The Rolling Stones :: Covered

I was never a Beatles guy. Sure, they were alright, but for me the greatest rock 'n' roll band of all-time has always and will always be The Rolling Stones. I inherited copies of Out of Our Heads and December's Children from my folks at an early age, and—though most fans consider the Stones' golden era to be that late 60's and early 70's streak leading up to Exile On Main Street—I've always had a soft spot for those early records: the bluesy stomping Chuck Berry numbers "Talkin Bout You" and "Carol," Jagger's sultry burning-hot rendition of Solomon Burke's "Cry To Me," and originals like "I Am Waiting," "Tell Me," "Play With Fire," and "Blue Turns To Grey," that in terms of pure pop and melodic quality, the band really never surpassed. Now, in celebration of the band's 50th anniversary, BBC 6 Music has been organizing a series of covers by the band's contemporaries. To date, First Aid Kit have stretched out "Play With Fire" into a slow warning hush and The Walkmen have dusted off the early great ballad "Blue Turns To Grey" with their signature class. After the jump, check out those two covers, along with some of our own past favorites by Kurt Vile, The Ramones, The Black Lips, and more.

Divine Providence, The Deerplacements, and The Derivative Argument

Divine Providence may not be Deer Tick's Mona Lisa or magnum opus—personally, I'm still partial to War Elephant and Born On Flag Day—but it's still a hell of a record. For the past 7 or so years, the John McCauley-fronted Providence band have been building a loyal and increasingly large fan base around rabid, fearsome, and often unpredictable liveshows. Divine Providence is the band's first attempt at capturing that raw energy on record.

The first time I saw Deer Tick live was at a free show in Portland. The band ripped through three sets over three-and-a-half hours, playing both armfuls of originals and classic covers by the likes of John Mellencamp, Ritchie Valens, Tom Petty, and The Replacements. The set ended with a sloppy rendition of The Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends." Alls those beers and Jack and Cokes had caught up with the band by the final song, and instead of finishing it, former guitarist Andy Tobiassen kicked McCauley from on top of an amp down into the drum kit with a loud crash. It was an aptly disheveled rock and roll finish for a night that had me believing again in the power of dirty guitars, pounding drums, and narrative storytelling.

Goodbye Portland

I'll miss the record stores, especially Mississippi; I'll miss the parks and farmers markets; Dove Vivi's cornbread pizza, Por Que No's chorizo tacos, and Broder's pytt i panna; the beer, especially Upright #4; affordable everything; seeing bands at Doug Fir, Mississippi Studios, and the Cherry Sprout Produce Market; having an independent coffee shop that roasts their own beans on every corner; surfing on the coast; the crowd at last Thursday; the three different color-coded recycling bins; and the bike paths. (I won't miss the endless rain nor the pretentious and jaded bartenders; the lack of jobs; or the people who stop at intersections when they don't have a stop sign.) But most of all, I'll miss sipping coffee in my hammock on the front porch, especially on a sunny Sunday morning with a book or newspaper in hand, as kids and dogs play, yell, and bark in the park across the street. Goodbye Portland.

Ty Segall - "Goodbye Bread"
Deer Tick - "Portland" (Live Replacements cover)
White Fang - "Portland Sucks"
M. Ward - "Paul's Song"


"Every town is all the same, when you've left your heart in the Portland rain..." - M. Ward

Middle Brother records Daytrotter sessions

Middle Brother has a handful of cuts off their stellar self-titled LP up on Daytrotter today. The band recorded two 4-song sets with Sean Moeller. The first in January of 2010 at John Prince's Nashville Butcher Shoppe Studio with John McCauley and Taylor Goldsmith playing their freshly written material. The second session was recorded in Austin at this year's SXSW, the morning after McCauley's Deervana show. I'm sure he wasn't hungover at all.

Middle Brother - "Daydreaming"
Middle Brother - "Thanks For Nothing"

Help Kickstart Johnny Corndawg's Down On The Bikini Line

Nashville's Johnny Corndawg—whom you may have heard sing a verse on Middle Brother's "Middle Brother" song—plays a classic country and western style of music suffused with whip-smart but often out of left field and hilarious lyrics, as on the crooned "Silver Pantie Liners" or "The Life Of A Bear." He's an absolute one of a kind talent and he's gearing up to put out what he calls "the best thing I've ever done," Down On The Bikini Line. However, putting out an album is a costly task, so Corndawg is using Kickstarter to get the necessary funds together to release the record. If you dig "The Life Of A Bear" as much as I do, you can help out by simply pre-ordering the record digitally for $10, on CD for $20 or on vinyl for $30. If you need more convincing, watch Corndawg drunkenly serenade strangers in his Kickstarter video and grab his free session over at the Daytrotter studios.

