Hello everyone,

I wanted to let you know we will be shutting down cvilleMUSE in a week or two.   It was a hard decision to make, but we think the arts and music community will be better served by making it a subset of cVillain.

Shaun came to us in March 2008 and had a vision for covering local music.  We wanted to make MUSE into something bigger than just music and worked with Shaun and many other writers including NewMan, Pinky, Esther, Cortney, Allie, Colton and Nick to cover as many types of local art forms that we could.

Why did we decide to shut down cvilleMUSE?   Several reasons, actually. We didn’t ever reach enough website traffic to make cvilleMUSE a viable standalone media source for local arts. I am not sure if this was due to lack of promotion, a small arts community or too many other sources of information.  Secondly, with the changing face of media, we decided that Shaun should focus his efforts into creating his own, personal brand.  Shaun is decidedly the go-to music expert in town and his passion and devotion to bringing music journalism to the Charlottesville community is something that I know will continue.  Shaun will be starting his own independent project which we will support as much as we can.  Thirdly, we don’t think that the site could thrive without someone as committed as Shaun.

We’ll be doing some reorganization with cVillain so that we can bring the arts to a larger audience.  If you have any suggestions or questions, please let me know in the comments.

Again, thanks so much for everyone involved in cvilleMUSE.  It was an awesome experience and your love for arts and music really shined.  There are a lot of people behind the scenes-the readers, the technical support folks, the dude who ran the calendar, the commenters-who also deserve a lot of thanks for contributing.  Thanks again everyone and I hope you look forward to continued arts and music coverage on cVillain.

[please leave comments on cVillain]

Experts in mops that scuba-dive…long-lost sisters on the hundredth floor having emotional sea changes…a western movie about eggplant parmesian…bowling with goldfish…

Come be part of the fun and watch your suggestions be incorporated into impromptu scenes by the Hamner Improv Troupe, Varsity and JV. The zanier, the better!

Show 7:30 pm, Doors/Bar 6:30 pm
Tickets are $10, $25 for a family, includes dessert (reservations required)
Please call 434-361-1999 for reservations.

Summary:
What – An evening of improv, in the Cabaret
Who - Hamner Improv Troupe, varsity & junior varsity
Where - Hamner Theater, at the Rockfish Valley Community Center, 190 Rockfish School Lane Nellysford, VA
When - Saturday, January 17 at 7:30pm, doors 6:30pm
Tickets - $10, includes dessert, $25/family
Reservations/Information 434 361 1999
Venue website - www.hamnertheater.com

For information contact:
Nancy Mulrine, nmulrine@hamnertheater.com
Marketing Director, Hamner Theater
Rockfish Valley Community Center
190 Rockfish School Lane, Nellysford, VA
434 361 1999

You may remember Ray Smith from our earlier profile of him. He’s back in action with an original comedy revue!

Play On! presents Future Sketch/Laugh Sounds, an original comedy revue developed by director, Ray Smith and his multi-talented, local cast.  Depending on who you talk to, Future Sketch/Laugh Sounds has been described as “HBO’s Mr. Show meets Showtime at the Apollo” or “Wu-tang Clan meets Justin Timberlake” or “A Sports Bar meets a Mennonite Town Square.”  Bringing all this to life are Lisa Jensen-Mitchell, Ruth Morton, Wendy Repass, Mary Waalkes, Katy Walker, Christina White, Andy Davis, Alex Modic, Jack Rakes, Nate Wooten & Jim Zarling.  Musical Direction is by Mecca Burns with lighting design by Derby Thomas. (more…)

This one seemed like a somewhat fitting choice to post today.  Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8, 1935 and while Gillian Welch’s “Elvis Presley Blues” contains the repeated lines of “I was thinking last night about Elvis, the day that he died” it’s still a fitting tribute to the King of Rock-N-Roll on his 74th birthday.  This live version of “Elvis Presley Blues” by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings is taken from BBC Four’s Sessions in 2007.  And if you want a taste of the real thing, the link below is for Presley’s 1956 television performance of “Heartbreak Hotel”.

Elvis Presley–”Heartbreak Hotel” [YouTube]

[6 Day Bender: Danny Breen (bass), Luke Nutting (banjo), Clayton Avent (guitar), & Corey Gross (drums)]

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been at this for almost ten months and I have yet to feature 6 Day Bender on these online pages.  As a wiser man than I once said…”Better late than never”.  Well here you go as this is Charlottesville “mountain rock” at its very finest and I present it to you on the eve of 6 Day Bender’s performance tomorrow night (Friday, January 9) at the Gravity Lounge.  It’s a late show, doors open at 10pm, and it’s $8 at the door.  With special guests The Palominos from Richmond.

6 Day Bender released their self-titled debut album to much praise in the early spring of 2008 and they’ve been riding high and hard ever since.  The band is just coming off a 26 day/21 show tour that wrapped up at the end of 2008 and now they’re heading back out on the road once again for a string of southeast dates that will keep them on the highway through the end of January.

Tomorrow’s upcoming show at Gravity gave me a good reason to dust off my old “7 Questions With…” feature and 6 Day Bender frontman Luke Nutting was able to find the time to provide me with the answers to my burning questions.  He was also kind enough to send me an exclusive first listen to the band’s yet-to-be mastered track “Factory Man” which was recorded back in October of 2008.  Give it a listen below and check out my 7 Questions With Luke Nutting after the break.

