A Year of Concerts: 2014

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Yusuf Islam / Cat Stevens | “Peace Train … Late Again” Tour | Nokia Theatre L.A. Live | 12/14/14 [Concert Review & Photos]

Yusuf Islam / Cat Stevens | “Peace Train … Late Again” Tour | Nokia Theatre L.A. Live | 12/14/14 [Setlist & Video Clips]

Jamestown Revival, Nikki Lane & Pete Molinari | The Troubadour | 11/30/14 [Concert Review]

Jamestown Revival | The Troubadour | 11/30/14 [Photos and Video]

Nikki Lane | The Troubadour | 11/30/14 [Photos and Video]

Pete Molinari | The Troubadour | 11/30/14 [Photos and Video] Continue reading

Laura Mvula | Coachella | 4/12/14 (PHOTOS)

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There aren’t many recording artists that’ll get me up early on a Saturday morning the weekend of Coachella … but Laura Mvula is definitely one of them. This Coachella performance marks the 3 time I’ve seen in this phenomenal singer/musician from the United Kingdom perform live. Having written about her when she opened for Iron & Wine at the Orpheum Theatre and when she also headlined the El Rey Theatre, I don’t feel the need to go more in-depth about her performance. Let’s just say that her set that afternoon, with her warm voice and sophisticated music was sublime, and the perfect  soundtrack to a beautiful and bright desert day.

There is no setlist information available online, so if you Laura Mvula fans happen to know what it was, please leave it in the comments, and I will add here. Thanks!

CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT BLOG ENTRIES OF OTHER BANDS I SAW AT COACHELLA!

Coachella 2014 | April 11 – 13

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This year, I was lucky enough to get approved for a media/photo pass for the first weekend of Coachella. The photo pass allows me to take pictures from the photo pit of each stage, and being armed with an incredible lens, I’ve taken some pretty amazing pictures so far, and I can’t wait to sift through them all and post what I’ve been able to capture.

There were a few acts that I wish could have snapped pictures for (Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Beck and Arcade Fire), but being a “newby” in the world of concert photography, I wasn’t selected to by artist management to have the privilege of taking pictures. Hopefully, the pics I post of the bands I saw here will help change their opinion of me for the future.

Each entry will contain a little bulb of my overall thoughts of what I was able to see, with a Instagram video post that I posted (my Instagram account is @Methodman13 … you may as well go there now while you’re waiting for the post to go up) and a photo slideshow.  I hope you enjoy the moments I captured as much as I enjoyed shooting it. Click on the name of the artist you want to check out to see the blog entry I put up.

Friday | April 11th, 2014

  1. Tom Odell
  2. The Preatures
  3. GOAT
  4. Dum Dum Girls
  5. Jagwar Ma
  6. Grouplove
  7. A$AP Ferg
  8. HAIM
  9. The Afghan Whigs (Unfortunately, the pictures I took during this set are unusable)
  10. Broken Bells
  11. Woodkid
  12. The Replacements
  13. Girl Talk
  14. Outkast (Unfortunately, the pictures I took during this set are unusable)

Saturday | April 12, 2014

  1. Laura Mvula
  2. Drowners
  3. White Lies
  4. Banks
  5. CHVRCHES
  6. City and Colour
  7. Julian Casablancas
  8. Kid Cudi
  9. Future Islands
  10. Lorde
  11. Pixies
  12. Empire of the Sun
  13. Pharrell Williams
  14. Pet Shop Boys

Sunday | April 13, 2014

  1. Fishbone
  2. Chance The Rapper
  3. The 1975
  4. Rudimental
  5. Blood Orange
  6. The Naked and Famous
  7. AlunaGeorge
  8. Little Dragon
  9. Lana Del Rey
  10. Motörhead
  11. Jhené Aiko

UPDATE: 5/9/14: It was a long, glorious, music-filled weekend of music. I think I may have ruined all of the future music festivals I attend because there really is nothing like being in the photo pit, even for only the first 3 songs, trying to capture “moments” of musicians practicing their craft and giving the audience all that they have. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity. Thank you, Goldenvoice. Thank you, Snoop. You made this music dweeb very, very happy.

 

A Year of Concerts: 2013

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Listed chronologically, the most recent show first.

