W♥M (Archive)

News: Childish Gambino Tour Postponement

Childish Gambino 2018 Tour Read More Childish Gambino In need of a ship that can make the journey, Solo meets Lando Calrissian (smartly played by Donald Glover, aka Childish Gambino) the suave owner of the perfect vessel for the dangerous mission -- the Millennium Falcon. …

As you may have heard already, Childish Gambino (the stagename for actor Donald Glover), suffered an injury that forced the singer to postpone his remaining “This Is America Tour”.

According to TMZ, they reported that Glover made a bad misstep during a dance move and basically broke his leg at the American Airlines Center in Dallas on Sunday night (Sep 23). He walked, or maybe limped, off stage and didn’t return for an encore.

We didn’t go to the show, but inspired by this news, here is Vu’s art of what really happened.

The press release from Live Nation confirmed that Childish Gambino will still appear at Voodoo Music + Arts Experience in New Orleans on October 27, however, his appearance at Austin City Limits Music Festival is now canceled:

Childish Gambino has been forced to postpone his remaining “This Is America Tour” stops until later this year due to an injury. The rescheduled routing can be found below. Tickets will be honored for the newly scheduled dates. The Seattle show is canceled due to venue renovations and refunds for that date are available at point of purchase.

Childish Gambino’s appearance at the Voodoo Music + Arts Experience in New Orleans on October 27 is moving forward as planned. His appearance at Austin City Limits Music Festival is canceled. Justice will headline on both Saturdays (October 6 and 13) alongside Metallica, and Travis Scott will headline both Sundays (October 7 and 14) alongside Arctic Monkeys. The updated performance schedules can be found at www.aclfestival.com. Fans with a Weekend Two Saturday 1-Day Ticket may exchange at no charge for a Weekend Two Sunday 1-Day Ticket by contacting Front Gate Tickets. Exchanges must be requested by Tuesday, October 2 at 11:59pm CT.

Latest tour information:

12/02/2018 Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
12/04/2018 Denver, CO Pepsi Center
12/07/2018 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena
12/11/2018 Oakland, CA Oracle Arena
12/12/2018 San Jose, CA SAP Center
12/15/2018 Phoenix, AZ Gila River Arena
12/16/2018 Los Angeles, CA The Forum
rescheduled from Sept 26
12/17/2018 Los Angeles, CA The Forum
rescheduled from Oct 3

Vuart: How Childish Gambino broke his leg art by Vu

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Living with the Apple's iPad Pro12.9 and Pencil

iPad Pro 12.9 Specs Model: A1670 (Wi-Fi) CPU: Apple A10X Fusion with Apple M10 2.36 GHz hexa-core Apple Fusion (3× Hurricane + 3× Zephyr) Graphic: 12-core PowerVR Series 7XT Display: 12.9 inches (330 mm) [diagonal] multi-touch display with LED backlighting and an oleophobic and scratch-resistant coating, Wide color display, True Tone display, Fully laminated display, Antireflective coating, ProMotion display (120 Hertz refresh rate) 2732-by-2048 pixel resolution at 264 ppi (Retina Display) Read More Apple It's hard to believe that it's only been three years since the iPad was introduced. Despite me thinking what a crap name "ipad" was, I think the name is probably well-accepted with people now. …

I’ve been living with the iPad 12.9 Pro (2017 Model) since March 2018. After using the iPad daily for about two months, here are my thoughts:

COMICS
Since I mainly wanted to read comics on a bigger screen (coming from the smaller 9.7 size), the iPad’s nearly 13 inches is just perfect for comics. The size is nearly one to one, if not slightly larger than the print version.

For comics bought on ComiXology, they upgraded their comics to nearly 4k resolution, so a typical “Epic” collection is about a gigabyte in size! While they look gorgeous on the higher resolution, you really need to make sure you have the disk space for it.

Magazine View

On the other hand, the magazine experience is only okay. I bought a subscription to PC Gamer on Zinio, and was not impressed. While the text is super crisp and readable, the art/images did not look so good on a higher resolution. I suspect on a smaller sized iPad, you wouldn’t notice... but you can clearly see the pixelation on the iPad Pro. See screen print as an example.

Until the magazine industry catches up or offers high quality resolution, I don’t think I’ll be buying it on digital (unless is free as part of a print subscription).

If you want to load your own content, the two iOS apps I’ve used and endorsed are: Chunky and Foxit PDF Reader (or the built in Books reader). Although I’m not a fan of the name “Chunky”, it’s probably the best CBR reader. I’ve even upgraded to the Pro version, even though I didn’t need or want the Pro features - I just wanted to support the Chunky creator.

SMART CONNECTOR
I have several Bluetooth keyboards, but I have never really liked pairing the keyboards. Sometime, particularly with the original Apple bluetooth keyboard because it doesn’t have a reset button, the iPad does not see the keyboard because it was previously paired with another iPad. It’s very frustrating.

With the Smart Connector, the keyboard is instant-on when you connect. You don’t need to charge the keyboard (since it’s powered through the connector).

I’ve read some reviews on Smart Connector keyboards, and they mentioned the magnets, but let me empathize on the magnets: the iPad will automatically align and stick to the keyboard. It’s powerful enough that you can lift it up and the iPad without any worry that the keyboard will drop off.

Although only Apple and Logitech makes Smart Connector keyboards, I think it’s worth it to buy one. I have the first generation Logitech iPad Pro keyboard, which is technically not meant for the iPad Pro second version, but it fits and the price was discounted to $75 (originally $149).

DRAWING
Before the new 2018 “New” iPad was announced last month, only the iPad Pro supported the Apple Pencil. I’ve wanted to draw on digital for a long time and have, in the past, used various instruments and softwares. None of them really worked for me, that is until the iPad and Apple Pencil combination.

Using ProCreate ($10), drawing was is pretty amazing. Trust me, drawing was nearly real time one to one, just like drawing in “real life”. Since it’s digital, there’s no paint mess or cleanup. Plus, producing artwork, from idea to finalized art, can be pretty fast and efficient.

Don’t take my words for it, professional artist Mark Ulriksen went from traditional to digital for The New Yorker with the same setup I have (iPad Pro, Apple Pencil, and ProCreate). Read his interview and profile at businessinsider.com

CONCLUSION
Let me get to the point: the iPad is not a laptop replacement. There are many limitations with the iOS system, for example true multitasking and file transfers. If you’re a traditional laptop user, you’re not going to be happy with the iPad, so stay with the tried-and-true laptop experience.

What the iPad is meant for, and excel at, is media consumption and portability. Watching movies and television is a joy (especially on a larger 12.9 screen) and reading is wonderful (at the higher resolution). Apple is known for their gold-standard battery life, and the iPad’s weight is a feather compared to traditional laptops.

If you like what you read, but don’t want to shell out the premium price usually associated with Apple products, the new 2018 9.7 iPad, at $329 (with Apple Pencil support), is the iPad I would recommend for you. Sure, you’re not getting the larger 12.9 screen or Smart Connector, but for most people, they’re not going to care to spend the extra cash to upgrade.

P.S. This article was written on the iPad using the Logitech Smart Connector Keyboard and Google Keep. If this was a collaborative article (requiring other people’s input), then I would use Google Docs with its sharing functionality.

Vuart examples:

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

John Maus at the Cedar Cultural Center, Minneapolis (05 April 2018)

John Maus at Cedar Poster Tour Dates 04/15/2018 Coachella 04/22/2018 Coachella 05/04/2018 Red Bull Music Academy Festival Read More John Maus In his first show in seven years, John Maus will be headlining the Cedar Cultural Center on Thursday, April 5th. Maus is known for his emotional, passionate live ..… C. Kostra Devata Daun (aka Nikki Pfeifer) and C. Kostra (aka Ryan Olcott) to open. After this warm-up gig, he’ll be travelling to various music festivals from around the world … Devata Daun Two local bands were special guests at the show. Darkwave band Devata Daun (aka Nikki Pfeifer) was first, playing some tracks from her album Look (Pytch Records). …

It was a sold-out show for John Maus’ first show in Minneapolis in seven years, at the Cedar Cultural Center on Thursday night. Sadly, that also meant that there were a few fans without tickets, waiting outside in the cold asking for spare tickets.

Devata Daun (aka Nikki Pfeifer) and c.Kostra (aka Ryan Olcott) opened the show. The first 30 minutes featured Devata Daun’s sweet, atmospheric songs from her album Look (Pytch Records), then, midway, the two swap places as c.Kostra finished out the remaining 30 minutes with his new album now i feel it (Pytch Records). The seamless transition suggests that the two often work together… and it’s probably safe to say that if you see one of them at a show, the other is close behind.

Just to give you a little background, but John Maus is often associated with Ariel Pink, as the two were roomates/classmates at the California Institute of the Arts. Maus would end up as a member of the Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti stage band.

