You know those guys who play the saxophobne in the subway? Well, the other day we came across a talented underground musician and decided to investigate further to find out what other hidden gems are harmonizing beneath the streets. It turns out, those guys are all over the world; playing mandolins in the metro, electric guitars on the el, and tubas on the tube. (I made that last one up, but it’s probably true.)
In most parts of the world it’s called “busking,” defined by Wikipedia as “…the practice of performing in public places for tips and gratuities.” Some people might call it “annoying.” But in every case, it’s not wrong to simply call it music. And some of these subterranean musicians are immensely talented.
Since we couldn’t hop on a plane and start traversing the globe for our search, we were limited to YouTube — which actually turned out to be quite effective. What you find below are some of the finest examples of subway music, or busking from around the world. Some are in the stations, and some are on the trains themselves. They are all quite interesting.
Moscow, Russia. These gentlemen play classical music of the highest caliber. I’m not certian, but people are commenting that this is Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.
Seoul, South Korea. This is an actual underground band, Los Andes. It’s music from the Andes, Chinchaysuyo. How cool would it be to see this on your way to work?
Paris, France. Paris is famous for musicians playing in the stations and on the trains themselves. This is Volare.
New York, United States. New York is truly a melting pot. This is Norteño music, from northern Mexico.
Chicago, United States. I’m proud to have these guys in Chicago. They capture the essence of this great city. Here’s It’s Alright.
London, England. This guy should be in a jazz hall. But then London commuters would be deprived. Here’s Sixteen Tons.
Prague, Czech Republic. Another underground band, of sorts. Incredibly elaborate — but I wouldn’t want to be commuting hungover with this…
Budapest, Hungary. Well known in the region, this is Club Era. Seriously this doesn’t look easy.
Stockholm, Sweden. These gents do it the old-fashioned way — simple harmonizing and no instruments. Starts at about the 25-second mark.
Montreal, Canada. I’ve never been there, but this guy seems entirely appropriate for Montreal.
There are surely plenty more out there. Do you have a favorite in your city? If so, we’d love to see them. Share a link below or, better yet, get out there and record them, and then let us know. We’ll post your locals in an upcoming Sound Citizen post!
In the mean time, here are three more that we didn’t want to leave out.
Budapest, Hungary. Playing glasses.
Tokyo, Japan. Only in Japan…
Philadelphia, United States. A little soul in Philly. Anthony Riley has a voice, and apparently a following.
New York, United States. Reggae in Union Square.
Welcome to another edition of Sound Citizen Radio. This week we feature songs from three Chicago bands and they are all playing Chicago concerts this week and next. It’s a diverse group too — we have some rock, a little blues and soul and even a country tune that will get your toes tapping. As always, we feature “screw the scalper” — where we tell you when tickets go on sale for those Chicago concerts likely to sell out so you don’t get gouged to see your favorite artists.
We hope you enjoy this week’s installment and please send your suggestions, comments and opinions to soundcitizenmike@gmail.com. For all you bands and artists out there, if you would like to be featured on Sound Citizen radio, please send an email with a link to your music.
We’re trying to help spread good music through Chicago, and could use your help. If you like anything you hear, please take a moment to share this podcast with your friends — you can use the Facebook or ShareThis buttons below, or simply copy the URL and share it that way. Thank you!
This week’s lineup:
The Blacks (pictured), “I’m in Love”
Schubas, Saturday, March 6.
Listen to more.
J.C. Brooks & The Uptwon Sound, “I’m Trying to Break Your Heart”
The Tonic Room, Wednesday, March 10.
Listen to more.
The Lost Cartographers, “Goodbye Ohio”
Uncommon Ground, Saturday, March 13.
Listen to more.
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Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers have announced their 2010 tour dates (below). They will be playing 38 dates spanning from May 6 to August 27. At the same time, they are promoting their first studio album in eight years, Mojo. In fact, when you buy tickets to a show, you will receive a special code to download the new album for free.
Supporting acts for the tour are pretty awesome, too. They are: Joe Cocker, Drive-By Truckers, ZZ Top, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and My Morning Jacket. Plenty of respect for Petty and the gang.
Tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, March 8, at 10 AM. The presale is Wednesday, March 3 at 10 AM. We’re not sure what the presale password is yet – follow Sound Citizen on Twitter and we’ll post the password there as soon as we know.
UPDATE: A few codes we’re hearing that work so far are 542418, 412800, or 546616 and REFUGEE. For Oakland, password is guitar. For Chicago, you don’t need one, just go to Ticketmaster and pay $45 extra. We’ll keep looking.
In the mean time, you can hear a new track from the upcoming Mojo, “Good Enough,” right here.
Also, enjoy this video, a Sound Citizen favorite from one of our all-time favorite artists.
Tour dates are below.
| May 06 2010 | Raleigh, NC | Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 07 2010 | Charlotte, NC | Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 09 2010 | Tampa, FL | St Pete Times Forum | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 15 2010 | Dallas, TX | Superpages.com Center | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 16 2010 | Houston, TX | Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 18 2010 | Phoenix, AZ | US Airways Center | w/ Joe Cocker |
| May 22 2010 | Los Angeles, CA | Hollywood Bowl | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 02 2010 | San Diego, CA | Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 03 2010 | Irvine, CA | Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 05 2010 | Oakland, CA | Oracle Arena | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 08 2010 | Vancouver, BC | GM Place | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 11 2010 | Seattle, WA | The Gorge | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 12 2010 | Seattle, WA | The Gorge | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 15 2010 | Calgary, AB | Pengrowth Saddeldome | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 16 2010 | Edmonton, AB | Rexall Place | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 19 2010 | Winnipeg, MB | MTS Centre | w/ Joe Cocker |
| Jun 22 2010 | St. Paul, MN | Xcel Energy Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jun 23 2010 | Omaha, NE | Qwest Center | w/Drive-By Truckers |
| Jun 25 2010 | Millwaukee, WI | Summerfest | w/ ZZ Top |
| Jul 10 2010 | Indianapolis, IN | Verizon Wireless Music Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 13 2010 | Kansas City, MO | Sprint Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 15 2010 | Cincinati, OH | Riverbend Music Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 17 2010 | Chicago, IL | United Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 20 2010 | Cleveland, OH | Blossom Music Center | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 22 2010 | Detroit, MI | Palace of Auburn Hills | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 24 2010 | Pittsburgh, PA | First Niagra Pavilion | w/ Drive-By Truckers |
| Jul 28 2010 | New York City, NY | Madison Square Garden | TBA |
| Jul 31 2010 | Philadelphia, PA | Wachovia Center | TBA |
| Aug 11 2010 | ATLANTA, GA | Philips Arena | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
| Aug 12 2010 | Nashville, TN | Sommet Center | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
| Aug 14 2010 | Darien Lake, NY | Darien Lake Performing Arts Center | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
| Aug 15 2010 | Washington, DC | Jiffy Lube Live | w/ Crosby, Stills and Nash |
| Aug 17 2010 | Hartford, CT | Comcast Theater | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
| Aug 19 2010 | Boston, MA | Comcast Center | w/ My Morning Jacket |
| Aug 21 2010 | Boston, MA | Comcast Center | w/ My Morning Jacket |
| Aug 24 2010 | East Rutherford, NJ | Izod Center | w/ My Morning Jacket |
| Aug 25 2010 | Toronto, ON | Air Canada Center | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
| Aug 27 2010 | Saratoga Springs, NY | Saratoga Springs Performing Arts Center | w/ Crosby, Stills, and Nash |
(Video, audio and tour dates included) We’re always on the lookout for new, breakout bands. And so is everyone else. Here’s one for you: Local Natives. Their debut album, Gorilla Manor released just a week ago and they’re getting massive pub around the Interwebs. Many critics have already tabbed them “indie darlings” of 2010. I suspect that the lead singer’s Freddy Mercury/John Oates mustache helps, too.
What do they sound like? Glad you asked. Local Natives sounds like talent. It’s definitely an interesting mix – there are keyboards, strings, an occasional trumpet and all of the singing band members have some pipes that blend flawlessly. No kidding.
The instruments are treated as an accompanyment to the overall music and vocals. It’s never overpowering but rather understated; however not unimportant. If you like Fleet Foxes, Arcade Fire or Vampire Weekend, Local Natives are for you. If you don’t like those bands, you probably won’t like this either. But give it a shot. There are two videos below; the first is “Airplanes” and the second is “Sun Hands.” What I find most impressive is that these are live performances, not studio work, but it sounds like it could be. And that’s always a sign of a talented band, whether it’s your style or not. They also do a nice cover of Talking Heads’ “Warning Sign.” And really, you can’t go wrong with covering Talking Heads.
Below the videos are current tour dates, including a stop in Chicago at Schuba’s. That show WILL sell out, so if you like them, get tickets here.
You can listen to Gorilla Manor for free, right here, at the bottom of this post. You can also order a vinyl copy of Gorilla Manor.
Airplanes
Sun Hands
Tour
| Feb 24 2010 | 8:00P | Thekla | Bristol |
| Feb 25 2010 | 8:00P | Rescue Rooms | Nottingham |
| Feb 26 2010 | 8:00P | Concorde II | Brighton |
| Feb 27 2010 | 8:00P | SOLD OUT Brudenell | Leeds |
| Feb 28 2010 | 8:00P | Arts Centre | Norwich |
| Mar 2 2010 | 8:00P | SOLD OUT Heaven | London |
| Mar 3 2010 | 8:00P | Academy 3 | Birmingham |
| Mar 4 2010 | 8:00P | Club Academy | Manchester |
| Mar 5 2010 | 8:00P | King Tuts | Glasgow |
| Mar 6 2010 | 8:00P | Academy 2 | Newcastle |
| Mar 10 2010 | 8:00P | SOLD OUT Academy 2 | Dublin |
| Mar 11 2010 | 8:00P | Limelight | Belfast |
| Mar 18 2010 | 8:00P | SWSX | Austin, Texas |
| Mar 19 2010 | 8:00P | SXSW | Austin, Texas |
| Mar 20 2010 | 8:00P | SSXW | Austin, Texas |
| Apr 18 2010 | 3:00P | Coachella | Indio, California |
| Apr 20 2010 | 8:00P | Solar Culture | Tuscon, Arizona |
| Apr 22 2010 | 8:00P | The Cavern | Dallas, Texas |
| Apr 23 2010 | 8:00P | Emo’s (inside) | Austin, Texas |
| Apr 24 2010 | 8:00P | Mango’s | Houston, Texas |
| Apr 26 2010 | 8:00P | Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack | Little Rock, Arkansas |
| Apr 27 2010 | 8:00P | Thirsty Hippo | Haittesburg, Mississippi |
| Apr 29 2010 | 8:00P | Cafe 11 | St. Augustine, Florida |
| Apr 30 2010 | 8:00P | The Basement | Nashville, Tennessee |
| May 1 2010 | 8:00P | Masquerade | Atlanta, Georgia |
| May 4 2010 | 8:00P | Local 506 | Chapel Hill, North Carolina |
| May 5 2010 | 8:00P | DC 9 | Washington DC, Washington DC |
| May 6 2010 | 8:00P | Bowery Ballroom | New York, New York |
| May 7 2010 | 8:00P | Kung Fu Necktie | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| May 8 2010 | 8:00P | Great Scott | Allston, Massachusetts |
| May 11 2010 | 8:00P | Beachland Tavern | Cleveland, Ohio |
| May 12 2010 | 8:00P | The Basement | Columbus, Ohio |
| May 14 2010 | 8:00P | Schubas | Chicago, Illinois |
| May 15 2010 | 8:00P | Rock Island Brewing Company | Rock Island, Illinois |
| May 17 2010 | 8:00P | 400 Bar | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| May 18 2010 | 8:00P | The Mill | Iowa City, Iowa |
| May 19 2010 | 8:00P | Mojo’s | Columbia, Missouri |
| May 21 2010 | 8:00P | Larimer Lounge | Denver, Colorado |
