The Church of Birch

A few months ago I heard an interview with Diane Birch on NPR. I was intrigued. It wasn’t until her song “Fire Escape” showed up on a sampler from my music-pusher (see Summer Tours) that I sought out her full album. Once I started listening to it, I couldn’t stop. Her gospel-infused retro soul music had me hooked. When I saw that she was playing at Le Poisson Rouge in NYC, I had to check out her live show and see if she was the real deal. Last Tuesday I attended what can only be called the Church of Birch.

Call Us Invincible

Thursday night I ventured out to the very edge of Brooklyn to see the Call Me Invincible tour with Pat Benatar and Blondie. I returned home with a few thoughts. First, it’s true what a man once told me, “rock ‘n roll is not an aesthetic or even a sound, but a spirit. And you can't kill a spirit.” Second, while the crowd is critical to the experience of live music, it’s possible to enjoy a show in spite of a lame audience. Finally, despite the focus on youth in today’s media, older women are cool. We will inevitably bring more to the table than our teen and twenty-something sisters. It’s not that we don’t love our younger sisters. We remember what it was like being young but, honestly, it’s WAY better now. Plus, generally we’re just better at whatever it is that we do because of all those years of experience. Thanks Patricia and Debbie for reminding me.

Watts and SWIK Drummers

The passing of writer/director John Hughes last week brought back a rush of ’80’s memories. He wrote some classic comedies including National Lampoon’s Vacation and Mr. Mom. Yet for many of us, it was movies like Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off that captured our high school experiences with stories and music that came to, dare I say, almost define a generation. My favorite of his films was not a huge hit. Some Kind of Wonderful starred Mary Stuart Masterson as quirky drummer chick, Watts. I’ve seen this movie so many times, I’ve lost count. John Hughes movies reminded me of Watts, which started me thinking about female drummers.

Santigold

As I’ve written previously (see Ring A Ting Ting) music can be heard in many places. I’ve admitted to finding music on some pretty cheesy TV shows, so here’s another one. I discovered Santigold (formerly Santogold) on this season’s So You Think You Can Dance. I love to dance and am thrilled there’s a TV show that highlights all genres of dance from hip-hop to ballet, as well as ballroom. Go ahead and laugh, but not only is it an outlet to see amazing dance routines, it’s a great place to discover new music. There have been two routines to Santigold’s music this season, so I finally had to check out her album.