Aaron Davis

By Aaron Davis (for JHWeekly.com)

Oh, summer, how music junkies love thee
I love this time of year for its anticipation of the massive intake of summer concerts. Headliner bills are already taking shape, so a little sneak peak is in order. By now, you’ve heard about Teton Valley Foundation’s free Music on Main series in Victor and the lineup that it announced a few weeks ago. Thursdays starting June 28 and continuing through August 16 will feature headliners Andy Frasco and The UN, Blitzen Trapper, Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, March 4th Marching Band, Stone Foxes, Rosie Ledet and the Zydeco Playboys, and Carrie Rodriguez, supported by Mandatory Air, The Shook Twins, Jet Black Ninja Funkgrass Unit, Scott McDougall, The Alta Boys, Random Canyon Growlers, and the Bluegrass Camp Allstars.

The exciting news of masterful indie-pop artist Andrew Bird billed with the earnest rasp of singer-songwriter Sharon Van Etten was confirmed last week for August 18, on the back lawn of Center for the Arts. It will likely be billed as Caldera Festival. As for the Center Theater, the only show that has been announced thus far is Robert Earl Keen for June 3, confirmed by the interim talent buyers at 307 Live.
Of course both Grand Targhee Festival lineups are always highly anticipated.

Targhee Fest (July 13-15) will feature a killer mesh of [Read the rest of this entry]

By Aaron Davis (for JHWeekly.com)

Break it Yourself ANDREW BIRD  * * * *
Bird’s brand of intellectual pop is fascinatingly quirky, and certainly singular and artistic. He’s a tender constructor, coated by impeccable whistling, guitar and fiddle playing. The pitch-perfect space he lives in is often layered with subtle, yet complex rhythms and Break It Yourself manages to take another step in the effort of career progression. While I have, at times, considered Bird a musician’s musician, his scope here can be as accessible as the catchiest of pop hooks, or as fiercely thought-out as a Bach piece.

Being fairly familiar with a good portion of Bird’s nine studio albums since 1998’s vaudevillian-vibed Thrills, his niche lies in attaining grandiose within his arrangements. In this set, the presence of long, classical-influenced fiddle textures over muted fiddle picking is prevalent, while guitar takes a foundational role. Much of the material seems ideal for his solo performances in which he loops, creating layer after layer of depth and texture of what becomes his music lab.

A local artist friend commented, “His new album is incredible … seems musically calmer, yet lyrically more agitated than normal.” Agreed. Bird will perform at the Center for the Arts on August 18.

By Aaron Davis (for JHWeekly.com)

Jackson Hole, Wyo. – Spring’s first full moon night will be buttered up by Lake Tahoe’s most revved band as of late – Dead Winter Carpenters. Fresh from completing a successful Kickstarter campaign in which they raised over $12,000 towards the making of their sophomore release, Ain’t it Strange, the quintet formed and created its home base in Tahoe in early 2010 after a chance meeting at a California festival.

“A few of us were living in San Francisco and a few of us in Tahoe. We met through mutual friends and we were playing in two separate bands that were reaching their respective tenures,” explained guitarist/vocalist Jesse Dunn. “Tahoe has been absolutely amazing. The area has welcomed us with open arms and built a strong community around the band. We’ve been selling out our hometown venue, the Crystal Bay Club, and that support has been incredible.”

Joining Dunn, Dead Winter Carpenters stir the pot with five parts of creative force from [Read the rest of this entry]

By Aaron Davis (for JHWeekly.com)

Jackson Hole, Wyo. – G. Love comes off as a cool cat. Off the bat, he wants to know about the snow conditions.  The avid surfer grew up skiing, then switched to snowboarding, and is looking forward to hanging on the mountain for a day after his performance at Mountain Fest.

“My drummer [Jeffrey Clemens] doesn’t approve of me doing too many extreme sports while I’m on tour,” joked G. Love, a.k.a. Garrett Dutton. “One time when we had first put the band together in ‘93, I had skateboarded over to a rehearsal. When I went to leave I was like, ‘Where the fuck is my skateboard?’ Jeff was driving off, and he had taken my skateboard from me and I never saw it again.”

Mountain Fest is becoming a storied tradition. Think back to the inaugural 2006 Fest with Blues Traveler, then through the years with The Wreckers (hmm…), Michael Franti and Spearhead, Ozomatli, Grace Potter and The Nocturnals, and Katchafire. The opportunity to crush the slush, cheers the beers, and [Read the rest of this entry]