I DIG: Blackalicious

Gift of Gab and Chief Xcel form the hip hop duo, Blackalicious. Apparently these guys have been around for awhile and are even from my ol' stomping grounds of Sacramento, California.

It wasn't until recently, however, that I was introduced to their music, and... wow. Awesome!

Timothy Parker appropriately goes by the moniker, Gift of Gab. The flow of his lyrical talents, I think, can best be heard on my favorites:

(click on song name to hear iTunes preview)

• Alphabet Aerobics
  
  
• Chemical Calasthenics
  
  
• Paragraph President
  
  
• Aural Pleasure
  
  
• Reanimation

Xavier Mosley (aka Chief Xcel) drops beats that are just ridiculous! This is NOT your typical everyday Hip-Hop/Rap music. This is music by which to get your groove on. And music with a message at that.

If you enjoyed the links above, download more of their other tracks on iTunes and show some love. You can also check them out at www.blackalicious.com

SPECIAL: Mike White

I thought I'd do a special post here, on the talents of Mike White. No, he's not a musician or in a band. But, he's definitely someone artists love to have around! And he's a 'rockstar' in my book. ;-)

Along with my love for music, is a love for photography. The work of Anton Corbijn and Patrick Rafanan have been my absolute favorites, though there are several others whose work I also admire. And now, Mike finishes up my top 3.

Mike is an incredible photographer out of Athens, GA whose specialty is in photographing concerts/live music. His talent is beyond description. I've been admiring his work for awhile, and in recent months have been fortunate to meet and get to know him. Awesome guy. Truly.

Talking with him at the Mass Solo Revolt show last Dec., it's easy to see that he loves what he does. And you've got to have that passion in addition to natural born talent, in order to be so good at capturing other artists doing what they love so passionately too! Mike's photography is so bad-ass, that I had a hard time deciding which ones to put up here. There were a lot of bands to choose from and so many great shots for each one!

In the end I had to pick images from a handful of my own favorite bands. I'll let the images speak for themselves.

Click on each of the photos to take you to galleries of more kick-ass images.

AC/DC| 12.16.08 | Atlanta, GA

Mass Solo Revolt | 12.14.08 | Athens, GA

Nine Inch Nails | 11.01.08 | Atlanta, GA

The Melvins | 08.18.08 | Athens, GA

Smashing Pumpkins | 11.07.07 | Athens, GA

Incredible, yeah? Umm. I say, Hell, yeah!

Now, go check out his full website at www.deadlydesigns.com. There is a massive portfolio of live concert photography to enjoy. Do it now! ;-)

Any bands, musicians etc. looking to have rockstar moments captured, should definitely get him behind the lens at their show.

ALL PHOTOGRAPHY IS THE PROPERTY OF MIKE WHITE / DEADLYDESIGNS.COM AND SHOULD NOT BE USED WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION.

Thanks, Mike for letting me put these up here!

ON THE ROAD: Indie Artists in Early 2009!

Some of my singer/songwriters are kicking off 2009, by hittin' the road. Check out and support these talented independent artists at a venue near you!

A.A. Bondy
02/11/09 Charlotte, NC Snug Harbor
02/12/09 Athens, GA Tasty World
02/13/09 Birmingham, AL Bottletree
02/14/09 Knoxville, TN Pilot Light
02/16/09 Oxford, MS Proud Larry's
02/18/09 Little Rock, AR Whitewater Tavern
02/20/09 Dallas, TX Double Wide
02/21/09 Austin, TX Emo's
02/23/09 Tucson, AZ Solar Culture Gallery
02/24/09 Hollywood, CA Hotel Cafe
02/25/09 Santa Cruz, CA The Crepe Place
02/27/09 Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge
02/28/09 Seattle, WA Tractor Tavern
03/03/09 Chicago, IL Schubas Tavern
03/05/09 Minneapolis, MN The 400 Bar
03/06/09 Madison, WI University Of Wisconsin
03/07/09 Chicago, IL Schubas Tavern

