Several Species of Small Furry Thoughts - Springsteen, Neil Young and Black Friday

Another crazy week! Starting with Bruce Springsteen at The Pepsi Center. I just got a smart phone and took some movies of a few of the highlights. I have a complicated relationship with Springsteen. It goes kinda like this; Loved him, hated him, loved him again, lost interest in him, loved him, became ambivalent, and now, love him again. Bruce and his gigantic (now 17 piece) E. Street Band (including late sax player Clarence Clemons’ Nephew Jake Clemons filling his uncle’s shoes pretty amazingly) took no prisoners at this show. It was classic Brooce; an endless marathon of heartfelt, original material peppered with huge hits ("Born To Run", "Hungry Heart", "Dancing in The Dark", "Promised Land", "I’m A Rocker, Badlands"), covers ("Get Out Of Denver", "Raise Your Hand", "Across The Borderline", "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town") and deep cuts ("E-Street Shuffle", "Spirit In The Night", "Bishop Danced"). It lasted three hours and it is safe to say that nobody in the joint left unhappy. It was exhilarating to watch this 63-year old legend deliver a show with more energy, guts and pure rock adrenalin than most performers half (a third?) his age. As I watched him I couldn’t help but think how I wish every young person could see this show before it is too late and there aren’t any performers with a genuine connection to the golden era left. Springsteen isn’t Dylan and he isn’t The Beatles, but he is probably the greatest exponent of a certain brand of uniquely American rock - the type that used to be played in small working-class bars throughout the country; fist-pumping, horn-blaring, top-down, cruising rock that people of limited means can enjoy and own as much as the president of a record company or the richest guy in the world. Bruce is an equal opportunity hero who speaks to all with an open heart.

Video 1: Bruce opens with "Get Out of Denver"
Video 2: Bruce brings a girl up from the audience to sing
Video 3: Bruce rewards the faithful spirit in the night
Video 4: Bruce gets seasonal with "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"

Something you might miss out on if you didn't know about it is the Blu-Ray version of Neil Young’s new masterpiece Psychedelic Pill. On the last few Neil releases Neil has quietly snuck out a DVD or Blu-Ray version of his new albums that often have remarkable additional material on them. Psychedelic Pill not only sounds even better on Blu-Ray audio but each song has a video accompanying it. Some are mostly just a light show, like the kaleidoscope effect on opener “Drifting Back” while others Like “Twisted Road” and “Born In Ontario” are full blown videos with unseen images of Neil at home, on the road, in the past and now. In addition, there is a bonus track called “Horse Back” that is an amazing 35 minute free-form jam that morphs into the classic “Cortez The Killer” while taking the listener on a video tour of Neil’s recording studio, focusing on all his vintage gear and homespun accouterments. If you love this album as much as I do, do yourself a favor and pick up the Blu-Ray version.

We are almost 3 hours into this year’s Record Store Day Black Friday celebration and things are going quite nicely. About a hundred people in line when we opened and a nice convivial feel in the crowd. It looks like almost everybody is getting what they want. The early winners seem to be Primus, The White Stripes, The Grateful Dead and The Fat Boys Pizza Box. Come on down - we still have lots of stock on many items.

Happy Thanksgiving

Paul Epstein

2011 UMS band interviews #1

Twist and Shout has asked some bands performing at the UMS to answer a few questions for us- check out these bands July21st-July24 at the UMS.

the Knew:

http://www.theums.com/artists/detail/the-knew

Where and when are you playing at the UMS?

We are playing the outdoor stage at 6 on Saturday as an 8 piece and the Rover on Sunday at 9 as a 5 piece.  Lots of numbers in that last sentence - I know - but both sets will be as different as they are fun.

Do you have your cd for sale at Twist and Shout?

We do.  We have our full length, Pulperia as well as our 7" Before it Ends.  Twist and Shout has always been super nice to us.  

How long has your band been together?

For many moons and many moods

What was your band's first live show/ performance?

 Herman's Hideaway to our parents.  

What was the first album you purchased?

P.M. Dawn "Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross 

Do you have any (quick) advice for new bands?

Don't get caught up in anything besides making good music and being good to one another.       

Besides your own band- who do you want to see at the UMS?

Trees, Ha Ha Tonka, The Fling, Oh No Oh My, The Dendrites, Vicious Women, the Blackheart Procession, Greg Al Isakov, Pink Hawks, Lord Steven Fuzz. 

Best past UMS experience?

After our show a couple years ago we went to the Brown Barrel and drank until we couldn't anymore.  They had a free taco buffet.  

Do you have any tips for festival goers?
Stay away from the free taco buffet at the Brown Barrel.

What's the best food people can find on Broadway during the festival?

You should try the free taco buffet and almost free draws at the Brown Barrel.

Who is your all time favorite Denver band?

Slim Cessna's Auto Club and The Beebs 

If you were behind the counter at Twist and Shout, what three albums would you recommend to our customers?

