Friday, September 30, 2011
Reviews / Music Last night: Finding Fiction and Brass Bed at Vino's
- Natalie Elliott
- Finding Fiction at Vino's.
The Lafayette-based jangle-pop outfit Brass Bed, true to their genre, have a command of bouncy major-chord melodies that sound like they've been dreamed up by a bizarro ’90s-teen version of Brian Wilson. Masters of their pop-perfect instrumentation, everything sounds spot-on—from the twinkling complement of the bright, fuzzy keyboard fills to the moments the bass player sat down at a distorted pedal steel—each solo was sharp enough to carry its own song.
I spoke with their dry-witted keyboardist, Andrew Toups, who wandered around the venue with his spray of curly hair, a thrift-store tie replete with tie clip, toting a glass of red wine and generally seeming like a cocktail-lounge philosopher—they're some affable dudes whose 2010 release on Park the Van Records is certainly worth seeking to satisfy your indy-pop inclinations.
Brooklyn's Finding Fiction continued the awkward-pop trend of the evening, but with more teenage-sounding, plaintive vocals and an obvious attempt to channel the Weezer of a time long since past. They were most musically interesting during their slow jams and breakdowns, which seemed like micro-experiments in the arhythmic, atonal blasts of a post-punk three piece, but usually teetering on the edge of completely falling apart.
The synth dabbled too much in shrill car-alarm sounds, and when it was employed properly, was barely audible, which makes one wonder whether or not it should even be a part of the lineup. The band itself appeared trapped in the amber of a computer-geek adolescence, with their flat stage banter and fumbling presence. A friend commented that their set would have made a perfect soundtrack to an episode of Degrassi, and it was true — in fact, the whole back room at Vino's, with the snarky indy pop, the sparse crowd, and long cafeteria-style tables gave the feeling of hanging out at an alt-prom that even the losers forgot to attend.
Posted by Natalie Elliott on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on / Music Sunday To-Do: ZooJam
ZOOJAM
Noon. War Memorial Park. $65.
You can learn a lot about life and America and Toby Keith by watching Toby Keith videos.
For example: In the video for "Trailerhood," Toby's wearing a hat that says "Nachos." Now that's a pretty cool hat, and it lets us know that Toby don't take things too seriously. From "I Wanna Talk About Me," we learn that Toby's happy to listen to his woman yammer on and on about clothes and gossip and lady stuff. But you know what? Sometimes, Toby wants to talk about Toby. And that's OK.
If you watch "I Love This Bar," you'll find out that Toby's favorite bar has all different kinds of white people hanging out there. In "Beer for My Horses," we learn that when Toby is playing a detective who's trying to crack a tough case, sometimes he has to turn to Willie Nelson for help. Everybody has to turn to Willie sometimes, even Toby.
In "American Ride," we discover that Toby loves this crazy country of ours, even though its culture is morally bankrupt and there are hordes of Mexicans waiting to swarm the border and you're not allowed to sing Christmas carols anymore because Christians are so oppressed and everybody's broke and Wall Street loves Obama. Oh, and don't worry about global warming, because even with "both ends [?] of the ozone burnin' / somehow the world keeps turning."
So maybe all you fancy-pants college professors and liberals and "scientists" just need to let Toby take you to school. Class is in session right now, on YouTube. Better bone up, four-eyes. Opening up for Toby at this fundraiser for the Little Rock Zoo are Sara Evans, Eric Church and Diamond Rio.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (2)
King Biscuit The Arkansas Times Blues Bus is filling up...
Time's tickin' for those of you considering hopping on the Arkansas Times Blues Bus to the King Biscuit Blues Festival in Helena-West Helena.
Once again, we're hauling busloads of blues-lovers to the Saturday portion of the festival, and once again, it's a hell of a bargain, at $99 a person for round-trip transportation, free booze and entertainment on the bus, plus a stopover in DeValls Bluff for barbecue at Craig's.
The bus leaves Sat. Oct. 8 at 10 a.m. from the parking garage at 2nd and Main streets downtown and returns that evening. The headliner for Saturday night is Keb' Mo' (above). Other performers include Marcus "Mookie" Cartwright, Lonnie Shields, Tommy Castro and the Stax Review with Eddie Floyd, Duck Dunn and Steve Cropper, plus many more.
Call 501-375-2985 to order tickets, or send check or money order to: Arkansas Times Blues Bus, Box 34010, Little Rock, AR 72203.
Posted by Lindsey Millar on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on / Music Saturday To-Do: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra
ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: "ITALIAN VACATION"
8 p.m. Robinson Center Music Hall. $14-$48.
