"You know what's wrong with the world? The hippies!" Mr. Diddley told me, with very little provocation on my part. It was one of those interviews in which the interviewer need not speak. The guitar legend, who must've had some kind of run-in with unwashed Birkenstock-wearers just prior to the call, let loose with his theory that lack of discipline--enacted by hippies and passsed on to their children--was destroying the world.

I kind of got it, though. After all, the party lifestyle that most people assume goes with being in rock-n-roll is more style than substance. Sure, you can live irresponsibly--but such musicians usually end up dead in a gutter before their time. No, most musicians--whether they admit to it or not--have to work like dogs to get their shot, again and again and again. I've no doubt the blues rocker had his share of hard times, which would have made free-wheeling folks most annoying to him.

Now, wherever he goes, Bo can play strictly for the enjoyement of it. RIP.

Breadpig is a Rock Band (in every sense of the word) composed of Brian Femiano, Jon Swyers, and Alexis Ohanian. Their full album is available on their site but I picked out my two favorite tracks here.

Breadpig's First Show: Live in D.C.:

On a more serious note, all proceeds raised by touring + t-shirts are donated to charity/good causes!

I guess I was painting with a broad brush. The Frames frontman and Czech chanteuse were up for Best Sountrack and Best Song Written For A Motion Picture Grammy Awards, and music and film critics alike adored Once. Yet the critcally acclaimed dynamic duo weren't invited to perform (not even sure if they attended)--though that druggie bouffant singer chick we're all tired of hearing about got to participate remotely, to much mindless ado. Of course, ever since the mid-1980s I'd despised and ignored the Grammys without felling the same towards the Oscars--but the taint of "industry" had permeated my perception of the Academy Awards, nonetheless.

I watched the Oscars almost solely because of Glen and Mara's scheduled performance. As they sang the first chorus, I actually started to cry--overwhelmed, I guess, that indie underdogs I'd met and seen in small venues could actually have a shot at something this big. But then hearing the crowd reaction--much more enthusiastic than when the Enchanted singers romped about an elaborate stage--made me think, "You know, they really could win this!"

After the big moment, I was further heartened to see A-listers talk about the greatness of Once. Anne Hathaway--who I will no longer dismiss as a mere Disney/romantic comedy staple--even mentioned that she'd listened to "Falling Slowly" for months and "bawled" every time. Just like me (and maybe you)!

Host Jon Stewart giving up extra funnyman time to let Mara give her acceptance speech was the icing. While surprising regarding Oscar history, the gesture underlined a greater context. Don't know if anyone remembers, but Stewart had a late-night talk show in the mid-1990s, around the same time I had a weekly underground music column. His program--rather than Dave's or Conan's--was the one that every band I interviewed said was their favorite on which to appear. All these punk/alt rockers said Stewart seemed genuinely interested in the music. He even took some of them to parties.

So it's heartening that an industry often accused of being shallow could have such appreciation for Glen and Mara's art--more so than The Guy And Girl's own industry. It's almost ironic as the time I wrote for a Florida magazine that was "desperate" for reviewers who weren't old dudes stuck on one genre--and then it rewrote my review of The Frames' Burn The Maps to be mostly negative and ignore the highlights of the freakin' album. Guess that magazine, and the Recording Academy, will be whistling a different tune.

Perhaps that of "Falling Slowly."

Grab 'em while the grabbin's good.

Earlier this month I went to Digital Music Forum West. Didn't get to attend the whole conference, but the second day was quite interesting.

Met some cool people from LA startup label Orphan Rercords, singer/songwriter/entrepreneur Evonne Rivera (who's playing at Holly Street Bar & Grill in Old Pasadena tomorrow, BTW) and even Gail Zappa, wife of Frank, mother of Dweezil and Moon--and, more importantly, the perfect blend of businesswoman and passionate art appreciator.

I'm going to be posting a series of blogs over the next few days, recapping stuff that was said and done. If you can't wait, check out what I wrote for my work blog about DMF.

Pretty exciting to be an independent musician these days.

The proponent of this thought, of course, was reknowned drummer Max Roach, one of the forefathers of bebop, who died today. The Los Angeles Times reported in 1991, the same year as that sociology class and quite unbeknownst to me, Mr. Roach as saying:

"Hip-hop is complete theater... These kids don't have rhetoric courses, so they've created their own script in rhyme--it's verbal improvisation. They don't have formal musical training, so they make music from the tones and rhythms of human speech--they'll sample Malcolm X saying, 'Too black, too strong.' They've even created their own instrument--the turntable. They have nothing but the inclination to be involved. And like Louis Armstrong, out of nothing they create something."

The drummer went on to say, "For centuries, Mozart and Charlie Parker and Ellington and Bach and Beethoven stood for the proposition of harmony, melody and rhythm equally balanced. Now here come these rap kids, dealing with a world of sound that makes the palette much broader. There's no melody, no harmony, just this very repetitive rhythmic thing. Rap completely obliterates Western concepts of music. It's revolutionary."

Now, this is just a small instance in Mr. Roach's impressive and accomplished life (check out the New York Times obit). But his beliefs affected me years after that class. While I was a writer at a Florida newspaper, I was assigned to to interview a member of a local jazz combo that was reknowned in the area maybe because it was a small retirement town; this group of elderly guys were good enough to please crowds at various food- and manatee-celebrating festivals, but they weren't great. As I tried to steer the conversation into the social implications of music, I blurted, "Well, rap is the new jazz, what do you think?" The guy stuttered for a second and said, "Um, well, I've never heard that--no, I don't really know about that."

Come to think of it, that band's piano was its sole percussion instrument. Those guys probably weren't that familiar with Mr. Roach--or his revolutionary ways.

So the formerly purlple, formerly unpronouncable Prince has struck another blow to the greedy music industry.

He's bypassing the traditional distribution chain in favor of a deal with a British newspaper to sell his new CD, Planet Earth, along with copies of the Sunday Mail (see the AP story). My vote for Most Clueless Comment Of The Year: "The Artist formerly known as Prince should know that with behavior like this he will soon be the Artist Formerly Available in Record Stores," said Paul Quirk, co-chairman of the Entertainment Retailers Association.

Ooohhh, scary. Then Prince'll just hafta sell tracks on digital music sites, or purvey mail-order CDs from an online shop, or have his merch stands at sell-out concerts pushing the albums. He's got the clout to be at least moderately successful at it.

But with the demise of record store chains, I'd think Mr. Quirk and his ilk should be grateful for whatever a big-name artist decides to sell through those retailers. And labels, in turn, oughtta sell via whatever way the consumer wants to receive music--be it digitally online, on CDs at a mom-and-pop shop, or pasted on the front page of one's favorite periodical..

Just more proof that the demise of the machine can't be blamed on filesharing kids.

Oh yeah, Chirag and I just launched it after 6 months in the making :)

It's Marketa Irglova, a Czech 19-year-old whose haunting voice and old-world lyrical style are a tangible link to Ireland's past and future. The film is set early this decade, before the new economic boom that has folks there either excited or despondent.

I saw Once when the movie's sneak-preview tour bus (courtesy of North American distributors Fox Searchlight) stopped at the Roxy Theater in the Mission. Many folks were obviously there because the screening was free; such Philistines left after the film ended and Glen and Marketa began performing with just their voices and the aforementioned acoustic guitar. You know how, when a movie has really good music, those tunes stay in your head hours after the closing credits? Well, pair the already-mesmerizing songs penned by Glen and Marketa with an immediate live rendition, and that music will become part of your soul.

Even almost two weeks later, I can't stop humming the refrain for "Falling Slowly," and find myself going on Once's page on Fox Searchlight's website to listen to Marketa's star turn in "If You Want Me." She's got an old-world quality to her voice that I can't pin down; or maybe it's the old-fashioned elements in the songs she sings that brings out her haunting yet guileless tone.

And guileless she is. I was sorely disappointed to find out that she doesn't have her own albums out--just the Once soundtrack and the Swell Season CD she recorded with Glen. I talked with her briefly after the screening/concert, and she reiterated that after recording twice with Glen, sharing a Sundance audience win, and touring around the U.S. in a fancy bus provided by a Big Hollywood Studio, she really wants to... work in a cafe. She hasn't done so before, she explained.

And maybe that mix of humbleness, naivete, and earnestness is what really comes out when she sings.

(Note: Once, which had a broader opening over the Memorial Day weekend, continues to debut at various theaters nationwide.)

Check out the video and be convinced:

Dark Meat @ Flamingo Cantinas

After a late night at the Purevolume party, Mark and I dragged ourselves out of bed just before noon to make it down to Flamingo Cantina's for Team Clermont's party with much anticipated free shoes. As we were waiting in line, a rag-tag marching band stomped by before we could get a good photo (hey I said it was a late night). When we got inside, they had already ran out of shoes but we ended up catching the entire performance of that rag-tag marching band we found out to be the Athens super-group Dark Meat. Half rock, half party (in the good way, not the Andrew WK way) this group of 15(!) members knew how to get and keep the attention of a room full of schwag-hunters with dueling drummers, violin, sax, trumpet, guitars and dancer/back-up singers. So good, we went to see them again on Saturday night. It wasn't as good as the first time (probably because it was so unexpectedly awesome) but still excellent.
Photo by Alexadan

Kaki King @ Convention Center

I have seen her before, so this was expectedly awesome. Unexpectedly after only 20 minutes of playing, a string broke and she improvised an amazing bit before leaving the stage (most musicians would've just walked off I think).
Photo by Sarah Monroe

Les Savy Fav @ CMJ Party

The last time I saw LSF was at the MoMA in NYC and was one of the craziest shows I've ever seen. I can't help but feel that it is God's ultimate desire for Tim Harrington to be a leader of a rock band. It would be a crime against humanity if he got stuck with any other profession. Back to SXSW, this show was the best yet. Antics included spitting water back and forth in fans mouths, giving birth to a pillow, and hanging, backwards, over the 2nd floor of the venue while singing upside down as I held one of his legs for dear life of killing one of my idols. There's not much more to say.