Late Night Pick of the Night: Estelle

Tonight, check out British R&B artist Estelle on the Late Show with David Letterman.  Estelle is signed to John Legend's Homeschool label so she has that old school R&B/neo-soul edge. Late Show is on CBS at 11:35 PM.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band

Tonight, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band kick off "Bruce Week" on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.  Bruce will bookend things on Monday & Friday (when Bruce looks to be the only guest).  In between, Kenny Chesney (Tuesday doing "I'm on Fire"), Elvis Costello (Thursday doing "Brilliant Disguise") and Wednesday we don't yet unless there will be a duet between Danny DeVito and Larry the Cable Guy on "For You", which would surely be a sign of the apocalypse.  Late Night is on at 12:35 AM on NBC.

Shadrock Music Fest tix on sale today; Joy Formidable: Late Night Pick of the Night

Tickets for the Shadrock Music Festival on Brown's Island are on sale as of today.  The event will take place on Brown's Island on Saturday, April 28.  So far they have announced four of eight bands, those being De La Soul, Dum Dum Girls, Invisible Hand and Photosynthesizers.  Ticket prices are $30 now, go up to $35 on 3/23 and then up to $40 on 4/20.  While I like that someone has put together a music festival for Richmond, I'm not going gaga over the lineup so far.  They just don't seem to have a must-see band yet.  Right now, this seems to be an "if I have money and the weather is good, I might decide to go the day of the show" event. 

Tonight, check out indie rock band The Joy Formidable on Last Call with Carson Daly.  Last Call is on at 1:35 AM on NBC.

Black Girls, Nightmare Boyzz, Big Bobby & The Nightcaps, King Solomon's Marbles

Begin your weekend, the last weekend in February, and thank God, because February is always weird and annoying, at Strange Matter with Nightmare Boyzz, Peace Beast, The Eurotics and Spots.  This show is FREE.   It'll start at 9 and the bands come on in reverse order of the above.  Nightmare Boyzz got a surf, punk, pop, garage mix thing going on.  You can click the link above to listen to some.

Friday night, dance/funk/disco/pop band, Black Girls, have their vinyl release party for "Hell Dragon" at Kingdom.  Per the poster, there will apparently be real dragons there so wear your fancy armor and your dancing shoes.  As if the show couldn't be any more fun, No BS! Brass Band will play (hopefully alone and with the Black Girls), along with White Laces and The Trillions.  Show starts at 9 and it's $12 to get in.  HERE is a review of the album from Style Magazine.  Though they'll play mostly originals, here's Black Girls doing a cover of The Band's "Ophelia" at Plan 9 Records at the Watermelon Fest last year.  Perhaps they'll bust this out Friday night with No BS!, ala "The Last Waltz".:



This just in.  There is a new music festival coming to town.  The Shadrock Music Festival will take place April 28 on Brown's Island.  Full details will be announced tomorrow at 8:45 AM on 103.7 The River and on the website.  The Facebook page has already announced that De La Soul will be one of the headliners and Richmond band Photosynthesizers will be playing.

If you are in a Grateful Dead kind of mood on Friday night, head down to Cary St. Cafe (where else?) for some King Solomon's Marbles.  Show starts at 10 PM and it's $7 to get in.  Here's a good chunk of their show from 3/11/11 at Cary St. Cafe.  This is part 1 of 3:

Sunday night at Bandito's, Big Bobby & The Nightcaps, The Last Blackouts and The Lonely Teardrops will perform.  Show starts at 9 PM and it's FREE.  Big Bobby & The Nightcaps are a garage/punk/surf band from Norfolk.  Here they are in Brooklyn in 2010:



On a completely different note, I caught Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers on Austin City Limits the other day and really liked this song.  It's a mix of Steve's humor and some fine bluegrass harmonies.  I couldn't find the ACL performance but I found this one from the Letterman show.  It's called "Atheists Don't Have No Songs":



Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick of the Night: Eric Hutchinson

Tonight, check out singer/songwriter Eric Hutchinson on Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35 PM on CBS.  Alec Baldwin will also be on and he makes me laugh.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Robert Randolph, Cesar & David of Los Lobos & Chris Slayton of Double Trouble; RIP MC5 Bassist Michael Davis

I don't usually recommend watching the Tonight Show with Jay Leno because I'm not the biggest Leno fan, but this lineup was too good to resist.  One of the best blues players alive, Robert Randolph, teams up with Cesar Rojas and David Hildago of Los Lobos with Chris Layton from Double Trouble (Stevie Ray Vaughn) on drums.  If this sounds half as good as this lineup looks, we are in for a treat.  Tonight Show is on at 11:35 PM on NBC.

In sad news, bassist of seminal hard rock band MC5, Michael Davis, passed away at the age of 68 from liver failure.  For the obit, click HERE and then kick out the jams, motherf**kers.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Butch Walker

Tonight, check out garage rocker, singer, songwriter Butch Walker on Letterman at 11:35 PM on CBS.  Kristen Wiig will also be on and she is hot and funny.  Double bonus!

David Allan Coe@Hat Factory Postponed tonight

this just in from the Hat Factory:

RESCHEDULED – DATE TO BE CONFIRMED – STAY UP-TO-DATE FOR FUTURE DATE


Roundup Presents: David Allan Coe

We regret to inform you that David Allen Coe has been forced to postpone tonight’s show due to an unspecified illness. Please retain your tickets as they will be honored for the new date once it is rescheduled. Please check back soon for more details.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Dr. Dog

Dr. Dog will be on Last Call with Carson Daly tonight on NBC at 1:35 AM.  Here's a recent live performance that Dr. Dog did for philly.com's (where I go for my Philly sports fix) In The Mix.  This is "That Old Black Hole":

Mates of State, Screaming Females, Man Overboard, Black Girls, Steel Pulse

We begin tonight with a pop-punk show at a record store.  Screaming Females (only one of whom is actually a screaming female) will be at Steady Sounds on 322 W Broad.  They'll come on around 7 and its a FREE, all ages show.  Julie Karr will open.  Here's Screaming Females going "Wild":

At Kingdom on Thursday night, pop-emo from Man Overboard who will perform for your pleasure.  It's $10 to get in.  The doors open at 6.  Handguns, Seahaven, Daytrader and Candy Hearts will open.  Man Overboard play "Montrose" here:



Friday night, alt-country bad m-f'er David Allan Coe will be at the Hat Factory.  Doors open at 8, show starts at 9 and tix are $20.  Here's DAC performing "River" at the Tennessee State Prison in 1975. I wonder what the jailbirds thought of DAC's whole rhinestone cowboy get-up?

Also, on Friday, Black Girls will bring their dance groove to Balliceaux.  Show starts at 10:30 and it's $5 to get in.  Here's the band playing at Camp Barefoot last summer.



If you are stuck at home Friday night and are in the mood for some rabble-rousing folk music in the vein of early Dylan or John Hiatt, you can check out the webcast with Dan Bern & Common Rotation from TRI Studios.  It will start at 10 PM ET.

Saturday, there is another webcast from TRI Studios, this one with politically charged jazz-rap band Alphabet Soup.  Bob Weir & Ratdog fans will recognize Ratdog band members Kenny Brooks on sax and Jay Lane on drums.  That'll start at 9 PM ET.

Monday night, indie rock duo Mates of State will be the Canal Club.  Tix are $15.  Doors will open at 7 and  Sean Bones and Canary Oh Canary will open.  Their album "Mountaintops" made famed music critic Robert Christgau's Best of 2011 list.  Here they are performing on Letterman back in October.  It's a immensely catchy and hummable song I really dig called "Palomino".  Check it out.:



Tuesday night, reggae icons Steel Pulse will be at The National. Doors open at 6, show starts at 7 and the National web site says the show will be done by 11 so you can get home, get yourself tucked into bed and still be coherent at work the next day.  Ace Reporter and Antero will open.  Here's Steel Pulse in '78 doing "Ku Klux Klan" and "Prodigal Son":


Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick of the Night: Deadmau5; Steve Van Zandt on E St Band & new TV show

It's pretty slim pickings tonight on late night.  I'll go with Last Call with Carson Daly because you've got three bands on the bill, with the highlight being DJ superstar Deadmau5.  I wonder if he gives interviews with his glitter ball mouse head on?  Deadmau5 was up for three Grammys the other night for Dance/Electronica.  I don't think he went home with one, but it's an honor just to be nominated.  At least that's what they tell me.  Also on the show are Jamestown Revival and Walk the Moon.  Last Call is on NBC at 1:35 AM.

Little Steven Van Zandt of the E Street Band gives the first interview after the new members of the E Street Band were announced.  He talks about the decision to go with a full horn section to replace Clarence and also his new TV show in this intereview from Rolling Stone.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Mark Ronson, Erykah Badu, The Dap-Kings, Zigaboo Modeliste

I don't know what this is going to be but it sounds crazy fabulous.  Mark Ronson will be joined by Erykah Badu, The Dap-Kings & Zigaboo Modeliste (drummer for The Meters) all as part of the Regeneration Music Project tonight on the Late Show with David Letterman on CBS at 11:35 PM.  The Regeneration Project was put together by The Grammys to get hot young DJs (such as Mark Ronson) together with musicians of other styles to reinvent or reexamine older styles of music.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Kasabian

Tonight, British rock band Kasabian will be on the Late Show with David Letterman.  Kasabian's latest album, "Velociraptor!", had been getting excellent reviews and they've been nominated for three awards at the British NME Awards: Best British Band, Best Live Band, and Greatest Rock Moment of the Year for their New Year's Eve gig.  Late Show with David Letterman is on at 11:35 PM on CBS.

