It's with a heavy heart that I leave
rogerzmusic.com. I've been blogging on this platform since February 2005. I
started this blog as an outlet for my excitement for new music, going to
concerts, and general music news. It's served that purpose well, but I wish I
could say the same for this blog platform. It was the ideal solution, using
iBlog to connect to my MobileMe iDisk, giving me lots of power and flexibility
at no cost or 3rd party hosting environment. About a year ago (maybe longer),
iBlog was essentially abandoned, in the middle of a major upgrade no less. That
left many, many months of trudging along with an outdated tool in a quickly
changing landscape.
Amidst major changes,
now is the time. Of course I couldn't find the ideal replacement blog setup,
but I've found a very good one - using a free, hosted Wordpress account and
ecto. This also gives me the flexibility to blog from Flock and my iPhone. And
while the new platform isn't quite perfect (paying for CSS, no iFrames, etc.),
neither will the transition. I had dreams of a sharp cut over to the ideal
layout and structure. Ha. Still, it's a start and a good foundation to build
from, rather than an abandoned
ship.
Eventually, I would love to make an
effort to make onlymusicleft.com a major Cleveland music
blog... Keep your eyes
out.
Posted at 10:09 PM |
Jennifer O'Connor (10/15/08)
I can't say that I'm a huge Jennifer O'Connor fan,
though I've enjoyed her new album more than previous ones. But I really wanted
to get out and see a show. Actually, my original plan was to go see the
in-store performance of Frightened Rabbit at Music Saves prior to seeing
Jennifer, but that just didn't work out (just too early). But she was very good
and the show was very enjoyable... until the sold out (??) Nick Lowe show in the
Ballroom let out and crowded the Tavern. Guess I'm glad Jennifer got a bit more
of an audience... but that made it a good time for me to
ditch.
The kicker in all this is that I
just found out that Frightened Rabbit (whom I *really* like) ended up playing at
the Spot that night!! What a bummer! Sorry Jennifer, but I would have gone to
that show instead. Oh well.
Posted at 08:20 AM |
Liam Finn (10/3/08)
Just to get this out of the way, yes he's the son
of Neil Finn... but he stands out as a performer in his own right. I had been
really enjoying some songs on his album and was excited to see him perform at
the Grog Shop. This ended up being a much more rock show that I was really
expecting. He jammed on songs harder and longer than I've seen before, well,
except maybe for Xavier Rudd. Guess it's something about those from down under.
Not all his songs were great, similar to the album, but I just loved the jams,
the banter on stage, the cutie brother that came out to perform, etc. Just over
a great personality, energy, and I expect great things from
him.
Posted at 08:16 AM |
Ryan Adams (9/30/08)
My
friend Tim was able to hook me up with tickets for this show. I've been a
sideline Ryan fan for a couple years. Lately his song "Two" has just gripped me
(embed below). He's one of the artists that I wouldn't pay a lot to go see, but
would DEFINITELY go if for free. :-)
I
invited my co-worker with me and we had a GREAT time, stopping at Becky's before
the show, as I always do before going to Playhouse Square. Which by the way,
was a great venue for him! Sure, the audience was a little annoying, but
overall the played an amazing set. Clean, crisp and well done. Even his
awkwardness on stage, bantering was extremely
charming.
Since then, I started listening
to his new album Cardinology, and I think I'm going to start listening to him
even more now. He's definitely been knocked up a notch, and I will definitely
see him next time (even if I have to
pay).
Another sold out Neko show. I was excited early on
for this show, but as it approached, I became less-so. Something about sold-out
shows really turns me off. I ended up showing up late and leaving early, but
not before being charmed by her once more. She played some new songs off the
new album... FINALLY! Bring it on Neko.
Posted at 08:12 AM |
Dar Williams (9/16/08)
Oh Dar... how I love thee. I was sooo glad to see
her perform at the Beachland, rather than the House of Blues like last time.
And the funny thing is that she made light of that during her show, commenting
on how the audience loved the Beachland more, despite almost killing a
Beachland-goer trying to back the tour bus into the Beachland parking
lot.
As soon as I walked in, I saw my
friend Jen sitting in the front row. She offered me a couple seats!! Love
her.
