Yonder Mountain String Band New Album "The Show"

Yonder Mountain String Band is releasing a new album "The Show" September 1st. Check out this great string quartet out of Colorado as they continue to grow their fan base, play bigger venues and bring quality bluegrass music to a new level. Check out samples, tour dates and band bio by clicking the link below. If you enjoy bluegrass you'll definitely come out of this one a winner.

http://www.yondermountain.com/main.html

Happy listening:)

The Black Crowes Release Their Eighth Studio Album Today 8/31

Be sure to spend your money wisely today and buy the The Black Crowes new double album Before The Frost-Until The Freeze available for download now. Twenty new tracks. I've had the pleasure of hearing at least a dozen of them through a couple of live recordings and at a recent show at Wolftrap in Vienna Va. In my opinion they sound better than ever with new guitarist Luther Dickinson of The North Mississippi Allstars. This is their second album in as many years with Luther. You will not be disappointed in his amazing slide work and constant back and forth soloing with Rich Robinson. It makes for a beautiful sound. I'll be listening all day:)

http://www.blackcrowes.com/

http://blackcrowes.shop.musictoday.com/Dept.aspx?cp=1152_23014

Class VI Mountain River On The Gorge: Whitewater Rafting

If you are planning a whitewater rafting trip, I strongly advise you to choose Class VI Mountain River On The Gorge in West Virginia. From what we were told this is some of the best whitewater in the country. I’m no expert on the subject and have never gone before this, but I know I had the amazing time last weekend at this place. Class VI offers just about anything for any outdoors person. Hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing and rappelling, zip line tours, kayaking, fishing, whitewater rafting, paintball, skiing, yoga. Not only was the whitewater amazing, but also the staff at all of the help points of this facility was incredibly helpful, nice, humorous and so much fun. For a little over $200 a person we got the boat trip, three meals served to us throughout the boat trip, and our cabin. There were seven of us total, including one bachelor on his final weekend away. We got there on Saturday night and stayed in the rustic cabins, which are owned and rented by Class VI. They were these small but very cool and cozy little cabins with 8 beds. Speaking of cool they even had AC. There wasn’t much else inside, but really what do you need when camping. The campsite had a front deck with lights, a grill, a picnic table and ten feet away was a small fire pit. We grilled out, drank beers, had a fire, played some tunes and just had a good ole time anticipating the next day’s events.

The rafting trip was definitely the most exhilarating and exciting thing I’ve ever done. We did the lower new river, a mix of class V, IV,III, and II’s. I was a little nervous to say the least. Our tour guides were amazing. They knew that river like the backs of their hands. We got to the first rapid and I had butterflies in my stomach. We went over it no problem. It was definitely a lot of fun, I was definitely ready for more. Then the instructor informed us that we were going surfing, West Virginia style. She then informed us to paddle and basically ram our boat back into the rapids while she kept steering with her paddle in the back of the boat. This is where I started to get really nervous. We went straight into those rapids and started surfing the waves with the front of our boat, water pouring in. Then all of a sudden the boat shifts to the left, water starts pouring in over the side and we’re flipped over. All seven of us were in the river riding the rapids down stream. What an adrenaline rush. It was after this that I actually felt the most safe. Our instructor was on top of the boat within 5 seconds, assessing the situation and taking headcount. I floated down a little until being yelled at to swim towards a boat not towards the shore, and to put my glasses back on because I looked stupid without them. Believe me my glasses were the least of my worries at that point, but then I realized just how safe I was. They were not going to let me drown and they were in complete control of the situation. They even had a sense of humor when things were crazy. They were serious when they needed to be serious, but they also made us really enjoy our time on the river. We didn’t flip our boat again but we did encounter some rough, sometimes violent rapids that were totally awesome. Here is a link to some of the pictures I took on the boat while rafting with my water resistant Olympus Stylus 790sw. http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/WhiteWaterRaftTripDillowBachelorParty#

I won’t go through and tell you every little detail about our 10 mile trip up stream (the river flows north). I will just leave you by saying that you're missing out on some serious fun if you don’t go try whitewater rafting at Class VI Mountain River @ The Gorge.

It's Rad!

Good Eats In Chicago

Recently I visited the windy city for the annual Lollapalooza festival. Apparently there are other fun things to there besides Lollapalooza. I would love to tell you about the good times we had at some of the eatery's we tried during our festival down time. Some that were recommended to us and some that we just happened upon. The first night when we arrived we tried to go to the famous chef Rick Bayliss' Frontera Grill http://www.rickbayless.com/restaurants/grill.html. It was packed and no longer taking tables, which was a real bummer. We were looking forward to that place. We strolled on down the street and found a cool sports bar Mother Hubbards http://www.motherhubbardschicago.com/food-drink/. This turned out to be a great choice. They had the refreshing Leinenkugel Summer Shandy http://www.leinie.com/av.html on tap. After a long day in the rain and heat it was a delicious treat to find that beer on tap, one of my new favorites. We were more than satisfied with our Chicago style pizza. So satisfied with our food and service that we returned there on Sunday, our last evening for some more Leinenkugels, Nachos and 3 Taco platter. Again our service and food were top notch. I would definitely eat there again and recommend you trying it if you are in Chicago.

The next morning we met up with some friends that recommended we try Heaven on Seven http://www.heavenonseven.com/wabash.html . Someone had searched "good breakfast in Chicago loop" and this came up many times. First of all I've never been in a restaurant on the seventh floor of a building. I thought that was pretty cool in itself. When you walk in you immediately feel this small town Louisiana vibe. Posters of Jazz Fest and different Louisiana college flags, and a giant wall of different hot sauces (picture above). Then you remember that you're in downtown Chicago on the seventh floor of a building. How cool! We had bloody marys that screamed of horseradish and other fine spices. Some of the choices among the group were Denver Omelet which was unbelievable ( ham, cheese, onions, green peppers, and of course a little hot sauce on top for extra flavor), Angry Omelet, Texas Chili Omelet, Poached Eggs on cornbread with red beans. Others as well, we had eight total I don't remember everybody's order. I do know that everybody was raving about how delicious everything was throughout the breakfast. I remember the breakfast potatoes being a huge hit at the table as well. We actually talked about this restaurant for the rest of the weekend.

We visited the Sears Tower after this. That is a story for a different day. If you are not afraid of heights you should definitely try the new sky deck at the top. Breathtaking views from all angles of every part of the city and lake Michigan. http://www.theskydeck.com/

The last day we tried another restaurant that came recommended to us and definitely lived up to it's high expectation called Ann Sather. http://www.annsather.com/Restaraunts%20Pages/Broadway_Bkfst.html. We were told specifically to try the cinnamon buns which turned out to be clearly the best I've ever tried. Ann Sather was a really cool small restaurant in a nice neighborhood. Even though you're in this huge city it still felt small town. Really cool vibe and great aroma while waiting outside for your table. It was packed, but they turned over the tables real quick and we were seated in about twenty to twenty five minutes. Not bad at all for the return we got. The food was out of this world. It was the best Turkey club I ever had. Real thick pieces of real turkey breast and thick crisp slices of bacon. After one and half of the those melt in your mouth cinnamon buns I could only finish half of the club sandwich. My girlfriend's Reuben was stacked high with corned beef and loaded with sauerkraut. Everyone else was completely satisfied with what they chose on the menu. We did have one small problem, our food took almost thirty minutes but they made it up to us with a six pack of warm, fresh cinnamon buns to take with us. Like we really needed those. It was a nice gesture though.

Our three restaurant choices for the weekend were all home runs. I hope I could steer you in the right direction for some good eats while visiting Chicago.

