The Warm Up with Casey Shea

05/19/2012 By
The Warm Up with Casey Shea [ 16:35 | 37.95 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We’ve been hearing great things about Casey Shea from our friends at Family Records for a few years now. So, when we heard he was stopping in Memphis to play Kudzu’s in support of his new album, In Your Head, we knew we had to invite him to Ardent to record some songs.  And of course, we were thrilled to take him on his first tour of Stax.

Shea is playing solo on this outing, playing the vintage blues riff he was brought up on. You can hear the classic rock influences in his voice,  but the songs still have a modern flare. Check out our podcast and you’ll hear what we mean. We also chatted about the price of Rock and Roll versus gas these days, and about listening to the audio book Life by Keith Richards on those long and winding roads.

Following the release of one self-produced, home-recorded album and the mellow full-band follow-up, Love Is Here To Stay, Shea’s third full-length effort, In Your Head, is a deliberately cleaner, harder edged version of what his fans have come to expect: irresistible hooks, airtight melodies, and masterfully crafted, heartfelt lyrics. In Your Head is the result of a year dedicated to honing a cohesive, genuine rock n’ roll sound, and the final product is ultimately a mix of classic and modern rock calling to mind The Beatles, Kings of Leon, and Tom Petty. A self-proclaimed explorer of genres, he effortlessly moves through time periods and styles, all the while staying true to his own unique songwriting voice.

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The Warm Up with Shearwater

05/17/2012 By
The Warm Up with Shearwater [ 15:42 | 35.92 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When we heard our friend Christian Mader from Brass Bed, one of our earliest guests on The Warm Up, had joined up with former Okkervil River alum Jonathan  Meiberg in Shearwater, we knew we had to reach out and ask them to stop by Ardent before their gig with St Vincent at Minglewood Hall tonight.

It turns out most of the band are fans of Big Star and were excited to get to stop in and spend some time chatting with studio manager Jody Stephens. We also were thrilled to get to take the guys to Stax and share a little bit of Memphis’ musical heritage with them.

Shearwater will be on tour with St. Vincent for another week and decided to play their own version of one of her songs while they were here. Check out their rendition of “Cheerleader” along with two other cuts off their new SubPop album, Animal Joy. We also talked about their recording process and what their plans are for the rest of the summer. Catch them on tour in a town near you!

Shearwater is a band from Austin, TX. Their new album, Animal Joy, was released February 14, 2012 in the USA and February 27th in the UK/EU. The band will be touring throughout 2012.

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The Warm Up with Lucero

05/06/2012 By
The Warm Up with Lucero [ 17:31 | 40.09 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Lucero is known as a rowdy and raucous bar band, one that will play your requests and then close the bar down with you after the show.  They’re the hometown boys that made good and they spend most of their time on the road playing shows and “ambassadorizing” Memphis.

Their live performances are legendary and continue to be a huge part of their appeal to their fans. And we love a good, loud and drunk rock show just as much as the next person! But we’ve also had the pleasure of seeing  singer/songwriter Ben Nichols and pianist/organist Rick Steff play in more intimate settings over the last few years and that’s been a pretty special experience too. We set out to capture one of those performances this afternoon at Ardent Studios. We are pretty happy with the results.

Tonight is The Lucero Family Barbecue at The Hi-Tone. The band will be going on a 8PM, so be sure to get there early. We have a feeling that it will be jam-packed since this show will be subbing for a record release party for their latest album, Women & Work. We hear there are free hot dogs if you get there when the doors open at 5PM.


Women & Work is a love letter from Lucero to its hometown, Memphis, Tennessee. “Having a band in Memphis puts you in a tradition,” says Lucero frontman Ben Nichols. “We started at punk rock shows, not necessarily playing punk rock, but coming from the outside, from a bohemian place.”

The bohemian tradition is just as strong in Memphis as the city’s series of international hits. The popularity of Sun, Stax, Elvis, and Al Green doesn’t diminish the influence of the blues, Jim Dickinson, and Alex Chilton. The bridge between the shadows and the spotlight has become the heart of Lucero: Unafraid to mix pop with their anti-pop, they always charge into new territory.

As punks, Lucero were masters of restraint, with country music beer stains dribbled down the front of their shirts. As whiskey-soaked bohemians, they didn’t shy from sweeping Americana tableaus. And then they added an accordion. “When we started, we were building on a foundation we weren’t aware of,” says guitarist Brian Venable. “Listening back to our early stuff, we hear ourselves reference the old Sun Records. We didn’t hear it or feel it then, but we hear it and feel it now.”

