Late Night Pick: Shemekia Copeland

Blues singer Shemekia Copeland will be on the Tavis Smiley show on PBS tonight. Check your local listings for the time in your area. I think they bury the show at 3 AM on our Richmond PBS so its definitely a DVR thing. Unlike some of Tavis' musical guests, Shemekia will be performing music on the show, at least that's what it looks like from the picture on the site. Here's a promo video for her album "33 1/3" which came out last year:

Cvurches, MGMT, People's Blues of Richmond, Fear of Music, Trongone Band

Not a whole lot going on this weekend but a local band on the rise, two local cover bands and couple hip national acts should be enough to provide entertainment for all types if you need to get away from the relatives or take them out for a rockin' good time.

You can get the weekend started by taking out those relatives who saw the Allman Brothers and Grateful Dead in the 70's to Cary St. Cafe on Wednesday. Trongone Band is playing, starting at 10 PM and it's FREE to get in so you won't have to cut into your Black Friday shopping budget.

Is that cousin in town who used to drag you to go see "Stop Making Sense" at the midnight show every Saturday night in high school? Bring him to The Camel on Thursday night to dance off that Thanksgiving dinner in that herky-jerky David Byrne style with Talking Heads tribute band, Fear of Music. This is also a FREE show. Doors will open at 8 and the show starts at 11 PM so you can get a nap in to sleep off the triptophan (sp?) before you head out. Here's the promo video for the show:



And here is the Talking Heads' "This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)":

Friday night, Cvurches (yes, you spell it with the v) will be at The National. Cvurches is an indie synth pop band which you might like if you like Prince, Kate Bush, Depeche Mode, Lorde, or Polica. Tix are $20 in advance, $23 at the door. Doors open at 7, show starts at 8 with opener Wet. Curches has been nominated for Indie Album of the Year, Best Artist Discovery and Best Song Discovery for the SiriusXMU End of Year Awards. Here's their latest number, "Lies":



Saturday, psychedelic electronic pop band MGMT are at The National. Tix are $25 in advance, $30 at the door. Doors open at 7, show starts at 8 with opener Kuroma. See these guys if you like Flaming Lips, Polyphonic Spree, Tame Impala, Of Montreal, Capital Cities, David Bowie, Suicide or Pink Floyd. Check out this freaky video for their new track, "Alien Days":



If you prefer your music less freaky and more raw, like pouring whiskey into an open wound, get down to The Camel on Saturday night for the power blues of People's Blues of Richmond. The Green Boys and Tarrant will open. Doors open at 9 and it's $7 to get in. PBR is just back from a tour of Colorado where I am sure they tested the new Colorado marijuana laws. Here's PBR doing "Free Will":



Thanks for reading the blog everyone! Thank you!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick: Trombone Shorty

The late night landscape was looking pretty slim tonight with mediocre pop and pop-rock bands and one of my most hated bands ever and then I saw New Orleans jazz-funk man Trombone Shorty was on the Arsenio Hall Show and I knew we would be alright. Aresenio is on at 11 PM on WUPV here in Richmond. Check local listing for times and station in your area.

Trombone Shorty and his band, Orleans Avenue, recently toured with Zac Brown Band. He was also voted Best Trombonist in famous jazz magazine Downbeat's Readers Poll and Shorty and the band were voted one of the best in the Jazz Group category.

Late Night Pick: Mazzy Star, Jake Clemons; new Springsteen album

90's dream pop band, Mazzy Star, returned this year with their first album in 17 years, "Seasons of Your Day", to critical acclaim. They'll be on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight on NBC at 12:35 AM. Jake Clemons, who took over the sax role in the E Street Band after his uncle passed away, will be on also, jamming with The Roots.

Jake will be featured on Bruce's upcoming album, "High Hopes". Bruce just announced today that the album will come out on 1/14/14. Here's the title track:

Late Night Pick: Foals

Tonight on a repeat of Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC, 12:35 AM) from 10/24, check out indie rock band Foals. Foals have a new wavey, art rock sound so check them out if you like King Crimson, U2, Joy Division or Talking Heads.

Late Night Pick: J Roddy Walston and the Business

Indie roots rockers J Roddy Walston and the Business will be on Late Show with David Letterman tonight at 11:35 PM on CBS. I saw them open for Drive-By Truckers last year (new album coming in March!) and they put on a good, fun, rowdy show with lots of long hair whipping around as J Roddy thrashed on the keyboards. They'll perform their song "Heavy Bells" tonight. Their song "Use Your Language" was recently featured on the series finale of "Eastbound & Down" and you know if Kenny Fu**in' Powers likes the band, they must rock.

Jonathan Richman, Jaheim, Coney Island Rock n' Roll Show, No BS! Brass Band, Fear of Music, Trongone Band, King Solomon's Marbles

As it's the weekend before Thanksgiving, not too many national acts on the scene, but a good week to catch some local favorites.

You can start Thursday night with the classic blues/jam rock of Trongone Band at Cary St. Cafe. Show starts at 10 PM and there is no cover.

If you want some sexy soul to warm you (and a partner hopefully) as the weather gets cold, head to the Landmark Theater on Friday night for the Jaheim / Chrisette Michele show. The show starts at 8 PM and the tix run from $50 to $72. If you dig D'Angelo, Maxwell, Luther Vandross, R. Kelly, or Teddy Pendergrass, you might dig Jaheim. Here's his latest video, "Chase Forever":

No BS! Brass Band brings their horny (see what I did there) funk to The Camel on Friday night. James Wallace and The Naked Light will open the show at 9. Chelsea Temple will come on around 9:45 and No BS! will kick in around 10:30. It's $7 to get in. Here's No BS! doing "Git it Awn'":



If you are having an acid flashback on Friday night or just flat out trippin', get thyself to Cary St. Cafe for Grateful Dead tribute band, King Solomon's Marbles. Show starts at 10 PM and there is no cover. This is KSM's 15th anniversary show and band members, past and present, will make appearances. Speaking of the Grateful Dead, hope you are all taking advantage of 30 Days of Dead with a new song picked from the vault for download every day this month. And don't worry if you missed some. The whole month's selections are there for you to catch up. I would particularly point you toward the selection on 11/9, which was recorded at my alma mater, Lafayette College. Unfortunately, this show took place a few years before I got there. It's a very good show and you can find a fine audience recording on the Internet Archive with John Cippolina joining the band for the second half of the second set. Here's the first song by the Grateful Dead that I loved and the first song I ever saw them play in concert (3/31/87), "Jack Straw" with a grumpy looking baby at the beginning:



On Saturday night, indie rock pioneer, Jonathan Richman will be at The Camel. Doors open at 8, show starts at 9. No opener is listed so get there on time. Tix are $15. Here's Jonathan doing "Vincent Van Gogh" in '83 on Australian TV:

The Coney Island Rock n' Roll show hits Richmond on Saturday. Not just bands (The Urban Pioneers, The Jesse Ray Carter Trio, and Reverend D-Ray and The Shockers), this show also will include a freak show courtesy of The Cut Throat Freak Show and burlesque from Scarlett Storm Burlesque. It should be quite an event and it all goes down at Wonderland starting at 9 PM. Not sure what the cover is so call Wonderland if you want to know (643-9233)

Tuesday night, Talking Heads tribute band, Fear of Music, is at Cary St. Cafe. Show starts at 10 PM and there is no cover. I caught these guys a couple weeks ago at Balliceaux and they had the whole place moving with an nice mix of T Heads hits and deeper cuts. Here's a clip from that show at Balliceaux that shows the band playing "Pulled Up":



If' you haven't checked out the new interactive video for Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", please do so now. As you flip through the "channels" on the TV as the song plays, all the channels feature people lip syncing the song, some shows real, some fake. It's a great use of the internet medium and it's really surreal and amazing. Go HERE now.

Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick: Jessie Ware, Ron Burgundy

Tonight on Conan, check out alt-R&B songstress, Jessie Ware. Conan is on TBS at 11 PM and repeated at 1 AM. You might dig Jessie if you like Alicia Keys, Annie Lennox, Lisa Stansfield, or Sade.

Also, on the show tonight, the return of newscaster Ron Burgundy. Things could escalate quickly.

Late Night Pick: Capital Cities

Neo-psychedelic electronica group, Capital Cities, is on Last Call with Carson Daly tonight at 1:35 AM on NBC. Check out Capital Cities if you like bands like MGMT, Fun., Of Montreal or the Bee Gees.

Late Night Pick: Luscious Jackson

One of my favorite 90's bands, Luscious Jackson, reunited a few years ago and they have a new album out, "Magic Hour", their first album (if you don't count a kids album a few years ago) in 14 years and it's getting good reviews so far. HERE is a tasty review from the NY Times. They'll be on Late Show with David Letterman tonight at 11:35 on CBS.

Here's one of my favorite LJ songs from back in the day, "Why Do I Lie?":

Late Night Pick: Johnny Marr

Johnny Marr, formerly of The Smiths, and now doing the solo thing, will be on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight at 12:35 AM on NBC. Tune in if you like, well, The Smiths, also Elvis Costello, Richard Ashcroft, Damon Albarn, Matthew Sweet, Noel Gallagher, PJ Harvey, Joe Jackson, Peter Murphy, or Mick Ronson.

Skydog, The Story So Far, Rock Lotto, Nighthawks, Former Champions, Southern Belles

We'll start our weekend at Capital Ale House Downtown for Allman Brothers tribute band, Skydog. Doors open at 9:30, show starts at 10. Tix are $8 in advance, $10 at the door. The band does a fine job recreating the classic Allman Brothers sound. If you can't catch them in Richmond Friday or you live closer to DC, you can catch them in Leesburg on Saturday night. If you like the Allman Brothers or think you should, check these guys out. Here's a short video that combines interviews with rehearsal footage:



And for a slightly different take on the Allman Brothers, here's Frank Zappa doing "Whipping Post":

Over at The Canal Club, it's the local jamtronica band, Former Champions, along with DJ Phil Dice and Digipossum. Doors open at 9 PM and it's $7 to get in. The Former Champs are billing this as "Startin' Somethin'" as in the Michael Jackson song as they'll be doing their take on MJ's music all night long. Here's a taste of the Champions from a video that was promoting their gig on 11/5 at Cary St. Cafe.



"Do you fell lucky? Well, do ya, punk?" Then head down to Rock Lotto at Strange Matter on Saturday night. What is Rock Lotto? Strange Matter assembled 40 musicians three weeks ago. They threw everyone's name into a hat and did a random draw forming 8 bands of 5 members each. The bands were given the 3 weeks to come up with a 10 - 20 minute set and you can see and hear the results on Saturday night starting at 7 PM. This is a benefit for WRIR and the Central VA Food Bank so you can get in with $10 or $5 and at least 2 cans of food.

THE BANDS (last to first/headliner to opener):

SARL CAGAN

WHIMSICAL ASS FASHION

WINKLE

INFECTED CEMETERY

GHOST BITCH

JERK BOOTH

SKULL THEATRE

DICK WOLFE

I don't have a video for this so here is Frank Zappa doing "Stairway to Heaven". Got to see this the one and only time I saw Zappa and remember being surprised and laughing when the horn section kicks in. Great stuff! Wish the video was better quality but the sound quality is pretty good.

On Sunday night, catch renowned blues band The Nighthawks at Lulu's. The show will start at 7 PM, tix are $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Here they are doing the classic, "Mannish Boy".

Wednesday night at Kingdom, pop punk band with a good buzz, The Story So Far, checks in. Also playing will be Stick To Your Guns, Such Gold, Rotting Out, and Souvenirs. Doors will open at 6 PM and it's $16 to get in. Here's their latest single, "Empty Space":



If you would rather do the funky, Americana, jam band thing on Wednesday night, go to Cary St. Cafe for The Southern Belles. Show starts around 10 and it's FREE to get in. After the show at Cary St., they head down to NC for shows in Asheville (Friday) and Winston-Salem (Saturday). Here's the Belles entire show from The Camel on 11/1. They open with a tune you might recognize.


Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick: Tame Implala

Australian neo-psychedelic band, Tame Impala, will be on Last Call with Carson Daly tonight on NBC at 1:35 AM. Tame Impala is on tour with last night's Last Call guest, Flaming Lips, who cover the Tame Impala song, "Elephant", in this video:

Late Night Pick: Flaming Lips

The always entertaining, sometimes confounding, psychedelic punk band Flaming Lips will be on Last Call with Carson Daly tonight on NBC at 1:35 AM. They have a new EP coming out on November 29 called "Peace Sword" featuring music for and inspired by the film "Ender's Game". I'm sure the music will blow the minds of those seeing the movie.

