Life is Music™

I am a great believer in quality over quantity, therefore 2009 was a good year for me musically.  I hope the new decade is filled with more great music for everyone.  Here are my top nine concerts of 2009.  Minnesota ROCKS!

1. The Hold Steady at Basilica Block Party – Minneapolis, MN 7.11.09- Wow, wow, wow!  This show was a musical riot.  It was spiritual.  It was energetic.  It was a perfect summer evening.  When The Hold Steady play Minneapolis one can expect fireworks, but I didn’t expect this.  Standing front and center of The Hold Steady’s preacher, Craig Finn, as the historic Basilica of St. Mary church shadowed the crowd from behind is something I will never forget.  I have been a part of many rock concerts, but there are only a handful of shows I have witnessed that compared to this.  The band was insane and the crowd was dieing for more.  It was a fist-pumping, musical uniting, rock-n-roll religious experience for the ages.  This was easily a top 10 concert ever for me.
2. The Decemberists at Walker Art Center – Minneapolis, MN 6.20.09- 2009’s version of “Rock the Garden” was a great success.  It was a hot summer day but thankfully when the headliner, The Decemberists, hit the stage, the sun had finally surrendered.  The band wasted no time working straight through their gorgeous 2009 rock-opera album, The Hazards of Love.  The addition of Becky Stark who played the role of the beautiful princess, and Shara Worden who played the evil forest queen was priceless.  Their added theatrics made this much more than any old rock concert.  I witnessed poetry in motion.  Singer/songwriter, Colin Meloy, appeared to be having a blast as 10,000 fans rocked across the grassy landscape behind the wonderful Walker Art Center.  Once again the crowd was terrific making this an unforgettable summer evening.
3. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit at The Turf Club – St. Paul, MN 4.15.09 – This was the most soulful concert I witnessed in 2009.  The former Drive-by Truckers singer and guitarist has been on his own for a few years, and on this night he showed all of the strengths of that experience.  Jason Isbell’s voice is pure.  Very few voices move me the way Isbell’s can, and I was fortunate to witness him at his very best this night.  His backing band, the 400 Unit, must be complimented as well.  They played flawlessly to a respectfully attentive sell-out crowd.  This night was beautiful, and leagues better than when they returned to the The Turf Club on November 20th.  That night they sounded tired.
4. Wilco at 10,000 Lakes Music Festival – Detroit Lakes, MN 7.23.09 – Leave it to Wilco to cue “The Price is Right” theme song before stepping on stage.  Wilco was the main stage headliner on Thursday night of the seventh annual 10,000 Lakes Music Festival in Detroit Lakes, MN.  Having the alt-rocking powerhouse band, Wilco, headline a night at a predominantly jamband festival had me a bit worried, but Wilco prevailed, even while being under the barrage of glowsticks at one point.  Although Jeff Tweedy is the singer/songwriter of the band, there really is no leader.  Wilco is a band, the very definition of it.  Each member is a master of their instrument and while a good portion of the crowd seemed unfamiliar with their work, Wilco proceeded along with their eternal professionalism and had the crowd rocking.  Most of the material was from their 2009 album, Wilco (the album), but they balanced their set wonderfully with songs from the past.  This show was fantastic, and added a wonderful mix to a wonderful festival.
