Inside Amplified

Arizona Law Prompts Musician Strike

Christina Caron — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 15:21:48 -0400

ABC News on Campus reporter Melanie Torre blogs:

Hundreds of musicians are joining together in boycotting concerts held in Arizona as a response to controversial immigration law SB 1070. In May, 20 artists united to take a stand. Now, that number has grown to nearly 400.

The movement, known as The Sound Strike, is gaining momentum from coast to coast. Big names like Kanye West, M.I.A, and Maroon Five have joined the strike and canceled their shows in Arizona.

Austin, Texas – known as the 'Live Music Capital of the World' – is providing some of the momentum. Austin one-man band Big Red Marbles, created by singer and songwriter Andrew Boze, joined the petition and is trying to spread the word in the Lone Star State. Boze said his decision to support The Sound Strike’s mission -- to get Arizona to repeal the immigration law -- was easy. “Human rights has always been important to me and it was something I immediately jumped on,” Boze said.

Boze said he thinks musicians can play important roles in social change — alluding to the counterculture of the 1960s. “I’ve never met anyone in my life that didn’t like music and so I feel like whether it’s folk music or blues or metal or anything, you can strike a chord with someone,” he said. “Musicians can be watchdogs for things and say, ‘something’s gone awry here and something needs to be done about it.’”

However, some say The Sound strike isn’t fair to Arizona’s music fans.

“What do these bands want us to do? Complain to the government? Well, we are complaining,” said Arizona State University senior Kendall Hill. “This law is something a lot of people in Arizona don’t like. I don’t know why [the bands] are punishing us.”

Hill said she’s a Maroon Five fan and is disappointed they won’t be playing shows in Arizona because of SB 1070. She’s been to many of their shows in the past, including one in Tempe that she attended with her entire sorority.

She also said The Sound Strike hurts individual towns in Arizona by taking away valuable revenue made from tourists traveling to see the bands. And she’s right. The Arizona Daily Star reports music venues in Tucson are suffering six-figure losses as a result of The Sound Strike.

Boze said he wants fans to write their congressmen if they want to see The Sound Strike stop. Until then, he said he thinks support for the strike will continue growing and may eventually affect other states who pass similar laws. “I do see the Sound Strike getting huge and then you get to the point where no one’s playing any more. I see that it could get to that magnitude for sure,” he said.

Earlier this month the Associated Press reported 11 states joined to file a legal brief in support of SB 1070: Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Virginia. As of now, The Sound Strike does not plan to expand the boycott beyond Arizona.

All Tomorrow's Parties '10: Dirty Dancing and Rocking Out

David Wharton — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 15:03:07 -0400

PHOTOS: Abbey Braden

Music festivals have a history of legendary bands playing iconic sets, but rarely is there a festival where the venue is so much a part of the ritual that it becomes its own character in the experience (Editor's note: check out Amplified's piece on last years festival here.) But that’s what happened this weekend at Kutshers where nearly 2500 music nerds converged (Sept 3-5) for the third annual All Tomorrow's Parties festival. Kutshers is a country club located about 90 minutes away from Manhattan, the inspiration for the movie Dirty Dancing and the last of the old school borscht belt grand resorts.

This year indie film maker Jim Jarmusch guest curated the festival which featured rock legends like Sonic Youth, Iggy Pop and newcomers like “sad song” aficionados -- Girls. You can’t help but look around at that original 1970s silver houndstooth wallpaper and imagine what happened in the Stardust Ballroom before Sonic Youth was ever there. In the back of the resort, Kutshers has a “lake” or one might call it a “bog”; where concert goers in plaid shirts, tight jeans and black thick rimmed glasses converge in between sets and are encouraged to take out paddle boats for a row.

You might think that the neon t-shirts and those crazy colored leggings clash with the lily pad filled bog, but it works. Also how many music festivals have a book club? This one does. The other very special thing about this venue is that there is actual no backstage. Bands hang out to check out each others sets. Thurston Moore and Kim Gordan mingle with everyone in the hallway and leathery Iggy leans on the couch in the lobby chatting with fan, Ron Jeremy lingers in the parking lot and nobody seems to bug them for photos, it’s all very friendly and free.

