Posts Tagged ‘Dr. Dog’
Dr. Dog at the Mad Hatter October 15, 2009
October 16th, 2009
Posted in Concerts
The black walls and curtains in the corner of Covington’s Mad Hatter were decked out last night to look like some kind of botanical garden, complete with all kinds of plants and flowers, and even a couple plastic flamingos. Philadelphia’s Dr. Dog was in town, as part of their fall tour, which has covered most of the country over the past month, including stops at the Austin City Limits Music Festival and San Francisco’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival. The majority of last night’s songs came from their most recent record, Fate, while the rest came from their previous two efforts, We All Belong and Easy Beat.
The night actually started off with comedic, singer/songwriter Jeffrey Lewis and his band The Junkyards. It took me quite awhile to build up any interest in this band, as the lyrics were a little too simple and appeared to have no real deep meaning, while the vocals and singing styles were average at best. The music alone would’ve been just enough for me to get into, had this been an instrumental band, but I felt that the lyrics and vocals really hurt this band. That was until I heard their song about the history of Communist Russia and the rise and fall of leaders like Lenin and Stalin. Lewis, who’s also a comic book artist, accompanied the song with a slideshow of drawings depicting the comical-yet-serious story of the song. It reminded me a lot of comedian Demetri Martin, who often uses music and drawings in his show.
As for Dr. Dog, this would be the third time I had seen the band, the first two times being in 2007 at Bonnaroo and while they were on tour with Wilco in Louisville. There’s nothing quite like that first time you hear about a band and see them in concert when you have no idea what to expect, but Dr. Dog still puts on an exciting, energetic, raw show. Part of that has to do with combining many styles of music like bluegrass, folk, psychedelic rock and soul.
Personal highlights of the Dr. Dog set included older songs like the opener “Worst Trip”, “The Way the Lazy Do”, “Ain’t It Strange”, “Die, Die, Die” and “Oh No”, and newer songs like “The Breeze”, “Hang On”, “My Friend”, “The Ark” and the show closer “The Rabbit, the Bat, and the Reindeer.”
After their fall tour ends, Dr. Dog will be going back into the studio to work on material for their next album.
The Doctor Is In
October 15th, 2009
Posted in Concerts
In light of tonight’s Dr. Dog show at the Mad Hatter, I thought I’d give those of you not familiar with this band a little taste of their sound with a track from their latest record, Fate.
Fate
If you like what you hear, check out some of their albums like We All Belong
October in Covington: Shows to Know at the Mad Hatter and Madison Theater
October 3rd, 2009
Posted in CD Releases, Concerts
Local indie, pop-punk band and CEA nominees of the past, A Decade to Die For, is set to release their full-length debut album, Best Laid Plans, this weekend. They’ve been working hard on this long-awaited album for well over a year now, so come out and show your support; it’s only a $5 show! Also on the bill are Louisville’s Sugar Spell It Out, Dayton’s The Paramedic and locals Counterfeit Money Machine. Doors at 8 pm.
The hottest thing to come out of Philadelphia since the cheese steak is the psychedelic, indie-rock band, Dr. Dog. The band has consisted of some twenty or so members in its ten-year career, who blend together elements of folk, blues, soul and bluegrass. They also put heavy emphasis on vocal harmonies, taking influence from The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Neil Young and Tom Waits, as well as Pavement, The Palace Brothers and Roy Wood. Opening the show is New York singer/songwriter and comic book artist, Jeffrey Lewis. He has worked with artists like Kimya Dawson and The Bloodsugars (who recently played MidPoint). His lyrics are very complex and depressing-yet-hopeful. Thursday, October 15. Doors at 8 pm. Tickets are $15.
One of the hottest sets at MidPoint 2008 was from Chicago indie-rock band, Oh My God. They’ve performing for nearly ten years and have released six full-length albums and an EP. They’re out on tour in support of their most recent release, The Night Undoes the Work of the Day. They’ve asked local electronica duo, You, You’re Awesome, to open the show. They’ll be fresh off of their first appearance at CMJ in New York, which happens the night before this show. This show at the Mad Hatter is on Friday, October 23. Doors at 8 pm. $8.
