REVIEW: Patti Griffin - American Kid

It’s easy for Patty Griffin fans to be apprehensive about a new album. It was 17 years ago this month that she released her breathtaking debut Living With Ghosts, a nearly perfect collection of 10 tracks featuring mainly Griffin and her acoustic guitar. The songs and stories were raw and beautiful and illustrated her almost unparalleled skills as a singer and songwriter. It was almost an accident the album worked so well – the songs were written to be played with a band, and played loud; stripping them down to their bare essentials made all the difference (even though it wasn’t her choice). Nevertheless, Griffin added a band and rocked out on her second album, Flaming Red, which, while still a great album, was overproduced and had fans scratching their heads and asking what happened to the simplicity of her debut. Her third album, Silver Bell, was never officially released as her label, A&M Records, merged with Interscope and dropped her from the label. (Several songs turned up on later albums, and in the entire album is available for download on several fan sites.)

All of this, of course, confused casual fans who wondered what kind of songwriter Griffin was. Her next three albums all showed flashes of brilliance (particularly 2004’s Impossible Dream) but were uneven. 2010’s Downtown Church was easy to listen to because of Griffin’s instrumentation and vocals but was, at the end of the day, an album of gospel covers; Griffin’s interpretations of other material often feel vastly inferior to her original songs. Griffin then joined (and, according to some media reports, married) Robert Plant, touring with Band of Joy for a while, leading some to wonder if her solo career was over.

Which brings us to American Kid, her first album of original material in six years, and the best since her debut. Her time with Band of Joy has paid massive dividends, as the perfectly sculpted soundscapes she creates – with help from Band of Joy openers North Mississippi Allstars, and background vocals by Plant himself – easily pull on the ears and emotions as much as anything she’s done.

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WIN STUFF: Win 2 tix to see Futurebirds at 9:30 Club!

Revel in the sweet reverb of Futurebirds' folk-rock and alt-country-tinged tunes this Thursday night at 9:30 Club!

Futurebirds hail from Athens, GA, the musical city also home to psych rock weirdos of Montreal. Speaking of Athens' diverse music scene, Futurebirds guitarist Thomas Johnson says, "It’s encouraged in the Athens music scene to do something that pushes the limits a little bit. Or to do something that someone else hasn’t really done, and create your own sound." And create their own sound they did. The bands' six members came together, along with their slew of instruments - acoustic and electric guitars, bass, drums, banjo, and mandolin - to create two EPs and two full-length albums since 2008. Hampton Lullaby, Futurebirds' debut LP, was released in 2010 with the sophomore follow-up Baba Yaga released earlier this year on Fat Possum Records. In the past five years, Futurebirds have shared the stage with such renowned acts as Drive-By Truckers and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals.  

For your chance to win free tickets to see Futurebirds headline 9:30 Club this Thursday night, please do one of the following: 

1. Leave a comment below, using a valid email address, telling us the name of your favorite bird.

2. Retweet this or tweet the following:

I'm entering to win tix to see Futurebirds at 9:30 Club! @ChunkyGlasses #Futurebirds930

A winner will be chosen at random THIS WEDNESDAY AT NOON, so be sure to enter before then! Not feeling lucky? Tickets are on sale through Ticketfly. 

Also check out 9:30 Club's Twitter today at 3:30 p.m. when Futurebirds take over to answer fans' questions! 

LIVE: 2013 Sweetlife Festival

All photos by Joy Asico (joy@chunkyglasses.com/www.asicophoto.com) and Julia Lofstrand (julialofstrand@gmail.com/julialofstrandphotography.com/)

A memorable music festival often involves as much luck as alchemy. Is the lineup great? Do the performances match expectations? Does the weather cooperate (and do the masses stay engaged if it doesn't)? Are there good food and beverage vendors? Do they have enough variety (and supply) to satisfy the masses? Is the venue appropriate? Does the experience inside the venue trump any issues with traffic, parking, or the parking lot scene? Whether by luck, alchemy, voodoo, or just good vibes, and in spite of an often rainy day at the end of an awfully rainy week, the folks at sweetgreen can look back on the fourth installment (third at Merriweather Post Pavilion) of the Sweetlife festival with a smile. The almost 20,000 in attendance most certainly will!

Solange captivating the early crowd at the 2013 Sweetlife Festival

Solange drew an early-afternoon set at Sweetlife, and it wouldn't be controversial in the least to suggest that she stole the show. Leading a funky, dynamic, band she certainly proved to many in attendance that she is so much more than just "Beyonce's little sister." She delivered excellent renditions of many tracks from her outstanding, Blood Orange-produced dance/pop/funk EP True. Solange has style and substance, incorporating excellent dance moves and a confident, winning stage presence, but her voice is what made her set truly special. It soared, swooped, trilled, and whispered throughout her mesmerizing, too brief set, which included stellar performances of "Losing You," "Lovers in the Parking Lot," and "Bad Girls," but what may have been the most memorable moment of her set was the closer. With a band that has clearly explored every nuance of "Bumpy's Lament" in tow, Solange brought cheers from a boisterous bunch at the main stage with her rousing, note-perfect interpretation of Dirty Projectors' hit "Stillness is the Move." The best proof that Solange is one to watch? At 2:15 in the afternoon of what would prove to be a long day, so many couldn't take their eyes off of her.

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