Spaghetti Western on the Radio

by Lucien Flores
The original version of this article was published on June 3, 2011 for the Daily Free Press.

Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi, Rome, Capitol, 2011

Brian Burton is a busy man. Known by his pseudonym, Danger Mouse, he has been a mainstay in the music industry ever since he mashed together The Beatles’ White Album with Jay’s Z’s The Black Album to much acclaim in 2004. Since then he has produced albums for The Black Keys, Beck and Gorillaz while also becoming one half of Gnarls Barkley (with Cee Lo Green) and Broken Bells (with James Mercer of The Shins).

While Danger Mouse can be frequently spotted creating and producing hip-hop and indie-rock, he has a strong affinity for the Italian cinema scores of the late 1960s and early 1970s, (think Ennio Morricone’s oft-imitated soundtrack of Sergio Leone’s The Good, The Bad and The Ugly) that stemmed from taking a film course his freshman year of college. Danger Mouse’ adoration for composers such as Morricone, Piero Umiliani and other stalwarts of Italian cinema ultimately fostered his friendship with the Italian producer and Rome co-creator, Daniele Luppi. Soon after meeting each other, Luppi and Danger Mouse became enamored with the idea of creating their very own Italian soundtrack masterpiece and after a half-decade of work, the final product, Rome (a record that Danger Mouse says influenced all his other work for the past five years), is finally out to the public.

Not wanting to skimp on any aspect of the album, Danger Mouse and Luppi did everything possible to preserve the sounds of those classic Italian scores. The two booked Morricone’s Forum Studios in Rome, collected a wealth of vintage instruments and recruited the very same musicians who contributed to the soundtracks that Danger Mouse and Luppi so admire. The pair also pulled some strings to reunite Cantori Moderni di Alessandro Alessandroni – a choir that was commonplace in Morricone scores – as well as 76-year-old Edda Dell’Orso – another favorite of Morricone and Sergio Leone – who provides atmospheric vocals on Rome’s opening track. In an interview with The Guardian, Danger Mouse commented on the bringing together of such musicians, saying, “First day, they all came in and you could tell it was the first time they had been in the same room for a long time. They were hugging, some tears. But then, about two hours in, they’re all yelling at each other.” These veteran musicians, now in their 70s and 80s, provide the life and authenticity of this album.

The Mustache of Greatness: Jack White

Danger Mouse’s Ocean’s Eleven recruitment strategy continued as the brilliant workhorse Jack White and the delicate Norah Jones were enlisted to contribute vocals.  The highlights of this album are Jack White’s three tracks. “The Rose With The Broken Neck,” the album’s first real song, is superb as a familiar higher-voiced Jack White duets with an unfamiliar sounding, lower-pitched Jack White. “The World” is another standout featuring an almost nervous sounding White. However, White’s strongest number and the album’s best track is the fast-moving, all-too-short, “Two Against One.” Starting with clean guitar, White’s impressive fast-talking lyrics and a playful harpsichord soon take over before the song ends much too quickly. Normally we hear White’s voice in front of the bluesy garage-rock of The White Stripes, the gloomy macabre of the Dead Weather and the 70s rock-pop of the Raconteurs; rarely do we get the pleasure of hearing him accompanied by the sweeping and eclectic sounds of an orchestra, and this makes Rome a delight to listen to.

While Norah Jones’ numbers aren’t quite as spellbinding as White’s, “Black,” “Season’s Trees” and “Problem Queen” are all very strong and interesting in their own right and suit her perfectly raspy voice.

Rome is a joy to listen to as we are treated to a multitude of rare instruments. The album’s three short interludes are surprisingly captivating and certainly add to the cinematic feel of the album. With that said, the album can drag a bit due to some uninteresting instrumentals, however, the strength of Rome’s lyrical track
Brian Burton is a busy man. Known by his pseudonym, Danger Mouse, he has been a mainstay in the music industry ever since he mashed together The Beatles’ White Albumwith Jay’s Z’s The Black Album to much acclaim in 2004. Since then he has produced albums for The Black Keys, Beck and Gorillaz while also becoming one half of Gnarls Barkley (with Cee Lo Green) and Broken Bells (with James Mercer of The Shins).

