Jeff_I's Blog

On Tuesday night I was tired. Exhausted from a long day's work, beat from a trek to Cambridge, stifled from a warm pollen-riddle day. Yet, I couldn't help from dancing myself into a sweaty frenzy. The cure-all was over-the-counter, though you'd be better off finding it at Newbury Comics than CVS. Thanks to Foals I was back in business.

Foals is a British five-piece touring the country in support of their month-old album Antidotes. Antidotes is a powder keg of staccato fueled rhythmic tunes that evokes Bloc Party (minus the ballads, plus horns!) Being a big Bloc Party fan, Antidotes quickly grew on me, and I was excited to see if Foals could 'bring it' the way Bloc Party has many times in the past.

Short answer: Yes they could.



Front man Yannis Philippakis and the band took the stage shortly after 11:00 to a crowd already buzzing from the excitement of a Celtics playoff win (check that, hipsters don't watch sports.) But they were buzzing, and it was quickly turned into a loud roar.

Foals opened with The French Open, which is the first, and one of my favorite, track from Antidotes. My original concern was that this song, and a few others, would lack from the absence of live horns (provided by Antibalas on the album), but keys player Edwin Congreave was able to adequately reproduce them in a live setting (though I would say that this band with live horns would be unequivocally unbelievable.)



The rest of the hour plus long set was a blur in a good way, the band and crowd seeming to one-up each other in how much of a frenzy they could work themselves into.

Some highlights:

• It's no secret that Foals loves what they do. The interplay between Philippakis and guitarist Jimmy Smith was awesome to behold and there was not a dry shirt left in the Middle East Downstairs.

• Heavy Water and Two Steps Twice - Two songs that rely on epic crescendos both delivered extremely well live.

• Philippakis quipping, "This song's called Red Socks Pugie. If I were more cunning I'd say it is dedicated to the Red Sox, but the truth is, I have no idea what it's about."

• Balloons, which I think is their best overall song, was awesome. Not the best use of descriptive words, and I'm sure my journalism professors would not approve, but sometimes one word sums it all up. Awesome.

• Bassist Walter Gervers legitimately caring that the Celtics won.

• Philippakis' daunting run into the crowd mid-song. A great rock move, made a little bit dangerous by the fact that he had jumped right next to a man we had dubbed "Foals Superfan". He was giving off the vibe of being a male version of Mel from 'Flight of the Conchords' (Hey, Sub Pop records reference!) and it was getting a bit creepy.

• Cassius! This song should be everywhere by mid-summer. If you don't move to it, there's a chance you may not like music.
  

• Opener The Ruby Suns playing an intriguing set, with a whimsical, eerie sounding sound. I would definitely check them out again.

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Foals:

• Yannis Philippakis (vocals/guitar)
• Edwin Congreave (keyboards)
• Walter Gervers (bass)
• Jimmy Smith (guitar)
• Jack Bevan (drums)

Check them out: Here

I have almost nothing in common with marathoners. I occasionally binge on pasta, but that's about as far as it goes. Despite this, I love the Boston Marathon. Patriots Day is my favorite completely arbitrary holiday (Flag Day is 2nd, FYI). The Marathon, the Sox, the barbecues... it doesn't get much better.

Growing up I'd always watch the Marathon at my Great Aunt's along Washington Street in Newton, but this year I decided to make the ultimate trek into downtown Boston.

Here are some observations, photos and failed attempts at witticisms from the 112th Boston Marathon.

• I'm convinced the only thing more difficult than running a marathon is planning your trip into Boston on Marathon Monday. Boston isn't exactly a world class city when it comes to public transportation (hint: when your public transportation stops running before your bars close, you may want to rethink things.) After planning my trip about 20 different ways, I finally chose one that was relatively painless and easy. I'm convinced Rosie Ruiz was a genius.

• This was the first time I'd ever been behind the Finish line. When you're tens of miles away, the area seems like it would be some sort of a runner's mecca, with masseuses at the ready, food at hand and all the seemingly innocuous weird silver blankets you can handle. Not so; it's just a bunch of tired people being cattle-called to a recovery area while they sweat, cry, vomit, etc. Not even every runner had a weird, seemingly innocuous silver blanket! Also, a lot of runners have to walk back on the overcrowded sidewalk amongst the fans.

• Bruins fans were out and about all over the city for the first time in far too long. It was a sight for sore eyes. Of course, naturally, they'll lose tonight and continue to be the butt of jokes.

• Companies were out all day handing out free schwag to the fans. The four most prevalent: Adidas, Nike Livestrong, New Balance and.... Dianetics. Hmmmm..... one of these things is not like the other.

Speaking of Livestrong, two Lance Armstrong related notes:

• Lance didn't get the biggest of all ovations when he passed by. Of course I was packed into some tiny Public Alley when he passed by and everyone was hard to pay attention to the road. Also, they were playing a Sheryl Crow CD at the Finish Line. I'm not sure what this means, but look, it's Lance!:

• The biggest rockstar of them all: Mayor Menino. People just flock to the guy and he was swarmed with well-wishers after he left the Media area.

Well, that's it after an awesome Marathon Monday now it's on to a sadly nickname-less Tuesday.

Today I awoke at the crack of 9:45 am (hey, it's early for me!) in an effort to get some Radiohead tickets.  They're playing at The Tweeter Center Great Woods in August and, being that they have Most Favored Band Status, I need to be there.

Tickets were reasonable ($30, $55), considering the prices some acts are charging, and surprisingly I was able to snag a pair with little resistance.

By 10:01 (I'm very adept at the intricacies of Ticketmaster) I was confirming my order and proceeding to check out when I glanced at the final price and nearly had a heart attack.

Final Price: $152.85

Now, I'm no math whiz, but I'm pretty sure two $55 seats should round out to somewhere in the neighborhood of $110.  Factor in some taxes, the inevitable "fees" and I was figuring I'd be lighter around $125 or so.

Further investigation showed:

Convenience Charges: $10.00 x 2
Service Charges: $7.25 x 2
(plus taxes)

I understand Ticketmaster provides a great service.  Knock on wood, I've never gotten a ticket order screwed up, they make it easy to get tickets to every possible event I could ever want to go to and it is generally a pleasant experience, but this is going too far.

What's convenient about getting charged 10 bucks to get a ticket printed and stuffed in an envelope?  Why do you get charged double if you're ordering two tickets, triple if you get three, etc?

I know some bands have tried to fight Ticketmaster, most famously Pearl Jam, but it never works (You can now buy your $77 Pearl Jam tickets on Ticketmaster).  Others, mostly jam bands, have completely bypassed Ticketmaster by printing and distributing their own tickets.

I'm outing myself as a wannabe hippie here, but Phish had their own service and it worked smoothly and their tickets became pieces of artwork themselves:


So what do you think?
Is Ticketmaster going too far???

There's something special brewing up in the Great White North.  Some of the best music in the past few years comes from Canada.  This year it was even more apparent while compiling my top 10 list.  The best part, in my opinion, is that it's very familial.  Everyone is in everyone else's band. 

Check this out (names of bands who put out albums in '07 are bolded):

Lonesome American Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse signed Wolf Parade to their record deal. Wolf Parade’s lead singer Spencer Krug also fronts Sunset Rubdown and he’s in the band Swan Lake with Frog Eyes’ lead singer Cary Mercer.  Dan Bejar is a member of both Swan Lake and Wolf Parade and, oh yeah, he’s also in a little band called The New Pornographers.

Then, on the other end of Canada, take the band Stars.  Owen Pallet who wrote the Arcade Fire’s string movements for their first two albums, helped work on some Stars remixes.  Three Stars members are also in Broken Social Scene, whose alumni include Kevin Drew and Leslie Feist (she of the catchy 1,2,3,4 ipod Nano song). 

Pretty cool, eh?  With limited amounts of adieu, here's my Top 10 of 2007.

#10 Frog Eyes - Tears Of The Valedictorian

There's a good chance I cannot pinpoint one specific lyric from this entire album.  Such is Carey Mercer's vocal styling.  But he sings in front of swirling, chaotic melodies that together make for some amazing songs.

Key Track: "Bushels".  9 Minutes of insanity that somehow mesh to create some beautiful chaos.

#9 Peter, Bjorn and John - Writer's Block

This album came out in their native Sweden last year, but since it didn't make it stateside (legally) until February of 2007, I'm putting it on the list.  All hail technicalities!  If you haven't heard anything from this album you probably don't make it out much.  Actually, you probably do make it out much seeing as songs from this album get tons of play in countless ads and TV shows.  You know that song with all the whistling?  That's "Young Folks" by Peter Bjorn and John.

Key Track: 'Up Against The Wall".  Alternately referred to as, that song in the Levis commercial.

#8 Vampire Weekend

This is one of those "widely circulated/not yet released" albums. Consider it like a rap mix tape minus Little Wayne.  Vampire Weekend is made up of a few hyper literate dudes from Columbia University who play a style of music described as "Upper West Side Sowetto".  I have no idea what this means, but I do know they play catchy little ditties, sing about Cape Cod and Boston and their album, when officially released, will probably be in the Top 10 of 2008.

Key Track: "Oxford Comma".  I'm a sucker for songs about punctuation.

#7 Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover

A lot of the musical styling I mentioned in reference to Frog Eyes can be appropriated here, although Sunset Rubdown does it with much more flair.  I would describe this album as if you were to head to the theater on acid.  And, while I'm unfamiliar with both (going to the theater and doing acid) it sounds about right.

Key Track: "The Mending Of The Gown".  Indescribable.  Might be my favorite song of the year and is most definitely my favorite to sing.  I need to find indie rock karaoke. 

#6 Stars - In Our Bedroom After The War

Brilliant album, great for, uh, lazing about in your bedroom (wars not necessary).  This placement on the list is in no way related to the fact that I know the brother-in-law of Stars' drummer and he has sent me free gear in the mail.

Key Track:  "Window Bird".  Hard to pick just one as the whole album has a magnificent flow.

#5 The White Stripes - Icky Thump

I'm still harboring ill feelings towards Meg White for canceling out on the Austin City Limits Music Festival.  As if her acute anxiety wasn't bad enough, now she has to worry about an anonymous blogger from the intrawebs hating on her.  Great album though.  Really shocking.

Key Track: "Conquest".  A duel between Jack White's guitar and a mariachi trumpeter?!  Sign me up!

#4 Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare

Despite all the Canuck love I'm still a sucker for Brit rock.  This album took awhile to grow on me, especially being in the shadow of their spectacular debut, but I really do love it.  Alex Turner, despite being one of the tiniest men I have ever accidentally bumped into, is still the finest songwriter concerning songs about being in your early 20's.

Key Track: "Brianstorm".  Biggest potential diss/compliment to anyone named Brian ever recorded.  Also happens to be laden with fantastic riffs.

#3 Radiohead - In Rainbows

I was finally able to download this album at about 2am the night it came out.  Suffice it to say, I was up until 4:30am with my headphones in, listening and re-listening to this majestic album.  And, I'm stealing this quote from Rolling Stone, many people paid more for a gallon of gas this year than they did to buy this amazing album.

Key Track: "All I Need".  Thom Yorke singing over a meandering synth crunch.  So good.

#2 Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

Critics of this album say it's too accessible.  What?!  Sounds like some upset fanboys, mad that their favorite band made catchier music.  This album is heavily nautically themed and features one of the world's most unusual vocalists in Isaac Brock.  I love it from start to finish and it's inspired me to listen to every Modest Mouse recording I can get my hands on.

Key Track: "Education".  I picked this because it's my favorite demonstration of Brock's unique vocals, though really every track is a winner.  "Dashboard" and "Missed The Boat" being two standouts.

#1 Arcade Fire - Neon Bible

Who's surprised?  My favorite band, my favorite live act, my favorite album of the year.  It all goes together so perfectly.  One of the best albums ever recorded, in my opinion, featuring blistering group vocals and swooping orchestral movements.  A masterpiece.

Key Track: A tie between "Intervention" and "Keep The Car Running"

Let me know what you think!

Friend of the FOX25 Morning News and host of killer aftershows, Paste Magazine has come out with their top 100 albums of 2007. 

