Eisley
Eisley have been favorites of mine since I first heard their debut‚ Room Noises‚ back in 2005. For the uninitiated‚ Eisley are a 5-piece pop-rock combo from Tyler‚ TX (3 sisters‚ a brother and their cousin). Though they're a terrific band all 'round‚ it's the singing -- by sisters Sherri and Stacy DuPree -- that truly sets them apart. I had a number of incredible Eisley experiences this year: I caught 3 shows in the Midwest in early May; 4 more shows and an in-store in California in mid-May; and a performance with a symphony orchestra and a choir (!) in Seattle in November. The latter was so over-the-top‚ I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at times‚ but all of the performances I saw them do this year were full of heart‚ commitment to their art and a celebration of the sheer joy in making music. And there really is no one in rock singing better these days‚ PERIOD.

Robert Forster - The Evangelist
Funny how circuitous the discovery of music can be. In May‚ Murry Hammond‚ friend and bassist of Old 97's‚ calls and asks if he can stop by the office with an Irish associate of his‚ Allison McGourty‚ from UK label LO-MAX Records. Allison is a mad fan of the 97's and offers her assistance in Europe. Our discussion leads to what our respective labels are working on. She mentions a new Kevin Ayers album which excites me as I'm a longtime fan of his. I give Allison some New West music and she promises to reciprocate and send the Ayers album and another new release by Robert Forster‚ former member of Australian band The Go-Betweens… a band I've always liked peripherally but had just never heard much of.

A couple of weeks later‚ a package arrives. I immediately put the Ayers' album on and like what I hear very much. A day or two passes‚ I keep eyeing the Forster album. It's called The Evangelist‚ has a kind of odd but cool cover. I put it on. It has a certain air‚ a thing about it that hits me right away. By song #8‚ "Don't Touch Anything‚" when I hear Forster sing these opening lines‚ "Now that I know how to control myself…" I'm GONE! For months‚ I'm convinced this is the best album I've heard all year. Then‚ as if all this wasn't enough‚ I discover Forster is coming to the states in September. He's only hitting 4 cities‚ NONE of which is L.A. So‚ a guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do -- I made plans to catch the SF show on September 10th‚ at one of my favorite venues‚ The Great American Music Hall. Playing with him were 2 latter day members of The Go-Betweens -- Adele Pickvance on bass/backing vocals and Glenn Thompson who‚ though he had been the drummer of The G-Bs‚ was playing guitar and singing backups. One Matthew Harrison very ably handled the drum seat. As Forster said when he came on stage alone to start the show‚ "It's going to be a long program‚" and that it was -- 2.5 hours‚ 26 songs. It was a remarkable performance. Adele is a fabulous bass player and an even better singer. I had also recently been turned onto Glenn's solo material (under the band name Beachfield)‚ so it wasn't surprising that his guitar playing and singing were also excellent. Forster himself was a hugely impressive‚ arty figure. It was the first show of the trip and there was a certain tentativeness to the first set -- the solo portion of 10 songs was a wee bit stiff but wonderful nonetheless‚ including opener "Something For Myself" (from the G-B's 2003 Bright Yellow Bright Orange album) and an unexpectedly early-in-the-set appearance of Evangelist album closer "From Ghost Town." He brought the band on one at a time beginning with Adele who joined him for "Clouds" (from G-B's 1988 album 16 Lover's Lane) and "Born To A Family" (from G-B's 2005 album Oceans Apart). And on it went. One fucking fabulous song after another. What a catalog he has! For me‚ being a recent convert‚ it was completely overwhelming. In my 40-some years of being a music nut‚ I have never had an experience like this: to discover an artist 30 years into their career with a collective catalog of 20-some albums -- 10 Go-Betweens‚ 5 Forster solo albums‚ plus assorted compilations‚ a DVD and many singles… not to mention the work of his late musical partner in The G-B's‚ Grant McLennan -- 4 solo albums and 3 by Jack Frost (Grant's collaboration with Steve Kilbey from the Church); I reiterate‚ how could I have missed all this??!! Tracking down and getting into all this material over the last 7 months has been indescribably cool (and pricey!). It's like‚ instant new favorite artist of all-time. Then‚ to be able to see the artist live for the first time in the very thick of my obsession‚ I just can't help but marvel at the synchronicity of it all!

But‚ back to the show‚ it really was just insanely good. There was an unmistakable camaraderie onstage. Being the first time the group had played in the states since Grant's death in 2006‚ it must have been quite emotional performing the G-Bs' songs‚ in particular for Glenn who did some of the guitar breaks Grant used to do. As the show progressed‚ the band got tighter and Forster loosened up‚ smiling frequently‚ adding hand gestures and body moves that were dramatic and humorous. His delivery veers from thoughtful to droll‚ his voice at times conjuring his heroes -- Tom Verlaine‚ Richard Hell‚ Lou Reed. I hear some Neil Young in there too. Set highlights? Where to begin?! From the Forster albums -- "If It Rains‚" "Demon Days‚" "The Evangelist‚" "121‚" "Heart Out To Tender"; From The G-Bs' -- "Dive For Your Memory‚" "Spring Rain‚" "Darlinghurst Nights‚" "Love Is A Sign‚" "Head Full Of Steam" and the totally rockin' set closer‚ "Here Comes The City." Two encores later‚ Robert said‚ "This is our last song‚ one that Grant and I both loved…" and they closed with San Francisco band The Beau Brummels' "Don't Talk To Strangers." A few of us who hung out after the show were lucky to meet and talk to the band who were as cordial as can be. Robert‚ Adele and Glenn signed my copy of The Evangelist and I left‚ happily dazed‚ with all of my expectations exceeded.

