AN EVENING WITH JAY BUCHANAN AND DERRICK BROWN - SWOON + CROON - RECAP WITH VIDEO - LONG BEACH - 10/24/2014

Attempting to write about the experience of listening to Jay Buchanan on stage is a daunting task. It's like trying to explain metaphysics. Intensity, pristine tone and profound power are the closest descriptors for the incomparable musician who performed last night at the hidden gem that is the Expo Art Center in beautiful Bixby Knolls. 

Derrick Brown, who is fittingly touted as one of the top five poets in America, wrangled a boisterous crowd into submission with his poems that defy labeling...Poetry? Comedy? Rock N' Roll? Although it's not the first time he has been on the bill with a musician(s), this particular pair go way back to the early beginnings in their art forms. During the evening, Jay Buchanan credited Derrick for supporting and inspiring him to perform his solo music again (also not the first musician to credit Derrick with being inspirational).
Although we've watched the two artists perform repeatedly over the past 2 decades, tonight would be different. They've successfully traded up to a large clamoring crowd in contrast to the distant past of having small venues filled like The Hub in Fullerton, The Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest or Linda's Doll Hut in Anaheim. 

Jay Buchanan on stage

After a comedic introduction by Derrick, Jay took to the stage. He lit what we would suspect was a smudge stick and carefully crafted the ambiance that would result in pure musical ecstasy by the end of the evening. The tone changed in the room. The collective energy in the room was palpable, then began the beguine with "Post Coital Kiss." 

With sage hanging in the air,  the intensity grew soul with "Roll with Me."

"Thankful" was both the song and sentiment that ended an euphoric night of pure art. We began the evening with thought provoking laughter and ended

the evening spellbound and spent. What began with the beautiful power of words ended with a collective euphoria that clearly affected even Jay  Buchanan, himself. A night no one in that room will soon forget, if ever. 

Left to Right - Jody & Judy (of Live Rock Gig) with Poet Derrick Brown

RIVAL SONS LIVE CONCERT FOOTAGE-NEW YEARS EVE-DOWNTOWN LONG BEACH 2013-14

Rival Sons closed-out 2013 with a bang and ushered in the New Year among all of their hometown fans. This night was especially meaningful for us, in particular, as the night began and was sponsored by The Federal Bar in downtown Long Beach. The Federal Bar stands directly across the street from the meeting place of what would, 15 years later, become LIVE ROCK GIG.  

Long Beach has a long history of being a music centric town. The Downtown Long Beach Associates whom organize the New Years Eve celebration, made a brilliant move  when deciding to feature a band right from their own backyard. In a quote featured in an article by the Long Beach Post, Gina Dartt, the events DLBA's marketing and events manager said, "We thought it'd be a good reflection of Long Beach to have original artists this year. It's what Long Beach is all about." The DLBA reports upwards of 10,000 attendees annually according to this article. We would have posted the setlist we managed to get after the show, but it didn't make it home with us. It's probably still somewhere in The Federal Bar where the night ended as well. Happy 2014, may you rock all year long!

 

 

 

 

 

 



Rival Sons Live Concert Footage at Vinyl, Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas 12-28-13

Since we've written about Rival Sons on many previous posts, we simply wanted to share video of their Saturday, December 28th show at the Vinyl Venue inside the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. This marks the 5th and most soul scorching and epic Rival Son's show we've witnessed to date. 

 

 

 

 

 

During the show, Rival Sons shared the news of their return to the recording studio next week to lay down tracks for the next album.

Although we often post set lists, this time we were unable to obtain one. Listed is what we can remember, in no particular order, other than the first 6 songs include the video footage for this post:

You Want To

Get What's Coming

Tell Me Something

Until the Sun Comes Down

All Over the Road

Young Love

Manifest Destiny Part I

Keep On Swinging

Wild Animal

Jordan

Soul

Torture

Memphis Sun

We anxiously await the sixth show, New Year's Eve in our hometown of Long Beach. 

Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons, Solo Performance at 2011 Buskerfest - 8/27/2011

Since so many of you seemed to be intrigued by Jay Buchanan (singer of Rival Sons), we decided to share a video of the song “Feel Better” from his solo catalogue of music. We shot this video a couple of years ago at the 2011 Buskerfest.  Buskerfest is a music festival that is held each year in the Arts District of downtown Long Beach, Ca. It’s a festival that focuses on local musicians and providing a venue for them to be exposed. The catch at this music festival is that the musician(s) must provide their own power source and amplification or just perform without. 

As you watch, you will notice that Jay chose not to use amplification of any type. His powerful voice doesn’t require it. We also wanted to share his musicianship, as he is not only a singer but a very formidable instrumentalist as well. It’s also important to point out that Jay was not a contestant of 2011 Buskerfest, but rather a featured performer.



 



 

RIVAL SONS - Fingerprints Records In-Store Concert - Long Beach, CA-3/14/2013

Rival Sons played a special homecoming show at Fingerprints Records in Long Beach to celebrate the US release of their Head Down record. We've already written extensively about the band's incredible live shows, so instead we would like to just share photos of Jay Buchanan on vocals, Scott Holiday on lead guitar, Michael Miley on drums and Robin Everhart on bass. We've also included some live footage for your enjoyment.

 

 

As a special treat for their hometown, Fingerprints had a photographer on hand to take "awkward family" type photos of Rival Sons posing with their fans. Here's our photo complete with ugly sweaters that were part of the fun!

Set List:

Pressure and Time

Burn Down Los Angeles

Gypsy Heart

Wild Animal

You Want To

Jordan

All The Way

Manifest Destiny Pt. 1

Face of Light

Keep on Swinging

RIVAL SONS - Concert Review - Costa Mesa, CA & Las Vegas, NV- ROCK N' ROLL IS BACK!

Get ready America, 2013 is the year of Rival Sons. The Long Beach, California based band has been selling out large venues all over Europe and Canada the past few years. It was just a matter of time before US rock fans took notice of this incredibly talented group. Their most recent album Head Down will finally be available in the US on March 17th through a deal with Century Media Records. Before the album is released the band will perform live on the Jimmy Kimmel Show this Thursday, March 7th. If you are not familiar with the band this would be an awesome opportunity to see what all the hype is about.

We had the great pleasure of catching their opening and closing shows on the most recent North American tour. If you are a fan of straight forward, no holds barred rock n' roll then Rival Sons is the band for you. This marks the sixth time we have written about them on our blog. Yes, they are that good.  

Samueli Theatre - Costa Mesa - 1/22/13

It had been over a year since we had last seen Rival Sons play live at Fingerprints Record Store in Long Beach. That show made both of us fans for life. If they were rock stars then, tonight's Costa Mesa show was proof positive that they are now rock gods.

You could feel the excitement in the crowd when the band took the stage in Costa Mesa and ripped right into "Keep on Swinging" the first single from the new album Head Down. Guitarist Scott Holiday's kick ass opening riffs set the tone for what was to be an incredible evening of live rock n' roll.



Lead Singer Jay Buchanan on stage in Costa Mesa 

Tonight's show was sort of a homecoming for the band since they are based just a few miles from the venue. The overall vibe of the concert felt like they were playing a thank you gig for their friends and family who had supported them over the years. Lead singer Jay Buchanan actually took the opportunity to single out some of his family members in the crowd. It gave the concert a very personal ambiance.

Guitarist Scott Holiday and Singer Jay Buchanan of Rival Sons



The band played a mix of songs from both the Head Down and Pressure & Time records. The highlights of the show included the rocker "You Want To" as well as the soulful ballad "Jordan." As many times as we have seen lead singer Jay Buchanan perform live we are still blown away every time we hear his stunning vocals. He is truly in a class all by himself.

The talented quartet of Jay Buchanan on vocals, Scott Holiday on guitar, Robin Everhart on bass and Mike Miley on drums are individually all amazing musicians. What makes them great is the sum of all their parts. They feed off of each other and play like a band that has been together for 20 years.

