Listen Localy: Rant Globaly

Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton has been found dead from what appears to be a heart attack.

Asheton was still living in Ann Arbor, where he'd been for almost his entire life. I grew up near there, and when I was in high school I used to come into Ann Arbor to hit the record stores and buy punk shirts and books at a place called the Cat's Meow.

I remember being up at the Cat's Meow once in the middle of a weekday and the only two people in the store were me (flipping through Crass and Clockwork Orange shirts) and the dude in his early 30s who worked there and used to school me on all sorts of music stuff. I'd recently gotten heavily into Fun House, so when Ron Asheton came in all trenchcoated up and looking like Mark David Chapman gone to seed I was pretty much blown away.

Dominick Brady, who's been doing some wonderful Atlanta music scene podcasts as of late, recently interviewed Atlanta underground hip-hop head Dres tha Beatnik for an upcoming story in Art Noveau magazine. Here's an excerpt Brady posted on his blog, DominickBrady.com, in which Dres reveals the defining -- and most embarrassing -- moment of his career:

BBC Entertainment News named the first artist featured in its "BBC Sound of 2009" countdown series: La Roux, the stage name/alter ego of 20-year-old fiery-haired electro-pop songstress Elly Jackson (pictured) and her behind-the-scenes production partner Ben Langmaid.

The latest sassy lass to emerge from London sets her perfectly pop vocals against heavily synthesized beats that are straight out of the skating ring '80s, apparently her intention. From Jackson's RMD Magazine interview:

"Electro music is so throwaway now. The lyrics don't mean anything and it should be about how the words sound together rather then the overall sound of the songs. Proper songs are really emotional, like Why by Annie Lennox," says the Eurythmics, Prince, CSS and Cure fan. "That's a really emotional tune, but it's all done on synth. We've got a couple of electro and synth ballads and we're not scared to show a vulnerable side. There's very few people doing it."

The Deal: Two "shows" in one night at the Muse offers a look at some of the variety of Charlotte's music scene.

The Good: I'll start at the beginning. Nicolette Emanuelle opened up the early show with a fantastic piano-driven set. She often draws comparisons to Tori Amos, though her themes may come across a little darker. With only a drummer to back her, Emanuelle delighted with her talents on the keyboard, vocals and in songwriting. She'd even go back out to perform a few songs on cello with the next act.

The Hot House Hefftones were the second act of the early bill and hit the stage swinging with their combo of jazz and swing with some New Orleans flavor added by the trio of horns.

Singer Emily Estrella has one helluva stage presence on her as she sang and swayed, made faces and gestures to go with the lyrics and just appeared to be having a great time. A group I hadn't seen before, but one that I'm hoping to catch again soon.

Thief was the middle act on the third bill and got things a little more charged up with a full band, indie-rock sound as players even found time to change up instruments. Seeing as how the group drew a decent crowd to the Muse that required chairs to be moved out, I'd keep your eyes out for these guys.

The final band of the night was S.O. Stereo. Frontman Bradley C. Davis sank himself into the lyrics and let his emotions pour out through the band's brand of straight-forward rock. Having seen the band more than a year ago at Tremont, I can easily say they've come a long way since them and appear a lot more comfortable on stage.

No matter how hard we might try, family gatherings and holiday season don't always add up to joyous -- or even peaceful -- experiences. But when the Trucks clan joined forces for their Soul Stew Revival bash at Tampa Theatre on Monday, a near capacity crowd of around 1,400 witnessed domestic bliss at its finest. The jubilant vibe, marked by expert musicianship, permeated the ancient venue. If the rumors are true about the historic movie house being haunted, even the ghosts must have been grinning.

The gnat's-ass-tight gang of musicians mesmerized with gorgeous executions of the timeworn tension-and-release dynamic. It's a God-send rooted in the churches of the Deep South, one that was sold with aplomb to the secular world by the likes of Ray Charles, James Brown and Aretha Franklin. The Allman Brothers Band, Derek Trucks' chief employer, then expanded the sonic presentation with Kind of Blue-indebted jazz elements in the late 1960s. Decades later, the holy tradition thrives, coming together wonderfully Monday night at Tampa Theatre.

Philip Frobos pauses when asked if Carnivores, the band in which he sings and plays bass, is a punk band. "You could say we're a punk band," he offers, "but we're a punk band in the way that the Pixies were a punk band, or the way the Replacements, the Minutemen and Pavement were punk bands. The roots are there but we're going somewhere else with them."

To get a handle on where Carnivores (formerly Chainstereo) takes these roots, it requires a psychedelic trek into lo-fi tropicalia, lounge and death-afflicted sound collages that defy easy categorization. Frobos - along with Nathaniel Higgins (guitar), Caitlin Lang (keyboard/vocals) and Tauseef Anam (drums) - splatters songs with a clutter of fuzz and musical inflections that come off busy at first. But every rhythm, melody and yearning voice is placed exactly where it's needed. The spirit of punk is undeniable in its presence, but the experimental bend of the songs is on par with the likes of Animal Collective, Faust and even the harmonic complexities of early Beach Boys records.

From the sad, ethereal pace of "For Griffin" to the bouncy, Brazilian flare of "Heart of Copper" on the band's debut, All Night Dead U.S.A., (due in March on Double Phantom), Carnivores shows genuine enthusiasm for exploring the fringes of fun, exotic music. Drummer Anam studies music at Emory University where he dabbles in everything from Samba to classical. The rest of the group springs from the traditions of homespun DIY. Their strengths and weaknesses provide a counter-balance of chaos and considered songwriting.

The Avett Brothers w/ Auld Lang Syne and Jason Webley
Belk Theatre
Dec. 30, 2008

The Deal: The Avett Brothers return to Charlotte for the first night in a sold-out, two-night New Year's Eve stand.

The Good: Auld Lang Syne warmed up the crowd as the first opener and were a little mellow in comparison with what was to come. Jason Webley was up next and got his feet stomping, the crowd involved and screamed his heart out. Even though he broke a guitar string, the show went on and he did his best to bring some energy out in the theatre.

You could tell the crowd was excited for The Avetts before they even hit the stage. There was an energy of anticipation for the whole night, and when the first notes finally rang out, the crowd broke into a frenzy and sang along with every word. While you may have thought it was full-on crowd participation for the opening song, it was en masse for "Paranoia," the second song of the night. The Avett's sister, Bonnie, came out to sing "Swept Away" and gave a nice female, family harmony to the song. Paleface and Mo made an appearance for three of the songs, including the first encore song. People who were yelling out for "Salvation Song" all night were rewarded at the end of the encore as Bonnie returned to join in with the band. It always amazes me that the band is able to keep up that energy each and every time I see them...but that's probably why their following continues to grow. Foot stomping, screaming, strumming -- it's always one hell of a live show to witness.