Farm Aid 2010

Willie’s getting the gang together again for Farm Aid 2011. Willie Nelson made the announcement today that the day-long event will be at LiveStrong Sporting Park in Kansas City on August 13th.

I was hoping it would be held in Milwaukee again this year. Mike and I had a blast last October when it was held at Miller Park, even though the roof was closed and acoustics were less than perfect. It was just a great day of music with a wonderful vibe, even though a man behind us kept saying “Who????” really loudly after they introduced any one. “Ladies and gentlemen, Farm Aid is proud to welcome Jeff Tweedy.” Who????”  Ladies and gentlemen, Farm Aid is proud to welcome Jason Mraz.”  “Who?”  You get the idea.

And of course it’s all for a great cause.

They haven’t announced who any of the supporting acts will be, but you can bet all the main dudes will be there–Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, and Willie Nelson.

More info here.

The Basilica Block Party began in 1995 as a fundraiser to pay for the $9.5 million structural restoration of The Basilica of Saint Mary, listed on the National Registration of Historic Places.  Proceeds from the event will fund the continued renovation of The Basilica.  5% of the proceeds have been designated for the St. Vincent de Paul outreach program to serve those in need.  The program provides food and shelter to nearly 3,500 people a month, as well as shoes and transportation assistance to 250 people every week.

The goal of the Basilica Block Party is to promote the spirit of volunteerism and community.  More than 25,000 people gather annually in the presence of the historic Basilica of Saint Mary and surrounding blocks to celebrate good food, great music, and summer fun in Minneapolis, MN!

The July 8-9 2011 lineup:

David Gray

The JAYHAWKS

Lissie

Scars on 45

Michael Franti and Spearhead

Fitz and the Tantrums

G. Love & Special Sauce

Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs

Amos Lee

Gomez

Stuart D’Rozario

Drive-By Truckers

Citizen Cope

The 4onthefloor

The west coast’s greatest music festival, Coachella, returns to Indio, California the weekend of April 15-17 with dozens and dozens of your favorite bands including festival headliners Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire, Kanye West and the Strokes. Highlights of the drop dead gorgeous lineup include The National, The Black Keys, Brandon Flowers and Cee Lo Green.

There are also loads of acts performing that are expected to drop albums sometime this year, among them: Animal Collective, Lauryn Hill, Mumford & Sons, Bright Eyes, PJ Harvey and Duran Duran. See the full lineup

This year’s event is slated for Saturday, October 30 on State Street in downtown Madison. Gates will open at 7:00 PM with tickets available at the gate for $10.

$7 advance tickets are available now at the Coliseum box office, Ticketmaster, or at several businesses in the State Street area.

The business ticket outlets will be selling tickets through Friday, October 29 and there is no service charge at any of those locations (only service charges on tickets sold at Ticketmaster outlets).  Participating businesses are designated with special multicolored posters with the Freakfest logo and the words “Freakfest Tickets Available Here”.  Tickets on the day of the event will be available at booths near the entrances beginning at Noon and continuing through the end of the event or when the street reaches capacity.  Additional information is available at the official Freakfest website: http://www.channel3000.com/freakfest

Freakfest 2009 drew a record number of people with an estimated 55,000 people enjoying the music and costumes on State Street.  Once again the city was able to cut back on costs and there were fewer arrests as the event continues to run smoothly and become more successful.  As the event continues to grow in popularity, it is definitely recommended that people purchase their tickets in advance or get to the event as early as possible to purchase their day of event ticket and insure admittance.

Freakfest 2010 has announced their lineup!

Date: October 30th, 2010.  7PM.

Location: State Street in Downtown Madison

OK GO

The “treadmill” guys will be coming to Madison.  Featuring a unique mix of visual excitement and auditory heaven, this band will put on a fun show.  Hailing from the Chicago area, they released their first album in 2002 and released their newest album Of the Blue Colour of the Sky in January.

LITTLE BIG TOWN

This country band has had 3 Grammy nominations and have been touring all over.  Their newest album Little Big Town came out in August.

MY DEAR DISCO

Coming out of Michigan, My Dear Disco released their debut full length  album in January 2009 and have an interesting sound that blends disco (who would have guessed?),  funk, rock and techno in interesting ways.

STEALING ANGELS

This country band released their debut single “He Better Be Dead” in July and will have a new album coming out in 2011.

