Their new disc, called Eisenhower, was released on Bar/None Records and is an album I’m taking my time to take in. I’ve been digging the two tunes they released for promo for a few months now (“Even Rats” and “Children of December”). But overall, it’s a wonderful disc, with some interesting textures and solid songwriting beyond these two powerhouse tracks. One thing’s for sure, this disc is definitely a big way for the Slip to say, “We’re no longer just some New England jamband.” They may still stretch out some of their songs and do some improv, but the Slip are continuing to combine cool sounds and textures with powerful songwriting.

Just last night I was just talking to my buddy who caught My Morning Jacket and the Slip last Friday here in Chi-town (one show, of several, that I lamented having to miss because of my Thanksgiving travels).

Anyways, he told me that MMJ was joined by the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra for a few tunes, which sounded awesome and made missing the show that much harder to swallow. MMJ is a great live band, and having the orchestral arrangments thrown into their sound is all the better in my opinion. Unfortunately, no video of that exact performance, but here’s MMJ playing what’s easily one of my favorite tunes, “Gideon,” backed by the Boston Pops Orchestra on Letterman:

Have a great weekend!

• My Morning Jacket
• The New Pornographers
• The Hold Steady
• Cat Power
• The Dirty Blues Band
• Cut Chemist

Looks like my initial reaction that this festival had gone straight back to its jamband roots was a bit premature. Good to see them continuing to branch out, but will the “indie kids” take the bait? We’ll see.

Tickets go on-sale this Friday, 12/1 at 10am EST at Langerado’s site.

Man! This is a heck of a weekend for live music in the Windy City, and I happen to be missing all of it! A couple solid two-night stands and some individual shows I am REALLY pissed that I’m going to miss. Here’s the run-down:

Friday
Tenacious D @ UIC Pavilion
MMJ and the Slip @ the Rivieria

Friday AND Saturday (we love our two-night stands!)
moe. @ the Chicago theatre
Wilco @ the Auditorium Theatre
Andrew Bird @ Logan Square Aud.
The Black Keys @ the Vic

Saturday:
Willy Porter @ Park West
Wolfmother (w/ Silversun Pickups and Dead Meadow) @ the Rivieria
Brazilian Girls @ the Metro

Just so many different ways to rock out, dance, soak up the lyrical goodness, or just get silly! Some really tough choices would have to be made IF I were actually in town. But, unfortunately, I’m missing out on the whole lot!

Enjoy your holiday!

“The Slip have signed to the acclaimed Bar/None Records (Architecture in Helsinki, Evan Dando, Yo La Tengo, They Might Be Giants) – and will be releasing their new studio album ‘Eisenhower’ into the world on Nov. 7th with the warm fuzzy pride of new parents. Co-Produced by The Slip and Matthew Ellard (Elliot Smith, Billy Bragg & Wilco, Morphine) and with additional engineering by good friend and fellow Montre-alien Drew Malamud (Stars, Metric, The Dears), ‘Eisenhower’ easily stands as the most cohesive and evocative work The Slip has released to date.”

I mentioned the Slip in this post about some fall tours I can’t wait to check out. They’re on the road with My Morning Jacket and the Lovely Feathers. Also, it looks like the Slip won a Boston Music Award for Best Live Act this year.

Kudos to a band that I’ve only managed to see a few times, but has continued to impress me with their evolving sound. When I first saw a show back in Boston in 2000, the Slip seemed to be just another jazzy jamband, but they continue to alter their sound and from the last show I heard (in 2004), they now play more of an atmospheric indie rock. Brad Barr’s songwriting has really improved, and it’s good to see them hooking up a solid tour schedule with MMJ. Very curious to check out this new disc and see how they’ve changed since 2004.

My Morning Jacket
11/23/2005
@ the Palace Theatre
Louisville, KY

Setlist:

disc 1:
01 Wordless Chorus
02 It Beats 4 U
03 Gideon
04 One Big
05 What a Wonderful Man
06 Lowdown
07 I Will Sing
08 Golden
09 Sooner
10 Hell

disc 2:
01 Lay Low
02 Off the Record
03 Dondante
04 Dancefloorz
05 Anytime
06 Louisville Pride
07 I Wil Be There (Jim)
08 Bermuda (Jim)
09 At Dawn
10 Run Thru
11 Magheeta

LMM’s Show Notes:
Some of my fav cuts from this shows are:

• Gideon – something about the guitar riff and vocal pairing in this song makes it my current favorite, hands-down.
• Wordless Chorus – with the high-pitched guitar licks, washed-out vocals, and the loping new-wave keyboard sound that sets the pulse, this song has such a cool mix of textures
• It Beats 4 U – musically dark and haunting, but lyrically beautiful and heart-wrenching
• Golden – a beautiful tune that’s perfect for James’s vocals; I especially love the pedal steel
• Magheeta – just a rockin way to close a show

As always, the Live Music Archive allows for both downloading and streaming, so you can preview the show before grabbing it outright…or just grab it. But if you dig their sound, show them some support and check out a show or buy an album.

A few fall tours not to miss

…with Chi-town shows noted for my local peeps.

~~~

The Benevento-Russo Duo

Fresh off a full summer tour with ex-Phish members, Trey Anastasio and Mike Gordon, and their stellar performance at Lollapalooza, the Duo (Marco Benevento and Joe Russo) continue their path towards world domination. I like to thing of them as the punk-jazz duo, but not only do they sound like much more than just a Duo, it’s hard to do them justice by branding them with any genre labels (though I still like the “punk-jazz” stamp and think it fits quite nicely).

They’re in Chi-town: 10/7 @ the Park West

~~~

My Morning Jacket (w/ the Slip in support for several dates)

In my opinion, this is a perfect match-up with these two bands playing together. I’m loving the two tracks I’ve heard from the Slip’s forthcoming release (available at their site). There’s just something about Brad Barr’s vocal delivery and the way the bass and guitar interact that feels right about this band.

And I can’t believe it took me until this past Spring to get into MMJ. Jim James’ (add the usual “reverb-drenched” descriptor) vocals just hit you in the chest and their big-stage sound has just the right amount of added textures and harmonies to create something unique. “Z” continues to be on my list of favorite albums of ’05, and the band is about to release a double live album, called “Okonokos,” on Tuesday, 9/26. They delivered a really solid performance at Lollapalooza this August, so I can’t wait to check out this match-up at the Riv this November.

In the Chi: 11/24 @ the Riviera Theater

~~~

Beck

And then there’s Beck, who just recently made the cover of Wired for his bold approaches to releasing his music in various formats, chunks, and mediums. Beck’s always been a pioneer, and it looks like he’s ready to release yet another “album,” (if that’s really what it’s going to be). Whatever it is, it’s called the Information, and he’s headed on a small tour in support of it. If you’re a music fan who’s into getting into the “process” then be sure to read that Wired piece, because Beck is definitely helping turn the standard album-releasing practice on its head.

He’s in Chi-town: 10/14 @ UIC Pavillion

Belle and Sebastian, Calexico, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Death Cab for Cutie, Iron and Wine, My Morning Jacket, New Pornographers, Secret Machines, Sigur Ros, Son Volt, and the White Stripes.

Rock your Indie heart out…here’s their main page. My personal recs go to My Morning Jacket, Secret Machines, Arctic Monkeys and the White Stripes (yeah, what can I say, I like my guitars).