Thursday, March 31, 2005

I am back

thanks HelperMonkey for the great posts. I don't have much time now but leave you with some crazy TV shows from Japan. The last game is my fav.

More later
Bro

Wednesday, March 30, 2005


Hmmmm, Heart Clogging Goodness! Posted by Hello

April Foo...um..Not yet

Because the country is not fat enough yet...
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=17&u=/ap/20050328/ap_on_he_me/fit_burger_king_breakfast
Speaking of which...I saw the documentary "Super Size Me" me this weekend....what a good way to kick start a diet...it's very enlightening.


How awesome is this?! A must download!!
http://www.fazed.net/common/content/out.php?id=8029



It's here..The Gallery Of Huge Beings....how many have you seen??
http://www.wlra.us/hugebeings.htm



A weird guy on the internet?! Unheard-of:
http://www.bikerfox.com/foxphotos2/




Oldest Monkey Dies...
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050328/sc_afp/japananimalsmonkey



Review of U2's first show on tour:
U2 have made their live return in SAN DIEGO with a show that reached far back into their archives.
The band played the 14,000 capacity San Diego Sports Arena in front of a devoted sell-out crowd – several hundred of whom had been queuing for over 24 hours.
The two-hour 22-song set saw several tracks drawn from recent album 'How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb' but had the crowd particularly excited with those taken from 'Boy' - U2's 1980 debut.
The Vertigo tour had been due to begin in Miami on March 1 but was postponed due to illness.
“San Diego turned out to be the best place to kick this off,” said Bono close to the show's conclusion.
Playing on a small circular stage bordered with a wide runway - similar to that they employed on 2001's 'Elevation' tour - U2 opened with 'City Of Blinding Lights', replete with a large curtain-of-lights backdrop and tickertape raining down from the ceiling.
The band also worked through a selection of their classics. 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', 'Pride (In The Name Of Love)' and 'Bullet The Blue Sky'.
Rich Wiseburg from Florida travelled across the US to see the show and had been outside for almost 14 hours in order to secure his place at the front.
He told NME.COM: “I've seen them 35 to 40 times and no-one in the world can touch them. I'm going to see them seven times on this tour.”
The setlist ran:
'City Of Blinding Lights'
'Vertigo'
‘Cry/Electric co’
‘An Cat Dubh’
‘Into The Heart’
‘Beautiful Day’
‘New Year's Day’
‘Miracle Drug’
‘Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own’
‘Love And Peace or Else’
‘Bullet The Blue Sky’
‘Running To Stand Still’
‘Zoo Station’
‘The Fly’
‘Elevation’
‘Pride (In The Name Of Love)’
‘Where The Streets Have No Name’
‘One’
‘All Because Of You’
‘Yahweh’
‘40’

Saturday, March 26, 2005


Happy Easter Posted by Hello

She's a dancer baby but not what you'd expect

I can't believe what I just saw. I can't believe that Illinois came back to win in OT. Some great games so far and hopefully more to come.

So anyway. Hip Hop Happy Easter. Or simply make your own jumping bunny.

Destruct-O- Matic. You will play for hours maybe days. Sorry and you're welcome. You don't have to sign in. Just let it load and hit play. Enjoy.

The Music Map. For the musical tourist. Have fun.

WEEZER
After what seems like years of delays, Weezer have finally announced that their fifth studio record, Make Believe, will be released in the U.S. on May 10. The tracklist for the record is not yet available, but you can see the new video for the first single "Beverly Hills" here. The band will also be taking to the road in April:
04-26 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
04-27 Seattle, WA - Paramount Theater
04-29 San Francisco, CA - Warfield
04-30 Indio, CA - Empire Polo Field (Coachella)
05-03 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
05-04 Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom
05-05 Detroit, MI - State Theater
05-06 Toronto, Ontario - Kool Haus/The Dock
05-08 Boston, MA - Orpheum Theater
05-10 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
05-11 New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom
05-12 New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom
05-14 Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
06-03 Nurburgring, Germany - Rock am Ring
06-04 Nurnberg, Germany - Rock im Park
06-05 Hamburg, Germany - Grosse Freheit
06-07 Dublin, Ireland - TBA
06-08 Paris, France - The Olympia
06-10 Nickelsdorf, Austria - Pannonia Fields (Nova Rock Festival)
06-13 Birmingham, England - Birmingham Academy
06-14 London, England - Brixton Academy
06-15 London, England - Brixton Academy
06-17 Glasgow, Scotland - Carling Academy
08-13 Osaka, Japan - WTC (Summersonic Festival)
08-14 Tokyo, Japan - Marine Stadium (Summersonic Festival)

SPOON

Spoon has announced details for a European and North American tour in support of their soon to be released fifth record, Gimme Fiction. The band will support Interpol for the European dates and be supported by the Clientele here in North America.
04-06 Dublin, Ireland - Olympia
04-08 London, England - Brixton Academy
04-11 Hamburg, Germany - Grosse Freiheit
04-12 Koln, Germany - E-Werk
04-13 Berlin, Germany - Columbiahalle
04-15 Treviso, Italy - New Age
04-16 Firenze, Italy - Sasch Hall
04-17 Modena, Italy - Vox
04-19 Bordeaux, France - Le Krakatoa
04-20 Nantes, France - Halle de la Trocardiere
04-21 Paris, France - Le Zenith
04-24 Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz
04-25 Madrid, Spain - La Riviera
04-30 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
06-01 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
06-02 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
06-03 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
06-04 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts
06-05 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
06-06 Northampton, MA - Pearl Street
06-07 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
06-08 New York, NY - Webster Hall
06-09 New York, NY - Webster Hall
06-10 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
06-11 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
06-12 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
06-13 Lawrence, KS - Granada
06-14 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater
06-16 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
06-17 Vancouver, British Columbia
06-18 Seattle, WA - Showbox
06-20 San Francisco, CA - TBA
06-21 Los Angeles, CA - TBA
06-22 Tempe, AZ - TBA
06-24 Dallas, TX - TBA
06-25 Austin, TX - TBA

I know I have posted about Mr Woo before but seriously check out the vids.

and of course nothing says Happy Easter like Will Farrell singing the Thong Song.

Thanks for reading and I will be gone for a few days but don't worry you are in good hands with HelperMonkey. See you Thursday or Friday. By the way the title comes from Bob Schneider's 2002.


Bro

And so it is Easter....

I must concure with cbro and say I am digging Bloc Party...Louis XIV is also sounding good to me these days.


First up...some words of wisdom from Diamond David Lee Roth:

"I'm a family-oriented guy. I've personally started four or five this year already."

"Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you a yacht big enough to pull up right alongside it."

"I used to jog, but the ice cubes kept falling out of my glass."

"After all these years of bright lights, I still don't need glasses--I drink straight from the bottle."

"The perfect woman has an IQ of 150, wants to make love until 4 in the morning, and then turns into a pizza."

"I won't go down in history, but I will go down on your sister!"

"I used to have a drug problem, but now I make enough money so that it's not a problem anymore."

"I don't get all the women that I want--I get all the women that want me."

"Young musicians are always coming up to me and asking 'how do you know when you've made it?' When you can spell 'subpoena' without thinking about it, that's when you know you've made it."

"It's not who wants to sleep with you; it's who wants to sleep with you again."

"Some people say that life is a cesspool of darkness and despair. Well, we in Van Halen are sailing through it on a yacht."

"I think people want balance more than ever. You know, feed an Ethiopian, plant the rain forest, save the ozone layer--you gotta have that, "oh woe is me," as a form of self-dramatization; it's always fun. It shouldn't be replaced, but there should be a balance. Sooner or later, it's Miller time! Sooner or later, there is some hallelujah, watusi-tailgate, light-up-the-goddamn-sky-it's-finally-the-weekend! And I don't care whether you wear a cowboy hat or your hair is purple, I don't care if you have a wedding ring or a clit ring, sooner or later, there's Miller time! That doesn't mean simple belly laughs, and it doesn't mean high-brow. It just means, 'wanna go have a drink?'"


Go ahead..tickle her....
http://www.fazed.net/common/content/out.php?id=8006


This seemed like a cool way to change up your pictures...
http://homokaasu.org/rasterbator/


Devil Turtle:
http://www.fazed.net/common/content/out.php?id=8004

More later,
HelperMonkey

Friday, March 25, 2005

Eye lashes and white leather boots--Oh god what have I been drinking

Love it...love it...love it. The new Bloc Party is nice. You really should have this in your collection. It really is all I have been listening to since Tuesday which is a shame because I really need to dig into the rarities of yo la tengo and Ben Folds Five. Soon. It just reminds me that life without music is a sad and pointless life. Just one man's opinion of course.

I will keep with the animal theme HelperMonkey started. Take this quiz. What kind of dog are you? Click on the Game to find out.

Strong Bad lets you glance at Limozeen.

Tom Waits chats up his 20 most cherished albums.

review of New Beck from KEXP.
Beck - Guero (Interscope) Guero is Beck’s most musically vibrant recording since his groundbreaking 1996 album Odelay. Like that album, this one’s produced by the Dust Brothers, but Guero isn’t simply Odelay redux. While some of the new songs share Odelay’s kitchen-sink dance-party aesthetic, others would sound more at home on other Beck albums, from the bossa nova-flavored Mutations to the down-home folk set One Foot in the Grave. In short, Guero is Beck successfully synthesizing different aspects of his multi-faceted career. Lyrically, the album is also considerably different from the mostly fun, good-times party vibe of Odelay – despite the often-upbeat music, this one’s considerably darker and shares more in common lyrically with downer albums like Sea Change and Mutations. Overall, it’s Beck’s strongest album in quite awhile.
Don Yates
Thousands of KEXP reviews here: http://www.kexp.org/reviews/reviews.asp
It comes out next week. Woo and Hoo.

Some current favs of 2005
1. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm (Vice)
2. Kings of Leon - Aha Shake Heartbreak (RCA)
3. Kasabian-Kasabian (RCA)
4. Tim Booth - Bone (Koch)
5. Doves - Some Cities (Capitol)
6. Low - The Great Destroyer (Sub Pop)
Just a few that should definitely be in your collection. Guaranteed not to suck.


THE LA'S RETURN!
http://www.nme.com/news/111813.htm
THE LA'S have confirmed their first UK dates in over a decade, NME.COM canexclusively reveal.
The influential Liverpool band, which now features Lee Mavers, John Power, JayLewis and Nick Miniski, will warm-up for their performance at Japanese festivalSummer Sonic with three British shows.
The dates are:
* Sheffield Leadmill (June 13)
* Manchester Ritz (14)
* London Shepherds Bush Empire (15)

Paladone Shocking Tanks
[RETAIL: $50]
This set of dueling remote control tanks is a masochist's dream come true. The controller is framed with conductive metal and zaps you with electricity whenever your opponent lands an infrared hit. It's an educational toy -- I learned that when my coworkers get shocked, they scream like little girls being chased by bees. And that's on the Low setting. After five or so battles on High (hits count double, but the shock is twice as powerful), I was in so damn much pain that I started holding my controller as if it were a used Kleenex. It's like BattleBots with freaking defibrillators! Soon, the only way I could lure new opponents was to tell them it's called Shocking Tanks because "it's shocking how much fun it is." paladone.com

Simpl Acoustics A1 Headphone Amp
[RETAIL: $150]
When I'm rockin' Billy Squier through my high-end headphones, my iPod's limp output just doesn't cut it. A headphone amp like Simpl's A1 sits between an audio source and a pair of cans, adding a layer of clean power so the signal can cruise at high volume with clarity and finesse. The A1 charges via USB for more than 10 hours of listening, hugs my 'Pod securely with its rubber-bumpered brackets, and delivers what it should: increased volume, refined sonic details, and punchy bass. At 0.7 inch thick, the A1 increases the bulge factor, but that's a minor issue for an audio nerd. One weakness kicked this rig just south of Heaven -- when the source-to-amp jump cable got jostled, which happens often in one's pocket, I was faced with sound dropouts and abrupt Btthhppt! static. simpl.com

The Straight Girl's Guide to Sleeping with Chicks--could be the greatest title of a book...ever.

man I thought I had too much time on my hands. Defy gravity.

Those that don't learn from History are doomed to repeat it. Germany fell for the "feel good" furher..

The Post's titles comes from Ryan Adam's "Love is Hell"

More Later
Bro

Thursday, March 24, 2005


Happy Easter! This Blog has pictures now Posted by Hello
An MP3 of Pearl Jam's new song Crapshoot can be found here:
Huge thanks to Billy Harrell for taping and providing this mp3, we're pleased to offer a live recording of Crapshoot, the new song from Friday's show at the Paramount.
Crapshoot Live Debut 3.18.05
Note: You can find some discussion of the song's lyrics here.
(thx to The Sky I Scrape)

A pretty funny credit card prank...
http://www.zug.com/pranks/credit_card/


Lips release bootleg to promote film

easytree.org

the torrent is up there and it's a good one:
8 Live Flaming Lips Tracks 1986-1996 The Fearless Freaks - A film by Bradley Beesley Film Premiere Bonus Bootleg Giveaway PROMO - NOT FOR SALE 1. Wayne's Intro 2. With You (Molly's, Boston 1986) 3. Can't Stop the Spring (Norman, OK 1988) 4. Shine on Sweet Jesus (Ausburg, Germany 1990 or 91) 5. Space Age Love Song (Chicago, Lollapalooza 1994) 6. Moth in the Incubator (Ventura, CA 1995) 7. When You Smile (Tree's, Dallas 1996) 8. Sleeping on the Roof (Excerpt from the first parking lot experiment OK City, 1996)

trailer for the Fearless Freaks:http://fearlessfreaks.com/images/movies/fe...aks_trailer.zip


WHITE STRIPES
have finished recording their new album inside two weeks – and it could be released in time for GLASTONBURY. The duo have been at Jack White’s Detroit home working on songs for the follow-up to ‘Elephant’. Much like the recording of their classic fourth album, which was done in ten days at Toe Rag studios in London, recording of the as-yet-untitled new longplayer came quickly, with the pair recording on average a song a day


A nice little website dedicated to anti-marriage:
http://www.nomarriage.com/


Jam Productions wins lawsuit vs. Clear Channel
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=509&u=/ap/20050322/ap_on_bi_ge/clear_channel_lawsuit_2&printer=1

More Later
-Helpermonkey


Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Sit around and dream away the place I'm from

Start your day off right--with a laugh. It's Mosh Girl. Keep scrolling down to enjoy it all.

I might as well continue my soccer--or football theme. Arthur Wharton--first black footballer in the UK.

New Order's New Album. It is called Waiting For The Sirens' Call and from what I have heard so far, it will be fantastic - maintaining the groups fascinating ability to rock out with their well established ability to kick it old school (they did, of course, invent old school.) Both hardcore fans and people who aren't yet cool enough to know who New Order are will both be thrilled.

ON TV--In case you want to plan your week.

Wednesday March 23, 2005
AMOS LEE The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (NBC)
TEGAN & SARA Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
KAKI KING Last Call With Carson Daly (NBC)

Thursday:
TINA TURNER The View (ABC)
SOLOMAN BURKE The Late Show With David Letterman (CBS)
BILLY IDOL The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (NBC)
KINGS OF CONVENIENCE Late Night With Conan O'Brien (NBC)

Friday:
AMOS LEE The Late Show With David Letterman (CBS)
LIFEHOUSE The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (NBC)
STING Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
KATHLEEN EDWARDS The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson (CBS)

Saturday:
WILCO, BRIGHT EYES Austin City Limits (PBS)
KEANE Saturday Night Live (NBC)

Sunday:
MARC BROUSSARD Breakfast With The Arts (A&E)

An Interview With Bloc Party
So much has already been said about Bloc Party, from the early clamor around "She's Hearing Voices" right up through today's release of Silent Alarm. All that hype is tough to live up to, but Silent Alarm definitely delivers. It's one of the best things we've heard this year, and we can't wait for Bloc Party's sold-out appearances at the Bowery Ballroom on April 7 and 8. Needless to say, we were pretty excited to sit down and chat with guitarist/lead singer Kele Obereke and drummer Matt Tong a few weeks ago. Fresh off of performing at the Motherf*cker party, they stepped away from VH1 Classic for a few minutes to talk to us.We did this interview for FreeWilliamsburg.com, who let us also post it here.
Enjoy!

Are you surprised by the reaction you're getting in New York? Your shows were sold out well before the album's release date.
Matt Tong: It's the downloading that's going on.

Does that bother you?
M: I remember the people who are singing the words [laughter] and we meet them afterwards.
Kele Obereke: We get the roadies to go out and shut those people down. We give them the shakedown. [laughs]

Is there any concern from you or your label about downloading? Some artists are worried about losing sales, but you've sold out two shows at the Bowery Ballroom.
M: Complaining about downloading really seems to be the province of people like Metallica; immensely successful people who want more, more, more.
K: I read somewhere that Madonna was really worried she wouldn't be able to give her kids an education because of people downloading her records. It's really ridiculous.

A lot of the media lump you in with the post-punk revival - some call you the next Franz Ferdinand. How do you feel about that?
K: It's not something you enjoy, but who cares. If it wasn't the next Franz Ferdinand, it'd be the British Rapture or it'd be something else. I think the media is always going to try to compartmentalize you. In the UK, I remember when bands like Muse and Coldplay were being called the next Radioheads. No one says that now because they've established what they are.

Success seems to all be happening quickly for you guys. Is it surprising how easy it's been so far? You haven't been around that long, at least over here.
K: Well, we haven't spent that long in the public eye, like a year or something, but we were playing as an unsigned band for a year before that. I've been in a band with Russell [Lissack, Bloc Party's guitarist] since 1998. So it's taken us about five years to finally find the right lineup. Once we found that, it's all fallen into place rather quickly.

What did you sound like back in '98?
K: We were a much more conventional rock band, I suppose. We had big ideas but we didn't know how to express them in a band situation. That really came after writing a lot of songs together and becoming more confident about our abilities between the four of us.

Was there a breakthrough song or moment?
K: The breakthrough moment was when we wrote "She's Hearing Voices." That would have been around the spring of 2003, about three months after Matt joined. Because we had had so many drummers come and go, we spent so much time teaching drummers parts of our songs, trying to get something to play live. Then it wouldn't work out and we'd have to go back to the beginning.When Matt joined we were able to write more songs together. We were able to evolve. I remember when we wrote the song, we were immediately pleased because it was something we were always aiming for. It was the first song that we wrote that had a lot of space in it. It was really just a drum beat, which was something we couldn't do before because we relied on writing songs only with guitars.
M: I remember being shocked when Kele said "just take it easy, don't change the beat." I just had to have a lot of trust in him as a leader. It was one of the first times we all realized it was more important to sacrifice aspects of your individuality for the greater good of the song.

Is that when labels started to take notice?
K: There were a few that were interested around that time. When we released that song on our first demo, no one really liked it all.
M: It was quite a departure at the time. It was the first time we recorded something that was on our own terms. Even though we were limited by our lack of equipment at the time, it was still a song we recorded as intended, in terms of getting down our ideas.

Listening to the album, it was most surprising to hear the slower, more atmospheric songs. Were these written early on or later in the process of recording the album?
K: Some of those songs were the last set written before we began recording the album. We always wanted to express more than being a fast, disco rock band. We've always like bands that can vary what they do. It was something we weren't as confident earlier on we were first started touring. I'm really excited about the next record because I think there will be a great exploration of those ideas.

Have you started writing new songs already?
K: Yes, we have about 12 songs already. We going to do more recording at the end of this tour. We write very quickly. If you sit us down for an hour we can come up with a song because we always have ideas. Unfortunately when you're on tour for a long time you don't get to sit down and not worry about playing shows. We've been filling our spare time in the studio, recording.

What's your process for recording a new song?
K: Usually I have an idea about a rhythm. I have an idea about how the song is going to start or how it will end. Sometimes I will have the music; sometimes I won't have anything at all. I usually ask Matt to play something on the drums, which will start me thinking of something to add to it. Usually the original idea will be superceded by other ideas that are thrown out.All of the songs on Silent Alarm were written before we entered the studio. Nothing was written in the studio. We had already recorded demos of them all before we went in. But of course it is a creative process and you have to let yourself be inspired while you're in the studio as well. That's what we were aiming for. Nothing was set in stone. We had a blueprint, but the songs had to sound better, bigger.

What inspires you to write?
K: Usually I'll hear something in a club or I'll listen to something and one little thing will stick out to me. Then I'll go away and obsess about it and it will spark ideas.

What kind of clubs do you like to visit?
K: One of the turning points for this band was when Russell and I got into dance music. When we first met we were just two kids who liked playing guitars and were into traditional rock and roll. Then we both discovered house and trance music. It sounds odd, but it really did affect how we put music together. It made us more aware of space, atmosphere and rhythm in music. It's an integral part of our sound now.

Are there any certain DJs or electronic artists in particular who did it for you?
K: I still don't know that much about dance music. We really like DJ Shadow and Squarepusher. It's enough to me to go to a club and dance for three hours and be made aware that there's lots of different rules about music.For me, as someone who was interested in playing guitar and experiencing dance music for the first time, it was something that I didn't want to immerse myself in. It was enough that I could hear it in a club and be inspired by it.

How did your collaboration with the Chemical Brothers happen?
K: They got in touch with our manager and asked if I could sing on one of their songs. I've seen them a couple times and thought they were quite good. So I was approached and thought it would be good.They had ideas for what they wanted and I tried to accommodate them. I didn't really add anything to the structure or tone of the song. It's not really my song, I just sing on it.

The Japanese version has an impressive list of artists remixing your songs: M83, Four Tet, and Mogwai. Did you pick them out?
K: We got in touch with lots of different people and asked for remixes. We got them all back and some were better than others. Some of them were real disappointing, but some were interesting. You have no idea how someone is going to change a song. It's interesting to hear someone reinterpret a song.What I can't stand is when people change just one thing about it. It seems really lazy. I hate that.Anything that implies someone has actually engaged with the song is really exciting. The M83 remix of "Pioneers" is really lush and ambient. Overall we received about 10, but many of them weren't that good.

Did you find a difference at all in the crowds in NYC compared to LA? Those are the two places you guys have played in the US so far.
M: LA seemed a bit sleazier. [laughs]K: We had two really odd shows in New York and LA, so we can't really compare them yet. It'll be interesting to see what happens when we come back on tour properly. Then we'll get to see every city. I'm quite curious to see which cities are going to take to Bloc Party and which cities are not going to take to Bloc Party. America is such a big place.I always find it odd when British bands declare that they're going to break America immediately. You have to keep coming back and back and back if you want to be really successful in the States. It takes a lot of hard work. When you're a big band in the UK, you can think that you've made it pretty quickly.

This is a question we always like to ask - what were your first concerts?
K: I saw the Cranberries at Wembley with my mom and my best friend and his mom when I was fifteen or so.

Was that the Everybody Else Is Doing It tour?

K: Yeah, it was that period.
M: I didn't know that.I think the first concert that I saw was Blur. It was in a big arena. It was just when The Great Escape came out.

Didn't you guys just do something with Graham Coxon?
M: Yeah, we toured with him for about 3 or 4 days.That must have been pretty cool, if you're big Blur fans.
K: Yeah it was. It really was.
M: Definitely.
K: We're all Blur fans, and he's certainly one of my favorite guitar players.
M: I think he's probably our favorite member of Blur as well.

What's your take on Blur without Graham then?
M: I'm pleased that they're at least trying to do something interesting, because Graham pretty much was Blur.
K: I think the point about Blur, and one of the reasons that I liked them, was the different personalities were making something more than just pop songs. Graham was into really noisy, heavy music, and Damon was trying to make really parochial-sounding pop music, and it was really interesting watching that sort of tussle between them. And I think now that he's gone, they've lost a lot of their appeal to me because there's no tension. It doesn't sound interesting to me.It's quite bad, because I thought they were getting better. I know it's not a popular view, but 13 and Blur were my favorite Blur albums, Blur especially. It's completely dark. I wasn't really a fan of the twee English ones like Modern Life is Rubbish or Parklife. I couldn't stand that sort of chirpiness.
M: Really - when did Parklife start to piss you off?
K: It's just something that I never listen to now. I listen to Blur and 13 when I listen to Blur.
M: There's a real underlying sense of sadness in Parklife, I think, wouldn't you say? About half the album is pretty sad.
K: I think The Great Escape is a sad album. There's a real sense of weariness in it. But yeah, Blur's my favorite.

What was the last album you went out and bought?
K: I just got a Fleetwood Mac live CD. We were watching some Fleetwood Mac on the tour bus and I'd always thought that they were a rubbish band. But actually watching them, I was really impressed with their musicianship. Matt's already a really big fan of theirs. Really awesome - I was listening to it last night.

What do you think of New York, by the way?
K: I like New York. I like the fact that it's a grid, so you always know where you are in relation to everything else. It's empowering!

Indeed. Thanks for your time!
K: Thank you!
M: Thanks!-



Bloc Party's official site-
Bloc Party downloads (via Bloc Party Dot Com):
"The Answer" (MP3)
"Banquet (Phones Disco Edit)" (MP3)
"Tulips" (MP3)

More later and the post title comes from "sit and listen to rain" by Whiskeytown.

Enjoy your wednesday
Bro

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

I believe in harmony--I believe in Christmas Eve

Also out today is Louis XIV---The Best Little Secrets are kept.

and Billy Idol. His new stuff sounds like the old stuff. You can also preview the Gorillaz on iTunes now. I listed a few new releases yesterday so stroll down to check them out. Great stuff out this week. And next week: Beck and The Bravery. Sometimes life is good. Happy shopping.

Behold! The technological marvel that is the 'Lazy Drinker'! ('Lazy Urinator' still in development...)

ThunderCats outtakes. Enjoy. A few bad words so be careful. If you don't know the ThunderCats it was a cartoon series in the 80s about half human/ half cat superheroes.

Time to waste some time. Chain Reaction to one click. My best score was 1284. Probably not that good but I am pleased.

Where is the giant ball of twine? Thos giant cartoon hotdogs atop Superdawg? The answers lie here my friends: Roadside America. Enjoy your next roadtrip.

An article about SXSW.by Jim Derogatis of Chicago Sun-Times

MP3 from Jens Lekman called "Do Impossible Things."

The Shins Begin Revealing U.S. Tour Plans
Ray Suzuki reports:
This spring, the Shins-- Sub Pop's other "O.C."-approved success story-- will hit the road on a North American tour. So far, their label can only confirm shows through April, but those of you west of the Mississippi should be hearing some good news soon. In the "bad news" department, there are no set plans for the band to re-enter a studio and record the follow-up to Chutes Too Narrow, which-- according to Billboard.com-- has sold nearly 300,000 copies. The dates so far are:
04-11 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
04-12 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
04-13 Milwaukee, WI - Eagles Ballroom
04-14 Chicago, IL - Congress Theater
04-17 Toronto, Ontario - Kool Haus
04-21 Providence, RI - Meehan Auditorium
04-23 New York, NY - Webster Hall
04-24 New York, NY - Webster Hall
04-27 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
04-28 Norfolk, VA - The NorVa
04-29 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel
04-30 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel

Get ready for Sundays US World Cup Qualifier against Mexico with a new soccer movie:
From the creators of RUDY and HOOSIERS comes a true story based on the 1950 U.S. World Cup Soccer Team, who showed the world that with enough Passion and Commitment anything is possible - even the greatest upset in World Cup Soccer.
THE GAME OF THEIR LIVES all-star cast includes; Patrick Stewart (X-Men, Star Trek: The Next Generation), Wes Bentley (American Beauty), Gerard Butler (Phantom Of The Opera, Tomb Raider), Gavin Rossdale (Lead Singer of Bush, Constantine), Zachery Bryan (Home Improvement), Jimmy Jean-Louis (The Bourne Identity, Tears of The Sun) and John Rhys-Davies (Lord of The Rings, The Princess Diaries). The film also features Freddy Adu, Landon Donovan, and many other of your favorite MLS All-stars.
This movie depicts the importance and power of soccer and plays tribute to anyone who has ever played the sport.THE GAME OF THEIR LIVES is a film for the entire family. It will be released in 14 cities on April 22 and is rated PG. Advance tickets are available now. This movie will be in theatres for a limited time.
To purchase tickets or set up a private screening for your team, please call 1-800-215-2971 for more information.We hope you will join us in celebrating this great moment in American soccer. Get Into The Game! Don't Miss Out! See The Movie!
Find out more at WWW.GAMEOFTHEIRLIVESMOVIE.COM

More later and this posts title came from a great driving song from Clinic called "Harmony".

Saturday, March 19, 2005

The Arrival of HelperMonkey (In Official Form)

I want to start off by thanking Chris for inviting me to join his blog. I will try and uphold the high standard of wisdom and debauchery that has been a hallmark of A Glorous Mess and throw in a comment or two from time to time. Stay tuned...it should be a good time.
HelperMonkey

Never put your cat in the washer...you might get a sock in the puss

Here is a review of Pearl Jam's Benefit show Friday for the Northwest School.

Pearl Jam didn't just rock the house Friday night. It rocked the school. And all for a good cause. In a sold-out benefit concert at the Paramount Theatre for The Northwest School, an independent college prep school for grades six through 12, the Seattle rock band joined fellow Seattle music luminaries The Presidents of the United States of America, Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart and Grammy-winning jazz guitarist Bill Frisell in celebrating the school's 25th anniversary. From the opening remarks by master of ceremonies Tom Skerritt to the boisterous finale of "All Along the Watchtower," the concert celebrated the creativity The Northwest School has fostered since it opened in 1980. Each of the acts shares a bond with the school, housed in a 100-year-old building on Summit Avenue. Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard and PUSA drummer Jason Finn are alumni (classes of 1984 and '85, respectively); Frisell's daughter, Monica, is a 2004 graduate; and Ann Wilson's daughter, Marie, is scheduled to graduate in 2010. "I am proud, honored and very happy to be here tonight," a beaming Gossard told the audience before Pearl Jam took the stage at about 10:30 p.m. Gossard learned to play guitar in the hallways during his junior year at The Northwest School. Singer Eddie Vedder acknowledged the milestone and quipped that if Gossard hadn't learned to play guitar there, Pearl Jam might not have formed years later and Vedder might have ended up singing in a boy band -- or married to Cameron Diaz. The concert drew a diverse crowd, from students and their parents and grandparents to rowdy Pearl Jam fans eager to catch a hometown performance by the band. The concert was also the first time Pearl Jam has played publicly with Frisell, who won a Grammy Award in February for contemporary jazz album for the CD "Unspeakable." Frisell, who cheerfully admitted being "scared to death" by the capacity crowd, played a short, technically awesome set that highlighted his eclectic musical tastes. It was also Frisell's birthday, and a giant birthday cake with two candles was delivered to the stage, to be shared later with Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, whose birthday was about a week ago. Vedder led the audience in a "Happy Birthday" singalong. Alex Revelas was the first of three talented students to take the stage between sets, performing a topical song titled "Perfect Silence" while accompanying herself on acoustic guitar. Ann and Nancy Wilson, calling themselves the evening's "folk act," delivered a powerful set that featured Nancy's remarkable guitar and mandolin playing and Ann's riveting vocals. The sisters performed songs from their most recent Heart album, "Jupiters Darling," as well as the longtime favorite "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" by Elton John. Ann Wilson dedicated "The Fallen Ones," from "Jupiters Darling," to "all those people out there with their butts on the line." Student Jonah Cohen filled in before The Presidents took the stage, performing a remarkable version of Skip James' "Illinois Blues." The Presidents, featuring Finn on drums, Chris Ballew on lead vocals and bass and Andrew McKaeg on guitar (substituting for Dave Dederer), were dressed in slacks, short-sleeved dress shirts and matching striped ties. The animated group played a selection of new and old songs, from "Boll Weevil," "Peaches" and "Dune Buggy" to new songs "Some Postman" and "Love Everybody." Ballew's manic energy and comical presence made the set a delight. Finn also joined in the clownishness by leaving his drum riser to play his drumsticks on any available hard surface, including the stage floor. After a brief intermission, Vedder and keyboardist Boom Gaspar took the stage for a stirring version of The Who's "The Kids Are Alright," a fitting tribute to The Northwest School and its students and staff. Remaining band members Gossard, Ament, drummer Matt Cameron and guitarist Mike McCready joined Vedder and Gaspar for thunderous versions of "Porch," "Save You," "Given to Fly" and other songs. Frisell added his guitar magic to a wonderful "Crazy Mary." And the band played a new, untitled song -- a special treat for concertgoers. Relaxed and in good spirits, Vedder sipped alternately from a mug of tea and a bottle of wine. The stunning finale of "All Along the Watchtower" featured Pearl Jam, Ann and Nancy Wilson, Chris Ballew, Frisell, Cohen and student cellist Eli Weinberg. Ballew, the most energetic of the bunch, tangled with Vedder as the two fell to the stage floor in a grinning heap while still playing their instruments. After scrambling back to their feet, the pair finished the song with dueling Pete Townshend-style
windmills, adding another comic touch to a night of community good will.


A weird vid that reminds me of a Tool video: http://www.fazed.net/common/content/out.php?id=7910


Q: How many Bush Administration officials does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: None. There is nothing wrong with the light bulb; it's conditions are improving every day. Any reports of its lack of incandescence are delusional spin from the liberal media. That light bulb has served honorably, and anything you say undermines the lighting effect. Why do you hate freedom?



More later-HM



























How well do you know your favorite band's songs?

http://www.scenta.co.uk/gamescenta/site/whatsthatsong.cfm

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

I am not a shadow--I am flesh and blood

Thanks to Tom Petty and his song "yer so bad" for the title of the last post.

More help from Helper Monkey. You are a good man

Woo and Hoo. PJ is back. and this one is way super cool--the internet archive. Some good acts. I have yet to download any but let me know how is it. All shows are SHN too. Thank you so very much HM!!

Spoon. Spoon. New Spoon. An MP3 from Spoon's soon to be released Gimme Fiction. This is "Two Sides..." Oh why not one more I just found. "My Mathematical Mind."

Superman is a dick.

Science breaks down the "hook" in songs. Why tunes get stuck in your head.

More Woo and Hoo. New solo Bob Mould. Sounds like a welcomed return to his acoustic days and if you know his acoustic days this should make you smile. So smile.

Mp3 from Anders Parker "So it Goes" Not bad let me know what you think.

This is a cool idea for an interview. Play a bunch of songs from other artists and see how that artist feels about the tune. It springboards into other areas as well. This one is pretty good.

Bono Promotes Growth with Clothes Line
U2 front man Bono launched a clothing company with theintent of providing sustainable employment toempoverished third-world countries.
Bono's Edun label features a line of jeans, jacketsand dresses. Bono dreamed up the notion of a sociallyconscious fashion label, and launched it with his wifeAli Hewson as a systematic effort to promote trade inAfrica. Bono, a longtime proponet of debt relief andhumanitarian efforts to Africa, will select sites inwhich the company's factories will be set up.
Bono's fashions are part of a larger effort toincorporate Africa into the world economy. He hopes tostimulate economic growth and provide sustainablegrowth in the troubled land.
Bono's side efforts for humanitarian aid and economicgrowth for Africa is nominated for this year's NobelPeace Prize. It's his secondnomination.
aversion.com/news
-----------------------------------------
Teenage Fanclub Return This Summer
Teenage Fanclub's next album will be in stores inearly summer.
Merge Records will release Teenage Fanclub's eighthalbum, Man-Made June 7. The album's the act's first innearly three years, and will be released in the UnitedKingdom on the band's own, label, PeMa.
The band headed over to Chicago to convene withproducer John McEntire at Soma Electronic Studios torecord the set.
Man-Made's track list is:
It’s All In My Mind
Time Stops
Nowhere
Save
Slow Fade
Only With You
Cells
Feel
Fallen Leaves
Flowing
Born Under A Good Sign
Don’t Hide
aversion.com/news"
-------------------------------------------------
Snow... way! 'Patrol bassist sacked
Snow Patrol have fired bassist and founding memberMark McClelland.
In a a statement the band say the pressures of successwere taking their toll on working relationships withinthe band. It was felt that Snow Patrol could notcontinue working with McClelland.
Snow Patrol say: 'Coming to this decision was thehardest thing the remaining band members have everfaced, it was reached with much regret.'
In other SP-related news, Gary and Tom will be takinga break from writing the follow up to 'Final Straw' toplay a DJ set in Cambridge tonight (March 17th) at TheJunction. Tickets are £7 on the door. They follow thiswith another set in Bedford at The Pad on March 18th.
www.drownedinsound.com/articles/11613.html

New Releases Today: Not too much to get excited about. I think next week is better. Kaiser Chiefs is suppose to be pretty good.


Daft Punk
Human After All Virgin
Written and recorded in just six weeks, Daft Punk's long-awaited third album Human After All discards the lush, eclectic pop of Discovery in favor of a stripped-down, repetitive sound. This approach may divide fans, but the album's best tracks show that the duo can still make taking chances work for them.
Club/Dance, House, Left-Field House


The Reverend Al Green
Everything's OK Blue Note
Al Green's excellent 2003 comeback album I Can't Stop wasn't just a one-off return to glory for the soul superstar as Everything's OK proves that Green is back to stay. Working again with long-time producer Willie Mitchell, he has crafted a gem of an album loaded with all the things that made him great so long ago — bubbling rhythms, uplifting melodies and above all, Green's age and gravity-defying vocals.
Soul, Smooth Soul, Retro-Soul


The Soundtrack of Our Lives
Origin, Vol. 1 WEA
International Swedish rockers The Soundtrack of Our Lives (TSOOL) dig deep on Origin Vol. 1, and come up with a delightful paradox of an album. The band has mined the vein of its collective musical past and has issued the most ambitious recording of its career. Influences ranging from the Beatles to the Stooges find their way into these songs, yet are carefully crafted inside TSOOL's tight, artfully articulated songcraft, which combines sonic crunch, elemental hooks and incisively revealing lyrics.
Rock & Roll, Indie Rock, Pop/Rock, Psychedelic


Better Than Ezra
Greatest Hits Rhino
Post-Grunge, Alternative Pop/Rock, American Trad Rock, Pop/Rock

David Bowie
David Live [Rykodisc] Rykodisc
Blue-Eyed Soul, Pop/Rock, Glam Rock, Album Rock, Proto-Punk, Hard Rock, Singer/Songwriter

David Bowie
Stage Rykodisc
Prog-Rock/Art Rock, Album Rock, Experimental Rock, Proto-Punk, Glam Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Pop/Rock

The John Butler Trio
Sunrise Over Sea Lava
Adult Alternative Pop/Rock


Crosby, Stills & Nash
Greatest Hits Rhino
Pop/Rock, Folk-Rock, Soft Rock, Singer/Songwriter

Miles Davis
Miles Davis in Europe [Bonus Track] Sony
Modal Music, Hard Bop

Miles Davis
Miles in Berlin [Bonus Track] Sony
Modal Music, Hard Bop

The Eagles
Eagles [Box Set] Rhino
Album Rock, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Country-Rock

Everything But the Girl
Adapt or Die: Ten Years of Remixes Rhino
Alternative Dance, Club/Dance


The Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead Movie Soundtrack Grateful Dead Productions
Jam Bands, Country-Rock, Album Rock

Merle Haggard
Going Where the Lonely Go/That's the Way Love Goes S&P
Honky Tonk, Traditional Country

Kaiser Chiefs
Employment Universal
Indie Rock, Post-Punk

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
The Ultimate Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Vol. 2 Narada
Qawwali

B.B. King
The Ultimate Collection Geffen
Modern Electric Blues, Soul-Blues, Memphis Blues

Los Lobos
Live at the Fillmore Hollywood
Roots Rock, Tex-Mex

Curtis Mayfield
Mayfield: Remixed - The Curtis Mayfield Collection Rhino
Blaxploitation, Psychedelic Soul

More later
Peace Off
Bro

Monday, March 14, 2005

My sister got lucky--married a yuppie

the last title was from "Outfit" by the Drive By Truckers. Play it for your little ones...good advice etc. You know that they wouldn't listen to you so maybe you could fool them into some good stuff with songs like this.

a few from HelperMonkey
The Gorillaz are back. Navigate around it they have some cool rooms

More hip hop fun at gizoogle.com. Puts your search resultizzle into gangsta-speak. Kizzy! thanks HelperMonkey.

Who is that clean cut man? Surely not Jim Morrison the lizard king.

Spike Jones for adidas.

MP3s from Aimee Mann.

More later. I am a bit bummed. I can't get sound through the computer right now. Wish me luck.
Peace Off
Bro

I am back and groovin to tunes. Somehow someone pushed the mute button? Strange. Anyway it is good to have tunes back. So way not some MP3s from Aimee Mann. New CD in May. Slick new site for ms mann.

Ok now that you have met ET now what. No need to figure that out. Go here.

I think I may love beer even more now. Beer under a microscope.

This vid will stay with you for awhile but very cool. It rubs the lotion on skin.

OK more later
Thanks
Bro

Friday, March 11, 2005

me and your momma made you in the back and I sold it to buy her a ring

The last title was from "Stripped" by Depeche Mode.

Looking for "real" radio. Try these. I have mentioned alot of them before but it is always good to re-remember the good stuff.

I can't believe it took my this long to tell you that I saw Spamalot. Wonderful. Funny as hell. If you go please sit as close as possible. Cool old theater. Small so I doubt there's a bad seat. Worth a trip to NYC to see it and yes you can stay with me in the 'burbs if you want.

Remember when I linked to the story about the New Bugs...Buzz? Well it didn't take long to get a very funny (and naughty) sendup of it. check out Buzz. I found it pretty funny and I hope you do too. Not safe for work unless that sorta thing is encouraged.

5 cents for a download. OK I am listening--You have my attention. C'mon Apple.

Family Says Green Day Ended Coma
Family of a Welsh boy who recently emerged from a comadon't credit the healing power of God or science. Theycredit Green Day.
Green Day fan Corey George of Aberaman, Wales, emergedfrom a two-week coma shortly after listening to GreenDay's American Idiot (2004, Reprise) (read Aversion'sreview), according to the BBC. Family of the9-year-old boy played the album to the child, who wason life support at the time, and within an hour he'demerged from the coma enough to move his fingers andtoes.
George was hit by a SUV while crossing the street onhis ninth birthday. While he hasn't regained speech ormobility, he's been taken of the critical list.
Upon hearing the news, Green Day arranged for apackage of merchandise and CDs to be sent to the boy.http://www.aversion.com

Cure Reissues Continuing In April
On the heels of last year's deluxe reissue of itsdebut album, the Cure will give similar treatmentgiven to the subsequent three releases that put theband at the center of the 1980s modern rock movement.Due April 26 via Rhino, remastered versions of 1980's"Seventeen Seconds," 1981's "Faith" and 1982's"Pornography" will each emerge with an extra disc ofrarities.
In the case of "Seventeen Seconds," the second disccomprises 15 songs, including studio and liverenditions of "I'm a Cult Hero" and "I Dig You"released under the pseudonym Cult Hero. Other goodiesinclude demos and live versions of songs that appearon the original album.
The "Faith" reissue adds the cassette-only B-side"Carnage Visors" to the first disc's original eighttracks. The second disc boasts 15 tracks, such asdemos of "Faith" and "Doubt," outtakes of "Primary"and "A Normal Story" and live versions of "TheDrowning Man" and "Forever."
"Pornography" gains 14 tracks on its bonus disc,including instrumental demos of "Demise" and "TheFigurehead" and live versions of "A Short TermEffect," "Cold" and "Siamese Twins."
Each package will be bolstered by booklets withlyrics, photos from singer Robert Smith's personalcollection and track-by-track commentary by U.K. musicjournalist Johnny Black.
The full track list for each reissue can be found onthe band's official Web site.
Last year the Cure released a new studio album andsupported it with a touring festival dubbed Curiosathat also featured Interpol and the Rapture. Theband's first studio album in five years, "The Cure" (IAM/Geffen), debuted at No. 7 on The Billboard 200 andhas sold 306,000 copies in the United States,according to Nielsen SoundScan.-- Barry A. Jeckell, N.Yhttp://www.billboard.com

"I feel sorry for people who don't drink. When they wake up in the morning, that's as good as they're going to feel all day."--Frank Sinatra

NMC reports: Muse is heading to college this spring, when the British alternative trio headlines the 2005 mtvU Campus Invasion. The ninth annual college tour begins April 8 at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton and, so far, shows are scheduled through April 28, when the Campus Invasion Tour plays Kent State University in Cleveland.

BW&BK reports: The front door of rock legend OZZY OSBOURNE's childhood home in Birmingham is to be sold because the current owner is fed-up with fans defacing it.
The ex-BLACK SABBATH front man grew up in Lodge Road, Aston, before rising to fame. His old front door now bears messages from fans.
Ali Mubarrat, who owns the house, says over the years it has become a pilgrimage destination.
And he is now considering auctioning the door on eBay.

DMB bus driver pleads guilty for dumping waste on boatload of people.

Review of Andrew Bird's latest. 16 good points.

- The official time has not been announced, but Bono and his wife Ali will be at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York today to launch Ali's Fair Trade clothing brand, Edun. According to U2log.com:
Although a spokesperson for Saks confirmed the Hewsons' appearance at the flagship store and their participation in a press conference with the fashion media, she was unwilling to divulge the specific time when all the fun will happen. The only helpful hint of information we have is the Edun line will be located on the fifth floor at Saks.Rumor has it that the event will take place around 7 PM, but keep checking U2log.com for more information.

- A little further ahead on the calendar but also missing many specifics: Spoon will appear at the Virgin Megastore in Union Square to promote their new album, Gimme Fiction. The album drops on May 10, so expect this event to happen somewhere around then.

- Get ready for Doves: Fansite of the Month has six downloadable tracks from Doves' acoustic set at Club 3voor12 in the Netherlands on February 16. "Snowden" is as good as advertised. Can't wait to hear this one live on Tuesday.

- Yo La Tengo will be doing their annual all-request set on WFMU next Tuesday (3/15) from 8 to 11 PM. It's simple: pledge money, make a request, and YLT will play it - whatever the song. Last year's set included everything from "Gigantic" to "Hold On (I'm Coming)" with plenty else in the mix. Sunsquashed has the full 2004 setlist available with an MP3 as well.

BRENDAN BENSON
May 02, 2005 Phoenix - Celebrity Theater
Friday, May 06 Berkeley Community Theatre
Sunday, May 08 Portland - Roseland Theater
Monday, May 09 Seattle - Paramount Theater
Tuesday, May 10 Vancouver - Queen Elizabeth Theater
Thursday, May 12 SLC - Abravenal Hall
Friday, May 13 Denver - Fillmore Auditorium
Sunday, May 15 KC - Uptown Theatre


Thursday, March 10, 2005

THE BRAVERY AND ASH
Co-Headlining US Tour With Ash:
Mar 9 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of the Living Arts
Mar 10 Washington, DC - Black Cat
Mar 11 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
Mar 12 Atlanta, GA - Vinyl Atlanta @ Earthlink Live
Mar 14 Houston, TX - Engine Room
Mar 15 San Antonio, TX - Sanctuary (formerly Communion)
Mar 17 Austin, TX - SXSW
Mar 18 Austin, TX – Exodus - SXSW
Mar 19 South Padre Island, TX - Louie's (Launch.com show/not with Ash)
Mar 20 Dallas, TX - Trees
Mar 26 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
Mar 27 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
Mar 28 Sacramento, CA - The Boardwalk
Mar 29 San Francisco, CA - Slim's
Mar 31 Vancouver, BC - Richards On Richards
Apr 1 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
Apr 2 Seattle, WA - Graceland
Apr 4 Salt Lake City, UT - Lo-Fi Café
Apr 5 Denver, CO - Bluebird
Apr 7 Minneapolis, MN - Univ of Minn
Apr 8 Chicago, IL - Metro
Apr 9 Columbus, OH - Promowest Pavillion
Apr 12 Cleveland, OH - Agora
Apr 13 Toronto, ON - Opera House
Apr 15 Boston, MA - Axis
Apr 17 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
Apr 18 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
May 1 - Indio, CA – Coachella

Now I leave you with a cool vid of Louis XIV. called "finding out true love is blind"

More later
Peace Off
Bro

Thursday, March 10, 2005

Take my hand--come back to the land--lets get away--just for one day

Ben Folds "The Ascent of Stan" was where the lyrics came from in the last title. Oh and speaking of Ben. You can download the song mentioned/linked to yesterday on iTunes. If you want to.

A bunny sings about sex. Flash. My favorite number is 3.5. How do you get a .5? Oh well nevermind. enjoy.

Dandy Warhols: Potential Mars Warlords
The Dandy Warhols have revealed that a new album is planned for 2005. According to their official website, the album will be titled 'Odditorium' Or 'Warlords Of Mars'. Potentially, this is merely band mischief, but equally, we'd love to hear an album called 'Warlords of Mars'. The follow-up to 2003's 'Welcome To The Monkey House' is currently being mixed and could be out before the summer. Slightly firmer news is of their first single from the record. The band recorded the video for 'Smoke It' a couple of weeks ago, so a release date should be impending http://www.drownedinsound.com

LONDON (Reuters) - Robbie Williams has topped the UK funeral music chart, leaving Mozart trailing in his wake, according to a survey Thursday. Williams' "Angels" was the record most Britons would like played at their funeral, with Mozart's "Requiem" coming in at five in digital broadcaster Music Choice's poll of top 10 British funeral songs. Frank Sinatra's "My Way" was second, just ahead of Monty Python's "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life."
The rest of Europe favored a more soft rock approach. Queen's "The Show Must Go On" topped the European chart, with Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" in second and third place.
Over 45,000 music fans from across Europe were polled, with 20,000 Britons taking part.

If you didn't check back yesterday scroll further down. My favorite was the spiderman bible stories.

More later
Peace Off
Bro

Wednesday, March 09, 2005

being poor was not such a drag in hindsight

The last title was from Luna's "Into the Fold"

More white people covering Hip Hop. This time the wonderful Ben Fold doing Dr Dre. Thanks Helper Monkey. Love it.

and more from Helper Monkey.

Why happy couples are so annoying
By Bob Strauss

Few things in the world spread as much misery as a happy, smiling, well-adjusted pair of newly minted lovebirds. Wherever you go — shopping malls, restaurants, target ranges — you're likely to run into this evil breed, grinning, giggling and holding hands like a pair of lovestruck teenagers. What is it about a happy couple that provokes such rage and despair in its unintentional victims? We could spend all day on this, but for convenience's sake here's a short list of the top five irksome offenses:
1. Cute nicknames
"What are you thinking about, Itsy-Poo?" "Just how much I love you, Frumkins." Listening to a happy couple is like being trapped on the set of H.R. Pufnstuf. Even worse than these insipid monikers is the incessant baby talk — "Ooh, are we a wittle upset today, lamby-kins?" — which, if nothing else, confirms the widespread impression that newfound love causes your I.Q. to drop by at least 50 points.
2. Public displays of affection
It'll be summer soon, so brace yourself for all those smug, magazine-gorgeous happy couples who won't be satisfied until they've recreated that famous beach scene in From Here to Eternity, with as big an audience as possible. If it's any consolation (and it's not much, I admit), the only reason these folks indulge in such blatant PDA is because, deep down, they're insecure about themselves and about each other. As if that matters.
3. Finishing each other's sentences
"You know, this appetizer reminds me of...""...that delicious ceviche we had down on Cape Cod! Oh, Frumkins!" If you're looking for a way to kill an evening, try staking out a happy couple near you and participating in this mind-reading routine (expressing your thoughts out loud is, of course, optional). "Didn't that waitress look just like...""...that friend of yours I hit on after our last date? Oh, Inky-Doodles!"
4. Utter condescension
He's smart and good-looking; she's smarter and even better-looking. So, naturally, they want to set you up with their dumb, unattractive friend, and can't understand why you should be the slightest bit ungrateful. This "we didn't settle, but we expect you to" act is only slightly better than the related "Gosh, how can you stand being single?" routine, as sure an incitement to happy couple homicide as ever was invented.
5. Even more utter self-absorption
A happy couple could cruise by a twenty-vehicle interstate pileup involving a bus full of nuns and a Girl Scout troop, and all the gal will say is something like, "you see the orange-yellow upholstery in that car? That's what I had in mind, only a little less summery." But don't despair: science has proven that "Happy Couplehood" has only a six-month duration (a year, tops), so they'll be immersed in the unpleasantness of everyday existence soon enough, just like the rest of us.

I like thanks again Inky-Doddles--I mean Helper Monkey

and why not more HM. A few MP3s of the "lost" Apple CD. and one last item from the Monkey that is a Helper: Review of Kings of Leon and Jeff Tweedy of Wilco.

I was at The Kings Of Leon show Friday at The Metro. I am now conviced the best time to see a band is on the cusp of a new album...just before they break out big and you have to pay $30+ and see them in 3K+ seat venues. These guys range in age from 18-23 but play like twice that age. They bring a fierce garage southern boogie that has matured since thier first album. I highly suggest seeing them if you get a chance.

While that was going on Tweedy was across town doing a charity gig at The Vic...he also played last night and here is a review of that show from a message board I was on...sounds like quite a good time....

"Pat Sansone and John Stirratt from the Autumn Defense opened (keyboard/guitar and bass, respectively, as well as both being members of Wilco) opened with a beautiful acoustic set. Great harmonies with each one switching between acoustic guitar, acoustic bass, or piano. The brief one hour set was over quickly. The stage was then sparsely rearranged with a microphone and a stool on an Oriental rug before Jeff Tweedy made his appearance.
He played seventeen songs, a large majority of which are considered extremely rare and old (including a great many from his Uncle Tupelo days). He was right on all night, his singing, his playing, wow, such emotion in a single performer I have not seen in quite some time. After those first seventeen, he broke for encore number one, which opened with Gun, an Uncle Tupelo favorite of mine. He would go on to play five more, break and then return for the second encore during which only one song was played.
However, after he left the stage none of the house lights had been turned on. Odd. The audience was electric by this point with everyone trying to figure out what was going on. Suddenly, drums appear, keyboards are shuffled out...fucking WILCO is going to end the show! Holy shit! Glenn Kotche comes out first on a complete stripped down kit and starts playing a groove during which Tweedy comes out while they play a duet, following that Jeff and Glenn are joined by Mike and Pat both on keys and play the obscure the Family Gardener afterwhich John joins the band and Wilco minus guitarist Nels Cline (who the band tried calling on his cell phone during the show to tell him he was missing a gig--pretty funny, actually) will end the night.
The band goes to play eight more songs (ten in total!) with Tweedy occasionally setting his acoustic aside to just sing leaving some of the songs sans guitar completely. It was quite incredible to see a totally stripped down version of Wilco with no electric guitar or feedback. I left the show utterly breathless.
Now, I've seen a lot of live music, but last night was one of those rare magical shows where you get so much more than you bargained. The Vic still reigns as one of the best, if not my favorite, venues in Chicago. The audience was one of the most respectful I've ever seen, remaining dead silent during songs and singing the background vocals to certain songs much to Jeff's surprise (he commented on how happy it made it at one point). I paid a paltry twenty six dollars for my ticket and I left the show feeling like a rich man.
Here's the setlist if anyone is a fan and would like to see it...may be slightly inaccurate (it was stolen from viachicago.org). Get this show on a torrent at ALL COSTS."
Jeff Tweedy Vic Theatre 3/5/05
Someone Else's Song
Remember the Mountain Bed
I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
Airline to Heaven
(Was I) In Your Dreams
Wait Up
Black Eye
Radio King
Chinese Apple
Bob Dylans 49th Beard
Someday Some Morning Sometime
Blasting Fonda
Someday Soon
Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again)
Summer Teeth
ELT
I Can't Keep From Talking
Encore 1
Gun
We've Been Had
Candyfloss
Henry & The H-Bombs
Acuff Rose
I'm The Man Who Loves You
Encore 2
Misunderstood
Encore 3 - Wilco without Nels
Not For The Season (Jeff and Glenn only)
The Family Gardener (Jeff, Glenn, Mike and Pat only)
How To Fight Loneliness
John Wesley Harding
Political Science
Hummingbird
Late Greats
Passenger Side
California Stars
I Shall Be Released

Wow. I need a copy. Please. Someone help me out. Thanks again HM.

Peace Off
Bro

this is added on--I am sure you wouldn't mind.

Spiderman's Greatest Bible Stories.

Bored with your mailbox. Some ideas here.

Find out what your future job will be and I will finish with one more from HelperMonkey. FAQs about Guinness.

That is it again and I still want a bootleg of that show. Please someone help.
Peace Off
Bro

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

and you sold your favorite records and you sold mine too

Last title was from Death Cab for Cutie's "Company Calls Epilogue" from the fine We have the facts and we're voting yes.

What a waste of time. It is brillant. Enjoy. Push the Button. I can't believe the 3 days?!? WTF.

some cool tees at threadless. I want the "god hates techno" shirt and "Fred and the Giant Eel" is pretty cool too.

$200 if you come up with a phrase for a tee and enough people vote for it. Good Luck at OMG or just make your own at neighborhoodies.

Nature is weird.

file under "I've seen this happen before and things worked out fine" Just see Wilco. So Fiona Apple's company says no to releasing her album.

SXSW geeks out. Enjoy.

MAKE THE BAD MAN STOP. I blame you. Yes you. You listen to radio with a lazy ear. Shame on you. Stand up. Someone must stop them. Please. Grow some. Clear Channel signs 50 year deal with China. 50 years. You gotta be kidding me.

Peace off
Bro

Sunday, March 06, 2005

I'm dressed up for free drinks and family greetings on your wedding date

Thanks to Super Furry Animals for the last lyric from "Something For the Weekend" Actually I am sorry I believe it is "Something 4 the Weekend" My Bad. Please find it in your heart to forgive me.

I wouldn't bore you with myself waxing philosophic-like. In fact I wouldn't wax anything but I did find this:

Every man should have blown a job he wanted; kept a job he hated; been in a wreck; to a funeral; sat shiva; should know how to cook a meal without opening a freezer; how to iron a woman's shirt; should be able to visit his parents and not arrive with laundry; leave with money; should have made peace with baldness; been troubled by the God issue; briefly sported a goatee; lied about his height; wondered if he was gay; tried meditating; held a gun; built a fire... --Unk

I have yet to sport the goatee and actually that will never happen and I haven't held a gun. That might happen. Water pistols count?

The art of the bad Album Cover. It's all here. I will leave you with a bit of Westerberg news:

Westerberg Anthology, 'Mats Reissues On The Horizon
Paul Westerberg will be the subject of a solo retrospective this spring via Rhino. According to the artist's official Web site, the 20-track set will feature two new songs, B-sides and rare tracks, Westerberg's soundtrack contributions and highlights from his post-Replacements releases.
The artist is in the midst of a North American tour backed by the three-piece His Only Friends band, which rolls into Tempe, Ariz., tomorrow (Feb. 25). Earlier this week in Los Angeles, confessed Westerberg fanatic Lucinda Williams joined the band for a cover of the Kitty Wells-popularized "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels."
While appearing on Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones' Los Angeles radio show earlier this week, Westerberg revealed he recently recorded a song with Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson, which is expected to appear in Cameron Crowe's forthcoming film "Elizabethtown." And while the likelihood of a Replacements reunion remains slim ("It can't be the Replacements without Chris [Mars] the drummer, and he's moved on into art and doesn't really want to come back," Westerberg told Jones), a host of reissues are in the works.
Rykodisc, which owns the rights to the band's Twin Tone releases, will reissue the Replacements first four albums in the fall, bolstered with rare bonus tracks. Rhino will give the same treatment to the group's late-period albums for Warner Bros.
Asked last summer if there were unreleased gems still in the archives, Westerberg told Billboard.com, "There probably are, but that haven't already been bootlegged in some way? The real fans have probably heard most of it. The only stuff that might be [unreleased] is cassettes of things that I have from real early on -- down in the basement kind of stuff when we were rehearsing."
Westerberg admitted he still reflects fondly on the 'Mats' early days, especially "when we were riding in the van and we ripped the seats out and would just listen to tapes and listen to Black Flag. [We would] sort of slam dance and stuff around in the back of the van and be drinking hard liquor at noon and it was just, you know, carefree times. We didn't give a damn." -Jason MacNeil, Toronto and Barry A. Jeckell http://www.billboard.com

Enjoy your Sunday
Peace Off
Bro

Saturday, March 05, 2005

First time I did it for the hell of it

The last bit of lyric was from the glorious "Gimme back my dog" from Slobberbone. I can not even begin to explain the joy I get from that song (actually the whole album brings a smile to my face). One great breakup song. Those that know--know. Those that don't--don't.

So I was away in LA and south of LA in Laguna Beach. I had a great time. I got to interview Virginia Madsen. She actually talked to me and answered my questions seriously. She was wonderful. Plus she brought her mother to the awards--more cool points for that. I still think she should have won.

After La La Land went down to Laguna Beach. My oh My there are a lot of art galleries down there. I almost bought a print of handwritten lyrics to "Watching the Wheels" from Lennon. $900 if you are into that.

While down in LB I met a screenwriter. I asked her what she was/has worked on. Her last two were Curious George and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe. Both movies I am excited about. She was surprised when I told her that Will Ferrell was the Man in the Yellow Hat and that Jack Johnson was doing the Soundtrack. She asked how I knew that. I said because I am a geek. That is something you already knew. If you haven't read the Hitchhiker's Guide books--now would be a good time. Think Monty P type humor. A good quick read that is very very funny.

Enough about my travels. I had a good time. Onward. HelperMonkey was busy filling my inbox with a few goodies I will now share with you. Thanks helper monkey.

the new music tip sheet. It is what it sounds like. It gives you the new releases. Very cool. HelperMonkey also wants you to check out Chickenhead. Thanks again HM. You are a good man.

Fun/ Gross Martial Arts bit.

How does our neighbor up there feel? Here's an op-ed from the Winnipeg Free Press.

A cool vid "about" Giant Steps by Coltrane. Enjoy the tune enjoy the process.

One F*($ing small step? Be careful bad words but it is very funny.

They recorded together 17 years ago, and now U2 is hooking up once again with blues great B.B. King. RollingStone.com reports that U2 and King are reuniting to record a song for King's forthcoming album, scheduled for release later this year. Here is more Bono--
Bono Plans His Own Funeral
Rock stars: One minute they're championing Third World interests, the next minute they're waxing morbid about their own death! Bono reveals he's thought about his last goodbye in an upcoming book. The book, Bono in Conversation, collects several interviews with the acclaimed U2 singer. Among them, is one where Bono chooses the music for his funeral (Bob Dylan's "Death is Not the End" and Pavarotti's "La Traviata"). Hopefully the singer, who has no known ailments, will remain healthy enough to trudge through the band's upcoming tour to support How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (Interscope). http://www.aversion.com. I don't think this is so bad. I have an iTunes playlist called "songs for my funeral" I want to put the fun back in funeral or at least some good tunes.

Lines are being blurred between online radio and music swapping.

Interpol video.

XM has raised its price. It is now the same price as Sirius. The first step toward the merger. Get the people use to the price then...

More later.
Peace Off
Bro

Friday, March 04, 2005

i'm back

and for now I just want to leave you this.

Yellow Ledbetter. The lyrics? Not even Vedder knows so maybe this guy is right. Still cool.

More. Much more later
Bro