The show was good as always, and I
enjoyed the unconventional drumming for this show. Oh, and Shawn Mullins
opened. I admit I wasn't that excited about him, but he was rather enjoyable!
I might even see him
again.
Since
this show, I've spent even more time with her new album and I'm LOVING it more
and more. I couldn't find "Buzzer" to embed, but check it out on her MySpace
page.
Posted at 08:01 AM |
Nathan Duprey (9/12/08)
What a night... I had been planning on this show
for a while, being very excited to see him since he surprised me with his
previous performance at the Spider opening up for Liz Stahler. Since that
night, I've seen Liz & Brianna again, offering up my place to crash. They
were excited, and VERY appreciative to the offer and it hit me last minute that
Nathan might be interested as well. I emailed Liz and she passed the message
and and it worked out! I'm so happy to help out traveling musicians.
:-)
Chad & I went to the show and had
a great time watching Nathan perform on the old Piano in the corner of the
Spider. Extremely talented and dynamic! After his set, the bluegrass band that
followed asked him to join them on a couple songs and it was great. After the
show, we went back to my place, hung out, played skip-bo and ate pickled eggs.
Well, Nathan didn't. I think they kinda freaked him out. The next morning we
ate a little breakfast and he was on his way. Can't wait to see him perform
again.
Hopefully next time I'll remember
to take a picture...
Posted at 07:45 AM |
Ra Ra Riot (9/10/08)
These
guys were a big surprise... I had been hearing their name, then saw they were
coming to Case Western. It had been awhile since I've seen a show at The Spot
(Supersystem), and I was itchin' to go. Their new album was enjoyable, and so
was their show. Well, other than the hoochie guy & girl grinding in the
front like they were at a Lil' Kim concert. They even had the gall to be
confrontational as all the indie kids just stared at their ridiculousness. Ugh.
But despite, they were great performers and I'd love to see them
again.
I'm also happy to see they're
getting some bigger
press!
My friend Tim had been telling me about Eilen
Jewell, wanting me to go see her in Akron. I couldn't make it, but found out
she was going to be at the Black Swamp Arts Festival. She was really the only
performer that I would consider paying attention to this year, unlike previous
years. She was good, I'd see her
again.
Posted at 08:40 PM |
Silver String Band (8/30/08)
Another great night at the
Spider.
Posted at 08:39 PM |
Silver Jews (8/29/08)
[another round of rapid catching
up...]
My
friend Jared contacted me about seeing the Silver Jews. I hadn't heard much
about them before, but listened to the new album and was surprisingly impressed.
The meloncholy sound and the deep voice, reminding me of Johnny Cash. At the
show, Jared told me this was the kind of band he'd like to hear on some random
country rest-stop jukebox. Very well
put.
One of my favorite songs from the
new
album:
Posted at 08:33 PM |
Sun - October 26, 2008
Mates of State (8/3/08)
I had been enjoying this album, but this was
another one of the shows where their performance solidified their stature as one
of my favorites. Mates of State looked like a 30-something
married hipster couple (and I mean that with the utmost respect). I really
enjoyed seeing them perform, but I really need to get more acquainted with their
earlier stuff, as that was a major crowd pleaser. They were *really* into it.
They really seemed into the crowd as well, saying we were "better than
Lollapalooza." Suck ups. :-)
Posted at 09:03 PM |
Janis Ian (7/31/08)
Another show at Cain Park. This time I wasn't
going to dare take a photo.
I've seen
Janis Ian
at Cain Park before (pre-blogging), and had a great time. This time wasn't any
different. I called early and got 4th row seats. I told my neighbors and they
were VERY jealous, because they tried and got seats much further back. The day
of the show, I surprised them and switched tickets. I was happy to do it
because they were so excited, and I didn't mind hanging back this
show.
One of the best aspects of a Janis
Ian show is her storytelling. Every song had a long story that wound it's way
to lead into the song. She is a very enjoyable story teller, which is probably
what makes her such a great musician.
Posted at 08:58 PM |
Over the Rhine (7/22/08)
What a great night to be at Cain Park! Even better
that this Over
the Rhine show was part of their $2 show
promotion.
