In House #1838: Ted Leo's Living With the Living; Apples in Stereo in Boise, SLC

The fifth full-length from the consistently interesting, always passionate Ted Leo and his band The Pharmacists dropped last week on Touch & Go, marking the band's initial release for the label. Living With the Living once again puts Leo's fiery delivery and heart-on-his-sleeve politics on display, this go around with an unexpected element or two. "Bottle of Buckie," is pure pop jaunt, bouncing along to a vaguely Irish beat before breaking out the pennywhistle for a Lord of the Dance midsong solo that actually works well. Elsewhere the band mines the dub-tones of The Clash or The Jam on "The Unwanted Things," and even brings early Springsteen into the mix on "La Costa Brava." This being a Ted Leo album, there are politics to be had as well, and Leo's been given plenty of ammunition to work with over the past few years. "Bomb. Repeat. Bomb.," as the title might suggest, is an absolute in your face to the current American government and its war, while similar themes pop up amongst the tunes "Army Bound," (which also features a mean guitar solo) and "Annunciation Day/ Born On Christmas Day." In short, the album exudes everything Leo has become known for over the years. It's passionate and diverse. It's thoughtful and indignant. In the end, it's these qualities in the music that will reward upon repeated listens, and forgive Leo the occasional tendency to overreach. Touring in support of the new release, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists play The Venue in Boise on April 20th and Club Sound in Salt Lake City on the 21st.

Also today, music from the Apples in Stereo, currently touring in support of their recent triumphant return, New Magnetic Wonder. Robert Schneider and friends showed no signs of rust after five years between albums with their new work standing amongst some of the best from their late 90's hey day. The band plays with opening act Casper & the Cookies tonight at The Neurolux in Boise before moving on to The Depot in Salt Lake City tomorrow night.




In House #1838.
Airdate: 3/30/07
Focus: New release from Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Living With the Living, plus the Apples in Stereo play Boise and Salt Lake City this weekend, and new music from Cloud Cult, The Eames Era, Arcade Fire, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, from Living With the Living:

"A Bottle of Buckie" (MP3)

"The Sons of Cain" (MP3)

Apples in Stereo, from New Magnetic Wonder:

"Energy" (MP3)

Casper & the Cookies, from Oh!:

"Take It Away, Kathy" (MP3)

BONUS Vids-
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists' "Bomb.Repeat.Bomb.":


Apples in Stereo's "Same Old Drag":


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #285

In House #1837: The Gourds Cover the Region; New Jorma Kaukonen

Self-described "music for the unwashed and well-read," The Gourds give plenty of their alternative country-jam rock-bluegrass (and whatever else they happen to feel like at the time) love to some of the more neglected corners of flyover country this week with six performances in Idaho and Montana. The Austin-based quintet is celebrating fifteen years together in 2007 following the release of their ninth full-length, Heavy Ornamentals (an In House pick for one of the Top Five Roots/Americana albums of 2006), in January of last year. After having already played Boise earlier in the week, The Gourds hit the uncharted waters (or prairies, anyway) of Livingston, Montana tonight before Friday and Sunday appearances in Missoula are split by a Saturday gig in exotic Whitefish (that's right good people of Whitefish, a band that does not perform Warrant covers while wearing matching vests is coming to your town!). The band finally completes the Lolo Loop next Monday at John's Alley in Moscow, ID.

The Gourds

In House #1837.
Airdate: 3/29/07
Focus: Music from The Gourds, playing numerous shows in the region this week, plus new music from Arthur Dodge, Jorma Kaukonen, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
The Gourds, from Heavy Ornamentals:

"Pick & Roll" (MP3)

"Burn the Honey Suckle" (MP3)

The Mother Hips, from Kiss the Crystal Flake (due 4/3):

"Time Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #284

In House #1836: Headlights, Page France Tour the Area






In House #1836.
Airdate: 3/28/07
Focus: Headlights & Page France play Boise tonight and Salt Lake City tomorrow night. Plus, new music from The National, Sufjan Stevens, Pela, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Headlights, from the Enemies EP:

"Tokyo" (MP3)
...and from Kill Them With Kindness:

"TV" (MP3)

Page France, from Hello, Dear Wind:

"Junkyard" (MP3)

"Bush" (MP3)
...and from ...and the Family Telephone (due 5/8):

"Hat & Rabbit" (MP3)

Sufjan Stevens, from A Tribute to Joni Mitchell (due 4/24):

"Free Man In Paris" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #283

In House #1835: Grant-Lee Phillips' Strangelet; New Laura Veirs

Back in the halcyon 90' s, once could still occasionally catch an actual music video from an actual band worth hearing on MTV. This is not to say the popular music scene was much better than it is now-- one still had to wait 10 or 15 videos before coming across something that didn't sound like everything else. It wasn't difficult, then, for Grant Lee Buffalo's "Mockingbirds," (from their 1994 release Mighty Joe Moon) to stand out amongst the Candleboxes and Lives of the time, as it somehow garnered moderate play on the channel. It was, of course, Grant-Lee Phillips' unique croon that drove the vehicle, rising to falsetto on the despondent but strangely comforting chorus, "And I thought/ If I toed/ The right lines/ But these mockingbirds won't/ Let me shine..." These days Phillips is still at it but taking the troubadour route, and his television appearances tend more towards his recurring role on The Gilmore Girls or the odd late night show appearance than they do MTV. Strangelet, the singer-songwriter's fifth solo release in the past seven years, drops today on Zoe, and finds him splitting the difference between the pop shine of 2001's Mobilize and the sepia-toned roots of 2004's Virginia Creeper. It's another engaging and melodic set from Phillips, who engineered, produced, and performed the album almost entirely on his own, save a little help from his band and friends like R.E.M.'s Peter Buck. Aside from his regular Los Angeles gigs, Phillips will be playing major U.S. cities here and there throughout the spring before heading to Europe this summer.

Grant-Lee Phillips

In House #1835.
Airdate: 3/27/07
Focus: New release out today from Grant-Lee Phillips, Strangelet, plus new music from Andrew Bird, Laura Veirs, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Grant-Lee Phillips, from Strangelet:

"Hidden Hand" (MP3)

"Johnny Guitar" (MP3)

Chrisopher Blue, from room tones (due 4/17):

"Ghost In the Night" (MP3)

BONUS vid-
Grant Lee Phillips, from Strangelet: "Raise the Spirit"


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #282

In House #1834: Great Lake Swimmers' Ongiara; Laura Gibson In the Area

Upcoming from the Great Lake Swimmers is Ongiara, the band's third album full of the kinds of beautifully stark and organic tunes that an Ontario winter might produce. Frontman Tony Dekker's songs easily recall Neil Young's early work, with nods to later artists like the Red House Painters and Iron & Wine included in the mix. He's at his best when he mixes imagery that is at once geographic and lovelorn romantic on the banjo-fueled "Your Rocky Spine," an ode to natural beauty found in disparate places. Ongiara, already available digitally, gets an official release next week in Canada, in April in Europe, and finally in the U.S. in May.




In House #1834.
Airdate: 3/23/07
Focus: Upcoming release from the Great Lake Swimmers, Ongiara, plus Laura Gibson and the Magnolia Electric Co. playing separately in the area this weekend, and new music from the Avett Brothers, Paul Duncan, Western States Motel, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House #1833: Low's Drums & Guns; New Blonde Redhead

Duluth, Minnesota trio Low emerged from the annual thaw this week with a new creation, their eighth studio full-length, entitled Drums & Guns. For a band once content with a steady and consistent sound that made them known as a slo-core act back in the 90's, they've shown a restless streak over the past two or three albums now. The new one is no different, exhibiting an entirely stripped bare sound that can only be described as skeletal, and in the process making an about face from the uncharacteristically loud, crunchy tunes found on 2005's The Great Destroyer. In fact, perhaps the only thing Drums & Guns has in common with that album is producer Dave Fridmann-- whose work here is truly astonishing considering that he was the guy responsible for the layers and lushness found on albums like the Flaming Lips' Soft Bulletin and Mercury Rev's Deserter's Songs, among others. Despite the sparse tones, Low still manage to cover complex territory, with the world's current war serving as the centerpiece for songs with titles like "Hatchet," "Murderer," and "Violent Past." In other words, it plays out how an album that begins with the lines, "All the soldiers/ They're all gonna die/ All the babies/ They're all gonna die," might be expected to, somehow without battering the listener over the head with the heavy subject matter. By reinventing their sound once again, this go around employing loops and electronic blips like they never have before, the band simply takes a different route to a similar result: a creation that is at once dark AND beautiful-- and unmistakably Low.

