Tag Archives: Justice

If I were going to SF Outside Lands Music Festival, here’s who I’d see

10 Aug

Let me break it down like this.  I couldn’t make the Outside Lands Music Festival work with my dates but for those going, here are the acts I would be seeing and who you need to check out.  Hope y’all going have a great time, especially with all the food and drink to enjoy. And if you see Chefs Sobel and Varley from the Michael Mina stable, tell them I said hey.

 

Alabama Shakes – yes everyone should know them by now but their live performance, whoa amazing!

Allen Stone – incredible entertainer, unreal voice, a star in music for years to come

Big Gigantic – get ready to get your groove on with these funktified musicians

Bomba Estereo – get your Columbian dancing feet ready

City and Colour – if any of you remember Dallas Green, this is his band

Cory Chisel – been waiting a while to see him live

Die Antwoord – seriously amazing live and at a festival, look out

Dispatch – reunited and rocking better than ever. If you were like me and never had the chance to see them live, now’s your chance

Electric Guest – rising very fast, great entertainers, fun live show

Honey Island Swamp Band – oh yes, these guys are so funky and goofy but fun live

Jukebox The Ghost – This may be the band I am most excited for everyone going to see. AMAZING

Michael Kiwanuka – amazing talent from the UK with a golden voice

MSTRKRFT – P A R T Y

Neil Young & Crazy Horse – do I need to say more!  Saw them last in 2001, Rotterdam

Of Monsters and Men – the seven piece Icelandic troupe not only have one of the most popular songs of the year but are incredible live

Passion Pit – at Lollapalooza they delivered an energetic performance for the books, peeling of hits and lots of new material.  Get ready to dance

Regina Spektor – I love her voice and am still hoping to see her live one day

Rebelution – if you are looking for a little reggae-rock

Sigur Ros – new album is out, that should be

Stevie Wonder – so jealous, sent Mom and Dad to see him last NYE

Tame Impala – jam on

Tanlines – pop over for a song or two

The Kills – sick duo that will have you feeling it

The Walkmen – a ton of fun live

Thee Oh Sees – are you a fan of The Black Lips?

White Denim – if you’ve never seen them live, get ready to rock out as these Texas boys jam on

 

Well now that I’ve covered most of the lineup, hahaha, enjoy the show!

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Five For Friday: Lollapalooza Edition No.1

27 Jul

So here we are, one week away from Lollapalooza and the excitement is building.  So many great bands and musicians over three wild and crazy filled days in Chicago!  As Grant Park gets ready to be invaded by 100,000 people, I’m running down a small little guide if you find yourself attending and for those who plan to watch the YouTube stream.

  1. Let’s get it out of the way, headliners.  Night One: pits Black Sabbath vs. The Black Keys – only US date for Black Sabbath, Night Two: Avicii vs. Red Hot Chili Peppers – RHCP dominated Bonnaroo with a fiery set, Night Three: Justice vs. Jack White – what I’m most interested in is how the crowd sways, when Childish Gambino and Kaskade play at the same time.
  2. Some afternoon delights for you.  Bands like First Aid Kit, The Growlers, Michael Kiwanuka, The War On Drugs, Milo Greene, JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound, Kopecky Family Band, Chancellor Warhol, Moon Taxi, GIVERS, Bombay Bicycle Club, Outasight, Hey Rosetta!, Oberhofer and more pull early time slots but I promise will be worth arriving for.  These bands are awesome and this is some new music you should really be checking out.
  3. Time Conflicts.  A tip of the hat to the schedulers for finding the easiest way to pull a crowd a part as there are many times over the three days that will have festivalgoers torn.  For instance, on Saturday at the same time you’ll have to decide between Alabama Shakes, The Temper Trap, The Dunwells, B.o.B and fun.  Good luck!
  4. When the sun goes down, the action heats up.  Late night Lollapalooza brings forth some amazing late night shows and some of the best memories of the weekend.  Tickets are sold out to the advertised shows but make a few friends and you’ll find out where the rocking parties are. (Last year I caught CULTS, The Black Lips, Crystal Castles, Skylar Grey)
  5. Who I’m excited for.  Well I’ve been fortunate enough to see so many of these acts live before that I’m mostly craving the opportunity to see many for the first time like Of Monsters and Men, The Gaslight Anthem, The Dunwells, Miike Snow, M83, The Weeknd, Twin Shadow, Amadou & Mariam, Dum Dum Girls, The Devil Makes Three, First Aid Kit, Milo Greene, DEV, Dry The River and Moon Taxi.  Plus after finally seeing Alabama Shakes live at Bonnaroo, I can’t wait to see them again, simply amazing live.

