Philadelphia Show Cancelled 3/10 at The Tin Angel
Posted by Manager
Hope we can make it happen again later. Don’t hate on us.
Off To Chicago and Milwaukee! Get em while they're hot.
Posted by Manager
PS. As the bands manager I want to encourage you all to fuel the fires. Or I’m out of a job!
Our most vulnerable citizens
Posted by Matt
Though I try to keep myself distant and disengaged from the debauchery of the forums, this latest excursion by this site’s cyber-rebels into the hidden and private lives of children forces me to speak up.
I think we all agree that the Love Monsters were a college band. And I’m sure we will all acknowledge that the college they attended was a private college. You see where I’m going with this. The Love Monsters were a private band. Think about that. Also, I’m sure that none of the hell raisers on the forum has ever stopped to consider that the Love Monsters at the time of these recordings were, for all practical purposes, children. By linking to this gangly and awkward music, you are exposing the private poetry and musings of children.
Dicey
Posted by Matt
Well this tour is over, except for this increasingly harrowing ride home across Iowa through sleet and snow. Dave has been our preferred pilot since things got perilous earlier this afternoon. He truly does have a way with machines, and, as I mentioned a few posts back, he really is cool under fire.
We’ve been traveling caravan style for this little tour, and throughout it’s been Steve and John, “the rhythm section”, driving in a white minivan, and Dave, Jacques and I, “the talent”, in a little black sedan. We haven’t bothered to stay close together because it’s so easy to coordinate with the phones. We in the sedan have adopted the strategy of driving like grannies in the left lane where there’s less ice, and we’ve been passed at high speed by countless cars. We’ve also seen a few of those Steve McQueens spun out in the ditch with an Iowa squad car parked nearby, colored lights going crazy.
Earlier in the day our little car exited to gas up at a “Kum & Go” (Yes, that’s really the name of this convenience store chain.), and, just by chance, who should we encounter amid the flurries at the gas pumps but our friendly band mates in the white minivan. That really struck us as a marvelous coincidence. Filthy comments were exchanged with a smile and we went our separate ways in the snow.
Bargain Hunting in Lawrence
Posted by Matt
We got into Lawrence with a few hours to spare, and suddenly flurry of music retail tire-kicking broke out. Within minutes of penetrating the business district all members of the band were scouting for local music stores with an eye to taking advantage of the countrified locals with their innocent country pricing. Unfortunately the interweb has ruined that game and Minneapolitans no longer have an edge. All the amps and keyboards that we were vulturing around for were priced at perfect parity with their big city cousins.
Are there no more yokels to be exploited? Has the internet turned us into one humongous city where everyone knows what amps had previously been undervalued?
Damn you, democratizing interweb of knowledge!
Waiting backstage at the Waiting Room
Posted by Matt
We’re all gathered backstage in Omaha. The Waiting Room. Steve’s sleeping in a comfy chair. John and Jacques are chitter chattering about the show we played in Brooklyn when the club charged us money for playing too long. Jeez.
Somewhere between our last rehearsal and this afternoon, the electric piano that Dave has been playing must have taken a nasty spill. It’s a shining web of metal on the inside. A delicate, complicated machine, and some of the little pickups were just broken right off. Dave is such a cool customer, he went out and bought some Krazee Glue and has set about fixing it up.
And the Press Page was good.
Posted by Omniscient
Once again, webmaster, your work has sufficed. I am pleased with the Press Page. It’s fruits are damn tasty.
You may rest.
A Press Page has been born onto the site
It has been decreed onto me that there shall be a Press Page wherein evaluations of the band’s work, both positive and negative, shall be listed and enumerated. And also, it has been heaped onto my back that there shall be a place on the Press Page for the band to post “Press Releases”.
It has come to pass. And there was a Press Page. And the reviews were fairly excellent.
I just became a blues musician.
Posted by Matt
But better New Orleans than anyone else.
Localism
Posted by John
You buy local. You eat local. You rock local. Yes. You rock local. We rock local, too. It’s been a nice year for us around here. We love our towns. It would appear that’s a two way street. Recent evidence came in a couple of year-end wrap-ups.
We came in number 4 among local records… In Minneapolis, the word local is funny. Because there are so many artists who we, as Twin Citians, claim. But by most estimations they aren’t that local. They just happen to live here. Thus, coming in behind artists like POS… well, number 4 doesn’t feel too bad. Feels really good in fact. A friend pointed out, too, that this number 4 was not just having some guy liking us and saying we’re number one. No, it was more like a consensus sort of thing. A poll, if you will. So we’re riding high on that assessment.
In addition to Stereo Night receiving local love, it turns out people like the band, too. Now, no one likes the band as well as Matt and I, but the various people that legendary rock club First Avenue polled seem to like us pretty darn well and rated us good enough to be on The Best New Band Showcase, January 15. I guess the last time that happened to Matt or I was in, like… THE NINETIES! So, we’re going to be jumping up on that stage, where we’ve rocked with other combos before, and test our new band out. That stage gives me goosebumps. All my energies, at one early point in my musical life, were focused on that stage… and many of my favorite moments as a fan have happened in that room.
On January 29th we’re playing The Current’s Fifth Anniversary Party, also at First Avenue. The line-up is going to be amazing, featuring a ton of local talent, something the station prides themselves on playing a lot of. Evidence of this can be heard by listening to us on The Local Show January 10th where we performed several songs from Stereo Night as well as a new song for a web-sclusive track, “Telephone”!
Accolades
Posted by John
Of course we care what you think. What you think is important in so many ways. When you stand with your arms folded we try to act like we don’t care. We dominate our broken hearts with minds of steel.
And on those nights perhaps someone comes up and says, “lame audience tonight,” or something like that, we die a little bit inside, because we know that maybe we could have made the audience not lame somehow.
But when someone says to us, “you are one of the best new bands of 2009 and will play a big show at First Ave with other best new bands of 2009,” we get thrilled. Just like we would have.
Come and see The Best New Bands of 2009 at First Avenue January 15 2010 where we will be among those very best of 2009. And in Minneapolis/Saint Paul there are annually over 3000 band births/year, so don’t act like it doesn’t matter Mr Arms-Folded!
In other words, we’re not dead… yet. Some might even suggest we’ve just been born. Come and see for yourself.
That felt good.
Posted by Matt
Our little East Coast sweep. Sometimes it felt more like a family reunion than a bona fide tour, but it did a lot of the tasks that travelling should. We returned to Minneapolis happy, victorious and renewed. The concrete feeling of bandness more set and firm than before.
The excellent staff of one at the 939 Club in Boston made a great recording of our show there, an unexpected gift. And the following day, as we rode to New York, we did the thing I’ve almost never done, but which I always should have: we listened to the naked truth of the music we were making. And there was so much to learn, so much clutter to clear away, so much cloud to be condensed.
Our posh night
Posted by Matt
Now I’m getting a little verklempt. We’re assembling in the lobby of our posh D.C. hotel right now. Yes, posh. We had planned to sleep on couches and floors last night, and we really would have been happy with that. But a very kind patron of the arts swooped down and carried us off to two fancy hotel rooms last night. Wow! Thanks, patron of the arts.
The full Twilight Hours crew includes me and John The Stalwart, plus Jacques Wait on electric guitar, Steve Roehm on drums, and Dave Salmela on keyboards. We’re traveling about as light as you could imagine, and it’s been working great. With less gear, you lose a lot of control, but it makes packing and lugging less onerous, and it makes the whole venture economically possible.
Ladies and Gentlemen, The Twilight Hours are on tour!
Posted by Matt
We are making America pay. And it does feel good. Last night was New York, and we found ourselves cuddled up tight in a Brooklyn basement called Union Hall. Lovely! All the peoples were sweet and gentle, which caused us to break our own plan and play a little longer than scheduled. In fact, we incurred a small fine from the club who didn’t seem to understand how important it was for the both the bar and the universe for The Twilight Hours to prance and sing even more. We had to go to the bottom dregs of our song barrel to find some suitable music to satisfy the grave need that everyone was feeling.
Song of the Day Download at The Current Today, Tomorrow Tour!
Posted by John
In other news, our eyes are watching the sky. And our eyes are seeing snow. I’m reminded again of why scheduling tour dates in the winter is a complete crap shoot. I love snow. I love to ski on it, I love to skate in it, I love to make mountains out of it, I love to ball it up and throw it at unsuspecting cars (while, not for a few years…), but I really hate driving van loads of rockers around in it. So… let’s hope that the snow relents in time for us to have a safe, mellow trip, arriving on time to all our shows and rocking (softly) into the nights. Peace out!
Tonight at the Nomad
Posted by Matt
Happy Holidays, my lovelies!
I always enjoy these shows around Thanksgiving and Kwanzaa because there is charity in the air. We’re all family here, right? And I will let the quality slide grievously. Ahhhh! If you’re wandering down to the Nomad this evening, do not expect a professional performance. Expect something much, much less!
Let Me Introduce To You...
Posted by John
...the one and only, Steve Roehm, drummer for The Twilight Hours. Matt and I first met Steve Roehm when he was playing with the notorious Billy Goat. Billy Goat was truly a band that deserved to have “The Notorious” attached to their name, as we learned the first night that we played with them, at First Avenue in 1991.
Systems within systems: Promises, expectations and violations
Posted by Matt
(Not long ago, John and I sat down to talk business with our label. Krista and Grant at Princess are the sweetest and gentlest, but when it comes time for an agreement, some contractual matters have to be addressed. There was talk of terms and percentages. Now you know I am a fragile flower, and this kind of subject matter starts to soak into my mind like blue food coloring into the petals of a carnation. Oh Lordy, forgive me! I woke up that night - perhaps a little buzzed on Nyquil - and this is the revelation I recorded.)
The Twilight Hours formally request expedited consideration for entry into the Pantheon.
Posted by Matt
As we work to bring wider attention to the band and our album, Stereo Night, John and I have concluded that our best path is to bypass the music business entirely, and make an end run straight for the Pantheon, a place of reward and recognition reserved for musical heroes. With this strategy in mind, we are including in our latest press packages a printed version (PDF 108KB) of this new and updated online plea for expedited Pantheon consideration. You will notice that in the new version of our letter, we have tightened the rhetoric to such a degree that the document’s conclusion is now inescapable: early enshrinement for The Twilight Hours will bring benefits to music in general, and society at large.
Twilight Hours Reach The Tippy Top of KCMP's "The Chart Show!"
Posted by Manager
The guys are not ones to crow too long and loud about it… but I thought I’d pass along the news that you have voted and made The Twilight Hours NUMBER ONE on The Current’s “Chart Show” hosted by Mark Wheat. I wish I could have been there to hear Mark say, “And this week, clocking in at number one, The Twilight Hours!” That would have been nice.
If you’re wondering how you can be a part of this fun you can go here. and Make your preference known. Thanks to everyone who voted. We love you.
The "Influences" Question
Posted by John
Matt, I think we both know that the only song you actually have any interest in creating liner notes for is “Dreams,” so you accomplished two things by posting your liner notes thread: putting up the only liner notes you really gave a damn about and putting you and I into our normal, tormented twist. Mission accomplished!
I was thinking about a different way into the music, other than the “This song is about such and such,” thereby wrecking the song for all eternity for everybody (debateable as this thread demonstrates). How else can we penetrate the creative process? How do we account for these wonderful tunes aside from dreams? The “influences question!”
There’s a few ways this can work. One is to explore favorite records of all time and remark on what stands out about them. Another is to talk about what we’re listening to now. And a third is to talk about what we were listening to as we conceived the music.
I’ll start by exploring two records, one a recent release that I think is really cool and one an old chestnut that I go back to over and over: Night Beat by Sam Cooke and Wilco The Record by Wilco.
I love the silliness of Wilco having a song about their band on their eponymous eighth recording. Of course it reminds me of our new song, “Soundwaves,” which is less about some fans thoughts about the band and more a dialogue between us, but it’s cool nonetheless for there to be a song “Wilco (the song)” on Wilco the Record. For a band, naming your record the band name signals a certain kind of “we did it” triumph. Or perhaps more accurately, “Eureka! After so many false starts, here it is, finally, the record that really says what we’ve been trying to say all along!” That’s got to be a great feeling. Of course it could also be the sinking feeling of “all my good titles have been used up… waaah.” But in this case, I think it’s definitely the former.