When Maus signed and released his debut record Songs (Upset the Rhythm) in 2006, he toured and built up a good reputation for his passionate performances. Then, in 2012, he just decided to take a four-year break from music. He spent that time finishing his dissertation, and gained a PhD in political science from the University of Hawaii.

Maus’ fourth album (and his latest) is called Screen Memories and came out last year. So, for the first time in four years, he went on tour to promote the record. While fans and critics were already accustomed to his solo one-man-karaoke shows, last year’s tour featured a full live band (featuring his brother Joe Maus on bass, Luke Darger on keyboards, and Jonathan Thompson on drums). After over a year of touring, the band was actually still very tight, which is important as they are set to play Coachella next week.

After a seven-year absent from Minneapolis, the show wasn’t just about Maus, it was also about his diehard fans. It wasn’t uncommon to see friends surprised and happy to see each other at the show. Or when a familiar song started to play, some people would just turn to each other and started hugging (especially hearing the opening chords to “Streetlight”). It’s heartwarming to see so many people happy to celebrate their mutual love for John Maus.

As you would expect, there was a lot of high-energy bopping up and down, fist punching the air, and plenty of sweating.

With an upcoming album Addendum (made of extra songs from Screen Memories), expect to see Maus more active in shows… and hopefully another Minneapolis date next year.

Devata Daun

c.Kostra

Devata Daun

Devata Daun (art by Vu)

John Maus

John Maus

John Maus

John Maus at the Cedar Cultural Center, Minneapolis (05 April 2018)

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

L.A. Salami, w/ Cat Clyde at 7th St Entry, Minneapolis (29 Mar 2018)

LA Salami North America Tour Dates Tour Dates Apr 1 - Toronto, ON The Drake Apr 3 - Boston, MA - The Red Room at Café 939 Apr 5 - New York, NY - Rough Trade NYC Apr 6 - Philadelphia, PA - The Boot & Saddle Apr 7 - Washington, DC - DC9 Nightclub Read More L.A. Salami London-based L.A. Salami (aka Lookman Adekunle Salami) will be stopping by the 7th Street Entry on Thursday. His new single, “Jean Is Gone” is taken from his forthcoming album The City of Bootmakers … Cat Clyde Cat Clyde is opening. Tour as follows: 05/31/17 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall 06/02/17 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Cafe 06/03/17 Denver, CO Bluebird …

London’s L.A. Salami headlined the 7th Street Entry on Thursday, March 28th.

Opening the show was Cat Clyde, who was previously in town with ZZ Ward in June 2017. The Stratford, Ontario singer/songwriter played selections from her debut album Ivory Castanets (Cinematic Music Group), including “Running Water” and “The Man I Loved Blues”.

Surprised at the good turnout at the 7th Street Entry, Clyde, midway in her set, asked, “What day of the week is it? Thursday? It’s a great Thursday!”

Highlight of the show was when L.A. Salami’s backing band joined Clyde on stage to play “Mama Said”, making for a nice change of pace with a fuller sound to her quieter Americana songs.

Clyde ended her 40-min set with “The River”. Although only released in late 2017, it may be her signature song with its lyrics, “Like the river I roll along. Today I'm here, tomorrow I'm gone”.

Coming on stage to an extended band jam intro, L.A. Salami (short for his full name Lookman Adekunle Salami) confessed that he’s been “spying from the bar” to survey the crowd. He’s come to the conclusion that we were an “interesting group.” If you couldn’t tell, it was clear that he was pretty happy about the large audience, possibly thanks to his appearance at the popular local station The Current ahead of the show.

L.A. Salami’s band consists of Mark Thorneon guitar, Frank Styles on bass, and Danny Brooks on drums, and their music is more on the punky DYI rock (like the Replacements or the Strokes). They basically serve the emphasize or enhance L.A. Salami’s poet-like lyrical songs. Sometime, especially when the harmonica is used, L.A. Salami sounds just like he was channeling Bob Dylan.

While L.A. Salami released a debut album and various EPs, he mainly stuck to playing his forthcoming album The City of Bootmakers (Sunday Best/PIAS Records), such as “Generation L(ost)” and “Who’s Cursing Us Now”... possibly because he is very much excited about the new materials and just can’t wait for people to hear these songs.

The City of Bootmakers was recorded in Berlin with Robbie Moore and its theme and focus seems to be urban welfare (“England’s Unwell”) and education (“Terrorism! (The Isis Crisis)”). A rather smart album, and worth looking into if you’re into poetry set to music.

L.A. Salami continues his North American tour in April.

Cat Clyde (with L.A. Salami’s band)

Cat Clyde

L.A. Salami (art by Vu)

L.A. Salami

L.A. Salami

L.A. Salami

L.A. Salami at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (29 Mar 2018)

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Devendra Banhart & Friends: Wind Grove Mind Alone at the McGuire Theater, Minneapolis (14 May 2016)

Devendra Banhart Setlist Golden Girls You’re Through Hating You (new) Lonely Woman (new) Never Seen Such Good Things Celebration (new) Note: new songs titles may change when officially recorded. Read More Liquid Music The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s Liquid Music Series, now in its third season, offers performances by artists who bend the distinctions between classical music and other genres, and take their music in new and unique ..... Devendra Banhart Back in 2004, Acid-folk god Devendra Banhart compiled a collection of folk music for some magazine. Much like Nostradamus before him, he managed to predict some of the leading lights of modern folk music … Rodrigo Amarante Opening up the show will be Los Angeles, by the way of Rio de Janeiro, Rodrigo Amarante (who was previously in town two weeks ago at Bryant Lake Bowl ... Hecuba At first listen, Los Angeles' Hecuba, I thought I would classify them as lo-fi electronica, but by the time "Ch-Changes" came on the debut EP, the sound shifted to soul and gospel. ...

The recent Walker Art and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s Liquid Music sold out show, featuring Venezuelan American singer-songwriter Devendra Banhart, last Saturday was simply a blast. The reports from fans who attended Banhart’s first night, they said that Friday’s show was a little ‘avant-garde’ and ‘experimental’ than Saturday’s show - which featured Banhart’s full live band.

Banhart was given complete control over his two-night music festival, and for the first night, his choices were Lucky Dragons, Jessica Pratt, Helado Negro, and William Basinski. Banhart would open up the show, solo with some sort of “Father Dom” Sylvester Houédard’s 1974 poem “Wind Grove Mind Alone” theme.

The Saturday night would also have a similar setup, Devendra Banhart, this time with a full electric band, would open up the show. As described by Banhart, there were no established setlist for his band and some sets were entirely improvised and some old songs are completely redone in a different direction. Whatever they decided to play, it was clear that Banhart was absolutely giggly about the whole thing. You can hear it in his voice and his mannerism, he was extremely excited to perform these songs for us.

Devendra Banhart: Everything’s dead! vuart

The band kicked off their set with ‘Golden Girls’, and shortly after was hit with technical difficulties. Since no photos were allowed, here is a doodle of the funny event. Quote Banhart, “Everything’s dead!”

The band would continue with new/unheard materials on their brief 40-min set... ending with of a song that Devendra “Fancyman” Banhart said was a ‘Celebration.’

Brazil’s Rodrigo Amarante (who also played in Banhart’s band and also is in Los Hermanos) was up next, and his barefoot exaggerated back and forth on stage and off stage were too comical. The self-confessed ‘big man with tiny guitar’ started his set with ‘Nada Em Vão’, followed by ‘Hourglass’, and ending with ‘The Ribbon’.

Amarante said that he will be back in the city, at the Cedar Cultural Center this June 16, as soon as his 20-min set was over. By this time (9pm), Banhart came back on stage to tell the audience that they were going to take a 10 minute break (which was actually more like 15 minutes).

Los Angeles’ Hecuba was my favorite of the night. I actually reviewed their debut SIR EP in 2008 and wrote that they were “lo-fi electronica” and that the duo, Isabelle Albuquerque and Jon Beasley, met working on film & theater, so they do have a little theatric side to their performance: Beasley dancing uncontrollably in one place while Albuquerque passionately singing into the mic... sometime on the floor.

I couldn’t quite figure out their set, but the majority of their song had the lyrics of “Brother, sister, two people, one swimmer.”

The show ended with a bizarre performance of Harold Budd, Bradford Ellis and Veda Hille. The one-piece performance wasn’t a song, but rather was something read from perhaps a diary or chapter of a book. The background music was provided by Budd and Ellis, while Hille read.

Once again, Walker Art/Liquid Music made this very unique show possible. We’re so lucky to have this great music program. For forthcoming shows and additional details, head over to liquidmusicseries.org.

