A rock star writes an article about the little town where he played his show. Makes me wish I could have worked in a story about the dude.
Check it out.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
July and a few tidbits
Just a cool thing. Ben Kweller is playing Mountain Stage July 26. I'm a little guarded. By most reports, the last two "big" headliners have been problematic. Patterson Hood from the Drive By Truckers was sick and the set was fine. It just wasn't the southern-fried rockin' thing everybody wanted. Neko Case approached the live radio show like it was a studio session.
It would be great if this one turned out.
Side notes.
1-Keith Urban was nice, but guarded. It felt like he was waiting for a question to be asked.
2-Leon Redbone was weird. I expected a fun, funny guy, but instead I got a mildly suspicious, slightly combative dude who'd be okay if none of us knew each other's first names. It was a little disappointing. You expect someone who seems to do playful material to be playful, but oddly, it's just as often it's the scary stuff people who are the most fun. Mercedes Lander from Kittie was bubbly and charming. Jerry Only from The Misfits was very easy going and Spider One from Powerman 5000 was great. Redbone just seemed... I dunno... against type.
The hope is I just caught him on a bad day.
It would be great if this one turned out.
Side notes.
1-Keith Urban was nice, but guarded. It felt like he was waiting for a question to be asked.
2-Leon Redbone was weird. I expected a fun, funny guy, but instead I got a mildly suspicious, slightly combative dude who'd be okay if none of us knew each other's first names. It was a little disappointing. You expect someone who seems to do playful material to be playful, but oddly, it's just as often it's the scary stuff people who are the most fun. Mercedes Lander from Kittie was bubbly and charming. Jerry Only from The Misfits was very easy going and Spider One from Powerman 5000 was great. Redbone just seemed... I dunno... against type.
The hope is I just caught him on a bad day.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
It must be said
Those interviews I tend to plan extensively for and hope will turn out spectacular tend to blow up. About half the time, they're real stinkers. The interviewed acts like they're being grilled by the IRS about the money they gave their gay Canadian mistress.
On those interviews where I walk blindly into a wall of fog, unprepared and sweating out my incompetence, it's funny how it leads, only by accident, into interesting places. I get tiny bits of truth.
If I could be sure I'd get to go interesting places every time, I'd never bother with the homework.
On those interviews where I walk blindly into a wall of fog, unprepared and sweating out my incompetence, it's funny how it leads, only by accident, into interesting places. I get tiny bits of truth.
If I could be sure I'd get to go interesting places every time, I'd never bother with the homework.
Friday, May 22, 2009
The Rules: rule 2
Another music writer rule --by the way, these aren't really in any particular order.
Rule 2: Remember who you work for.
You work for your reader. In the end, that's who buys the papers, that's who buys the products your advertiser's sell, etc... etc... You work for the audience; the same as a singer, an actor or a stripper. The difference, naturally, is the previous occupations require more talent for any degree of success and pay better for the size of audience.
Music and entertainment writing isn't high-minded stuff really. It branches into it sometimes and sometimes, some entertainment writers can attain the profound or the poetic riffing off an album, a song, a performance, an experience, but usually not. Mostly, entertainment writing is about diverting people's attention, providing them with something pleasant to think about, and giving the reader options on their weekend. At it's worst, it becomes gossip. At it's best, it's human interest --it's about people and maybe a look at some aspect of people we either share or wish we could share.
Often, a story will encourage other things --like commerce. Entertainment features put people in movie houses, get them to buy records (sometimes) and push them in the direction of a show. This is a side effect --kind of like how certain heart medicines also give you nuclear-powered boners. While the side effect is not without its benefits (and is certainly more lucrative), it's not what you're here to do.
Occasionally, others will confuse the side effect with the intended effect. They will want you to confuse it, too, and for all kinds of reasons that sound good on the surface. Just remember what's good for the performer or the show is not necessarily good for the reader --or the newspaper or the magazine.
