kmmmusings... Top Shows of 2008

Because the world needs another top ten list from a dorky blogger. Trust me.

1. My Morning Jacket at Madison Square Garden -- 12.31.08



Expectations were high for this one, as New York City abounds with options (musical and otherwise) as the days expire on a calendar year. From this vantage point, the lofty expectations for this New Years party were met--and surpassed. From the opening waterfall of tumbling horns that introduced Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up" through to the always-mindblowing "One Big Holiday", Jim James and crew delighted the nowhere-near-capacity dressed-to-the-eights crowd at MSG. The extra space made for ridiculously easy maneuvering to be with loved ones as the balloons fell: nuzzling up sidestage with a hundred of your closest friends to welcome '09 made this the year's top show for me. Steven Bernstein's horn section was used judiciously and superbly: to augment funky covers that would have been impossible without brass (Charles Wright's Express Yourself, Kool & The Gang's Celebration, James Brown's Cold Sweat), but also used on occasion to bolster some MMJ staples (Evil Urges, Dancefloors) making them the perfect accoutrement for the Jacket on this special evening. Very close to being this here dorky blogger's perfect show.

2. Marco Benevento, Joe Russo, and Brad Barr at Sullivan Hall -- 01.10.08

I'm going out on a limb, perhaps, by identifying this little gem as my second favorite show of the year, but for anyone who was in attendance, you can corroborate my wonder at the amazing energy and spontaneity this trio displayed on the old Lion's Den stage. Maybe it was because Brad was arrested on his way to the gig and arrived JUST in time to plug in onstage to soundcheck a note or two before diving headfirst into a first-set jam with his old friends, or maybe not. Who's to say where synergy like this is derived: these long-time collaborators have a vast amount of trust in each other's talent and each other's listening skills. The trio had played a small run of shows together in Nov 2007, where Brad was mostly providing complement to The Benevento/Russo Duo's material, but this show didn't even remotely resemble a Duo show. Without an ounce of premeditation on what the set should contain, these three poured out a symphony of rock n' roll, with Barr touching on riffs from Chuck Berry to Jimmy Page, from Django Reinhardt to Trey Anastasio, all with a good dose of Slippy guitar in there for good measure. Benevento delighted in having a new partner with whom he could tag team tangling with his regular bandmate, Sir Russo, and the interplay between Russo and Barr was (for lack of a more sophisticated word) SICK. Video footage of this little gem is currently under lock-and-key at Shine A Light Productions, but will surely see the light of day soon, and in the meantime you can enjoy this clip from Benevento's 2008 residency:



3. Trey Anastasio at Music Hall of Williamsburg -- 08.07.08

He sounded good. Really good. It was worth the second mortgage I took out on my home to procure that tough ticket. From the oddly-familiar first notes of his new tune,"Alaska" right through to the sweaty last notes of the now-epic "Bug", I was in the zone that I can only get into with a few performers, and I was happy to have him back. Clean and sober Trey has an undeniably purer tone despite still being able to unleash some of the dirtiest licks in guitar history.



Adding the amazingly-underappreciated Ray Paczkowski to his inaugural TAB team (Tony Markellis and Russ Lawton), the quartet debuted newer versions of some TAB standbys (when did "Gotta Jibboo" become sooooo irresistibly nasty? when did Driftin' lose all the schmaltz and deliver Jerry-esque elation?). The intimacy of the venue fed the frenzied energy in the room, and it's safe to say that most in attendance had their aural tubes cleaned out upon leaving the newly-appointed venue almost four hours later. Money well spent, in my books.

4. Radiohead at All Points West -- 08.09.08



It was almost too good... Really. The sound was so good that I felt like I had headphones on. The lights were so good I almost cried. The music, well, there's no one else that does what Radiohead does. How sparse arrangements of songs (like the haunting Nude, which prompted a hilarious "That was impossible!" outburst from my friend) can sit side by side with meticulous cacaphony (the delicious 15 Step) is something to behold live... and yet, I almost felt like it wasn't live. Like it was a pre-recorded show, somehow, too perfect in its delivery (despite a late-concert flub, which friends tell me was executed with the exact same script in Montreal days earlier). I was left loving the show, and yet strangely unsatisfied by how perfect it was. My suspicious sentiments were seconded by a much-respected musician who shared that while he was undeniably impressed with their show, he prefers his rock with a little more danger, and I realized that despite the wild rapids of Radiohead's wizardry, I, too, would prefer musicians going into the unknown and risking a little more for their rewards. That said, any person who listens to music in this decade owes it to themselves to go see this band, and any musician playing in this decade who doesn't cite them as an influence is a total lying bastard.

