Hayes Carll at Club Passim

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This gallery contains 8 photos.

Hayes Carll, whose song “Hard Out Here” inspired the title of this site, played a great show at Club Passim, one of my favorite venues in the area, on July 16. The sold out show was his second in the … Continue reading

Adam Ezra Group Release Better than Bootleg 2 at the Sinclair January 2

The Adam Ezra Group

The Adam Ezra Group

The Adam Ezra Group is celebrating the release of Volume 2 of the Better than Bootleg series with a show at The Sinclair in Cambridge, MA on January 2. Like its predecessor, Better than Bootleg, Vol 2 is a live recording, but while all the songs on Volume 1 came from one single performance, the recordings on this collection are taken from different shows. (Cl

In an interview conducted on December 13, Adam Ezra explained that it is not a live album” in the usual sense, documenting a single concert from beginning to end.  Rather the collection represents the band’s ongoing experiments at finding the best way to engineer recordings that “translate the energy from our live shows into a recording.”  I quite like the approach taken to this collection.  A live recording of a show on a single night is documentation of that specific night’s, but this approach feels more representative of the band’s live shows in general.  It mixes things up.  The tracks include performances of some of the bands best known songs such as “Burn Brightly” and “Steal Your Daughter,” one cover of James Taylor’s “Sweet Baby James,” as well as some of the newest songs in the band’s repertoire. (Click here to jump to a video of “Hippy Girl,” another song from the album.)   Continue reading

Concert Gallery: Ryan Bingham in DC

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This gallery contains 39 photos.

It’s no secret I think Ryan Bingham is one of the most exciting artists touring today.  I said as much 4 years ago in a post on my Random Thoughts and Ideas blog, and many of you agreed.  That post was … Continue reading

Gallery: Jason Mraz and Raising Jane at the Wang Theater

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This gallery contains 35 photos.

When the folk-rock quartet Raining Jane opened for Jason Mraz at a show at the University of Redlands in Southern California, he was so impressed with their act that he suggested they work together. They accepted, of course, and a … Continue reading

Four Singer-Songwriters and a minivan: The Parlor Sessions Tour

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This gallery contains 35 photos.

Tomorrow night Eliot Bronson, Dean Fields, Jason Myles Goss and Andy Zipf will wrap up their 15-day, 15-city tour at The Evening Muse in Charlotte, NC. In five previous posts you can read about the tour and what was planned.  … Continue reading

Concert Gallery: Dean Fields and Ari Hest Play Passim

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This gallery contains 30 photos.

I had a chance to chat with Dean Fields before his show at Club Passim last Friday, opening for Ari Hest.  I was excited to hear about his upcoming tour with Eliot Bronson, Jason Myles Goss, and Andy Zipf.  All … Continue reading

Leon Russell and Eric Himan on Tour

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This gallery contains 9 photos.

Hey all you Southerners, specifically those in the Carolinas, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas, if you’re anywhere near the venues on the list below, get yourself to this show and see Leon Russell with Eric Himan opening. I saw … Continue reading

Interview with Declan Bennet, the Singer/Songwriter Starring in the West End Production of Once

Declan Bennett accompanied by Alon Bisk

Declan Bennett accompanied by Alon Bisk

This past Friday I caught a show on Rockwood Music Hall’s Stage 3 that was a revelation. Declan Bennet, currently starring in the West End production of Once, is on a brief break, during which he played a show in New York. It was brilliant! It’s been a while since I left a concert this excited about the artist, but this guy is the real deal!

I’d only discovered his music a few weeks ago, when I read a short blurb about the live and unplugged remake of his 2011 album Record: Breakup. I didn’t know who he was, so I certainly wasn’t aware of the original, electric, studio version of Record:Breakup, but something about the blurb intrigued me. I remember jotting down the link on my phone, and finding it later that night, I was blown away.  Continue reading

Concert Gallery – Adam Ezra Group Ramble 4

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This gallery contains 28 photos.

The Adam Ezra Group‘s Ramble is an annual music festival during which fans of the band gather for some great music and a good cause.  Find out more about it from the interview with Adam Ezra posted in this site … Continue reading