Thursday, Jul. 02, 2009
Rock out with your grill out on Independence Day
Weekly Surge Cookout
Surge Cookout Video
It is official, Independence Day weekend is here. What does that mean for us here in the Myrtle Beach area? Fireworks and high returns in the tourism business, but these rewards are often associated with the downside - unmovable traffic, overstuffed restaurants and crowded beaches. So, what do many of us as residents choose to do? Stay home of course. While we are being held hostage by invaders - we might as well make our imprisonment a party.
With July being known as the National Grilling Month and National Hot Dog Month, it is only natural for us to gather around the grill and throw some meat and accoutrements on the grates to sizzle while we fry in the summer heat. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, "On Independence Day, Americans will enjoy 150 million hot dogs. That is enough to stretch from Washington D.C., to Los Angeles, Calif., over five times." Now, that is one hell of wiener train, but maybe hot dogs are not your thing. It is safe to say, that we all love the smell of a grill permeating the neighborhood - whether it is coals or gas lifting those savory scents into the hazy air, propelling them on the summer breeze, to tempt our senses with any number of tantalizing delicacies.
This weekend, the spirits will be high as we celebrate our freedoms. With food and drink in our hands, surrounded by family and friends, the party is inevitable but there are several considerations when planning any event. You have to factor the menu, the ambiance and of course, the music.
In the age of the iPod, it is easy to forget how an album - yes, that's what the still call them - can have a life of its own. Good albums cannot only serve as the background noise of a party - it can set the atmosphere, lead the conversation and control the whole vibe.
The following is an all inclusive guide - a guide to help you choose the right lineup for your festivities. There are recommendations for the eats, the drinks, and the ambience to match the music - a whole kit-and-caboodle to serve as a package deal to maximize your experience. The guide only contains relatively recent albums in favor of the classics to keep your festivities current. All the food and spirits can be easily Googled for recipes. So sit back and relax while we do all the legwork to provide you with a one-stop shop for your perfect weekend rock-out grill-out.
The Food: Scottish Salmon Resting on Savoy Cabbage with a Mushroom Vinaigrette
The Drink: Glenfiddich Scotch, if you can afford it, or Johnny Walker Red if you are on a budget
The Lighting: The lonely moonlight
The Album: Paolo Nutini's "Sunny Side Up"
This is the voice of an old soul crooner coming out of the mouth of a kid fromScotland. Nutini's sophomore albumlaunches from a strong foundation that was builtwithhis debut, "These Streets." An infusion of folk, pop and reggae - all topped off with harmonies dripping with soul. Loose, touching and fun - this album reaches heights first set by Van Morrison and Motown.
The Food: Chili dogs
The Drink: Budweiser in the can
The Lighting: A bon fire
The Album: Kings of Leon's "Only By the Night"
You can take the kids out of Tennessee but you can't take the Tennessee out of the kids. After four albums, Kings of Leon found the perfect mixture. "Only by the Night" blends catchy hooks with dirt fields and swamp mud. It is raunchy and outspoken, filled with songs that stick in your head and roll off your tongue.
The Food: Barbecued Beef Short Ribs with Collard Greens
The Drink: Soul Trip Tipple
The Lighting: Lamps with red scarves draped over the shades
The Album: Raphael Saadiq's "The Way I See It"
When Saadiq formed Tony, Toni, Tone back in the day, who'd a thunk that 20 years later he would be releasing this brilliant ode to '60s and '70s soul? The production sounds modern but grooves and vocals are all throwbacks. Lyrics that are potent today interlaced with the sounds that moved a million booties from Philadelphonic to Motown to Cali soul. Turn your lights down low and get dirty.
The Food: Cheese and Fruit Fondue
The Drink: Sour Apple Martinis
The Lighting: Lava lamps
The Album: The Bird and The Bee's "Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future"
If you are into late night episodes of "Laugh-In" or "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," then this is your party. All short skirts and a kaleidoscope of color - smooth vocals ride the smoother production of Greg Kurstin, who was obviously inspired by Burt Bacharach. Retro-jazz sung by Inara George with a tongue in one cheek and a sweet peppermint in the other.