The Black Crowes Before The Frost...Until The Freeze 8/31/09

The Black Crowes are still flying under the radar, and will be releasing their 8th studio album august 31st. Their second album in as many years with new guitarist Luther Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars. They continue to be innovative like no other band in rock and roll, coming up with fresh ideas to keep their fans interested. Not only do they have a new studio album coming out, but buy the album and download the second album on the Internet. That's right a new double album. This album was recorded in front of a small audience in the intimate setting of a small barn in upstate NY. owned by Levon Helm drummer from (The Band). The band is currently on a sixty day tour through December supporting the new album, beginning at Wolf Trap in Vienna Va. and ending with another 5 night run at San Fransisco's classic Fillmore. For tour dates, album info and to download the new single "I ain't Hiding" click the link below.

http://www.blackcrowes.com/

Lollapalooza 2009: One For The Books

There was no sign of a recession at lollapalooza in Chicago’s Grant Park this past weekend. Perry Farrell founder of lollapalooza and front man for Jane’s Addiction, telling his audience that they sold record amounts of tickets for this year’s three day festival. There was no shortage of heat and rain either. It rained for most of the day on Friday, and then temperatures soared into the nineties on Saturday and Sunday.

There were way too many bands there for any person to see all of them, but I would be glad to share with you the ones that I was fortunate enough to see. I will say that I was not disappointed with any of them. In fact there wasn’t one thing that I was disappointed with the whole time I was there, Perry Farrell founder of Lollapalooza is so innovative, and always on the cutting edge of the scene. He just seems to out do it every year with something fresh and exciting, never the same. This is a fantastic festival in a fantastic park and city. There is something there for every body, even the kids. I’ll get to that later.

On Friday, Hockey a band out of Portland Oregon started it off on the PlayStation stage in the drizzling rain. I was definitely impressed by their sound and energy on stage. They had a great crowd, we were all digging them and during the second or third song the power went out on the entire stage lights and all. The band was quite disappointed as they were playing for what was probably the largest crowd they’ve ever played for. That didn’t stop them though. The drummer starting jamming a few beats on the drums and threw beers out into the crowd to keep them pleased. They got power back a few minutes later, played two more songs and it went out again. I felt really bad for them after this. They were definitely discouraged, the drummer threw his sticks down and they left the stage. So did the crowd unfortunately for them.
Next was on to the Kidzapalooza stage for Paul Green’s school of rock. This was something I was really excited for. PGSR is a school that started out in 1998 in Philadelphia due to the lack of school sponsored programs for kids and is now in at least two- dozen cities. Paul Green picks the students ages 9-16 himself from all over the country and takes them out on tour to play cover songs of Rock bands such as Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Frank Zappa. Even being joined by Perry Farrell for Jane’s Addictions Summertime Rolls at Lolla 2007. This years performances were outstanding. I was blown away. If you closed you eyes you would never think they were kids up there. They played hits from REO Speedwagon, Led Zeppelins-Four Sticks, Van Halens, Hot For Teacher the young singer even dressing up like David Lee Roth and doing a split jump off of the bass drum at the end. I’m going to jump forward a little but they played on Sunday as well and were joined this year by special guest Robert Earl Keen to play Cream White Room, a Santana song which I do not know the name of, Friend Of The Devil by The Grateful Dead, then ended it with a strong No One’s Leavin by Jane’s Addiction I don’t think Robert Earl stayed up for that one I had walked away by then but then (go figure) but I heard it from where I was and it sounded pretty amazing.
After PGSR was finished, Perry Farrell was joined by country star Leanne Rimes to sing The Beatles Here Comes The Sun, and Tom Petty’s Stop Draggin My Heart Around. Perry promising the crowd at the end that it will stop raining. The rest of the day for us consisted of White Lies a band from West London at the Budweiser stage, They were a great band, however I don’t really have any thing specific to write about them I just remember it being packed and I definitely enjoyed them. After White Lies we took a little hotel break to dry off get new clothes and head back down for Simian Mobil Disco down at Perry’s DJ stage and then on to the main Chicago 2016 stage for some Deplete Mode. My first Depeche Mode show and I was definitely shocked by how good they were live. I remember thinking to myself why have I never listened to this band before.

Below are some links of pictures I took throughout the weekend at the festival.

http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/Lollapalooza2009EverythingElseNotJaneSOrPerryRelated#

http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/PerryKidzapaloozaStageWithLeanneRimes#

Lollapalooza: Saturday-Day 2

Saturday was a late start due to a late sleep in, heat and some sightseeing at The Sears (Willis) Tower. The first band to check out was Los Campesinos an Indie band out of Wales rising to the next level of stagedom @ Lolla after their last visit in 2007. They were a treat to watch. Awesome male to female vocal changes, great guitar riffs, a more than energetic lead vocalist who looked like he enjoyed playing drums and percussion more than singing, and a surprising electric fiddle to round a good blend of upbeat songs. They had a huge crowd and they were a great band go check them

Next up for the group was off to Perry’s DJ stage for some electronics and spinning of the tables by Animal Collective out of Baltimore and then Prophit out of Queens NY. This was a serious dance party with samples of Beastie Boys, Rage Against the Machine Bulls On Parade and other popular beats added to the original raps and beats of Prophit. He played for 30 minutes and rocked to a crowd of at least 8000 leading up to a 4 pm special set by Perry Farrell, joined by his wife Etty on vocals, and Nick Maybury the phenomenal guitar from the band Mink out of NYC. The play list consisted of a mix of songs from different Perry eras. They belted out Porno for PyrosTahitian Moon, Say Something from Perry’s album Song Yet To Be Sung, Ultra Payloaded Satellite Party from Perry’s band Satellite Party, followed by Perry’s new song Nasty Little Perv and the Go All The Way from the movie Into The Twilight. At one point Nick picked up a violin bow and started playing his guitar with that which was a very cool sound. To finish it off they brought Kascade and prohpit back out there to perform one of Kascades songs Machine Girl. The only complaint I had about this set was that the sound was too low. It was hard to here Perry and Etty’s voices; otherwise I thought it was a great show and a special treat that I was thrilled to have the opportunity to see.

After we were rocked by the two DJ’s and Perry’s special set we headed over to see Santigold who has blown up in popularity since the last time she took the Lolla stage. Santigold is a mix of Hip Hop, Techno, and Indie pop rock with dancers Dj’s and this time she brought out a full band. It was a pretty impressive set as well as an impressive crowd that she definitely owned. She came out in gold clad and at the end of her energetic set she pulled a bunch of dancing concert- goers up on to the stage to have their five minutes of fame.

Last but not least was TooL. This would be my first Tool show and the first time they took the Lolla stage since1997. I thought it was a killer and powerful set including old favorites such as Schism, Stinkfist, and Aenema. Of course there was also the dark, morbid films on the big screen to add to the freak show. Maynard didn’t show his face much hiding behind the drum kit for most of the evening, at one point telling the crowd that he smells marijuana, don’t you know that is Illegal? If you’re not into this band it is as least worth watching these classically trained musicians rock you out and also witnessing one of the best drummers out there Danny Carey. Tool was a definite A plus for me.

Below is a link to some of the pictures I took on Saturday at the festival. Other photos from Saturday are in the link on Day 1 that says everything else non Perry or Jane's related.

http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/PerryAndFriendsPerrySDJStage#