Stevie Wonder | Songs In The Key Of Life | Nokia Theatre L.A. Live | 12/21/13

Shy Girls | The Spare Room and Bootleg Bar | 12/12/13 and 12/13/13

Snoopzilla and Dam Funk “7 Days Of Funk” Record Release Party | Los Angeles Exchange | 12/10/13

Thundercat | The Echoplex | 12/05/13

Moses Sumney | The Echoplex | 12/05/13

Pearl Jam | Los Angeles Sports Arena | Nov. 23-24, 2013

Ben Harper | Walt Disney Concert Hall | 11/18/13

The Record Company | The Satellite | 11/15/13

The Janks | The Satellite | 11/15/13

Nine Inch Nails | Staples Center | 11/08/13

Iron & Wine | The Orpheum Theatre | 10/31/13

Laura Mvula | The Orpheum Theatre | 10/31/13

Hiatus Kaiyote | Skirball Cultural Center | 10/30/13

Moses Sumney | Skirball Cultural Center | 10/30/13

Hanni El Khatib| El Rey Theatre| 10/25/13

Bass Drum of Death | El Rey Theatre | 10/25/13

Tijuana Panthers | El Rey Theatre| 10/25/13

The Secret State | Loaded Hollywood | 10/13/13

Filter Magazine’s Culture Collide 2013 | Echo Park | 11/10/13 – 11/11/13  (Wooster, Tiny Ruins, Maya Vik, Iza, Medicine, Jacco Gardner, Gemini Club and Great White Buffalo)

Fiona Apple and Blake Mills | Walt Disney Concert Hall | 10/7/13

Depeche Mode | Staples Center | 9/29/13

M83, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and Phantogram | Hollywood Bowl | 9/22/13

The Beach Ball Festival: Soul Revue | Santa Monica Pier | September 21, 2013 (Myron & E, Lee Fields and the Expressions, Maceo Parker, Allen Stone and Aloe Blacc)

Laura Mvula | El Rey Theatre | 9/17/13

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Lobster Festival | Port of Los Angeles | September 14, 2013 (The Section Quartet, Nightmare & The Cat, Deap Vally, Dead Sara)

Girl in a Coma | The Echoplex | September 12, 2013

Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue | Twilight Concert Series | August 29, 2013

The Dustbowl Revival | Twilight Concert Series | August 29, 2013

FYF FEST | L.A. State Historic Park | August 24 and 25, 2013 (Mikal Cronin, Charles Bradley, The Breeders, Devendra Banhart, The Locust, Deerhunter, TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Orwells, Pional, How To Dress Well, No Age, !!! (ChkChkChk), Shlohmo, MGMT, Solange, and Holy Ghost!)

Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz Band |Burton W. Chace Park | August 17, 2013

The National | Jimmy Kimmel Live | August 12, 2013

Hanni El Khatib | Twilight Concert Series | August 8, 2013

Hiatus Kaiyote | The Bootleg Theater | July 31, 2013

Geographer | Getty Center | July 27, 2013

Tijuana Tears | The Virgil | July 24, 2013

Savages | El Rey Theatre | July 23, 2013

Alabama Shakes | Hollywood Palladium | July 17th, 2013

Rodrigo y Gabriela | Hollywood Bowl | July 14, 2013

Young, Gifted & Nina: A Tribute to Nina Simone | California Plaza | July 5, 2013

BET Experience | R. Kelly, New Edition & The Jacksons | Staples Center | 6/30/13

BET Experience | Snoop, Kendrick Lamar & J.Cole | Staples Center | 6/29/13

BET Experience | Beyonce | Staples Center | 6/28/13

Robert Plant and the Sensational Space Shifters | Shrine Auditorium | June 26th, 2013

Nina Diaz | Hotel Café | June 9th, 2013

Ink-N-Iron Festival | Queen Mary | June 8, 2013 (Girl in a Coma, Hopeless Jack & the Handsome Devil, Kaleigh Baker, The Fleshtones, Dead Kennedys and Iggy and the Stooges)

Illumination Road | The Roxy | June 4, 2013

Make Music Pasadena 2013 | June 1, 2013 (The Record Company, The Peach Kings, YACHT, Robert DeLong, Youngblood Hawke, Haunted Summer and The Likes of Us)

A Night For Jolie; A Night To Remember | Henson Recording Studios | May 31, 2013

Hanni El Khatib and The Black Angels | Mayan Theater | 5/21/13

What Made Milwaukee Famous | Central SAPC | 5/19/13

Dead Sara | El Rey Theater | May 9, 2013

New Build and No Ceremony/// | First Unitarian Church | April 27, 2013

Coachella 2013 | April 12-14 | Friday (Of Monsters and Men, Passion Pit, Palma Violets, Modest Mouse, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Jurassic 5, Stone Roses and How To Destroy Angels)

Coachella 2013 | April 12-14 | Saturday (Ben Howard, Pucifer, Violent Femmes, Grizzly Bear, Postal Service, Franz Ferdinand and Phoenix)

Coachella 2013 | April 12-14 | Sunday (Alex Clare, Rodriguez, Vampire Weekend, Nick Cave, Wu-Tang Clan and Red Hot Chili Peppers)

Toddchella | Part I | Tijuana Tears

Toddchella | Part II | The Record Company

Toddchella | Part III | We Were Indians

The Weeks | Three Clubs | 3/29/13

Nik Kai | 12 Year Old Guitar Prodigy | The Future of Shredding

The Night Hiatus Kaiyote Blew My Mind At The Del Monte Speakeasy 3/23/13

Jose James | The Del Monte Speakeasy | 3/13/13

Morrissey | Staples Center | 3/1/13

Orange Tulip Conspiracy |El Cid | 2/22/13

Soundgarden | The Wiltern | 2/16/13

The Robert Glasper Experiment | The Roxy | 2/8/13

Social Distortion | The House of Blues (Sunset) | 01/26/13

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Laura Mvula | The Orpheum Theatre | 10/31/13

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Earlier this year, I hit a little bit of a rough patch. It was one of those times when life just didn’t seem to go my way. My loving dog of 13 years, Samson, passed away while I was out of state, I was having some personal issues I was dealing with, and the icing on the proverbial cake was that a show I had planned on attending months in advance was rescheduled such that I couldn’t attend.

The show that I missed was Laura Mvula at the Bootleg Theater in April. If you’ve been following my blog this year, you probably saw my first post about her music back in January. I followed that post up with additional posts in February and March because I was so excited by her sophisticated sound. As fate would have it, Laura Mvula ended up scheduling another show in Los Angeles, which was a breathtaking performance at the El Rey Theatre in September. It appeared as if the music gods were throwing me a bone.

I had purchased tickets for Iron & Wine back in June, and at that time there was no opening act listed. It was almost an afterthought, since I had been wanting to see Iron & Wine live for years. About a week or two before the Halloween Eve concert, Laura Mvula posted on Facebook that she would be opening for Iron & Wine on a series of west coast dates. Needless to say, I was enthralled. At this point, I thought the music gods were serving me a t-bone.

I barely got there in time for the first song of her set. Watching her perform in the beautiful and historic Orpheum Theatre was truly a musical blessing. The fashionably late arriving Los Angeles crowd steadily filed in to their seats during her set, and I could only think to myself that they were fools to miss out on her glorious music. Their loss.

She bantered with the crowd and mentioned that her favorite song was “Let Me Fall” (which, ironically, wasn’t on her debut album)  and her second favorite song was “Flying Without You”. She performed a subdued version of “She” which sent shivers down my spine. After she sang the title track off her debut album, “Sing To The Moon”, and having heard that she had just recently lost out on the prestigious Mercury Prize, I yelled out from my seat, “You deserved the Mercury!”  She giggled and said, “That’s funny.” Really though … she should have won that award.

Though her set was obviously shorter than her concert at the El Rey, it was still filled with the deep musicality and unabashed emotion that makes her music so appealing to me. I eagerly anticipate her sophomore album, and the next time she’s back in the United States to perform for her fans.

Setlist (written down by me during her performance):

  1. “Like the Morning Dew”
  2. “Let Me Fall”
  3. “Flying Without You”
  4. “She”
  5. “Sing to the Moon”
  6. “Father father”
  7. “Green Garden”
  8. “That’s Alright”

Unfortunately, the Flickr slideshow below is not currently available on mobile devices. If you are on a mobile device, please click THIS LINK to get redirected to the set of photos. To see the amazing pictures I took of her at the El Rey, please click here to see that blog entry (trust me, some of the pictures taken were amazing).

Laura Mvula | El Rey Theatre | 9/17/13

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I remember the day I first heard Laura Mvula sing (January 18th, 2013) because I was so amazed by what I heard that I immediately posted a blog entry about it. I kept an eye (and ear) on her music and would post additional blog entries about some of her other songs (“That’s Alright” and “Jump Right Out”) because I was enthralled with her sound and excited about her debut album “Sing To The Moon”.

Laura Mvula’s music cannot be easily classified, as it is a sound that frankly defies stylistic categorization. As allmusic.com proffers, Laura’s music is “rooted in decades-old forms of gospel, jazz, R&B, and, most deeply, orchestral pop . Almost all of the material is as serious and as refined as it is majestic, with vocal showcases and hushed-belted-hushed-belted dynamics galore.” I agree with the assessment, and would even boil it down simply as classy and sophisticated, orchestral neo-soul music. Some seriously good, grown folk sounds for those who appreciate musicality and message in their music.