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The Warm Up with Garrison Starr and David Berkeley

05/03/2012 By
The Warm Up with Garrison Starr and David Berkeley [ 27:08 | 62.11 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We already know that we are lucky to host so many fantastic artists here on The Warm Up – but sometimes we have to pinch ourselves when we realize just how lucky. Today was one of those days.

We invited not one, but two extremely gift songwriters to come hang out with us this afternoon: Garrison Starr and David Berkeley are old friends currently on tour with each other so we were very excited when they agreed to stop by and play some songs for us. As a matter of fact, after we dropped the invitation John Fry was quick to tell us that Garrison actually used to work at Ardent many moons ago. Small world, huh?

Don’t miss them  at the Hi-Tone tonight sharing funny stories and maybe playing a little bit of music :) Check out our podcast to hear some songs!. Plus we talk about their latest releases, why this is the best Garrison Starr record yet, writing books on the island of Corsica and what both musicians will be up to the rest of the year (#PREVIEW: David will be heading back in September to play Memphis again!)

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The Warm Up with Beth Bombara

05/02/2012 By
The Warm Up with Beth Bombara [ 13:46 | 31.5 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We had a great time hanging out with Beth Bombara and her band, which included husband Kit and brother-in-law JJ and regular touring partner Karl Eggers, this afternoon. We went to the Stax Museum of American Soul Music (RIP Skipp Pitts), grabbed a sandwich at Kwik Check (Memphis’ worst kept secret), and then kicked it old school in Studio B at Ardent (setting up around Jody Stephens‘ drum set, which you’ll see in the video –  since he has been practicing non-stop for his upcoming show in London). We were a little crowded, but when you take a listen you’ll hear that the entire set still came out sounding awesome!

The band drove in from St. Louis to spend the day soaking  up some Memphis soul before heading west to tour for the next few weeks. We think they might make a few fans along the way…

So, take a listen to the podcast – we kick things off with three stripped down songs and then we chat with Beth and her band about what national monuments they plan on visiting on this tour, the idea of recording in ghost towns, and of course, when she’ll start work on her new record. Tonight Bombara will join forces with The Memphis Dawls at The Buccaneer to play one of those shows that we’re sure people will be saying they were at, even if they weren’t. See you there?

Read the Bio:

Having independently released two successful EPs and, most recently, a full length album on vinyl, Beth Bombara is now more wanderer than “wonderer”. A Grand Rapids, MI native and current St. Louis resident, Beth has developed her signature sound over the past decade, drawing inspiration from not only her favorite rock, blues, and folk musicians but also from the places she’s lived in and toured through over the years, first as a member of Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers and then as a solo artist.

Beth has steadfastly grown into her identity as a strong musician first and foremost, loath to be categorized as another delicate female singer-songwriter. Beth’s versatility in live performances and multi-instrumental chops make her much more than just another “girl with a guitar”.

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SoundCheck @MinglewoodHall: Lindi Ortega – “All My Friends”

05/02/2012 By

We were lucky enough stop by Lindi Ortega‘s sound check yesterday before she played at Minglewood Hall to a packed house. She opened for Social Distortion (who we are pretty sure we saw John Stubblefield of Lucero showing around Ardent yesterday afternoon!) which seemed like an odd fit at first, but we figured SD must have fallen in love her lovely persona and music  just like we did and just couldn’t resist bringing her on the road!

Personally, we wanted to check her out after we read that the Canadian-born singer, whose voice has been described as a blend of Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, and Emmylou Harris, had moved to Tennessee.  That sounded right up our alley and we were not disappointed! She’s going to be on the road with SD and The Toadies for the rest of the month, we highly recommend the show, if you can get a ticket. Check out this excerpt form her sound check last night …

Here’s the Bio:

Biography

Somewhere in an old 1960’s apartment building in the city of Toronto, Canada, a well worn pair of cherry red cowboy boots wait by the door. About a half foot from those boots sits a guitar case, brightly decorated with glittery stars and images of Mexican painter, Frida Kahlo.A little down the hallway and towards the bedroom, a Johnny Cash record is spinning away. On the bed is a journal with a bird on the front cover and the saying “Go Slow, Life in Progress”.Sitting on the floor with a bottle of merlot and a red flower in her dark hair is where we find Lindi Ortega.It’s rather obvious from her appearance that Miss Ortega, with her ruby lips and Mexican/Irish background, is the kind of gal that would stand out in a crowd, but she prefers to be standing in front of one. [Read more...]
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The Warm Up with Jon Lindsay

04/30/2012 By

Jon Lindsay has a great new record coming out called Summer Wilderness Program in June,  so when he decided to pop into town and play an early show at The Hi-Tone on Saturday night we were happy to invite him over to Ardent Studios to spend some time with us and check out Studio A. Many of Lindsay’s favorite records were made in that room, and knowing what a fan of Big Star he is,  we couldn’t resist asking him to take a seat at the piano and play this great version of “Thirteen.”

