Well, my buddy Cindy over at The Fine Line and I will be webcasting live from the Rodney Parker & Bleu Edmondson show at the Granada Theater in Dallas on Friday night. It is the night of Parker’s excellent new CD release (The Lonesome Dirge) and we’ll be all over that place so please tune in around 8pm. I’ll have more details soon enough….
Kathleen, jamming on a yoga mat with a box of wine at her bare feet
Well, the day of much anticipation arrived and I counted down the minutes until I would get to see my favorite female artist live and in an intimate, acoustic setting. As I have stated before, Edwards was to be gigging at a BYOB Yoga studio. It sounded fine, as I have heard good things about it being a good place for acoustic shows, and very different from the typical, smoky, boozy bar scene that often times would absolutely murder a quieter, more subtle performance. To make a long story short (not really), the concert was unreal and it proved to live beyond the hype that I had given it from a musical perspective, more on that later in the post. After making my way in and finally sitting down, I realized that I was fitting very tightly (no fat jokes, I’m not that big) into what would be my home for the next 3 hours. The studio understandably wants to accommodate as many as possible and I understand that there was a time where there were no chairs at all, so this is an improvement to say the least, but my knees were pressing into the chair in front of me as hard as the knees of the man behind me were pressing into the back of mine, all while I held my legs in place with my hands to keep from invading the personal leg/knee space of the people to my left and right. OK, enough with the complaining, the fact is, I was much more uncomfortable the first time I witnessed a Kathleen live gig, when I endured driving, pelting rain to my back and neck on the front row at the ACL Fest in 2006. Also, I sat next to a great couple who happen to be the parents of Ft. Worth/Austin based rocker Collin Herring (more on him later this week). OK, now onto the show…
After the opening set by Bob Schneider guitarist Jeff Plankenhorn (who name dropped a whole bunch for an opening act, but hey, who am I to judge? I mean, he couldn’t introduce a song without naming a “big” Texas artist that either played on the track or loved it and that Kathleen, who has Tom Petty, John Mayer and EmmyLou Harris on speed dial never once mentioned any of her high-toned buds, but whatever) Kathleen came up and opened with a new song, then her hubby/lead guitarist Colin Cripps came up and the hits started flowing. “In-State,” “One More Song the Radio Wont Like” & “Hockey Skates” were old favorites from both studio albums that led into Kathleen showcasing some of the new material for the upcoming album, including her new single, “Cheapest Key.” Her jovial, humble banter with the crowd was only topped by the playful jabs she took at Colin. Everyone was having fun, even Kathleen had to laugh atthe crowd as much as with the crowd at times. During “Hockey Skates,” a slow and somber tune of leaving someone behind, the guy who did a lot of closed mouth-burping next to me cracked opened can of Natty Light during the final chorus. The sound of air escaping the freshly opened can echoed like a balloon deflating in the quiet studio atmosphere, warranting a shocked little chuckle from Edwards, who didn’t miss a beat. Also, during the encore, Kathleen indirectly and inadvertently welcomed requests. The guy behind me that kept saying “oooh, I love this song!” after every song began shouted, “‘Pink Emerson Radio!!.” That sent the crowd into laughter due to the fact that Kathleen had played that very ditty 15 minutes prior to this strangely out of place and ill-timed request. While the crowd laughed, Kathleen shouted “Hello, I just played that!”, and then Colin rejoined her and they finished up with a cover of “When Will I Be Loved,” which sent everyone off with that warm-fuzzy feeling one gets after not just having fun at a show, but feeling like you got to know the artist in the process. That warm-fuzzy-gettin’-acquainted feeling got stronger when I went to say hi to Kathleen and thank her for a great show. As we shook hands, Kathleen gave me a surprised look of recognition as she asked “Are you Kelly?” To which, in my shock replied, “Holy crap. Yeah. Me Kelly“. Kathleen went on to explain that she recognized me from my leaving a comment on her myspace page and that after checking my page out, she thought it was funny (her words not mine, but they would be my words if you asked me if my myspace page is funny or not), and even explained to me the various points of my hilarious, revolutionary myspace site that was indeed funny enough to make her remember a schlub like me. Well, after that little chat and then me breaking out my phone to show her pics of my baby boy (she likes Cash for a name too), I then decided that it was time to go, quit while I still seemed normal, and not run the risk of her looking into what kinds of restraining orders might suit her needs best for future visits to the Lone Star State.
