Whatever happened to the dude on Nathaniel Rateliffe's cover for Falling Faster Than You Can Run, well, we predict many sad bastard nights in his future. Folks, you know the image above well, and it can't be good. She gone.
However, there is hope for him to recover! (Sad drum roll...)
Like we did last year, it's time for The 20 Best Sad Bastard Songs of 2013, perhaps our highest honor here at SIC!
We know what you're thinking: Hope in a sad song? How can that be!? Wouldn't sad shit make my problems worse?
Nonsense, we say.
**Note** These are not ranked, and only songs NOT included on our "Best Songs of 2013" list, which will be posted next week. Also -- we've considered everyone, male or female, band or artist. Remember, it's the song we're picking, not the person who wrote it or who is covering it (as some of these are indeed covers).
As we make our way into the second half of 2012, we want to take a minute to look back at what we saw, what we wrote, who we spoke to, and who we shot in January through June. In the coming days, we'll also be posting our favorite songs of the first half of the year, and the albums we're most looking forward to in the next quarter.
I knew a kid once in high school, his name was Bob. Bob liked to order fries from the cafeteria and stuff them in his pants pocket, perhaps to store a few away for fifth hour when he got hungry. Sometimes, you would be talking to Bob and he would just casually pull one out, like he was fishing for a stick of gum, and chow down. Bob did whatever he wanted to do.
Bob would have liked Deer Tick.
Deer Tick fans are an interesting, sometimes unruly bunch. When the floor cleared last night after the band's final song, a triumphant and rowdy "Let's All Go To The Bar," where they were joined by the opening band, Turbo Fruits, the Firebird was left in a state of filth -- you probably could have slid across the beer-soaked tile and had yourself a grand time with the PBR and Busch cans that remained. This came just after a cover of The Beastie Boys' "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)," and the 400 or so in attendance, including St. Louis Rams defensive end Chris Long, certainly did just that.
Oddly enough, aside from all the drinking and partying that went down, still, Deer Tick's prettiest song, "Dirty Dishes," is the song that gets called out the most. They played it near the end of the main set, stripping it down as a four-part harmony heartbreaker, barely touching any strings to make any unnecessary sound: their voices were enough. "And I cried all night. You made a stream and it flows forever," they sang together.
I'm probably dramatizing this just a bit, because most of the night was not as pretty. Apologies, or any kind of conceit of defeat, are not exactly what defines this band from Rhode Island. Honesty is, though, and it oozed from the opening "The Bump," where John McCauley took the lead to broadcast, "We're four grown men, and we act like kids. We'll face the music next time we roll in."
And now's probably the time to discuss McCauley's voice. If you're looking for a trained singer, or a sustainable voice (there is no way this guy can keep screaming like that and not face inevitable damage), McCauley isn't your cat. But, he's able to sing just about anything, including a cover of Chuck Berry's "Maybellene," a song written by McCauley's "favorite songwriter." The sound that comes from McCauley is just a little less polarizing than, say, Tom Waits, but it's amazing what he can sound like when he really tries, especially later on in the set when he comfortably sang the low-key "Chevy Express." The grit was absent, but his spirit remained.
When McCauley is focused, he proves to be versatile. When he's not, which is also absolutely fine, he reverts back to the guy who wrote "Let's All Go To The Bar," a man who is content with his friends puking in his car, and taking the party back to his place, where his fridge is stocked and fucks to give have flown the coop.
And really, that's what a Deer Tick show is: a 90-minute break from reality to use the floor as your trashcan. And maybe pull a few fries from your pocket while no one's looking.
While I've only been to one Deer Tick show in my life, the fact that they opened the show with "Sleep Walk" makes me think that these rough dudes from Rhode Island care about me and my love for the movie La Bamba. Which, of course, is far from the truth; John McCauley and Co. care more about drinking out of a dusty bottle of Wild Turkey, if I had to guess.
I would also suspect that they'll be ready to throw down some rock on Wednesday at The Firebird. Here's hoping they play "Born at Zero," off their latest EP, Tim, or "Main Street," off their 2011 release, Divine Providence.
We have a pair of tickets to give away to Deer Tick's show at The Firebird. To enter, please do one of the following:
1. Simply copy and paste this into a tweet: I entered to win 2 tickets to see @deertickmusic on 5/16 @firebirdstl on @speakersincode! You can, too - just tweet this to enter!
3. Leave us a comment on our Facebook page. You can say anything. Really.
The contest will run through May 15th at 10 AM (central), and we'll randomly pick and e-mail the winner later on that night (if you enter through FB, we'll announce your name on our FB page). Good luck!
Deer Tick, one of our favorite bands over the past few years, is heading to The Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, NC, on Monday, October 17th, touring in support of their upcoming album, Divine Providence, which is set to kick all kinds of ass. What makes this even better is they are joined by future Jam of the Day band, VIRGIN FOREST, who also serves as the backing band for the very lucky, Phosphorescent.
So we're just tickled as hell to be giving away a pair of tickets to the show!
To enter, you must pinky swear to attend the entire show, by attesting: "I pinky swear I will get there early, stand while the bands play, and tip my bartenders." You can do this in one of two ways:
1. Leave it as a comment on this post.
2. Leave it as a comment on our Facebook page.
The contest will run through October 15th (11 PM Eastern), and we'll pick the winner randomly and make an announcement on Facebook and Twitter on October 16th. Good luck y'all!
We must take a quick pause from our Best of the 2010 reindeer games to round up a collection of new holiday songs. We posted the link to download the awesome Target Christmas album a few weeks ago, but here we offer a random assortment of thingamabobs, whatchamacallits, and widgets to boost your holiday spirit. So, hang your stockings, say your prayers, spike the eggnog, and download like Santa's comin' early this year.
The Apache Relay - I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus To gear up for the new album coming up in spring of 2001, the band is offering an exclusive download of "State Trooper," a Bruce Springsteen cover, at The Apache Relay's Facebook page!
Hurrah for plum pudding! The dudes that rocked our worlds in concert at the beginning of the month have decided to share a new song with us and the world: "Piece by Piece, Frame by Frame."
These are the six words that concluded Deer Tick frontman John McCauley’s somber recognition of the late Dave Hagerty, vocalist/guitarist of the local Saint Louis band, Fattback. (Please read the touching obituary written by our friend, Christian Schaeffer, for A to Z, the music blog of The Riverfront Times). The band was meant to open last night’s show at Off Broadway, along with Dead Confederate. While McCauley’s mere mention of the tragedy that bestowed Hagerty’s family and friends only six days ago was suitably poignant, the right words to express his emotion seemed to narrowly escape him, and therefore, he took to his guitar to honor Hagerty with a song that McCauley explained is right for almost all occasions in life: marriage, death, and everything in between.
He played an electric solo of “Sleep Walk.” (You might know it from its frequent appearances in the film La Bamba). I’m not going to pretend that I knew him, but I have to say this song seemed to be a perfect tribute to the late Hagerty: raw, spontaneous, jabbing. The audience went silent, and everyone’s thoughts leaned the way McCauley hoped they would, intimate friends and complete strangers alike.
Because of the melancholy that surrounded the night, Deer Tick eased into its set, initially playing mostly down tempo songs, including the band's latest single “20 Miles” followed by “Smith Hill” off last year's Born On Flag Day (but not before, of course, playing a few bars of Hanson's "MMMBop!" first).
But, as McCauley told his eager crowd at the start of the show, every time he comes to Saint Louis, there’s cause to party. (The last time the band came through, it was McCauley’s birthday, and he was smacked in the face by a broom handle after a late night attempt to pee on people. He acknowledged that the battle wound on his chin was well-deserved). Sensing that the band's usual, ahem, merriment could not be suppressed for much longer, the crowd joyfully sang along with McCauley to "Dirty Dishes." The noticeable emphasis on the lyric "Things could be so much worse..." was not unintentional. After all, we were gathered to celebrate.
Deer Tick - "Dirty Dishes"
McCauley paused for a moment to acknowledge absent guitarist, Ian O'Neil, who missed a plane from Chicago and didn't make the show. He warned, "So, if it sounds a bit raw and naked [tonight]...deal with it." The band then launched into a biting version of "When She Comes Home" from this year's TheBlack Dirt Sessions. It was then that I realized his voice, known for its gruffness, began to sound more and more like the electric guitar around his neck: buzzing, humming, wailing.
Photo by Katie Guymon
The band covered The Replacements' "Waitress in the Sky," but shit really got rowdy with its version of ZZ Top's of "Cheap Sunglasses," an old standby for live Deer Tick shows at this point. McCauley donned those infamous white shades and wooed the crowd with his eyebrow gymnastics. All around the room, Stags were thrust into the air with cavalier abandon. McCauley then planted his tongue firmly down the keys player's throat. So very punk rock!
Photo by Katie Guymon
Shortly after midnight, Deer Tick launched into "Don't Fear the Reaper," and the audience pleaded, "More cowbell!" when the band abruptly stopped. (That line, seriously, never gets old). The show ended with bloody knuckles and a Stag foam party for the front rows of the crowd. And McCauley explained that he thought Hagerty would have appreciated that display of exultant rejoicing.
The first time I caught Deer Tick in concert was when the band opened for Jenny Lewis at The Pageant last summer. After seeing the band last night in an exponentially more intimate venue, it's clear that's so much more its scene. McCauley is a talker; he wants to interact with his fellow revelers. He feeds off the energy of fans standing inches away. In the heat of a summer night, sweat and saliva should blend and bind us all together.
Given the circumstances of the evening, however, it was a different kind of show for me. Like I said before, I never knew Dave Hagerty, but it wasn't hard to miss those who did. You could easily tell the difference between those who were carrying a weighty burden on their shoulders and those who were left to empathize.
Deer Tick made a lot of classy moves in the days after Hagerty's death, leading up to last night's concert at Off Broadway, including donating proceeds to benefit Hagerty's family. But, I think the one that mattered most was simply putting on the kind of show the band always does: gritty, spirited, raucous. While it was difficult at times to take my eyes off Deer Tick's onstage antics, I also paid close attention to the many brave faces swapping hugs and toasting to what I can only guess was Hagerty's legacy, masking their shared loss for the time being with great music, which to me, translates directly to love.
Off Broadway in St. Louis has quite a show for us next week as Deer Tick will be rocking the stage on Thursday, August 5th. We're very excited for the show, but we're even more excited that Off Broadway has given us 4 tickets to give away to 2 lucky winners!
All you have to do is e-mail Jason at jason.speakersincode@gmail.com and tell us why you love Deer Tick. We'll pick our favorite response for one pair; for the other pair, we will randomly draw the winner.
We will announce the winners on Tuesday, August 3rd.
Fresh off a tour with Speakers in Code faves, Deer Tick, One Wolf is garnering mucho atención with its gruff and gritty mix of punky-folk, reminiscent of the DT sound. One Wolf is not one note, however; the band bounces to and fro along the sound spectrum, sometimes rocking out in a gnarly way, sometimes slowing it down and muddling the latter's rough edges.
"Backyard" is a hazy in-betweener meant to carry you into the weekend, and its title alternately serves as a perfect location to blast this song. Just ensure you've got a 12-pack in tow to really do it up right.
Last summer, I saw Deer Tick open for Jenny Lewis, and the then unknown-to-me band covered John Mellencamp's "I Fought Authority" with the intensity of The Sex Pistols. I still don't know if that was a sincere gesture or more of a kitschy move, but as a small town girl who grew up near many pink houses, I was touched.
That was enough for me to get hooked on the band; it's true that John Cougar brings people together. I found that Deer Tick's 2009 release, Born On Flag Day, included the melancholic "Smith Hill," in a bring-me-to-my-knees 6/8 time signature, which alone was worth the purchase of the entire album.
Now, the boys are back with the first offering off the forthcoming The Black Dirt Sessions. Lead singer, John McCauley's vocals are naturally wearied, perfectly suited for his songwriting that is growing ever more inquisitively dark. (In fact, two new songs, "Christ Jesus," and "Goodbye, Dear Friend" off the upcoming album feature McCauley alone at his piano, exposed and naked like he came).
"Twenty Miles" is the perfect yin to Deer Tick's onstage punk-rock yang.
Although it's another reminder that we won't be at SXSW, which isn't so fun. Here are the details from the press release:
MG&V stands for McCauley, Goldsmith, and Vasquez...more specifically, John McCauley - frontman of Deer Tick, Taylor Goldsmith - frontman of Dawes and Matt Vasquez - frontman of Delta Spirit. Notoriously adverse to sitting still, John McCauley felt the urge to write and record during some of Deer Tick's recent downtime. Deer Tick chose Dawes to support a leg of their summer 2009 tour, during which McCauley and Goldsmith developed an affinity for each other's songwriting. McCauley decided that Nashville would be the perfect location to write some new songs, and invited Goldsmith to join him. As the project began to take shape, McCauley and Goldsmith decided Matt Vasquez was the man to complete their vision for the project. A few days after tape started rolling, Vasquez arrived in Nashville - never having met McCauley. The three songwriters immediately bonded and proceeded to make a timeless masterpiece. Dawes drummer Griffin Goldsmith also joined the group to contribute percussion.
MG&V will make their world debut at the Coda Agency SXSW Showcase at the Ale House on Friday, March 19th at 1 AM. Album details will be released later in the year. Expect MG&V announcements at Twitter.