Afterwards, we hung out with him at The Hi-tone and watched his set with his partner in crime, Kyle. We were really impressed by the new tunes and they did a fantastic cover of a Breeder’s song! The next day, of course, we took him to the Stax Museum of American Soul Music to check out a little Memphis music heritage.

Thanks Jon, we were really impressed! We’d love to have you back when you hit Memphis again on your summer tour to do a full show!

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The Warm Up with This Providence

04/17/2012 By
The Warm Up with This Providence [ 15:25 | 35.28 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We’re a little bit under the weather today, but lucky for us we were treated to the best kind of medicine: great music. 

Seattle-based band This Providence stopped by Ardent Studios this afternoon before their gig at Newby’s tonight to play us three songs from their upcoming record, Brier. It’s scheduled for release at the beginning of May so we were lucky to get an early taste of the band’s brand new tunes. Not only have there been changes to the line-up over the past few years, there has been a change to their sound.  According to the band, their new music represents a more stripped-down, organic approach to songwriting.

We have to admit that we’re not exactly sure what they sounded like before, but the new music has us hooked. Check out the podcast to hear for yourself. We also discussed their recording process for the new record and where they’ve been getting their inspiration from lately.

If you’re in the area you can catch them tonight when they open for OK Radio – or if not, they’re heading for the west coast after this so you should have ample opportunity to see them play!

This Providence is a four-piece alternative rock band from Seattle, Washington. The band consists of Dan Young (lead vocals/guitar), David Blaise (bass), Gavin Phillips (lead guitar), and Andy Horst (drums). They are currently supporting Go Radio on the Lucky Street tour and will release their new EP, Brier, on May 1st.

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The Warm Up with Marcus Foster

04/09/2012 By
The Warm Up with Marcus Foster [ 16:27 | 37.64 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Sometimes when we invite people to come to Ardent to record an episode of our little podcast something magical happens. Such is the case of Marcus Foster. When he showed up at the studio we didn’t know a lot about him, and he didn’t know a lot about us. But sometime over the course of the day we fell in love with each other.

The UK-based musician has been on the road non-stop since SXSW, touring the US with his piano player Jack Standen and spreading the word about his album, Nameless Path, and his upcoming EP. We first heard him just a few weeks ago when he played The Jimmy Fallon Show.

Foster is signed to Communion Records, the Geffen imprint of Mumford & Sons‘ Ben Lovett. The musical comparisons made between him and  Tom Waits, Tim Buckley, and Van Morrison are very much deserved – especially when Pete Matthews, who was in Studio C producing another artist, passed by where we were recording and popped his head in just to say he was really digging what he heard from the hall.

Take a listen to hear what Matthews was raving about and to hear us chat about going to Stax, Foster recording his debut album in Wales and playing the piano used in the recording of Bohemian Rhapsody.

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The Warm Up with The Black Cadillacs

03/29/2012 By
The Warm Up with The Black Cadillacs [ 17:07 | 39.18 MB ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We had a great time hanging out this afternoon with The Black Cadillacs. However, we totally forgot to ask them the burning question that has been bothering us all week: Is the band named after the classic American luxury car or The Modest Mouse song?

The Knoxville-based group stopped by Ardent Studios this afternoon to play three songs off their upcoming record Run. They sounded pretty amazing in the studio, so we can’t wait until tonight when we get a chance to see them play with their full set-up at Young Avenue Deli. They’re out for a very short tour this run, so try to catch them if you can. If you’re regional, they’re playing Friday at Egan’s Bar in Tuscaloosa, AL and they’re playing Teh Alabama Shakes’ afterparty on Saturday at The Bottletree  in Birmingham, AL

Check out our show where we talk about all of their recording tricks and how they learned to record good sound in a studio. The answer may surprise you.

The Black Cadillacs deliver a unique brand of rock and roll that combines elements of country, blues, soul and R&B. With a powerful 5 piece set up, including 2 guitar players, a thunderous yet precise rhythm section, and a stand-alone frontman, The Black Cadillacs are able to both whip an audience into a frenzy, and just as quickly ease them back into a melodic groove.

Over the last 2 years they have been working hard honing their sound and live performance, and have made a name for themselves in the East Tennessee region. Their new album comes out in May. 

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