Chicago instrumental trio, Russian Circles, come to town on Wednesday, October 28. Call ‘em post-metal, post-rock, experimental or even math rock, but what these three guys do is create epic, atmospheric soundscapes going from heavy metal to soft and delicate much like you find in bands like Pelican and Minus the Bear. Opening the show are two bands from Louisville: Coliseum (Hardcore/Punk) and Young Widows (Noise Rock/Post-hardcore/Experimental). Doors at 7 pm. $12.
Mat Kearney, a former youth pastor turned singer/songwriter combines pop, melody, guitar and piano with rap rhymes which often ends up sounding like mellow Brit pop or even early Beck or Everlast (minus the scratchy vocals). His breakthrough came in 2006, when he toured with John Mayer. Opening the show is Diane Birch, who also comes from a religious background. She spent much of her childhood living in South Africa and Australia, before her parents decided to settle in Portland, Oregon. She was classically trained on the piano, learning just from ear at a very early age. She has attracted the attention of some Hollywood’s famous, and has jammed with Prince and his band at his house. The show’s this Wednesday, October 7 at 8 pm. $20.
Shooter Jennings is the son of one of country music’s greatest outlaws, Waylon Jennings. The first few years of his life were spent living on his parents tour bus, and by age five he was playing drums. He also took piano lessons and started playing guitar at age fourteen, where he sometimes played in his father’s band. He left Nashville for L.A. and assembled a band called Stargunn, who he described as “Lynyrd Skynyrd mutating into Guns ‘n Roses.” And did you know that he played his father in Walk the Line? Opening the show is JJ Grey & Mofro (Southern Rock/Blues/Funk) and Earl Greyhound (Indie Rock/Hard Rock/Garage Rock). Thursday, October 8. 8 pm. $17.
It seems pretty weird to think that moe. has been playing for nearly twenty years. They’re one of the more successful touring jambands, alongside the kings (Grateful Dead) and the more recent ones (Phish, Widespread Panic, String Cheese Incident). It often seems like the jamband scene is slowly dying off, but moe. is certainly in contention to carry the torch for the jamband leaders of tomorrow. And it’s pretty cool that guitarist Chuck Garvey calls Cincinnati home. Come on out on Saturday, October 17 and show them that you feel the jamband scene and community is just as strong as ever. 8 pm. $22.50.
Get Yer Tickets Now, Vol. 1
July 30th, 2009
Posted in Local Music
Here’s a look into what’s happening over the next several months:
Indie, punk rock band, the Gaslight Anthem, is coming back to town for the second time within a year. The last time they were here, they played a crowded Mad Hatter, but on Wednesday, September 9, there will be a lot more rock and better yet, more room to rock. They’re playing Bogart’s with another pretty big band you may have heard of – Murder By Death. A post-punk band from Indiana, with a wide range of styles from instrumental, punk, alt. country and gothic. But the aggressive, rock and roll doesn’t stop there. Make sure you get there early enough to catch Philly Americana punk band, Loved Ones, and country, folk-punk act, Ninja Gun.
Built to Spill returns to the Southgate House on Friday, October 2. As one of the more popular bands in the indie rock movement of the ’90s, the best may actually be yet to come for the band. Vocalist Doug Martsch states that “I do think Built to Spill could be something better than ever just because our lineup is better than ever…I think there is potential for the five of us to collaborate on something that is just way better than anything that I have ever come up with by myself or that we have done in the past.” Martsch cites a ton of bands as influences, ranging from older acts like Dinosaur Jr., Neil Young, Pavement and Camper Van Beethoven, to newer acts like Modest Mouse, the Strokes and Death Cab for Cutie. But you can also discover some of their influences in the selection of cover songs, like Elliott Smith, David Bowie, The Cure, Captain Beefheart, Cheap Trick, The Clash, Brian Eno, The Smiths and Talking Heads. Built to Spill is preparing their seventh full-length album, There is no Enemy, to be released in October of 2009. Opening the show is the Swiss indie-rock band, Disco Doom.