| May 22 2010 | 8:00P | Kilby Court | Salt Lake City, Utah |
| May 25 2010 | 8:00P | Empyrean | Spokane, Washington |
| May 26 2010 | 8:00P | Neurolux | Boise, Idaho |
| May 27 2010 | 8:00P | Mississippi Studios | Portland, Oregon |
| May 28 2010 | 8:00P | Media Club | Vancouver, British Columbia |
| May 30 2010 | 8:00P | Sasquatch! | Seattle, Washington |
| Jun 3 2010 | 8:00P | Bottom of the Hill | San Francisco, California |
| Jun 10 2010 | 8:00P | Bonnaroo | Manchester, Tennessee |
| Jun 15 2010 | 8:00P | Shepherds Bush Empire | London |
We have another great show for you this week, including three new bands playing in Chicago in the next couple weeks – from Philadelphia and all the way from Australia. Also featured is an up-and-coming Chicago band and some news about Lollapallooza 2010 and Pitchfork.
As always, we make some recommendations about upcoming shows to look out for in the coming months. Hang tight, winter is almost over and that means the local music scene is coming alive again.
If you have any recommendations for us, comments, thoughts or opinions, please send an email to soundcitizenmike@gmail.com. And bands, if you want to be featured on Sound Citizen Radio, email an MP3 or a link where some of your music can be downloaded.
This weeks’ lineup:
Strand of Oaks, “Two Kids”
February 21, Halfway Lounge, Chicago
Young Jesus, (pictured) “God Put a Curse on Us”
Feb. 17, Matz Hall, Winnetka
March 5, Martyrs, Chicago
Grand Atlantic, “Coast is Clear”
March 9, Martyrs, Chicago
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Sometimes we see a great show then get caught up doing other things. And, unfortunately, the show slips into the archives unpublished. This is one of those times. We went to Schuba’s back in November, 2009, to see Vandaveer – the folk duo of Mark Charles Heidinger and Rose Guerin. It was one of those shows that hit at just the right time – we were headed into winter and needed a warm sound to get prepared. Vandaveer was wrapping up a long road tour, on their way back to their homes in Washington DC. (Live video below)
We spent some time hanging out with Mark and Rose and they just couldn’t be nicer people. Rose was wearing a black veil over her neon-pink hair, recently purchased for her by her brother while on tour. Also, her frilled shoes which she said, “I can’t stop rocking them.”
Mark was all smiles and excited to meet a fellow Pearl Jam fan.
On stage, their every bit as freindly and simply excited to be doing what they do. For example, during an equipment malfunction, instead of complaining or apologizing, they explored the use of the word “awesome.”
“Where’d you get that hat?” asked Mark.
“Denver,” said Rose. “Denver is awesome. But not Chicago awesome.”
“Everything for you and me right now is pretty awesome,” said Mark. “That was a magnetic fuel song. They sure are great … but I wouldn’t call them awesome.”
Vandaveer is surely not widely known, but that might change real soon. They play The Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia on Feb. 26, ahead of four-day stint at South by Southwest, in Austin, Texas, March 17-20. It’s really a perfect place for them to showcase their sound – what XM Cafe called “This generation’s Nick Drake” and Rolling Stone categorized as “Jarring new folk.”
Below is a video from the show at Schuba’s in November, “A Mighty Leviathan of Old.”
And read our interview with Mark Heidinger before the show, and hear more Vandaveer on their MySpace page.
