KS#21: Darlingside

Darlingside's Kitchen Session was several months and 18 e-mails in the making, but we finally got the show together on January 23rd. The band is releasing their new album, Pilot Machines over the course of the spring as a 'subscription album'. The first first 7" was released just yesterday, and features an extremely catchy tune called 'Blow The House Down'--a perfect opener to an amazing KS set, check it out:

And, from their debut EP 1 (2010), this gem called 'The Catbird Seat':

More info:

darlingside.com

pilotmachines.com

NEwport Nightcap! Featuring: Pearl and the Beard, Swear and Shake, Kingsley Flood and Vikesh Kapoor

Our good friends at visible voice boston organized an evening's worth of live music known as the Newport Nightcap in Newport, RI during Newport Folk Festival weekend 2011. We were there to support our friends and capture the night on film. Enjoy, folks!   

WRAP YOUR EARS AROUND THIS: TALLAHASSEE

Tallahassee is a Boston-based quartet comprised of former New England Patriot lineman and current frontman, Brian Barthelmes, along with Scott Thompson on guitar, Shawn Carney on bass, and Matt Raskopf on drums. 

I first heard Tallahassee at Radio (formerly "Club Choices") in Union Square. Opening for Vineyard vagabonds, Nina Violet and Willy Mason, in a brand new run-down venue on a Sunday night is not an easy feat, but these guys had the crowd bouncing and singing along immediately. Mixing elements of roots rock, low drum lines, and catchy guitar riffs, Tallahassee's tunes stayed ingrained in my mind well after they'd left the stage. It's no surprise that most of the crowd left with them. 

We were lucky enough to host the very talented and equally friendly guys in our living room in November, where they played songs from their debut 2011 album, Jealous Hands, along with a new love song called "My Days With You." Check back at a later date for the video. Below you can see Tallahassee performing "Time" from Jealous Hands. 

Pick up a copy of Jealous Hands here: http://tallahassee.myshopify.com/  Each 3-minute song will leave you wanting more. It's been playing on repeat since November in our house. Happy listening. 

The Wooden Sky (KS# 18 + Contest!)

I first read about The Wooden Sky on Visible Voice, and quickly jumped on board. Luckily, the last stop on their tour was only a mile away from the KS house on a Friday, and they were willing to extend their trip by a day to play a matinee KS for us before heading back to Toronto. We all woke up only about an hour before the first guests arrived, rolled up the sleeping bags and carried out the couches, and transformed a mess of a living room into the 'performance area':

'North Dakota' (from When Lost at Sea)

They played a full set in the living room, then had everyone follow them to the kitchen to legitmize the 'Session', then played a stripped down version of 'Take Me Out' on the porch:

'Take Me Out' (City of Light EP)

I urge you all to familiarize yourself with their music and to prepare for what is sure to be one of the best shows of 2012, whenever they make it back to Boston.

VV and KS will be hosting a contest to give away a bunch of merch donated by the band (two vinyl's, two cd's, t-shirt, cassette) in the coming weeks on our facebook pages, so head over there and look us up if you haven't already. A huge thanks to Visible Voice for the introduction, to The Wooden Sky for graciously accepting the invitation to come play for us.

SARAH LEE GUTHRIE & JOHNNY IRION - Airline to Heaven

Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion performed a surprise set in the MASS MoCA art galleries at Wilco's Solid Sound Festival. This was one of the musical highlights of 2011 for me, and I dare say they are one of the best male/female duos out there right now.

Below, they perform Wilco's Airline to Heaven (from Mermaid Avenue Vol. II)...Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion's voices, Woody Guthrie's words, Wilco cover at Wilco's festival...a 6 1/2 minute call-and-response rendition, with guitar, standup bass, and accordian solos that give me goosebumps every time, couldn't have been more perfect: