The Dancing Tree 06.17.08

New Additions:

Charlie Wheeler Band - Highway Run CD - Fate works in strange ways. Sometimes, when the stars line up just right, and luck is in one's favor, amazing things can happen. This might be the best way to describe the conception of Western Pennsylvania's Charlie Wheeler Band. A combination of the hottest and most talented musicians between Jamestown, NY, Warren, PA and Ridgway, PA, CWB was created in 2007. Originally assembled as a studio band, the band became energized during the recording of their debut CD, Highway Run, and employed the doctrine used by the old masters of rock; high quality vocals, rippin' guitar leads and lyrics you can relate to. CWB plays a variety of styles on Highway Run, including straight ahead blues/riff based rock to rockabilly to some sweet monster power ballads. $12.00

Stanley Maxwell - Don't Wake the Baby! CD - Connecticut-based four-piece Stanley Maxwell plays original music that blends, among many other influences, jazz, funk and rock with tight arrangements and intricate group improvisation. They are a no-nonsense, conservatory-trained group of musicians who share a love for playing soulful music together and making people dance. Aesthetically, they combine both the virtuostic and the simple into a visceral concoction. Don't Wake The Baby! includes "Mousetrap," an eleven-bar blues influenced by Thelonious Monk. The band's recording of the composition by pianist Evan Green has attracted international attention including winning "Best Jazz Song" in the 7th Annual Independent Music Awards. $12.00

The Heavy - Great Vengeance and Furious Fire CD - 2008 U.S. pressing of the British band's album features one bonus track. The Heavy's dirty, guitar-scorched Hip Hop Soul will lead you into temptation. Hailing from a town in the English countryside called Bath, The Heavy make everything wrong sound right. At the core are Swaby and Taylor, who have known each other for a decade. When they met, the two bonded over vintage Rhythm and Blues and the films of Jim Jarmusch. They soon recruited Ellul (drums) and Page (bass) and began gigging as a four-piece; most recently Hannah Collins joined to round out the sound. Crushing drums, gritty vocals, and scorching guitar make this a visceral work of modern soul! $16.99

The Herbaliser - Same As It Never Was CD - Blending hip-hop, sampled breaks, and jazz, The Herbaliser have remained stalwarts of the creative downtempo scene for more than a decade. Same As It Never Was is a brand new effort, and the first with the group's new five piece line-up, including lead vocalist Jessica Darling. It's clear that The Herbaliser's evolution is still in progress. As the title suggests, Same As It Never Was sees The Herbaliser employing more of a live band sound, showing that they can produce scratchy funk to rival groups like the Dap Kings. With guest vocalists including Jean Grae of the Okayplayer camp and their signature knack for reflective songs that still bump, it's clear that more than ten years into their history, The Herbaliser's sonic trajectory is still picking up steam. $15.99

Also available from The Herbaliser:
FabricLive 26 CD
Remedies CD

Coming Soon:

June 24 - Roots of Creation - Live Vol. 1 CD (pre-order)
Scrapomatic - Sidewalk Caesars CD (pre-order)
Warren Haynes Presents The Benefit Concert Vol. 8 (2006 XMas Jam) DVD (pre-order)
Rose Hill Drive - Moon Is the New Earth (pre-order CD & LP)
Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation's Dark (180g 2-LP set) (pre-order)
G. Love and Special Sauce - Superhero Brother (pre-order CD & LP)
Seth Yacovone - Land of Split Decision (2 CDs)
Zach Deputy - Out of the Water CD (pre-order)

July 8 - Donna the Buffalo - Silverlined CD (pre-order)
Sim Redmond Band - Room in These Skies CD (pre-order)
The Radiators - Wild & Free (2 CDs)
Sound Tribe Sector Nine - Peaceblaster CD

July 22 - Dr. Dog - Fate CD/LP
My Morning Jacket - It Still Moves 2-LP Set
The Avett Brothers - The Second Gleam (CD and LP)
Tea Leaf Green - Raise Up the Tent CD
Ozric Tentacles - Jurassic Shift CD & DVD
Medeski Martin and Wood - Zaebos: The Book of Angels Vol. 11 CD
Slightly Stoopid - Slightly Not Stoned Enough To Eat Breakfast Yet Stoopid CD

August 5 - Mike Gordon - The Green Sparrow CD

August 12 - The Duhks - Fast Paced World CD

August 19 - Xavier Rudd - Dark Shades of Blue CD

September 9 - Michael Franti & Spearhead - All Rebel Rockers CD
Ray Lamontagne - Gossip in the Grain CD


Last Week's Additions:

Delta Nove - Fire It Up EP
Ekoostik Hookah - Live at the Newport DVD
Railroad Earth - Amen Corner CD
Robert Walter - Cure All CD
My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges CD
N.E.R.D. - Seeing Sounds CD
The Infamous Stringdusters CD
Radiohead - The Best of: The Videos DVD

Upcoming Festivals: