Root Down in the Shadow

DANIEL LEFKOWITZ of FUTUR PRIMITIF Checking in with Daniel Lefkowitz we find another record in the works and plans of a UK tour next year! In the Journey of Dreams by Daniel Lefkowitz BUKE & GASE: Back in May, we reviewed Riposte by Brooklyn-based Arone Dyer and Aron Sanchez. At the time, they were eight months deep into their release and were known as Buke & Gass. Six months later, the duo's name has morphed to Buke & Gase but they are still on the road with the same wonderful sound. They are touring abroad through mid-December and then taking some much deserved time off. What's next for the band? With only a month off at a time in between touring for the last two years, it's hard to imagine a new album coming soon, but a new release in 2012 would be fantastic? JOCIE ADAMS.  Jocie toured a ton this year with the Low Anthem and the Smart Flesh album.  A few times this year she was able to do some shows for her own recordin...

At the beginning of April, I fell in love with Buke & Gass.  I had been preparing for the Free Music 2010 best of post here.  I found myself watching the NPR Tiny Desk Concert of Buke & Gass over & over again after posting it. I had to learn more about this band. I needed to hear more! What I had expected listening to 'Revel In Contempt' since I found it in December, was a full band and lots of production.  What I saw on the NPR video was only two artists, and some sound I could easily discern with visible strumming and neck plunges.  It took reading about the band to learn more of why it sounded the way it does. Photo by Grant Cornett I learned that Brooklyn-based BUKE (byook) & GASS (gace) are Arone Dyer on the "buke" (a self-modified six-string former baritone ukulele) and Aron Sanchez on the "gass" (a guitar-bass hybrid of his own creation). Both of them play double duty, also mobilizing a small army of foot percussion....

Through the last few years, I have gone deeper into archivist mode, looking for more and more music to enjoy.  I look for new music in many places, and during my week day drives around Philadelphia, I listen, and rate, listen, and rate, and listen some more.  When I start to compile a solid best of playlist, it is very exciting.  I start the year with nothing, and by the end of the year there are so many gems, so many artists I had never heard before, and now love.  In many cases, I wouldn't have the funds or means to go beyond the single free track or download, but I have been trying to make a point to rewarding those artists that put their intellectual capital out on the line and look for more songs that I love of those artists.  As mentioned in the Sean Hayes post, I recently hit a bonus of iTunes cards for the holidays, and I've used that to dig deeper into my new found loves.   Especially now that I have found a voice for my music obsession, I've been...