3 Faces of Close to the Line...

This summer has been a hectic and fantic time for The McLovins. After a nearly 6 week layover, the band has stormed back with a series of concerts that has cemented their position as a band to watch. As if there's any proof needed that The McLovins have really turned a corner and aren't looking back; I offer up for your perusal, 3 performances of Close To The Line. These 3 versions were performed during three consecutive shows in a span of 4 days earlier this month. Each performance is unique, each has it's own musical arc and the jamming in each is fiercely singular. Turn these up, there is something special happening this summer.

The Mclovins Live at Mills Pond (August 4 2011)

Close to the Line, middle of the 1st set

Dropped right in the middle of the first set, wonderfuly interaction between Jason and Jeff, funky and breezy, perfect for a calm summer eve.

The McLovins at Camp Creek (August 6 2011)

Close to the Line, the set opener

Fierce and assertive, an attention grabber and a kick in the teeth. Jake sets the table and Jeff and Jason serve it up, hot and tasty.

The McLovins Live at SoNo Arts Festival (August 7, 2011)

Close To The Line, 2nd set opener

This rendition sets the tone for the entire set, an aural assault, wonderfully funky and loose. A thick jam helps lead off this set off with bang.

Newport Folk Festival - The Cave Singers

Ohdarlingdear and I traveled down to the Newport Folk Festival this past Sunday primarily to catch sets from the Civil Wars and The Head and the Heart. A few of the other acts were guaranteed pleasers; Thile & Daves, Justin Townes Earle and Brown Bird, but we were so pleasantly surprised by this intense trio of Northwesterners, The Cave Singers.

Their set was positioned smack dab in the middle of the day's Harbor Stage performances and the only thing I knew about the band was an anecdote that had been related by the day's first act Brown Bird. The story recounted a chance meeting between Brown Bird and The Cave Singers at a rest area in North or South Carolina a few years before where a small leather jacket was exchanged. The jacket was to have been signed and passed on to other bands to eventually work it's way back to Brown Bird, and earlier in the day, the jacket worked its way back to Brown Bird at Newport.

Their music is born of rust-belt americana, a darkly hypnotic roots rock stew; stomp and roll. A deep woods sound that's perfectly suited as the soundtrack for an episode of Twin Peaks.. there's something here that I can't put my finger on but oh how it works; achingly familiar fuzz guitar and sledgehammer drum rhythms focused through the lens of blast furnace vocals. This melange yields a powerfully earnest blend, equal parts folk, punk and rock; a potent potion best experienced hot and live. They played a blistering 46 minute set that had the crowd equally mesmerized and exhilarated, shock and awe indeed.



Luckily for me Ohdarlingdear had the sense to take some pictures because I was just sitting there jaw-dropped and totally into this band. NRP and Folk Alley were kind enough to make this performance available to stream or download. I can't wait to being able to see this band again.

Check their set out here, NPR, Folk Alley
and stop by their website Here