Andy Shauf: Live Video from Roots Cafe, Brooklyn, NY 9-17-10

Andy Shauf just finished a month-long US tour with Lauris Vidal and I caught the tour at the free pass-the-hat show at Roots Cafe in Brooklyn. Given the subtlety intimacy of Andy's songs, I was pleasantly surprised to witness how well the songs came across in a live setting. Roots Cafe is fairly small in size so Andy's songs and direct conversations with the audience made the show feel more like a house party with a group of friends than a 'traditional' concert.

Here are the last two songs from Andy's set:



Andy's new EP, "Waiting for the Sun to Leave", is out this Tuesday, Sept. 28th and the disc contains studio recording of songs that have been a part of Andy's live set for the last few years. "It’s 8 songs that are sort of old. Newer than Darker Days, but older than… brand new." (from Andy's blog)

Links:
Andy Shauf

Argyle Johansen - Self-Titled CD Review

Argyle Johansen is the debut release from Brooklyn musician John F. Wentz's alter-ego/solo project. This project includes Sam Merrick (percussion), David Kross (bass) and Taylor Galassi (cello) and the end results are comparable to artists like Jack Johnson and Ben Harper. Similar to Johnson's music, you can quickly hear influences like Nick Drake, Simon & Garfunkel, The Beatles and Jeff Buckley on Argyle Johansen's self-titled debut,

The ten-song electro/acoustic disc is consistently mellow with a laid-back 70's West Coast vibe. The songs are narrative stories that paint a lyrical picture of a particular place or point in time and the disc's mellow vibe hides lyrics that can be sometimes dark and off-kilter. Argyle Johansen is already getting some national attention as the song "Sunny Day In Hell" was included in Showtime's Californication.

Argyle Johansen plays live with a full band and here are the band's upcoming shows:
July 26, 2009, 6:00PM, Spike Hill, Brooklyn, New York
August 4, 2009, 10:00PM, Local 269 (formerly Vasmay Lounge), New York
August 25, 2009, 8:00PM, Cross-Pollination @ Pianos [Upstairs]

Cross-Pollination has been going on for a few years now but I've only recently become aware of it:

The set-up of the Cross-Pollination event is as follows: Two of the best singer-songwriters in NYC each play a 40 minute solo set. This is followed by a three song collaborative set during which both artists share the stage. We've seen it all, mutual covers, songs written together especially for the occasion, EP's of the event, playing on each others songs, etc. Fans and artists alike have responded with nothing but praise as they marvel at these unique listening experiences in which artists step out of their comfort zone, and into new and exciting territory.

Argyle Johansen - "Pressure"


For more information, check out an interview with John F. Wentz on Breakthru Radio's blog and Argyle Johansen's MySpace profile.

Andy Shauf - "Darker Days" CD Review (P Is For Panda Records)

DOWNLOAD: Andy Shauf - Three Cuts from Darker Days are available as a Free Download on iSound.com

Andy Shauf's full-length debut Darker Days came out last week on P is for Panda Records. The disc is a collection of the best of Andy's bedroom demos but, unlike most demo tapes, the songs are surprisingly mature. Andy wrote, produced and played all the instruments on this disc; on only two of the eleven cuts does he bring on friends to help out on backing vocals.

Andy has a silky-smooth voice but he doesn't use his voice alone to cary the songs. The backing instrumentation plays a major role in most songs and it ranges from acoustic guitar to electric grunge chords, handclaps and a banjo. While Deb Hansen adds some beautiful backing vocals to "Crushes", one of the real gems on this CD is "Gone" where Andy provides his own backing vocals and sings in glorious Beach Boys-like harmony with himself.

The themes of a lot of the songs are about love and relationships but the disc doesn't come off as a bland folk/emo disc. While there are a few slow spots, Andy keeps the disc moving by changing up the tempos, the instruments and his vocals. Some of the strongest cuts ("The Greatest Moments", "Your Heart" and "Crushes") are streaming on Andy's MySpace page.


Here is the first of Andy's video blogs which features an acoustic performance of "Your Heart". This is the lead-off track from Darker Days and it is a great segue into the rest of the disc.



Andy is currently touring in Canada and here are his upcoming tour dates:
June 2, 2009 -- 7:00PM, Estevan Comprehensive School Cafeteria, Estevan, Saskatchewan
June 12, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Haar Theatre (Grant MacEwan Arts Campus), Edmonton, Alberta
July 8, 2009 -- 7:30PM, TCU Place, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
August 7-9, 2009 -- Regina Folk Festival, Regina, Saskatchewan