wowee zowee!

thanks to everyone who came out last to the mercury lounge to see dirty on purpose. the turn out was overwhelming! i saw many familiar faces and tons of new faces! the band was on first, and had the biggest crowd -- their performance was simply illuminating (not that i'm biased or anything...) but my high spirits were confirmed by several people who came up to me afterwards. it's so nice when you get immediate feedback like that. it's too bad the band didn't get to play "mind blindness," one their new ones that just consumes you, but their performance exploded into wild gusto when they ended with crowd favorite, "monument." i couldn't stay still. i was dancing and just drowning in the intense musical finale.

i love dop, not only for their good music, but they're just awesome people. they're good natured and appreciate everything that comes their way. they love their fans. they love their peeps. they love music. it makes all of the work i do for them extremely rewarding. it sounds a little sappy, but that's the truth, ruth. hanging with them at practice and recording and just hanging out is time i never feel i've wasted because i get so much back. a special thanks to dop!

also another thing i'd like to announce: DoP's first EP is officially sold out at truthflies.com! thanks to all who purchased a copy. i think truthflies.com will be taking pre-orders of DoP's second CD at some point. we'll let you know when it all goes down. i also did get ed from truthflies to come to the show (granted it was after the band went on) to sell me a walkmen bows and arrows cd. word! you know i'll be buying a bunch of copies of that on the official release date to give to my peeps.


anyhoo, while we were hanging around the mercury lounge's downstairs band room, a small, smoky space covered with graffiti and band stickers, we got to know the guys from swell. they were ultra nice, and we were all siked to see them on the lineup. their music had a wonderful groove to it that was more laid-back than dop's set. it was music that just made you say, "yeah this shit is coool." extra "o" intended. i really liked them and look forward to seeing them again soon! they have an upcoming show with the wrens at sarah lawrence, so if you missed them this time, you can check them out again soon!


i was seeing the blondes, inc. last night for the second time. what's immediately striking about this band is their look. they had really cool lighting that came up from the stage floor. they were going to put up their signature black-and-white polka-dotted curtain, but at some point decided against it. i think this was a good move. instead of the audience focusing on their stage set up, they were focusing more on the music. the result is rewarding because i completely disagreed with the village voice review that the blondes don't play good music. their music is a throwback to the old school. and i saw many girls swaying their hips like they were at a rolling stones concert or something.

tonight i'm going to see the go station, a band i've been hearing many good things about. they're playing tiswas with aerial love feed. i've never seen them live before, but you should come check them out with me...

show show show!

dirty on purpose return to the mercury lounge after a three-month break! they've been recording some hot new stuff, and they'll be playing old and new faves tonight!

listen to some mp3s:
* "go back to sleep"
* "monument"

jan. 30 --> tonight!!
dirty on purpose
w/ the blondes, swell, int'l orange
@ mercury lounge
8:30 p.m. // $8

hot poster

i just love this poster so much.
click it to see it in all its garrett morlan glory.

dearest dennis and eric,

please forgive my absence last night at your sin-e and mercury lounge shows, respectively. i hope that they went well.

dennis, i love your mp3s and was really looking forward to hearing you, but i got stuck at work until uber-late and then i was stressing out so much my eyes wouldn't stop twitching. i went home and i slept like my life depended on it. but i guarantee i will catch you at asobi seksu's release party in march. mucho mucho sowweeeee.

eric, i listened to say hi to your mom's new cd and it rocks with poppy goodness! everyone should buy it.

love jinners

congratulations to you

i chose two winners in a random draw for the stills contest. congratulations to the winners! be on the lookout from an email from moi about the contest. if you haven't received any notice from me, you weren't among the lucky bastards. sorry!

walkie talkie

the next walkmen show: april 1 @ irving plaza. wheeeeee!

fred flare, etc, etc

fred flare is having a major sale. lots of cute valentine's gifts, too, for the romantic in you. their stuff is always adorable, fun, colorful and hip. check 'em out!

another link sent to me by my friend katy freaked me out. stevie nicks fans probably already know about this one, but c'mon!

one of the cooler experimental bands in new york city, the new humans, are doin' their thang on jan. 27 with another new york band, cheeseburger. while the new humans will play under their huged quilted sheet, cheeseburger will play simulataneously... all of this happens at gavin brown's passerby art gallery in chelsea. 10 p.m.

also playing on tuesday is dennis from the realistics at sin-e. he's posted some mp3s on his site, so check em out and go see him! 10 p.m.

also playing are say hi to your mom -- it's their record release party at the mercury lounge! 9:30 p.m.

sleater-kinney

Sleater-Kinney have just launched their official web site. You can find it at: www.thisissleaterkinney.com

ALSO Janet and Corin made a celebrity playlist in iTunes. To find it click on the link to Celebrity Playlists on the iTunes Music Store front page.

+1 +1 +1 +1

the launch of jonny kaps' new company, +1 Management and PR last night at don hill's was crazy packed. it was difficult to maneuver through the crowd that was shuffling about with their discounted vodka drinks. i walked into the venue as inouk was on stage. i liked what little i heard as i headed back to the coat room, an arduous task that took longer than it should have. i'd have to see them again to really formulate a solid opinion.

my spirits were high , and i couldn't help but break into lots of smiles. later ambulance ltd took the stage and impressed me. they've gotten a lot better since i last saw them -- and as you know they also have a new keyboard player. there were definitely parts of songs i liked better recorded than live, but they were tight overall. marcus' voice was also stronger.

on tv screens in the bar, stellastarr* videos were playing on a loop as if to foreshadow to their "surprise" performance. they took the stage, looking exactly how i remembered them the last time i saw them. they started out with "in the walls" -- those opening guitar parts are always so engaging and ominous of a spectacular performance. i'm not sure what it was, but i think they sounded better at don hill's than in any other venue i've seen them in (funny, because don hill's is the first venue i saw them in). it was like they had come full circle in my eyes. the crowd exploded when they began to play the anthemic single, "my coco." it was good to see that people that weren't that impressed with their recorded stuff, were impressed with their live performance. i always think of stellastarr* as a band that is fun to watch live because guitarist michael jurin will undoubtedly be writhing on the floor in dramatic flails as will lead singer shawn christensen. the drummer arthur kremer also broke out into his trademark barechests, with his trademark asterick nipple. he's probably the most entertaining performer to watch on stage because his personality is so pronounced. bassist amanda tannen also seems like her stage presence has improved, her stance on stage seems to have more hamony with the other members than it had in the past.

adrian tomine

ooooh adrian tomine has a new optic nerve out, finally! he's one of the few storytellers out there i really identify with. and it's not just cuz he's asian. he understands alienation, loneliness, confusion, small joys...

here's a blurb from the housing works used book store site: Adrian Tomine, creator of Optic Nerve #9, will appear for a Q&A. The graphic artist will also be available to sign books.

About Adrian Tomine: The California-based cartoonist has been producing the Optic Nerve series for more than 12 years. His latest, Optic Nerve #9, presents the fictional story of a troubled twentysomething Japanese-American guy's cross-country quest for the perfect girl. Excerpts from his earlier work appeared in the critically acclaimed graphic novel Summer Blonde. Tomine's illustrations have also appeared in The New Yorker and Esquire. "Reading a comic book suddenly becomes as rewarding as reading good contemporary fiction...Tomine has both talent and a writer's eye for the truth." --The New York Times

i can't wait for his book signing:

wednesday, feb. 4 @ 7 p.m.
the housing works used book cafe

scary shit

you know what's kind of freaking me out? i looked at my list of referrers today and guess what was listed as a referrer? riaa.com what the hell is up with that?? anyone experiencing this? email me!

killing penguins is not cool

penguins penguins penguins click on the penguins and play the game... the trick is to get the penguin to slide when it lands on the snow. you get more distance. i got 530 ft.

don't let your co-workers see you playing this game. it will give them nightmares. in fact, it gives me nightmares. and maybe it will give jo divestar nightmares. you know how we both adore penguins.

i wonder who created this sick game? i have to confess, it's damn fun. it's damn addictive. and i love the "whee." i don't think i can write enough crap to fill this space on the side of the picture. oh well. deal with it!

penguins! penguins! penguins!

ok i'm done now. sorry about that. i'm loony for penguins.

omg

shuddup! the walkmen are going to be on conan o'brien feb. 6. hot diggity dawg! that's the same night dirty on purpose is opening up for the suicide girls burlesque show at the knitting factory. set your tivos/vcrs, peeps, and come to the knitting factory instead! i wonder if they will play "the rat"? from what i hear, it will be their first single and video. you've got a nerve, baby! also, i wonder who's taller, hamilton or conan?

french kisses

walk on air

jasper's new venture truthflies.com is having a special pre-sale for the air album. rock on! it's a limited edition cd for all of you air-heads. it also comes with a free poster, bonus! truthflies will also have a drawing for some autographed air gear -- check out their site for deets.

dop dop dop

i have taken lots of funny dirty on purpose footage during the past few weeks. they are amazing. their new music is KICK ASS. they are lovely.

george dop beats walt walkmen on stillness

and i think i've been having way too much fun with my digital camera and its ability to do multiple exposures. a couple of these photos were taken by joe. booyaaaaa:

get boggy

the boggs have a website finally!

stuff to do, and you know, stuff

i feel sort of strange not going to vicious tonight, but there was so much shit i needed to get done. and the range of upcoming shows is stellar. check it:

wednesday, jan. 21
au revoir simone + coup fourre
FREE @ knitting factory

thursday, jan. 22
mahogany, prosaics, on!air!library!, sea ray, medicine hat (what an orgasmic combination of bands)
@ sin-e

friday, jan. 23
starsailor, tim burgess (i love the charlatans, tb's new album is pretty good too)
@ irving plaza

saturday, jan. 24
+1 launch party // tiswas with ambulance and inouk
@ don hill's

qatsi, the fever, the affair
@ mercury lounge

read yellow, circle and square
@ north six

check out my dresden dolls review on popmatters.

vaz + the amber smith

on the same night i saw the unicorns play, i saw vaz for the second time and the amber smith for the first time. i remember being really impressed with vaz the first time i saw them play with knife skills back in the days when luxx was still a cool rock venue. the lead singer, paul, is a sweaty agile performer who spits frequently and attacks the mic viciously. so much fun to watch. i became fascinated with just staring at him and his wild, but strong performance. whoa. his drummer was like a crazy homeless person with severe schizophrenia. his head would swivel wildly like he was having a seizure. i'd be caught staring helplessly at him, too. then suddenly his eyes would rise from the drums and quickly fall back down. it was rather scary. and i liked it.

the amber smith were the exact opposite. not scary. not threatening. their music had a cheerful tone. it reminded me of the strokes meets that thing you do! i swear. one singer sang while chewing gum and playing guitar at the same time. the other singer looked a bit like michael ian black, kind of. some people describe them as a girly version of the strokes. i basically agree except that some of their lyrics were on the sarcastic, snide side (which turned out to be their saving grace) -- i think one of their song lyrics were "i'm having an affair with your girlfriend." if there wasn't that iota that makes them stand out from other poppy rock bands, i would say they were good but nothing special. in this case, they might grow into quite a catchy band if they work on charisma and diversity in tempo and pitch.

marg cho show

From margaret cho's mailing list:
Episode #2 of our new Internet Show will be up tomorrow. In this episode,
Margaret and Bruce visit the Human Sexuality Collection at the Cornell
University Library. You can view it from our Home page:
http://www.margaretcho.com or Margaret's blog:
http://www.margaretcho.com/blog. We're going to try to put up a new episode every other week or so. We have some fun things planned and it's all free to view (at least for now).

pela download

this new pela song, "all in time," is amazing. check it out, you can't deny it! producer rod "goldenrod" sherwood sure does have the midas touch. he produced pela's songs as well as the upcoming dirty on purpose cd that is mindblowing. all i can say is wowee wow wow!

we're the unicorns and we're people too

even though it was snowing, i went with deron and anna to southpaw (they drove) to see the unicorns play at southpaw. one of the first things out of one of the unicorns' mouth was, "this show is so much better than last night. pianos sucks." hmmm, i heard it was crazyfest! but let me tell you, southpaw was jampacked with people, and y'all know that venue is a pretty big size. the buzz was'a buzzing.

CHECK OUT THE PHOTO GALLERY !!

also check out real player video clips of the unicorns:
* unicorns 1
* unicorns 2
* unicorns 3
* unicorns 4

i'm writing up a formal review on popmatters.com, but my overall impression of the unicorns was first amusement, pleasant surprise to later yawn-eriffic to then amused again to confused to amused to physically tired of watching their "grody roadie" dance around spitting beer, throwing condoms all in a unicorn uniform. all in all a good show, but way too long. however, there was some kylie thrown in there. laura will love that. thank god they didn't do "hey ya." aren't we getting tired of people covering outkast? maybe not.

right before the unicorns we ran into susan. she said that she liked the unicorns after seeing them at mercury lounge. i was kind of surprised, but after i saw them, i felt the same way. i also met doug who books at lit, does version city records, blah blah blah. he was nice. his label is putting out the amber smith cd... i also saw vaz and the amber smith but i'll talk about them in a separate post...

my pet fat

can we say, ewww? my pet fat. thanks alot, anna.

the stills ticket giveaway

hammy!!

ok, he was super nice and even, jocular. weeeeeeee. here are a couple of new walkmen photos:

some fun links

Pete's Corner - Mr. Match contestants and their answers
wouldn't it be funny if walkmen fans around the world started dating each other because of pete?

The Stills on Last Call with Carson Daly
Real Player
Windows Media - low
Windows Media - medium
Windows Media - high

The Stills on Rolling Stone/MTV2 special
Real Player
Windows Media - low
Windows Media - medium
Windows Media - high

boys, inform me

photo: rachel lovinger

i had this incredible post about the shins show at the mercury lounge and blogger ate it up. argh! here's the short version:

starfoods, nila wafer banana pudding, mac and cheese, bourbon and chocolate pecan pie, i heart byron who is a total sweetheart every time!

todd barry + the shins is funnier than david cross + the strokes. i was skeptical about the whole comedy before rock thing, but todd barry pulled it off.

tigers and monkeys had jeff from sea ray in it. incredible female singer. surprisingly gutsy... we'll have to see how they develop. jeff plays the drums standing up!

roland, ok = awesome
the shins = awesome

the last time i saw the shins was at siren fest a couple years ago. they were just OK back then. so i had medium expectations this year... jeez, was i blown away. their performance at the mercury lounge was dynamic... almost explosive at times. the guitars and keyboards were jacked up and LOUD. it was nice to see the keyboards showcased a little more. they are kind of buried in the recording, and that marty kind of goes wild on stage. NICE showmanship! james mercer was kind of the logical foil to his wild antics. his voice was so much better this time, really crisp and that sweet ring of his vocals was heightened and really made the songs pop. they sang all the usual suspects from the old and new album -- no flake songs, much to rachel's dismay. rachel can tell you why they are reluctant to play flake songs.

what is roland, ok? the city and state where the shins got arrested for pot and drug paraphanelia. marty seems very bitter about this and kept making mary jane jokes throughout the set. he was a hoot to watch...

people i saw and talked to: jeff from sea ray, eric from say hi to your mom, dawn, noah from sam champion, daniel from circle and square -- he pinched my cheek (the one on my face) like i was an infant, todd barry, rachel, justin and c.o. from bishop allen, jo divestar who told me the latest shins video had penguins in it!!

people i wished i talked to: david cross (i hope he smokes everyone in celebrity poker showdown!) watch it tuesday on bravo. james mercer and marty... all i would have been able to say woulda been something dorky like, "uh i really thought you guys were great."

hammin' it up

i am going to be interviewing hamilton of the walkmen on monday over the phone. i'm prayin' he won't be surly towards me. i don't know why he still intimidates me. maybe it's the perpetual scowl on his face or his considerable height. the new walkmen album is DOPE. it's so weird to be hearing the songs on a CD though because i've been hearing them live for so frickin' long. but i likes it.

why did i just read this?

normally i wouldn't post anything on britney spears, but this is too funny: mommy and daddy broke the britney spears wedding story.

dissing the bloggerazzi

dude, it's just not right to diss people who aren't there to defend themselves. [link via miss "modern"] gotta at least leave the option open for people to respond to your "low blows." that's just my opinon though.

some more shows

the stills have added a second night at the bowery ballroom for jan. 29. it's a special bbc 1 broadcast and is 16+ for the kiddies. there might be a possibility that i'll be giving away a pair of tickets to the show so stay tuned. are they playing before or after the killers? i just saw that ultragrrrl posted on her site that the killers were gonna play the bowery on the same date...

while perusing, i see that the von bondies are coming to the bowery ballroom on feb. 25. hope those bruises have healed, jason. ouch.

the national have been added to the bill for the feb. 21 elefant bowery show, too. does anyone else think that's kind of a strange combination? on one end you have kind of dark serious music with smart introspective lyrics, and on the other, well... you know. let's not kid ourselves. he's hot but nowhere near deep.

french kicks

what's cooler than cool? the french kicks.

the first french kicks show at the mercury lounge will be february 4 with the shout out louds, that band that jo divestar raved about recently...

lord of the rings

greg texted me to tell me that the movie theater at lincoln center will be showing the lord of the rings trilogy back to back all day. well, day-am, it takes almost half a day to just show the whole string once, don't it? he is going to go see it, bless his soul. hope there's some sort of intermission so people can take a pee break or something.

ambulance

the emergency sirens are going off as ambulance announces the band will release their full length finally on march 2. this full length features the single (a brand new version of "primitive (the way i treat you)") along with brand new tracks! well, let's hope this new version of "primitive" is a lot better cuz that old track was kinda wack. i have to say though their shit is catchy.

