Blogs

GFK, Hiretsukan and Propagandhi
Slide show

Norah Jones thinks her musical evolution is moving forward more rapidly than do many reviewers. Still, her latest disc, Not Too Late, is a modest step toward greater self-expression -- she wrote or co-wrote all of the material on it -- and other projects suggest that she’s interested in doing more than simply replicating the 2002 Grammy magnet Come Away With Me for the rest of her career.

In the following Q&A, which contributed to the profile in the May 31 edition of Westword, Jones talks about the frequency with which young jazz vocalists are likened to her, and the silly comparisons she once suffered; the degree of musical change represented by the new album; her contributions to Peeping Tom, a Mike Patton project that gave her the chance to repeatedly mouth the word “motherfucker”; a review in which she was called a “sex panther”; the ways she balances modesty with confidence; the joys and challenges of playing Red Rocks; the experience of starring in My Blueberry Nights, a film that opened the Cannes Film Festival only days after this interview took place; the pros and cons of repeatedly kissing Jude Law; and the future of her film career -- if there is one.

For readers who’d like to learn more about Ms. Jones, it’s Not Too Late:

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Git Some and These Arms Are Snakes
3 Kings Tavern
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Some cool things about Sasquatch! Music Festival :

-- Sasquatch is another name for Bigfoot
-- There were a ton of great bands.
-- Seattle Weekly (Westword's sibling) has extensive web coverage of the event.

The only thing that could have made it better if the bands that preformed were made up of Sasquatches.

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Whiskey Kiss and 18 Wheeler
3 Kings Tavern
Saturday, May 26th
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Slide Show

Bob Dylan is a wierdo among freaks. Even when he was a leader of the '60s folk scene, he considered himself an outcast, a stranger who was lost, and by his own admission had "no direction home." So maybe it was fitting that the Bob Dylan tribute show last night at the Oriental Theater had no direction either. It really worked for the whole tribute theme.

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Killfix
The Walnut Room

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Being a native of Littleton, I felt an immediate affinity for Januar while researching their Myspace Music page. Their profile was incredibly straightforward. From: Littleton (who owns up to that?); influences: Jeff Buckley, Mojave 3, Sigur Ros; band name is Icelandic for "January," and they're wearing woolly beanies in their thumbnail picture. In the rest of the photos -- even through minor line-up changes -- they look like best friends forever. Often with their arms around one another and ear-to-ear grins across their glowing faces. "Januar in Pittsburgh '06...1st tour ever." More than anything, they looked primed to win the battle of the bands in a dramatic, underdog One Crazy Summer fashion.

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Ethan Iverson, keyboardist for the Bad Plus, had a lot more to say than could be squeezed into the profile that appears in the May 24 edition of Westword. But the web has plenty of room -- so here's the full Q&A.

The topics discussed include the reasons behind the title of the combo's new CD, Prog; the question of whether Tears for Fears and Herb Alpert numbers can be considered progressive; Iverson's disinterest in exploring the rock music he missed as a devoted young jazzbo; the prospects of the Bad Plus ever covering a Lionel Richie number; the group's positive and negative experiences while on Columbia Records; and Iverson's contributions to "Do the Math," the trio's blog, which feature his takes on everything from the music of Sesame Street to transcriptions of Miles Davis classics.

Consider the conversation a real Plus:

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Thickly bearded and shrouded beneath a floppy hat, Sir Richard Bishop warmed up the eager, Monday night crowd. Sort of an edgier Leo Kottke, after about thirty minutes of lighting-quick guitar instrumentals he lightheartedly lambasted the freak folk scene, trying to count the beards in the crowd. Then he broke into a song about hanging a preacher and wrapping the corpse in fancy yarn before chopping it into six pieces. A gloomy number, but he floated in the word "hemlock" so it wasn't without poetry. Bishop's chugging set was an atmospheric intro for Animal Collective, who took the stage casually as the crowd erupted, doubling the whiffs of grass and BO. Band member Geologist wrapped his signature headlamp around his bean and began inspecting what looked like a small mixing board.

Panda Bear readied himself behind a much taller tower of electronic devices and Avey Tare tinkered with a ragtag assortment of percussion instruments and a lonesome keyboard set back behind them all. The band's fourth member, The Deakin, isn't on their current tour, but that didn't seem to bother the audience. One fellow at the head of the stage looked ready to take communion, bowing down and stroking the semicircular area at the front of the stage with spread palms.

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May 17’s Westword features a profile of Dimmu Borgir, Norway’s premier practitioners of symphonic black metal -- but there’s a lot more mayhem where that came from. Below, find the entire Q&A with Erkekjetter Silenoz, the band’s guitarist, lyric writer and all-around conceptualist. Along the way, he discusses the narrative and protagonist of In Sorte Diaboli, the group’s new CD; his rejection of organized religion; the similarities between Diaboli’s satanic journey and his own; Christian homophobia; the band’s predilection for pitting beautiful and ferocious music against each other; the prospects for a Dimmu Borgir movie; accusations of selling out; the outfit’s rising stateside profile; and his contention that his music’s actually capable of saving lives.

The devil you say…

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It's early in the current Red Rocks season, but the marvelous venue's most unusual 2007 show may have already taken place. The May 15 date featuring Icelandic sprite Björk and harpist Joanna Newsom offered the sort of challenging music that wouldn't be expected to draw a throng. Yet the rows along the Rocks were damn near full, and those who braved a misty, mildly chilly spring night were rewarded by performances that were filled with adventurous arrangements and artistic daring. While neither set was flawless, even the rough patches were intriguing.

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Westword's May 10 profile of Ramble John Krohn, known to the music world as RJD2, finds the hip-hop producer turned pop-music maker complaining about the press taking comments out of context. There's no danger of that here. Below, find the entire transcript of our RJD2 interview.

The conversation touches upon a slew of topics, including the similarities (rather than the differences) between RJD2's latest CD, The Third Hand, and his previous work; the challenge of releasing unusual tracks, as opposed to simply making them; the misinterpretations of his offhand joke about going "rap-free in 2006"; similar confusion over his description of some past productions as "moron music"; the propensity of critics to be as unwilling to let artists develop as some fans; the risks and rewards of a producer experimenting with singing; constant change versus the development of a signature style; so-called "Scott Storch bullshit"; the excitement of playing live using old-school instruments; and the beauty of mistakes.

As you'll see, context is everything.

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Alright, so the wait is over. This year’s Showcase ballot has finally been revealed. As with every year, the event continues to evolve and improve (we like to think so, anyway). This year, you’ll notice that we’ve added five new categories, and there’s 57 acts making a first-time appearance on the ballot -- many of whom will be performing at the Showcase on Saturday, June 16, along with our unbelievable headliners Lucero and Dinosaur Jr. (who you can also catch tonight on Late Night with Craig Ferguson, BTW).

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Tuyet Nguyen’s April 19th review of Thank God for Astronauts’ latest offering has caused a stir over on the Denver MessageBoard. One member’s letter to the editor sparked a debate of Nguyen’s merit as a music reviewer.

Not wanting just a select few to debate this important topic of musical aptitude, we here at The Latest Word want to know what you think.

Send us your comments

--Crystal Preston-Watson