Delete your Ticketmaster app and go see Black Flag

Greg Ginn, founder of Black Flag, performs at Gas Lamp in Des Moines, Iowa, on April 26. Photo by Fred Love

Corporate rock still sucks, and Black Flag is still the best antidote to the stage-managed Ticketmaster thralls headlining your local arena.

The seminal hardcore band set out on a major tour to mark the 40^th anniversary of ‘My War,’ a landmark of independent rock that saw Black Flag break all the rules they’d just codified scarcely three years earlier on their debut full-length. The My War 40^th anniversary tour hit Gas Lamp in Des Moines on April 26, and I made sure to get to the venue early enough to stake out a spot right next to guitarist Greg Ginn’s corner of the stage so I could get as close as possible to one of the true giants of underground rock and roll.

Mission accomplished.

My wife and I literally had to step aside so Ginn, who founded the band back in 1976, could make his way to the stage and remove his guitar from its road case. We spent the entire performance inches from Ginn, staring straight up at him as he swayed back and forth in front of his megalithic amplifier. I didn’t take the time to do a systematic head count, but the venue felt packed and was certainly near capacity, which is about 200.

Long story short, I sat at the feet of a punk icon for a $25 general admission ticket. The corporate rock industry just can’t compete with that kind of experience. Every week seems to bring a new wave of stories about outraged fans getting fleeced by Ticketmaster for Bruce Springsteen nosebleeds or whatever. Skip all that. Delete the Ticketmaster app. You can have a far more rewarding experience at your local rock club for a lot less money. I promise.

Black Flag performed two sets on the evening. The first consisted of the entirety of ‘My War,’ while the second set drew on the rest of Black Flag’s legendary catalog and included some of the greatest anthems in the punk canon.

Mike Vallely, a professional skateboarder who now lives in Des Moines, has served as the lead singer for several years now. It takes serious focus and intensity to credibly channel the aggressive energy of Black Flag, and Vallely delivers. He contorts his muscular frame in time with Ginn’s twisted riffs and coils like a snake near the kick drum between songs as if replenishing his energy for the next number. Sweat rolled down his shaved head from the opening moments of the first set.

Mike Vallely delivers a high-energy performance as frontman for Black Flag. Photo by Fred Love.

Obviously, anyone who takes on frontman responsibilities for a ‘My War’ anniversary tour is going to receive comparisons to Henry Rollins, who sang on the record. I wouldn’t say Vallely possesses the same combination of menace and charisma that made Rollins one of the most recognizable faces in the history of heavy music, but Vallely more than holds his own.

But let’s talk about Greg Ginn a little more, because this stuff’s important. Not only did Ginn form Black Flag and mastermind the band’s direction through the decades, he also founded SST, one of the most important independent record label in the history of rock. At its height, SST was a cultural powerhouse that released some of the most influential rock music of the 1980s, laying the foundation for the Nineties alternative rock explosion. According to Jim Ruland’s “Corporate Rock Sucks: The Rise and Fall of SST Records,” Ginn burned some bridges and made some questionable business decisions, and SST today is little more than an online storefront for merch and reprinted vinyl.

It’s my sincere hope that, despite the controversy Ginn generates in some quarters, he’ll get his due as one of the true visionaries of independent music. The sheer scope of the revolutionary music he helped to release as the founder of SST will melt your face. Soundgarden, Bad Brains, the Descendents, Sonic Youth, Husker Du, the Minutemen, the Screaming Trees and Dinosaur Jr. all spent time on SST and benefited from the label’s imprimatur. He played a crucial role in the DIY ethos that drove punk and indie music of the 80s and 90s, and he flouted the rules of the music business at every step in the process.

Take Black Flag’s first few records as an example. With “Damaged,” the band’s first full-length album released in 1981, Black Flag created a blueprint for hardcore punk that would inspire countless copycats across the country. And it’s easy to see why. Anthems like “Rise Above,” “Six Pack,” and “TV Party” deliver the fist-pumping speed, volume and aggression that define hardcore. Then, less than three years later, Black Flag would turn the loud-and-fast formula on its head with ‘My War.’ Or, more accurately, with side 2 of ‘My War.’

The first side of ‘My War’ delivers the kind of hardcore punk fans expected from Black Flag. The second side, however, gets considerably slower and weirder. Black Flag’s first official release, the Nervous Breakdown EP, features four songs with a combined runtime of just 5:23. Of the three tracks on side 2 of ‘My War,’ the shortest song clocks in at 6:02. That’s positively interminable compared to the band’s earlier output. The riffs churn downhill like a slow-motion avalanche. They’re brutal and unstoppable – and they owe more to Sabbath than to the Ramones. It’s no wonder the album proved polarizing among the punk scene at the time.

