Goodbye to Doc Watson

Sadly, seven time Grammy winner Doc Watson died today. Doc was a bluegrass legend and helped bring bluegrass out of the rhododenren of western North Carolina and into the national spotlight. Doc thrived despite growing up dirt poor and blind from an eye infection at age 1. Doc is one of my favorite bluegrass artists not only because of his guitar chops, but also because of his classic, clear bluegrass voice..

Full bio here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Watson

If you don't know Doc, check out a couple of these videos:

The Weeknd

Remember when we posted about The Dream? Well, here's some R&B that's cut from the same cloth. A little slower, a little nastier, The Weeknd is baby making music gone slightly indie. There are some killer jams to be had on his first proper album, House of Balloons, and his EP/mixtape releases are solid as well. Check out Echoes of Silence, which you can download for free on his website. Dude's created a nice little internet persona for himself as well. Do yourself a favor: pour a glass of wine for you and that special someone, light a fire, and spark a bowl. As the song says...





Happy Weeknd

Stew

Jack White Solo Album April 24

Booyah. Here's a taste:

Best Shows of 2011

I brought back my annual New Year's poll asking my friends to name their favorite concert of the year. It was another solid year in the music world. Here are a few selected results.

Let's start with the weather-related choices:

Amy Jordan and Luke Muellerleile - U2 in Minneapolis in a torrential downpour, worthy of two videos because this was one hell of a storm:




Fellow bloggers Nate Gagnon and Ben Siebers - Snoop Dogg in Madison:


During the Blizzaster:


Our top vote getter: Danny Linihan, Nic Tyson, Brett Keller - The Black Keys:


And Gold on the Ceiling from Letterman, because it's my favorite song right now:


Trevor Gray - Tinariwen


Jake Howard and Clayton Scherrer - The Strokes


Have a great 2012 and go see live music!

Stew

Merengue!

Elvis Crespo was named after Elvis Presley, has won a Grammy, and was the 1999 Tropical: Male Artist of the Year ... what have you done that is half as awesome? Elvis is a merenegueteno (creater of merengue music) and has been making danceable music since his debut in 1998.

Merengue is probably the simplest of the latin dances because of it's basic 4/4 beat. It's relative fast pace and simplicity allow some flexibility on the dancefloor.

So grab your better half and give it a shot ....

Song of the Year

It's fun to pick an indie or obscure track for song of the year. Makes me look smart and well informed. But when Ravens defenders are declaring that they went to Ball So Hard University and Jay-Z and Kanye are repeating one song ten times at their shows, there's really only one choice.

The song of the year is Niggas in Paris:


No lists this year, I just wasn't paying close enough attention. But if I did make a list the M83 album below would be right at the top.

Stew

M83

One of my favored electronica acts, M83, released a new double album a little while back. Hurry Up We're Dreaming is a sprawling epic, touching a little bit of everything in M83's past: moody lyric-less soundscapes, slow building jams, and blowout dance tracks. The title feels appropriate; this stuff could easily be the soundtrack to your dreams. Here's a taste:






Echoes of Mine (part of it anyway):


The first single, Midnight City, live:


Steve McQueen live:


Like remixes? Here's a remix EP the band released for Midnight City:
Midnight City Remixes EP by M83

And what the hell, here's my favorite track off of Saturdays=Youth, their last release before Hurry Up:


Happy... Saturday?

Stew