Great night, Great show, looking forward to the new album Asking for Flowers in March. Maybe she’ll come back and play a venue that allows shoes to stay on ones feet.
Kathleen Edwards Live @ Bend Studio (Sorry, I still am not the greatest camera guy)
Ned Van Go. Put the women & kids to bed, they’re coming to the Big D.
It is well documented that I am a big fan of the Nashville based band Ned Van Go. They reside in the soil of the same Bourbon-soaked land that bar band prototypes Bottle Rockets, Slobberbone, Lucero and Bare Jr. have grown their legend. The guys will be making another trip here to Dallas this weekend and to celebrate and get everyone ready for their gigs, I want to share with you a chat that the leader of the group, Ned Hill, and I had after their last Dallas trip.
You guys are based in Nashville. Most people associate Music City with a more polished, slickly-produced version of country. What kind of “scene” is there for a band such as NVG in Nashville ?A great majority of the bands actively playing here are not the slick country acts you see on CMT. In fact, most of the younger acts don’t have anything to do with country. Most are alt. rock or alt. pop bands that have signed major deals and had moderate to decent success (Kings of Leon , The Pink Spiders, Matt Kearney, etc.). Ned Van Go is part of a smaller scene in town that are influenced by roots rock, country, rockabilly, bluegrass, punk and pop. It’s an extension, I guess, of what Jason and the Scorchers and Steve Earle started here in the mid 80’s and early 90’s. Todd Snider, Tommy Womack, Old Crow Medicine Show, Porter Hall TN, Les Honky More Tonkies, and Trent Summar would be some in this group. It’s a smaller but active, growing group.
NVG has built a bit of a following overseas. Have you toured there before? If so, how are the audiences different from ones you find on the road in the States?Yeah, we’ve had a decent amount of airplay overseas with our latest CD “Marry A Waitress.” But no, we’ve never toured there but hope to do so at some point.
Now that you have had a chance to play in Texas alsong with Nashville, are there any differences between the crowds and venues of Texas as compared to Nashville ?Well, to be honest, we haven’t been a heavy touring band. We’ve been weekend warriors over the last year and a half or so. So we know mostly about the southeastern part of the US . But I can tell ya that we’ve been to Texas three times so far and there is definitely a different vibe there. Especially, it seems, with their taste in country, country rock, roots rock-it’s definitely cooler in Texas. This is helped I think in part by the great radio stations going on down there, KHYI for instance. I guess that’s why we wanted to play there in the first place.
What are the things that us as fans may not realize when it comes to scheduling and touring out of state or even in another country?I guess the main thing that people don’t understand is that you just can’t play any club you want. Unknown, unsigned bands can have a hard time at first getting into decent clubs. There are a lot of bands wanting to play them and the clubs aren’t necessarily wanting to bring in a band no one’s ever heard of. They’re businessmen, they want a full house if they can get it. Plus the price of gas can make a trip expensive and unorganized people having to get organized can be a challenge.
The lyrics to many of your songs are humorous, like “Laid,” and “Never Kissed a Girl.” Other songs provide a glimpse of life that many people would call “working-class” or even mundane (”Factory Blues”, “Marry a Waitress”). What attracts you to such left of center topics and lyrics?Well, before I picked up my first guitar in my mid-twenties, my favorite band was a group my brother (Billy Hill along with Tommy Womack, Scott Willis, Joe King, and Chris “Viva Knievel” Becker) was part of in the mid-80’s called “Government Cheese.”. They were a pretty successful regional act up until the early 90’s and one of the best bar bands I ever saw. But they were also great writers. What I really dug about it was the fact they were writing about, basically, their own little world and doing it in a very clever, intelligent, funny and sometimes sad way. It was the first time I realized that “Holy Shit,” I could be myself and write about things in my world and maybe even be in a rock’n’roll band! So, I’ve always tried to write and find songs that fit into my world, the everyday, the mundane. It’s just more interesting to me. That’s why we’re the characters we are, that’s where the truth is. And hopefully a good song comes out of that process every once in a while.
