What? With their 2005 debut, countrified-rock outfit Magnolia Electric Co. asked a mind-boggling question: "What comes after the blues?" Three years later, Brooklyn-based troubadour TK Webb has found the answer, and it's pretty heavy, man. With his newly formed backing band, the Visions -- featuring ex-members of Blood on the Wall and Love as Laughter -- Webb returns this week with the riff-tastic Ancestor. A drastic departure from the stark, howling blues perversions of Webb's 2006 solo outing, Phantom Parade, Ancestor owes more to Robert Plant than it does to Robert Johnson, with astral sonic projections, mystical lyrics, and '70s-hard-rock-indebted guitar play that will have you hopping misty mountain tops from the moment the needle drops.
More on SPIN.com:
>> Exclusive: TK Webb & the Visions Announce First U.S. Tour
Who? Born Thomas Kelly Webb in 1977 in Missouri, Webb released his debut, KCK (short for Kansas City, KS), in 2005 on Brooklyn's eclectic Social Registry label. After its follow-up, Phantom Parade, dropped to widespread critical recognition the following year, TK formed the Visions in the summer of 2007. Ancestor is the group's debut and first record on new label home Kemado. The Visions are made up of Webb (vocals/guitars), Brian Hale (guitars), Ben McConnell (drums), and Jordan Gable (bass).
Fun Fact: Webb, who picked up the guitar at age 9, played with numerous bands before going the solo route on his debut full-length. But with the Visions, the singer/songwriter feels right at home. "It felt like gravity pulling the sound towards being bigger," Webb says of working with the new group. "I found myself surrounded by bland half-baked folk acts and wanted out... but this project feels right. It feels like a band should."
Now Hear This: TK Webb & the Visions, "Shame"
Despite relatively recent label troubles and tragic setbacks, emo survivors Hawthorne Heights are still pushing into the future -- specifically, with the recent release of Fragile Future and today's announcement of a headlining U.S. tour this fall.
More on SPIN.com:
>>Artist of the Day: Hawthorne Heights>>Exclusive: Backstage Video with Hawthorne Heights
>>Hawthorne Heights, 'If Only You Were Lonely' (Victory)
>>Victory Files Countersuit Against Hawthorne Heights
>>Hawthorne Heights Fights Lonely-ness
Frontman JT Woodruff and the gang will strike out on The Never Sleep Again Tour Oct. 17 in St. Petersburg, FL, and make their way through major cities in the South, Midwest, and West Coast before hitting the East Coast for a string of dates, concluding in Norfolk, VA, Nov. 30. "It's been a long time since we did a real headlining tour," drummer Eron Bucciarelli said. "We'll be busting out rarely played HH songs and a healthy dose of new songs from Fragile Future."
Now Hear This: Hawthorne Heights, "Rescue Me"
Hawthorne Heights Tour Dates:
10/17, St. Petersburg, FL (State Theatre)
10/19, Ft. Lauderdale, FL (Culture Room)
10/20, Tallahassee, FL (Floyd's Music Store)
10/21, Atlanta, GA (Masquerade)
10/23, New Orleans, LA (House of Blues)
10/24, Little Rock, AR (Village Theater)
10/25, Frisco, TX (Pizza Hut Park -- Edgefest)
10/26, The Woodlands, TX (Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion -- Buzzfest)
11/1, San Antonio, TX (White Rabbit)
11/3, Scottsdale, AZ (Martini Ranch)
11/6, Bakersfield, CA (The Dome)
11/7, Pomona, CA (The Glasshouse Concert Hall)
11/8, West Hollywood, CA (House of Blues)
11/9, San Francisco, CA (The Regency/Grand Ballroom)
11/10, Portland, OR (Crystal Ballroom)
11/11, Boise, ID (Knitting Factory)
11/13, Denver, CO (Ogden Theatre)
11/15, Des Moines, IA (People's Court)
11/16, St. Paul, MN (Station 4)
11/17, Lawrence, KS (Granada Theater)
11/18, Chicago, IL (The Metro)
11/20, Detroit, MI (St. Andrews Hall)
11/21, Newport, KY (The Southgate House)
11/22, Pittsburgh, PA (Rex Theatre)
11/23, Hartford, CT (Webster Theatre)
11/24, Boston, MA (Wilbur Theatre)
11/25, New York, NY (Irving Plaza)
11/26, Poughkeepsie, NY (The Chance)
11/28, Towson, MD (Recher Theatre)
11/29, Richmond, VA (The National)
11/30, Norfolk, VA (Norva)
"We want to thank SPIN. We've been on the cover six times, but we've never been part of a showcase," joshed Adam Selzer, lead singer/guitarist for Portland's Norfolk & Western. The Hush Records-affiliated quintet -- reduced to a four-piece due to a viola mishap earlier in the week -- came out roaring last night before an adoring crowd at SPIN's Music Fest NW kick-off party at the sweltering Berbati's Pan, a popular restaurant-cum-nightclub located in the heart of downtown.
