The Medusa Fora

Esther wrote:

DzM wrote:Dude! I get to see WEW on Friday! w00t!

Have a wonderful show, DzM! Hey, did you ever get a copy of Hallways of Always?

No, I haven't yet. Life at The Company (All Praise The Company) has been a bit uncertain (a few weeks ago we let go several engineers and a director), so I've been being a little conservative with my extracurricular spending.

Maybe there'll be one for sale at the show.

DzM wrote:Maybe there'll be one for sale at the show.

Maybe. If you get one, I will be interested to know what you think of it.

Esther wrote:I've not talked to Will since he left on tour a few weeks ago. At that time, there were no plans for crossing the Atlantic. If I learn otherwise, I'll be sure to tell you.

Thanks, Esther.

Esther wrote:there were no plans for crossing the Atlantic. If I learn otherwise, I'll be sure to tell you.

Please do, Esther, I'm still annoyed I missed him last time here.
And am looking forward to DzM's raving review tonight.

Christine wrote:

Esther wrote:there were no plans for crossing the Atlantic. If I learn otherwise, I'll be sure to tell you.

Please do, Esther, I'm still annoyed I missed him last time here.
And am looking forward to DzM's raving review tonight.

The show was, as always, fantastic.

William has a very easy rapport with his audience. There's a lot of back-and-forth banter, and he seems to be having a genuinely good time. One of the things I really enjoy too is his willingness to improvise (on this evening a guitarist from one of the the other bands joined him on stage for one song, and a drummer that he's been playing with for about a week joined for half the set) around the set.

I'm enamored enough of his shows and performances that I feel it's well worth the five hour (round trip) drive to catch his forty-minute opener-opener set.

At the show I picked up his and Jenny's collaborative album Hallways of Always. It's a good album with some standout tracks (we miss you, you're already gone, etc). I'm not at all impressed by marrow though. Jenny's voice is just wrong for this, at least with Will's (his solo version is really fun though).

I think Will and Jenny really match each other well on feast of a thousand beasts and you've already gone, and Will is fantastic on black Iowa dirt.

In the crowd I saw one Pogues 2007 T-Shirt (looked kinda like a tombstone design).

For those of you that want these kinds of things:

13 photos from Bottom of the Hill

I remember for the 2006 tour hearing early rumors that WEW would be opening for the Pogues. Made the long trek from Florida to NY and found that at this show (or maybe for NYC) he was not opening. Don't get me wrong, I did get to see the Pogues (or at least some of them, but that's another thread), so it was NOT a total loss. BUT I really had hoped to finally see him live. Then 2007 rolls around and looks like he's been booked for the opening slot. Made it to Boston and he did indeed have the opener slot which had me very happy. I got a couple songs (or portions due to the limits of my digi-cam) on video and I thought some of you fans (or those that have yet to be turned on to the WEW way) might be interested in watching this. Granted it's a cover song he does, but come on, it's a great song and it's WEW live and in person.
Met the man after two of the Boston shows and really is a nice and cool guy. Go buy his stuff...and see him live!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cm_X0l-LZOY

Does anyone know if if WEW's lastest cd, Songs of the blackbird, will be available on iTunes like his other two albums?

DzM wrote:I'm enamored enough of his shows and performances that I feel it's well worth the five hour (round trip) drive to catch his forty-minute opener-opener set.

Well, I am pleased that you'd say so.

DzM wrote:At the show I picked up his and Jenny's collaborative album Hallways of Always. It's a good album with some standout tracks...I'm not at all impressed by marrow though. Jenny's voice is just wrong for this, at least with Will's.

I beg to differ, but thanks anyhow. I asked!

DzM wrote:For those of you that want these kinds of things:

13 photos from Bottom of the Hill

I love the photos, DzM! Thanks for sharing!

dj_evol_eno wrote:- Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

dj, I've been meaning to tell you that that quote is a favorite of mine. Thank you for reminding me of it!

Esther wrote:

DzM wrote:At the show I picked up his and Jenny's collaborative album Hallways of Always. It's a good album with some standout tracks...I'm not at all impressed by marrow though. Jenny's voice is just wrong for this, at least with Will's.

I beg to differ, but thanks anyhow. I asked!

What can I say? I'm just not a fan of most duets between really contrasting voices. I also really don't like Shane and Maire (is that right?) on You're the One.

I really enjoy Hallways of Always though. I'd recommend it to anyone that cares to ask my opinion.

Esther wrote:

dj_evol_eno wrote:- Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

dj, I've been meaning to tell you that that quote is a favorite of mine. Thank you for reminding me of it!

You're very welcome.

A recent interview: http://www.onmilwaukee.com/music/articl ... tmore.html

Here's a nice quality video clip from 10/2006:

http://www.amoeba.com/video-player/will ... tmore.html

Esther wrote:A recent interview: http://www.onmilwaukee.com/music/articl ... tmore.html

Will said something about place shaping music ...

That was something that the lovely Mrs. DzM ana]s]and I were talking about on the drive home from the recent show in San Francisco. We were mutually agreeing that one of the things that Wiil's music appeals to, for us, is the perspective of the farmer. Dry is a good example.

This year is for shit as far as rain. We're looking at having to (maybe) pay somebody to truck in water. Come on rain. Fuck yeah.

...

It's taken me way minutes more than it should have to type this. I shouldn't drink and type.

Lammyts1 wrote:Here's a nice quality video clip from 10/2006:

http://www.amoeba.com/video-player/will ... tmore.html

Hey, thanks, Lammyts1! Our annoying dial up connection doesn't allow for easy viewing of videos, but this worked well (after a very long download time.) I found this nice little review from Amoeba's site, too:

Reviewed by Happy Joe

In the last quarter of the twentieth century, American roots music, specifically blues and country, had devolved into a soul sucking ooze of commercial self-indulgence and six string snobbery. High budget production and mainstream marketing stripped the art of storytelling in its bare essence into a convoluted mish-mash of petty woe-is-me-isms and worthless ponderings of the bourgeoisie.

Taking the essence of traditional American Roots music from the teachings of Harry Smith, the outsider inventiveness of mavericks like Tom Waits and Don Van Vliet, all filtered through the radical ideology of hardcore punk, William Elliott Whitmore is one of the few new artists leading the pack of folk revivalists into a new age of raw music.

Coming through Southern California in support for his latest album, Songs Of The Blackbird, Mr. Whitmore was kind enough to stop in with his banjo and some friends to play some songs and tell some tales. The native Iowan brings a fresh breath of air and gritty realism as an alternative to indie rock's current obsession with woodland mysticism, teepee tree forts and frolicking unicorns. View the video and witness the truth about new American folk music.