5. The Slip at Paradise Rock Club -- 12.27.08



I'm not going to lie to you, I don't recall the details. I spent the day geeking out in the car on the way to Boston with two fellow Slip-enthusiasts, and thus I was fully prepared to launch into outerspace with the opening notes of Airplane/Primitive. Fact: this was The Slip's third concert of the year. Fact: it fucking rocked. I've double checked this fact by re-living it through the hard work of Clinton Vadnais, and I stand by my evaluation. There is only one Slip. These guys are it. They owe it to the world and to themselves to let the Slip out of the bag more often, for they are able to incorporate genres like no other trio, and the intense rapport that comes from playing together for over a decade is something that few young bands can hope to have. It was extra-special to see the boys in their backyard of Boston, for Slip fans have proved time and time again to be my favorite live music concert-goers -- attentive, respectful, and totally into it. Let's all please say a prayer that 2009 sees this trio popping up in lineups all over the country, and do yourselves a favor and go listen to what awesome music sounds like.

6. Neil Young & Wilco at Madison Square Garden -- 12.06.08

While the sound in MSG was poorly suited to display the rich tapestry of Wilco's sound, I had to admit that Wilco -- a band who could headline most festivals around the world -- was serving as perhaps the most wonderful opening act in memory. It seems as though Wilco is distinguishing itself as the quintessential modern American Band, as I recall getting whiffs of ZZ Top in there amidst the usual overtones of The Band that Wilco invokes.



And Neil, well, I couldn't have more respect for the aging Canadian icon, and when I compare the energy and preparation that his show requires with the lucklustre performances of some other legends I saw this year (but who will remain nameless because it's sacreligious to say anything bad about Bobby Dylan... I mean, uh...), it is clear that Neil's passion for the music, for performing, for leaving it all out on the stage has not diminished with age. When he closed his set with The Beatles' "A Day In The Life" (featured below), he gave the lyrics a haunting immediacy (not unlike when he sang "Campaigner" at the United Palace last year), making Lennon & McCartney's words from 1967 seem like a current critique of modern media, social apathy, and war.




7. Jay-Z at Pemberton Music Festival -- 07.27.08

I had never seen anything like Jay-Z. I was floored. I want more. When Jay-Z suggested to the burly British Columbian crowd that we ought to get rid of the border between our respective nations so that we could do a whole lot more hangin' out, well, I thought that was a swell idea. His undeniable magnetism and gift for spontaneity become painfully clear seeing him live, where he can deliver several minutes of improvised valentines to the crowd (as he did in the amazing "Girls, Girls, Girls") that are shockingly well-delivered off-the-cuff. Sample the blissful energy that explodes during the "99 Problems" below:



For a gal who doesn't get much hip hop in her musical diet, I was admittedly surprised by how much I loved his set, but that is the gift of a true performing star -- the ability to connect and delight crowds supersedes the confines of any genre. Don't ever miss an opportunity to see him for yourself, please.

8. Kronos Quartet with Glenn Kotche at Carnegie Hall (Zenkel Hall) -- 12.05.08

As difficult as it may be to believe, not all of the aural titillation that I enjoy comes at the hands of an electric guitar. This remarkable classical concert featured a handful of world premieres, as well as the seminal 1970 George Crumb piece "Black Angels", which was the inspiration for David Harrington to form the Kronos Quartet in 1973. Kronos Quartet is difficult to categorize, as you will see from their rendition of Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" below.



The highlight of the show, for me, was when Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche joined the quartet to perform the NY debut of his piece "Anomaly", which is the first piece Kotche has penned for instruments beyond percusscion, and in which the strings are meant to emulate the limbs of a percussionist. The 25-minute piece was mesmerizing, clearly demonstrating that Kotche is so much more than a mere Heavy Metal Drummer.

9. Earl Greyhound Acoustic at Calhoun School -- 09.12.08

Nothing against turning the knob to eleven, but when the strumming comes unplugged there is just something so real about it. Brooklyn's Earl Greyhound is known for making a whole lotta noise, but for those who aren't initiated with their honky tonk roots, Kamara Thomas and Matt Whyte have been performing acoustic for some time, and thus when they bring the EG material to this stripped-down format, it is truly something special. The audio from this concert is available in a limited release, and the video is (again) in the tank over here at Shine A Light Productions, so you'll have to make do with pictures of this one-of-a-kind show. You'll want to try to get your hands on a copy of "I'm On Jupiter Waving My Arms at You" because it features Thomas at her most riveting (causing chills when I witnessed "My Kentucky" from behind the lens, and thereafter in the edit room) and Whyte at his most swoon-a-licious (on tunes like "Someone" and "Out of Air"). It was particularly heart-warming to witness EG get the high school crowd to sing along with them on Whyte's children's song, "This Tree". A truly touching show from a trio that is more apt to melt your face off. Seeing them acoustic is a rare, delicious treat.

10. Bustle In Your Hedgerow at The Knitting Factory -- 12.28.08



Cover bands are supposed to be kind of lame, even if the band they're imitating is cool. That has never been the case for Bustle In Your Hedgerow, who have always been so-much-more than just a cover band. Why? Because of the talent on the stage, duh. But this particular show was so-much-more than even that -- on this evening where Marco Benevento, Joe Russo, Scott Metzger, and Ween's Dave Dreiwitz would say goodbye to 14 years of memories at the fabled Knitting Factory (over and done in Manhattan, at least, as the club is heading to what we used to call The Luna Lounge in Williamsburg), the quartet truly went beyond any boundaries that were drawn in the sand by Page and Plant so many years ago. Sure, it's always awesome to hear your friends rock the living daylights out of some of the best songs ever written, but this time, they really did it as a band: they went out on a limb and re-arranged my concept of what Zep should sound like, and that's no small task. Witness the transformation on "Out on The Tiles" above, and on "The Song Remains The Same" below:



Honorable mentions:

• Ruby Benevento making her big-stage debut at High Sierra Music Festival, 07.03.08

• Steven Bernstein's Millenial Territory Orchestra at 55 Bar, 11.14.08

• Good Enough For Good Times at Le Bon Temps Roulé, 05.03.08

• Lizzie Powell fronting Land of Talk and then joining headliners Broken Social Scene as the new girl in town. Brooklyn Masonic Temple, 10.24.08










• Brad Mehldau at (le) Poisson Rouge, 10.10.08

• Marco Benevento with Reed Mathis and Jon Fishman at Drom, 11.07.08

• Surprise Me Mr. Davis at Sullivan Hall, 04.20.08

Rocktober continues with the Incomparable Brad Barr

The second installment of ROCKTOBER from Shine A Light Productions presents The Slip frontman Brad Barr's solo work. The selections for this week come from Barr's performances at Pete's Candy Store last autumn (which served as the capper for a magnificent wedding weekend, which partially explains why Barr is in a suit and tie for this performance); at Sullivan Hall this past January where he opened on the final night of Marco Benevento's residency; and his recent appearance at the Bowery Ballroom where he graced the stage twice, first as a solo performer and later with his Slip bandmates backing Sonya Kitchell. You can view the videos HERE.

Barr's songwriting has become increasingly prolific and poignant, and the rare chance to catch him play solo is something not to be missed. His guitar chops are widely heralded, and here at Shine A Light Productions we don't think it's an understatement to call him the best guitar player of his generation, for he can deftly channel Chuck Berry or Jimmy Page, Django Reinhardt or Jimi Hendrix. Most importantly, he also can sound like Brad Barr, and that's something no other player out there can claim.

Barr's new solo album, The Fall Apartment (Tompkins Square Records), features 11 instrumental tracks, and if you visit the Tompkins Square release page, you can get a free mp3 of "Newst Flurries". The album features imaginative arrangements, including a haunting cover of Kurt Cobain's "Heart Shaped Box".

Barr is currently on tour with his Slip bandmates backing Sonya Kitchell, and Barr is oftentimes performing a solo set to open the show, so be sure to go early to catch these rare solo sets. Full tour dates and more information about Barr available on his MySpace page.

Shine A Light Productions Presents: ROCKTOBER

After a lengthy blogging absence, we are jumping back into the thick of things here at Shine A Light Productions, and we are going to be providing you with some of what we've been working on over the summer months.

Over the course of the next five weeks, we will release live footage of some of our favorite artists every Friday through a series we're deeming ROCKTOBER. These exclusive videos will be released via the Shine A Light Productions Live Music Page and through our Facebook page, so be sure to become a fan so you will receive updates announcing the latest live video releases.

October 3 - Surprise Me Mr. Davis
October 10 - Brad Barr solo
October 17 - Marco Benevento
October 24 - Earl Greyhound
October 31 - Nathan Moore and release of new Surprise Me Mr. Davis video

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The first featured artist is Surprise Me Mr. Davis, an innovative electro-folk quartet which is comprised of singer-songwriter Nathan Moore and what is surely the most under-rated band in modern rock, The Slip. The story goes that Nathan was on the road as The Slip's merch guy when the acoustics in some hotel shower convinced the Boston-based trio that they should begin collaborating musically with Moore.

Many years later, we are lucky to be witnessing the bounty of this musical partnership in venues all across the country, and nowhere are the boys more at home than at the High Sierra Music Festival, where they have reigned as unofficial good times amabassdors for the last decade. Shine A Light was on hand at the 2008 festival to capture some of the many sets that these fellas offered, from the Davis performances at all hours of the day and night, two rare and hotly anticipated sets from The Slip, and solo sets from Nathan Moore (which didn't necessarily feature Mr. Moore... a late-in-the-festival troubadour timeslot saw Brad Barr fill in and play the songs of the vocally-overworked Nathan Moore).

The Davis boys did a quick run through the North-East in August, landing in New York during what was surely the most heavily-laden week of music in recent memory, with an All Points West Radiohead double-header sandwiched in between shows from Trey Anastasio, Wilco, and Bob Dylan. However, Union Hall played host to SMMD for a fantastic Sunday evening show, and the following day before the boys left town, Shine A Light caught up to the boys to shoot a music video for their new song, "I'm No Good At All'.



Surprise Me Mr. Davis doesn't have any tour dates on the radar until their huge New Years Eve show with their good friends the Benevento-Russo Duo at B.B. Kings in New York (conveniently located down the street from what promises to be a monster celebration at Madison Square Garden when My Morning Jacket rings in 2009). However, the Davis boys will be busy touring in other incarnations: the fall season will see The Slip touring with Sonya Kitchell all over the lower 48, and Brad Barr will be promoting his new instrumental album, The Fall Apartment, by doing solo performances to open most shows; Andrew Barr and Marc Friedman will appear in Marco Benevento's trio in November, and Nathan Moore will be the featured opener for a handful of these dates.

Rocktober's inaugural live release is featured below, and remember that you can only check out the rest of these exclusive (that means not on YouTube) videos at the Shine a Light Live Music webpage.

Tea Leaf Reed's alright with me

The news that Reed Mathis would be stepping in to fill Ben Chambers' shoes in Tea Leaf Green was slightly befuddling to me at first, if only because the news came to me in the form of Marco Benevento enthusiastically belting "Tea Leaf Reed!" to me over a pre-show dinner in Woodstock, NY on the weekend. But once I garnered the facts, I was in full support of the union.

Reed will add some incredible depth to a lineup that that is in need of this kind of injection of sonic originality. Tea Leaf Green has developed a sound that is straight-ahead and rather predictable, but that is not to say they haven't crafted their own distinct sound. I was most impressed to have caught their all-acoustic performance at Mo Pitkin's earlier this fall, and the country-funk vibe came through just beautifully unplugged. I would take an acoustic TLG show over a boisterous frat-boy sell-out at Irving Plaza any day, but now that Reed is on the scene, I will happily get up front to hear some of the amazing basslines that he will spew forth. He will bring only good energy to the band and their sound, and I applaud his bold move to expand on musical horizons. The backlash indicates that perhaps jam fans aren't as ready to think outside the box as they think they are, and Reed's response only indicates what a beautiful human being he is:

"music CAN be a force for unification and community. why are the differences between us our favorite thing about ourselves? why do we want coltrane INSTEAD of the rolling stones. why not coltrane AND the rolling stones? do people need music? if so, what do they need it to do?"

Reed brings up a lot of pertinent questions, and I agree with him when he says this is an important conversation to have. Enjoy the full spectrum of Mr. Mathis' musings here.

And speaking of getting outside the box, the Benevento/Russo Duo invited Brad Barr on a 3-night run in the Northeast this past weekend, and it didn't take long for the trio's sound to convince me that this should be the new band... Their show at the lovely Bearsville Theatre was a heady affair indeed, with Brad providing a whole new level of ethereal range to the Duo's jams. The jams in Woodstock all became quietly intimate and intense, and were just a beautiful antithesis to the Duo jams I've come to recognize. Three sets of ears onstage were wide open, and with the crowd politely following suit, it made for one of the most enjoyable evenings of music in recent memory... (Okay, I confess that the occasional appearance of two guitars onstage was just a small bonus... a little slice of guitar-mony heaven for me).

The following night took the trio to Northhampton, MA where the energy was the polar opposite: the Duo were back up to their typical aural intensity and the crowd had gusto to match. I was behind the camera for this show, so stay tuned for the highlights. Having The Slip's frontman sit-in only enhanced the Duo's dynamic, and it underlines the importance for musicians to keep it fresh.

And while we're on the topic of fresh... sample a sneak peak of Marco Benevento's new album featuring Reed Mathis and Andrew Barr/Matt Chamberlain here. Beware: The Real Morning Party will set up camp in your phonological loop and stay there all day. Album will be out on Hyena Records in January!

Flashing forward, flashing back.

Anyone hankering for a cozy campfire vibe will be happy to know that highlights from Nathan Moore and Brad Barr's acoustic set at Pete's Candy Store are now finding their way onto YouTube. It was the perfect capper to a dizzying wedding weekend that had these boys playing music continuously in various capacities-- as Surprise Me Mr Davis, then as the tastiest wedding band on earth, and finally as a duo at Pete's in Williamsburg. There's not much I need to say about this amazing show that isn't readily apparent in the clips, so I'll let the songwriting and musicianship speak for itself on this haunting version of "Hollow" by Nathan Moore, followed by the pair's swoon-a-licious rendition of "Lost Man in a Foreign Country".



Check out Nathan's new album In His Own Worlds... and get yourself to the left coast early December to catch the delightful Davis experience in Northern Cali. You might just want to bring along your French-English dictionary...


Another nugget you might have missed in the Big Apple this fall is Do Make Say Think's powerful performance at the Wordless Music Series.



The Wordless Music Series is off to an amazing start this season, having just hosted a back-to-back Mum weekend, and a brilliant show from Grizzly Bear, whose drawing power is great enough to draw Paul Simon out to hear their rendition of Graceland. Word is that Feist recommended the Brooklyn-based quartet to Mr Simon. The Wordless Series will be featuring Jonny Greenwood's (Radiohead) debut of the Popcorn Superhet Receiver in January and there's talk of David Byrne doing a show in the spring.

Monuments frontman Gabe Berezin threw quite a party in DUMBO this past weekend, all in the heady name of Kurt Vonnegut. It featured some great performances from Suzan Hurtuk and All the Tired Horses, and of course from Monuments themselves. If you've never heard the math-y magic of Monuments, get ye to Trash Bar Nov 16th to get your first taste. Stay tuned for clips of the Vonnegut tribute...

And lastly, how's this for awesome: Smyer just released their debut album and they're making it available for FREE DOWNLOAD here... In the always-apt words of Gordon Hartin, "There are some things you can't download. Like a coca-cola. Music is already out there being downloaded, so we're giving it to the people and hoping it will translate into them coming to our shows." So do it-- on December 7th at the CD Release party at the Crash Mansion. And since you'll have downloaded the album already, you will know all the songs and feel like the coolest kid on the block.

marco benevento - "live at tonic"

Well, it's been many months since Marco wowed us all at Tonic with his immense talent and infectious love of music. I've been lucky to have been basking in the sights and sounds of his residency since then, as I've been editing the footage from each of those delicious Wednesdays last November (and weren't we all glad the calendar graced us with FIVE Wednesdays that month...)

Below is a collection of some highlights from Marco's amazing residency. It features some of his rather talented friends, like Mike Gordon, Bobby Previte, Mike Dillon, Steven Bernstein... the list goes on and on. Yes, that's Brad Barr playing a drum with one of Marco's old Wurlitzer keys. Yes, that red-head dancing and playing the flute is none other than Sir Joe Russo. Even half of the Ween team, Claude Coleman and Dave Dreiwitz (pictured above), showed up one evening to back Marco, despite the fact that Coleman had never met Marco face to face before that evening. You certainly would never know it after listening to the two hours of music they created that night...

The fine folks at Ropeadope are going to release much of the material on a multi-disc set this summer, and as you'll see in the clip, the range of Marco's material is vast. Thelonious Monk ditties sit beside Pink Floyd tunes, and little-known songs from Leonard Cohen and Elliot Smith will send you back to your record collection to revisit them. Marco's jazz chops being what they are, prepare to be floored by the free-jazz improvisations that he created each night alongside the likes of seasoned veterans like Matt Chamberlain or Steven Bernstein.

Stay tuned for more material featuring Marco, as talks are in the works with Ropadope to create a web TV station devoted to all-things-Marco, curated by yours truly. Now that's what I call using time for fun...

Ringing in 2007 with The Duo, The Slip, and Larune...

Benevento/Russo Duo perform "9 x 9" at the Chameleon Club, Lancaster, PA 12.30.06:



It will come as news to nobody that there were a plethora of options available for New Years festivities on the East Coast this year. While the most enticing options almost always involve travel of some kind, I was lucky enough to find musical pleasures close to the Big Apple. However, my game plan involved turning a blind eye to the shenanigans in Atlantic City, and whether I could actually resist ringing in the New Year with the red-headed felon was a decision that many (including myself) wondered whether I could stick to. But stick I did, and I was rewarded with the warmest NYE run in recent memory.

The 29th began with a yummy double-header at Mo Pitkins of two sets of Honky-Tonk Allstars, Larune and Basement Band. Kamara Thomas bravely opened the Larune set with a solo acoustic debut of another of her signature panoramic song-writing journeys, and the band then joined her for favorites like "My Kentucky" and "I Just Don't Get It", the latter of which Jeff Malinowsky hilariously (and correctly) dubbed "Best song ever!". He thereafter took the stage with his Basement Band-mates, and delivered some wonderful a capella and acoustic numbers, including a lovely "Wagon Wheel". From Mo Pitkins, we hightailed it to the Knit to catch Rana's set, performing as a trio in the Tap Bar, and whilst the front row featured some distracting glow-ring e-tivity, Scott Metzger once again demonstrated his solid chops on guitar.



The next morning I hit the highway and headed west to PA (and not south to AC) to catch The Benevento/Russo Duo in Lancaster, PA. With no foreseeable shows as a duet in 2007, I wanted to make sure to catch one last Duo show to cap off a huge year for Marco and Joe-- a year that saw them on stages in Europe, on stages with half of Phish, and everywhere in between. I can't think of two musicians who have toured as tirelessly as these two, and this sentiment was solidified when the fact was revealed backstage that this was the first time in recent memory that Joe had not opened for himself: he has pulled double-drumming duty on tours with GRAB, Chris Harford's Band of Changes, and had even stood in the night prior for Sam Champion while Ryan Thornton manned the kit at Rana's Knitting Factory gig.

Joe and Marco opened their set with a rare "Hateframe", and played an impressively tight and evocative show in the quirky and intimate Pennsylvania venue. A hands-down highlight was the cover-combination of Elliot Smith's "Waltz #2" into Radiohead's "Myxamatosis", a segue which appropriately showcases both ends of the Duo's sonic spectrum. Songs like "Love Song" and "9 x 9" (which you can view above) have grown much deeper and tighter since the release of "Best Reason To Buy The Sun", and if songs this young can be nostalgic, the anthems from their first album seem to recall a different era. Perhaps it is because the Duo's incessant touring and prodigious talent have meant that their entire repertoire has evolved immensely over the past few years. What is clear is that their presence as a duet will be missed in the musical tapestry of 2007.

