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March, 2011

  1. The Experience of Music

    March 30, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    I was driving a few weeks ago with my wife in her car, which has a cd player. We’re a little (or I suppose a LOT) behind in media technology for the motor vehicle with my truck only having a tape player. Up until last Thanksgiving that was our primary mode of transportation, so we listened to a lot of radio and silence when my tape player went out a few years back. Fortunately my good buddy hooked me up with an old iPod and adapter that plugs into the cigarette lighter and lets you play on a free radio channel. That is the way I pass time on the long drive to and from work now.

    Anyways, back to the drive with my wife in her car. I made some mix cds for her and on one of them was some great Jimi Hendrix b-sides. We both love old Hendrix stuff. I used to be an ardent fan a decade or so ago, collecting the remastered cds when they would be released. I loved not just the music but the liner notes and photos in the cd booklet. It was great flipping through that while listening to the music. Hendrix had this charisma that went beyond the image of a black rock star in an era of mostly white music icons. His music was an experience, and he knew that, hence his band was called “The Jimi Hendrix Experience.” I know there was some hippie drug stuff tied into that experience as well, but the music was something that transcended its time and is still an experience over 4 decades later.

    If all you’ve heard from Hendrix is the standard classic rock radio hits, you’ve been highly short-changed. Sure, Jimi’s take on the Dylan track “All Along The Watchtower” is amazing, the solos genuinely phenomenal and awesome. “Purple Haze” is an incredible addition to rock music’s greatest anthems and riffs. “Foxey Lady,” “Fire” and “Crosstown Traffic” are some less well-known tunes that still are radio fodder. But there’s SOOOOO much more to experience that showcases his insane ability to turn a guitar into more than an instrument. That ability to turn a 6 string guitar into an experience all its own can be discovered in tunes like “1983…(A Mermaid I Should Turn To Be)” from Electric Ladyland. At over 13 minutes, it’s a song that media back then and now won’t play for time’s sake. But it encompass’ his jazz and blues background and inspiration as well as kicking into some funk and psychedelic sides. There’s also the classic Bold As Love (the title track from Axis: Bold As Love that John Mayer covered years ago; Jimi’s solo is far better), Burning Of The Midnight Lamp, also on Electric Ladyland, which has one of the best wah-wah themes ever writtern, Third Stone From The Sun on Are You Experienced, and a ton of other great songs.

    These songs are more than just music, they’re an experience. Last week on The Appetizer I shared with listeners a revelation I had weeks ago about what life would be like without color, and likewise without music. The challenge and notion presented was to close your eyes and see colors when you listen to music. Hendrix makes that experience easy, which is why this weekend we’ll experience the colors of music with a little big of Jimi Hendrix, as well as Ben Harper, The Light Parade from Abilene, Tx, Dream Theater, new band Resonant Discourse and much more. Join us.

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: | No Comments

  2. Why Parenthood Is A Favorite

    March 29, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    My wife and I make sure we’re home every Tuesday night at 9PM to see Parenthood on NBC. I’ve commented on the show repeatedly on Facebook and have posted a few blurbs about it here. The storyline is fantastic, the writing is as well and best of all, there’s a ton of great indie and emerging artists featured each week within the show. I know Grey’s Anatomy is another place for emerging indie artists to get their stuff heard. That’s great. I’m not much of a fan of hospital shows (with the exception of Scrubs), because the hospital isn’t a place I like at all. But stories that involved families are more of something I am drawn to and appreciate. So that’s why I’m stuck to Parenthood.

    Over the past few months, artists like Ray LaMontagne, Citizen Cope and a ton of other artists that are regularly featured on The Appetizer are heard as part of the episode. I just found out that Lucy Schwartz, who was featured with 2 songs 2 weeks ago on the show (The Appetizer) will have music heard on tonight’s latest episode of Parenthood. Check it out and let me know what you think. The song featured will be “Graveyard.” Comment here on other great music you hear on Parenthood and feel free to make suggestions to stuff we should feature on The Appetizer.