Also... and just as importantly... what is good for the writer is not necessarily what's good for the reader. I'd be lying if I didn't say I occasionally wanted to do stories that are only for me. Sometimes, it's wanting to help someone who really needs it. Other times, it's wanting to get a piece of knowledge that's hard to get at. Validation is another thing: some sort of proof of self-worth as seen reflected through the job. It's kind of a sickness, given the kind of things I write about. Really, are there ten people in this state who are bothered that Bruce Springsteen hasn't played in West Virginia in over 30 years?
Periodically, I pitch things at my editors of dubious value and they have to remind me: who does this benefit? If the answer is "me," then we don't do it.
Remember your reader.
Rule 2: Remember who you work for.
You work for your reader. In the end, that's who buys the papers, that's who buys the products your advertiser's sell, etc... etc... You work for the audience; the same as a singer, an actor or a stripper. The difference, naturally, is the previous occupations require more talent for any degree of success and pay better for the size of audience.
Music and entertainment writing isn't high-minded stuff really. It branches into it sometimes and sometimes, some entertainment writers can attain the profound or the poetic riffing off an album, a song, a performance, an experience, but usually not. Mostly, entertainment writing is about diverting people's attention, providing them with something pleasant to think about, and giving the reader options on their weekend. At it's worst, it becomes gossip. At it's best, it's human interest --it's about people and maybe a look at some aspect of people we either share or wish we could share.
Often, a story will encourage other things --like commerce. Entertainment features put people in movie houses, get them to buy records (sometimes) and push them in the direction of a show. This is a side effect --kind of like how certain heart medicines also give you nuclear-powered boners. While the side effect is not without its benefits (and is certainly more lucrative), it's not what you're here to do.
Occasionally, others will confuse the side effect with the intended effect. They will want you to confuse it, too, and for all kinds of reasons that sound good on the surface. Just remember what's good for the performer or the show is not necessarily good for the reader --or the newspaper or the magazine.
Also... and just as importantly... what is good for the writer is not necessarily what's good for the reader. I'd be lying if I didn't say I occasionally wanted to do stories that are only for me. Sometimes, it's wanting to help someone who really needs it. Other times, it's wanting to get a piece of knowledge that's hard to get at. Validation is another thing: some sort of proof of self-worth as seen reflected through the job. It's kind of a sickness, given the kind of things I write about. Really, are there ten people in this state who are bothered that Bruce Springsteen hasn't played in West Virginia in over 30 years?
Periodically, I pitch things at my editors of dubious value and they have to remind me: who does this benefit? If the answer is "me," then we don't do it.
Remember your reader.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
DBT at the Clay Center
In case you missed the announcement, the Clay Center has published their new schedule. Among the highlights, the Drive By Truckers are coming back in November. The band recently played Mountain Stage, but Patterson Hood was pretty much the walking dead and the show was very downbeat for what was expected. More than a few people were disappointed.
Anyway, I was digging through my old files and found a rough draft on a Drive By Trucker article I wrote a couple of years ago. Three years back, I did an insane number of All Good festival articles. There was just so many choices, I was kind of like a kid in a candy store and really lost track of who I scheduled. So, Patterson Hood just calls up one afternoon. We had an appointment. I hadn't written it down. I wasn't prepared, didn't have my notes and so we winged it. The results were a bit --eh, but that happens when you're unprepared, haven't listened to the album and only vaguely know who they are.
Three years ago, I didn't know who a lot of people are. This is the kind of job where you're always going to be at least a little behind.
Anyway, most of the good stuff, I had to leave out of the article, including the part about him toking his first joint here in Charleston -which was funny and should be printed on state tourism flyers. "West Virginia: a place to smoke pot." He might have even seen his first pair of live, naked breasts here, but my memory is a little faulty on the subject. Someone told me this was the town where their first concert here was also the place where they saw their first set of beer-drenched tits.
This should also be printed on tourism flyers.
Anyway, Hood and company are headed back for a show that will hopefully redeem their lesser loved recent performance... what would be funny is if Niko Case was the opening act, but I'm not holding my breath.
