Langerado 2008 Day 4 And Wrap-Up

I got a late start on Sunday between being up late Saturday night and the time change. The first show I was able to catch after blogging was Keller Williams. He put a cool show like always. Keller is definitely on the side of the jamband spectrum I enjoy.



After that I checked out the non-music festival activities like merch tents, food, and of course the Ferris Wheel:









Then it was on to catch Minus The Bear. I have really dug their last two LPs so I was pretty excited about the show. They did not disappoint. While their style is just a tad bit more mainstream than what I normally like, they do what they do perfectly, and that's put on a great rock 'n' roll show. One thing I noticed for the first time is how often the lead guitarist is not playing anything. He is more an accessory to the music than anything else, and it is makes for an interesting dynamic.









One joke going around all weekend was how all of the indie acts were on the very far away stage that you had to cross a swamp to get to. As you can guess, I was at that stage most of the weekend, and so the small handful of non-hippies in attendance and myself stuck around for Of Montreal. They actually catered their entire set to the jamband crowd and did an extremely unique and rather amazing jammed out set, even covering the Grateful Dead. Kevin Barnes was dressed in some serious hippie gear. They did very guitar driven versions of their stuff, did some instrument switching, and ended the set with "The Past Is A Grotesque Animal", in which Barnes' only costume change had him come out in a casket sort of thing filled with a shaving cream-like substance. He performed all of the closer with the blobs of gel dripping down his body slowly. For the finale, he rolled around on the ground, and then jumped off the stage and slimed the front row audience. The whole show was surreal, and I think it was the second best show of the weekend for me (BTS being the best).





















We drink some beers and sat in the field for about half of Phil Lesh, and it was a nice chill way to end a crazy and fun weekend. Langerado featured about every single weather you can imagine from hot sun in the nineties, to typhoon storms, to a freezing cold Saturday night, to a beautiful Sunday. The police/security had a decent presence, but weren't very intrusive. The biggest complaint I had was that the fest seemed to be marred with logistic issues. But, you have to cut them some slack considering it is the first year in a new venue, and the venue is in a desolate, distant location, but they will definitely need to take a deep look into those things for next year. One thing I can say for sure is that this turned out to be one of the most adventurous festival experiences I have ever had and one I will always remember. I'm looking forward to Langerado 2009.

The Shows I missed that everyone was raving about: That 1 Guy, Umphrey's McGee, Govt' Mule (covering Temple Of The Dog's "Hunger Strike")

Best Band shirt I saw: Daniel Johnston

Best phrase of Langerado: "The Triple Pack Attack"

Worst Wookies of Langerado "Peter Pan", "The Heroin Sasquatch"

The 2008 festival season is now officially on and we heart festies, so keep reading as Ohmpark brings you the info, the analysis, and the experiences.

Video Of The Day: Of Montreal at Langerado 2008 "Skakedown Street"

I got back from the fest around 2 in the morning, so while you wait for my Langerado Wrap-up and the other things I'll post before leaving for SXSW tomorrow morning, here is Of Montreal jamming a Grateful Dead cover from Sunday night:

Langerado 2008 Preview

Langerado just released the schedule today and it looks pretty good. Here is my personalized schedule so far. If you are still on the fence whether to go to this one, I'm gonna go through some of the smaller acts that I'm really excited about. The first band on the "Swamp Stage" is right here from Altanta, Dead Confederate. I believe they are going to be one of the ATL bands that get big nationally by the end of this year (they were handpicked to open for R.E.M. at SXSW), because their new EP is really awesome. Jam this track and pick up this EP:

Dead Confederate : The Rat




Vampire Weekend is another band that is on the super-hype lately in blogland. While I enjoy their new album, I think it is one of those "good but not great". They are just a little too gimmicky and lacking a tad bit in substance. Regardless of that, though, I'm very excited to see them live because I think they will be pretty cool to see. Check them out:

Vampire Weekend : Walcott




An album I really enjoyed from last year is !!!'s Myth Takes. They are organic dance rock that sort of sound like a an indie-rock version of STS9 or those sorts of bands with lyrics/vocals. I've been wanting to catch them live for so long because I've heard how much fun their shows are. If 311 isn't quite your bag, or you've seen them like 10 times like me, this band is really worth checking out:

!!! (chk chk chk) : Break In Case Of Anything




So, one of the biggest draws to Langerado for me is Built To Spill. They are one of my all time favourite bands. Since I have like a million BTS live shows, this seems like a good time to share one. Behold 1999-05-09 (Early Show):

1. Made Up Dreams
2. Center of The Universe
3. Kicked it In The Sun
4. Reasons
5. I Would Hurt A Fly
6. Twin Falls/Some (instrumetal)
7. You Were Right
8. One Thing
9. Terrible/Perfect
10. Car
11. Big Dipper

Blitzen Trapper was a band that was full of blog buzz last year. A little bit country, a little rock 'n' roll, a little bit weird:

Blitzen Trapper : Devil's A-Go-Go




The Benevento-Russo Duo is one of my favourite jambands. The keyboard/drums power duo that backed up Trey and Mike of Phish are not only a great live show, but they are one of the few hippy bands who know how to make a great album too. Check them:

The Benevento-Russo Duo : Play Pause Stop




Pelican is a post-metal band that I really got into last year. You were probably thinking that Bonnaroo was the only hippy fest this year to bring in some metal, but you were wrong:

Pelican : City of Echoes




Dan Deacon is another big draw to Langerado for me because he is so awesome. He was just here in the ATL last month, so you should check out our review and jam him:

Dan Deacon : Wham City


Minus The Bear is another artist that had an album in out Top 50 album list from last year. They do music that sounds very radio-friendly and accessible, but has some serious musical depth:

Minus The Bear : Burying Luck




Finally, a band that I was totally obsessed with last year was Of Montreal. I caught them plenty of times last year, but they are so good live I can't wait to see them again. If you go to Langerado, be sure to catch this:






So, now go get tickets to Langerado and we'll party down!

Langerado Website

Halloween In Atlanta Without The Smashing Pumpkins

If you're bumming about both the Smashing Pumpkins shows this week getting cancelled, here's what you can do instead:

• The Howlies, The Carbonas, The Spooks and more at Lenny's
• M.I.A. at Center Stage
• Dead Confederate at the Earl
• Badfish (the Sublime Cover Band) at The Masquerade
• Of Montreal at The 40 Watt in Athens, Ga (Sold Out)
• Throw eggs at kids trick or treating
• Drink Profusely
• Save your energy to get crazy at Home Park Fest this weekend
  

Have a happy one!

Pitchfork Music Festival: Day 3/Wrap-Up

The final day started with Deerhunter and I was interested to see what they would do on what was probably one of the biggest crowds they've played to. They brought their A game and Bradford Cox shined on stage. They even got some of Grizzly Bear to jam with them at the end. There's something special about seeing two of the best young bands today teaming up like this and gives me even more optimism about the state of music today. We watched The Ponys from far away and they sounded good with the exception of the entire PA system going down for half of it. Seriously, Pitchfork Fest's sound system seemed to get even worse as the days went on and I've never seen anything like that at a music festival. Next up we watched Menomena put on a really good show. They seemed especially loose and maybe over excited or something but that seemed to work favourably for their sound. This is another band that if you haven't got into yet, i strongly urge you to check them out. The next band I went to see was The Sea And Cake. It was hard for me to believe how bad it was considering how much I like this band. In their defense, the sound system did seem to be especially terrible for their set, but I do not like the direction this band has gone in. The show and the new album both seem like their missing the magic this band used to conjure up. I caught a little bit of Stephen Malkmus playing a solo set. It was good but it's just not exactly my thing. The best show of the day for me was Of Montreal. This band combines art with fun like no other. They did a few new songs, Kevin Barnes wore a few outfits, they even played a little football on stage. I waited a really long time to see Klaxons next. They were good but the weak sound system on the third stage made it seem more underwhelming than it should have. We ended the night watching De La Soul do a solid performance.

Overall, the fest was fairly interesting and a good experience. They must do something about the sound system because it was way too amateur for a festival of this size. I know the ticket prices were low, but if I have to pay another ten or twenty bucks to get to listen to more than the band's monitors for half the shows, it might be a good idea. The actual line-up mostly delivered on the hype, but I think Pitchfork could do a little better job scheduling. The venue was nice but if they want this event to get any bigger they're going to need to relocate. I will say that the security was extremely light and well behaved, and I am always a big fan of that. Overall, Pitchfork Fest gets a thumbs up from me but need to improve some things for next year.

Friday Free-Style

In case you haven't noticed, our blogging has been a little brisk lately as we are enjoying the summer. But don't dismay as we have a bunch of cool stuff cooking in the lab for you.

We'll start today off by getting krunk with Kanye West:



Pitchfork Fest has sold out and released set times. While you are enjoying Corndogarama, we will be covering this in Chicago.

John Vanderslice will be at The Earl on September 20th.

Weezer is about to record another album.

In case you don't, Beach House are awesome, and they be talking.

The Cure are working on the new album still and will be at The Gwinnett Center September 15th.

Band Of Horses are just finishing up their new album.

The Led Zeppelin reunion rumour mill is on again.

Rage Against The Machine will be headlining this year's Vegoose Festival in Las Vegas. The full line-up will be announced in mid-July.

Here's Ryan Adams on Letterman:



Here's an old The Rapture video:



Here's a Battles video:



Some Cat Power for you:



A Califone video:



Some Girl Talk:



Some The Ponys:



And finally, some Of Montreal:

Video Of The Day: Of Montreal

I know it seems I post something Of Montreal related every week, but they are rad. I'll try to make this my last for a while and pack in some info. Cable And Tweed has a bunch of posts on them this week related to the karaoke show, complete with mp3 highlights, and the 411 on Fo Montreal. Tonight you can catch them on the Conan O'Brien show so set your DVRs. Pitchfork called Kevin Barnes' celly and discussed the dilly. Finally, Bobloblaw79 caught this Led Zeppelin cover at the 2-24-2007 show at the Variety Playhouse:

Torrent Of The Day: Of Montreal (3-22-2007)

A good friend of mine taped this show:

Of Montreal & Loney, Dear 2007-03-22 The Grey Eagle, Asheville, NC (FLAC)

Of Montreal & Loney, Dear
2007-03-22
The Grey Eagle
Asheville, NC

Source: SP C4s [ Oade Mod Marantz PMD671 > CF card [wav 16/44.1]
Transfer: CF card > usb > harddrive > Audacity [normalize / track splits] > wavs > xACT v1.59 > flac
Taped by: Team WWHJD? + Sugarkane/Leah
Transferred by: Team WWHJD?

________________________________________________________________________

Loney, Dear

Disc 1
01 Sinister in a shape of hope
02 ????
03 The meter marks OK
04 Battle of Trinidad and Tobago
05 I am John


________________________________________________________________________

Of Montreal

Disc 1
01 intro
02 Suffer For Fashion
03 Sink The Seine
04 Cato As A Pun
05 Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse
06 Labrynthian Pomp
07 She's A Rejecter
08 We Were Born the Mutants Again With Leafling
09 October Is Eternal
10 I Was A Landscape In Your Dream
11 Vegan In Furs
12 Chrissy Kiss The Corpse
13 Forecast Fascist Future
14 I Was Never Young
15 Rapture Rapes The Muses
16 Gronlandic Edit
17 A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger
18 The Party’s Crashing Us

Disc 2
ENCORE:
01 ...audience + banter...
02 Bunny Ain't No Kind Of Rider
03 Faberge Falls For Shuggie
04 Raspberry Beret [Prince cover]
05 Requiem For O.m.m.2

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

NOTES:
Due to having only one set of batteries, just the first 5 songs by Loney, Dear were recorded...apologies for not providing a full set...CHEERS to Sugarkane & Leah for helping keep an eye on the gear during beer runs!

Heather Jr says: Support independent artists -- buy their albums, go to a show, get a t-shirt, sleep with a rockstar

http://www.ofmontreal.net
http://www.loneydear.com/

Post-Spring Break Randomness

The last week was a blur of drinking and more drinking. In between the war campaign I waged against my liver, I caught 2 shows. I saw RJD2 and Busdriver at the Variety Playhouse last Tuesday night. In the context of all the awesome shows i've been catching lately it was a little dissapointing. Busdriver is very talented, but the show was not anywhere near amazing. His lyrics were hard to understand most of the time because he was mumbling too much and him and his DJ (who was more using drum machines than turntables) basically whined about the audience reaction (or lack thereof) the entire performance. I know hip-hop artists like to yell at the crowd and try and get them to go crazy, but dissing your crowd between every song is not going to entice the reaction you want. If you're not recieving the ideal reaction from your audience, perhaps you should be more entertaining. RoadKillOvercoat is a good hip-hop album, but this guy is not the Notorious BIG. Go earn a crowd reaction, don't act like it's due to you.