While Danger Mouse can be frequently spotted creating and producing hip-hop and indie-rock, he has a strong affinity for the Italian cinema scores of the late 1960s and early 1970s, (think Ennio Morricone’s oft-imitated soundtrack of Sergio Leone’s The Good, The Bad and The Ugly) that stemmed from taking a film course his freshman year of college. Danger Mouse’ adoration for composers such as Morricone, Piero Umiliani and other stalwarts of Italian cinema ultimately fostered his friendship with the Italian producer and Rome co-creator, Daniele Luppi. Soon after meeting each other, Luppi and Danger Mouse became enamored with the idea of creating their very own Italian soundtrack masterpiece and after a half-decade of work, the final product, Rome (a record that Danger Mouse says influenced all his other work for the past five years), is finally out to the public.

Not wanting to skimp on any aspect of the album, Danger Mouse and Luppi did everything possible to preserve the sounds of those classic Italian scores. The two booked Morricone’s Forum Studios in Rome, collected a wealth of vintage instruments and recruited the very same musicians who contributed to the soundtracks that Danger Mouse and Luppi so admire. The pair also pulled some strings to reunite Cantori Moderni di Alessandro Alessandroni – a choir that was commonplace in Morricone scores – as well as 76-year-old Edda Dell’Orso – another favorite of Morricone and Sergio Leone – who provides atmospheric vocals on Rome’s opening track. In an interview with The Guardian, Danger Mouse commented on the bringing together of such musicians, saying, “First day, they all came in and you could tell it was the first time they had been in the same room for a long time. They were hugging, some tears. But then, about two hours in, they’re all yelling at each other.” These veteran musicians, now in their 70s and 80s, provide the life and authenticity of this album.

Danger Mouse’s Ocean’s Eleven recruitment strategy continued as the brilliant workhorse Jack White and the delicate Norah Jones were enlisted to contribute vocals.  The highlights of this album are Jack White’s three tracks. “The Rose With The Broken Neck,” the album’s first real song, is superb as a familiar higher-voiced Jack White duets with an unfamiliar sounding, lower-pitched Jack White. “The World” is another standout featuring an almost nervous sounding White. However, White’s strongest number and the album’s best track is the fast-moving, all-too-short, “Two Against One.” Starting with clean guitar, White’s impressive fast-talking lyrics and a playful harpsichord soon take over before the song ends much too quickly. Normally we hear White’s voice in front of the bluesy garage-rock of The White Stripes, the gloomy macabre of the Dead Weather and the 70s rock-pop of the Raconteurs; rarely do we get the pleasure of hearing him accompanied by the sweeping and eclectic sounds of an orchestra, and this makes Rome a delight to listen to.

While Norah Jones’ numbers aren’t quite as spellbinding as White’s, “Black,” “Season’s Trees” and “Problem Queen” are all very strong and interesting in their own right and suit her perfectly raspy voice.

Burton, Jones, Luppi, and White

Rome is a joy to listen to as we are treated to a multitude of rare instruments. The album’s three short interludes are surprisingly captivating and certainly add to the cinematic feel of the album. With that said, the album can drag a bit due to some uninteresting instrumentals, however, the strength of Rome’s lyrical tracks and interludes allow listeners to forgive these less interesting moments.

Rome sets the imagination wild by evoking the harsh desert terrain, black-clad baddies and unkempt facial hair of any Clint Eastwood western. However, no matter how entertaining the album is, Rome’s best moments can never reach the cinematic spiraling highs of an Ennio Morricone score. Ultimately, Rome is a quality record that arose out of ambitious project to pay tribute to the greatness of Italian cinema soundtracks and it certainly delivers. Bravo, Danger Mouse, bravo.

Overall Grade: 8

Kickin' It With Keeler (Patrick Keeler of The Greenhornes/Raconteurs)

by Lucien Flores
The original version of this article was published on April 7, 2011 for the Daily Free Press.

 Patrick Keeler at Work

A few weeks ago Common Ground's Lucien Flores talked over phone with Patrick Keeler whose band - the three-piece garage rockers The Greenhornes - played Brighton Music Hall last night.  The Greenhornes’ sound drips of their influences (those quintessential 1960s bands such as The Who, The Kinks, The Stones, The Animals, and others that defined a generation) and their latest album, ★★★★ (4 Stars), dropped late last year to positive reception.  The band is composed of guitarist/vocalist Craig Fox, bassist Jack Lawrence, and drummer Patrick Keeler.  

Keeler is the band’s impressive drummer and even if you don’t recognize the name you’ll be sure to his recognize his work. Aside from founding The Greenhornes in 1996, Keeler and fellow bandmate Jack Lawrence comprise the rhythm section of Jack White and Brendan Benson’s supergroup, The Raconteurs (you might recognize them for their hit “Steady As She Goes.”). Keeler, Lawrence, and White also collaborated on Loretta Lynn’s Grammy-winning album, Van Lear Rose, and Wanda Jackson’s recent The Party Ain’t Over. We at Common Ground are very thankful that Keeler who, even while suffering from a cold, sacrificed his time to answer a few of our questions.  He seemed equally as appreciative for the chance of being interviewed and came off like a genuinely nice and down-to-earth person.

Lawrence, Fox, and Keeler

LF: ★★★★ was the Greenhorns’ release after a pretty sizable hiatus. [In fact, ★★★★ is the band’s first studio album in eight years]  What were those first rehearsals after being apart?

PK: It was pretty amazing. We didn’t really rehearse so much…to make the record. In the studios we got shows booked when we were ready to put out the record. Those rehearsals were pretty amazing. Just kind of going back to everything we’ve ever done since 1996 and how easily a bunch of the old stuff kind of came out and how hard it was to do the new stuff.

LF: You guys formed in ‘96. What’s it like playing with the same two guys for so long? What’s your relationship like now and just how much have you grown together as musicians?

PK: As musicians we’ve all really grown up together and just kind of play off each other, listen to each other, and make each other better for sure. You grow up and you know each other a little better and it’s going well.

LF: I think it’s pretty safe to say that The Greenhornes and The Raconteurs have this 60s/70s influence. How did you yourself get introduced to the era of music?

PK: I think it was just growing up; where I grew up and the kind of music my dad listened to and my older brother listened to and it was kind of discovering what you like. I guess I only liked that kind of music. That was what I had most access to and I guess it stuck with me better. We all a kind of similar taste in music and that’s how we all got together in the first place.

LF: Whom do you consider your biggest influences in terms of drummers?

PK: Hmm, I don’t know. I’ve got a lot of them. Probably Buddy Rich or Mitch Mitchell.

LF: We’ve been talking about the music from the 60s/70s, however, what contemporary music to you listen to?

PK: I like Dungen a lot…it’s a Swedish band, called like “Dungeon”… sort of… but [in] Swedish (laughs). I like them. I like a lot of stuff. I listen to a lot of stuff

LF: What do you find yourself doing when you come to Boston? Are there any spots you tend to frequent or is it different every time?

PK: I’m dying to really try a Wagamama there. I want to do a general compare and contrast. That’s like the food that saves you when you’re in Europe…in the UK…and now they have them in Boston. I would love to try that.

LF: You’ve been very busy over the last couple years. You and Jack Lawrence played in the Raconteurs and played on Loretta Lynn’s [Van Lear Rose] and Wanda Jackson’s [The Party ‘Aint Over]. How do you manage all these projects?

PK: Well, it’s a lot easier than you think. You just show up and play (laughs). But I’ve been fortunate to get to work with some very cool people.

LF: Were you yourself influenced by their music styles?

PK: I think you always pick up something from whatever you do. Anytime you record something new with somebody else, you’re going to pick up something. 

 












LF: Did you find that The Greenhornes find a heightened popularity with these other projects?

PK: Yeah we’ve benefitted from all of us doing different things over the years.  Getting back together, kind of doing it the way we would traditional we would do it, which was, we never had an idea of how to do this stuff (record or anything). It’s all trial by error, you know?

LF: How’s the fan support been for your first tour in a while and your first album in years?

PK: Oh it’s been great man. It was cool in a way that we took a break because now there’s people that were way too young or that didn’t know us before, that never saw us, that are coming out. It’s been really good.

LF: During your hiatus, did it ever look like the Greenhornes were done or was there always a belief that you guys would come back and finish the album?

White, Keeler, Lawrence, and Benson: The Raconteurs

PK: Well we were always working on our record. We’re not quitting at that point, it’s like why quit if we’ve been a band this long?

LF: Do the Raconteurs have any future plans?

PK: Yeah, I’m sure we do somewhere down the line. I’m sure we’ll do something some day.

LF:  You’ve talked about how you guys were working on ★★★★ for a while. What were you guys try to do differently on this album compared to any of your earlier albums?

PK:  Well we weren’t trying to do anything. We recorded this one differently by kind of writing the songs in the studio. Before we had already had songs ready to go and we knocked ‘em out really quick. This one, we just took our time and worked the songs in the studio. It probably shows its difference that way.

LF: Jack Lawrence makes his vocal debut for The Greenhornes on this album [on the songs “Go Tell Henry”], now, do you ever possibly see yourself doing that down that line?

PK: I don’t know. At the moment I can barely do a speech because I’m sick (laughs). I don’t think so. I don’t know. I have no idea.

Common Ground News Update - January 20th

Listen up folks – literally. The Coachella Festival slated for April 15-17 in Indio, CA has released its lineup. The directors of the three-day extravaganza again seem to be attempting to cater to both indie and mainstream audiences, a trend becoming increasingly evident over the past few years. Check out the list which includes Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons, The Black Keys, Cold War Kids, The National, Morning Benders, Nas, Black Joe Lewis, Sleigh Bells, Titus Andronicus, and more Common Ground favorites. Also included...Cee Lo Green.

As you may already know, the indie-rock super stars, Arcade Fire, have been nominated for three Grammys this year. Their 2010 album, The Suburbs, faces competition from Katy Perry, Lady Gaga,  Eminem, and Lady Antebellum in the Album of the Year category.  The Suburbs is also up for Best Alternative Music Album while the track "Ready To Start" has been nominated for Best Rock Performance by A Duo or Group With Vocal.  On top of these honors, the band has also been given the nod to perform at 53rd Grammys (February 13th, 8pm).

In other Arcade Fire news, the band will debut Scenes From the Suburbs, a short film directed by Spike Jonez at the Berlin International Film Festival, taking place February 10-20. The film has been referred to as "a science-fiction B-movie companion piece for the record" and in an interview with Pitchfork, lead vocalist Win Butler said "my brother [William Butler] and I and Spike wrote it together, which was really fun– it was like total amateur hour.” Enjoy a clip from the film:

What do you get when you cross Bob Dylan, Wanda Jackson, and Jack White? An innovative combination of vintage old and vibrant new - classic black with a splash of girly pink – a marriage evident in Wanda Jackson’s new music video released on Tuesday. Covering Dylan’s 2006 “Thunder on the Mountain”, the rockabilly star joined forces with Jack White and his Third Man Record team to produce The Party Ain’t Over out January 25^th. Take a look at the rip-roaring fun here: 

Back on the 11th of December the Cold War Kids played a few songs over at Jack White's Third Man Records in Tennessee. Now, a few videos of the act making their way to the band's Youtube/Vevo page. Here's the unreleased "Skip The Charades." You can also check out a performance of "Louder Than Ever" from that show. Also check out the new "Louder Than Ever" music video.

Gregg Allman, famed founder of the band that bears his name, released his latest album Low Country Blues on Tuesday, his first in fourteen years. Produced by the legendary T Bone Burnett, the album consists of eleven covers and one original. Mostly blues interpretations, the tracks seem to connect Allman again to his Nashville roots, albeit in more relaxed arrangements than those he always played with his “brothers”. You can listen to the album on Rolling Stone. 

The Denver based DeVotchKa releases 100 Lovers March 1st on Anti- Records. The diverse band achieved some acclaim in 2004 with "How It Ends." They also provided the majority of the music for the Little Miss Sunshine Soundtrack which was nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack at the Grammys in 2006. Anyway, the band once again draws from an eclectic mixture of musical influences on their new track "100 Other Lovers." Listen to it here on Stereogum.

