Meshells new album "Devils Halo" due out October 6th... you can pre-order...

http://blogs.myspace.com/...=507482890

...and if you're in NYC on the 6th

Tue oct06
New York New York
Highline Ballroom: 8pm (The Roots party gig afterwards too)

and a bunch of tour dates to kick it into gear...


Wed oct07
Cambridge Massachusetts
The Middle East: 8pm

Thu oct08
Washington D.C.
Black Cat: 8pm

Thu oct15
Detroit Michigan
Music Hall: 8pm

Fri oct16
Chicago Illinois
Old Town School Of Folk Music: (Two sets: 7pm & 10pm)

Sun oct18
Minneapolis Minnesota
Dakota Jazz Club & Restaurant (TWO sets: 7pm & 9:30pm)

Thu oct22
Los Angeles California
El Rey Theatre 8pm

Fri oct23
Oakland California
Town Hall

Sat oct24
San Francisco California
The Independent

Tue oct27
Seattle Washington
The Triple Door

Wed oct28:
Bellingham Washington
Nightlight Lounge: 9pm

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[Edited 9/24/09 15:51pm]

YES !!!!

^
^
updated the tour info a bit to include the info about two sets at the Minneapolis stop....

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[Edited 9/24/09 15:50pm]

early review of the new "Devils Halo" record from someone who got an advance promo copy...

Tue Sep-22-09 10:10 PM by antoniovaladez:
"Im listening to the new Meshell album...

I love it. Im objective as can be. Bright sounds
and guitar chords. Some electronic drums but
much more live drums. Some double time beats and
just beautiful guitar chords that float. Meshell continues to pour
her soul in the the delivery of the album.

edit.. WAIT SHE COVERED LOVE YOU DOWN!! wow!!

Loving this! "

....

http://antvala.wordpress....vils-halo/

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[Edited 9/28/09 17:21pm]

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http://www.meshell.com/

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interesting that Lisa Germano is on the new record

i remember seeing her play with John Cougar Mellencamp in 1987

i wonder if they know each other through John

i wonder if John listens to her

this is the only music release i am looking forward to this year

this and more reviews & interviews about the new record can be found over at

http://freemyheart.com/ev...#988100271


"Making Music On Her Own Terms"
by Sarah Rodman for the Boston Globe on October 2, 2009

Meshell Ndegeocello lets out a low chuckle when asked if she's worried her fans might think she's been hitting the bottle based on some of the boozy characters on her new album, "Devil's Halo."

There is "Lola," who imbibes until she passes out. One drink is too many and yet there are not enough drinks in the world to get over an ex on "Hair of the Dog." And the album ends with "Crying in Your Beer," a bleak plea from someone who seems to have fully grasped the concept of mortality.

"I live in a small town that's full of watering holes, and I get to see a lot of drama unfold," she says, letting her throaty laugh fade over the line from her home in Hudson, N.Y. "That's what's hard — everyone thinks everything's about me."

To the mainstream pop audience, Ndegeocello is best known for her "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp in 1994. But the singer-songwriter and bassist has made a series of solo albums devastating in their emotional content and adventurous in their musical spirit. "Devil's Halo" — with its collisions of trip-hop, psychedelia, pop, R&B, and jazz — is no exception.

"I listen to everything from prog rock to Human League to Joy Division to Ready for the World," says Ndegeocello, who'll play the Middle East Downstairs next Wednesday. "I'm one of those people — I really, really, really love music. So I just try to listen to as much as I can, and I guess through my filter it comes out in different ways."

Indeed, Ndegeocello's unique filtering process has endeared her to critics, fellow musicians, and a robust cult of followers who managed to find a point of entry at some stage of her deliriously eclectic career. Some signed on with her hipster funk hit "If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night)" when she was among the first signees to Madonna's Maverick label in the early '90s. Others came on board with the Mellencamp duet. Jazz fans became enamored following her improvisationally minded, all-star releases featuring luminaries like Jack DeJohnette, Pat Metheny, and Cassandra Wilson. And still others came to know Ndegeocello first as a sought-after side woman with artists as disparate as Joshua Redman, Alanis Morissette, Indigo Girls, and Karl Denson.

Metheny, who calls Ndegeocello "one of my very favorite artists," says the element that truly sets her apart is her "deep sense of personal vision."

"She is a strong and unique player with a strong and unique concept — and for me that is the draw," Metheny says. "There just are not that many people around that truly have their own thing. She is one of them."

Ndegeocello lets out a mock nefarious chuckle when she ponders the underlying reason she has been able to synthesize so many influences without sounding derivative. "I'm kind of an [expletive]. I really like my individuality, so I guess there's something in my psyche that's always like, 'but how can I destroy it and make it my own?"'

She certainly manages to do that to a cover of "Love You Down" by aforementioned boy band Ready for the World. Ndegeocello deconstructs the '80s slow jam for the 21st century, breaking down the backdrop with pounding high-hats and serpentine keyboards covered in fuzz but never losing sight of the core melody or innate sexiness of the May-December homage.

"I don't buy a lot of R&B; it hasn't fed me lately," she says of her decision to revisit a high school favorite. "I wanted to do something that would show that I really have love for it but was trying to hear it in a different way."