5. Umphrey’s McGee at First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN 1.31.09 – Night two of Umphrey’s McGee’s three-night run at First Avenue rocked!!  Just over a week after the release of their brilliant prog-rocking album, Mantis, the band introduced the new tunes with force while mixing in plenty of older favorites.  Friday night was for the rookies, but this night was for the pros.  First Avenue was filled with the hardcores, making it an amazing experience.  The night opened with the heavy head-bobbing “Push the Pig”, and ended with an awesome “Syncopated Strangers > Cemetery Walk II > Syncopated Strangers” mash.  This was an amazing night that shook the cold winter blues.  I’m grateful for the new friends I made this weekend.
6. The Swell Season at The State Theatre – Minneapolis, MN 12.5.09 – This was a beautiful show.  The Swell Season are made up of The Frames’, Glen Hansard, and Czech pianist, Marketa Irglova.  Together they won a an Academy Award for Best Song from a Motion Picture for the ballad “Falling Slowly” from the low budget Irish film, Once (a must see if you haven’t already).  On this tour they were supported by Hansard’s band, The Frames.  The night was mixed with songs by the duo, Glen Hansard playing solo, and together with the addition of The Frames.  They even included a nice cover of “Two-Step” by the Minnesota band, Low.  The State Theatre was the absolute perfect venue for this wonderfully moving show.
7. The Jayhawks at Basilica Block Party - Minneapolis, MN 7.10.09 – Seeing the Basilica of St. Mary gospel choir back up The Jayhawks on “Blue” while rain fell steadily is one of my biggest musical highlights of 2009.  There was a lot of anticipation for this show since the only other date the band reunited for in 2009 was for a festival in Barcelona, Spain.  It was unfortunate that it rained through most of the concert, but the packed crowd welcomed the music with little regard.  All night the fans could be heard singing along to the songs of these Minneapolis alt-rocking legends.  And Gary Louris’ guitar work impressed me more than I ever could have imagined.  I am very grateful to have been a part of this show.
8. Trampled by Turtles at First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN 11.6.09 – There is no questioning that this band is for real.  Trampled by Turtles is a quintet from Duluth, MN who play their own brand of bluegrass.  On this night they were on, and the sold-out crowd that packed First Avenue to witness it were blessed with an amazing performance.  I’ve seen Trampled by Turtles a lot of times, but this night was special.  A Radiohead cover started things off, and from their they hammered through songs from their four albums and also tunes from their currently untitled fifth album which is due next April.  It was a great night to celebrate Minnesota, a great night to celebrate Trampled by Turtles.  This band deserves the success they are starting to see.
9. Dan Auerbach at First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN 3.7.09 – I am probably one of the only ones around who think that Dan Auerbach is better with his solo band than he is with drummer, Patrick Carney, as the duo, The Black Keys.  This show at First Avenue made me realize how great of a songwriter Auerbach really is.  He plays guitar like an old bluesman sitting on a front porch, yet with catchy bounce that is hard to resist.  His solo album, Keep It Hid, that he was touring behind is fantastic.  The band, Hacienda, acted as his band on the record and tour and they were very impressive.  The addition of My Morning Jacket’s, Patrick Hallahan, on percussion certainly didn’t hurt matters either.  This was a great show.  Dan Auerbach is a legend in the making.

