The Arcs performed as part of NPR Music’s First Listen Live series

Expectations were high.  Heck, Rolling Stone Magazine’s David Fricke was behind me in line, NPR was taping the show, and All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen was snapping pictures next to me once Dan Auerbach and company took the stage.

Fans entered the door to receive two free drink tickets courtesy of Housing Works and Miller Lite.  I had one alcoholic water, then switched to iced coffee.  

The Black Keys’ singer/guitarist Dan Auerbach and his new band, The Arcs, performed at Housing Works Bookstore Café in New York City last Wednesday night (September 9, 2015).  The Arcs consist of longtime collaborators – Richard Swift and Leon Michels – as well as Homer Steinweiss, Nick Movshon, Kenny Vaughan and the women of Mariachi Flor De Toloache.

In recent years, The Black Keys have sold out venues as large as Madison Square Garden.  To see Auerbach in such a small venue these days was quite the treat.  Housing Works, staffed by almost all volunteers, is a nonprofit bookstore, cafe, and event space that donates all its proceeds to their mission of fighting AIDS and homelessness.  The Black Keys held their release of Brothers there back in 2010. 

I’ve never seen The Black Keys so close up.  Maybe I missed this, but on Wednesday night Auerbach seemed to have quite the swagger.  He made his own excitement about his new band obvious to the audience, often finishing songs with a smirk, closed eyes, and breathes through the nose – like a sigh of relief and sign of things to come.

In an interview with Terry Gross on NPR’s All Things Considered, Auerbach said, “I feel something's happening...it’s very exciting.”  Towards the end of the concert, he even said they’re going to play two songs next, a cover and one from the next album – with a "yeah" at the end – like that's how good we are and, no, this isn't just a side project. 

Auerbach told Rolling Stone, "We have 75 songs. We had to keep telling ourselves to stop writing new songs so we could finish old ones."

Now, I might just be losing my hearing from blasting music and wearing those damn earbuds – but there's just something about live music – there's more punch to each instrument (although when drinking Miller Lite, there’s more punch to everything), and this brought The Arcs' debut album, Yours, Dreamily, to life. 

The public’s first introduction to The Arcs was the first single Outta My Mind, which could have fit well on the last two Keys’ albums El Camino and Turn Blue. 

Auerbach’s songs have become more chorus-y since the Keys’ first four albums.  He has been playing a lot with his falsetto, which makes fans nostalgic for the rugged voice from Rubber Factory, possibly the Keys’ best album.  However, without experimentation, Brothers, the Keys’ most fully realized album, may not have been created.  On that album we first got to hear Auerbach play with his voice.

With The Arcs, Auerbach is experimenting with more than his voice.  Mariachi Flor De Toloache, a mariachi band made up of three women, opened the show.  Auerbach had invited them into the studio for one song, yet they blew him away and became an official part of the band.  When The Arcs took the stage, they opened with the Otis Redding-like Stay in My Corner.  This is an example where experimentation pays off – you’ll wake up singing the refrain: “Stay in my corner, babe / I will fight for you if you fight for me too.”

The most experimental songs were Everything You Do (You Do For You) and Come & Go.  The former was referred to by Gross as a “creepy carnival.”  I can’t help but think both songs were influenced by Auerbach’s appreciation for Dr. John, and his experience working as the producer of John’s latest album Locked Down – referred to by NPR as “swamp grooves,” which captures the vibe of these two Arcs’ songs.

The Arcs stand as a platform for Auerbach to experiment and implement other music influences – other than the blues singers like Junior Kimbrough that influenced The Black Keys. 

The only disappointment of the night was that The Arcs didn’t play my favorite of theirs, Searching the Blue.  However, the highlight of the night, which I touched on before, was how excited Auerbach was about his new band.  In Searching the Blue, Auerbach sings, “Is anything we do ever going to last?”  And I think what will last is Auerbach’s curiosity to keep searching, and his fans’ anticipation of what he creates next.

The Arcs play again in New York City at The Bowery Ballroom on Saturday, September 26^th.  Courtesy of Studio 7 at 101WKQ, check out a cool interview and session of stripped down versions of the band’s songs below:

Benjamin Booker - self-tiled debut (review)

All music journalists like to claim to find "the next big thing", but 25 year-old Benjamin Booker might be IT. Although, he is already opening for Jack White even before his debut album hits stores this coming Tuesday, August 19^th - so I hardly discovered him. His self-titled debut was produced by Andrija Tokic, producer of Hurray for the Riff Raff, and another former White opener, The Alabama Shakes. The album opener and single Violent Shiver grabs you with an immediate riff, making you think of Chuck Berry. Booker describes his music as “punk blues.” Throughout the album you certainly hear that attitude and vibe of punk and blues (maybe some Strokes, Black Keys type instrumentation & old school rocknroll)...but it is THAT voice that hooks you in and makes you press play again and again. It's hard to believe Booker's 25, the voice so raspy you think he's spent a lifetime yelling, making his voice hoarse.

