Boston Calling 2014 Fall Preview

For a second year Boston Calling comes for a second time in the year, the fall edition coming to downtown Government Center, Friday-to-Sunday, September 5th to 7th:

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 5th

The National – JetBlue Stage, 9:30 PM Cincinnati-by-way-of-Brooklyn’s The National (QRO photos outdoors) hit it big in 2007 with Boxer (QRO review) and tracks like “Fake Empire”, “Mistaken For Strangers”, and “Apartment Story” (QRO video) – and again in 2008 with the Virginia EP (QRO review), but that just presaged 2011’s High Violet (QRO review), which debuted at #3 on the Billboard charts (QRO expanded edition review). An impressive and much-in-demand act (QRO live review), they’re fitting in nicely as even festival headliner (QRO photos headlining a festival) or curator (QRO photos curating a festival), like at London’s All Tomorrow’s Parties in 2012 (QRO photos). Blown up to the point that New York Times Magazine ran a feature on them (QRO spotlight on) & Obama used (a family-friendly) bit of “Mr. November” (QRO video at a festival) as a campaign song, The National (QRO photos at a festival) returned from an hiatus last year to take North America by storm (QRO photos headlining a festival) behind Trouble Will Find Me (QRO review), after having done so in Europe (QRO photos in Europe), the festival circuit (QRO photos at a festival), the European festival circuit (QRO photos at a European festival), Canada (QRO photos at a festival in Canada), Spain (QRO photos at a Spanish festival), Croatia (QRO photos at a Croatian festival), Singapore (QRO photos in Singapore) & their own Brooklyn (QRO photos in Brooklyn). They look to keep it going (QRO photos in 2014), coming back to Boston to curate & headline Boston Calling once again (QRO photos at headlining the first Boston Calling).
Neutral Milk Hotel – JetBlue Stage, 8:00 PM Jeff Mangum formed Neutral Milk Hotel around him in the late nineties, released In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, and the rest was history. One of the most critically acclaimed records of the past twenty years, NMH still disbanded before the decade/century/millennium was over, thanks to Mangum’s growing disillusionment (and later nervous breakdown). It all seemed to be the story of a candle that burned too bright for too short a time, but then Mangum began touring a few years ago (QRO live review), and then came a full-fledged reunion (with the line-up that played on Aeroplane) last fall, which comes to play Boston Calling. [note: put your cell phones and cameras away for this performance, as Magnum notoriously hates photographing at his performances…]
Future Islands – JetBlue Stage, 6:45 PM Baltimore’s Future Islands (QRO photos) play a highly acclaimed, darker form of synth-pop (QRO photos at a festival) as they come to Boston Calling.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6th

