Relient K fall tour dates

photo by Corynne Hogan

Relient K's “Mmhmm 10th Anniversary Tour” will begin in October. Tickets will go on sale Aug. 1 through Ticketmaster.

Third CD, Mmhmm, debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 chart and later went gold. It features two Top 40 Christian hits including “Be My Escape” and "Who I Am Hates Who I've Been."
 
Last year Relient K released Collapsible Lung, their first studio album in four years. The digital only release debuted in the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart. This was the first time the Grammy-nominated band released a studio project in digital form only, and the album also debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes overall album chart.

Tour dates:

10/30/14 Louisville, KY Mercury Ballroom
10/31/14 Cincinnati, OH Bogarts
11/01/14 Chicago, IL House of Blues
11/02/14 Minneapolis, MN Mill City Nights
11/04/14 Denver, CO Summit Music Hall
11/05/14 Salt Lake City, UT Complex
11/07/14 Seattle, WA Neptune
11/08/14 Portland, OR Roseland
11/09/14 Sacramento, CA Assembly
11/11/14 San Francisco, CA Slim’s
11/12/14 West Hollywood, CA House of Blues
11/13/14 San Diego, CA House of Blues
11/14/14 Pomona, CA Glasshouse
11/15/14 Las Vegas, NV Hard Rock
11/16/14 Phoenix, AZ Nile Theater
11/18/14 Tulsa, OK Cain’s
11/19/14 Dallas, TX House of Blues
11/20/14 Austin, TX Emo’s
11/21/14 Houston, TX House of Blues
11/22/14 New Orleans, LA House of Blues
11/24/14 Jacksonville, FL Freebird Live
11/25/14 Orlando, FL House of Blues
11/26/14 Atlanta, GA Masquerade
11/28/14 Charlotte, NC Fillmore
11/29/14 Saxapahaw, NC Haw River Ballroom
11/30/14 Silver Spring, MD Fillmore
12/02/14 Philadelphia, PA TLA
12/03/14 Boston, MA Paradise
12/04/14 New York, NY Gramercy
12/05/14 Pittsburgh, PA Altar Bar
12/06/14 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
12/09/14 Grand Rapids, MI Intersection
12/10/14 Detroit, MI St. Andrew’s Hall
12/11/14 Indianapolis, IN Deluxe
12/12/14 Nashville, TN Cannery Ballroom 

The Cult concert review: Riverside, Calif.

Billy Duffy makes it all look so effortless.

On Saturday night, the founding guitarist for The Cult occasionally held his guitar aloft while casually playing some of the more memorable riffs in alternative and hard rock history. Even more impressive was the fact that it was done without your typical clichéd axe man posturing or grimacing.

Held at the historic Municipal Auditorium in Riverside, California - the 75-minute gig marked a rare area performance for the veteran English band. The floor section was almost filled. This was my first time experiencing an A-level act at 86-year-old venue following a recent sonic upgrade. I thought the sound quality was exceptional.

Longtime enthusiasts know that Ian Astbury can often be hit or miss in concert: will he go off on a rant? Will he clip lyrical phrases and just yelp? Here, the front man did relay a disdain for technology and took a few vocal shortcuts at the very end, but was basically in good form.

Sporting black leather jacket and shades, Astbury and company kicked things off with the haunting “Rain” and Duffy’s chugging guitar led the way.

For the quick-paced “Spiritwalker” (off the band’s debut 1984 LP Dreamtime), some clarion call effects on Duffy’s trademark Gretsch White Falcon guitar made it an early standout.  A thunderous “Honey from a Knife” (key refrain: “we got the drugs in here”) was the first of three selections played from 2012’s solid, underrated Choice of Weapon. Word is they will be recording new material in the near future.

Lean ‘n’ mean riff rocker “Lil’ Devil” got the crowd all riled up; one fan in front even waved crutches in the air. A dense, grungy “The Witch" saw Astbury mumble something about “honky tonk transvestites” before he wildly shook maracas and Duffy navigated the squelching guitar.

Remarking that everyone looked like university students (the Muni is only a few miles from UC Riverside) when in fact this was an older-skewing crowd including many biker types, Astbury’s thoughtful side came to the fore during the slower, dramatic “Embers.”  

