Here’s some photos I shot of Shakey Graves in the Soundcheck studio.
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Category: Reblogging
Those Darlins: Magnetic And Hair-Raising
I first caught Those Darlins in 2012, opening for Best Coast at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. I had never heard the band before but I was immediately drawn in and blown away by its killer songs and captivating singers. Despite its namesake, Those Darlins’ songs are far more sinister than sweet. The Murfreesboro-turned-Nashville band makes scorching hot country-fried, punked-up rockers, and its fantastic 2013 album, Blur The Line, oozes with lip-curling charisma and hair-raising guitar lines, and choruses that can get a crowd swaying, whiskey in hand.
Photo Gallery: Jeff Goldblum, On Soundcheck
Had the bizarre pleasure to take photos of Jeff Goldblum — you know, of movies like Jurassic Park, The Fly, The Big Chill, Independence Day, various Wes Anderson films, and so much more. He came to the Soundcheck studio with his jazz ensemble, the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra, play some piano, and generally be delightful. Weird day, but a fun day.
Continue reading Photo Gallery: Jeff Goldblum, On Soundcheck
Photo Gallery: Ryan Adams, On Soundcheck
Shot photos today of Ryan Adams, the manic and brilliant and once-endlessly-prolific songwriter, who has a pretty decent new album of alt-country songs, and a really good short EP of punk bangers. He played a bit of both in the Soundcheck studio.
Photo Gallery: Idina Menzel, On Soundcheck
Idina Menzel might be the biggest star I’ve been around in awhile, thanks to a giant body of work on Broadway, appearances in Glee, and this little animated movie you may have seen called Frozen. Oh yeah, and that whole Adele Dazeem thing from the Oscars. Menzel dropped by the Soundcheck studio to sing selections from her latest production, If/Then. I filmed it and shot photos and sorta just tried not to get in the way.
Weezer’s Going ‘Back To The Shack’ Like It’s ’94
Ask anyone who grew up listening to those first Weezer albums, and they’ll tell you that news of a new record comes attached with some trepidation. It’s a fair reaction, especially for fans who felt a little burned by a string of, um, not-so-good, seemingly tossed-off efforts — I’m looking at you, Raditude! Now it’s been four years since the band’s previous record, 2010’s Hurley, and honestly, it’s been even longer since a great Weezer album.
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NPR First Listen: Phish, ‘Fuego’
This was originally written for NPR Music’s First Listen series. Read the rest over at NPR Music or Soundcheck.
Whether you know its work or just its reputation, you’ve probably already made up your mind about Phish. Maybe you love the band and its music, maybe you can’t stand them, or maybe you liked them and have since moved on to other things. Phish is one of the most dynamic and celebrated live acts in all of music, with a loyal community any artist would envy, but it’s also divisive. This is a band that inspires passion with its multipart compositions, meandering improvisations, playful (often nonsensical) lyrics and unwavering positivity. For the same reasons, it also courts punchlines from its fervent detractors.
Stephen Malkmus And The Jicks: Enigmatic And Elastic As Ever
It’s crazy to think that Stephen Malkmus has been fronting his band the Jicks for as long as he was ever in the band he’s best known for: the influential ’90s indie rock pioneers, Pavement. But here we are, six albums into a solo career, and Malkmus and his shape-shifting group remains as relevant and experimental as ever. On their latest, Wig Out At Jagbags, Malkmus and the Jicks churn out another catchy and off-kilter batch of songs crammed with knotty guitar lines, slack, half-sung melodies, and evocative, if elusive lyrics.
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Jessica Lea Mayfield: Unleashing Gnarled Distortion And Visceral Fury
Push play on the smoldering opening track “Oblivious,” and that very first gnarled squelch of feedback says it all: this is not the same Jessica Lea Mayfield. For years, the Ohio singer-songwriter trucked in the alt-country circles, crafting intriguing and melancholy songs about complex (i.e. bad) relationships and heartsick regret with an unadorned beauty. Now, Mayfield is still singing about love, restless yearning and jealousy on her latest album, Make My Head Sing…, but with a little less twang and a newfound visceral, blood on the lips fury.
Continue reading Jessica Lea Mayfield: Unleashing Gnarled Distortion And Visceral Fury
Conor Oberst, ‘Upside Down Mountain’
It’s wild to think that Bright Eyes’ last, and eighth album, 2011’s masterful The People’s Key, was released when frontman Conor Oberst was then just 31. While still considerably younger than many of his peers that blossomed at the same time in the mid-2000s, the prodigiously talented songwriter has been cranking out confessional songs riddled with internal angst and self-doubt since his teens. But with The People’s Key, Oberst finally embraced an extroverted rockstar persona (well, for him, anyway), and an outward-looking viewpoint, pondering big metaphysical ideas about compassion in a complicated world, and humanity’s place in the wider universe. A sonically captivating, emotionally moving record, it felt like a culmination, and honestly, a celebratory farewell.
Luckily it was not a true goodbye: Here we are, three years later, and Conor Oberst is back, albeit sans the Bright Eyes moniker, with his latest, Upside Down Mountain.