Johnathan Rice's deep, whiskey tinged voice sends shivers down my spine. His gorgeous debut Trouble Is Real was easily one of the best albums of 2005, so to say that I'm excited about his new record would be an understatement. Slated for release on September 11th, Further North shows Riceexperimenting with new instruments and musical genres from sunny Americana ("What Am I Going To Do" and "End Of The Affair) to traditional country ("The Middle Of The Road" and "The Ballad of King"). I swear, I even hear elements of psychedelic rock ("THC") and punk ("Giving It Up"). Although it's not quite as poppy as his first album, the songs definitely still shine. Listen to the album streaming now on Myspace.
Last month, I wrote about the stellar new record from The Perishers, Victorious. Calling it "the definition of great music," I used 300 words to describe why I thought the songwriting, melodies, and Ola Kluft's emotive voice were incredible. I won't do that again, but now that the release date is upon us I thought I'd quickly remind everyone about the album.
In a word, Victorious is FANTASTIC. With a good mix of the sanguine and the somber, the record is a journey of good days and bad, love gained and lost, everything in between and then back again. It's this contrast of subject matter and emotional content that makes the album work on so many levels. More importantly, arguably, the songs are gorgeously lush, catchy, and memorable.
Victorious will be released properly in stores on Tuesday, but you can download it now on iTunes.
Tiny Dancers is not an Elton John tribute band. Believe it or not, they're not even named after the timeless classic of the same name. A pure coincidence, the band thought the phrase "tiny dancers" had a "good, positive feeling" and went with it. Any similarities with Mr. Crocodile Rock end there, at least musically.
Tiny Dancers play a brand of British rock that's on the twangy side, as if The Verve or the Stereophonics drank a little too much moonshine and started messing around with a steel string guitar and country harmonies. I've struggled with the best way to describe my favorite track, "I Will Wait For You," so I'll leave it at this--it feels like a booze soaked hootenanny. With a big, stomping beat dueling with an exuberant, driving guitar riff and a huge sing-a-long chorus, the song overflows with a fun sort of energy. You'll have it on repeat for weeks. [Myspace] Tiny Dancers [mp3] "I Will Wait For You"
We've been going on about NYC's White Rabbits for the better part of a year, and we're glad that others are noticing -- everyone from Pitchfork to The Village Voice and NPR to The Late Show With David Letterman. The band is not about to rest on their laurels yet -- they just made a video for "The Plot" [single of the year???], plus they'll be on the road with Tokyo Police Club and Kaiser Chiefs. No Boston date.
8.25 Ithaca, NY Cornell University w/ The National 9.6 Poughkeepsie, NY Vasser College 9.7 Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe 9.8 Columbus, OH Carabar 9.9 Dekalb, IL House Cafe 9.10 Saint Louis, MO Off Broadway 9.11 Columbia, MO Mojo's 9.12 Lawrence, KS Jackpot 9.15 Red Rocks, CO Monolith Festival 9.18 Dallas, TX House of Blues w/ Kaiser Chiefs 9.19 Houston, TX Warehouse w/ Kaiser Chiefs 9.21 Nashville, TN City Hall w/ Kaiser Chiefs 9.22 Atlanta, GA The Roxy w/ Kaiser Chiefs9 9.24 Chicago, IL The Metro w/ Kaiser Chiefs 9.25 Detroit, MI Majestic Theater w/ Kaiser Chiefs 9.29 NYC Beacon Theater w/ Kaiser Chiefs 10.18 Seattle, WA Neumos w/ Tokyo Police Club 10.19 Portland, OR Doug Fir w/ Tokyo Police Club 10.22 Las Vegas, NV Beauty Bar w/ Tokyo Police Club 10.23 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theater w/ Tokyo Police Club 10.24 Pomona, CA The Glass House w/ Tokyo Police Club
With all apologies for any inconvenience or disappointment it may cause, we have made a decision to move the September/October 2007 North American Cure shows to April/May 2008.
The schedule as it stands only gives us a couple of weeks to finish our new double album before we hit the road again, and we know this just isn’t enough time to complete the project to our total satisfaction.
Although this last month’s tour of Australasia showed that a great Cure show is not dependent on a new Cure album, it has to be remembered that we hadn’t played Australia for 7 years, New Zealand for 15 years, Japan for 23 years(!), and Singapore or Hong Kong ever before – so the absence of ‘new’ songs in the set was not really much of an issue.
