Interview with Black Lips’ Jared Swilley

AP Photo/Dave Martin

Black Lips, this crazy psychedelic garage rock act from Atlanta, Georgia, are going to perform up the highway at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston on September 28 with Montreal punks The King Khan & BBQ Show. I had a chat with co-founder, bassist and co-vocalist of Black Lips, Jared Swilley, about the upcoming show and a bunch of other things that’ll tickle your fancy.

Rob Duguay: Black Lips has a show going on at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston on the 28th. You guys have gotten notoriety for vomiting, urination, flaming guitars and even RC car races, but you’ve toned down your theatrics a bit saying that you’ve matured a little. Was there ever a breaking point that signaled to the band that you should clean up your act on stage or was it purely a personal decision?

Jared Swilley: We never really did stuff like that. Sometimes it happened at shows, but we never did it every night. Cole Alexander in the band has a medical condition where he can’t control his gag reflex, but he takes medicine for that now so it doesn’t happen as much. We try not to eat too close to shows. I don’t know where the RC car thing came from, I don’t even own a car and we definitely have never had RC cars. Our shows still get pretty wild; I still don’t know what the word mature means at this point. There was never really a decision made concerning that at all.

RD: Well, if Black Lips ever decide to do an RC car race on stage, please do it at the show in Boston on the 28th. Earlier this year the band put out their seventh studio album with Underneath The Rainbow. It’s been your fourth release with Vice Records, which is affiliated with the magazine of the same name and they’ve created their own media entity. How has it been working with a unique label like Vice?

JS: When we started with them it had be around seven or eight years ago. At the time they were mainly the magazine and they still had the record label, but it was a lot smaller. It’s been cool seeing them blow up like they have. It definitely gives us more resources and opportunities to do things because they have offices around the globe. We do video stuff with them as well as stuff in the magazine. It’s pretty awesome to be on their label because they’re so much more than a label.

RD: It must be great to be part of something that gives you avenues to go to with you having to go out of your way. It’s like they’re working for you which is pretty nice. One crazy story I read about you and Cole is that when you were both in high school you guys got kicked out in the aftermath of the Columbine Massacre in 1999 because you were regarded by the administration as being a subculture danger. Is there any truth to this story? If so, what exactly happened? JS: They started going with a zero tolerance policy in high school after it happened. We weren’t really weird at all. I hung out with cheerleaders and people on the football team and stuff like that. We were pretty well adjusted and we definitely weren’t outcasts. It was just a lot of little things they started expelling people from our class for. Stuff like skipping too much, getting caught smoking too many times, tardiness. I wouldn’t have called us a subculture danger; we were actually good kids. It’s just hard for us to follow rules, that’s why we do what we do.

RD: I can imagine a school cracking down on anti-authoritative kids wouldn’t mix that well. Along with Black Lips, members of the band have been involved in numerous side projects like Diamond Rugs featuring John McCauley from Deer Tick and Hardy Morris from Dead Confederate, the Halloween- themed ghost rock band called The Spooks and more recently Cole is in a side project called Night Sun. When it comes to juggling all of these different projects, does it ever get overwhelming?

JS: It’s actually pretty easy. Black Lips is our main gig and with the side projects we mostly half-ass it to be honest. We don’t try very hard.

RD: Is there any reason why you guys always wanna try something different?

JS: Not really, just for something to do. Just be punk. That’s what we like to do.

RD: What can fans expect from Black Lips in 2015? Will any of the band’s side projects be releasing any material? Will there be another Black Lips album? Will there be a live record?

JS: We pretty much live every day like there’s no tomorrow, like shit’s about to hit the fan, like hell’s about to break loose. So we’ll probably make a record, play a bunch of shows all over the world, y’know — the usual.

Sunday night on September 28 will be bumpin’ at The Paradise Rock Club in Boston when Black Lips show up. Get your ticket or be square, hopefully I’ll see you there.

