Against convention for new album releases, Houston rapper Maxo Kream released his third album on a Monday, due to the date’s personal significance. Weight of the World‘s Oct. 18 release coincides with his niece Jalae’s birthday, as well as the anniversary of his cousin Andrew’s death. Maxo even remembers Oct. 18 as the date that his younger brother — Jalae’s …
JME DJ Sessions | The beautiful noise of Northeast Florida on First Coast Connect
Listen to three new songs out of Jacksonville
As temperatures are cooling here in Northeast Florida, local artists are heating up––setting streaming services ablaze with brand new tunes. On October’s edition of JME DJ Sessions on First Coast Connect with Melissa Ross, we listened to three songs from some of the region’s most buzzed-about artists. You can read reviews for each song on jaxmusic.org and listen to them …
Local Spotlight | “Stay in L.A.” by Howdy
Jacksonville indie-folk cowboy says "Aloha" to the West Coast
California retains a mythical quality in the hearts and minds of East Coasters. Los Angeles, too––despite its labyrinths of on- and off-ramps, fire hazards and (now) mosquito problems––can weigh heavy on the imagination of a right-coast romantic. A West Coast pilgrammage, then, is a must; if only to realize the grass is always greener. On “Stay in L.A.” Jax Beach-based …
Go | The best concerts in Jax this week
A good week for fans of college radio
There was a time when the term college radio was used to describe any rock music that was just outside the mainstream. Bands like R.E.M. and the B-52’s wore it like a badge of honor. The Replacements glorified such “Left of the Dial” music in song. Today, the term is used to describe a much broader array of artists working …
NPR Music hosts live listening party for ‘A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle’
Mythical John Coltrane recording to be released on October 22
In October of 1965, John Coltrane and an ensemble that featured drummer Elvin Jones and pianist McCoy Tyner, as well as bassist Donald Rafael Garrett and a second tenor saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, finished out a week-long residency at the Penthouse jazz club in Seattle, performing Coltrane’s A Love Supreme, the heralded saxophonist’s masterwork released earlier that year. Until just a …
Fresh Rotation | New tunes JME contributors can’t stop listening to
New tunes from Michael Hurley, BeMyFiasco, Rodrigo Amarante and a fresh dedication to Pops
Each and every month the JME team handpicks the juiciest new tunes from local, regional, national and international artists and concocts the tasty, tall-glass-of-a-listening-experience that is our Fresh Squeeze playlist. Each song is chosen with intention. And so we often feel like they are worthy of a broader discussion (or at least a bit of context). Here’s four new songs (all …
Local Spotlight | The best releases by Jax artists out right now
New singles from Faze Wave and Niki Dawson; albums by LPT and DeAndre Lettsome
The JME team was busy last week, as new music flooded in from across Northeast Florida. New tracks from indie rock quartet Faze Wave and singular vocalist Niki Dawson perked our ears. And meditative and complex new full-lengths from jazz-scene standout DeAndre Lettsome and ten-piece Afro-Cuban salsa orchestra LPT gave us much to chew on. Here are the best new …
Giveaway | Win tickets to see Sheer Mag at Intuition Ale Works
Free tickets to see potent Philly power-pop quartet
The team over at Intuition Ale Works had big plans for the Bier Hall, a mid-sized music venue inside their Downtown taproom and production facility. While the pandemic may have stalled those initial ambitions (a Ty Segall show was put on ice), the Bier Hall is ready to come alive, rolling out a fall lineup featuring some big-time indie acts …
Defining T. Rex Album Came Out The Same Year NPR Debuted Original Programming
This story originally aired on Sept. 24, 2021. In 1971, Joe Elliott was 12 years old, and he was going to his first rock show. The band was T. Rex, touring their latest album, Electric Warrior. Pushing through the venue’s swing doors with porthole windows, Elliott found himself in a rollicking, ecstatic crowd that screamed itself into his memory. Fifty …