The album is an uptempo and loud affair, but Booker pulls you in further in the softer and intimate fourth track, Slow Coming. The song makes you believe there is a maturity in Booker's talent that is beyond just his weathered voice. He sings, “At the top of the hour...little girl is shot down...honestly, how can I be bothered now?”

Booker is a songwriter, which is also exemplified in one of the best and most rocking tracks, Have You Seen My Son? He sings, “Told me that the world is full of sins / and placed a bible at my feet...I say God must love everyone / even the ones the church loves the least...and when a mother loves a child / she'll do almost anything.” At the end, this song takes a turn, first sounding like a march and then exploding into a Rage Against the Machine/Black Keys type riff. See Booker performing this song on Conan below: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ICedPGvUqk  

The elephant in the room, which might be part of the attraction to his music, is that Booker is one of few African Americans playing rocknroll these days (correct me if I'm wrong and send me some suggestions). Born in Tampa, Booker is based out of New Orleans. When talking to NPR about his influences, he cited gospel, punk, and old rhythm and blues musicians such as Muddy Waters and others that took their sound from the south to Chicago. The influence of those guys will never be replicated, but hopefully Booker will inspire other young people to pick up a guitar and write sincere songs like he does.

Jake Bugg - Shangri La

Last night I had listened to most of Jake Bugg's second album Shangri La.  More than pleased with what I heard, I went from one song to the next without much pause, except for a glass of water and a couple stretches.  But then, I got caught in the moment of track ten, Pine Trees.  Up to this point, Bugg presented similarities to his self-titled first album, and, in a good way, this song wasn't much different (more on this song later).  I began to think, "What can't this nineteen year-old do?"  

There's element of folk, rocknroll, country, and punk.  All the songs included his creative lyrical phrasing, with a little more confidence, or maybe cockiness - a troubadour who knows what he wants out of his music.  When hearing Bugg interviewed, there's a maturity there, too - a nineteen year-old who knows what he wants out of life.  There was an addition of Bugg giving us a taste of his electric guitar ability (Slumville Sunrise, What Doesn't Kill You, Kingpin), which I was lucky to see live earlier this year at The Iridium in New York City (thanks to concertblogger.com).  As I sensed then, and continued to after having listened to most of Bugg's second album, there is more to be seen - his talent very evident, yet still revealing itself.  Up to this point, there was no question Bugg had already shattered any doubt of the second album flop and the idea that he was posturing as a wanna-be Dylan.

Track ten, Pine Trees, made me stop and want to write this.  Writing music reviews is nauseating, unless it's for music worth having a conversation about.  There are many reasons to listen to music and to make music.  On this track, Bugg conveys this, as well as the power of a voice and how it can carry a song.  It is a soft song with simplistic guitar strumming.  Bugg's voice is the lead instrument and is the part of his music that will leave people talking, or shaking their heads as they did leaving The Iridium, not believing he's nineteen.  The song Simple As This, from his first album, had a similar affect on me.  There was resonance of Buddy Holly, but more importantly, made me, the listener, think - about the past and where I was heading.  

Bugg couldn't have known where he was heading a few years ago, still writing songs in his childhood bedroom in Nottingham, England.  When his first album came out, he had never left England before the album's release, which landed number one on the UK charts.  Since, Bugg has toured the world, went from the smallest stage at the Glastonbury Festival to being one of the main acts, and on November 19th he'll release his second album, Shangri La, which was produced by Rick Rubin.  The album title is the name of Rubin's Malibu studio.

About a year after Bugg's first album release, there are moments on the second album where his voice is recognizably deeper.  I was sold on Bugg after the first album, but maybe the more mature voice will make cynics take him more seriously.  The voice is his staple, and this second album proves Bugg will be a staple in the music business for many years to come.  I hope he keeps creating because for cynics that say there's no music worth listening to "these days", well, he's a reason to listen.

I could use the last paragraph as the other highlights section.  But, Shangri La is a consistent album all the way through and is possibly more cohesive than Bugg's debut.  In addition to Pine Trees, today my favorites are:  

Track 1, There's A Beast and We All Feed It.  Rockabilly-esque lyric reciting with an uptempo country instrumentation.

Track 4, Me and You.  Bugg sings, "All the time / People follow us where we go / We both should believe in the path that we chose."  I heard this first live and the audience was frozen, watching Bugg's conviction in his craft.  The song ended and a friend remarked, "That's a keeper."           

Track 12, Storm Passes Away.  Bugg often ends shows playing Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues.  The influence is heard on this album's closer by how Bugg finishes lines.  

Bugg ends Shangri La and leaves the listener wanting more.  Again, his talent is still revealing itself, yet Bugg is positioning himself as the soon-to-be influence.  I finished the album and pressed play again.  I'm sensing there will be another day when the other tracks are the go-to songs.  In all, Bugg's second album, like all great music, provides an escape - Shangri La.

Below is Bugg performing Pine Trees live & the crowd joins along:  

Anna may she on!

