In a sea of faces the other night, I finally tracked him down. I found him! Chilling in the back, he was observing the dancing masses. The strobe lights flashed off of his glassy, glistening eyes. His eyes were bigger than his face. “My mouth tastes like hairspray and the crippling emotional uncertainty that my dad must feel,” he seemed to say to himself. As the bass rolled in to the next tune, he announced to his crew, “It’s lit, fam!” He stood up and staggered off, melding back into the dancing throng.
French DJ/producer Madeon smashed Kansas City hard on Saturday night with an hour and 20 minutes of diverse French dance music. He brought the Pixel Empire tour to the Midland, which showcased his skills and a stunning visual production. The 21 year-old gave the partying Midland crowd exactly what they wanted.
A lot of DJs get criticized for not playing anything live, but Madeon put the work in and beasted it live. Using track pads, he would trigger beats and samples in real time. His mixing was flawless and on point all night. His tunes drew from a wide range, from dubstep to classic French touch. Regardless of the style, his use of filters and phasing was very French. It was a beautiful thing.
Madeon at the Midland.
A few of the tracks fell into a category I call “beach music.” It’s the music you hear when you’re chilling on the beach in France, eating a French doughnut. It’s the sound you hear when you’re clubbing next to the sea. The songs are the perfect mix of the cheesy and the sublime. Dance anthems become popular in France every summer. Madeon dropped his remix of Martin Solveig’s “The Night Out” on Saturday in KC, it’s a quality example of beach music. He also played Daft Punk’s 1997 classic “Around the World.” Moments like these lit the crowd up.
Madeon at the Midland.
It was a glorious night of tunes and joyous energy. By paying homage to the past and pushing his sound forward, Madeon proves that the future of French dance music is looking bright.
Of all the festival lineups, this might be one of the best. The highlight has to be the legendary Big Fat Bearded Jam Band. I love Big Fat Bearded Jam Band. They have never played the same set twice. Big Fat Bearded Jam Band have done so much nitrous, they don’t even remember the concept of a set list.
All the members are virtuosos and they all play at once. I love when they cover obscure funk jams and slow the tempos way down. Their flaccid funk helps to placate the big-eyed masses. Big Fat Bearded Jam Band’s music has been described as sounding like a really bad Steely Dan high on bath salts. The four hour shows just fly by when you can’t feel any of the nerve endings in your face.
However, not everything is groovy in Big Fat Bearded Jam Band land. The 45-minute drum solo could probably use some tightening up. Big Fat Bearded Jam Band should also just try not to sing. They tried to harmonize once and it just sounded like, “Ahhhh!!!! Arrrrrgggg!!! Ahhhhhhh!” Also, never see them during the day. Their daytime festival sets sound even more listless.
“During the day sets, they look very hungover,” stated fan Chad Chaddington. “You gotta see them late at night, brah. I saw their aftershow for an aftershow for an aftershow of a Phish aftershow once. It melted my face off of my face.”
For Big Fat Bearded Jam Band and their devoted fans, the pothole-filled road goes on forever. Just keep chasing the dragon into blissful, spinning glory.
Last week marked the birthday of New Orleans blues guitarist Snooks Eaglin. Snooks was a legend of New Orleans music, but not enough people know about him. Eaglin played with Professor Longhair and also played guitar on the Wild Magnolias’ first album. Snooks passed in 2009, but his music and the joy he had playing still resonates deeply with many NOLA music fans.
As I walked into the Mid-City Lanes Rock ‘n Bowl, an elderly blind man was carefully navigating his way up the rickety stairs. I didn’t realize at the time that this was Snooks Eaglin. I was about to find out. For over two hours, he completely melted the stage of that bowling alley.
Every time I saw Snooks live, it was totally mind blowing. Snooks shows would be a combination of blues, jazz, funk and quality old school New Orleans R&B. You would never know what he would play. Anything could happen. He would often just call out key changes to songs as he went along. Snooks rarely used set lists, he would often take requests shouted from the dancing crowd. Meters bassist George Porter Jr. played with Snooks for many years. When I interviewed George, he talked about the experience of playing shows with Snooks, “Before the gig is over, you will have played three or four songs you’ve never heard before in your life.”
Below is one of my favorite Snooks clips. It’s a cover of Professor Longhair’s “Red Beans.” George Porter Jr. is on bass and Jon Cleary plays piano on this live version. So much soul and fire on this tune! Once you know about Snooks Eaglin, you will quickly learn why he is considered a legend of NOLA music.
The satellite radio station at work has been glitching out and looping the same songs for three days straight. Every seven songs, it has been plays Men at Work’s 1981 classic “Down Under.”
