The Best Music Your Eyes Have Ever Heard !
A new earthshaking special feature addition to WVOX's Metal Mayhem show in New York will debut this Friday and every last Friday of the month from 9:30-10:00pm EST.
"Expect a whole new twist on heavy metal interviews...Ed's knowledge is great and WVOX is prepared for the worldwide mayhem that is sure to ensue", says Metal Mayhem host, Matt O'Shaughnessy.
By Mike Ritchie
In a quiet, secluded patio-like room illuminated by a fountain of melted candle wax and a tent like ceiling extending into the dark carnival air of Hollywood loomed the curtained circular stage of Bar Sinister www.facebook.com/ClubBarSinister.
Tonight’s show featured a trio of acts that ranged from the creatively deranged, the industrial macabre and the dark dinged shine of the painted up burlesque.
The synthesizer’s heavy keys were loud with angry guitars taking center stage behind the cyber industrial plates hammering and flame flying steel fabrication as she walked spreading her addictive Bullshit. The Industrial Bitch stated her loud mission statement, to which she’s ‘entitled’.
AKA, Shere Thu Thuy was born in Saigon and is currently the only Vietnamese female industrial Goth, cyber rock vocalist in LA beginning in 2011 with concerts at The Whisky, Bar Sinister, Club Addiction and Club Sacrilege.
After a few moments of creative-technical difficulty, not every great show is perfect; they broke into some Bohemian Rhapsody. Ginger might be the king or ‘honorary Queen of the damned’ according to his dark cabaret inspired music and imagery. They started the originals with a preview of The Culling EP due out in September with Everything is Fine. Ginger went back to 2011 and his Atlanta recorded debut on The Fake & The Fabuless and sang a twisted but true tale of life/career fakery in fame’s name from the broadcasted fairytale on the TV/movie screen to the tabloids, with a clever sprinkling of jaded cynicism and underground laughter.
To end the show the best way possible, with a debaucherous, treacherous walk down the left hand path, former Dawn of Ashes/current Urilia www.facebook.com/URILIAband front man Kristof Bathory joined the brood onstage to finish the evening in devilish fashion.
Photography by Mike Ritchie www.facebook.com/mike.ritchie.338
Read more from the pit articles and reviews by Mike Ritchie on his web site www.coveringthescene.com
Los Angeles Based Alt-Indie band Statues of Cats recent album Memorabilia is an irreverent and highly talented work.
-Benjamin Franklin
Album Review: Memorabilia – available on 80/20 Records and on Bandcamp
Reviewed by joseph Timmons: Xombiewoof Magazine
Statures of Cats is a four piece ensemble of artists that have created an undeniably catchy and somewhat irreverent ( as I have said before ) sound that keeps you listening and moves you to tippy tap your toes in measure with the music. Band members Daphne Greene and Jonney Machtig on Guitar, Anthony Salazar on Drums and Dan Rojas on Bass create a delightful and resounding “cacophony” of blissful tonality, with all the members doing vocals with grand harmony.
Do I sound a bit off to you, a bit “nerdy” in my prose and conjugation of verbs; well it’s all good to me…. That’s what Statues of Cats does with their music; it weaves a thought into your head that you have to follow. Nominated by L.A. Weekly as “Best Live Band of 2014”, Statues of Cats is a up and coming band with a fast growing following, able to cross musical divides, not being cast as a particular type of music, Memorabilia, stated as an EP is really a taste of what is forthcoming and I feel there will be more great wok coming from this quartet of quirk.
With influences that range from classic rock acts like Led Zeppelin and Queen, to more current Jack White, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Muse leanings. The band has toured and played extensively in and around the Los Angeles and surrounding area, playing venues like the Whiskey A-Go-Go, The Viper Room, and Sunset Strip House of Blues, as well as Silverlake mainstay The Satellite and others. In 2013 they played an event affiliated with Phoenix Comicon, further cementing the band's nerd-dom, and 2014 also marked Statues' first time playing Trans Pride LA.
I strongly advise you to seek the inner geek and follow Statues of Cats on the webiverse at the following links:
Statues of Cats Website - http://www.statuesofcats.com
Xombiewoof Magazine got a chance to listen to this album in its entirety and we have to say this is one to have, not only is this album a stunning tribute from one amazing performer about another, it is a living tribute of a son’s love for his father.
Much to the excitement of music fans worldwide, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's Robert Levon Been pays tribute to his late father, Michael Been, with an unforgettable live performance fronting his father's legendary band The Call in the upcoming live DVD / CD “The Call Live Tribute With Robert Levon Been” (available September 2nd, 2014 via Label Records/Lightyear/Caroline).