That statement could essentially serve as Ndegeocello's musical motto. It's evident in the catholicity of sounds on "Halo" that somehow hang together — like the way that "Slaughter" shifts on a dime from trippy electro-folk to violent rock swells, or how the bitter and dramatic "Lola" unspools with an unwieldy guitar solo into a wash of dreamy ambience that wouldn't sound out of place on a mid-period Genesis album. Darkness and light battle for equal time with the former winning beautifully in the deep melancholy of Lisa Germano's cello on "Hair of the Dog."

"I guess I'm weird. I like the darkness. I'm not afraid of it as much anymore," she says.

Ndegeocello has her work cut out for her when it comes to composing a set list.

While she reassures that she will be playing some of her older material, she says she's reached a "new place."

"What influenced the making of 'Devil's Halo' is I wanted to write songs that I'd like to play for a long time," she says. "These are grooves that can grow and change and evolve, and the songs are solid enough to depart from them. So when you come to the live show, I hope people understand I'm not ever going to be Katy Perry or Beyoncé, who I love. I'm just a musician and I play with amazing musicians, so hopefully they'll come check it out and I can keep live music alive."

Thanks for the post.
Very interesting to read..can't wait to hear the album !

justhemusic said:

Yes!
Go to media section, there is 2 new tunes to listen to:
Slaughter
and
Mass Transit
Honestly folks, if the more "outside" Meshell turns you off, stay away. All others, enjoy! For real. I love this stuff and cannot wait for Devils Halo.
Her studio stuff never disappoints me.

can't wait! thanks for the info

Im intrigued about the Ready for the World cover...

Thanks for the update. The Black Cat is just around the corner from my house. Think I'll try to check her out. I loved her first two records. I haven't paid much attention to her recently. I did see her live once and she was in a bad mood. But maybe I'll give her another chance.

saw her last year in NYC and the crowd seemed like they wanted to hear her old R&B style songs but she played mostly fast rock/jazz style songs

that is what i like about her.....you never know what to expect

japanrocks said:

Chris Bruce produced this album. Chris is best friends with Jill Jones who introduced him to Wendy & Lisa. He was part of their original touring band (with Cole, Susannah and Carla Azar). Lisa Germano became a part of their extended family during Wendy & Lisa's Girlbros era and they all kind of circle the same musicians album and tours and what not. All except for Jill...I take it that's because she lives in New York.

Glindathegood said:

cool, i'm in the next state over and was thinking about trying to catch the the Black Cat gig in DC since its so close. How is that club? Is it good audio-wise? I'd love to catch that stop, but the only thing is it's on my wifes birthday so i think i probably should be a good husband and do something SHE really wants to do on her birthday night instead of taking a road trip for something I want to do;)

all good though...i am going to the Chicago show in the middle of Oct...

hey if you do catch the Black Cat set report back the details if you get a chance...thanks.

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[Edited 10/4/09 4:47am]

errant said:

You're welcome.
I've heard Devil's Halo.Local wrecka stow had it early. It's out this Tuesday Oct.6th.
Like I said earlier, if your not a fan of her "outside" stuff, stay away. Those who dig here newer stuff, rejoice, again.
I love this album. I don't often hit the repeat button for albums but this is an exception. It kinda consumes you. Then again, I'm biased. I dig her newer stuff.
For Devil Halo's, think TWHMMTMOMD mixed with Bitter. More direct and to some degree, less accessable. But all the better for it.I can't say enough about this album. For the real heads, pick this up Tuesday. Music this unique and powerful is few and far between.And no I don't work for Meshell. I wish.
Btw, Love You Down the Ready For The World cover is, simply put, sublime and perfect.Def 420 friendly.

Bfunkthe1 said:

Thanks, looking forward to this. Sounds good as always!

heheh...this just happened yesterday...

i went into my local record store on the hunt for some good movie deals (along with music they sell used DVD's used Blu ray's etc) ....so i'm browsing the movie section and as i'm doing that i'm caught by the music they're playing over the store speakers...not sure who it is but has a real nice sound to it...a lot of space to it, with some swirling guitars...the vocals were real loose and floaty like, not quite falsetto but high...anyway the song intrigued me enough to go to the counter to ask the dude who it is they were playing, (after all, when the wallet agrees, i dont mind popping down a little cash to support a new artist who's got an interesting sound. Hell, thats how i came across Meshell back in 1993 ....

so i ask the dude who he's playing, and he says,

'oh, thats the new Meshell Ndegeocello record...'...



heheh...i guess shoulda known right?

...seriously though, even though i've been a huge fan of her stuff since 1993, i had NO idea it was Meshell they were playing...but i definitely liked what i heard. Not sure what song it was, but it had a nice 'airy' feel about it...it had 'room' and a looseness to it that was instantly 'refreshing' to my ears...thats what made me go ask who it was in the first place, the song just gave off an 'airy/fresh' vibe that attracted me to it...(i know thats a weird description, but thats what came to mind at the time

anyway not long after he told me who it was thats when i heard Meshells deeper voice come into the tune here and there (that probably would have been a giveaway who the artist was had i heard her recognizable deep voice at first, but the higher voice i initially heard i actually didn't recognize as Meshell at all...

..so yeah...i'm thinking i'm gonna really enjoy this new record...

and btw: i had to leave the store so i couldnt hear the entire album. (i kinda want to wait till tuesday to hear it all at once with my best headphones anyway) but the cool thing is, talking with the dude working at the store it turns out he's a fan of Meshells stuff too. when i asked him how he thought the album was and he just shook his head, grinned and said, 'man its awesome, the whole thing...'


.

I had her first cd signed at tower records when it came out

review of recent boulder show...

http://causeequalstime.co...-10-21-09/