May 3rd - mark you calendars

I would have included this in Friday's blast, but RatBat Bear is heading in to catch the Pirates and Nationals fight for the worst record in baseball. I'm assuming some burr drinkin' will be happening as well... so who knows if that post will actually happen. Better be safe than sorry is my motto.

VH-1 will air a Radiohead in-studio performance on Saturday, May 3rd featuring 9 songs (6 from In Rainbows). Only bad thing is that it's scheduled for midnight. And who knows where we'll be or what shape we'll be in at that point. I guess I'll need to fire up the trusty VCR.

Thanks to P-fork - the clips they have linked are badass.

Tapes 'n Tapes - 9:30 Club (4/23/08)

I had high hopes for this concert. I was a fan of The Loon and felt that the boys from Minneapolis did us right with their second effort, Walk It Off. While I was surprised to see that they booked their DC show at the 9:30 Club vice the Black Cat, the price was right ($15) so I figured I didn't have much to lose.

The night started off well, as I was able to secure a ticket outside for under face value. I was feeling pretty good about myself until the the girl right behind me scored a free ticket from someone else. It's okay though, she was hotter than me.

For some reason, headed to the bar across the street to whack a few brews back and catch some of the Phils game. When I finally headed into the 9:30, I overheard a few guys smoking outside commenting about the quality of the opening band, White Denim. Damn!

The club was maybe half full - probably closer to a third. While I didn't expect it to be packed, I definitely thought there would be a few more people in attendance. Tapes 'n Tapes hopped on stage and blistered through their setlist, front loading tracks from Walk It Off. I think they stopped to talk to the crowd twice and both times it felt really forced. Something also wasn't quite right about their sound and it was a serious distraction for me. The only thing I could figure was that the instruments and vocals were at the same volume level, making the vocals just another "noise" instead of being distinguishable (does that make sense?).

They probably played 15-17 songs in about an hour and it seemed like they couldn't get off stage fast enough. Maybe they had somewhere cooler to be...

Coachella live in the Blue Room

If you're not out west right now soaking up the sun and music with 80,000 of your closest friends, don't fret. Check out the AT&T Blue Room this weekend for their live webcast from Coachella. I'll be honest - there's not too much that interests me on their lineup, but I'll let you make that call for yourself.

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SATURDAY, APRIL 26

06:05 PM The Bird and the Bee

06:55 PM Man Man

07:45 PM Dredg

08:35 PM VHS or Beta

09:30 PM DeVotchKa

10:25 PM Hot Chip

11:25 PM Animal Collective

12:15 AM Portishead

01:10 AM Flogging Molly

02:10 AM Yelle

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SUNDAY, APRIL 27

06:00 PM Brett Dennen

06:50 PM Electric Touch

07:40 PM Shout Out Louds

08:30 PM Duffy

09:20 PM Manchester Orchestra

10:15 PM Stars

11:10 PM Spiritualized

12:15 AM Gogol Bordello

01:10 AM Metric

02:05 AM Love and Rockets

Hooray Friday!

- If you haven't been to NPR is a few weeks like myself, prepare yourself for sensory overload. All Songs Considered has a shitload of concerts up to include Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, My Morning Jacket, Yo La Tengo, The Whigs, Vampire Weekend and more. Enjoy!

- Check out some new music to include Wolf Parade's "Call it a Ritual" and MMJ's "Evil Urges" on MOKB. There's a Scarlett Johannson track on there, but I'm staying away from that one... don't want to tarnish her hotness.

- A new Nine Inch Nails track is available for free on their website and I am fuel.

David Simon comes correct

I know, it’s been almost two months since HBO ripped yet another great show away from us. But this is worth reliving the pain fans of The Wire felt when "the best show on television” went off of the air - for the simple reason that it'll make that hamster in your dome piece work a little harder than it normally does.

David Simon, The Wire’s creator and executive producer, wrote an article in The Huffington Post after the series finale just to make sure everyone caught the underlying story of the fifth season. I’ll be honest - when my brother-in-law sent me this, it took a few reads for it all to sink in. If you haven’t already guessed, this Simon guy is one smart SOB who definitely has a way with words. “Crown me up and kneel, ya bitches.” Well said, Mr. Simon – hope you don’t mind if I borrow that one next time I'm feeling saucy.

This week's late night TV lineup

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

• Wednesday - Vampire Weekend
• Friday - The Swell Season

Late Night w/Conan O'Brien

• Monday - Grizzly Bear
• Wednesday - Radiohead

Last Call w/Carson Daly

• Friday - Matt Costa

Late Show w/David Letterman

• Wednesday - Tokyo Police Club
• Friday - The Black Crowes

Record Store Day - TODAY!!!

I guess I've been extremely lazy over the past few weeks, because I just dug into this one. Today (Saturday) is Record Store Day. Not sure who put this sucker together, but hell, putting the spotlight on the independent record retailer isn't a bad thing. I'll be honest, I'm as guilty as the next guy as it's been quite awhile since I've been in an independent record store. I'm sure I could come up with a bunch of lame excuses, but who wants to read that crap?

Instead, take a look at the official website, which has a listing of participating stores. Several artists are also planning exclusive releases to include Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, Vampire Weekend, Death Cab and the Black Keys. Sprinkle some in-store performances, contests and freebies and BAM, next thing you know it'll be time to start tying one on at the local watering hole. Enjoy!

Yeasayer - Black Cat (4/10/2008)

I've been back and forth on this concert since last week. I wondered beforehand how Yeasayer's sound would come across live - both with the number and uniqueness of the instruments they use as well as their harmonies. Hell, a lot of people can pull that shit off in a studio. But it's a whole different ball of wax in concert. Let's just say I was curious.

Well, they definitely pulled off that part of it. I was amazed by what sounds came from what instruments and how they used them all in a live venue. Their harmonies were spot on as well. But what I couldn't figure out was the mood of the Black Cat. The audience just didn't seem that into them, which is interesting considering the fuss they created the last time they were in town.

Now mind you, Yeasayer eased into their set with some slower, longer diddies. Maybe they had already lost the crowd by the time they hit their groove... and with only one album in their pocket, that doesn't give them a lot of time to get it going (the set clocked in at right around 50 minutes). I don't know what it was, but it was weird.

This was the first concert I've ever been too that the band didn't come out for an encore. And honestly, I really don't blame them.

This week's late night TV lineup

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

• Friday - Lyrics Born

Late Show w/David Letterman

• Tuesday - Rogue Wave
• Thursday - The Black Keys

Late Late Show w/Craig Ferguson

• Monday - Daniel Lanois
• Wednesday - Bell X1
• Friday - Liam Finn

Late Night w/Conan O'Brien

• Monday - Spoon

Hooray Friday!

Sorry for the late post, but I got sucker punched at the bar last night. Okay, I had no plans to do this last night anyway, but I figured I'd use the black eye and split lip I'm now sporting to my advantage.

- My Morning Jacket covered The Velvet Underground's "Head Held High" at SXSW and An Aquarium Drunkard has the video.

- Feist and The Constantines got together and gave us their take on the "Islands in the Stream". I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan. But it's a free country - take a listen for yourself at I am fuel.

- Eddie Vedder, you tease! Everyone knows he's going to be great live... including him. So he only schedules seven dates. And doesn't even venture away from the West Coast. But thanks to I am fuel, you can stream/download his Berkely concert and read a detailed review.

- Three times a charm for I am fuel. Tracks and a review from the Springsteen concert in San Jose.

- I am fuel had a busy week. The National covered the Boss' "Mansion of the Hill". Yes please.

- Speaking of the National, A Skin, A Night is their DVD to be released on May 20th. Ultra 8201 teases us with the trailer.

- NPR's All Songs Considered previews the upcoming releases. And from the looks and sounds of it, it's going to be a good Spring.

- Check out Tapes 'n Tapes performing "Hang Them All" on Conan this week. I need to dig into Walk It Off statim. Only 2 weeks until their concert at the 9:30 Club - hells yeah!

- Vote for the greatest rock 'n roll band ever. Cool concept, poor execution. NME has taken on task, but it's too time consuming. How many bands are there to rank? When I was asked to rate Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, I called it quits.

This week's late night TV lineup

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

• Tuesday - Phantom Planet
• Thursday - Switches

Tonight Show w/Jay Leno

• Thursday - The Redwalls

Late Night w/Conan O'Brien

• Monday - Hot Chip
• Wednesday - Tapes 'n Tapes

Last Call w/Carson Daly

• Thursday - Ben Harper

Late Show w/David Letterman

• Monday - The Mars Volta (w/Bruce Willis??)

Hooray Friday!

Rapid fire again this week. It's my last day before I start a new job and I want to close up shop and get outta here ASAP.

- News on the National DVD and EP out in May. Thanks to Metro D.

- Same band different blog. I think I may have posted this before but if not, Aquarium Drunkard has White Sessions from the National's visit to France in 2007.

- Hot Chip covers Snoop Dogg's "Sensual Seduction" and MOKB is on the case.

- M. Ward demos are available on I am fuel.

- Check out Tokyo Police Club's video for "Tessellate" of of theri new album Elephant Shell on Ultra8201.

- If you're interested in trying your hand at remixing, iTunes has different stems of Radiohead's "Nude" available. Thanks to Metro D again.

Gameshow contestants needed!

This is definitely something to click on when you're having a bad day. Yes it's not in English, but trust me it doesn't really matter. You can thank my cousin for this gem.