Collected Show Reviews: 2015
2015-2016 saw me mostly in Los Angeles as far as going to shows was concerned, mostly because my partner needed or wanted to go to work. I was ready to not go smaller indie shows for a while and was more than happy to tag along wherever I was invited. Most of the people I met in Los Angeles, many of whom actually worked full time in the music industry at the major label level, had no idea that I wrote about music, had a label etc. Also, in 2016 my partner started managing Margo Price, and that became a big deal.
Show Review: Empress Of @ Teragram Ballroom LA, CA (3/4/16)
Show Review:
Empress Of
@ Teragram Ballroom LA, CA
I look back at my time directly involved in indie music and I just have to laugh, because if you aren't a pro player in the music business, you only get one shot, and that was it. And now I see how it all really works, how the actual players in the music industry view indie types and I think that if the bands out there struggling knew what waited for them after the once in a lifetime success actually happens, they would probably quit, or redefine their idea of success. The truth of the matter is that unless you are a Rhianna level superstar, being on a reputable indie label is better than throwing in your lot with a major label. The odds against success AFTER a young artist has been signed have skyrocketed. Selling a thousand records in the first week of an album releases can be deemed a success. For a young artist being courted by a major label, the 360 deal is essentially a reality.
Empress Of AKA Lorely Rodriguez has about as much going for her as a young artist can have going for her: She's on an imprint of XL Records(Terrible Records), an indie so successful it might as well be a major label at this point, her debut LP landed a "Best New Music" tag on Pitchfork when it came out late last year, she can really sing, she does her own programming and she isn't batshit crazy like Grimes, who is the closest point of reference. At the show I was told that she does her own production, that's impressive.
On stage, she lived up to the hype. Like I said, she really can sing, and the beats evoke the blissful "electronica" era of The Chemical Brothers and Bjork, back when she was fun and wrote hits. Several of her songs seemed to directly reference the Chemical Brothers, probably because she is using something like the same palette of sounds and beats they drew from. Aside from her exquisite vocals she has a stage presence that manages to be both charmingly shy and energetic at the same time. She has dance moves. She has a two person backing band that livens up the programmed tracks with timely percussion. In short, she's got everything except a huge audience, but I'm sure that is in the works. Now I'm going to track back and listen to the recently released record, and pay attention to what happens with the next record, because it could be huge, it could be amazing, it could be both, or it could be neither.
Show Review: Margo Price and the Price Tags (3/24/16)
Show Review:
Margo Price and the Price Tags and the Outlaw Country Revival
Hotel Cafe, Los Angeles, CA.
I was sitting in a San Diego court house, waiting for a case to be called, when I saw this Rolling Stone article announcing her debut LP, Midwest Farmer's Daughter. It was September 18th of last year. Immediately I thought of my significant other, who has been into country music in a completely non-ironic way since the beginning of our relationship 2 plues years ago. Including, trips to Nashville, religiously watching the ABC television show, Nashville and going to the Stagecoach festival after Coachella two years in a row. So I saw that the record was coming out on Third Man Records, owned by Jack White, who is also a client of her boss.
And almost immediately I Facebook messaged her and asked, "What are you even doing if you aren't managing this artist?" Not something I'd ever done before, but I felt it was warranted, if only because the record was being released on a label owned by another client of her own firm. Also, there was the fact that it was the perfect time to jump on board with a new artist, because someone else (Third Man Records) had already made the call. So of course she got the job, so to speak, and for the last six months I've watched the run-up to tomorrow's release date for Midwest Farmers Daughter.
Let me tell you, it has been a privilege to watch both Third Man Records, and my girlfriend's management company work their magic. I was emotionally invested in the outcome. Seeing her perform last night, for the first time, at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood, I experienced a deep sense of satisfaction in everything that had come to pass for Margo Price in the last six months, and a great sense of excitement about that which was to come.
Margo Price is an appealing artist on a number levels, primarily as an artist who can "write 'em and sing 'em" as another critic said. Considering that Midwest Farmer's Daughter is self-recorded and produced, at Sun Studios, places her squarely on the "indie" level of Dirty Beaches, Dum Dum Girls, Crocodiles, Best Coast, Wavves or any of the bands that I've written about here over the last several years. Before Third Man Records picked up Midwest Farmer's Daughter, Margo Price was essentially a local music scenester. She had had brushes with artists who had emerged (Sturgill Simpson), but had failed to attract any interest from artist development professionals in Nashville. I think it is fair to observe that she had been overlooked and dismissed by the Country Music establishment in Nashville.