 

Revisited: JUSTICE | 4 19 12 | Las Vegas | (Photos)

20 Apr

Back in 2008 I had the chance to see JUSTICE perform at House of Blues in Las Vegas and I was just too exhausted to go (living in Las Vegas and the line of work I was in can do that to you) so I gave up my ticket .  Not a day went by I didn’t kick myself for missing that show.  Finally last night I got the opportunity to redeem myself as the duo of Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay took the stage in front of a amped crowd at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.  I’ve often said I love concerts out at the BLVD Pool because one, it’s outdoors and two, the there is something about being surrounded by the neon glow of The Strip that just makes these shows better.

As for the show itself, AWESOME.  I know, I know it’s an experience and the lighting rig was impressive (LED piano was sweet, LED orbs adorning the backdrop were intense) but I really just wanted to hear them live.  For me the highlight was “On’n”On,” my favorite track off Audio, Video, Disco which along with “We Are Your Friends” was teased before bringing both back during the encore.   Plus when they played “D.A.N.C.E.” I don’t think you could find one person standing still which brings me to the wide eyed crowd; wow, it was an intense group right in front of the stage!

At the end of the day I can count on one hand the electronic acts I would go out of my way to see and sure enough, JUSTICE is right there.  See you in August at Lollapalooza!

 

Photos courtesy of Scott Harrison

Outside Lands 2012 Lineup Released

17 Apr

This morning Outside Lands released their lineup for the festival taking place at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, August 10-12.

Not a bad lineup at all with Stevie Wonder, Metallica and NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE (how can you not be stoked about this?!).  Plus Dispatch, Of Monsters and Men, Sigur Ros, The Kills, Bloc Party, Die Antwoord, Alabama Shakes, White Denim, Allen Stone, Electric Guest and Michael Kiwanuka; going to be a solid three days in SF.

Tickets go on sale Thursday at noon PST.  If you are within a two hour plane ride of SF, no reason why you shouldn’t be booking tickets now, with all this great talent slated to perform in one of the best cities in the US.

Stevie Wonder, Metallica, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Jack White, Foo Fighters, Beck, Skrillex, Sigur Ros, Justice, Norah Jones, Dispatch, The Kills, Regina Spektor, Passion Pit, Andrew Bird, Grandaddy, Big Boi, Bloc Party, Explosions In The Sky, Franz Ferdinand, Mstrkrft, Rebelution, Die Antwoord, Fitz and The Tantrums, Portugal. The Man, Amadou & Mariam, Wolfgang Gartner, Fun., Dr. Dog, The Walkmen, Washed Out, City and Colour, Two Gallants, Of Monsters and Men, Mimosa, Alabama Shakes, Reggie Watts, Trampled By Turtles, Tame Impala, Jovanotti, The Be Good Tanyas, Geographer, Sharon Van Etten, Yacht, Sean Hayes, Bomba Estereo, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Big Gigantic, Thee Oh Sees, Wallpaper, Tennis, Zola Jesus, White Denim, Allen Stone, The M Machine, Michael Kiwanuka, Tanlines, Father John Misty, Electric Guest, Caveman, Yellow Ostrich, Papa, Honey Island Swamp Band, Animal Kingdom.

Lollapalooza 2012 Lineup is here!

11 Apr

It should be one hot, fun weekend in Chicago for Lollapalooza.  Late last night the much-anticipated lineup for Lollapalooza 2012 was released and C3 Presents and Perry Farrell definitely did not disappoint.  The headliners were pretty much shoe-ins with the exception of Black Sabbath and At The Drive-In (talk about reunion acts) two bands I can’t say anyone really expected.  RHCP, The Black Keys, Jack White, Florence + The Machine are all doing their fair share of festival headlining this summer. Add Justice and Avicii to that list and it is going to be a heck of a good time.

I was really excited to see Sigur Ros, Miike Snow, Die Antwoord, Alabama Shakes, The Weeknd, Passion Pit, Franz Ferdinand, Of Monsters And Men, The Temper Trap, Aloe Blacc, Trampled by Turtles, Toro y Moi, The Head & The Heart, The Big Pink, JJ Grey & Mofro, Gary Clark Jr. , The Gaslight Anthem, Dawes, Bloc Party, Passion Pit, Madeon all getting great billing for the festival.

But even more thrilling was seeing some really awesome smaller acts tabbed to play; like First Aid Kit, Bombay Bicycle Club, GIVERS, Michael Kiwanuka, The Growlers, Hey Rossetta!, JEFF The Brotherhood, The Jezabels, Moon Taxi, Chancellor Warhol, The War On Drugs.

Also I have to say I love the logo used on the lineup poster, YEAR OF THE DRAGON.

See you August 3-5 at Grant Park in Chicago.

The Official 2012 Lollapalooza Line-up Video from Lollapalooza on Vimeo.

Coachella 2012 Line-Up & My Initial Thoughts

10 Jan

Another year of anticipation has come and gone as the 2012 Coachella line-up was released and while it’s pretty awesome they secured all the acts for back-to-back weekends on April 13-15 and April 20-22 I have to say my initial reaction was meh.  Don’t get me wrong, there are a ton of phenomenal musicians slated to play the festival but I personally feel they lacked in the bigger acts category but did a stellar job with the smaller ones.

Headliners: Radiohead, great score and definitely one of the most sought after acts this year, The Black Keys love ‘em but bumping them up one slot from last year into the headline act…., Dre and Snoop, ok I get it and Cali kids will probably love this but is this how you really want to close out three days of music (I’ll probably be eating my words as this may end up being the most talked about performance)?

Also this year has so much more EDM and on the main stages, I know its music of the present but I wonder if/how it will influence and change the dynamic of the festival since it’s thrust to the top.  I’m a big fan of EDM and these artists but Swedish House Mafia, David Guetta, Avicii, Kaskade, Afrojack, Justice, Sebastian Ingrosso and Madeon all as “main acts” it could get interesting just look at how many other EDM acts are booked.

Now what really excites me about Coachella:

Friday: M83, Jimmy Cliff & Tim Armstrong (oh wow this is going to be awesome), GIRLS, The Rapture, Madeon, Yuck, Dawes, WU LYF, GIVERS, Wolf Gang, Ximena Sarinana, Band of Skulls, honeyhoney

Saturday: Miike Snow, St. Vincent, Manchester Orchestra, AWOLNATION, Azealia Banks, Kaiser Chiefs, The Head and The Heart, Laura Marling, tUnE yArDs, The Black Lips, Childish Gambino, The Vaccines, Grouplove, Gary Clark Jr., We Are Augustines

Sunday: Beirut, The Weeknd, The Hives, Real Estate, Wild Flag, Fitz & The Tantrums, araabMUZIK, Lissie, Gardens & Villa

Something else that I love and hope is a trend for all the festivals this year is the addition of acts from outside the United States.  Bands like WU LYF, Wolf Gang, M83, The Vaccines, The Hives and others that are extremely talented will get introduced to so many new fans.

All in will it be fun, heck yeah but what else will be fun is Coachella East aka Las Vegas.  With a week in between you better believe Las Vegas is going to be a mid-week retreat with acts popping up for DJ sets in clubs and concerts peppered all over the Las Vegas Strip.

Paste Magazine – 50 Best Albums & 50 Best Songs of 2011

30 Nov

First and foremost, this stuff is hard. The amount of music that is released each year and narrowing it down to 50 is damn tough but I have to give Josh Johnson at PASTE Magazine much credit for his solid lists of 50 Best Albums and 50 Best Songs of 2011.  There are definitely more than less bands/artists on his lists I have been jamming out to heavily over the past year.  Again, I love this list, tons of great music but a couple names I didn’t see that personally I think should have been included, GROUPLOVE, Girls, Justice, Allen Stone, SuperHeavy, NewVillager and Boy & Bear to name a few. What’s missing that you fell in love with over the last year?

50 Best Albums
50 Frank Turner – England Keep My Bones
49 Mates Of State – Mountaintops
48 Drake – Take Care
47 Real Estate – Days
46 Holy Ghost! – Holy Ghost!
45 Those Darlins – Screws Get Loose
44 Kurt Vile – Smoke Ring For My Halo
43 The Joy Formidable – The Big Roar
42 Wild Flag – Wild Flag
41 James Blake – James Blake
40 Portugal. The Man – In The Mountain, In The Cloud
39 Gillian Welch – The Harrow And The Harvest
38 Over The Rhine – The Long Surrender
37 The War On Drugs – Slave Ambient
36 Mister Heavenly – Out Of Love
35 Childish Gambino – Camp
34 Seryn – This Is Where We Are
33 The Head And The Heart – The Head And The Heart
32 Ryan Adams – Ashes & Fire
31 Telekinesis – 12 Desperate Straight Lines
30 Tom Waits – Bad As Me
29 Feist – Metals
28 Lykke Li – Wounded Rhymes
27 Black Lips – Arabia Mountain
26 The Low Anthem – Smart Flesh
25 The Antlers – Burst Apart
24 TV On The Radio – Nine Types Of Light
23 The Belle Brigade – The Belle Brigade
22 The Black Keys – El Camino
21 Charles Bradley – No Time For Dreaming
20 Beirut – The Rip Tide
19 Cults – Cults
18 Wye Oak – Civilian
17 The Civil Wars – Barton Hollow
16 Yuck – Yuck
15 Deer Tick – Divine Providence
14 Adele – 21
13 Radiohead – The King Of Limbs
12 Iron & Wine – Kiss Each Other Clean
11 St. Vincent – Strange Mercy
10 The Decemberists – The King Is Dead
09 M83 – Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming
08 Dawes – Nothing Is Wrong
07 Wilco – The Whole Love
06 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. – It’s A Corporate World
05 Middle Brother – Middle Brother
04 tUnE-yArDs – w h o k i l l
03 My Morning Jacket – Circuital
02 Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
01 Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver

 

News & Notes: George Harrison, Jimmy Cliff & The Roots, RHCP and more

29 Nov
  • Today marks the 10th anniversary of George Harrison’s death.  Do yourself a favor and listen to some of his works today
  • Did anyone catch THIS sweet Jimmy Cliff & The Roots performance of “The Harder They Come” last night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
  • Read this little piece on Frank Ocean and his recent NYC performances
  • Red Hot Chili Peppers, Justice, Laura Marling and Grimes announced some of their tour dates for next year
  • And props to Rolling Stone for their new issue featuring the Top 100 guitarists of all time.  Great list, awesome group of voters and some really powerful print as to who and why they were selected

New Music Tuesday

25 Oct

What a week for new music it is and that goes for all genres. Here are my picks for the discs to pick up/download asap.

Kaskade drops Fire and Ice

Coldplay releases the much anticipated Mylo Xyloto



JUSTICE are back with what could be one of my favorite discs of 2011 in Audio, Video, Disco

Rhode Island’s finest Deer Tick release Divine Providence

Tom Waits keeps it going with Bad As Me