When long-time Iowa City scene staple Dave Zollo and Lee County troubadour William Elliott Whitmore started performing together a couple years ago as Middle Western with members of Zollo’s band The Body Electric and Chicago guitarist Stevie Doyle, it seemed a natural fit.
Michael Roeder
Michael Roeder is a self-proclaimed “music savant.” When he’s not writing for Little Village he blogs at playbsides.com.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: BEES — Shady Lady EP
The early 1970s was a dynamic time for country music. The old guard of ’50s and ’60s country artists started taking a backseat to the rise of artists crossing over with rock and R&B who took over the Top 40: artists like Glen Campbell, Mac Davis, John Denver, Elvis in his post-’68 Comeback period, Jerry Reed and J.J. Cale.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Extravision — Waking Up
If you’re familiar with Ryan Stier’s work, it’s probably from regular plays of the theme music for the Iowa Public Radio shows River To River and Talk Of Iowa that his band the River Monks composed. That band enjoyed acclaim particularly for their 2014 album Home Is The House.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Treesreach — Some Night You Will Hear Me Crowing
Some Night You Will Hear Me Crowing, the debut album from Cedar Rapids trio treesreach, uses the story of Peter Pan as a thread joining the musical squares in a large double album quilt in the form of symphonic interstitial pieces. Taken by themselves, the rock songs are not directly Peter Pan-themed, but they evoke a sense of melancholy similar to Peter Pan’s afterthought.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Dan Tedesco chases the lightning to Cedar Rapids
Dan Tedesco will be at CSPS Hall in Cedar Rapids on Thursday, Dec. 14. He’ll show the film, then hold a Q&A which will be followed by a short solo acoustic set. Tickets are $13 in advance and $16 at the door.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Gloom Balloon — Drying the Eyes of the Goddess of Gloom, Underneath the Stars and the Moon
The songs on Des Moines band/project Gloom Balloon’s sophomore album were inspired by life-changing events of falling in love and the birth of Patrick Tape Fleming’s son Nilsson (who makes an appearance on the opening track, “Password”).
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Colleen and treesreach bring new music to Groundswell
Two Cedar Rapids-based bands I’ve been following for over a year — treesreach and husband and wife duo Heather and Tyler Stück, who perform as Colleen — will be at Groundswell (201 Third Ave SW, Cedar Rapids) on Saturday night starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Har-di-Har — we will will you
‘we will will you’ isn’t about Julie and Andrew Thoreen’s separation as couple and band but rather the subtly uncharted part where they consider coming back from it. The band goes on to describe the album as a record that “invites us into the process of re-commitment.”
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Chicago’s The Right Now return to Iowa City
Chicago Soul and R&B band The Right Now celebrates nine years together in 2017. Over those years they have logged countless miles bringing their polished and passionate performances to stages across the U.S. They recorded and self-released three albums and two singles; their distinctive take on soul music stands out in an increasingly populated genre.
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: Ryne Doughty — Date Night
Des Moines-native singer-songwriter Ryne Doughty approached the production of his latest album, Date Night, with the desire to step away from the more stripped-down folk sound of his 2013 album, Under The Willow Tree. “I love that last album and the sound but I just wanted to do something different and really bring these songs to life,” he explained. “All of the songs are still songwriter based, but with more instrumentation and energy.”
Posted inAlbum Reviews
Album Review: House of Large Sizes — Idiots Out Wandering Around (Reissue)
It’s impossible to talk about the history of Iowa modern rock without talking about Cedar Falls band House of Large Sizes. During their 17-year run (1986-2003) they released eight albums, including a very brief stint on Columbia Records and a bunch of singles. Since 2003, HOLS has sporadically come out of retirement to play shows in the area to eager fans; this month HOLS put out its first release since 2003’s self-titled album — a gorgeous, expanded, two-LP color vinyl reissue of their 1999 live album.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
World premiere video: Mark Olson’s Cedar Rapids ode “Seminole Valley Tea Sippers”
Little Village is pleased to debut the video for “Seminole Valley Tea Sipper Society” — a song with its genesis in eastern Iowa. The song, by Mark Olson, one of the founders of seminal Minnesota band the Jayhawks, is featured on a CD that comes along with the current issue of the music magazine Uncut.
