Music & More

Imogen Heap played to a packed house at New York's Canal Room tonight and words are hard to find to describe how great her performance was. During the 75 minute set, time literally seemed to stand still, and I was totally knocked out by the total artistry of her performance. I have to admit that when Dave first sent me to her website, I wasn't quite sure what he was on about, what with the somewhat strange name and the bizarre look of some of the images. Which really only proves that first impressions can be meaningless, as in just a few short weeks, her new album Speak for Yourself (which will be released this Tuesday November 1st) has not only totally taken over my car player but has quickly established itself as one of the best albums of the year. And as good as the record is, it only hints at the musical capabilities of this extraordinary artist. Here are some pictures from tonight's show. I'll be back to post the setlist soon. Remember to click on photos to enlarg

Texas - Red Book (Mercury, 2005) The new Texas album is set for release in the U.K. and Europe on Monday November 7th in both standard cd and deluxe edition with dvd. The last album, Careful What You Wish For (2003) was something of a disappointment for some fans, but hopes are high for Red Book . The first single, "Getaway" released in three formats, has been in the racks since August 1st. Texas - Can't Resist (Mercury, 2005) "Can't Resist" is the second single from Red Book , also released in three formats (cd single, cd ep, and dvd single) on Monday October 31st in the U.K. and Europe. You can watch the "Can't Resist" video and preview the entire new album at Texas' Website . Edinburgh's Hogmanay Texas is slated to headline this year's Hogmanay festival, New Year's Eve in Edinburgh, Scotland. This detailed news article describing the event was posted on the Texas message board. and I am pleased to reprint it here. If anythin

The lastest from Tina Dico is that In the Red went straight to number one upon release in Denmark, however the rest of the world will now have to wait until February 2006 for the international release. In the meantime, there's a must-see EPK you can see by clicking: www.tinadico.com/medium.mov . You can also download it by right clicking the link and choose "save target as" for an 8:21 Quick Time movie of interview spliced with live performance clips. The download is approximately 38MB; once it's on your computer, right click the file name and choose "open with" and then choose the Quick Time player. It doesn't get any better than this. There's also a solo acoustic peformance and interview with Nic Harcourt on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic program from 9/29/04 that is archived for your listening and/or viewing pleasure here . Tina's U.S. website . Tina's Danish website .

Imogen Heap - Speak For Yourself (RCA, 2005) Many thanks to Dave from Sony BMG for not waiting for the November 1st release on one of his own labels, to preview by way of the import, Imogen Heap's second solo album, Speak for Yourself . Primed for the mass market by song placements in The O.C. ("Hide and Seek") and Garden State ("Let Go" by her band Frou Frou), this record offers up an intriguing combination of danceable fat beats flavored with occasional techno or even industrial sounds with some gorgeous multilayered vocals that give rise to Dave's labelling this "progressive pop." There's a lot more going on musically than in your typical pop record, but the multitracked and sometimes electronically processed vocals do have a sound that recalls the glory days of progressive rock. Since this music defies easy description, I'm going to reprint here the editiorial review of the import, from Amazon.com, written before she signed with RCA for

I don't imagine there are too many places where audiences for Stevie Wonder and Martina McBride intersect, but you are visiting one now. Martina McBride - Timeless (RCA, 2005) Although I hadn't heard in advance what Martina McBride was up to on her new album Timeless , the concept becomes crystal clear within the first twenty seconds of track one, with the first strains of beautiful pedal steel guitar that opens Hank Williams' "You Win Again." What's happening here is that Martina has recorded an album of standards - no, not the great American songbook as currently being worn out by the likes of Rod Stewart and no, not the obligatory bluegrass album that many country artists record, but these are the standards of classic country music, the songs of Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Ray Charles, Buddy Holly, Tammy Wynette, Ernest Tubb, Buck Owens, and Kris Kristofferson, to name a few. My interest in country music didn't extend to anything much more twangy than

One of the best new television shows to debut last season was Veronica Mars (UPN). The following appreciation was written by Joss Whedon, the creator and director of Buffy the Vampire Slayer , Angel , and the current movie Serenity , and is reprinted from the October 20, 2005 issue of Entertainment Weekly . Last year, Veronica Mars' best friend was murdered. Some months later, she was drugged at a party and raped in her sleep. Welcome to the funniest and most romantic show on TV, collected on DVD in Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season. On the surface, VM is a simple Nancy Drew update: High School Girl Solves Mysteries. It's impressive how well it works as just that, because week to week, nothing is harder to pull off than a genuine whodunit, and no show does it better than VM. But obviously, it's what lies deeper that not only makes the show remarkable but defines it. Mysteries are its central metaphor; Veronica solves little puzzles because she, like all of us, canno

In Flightplan, a taut thriller directed by Robert Schwentke, Jodie Foster plays Kyle Pratt, a mom who has just lost her husband and together with her six year old daughter Julia, is flying the body from Berlin back to New York aboard a jumbo jet. Mom and daughter stretch out for a snooze just after takeoff and when Kyle wakes up several hours later, Julia is missing. After a search of the plane, she is told that there is no record of her daughter ever being on the flight, offering the dual scenarios that either a kidnapping has taken place or that Kyle is just a delusional mom, overcome with grief due to the death of her husband. Conveniently, Kyle is a jet propulsion engineer, familiar with every hatch, nook, and cranny of this airliner. Evidence such as the child's blanket, stuffed toy, and her heart tracing in the fog of the jet's window suggest that the delusional mom theory has been engineered by the clever kidnappers, and you don't have to be Roger Ebert to figure out

You can check the complete list of albums and check out the message board at the xpn website . My annotated top ten is here . The last three weeks have been about the most fun one can have on the radio. It's been a great ride and it will be tough to go back to normal work tomorrow. Here are the top 25 as voted by the xpn community, followed by my daily reports, followed by a few stats. Click on photos to enlarge. The Top 25 THE BEATLES - Abbey Road!!!!!!!! THE BEATLES – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band PINK FLOYD - Dark Side of the Moon BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN – Born to Run BOB DYLAN – Blood On The Tracks THE BEATLES – The Beatles (White Album) U2 – The Joshua Tree THE CLASH – London Calling THE BEATLES – Revolver THE BEATLES – Rubber Soul THE WHO – Who’s Next THE GRATEFUL DEAD – American Beauty JONI MITCHELL – Blue MILES DAVIS – Kind Of Blue RADIOHEAD – OK Computer BOB DYLAN – Highway 61 Revisited THE ROLLING STONES – Exile On Main Street PAUL SIMON – Graceland BOB DYLAN – Blonde

In 1994 Traffic reunited for a new album and concert tour, and The Last Great Traffic Jam documents that tour. The setlist for this dvd concentrates on the classic Traffic songs, with just one tune from that year's new album, Far From Home. All the performances captured here sound truly great and are a priceless addition to the Traffic catalogue. This reunion included only Steve Winwood (lead vocals, guitar, piano, and Hammond B-3) and Jim Capaldi (drums and vocals), being that Chris Wood, the third primary member of Traffic, passed away in 1983; Capaldi has since left us this past January. Playing the sax, flute, and some superb Hammmond B-3 on this tour was Georgia native Randall Bramblett, an accomplished singer songwriter in his own right who has also played with Greg Allman, Robbie Robertson, and the band Sea Level. Rosko Gee joined Traffic in the final 1974 incarnation playing on When the Eagle Flies, and he returned on bass in 1994 for the reunion album and tour. Walfredo Re