Archive for December, 2009
Concert Calendar: Winter Semester and Short Term 2010
December 28th, 2009 • Boston, Concert Calendar, Maine, News
Tags: air, ani difranco, anna ternheim, asobi seksu, concerts, dar williams, david gray, efterklang, el perro del mar, Freelance Whales, keller williams, suzanne vega, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, tegan and sara, the new deal, wild beasts, Yeasayer
Several interesting bands will be performing within a reasonable driving distance of Bates between Winter Semester and Short Term 2010. Here are some selections, and, as more concerts are announced, this list will continue to be populated. For a complete listing of concerts, please visit our Concert Calendar page.
January 19: Freelance Whales – Great Scott, Boston, Ma.
January 20: The New Deal – Port City Music Hall, Portland, Me.
January 23: Suzanne Vega – Olin Arts Center at Bates College, Lewiston, Me.
January 28: Ani DiFranco – The Strand Theater, Rockland, Me.
January 30: Asobi Seksu – Club 939, Boston, Ma.
February 12: Dar Williams – One Longfellow Square, Portland, Me.
February 13: Tegan and Sara – Orpheum Theater, Boston, Ma.
February 19: El Perro del Mar & Anna Ternheim – Cambridge YMCA, Cambridge, Ma.
February 24: Wild Beasts – Great Scott, Boston, Ma.
Concert Review: Fanfarlo and Freelance Whales (with Video)
December 27th, 2009 • 1 comment Boston, Concert Review, Folk, Rock
Tags: fanfarlo, Freelance Whales, T.T. and the Bear's, Weathervanes
Fanfarlo and Freelance Whales played in Boston at T.T. the Bear’s on December 17. Despite the fact that London’s indie-pop group Fanfarlo headlined, several Bates kids and I actually made the trek to see the openers, New York’s Freelance Whales.
Freelance Whales is Judah Dadone, Kevin Read, Doris Cellar, Jake Hyman and Chuck Criss. They were recently signed onto Frenchkiss/Mom + Pop Records, and in my opinion deserve a lot more recognition than they’ve garnered so far. The group is rapidly gaining momentum considering the limited time they’ve been together.
Their show was a great success, and the packed, enthusiastic crowed they played for is a testament to the close following they’ve acquired. Read more »
18 Crucial Albums of the Past Decade to Supplement the Editor's Picks
December 26th, 2009 • Commentary, Op-Ed
Tags: Against Me!, Animal Collective, Bill Callahan, Black Eyes, Bright Eyes, Dan Deacon, Deerhunter, Destroyer, Dinosaur Jr., Elliot Smith, Fugazi, Modest Mouse, Mountain Goats, Of Montreal, Q and not U, Rage Against the Machine, Re-Up Gang, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
I’ve seen a lot of ‘Best Of..’ lists, and Doug has already done a pretty good job of providing a musical overview to the past decade, but I feel these albums were super-crucial for my musical development and enjoyment, and I had to say something.
The following 18 albums, sometimes missed or overlooked on retrospective lists, but deserve some mention of worth.
1. Fugazi — The Argument/Furniture Ep
The last simultaneous releases from Fugazi also happen to be their best. Fugazi has been such an important band for the independent music scene, and these two recordings truly display the band’s ability to convey their ethos and message into a powerful musical form. The band’s impressive 15 year span culminates in these two final masterpieces.
2. Animal Collective — Water Curses
It was hard for me to pick between Water Curses or Feels, so I decided to go by my play count in iTunes. I think Water Curses is Animal Collective’s most dynamic, complex, and innovative recording to date. While their current pop direction is great, I do long for their freaky folk days. Additionally, the lyrical quality is much, much better than their latest releases. Street Flash and Cobwebs are standouts. If it wasn’t for Feels, then I would say that this is the best Animal Collective album by far.
3. Q and not U — Different Damage
Dance punk from DC. This album is much more subtle than their previous release, benefiting their sound to a huge extent. The energy is still there, but in a less frantic form. It has direction, velocity, and as a result, more force and power, exemplified in These Are Flashes. Another innovative punk album from our nation’s capital, but this one reigns above the rest.
4. Modest Mouse — Moon and Antarctica
One of my favorite Modest Mouse albums and their last great recording before they lost the air in their tires. Shows what a great band can do when backed by high production values on a major label. Too bad they blew it afterwards. This album, though, continues to blow my mind. Read more »
Editor’s Picks: 30 Best Albums of the Decade
December 24th, 2009 • 1 comment Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Op-Ed, Rock
Tags: Amadou & Mariam, Animal Collective, Bjork, Bon Iver, Brian Wilson, Bruce Springsteen, David Sanford & The Pittsburgh Collective, DJ Danger Mouse, Fleet Foxes, Gregory and the Hawk, Gui Boratto, Jens Lekman, Jonsi and Alex, Lil Wayne, M83, Noah and the Whale, Phoenix, Radiohead, Ryan Adams, seabear, Sigur Ros, Sin Fang Bous, Spoon, Sufjan Stevens, The Arcade Fire, The Hold Steady, The Shins, TV on the Radio, Yeasayer, Yelle
With the impending end of the first decade of the century looming in the distance, all one can do is take a look back at the last 10 years in music and create another list, this one ranking the best 30 albums of the last decade (With a sentence of explanation for each).
