Issue26, Sept. 2009

Far Out - Regina Spektor blows us away – on her album and live in concert
We were worried for Regina Spektor. Yes, worried.
We first experienced the World According to Regina when she was an opener along with Josh Ritter for Keane at an outdoor venue in Boston in 2005. (Guess who we were there to see!) Regina performed solo on the huge stage, and we remember thinking “who is this strange woman? What planet did she come from?” She was not any kind of singer-songwriter we had seen before and her songs and voice did not fit anything we’d heard before. She seemed a little lost up there, a lone figure sandwiched between the two massive video screens.
The next time she caught our attention was when she released the 2006 album “Begin to Hope.” This time we were blown away. Her tunes, a little less avant-garde and a little more pop, began to make sense to our ears. And her gorgeous, fluttering voice on songs such as “Fidelity,” “Better,” and “On the Radio” affected us like few others. And while commercial radio played these tunes occasionally, a fervent and devoted following grew, awaiting every video and interview she did.
Regina had seamlessly made the transition from quirky anti-folk outsider to quirky indie-pop darling. We loved it.
And that’s why we were worried. Would Regina, with her critical success, journey further into pop, leaving behind her wonderful quirkiness? Would she go all Tori Amos on us? Please no.
Well, our fears were for naught. Her new album, “Far,” picks up where “Begin to Hope” left off, and her live performance, which we caught recently was equally quirky and refreshing. You can read both the review of the album and the show beginning on Page 4.
And speaking of albums and live shows, we’ve noticed recently the trend by musicians and bands performing an entire album, start to finish, in concert. Bruce is playing “Born to Run,” Van Morrison did “Astral Weeks.” Whether you like the idea or not, it certainly makes one pause to think “Who would I like to see play one of their albums live in its entirety?”
We asked our readers what album would you like played in concert? Check out our readers’ poll results to see what others said.
No worries, Rich Kassirer, editor
To read the new issue, click HERE.
To read album reviews of Regina Spektor's "Far," The Avett Brothers' "I and Love and You," Erin McKeown's "Hundreds of Lions," and Thao's "Know Better Learn Faster," click HERE.

Issue 22, Sept. 2008

Summer Picks: From festivals to clubs – even to Symphony Hall! – we were there
Summer has come and gone again, bringing its share of hot days and sultry nights. It also brought – as usual – great opportunities to catch live music at outdoor festivals and indoors at steamy clubs.
Our purchase of a new and more powerful camera also brought hopes of better images from these shows. While we’re still trying to figure out all the features of the camera, we were able to capture some of the great moments of what we saw.
We made two trips to Western Mass., one to catch the Great American Hoedown known as the Green River Music Festival, one of our favorite festivals. There we caught up with Crooked Still, now sporting a new lineup that includes cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddle player Brittany Haas; we also caught Mavis Staples, the Greencards, and Lucinda Williams (a first for us!); plus a fabulous after-hours set by the foot-stompin’ Eilen Jewell band.
On our second trip out west we took in the Swell Season, the amazing Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, as well as Josh Ritter playing solo as the opener. The show was intimate and warm despite downpours scattered throughout.
And speaking of Mr. Ritter, his performance at Symphony Hall with the Boston Pops orchestra was a real treat. He and his band, decked out in suits, were in top form for the occasion.
We also visited clubs like T.T. the Bear’s, a great college hang, to see young and hip Thao and her band, the Get Down Stay Down. You actually don’t go to see and hear her, you go to take part in her show as she bounces, bounds, and bobs along to her songs and you have little choice but to follow suit.
We stopped into the Bank of America Pavilion (not one of our favorite venues) to catch the amazing Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, who mixed ’70s-style guitar jams with alt-country accents to soaring effect.
We’re breathless just remembering all the fun we had this summer and can only hope that the fall will be half as fun.
To download the new issue, click HERE. To read CD reviews in the issue, click HERE.
To view photos, click HERE. For videos, click HERE.

MA5 - Songs
Songs that helped us survive this issue.
1. “You, Me & the Bourgeoise,’’ “Honeysuckle Weeks,” The Submarines. What? An upbeat, bouncy song? Impossible.
2. “We Both Go Down Together,” “Picaresque,” The Decemberists. They go down, we follow.
3. “Shady Grove,” “The Pizza Tapes,” Grisman/Garcia/Rice. Spontaneous and just plain fun.
4. “I Envy the Wind,” “Essence,” Lucinda Williams. Great to hear this song live at Green River.
5. “Modern Trick,” “Diamonds in the Dark,” Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles. In honor of guitarist Mike Castellana, who is leaving the band in favor of family. Hopefully, we’ll hear from him again soon.

Camera ready

A quick post before I head off to work. I recently purchased a new camera, an 8 megapixel Canon with a 10x zoom and 1600 ISO and am hoping it puts an end to my irritatingly blurry concert photos. Too many nights after spending too much time snapping pictures, especially in dark clubs, only to find the results miserable. First show up is the Swell Season in Northampton on Aug. 10. This one's an outdoors show at night so it will be a good test. I'll follow that up two nights later seeing the funky Thao With the Get Down Stay Down at T.T.'s in Cambridge. We'll pretty much know what we got after that. Anyway, a couple of the good shots I got at Green River a couple of weeks ago. Above, Greg Liszt of Crooked Still; and below, Lucinda Williams. Enjoy. More later.