Low

In House #1833.
Airdate: 3/22/07
Focus: New release from Low, Drums & Guns, plus new music from Blonde Redhead, Elk City, Archives (featuring Carissa's Wierd's Mat Brooke), and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Low, from Drums & Guns:

"Breaker" (MP3)

"Murderer" (MP3)

Archives, (new band feat. ex-Carissa's Wierd/Band of Horses' Mat Brooke):

"Sleepdriving" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Low's "Breaker":


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #281

In House #1832: Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha; New Beirut

Not to gush, but this is getting ridiculous. Fresh off of setting the world a'fire (ours, anyway, we named The Mysterious Production of Eggs one of our top five releases of 2005), Andrew Bird returned this week with Armchair Apocrypha, an album that expands Bird's scope to include the odd electronic texture (thanks to collaborator Martin Dosh) and legendary blues label Fat Possum. "Simple X," is a rather astounding number included here, taking on a second life after originally appearing as a Dosh instrumental. It's notable for its drum loop, almost certainly a first in Bird's catalog, later to be joined by a bit of Hammond organ, theremin, and Bird's prodigious whistling talents. It's not the album's lead track, or even its lead single, but its haunting and rather unlikely combinations provide a nice summary of the new ground Bird covers. One other number enjoying a second life, and living it to its fullest, is the infectious "Imitosis," a revitalized take on the song, "I," from Bird's 2003 release Weather Systems. One of the rare head-bobbers in the collection, the song is built upon the vaguely eastern European folk rhythms recognizable in much of Bird's previous work-- though its dark theme ("we're all basically alone") is more than at home with the unsettled and unsettling subjects on the rest of this album. Armchair Apocrypha represents the next step up for Bird, whose ascension from Squirrel Nut Zippers sideman to revered musical swashbuckler has been nothing short of astounding. To paraphrase the Bird himself, thank god it's (not) fatal.

Andrew Bird

In House #1832.
Airdate: 3/21/07
Focus: New release from Andrew Bird, Armchair Apocrypha, plus new music from Beirut, Winterpills, Bill Callahan, Arthur & Yu, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Andrew Bird, from Armchair Apocrypha:

"Heretics" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #280

In House #1831: Patty Griffin in Boise Tonight; New Grant-Lee Phillips

In many ways, Children Running Through, the fifth and latest full-length from Patty Griffin, is an album that finally gets her completely right. It's certainly her most accomplished and confident sounding release, serving as a statement of absolute arrival just over a decade since her debut appeared. Not to discount her past work or suggest that it hasn't won her a dedicated following along the way, but there's something different, something more going on this time out. Immediately noticeable is the classic R&B vibe, as in Aretha Franklin and Sam Cooke, that appears over the course of the album. "Stay On the Ride," is a horn-fortified slice of soul that sounds born of Washington, D.C. street marches, while "Heavenly Day," a song borrowed to R&B great Solomon Burke for last year's Nashville, sounds like a companion piece to Sam Cooke's endlessly moving "A Change Is Gonna Come." Elsewhere Griffin brings a gospel flair to "Up to the Mountain (MLK Song)," a gorgeous number based in part on Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. It's here that Griffin might be said to achieve a level that is spiritual, but not religious-- a line similar to the one that she walks in the rollicking "No Bad News," a song that clearly addresses a political situation without becoming polarizing. Another highlight finds Griffin joined by Emmylou Harris as she mines her Americana roots (also done on "I'm Getting Ready," but at a much faster speed) on "Trapeze," which sounds as good as one might expect given the duo joining forces. It all adds up to what can really only be summed up as a moment that is "career-defining" for Griffin, who clearly deserves to be mentioned in the same circles as contemporaries like Lucinda Williams, among others. In the latest in an impressive string of artists to grace its stage so far this year, Patty Griffin plays the Egyptian Theatre in Boise tonight.

Patty Griffin

In House #1831.
Airdate: 3/20/07
Focus: Patty Griffin in Boise tonight, plus new music from Arthur Dodge, Grant-Lee Phillips, Cowboy Junkies, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Patty Griffin, from Children Running Through:

"Stay On the Ride" (MP3)

Grant-Lee Phillips, from Strangelet (due 3/27):