Anyway, I was digging through my old files and found a rough draft on a Drive By Trucker article I wrote a couple of years ago. Three years back, I did an insane number of All Good festival articles. There was just so many choices, I was kind of like a kid in a candy store and really lost track of who I scheduled. So, Patterson Hood just calls up one afternoon. We had an appointment. I hadn't written it down. I wasn't prepared, didn't have my notes and so we winged it. The results were a bit --eh, but that happens when you're unprepared, haven't listened to the album and only vaguely know who they are.
Three years ago, I didn't know who a lot of people are. This is the kind of job where you're always going to be at least a little behind.
Anyway, most of the good stuff, I had to leave out of the article, including the part about him toking his first joint here in Charleston -which was funny and should be printed on state tourism flyers. "West Virginia: a place to smoke pot." He might have even seen his first pair of live, naked breasts here, but my memory is a little faulty on the subject. Someone told me this was the town where their first concert here was also the place where they saw their first set of beer-drenched tits.
This should also be printed on tourism flyers.
Anyway, Hood and company are headed back for a show that will hopefully redeem their lesser loved recent performance... what would be funny is if Niko Case was the opening act, but I'm not holding my breath.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Vandalia
I'm not a huge fan of traditional music. I prefer it in small doses. A couple of bluegrass tunes in an afternoon or a single 18th century Scottish ballad and most of the time I'm good. No more needed for a month or so. I have the same feeling for Death Metal, though alcohol can sometimes deaden the pain of extended exposure.
Others go nuts for the stuff and they are welcome to.
Still, whether I'm a fan of old time music or not, Vandalia Gathering is one of my favorite festivals in the state --which isn't difficult, given my ongoing lack of enthusiasm about many of the others. Vandalia has a solid core, which is the traditional music, and the other stuff (arts, culture and food) sort of builds up around it. They've got their one thing down. That's what they do. Everything else is sort of secondary. This, they say, is why the Sternwheel Regatta worked in the old days, because it was really about the damned boats and the debauchery on the river. The music, the booze and the food on the boulevard sprang up around it. When they lost the sternwheelers, the party was over. The festival went into an endless tailspin of suck.
That's what they say... I liked a couple of the shows during Regatta years back, but really, I always thought what killed the thing was turning it from a half-assed mardis gras into a citywide birthday party for an eight year-old nobody likes.
Anyway, my feeling is Vandalia lasts as long as the state continues to pay for it and as long as the festival stays away from trying to be all things to all people. Inclusion is over-rated. The second they open up their new rock stage (for the kids) with special appearance by "Bon Scottscock" that'll be the end.
What I like about Vandalia is I don't have to try very hard to get it. It is what it is. While the music may not be my particular brand, it's usually decent and there's a lot of enthusiasm among the players and the fans. It's a good time and nobody tries to pawn anything off about it as something it's not --at least, it seems pretty much on the up and up.
Anyway, if you haven't made the trip up for Vandalia, you should --and what the hell, get some ramps and maybe a square of cornbread. You might as well soak it up. Go whole hillbilly for a day.
Others go nuts for the stuff and they are welcome to.
Still, whether I'm a fan of old time music or not, Vandalia Gathering is one of my favorite festivals in the state --which isn't difficult, given my ongoing lack of enthusiasm about many of the others. Vandalia has a solid core, which is the traditional music, and the other stuff (arts, culture and food) sort of builds up around it. They've got their one thing down. That's what they do. Everything else is sort of secondary. This, they say, is why the Sternwheel Regatta worked in the old days, because it was really about the damned boats and the debauchery on the river. The music, the booze and the food on the boulevard sprang up around it. When they lost the sternwheelers, the party was over. The festival went into an endless tailspin of suck.
That's what they say... I liked a couple of the shows during Regatta years back, but really, I always thought what killed the thing was turning it from a half-assed mardis gras into a citywide birthday party for an eight year-old nobody likes.