1. The Arcade Fire – Funeral
This album made baroque pop cool again, something that seemed unachievable after the Beach Boys fell apart.
2. Ryan Adams – Gold
Gold is alternative country at its very best, chocked full of sublime instrumentation and sentimental lyrics.
3. Bruce Springsteen – We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions
The Boss sings Pete Seeger and brilliance results; there is something fantastic about the combination of Springsteen’s voice and Seeger’s lyrics.
4. Yeasayer – All Hours Cymbals
All Hours Cymbals is an album for the decade lyrically, thematically, and instrumentally.
5. Jonsi and Alex – Riceboy Sleeps
Jonsi and Alex’s post-rock/ambient masterpiece is an album to listen to all the way through (8+ times) to really catch it’s flavor. Read more »
Editor’s Picks: 10 Best Albums of 2009
December 21st, 2009 • Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Op-Ed, Rock, Top Ten
Tags: 2009, Animal Collective, au revoir simone, best albums, Fuck Buttons, Grizzly Bear, Jonsi and Alex, Karen O and the Kids, Noah and the Whale, Phish, Phoenix, The Avett Brothers, Top Ten
Now, just 10 days remain in the decade, and as such, another top ten list is in order. This time, I am looking at what I think are the ten best albums of the past year.
1. Jonsi and Alex – Riceboy Sleeps
This is one of the finest ambient albums ever made. This album is both enigmatic and idiocyncratic; it really grows on the listener such that it may be true that each time one listens to it, Riceboy Sleeps feels like a whole new album. Despite being produced by Sigur Ros lead singer Jón Þór Birgisson and his boyfriend Alex Somers, this album has a unique quality to it that fans of post-rock should hope continues in the future with Jonsi’s upcoming solo release, Go, which is due out early in 2010
2. Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
It’s light and poppy; it’s deep and lyrical; it’s Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. This album is about contradictions and while that might not normally make for a stellar album concept, French rockers Phoenix have really produced a piece on indie-pop gold in this, their fourth full-length studio album.
3. Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
Delightfully weird, as one should come to expect from the Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavillion is a tour-de-force of the dream-pop scene, which is developing in and around Baltimore of all places. Read more »
2009 – The Year in WRBC
December 18th, 2009 • 1 comment Commentary, Maine, News
Tags: 2009, Anamanaguchi, Art-In, Black Taxi, FM Belfast, Friends Academy, Glenn Jones, Matt and Kim, Retrospective, Trivia Night
2009 was an interesting year in the history of WRBC. The saw several key changes and its prominence on campus grow to a significant degree. It was a year marked by a variety of concerts, excellent programing, and a few bumps along the way. The WRBC board and the station at large has worked hard to make 2009 one of the best years in our over 50 year history on FM and hopes to build on that momentum in 2010.
Thus, here is a partial rundown of everything that was accomplished over the past year.
January 15: Winter Semester general meeting, we welcome new members onto the board and completely fill the schedule for the third semester in a row.
January 17: Concert by Black Taxi (With Class of 2010 Co-Presidents and Bates Musicians’ Union)
February 28: Concert by FM Belfast (With Bates Musicians’ Union) Read more »
Editor’s Picks: 10 Best Songs of 2009
December 15th, 2009 • 4 comments Commentary, Electronic, Folk, Hip Hop, Rock, Top Ten
Tags: Karen O and the Kids, Matt and Kim, Mum, Noah and the Whale, Passion Pit, Phoenix, Regina Spektor, The Lonely Island, Top Ten, Weezer, Zee Avi
With just 16 days remaining in 2009, and the music calendar winding down, its time to look back at the year in music as I provide you with my picks for the 10 best songs of the year.
2. “All is Love” (Where the Wild Things Are) Karen O and the Kids
3. “Rome” (Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix) Phoenix
Happy Holidays from WRBC
December 9th, 2009 • Commentary, Maine, Photo Gallery
Tags: 2010, Christmas, Hanukkah, Holidays, Kwanzaa, New Years, The Board, WRBC
Happy Holidays from all of us at WRBC. May the blessings of free-format radio be with you throughout the coming year!
Concert Review: The Miracle on Tremont Street (with Video)
December 5th, 2009 • 1 comment Boston, Concert Review, Electronic, Rock
Tags: Miracle on Tremont Street, Passion Pit, Phoenix, Spoon, WFNX
Usually when you are awakened three hours before the alarm goes off, it’s a sign that you might be having a bad day. However, when I received such a call one morning in October while on a trip in San Francisco, the opposite was true.
The call alerted me to the lineup of the annual Miracle on Tremont Street sponsored by Boston’s WFNX, which featured three of my favorite indie rock acts, in concert order, Passion Pit, Phoenix and Spoon, and the concert was to be held in Boston’s historic Orpheum Theater. Read more »