Antje Duvekot
01/09/09 Framingham, MA Amazing Things Art Center
01/10/09 Easthampton, MA Pioneer Arts Center
01/17/09 Westfield, NJ Coffee With Conscience
01/23/09 Seattle, WA TBA
01/24/09 Seattle, WA House Concert
01/25/09 Portland, OR Alberta Street Pub
01/27/09 Felton, CA Don Quixote's Int'l Music Hall
01/28/09 Berkeley, CA Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse
01/30/09 Cotati, CA Frog Song
01/31/09 Sutter Creek, CA Sutter Creek Theatre
02/07/09 Fairlawn, NJ Fairlawn Community Center
02/13/09 Pittsfield, MA Mission Bar & Tapas
02/14/09 Pawtucket, RI St. Paul's Episcopal Church
03/10/09 Nashville, TN Bluebird Cafe
03/11/09 Decatur, GA Eddie's Attic
03/13/09 Charlotte, NC Evening Muse
03/19/09 Cambridge, MA Passim Folk Music & Cultural Center
03/20/09 Cambridge, MA Passim Folk Music & Cultural Center
03/21/09 Cambridge, MA Passim Folk Music & Cultural Center
03/28/09 Elmer, NJ Appel Farm Arts & Music Center
04/04/09 Bloomington, IL Blue Moon Coffeehouse
04/05/09 Dayton, OH Canal Street Tavern
05/10/09 Belle Plaine, KS Bartlett Arboretum

Glen Phillips
01/30/09 Tacoma, WA Urban Grace
04/02/09 Bay Shore, NY YMCA Boulton Ctr. For The Perf. Arts
04/03/09 Tarrytown, NY The Tarrytown Music Hall
04/04/09 Chatham, NJ Sanctuary
04/05/09 Annapolis, MD Rams Head On Stage

MARK IT: Lucky Diaz at Genghis Cohen - 01.14.09

VIDEO: Aleksis Bilmanis - "All Those Times"

Sneak peak at a beautiful new song from Aleksis Bilmanis. Here's the video for "All Those Times" from his upcoming acoustic album. I'm so looking forward to hearing more! Enjoy!

www.aleksisbilmanis.com

GALLERY: Mass Solo Revolt at Farm 255 - 12.14.08

Some snapshots from the show at Farm 255. It was soooo awesome. I freakin' love these guys. Yay, MASS SOLO REVOLT!

LIST: Music Makes For Great Gifts...

With the holidays here and Christmas fast approaching, I thought I'd help out and suggest some albums that would make for great gifts. These are albums (new and old) that I really enjoy. There's music from different genres, so hopefully there's a little something for everyone. Hope you agree...

(BTW... these are in no particular order, and like everything in this blog, is my own complete endorsement.)

1. Smashing Pumpkins - Any of their albums, I think would be a winner. I just LOVE this band. The end.
   
   
2. Radiohead - Anything by these guys. They are brilliant.
   
   
3. AA Bondy - American Hearts
   
   
4. Antje Duvekot - Snapshots
   
   
5. Augustana - Can't Love, Can't Hurt
   
   
6. The Brilliant Mistakes - Distant Drumming
   
   
7. Five A.M. - Raise The Sun
   
   
8. Val Emmich - Little Daggers
   
   
9. Matt Nathanson - Some Mad Hope
   
   
10. O.A.R. - All Sides
    
    
11. Emerson Hart - Cigarettes & Gasoline
    
    
12. Adele - 19
    
    
13. Kira Fontana - Inner Revolution
    
    
14. The Interiors - The Interiors
    
    
15. Mass Solo Revolt - Easy Mark
    
    
16. Aleksis Bilmanis - World Around
    
    
17. The Fray - How To Save A Life
    
    
18. Foo Fighters - Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace
    
    
19. Leona Lewis - Spirit
    
    
20. Travis - Singles
    
    
21. The Kooks - Konk
    
    
22. The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
    
    
23. Silversun Pickups - Carnavas
    
    
24. Christian Brown - When It's Perfect
    
    
25. Deftones - White Pony

And just because it's the holidays... My favorite Christmas album to suggest would be:

Any of the Harry Connick, Jr. Christmas albums.

Happy Holidays!