Artist Review (Forecastle Preview Edition): Bassnectar

For the past decade, Bassnectar (Lorin Ashton) has been creating many unique, electronic tunes. With a  freeform electronic and dubstep sound, Bassnectar is best known for his live performances, light shows, and community engagement. With 8 different LP's along with many remixes of other artist songs, Bassnectar is releasing his ninth album titled VaVa Voom on Tuesday, April 10th and with any successful live DJ there is a 2012 VaVa Voom tour this spring and summer. Luckily, for the people of Ohio Valley, his tour comes to Louisville at the beginning of Forecastle weekend and he will be headlining the Friday lineup.

For anyone who has never heard Bassnectar's music, it has very heavily electronic bass with many unique sounds mixed together. While I don't feel like his music is best for casual listening, it is fun music as there is a lot of energy and would be great to hear at one of his live shows.

Ashton's main musical influence comes from heavy metal and grunge bands such as Nirvana, Megadeath, and Metallica and it shows in his music. He has been creating genre-mixing music since the early 90's and has gained popularity through his live shows with music that consist of heavy tempos, lots of play with double time and half time and using electronic methods to embellish and reinforce other styles of music. Since 2009, he has been doing live shows constantly and has appeared at many music festivals and sold out shows around the world.

Bassnectar is also an active proponent of creativity, discussion, thoughtfulness, communication, health, education, safety, interaction, and critical thinking, and has fostered a community through his online discussion forum based around these principles. He has openly advocated for causes such as free press and true media, net neutrality, ending corporate personhood, public knowledge, and the non-profit organization Conscious Alliance.

Be sure to stay around for Bassnectar the Friday night of Forecastle weekend, as I am sure no one will want to miss his crazy ass live show.

Boombox - Bassnectar

The Churn Of The Century - Bassnectar

West Coast Lo-Fi Rides Again - Bassnectar

Upside Down - Bassnectar

Plugged In (Remix) - Bassnectar

Voodoo - Bassnectar

New Voice of FreeCreditScore.com Commercial

Does that voice sound familiar? Daniel Zott, lead singer of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., is the lead singer of a new FreeCreditScore.com commercial. Here he is featured alongside members of his other Detroit-based band, Victorious Secret.

Canadian musician Eric Violette was the frontrunner of the FreeCreditReport commercials for several years, but when the credit rating service changed their name to FreeCreditScore.com, they also searched for a new band. I was totally surprised to see Daniel Zott singing this new catchy jingle on TV and I'm not sure whether to be excited or bummed out. It is catchy though and it's a nice change from the old tune!

Concert Recap: Fountains of Wayne

I finally had the chance to see my favorite band from my high school days. Power-pop quartet Fountains of Wayne played a stellar set at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, N.C. To my surprise, my friends and I were some of the youngest people there, surrounded by a lot of 40+ year-old couples who weren't afraid to headbang lightly when appropriate. Opening for FoW was the less than exciting group, The Stars Explode. My friends and I showed up late, anxiously awaiting FoW and attempting to miss the opening act.

After The Stars Explode cleared the stage and many excruciating minutes of waiting, FoW took the stage. Surprisingly, I quickly found myself wondering if I had wasted my money. Lead singer Chris Collingwood's guitar pedals were not working and his guitar was inaudible. A roadie worked quickly to resolve the situation and Collingwood had to repeat a verse of "I've Got a Flair" from their self-titled release (1996). After a few songs, the band settled in and proceeded to rock out, playing a good mix of newer and older material. Even without the synthesizers that are present in so many of their recorded songs, the band managed to present a full sound, and Jody Porter, lead guitarist, didn't miss a note in his solos.

Notable numbers include "Radiation Vibe", where FoW showed off their ability to play measures of classic rock songs, then quickly return to the original tune. "Hey Julie" from Welcome Interstate Managers (2003) featured the percussive work of three members of the crowd. "Valley Winter Song" was befitting for the evening, given the bitter, blustery cold weather outside. In the encore, "Stacy's Mom" was rearranged into a slow, jazz piano-infused tune, perhaps taking a stab at the crowd members who came hoping only to hear this one-hit wonder. All in all it was a great show, but one can only hope for a better opening act if they return to the area.