Radiohead @ Miami

I know this blog often goes back to radiohead news, but as my favorite band i cant help but tell because I am so excited.  Last night, Radiohead kicked off their tour in Miami.  The set started off as expected, with a handful of songs off their latest album, King of Limbs.   But from there the show was in new territory.  Radiohead surprised fans with the live debut of Meeting in the aisle, a 15 year old b-side track.  They also treated fans with two brand new songs, Identikit and Cutting a Hole.  Sprinkled in with older tunes like Airbag and ending with Karma Police, the setlist was nothing short of amazing.  At the end of the night, Thom Yorke said that we can expect new setlists every night of the tour.  For those of you with Radiohead tickets in the future, get excited.  Here is the setlist and videos of Identikit and Weird Fishes last night...
setlist
01. Bloom
02. The Daily Mail
03. Morning Mr. Magpie
04. Staircase
05. The National Anthem
06. Meeting In The Aisle (live debut – seriously, this is a WTF inclusion)
07. Kid A
08. The Gloaming
09. Codex
10. You And Whose Army?
11. Nude
12. Identikit (new song debut)
13. Lotus Flower
14. There There
15. Feral
16. Idioteque
17. Separator
———
18. Airbag
19. Bodysnatchers
20. Cut A Hole (new song debut)
21. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
———
22. Give Up The Ghost (with a false start)
23. Reckoner
24. Karma Police

New Jack White

He's back!  The lead singer of The White Stripes, The Racounters, and drummer of Dead Weather recently announced that he will, for the first time, be releasing a solo album.  The new album, Blunderbuss, is set to be released April 24th.  In an interview, White said that Blunderbuss is "an album I couldn't have released until now. I've put off making records under my own name for a long time but these songs feel like they could only be presented under my name. These songs were written from scratch, had nothing to do with anyone or anything else but my own expression, my own colors on my own canvas."  While waiting for that, check out the new solo, "Love Interruptions", and be sure to see his performance on SNL March 3rd.

Wilco Live In Santa Barbara

        After a listen to Wilco's new album The Whole Love, I knew that this would be a tour I did not want to miss.  So when I saw that they would be playing the Arlington theatre in Santa Barbara (one of my favorite venues), I immediately hopped on some tickets.  So a few weeks ago, my friend Wynne and I drove down to Santa Barbara, and after watching a sunset that made us extremely jealous of UCSB students, we went over to the venue.  Anticipation was high, and although the opener, White Denim, was impressive, we could not wait for Wilco.  And sure enough they fulfilled all expectations and more.
The band opened with "reservations", and older, folk tune that showed off Jeff Tweedy's amazing tone.  They soon broke into a few of the hits off Whole Love and with dramatic dynamics, the crowd was in their hands.  One song that stood out to me was "Impossible Germany", a hit off their 2007 album Sky Blue Sky.  While the band built a groovy foundation, lead guitarist Nels Cline explored the fret board aggressively with a solo that had us all on our feet.  And as they built up to a ground-shaking climax, they managed to maintain their clarity and control, demonstrating their experience as a band that has been touring for almost 20 years.  With Jeff Tweedy's amiable persona, the unpredictalbe setlist, and the perfectly constructed encore, Wilco made the night feel special (which is no easy task after being on tour for months).  On the drive back to school, I could not help but throw Wilco on my ipod, only to rant about how "it was sooo much better live".

Video of Wilco live on Letterman

Bonnaroo Lineup 2012 Released

Radiohead Headlining

For those of you going to Coachella this year, here is the video of Radiohead headlining Glastonbury music festival in 2003, just to give you an idea of what you're in for.  Enjoy!

Playlist of the Week #15

Here is a playlist for your week!  I have recently gotten some requests for cd's of these.  If you are interested please contact me.  The goal is to help out anyone interested in new music.  Also, if you have any artists you think i would enjoy, send them my way!
Enjoy!

1. Mind Eraser - The Black Keys
2. Death By Diamonds and Pearls - Band of Skulls
3. Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues - Bob Dylan
4. Shadow Stabbing - Cake
5. Love Song - The Cure
6. Symphony 1 In the Barrel of a Gun - Emily Wells
7. The High Road - Broken Bells
8. VCR - The XX
9. Kiara - Bonobo
10. Every Planet we Reach is Dead - The Gorillaz
11. Look After Me - Hot Chip
12. Something About Us - Daft Punk
13. Pagina Dos - Prefuse 73
14. The Pageant of the Bizarre - Zero 7
15. Kala - Bonobo
16. Octopus - 2 Foot Yard
17. Morning Bell - Radiohead

R.I.P Etta James

With unforgettable songs such as "At Last", "Dance With Me Henry", and "Tell Mama", Etta James was an incredible musician.  For decades, people will remember her and her phenomenal voice.  A voice that, as some have put it, can be raspy deep and soulful, and then turn to silk at the drop of a dime.  She was a master of jazz and blues and will forever influence R&B singers who aspire to have the soul she had.  Etta sadly was diagnosed with leukemia last year and passed away this morning just 5 days before her 74th birthday.  Honor her memory with a listen of the timeless classic, "At Last".

Group of the Week! - Fitz & The Tantrums

Hometown:  Los Angeles

Members:  Two Lead singers, Tenor Sax, Drummer, Piano, Bass

Genre: Soul

Sounds Like: A groove fest of catchy lyrics, and nice melodies.... you'll dance!

Hits:  Be sure to check out Moneygrabber, Don't Gotta Work it Out, and Winds of Change.

Shows:  Fitz and the Tantrums will be playing on Sunday at Coachella, as well as two shows in San Francisco in late January.

Playlist of the Week #14

Hello friends and family,
I am currently in the works of planning a small concert with some local bands from San Luis Obispo.  Although no plans are concrete yet, I am very excited to see what we can make out of this.  In the meantime, here are some softer tunes to ruminate.
CS

1.  The Past and the Pending - The Shins
2.  Hold You in My Arms - Ray LaMontagne
3.  Stuck Inside of Mobile with The Memphis Blues Again - Cat Power
4.  Christ for President - Billy Bragg & Wilco
5.  You're In My Heart - Rod Stewart
6.  America - Simon & Garfunkel
7.  Orange Sky - Alexi Murdoch
8.  Tenuousness - Andrew Bird
9.  The Littlest Birds - The Be Good Tanyas
10.  Two of Us - The Beatles
11.  The State I am In - Belle & Sebastian
12.  It Ain't Me Babe - Bob Dylan

Coachella Sold Out

Sorry for those behind at all; but Coachella, yes both weekends, sold out all 225,000 tickets this morning in less than 3 hours, including all campsites.  This sets a record for not only most tickets sold in such a short time, but also highest grossing music festival in the world.  For those who were on their game, congrats on booking one of the highest sought after shows with an amazing lineup this year!  I'll be there second weekend and hope to see you there!