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Blues Country: A Walk Through Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival

Legend has it that over 75 years ago Robert Johnson met the devil one dark night at the intersection of Highways 61 and 49 in Mississippi. It was at this crossroad that Johnson sold his soul in exchange for the vast guitar-playing skills that solidified his place as one of the greatest blues guitarists in all of history.

Clapton opened up the two-night affair with an acoustic set featuring country music guitarist Vince Gill, who was actually celebrating his birthday that night. They played Clapton crowd-pleasers like “Tears in Heaven,” “Lay Down Sally,” and “Wonderful Tonight.” Next up was Booker T., who went in on his classic hit “Green Onions” with Blake Mills and Matt “Guitar” Murphy. Still the king, B.B. King showed that at 87 years old he still has “it” and demands the same energy from everyone else on his stage as well as his audience; he often held his hands up to his ears gesturing for more. King later did a notable acoustic set with Jimmie Vaughan, Robert Cray, and Eric Clapton.

Night one had many other impressive sets. Sonny Landreth had a powerful five minute solo that, if you weren’t paying attention, you might not have even realized was a solo. Doyle Bramhall II left it all on the stage with Citizen Cope and Gary Clark Jr., even playing a couple of Cope’s popular songs. Gary Clark Jr. came back to play his solo blues while singing, playing guitar, and rocking the drum cymbals with his foot. John Mayer and Keith Urban flaunted their bromance and shocked the audience with a performance of the Beatles’ classic “Don’t Let Me Down.” Later, Buddy Guy kept the blues alive, but marked his territory with lines like “I wanna play something so funky you can smell it!”

Dan Akroyd, who MC’ed the festival, pointed out that he was honored to be there with three of the original Blues Brothers- Steve Jordan, Steve Cropper, and Matt “Guitar Murphy”. In honor of Muddy Waters’ 100th birthday, Akroyd busted out his harmonica to share the stage with guitarist Keb Mo for a special rendition of Waters’ song “Get My Mojo Working.” The task of closing night one was completed by the Allman Brothers Band, who really played out the musical affair between rock and blues.

Where night one of Crossroads stood for a more mellow side of blues, night two spoke up with a little more grit. After a solid solo set, Doyle Bramhall II played “Change It” alongside John Mayer; a song written by Doyle’s famed father who passed away a year ago. One of the most memorable groupings of the festival started with Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks of the Allman Brothers Band playing the band’s hit “Old Friend.” They then added Greg Allman to the mix and treated the crowd to Neil Young’s “Needle and the Damage Done,” chosen befittingly considering the occasion’s fundraiser, and finished with the Allman classic “Midnight Rider.” (Fun fact- Trucks later revealed backstage that the gold Gibson he played during night one was actually the one that Duane Allman played on the “Layla” record and at Fillmore East.)

One surprise during night two came during Vince Gill’s set when Keith Urban led a rendition of the Rolling Stones classic “Tumbling Dice.” After, Taj Mahal and Keb Mo shared the stage in another one of the most memorable groupings of the festival. Not only did they have the coolest looking guitars of the whole weekend, they also created some of the grittiest blues heard during the festival. Taj Mahal tells a great story with his blues, whether it’s meant to make you laugh or make your heart ache. In his closing set, Clapton brought out surprise guest Keith Richards, and the two shared the stage with Richards on vocals for “Key to the Highway” and “Sweet Little Rock and Roller.” To everyone’s delight, Clapton later surprised the crowd with “Sunshine of Your Love,” a hit from his band Cream. The show ended with numerous acts from the festival joining on stage in a jam version of “High Time We Went,” where everyone got their time to shine.

Clapton’s last words on the stage were “Thank you! See you in three years!” We’ll be holding him to that.