Major labels are having problems the likes of which they never envisioned thanks to the digital music “revolution.” As a DIY band that busts its tail for every radio spin and live gig it can manage, how are you affected by this “revolution”?Well, it’s great thing. It’s a tool that allows us to market ourselves, to some extent, to people all over the world. Being able to sell your product from essentially your own store is very important for the “Do-It-Yourself” band. Hell, even illegal downloads aren’t that bothersome. It’s all about getting the word out. It’s the way we communicate with fans, radio, and other bands. Even for the least computer savvy folk like ourselves, it is a great tool.
What are the rules on the van when it comes to the music selection?The pilot and co-pilot have the most influence about what’s in the CD player. One’s influence decreases, the further back one is in the van. Anything lame could constitute a verbal lashing from the contingent.
How soon will you be back to The Lone Star State??Maybe December, definitely March. (Knob Note: They will be here in Dallas on the 14th and 15th. The Double Wide on Friday night and a free in-store at Bill’s on Saturday)
*I have a couple of signed CD’s from the boys in Ned Van Go to give away to my dirty, precious readers. Email me at krd1992@yahoo.com to enter yourself into the drawing. I’ll pick a winner at random on Thursday night and announce the lucky eff’s on Friday.
Sunset @ LJT Festival 2007. One of the “pre-baby” high-points.
I could do a “Best of 2007″ or even a Top Albums of the Year kinda thing, but it probably wouldn’t be that great. Why? Just cuz, I guess. In fact, I am not even reviewing the entire year, but only the part of the year that I have been blogging up in this mutha, which would be since May 1st. So, you wanted a woefully incomplete and illiterate retrospective on the partial year that was (you did, I heard you ask)??? Well unwrap this little present below (no special order or progression, this review is as out of order chronologically as it is incomplete):
Bleu Edmondson, Adam Hood, Ryan Bingham, Drew Kennedy
Wilco, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Cross Canadian, Ryan Adams -
Big names, big record releases. While these twangy favorites produced solid, focused and tight albums that had various flashes of brilliance, they each fell a tad short (some more or less than others) of some of their previous works that provided them with their big names. What most bands wouldn’t give to have an offering as strong as these discs as their second, third or fourth best productions in their catalog.
The Wagonmaster rides out in style. The Thin Man from West Plains astounded and confounded me with his “don’t call it a comeback” album that gave us a riveting farewell simply by reminding us all where he had been.
Entertainer of the Year: Cash Dearmore -
My Baby Boy (Sorry, I had to, go read Country Weekly if you don’t like it). July 23rd saw my life change forever, and there isn’t a concert or CD in the world that could entertain, delight and make me smile the way that Little Cash does.
If you are like me (which according to my wife, would be sad and somewhat over-weight), you like to read other blogs besides ye ol’ Knob. I’m not mad, it simply isn’t natural to devote yourself to merely one blog, what us in the biz call “Mo-blogomy.” Ok, we don’t call it that and I am not even sure what “biz” I was talking about. I encourage you, the reader that wants to spice up his/her blog life and introduce new ideas into your blogroom, to peruse the “blogroll” on the left hand side of the screen. Below are some of my favorites:
The 9513 - Brody and his band of merry men offer us a daily round-up of all the necessary news and interesting tid-bits from across the Country/Americana Universe. With CD and concert reviews, along with insightful interviews, the 9513 has become one of the most well-known blogs for music lovers across the country.
Amber Waves of Twang - Chip, who also contributes to Twangville, enlightens readers with reviews and personal suggestions of what deserves our attention. There aren’t enough folks like Chip, who is out there promoting the likes of Peter Case and Jason Isbell. With frequent video clips of live performances, you are never out of the loop.
The CMT.com Blog - With contributors such as Sunny Sweeney, Eamon McGloughlin (the Greencards), and the iconic Chet Flippo, this blog hits about every color in the Country rainbow. A recent post was dedicated to Gobblers Knob fave Reckless Kelly even. Surprisingly, this blog also covers a large area and doesn’t merely focus on even artists which are mainly (not totally) Nashville produced and extremely mainstream, but spreads the love and includes talent from Texas. The posts that are dedicated to tunes and videos from the past are especially fun.
Americana Roots - This is an excellent resource for Americana treasure. The podcasts are excellent and the writing is a cut-above many, if not most, blogs.
There you go folks. I hope this gives ya’ll something to do as you eagerly await my next, Oscar worthy (or whatever they give for so-so blog postings) insight into my soul.
Kathleen, jamming on a yoga mat with a box of wine at her bare feet