AND LOCAL ARTISTS:

Aaron Williams & The Hoodoo

Daniel & The Lion:  Jimmie Linville, the lead singer was this year’s Project M winner.

Mechanical Kids

Mike Droho & The Compass Rose:  Project M’s winner last year.

Tickets: $7 advance tickets will be sold starting Friday October 1 at 10:00 AM at the Coliseum box office, Ticketmaster, or by phone at 1-800-745-3000 or you can order them through Frank Productions.  Tickets will be sold through October 29th.  Gates will open at 7PM and tickets will be available day of for $10.

Enter to win tickets to see the Drive-By Truckers at the Majestic

From museum.dva.state.wi.us

Tuesday, September 28, 2010 – 3:30 to 4:00 p.m.

Exclusive acoustic performance

The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is honored to host Patterson Hood of the Drive-By Truckers for a special acoustic performance in its galleries. Hood has long been a supporter of American soldiers and veterans, having written such songs as “The Sands of Iwo Jima” and “The Home Front,” which was inspired by the passing of Madison native, SGT Mark Maida. SGT Maida’s personal effects can be seen in “Faces in the Sand,” an exhibit honoring Wisconsin’s men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The concert will start promptly at 3:30 p.m. and is FREE (do not be late – you will miss the show). Space is limited for this very special event, so arrive early (no advance reservations). Drive-By Truckers will be performing on the evening of September 28 at the Majestic Theater in Madison. The all-ages show starts at 8:30 p.m. with support from Henry Clay People. Purchase tickets for the Majestic Theater performance here.

The Eastern Conference Champions made a stop in Studio M yesterday prior to their show which is taking place TONIGHT at the High Noon Saloon, 9pm! This band + their upcoming show is cool for a lot of reasons:

1. During their Studio M Session, they played some cool covers – like Bob Dylan for instance – along with a song that you may already be familiar with, entitled “A Million Miles an Hour.” This was featured on the Twilight – Ecplise soundtrack! Check out the video of their performance below.
2. ECC partnered with Physicians Plus to perform a cool song for them, which has been featured in TV spots as well as on the radio.
3. Their show at the High Noon Saloon is free with a $5 suggested charitable donation to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
4. Physicians Plus has been running a contest called “Get the Gist” inviting local musicians to recreate the ECC song to win a $3600 Gretsch Guitar! The Top 3 finalists have been selected, and one person will win tonight based on audience response!

Who knew going to a show could make you feel so good? See you there!
RSVP on Facebook

Mark Olson w/ Cory Chisel

7pm, Wednesday, September 15

High Noon Saloon, tickets, more info

Arriving this week at the High Noon Saloon in downtown Madison is none other than Mark Olson, founder of alternative country band The Jayhawks.  Olson is riding the release of his second solo album titled Many Colored Kite from early this summer.

Mark Olson was an establishing member of The Jayhawks, taking on much of the songwriting and singing tasks for the Americana-country rockers.  Along with Olson, The Jayhawks included Gary Louris, Marc Perlman on bass and Thad Spencer on drums.  Olson left The Jayhawks in 1995 after 4 studio albums to pursue a new musical direction.  Olson formed The Original Harmony Ridge Creek Dippers with the help of his (at the time) wife Victoria Williams and the multi-talented Mike Russell.  From 1997 to 2004 The Original Harmony Ridge Creek Dippers recorded 7 albums before Olson and Williams separated in 2005.

Olson again to try a new direction musically, opting for a solo career with some collaboration with former Jayhawk Gary Louris.  Recently Olson released a solo album titled The Salvation Blues in 2007, a collaboration album with Gary Louris titled Ready For The Flood in 2008 and most recently, Olson’s earlier noted 2010 album Many Colored Kite.

Whether you have been following Olson musically over the years or are a Jayhawks fan from back in the day, the High Noon Saloon is the place to be on Wednesday night.  If you have not heard any of Olson’s solo/recent work, here are some free .mp3 files to check out before the show.

Mark Olson – Little Bird of Freedom (click the plus sign to stream, click the link to download)

Mark Olson – Scholastica (click the plus sign to stream, click the link to download)

If you like what you hear, grab a copy of Mark Olson’s new album Many Colored Kite and be sure to make it to the High Noon Saloon Wednesday night.