Before the intense, circuitous rock thrust of “Lucifer” (about the devil, a favorite topic), Astbury quipped, “Imagine: people that can really play their instruments! All those high-priced DJs do is put in a flash drive. No talent. You deserve better.”   

Duffy got in some nifty windmill motions on “Rise.” Other absorbing songs included radio hits “Sweet Soul Sister,” the stomping “Wildflower” and main set closer “Love Removal Machine.”

Come encore time, “She Sells Sanctuary” (a song which many, this writer included, consider The Cult’s finest moment) still packed a mighty wallop after all these years.

Next: Aug. 2 - Sturgis Buffalo Chip, Sturgis, South Dakota

thecult.us

Country music tribute to Motley Crue

Big Machine Records, Mötley Records and Eleven Seven Music are readying Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute to Motley Crue for Aug. 19 release.

The project will feature 15 of the band’s biggest hits covered by some of Country music’s biggest names, including Florida Georgia Line, Justin Moore, Big & Rich, LeAnn Rimes, Gretchen Wilson, Darius Rucker, Rascal Flatts and more. 

"We did not make this record for Mötley Crüe fans, but for Country fans who are also rock fans. I believe that there’s going to be a lot of synergy and excitement for Mötley Crüe fans hearing different artists covering their favorite songs. People will be surprised how these artists made these songs their own and we couldn’t be happier with how the album turned out. It’s been an amazing, positive experience and, as a lot of things we’ve done, a first in our career,” says Mötley Crüe bassist, Nikki Sixx. 

“It has been a blast becoming friends with the Motley guys and learning how much they appreciate the history of Country music. They are truly one of the most disruptive bands of their generation and I am honored to be able to cover one of my favorite Crue songs of all time, ‘Home Sweet Home.’ It has been pretty unreal singing with Vince Neil," said Justin Moore. 

Track listing:

Rascal Flatts – “Kickstart My Heart” 
Florida Georgia Line – “If I Die Tomorrow” 
LeAnn Rimes – “Smokin’ In The Boys Room” 
Justin Moore – “Home Sweet Home” 
Cassadee Pope with Robin Zander – “The Animal In Me” 
Aaron Lewis – “Afraid” 
Big & Rich – “SOS” 
Sam Palladio and Claire Bowen – “Without You” 
Eli Young Band – “Don’t Go Away Mad” 
Lauren Jenkins – “Looks That Kill” 
The Cadillac Three – “Live Wire” 
The Mavericks – “Dr. Feelgood” 
Brantley Gilbert – “Girls Girls Girls” 
Gretchen Wilson – “Wild Side” 
Darius Rucker – “Time For Change

Minus The Bear music arrives in October

Minus The Bear will release new album Lost Loves on Oct. 7 via Dangerbird Records.

The Seattle quintet will do a club tour this fall in support of it as well as the 10th anniversary re-release of their fan favorite EP, They Make Beer Commercials Like This.

Lost Loves follows Infinity Overhead, which reached #31 on the Billboard 200, Minus The Bear's highest charting album to date. Songs were culled from the band's last seven or so years of writing, recording and releasing records.

"Inevitably some of your favorite songs are going to be cut in the necessity of creating the right sequence for that particular time," says bassist Cory Murchy. "Regardless of the reason they weren't included, it wasn't for lack of love and appreciation of the songs themselves." Somewhat by chance the black sheep that didn't quite fit in with Planet of Ice, OMNI, and Infinity Overhead coalesce among their once regretfully forsaken peers. "Perhaps it's because they didn't make the past albums that they fit so seamlessly together," muses Murchy.

That each song was out of place on more conceptual releases is a harbinger of what to expect from Lost Loves. As the band began metaphorically reaching out to the "ones that got away" from past sessions, additional recording and vocals were completed for select tracks. "As a whole," says Murchy, "this collection of songs offers as strong a package as any other album we've put together."

Tracklist

1 - Electric Rainbow
2 - Surf-N-Turf
3 - Broken China
4 - Walk On Air
5 - Patiently Waiting
6 - Cat Calls & Ill Means
7 - Invented Memory
8 - South Side Life
9 - Your Private Sky
10 - The Lucky Ones

minusthebear.com

Paul McCartney & Wings reissue news

This exciting news for Macca diehards arrived this morning...

