With Black Friday right around the corner, its time to start Christmas shopping for your loved ones. Not sure what to stuff their stockings with? How about some Wilco Coffee?
I know what you’re thinking. What is Wilco Coffee? Well, some of band’s members visited Inteligentsia Coffee’s Cupping Lap to pick their favorite variety. They settled on a coffee from the Sidama region of Ethiopiam, grown by the Homecho Waeno co-op.
Our friends over at Stereogum have a description of the coffee’s flavor, which I have admit sounds intriguing. The retail price ($21 per pound) is a little steep. But, for those who are interested, you can purchase Wilco Coffee here.
Last night I hoped a train down to Webster Hall to check out Delta Spirit. The band is out of San Diego, California and can be described as a “hybrid of rock and northern soul” and they brought both in spades. I arrived as Darker My Love was about halfway through their set. Darker My Love had a great, bright country mixed with psychedelic sound but was visibly upset after lead singer and guitarist Tim Presley spilled a beer into his Vox amp. He asked the crowd if it sounded all right and I yelled to assure him it sounded great (It really did!) .
After they wrapped up their set, I actually got a chance to meet Tim Presley himself outside. We talked guitars for a bit and exchanged emails so I could send him addresses of repair shops. Hopefully they can get their gear in line before getting out for the rest of the tour. We said goodbyes and I hurried back in to catch the Delta Spirit start their show.
This guy was so excited he passed out. He was escorted out as the band was coming on, little did I know this would be a hint to their massive energy and power. The band opened with ‘White Table’ multi-instrumentalist Kelly Winrich backing the band up on orchaestral drums. The song was a powerful slow build to ‘Golden State’, a catchy as hell bumping and grooving song, which would come to be a hallmark of the show overall. ‘9-11’ followed, punctuated perfectly by the great lyrics and comfortable voice of singer Matt Vasquez. They were constantly engaging the audience, a very welcome break from the stand with arms folded shows I’ve been attending. Even when the band would take things down a notch on ballads like ‘Ransom Man’ they had the audience totally engrossed. The song was a slow burn to an epic noisy freakout, and it was awesome to see the guys let loose.
The energy carried them to rocking and rollicking ‘Streetwalker’ featuring Winrich on some mean organ parts. ‘Parade” featured some smooth bass grooves from 4 string maestro Jon Jameson. Vasquez dedicated the song to all the out of towners like himself and the band set into ‘St. Francis.’ The crowd got so excited the song even had a stage diver! I wouldn’t say he dived as much as skanked as if “he was at a ska show in 1995” (Kelly Winrich’s words, not mine) The band was fair enough to dedicated a song to the local crowd and played ‘Bushwick Blues’ next, an ode to hopping n the L train and living the hipster life up. This song was actually proceeded by my favorite moment of the night. Vasquez begas a story with “So the second time I dropped acid I walked into my friends bathroom and started playing this song” which lead to a piano and vocal cover of Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here (gleefully joined in on vocals by happy rock fans like me in the crowd) into my personal favorite ‘Trashcan’. If that song has somehow missed your ears I pity you.
Before wrapping up, the Band launched into ‘People C’Mon’, another crowd favorite off the band’s first LP “Ode to Sunshine,” Then went into ‘Childrens’ which I was lucky enough to capture a bit of below. I wanted to get some video of the crowd in action.
The band closed up with the closing track off their latest album, “History From Below,” the ballad ‘History.’ Vasquez said the song was inspired by a man who killed his wife’s lover. I don’t know if I can say it ended the night on a high note but the song cemented the band’s set as a serious statement that they will return soon with more rollicking tunes and good times.
Carpark Records, which is already home to acts like Panda Bear and Indian Jewelry, have now added Young Magic to their continuously growing roster.
Australian import Young Magic, made up of Isaac, a portable studio and numerous friends, currently resides in New York City. For the last six months, Young Magic has been recording songs in various places to add to the song’s unique and organic psychedelic sound. Sounds sampled from old spy bases in Berlin to children’s playgrounds in Melbourne to flats in New York City were all integrated into creating these songs. In Young Magic’s first single, “You With Air”, the listener is taken on a journey to a place where young children are playing and laughing while Isaac’s vocals add a layer of soul creating a perfect combination of modern-day drum beats and matter of fact lyrics.
Young Magic will be releasing its debut single, “You With Air” backed with “Sparkly”, digitally and in a 7” vinyl format February 8, 2011 on Carpark Records.
Rejoice. With their first studio album since 2001’s United by Fate, New York rock outfit Rival Schools, release their first single for Pedals, due out March 8, 2011. In an effort to satiate those in wait for the past ten years, the song, “Shot After Shot,” is out now on Itunes as a deluxe single, featuring both the original and acoustic versions, along with the video and a b-side, “Arranged Marriages.”
Check out the official video for “Shot After Shot.”
Delicate Steve, the 5-piece instrumental band from Newton, N.J., has released their debut 7″ “Butterfly” this week. The experimental rock group was discovered in the parking lot of a strip mall in NJ and was signed to Luaka Bop before the label “heard even a moment of their music.” Their LP, Wondervisions, will be released on February 1st.
Here’s the single: Delicate Steve – Butterfly by latitude32
Tour Dates:
12/4/10 Pub on Main Allentown, PA w/Javelin
Modern Mystery 
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