- Josh Wexler

Images courtesy of Getty

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A Look Inside: Lily & The Parlour Tricks

On the dimly-lit floor at (le) Poisson Rouge in New York City’s Greenwich Village, show goers eagerly await the onstage presence of Manhattan-based band, Lily & The Parlour Tricks. Although the band is constantly playing in the city, they approach the stage with a new, infectious energy.  They are primarily considered an Americana band, but have clear jazz and rock undertones. They have mastered their 3-part harmonies and effortless dance moves, which are a blend of both classic and provocative. Underneath their upbeat sound and swinging dance steps brims something slightly darker, a slightly sinister influence.  After all, the band began in a cemetery. Well, sort of. 

Frontwoman Lily and bassist Brian first connected after they attended a Moby Dick reading at a chapel in Brooklyn’s famed Greenwood Park Cemetery.  The two bandmates, along with a couple other friends, ended up wandering the cemetery after the reading, and got locked inside (in the snow) for hours.  They were eventually let out by the police in the early hours of the morning.  It was after that night that Lily says she and Brian really hit it off, and shortly after, decided to form the band. Gradually, they added on their New School classmates Angelo (guitar), Terry (drums), Darah (vocals), and Morgane (vocals) to the group.

"Our sound evolved in a really awesome, natural way," says bassist Brian.  “Things evolved, they changed, but nothing was forced.  We used to be a little more restrained, a little bit cleaner,” adds Terry. But things took off in a new direction after Angelo showed up to a gig with various odd objects to play with his guitar. “Angelo showed up to a gig with a cake tester, a quarter for his guitar pick, a right angle protractor, a paint brush.  No one asked him, no one told him to do it,” says Brian. “But it was a very specific turning point,” Lily says. “And we’ve kind of gone in that direction.” Collectively, their music is inspired by a lot of literature, and Lily describes them all as “big readers.”  As the primary songstress, Lily says she is hugely inspired by Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood”, and loves American True Crime novels, and case studies, which helps to explain the band’s subtle darkness.

Outside of their music, the band is a sunny, very tight-knit group of musical friends, who all began playing instruments as children.  They gush over newer-aged indie bands like Everything Everything, Paper Bird, and Boy, and joke about future plans of becoming a team of “amateur” archeologists when their music careers end.  They even happily embrace what many musicians would view as an incredibly frustrating music industry. “I'm pretty happy with the music industry,” says Brian, and the rest of the band agrees.  “You kind of make your own story; you can do whatever you want.  There are more opportunities, there's less money than there was in a traditional sense, but the money is just in other places now.  We have a burgeoning middle-class!” And when asked what they would be doing if they couldn’t be doing this? Brian says they’d still be doing this, just somewhere else.  If not for the love of the music, then certainly for each other. As Lily put it best: “We really just like hanging out with each other.” - Emma Gaedeke

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What it is To Burn: An Interview with Finch's Randy Strohmeyer

MC scored tickets to Finch’s 10-year reunion tour of their first album What it is To Burn.  We had a couple moments backstage to ask guitarist Randy Strohmeyer some questions.  Check it out!

What's the biggest difference between touring for What it is To Burn in 2013 versus back when it came out? It’s a lot tighter. More rehearsed. We’re concentrating on the nitty-gritty stuff, trying to really tighten the songs up. Do you guys still go as hard? We go as hard, but I think to a fault, because we’re older now and our backs hurt much more. What is your essential tour item? Clean socks and boxers.  It’s good to keep them going, but if you have extra money just throw them away and get new ones. Weirdest or craziest thing that happened on tour with Finch? The whole Disturbed incident… Yeah? Let’s just not talk about it.  It’s like digging up old graves (laughs). What's your favorite song off of WIITB to play live? I think my favorite moments are towards the end of the set. We play “Ender” and then “What It Is to Burn” finally, and I feel like people really let go and say ‘This is it, I’m going to let go, and I’m going to let go now.’ Who is a newer band in the scene that you really respect? What scene? I guess I should say a band that you could potentially tour with, a band that you might see beside your name somewhere, something along those lines. Shit, I don’t know.  I’m pretty out of it as far as contemporary music in the scene goes.  I think the bands that are out with us right now (The Almost and The World is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die) are fine people, fine bands.  TWIABP is great, and I think they’re a little on the outside of it.  And we like that.  I think we’ve always sort of felt like outsiders anyway.  Whenever we used to go on tour with bands, we didn’t sound like anyone else at the time.  I really love Tera Melos, this band that I’m friends with. But we’ve always sort of toured with bands outside of what you’d think.

