As Sam Sessa reported in today's Baltimore Sun, U2 is bringing it's mammoth 360 Tour (featuring The Claw) to Baltimore on June 22, 2011. Tickets will be made available starting Monday at 10am.
So, after a month's worth of speculation, prompted by a premature U2.com post that had the date and the city before being removed, it's finally official!
This marks the first time U2 has ever played a stadium in Baltimore.
The last time they did a show here was on October 19, 2001, during their Elevation tour at the Baltimore (now, First Mariner) Arena.
And a few us may recall what almost was, what could have been, when, in 1992, U2 scoped out stadiums where they could rehearse their, then, colossal Zoo Tv tour. Baltimore made the final cut, but alas, noise concerns from Memorial Stadium neighbors prompted the band go a little further up I-83 and camp at Hershey Stadium.
Volunteers make an incredible contribution to WTMD throughout the year. They help out around the office, represent the station at area events, and keep us sane during pledge drives.
Volunteers also share some of their favorite music with TMD staffers. (We're looking at you, Fletcher.) A few of our favorite volunteers weigh in on the Top Songs of 2009 below.
Musical Memory of 2009 The Beltways playing "Ring of Fire" at my wedding.
Pam Cohee, Volunteer for 3 Years
U2, "Moment of Surrender"
Matisyahu, "For You"
Assembly of Dust, "Second Song"
Trevor Hall, "Where's the Love"
Eric Lindell, "Turnin' It Out"
Musical Memory of 2009 Seeing Trevor Hall at the Sound Garden music store with my kids. Trevor played a free show, for about an hour for maybe 30 people!! The sound that these 3 musicians produced was unbelievable and Trevor's voice and message are just beautiful. Thanks, WTMD for introducing us to Trevor Hall!
Bridget Cooper, Volunteer for 3 Years
Passion Pit, "Sleepyhead"
Devendra Banhart, "Baby"
The Avett Brothers, "January Wedding"
J.J. Grey and Mofro, "Orange Blossoms"
Blitzen Trapper, "Black River Killer"
Musical Memory of 2009 Seeing Ghostland Oberservatory--as well as many other fabulous bands--at the Austin City Limits Festival.
Beth Lacey Gill, Volunteer for 1 Year
Animal Collective, "Summertime Clothes"
St. Vincent, "Actor Out of Work"
Regina Spektor, "Laughing With"
Phoenix, "Listzomania"
Tyrone Wells, "More"
Musical Memory of 2009 Actually, one of my favorite moments was volunteering with WTMD for one of their fund drives. It's so easy to find common ground when you look around a room, and see everyone singing along to the lyrics of "Lisztomania." Plus, I left with more than just a good feeling from volunteering. I also made some new good friends and got a few live pointers on some killer music before it was ready for the air. So, so cool.
Cindi Jansohn, Volunteer for 6 Years
Creed, "Time"
Enter the Haggis, "DNA"
Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam, "Tear Down the Walls"
Cheryl Wheeler, "Underbrush"
Will Hoge, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart"
Musical Memory of 2009 Seeing Victor Wooten up close and personal at Rams Head Tavern and seeing him perform with his kids. They were awesome!!!!
Chris Killam, Volunteer for 1 Year
Snow Patrol, "Just Say Yes"
Ingrid Michaelson, "Maybe"
Imogen Heap, "First Train Home"
Vampire Weekend, "Horchata"
Lisa Hannigan, "I Don't Know"
Musical Memory of 2009 Going to see Ingrid Michaelson at the Recher.
Fletcher McNeill,Volunteer for 7 Years
Portugal. The Man, "The Home"
Wye Oak, "For Prayer"
Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, "I'm Broke"
Heartless Bastards, "The Mountain"
The Bowerbirds, "Ghost Life"
Musical Memory of 2009 Hearing Wye Oak play new songs that would become "The Knot". It was amazing to hear these songs and know that they had really matured in both production and songwriting.
Elizabeth O'Shea
Levon Helm, "When I Go Away"
The Avett Brothers, "I and Love and You"
Levon Helm, "Stuff You Gotta Watch"
Cage the Elephant, "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked"
Neko Case, "This Tornado Loves You"
Jen Raffensperger, Volunteer for 1 Year
Gomez, "Little Pieces"
Spoon, "Got Nuffin'"
Caleb Stine, "Eyes So Strong and Clean"
Will Hoge, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart"
Mike Doughty, "(I Keep On) Rising Up"
Musical Memory of 2009 From the Young Dubliners in the TMD studio in February to the simply spectacular weather--and show--for Guggenheim Grotto at First Thursday in July.