What do I love about this record (got it on vinyl btw!)? I love the tunes, especially the duet with Feist, “You and I,” which echoes (consciously?) the great Beatles tune, “Two of Us.” I love the communal recognition of “Wilco (the song).” A song that identifies its fans as “dabbling in depression.” Funny. It’s holding up the song as a mirror to it’s audience. It also holds music as our possible savior. And it is. It definitely is.
I love Nels Cline’s guitar playing. I’ve had friends put him down for getting all over the tracks in a way that’s distracting, but to me: no way. I can’t really get enough of him, quite honestly. He loves the same guitarists as me. I’m thinking particularly of Richard Lloyd and Tom Verlaine from Television here. He uses a lot of finger vibrato, which I love. He plays in the upper reaches of his instrument, but never sounds shrill. I’m a fan.
I love the B-3 on “I’ll Fight” as well as the overall arrangement and the sentiment. It speaks to the necessary passion it requires to hew to the line as you make a thing whatever it is.
There’s a naturalness to the sound of Wilco’s records, especially post-Jay Bennett (RIP) that really appeals to me. I love Being There, at least one of the discs, but I love the last two Wilco discs even more than that for the inevitability of the sound. I think it evinces an aesthetic that Matt and I share, actually: plain rock. The sound is about the plain sound of each instrument. And not a lot of layering. Sometimes it’s nice to pour it on, but more and more lately I want clear, beautiful sounds and simple perfomances that feature each instrument. There is a ton of nice ensemble playing on this record and you can really track that playing because of the mixes, arrangements and all.
Which brings us to Night Beat which shares some of these qualities. Have you ever heard it? It will make you believe in the power of rhythm and blues again. But this is the plainest sort of R and B: double bass, super plain drumming (Hal Blaine!), piano, really groovy rhythm guitar, Billy Preston on B3, and of course Sam Cooke’s stunning voice soaring over the top. I’ve listened to this record countless times. It’s like an old friend to me.
The record was conceived as one which would have a late-night vibe to it. There is a little bit of an “after the after party” sort of energy to the band and especially to Cooke’s voice, slightly raspy as it might be after a gig, but also really warm and flexible, a result of the same.
The arrangements are revelatory in their simplicity. But the songs, along with the voice, are the centerpiece for each recording. And what a set of tunes! The record starts with “Lost and Looking for My Baby.” I might be particularly fond of this one because it is JUST bass and high hat and vocal. The arrangement feels the title in a deep way. “Mean Old World” and “Nobody Knows The Trouble I’ve Seen” sound great as does every single track on this disc. “Red Rooster” breaks the spell, but only a very little bit, and it’s worth it for how expressively Billy Preston plays the organ, imitating a whole barnyard’s worth of animals with his axe.
One thing that I feel a real sense of simpatico of with this one is that Cooke picked his faves for it and just ran them down over the course of a few days That reminds me of my other band’s approach (though we tend to stretch a little bit in terms of the arrangements!). It’s fun to hear Sam Cooke’s hand-picked favorite tunes rendered in this way. I can’t recommend this record highly enough. It has been deeply influential on me and every time I hear it I think, “I want to make a record that sounds that good some day!”
How about you, Matt? Got any good ones you want to talk about? I know you’re aching to reveal your abiding affection for “The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald” and Juice Newton.
The Doorway to Dreams
Posted by Matt
During the last couple years, since I’ve had children swirling through the rooms of my house, I’ve found that the best place to mine for melodies and words is right near the edge of dreams. Of course, sleep itself is unimaginably precious, and I never want to leave. But when I wake up in the middle of the night, I try to be ready and listening. If I hear words or a melody, I repeat them in my mind. I’m trying to understand and gain clarity. But, above all, I’m trying to preserve the thing I’ve heard within my crumbling mentality until I can get to a phone or computer to record what I’ve found.
Clearing up some misconceptions about The Twilight Hours by the means of a dialogue between master and student
Posted by Omniscient
Omniscient: Webmonkey, you seem puzzled.
Webmaster: Master, I am fully indoctrinated and enthusiastic in my appreciation of the one band, The Twilight Hours. But I confess that sometimes my faith lapses when they do not post on this site for weeks at a time. Isn’t the universe out of balance if my own dedication is greater than that of musicians I serve?
Omniscient: No, your self worth is out of balance. Remember, monkey, to determine your value to the band we multiply your great dedication by your meager worth as an HTML technician. The product is not much. On the other hand, John and Matt are questionable in their dedication, but their limitless talent makes their contributions to the universe more valuable than yours. It is best if you close your mouth and consider ways to make the band’s rare postings appear on everyone’s Facebook page.
Exciting Developments!
Posted by John
Some of you who visit the forum may have seen that The City Pages, one of Minneapolis’ weeklies, ran a nice story and interview with Matt and I. That was cool. You can find it here. Please don’t be concerned regarding the headline re-branding us as “the Twiglight Hours.” We remain, The Twilight Hours.
On Thursday morning we will be featured on the KARE 11 (local Twin Cities Television) show, “Showcase.” This is barring President Obama pre-empting us like he did last time!
I think that VitaMN is going to have a little something soon too, so keep an eye out for that.
Can’t wait to see you at The Cedar and down the dusty in Chicago, New York, Philly and other places!
Liner Notes Controversy
Posted by Matt
There are so many moving parts in this discussion about liner notes. In general, people love to read them. But John has a point that saying too much about a song may have the side effect of bringing it down to earth, killing some of its magical power.
I think the best way to understand this whole dynamic system of musicians, songs and liner notes is to think of the whole thing as a fleet of blimps. Imagine, John, that each song on our album is a huge lighter-than-air flying craft. Each one has its own majestic color. They are slowly dancing on the horizon. They are having fun, and they are beautiful. Those are our blimps, John. And we love them.
The Uni-bummer Strikes Again
Posted by John
Matt, I’m sorry, but I don’t want to know where the songs come from, even though I myself do know, for the most part. I’m speaking now as a fan. Please don’t tell me anymore! I know, of course, that this will only encourage you to find interesting ways around my request… because you just want to give endlessly of yourself. I wrote you a note that explains what I mean… I was going to send it to you, but now I’ve decided to put it up here. I’m going to preface it with some thoughts about art.
Matt's Liner Notes: 1 Dreams
Posted by Matt
Warning: There are three (3) paragraphs of liberal claptrap just ahead. Things clear up after that.
Around 2005, as the Bush administration settled in for a second term, I became overwhelmed with frustration at lies we Americans were being told by our government. Falsehoods regarding the war in Iraq, the torture of prisoners, wire tapping – almost everything – were so widespread that to talk about the situation with anyone but a close confidant would always make me worry that I would be perceived as a crazed conspiracy theorist.
Liner Notes
With the dust settling down a bit around Twilight Hours country, now feels like a good time to say a few words about the songs on Stereo Night. In the past I’ve worried that I might ruin someone’s pleasure in my music by revealing too much about the feelings and events leading up to the making of a song. But during the long minivan vacation from which my family and I just returned, I found myself cherishing the liner notes from a Gordon Lightfoot compilation CD as I imposed hit after hit on my trussed and immobilized children.
The Vinyl is IN, The Orders are OUT
Posted by John
In my opinion the LP sounds better than the CD. Of course the CD sounds great. But something happens when you set the disc on the turntable, kick back in your brown, woven recliner and open the gatefold as the music starts to play. You’re enveloped in warm bottom-end and transients that seem to spin off to the stratosphere. Every word is packed with extra meaning. I myself was transported to my friend, Mike Sonkowsky’s basement, during 10th grade. The Twilight Hours LP sat in the stack right there next to CAN and The Soft Machine and a stack of CREEM’s and Trouser Press mags. Time travel is what I’m talking about! It’s pretty swell. And I’m not just saying this to get rid of what seems like an impossibly huge pile of records, either (545 lbs of music, to be exact).
So, choose the format that’s right for you. Prefer one that you can listen to.
The Star Folk to open September 18th. Musical film "Alone" to Debut.
Posted by John
The Twilight Hours are also planning on debuting the new musical film: “Alone,” based on the song of the same name, which is featured on Stereo Night. The Cedar has a big brand new silver screen, so this should be pretty cool, if everything goes as planned!