good? Of course it does. And consciousness raising is important too. But seriously, to all of you out there right now trying to think of what you can do, why not just keep things simple: open up your wallet, pull out a credit card or write a check directly to the pertinent relief agencies. Then call or email and otherwise browbeat your friends and neighbors into doing the same thing. Put links out on Twitter and on your Facebook pages. Make people feel guilty they haven't done something.

And obviously, there are local relief agencies getting involved, by all means donate to them whatever they are calling for - money, water, canned food, blankets - because they are professionals and they know how this kind of thing is done. But make a direct donation, and to do it NOW.

Again, none of this is to make musicians and the music community feel like they shouldn't get involved. But it all has to be taken into perspective in terms of what the priorities at hand are, and to be honest right now the people in Haiti don't need your guitars, your songs, your on-stage platitudes, your recording studio efforts, etc. They need food, water and medical care, and that's something only the professionals can do at the moment. Those professionals don't need the guitars ‘n' tunes either - they need your dough.

New rec due in March from London loonies.

By Blurt Staff

Okay hepcats, Archie Bronson Outfit return with a new album, Coconut, on March 23. Coconut is the London based three-piece's first LP in almost four years and their third album for Domino. 2006's Derdang Derdang made our best-of list that year (back when we were known as Harp) so we expect nothing less than greatness this time around.

It's described as "switching between full on deep-end rock and more reflective, beat-driven numbers... a modern psychedelic testament delivering a visceral shot of pleasure."

Hey, we are all about visceral shots of pleasure.

Recording sessions took place in London and Benton Harbour, Michigan, with production from DFA's Tim Goldsworthy (LCD Soundsystem, The Rapture, Hercules & Love Affair).

Tracklisting:

1. Magnetic Warrior
2. Shark's Tooth
3. Hoola
4. Wild Strawberries
5. Chunk
6.1 You Have A Right To A Mountain Life / 6.2 One Up On Yourself
7. Bite It & Believe It
8. Hunt You Down
9. Harness (Bliss)
10. Run Gospel Singer

The band will tour the UK in March followed by North America in May.

Finally getting down to promoting the Curse Your Branches album. A must-see tour.

By Blurt Staff

Ex-Pedron the Lion mainman David Bazan, who released Curse Your Branches this year as his first solo album, has just announced an extensive U.S. tour that kicks off March 4 and runs through mid April. It's sure to be a must-see tour, considering how rabid Bazan's fan base - both in the Christian and the secular music communities - tends to be.

The record is the deepest and most explicit exploration of his struggles with faith and the Evangelical world in which he was raised to date, and a meditation on all things passed between the generations. Since its release Curse Your Branches notched scores of "Best of 2009" nods.

As BLURT put it in our review, "He's voicing the doubts and dichotomies that comprise any thinking person's faith. He's got a knack for ironic wordplay, graceful dirges and understated pop hooks, too, and that's translated into good drama and songs."

Bazan was featured in an in-depth profile in the latest issue of our print magazine, and we'll be publishing the entire, expanded version of that article on the website shortly, so keep your eyes peeled.

DAVID BAZAN ON TOUR:

March:

04 EUGENE, OR - Sam Bond's !@
05 SACRAMENTO, CA - Blue Lamp !@
06 VISALIA, CA - Cellar Door !@
07 SANTA BARBARA, CA - SOhO Restaurant and Music Club !#
08 LONG BEACH, CA - Alex's Bar !@
09 LAS VEGAS, NV - Beauty Bar !@
10 TEMPE, AZ - Sail Inn !@
12 NORMAN, OK - Opolis !@
13 SPRINGFIELD, MO - Gallery Sounds !#
14 ST. LOUIS, MO - Old Rock House !@
15 NEWPORT, KY - Southgate House !#
17 NASHVILLE, TN - Exit In !@
18 ASHEVILLE, NC - Grey Eagle Tavern and Music Hall !#
19 COLUMBIA, SC - New Brookland !@
20 RICHMOND, VA - Alley Katz !$
21 BALTIMORE, MD - Ottobar !#
22 PHILADELPHIA, PA - First Unitarian !#
23 BROOKLYN, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg !$
27 GRANTHAM, PA - Larsen Student Union at Messiah College !@
28 COLUMBUS, OH - Summit !$
29 BLOOMINGTON, IN - Bishop !$
30 GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Ladies Literary Club !#

April:

03 DEKALB, IL - House Café !#
04 MILWAUKEE, WI - Pabst Theater !@
05 ST. PAUL, MN - Turf Club !@
06 FARGO, ND - Aquarium !@
08 MISSOULA, MT - Palace $
09 SPOKANE, WA - Empyrean #
10 BELLINGHAM, WA - WWU Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room #


! with Headlights

@ 21+
# all-ages
$ 18+

Soulful icon had continued to perform despite becoming paralyzed from a car accident.

By Fred Mills

Smooth-singing soul superstar Teddy Pendergrass died yesterday, Jan. 13, in the aftermath of colon cancer surgery some 8 months ago followed by what his son said was "a difficult recovery," according to media reports. His son, Teddy Pendergrass II, told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the senior Pendergrass died in Philadelphia's Bryn Mawr Hospital.

Pendergrass, originally a drummer, hit the charts in a big way in the ‘70s when he became lead vocalist for Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes ("If You Don't Know Me By Now"), later going on to a hugely successful solo career with hits such as "I Don't Love You Anymore," "Close the Door," "Turn off the Lights" and "Love TKO," many of them penned by the legendary Philly-based songwriting team of Gamble and Huff.

In 1982 he was in a car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down, but though wheelchair-bound he continued to perform. Throughout his career he scores of singles and received 5 Grammy nominations. He also established the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, an organization that worked with individuals who had spinal cord injuries.

"To all his fans who loved his music, thank you," his son said. "He will live on through his music."

Streaming Reatard's Beck cover at his website.

By Blurt Staff

In the wake of news of Jay Reatard's death, testimonials and words of condolence have been coming forth from the music community - among that community,the Pixies and respected NPR Music commentator Bob Boilen (who posted a Reatard video as Song of the Day).

Also there's Beck, who at his Beck.com website is streaming Reatard's cover of "Gamma Ray".

Originally a song on Beck's Modern Guilt album, this version was cut in 2008 by Reatard at the behest of Beck to be the B-side of his "Gamma Ray" single.

T Bone Burnett-produced record announced last Spring gets shelved by record label and Potter & the Nocturnals turn to a different producer for their latest album.

By Fred Mills

Just announced: Grace Potter and The Nocturnals make their debut appearance at the Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 28 and 29 performing at the Sundance ASCAP Music Café.  The band will preview select songs from their self-titled album due this spring.

The record will be the band's third album for Hollywood Records and was produced by Mark Batson (Dr. Dre, Dave Matthews Band, Eminem, Alicia Keys, Jay-Z,).

Making it must have come at a cost, however.

Sharp-eyed BLURT readers will recall that it was announced last May that Potter hand been in an L.A. studio with produce T Bone Burnett, going through the band's material for a proposed Fall '09 release. "It's such a huge relief to find a producer of T Bone's caliber we can totally put our trust in," Potter said at the time, "not just because of the records he's made, but because of the person he is. Now it's happening, and we're excited and ready!"

Subsequent to that, Potter sat down for a BLURT interview with contributor Hal Bienstock, telling us the Burnett-produced sessions would tentatively come out on Hollywood under the name Medicine. In the interview - which appears in the latest print issue of BLURT - she enthusiastically described the album as "very different. There's a dark undertone to this one. I tend to be a bright shiny person but there's always a level of heavy heartedness to my songs. With T Bone, it's been captured sonically in ways I never expected. This one has more emotions and is more raw. It's very cinematic. Whenever I listen to these songs I want to write a movie."

She added that Burnett is "the king of cinematic songs. He treats them like they're spiritual experiences. It rattled me at first. Everything is very in the moment. It's the Dylan approach. Learn the song, then go play it."

Potter also elaborated on some of the material: "'That Phone' is a very soul/R&B attitude-y song about a woman refusing to pick up her ex-lover's phone calls. At the beginning of the project, it seemed like a possible hit, so T Bone decided to make it a 7½- minute jungle thing. That was the clincher in terms of what kind of record we were making....  I wrote the song ‘Colors' right before Obama was elected. There were lots of expectations, but also a sense of not knowing. I wanted to capture that moment because I wasn't sure anyone else would. I debuted it at a homecoming show in Vermont and got so choked up that I could barely make it through."

However, the Burlington Free Press is reporting that Hollywood "deemed [the Burnett album] too tame and has put on the shelf for now." Rumors along the lines of the album being "heavy on Grace but light on Nocturnals" have been floating around the media lately too, but neither Potter nor Hollywood has made an official comment on the matter yet. It will be a shame if the Burnett sessions never see the light of day.

At any rate, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals  also unveils the Vermont-based band's new five-piece configuration, in which Potter, lead guitarist Scott Tournet and drummer Matt Burr are joined by new bassist Catherine Popper (Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, Hem) and rhythm guitarist Benny Yurco, who also plays with Tournet and Burr in the GPN side project Blues & Lasers.

"This record is the first time it's really been us - the first time we've all found each other and ourselves," says Potter, in a statement. "The whole thing was fluid and effortless. In my mind, an album shouldn't be self-titled unless it feels that way."

Tour Dates:

Wed. Jan. 20              Norfolk, CT                Infinity Hall

Thurs., Jan. 21            Syracuse, NY              The Westcott Theatre

Fri., Jan. 22                Woodstock, NY          Bearsville Theatre

Thurs., Jan. 28            Park City, UT              Sundance - ASCAP Music Café - 5:20pm

Fri., Jan. 29                Park City, UT              Sundance - ASCAP Music Café - 4pm

Thurs., March 11        North Adams, MA      MASS MoCA

Fri., March 12            Ridgefield, CT            Ridgefield Playhouse

Austin rocker's current road trek through the South intended to wind its way to Lexington, KY, where he'll record a new album, due out in June.

By Fred Mills

BLURT hero Alejandro Escovedo is currently in the middle of a short tour that will bring him to Asheville, NC, showcase venue the Orange Peel tomorrow night, Jan. 15. After that he'll have dates (as listed at his official website) in Virginia Beach, Charlottesville, Knoxville, Birmingham, Memphis and Louisville, then he'll take about three weeks off before resuming his road trek Feb. 11 in Santa Fe.

Escovedo and his band won't be cooling their heels during the break, however: following the Louisville gig they'll scoot over to Lexington, KY, home to St. Claire studios, where Escovedo recorded his last album, 2008's acclaimed Real Animal, with producer Tony Vicsonti.

In an interview published this week in Asheville's Mountain Xpress weekly, Escovedo explaied, "This tour is the beginning of the process of recording a new album... The record, as I see it, is a rock album along the lines of Real Animal only not autobiographical."

The Xpress article adds that "the new material has been developed over the course of Escovedo's residency at the Continental Club in Austin, Texas, where he's been presenting three new songs each week." He's also been unveiling selected tunes in concert on the current tour.

Escovedo's management indicated in an email to BLURT that a projected release date of June has been penciled in for the new album. It's slated to come out on Back Porch/Manhattan but no title has been determined yet.

***

Read our 2008 interview with Escovedo, producer Visconti and Chuck Prophet, who co-wrote the songs on Real Animal with Escovedo: http://blurt-online.com/features/view/105/

More Al:

CD review: http://blurt-online.com/reviews/view/98/
Live review: http://blurt-online.com/concert_reviews/view/39/
Video filmed especially for BLURT: http://blurt-online.com/video/view/62/

[Photo Credit: Todd V. Wolfson]

With frontwoman Regine Chassagne's family roots extending to Haiti, this makes it personal for them. Time to step up and make a donation, folks. It's as simple as that.

By Blurt Staff

A message from the Arcade Fire, posted to their site this morning:

Friends,

Haiti needs your help in her darkest hour.

We just got off the phone with our friends at Partners in Health.

Most of the medical infrastructure in Port-au-Prince is down.

Since Partners in Health's clinics are in situated the surrounding areas and haven't been damaged, they are mobilizing their resources towards the capital, setting-up field hospitals to treat the injured on the ground. Also, Paul Farmer (the founder of PIH) is at the UN and has access to the best information on where to direct the money... so for the moment if you want to help, we suggest sending funds to:

www.pih.org

+

donate.pih.org/page/contribute/haiti_earthquake?source=earthquake&subsource=homepage

Canadian residents with Roger cell phones can text HELP to 1291. 5 $ will be directed to Partners In Health's Haiti emergency fund.

Please be generous as time is of the essence.

love,
Win and Regine

p.s.
these photos convey some of what is going on:

+ www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/01/earthquake_in_haiti.html

Famed electronic musician-producer (and shoegaze scene celebrant) lines up a who's-who of cutting edge artists and then has his way with ‘em: Asobi Seksu, Mojave 3, Mark Gardener, Rachel Goswell, High Violets, Mahogany and Howling Bells, among others.

By Blurt Staff

Although strictly speaking a remix album, Missing Deadlines sees Ulrich Schnauss adopt the role of a master orchestrator or alchemist, rearranging and restructuring the songs of his contemporaries, as opposed to simply adorning each with throwaway beats-by-numbers. The record is a testament to Schnauss's unique aural vision, showcasing his undeniable grasp of heart-warming, heart-wrenching melody. Schnauss's telltale signature sounds are present in each track - whether it be the ever-oscillating synth patterns, the rich, reverb-laden voices, or the euphoric beats - yet still manage to reemain true to the spirit of the originals.

Says Schnauss, "Essentially what makes me really happy about this album is the fact that it's a selection of the - in my opinion - best mixes from a musical point of view, rather than a compilation of the commercially most successful ones, or the tracks that have the biggest names associated with them. In all cases, the original songs are already great in their own right - which made it really inspiring to work with them."

It's due March 15 from Britain's ever-eclectic Rocket Girl label.

Tracklisting:

1 Howling Bells: Setting Sun

2 A Sunny Day In Glasgow: Ghost In The Graveyard

3 Katharina Franck: Faithful Friend

4 Madrid: Out To Sea

5 Asobi Seksu: Strawberries

6 Dragons: Remembrance

7 Aus: Halo

8 Mahogany: Supervitesse

9 Lunz (Roedelius & Tim Story): Lunz

10 Rachel Goswell: Coastline

11 High Violets: Chinese Letter

12 Mark Gardener: Story Of The Eye

13 I'm Not A Gun: Make Sense And Loose

14 Mojave 3: Bluebird Of Happiness

[Photo Credit: Troy Stains (note the Omnichord)]

On the web: www.myspace.com/ulrichschnauss