Johnny Corndawg - "The Life Of A Bear" (from Down On The Bikini Line)
Johnny Corndawg - "Night Rider" (from Water Friends For?)

Invisible Children Presents The Silver Series at SXSW

Nada over at Friends With Both Arms has put together a four day street performance series at SXSW this year in honor of the 25th anniversary of the festival and the 25th year of the devastating war in East Africa. The Silver Series will feature 25 musicians and bands including Everybody Taste favorites Vandaveer, Jesse Woods, Lord Huron, Deer Tick and Middle Brother busking in the streets of Austin for the Invisible Children charity. The performances will take place in Republic Square Park, so please go and support a great cause. La Blogotheque will also be along for the ride capturing a few of the performances to video. It's entirely free, though any contribution you can make to the charity would be greatly appreciated. Check below for the entire schedule. If like me, you're unable to make it to SXSW this year, cover your eyes—you don't want to know how many great acts your missing.

Vandaveer - "Concerning Past & Future Conquests" (from Dig Down Deep)

Review: Middle Brother:: Middle Brother

Cream were dubbed the world's first supergroup; The Highwaymen were country’s; and then there was the Traveling Wilburys, perhaps the greatest of them all: a band comprised of George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison. Harrison, one of the Fab Four, once admitted that he never knew what it felt like to play in a band until the Traveling Wilburys. Supergroups were once something to behold, but the magic and allure faded with bands like Velvet Revolver and Audioslave acting more as life rafts for aging rock stars than outlets born of creative desire. Monsters of Folk—three of folk rock’s brightest stars rekindling the magic of a shared tour—sounded so promising on paper, but the record came out flat and contrived. Save for the single "Say Yes," the album was three songwriters trading songs with no discernable input from one another.

Middle Brother - "Middle Brother"

If you're not sold on this Deer Tick/Dawes/Delta Spirit rollickin' roots-rock supergroup, you should be now. We've heard "Me, Me, Me" and the Replacements' cover "Portland" and now we have the song for which the group gets its name, "Middle Brother"—a furious Chucky Berry-inspired bit of rockabilly and soul that features a guest spot by Nashville's Jonny Corndawg. Do yourself a favor and pre-order this baby on some good old-fashioned vinyl.

Middle Brother - "Middle Brother" (from S/T)

Middle Brother - "Me, Me, Me"

Recently, the concept of a supergroup has offered nothing more than an overabundance of anticipation followed by a giant whopping let down (see Monsters of Folk, Them Crooked Vultures). However, the first track from Middle Brother—the pairing of rowdy roots-rock rabble rousers John McCauley (Deer Tick) and Matt Vasquez (Delta Spirit) with the harmony-glazed Dawes frontman Taylor Goldsmith—proves to be something else entirely: feverishly sweaty, inspired and most importantly, fun, rock and roll. The trio's debut record is due out March 1st on Partisan Records.

Middle Brother - "Me, Me, Me" (from Middle Brother)

The Best Albums of 2010 :: 30-16

Grass Widow - Past Time
Raw propulsive bass lines, angular guitars and near chaotic overlapping vocal harmony lend a discordant beauty to the follow-up from this all-girl San Francisco trio.
Sample: "Shadow"

Deer Tick - The Black Dirt Sessions
A dark brooding collection of songs that, with the exception of "When She Comes Home" and "Mange," feel more like a sobering John McCauley solo record than than the drunken poetry of Deer Tick—but poetry it still is.
Sample: "Twenty Miles"

Surfer Blood - Astro Coast
From the light tone of "Take It Easy" to the giant roaring swell of "Swim" and ferocious velocity of "Neighbor Riffs," this is simply one of the best guitar-driven rock records to come out in quite some time.
Sample: "Neighbor Riffs"

The Radio Dept. - Clinging To A Scheme
This is pop music in its most charming, addictive, and sweepingly creative light—a near greatest hits quality collection of singles from this elusive Swedish band.
Sample: "Never Follow Suit"

Mixtape #8: Visions of Country Music

Country, like jazz music, is a truly American art form born in the United States. Despite the recent glossy and insincere evolution of the "country" label and the occasional absurdly popular right wing propaganda-inspired song, the basic foundation of the genre is still intact. From old greats like Hank Williams and George Jones to contemporaries like Deer Tick and the Willie Nelson-loving Matthew Houck, this playlist is dedicated to those momentary visions of great country music conceived of and kept alive in song. The mixtape's title is inspired by the above photo of Gram Parsons, who was having his own acid-fueled visions of country alongside Keith Richards in Joshua Tree.