Jake Bugg - 2012's best new find

Jake Bugg is eighteen.  His debut album recently came out and debuted at number one in the UK.  Do not get it twisted.  This is not the equivalent to Justin Bieber being number one in The States.  Due to the sound of his music, voice and lyrical phrasing, comparisons to Bob Dylan have been inevitable.  However, he's not as familiar or obsessed with Dylan as one might think - "I know his first album and the famous tracks, like Subterranean Homesick Blues, but not much" (www.musicblogs.co.uk)

You will also hear elements of the Arctic Monkeys, fellow Dylan-soundalike Pete Molinari, and Buddy Holly.  Bugg has heard acclaim from an idol of his, Noel Gallagher, and has toured with the ex-Oasis frontman.  He's got his influences and soundalikes and that troubadour cadence, yet Jake Bugg conveys authenticity and is quite a songwriter for a late-teen...or any age.

Chances, people tell you not to take chances / And they tell you that there aren't any answers / And I was starting to agree / But I woke suddenly / In the path of a lightning bolt / Fortune, people talking all about fortune / Do you make it or does it just call you / In the blinking of an eye / Just another passer-by in the path of a lightning bolt (track one, Lightning Bolt).

Bugg denied the request by his classmates to go on Britain's Got Talent - "I would never have done that because it doesn't seem genuine, it doesn't seem natural" (The Observer).  It appears his ambitions lie for more than fifteen minutes.  His debut album suggests he will be a name atop the charts and in music-snob conversations across the globe for years to come.  Check out the video for Lightning below:

On Monday, January 14, 2013, Bugg will perform live at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City.  Solo-folk-blues woman Valerie June will be his opening act. 

Philosophy Class...or is it?...

All of you are correct by assuming I am a great debater.  What does it take to be a great debater?  Thanks for asking.  It takes being a philosopher.

I teach a philosophy class at Columbia University and debates often spark.  Other than the whispered debate amongst students about - how the hell did this weak black woman (referring to me) get to teach this course, this class dives into - the mysteries of life.  For example, let’s reenact one of our greatest debates.  As always, I played the moderator...or did I?


ME:  Ok, welcome to today’s class.  Let’s jump right into our debate.  I hope both sides are prepared.  Today is the day that all those years of preparing to be prepared pays off.

We’ll start with each side's opening argument and see where it takes us...I hope all of you stretched your hamstrings.  Let's start off with this side.

(point to left side and ask):  

What is your side's opening argument?

Left side:  Life sucks.

(Repeat while shifting eyes toward right side):

Life sucks…ok, and can we have your side's opening argument?

Right side:  But it gets better.

Me:  Ah, but it gets better.

(pause and act interested; then point to each side and repeat arguments)

Life sucks…but it gets better…

Ok, I’d like each side to repeat their opening arguments so we can really emphasize where each side truly stands.

(have each side repeat arguments; then say):

That’s interesting…life sucks…but it gets better.

(then have right side go first, asking):

Is there anything you’d like to add.

Right side:  Life gets better.

Me:  Ah, life gets better...Would the other side like to counter?

Left side:  But it sucks.


Me:  I have heard both sides and they are each compelling arguments.  Once again, we had:

Life sucks, countered by - but it gets better...

And then we had:

Life gets better, countered by - but it sucks...

Very interesting...I have come to the conclusion that life doesn't necessarily suck - but it's not getting better either...

...life just is...or is it?

Health Insurance for the soul...

Politicians lie.  We will see if Barry Obama lied to me about health insurance and helping me out with that bladder problem.  But, all politicians do lie.  And they should…because it seems to work.  They should run for office based on the greatest lie of all time - by telling kids they can grow up to be anything they want to be.  Like Barry Obama is in the position to tell anyone this.  Parents and teachers tell children this and the outcome is that none of them become what they want to become...

...maybe the opposite might work.  Tell kids they won't become anything and they will revolt like the 60s and become everything they want to be…because that’s what happened in the 60s.  That revolution really worked out for everybody.                           (peace sign)

Now, personally, I've been telling myself I won't become what I want my whole life.  Looking in that mirror I say, “Garrett you will become nothing.”  So far so good because I'm thirty - so my life is half over and I'm the farthest I can be from what I'd like to be...what I dream to be...I'll tell you what that is shortly.

So, like Barry Obama said – hope – it’s still alive...as long as everyone continues to bet with me...bet with me - by lying to me that I can become everything I want.  Because I know they lying...telling me I can become anything is a lie...at least coming from people like politicians and my family and friends...and the thing is, politicians know they lying, too...so, what they must truly believe is the truth – is that I will be like everyone else - by not becoming what I want...and so the “real” truth must be the opposite of what politicians truly believe.  Therefore, the real truth must be the politician’s lie…in this case…and so, the only way to interpret this is – is that I can become anything and everything I want to become.  It's like reality Halloween, everyday...and you may not think this is coming from someone with much soul...but one day I will become what I want and stand before you – as a strong black woman.  And not even a politician can lie and tell the masses that they ain't got soul...

...And that's what's up, Brooklyn!