Aw shit....
As excited as I am to go to Grand Rapids and celebrate the Mighty Narwhale's release of their debut album, I am a little sad that it is falling on the same date as this year's Ypsilanti Songwriting Festival. Why should I be so sad? Well friends, the two main guests are Paul Burch and Jon Langford. The last time Paul Burch was in the Ann Arbor/Ypsi area was 1998. He played the Screaming Dog, which was a shitty bar that lasted all of twenty seconds and was located where Live at P.J.'s is now on First Street, and he played there only weeks before I discovered his music at the record store where I was working (though it wouldn't have mattered because I was only 20 at the time and likely wouldn't have been able to get in). That's ten years ago, folks--1/3 of my life ago. I've been following him since and I've been blown away by most everything he's done. I have had the pleasure of seeing him twice, though both were at music festivals (SXSW and CMJ, both in 2001), so I don't imagine the sets he played were particularly usual. While most people are unfamiliar with him, especially here in the north, some of you indie kids might remember him as the vibraphonist for the sprawling Nashville band Lambchop.
Via Paul Burch, I became a big fan of weird-ass songwriter and poet Tom House, as well as author Tony Early, whose book, Jim the Boy, featured a soundtrack by Burch.
And then there's Jon Langford. He's a semi-legendary figure from the '70s and '80s UK punk scene via fronting the Mekons. I've been a Mekons fan for a long time, but I've been even more into Langford's recent solo work and was delighted a few years ago when the Found Magazine 7" I had contributed a track to had come out and also featured a track by Langford. His recent collaboration with Kat Ex from Dutch punk band (and fucking forward thinking motherfuckers) the Ex is worth several spins. Goddamn it. Langford rarely plays outside of Chicago, and when he does play Chicago, he doesn't tell anyone he's playing Chicago, so I've actually never seen him. He's also a great visual artist and you probably recognize his work if you're into some of the Bloodshot releases over the last decade or so.
Apparently the two have been playing a show here and there together over the last couple of years. This is like missing every birthday party ever.
Click to viewVia Paul Burch, I became a big fan of weird-ass songwriter and poet Tom House, as well as author Tony Early, whose book, Jim the Boy, featured a soundtrack by Burch.
And then there's Jon Langford. He's a semi-legendary figure from the '70s and '80s UK punk scene via fronting the Mekons. I've been a Mekons fan for a long time, but I've been even more into Langford's recent solo work and was delighted a few years ago when the Found Magazine 7" I had contributed a track to had come out and also featured a track by Langford. His recent collaboration with Kat Ex from Dutch punk band (and fucking forward thinking motherfuckers) the Ex is worth several spins. Goddamn it. Langford rarely plays outside of Chicago, and when he does play Chicago, he doesn't tell anyone he's playing Chicago, so I've actually never seen him. He's also a great visual artist and you probably recognize his work if you're into some of the Bloodshot releases over the last decade or so.
Apparently the two have been playing a show here and there together over the last couple of years. This is like missing every birthday party ever.