Van Halen I, Van Halen II and Jimmy Cliff's The Harder They Come

Is there anything we forgot to ask you about the UMS that you think people need to know?

Its more important to try to have as much fun as possible than it is to try to look cool.  

Mane Rok

http://www.theums.com/artists/detail/mane-rok-w-deejay-tense

Where and when are you playing at the UMS? 

11pm Sunday at Club 404

Do you have your cd for sale at Twist and Shout? 

"The Ugly Truth" & ManeLine titles are there, but the newest opus "En Stereo" is at shows only for the moment.

How long has your band been together? 

I've been performing with Deejay Tense since about 2004 in different capacities...but went solo with Tense as of 2009

What was your band's first live show/ performance? 

First live solo show...was at the Marquis Theater with The Pirate Signal in March of 2009.

What was the first album you purchased? 

Full Album...Kris Kross. First anything..was a maxi-tape single by Heavy D & The Boyz...RIP Trouble T Roy.

Do you have any (quick) advice for new bands?

 Be prepared for the worst...expect the best....and you'll land somewhere in between.

Besides your own band- who do you want to see at the UMS?

 The lineup is so extensive...can't really say...I prefer what happened to me at my first year playing...being amazed by random bands at random venues...like the pink hawks.

Best past UMS experience?

Refer to previous question.

Do you have any tips for festival goers?
Comfortable shoes. Lots of water.


What's the best food people can find on Broadway during the festival?

 The yogurt shop...the thai spot...and Sputnik.

Who is your all time favorite Denver band?

 Deca

If you were behind the counter at Twist and Shout, what three albums would you recommend to our customers?

 Mane Rok "The Ugly Truth" Prime Element "Set IN Stone" and ManeLine "...& Sew Its Seams"

Jessica Sonner

http://www.theums.com/artists/detail/jessica-sonner

Where and when are you playing at the UMS?

The Hornet 9pm Sunday night. WOO!

Do you have your cd for sale at Twist and Shout? 

Yes, both my albums are available at Twist.  'All We Need' and 'The EP'

How long has your band been together?

I have been playing and touring for 7 years. 

What was your band's first live show/ performance?  

Starbucks every Thursday night in Anderson, Indiana. 

What was the first album you purchased?  

Jewel  - 'Pieces of You'

Do you have any (quick) advice for new bands? 

No one will work harder for you than you will for yourself. 

Besides your own band- who do you want to see at the UMS?  

Nathan and Stephen

Best past UMS experience?  

Hearts of Palm (Nathan and Stephen)'s secret show last year at 2 am. fantastic. 

Do you have any tips for festival goers?  

Go to as much as possible.  Wear sunscreen.  404 has the best Bloody Mary.

What's the best food people can find on Broadway during the festival? 

Walnut Room pizza... or the Steuben's kitchen on wheels. LOVE IT!

Who is your all time favorite Denver band?  

Yikes. um... undecided. 

If you were behind the counter at Twist and Shout, what three albums would you recommend to our customers? 

Churchill, Gregory Alan Isakov, and Dan Craig's new record... coming out this fall...  

Is there anything we forgot to ask you about the UMS that you think people need to know?  

You can sleep when you're dead.

Overcasters 

http://www.theums.com/artists/detail/overcasters

Where and when are you playing at the UMS? 

Sunday July 24th @ 6pm 3kings tavern

Do you have your cd for sale at Twist and Shout? 

Yes, The Whole Sea is Raging on Colored Vinyl and CD

How long has your band been together? 

5 years

What was your band's first live show/ performance? 

Weather Center, Sept 2007

Besides your own band- who do you want to see at the UMS? 

Land Lines

Do you have any tips for festival goers? 

Come see Overcasters @ 3kings Sunday

What's the best food people can find on Broadway during the festival? 

Food Trucks!

Who is your all time favorite Denver band? 

Tarmints

If you were behind the counter at Twist and Shout, what three albums would you recommend to our customers?

 BRMC Baby 81, Echo and the Bunnymen Ocean Rain, Black Angels Directions to see a ghost 

More interviews to come! 

I'd Love to Turn You On #35 - Bill Withers - Live At Carnegie Hall

Bill Withers Live At Carnegie Hall is one of those rare recordings that really can only be described as magic. It is one of the greatest live records of all time and is often mentioned in the same breath as James Brown’s Live At The Apollo, Curtis Mayfield’s Curtis Live and any number of others. The songs and their playing order feels like a conversation – about love, poverty, family, war, friendship, maturing, and whatever other human experience was on his palate that October evening in 1972.

This is an album you become absolutely immersed in from the very beginning. The laid back but musically tight eight-minute plus version of “Use Me” gets the crowd out of their seats early chanting “One more time!” to which Bill asks, “One more time?” and then obliges the audience, sounding just as excited as they are to dive back into the chorus. This is the vibe of the entire record. Bill comes across as everything he is: warm, funny, cool, vulnerable, wise, and above all, genuine. He talks to the crowd, and when praising and jabbing at his band mates, he makes sure the audience is included on the inside jokes. He shares it all with whoever is listening, and you can’t stop listening.

There is no shortage of advice given and lessons learned in Bill’s writing, but he never comes across as preachy or holier than thou” but rather he sounds achingly human and blunt. He has the rare gift of being able to convey lyrically what so many feel but can’t put to words. It’s not only what is being said but how it’s being sung. Bill has a voice and sound that’s never quite been duplicated; not by his peers of the time like Al Green, Isaac Hayes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, or by anyone else for that matter. Bill never had any proper musical training and as a result no one to tell him he was doing it wrong. He was a wholly unique, folksy R&B singer/songwriter, equal parts rock n’ roll and soul crooner. He was the embodiment of the progressive R&B movement of the moment.

Bill came to the music industry relatively late, not even singing one of his own songs in front of others until his early thirties and has been quoted as saying, “When you have a talent you know it when you’re five years old - it’s just getting around to it,” and here we get him at the absolute peak of his career.

These are songs written as much about people as for people. Alive or dead, grandmother, stranger, neighbor, friend, or lover. These joyous songs, these reflective songs are all about the human experience, specifically the American experience of the time. On the solemn “I Can’t Write Left Handed” Bill puts himself in the shoes of a young man he met that had recently returned from Vietnam after losing his right arm. It is one of the greatest anti-war songs of not only the post-Vietnam era but of all time. Bill’s biggest hits “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean On Me” take on a life of their own, while lesser known tunes like “Grandma’s Hands,” “Better Off Dead” and “World Keeps Going Around” are made into classics.

To quote from Bill’s writing in the liner notes: “Affection! By the time we got into ‘Harlem’ us and the audience had become all happy members of one big band all on one stage.”

So now do yourself a favor, pick up a copy of this album, listen to it repeatedly, and let it in your life.

Andrew Kleiman

Wrap-up for Foster the People live at Twist and Shout 6/8

Foster the People played a semi-acoustic set yesterday to a crowd of 170 fans.  The crowd was full of excited music lovers, many of whom were dancing along to the songs.  Mark Foster's lead vocals were surprisingly enriched by his acoustic guitar.  This band is mainly known for having an indie-electro sound so it was really cool to see the stripped down version of the summer hit "Pumped Up Kicks." The band played a four-song set and stayed for the large line of fans who were anxious to get anything signed by the band.  One girl even had an app on her phone for autographs, which just goes to show this was a young hip crowd.  There were new customers as well as a lot of regulars.  Most folks had already purchased the album but ended up picking up boutique items and lots of other good stuff while here.  The band was super friendly and so gracious to give us all so much time when they had a sold out show later at the Bluebird Theater.  This was one of those in-stores that just made everyone here happy.  I couldn't get their songs out of my head all night and I love when that happens.
-Natasha

Bad Weather California live at Twist and Shout 5/24 wrap up

Bad Weather California played at Twist and Shout last night to a crowd of 70 folks. There was a family reunion vibe as Denver came together to celebrate the release ofDemos and Live Takes for the Fans. This super exclusive vinyl has artwork hand-made by the band and some covers even have their own blood mixed in. Nothing like giving your blood to the craft... But that kind of sums up what Chris Adolf gives to BWC- his blood, sweat and tears. Though there was a lot of laughter and fun here last night. As Chris put it several times "This is WAY more fun than I thought it would be". That always leaves us with a sense of pride, not only are in-stores an enjoyable experience for the music fans, but for the musicians as well. We sold a great amount of the vinyl, which has a really good sound quality for a demo/ live takes album. The band rocked, the crowd danced and people had a great time!

the images above by Tony White http://www.whitegardenphotography.com

check out http://www.badweathercalifornia.com/ and have a great one!

-Natasha

Ryan Bingham Live at Twist & Shout 2/25/11

When one of my employees came in and said “There’s a bunch of cars in the lot with Wyoming license plates” I knew something was up. Usually when we have an in-store everybody shows up at the last minute. For this up-and-coming country star though, people were here at least an hour before show time. By the time the unassuming Mr. Bingham strolled on stage and looked kind of bemused by the size of the crowd there were close to 300 people packing the vinyl room. Ryan did not disappoint. He played about a half hour of his world-weary country blues. I really didn’t know what to expect, but by the time it was over I realized this guy was the real deal - in a Townes Van Zandt kinda way. He has real presence, although absolutely no pretensions whatsoever. His songwriting and laconic delivery shine as the star of the show. He was tremendously nice to the many people who stayed around to get stuff autographed. Unfortunately for us, all the fans seemed to own all three of his excellent albums already - so sales were a bit peckish, but when an artist plays with this much heart and soul and his fans come out in such force, we would be foolish to complain.
-Paul