Any tattoos? I have a few. Any favorites? Oh, I don’t know.  I guess I don’t really care about any of them.  They don’t have any significance to me.  They’re fun, I just don’t care.  I’ll let anyone tattoo me.  As long it’s not something like a swastika. Nothing too crazy, right? I mean, it can be crazy. Just not anything racist, or sexist. I hear you've eaten some great food on this leg of the tour.  What's the best meal you've had thus far? Yes!  Definitely Avec in Chicago.  Best food I’ve ever had in my life.  I had these dates wrapped in Chorizo. It was so good.  And then we had pork shoulder that came out afterwards.  Everything was so delicious.  We’re not like crazy foodies but we turned into those guys that were suddenly like, ‘Ohhh fuck!’ Suddenly your food is on Instagram. Yeah, everyone was taking pictures with their phones. What's the worst gig Finch has ever played? Well obviously the Disturbed one was pretty bad.  There was this one show that was sort of like, both the best and the worst.  It was Grizzly’s [guitarist Alex Linares] birthday, and we were playing in a big room and there weren’t that many people at all, and we just kind of decided we were going to celebrate, and so we did. And it got out of control… like real quick. We ended up playing the whole show, but the stage people hated us.  They were like, ‘Enjoy it while it lasts!’  And we were just like, ‘Uh, we are! We clearly just did, dude!’ Craziest thing a fan has done? I think it’s pretty crazy when fans get Finch tattoos. I mean, it’s a big commitment. Yeah, but I have tattoos of bands.  Sigur Ros and Radiohead.  Radiohead is my favorite band. I got the tattoos when I was really young. I was just like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to like this band forever.’ I can imagine it's just weird seeing your own band logo or lyrics on someone else's body. It becomes a little bit more of what it is to you. It clearly means something else to them.  They get into it in a different way, and I think that’s great. I think it’s so sweet.  It’s very flattering.  Maybe we can reach some sort of level where we are on the same page, or maybe it means something totally different to you, and that’s okay too.  Because whatever it means to you, it means something, because you branded yourself with it. If a Finch song were to play at your funeral, which one would you pick? Maybe “Chinese Organ Thieves”. It’s the song that I worked the hardest on, it took forever, but we finally finished it.  Either that, or “Ender”. If you weren’t doing this right now, what would you be doing? Probably in my room crying. (Laughs) Well, I’m glad you’re here then! Me too!

- Emma Gaedeke

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Haven't you heard?

A huge benefit concert is in the works to help with the relief of Hurricane Sandy. On December 12, 1012, New York City's Madison Square Garden will be hosting an all-star lineup  including Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Kanye West, and Alicia Keys just to name a few.

In recent news, it has been reported that a couple rockers have been added to the mix! Pearl Jam's vocalist Eddie Vedder and Foo Fighters' frontman Dave Grohl will hit the stage for a great cause.

The 12/12/12 show is one-night-only and is looking very promising.

Photos courtesy of GETTY

-Jamal Bell

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The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame celebrates the lives and careers of musical artists that have made such an impact that they changed the shape and sound of American culture forever. Such an honor is called American Music Masters.

This year, for the organization's 17th annual ceremony, they chose to explore and honor the legacy and accomplishments of rock and roll pioneer Chuck Berry. Originally inducted into Rock Hall in 1986, Berry made a very special appearance this past weekend at State Theater in Cleveland, Ohio. 

His music has stood the test of time and he even claims to have more on the way!

Congratulations, Mr. Berry!

Photo courtesy of GETTY

-Jamal Bell

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Ben Gibbard goes solo with "Former Lives"

It finally happened, everybody!  Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service), has released his first solo album ever.  Be sure to check out Benjamin Gibbard’s Former Lives.

- Emma Gaedeke

Photo courtesy of GETTY

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Metallica to Headline 2012 Voodoo Fest

Metallica is set to headline this year's Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans, Louisiana later this month. This will mark the first time that Metallica has ever played Voodoo.

We all know that Metallica is a huge act, but they weren't originally chosen to headline this festival. Green Day occupied Voodoo's headlining spot but was forced to bow out of the festival for good reason. Green Day’s front man Billie Joe Armstrong checked into rehab last month following his public meltdown in Las Vegas,Nevada at the iHeart Radio Festival. Remember, health comes first!

While Green Day will be deeply missed, what better group is there other than fellow Bay Area group Metallica to do them a solid? Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich stated, “We’re hoping we can fill those very large shoes and do them proud.”

Don’t worry Lars; we’ve got faith that you guys will rock the house! 

Photo courtesy of GETTY

-Jamal Bell

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Lorraine Leckie & Anthony Haden-Guest's Rudely Interrupted

"On social media, I'll live forever."

You can picture Lorraine Leckie and Anthony Haden-Guest writing the songs from Rudely Interrupted on a piano in front of a yellowing wall with textured wallpaper fraying at the seams. There's grit to their music, a bit of dust and dirt and sand that swept west from the deserts and settled under nail beds and guitar frets.

Lorraine, a raven-haired LES artist, wrote the music for the album which revolves around the dark lyrics of bon vivant and poet Anthony Haden-Guest. Together, they offer listeners the cross-section of a universe filled with failures, floosies, and junkies. Lorraine's voice, natural and unafraid of being un-beautiful, weaves the wisdom of Anthony's words through the too-short album. The symphony of tinkling piano keys, jubilant horns, and mellow strings prove the perfect counter to the album's dark lyrics.

Their songs envelope stories with a balance of harmony and spoken word, lyrics echoing in the spaces between word and music. "When my needle kisses the spoon, I think of you," Lorraine sings in track four, "Happy City." Her voice leads us from passion to ashes with "Bliss," a song injected with the type of sadness Cat Power made a career of.

Though the music is refined, Lorraine's voice plays with dissonance. At unexpected moments, the two meet in stretches of synchronization like the fold of a complicated garment that fills, at first glance, a simple silhouette. (A reference to the late Alexander McQueen makes an appearance in "Little Miss X," track three.)

Rudely Interrupted is an album that will disrupt your day, in that its lyrics will creep under your skin, the melodies enrapture. It will be released November 12th with a show at the Mercury Lounge in New York City.

http://lorraineleckie.com/

http://www.anthonyhadenguest.com/

- Francesca Soroka

All images courtesy of http://lorraineleckie.com

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Interview With Mariko

Sometimes, being in the right place at the right time is all it takes.  And If you’re New York City-based singer/songwriter Mariko, you also learned that persistence (and quite a bit of it), is a good way to turn heads when it comes to making moves in the music industry.  We sat down with Mariko to discuss her experience playing on one of the hottest rock tours in the country, and why, despite the odds, she still plans to bust into one of the most unforgiving careers around.

