Happie Hoffman

One Liner: The Cantorial Soloist for Temple Israel in Memphis (?!?!)

Wikipedia Genre: None, but Jewish chanting?  And maybe opera?  And maybe indie acoustic guitar solos?
Home: Memphis

Poster Position: 23
Both Weekends.  

Weekend One - Sunday.  Weekend Two - Friday.

Thoughts:  Well, there is something I didn't expect today.  According to Wikipedia, assuming this is the same Happie Hoffman, this gal is on staff at a Reform Jewish synagogue in Memphis, Tennessee.  Wikipedia says he is the Cantorial Soloist for the synagogue.  According to myjewishlearning.com, "a cantor — hazzan (חזן) in Hebrew — is the person who chants worship services in the synagogue."  "Beyond their responsibilities as prayer leaders, contemporary cantors typically also officiate at lifecycle events, teach bar and bat mitzvah students, and sometimes provide pastoral services."

Mmmmkay.  She has no Spotify presence other than appearing on songs for two other artists.  The best of those two is absolutely Zach Singer's "Adonai Malach," because the Laura Copel track sounds like a normal Christian music drivel.  The Singer song is slightly groovy and good.

Happie has a website - happiehoffman.com - but it pretty much just says coming soon.  The announcement from Temple Israel that she started there says she is native to Memphis, and was trained in opera at Indiana University.

Seriously, what the hell is going on here?  Is this like the niece of one of the C3 people or something?

I think this is her, being as her name is so very different that I can't imagine there is another woman singer with her name:

Sure.  Really pretty voice.  I have no clue what this is doing on the poster.  Maybe they're adding her to the Gospel stuff on Sunday morning (or adding a new Jewish chanting portion on Saturday morning?  Am I going to find a Muslim muezzin somewhere on the poster as well?

Traveller

One Liner: Folky acoustic featuring Robert Ellis
Wikipedia Genre: No Wikipedia page
Spotify Says Similar To: Not on Spotify (see below)
Home: No clue, I'm going to guess Houston since that is where Robert Ellis is from?

Poster Position: 19
Slot: ?

Thoughts: Interesting.  The ACL bio for this band is non-existent, and they just provide a link for one YouTube video and a link to a "website" which is actually a link to Instagram.  Well, Spotify has a bunch of bands called Traveller or some variation of Traveller (listed in the order they appear on Spotify):

• Traveller - Not in English, the cover of the album is in Asian characters.  One song over 1k plays.
• Chippewa Travellers - Crazy Native American chanting and drums.  No song over 1k streams.
• Traveller - heavy metal screaming.  No song over 1k streams.
• Traveller - thumping club mixes of a song called "Bright Sign" (68k streams) and then also a metal-ish rock instrumental called "I Want You," a chill instrumental called "Lazy Sunday," and a jam-band-ish rocker called "Mud, Wind and Dust," [sic, where is my oxford comma, dammit?] all of which have less than 1k streams.
• Euphonic Traveller - super chill electronic for use poolside in Ibiza (hundreds of thousands of streams)
• Time Traveller - roaring metal.  Top song at 153k.
• Reeltime Travellers - bluegrass.  Top song at 216k (that was used on the Cold Mountain soundtrack, FYI)
• The Traveller Band - Irish traditionals, each song barely over 1k streams.
• Travellers Music.  Hip hop, no song more than 1k streams.
• Travellers - old school reggae, a few songs over 1k, but barely.
• The Travellers - jumpin' and jivin' swing.  The only big songs are covers of Stones songs.
• Nate Traveller - hip hop.  Two songs, none with more than 1k streams.  Actually not bad.
• The Traveller - straight up techno beatzzz.  19k streams for top track.
• Last Traveller - folky Irish music.  1,049 for top track.
• Sotu the Traveller - trippy electronic, kind of Thievery Corp.  66k for top track.
• Travellers Lodge Atomic 8 - World music.  No clue where from, heavy on horns and, like, marimbas.  2k songs for top track.
• The Travellers - no clue what language their song titles are written in, but every city on their About page is in Malta, so I'm guessing that is Maltese?  37k for top track.
• The Tyme Travellers - rock-ish tunes that sound like they were made with an iPhone in the womb of a dead elephant.  2k for top track.
• The Incognito Traveller - mod flute and xylophone tunes?  What am I even doing now? 2k for top track.
• Ethel Waters & the Travellers.  1920's stuff.  46k streams.
• Die 3 Travellers.  Accordion.  Polkas.  I've made it to the 7th Circle of Traveller Hell.
• There are still a crapton more - Misterious [sic] Traveller, Drei Travellers, Pilgrim Travellers, Sunset Travellers, Mysterious Traveller, World Traveller, Mindprint Traveller, The Millennium Traveller, Electric Traveller, Space Traveller, Time Travellers, Arkansas Travellers, The Chilled Traveller, Travellers Journal, Perry & the Travellers, Sun Travellers, Susuehanna Travellers, The Canaan Travellers, Midnight Travellers, My Fellow Traveller, Mystic Traveller, Armchair Traveller [I SWEAR I'M NOT MAKING THIS SHIT UP], Joe Traveller, The Fellow Travellers, Grand Trunk Travellers, Taj Majal Travellers, Tricks Upon Travellers, Acoustic Travellers, etc.  I swear to God it goes for like another 50 band names.
• Wikipedia lists The Travellers as a Canadian band from the 50's.

