This is one show that I have had marked on my Calendar for a long time. I have been a long time fan of Mike Mewborne and every project he has ever been a part of. He is also one of the first musicians I met when I came to college 500 years ago. The first show my band played at New Brookland freshman year was with Tigerbot Hesh. I don’t think a nicer, more genuine person exists on earth. Not to mention he is a incredibly talented musician who writes wonderful songs. You better come out to this show because I hear it is the last one that he will be playing for awhile. Mike is a busy man and has to focus on some other things for awhile, like getting married. Wow I feel old.
If you were to look at my Itunes top 25 most played songs you would see that there are 8 Haley Shaw songs in there. Actually the top four are Dirt and Cigarettes, Some Like It Sad, Red Sea and As If It Were Twilight. The only reason there aren’t more than 8 songs in the Top 25 is because that is all I have been able to get my grubby hands on. From the first time I saw her live at The Watershed at least a year ago, her songs have become a part of me. If you look at my top 15 albums of last year that I posted on my personal Myspace you will find her album #7. The funniest part about that is looking back at it I really only listen to 7 albums on the list anymore. If I were to rearrange the list today with some decent perspective Haley would move to a solid #3 and Austin Crane would move to a solid #4. The new #1 and 2 if you are interested are The Everybodyfields which have moved to my top 5 favorite bands of all time and Anberlin-Cities. Anyway, Haley is moving to Nashville if she hasn’t already. I don’t have any tears left to cry about that, so I try not to think about it. She has also finished recording an album that I can’t wait to be my #1 album of this year. I’m going try really hard not to be that crazed fan on the front row singing all the words on the 18th.
I feel like an idiot for not listening to Dylan Sneed before today. Seriously, how could I have overlooked his music, it is right up my alley. I can’t wait to hear the Austin native and buy some of his music and put it in constant rotation.
I noticed that later today Reverie was added to the show. And no, not The Reverie that is playing at music crawl and are some of my best friends. Reverie is Philip Strickland, Drew Walstrum, Jimmy Gibson and Stephen Rutland. I don’t know these guys personally, but I saw Firefly Summer a good amount back in the day. Little did I know then what I would be doing today and how all of our paths would cross again. I’m really looking forward to hearing what Philip has in store for us and was really excited when I saw them on the show and connected all of the dots from the past.
Also on the 20th Haley Shaw/Dylan Sneed and Austin Crane are playing in Hartsville so if you’re in that area go to that show. I wish I could make them both. Who knows, maybe I’ll be able to if gas prices aren’t 5 dollars a gallon.
Free Times Write Up
The Lovely Few – Mike Mewborne names Sufjan Stevens and Pedro the Lion as influences, and surely their hushed acoustical compositions are an apparent frame of reference. But what further makes David Bazan and Stevens appropriate references is the fact that, like Mewborne, their songs occasionally touch on their Christian faith. Opener Dylan Sneed brings his many comparisons to Paul Simon with him on his Texodus tour, which began in his former home of Dallas and will end in his future home of Hartsville, S.C. (You heard right.) Also on the ticket are Haley Shaw and The Reverie. -K. Foster
