Trampled By Turtles were hands down my biggest surprise of SxSW 2010. I had already listened to their debut latest album, Palomino, but nothing prepared me for the storm of bluegrass energy that blew my hair back a the Lucero Family Picnic Party at Red Eyed Fly in Austin. They opened, but stole the show away from followers like Deer Tick and Justin Townes Earle.
The Minnesota band plays a unique brand of raucous bluegrass that will win over audiences of all shapes an sizes. In person, Trampled By Turtles sound and stage presence is impossible not to love. On Palomino, it’s exhausting to make your way through if you’re unprepared for the furious pace of the mandolin, banjo and fiddle. I listened to the opening track, “Wait So Long” and started sweating a little bit out of my right armpit (For some reason that’s where my sweating starts and my left armpit never quite catches up).
Luckily, TxT balances ferocious tracks like “Wait So Long,” “It’s a War,” and “Feet and Bones” with lighter fare like “New Orleans,” “Separate,” and “Bloodshot Eyes.” This balance of energy is a bit like riding a roller coaster. You’ll take twists, bends, and dips at break neck speeds before clicking your way slowly up an ascent that drops you back down into the bluegrass abyss. It’s one hell of a ride.
They are touring in May and June, so check out their site for dates. We damn near had a session with them last time through Chicago, but their schedule was too tight to make it happen. Judging by the video below, it would have been something amazing. Maybe next time…
I’m anxiously awaiting Phosphorescent’s upcoming album almost as much as the aforementioned Josh Ritter. Phosphorescent’s Here’s To Taking It Easy is due out on May 11th via Dead Oceans. He’s just released a second mp3 entitled “Mermaid Parade” and it’s incredible.
I wasn’t aware of Ritter’s emotional struggles in writing his upcoming album. He goes into detail, wearing his heart on his sleeve via his website.‚ Here’s an excerpt:
After my last record, Historical Conquests, a feeling came stealing over me that I had a reckoning in store. It was a new feeling, sinister in its emptiness, and it fell across me like a cold shadow. After almost a decade on the road, my life seemed as if it had become the one I always dreamed of; I was playing shows, living the charmed existence of a writer who has worked very hard and been very lucky. Still, the shadow was there, and I knew it had found me for a reason. I knew that I would have to wrestle it eventually. In the meantime though, in the words of Muriel Spark, I went on my way rejoicing. Then one day the shadow fell across me and stayed there. You know what that’s like. Anyone who loves to do something and then, one day, finds no joy in it, knows what that’s like. I suppose I could say I was burned out, but it wasn’t that; I wanted to write and I wanted to play, but nothing, nothing felt right to me anymore. Even more than that, nothing felt original. Suddenly, after all my effort, I had lost my confidence in the force and originality of my own work. I wrote and wrote. Nothing came and if it did, it was the same old stuff as before. My old songs came ringing back, silly, bereft to my ears of their original love or intent. I felt at times as if I was hovering just above myself, watching the mediocrity of my afternoon threatening to spread across months and years into a lost decade. And with nothing to show for myself would anyone ever believe how hard I had worked? The shadow hung and I held on, hoping for a single verse of something, anything at all that I could love.
I think we can all identify with his feelings, but I can’t imagine the pressure an artist or musician must feel when they know their livelihood is at stake. The pressure mounts, panic sets in, vision gets clouded, and the downward spiral begins. It’s probably like Tin Cup getting the yips.
Anyway, I’m glad he eventually snapped out of the funk, because it’s been two long years since Ritter’s last release, The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, and I’m in Tom Sizemore sized withdrawal right now.‚ “The Curse” was posted on I Guess I’m Floating, and you’d think the song was about this back story. Nope. It’s about a mummy falling in love with an archaeologist.
Crashing a party at The White House would have been easier than catching a set by Surfer Blood at SxSW 2010. We made valiant attempts to see them, but their rapid ascent to buzz band status made lines intolerable and entry unlikely. I suppose that makes our live session that much more special.
Surfer Blood is an impressive band. While I expect all bands to be professional (I’ve said many times that indie bands are the hardest working people around), Surfer Blood has a work ethic and demeanor beyond their years.‚ Their whirlwind rise to prominence in indie circles would feel unnatural for mature bands, let alone these lads with an average age somewhere in the early twenties. In fact, their surge in popularity made us a little uneasy, concerned that they may dismiss the session as a distraction or pain in the ass. Luckily, the early indicators of success didn’t deter them from a quick stop at Shirk Music + Sound.
Following the lead of JP Pitts, the boys from Florida perform punk inspired indie rock with precision. Their power chord driven sound, broken up by tasty percussion and bubbly guitar breaks, has earned them labels like “breaking band” by Rolling Stone, “hot band” by Spin, “between buzz and break” by NY Times, and “the first big surprise of 2010″ by us. High accolades for a band formed only a year ago. The band released their amazing debut, Astro Coast, then launched out of SxSW into a tour that will carry them through June. Their next test is to take the stage, city by city, and win over crowds carrying big expectations.
If you want to fast dance, Horse Feathers isn’t your band. But much like The Tallest Man On Earth’s The Wild Hunt, Thistled Spring is the perfect companion for our changeover to the Spring season. Nowhere is it more evident than in the first strikes of piano keys and lyrics in the opening title track: [...]
Here are the tracks we discussed on HearYa this past week Treetop Flyers – Mountain Song The Moondoggies – Changing Chief – Your Direction The Love Language – Heart To Tell The Antlers – Two Phantogram – When I’m Small From our live session with The Right Now:
In a random encounter at our SxSW 2009 day party, I met a guy that obsessively records Americana/ Alt-country shows around Austin. I’m now on his email list and his tapings and downloads can be found here. This track was sent out today and it’s too good not to share on a Friday. Justin Townes [...]
Harlem has been getting a boatload of buzz since the release of Hippies on April 6th via Matador Records. I admit that Harlem’s songs blended together at first and the album felt marginalized by countless other garage bands. But upon further listens, I noticed nuances in the trio’s music that grew on me. Hell, I [...]
I didn’t intend to make this Peter Wolf Crier day, but it has now been declared. They just released this mp3 as a free download. Peter Wolf Crier – Hard As Nails Tweet
Tree Top Flyers are a London quintet that recently graced our inbox and are presumably named after the excellent Stephen Stills tune. Upon making my way halfway the first song, I was blown away. They combine big hooks, melodies I grew up on, and phenomenal harmonies. You can site all the old-school influences such as [...]
