The Henry Clay People Rock Nic Harcourt and Livebuzz.com with "Slow Burn"

Five of our most favorite guys are in the band, The Henry Clay People and they met up with Nic Harcourt as they were touring about the countryside this summer rocking butts and winning hearts. If you don't know them already, give a listen to the rawk-tastic "Slow Burn" from Somewhere On the Golden Coast. Then you can tell your friends you knew them before they got arena-huge.

Code for the site appears to be wonky so go check out the video and other assorted goodies here:Slow Burn on Livebuzz.com-Henry Clay People

The Henry Clay People Release Video for "Your Famous Friends," Open for SSPUs at DAR Tonight

The Henry Clay People are opening tonight for Against Me and Silversun Pickups at DAR (tickets still available here). Their down-to-earth anthemic rock and roll is always crazy amounts of fun to see live. (They go on at 7:30 tonight so get there early.)

Their new record, Somewhere On the Golden Coast came out last week and it doesn't disappoint. It's music great for driving real fast to, for dancing in your living room with friends to, for anytime you want to witness merriment come alive in you or your friends.

The band released the first video today from Golden Coast for the song "Your Famous Friends." The video mixes their tongue-in-cheek humor (the HCP have long dressed up like Ronald Reagan and played shows) with their not-so-famous friends. "It was shot by Ben Hoste out in front of our old rehearsal space in downtown Los Angeles," says singer/guitarist Joey Siara. "We got some of our buddies to put on some presidential masks and goof around on a hot spring Saturday. The real star of the video is our pal Fieron Santos who endured water balloons aimed at his crotch, hair caked thick with wet flour and a flying attack from Saddam [Hussein]. If making videos were always this fun then we would have a lot more."



Give a Listen:: Your Famous Friends-The Henry Clay People/ Buy Somewhere On the Golden Coast

Henry Clay People Announce Summer Tour Dates with Silversun Pickups

SXSW 2010, Day 2: Henry Clay People @ Aquarium Drunkard Day Party (3-17-2010), originally uploaded by BetweenLoveandLike.

The Henry Clay People is a band we've long rocked out to around here. Their songs of fist-pumping choruses and driving guitars (made even better now with full-time keyboardist Jordan Hudock), mixed with the slower, almost mournful stuff that can only be conveyed by a talented slide guitar player (lead guitarst Andy Siara), make for a band that's definitely not a one-song pony with every song sounding the same.

HCP has opened for a multitude of bands at this point (Ben Harper and The Airborne Toxic Event being two), and just came back from dates with Drive-By Truckers. Next up will be a two-month tour with fellow Silver Lake-area friends, Silversun Pickups, which starts just after their first full-lenth release, Somewhere On the Golden Coast comes out on 6/8 (tbd Records). Both bands put on powerful stage shows, but HCP have been known to win over and take out an audience, so look for the intensity to be amplified with both sets.

Give a Listen: Your Famous Friends-The Henry Clay People/Buy Somewhere On the Golden Coast

Henry Clay People June/July Tour With Silversun Pickups
June 15th- Hard Rock Cafe,Orlando, Fl
June 16th - Sunset Cove Amphitheater, Boca Raton, FL
June 18th - Ritz, Tampa, FL
June 19th - The Tabernacle, Atlanta, GA
June 20th – Sunset Theatre At Disco Rodeo, Raleigh, NC
June 21st - The National, Richmond, VA
June 23rd - DAR Constitution Hall, Washington, DC
June 24th - Wellmont Theatre, Montclair, NJ
June 25th - Williamsburg Waterfront, Brooklyn, NY
June 27th - Landsdowne Street, Boston, MA
June 28th - Great Plaza at Penns Landing, Philly, PA
June 29th - The Sound Academy, Toronto, ON
July 2 - The Fillmore, Detroit, MI
July 3 - Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL
July 4 – Summerfest, Milwaukee, WI
July 16 - The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas, NV
July 17th - Marquee Theatre, Tempe, AZ
July 19th - Stubb's, Austin, TX
July 20th - Warehouse Live, Houston, TX
July 21st - Palladium Ballroom, Dallas, TX
July 24th - Live on the Fair St Louis, St Louis, MO
July 26th - The Fillmore Auditorium, Denver, CO
July 27th - The Rail, Salt Lake City, UT
July 29th - Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR
July 31 - The Paramount Theatre, Seattle, WA
Aug 7th - Soma, San Diego, CA

Henry Clay People Sign with TBD Records, Announce Full-Length Debut forJune Release

Henry Clay People at SXSW 2009, Red Eyed Fly (3-21-09), originally uploaded by BetweenLoveandLike.

The music business is filled with all sorts of people and personalities, both good and bad, and sometimes it's the kindest ones who get left by the wayside. So when the kindest ones win, it's a major heart-warmer.

The Henry Clay People is a band filled with the latter, which makes you like them as people. And they're crazy good musicians with big guitar hooks and catchy melodies, which makes you love their music. And word came down today that they've found a label that loves it too.

TBD Records signed HCP and will be putting out their first full-length, Somewhere on the Golden Coast in early June. About the record the band said, "The idea was to track the record as live as possible onto tape, leaving that dirt under the fingernails kinda feel. So yeah, there is a good amount of dirt, but hopefully other stuff too."

Listen to one of the new ones, "Slow Burn," here, with more to follow they said.

Congrats guys...couldn't happen to anyone nicer.

(Read some of our previous HCP show coverage here and here)

Seen Your Video: Airborne Toxic Event Covers "People Who Died" (with Henry Clay People and Red Cortez)

I saw the awesomeness that was the "East LA Rock n Roll Revue" with The Airborne Toxic Event, The Henry Clay People, Red Cortez twice last week, once here in DC and back home in upstate NY (the latter show also included the beautiful and ethereal harmonies of The Parson Red Heads, the main reason I wanted to see the show). But the job-that-pays-the-bills exploded with deadlines upon my return so I am a bit behind with posting the reviews/photos. I did, however, want to share one of the shining moments of the DC show, which was when Airborne's lead singer, Mikel Jollett, brought both his opening bands back out during Airborne's set for a rousing rendition of Jim Carroll's "People Who Died." Carroll, who died back in September, was the male embodiment (to me anyway) of the poetry and grit that was New York's Lower East Side in the 70s, and I'm always thrilled when he's given recognition. "People Who Died" is a great song normally, and Jollett, obviously a Carroll fan, does it serious justice.

Preview Notes on the Lucero Show @ 930 Club (10-15-09)

I'm catching a flight home in a few hours to catch a ultra rare appearance on the other coast by The Parson Red Heads. With Red Cortez, The Henry Clay People, and The Airborne Toxic at Northern Lights in Clifton Park, NY. Short of being at Spaceland in LA a few years ago, I'm pleasantly shocked that I'm getting to see a lineup like that.

But I wanted to just drop a note and say...the 500+ photos and review of the Red Cortez, The Henry Clay People, and The Airborne Toxic's DC stop should be up this weekend, as will the photos/review from last night's Lucero show at the 930. A few quick notes on the latter:

-Ben's Nichols voice is pretty ragged out. I thought it might have been due to a cold or something but I found out after that they'd been practicing like 6-8 hours a day for like a week prior to the tour to get the horns up to speed. And Nichols, "who doesn't take care of himself anyway" (says Brian Venable), shot his voice. Anyone seeing them this show, seeing them earlier than later might be better.

-Nichols was drinking water (I know, shocking) but there was whiskey shots being brought up around all sides of me that he was drinking.

-Stand in the back of whatever venue you go to see them in order to hear the horns the best. I commented to their steel pedal player Todd Beene after about how hard it was to hear the horns where I was up front and he said, 'Yeah, the horns were put through the mains so the sound carries. If you're up front, it's not as much." He said he had a hard time hearing them in his monitor, and he was right in front of them.

-FYI: horns were worked into their older tracks and boy, are they niiiiice. They aren't onstage for the entire show though.

Oh and speaking of Lucero, if you're in Baltimore, MD tonight, be sure to catch The Revival Tour 2009 at Sonar. Lucero's buddy Chuck Ragan and the awesome Jim Ward are among the large group of performers.

Doh!

No post today kids...Having a small computer crisis here today at BL&L central headquarters, and an owner who's still learning how not to be a spaz when it comes to her touchphone.

But if you're in DC, be sure to go to the 930 club tonight for the fab La-La Land Trifecta of The Airborne Toxic Event, The Henry Clay People, and Red Cortez. Red Cortez hits the stage at 8 pm, HCP at 8:50 pm, Airborne at 10 pm. That's a whole bunch of awesome for only $20.

The Henry Clay People Start Fall US Tour

We have long loved the Henry Clay People around here (even if we've never been entirely sure if the name is in honor of the cigars or the man) and their brand of indie rock that smacks of a Cheap Trick-powered car with a California license plate. Bringing passionate playing, big meaty guitar hoooks, and a pogo-inducing sound across the mountains and prairies of the US this fall, HCP kicked off an extensive six week tour last night as openers for The Airborne Toxic Event. As we said about Henry Clay when they opened for Ben Harper here in DC this past May, Their recent opening slot for Ben Harper at the 930 Club...showing that not all opening bands are created equal. The Ben Harper audience never knew what hit them.

