Following the band’s 2012 tour DeVotchKa frontman Nick Urata was left feeling conflicted. On one hand, his band was as popular as ever, playing their critically-acclaimed songs from over seven albums to fans at sold- out shows around the globe, and Urata was enjoying a burgeoning career as a film score composer, with a GRAMMY nomination already under his belt. But on the night of DeVotchKa’s final show of the tour, onstage in an enormous arena in Mexico, Urata belted out the first few lines only to discover his microphone powered off—a simple mistake, but one that would later cause him to reflect deeply on his stake in life.
“You try not to make a big deal out of it, but you don’t recover from that for the rest of the show,” Urata says, now smiling at the memory. “It happened more than once on that tour, I went into a bit of a tailspin after that. I wondered if the universe was trying to tell me something I didn’t want to hear. I was realizing how nearly anyone can sing, almost everybody has the ability, but if you want to perform for people, then you have to fight for it.”
Following the tour, the band—Urata (vocals, guitars, Theremin, trumpet, piano), Jeanie Schroder (acoustic bass, sousaphone), Shawn King (drums, percussion, trumpet), and Tom Hagerman (violin, viola, accordion, piano)—enjoyed a series of gigs at smaller venues. Urata spent those shows both reconnecting with his audience on a more intimate level and rediscovering his love for his craft. It was a necessary moment that inspired him to begin work on a new DeVotchKa album—a process that would take a lot longer than anyone anticipated, but that would prove essential.
NIGHT OF 1000 STEVIES - the largest and most beloved STEVIE
NICKS fan event in the world - is coming to New Orleans on 2/8/19.
Like the NYC marathon NOTS editions that turn 29 in May, this
Enchanted evening will be produced by show founders CHI CHI
VALENTI and JOHNNY DYNELL and their creative krewe at THE JACKIE
FACTORY. Neither a contest nor a karaoke show, NOTS is the Stevie
Nicks celebration ne plus ultra - a riot of shawls, lace, baby's breath,
twirling, tambourines and great performance.
The show will feature Legends of Stevie Realness (NOTS NYC stars)
including Southern Belladonnas JAZMEN FLOWERS (Jackson, Miss),
DIVINE GRACE (Orlando), KIMBERLY CLARK, cover Stevie BROOKE
ALYSON (Houston) and RYAN LANDRY. NOTS debut performers will
include local and regional interpretations from DEDE ONASSIS,
CHERRY BROWN, RISE DUPREE (Houston) and the great JAKE
SHEARS. Longtime NOTS DJ SAMMY JO (Club Cumming) will spin the
all-Stevie/Fleetwood dancefloor and "Enchantress of Ceremony"
EMPRESS CHI CHI VALENTI will keep the white winged talent flowing.
The show will climax with the iconic "Battle of A Thousand Stevies"
finale and tambourines will be tossed to the Enchanted audience
through the night.
SUGGESTED DRESS
Southern Gothic a la Stevie Nicks, Beribboned and Bedecked
Tambourines, Enchanted Eveningwear, ruched boot covers, Welsh
Witch (Dark Ages to Darkwave), Decatur Street Chiffonhead, Vampire
Velvets, Fringed Shawls, Like A White Winged Dove, Stevie-adorned
Top hats, Fleetwood "The Dance" classic menswear, Victorian
Cokespoons, Nightbird capes or Total Stevie Realness (All Eras)
On the surface, Murder By Death is a Bloomington, IN quintet with a wry, ominous name. But behind the geography and moniker is a band of meticulous and literary songwriters matched by a specific brand of brooding, anthem-riding balladry and orchestral indie rock.
Murder By Death’s path began in the early 2000s as most Midwestern college-town groups do, by playing to small crowds at ratty venues and frenzied house parties. While many of their formative-year scene-mates failed to make it much further than campustown’s borders, Murder By Death translated their anonymous beginnings into a 10+ year career founded on a bedrock of five full-length albums, tireless D.I.Y. touring and performing ethics, and, most importantly, a dedicated, cult-like fanbase.
J Roddy Walston and The Business refuse to play it safe. In this age when mobile phone apps have replaced recording studios and the term “badass” rarely describes modern music, J Roddy furthers the proud legacy of unrelenting rockers from Little Richard to Janis Joplin to KISS, shredding eardrums and stirring souls with scrappy, All-American anthems.