Local Spotlight | ‘Se Quema El Mundo’ by LPT
New full-length by popular Jax-based Afro-Cuban Salsa ensemble is designed to move you
Since forming 2015, LPT have been vigilant in bringing their personal brand of salsa music to both the stage and studio. The 10-piece Afro-Cuban ensemble have released a handful of singles, a full-length and live releases on labels Winterland Records, Bold City Records and their own LPT Salsa imprint. In concert, LPT is a veritable juggernaut, setting stages ablaze (figuratively) …
Meeting Tracy Chapman In The Spaces Between
Tracy is wearing a plain, worn, black T-shirt, no pockets, no sly sayings, and I imagine her waking up in it, in just that T-shirt, and walking around my small basement bedroom in the Oakland split-ranch that I am sharing with 5 other grad students for $200 dollars a month each, so cold we can see our breath. Tracy is …
Fresh Rotation | 3 new songs we can’t stop listening to
New music from Wet Leg, serpentwithfeet and Shannon Lay
Each and every month the JME team handpicks the juiciest new tunes from local, regional, national and international artists and creates the tasty listening experience that is our Fresh Squeeze playlist. Each song is chosen with intention. And so we often feel like they are worthy of a broader discussion (or at least a bit of context). Here’s three new …
Local Spotlight | ‘Impetus’ by DeAndre Lettsome
Jax-based alto saxophonist struts across standards and original compositions
Astute followers of Jacksonville’s red hot jazz scene are surely familiar with DeAndre Lettsome. A founding member of Jax-based purveyors of New-Orleans-style jazz, Let’s Ride Brass Band, the 26-year-old alto saxophonist is an in-demand player. And, as evidenced by the new nine-song collection Impetus (Lettsome’s first solo release on Bold City Music Productions), he’s also a formidable composer and topnotch …
Go | Todd Haynes’ ‘The Velvet Underground’ documentary @ Sun-Ray Cinema
The revered avant-garde rockers finally get the rock-doc treatment
You don’t have to be a mystic, or even religious, to understand that coincidences don’t really exist. Indeed, any student of rock n’ roll knows that the history of the canon is littered with chance encounters and ripe scenes made up of unusually heterogeneous mixtures of characters. In 1957, a 15-year-old Paul McCartney paid threepence to watch a popular Liverpool …
Go | The best concerts in Northeast Florida this week
Funk jams, Pitbull, Thievery Corporation and LPT
If you haven’t yet heard Jax-based afro-cuban salsa orchestra LPT, this week represents perhaps one of the best opportunities, as the ten-piece owns a headline spot at Viva La Fiesta in James Weldon Johnson Park Downtown. Not only will the band closeout the two day celebration of the contemporary vibrancy of the city’s Hispanic culture. The event doubles as a …
Local Spotlight | “Feelings” by Niki Dawson
Jax singer flexes her singular vocal talent on new single
Certainly there are countless singers who can emote a broad spectrum of sentiments despite a limited vocal range. (Bob Dylan comes to mind, though, many––myself included––find his vocal prowess to be somewhat underrated.) But when it comes to Niki Dawson, there are seemingly few, if any, limitations on what the Jacksonville singer can express. On a new single appropriately titled …
GO | Pitbull @ Daily’s Place Amphitheater
Mr. 305 to perform in the 904
Ok so technically, he’s now Mr. Worldwide. But once upon a time, he was simply Mr. 305. And before that, he was simply Pitbull. The Miami-born rapper and producer, who’s real name is Armando Christian Pérez, is bringing his “I Feel Good” tour to Daily’s Place Amphitheater on Tuesday, October 12, 2021. The tour is named after his latest single, …
Neil Young’s mythical 1970 Carnegie Hall Performance Gets the Vinyl Treatment
By the time he got to Carnegie Hall in 1970, Neil Young was in rare form. Two years removed from his departure from Buffalo Springfield and just months after adding his voice to the soon-to-be-released Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young debut, Deja Vu, Young was arguably at the height of his singing and songwriting prowess, having just released another seminal …
