Between the Grooves: Walk the Moon's Dance Happy Sounds

From the city that gave us the Isley Brothers, the Afghan Whigs and a wacky, fictional radio station comes the energetic sounds of Walk the Moon.

A love of Talking Heads and The Killers gave rise to the Cincinnati quartets' rhythmic blend of 80's-flavored keyborads and poppy guitars.

Walk the Moon's new album I Want! I Want! has enough allure in the lyrics to make it more than a dance album, though not that there would be anything wrong with that!

On this week's Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm, Walk the Moon plug in for a full set of happy, non-sedintary music. Oh yeah, the band also likes to face paint their fans onstage. Feel the love this Thursday!

Between the Grooves: JJ Grey's Swampy Soul Solo

You just won't hear a groovier summertime tune than "The Sweetest Thing" by JJ Grey and Mofro. Toots Hibbert's soulful grunts and a laid back kick drum make the track from the Jacksonville, Florida band's latest, Georgia Warhorse something to savor on a hot day with a cool sunset.

Hear Grey's potent blend of funk, rock, gospel, Southern rock and homespun lyrics stripped down to its acoustic basics Thursday at 2pm on this week's Between the Grooves.

CD of the Week: Raphael's Rockin' Retro Rolls Into Future

You could forgive Raphael Saadiq for feeling giddy. The Tony! Toni! Tone! frontman, producer (Joss Stone, D'Angelo) and multi-instrumentalist started out the year playing guitar alongside Mick Jagger at the Grammy's during a rollicking Solomon Burke tribute.

So why not aim high on his new record? Right out of the gate, on "Heart Attack" from WTMD's new CD of the Week Stone Rollin', Saadiq ambitiously channels the Jackson's "Shake Your Body Down (to the Ground)" with a dirty guitar riff that boogies with the best of them.

And whether it's Motown he's channeling or early rock and roll,  Saadiq brings so much zeal and love to his influences that the music sounds as contemporary, cool and snazzy as the suits and sweaters he favors.

Between the Grooves: Justin Jones Hits a Nerve

When DC music scene veteran Justin Jones first realized he could be a serious songwriter, it was at a townie bar on the Outer Banks that he performed a song that had one patron in tears.

And the empathetic way he sings the lyric, "I could use another friend, I could use another brand new start" from the title track to his new EP The Little Fox, could make one mist up the glasses.

From a guy whose survived some of the darker byproducts of being a musician, there's a real truth and honesty that draws you into his music.

Hear this talent shine on some brand new songs on this week's Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm on WTMD.

Al Stewart's Guitarist Dave Nachmanoff Live on WTMD

I'm a huge Al Stewart fan, so I can't wait for tomorrow's (Wednesday)TMD Morning Show when his amazing guitarist Dave Nachmanoff joins me at 820am.

He's in town to play the Public Justice Center's Celebrate Justice concert Wed night (5/11) at Goucher College's Kraushaar Auditorium along with Gaye Adegbalola (from Saffire: the Uppity Blues Women), Lea Gilmore, Walt Michael , and more.

Dave not only serves as Stewart's collaborator onstage, but produced his latest live album Uncorked. He's also a talented, literate songwriter in his own right.

But, it's his speed, melodic prowess and versatility on acoustic guitar (he replicated Rick Wakeman's piano solo on Al's "News From Spain") that leave dropped jaws in his wake wherever he plays live.

CD of the Week: Smithereens Blast to the Past

If my high school class decides to hold its 25 year reunion this summer, I'll have to tell my classmates of the time in 1986 when I bussed the table of The Smithereens while working at a Columbia-area hotel restaurant.  Pat DiNizio and the boys were playing Merriweather in support of their debut album Especially for You and couldn't have been nicer (good tippers!). Being the professional busser that I was, I kept the proper distance and tried not to gush about my favorite song at the time, "Behind the Wall of Sleep."

A quarter century later Don Dixon is back in the producer's chair as he was for the first one.  The Smithereens 2011 is our CD of the Week.  Beatles/Byrds-inspired melodies drive the songs while power-chords provide the fuel. DiNizio's voice aches with the kind of romantic longing you'd find in old movies, though sometimes a little growling defiance comes through, as on the TMD favorite "Sorry."

Though they've dabbled plenty in nostalgia (a remake of The Who's Tommy and a Beatles' covers record) over the ensuing years, the new music from these Jersey boys feels relevant and time-tested.

Enjoy all the tracks from The Smithereens 2011 this week on WTMD. And compare 2011 to 1986 Smithereens (w. the alluring Suzanne Vega). What a blast!