RJD2 came out with a band and was playing guitar and bass and singing and didn't even touch a turntable until the 5 th song. This first portion was interesting as this 4-piece version of RJD2 did their best impression of Ratatat. Then RJD2 himself got behind his turntables and drum machines and turned in a mediocre mixing set. The coolest thing about it was the use of projector. In addition to having random trippy stuff going on, he had a video camera that would show what his hands were doing on certain parts, like playing the drum machine. As his bandmates retuned to stage and they continued to do rock-ish music, the show got seriously boring. I don't mind the concept of a DJ pretending he is a rockstar but the delivery here was lacking to say the least.





The other show I caught last week was Of Montreal at the Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC. A great show in a venue that I didn't really like that much. The band did mostly stuff off of Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? and was maybe a little shorter show than most of the set lists I've seen. My friend taped the show and I'll have that torrent highlighted as soon as it is up.



Largehearted Boy has a collection of torrents, files, and streams from SXSW. You should check it out.

Spoon have released details on their new album coming out in July called Gimme Fiction.

The White Stripes have released a tracklisting of their new album Icky Thump.

As part of the Pitchfork Fest/ATP/Awesomeness, Slint will be performing their album Spiderland the same night Sonic Youth performs Daydream Nation. It just gets better and better.

Blonde Redhead talk about their new album, 23.

Lamb Of God, Hatebreed, and Lordi are headlining this year's Ozzfest.

The Chemical Brothers have a new album out in June. Here's a vid:



Tori Amos has a new album coming out in May. Here's a video:



Paul McCartney has a new album comnig out this year on a Starbucks label.

Jurassic 5 is breaking up.

Roger Waters has a new song for a soundtrack of The Last Mimzy.

Here's an article on the 404 Noise Fest Biggie C checked out.

Sleater-Kinney's Corin Tucker is getting busy. Here's a SK video:



Scott Weiland allegedly trahsed a hotel with his wife.

Shellac have an new album due out in June.

The Darkness realized they suck and broke up.

A bundle of interviews for you:

• Bloc Party
• New Pornographers
• Panda Bear
• Whigs
• Ted Leo
• The Decemberists
• Dr Dog
• Serena-Maneesh
• Reverend Horton Heat

A Serena-Maneesh video:



Dr. Dog at Criminal Records doing an in-store performance last month:

Torrents Of The Day: Of Montreal (3-7-07), (3-8-07), and (3-9-07)

Get some Of Montreal shows from last week. Remember they will be in Athens next Saturday night.

of Montreal 2007-03-07 Hamilton College, Clinton, NY ~ MG M20>JK Labs>Oade ACM 671

Of Montreal - 03-08-2007 - The Trocadero, Philadelphia, PA

Of Montreal 2007-03-09 Irving Plaza NYC - FOB Neumanns

Pitchfork Music Festival Line-up!

The cool kids at Live Music Blog are reporting:

While we await some of the details from Whitperson's trip down to Florida for Langerado 2007, we're awarded with some details about another festival that the Chicago locals go crazy for -- Pitchfork.

Some details were posted yesterday, although yet to be made fully official by Pitchfork themselves...

2007 Pitchfork Music Festival
http://pitchforkmusicfestival.com/
July 13-15, 2007
Union Park, CHICAGO

Lineup:

Girl Talk
Powerhouse Sound
Cat Power
Clipse
Grizzly Bear
Professor Murder
Jamie Lidell
Of Montreal
...and more!

Tickets will go on sale this Monday (March 12) at 12pm CST.

(via donewaiting.com).

I'm psyched to see Of Montreal on that lineup and can't wait to see who else is headlining it.

More details to come once we get them...

2-24-07 Of Montreal Photos

While sugarkane and I were at the Mastodon show head-banging to the sounds of what seemed to be Atlanta's own tribal war chieftans, Leah got a little more colorful and checked out Of Montreal at the Variety Playhouse. Here are some pics she took:


















I didn't bring my good camera (20D) to Mastodon but I would have liked to so if you or someone you know would like to hook us up with a press pass to most any mid to large sized venues in Atlanta, let us know.