Lollapalooza: Sunday-Day 3

Sunday Funday as I like to call it. Again it was way too hot so we waited until a little later in the day to head down to the park. Pete DiStefano guitarist from Porno for Pyros was first on the list for the day at the kidzapalooza stage. Without question my favorite stage at the festival and I don’t even have kids. A cool surprise when we arrived was a kids break dancing workshop. I didn’t even know break dancing was even still going on, it was real fun to watch. The guys doing the workshop were from Chicago south side I believe. They were doing all the old school moves, windmill, helicopter, head spin you name it they did it. Then after the whole crew was finished they got the little kids out there. Soon after that Peter DiStefano and Tor Hyams (Creator of kidzapalooza) took the stage to a pretty decent size. I was hoping for some Porno for Pyros with a guest visit by Perry Farrell, but what we got was a ripping set from Pete D and Tor on Keys with a fifteen year old on drums. They tore it up. After a few songs they started inviting all of the little kids from the audience up on stage to strum the guitar or play on the keys. This was very satisfying to me. It was great to see them up there with so much care for kids, just so not American Idol. They were not being exploited like you see on T.V. This was genuine interest in getting kids into music. Which is what the Kidzapalooza stage is all about. After Pete and Tor Paul Greens School of rock returned to the stage, which I already covered in the day 1 article so please refer to that for more info on Paul Green and his wonderful program. I can tell you that both years that I went to Lollapalooza, I had the most fun at kidzapalooza.

Passion Pit a brand new Indie band out of Boston Ma. Came highly recommended to me by a friend that saw them at Bonnaroo festival this summer. Of course I would take her word for it and of course they rocked. Apparently this band has blown up on the indie scene in the last year. Playing Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo in your first couple years of existence and killing at both festivals in front of huge crowds a big feat. I loved them and will definitely be downloading their debut EP chunk of Change and full length Manners. I say you should too.

On the way over to Jane’s Addiction we stopped off at Perry’s DJ stage one more time to check out Boys Noize from Berlin for ninety minutes and then Mstrkrft from Canada for the same. This was a sick back to back hands in the air jumping up and down dance party. I mean there’s really not much to say but it rocked. I’m not big into this type of music but I am now. There is as much talent in spinning those records, and figuring out where the beats go and the drops and samples of other people’s music as there is in playing instruments. It’s definitely a skill. There were at least 15,000 packed in this one little area to see them. If you like DJ’s, thumping techno beats, and dancing your ass off , then I would go see either of these two names at a club near you very soon. I know I will be.

Jane’s Addiction on the Budweiser stage at 8:30. If you weren’t at Jane’s you were at The Killers. Jane’s Addiction is not for everyone I know, and that’s why The Killers drew a bigger crowd. However if you are a Jane’s fan and you did happen to catch their set. You got to see the show of a lifetime. The anticipation was finally over. Janes took the stage and went right into Up The Beach a nice change from the normal Three Days opener from the rest of tour. As the song began you could hear this loud helicopter up above, you look up and there’s this helicopter flying all around doing low sweeps with its spotlights shining all over the crowd. What a sick way to start a show. The crowd was on, the vibe was set and we got what I believe was the best show of the tour. I wasn’t at all but I was at 5 and believe me this was a special night. Moving on through Mountain Song, Ain’t No Right, the epic Three Days. Perry taking a short break to let the crowd know that even though two doctors told Stephen Perkins not to play drums. He did it anyway. Of course drawing huge applause from the crowd. The band then ripping into their MTV classic Been Caught Stealin, Then She Did, Oceansize. Just tearing through them with excellence. What would a Jane’s show be without theatrics? Perry had two women on stage (one being his wife Etty) dressed as the Siamese twins from the controversial Nothing Shocking album, dancing and prancing around. Also taking time to sit in their sideways rocking chair. Chinese fire dragons danced in front, below the stage for part of the set. This set was full of energy, brotherhood, love, sexiness and fine musicianship. They finished off the set with Ted Just Admit It, Summertime Rolls, Stop, and a very special Jane Says joined by Joe Perry from Aerosmith. What an amazing show. A magical night. Perry made a few announcements at the end of the night about the 2016 Olympic bid for Chicago, the most tickets ever sold for Lollapalooza, and there was even a wedding proposal on stage. Barry Brecheisen a metromix photographer, asked his girlfriend to marry him in front of thousands of people. Her response, are you f-ing kidding me. YES.

