When Norah Jones last visited Red Butte Garden, shortly after her debut album Come Away With Me had made the young artist a multi-Grammy-winning, multi-platinum sensation, I found myself horizontal in the grass of Salt Lake City’s best summer concert venue, staring at the stars and zoning out. Jones’ sound at the time was good, but rather mellow and one-note for my taste.
Jones’ sold-out show at the same venue Tuesday night showed just how much she has grown as an artist, musically and as a live performer. As she’s evolved from the jazzy piano-pop stylings of her first album to find a more experimental edge working with producer DangerMouse on her latest release, Little Broken Hearts, her live performances have evolved from simple, relatively staid affairs to big productions, complete with light show and a backing band capable of delving into all the styles Jones has tackled in the years since her breakthrough, from traditional honky-tonk to straightforward pop to that familiar blues and jazz-fueled songwriting that made her a star.
Tuesday night, Jones started with three straight new songs: “Turn Me On,” “Out on the Road” and the title track “Little Broken Hearts.” She followed with an unexpected treat, a cover of Tom Waits’ “The Long Way Home,” causing a bit of deja vu among those of us on hand for Diana Krall’s show at Red Butte Garden a couple weeks back, when Krall covered more than one Waits tune.
“Say Goodbye,” another new song, showcased Jones’ swanky side as she sat at an electric piano, leading her band through its paces. I never thought I’d see Jones bring some funk to her sound, but that song did it (albeit subtle funk, if there is such a thing). Even more from Little Broken Hearts came fast and furious, including “Take It Back” and “All A Dream,” before Jones lit into one of her most popular covers, a bluesy shuffle through Hank Williams’ “Cold Cold Heart.”
With lights flashing into the audience and large origami cranes dangling overhead, Jones killed a version of “Happy Pills,” the first single from Little Broken Hearts, before winding out the show with a heavy dose of songs from Come Away With Me. “The Nearness of You” was one of the night’s highlights, as was its follow-up “Miriam” from the new album. “Chasing Pirates” and “Lonestar,” a song she’s performed with fellow Texan Willie Nelson on occasion, ended the main set.
The encore was manna for Jones fans, with the singer settling in with her band around one microphone, strumming an acoustic guitar she said she bought in Salt Lake City. “Sunrise,” “Creepin’ In” and “Come Away With Me” made for a winning closing burst of a show full of unexpected treats.
That first time I saw Jones perform at Red Butte Garden, I had her pegged as a musical comet, burning at the moment but probably not lasting very long. After Wednesday night’s show, I’ve changed my mind. It’s easy to see, and hear, how Jones could become another Emmylou Harris or Lucinda Williams–a performer with roots in Americana and the vocal chops to delve into any style she wants for years to come.
I can definitely say this: Next time around, I’ll be there to see Jones with high expectations, rather than simply a curious mind. She’s made it clear, through her adventurous recordings and increasingly dynamic performances, that exceeding expectations is something she has no problem doing.
This week, Utah is brimming with great music, including some Rock and Roll Hall of Famers, some indie-rock darlings, and a piano-pop chanteuse to get things started. Check it out:
NORAH JONES, RED BUTTE GARDEN, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m., Sold Out
When Norah Jones stopped at Red Butte Garden when she was touring in support of her monster-selling, multiple-Grammy-winning breakthrough album Come Away With Me, it was a big moment for the venue. Jones’ appearance led to tons of new people becoming members of the Garden in order to swoop on some tickets, and probably showed the Powers That Be that current, hot artists would be worth adding to the mix of old favorites that typically make up the Red Butte lineup. I went to that first show, and it was a bit sleepy for my taste–even the AC/DC cover was mellow–but Jones has gone on to make increasingly interesting music, collaborating with the likes of Danger Mouse and Willie Nelson, and doing country covers in a band called The Little Willies. Her latest album, Little Broken Hearts, should get a lot of attention at Tuesday’s show. Cory Chisel and the Wandering Songs open up. The show is sold out, but there will be scalpers outside the amphitheatre.
Norah Jones headlines Tuesday at Red Butte Garden.