Multi-instrumentalist, Andrew Bird, will be coming to Bogart’s on Wednesday, October 14. Not exactly the type of venue you would expect someone like him to play in, it’s a venue designed perfectly for hardcore and metal bands, both with the sound system and the spacious and disgustingly sticky floor. But this show will be one for the ages nonetheless, particularly because of the amazing talents that Bird possesses. The classically-trained, indie-folk musician has a style all his own, bouncing around from the violin, guitar, mandolin and glockenspiel, not to mention he’s pretty much the greatest whistler of all-time. He’s able to use several instruments in just one song, because he’s become a master of live looping. Opening the show for Andrew Bird is Annie Clark, otherwise known as St. Vincent. Also a multi-instrumentalist, Annie was previously a member of both the Polyphonic Spree and Sufjan Stevens’ touring band. Her first bout as a solo artist came with her debut album, Marry Me
Philadelphia’s psychedelic, indie rock band, Dr. Dog, comes to the Mad Hatter on Thursday, October 15. Strongly influenced by a wide range of bands like the Beatles, Tom Waits, Pavement and Roy Wood, they combine folk, blues, soul, bluegrass and a lot of harmonizing. Nearly twenty musicians have been a part of the band at different times over the past ten years, but for the most part Dr. Dog remains a five-piece. These five members have taken to being called by their odd nicknames: Taxi, Tables, Text, Thanks and Trouble. They recently signed with Anti-Records, and will be releasing an album this fall.
Fran Healy and Andy Dunlop of the Scottish alternative rock band, Travis, make what I believe is their first trip to the Southgate House on Wednesday, October 21. Dubbed “A Chronological Acoustical Journey Through the Travis Back Catalogue”, expect to hear stripped down versions of songs like “Why Does It Always Rain on Me?”, “Sing”, “Love Will Come Through” and “Selfish Jean.” The influence that both the Beatles and Oasis have had on the band is uncanny, and Travis are often credited with having paved the way for bands like Coldplay, Keane and Snow Patrol. I’m pretty excited about this show because Travis was one of my favorite bands of the early 00’s and I think the last time I saw them was 2001 at Bogart’s. Tickets go onsale this Saturday.
Quite possibly the scariest band of all-time, The Misfits, will return to the Southgate House just in time for Halloween. The hell-raising happens Tuesday, October 27 with Oxboard Drain opening. Good luck trying to find out who that band is. I’ve searched the internet high and low and can’t find anything. Named after Marilyn Monroe’s final movie, the Misfits have withstood the test of time, creating a legacy and making history when they set out to make an impression. They’ve inspired way too many bands to count, but you might notice their influence in bands like Slayer, Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson and Slipknot. There’s been a huge rotating cast in the band’s thirty-plus year career, most notably founding members Glenn Danzig and bassist, Jerry Only, who is the only remaining member. Head to the Southgate House this Halloween holiday to scare or be scared. You might even want to dress up too – you know the Misfits will be looking scary as hell.
On Tuesday, December 8, Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys comes to the Southgate House with his other band, The Fast Five. Also on the bill, is the Americana singer/songwriter son of Steve Earle, Justin Townes Earle, and the nineteen-year old Alt. Country and Folk singer/songwriter, Jessica Lea Mayfield. Auerbach is still on the road in support of his solo debut, Keep It Hid
Other Shows to Look Out For
Southgate House
Gil Mantera’s Party Dream with Eat Sugar and Enlou – Sunday, August 2
Deerhunter/Dan Deacon/No Age – Tuesday, August 4
The Breeders with Times New Viking – Wednesday, August 5
Son Volt with Cary Hudson – Friday, August 7
Bad Veins with now, now every children and Hazle Weatherfield – Saturday, August 8
Langhorne Slim with Low Anthem in the ballroom and Trevor Hall with Alex Carruthers in the parlour – Monday, August 10
The Duke and the King (featuring Simon Felice of the Felice Brothers) with Wonky Tonk – Tuesday, August 11
Iris DeMent with the Tillers – Thursday, August 13
Cowboy Mouth in the ballroom and Lord T & Eloise in the parlour – Thursday, September 10
James McMurtry – Friday, September 11
Sea Wolf with Port O’ Brien and Sara Lov – Sunday, October 4
Ten Out of Tenn Tour with Madi Diaz and Kyle Andrews - Tuesday, October 6
The Raveonettes with the Black Angels – Saturday, October 24
Vic Chesnutt Band (featuring Guy Picciotto of Fugazi) with Clare and the Reasons – Wednesday, November 4
Northside Tavern
Gringo Star – Tuesday, August 25
Bus Driver – Wednesday, September 9
Why? with Serengeti and Polyphonic – Thursday, September 24
Mad Hatter
Airborne Toxic Event with Hazle Weatherfield – Wednesday, August 5
Bogart’s
Silversun Pickups with Cage the Elephant and Manchester Orchestra – Monday, September 14
Mute Math – Tuesday, September 22
