Something Beautiful

Hear the roar of the crowd, the lights from above... Alejandro Escovedo - Heartbeat Smile 

Alejandro Escovedo has a great new album out now entitled Burn Something Beautiful. The album was produced and written with Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck of the Minus 5.  I saw them perform on Austin City Limits over the weekend.  A solid performance - check out the song Heartbeat Smile below.
      

The Corners Best of 2010

I want you out on the streets making a noise for everybody; I want to hear your voice up above the crowd and the noise ... (Alejandro Escovedo - Down in the Bowery)

As I've said before, I love year end lists. I enjoy making them and reading others.

2010 was another good and suprising year in music. There were several suprises this year from Broken Bells to Black Keys. I saw several fine concerts this year: Alejandro Escovedo, Bob Dylan, Kings of Leon, Paramore, Arctic Monkeys, The Black Keys, The Avett Brothers, The Whigs, The Incurables, etc...

Here we go:

1. Broken Bells - Broken Bells - James Mercer of The Shins and musician/producer Dangerous Mouse released their debut record together in 2010. The result is a great blend of The Shins quirky melodies and lyrics with the experimental/hip-hop of Dangerous Mouse previous works. The CD is loaded with great tunes.

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2. The Black Keys - Brothers - The duo from Akron, Ohio released a classic in 2010. Brothers is full of gritty blues, R&B and classic rock sounds. Highlights include Tighten Up, The Only One, Everlasting Light, Ten Cent Pistol and Sinister Kid.

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3. Alejandro Escovedo - Streets Songs of Love - Street Songs of Love comes off like a classic record with a terrific mix of both rockers and ballads. The highlights include Down in the Bowery, Anchor, After the Meteor Shower, The Bed is Getting Crowded and Fall Apart With You.

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4. Robert Plant - Band of Joy - Robert Plant, one of the great voices of rock and roll released another rootsy record in the vein of 2007's Raising Sand. Band of Joy features Buddy Miller & Patti Griffin and brilliant song choices: Angel Dance, Monkey, You Can't Buy Me Love, Silver Rider, Cindy I'll Marry You Someday, House of Cards, etc...

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5. Bruce Springsteen - The Promise -Bruce finally released those outtakes from The Darkness On the Edge of Town era that we have been waiting for several years. The Promise is look behind the curtain into the most productive era on E Street. The songs range from classic E Street sound to 50's style rave ups to Southside Johnny territory. My review will be coming soon.

6. Kings of Leon - Come Around Sundown
7. Old 97's - The Grand Theatre
8. The Gaslight Anthem - American Slang
9. Band of Horses - Infinite Arms
10. The Hold Steady - Heaven is Now

My favorite songs of the year are as follows:

1. Broken Bells - The Mall & Misery
2. The Black Keys - The Only One
3. Broken Bells - Mongrel Heart
4. Band of Horses - Factory
5. The Gaslight Anthem - The Queen of Lower Chelsea
6. Alejandro Escovedo - After the Meteor Showers
7. Broken Bells - Vaporize
8. The Black Keys - Tighten Up
9. Broken Bells - The High Road
10. Alejandro Escovedo - Down in the Bowery

It's really hard to pick one favorite show this year, but Alejandro Escovedo was so good when I saw him In Lexington, KY at The Kentucky Theater back on October 19. Close behind was the Kings of Leon/Black Keys/The Whigs at Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH on September 2.

Concert Season: A Few Tricks, But Mostly Treats

I am a breathing time machine, I'll take you all for a ride... (The Avett Brothers - Laundry Room)

I have been to several concerts lately:

The first was Alejandro Escovedo along with The Incurables at the Kentucky Theatre in Lexington, KY on 10/19/2010. Alejandro was in support of his recent great release Street Songs of Love (which was recorded in Lexington and some of the artwork shot at the Kentucky Theatre). This was a special show with Alejandro and the Sensitive Boys (or Sincere Boys as the tickets read and Alejandro joked) in great form. The band was awesome; bassist Bobby Daniel, drummer Hector Munoz, and especially guitarist David Pulkingham.

Alejandro was warm and funny, sounded even better. The show featured songs from Street Songs including: The Bed is Getting Crowded, Anchor, Down in the Bowery, Fort Worth Blue and Street Songs; and older songs like: Rosalie, Castanets, Always a Friend and Chelsea Hotel '78 to mention a few. This was one of the best shows that I've seen this year.

Additionaly the show opened with a St. Louis band called The Incurables who were lead by charismatic frontman Jimmy Griffin. Their portion of the show was excellent and I look forward to future recordings by this band.

The next show was The Avett Brothers along with Grace Potter and The Nocturnals in Huntington, WV on October 24.

This was my first Avett Brothers show and what a treat. The show was a high energy spectacle of the Brothers unique music. The audience was more familiar with their music than I was having only heard I and Love and You, but that didn't dim my enjoyment.

The highlights for me were Kick Drum Heart, January Wedding and I and Love and You.

The most recent show was Bob Dylan on his Never Ending Tour at Northern Kentucky University on 11/3. Dylan's current band includes the fantastic guitarist Charlie Sexton, who is very entertaining. Dylan played a very good setlist that included some of my favorites: It's All Over Now Baby Blue, Lovesick, Man in a Long Black Coat, Cold Irons Bound and from Highway 61 Revisited: Desolation Row, Highway 61 Revisited, Ballad of a Thin Man, and of course Like a Rolling Stone. Dylan was more animated that I've seen him before and at age 69 he still seems as enigmatic as ever.

Street Songs in American Slang

Everybody's got to dance with the blues sometimes... (Alejandro Escovedo - Down in the Bowery)

There's a couple of discs that have been out for a few months that deserve mention here: Alejandro Escovedo's Street Songs of Love and The Gaslight Anthem's American Slang. I've been slow about blogging about these, but they both deserve some raves.

I've been listening to Street Songs of Love for a while now and a couple of things that stand out. First of all this disc has a Springsteenish feel and I noticed that Alejandro is managed by John Landau (Bruce's manager). Additionaly Bruce makes an appearence on the song Faith. The second thing is the background singing by Karla Manzur and Nakia Reynoso is some of the best that I've heard in a long time. I also wanted to mention that the disc was recorded at Saint Claire Recording Company in Lexington, KY (just up the road; that is exciting).

Street Songs of Love sounds like s a new classic with a nice mix of both rockers and ballads. The cd starts with Anchor, a rocking love song that makes you want to sing a the top of your lungs with the windows rolled down; This Bed is Getting Crowded is another loud upbeat song with clever lyrics; Down in the Bowery is a slower number and a highlight as this duet features Mott the Hoople's Ian Hunter; After the Meteor Shower is a gorgeous ballad; Tula brings you back to your feet; Fall Apart With You is another beautiful song with a nice sentiment; Faith is another rocker and as I said previously features Bruce Springsteen.


The other new disc is The Gaslight Anthem's American Anthem. If you never heard these New Jersey guys they sound sort of like the Ramones meet Springsteen. The highlights of the cd include The Queen of Lower Chelsea, the title track, American Slang, Star Lucky and Boxer.