And yet, despite the 100% DIY origins of Midwest Farmer's Daughter, the end product and accompanying live show defy any attempt to limit Margo Price as an "indie" artist. Both her voice and song writing are fully mature. Perhaps the song writing has not reached its full potential (this is a debut LP) but the voice I heard last night is ready to go now. Like Top 40, Country Music Awards, Coachella, Stagecoach Festival ready to go right now. So is the stage show. Her backing bacd, The Price Tags, perform like seasoned touring veterans and have exactly zero of the problems with professionalism that are often associated with young break-out artists on there first twirl of the music industry merry-go-round.
What I saw last night is an artist squarely within the Outlaw Country tradition in the best possible way, who is being managed by music industry insiders and being released by an artist owned independent label. In other words, she is poised for the kind of breakout success that only comes around every few years. I know that even before the record comes out, because I know what kind of offers she is getting for the live show (she's on Conan tonight if you are interested) and those offers mean that this record will get active promotion at least through the middle of next year. She will get the chance to play the UK and Europe, if not Australia, within the touring cycle. She will get a second a LP that is well financed.
It's not clear if she will sell records. Fingers crossed on that one, but I'd have to say just based on where she is in terms of social media demographics- 5000 Facebook friends- huge sales may be unrealistic. But the upwards trajectory is firmly in place even before the release of the record, and low record sales, will, if anything, simply make what is yet to come look even more in comparison. For better or worse, record sales are only a piece of the pie. In fact, their most important role for young artist these days is simply being good enough to attract continued investment and attention from the stake holders in their careers, the labels, managers, publishers, etc.
More than anyone besides Margo Price, Third Man Records deserves credit for taking up a 100% local Nashville artist, and one who had essentially been denied by the powers that be, and securing her the attention she would have only gotten by virtue of being released by Third Man Records. To take a chance on Margo Price defies the music industry "wisdom" that artists who stay within a local scene for too long a time are not worth investing in.
I know this to be true because I myself wrestle with that very attitude, which to say, that I have totally succumbed to it in my own home markets of San Diego and Los Angeles. Now if a band stays local for any length of time I take it as a sign that they are not worth paying attention to. Sad, but true in my case, and obviously true for those who are firmly ensconced within the music industry. Third Man has turned that wisdom on it's head, and they fully deserve to share in Margo's triumph. The pairing is an example of what can go right between and artist and a label.
In conclusion, I found Margo Price and the Price Tags show to be deeply satisfying. She is fantastic life, and when she gets out there on the road you are going to want to see her songs performed live. She is in capable hands on all professional levels, and you can be sure that if you are wondering if your time investment in getting to know Margo Price as an artist will be repaid, the answer is yes, with interest.
Show Review: Coachella 2016 (4/18/16)
 |
| Chris Stapleton was the most revelatory performance at Coachella in 2016 |
Coachella Arts & Music Festival 2016, weekend one
Bands Reviewed: The Kills, Underworld, Run the Jewels, Pete Yorn, Autolux, Chris Stapleton
There are at least five different Coachella festivals in 2016: There is the general population non campers festival, the general population campers festival, the VIP festival, the Artists festival and the secret celebrity festival centered on the special celebrity RV lot. At this point, I would be hard pressed to make a case for attending minus an Artist level wrist band. At no point did I spend more than five minutes outside in general population, in a thwarted attempt to see James Murphy's Despacio sound system.
For me the most interesting interaction is between the Artist level wristband and the special VIP/celebrity RV lot. There is a path between the RV lot and the artist village that you essentially have to walk on, unless you are so high up that you get driven from point to point. The most rarified real estate of all is the headliner only artist area behind the main stage of Coachella. Even the highest level of general wristband is not sufficient to get you in there, you need the artist specific wrist band that grants you access to that area. There is also a special wrist band for people who are affiliated with the Polo Club, I saw that wrist band on the wrist of a co-worker of my date/reason I was there.
The most important thing to understand about Coachella from a business perspective is that it sells out instantly, long before any artists have been announced. In a practical sense, it mean that Goldenvoice/AEG can book whomever the fuck the want to book. This is most notable amongst the bands/artists chosen at the bottom of the bill.
Just to take a random "classic" Coachella bottom of the line-up snapshot, let's look at 2007. In 2007, the bottom of the bill included, Amy Winehouse and David Guetta (Friday), Girl Talk, Pharoe Monch, Justice, the Fratellis, Andrew Bird, Ratatat, the Avett Brothers, Grizzly Bear and the Coup. Those are all absolute bottom of the bill artists! In 2007, I actually watched many of those artists. In 2016, the bottom of the bill artists are unrecognizable.
FRIDAY
The Kills; This a band that I have now seen three of four times because they are managed by the company of my significant other. I was indifferent at first, but I've grown to appreciate the onstage gyrations of front woman Alison Mossheart. I'm still not entirely clear why The Kills played this year, but they are always a solid late afternoon/early evening booking, and the crowd was into it. This was at the outdoor stage.
Underworld: I was super excited about seeing Underworld play, maybe for the first time? They had their full line up, and raced through a collection of old hits and material from the new record. They closed with Born Slippy. It was a commanding performance, the light show was excellent and the the crowd was enthusiastic. They got a much better reception than Pet Shop Boys, occupying a similar slot in the festival a couple years ago.
SATURDAY
Run the Jewels: Run the Jewels performed an explosive late afternoon set on the main stage. They were a highlight of the festival. Unlike many rap artists, including former main-stage headliners, they do not suck live. They managed to ignite the (relatively modest) main-stage crowd with a mixture of adept rapping, up-to-date backing music and a special guest appearance from DJ Shadow. Red Run the Jewels bandannas had been widely distributed throughout the crowd, making the set something like a celebration of all things "Blood." Bernie Sanders introduced the group, Killer Mike seemed incredibly proud about that. The Run the Jewels performance was undeniably powerful, and I would recommend them to another festival goer if they were playing some other festival.
SUNDAY
Pete Yorn: Pete Yorn played Sunday afternoon in the Gobi tent. Yorn is an LA area musical stalwart, and part of the "Yorn Brother" who also include Rick Yorn, the super-agent and Kevin Yorn, attorney. I had it in my mind that York played folky style indie, but the set was actually filled with up-tempo radio friendly rock numbers. It made me think that he is really only one hit away from securing really top level status in terms of sales and live shows. But he isn't there yet, and I think it a very legitimate question to ask when the hit will come.
Autolux: Autolux followed Pete York on Sunday afternoon. Autolux also has a sound (heavy 90s style alt rock with electronic flourishes) that is out of step with the prevailing EDM/hip hop heavy taste of current Coachella-goers. That's a shame. It's almost like the Sahara tent has taken over the entire festival at this point. Autolux played an excellent set, anchored by the incredible drumming of Carla Azar. Azar, who was short listed for the Seth Myers band, drummed for Jack White when he had two bands at the same time and acted in the Michael Fassbender starring film, Frank, is certainly one of the top drummers working today. It's a pleasure to watch her work. The new Autolux songs are really good, it just seems they are playing a style of music which isn't particularly fashionable. They reminded me of the band Jawbox. Their new record, Pussy's Dead, is really good, too.
Chris Stapleton: Chris Stapleton was the highlight of the festival for me. He is another in the very short list of artists who have played both Coachella and Stagecoach. It makes sense that there would be some, because both festivals are thrown by the same entity in the same location, back to back to back. So far, that list of artists includes Sturgill Simpson, Trampled by Turtles and Willie Nelson. Chris Stapleton is the fourth. That is a short list, but I think it's a list that will grow longer as a consequence of the decimation of the process for a&ring rock bands.
If you are looking at the 2016 Coachella Arts & Music Festival and asking, who are the hot young rock bands on the bill, you may be stymied. Friday had Savages, who are still far from the pop charts, but two LPs into an incredibly well received career. Health are industry veterans at this point, Haelos are the only band playing Friday who even remotely fit that category. Saturday and Sunday are no better. Gary Clark Jr. might fit into that category, but if he's rock he's not "modern" rock, Churches, Courtney Barnett, Unknown Mortal Orchestra are already established. Same for Deerhunter and the Arcs. Sunday you've got Girlpool and Joywave.
I'm not saying that Chris Stapleton is up and coming, just that he fills a vacant niche at Coachella of "rock music" even though he is marketed as a country singer. It's not a secret that rock and country have a common heritage in the blues. In Chris Stapleton's masterful Coachella set, he walked back and forth across the line of blues, rock and country, aided by the voice of his wife. He had a simple set up of drums, bass and guitar and stood on the stage and sung while he played the guitar, but it was all he needed to wow the audience, which was clearly starved for the kind of sing-a-long country-rock vocals that are in short supply at Coachella 2016.
