JoshCast #28 - #41 (Live)

Who better to finish my JoshCast binge than my hands-down, no-debate, don't-even-try-and-argue-with-me favorite band of all time?

The good news: the Dave Matthews Band will visit Dallas on September 11 -- only a month and a half down the road. The bad news: this will be among the last times ANYONE will get to witness them live for a long while, since they're taking a one-year tour break in 2011. It's a well-deserved hiatus, seeing as they sold a staggering 11,230,696 tickets last decade.

They must be doing SOMETHING right, huh? Even after all these years?

Speaking of "after all these years", today's track is lifted from Listener Supported, which was recorded back in 1999. It's a quintessential DMB track, showcasing the talents of all its members during its closing five-minute jam session:

Boyd Tinsley on violin.

The late Leroi Moore on sax.

Carter Beauford on drums.

Only guitar god Timmy Reynolds, who has toured with the band the last few years, is missing.

Lots of people can't stand DMB. OK, I sorta get it...they've had their share of clunker albums, and maybe you're not into the whole 20+ minute jam session thing. But I just CANNOT fathom why anyone WOULDN'T love the last five minutes of this song:

JoshCast #27 - Fox Confessor Brings the Flood

JoshCast week -- or where my narcissistic writing assumes that you have similar tastes in music that I do -- continues... as does my interest in a certain female vocalist.

Probably a year ago, I stumbled on the music of Neko Case. I don't remember how, although I think it through an indie group called The New Pornographers, with whom she was associated before making it big in her solo career.

I'm not 100% sure why her music constantly finds its way to my ears. Her hypnotizing voice and lyrics are the most likely reasons, but her off-the-beaten-path-ness is equally appealing. Both qualities are evident if you see her live: the former in her usually 3-minutes-or-less musical gems, the latter in the irregular but hilarious anecdotes you hear between songs.

I mean, how could a self-described "country noir" artist with radiant, ruby hair who also the co-stars with T-Pain in an animated TV series called "Cheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge" NOT be interesting?

Anyway, I'll quit gushing (as one blogger put it, "Sigh, I want to marry her, but that blasted restraining order...") and let you listen to the title track off of her 2006 album, Fox Confessor Brings the Flood:



(P.S., see also the positively gut-wrenching "In California".)

JoshCast #26 - Fear Not Of Man

I am a pale individual. I’m no Hank Hill, but yeah, I admit that Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Beatles, and Pearl Jam compose a very significant portion of my iTunes library. But that doesn’t mean I can’t occasionally love me some hip-hop. ...uh, right?

Well, a few months ago, after a little nudge from Pandora, I bought Black on Both Sides, Mos Def’s solo debut from waaay back last MILLENIUM in 1999. That was a good decision. It’s always been perfect for when I need to get psyched up for something. Plus, it’s not without socially conscious commentary.

While "Mathematics" is almost certainly the track most people have heard of, I frequently find myself flipping back to Track 1, "Fear Not of Man". It sounds good, for one (although I’m not going to pretend to understand the dynamics of hip-hop enough to analyze why), and its lyrics resonate more to me than, say, Jay-Z’s "Big Pimpin'".

Especially: "Mind over matter and soul before flesh". Simple. Only seven words. But that’s enough... maybe brevity is the soul of wisdom, too.

OK, I’m getting too deep. On to music:

JoshCast #25 - The Adjustor

After yesterday’s foray into roadhouse Americana, it’s time to shift gears. And by "shift gears", I mean "throw it into reverse and crash the transmission."

Last Friday, I had the opportunity to witness an indescribable showcase of experimental electronic hullabaloo when Austin-based The Octopus Project took the stage of the Granada Theater. Sure, it would probably be categorized as electronica...but that doesn’t mean throbbing bass and glowsticks. No, this was a little different. Electronic beats backed by guitar, bass, drums, and some random, off-the-wall instruments.

Undoubtedly the awesomest parts of the show came when Yvonne Lambert, complete with Mary Tyler Moore hairstyle and old-school prom dress (why not?), showed off her talents on the theremin. In case you don’t know -- because I sure didn’t -- the theremin is played without even touching the thing. From Wikipedia: "The controlling section usually consists of two metal antennas which sense the position of the player's hands and control oscillators for frequency with one hand, and amplitude (volume) with the other. The electric signals from the theremin are amplified and sent to a loudspeaker."

The timbre of the theremin (at least at the show) is sort of an electrified whistle, reminiscent of a ghost. It took a while for me to realize that Yvonne’s deliberate mid-air hand motions resulted in pitch and volume changes coming from the instrument.