Childish Gambino – JetBlue Stage, 9:30 PM The world is littered with rappers trying their hand at acting, and actors trying their hand at rapping (to say nothing of sports stars trying both) – with usually poor results. Standing out from that crowd is Childish Gambino (QRO photos), a.k.a. Donald Glover (QRO photos at a festival) of NBC’s great (but sadly cancelled) Community. Joel McHale ain’t the only one with a second job – but will Danny Pudi (QRO photo) or Alison Brie (QRO live review) be there for Troy’s arrival at Boston Calling (QRO photos at a festival)?
Lorde – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 8:15 PM It’s been fast and furious, the success of Lorde (QRO live review). The New Zealand songstress (QRO photos) is still in her teens, but blew up in a huge way last year behind Grammy-winning single “Royals” and last fall’s debut full-length, Pure Heroine. She even performed “All Apologies” with Dave Grohl & Kurt Novoselic at Nirvana’s induction at the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame! So catch the voice that’s turning heads around the world (QRO photos) and at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).
Girl Talk – JetBlue Stage, 7:10 PM Greg Gillis (Girl Talk – QRO photos at a festival) moved from biomedical tissue engineering to DJ mash-up engineering (QRO photos at a festival), taking samples from across the spectrum and making something very new (QRO photos at a festival). While he started out playing clubs, he’s graduated to ballroom & even the great outdoors (QRO photos outdoors) – but that just means he’s got bigger stages (QRO photos outdoors at a festival) and festivals (QRO photos at a festival) to fill with dancing concertgoers (QRO photos at a festival).
Volcano Choir – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 6:05 PM We all know Justin Vernon as Bon Iver (QRO live review) – though QRO knew him when he was the touring guitarist for The Rosebuds (QRO photos), but the man has a million other projects, like funky GAYNGS (QRO album review), rock Shouting Matches (QRO album review), and his more ambient Volcano Choir (QRO live review), who come to Boston Calling (QRO photos at a festival) behind last year’s Repave (QRO review).
The Hold Steady – JetBlue Stage, 5:00 PM Brooklyn’s The Hold Steady (QRO photos at a festival) have reached serious heights with their classic rock and singer/guitarist Craig Finn’s talk-sing storytelling – even got an appearance on The Colbert Report! They’re also incredibly overrated, but certainly have fun outdoors (QRO live review outdoors). They come to Boston Calling (QRO photos at a festival the weekend before) behind their sixth full-length, March’s Teeth Dreams (QRO review).
Bleachers – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 3:55 PM Jack Antonoff of fun. (QRO live review) recently launched his own indie-pop side-project, Bleachers.
Sky Ferreira – JetBlue Stage, 3:05 PM Sky Tonia Ferreira (QRO photos at a festival) grabbed eyes & ears by just uploading videos of her songs onto MySpace, but shifted from her electro-pop into incorporating more experimental sounds on her delayed debut full-length, Night Time, My Time. She comes to Boston Calling (QRO photos at a festival) after opening for Miley-twerkin’-Cyrus…
S. Carey – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 2:15 PM Once upon a time, Justin Vernon was just known as the touring guitarist for The Rosebuds (QRO spotlight on). But then he put out his own material as Bon Iver (QRO live review), and the rest is history (including his work in Volcano Choir – see above – The Shouting Matches – QRO album review – and GAYNGS – QRO album review). S. Carey is best known as the drummer in Bon Iver, but Sean is a solo artist in his own right (QRO photos at a festival), with his excellent new Range of Light (QRO review).
Also: Clifflight – JetBlue Stage, 1:40 PM St. Nothing – Capitol One 360 Red Stage, 1:05 PM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7th

Nas x The Roots – JetBlue Stage, 9:20 PM One of the most consistently strong rappers for more years than you realize has been Nas (QRO photos at a festival). His 1994 debut Illmatic has been consistently ranked as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time, and follow-up It Was Written made him internationally famous (as did a ten-year feud with Jay-Z). More recently, he and Damien Marley of reggae fame & family collaborated both on record & live (QRO photos together at a festival), donating all the royalties to African charities, and in 2012 Nas put out his tenth studio album, Life Is Good. Yes it is for Nas, who comes to Boston Calling behind the twentieth anniversary of Illmatic. And he comes to Boston with the ‘best band in late night’! Black Thought & ?uestlove’s outfit (QRO photos at a festival) has met with critical and popular acclaim for years now, fusing hip-hop and jazz into an original & enjoyable package, along with collaborating with just about anyone you can name. Four years ago, the group (QRO photos outdoors) signed on as the house band for the new Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (QRO Music on Late Night TV), and now serves on the new Tonight Show (and are partly responsible for it moving to the Big Apple), and while this limited their touring (QRO photos at a festival in New York), not so their records, like 2011’s Undun (QRO review) and this year’s …And Then You Shot Your Cousin. And the Philly natives, when not slow-jamming the news with President Obama, find the time to come to Boston Calling (QRO photos outdoors) with Nas.
The Replacements – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 8:15 PM When the Pixies (QRO live review) reunited at Coachella in 2004, we couldn’t have known how far and how great the trend of alt-rock reunions would become in this century/millennium. There’s been Dinosaur Jr. (QRO live review), Pavement (QRO live review), and now The Replacements! The band basically originated/defined ‘college rock’ in the eighties with classic albums on local indie imprint Twin/Tone (QRO deluxe edition reviews), before graduating to major label status for the second half of their impressive discography (QRO deluxe edition reviews). They called it quits in 1991, well after members like guitarist Bob Stinson and drummer Chris Mars had left, with only singer/guitarist Paul Westerberg and bassist Tommy Stinson remaining from the original line-up. Westerberg went on to a successful solo career, while Tommy Stinson (QRO solo photos) has managed to be the ultimate rock ‘n’ roll utility player, working in such outfits as Soul Asylum (QRO spotlight on) and even Guns n’ Roses (QRO photos at a festival), plus doing his own solo material (QRO solo album review). Bob Stinson unfortunately passed away in 1995, and more recently his ‘replacement’ Slim Dunlap was hospitalized from a severe stroke – which led to tons of musicians who were influenced by The Replacements to do a series of special, limited edition seven-inches in Dunlap’s benefit. And most recently, Tommy teamed up with Westerberg and Mars for the Songs For Slim EP (QRO review) – and now a full-fledged reunion (QRO photos of first reunion appearance – though Mars seems to prefer the life off the road – or just still can’t work with Westerberg…)! It was over twenty years ago that The Replacements were one-by-one replaced by their roadies at the band’s final concert in Chicago’s Grant Park (famed as the ‘It’s Not Over ‘Til the Last Roadie Plays’ concert), and last year they returned to that stage (QRO photos at a Chicago festival) – plus, recently guest-spotting on rhythm guitar has been Billy Joe Armstrong (QRO photos of them with Armstrong at a festival)! Even if you’re too young to have caught ‘The Mats’ in their heyday, catch ‘em now, ‘cause you don’t want to be like Art Brut (QRO interview), “How have I only just discovered The Replacements?!?” (now if we can only get a reunion from ‘other’ great band from Minneapolis, Hüsker Dü – QRO spotlight on…)
Spoon – JetBlue Stage, 7:10 PM As The Tick would shout, “Spoon!!!” Austin’s Spoon (QRO live review outdoors) has been turning heads in the indie-sphere for a while with their trademark indie-rock, but with 2007’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (QRO review) & 2010’s Transference (QRO review), the group (QRO photos at a festival) has launched into the stratosphere, including headlining at New York’s own ultra-upscale Radio City Music Hall (QRO live review). A festival veteran (QRO photos at a festival), including headlining fests (QRO photos headlining a festival), they come to Boston Calling (QRO photos at a festival this summer), now behind this fall’s release of They Want My Soul. Three cheers for “The Underdog” (QRO video)!
The 1975 – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 6:05 PM Manchester’s The 1975 (QRO photos at a festival) turned heads with their Sex EP in 2012, even though it wasn’t very good (QRO review), and have kept that up with last year’s self-titled debut full-length.
Twenty One Pilots – JetBlue Stage, 5:00 PM The somewhat uninspired pop of Twenty One Pilots (QRO photos at a festival) comes to Boston Calling behind last year’s Vessel.
Lake Street Dive – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 3:55 PM After meeting at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music, jazz-soul outfit Lake Street Dive (QRO photos outdoors) became, “Two girls, two guys, and a whole lotta feelings.”
The War On Drugs – JetBlue Stage, 3:05 PM Claimed to be “Best New Music” by Pitchfork for their 2011 album, Slave Ambient, The War On Drugs are often known for the jauntily confections of atmospheric guitars and rolling drums (QRO live review). The Philly outfit (QRO photos) later saw member Kurt Vile spin-off for his own successful career (QRO live review), and followed up Slave with March’s Lost In the Dream (QRO mp3 review).
White Denim – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 2:15 PM Out of Austin’s psychedelic rock scene comes White Denim (QRO live review at home in Austin), but they’re more accessible than most psych-rock (QRO live review), if also correspondingly less inspired (QRO photos at a festival).
Also: San Fermin – JetBlue Stage, 1:40 PM – QRO photos at a festival Gentlemen Hall – Capital One 360 Red Stage, 1:05 PM

For festival website, go here: http://fall.bostoncalling.com/