5 Songs I Am Into Right Now -- Lollapalooza 2008 Edition

5 Songs I Am Into Right Now -- Bigger/Older Bands

Nine Inch Nails- All The Love In The World
From the album With Teeth (2005)
Reznor's insecurities of being alone are displayed for everyone,...It starts with feelings of sadness and helplessness when it seems like the song is almost over, it totally changes gears and has a brand new upbeat/angry feel.

Rage Against The Machine- Township Rebellion
From the album Rage Against The Machine (1992)
In the best way Zach and company know how, they explain the similarites between Johannesburg, South Africa to the problems of South Central Los Angeles (written during the Rodney King riots). Just like all Rage songs, this song inspires the listener to get up and fight.

Radiohead- Lucky
From the album Ok Computer (1997)
Thom Yorke's most Dark Side of the Moon-esque moment on their third album.

Love & Rockets- Kundalini Express
From the album Express (1986)
Former goths, bring on more of a psychedelic (dare I say hair metal?) sounds that going with the Baushaus route. Bauhaus can tend to be a little pretentious, Love & Rockets left that behind.

The Raconteurs- The Switch of the Spur
From the album Consolers Of The Lonely (2008)
Jack White's other band offers the account of an escaped convicted riding through the desert. This extremely theatrical tale includes Western film/Mariachi style horns. Good luck listening to this song and not getting the horns part stuck in your head.

5 Songs I Am Into Right Now -- Lollapalooza 2008 Edition

5 Songs I Am Into Right Now -- Smaller/Newer Bands

MGMT- Electric Feel
From the album Oracular Spectacular (2008)
Brooklyn's eclectric indie boys decide to make a catchy throwback to a little 70s discoesque soul.

The Weakerthans- One Great City!
From the album Reconstruction Site (2003)
Fromer Propagandhi front man tells a story of how Brooklyn and the L.E.S. aren't the only places suffering from unwanted urban gentrification, but its going on in Winnipeg as well.

Does It Offend You, Yeah?- Let's Make Out
From the album You Don't Know What You Are Getting Yourself Into (2008)
The UK gives their version of !!! meets Death From Above 1979 at a Muse show. Half dance punk, half electronic rock, this song won't to let you just stand there listening with your hands in your pockets in your favorite statue-like pose.

Margot & The Nuclear So and So's- On A Freezing Chicago Street
From the album The Dust Of Retreat (2006)
Indianapolis shows that indie folk doesn't only come from the UK or New York's East Village. This song offers a story of two people who seem to care about their own vices more than they care eachother.

The Gutter Twins- Seven Stories Underground
From the album Saturnalia (2008)
Mark Lanegan (Screaming Trees, Queens of the Stone Age) and Greg Dulli (Afghane Whigs) join forces for this stoneresque track, that sounds like it could be on a QOTSA record. The song has a way of being haunting and comforting at the same time. Well, I guess kinda like getting stoned.

Good Music Videos

Marble Index- We Always Complain

Lollapalooza 2008 Day 1

Great Live Show Alert!
12:15-1:15
BLACK LIPS
Atlanta, GA
Garage Punk, Sounds like a throw back to early Stooges.
This band is most known for their live shows. I am not sure what is going to happen in a festival setting but when I saw them at SXSW in 2007 their show included nudity, animals, flowers and fire. It was rather interesting.
For fans of 70s Glam (Stooges, Velvet Underground).
Download:
Cold Hands
Veni Vidi Vici
Lock and Key
Dirty Hands

Death Cab Junior Alert!
1:00-1:45
MANCHESTER ORCHESTRA
Atlanta, GA
Pop leaning indie, only have one record
For fans of Death Cab For Cutie, a little schizophrenic ranging from rockers to downtempo
Download:
I Can Barely Breath
Wolves At Night
Now That You’re Home

No, Its Not Zeppelin or Wolfmother Alert!
1:30- 2:15
THE PARLOR MOB
Red Bank, NJ
Big guitar classic rock, only have one record
For fans of The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, Wolfmother, Classic Rock Radio
Download:
Bullet
Everything You Are Breathing For
Can’t Keep No Good Boy Down

Amy Winehouse & Lily Allen Have Started A Trend Alert!
3:15-4:15
DUFFY
Nefyn, Wales
Soulful alt pop, ala Amy Winehouse, has only one album right now
For fans of Amy Winehouse, Dusty Springfield
Download:
Rockferry
Mercy (hit single tearing up the charts)
Syrup & Honey

Let’s Pretend We Are Cocky English Guys Alert!
3:15-4:00
LOUIS XIV
San Diego, CA
Indie, Brit Pop, more Neo Glam (think Bowie’s Suffragette City)
For fans of old Bowie, T Rex
Download:
Finding Out True Love Is Blind (hit single from 2004)

Dance Punk Alert!
3:15-4:15
THE KILLS
W (Florida based), Hotel (UK based)… yes she goes by W and he goes by Hotel (not their real names, they are just weird)
Indie punk, garage, lo-fi, dance
Stripped down Metric, good for music snobs
Download:
No Wow
Cheap and Cheerful

Bluesy Classic Rock Guitar Alert!
4:15-5:15
THE BLACK KEYS
Akron, OH
Guitar heavy, lo-fi, bluesy hard rock
For fans of White Stripes or guitar heavy classic rock
Download:
Strange Times
When The Lights Go Out (don’t think its on an album, from the movie Black Snake Moan)
I Got Mine
10 AM Automatic
Your Touch

Gypsy Punk Alert!
4:15-5: 15
GOGOL BORDELLO
Kiev, Ukraine
Gypsey punk, old world sounding punk rock sounds, sounds weird but great live show
For fans of Flogging Molly or Dropkick Murphy’s lighter side, the Borat of Punk
Download:
Wonderlust King
American Wedding
Start Wearing Purple

Dance Twee Alert!
5:15- 6:15
MATES OF STATE
Lawrence, KS
Electronic, dance, twee, male and female vocals, very upbeat
For fans of dancy music and the “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” song
Download:
Goods
Jigsaw
Fraud In The 80s

Don’t Miss Them Live Alert!
6:15-7:45
THE RACONTEURS
Nashville, TN and Detroit. MI
Fantastic indie, blues rock band that was one of the best acts of Lollapalooza 2006
For fans of The White Stripes, good things, great blues guitar
Download:
Salute Your Solution (current single)
Steady As She Goes (2006 hit single)
Hands
Blue Veins
Consloler of the Lonely

Indie Icon Alert!
7:15-8:00
STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS
Santa Monica, CA
Stephen Malkmus was the singer for Pavement
For fans of 90s college radio, indie rock, classic rock, Wilcoish at times
Download:
Dragonfly Pie
Gardenia
Baltimore
Cold Son
Hopscotch Willie

World’s Most Creative Big Band Alert!
8:30-???
RADIOHEAD
Abingdon, UK
No real introduction needed
Download:
National Anthem
Creep
Paranoid Android
Karma Police
Fake Plastic Trees
Lucky

Lollapalooza 2008 Day 2

Fun Indie Dance Rock Alert!
11:45-12:30
DE NOVO DAHL
Nashville, TN
Indie rock that doesn’t take itself to seriously
Sounds like the Strokes not being posers, mid 70s radio
Download:
Shout
Shakedown

East Village Style Folk Indie Rock Alert!
12:15- 12:45
MARGOT & THE NUCLEAR SO AND SO’S
Indianapolis, IN
More downtempo, slow, folky indie rock, only one album (one of the first bands I tried to sign)
Sounds like a less poppy version of Snow Patrol, less snooty than Bright Eyes
Download:
On A Freezing Chicago Street
Skeleton Key
Vampire In Blue Dresses
Barfight Revolution

Silly Electronic Europeans Alert!
12:30-1:30
DOES IT OFFEND YOU, YEAH?
Reading, UK
Electronic, aggressive rock, known for a great live show, only one record
Sounds like Justice and Muse had a kid together
Download:
Epic Last Song
Let’s Make Out
Being Bad Feels Pretty Good

Buzz Band From iPod Commercial Alert!
12:45-1:30
THE TING TINGS
Manchester, UK
Dance punk, electronic sounding indie, that sounds like a cheer routine, only one record
Sounds like Justice and Toni Basil had a kid together
Download:
Shut Up And Let Me Go (ipod commercial, hit single in the US and UK)
That’s Not My Name

New Band Sounds Like An Old Band Alert!
1:30-2:30
DR. DOG
Philadelphia, PA
Psychedelic indie slow rock
Sounds like a mix of the Beatles, Ziggy Stardust with occasional backing from a Stax band
Download:
Worst Trip
Ain’t it Strange
The Girl
My Old Ways

Yet Another Spin Off From Queens Of The Stone Age Alert!
2:30-3:30
THE GUTTER TWINS
Los Angeles, CA
Alternative rock (very 90sish), singers are Greg Dulli (Afghan Whigs) and Mark Lanegan (QOTSA-Lullabies To Paralyze)
Dulli is more rhythmic while Lanegan is more deep blues think Tom Waits, the songs are very down tempo, not the happiest group at Lollapalooza 2008.
Download:
Seven Stories Underground
Bete Noir
God’s Children
Who Will Lead Us?

New York’s Buzz Band Alert!
3:30-4:30
MGMT
Brooklyn, NY
Alt pop/electronic and strange sounds are part of very song.
Sounds like a combination of electronica and at times plastic soul, a step beyond Sound Team
Download:
Electric Feel
Time To Pretend

Canadian SuperGroup Alert!
6:30-7:30
BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE
Toronto, ON
Musicians and singers from Canada’s biggest indie bands (and everyone knows Canada has the best indie music) including, Feist, Jason Collett, Emily Haines and other members of Metric, Stars, The Weakerthans, The Dears, Holy Fuck and many many more.
Download:
Anthems for a Seventeen Year Old Girl
Lover’s Spit
I’m Still Your Fag
Cause=Time
7/4 Shorline
Almost Crimes

Soul Is Back Alert!
7:30-8:30
SHARON JONES & THE DAP KINGS
Brooklyn, NY
Sharon has been called the female James Brown, amazing live show- includes strings and horns
Sounds like James Brown, Ann Peebles, don’t miss it
Download:
All Over Again
Fish In My Dish
How Long Do I Have To Wait For You?
100 Days 100 Nights

Forgotten Song Of The 1990s Alert!
7:30-8:30
TOADIES
Dallas, TX
Great live show, rather loud, you know a song by them even if you don’t remember the name Toadies
Sounds like post grunge alternative rock
Download:
Possum Kingdom (you all remember this song)
Tyler

Indie and Chicago Icon Alert!
8:30-???
WILCO
Chicago, IL
Great live show, alt country, indie rock
For fans of Spoon or My Morning Jacket… but you likely know that already
Download:
Heavy Metal Drummer
Walken
Jesus, etc.
Impossible Germany

They’re Back Alert!
8:30-???
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE
Los Angeles, CA
Mix of rap, metal and punk… political political political… so prepare for some annoying rants
Best live band I have ever seen (aside from Justice) at 1999 Tibetan Freedom Concert
Download:
Sleep Now In the Fire
Bulls On Parade
Renegades of Funk
Bombtrack
Bullet In the Head
People of The Sun
Township Rebellion

Lollapalooza 2008 Day 3

Saturday Night Hangover Beware Alert!
11:30-12:30
OFFICE
Chicago, IL
Cult favorite Chicagoans on the indie scene, almost tweeish, happy, sunny indie rock
Sounds like a dancey rock ie. Kaiser Cheifs or Franz Ferdinand or Utopia Parkway era Fountains of Wayne and more refined than the Arctic Monkeys
Download:
The Ritz
Company Calls

Punk Guy Grows Up Turns Indie And Becomes Story Teller Alert!
1:15-2:15
THE WEAKERTHANS
Winnipeg, MB
Band led by former member of the punk band Propagandhi, now he is in a indie pop but likely to smart for radio band with a little new wave kick… a nice combination with the stories that are told in each song in a sort of Ben Folds sort of way.
Download:
Plea from a Cat named Virtue
One Great City!
Aside
Night Windows

Southern Indie Rock Alert!
1:15-2:15
THE WHIGS
Athens, GA
Pretty fun, energetic band that sounds southern with out sounding alt country.
Sounds like Kings of Leon’s Because of the Times with a more traditional rock singer and a little less hip than Spoon.
Download:
I Never Want To Go Home
Right Hand On My Heart
Sleep Sunshine
Violent Furs

Lounge Music Alert!
2:15-3:15
BRAZILIAN GIRLS
New York, NY
These guys are the house band at a very hip and hidden bar in Manhattan… they play from 2am-4am every night.
Sounds like you are at lounge in either Sao Paolo or Paris, with a Lower East Side style electronica element added.
Download:
Pussy
Don’t Stop
Jique

Get Ready To Dance Alert!
3:15-4:15
CHROMEO
Montreal. QC/New York, NY
The self described “only successful Arab/Jewish collaboration since the beginning of time.” One does the keyboards and synthisizers and one plays guitar and sings. One is a famous DJ in NYC one is the road DJ for Kanye West.
Sounds like Justice, Daft Punk, dance music, electronic…
Download:
Tenderoni
Fancy Footwork
Bonafied Lovin
100%

Buzz Band That I Tried To Sign Alert!
3:30-4:30
BLACK KIDS
Jacksonville, FL
Indie pop, indie dance group, who doesn’t even have a record out yet… it will be out July 22nd… so I only know one song by them, other than what I saw from a live show so I cant really tell you much.
Download:
I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

Blue Eyed Soul Without The Big Name Producer Trying To Make It Sound New Alert!
4:15-5:00
ELI “PAPERBOY” REED & THE TRUE LOVES
Brookline, MA
Yes I was talking about Justin Timberlake… this act sounds like a throw back to R&B the same way as Sharon Jones.
Thinks Sam & Dave, Otis Redding, Stax… all that good stuff, just with a White Boy Masshole.
Download:
Take My Love With You
Won’t Give Up Without A Fight

Celtic Punk Icons Alert!
5:15-6:15
FLOGGING MOLLY
Los Angeles, CA
Half punk band, half Irish folk band, full of Guinness band
Sounds like Against Me! Doing a commercial for Lucky Charms. Or Social Distortion and Bouncing Souls preparing to play soccer but first are having a drink at your favorite Irish Pub.
Download:
Drunken Lullabies
If I Ever Leave This World Alive
Salty Dog
Laura
Am I Wasting My Time

80s Gothic Rock Icons Alert!
6:15-7:15
LOVE & ROCKETS
Northampton, UK
Of course 80s Goth is a little different from Goth today… these guys are Goth from a time of Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Cure, New Order,Echo & The Bunnymen, etc.
Sounds 80s but appealed to a different crowd than Def Leppard and Bon Jovi.
Download:
Kundalini Express
Ball of Confussion

Don’t Count On iTunes For This Alert!
6:30-7:30
GIRL TALK
Pittsburgh, PA
DON’T LOOK FOR THIS ON ITUNES YOU WILL GET SOMETHING ELSE.
Girl Talk is a dj that does mashups better than any other dj in the world. He has a knack for taking 2 songs from a different genres and putting them together perfectly. The Jay-Z/Linkin Park stuff is a yawn compared to what he does. This will just be a dj set but worth noting if you are into that stuff.

Bruce Springsteen’s Favorite New Band Alert!
7:15-8:15
THE NATIONAL
Cincinnati, OH/Brooklyn, NY
The band has gotten tons of album/band of the year form magazines and blogs for the 2007 album “Boxer.”
Straight/honest folk rock band that doesn’t lose its New York cool for not longing for a hipster edge. You can tell why Springsteen loves them.
Download:
About Today
All The Wine
Mistaken For Strangers
Fake Empire
Apartment Story

You May Not Be A Fan But Check Them Out Trust Me Alert!
8:15-???
NINE INCH NAILS
Cleveland, OH
Not much to introduce here… Trent Reznor does everything on the record and has hired guns on the road with him. NIN does have a lot of hard songs but I tend to like some of the softer stuff better. March of the Pigs makes me think of hanging out at Brandon’s in 1994.
Download:
Everyday Is Exactly The Same
Right Where It Belongs
The Hand That Feeds
Head Like A Hole (not on itunes)
Terrible Lies (not on itunes)
Only
All The Love In The World
Closer
Hurt
March Of The Pigs

You All Know This Guy So I Am Writing Nothing Alert!
8:30-???
KANYE WEST
Considering the Bannaroo debacle, I am sure he will be ready to go, especially in his own home town.

MLB Picks

Check my picks for this baseball season. I was the guest baseball Nostradamus, for my friend Boogie's blog, Ladies Locker Room...

Check out the link to see them... feel free to leave comments telling all of us that we suck!

http://ladieslockerroom.blogspot.com/

Good Music Videos

MRNORTH- Speak No Evil

CBGB Almost 2 Years Later

As you all know, the legendary New York City rock club has been closed for almost 2 years now. I was just as sad as anyone when I heard the news that it was real. Granted a lot of nothing bands played there in its last days, but it was also a place where bands I love such as Television, Misfits, Ramones (obviously), Blondie, The Dictators, among countless others cut their teeth. Plus a lot of my good friends who are in bands had played there and loved being on that shit stage.

As you know I love the music scene, tend to hate on massive pop culture and am a well… a snob when it comes to those things. I am also a fan of the Morrison Hotel store down in SOHO (for those of you not in New York http://www.morrisonhotelgallery.com/). In what used to be CBGallery, there is currently a great exhibit that is for sale from the photographer Bob Gruen. He has stuff ranging from John and Yoko to the punk years (Sex Pistols, Clash) to the glam years (Lou Reed, New York Dolls, Iggy). It was a great exhibition.

While hanging there, the guy running the gallery told us to check out the John Varvatos store (formerly known as CBGB). I was a bit skeptical, he told me he was too and to just bite the bullet and check it out. So I did. For those of you who don’t know, John Varvatos is a total audiophile and supposedly has a world class vinyl collection.

I am not scared to admit… John kudos my man. The store looks great. He did his best to keep the… um… charm of CBGB and of course clean it up (the urine smell is gone!). They even framed the original walls in a few places so you can see what it used to look like in there. The registers are located on the same bar where a bartender actually once handed me a Bud Light missing half its neck and up. He also decorated the walls with vinyl and promo posters for bands that would have or did play CBGB.

Good job Mr. Varvatos… its not quite what it used to be but I was pleasantly surprised. That isn't to say that I wouldn't rather CBGB be landmarked. If it were up to me it would still be CBGB and it would still be pumping out a killer PA with local and national acts playing shows nightly. At this point that just isn't reality. Nothing is sacred in the world of gentrification and frankly I understand that. All I am trying to say, is that if its not going to be a rock club, I am glad it has fallen into the hands of someone who understands what used to be there. Imagine it turned into a Duane Reade or a Starbucks! Yikes!

27 Club

Hey All,

Just wanted to let you know I celebrated my 27th birthday last week... in other words I am now the same age as...

Jimi Hendrix
Janis Joplin
Jim Morrison
Kurt Cobain
Brian Jones
Louis Chauvin
Robert Johnson
Jesse Belvin
Alan "Blind Owl" Wilson
Les Harvey
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan
Dave Alexander
Peter Ham
Gary Thain
Helmut Kollen
Chris Bell
D. Boon
Pete de. Freitas
Mia Zapata
Kristen Pfaff
Fat Pat
Sean Patrick McCabe
Jeremy Michael Ward
Bryan Ottoson

All Star Game (ill logik)

So last night was the Major League Baseball All Star Game. Every where you read about it or heard about it was followed with the tagline, "This Time It Counts." Of course, that is referring to the fact that the winning team will give their league champion home field advantage in the World Series. Here are a couple reasons that I have a problem with this.

Fan Voting- How are you going to leave something like that in the hands of the fans? There were a few people in the All Star game that were voted in that should not have been. Jason Varitek was voted in and his number are as follows: .218 BA, 7 HR, 28 RBI. These are far from All Star numbers… They are even less than average! He is one more bad run away from being at the Mendoza Line! This is not someone who should be in a game of this magnitude. There are certain teams that are always going to get more love from the voters than others. How can a deserving player from Kansas City, Cincinnati or Minnesota compete with players from New York, Chicago or Boston?

Everyone Represented- No! This doesn’t make sense. A game that will chose the location of the first two games of the World Series should not be up to a game that will have a single player from a last place team in it. It should be only the best players, not the best players and the best player from Team X because they have no one in the game.

Roster Problems- Certain pitchers were only allowed certain amounts of work based on what they had done and games that were coming up. Webb, Dempster, Marmol, Kazmir were only allowed to pitch one inning while Baltimore closer George Sherrill was asked to pitch 2.1 innings.