2009 was a year of real ups and downs for me, but music was a constant comfort.
Randy Schreffler, Volunteer for 1 Year
Ingrid Michaelson, "Maybe"
Langhorne Slim, "Say Yes"
Vandaveer, "Divide and Conquer"
Guggenheim Grotto, "Fee Da Da Dee"
One Eskimo, "Kandi"
Musical Memory of 2009 Ingrid Michaelson concert at the Recher. Walking in, I was not sure what to expect. Ingrid put on one heck of a show. The band came out after the show to say hello to fans and stuck around to take pictures, sign CD's and just get to know their fans. Very cool band and one that I will remember for a long, long time.
Mary Zajac, Volunteer for 4 Years
Passion Pit, "The Reeling"
Phoenix, "1901"
Roman Candle, "Why Modern Radio is A-OK"
Vetiver, "Everyday"
The Duke & The King, "If You Ever Get Famous"
Musical Memory of 2009 I was fortunate enough to attend some fabulous shows this year: Butch Walker at the 930 Club, Elvis Perkins and Blitzen Trapper both at the Ottobar, the Hold Steady at the Recher, the Duke and the King performing at a house concet (my first). A great year for music.
Given the speedy evolution of digital music and the devolution of cd's, for maybe just a little while longer, we can take a look back at the year and pick our favorite full-length albums.
In the future, we'll probably debate which was the best mp3 of the past twelve months. But, for at least a sense of future nostalgia, I submit to you, my Top 5 Albums of 2009 and why I picked 'em.
1. Bell X1- Blue Lights on the Runway - An aviation inspired band name and album title, clever lyrics, inventive new wave hooks go right for the gut, but Paul Noonan's sincere, yet almost deadpan delivery will keep the songs in my brain receptors for years to come.
2. Neko Case- Middle Cyclone - As fearless and compelling as a record can get, the red headed siren gets savagely revealing on these boundless songs made all the more so by jazz-like tempo and idea shifts and killer lines like "the next time you say forever, I will punch you in the face." Hurts so good!
3. Cotton Jones- Paranoid Cocoon - Michael Nau and Whitney McGraw, the Cumberland duo who used to front Page France, go from child-like pop wonderment, to darker, psychedelic harmonies that would be perfect cure for a fever in a Western Maryland cabin.
4. U2- No Line on the Horizon - This was a very slow burn for me. But, then again, so was Achtung Baby and this record, if you can believe it, actually tops it! Like the Berlin-inspired 90's opus, this collaboration with Eno and Lanois was dying in the Moroccan desert until Bono, Edge, Larry, and Adam came together around a magical song about addiction, called "Moment of Surrender." What resulted after that, is a living-on-the-grid gospel album that would sound right pouring out of a minaret or a church.
Watch Eno talk about that song.
5. Animal Collective- Merriweather Post Pavilion - Every year, I look for a record that doesn't sound like anything else; that doesn't faithfully beg, borrow, or steal, from anything.... that has no equal. The Boys from B'more deliver that kind of album, a sonic extravaganza that's intense, sexy, psychedelic, harmonic, pulsating, and sometimes, moving. Put this one in the time capsule!
We'd like to know what your favorite songs are for the year. Click here to vote and listen back on 12/20!
I call this my War and Peace mix. It's about having your own mind and not letting others rule your thoughts, and being open-minded and seeking a peaceful solution to things instead of trying to get your own way.
"Zor and Zam," by The Monkees
"They," by Jem
"Nobody Right, Nobody Wrong," by Michael Franti & Spearhead
"Philosophia," by Guggenheim Grotto
"Everybody Wants to Rule the World," by Tears for Fears
7 a.m. Brandon Hurley
These songs make me think of the financial crisis. We started with the flood of consumerism and high expectations, which have all come crashing down.
We all try to escape through different ways. Some react with medication, some pine for "good old days," others just try to deal with life and try to hang on to hope of a better place. But, at these times we all need to rally around each other.
"First Day," by The Futurehead
"Interesting Drug," by Morrissey
"Compositions for the Young and Old," by Bob Mould
It's a mix of great tunes, a couple of which WTMD has turned me onto in recent years, and it's a mix of some trippy grooves interspersed by rockin' tunes from great bands. Just great music that fits my alma mater's station's style!