The reissued copy of ‘My War’ that I’ve been spinning compulsively in recent weeks. Ordered from the SST Superstore. Sounds good to my heathen ears.

Side 2 of ‘My War’ opened new possibilities for the punk world, and its influence can be heard all over the Pacific Northwest bands that would take over the world in just a few short years. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say you can draw a direct line from Black Flag’s “Nothing Left Inside” and “Scream” to “Floyd the Barber” and “Sifting” on Nirvana’s ‘Bleach’ or pretty much everything on ‘Gluey Porch Treatments’ by Melvins.

Black Flag’s double-barrel sets at Gas Lamp last week showcased the impressive scope of the band’s development and vision. It was a little like watching the Beatles perform Sgt. Pepper’s in their brightly colored psychedelic regalia, take a 20-minute break and then come back onstage in black ties and moptops to perform “I Wanna Hold Your Hand.” Maybe that comparison is anathema to the punk purists of the world, but that would be in keeping with Ginn’s willingness to thumb his nose at punk strictures. Whiplashing between ‘My War’ and a second set of punk classics reinforces just how much Ginn wrote and rewrote the rules of underground rock.

What could be more punk?

Fred’s Best Music of 2022

If you’re anything like me, you compulsively read those end-of-the-year music lists to see what songs, albums and artists you missed the previous 12 months. I thought I’d do something similar, but rather than categorize everything by genre or rank everything one through ten, I just made up some categories so I can talk about music I liked in 2022 without having to worry about coherent organization or smooth transitions. I admit it’s kinda arbitrary. But that doesn’t mean I’m wrong.

BEST COWPUNK ALBUM

Sarah Shook & The Disarmers – Nightroamer

This album covers more sonic territory than either of Sarah Shook & The Disarmers’ two prior albums. As on previous efforts, Nightroamer boasts a handful of quality cowpunk country songs, such as the waltz-timed title track, that simultaneously embrace and subvert the conventions of traditional country music. But the pop earworm “I Got This” and garage rocker “Talkin’ to Myself” expand the musical palette and give the album a sense of growth and experimentation.

BEST TRIPLE ALBUM

Zach Bryan – American Heartbreak

Look, triple albums shouldn’t even exist. And double albums probably shouldn’t either, for that matter. But this one almost makes a believer out of me. After spending time with it, I’m hard pressed to find much filler among these 34 songs. And for an artist having a real moment on country radio, the production of this album is refreshingly understated, which only adds to its stark emotional impact. Many of the songs completely lack a rhythm section and leave all the emotional heavy lifting to acoustic guitars and Bryan’s impassioned vocals. If this album’s success foreshadows the direction of the country music industry, I wouldn’t complain. Well, that’s not true. I reserve the right to complain, but I’ll probably do it a lot less than I have these last few years.

BEST SPRINGSTEEN REFERENCE

Nikki Lane – “First High”

“First High” was the lead single from Lane’s excellent album Denim & Diamonds. The song tells Lane’s rock-and-roll origin story set to a greasy headbanger of a groove. The lyric “I tried cheering for the Wolverines/I took a shot at being pageant queen/But I wound up hanging with the punks at the park” encapsulates much of Lane’s appeal. She’s planted one foot in the world of fashion and glamour (see her collaboration with Lana Del Rey) while the other foot can’t help but slink off the beaten path with the leather jacketed rebels and misfits. The Springsteen reference in question begins the chorus: “Take me back to the first dream/501 blue jeans tighter than goddamn Springsteen.” You need only take one look at the cover of Born in the U.S.A. to sense the energy Nikki Lane’s got on this song.

BEST MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO A ROCK CLUB

Drive-By Truckers – “Welcome 2 Club XIII”

Seedy rock clubs are my natural habitat, and the title track to DBT’s latest album drops the listener right into the middle of the local scene, complete with Foghat cover bands, girls with artificial tans and plenty of cheap coke. The tune pays tribute to a real club where DBT songwriters Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley cut their teeth with their first band, Adam’s House Cat. Here’s how Hood sets the scene:

“Welcome to Club XIII/All the usual suspects are acting weird/The bartenders can’t be bothered/We’re all glad you’re here

“The door guy’s got an attitude/The disco light’s obscene/The crowd is sometimes rude/Welcome to Club XIII”

I’ve spent a more than a few nights “acting weird” in joints like Club XIII, and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

SICKEST RIFFS AND GUITAR TONE

Marcus King – Young Blood

Something about the sound of an incendiary electric guitar played through a dimed tube amp just makes me start sweating, and I have to reapply my Old Spice every time I listen to Marcus King. Maybe you spotted King thrashing his Gibson ES-335 with Zac Brown during this year’s CMAs or caught his performance of “Hard Working Man” on the Tonight Show. If you did, you no doubt noticed his blues-rock guitar heroics and soulful vocals.

