who knew it was a misdemeanor to express your opinion in the capitol building?

as a person who has worked and reported for the freedom forum in the past and is wholly pro-first amendment, i am shocked that you cannot wear an anti-war shirt in the capitol building. i am not surprised at how idiotic bush sounded in his state of the union speech, however.

diamond nights van stolen!

from the band:
PLEASE REPOST FOR DIAMOND NIGHTS:

Our van is GONE!!! Last seen in Long Island City

um...did someone borrow our van? we can't find it. If you did would you please return it soon before we have to go on tour? To all the righteous vigilantes out there, its a white Ford E350 van with NY license plates DFE-9711, if you see someone besides diamond nights driving it you are now officially deputized to kick their effing ass!

bishop allen releases a 12-part EP series



everyone knows my love for bishop allen. they have grown so much over the years as performers and musicians. their charm school cd charmed me and many others. now the group is releasing 12 EPs this year -- one each month. this month's -- january -- is available for sale online today through the band's site. their lead single, "corazon," is awesome, and i put it as the lead track on the jinners jukebox. check it out! if you like what you hear, check the band out live feb. 10 @ pianos. word.

sxsw 2006 on myspace

it's not affilliated with sxsw, but someone is going around adding all the bands playing sxsw to this myspace account. good idea in my opinion. easiest way to surf around and check out music of bands who are going down to austin this year!

pitchfork talks about all the 48 KRS/5RC releases for 2006

while they talk about the sufjan stevens, devin davis and colin meloy track on the upcoming kill rock stars compiliation, the sound the hare heard, i love that they added a bit on all the 48 releases coming out on kill rock stars and 5rc, including mary timony, erase errata and mikamiko. i also love the positive mention of knife skills: "5rc totally scored with inca ore, knife skills, mic barr (orthrelm) and zach hill (hella) and ocs." [pitchfork]

ps. i know jerry yeti will be excited to see that there is a yeti magazine. they should join forces or something.

la familia
this weekend my sister came to visit me, and i was broke so we chose to do cheap form of entertainment... namely anything free.

on friday, nate (jay' doppelganger) came over to death by audio to shoot the dirty on purpose. this shoot took a very long time -- during which we proceeded to get drunk on whiskey (though my sister didn't partake) and got sucked into a really bad quality moog training dvd. the shoot got kind of ridiculous as antics ensued... i was tired afterwards and went home -- and off to bed.

the next day i took my sister over to beacons closet, but came up empty handed in our search for spring dresses for my sister. we then went home to eat and rest, and quickly got sucked into watching the first season of lost (my sister's dvd set).

i think there's one korean woman and one korean american guy on the island, and the guy speaks horrible korean. the woman featured is all over the korean soap operas that my parents watch. i knew she looked familiar. so weird to see korean soap opera people on american tv. they seem to have every different kind of demographic represented on this show, and i'm wondering if that's part of why it's so popular -- i mean, besides the fact that it's scary and suspenseful.

i also watched, grizzly man, the documentary by werner herzog featuring timothy treadwell, a kooky nature lover who communed with the kodiak grizzly bears for 13 summers before he finally got mauled to death by one of them. werner herzog's opinions and constant feature of himself got kind of annoying, but overall, the doc was interesting to watch. they didn't play the audio of timothy's death at the end, which i know is sick, but i was super curious to hear.

did anyone go to the idiotarod from brooklyn to manhattan?

walkmen show dates

so according to the tripwire, the walkmen are officially done recording their third album, slated to be released in april this year on record collection... and they're doing some shows too... their new york date is exactly when i'm out of town for sxsw, march 19 at the nokia with the pogues. this is very upsetting.

01.27.06 - Montreal, QC (La Tulipe)
01.28.06 - Toronto, ON (Lee’s Place)
01.29.06 - Buffalo, NY (Mohawk Place)
03.19.06 - New York, NY (Nokia Live w/ The Pogues)

bye bye grandaddy

i've been listening to the new grandaddy album, just like the the fambly cat and love it, and am sad they are broken up and not touring anymore. boo!!! get the scoop over at pitchfork... i'm going to put the song "elevate myself" into the jukebox for your listening pleasure. also new music from band of horses and two gallants.

upcoming on the moon music shows in new york

hello there, here are some upcoming OTM shows in february. hope to see you there!

feb. 17, 2006
dirty on purpose, oakley hall (ex-oneida), hopewell, jaymay
@ northsix
buy tickets

feb. 20, 2006
wolfmother, black lips, knife skills
@ mercury lounge
buy tickets

2006 bloggies awards

there are several awesome blogs nominated for bloggies this year, including one of my faves, frank from chromewaves.net. other cool blogs that were nominated include gothamist, flickr, my boyfriend is a twat (i'd vote for this on name alone), girl with a one track mind (again, another great title), overheard in new york (a personal fave), you can't make it up, stuff on my cat (kitties are cute), said the gramophone (xoxo), need coffee and postsecret!!

strangely somehow brooklyn vegan didn't make any of these categories.... very surprising.

anyhoo, go here and vote!

a small confession
for some reason i am getting sucked into watching television lately -- 24, american idol, beauty and the geek 2, entourage, csi (las vegas) -- i am guilty of watching it!

recap: dirty on purpose in boston + dc

i've been absolutely terrible at updating my show happenings on this diary, especially all the dirty on purpose shows i've been to. but c'est la vie. here i am giving you the update on what's been going on in my crazy lil' world.



so a whole crew of us traveled to boston to see dirty on purpose play the plan @ great scott. unfortunately, we were competing against a pivotal patriots game that night, but overall, we fared well. though the day started out wonderfully (i was wearing shorts with boots), it turned into quite a chilly storm (and then i felt stupid for being so optimistic about the weather).

this was the band's first show since october when they played with wolf parade at nyu. they had been hibernating underground working on their full length due out this spring, and now it was time to come out and test out the new songs live. i think it went well, and i always have a great time at the plan, which is nicely put together by booker carl lavin. the band played with a nice philly group called grammar debate, who had sweet melodies and a charming demeanor. appomattox was also very nice. also before the show, we gobbled down on some good food provided by a boston band called the beatings. they were also supernice to us. i enjoyed the swedish meatballs very much. better than the ones at ikea!

we stayed overnight at doug's friend jocelyn's house. she lives with her boyfriend dave in this nice apartment with a somewhat evil cat who ended up scratching me a couple times. oddly enough, that cat likes to crawl in plastic bags and have you swing it around. i've never seen such a thing before! a ton of people showed up at the house, and we proceeded to play trivial pursuit on dvd. mike and i were very close to beating doug and joe. soooo close. then after that, we got sucked into playing xbox karaoke. everyone kept passing me the mic on songs they got tired of singing. i am a karaoke sucka, so i went along with it all. all in good fun.

mike and i traveled down to dc separate from the band. we wanted to get there a little early and grab dinner with stephanie. the show was in chinatown at a placed called warehouse next door. mike, steph and i ended up at ruby tuesday where i had a wonderful megarita to put me in the right mood. then we went over to the warehouse.







what i didn't expect was a long line to get into the show. and then when i walked into the venue, it was already full of people. amazing! i was happy that dirty on purpose was again reunited with say hi to your mom. so anyways, it was a nice packed show in a venue that is slightly bigger than pianos in new york, maybe. i ran into another blogger in the crowd, natalya of seeking irony, who helps put on the blue state party with information leafblower at the black cat in dc. she was so nice, and i was excited to actually talk to a new show friend... also, belin's beloved oveis made an appearance, which was awesome. it's always nice to see familiar faces at shows!

one of the things i like about dc is that all the touristy things to do are FREE. the next day mike, steph and i went to the national zoo. we saw many awesome animals, including the pandas. we almost saw the baby panda but it was asleep in a bucket with only a patch of fur giving away its location. those pandas are darn cute. the next day, mike and i wandered over to the mall to see the washington monument, the lincoln memorial, the vietnam memorial, the white house and also saw some of the exhibits at the american history museum. it was a full day of activities and then we hopped on a bus back to new york. i was happy to come home.

the worst day of the year

according to a british psychologist, today jan 24 is the worst day of the year. i'm doing pretty well so far and I hope you are too!

indie night school @ the plug awards

so you've heard a lot about the educational music biz series, indie night school, in new york. tom from the black spoons has arranged for a really cool "all star" edition of indie night school at the plug awards. there will be three main focuses: record labels, music media and booking. here are the details!

thursday, february 2
indie night school @ the plug awards
@ webster hall
1 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

here are some of the industry people he's gathered for the panels thus far... it's looking pretty awesome:

- John Moore (Talent Buyer, Bowery Ballroom)
- Johnny Beach (Talent Buyer, Mercury Lounge)
- Sam Kinken (Talent Buyer, Irving Plaza)
- Chris White (Talent Buyer, Warsaw/Avalon)
- Doug DeFalco (Talent Buyer, Southpaw)
- Yalan Papillons (Talent Buyer, Knitting Factory)
- Sascha Lewis (President, Flavorpill)
- Jeralyn Gerba (Editor, Daily Candy)
- Syd Butler (Founder, French Kiss Records)
- Dan Koplowitz (Founder, Friendly Fire Recordings)
- Lio Cerezo (Founder, Kanine Records)

many more to come, subject to change

ticket information:
- $15 Indie Night School tickets, which gets you access to all three panels and allows you to meet all the panelists
- $27.50 All-Access Combo Tix (Indie Night School + Plug Awards, where you can see The National play, along with so many other great thing).

click here for tickets

NOTE: this is an amazing deal - Plug tix alone cost $20, so this combo one is great.

new knife skills song from the upcoming 5RC full length!

knife skills have posted a new unmastered track on myspace to give you a little taste of what's coming up on their 5RC full length. it's pretty wild stuff. it makes me want to run around central park in freezing cold weather, howling for salvation... alas, only in my dreams.

click here to hear the song.

what's faker than fake?



so there's been some interesting fraud writing incidents lately, the latest being from "jt leroy." though many have hailed him/her as brilliant and whatnot, there has always been speculation as to whether jt leroy was for real. the new york times recently exposed the author as a concept from a san francisco couple, geoffrey knoop and laura albert. the times speculated that albert was the brains behind the published books. knoop and albert are also members of unsigned band thistle, which jt leroy was also supposedly part of. and in public appearances, leroy was often "played" by knoop's half sister savannah knoop. that's probably who posed for this photo shoot for the pop manifesto... maybe illy can give more details on that...

he/she has always been described as painfully shy (thus explaining the uncommon public appearances) and has had a seedy past filled with hiv, hustling and drugs. shirley manson wrote a song about him/her called "cherry lips." billy corgan even wrote a song for thistle. leroy also wrote the introduction to the sixth installment of the "Best Music Writing" anthology... he/she basically fooled the masses. i feel like it's a metamorphosis of combining writing, music and performance art. quite fascinating, and i expect to see more people copying the ruse...

we are scientists @ bowery ballroom

ok so i sort of forgot that i went to see we are scientists at bowery ballroom the other night -- until i read brooklyn vegan, and it jogged my memory. the band was so much better at their bowery ballroom show than almost any other show i've seen them at -- except for the ascap sxsw showcase last year. the venue was packed, and i was actually getting kind of excited to dance. the first half of their set was so charged with energy, that i was really impressed and getting pretty into it. but then halfway through the set, i began to wonder if the group would ever pause for a breath between songs. because of their overlapping transitions on almost every song, the whole concert just seemed like one very long song, and i was starting to get bored. the only thing that kept me going was the hope of hearing "the great escape," which they raucously played at the end.

happy birthday, doug marvin



the other night i found myself walking over to the levee once again to celebrate doug marvin's birthday. all of my friends seem to like celebrating at the levee, and really, what's not to like? cheap drinks, free cheeseballs, connect four, boggle, erotic photo hunt, a pool table, a pinball machine and more! i schooled dtl in connect four and got to catch up with some nice folks, including rod and the au revoir simone gang. joe and i teamed up once again at pool. our first game was with these dudes who were total showoffs. one guy kept shooting with one hand, but to his credit, his shots were usually accurate. his flashy playing rankled some feathers, but i really didn't give a shit, especially when he scratched the 8 ball. for some reason, my pool game was better than usual -- perhaps because i was not blearingly drunk -- and i actually got some compliments on my shots from the boys. i'm far from being a black widow, though...

a whole crew of doug's friends broke out the boggle and formed a nerd circle. ah, i love that i go hang with a bunch of people at a bar, and they get all excited about boggle! you can check out photos from that night and also some other shots from boston and our new year's eve at headgear. click here.

feel good stories about recovery

what would you do if you lost your wallet and someone found it? what if 56 years had passed since you lost it??

another strange "recovery" story...this guy's stolen car was found and returned to him after 37 years!

weather report for optimists (january 19)

today's weather: very nice! makes me wish spring was here already!! it's going to be sunny with highs in the mid 40's this afternoon. leave your umbrella at home, because there's no chance of rain! yay! jin...you can enjoy wearing your suede boots today!!

weather report for optimists (january 18)

today's weather: happy hump day! it's going to rain for most of your work day (meaning you won't be missing anything outdoors). after 4pm, the sky will start clearing up and there will be an 80% chance it won't be raining anymore. the temperature will be in around the 30's and high 20's at night. have a nice day!

weather report for optimists (january 17th)

today's weather: i've seen worse. considering that it's january, i'm feeling pretty okay about the weather. it'll be in the 30's with a 50% chance of no rain from 3pm on.

catching up on shows

so i've been going to see shows without much time to report on them. sorry about that. i feel like my life is a series of running around town without much time to share it with anyone... let alone people who read my online diary, but whatever. here is an attempt to catch up.

the changes @ trash
i recently went to see the changes at trash. they are a band from chicago who have buttery vocals that make girls melt and catchy songs that make the feet move. seriously. but at this particular show, the band made some random dude go wild. and it was really entertaining, though after a while, you sort of feel like the guy should stop upstaging the band. the guy was doing a lot of weird interpretive dances, which subsequently got him kicked out -- no, dragged out -- of the venue. i was hoping i would have a photo of this bizarre incident, but my camera yields no decent photos. all in all, i had a great time at this show. i've seen the changes before, but they have really tightened up their live show and have come back with a slew of impressive songs. the band was pretty engaging and played one of my faves, "such a scene." they're playing the opening night gala at sundance this year. kudos to them!

the boggs @ mercury lounge
i also went to see jason's band back from berlin -- the boggs. he has revamped the sound of the group from a sort of an english bluegrass garage rock sound to a more bombastic lightning speed collision rock. it's so high energy, i felt like i was drained of all my energies after the show. it was very intense, yet fun as hell. check out new music on their myspace page.

diamond nights @ bowery ballroom
i went to see my favorite down and dirty band, diamond nights, headline bowery ballroom. i thought it was too soon for them to headline such a venue, but then again, i thought it was also a bold move to make. the band put on a pretty spectacle with their purple, hazy clouds circling the background of the stage. it was a nice addition to the live show, and morgan the lead singer tried very hard to engage the crowd, inviting girls up on stage to dance like they were on some kind of concert episode of The OC. but up they went, and danced all around him. it was a little too much for me because i like to see diamond nights in small clubs while i'm downing whiskey on the rocks and sparks, gulp for gulp. like i said, they make me want to be naughty. tsk tsk.

weather report for optimists (january 14)

today's weather: it looks as though it will rain for most of the day. that's not a bad thing. there are plenty of nice activities to do indoors. besides, after 3 pm the chances of rain drops to 50/50. that means there's a 50% chance it won't rain anymore.

new built to spill song on myspace!



thank you cmj newsletter! i love the new built to spill song posted on their myspace site, "going against your mind." doug martsch = genius.

tracklist from the forthcoming, you in reverse:

01. Goin' Against Your Mind
02. Traces
03. Liar
04. Saturday
05. Wherever You Go
06. Conventional Wisdom
07. Gone
08. Mess With Time
09. Just A Habit
10. The Wait

silversun pickups interview at loose record

i love the silversun pickups. read this interview.

sxsw announces some more bands to play in 2006

hello, austin. i have missed you... and i can't wait to go and see a bunch of these bands! check out the newly updated list here.

weather report for optimists (january 13)

today's weather: nice again!! yes, it's friday the 13th, but consider it your lucky day. even though today won't be quite as sunny as yesterday, it's still going be around 50 degrees with no chance of rain until midnight. enjoy!

2006 sundance music cafe - jan. 20-28 - park city, utah

with the growing overlap of indie rock and music licensing to tv shows and films, it's no wonder that film festivals like sundance and tribeca are featuring music a little more... this year for the sundance music lounge, ascap and sundance have put together some notable acts like rufus wainwright, athlete, brazilian girls, mike doughty, inara george, darren hayes (um, yes from savage garden), imogen heap, margot and the nuclear so and so's (who just signed to artemis), persephone's bees (cool french pop - i think audrey would like them), the weepies and mushman (which features actor patrick fugit - remember the little terminator 2 actor?).

yeah yeah yeahs announce bowery ballroom dates
the yyys are playing bowery on february 24 and 25. ahhh i can't wait!!! tickets go on sale tomorrow.

the tripwire reports that the new album will be called, show your bones, released march 28 in the u.s. the first single will be called "gold lion."

tonight: sam champion @ rothko or a place to bury strangers @ mercury lounge?

so we are scientists @ bowery ballroom is sold out... and if you're jonesing for music, you might consider these alternatives...

productshop nyc presents...
group sounds, tapes 'n tapes, sam champion (not just noah, it's the whole damn band -- hell yeah)
@ rothko
djs michael showalter and tarts of pleasure
8 p.m.

or

a place to bury strangers, rockets and cars, five o'clock heroes
@ mercury lounge
8:30 p.m.

i almost forgot, audrey and karibomb are also spinning tonight too at the benzos show...

the lilys are back!

the lilys are back to support their new record, everything wrong is imaginary. sounds like a good motto to me! i can't wait. the last time i saw the lilys, it was in the old office or something at knitting factory right after dirty on purpose opened for the suicide girls. yes, we skipped the half-naked girls for the lilys, and it was much more enticing and intimate. the band will be playing magnetic field on feb. 4. check out their music on their myspace page.

pela has new music on their myspace page



check out the new music pela has posted on their myspace page. they'll be posting new tracks every now and then, so check back regularly... if you haven't seen pela recently, then you'll probably be pleasantly surprised with their new direction. it's less shoegaze and more poppy rock.

the walkmen finish their third album... finally!



yes, the walkmen's third album is finally done... just as you were beginning to forget about them, right? i can't wait to hear the album, but the last time i ran into pete, he said none of the new songs they played at the dentyne irving show were being recorded. they're playing some warm up dates, though unfortunately for me, none are in new york city. boo!! (ps to filter, the walkmen aren't on startime anymore, they're on record collection... though i'm sure isaac appreciates the nod.)

here are the scheduled dates:

1/25: Middle East - Cambridge, MA
1/26: Higher Ground - Burlington, VT
1/27: La Tulipe - Montreal, QC
1/28: Lee's Palace - Toronto, ON
1/29: Mohawk Place - Buffalo, NY

weather report for optimists (january 12)

*jinners prefers the way i tell her what the forecast is. so...i'll be bringing you (and her) a daily weather report with a positive spin. for example: instead of saying "partly cloudy", i'll say "partly sunny". if there's a 30% chance of rain, i'll say 70% chance it won't.

today's weather: nice! clear and sunny. there is a 90% chance it won't rain until 1pm and a 0% chance for the rest of the day. also, it's going to feel pretty warm for january standards with temperatures in the low to mid 50's. enjoy your day!

is that an ipod in your pocket...or are you just happy to see me?

levi strauss announced that this fall, they will begin selling specially designed jeans to hold ipods. The Levi's RedWire DLX will even have a joystick control located in the watch pocket. what the hell is a watch pocket? well it's that useless tiny pocket next to your right hip. now it has purpose. anyway, if you're prepared to lay out $275-$350 bucks a pop, these jeans can be yours. but take caution, on the days you choose not to wear your snazzy new levis, you'll have to figure out some other way to carry your ipod.

other passengers @ joe's pub



other passengers will bring their brand of psychedelic extravaganza to joe's pub tonight... i think it's weird to have rock shows at such a trendy place, but if anyone can turn that trend upside down, it's other passengers. go ahead and feel billy's intensity. the show is brought to you by the industrious kelly corson of the art of shooting. she'll be spinning. show is at 11 p.m. and it's $7 without a flyer, and $5 with a flyer.

i got inspired from that ipod shuffle to make a mix for mike... the only thing that would have made it better was if i replaced cinerama with built to spill. hindsight 20/20, eh?

Mix for Mike

1. I Believe In You – Neil Young
2. Walking In the Sun - Travis
3. There’s Never Enough Time – The Postal Service
4. Each Coming Night – Iron & Wine
5. Of Pressure - Mirah
6. Sweet Jane (Early Version) – The Velvet Underground
7. Gardenhead – Neutral Milk Hotel
8. Eskimo - Versus
9. My Wandering Days Are Over – Belle & Sebastian
10. We Have a Map of the Piano - Mum
11. Trust Me Baby – Sonny Boy Williamson
12. Lazy Confessions – The Moldy Peaches
13. Never Ending Math Equation – Modest Mouse
14. Flatline Blur – Kevin Devine
15. Dare – The Wedding Present
16. Just Like Heaven – Dinosaur Jr
17. Glass Corridor – Lansing-Dreiden
18. Airport Motels – Crystal Skulls
19. Wow (Extended Version) - Cinerama

recent ipod shuffle
wow, i just experienced an amazing ipod shuffle, and felt like sharing...

1) accidents will happen - elvis costello
2) lazy confessions - moldy peaches
3) flowers in the window - travis
4) don't think twice, it's all right - bob dylan
5) gardenhead - neutral milk hotel
6) better version of me - fiona apple
11) you're just a baby - belle & sebastian
12) love steals us from loneliness - idlewild
13) flatline blur - kevin devine
14) tired eyes - neil young
15) city folk morning - fountains of wayne
16) fin - pavement
17) made for tv movie - clem snide
18) sweet jane (early version) - velvet underground
19) please please please - fiona apple
20) eskimo - versus
21) lonely as can be - the concretes

yeah yeah yeahs aren't exactly purring about album rumors

so filter magazine reports that the yyys album isn't a concept album about karen o's cat coco. here's what the report quoted from the band:

"Hey, So, our website should have been up by now but it's not...There's lots of YYY's news we need to tell you...In the meantime, here's some of the most important info:

- We recorded a new record over the summer. It's scheduled to come out at the end of March
- We're planning a US tour for April and a European tour for May
- The new record will not be called Coco Beware. The new record is not a concept record about a cat. Though Coco does exist in real life, its relation to the new record was a hoax. You can't believe everything you read!
- It's colder in NY than it is in LA

We've been hiding for a while. Our time to come out is just around the around corner.

XOXO, YYY's"

fighterpilot @ rothko tonight
chris from north street records is in a band called fighterpilot... and they're playing at rothko tonight at 9 p.m. with the animators, who are on at 10 p.m. tickets are $10. come out and support!

anonymous online harrassment now illegal
wow, so now it is illegal to post annoying messages online without disclosing your true identity. is that strange? does that mean blogs and message boards will have to get rid of the option to post anonymously? will this cause less people to post messages? and isn't the word "annoy" a little weird in a law like this? i could understand threatening harm or libel, but... annoying?

a million little lies
one of my favorite books (at least among the ones i read in 2005), a million little pieces by james frey, is actually built upon a million lies. the book was supposed to be an autobiographical account of james frey as he battled his excruciating addictions to just about everything in rehab... but the smoking gun has revealed, it's mostly just lies and embellishments... and thanks to oprah, the dude has sold 1.77 million books! well, i think that's some fancy writing... and i enjoyed the book, so who cares? now i really can't wait to read his follow-up, my friend leonard.