I’ll begin with a confession. I did next to nothing last weekend, which means I didn’t catch any of the F.O.G. Festival at Port City Music Hall with John Popper of Blues Traveler, Chris Barron of Spin Doctors and a whole mess of local acts.
And I didn’t make it to the Lady Lamb the Beekeeper CD-release show at Space Gallery in Portland. Instead, I lived vicariously through the Facebook posts of others.
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Sometimes, a gal just needs to do nothing but listen to music on her Christmas present portable record player and make a “countdown to the David Byrne & St. Vincent show chart.” That show is on June 21, and tickets are selling at a rapid clip, so don’t dilly-dally for too long. I saw them last fall in Boston, and it was unbelievable with Byrne, Clark and a whole mess of horns.
SPEAKING OF DILLY, Portland musician Erin Davidson, aka Dilly Dilly, sends greetings from across the pond — Colchester, England, to be exact. She flew over Feb. 4 and her return ticket is flexible, so only time will tell when she’ll be coming back.
Dilly’s been hanging with a VJ/producer/videographer who goes by the name of sHORTfACEDbEAR, and this guy’s got a studio space. Dilly, SFB and Lewis Hicks (on electronic drum kit) are working on a collaborative record. They’ve also been making some videos, which I’ll keep you posted on for sure. If things line up right, a tour over there could ensue. Mind the gap, Dilly, and enjoy!
DILLY DILLY also tossed me a reminder about the New England Music Awards (nemusicawards.com). The show is happening at Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Massachusetts on April 13, and some fantastic Maine acts are contenders. And heck, Maine sister act The Veayo Twins will be performing.
Voting is open, and I’m sure the well-deserving Mainers would appreciate your vote. Here are our nominees: Jonathan Wyman is up for Producer of the Year, Rustic Overtones for Live Act of the Year, Spencer and The School Spirit Mafia for Pop/Indie Act of the Year, Tricky Britches for Folk/Roots Act of the Year and Dead Season for Hardcore/Metal Act of the Year.
In the State Awards category, the Maine nominees are The Toughcats, The Veayo Twins, The Mallett Brothers, Dilly Dilly and Anna and The Digs. Good luck, everyone!
NOW THEN, as far as this weekend is concerned, here’s my official recommendation. Head to Space, 538 Congress St., at 8:30 p.m. Friday to celebrate the release of Phantom Buffalo’s magical new record, “Tadaloora.” Take a listen at phantombuffalo.bandcamp.com. The 18-plus show costs $8. space538.org
I’LL LEAVE YOU with another crazy confession. I’ll be reviewing the Jewel show Sunday night at Merrill Auditorium, so I’ve been listening to her for the past week or so. While I can appreciate a lot of her work, I have NEVER liked the song “You Were Meant for Me.” In fact, it’s been like nails on a chalkboard.
Until now.
For her recently released “Greatest Hits” CD, Jewel went back into the studio and re-recorded the song with The Pistol Annies, and it now has electric guitar. In short, it’s a totally new song, and dare I say I like it?
I’m saying it.
Staff Writer Aimsel Ponti can be contacted at 791-6455 or at:
aponti@pressherald.com
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