Here is my proposal. I do think the fans should vote. I do think every team should be represented. It just should not chose the World Series. If you want a creative way to get the location figured out. Go by the league with the better interleague record. That actually means something.

Shows This Past Week (or month)

Lou Reed.
Highline Ballroom
http://www.myspace.com/loureedfanpage

This show was a lifetime memory. I had never seen Lou Reed before and have been a big fan since I was a kid. My dad taught me about Lou Reed and Velvet Underground at a very young age. He told me about them, I believe when I was in middle school when people started throwing around the term “alternative music.” This didn’t just end here. I went to Syracuse University (Lou’s Alma Mater). The last time I was supposed to see him, there was a tiny snow storm that cancelled the show. New Yorkers bug out from little nothing snow storms. Any way, this show was at Highline Ballroom in the Meat Packing District. The crowd wasn’t so cool… one stupid bitch pushed my dad for having a good time and dancing a little.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
No question… I got to see Lou Reed with my dad.

Tegan & Sara.
Terminal 5
http://www.myspace.com/teganandsara

I was shocked how good this show was. Between the quality of the performance and the sound of room at Terminal 5, this was a fantastic show. Not only great songs written by two very talented women, but their chemistry between and during songs can’t be beat. Of course it helps that they are sisters, but they were cracking me up. Usually, I don’t like talking between songs and just want them to play but this was an exception. I liked the jokes. I liked the whole Vh1 Storytellers vibe to the show. It was really cool seeing Tegan’s prankster like personality and Sara’s more cute and appreciative side. Very fun, a show I will definitely go see again.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
Before the show, I went to an Irish pub for some food and a couple pints. It wasn’t a sports bar, but it was a place full of regulars watching the Mets on the tvs. It was hilarious watching them looking around thinking, “whats with all the girls with Mohawks and muscle shirts?”

Mike Ness.
Irving Plaza
http://www.myspace.com/mikeness

I am a music nerd. I like all of my favorite bands side projects. This one is one of my favorites. He doesn’t get so far away from the Social Distortion formula… at all. He adds a little country flavor to it and I love it. While there were plenty of Sick Boys walking around (I dressed in my finest Sick Boy attire myself), a lot of the people there traded in their work shirts and chains for cowboy hats and plaid shirts. It was a really cool half punk half hootenanny vibe. Mike played his album of originals, some Hank Williams covers, some Johnny Cash covers and Ball and Chain. While it wasn’t exactly a Social Distortion show, I will take it as an appetizer until the come back.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
I went to this show alone, but ran into one of my favorite bartenders from my favorite bar… she and I have the exact same taste in music. The country punk vibe was cool too and the girls dressed as punk rock pinup girls is always ok by me.

The Wombats.
Gramercy Theater
http://www.myspace.com/thewombatsuk

As you know I have a special place in my heart for this band. I consider myself one of their American finders. I have known them for about 18 months now. They put on another great show and its amazing watching them get bigger and bigger every time I go see them. They also seem to be just as quirky and just as fun loving as ever. For more see April 4th report.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
Their manager took really great care of me and my friend at this show… thanks Simon.

Mission of Burma.
Bowery Ballroom
http://www.myspace.com/missionofburma

Loud… it was loud. Almost too loud. This was a very significant show. In this show, they warmed up with a random potpourri of songs and then played Signals, Calls and Marches from start to finish. I was impressed with how well the vocals sounded the instruments were a little bit hard to really hear since it was as loud as it was. This is another band that I have been wanting to see for a long time. They didn’t disappoint at all. The crowd was very into it and that of course just made everything better. I am not sure I am a big enough fan to watch a regular show, but since I love every song on the album they played they made it a great show. In other words this was a show made specifically for me. Thanks guys.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
The mix of people. Punks. Metal heads. Indie kids. All drinking Brooklyn Lager and enjoying a great show together.