Black Lips’ Website: www.black-lips.com

Album Of The Week: Violent Sons’ Nothing As It Seems Boiling in the depths of the Providence music scene is pure intensity. Regardless of genre, nothing is sugarcoated and everything is as real as your senses tell you. A wonderful example of this trademark has to be Sean Murphy. He’s fronted hardcore punk revolutionaries Verse and lo-fi shoegaze punk act Bad Swimmers, and now this ball of poetic rage is returning to his roots. Violent Sons have a new album out titled Nothing As It Seems, and it very well could be one of the best debut albums to ever come out of The Creative Capital. It’s loud, unapologetic and angry. In other words, it’s absolutely pristine.

Classic hardcore riffs crawl up your spine and feverish drums destroy everything in sight while Murphy’s vocals bring the assault again for good measure. Anti-establishment and anti-authority, Violent Sons’ new album is for the rebel in us all. It makes you want to shout and break all the chains that bind you; its songs will hit your soul and reenergize it with an adrenaline-filled battery. If you’re looking for a new awesome punk album, Nothing As It Seems is exactly what you’ve been looking for.

And now it’s the wonderful time for the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week. Don’t be afraid, don’t fret, it’s purely painless. Hey, you might even learn something.

The cryptic intro roaring into “Clean Boots” gets right into a furious track about entitlement and concludes with another scorcher of a riff. One that really gets me is “MK Ultra Minds,” a pro- individualist anti-war anthem all about government brainwashing and the wearing away of the human condition via war. Murphy sings about what a lot of people are afraid to talk about in this one. Another great anti-establishment anthem is “Faith Pushers,” all about living your own life and not letting anyone waving around a book tell you any different.

Violent Sons will celebrate the release of Nothing As It Seems at AS220 in Providence on September 25th with Caught In A Crowd, My Fictions, and Barber Cop. If you want to bump around in a mosh pit, get a little crazy and have a lot of fun at a punk rock show, I highly suggest you go.

Link to where people can buy & stream the album: http://bridge9.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-as-- it-seems Album Of The Week: Broncho’s Just Enough Hip to Be Woman

If you delve deep enough, you’d be surprised how artistically and musically weird Oklahoma can get. Psychedelic dream punks The Flaming Lips started out there and The Philbrook Museum of Art, located in Tulsa, is one of the finest museums in the country. There’s also an up-and-coming rock ‘n’ roll act coming through the tumbleweeds to make a name for themselves. Groovy fuzz rockers Broncho have their new album Just Hip Enough to Be Woman currently out, and the fusion of glam and post-punk styles is impeccable. Imagine if T.Rex & The Cars had a baby who started singing like Lou Reed and Ric Ocasek and you’ll have Broncho.

There’s a certain amount of pop within the distorted guitars in this album; one moment you’ll want to shake your hips on the dance floor while another will have you rocking out to a blistering solo. Just Hip Enough to Be Woman sounds like a new wave album without the cheesy synth. It’s pure rock that’s very accessible to the point that you could spin this album either to a bunch of ravers or to a crew of guys in leather jackets doing whiskey shots all night. Sometimes you wonder if a group putting out a new album deserves the hype. Broncho’s new release definitely does.

Sometimes this world doesn’t make sense. It can be mind-boggling, aggravating and blissful all at the same time. To be on the more blissful side of things, open the door and walk into the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week:

The single “Class Historian” is catchy as hell. A simple chorus and rocking riffs are the ingredients to make the track one of the best songs to come out this year. A stone cold bass lick is the backbone in “Kurt,” one of the many headbobbers on the album that makes it kick. Definitely a smooth punk anthem, “Deena” is short, sweet and to the point with the clashing guitars. As you can tell, the guitars dominate Just Hip Enough to Be Woman from front to back. That’s what you have to expect from a rock ‘n’ roll band right?

Broncho will be taking over Great Scott in Allston, Mass., on September 17 with fellow Oklahomans Low Litas. Anyone who loves the sound an electric six-string makes shouldn’t miss this show. While you’re there, grab a copy of Broncho’s new album. It’s ideal for the movers, shakers and the moneymakers.

Broncho’s website: bronchoband.com

Album Of The Week: Death From Above 1979’s The Physical World

When a band takes a decade to put out the follow-up to their debut album, it can either ruin high expectations or keep things fresh so they can create a gem. Drum & bass dance-punks Death From Above 1979 have put out The Physical World, the duo’s first album since the release of their debut You’re A Woman, I’m A Machine back in 2004. The new record shows that Toronto musicians Sebastien Grainger and Jesse F. Keeler haven’t fallen off at all since reuniting in 2011. The thunderous siege of fuzziness and deep tones invade each track like a full-scale assault. Stuff that you can either rock out or dance to, Death From Above 1979’s new album hits on all cylinders for a spectacular reentry to the musical consciousness.

I noticed in The Physical World the tinges of influence from both Grainger & Keeler’s other musical endeavors. After the duo broke up in 2006, Keeler started up the electronic dance music duo MSTRKRFT with Al-P while Grainger embarked on a successful solo career. With the minor electronic effects and the use of guitars in a couple tracks, it’s as if the progression of both musicians’ styles over the years combined to further the classic drum and bass of Death From Above 1979. The new album isn’t as raw sounding as their debut, but The Physical World holds its own by taking risks and not being afraid to change things up.

It’s that time again. Like death and taxes, you can guarantee that you’ll be immersing yourself in the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week:

Starting off the album with a boom, “Cheap Talk” is the light that burns this dynamite of an album. This track is an excellent example of the duo using minor electronic effects with the drum and bass giving the whole song a dose of raw power. A groovy body mover, “Always On” has bass licks that are flat-out ridiculous. I wonder how many blisters Keeler got on his fingers from how many times he played the song during the recording process. Downbeats for days, “Government Trash” is a mosh pit accelerator for the masses. From start to finish this number will get you acting like a human tornado in a jiffy.

Death From Above 1979 will start a tour of Europe and The United States in October and they’ll blow the roof off of The House Of Blues in Boston on December 2. Until they come to rip apart your friendly neighborhood music venue, get yourself a copy of The Physical World. It’ll rock your socks off so hard that you’ll need a new pair of shoes.

Death From Above 1979’s website: deathfromabove1979.com

Top 10 Acts To See At Boston Calling

It has rocked Boston four times since its inception in May of last year, and has quickly become one of my favorite music festivals. Boston Calling is invading City Hall once again from September 5 – 7 with a lineup of acts that very well could be the best edition yet. Once in a lifetime experiences, bands playing Beantown for the first time in decades, and a whole lot of fun is guaranteed to ensue. If you plan to attend, here are my suggestions for the top acts to see at the 4th Boston Calling Music Festival: 10.) Lake Street Dive (Sunday 3:55 @ Capital One 360 Red Stage)

This jazzy soul band started out in Boston and is currently based in Brooklyn. I’ve been a fan of Lake Street Dive ever since I saw them perform at The Newport Folk Fest. They’ll be performing during the last day of the festival with an electrifying sound that you don’t want to miss out on. For a sneak preview, pick up their brand new album, Bad Self Portraits, that was released this past February.

9.) Girl Talk ( Saturday 7:10 @ JetBlue Stage)

There are mashup artist and then there’s Girl Talk. The Dance King Of Pittsburgh, also known as Gregg Gillis, has the uncanny ability to combine snippets of nearly every musician and rapper on your iPod and make them into a song that will make you go absolutely insane. The courtyard at Boston City Hall will become a raging dance party when Girl Talk hits the stage on Saturday, so act accordingly and dance like an absolute fool.

8.) The War On Drugs (Sunday 3:05 @ JetBlue Stage)

An experimental rock band from Philadelphia that dabbles in shoegaze, psychedelic rock and good old- fashioned Americana, The War On Drugs are one of those acts that at least one of your friends loves to talk about but hasn’t reached the mainstream. With a very cool sound and great lyrical quality, get ready for a unique rock ‘n’ roll experience once these guys start to play. One of many acts playing Boston Calling this year that have put out new material, give The War On Drugs’ new album Lost in the Dream a listen and dive in.

7.) White Denim (Sunday 2:15 @ Capital One 360 Red Stage)

With their combo of old-school blues and psychedelic rock, White Denim from Austin, Tex., are, in my opinion, one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands out there right now. Their songs hit you like a ton of bricks and they’re not afraid to get crazy with the rhythms. Right before The War On Drugs take things over, White Denim will be up and you’re gonna love it. If you need any more justification, their last album, Corisicana Lemonade, was produced by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy.

6.) The Hold Steady (Saturday 5:00 @ JetBlue Stage)

One of the many heavy hitters on the bill this time around, The Hold Steady will be bringing the positive jam to Boston Calling on Saturday. Frontman Craig Finn will be getting everyone amped up while the rest of the band will be lighting the stage on fire with their heartfelt alternative rock sound. The boys from Brooklyn also have a new album called Teeth Dreams that came out this past March, which you should get your hands on if you haven’t already.

5.) The National (Friday 9:30 @ JetBlue Stage)

Last year they headlined the first edition of Boston Calling, and Brooklyn via Cincinnati post-punk alternative rock act The National is back to kick off the first night of the festival on Friday. Lead by the unique baritone vocals of Matt Berninger, I first got into the band after I saw their performance at the inaugural inception of the festival and they’re definitely the real deal. It’s going to be a treat to see The National once more and I highly suggest you don’t leave early on Friday so you can catch them live.

4.) Spoon (Sunday 7:10 @ JetBlue Stage) One of the best independent rock acts of the past 20 years who still put out quality music with every new release, Spoon will bring their catchy tunes to the forefront on Sunday. Britt Daniel is an incredible lyricist and the rest of the band are simply amazing to see live. If you know me well, you know how much I love Spoon. When they play Boston Calling I guarantee you’ll get to see why. They also have a brand new album out titled They Want My Soul, which is fantastic, so go and pick that up before you head to the festival.

3.) Lorde (Saturday 8:15 @ Capital One 360 Red Stage)

I might get flack from people for putting Lorde so high on this list, but then again I never really cared much for the haters. The New Zealander is only 17 and in my opinion is the best pop artist alive today. Better than Lady Gaga, better than Katy Perry, better than Britney Spears and better than Rhianna. Actually, she’s stratospheres above all of them. She’ll be performing on Saturday, go and see why she’s held to such high acclaim.

2.) The Replacements (Sunday 8:15 @ Capital One 360 Red Stage)

It’s hard to believe I’m not putting a band I’ve been listening to since my teens at the #1 spot, but The Replacements are absolutely worthy of being on the list. When they got back together in 2012 they made a buzz, but when the alternative rock legends got announced as being part of Boston Calling they created a frenzy. It’s going to be their first time playing in Boston in over 20 years. I can’t wait to see Paul Westerberg and the rest of the band perform classics like “Can’t Hardly Wait” and “Alex Chilton” Sunday night.

1.) Nas & The Roots (Sunday 9:20 @ JetBlue Stage)

Put who I believe is one of the best rappers alive on the same stage with the quintessential hip-hop band and there’s no wonder why Nas & The Roots are #1 on the list. It could very well be a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity to see two hip-hop giants perform together and it’ll be an excellent way to conclude the 4th Boston Calling Music Festival. I could tell you why you shouldn’t miss Nas & The Roots, but both names should tell you why already.

Head up to The Hub via The T or I-95 for Boston Calling and it’ll be very well worth the trip. Get ready to have some fun and I’ll see you there.

Album Of The Week: Dan Blakeslee’s Owed To The Tanglin’ Wind Boston musician Dan Blakeslee is an extremely talented individual on the folk music scene. Along with being one of the kindest and most energetic human beings you’ll ever meet, his songs have immense heart and passion that’s rarely equaled. Dan has a brand new album out called Owed To The Tanglin’ Wind and it’s quite a jewel. Each song is bound to take your breath away while giving the senses a touch of bliss.

Recorded at The Columbus Theatre in Providence, the album features an ensemble cast joining Dan to give each track it’s own identity. With The Low Anthem’s Jeffrey Prystowsky and Ben Knox Miller, Death Vessel’s Joel Thibodeau, Ian Fitzgerald and Joe Fletcher, among others, providing their accentual beauty to Owed To The Tanglin’ Wind, it’s a great example of how a community can come together to create something truly brilliant. Dan Blakeslee shows his talents with his thoroughly soulful voice and his amazing skills on guitar exquisitely to create a whole album that’s a series of stories. The fiddle of Joseph Arnold is all over Owed To The Tanglin’ Wind to add a nice body to the recordings.

Before you know it the long days will quickly become early nights and the weather will get colder and colder as the days go on. While you get ready to bring out your sweaters and scarves, get cozy and jump into the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week:

I do love “My Lightning Valentino” a lot, a spectacular ballad about a southern man meeting a northern girl, and an amazing white horse takes your mind to picturesque places you never thought imaginable. The strumming chords of “Sleepwalkin’” set the song off perfectly and when Dan starts to sing about walking with his eyes closed, his voice shows you his essence. Another wonderful track is “Love and Confection.” Dan’s description of falling for a girl at a bakery while drinking a cup of coffee is another example of how he can tell a mesmerizing story and make a pretty damn good song out of it.

Dan will be doing a little mini tour in celebration of Owed To The Tanglin’ Wind’s release with fellow Bostonians Tallahassee starting at Great Scott in Allston, Mass., on September 3 with Tigerman WOAH! and Joe Fletcher & The Wrong Reasons, September 4 at The Columbus Theatre with Will Dailey and The Press Room in Portsmouth, NH, with Brook, Bear and The Elephant on September 5. You better make plans to go to one of these shows because once you see Dan Blakeslee play you won’t regret it. While you’re at it, grab a copy of Dan’s new album. It’s a fantastic piece of music that I guarantee you won’t be able to stop enjoying. Dan Blakeslee’s BandCamp page: http://danblakeslee.bandcamp.com

Album Of The Week: Ty Segall’s Manipulator

Some musicians put out so much material in such a short amount of time that even the biggest music fan will have a hard time trying to catch up with them. There are acts that will probably put out two albums over the course of a calendar year, and then Los Angeles rock ‘n’ roll phenom Ty Segall puts out three solo albums and two other albums with two other bands in one year and acts like it’s all old hat. He’s 27 and he’s already put out more releases than most of the musicians he probably grew up listening to. What separates Ty from a lot of others with an extended catalog is that he’s never put out a dud. Everything he touches is rhythmic gold, like his brand new album Manipulator that’s currently out. He gets back to his roots following up last year’s acoustic gem Sleeper, and he gets louder, louder and even louder as the album goes from track to track.

There’s that ’60s psychedelic pop influence covering Manipulator like a pristine diamond sheen and that guitar of his has a snarl that seems to get angrier and more rigid with each strum. The tones are groovy and the lyrics are infectious. A wall of sound crushes everything in sight at times and the destruction is simply glorious. Ty Segall’s new album was one of the most anticipated releases of 2014 and I think it lives up to the hype.

While reading my Album Of The Week I highly recommend drinking your favorite cup of coffee and opening your mind to the adventure each album presents. Think of my top tracks as a guide to the adventure.

It was tough to choose my favorite off of Manipulator, but after much deliberation it has to be “The Crawler.” Fuzzy bass licks, crazy drum beats and distorted riffs never let up from start to finish and it’s a pure brain melter. The screech at the beginning of “It’s Over” sets the tone for a dreamy surf-punk opus that’s sure to amaze. With a tad bit of pop to go along with the emphatic guitars and drums, “Susie Thumb” makes me think that it would be a song The Kinks would have written if they started out in the late ’70s London punk scene. There are so many damn good songs off of Manipulator it’s ridiculous; once you get your hands on a copy, listen to it from front to back.

Ty Segall will roll on through Great Scott in Allston, Mass., on September 19 as part of a tour of the U.S. and Canada. If you’re in the area, hit that show up because it’ll be something you won’t want to miss. Until he tears apart your friendly neighborhood music venue, grab a copy of Ty Segall’s Manipulator. It’s so fuzzy wuzzy that if it were a person you’d want to give it a hug.

Ty Segall’s Website: ty-segall.com

Album Of The Week: The Lovers Key’s Here Today Gone Tomorrow

These days there are only a handful of musicians that really have the classic Motown sound. A modern take on the style can be best exemplified by diving into the tunes of The Lovers Key, a spectacular neo-soul act from Pompono Beach, Fla., who have a new album currently out called Here Today Gone Tomorrow. Ranging from mover shakers to sensual ballads, this album timeless and genuine is the bees knees if you’re looking for something contemporary that has a vintage vibe.

Lead vocalist Maco Monthervil sounds like a young Nat King Cole, which is completely mind-blowing. You think people don’t sing like that any more and all of a sudden Maco lays down lyrics and proves you wrong. The electric organ is a fantastic highlight on Here Today Gone Tomorrow, present in every track, and it adds a fuzzy texture that is always appreciated by yours truly. You have the classic horns and the reverb of the guitar filling up the rest of the dimensions; it’s completely solid all around. The album gives you a jolt and a hop in your step while at points giving you a feeling of thoughtful relaxation. Start to finish, Here Today Gone Tomorrow does no wrong.

It’s a fairly contradictory time in the world — left is right and up is down. To separate yourself from the confusion, look to the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week for a smile.

If you’re looking to do a little hip shakin’ “Who’s The One You Love” is definitely the song you’ve been waiting for the DJ to spin. That electric organ sets the whole track up to be a dance number for the ages. Every time I listen to “Saturday Night” it puts me in a great mood. It’s probably the excellence of the organ and Monthervil’s velvety voice, but the drums serve as the unsung hero in this one. Another fantastic example of the spectacular drumming on Here Today Gone Tomorrow is “Tell It Like It Is.” The chorus is extremely catchy, but you’re gonna love it anyway.

The Lovers Key will be releasing a special deluxe edition of Here Today Gone Tomorrow on September 23and they’ll be performing at TT The Bear’s Place in Cambridge, Mass., with Miss Fairchild, Aloud and Johnny Blazes & The Pretty Boys on October 9. Until they hit up your friendly neighborhood music venue, grab a copy of the new album from The Lovers Key. It’ll put you in the groove and it’s going to make you move.

The Lovers Key’s Website: theloverskeymusic.com

Interview with Ravi Shavi’s Rafay Rashid

On Saturday, August 16, garage mod revolution punk rockers Ravi Shavi will release two EPs — Courage and Independent — at the legendary Columbus Theatre featuring special guests and a party atmosphere. I chatted with the band’s funky frontman Rafay Rashid about putting out two EPs in one night, the changes in band members and many other things. Rob Duguay: It’s pretty unique that you guys will be releasing two separate recordings in one night. What made you want to go about it that way when most bands would have just released one EP now and another one a few months later? Rafay Rashid: The decision to release two EPs simultaneously was basically driven by the fact that the two sets of recordings were engineered, mixed and mastered by two separate people — Jesse McFadden and Atlantic Thrills’ Eric Aguiar — at two very different stages of the band’s evolution. We just figured we’d put ’em both out while they’re still fresh and exciting to us. The two EPs basically cover the last year’s output and I reflect upon it as a pretty experimental stage for us. We kinda tried a bit of everything. I’m not one to sit and covet something for long; it’s usually gonna be out there as soon it’s done or never at all. Plus, we’re going on a tour to Atlanta and we’re excited to share everything we’ve produced. RD: In addition to Ravi Shavi, you are in another band with Christopher Ryan, Dennis Ryan & Ian O’Neil from Deer Tick called Happiness. How is it being in a band with those guys and can we expect a debut record from Happiness anytime soon?

RR: Playing with Happiness has been a really fun time. I didn’t expect the amount of dedication and involvement we’ve been putting into the project because of our respective groups, but things are moving along! We’ve played out-of-state shows with Los Lobos and R.E.M side project “The Baseball Project”- both of which were pretty surreal experiences for me. They’re just a great group of guys with whom I am fortunate to play and learn new writing, playing, and recording techniques with. It’s a very DIY project in its current state and I’m just pumped that it’s getting increasingly more collaborative every time Deer Tick is home from tour. Look out for the release — it will happen in the very near future. RD: I remember when I first started seeing Ravi Shavi play that your catalog was around 15 songs and now it seems as if every time you guys perform live you always have at least a couple brand new songs to unleash. What drives you to be so prolific?

RR: The fact is that Nick Politelli and I really love writing new material more than anything. I think the future always holds something better if you’re learning from the past. Nobody in the group is a formally trained player. Most of us have never played our instrument in a band before Ravi Shavi so in that way we’re constantly building upon a creative momentum that is fueled by a desire to create something better. We’re lucky to work with a group that is just excited to perform the latest material and even luckier to have the continued support of people who still dance to songs they’ve never heard before at shows. RD: With Bryan Fielding on bass, Nick Politelli on lead guitar and recently Andrew Wilmarth joining Ravi Shavi on drums and Muggs Fogarty becoming the backing vocalist, you have been playing with a completely different cast of musicians since Ravi Shavi first started out. Are there any contrasts or similarities between playing with Bryan, Nick, Andrew and Muggs versus when you first started out with Wilson Keithline, Jim Galvin and Ben Tucker?

RR: I think of the two groups as almost completely different entities. It’s been a gradual process toward where we are now, but I think now that we’ve found a bit of an identity we can focus more on songwriting and planning our trajectory as opposed to just finding our footing. I will say that the songwriting and musical arrangement is more collaborative than any previous incarnation of the band. That could be time or the players involved, but it’s great to bounce ideas back and forth til the song’s right. RD: Where do you hope to be as a musician in five years?

RR: Making a living off music would be ideal. You know, raising moderate hell in Europe and Asia — livin’ the dream. Getting a back massage, raising relief-funds, spreading neutral vibes, having fun more comfortably. Mostly just alive and still really, really into it. Ravi Shavi’s website: ravishavi.bandcamp.com Album of the Week: Benjamin Booker

There’s really nothing like hearing a pristine, raucous, bluesy rock ‘n’ roll record. I can never put my finger on what makes it so damn good, but it definitely has something to do with it being loud, raw and no-holds-barred. This is where guitar whiz kid Benjamin Booker comes into play. The phenom from The Big Easy is putting out his self-titled debut and it’ll make you jump out of your chair, do the boogie woogie and cause a stir. It’s a gem that shines so boldly that musically, it’s worth its weight in gold.

Benjamin rocked Rhode Island music audiences during this year’s Newport Folk Festival and his debut album introduces audiences to the heart Benjamin shows on every track. Whether it’s lightning fast or solemnly slow, Benjamin exhibits sheer intensity on each track while presenting his soul in the most genuine of ways. You can sense that the music is done by a man with a blue-collar aesthetic — he puts his all into everything he does — a striking quality that made me fall in love with everything Benjamin Booker creates on his six-string.

For the 50th time in my life I heard that World War III is approaching and that we’re all going to die in a nuclear war. Before the world ends, check out the top tracks off of my Album Of The Week. It won’t save humanity from self-destructing, but it’ll definitely save your music taste.

“Violent Shiver” opens the album and the opening solo and the clash of riffs and drums will make you jump up and down so hard you could cause a few dents in your floor. What I like most about “Have You Seen My Son” is the noisy jam session during the last two minutes. It’s sheer insanity with complex rhythmic energy lashing out from all directions. The keys in the background of “Chippewa” really give the song a lot of groove; this one will get the ladies’ hips shakin’ in no time.

Benjamin Booker will officially release his debut on August 19 and he’ll perform at the legendary Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, Texas (October 3 – 5 and 10 – 12) after a tour of the west coast and United Kingdom. Let’s hope Benjamin graces The Ocean State with his presence once again soon. If he’s as good as he was in Newport, then it’ll be a treat for any rock ‘n’ roll enthusiast. Until then, get yourself a copy of Benjamin’s debut when it hits record store shelves. Rock ‘n’ roll ain’t dead, it’s alive and well.

Benjamin Booker’s website: benjaminbookermusic.com