Umphrey's Mcgee

If you guys haven’t heard of Umphrey’s Mcgee I highly recommend taking a listen. There in the jam band scene, but their sound is very different then their fellow jam peers. There is a certain metal and rock sound to their guitar riffs and overall sound, which I immediately fell in love with. They’ve been compared to the Grateful Dead and Phish in their improvisation skills. Not only are their originals amazing, but also their ability to cover songs is another part of the band that I love. I have an album of theirs titled, “Umphrey’s Covers the World” and they really do cover everything. Some of the songs on the album include, “Billie Jean”, “Regulators”, Trenchtown Rock”, “Paradise City”, etc.

Now, I’ve seen Umphrey’s a handful of times, and they still are one of my favorite live acts in the scene right now. I never leave a show of theirs dissatisfied or unhappy. Every person who sees them for the first time always says how amazing their concert was, or how it was not what they were expecting. Umphrey’s shows are really an experience I think everyone should try out. They are from South Bend, IN, but are now based in Chicago, IL. This also makes it great for me, be it that I’m from Chicago, so I get to see them frequently. I saw them this last New Year’s Eve and it was amazing. I also plan on seeing them this summer, probably more than just once too.

Pretty Lights Concert Review

So this last Tuesday I went to the Pretty Lights concert here in Tucson. I’ve seen a little of Pretty Lights before, saw a couple of songs of his at the Rothbury Festival in Michigan this past summer. I arrived at the Rialto Theatre not really expecting anything in particular. I just hoped there were more than a couple rows of people in the crowd. I’ve been to a show at the Rialto and there were legit three or four rows of people. It’s really a sad site when the band is playing there hardest and there are only 40 or so people in the room. But walking into the Rialto that Tuesday night was a different site. The room was full, and not just full of people sitting around watching, but people feeling the music and grooving. It’s refreshing to be with people who aren’t afraid to let their guard down and appreciate live tunes at it’s fullest. Pretty Lights was one of the better shows I’ve seen here in Tucson. The energy they brought was insane; they really brought the crowd into it.

I’m probably seeing Pretty Lights again this summer, at the SummerCamp Music Festival. Their scheduled to play one of the late night shows, which I feel is completely fitting. They are the perfect music to play the late night shows. It’s the kind of electronic music that Pretty Lights’ produces is exactly what my ears want to hear at 2 or 3 in the morning at a festival.

Phish 3D

So recently I have read that Phish will be coming out with a 3D film of their concert out in theaters. The film is set to come out April 30th in selected cities. Phish 3D is going to cover their Halloween show this past October in California. It was in Indio, Ca, which is the same location the Coachella Festival is on. The film is going to be an exclusive one week run in theaters nationwide. There is never before seen footage of them backstage and songs they covered during the Phish 8 fest in California. The film is supposed to be a little over 2 hours. I hope someone I know wants to go see this with me. I mean, Phish in 3D? C’mon that sounds like a visual and audio spectacle. Phish is also going to be heading on tour this summer. I plan on seeing them at the Toyota Park in Bridgeview, IL. I missed out on them last year and knew I made a mistake. Some of my friends attended the show and said it was unbelievable. I wonder what the film is going to be visually, what exactly is going to be 3D? I heard the Halloween show was incredible that weekend. They covered certain songs by the Rolling Stones, and I heard that is supposed to be in the movie as well.

Coachella- Live Stream

What would we do without modern technology? Well, without that I wouldn’t be watching a live stream video of the Coachella Music Festival right now. This is amazing, multiple camera angles, close to the stage, and good sound and video quality. The program is wired through Facebook application, which I found just searching on google. The Internet is changing the music scene in such an obvious light it’s insane. How music is distributed, watching live streams of concerts (like what I’m doing currently), and album leaks are all apart of this ever-changing music revolution. I’ve been watching it all-day and kicking myself for not going to the festival. Wish I had the money to go this year, but I plan on seeing LCD Soundsystem at this year’s Pitchfork Festival in Chicago. I didn’t even know how many people were in the band, definitely more people than I originally thought.

Today I’ve seen segments of De La Soul, Them Crooked Vultures, and as I mentioned before LCD Soundsystem. Them Crooked Vultures rocked, I mean their a legit supergroup. As this weekend progressed I was getting more and more jealous of the people who attended Coachella this year. I know the headliners weren’t the best, but seeing pictures of people enjoying the live music and atmosphere made me wish I got the money to go this year. Maybe I’ll start saving some money for next year’s fest.