So we sat down in the theater and I played him my music and most people in the music industry that I show my music to only listen for 30-60 seconds. But he listed to my entire song, “On With the Show.” I didn’t know if this was a good thing or a bad thing, and I was nervous for his response. And then he was like, “Yeah, I’d love to have you play Warped Tour, I’ll make sure you can play at least one or two different places on the tour, just let me know where you want to play.” He could have just said that to get rid of me, but he stuck to his word. I sent him an email and he confirmed everything, and told me he would have me play on the Acoustic Basement Series portion of Warped Tour. It was so sweet of him, I have nothing but nice words to say about him. How did you know you wanted to play Vans Warped Tour?  Have you attended the tour in the past, or did you just know that this was a major festival that you wanted to be a part of it in some way? I think everyone who plays in my genre of music knows about it, and I’m in a really rare position [in] that I’ve barely been to any concerts in my whole life, so I knew it would be so cool if I could play on Warped Tour.  Now at this stage in my career, I just saw this as a great networking opportunity, and a way to meet other bands that I wouldn’t be able to meet because some of these bands are located in California or Ohio, and so the festival allows you to meet these bands because you’re all playing at the same place and location. I thought of it as a great networking opportunity and a great chance to be exposed to other musicians and other sources of media. When I played at the Darien Center, a photographer from a local paper in Buffalo was taking pictures of me. And I also knew that playing Warped Tour would get my music out to a broader population as a way to grow fans and gain exposure. What was the coolest part about this experience for you? I have to say, the coolest part was meeting the bands and seeing how humble and low-key everyone is.  There were really no egos.  Emily Armstrong from Dead Sara was really, really awesome.  I talked to her for a decent amount of time, and she’s relatively popular, so the fact that she gave me her time was so great. Even the way I saw her interacting with fans, she was just so attentive to everyone talking to her.  And I also have to say that the band Sick of Sarah was really great. I was joking around with them and they were so much fun to talk to, and also just as attentive. They were all just so humble. Were you nervous playing?  Do you ever get stage fright? The only time I’m ever nervous is when I’m playing in front of people that I’m close to. I’m so used to playing in front of people that I don’t know – for some reason my mentality is that they’re either going to like it or they’re not. I have no control over someone’s taste, and I can only do so much to show them who I am and what I play and so whether they like it or not is out of my control. But when it comes to family or close friends, I get the most nervous because I’m really hoping and wanting them to like what I do and what I’m creating.  And that’s still out of my control, but they’d probably lie to me anyway, because they love me. But that is when I am absolutely the most nervous. I’d be more nervous in front of ten close friends than I would 20,000 strangers.  So I was not all nervous, just so excited. I knew it was such a great opportunity to convince people to be apart of the I Love Mariko band wagon, and I got some really great responses. Tell me about your new EP. How were you able to produce it? My EP is entitled On With the Show, and my single is off of it is also called “On With the Show.” The EP is on iTunes. Before it was produced two years ago, I was living in Queens, and it was the first time I had ever lived in NYC. So one day I was like, “You know what, I’ve always wanted to play in Central Park and street-perform.” So the first day that I ever played in Central Park, Alex Sterling, who co-produced this EP and audio engineered this EP, walked by, dropped his business card, told me he really liked everything I was performing and then contacted me. I always get a lot of business cards, so the fact that he went out of his way to email me showed that he was very interested.  We ended up exchanging emails for a while, and then we decided to meet up. He told me that he would record my EP for free, and that he truly believed in my music and felt that doing so would be a great opportunity for him to get producing credits. He’s worked with Grammy artists before, but he had never gotten producing credits, just audio engineering credits, and so he wanted to have more experience under his belt. We recorded the EP together and he introduced me to Armand Hirsch who has worked with John Mayer, and he ended up being the creative director and played guitar and drums on the EP.  I would have easily paid $20-30,000 to have it produced otherwise. How would you define your sound?  What has inspired you musically? How have you crafted your sound? If I were to really narrow it down, I’d say my music is pop/rock alternative.  If Paramore, Company of Thieves, and Tegan and Sara had really crazy sex, I would be their baby.  A lot of people say I sound like Gwen Stefani and it’s totally because I grew up on No Doubt.  That was my shit.  I loved No Doubt when I was growing up. Someone at Warped Tour told me that I sounded like Meg & Dia, and I can see that, but I think I’m more alternative than they are.  I think it was just because I look a lot like Dia! What are you listening to on you iPod right now? To be honest, when I’m at the gym I listen to a lot of dance music, like remixes of pop songs or electronic dance music.  And being on Warped Tour exposed me to different acts, so I’ve been listening to Dead Sara a lot lately.  Every time I listen to them I think about my memory of meeting them. What motivates you to keep pursing music in such a competitive field where the odds are so often against you? That’s a great question. I think the one thing you need to have is passion. If you don’t have passion for this, you’re going to quit so fast. I definitely have those days where I’m so fed up and frustrated that things aren’t happening the way I want or as fast as I want them to, and ironically, it’s when I’m having those days that I also happen to be performing outside or playing a gig, and afterwards people come up to me and say, “You’re so good, you’re so talented, I love your music.” Honestly, those random people who give me those compliments refuel me. If I didn’t receive positive feedback, I think I would have quit a long time ago.  It’s so funny that the days where I’m so down about pursuing this crazy, stupid dream, I meet those very sweet positive people who tell me to keep going with it.  I think most people have a calling to do something, and I think that deep down inside, this is my calling and this is what I’m supposed to do.  Everyone wants to feel like there’s a reason they’re on earth and I feel like this is one of the reasons I’m here.  It’s not something I can help.  Honestly, I wish I didn’t feel this way, and that I was pursuing something that wasn’t so competitive, but I’m not going to be happy unless I put my 100% into this. If it doesn’t work out, I can always do something else. But I don’t want to regret not trying.

