Day 154: Mumford & Sons *Guest Author Day*

(Allow me to present guest author Grace Cass in her 365 debut.)

Mumford & Sons are one of the very few bands\artists that were at the Grammys that didn’t suck.



Mumford & Sons are a band whose genre can be described from British rock to folk rock and Indie rock. They consist of Marcus Mumford (vocals, guitar, drums, mandolin), Ben Lovett (vocals, keyboards, accordion, drums), Country Winston Marshall (vocals, banjo, dobro , guitar), and Ted Dwane (vocals, string bass, drums, guitar). The band formed in December 2007.They named the band Mumford & Sons because they wanted it to have a family “feel” and Marcus Mumford was front stage at most of the gigs.

Their first project was an EP titled Love Your Ground which took a year to complete and was released in November 2008 on Chess Club Rec. The only song that was on Love Your Ground and Sigh No More was Little Lion Man, that song by itself was nominated for five awards during 2010 and 2011.

Their debut album, Sigh No More, was released in the UK and Ireland in 2009, and February 2010 in the United States. Mumford & Sons have been commercially successful in Australia and New Zealand. The album Sigh No More has a few songs that have Shakespeare lines in them. Like, the song "Roll Away Your Stone" is influenced by Macbeth; the song includes the line Stars hide your fires / And these here are my desires. They also make reference to Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. The track "Sigh No More" includes lines from the play such as“ Serve God love me and mend and One foot in sea and one on shore. In an interview, Mumford was quoted as saying, "You can rip off Shakespeare all you like; no lawyer's going to call you up on that one”

While touring the United States in early 2011, the band began writing songs for the follow-up album. While the release date of the new album has been the subject of speculation in the social media sphere, the official release date was not announced until Pinkpop 2012. During their performance on pinkpop, band member Ben Lovett announced on Dutch national television that the new album had been completed and would be released September 24th, 2012.

My Thoughts:

So far I think they’ve done well. They are one of those bands that you can say you like and have only heard two of their songs. I think they are great and so should you.

Day 153: Pearl D'jango

(I'm literally phoning this in from an airport... Short entry about a different kind of Seattle classic)

Pearl Django

To most, gypsy jazz is thing of the past, a relic. It died with the astonishing guitar of Django Reinhardt, and the soaring violin of Stephan Grappelli. Not so, according to Seattle jazz legends Peal D'jango.

Started in 1994 - at the tail end of grunge, and the midst of the swing revival, Pearl Django dedicated themselves to keeping Reinhardt and Grapelli's tradition not just alive, but vibrant ant relevant for modern audiences.

The band has an even dozen albums and is one of the most beloved local bands in Seattle. Their near annual 'Jazz Cruise' with local public station KPLU is not only legendary, but helps keep that station afloat financially -almost single handedly.

Thoughts:
This is another band that could easily be making shitty, dry covers of long gone music - but they not only manage to keep the music fresh and authentic, they even carve some new ground from time to time. Even jazz haters have to admit, the "hot jazz" gypsy sound is thoroughly compelling, and few do it better these days than Pearl D'jango.

Day 152: The Dubliners

(Writing from the road today - on vacation. These will be short and sweet.)

The Dubliners

When it comes to art, tradition can be a stagnating boat-anchor. Tradition can be a bully - holding progress' head in the toilet and refusing to acknowledge anything but the "pure" past. It takes a rare group to explore traditional music with authenticity and not have it coming out sounding like a stuffed and mounted museum piece. The Dubliners are one of those rare bands.

The Dubliners were founded in the city of the same name in 1964, by Ronnie Drew, Luke Kelly, Ciarán Bourke and Barney McKenna. The band started as sort of a novelty traditional revival act - booked originally as a fundraiser house band. The members got on so well and the act was so well received that they decided to make a formal band. Kelly was reading Joyce's novel, "The Dubliners" at the time, and the name eventually became the obvious choice.

Some credit the Dubliners with single-handedly saving traditional Irish folk music from obscurity and sparking the world-wide interest that still echoes today. The band was astonishingly prolific, releasing over 33 albums, and an additional 25 compilations. They toured widely every year and recorded nearly constantly for four decades.

The lineup changed over the years, revolving off and on around the founders as they passed away. Kelly died in '84, Borke in '88, Drew passed in 2008, and the remaining founder McKenna died in the spring of this year. The current lineup is still touring and plans to continue the Dubliners mission as living ambassadors for Irish music.

Thoughts:
Projects like the the Dubliners could come off sounding like a mummification or some sort of Disney imitation of what Irish music should be. They manage to keep the music rowdy and real - alive and vibrant. I don't know what the new McKenna-less version sounds like, but I have no doubt they'll keep the faith and keep cranking out great music.

Day 151: Derek Trucks

Do you guys know who Derek Trucks is? I never know.



Derek Trucks inhabits a unique space in the rock and roll universe. He’s been on the cover of Rolling Stone, and so a lot of people are familiar with the young guitar wizard and especially his work with the latter-day Allman Brothers Band. He’s got the kind of skills that prompted Eric Clapton to ask him to record and tour with Clapton’s band, but his own band plays mostly small clubs, and it often comes as a surprise to Derek Trucks fans that there is such a thing as the Derek Trucks Band.

He started early (How early? First guitar at 9, first paid performance at 11), and it was like ringing a bell. He was amazing to start with, and he only got better. And yes, his uncle was ABB drummer and founding member, Butch Trucks, and sure, that made it easier to get booked opening for them, but the kid was a badass from jump and no one was just being kind. Check him out at age 13. Awesome, right? I only hate him a little bit.

He immersed himself in the southern blues idiom, developing a signature style of electric slide, with buzzing, crackling slides that seemingly have no point of origin, no attack. The notes are just effortlessly there and effortlessly held, modulated, or terminated while seamlessly giving rise to the next idea. Not content to be limited to southern rock, Trucks studied African and Eastern music, adding those new and different ways of thinking about scales and rhythms to his bag of tricks. More than anything, he fell in love with jazz, and more than anyone, he was inspired by John Coltrane. Coltrane’s approach to extensive soloing giving fuller voice to a given musical notion influenced Trucks’ own approach. Even onstage, Trucks emulates his hero, standing stock still while delivering incredibly alive and changing music to a crowd who absolutely can’t stop from moving.

So there he is, making his way in the world, forming the Derek Trucks Band in 1996 and playing regularly with the Allman Brothers Band. ABB’s 2003 release, Hittin’ The Note was a huge hit for them, many people (including Greg Allman) calling it the band’s best release since 1972’s Eat A Peach. Trucks, along with singer Warren Haynes, shared a lot of the credit in addition to the lead guitar duties. In 2010, Trucks won a Grammy for his Already There. Somewhere in there, he married blues songstress, Susan Tedeschi. They put together a band and they called it The Tedeschi Trucks Band because they were tired of touring apart. Their self-titled release scored the pair another Grammy and an invitation to play a blues concert at the White House for President Obama.

My Thoughts:

He really is amazing. I really, really love everything that he does. And one reason he hasn’t had huge, mainstream success is because he doesn’t sing, and I flippin’ love that about him. A lot of blues guitarists figure it’s easy enough to step up to the microphone and growl out some lyrics between licks, but Derek Trucks isn’t trying to do anything half-way. And I think he’s one of the more inventive and original guitar gods currently going.

Day 150: The Handsome Family

(This is one of those bands that creeps up on you slowly, and then never lets go...)

The Handsome Family

“Their music holds echoes of Americana in the truest sense— from medieval ballad to Appalachian holler to Tin Pan Alley and punk rock.” – The Handsome Family website

In a garage behind their house in Albuquerque, the husband and wife duo known as The Handsome Family record their unique brand of Americana. To say no one does it quite like Rennie and Bret Sparks, is an understatement. The band has been called “unique”, “haunting”, “terrifyingly original”, and “primal and strangely heroic”. Adjectives not often heard in the music industry. Marrying the deadpan drama of Leonard Cohen, the whiskey haze of alt country, the DIY of punk, and poetry and images from history – the duo really have made themselves one of a kind.

They got their start in ’93 while living in Chicago; Rennie and Bret were already married when they decided to begin the band.

"It's just kind of a stupid name. We used to have this really obnoxious drummer, and he used to call me 'Handsome', that was his nickname for me, I think for sarcastic reasons... And he wanted to call it the Handsome Family...and we thought it was funny, too. We thought it was a good name." – Brett Sparks

Rennie writes the lyrics, Brett writes the music. Their first album came out in ’94 and by the second in ’96 they already had the attention of critics and other songwriters. The two have been covered by legends such as Andrew Bird, Christy Moore, Jeff Tweedy and Cerys Matthews.

The Handsome Family has thirteen albums to date including three live albums and a compilation of demos. The last full album “Honeymoon” came out in ’09.

Thoughts:
First – if you two are reading this – More please. It’s been long enough – surely you have enough material for another album by now. Oh, and thanks for being so freakishly awesome.

Secondly – to our dear 365 readers out there; go find more, now. There’s just no way to pick two videos that can summarize what these two can do – seriously, look up more. You will not regret it.

Day 148: Amos Lee

(Kind of a popular act today, worth listening to some B-sides…)

Amos Lee

Amos Lee’s rise to fame is a story of how talent sometimes makes it’s own connections – and makes it’s own way. Amos was playing coffee shops and open mics around Philly when a venue promoter noticed him and introduced him to others; shortly there after he was opening for Mose Allison and BB King.

Those connections led to others, and while Amos was visiting Blue Note Records to sign a deal, Nora Jones heard his demo and asked him to open on her huge 2004 tour. From there, he met with Bob Dylan’s people (Bob’s manager and Amos’ manager knew each other) and Bob asked Amos to open for the 2005 tour; all of this before recording his first record.

Amos grew up in Philly and New Jersey. He was always musical, but didn’t have real professional aspirations until those open mic days. After college he was a bartender, and a schoolteacher. Those days ended quickly once those connections started happening. When his first album dropped, it hit the charts hard – singles were featured on TV shows (Grey’s Anatomy, among others). By ’08 he had tree albums out, a stack of awards and was one of the top selling male acts in the “Adult Alternative” market (whatever that is…).

In 2011 his fourth album debut at #1 on the charts (digital sales and billboard) and pulled in even more critical acclaim for his already much lauded career. The album features Lucida William and Willie Nelson, among other guests, and the first single charted almost immediately.

Lee’s not touring to support any releases currently but he is playing the Rotterdam Festival this year and the Colorado Folks Festival later in the summer.

Thoughts:
Ok. Lets get this out of the way. I dislike Nora Jones’ music. Dislike is mild. She’s talented, overexposed, and bland as a bar of soap. She is middle of the road – and I hate middle of the road.

Amos walks that line too – and all that early exposure and press was kind of obnoxious. I got very tired of hearing his voice. That said – He’s a terrific writer, and some of his less popular tunes are downright great. If you, like me, avoid mainstream pap, I understand if you run from Amos… but if you take a little time, he’s got some seriously quality work behind all that buzz.

Day 147: Rory Gallagher

Please accept my apologies for the tardiness on what should have been Saturday’s post. I’ve been preoccupied with race cars all month.



I have a hard time thinking about Rory Gallagher without thinking about Eric Clapton. Gallagher was born in March 1948, in Ireland. Clapton was born in March 1945, in England. They’d both go on to be tremendous guitar players, singers and songwriters. Eric Clapton fronted a power trio called Cream; Rory Gallagher fronted a power trio called Taste. Both continued to enjoy success as solo acts. Somehow, though, Eric Clapton became a household name and Rory Gallagher only should be.

If you already know who Rory Gallagher is, (1) I don’t have a lot to tell you, because if you know, then you know, and (2), you’re in good company. The guy’s sold some 30 million records. If you don’t have one, you probably know someone who does. Rory Gallagher isn’t one of my secret, pet guitarists that I like because no one else knows enough to like him (that distinction goes to Fareed Haque). Ask anyone – Rory Gallagher is a bad ass. Someone once asked Jimi Hendrix what it was like to be the greatest guitar player in the world and Jimi advised the asker to look up Rory Gallagher and ask the right guy (mini shout out to Uncle Jeff, who turned me on to that story, which has been verified by that most holy of oracles: Google).

So, but what happens if you are a bad ass guitar player making kick ass music with your power trio in the U.K. at the same time as Eric Clapton with Cream and then Jimi Hendrix with the Experience? There’s a reason these guys play the blues. There is not a lot of room for number one acts. For his part, EC saw what Gallagher was doing and he liked it. “God” asked Gallagher to open for Cream, and then later, Blind Faith on extensive tours of the United States.

But where were the hits? Rory Gallagher has written some really fantastic songs, some of them with jaw-dropping solos, but never really scored a big hit for U.S. radio. Why not? Was he too bluesy? Too messy? Too late? His label was trying to pay off radio stations with grass when everyone else had moved on to coke? I just don’t know. Today every town has a classic rock station, playing some Clapton song or other about once an hour. But no Gallagher songs make the playlist. Ever see a blues band cover Rory Gallagher? No, you haven’t. They ought to. But, no, it’s got to be Sweet Home Chicago and Crossroads every time.

Rory Gallagher never let up. He was well respected among his peers and fans of the blues. He dropped the Taste name, but continued to inhabit the three piece format, writing songs and melting the pants off of audiences all over. He played hard and toured hard, and in 1995 he needed and received a liver transplant. His body was not happy about the arrangement and he died later that year from complications.

My Thoughts:

I’m really hoping someone who didn’t know about Rory Gallagher read this today and clicked on the videos and is in the process of cultivating a healthy respect for the man. It’s mind-boggling that someone so good has managed to avoid mainstream success. When I first turned on to him, it was like a light coming on in a dark room.