The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra keeps an essential American sound alive Big band, big dreams Stuart Levitan on Thursday 02/02/2012 The most influential big band in contemporary jazz is bringing a bit of Greenwich Village to Madison, just days before it celebrates an anniversary. As great art often does, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra began in disappointment, when jazz giant Count Basie commissioned Thad Jones, his band's cornetist, to write a full album's worth of material in 1965. Basie rejected the seven compositions Jones presented, saying they didn't sound like his band and might be too hard for his musicians to play. >MoreMadison musicians collaborate with artists overseas Lost in translation Scott Gordon on Thursday 02/02/2012 Sometimes music-making thrives on isolation, but a handful of abrasive, experimental Madison artists have found collaborators -- abroad. The Internet makes that easy, but it's still an improbable feat when a musician in Madison and one overseas learn they share the same twisted muse, then develop the discipline and chemistry to make compelling recordings together. Three recent releases capture just that dynamic. >More
Deleted Scenes craft poppy art rock from stark themes Love, death and amphetamines Jessica Steinhoff on Thursday 02/02/2012 Washington, D.C.'s Deleted Scenes make art rock from a broad palette of sonic colors, painting their soundscapes with sunny shades of surf rock and smudges of dark, alluring funk. >MoreCass McCombs' personal, eccentric folk keeps you guessing Mystery man Scott Gordon on Thursday 01/26/2012 California singer-songwriter Cass McCombs has built up a weird body of online apocrypha, which hobbles that whole process of consulting the Internet to figure out how to appreciate music. Go ahead and dig for context, but you may find yourself grumbling over his slippery answers to interview questions as you stare at a photo of him looking glum in suspenders. He's screwing with people's heads, intentionally or not. >More
Madison author rediscovers folk hero Mike Seeger A magical artistic moment Andy Moore on Thursday 01/26/2012 Consider the parallel course American music has run next to American politics. The handiest example is the 1960s, when music and politics raged, clashed and crashed, creating sparks that both united and divided us. Music and politics also met up in the 1930s, and that coalescing did nothing less than identify what being an American meant. >MoreScientists study music's effects on our brains and bodies Measuring the chills Sandy Tabachnick on Thursday 01/12/2012 As we lie under the stars and listen to a Puccini aria or tap our toes in a nightclub to some earthy jazz, we're probably not thinking about how the music affects our brains. We're just feeling good and enjoying the moment. But it turns out that music is a good subject for brain research because it affects so many neurological pathways. >More
With Madison Symphony Orchestra, Hadelich plays Prokofiev with deeply moving beauty John W. Barker on Saturday 01/21/2012 8:01 am The first program of the new year offered by the Madison Symphony Orchestra is simply fabulous! It debuted Friday night in Overture Hall. >MoreBoccherini pastiche mars Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra concert John W. Barker on Saturday 01/14/2012 10:40 am, (1) Comment As so often happens, a wonderful concert by the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra has been blighted by the contribution of a guest soloist. Amit Peled is a gifted musician and outstanding cellist. But Friday night in Overture Center's Capitol Theater, he displayed total irresponsibility in devoting his major appearance to a completely fake and utterly discredited work. >More
John K. Samson: Provincial (Anti- Records) Scott Gordon on Thursday 02/02/2012 Weakerthans front man John K. Samson hasn't stagnated since the Winnipeg band's most recent album, 2007's Reunion Tour. But the characters on his first solo LP, Provincial, seem stuck — or at least, Samson's lyrics vividly freeze their moments of anticipation, longing and rejection. >MoreThe Antiprism: Age of Wonders Scott Gordon on Thursday 01/19/2012 Madison has lost some fine metal bands in recent years, including Dissent and Revolt, Buried Future and Luna Mortis. But we have hung on to the Antiprism, which melds Black Sabbath austerity, Iron Maiden guitar harmonies and early-black-metal creepiness. >More