How Taylor Swift and her master recordings play into the Virginia race for governor
Updated October 5, 2021 at 6:09 PM ET Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is betting that Taylor Swift fans can help prevent his state from turning red. The Democrat, who is running for the seat again on Nov. 2, has a new five-figure ad buy that connects his opponent, Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, to Swift’s bitter battle to gain control …
Local Spotlight | “Waiting to Lose” by Faze Wave
Popular indie rock kids continue to grow, expand their infectious dissonance
Faze Wave is nothing if not durable. Since the release of their well-received debut, 2016’s earnest and reverb-drenched collection Melt, the Jax-based quartet has not only sustained that initial buzz. Over a half-dozen singles, EPs and another full-length (2018’s broad-yet-refined collection, Lethologica), the band has persisted––no small feat considering the group’s core members have spent the twilight of their youth, …
Hot Off the (Re)Press | John Prine’s 2005 masterwork and ‘Jazz is Dead 001’
Two great albums get a vinyl reissue this week
‘Hot Off the (Re)Press’ is a semi-regular column highlighting reissues of seminal, classic and groundbreaking works. The Jacksonville Music Experience team is made of vinyl enthusiasts. Read more about our love affair with the medium via JME’s Crate Diggin’ features. Fair & Square, John Prine (2005) During the height of Covid-initiated quarantines and lockdowns, as people were spending inordinate amounts …
Just Announced | These concerts have our ears perked
Chris Thile, Polo G., Futurebirds, Circle Jerks, Henry Rollins and more.
After the delta variant forced a fits-and-starts-style return to live music, Northeast Florida’s concert calendar is starting to fill up. Venues large and small in and around Jacksonville have made big announcements in the last few weeks and days, signaling a growing confidence in a post-new-normal normal. To be clear, St. Johns County venues the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall and …
Listen | New Electro Lounge Radio playlist
Chill out, relax and get inspired
From Bossasonic’s remake of The Supreme’s “You Can’t Hurry Love” to some astral traveling with German electronic-duo VARGO, JME’s newest Electro Lounge Radio playlist is painted with fall colors. An always eclectic mix, this month’s ELR playlist features chill, down-tempo, reggae and more from Down To The Bone, Nicola Conte, DF TRAM and plenty of others. Listen to a hand-selected …
Go | Here’s who’s playing in Northeast Florida this week
Folk, pop, indie rock and more are on tap
September’s eclectically booked Sing Out Loud Festival rolled nicely into the Jacksonville Jazz Festival on the first weekend in October. And live music isn’t letting up just yet. There’s plenty more to see and hear this week in Northeast Florida. Here’s what the JME team is masking up for. NOTE: The CDC recommends wearing a mask indoors in public if you …
Local Spotlight | The four best tracks by Jax artists out now
While jazz gets a weekend in the sun with the Jacksonville Jazz Festival kicking off this week, there are several local artists working in myriad genres that also deserve the spotlight. Here are four great tracks, all from locals, that the JME team put its collective ears on this week. “In the Garden” by LANNDS Due in large part to …
Listen | October’s Fresh Squeeze playlist
Discover new music from local, regional, national and international artists
The JME team is here to help you discover new music. Each month, JME contributors pick the juiciest noise emanating from Northeast Florida and beyond for our monthly Fresh Squeeze playlist. Featuring a few dozen new tunes from local, regional, national and international artists, there are no rules or genre restrictions; just songs we thought were worth a share. Follow …
Tiny Desk Contest entrant Yosmel Montejo has a message for his community: ‘Go for it’
The 2021 Tiny Desk Contest wrapped up last month with the announcement of this year’s winner, Neffy, and her song “Wait Up.” But the Contest’s panel of judges saw thousands of incredible entries from around the country, and Weekend Edition will be highlighting some of them over the next few months. One of those standout entries came from musician Yosmel …
