Holy Ghost Tent Revival and the Dirty Bourbon River Show at the Blue Nile in New Orleans on April 2, 2011.
~ Photos by Josh Bradsted
New Orleans Big Brass Circus Rock Music
Holy Ghost Tent Revival and the Dirty Bourbon River Show at the Blue Nile in New Orleans on April 2, 2011.
~ Photos by Josh Bradsted
Album review of the Danger Painter's IV
In the cosmos of music and art, the Danger Painter’s newest album, IV, is pretty insignificant. It’s no mega record like Zeppelin IV, it will probably never be toured, and not more than a few thousand people will listen to it, if that.
Then, you put fame and recognition aside, and if you are one of those few lucky wild at heart and weird on top-type people who have stumbled upon this unlikely record, you are left with a great feeling when you finish.
It makes you go Fuck Yeah.
The Danger Painters is comprised of longtime friends Bob Boilen and Michael Barron, formally of the DC band Tiny Desk Unit. IV, their 4th album, was written and recorded in a single month for the RPM Challenge, a yearly music industry tradition created in 2006 to help foster greater levels of productivity among musicians. The result is a true gem.
In this record you hear influences from all across the board. It is a record that echoes all sorts of great things – primary vocalist/songwriter Barron weaves through the tracks like a starker Stuart Staples – walking on Ostinato Black Keys-styled riffs and crunchy Oreos of aural accoutrements courtesy of his friend Mr. Boilen. The 7th track – Made on Earth (written by their bassist William X Harvey) – brings to mind Bowie and Radiohead. The 9th track, Power Off, rides on an Edward Sharpe-like sensibility, throwing in a little hootenanny and Zeppelin III-style rústico in the mix. In this record you hear the influence of many artists. Yet no part of this record is imitative.
IV is stitched together with great ambition, considering the time crunch it was produced in. It is presented very well. Occasionally the musicianship wobbles, but not awkwardly; instead it feels almost necessary at times, reminding you that the album you are listening to did not come from some mega band like Zeppelin or the Talking Heads or the Decemberists – but that it was made by two everyday guit’n’gear slingers like you or I, just doing what we like, without regard for fame or glory.
IV is do-it-yourself self-driven music appreciation at its finest.
It is also slightly autistic in this celebration, like a good 80’s Daniel Johnston tape. It touches you in darkly places, like a good Tindersticks or Scott Walker song. It is also strangely spirited and cheerful. And it is sometimes downright weird (my favorite track, When the Saints, is just fucking out there, in the best way possible – you blip and blop around, groove-hopping on bubbles and sonic zaps – dig it). IV is, from a mass taste perspective – a big no no. Yet, at the same time, it is entirely human. Any of us could have made this record. We just didn’t take the time to.
Give it a listen, and then go out and make your own record. Next year I invite all you fellow songwriters to enter the RPM challenge – if anything, it’ll keep your chops up and yield fodder for a future project. And, if you’re lucky, it may even produce a gem like the Danger Painter’s IV.
Download the full record for free from the Danger Painter’s website.
More on the RPM challenge HERE.
Thank you Baton Rouge, Mobile, Lafayette and New Orleans for giving us & Holy Ghost Tent Revival such an incredible weekend. Thank you Tin Men & Chubby Carrier for joining in on the festivities. Thank you everyone who came out and supported us. Man, this weekend was something else.
If you haven’t yet, check out the new album. It’s on Bandcamp, iTunes & Amazon now for only $9.99. And for everybody outside of this deep south bubble Dirty Bourb was born in, we will be coming to your city soon. We’ve got a whole host of dates on the Eastern Seaboard this May & June & some westward dates to follow in the Fall.
And once again, thank you. We hope you enjoy the new record.
~ The Dirty Bourbon River Show
Tonight we release our new record – Volume Two – at the Blue Nile on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans.
Doors Open at 9:30.
Holy Ghost Tent Revival kicks off the show at 10pm.
Dirty Bourbon headlines at 11pm.
Tin Men finish out the party round Midnight.
It’s going to be a giant, spectacular explosion of good music and good people.
And if you haven’t checked out the new record yet, it’s available on Bandcamp, Amazon & iTunes now for only $9.99 now.
And tonight, you can here it live.
Hope to see you there my friends.
Yes, yes good people, the weekend we have preping and preening for has finally arrived. To celebrate the release of ‘Volume Two’, we are doin a quick jaunt throught the Gulf that starts TONIGHT! in Baton Rouge with our friends Holy Ghost Tent Revival.
For those who lost track, here is the nitty gritty for the whole weekend:
Baton Rouge, LA
Red Star Bar
222 Laurel Street
Doors @ 9pm Show @ 10pm
Friday, April 1st :
Mobile, AL
Callaghan’s Irish Social Club
Doors @ 6pm Show @ 7pm
Saturday, April 2nd:
New Orleans, LA
Blue Nile
Also w/ The Tin Men
532 Frenchman St
$10 cover, Show @ 10pm
Sunday, April 3rd:
Lafayette, LA
Blue Moon Saloon
Also w/ Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band
215 East Convent Street
Doors @ 6pm Show @ 7pm
We sincerely hope y’all can make it out, we’ve been working on this one for awhile and the excitement is like that of a child on Christmas morning (for real!). See you lovely people out there on the road.
Noah's new beard - week 3
April 2nd, 2011 - A day to be remembered...
Only one week to go until our greatest fxxking show yet. Yessiree ladies and gentlemen, we haven’t been this excited in a while – got a huge one planned for you ~ its going down like this:
Saturday, April 2nd
The Blue Nile on Frenchmen
Show kicks off at 10pm with our dear friends from Greensboro, NC, the one and only Holy Ghost Tent Revival. This 6 piece string/brass extravaganza is the perfect mixture of foot-stompin’ love makin’ folk/roots/blues/dixieland/rock and more. Say hello:
Then, at 11pm, yours truly will be taking the stage, performing for you our newest album – Volume Two. Songs you’ve never heard, old familiars, and everything in between. Good friends, bourbon pours, fireballs and more. So excited to be sharing this newest one with you. We sincerely believe it is our greatest work yet:
And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, guess who’ll be closing out the evening? None other than New Orleans’ own the Tin Men. Washboard Chaz, Matt Perrine, Alex McMurray – these cats kill:
Tickets are $10, $8 if you click “attending” on the Facebook event, and free for those who pre-purchase the album on our Bandcamp site.
If you can’t make the New Orleans Show (which you should, even if you live 300 miles away) you can catch us and Holy Ghost in Baton Rouge on Thursday, Mobile on Friday, and Lafayette an Sunday with Chubby Carrier.
Don’t miss this one. It is going to be our greatest fxxking show yet.