Twilight Singers Extended Family

Lanegan/Campbell U.S. dates starting to pop up

2010-07-28T18:32:47Z

And the Midwest is getting some love with a Minneapolis stop on October 23rd. :)

My Jerusalem

2010-07-22T00:09:06Z

What does everyone think of the Without Feathers EP. Anyone notice the band is not mentioned on the Summers Kiss site anymore? Sweet Chariot is worth the price alone, if you are not aware this is Jeff Kleins band with some of the Twilight Singers. Jeff's album The Hustler is also worth finding, produced by the man himself.

Rykarda Parasol on The Afghan Whigs' Black Love

2010-07-17T23:28:58Z

http://www.adequacy.net/2010/07/artists-on-albums-aoa15-rykarda-parasol-on-the-afghan-whigs-black-love/

It seems that Duende is a difficult-to-define term that describes the soul and spirit from which art (usually the Spanish arts) can stem. And yet most artists look to a so-called "golden muse" to be inspired or aspire to. Duende is not like this grand, lofty notion of attaining beauty or relishing in it. It is decidedly connected to that which is anything but beautiful. See, Duende seems most dependent on the struggles and conflicts brewing far within one's own core or even from somewhere far deeper below our feet. This is what I know Duende to be: a diabolical creature of one's self that must be faced head on. It is authentic, personal, and soulful. It is intimate and universal. It is the admission of your own beasts and understanding them. Not all art has it and not all artists have it either, but I'd argue that the Afghan Whigs and Greg Dulli have it in spades and at no time more than during their 1996 third album, Black Love.

"Everything that has black sounds in it, has duende." - Federico García Lorca

Writing about one's struggles with vice and immorality have a certain consequence. In my own teeny, little career, I've seen this garner me at times unfavorable attention or trepidation from others. For all the mistakes I've made in my life, I've probably only opened the door for more to come, in the attempt to reconcile my own demons and emotional poverty. But it's hard to leave the mistakes alone. Sometimes we are compelled to examine, make sense of, or glorify our monsters. Writing can be a way of reconciling with one's guilt and a way to seek redemption. Sometimes it's simply a way to get everyone to sing along with your wrongs and validate all the messes you've caused. It'd be hard not to separate the person from the art here and not inexplicably link him to his offenses. It seems that most of us who've listened to Black Love would agree that the album speaks of something very real and that its narrator, Greg Dulli, is one giant piece of work...

"Blame, deny, betray, divide /A lie, the truth /Which one shall I use?"

The Afghan Whigs is most noted for the fantastic second album, Gentlemen. It depicted the male ego in all its animalistic splendor. But for me, Black Love is simply a more psychologically-complex album. It took the caricature and made him true. The logic behind emotional reactions is explained, characters and scenes are further fleshed out, and our narrator has a wider set of emotions - making the experience of listening more authentic. It takes two to tango and lord knows there's some mutual mind-f&#king going on. Here the animal has a means to its beastliness. Black Love sets out to chronicle the end of a tumultuous and diseased relationship. It's full of remorse, betrayal, manipulation, and intent - things you and I know a lot about, don't we?

Yet Black Love is also filled with soul music that underscores the intimate tales. A blend of gospel and blues, soul takes from both the sacred and the flesh. On Black Love those two battle it out face to face. It gets "Duende" on you. It pleads to somehow take the crimes and find a light through them. An old story made new. And yet, it was created in the mid-90s when I personally found myself immersed in Brit-pop from the likes of Pulp and Suede. I didn't care for the straight-ahead anger and non-glamour of Grunge that was Stateside. In fact, I felt a real disconnect between that and myself. I wanted something more, well, debonair and yet, not affected. Something that could doubletalk me into another cognac and not man-handle me to finish a can of beer. And while I loved my spindly and lounge-luscious Brit-pop, I needed my "from-the-hip" stuff too; music that was seeped in American roots. And it's there that the Afghan Whigs and this album make the most sense to me. The album somehow seemed to combine the artful retelling of the most mortal self-battles alongside the hard-hitting, yet hustling, Motown beats, calculated vocal delivery, and vigorous guitars. The piano plays percussion and the organ plays the devout sinner. The album is turbulent and sacrificial in its attack, but yet has very tender and reflexive moments as well. That voice in your ear, Dulli's haunting backing vocals, switches between the Devil and the consciousness. You get down with it in that "New Orleans-Detroit" kind of way.

"To get on down / this time we go a little lower."

As low as you can go. Duende.

I was exposed at a very young age to supreme manipulators. The kind that are so good at masking their own insecurities that they're perpetually on the defense birthed by paranoia. Lies come in many forms: deception, exaggeration, omission, and evasion. It came as some sort of cathartic relief to hear this album (which I've never stopped listening to). In essence, it was the confession of my own faults and the assertion from others of theirs too. Liars know of what they do (and what is a writer if not a very fanciful liar?). In a world where there are so many songs about people being done wrong it's validating of sorts to know there are songs that address those who know they're not innocent and have committed misdeeds.