However, we want to remodel/rework the live show for North America, change things around, incorporate new songs… and we need time and focus to do this.
So although we can agree it is a great shame to move these dates – believe us we have been looking forward to them more than anyone! – and know there will be a lot of disappointed people out there, we honestly feel that in the bigger picture we are making the right decision.
All tickets held for all 2007 North American Cure shows will be valid for the re-scheduled 2008 shows, and of course anyone who seeks a refund will be able to get one.
All validity/refund/rescheduling details will be announced as soon as we have them.
We are still going to headline the San Francisco Download Festival October 6th, and we will still be performing at the MTV Latin America Awards October 18th.
We will also play the three scheduled Sports Palace Mexico City shows October 20th/21st/22nd, as by this point we feel sure we will have finished the new album, and will be more than happy to start dropping a fresh song or three into the set each night…
Once again, our genuine apologies to anyone who is upset by this announcement - please be encouraged by our promise:
The Spring 2008 Cure shows will be even better than the Fall 2007 ones would have been!!!
08.27: Geoff Farina @ TT The Bears 08.28: VHS or Beta/Walter Meego @ Great Scott 08.30: Certified Bananas @ Great Scott 08.30: Hilary Duff/Maroon 5 @ Bank of America Pavilion 08.30: Mika Miko @ Mass Art 08.31: The Pill @ Great Scott 08.31: Backyard Tire Fire @ The Paradise Lounge 09.02: Jennifer Gentle @ Middle East Up 09.02: Mark Olson @ The Paradise
"No they're not a grunge tribute act. Rather, they're a three-piece from Glasgow whose effervescent British Invasion sing-alongs got them signed after only six months" - SPIN
Scottish trio 1990s are out doing the European festival thing right now, but as soon as the temperatures drop, the band will be making their way to the States. They'll be playing a host of dates with Voxtrot, The Long Blondes, Art Brut and The Hold Steady.
Sun - Oct 07 @ First Unitarian Church, Philadelphia, PA w/ Voxtrot Tue - Oct 09 @ The Mod Club, Toronto, ON w/ Voxtrot Wed - Oct 10 @ Zaphod Beeblebrox, Ottawa, ON w/ Voxtrot Thu - Oct 11 @ La Sala Rossa, Montreal, QC w/ Voxtrot Fri - Oct 12 @ Pearl Street, Northampton, MA w/ Voxtrot Sat - Oct 13 @ Middle East, Cambridge, MA w/ Voxtrot Sun - Oct 14 @ Maxwell's, Hoboken, NJ Mon - Oct 15 @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY w/ Voxtrot Wed - Oct 17 @ The Rock & Roll Hotel, Washington DC Fri - Oct 19 @ Bug Jar, Rochester, NY Sat - Oct 20 @ Beachland Ballroom, Cleveland, OH Sun - Oct 21 @ Southgate House, Newport, KY Wed - Oct 24 @ Larimer Lounge, Denver, CO Sat - Oct 27 @ Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA Sun - Oct 28 @ El Rey Theatre, Los Angeles, CA w/ Roky Erickson Wed - Oct 31 @ Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA w/ Roky Erickson Fri - Nov 02 @ Richard's On Richards, Vancouver BC w/ Long Blondes Sat - Nov 03 @ Dante's, Portland, OR Sun - Nov 04 @ Hi-Dive, Seattle, WA Wed - Nov 07 @ 400 Bar, Minneapolis, MN Thu - Nov 08 @ Empty Bottle, Chicago, IL Fri - Nov 09 @ The Basement, Columbus, OH Sat - Nov 10 @ St. Andrews Hall, Detroit, MI w/ Electric Six Tue - Nov 13 @ Granada, Lawrence, KS w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Wed - Nov 14 @ The Palladium Ballroom, Dallas, TX w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Thu - Nov 15 @ La Zona Rosa, Austin, TX w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Sat - Nov 17 @ Bottle Tree Annex, Birmingham, AL w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Sun - Nov 18 @ Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Mon - Nov 19 @ Toad's Place, Richmond, VA 2/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Tue - Nov 20 @ 9:30 Club, Washington DC w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut Wed - Nov 21 @ Terminal 5, New York, NY w/ Hold Steady, Art Brut
Broken Social Scene will be playing an intimate show at TT The Bears in Cambridge on Tuesday, August 28th. Part of the Myspace Secret Show series, the collective will play selections from core member Kevin Drew's solo album Spirit If. Wristbands for the free event will be available at TT The Bears on Tuesday starting at 2pm on a first come, first served basis. Since it's a small venue and demand will be high, I suggest lining up on the early side.
September means a lot of things--the start of fall, a new television line-up (Tim Gunn's Guide To Style!), and a brand new indie-pop masterpiece from Stars. The Canadian darlings' new disc In Our Bedroom After The War hits the shelves on September 25th, but don't wait... go ahead and download it right now. No, I'm not talking about an illegal leak, Stars made the album available for purchase online on the iTunes store to try and combat that sorta thing. Talk about embracing the digital age.
On first listen, I thought that the songs were good but lacked the odd flair that made their last album so brilliant and interesting (admittedly, it's hard to top a perfect record). In subsequent weeks, In Our Bedroom After The War grew on me considerably. Now, I view the disc as a mature offering that's solid from start to finish. Though a bit more somber and down tempo than previous efforts, the songs still shine as a result of gorgeous vocal counterpoint between Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan, flourishes of interesting instrumentation, and utterly intelligent songwriting. Here's the video for their first single "Take Me To The Riot," a jaunty caffeine frenzy of a song with the biggest foot stomping chorus that I've heard all year. Oh Canada, indeed.
The Cold War Kids: 09/08/07 Madison, WI @ Willow Island - Alliant Energy 11/17/07 San Francisco, CA @ Warfield Theatre 11/23/07 Los Angeles, CA @ Wiltern Theatre 11/27/07 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club 11/28/07 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club 11/29/07 Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of the Living Arts 11/30/07 New York, NY @ Webster Hall 12/01/07 New York, NY @ Webster Hall 12/04/07 Boston, MA @ The Roxy 12/11/07 Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater
And they are also on the road with Jack & Meg next month.
With The White Stripes: 09/13/07 Albuquerque, NM @ Kiva Auditorium 09/16/07 Austin, TX @ Stubb's BBQ 09/18/07 Chula Vista, CA @ Coors Amphitheatre 09/19/07 Inglewood, CA @ The Forum 09/21/07 Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre 09/24/07 Anchorage, AK @ George Sullivan Sports Arena 09/26/07 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre 09/27/07 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre 09/28/07 Nampa, ID @ The Idaho Center 09/29/07 Salt Lake City, UT @ The E Center of West Valley 09/30/07 Jackson Hole, WY @ Snow King Convention Center 10/02/07 Rapid City, SD @ Rushmore Plaza Civic Ctr Arena 10/03/07 Fargo, ND @ Fargo Civic Auditorium 10/04/07 Lincoln, NE @ Pershing Auditorium 10/06/07 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom 10/07/07 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom
I've been into this bluesy/garagey San Diego group for some time, but I got a little lazy and lost track of them. They spent this past spring recording their debut album with Blake Sennett [Rilo Kiley, The Elected], which sees the light of day exclusively on iTunes on Sept. 4th [with bonus track "Shot in the Alley"], but you'll be able to pick up a real life copy of Humanimals while their on the road. You can see Grand Ole Party opening for Rilo Kiley for most of September & October.
September 6 San Francisco, CA @ Warfield 7 Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom - MFNW 2007 8 Seattle, WA @ Showbox 11 Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre 12 Columbia, MO @ University of Missouri - Jesse Auditorium 13 Omaha, NE @ Sokol Auditorium 14 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue 15 Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre 17 Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre 18 Toronto, ONT @ Phoenix Theatre 19 Montreal, QUE @ La Tulipe 21 Boston, MA @Avalon 22 New York, NY @ Webster Hall 23 New York, NY @ Webster Hall 25 Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero 26 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club 27 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club 28 Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel 29 Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
October 1 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution 2 Lake Buena Vista, FL @ House of Blues 4 New Orleans, LA @ Republic 5 Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live 6 Dallas, TX @ Palladium 7 Austin, TX @ Stubb's BBQ 9 Tucson, AZ @ Rialto Theatre 10 Tempe, AZ @ Marquee Theatre 12 San Diego, CA @ SOMA 13 Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint 15 Los Angeles, CA @ Santa Monica Civic
Blood Red Shoes is currently putting the finishing touches on their debut album, which is being produced with Mike Crossey [Arctic Monkeys], plus they will have a new single out this October. Steven from the band said "we're looking forward to playing some of the new album material out on the road, and we've done our best to get the age restrictions down we wanted to pack everyone into smaller venues and have a riot so let's go!"
Check out their video tour diary above, or if you're in the UK, you can see them on the road -- dates are on their Myspace page.
I'm sure that every cool kid in Canada has heard of The Mohawk Lodge already. I always seem to be a few weeks late to the party when it comes to discovering the next super cool band. Hailing from Vancouver, The Mohawk Lodge plays a rootsy brand of indie rock that probably feels more at home around a campfire than on stage at a rock venue. With big throated vocals and slightly dischordant harmonies charmingly layered over flawless guitar accompaniment (be it dirty alt-country strumming on "Hard Times" or gorgeous acoustic plucking on "Making Music"), the songs are constructed in the perfect manner to allow the melody to shine. This band would probably appeal a broad spectrum of music fans, so check them out if you like bands as varied as Smog, Coldplay, and The Constantines. [Myspace]The Mohawk Lodge [mp3]"Wear 'Em Out"
08.21: Adam Franklin/Hopewell @ Great Scott 08.22: Tiny Vipers @ Great Scott 08.23: Static of the Gods @ Middle East Up 08.24: The Luxury @ TT The Bears 08.24: The Pill @ Great Scott 08.24: Helms @ Middle East Up 08.24: Copeland/Goldenboy @ Middle East Down 08.25: Stereo Total/The Octopus Project/Les Sans Coulettes @ Middle East Down 08.25: The Start @ Middle East Up
Minus The Bear released one of my absolute favorite albums of 2005, Menos El Oso. It was angular rock music at its best, yet refreshingly light and poppy at the same time. I basically listened to it non-stop for months until my roommates got annoyed at me. Anyway, I'm super excited because Minus The Bear's new album Planet of Ice hits the shelves tomorrow. Early reviews call it Pink Floyd-inspired psychedelic rock music--something that I don't really hear in their lead single "Knights." But whatever, the song sounds fucking awesome so make sure to buy their album tomorrow!
Aug 20 Easy Street Records -- In Store (Seattle) Aug 21 Pacific Science Center Laser Dome -- Listening Party (Seattle) Aug 22 Amoeba Records -- In Store (Berkeley) Aug 24 Fingerprints -- In Store (Long Beach) Sep 2 Download Festival -- Charter One Pavilion (Chicago) Sep 22 Endfest 16 -- Qwest Field (Seattle) Sep 23 Service Station (Spokane) Sep 24 The Badlander (Missoula) Sep 27 St. Andrew’s Hall (Detroit) Sep 28 Grog Shop (Early Show) (Cleveland) Sep 28 2007 Grog Shop (Late Show) (Cleveland) Sep 29 Diesel (Pittsburgh) Sep 30 Tralf Music Hall (Buffalo) Oct 1 Opera House (Toronto) Oct 3 Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge) Oct 4 Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge) Oct 5 2007 Warsaw (Brooklyn) Oct 6 2007 Irving Plaza (New York) Oct 7 Starland Ballroom (Sayreville) Oct 8 Theater of Living Arts (Philadelphia) Oct 10 Black Cat (Washington DC) Oct 11 The Norva (Norfolk) Oct 12 Variety Playhouse (Atlanta) Oct 13 Tremont Music Hall (Charlotte) Oct 14 The Club at Firestone (Orlando) Oct 15 Culture Room (Ft. Lauderdale) Oct 16 The Moon (Tallahassee) Oct 18 House of Blues (New Orleans) Oct 19 Emo’s (Austin) Oct 20 Numbers (Houston) Oct 21 Palladium Showroom (Dallas) Oct 23 Cain’s Ballroom (Tulsa) Oct 24 Granada Theatre (Lawrence) Oct 25 Pop’s (St. Louis) Oct 26 Metro (Chicago) Oct 27 First Avenue (Minneapolis) Oct 28 Slowdown (Omaha) Oct 29 Gothic Theatre (Denver) Oct 31 Sunshine Theatre (Albuquerque) Nov 1 Marquee Theatre (Tempe) Nov 2 Soma (San Diego) Nov 3 Avalon (Los Angeles) Nov 4 Glass House (Pomona) Nov 6 The Fillmore (San Francisco) Nov 8 Crystal Ballroom (Portland) Nov 9 Viking Union (Bellingham) Nov 10 Showbox (Seattle)
I suppose a lot of people wrote the Manics off a long time ago. After the brilliant one-two punches of The Holy Bible and Everything Must Go, the band started to fade away. They remained active, but with each subsequent release, there were few reasons to follow these guys unless you were a diehard. I kept buying their albums and singles, assuming that the band's best days were behind them, but still hoping for a few solid tracks.