Coldplay.
Madison Square Garden
http://www.myspace.com/coldplay

I know what you are thinking. Really? Yes, really. My girlfriend is a big fan, and I won tickets to the free show so we went. I am not afraid to admit I was impressed. It was much better than I thought it would be. I also am shocked how many songs I knew. Not necessarily to the point that I was jumping and singing and going nuts but it did make it fun. I am not quite sure why, but for some reason I didn’t think Chris Martin’s voice was going to be able to fill The Garden. It wasn’t a problem at all his voice is much bigger live than it is on the records.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
The show was free! They made a few mistakes tuning, starting at different times, lyrics mistakes. The dress rehearsal vibe was kind of cool. It made one of the world’s biggest bands seem human. On the bands mistakes, at one point Chris Martin sang, “I can’t believe we are embarrassing ourselves at MSG atleast all of the fans are here for free!” He also came out and apologized to everyone for the high ticket price which got a large cheer.

Pearl Jam.
Madison Square Garden
http://www.myspace.com/tenclub

I have seen Pearl Jam three times, this being the most recent, obviously. This was probably the best show I have seen of theirs allow to me to explain by telling you about all three.

Show one was at Izod Center at the Meadowlands. It was far. It was raining. There was a line for the bus. There bus was stuck in traffic. We get to the show. They run out of beer early. Pearl Jam plays maybe 4 songs I knew in the entire set. The next night apparently they played a huge playlist. Lame.

Show two was at Lollapalooza 2007. It was amazing. Clear night. They played everything that a festival wanted to hear. Everyone knew every song. They did a version of Another Brick In The Wall about British Petroleum dumping in Lake Michigan. “Hey BP, leave out Lake alone.” Of course a political singer from Chicago is going to have to bring that up.

That brings us to show three. An amazing mix of the two. I know Pearl Jam shows aren’t supposed to be greatest hits playlists. This was far from a greatest hits playlist… I would say as a medium Pearl Jam fan I knew a lot of songs certainly not all. However, the crowd knew every song. It was by far the loudest crowd I have ever been to a show with. They every song incredibly loud and the Knicks and Rangers have never gotten a cheer at the Garden the way they did after each song. It was incredible to be a part of.

Random Non-Music Related High Point.
Two songs in, Eddie Vedder announced, “we spoke to the people here at tonight and they told us we don’t have to worry about curfew, so we may play for a while is that ok with you guys?”

5 Songs I am Into Right Now

Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks- Dragonfly Pie
From the album Real Emotional Trash (2008).
Pavenment's front man shows that he can play some good old fashion classic rock in sludgy Black Sabbath sort of way, but keeps the 90s College Radio vocals alive.

Sonic Youth- Reena
From the album Rather Ripped (2006)
Alternative icon's keep their sound and swagger in an only slightyly updated (not too updated though) version of themselves, playing behind Kim Gordon's vocals.

A Place To Bury Strangers- Missing You
From the album A Place To Bury Strangers (2007)
Brooklyn's loudest band comes through with a song that almost seems to be a slightly harder shout out to My Bloody Valentine.

Lou Reed- Goodnight Ladies
From the album Transformer (1978)
The Godfather of everything glam and indie gives a song that is almost a showtune about a night going home all alone in Manhattan.

Tom Waits- Goin' Out West
From the album Bone Machine (1992)
Great song for drinking whiskey, forgeting your problems, then taking the bottle and smashing it over the guy's head who hasn't shut up all night.

Lollapalooza 2008

Ok. Ok. Ok. The study guide is coming soon. I will be posting by the day this week... so quit bothering me!

For now visit-
http://www.lollapalooza.com/default.asp?fd=1

Sports Gossip? (ill logik)

For those who don’t know, I am a sports junkie. Let me rephrase that. I love sports. You are likely asking yourself why would he down grade like that and not just come out and say it that way. Well here is the thing, I am indeed a huge sports fan. Sports is what I watch on tv 95% of the time… I don’t like movies, I don’t like sitcoms or any of these continuation epic shows like Lost or Heros or that stuff.

I prefer sports, but I am not one of those people that knows every single starting lineup, where they went to school and what their stats are. I love my teams and follow my teams but that’s about it (still don’t know their numbers and stuff).

Any way, so this past weekend I have had my second favorite form of entertainment (music is still number 1), turned into US Weekly from this whole, ARod getting divorced from his wife who is with Lenny Kravitz in Paris, while he stays home with Madonna… stupid. Its lame to me that people who read People Magazine know who Tom Brady, Lance Armstrong, Derek Jeter and Tony Parker are based on who they date/marry. It’s lame. The ARod story even got the back page on the newspaper the day the Yankees were hosting the 4th and final game of a series against the Red Sox. Here in town nonetheless.

Two very cool stories happened this weekend involving athletes that aren’t getting nearly enough love. First, former NFL player turned lame actor Brian Bosworth pulled a woman out of a wrecked car this weekend. Also a current NFL superstar, Tony Gonzalez apparently gave someone the Heimlich Maneuver.

I don’t judge anyone for reading US Weekly or People or whatever. The fact of the matter is though, we are sports fans because we love the game! We don’t care who dates who. We don’t care who cheats on who. If my favorite athlete cheats on his wife today, he is still my favorite athlete tomorrow. I love the game and the athletes, what they do in their private time is up to them.

Head Stone Of Ian Curtis Stolen.

As if it isn't odd enough to hear one of your favorite singer's headstone has been stolen, imagine that you heard this the day after you finally saw the movie Control. That's exactly what happened to me, folks. I watched the biopic on the Joy Division singer less than 24 hours before hearing this story. I had been wanting to see it for months and I decide to watch it the day before BBC Manchester reported that the headstone had been stolen from Macclesfield Cemetary.

The headstone simply read "Ian Curtis 18-5-80. Love Will Tear Us Apart."

Josh Homme Responds

From The Tripwire. I am a big QOTSA Fan and Josh Homme I know doesn't have the longest fuse in the world... so, enjoy this!

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The interwebs were buzzing about a recent Queens Of The Stone Age gig in Oslo, during which a fan chunked a bottle at frontman Josh Homme. Now, we've met Homme before, and there is no way in the world that we would even remotely consider fucking with him. The dude could break you in half without breaking a sweat. Well, after this bottle whizzed by his head, Homme erupted into a pissed off rant, using language that some interpreted as homophobic and inappropriate. In an effort to sorta kinda but not really clear his name, he released the following statement to press:


Member of the Peanut Gallery:

Some journalists & citizens on the internet & are wondering: Q? Am I a homophobe because I included a slang for gay in with other "acceptable" curse words during a verbal lashing I gave a young concertgoer, after being hit by his shoe, during a show the other day? A= Nope. My gay family & friends, as well as myself, KNOW I am not a homophobe. For years now I've known gay is not a choice; one's skin color doesn't determine one's intelligence level; & red hair doesn't mean you're someone's stepchild. You see, it's not the words, it's their intent. I never said, nor suggested, that being gay is wrong, but apparently, based on your outrage to my flu-infused rant, you do! By that logic... I also told that young whipper snapper I'd have anal sex with him... how can I possibly reconcile these opposing viewpoints? I called him a pussy too. Does it mean I hate our one worlds' collective vagina? I never have been nor intend to be politically correct. That's your cross to bear. To me, that PC world would suck more shit than the porta-potty truck at Glastonbury. Homophobic? I'm in Queens of the Stone Age for crissake... You say, "So. Your band name doesn't prove anything." Maybe not. But it's a helluv a lot more definitive than the logic of some watchdog... (sorry canine-American, canine-European, canine-African, canine-Australian & canine-Asian) moralist, keeping score from pure perfectionville? If your glass house is squeegeed that clean & you need to do something, do what the great philosopher Bill Hick's once suggested: - forgive me-. Or don't. I'm not asking for either, OK? I think you should let both of your cheeks go loose so the stick will drop out. Either way I expect that you'll soon find another injustice from your chair, then roll to your bullhorn & point it out to the rest of us... Because you're so above it all. Or If you'll allow me to translate a wish of mine into your PC lingo:
Will you please go have, consensual, sex with yourself.
Pretty please with all natural, carbon offset sugar on top.

Sincerely,
Mr. Missundastood
A.K.A. Joshua, Baby Duck, Jho
Head Choreographer & Do Stuff Corporation's pansexual spokes-thing

Good Music Videos

The Wombats- Moving To New York

Good Music Videos

Queens of the Stone Age- Go With The Flow

Universal Music Group has decided they would rather I didn't promote their music for them so if you would like to see this video please go to THEIR page at the link! They pulled all of the postings of this video on YouTube except for their own, and won't give out an embeding code. Long live the major label!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiU7o7hRJmE

Good Music Videos

Justice- D.A.N.C.E.