Middle Class Fashion / The Ladybirds / Via Dove @ Cicero's, St. Louis, MO

Words and pictures by Duane Clawson

Ah!  Saturday night and I’m back in my element.  As much fun as it was to test the waters in a big venue like Scottrade Center on the previous night, I still feel at home photographing bands in smaller clubs throughout St. Louis.  This show came to be through an invite from Jenn Malzone, lead singer of Middle Class Fashion.  After reviewing the band's album Girl Talk earlier this year, I was anxious to get out and see this band and hear their live sound.  I was in no way disappointed. Middle Class Fashion played a majority of songs from the aforementioned Girl Talk album.  Jenn, Brian, and Brad brought with them a large, local following that sang along with many of the songs from the new album.  At this point, I must mention that all three bands on this bill played varying styles of music but all three were very good at what they do.  Middle Class describes their sound as minor key pop.  I describe it as pretty darn cool.  Middle Class Fashion has a Facebook page that is full of useful info and links to the band’s music.

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Other Lives w/ Radiohead @ Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO

Words and pictures by Duane Clawson 

It has been said life is not without challenges and this statement could not have been any truer on a Friday night in St. Louis.  The boss had secured my spot at the front of the stage inside one of the largest venues in STL.  OK, first challenge:  where does one enter the press area?  After some instruction from the nice lady at will call, this challenge was overcome.  After some confusion on behalf of the security team is cleared up, another photographer from Kansas City and myself were led up to the stage area.  My first impressions were that is a big stage and Other Lives takes up a good portion of this stage.  Feeling pretty confident I’ve made it to the stage with minimal difficultly, now let the waiting begin.  Challenge #2:  how am I going to shoot all this with my less than capable camera?  Solution:  one band member at a time.  As if my stress level was not high enough, now security is calling us back to meet up with a press liaison.  After a quick briefing, we were led back down to the stage.  Challenge #3:  now I have eight other photographers to contend with.  When the lights of the Scottrade Center went down, it didn’t take long for Challenge #4 to rear its ugly head:  bad lighting is reserved for the opening band.

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Album Review: Thick As Thieves by Cavo

Words by Duane Clawson

Two songs into the latest release, Thick As Thieves, from the St. Louis band, Cavo, I’m saying to myself, “I don’t care if the rest of this album sucks, the first two songs by themselves are review worthy.”  Real rock and roll is what this band is about and kudos to those who were able to capture this feeling during the recording process.  One of the first things I suggest to get the true benefits of this album, outfit yourself with a decent pair of headphones.  The bass lines will jump into your ears from the opening notes of the title track, “Thick as Thieves.”  If listening by headphones, you will also notice the beefed up recording process that finds little things such as the tapping of a drumstick on a hi-hat cymbal.  The second song from this album,”Give It Away”, will without a doubt find its way on to my iPod, as it's powerful backbeat will power me through at least three minutes and 22 seconds of my workout.  'A new beginning now', a lyric found in the song, “Hold Your Ground", could be used to define everything the band has overcome to put together this album.  “California” slows the pace of the album but not in a bad way.  It's still rock and roll to me.  “California” would sound best in 80 degree weather, an ocean breeze, and of course, in a convertible rolling up the PCH.  Throughout the song “Circles”, you get the feeling that the band is reassuring the listeners that it’s OK to travel outside of your comfort zone.

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Other Lives @ American Airlines Center / Good Records, Dallas, TX

It must have been like the NFL Draft when Other Lives got the call to be the opener for Radiohead on their current tour.  I'm sure there were hugs exchanged, maybe some tears, but smiles all around.  Of course, there weren't any million dollar contracts or endorsement deals but there would still be some parallels.  There would be plenty of practice, numerous interviews, guest appearances, and of course, performing in front of thousands in some of the largest and most prestigious arenas in all of the land.  I'm sure it's been a whirlwind ride.

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Day 1 @ 35 Denton, Denton, TX

The air was cool, the ground was damp, and sky was grey.  This isn't typically how you want to explain the weather of a walkable four-day music festival, but that's what Mother Nature had in store for us.  The dreary conditions sure did make things uncomfortable but that's about where the annoyances stopped.  The anticipation for this year's installment of 35 Denton, or any variation thereof, was at fever pitch and while the weather was not ideal, everyone's spirits were shining bright.

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Grimes @ Dan's Silverleaf, Denton, TX / Good Records, Dallas, TX

Having missed out seeing Grimes at the inaugural Gorilla vs. Bear festival last year, I luckily had the chance to catch her twice in one day.  Two shows in one day?  Sorta.  The first of her performances came by way of the Astroturf at Good Records.  And if you haven't noticed, the Astroturf has brought in some damn fine acts lately.  But, I digress.  The slow, yet constant flow of people descended upon Good Records to catch Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher, who has made quite a name for herself by producing catchy tracks and receiving well-deserved press and praise by most influential music outlets.  As she began setting up her equipment, you could tell she seemed out of her element.  She wasn't in the middle of a dark venue where the only lights were beamed from overhead, but yet, she was in plain sight with no backup band and dozens of eyes staring at her every move.  An intimidating situation for most people.  But once she was set to go, you could see most of those insecurities drift away as she dove into her music, performing four lengthy renditions of "Vanessa", "Be a Body", "Genesis", and "Symphonia IX".  The Visions-heavy set was short but sweet, a real teaser for what her sold out show at Dan's Silverleaf in Denton had in store.

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