I can’t pretend there’s anything revolutionary here. But this album’s full of apocalyptic guitar playing and propulsive rhythms sure to steam up the lenses of your glasses.

Honorable mention in the sick riffs category goes to Larkin Poe’s Blood Harmony.

THE BEST COUNTRY MUSIC YOU’LL HEAR IN 2022 I DON’T CARE WHAT ELSE YOU LISTENED TO DON’T TRY TO CONVINCE ME IT WAS LUKE COMBS OR WHATEVER I DON’T CARE

Live Forever: A Tribute to Billy Joe Shaver

Billy Joe Shaver is among the very best songwriters in the history of American music. If you don’t believe me, ask Bob Dylan, who riffed memorably on Shaver’s “Willie the Wandering Gypsy and Me” in his recent book “The Philosophy of Modern Song.” (Dylan calls the tune “a riddle” that “seems to have ulterior motives.”)

This year, an all-star Americana cast got together to record new versions of some of Shaver’s finest compositions, resulting in Live Forever: A Tribute to Billy Joe Shaver. George Strait took on the aforementioned “Willie the Wandering Gypsy and Me.” Miranda Lambert turned in a stomping version of “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal.” And Steve Earle’s grunting and groaning vocal delivery was tailor made for the outlaw lament “Ain’t No God In Mexico.”

But I’ve got to talk to you about Willie Nelson’s version of “Live Forever,” which kicks off this album and is my favorite song of 2022. Nobody knows how many more years we’ll have Willie around. I hate writing that, but that’s just facts. So when he sings “I’m gonna live forever/I’m gonna cross that river/I’m gonna touch forever now,” it’s like a salve applied directly to my anxious soul. This is truly a generous song that can provide real comfort for those struggling with the fleeting nature of life. It’s not an exaggeration to say that listening to this song the first time was a spiritual experience for me and a highlight of my year.

Willie received a Grammy nomination in the category of best country solo performance for “Live Forever,” in addition to three other nominations. So let’s just all agree that he should win every award for which he’s nominated and make sure we take some time to recognize his monumental contributions to music and humanity at large.

An ode to Patrick Haggerty of Lavender Country

NOTE: This is a repost of a message I wrote on Facebook on Nov. 4, shortly after Haggerty’s death.

Patrick Haggerty of Lavender Country performs at London Underground in Ames on March 13, 2022. Photo by Fred Love

One of the most courageous voices in country music went silent this week with the death of Patrick Haggerty.

Under the moniker Lavender Country, Haggerty wrote and recorded what is widely regarded as the first openly gay country album nearly 50 years ago. The songs on that album are empathetic, tough, funny and unflinchingly honest – just like the artist who created them. The album honored the musical conventions of traditional country music, but its subject matter was decades ahead of its time and so it vanished into obscurity until a 2014 reissue landed with an audience ready to embrace its message. Haggerty didn’t record a follow up to the original Lavender Country album until the release of “Blackberry Rose,” another gorgeous collection of queer country songs, earlier this year. Haggerty died on Monday at age 78 after suffering a stroke.

My path crossed with Haggerty’s on March 13, 2022, just as the tour for his new album was getting underway. An all-star troupe of queer country and Americana artists accompanied him on the tour, including Austin Lucas, Lizzie No and Paisley Fields. The tour was stopping at London Underground, a pub on Main Street in Ames that does not have a dedicated PA system. I was invited to play an opening set and was asked to provide a PA for the show. I was familiar with Lavender Country and knew Haggerty’s story since Lavender Country played the Maximum Ames Music Festival several years earlier in the wake of the successful reissue of the 1973 album. As a straight man, however, I wasn’t sure I was the right fit for an opening act, and I worried that I’d be intruding in a space that wasn’t mine. On the other hand, if the venue didn’t find a PA, the show couldn’t go on at all. That wouldn’t do, so I said yes.

But here’s the thing. I’m not a sound engineer by any stretch of the imagination. What I know about running sound, I’ve learned from running a PA at my own gigs. I know what works for me, but I’ve received zero professional training. The thought of running sound for Haggerty and his tourmates, who have played thousands upon thousands of gigs combined, sent my anxiety into overdrive.

I shouldn’t have worried. Haggerty and co. showed me great kindness and patience throughout the evening. I became instant fans of all the musicians on the tour and have enjoyed following their work in the months since.

As for Haggerty, his performance was spellbinding. London Underground is a small space. Musicians set up in a corner near the main entrance, meaning patrons pass within inches of the band as they come and go. With virtually no separation between the audience and the performers, Haggerty, clad in his trademark lavender cowboy hat and western shirt, stepped into the crowd and sang to members of the audience, making direct eye contact with them and even offering the microphone to fans who knew the words to his songs.

