cassadaga tour

Coinciding with today's Four Winds EP release, Bright Eyes have announced a ton of tour dates. Sadly, the Denver date is the day I leave for Cancun. Dammit.

03-07 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey *
03-08 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey *
03-09 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall *
03-10 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall *
03-11 Seattle, WA - Showbox
03-16 London, England - Koko
03-18 Oxford, England - Brookes University Student Union
03-22 Oslo, Norway - Cosmopolite
03-24 Stockholm, Sweden - Debaser
03-26 Berlin, Germany - Columbia Club
03-27 Cologne, Germany - Gloria
03-30 Paris, France - Cafe de la Danse
03-31 Amsterdam, the Netherlands - Melkweg
04-22 Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theatre
04-23 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
04-24 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
04-25 Minneapolis, MN - State Theatre
04-26 Omaha, NE - Holland Performing Arts Center
04-28 Denver, CO - Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre
04-29 Salt Lake City, UT - Kingsbury Hall
05-01 Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
05-02 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
05-04 Berkeley, CA - Greek Theatre
05-05 Santa Barbara, CA - Arlington Theatre
05-06 Los Angeles, CA - Walt Disney Concert Hall
05-08 San Diego, CA - SOMA
05-09 Tempe, AZ - Mesa Amphitheatre
05-11 Dallas, TX - Palladium Ballroom
05-12 Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom
05-13 Austin, TX - Bass Concert Hall
05-14 New Orleans, LA - Republic
05-16 Tampa, FL - Tampa Theatre
05-17 Orlando, FL - Hard Rock Live
05-18 Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre
05-19 Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
05-20 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center for the Arts
05-21 Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre
05-22 Toronto, Ontario - Massey Hall
05-24 Boston, MA - Wang Center for the Performing Arts
05-25 New York, NY - Town Hall
05-26 New York, NY - Town Hall
05-28 New York, NY - Town Hall
05-29 New York, NY - Town Hall
05-30 New York, NY - Town Hall
05-31 New York, NY - Town Hall
06-01 New York, NY - Town Hall

* with Vetiver

shows of interest for 3/5 - 3/11/07

OK, so I stole this feature from Muzzle Of Bees, I hope they don't mind. I think it's a great idea, so I'll try to remember to post upcoming shows in the Denver/Boulder area each week.

Monday, March 5
Clipse @ Gothic Theatre
The New Trust/We Are! We Are!/So Many Dynamos @ Hi-Dive

Tuesday, March 6
Clipse @ Fox Theatre
Snow Patrol/OK Go/Silversun Pickups @ Fillmore Auditorium

Wednesday, March 7
Dropkick Murphys @ Fillmore Auditorium

Friday, March 9
Hella @ Hi-Dive
Snowden/Malajube @ Larimer Lounge

Saturday, March 10
Midlake @ Hi-Dive

Sunday, March 11
The Terrible Twos @ Hi-Dive (kid's show!)

if you read this tonight...

Wilco is streaming the new album Sky Blue Sky at their website, don't really know for how long. Clicky.

Now playing, obviously:

sold out hi-dive? boo.

Two days later and I'm at Hi-Dive again. I really like this club, but tonight's sold out Cold War Kids show was so dramatically different from The Spinto Band on Wednesday that it's a bit ridiculous (see me pimping them? Nice...). There was a line to get in, even though I arrived close to 9:30; it was something like 25 degrees outside, but at least there were only a dozen or so people in line. Somehow, though, I found myself standing outside for at least 10 minutes. WTF?!? When I finally got to the door I was incredibly amused to discover that they were frisking people. I can't even remember the last time I was frisked at a show, let alone at a venue like Hi-Dive. Maybe it had something to do with the fight that broke out at The Spinto Band show the other night.... lol. Weird.

I finally entered the bar shortly before openers #2, Delta Spirit. The floor was already crowded and I hung out off to the side of the stage a bit, but somehow, without feeling like I really moved at all, I found myself mid-rabid-crowd by the end of their set. I'm not sure why, but this kind of thing always seems to happen to me. Delta Spirit had a lot of fans in attendance, which was a bit surprising to me. I'd never heard of them, and in doing a google search the only thing I really turned up was their MySpace page, from which I stole the photo over there <-, as a google image search of "Delta Spirit" merely unearthed several pictures of sorority girls... Delta, Delta, Delta, can I help ya, help ya, help ya?

They were good, they rocked out pretty hard, but I just am not a fan of bands where the lead singer doesn't play an instrument. I don't know why it bothers me so, but it does. Perhaps it's the fact that when they're not singing they've got nothing left to do but strut around, blow kisses to the crowd and do fancy microphone acrobatics. So cheesy. But it was a good set, just about the right length, and fun to listen to. Capacity for the Hi-Dive is around 300, and the floor in front of the stage was packed for the Delta Spirit set. Or so I thought. As soon as they left the stage people just started pushing their way in. Some dude who was around 6 1/2 feet tall went to pass in front of me, at least I thought he was passing, but then he planted. Right in front of me. I tried to tell him that I couldn't really see now, but he didn't seem to hear me all the way up there so I had to nudge him and give him a look. He said "Oh, do you want to stand in front of me?". Yeah, thanks man.

By the time Cold War Kids took the stage I had no personal space to speak of, was getting a bit claustrophobic, and despite being approximately 15 feet in front of the stage, had no real view. I decided to wait it out for a few songs and see if the band was worth putting up with people touching me on all sides. They weren't, so after about 4-5 songs I escaped back to the merch table area where there was room and I actually had a better view of the stage than when I was in the midst of the crowd. Not that they didn't put on a great show, but it will take something like The Thermals (20 days and counting!) for me to put up with a crowd like that. And on top of everything else, I had meant to bring the ear plugs Leah gave me the other day, but forgot them in my car. So in all, moving to the back of the room was probably a good plan.

I did manage to note most of the setlist (holes filled in thanks to Westward Bound):

We Used To Vacation
Sermons Vs. The Gospel (solving some technical problems)
Passing The Hat
Rubidoux
Saint John
Well, Well, Well (John Lennon)
Tell Me In The Morning
Robbers
Hospital Beds
God, Make Up Your Mind
Hair Down
Every Valley Is Not A Lake
Hang Me Up To Dry
Quiet Please

The new song(s) sound a lot like Robbers & Cowards, same Cold War Kids sound. This is not a bad thing; I like them a lot and would certainly see them again. It just really felt like they should have been at a bigger venue than Hi-Dive. Maybe the Fox next time.... well, I can dream anyway.


Now playing:

Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha (out on March 20 - buy it, it's fabulous!!!).

you had me at kazoo

I'm too old for this shit. Seriously. I left my house to go out at 9:00 on a Wednesday night. And honestly, "i'm too old for this shit" was all set to be the title of this post. That, however, was before I saw The Spinto Band play the Hi-Dive.

There were two openers tonight, The Changes and Dios Malos. Having left my house at 9:00, I obviously missed The Changes. Apparently they were quite good, as some asshole kept shouting "bring The Changes back!" throughout The Spinto Band's set. We get it, they were good. And I was even sorry for missing their set, but shut the fuck up, jackass!! I did arrive to catch most of Dio Malos' set though, and they most definitely tore the shit up. I love me some good reverb-drenched rock n' roll! They almost reminded me of Band Of Horses turned up a couple of notches. I like to believe that during their set I kinda text-talked Leah into coming to the show. She didn't arrive in time to see Dios Malos, but was in plenty of time for The Spinto Band. Luckily she had a good time so I don't have to feel bad... lol.

The Spinto Band took the stage with little fanfare to maybe 150 people. Holy. Fucking. Hell. These kids put on a phenomenal show. The selfish part of me loves that I got to see them in such a small venue with so few people. But how in the world is a band that has been around for nearly 10 years (I only heard of them last year, but I do my research, dammit!), and who has such an amazing stage presence, relegated to this sort of existence? Don't get me wrong - they were either having a fabulous time or they were putting on Oscar-worthy performances. But they should at the very least be playing venues such as the Fox or the Gothic. I guess it's also a selfish part of me to want them to come BACK to Denver... and when playing for a handful of people, who knows?

But enough of the perplexities of indie rock, on to the show! I am not so familiar with The Spinto Band to be able to come up with a setlist for tonight. They played a lot from Nice And Nicely Done, the only album of theirs that I have heard. Here are a few highlights of the evening:

• Not one, but TWO kazoos on Brown Boxes. I saw one guy strapping on a harmonica-type apparatus, but I thought to myself "that's not a harmonica..." Leah leaned over and said "that's a kazoo!". Awesome. Plus, the keyboard player had one too. Yay kazoos!
• I may have missed their set, but two members of The Changes came on stage for a cover of I Think We're Alone Now. I think everyone was singing. Fantastic.
• The mandolin on Oh Mandy was sublime.
• Direct To Helmet. Need I say more? OK, maybe I do... I love this song. And it was enhanced by some stellar choreographed dance moves... lol.
• Late was just... awesome.

I'm still struck by the energy this young band showed on stage. It was obviously a very fun experience for me, which is good because I really need to be reminded from time to time why it is that I go out at 9:00 on Wednesday nights.


Now playing (with a renewed appreciation):



it's getting late late
tell me what time it is i can't wait
i gotta get back to the house
my show is on

so walk and don't run
it's slippery by the pool and it hurts
you know that it only gets worse
'cause the grade is steep

it hit me so hard fear for my agitated
discomposed disturbed perturbed and alarmed
i can't believe this works

it makes you supersonic
your science hurts
so why don't you
stop it
and switch me chairs

my efforts fall short but in the long run
lots could stretch forward then it'd all be almost there
it's just a longer ride

so up to full speed
if i can handle it well we'll see
action takes more than just luck
it needs a well thought plan

it's getting good good
turning and dodging like all you should
just as it tosses me out
i'll have to look to land

i think you're supersonic
your science hurts
so why don't you
stop it
and switch me chairs

it's getting late late
tell me what time it is i can't wait
i gotta get back to the house
my show is on

so walk and don't run
it's slippery by the pool and it hurts
you know that it only gets worse
'cause the grade is steep

i think you're supersonic
your science hurts
so why don't you
stop it
and switch me chairs

i think you're supersonic
your science hurts
so why don't you
stop it
and switch me chairs

album news

Quickly...

Voxtrot will release their self-titled full length debut on May 22 (Beggars/Playlouder). Tracklist:

01 Introduction
02 Kid Gloves
03 Ghost
04 Steven
05 Firecracker
06 Brother in Conflict
07 Easy
08 The Future Pt. 1
09 Every Day
10 Real Live Version
11 Blood Red Blood

Ryan Adams will release a real, honest-to-goodness physical record on June 5 (Lost Highway). Disregarding the 1,058 albums he released via his website last year, Easy Tiger will be the first new music from Ry-Ry since his slightly over-prolific 2005. Tracklist (order TBD):

Goodnight Rose
Everybody Knows
The Sun Also Sets
Halloween Head
Off Broadway
Two Hearts
Tears of Gold
These Girls
Two
I Taught Myself How to Grow Old
Oh My God, Whatever, Etc.
Rip Off
Pearls on a String

Oh my god, whatever. :b

because apparently i'm in a blogging mood and everyone else is doing it anyway...

Artwork for the very highly anticipated Wilco release - Sky Blue Sky - due out in May:

Tracklist:

01 Either Way
02 You Are My Face
03 Impossible Germany
04 Sky Blue Sky
05 Side With The Seeds
06 Shake It Off
07 Please Be Patient With Me
08 Hate It Here
09 Leave Me (Like You Found Me)
10 Walken
11 What Light
12 On And On And On

Seems like forever since our last Wilco release...

i'm such a pimp...

some minnesota love

A couple of weeks ago I found a new band to obsess over... a band which comes from Minneapolis and goes by the name of Cloud Cult. Since hearing their new album, The Meaning Of 8 (due out 4/10/2007), I just can't get enough. Yes, this is old news I know... but it begs the question: just what are they putting in the water in Minneapolis?

Beyond Cloud Cult I've recently "discovered" two more Minneapolis bands who've recently put out some really good shit.

Mouthful Of Bees. Their record The End was released on 2/15/07 and is of the indie art/power pop persuasion. Of course this is not the first blog ever written about Mouthful Of Bees, and in some light research (i.e. the first page of a "mouthful of bees" google search) I found several blog posts about them. Unsurprising to me is that I saw them at least twice compared to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah & fellow Minnesotans Tapes n' Tapes. Mouthful Of Bees skillfully wind their way through rockers as well as slower tempo songs. The album's production is fuzzy, and there are sporadic bursts of noise (hence the CYHSY comparison?) but at the center of it all are some real fun songs. Personally, I rather like the fuzziness in some cases. Who wants to forever listen to slick production that completely masks the spontaneity and even heart of the songs? So are these youngsters poised to become the next indie blog darlings? Time will certainly tell... just remember that although you may not have heard them here first, at least you heard them here before you heard them on Pitchfork... :)

Listen to The Now. Buy the album.



Download "The Now" (mp3)
from "The End"
by Mouthful of Bees (Afternoon Records)
Buy at eMusic

The Original Mark Edwards. He's not as new as and not quite as "my cup of tea" as Mouthful Of Bees, still The Original Mark Edwards released a great album entitled The Doom Loop on February 13. Sadly, a google search turned up precious little information about this man. Besides his MySpace page, the most I could find (well, OK, so I looked for like 5 minutes, but I'm lazy!) was at the Minnewiki. The album? Stylistically, it's all over the place. Not that that's a bad thing. Keeps you guessing, at the very least. I grabbed the album from emusic the other day.... don't get me wrong, I love emusic, but I wish they'd have some sort of liner notes downloads to go with the albums. From the Twin Cities City Pages I learned this:

It's also a solo project in the most extreme sense; just check out The Doom Loop's credit line: "OME: guitars, vocals, bass, drums, beat box, Wurlitzer, kitchen pots, violin, electric kazoo, synthesizers, hand claps, tambourine, programming, piano, toys, clarinet, organ." Amazingly, that's about it. The liner notes go on to mention that one Steve Goold, a real brick house of a drummer, performed on half of one song, and that Edwards's wife Heidi sang backup on two others. Mixing duties on a handful of tracks were farmed out. Otherwise, everything the listener hears on The Doom Loop—with its six-part vocal harmonies, unholy warbles of recircuited children's toys, and countless tracks of guitar, synth, and kitchen utensil clamor, all twisted and chunked together like so many Rubik's cube blocks into no solid color but something that much more interesting, nay, original—all of this is the work of one man.

He experiments with vocals, he experiments with instruments, and the result is an incredibly likable album. I've only listened to The Doom Loop a couple of times, but I can say that the comparisons to The Flaming Lips, Neutral Milk Hotel and Apples In Stereo are not unfounded. Think 1960's pop meets 2000's synth experimental. Very nice.

Now listen to these songs and buy The Doom Loop, too. Yay Minneapolis!



Download "The Doom Loop" (mp3)
from "The Doom Loop"
by The Original Mark Edwards (Princess Records)
Buy at eMusic

Download "Danger, Danger" (mp3)
from "The Doom Loop"
by The Original Mark Edwards (Princess Records)

look at me, i've got mp3's!

My maiden MP3 blog - because I love Rock Plaza Central so very very much:

Download "My Children, Be Joyful" (mp3)
from "Are We Not Horses"
by Rock Plaza Central (Outside Music)
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Insound
More On This Album

Download "I Am An Excellent Steel Horse" (mp3)
from "Are We Not Horses"
by Rock Plaza Central (Outside Music)

Download "When We Go, How We Go (Part II)" (mp3)
from "Are We Not Horses"
by Rock Plaza Central (Outside Music)