If you're anywhere near Boston, and you've been following me on Twitter, you've probably been pleased with my recent flood of fairly exciting Boston-area rock show announcements. If you're elsewhere, well then, I'm assuming you're a bit jealous. Rather than relegate all that good info to 140-char info-blasts, I figured it was time to neatly pull it all together so you can get your tickets and mark your calendars.

So, in chronological order, here's some upcoming area events that have given me high hopes for the weeks and months ahead...


Tomorrow night, Saturday, June 27th, brings the second half of the celebration marking WMBR DJ Jon Bernhardt's incredible 25-year run on morning slot "Breakfast Of Champions". Both nights are, appropriately, fundraisers for the station, each featuring some of the artists that Jon has played most frequently over his many years on the air. Last weekend brought Yo La Tengo (playing as the Condo F*cks), The Bevis Frond, and Sleepyhead to TTs, and as fantastic as that lineup sounds, this weekend's show at Church is personally more thrilling: The return of Versus with Buffalo Tom and Rebecca Gates of the Spinanes. I mean, wow. Details are here, and tickets can (surprisingly) still be had here.


Next Thursday, July 2nd, I'll be making my first-ever trip down to Showcase Live in Foxborough to catch The Church, who happen to be touring with Adam Franklin and his backing band Bolts of Melody. I was a Church completist back in the day, but have lost track of them over the past several years. In fact, I think the last time I caught them was a decade ago at (the now defunct) Mama Kin on Lansdowne. It was a good show, although it didn't necessarily reignite my completism. The fact that they're playing this time around at a place I've never been to (always a plus), and with Swervedriver frontman Franklin, well, that was enough to get me to grab a ticket. If anyone's been to Showcase Live and has any tips to share, drop a comment below. I've been meaning to pick up The Church's latest album, which bears the non-name of "Untitled #23" (yes, it's their 23rd release), but I think I'll wait until the show to put more cash in their own hands.


Last year I shared up a pretty great song by NYC trio City Breathing off their debut full-lengther. And then, for inexplicable reasons, I neglected to spend time with the rest of the album, and the band's name got washed away in the never-ending flood of promo emails I get. Well, shame on me. Because earlier this week I discovered their newly-released follow-up EP, entitled "My Apple IIe Is Singing Sad Songs To Me", and was quite rightly blown away. Four beautiful songs repeated all day long, prompting me to throw some money in their paypal account, then head back and listen closely to that debut, "Look How It's Snowing Upwards, Look How They Move Towards Heaven". Wow. And here's the thing: You can download all of their stuff for free, using the links above. Just toss a little cash in their tip jar if you love it as much as I do. And lucky me/us, they're hitting the Middle East Upstairs on Sunday, July 5th, as the last band on a four band bill. Now, that's not exactly prime-time - it's going to be rough getting myself out for it - but I think I've fallen hard enough to make that happen.

Here's the first track from City Breathing's new EP...



Another band it took me far too long to fall for: Boston's own Aloud. I'd heard and liked their song "Sometimes I Feel Like A Vampire", but recently dug into their sophomore full-length ("Fan The Fury", released last year) and found a whole lot more to love. Catchy, melodic guitar work that rocks without being overly indulgent, some fantastic boy/girl harmonies (I'm struck by singer Jen de la Osa vocal similarities to Concrete Blonde's Johnette Napolitano, and that's some praise), all contributing to memorably dynamic songs that each have their own specific identities. While it took me far too long to connect with this band, it was just in time to make sure I arrive early to the Paradise on Saturday, July 11th when they open up The Luxury's CD release party (The Click 5 and Midatlantic round out the lineup). Tickets for that show can be had here. Listen to some Aloud at MySpace, or better yet, stream their entire latest full-length...



If you haven't already got tickets to see American Music Club's Mark Eitzel (with AMC's Marc Capelle on keys) at the Lizard Lounge on Tuesday, July 21, well... you'd best get on that. 'Cuz the place ain't that big, and opener Rick Berlin is bound to bring in his share of loyal followers. Eitzel & Capelle will be playing a whole bunch of AMC songs along with, word is, some choice covers, and to see them in this intimate setting will be a total treat (especially after that last AMC gig at the relatively cavernous Harpers Ferry). The show takes place as part of a 12-date tour surrounding their appearance at the Merge Records 20th anniversary shindig down in North Carolina the following week. Which I'll be at. Oh yes I will.


On Wednesday, July 29th, London-based combo The Veils comes to TT the Bears as part of a 3-week North American tour to deliver songs from their recently-released third album, "Sun Gangs". Rather than headlining outright, they're alternating the closing spot with tourmates Foreign Born, who released a new record of their own ("Person To Person") earlier this week. I'll be giving out a pair of tickets to the show as it gets closer, but if you can't wait until then (and given the pairing, along with openers Faces On Film, I wouldn't), pick up tickets here.

A track from The Veils latest...