Check out more of Mariko at www.marikosmusic.com

- Emma Gaedeke

Photo courtesy of Lauren Callahan

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An Interview With Black Stone Cherry

We sat down with Kentucky rockers Black Stone Cherry before they took the stage at New York City’s Beacon Theater with Chickenfoot last week. Drummer John Fred Young, lead singer and guitarist Chris Robertson, guitarist Ben Wells, and bassist Jon Lawhon discussed everything from where they got their name to John Fred’s dad's influence (Richard Young of The Kentucky HeadHunters). The band even admitted to a not-so-secret infatuation with Chickenfoot lead singer Sammy Hagar.

MC: How did the band first get together?

John Fred Young: We formed in 2001…We normally tell people we were in the circus, but no. [laughs] Chris and I went to kindergarten with each other and Jon actually moved up from West Palm Beach, Florida.

Jon: Jacksonville.

John Fred: Yeah, but you were born there.

Jon: I was born in West Palm, but I grew up in Jacksonville.

John Fred: We have to get Jon’s whole Behind the Music story.

John Fred: [laughs] Jon moved up and we started playing together. Ben we met through a good friend of ours and we put the band together, actually, on Chris’ 16th birthday; June 4th, 2001.

MC: Sweet Sixteen.

John Fred: Still here. All four original members. [We’re] still making good ole’ Southern rock 'n roll.

MC: What was the first instrument you picked up?

John Fred: Mine was a guitar, but that didn't last long ‘cause I couldn't make a bar chord.

Jon: Piano. Same thing. I couldn't make a bar chord, but it doesn't require one.

Chris: Trumpet for a week and I gave that up ‘cause I didn't like it.

Ben: Mine was a guitar.

MC: Was Black Stone Cherry the first name you guys picked out for the band?

John Fred: No, we had an epic list of failure names that were not good band names.

Jon: The good thing was that it only lasted for two weeks. You know, most bands go through a six-month or a whole-year spiral of horrible names before they finally settle on one. Ours was like a couple of weeks and then we settled on stealing a name from Blackstone Cigars, cherry-flavored.

MC: John Fred, your father, Richard Young, is a part of The Kentucky HeadHunters. How much did that influence you to become a musician?

John Fred: Actually, it did a lot when I was little. I used to go on the road with him and I didn't really think I would be a musician when I got older. I knew it was cool and I loved it. I loved watching my uncle and my dad playing music together. Like I said, I started out playing guitar and I became so frustrated because the guitar necks are so big and I was a small kid; I had little hands so I started playing the drums. My uncle’s a drummer in The Kentucky HeadHunters so I took after him. They’re a huge influence on us. My dad is actually here in New York with us today.