Alternating between pretty, radio-friendly pop songs and contemplative, mid-tempo ballads, Selzer and company ratcheted up the rock factor, a decision lapped up by an at-capacity audience eager for more.
Up next was Langhorne Slim, a folksy trio that cribs heavily from the No Depression playbook. Mixing country, classic rock, and Tom Petty-like Americana, the NYC-based act made a game effort to win over the Portland crowd with stage banter ("is anyone at this particular time...ready to get crazy?), platitudes ("it's a pleasure and an honor to be here"), and raw, frenetic energy.
Making their first Portland appearance in some time ("we've been here before... but now there are more of you"), the Old 97's took to the stage shortly after midnight and were promptly greeted by deafening applause. Like a countrified, blue-collar hybrid of the Pogues, Camper Van Beethoven, and Social Distortion, the Dallas band wasted no time blazing through a set that drew on all periods of their now lengthy discography, including their most recent long-player, Blame It On Gravity. Halfway through the performance, the Old 97's broke into a spot-on cover of Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried," providing further proof that they know how to talk the cowboy talk, and walk the cowboy walk.
Check out pictures from last night on page 2.
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Langhorne Slim / Photo by Josh Elliot
Langhorne Slim / Photo by Josh Elliot
Norfolk and Western / Photo by Josh Elliot
Norfolk and Western / Photo by Josh Elliot
Norfolk and Western / Photo by Josh Elliot
Old 97's / Photo by Josh Elliot
Old 97's / Photo by Josh Elliot
Andrew Bird is a modern-day renaissance man. Beyond his multi-instrumental prowess and penchant for quirky, orchestrated chamber pop, Bird has come to define the sort of bookish, detached cool that can't be bought, styled, or practiced in front of the mirror. And with his mind-boggling skill, Bird looped, strummed, plucked, and whistled with his crack band through a set heavy in new tunes to an adoring crowd last night under the stars in Chicago's Millennium Park.
More on SPIN.com:
>> World Party, Andrew Bird Get Bonnaroo Moving
After the band's exuberant versions of "Plasticities" and "Fiery Crash," audience members rocketed to their feet as soon as Bird ripped into the intro to "Fake Palindromes." Patrons on the lawn poured down into the pavilion, pushing forward in one collective conga line of writhing excitement. In a matter of seconds, the scene went from tame restraint to a crush of dancing bodies, with young girls screaming, "I love you!" The sudden tsunami of activity left the bewildered security staff throwing their hands in the air and exchanging glances that said, "What the hell?! This guy is playing a freakin' violin!"
Though the crowd stopped just short of panty-throwing, the night left this reporter with one thought to ponder: Is VH1 interested in casting a new hunk for the next season of Rock of Love?
Check out pictures from last night on page 2.
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Andrew Bird / Photo by Laura Gray
Andrew Bird / Photo by Laura Gray
Andrew Bird / Photo by Laura Gray
Andrew Bird / Photo by Laura Gray
Just as fans were finally accepting the death of '90s balladeers Ben Folds Five and embracing each member's respective solo projects, the piano, drum, and bass trio will reunite for the first time in 10 years to tape an installment of MySpace's newest show, Front to Back.
More on SPIN.com:
>> New Ben Folds Album Out September 30
The new program, which features musicians playing their seminal albums, ahem, from front to back, will see the Ben Folds Five take the stage September 18 at UNC Memorial Hall, in their former hometown of Chapel Hill, NC, and play 1999's The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner in its entirety. The show will be rebroadcast for MySpace viewers at a yet-to-be announced date in October.
"When MySpace approached me about doing this gig… I misunderstood and thought they wanted us to play Purple Rain front to back, so of course I said yes," Ben Folds said. "But we're happy to do The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner instead. Of our three albums, this one brings back the most vivid memories. It was actually written to be one song of many movements, which is why there are motifs that appear throughout the album. That should make Reinhold a natural to be played front to back."
Fans can purchase tickets beginning Sept. 8 via eTix.com, with proceeds to benefit Operation Smile: Changing Lives One Smile at a Time.
Considering Bumbershoot's ever-expanding, eclectic lineup -- not to mention other local oddities like the Green River Killer, the Sasquatch, and the Aurora Bridge's Troll -- Seattleites are certainly accustomed to a little weirdness. But when Portland, OR's Blitzen Trapper took the stage, even the freakiest freaks below the Space Needle (and there's plenty of them!) wondered what their pot was laced with, as the band slipped from slacker indie-pop to countrified balladry, to lumberjack prog -- all in one song!
