THE MUSIC MADE ME DO IT

Grand Archives (Live)

Last night The Jealous Girlfriends, Grand Archives and Most Serene Republic played The Entry. It was one of the very few times I have ever seen all three bands on one bill. I have to say I enjoyed all of them, but by far the highlight of the evening for me, as it appeared to be for many others as well, was the Grand Archives performance in the second slot.

Being a fan of Mat Brooke's two prior bands, I had been looking forward to a full-length album since first reading about them in Pitchfork last year. Then when looking through the show listings for various venues in town back in January and seeing that they were coming to town, I was a bit excited.

While all of the band members harmonize on vocals in addition to playing their instruments, it was primarily Mat and Ron Lewis (formerly of Ghost Stories, Joggers and Mines) leading the charge on vocals with Mat taking the lead most often. The same was true for their interactions with the crowd which were humorous, self-deprecating and genuine.

The band played through their songs at a good pace, having fun being on stage and truly enjoying playing their music for others to hear. It was my first time at The Entry and I fell fortunate to have been able to see them there. At the end of their set, everyone in the audience was asking for a couple more songs, but being in the second slot and out of time, the guys were unable to oblige. We'll just have to wait for another time, and likely a larger venue, to hear more of them in person.

Since getting The Grand Archives back in early February, it has been on heavy rotation. Now after seeing their live show, it will only continue to be so. (As a matter of fact, it's playing right now in a mix with Band of Horses, S and Carissa's Wierd in my iTunes.) If you don't have The Grand Archives yet, take a listen to one of the below places where it's streaming and if you're into it, support these guys by purchasing it at your favorite music store or site. They're very deserving of it in my opinion.

Related note 1: My photo set from last night.

Related note 2: Video of Most Serene Republic singing (Oh) God here.

Related note 3: A great review and Flickr photo set of the CD launch party for Grand Archives at The Triple Door in Seattle, which included opening performances by Mat's former Carissa's Wierd bandmates, Jenn Ghetto (S) and Sera Cahoone.

Related note 4: An article from the Seattle Times when the band was first getting noticed that's a good read.

Grandarchives.com | MySpace | Last.fm | iTunes | Amazon

Mat Brooke

Liam Finn Rocks the 400 Bar

Liam Finn stepped into the headline slot at the 400 Bar last night and took full advantage of his opportunity to play a longer set. He was to play the second time slot, opening for Pela, but due to an unfortunate accident, was moved into the spotlight. (Sorry to hear about the accident Pela. Hope Billy heals quickly.)

Supported on stage by his good friend EJ Barnes, Liam played a mix of songs off of his album, I'll Be Lightning, along with a few spontaneous jams (one based on saying the word "Minneapolis" in various tones and looping them). I had somewhat of an idea of what I was going to see, but was still very impressed with Liam's show.

Liam primarily played the guitar and drums, along with the Theremin at times. EJ supported him on vocals while playing tambourine, autoharp, cymbals, cow bell and the wood block/temple block (I think). Both used pedals and loops to give the songs much more dimension and character.

I would describe his performance as raw, unpredictable, melodious electricity - well on his way to becoming lightning. His interactions with the crowd were fun, humorous and very uncensored. He even got the crowd to yell out the "C" word near the end.

He is an incredibly talented musician and a gifted performer. Getting to watch him croon a slower song one minute and then rock out the next; moving between recording loops for the guitar to hammering on the drums with unbridled passion for the music, was quite an incredible spectacle. (I would have to say that my favorite moments were those when he was going crazy on the drums. You can't help but be affected by his energy.)

If you have a chance to catch Liam live, I would recommend you do so. The live version of his songs become much bigger than what you hear on his album/CD and the little spontaneous surprises make it even more enjoyable.

Related: Some great photos of last night's show can be found here. My lesser quality ones can be found here. More from other recent shows here and here.

Provided he continues on this tour without Pela, you can find his next live dates here.

(A note to my friends in Denver - he's scheduled to play Hi-Dive on Monday, March 10.)