many good things to come

woo boy, i've been swamped at work and wasn't able to update at all for the past couple days. day-am! after whooping some ass in an intense game of scrabble, i headed over to sin-e with jenna to see au revoir simone for the second time in 7 days. let me tell you, i really love the concept of this band. to create a band that revolves around keyboards is simply awesome. and three keyboards, no less! i can tell erika, annie, sung bin and heather are heading in the right direction. their songs are pretty and hip. i really enjoyed the instrumentals (just like jenna did), and there were a couple songs with super-soft, melodic harmonies -- pretty heavenly, you might say. i also loved their covers of heavy d & the boyz' "now that we've found love" and liz phair's "girls, girls, girls." there will be many good things to come for this band down the road if they keep at it. their next show is in the old office at the knitting factory on jan. 21 with coup fourre. okay, that is a mighty strange combination of bands, but the show is free, so go check it out!

so what's coming up? i'm sure you already knew, but, well the shins are playing under the moniker "roland, OK" at the mercury lounge with comedian todd barry on sunday. my friend rachel talked to todd barry about it, and he said something like, "i hope it's not a blood bath" in that wry tone that pervades his stand-up. dude is funny, so i'm looking forward to this show very much. it sold out at some point this week so i hope you have already bought your tickets. apparently, the show is a warm-up for the shins' before they appear on letterman or one of those other talk shows.

on tuesday, jan. 13, the fever and the unicorns are playing a FREE show at pianos. word is that the show is going to be insanely packed so get there early, kiddies. you know how frickin' small pianos is.

bishop allen is playing the mercury lounge on wednesday, jan. 14.

on jan. 15, there is one juicy show going on: prosaics, mahogany and the winter pageant at sin-e.

on jan. 16, another juicy fruit: asobi seksu and moonraker at mercury lounge.

i promised annabiotica i wouldn't post this on my blog, so i'll be vague. one of my favorite brooklyn bands might be breaking up because their drummer is moving outta town!!! i am heartbroken. argh!!

nyc bars closing at 1 am!

jo divestar forwarded this message:

Apparently City Hall and the Department of Consumer Affairs have been getting complaints about noise late at night from neighborhood activists and other lame ass people like them, so much like the smoking ban, New York City is about to be ruined once more. Only this is much worse. They are planning an initiative to force all bars to obtain a license to stay open past 1am. It's somehow tied into the repealing of the cabaret laws, but apparently it's a big joke because they can revoke the license at any time based upon the dumbest criteria and without due process. If you care at all about keeping NYC...well, NYC and keeping bars and clubs open past 1am, then I suggest you go to these links and write to your state congressman and Mayor Bloomberg himself. Tell them what bullshit this is, and that you're opposed to it. For those of you who are musicians, this is a potential threat to your way of life.
Congressman Joe Crowley: write2joecrowley@mail.house.gov
Mayor Bloomberg: http://nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mayor.html

jennarator.com

my friend jenna has a site, finally! check out the fabulous life of jenna!

au revoir simone

stereolab + postal service = au revoir simone

or something like that... anyways, the girls are debuting on the lower east side:
january 7
@ sin-e
11 p.m. // $7

french kicks

a little birdie tells me the french kicks will have a residency at the mercury lounge in february. how hawt is that?

blonde redhead

can anyone tell me why blonde redhead are not listed under the bowery ballroom for jan. 22 and 23? have those dates been canceled? if so, BIG DISAPPOINTMENT for me and hundreds of other fans in nyc. jeez.

that said, there are tons of awesome shows coming up this month and i plan to be there. back in the rock saddle!!

congratulations, DoP!

dirty on purpose has won the opening slot for the suicide girls burlesque tour when it comes to new york city. mark your calendars! it's going to be february 6th at the knitting factory. thanks to all who voted for the band!

au revoir 2003

i stopped by jco's dinner party at the powers house on new year's eve. there was a lavish spread of food, but i was wary to eat anything cuz i thought i might end up puking it all up when i get boozed later on. then later on i rushed over to graham's loft to see erika's band au revoir simone play. au revoir simone are four lovely ladies, three keyboards, one drum machine and four beautiful harmonies. have you ever heard of that before? three keyboards! afterwards, we all headed up to the roof to ring in the new year. we could see the city skyline, the empire state building and all that good stuff. when the clock struck midnight, the fireworks in times square went off as well as in other places within eye sight. everyone was chugging their own bottle of bubbly and giving each other good cheer. soon afterwards, keith and i headed home because he wasn't feeling well, and we passed out. happy new year!!