Unfortunately we were running
late. As we were walking in, I heard them covering Gillian Welch's "Look at
Miss Ohio." Ugh!! What a great song. Unfortunately, walking in we saw how few
people were there. WTF? Over the Rhine is definitely an established and
respected band, so this was a surprise (not to mention the price). They went on
to play a great set, making this a nearly perfect summer night. They also
covered Emmylou Harris' "Orphan Girl" and Pretenders "My City was
Gone."
My only complains that night were
the bug light continually zapping, and that the ushers were camera nazis.
Within seconds of me taking a photo with my phone, they were on me, almost
having a fit. A couple minutes later, a woman in front of me did the same.
Only this time, the usher caused a ruckus by making the concert-goer delete the
photo right in front of them, proving it's demise. Whatever. Just good to
remember for next time.
Posted at 08:53 PM |
Pitchfork Music Festival 2008
[...time to blow through these shows that need
posted]
Where
to start... Last year'sPitchfork
Music Festival was amazing. So much so, that I knew I was coming back
this year despite who was performing. I wasn't
disappointed.
Of course, one of the
reasons that a weekend like this is possible is because of my good friend Sal
and her husband Chris. Going to Chicago always results in a good time hanging
out with them. Though one of the stipulations this year was that I stay for the
entire day (both days) at the Festival, so I didn't get to hang with them as
much as I'd like. This year we drove in on Saturday morning, just enough time
to drop our stuff w/ Sal and head on over to Union
Park.
One of the defining characteristics
of Saturday was the rain. It wasn't what I was hoping for, but the show went on
and people made the best of it. It was almost a welcome addition. We got
settled in time to hear Caribou (from a distance)... From there Saturday day
included Jay Reatard, Fleet Foxes, Dizzy Rascal and Vampire Weekend, and !!!.
Surprisingly, I really enjoyed Vampire Weekend. They were very fun, and very
"festival." Amongst these shows, we ate some festival food and watched
mud-diving. By this time, evening was upon us and we we saw !!!, The Hold
Steady. We stayed for some of Jarvis Cocker, but decided to head out and meet
Sal & Chris for some drinks and food. I was curious to see Animal
Collective, but staying wasn't necessary (boy these days are
long).
A point of conflict for me at this
festival is viewing location. Once D and I sat our chairs down in the lawn, we
were able to just swing directions between stages A & C. Stage B was at the
other end of the park and we usually interested in the main two stages. The
problem is that I would have liked to stand close for some of these shows,
getting a better feel for the performance. But this required committment, as
being close required no chairs and missing a band on another stage while the one
you were waiting on set up. This year we took the easy route and just stayed
planted. Sure, I missed some great close-up pics and the crowd's energy, but no
where was there a bad seat or a lack of people-watching. We took the path of
least-resistance and stayed put.
With Day
2, we parked it in the same location. It worked. We were there in time for the
Dirty Projectors. I then walked over to see HEALTH on stage B. I was back at
stage A for Apples in Stereo which were great, they played a lot of new stuff.
I walked up close for them, hence some of the better photos for them. Back to
our seats, we watched Les Savy Fav. I wasn't expecting them to have a lead
singer sporting a one-legged, red leotard. Oh, he was also bald(ish), chubby
with a beard. F*cking crazy, but lots of fun, and I would totally see them
again. Next up were the Dodo's. These guys were okay, and one of the bands I
was really looking forward to. They were good, but I'd much rather see them in
close proximity in a place like the Grog Shop. Then was M. Ward, who's
performance made me want to give the She & Him album another shot. Stayed
for a bit of Spirtualized, then headed over to see Bon Iver back over to Stage
B. Unfortunately, that didn't work out so well because it was PACKED and you
could still hear Spiritualized. We finished off with Spoon, which we only
watched a couple songs as we were walking
out.
Overall, this festival is as much
about the overall experience (food, beer, people watching, etc.) as it is about
the music. I think it was this realization which made me more comfortable with
just sitting back and taking it all in from the folding chairs near the back.
But who knows, that may change next year.
Jennifer O'Connor (10/15/08)