The Food: Boiled Goose and Chex Mix
The Drink: Santana DVX
The Lighting: Any form of neon
The Album: The Lonely Island's "Incredibad"
Lonely Island is the musical legacy of "Saturday Night Live's"Andy Samberg and writers,Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone. Born of Samberg's"SNL Digital Shorts," this album works as a musicalcomedy album from start to finish. Attempting one genre after another, from '80s disco to gangsta rap, "Incredibad" succeeds in being both hilarious and absurd. The musical guests: T-Pain, Jack Black, Chris Parnell, Justin Timberlake and Natalie Portman only add to the laughs. Gather your friends, stuff your face and prepare for spit-takes.
The Food: Grilled Oysters with Butter
The Drink: Hand Grenades and Hurricanes
The Lighting: Gas lamps
The Album: Dave Matthews Band's "Big Whiskey & the GrooGrux King"
DMB's latest is a fitting tribute to their fallen brother and the band's saxophonist, Leroi Moore. With its Louisiana sound and loose jams, Matthews has returned to his bread-and- butter. It is a New Orleans' funeral, opening like a main line with a sax intro, and then barreling forward with a second line that is vintage Matthews. This album deals with love and death, life and the dealing with all the pitfalls. A couple songs and you'll find yourself dancing that goofy little dance that DMB's music provokes.
The Food: Las Vegas Style Prime Rib
The Drink: Screwdrivers made with cheap vodka
The Lighting: Canned colored lounge lights
The Album: The Killer's "Day & Age"
Let us not split hairs here, The Killers are pompous. Brandon Flowers and co. are cheap rip-offs and at best a good bar band. But hey, they are from Vegas! That is what Vegas is all about - regular people using their style as currency. That is what The Killershavein spades ... style. So let this little band try to make big music. Let Flowers and the boys reach for the stars. If they succeed, they make great pop songs and if they fail, they make fun songs with silly lyrics. Either way, The Killers' albums are perfect party fodder.
The Food: Shrimp Kabobs and Grits
The Drink: Whiskey Tonics
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The Lighting: Black lights
The Album: Ben Harper and the Relentless 7's "White Lies for Dark Times"
Harper's new album is a very obvious change in direction from his past efforts with TheInnocent Criminals.It is comparable in both sound and tone to Jimi Hendrix moving away from The Experience to The Band of Gypsies. The blues are sharper. Harper's voice is less falsetto and more pointed. The songs that have always been a blend of political and personal issues now seem more personally political. Harper's guitar is wailing and the Relentless 7 chug right behind him like a freight train, both following his lead and pushing him in the same motion. Gritty, raw and reflecting the climate we live in today.
The Food: Provencal Grilled Lamb Chops with a Side of French Fries
The Drink: Champagne Mimosas
The Lighting: Candlelight
The Album: Melody Gardot's "My One and Only Thrill"
Gardot has Fiona Apple's flow minus all the spite and resentment.This album is elegant, yet sexy. If you close your eyes, Gardot will transport you to a smoky piano bar where men seduce their mistresses, poets write in the dark corners and a chanteuse moves to the soft melodies like a silhouette in a dark room. In other words, she is like a French Norah Jones - only entrancing instead of sleepy.
The Food: Aged Beef with Grilled Vegetable Salad and Anchovy Butter
The Drink: Night Train
The Lighting: Spotlights
The Album: Guns 'N' Roses' "Chinese Democracy"
Alright, so it is not really Guns 'N' Roses. It should be the "Axl Rose Bad Experience" or the "Wait a Decade Band" or the "Maybe One Day Group" or the "How Many Guys Do You Need to Play Guitar Orchestra?" Whatever the case, Rose finally released the album that he has been talking about for half of his career. The masses really wanted to hate it. Even diehard GNR fans wanted to hate it - but guess what? It is a good rock record. Rose shines with bravado and arrogance - like a street kid made good - eating in expensive restaurants with dirty fingernails and talking belligerently over the string quartet. With the current state of all of the original GNR line-up, it is safe to say this is as close to the real thing as we need to get. This is a rousing collection perfect for rockers, young and old, looking to bridge the divide.
The Food: Spicy Sour Chicken (Hold the Sweet)
The Drink: Hard Limeade
The Lighting: Glow-sticks and strobe lights on low setting
The Album: Kanye West's "808s & Heartbreak"
This is Kanye West'sLed Zeppelin III, almost devoid of rap, experimenting with the vocoder effects that were made famous by T-Pain (and before that Zapp'sRoger Troutman). "808s & Heartbreak" is a bitter album. It is a document of harsh breakups, loss of loved ones and solitude. But leave it to West to make heartbreak a joy to listen to. This one will pump up moods of the lonely hearts club.
The Food: Grilled Irish Flank Steak
The Drink: Pints of Guinness
The Lighting: Strobe lights on a high setting and glow-sticks
The Album: U2's "No Line on the Horizon"
U2 is whatever U2 wants to be. Both worldly and grounded, these four guys have stood shoulder-to-shoulder for three decades,creating memorablepop music with creditability. That is not to say that they haven't released alums that pinnacled with one or two songs, swimming in filler. This is not one of those albums. Finishing out the decade with a boom, "No Line on the Horizon" has the bumper-to-bumper feel of past greats, "The Joshua Tree" and "Achtung Baby." So get on your boots, wave your flag and drink a pint.
The Food: Smothered Pork Chops
The Drink: Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka
The Lighting: A String of Christmas Lights in July
The Album: Conor Oberst's "Outer South"
"Outer South" is a mess. It sounds sloppy. The front man for the ever promising Bright Eyes takes a new direction for his second solo album. Enlisting a full band, The Mystic Valley Band, his usual skeletal songs are given that big band feeling, with additional singers, organs and out-front electric guitars. It is like sitting on a front porch at sunset listening to a gaggle of good musicians just riffing and exploring where the sound takes them. That is not to say that there is no structure, this is Conor Oberst we are talking about, but here he allows his inner control freak to sneak into the kitchen for a beer while he sets the groundwork and lets his new friends loosen him up. You should follow his lead.
The Food: Bangers and Mash
The Drink: Snotty Punk Cocktails (It exists, we swear)
The Lighting: The soft glow of a TV in a dark room
The Album: Green Day's "21st Century Breakdown"
The Kings of Pop/Punk are back. One thing is certain, these guys do not care about fans yelling, "Sell Out!" What they do seem concerned about is stretching in whatever direction will make a better song. This album weaves through acoustic guitars to string arrangements to falsetto vocals to screaming and hard three cord progressions, often in the same song. Fearless, for a trio that started off back in the early '90s with an album named "Dookie." This is a genre-busting opus that soars in directions that "American Idiot" reached for. It has a unified feel that moves in crests and waves, essential for any party.
The Food: Jamaican Jerk Chicken
The Drink: Dr. Funk Cocktails
The Lighting: Tiki lamps
The Album: Michael Franti and Spearhead's "All Rebel Rockers"
The usually very political Michael Franti decided to take a break from lobbying the left, to make a truly fun dub reggae record. Big bass, percussion and synthesizers spin a good time on every song. Franti does slip in some politically-charged lyrics, but the beats always make them feel more optimistic - like a new millennium mix of Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. The spoken vocals over the catchy hooks make your head bounce and your booty move. A sure hit for any party involving frozen drinks and dancing.
The Food: All American Veggie Burgers
The Drink: O'Doul's Non-Alcoholic Beer
The Lighting: Bug zapper
The Album: Eminem's "Relapse"
Yes, I know. Eminem is so five years ago. It may be true, sometimes his lyrics are a little outdated, the skits between the songs are corny and occasionally his attempts to shock his audience just feels desperate. But that is the funny thing ... he knows. The theme of his latest outing deals with his recent stints in rehab for substance abuse. He is the biggest butt of his own jokes and most of his music teeters on the absurd. From the true accounts of his life to the wild flights of fantasy, Marshall Mathers is never boring. He is the Andy Kaufmann of rap - a multi-personality who can turn any situation into entertainment. Plus, his talents as a rapper and producer are unique to the point of unparallel. Not recommended for a family gathering but for those not easily insulted - let it rip.