MPL and Concord Music Group will reissue Wings albums Venus and Mars and At The Speed of Sound as the next releases in the Paul McCartney Archive collection on Sept. 23. 

Both albums will be available in a variety of physical and digital formats. Starting with a 2-disc (2 CD) Standard Edition, the first CD will feature the original remastered album and the second CD will include bonus audio made up of material including demos and unreleased tracks.

The 3-disc (2CD, 1DVD) Deluxe Edition will be housed in a hardback book featuring unpublished photographs, new interviews with Paul, material from Paul’s archives and expanded track-by-track information.

On the deluxe version bonus DVD, there will be filmed material from around the time of each release, some of which has never been seen before. The albums will also be available on special gatefold vinyl editions (vinyl editions include a download card). Digitally, Venus and Mars and At The Speed of Sound will be made available as both standard and deluxe versions – including Mastered for iTunes and Hi-Res formats.

As with other titles in the Archive Collection, Paul has personally supervised all aspects of the reissues. The remastering work was done at Abbey Road by the same team who has worked on all the reissues as well as the Beatles’ catalogue.

Since launching the Paul McCartney Archive Collection in 2010, Paul has received two Grammy Awards for the releases. In 2012 was Best Historical Album for Band on the Run and this year Wings over America was for Best Boxed or Special Edition Package. It was on the same night that Paul set a personal best by picking up five awards in just one night. In 2013, RAM was nominated for Best Historical Album. 

Other titles released to date in the Paul McCartney Archive Collection are Band on the Run, McCartney, McCartney II, RAM and Wings over America.  

www.paulmccartney.com
@paulmccartney 

Watch the unboxing videos here:
Venus and Mars: http://youtu.be/DfiWic6FC7Y
At the Speed of Sound: http://youtu.be/Yivx0c48q64
TRACKLISTING:

Venus and Mars
CD 1 – Remastered Album
1.    Venus and Mars                
2.    Rock Show                      
3     Love In Song                    
4.    You Gave Me The Answer            
5.    Magneto and Titanium Man        
6.    Letting Go                    
7.    Venus and Mars – Reprise            
8.    Spirits Of Ancient Egypt            
9.    Medicine Jar                    
10.  Call Me Back Again                
11.  Listen To What The Man Said            
12.  Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People        
13.  Crossroads                  

CD 2 – Bonus Audio
1.    Junior’s Farm                                      
2.    Sally G                                                  
3.    Walking In The Park With Eloise                
4.    Bridge On The River Suite                                                
5.    My Carnival                                                           
6.    Going To New Orleans (My Carnival)                
7.    Hey Diddle [Ernie Winfrey Mix]                 
8.    Let’s Love                                         
9.    Soily [from One Hand Clapping]                           
10.  Baby Face [from One Hand Clapping]                                                      
11.  Lunch Box/Odd Sox                         
12.  4th Of July                                       
13.  Rock Show [Old Version]         
14.  Letting Go [Single Edit]                    

DVD – Bonus Film
1.  Recording My Carnival                        
2.  Bon Voyageur            
3.  Wings At Elstree                                
4.  Venus and Mars TV Ad

At the Speed of Sound
CD 1 – Remastered Album
1.   Let 'Em In                     
2.   The Note You Never Wrote            
3.   She’s My Baby                    
4.   Beware My Love                
5.   Wino Junko                    
6.   Silly Love Songs                
7    Cook Of The House                
8.   Time To Hide                
9.   Must Do Something About It    
10. San Ferry Anne                
11. Warm And Beautiful            

CD 2 – Bonus Audio
1. Silly Love Songs [Demo]
2. She’s My Baby [Demo]
3. Message To Joe
4. Beware My Love [John Bonham Version]
5. Must Do Something About It [Paul’s Version]
6. Let ‘Em In [Demo]
7. Warm And Beautiful [Instrumental Demo]

DVD – Bonus Film
1. Silly Love Songs Music Video
2. Wings Over Wembley
3. Wings In Venice

The Go-Go's concert review: Costa Mesa, Calif. (OC Fair)

photo by Joshua Sudock

A version of my review originally appeared at ocregister.com 

Talk about the perfect band booking for a Friday night at the Orange County Fair. 

The Go-Go’s returned for the second year in a row and packed the Pacific Amphitheatre venue. Exuberant fans bounced beach balls, continually sang along loudly, immediately stood and remained that way throughout the 70-minute concert. 

Lately, the Go-Go’s have been touring across the country with Scandal, the Motels and Naked Eyes. Surprisingly, that lineup wasn’t at Costa Mesa. Would’ve been a great fit.

Although the pioneering female band haven’t put out a new studio effort since 2001’s God Bless the Go-Go’s, it is set to become more visible over the next year. Some testing of the creative waters is planned with producer/songwriter du jour Linda Perry. 

New audiences will be exposed to Go-Go’s music after “Head Over Heels” arrives at Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2015. Directed by Jeff Whitty (the Tony Award-winning playwright for “Avenue Q”), the offbeat musical is not driven by the musicians’ backstory. Described as “an Elizabethan comedic adventure tale,” actress Gwyneth Paltrow is apparently involved in some capacity. 

In O.C., the pop/rock group took the stage – appropriately enough - to Shirley Bassey’s orchestrated dance version of Pink’s “Get This Party Started.” They played to it, before kicking off with an ebullient “Vacation.” The energy level was palpable; the sound initially came across as muted (likely due to decibel limits), but improved as the evening progressed. 

A barefoot Belinda Carlisle was radiant and rarely still, frequently twirling around and sashaying across the stage. Early on, she explained the band would be performing songs from their “first four albums.” Reminded that was the entire catalog, the lead singer said, “You know those ‘80s. We don’t remember much." 

photo by Joshua Sudock

Chart topping, multiplatinum 1981 debut LP Beauty and the Beat comprised half of the 17-song set. 

Charlotte Caffey’s careening electric guitar riffs and supple harmonies from everyone on “Tonite,” the dark lyrical themes of “This Town” (about their Los Angeles home) and “Skidmarks on My Heart” were all highlights. 

This tour’s Carlisle solo song slot went to “Mad About You” (her first top 10 single in ‘86). With a revamped arrangement that traded gloss for grit, it was pure Go-Go’s and worked well. “Cool Places,” co-guitarist/singer Jane Wiedlin’s 1983 new wave collaboration with fellow L.A. combo Sparks, found Carlisle trading verses with her on the onetime KROQ/106.7 FM staple. While giddy fun, it came across as just average. 

When the Go-Go’s arrived at their joyful cover of the Capitols’ “Cool Jerk,” several fans were invited onstage to dance. Nearly a dozen guys, a woman and little boy happily obliged here. Amid the chaos, Carlisle laid down on a rug adorning the stage. 

Following “Insincere,” Wiedlin quipped, “that’s another one of our patented hate songs. Hell hath no fury like a Go-Go scorned. Here’s another song about a douchebag one of us dated,” as they proceeded into a sharp “Fading Fast.” 

photo by George A. Paul

Drummer Gina Schock relayed that it was “good to be back in Cali. You get our insane humor,” before asking how people fared travelling amid the three-hour I-5 shutdown due to a potential suicidal man on an overpass. Then the band did a captivating “Lust to Love.” 

Elsewhere, an extended “Our Lips Are Sealed” was pure bliss. Some staccato Caffey guitar work and Schock’s military rhythm propelled main set closer “We Got the Beat” in fine fashion. 

The quartet (touring bassist Abby Travis replaced original member Kathy Valentine two years ago) returned to encore with the brawny tribal excursion “Get Up and Go.” Wiedlin noted, “people still can’t get their head around the fact we were once a punk band. We used to do this in the ‘70s” and the gals pile drived through “Johnny, Are You Queer?,” a minor 1981 novelty hit from Josie Cotton.

Finally, an extended sprightly “Head Over Heels” left everyone wanting more.

LeAnn Rimes, Kristian Bush concert review: Costa Mesa, Calif. (OC Fair)

A version of my review originally appeared at ocregister.com.

 

For LeAnn Rimes, crossover appeal is nothing new. 