Anyway, my feeling is Vandalia lasts as long as the state continues to pay for it and as long as the festival stays away from trying to be all things to all people. Inclusion is over-rated. The second they open up their new rock stage (for the kids) with special appearance by "Bon Scottscock" that'll be the end.
What I like about Vandalia is I don't have to try very hard to get it. It is what it is. While the music may not be my particular brand, it's usually decent and there's a lot of enthusiasm among the players and the fans. It's a good time and nobody tries to pawn anything off about it as something it's not --at least, it seems pretty much on the up and up.
Anyway, if you haven't made the trip up for Vandalia, you should --and what the hell, get some ramps and maybe a square of cornbread. You might as well soak it up. Go whole hillbilly for a day.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Taking the hit
Well... I stuck by my guns: no e-mail interviews with ventriloquists. I asked. They declined. They offered, I giggled and wrote back saying I wished him the best of luck. Meanwhile, without the sound, I scoffed at the idea that a touring ventriloquist saving his voice by not doing the occasional phone interview with the local paper. I piss on the very notion. Chances are when he calls room service at the motel, he doesn't send an e-mail down to the kitchen for his grilled cheese and caviar sandwich. When he hails a cab, he doesn't send smoke signals. He is not going to use ASL to communicate with the crew backstage. It is a bullshit excuse.
Bottom line... what he does is a vocal performance that is very much in line with what an a Capella singer would do, what a stand-up comedian or an impressionist might do. I'd argue he's not doing anything more vocally challenging than what the lead singer of Kitty does when she switches abruptly from a sweet melodic schoolgirl voice to the throat crushing devil voice.
Yeah... I don't think he's so much saving his voice as saving his ass. A lot of comedians just aren't funny when they're not on stage. I appreciate not wanting to look bad. If you suck at interviews, you should practice.
Of course, I don't know the competition will do. I'm actually curious to see.
Bottom line... what he does is a vocal performance that is very much in line with what an a Capella singer would do, what a stand-up comedian or an impressionist might do. I'd argue he's not doing anything more vocally challenging than what the lead singer of Kitty does when she switches abruptly from a sweet melodic schoolgirl voice to the throat crushing devil voice.
Yeah... I don't think he's so much saving his voice as saving his ass. A lot of comedians just aren't funny when they're not on stage. I appreciate not wanting to look bad. If you suck at interviews, you should practice.
Of course, I don't know the competition will do. I'm actually curious to see.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Charlie West Blues
The Charlie West Blues Festival is coming up next weekend. Twenty bucks (fifteen, if you join the Blues Society) nets you eight acts, including some people who have been up for awards. It's not necessarily a family-friendly-end-all-be-all of a a kind of festival. One of the more interesting acts on the card is a harmonica player named Jason Ricci.
Jason is a very, very troubled boy... He's had run-ins with the law, but doesn't look like a traditional blues player. He doesn't flinch when talking about his drug use or the fact that he doesn't fuck chicks (consider how many gay blues musicians you can think of), but man... he's got one spooky album out. His latest, "Done With The Devil" is creepy, heartfelt and just plain weird. It's what might have happened if Marilyn Manson had studied under Sonny Boy. Oh, it's dark.
He's also up for a Blues Music Award. Hell, he hasn't got a chance in hell, but it would still be cool if he won.
Anyway, the Charlie West Blues Festival next weekend. It's a pretty good ticket.
Jason is a very, very troubled boy... He's had run-ins with the law, but doesn't look like a traditional blues player. He doesn't flinch when talking about his drug use or the fact that he doesn't fuck chicks (consider how many gay blues musicians you can think of), but man... he's got one spooky album out. His latest, "Done With The Devil" is creepy, heartfelt and just plain weird. It's what might have happened if Marilyn Manson had studied under Sonny Boy. Oh, it's dark.
He's also up for a Blues Music Award. Hell, he hasn't got a chance in hell, but it would still be cool if he won.
Anyway, the Charlie West Blues Festival next weekend. It's a pretty good ticket.
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