8 Shows In 8 Days

The 2007 concert season has begun and we're gonna help you rock it out right. Atlanta averages at least one great show every night, and here's the proof:

Saturday, February 17th
From Exile, Ground Xero, Draped In Sorrow - The Masquerade ($6)



In the shadow of Mastodon, the Atlanta metal scene is bubbling up and From Exile is in the thick of it. After dropping their stellar debut album, Crushing Reality, and playing some killer shows in 2006, a new era is about to begin. This Saturday will be the first show with a new bassist and a new vocalist. Sources also say that this show will feature a new interactive, visual experience. It's an exciting time for a band on the brink and you should check it out.


Sunday, February 18th
Moorish Idols, Remote Islands - ISP Space (Donations)



This show embodies all that is good about the Atlanta independent music scene. Industrial Strength Productions is conglomerate of local bands, promoters, artists, etc networking together that have a multi-faceted space next to The Earl. Bands we like such as Parade and Slow Motion Crash are involved, and Sunday night another band we are big fans of, Moorish Idols, will be performing at the space. Support you local scene!


Monday, February 19th
Dick Dale - The Earl ($18)



I've been listening to a lot of surfer rock lately and Dick Dale is the Elvis of surf. An amazing songwriter and guitarist who is a true legend. His Miserlou is an essential part of one of my all-time favourite movies and I can't wait to hear it.


Tuesday, February 20th
Akron/Family, Untied States - The Earl ($10)



I'm just learning about these guys and I like them. Experimental folk rockers from New York are always a good choice. Plus, opening for these guys is one of my favourite ATL bands, Untied States. This is gonna be a hot show.


Wednesday, February 21st
The Blue Hour, Soular, Epocha - The Earl ($7)



I'm a fan of Tracy Clark and this might be the best band she's been in yet. If you have any doubts, they are on Goodnight Records which include kickass bands like the Orphins, The Close, and The Press. Also on the bill, Albuquerque, New Mexico's Soular.


Thursday, February 22nd
Darkstar Orchestra - Variety Playhouse ($20)



The Grateful Dead are one of my all-time favourite bands and I was too young to see Jerry. I'll never get to have that awesome experience, but i have to say that seeing Darkstar Orchestra is pretty nice. I'd rather go see these guys right now than Bob and Phil. They do do a brilliant job at replicating the Dead and really this is the only cover band in the world that I will give true props. If you're a serious 'head, you can try to guess the date of the show these guys are reproducing.


Saturday, February 24th
Of Montreal - Variety Playhouse ($14)



I'm still listening to Hissing Fauna, Are you The Destroyer? like crazy. The best album to come out this year so far, Athens represent! As long as these guys have been around here, I've yet to see them and am very excited to catch a show ( I'm going to see them in Asheville, though).


Saturday, February 24th
Mastodon - Center Stage ($18)



Mastodon will be closing out their US tour here in the ATL, and you can bet this homecoming is going to be an epic. Blood Mountain is blowing up and suddenly Mastodon is maybe the most important band in Atlanta for the moment (although the Deerhunter craze is just beginning). A great way to round out a week of shows. See you there!

What The Hell Am I Listening To?!?

Here's some previews of some albums I've been listening to alot lately:

Of Montreal : Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?

First, this is a very well-done personal relationship concept album in the vein of Pink Floyd's The Wall where singer/sonwriter Kevin Barnes transforms into "Georgie Fruit" halfway through the album on the almost 12 minute long The Past is a Grotesque Animal. Stylistically, it is pretty much the polar opposite of The Wall, channeling electronic dance music and a little funk to produce a very upbeat, yet dark experience. Vocals and Lyrics are badass as well.

Listen to:

• Cato as a Pun
• A Sentence of Sorts in Kongsvinger
• Bunny Ain't No Kind of Rider

Cougar : Law

Cougar is a Madison, Wisconsin band that describe themselves as "emergency rock". The album was released in the UK early last year but not released in the U.S. until last month for some reason. The album was recorded by John McEntire (Tortoise, the Sea and Cake) and his imprint is easily felt on it. Check it out:

Listen to:

• atlatl
• pulse conditioner

Sloan : Never Hear The End Of It

This album by the Canadian rockers Sloan was also released in the US last month, but originally in Cananda last year. It has 30 tracks, so it's alot of very short songs strung together to all sound like one. I've been enjoying it alot:

Listen to:

• Everybody Wants You
• Can't you Figure it Out