"Rebellion (Lies)," by Arcade Fire
"Eple," by Royskopp
"Have You Once Recalled the Days?" by Warren Zanes
"What Are You Afraid Of," by West Indian Girl
"Valerie," by The Zutons
1 p.m. Kristin Symes
These are pretty much my top five favorite songs right now. I picked them because they are a great mix from a variety of different genres, with a progression from upbeat to soft and chill.
"If She Wants Me," by Belle and Sebastian
"Something to Talk About," by Bonnie Raitt
"Staple It Together," by Jack Johnson
"Give It Away," by Zero 7
"Day Dreaming," by Lupe Fiasco and Jill Scott
2 p.m. Keith Pozanek
The "x" files + god & the devil. Most of these excellent songs received little or no airplay. I am a closet DJ.
The theme may be obvious: all women! I think this lineup would go over well, and I love Ms. Sara's tune for local flavor.
"9 to 5," by Ms. Sara and The Help
"Lonely Love," by Juliana Hatfield
"Hurt So Bad," by Susan Tedeschi
"Rehab," by Amy Winehouse
4 p.m. Mary Thomas
Representative of the darker side of love and relationships.
"We Both Go Down Together," by The Decemberists
"Fly," by Moxy Fruvous
"Cold Kisses," by Richard Thompson
"Break Your Heart," by Barenaked Ladies
5 p.m. Amanda Krotki
These are all songs from Cameron Crowe movies and we're overdue for a really great new film from him.
"I Can't Get Next to You," by The Temptations, Elizabethtown
"Vanilla Sky," by Paul McCartney, Vanilla Sky
"Tiny Dancer," by Elton John, Almost Famous
"Dyslexic Heart," by Paul Westerberg, Singles
"In Your Eyes," by Peter Gabriel, Say Anything
6 p.m. Laura McGuire
These are all artists I've seen live in the past year, courtesy of WTMD: emerging artist concerts, First Thursdays, member concerts, Baltimore Unsigned tapings, in-studio performances.
You guys bring great music to Baltimore!
"Stop and Think It Over," by Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles
"Good Day," by Jukebox the Ghost
"Emancipated Minor," by Ani Difranco
"Frera," by Fools & Horses
"A Little Bit of Riddim," by Michael Franti and Spearhead
Just announced: U2 will play five consecutive nights on the Late Show with David Letterman Monday March 3rd through Friday March 6th! That's almost as awesome as Joaquin Phoenix's interview w. Dave last night!
If you want to find out where you can hang out with Jessica Alba and Citizen Cope or Sting and Denzel Washington this weekend and early next week, just click on this highlighted link.
The forecast calls for painfully cold weather down at the National Mall on Sunday (at around 2pm), when Bruce Springsteen, U2, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Wonder and more take the stage in front of the Lincoln Memorial for a 90 minute concert. It's free and open to the public.
Word is, each artist will perform a song each, but keep an eye out for some collaborations.
If you miss that, you can still catch Elvis Costello and Michael Franti (which is cool, because, much to his regret, he was in Canada and NOT Chicago the night Obama was elected- his plane did make a stop in Chi-Town), and more around town, during a star-studded week of history!
Hopefully, Sunday at The Mall will look something like this:
So it's been 20 years since U2 released the classic album The Joshua Tree. They'll be giving it the deluxe treatment to re-release it next week. And I found a little gem when searching for details. Take a look as Bono introduces a song that was salvaged from those original recordings.
The song is titled Wave Of Sorrow and it has the heart of U2 in mind, but I'd love to hear form U2 fans... Do you think this newly finished song could stand next to the tracks on The Joshua Tree?
Last night's awful Ravens game in Pittsburgh was matched equally only by the awful weather. It was pouring sheets of rain and fog shrouded Heinz Field. But, trying to look at the glass half full despite the pitiful outcome for my favorite football team, last night's weather coupled with a rabid crowd got me to thinking about my favorite live album of all time, UNDER A BLOOD RED SKY.
Fog and a cold rain enveloped Red Rocks Amphitheater on June 5, 1983, the day four Irish lads took the stage amidst lighted torches and an eager crowd, and blasted out one of the most passionate performances ever recorded in rock and roll history. In fact Rolling Stone named U2's Red Rock performance as one of the "50 Moments That Changed Rock and Roll."
Though, only two of the songs taped at Red Rocks actually made the album, the video of the show captured U2 at the cusp of being something way more than four guys banging on instruments. Plus, it gave us the Bono Mullet.
As Sam Sessa reported in today's Baltimore Sun, U2 is bringing it's mammoth 360 Tour (featuring The Claw) to Baltimore on June 22, 2011. Tickets will be made available starting Monday at 10am. 