So as I said, Lollapalooza 2009 is definitely one to go down in the history books. Out of all the festivals I’ve been to it is most definitely in my opinion the most fun you could have seeing music in one weekend. There is something there for everyone, especially the kids. See you next year.

Below are the links to the pictures I took on Sunday at the festival, some of the pictures from sunday are in the link on the day 1 review called everything else not Perry or Jane's related.

http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/JanesAddictionLollapalooza2009#

http://picasaweb.google.com/cosmicfriendjeffrey/PeteDistefanoTorAndKids#

Bring The Good Vibes To Lollapalooza

The time has come for Lollapalooza my favorite festival of the season. I've been talking it up all summer and now the time has finally come. The pilgrimage to Chicago has begun as tens of thousands of people will converge on Grant Park for three days of Music, Arts, Food and fun with people from all over the world. Stay tuned throughout the weekend as I will be posting updates and pictures on my twitter page http://twitter.com/cosmicfriend. If you are going to be in Chicago please feel free to email or twitter me if you want to meet up for a show, or a beer or both. Also stay tuned for reviews and pictures of the festival, the music, and the sites and tastes of The windy city. Below is a link to the CoS Lollapalooza online Festival Survival Guide for all you need to know about Lollapalooza and Grant Park. I recommend taking a look at it. It's a big festival, a big park and there's a lot to see. You don't want to miss out on any of the good stuff. http://consequenceofsound.net/2009/08/05/cos-at-the-gates-lollapaloooooooza-2009/

I Hope to see you in the park.

Lollapalooza Confirms Crooked Vultures As Late Night Closer ( Dave Grohl, John Paul Jones, and Josh Homme)

It has been confirmed that Crooked Vultures have been added as the official closer of Lollapalooza with an after show Sunday August 9th at Metro. Tickets go on sale Thursday, Aug. 6, at 10 a.m. here, with the show starting at midnight (or 11:59 p.m.) Sunday. The band consists of Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters on Drums, Josh Homme, guitarist for Queens Of the Stone Age, and Legendary bass player of Led Zeppelin John Paul Jones filling out the rhythm section. It would only be my guess, but I would say these tickets are going to go fast. Click the link below to read more about the group, how it started and what to expect.

Dave Grohl, QOTSA's Josh Homme, and Led Zep's John Paul Jones Team Up

Phish Rocks At Red Rocks

If you're into the jam band scene you are well aware that Phish is back on tour. On Sunday 8/2/09 They finished an incredible four night run at the legendary venue Red Rocks in Morrison CO. If you have not been to this venue I suggest you take a trip there to hike the rocks and see your favorite band. You will fall in love with this place. Two of the best nights I've ever spent seeing music were at Red rocks. I cannot wait to go again. Take a look at the breath taking pictures from the four night Phish run thanks to the folks at JamBase.

http://www.jambase.com/Articles/19095/Phish-07.30-Red-Rocks-Photos-1

http://www.jambase.com/Articles/19108/Phish-07.31-Red-Rocks-Photos-2

http://www.jambase.com/Articles/19114/Phish-08.01-Red-Rocks-Photos-3

http://www.jambase.com/Articles/19125/Phish-08.02-Red-Rocks-Photos-4

Lotus Pay What You Want Tour

Lotus is launching a massive fall tour starting on September 4th in Japan. Lotus is a mix of electronic dance music with instrumental post rock. I've been checking this band out for a few years now and every time I see them, they're up to something new and fresh. Check out the dates and full article on JamBase by clicking the link below.

Lotus Pay What You Want Tour on JamBase

Sat Eye Candy: Jerry Garcia on JamBase

Lot's of goodies in this link. If you're a Dead fan you don't want to miss out on these videos from over the years.

Sat Eye Candy: Jerry Garcia on JamBase

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