Joining Mark Olson on stage will be the talented Mr. Cory Chisel. Chisel is a singer-songwriter originally from Appleton, WI.  Chisel and his band, the Wandering Sons, won 2010 Wisconsin Area Music Industry Awards for Artist of the Year and record of the year for their song “Born Again.”

One cover charge, two great artists.  Be sure to be there Wednesday night.

-Sam Ryan

Daniel and the Lion

Monday Sept. 13 at 8pm

Java Cat Coffee, Madison, WI

Local indie-folk rock band Daniel and the Lion are preparing for their fall 2010 “Heartland” tour.  The band is kicking off the tour on Monday night at Java Cat Coffee in Madison, WI.  Daniel and the Lion fans better head to Java Cat Coffee on Monday night to catch the band and their new material before they hit the road.

If you are unfamiliar with Daniel and the Lion, the band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Jimmie Linville and pianist Daniel Pingrey.  Jimmie Linville was the 2010 Project M champion, 105.5 Triple M’s singer-songwriter competition.  Linville wrote a handful of songs for Project M, including the recently released Daniel and the Lion song “Hollywood” (which can be heard on their myspace page.)

Jimmie and Daniel will be joined by Hilary Neesam on organ and vocals and Cody Wheeler on drums for the upcoming tour.  These additions to the band bring  exciting new dynamics to the sound of Daniel and the Lion.  If you have enjoyed Daniel and the Lion in the past, checking out the new look band on Monday is highly recommended.

Do you not live in Madison, WI but love Daniel and the Lion?  Well you may be in luck that Daniel and the Lion will be arriving near your hometown this fall sometime.  The band will visit numerous Wisconsin cities as well as other cities in surrounding states including Chicago, Iowa City and Minneapolis.  To check out full tour dates, head to Daniel and the Lion’s myspace page to get exact details.

Before you head to Java Cat Coffee on Monday night, grab yourself a free.mp3 of Daniel and the Lion’s song “Hollywood” when you follow this link.  Also, sign up for your chance to see Daniel and the Lion live in Studio M through the same link.

On a side note, the tour t-shirt design is fantastic.  Much “love” from Triple M on the “heart”-felt design.  If you like the design as much as us here, be sure to grab one for yourself.

-Sam Ryan

Trevor Hall

w/ Cas Haley

8pm, Sunday September 12, 2010

High Noon Saloon, tickets, more info

This weekend I went home to the Twin Cities to see family and celebrate Labor Day weekend away from all sources of “labor.”  While I was driving with my Dad we listened to a public radio special on The Beatles’ 1966 classic album Revolver.  My Dad made a comment about the use of the sitar on the track “Love You To” and how the use of that sort of instrument was never used on a pop album before that.  We both laughed at the fact that even today the use of sitar is far from common.

As I drove back to Madison along I-94 with anticipation for this Sunday’s Trevor Hall show I listened to Mr. Hall’s most recent self-titled studio album.  Although I have heard the album a number of times, the presence of a sitar on the very first track made me smile.

Trevor Hall is a singer and songwriter originally from Hilton Head, South Carolina.  He has been fully absorbed with music since the age of 14 when he first was exposed to his father’s drum kit.  Hall soon recorded some of his own music and later attended Idyllwild Arts Academy in California to develop his musical talent in high school.  He has recorded a number of releases including his 2006 EP The Rascals Have Returned, his 2009 full length self-titled album and a live album titled Chasing The Flame in 2010.  Trevor’s song “Other Ways” was featured on the soundtrack of Shrek the Third.

Hall’s musical style has a hybrid reggae and pop feel.  His voice has a distinct and bold sound to it.  Hall has an accent while singing that is tough to describe, but beautiful when heard.  His music is crisp and is filled with messages of peace and unity.  From both a musical perspective as well as the message perspective, everyone could use some Trevor Hall.

The opening lines of Trevor’s song “Where’s The Love” are a perfect example of the message of love that Hall is working to spread.

“So many gods but no love for the people

My Mama told me that we are all made equal

What are we fighting for?

Why are we still at war?

Where’s the love? Where’s the love?“

If I remember correctly, a band back in 1967 worked to spread this same message.  The same band that rocked the sitar…

“All you need is love.” -The Beatles

Be sure to head to the High Noon Saloon on Sunday to catch Trevor Hall with guest Cas Haley.  You will not want to miss this young musician as he arrives in beautiful Madison, WI.

-Sam Ryan