Anyway, it was a good time, and their music was noticeably more enjoyable than their recorded stuff. Nevertheless, here's "The Adjustor", from One Ten Hundred Thousand Million:

JoshCast #24 - Southside of Heaven

Two months since the last JoshCast. How have you survived? Fear not, because it just returned from its summer hiatus, largely due to the fact that I've found Grooveshark, another means to embed music -- a dire need after Lala was shut down at the end of May.

To make up for lost time, how about 5 new tracks...one for each day of the week? And not only that, but each one from a different corner of the music-verse? On to JoshCast #24!

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If you've seen the movie Crazy Heart, you are aware of the sheer genius of (1) Jeff Bridges and (2) Ryan Bingham. Chances are you hadn't heard of the latter (and maybe still haven't) until he -- like Bridges -- took home an Oscar for his role in the bittersweet, whiskey-soaked drama.

Before winning that gold statue, he broke onto the country(ish) music scene in 2007 with his major label debut, Mescalito. His loose, roadhouse songwriting style, coupled with his rusty voice (think country-fried Bob Dylan), made for a real fine album. (In addition to the song I'm about to introduce, see "Bread and Water".)

As I listened to it all the way through for the first time this past weekend, I couldn't help but think of the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?, which in post-production, they filtered the colors so the whole thing had a brownish, sepia texture. True, Mescalito can only be perceived by the ear, but when listening to it, you almost can see, feel, and taste that same dusty tone.

The first track, "Southside of Heaven", is probably the highlight. Its slowburning introduction, soon joined by a gorgeous harmonica, backs lonely lyrics bellowed by Bingham's gravely voice. After a couple of verses, it slows to a smoldering pace for a moment before ending with a rousing banjo-laced finale. GREAT STUFF. Listen for yourself.

Oh Thank Heaven

...for a 7/11 eclipse.

It may not be much of a consolation prize after finishing their World Cup quarterfinal on the wrong side of a 4-0 shelacking by the Germans, but Argentinians were among the only witnesses in the world of the last total solar eclipse until November 13, 2012 yesterday.

The path of totality (where the total eclipse was visible) tracked almost entirely over the southern Pacific Ocean, including Easter Island, but was visible just before sunset -- with the sun's angle of altitude at just 1 degree -- at Argentina's southern tip. Check out this shot:


(Link to full image)

An annular eclipse is scheduled to track over North America in May 2012, directly over the Grand Canyon on its way to the Texas panhandle just before sunset. Mark my words: I fully intend to be in one of those spots to capture the phenomenon for posterity.

And by posterity, I mean for the following 7 months. Until, you know, the end of the world. 2012 and all.

You Have the Right to Remain...Online

Does speedy Internet access belong in the same arena as personal liberty, the freedom of expression, and the pursuit of happiness?

If you're Finnish, the answer is a resounding yes.

On the same day Starbucks endorsed the basic human right of Internet access (sort of) by offering free wifi to all Starbucks-goers, the entire nation of Finland followed suit by " by making broadband every Finnish citizen's legal right and ensuring that every citizen will have access to a 1Mbps broadband connection".

Who knew those Scandinavians would be the ones to push the technology envelope? Though, I can't say I'm surprised, since a quarter of my blood is Swedish. (Really. Sometimes I can't say "three" because of my latent accent trying to escape my East Texas upbringing.) Over 95% of the Finnish already have Internet access. And call me uninformed, but I didn't realize that tech giant Nokia is Finland-based.

I hinted at the implications of human rights a few months ago (see "Digital Divide") when I noted that it's extremely difficult to receive a complete education these days without decent Internet access. Those in poverty who can't afford it are at a tremendous disadvantage, and that interferes with the human right to a good education.

As our world races forward and computer and telecommunications technologies penetrate even more deeply into our societal fabric, the argument begins to involve more than a mere decent education. Inadequate Internet access will eventually interfere with our ability to function as human beings.

One blog I read had an interesting take: "I think this insults the idea of human rights a bit. Does inhibiting someone’s broadband fall into the same category as other crimes against humanity now? Surely we don’t put broadband up there with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, do we?"

But, like education, does a lack of Internet access sufficiently interfere with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that it becomes a "right by association"? I don't know.

I wonder which countries will be the second, third, fourth dominoes to fall. And I wonder how late my US of A will be to the party.

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"Human beings will be happier - not when they cure cancer or get to Mars or eliminate racial prejudice or flush Lake Erie but when they find ways to inhabit primitive communities again. That's my utopia." -- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.