Jarmusch created an eclectic mixture of music some call the “perfect mix tape”, everything from hip hop, punk to doom metal and even some amazing buried treasures in the line up that you might not otherwise see – like a 90 year old (or 96 he can’t remember his birthday) bluesman called T Model Ford who lit up the room with some deep Delta blues on Sunday. In a crowded field of annual claustrophobic music festivals, All Tomorrow’s Parties deserves a Mazel Tov!

(Desiree Adib)

Live from New York It's Jack Johnson

Troy McMullen — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:49:45 -0400

By Troy McMullen

It’s easy to like Jack Johnson. His lazy, infectious songs evoke a kind of earnest, boyish charm that would disarm even the most cynical audiophile.

In a performance Wednesday night at New York’s Madison Square Garden, the surfer turned singer song-writer, who made his name strumming laid back, loping melodies in his native Oahu, Hawaii, managed to turn a cavernous, 20,000-seat arena into a campfire sing-along.

“He’s sort of like the new Jimmy Buffet,” said concertgoer Steve Westfall, hauling a beer in each hand as he and the mostly young, female crowd hummed along to songs like “Banana Pancakes” and “Better Together.” “He could probably play the same songs for the next 20 or 30 years and we’ll still love it.”

Johnson, sporting his usual tee shirt and jeans, crammed nearly 20 songs into the two hour performance, which included a rousing, three song encore with opening act G Love. (The two men met while surfing back in the 1990’s and eventually recorded several songs together.)

The sold-out show also included several light and lovey duets with the rotund, sweet-voiced Paula Fuga, a fellow Hawaiian who is part of new wave of performers pushing the local music scene on the Big Island.

Of course, Johnson managed to keep his likability index high: he not only found time to dedicated songs to his wife (three songs), kids (two songs), parents (one song each), but he also got a roar from the crowd when he dedicated a song to the victims on 9/11.

Johnson is touring in support of his new album, “To the Sea.” It was recorded in his two solar-powered music studios in Hawaii (of course).

ABC News Makes Awesome Low-Budget Music Video

Stephanie Rutkowski — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 15:37:11 -0400

Please excuse the not-very-humble headline, but we're legitimately excited about this new video we've made.

It features indie band the Mates of State, which consists of married couple Kori Gardiner and Jason Hammel. In the video, the Mates going marauding through Manhattan with a tiny video projector, spraying their image on unsuspecting passers-by.

See it here:

We're also releasing a short "making the video" clip, which shows how we did it:

Full disclosure: I'm friends with Jason and Kori. I met them while shooting a story about how they take their young daughters out on the road with them when they go on tour.

The idea for this video came about over beers and pork buns in lower Manhattan a few months ago. I was telling Jason, somewhat sheepishly, that I had made a super-low-budget video for the post-punk band Jawbox when I was in college in 1992.

I then mentioned that I had one other concept for a video that I'd never actually made. The idea was to shoot a band playing their song, then take the footage of that performance and project it all over the place -- on people, surfaces, animals, whatever.

Jason's response, "You should make it for us!"

So I begged the Executive Producer of ABC News Now, Nancy Han, to pay for it - and, for some unknown reason, she said yes.

I then recruited Amplified Producer David Wharton, Photojournalist Andy Bowley and editor Mark Monroy (who edited this thing on his home laptop in his spare time).

After listening to the new Mates album ("Crushes: The Covers Mixtape"), I chose my favorite song: "True Love Will Find You In The End." It's a cover of a Daniel Johnston track. It's insanely catchy and also short (which worked well for us since we had a very, very, very small budget).

In mid-May, the crew and I went up to Kori and Jason's house in Connecticut and shot some footage of them playing the song in their basement practice space (where they actually recorded the new album).

Then, crazy video whiz kid Mark Monroy transferred the digital video files onto a tiny projector as we drove down to Manhattan.

Projector in hand, the band began torturing random strangers. (With shocking and awesome gusto, I might add.)

That that's pretty much it. Hope you enjoy the final product.

- Dan

Austin Musicians Receive Free Vision Screening, Prescription Eyeglasses

Christina Caron — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 16:39:26 -0400

Uninsured musicians are getting a new outlook on life -- literally.