"Love I can't hide / but it's been easier since I said it now."

Of course there is a light outside darkness. So, gentle reader, before we think that is all people can offer, the truth is that instead of engaging in the dance, we simply must see it upon first glance and walk away. True, but for now, the drama of the dance makes us feel alive. The battle of perception (real versus fake - is it love or hate?) is epic. In listening to Black Love, the world is desperate and there's no such thing as truth, intimacy, and warmth. Everyone is so much better at being crazy than you are at being sane. Love is a place where one has to watch their back, friends are foes, and survival means more than respect.

"I have to ask, was it ever good?"

By the end of Black Love, Dulli has more than admitted his sadness and expelled some of the pain. He's also thrown gas on the fire. But, as true as life, it's never fully resolved; just accepted to some degree. What was once bright diminishes.

"Demons, be gone / away from me... / Come lay down in the cool grass / with me, baby let's watch that / summer fade."

And there is certainly a sense that for all the cocksureness, there is an unstable soul. Someone who is not simply retelling his exploits, but really feeling the effects of them and yearning for a light to shine through the clutter. The reconciliation may be not with our consciousness, but how we naturally are, as we are of course, beasts. That creature is near and can be an enemy at odds with society and lovers. It inevitably affects our relationships with the world, with love, and with ourselves.

"If I go bad / from time to time / Love to love but love is not / My only crime /Bathe the path, shine the light"

Afghan Whigs never found the success that their Seattle counterparts did. Are we really surprised? I mean, when did anything really intelligent ever make its way to the collective minds of American music charts? Anyway, their loss. Black Love to me stands as a masterpiece and an album that certainly stands as my concrete favorite. I'll spare you my giddiness... I just mean to say that Black Love has a unique importance for me. It embodies the power of ourselves, as well as the power that music has on us to take us down and build us back up.

"Do you think I'm beautiful? / Or do you think I'm evil?"

I don't know why other people make music - I only know why we are compelled to make it. Duende is a power not an action and it's a tussle more than a concept. In all art we seek to release and to free ourselves of something at least a little bit. Sometimes we have to fight to feel that emancipation and in doing so, there may be casualties or bloodletting much as in Black Love. Duende is a living thing. It's your closest friend, your challenger, inexplicably linked to ancient culture. Creation and destruction. It's the lover who is both bad and good for you. It's both beautiful and evil... But let's confess: We love it all.

Alain Johannes - Spark

2010-07-11T19:06:26Z

If you don't know yet, I'm here to let you know... Alain's solo debut record drops August 31 via Rekords Rekords/Dangerbird Records.