The Decemberists are an indie folk rock band who sound as if they’ve been trapped in a wooden vessel on the deep blue sea for centuries, only to recently make landfall on the shores of America.  Colin Meloy leads the group with a troubadour’s tongue, while Chris Funk, Jenny Conlee, John Moen and Nate Query round out the band with distinction.  Since their debut in 2002, The Decemberists have sharpened their talents with each subsequent release making them the epitome of indie rock.  Below is a review of each of their full-length albums in the order I would rank them.

1. The Crane Wife - The Crane Wife was released October 3rd, 2006 and is the first album on major label, Capitol Records, for the band.  Many fans stressed about the move to a major label for a band whose sound is the very essence of indie, but Colin Meloy and the rest of the band put minds at ease with a brilliantly clean album that follows an old Japanese tale about a man who nurses a wounded crane back to health.  Meloy’s writing has always been heavily influenced by literature and The Crane Wife is no exception.  He paints imaginative tales of love and war with diverse and colorful strokes, and the folk-rock the band is known for is sharpened to the point of becoming the prog-rock they display on The Hazards of Love.  The Crane Wife is a fantastic album from beginning to end and is perhaps the most important record the band will ever make considering their move to a major label.  My favorites from the album are the three-part track “The Island”, “The Perfect Crime #2″ and “The Crane Wife 1 and 2″.
2. Picaresque - Picaresque is the third album for these indie-rockers from Portland, OR.  It was released on Olympia, Washington’s Kill Rock Stars label and Chris Walla from the band Death Cab for Cutie produced it.  Picaresque rocks more than the two previous releases and was a big step up towards their indie-rock prominence.  Opening track, “The Infanta” starts Picaresque off with a thunderstorm of banging toms and the album ends with the ballad, ”Of Angels and Angles”.  What fills the in-between are some of the most accessible tracks the band has ever laid down including one of Meloy’s best ever, “The Engine Driver“.  “On the Bus Mall” is also fantastic as is the aforementioned opening track “The Infanta”.  Picaresque loses the theatrics and the result is an upbeat indie-rock record that’s a terrific place for any newbie of the band to start.
3. The Hazards of Love - The Hazards of Love is a major artistic accomplishment.  After releasing just one lp on Capitol Records, The Decemberists returned with a rock-opera of all things, and not surprisingly it works wonders.  The Hazards of Love was released March 24th, 2009, debuting at #14 on the Billboard 200 making it the most successful release by the band.  The album follows a tale of a woman named Margaret who falls in love with a shape shifting forest dweller named William, while an evil forest queen tries to wreak havoc on the two.  Becky Stark of the band Lavender Diamond sings the role of Margaret beautifully, while Colin Meloy plays William, and Sharon Worden of My Brightest Diamond plays the queen.  The Hazards of Love needs to be listened to as whole.  With each song folding into the next, Meloy put together a creatively theatrical masterpiece with plenty of progressive influence to display the maturation of the band.  If you had the opportunity to see The Hazards of Love performed live in its entirety, consider yourself lucky.  My full review of this album can be found here.
4. Her Majesty – Her Majesty opens with “Shanty for the Aretheusa”, a fantastic historical voyage into the depths of everything The Decemberists are known for.  There are references to spices, rum and tea leaves while an accordion fills in the musical spaces along with singer Colin Meloy’s voice.  By the end of the song,  Meloy is wailing as the acoustic and electric guitars grind away.  Released September 9th, 2003 on Kill Rock Stars,  Her Majesty is a relatively scattered album whose highlights succeed as a much as anything the band has ever written, but it also lacks the cohesiveness of the later albums.  It’s an ambitious prelude to Picaresque though, with my favorites being the opening track “Shanty for the Aretheusa”, the blatantly satirical “Los Angeles, I’m Yours” and the absolutely stunning “The Bachelor and the Bride“.
5. Castaways and Cutouts - Castaways and Cutouts is the impressive full-length debut by The Decemberists.  It was originally released May 21st, 2002 on Hush Records then reissued a year later on Kill Rock Stars.  Musically, the album revolves heavily around the the accordian and Hammond organ stylings of Jenny Conlee.  “Castaways and Cutouts” is an appropriate title for an album that is filled with tales of ghosts, prostitutes, gypsies and other castaways that songwriter Colin Meloy seems to invent at ease.  Overall Castaways and Cutouts is a nice consistent album albeit somewhat slow paced through the middle.  The ghostly opening tale “Leslie Anne Levine” is fantastic, as is the bass heavy “Odalisque”, and the epic finale, “California One / Youth and Beauty Brigade”.

The sun was shining brightly; it was a glorious summer day in Minneapolis.  On Saturday, June 20th the studious indie-rockers, The Decemberists, headlined 2009’s version of “Rock the Garden”.  The new and improved set-up proved to be a success with the stage facing the grassy natural amphitheatre where the old Guthrie Theatre once stood.  Sponsored by The Current 89.3 and the Walker Art Center, a sold-out crowd of nearly 10,000 rocked through the mid-day sun to benefit one of Minneapolis’ greatest treasures, The Walker Art Center. 