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  3. $10 For Music

    March 28, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    I have to admit that though I used to consume a lot of cassette tapes (back when that was the way to listen to music as opposed to vinyl records), and yet I can’t recall for the life of me what a cassette tape cost in terms of albums. I don’t remember if they ran $8 or $10. Maybe more. I know cds ranged from $15-$20 brand new unless you got them on sale for $10. Then the Internet became the place where consumers went to for music because you could just grab a single track without having to buy the whole album. You could dictate the market for music instead of it making the rules (in terms of you buying music).

    Still, $10 buys albums. That’s a cool thing, especially with all the speculation that inflation is going to drive the prices up on our lifestyle as Americans and as free thinkers. That’s wild. Just about everything else I buy, whether online or in a store, costs much more than it did 10 years ago, 5 years ago, or even 2 years ago. Especially food. My favorite restaurants have changed their menus repeatedly in the last 5 years. Yeah they have new dishes, new pictures, and of course new prices. It’s not a huge difference, but there used to be stuff on the Chili’s menu that cost $4.99 that wasn’t a side salad or bread. You used to be able to get something at Red Lobster that wasn’t on the Starters menu for $4-5. It’s not that way anymore. But music has stayed consistent in that realm, at least on iTunes, which is probably the main place most of us are consuming the music we listen to. We all (or most of us) have an iPod or mp3 player that we link to our iTunes or computer for music and that’s what we are connected to. I know I buy gift cards to iTunes to budget my music consumption, and in that $10 goes a long way.

    Why am I making this big deal about $10 and music and iTunes? If you’re asking if I’m going to start running iTunes ads because The Appetizer is now sponsored there or has a deal, the answer to that is no. I wish I had a sponsorship with iTunes or a music retailer. That would be a great thing to partner with a store in what I do. No, the reason I bring this up is to actually ask you as a reader and consumer of music and The Appetizer to take what you’d spend on 1 iTunes album, and put it towards another outlet that contributes to the music realm, the indie music world in particular. And that is public radio. Yeah, public radio has been in the news a lot in the past few weeks with the controversial stuff involving ex-CEOs and members of the executive staff and remarks made to people posing as other people. Personally I feel the backlash against NPR and public radio is politically motivated more than anything. But that’s a different conversation. I’m not plugging NPR.

    I am trying to raise support of public radio, in particular the stations that carry my show The Appetizer. Those great stations include KACU in Abilene, Tx, KVLU-1 in Beaumont, Tx, and KTRL in Stephenville, Tx. These stations are GIANT contributors to music, and to people searching for something off the beaten path. Artists that are becoming well-known across the country like Iron & Wine, Ray LaMontagne, Bon Iver, The Civil Wars, and others have grown in audience because public radio has done so much to showcase them. Public radio (KACU, KTRL, and KVLU-1 in particular) have been huge resources for Texans who connect with indie artists, attend concerts and more. Because of these contributions to music, support them with $10 in the name of indie music. If you did it in the name of The Appetizer, even better. But $10 helps stations in big ways.

    I know that this week and this month is fundraising season for most public radio stations. Your $10 helps these stations continue to play the music that you want to hear, not something that Billboard or a major label exec says to play. That’s how public radio works. I worked for a little while at a station that was told by Billboard how many times each day they had to play certain songs. It drove me nuts, for a few reasons. First, I was already sick of hearing these same songs over and over every day and having to repeat that without any control was more than annoying. Plus, not being able to decide for yourself when you run a station as to what you can and can’t play is debilitating, to the radio industry as well as the music industry. Public radio operates by different rules. As a program co-director, only my station manager tells us what to play. He and I collaborate on what we’re broadcasting. That’s why you get such cool guests on the air as well as amazing talents in indie music on public radio. We have that kind of freedom. But it comes at a cost. The listenership contributes to the lifeblood of this endeavor.

    I implore you to invest $10 (or more) in these stations, in the name of The Appetizer and indie music. Trust me, that President Hamilton (or Franklin if you’re more generous) will go a long way. Thank you.

    Click on these links to contribute to these stations. Let them know you’re giving in the name of The Appetizer and indie music.