The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and conductor Philip Mann kick off the 2011-2012 season with a show that includes the majestic works of Mendelssohn, Rossini, Puccini and Respighi.
Featured performances will include: Mendelssohn's "Symphony No. 4 in A, Op. 90"; Rossini's "Overture to The Italian Girl in Algiers"; Puccini's "Chrysanthemums"; and Respighi's "Pines of Rome."
The ASO will also perform a matinee at Robinson at 3 p.m. Sunday, when all kids high school age and younger can attend for free.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on Saturday: Main Street Food Truck Festival
This Saturday, starting at 11 a.m., Main Street will morph into a food truck-lovers paradise as the Main Street Food Truck Festival gets rolling. From Third Street to Seventh Street, it'll be jam-packed with games, contests, eats, treats, tunes, brews and more.
Now, I know what you might be thinking: Our Beloved Hogs take on the Texas A&M Aggies at the Palace in Dallas Saturday, with a kickoff scheduled for 11 a.m. Well the folks at the Downtown Little Rock Partnership will have two 55-inch TVs set up so folks can watch the game.
The Rep is hosting a beer garden and a costume sale from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., so if you've always wanted to own a piece of Rep history, here's your chance. Maybe they'll have a coat of many colors from the production of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." With Halloween approaching, this is perfectly timed. There will be arts and crafts vendors set up between Fifth and Sixth streets.
Participating vendors include: Banana Leaf, Big Poppa’s Mobile, Christians Take-Out Too, Dream Eats Café Mobile Food, Green Cuisine, Grills on Wheels, Hot Dog Mike, Kristina’s Hawaiian Ice, King Blvd., Kwik Dawg Stop, Le Pops, Lewis & Edna’s Mobile, Loncheria Mexicana Alicia, Papa’s Burgers & Dogs, Peace Hog Mobile Café, Pierre’s Gourmet Pizza, Taqueria Jalisco San Juan and Wishbone’s.
There will be performances from Crooked Roots, Monkhouse, Fire & Brimstone, The Justin Bank Band, DJ Dylan, the Porter's Jazz Café house band and Underclaire.
Everything will wrap up around 7 p.m., but if you're still in the mood for good times, you can stick around for a performance of "Ring of Fire" at The Rep.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Reviews / Music Last night: Richard Buckner
Richard Buckner came through town last night and played a stellar show at Stickyz. It's been two years since Buckner visited Little Rock and a small but dedicated crowd showed up to get their fix. Buckner is a big guy, a real commanding presence on stage. But his lilting voice and dense lyrics really drew the audience in. In fact, I think this was probably the quietest show I've seen since the last time I saw Buckner play. Aside from applause, the small-but-attentive crowd barely made a sound. The audience sat rapt as Buckner rolled through a mix of songs, some off his new album, "Our Blood," with a smattering of older tunes mixed in. Unlike last time, Buckner had accompaniment. Jeff Kazor, of the Crooked Jades, supplied shakers, keys and harmonium (which you can see on the video below). The combination of Buckner's percussive strumming and the moan of the harmonium almost made it feel like church. Hopefully it won't be two years before Buckner graces a Little Rock stage again.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on / Music / Theater Weekend: Nick Charles, Feed Turkana benefit, Family Fun Fest and more
- Barry Gittins
- Guitarist Nick Charles plays in Hot Springs and Little Rock this weekend.
FRIDAY 9/30
If your ears are itching for some jammy goodness, Maxine's has the cure: 1 Oz. Jig at 8 p.m., $5.
Australian guitar virtuoso Nick Charles plays a beautifully understated style that recalls such disparate influences as Django Reinhardt and the Big Bill Broonzy. Charles plays Artchurch Studio in Hot Springs at 7 p.m., $10, or you can catch him in Little Rock Saturday night at Thompson Hall at the Universalist Unitarian Church, 7:30 p.m., $12.
Feed Turkana is a benefit for World Relief, which provides aid to the people of northern Kenya's Turkana region. There will be beer, food, a silent art auction and live music from Chase Pagan, Isaac Alexander, Bear Colony, and No Moon. Canned goods are worth $1 apiece toward entry fee. Dreamland Ballroom, 7 p.m., $5 entry, $20 entry and free beer.
If you were planning to catch Arkansas TheatreWorks' production of "Stage Struck" at Central Theatre in Hot Springs, this weekend is your last chance. The play runs Friday and Saturday night at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m., $15-$25.
SATURDAY 10/1
It's Family Fun Fest at Dickey-Stephens Park, Browse vendor booths and enjoy games and live music from Trout Fishing in America. Emcees for the event will include Alyse Eady and Craig O'Neill from KTHV, starting at 9 a.m., $ 5.
Ed Bowman & The Rock City Players tear the joint up at The Afterthought, 9 p.m., $7.
Tyrannosaurus Chicken brings ramshackle, blues-damaged psychedelia to White Water Tavern, 10 p.m., $5.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (1)
Music Saturday in the Park: Chicago to play Clinton anniversary event
Chicago, the hugely popular FM baby boomer staple, will play a short set during the celebration of the 20th anniversary of Gov. Bill Clinton's announcement to run for president at the Old State House on Saturday, according to our sources. President Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be in attendance.
The standing-room-only event starts at 4 p.m. on Saturday. It's free, but you have get tickets. They're available throughout the week, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Clinton Center and will be available at the Old State House starting at noon on Saturday.
It'll be a good day to be in downtown Little Rock, with the Main Street Food Truck Festival kicking off at 11 a.m.
On the jump see footage of Chicago playing "Saturday in the Park" at a 1995 Presidential Gala, where President Clinton looks like he's in heaven.
Posted by Lindsey Millar on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on / Music Friday To-Do: The Lemonheads
THE LEMONHEADS
9 p.m. Revolution. $15.
Man, this is a good week for those poor lost souls still pining for ye olde college rocke sounds of yore, back before beards and animal-related band names became mandatory. Maybe these shows will even dry some leftover tears caused by R.E.M.'s breakup.
The Lemonheads — led by alterna-hunk Evan Dando — weren't really on my radar back in the '90s, unappreciative as I was of music that wasn't hard, fast and loud. Even though I never listened to the band back then, I was aware that there seemed to be a great deal of hostility directed toward Dando. Semi-famous musicians wrote horrible things about him in their 'zines and sometimes on their instruments.
I never understood that animus. Maybe back then things were so good that people had the luxury of hating a tall, handsome, drug-addled rock star for no other reason than that he was a tall, handsome, drug-addled rock star. Just check out the clip online of Dando on "Live with Regis and Kathie Lee." He's such a goofy, amiable dude and he wrote good songs. How could anybody have a beef with that guy?
The band will perform its breakout 1992 long-player "It's a Shame About Ray" in its entirety. The Shining Twins and the totally excellent (seriously!) Little Rock act The Evelyns open the show.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
What's going on / Film / Music / Theater Thursday: The Movement, 100 Mile Meal, "101 Years of Broadway" and more
Two Arkansas-related films screen on Thursday. "Lesson Before Love," plays at Market Street Cinema at 7 p.m. and includes a Q&A with director (and White Hall native) Dui Jarrod. The thriller "Tuckerman," which was filmed in Arkansas and stars many of the region's talent, screens at Rave at 7 p.m.
Vino's hosts Finding Fiction and Brass Bed for an evening of, respectively, bouncy guitar pop and jangly, dreamy-haze pop, 9 p.m.
The Movement comes to Revolution for a night of frat-bro reggae jams, 9 p.m., $10.
Heifer Village hosts 100 Mile Meal, featuring local, fresh food and a panel discussion about food deserts and access to healthy eats, 6:30 p.m., $30.
Fine edition book binder Craig Jensen will discuss the history of his craft at Hendrix College, 7:30 p.m.
How about sampling "101 Years of Broadway" in one night? Well the University of Central Arkansas has the goods, 7:30 p.m. at Reynolds Performance Hall, $23-$40.
"Ring of Fire" returns to the Rep, 7 p.m. (8 p.m. Saturday night), $30-$40.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Thursday To-Do: Meat Puppets
MEAT PUPPETS
9 p.m. Stickyz. $12 adv., $15 door.
As far as weird career trajectories go, it'd be tough to top The Meat Puppets: two brothers and their drummer friend started a hardcore band; signed to the legendary SST Records; decided hardcore had grown rigid and dogmatic and its fans annoying; proceeded to craft their own sui generis, sun-warped blend of punk, country, boogie rock and psychedelic burnout folk that would serve as a touchstone for subsequent generations of weirdoes; cut two stone-cold classic albums; cut several more really good albums; signed to a major label; joined forces with Nirvana for that band's massively successful MTV Unplugged album; released an album that broke the Billboard Top 40; put out another album that, uh, wasn't as good; spiraled into years of awful drug abuse, fraternal acrimony and incarceration; broke up; got back together years later to release solidly enjoyable albums.
Back in May, the Meat Puppets played the Animal Collective-curated All Tomorrow's Parties festival in England, performing 1985's peerless "Up on the Sun" in its entirety as part of the set.
The odds are slim that the Puppets will get a wild hare up their collective ass and do that again, but you never know. Hearing "Two Rivers" live would be killer.
Opening acts include Adam Faucett & The Tall Grass and The Weeks.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
What's going on / Music Thursday To-Do: Grand Serenade record release show
GRAND SERENADE
10 p.m. White Water Tavern. $5.
A few weeks ago, a couple of 180-gram vinyl copies of Grand Serenade's latest album on Max Recordings arrived at the Times mega-compound hidden deep within the bowels of subterranean Little Rock. Nobody knows how they got here. They just showed up, the intended recipients' names scrawled in all caps on Post-it notes stuck to the front.
A few spins reveal a band that traffics in moody modern rock that never comes across as self-indulgent and is a welcome respite from the current glut of glo-fi or chill-wave or whatever. The album reminds this writer of Radiohead's late '90s output, only not as freaked-out and melodramatic.
The album is called "Lake Country" (a nod no doubt to the band's hometown of Heber Springs) and was recorded at Blue Chair Studio in tiny Austin, Ark. It has a big, warm sound, with Pink Floydian guitar solos, drums and cymbals that pound and crash and singing that's reminiscent of Thom Yorke or maybe a less bombastic Jeff Buckley.
It's really good stuff and you can pick up a copy at this record release show for $10.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
What's going on / Music Wednesday To-Do: Richard Buckner
RICHARD BUCKNER
8:30 p.m. Stickyz. $10.
In a better, more just world, Richard Buckner would be celebrated far and wide.
When he embarked on his sold-out tours, the mayors of mid-sized American cities would issue declarations proclaiming that whatever day it was would henceforth be known as "Richard Buckner Day." Also, in this world Jeff Tweedy would have recently gotten canned from his video store clerk job, his resume littered with dozens of other dead-end hellscapes from which he was fired for being more smug and self-satisfied than his meager, minimum-wage accomplishments could ever justify.
I suppose in reality, Buckner is appreciated well enough. After all, Volkswagen saw fit to use both his and Tweedy's tunes for car commercials. A spot for the 2009 Touareg featured Buckner's touching "Ariel Ramirez." That probably was beneficial in terms of helping Buckner's music reach new audiences.
But it's nonetheless baffling that he's not way more popular. His songs are consistently great and his singing is expressive and dynamic, in sharp contrast to the hordes of bearded, hushed troubadours out there mumbling about feelings and stuff. "Our Blood," Buckner's latest album and first in five years, has met with pretty much universal acclaim.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (1)
What's going on / Music Tonight: Electric Six, Elliot Yamin, Caroline Smith & The Goodnight Sleeps and more
Here's a quick roundup of various ways you could spend the evening:
Leeches of Lore bring some crustified New Mexico heaviness to Downtown Music Hall, at 8 p.m. Little Rock doom-merchants Pallbearer and the eardrum-destroying Crankbait open the show, which is $6.
Detroit dance-rock stalwarts Electric Six are at Stickyz, with Kitten and Flameing Daeth Fearies, 9 p.m., $14.
Contemporary adult pop singer-songwriters Elliot Yamin and Mikey Wax take to the stage at Juanita's, 9 p.m., $18.
Over at the White Water Tavern, it'll be a night of catchy indie pop, with Minneapolis four-piece Caroline Smith & The Goodnight Sleeps and Little Rock's Sea Nanners, 10 p.m., probably $5.
Posted by Robert Bell on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Monday, September 26, 2011
Film Jeff Nichols adds Michael Shannon, Ray McKinnon, Sam Shepard and other famous faces to 'MUD' cast
Whoa. Little Rock director Jeff Nichols has added some serious weight to the cast of "MUD," which, as we've said, started shooting on Monday.
Deadline New York reports that now, in addition to Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon and Tye Sheridan, the cast includes "Take Shelter" star Michael Shannon and the folks above, Little Rock's own Ray McKinnon, Sarah Paulson ("Deadwood," "Martha Marcy May Marlene"), Joe Don Baker (Buford Pusser!) and Pulitzer Prize-winning actor/playwright Sam Shepard ("Days of Heaven"! "Paris, Texas"!)
Posted by Lindsey Millar on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Event Calendar
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Re: Willie Nelson to Johnny Cash Music Festival
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Re: Willie Nelson to Johnny Cash Music Festival
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