Monday, January 31, 2005
All the neighbors are starting up a fire/ burning all the old folks, the witches, and the liars...
Someone offered me $100 for my Arcade Fire tickets outside the 9:30 Club, so you know this had officially become Hot Shit. Seeing the way people were going batshit about this almost washed the memory of Metro cars full of fur coats and cowboy hats during inauguration week out of my mind. Almost. Was the show worth $100? I don't think so. Could I have done a lot with that $100? I sure could, and a lot of it would have involved betting on amateur competitive eating. What the offer did was make me want to see the show more, and maybe it set the bar too high. I'm not so good with the reviews, but here's a few thoughts:
First of all, the opener, Final Fantasy? More like Final Fantas-tic! I was surprisingly impressed with a guy who played violin and is writing a nine-song concept album about the nine magics of Dungeons and Dragons. (I may be wrong about if its "magics" or "powers", but you know what? Eat it. I'm not looking it up.) He layered violin part upon violin part using sampler pedals (I'm assuming) and built glorious little melancholy songs.
As for the Fire: They were great. They really were. They sang, they screamed, they jumped around. The guy who looks like Napoleon Dynamite climbed the speakers, some guy in a crash helmet kept climbing up to the stage-side balcony banging on a drum. They broke out accordians, cellos, tamborines, multiple violins, whatever that toy instrument is that's a cross between a kazoo and a keyboard. Regine sang, played accordians, and hit the drums for one song. She also danced like Daryl Hannah's death scene in Blade Runner played in slow motion. They played everything, plus some new stuff. And that was the only problem I had with the show: two new songs back to back kind of let the air out of the room. But they got it back. How could they not, especially after playing "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)" into "Rebellion (Lies)"?
And I'm no starfucker, but when they funeral-marched through the audience and made their way right past me on the second floor, I got a little giddy. Just a little bit. And I wore my scarf indoors to fit in. It looked "arty."
For those who want more Fire, and have a access to time machine, they were supposed to do a DJ set at Saint-Ex after the show, "spinning your favorite platters." But that promised to be a mad house. Those of us confined to the cold prison that is the linear, consecutive passage of time can catch them on Conan on Tuesday, where they were asked to fill in for Maroon 5. And late night television is all the better for it.
First of all, the opener, Final Fantasy? More like Final Fantas-tic! I was surprisingly impressed with a guy who played violin and is writing a nine-song concept album about the nine magics of Dungeons and Dragons. (I may be wrong about if its "magics" or "powers", but you know what? Eat it. I'm not looking it up.) He layered violin part upon violin part using sampler pedals (I'm assuming) and built glorious little melancholy songs.
As for the Fire: They were great. They really were. They sang, they screamed, they jumped around. The guy who looks like Napoleon Dynamite climbed the speakers, some guy in a crash helmet kept climbing up to the stage-side balcony banging on a drum. They broke out accordians, cellos, tamborines, multiple violins, whatever that toy instrument is that's a cross between a kazoo and a keyboard. Regine sang, played accordians, and hit the drums for one song. She also danced like Daryl Hannah's death scene in Blade Runner played in slow motion. They played everything, plus some new stuff. And that was the only problem I had with the show: two new songs back to back kind of let the air out of the room. But they got it back. How could they not, especially after playing "Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)" into "Rebellion (Lies)"?
And I'm no starfucker, but when they funeral-marched through the audience and made their way right past me on the second floor, I got a little giddy. Just a little bit. And I wore my scarf indoors to fit in. It looked "arty."
For those who want more Fire, and have a access to time machine, they were supposed to do a DJ set at Saint-Ex after the show, "spinning your favorite platters." But that promised to be a mad house. Those of us confined to the cold prison that is the linear, consecutive passage of time can catch them on Conan on Tuesday, where they were asked to fill in for Maroon 5. And late night television is all the better for it.
Here comes the boy with the chemicals...
Is Conor Oberst's record label really called Team Love? Well, that's just art-school adorable. The Washington Post has a short review of Saturday's Bright Eyes show. I go back and forth on this guy. I hear a song, I like it. I see him on "Austin City Limits", and after a few minutes I'm hoping there's a "Yes, Dear" rerun on UPN.
Postcard from Spain
Sunday, January 30, 2005
We are young despite the years/ we are concern/ we are hope despite the times...
By way of murmurs.com, Daily Kos talks about finding comfort in R.E.M.'s Lifes Rich Pageant in the aftermath of the 2000 election. Much safer than the numb blanket of vodka and hillbilly heroin that I wrapped myself in during those days.
You know, someone compared R.E.M. to the Gin Blossoms in my presence a week ago. I mean, maybe I can chalk to up to the alcohol talking but really, where did that come from? I don't see anyone writing anything meaningful about Congratulations, I'm Sorry.
You know, someone compared R.E.M. to the Gin Blossoms in my presence a week ago. I mean, maybe I can chalk to up to the alcohol talking but really, where did that come from? I don't see anyone writing anything meaningful about Congratulations, I'm Sorry.
I've got a fever, and the only prescription...
The Washington Post has a story on the Blue Oyster Cult and the genius of "more cowbell."
Friday, January 28, 2005
Tall buildings shake/ voices escape singing sad sad songs...
Wilco, Hot Hot Heat, and Interpol are contributing tracks to a tsunami relief double CD coming out at the end of February. On the other end of the asshole/non-asshole spectrum, no word on if the Hot 97's "Tsunami Song" will get its own release.
Miss Jones earlier said on air: "I apologise to all who have been offended by my poor decision to go along with playing that insulting (to say the least) Tsunami Song."Word is, Toby Keith's restaurant is looking for a hostess. And he loves assholes.
She added she wanted to "move forward from this being a better hostess".
Real, real like a plastic bouquet/ that thrives on the smoke from the old fireplace...
Time for Ryan Adams to vomit out some albums. This year we get three, one of which is double album. I'm sure there's a great album in the somewhere, distributed among the three. Ah... how long ago did Heartbreaker come out?
Shit, I'm with ya/ I ain't mad at cha/ got nothin' but love for ya/ do your thing, boy...
Who knew that Tupac: Resurrection is up for Best Documentary. Not I. DCist has word that the National Archives is showing this year's Oscar-nominated documentaries for free, including Mr. Shakur's on February 25. I look forward to seeing a lot of librarians with "Thug Life" tattooed on their belly after that date.
It came out magical/ out from blown speakers...
According to Matador Records, Carl Newman's talking about finishing up a new New Pornographers album in March, and getting it out by September. And Carl Newman's never given me a reason to doubt him.
Thursday, January 27, 2005
Album of the week...
Guided by Voices mastermind Robert Pollard's comedy album, Relaxation of the Asshole. I've heard good things about his "Whiskey Shits" routine.
Unfortunately, I think it sold out. Sigh...
Unfortunately, I think it sold out. Sigh...
Hang the blessed DJ/ because the music that they constantly play/ it says nothing to me about my life...
Like most things that reach the major news outlets iPod Jukebox nights aren't exactly new (even though "not new" is such a subjective term these days). But anyway, it's officially not the province of the hip, or the little secret of the indie glitterati. D.C. has an iPod night at Saint-Ex downstairs at Gate 54. As obsessed as I am with my new iPod, I'm really intrigued with this.
It's like a 12-minute mix tape, and for someone new at that. Do you go with the standbys everyone should hear (Rocket from the Crypt's "Lipstick", Jawbreaker's "Do You Still Hate Me?", The Long Winters' "Scared Straight") or stuff you're into right at this moment (Neko Case's "The Tigers Have Spoken", Mark Lanegan's "Methamphetamine Blues", Martina Topley-Bird's "Too Tough To Die")? Would you go short and sweet to get the most songs in as possible (Archers of Loaf's "Web In Front", Guided by Voices' "Teenage FBI")? Would you go obscure? Would you have a theme (all D.C., with Fugazi's "Do You Like Me?", Shudder to Think's "9 Fingers on You", Jawbox's "Cooling Card")? Try to open people up to something new? Show off? Acoustic versions of Superchunk songs? In Flames followed by Nico? All of "Jungleland"? And of course, do you slip the Afghan Whigs' "Sweet Son of a Bitch" in halfway through? Difficult choices for difficult times.
It's like a 12-minute mix tape, and for someone new at that. Do you go with the standbys everyone should hear (Rocket from the Crypt's "Lipstick", Jawbreaker's "Do You Still Hate Me?", The Long Winters' "Scared Straight") or stuff you're into right at this moment (Neko Case's "The Tigers Have Spoken", Mark Lanegan's "Methamphetamine Blues", Martina Topley-Bird's "Too Tough To Die")? Would you go short and sweet to get the most songs in as possible (Archers of Loaf's "Web In Front", Guided by Voices' "Teenage FBI")? Would you go obscure? Would you have a theme (all D.C., with Fugazi's "Do You Like Me?", Shudder to Think's "9 Fingers on You", Jawbox's "Cooling Card")? Try to open people up to something new? Show off? Acoustic versions of Superchunk songs? In Flames followed by Nico? All of "Jungleland"? And of course, do you slip the Afghan Whigs' "Sweet Son of a Bitch" in halfway through? Difficult choices for difficult times.