During a career that spans nearly 20 years, she has scored numerous hits on the Billboard country singles chart while making frequent inroads at pop and adult contemporary radio and dance clubs. 

The latter genre is the focus of Dance Like You Don’t Give a …Greatest Hits Remixes, a new Rimes compilation due in stores on August 5. It includes remixes by Kaskade (“What I Can Not Change”) and other DJs, plus a collaboration with The Crystal Method (“Grace”). 

Yet roots rock formed the basis of Rimes’ solid Costa Mesa show on Thursday night. Despite reasonably priced tickets, there was only a moderate turnout at the Pacific Amphitheatre.

Clad in a black miniskirt and backed by a five-piece band, Rimes kicked off the 70-minute main set with her rousing cover of John Anderson’s “Swingin’” and gleefully delivered the rapid-fire vocals. Swampy dual electric guitars made “Nothin’ Better to Do” more fiery than usual.

“When I was a teenager, people used to tell me that I didn’t know what I was singing about. I grew up and realized it was true,” Rimes told the crowd before the haunting, slide guitar-infused “I Do Now.” 

The blonde singer kept her trademark wail in check, only using it when needed. There was plenty of between song banter and a good-natured plug for “LeAnn & Eddie,” the new reality series which airs Thursdays at 10:30 p.m. on VH1. 

More smoldering, reverb-drenched guitar work enveloped ballads “Probably Wouldn’t Be This Way” and “I Need You,” which received a loud crowd response, as did a segue into her take on the Bonnie Raitt/Adele-popularized “I Can’t Make You Love Me” while seated on a stool. Big rock guitars gave “Life Goes On” a brawnier heft; Rimes’ totally inhabited “Spitfire” (the title track to her highly underrated 2013 studio album). 

Once the musicians got to twangy, rocking medley “One Way Ticket/Nothin’ ‘Bout Love Makes Sense/Commitment,” several female fans danced up a storm. 

First career hit “Blue” was prefaced by a touching dedication to James Garner. The beloved television actor, who died last week, was godfather to Rimes’ producer Darrell Brown. Garner initially turned Brown onto Rimes’ music and she also used to sing in Garner’s living room as a teen. The song was done in the usual understated style of late. 

Returning to the stools with impressive co-lead guitarist Akil Thompson for a tender acoustic version of Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud,” Rimes gave a passionate delivery and didn’t cry as she warned might happen. The final stretch included a strong “How Do I Live” (some couple slow danced) and raucous closer “Something’s Gotta Give,” with a subtle nod to Bryan Adams’ “Cuts Like a Knife.” 

Kristian Bush - guitarist, co-singer and songwriter for superstar country duo Sugarland - opened the Costa Mesa concert with an extremely enjoyable 45-minute set. 

The songs previewed his upcoming solo album Southern Gravity, expected this fall (“the band is not breaking up,” he firmly stated, alluding to musical partner Jennifer Nettles’ own “That Girl” release and subsequent tour earlier this year). 

A proud Georgia native,  his a gregarious stage presence. He used it to an advantage here to win over the audience.

Bush’s excellent band included brother Brandon on keyboards (longtime touring member/studio contributor to Sugarland, Train, John Mayer, Little Big Town) and Michelle Malone (an acclaimed and respected artist in her own right since the late ‘80s) handling acoustic guitar, mandolin and backing vocals. They often did coordinated moves onstage, adding a sense of fun to the proceedings.

Before doing a hushed, stripped down take on Sugarland’s “Baby Girl” (off triple platinum 2004 debut “Twice the Speed of Life”), Bush said he’d wanted to write a song that could also be a wish.

Many of the winsome newer tracks should easily find favor at country and adult rock radio.

Key among them were the driving “Make Another Memory” (which boasted sharp electric guitar work by Benji Shanks), the humorously jaunty first single “Trailer Hitch” (check out the video where Bush gave $300 away while busking on the street in Chicago here: http://kristianbush.com/news/217483), smoldering ballad “Light Me Up” and “Southern Gravity,” Bush’s breezy self-described “love song to his hometown.” 

Can’t wait to hear the finished product.

Rimes also performs Sept. 27 at the Fox Performing Arts Center, 3801 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside, $52-$87.25. 

All photos by Joshua Sudock