• McDowell Mountain Music Festival

    Coming Right Up: McDowell Mountain Music Festival

    For those of us in the southwest U.S. who can’t make it to Prince’s Coachella debut this weekend, a great alternative exists with the 5th annual McDowell Mountain Music Festival in Scottsdale.

    I’ll be heading out Friday to see the Subdudes, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Robert Randolph & the Family Band, and Friday headliner Gov’t Mule.

    Saturday’s lineup includes the John Butler Trio, Blues Traveler, the Wailers, and J.J. Grey & Mofro.

    So grab the sunscreen (forecast of 90 degrees), hit the noon to 4pm happy hour ($2 beers), and catch some quality tunes with Ickmusic! (or Pete, as I’m known in these parts)…

  • Hip Hop,  Video

    Can I Kick It?

    The Tribe That Refreshes.

    Yes you can! The annual Rock the Bells tour line up has been announced and it is, for my dollar, the most jam-packed bill of any tour crossing North America this year. Headlining the trek is the reunited members of A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, Mos Def, De La Soul, 1/3 of the Wu-Tang Clan and the master himself Rakim. So indeed, “before this, did you really know what live was?”

    De La Soul – Buddy (Native Tongue Decision) (Video)
    [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTkxCwEZx3A 500 418]

    Check the rest of the line up and the dates after the jump.

  • Rock

    My Morning Jacket’s Evil Urges

    I want to be the 840th blogger to post the new My Morning Jacket single, “Evil Urges”! I don’t know how it sounds to you folks, but it sounds like Jim James is channeling his inner Prince here? However you wanna swing it, cool tune all around, in my opinion.

    My Morning Jacket – Evil Urges (mp3) from the forthcoming album of the same name, due out June 10th.

    UPDATE: MP3 removed at the request of the “International Federation of the Phonographic Industry”.

  • Friday Five

    Ickmusic’s Friday Five: April 18, 2008

    Got a Shuffle? You're in Luck.

    Good Morning Friday Five Family!!

    My wife and I are in the midst of home improvements and the iPod and iTunes have been providing the soundtrack. In honor of my current project I set up the following smart playlist in iTunes (I’m including this in case any of the faithful fivers want to play along at home:

    Name > contains > House
    Name > contains > Home
    Name > contains > Work
    Name > contains > Improve
    Name > contains > Better

    I was pretty surprised by the number of tracks that came up (just over 300). And thus the first ‘themed’ Friday Five is born. Last week the fearless fivers picked up my slack by bringing it, this week I’m giving back with this very special edition of the Friday Five.

    Now Driver, Move That Bus!!

    Here are this week’s tracks:

    1. City and Colour – Comin’ Home (from Sometimes)

    I came across City and Colour while I was working in Toronto a few years ago. The acoustic side project (and polar opposite) of Alexisonfire front man Dallas Green really resonated deeply with me when I first heard the track “Save Your Scissors” on MuchMusic (that’s the Canadian version of MTV for those who are not aware). I highly recommend this record to just about everyone.

    2. John Legend – Coming Home (from Once Again)

    I remember reading an article last year where John Legend was talking about how much Jeff Buckley influenced him. This track, to me, is one example of where I can hear that influence. Stark and honest this is as close to topical as Legend comes and the delivery is without doubt heartfelt.

    3. Francis Dunnery – Homegrown (MP3) (from Fearless)

    In the early 90’s I had a friend who worked A&R at Warner Records and he introduced me to Francis Dunnery. To this day I still pull this record out at least once every other month and it feels as fresh and vital as it did the first day I listened to it.

    4. Bruce Springsteen – Long Walk Home (from Magic)

    This to me has all the makings of a classic Springsteen track. Topical without beating you over the head, great lyrical hook and a healthy dose of Jersey shore imagery. “Long Walk Home” is without a doubt one of my favorites from Magic.

    5. Jon Regen – Better Days (MP3) (from Let it Go)

    From New Jersey’s favorite son to another New Jersey native with a penchant for writing beautiful and moving songs. When I said in my review of Let it Go that it felt like home, this was the song that earned it that description. There is something familiar and warm not just to the timbre of Jon’s voice, but the song itself in the way it wraps around you and lifts you up.

    So what’s taking you home today?

  • Ickmix

    Ickmix 3

    ickmix 3

    ‘Tis time for another Ickmix. This is my best one yet, if I may toot my own horn. Toot.

    Take a little trip with me, yah? Oh and check my fancy intro.

    Download Ickmix 3 (57MB, 41:38)

    Playlist after zee jump…

  • Indie,  Jazz,  Pop

    Jon Regen – Let it Go

    Regen Just Feels Right.

    Photo: Merri Cyr

    Sometimes an album just hits the mark. Let it Go is one of those records. There is something to it that just feels like home. I’ve spent two weeks soaking up the tracks, something that as Pete pointed out in a recent post is sometimes hard to do with all the music we listen to. Jon Regen has taken on the singer/songwriter genre from a point of view not often seen. The New Jersey native has a Jazz pedigree but the heart of a pop songwriter with the ability to make words and music move your heart through the arc of a relationship’s highs and lows.

    From the first notes of the opening title track through to aptly titled “The Last Song” there is no emotional stone left unturned. I really struggled with what tunes to share with you all as there are no duds here. I choose the heartfelt “Better Days” and the beautiful “Finding My Way Back to Me”. Check these out and pick up the record at the links below so you can tell all your friends that you were listening to this guy before he hit it big.

    *Note: I’ve reloaded the audio files and they should be working now. My apologies to those who have tried to listen.

    Jon Regen – Better Days (MP3)

    Jon Regen – Finding My Way Back to Me (MP3)

    Buy Let It Go: CDBaby | iTunes

    Links: Official Site | on Last.fm | on MySpace

  • Rock

    New Tunes: Kris Delmhorst’s Shotgun Singer

    One bonus (and frustration at the same time) of this bloggin’ hobby of mine is the flood of music that comes my way. In a just and perfect world, I could spend all day giving these tunes a fair listen. Just so you know, my wife and I are in the market for a sugar daddy or sugar mama to finance our family while I sit and listen to music. Well, my wife probably wouldn’t be totally up for that, but it sure sounds good to me.

    Kris Delmhorst is one of those established, respected singer-songwriters that I’d never heard of. I’ve spent the last couple of months listening to her upcoming album, Shotgun Singer (Signature Sounds Recording Company). It’s her 5th album, and really grows on me with each listen.

    Kris spent a lot of time holed up in a rural Massachussets cabin with a minimal amount of recording gear and a bunch of instruments: guitars, cellos, a Rhodes electric piano, mandolins, vibraphones… and she brought in reinforcements like Sam Kassirer (who produced Josh RItter’s latest album) to help her arrange, mix, and chip in on percussion and keys. The result is a strong, adventurous album of indie-folk-pop.

    The “poppiest” of the record is this catchy tune. Other standout tracks for me are the seamless, flowing “To The Wire” and the haunting rhythm of “Heavens Hold the Sun”. This album will be hanging on my iPod for a while. There’s something fresh and new to discover about it with every listen.

    The Ickmusic *ding* of approval is hereby affixed to Kris Delmhorst’s Shotgun SInger….

    Kris Delmhorst – 1000 Reasons (mp3)

    Shotgun Singer will be released on April 22nd. You can pre-order it here:

    Official Site | MySpace

  • Funk,  Rock,  Soul

    Chicago Falcon

    They bill themselves as “the unheralded emperors of Instrumental Staten Island Afro-Soul”. They are white, they are bearded, and they know how to get down in that old school “Dirty Harry” kinda way (this could fit right into ‘The Enforcer‘). Check ’em out….

    The Budos Band – Chicago Falcon (mp3)

    From….

    Links: Official Site | MySpace