Bring the Beat Back | A brief history of the Jacksonville Jazz Festival
A highlight of the city's cultural calendar for 40 years
This year marks 40 years since the Jacksonville Jazz Festival first took place. And the only thing that’s changed more than the festival is the music itself. The name has changed, the dates have changed, and the location has changed––multiple times. One thing that’s never changed, though, is the festival’s status as a highlight of the cultural year in Northeast …
Anthony Hamilton On Being Vulnerable And His New Album ‘Love Is The New Black’
Multi-platinum singer-songwriter Anthony Hamilton is back with a new album. Love Is The New Black is his first full length album in five years — one fans have been anxiously awaiting. Hamilton is the self-described “country boy” from North Carolina whose vulnerable lyrics and gospel-tinged delivery have gained him fans across the globe. Many were introduced to Hamilton through his …
The Jacksonville Symphony fires up the band for another season of classical and pop favorites
Live musicians navigating the realities of performing onstage during the pandemic age are facing unique predicaments. Former concerns about load-ins, soundchecks, and coveted drink tickets have been readily muted. Now musicians are facing current anxieties regarding personal and public health, social distancing, “to mask or not to mask” and other high-volume, Covid-related realities. Add to those factors the anxiety of …
Local Spotlight | “How Many Bugs” by Teal Peel
In July, Taylor Paul Neal introduced Teal Peel, a project that puts Neal––a multi-instrumentalist, producer and sought-after collaborator––front-and-center. The debut single “Smello Coffee,” full of sardonic-yet-good-natured quips on apathy and boredom, offered the first taste of a dynamic and interesting composer and lyricist. “How Many Bugs,” the second single from a forthcoming nine-song collection, finds Neal waxing existential over languid …
Listen | Electro Lounge Radio goes all jazz for Jazz Fest weekend
48 hours of jazz on 89.9 HD4, the WJCT app and streaming online
The JME team has been digging in on jazz in anticipation of this year’s Jacksonville Jazz Festival. Things have changed since ‘81, sure. But the yearly festival continues to mark a week in which Jax feels very much like a jazz city. Truly Jacksonville’s jazz-cup overfloweth this weekend, as WJCT station manager and JME contributor David Luckin has curated 48-hours …
Go | Jazz Fest After Dark broadens the Jacksonville Jazz festivities
All that jazz... and much more!
With the Jacksonville Jazz Fest celebrating its fourth decade with more than a weekend’s worth of main-stage performances and auxiliary programming, another––though relatively new––tradition will commence this week: Jazz Fest After Dark. And while the Jacksonville Jazz Festival certainly leans into eclectic booking by featuring jazz torchbearers like George Benson as well as music icons like percussionist Sheila E. and …
Go | The best concerts in Jax this week
All that (Jacksonville) Jazz (Festival)
Jazz Fest is upon us. And beyond the action of the two Downtown Jacksonville stages, music will be pouring out of venues across the city. There’s a lot going on. Here’s what the JME team has their ears on this week. NOTE: The CDC recommends wearing a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission even …
This French Pianist Has Been Playing For 102 Years And Just Released A New Album
PARIS — Colette Maze welcomes me warmly into her apartment on the 14th floor of a building overlooking the Seine River. From her flowered balcony, she has a view of the Eiffel Tower. She offers me a whiskey or a cognac — along with a hearty laugh as it’s 10:30 in the morning. It’s that humor, a sense of optimism …
Watch A Massive Violin Transport Musicians Down Venice’s Grand Canal
The trademark gondolas of Venice’s Grand Canal played second fiddle this weekend to a very unusual vessel: A giant violin carrying a live string quartet. “Noah’s Violin” is the most recent creation of Venetian artist Livio De Marchi. He’s sent plenty of other wooden works out to sea, including a giant shoe and an origami hat. This large-scale replica is …