Second annual 80/35 concert to rock Des Moines – Ben Harper and Public Enemy will headline the 2009 80/35 Music Festival July 3-4 in downtown Des Moines.

Other national acts on the bill include Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Matisyahu, G Love and Special Sauce, and Girl in a Coma as well as Iowa bands Cleo’s Apartment, Beati Paoli, House of Large Sizes, Josh Davis Band and Floodplane.

Advance tickets are on sale at IowaTix.com: $70 two-day pass, $35 Friday single day pass, and $45 Saturday single day pass. There will be a limited number of advance single day passes ...]]> Vacation Iowa 2009: Top places to go, things to do : Full Article

Other national acts on the bill include Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Matisyahu, G Love and Special Sauce, and Girl in a Coma as well as Iowa bands Cleo’s Apartment, Beati Paoli, House of Large Sizes, Josh Davis Band and Floodplane.

Second annual 80/35 concert to rock Des Moines – Ben Harper and Public Enemy will headline the 2009 80/35 Music Festival July 3-4 in downtown Des Moines.

Other national acts on the bill include Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Matisyahu, G Love and Special Sauce, and Girl in a Coma as well as Iowa bands Cleo’s Apartment, Beati Paoli, House of Large Sizes, Josh Davis Band and Floodplane.

Advance tickets are on sale at IowaTix.com: $70 two-day pass, $35 Friday single day pass, and $45 Saturday single day pass. There will be a limited number of advance single day passes available. VIP passes to the festival have sold out.

A midwest alternative country band has decided to stop printing and selling CDs, and is now offering their new songs to owners of the new Josh Davis Band MP3 Digital Portal Key —JDBMP3DPK for short — a USB flash drive imprinted with the band’s logo.

The Josh Davis Band is selling the JDBMP3DPK only at shows for $6 – preloaded with 3 new songs. Fans return to future shows and bring their flash drives for more content — new songs, live tracks, videos, photos, whatever the band wants to give out, as long as it fits on the drives.

(special appearance by St. Vitus & the Taxi Dancers)

National headliners will converge with top local and regional acts at 80/35 presented by U.S. Cellular on July 3 and 4 in downtown Des Moines’ Western Gateway Park. 80/35, the second annual summer music festival organized by the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition (DMMC), announced 11 of the more than 40 acts scheduled to appear over 4th of July weekend.

Acclaimed national acts Ben ...]]> 80/35 Music Festival : Ben Harper and Relentless7, Public Enemy, Matisyahu, and More To Perform at 80/35 : Full Article

Acclaimed national acts Ben Harper and Relentless7, Public Enemy, Matisyahu, Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Girl In A Coma will celebrate their Independence Day weekend at the epicenter of Interstates 80 and 35 (80/35). House of Large Sizes, The Josh Davis Band, Beati Paoli, Cleo’s Apartment, and Floodplane are among the Iowa-homegrown bands announced. Additional acts will be announced in the coming weeks.

National headliners will converge with top local and regional acts at 80/35 presented by U.S. Cellular on July 3 and 4 in downtown Des Moines’ Western Gateway Park. 80/35, the second annual summer music festival organized by the Greater Des Moines Music Coalition (DMMC), announced 11 of the more than 40 acts scheduled to appear over 4th of July weekend.

Acclaimed national acts Ben Harper and Relentless7, Public Enemy, Matisyahu, Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Girl In A Coma will celebrate their Independence Day weekend at the epicenter of Interstates 80 and 35 (80/35). House of Large Sizes, The Josh Davis Band, Beati Paoli, Cleo’s Apartment, and Floodplane are among the Iowa-homegrown bands announced. Additional acts will be announced in the coming weeks.

Last years’ 80/35 drew an estimated 30,000 people to see more than 40 acts on four stages, including The Flaming Lips, The Roots, Andrew Bird, Black Francis, and Drive By Truckers. The 2009 80/35 will again feature more than 40 acts over the two-days. The festival will include acts in both free and paid areas of the event. Both areas will house interactive art, activities, vendors, resting places, food and beverage sales, and plenty more. A fireworks display is planned for Saturday, July 4.

“Since the inaugural 80/35, Des Moines has seen a surge of promoters bringing new and exciting music to the city,” says Amedeo Rossi, DMMC project manager. “The goal of the DMMC is to grow the city’s music scene and we see a lot of activity out of our local bands with new records and tours. This year’s event will continue to expand the growing base of music fans and provide an even higher profile for the Des Moines music scene.”

Advance tickets are on sale now at IowaTix.com: $70 two-day pass, $35 Friday single day pass, and $45 Saturday single day pass. There will be a limited number of advance single day passes available. VIP passes to the festival have sold out.

“I usually get something from our record art tattooed on me,” Davis said in a phone interview from his home in Ankeny. “The cover artist is also my tattoo artist, Joshua Bowers. He has lots of unique art.”

Davis’s desire to record music is insatiable, producing three albums in as many years for Authentic Records, since he began the Josh Davis Band. “Get Awesome” was just released in October and he is ready to go back into the ...]]> Des Moines Register : Music Scene

Music Scene: Band’s provocative album artwork often ends up on Josh Davis’ skin
The cowgirl riding the make-believe bull (a barrel and skull) with a beer in one hand, a tambourine in the other and a prosthetic leg makes for provocative album artwork. As the cover of “Get Awesome,” the latest CD of the Josh Davis Band, it soon will become an interesting tattoo on the body of Josh Davis.

“I usually get something from our record art tattooed on me,” Davis said in a phone interview from his home in Ankeny. “The cover artist is also my tattoo artist, Joshua Bowers. He has lots of unique art.”

Davis’s desire to record music is insatiable, producing three albums in as many years for Authentic Records, since he began the Josh Davis Band. “Get Awesome” was just released in October and he is ready to go back into the studio. Another testament to Davis and his band’s prolific nature: There’s not one but two hidden tracks on their “10-song” CD, (which is why “June” looks like it lasts 14 minutes).

“I don’t know why. Maybe I have [attention deficit disorder]. I can’t sit still for very long. I get tired of things and want to do something new. Otherwise I get stir crazy,” Davis said.

On the other hand, Davis can drive his band mates a little crazy. During the recording of this album, the band showed up at the studio expecting to play one tune only to find out that he had changed his mind and written a new song, “Tambourine Girl.”

“They were annoyed, because they hadn’t rehearsed it. So they learned it on the fly,” Davis said.

Add “producer” to Davis’s credentials. While his first two albums were produced by the Nadas, “Get Awesome” was produced by Davis, and the team of Jon Locker and Tony Bohnenkamp at their Des Moines studio, The Sonic Factory.

Davis’s unique writing and the excellent musicianship of his band make it a genuinely fun listen. Paul Hart’s power chords and slashing riffs complement Davis’s crisp, clear vocals. Will Locker’s driving beat and Dusty Baird’s solid bass playing provide a firm foundation on rockers like “Pocket Rocket,” “Coal Black Heart” and “Tambourine Girl.” Plenty of nice hooks highlight the mellow tunes like “Sweet Suffocation” and “Dirt” and the acoustic rock song, “For the Last Time Liza.”

“I am not trying to make people sit there and ponder any deep meanings in our songs,” Davis said. “Most of the songs on our latest record are pretty straightforward rock and roll tunes about drinking and carrying on. There is no political agenda.”

Perhaps Davis’s songs are like his tattoos. “People always ask me what my tattoos mean,” Davis said. “All my tattoos are chapters and moments in my life. Nothing too deep, like destiny or fate.”