http://www.alainjohannes.com/ http://www.facebook.com/alainjohannesmusic

Pre-orders here: http://dbrd.la/aexfdO

There's always a light at the end of the tunnel... Alain Johannes proves that proverb with Spark, his solo debut. Due out August 31 via Rekords Rekords, Spark is a heartfelt, honest and hypnotic collection of songs that Alain penned to commemorate his late wife and creative partner, Natasha Shneider. It's more than a tribute though; it's the purest celebration of her spirit through song. Alain plays like his soul depends on it during album opener "Endless Eyes." Through tribal percussion and cigar box guitar strumming, the song breathes organically. Meanwhile, there's a poignant lyrical poetry at the center of "Make God Jealous" and "Spider" that resounds just as powerfully as the album's fretless guitar hum and the somber cello on "Speechless." From co-founding Eleven with Natasha to collaborating with everyone from Queens of the Stone Age and Them Crooked Vultures to Chris Cornell and Mark Lanegan, Alain remains a prolific force. Spark shows listeners every side of this unique songwriter, producer and composer. Spark has been in the making since the summer of 2008. After Natasha passed away following her battle with cancer, Queens of the Stone Age organized a star-studded benefit in Los Angeles to celebrate her life on August 16, 2008 at the Henry Fonda Theater. Alain wrote "Endless Eyes" specifically for the show, and it set the wheels in motion for the entire record. "The story started with that song," he explains. "It's the most direct ode to Natasha and the wonderful time we had together--it's specifically about my love and admiration for her. She had a wonderful soul, natural intelligence, humor and internal funkiness, and she's the most amazing musician I've ever met." It all began with "Endless Eyes" and, for the next year, Alain brought his cigar box guitar everywhere. Whether he was on the road with Them Crooked Vultures or in the studio, he continued composing songs for what would become Spark. Once everything was written, he found a four-day period in November 2009 to record and mix the entire album at his home studio. "It'd been building for awhile," he goes on. "I was gathering songs, and I was waiting for them to show up. The songs would come while I was on tour, and I knew I was going to record them at some point. Once it started, I knew it wouldn't stop until I was finished. I had a lot of friends offer to help me record, but something told me that wasn't the way to do it. I had to be alone in that space. I found four days that were open, and I gathered the courage to jump into it. " Alain wasn't truly alone though. Natasha's spirit lives within each chord and lyric that he committed to tape during those four days. He reveals, "I felt like I was being guided. Not only that, but I felt her presence in the room so intensely it was insane. It was almost like I could turn to her and say, 'What do you think of this?' In our musical journey together, we compartmentalized so many things we were good at. Her ability to come up with beautiful harmonies was incredible. There were a couple moments that I heard the harmonies like she would, and they just came out of me." An example of that is the eerily enchanting crescendo on Spark's final track "Unfinished Plan." The song soars into a sublime realm as Alain intones the last lyrics, and there's an invigorating, inspiring spell cast from those moments. Alain's worked with some of the most important and influential musicians in rock 'n' roll--on stage and in the studio. In addition to his much lauded catalog with Eleven, he's been a longtime Queens of the Stone Age cohort, appearing on Songs for the Deaf, Lullabies to Paralyze and Era Vulgaris as well as playing live with the band. He contributed to Chris Cornell's acclaimed solo debut Euphoria Morning on guitar and as a producer, and he's a member of Spinerette alongside Brody Dalle. "I've been a musician since I was four-years-old, and it's been a long arc to arrive at this place. I've garnered so much experience, and I'm blessed to have worked with so many phenomenal and influential musicians." Alain's about to bring Spark to audiences everywhere live all over the world. "The set is really stripped down, but the songs survive in that context. I simply wanted to be able to grab my cigar box and go. I'm like a traveling blues man," he laughs. This is the most open that Alain's ever been. Constructing his own acoustic choir with a cigar box guitar and floor toms, Johannes builds each track with palpable power, orchestrating a cathartic sonic journey that's as unique as it is uplifting. "It's very direct and it feels really close. I was being taken over by the music. The thematic aspect of each song would come like a prism from a different perspective. Some songs sound celebratory, sweet and hopeful and some are much darker. Some have a bit of anger in them and a resignation. Whenever I got emotionally charged up enough, I would write. Going through grief, there are so many stages. There's shock, anger, guilt, sadness and a part that pushes you to keep going--that's what she would've wanted." Thankfully, Alain's kept moving forward and he's continuing on the path he carved since he first picked up a guitar. About the record, Queens of the Stone Age and Them Crooked Vultures frontman and Rekords Rekords founder Josh Homme comments, "Alain's record is the total embodiment of what the label stands for--the war against endorsing mediocrity and the uncensored attempt to take a leap off the musical cliff. Spark is a stunning examination of figuring out what you do when someone's gone, and it's utterly breathtaking." Beauty often is born from tragedy, and Spark ultimately stands as a testament to that. Alain elaborates, "I actually finished the album 25 years to the day that Natasha and I met--November 29, 2009. That was our anniversary. In many ways, I was really just trying to make a record that she would be proud of." Her light still shines brightly through Alain on Spark.

Drummer

2010-05-08T23:58:36Z

What happened to that goofy drummer the twilight singers had on their previous tours? I'm not sure of his name but goofy drummer should be description enough for you to know who I'm talking about.. Whatever happened to that fellow and why has he been replaced by the man child drummer?

Mark Lanegan solo acoustic tour dates in Europe

2010-02-24T14:19:18Z

From the onewhiskey board: 20/04/10 Utrecht - Helling 21/04/10 Eindhoven - Effennar 22/04/10 DAY OFF 23/04/10 Bristol - Academy 2 24/04/10 Oxford - Academy 2 25/04/10 Manchester - Academy 3 26/04/10 Glasgow - Oran Mor 27/04/10 DAY OFF 28/04/10 Belfast - Empire 29/04/10 Dublin - Academy 2 30/04/10 Galway - Roisin Dubh 01/05/10 DAY OFF 02/05/10 Wolverhampton - Slade Rooms 03/05/10 Nottingham - Rescue Rooms 04/05/10 London - Garage 05/05/10 DAY OFF 06/05/10 Brussels - Ancienne Belgique 07/05/10 Cologne - Luxor 08/05/10 Hamburg - Fabrik 09/05/10 Berlin - Lido 10/05/10 DAY OFF 11/05/10 Munich - Backstage Halle 12/05/10 Vienna - WuK 13/05/10 Milan - Magazini Generalli 14/05/10 Rome - Circolo degli Artisti 15/05/10 DAY OFF 16/05/10 Madrid - Joy Eslava 17/05/10 Barcelona - Bikini Opening act: Duke Garwood. I'm hoping to at least see hom once on this tour. Anyone else going?

Jeff Klein

2010-02-23T01:08:55Z

i'm just curious why Jeff is no longer with The Twilight Singers.

Gutter Twins Bimbo's Gig @ Crawdaddy

2010-01-26T20:59:24Z

http://www.crawdaddy.com/index.php/2009/03/23/video-the-gutter-twins-down-the-line/ I am so glad 8 posted these at the SFR forum - I had forgotten I was on the lookout for these videos and they are phenomenal. At the time of the gig, I asked the video crew what the plans for the tape were and they said the video would be made available at Wolfgang's Vault. It's taken them SO long! Someday I hope to see this entire show released. It was a great night and the clips we've been shown are beautifully shot.