“What a joy it has been to reconnect with the band and the fans. I don't know how Robert pulled this off, but there were times during the show that I was not sure what year it was” – Jim Goodwin
The album is definitive and astounding, the collected works of musical genius with a foundation in total respect to his father’s work, Robert Levon Been brings an energy and excitement that is unparalleled in many tribute albums and will be the goal to meet for any future performers who dare to follow. In addition the DVD is full of great moments and behind the scenes information and footage.
While The Call (Michael Been, Tom Ferrier, Jim Goodwin and Scott Musick) got their official start in Santa Cruz, CA in 1979, its roots as a band go back to Michael Been's childhood in Oklahoma City, where seeing Elvis Presley perform on television changed the course of his life. That early interest in musical performance inspired his career, from the very beginning performing at the age of seven on local radio and television programs, to his eventual move to Chicago at the age of 16, where he was drawn into the blues scene by Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, and Junior Parker. Been eventually made his way to California, where he connected with drummer Scott Musick, as well as Tom Ferrier (guitar, vocals) and Jim Goodwin (keyboards, vocals) to form The Call.
Despite having their initial demos rejected by all the major labels, the band found themselves in demand by nearly every major producer in America. The Call's debut album was ultimately produced by Hugh Padgham (David Bowie, The Police) and the band were suddenly opening acts for major artists including Peter Gabriel and Simple Minds. The Call was not atypical of their generation, but a voice that was herd and revered, to put in one word, Timeless.
The Call were signed to Mercury, Elektra and MCA, and released seven critically acclaimed albums over the next eight years, featuring several iconic hit songs including “Let The Day Begin” and “I Still Believe (Great Design).” In 1997, after a seven year break, the band reformed to release the album Heaven & Back, before disbanding once more. Michael Been began serving as sound engineer for his son Robert Levon Been's band Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, but passed away from a heart attack while working backstage at the 2010 Pukkelpop festival in Belgium.
Now after twenty years, The Call reunited at legendary Los Angeles venue The Troubador and gave an incredible live performance with Robert Levon Been stepping into his father's role and joining Musick, Ferrier and Goodwin for the one-of-a-kind event. For Robert - who grew up going out on the road with The Call anytime he had a break from school - the performance offered the chance to honor his musical legacy and perform nearly a dozen and a half songs from the band’s esteemed catalog. And for original members Musick, Ferrier and Goodwin, the show allowed them the opportunity to honor their friend and their own musical legacy while revisiting a bond they thought was gone forever.
“The Call was always about a deep spiritual connection and an examination of life from an intense personal perspective. Now, we have the son doing a tribute to his father that has taken it to a new level...a truly joyous noise after a 25 year silence.” - Jim Goodwin
“The Call Live Tribute with Robert Levon Been” will be available as a DVD+CD Deluxe Set on September 2nd 2014 and will also be available on CD, 180 gram double vinyl, and digitally (with 5 extra bonus tracks).
http://www.the-call-band.com/
To purchase:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1q1psz3
iTunes: http://bit.ly/V8y526
Vinyl: http://amzn.to/1sFJPGL
Outside US & Canada:
http://smarturl.it/TheCallAmzn
https://itunes.apple.com/album/id901579778 (Deluxe)
https://itunes.apple.com/album/id902718374 (Standard)
Special Two Disc Edition, The Basement Tapes Raw: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11 Presents Highlights From The Basement Tapes Complete
Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings will release Bob Dylan's The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11 (http://smarturl.it/BD_basement_amzn) on November 4. Compiled from meticulously restored original tapes – many found only recently – this historic six-disc set is the definitive chronicle of the artist's legendary 1967 recording sessions with members of his touring ensemble who would later achieve their own fame as The Band.
The Basement Tapes Raw: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11, a two-disc version of highlights from the deluxe edition, will also be released on November 4. This will also be issued as a 3 LP set on 180-gram vinyl.
Among Bob Dylan's many cultural milestones, the legendary Basement Tapes have long fascinated and enticed successive generations of musicians, fans and cultural critics alike. Having transformed music and culture during the early 1960s, Dylan reached unparalleled heights across 1965 and 1966 through the release of three historic albums, the groundbreaking watershed single "Like A Rolling Stone," a controversial and legendary 'electric' performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival and wildly polarizing tours of the United States, Europe and the United Kingdom. Dylan's mercurial rise and prodigious outpouring of work during that decade came to an abrupt halt in July 1966 when he was reported to have been in a serious motorcycle accident in upstate New York.
Recovering from his injuries and away from the public eye for the first time in years, Dylan ensconced himself, along with Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel, Garth Hudson and, later, Levon Helm, in the basement of a small house, dubbed "Big Pink" by the group, in West Saugerties, New York. This collective, which would come to be known as Bob Dylan and The Band, recorded more than a hundred songs over the next several months including traditional covers, wry and humorous ditties, off-the cuff performances and, most important, dozens of newly-written Bob Dylan songs, including future classics "I Shall Be Released," "The Mighty Quinn," "This Wheel's On Fire" and "You Ain't Going Nowhere."