"Hidden Hand" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #279

In House #1830: Jon Rauhouse's Steel Guitar Heart Attack

Guitarist extraordinaire Jon Rauhouse released his fourth full-length, Steel Guitar Heart Attack, last week on the Bloodshot label. The effort finds him once again serving up a wide-ranging, retro-leaning, guest-filled batch of tunes evoking Hawaiian sunsets, hoedowns, and happy hour. Longtime co-conspirator Tommy Connell, along with members of fellow Arizonans Calexico, back Rauhouse throughout the set, bringing their dusty flair with them, and a quartet of siren singers, Neko Case, Kelly Hogan, Sally Timms, and Visqueen's Rachel Flotard, take their individual turns fronting tunes like "Harbor Lights," and "I'll Be Seeing You," to predictably mesmerizing results. Elsewhere, Rauhouse himself takes a rare turn or two behind the mic, including a version of "The Fishin' Hole," heretofore best known as the theme to The Andy Griffith Show (the TV theme appears elsewhere, too, with an oddball take on the theme from Mannix). One might expect high levels of kitsch propelling the album along, but Rauhouse pulls it off with barely a wink, producing a work that feels fresh even while it's playing out as an homage to a by-gone era (whether that's his point or not). Steel Guitar Heart Attack looks to be a perfect companion to the laze of coming summer afternoons-- even as it's inspiring a longing for the tiki-lit twilights of 1958.


In House #1830.
Airdate: 3/19/07
Focus: New release from Jon Rauhouse, Steel Guitar Heart Attack, plus new music from Gill Landry, Elana James, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Jon Rauhouse, from Steel Guitar Heart Attack:

"Ballad of the Black Chihuahua" (MP3)

"East of the Sun (& West of the Moon)" (MP3) (with Neko Case)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #278

In House #1829: St. Patrick's Day Special: The Gorgeous Hussies/ The Wailin' O'Sheas Live

We celebrate St. Patrick's Day one day early this year with two bands in one. Salt Lake City's Gorgeous Hussies miraculously transform themselves into Irish tunesmiths The Wailin' O'Sheas in the studio today, gracing us with material from both acts. In either case, the trio has been playing together for a mere eight months with an EP, last year's Oh! Hello, already to their credit. They're in the area for performances from each of their personas tomorrow night at Pocatello's First National Bar.

The Gorgeous Hussies AND The Wailin' O'Sheas

In House #1829.
Airdate: 3/16/07
Focus: St. Patrick's Day Special with a live in-studio visit from The Gorgeous Hussies and The Wailin' O'Sheas, plus music from The Pogues, The Waterboys, The Dubliners, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's live in-studio set-
The Wailin' O'Sheas:

"The Kilborn Highroad" (MP3) (Flogging Molly cover)

"Whiskey In the Jar" (MP3)

"That Woman's Got Me Drinkin'" (MP3) (Shane McGowan & The Popes cover)

The Gorgeous Hussies:

"On the Phone" (MP3)

"Dangerously Similar" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #277

In House #1828: Modest Mouse Plays Missoula Tomorrow; More SXSW

One of the few acts not playing in Austin, Texas this week, Modest Mouse instead gives some love to the hinterlands as they hit the University of Montana in Missoula tomorrow night before moving on to the Gallatin County Fairgrounds (no joke) in Bozeman, and finally the barren, unthawed landscapes of the Dakotas. The band is touring in anticipation of their fifth full-length release, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, out next week on Epic. One slight change (hardly) this go around is the presence on guitar of none other than Johnny Marr, the man in large part responsible for the musical brilliance of The Smiths and songs like "This Charming Man," and "How Soon is Now?" It's difficult to judge how much difference the addition really makes, aside from an atmospheric twist here and there, much like the cameo appearance of The Shins' James Mercer (intriguing but little more than a side note). What is clear from the album's beginning number, "March Into the Sea," is that Isaac Brock and company will not be content to turn in a batch of tunes hoping for another "Float On," though the insistent and infectious "Dashboard," complete with a surprising horn section, comes close. Still, new fans hoping to go unchallenged in their love may be disappointed-- in many instances here it seems that the point may be to challenge.

(Marr)dest Mouse

In House #1828.
Airdate: 3/15/07
Focus: Modest Mouse plays the University of Montana in Missoula tomorrow night, plus more dug up gems from the SXSW treasure trove, including music from The Twilight Sad, The Needles, Zykos, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
Modest Mouse, from We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank:

"People As Places As People" (MP3)

(And a few more gems from the SXSW cornucopia)

Zykos: "Wipeout (Try Waking Up!)"

Death Ships: "Story Never Gets Old" (MP3)

Lionheart Brothers: "Hero Anthem" (MP3)

The Sterns: "Supreme Girl" (MP3)

The Needles: "Dianne" (MP3)

Black Tie Dynasty: "Tender" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #276

In House #1827: SXSW: Diamonds In the Rough

Sure, you know that the likes of Spoon, Robyn Hitchcock, Clem Snide, and Midlake are playing this year's South By Southwest fest in Austin, TX. You know that it features returns from varying degrees of legendary artists, The Stooges to Charlie Louvin to the Meat Puppets (not to mention Public Enemy). But did you know that Brighton, MA is a) A band, B) Not from anywhere near Massachussetts, and C) Also playing SXSW this year? NO? How about The Deaths, or perhaps Mr. Lewis & the Funeral 5? We've scoured the 1300 or so acts and come up with a few of the lesser knowns, those acts that are not household names by indie or any other means. Diamonds in the SXSW rough, if you will. A similar excursion last year led us to such before they were famous mentions of The Whigs, Jenny Owen Youngs, and Jim Noir, as well as some that should have been but weren't like The Sundresses and Black Joe Lewis.

In House #1827.
Airdate: 3/14/07
Focus: SXSW 2007 with an emphasis on lesser known acts playing the festival, including names like Brighton, MA, The Deaths, Illinois, Ruth Minnikin, and more.

BONUS MP3s-
(A few of the worthwhile lesser-known acts playing this year's SXSW that we managed to come across)

Brighton, MA: "Bet You Never Thought" (MP3)

Illinois: "Alone Again" (MP3)

The 1900s: "Bring the Good Boys Home" (MP3)

The Deaths: "Turn For the Worst" (MP3)

The Golden Boys: "If I Can't Hold You In My Arms" (MP3)

David & the Citizens: "The End" (MP3)

Ruth Minnikin: "Southern Misfortune" (MP3)

More to come tomorrow...

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #275

In House #1826: Neil Young's Live at Massey Hall; New Graham Parker

Following last year's release of a 1970 recording with Crazy Horse at the Fillmore East, Neil Young issues the second in his new archives series with the release today of Live at Massey Hall. The 1971 recording captures Young solo and acoustic in his hometown at a point between the classic full-lengths After the Goldrush and Harvest, the latter of which would propel him into full-on star status. The perspective here is the important thing. This is Young at just 25, having already enjoyed much success with Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young, as well as Crazy Horse, and much of what would make his legend was still to come. Plenty of songs here make debut appearances, some with slight alterations. As he tells the audience at the outset, he plays mostly "new stuff," including Harvest heavyweights like "Old Man," and "A Man Needs a Maid," which is played as a medley with "Heart of Gold." One of the real revelations here is "Dance Dance Dance," a song that appears on Crazy Horse's 1971 self-titled release. In other words, it's not an oft-heard song, but Young's stage stomping version here, easily the most energetic number of the night, unearths a forgotten gem. Other songs from future recordings include "Love In Mind," and "See the Sky About to Rain,"; "Bad Fog of Loneliness" appears for the first time anywhere. Live at Massey Hall is a wonderfully-recorded, intimate portrait of the artist as a young man.

Neil Young, 1971


In House #1826.
Airdate: 3/13/07
Focus: Neil Young's newly released Live at Massey Hall, plus a new album from Graham Parker, Don't Tell Columbus, as well as new music from Son Volt, Wilco, Willy Mason, and more.

BONUS MP3-
Neil Young, froom Live at Massey Hall:

"Dance Dance Dance" (MP3)

Graham Parker, from Don't Tell Columbus:

"Stick to the Plan" (MP3)

BONUS Vid-
Official trailer for Live at Massey Hall:


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #274

R.E.M., Patti Smith Enter Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Grandmaster Flash, The Ronettes, and, umm, Van Halen were also inducted in an evening that featured everyone from Keith Richards to Eddie Vedder to Zach de la Rocha. Oh, and Velvet Revolver.

On a related note, brand new from R.E.M. is a version of John Lennon's "#9 Dream," to be included on the upcoming benefit comp Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur.


...and Patti Smith with an updated take on an old tune:

In House #1825: Bryan Ferry's Dylanesque; New Patti Smith

Aside from his beginnings fronting art-pop pioneers Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry has, over the years, also made a name for himself with his solo work. His cool, sophisticated delivery has almost always resulted in interesting and engaging work, a major part of which has been his ability as a song interpreter. From the beginning of his solo career, 1973's These Foolish Things, Ferry has shown a consistent flare for repackaging, rearranging, and reimagining compositions by everyone from The Beatles to Smokey Robinson & the Miracles to Great American Songbook standards by Cole Porter and Jerome Kern, among others. Indeed, a glance through his back catalog shows a body of work made up almost exclusively of covers, with the odd original thrown in here and there.