Late Night Pick: Black Joe Lewis

Check out funky blues man, Black Joe Lewis, tonight on Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35 PM on CBS. I was a big fan of Black Joe's last album, "Scandalous", so I'm interested to see what he's up to now. I've heard the first single, "Come to My Party", and it sounds like the same party vibe as the last album and that's not a bad thing. Black Joe was recently on NPR's World Cafe and they performed three songs from their new album. You can listen to that HERE.

Here is the amusing video for "Mustang Ranch" from his last album. Love the song and love the video.

Paul Burch, Coheed & Cambria, Manchester Orchestra, Joe Bonamassa, Sam Bush & Jerry Douglas, The Lonely Teardrops, The Front Bottoms, Balance & Composure

At the Modlin Center on Friday night, is the sensational bluegrass duo Sam Bush & Jerry Douglas. Tix run from $10 to $45 depending on your demographic. Here's the press blurb on the duo:

"Known as the King of Newgrass, Grammy-winning multi-instrumentalist Sam Bush has played a pivotal role in expanding the horizons of bluegrass music, fusing it with jazz, rock, blues, funk, and more. Best known for his jaw-dropping skills on the mandolin, Bush is the cofounder of the genre-bending New Grass Revival and has played with everyone from Emmylou Harris and Béla Fleck, to Charlie Haden, Lyle Lovett, and Garth Brooks.

Dobro master and 13-time Grammy winner Jerry Douglas is to the resonator guitar what Jimi Hendrix was to the electric guitar: elevating, transforming, and reinventing the instrument in countless ways. In addition to his 13 solo records, Douglas has played with everyone from Ray Charles to Alison Krauss and has produced albums for Krauss, the Del McCoury Band, Maura O’Connell, and Jesse Winchester. His latest solo album Traveler features guest appearances by such notable friends as Paul Simon, Mumford & Sons, Eric Clapton, and more."

And if you've got kids that like Taylor Swift, you can tell them Taylor asked Sam to play in her all-star band at the CMA Awards this month.

Here they are playing together at the 2012 Telluride Bluegrass Festival with John Cowan doing a rippin' version of Little Feat's "Sailin' Shoes":



Honky tonk country artist Paul Burch plays with his band, WPA Ballclub, at Ashland Coffee & Tea on Friday night. The show starts at 8 PM, it's $10 in advance, $15 day of show. Here's the press blurb for Paul:

"Paul Burch, Nashville’s honky tonk auteur and a writer of unmistakably modern but instantly classic songs, will release his 9th album Fevers this fall on Plowboy Records. Backed by his redoubtable band the WPA Ballclub, Fevers brings the intense, unbridled, and bravado of a Burch’s stage show into the studio. Produced with multi-instrumentalist Fats Kaplin (Jack White’s Buzzards, Third Man Records), Fevers is a riveting and haunting mix of honky tonk, stringband blues, and bop grooves that defies easy categories.

Critics have praised Burch’s albums as “music that sounds thoroughly modern but completely unlike contemporary country” (USA Today) and Entertainment Weekly has called him “a modern day Jimmie Rodgers.” The UK’s Uncut has awarded Burch’s last three albums 5 stars saying: “No one makes records like this anymore.”

Born in Washington D.C., Burch was first singled out when his 1996 debut, Pan American Flash, was named Amazon.com’s #5 Best Country Albums of the 90s and was described by Billboard’s Chet Flippo as “extraordinary…establishing Burch as a leader in marrying country’s roots tradition with a modern sensibility.”

Along with a GRAMMY nomination for his contribution to the comeback album by the Louvin Brothers’ Charlie Louvin, Burch has worked with a range of equally ineffable artists including Ralph Stanley, Exene Cervenka of X, Mark Knopfler, Lambchop, Vic Chesnutt, and R&B great Candi Staton. Burch’s songs for Last of My Kind, a companion to Tony Earley’s bestselling debut novelJim the Boy, were called “heartfelt and elegant in their simplicity” by the New York Times and his tribute to Buddy Holly,Words of Love, led to a new fan in Holly’s widow, Maria Elena. “Words of Love is a beautiful album,” said Maria Elena. “He has everything Buddy wanted to hear in an artist–his own style and his own sound.”  PB  recently produced famed Nashville songwriter David Olney’s Predicting the Past.