MC: He worked on your debut album, right?

John Fred: Yes, he did. Actually my dad and David Barrick helped us produce our first album.

MC: So does he still help you guys produce music or is it just moral support?

John Fred: He helps us write sometimes and then just helps us with the touring and a little bit of the financial side.

MC: Do you all write the music together or is it…

John Fred: We order it offline.

Chris: We pay high profile writers to write our songs. [laughs]

MC: Is it a collective effort?

Chris: Yeah, we all four pitch in the money. [laughs] Yeah all four of us write together. Sometimes we write with outside writers, but it’s always the four of us writing with someone else or by ourselves.

MC: How would you say your music has evolved from your debut to the last album?

Jon: I think ultimately we've learned how to become songwriters and not just kids that bash on instruments. We've become better players and we’re starting to try to understand the animal that radio is in America. So it’s hard to maintain the identity of who we are as a band, but manipulate it enough where it’s going to work for radio, but never sell our soul in the meantime. It’s kind of difficult to do that, but it’s what you have to do.

MC: I read in an interview that you’re a huge Sammy Hagar fan…

John Fred: Who me?

MC: Yeah.

Ben: We’re all big Sammy Hagar fans.

John Fred: Yeah, I don’t have his named tattooed on me. I’m an undercover Sammy fanatic.

MC: Well I heard he was your favorite Van Halen singer.

John Fred: He is my favorite.

Chris: He’s a 140 years old and still sings like he’s 25.

John Fred: Do you realize he’s probably, what, 65? Jon: 65, 66 something like that.

John Fred: I can’t believe that. I can’t fathom… he looks like he’s 44, you know? They [Chickenfoot] rock every night. They get out there and destroy. It’s awesome being out with these guys. They’re really nice guys and great players too.

MC: Any crazy tour experiences with them so far?

Ben: It’s crazy to us to have them sit on the side of the stage and watch us play. That alone is pretty awesome. I think they've been through their days of trashing dressing rooms and craziness.

Chris: We’re just getting started. [laughs]

John Fred: We’re pretty lame too. We like Xbox and pretty much going to antique shops. That’s our excitement level.

Chris: We’re going to a driving range tomorrow.

John Fred: Chris loves to hit balls. Just kidding. It relaxes him. It helps him get his chi flowing right.

MC: For anyone who is looking to get into Black Stone Cherry, how would you guys describe your sound in one sentence?

Chris: You know, you look at all three albums, they’re all similar, but they’re all different. I don’t know it’s just Black Stone Cherry.

Ben: We want people to just feel good.

John Fred: The best thing to do is go to iTunes download our album and if you love it, thank you very much. If you don’t, just invoice our record label and they’ll work that out with you.

MC: Ok, now just some fun grab bag questions: What’s your favorite part of touring?

John Fred: Catering.

Jon: Playing the shows, honestly ‘cause if you’re at home, you have family and so much to do at home that we don’t get to do while we’re on the road. So when we’re on the road what I look forward to the most is getting on stage and playing music.

Ben: That’s what we’re out here to do—play live. That and the many shopping malls that we've seen in America.

Chris: God, we've seen them all!

Jon: We haven’t seen that many on this tour.

Chris: No, ‘cause we've seen them all in the last ten years! I can tell you where every FYE is in every mall in America.

MC: Who’s the messiest?

Chris: [raises his hand] I’m not even going to try to deny that shit, it’s me.

MC: What’s one song or one artist that people wouldn't expect you guys to like?

John Fred: Girl rock. Nah, I like electronica, house music/girl rock. I’m not even joking about it either.

Chris: He’s thinking of Skrillex.

MC: Yeah, are you big Skirllex fan?

Chris: No. Not that I don’t like [him]. I just haven’t gotten into it yet. I don’t know… you know that Gotye song?

MC: “Somebody That I Used to Know”?

Chris: Yeah. I just like pop music like the girl who was singing— Kimbra. Yeah she’s kind of like my new “wow she’s awesome”. She’s really super talented. I don’t know. We all like everything: hard rock, country, blues, R&B, anything.

Chris: Our iPods go from Kelly Clarkson to Eric Church to…

Ben: Gospel, bluegrass, but we've always been open about it. So I don’t think we have any guilty pleasures ‘cause we've always talked about ‘em.

Chris: [pulls out his iPod] Ok, so we got Flo Rida, Eagles, Dwight Yoakam, Creed, Chickenfoot. I’m big into old school rap. Adele…

John Fred: Chris is in love with Adele.

Chris: Gotye’s whole album—literally it just goes on and on and on of just different stuff.

John Fred: You become a better musician when you don’t limit yourself to different types of music because if you miss out on a genre then you miss out on a playing style that could or could not better your musical ability. That was deep. You might want to write that down. That could be a quote.

-Elizabeth Santana

[musicchoicerock]

We scored a ticket to 10th Anniversary of The Bamboozle Festival from May 18th - 20th at North Beach Asbury Park, New Jersey. Check out our Facebook page for even more exclusive shots.

  Let's just say... it was awesome.

[musicchoicerock]

British Singer David Ford Wows NYC's Rockwood Music Hall

Opening up the show with his harmonica-guitar driven "Pour a Little Poison", David captivated the crowd with powerful vocals and the cool, sensuous tune of "The Ballad of Miss Lily". He followed it with the somber, economy-bashing song "Requiem". Though he was mostly a one-man band for the night, it all changed when he playfully pulled a pair of overzealous fans on stage to harmonize with him on his piano version of AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long".

As the master of ceremonies, he led the audience along emotional peaks and valleys with his personal ode to Philadelphia, "Philadelphia Boy"--apparently his favorite US city to perform in. (Sorry, New York.) Later on, the singer did his best Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde impersonation and transformed himself into a mad scientist as he looped from stage to play the crowd favorite, and some would say his magnum opus, "State of the Union".

After an hour-and-a-half of harmonizing, David closed the show with the honest and self-reflecting "Every Time", a song about Ford's own shortcomings in the music industry and how he's "never made it." Looking around the crowd enchanted with all things David Ford, I'd like to say, you've made it, David. You've clearly made it.

[musicchoicerock]

New Green Day on the Way

Green Day just announced that they will release not one...not two... but THREE albums between September and January, as a trilogy aptly titled ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, and ¡Tré!.

The band hasn't released an album since 2009's 21st Century Breakdown, though they now claim to be at "the most prolific and creative time" in their lives. Let's see how things unfold come September!

-Jamal Bell

Photo courtesy of GETTY

[musicchoicerock]

Dead Sara Releases Debut Album Today

Los Angeles-based rock band Dead Sara dropped their self-titled debut album today! They'll be on touring with The Used beginning May 12th, and then in support of The Vans Warped Tour, which kicks of June 16th.

Check out the video for their hit single, "Weatherman."

Photo courtesy of GETTY

- Emma Gaedeke

[musicchoicerock]

Soundgarden... Still Alive

A decade and a half has passed since we've heard from Soundgarden... but they are back (!) with a new song, like musical superheroes risen from the radioactive muck of time. Their new track, "Live to Rise," will be featured on the upcoming soundtrack for The Avengers. Fittingly, the movie's about superheroes.

Image courtesy of GETTY

[musicchoicerock]

The Fray Takes on the National Anthem

How do you feel about The Fray's rendition of "The National Anthem"? Not everyone is too pleased with their improvisation of such a classic at the NCAA Championship...

Photo courtesy of GETTY

[musicchoicerock]

Taking Back Sunday... A Decade Later

 Taking Back Sunday’s Tell All Your Friends was released ten years ago today. Do you remember where you were when you first heard it?

-Emma Gaedeke