Opening the day was the local electronic rock band Solid Gold, who played a fine set in the peak of the heat.  Then came New York art-rockers, Yeasayer, and finally just as the sun was beginning to relinquish, the eclectic southwest Latin tinged band Calexico took the stage with a very impressive set.  After Calexico The Decemberists had their turn.

Dusk was just setting in when keyboardist Jenny Conlee took the stage alone.  She sat down quietly and held the keys in an organ tone for what was the prelude of The Decemberists’ rock-opera, The Hazards of Love.  Soon the rest of the band impressively well-dressed in dapper suits and ties took the stage and the crowd absolutely erupted.  Leading the band, singer and guitarist Colin Meloy settled in to “The Hazards of Love 1″ and from there they worked through the entire album with the ever-enthusiastic crowd following attentively.  Becky Stark, beautifully draped in a virginal white princess dress played the part of Margaret and was introduced in song four, “Won’t Want for Love (Margaret in the Taiga)”.  She swayed like a goddess with equally pure vocals and from that point forward I knew this was going to be far more than any old rock concert.

Shara Worden, in a clinging black dress and chopped black hair stormed the stage as the evil queen for her entrance in song eight, “The Wanting Comes in Waves Repaid”.  She went straight to the edge of the stage crouching low with her fist pounding down as a slight riot ensued amongst the masses with fists pumping hard and heads banging as Chris Funk and Colin Meloy ground away steadily at their guitars.  The energy was absolutely unbelievable, and wow that woman can wail!

From there Meloy took his turn in the pounding and rhythmic “The Rake’s Song”, one of the heaviest of the night as the females Conlee, Stark and Worden all hammered on tom drums.  The tune flowed into “The Abduction of Margaret” and ‘The Queen’s Rebuke The Crossing” where Shara Worden once again had the crowd stirring as she howled and jerked across the stage impulsively.  The set then calmed as Meloy strummed through “Annan Water” and Becky Stark returned with the voice of an angel for “Margaret in Captivity”.  “The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)” and “The Wanting Comes in Waves (Reprise)” once again made the enthusiastic crowd sway as the story concluded.  The set ended in perfect fashion with Meloy’s mellow and lovely “The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)”, and then band put down their instruments and walked off the stage.

It didn’t take long for the band to come back (sans Stark and Worden).  Colin Meloy first gave thanks to the The Walker Art Center and Minneapolis for providing a wonderful evening before bringing in “Leslie Anne Levine” from the band’s 2002 debut, Castaway and Cutouts.  The band then touched on all of their albums while working through five other songs.  The bouncing “Billy Liar” concluded with Meloy conducting a four-part chorus with the crowd.  After that Meloy explained he was going to play “the worst song he ever wrote” entitled “Dracula’s Daughter”.  Becky Stark and Shara Worden came back in changed attire to end the remarkable show with an explosion.  The band covered Heart’s classic 1976 hit, “Crazy on You” with both Stark and Worden ruthlessly nailing the vocals as the rest of The Decemberists played spot on obviously enjoying every moment of it. 

The Decemberists have never failed to impress me and this night was no exception.  With a wondrous performance combining both music and theater, they provided the perfect art.  And art is what we were there to celebrate.  It was a gorgeous summer night in the city and it could not have ended on a higher note.

The Decemberists – Walker Art Center, June 20th, 2009 setlist:

Prelude
The Hazards of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won’t Wrestle the Thistles Undone)
A Bower Scene
Won’t Want for Love (Margaret in the Taiga)
The Hazards of Love 2 (Wager All)
The Queen’s Approach
Isn’t It a Lovely Night?
The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid
An Interlude
The Rake’s Song
The Abduction of Margaret
The Queen’s Rebuke/The Crossing
Annan Water
Margaret in Captivity
The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)
The Wanting Comes in Waves (Reprise)
The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)
———
Leslie Anne Levine
Engine Driver
Billy Liar (with four-part chorus by crowd)
Dracula’s Daughter
O’ Valencia!
Crazy On You (Heart cover)