When rumors and rare acetates of some of these recordings began surfacing, it created a curiosity strong enough to fuel an entirely new segment of the music business: the bootleg record. In 1969, an album mysteriously titled Great White Wonder began showing up in record shops around the country, and Dylan's music from the summer of 1967 began seeping into the fabric of popular culture, penetrating the souls of music lovers everywhere. With each passing year, more and more fans sought out this rare contraband, desperate to hear this new music from the legendary Bob Dylan.
The actual recordings, however, remained commercially unavailable until 1975, when Columbia Records released a scant 16 of them on The Basement Tapes album (that album also included eight new songs by The Band, without Dylan).
A critical and popular success, The Basement Tapes went Top 10 in the US and UK, with John Rockwell, of The New York Times, calling it "one of the greatest albums in the history of American popular music," Paul Nelson, in Rolling Stone, praising the tracks as "the hardest, toughest, sweetest, saddest, funniest, wisest songs I know"' and the Washington Post noting that "...Dylan has to rank as the single greatest artist modern American pop music has produced." Robert Christgau gave the album an A+ rating in the Village Voice, where it topped the annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Over the years, the songs on The Basement Tapes have haunted and perplexed fans, with the recordings themselves representing a Holy Grail for Dylanologists. What's on the rest of those reels?
The Basement Tapes Complete brings together, for the first time ever, every salvageable recording from the tapes, including recently discovered early gems recorded in the "Red Room" of Dylan's home in upstate New York. Garth Hudson worked closely with Canadian music archivist and producer Jan Haust to restore the deteriorating tapes to pristine sound, with much of this music preserved digitally for the first time.
The decision was made to present The Basement Tapes Complete as intact as possible. Also, unlike the official 1975 release, these performances are presented as close as possible to the way they were originally recorded and sounded back in the summer of 1967. The tracks on The Basement Tapes Complete run in mostly chronological order based on Garth Hudson's numbering system.
Bob Dylan and his Band will be touring North America this Fall. Check bobdylan.com for details on August 27.
BOB DYLAN - THE BASEMENT TAPES COMPLETE: THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOL. 11
(all songs written by Bob Dylan unless otherwise noted)
CD 1
CD 2
CD 3
CD 4
CD 5
CD 6
BOB DYLAN- THE BASEMENT TAPES RAW: THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOL. 11
(all songs written by Bob Dylan unless otherwise noted)
CD 1
CD 2
Musicians: Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel, Garth Hudson, Levon Helm
(Lead vocals are sung by Bob Dylan. Harmony and instrumentation are unknown because all involved were multi-instrumentalists and vocalists, and no records remain.)
More Information at http://www.bobdylan.com
By James and Debra Romeyn – Contributing Writers for Xombiewoof Magazine
Penny Unniversity member, Jack LaCompte, has played with artists that span a wide diversity of talent and style: Michael Bolton, Bette Midler, and his band mate Ted Walker has done audio tech work for Stevie Wonder, Journey and Guns n' Roses. These musicians saw an opportunity to create something special, so the band Penny Unniversity was founded, using the name with the Old English spelling, connecting the present with the past and adorning the music world with a unique musical air.
It was our distinct pleasure to interview Penny Unniversity while on their travels to find out more and bring you a full and enlightened story. We asked Penny U to share their thoughts on the arts of writing and performing.
Here is our Q&A Interview.
Q. Would you please name all the band members and tell us which instruments they play?
Michael Anthony Gagliardi -Guitar, vocals and guitar synth, Rene Almodovar - Percussion and Ted Walker - Bass, synth bass, and fretless.
Q. I know you often play in Central and Southern CA and you opened for Buddy Guy and Aaron Neville last spring. But could you go back to when the band was first formed? How did you all meet?
I (Michael) was groomed on guys like Al DiMeola, Jeff Beck, and Allan Holdsworth. I had a classical and jazz background. Neither Ted nor Steve were ever in an instrumental group and were not hot on the idea at the time, but grew to enjoy its endless and open writing options. After the first year we replaced Steve after he left to another job in Azusa and acquired Craig via Craigslist, (no relation) ha. After a few months of rehearsals we added Percussionist Rene Almodovar to the lineup. Rene brought the icing we wanted. We eventually replaced Craig with Jack LaCompte an accomplished drummer who has toured and played with Michael Bolton, Bette Midler, and Stevie Wonder. Our foursome is now complete, and we break our performances into the "Trio" for smaller intimate concerts and our "foursome" we retain for larger shows like festivals and outdoor concerts.