Between the Grooves: Consume Iron and Wine

Tune in Thursday at 2pm for a mini orchestra session with Iron and Wine. You'll hear a clarinet, bass harmonica, mandolin, the blended voices Rosie Thomas AND Oscar-winner Marketa Irglova of the Swell Season and the movie Once, and of course, the whispered, yet increasingly commanding vocals of mastermind Sam Beam.

The sonic panoramas on Kiss Each Other Clean, colored by jazz, 70's rock and other unorthodox styles, enliven the mystery of Beam's scripture shorthand. Repeated listens reveal the rewards. 

And what a treat it will be to hear these lushly layered new songs come alive in a new setting.  Iron and Wine on Between the Grooves Thursday at 2pm on WTMD. 

CD of the Week: Fleet Foxes Take Their Sweet Time

Three years of writing and re-writing, second guessing and consensus building pays off on Fleet Foxes'  sophmore album and WTMD'S CD of the Week, Helplessness Blues .

A combination of importing the winning hymn-like harmonies from their first record and adding new sonic depth on the second, strikes a perfect fresh/familiar balance.

There's so much sincertiy and emotion on Helplessness Blues. On the title song, lead vocalist and lyricist Robin Pecknold movingly bids farewell to family, or maybe a girlfriend, while setting off on a quest to find himself and his place the world, "And I know you won't keep me on the shelf. I'll come back to you someday soon, myself."

Someday soon is now on WTMD. Listen all week and be the first to get to know this beautiful record, which doesn't offically drop till next week.

Weekend on the Radio Recap

Every Thursday morning at 6:20 a.m. and 8:20 a.m. Sam Gallant of the Creative Alliance shares with you all the cool happenings around town on Weekend on the Radio. In case you missed a detail about a specific event, click here.

CD of the Week: A Compact and Content Wye Oak

WTMD's CD of the Week, Civilian, features Wye Oak's apparent new fondness for shorter songs.

The Baltimore duo of singer/guitarist Jenn Wasner and drummer/keyboardist Andy Stack still build suspense through hushed and sparse beginnings to explosive crescendos- check out Wasner's guitar shredding in the title song.

But Stack's overall tighter arrangements maintain a mood, helping to balance his counterpart's conflicted lyrics about a relationship's end and her quest to find happiness in solitude.

Enjoy this video for "Fish," from Baltimore painter Katherine Fahey, who made the paper dolls, and photographer Michael O'Leary.

Between the Grooves: The Apache Relay's Refined Roots

Nashville-based The Apache Relay bring their animated live performance to the air this week.

Despite the name, it's not a baton they pass around, but instruments. Their rousing live shows have turned audiences into advocates for the band.  Even more impressive, they've opened for Mumford and Sons and friendships between the bands have developed.

Their second album, American Nomad, produced by Neilson Hubbard, evolves their rootsy, raw repertoire from their early days at Belmont University into intricately structured, symphonic pop and soul. Frontman Michael Ford Jr sings passionately and is sure to place the record on critics top CDs of the year lists.

The Apache Relay play this week's Between the Grooves Thursday at 2pm on WTMD.

CD of the Week: Paul Simon's Rock of Faith

Christmas was a few months go that the song that opens  Paul Simon‘s So Beautiful or So What, seems late to the party.

On “Getting Ready for Christmas Day,” a sample of a 1941 sermon by Rev. J.M. Gates anchors a contemporary mortality tale. And that sets the mood for Simon’s musings on reaching the Pearly Gates on “The Afterlife,”  another standout track on the CD.

Simon returns to speaking in straight ahead rock and roll “Love & Blessings.”
So Beautiful or So What doubtlessly will rank with Paul Simon’s best.

Pop Composer Jimmy Webb Reveals MacArthur Mystery

Jimmy Webb, author of countless pop classics such as "Wichita Lineman" and "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" plays Germano's Trattoria Cabaret in Little Italy for 2 shows this Sunday and Monday evening.

His latest record Just Across the River features new versions of his songs with help from Jackson Browne, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Mark Knopfler, and of course, his longtime kindred spirit and muse Glen Campbell. I had the honor of speaking with him recently. We covered everything from what inspired one of the most famous lines in pop history, "Someone left a cake out in the rain" (perhaps, the first time he's publicly revealed one of "MacArthur Park's" big secrets), to his time at Motown to hanging out The Beatles. Known more for having others sing his words, I also asked Jimmy to name his favorite version of one of his songs. Hear the full interview below.

Between the Grooves: Cas Haley's Real Deal Talent

Being America's Got Talent's Season 2 runner-up may have given rise to his career,  but once Cas Haley opens his mouth and pounds his acoustic guitar strings with such surprising rhythmic virtuosity, you'll be glad this reggae-ska vocal dynamite got the break.

Still, even with the TV boost, the Paris, Texas native works like any other hungry musician, touring incessantly (he was on a bill with others at Bourbon Street last Thursday) to support his wife and two kids back home, which fans of the show know motivates him to no end.

Cas tells us why his second album Connection feels like his first and he demonstrates a surprising vocal influence this Thursday at 2pm on Between the Grooves. Don't miss this undeniable and uplifting talent!

Peter Tork: A Monkee Coming to Your Town

At Club 66 in Edgewood Saturday night you'll have the rare opportunity to see a member of band which, in 1967, outsold The Beatles and the Stones combined! While Peter Tork of The Monkees played the "dumb"one in the prefab band of four, whose cheery mugs graced many a lunch box at the time, he arguably is the most intelligent and musically gifted one of the bunch. His early folk years buddy Stephen Stills can attest, as can Hendrix, who praised Peter's prowess on guitar. These days Tork sings the blues. The Shoe Suede Blues. That's the name of his band. Not that he has them. In fact, after some pretty trying times in the past few years, the blues mean something joyful, like watching an episode of The Monkees! Hear the interview with Peter and watch a little "I'm a Believer" below. For non-oldies, Peter is on the right "playing" keys (he actually does play piano, guitar, banjo, French horn, and much more.

Here is Erik's full interview with Peter Tork!

Between the Grooves: Austin's Frontman Bob Schneider

Like seeing Kermit Ruffins in New Orleans, visitors haven't really experienced Austin until they've taken in a Bob Schneider show.

The Michigan-born, Germany-reared rocker won over the Texas capital years ago as a member of Ugly Americans and The Scabs. Solo, though, fans can't get enough of his signature adult humor, energy and ever-evolving catalog of confessional songs soaked in his uniquely Texan brew of musical flavors.

On his forthcoming album A Perfect Day, a boat trip inspired Bob to set the perfect soundtrack to your next summer outing on The Bay or Deep Creek Lake.

Catch up with Bob Schneider on this week's Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm.

Between the Grooves: Bobby Long's Honest Connections

Sprung from the Northern Soul hotbed of Wigan, England, Bobby Long seems to immerse himself in music's authenticity and power to change. He wrote his college thesis on the social impact of folk music in America, recorded with Liam Watson (producer of The White Stripes Elephant) and his vintage analog recording equipment live to tape at the famous Toe Rag Studios and created an immediate and disarming record, A Winter Tale.

At open mic nights in London, he'd sing with pal and future vampire heartthrob Robert Pattinson, who later recorded one of his songs for the "Twilight" soundtrack. But, it's not commercial success, but musical integrity to which Long's evocative style of songwriting and soulful singing speaks and why he's our guest on this weeks' Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm.

CD of the Week: Breakups Galore on Atkins Amore

Nicole Atkins split from her boyfriend, her label and her backing band.  You might expect her new album could be a one-sided, venomous revenge album.

Instead, with her new band, The Black Sea, Atkins sketches out relationship endings from multiple points of blame, including herself.  Mondo Amore is WTMD's new CD of the Week. All these changes for Nicole really pay off.

Displaying those dramatic pipes, Atkins gets raw and rocking  with the reverb-soaked and string-heavy "Vultures." A  Zeppelin-like shuffle compliments Atkins bluesy delivery on "You Come to Me," a Delta-blues harp riff spices up "My Baby Don't Lie" and Jim James adds a male counterpart to ballad, "War is Hell."  That last one might have a political tale to tell--give it a listen and decide.

Between the Grooves: Schuyler Fisk Wins the Prize

Singer/actress Schuyler Fisk retreated to the rural Virginia where she grew up to make her second album Blue Ribbon Winner.

The daughter of Oscar winner Sissy Spacek's displays a soothingly smooth voice, a keen ear for bouncy pop/Americana melodies and a mom and apple pie kind-of vibe.

Schuyler Fisk plays this week's Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm on WTMD.

Check out the Sam Jones-directed ("I am Trying to Break Your Heart") video for Schuyler's "What Good is Love" that came out of a recent Vanity Fair photo shoot.

Get Between the Grooves With Ivan and Alyosha

The songs on Seattle quintet Ivan and Alyosha's new EP Fathers Be Kind both question and embrace faith.  That's not unexpected since the band is named after two sibling characters in a Dostoevsky novel who are on both sides of the spiritual spectrum.

They've combined religious themes with rich harmonies and punchy melodies that result in a delightful discovery for 2011.

Catch Ivan and Alyosha on this week's Between the Grooves, Thursday at 2pm.