~ More News and Notes ~ 

- The energetic funk revival band, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears is set to release Scandalous on March 15th. . This is Sugarfoot, off their 2009 debut, Tell 'Em What Your Name Is!

- In an odd turn of event, The Dire Straits' classic radio anthem, "Money For Nothing" has been banned in its uncensored form in Canada. Read more about it at Rolling Stone.

- A Grateful Dead videogame in which "players will explore a Grateful Dead-themed world." Read about it at Rolling Stone.

- Robin Pecknold of Fleet Foxes tweeted that their second LP "is done and mastered."  He later went on to tweet, "that happened a little while ago. Announcements soon, but no turning back now I guess.”

- The Strokes are set to release their first album since 2006 later this year. Angles will drop March 22nd in the USA  

- Common Ground writer, Lucien Flores has begun contributing to the Daily Free Press' new blog. Here he weighs in on the three bands that he most wants to see live at Coachella.

Cheers,
Michela Smith & Lucien Flores

Looking Ahead: A Brief Glimpse Into 2011 and Other News - Cold War Kids Sampler & The Black Keys Do Battle With Vampire Weekend

Here's some music news and song samples to whet your appetites for a few of 2011's new releases from The Decemberists to Okkervil River, Cold War Kids, Danger Mouse, and more. Enjoy.

Okkervil River appeared on Jimmy Fallon last night and debuted their song, “Wake and Be Fine," Their new album, I Am Very Far is to be released May 10 and will be added to the list of albums to the right.  If you don't know Okkervil River, I'd take a listen...they're pretty good.

So The Decemberists new album, The King Is Dead, leaked the other day. I'll have a review up before the end up the month, but in the meantime, you can listen to it over at NPR. Here is the opening track, "Don't Carry It All." The album is slated for a January 18th release. They're playing January 24-26th at the Beacon Theatre in Manhattan and January 28th-29th at the House of Blues in Boston.  Be sure to check the Boston Music Scene page as well.

Danger Mouse is collaborating with Italian composer Daniele Luppi on a new album inspired by the film soundtracks of Ennio Morricone. For this project, entitled Rome, Danger Mouse procured the help of Jack White and Norah Jones.  Hear snippets of a few songs below. This blogger's personal favorite is the Jack White sung track that comes at just about 2:00 minutes in. Rome drops March 1st.

Kentucky based indie rockers Cage the Elephant release their new album, Thank You, Happy Birthday, today. The band appeared on my music radar in 2008 with their twangy indie-blues song,  "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked." However, their debut album was nothing great and it remains to be seen if their follow up album will resonate with audiences. A review will be up before the end of the month, but until then this is "Shake Me Down."

Cold War Kids' Mine Is Yours comes out January 25th, but if you can't make it until then without new Cold War Kids material, enjoy "Royal Blue" and "Louder Than Ever."

The Black Keys released Brothers May 18th and yet audiences still can't get enough of them. They were on SNL last week and on Letterman yesterday. Check out the band playing their hit single "Tighten Up" on SNL. The rock duo also played "Howlin' For You" on SNL and Letterman (wish they would have changed it up).

So that's a wrap for now. We'll have more on these albums when they finally drop, but until then, keep on listening and of course, reading Common Ground. 

- Lucien Flores

~ UPDATE ~

Cold War Kids released a sampler of 5 songs off Mine is Yours. Now two of these songs ("Royal Blue" and "Louder Than Ever") have already been released, but this is the first taste of the other three tracks. Also, I forgot to mention it earlier, but the band is playing at the House of Blues in Boston on March 22nd. Tickets are $20 so pick some up today. I'll be going...maybe I'll see you there?

~ January 12th ~

The Black Keys were once again on late night television last night, gracing Stephen Colbert with their presence on his Colbert Report.  On the show, Colbert enlisted help from the Ohio-based garage rockers and Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend to aide with his selection for the Grammy for Best Alternative Album. Of course, the Black Keys supported their own Brothers while Ezra supported Contra. Eventually, Colbert had the two bands face off in a Sell-Out Off and hilarity ensued. Colbert also poked fun at Arcade Fire, Band of Horse, Mumford & Sons, and other artists.

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