What do you guys think?  Personally I think Stars, Radiohead and Arctic Monkeys should all be a bit higher.  It's great to see The National getting the publicity they deserve.

So, lists are bound to generate some sort of controversy, let's hear it!

100. Stars – In Our Bedroom After The War
    99. The Fiery Furnaces - Widow City
    98. Dinosaur Jr. - Beyond
    97. Marissa Nadler - Song III: Bird on the Water
    96. Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare
    95. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - The Good, The Bad & The Queen
    94. Suzanne Vega - Beauty & Crime
    93. Lori McKenna - Unglamorous
    92. Jesse Sykes – Like, Lust & the Open Halls of the Soul
    91. The Fratellis - Costello Music
    90. Devendra Banhart - Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
    89. Anat Cohen - Noir
    88. Do Make Say Think - You, You're A History In Rust
    87. White Rabbits – Fort Nightly
    86. Ruthie Foster - The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster
    85. Menomena - Friend and Foe
    84. Liars - Liars
    83. Deerhunter - Cryptograms
    82. Dan Deacon - Spiderman of the Rings
    81. Art Brut - It's A Bit Complicated
    80. Akron/Family - Love Is Simple
    79. Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity
    78. The New Pornographers - Challengers
    77. Jeremy Fisher - Goodbye Blue Monday
    76. Okkervil River - The Stage Names
    75. Great Lake Swimmers - Ongiara
    74. Beirut - The Flying Club Cup
    73. Warm In The Wake - American Prehistoric
    72. Bettye Lavette - Scene Of The Crime
    71. Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House
    70. Ween - La Cucaracha
    69. Bat For Lashes - Fur & Gold
    68. Office - A Night At The Ritz
    67. St. Vincent - Marry Me
    66. Apples In Stereo - New Magnetic Wonder
    65. Caribou - Andorra
    64. Animal Collective - Strawberry Jam
    63. Explosions In The Sky - All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone
    62. Joseph Arthur - Let's Just Be
    61. Prince - Planet Earth
    60. The Broken West - I Can't Go On I'll Go On
    59. Imperial Teen - The Hair The TV The Baby & The Band
    58. Romantica - America
    57. The Clientele - God Save The Clientele
    56. Kate Nash - Made of Bricks
    55. Sunset Rubdown - Random Spirit Lover
    54. Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew - Spirit If...
    53. Fionn Regan - The End Of History
    52. Thurston Moore - Trees Outside the Academy
    51. The Frames - The Cost
    50. Battles - Mirrored
    49. Carolina Chocolate Drops - Dona Got A Ramblin’ Mind
    48. The Weakerthans - Reunion Tour
    47. Linda Thompson - Versatile Heart
    46. Justice - †
    45. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights
    44. Norah Jones - Not Too Late
    43. The Everybodyfields - Nothing Is Okay
    42. Lifesavas - Gutterfly
    41. Brandi Carlile - The Story
    40. Damien Dempsey - To Hell Or Barbados
    39. The Perishers - Victorious
    38. Olof Arnalds - Vid Og Vid
    37. Eleni Mandell - The Miracle Of Five
    36. Joe Henry - Civilians
    35. Peter Bjorn & John - Writer's Block
    34. Bright Eyes - Cassadaga
    33. PJ Harvey - White Chalk
    32. Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
    31. Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
    30. Björk - Volta
    29. Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
    28. Mary Gauthier - Between Daylight and Dark
    27. Derek Webb - The Ringing Bell
    26. The Shins - Wincing the Night Away
    25. Over The Rhine - The Trumpet Child
    24. Patty Griffin - Children Running Through
    23. Black Lips - Good Bad Not Evil
    22. LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver
    21. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
    20. Blonde Redhead - 23
    19. Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Living with the Living
    18. Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
    17. Josh Ritter - The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter
    16. Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger
    15. Kanye West - Graduation
    14. Loney, Dear - Loney, Noir
    13. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
    12. Avett Brothers - Emotionalism
    11. Radiohead - In Rainbows
    10. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
    09. Band of Horses - Cease to Begin
    08. Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
    07. Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
    06. M.I.A. - Kala
    05. Feist - The Reminder
    04. The White Stripes - Icky Thump
    03. Bruce Springsteen - Magic
    02. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
    01. The National - Boxer

Are you (gasp) sick of hearing the Dropkick Murphy's right about now (or always, for that matter)?

Thankfully, I've created the ultimate playlist for you, while you bask in the glory of the Red Sox 2007 World Series Championship. One song dedicated to every member of the Red Sox. Enjoy:

PITCHERS:

Jonathan Papelbon – “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor” – Arctic Monkeys

Key Lyric: Well I bet that you look good on the dance floor/Dancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984

Not since the updated Electric Slide hit the 1995 Bar Mitzvah circuit has a dance craze swept the nation like Papelbon’s jig. He may be clinically insane, but he’s amazing and we love him for it.

Tim Wakefield – “Float On” – Modest Mouse

Key Lyric: Don't you worry we'll all float on/All float on

With injury problems creeping up on the Senior Sox, it may be time for Tim to Float on into retirement and the Red Sox Hall Of Fame

Eric Gagne – “Everyday I Love You Less And Less” – Kaiser Chiefs

Key Lyric: And everyday I love you less and less /You're turning into something I detest/And everybody says that your a mess/Since everyday I love you less and less

I remember sitting in the Cask n’ Flagon for Eric Gagne’s debut. He looked amazing, save for a bloop hit. Flash forward a few weeks, and hearing the phrase ‘Now Pitching, Eric Gagne’, provokes a bloodcurdling scream. The record setting closer can now only be trusted with an 8+ run lead.

Daisuke Matsuzaka – “Oh My God” – Mark Ronson feat. Lilly Allen (though technically a Kaiser Chiefs song)

Key Lyric: Oh my God I can’t believe it/I’ve been this far away from home

Towards the end of the year it became apparent that Matsuzaka was not the same pitcher he was overseas, mainly because he wasn’t getting the same calls he was used to. As his reputation grows, so will his strike zone.

Jon Lester – “Two Headed Boy” – Neutral Milk Hotel

Key Lyric: Two-headed boy/There is no reason to grieve/The world that you need is wrapped in gold silver sleeves

You never know what you’re gonna get when Lester is on the mount. It’s either a dominating performance by a stud prospect or a grueling 4 inning, 7 walk outing.

Curt Schilling – “The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You're Going to Have to Leave Now, or, 'I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!'" – Sufjan Stevens

Key Lyrics: Ironically, this song is instrumental.

The most wordy song title on my iPod goes to the most verbose member of the Red Sox. Normally I like to take Schill to task, but when it was ‘Put Up or Shut Up’ time in the playoffs, he Put Up. Who knows where he’ll be next year, though.

Josh Beckett –" Rock The House" – Gorillaz

Key Lyric: Taking you to another landscape/Is my mandate

Without Josh Beckett's pitching there’s no way we’d be where we are this year. Case in point: 2006, when Beckett was not the dominant force he was today

Mike Timlin – "Time Is Running Out" – Muse

Key Lyric: Our time is running out

Another veteran pitcher probably heading towards retirement after a great career and great playoffs.

 

Manny Delcarmen – "Welcome Home" – Coheed & Cambria

Key Lyric: Hang on to the glory at my right hand.

Local kid getting to pitch for his hometown team in the World Series? Pretty cool.

Clay Buchholz – "Song For Clay" – Bloc Party

Key Lyric: I am trying to be heroic/In an age of modernity./I am trying to be heroic/because all around me history sings.

Why not?

Javier Lopez – "Who Cares?" – Gnarls Barkley

Key Lyric: Who cares?

I don’t.

Hideki Okajima – "Decent Days And Nights" – The Futureheads

Key Lyric: If you work it out tell me what you find

After giving up a Home Run to the first batter he ever faced, Okie became our second most reliable reliever this season, putting together an amazing season to everyone’s surprise.

OUTFIELDERS

Manny Ramirez – “Carry On My Wayward Son” – Kansas

Key Lyric: Carry on my wayward son/There’ll be peace when you are done.

Manny is so misunderstood by the media that when he broke his silence only to say something completely rational (It’s only a game), he was buried. He should just keep doing what he’s doing (Being a bad, bad man, man) for his remaining years and retire as one of the greatest Left Fielders of all time.

Coco Crisp –" Deadwood" – Dirty Pretty Things

Key Lyric: Don’t give me that face /I know when I should live in disgrace /Not dig up the deadwood/I knew this place was never the place for me

See ya, Coco. At least he boosted his trade value with that catch in Game 7 of the ALCS.

JD Drew – "Sometimes I Don’t Get You" – Yo La Tengo

Key Lyric: Sometimes I don't know you/It's like we never met

J.D. Drew’s swing is gorgeous, only too many times it’s end result is a ground out to 2nd base. Sometimes he’s amazing in the field, other times it’s like watching a deleted scene from Angels In The Outfield (pre Christopher Lloyd’s intervention, natch). I don’t know what to make of this dude.

Eric Hinske – "These Are The Fables" – The New Pornographers

Key Lyric: These are fables on my street

Remember when Eric Hinske was Rookie Of The Year? Me neither. He better stay the hell away from Pedroia and Ellsbury.

Jacoby Ellsbury –" Run Like An Antelope" – Phish

Key Lyric: Set the gearshift to the high gear of your soul/You’ve got to run like an antelope/Out of control

I’ve never seen a member of the Red Sox take two bases on a Wild Pitch with such ease. Jacoby is going to be a breath of fresh air in Boston allowing the Sox to mix in a little small ball with their typical AL play.

Bobby Kielty - "Wake Up" - Arcade Fire

Key Lyric: With my lightning bolts a-glowing/I can see where I am going

Kielty woke up from his bench induced slumber (not including the snooze alarm that is C.C. Sabathia) to hit the World Series winning home run. Bobby "bleeping" Kielty. The finest redhead to don a Red Sox uniform in years

INFIELDERS:

Kevin Youkilis – "Israel’s Son" – Silverchair

Key Lyric: I am Israel’s son/Put your hands in the air

I couldn’t find any songs about horrid facial hair (ZZ Top songs don’t count) so I have to give props to a fellow chosen son. With Adam Stern and Gabe Kapler gone, it’s just me and you, buddy!

Julio Lugo – "Let’s Call It Off" – Peter Bjorn and John

Key Lyric: Did you agree/ we just let it be/And did you agree/ It's a must/Let's call the whole thing off.

Hopefully we’re dunzo with the Julio Lugo experience. I know I’m dunzo with saying dunzo, however.

Dustin Pedroia – "Emerge" – Fischerspooner

Key Lyric: Feels good/Looks good/Sounds good/Looks good

1. I find it hilarious that Dustin, nee Dusty, would listen to horrible techno music

2. I’m part of a 3 person campaign to rename Dustin as Dusty, join the fight

3. Despite the man’s serious Napoleon Complex, he has emerged as one of the team’s superstars.

Mike Lowell – "So Come Back, I Am Waiting" – Okkervil River

Key Lyric: So come back and we'll take them all on.

My gut feeling tells me Mike Lowell will not be back, but I’m hoping he’ll take a 2 year deal with the Sox, and play Gold Glove caliber defense on the way to a few more World Series titles.

Alex Cora - "Fancy Claps" - Wolf Parade
Key Lyric: We'll be home then/We can sing and/We'll be home then

Cora has been relegated to hanging out in the dugout and joining in in celebratory handshakes with happy teammates. Best. Job. Ever.

CATCHERS

Jason Varitek – "Ride Captain Ride" – Blues Image

Key Lyric: Ride captain ride/Upon your mystery ship/On your way to a world/That others might have missed.

He’s getting up there in age, his bat is slowing, but he’s still the brains of our operation.

Doug Mirabelli – "Wake Me Up When September Comes" – Green Day

Key Lyric: Wake me up when September comes

Keeping a pretty bad backup catcher on the roster solely to catch a knuckleballer doesn’t really make sense. Neither does this song selection.

DESIGNATED HITTER:

David Ortiz – "The Man Of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts" – Sufjan Stevens

Key Lyric: Man of Steel, Man of Heart /Turn your ear to my part /There are things you have said/Raise the boat, and raise the dead

Big Papi, our personal smiling Superman single-handedly got us to the promised land in 2004 and the momentum is still carrying in Red Sox Nation.

MANAGER:

Terry Francona –" Everything In It’s Right Place" – Radiohead

Key Lyric: Everything in it’s right place

Tito made all the right moves all year.

Say what you want about Radiohead, either they're amazing or amazingly overrated, but there's one thing you cannot ignore. Radiohead is one of the world's biggest bands.

I happen to think they're also one of the world's best bands (and also guest starred on the best episode of South Park ever), but I am willing to forget that I worship at the altar of Thom Yorke and Co. for the sake of objectivity.

Radiohead has just destroyed the recording industry. Or, taken the biggest shot at the already decrepit state that the recording industry is already in.

Let's look back:

Two days ago, Jonny Greenwood posted this message on the band's usually cryptic blog Dead Air Space:

" Hello everyone.
Well, the new album is finished, and it's coming out in 10 days;
We've called it In Rainbows.
Love from us all.

-Jonny"

I was psyched and shocked (pshochked?). Only Radiohead would nonchalantly announce that their album was done and it was coming out in a week and a half. In this age of promotion does this ever happen? Nope. After picking up my jaw from the floor, I began to get excited. My jaw's realignment with my face was brief, however, as it quickly fell right back to the floor while reading how I could get the album.

"In Rainbows" would be available for download on 10/10/07 for the price of... whatever you feel like paying. When you order the download this pops up at checkout:

Then, when you inevitably think it's a scam and click the Question Mark next to the checkout, this pops up:

---

So, it's up me to pay what I want (I haven't decided how much I want to pay yet) and now it's up to the recording industry to figure out how to deal with this blow dealt by Radiohead.

If you haven't noticed, no one really buys CDs anymore. The industry is flailing. Now, with this stunt, they've officially been put on notice. Radiohead has now said, "It's About The Music," and it's about time.

Look at the other big bands these days. Springsteen inked a deal with Starbucks, U2 released an album with a freaking iPod.

Only Prince had the guts to do anything similar when he put out his newest album for free in a British newspaper. But he was still signed with a record label and you still had to buy the album in the States.

Nobody has had the gall to do it like this. No label, no promotion, no singles, NO PRICE!

For a far more talented take on what I'm trying to say, check out this article in TIME. Here's my favorite quote:

"That's the interesting part of all this," says a producer who works primarily with American rap artists. "Radiohead is the best band in the world; if you can pay whatever you want for music by the best band in the world, why would you pay $13 dollars or $.99 cents for music by somebody less talented? Once you open that door and start giving music away legally, I'm not sure there's any going back."

Touche.

So, how much would you pay for Radiohead's album? Is this a death knell for the industry? Let me know what you think.

"It's pretty sweet that the first time I come to Austin City Limits I get to go for free AND play."

I'd say it's hard to disagree with Josh Campbell's sentiment. The bassist for Homer Hiccolm & the Rocketboys is reflecting on just having played an early afternoon slot at the 2007 Austin City Limits Music Festival. A stellar set and one that wouldn't have existed if it weren't for Dell's The Sound & The Jury competition.

Sound & The Jury took the ages old Battle Of The Bands concept and brought it into the blogosphere, with more than 600 bands from around the world uploading their music for everyone to hear and, ultimately, vote on. As Dell's David Clifton told me, "At the end, the cream rises to the top," and there floating on top of the crop is Homer Hiccolm and the Rocketboys.

"Here's this band from Albilene, Texas," Clifton said "And now they're playing ACL Fest in front of thousands of people."

"It's pretty overwhelming," according to keyboardist Justin Wiseman "Pretty phenomenal, really."

"I've seen so many awesome bands on this (Dell) stage in the past 3 or 4 years I've been going," says guitarist Mitchell Holt "It's just weird to play almost."

Holt isn't exaggerating either, as I've probably been in the same crowd as he, watching Sam Roberts Band, Ghostland Obervatory and the Benevento-Russo Duo in year's past. In fact, just a few hours after the Rocketboys cleared their gear, the Dell Stage was graced by major acts like Peter, Bjorn and John, M.I.A. and The Gotan Project. It also featured sets from Common and The Dececmberists.

The Dell Stage seems more like a launching pad to stardom than a stage.

The Texan 6 piece band had me hooked from note one on Wednesday night. The contest's final 5 bands took the stage at Austin's legendary Antone's. The first finalists, Blue Flashing Light, seemed more intent on mugging for the cameras than playing anything listenable and I could tell I wasn't the only one in the nearly sold out crowd who was worrying about the rest of the night. Enter the Rocketboys to save the day. Their songs feature intricately layered melodies topped coupled with powerful vocals from Brandon Kinder. It all makes for some of the best music I heard all weekend and their tune "Heartbeat" was constantly blasting from our hotel room post-Fest. After their Antone's set, my friends and I left. Partly because of jetlag, but mostly because we knew they would win and we were right.

That night kicked off a whirlwind few days for the Rocketboys (at my count, five shows in four days including multitudes of press obligations) and it never would have happened if it weren't for their friend Jeff. "He's really music savvy and told us we should enter this (Sound & The Jury) contest. He thought we could win", Holt told me.

Holt, who has Boston ties, says the band wasn't as initially confident as their friend but were grateful for his motivation. "I texted him after we won and told him I felt like he should be getting one of these laptops (in addition to playing the fest, Dell also hooked up their winners with laptops)."

If Jeff was plied with free drinks for life from the band I wouldn't be surprised, as all of the guys seem equal parts grateful and gracious at the position they were thrust into. Case in point: On Thursday morning my friends and I stumbled upon Kinder and Wiseman on 6th Street. We introduced ourselves and congratulated them on their Antone's show and their win at no point mentioning I was covering ACL Fest. Flash forward to immediately after their set at ACL. Kinder happened upon me back stage and said, "Hey, Jeff right? How are your friends Dave and Dave?"

Either Kinder has some sort of Rain Main meets Cam Jansen-esque photographic memory OR he's just a good dude in a great band. I'm leaning towards the latter and trust me, it won't be long before you have the names of Homer Hiccolm & The Rocketboys ingrained into your memory.

Homer Hiccolm & the Rocketboys are:

Josh Campbell (bass)
Philip Ellis (drums)
Mitchell Holt (guitar, vocals)
Brandon Kinder (vocals, guitar, piano)
Daniel Wheeler (guitar, aux)
Justin Wiseman (keys)

Since Dazed and Confused is in my top 5 favorite movies, it was filmed in Austin and I can't go more than 10 minutes without referencing it, I'm reviewing the last day D&C style.

 

 The Randall "Pink" Floyd Award For Overall Excellence:  Bloc Party, who once again dominated.  Kele Okereke is, in my opinion, one of the best frontmen around.  Most everything I could say about them I've already said, but there's this:  I was not expecting them to be as high on my list as they were, but they proved me wrong.  We were way up close and at one point Kele asked everyone in the back to scream and from seemingly miles away us in the front heard a roar.  It was a wild moment.  We also met a slew of great people in our cattle call-esque wait for them to come on. This arm ready to throw about 3,000 yards?

The Fred O'Bannion Award For Worst Performance By A Senior: Bob Dylan.  We all crossed 'Seeing Bob Dylan' off of our life lists which was all well and good, but we thought we might have to cross off 'Seeing Bob Dylan die' off too, because that's what it sounded like.  We left early as did THOUSANDS of people (I've never seen the streets so crowded and hour before the Fest ended), got dinner and watched the Patriots game.  Best decision I've ever made.

The Mitch Kramer Award For Best Performance By A Freshman: The National.  They were awesome and I highly recommend you check them out when they come around.  'Fake Empire' is one of the greatest songs you'll hear all year.  Mitchy? Mitchy Mitchy Mitchy.  We're coming for you, kid.

The Carl Burnett Award For Most Disappointing Performance By Someone You Usually Like: Ben Kweller.  Last year, Kweller had a massive nosebleed in the middle of his set and had to walk off before he died.  His much hyped 'return' was totally disappointing.  Instead of his 5 piece it was a really hollow sounding 3 piece, he didn't play too much old stuff and it generally didn't rock as much as it should.  Technically, he was great as usual (solo during 'Red Eye" was great), but it just lacked a lot.

Also, the crowd was the youngest I've ever seen.  This conversation actually ensued:

Dave S: Half of these kids weren't alive the first time I saw Ben Kweller

Me: They're just all here because they were bummed he cancelled his Austin Kiddie Limits slot (he did bail on his 15 minute set on the kid's stage)

Dave C: I feel like today's fest is brought to us by the Disney Channel.  Up next on the AMD Stage, Kim Possible!

Me: With Hannah Montana headlining.  Hey, doesn't Miley Cyrus sound like a disease?

Dave C: Is that Hannah Montana's real name?

Me: Yes

Dave C: Why do you know that

Me: Uh.... Hey look the band's on!

 

The Ron Slater Award For Performance Most Probably Enhanced By Drugs: Ghostland Observatory.  This techno/trance duo closed down one side of the park on Sunday night and brought the house down with their danceable beats, trippy light show and general weirdness.  We saw them last year at about 2 in the afternoon on a tiny stage and thought, "Wow, they're good."  One year later they have a prime slot.  You'll definitely hear about them soon.
 

 The Cynthia Dunn Award For Best Performance By A Redhead:  Regina Spektor.  We waded through the post Bloc Party/Food area crowds and finally descended upon Regina Spektor, playing for one of the biggest crowds.  Another nearby band (Rose Hill Drive) was drowning her out a bit, but we managed to hear "That Time" and "Fidelity" amongst a few others.  I'm incredibly psyched for her Boston show.

 

The David Wooderson Award For Best/Coolest Performance By An Established Act: My Morning Jacket.  Man, they rock and they came out in full on Wooderson chill-out vibe with a Hawaiian backdrop, hula girls and I'm pretty sure that Jim James stole Vince Neil's hair for the event.  'Off The Record' was the highlight for me, including the epic solo.  They were also joined by professional whistler/rock star Andrew Bird for a song.

 

 Tune in tomorrow for some more musings, including myself and the two Dave's picks for best acts, most disappointing, best moment, Ms. Congenality, and favorite fan related thing!

I definitely titled this post after a Beatles' song because I knew at least Bob Ward would read it.

With apologies to Bob, and whoever else is reading, this post will be short and unfulfilling, much like every episode of Entourage. 

 Saturday's fest was insane per usual.  With the White Stripes bowing out (if you think your acute anxiety is bad Meg, I'm sure cancelling a major festival is sure to help), the headliners were split between Muse and Arcade Fire.  A King Solomon-ian split for many music fans, including myself.  But everyone got to see the true headliner: the sun.

Man, it was hot out yesterday.  If the Arcade Fire blew my face off last night, the sun melted it. 

Because we're about to head out to the last day in a minute, here are some quick hit thoughts:
 

Really enjoyed Dax Riggs, formerly of Deadboy & the Elephantmen.  (He's already the most famous Dax I've ever encountered, with Dax Sheppard being #476.)

In order to get really really close to Arctic Monkeys and ridiculously close for Arcade Fire, I had to endure Blue October.  Never have I left a show to go buy earplugs.... until yesterday.

I think my right foot is broken. 

Pedi-cabs are the way to travel.

I ran into Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys backstage.  He is a wee, wee boy. 

Muse is so awesome, and so loud. I was bummed to only be able to catch one song.

Neighborhood #3 (Power Out) -> Rebellion (Lies) is still the best segue ever.

Caught a PASTE Mag. afterparty again, this time it was Grace Potter & The Nocturnals.  They rocked incredibly hard and I was blown away.  Bonus for the fact that it was on a stage no larger than the anchor desk and  I was 2 feet away.  Her guitarist shreds like nobody's business.  One of our bloggers did a review/interview that says it all so read that.

OK that's it. Ben Kweller, Bloc Party, My Morning Jacket, Decemberists and Bob Dylan tonight, presumably followed by heat stroke and packing for my flight home tomorrow.

Since the heat has been sucking out my creative juices, and I've been re-reading my Randolph High School Class Of 2000 Yearbook, wondering how I didn't nab Best Personality, I've decided to blog out Day 1 Best/Worst style.

Here we go:

Best Set: It was tough race as M.I.A. and Peter, Bjorn and John all put on amazing sets, but the best had to be Kaiser Chiefs. They put on one of the most energetic sets of the day, bringing the sweaty crowd to a frenzy with their 'Na Na Na' and clap heavy lyrics. They were here before and haven't lost a step. Actually, they almost did:

Worst Decision By A Rock Star To Pull Off A Rock Star Move: Kaiser Chief's Ricky Wilson climbing up at least 25 feet on the stage's side rigging. Instead of climbing all the way down, he decided to jump most of it, seriously damaging his leg. He limped through the rest of the set (this was during the 3rd song of the set "I Predict A Riot" and it was as totally awesome as it sounds.)

Best Performance By A Sri Lankan Emigre With Possible Familial Ties To Terrorism: M.I.A. rocked the house. Backed by only a DJ and a backup singer/dancer (who looked like an extra from "Coming To America") her pulsating rhymes and beats got the Austin crowd rocking. It's the first rap act I've ever seen at ACL and I'm glad I did.

Best Decision To Stay Where We Were Based On Crowd/Vantage Point: Note the view for M.I.A. Note the view for LCD Soundsystem. They were playing at the same time and I was bummed to miss LCD, but can you blame me?

LCD:

Best Recovery After Realizing They Had Way More Time: While Peter, Bjorn and John were jamming their, presumably, last song "Up Against The Wall", I saw Bjorn go over to the John and mouth out "We still have 15 more minutes!" An epic jam ensued, including multiple crowd dives and even a bongo solo by their creepy sound guy.

Best Banter: Jesse Malin who quipped, "OK, this is our last song, then we're gonna go trip out at the LCD Soundsystem set, do some ecstasy and start a fire with Joe Strummer."

Worst Incident Involving Fire (and maybe Joe Strummer and Jesse Malin): A massive plume of jet black smoke starting pouring from a peripheral parking area. It turns out a propane tank blew up near a vendor trailer. It was horrific at first, with everyone's first thoughts leaning towards terrorism. Not fun.

Best Performance By A Band With The Worst Name: Homer Hiccolm And The Rocketboys. The Sound & The Jury Winners Performed At the Dell Stage to a pretty big crowd. I got a chance to sit down with the guys and interview them and that will be posted soon. They're all extremely awesome and very grateful to be there.

Worst Performance By A Team With So Many Fans In Texas: The Red Sox and their bullpen. Zilker Park is teeming with Red Sox fans (and we all say "Hi" and seem so happy to see them, even though in Boston we would probably hate eachother) who were all let down by yesterday's performance.

Best Reason Not To Mess With Texas: The heat. It was easily pushing high 90's for the better part of the day. But when everyone's sweaty, no one is. Get it?

Best PASTE Magazine Afterparty: We headed to Maggie Mae's on 6th Street and caught the last few moments of Manchester Orchestra, then we're treated to an AWESOME, intimate performance from Ben Lee whose new album is "dropping" on Tuesday. The man is great, and hilarious.

Best Banter Part Deux: "This is a song about my hero Jay-Z." - Ben Lee

That's it for now, off to swim in the sunblock and get ready for today!

 

 

 

Tomorrow begins the madness.

Tens of thousands will descend upon lush green Zilker Park only to turn it into a dusty musical utopia.  My bag is packed, and I'm ready to go (lie).  But before that, why not recap an epic day that was.

Earlier in the day we took a 6 hour trek through the city, sometimes in not the nicest of areas.  We say it was for sightseeing, but the only real sight we wanted to see was a SONIC.  I don't  know why or where this obsession came from, and now I understand how embarrassing  it is. 

After our initial search appeared to be fruitless, we decided to call a cab.  "To the nearest SONIC, please", we said.  "Does it have to be a SONIC?", our cabbie replied.  "Yes. Yes it does."

So, off we were, to a SONIC and man it was a beautiful sight.  I was so excited to see it, I smashed my big toe against a curb, splitting my toenail and causing it to gush blood.  Limping and bloody, we made it to the place to order, and came away with what we desired.  It was exactly like Lord Of The Rings, but not.  Got it?

 

 Prior to this, we were invited to a fabulous party put on by BMI.  They were celebrating the 1 millionth radio play of Stevie Ray Vaughn's "Crossfire". In addition to the awards ceremony and the magnificent spread, were two performances.  First up Adam Hood, an enjoyable singer songwriter, not really my style, but I liked it.  Think a Southern James Blunt who doesn't write terrible songs.  In all seriousness, Adam Hood was great and I recommend him.

I REALLY recommend the next act, straight outta Australia, and discretely drinking red wine next to us before she got called up to rock, Kara Grainger.  She has a fantastic alto/smokey voice that's been getting alot of comparison to Bonnie Raitt, and man, she can play guitar, too.  She was joined by her band (drums, keys, bass), but you could tell who the showstopper was.  Tune in for more from Ms. Grainger in the upcoming days, and check out her stuff her website.

 

We also got to see another performance (albeit abbreviated) by the aforementioned Sound And Jury Winners, Homer Hiccolm and the Rocketboys.  I'm now going to refer to them as Double H and the R's.  I can't remember their name for the life of me and it's sad.  After their set someone asked who they were and it took me 5 full minutes to remember their name.  

 

I'll bring it up to them, I've run into them at least 15 times already (they are very nice dudes) and they're going to start thinking I'm their Mel, and we wouldn't want that.

 OK, off to bed.  Tomorrow includes: Peter Bjorn and John, LCD Soundsystem, Spoon and Bjork!

 Should be awesome!

 

 

When I told people I was planning on standing on a bridge and watching 80,000 bats fly away at once I got two reactions:

1) That's disgusting.

2) That's awesome.

Naturally, the people who gave the first answer were among the more rational people in my life, and the people who answered the second way are my idiot friends/travel mates/myself.

So, guess what I did last night?

We gathered at about 7:15p.m along the Congress Avenue bridge (nicknamed "The Bat Bridge") and waited. And waited. And waited. By 8:15 we were getting restless, as were the countless amounts of people also waiting (actually, it wasn't countless. Probably about 100. Entirely countable.)

Then, the bats started coming in a frenzy. Swooping like crazy up and around the bridge. It was actually a bit more freaky than awesome, but definitely a worthwhile experience. I'd say it's a once in a lifetime event but you can't really predict mass bat related events.

Following that we headed to Antone's for the Sound And The Jury Contest Battle of the Bands presented by Dell. The contest was to determine the winner of a 600 band contest, the prize being a slot on the ACL Fest stage on Friday.

What a great event. Admittedly, I was only able to make it for 2 of the 5 bands vying for the gig (remember that whole staying up for 24+ hours?). Antone's is a really cool converted warehouse (located in the Warehouse district, natch) and it was packed!

The first band 'Blue Flashing Light' was the only non Texan outfit on the bill (from Athens, GA). They were high energy, but ultimately disappointing. They reminded me of a Korg organ on a pogo stick, and the melodic moments were few and far between. The line of the night came from my buddy Dave C who noted the band had their own 'Mel' from Flight Of The Conchords. Eventually, watching her enthused flailing became more fun than watching the band.

The next band was GREAT. They have an absolutely horrendous name, but man did they rock, and I'm told that 'Homer Hiccolm & The Rocketboys' won the whole contest last night. I will definitely be checking them out tomorrow morning.

For more on all of the Sound And The Jury finalists click here and be sure and listen to 'Hearbeat' by HH& The Rocketboys.

With that, I'm off to finish off our Grail-esque quest to find a Sonic (The Knights Of The Embassy Suites managed to walk about 6 miles today without finding one), then checking out Pattersoon Hood and Kara Grainger, and visiting our friends at PASTE Magazine.

More on that soon. And one note: I have a ton of awesome pictures, but uploading is becoming an issue. Stay tuned. I promise epicness

I hate flying, I really do. But, I find driving days upon days to Texas and then back even less appealing, so here I am.

If you’re afraid of flying, a good way to ease your fears is to take the Logan Express. Nothing gets you more prepped for several hours of shakiness inside a small cabin with recycled air than taking the Logan Express through increasingly dangerous tunnels, and way-too-small streets. That’s what I did. At 3:45 AM. On no sleep. Aside from the fact that I kept nearly getting off at the wrong airline, I’m doing alright for an all nighter.

I better get some sleep on this plane or I will be a real joy to deal with (I won’t, and I will be).

I was forced to check my bags, which stinks. I’m convinced they will be lost. I will be rocking Austin City Limits in whatever they sell at a combination of my hotel and Target. Thankfully, the second Dave, and third part of my ACL travel group is arriving at Austin an hour or so after me, so I’ll have that whole hour to neurotically pace around the luggage carousel waiting for my bag to appear.

To complicate matters, Logan’s touted “Free WiFi” is total B.S. It is free to log onto the Logan WiFi website and buy internet access and that’s about it. I’m writing this installment of my travel blog on Microsoft Word and I won’t be able to update it live like I wanted.

So, in hours from now (it’s 5:01 AM on Wednesday), read this first part, then wait the according amount of hours and read what follows. Or don’t. I’m too tired to be picky.

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Let's skip ahead about 29 hours.

It's nearing noon on Thursday, and I'm here in lovely Austin, Texas.

To answer some questions: Yes, my flight was fine. No, I didn't lose my luggage. No, I didn't sleep.

You read that right, I was awake from about 9A.M on Tuesday until about 12:30A.M on Thursday. Part of that was over tiredness, part of it, vacation high.

Just a quick note for now, in a few I'll post highlights from last night which includes a Battle Of The Bands, and oh yes, Bats!

A word to the wise: Try not to go on vacation to a place that rhymes with where you currently live.

Unless you live in a town called Dorlando, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but believe me. After explaining to people from Boston that you're going to Austin, then getting to Austin and telling people you just flew in from Boston, you're in need of another vacation already. So, after weeks of feeling like Tom Green in "Road Trip" I'm finally gearing up to fly to Austin for the 6th annual Austin City Limits Music Festival.

I've been all over the world and Austin remains one of my favorite cities. For whatever reason our preconception of anything Texas is oil rigs, hicks and tumbleweeds, but that can't be further from the truth. Austin is billed as the 'Live Music Capital Of The World', it's music scene every bit as hip as Brooklyn and its residents, possibly the nicest people on the planet.  All the city's positives come together as they take great pride in hosting ACL Fest.

This will be my third year heading to the Festival, once again heading there with my two friends Dave and Dave (I have an inordinate amount of friends named David, including my brother. My cell phone's contact list looks like the Old Testament.)  We have some big plans ahead.

 The Impending Highlights:

The Music! - Have you looked at the lineup?  Arcade Fire, Bjork, Muse, Bob Dylan, My Morning Jacket, Arctic Monkeys, Bloc Party. It's endless.  Plus we're planning on seeing Art Brut, Grizzly Bear and some mystery acts at aftershows around town.

The Night Life:  You know a city has a good scene when they host a Real World there and there are more than 3 incarcerations over the course of the season.  Austin is home to the University Of Texas, whose entire student body seems to collectively appear on Sixth Street at night.  Sixth Street is the main drag of bars, clubs and restaurants, oozing with live music and revelry.  Think Bourbon Street minus the pools of vomit lining the streets.

The Food: Before I went to Texas my idea of BBQ and Mexican food was my backyard grill and Taco Bell.  Oh man was I wrong.  All I'm going to say is Stubb's and Chuy's and I'm told they're not even the best in town.

The Interviews:  I'm set to bring you some special treats, including thoughts from some of the country's most influential music bloggers and up-and-comers in the music scene. 

The Bats: There happens to be 80,000 bats that live under a bridge near my hotel. Every night they fly out at the same time.  It's apparently a spectacle to behold and believe me, we'll be getting our West/Keaton/Kilmer/Clooney/Bale on. 

 The Quest:  There's no way we're trekking all this way without going to a Sonic. Despite the fact that the average Northerners obsession with Sonic probably outweighs the actual food served there, it will be done, and it will be photographed.

That's all for now.  Check back in a bit for a stellar update on my hectic day of travel.