All photos by Chris Lay Last year, we ranked M83’s album Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming as our 40th favorite album of 2011. So, needless to say, we’re big fans. The shoegazing outfit, fronted by Anthony Gonzalez (and complete with the creepy dude on the cover of “Midnight City”), hit up The Pageant last week and … Read more
Artwork by Nate Jones of Kentucky Knife Fight New Year’s Eve can be hard, man. It’s usually flavored with the cynicism of downtrodden naysayers or the overly high expectations of innocent eager beavers (see: all the people who paid money to see this). Between the solo whiskey sippers and the prix fixe four course dinners … Read more
Okay, we’re so excited about the 2011 LouFest Music Festival that we could just pee our pants. Jason, Darren, and I had almost too much fun at last August’s inaugural event in Forest Park. (We met Jeff Tweedy! And have pictures to prove it!) Although the line-up hasn’t been announced just yet (fingers crossed for mid-March), LouFest … Read more
The countdown is on! LouFest is only a week and a half away, and we at Speakers in Code could not be more psyched for the second coming of a plethora of fantastic local and national musical acts, set right smack dab in our city’s biggest bragging right, Forest Park. ‘Twill be a glorious two … Read more
The Decemberists sound check at The Pageant / All photos by Katie Guymon Last Wednesday, I attended my first ever sound check. Yes, I, along with approximately fifteen others, had the privilege (courtesy of my favorite indie radio station, KDHX) to witness The Decemberists, along with Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins, gear up for that evening’s … Read more
This Saturday, the second round of the LouFest Music Festival High School Battle of the Bands will take place at Off Broadway from 5:00 – 8:00 PM. We first announced the competition back at the beginning of March, including the fact that Jason and I would be two of the three judges for both evenings of … Read more
Photo by Katie Guymon Alright, you all know good and well that Record Store Day is coming up this Saturday, April 16th. All across the country, indie shops will celebrate in high fashion: special releases, live bands, maybe an adult beverage or six… Jason and I will be representing the Saint Louis contingency of our … Read more
***UPDATE: Ticket info has been released, including a pre-sale on Thursday: On sale to General Public: Start: Sat, 12/03/11 11:00 AM CST Internet Presale: Start: Thu, 12/01/11 10:00 AM CST End: Fri, 12/02/11 10:00 PM CST Price Range All Reserved tickets are $32.00, which includes a $3 facility fee. *** As we mentioned earlier, Ryan … Read more
New Pornos’ permi-member (she sings Neko’s parts when the redheaded power vocalist is away on business, so you know she’s for real) and frequent solo artist, Kathryn Calder, came correct with her sophomore album Bright and Vivid, released in October. We first caught wind of Calder going it alone in May 2010 with the release … Read more
In a fun twist on the way the LouFest lineup is usually announced, this year the Saint Louis music festival is hosting a lineup release party to spread the good word on the artists expected to razzle dazzle music fans in Forest Park for the third year in a row. Taking place on Tuesday, April … Read more
Photo by Carson Minow “You know I probably broke one hundred hearts by now…” I’ve recently been going through an MC Lyte phase, so I’ll just go ahead and say it: Née cold rocks a party. I mean, Spinner compared the Saint Louis foursome (Kristin Dennis, David Beeman, Mic Boshans, and Lex Herbert) to LCD Soundsystem. … Read more
Photo by Shervin Lainez I’ve been a Mynabirds fan since the band’s inception, doting on singer-songwriter Laura Burhenn more than sporadically on this here blog. I’ll keep this interview introduction simple: after talking with her, I think I’m in love. A whip-smart, creative, grounded/groundbreaking woman is, of course, not an anomaly, but I still feel … Read more
Photo by Louis Kwok Last Saturday, downtown Saint Louis played host to one of the biggest displays and celebrations of local music: The Riverfront Times Music Showcase. While it’s a fantastic way to dive headfirst into the deep end of our city’s immense local talent, the showcase itself presents a little bit of a conundrum. … Read more
Photo by Jarred Gastreich For a band that is considered very diverse (judging by their appearance), Union Tree Review is releasing some very consistent good work. The Cherokee Street natives have a new song called Skeletons that they performed for us in the Firebird parking lot. To set the mood, this was the night before … Read more
PLAY:stl, a music festival and conference held each year in Saint Louis, has officially announced its line-up (with just a few TBA spots sticking around for now)! The fourth annual three-day fest will take place September 16-18 and spotlight 100 acts on over seven different stages across the much-loved Delmar Loop. This year, it kicks … Read more
Photo by David Black It’s hard for me to write about Ryan Adams without getting slightly sentimental with regard to what his music has meant to my life. So, I’ll turn to the words of Neil Strauss, who once wrote this about Adams: “No one likes admitting to a guy who knows he’s a rare … Read more
Last night, I had the extreme pleasure of seeing Jason Isbell perform at The Peabody Opera House in Saint Louis, in all his solo, acoustic, countrified glory. He immediately made me swoon with his use of the term “fuck aroundery,” and as I watched him play songs like today’s Jam of the Day, “Alabama Pines,” … Read more
Photo courtesy of Misra Records We are pleased as punch to feature Water Liars for Hometowns today on Speakers in Code. Reminder: the Hometowns mission is twofold. 1) We wanna let our favorite musicians play homage to the places they hold near and dear to their hearts and 2) we strongly believe that roots have … Read more
Photo by Jarred Gastreich Last June, I had the EXTREME (ALL CAPS doesn’t even do this adjective justice) pleasure of attending a KDHX in-studio for The Head and the Heart before the band’s Saint Louis debut at Blueberry Hill later that evening. There, Josiah Johnson, Jonathan Russell, and Charity Rose Thielen of the Seattle outfit … Read more
Remember me with yellow hair and freckles on my nose Remember me in purple shoes and turquoise pantyhose Remember my two ankles, my fingers, and my toes Remember me with yellow air and freckles on my nose There’s beauty in simplicity, and what could be a better example of that notion than the lyrics … Read more
Photo by Jaime Massieu This Sunday marks a JC Brooks and The Uptown Sound first: they’re bringing their Chicago-style, post-soul dance party to the light of day. Yup, the band’s putting on a free brunch show at Lola in downtown Saint Louis! And all you have to do to partake in the festivities is show … Read more
“Catch the train to catch the spirit!” In these cynical times, golly gee, we love that slogan. But, maybe we love the concept of Rhythm & Rails even more. A few weeks ago, Saint Louis Metrolink unveiled its first ever Holiday Magic Express, a train “decked out in lights, ornaments, garland, and festive cheer for … Read more
Here at Speakers in Code, we can’t believe it’s almost August. Of course, that means LouFest is just that much closer, and we’ve been looking forward to the inaugural two-day festival, which takes place August 28th and 29th in Saint Louis’ Forest Park, for quite some time now. So, naturally, we’re pretty excited to announce … Read more
Here at Speakers in Code, we can’t believe it’s almost August. Of course, that means LouFest is just that much closer, and we’ve been looking forward to the inaugural two-day festival, which takes place August 28th and 29th in Saint Louis’ Forest Park, for quite some time now. So, naturally, we’re pretty excited to announce … Read more
If you’re any sort of devoted reader of Speakers in Code, you know that around these parts, we are pretty amped about the first annual LouFest taking place in Forest Park, Saint Louis on August 28th and 29th. We are devoted to promoting Saint Louis as a viable music city, whether that be on a … Read more
Photo by Katie Guymon “I’m terribly sorry for your loss.” These are the six words that concluded Deer Tick frontman John McCauley’s somber recognition of the late Dave Hagerty, vocalist/guitarist of the local Saint Louis band, Fattback. (Please read the touching obituary written by our friend, Christian Schaeffer, for A to Z, the music blog … Read more
If you’ve lived in Saint Louis for any significant amount of time, you probably remember a local rockabilly band called Rockhouse Ramblers. (KDHX claims, “In their day, [they were] the hottest honky tonk band” in the city). According to founder Kip Loui, from 1999 to 2005, the band “played pretty much every bar, nightclub, dance … Read more