Watch the sextet -- led by singer/songwriter Eric Earley -- rip through "Devil's A-Go-Go," off their breakout LP Wild Mountain Nation. And be sure to check back to SPIN.com all week long for more from Bumbershoot '08!
"Devil's A-Go-Go"
What? As survivors of the heady rise and uneasy comedown of the '90s electronica craze, Manchester, England's the Chemical Brothers have been bringing the block rockin' beats at a consistent rate, from 1997's landmark rave touchstone Dig Your Own Hole to last year's spacey We Are the Night. This week, the Brothers look back with the career-spanning Brotherhood, a double-disc compilation featuring the duo's classic singles, as well as tracks from the hard-to-find Electronic Battle Weapon single series (including new single "Midnight Madness") and a brand spanking (literally) new cut featuring Baltimore MC Spank Rock, "Keep My Composure".
More on SPIN.com:
>> The Chemical Brothers Galvanize the Roundhouse
>> Chemical Brothers, We Are the Night (Astralwerks)
>> New Chemical Brothers Collection Out Sept. 2
Who? Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands began first working together as the Dust Brothers in 1992, but were forced to change their name to the Chemical Brothers in 1995 following threats of legal action from U.S. production team the Dust Brothers. Besides releasing six full-lengths since 1995's debut Exit Planet Dust, Simons and Rowlands have collaborated with such wide-ranging artists as Q-Tip, the Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne, and New Order's Bernard Sumner.
Fun Fact: A CD copy of the Brothers' third full-length, Surrender, was buried in a time capsule, compiled in January 2000 by the popular British children's television show Blue Peter.
Now Watch This: "Midnight Madness"
Thursday night promises to be full of rare moments for Tegan Quin, half of sister duo Tegan & Sara. She'll be performing a song that she wrote to accompany the audiobook of Augusten Burroughs' A Wolf at the Table for the very first -- and possibly last -- time in front of a live audience, and she'll be appearing for only the third time without her sister, Sara.
It's all part of SPIN.com's first-ever Liner Notes event, a benefit for NYC AIDS charity Housing Works featuring performances and readings by Tegan, Burroughs, Circa Survive's Colin Frangicetto, Elizabeth Seward, and Anberlin's Stephen Christian. The sold-out event is set for Thursday, Sept. 4, at 8 P.M. at the Housing Works Bookstore Café in New York City.
In the video interview below, with SPIN.com Book Club curator Emily Zemler, Tegan talks about how the collaboration with Burroughs came together and what it's like to play without her sister.
Be sure to check back to SPIN.com on Friday for photos and video from the event!
The sad truth: Not all youngsters gallivanting under Seattle's Space Needle Monday turned out to heed SPIN deputy editor Steve Kandell's advice and catch indie rock luminaries Superchunk's rare live set in Memorial Stadium.
But despite the not-so-thick crowd, frontman Mac McCaughan and crew's tangled indie-pop hooked many a fervent, fist pumping, and -- at times -- moshing 30-something clad in weathered rock tees. Even Death Cab guitarist Chris Walla, perched on the side of the stage, exhausted more energy bouncing up and down in glee than strumming alongside Ben Gibbard later that night. Plus, comedian Janeane Garofalo was seen running backstage, coffee in hand, to watch the band with her own two eyes. Call it '90s nostalgia, but who wants to argue with the same decade that spawned grunge, Beavis and Butthead, the DIY movement, slacker sarcasm, and so many other entities responsible for the sounds of today? Not me.
Watch Superchunk rip through classics like the fuzzy pop-smart "Throwing Things," off 1991's No Pocky for Kitty, and "The First Part," a heavy rocker from 1993's Foolish, and be sure to check back to SPIN.com all week for more from Bumbershoot '08.
"Throwing Things"
>> Watch "The First Part"
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"The First Part"
>> Watch "Throwing Things"
Sandwiched between sets from Athens, GA's, the Whigs and Minneapolis' Tapes 'n Tapes, it's easy to be overshadowed, but Glasgow rock'n'roll quartet Sons and Daughters found no trouble standing out on their own Sunday evening at the Rockstar Stage, as commanding frontwoman Adele Bethel and axeman/vocalist Scott Paterson led the band through one of the day's most energetic sets.
Watch the quartet rip through the chanting, brash groover "Johnny Cash," sung in their thick Scot brogue, below, and be sure to check back to SPIN.com all week long for much more from Bumbershoot '08.