LiamFinn.tv | MySpace | VIRB | Last.fm | iTunes | Amazon

Foreign Born Live

Foreign Born opened for St. Vincent on Friday night. Per the advice of some friends who had been to see shows at the Cedar before, I got there early so I could get a good spot to see everything. Caught Foreign Born's full set and have to say I was pleasantly surprised.

They had abundant energy and were very entertaining. I wasn't a fan of every song, but found myself liking most of what they played. If you're going to catch any of this short tour, I highly suggest you get there in time to see a little bit of their performance, if not all of it.

Foreign Born's site | MySpace | VIRB | Last.fm | iTunes | Amazon

St. Vincent Show / I <3 Annie Clark

It's official. I have a crush on Annie Clark, a.k.a. St. Vincent. I can't help it. Last night at the Cedar Cultural Center she disarmed me with her charm, humility and all-around resplendence. Then she blew me away with her ambrosial vocal dexterity and gift of being able to strum a delicate string of chords together on the guitar one minute and completely shred it with mastery the next.

I had some notion of what to expect going into the night and had been looking forward to it all week. At the end of the evening, all of my expectations were greatly surpassed and I now have a new-found appreciation for Ms. Clark not only as a chanteuse, but also as a delightful woman willing to share more than just her music with her fans.

Some artists use pedals, effects and a variety of microphones to cover for a lack of talent. Not Annie. She uses these tools to take her music and natural abilities to another level. She kept the pace of the show undulating expertly throughout the night, starting off with a couple of her more popular/known songs*, moving into a mix of stuff off of Marry Me, bringing out one or two new songs and rocking out a phenomenal solo cover of The Beatles song "Dig A Pony."

(*I think she opened with Now Now and Jesus Saves, I Spend. I could be off though.)

Her interactions with the crowd were endearing and engaging. Between songs, she responded to louder comments made by enamored members of the audience and shared stories from recent adventures on the road. She was genuine and playful. At times, she was even a bit demure. She appeared to be truly flattered that people applauded and cheered after each song. When she couldn't quite get her guitar tuned to the perfect note, rather than continue fussing with it, she'd just stop, say something to the effect of, "Oh, the hell with it. It's a rock show, right?" and then begin playing.

Every glowing review that has been written of her live performances is well deserved. I can honestly say this was one of the best shows I've been to in quite some time. It was one of those shows where nobody in the audience wanted to see it come to an end, least of all, myself. I will definitely go back to see her the next time she comes to town or if she happens to be playing somewhere I also am at the moment.

Thank you, Annie. Thank you for not only sharing your music with the world, but for also being so open, real, elegant and interesting when performing it.

ilovestvincent.com | MySpace | VIRB | Last.fm | iTunes | Amazon

Related: Here's a video of her performing "Dig A Pony" in a NY music store:

Cat Power (Chan Marshall) Live

photo credit

Went to see Cat Power last Monday night at First Avenue. Ms. Marshall was backed by the outstanding Dirty Delta Blues. I went into the show not knowing what to expect. I'd heard that she had been known in the past to have "outbursts" on stage. I'd also heard that she has pretty much gotten through that and has been putting on incredible shows. This show certainly fell into the latter.

She definitely seemed a little uncomfortable/fidgety at times. She was constantly messing with the buttons on her shirt and ducking off to the side of the stage to grab a sip of Sugar-Free Red Bull while the band played out a chorus or section of a song. But she pushed through those moments and sang both her own songs and her own versions of other peoples' songs gorgeously.

As with the covers, she sang her own material different than it sounds on the albums, which I really enjoyed. I have always admired her voice and it came through beautifully clear on this night. She was charming, sweet and as the night went on and she became more comfortable, engaging. While it wasn't the most energetic show you'll go to, it was more so than I expected and I'd go see her again in a second.

For a sample of what the Minneapolis show was like, here's a clip from the same tour, two nights prior in Toronto. This very well could have been last Monday night here in regard to her motions and movements on stage. Anyway, here you go:

Matador Records | catpowerthegreatest.com | MySpace | Last.fm | iTunes | Amazon