SIDE A

Ricky Nelson - "Lonesome Town"

Justin Townes Earle - "Poor Fool"

Jerry Reed - "You Took All The Ramblin' Out of Me"

Emmylou Harris - "Two More Bottles of Wine"

Gram Parsons & The Fallen Angels - "California Cotton Fields"

Justin Jones & The Driving Rain - "Long Time"

Phosphorescent - "Reasons To Quit"

Waylon Jennings - "Honky Tonk Heroes"

John Doe & The Sadies - "I Still Miss Someone"

Old Crow Medicine Show - "James River Blues"

SIDE B

Bobby Bare, Jr - "I'll Be Around"

Deer Tick - "Houston, TX"

Blue Giant and Corin Tucker- "Gone For Good"

Roger Miller - "King of The Road"

Kenny Rogers - "Ruby, Don't Take Your Love To Town"

Redbird - "I Gotta Get Drunk"

Langhorne Slim - "In The Midnight"

Bonnie Raitt - "Bluebird"

Townes Van Zandt - "Be Here To Love Me"

Steve Earle - "Goodbye"

Visions of Country Music.zip

To retain track order, drag the folder after it's unzipped into an iTunes playlist.

Best of 2010, So Far...

Songs

Kisses - "Bermuda"
Delta Spirit - "Bushwick Blues"

Blake Mills - "Hey Lover"

The Morning Benders - "Excuses"

Cults - "Go Outside"

Active Child - "When Your Love Is Safe"

Fang Island - "Daisy"

Surfer Blood - "Take It Easy"

LP's, EP's & 7"s
Phosphorescent - Here's To Taking It Easy
Free Energy - Stuck On Nothing
Josh Ritter - So Runs The World Away
Vampire Weekend - Contra

Twin Sister - Colour Your Life
Sonny & The Sunsets - The Hypnotist

Spoon - Transference

Club 8 - The People's Record
The National - High Violet
Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record
Woods - At Echo Lake

The Tallest Man On Earth - The Wild Hunt

Dr. Dog - Shame, Shame

Toro Y Moi - Causers of This

Javelin - No Mas

Deer Tick - The Black Dirt Sessions
Elite Gymnastics - Real Friends

Release Catch Up

Deer Tick - "Sun Street" (Katrina & The Waves cover)

"And it's good, when I'm a little high. And it's good, my glass is never dry. And it's good, when everything is spinning baby."

Deer Tick's latest, The Black Dirt Sessions, is out now. The band rips "Bitchfork" here in good fun for its recent review of the album.

Blitzen Trapper - "Dragon's Song"

Destroyer of the Void, the newest and best from Portland's own folk-tinged experimental rock outfit, is out now.

Delta Spirit - "Bushwick Blues"

History From Below is out now. "Bushwick Blues" and "Golden State" are both rollicking rootsy song of the year contenders. Can anyone wail out raspy vocals like Matt Vasquez? Only John McCauley, which makes me even more excited for their MG&V collaboration.

Stars - "Wasted Daylight"

Previously:

Stars - "We Don't Want Your Body"

Stars - "Fixed"

Three free songs from one album? Thank you Stars—you can market an album any time. Their Five Ghosts is due out June 22nd.

Johnathan Rice - "The Middle of the Road"

Jenny Lewis - "Acid Tongue"

Jenny & Johnny—the aptly-titled project of Jenny Lewis and fellow Laurel Canyon musician/boyfriend Johnathan Rice—have named their record I'm Having Fun Now. Despite the cutesy cover art and potential She & Him comparisons, this could be a fantastic collaboration. Has Lewis ever made a single musical misstep in her career? Let's see: Rilo Kiley, Postal Service, Watson Twins, Elvis Costello, Traveling Wilbury's cover with M. Ward. I'm going to go with a definitive no. Here's a cover of "Love Hurts" the pair sung almost every night on Lewis's Acid Tongue tour.

Digging For Covers: The Boss's Disciples

The National - "Mansion On The Hill"

Marah - "Streets of Philadelphia"
Josh Ritter - "The River"
Deer Tick - "Nebraska"

Ted Leo - "Dancin' In The Dark"

AA Bondy - "I'm On Fire"

Spoon - "I'm Goin' Down"

Deer Tick to play PDX on 4/20 and throw afterparty

Hey Portlanders: Everybody Taste favorites Deer Tick will be in town on April 20th for a show at the Crystal Ballroom and the band just announced today that immediately following the concert they'll be throwing an afterparty at the nearby Berbati's Pan (about ten blocks East). Who knows what the special occasion is or what shenanigans will be going down, but you should probably get a ticket.

Deer Tick - "Twenty Miles" (from The Black Dirt Sessions)

New Deer Tick - "Twenty Miles"

Deer Tick has offered a download from their forthcoming June 8th release, The Black Dirt Sessions. The song, "Twenty Miles," finds John McCauley experimenting with his deep-throated rasp to the point where you can literally feel his vocal cords vibrate during the chorus. That and an acoustic bass make for a particularly rugged and sparse song, but that's just Deer Tick at its best. The band also recorded a few songs for the "Take Away Show" last year that never ran—you can now watch them all on Vimeo here.

Deer Tick - "Twenty Miles" (from The Black Dirt Sessions)

MG&V: A Deer Tick, Delta Spirt and Dawes supergroup

MG&V is an acronym for McCauley, Goldsmith and Vasquez—the respective songsmiths behind the great Deer Tick, Delta Spirit and Dawes. According to a press release, the three recorded an album down in Nashville together. Judging from the above SXSW performance taped by the great Duke Street Blog, there isn't a Monsters of Folk veneer of collaboration going on here. Thankfully, instead, it seems to be something much more organic. The raspy-voiced McCauley and Vasquez won't be producing many golden CNY harmonies, but the trio sure do embody that spirit in this brief clip of "Daydreaming."

Dr. Dog to release Anti debut Shame, Shame

Everybody Taste favorites Dr. Dog are set to release Shame, Shame—their 6th album and first via Anti-Records—on April 6th. If the band's past evolutionary leaps are any indicator, Shame, Shame will be one of the can't miss releases of 2010. From the charmingly lo-fi and Beatles-esque Easy Beat (check out the chorussing George Harrison guitar in "Easy Beat") to the pitch-perfect Last Waltz-inspired Fate, Dr. Dog have proven to be one of the most reliable and creative rock classicists of the past decade. The band starts touring for the album January 27th, playing a few shows with fellow folk-rock throwbacks Deer Tick. Check out the dates.

Dr. Dog - "Hang On" (from Fate)

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Download Dr. Dog via Emusicand Get 25 Free MP3's

Deer Tick to release four-song EP

The great rock and roll band that is Deer Tick is set to release a four-song EP on Dec. 1st to cap of a year in which they earned universal praise, from obscure taste makers to mainstream behemoths like NBC anchor Brian Williams and Rolling Stone. When I saw the band live earlier this year, it just clicked: this music is classic—something no trend or length of time can change.

The EP, More Fuel For The Fire, will include three new songs as well as a live take of their Chuck Berry-fueled barn burner "Straight Into A Storm." To celebrate the Tick, here's a cover John McCauley recorded two years back of the Sean Kingston chart-topper "Beautiful Girls."

Deer Tick - "Beautiful Girls" (Sean Kingston cover)

Review: Deer Tick at the Kennedy School

Deer Tick may be the greatest bar band in the world. And one of the best up and coming rock and roll groups. They aren't hip and they aren't of the moment: it's classic whiskey-fueled and sweaty head-banging guitar soul. Led by singer and finger-picking devotee John McCauley, Deer Tick played three high-energy sets of originals and covers, including cuts from the Replacements ("Can't Hardly Wait"), Tom Petty ("Breakdown"), John Mellencamp ("The Authority Song") and Ritchie Valens ("La Bamba").

Mick Jagger once said, "Everything we do is derivative." On Wednesday night, it seemed McCauley couldn't agree more. Wearing a black Thin Lizzy t-shirt, he and his band tore through some of the favorite songs of their youth while delivering their own equally inspired originals. From the anthemic "oohs" of "Ashamed" to the Chuck Berry-inspired "Straight Into A Storm" and an a cappella set-ending version of "Diry Dishes," it's clear that Deer Tick—now assembled as a five piece—are a confident group storming the gates of success.
Whether it was dexterous guitar player Andy Tobiassen slashing through accompaniments and solos; the steady hands of rhythm guitarist Ian O'Neil and bassist Christopher Ryan; or Christopher's burly and bearded half-brother Dennis displaying chops on the drum kit and delicacy on his vocals; the band proved to be a remarkably capable bunch—and McCauley's songs are all the better for it.

Heavily sipping a glass of whiskey, McCauley joked about the popularity of some of his songs, including at one point comparing the listens per month of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Have You Ever Seen The Rain" to his own "Song About A Man." But after performing the track, the comparison wasn't so far-fetched. McCauley may not have written his own epic sweeping ballad yet, but the accomplished and young lyricist has time on his side. And with his band of rebel rousers helping him shake things loose along the way—as when Tobiassen kicked McCauley from on top of an amp down into the drum kit during the encore-closing "With A Little Help From My Friends"—it's clear that their journey towards greater success will be one well worth watching—and keeping a close ear to.

Deer Tick - "Ashamed" (from War Elephant)
Deer Tick - "La Bamba" (live Ritchie Valens cover)

Listen to Deer Tick's recorded version of "La Bamba", available as a 7" tour-only single, here.