March 24th, 2009 finally came and with it Portland, Oregon’s The Decemberists released their fifth full length album entitled The Hazards of Love.  The album was released a week earlier on iTunes and is their second full-length album on Capital Records after 2006’s The Crane Wife.   The Hazards of Love is a rock opera tale of a woman named Margaret, her lover William, an evil forest queen and an immoral rake.  As if you all didn’t see this one coming…

A while back singer/songwriter, Colin Meloy, acquired a copy of folk vocalist Anne Briggs’s 1966 EP, titled The Hazards of Love and thought he’d write a song of the same title.  What came out of it was this 17 track album that demands your attention with narrative both deep and dark, filled with many moments of heavy wailing behind Meloy’s nasally croon.  It’s a highly ambitious piece of work to say the least, especially considering The Decemberists’ move to a major label before the release of The Crane Wife.

The plot gets started with track #2, “The Hazards Of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won’t Wrestle the Thistles Undone)” setting the main recurring theme (both lyrically and musically).  From there it bounces over high peaks and through deep valleys oftentimes showcasing a more progressive and hard-rocking side of The Decemberists than their previous efforts ever displayed.  Song #4, “Won’t Want For Love (Margaret In The Taiga)”, is beautifully sung by Lavender Diamond’s Becky Stark.  “The Wanting Comes In Waves / Repaid” is track #8 and is a standout of the album if there are any.  The back and forth conversation of William as sung by Colin Meloy, and the Queen as sung by My Brightest Diamond’s, Shara Worden, works terrifically as the music ebbs and flows in support.  Guitarist, Chris Funk, displays some real chops on this one.

Shara Worden is back as the Queen for track #12 titled, “The Queen’s Rebuke / The Crossing”.  Once again behind the Queen’s howl the music is heavy and filled with wonderful organ stylings by Jenny Conlee that blends into the muff-heavy sound of Chris Funk.  #13 is “Annan Water” and sounds like The Decemberists have been known to sound with Meloy’s strumming acoustic guitar balancing his vocals.  Track #15 brings back “The Hazards of Love” for the third time, and this time sung by children.  The song swings in 6/4 and is a nice addition to the album.  It works directly into  ”The Wanting Comes In Waves” (Reprise) which grinds to dust leaving the finale “The Hazards Of Love 4 (The Drowned)” in its wake with Meloy ending the record in a beautiful lullaby in front of a warm and ringing lap-steel guitar.

The Hazards of Love is a challenge that requires time to appreciate and will undoubtedly cause many to groan.  Colin Meloy and gang have something to be proud of here though, as it’s obvious their musical compositions are growing greatly along with their distinctive sound and The Hazards of Love is a true work of art.  It’s no easy chore working through this album that at times can be overwhelming but in the end many should find it is worth the endeavor.  Taken from beginning to end, The Hazards of Love is something special and unique that real music fans should be thankful for in a time when records like these are rarely fashioned.  And to all of those sniffling indie kids who were worried The Decemberists would sell-out with some major-label success behind them, put on your headphones and rest your weary eyes as these hazards of love never more will trouble us.

The Hazards of Love

1. “Prelude” – 3:04
2. “The Hazards of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won’t Wrestle the Thistles Undone)” – 4:19
3. “A Bower Scene” – 2:09
4. “Won’t Want for Love (Margaret in the Taiga)” – 4:07
5. “The Hazards of Love 2 (Wager All)” – 4:26
6. “The Queen’s Approach” – 0:29
7. “Isn’t It a Lovely Night?” – 3:39
8. “The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid” – 6:27
9. “An Interlude” – 1:40
10. “The Rake’s Song” – 3:16
11. “The Abduction of Margaret” – 2:07
12. “The Queen’s Rebuke/The Crossing” – 3:56
13. “Annan Water” – 5:12
14. “Margaret in Captivity” – 3:08
15. “The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)” – 3:22
16. “The Wanting Comes in Waves (Reprise)” – 1:31
17. “The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)” – 5:57