The best laugh never leaves your lungs...
CNN has a story on Numero Group reissues. It's not along exactly on point, but it needs to be asked: When are they going to come out with Springsteen special editions? My dream is something that straddles the line between the Stones/Dylan reissues and the Elvis Costello Rhino reissues: Nice digipak packaging; maybe some original inserts, lyric sheets, liner notes; and most importantly, extra tracks. And this is where the most recent Elvis Costello reissues got it right: put the extra tracks on a whole other disc. The first wave of those reissues just lumped the extra tracks in at the end of the normal album, so I never really appreciated My Aim Is True as a pure album. It always felt bloated to me until I realized I should just stop the CD before the extras. After that, it was a whole other experience. You hear me Columbia?
"Even people with no arms be feelin' me..."
Man oh man, that "Road to Stardom". The first group with Deltrice, Akil, Marcus and Eddie? It's like they were the stars of a teen movie where they were in some uptight music school or something and they try to fit in but finally they're like "Hell with this, I'm going to do my own thing," and maybe they're taken under the wing of the school rebel, who's real quiet but you know, he's good people, heals sick birds on the side, and at the end there's a big showcase and they come out and invent this new hybrid of music and they get the scholarship, kiss the guy, their poor father wins the lottery, and the bad guy comes over and and is all "Yeah, you know what? You're pretty good" and they're like "I know. You're not so bad yourself" and they give each other some complicated handshake and then... scene. Maybe Train plays over the credits. Yeah, the version of "Sweet Home Alabama" that Deltrice/Akil/Marcus/Eddie did on the show would be the showcase song in that movie. It sounded very focus-grouped, like it was different but not daring, unusual but not experimental. But still, they "raised the roof". And all the Nashvillians dancing with the contestants at the end? That's America, people, courtesy of Missy Elliott and her magical square lollipop.
All hail the king of the status quo
First a restaurant, now a new album? Toby Keith, you are single-handedly keeping middle America safe from culture. After the nuclear winter, when you are depicted in the new world folklore, you will be depicted in jeans and sandals, shovelling shit into the open mouth of the engine that drives the great steam engine "Mediocre". Hats off to you.
We are the sons of no one...
Are you telling me we're a little more than a week away from a Tommy Stinson show at Iota and I didn't know about this? My Replacements-dar must be on the blink.
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
I miss you/ I've grown taller now/ I want the police to be notified...
This kind of snuck up on me, but they announced Slint tour dates. Looks like they'll be hitting D.C. on March 22, at the 9:30 Club. Is $25 too much, or am I just cheap? (I mean, I am cheap, but is that still too much despite that?)
Ya gotta get... that... dirt off your shoulder...
Who wins in a fight: Jay-Z or R. Kelly? Would it even be close? Something tells me R. Kelly slaps a lot and uses his nails. Or he pulls some crap like "Ow, I think I'm bleeding!" and doubles over, then when Jay-Z comes close, R. throws some dirt in his eyes. I know that's what I would do, but then again, I don't videotape myself have sex with underage girls, so I'm one up in the smarts department.
Jay-Z Dissing R. Kelly On 'Drop It Like It's Hot' Remix?
The last few lines of Jay's raps, however, seem to take a jab at R. Kelly. Although Jay doesn't mention the Pied Piper by name, he does talk about a man who had to leave a stage and is now taking him to court...
"It's Jizz-ay, homey, you got pizz-ayed/ Take it like a man, the flow ran you off the stizz-age/ Wasting your time trying to sue S Dot/ Tell your lawyer to take the civil case and drop it like it's hot."
You know it's time to change/ when you're only wet/ because of the rain...
Oh, Tori Tori Tori, always a few stuffed animals short of a teddy bear picnic. I used to think she was the shit (and I wasn't even a gay or unicorn-loving sad girl), but since Choirgirl Hotel she hasn't done a thing for me. There's always hope she will, but it's dim. Rolling Stone has a story on her, and she's got a book and a new album coming out. Both promise to be wacky.
I'll leave you with this (not from the linked article, but from here, which if you're a Tori fan will probably light your candle): Tori, what's "Raspberry Swirl" about? "The animus in me is Raspberry Swirl, I'm in love with my women friends, but I just don't eat pussy. But I'm in love with them." Nice.