Peter Guralnick, author of biographies on Elvis Presley (Last Train to Memphis & Careless Love) and Sam Cooke (Dream Boogie) says: “I’m a Paul Burch fan. How could I not be? His music never fails to achieve its purpose, what Sun Records founder Sam Phillips has deemed the unequivocal purpose of every kind of music: to lift up, to deepen, to intensify the spirit of audience and musicians alike.”"

Here's Paul and the band with "Couldn't Get a Witness" from his new album "Fevers":

If you are more into rocking hard with some prog metal, Coheed & Cambria will be at The National on Friday. Tix are $25 in advance, $28 at the door. Doors open at 6, show starts at 6:30 with openers Balance & Composure (make sure you're in on time to see them) and I the Mighty. You might dig Coheed & Cambria if you like Rush, Queensryche, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Blue Oyster Cult, or Dream Theater. Here's the video for their song, "Number City", from their latest album, "The Afterman: Descension". This song is pretty poppy compared to a lot of their stuff, even including a horn section, but still weird enough to be Coheed & Cambria:

On Saturday, it's an evening with blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa at the Landmark Theater. The show will start at 8 and it's billed as "An Evening with Joe Bonamassa" which usually means no opener. Tix run from $71 to $91. Yes, you read that right but he can sell 'em because only Balcony seats remain. In a review of a March show at London's Royal Albert Hall, UK web site Get Ready to Rock said, "Bonamassa is a barometer of just how far blues rock artists can go. He’s broken through the glass ceiling hampering the genre, while remaining fiercely independent. He’s set new standards with impeccable playing, carefully chosen material, a cast of top musicians and an intuitive producer. His audience has grown exponentially and internationally, and judging by tonight, he’s even copped some of Clapton’s Albert Hall crowd." Here's Joe doing "Don't Burn Down That Bridge":

Richmond's world renowned salsa band, Bio Ritmo, is at The Camel on Saturday night. It'll start at 10 PM with openers Soul Power and dj sets in between the bands. It's $10 to get in, $5 for students. Here's the band's "La Verdad":

Sunday at The National, alt-rock band Manchester Orchestra will perform so you can get your kicks. Tix are $16 in advance, $20 at the door. Doors open early at 6 PM and the show starts at 7. Make sure you get in early to see The Front Bottoms. They'll be on before MO and O'Brother will play before Front Bottoms. Here's Man O playing "Simple Math" at The National on 11/16/11:

Local punk/garage rock band, The Lonely Teardrops, will rip it up at Bandito's on Sunday at 9 PM. I believe it won't cost you nothin' to get in. Here they are combining two of the greatest things ever, surfing and monkeys, in a song called "Surfin' Monkey":

Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick: Nine Inch Nails

Tonight on Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC, 11:35 PM), catch a rare TV appearance from Nine Inch Nails. I caught one of their shows on one of the festival webcasts this summer and it was outstanding. Hopefully, they'll do some of the same minimalist, shadow staging they have on their stage show. Judging from some of the pics on the NIN site, they've added some more twists to the staging and made it even cooler. NIN will be doing a tour of Australia and New Zealand in 2014 with Queens of the Stone Age (don't miss QOTSA at The National next month!) in which the opener each night will be decided by a flip of a coin.

Late Night Pick: Florida Georgia Line

Took a day off yesterday because I didn't want you sitting around reading my blog (yeah, right) instead of getting out to vote. Tonight's late night pick is country band Florida Georgia Line on Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC at 11:35 PM. Their song, "Stay", is currently the number one song on iTunes.

Late Night Pick: Janelle Monae

The funky alternative R&B/neo-sci-fi-soul powerhouse, Janelle Monae, will be on the Arsenio Hall Show tonight. Arsenio is on WUPV at 11 PM here in Richmond. Check your local listings for channel and time in your area.

I've seen Janelle lately on SNL and Later with Jools Holland and she never fails to get my booty shaking and bring a smile to face. She can mix 60's girl band backing vocals, with a 70's horn section and 2010 beats and make it all work with her personality, beauty, singing and dancing. She could become huge but hopefully we'll get to see her at The National before she hits it big. If you want a quick little synopsis of her career up to now, check out THIS slide show on the BET site.

Late Night Pick: Big Sean featuring Kid Cudi

Rappers Big Sean and Kid Cudi will be on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC at 12:35 AM. Speaking of Jimmy Fallon, Tux (Jimmy Fallon & Jason Schwartzman) reunited on the show last night to perform their Halloween classic, "Mr. Scarecrow":