With Send Away The Tigers, the band returns to form by only revisiting the past slightly. It's an album that contains the fire of youth, but filtered through the eyes of men approaching middle age, making it easy to put it next to the band's best work. The band's latest single is "Autumnsong," and this is the much better version of the video. If you're really that curious and you want to see the other one, then click here.
The Download music festival is entering its fifth year as a global interactive event fusing music, culture and technology together. Download takes place on multiple days scattered in cities around the world with a different line-up for each show. On Saturday, the festival is coming to the Boston area with Modest Mouse, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Band of Horses, Wolf Parade, Neko Case, Apollo Sunshine, Bang Camaro, and Guster playing the Tweeter Center in Mansville, Massachusetts. Tickets are available on Ticketmaster for FREE if you click on this link (and yes, I meant to type f-r-e-e in relation to Ticketbastard). I try to avoid large venues and generally hate to leave my apartment, but it's basically illegal to miss a line-up like that for zero dollars.
London group Grand National will be dropping their sophomore album A Drink & A Quick Question on 09/11 through Recall. There have been a few tunes floating around the interview, including a cover of "Old Man" [the Neil Young classic], which you can watch below.
Swedish indiepop group Shout Out Louds, fresh off of getting dropped by Capitol, will be releasing a new album called Our Ill Wills on 09/11 through Merge. For those who can't wait, there is a five song EP out now.
The band will be doing a full national tour as well with support from fellow Swedes Johnossi and US group Nico Vega.
10/6/07 – Los Angeles, CA @ LA Weekly Detour Festival 10/9/07 – San Francisco, CA @ Independent 10/10/07 – Eugene, OR @ WOW Hall 10/11/07 – Portland, OR @ Berbati’s Pan 10/12/07 – Vancouver, BC @ Richard On Richard’s 10/13/07 – Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey 10/15/07 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge 10/16/07 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theatre 10/17/07 – Lawrence, KS @ Jackpot Lounge 10/18/07 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Café 10/19/07 – Chicago, IL @ Logan Sq. Auditorium 10/20/07 – Columbus, OH @ The Basement 10/22/07 – Toronto, ON @ Mod Club 10/23/07 – Montreal, QC @ Cabaret 10/24/07 – Boston, MA @ Paradise 10/25/07 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom 10/26/07 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg * 10/27/07 – Hoboken, NY @ Maxwell’s 10/28/07 - Washington, DC @ 9.30 Club 10/29/07 - Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church 10/30/07 – Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506 10/31/07 - Atlanta, GA @ The Loft 11/2.07 – Austin, TX @ The Parish 11/3/07 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theatre * Nico Vega will not do this show. Other support will be announced shortly
The Voom Blooms just wrapped up recording and mastering their debut album, Nine Ships, due out on September 5th on Fabtone Records. Unfortunately, most fans of the rowdy Loughborough quartet won't get a chance to hear the record as it's only being released in Japan. Yeah, I'm bummed too. Apparently the band will spend the rest of the year holed up in the studio working on separate albums for the US and the UK with a tentative release date of the spring of 2008. Here's the title track off of Nine Ships to tide you over until next year.
08.13: Oh No Oh My/Au Revoir Simone @ TT The Bears 08.13: The Wombats @ Great Scott 08.15: Erin McKeown/Winterpills @ MFA 08.16: Lifetime/The Bouncing Souls @ The Roxy 08/17: Silverstein/Rise Against @ Avalon 08.17: Fiona Apple/Nickel Creek @ Bank of America Pavilion 08.17: The Pill [w/ Wonderful Spells] @ Great Scott 08.17: Bishop Allen/Page France/The Teeth @ Middle East Down 08.17: Benzos/Foreign Islands @ Middle East Up 08.19: Limbeck/Piebald/The Format @ Avalon
Canadian-based Paper Bag Records will be releasing Disco Romance, the debut album from Sally Shapiro on October 30th. The Swedish singer released the album internationally earlier this year, and despite the copious praise heaved upon her, has remained a proper enigma. She shys away from photographs, records under a pseudonym and even showed up to her album's official release party incognito.
The album is a catchy affair, falling somewhere between Saint Etienne and Annie.
1. I'll Be By Your Side (Extended Mix) 2. I Know 3. Find My Soul 4. Time to Let Go 5. Anorak Christmas 6. He Keeps Me Alive* 7. Hold Me So Tight 8. Skating in the Moonshine* 9. Jackie Jackie (Spend This Winter With Me)* 10. Sleep in My Arms * = exclusive to the US release
This year's CMJ Music Marathon goes down from October 16th - 20th in NYC. As always, I'll be there, but the initial list of performers has left me a little lukewarm. Don't get me wrong, there are several bands here that I am psyched to see, but some of the big headliners [like Spoon & Mates of State] are boring.
As always, I'll be covering the fest before, during and after, and once more bands and schedules are announced, I'll get them up.
Confirmed to appear: Spoon UNKLE Justice British Sea Power Mates Of State Coheed And Cambria Rodrigo Y Gabriela Xiu Xiu Del Tha Funkee Homosapien Dirtbombs Mute Math Jesu Devin the Dude The Ponys Islands Tiny Masters of Today Eisley Vietnam Little Brother Mickey Hart & Zakir Hussein Brother Ali Marnie Stern No Age Crystal Castles MSTRKRFT Chromeo The Brunettes 1990s Ruins A-Trak Foreign Islands Kavinsky Simian Mobile Disco
Like fellow teenagers Pull In Emergency, Berkshire, UK group FortyFives are still way under the radar, but their tunes are smart, catchy and worthy of envy by bands ten years their senior. This is post-punk at its best. I wish I could tell you more about these kids, but their Myspace page is pretty bare and there is no official website to be found.
UNKLE makes its debut as a live band this fall with a short string of shows across North America. It's crazy to think that they've never played a full band show in their 10+ years making music, but I guess that makes sense--what with the million crazy elements that they mix together electronically. You probably shouldn't expect the long list of guest contributors on their new album to join them on stage (Ian Astbury from The Cult, Josh Homme from QOTSA, Matthew Caws from Nada Surf, 3D from Massive Attack, amongst others), but I'm told that they will play a mix of new and old songs so that's good enough for me. Tickets go on sale on Friday, August 10th.
10/18 -- Webster Hall (*CMJ* New York, NY) 10/19 -- Lee's Palace (Toronto, ONT) 10/20 -- Metro (Chicago, IL) 10/26 -- Echoplex (Los Angeles, CA) 10/27 -- Mezzanine (San Francisco, CA) 10/28 -- Vegoose Festival (Las Vegas, NV)
Beyond The Neighourhood, Athlete's third album, is set to be released on September 25, 2007 through Astralwerks. The band has been busy in the past couple of years, between recording the new album in their South London studio, touring with the likes of Snow Patrol and U2 and performing on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Here's the tracklisting: # In Between 2 States # Hurricane # Tokyo # Airport Disco # It's Not Your Fault # The Outsiders # Flying Over Bus- Stops # Second Hand Stores # In The Library # Best Not To Think About # This Is What I Sound Like
Sea Wolf's debut LP, Leaves in the River, drops on September 25th on Dangerbird. The band will be on tour with Nada Surf and Silversun Pickups in just about every city but Boston.
July 26 Los Angeles, CA - Hammer Museum [w/ Midnight Movies] 29 Salt Lake City, UT - In The Venue * 30 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre *
August 01 Omaha, NE - Slowdown * 02 Boulder, CO - R&R Convention 06 Toledo, OH - Frankie's * 07 Cleveland, OH - Agora Ballroom * 09 Indianapolis, IN - Vogue Theatre * 10 Cincinnati, OH - Southgate House * 18 Los Angeles, CA - Sunset Junction
September 16 San Francisco, CA - Treasure Island Fest
October 15 Columbus, OH - Basement + 16 Cincinnati, OH - 20th Century + 17 Louisville, KY - Jim Porters + 18 Indianapolis, IN - Birdy's + 20 Chicago, IL - Schubas + 22 St. Louis, MO - Gargoyle Club + 23 Nashville, TN - Exit In + 24 Birmingham, AL - Bottle Tree + 26 Tampa, FL - State Theatre + 27 St. Augustine, FL - Cafe Eleven + 29 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club + 30 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel + 31 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle +
November 01 Charlottesville, VA - Satellite Ballroom UVA + 02 Baltimore, MD - 8 x 10 + * Silversun Pickups + Nada Surf
08.06: Big Bear/They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? @ Middle East Up 08.06: The Mae Shi @ Great Scott 08.06: Handsome Furs @ TT The Bears 08.07: Tigercity @ Great Scott 08.09: Calla/The A-Sides @ Middle East Up 08.10: The Pill @ Great Scott 08.11: Junior Senior/Gravy Train!! @ Middle East Down 08.11: Muse/Cold War Kids @ Agganis Arena 08.12: Transistor Transistor @ Great Scott 08.12: Tokyo Police Club/Ra Ra Riot/Vampire Weekend @ Middle East Down 08.12: Portugal The Man/The Photo Atlas @ Middle East Up
There are [at least] two bands named Fear Of Flying playing shows in the world right now. One bills itself as "New York's premier progressive power rock band," while the other Fear Of Flying hails from the United Kingdom and is actually good. Go figure. In case anyone is confused, I'll be writing about the UK band from here on out.
The past year has been a good one for the Fear of Flying, who have signed with the impeccable Young & Lost Club, released two well-received singles, and supported the likes of Jamie T and The Maccabees on the road. Unlike some of their uber serious contemporaries, the trio plays a fun brand of indie rock, mixing playful lyrics with pulsing guitar and throbbing drum beats. I'm really taken with their second single "Three's A Crowd," which, according to the band, is about "the very real and painful jealousy you experience when you believe your girlfriend to be cheating on you...with her cat." Who can't identify with that?
It seems like The Klaxons have been spending almost too much time here in the States. They're coming back this fall for a victory lap since they won Best New Act at the NME Awards and were nominated for a Mercury Music Award.
While their last show in Boston was sold out, it was a giant bummer -- the band was just not into it, plus Bonde Do Role blew them off the fucking stage. Let's just call it an off night. The band will be at The Paradise on 09/23 with Mystery Jets, who postponed a US tour back in the Spring.
9/23 Boston MA - Paradise Rock Club* 9/24 New York NY - Madison Square Garden (with Bjork) 9/26 Los Angeles CA - Henry Fonda Theatre* 9/28 San Francisco CA - The Fillmore* 9/30 Seattle WA - The Showbox* 10/01 Vancouver BC - Commodore Ballroom* 10/04 Boulder CO - Fox Theatre 10/05 Lawrence KS - The Bottleneck 10/06 Chicago IL - Vic Theatre** 10/08 Washington DC - 9.30 Club** 10/09 Philadelphia PA - The Fillmore @ Theatre of Living Arts** 10/10 Toronto ON - Opera House Concert Venue** *with Mystery Jets **with Shit Disco
Wes Anderson began his directing career on top [Bottle Rocket, Rushmore] and stayed there [The Royal Tenenbaums] until the incredibly lackluster The Life Aquatic, but hey, everyone is allowed a bogey or two.
The Darjeeling Limited will open the the 45th New York Film Festival on Friday, September 28th, and the film will then release to New York theaters on September 29th, 2007. I am very excited to see this, mostly for the fact that Anderson's films are great to watch over and over -- there are so many great things that you notice with each viewing.
Written by: Wes Anderson, Jason Schwartzman and Roman Coppola Produced by: Scott Rudin, Lydia Pilcher, Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola Cast: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman
Like any other year, this year's SXSW was early risings, late to beds and a whirlwind of bands to see. Some bands I was content with seeing once, but there were some that I couldn't see enough, like The Black Lips, whose live show is legendary [OMG they pee on one another! they like to make out with each other! one dude wears grills!], but the real attraction is their infectious, grimey garage rock. These guys know how to create a genius hook -- they already have three albums full of them.
Their Vice Records debut Good Bad Not Evil is out on September 11th.
9/12/07 ATHENS, GA 40 WATT CLUB 9/13/07 CARRBORO, NC CAT’S CRADLE 9/14/07 BALTIMORE, MD SONAR 9/15/07 WASHINGTON, DC BLACK CAT 9/16/07 PHILADELPHIA, PA THE FILLMORE 9/18/07 NEW YORK, NY THE FILLMORE AT TLA 9/19/07 BROOKLYN, NY MUSIC HALL OF WILLIAMSBURG 9/20/07 WORCESTER, MA THE GRIND AT CLARK UNIVERSITY [Students Only] 9/21/07 CAMBRIDGE, MA MIDDLE EAST UPSTAIRS 9/22/07 MONTREAL, QC LA SALA ROSSA 9/23/07 TORONTO, ON HORSESHOE TAVERN 9/25/07 DETROIT, MI MAGIC STICK 9/26/07 CLEVELAND, OH BEACHLAND BALLROOM 9/27/07 COVINGTON, KY THE MAD HATTER 9/28/07 CHICAGO, IL LOGAN SQUARE AUDITORIUM 9/29/07 MILWAUKEE, WI MAD PLANET 9/30/07 MINNEAPOLIS, MN TRIPLE ROCK 10/2/07 OMAHA, NE THE WAITING ROOM 10/3/07 KANSAS CITY, MO GRAND EMPORIUM 10/4/07 DALLAS, TX THE LOFT 10/5/07 AUSTIN, TX EMO’S 10/6/07 HOUSTON, TX THE ENGINE ROOM 10/7/07 NEW ORLEANS, LA ONE EYED JACKS 10/11/07 VANCOUVER, BC RICHARDS ON RICHARDS 10/12/07 SEATTLE, WA CROCODILE CAFÉ 10/13/07 PORTLAND, OR DANTE’S 10/15/07 SAN FRANCISCO, CA GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC HALL 10/17/07 POMONA, CA GLASSHOUSE 10/18/07 SAN DIEGO, CA THE CASBAH 10/19/07 LOS ANGELES, CA TROUBADOUR 10/20/07 LOS ANGELES, CA ECHOPLEX
Supergrass has been quiet for some time, but they sent out an e-mail yesterday offering a link to a live version of a brand new song. No word on the next album, but the band is playing a handful of dates in the UK.
I hate when solo singer-songwriters release music under band-sounding monikers, because it gets too fucking confusing. I still don't know whether the name Bright Eyes applies solely to Conor Oberst or to a band consisting of Conor Oberst and a couple other musicians. And don't even get me started about Wooden Wand. Or Five For Fighting. Seriously, go by your own name. That shit is way too complicated.
Zookeeper falls into that same abhorrent category, as it is NOT a band but rather the alter-ego of Chris Simpson of Mineral and The Gloria Record fame. Unlike his earlier emo leaning bands, Chris Simpson delves into the lush stylings of indie pop on Zookeeper's self-titled debut EP. Mixing a ton of interesting instruments, sounds, and musical genres, Zookeeper has created a disc full of intelligent, layered compositions and great melodic hooks that is strong from start to finish. All told the highlight is probably "I Live In The Mess You Are," an infectious little pop song with a country bent reminiscent Summerteeth-era Wilco.
"The dancey electro-pop of Walter Meego (the alter ego of locals Justin Sconza and Colin Yarck) is slicker that anything you'd expect this dirty city to produce. The hooky "OneFive", a Junior Boys-esque tune from the duo's self titled 2005 EP, rides a groove so slithery you'd swear it was made with a synthesizer that converts Bryan Ferry's pants in to sound. . .Last year's Romantic EP (Brilliante), which features a Flosstradamus remix, evokes the kind of love that flourishes in AMG Benzes doing 130 on the autobahn." -Chicago Reader, March 9, 2007
Aug 28 Boston, MA - Great Scott Aug 29 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom Aug 30 Brooklyn, NY - Studio B Aug 31 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's Sep 1 Washington DC - Rock N' Roll Hotel Sep 2 Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop Sep 4 Chicago, Illinois - Subterranean Sep 5 Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry Sep 7 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge Sep 8 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge Sep 10 Seattle, WA - Chop Suey Sep 11 Vancouver, BC - Media Club Sep 12 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Sep 14 San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine Sep 15 Los Angeles, CA - Echoplex Sep 16 Pomona, CA - Glass House Sep 17 San Diego, CA - The Casbah Sep 18 Phoenix, AZ - Rhythm Room Sep 20 Dallas, TX- Granada Sep 21 Austin, TX - Mohawk Sep 22 Houston, TX - Minc Sep 24 Atlanta, GA - The Earl Sep 25 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Sep 26 Mt. Pleasant, SC - Village Tavern Sep 27 Carrboro, NC - Local 506 Sep 28 Lexington, KY - The Dame Sep 29 Louisville, KY - Headliners
the mp3s provided are for preview purposes only. if you like what you hear, go to the show or follow the
link to buy the album or single. also, i will be glad to remove an mp3 if you are the owner of the file and are unhappy with
its appearance here. thanks!