I was ecstatic when I found out that Laura was scheduled to perform April 16, 2013 at the Bootleg Theater, and I immediately snapped up tickets. As fate would have it, however, I was asked to speak at my Alma Mater that same week, and to my dismay, I had to give my tickets up. As a small consolation, I received my copy of Laura’s debut on vinyl (a UK export that has an amazing recording of Stevie Wonder’s “Something Out of The Blue”) and for the next few months listened to it whenever I needed to set my mind and soul at ease.

I received a notice (thank you social media!) that Laura was to do another round of touring in the United States with a stop in Los Angeles September 17th, and I agains purchased tickets to her show. This time, though, I made sure I had no conflicting appointments.

Laura’s show was simply amazing. Me and my friends were able to get up to the very front of the venue for the performance, and as fate would have it, Laura’s keyboard was basically in front of us, and thus we were privileged to have Laura performing no more than 5 yards from us for a majority of the show. I could see her every breath and read the emotions on her face with every lyric. It was a beautiful experience. A moving experience. During the most tender part of the concert, when Laura sang “Diamonds” and “Father, Father” back to back, you could feel the audience release a collective sigh following the last note of “Father, Father”. I did not have to look around to know that there were some  in the audience tearing up because … truth be told … I was busy dabbing the corners of my eye as well.

My anticipation for new music from her is at an all time high. My commitment to see her perform live again has been verified. An amazing concert by an amazing artist. Her performance at the El Rey has a spot in my top 10 concert performances of the year. Nuff’ said.

Setlist:

  1. Like The Morning Dew
  2. Let Me Fall (not in the album)
  3. Flying Without You
  4. She
  5. Is There Anybody Out There?/ One Love (Bob Marley& The Wailers cover)
  6. Sing to the Moon
  7. Diamonds
  8. Father, Father
  9. Green Garden
  10. That’s Alright
  11. Make Me Lovely (Encore)
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13
Laura Mvula at the El Rey Theatre 9/17/13

Laura Mvula | “That’s Alright” (Video and Lyrics)

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2013 may very well be a GREAT year for new female vocalists.  I’ve already been smitten by Nai Palm, the lead singer of Hiatus Kaiyote … and now Laura Mvula is looking to squeeze her way into my heart as well.

My interest in Laura Mvula had already been stirring and I’ve posted short blog entries about her songs “Jump Right Out” and “She”, but she just release a new video for her latest single “That’s Alright” and it’s blowing me away. It heavy on rhythms and chants and really comes out punching.  Definitely contrasting to her more delicate fair that I’ve grown accustomed to.  With her rich alto tone, and jazz/soul/gospel sensibilities, she sings out rebelling against an unknown antagonist, proclaiming her autonomy and self worth and chastising him/her with a chorus of “Who made you the center of the universe”.

Her first major label album, “Sing to the Moon”, was released March 4, 2013 abroad, but the CD, LP and digital downloads don’t seem to be available yet in the U.S.  RCA needs to get on the stat. And if it’s never going to be released in the states, I may very well have to spend the extra cash to purchase imports…

For your listening pleasure, Laura Mvula’s “That’s Alright”:

(Verse)
I will never be what you want and that’s alright,
Cause my skin ain’t light and my body ain’t tight.
And that’s alright.
But if I might, I must stand and fight.

I will never be what you want and that’s alright,
I play my own damn tune, I shine like the moon.
And very soon, I’ll soon fly over you.
And what you gonna do when I fly over you?

(Chorus)
Tell me who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?

(Verse)
And every morning when I wake up I pray for you
And then I pray for me that soon you’ll see
How love can be, our love will set you free.
And what it’s gonna be, I see the beauty in your eyes.

(Chorus)
Tell me who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?

(Verse)
I will never be what you want and that’s alright,
Cause my skin ain’t light and my body ain’t tight.
I will never be what you want and that’s alright,
Cause my skin ain’t light and that’s alright.

(Chorus)
Tell me who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?
Who made you the center of the universe?

Laura Mvula’s “She” (Live)… Amazing

Wow. I was eating lunch and surfing the web when I stopped what I was doing to post this video. I don’t know much, if anything, about this singer-songwriting, but I was immediately floored by her sound.

Born in Birmingham, United Kingdom (why does it seem like all of the great soul singers these days are coming from England… lol), this 26 year old talent simply floors me. I’ll be sure to pick up her album (on CD and Vinyl, if available) when it comes out because I have a sneaky suspicion that it’s going to be a classic.

Thank you internet. You made my day with this find.