Devendra Banhart at the McGuire Theater, Minneapolis (14 May 2016)

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Minneapolis: December 12, 2015

Here are some shows taking place in the Minneapolis/St Paul area on December 12, 2015.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Read More Michael W Smith Michael W Smith will be performing Christmas songs from his The Spirit of Christmas holiday album (released September 30th) with a full symphony orchestra at the Target Center … Amy Grant It's hard to believe that six-time GRAMMY winner Amy Grant is releasing her first record in 10 years called How Mercy Looks From Here on May 14, 2013. …

MICHAEL W SMITH
at Target Center
Saturday, 12/12/15, 7pm ($32-$77)
targetcenter.com

The Michael W Smith and Amy Grant Christmas show is returning to the Target Center in Minneapolis next Saturday. They will be performing all your favorite Christmas/Holiday songs; fun for the entire family.

I am assuming, like the previous appearance, that they will also be accompanied by a full symphony orchestra. Should be for a swingin' good time.

Tour dates:

12/05/15 Woodlands, TX Cynthia Woods
12/06/15 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
12/08/15 Grandville, MI Resurrection Life Church
12/09/15 Detroit, MI Fox Theatre
12/11/15 St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
12/12/15 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
12/13/15 Sioux Falls, SD Denny Sanford
12/15/15 Cincinnati, OH Cincinnati Music Hall
12/16/15 Brandon, FL Bell Shoals Baptist Church
12/18/15 Duluth, GA Infinite Energy Center
12/19/15 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
12/20/15 Fairfax, VA EagleBank Arena
07/02/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/03/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/04/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/05/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/06/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/07/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/08/16 Oasis Of The Seas
07/09/16 Oasis Of The Seas

photo: Jason Larkin Read More Zoo Animal Next was Zoo Animal, a band that I've seen a few times. Mostly with just Holly Newsom by herself, so it's always nice to see her backed up with a full functioning band. … Bruise Violet We will be having our release show on the 13th at the 7th Street Entry with our best friends, Rupert Angeleyes, Real Numbers and Bruise Violet. …

ZOO ANIMAL
at Amsterdam Bar and Hall
Saturday, 12/12/15, 7:30pm ($8/$10)
amsterdambarandhall.com

The special Amsterdam Bar and Hall’s 4th Anniversary show is this December 12, featuring some local bands: Zoo Animal, Bruise Violet (probably named after a Babes in Toyland song) and Swimsuit Area.

Holly Hansen (vuart)

According to details below - this is the final Zoo Animal show... but I'm sure we'll see singer Holly Hansen around. You probably know that I randomly sketch at shows if I don't have a camera (for example), and as a special bonus, here are some notes and vuart for Holly.

We last saw Zoo Animal at Basilica Block Party 2015 and solo Holly Hansen with Tiny Ruins in 2014.

Details:

89.3 The Current an Deschutes Brewery present Amsterdam Bar and Hall's 4th Anniversary!

Celebrating 4 years in downtown St. Paul, Amsterdam will be hosting Zoo Animal and Bruise Violet on Saturday, December 12th. Tickets are on sale now!

Zoo Animal (farewell show)

Bruise Violet

Swimsuit Area

$8 advance, $10 day of show
Doors at 7:30 PM
18+

Read More Grandtheft Toronto producer Grandtheft has released his debut Quit This City EP, out today on Mad Decent / Pirates Blend in Canada. The emotional video for "Quit This City" (feat. Lowell) was directed by John Poliquin …

GRANDTHEFT
at The Loft
Saturday, 12/12/15, 9pm ($15/$25)
skywaytheatre.com

Toronto producer Grandtheft will be stopping by the Loft (inside the Skyway Theatre) in Minneapolis, in support of his debut EP Quit This City (Mad Decent / Pirates Blend).

The promo video for "Quit This City" (feat. Lowell) was directed by John Poliquin and featured a sex worker in Barcelona struggling to provide for her two children. Director John Poliquin had this to say about his vision for the video, "Shot across two nights in Barcelona with a primarily Spanish cast and crew, these scenes are a combination of conventional filmmaking and on-the-wall documentary observations. Many of the scenes were filmed in the rowdy nightlife district where the camera had to be concealed at points for safety. The scenes where the girls are working the corner was photographed on a long lens from across the street, which led to the actresses being approached by both police and men looking to hire sex workers. Some of the men who approached the actresses were disrespectful and harassing, which unfortunately mirrored the malicious spirit of the final man in the film."

Tour dates:

12-05 Pittsburgh, PA - 415 Bingham Street
12-11 Atlanta, GA - Havana Club
12-12 Minneapolis, MN - Bar Fly
12-30 Phoenix, AZ - Decadence

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic