MPMF – Artist Review

For the next few weeks I will be using this blog to review the MPMF artists I have listened too. Part of this is to benefit others who will be attending the festival, and part of this is to benefit me. There are a lot of artists and writing my thoughts about them will help me remember which acts I want to see.

Allison Tartalia – So, this singer/song writer reminds me of Ani DiFranco without all the really rough edges. If you dig Ani you might dig Allison. I don’t really dig Ani. I don’t really dig Allison. She makes perfectly fine music. It’s just not my thing.

Annie and the Beekeepers – Loves it! The ladies providing vocals on this recording have rich, warm voices. The songs are bluesy and fun. There are lots of acoustic guitars and the production quality on the recording is great. These guys go on my want to see list.

Babe the Blue Ox – Pearl Jam, Alice and Chains, and Sound Garden get put in a blender. The result is Babe the Blue Ox. There is a 90’s rock sound to this band. There is a lot of stop and stutter drumming and lots of grungy fuzzy guitars punctuated by clean harmonics and quiet verses. I think this band probably puts on one hell of a live show. These guys don’t really produce music that I typically like. I just think their live performance would be worth seeing. These guys go on my want to see list. One other thing, they have a song called “spatula”; I enjoy this song title.

Banderas – These guys are a little bit Tool and a little bit The Strokes. They have a little less pop appeal than The Strokes. Their sound is dark and atmospheric. There seems to be a lot of talk-singing. There are some guitar riffs that rival 80’s hair band solos. These guys go on my want to see list.

Barnaby Bright – This acoustic group has polished vocals and soothing arrangements with violins and guitars. The female lead forms great harmonies with a male backing vocalist. These guys go on my want to see list.