Theresa Andersson – “Oh Mary” (Video)

Theresa Andersson is one of music’s most engaging and innovative performers. The spritely, one-woman band has amazed us in the past with her incredible live shows and engaging music videos. Now, the clip for “Oh Mary” combines the two, capturing Andersson on stage as she cobbles the bouncy spiritual together one blissful loop at a time.

The video is an excerpt from her new concert DVD, Theresa Andersson: Live at Le Petit, on sale exclusively through her website. The performance in question was recorded on February 8, 2010 at Le Petit Theatre in her hometown of New Orleans. Directed by Bridget Palardy, the concert film showcases Andersson’s boundless talent and unassuming charm.

If you think it’s amazing how much mileage Andersson gets out of a violin and some pedals, check out Live at Le Petit to see what happens when she throws all those guitars and drums into the mix.

Mumford & Sons Sell Out

English folk band Mumford & Sons seemed to come out of nowhere last year, capturing people’s attention and hearts with their sweeping debut, Sigh No More.

Blending the homespun sincerity of The Avett Brothers with the Celtic stomp of Flogging Molly, the London four-piece are an unlikely phenomenon. But thanks to the cathartic, pint-waving choruses of songs like “The Cave,” “Winter Winds” and “Little Lion Man,” the band are now the subject of adoration from both sides of the pond. Continue reading…

Review: Shout Out Louds; May 22, 2010; House of Blues, San Diego

Photo credit: Christian Haag

For their fifth anniversary, the San Diego branch of Chicago-based music venue House of Blues celebrated with an afternoon, all-ages show featuring Freelance Whales, Earl Greyhound, Shout Out Louds, and Ok Go. The “all-ages” aspect was evident in the awkward teenage poses of kids in the top balcony — and by what looked like an entire middle-school class, complete with chaperones, taking up the whole right corner. Continue reading…

Poetic Memory: Normandie Wilson (List)

Photo credit: MySpace

Fans of San Diego’s eccentric mariachi rockers Red Pony Clock have no doubt noticed Normandie Wilson, their fetching marimba player. The self-described “DIY Burt Bacharach-influenced pop” songstress is preparing her fourth solo album, The Flower Box, for release on July 1st. You can hear the first single, “Elevator,” on her MySpace page, or you can download the lovely “Goodbye” here (MP3).

It’s fitting that Wilson’s vocals soar like a bird over her swanky pop arrangements — she’s a member of the San Diego Audubon Society, and has dedicated herself to painting every single species of bird before she dies. We’re guessing that she also approves of (at least the first half of) our website’s name.

Wilson will be tearing herself away from the mixing board on June 23rd for a rare performance at the E Street Cafe in Encinitas, so be sure to catch her. In the meantime, be sure to check out her Poetic Memory below, in which she lists the albums and artists that ignited her love for music. Continue reading…

Review: The National; May 23, 2010; Spreckels, San Diego

Photos by Natalie Kardos

It’s official: The National are a great band.

The Cincinnati group’s newly released LP, High Violet, is their third stellar album in a row, completing the astonishing trilogy they began with 2005’s Alligator and 2007’s Boxer. Like those records, High Violet finds the band in peak form, maintaining a calculated mastery of their material that begins when the needle drops and doesn’t let up until the final track fades away. Continue reading…

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