“I Can’t Shake the Stranger Out of You,” perhaps his best-known composition about the barriers to intimacy in queer relationships, took on deeper resonance for me as I watched people in the crowd sing along with Haggerty into his microphone, causing the entire room to get heavy with complex emotions. As a straight guy, I can’t say I’ve experienced exactly the kind of relationship dynamics described in the song, but the performance guided me into the emotional core of the song’s truth and made it universally relatable, which is precisely what great art does.

At one point, I expressed to Haggerty my doubts that I should be opening the show. He waved my reservations aside and insisted I play some songs. He even offered up his band to accompany me on some classic country tunes, a proposal I accepted with great enthusiasm. When we launched into the Hank Williams tune “Mind Your Own Business,” Haggerty grabbed a microphone and sang along with me. Later, he told me he would send me a list of classic country songs he loves so we could play an entire set together the next time he came through Ames.

Another memory I treasure from that evening was spending time with J.B., Haggerty’s husband of many years. While the band ate dinner in the back, J.B. and I sat together at a table near one of the pub’s few windows, watching people go by on Main Street. He was full of light and kindness, and he complimented one my original songs. That meant a lot to me.

Between sets, I got the opportunity to talk to Haggerty one on one, and I asked him why he chose country music as his preferred medium. He responded matter-of-factly that he loved country music deeply, that he grew up listening to country radio stations while working in the barn on his family’s Washington dairy farm. The sound of country music was simply woven into the fiber of his consciousness. I told him that it was the same for me. I told him I couldn’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t know the sound of Merle Haggard’s voice, and that something about Hank Williams’s songwriting took hold of me in elementary school and never let go. He nodded like I’d told him something he already knew.

I spent only a few hours with Patrick Haggerty, but those hours turned out to be highly meaningful in my life as a musician. I’m grateful I got to perform with him and to watch him perform. I’m grateful for his courage and talent. And I’m grateful for the exquisite country songs he left behind.

Glimmers of hope: A legislative update on effort to #SaveOurStages

The economic calamity wrought by the coronavirus threatens to devastate live music across the country. In case you think that sounds hyperbolic, a June survey of members of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) found that 90% of live music venues could close within six months without additional government help.

That ought to chill music fans everywhere to the bone. But a few proposals are circulating in Congress that could provide help, some of which have received the support of Iowa lawmakers.

Here’s a quick rundown of the proposals and who’s backing them:

The RESTART Act – This legislation would amend and extend the previously approved Paycheck Protection Program with a focus on small and midsize businesses. That would be good news for music venues, and NIVA has backed this legislation. Sen. Michael Bennett, a Colorado Democrat, is the lead sponsor in the Senate. Rep. Jared Golden, a Maine Democrat, sponsored the bill in the House. The proposal has received bipartisan backing, including from Sen. Joni Ernst, an Iowa Republican who has signed on as a cosponsor. Rep. Cindy Axne (D-Iowa) and Rep. Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa) have cosponsored the companion bill in the House. This proposal was assigned the bill numbers S. 3814 in the U.S. Senate and H.R. 7481 in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Save Our Stages Act – This bill would establish federal grants specifically for live music venues, performance spaces and theaters. It was introduced in the Senate by the bipartisan team of Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar and Texas Republican John Cornyn. The narrow focus of the bill on performance venues makes it a more direct option to keep venues afloat. Dave Loebsack is currently the only Iowan in Congress cosponsoring the legislation . The Save Our Stages Act was assigned the bill numbers S. 4258 in the Senate and H.R. 7806 in the House.

The ENCORES Act – This bill would allow small music venues to recoup some of the losses they sustained due to ticket refunds from canceled events by providing a tax credit for half the value of refunded tickets. This bipartisan bill was cosponsored by Rep. Rob Kind (D-WI) and Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA). The bill was assigned the number H.R. 7735, and Congress.gov does not list any Iowa cosponsors currently.

An overlooked aspect of this issue is the plight of publicly owned venues, such as Stephens Auditorium in Ames, which is owned by Iowa State University. Federal pandemic relief programs have excluded publicly owned venues to date, despite the fact these venues were among the first to close and will be among the last to reopen. Stephens Auditorium, named Iowa’s building of the 20th century by the Iowa chapter of the American Institute of Architects, is one of the crown jewels of Ames and absolutely deserves federal help during this unprecedented crisis. Publicly owned venues depend on ticket sales for their long-term operations, and the pandemic has crippled their business just as it has for privately owned venues.

Sen. Ernst and more than a dozen of her Senate colleagues signed a formal letter to Senate leadership asking that publicly owned venues become eligible under the Paycheck Protection Program.

“Often, publicly-owned venues are established by a political subdivision of a state or local government, but they fund their operations through event revenue like privately-owned venues,” the letter reads. “Moreover, they typically receive little to no funding from government sources because they are not included in state or local government budgets.”

This is a common-sense adjustment to an existing federal program designed to help Americans get through the financial strains of the pandemic and ought to become law.

So what can we do to support this effort? NIVA has a terrific “take action” resource on its website that allows you to send letters of support to your members of Congress. Beyond that, musicians and music fans should get active. Read up on the proposals, check in with your local music venues and let people know on social media this issue is important for the health of live music.

Virtually everyone, no matter their political affiliation, has enjoyed live music in their lives. Let’s work together to save our stages, save public venues and keep the music going!

NOTE: This post was updated on Aug. 13 to note that Rep. Dave Loebsack has cosponsored the RESTART and Save Our Stages acts.

Iowa Music You Gotta Hear: ‘Dream On’ by TWINS

101134804_342061003425902_8355098802595561472_n TWINS, the longstanding Cedar Valley rock band with a reputation for electrifying power pop, took a hard turn on their latest album, Dream On. Or, rather, a softer turn.

And principal songwriter Joel Sires says it was all by design.

The new nine-song collection, officially released on June 5, dials down the electricity while pushing Sires’ acoustic guitar and lyrics to the forefront. The songs retain the hooky melodic sense of previous TWINS efforts, and the arrangements are still lush and atmospheric. But the new approach showcases a vulnerability that may have been overshadowed by the bombast of the old TWINS. The result is a delicate and sometimes haunting album that draws the listener closer, like a whisper you have to strain to hear.

“I wrote a good majority of the record alone on my acoustic and I figured the songs just translated better with the acoustic being sort of the backbone of the recorded versions,” Sires told Rock Roads. “I also specifically wanted it in the songs to make it as hard of a turn as possible from our last record, “Square America.”

“Buffalo Snow,” the first single released from the album, accurately previews what listeners can expect from much of the record. A carefully plucked figure on an acoustic guitar does most of the lifting on the introduction while the rhythm section — Luke Sires on drums and Devin Ferguson on bass — remains tastefully restrained throughout. Toby Sires’ lead guitar enriches the atmosphere without stepping on the vocal. An organ, played by newcomer Ben Randall, thickens the sound and adds warmth.

“I just wanna be your vapor trail/Follow you around like a tail,” Sires sings.

The theme of life’s impermanence pops up again and again on the album. Sires’ lyrics make use of fleeting imagery like shooting stars and fresh-fallen snow. Blink and you’ll miss it. Or, at least, blink and it won’t be the same as it was before. The delicate arrangements enhance the ethereal, misty nature of the songwriting.

“Reminds Me of the Rose” is perhaps the high point of the album, featuring rich harmonies and a dynamic structure that climaxes with Sires chanting “You remind me of the rose” as the instruments swell around him. The song urges the listener to slow down and appreciate the miraculous beauty of the everyday, which, like the rose, never lasts long.

Flashes of the old TWINS shine through the wintry clouds at various junctures. “So Far Gone,” the second single released ahead of the album’s debut, features a Stonsey groove that’s reinforced by an overdriven anti-solo. “Passenger,” a bouncy slice of pop rock with a singalong chorus and lyrics about “hangin’ round a burger shack,” recalls previous TWINS efforts as well.

TWINS recorded the album at Chandler Limited in Shell Rock. Recording close to home allowed the band to stretch out and take their time, though Sires said the band worked to preserve a live feel as much as possible.

“We have polished off the rough edges on previous records, and I knew this time I didn’t want to do that at all, if possible,” Sires said. “Because that’s the type of band we are. Sort of like Charlie Brown and the Peanuts Gang if they had a garage band.”

Dream On will be available on streaming services on June 5. Pre-order a physical copy on the TWINS Bandcamp page.

Independent music venues are hanging on by a thread. Let’s not let them go without a fight.

1600px-Paradise_Rock_Club,_Boston_MA — Paradise Rock Club, Boston. Photo by John Phelan and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported without change to the original work.

Friends, I love rock clubs. I love squeezing up to the stage, shoulder to shoulder with a mob of fellow music fans. I love hearing the squeal of an electric guitar through the mains of a big sound system. I love getting as close as possible to my favorite artists, watching and learning as they ply their trade onstage.

I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I say the pandemic threatens to annihilate that experience for the foreseeable future. Independent music venues face extinction, and we have to do everything we can to see them through this crisis.

Virtually all music venues, from stately auditoriums to sticky dives, have had to scrap their entire calendars, and their futures are stuck in limbo.

Here’s a passage from a May 6 New York Times article by Ben Sisario:

“This is an existential crisis,” said Dayna Frank, the owner of First Avenue in Minneapolis, a regular spot for Prince, the Replacements and Hüsker Dü that opened in 1970. “Independent venues have no financial backstop. We do not have corporate parents. There are no financial resources we can turn to.”

The same article imagines a future in which concert venues will have to reduce their capacities and install privacy shields in whatever post-pandemic world emerges. One venue owner quoted in the article floats the idea of dividing audiences into sections for fans who can prove they possess antibodies for the novel coronavirus – a possible indication of immunity – and sections for those who don’t have antibodies.

In Iowa, Codfish Hollow in Maquoketa has launched a GoFundMe in the hope of raising $25,000 to help pay bills. Lefty’s Live Music in Des Moines recently completed a GoFundMe campaign that brought in over $5,000.

From Codfish Hollow’s GoFundMe page: “Our monthly bills are still due and although, as of right now, the few shows we had scheduled are postponed and not cancelled, we still have to pay the bands and the bills. We have no way to make money without people in the barn – alcohol, merch and ticket sales are our only sources of revenue.”

More than 1,200 venues and promoters have banded together since the beginning of the pandemic to form an advocacy group called the National Independent Venue Association. NIVA is currently lobbying Congress for federal help for independent venues as the House and Senate hammer out another round of stimulus spending.

I spent several years working as a communications director for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, so I’ve seen my share of politics. I changed careers shortly after the birth of my son, and I’ve limited my political activity since then to voting and reading the news every day. But seeing something I so dearly love dangling by the thinnest of threads motivated me to reenter the political realm. I sent letters to each member of my congressional delegation urging them to remember independent music venues when they consider further stimulus spending as a result of the pandemic.

I don’t know what difference it will make, but my conscience demanded it. If you love live music like I do, please consider doing the same.

There will always be music as long as there are humans, and I take comfort in that. But I’m far less confident about the future of local rock clubs, which are among my preferred ways of experiencing music. I can’t imagine my community without dedicated spaces for musicians and music fans to gather and celebrate. Iowa stands to lose much of its cultural and artistic tradition if we don’t act to help our independent music venues survive this pandemic.

Discover your New Favorite Band during the Maximum Ames Music Festival

diegodanger — Diego Danger plays at Morning Bell during the 2018 Maximum Ames Music Festival. That’s the author seated at right, realizing that Diego Danger had just become his New Favorite Band. Photo by James Dean.

Perhaps my favorite thing about the Maximum Ames Music Festival is the high likelihood I’ll discover my New Favorite Band.

The festival, which runs from Thursday through Sunday at multiple venues all over downtown Ames, has featured a sweeping range of genres and artists throughout its existence. The festival has hosted rock hall of famers, grunge legends and country trailblazers. It’s drawn traditional folk troubadours and EDM experimenters. Virtuosos and beginners, nationally touring headliners and local heroes.

And this year’s lineup, the ninth iteration of the festival, follows suit. Indie rock. Americana. Power pop. Dance. Jazz. Blues. All that adventurous music can be yours for the cost of a $20 wristband. And, even if you can’t afford that, the festival slate includes a half dozen free and all-ages offerings. There’s really no excuse to stop you.

So here’s my challenge to all my fellow central Iowa music fans: Discover your New Favorite Band during the 2019 Maximum Ames Music Festival.

Last year, my New Favorite Band was Diego Danger, a swampy blues outfit currently from Omaha. They played at Morning Bell, a coffee shop on Main Street that needed a PA system brought in for the festival. I volunteered mine and loaded it in that evening without any knowledge of the acts that would be playing Morning Bell. I assumed, judging strictly by the name, that Diego Danger was a solo act, probably a singer-songwriter strumming an acoustic guitar. To my surprise, when it was time for Diego Danger’s set, a handful of guys set up drums, electric guitars and keys. Then they let loose with a groovy set of bluesy originals.

MAMF9 Program Full Color Blue-centerfold — The full schedule for the 2019 Maximum Ames Music Festival

The blues does this thing to me that no other musical form manages. A good blues band hijacks my brainwaves and makes it nearly impossible for me to pay attention to anything else happening around me. I think it probably has a lot to do with the shuffle rhythms so prominent in blues music. It’s just irresistible to me.

Diego Danger induced this blues-trance almost immediately. Long-time Maximum Ames photographer James Dean actually captured the moment in a couple shots that night. Diego Danger played a tight, polished set and wrapped up just as their allotted set time was about to expire. They clearly knew what they were doing, and I knew I’d discovered my New Favorite Band. So I bought a couple of their CDs and a sticker and told them I hoped they would return to Ames. And, as fortune would have it, Diego Danger is among the 50+ acts playing the Maximum Ames Music Festival this year. You can see them Friday night at Time Out, along with Equal Parts and Origami Animals.

But they can’t be my New Favorite Band two years in a row. That title will belong to a new act, probably one I know next to nothing about as I write this. And that excites me.

So come out to Maximum Ames this weekend with an open mind and take a chance on some artists you’ve never heard of. The odds are good you’ll discover your New Favorite Band.

I’ll see you on Main Street!

Hinterland 2019 from a kid’s perspective

mickanddad — The author with his 7-year-old son Michael at Hinterland 2019

Few things put a damper on the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle like parenting.

Rock shows usually go late, and toddlers always wake up early. Accordingly, I’ve passed up countless shows that I otherwise would have jumped at because they simply weren’t compatible with my responsibilities as a husband and father to two kids (ages 7 and 2).

Sometimes that reality frustrates me, but I try to share my passion for music with my family whenever possible. Hinterland, a three-day outdoor music festival earlier this month near St. Charles, Iowa, provides the most recent example of my struggle to balance those two sides of my life. The incredible lineup – including Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile, Kacey Musgraves, the War & Treaty, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, Colter Wall and others – was simply too good to pass up. Taking my 2-year-old daughter along seemed out of the question, on account of her stubborn insistence on throwing epic tantrums without warning and for no discernible reason. But my nearly 8-year-old son Michael, a thoughtful and compassionate lad who has been to several big concerts, acted excited by the prospect of going. So we sent our toddler to spend the weekend with my wife’s parents and decided to initiate our son into the music festival experience.

The missus and I, along with my way-cool music-loving parents, have attended three Hinterland festivals now, and it’s been a highlight of our year each time. Our first exposure to Brandi Carlile’s live show took place at the first Hinterland in 2015. Carlile put on such an energetic, life-affirming performance that my wife and I swore we’d never miss another chance to see her. We’ve taken in all-timers like Willie Nelson at the Avenue of the Saints Amphitheater and newer favorites like the Turnpike Troubadours, who have perhaps burned out before their time and may never tour again.

But leaving the kids with the grandparents the two previous trips to Hinterland allowed us to pretend we were just a couple kids in love, living in the moment without worrying about whether our son had applied the proper amount of sunscreen or having to carry his snoring form through the darkened parking lot because the last set went way past his normal bedtime (Fun fact: my son is the only person I know who has dozed off in the middle of Bob Dylan AND Willie Nelson concerts). So I think it’s fair to say the decision to bring our son along caused us both some real anxiety. It pleases me greatly, however, to report he did really well – for the most part.

Saturday afternoon, as we dealt with withering early August heat, disaster struck when my son’s melting ice cream cone dripped all over his clothes. This set off some tears from Michael, and I worried that we’d made a mistake. Maybe he wasn’t ready for the rigors of a weekend-long music festival. As his mood nosedived, I felt certain that my worst festival nightmare was coming true, that we’d have to pack up and leave without seeing any of my favorite acts on the bill.

But it was Hinterkids to the rescue. Hinterland organizers anticipated just this sort of emergency and put together a slate of activities just for kids. Children and parents could retire to a tent in a quiet corner of the festival grounds for some shade, and Michael got his photo taken for a nametag that looked like a backstage pass for a 90s Nickelodeon cartoon. Kids could complete activities in a workbook specially designed to feature all of the musicians on the festival lineup. He also painted a picture of an alien that got added to a mural featuring artwork from all the kids who visited the tent.

Michael went into the tent on the verge of a breakdown and came out ready to rock for the rest of the day.

The sun set, and the boiling temperatures eased into a much more comfortable range. St. Paul and the Broken Bones took the stage and delivered an irresistibly funky set. My family and I sat on a blanket, close enough to see the stage but far enough away that we weren’t overwhelmed by dense crowds. Michael, without saying a word, climbed into my lap and watched St. Paul and the Broken Bones in hushed awe. Paul Janeway, the dynamic lead singer, pulled off the most thrilling moment of the entire festival by climbing down off the stage during the last song and making his way back to the VIP area, which was situated on top of the sound booth. Janeway climbed the stairs to the balcony and finished the song standing on top of a folding chair, a couple stories above the audience, conducting the band to an exquisite crescendo. And Michael and I were right there to share the moment together.

We ended up leaving about halfway through Jason Isbell’s headlining set because Michael was clearly running out of steam. Of course, I ended up carrying him through the pasture that served as the general admission parking lot as sleep overtook him. My arms ached by the time we got him in the car, but I honestly didn’t mind.

I’d learned a lesson that night. When it comes to finding that balance between parenting and experiencing all the great music I can, it’s okay to make some compromises if it means sharing a few unforgettable moments with my family. My son got too tired to hear Jason Isbell’s finale, but we’ll always remember Paul Janeway precariously balancing on that chair high over our heads.

Rock ‘n’ roll is a way of thinking as much as it is a musical form. It’s a rejection of the prevailing way of doing things in favor of thinking for yourself. Rock ‘n’ roll, at its purest, challenges the corporate and commercial priorities of our culture in favor of strengthening our ties with the humans around us. In that sense, introducing my son to his first music festival at a young age may have been a pretty rock ‘n’ roll thing to do after all.

Iowa music you gotta hear: Miss Christine’s ‘Conversion’

Time, Christine Moad knew, was of the essence.

Moad, the creative force and bassist for power-pop outfit Miss Christine, decided she needed to record her album quickly in February 2018. Taking time to agonize over every tiny detail could derail the entire project, she reasoned, and keep her songs from ever seeing an official release. So she gathered some charts and demos of her songs and showed them to a group of musicians who had never heard them before.

The band arranged and recorded each song in the studio, quickly turning out the 12 tracks that would form Miss Christine’s latest album, Conversion, released earlier this summer.

“I’m a perfectionist and knew this was the only way I could record my album without getting too much in my head,” Moad said via email. “This approach was terrifying but so rewarding.”

Moad said she hopes the creative energy unleashed when she and the band members figured out the arrangements would saturate the recordings. The approach allows the listener to discover the songs alongside the musicians.

“My idea is that music is most powerful when it’s first created,” she said.

Moad is an Iowa native. She grew up near Allison but moved away at 17 to study electric bass performance at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. From there, she moved to Nashville, where she found work as a session and touring bassist. But Moad moved back to Iowa when she decided it was time to focus on her own compositions, and she currently lives on a farm near Iowa City.

“I found myself at a crossroads and decided I wanted to do my own music,” she said when discussing her return to her home state. “I moved back to Iowa to finish writing my album and do some self reflection. It has been great to reconnect to my roots and enjoy the beauty of Iowa.”

Despite the compressed recording process, the songs on Conversion don’t sound hurried or sloppy. Rather, they feature a diverse range of instrumentation and textures. Album opener “Be Present” crackles with delightfully punky guitar tones and horn swells, while the title track strikes a more dramatic tone with somber keys and ominously whispered background vocals. Breakup song “Without You” dials up an r&b-inspired groove and guitar part and a big-time singalong chorus.

The album covers a lot of lyrical ground as well. Numbers like “Be Present” and “The Millennial Paradigm” take on social and philosophical topics of relevance to modern life. “Green Walls, Red Trim” and “Without You” are more character based. “Nightmare In the Daytime,” in which the narrator finally works up the courage to confront a manipulator, contains some scorchingly cathartic kiss-off lyrics.

“But I can see right through it to the root of your lies,” Moad sings on one of the catchiest choruses of the entire album. “You’re a horrible person with the worst disguise.”

Miss Christine is wrapping up an East Coast tour and will almost certainly play some gigs closer to home in the near future. In the meantime, stream Conversion and check out Miss Christine’s website for official music videos for album tracks “Conversion,” “Entitled” and “Skinny Jeans.”

‘Old-school’ record shopping at the Analog Vault in Cedar Rapids

vega — Analog Vault owner Jeremy Vega with a copy of Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band’s ‘*Trout Mask Replica’* album

I heard Led Zeppelin the moment I walked through the door and immediately felt at home.

I spent an evening in Cedar Rapids last week and decided to make a stop at the Analog Vault, a record shop in the city’s resurgent NewBo neighborhood. The store moved to its current location earlier this year after it grew out of its old space. The shop features new and used vinyl and audio equipment, and owner Jeremy Vega does repair work on audio gear as well.

Led Zeppelin II played on the store’s speakers as I entered the shop, a particularly tasty pick to my ears since it was my first Zeppelin album, which I bought on CD during junior high. The album had progressed deep into side 2 by the time I stepped into the shop, but I enjoyed ‘Moby Dick’ and ‘Bring it on Home’ while I flipped through shelves full of vinyl.

Vega talked music with customers while I picked out a couple selections to add to my collection. A careful sweep through the bins identified maybe a half-dozen candidates, but I decided my bank account would allow me to go home with only two. So I selected Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian by Johnny Cash and I’m Ready by Muddy Waters and took them up to the counter to pay and ask Vega some questions about his shop.

Music-themed décor covers most of the walls, and Vega said he tries to provide customers with an “old-school record shop,” like the kind that made a deep impression on him as a child.

“I remember being waist-high to my old man, and we’d go to record stores around town and I’d just be awestruck,” Vega said.

He hopes his store can provide a similar feeling for kids today. He said a common sentiment he hears from his adult shoppers is, “Whoa, this takes me back.”

I asked him if there were any records for sale in the shop that he would point to as particularly interesting, and he went over to a bin and returned with a copy of Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, priced at $64.

Classic atmosphere, wide selection and a friendly owner. Check, check and check. The Analog Vault gets my full recommendation. And for anyone wondering, those Muddy Waters and Johnny Cash albums sounded fabulous on my home setup.