MP3:  6 Day Bender–”Factory Man” [stream]

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I thought I’d share a few new songs from artists worth getting excited about who have new releases on tap for 2009.  I’ve got the latest from Black Lips’ forthcoming record, a song off of Bon Iver new 4-song EP, and we begin with the latest from Andrew Bird, whose new album Noble Beast hits stores on January 20 courtesy of the fine folks at Fat Possum Records.

In addition to the standard version of Noble Beast, Bird will also be releasing a deluxe edition of the album that will include a bonus disc of instrumental pieces titled Useless Creatues.  The deluxe edition will be available in limited numbers in record stores the day of the album’s release.  [You can also pre-order the deluxe edition via Fat Possum’s home page].  Give a listen to “Oh No”, the first single off of Noble Beast, below or you can head over to NPR’s All Songs Considered and check out their exclusive stream of the entire album here.  Now if we could just get Andrew Bird to make a concert stop in Charlottesville this year.

MP3:  Andrew Bird–”Oh No” [stream]

[To hear the latest from Black Lips and Bon Iver keep reading]

(more…)

O’Death, the five-piece band of punkbilly gypsies from NYC, will be making their way to Charlottesville to play the Gravity Lounge on Friday, January 30.  O’Death will be bringing with them their most recent collection of songs Broken Hymns, Limbs, and Skin (which came out in late October on Kemado Records) and a reputation for putting on a wildly chaotic live show.  Think of it as Slim Cessna’s Auto Club meets the Hallowed Ground-sound of the Violent Femmes wrapped up as a whiskey-soaked string band.  Philly’s Pattern is Movement opens.  $7 advance / $10 door.  Presented by Starr Hill Presents.  [buy tickets].  “Lowtide” is the first single of off Broken Hymns, which is O’Death’s third album to-date.

MP3:  O’Death–”Lowtide” [stream]

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Amazon:  O’Death–Broken Hymns, Limbs, and Skin

Larry Keel and Natural Bridge, who just last month appeared on the nationally syndicated radio show Mountain Stage, have just announced the release of their second full-length album Backwoods.  The latest effort features seven new original tracks along with three covers (including a version of the Beatles’ tune “Mother Nature’s Son”) and was co-produced by Keel and longtime friend and collaborator Keller Williams.  The pair most recently worked in the studio together on the 2005 release Grass from Keller and the Keels.

No strangers to Charlottesville, Larry Keel and Natural Bridge last performed in town this past summer when they just plain tore it up back in August for Fridays After Five at the Pavilion.  But then again, tearing it up is just what Larry Keel does.  Over the past decade and a half the two-time national flat-pick champion has made a name for himself through his fiery-fingered guitar mastery, his almost other-worldly vocal style, and his wild, progressive mountain sound that has one foot firmly planted in tradition while the other reaches out beyond the boundaries.   In the end there is very little in the world of bluegrass music that comes close to sounding like Larry Keel.

It’s still too early in the year to know when Larry Keel and Natural Bridge might come blazing back through Charlottesville but in the meantime do yourself a favor and check out the new sounds.  [You can hear two of the new tracks from Backwoods on the band’s MySpace page and I’ve included a complete track listing as well as album cover art after the break]

Purchase:  Larry Keel and Natural Bridge–Backwoods

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The problem with the holidays is that the minute you get back from all the traveling and revelry you’ve got a mound of things to get caught up on once you arrive back home.  As a result there are just some things you can’t get to quick enough…like this little announcement:  The Dead coming together for their first tour in five years and making a tour stop in Charlottesville to boot.

Surviving Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart, and Bill Kreutzmann will be joined by Gov’t Mule / Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes and keyboardist Jeff Chimenti on a 19-stop April/May tour through 16 cities that is set to begin on April 12 in Greensboro, NC and will wrap up on May 10 at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA.  Included on the tour schedule is a stop at Charlottesville’s John Paul Jones Arena on Wednesday, April 15.  Tickets go on sale Friday, January 23 at 10am.  [complete tour date listings after the break].

It looks like the circus is coming to town this spring.  It should make for an interesting evening to say the least.  On a personal level I’ve included a video from my favorite era of The Grateful Dead’s long, strange musical trip.  For me the ‘Pigpen’ years are the Grateful Dead!  I’m pretty sure this version of “Easy Wind” is taken from the Grateful Dead’s concert at the Winnipeg Fairgrounds on July 1, 1970. (more…)

One of the first albums of 2009 that I’m looking forward to getting my hands on is set to hit stores on January 20th as Ben Nichols, the frontman for the Memphis-based band Lucero, releases his solo debut The Last Pale Light in the West on The Rebel Group label.  In truth the upcoming release is more of a mini-album or an expanded-length EP (depending on how you chose to look at it).  Containing just seven songs, The Last Pale Light in the West is based on Cormac McCarthy’s gritty Western novel Blood Meridian and from the three tracks I’ve heard so far the album feels like the sound of the wide-open Western plains soaked in whiskey and smoke. The songs themselves are stark, acoustic affairs that stand in contrast to much of Lucero’s rocking punk country but if you’re a fan of the band it’s the rough-edged vocals and songwriting of Ben Nichols that will surely draw you to this solo effort.

While the physical release of The Last Pale Light in the West is still some two weeks away, you can pre-order the CD now and once you submit your payment you’ll receive an instant digital download of the album along with the accompanying album art.  The pre-order offer is available only through the Official Lucero Store [click here to pre-order].  In the meantime you can give a listen to the title track from Ben Nichols’ forthcoming album below.

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MP3:  Ben Nichols–”The Last Pale Light in the West” [stream]