Mike Posner

So recently one of my buddies showed me some new tunes. These tunes are courtesy of Mike Posner. He is currently a senior at Duke University and just signed a major record deal with J Records. When I first read this I was completely jealous of the guy. I mean a record deal your senior year of college? Pretty much my dream in a nutshell right there. He is a singer/songwriter/producer who has been considered in the synth-pop, electro-hop, and hip-hop genres. He currently has two mixtapes out right now. His first mixtape is titled, “A Matter of Time”, and his second is titled, “One Foot Out the Door”. His sound is unique in the fact that he brings hip-hop and dance beats together. His catchy melodies combined with the synth noises add for a nice mixture. My favorites from Posner include, “You Don’t Have to Leave”, “Cooler Than Me”, and “Bring Me Down”, all of which are off his latest mixtape, “One Foot Out the Door”. I’ve seen a youtube video of him where he just makes one of his songs in his dorm room. He’s got a massive piano/synthesizer and a laptop in his room. It really is amazing how now a days you don’t even need a recording studio to become popular. You can literally make your own music in your room, in Posner’s case in your own dorm room. I can’t even imagine how popular this guy is on Duke’s campus. It’d be a pretty tough decision to stay in school after signing a major record deal, but I think he made the right one. Being so close to graduating I would probably have done the same thing. Posner tours on the weekends, with that and studying probably takes up most of his time. That’s a hell of a way to end your collegiate career if you ask me.

Bored/Itunes shuffle

Well I haven’t really been listening to any new tunes so I guess I’ll just put my itunes on shuffle and tell you guys what I’m listening to. First song is by a band I’ve talked about on my blog in the past, this band is STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9). The song that was just put on is called “We’ll Meet in Our Dreams”, which to me is a perfect title for the kind of sound the song brings. The overtones and catchy riffs of the synthesizers really bring a euphoric sound to table. They add so many different noises in the song; innovation is the only word I can think of for this band. STS9 has slowly become one of my favorite bands on that scene right now. Seeing them a couple months ago definitely helped, considering it was one of the most fun nights of the semester for me. Listening to their albums really does not do this band any justice; the live experience for STS9 is a completely different game.
This next song my itunes decided to blast in my ears is by a band called Thievery Corporation, with the song titled “Sound the Alarm”. Another band where they don’t just fit into one category. They have been considered to mix different elements of dub, reggae, acid jazz, Middle Eastern, and Brazilian. Now that is a pretty crazy array of musical genres if you ask me. This song in particular definitely has a reggae/dub feel to it. With vocal guests Sleepy Wonder on the song, definitely has a reggae vibe to it. This band is another innovative group, and if you haven’t checked these guys out I advise you to do so.

Pretty Lights- Rialto Theater, Tucson, AZ - 4/20

So today I just bought my Pretty Lights concert ticket. Pretty Lights is playing at the Rialto Theater in Tucson, AZ on Tuesday April 20th. Derek Vincent Smith goes by the name Pretty Lights. Pretty Lights is considered in the electronic beats genre. I was overly excited when I saw Pretty Lights on the Rialto Theater schedule. I’ve only seen them one time and I only caught a couple songs of them. I saw Pretty Lights last summer at the Rothbury Music Festival. Smith is joined on stage with Cory Eberhard, who adds live drums to the equation. I expect nothing less from this concert than 2 or more hours of a straight dance party. These electronic music type concerts are probably one of my favorite types of music to see live. It’s not as visually appealing as much as live instruments being played, but the crowd’s reaction is what makes it. Everyone is dancing, having a great time, and I wish all concerts were like that.
Pretty Lights seems to be blowing up now days. Their great party tunes, which is definitely one of the reasons the music is getting more and more popular. One thing that I love about Pretty Lights is how he puts all his music for free on his website. prettylightsmusic.com is the home page for the artist, so I advise all of you to download his albums. All his albums are downloadable for free. Cannot wait for this concert, been waiting ever since it as announced.

Neon Indian

Just started jamming to this band called Neon Indian, really like his sound. Neon Indian is the mind of Alan Palomo. A live band joins him on the stage normally, but Palomo composes all the music. Neon Indian came out with their first full length in 2009, titled Psychic Chasms.
With funky grooves, catchy synth-noises, and ridiculous song names and lyrics, Neon Indian is bringing something fresh to the psychedelic/electronic genres. While listening to them, I see a little bit of early MGMT in their style. More the melodies of the songs is what I can compare them with MGMT. The poppy synth-noises Palomo puts together at times makes me want to get up and groove and at other times it makes me want to sit down and chill. Each song has such a different personality to it; it keeps it exciting and fresh. My favorite song title on the album has to be “Should Have Taken Acid With You”. I saw this song name and just had to put it on in my headphones. Definitely a catchy up-beat song that makes me have some euphoric feeling. There is a huge psychedelic influence in Palomo’s music as well. With the poppy-synth noises being the main drive in most of the songs, there are subtle synth additions, which gives it the more psychedelic feel. If you’re looking for some new funky, psychedelic, electronic tunes, check out Neon Indian. After listening to the whole album, I’m regretting not seeing him when he came out to Tucson this past year.