Stapleton clearly scratched an itch of the paying audience, and I assume this means more country cross-over artists at next year's version of the festival.
Show Review: Margo Price @ The Grammy Museum (8/2/16)
Show Review: Margo Price
@ The Grammy Museum
I go back with The Grammy Museum- my current girlfriend- Margo's manager (at Monotone Management)- and I went to The Grammy Museum on our second date. That was in September of 2013. Here we are, close to three years later, and I'm back. Margo Price was playing the Grammy Museum of part of her well managed campaign to obtain a Grammy nomination this year. I've learned quite a lot about the process of being nominated for a Grammy. Basically, you hire a fixer to run your campaign- someone who has worked either directly at "The Academy" or has a long-term relationship as an outside contractor.
You hire your fixer, then you need to jump through some hoops, which basically involve making yourself available for shows in the LA area, which are typically benefits for the Grammy MusicCares charity. Basically, MusicCares is the front door to getting your artistic foot in the Grammy door. The show last night was a combination interview followed by a brief set with a three piece: piano, guitar and Margo playing acoustic guitar. She was interviewed by Scott Goldman, who is a big deal with the MusicCares charity.
The conversation was enlightening, I'd heard some of her material before, just based on reading all the interviews, but last night she shared additional details about the tough times and the more recent good times, including the curious concept of a manager who is paid a monthly retainer by the band. After the four song set, she signed autographs in the gift shop for, like, an hour. The crowd was a mix of fans and industry types. There certainly is much to learn about the real music industry. Despite all the complaining about the devastation wrought on physical music sales by technology, there is still plenty of money to be made in the creation and distribution of music.
Andddd... one thing I've learned in the whole Margo Price come up is that really establishing yourself as a force as an artist, indie or major, requires cash money and people on the ground. Incredible opportunities, for example, late night television, don't pay. Someone has to get you there and pay for everything. Getting on the radio means interacting with the top office for each particularl chain of stations, of which there are very few. That means you need a person who can get you inside and show you around. We're talking, very legitimately, at 200, 300 thousand dollars and that is for someone who has a real organic success at the beginning. I can't even imagine what it's like for manufactured pop stars- but I'd imagine millions of dollars.
Show Review: Americana Music Festival & Conference 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee (9/25/16)
 |
| The Octagon, a civil war type memorial |
Show Review: Americana Music Festival & Conference 2016
in Nashville, Tennessee
It was back in 2014 when I began to fuck with country music, and by extension, Nashville. Among my formative experiences in that area was a May, 2014 trip to Nashville as a tourist. I stayed in east Nashville, ate at some quality restaurants, went to Robert's Western World, visited the Country Music Hall of Fame. I was impressed by the combination of surface and depth in the music industry there. You didn't just have the hipsters of East Nashville, you had the publishers on publisher's row. You didn't just have the touristy bars of the Broadway strip, you had the measured tones of quality museum speak in the Country Music Hall of Fame. The Ryman Auditorium, historic home of the Grand Ole Opry, is a perfect example of the strengths of Nashville. Although it no longer hosts the Grand Ole Opry, it has remained as a tour-able site during the day and a classic venue, host to all types of bands and genres, in the evening.
 |
| exhibit from Octagon Hall in Kentucky |
In 2014, I went on the tour. Last week, I returned to the Ryman Auditorium to watch the Americana Honors and Awards Show. The Americana Honors and Awards Show is the highlight of the larger Americana Music Festival & Conference, which started in 2000. The Americana Music Festival & Conference is impressive, and although I've never actually attended SXSW, I nodded sagely in agreement when others called it a "low energy south by southwest." Sounded apt to me. I was there last week because of Margo Price. I'm not professionally involved, but my girlfriend manages her (she is an employee of Monotone Music, owned by Ian Montone.) The rumor was that Price was in line to win the 2016 Americana Honors and Awards Show award for Breakthrough Artist.
 |
| Margo Price playing Joey by Concrete Blonde with Shovel and Rope |
I don't fetishize awards, heaven knows, but the rise of Margo Price is an incredible story for anyone with an interest in independent music, irrespective of genre. Margo Price labored for years in a way familiar to musicians in fifty local music scenes across the country, She worked odd jobs, went through a succession of "managers," did shitty van tours where she played for bar staff. She also got married and had a kid, which is well beyond the experience of any local musician types I've met. The ones I know just give up when they have a kid.
