 |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Sunday, November 26, 2006
As this long Thanksgiving weekend winds down, I wanted to take a moment to show a little gratitude for some of our area music-makers and supporters, the ones that help make Boston the great-sounding city it can be for me. I often feel like I don't give the local scene enough written love here on the 'Nac, spending what little blogging time I have focusing mostly on visiting out-of-town faves. This too-small post isn't meant to make up for that, but hopefully it'll help motivate me to pay more attention in '07...  First off, a big thanks to a certain handful of area independent promoters who consistently do their DIY thing and do it so well. Without them, I wouldn't see half the shows I do; so many local acts would be without solid lineups to jump on; and a whole bunch of touring bands would be struggling for the nights they need. So cheers to Stacie Slotnick at CPR; Carl Lavin & Ben Sisto for all the shows at Great Scott, O'Brien's, and elsewhere; Aliza Shapiro at Truth Serum; Dan Shea at BoWAaC, and Dan Hirsch for the amazing evenings he helps put together at the MFA Boston.  Speaking of which, here's to the alternative venues that have popped up during the past few years, and have continued to give me an oft-needed break from the ol' big two in Central Square. I've seen countless memorable shows at Great Scott, PA's Lounge, the MFA's Remis Auditorium, and the Lily Pad. Viva variety. Thanks to one of my favorite local labels (hell, one of my faves period), Kimchee Records. Co-run by Andy Hong and Bob Dubrow, the imprint is celebrating it's 10-year anniversary with two upcoming shows, the first on Friday, December 29th at the Middle East in Cambridge, the second on Friday, January 5th at TT the Bears next door. Just check out the bands playing these shows: Seekonk, Hilken Mancini (ex-Fuzzy) & Chris Colbourn (Buffalo Tom), Tiger Saw, Geoff Farina (ex-Karate), 27, a reunited Cordelia's Dad, Thalia Zedek, the Paula Kelley Orchestra, Heidi Saperstein, Willard Grant Conspiracy, and Chris Brokaw. Check the list on the left for the exact where and when. And as Kimchee hits their decade mark, here's to the upstart Post Meridian Records, who now have a year under their belts and are throwing a holiday party at the Abbey Lounge on Thursday, December 21st. The label was recently profiled in a nice Boston Globe article, and next year looks to be an important one for them as their initial signees release more music. Keep an ear out for those future full-lengths from The Westward Trail (myspace) and Logan 5 & The Runners (myspace). Thanks for the Band In Boston podcast, which is coming up on six months of not only playing songs from area artists and in-town visitors, but hosting their own 'Flophouse Sessions', where locals get to play live. Here's hoping that Andy & Jen keep it going long enough to celebrate a bunch of anniversaries of their own. Thanks to those locals who put out albums that have made (and are still making) my 2006 go down smoother, including Drew O'Doherty, Victory At Sea, Age Rings (who I recently plugged over at ILB), Dear Leader, Tanya Donelly, and for an album I just got in the mail, the Specific Heats. (speaking of the Age Rings, check out their recent live Flophouse session on the Band In Boston podcast) Thanks for area college radio, especially WMBR's long-running "Pipeline" and the more recent "Phoning It In" programs, along with WZBC's "Mesmerization Eclipse" and "Flyweight" shows. Thanks to some of my longtime faves who continue to make their home here, writing songs and playing out often. It'd be easy to take them for granted if their output didn't continue to be so damn good. I'm talkin' about some names I've mentioned above and a few I haven't in awhile: Chris Brokaw, Seana Carmody, Aaron Perrino, Thalia Zedek, Bill Janovitz, Tanya Donelly, Chris Pearson, and a bunch more I'm probably spacing on. Linkworthy bits from those above...
And I'll bring this post to a thematic close with a link to "Thanksgiving", a short film that writer/director Alex Johnson has finally made available for viewing in its entirety over at his Lachima Films site. What does this have to do with Boston music? Well, the film was scored by none other than Drew O'Doherty with Klaus Hubben (Certainly, Sir) and Scott Craggs (Roh Delikat). A great collaboration all around, musically and visually. And so the long weekend is over, and I've only scratched the surface of the Boston-born music-makers and boosters that help make my listening life what it is. There's so much more, and it'll be an easy resolution to give my adopted hometown more musical due in the new year...  |
 neil halstead live in cambridge, ma on november 14th, 2008 previously: joy formidable - boston 2011 recent posts on the 'nac...
on the nightstand boston-area music bloggers
boston music media 
|