Guitarist Scott Holiday on stage at the Samueli Theatre in Costa Mesa

  

Las Vegas - Hard Rock Hotel- Vinyl - 2/23/13

Promotional standee inside the Hard Rock Hotel

The only words that we needed to hear were Rival Sons and Las Vegas. We were in. The Hard Rock Hotel was the last stop on the band's tour that took them from the west coast, up through Canada and back down into the midwest with the final show in Sin City before they headed back to California. The hotel's newest concert hall, Vinyl, was a perfect venue to see the band. It's up close and personal. There's not a bad view in the house.



Lead Singer Jay Buchanan on stage in Vegas

The band opened the Vegas show with the song "Pressure and Time" the track from the 2011 album of the same name. They immediately went right into the song "Burn Down Los Angeles." With a one-two punch of these songs we knew we were in for something special tonight. 

Two highlights stuck with us from the Vegas show. First, the amazing extended guitar solo from Scott Holiday during the song "Manifest Destiny Pt. 1." He played a great solo in Costa Mesa but tonight's solo was just astonishing. We wouldn't be surprised if you see Scott gracing the covers of all the guitar magazines this year.

Guitarist Scott Holiday playing "Manifest Destiny Pt. 1" in Vegas

The other highlight of the Vegas show was when the band played a revved up cover of Fleetwood Mac's "Oh Well." The song didn't appear on their setlist and I don't think anyone in the crowd saw it coming. To say they made the song their own would be an understatement. The song fit seamlessly with their style and it sounded like it was written by them.

Rock n' Roll is back courtesy of Rival Sons!

Las Vegas Set List and Scott Holiday Guitar Pick



Drummer Mike Miley on stage in Las Vegas

Lead Singer Jay Buchanan in Las Vegas

 





Rival Sons-New Video for "Face of Light"

We can't say enough about the band Rival Sons. If you yearn for the days of straightforward, blues-based rock and roll then you owe it to yourself to check them out. Below is their new video for the ballad "Face of Light." We expect to have a new album from them sometime this year but in the meantime Earache Records continues to promote the 2011 album Pressure & Time.

The band is fresh off a European tour with Black Stone Cherry and has previously opened for Judas Priest and Queensryche. Lead singer Jay Buchanan has one of the best voices in rock and we are proud to say that he is a local Long Beach guy. Check it out and let us know what you think.

Jay Buchanan Interview

We had the great pleasure of interviewing Jay Buchanan after his recent show at Alex's Bar on December 30th. Jay had just come off a European tour with Rival Sons and was playing his his first Long Beach, CA solo show since this summer's Buskerfest.

Jay Buchanan with Judy on the patio of Alex's Bar.

Q: What are some of your musical influences?
A: I love Joni Mitchell and Robert Johnson. One of my biggest vocal influences would have to be Freddie Mercury from Queen. I also really like Steve Marriott from Small Faces and Humble Pie.

Q: What was your first record?
A: Probably something by Prince.

Q: What made you want to call Long Beach [CA] home?
A: The local music scene. My friends in Bourbon Jones and Brett Bixby from 12 Hour Mary were all based here. There's a lot going on artistically and musically around town.

Q: With your amazing voice we always wondered if you ever had any type of vocal training?
A: No never, in fact I don't usually even need to warm-up my voice before going on stage.

Q: How was the tour of Europe?
A: Amazing. We sold out over 95% of the tour. The crowds were fantastic.

Q: Rival Sons have shared the stage with a diverse array of bands such as Judas Priest, Queensryche, Kid Rock and Evanescence. Is it hard to play with bands that might have a different core audience?
A: No. We look at it as an opportunity to pick up new fans.

Q: Is it hard to switch gears from the hard rock style of Rival Sons to the  folk/blues sound of your solo work?
A: This is this and that is that (Jay's opposing hands gesture two completely different musical styles).

Q: What are your plans for 2012?
A: Rival Sons are getting ready to go out on a tour of the south through Georgia, South Carolina, Florida and Mississippi. After that we are headed up to Canada for a tour. We are now in the Top 10 in active rock in Canada so I'm looking forward to touring up there. I'm also planning on recording a solo album sometime this year.

Jay Buchanan Concert Review - Alex's Bar-Long Beach, CA-12/30/11

 

Jay Buchanan at Alex's Bar

Jody and I first spotted Jay Buchanan at the Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest, Ca. circa 1999. We would frequent this club to catch local acts. I'm not sure who we were there to see initially, but when Jay got on stage, played the first few chords and opened his mouth, I remember thinking, Holy Shit! Who is this guy?! In 99' his sound was already flawless. I never imagined that a musician of his caliber could improve on perfection, but he has. This is what makes his performances transcendental. He masterfully combines the essences of  soulful blues, folk and rock. He also uses them at will. Diametrically opposed is the word that comes to mind when you consider his collaboration project with Rival Sons and his solo work.

Jay is not a typical rock guy. He's not pretentious. He doesn't require a big stage production or a plethora of equipment. In fact each time I've seen him play solo he usually takes the stage with just a guitar and his seraphic voice. The show at Alex's tonight was no different. Stepping to the stage with a red Gibson guitar he played an eight song, hour long set of incredible ethereal music. Jay's lyrics are introspective and often paint pictures of love and loss. He seems to be a keen observer on the human condition and has the ability to draw you into the picture that he is trying to paint. His incredible whisper to a scream vocals are often times jaw dropping.

Fresh off the road with Rival Sons, Jay gave his fans a treat at this show playing a retrospective set list. He kicked off the night with "Post Coital Kiss" which is Jody's personal favorite. He went all the way back to the 1999 album Violence for "Satan is a Woman," which he freely admitted to not playing in a "long, long time." He closed the evening with my favorite, "Internal Dialogue," where in the chorus he belts out "there is beauty everywhere." When it comes to Jay's music, I couldn't agree more.

Spotted in the crowd at the Jay Buchanan show was writer/performer/poet Derrick Brown. We have been fans of Derrick since his days as lead singer of The John Wilkes Kissing Booth. If you've never checked them out you should. They rock.

Jody with poet Derrick Brown

Rival Sons at Fingerprints Records, Concert Review, September 27th, 2011, Long Beach, CA

Before they rocked the stage in front of rock legends the likes of Queen and The Who at the Classic Rock Awards in London, Rival Sons killed it at one of the coolest and last surviving independent record stores in the heart of downtown Long Beach, Ca.  As I stood in front of the stage at Fingerprints I felt like a kid that had just heard the first Guns and Roses record. To put it bluntly, Rival Sons kick ass. They play a blues based brand of hard rock that you don't hear much these days. I think it's because most bands today don't have the musicianship to pull it off. You can hear the influences from Led Zeppelin to Bad Company but make no mistake, these guys have their own sound.

Jay Buchanan, whom I've come across often in the last 15 years of addictive show attendance, is the lyricist and voice of Rival Sons; And an impressive voice he is. He has the capability and range like those of his classic rock forefathers.  His lyrics are so descriptive and relatable you feel as though you've lived it and he's writing a song about your life. Isn't that what a great rock song is all about? The opening track to Pressure & Time "All Over the Road," has a lyrical feel reminiscent of the Eagles', " Life in the Fast Lane." Although, the lyrics are not so much negative as they are entertaining. The rhythm and chord progression are much more rockin', too. In fact, I know I have taken this road trip, I just don't remember Jay being in the car with us. That one factor, alone; RELATABILITY, is the distinction between a great song and a legendary one. A song that changes the face of rock and becomes a part of the soundtrack to your life.

 The hour plus set included a mix of songs from the recently released "Pressure & Time" as well as a few tracks from their debut EP. Some of the standouts included "Only One" which paints a picture of life on the road. In the song Jay sings, "Another night spent alone, while I'm up on the stage, in some Midwest town refusing to act my age." This is easily my favorite track on the new record. The band also played "Burn Down Los Angeles" and "Pressure and Time." The latter is the lead single which they played recently on the George Lopez Show.

Before the Fingerprints show Rival Sons had just returned from a European tour with Judas Priest and Queensryche. With their blazing guitars, searing vocals and feverish drumming they can easily hold their own in a room full of rock vets. This gives you a clue to the caliber of talent you are witnessing when watching Rival Sons. If you yearn for the days when musicianship was the driving force behind getting your ass to a show...then do yourself a favor and look these guys up.