I'll leave you with this (not from the linked article, but from here, which if you're a Tori fan will probably light your candle): Tori, what's "Raspberry Swirl" about? "The animus in me is Raspberry Swirl, I'm in love with my women friends, but I just don't eat pussy. But I'm in love with them." Nice.
Celluloid heroes never ever die...
Film culture 'in the craphouse' says Hoffman: "Hoffman said he quit because 'studios weren't interested in the kind of films that people of my generation wanted to see.' He added: 'I just lost that spark I always had."I guess that means voicing a horse in Racing Stripes was just the sort of cinematic cocaine he needed.
When the devil came/ he was not red/ he was chrome and he said....
...that Pitchfork is reporting that Wilco is re-releasing a ghost is born with some extra tracks on a bonus disc. And those tracks just happen to be:
01 Panthers
02 At Least That's What You Said (live)
03 The Late Greats (live)
04 Handshake Drugs (live)
05 Kicking Television
Now before you get all "Boo-hoo I already bought that album I don't want to buy it again because I'm poor and I really want to buy some Shuggie Otis re-issues on vinyl," remember that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was going to get the same treatment and you said the same thing except you were saving for some ultra-rare record by some band that started Brooklyn dance-punk and it turned out Wilco let you download that EP for free on their website (if you bought YHF). Remember that? The Kamera EP? With all that downloadable art work? Yes, that's the one, so let's not get all up in arms.
Also, Pitchfork still seems to have a burr in its britches over the SpongeBob soundtrack:
01 Panthers
02 At Least That's What You Said (live)
03 The Late Greats (live)
04 Handshake Drugs (live)
05 Kicking Television
Now before you get all "Boo-hoo I already bought that album I don't want to buy it again because I'm poor and I really want to buy some Shuggie Otis re-issues on vinyl," remember that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was going to get the same treatment and you said the same thing except you were saving for some ultra-rare record by some band that started Brooklyn dance-punk and it turned out Wilco let you download that EP for free on their website (if you bought YHF). Remember that? The Kamera EP? With all that downloadable art work? Yes, that's the one, so let's not get all up in arms.
Also, Pitchfork still seems to have a burr in its britches over the SpongeBob soundtrack:
"...and helped get them to contribute a predictably decent song for the predictably so-so soundtrack to the predictably bad The Spongebob Square Pants Movie."Jesus guys, it was a crappy little soundtrack. Give it a rest.
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
'Cause I'm ugly with a capital 'U'/ and I don't need a mirror to see that it's true...
This might be a cheap question, but I feel it needs to be asked: is there a less attractive band than Three Doors Down?
An acre of trees sheds a collective, sawdusty tear...
Is a memoir by one of the guys in B2K necessary by any definition of the word? Well, if you want a taste of what is sure to contain a riveting chapter on the legendary B2K/Smokey Robinson Dr. Pepper commercial, MTV.com has a preview of the future king of the remainders bin.
Because it's been too long...
A Lohan update, courtesy of Pitchfork's "Rumors" review.
No one likes a girl who won't sober up...
I saw Kathleen Edwards open up for Richard Buckner at Iota back when I first moved to DC. She made a joke about the D.C. sniper, which was obviously a big deal back then. She asked if anyone knew how her favorite hockey player (man, I miss hockey) was doing. "He got shot by the sniper!" someone yelled. Good times. She did an acoustic version of AC/DC's "Money Talks" to end her set. You can get that on some Canadian download site, which just by that description sounds untrustworthy. So I thought she was good, but kind of forgot. Then her album Failer was written up all over the place. My friend burned me a copy and I forgot about that for a while. But a few months went by and I threw it on one day and it just caught fire with me. Kind of alt-country, adult-alternative, VH1-slick; but still great at the heart of it. "12 Bellevue" starts off with this guitar growl that I think is required to be on every alt-country album; it's filed under "dark, but not scary". But then all of a sudden horns and banjo come out and it's just an amazing song.
Anyway, long way to a short point: she's got a new album, Back to Me, coming out on March 1, and will be on Letterman the next day. Good times.
Anyway, long way to a short point: she's got a new album, Back to Me, coming out on March 1, and will be on Letterman the next day. Good times.
Jerk my fountain/ ice cream mountain...
Buffalo Tom, anyone? "Sodajerk"? That song is so about rubbing one out. Clever Bill Janovitz. Anywhere, here's a piece of miscellania by way of I Read The Comics So You Don't Have To: the Pop vs. Soda county-by-county map. This is the sort of thing the internet was invented for. Well, that and farm porn. The scary thing is that it kind of mirrors the county-by-county voting maps from the last election. Spooky.
Monday, January 24, 2005
"Spotlights, please"
Television Without Pity has officially put the kibosh on (as an old friend would say) Miss E's "The Road to Stardom", which is definitely my favorite show in the world right now. As they say in the "biz", it's "appointment television", meaning that the couch has my fat, white ass penciled in regularly for a good hour of TV on Wednesdays, or if I missed that, on Friday. Either way. It's flexible. Anyhoo, TWoP hasn't poo-poo'ed (hee-hee) the "Road to Stardom" message board.
Oh, you know I was on the honor roll/ Got good grades/ ain't got no soul...
Hey, it's news about Sting! Kismet. Don't let the title of the article fool you: "Sting Enrolls in School of Rock" refers to his stripped-down college tour, not him going back to class to learn how to not suck. A stripped-down Sting just means he sucks in a more intimate environment.
Indie Rock Karaoke
If I had friends, I would so make them go to this with me. Plus, the proceeds go to tsunami relief, and despite what conservative commentator/professional asshole Michael Graham says, that ain't wrong at all.
In my dreams, I was drowing my sorrows/ but my sorrows, they learned to swim...
Whew! Finally! This is bigger than Drew Carey discovering the love of his life: improv comedy. Let the world recommence its daily revolutions! U2 announces tour dates.
Listen, listen to the holler/ If I write a book it will be called/ "Life and How To Live It"...
Dylan keeps raking in award nominations (otherwise known as "props") and copy editors around the world try to squeeze out one last variation of "My Back Pages" for their respective Arts/Style/"Daily Magazine" headlines.
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance...
"I hope you daaaaaance!" Damn straight I just quoted Lee Ann Womack. Eat it.
So I think England goes apeshit for their version of "Big Brother", and that apeshit gets squared... nay, cubed when it comes to "Celebrity Big Brother". Which is reason number 439 why the British can take their cultural snobbery and stick it up their arse. So the big winner this time around is Bez from the Happy Mondays. Don't know much about the Mondays, never been a fan. But the fact that they have a dancer is a-fucking-dorable with a capital 'A'. Does this make him the British Ben Carr?
So I think England goes apeshit for their version of "Big Brother", and that apeshit gets squared... nay, cubed when it comes to "Celebrity Big Brother". Which is reason number 439 why the British can take their cultural snobbery and stick it up their arse. So the big winner this time around is Bez from the Happy Mondays. Don't know much about the Mondays, never been a fan. But the fact that they have a dancer is a-fucking-dorable with a capital 'A'. Does this make him the British Ben Carr?
In Cairo...
Hot Hot Heat has some tour dates coming up, and I think they're all before the new album is released. But do you really need to know the lyrics or anything about the song to shake ya ass? Mystikal would say no. But I think he's in jail, so who can trust his judgment?
Saturday, January 22, 2005
Top five underappreciated albums of the 90s
Really, I have no formula for this, but here it goes:
1. Jawbox - For Your Own Special Sweetheart*
2. Richard Buckner - Since
3. Hellbender - Con Limon
4. Suzanne Vega - Nine Objects of Desire
5. Afghan Whigs - Black Love
Honorable Mentions: R.E.M. Up, Letters to Cleo Go, Rocket From the Crypt RFTP, Sinead O'Connor Universal Mother
* While appreciated by a good amount of people "in the know", it's so goddamn good, it will be underappreciated until everyone in the world has heard it.
1. Jawbox - For Your Own Special Sweetheart*
2. Richard Buckner - Since
3. Hellbender - Con Limon
4. Suzanne Vega - Nine Objects of Desire
5. Afghan Whigs - Black Love
Honorable Mentions: R.E.M. Up, Letters to Cleo Go, Rocket From the Crypt RFTP, Sinead O'Connor Universal Mother
* While appreciated by a good amount of people "in the know", it's so goddamn good, it will be underappreciated until everyone in the world has heard it.
Better step your game up, get on the bus/ when the spotlight hits you, bet your face get flushed...
While Television Without Pity says they're still doing recaps of Missy Elliott's "The Road to Stardom", I can find no evidence of this week's episode. And that's a damn shame; this was the week I finally caught it. Let me say, this show redefines "off the hook". Things that were off the hook a mere month ago? Not so much now. Like Lil' Jon once said, "Consider the paradigm shifted, bitch. YEA-AH!" Also, if I had to make a sculpture out of junk that represented my inspiration, and if while explaining it I wanted to bust out in tears like a lot of the other contestants did, I'd dedicate my artwork to the cat I had that got feline leukemia. Rest in peace, Sylvester; meow, meow.
Wednesday, January 19, 2005
Shake it like a major motion picture...
Andre 3000 is going to play a crow in the Charlotte's Web movie. And it's going to be the sexiest fucking crow alive.
Why do good things never want to stay...
Pitchfork has info about the new Sleater-Kinney album.
Tuesday, January 18, 2005
The greatest lost track of all time/ The Late Greats' "Turpentine"/ Can't hear it on the radio/ can't hear it anywhere you go...
Boo hoo hoo for shitty radio. A little snippet from RollingStone.com about radio fighting back against satellite radio:
"NELLY, AVRIL LAVIGNE, ALICIA KEYS, ASHANTI, HOOBASTANK and LUDACRIS have recorded thirty-second spots for a national radio campaign aimed at quashing satellite and online radio competition . . ."This article from PBS' NewsHour Extra goes a little farther. Here's a quick one:
Lavigne's ad plays up radio's part of the music process: "Before I got nominated again, before the pop-tart drama, before I toured the world at 19 and 'Complicated' made things so complicated, you heard me -- on the radio."I don't even know what that means. Beyond that, what is radio anymore other than PR and multi-national conglomeration. There's no soul (which explains why Hoobastank and Avril Lavigne are recording ads for its protection). Let it die. Viva la competition.
By the time we got to Glastonbury/ we were half a million strong...
No Glastonbury in 2006. What am I going to do next summer if there's no Glastonbury and yet another year without the Lilith Fair?
I don't wanna be buried/ in a pet cemetary...
Johnny Ramone gets a statue in a cemetary.
Wonderful people, I wonder if they'll show me/ wonderful secrets that never leave me lonely...
Q And Not U and Del Cielo are now on the Punk-Rock Counter Inaugural Ball bill, in addition to the previously mentioned Anti-Flag and 1905. Plus, if you click on that link, you can read a whole message board of punk kids bitching. Which is... fun.
Friday, January 14, 2005
Tom the Dancing Bug
Salon.com has an interesting article about Ruben Bolling, the artist behind "Tom the Dancing Bug", which I think is borderline brilliant at times. He's a banker by day? Gives me hope.
Thursday, January 13, 2005
All hail to the thief/ all hail to the thief...
"Don't question authority or put me in the dock..." More stuff to do next Thursday in D.C. for those of us unable to get out of town during the Great Asshole Migration of 2005.
Yeah, they love me/ down in Texas...
I am balls deep in Dulli info the last few days. Here's one more bit for all you L.A. fans:
Greg Dulli will be performing with The Section on January 27 in Los Angeles at The Echo.
The Section is a string quartet that performs rock and roll, often covering diverse acts like Led Zeppelin, Radiohead, and Tool.
Also performing with the quartet are Grant-Lee Phillips and Sam Phillips.
I like a tombstone 'cause it weathers well/ and if it stands or crumbles only time will tell...
In the interests of unbridled cleverness I'm trying to pair stories with a thin thematic connection, much like presenters at an awards show. So here it goes. First, dead Bob Marley's going to get his ass exhumed and reburied in Ethiopia. (All I know is, Ethiopian food is surprisingly tasty. Addis Ababa on 18th St. NW in D.C. is real good eats, and Ethiopian beer is better than you'd think.) And speaking of graves, the Black Crowes have risen from theirs and are planning five reunion shows.(Shit, that was good. I should write for the local news. "Speaking of people being washed away in the tsunami, looks like Brad and Jennifer's love got swept away... in a tsunami of Hollywood jealousy!")
One little nip/ one little tuck/ ohhh you're looking hip/ good enough to...
Pitchfork has redesigned its site. I'm not sold, but sometimes it takes a while for me. I'm still getting used to calling Kentucky Fried Chicken "KFC".
I wanna live at the...
Y.M.C.A.!
The Indian from the Village People donated a gold record to the National Museum of the Native American. Next week the Cop is going to lay a garland of flowers at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.
The Indian from the Village People donated a gold record to the National Museum of the Native American. Next week the Cop is going to lay a garland of flowers at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
WHFS: muerto!
While I am no big fan of the radio, it's kind of sad that D.C.'s WHFS switched over to salsa music today at noon. I listened to it a little (very little) over the past few years, and I can say this: it wasn't total shit. And that's a compliment in today's radio terms. Sometimes they played actual songs, by bands that didn't have a PR machine behind them, or bands you couldn't hear on every other channel. Granted, it wasn't a savior of music, but they had a pretty respected history. And they did put on the HFStival, and if you're a Jawbox fan and own My Scrapbook of Fatal Accidents, you've heard their short set from that show. So anyway, WHFS is muerto, and salsa music lives.
"Hey sneaky man, what's up?"
A conversation overheard by my good friend and West Coast operative Jason, who rang in the new year at Greg Dulli's bar in L.A.:
Bartender: Hey sneaky man, what's up?
Dulli: Nothing man, just sneaking around, looking for something to make the night magic, bro.
Dulli needs a reality show; someone call MuchMusic.
Also, he's answered some questions about his new band, Uptown Lights, on his myspace page.
Bartender: Hey sneaky man, what's up?
Dulli: Nothing man, just sneaking around, looking for something to make the night magic, bro.
Dulli needs a reality show; someone call MuchMusic.
Also, he's answered some questions about his new band, Uptown Lights, on his myspace page.
On stage the bugle looks so cute/ and the trumpet goes "toot toot toot"...
The Polyphonic Spree is looking for a new horn blower
We are looking for a wonderful, innovative, incredible trumpet player....preferably someone in dallas/denton area....we assure you it will not be an easy task to fill the shoes of Logan Keese musically or personally....so with that in mind, we are requesting someone who can bring their own personal style and taste of playing into The Spree. This player needs great improvisational skills. We are obviously a touring band with many, many adventures full time...if anyone knows of a really cool kid, girl or boy, that can handle the road, thirty something new people in their life, etc...........and loves music with a WIDE range...please let us know!Toot toot! One catch: I think you may have to sleep with everyone in the band. And have you ever seen the old guy in the chorus? I hear he's quite the angry lover. So remember: serious inquiries only.
Serious candidates or friends of bad ass trumpet players please email us at
management@thepolyphonicspree.com
Some people call me the fake cowboy...
One more thing to do in D.C. next Thursday that doesn't involve a bunch of asshole fake cowboys, this one courtesy of Dischord Records:
Thu 20 DC, Washington - Sanctuary Theater/Calvary Methodist Church (1459 Columbia Rd. NW between 14th and 15th Sts. Near Columbia Heights Metro) w/ Anti-Flag, 1905 and Del Cielo. 6pm. $5. All Ages. This show is a benefit for Empower DC and Jan 20th protest efforts against the 2005 Presidential Inauguaration. Info: www.positiveforcedc.orgAlso, did you know that all the Ritz-Carlton staff will be wearing rattlesnake boots and cowboy hats next week? Nothing says "workin' on a ranch" like $500 rooms and day spas.
If you're having girl problems, I feel bad for you son/ I got 99 red balloons go by...
DCist has a short thing-a-majig on the lack of a DC mash-up scene. I didn't even know it was a "scene," but I guess there's a night at River Gods in Cambridge, Mass. Hell, I don't even know that bar. I'm so damn behind.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
More iPod crap
Apple announces a $99 iPod and the world shrugs. Is there a market out there for cheaper iPods with no display that only plays songs in random order? And isn't part of the iPod appeal the size of its hard drive? What do I know? Smarter people than I have probably researched this and focus-grouped it into the ground. But one last question: if U2 helped launch the mega-deluxe iPod, will the smaller one get shilled by Smashmouth?
Let the idiot speak...
Wonkette has the playlist from Bush's iPod.
He's the one they call Dr. Feelgood...
I love how every lazy journalist writing about Vince Neil's wedding used a lede like "No more 'Girls, Girls, Girls' for the Motley Crue frontman!" Sure, right. Because nothing says "I'm ready to settle down" like the fourth marriage. By then you've worn a sweet ass-groove of fidelity into the sofa that is casual sex with strippers.
Oh girl, when I'm in love with you/ keep fishin' if you feel it's true...
MTV.com has an update on the new Weezer album. They should call it Chinese Democracy. In fact, every album that gets delayed should be renamed that.
Monday, January 10, 2005
You make him sound like frozen food/ his love will last forever...
Jade Tree Records reminds me that a former vegan musician is now the chef at a South Philly restaurant called Vesuvio. I ate there a few weeks ago and it was pretty damn good. There's a whole menu for vegans/vegetarians so if that's the way you swing, then you can add the restaurant to your "safe" list. Also, they seem to have a pretty nice lounge for those who don't want to dress up in "trousers" and such, and would prefer pool, Johnny Cash, and Jack and Coke to wine lists and "adult conversation".
You make me wanna la-la...
ESPN.com has a first-hand account of Ashlee Simpson getting booed at the Orange Bowl.
You can make me perfect again...
MTV.com has the new U2 video for "All Because of You", which was filmed when they were rolling around New York a few months ago on the back of a flatbed. The wierd thing about it is that in the context of the video, the song becomes about the audience, that they vindicate Bono, they make him what he is. And that's supposed to make the audience feel better. "Oh, it's because of me? Without you, you'd just be playing music into a gaping void? Well, I guess mom was right about me being special." It all hews too close to that Backstreet Boys song, where in the video they're in a spaceship or something, saying, basically, big ups to our fans, we wouldn't be gajillionaires without you. I'm really not going to look up which song that was.
Black out the lights, it's party time...
By way of largehearted boy, it's Greg Dulli's new band, Uptown Lights. For some reason, this is on myspace.com. This is why I'm looking forward to this band: under "Sounds Like", Mr. Dulli has written "A fucking good time." And I wouldn't have expected less...
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Together We're Heavy
The Polyphonic Spree has a few U.S. dates coming up: three in Philly and NYC, a few on the West Coast. It's a good time, I'm telling you.
I've been poking a voodoo doll that you do not know I made...
With a new album coming out, Hot Hot Heat has a snippet of a new song and some studio footage on their site. Plus they have some West Coast dates planned for February, with more to come. Or so they say. After Star Jones' wedding, I really didn't think we'd have anything to look forward to.
Saturday, January 08, 2005
I'm as lonely as the Irish Sea/ and as willing as the sand...
According to the buzz I'm hearin' (okay, what I read in Entertainment Weekly), the Pernice Brothers are recording a follow-up to the kick-ass Yours, Mine & Ours for release in April. And a little research on their website has uncovered some interesting bits. One, they have a live album/DVD for sale. Two, they have a couple of songs, "The Flu" and "Moonshot Manny (Pega Luna)", available to download for a buck each. Who knew?
Friday, January 07, 2005
Break on through...
Hardest working rapist in show business...
Threatening a woman with a shotgun? Say what you will about the man, but James Brown is old school.
Danger has never been so hilarious...
Aaron Carter Drives Over Mattress, Escapes SUV Moments Before Flames Erupt
Aaron Carter emerged unscathed from an accident late Wednesday night when he hit a mattress with his SUV, causing the vehicle to burst into flames.
The singer, 17, was driving his 2004 Cadillac Escalade on Florida's Turnpike, north toward Orlando, at around 12:30 a.m. when a mattress fell from the cargo bed of a delivery truck ahead of him, according to his spokesperson.
Carter drove over the mattress, which became lodged under the SUV and caught fire. He then pulled over and he and a passenger escaped to the side of the road where they watched as the vehicle exploded moments later.
I know I'll make it back one of these days/ and turn on your TV/ to watch a man with a face like mine/ being chased down a busy street...
Big Wilco TV weekend: Letterman tonight, and Austin City Limits on Saturday. They're bigger than Wilmer Valderrama.
Get Ur Freak On...
Looks like Television Without Pity is going to be recapping the Missy Elliott reality series.
Oh Ted Nugent, you goddamn sellout
The Motor City Madman is moving to Texas. Not enough yahoo hicks in Detroit I guess.
Average is as average does...
Who would say "There's only one way to celebrate an election victory, and that's by booking 3 Doors Down"? All the money in the world and this is what they come up with? Were the Goo Goo Dolls already snapped up for a NASCAR awards party? I guess it's the proper way of kicking off 4 more years of mediocrity. Here's to the status quo.
Sunday, January 02, 2005
Top eleven albums/2004
1. Arcade Fire Funeral
2. Elliott Smith From a Basement on the Hill
3. Ted Leo + The Pharmacists Shake the Sheets
4. A.C. Newman The Slow Wonder
5. The Streets A Grand Don't Come For Free
6. Wilco a ghost is born
7. Sonic Youth Sonic Nurse
8. TV on the Radio Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes
9. Twilight Singers She Loves You
10. U2 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
11. The Roots The Tipping Point
Too soon to tell: Neko Case The Tigers Have Spoken, Martina Topley-Bird Anything
2. Elliott Smith From a Basement on the Hill
3. Ted Leo + The Pharmacists Shake the Sheets
4. A.C. Newman The Slow Wonder
5. The Streets A Grand Don't Come For Free
6. Wilco a ghost is born
7. Sonic Youth Sonic Nurse
8. TV on the Radio Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes
9. Twilight Singers She Loves You
10. U2 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb
11. The Roots The Tipping Point
Too soon to tell: Neko Case The Tigers Have Spoken, Martina Topley-Bird Anything
