Shows, Shows, and More Shows (PJ Harvey!!!!)
I've got a few shows to catch up on, starting all the way back to April Fool's Day, go figure. I went to see a great local collaboration between two local musicians- Dave Gutter (of Rustic Overtones fame) and Anna Lombard. They have a project called Armies, which is excellent in and of itself, but for this show, they added the musical sounds of the Maine Youth Rock Orchestra (MYRO) which really made their songs pop even more. I've seen MYRO perform with The Ballroom Thieves and Gregory Alan Iskov last year and both shows were incredible with the orchestra sound.
Armies is a special genre of music. I really love the mix of male-female vocals. It makes me think of Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson's collaboration. Or even She and Him. I just love it!
This was an excellent show.
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A week later, I headed down to Boston to see a great singer/songwriter, Morgan James. I sort of discovered her by accident, as she did some work with the Postmodern Jukebox, which focuses on artists covering other artists. She had a few covers up on YouTube, most notably, a cover of Prince's "Call My Name" which he gave his stamp of approval before passing away last year. Her voice struck me and sent shivers down my spine as I listened to her version. Then, after doing a little research found out she was known for her acting and singing on Broadway. She has that great, old-fashioned, jazz-smoky voice. Last year, she released a song-by-song cover of Joni Mitchell's "Blue" album, which is a risky move since that is an incredible album, but she did a decent job re-imagining the songs. Needless to say, when I saw she was heading to Boston and the ticket was a cheap $16, I had to go; and she did not disappoint. Her setlist had some great covers and original tunes.
Her opening act was a great singer-songwriter named Andy Allo. Definitely worth checking out.
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A week and a half later, sometimes a long time between shows for me, as I'm sure you've seen, I traveled down to Boston to finally see PJ Harvey. I've loved her since she appeared on the alternative rock scene in the early '90s with her raw, sexual energy in a male-dominated genre where she pulled no punches in making her presence known, as well as her pure talent. She became slightly more experimental with her sound and approach to writing and making music with later albums. Still one of my favorites is "Stories From the City" in which she enlisted the help of Thom Yorke (Radiohead) for a beautiful album about New York City right around the time of 9/11. "White Chalk" and "Let England Shake" were more stripped down and raw, but still told stories. With her latest album "Hope Six Demolition Project," she decided to enlist the help of a plethora of musicians, recorded the album live in front of an audience of people in what you could consider a live-art project. The tour finds her back by a stellar lineup of musicians and it was one of the best shows I've seen this year! She had no opening act, and really, she did not need one. She pretty much saved her early hit songs for the end of her set, but the build up was incredibly energizing. Everyone knew a few songs were coming, but the new album's songs just sound so damn amazing live.
Armies is a special genre of music. I really love the mix of male-female vocals. It makes me think of Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson's collaboration. Or even She and Him. I just love it!
This was an excellent show.
A week later, I headed down to Boston to see a great singer/songwriter, Morgan James. I sort of discovered her by accident, as she did some work with the Postmodern Jukebox, which focuses on artists covering other artists. She had a few covers up on YouTube, most notably, a cover of Prince's "Call My Name" which he gave his stamp of approval before passing away last year. Her voice struck me and sent shivers down my spine as I listened to her version. Then, after doing a little research found out she was known for her acting and singing on Broadway. She has that great, old-fashioned, jazz-smoky voice. Last year, she released a song-by-song cover of Joni Mitchell's "Blue" album, which is a risky move since that is an incredible album, but she did a decent job re-imagining the songs. Needless to say, when I saw she was heading to Boston and the ticket was a cheap $16, I had to go; and she did not disappoint. Her setlist had some great covers and original tunes.
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(Frank Sinatra cover)
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(Aretha Franklin cover)
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- Encore:
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(Peter Gabriel cover)
Her opening act was a great singer-songwriter named Andy Allo. Definitely worth checking out.
A week and a half later, sometimes a long time between shows for me, as I'm sure you've seen, I traveled down to Boston to finally see PJ Harvey. I've loved her since she appeared on the alternative rock scene in the early '90s with her raw, sexual energy in a male-dominated genre where she pulled no punches in making her presence known, as well as her pure talent. She became slightly more experimental with her sound and approach to writing and making music with later albums. Still one of my favorites is "Stories From the City" in which she enlisted the help of Thom Yorke (Radiohead) for a beautiful album about New York City right around the time of 9/11. "White Chalk" and "Let England Shake" were more stripped down and raw, but still told stories. With her latest album "Hope Six Demolition Project," she decided to enlist the help of a plethora of musicians, recorded the album live in front of an audience of people in what you could consider a live-art project. The tour finds her back by a stellar lineup of musicians and it was one of the best shows I've seen this year! She had no opening act, and really, she did not need one. She pretty much saved her early hit songs for the end of her set, but the build up was incredibly energizing. Everyone knew a few songs were coming, but the new album's songs just sound so damn amazing live.
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-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
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-
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- Encore:
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