For many of the shows, they will share opener duties with another great LA band, Red Cortez. This trifecta on one bill is quite a coup, so get there early to see some of the absolute best of what the Los Angeles indie music scene has to offer.

Give a Listen:Switch Kids-The Henry Clay People (unreleased)

Henry Clay People Fall 09 Tour
September
* Thu Sep 17, 2009 - Pomona CA Fox Theater #
* Sat Sep 19, 2009 - San Pedro CA Port of Los Angeles Lobster Festival ^
* Wed Sep 23, 2009 - Denver CO Ogden Theatre &
* Thu Sep 24, 2009 - Boulder CO Boulder Theater #
* Fri Sep 25, 2009 - Omaha NE Slowdown #
* Sat Sep 26, 2009 - Des Moines IA People’s Court #
* Mon Sep 28, 2009 - Lawrence KS The Granada #
* Tue Sep 29, 2009 - Tulsa OK Cain’s #
* Wed Sep 30, 2009 - Dallas TX House of Blues #

October
* Thu Oct 01, 2009 - Houston TX House of Blues #
* Fri Oct 02, 2009 - Austin TX Emo’s **
* Sat Oct 03, 2009 - Austin TX Austin City Limits Festival $
* Sat Oct 03, 2009 - Emo's (ACL after party)**
* Sun Oct 04 and 05, 2009 - New Orleans LA Circle Bar %
* Tue Oct 06, 2009 - St. Petersburg FL The State Theatre #
* Wed Oct 07, 2009 - Atlanta GA Variety Playhouse #
* Thu Oct 08, 2009 - Columbia SC Headliners #
* Fri Oct 09, 2009 - Norfolk VA The NorVa #
* Sat Oct 10, 2009 - Philadelphia PA Trocadero Theatre #
* Mon Oct 12, 2009 - Washington DC 9:30 Club #
* Tue Oct 13, 2009 - Boston MA House of Blues #
* Thu Oct 15, 2009 - New York NY Webster Hall #
* Fri Oct 16, 2009 - New York NY Webster Hall #
* Sat Oct 17, 2009 - Clifton Park NY Northern Lights #
* Sun Oct 18, 2009 - Montreal QC La Tulipe #
* Mon Oct 19, 2009 - Toronto ON Phoenix Concert Theatre #
* Wed Oct 21, 2009 - Columbus OH Newport Music Hall #
* Thu Oct 22, 2009 - Pontiac MI The Crofoot Ballroom #
* Fri Oct 23, 2009 - Chicago IL Metro #
* Sat Oct 24, 2009 - Minneapolis MN Fine Line Music Cafe #
* Wed Oct 28, 2009 - Vancouver BC The Commodore Ballroom #
* Thu Oct 29, 2009 - Seattle WA The Showbox #
* Fri Oct 30, 2009 - Boise ID Knitting Factory #
* Sat Oct 31, 2009 - Portland OR Roseland Theater #

November
* Mon Nov 02, 2009 - San Francisco CA The Fillmore #
* Tue Nov 03, 2009 - San Diego CA House of Blues #

# - w/ The Airborne Toxic Event and Red Cortez
^ - w/ Dios, Oliver Future, and lots of Lobsters
& - w/ Arctic Monkeys and the Airborne Toxic Event
% - w/ Red Cortez
** - w/ Deer Tick and Alberta Cross

Seen Your Video: The Henry Clay People's "Hand on My Shoulder

One of our west coast favorites around here, The Henry Clay People, put together an acoustic video of one of their newer songs, "Hand on My Shoulder."

(Thanks)

Show Review: The Henry Clay People @ 930 Club, Washington, DC (5-4-09)

It should have been no surprise to me when Henry Clay People lead singer and guitarist Joey Siara told me he was also a fan of The Wrens. A Wrens show is a reminder of what a great live show should be: loud and intense, the kind where you find yourself swept up and dancing before your brain catches on. And that's what a HCP show is like as well. But where the Wrens yell from the darker side of things, HCP comes at it with a wry grin and an "all for one" attitude. To HCP, we all may be heading down financially, emotionally, and romantically, but we're in it together. So let's have a beer and rock the fuck out as we fall.

Their recent opening slot for Ben Harper at the 930 Club went much like when they opened for The Airborne Toxic Event in March at the Black Cat in terms of showing that not all opening bands are created equal. The Ben Harper audience never knew what hit them.

HCP did start off a bit sluggish. It could have been nerves because the 930 was one of the biggest venues they've ever played; or just sluggish because Harper added them as the opener just days before, which meant HCP had to drive cross country from Los Angeles over the weekend to make the start of the tour on Monday in DC.





But it didn't last long. The set was filled with many songs from their forthcoming record ("The Switch Kids," an homage to a fellow Silver Lake-ian band, Le Switch, really stands out, as does "Something in the Water"), and a few covers sprinkled in for flavor (including Mott the Hoople's "Roll Away the Stone"). This is a band that could teach a class on stage presence. It's a rare talent for a band to grab hold of a new crowd the way that HCP does, going from polite disinterested applause in the beginning to an audience unified in following Siara's lead to yell the "1, 2, 3, 4" count-off to a song about half way through. But because their music is so damn catchy, and because Siara is so damn charming as a front man, after awhile the crowd chatter stops, and the applause after each song gets louder and louder.

(See the rest of the photos from the show here)

By the time they ended their set with a mash-up that started with Operation Ivy's "Knowledge," slammed into a medley of Lou Reed ("Walk on the Wild Side"), The Faces ("Oh La La"), The Who ("Baba O'Riley"), and ended with The Rolling Stones "You Can't Always Get What You Want," Siara had the sold-out crowd singing the refrain at the top of their lungs. While it's true you can't always get what you want, you do get what you need at a Henry Clay People show; you get a reminder of just how good a live show can be.

Songs, Sun, and Lone Star Beer: SXSW 2009, Day 3

Intro, Day 1, Day 2 (day), Day 2 (night)

1. The Wrens
When I saw The Wrens were playing this year's SX, one of my travelmates knew of them so I asked him to describe their music. His exact words were “awesome and awesome-est.” Said travelmate and I don’t always agree on what constitutes “awesome” music (our common ground is Springsteen and Westerberg), so I wasn't sure what I'd find upon arriving to their noon set at the Hot Freaks day party this third day.

What I found was complete and utter awesome and awesome-est. Squared. To infinity.

Sometimes, hearing enough music that is just ok-not mind-blowing, not life-changing, but palpable-enough of that and you start to think "ok" is enough. You forget what it was like to hear music so good it scrambles your brains and all you do is grin like an idiot.

Go see The Wrens live and you'll recall all of this soon enough. What a glorious full-on aural assault of melodious noise.

(See more photos from the set here)

Give a Listen: Everyone Choose Sides-The Wrens

What could follow up such a thing? I needed some time to breathe so had a few beers then set out to catch my first SX music panel. Along the way, I caught two minutes of Bishop Allen...



and Viva Voce...
(See more photos from the set here)

2. Music Panel: The Sound and the Fury
SX has a ton of panels on all sorts of things music-related. But I thought "Sound and the Fury" looked pretty interesting if only for the roster (see below). Where else would you see Sylvain Sylvain, Matthew Caws, and Jonathan Poneman (one of the founders of the Sub Pop label) in the same place?

Like the variety of perspectives Faulkner offered in his classic novel, artists' views of the music biz are filtered through their particular experiences. Without denying the difficulties facing the recorded music market, and the economy as a whole, there are opportunities for intrepid musicians to find fans and make a career out of their creativity. The artists and execs on this panel bring unique histories to their current work, and they'll share their thoughts about furthering their goals in this challenging era. But maybe we'll leave Faulkner's themes of incest and despair out of this panel.

-Moderator: Karen Glauber Pres, Hits Magazine
-Lynn Barstow, Program Dir, Emmis Austin Radio/KGSR/KROX
-Matthew Caws, Nada Surf
-Karen Glauber, Pres, Hits Magazine
-Matthew Hales, Aqualung
-Mikel Jollett, The Airborne Toxic Event
-Jordan Kurland, Owner, Zeitgeist Artist Management LTD
-Anya Marina, Performer, Anya Marina
-Jonathan Poneman, Sub Pop Records
-Sylvain Sylvain, New York Dolls

(More photos from the panel discussion here)

There were some pretty funny quotes. Sylvain Sylvain on being a cult artist: "You get laid a lot." He also talked about taking a job as a cabbie in the lean years so he could make music on the side. "I got robbed three times, once by a woman." And Matthew Caws: "We'd rather play a packed closet than a half-empty living room." (Gotta love Matthew Caws.)

3. The Henry Clay People
Playing the last of their 98786876 shows at this year's SX at Red Eyed Fly, the HCP boys were ready to cut loose.



HCP are consistent in putting on a great musical performance, even a few drinks in (well here, it was more "a lot of drinks in"). The obvious closeness of the band collectively, and of the brothers Siara as family, make for an entertaining stage show; that friendliness amongst them exudes into the audience when they play. Combine that with their excellent musicial abilities and damn catchy songs, and you've got a great can't-miss band. I see great things on the horizon for HCP.







And I couldn't get a proper shot of drummer Mike Hopkins the whole show, so he was nice enough to pose for me after. I've always said I'm too east coast to live on the west coast, but damn, if all the boys are as handsome as Hopkins, I may just have to reconsider...

(More photos from the show here)

Give a Listen: You Can Be Timeless-The Henry Clay People

After HCP, I caught up with the travelmates at the SPIN day party at Stubbs for a few minutes of Glasvegas. "Daddy's Gone" is a lovely, rather hymn-like song that really does hold up live...



Give a Listen: Daddy_s_Gone-Glasvegas

And then I headed over to Maggie Maes for the only performance at SX of The Takeover UK, who were headlining the Sonicbirds party. Out of Pittsburgh, PA, Takeover's excellent take on powerful indie Brit-pop is worth a listen (debut is called Running with the Wasters). Their energetic live show should not be missed.



My travelmate John did a great writeup on the show here




(See more photos from the set here)

Give a Listen: Ah La La-The Takeover UK

Show Review: Airborne Toxic Event, Henry Clay People, and Alberta Cross @ Black Cat, Washington, DC (3-12-09)

I have to admit, I felt kinda bad for Alberta Cross when they played at the Black Cat recently with The Henry Clay People and The Airborne Toxic Event. To be the blues-rock middle band that is sandwiched between the straight ahead indie power of Henry Clay and the indie power emotion that is Airborne, they were sorta the odd man out. They were good, in their own way, very focused, and all were very capable musicians. But they were of a vein that was Jethro Tull to Henry Clay's Cheap Trick, Rush to Airborne's Orange Juice. Guitars and drums and keyboards may have been the lowest common denominators amidst these three, but that's like saying Elvis and Morrisey's music and audiences are similar because they both wore pompadours and made young girls scream.

See, Alberta Cross had to follow 40 minutes of Henry Clay’s brand of hook-filled, drive-real-fast, throw-down-till-you-are-down rock and roll, the poor lads. People maybe got there early for a good spot for Airborne, but they left fans of Henry Clay that night as well.





Like a bespectacled four-headed hydra, Joey Siara and his younger brother Andy, drummer Mike Hopkins, and bassist Jonathan Price beat the audience about the eardrums from the start with new tracks like the musical whiplash of "Something in the Water," and tracks like the so-good-it's-criminal "Andy Sings" from their record, “For Cheap or For Free." Siara got people to "save rock and roll music by putting your fist in the air like Bruce Springsteen" during "You Can't Bring it Back," and played the fabulous “You Can Be Timeless” because the Siara’s mother had requested it (mom and dad were in the audience that night, having flown over from CA to see their sons play. Thanks Mom, I was hoping they’d play that one.) They’d pretty much sealed the deal with the crowd at that point, and then they brought out a couple of friends from their hood back home: ATE lead guitarist Steven Chen to play guitar on the bombastic barrel roll of hooks that is "Working Part Time"...




...and ATE bassist Noah Harmon who sat in for a raucous and bluesy set-ending rendition of “Honky Tonk Woman.”




Based on the ear-splitting roar that went up at the song's end, it was obvious those west coast boys had wooed and won this east coast crowd. And Alberta Cross had to follow that. Kinda like The Who opening for Hermans Hermits, it just didn't seem fair you know?



As for Airborne’s set, it was so great to see them sell out the Black Cat when a mere six months ago there was, maybe, 30 people at DC9. Originally, they were to be playing Black Cat's Backstage, but someone at the Cat must have been paying attention to the buzz about them because the show was moved upstairs to the main room (something the bands didn’t know until they arrived, I heard later).







Airborne’s playing was cohesive a year ago when I first saw them in a courtyard at SXSW, and a year of continuous playing on the road in support of their self-titled debut album has only improved on that.






Lead singer Mikel Jollet recently had a nasty bout with laryngitis that caused them to cancel some shows before the DC appearance and he was still trying to ramp back up.



But good things can come out of bad situations, and laryngitis made Airborne change up the songs some, including adding Harmon on backup vocals, which I liked.




Having seen them a few times now, I can say that this is a band that’s really growing as more of a "team," rather than “just” a band that Mikel Jollet and Daren Taylor decided to start a couple years back. This is a band branching out and exploring other avenues from necessity but in doing so, they're also producing some amazing results. That adage is true I guess, necessity really is the mother of invention.

(See the rest of the photos from the show here)

Oh, and to give you an idea of a hometown Henry Clay/Airborne mashup, this is video from a homecoming show they did last week.