Q. Who has inspired you?
Well I think for all of us Life is probably the first mention. Musically life brings out the creative animal. Musical artists have helped by introducing us to this vehicle we use to express ourselves.
Q. You seem to mutually respect each other's talent. Do you all have individual playing styles and if so how did you accomplish such a perfect blending of sounds?
We not only respect each other’s abilities but we are friends! Each of us has his specific identity, sound, and duties to fill in the making of our music. We work very well together and complement each other always. I think we understand unity and team playing since we are not 20 and trying to conquer the world. We are more like a fine wine enjoyed by a fire as you watch the sunset. There is no animosity or rivalry since we all see the same goal at the end of the day.
Q. Considering how accomplished you all are...do you feel playing with each other’s raises each other's game?
Q. You all seem to be steeped in jazz, is jazz the most essential part of your sound?
Well for me (Michael) that was the style that gave me something to chew on. I loved the composition and playing/writing skills of Al DiMeola, Paco DeLucia ,Manitas DePlata and Andreas Vollenweider. Even though I grew up playing rock as a teen it wasn't enough musically. Ted grew up in classic rock and played in several rock bands as well as being an audio tech for everyone from Journey to Guns n' Roses. However Ted's love of music was not solely rock oriented. Rene was jazz from the beginning and had a wider variety and scope in his influences than all of us, with Salsa, Brazilian, and more ethnic influences.
I don't think we consider ourselves jazz although we are on a number of jazz radio stations as well as ambient, new age, and world. Jazz is certainly a big influence. But not the contemporary or scat jazz. I never really considered Al DiMeola jazz but that's where you find his recordings. I guess that's how we view ourselves. Our current album coming in September draws from a Cinematic point of view. Movie music, sweeping melodies and orchestration is the "soup dejour" on this one. It is such a great mix of Cinematic, Acoustic, Latin, and ambient jazz that we call "Sound Tapestry" because of its stitching of so many influences.
Q. I'd like to explore the mind(s) of the writer(s) in the group. Who does the majority of the writing?
I (Michael) write all the songs, Ted helps build the parts, and is a major part of the recording, engineering and overall look of the material as well as his bass parts. Rene provides the drive, and creates the beats and rhythms, and falls easily into his place of attacking the song with the proper feel. I think I write the lions share because I am a prolific writer. I have at least ten stacks of demo Cd's plus 8 inches high of demo material ranging from Acoustic to Middle Eastern music. I can’t stop writing! It is my outlet for an overactive ADD mind I absolutely love the creative process.
Q. Your music is instrumental. With your songs it's easy to know what inspired the melody; it's usually a beautiful place. How hard is it to express your emotions through musical notes?
Though we dabble in vocal songs here and there, yes most of it is instrumental. The second you put vocals on a song it changes everything. It quickly falls into a genre, or it has to be arranged according to the "formula" musicians use for intro verse, bridge, chorus etc. I hate these parameters. This is what stifles guys like me who want to express life through notes. I naturally feel devoted and fall passionately for a rhythm; the feel, and taste. if you will, for a potential song. It is the topic that draws out the urge, the "towel ringing" I call it of melody and feeling. It is as if it was predestined to arrive, but only in its time. Some songs show up a decade later because they had the melody but not the contagion of feel, passion, and power that evokes the finished product.
Q. Is any of your music by chance or is all your songs completely intentional?
All the songs are intentional because chance is the intention of creation. When you are always in a creating process, chance is what satisfies the intent and that is one of the "eureka” moments. If you are capable of something, it will come out either by chance or intention, make sense?
Q. Which song is your favorite to perform and which are you most proud of from a creative point of view?
Definitely our newest album has some material that I am very proud of, although I bore easily, and I want to move on to the next project. I do love "San Gimignano" off the first album and of course "Escape to Capri". Both were radio favs in Europe.
Q. It's a lot of work to perform. But you all seem to have a lot of fun playing together. Are you able to relax at a gig, even when it's at a large venue, and just have fun jamming?
Yes we are relaxed, but we are very, very insistent on performing the best we can. We mull over sound issues most of all. Most times they are out of our control, but to a musician who is constantly trying to create the "climate" our sound is the greatest Achilles heel, especially if we are not able to have a sound check. We usually prefer to arrive 1-2 hours early to secure a good sound thus securing a good performance.
Q. What's in store for Penny Unniversity?
We will continue to record and play while exposing our group to wider audiences. With the advent of the internet and the decline of record companies and the way things used to be in the Industry, this is the only path any group can take. We are both excited and look to the future for what is to come for Penny U.
We would like to thank Penny Unniversity for taking the time to do this enlightening and inspiring interview for us and Xombiewoof Magazine. We believe your music brings folks together and uplifts their spirits, as well as expanding their minds. All the best to you and to your brilliant successes!
Follow Them on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Penny-Unniversity/128078650618788