Angus & Julia Stone - A Book Like This
Speaking of circuitous‚ Angus & Julia were first brought to my attention by Paul Kelly. When he arrived for the abovementioned dinner party‚ he graciously gave Jennifer a bottle of wine‚ then handed me a CD saying‚ "This is one of my favorite albums of last year and I thought you might like it too." Well‚ that turns out to be the understatement of the century. It was a night or two before I put the album on for the first time. Opening track "The Beast" drew me in immediately. I loved the phrasing on the chorus but couldn't decipher the words. I searched online and found the lyrics. The simple couplet goes: "Just don't be runnin' late/Are you on time today?" But the singer (who sounds very effeminate so I naturally assume it's Julia) doesn't pronounce the "Ju" in "Just‚" so it comes out like this: "…st don't be running late …" and‚ for some reason‚ that nuance tickles me to no end! The second song‚ "Here We Go Again‚" comes on and I chuckle at myself… it has a lovely acoustic guitar finger-picking part in the intro‚ then‚ what's clearly a female voice enters the picture‚ but different than the voice on the first song… I think‚ "Hmmm‚ that's funny‚ that must have been Angus singing the first track! Months later‚ I'm still in awe of this enchanting record -- there are elements of Nick Drake‚ Fairport Convention‚ Joni Mitchell and‚ I have no idea if Angus is a Jefferson Airplane fan but‚ some of the acoustic guitar breaks remind me of Jorma Kaukonen/Volunteers-era ('69) Airplane. And this might be a stretch but Julia's off-times exaggerated sounding cockney conjures Hunky Dory period David Bowie to me. Anyway‚ it's a beautiful‚ magical‚ at times whimsical kind of folk-rock and I can't recommend the album more highly.

Wow‚ there were so many fantastic aspects of the year. My top highlights would be (in no particular order)

2. Releasing No Consequence with Ropeadope was huge for me. As long as I've been into improvised groove-based music‚ Ropeadope has been one of my favorite labels. Seeing an album of ours placed alongside groups I've been into for years has been a humbling experience.

4. Femi Kuti's release of Day by Day was (for me) the most anticipated release of the year (along with Akoya Afrobeat's P.D.P.). Day by Day was released in mid-November (11/18/08 -- same day NC dropped on Ropeadope) and there was only 1 copy sent to the state of VT. I called every record store in the state to find it (didn't preorder‚ wanted to support the local vendors). Turned out that Buch Spieler in Montpelier was the only one intelligent enough to order the album. They got 1 of 'em‚ and I dropped what I was doing and hauled ass to go get it. The whole day reminded me of trying to find The Story of the Ghost back in the day.

5. Since I just did a similar rant for the Ropeadope folks‚ I figured I'd drop my top 5 albums of the year for you too. Again‚ no particular order: Erykah Badu -- New Emerykah Vol. 1; Femi Kuti -- Day by Day; Marco Benevento -- Invisible Baby; Beck -- Modern Guilt; Bad Suit -- Bad Suit.

Howard Wuelfing -- Howlin' Wuelf Media
 

photo by Amy Yates Wuelfing

This was a great‚ long show focused on her latest album‚ some yet-to-be recorded material and some Phillips chestnuts. She had a wonderful band that provided all the instrumental colors she could want.

Wire performing live at Johnny Brenda's
Wire's ability to re-invent themselves again and again over the years is nothing short of astounding. And as they close each chapter of their history it seems impossible that they'll ever come back with anything as substantial and innovative... and yet they've done it 4 times now. I really didn't know what to expect from this show but to see Wire in a venue this intimate was a prospect impossible to pass. And to my shocked delight they wound up performing songs from their first three albums as well as the most recent two. Their playing was tight‚ powerful and exuberant as hell.

The Watersons -- The Definitive Collection
I tend to read a lot about music and to occasionally wind up obsessing over particular periods or music scenes and scoping them out as much as possible. In recent years the British folk revival/rock scene of the 60's has utterly fascinated me. I'm most intrigued by the fact that almost none of the names I come across are familiar despite my having been a music freak for decades and often an avowed Anglophile. Joe Boyd's "White Bicycles" book mainly provided backstory on artists that I'd recently already come across but there were a few mysteries -- primarily The Watersons. I stumbled across this collection in a local record store‚ picked it up and was wowed. None only is this breathtaking traditional British folk but one notices the sizeable impact that their vocal harmonies and repertoire had on better known acts like Fairport Convention and the Incredible String Band.

I came across a lot of other great music but a LOT of this came from folks I wound up working with and to mention those would be a major conflict of interest.

1. Seeing Nathan Moore for the first time at High Sierra. First late night with Surprise Me Mr. Davis and then solo the next day. What a writer. And then such a crazy front man with The Slip backing him up!!?! I was like "Are you kidding me?" I was floored.