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I’m sure it has been a bit difficult for promoters to properly market these upcoming Utopia gigs. Any advertising would have to reach the casual fan since most “diehards” would already have tickets to the shows by now. And there-in lies the confusion. From a marketing perspective, you have to remind the general music fan at large of the fact that Todd Rundgren is the guy behind songs like “Hello It’s Me” and “Bang on the Drum All Day”. But when you mention Rundgren’s familiar hits in your ads, you wind up with concert goers expecting syrupy ballads like “Can We Still Be Friends” and “It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference”.

Take the case of what’s written up on the website for the show I’m going to at the Carolina Theatre:
Rock’s ultimate cult hero, Todd Rundgren is a prolific and talented musician and producer who has created a staggering amount of sounds and styles over the last few decades, everything from Beatles-inspired pop to a cappella recordings. His 1972 double album Something/Anything?, showcased his genius better than any other Rundgren record before or since, with such radio hits as “Hello, It’s Me” and “I Saw the Light.”

That’s all fine and dandy but there’s NO MENTION of the fact that this is the long-awaited reunion of the 1974-era members of Todd’s prog-rock band Utopia. And because this is a “UTOPIA” gig, I’m pretty certain “Hello It’s Me”, “Can We Still Be Friends” and the like will not be played at any of these shows.

Hopefully the “casual fans” going to these gigs will be informed enough to know what they are getting into.

But for the diehards, these gigs are a dream come true. Even a couple years ago, no one would have imagined that they’d actually see Moogy Klingman, Kevin Ellman, Ralph Schuckett, John Seigler playing “The Ikon” on stage with Todd ever again. But it’s happening!! And as far as we know, only at these 12 shows. …Well, if these shows do well in terms of ticket sales then who knows…there could be more…

As for what they’re playing – Todd mentioned in a recent interview that they’ll be playing most (if not all) of the 1974 album Todd Rundgren’s Utopia and the 1975 album Another Live. So expect to see the full 30-minute rendition of “The Ikon”!! as well as “Freak Parade”, “The Wheel”, “Seven Rays” and “Just One Victory”.

We’ll know for sure after the first gig at the Hard Rock in Florida on November 2nd. I’ll probably update this post with a setlist on the 3rd. So check back here if you want spoilers.

Utopia 2011 tour dates:
Wed 11/02/11 Hollywood, FL Seminole Hard Rock Live
Thu 11/03/11 Fort Pierce, FL Sunrise Theatre
Sat 11/05/11 Clearwater, FL Ruth Eckerd Hall
Sun 11/06/11 Jacksonville, FL Florida Theatre
Wed 11/09/11 Atlanta, GA Center Stage
Thu 11/10/11 Durham, NC Carolina Theatre
Sat 11/12/11 Akron, OH Akron Civic Theatre
Sun 11/13/11 Westbury, NY NYCB Theatre At Westbury
Tue 11/15/11 Boston, MA Wilbur Theatre
Wed 11/16/11 Englewood, NJ Bergen Performing Arts Ctr.
Fri 11/18/11 Peekskill, NY Paramount Center For The Arts
Sat 11/19/11 Upper Darby, PA Tower Theatre

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This gave me a chuckle today. I just stumbled across an old concert review I posted back in 2003 over on the TR Connection, a Todd Rundgren fan site run by Roger Linder. This was during Todd’s “have gun, will travel” tour which made a stop at the Carolina Theatre in Durham. I’m a bit surprised I gave a pretty positive spin of the concert since “Todd on stage all by his lonesome” is not really my cup of tea. I personally prefer to see him with a band. I’m pretty positive even Todd himself got sick of the “solo acoustic” type gigs since he stopped doing those types of shows after 2005.

Thankfully his return to the Carolina Theatre in November will be with a full band, the 1974-era UTOPIA no less. I’ll post more about the Utopia concert later on but first here’s my original review of Rundgren’s February 8, 2003 concert as found on the TRConnection.

enjoy.

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Todd Rundgren – February 8, 2003 at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, NC

I went into the show thinking that since this was the last official stop on his winter mini tour-of-the-south that I’d have a better chance in seeing a more polished Todd show this time around (you know, Todd had the whole tour to “practice” the piano) Well, better luck next time I guess. The show was pretty much typical Todd in terms of piano flubs, forgotten lyrics and technical difficulties.

Todd started out well performing Love of the Common Man but had to stop mid-way through due to breaking THREE guitar strings. He had this “oh no not again!” look on his face since something similar to this happened the night before in charlotte. It seemed that Todd had a rough time recovering from this initial incident the rest of the night which may explain the shorter set list compared to other stops on this tour. some notable songs MIA this night: Love In Action, Black and White, Hawking, It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference and There Goes My Inspiration. I didn’t get a good read on Todd tonight. Couldn’t tell if he was glad this was the last stop on this leg of the tour and was eager to move on or if he felt this was an “off night” and decided not to push his luck by playing more than he had to. Todd wasn’t that chatty tonight which was kind of a bummer as well. The show was over by 10:30pm which was just TOO early. I was waiting for him to play on….. at least to hear him sing Hawking. But just my luck, it wasn’t meant to be this night.

Even with all the flubs and mind farts, I still enjoyed the show (yes, i know it surprised me too). There were several moments of pure bliss where Todd would sing a line so sweet and perfect, it’d take you to another place and time. Those moments really made the show for me. highlights for me include: tonight’s version of Compassion (spine tingling), the mp3-backed bossa nova set (although the abrupt way the “with a twist” instrumentals end is kinda jarring…..I wish he’d modify the tracks…), a sweet version of I Don’t Want to Tie you Down, Love of the Common Man (in the second run through of the song, Todd seems real determined to get it right this time and he definitely came through!), a solid performance of Cliche and the Wheel, and a surprisingly enjoyable version of Bang on the Ukelele Daily (personally I think I was more receptive to it tonight mainly b/c it came after the crash and burn of Hello It’s Me on piano.)

Overall Todd’s voice sounded great. And at times he seemed to really get into it. lowlights: in addition to the cring-worthy performance of Hello It’s Me, Todd barely made it through A Dream Goes On Forever. Afterwards Todd remarked that he couldn’t let the night end like that so he strapped on the guitar one last time to send us home with One World. I was pleasantly surprised that he sang “Chapel Hill to Tokyo!!” in the song since I live there. cool!

As for the venue: kudos to whoever booked this tour. they picked some great places for Todd to play and the Carolina Theatre is definitely one of them. pretty intimate and great sound. And I was real glad to see such a great turnout. The place was packed. A big thanks to the management of the Carolina Theatre, STAR-FM and the News and Observer for getting the word out about Todd’s show. I think it made a big difference in terms of the size of the crowd.

Another highlight of the evening came early on: the opening act (an acapella group from NC State) ended their set with a great version of Todd’s Hodja.

To sum up: even though the show wasn’t as polished as I had hoped, I still came out of the theater with a big smile on my face. Thanks Todd. Come back and visit soon!!! (actually that just might be the case since Todd announced last night that Rex will be playing with the Greensboro Bats this season which is about an hour away from Chapel Hill! cool!)

hhhmmmm, not sure why Yes isn’t releasing a recording from their most recent “Fly From Here” tour which includes keyboardist Geoff Downes in the lineup but this isn’t the *first* time Yes and their management has gone and done something screwy. Anyway, this new 2CD/DVD set features Benoit David on vocals and Oliver Wakeman in keys.

Here’s the official announcement:

YES TO RELEASE NEW LIVE 2CD/DVD PACKAGE ON FRONTIERS RECORDS
Frontiers Records proudly announces the latest live release from the most influential and ground-breaking progressive rock ‘n’ roll band in history, Yes. New album In The Present – Live from Lyon will be available on 2CD/DVD package from November 29 in North America and December 2 in Europe.
Recorded in Lyon, France, on December 1st 2009, In The Present – Live from Lyon is an outstanding collection of hidden gems and unforgettable classics, with new singer Benoit David breathing new life into each of the evergreen tracks. The package comes with a 55 minute DVD containing excerpts from the live performance, candid interviews and behind the scenes footage. The cover art features an original design by Roger Dean, author of most Yes album covers including classics ‘Fragile’, ‘Close To The Edge’ and ‘Drama’.
Yes’ powerful compositions influenced a generation of musicians. They have a hugely successful and indelible catalogue of masterpieces; songs like “Roundabout,” a seminal hit which consistently appears on “the best songs of all-time” lists, and the group’s #1 hit “Owner of a Lonely Heart”, taken from the Yes album ’90125′, saw Yes top the UK and US album charts simultaneously.
Yes are the pioneers for the use of synthesizers and sound effects in modern music and produced a multitude of timeless, symphonic-rock masterworks; they continued to push the cutting edge of art-rock music to their limits, selling over 30 million albums and reaching platinum status multiple times worldwide. Yes latest studio album ‘Fly From Here’ – the first in ten years – hit the Top 10 on the Rock Charts and was declared as their “best work since the ’70s” (Paste Magazine)