The first night of August brings the official release party for Wheat's latest album, "White Ink Black Ink", at Great Scott, though if you pre-ordered it as I did, you've already got it in your hands (and headphones). Openers are locals Bon Savants with Brooklynites The XYZ Affair, and tickets can be purchased right here. I'm hoping to have a few live tracks from their last Great Scott gig shared up before the show (including a cover of Daft Punk's "One More Time"), but I still need to check with the band to make sure that's cool.

Here's a track from Wheat's "White Ink Black Ink"...



Alright, I'm going to make myself stop here for now... I swear I've got twice as many shows to write about, but I'll leave you with two quick and timely things...

The internet pre-sale for the just-announced reunion of Sunny Day Real Estate at Boston's House of Blues on September 28th started this morning (presale password: SUNNYDAY), so head over here to get in on that, or try again tomorrow morning for the regular public on-sale.

And the show that will end our summer in sonic style: On Sunday, August 30th, Austin's Explosions In The Sky will play with The Flaming Lips on the Boston waterfront at the BoA Pavilion. Uh, Wow. Tickets go on sale tomorrow morning at 10am, and I'll be one of the many clicking refresh as the hour approaches. I'm infinitely more excited to see EiS than Coyne & Co., but that doesn't mean I'll won't be staying for the whole shebang. And a bonus: Seems a new Flaming Lips EP will be made available to those who purchase tickets to the show, which will include 3 tracks from their upcoming double album and 3 b-sides. I'm down. But the only bonus I really want is this: While Explosions in the Sky are playing, how about some actual waterfront fireworks? Ah, a boy can dream.

And with that, here come the thunderstorms... have a good weekend, all. Maybe I'll see you at Church tomorrow night for Versus, Buffalo Tom, and Rebecca Gates? So damn excited...

posted by brad at 7:02 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

Tonight Andrew Kenny returns to town with his Austin-based combo The Wooden Birds for their second area show at TT the Bear's in just three months. The TT's stage is a very familiar one to Kenny, who played there many times with his former band, American Analog Set, and more recently as a touring member of Broken Social Scene. Had AmAnSet continued beyond the 2005 release of their last album, it's possible that subsequent visits would have necessitated a larger venue, but with their break-up/hiatus, Kenny has essentially started over from scratch. Their April show was a bit underattended (at least relative to latter-day AAS appearances), although it did precede last month's release of The Wooden Birds' debut album, "Magnolia" (on Barsuk), and the publicity and praise that followed. Here's hoping tonight sees a healthier crowd welcoming back the band with current tourmates Other Lives and the UK's Hatcham Social.

My love for the songs of American Analog Set runs very, very deep, and it took me a little while to wrap my heart and head around the new direction Kenny has taken with his Wooden Birds songwriting. While the sonics still fall on the softer side, his compositions are far different animals - keyboards have been abandoned; the vibra-ma-phone is left at home; gorgeous harmonies have been added (thanks to Leslie Sisson); and on record, a standard drum kit is largely absent, the rhythms stripped down to bare essentials. In fact, were it not for his distinctive voice and the occasional trademark guitar line, you might be hard pressed to guess this was an AK creation.

It's all extremely organic, and very precise, occasionally to a fault. In fact, it wasn't until seeing the band in April that it all clicked together for me, that I finally fell for it. I was able to stop holding them up to AAS standards and judge the songs on their own, in their rawer, less sterile form. And with not just one drummer, but a percussionist as well to help flesh things out. The inclusion of a live rendition of AmAnSet fave "Kindness of Strangers", done "Wooden Birds style" helped bridge a gap, and it all made a lot more sense. I've since come to appreciate "Magnolia" far more than on my initial listens.

With Kenny's permission, here are a few songs from their April set at TTs, including my favorite WB track ("The Other One"), and their version of "Kindness of Strangers". And don't be surprised if you hear yet another American Analog Set song tonight...



To get yourself ready for this evening, hop on over to the Ash Gray Proclamation, who have a brand new Andrew Kenny interview, and be sure to visit Luxury Wafers, who have just shared up a six-song live session, including video footage of "Sugar". More audio-visual treats: The band performing "Seven Seventeen" and "Hometown Fantasy" on a Valencian street earlier this month (via Au Agenda Urbana). Update: They Shoot Music Don't They has a couple of wonderful clips of the band performing acoustic in a Vienna park.

Upcoming Wooden Birds tourdates (all with Other Lives):

Tuesday, 6/23: Cambridge, MA @ TT The Bears
Wednesday, 6/24: Brooklyn, NY @ The Bell House
Thursday, 6/25: Philadelphia, PA @ North Star
Friday, 6/26: Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel
Saturday, 6/27: Asheville, NC @ Rocket Club
Sunday, 6/28: Chapel Hill, NC @ Nightlight Bar & Club
Monday, 6/29: Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
Tuesday, 6/30: Birmingham, AL @ Bottle Tree
Wednesday, 7/1: Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon
Thursday, 7/2: Houston, TX @ Walters on Washington

Listen to any and all 'Nac-hosted Mp3s at the Hype Machine.


the fine print... If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the 'nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.