Dylanesque, Ferry's latest effort and first since 2002's excellent Frantic, should come as no surprise then, particularly since there has been no single artist he's sung more than Bob Dylan. Given the track record, it's also no surprise that the eleven versions here are anything but karaoke takes-- Ferry speeds up "Simple Twist of Fate," and slows down "Positively 4th Street," to gist-altering results. The selections span roughly thirty years of Dylan's output, 1964's The Times They Are A-Changin' to 1997's Time Out of Mind, with a surprising emphasis on well-known tunes like "Knockin' On Heaven's Door," and "All Along the Watchtower," the latter of which is as much a nod to Jimi Hendrix as it is Dylan with the impeccably cool Ferry rocking out like he rarely has. Underrated yet iconic at 61, Ferry turns in another collection that fulfills the intrigue it suggests on paper.

In House #1825.
Airdate: 3/12/07
Focus: New release from Bryan Ferry, Dylanesque, plus Richard Swift covers Prince, and Patti Smith and R.E.M. get inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame tonight.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Bryan Ferry, from Dylanesque:

"Simple Twist of Fate" (MP3)

Patti Smith, from Twelve (due 4/24):

"Gimme Shelter" (MP3) (Rolling Stones cover)

Richard Swift, from the "Kisses For the Misses" 7" single:

"Paisley Park" (MP3) (Prince cover)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #273

In House #1824: Rocky Votolato in Boise, Provo; Bigsby Jones in Pocatello

With a fifth solo full-length coming later in the year (the brag & cuss is due out June 19th on Barsuk), singer-songwriter Rocky Votolato plays venues in Boise and Provo this weekend. While fronting the emo-tinged Waxwing, Votolato released his self-titled debut in 1999, an album made up of quiet indie-folk tunes that revealed another side to his muse. Last year's makers, his first solo effort since the disbanding of the band in 2005, showed Votolato walking even further down the country road, with flourishes of harmonica and pedal steel backing up mostly voice and acoustic guitar arrangements. Songs like "White Daisy Passing," and "Uppers Aren't Necessary," displayed his skill for matching soft harmonies with contagious melodies, and the album skirted territory claimed by M. Ward and Bright Eyes while achieving a certain ragged charm of its own. The word on the new album is that it veers even further into classic country territory, fleshed out by a full band that includes Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter's Bill Herzog and Pedro the Lion's Casey Foubert (who also produced the album), among others.


Also today, music from the full-length debut by Bozeman, Montana's Bigsby Jones. The quartet released memories & dreams just this week, and make their Pocatello debut tomorrow night at the First National Bar. There are plenty of influences evident in the band's sound, due largely to the fact that they consist of four contributing songwriters. One hears the roots-leaning rock of Neil Young alongside the alt.country of Uncle Tupelo and jamband sounds of Leftover Salmon. Showtime is 9:30, downtown Old Town.


In House #1824.
Airdate: 3/9/07
Focus: Rocky Votolato in Boise tonight and Provo tomorrow night, plus Bozeman, Montana's Bigsby Jones in Pocatello tomorrow night. Also, new music from Willy Mason, Ferraby Lionheart, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #272

In House #1823: Douglas Cameron Live

It's a live session today with Boise singer-songwriter Douglas Cameron, who returns to the show and to the area for performances tonight in Pocatello. Cameron dropped by twice in 2006, each with Seattle's Darren Smith, with whom he toured with extensively in the latter half of the year. This go-around, it's just Cameron and his dog as he makes a quick mini-tour to the area before heading off to Nashville for a festival one-off and returning for dates in the northwest before the month is out. His latest effort is last year's Remedies, an excellently recorded collection that, among other things, shows off Cameron's skill as a storyteller.


In House #1823.
Airdate: 3/8/07
Focus: Boise's Douglas Cameron live In House and in Pocatello tonight. Plus, new music from Lucinda Williams, Charlie Louvin, and more.

BONUS MP3's from today's in-studio set from Douglas Cameron-

Whiskey Ginger" (MP3)

"Let Me Show You How" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House #1822: New Music From Too Slim & the Taildraggers, Playing Idaho Falls Tonight

Seattle based blues trio Too Slim & the Taildraggers return to southeast Idaho tonight with a performance at Karen's Park Avenue Club in Idaho Falls. The band is touring in support of the new release, The Fortune Teller, an album made up of songs that came to frontman Tim Langford in a series of epiphanies, as he tells it, following an unnerving run-in with a fortune teller while on tour in Oslo, Norway. The band's always eclectic, always high-energy brand of blues takes a stylistic shift away from the Americana-flavored leanings of recent efforts and lands squarely in electric rock n' blues territory. The Taildraggers were formed by Langford in Spokane back in 1986 and are celebrating over two decades of bringing blues to the great northwest and beyond.


In House #1822.
Airdate: 3/7/07
Focus: New release from Too Slim & the Taildraggers, The Fortune Teller, also playing Idaho Falls tonight. Plus, new music from John Hammond, Joe Ely, Hayward Williams, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #271

In House #1821: The Arcade Fire's Neon Bible Out Today; New Page France

Just in case you're somehow not aware, Montreal's Arcade Fire return with their second full-length today, entitled Neon Bible. The effort is, of course, their follow-up to 2004's Funeral, the nearly universally-praised debut that came out of nowhere to propel the band to indie star status. Later came stage sharings with the likes of David Byrne and U2, among others. Where there might be discernible pressure, however, The Arcade Fire doesn't appear to be letting on. Neon Bible is, at the very least, a creation worthy of its predecessor; at best, it's a musically and lyrically complex epic that expands Funeral's scope while maintaining its sincerity and indignation. While the stepping stones can still be traced to the likes of the Talking Heads, early U2, and The Clash, at least one unlikely musical nod creeps into the new songs here and there, with the ghost of early Springsteen hovering over songs like "Keep the Car Running," and "Antichrist Television Blues." It adds up to a kind of bleak grandeur: assessing the current state of the world as darkness, followed by a righteous rejection of this fact as completely unacceptable. While this may not be entirely new territory for artists of any ilk, the Arcade Fire's methods are transcendent where they might have been cringe-worthy and naive. The release follows a recent string of dates that is perhaps most accurately referred to as a barnstorming, with packed to the gills shows on both sides of the Atlantic marked for their spontaneity and passion, beginning in the audience and ending in the foyer. Often, people can get swept up in the waves created by such spectacles for reasons that are anything but musical. In this case, the hype surrounding it all appears completely deserved.

The Arcade Fire

In House #1821.
Airdate: 3/6/07
Focus: New release out today from the Arcade Fire, Neon Bible, plus new music from VietNam, Page France, Apostle of Hustle, Elk City, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
The Arcade Fire, from Neon Bible:

"Black Mirror" (MP3)

David Vandervelde, from The Moonstation House Band:

"Murder in Michigan" (MP3)

Elk City, from New Believers (due 4/17):

"Los Cruzados" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #270

The Attic #3 (Random Junk)

Greetings.

So it would appear that after much hand wringing and gnashing of teeth, Blogger has settled into a relative stasis following the switch In House made to its new version. Displays, podcasts, etc. should all be in proper working order now-- if not, drops us a quick note, won't you?

*In other news, see that "Public Radio Talent Quest" banner on the left sidebar? (It looks a lot like this:

only bigger). It is what it sounds like: beginning in April, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Public Radio Exchange will be accepting audio entries from all sorts of non-professional (read: non-established NPR types) radio hosts and potential radio hosts in looking for the next Ira Glass, Nic Harcourt, etc. Details and all are behind the button, but just an FYI in case you want to vote for, you know, anyone and their content when the time arrives. Just so you know, no pressure.

*Few things, we like to think, are better than a swell new t-shirt emboldened with witty images that declare to the passer-by, "I have intelligence AND a sense of humor," or "No, the irony is not lost on me," or "You will not understand this in the few seconds you have to upload it into your brain before I have walked by." That's just good stuff. The creative and charitable bunch at Threadless have just begun a $10 Spring Broke (get it?) T-Shirt Sale, meaning that nearly every single one of their bazillion stellar T's can be had for a Hamilton (+S&H). The best news is, buy it here and In House benefits, which is good. Among the shirts for your consumption: the newly crowned Decemberists contest winner, "The Soldier Returns," a shirt that perfectly captures the seagoing, war-fighting side of Colin Meloy and company. Or, if topical hilarity is more your bag, nothing says life during (21st century) wartime like, "MP(3)." Really now, can you lose with this? Buy a bunch here.

*Finally, looking for some way to attract musically-savvy, stunningly attractive people to your website so that you can tell them about your event/obsession/get rich quick scheme/plan to save the world/super extra-special product for sale/etc? Yes? Then why not go the In House route and advertise on the blog or, better, the podcast, or, best yet, both? Space is available for reasonable terms, and we'd be more than happy to subtly suggest to our reasonably large stable of consistent visitors that they head your way. Interested? Inquire within (no obligations, it's just an email: inhouseradio.blogspot.com).