“In the Present – Live From Lyon” will be released in a gloss digipak edition. The final tracklisting includes:
CD1: Siberian Khatru, I’ve Seen All Good People, Tempus Fugit, Onward, Astral Traveller, And You And I, Corkscrew (Acoustic Solo).
CD2: Owner Of A Lonely Heart, Southside Of The Sky, Machine Messiah, Heart Of The Sunrise, Roundabout, Starship Trooper.
DVD: Interviews, Excerpts from the Live Show, Roundabout, Machine Messiah (running time approx 55 mins.)

A limited edition gatefold sleeve 3 LP vinyl release (only including the audio portion of the album) will be exclusively available in the European markets.

“In the Present – Live From Lyon” lineup features:
Benoit David: vocals
Steve Howe: guitar
Chris Squire: bass
Alan White: drums
Oliver Wakeman: keyboards

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like a lot of other music blogs, I receive promo DVDs and CDs from various companies for me to review. And over time, the retroblog promo bag has gotten quite full. So, I thought I’d do another giveaway so that I share some of these cool titles with my retroblog readers.

here’s what you do. take a look at this photo of DVDs and CDs.

all you have to do is identify as many CDs/DVDs as you can that’s featured in this photo. I’ll need artist AND title of each item. The person that identifies the most items in this photo correctly will be sent the CD or DVD of their choice (from this pile of promos of course). Simple as that.

submit your answers at this link. (via surveymonkey)

Since this is a contest the requires correct answers please refrain from posting any of the answers in the comment section of this post. I’m only accepting answers through THIS LINK.

As always, when submitting your answers, please include your correct mailing address and email address so that, if you win, the prize will be sent to the right address. I know, I know, it’s common sense but still, from past experience, I HAVE to mention it.

Oh and bonus points for those that follow me on twitter and facebook. be sure to mention it when you submit your answers in order to get credit.

Thanks for participating! have fun!

this contest ends at 11:59pm November 18, 2011.

please note: only open to those in the U.S.

They Might Be Giants recently announced that they’ll be releasing an all new rarities album on November 1st titled “Album Raises New and Troubling Questions”. There’s not much more info in regards to tracks and such but more TMBG music is always a good thing in my book. keep ‘em comin’!

the guys are still out on the road supporting their most recent studio album, Join Us.
catch ‘em if ya can.

Oct 28 2011 Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theatre
Oct 29 2011 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
Oct 30 2011 Iowa City, IA – Englert Theatre
Nov 1 2011 Omaha, NE – Slowdown
Nov 2 2011 Kansas City, MO – Beaumont Club
Nov 3 2011 Boulder, CO – Boulder Theatre
Nov 4 2011 Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
Nov 5 2011 Boise, ID – Knitting Factory
Nov 6 2011 Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
Nov 8 2011 Vancouver, BC – Venue
Nov 9 2011 Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo
Nov 10 2011 Portland, OR – Crystal Ballroom
Nov 11 2011 Arcata, CA – Van Duzer Theatre
Nov 12 2011 San Francisco, CA – Fillmore
Nov 13 2011 San Francisco, CA – Fillmore
Nov 16 2011 Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
Nov 17 2011 San Diego, CA – Belly Up
Nov 25 2011 Uncasville, CT – Free Audience Appreciation Show – Mohegan Sun Casino
Nov 26 2011 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
Jan 27 2012 Santa Cruz, CA – The Rio Theatre
Jan 28 2012 Los Angeles, CA – Special Family Show – Royce Hall UCLA
Jan 28 2012 Los Angeles, CA – 30th Anniversary Show – Royce Hall UCLA
Jan 29 2012 Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
Jan 30 2012 Tucson, AZ – The Rialto Theatre
Feb 1 2012 Tulsa, OK (Rescheduled from Sept.) – Cain’s Ballroom
Feb 2 2012 Dallas, TX – The Granada Theatre
Feb 3 2012 Austin, TX – La Zona Rosa
Feb 4 2012 New Orleans, LA – Tipitina’s
Feb 7 2012 Tampa, FL – The Ritz Ybor
Feb 8 2012 Orlando, FL – Hard Rock Live
Feb 10 2012 Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
Feb 11 2012 Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
Feb 12 2012 Chattanooga, TN – Track 29
Feb 14 2012 Charlotte, NC – McGlohan Theater at Spirit Square
Feb 15 2012 Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre
Feb 16 2012 Charlottesville, VA – Jefferson Theatre
Feb 17 2012 Baltimore, MD – Ram’s Head Live
Mar 8 2012 Northampton, MA – Calvin Theater
Mar 9 2012 Providence, RI – Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
Mar 10 2012 New York, NY – Terminal 5

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**update: 18Oct11**

info from ParticleMen’s youtube page!!!

Idlewild Recordings next release arrives Nov. 1! They Might Be Giants’ Album Raises New and Troubling Questions. A brand new rarities, remix and video compilation includes 20 brand new songs! Digital release is direct from www.tmbg.com, iTunes & Amazon. Special limited run of vinyl and CDs for orders by Nov. 15.

In the many months making and then promoting Join Us They Might Be Giants created many recordings. Contained on this brand new full length album of rarities are many previously unheard tracks along with the live version of Cloisonné heard on the official video of the song, a fantastic remix of You Probably Get That A Lot from the Elegant Too, plus the band’s now legendary appearance on The Onion AV Club’s Undercover series performing Tubthumping with the AV Club Choir. Rollicking new music from TMBGs Other Thing Brass Band sessions fill out the set, making ALBUM RAISES NEW AND TROUBLING QUESTIONS a must have for all TMBG music-lovers.

Complete track listing: O We, Authenticity Trip, You Probably Get That A Lot (Elegant Too remix), Now I Know, Doom Doom, Tubthumping (feat. the Onion AV Club Choir), Electronic Istanbul (Not Constantinople), Cloisonné (live), Marty Beller Mask, How Now Dark Cloud?, Money for Dope,The Fellowship of Hell, Read A Book, Mountain Flowers, Havalina, 200 Sbemails, and featuring TMBGs Other Thing Brass Band: Boat of Car, Mr. Me, Dirt Bike, Particle Man

VIDEO BONUS! Electronic Istanbul (Not Constantinople), You Probably Get That A Lot, Can’t Keep Johnny Down, Spoiler Alert, Cloisonné

it has been a while since I’ve shared any links of interest. So, here ya go, some random links for the weekend. Normally I share more of these types of links via my facebook page so if you enjoy this type of thing, be sure to “like” my FB page to keep in the loop.

Keith Emerson Band Feat. Mark Bonilla – Live In Moscow (2011)
The great return of Keith Emerson to Progressive Rock was debuted in the summer of 2010 in Moscow, Russia, at the Moscow Theatre – an explosive combination of the classic ELP sound and modern Hard Rock flavor which was captured on tape. Several Emerson, Lake & Palmer classics have been cleverly re-arranged with new guitar versions, adding entirely new elements to the already epic sound. Emerson’s keyboard is flamboyant and explosive more than ever. When interviewed recently, Keith confessed, that these new re-constructions with guitar reflected more accurately the way he had originally envisioned them. Besides Emerson and guitarist Marc Bonilla, the band members include drummer Tony Pia (Edgar Winter, Brian Setzer, Doobie Brothers) and multi-faceted newcomer Travis Davis on bass and backing vocals.
CD 1 | CD 2 | CD 3

Kim Wilde – Original Gold 2 CD (1998)
Kim Wilde. Mention her name and people’s eyes light up. The blonde singer with the siren voice is after all one of pop music’s most dazzling stars. For years she has held the record as England’s most successful female pop star ever. The French consider her the “Brigitte Bardot of Rock” and her German fans still venerate her as the sexiest glamour girl to come out of the eighties. Even today megahits such as “Kids In America” and “Cambodia” are guaranteed to rock the dance floor.
click here

Eric Clapton – live 1998-10-15 – London (SBD)
This soundboard recording of the first night, October 15, 1998, is unique in several respects. First, Eric plays acoustic guitar on 4 numbers, a rarity in concert for him. Second, he’s supported not only by his regular band, but also by a 20 piece orchestra. Third, Bonnie Raitt joins him during the encores for Before You Accuse Me. Finally, the sound is so good on this bootleg, that the Geetarz website, which normally rates bootlegs on a scale of 1 (worst) to 6 (best), gave this recording a 7! Download this one to hear one of the best Clapton recordings you’ll ever find.
boot recording via So Many Roads to Ease My Soul

David Foster – A Touch Of David Foster (1992)
a nice compilation of David Foster’s most sappiest tunes.
click here

Evanescence – Live At Rock in Rio (2011)
set includes “What You Want”, “My Immortal”, “Sick” and “Bring Me to Life”
click here

enjoy!

