Bhi Bhiman is a one-man folk music force of nature. He’s a Sri Lankan-American who grew up in St. Louis and later re-located to San Francisco, where he lives today. His debut album, BHIMAN, was released in January of this year and is winning over music critics, musicians, fans and long-time folkies with impeccable acoustic guitar and marvelous storytelling, taking on personas of a North Korean prisoner, a hobo riding the rails, a redneck, and a jealous lover, among many others.
But more impressive than his technical proficiency on acoustic guitar or his songwriting is his unmistakable tenor. Bhi appears to barely utter his vocals, yet they swell up inside a room and become larger than life. His grace is most evident when singing “Guttersnipe,” a complex and powerful vocal performance that Bhiman delivers effortlessly.
In the video for “Guttersnipe,” you’ll also see some footage of Bhi hanging out with our live session producer, Steve Shirk at Shirk Music + Sound. Shirk introduced Bhi to his prized 1941 Gibson SJ acoustic guitar – the same guitar that Joe Pug used in recording 90% of his 2010 album Messenger in Shirk’s studio. It’s a guitar that was almost destroyed in Shirk’s early days living in New York and Bhi commented that it was the best sounding acoustic he’d ever played. He decided to play it on “Guttersnipe” for the session.
If you’re into these songs, please go buy the album. You will not be disappointed. If you live in San Francisco, you can find Bhi Bhiman on June 9th with Donovan Frankenreiter at The Independent.
Since moving out to The City of Fountains (yes, Kansas City), I’ve been to a handful of shows but haven’t caught any local bands. Oddly enough, I discovered Lawrence, KS band Quiet Corral in Austin at our SXSW party and have been enamored with their 2010 self-titled EP and their latest single, “City Steep,” released earlier this year.
Their sound fits perfectly into the folk-rock invasion that has become the latest crave. As I made my way through their EP, I drew comparisons to The Decemberists (Lonely Company, City Steep) and Elvis Perkins (One, Two, Three, Oh) with the pop appeal of Delta Spirit and Mumford and Sons.
One of my favorite songs from The Band is “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and Lisa Hannigan’s rendition in tribute to Levon Helm more than does the song justice. I’m not sure where Lisa found her band mates, but they have serious talent. This is the stuff that makes goosebumps.
The Walkmen have a new album coming out on Fat Possum on June 10th called Heaven. We got a new track and a trailer so you can sample the goods like a fine caviar. If the lead track is any indicator, I think we got a winner on our hands. Quoth the PR juggernaut:
The Walkmen just celebrated their 10th anniversary and are still comprised of the same members that started the group in 2001 – drummer Matt Barrick, multi-instrumentalist Pete Bauer, singer Hamilton Leithauser, guitarist Paul Maroon and bassist Walter Martin. The Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold sings harmonies on two songs on the record.
When describing Heaven, Leithauser portrays a band hitting maturity, comfortable in its mastery, after a decade together. “The detachment you can feel throughout our younger records is gone. We felt like it was time to make a bigger, more generous statement.”
It’s been ten years since the Walkmen made their debut album, Everybody Who Pretended To Like Me Is Gone. Ten years since they mixed the lovingly recorded analogue tapes down to the cheapest CD burner they could find. Ten years since Leithauser snapped Maroon’s arm in a celebratory wrestling match. Ten years since critics attached them to a New York scene they never wanted any part of. In the spring of 2011, the band played a series of 10th anniversary shows that demonstrated how far they have outstripped their peers: two sets over two hours, no filler, rapturously received. In contrast, fellow graduates from New York’s celebrated rock revival class of ’02 have burned out or faded from view.
On the Tuesday night of SXSW, Oz was trying preview Nick Waterhouse for me before seeing his set the following day. I was skeptical at best; ornery at my worst. I remarked to him, “I hope this isn’t some hipster bullshit revival act where some clown gets up in a suit and sings some old-school [...]
I remember the first time we all heard Joe Pug. Listening to his lyrics, I would have guessed him to be closer to my age than his true age of 23. The lyrics he put to paper belied his true age. The same is true of newcomer John Fullbright and his astonishingly young age of [...]
I first crossed paths with The Mastersons at SxSW 2011 at The San Jose. As I sat in the sun drinking micheladas, they cranked out the twang with boy/girl harmonies that made my heart swell. I plugged that name into the ol’ smart phone and promised that I would look them up when I got [...]
Friends, now that the secret of The Chubberoo has been exposed, I figure I will now be working it in to more and more posts, kind of like right now. Lucero playing Sounds Of The City w/ The Memphis Symphony Orchesta gives me a Chuberoo!!!! Tweet
I am going to let you in on a little HearYa secret. Sometimes when we get new music, I will remark to Oz that such and such band’s new song is giving me a Chubberoo. A Chubberoo is defined as a boner brought forth by great musical excitement. We’re still awaiting word from Webster’s if [...]
I once said that it’s hard to put a price tag on Joe Pug’s music. I received his debut EP Nation of Heat in the mail while living in Northern California, shortly after moving away from Chicago. His debut LP Messenger arrived while living in Atlanta, shortly after leaving California. And now his sophomore LP, [...]