Labels: livemp3s

posted by brad at 11:31 AM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

In four short days, a genuinely special double-bill will make its way to Boston when Andrew Bird and Calexico set up at the BoA Pavilion on our waterfront's Fish Pier. As a fan of both, having seen each in far different settings and far away from Boston (Bird in a bar, under a tent, and in an old Vermont meeting house in '03, Calexico in '06 at the Touch & Go 25th Anniversary shindig in Chicago), I know the team-up will be anything but the standard guitar-based-indie-rock thang I see way too much of. While Bird's inventive, violin-and-whistlin'-accented songs don't share obvious commonalities with Calexico's energetic, Arizona-mex stylings, they for some reason feel like they'd perfect live compliments to each other. Especially if we get a break in this gray weather and a warm dusk eases us into the Friday night show.

Want a pair of tickets? Well, of course you do. Send along an email to giveaways [at] bradleysalmanac [dot] com before this Thursday noon, entitle it "AB&C", and let me know which town you live in. I'll pick a random winner from all entries, letting them know on Thursday afternoon that their name will be on the guest list with a +1. An easy enough hoop to jump through, eh? So get jumpin'.

For tickets of your own, hit up Live Nation. As you write me your entry, stream some Andrew Bird at his MySpace page, including tracks from his latest, "Noble Beast", or some Calexico at theirs. Bird is fresh off an appearance at Bonnaroo, recently chatted with WNYC's Soundcheck about his "gateway albums", and appears in an entirely un-serious interview piece called Touche at P4K. Damn, do I love that man's whistlin'. Luke at Hip2BeSquare has a preview of the show as well.

Andrew Bird's summer journey picks up again in July with some dates out West, a stop at Chicago's Lollapalooza, and then a trip overseas. Check out his tour dates page for all the info. From Boston, Calexico cruises out to Minneapolis for a Saturday show with the Decemberists (who just played the Pavilion themselves), and spends the rest of the summer hitting festivals on the other side of the Atlantic. Their busy itinerary is here.

Labels: giveaways

posted by brad at 1:08 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

I was gearing up to write this intro for my recording of The Radio Dept. live at the NYC Popfest last month, then I re-read Chromewaves' recap of the night and realized I (and you) would be much better served by sticking with his summary. So go read that and come back. Ok. Done? Alright then.

Like Frank, I traveled to Brooklyn specifically for the Swedish trio, fulfilling a longtime wish to watch them play, and like him, I'd agree that seeing them was simply about the songs, not about any on-stage energy (or any lack thereof). My compulsion to see them perform their heartfelt (and heartstring-tugging) music directly in front of me wasn't going to be defeated by any possible deficiency of stage presence, or the absence of a drummer. In fact, the only stage presence I required was that they were standing on one. And they were, so I was happy.

New songs, old songs, b-sides, they played 'em. The 12-song set felt painfully short, but I'd be saying that even if it had lasted all night (although the army of post-show indie-pop dancers might have been slightly let down). I did spend 8 hours alone in my car for it, after all. The band played a couple songs that will no doubt be found on the eventual next album ("Clinging To A Scheme"), although the absence of new single "David" (out June 24th, downloadable below) was notable (they did perform a b-side, "Messy Enough").

Here's their set, and here's hoping they return to our shores sometime in the next, oh, decade or so. More please.


Some Radio Dept. linkage...

The RadioDept.com website is invaluable, and in fact, you could have downloaded someone else's recording of this set earlier if you'd been paying attention over there. Also hit their MySpace page, Wikipedia entry, and Labrador label page.

Additional Audio: As I mentioned their next single is "David", and Labrador has made the track available for free.

[Mp3] The Radio Dept. - "David"

Order the single from Labrador to get 3 extra tracks. Frank Chromewaves also has lots of RD Mp3s linked in his post, and the RadioDept.com downloads section has tons of studio and live material. Seriously, it's the mother lode.

Video: Official videos and more over at the RadioDept.com video section, and a mess of live clips with a YouTube search.

Photos: My few Flickr-hosted shots are here, but as with the words, you're better off at Chromewaves for his excellent shots. And of course there's many more on Flickr.

Stream this entire set, and all 'Nac-hosted Mp3s, over at the Hype Machine.

the fine print... If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the 'nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.

Labels: livemp3s, radio dept.

posted by brad at 7:04 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

Below, a veritable wellspring of news, music, and performances from a bunch of great Boston area musicians. Subjects covered below includes The New Collisions (playing tomorrow), Greg Hawkes, Hallelujah the Hills, Wheat, Miranda Warning (playing tomorrow), Charlene, The Broken River Prophet, Heat From A DeadStar, Saturday's "SPLIT / SIGNAL" show in Somerville, Norway's I Was A King (also playing Saturday), and Walter Schreifels. Please do dive in...


There is no shortage of shows to choose from in the Boston-area tomorrow (Friday) night, but one stands out from the crowded schedule: The New Collisions will welcome their debut EP into the world with a set at TT the Bears, and they've smartly surrounded themselves with some of Boston finest: Township, Televandals, The Lights Out, and Logan 5 & The Runners. As if that wasn't enough Boston goodness for you, word is that The New Collisions will be joined on stage by the esteemed Greg Hawkes, keyboardist and co-founder of The Cars, who contributed his easily-recognizable playing to the band's new recordings. As an old school Cars fan, who as a 10-year old listened incessantly to his dad's vinyl copy of "Candy-O" (and blushed at its Vargas cover), this linking of new wave Boston rock to newer wave Boston rock gives me a little thrill.

Here's the second track from The New Collisions EP, which they've graciously sent along as a high-quality 256kbps Mp3...



I have heard my new favorite Hallelujah the Hills song, and it is "Blank Passports". The track will be the fourth on their upcoming second album, "Colonial Drones", out this fall on Misra. The label has used it (oh so effectively) to tease us by including it as part of their new freely-downloadable Misra/Absolutely Kosher Records "Soon" Mp3 sampler, which also includes songs from Buttonhead, Emily Rodgers, Chet, 60 Watt Kid, The Rollercoaster Project, Chris Garneau, and a track from Monahans just-released (and excellent) new record, "Dim The Aurora". Even though I'm only sharing the HtH track here, don't let that stop you from grabbing the rest of the "Soon EP" here.



Another celebration of some new music, this one taking place a little further down the road: On Saturday night, August 1st, Wheat, the pride of Taunton, will mark the July 21st release of their next full-lengther, the long-awaited "White Ink, Black Ink", with a show at Allston's own Great Scott. Openers are Bon Savants and The XYZ Affair. For the impatient (like yours truly), the album can be pre-ordered now, which will allow you to download the whole thing while you wait for your physical copy to arrive. To wet your Wheat-deprived whistle, here's the preview track...



This name should ring a fairly loud bell for any longtime followers of the Boston music scene: Miranda Warning. The power pop combo (who spent time as both a trio and a quartet between the years '87 and '95) is making a one-time-only return to the stage tomorrow night, Friday the 29th, when they play a reunion show at The Rabbit Hole book/music/comic shop in Fitchburg. The reunited band includes longtime members singer/guitarist Ad Boc and drummer Tom Evans, who later went on to form Jumprope. Random fact: Their original lineup actually included Shellac/Volcano Suns/Mission of Burma member Bob Weston in their first incarnation (which was news to me). As M.R. makes a brief return, another band called The Bones makes their debut as the opener. The totally free show kicks off at 7pm, so find your way out to Fitchburg if you can.

Here's the first track of Miranda Warning's third album, 1993's "Twelve Speed Pop Blender". Another random fact: This song features lyrics by Rob Galgano, who later went on to play with Ad in The Fond Farewells, and is the man behind the All Over The Place podcast.



It's been a very long time coming, but finally, Charlene is back - in recorded form, at least. The Newton-based band is on the verge of releasing a follow-up to their excellent 2002 debut full-lengther, and to get us ready for its arrival later this summer, they've offered up the new digital "Oh Hey" EP (along with a mere 100 handmade physical copies). Recorded over the course of several years at their own Dented Head Studios, it's got three songs: "Oh Hey" along with "Before The Comet Hits" and "Big Winds". All three songs can be streamed at their Myspace page and TheSixtyOne, and you can make them your own through Other Music, Amazon MP3, or iTunes. If you've been reading the 'Nac for awhile, you know I've shared up the title track before, and here it is again...


(Full disclosure: I was honored to play drums in Charlene for a time, but don't hold that against them.)


And as long as we're on the subject of songs recorded at Dented Head, how about new/old songs from The Broken River Prophet? (yes, another band who allowed me to sit on the drum stool and play along with them). The musical collective, who has stuck with a relatively stable lineup over the past couple years, has just finished a pair of songs that had their basic tracks laid down 4 or 5 years ago. Yes, the current crew completed songs recorded by younger versions of themselves (and even former members, including violinist Taro Hatanaka), and according to head prophet Adam Brilla, "Some sort of H.G. Wellian/DeLorean type shit went down." The results? "New York City Director's Cut Blues" and "Chemical Solitaire", which has always been one of my fave BRP songs. You can stream both at their MySpace page, and here's one of 'em to download...



Now this next song is from a band that is most certainly not Boston-centric (London/France, in fact), but it's record label most certainly is. In fact, I challenge you to find a label more thoroughly Boston than Rick Harte's Ace Of Hearts Records, the imprint responsible for releasing seminal albums from the likes of Mission of Burma, the Neighborhoods, and the Neats more than a couple decades ago. Just last year Rick worked on those fantastic MoB remasters for Matador records, and even now he's remastering the Neats' stuff.

But enough about the past, this is about the now: A few months back Ace of Hearts put out a new record from UK trio Heat From A DeadStar, and while the local connection got me to listen, the songs made me a fan. The 13-track "Seven Rays Of The Sun" pulls from the dark, angular aspects of Unwound and some Fugazi, but throws in a little more melody and overt beauty. It's right up my alley, and Ace of Hearts has allowed me to share the song that got me hooked. And get this: Mission of Burma's Roger Miller plays piano on it (more about him below)...



And lastly, I have your Saturday evening plans for you, so pay attention -- You'll be at the Center for the Arts at the Armory in Somerville for what promises to be a truly special night: It's called "SPLIT / SIGNAL", and it will marry together music and film in a way that is not often done, by having eight unique acts play original scores to original, exclusive short films. The musicians? The Books, Cul De Sac, Roger Miller, Caspian (oh yes), Black Yodel, Arms and Sleepers, Devil Music, and Mike Dunkley with Todd Brozman. The creators behind the corresponding visuals? Rich Remsberg, VJ Dziga, Handcranked Productions, Bryan Deblasio, Michael Maraden, Dado Ramadani, Barrett Films, and Jon Cianfrani. As if that long list wasn't enough, there's a bit of a bonus: The ticket price includes beverages from the Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project, the Cambridge Brewing Company, and the Mayflower Brewing Company. Doors are at 6pm, the action starts at 7pm, and I'm hoping I'll be able to see all of it before I head over to the now-sold-out Figgs / In Out / Boston Beat Machine show at the Midway. Oh man, Davis Square to JP? That's going to be a haul. Kindly clear the way, willya?


Ok, I lied, a couple more quick weekend things I must mention: Try to catch Norwegian band I Was A King at Harpers Ferry on Friday night. They're playing second of four, they've traveled far, and they definitely deserve your ears. I shared one of their songs recently, so grab it and you'll hear why. There's a reason that members of Danielson, The Ladybug Transistor, Serena Maneesh, and Sufjan Stevens contributed to their album.

And finish off your weekend be seeing Mr. Walter Schreifels (Quicksand/Rival Schools/Gorilla Biscuits) at Great Scott on Sunday night, with Steven Brodsky (Cave In) and Clouds opening up. It's just $10, and I'm pretty surprised tickets are still available. Play it safe and grab yours here, or swing by Great Scott to skip the extra charges.

posted by brad at 10:28 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

Taking a break from, well, taking a break, to finally offer up my recording of what ended up being Mogwai's last North American performance of 2008 (and just two days before the U.S. release of "The Hawk Is Howling"), up in the Catskills during the final night of the first New York edition of All Tomorrow's Parties. If you know Mogwai, you know it was equal parts gorgeous and ear-blistering... although the ear-blistering aspect was quickly forgotten once Dinosaur Jr. took the stage shortly after, followed by festival-closers (and last-day curators) My Bloody Valentine. Can sustained sonic waves actually melt a pair of earplugs? Came close.

The band was in the home stretch of a road trip that never finished, as ace drummer Martin Bulloch's faulty pacemaker, which had been bothering him all tour, necessitated a trip to an area emergency room (and then a flight back home to Scotland) shortly after he walked off the Kutsher's Country Club stage (and the fact that he kept himself together, and played a flawless set under what must have been trying circumstances, says as much about the man as it does about his drumming). The band was forced to cancel the remaining six dates of the tour, including the next night's show back here in Boston.

They'd return though, as part of a just-finished month-long journey that brought them back to Boston on May 1st. The scheduling of that show was personally painful, as it was announced just after I'd put together a four-band bill on the very same night across the river at TTs. It wasn't just that many people would (and did) opt to see Scotland's pride instead of my modest little lineup, but that I wouldn't be able to see them myself. Despite the competition, we ended up with a good crowd at TTs, and missing out on Mogwai made me appreciate their ATP performance even more. Here it is...


Some Mogwai links...

Their official site, MySpace page, Wikipedia entry, and Matador label page. Be sure to check out the indispensable Bright Light! fansite.

Additional Audio: Mogwai is live-taper friendly, and allows the wonderful Live Music Archive to host (123!) recorded shows for download in a variety of formats. The band also has their own podcast with loads of audio (here's the iTunes link). Be sure to hit up Bright Light! for their links to more audio/video action. Matador's free Mp3 from "The Hawk Is Howling" was my personal fave from it...

[Mp3] Mogwai - "The Sun Smells Too Loud"

Video: Their latest video is for "Batcat". They've got many more on their own site. La Blogotheque filmed the band live performing "Mogwai Fear Satan" on Valentines Day in Reims, France. A Mogwai YouTube search will keep you busy for hours.

Photos: My Flickr-hosted shots are here. And here's a full Mogwai tag search (Gremlins shots included).

Upcoming tourdates: The band has a handful of dates remaining in May and June in the EU, and goes festival-crazy in July and August. See Bright Light! for a complete list of upcoming gigs..

As ever, stream any and all 'Nac-hosted Mp3s at the Hype Machine.

the fine print... If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the 'nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.

Labels: livemp3s, mogwai

posted by brad at 8:32 AM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

Regular 'Nac visitors know that I frequently wander off on non-musical tangents, talking comic books, movies, whatever. Well, here I go again, offering up a couple pairs of tickets to see comedian Christian Finnegan and friends at Allston's Great Scott this Friday, along with an autographed copy of his just-released stand-up CD "Au Contraire" (which also has a DVD edition).

I've been a fan of Christian's for a few years, mostly due to his frequent (and always funny) appearances on VH1's excellent "Best Week Ever" pop culture-skewerin' show (now hosted by grade-A jokester Paul F. Tompkins), so I jumped at the chance to hook a few readers up. Hard to think of a better way to kick off a long Memorial Day weekend than by catching him and four other stand-ups (Ken Reid, Chris Coxen, Laura Burns, and James Laurence) on a Friday night. Even mo' better: The comedy action starts at 7pm in order to make way for the Pill's celebration of Morrissey's 50th birthday later that evening, so you can either hang there or head across the river to the Middle East to witness a pretty rocktacular lineup.

Want a pair of tickets, along with a Christian-signed copy of his new "Au Contraire" stand-up disc? I'll randomly pick two winners of two tickets each from those who send an email (title it "Finnegan!" and be sure to include a mailing address) to giveaways [at] bradleysalmanac [dot] com before noon this Thursday, and will notify them that afternoon. They'll find their name on Great Scott's guest list with a +1, with the CD sent on shortly after. Now get with the electro-mailing, and commence with whatever luck-inducing dance that works for ya.

posted by brad at 1:39 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

This Tuesday, May 19th, St. Vincent (aka Ms. Annie Clark) will return to the Boston area to headline a night at the Somerville Theatre with openers Pattern Is Movement. It's the very first stop on a month-long, nationwide tour to spotlight last week's release of "Actor", her second solo album and first for legendary label 4AD.

Thanks to the kind crew at World Music/CRASHarts, I've got a pair of tickets for the Tuesday show to bequeath to an Almanac visitor. And that may be the first time I've ever used the word bequeath here on the 'Nac. May not happen again.

If you want your name and a guest's to magically appear at the box office on Tuesday evening, send along a quick email to giveaways [at] bradleysalmanac [dot] com before this Monday noon, title it "St. Vincent!", and let me know which town you live in. One random winner will be notified that very afternoon.

For tickets of your own, buy direct from World Music/CRASHarts to save on service fees. To educate your ears, visit St. Vincent on MySpace, have a listen to an Mp3 from her new album below, or take a look at the video for "Actor Out Of Work"...


My inbox awaits...

Labels: giveaways

posted by brad at 12:01 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

One week from today, John Vanderslice officially releases his new full-length, "Romanian Names", through the Dead Oceans label, and will soon after head out on lengthy North American tour to support it. Even without this new album and upcoming live schedule, this spring has been a good time to be a JV fan - his recent "Gone Primitive" tour with the Mountain Goats' John Darnielle was truly special, and not only did the collaboration result in some great shows, but the limited edition JV/JD split vinyl "Moon Colony Bloodbath" EP.

It's been relatively tough for fans to track down a copy of that EP, due not only to its limited nature (just 1000, with 200 of those on green vinyl), but the fact that it was delayed and not to be found at the Johns' merch table until the very end of the tour. Post-tour, copies made their way into a couple record stores and quickly disappeared, and 150 were briefly made available as the very last item offered through 3 Beads of Sweat mailorder, which has now officially shut down (RIP). I was fortunate enough to get one from 3BoS, but if you didn't, you're now in luck: They've just become available through the US arm of the Beggars Group. So go here immediately, because they'll be gone soon enough. I can tell you this: The packaging is gorgeous, and the songs and sound quality are tops. Totally worth taking for multiple spins.

For more immediate JV gratification, NPR is now streaming "Romanian Names" in its entirety, and if you pre-order the album from Dead Oceans, you'll get sent download codes so you can start listening ahead of your mailman's arrival (although you're likely too late to be one of the first 100 pre-orders, and missed out on getting a chunk of the studio tape from the RM sessions).

Here's my full recording of Mr. Vanderslice's set from the "Gone Primitive" tour's March visit to Somerville, Mass -- the companion piece to my recent sharing of Mr. Darnielle's stellar performance. To be heard are acoustic versions of a couple "Romanian Names" songs, along with one of the numbers he wrote for the "MCB" EP ("Lucifer Rising"), along with some old JV faves (as a Tascam owner, I'm always glad to hear "Me and My 424"). Enjoy, and look below for two Mp3s from the album as well...


Some various Vanderslice linkage...

His official site, MySpace page, Wikipedia entry, Twitter page, Dead Oceans label page, and Barsuk label page. Pre-order "Romanian Names" here.

Additional Audio: In addition to the NPR's full album stream, two promo Mp3s from "Romanian Names" have been made available...

[Album Stream] John Vanderslice - "Romanian Names"

[Mp3] John Vanderslice - "Fetal Horses"

[Mp3] John Vanderslice - "Too Much Time"

Video: John has made a few official videos, including clips for "Time To Go", "Trance Manual", "Exodus Damage", and "Plymouth Rock". For a wealth of fan-made live clips, run a Vanderslice YouTube search.

Photos: My Flickr-hosted shots are here. Check out the full Vanderslice Flickr search.

Upcoming tour dates: As I mentioned, John has a lengthy tour booked in the wake of the "Romanian Names" release...

Sun May 17 - Merced, CA @ The Partisan
Tue May 19 - San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
Thu May 21 - Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
Fri May 22 - Seattle, WA @ Easy Street Records
Sun May 24 - George, WA @ Sasquatch Music Festival
Wed May 27 - Provo, UT, @ Velour
Thu May 28 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
Fri May 29 - Denver CO, @ Hi Dive
Sat May 30 - Omaha NE,@ Slowdown Jr.
Mon Jun 01 - St. Paul, MN @ Turf Club
Wed Jun 03 - Iowa City, IA @ The Mill
Thu Jun 04 - Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall
Fri Jun 05 - Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon
Sat Jun 06 - Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Sat Jun 06 - Chicago, IL @ Metronome Celebration
Mon Jun 08 - Newport, KY @ The Southgate House
Tue Jun 09 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Andy Warhol Museum
Thu Jun 11 - Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
Fri Jun 12 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Sat Jun 13 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
Sun Jun 14 - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
Tue Jun 16 - Washington, DC @ Black Cat
Wed Jun 17 - Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
Thu Jun 18 - Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
Fri Jun 19 - St. Augustine, FL @ Cafe Eleven
Sun Jun 21 - Orlando, FL @ The Social
Tue Jun 23 - Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
Thu Jun 25 - Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
Fri Jun 26 - Austin, TX @ The Parish
Sun Jun 28 - Phoenix, AZ @ Modified
Mon Jun 29 - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
Tue Jun 30 - San Diego, CA @ Casbah
Sat Jul 11 - Ottawa, ON @ Cisco Systems Bluesfest
Sun Jul 12 - Ottawa, ON @ Cisco Systems Bluesfest
Sat Aug 29 - San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival
Sat Oct 03 - Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival

Easily stream any and all 'Nac-hosted Mp3s at Le Machine de Hype.

the fine print... If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the 'nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.

Labels: livemp3s

posted by brad at 11:43 AM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |

I live! Fully recovered and re-energized after last Friday's amazing pop/rock show at TTs, I return here to share a whole lotta songs. I'm prepping to post a nice John Vanderslice live show (to go along with that recent John Darnielle set), but before I get to that, I wanted to pass along a whole mess of guilt-free Mp3s, totally legal downloads from new and upcoming releases that have grabbed me lately.

Free songs follow from Tara Jane ONeil, Loney, Dear, LoveLikeFire, Sky Larkin, The Legends, Wye Oak, The Wooden Birds, Liechtenstein, Cause Co-Motion!, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, British Sea Power, I Was A King, Pony Up, and The Mary Onettes. Have at 'em...


Yesterday was a pretty solid new release Tuesday, but there's one disc in particular that stands out for me: A fresh full-lengther from Tara Jane ONeil. Now part of the venerable K Records roster, TJO gives us "A Ways Away", and here's a taste...



I'll be at Great Scott tonight for the return of Emil Svanangen's Loney, Dear, and it will be in marked contrast to the last time I saw him and his band at the far more spacious (and seated) Somerville Theatre, opening for Low. Given the fairly healthy amount of attention he's received in the intervening two years, I'm surprised to see him returning to such a small venue, but I'm certainly not complaining. Looking forward to seeing him play lots of songs from his latest, and I'm also intrigued by opener (and fellow Vermonter?) Lia Ices.

Here's the opening track from Loney, Dear's excellent "Dear John"...



Having put out a couple of excellent EPs, San Fran quartet LoveLikeFire will release their debut full-length later this year, but before that we get one more EP entitled "William". It's now available via iTunes (and can be streamed here), they've got a video for the title track, and have offered up one of the songs from the EP for sharing...


The band spends the month of May over in the UK, so if you're over in ol' blighty, have a look at the dates, and be sure to bookmark their new blog.


I owe Michael over at Safe As Milk a debt of gratitude for turning me on to Leeds trio Sky Larkin awhile back. Really good stuff. The band has posted details on the cassette (yes, cassette... and digital download) they're releasing in the UK next week on Wichita Recordings entitled "Antibodies", and have shared up one of the remixes from Side A...


If you've never heard them before, don't judge 'em by the bjorky-bleep-bloop of that remix, but instead visit their MySpace for some guitar-flavored goodness. Their first full-lengther, "The Golden Spike", was supposedly released last month here in North America, but damned if I can't find anywhere to order it non-import.


Also import-only (for now) is The Legends new album on the seemingly infallible Labrador label. "Over and Over" is out today, and while I've been very much into all of (primary Legend and Labrador co-founder) Johan Angergard's work to date, the advance single from this new one didn't do much for me. There's a good song to be found inside "Seconds Away", but it's buried underneath a layer of guitar squeal that overloads my ears a bit. My FSA-phase is long behind me, and in fact, my favorite part of the cut is when that noize track cuts out for a few seconds. Makes me wish for an alternate mix, and has me hoping the rest of the album doesn't follow that fuzzy suit. In any case, here's the track, which I should probably give a few more chances...


Order "Over and Over" direct from Labrador here.


Baltimore duo Wye Oak will release their new Merge album, "The Knot", on July 21st (just in time for the XX Merge bash!). It'll be their first work recorded specifically for the label (with last year's debut, "If Children", being more of post-signing re-release), and I'm really looking forward to hearing what Andy Stack and Jenn Wasner have in store for this follow-up. This first dose promises very good things...



I haven't had a chance to write about the first Boston visit from former American Analog Set frontman Andrew Kenny's new quintet, The Wooden Birds, but I was unsurprisingly enamored with their performance, and will hopefully be sharing my recording of it when their debut album, "Magnolia", arrives from Barsuk next week. Those of us fortunate enough to see the band recently were able to pick up the vinyl version (which includes download codes), and you can already order that from Barsuk as well.

Two Mp3s from the album have been (legally) let loose into the world...


Have a listen to the WOXY session that the band recorded during their visit to SxSW, and Europeans would do well to check out their list of live dates as they continue through Spain, Germany, and Austria this month.


The re-emergence of the wonderful Slumberland record label in 2006 has proven no mere nostalgia trip (PoBPaH, anyone?) -- they pretty much picked up where they left off and have continued to put out some really strong stuff. Well, they've announced another signing with Swedish trio Liechtenstein, who will release a mini-LP called "Survival Strategies In A Modern World" on June 2nd. And more relevant to us Bostonians: They're coming to town to play the tiny Middlesex Lounge in Cambridge on Sunday, May 18th with Pants Yell!. Here's hoping they'll have some early copies of that album with 'em. Here's a preview Mp3...


For New Yorkers, Liechtenstein will also appear at the NYC Popfest on Friday night, May 15th.


Speaking of Slumberland, their Brooklyn-based act Cause Co-Motion! came to Cambridge a couple weeks back to play an outdoor MIT/WMBR event, and it ended up being my very first listen. I went for Sleepyhead and Plus/Minus, but walked away with a new band to dig. They've got a new EP out this month titled "Because Because Because", and have offered up the last of its six songs as a freebie...



Shall I make it a Slumberland tri-fecta? Sure, why not. It pains me that The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have no Boston-area date on their extensive travel schedule, although it's a bit greedy to hope for such a quick return... they were here in February after all. I missed that one, but caught them on a trip up to Vermont the day before, a Valentine's Day gig that totally delivered (I really need to share up that show soon). I picked up their album at that show, and recently grabbed their new 7" from the Slumberland site, and here's the A-side, which also comes from the album, along with an Mp3 of their recent performance on Last Call...


British Sea Power are apparently toiling away on their 5th album, but in the meantime they're putting out their soundtrack to the 1934 b&w film "The Man of Aran", which is due out May 18th on both CD and DVD. Have a look at the new trailer. BSP's soundtrack is, of course, mostly instrumental, and includes new tracks along with re-recorded/re-arranged versions of their songs "True Adventures", "The Great Skua", "North Hanging Rock", and this cover of a Jeff Alexander number (originally written for an episode of the Twilight Zone)...



Thanks to Britt for hipping me to the fact that Norwegian band I Was A King will play their very first Boston show at Harpers Ferry on Friday, May 29th. She was right on when she pegged them as TFC/GBV-influenced, and when she guessed I'd like them. I do, I do. You can stream their entire latest album (with guest contributions from Sufjan Stevens & members of Danielson, The Ladybug Transistor, and Serena Maneesh) thanks to their label, Morningside Records, and here's one of the tracks for ya...


That self-titled debut and a 7" are both available domestically on The Control Group here in the US. After they play Boston, the band heads south then west for many more stateside dates, including a stretch with Constantines and Crystal Antlers.


I first saw Montreal quartet Pony Up years ago up in Burlington, VT when they played a show with The Smittens and charmed me with a super-catchy ode to Mr. Matthew Modine. Now they've got their sophomore album, "Stay Gold", ready to go, and are going to be self-releasing it North America on May 30th (it'll be on Laughing Outlaw in Aus/NZ). It was produced by the Dears' Murray Lightburn, and their brand new online store will not only be offering the digital download for a mere $5, but a limited, hand-made edition for pre-order as well. Here are two excellent preview tracks from "Stay Gold"...



And lastly, some more new music from the lovely Labrador label, who just released a 3-song single from Swedish pop combo The Mary Onettes. It's been a long while since we've had new sounds from the MOs (and with good reason), but this one was worth waiting for. Here's the title track from the EP, which can be ordered here...



There, that should keep your ears busy for a little while. And remember, you can stream all these songs easily over at the 'Nac page on the ol' Hype Machine.

posted by brad at 3:48 PM | direct link | rss (1:2) | |