 |
| Bonnie Raitt at the Ryman Auditorium during the 2016 Americana Honors and Awards |
Margo Price did win the 2016 award for Breakthrough Artist at the Americana Honors and Awards Show, so that was an obvious highlight. It was a parade of highlights, truth be told. Performers included up and comers like Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, the Milk Carton Kids and John Moreland and lifetime honorees like Billie Bragg, Bonnie Raitt and Emmylou Harris. Jason Isbell showed up to play a song and collect two awards. Chris Stapleton walked in at the last minute to pick up his award for artist of the year. George Strait and Bob Weir showed up because they wanted to and had a project to promote.
 |
| Behind the scenes at Third Man Records |
The rest of the week was a blur of free drinks and corporate events. The major focus was a collaboration between Third Man Records and the Luck Reunion folks from Texas. They rented out a house, complete with bar b que and cocktails, and had Margo Price and Shovel & Rope (and other artists on different days) compose a song together and then play it for the people who were hanging out at the house. Then, on Saturday Night, they took over the concert hall at the Nashville Palace where both acts played live and did their collaborations. Ironically, the most memorable song I heard this week was the Concrete Blonde cover of Joey cooked up as the b-side to the song they performed together.
The temperature all week was in excess of 90 degrees. It severely limited by day time activity, and forced me to abandon an earlier plan of aggressively walking the city. I was again impressed by Nashville. I highly recommend a visit.
 |
| Margo Price sound checks before her Troubadour show |
Show Review:
Margo Price and the Price Tags @ The Troubadour
Hollywood, CA.
I like to consider this blog a single narrative. 2006-2008: Early beginnings, local music scene, show promotion, cat dirt records. 2009-2015: Zoo Music, Dirty Beaches, Crocodiles, Dum Dum Girls, national indie music scene 2016: Margo Price, national music scene. Margo Price is about a year into the three year virtuous circle of a new artist with a hit record. Her current album sales are in excess of 30 thousand. The recent appearance on the Anthony Bourdain show on CNN led to a 200 percent increase in album sales, following similar bounces from appearances on Saturday Night Live and CBS This Morning. Since the release of her record, Margo Price has signed a publishing admin deal, she has touring package offers on the table, and she's already booked significant festival gigs for 2017. Her reception certainly exceeds anything I've witnessed on the Indie side in the period between 2006 and 2015.
I remember, for example, reviewing the sales figures from the Dirty Beaches double LP, an album which received a Best New Music from Pitchfork and benefited from perfect PR and physical distribution across three continents and thinking, "Damn, this is it." As in, "this record did amazing and it's still barely worth while from a financial perspective." It wasn't break even but it was small enough to make me wonder- this is in 2014- whether the whole idea of making things work at an indie level is an inherently unsustainable project.
It's like, when you start a creative project the question is, "Let's say it succeeds beyond your wildest dream...how big is that?" With Dirty Beaches and the other projects I've witnessed first hand, the answer was, "Not big enough." That is no reflection on the artistic merit of the specific projects, just a statement that financially speaking, getting involved isn't "worth it." One of the thing I picked up over the last couple years is that there are certain parts of the music business where success really does mean success. Pop music of course. Hip Hop. And Country.
And it's gratifying to see it all play out in real time, for such a deserving artist. I spent last night watching the show with Margo's mom in the balcony. Midwest Farmers Daughter is as much about her as it is Margo, and I can testify that everything on that album- every single line- is true. It's interesting to see the impact of sudden success on people. One thing I've learned is that solves zero problems. Like, if one day, you are broke and addicted to drugs, and then the next day you win 10 million dollars, it doesn't wipe out all the experiences that led you to where you were before the 10 million dollars.
With Margo Price, she really struggled in a way that I know is very familiar to anyone who has participated in the local music scene in any number of cities. And her mom struggled too, which is something we talked about as we sat there, watching William Tyler, the opening act, play an excellent set of solo, acoustic guitar, heavily weighted towards songs from his new record, Modern Country. My point is that success doesn't wipe away those years of struggle. And in my experience- this has nothing to do with Margo- people are just as likely to look back nostalgically at the pre-success "good ole days" as they are to revel in the moment.
I can honestly say though, that I'm glad I wasn't there for the struggle. Having witnessed the struggle in San Diego first hand during my years of involvement in the local music scene, I don't see it as something to be treasured. Much better to jump on the train the moment before it leaves the station. Being there in the beginning only means you are far more likely to be left behind at the end.
Instagram
No comments:
Post a Comment