The first time you hear it in a long time, you’re like, “Oh hell yeah!! Men at Work kicks ass! This is one of the best songs ever written!” However, I have heard the song over 163times in the past three days. It might be a little bit of an overkill. Being a man at work forced to listen to this Men at Work song against your will can be rough. I think this must be how purgatory feels. You are forced to listen to a song you love over and over and over again. It is a strange form of torture. There have to be some laws in the Geneva Conventions about this.
However, I currently still have “Down Under” still stuck in my head. CAN’T YOU HEAR, CAN’T YOU HEAR THE THUNDER?!? YOU BETTER RUN!!! YOU BETTER TAKE COVER!!!!!!
There are so many bands out there today, I think people are running out of band names. I keep an ever growing list of potential indie rock band names on me at all times. If I ever start a bedroom indie pop project, I will likely name it Mock Turtleneck.
What rules do I follow for this list? Two word band names seem to sound good. The band name also must work in the following sentence, “I saw Mock Turtleneck open for Youth Lagoon. They were good, but he meowed into the mic too much.”
Mock Turtleneck
Galapagos Apocalypse
Shamu and the Peter Pans
Bunny Regret
Wet Kiwi
Crying Duck
Nervous Pervert
Strawberry Mountain
Minimalist Parent
Shaved Driver
Wolf/Woof
Dingo Butter
Evil Lawn
Heat Stroke
Bus Shoes
Gravity Waves
Hobo Rebuff
Flowers for Bees
Cape Disappointment
Electric Pen
Cubicle Days
Night Barge
Blood Moon
Earth’s Shadow
Dwarf Planet
Robert Randolph and the Family Band at Wakarusa 2006.
“Don’t let nobody take your joy away from you,” Robert Randolph enthusiastically shouts to the crowd in an intro to a 2002 live performance of “The March.” He has a point. It’s an important life lesson. Holding on to joy is what life is all about.
Robert Randolph is one of best pedal steel guitar players in the world. He began playing pedal steel in the House of God church in New Jersey. His live shows are filled with an energy that is unparalleled in today’s music scene. The joy he brings to his music is infectious.
Robert Randolph and the Family Band at Crossroads KC (2014).
Live at the Wetlands remains one of my favorite albums of all time. The live album served as my introduction to jam bands. Randolph’s joyous passion comes through in his playing. His playing reminds me of some glorious gospel combination of the Allman Brothers Band and Sly and the Family Stone, but with Randolph’s own voice shining through all of the time.
I first saw Robert Randolph and the Family Band live at the City Market, in 2005, in Kansas City, Missouri. I have seen RRFB live 10 times over the years. His shows are loose and free flowing. No two sets are ever the same. I once saw Randolph play a three song mini-set and it was still 30 minutes long. Epic NOLA Randolph shows featured some of the most uplifting music I have ever heard.
I interviewed Robert Randolph in 2006. It was fascinating to see his positive viewpoint, “When we are in our great state of mind and we see somebody else stumbling along the way, feeling a little down, we can be able to pick them up and get their spirits up. Things like that are really important to me.”
Robert Randolph brings his joy to the world through music. When I go to a show, I want to see an artist doing what they love. Robert Randolph’s music connects with so many people because it comes from a real place. Let’s get to some of my favorite Robert Randolph live jams:
Here’s RRFB and Luther Dickinson (of the North Mississippi Allstars) playing “Squeeze.”
Robert Randolph and the Family Band “Run for Your Life.”
Robert Randolph and the Family Band “The March.”
Here’s Randolph, performing with gospel/jam super group the Word, doing a cover of the Lee Boys’ “Joyful Sounds.”
Herring is an endlessly creative musician. “What I like more than anything is basically to have no genre at all. Where elements of different styles of music come together to form something pure that has no definitive category,” he stated in my 2014 interview. Jimmy’s desire to create music that exists beyond category keeps him pushing ahead. “Ultimately, a musician is seeking their one true voice,” Hering said. That can be a lifelong search.”
Let’s get to some jams. I decided to focus on some non-Widespread Panic tunes to show off Jimmy’s versatility:
Here’s the Jimmy Herring Band doing “Aberdeen.”
Here’s Jimmy and Derek Trucks ripping it up:
Here’s Jimmy playing the classic “Basically Frightened” with Col. Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit:
Here’s Jimmy sitting in with the Allman Brothers Band:
Here’s Jimmy sitting in with the Allman Brothers Band and taking “Mountain Jam” to Mars. Following this show, Gregg Allman was talking to the band about this jam, “OK, who’s the fucking Phish fan? That was too much.” Is this jam over the top? Yes, but Jimmy and Derek Trucks take the song to glorious heights.
I had a friend of mine in college that was playing a mix CD he had made of new music. I asked him about what some of tunes were. “I don’t know yet. I’ll find out what I’m listening to tomorrow.” The tunes were so new, the guy that made the CD didn’t even know them yet. He is so hip, he is ahead of himself.
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