    89.7 KACU FM
    90.5 KTRL
    91.3 KVLU-1

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  4. Andrew Belle Session and Show

    March 26, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    Andrew Belle recording with The Appetizer

    Yesterday was a great day filled with music and conversations with artists and fans.  In the afternoon, I hosted Andrew Belle at Flyboy Studios for an exclusive interview session for The Appetizer.  We had a great time.  It turns out we share a love for the Chicago Bears as well as the culinary arts.  Andrew’s music is captivating and his stories are as well.  He later shared the story behind a song called “My Oldest Friend” that deals with a longtime buddy who he had an altercation with which led to somewhat of a fist fight.  The situation led to him almost going on a daytime judge TV show (Joe Brown I think) but he decided instead to deal with his side of the emotions from that by writing a song.  It’s a really powerful one too, found on his album The Ladder.

    He performed an acoustic version of The Ladder in the studio before taking off to explore the wide world of Abilene, Tx.  I don’t know where all he went but he did go to Hastings and picked up some albums on vinyl that he showed me later.  I love vinyl as well.  What a great piece of musical history that’s coming back.

    Andrew Belle at Monks


    The show later at Monks Coffeehouse was a great time.  I enjoyed getting to meet and talk with a lot of new people, many of whom traveled quite a ways to come to Abilene to see Andrew, including Chrystal from San Angelo and Michele who came all the way from Galveston.  That’s dedication and love for the arts there.  It’s always great talking with people who appreciate music so much that they will travel many hours in the car (and spend the gas it costs to get there at $3.40/gallon) to see a small show.  If you’re someone who does that as well, thank you.  It means a whole lot to the entire music community, and we really appreciate it.

    Cody Carnes performs and entertains at Monks on March 25, 2011

    Leading up to Andrew’s set was this great indie guitarist named Cody Carnes.  Cody had such a pleasant and fun stage presence, and he is a terrific performer.  He lives in Dallas and said he plans on coming back this way again soon.  I’m not a huge fan of pop-driven love songs, but his writing is very catchy and deep at the same time.  He worked with the crowd for some great audience participation on some of his songs.  The highlight for me was a musical recap of his K-12th grade years in music, which had him retracing the key songs he remembers from that time in his life, performed and sung in choruses, not all of which he remembered.  Some of the tunes were Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up,” Train’s “Drops Of Jupiter,” a Disney Channel band song I didn’t recognize (that’s not my bag at all), and the closer with a very sweet version of the theme song to The Fresh Prince Of Belle Air.



    Andrew Belle     and Cody Carne’s music is available on iTunes and other online platforms.  Check out their websites for more information.  I’ll post a few podcasts from our session shortly. Stay tuned.

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: ,,,,,,, | 3 Comments

  5. Does Music Have Color?

    March 25, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    One Sunday morning I was listening to some music and I had this series of thoughts that changed the way I think about stuff. It really was a profound moment, and something I’ve spent the past several weeks thinking more about. The initial thought was this: what if color did not exist. It wasn’t, “What if you couldn’t see color?” What if color didn’t exist? Think about that for just a moment.

    This led to what would life be like in a world with no color. It’s hard to imagine (as a sighted person) since we are not only surrounded by the brilliance of light and color, but also we live in an era of High Definition, where the colors we see are amplified in ways unlike any time in history. Add the shades of color to that, as well as tones and hues. The brilliance of color is a magnificent thing. The more I thought about how powerful color itself is, the more I appreciated it. Also, the more I thought of it, the harder it became to imagine life without it. This included life without shades, without black and white (which are both colors). The natural inclination is to just think about living in a world of black and white, like old movies. But there are tons of color in those movies. It’s like black and white photography, which has millions of colorful pieces in them, all in shades of black, white, and gray.

    Boston Symphony Orchestra

    This thought led to other thoughts. If there were no color, what would music be like? Would we have music if we couldn’t process color? This led to the wonderment of the senses. My conclusive (up to this point) thoughts are that as the eyes are amazed at the beauty of color, so are the ears by music. Music is the colorful expression of sound. Diving deep into it is easy, just take a band with several members like The Dave Matthews Band or Trans-Siberian Orchestra. All you need is an iTunes 30 second sample to hear the richness of flavor and color in each song with all the instruments involved. Go the the symphony and listen to the the colorful expressions of the strings, the woodwinds, percussion, piano, horns, choir, etc. Hear the color they play individually and then collectively as an orchestra. It’s one of the most amazing and beautiful things we can experience.