I took the kids to see Weird Al Yankovic at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) this past sunday. Just want to make it clear that I went to the concert for MY KIDS. Certainly not for myself since I’m a sophisticated music blogger and all. *ahem*. …OK, who am I kidding? Weird Al and his band put on a great live show and the kids and *I* had a blast. There I said it. I enjoyed the Weird Al show, OK? Why should I feel embarrassed for admitting that? The guy is a pop culture icon. Yankovic has managed to sustain a 30 year career out of making song parodies. I mean, he’s outlasted a long, long list of bands and artists that have come and gone over the years. Plus he’s got his live shows down to a science – which includes lights, video screens, a couple cheerleaders, stormtroopers, Darth Vader and a slew of costume changes.

Yankovic’s show is a well-oiled machine that’s scripted, well-rehearsed and synchronized with the video feeds. So there’s not much spontaneity here but in the world of Weird Al, there’s no need for such things. OK, ok, fans might argue that Weird Al does alternate playing “You Make Me” with “Frank’s 2000 inch TV” from show to show and he mentions a local coffee shop during his spiel in “Craigslist” but they’d be missing the point. A Yankovic concert is more like a broadway musical than say a Phish concert where setlists differ from gig to gig.

But enough about that. All that really matters is that the kids and I enjoyed seeing Weird Al. His fans pretty much packed the DPAC which holds around 2,500. Luckily we got our tickets early and were close enough to get splashed with water during his Nirvana spoof and be able to notice his double-chin becoming unglued at the end of “Fat”.

I love all his rap parodies so I was delighted to see him do “Another Tattoo”, “Amish Paradise” and “White and Nerdy”. The Star Wars encore was another highlight of course. The “oldies” Medley hit all the right notes but I personally would have like a few more “oldies” in the setlist. Another memorable bit was during “Wanna B Ur Lovr” where Yankovic, dressed up in a tiger-striped suit, went around and air-grinded a few “lucky” women in the audience.

With all the wardrobe changes the guy has to do each night, I have to say that Al sure does work hard for his fans. Oh, and big props to his band – Steve Jay, Jon Bermuda Schwartz, Ruben Valtierra and Jim West. they can pull off any genre with ease which isn’t as easy as it looks. they sounded pretty tight.

All in all, a fun night out with my kids. I’d definitely catch Yankovic again the next time he comes through. And after seeing all the grinning faces at the end of the night, I’m pretty sure most if not all would do the same.

retroGrade: A

Weird Al Yankovic
October 9, 2011
Durham Performing Arts Center

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I’m still not totally sold on Mike Peters singing Big Country songs. Yes, I’m glad to see the remaining Big Country members (Bruce Watson, Tony Butler and Mark Brzezicki) playing together again but Peters’ voice is just so distinctive and so unlike Stuart Adamson’s. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of both Big Country and the Alarm so you’d think that this would be a match made in heaven for me but listening to their live album, Dreams Stay With You: Live April 2011, I’m just still not convinced this works under the name “Big Country”.

But I don’t know… maybe this collaboration works better when seeing them in person. I doubt they’ll ever do any dates here in the U.S. but they’ve announced UK dates for February 2012 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their classic album The Crossing.

Here’s the official announcement:

Big Country who have completed a very successful comeback year which has seen them complete two sold-out UK tours and make high profile appearances at The Isle of Wight Festival, T in The Park, Oxegen and V Festivals plus, reunite with legendary producer Steve Lillywhite for the first time in 27 years, announce a new tour of UK for 2012. This will be the commencement of celebrations for their 30th anniversary and to mark it, Universal are to re-release The Crossing the bands debut classic album, in various formats. The band will perform the album live in its entirety.

Tony Butler says “First albums are usually considered to be a bands finest moment, for us it was a magical one. A collection of songs that were unique, original and above all, heart felt. We knew we were different and we knew we were creating something special.”
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