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Category Archives: Ball of Wax
Album Review: The Cupholders Present . . . “The Wisconsin Polka!”
Supergroups are strange beasts. Jann Wenner claims that Cream, with members from the Yardbirds, the Graham Bond Organization, and John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, was rock’s first supergroup – soon to be followed by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; Blind … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Robert Deeble – “Veni Emmanuel”
Seattle-by-way-of-Long-Beach institution Robert Deeble has a deep discography containing multitudes (including collaborations with fellow Ball of Wax contributors Tomo Nakayama and Shenandoah Davis) and here offers a sinister gothic take on “Veni Emmanual” . . . or “O Come, O … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Laudatory Consortium – “Fine Wine”
One thing about Ball of Wax that I will always be proud of – regardless of how many people in the world are even aware that this strange little endeavor exists – is the number of musical collaborations and friendships … Continue reading
Posted in Ball of Wax, Check Out This Song
Tagged darryl blood, Grumpy Bear, Laudatory Consortium
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Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Arthur C. Lee – “Holiday Cheer”
Now and then, I like to try playing along to stuff I’m listening to. For the most part, I do an okay job of anticipating chord changes, structures, and progressions. Not that the artists I love are predictable at all, … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: KPH the Canary Collective – “New Year”
I had the opportunity a few weeks back to watch the live Instagram feed of a Kaeley Pruitt-Hamm show and was taken with her mix of nervous chattiness (a characteristic I share, though mine is far less endearing) and moving … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Joseph Allen Beltram – “Winter’s Early Light”
Joseph Allen Beltram‘s “Winter’s Early Light” ticks a lot of boxes for me. It’s slow and languorous, built around a splendidly droney, finger-picked acoustic guitar part and Beltram’s voice, his delivery earnest but never cloying. This song, capturing a moment … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: The Foghorns – “Queen of Decatur”
Seattle’s Foghorns strip it down to the Americana basics with “Queen of Decatur,” leaving just vocals and acoustic guitar to tell a complex personal story in simple musical terms. This is a bleak, beautiful “end-of-the-line” set piece: a hotel parking … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: “Colin Ernst- Everybody’s Gettin’ Coal”
You never know what you’re going to get when you see Colin Ernst’s name pop up. On his contribution to our winter spectacular, Ernst narrates as Old Saint Nick himself, somewhat irritably declaring that “Everybody’s Gettin’ Coal.” Thinking back to … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Brittain Ashford & Matt Bauer – “Tinsel and Snow “
Matt Bauer is no stranger to me. In fact, he and Grumpy Bear appeared on compilations together twice many years ago, one by a small Tucson label called Keep Recordings and the other a tribute to the Harry Smith Anthology … Continue reading
Ball of Wax 58 Songs: Monica Schley – “Pavane”
What would a holiday collection be without a little harp? Harpist Monica Schley has brought us her arrangement of Gabriel Faure’s “Pavane,” and it’s the perfect, peaceful interlude to relax and refresh one’s mind and soul for the season. I … Continue reading