Thanks for visiting, reading, listening.

In House #1820: Son Volt's The Search Out Tomorrow; New Wilco

Marking two albums into Jay Farrar's resurrection of Son Volt, the band releases The Search tomorrow. As you may recall, it was just a few short months ago that we were talking about Farrar's collaboration with Anders Parker known as Gob Iron. On the heels of finishing off a tour supporting that act's Death Songs For the Living, the ever-prolific Farrar returns with another set of songs for the new Son Volt line-up that follow along the lines of 2005's rather electrified Okemah & the Melody of Riot at the same time that they occasionally hearken back to to early efforts like Trace. On the one hand, the band rocks out with its politics out on the brief but charged "Satellite." On the other, they're joined by songstress Shannon McNally on the outstanding "Highway & Cigarettes," a road-weary tune that brings to mind Farrar's mid '90's duets with Kelly Willis on Lowell George's "Truckstop Girl," and Townes Van Zandt's "Rex's Blues" (VIDEO). Most surprising, though, is the Memphis-riffing horn section on the album's most immediately enjoyable track, "The Picture," a piece that sounds wholly unlike anything Farrar has done before. Son Volt begins an extensive tour later this month with the Magnolia Electric Co., beginning March 26th in Bellingham, Washington.

Son Volt circa 2007

In House #1820.
Airdate: 3/5/07
Focus: New release out tomorrow from Son Volt, The Search, plus new music from Wilco, Bright Eyes, The Silos, and more.

BONUS MP3s from today's show-
Son Volt, from The Search:

"The Picture" (MP3)

Wilco, from Sky Blue Sky (due 5/15):

"What Light" (MP3)

Bright Eyes, from the Four Winds EP (due tomorrow):

"Four Winds" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #269

In House #1819: Graybeard Live; Todd Snider in Boise This Weekend

It's a localized edition of the show today, as Pocatello's Graybeard stops by the studio for a performance and interview. The long-running quartet's new full-length, Trailer Trash American Dream, is full of the rhythm & blues-country-folk-rock mixing kinds of songs they've become known for in the region. The band celebrates the new album tonight at Portneuf Valley Brewing in Pocatello.


Also today, music from Todd Snider, who plays the Egyptian Theatre in Boise this weekend. He released his eighth studio album, The Devil You Know, last year on New Door recordings.


In House #1819.
Airdate: 3/2/07
Focus: Graybeard live In House, plus Kate MacLeod & The Pancakes tonight in Pocatello and Todd Snider tomorrow night in Boise.



BONUS MP3s-
Graybeard, from today's live in-studio set:

"Man In the Moon" (MP3)

Todd Snider, from East Nashville Skyline:

"Conservative Christian, Right-Wing Republican, Straight, White, American Males" (MP3)

PLAYLIST

In House #1818: Dios (Malos), The Spinto Band, The Changes in Salt Lake City

It's a three for the price of one indie-pop bombardment tonight in Salt Lake City as Kilby Court hosts Dios (Malos), The Spinto Band, and The Changes, all of whom are heading towards the Noise Pop 2007 Fest this weekend in San Francisco.

After changing their name from "dios" after receiving a cease and desist from medieval butt-rocker Ronnie James Dio, Dios (Malos) released their second album late in 2005. As opposed to their first self-titled release (under the name dios), their second was a decidedly sunnier affair with head-nodders like "Feels Good Being Somebody," and "I Feel Fine All the Time." Dios (Malos) is based in southern California.

Delaware's Spinto Band released their debut full-length Nice & Nicely Done originally in 2005 before it was discovered by more or less everyone in 2006 and released on Virgin. One distinguishing characteristic of the band is their tender age, with many of them clocking in at under 19 at the time of the of the album's recording (and looking even younger).


Also on tonight's bill are Chicago's Changes, a band marked by a high-energy, slippery to define sound. Occasionally, an eighties vibe is discerned-- particularly in the places where their synthy keyboards are used to full effect. Other times, it's an almost Kinks-ish scent wafting from the band. Their second full-length Today Is Tonight was released last September.

In House #1818.
Airdate: 3/1/07
Focus: Dios Malos, The Spinto Band, and The Changes together tonight in Salt Lake City, plus new music from The Parson Redheads, The Papercuts, and more.


PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #268