Finding Forever today.

Once again, Common has released a great album. Finding Forever came out in July under my radar and I have only now come to really dig into it. It's a great album full of intelligent lyrics, thoughtful samples, and catchy hooks. Also, he finally got the credit he deserved by debuting at number one on the Billboard 200.

I first came under Common's spell on the De La Soul record Stakes is High and have tried to keep up as best I could. His 2005 record Be was the pinnacle of his career. It was a soul/R&B record that deserved record of the year for its socially conscious lyrics, its fantastic hooks, and its surprisingly widespread appeal. His new record is more in the hip-hop vein, which is fine, but I was really hoping for a Be sequel to be honest. This one is more like his previous records (Electric Circus, Like Water for Chocolate but without a pop masterpiece like "Come Close" from EC). The lyrics are less socially conscious and more appealing to a larger crowd. What I mean by a more widespread appeal is the references buried in them.

For example, he makes reference to, among others: Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn's relationship, astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak's very publicized breakdown, and Dreamworks Pictures near-masterpiece Finding Nemo. While my generation may now get a kick out of reminiscing about these events today, where does that put these lyrics in 10 years? Will those in kindergarten today know who Nowak is or remember that Aniston and Vaughn had a short-lived relationship following their $100+ million film The Break Up? I hope not.

His music is always catchy and very well constructed. His tracks could easily stand alone, thanks again to Kanye West (producer of Be as well), which reminds me of some of my favorite other hip-hop groups. His lyrics are memorable enough to sing along (for the most part) but I can't get over the fleeting nature of his pop references. Tracks to check out: "The People," "Forever Begins (featuring the easily recognizable drum track from Paul Simon's "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover")," "Break My Heart." Either way, I'll still give it...

Rating: Buy it.

Just another week at One Eyed Jacks.

In recent months, One Eyed Jacks has become one of my favorite venues in town. This week along I saw two great shows. They always offer great music that no one else in the city seems to attract.

Heartless Bastards
On Wednesday I saw the Cincinnati trio rock for the second time. The first time I saw them (also at One Eyed Jacks) I was absolutely blown away by how tight they were, how great they sounded, and how shy but simultaneously powerful lead singer Erika Wennerstrom was. This show was much of the same. There were many many more people in the crowd this time which was great to see, and Erika had a little bit of a buzz on.

Ok, that's stretching the truth. She sat at the bar during the entire opening band (Pearlene, also from Cincinnati and pretty good) and by the time she got on stage she was allegedly "very drunk, but hey, ain't New Orleans the place to be drunk? wooooo!" Surprisingly, she still put on a great show, albeit dropping picks, stopping songs because she's out of tune, etc.

They played a new song which was very mellow. This is a little worrisome to me. Listening to the first and then second album, it's obvious that they did a lot of songwriting and innovating between albums. However, I hope that doesn't mean that they will continue to mellow out. Songs like "Brazen" and "Into The Open" are fantastic and some of my favorite. Either way, good show.

The Comas
The Comas opened for the Meat Puppets. The only reason I mention them is their stage antics. They weren't great. They weren't unlistenable, but it was few and far between those in the crowd that were really paying attention much less getting into it. They played sloppily, they ignored the crowd, it was just not a well run show. Before the second to last song the singer decided to announce to the crowd that we sucked and we're nothing but dead weight that was pissing him off. Forget those guys. Avoid the Comas. That's what happens when you take a regional at best band out of their region.

The Meat Puppets
Great great great show. Both Kirkwood brothers were present and they were both obviously having a good time. They went all over the place: punk, country, psychedelic rock, and everywhere in between. I was never able to see the Minutemen or fIREHOSE so it was awesome to see the Meat Puppets, who typically fall between these two bands and bands like Sonic Youth and The Pixies. The crowd was interesting. It was full of hipsters, older guys, frat guys, young guys, and hippies. I can explain most of them, but I don't understand the frat guys. Either way, I have now seen the Meat Puppets. Great show.

Galactic - From the Corner to the Block

I first fell in love with Galactic in 8th grade on the way to summer camp. Their debut album, Coolin' Off, is awesome. I didn't know it then, but I know now that it is an homage to the original funksters, The Meters. Either way, it's a totally decent funk R&B record and I still give it a spin once in a while. I further fell in love with Galactic drummer Stanton Moore with the release of his first solo album All Kooked Out! when it was released. I was just getting into the New Orleans style of drumming and it is an amazing record. The fact that the basslines were played by tuba and renowned weirdo Skerik played his fool head off on the album certainly helped.

Having worked in a local music store (instruments, not CDs) for a couple of years now, I've seen all sorts of New Orleans musicians flow in and out. From George Porter and Mem Shannon, both of whom appear weekly, to Ani Difranco and some of the Neville Brothers (a more rare occurance), they all stop by.

More recently, I've met Stanton Moore and some of the other members of Galactic. For the most part, I will say that they are humble..for the most part. The album they released in 2003, Ruckus, was the first thing that made me scratch my head. There were loops, beats, and other generally confusing things on the record. It was the first time I was let down by a Galactic album.

The most recent one, From the Corner to the Block, is another one of these Galactic albums that involves a kind of general confusion on the theme of the record. It's premise is Galactic funk under MCs laying down their respective gifts of gab. Being such a huge fan of Tribe Called Quest and Jurassic 5, I figured I would dig the New Orleans rhythms under the eloquent stylings of many a guest rapper, but how wrong I was. First of all, the funk is lacking. The syncopations are not what they should be, the melodies are lacking, and the rapping, while perhaps strong otherwise, gets lost over the music. Why they decided to innovate instead of seeking out their roots I'll never know. This is the first time I can safely say that not even their usually killer live shows can save this one.

Rating: Skip it.

Last Light

Matt Pond PA: Hardest working band in indie pop show business? Once again, Matt Pond and co. has released a totally decent album both my mother and I can enjoy. He has, year in and year out, put out good pop records that he can be proud of. These same records have, year in and year out, failed to wow any A&R executive. I've seen them live once and was actually pretty impressed. It was the first time I had even heard of them and I found myself wishing I was able to sing along with the rest of the rather moderate crowd.

With each album put out, I find I am torn between buying another copy for my Mom (who likes pretty decent music, to her credit) or telling my friends that this could be the one for the band. The latest offering, Last Light, offers more of the same sing-a-long mom pop we've come to expect and even wait for. He's found his niche and he's sticking to it. The David Bowies and Becks of the industry are more than welcome to adapt and evolve to their liking, Matt Pond has found his style.

This offering is a little more solid and reminiscent of Several Arrows Later (2005, Altitude Records) which has been my favorite album until this point. This is the album that college coeds will share on their various P2P programs promising a perfect pre-class and/or pre-game record. Long live Mr. Pond.

Rating: Burn/Buy it.

Want to grow up to be, be a debaser!

Having returned from the tour, I'm not quite sure what to write about in these blogs. The only music news I've heard recently is that Frank Black has disappeared. Black Francis has returned. That is correct Pixies fans: the arguably most influential band (with Sonic Youth) to the grunge era's singer's alter-ego has resurfaced. What does this mean?

Most probably, it means that the albums he put out under the Frank Black name (self-title, the near perfect Teenager of the Year, all the Catholics releases, etc) are officially shelved and the music he wrote on the records we know and love (Doolittle, Trompe Le Monde, Surfer Rosa, etc) is back! Upon first listen, the first track is exciting and really moving. It's exactly what I expect out of the lovely Charles K. Thompson.

However, I'm disappointed to say that the melodies that the Pixies records were so thick with seem surprisingly absent. There's not as much to sing along with even though the vocals are more Pixies and less Frank Black. Hearing this album, I'm ok with the Pixies not releasing a new record yet. I want their upcoming record to be the ultimate resurgence of teen angst and grunge and power pop and all the thing I love about them. The recent Dinosaur Jr. record was pretty good, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the hell out of it. I recommend this record to all of you superfans, those of you who love later Pixies and later Catholic stuff.

That's not to say it doesn't have the potential to be great. I said myself I've only given it one good listen. I was just too excited about it to wait and absorb it before posting about it.

Rating: Borrow and burn

End of the Roadie

I have officially reached the end of my roadie days. I had a great time but it sure is nice to be back in New Orleans in my own bed driving my own car and having my own fridge. I made some friends that I will hopefully run into again soon. The last show I recorded was a pretty good one. Scoop up a copy at the Hittin' the Note website or download it at ABBlive.com. They played neither of the songs I wanted to hear nor "Gambler's Roll" which would have been so appropriate for a casino show, but oh well.

After the show in Council Bluffs, IA, I caught a flight out of Omaha and back to New Orleans. Neither the Omaha nor the Houston airports have free or even cheap wireless so I was instead reduced to doing something more useful with my time anyway: reading. I picked up a book called The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century by Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times journalist Thomas L. Friedman.

It is an LP, if you will, of an essay about a increasingly shrinking world. In it, he argues that the world, with its outsourcing, offshoring, multinational corporations, and ever increasing numbers of knowledge centers is getting smaller. Our cultures are slowly merging and as more and more countries advance, it forces the world leader, America, to innovate at an astounding rate. Really interesting read.

In other news, the Gregg Allman Band is coming to New Orleans in October and I've been asked to at least stop by and visit my new found friends in the roadie world, which is fairly exciting. Also, tons of great music is coming to New Orleans in the next two months.

9/12 Heartless Bastards at One Eyed Jacks
9/15 The Meat Puppets (with both brothers!) at One Eyed Jacks
9/16 Indigo Girls at Tipitina's
9/18 Arctic Monkeys at House of Blues
9/20 Biz Markie and the Roots at House of Blues
9/21 Henry Rollins at House of Blues
9/23 Interpol at House of Blues
9/30 Turbonegro at One Eyed Jacks
10/4 Rilo Kiley at The Republic
10/5 George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic at House of Blues
10/10 Blitzen Trapper at The Parish
10/17 Gregg Allman Band at House of Blues
10/25 The Hives at One Eyed Jacks

And that doesn't include Voodoo Fest, which I will cover in full at a later date.