All of that, as a very long winded way of saying: MAYBE YOU DUDES SHOULD LOOK AT A NAME CHANGE?!

So, with no Spotify music that I can find (because none of those bands above have a song called "Western Movies," which is the only hint I have about who these guys are), I gotta go with the YouTube videos.  Oh shit, that is Robert Ellis.  So watch the video for this one:

Robert Ellis has a great voice - very distinctive.  He came to ACL a few years ago.  Do you think these guys like Western movies when they are lying alone in their bed because they think old John Wayne was hot?  I think that is the message of the tune.  Nice harmonies, pretty good for just two acoustics and a big dumb red van.  The other song available on YouTube that I could find is their "first song," called "Nobody Makes it Out."

Sound on that one is terrible - you can hear the breeze blowing by their iPhone that is wedged on a rock balancing on a guitar case leaning up against a stump over across that clearing.  Although I do like the bird chirps in the second verse.  I think I'd rather just hear Robert Ellis again.

Recommend? No.

Julien Baker

One Liner: Beautiful acoustic folky emo

Poster Position: 20

Thoughts:  Very simple stuff, but this is damn pretty music.  She's got one album, 2015's Sprained Ankle, that showcases the songs she write with very little in the way of instrumentation or flourish, and then a live Spotify Sessions set of songs as well.  Her most listened to track is also her most popular, with just over 5 million streams, this is "Everybody Does."

Criminy, man.  That is beautiful, and powerful, and sad.  Hot damn.  She's got three other songs that top 1.5 million streams, so she's not burning up the world but is getting a good number of listens.  Here is the title track to her album, "Sprained Ankle," which has 1.5 million streams.

If she's a day over 12, I'd be shocked.  Weird video with no explanation for why she's rocking an eight grader's basketball uniform.  But another lovely song.  Super simple, but the lyrics are so good. Here is a good interview with her about what it is like to be queer and Christian in the south - interesting read.  This is beautiful music, and I'm going to add this to my Q of music to keep listening to in general, but I can't imagine that these quiet and precious songs would translate well to the big stage in Zilker.  Maybe I'm wrong.

Liza Anne

One Liner: Acoustic indie folk

Poster Position: 26

Thoughts:  This is one way that the poster position is so deceiving.  You'd think that this artist, fifth last on the poster and second to last if you don't include the gospel bands, should be terrible.  Instead, her most popular tune, "Lost," with 4.4 million streams, is freaking gorgeous.

Haunting and pretty, with the banjo tweaks to make it a little more grounded.  I like that song a lot. This is from the newer album, 2015's Two, which is good overall.  The second most popular track on Spotify for her is also on that album and is a little less ethereal, called "Take It Back," which has 1.1 million streams.

Full band sound, a little bit of a rock n' roller.  Very different from the first single, but equally pleasing.  I've been busy at work today, and just kept this rolling all day long and liked it a good bit. Its nice music, not so sure how that will translate to the big stage, but she has a nice voice and write good songs.  She has one older album, 2014's The Colder Months, which is also good.

I kind of doubt I'd go see her play, but I wouldn't be opposed.

Vance Joy

Very likeable pop indie.  Heavy on the strumming guitar and pretty spare arrangements, along with a solid voice.  His initial single/hit blew up in a huge way, and as of now has more than 236 million listens on Spotify.  "Riptide"

Nothing wrong with enjoying some uke.  For some reason, he put his law degree on hold to go and dominate the world with that single.  Can't understand who would choose that over law.  Weird.  Of note, I wrote the first portion of this review before I left to go on vacation for a week, and since then, the play count on Spotify for "Riptide" is now up to 247 million.  11 million more listens in two weeks! Pretty awesome.

His second most-listened to track is called "Mess is Mine," with more than 48.2 million spins. I've heard it somewhere before, not sure if the radio or what, but it rings a bell.  Got a Mumford and Phillip Phillips vibe.

Weird video.  Poor polar bear, he should go back to his iceberg.  Driving a gypsy cab looks like a terrible plan for him.  This music is good.  Not sure I'll prioritize Joy over others on the schedule, but he'd probably be nice to go see.

Jose Gonzelez

Plainly beautiful indie acoustic.  Jose Gonzalez taps into some visceral point in my brain that just makes me relaxed and pleased with the world.  Not a lot of flash in his music, it is generally just his voice, his classical-style guitar, and maybe a little other accompaniment.  Lots of hand claps or guitar body taps.  I saw him come through ACL Fest a few years ago with his side project, Junip, and liked that quite a bit as well.

His most recent album, Vestiges and Claws, is really very good from start to finish.  I don't need to dig deeply into it since I already did a few months ago, but I stand by my sense of immense pleasure derived from the album.  I gave you a look at the most popular track off the album at that time ("Every Age," which is a beauty), but the most popular track from that album now is another track, called "Leaf Off/ The Cave," which is also awesome, and a little more driving.

Something about that video just caught me right up in it.  Weird shots, but it trapped my attention for a couple of minutes.  Video of people expecting stills is always entertaining.  Great tune, almost 5.3 million listens on Spotify.

Before that 2015 album, Gonzalez released 2007's In Our Nature, 2007's Stay in the Shade EP, and 2006's Veneer.  He is Swedish, with his family being from Argentina, but it feels impossible to classify his music based on place.  After reading my review of Vestiges and Claws, my friend Noah reminded me that Gonzalez's music had been used heavily in the The Secret Life of Walter Mitty movie/soundtrack.  Which is likely why it sounds like something that would underscore a guy's search for meaning in this life.  In line with that, the most listened-to track on Spotify for Gonzalez is "Stay Alive," from that soundtrack, with 21.5 million listens:

That video is cleverly titled "The Secret Life of Jose Gonzalez" and has a feeling of some of the movie scenes.  I like it.  And the other song from the soundtrack that I remember, which was used to great effect in the trailer, is called "Step Out."  Here is the trailer (skip to 1:35 if you just want the song):

Makes that movie sound amazing, right?  I did like the movie, but that montage of scenes with that song behind it made it even more powerful.

His most listened to song other than the one above is from the 2006 album Veneer, and is called "Crosses."  With almost 20 million listens on Spotify, it dwarfs almost everything else in his catalog.

I mean, how damn pretty is that music?  I like his more recent stuff better, I think it sounds more full than the older, more basic stuff, but I still can't mess with any of it.  I've spent the last couple days just listening to his music and see no reason to stop.  So good.  I expect to go check out the live show.

Boom Forest

Beautiful folk indie.  I mean, really lovely stuff.  This is one guy, John Paul Roney, making gentle tunes that recall classic folk tunes, with a few in here that sound more modern.  I definitely prefer the classic sound over the modern, but all of them are good.  When I read the band name on the poster, I figured this was going to be another EDM group, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear this great stuff instead.

Also of note, the guy is very weird.  Read the "Aboot" section of his website.  Or see his answers to this American Songwriter piece.

Anyway, one album, from 2014, and also called Boom Forest.  Only one tune appears to have an official video - "Baby Teeth" (almost 7k listens on Spotify):

Cool track.  BTW, there are no rocket launches or thunder in the studio version of the track. That version definitely changes the feel of the tune, but you get the idea.  Here is the most listened to track on Spotify (almost 11k listens), called "No Lion" and featuring another band called Phox.  This is obviously not the studio version, but you'll have to go to Spotify for that.

Killer harmonies and nice lyrics as well.  The opener to the album ("Wooden Heart") sounds like David Wilcox to me.  I love David Wilcox's music (even if his ramblings can be a little cray cray). "Clean Coal" evokes the ultimate touchstone for this type of music, Nick Drake.  "Shadow of a Doubt" sounds like some War on Drugs or new Mumford, until it switches in the middle and becomes a quiet folker.  "Analog Cowboys," with the In-the-Air-Tonight drum break in the middle and more strident sound, is also totally different, more arena ready and pop sounding.  Interesting and fine album.  Good discovery way down at the bottom of the poster.

Strand of Oaks

Folky rock now, grown out of a more Americana sound.  I checked out this band's most recent album at the end of 2014 because it made the Grantland top ten albums of the year list.  I was so put off by the fact that the writer compared the album to the Smashing Pumpkins that I don't think I ever really gave the music a chance to stand on its own.  Totally not the Smashing Pumpkins.  But pretty good if you get over trying to compare it to that band.

The band is a guy named Tim Showalter, who has a massive beard of beauty.  That most recent album (2014's HEAL) more reminds me of old Arcade Fire using the Cure's synths ("HEAL") or some late-80's / early-90's jangle rock like the Replacements ("Goshen '97") or a Ryan Adams-esque dad rock thing. The most popular track on Spotify is that last song, "Goshen '97"

Here is the second most popular tune he has on Spotify, called "Shut In"

This one sounds more like War on Drugs or Ryan Adams.  Confessional rock and roll anthems ready to have a lighter raised to them in the crowd.  I love that line though, about when he was born, everything good had already been made.  He's got some pretty salty hot-molten-lava guitar solos in here, like on both "JM" and "Mirage Year."  I like this album.  More so now than when I first listened to it, but it is also a little uneven.

The album before this one, 2012's Dark Shores, is a gentler, folkier album.  "Little Wishes" or "Satellite Moon" are the two best tracks from that album.  Then there is 2010's Pope Killdragon, which is even stranger, with an opening instrumental track that sounds like a Dark Side of the Moon outtake, then he goes with a really light touch on acoustic guitar tunes until some sludge guitar rock action on "Giant's Despair," only to go right back to chilled acoustics with a few synth flourishes.  It's actually damn pretty, even when it transitions back and forth.  Really good rainy day music.  Finally, you've got 2009's Leave Ruin, which is more pretty acoustic Americana with some banjo/mandolin thrown in that doesn't show up in his later work.  Some extremely pretty music on this one.  Talented guy.

I think this would be a pretty good show.  He shows a lot of angles in his music, so I'm not sure which one you could really expect, but all of the different facets are good ones.

Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors (2015)

Tight folky rock harmonies.  Six albums available on Spotify, so he's been around the block for a while, but I hadn't heard of him before.  He sounds a lot like David Gray to me, and the backing music is fabulous.  He's a Nashville guy, and according to Wikipedia does a lot of work with the local Young Life group there in Nashville.  His music has also been pimped on a ton of shows, which makes sense, this music has the sound of tender moments on TV dramas.  The most listened to tune on Spotify is called "Live Forever"

Nice, right?  That comes off the 2011 album Chasing Someday.  The most recent album, 2014's Medicine, is fun, playful folksy rock and tender melodies with a lot of soul.  Here is the album opener, "American Beauty"

And he just keeps going.  "Avalanche" is a lovely love song in the Ryan Adams vein, "Tightrope" is a fun rocker, "You'll Always Be My Girl" aims for the Avett Brothers and Rhett Miller crown of best off-the-beaten-path wedding first dance song. A waltz at that!  This is really a fine album.

Cool artist that I'll check out if I get the chance.

James Bay

Pleasant piano rock.  Is that damning praise?  Two EPs, one from 2013 and one from 2014, so his stuff is relatively recent.  Hopefully one of his album covers later down the line does not involve the same drawing of his Smokey the Bear hat with stringy hair and his nose poking out underneath.  I bet he'll come up with something by 2015.  This one is an acoustic only version of his most popular tune - Let It Go (thankfully, not a Disney cover):

Soulful stuff, right?  His second most popular song is from the earlier EP, called When We Were On Fire:

Still wearing the Arby's sign on his head, but again it is pretty soulful and simple.  I like it.  Weird part is that these videos don't sound quite like the studio versions, so it makes my comment that he plays pleasant piano rock sound insane.  Just believe me, his most recent EP is full of piano.  Or go listen for yourself.  After making it through all of his music, I like him.  I wish the dude would go find a kick ass band to front - his voice is strong and expressive.  His stuff is good, but I think he could be fantastic in front of a good band.  I'm going to put him in touch with Guns n Roses.