Arlo Guthrie, No BS Brass Band, Victor Wooten:Late Night Pick of the Night

This is gonna be a quick one for two reasons.  1 - There isn't much going on this weekend.  2 - I'm tired from the Dumpstaphunk show last night, which was a great, fun, funky, crazy time (as predicted) but went a little later than a thought but it's Friday so I knew I could rally for a few hours and make it to the weekend.

No BS! Brass Band will be at The Camel tonight (Friday).  Door at 8, show starts at 9, $7 to get in.  Here's No BS! rockin' the field at Best Friend's Day here in Richmond in 2009:


Folk legend Arlo Guthrie will be at University of Richmond, Camp Concert Hall, Booker Hall of Music.  That's a really long venue name. Tickets run from $10 to $40 depending on if you are a U of R student, how old you are, whether you have a Q in your name and a number of other demographic factors.  Here's Arlo doing the "Motorcycle Song".  I, for one, think that one could have a pickle and ride a motorcycle at the same time, but Arlo begs to differ:


After seeing Dumpstaphunk which has two bass players playing their basses at the same time for an extra deep funky sound (they put the dumpsta in the dumpstaphunk), I got a hankerin' for more bass and who better to provide that bass than a guy who was picked by Rolling Stone readers as one of the top 10 bassists of all time.  That would be Victor Wooten of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones.  Victor will be on Jimmy Fallon tonight at 12:35 AM on NBC.

Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Dumpstaphunk@Capital Ale House tonght; Primus: Late Night Pick of the Night

Tonight, have a funky good time at the Capital Ale House downtown with Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk.  Doors open at 7:30, tix are 18, Jamie McLean will open the show.  Dumpstaphunk played at Friday Cheers a few years ago and it was a huge, hot, sweaty dance party in the best New Orleans funk fest way.  Here's the last song from last Friday night at the Georgia Theatre, a cover of Isley Brothers "Fight The Power".  That bass is poppin'!



Tonight's Late Night Pick of the Night is Primus bringing Les Claypool's poppin' bass and funky weirdness to Late Night with Jimmy Fallon at 12:35 AM on NBC.  Also, as an added bonus, the super cute Zooey Deschanel will be on too.

Late Night Pick of the Night: Dr. Dog, The Return of Luscious Jackson

Philly's own psychedelic pop-rock band Dr. Dog will be on Conan tonight along with the always funny Martin Short.  Dr. Dog's new album "Be the Void" is getting rave reviews.  You can stream the new album on Conan's web site.  Look on the left side, about half way down. Yup, there you go.

In happy news, at least for me, 90's electronic pop group Luscious Jackson has reunited and will be putting out a new album and possibly touring this year (please come to Richmond!).  The cotton candy vocal harmonies are still intact as you can hear on the Rolling Stone web site which has a short interview and a stream of a new track.  Yay!

Late Night Pick of the Night: Alabama Shakes

Critically lauded (at least so far) neo-Southern soul band, Alabama Shakes, making their national TV debut on Conan tonight on TBS at 11 PM.  The band is being compared to Drive-By Truckers (who will be coming to C'ville and Norfolk in April, but apparently skipping Richmond. Boo!), Black Keys, and Sharon Jones, all some of my faves. 

Late Night Pick of the Night: Fun.

Tonight we'll see how much fun Fun. is when the neo-psychedelic band (Fun.) play on Last Call with Carson Daly on NBC at 1:35 AM.  Ziggy Marley will be on too, so if Fun. isn't fun, Ziggy should be fun.  Have fun today!

Late Night Pick of the Night: M83

Electronic pop musician M83 will be on Last Call with Carson Daly tonight at 1:35 AM on NBC.  M83 is coming off an album that made a bunch of top albums of the year lists, "Hurry Up We're Dreaming".  I've been digging on the song "Midnight City" from that album lately.  Here's a cool time lapse video of Yosemite that uses "Outro" from that album:

Yosemite HD from Project Yosemite on Vimeo.

Rusko, WRIR party, Black Girls, SOJA, American Aquarium

A couple items to start before we get to this weekend's shows.  Dominion Riverrock released the full slate of bands for the weekend (5/18 - 20) to fill in the rest of the schedule after headliners The Travelin' McCourys feat. Keller Williams, Galactic, and JJ Grey & Mofro.  They will have two stages this year and you can find the full schedule HERE which includes The Hot Seats (5:30 Sat.), Crucial Elements (1 PM Sun.), Farm Vegas (4 PM Sun Virginia Lottery stage) and Skydog (4 PM Sunday Tredegar stage).  Should be a fun weekend down on Brown's Island.

Also announced today was that tickets for Dark Star Orchestra are going on sale Friday, 2/3 for their show on May 17.  That in and of itself isn't that interesting as DSO plays here about every 6 months.  However, the location is Pocahontas State Park at either a new venue and/or a new concert series there called Pocahontas Premiers.  No other shows have been announced yet, but national acts playing in a great setting is always cool and I'm sure my friends on the South Side will like having some shows down in their neck of the woods, literally.

Onto this weekend's shows.  Friday night, indie station WRIR has their Party for the Rest of Us to benefit the station.  It'll run from 7 to midnight at the Richmond Renaissance Ballroom and there will be an assortment of bands, DJs, comedy and spoken word.  It's only $10 to get in.

Also on Friday, Black Girls will be at The Camel with Psychobilly Cadillac opening.  Show starts at 9.  It's $6 to get in.  Here's Black Girls performing "So Sorry" at the Canal Club last Halloween:



Also Friday is some reggae at The National with SOJA, The Movement and Fear Nuttin Band.  The Fear Nuttin band is made up entirely of people severely allergic to peanuts.  True story.  Door open at 8, show starts at 9, tix are $22.50.  SOJA will be doing a live webcast at 2 PM on Wednesday, 2/8.  HERE is the info on that.  Here's the lead video from their new album "Strength to Survive" with the song of the same name:

If you are a Deadhead, you might want to check out the annual KPFA Grateful Dead marathon helmed by Grateful Dead Hour host David Gans.  You can hear that at kpfa.org and that starts at noon ET on Saturday and runs until 4 AM ET on Sunday.  There will be lots of rare Dead from the archives, some unreleased Jerry Garcia Band recordings, a live performance by the David Nelson Band, and I bet David will play some tracks from the recent Dave's Pick release from the May '77 Richmond show.

On Saturday, live and in person, you can see American Aquarium with Horsehead and The Fire Tapes at The Camel.  Doors open at 8, show starts at 8:45 with The Fire Tapes. Horsehead will come on around 9:50 and American Aquarium around 10:50.  It's $7 to get in.  American Aquarium plays alt-country in the vein of Whiskeytown and Drive-By Truckers.  Here's American Aquarium playing "Tennessee" and "Hurricane" in Oxford, Mississippi in November:

On Monday night at The National, dubstep DJ Rusko comes to town to rock the party.  Also appearing will be Bassjackers, Beat Down the Kid, and Mammals.  Doors open at 8 and the show starts right up as soon as the doors open.  It's $25 to get in.  Here's Rusko's latest single "Somebody to Love" (not the Jefferson Airplane song):

That'll do it for this week.  Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

Late Night Pick: White Denim, RIP Don Cornelius, Greatest Animated Videos

Tonight's Late Night Pick of the Night is one of my favorite new bands, White Denim.  They'll be on Last Call with Carson Daly at 1:35 AM on NBC. I first caught White Denim when they opened for Manchester Orchestra at The National last year.  (see my review HERE)  Their latest album, "D", is a strange and wonderful mix of post-punk and psychedelia.  Check them out tonight.  It will be the band's TV debut.

Been checking out a cool video list this AM which was put together by Rolling Stone of the Greatest Animated Music Videos.  Check it out HERE.

In sad news, Soul Train creator and host Don Cornelius passed away yesterday of an apparant suicide.  He was 75.  Centric TV was running old episodes of Soul Train about a year ago and I was really enjoying them.  Besides the crazy fashions and the dance moves, there were some great non-lip synched performances from Al Green and James Brown.  And Don was the smooth host keeping it all together.  There is also a good documentary about Soul Train that VH1 and VH1 Classic show on occassion which explores the impact the show had.

Here's that Soul Train episode with James Brown:

Late Night Pick of the Night: Gotye

Tonight, check out new artist Gotye, who plays Peter Gabriel-ish atmospheric pop, on Jimmy Kimmel at 12:05 AM on ABC.  He's generating big buzz right now with virtually his entire US tour of clubs in April selling out.  Gotye recently came out first in Australia's (his home country) biggest fan voted music poll of top acts.