master-musicians-of-jajouka.jpgThis week marks one year since I took the helm of Sound. In honor of the occasion, and because it is production week and I would like to quicken the onset of insanity, I present the first Daily Note column, a mash-up of the minutiae that gains my fleeting attention each and every excruciatingly long work day. Sometimes these notes may be quite boring and consist of little more than a series of emoticons. Other times they will be filled with amusing temper tantrums regarding the various levels of entitlement that are sensed by Northwest music institutions. In general, though, they will be filled with half-thoughts and meandering conversations that I have collected throughout the day. I might also tell you what I’m listening to, or what band I’m going to see. Who knows. Life is an adventure! And this column is a vague representation of that adventure. So, off we go.

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First off, it has just come to my attention that the appearance by the Master Musicians of Jajouka at Neumos July 25 has been canceled due to federal government interference. Rumor has it that the group of African musicians was denied entry to the U.S. because some or all of the members of the group are on a terror watch list. None of this has been confirmed, so I will resist my inclination to call bullshit on such a move, but I will say that I am personally disappointed. After reading Darek Mazzone’s recounting of the group’s last visit (on page 65 of July’s Sound), I was ready for a transcendent experience. Now I will just have to huff glue. Stay tuned for updates as they become available.

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Next is a conversation I was having with a friend of mine over gchat, regarding the Hold Steady, a well-trained bar band that I am incredibly fond of. Keep in mind that my friend, whom we will call Blanche, myself and the author of the article of which we are speaking, all lived for a time in Minneapolis. If you are easily annoyed or confused, do pass.

me: did you read matos’ hold steady piece?
Blanche: I did, liked it better than the new york mag piece

me: i didn’t read the ny mag piece
who wrote it?
Blanche: a joshua ferris? don’t know the name

me: hmmm
i dug matos piece
only people who lived in Minnesota in the late-’90s should be allowed to write about that band
totally did NOT get the lede, though
Blanche: it’s a weird comment to lead on, fo sure

me: yeah.
i was just thinking, I wonder what this story is going to be about?
and then when it got into the meat, I thought, this is good, but how is he going to weave the voice thing back in
and then it didn’t weave
knowwhatimsayin
Blanche: and he’s usually pretty good at that, too, bringing it back around

me: definitely
matos is, in many ways, like a very good comedian
he usually wraps up well
personally, i would have loved it if he would have started by unpacking the title track from the new album
pointing out all the allusions to the old albums
it’s really interesting how self-referential the Hold Steady is
and that was the meat of the story
but the treatment he gave it felt a little
superficial
imho
like he didn’t trust the reader could follow him there
did you find that at all?
Blanche: well, other than the rabid readers (i.e. lifter puller fans) what can one assume the general public knows of these guys?

me: absolutely nothing
Blanche: the NY mag one is worse for that
http://nymag.com/arts/popmusic/features/48531/

me: how long does an “indie” band have to be around before national writers can start writing as though the readership has a basic understanding of who they are?
Blanche: is it a duration question? or more of a stats question. If X amount of an album gets around, when can you start talking like you’re not being inaugurated into the next “big thing?”

me: i think i’m thinking more in terms of this:
with the fracturing of music culture, at what point do our best writers get to write indepth pieces about an artist for a national audience
or will that national audience always be unfamiliar
eh
i don’t know
Blanche: it’s hard, esp re: hold steady
it’s like you either know (or know too much) or you’re like “who are these guys?”

me: they’re so hypercontextualized too
if you’re not from Minnesota or New York, do you really give a fuck
I would love to see the Soundscan distribution of album sales for them
Blanche: exactly. I really don’t know if folks outside the realms of MN & NY care one cent about them
but this is nice. I never get invited to critique here.

me: yeah
i kind of love gchat critique

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And finally, I will end today by talking about tonight’s Joshua Morrison show at the Triple Door. Morrison, for those Sound readers who do not know, is a promising young songwriter whose debut full-length, Home, is filled with songs of longing that could only be borne out of forced separation. Morrison’s whisper delivery and quietly galloping (imagine Sea Biscuit in slippers) guitar lines set the mood, but the lyrics are the thing; all heart and soul. Morrison is in town for just a few days, as he is currently on a short leave from the army. His last local performance was a few months ago at the Tractor Tavern. Since then he has performed in Nashville (his fort is a short drive away) and has written a lot of new material. The new stuff is still in rough form, as Morrison grapples with emotions much more complex than homesickness, but the guy is determined as he climbs a steep learning curve that could very well put him in the company of his hero David Bazan. Ask him to play Pedro the Lion’s “June 18 1976″ for a pure chill. Tomorrow Morrison leaves for Kentucky where he will continue his service. So catch him tonight, or wait till Bumbershoot.

PHOTO: A lineup of suspected terrorists, aka the Master Musicians of Jajouka. By Ngo Vinh-Hoi.