With jam bands rampant throughout the country, I could understand the apprehension towards listening to yet another one. However, The New Deal has an edge. This group of three guys out of Toronto, Canada has a unique distinction. Jamie Shields, Darren Shearer and Dan Kurtz were all front men of their own respective bands until they collectively decided to leave their own groups and create something entirely different, hence their name. None of them had a background in house or electronica, but according to Darren, “We wanted to leave everything behind and focus on playing new music.”

Thursday night was a night of celebration in Charleston, and not without cause. Halfway through their set at the Music Farm, Dublin born singer/songwriter and front man Dave King announced that they got wind of a peace talks in Ireland. King, with a Guinness in hand, ordered the crowd to put their “dancin’ shoes on” and celebrate the historic news.

“Loud, Fast and Traditional!” is how Dennis Casey, guitarist for Flogging Molly, described his band to me. The first two adjectives were to be expected for a band with a reputation for rowdy shows and a name like “Flogging Molly.” However, “traditional,” caught me off guard. As the night progressed, I began to see what Casey was talking about. Although they have the stage presence of typical world-class rock stars, their respect for their Irish roots and musicians before them was clear. Many of the instruments Flogging Molly uses can be traced back to traditional Irish music including the accordion, tin whistle, uilleann pipes, mandolin and banjo.

Willie Nelson is synonymous with everything that is American. The worn acoustic guitar, the bandanna, the boots, the Texan roots all bleed red, white and blue. His music is nothing but iconic. This is why despite the unusually chilly weather last Thursday night in Jacksonville, nineteen hundred people flocked to the Florida Theatre.

His own son, Lukas Nelson, along with his band, The Promise of the Real opened for Willie. At first, I have to admit that I was skeptical.

I thought that Lukas would be nothing more than a product of his father’s success. I was quickly proven wrong. Lukas’s powerful, distinctly unique voice and the screaming guitar pierced the air.  Even more amazing was his ability to play the guitar with his teeth to close his set.

Despite a long night of miscues including car troubles and torrential rain, I made it just as Yonder Mountain String Band was taking stage last Friday night. As I was approaching the Music Farm in downtown Charleston, I felt the buzz of excitement and anticipation from a block away. People, dripping wet, desperately asked me if I had tickets to spare. The show had been sold out for two days, but that clearly wasn’t going to dissuade them. Being from Colorado, I was familiar with the Boulder County based group, but I had no idea that they would be so well embraced in the South.

I pushed my way through the doors and was taken back by how packed the venue was. It was comparable to a Tokyo subway during rush hour. There were over 1300 concertgoers packed into the Music Farm’s modestly proportioned music hall. One of the many unique qualities of this band that I noticed throughout the night was the wide range of people they attract. There was everything from rowdy college kids to grandparents square dancing in the back.

Magazine Avenue

One of Savannah’s newer bands, Magazine Avenue, has quietly established a following in this town known for it’s musical heritage. Although Mag Ave, for short, is a product of SCAD along with perhaps hundreds of other bands, there is something different about these guys that is garnering them attention among the young. They bring to the stage a variety of sounds. Not only do they put their own spin on classics such as “Jolene,” they create tunes that when heard live stir something within. Their energy and candor makes you wanna laugh, sing and dance right along with them.

Thogmartin on Vocals

Last night at the Wormhole Bar, Savannah was introduced to not only a relatively obscure genre of music, but a whole new approach to creating it.

Everything about Ohio based band Papadosio is strange and intriguing. From their name to their sounds, this group approaches music from an entirely different avenue. Self described as a jam band, they have “[...] added electronica and applied it to rock and roll.” Tony Thogmartin (guitar, keys and vox) told me that there has to be an element of honesty in music. He said that, “We write music we feel no matter what it is,” and that they, “Don’t change the style of music to cater to what the audience wants.” Papadosio is all about their own auditory journey and self discovery.

It’s not common that a large act plays in a small venue, especially in Savannah. However, 2010 is looking up! This Tuesday, January 12^th, legendary underground electronica artist RJD2 is playing downtown at Live Wire Music Hall. RJ, as he refers to himself, hails from Philly and has made a name for himself remixing popular hip-hop songs.

Unlike the majority of today’s DJs, RJ strays from the simple track mash-ups and creates beats entirely unique and signature to his style. So if you want to experience a performance on the cutting edge of today’s music industry, check out RJD2 at Live Wire on Tuesday night at 10pm.

Does Christmas shopping make you anxious? Have all those parties and goodies at the office caused you to put on a few extra unwelcomed pounds? Is there no time left in your busy day to exercise? Does having all those family members gathered together under one roof cause added stress in your already hectic life?

Then it’s time to get away from it all and treat yourself to the gift of health this holiday season! Simply book a 3 Day Getaway or 1 Day Pass to one of the “Top 5 US Health Spas,” the Hilton Head Health in Shipyard Plantation. The island is only a short 30-minute drive from “bridge to bridge.” From the minute you set foot in the facility, you feel like you’ve been transported to a special oasis designed to help you re-focus your priorities and re-energize your life.