Nearly 200 local musicians gathered on Saturday in Austin, Texas to receive a full eye exam as well as vouchers for prescription eyeglasses at no cost. Carolyn Schwartz, executive director for Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM), said the response was overwhelming.

"It was first-come first-serve," Schwartz said. "The appointments filled up in a matter of hours."

Ruby Dee, the 45 year-old lead singer of Ruby Dee and the Snakehandlers, has been a member of HAAM since moving to Austin last year. Dee said she was impressed by the event, and walked out the door with a prescription in hand.

"It was a really thorough way of addressing the issue of eye health," Dee said. “The event was necessary, well organized, and you can tell that the individuals volunteering really care. I feel so lucky to live in Austin, where we have something like HAAM."

Austin's music scene generates enormous revenue for the city, yet many artists barely make enough to make ends meet.

HAAM, founded in 2005, offers Austin musicians access to affordable health care. While HAAM has provided primary medical and mental health care since its inception, the non-profit discovered that eye health was an important, unaddressed concern for its member musicians. As a result, HAAM approached Prevent Blindness Texas, a non-profit designed to preserve sight through vision screenings and education, to form a partnership.

“We did a survey of our clients to find out what services they would like to see added, and vision health immediately rose to the top,” Schwartz said. “Even though music is a $1 billion dollar industry, the majority of our hardworking musicians earn less than $16,000 per year, which can barely cover basic necessities. Our clients are on the road, and they need to be able to see, just to drive their tour buses or play their instruments.”

Screenings were held at Eye Physicians of Austin by ophthalmologists and optometrists, who have donated their time and expertise.

While this is the first vision screening HAAM and Prevent Blindness Texas have organized, Maria Tripovich, state development and marking director for Prevent Blindness, is excited about the prospect of holding more in the future.

"The more people we can help the better," Tripovich said.

-- Caitlin Mangum

Adam Green: Artist

Troy McMullen — Wed, 12 May 2010 14:20:02 -0400

By Troy McMullen

In a solo career that has now spanned six albums in eight years, Adam Green has managed to endear himself to indie music fans by using a keenly-honed pop sensibility to deliver a unique brand of off-kilter, unpredictable folk-rock.

The New York-based singer/songwriter, a member emeritus of the lo-fi band the Moldy Peaches, employed some of the same childlike, stream-of-consciousness motifs in his latest creative effort.

“Teen Tech,” Green’s debut art show on view recently at the Morrison Hotel Gallery Bowery in New York City, featured dozens of playful, incongruous original works that would fit nicely alongside any of his album liner notes.

Much like the witty, often sardonic songs Green has churned out over the past decade, his artwork mixes equal doses of sincerity and snarkiness - with a dab of free association.

“All of the artwork in the show is more cerebral and doesn’t necessarily have to do with technique,” Green said recently at the show’s closing, where he also performed a few songs. “Because I'm an entertainer in showbiz, I found myself trying to make this art show more entertaining than average.”

The show, housed in a gallery space formerly occupied by the legendary music club CBGB, features more than 60 works of art, including sculptures of plaster and papier-mâché, large-scale acrylic or watercolor paintings, drawings and collages. It coincided with Green’s two-night stand at the nearby Bowery Ballroom, capping a U.S. tour in support of his latest album, “Minor Love.”

CLICK HERE FOR A SLIDE SHOW OF THE ARTWORKS

Many of the works feature caricatures of cartoons that “distill the subjects down to their bare essence,” says Green. “I don't often read comics but I've always liked to draw cartoons. He adds, “I contend that all artists work in caricature.”

Nearly all artworks have sold, according to Peter Blachley, co-owner of the gallery, who says collectors included the actor Macaulay Culkin. A portion of the proceeds from the show will be donated to Artists for Peace and Justice, a charitable organization aimed at rebuilding Haiti after January’s earthquake. Green says he was introduced to the relief organization after donating a hand-designed t-shirt for a recent online auction to raise funds for the organization.

Blachey, a former record company executive and producer, says the collaboration with Green was an easy fit.

“Adam knew enough about his own work so he knows what he wants to exhibit,” says Blachey. “For me it’s just a matter of me saying ‘Hey, come on in and do this. Let’s make it happen.’”

The Morrison Hotel Gallery Bowery is named after the 1970 album by The Doors and has had a connection to rock music since opening in 2008. Blachey launched the gallery with former independent record store owner Rich Horowitz and music photographer Henry Diltz, who famously snapped the cover image of the Doors for “The Morrison Hotel” album. The three men have a second gallery location, opened in 2001, in nearby SoHo.

CBGB, the launching pad for influential rock and punk acts from the Ramones to Talking Heads, closed in 2006. Blachey and his partners re-opened the space two years later with an inaugural exhibit of photographs and mixed media pieces featuring rock icons including The Clash, the Sex Pistols and the Rolling Stones from artist Steve Joester.

Musicians like singer Ryan Adams have showed their artwork at the gallery and Blachey says more shows featuring musicians are being discussed. “Musicians have always brought something unique to art,” he says. “The same creative energy they bring to their music is often found in their art as well and that ultimately makes it special.”

New Apples in stereo album out now

David Wharton — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 14:55:53 -0400

"The most important thing to me is... being kind and also trying to do something awesome." – Robert Schneider, The Apples in stereo

Schneider has lived up to his credo on his band’s new album, “Travellers (sic) in Space and Time”, which came out today. We’re re-posting this video we shot with him last year, because it includes some exclusive footage of him recording the songs. Also, because we like Robert a lot. (He recorded our theme song!)

Enjoy the video. Buy the album. Go see the band live. (I hear they’re unveiling some crazy new costumes.)

-Dan

LCD Soundsystem: "Drunk Girls"

Brian Braiker — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 22:39:48 -0400

DRUNK GIRLS. (Wait an hour to pee.) With this here new track off their as-yet untitled forthcoming album, LCD Soundsystem hits it out of the park. (Again) (And again). Listen here. Or right here:

James Murphy told Pitchfork not too long ago that the song is "about drunk people and fun things and the fact that all of the boys of the L.A. mansion we recorded at were called 'the girls' by our chef. We were the ladies of the mansion."

Whatever. This song is rad. Get drunk, girls, and dance!

-- Brian Braiker

Speaking of Erykah Badu ...

Brian Braiker — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:30:34 -0400

A song from Badu's forthcoming album, "New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh," has trickled out online. "Turn Me Away (Get MuNNY) " is essentially a cover of Sylvia Striplin's "You Can't Turn Me Away," which is fine by us becauase it's an amazing song: gorgeous, sexy, evocative. Check it out and tell us what you think.

Here's the original:

While we're on the topic, if you're in New York this weekend there's a "secret" Badu show on Saturday. Get tickets before they're gone.

And after you see the show, there's a good chance you might be suffering from "Baduizm." Here's what you need to know about the musically transmitted disease.

-- Brian Braiker

Julian Casablancas X3

David Wharton — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 13:02:29 -0400

We complete our trifecta of Julian Casablancas coverage with last night's show at the Fillmore East in New York City. Pics from the show are below, but first a description of what else we've heard from Julian the past week.

We sat down to interview him on Tuesday at Electric Lady Studios in the West Village. He was a little late, no biggie. He wore shades that didn't come off until the interview was over, red tight pants, a heavily studded leather jacket and a feather in his hair. When Dan started in with the questions, there wasn't an ounce of pretension or defensiveness to him. He was open about all things Strokes, his drinking and his music. Highlights include the reason the band is playing shows this summer (money) and the fact that the band is recording new music without him (but he'll lay his tracks in later). We've made two videos from the session, one a full-on Amplified where Julian talks about forming the Strokes, some of the issues with the band and his own disappearance from the spotlight for a few years. He's surprisingly open about his drinking, and his renunciation of it.

We also asked him about the ridiculously funny video he made with Andy Samberg's Lonely Island group. "Boombox" puts the 80's streetcorner staple up on a pedestal and wonders at it's magical powers. Such powers include making old people get down and dirty with each other. It's disturbing, hilarious and truly awesome.

And finally, the pics from the show. Julian came on stage at approx 10pm last night to a tight packed crowd of Strokes fans and teenage girls, who knew all the words to the words to his solo album songs, "Phrazes for the Young." He capped things with the Strokes song "Hard To Explain," and talked onstage about the massive number of shows he's seen at the Fillmore East or Irving Plaza "or whatever they call it now."

(David Wharton)