New Years Eve brought me back to Brooklyn, not just because of the borough's musical offerings, but because waking up in your own bed is the most attractive way to start the year. I doubled-down on my Honky-Tonk intake by attending an incredible loft party in Green Point and happily counted down to 2007 with the rowdy sounds of Gordon Hartin singing "Navajo Rug'", with delighted Honky-Tonkers abounding. I then skipped over to NorthSix to catch the second set of The Slip.

While they had plowed through many of their hits like "Airplane/Primitive", "Children of December", and the ever-awesome "I Hate Love" already, that meant that the second set was peppered with one-of-a-kind gems like Bowie's "Changes",, Elvis Costello's "What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding", and my personal favorite cover of the ENTIRE YEAR: AC/DC's "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock N' Roll)" with a "Poor Boy" sandwiched in the middle. Pretty serious stuff for the beloved Berklee dropouts.

All in all, they capped off a lovely three-night run of smiling friends playing music in intimate rooms: what New Years should be every year if we're doing it right. Happy 2007...

'Scuse me while I Slip into My Morning Jacket...

It is a rare thing indeed when someone tells you that a band is about to melt your face off... and they're right. I had heard studio work from My Morning Jacket, and I suppose I can recall a few recommendations to see them live, but I was nowhere near prepared for the tower of sound that engulfed me on Nov. 30th at the Roseland Ballroom in New York.

First things first, of course, which brings us to the delicious opening set by The Slip, a trio who earns more and more of my respect each time I hear them. (Which, fortunately for me, is rather often these days...) The songs that comprise their latest studio effort, Eisenhower, are all remarkably stage-worthy, continually evolving, and are profound enough to provoke both your grey matter and your dance moves.

The band took to the stage adorned with furry wildlife as headgear: Brad Barr (guitar & vocals) played Moose, Marc Friedman (bass) was the Fox, and Andrew Barr (drums) took on the Wolf. The story goes that the pelts were acquired somewhere in western Pennsylvania, and there were multiple plush accessories purchased (including one for My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James, who brought his Bear onstage for portions of his set).

While Slip fans are now accustomed to getting their fill of Eisenhower's 'hits' like Even Rats, and Children of December, songs like Paper Birds are developing into incredible live adventures, and Airplane/Primitive might just be my favorite rock song of the year. Do yourself two favors: buy the album, and see the band, and you'll be a much happier person. New York, are you listening? The Slip will be playing their New Years show at (soon-to-be-closed for-renovation and returning-in-spring as the Williamsburg Music Hall) NorthSix in Brooklyn. You have been advised...

You can stream the set that The Slip played the following day for WXPN at Philadelphia's Electric Factory here.

Which brings us back to My Morning Jacket, where my face was just about to melt. I'm really at a loss for words to describe their impact, but what I can tell you is that I was captivated every single moment of the show. Not just entertained, but that kind of "I don't even want to have a sip of beer because I might miss something" engagement. I think it's safe to say my jaw was on the floor for the majority of the set, and I kept wondering "Where have I been? Why hasn't anyone told me about this breathtaking sound before?" The energy was powerful not only in the epic rock tunes (and these boys from Kentucky seem to know a thing or two about epic rock), but also in the seemingly mellow tunes which touched on everything from reggae riffs (Phone Went West) to easy listening elements (Lowdown) to jazzy romantic ballads (They Ran).

The show inspired that kind of striking-oil-eureka euphoria that a whole well of future musical enjoyment had just been tapped. While I was admittedly less flattened by the next night's show in Philadelphia, I can safely add this band to my list of not-to-be-missed concert experiences, and if you're reading this, you can't say nobody told you. San Francisco, are you listening? A three-night New Years run at the Fillmore. Consider yourselves advised...

You can stream My Morning Jacket's 12.01 Philadelphia show here, and you can also add it to your iPod through the Setbreak.com podcasting system.