Naughty Professor is an iconoclastic New Orleans-based jazz-funk sextet whose adventurous recordings and horn-charged, high-energy live performances have earned them an enthusiastic fan base, critical acclaim, and widespread attention from their musical peers.
Their diligent roadwork has established Naughty Professor as a beloved live act. Weaving together complex, inventive compositions and loose, organic improvisation, the band honors their hometown's jazz, R&B and brass-band traditions while looking to the future.
Naughty Professor raises the stakes on its new album Identity (Release date June 23rd, 2017). Where their prior four releases showcased the group's knack for self-contained instrumental experimentation, Identity finds the band teaming with a stellar assortment of more than a dozen cutting-edge collaborators, whose vocal, instrumental and compositional contributions expand the music into new musical territory.
Identity's prestigious gallery of guests includes Jurassic 5's Chali 2na, who's featured on a pair of tracks, "Darker Daze" and "Sugar Coat," which also features contributions from New Orleans legend Ivan Neville. David Shaw of the Revivalists lends his vocals on "Stray" and singer/guitarist Dexter Gilmore contributes on "I Can't Sleep At Night." Additional special collaborators include trumpet player Eric “Benny” Bloom of Lettuce, percussionist Mike Dillon, much-lauded jazz vocalist Sasha Masakowski and members of the renowned New Orleans horn outfit Soul Rebels, who turn up the brass on the album-closer "Funk 4 Lunch."
"They're not just guests," explains Naughty Professor drummer Sam Shahin. "The collaborators on this album were chosen because we respected what they do and felt that they could be a complement to our ensemble.”
"When these kids first started coming up on the scene, I could tell right away that there was something very special about their energy and music," David Shaw comments on his excitement to collaborate with Naughty Professor. "I believe that the sky has no limit for these boys."
Jonathan Richman has been playing music, recording and touring for most of his life. Jonathan and his drummer Tommy Larkins win fans wherever they play. In the early 1970s, Jonathan formed the noted band The Modern Lovers. Tommy Larkins was in the groups Naked Prey, Giant Sand and other popular bands in Tucson, Arizona.
John Maus is a truly enigmatic musician. Broadly cut from the synth pop cloth, he’s fashioned the frosty minimalism of its fabric into a cloak of infinite meaning, genuine grace and absurdist humor over the course of three defining albums since 2006. His music is a highly mutable affair, whilst often described as retro-futurist on behalf of the 80’s drum machines and synth sounds employed, John’s music is more personal than the nostalgic re-tread implied. There’s a cinematic quality to his songs, with pathos conjured through propelling bass-lines, trailing arpeggios and of course his deeply resonant vocal. Moroder helped map out the territory but Maus is more interested in seeking cadence through his love of Renaissance polyphony and the experimentation behind post punk. It’s an amalgamation of musical ideas as radical as its intent.
They were started in the fall of 1977 by punk poet Chris Desjardins, a singer known for morbid lyrical themes. Their first gig was December 21, 1977 at The Masque in Los Angeles. Musicians in various Flesh Eaters line-ups included Stan Ridgway (Wall of Voodoo), John Doe (X), DJ Bonebrake (X), Dave Alvin (The Blasters), Bill Bateman (The Blasters) and Steve Berlin (The Blasters, Los Lobos). Considered by many to be a precursur of Death Rock, their music was a pastiche of rockabilly, road-house blues, punk rock and jazz.
The Flesh Eaters initially broke up in 1983. Desjardins performed with his new band, The Divine Horsemen until 1988. In 1989 Desjardins recorded an LP with the one-time group Stone-By-Stone. Shortly after this they changed their name back to The Flesh Eaters. They continued to perform on the west coast, ultimately recording two albums. They discontinued performances in the Spring of 1993. Since then, Desjardins has performed intermittently with a variety of musicians under this name. The most recent Flesh Eaters album Miss Muerte was released in 2004 on Atavistic Records. This label has also reissued "No Questions Asked" & "Hard Road To Follow". In February 2006 it was announced that the original Flesh Eaters would perform several live shows. This particular line-up of The Flesh Eaters had not played together since the Spring of 1981. John Doe and DJ Bonebrake from X, Dave Alvin and Bill Bateman from The Blasters and Steve Berlin from Los Lobos were scheduled to appear for these shows. The tour included three dates in California and one date in England at the All Tomorrows Party Festival.