    Indie artist Andrew Belle

    But that’s easy to think about. Break it down a step further, or actually a few steps further. There’s just as much color with a songwriter and a guitar, it’s just interpreted in a different way. I love folk songwriters like William Fitzsimmons (who is a dynamite guitarist too), Brandi Carlile, Andrew Belle (performing tonight at Monks in Abilene), Joshua James, Rosi Golan and others. They don’t have a violin section, or horns, or the pieces of an orchestra or rock band with them. But there’s so much color in their music that it’s captivating of all the sense.

    So to really get into this subject, I’m inviting you to join me in the adventure of discovering musical color. This week on The Appetizer we’ll dive into the color of music. You’ll hear the artists mentioned in the previous paragraph and several others including Kelley McRae, The Rocketboys, Eric Hutchinson, Regina Spektor, Neko Case and more. Tune in. And join us on Facebook to talk more about the colors you see in music. I’d love to hear what you have to say about this.

     

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: | 2 Comments

  6. Music-Therapy for the Mind and Soul

    March 24, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    Wow, it’s been an insane week. Has it been that way for you?

    At the radio station we’re trying to raise money, and since we’re a nonprofit organization that’s much harder to do than it is to say. So, I’ve spent the week running around town doing all sorts of things and not getting to listen and write as much as usual. My apologies for not being able to do that.

    One saving grace in all this has been the beautiful and wonderful magic of music. When I was a little kid, I only listened to what my parents played in the car, which was a light rock station and I never knew who the artists were. I recognized the voices, so when I got older I could figure out who played those songs I loved so much years earlier. One act was Journey, another was Tears For Fears. When I was a child the only music I knew of was the soundtrack to Top Gun (though I didn’t know or recognize the individual artists), Debbie Gibson (my sister’s favorite), and the Beach Boys. I’d hear people talk about the magic of music and how it was such a part of their lives. I couldn’t understand that. I liked the Beach Boys, but there wasn’t anything magical about what they did. Maybe it’s magical to you, and if so I apologize. I was 7 when I had these thoughts.

    Kara Dubose and Alex Howard of The Light Parade

    Being older and more engrossed in the culture of music changes that perspective. Music is therapy. It’s that and so much more but in the midst of this crazy week it’s been a refuge unlike any other. I would explain how but you probably already know. You have your own experiences of the power of music to bring warmth, comfort, joy, inspiration, love, etc. etc. I can tell you who I listened to that’s had my head bopping and my toe tapping and allowed me to forget about the stuff that’s occupied my thoughts. Those people include Jimi Hendrix and his Are You Experienced album, David Ramirez, Ben Harper, The Light Parade, and Ben Folds. There’s a lot more but that list will have to suffice for now.

    On a side note, don’t miss Andrew Belle tomorrow if you’re in Abilene. He’s playing at Monks Coffeehouse at 7P with Cody Carnes and Paul Matta. It will be a great show. I’m going to get an exclusive session with Andrew at Flyboy Studios and I’ll post that stuff later. Come out it will be great to see you.

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: | No Comments

  7. Music For The Long Haul

    March 23, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    I’ve been listening to my iTunes DJ today (what used to be known as the random setting) and there were a few tracks that came up that were pretty long songs. Usually if a band, indie or popular, has a song that’s longer than 5 minutes and the label or artist isn’t pushing it hard for airplay, it gets missed by the greater music audience. But this can be a missed opportunity to hear some really solid tunes. Aside from being a music connoisseur, there’s other opportunities for people to indulge or have a reason to invest in a 8 minute (or longer) song, such as a road trip or long drive time to and from work. I know some people who are having to drive a lot more these days for work. They’ve told me they want some great music to listen to. So if that’s you, here’s some suggestions for longer tracks that aren’t boring and will certainly entertain for the long haul:

    Led Zeppelin-In My Time Of Dying
    I’d have to check but this is a perfect track for a modern western, or something they could have used somewhere in Young Guns or Tombstone. There’s a lot of slide electric guitar, with the drums coming in and out in a style and way only John Bonham could pull off. Like a lot of Zeppelin, the song itself changes its pacing, tempo and feel in a few different places. Jimmy Page is brilliant as always with varied riffs and solos, as well as a jamming melody all the way through. All in all, a great track that runs over 10 minutes and can be found on Physical Graffiti (remastered).

    Weird Al Yankovic- Trapped In The Drive Thru
    Let’s face it, there’s really no parody artist in the world or in the history of parody/satirical music that can compare to Weird Al. He in many ways created the parody music genre. There’s several others now in that line of entertainment. But there’s little comparison. He’s been doing this stuff since the late ’70s. One of my favorite albums of his (aside from the compilation discs like The Food Album) has to be Straight Outta Lynwood, where he mocks everything from Green Day, Usher, and Rage Against the Machine. One of my favorite tracks has to be this one, a parody of R Kelly’s “Trapped In The Closet.” Running nearly 11 minutes, the song tells a hilarious tale of a couple trying to figure out what they’re going to do for dinner. The best thing about the song is that the story told is probably something Al’s lived through, and you and I have as well. The video is pretty dang funny too.

    Santa Esmeralda-Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood
    This was a great track from the film Kill Bill. Running time is around 10 and a half minutes and much of it instrumental. This is a high tempo Latin-styled tune with classical guitar and some great Santana-esque electric guitar layered in as well as some smooth horn work. The song rises and falls through a few different places but is engaging throughout the whole thing.

    Guns N' Roses (From left) Steven Adler, Izzy Stradlin, Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan

    Guns N Roses-Estranged
    If you’re a fan of 80s rock or what some may call hair-band music, you’re already into GNR. If not, and you still like cool rhythm guitar work and amazing solos, you’re probably already into some GNR. Everybody knows the stellar work of lead guitarist Slash in tracks like November Rain and Sweet Child Of Mine. Estranged has some similar characteristics in dynamic, tempo and even the laying in of guitar solos. What is also has is a freshness that a lot of other GNR tracks lack. One thing I admit to not liking about a lot of Axel Rose writing is the inability or unwillingness to end a song. “Aye-ee-eye” is a line or gibberish sung waaaaay too much by Rose in his GNR days. But I don’t feel that with this song. And especially for a road trip, you’ll find yourself enjoying this song for the drive.

    There’s a lot more to this, but it will have to wait until a later time. Enjoy, and post your comments.

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: | 6 Comments

  8. Music For The Setting

    March 21, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    I spent some time in a coffee shop this weekend with some friends. There’s certain music appropriate for a coffee shop. I don’t think that the comfort and warm atmosphere of the coffee shop, regardless of where you are, can maintain that feel with something like death metal, thug rap, or even polka playing in the background. Probably the best music for the coffee shop setting is acoustic folk, which is also probably why you find a lot of singer-songwriters performing in such venues across the country.

    As we sat and drank the warm coffee on a relatively warm evening, Iron & Wine’s Our Endless Numbered Days played in its entirety. Many of the songs I haven’t listened to in a while. It made me appreciate the setting more. I thought for a brief moment what it was like before shop owners introduced music to their place of business. Was it more noisy with people’s movements, chairs skidding on the floor, and were people talking at a louder volume because it hadn’t the peace and tranquility that soft music provides? Just curious questions.

    Over the past few weeks, I’ve been diving into more and more songwriter folk music than normal. There’s something about it all that draws us in, all of us for different reasons. Perhaps the soft voice of Sam Beam (Iron & Wine) is what drew you in. Maybe it’s his relatively easy note picking on the guitar, or his melodies that for the most part remain constant throughout his songs. Or maybe it’s the vagueness of the stories that he sings, vague only until you dive into them and realize how he’s telling a deep, intricate, and sometimes painful story, without using the personal pronouns and descriptors most commonly used in language and other art forms.

    But Sam’s not alone in drawing people in. And neither is songwriter-folk music. There’s all sorts of settings where we find ourselves exposed to music of all kinds. From the experience, if we allow ourselves to take note of it, can walk away with something more than just a memory. We can experience something new, something old, something beautiful.

    Category Blog, Music, People | Tags: | 3 Comments

  9. What I’m Listening To Now

    March 21, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    Vinyl actually.  Yeah, I know it’s outdated by about 30+ years but I don’t really care.  The nostalgia of it is cool and the sound is pretty groovy too.  And I have recently come into the possession of about 40-50 full albums and about 100 or more 45 singles.  So I have plenty of music to check out.  I got the turntable over the weekend to fulfill the desire to hear all this music surrounding my office.

    The albums I have on vinyl, I don’t have in digital form, yet.  It’s a great way to discover music to pick up online, sort of a sample tasting before going with the platter, as they say.  Yesterday I dined on some Bruce Springsteen-The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle, as well as his live album from concerts recorded from 1975-1985.  I checked out a surprisingly cool David Lee Roth album called Skyscraper, the soundtrack to Rocky 4 (always a good one), Frank Sinatra’s Sinatra (greatest hits), Michael Jackson’s Thriller, and the 45 single to U2′s Vertigo, just to name a few.  I’ll dive into the 45s today.

    Other music I’ve stumbled upon over the past week include some cool indie covers of hiphop like Anya Marina’s cover of TI’s Whatever You Like, The Casual Media’s hip tune (before the recall) “In My Prius,” and a really nice track from Robert Francis called Junebug.  All these songs are on the way on the Appetizer.  Stay tuned.

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  10. The Faces Of Emerging Music

    March 19, 2011 by DGrantSmith

    Over the past 4 weeks on The Appetizer, we’ve explored just a slice of the many many new sounds out there. When I hear the terms “emerging artist” I know that usually means that this artist has been cultivating their craft and art for some time and now they’re beginning to be noticed by the greater music community. That’s an amazing thing. That doesn’t necessarily mean they just started making music.

    We’ve also heard some great musicians that are relatively unknown. Sometimes a great talent remains unknown to the larger nation-wide arts community for a while. Unknowns aren’t necessarily rookies either. They just haven’t either had the marketing do get their music out there or they haven’t been able to record it in a way that makes it marketable. Yes, even in the indie scope of music making, a record has to have a studio-quality sound in most regards before it will be given consideration for airplay. I could go into the reasons for that and what those qualities are, but that’s a different post.

    I’m going to conclude the series focused solely on emerging and unknown artists this week on The Appetizer, but that doesn’t mean that I’ll stop playing these people. Actually, if you’ve followed the show at all over the past year or more you’ll have noticed that I’ve taken quite a bit more time in the program to focus on emerging and unknown talent, as well as more of the indie music community. There’s a reason for that, and I think you know what it is.

    These are just some of the faces of emerging music that you’ll taste this weekend on the show. By no means is it all of them. Not even close. It would take about 6 months worth of shows just to cover the great sounds that came out of SXSW this past week and weekend. And that’s 1 concert week. Imagine how many other great sounds are out there.



    Brett Dennen


    He’s toured with Grace Potter and the Nocturnals and done benefit gigs with Jason Mraz. Now he’s taking a more prominent role in indie music with the release of Hope For The Hopeless and the upcoming release (April 12) Loverboy.






    Lucy Schwartz


    At the young age of 20, Lucy is already garnering national attention with a duet with Landon Pigg for the Shrek Forever and Ever soundtrack. Her 2010 release is titled Life In Letters.








    Kelley McRae


    Her latest album Highrises In Brooklyn was featured in a recent Appetizer podcast. She’s currently on a nationwide tour and just played at SXSW. She’s continuing to perform in house shows around the country.







    Husky Rescue


    An electronica band from Finland whose music has been featured on Hyundai’s “Think About It” advertisements, in a P&O TV commercial, while “Rainbow Flows” has been used for Beck’s Italian beer commercial.

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