MUMFORD & SONS, SALTAIR, Wednesday, 8 p.m., $40
Still a month away from the release of their new album, Babel, English folkies Mumford & Sons come to town for one of the most-anticipated shows of the summer, at perhaps the most unlikely venue imaginable. The band has the sort of rabid fan following that American traditionalists the Avett Brothers enjoy, and they will be packing the Saltair space for sure. It’s been a while since I’ve been tempted by a show at the venerable old warehouse by the lake–it’s one of the least fan-friendly places to see a show in SLC, between the drive to Magna, being forced to pay to park and the horrible sightlines from the upstairs bar, but I heard a rumor this show might be outside on the beach. No word of that on the Saltair Web site, but lets hope it’s true. Nathaniel Rateliff and Slow Club open the all-ages show.
Mumford & Sons headline Wednesday at the Saltair.
CROSBY, STILLS & NASH, RED BUTTE GARDEN, Thursday, 7:30 p.m., Sold Out
Back in the ’80s and ’90s, it seemed like Crosby, Stills & Nash came to Utah every summer, whether at Park West (now the Canyons), the Salt Palace or some other long-gone venue. Red Butte Garden seems like the ideal environment to see the folk-rock heroes do their thing. This will be my first time catching CSN, and I’m hoping the vocal harmonies that made the band’s name are still sounding sweet.
Crosby, Stills & Nash headline Red Butte Garden on Thursday.
BUILT TO SPILL, THE URBAN LOUNGE, Friday, 9 p.m., $20
Boise’s finest come back to town, and I’m cheering the fact that Doug Martsch and Co. are playing The Urban Lounge because it’s been a few years since we’ve had the chance to see Built to Spill in a small club. It’s hard to believe it’s been 15 years since the band released Perfect From Now On, their major-label debut and a delicious slab of indie-rock focused around Martsch’s guitar wizardry and preference for long songs. The band is recording a new album this fall, to be released in 2013, so this must be a tour to tighten up their collective chops before hitting the studio. Helvetia and Revolt Revolt open the show.
Built to Spill headline Friday at The Urban Lounge.
MANZAREK-ROGERS BAND, EGYPTIAN THEATRE, Friday-Saturday, 8 p.m., $35-$45
You know Ray Manzarek as the keyboard player in The Doors, the man who lent Jim Morrison’s dark lyrical forays their distinct sound (with all due credit to creative guitar player Robbie Krieger, who still plays with Manzarek regularly). For his current tour, Manzarek is bringing along another noteworthy guitarist in Roy Rogers, a slide-guitar killer best known for leading his own band, the Delta Rhythm Kings. Together, the Manzarek-Rogers Band tackle Doors classics, originals and covers. Seeing a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer in the cozy confines of Park City’s Egyptian Theatre should be pretty sweet.
The Manzarek-Rogers Band play Park City’s Egyptian Theatre Friday and Saturday.
SAN FRANCISCO–It’s taken me nearly a week to recover from a weekend at the Outside Lands music festival at Golden Gate Park, to catch up on sleep, to rest my feet after days of trudging around the venue and the city, and to let my liver take a pause after WAY too much Newcastle and Irish whiskey.
And I would do it again in a heartbeat.
This was Outside Lands’ fifth year, and it’s a remarkably efficient, entertaining event. I thought I was long done going to multiple-day rock festivals when I went to Coachella a few years back, but visiting Outside Lands convinced me that I might still have a few more left in me. Getting to the park each day and getting back to my hotel after the shows was definitely a challenge, but the experience inside the festival? Awesome, and easy.
I never waited in a beer line, something you can chalk up to the fact that it was freezing at night, and that it was really easy for fest-goers to sneak booze and weed (and assorted other, more creative intoxicants) in through the security checkpoints. The first night, my buddy and I looked around and in every direction we saw people passing bottles and joints while we sipped $10 drafts. It was a valuable lesson, and it served us well on Saturday and Sunday.
Bathroom lines weren’t bad, either, for the most part, and neither were the food lines at the series of booths and food trucks dotting the grounds that kept up with the demand of the 65,000 fans on hand each day. Golden Gate Park is a sprawling place–20 percent larger than New York City’s Central Park, I learned–and the festival had five large stages, along with a number of DJ tents, strategically spread out so you could hear, say, Sigur Ros while the band played at the same time as Metallica. Moving between stages took some planning, and usually about a 20-minute walk along dusty paths through the woods. A pretty idyllic setting for sure, and as much as I liked Coachella, the polo grounds of Indio have nothing on Golden Gate Park as a concert environment.
Adding to the good vibes were the fans themselves. I was annoyed by the kids constantly taking pictures of themselves, and amused by all the stuffed-animal hats they were wearing, but for the most part everyone was in good spirits when you’d weasel your way forward to see a specific act. I can’t think of many instances where I would willingly hang out with any Juggalos, but we met a sweet Juggalo couple on the scene for Metallica, and the next night we teamed up with some traveling 20-somethings from Vancouver who had shared an epic road trip down the coast of Washington, Oregon and Northern California to secure a block of space close to the stage for Stevie Wonder. We met a 50ish hippie woman from Eureka who had brought her 17-year-old to see her first concert–not a bad first show! Of course, her mom’s first concert was David Bowie in the ’70s, and none of the acts at Outside Lands this year could match that.
Actually, for the fans on hand, that’s probably not true. The strength of the Outside Lands lineup is its musical diversity. From classic rock to hip-hop, dance music to folk and everything in between–Outside Lands had something for everybody. And no doubt some of the kids seeing Skrillex or the Kills or Passion Pit will hold the experience as dear as the hippie woman holds her David Bowie show.
Stevie Wonder’s Sunday night set was the reason I pulled the trigger and went to Outside Lands for the first time. The fact there were about 60 other acts to check out leading up to that festival-closing show made for a worthy weekend.
Here are some thoughts on the music:
FAMILIAR FAVORITES
The value of a festival like Outside Lands for someone living in Utah is obvious–it’s a chance to see some folks who don’t come through Salt Lake City on tour very often, if ever, ie. Stevie Wonder. Neil Young, who headlined Friday night, isn’t coming to Utah on his current tour, and we were ready to check him out to end the first day–until the temperature plummeted into the high 30s before he started playing, causing much of the crowd to flee when they realized all the winter hats and blankets for sale were gone. I was one of the fleeing, having stupidly worn shorts, sandals and a hoodie as my fest uniform for the day. Bummer to miss Neil Young, but plenty more to see the next two days, when I was layered up and ready for the elements.
We did get to see Beck and Foo Fighters the first day, though. Beck delivered a strong set full of some of my favorite tunes of his, as well as a Neil Young cover (“After the Goldrush”) and a Bob Dylan tune (“Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat”). He dedicated a song to Adam Yauch and talked about playing one of the Tibetan Freedom Concerts the Beastie Boy organized years ago. And the Foo Fighters delivered a rocking set that was a fine reminder that Dave Grohl is a legit frontman and a blast to watch perform.
Beck’s Outside Lands setlist: Black Tambourine>Devil’s Haircut>Novacane>Loser>Soul of a Man>Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat>Hot Wax>Modern Guilt>Soldier Jane>The Golden Age>Lost Cause>After The Goldrush>Sunday Sun>Gamma Ray>Girl>Where It’s At>E-Pro
Saturday was all about Metallica, and they didn’t disappoint. It was a hometown show for the heavy-metal heroes, and their set leaned heavily on their early albums like Kill ‘Em All and Master of Puppets. Lead singer James Hetfield let it be known that the band wanted all of San Francisco to hear them at the Saturday night gig, and no doubt they did. I’ve never seen pyrotechnics at the festival, but Metallica delivered a full show, complete with fire in the sky and massive video screens.
Metallica’s Outside Lands setlist: Hit the Lights>Master of Puppets>Fuel>Ride The Lightning>Fade to Black>The Memory Remains>Hell and Back>Sad But True>Welcome Home (Sanitarium)>Orion>One>For Whom the Bell Tolls>Blackened>Nothing Else Matters>Enter Sandman>Frayed Ends of Sanity>Creeping Death>Battery>Seek and Destroy
Sunday’s top of the bill was Stevie Wonder, who I had never seen, and he hit the stage with multiple backup singers, horn players, percussionists and other musicians, walking out with a key-tar around his neck to play Marvin Gaye’s “How Sweet It Is.” I thought starting with a cover song was a little odd, but Stevie Wonder gets to do whatever he wants. That includes a mid-song breakdown, still during the first song, in which he chatted with the crowd for a good five minutes about loving each other, and the need to reelect Barack Obama. Taking his place among a group of pianos, keyboards and synthesizers at mid-stage, Wonder proceeded to deliver a killer set of some of the best American pop music ever written–and a few more covers of songs by Michael Jackson, The Beatles and The Temptations. I could have lived without “I Just Called to Say I Love You,” but there’s no way Stevie is going to ignore one of the biggest hits of his career, even if it doesn’t hold up next to songs like “Superstition” and “Sir Duke.” And he didn’t just replicate the studio versions of his tunes; Wonder creatively tweaked his classics and led his band through some improvised jams, too. Great stuff.
Stevie Wonder’s Outside Lands setlist: How Sweet It Is>Master Blaster (Jammin’)>Higher Ground>The Way You Make Me Feel>Never Dreamed You’d Leave in Summer>Overjoyed>Imagine>Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing>Sir Duke>I Wish>Signed Sealed Delivered I’m Yours>My Cherie Amour>Living for the City>I Just Called to Say I Love You>You Got Me Runnin’>Superstition>Isn’t She Lovely>As>Happy Birthday>She Loves You>My Girl
BEST OF THE REST
Between those main stage acts, we saw plenty of great sets. The most pleasant surprises for me were Of Monsters and Men, whose epic, Arcade Fire-like sound is perfect for a festival crowd, and The Kills, who played on the main stage just before Metallica and absolutely destroyed the place. I couldn’t believe I had never seen them before. The fact that the duo of singer Alison Mosshart and guitarist Jamie Hince added four drummers dressed as ninjas behind them made me love their set all the more. We managed to catch bits of Grandaddy, Fun., Regina Spektor, City & Colour and Thee Oh Sees, and they were all pretty decent.
Franz Ferdinand’s mid-afternoon set Sunday was brilliant, as the Scottish band always is live. They seem like a perfect choice for a future Twilight Concert Series show, with pop hooks galore and tough-enough guitars to attract the rockers along with the dance-music kids. I’ve seen them probably five times now, and they never disappoint.
Tom Morello: The Nightwatchmen was a great eye-opener Sunday afternoon, beseeching the crowd to put their phones away so we can all “be here right now, together, in the moment, if only for one song.” He wasn’t the only act to ask fans to put their gadgets away for a song or two, but he was the most articulate. His political folk songs hit the spot, and The Coup’s Boots Riley joined him to rap through some of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.”
Big Boi was high on my list of must-sees, but the booming bass obscured his rhymes to such a degree that we bailed to get in better position for the Kills.
There was no such problem for Jack White, who played Sunday night just before Stevie Wonder. Leading an excellent band, White did songs from his latest release, Blunderbuss, as well as covers and plenty of White Stripes songs. I’ve seen White playing drums for Dead Weather, his project with The Kills’ Mosshart, but never doing his thing as a frontman, and he was excellent. His guitar playing was gleefully sloppy at times, poignant at others, and his vocals were great. I’m already dying to see him again.
Hopefully that will be in Salt Lake City. Or I just might have to go back to Outside Lands next August and hope he makes a return trip.
Jack White’s Outside Lands setlist: Black Math>Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground>Freedom at 21>Missing Pieces>Weep Themselves to Sleep>Two Against One>Top Yourself>Hotel Yorba>Cannon/John the Revelator/We’re Going to Be Friends>I Guess I Should Go To Sleep>Take Me With You When You Go>I Cut Like a Buffalo>The Same Boy You’ve Always Known>Catch Hell Blues>Seven Nation Army
Just when we’ve gotten used to mud slinging in this religion-infested election cycle, we get to witness the casting of the first stone.
In a bodacious blog in the Jewish Journal, of all places, Mark Paredes, a Mormon and a member of the Jewish Relations Committee of the LDS Church’s Southern California Public Affairs Council, actually made the call on who’s the BETTER Mormon–Mitt Romney or Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
I have to admit I was stunned to see a Mormon of some stature actually presume to rate the spiritual credentials of two co-religionists. I’ve got to wonder if he ran his blog up the heirarchy in Salt Lake City?
According to Paredes’ score card, that includes the mens’ stands on gambling and abortion: “Mitt wins the Better Mormon Award, though not by a landslide.”
Paredes writes that Reid falls especially spiritually short on gay-marriage yardstick [note: Reid supports gay marriage].
…since LDS prophets have repeatedly and publicly opposed state-sanctioned gay marriage. Romney agrees with the church’s position; Sen. Reid recently announced that he opposes it [the LDS church position]. In other words, men whom the senator regards as modern-day prophets have officially spoken on one of the major moral issues of the day, and the good senator thinks that they’re wrong. It is not possible for a faithful Mormon to support state-sanctioned gay marriage because it entails rejection of prophetic authority. On this issue Sen. Reid’s stance is not a liberal Mormon position; it is an anti-Mormon one.
Ouch.
Citing theological ignorance, Paredes declined to rate the the quality of Roman Catholic faith held by Vice President Joe Biden and Mitt’s veep candidate Paul Ryan. Presumably, both are lousy Mormons.
I’ve been on vacation, so I’m offering up an abbreviated batch of SLCene Suggests this week. There are many fine options coming up, including Iron & Wine and Kathleen Edwards at the Twilight Concert Series show at Pioneer Park on Thursday. Here’s a little low-down on another couple of gigs worth a look:
MURDER BY DEATH, BAR DELUXE, Wednesday, 9 p.m., $18
It says something about the sprawling sound of Indiana’s Murder By Death that the band can move from the emo- and punk-friendly label Vagrant Records to the decidedly rootsy Bloodshot Records and it completely makes sense. Whether you consider them a punk band that dabbles in dark murder ballads, or a roots-rock band with the occasional aggressive excursion, Murder By Death are always an exciting listen. The band’s new album, Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon, arrives in September, but they’re stopping in Salt Lake City before then. They’re joined by Missouri’s Ha Ha Tonka, another band that straddles the line between traditional folk-rock and so-called “alternative;” the bands have toured through town together in the past, and it made for a fine double-bill. Make no mistake, though–Murder By Death tops the bill for a reason.
Murder By Death headlines Wednesday at Bar Deluxe.
SHARON VAN ETTEN & TENNIS, THE URBAN LOUNGE, Friday, 9 p.m., $15 advance/$17 day of show
Brooklyn singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten is quickly becoming a Salt Lake City favorite; her show at The Urban Lounge on Friday is at least her third visit in recent memory. Lucky us, because she is a rising star who could easily parallel the growing audience of someone like Brandi Carlile if enough people are exposed to her winning wordplay and songcraft, captured on her excellent album, Tramp, released earlier this year. It’s her third full-length, and easily her best work so far. This summer, she’s touring with Denver’s Tennis, a fine pop-rock duo who could easily be headlining on their own.
Sharon Van Etten headlines Friday at The Urban Lounge.
When A&E contributor Dan Nailen flew to the Bay Area to catch the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival, he enlisted SLMag buds Mary Brown Malouf and Glen Warchol to scope out the Michael Franti concert Sunday night at Red Butte.
Malouf: Let me just say here that I know I’m not the right age or mindset to appreciate a lot of pop music. I love old country for its genuine heartache, old rock–Elvis through Sid Vicious and beyond–and rap for its Eff-You attitude. I love great voices and complicated compositions.
Warchol: I like pop music and Dan assured me that if I loved Jimmy Cliff, I would enjoy Franti. “He’s fun,” Nailen said.
Malouf: A remark that made me skeptical. I know a lot of people who dismiss reggae as “fun” music. It does make you move. It does allude frequently to ganja. It is an offshoot of a religion with silly overtones—revering Haile Selassie?? But, reggae at its roots is revolutionary music. Before it got subducted by pop, it spoke about oppressed people seeking identity and spiritual solace. I’m not Franti-savvy, and I am told his lyrics used to address real ideas. But now he seems way more Beach Boys than Bob Marley. All one flavor and it’s sticky sweet. Not that I don’t like Pet Sounds.
Warchol: I was willing to remain open-minded through the jazz-lite pre-concert canned music as suburban ladies-who-lunch settled in around me at the Butte. Obviously I was unfamiliar with the cult of Franti. The performance that followed is best described in Hollywood concept speak: Raffi-meets-Richard Simmons.
Malouf: Or Van Halen in pigtails. As in, “Everybody, JUMP!” “Clap your hands!” “Clap your hands, OVER YOUR HEAD!” Even the lunching ladies were jumping, a sight to behold considering their surgical enhancements. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. Certainly, we can all use the exercise, and I would absolutely recommend Franti as great sounds for any aerobics class.
Warchol: This guy not only whistled, he skipped around the stage. That was followed by a trademark schtick of wading, salamander-like, into his adoring crowd. Mick Jagger can pull off skipping (even in a pinafore), and Al Greene moshes with the ladies.
Malouf: I’ve still got Al’s rose!!
Warchol: But with Franti, it’s just creepy. I learned the hard way it isn’t possible to wire brush the horror out of my memory, so I’ve been listening to a continuous loop of Waylon Jennings and, yes, Jimmy Clliff. It may be the only known antidote to Franti.
Malouf: So, in summary, thanks Dan!
Daniel Nailen 