Mostly flamboyant, sometimes subdued, Patti Lupone delights in Overture Hall Kenneth Burns on Thursday 02/02/2012 12:02 pm Patti LuPone is a Broadway baby, and Broadway isn't famous for subtlety. Wednesday night in Overture Hall, LuPone presented a few gentle interludes, but mainly the performance was one gigantic climax after another. That could have been exhausting to watch, but she threw in a lot of self-deprecating shtick, which helped make the show just the right size. It was a delight. >MoreMadTracks: 'Fantástico' by Defcee Scott Gordon on Tuesday 01/31/2012 3:31 pm Madison rapper Defcee gives himself plenty room to explore on December's free mixtape Out From Under. He incorporates spoken-word collaborators on "(Advice to a Younger Adam) On Handling Heartbreak," recounts a trip to London on "Postcard," spins a tale of the suburban drug trade on "The Herb in Suburban." As a member of UW-Madison's First Wave Spoken Word and Hip Hop Learning Community, he's got the mandate and the means to stretch the form a little. >MoreVinyl Cave: Catch and release with The Poor Boys, Libby Titus, Earth Quake, Magic, Hope, and Cashman, Pistilli & West Bob Koch on Sunday 01/29/2012 6:00 am Here's another batch of quick takes on some vintage obscurities, plucked from local bargain bins and lent by friends. >MoreGalileo Galilei is Madison Opera's second triumph of the season John W. Barker on Friday 01/27/2012 9:38 am Philip Glass's Galileo Galilei has had rather limited circulation around the operatic world, so it was a brave step for Madison Opera to take it up. But the step has paid off, with perhaps the best yet of the company's small, midseason productions in the Overture Center's intimate Playhouse. >MoreAfter more club violence, disappointment, tightened security Scott Gordon on Thursday 01/26/2012 2:43 pm Just bringing up the subject of violence at hip-hop shows immediately gets you into a mess of generalizations, doesn't it? After all, for every incident like the fight last Tuesday at the High Noon Saloon, during which a gun reportedly went off, there are plenty of positive examples to choose from. >MoreVinyl Cave: Free Again: The '1970' Sessions by Alex Chilton Bob Koch on Sunday 01/22/2012 8:00 am The past few years have been good to fans of the Big Star orbit who collect vinyl, thanks to well-done LP reissues of all three of the band's albums and the posthumous, previously CD-only Chris Bell collection I Am the Cosmos. The trend continues in 2012 with the first vinyl issue of Alex Chilton's initial solo flight, previously issued in 1996 on an Ardent CD as 1970 but out of print for years. >More
Madison landmarks co-star in F. Stokes' video for 'My Simple' Andy Moore on Tuesday 01/10/2012 The relentlessly positive, Brooklyn-based hip-hop artist F. Stokes has dropped a nuclear bomb of goodness onto his adopted hometown of Madison. Shot here over 12 hours between two live shows last October, "My Simple" is a video valentine featuring Madison people and Madison locations, like the Crystal Corner Bar. This is the second "My Simple" video, the only public version. >MoreMusic Tuesdays get eclectic at Mickey's Tavern Scott Gordon on Monday 01/09/2012 2:18 pm Not long ago, Tuesday nights at Mickey's Tavern featured a rotation of local singer-songwriters, including Josh Harty, Blake Thomas, Robby Schiller and Jeremiah Nelson. It was enjoyable but never jarring, except perhaps the time Schiller roused the crowd into a National Anthem sing-along. >More
The Big Payback's funk/soul claims the Isthmus 2011 Band to Band Combat title Austin Duerst on Friday 12/16/2011 12:41 pm The Frequency was packed with music fans and a wide variety of sounds Thursday night as The Big Playback was selected by the audience to receive 20 hours of recording time at Madison's Blast House Studios. >MoreTeam Bon Iver: Wisconsin's iconic indie act is a band, not a dude Andy Moore on Thursday 12/08/2011, (1) Comment Appreciating Bon Iver is an exercise in imagination. Their fabled trajectory has taken less than three years: from a rural Eau Claire hunting shack, where Vernon emerged from solitude, clutching the songs for the freshman record For Emma, Forever Ago, to appearances on Letterman and sold-out headlining sets at festivals from Perth to Paris. >More
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