My former writing outlet of three years, SFist, snarked about my current roommate, Jeff Klein, calling him self-absorbed. :[
Oh the times, they have a-changed.
My former writing outlet of three years, SFist, snarked about my current roommate, Jeff Klein, calling him self-absorbed. :[
Oh the times, they have a-changed.
I have an extra ticket to see the mesmerizing and magical Miss Newsom with the Austin Symphony Orchestra at Riverbend Centre tomorrow night. If you or someone you know wants it, send me a message.
I'm going to see Fair To Midland at Stubb's outdoor stage tonight (after dinner with the Case family at East Side Cafe, yummm).
FTM, who I've written about several times before, play on my love for creative singers with a wide vocal range, interesting instrumentation, art-rawk and general over-the-top-ness. (See: Tool, Mars Volta, Faith No More.)
Watch the video for "Dance of the Manatee"*:
* That growly nonsense he does before the bridge? He doesn't do much more of that on the rest of the record.
If only I could be in four places at once.
There are four amazing music festivals happening this weekend:
Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin, Texas: It's only in its third year but it offers a high-quality range of huge headliners, smaller bands and local acts.
Monolith Music Festival near Denver, Colorado: Two days and two nights in the Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
Treasure Island Festival on Treasure Island near San Francisco: Brought to us by the fine folks at Noise Pop and Another Planet, Saturday features electronica and hip hop and Sunday features a whole bunch of indie rock.
End of the Road Festival near Salisbury in the UK: This is the one I most wish I could go to, especially since a few of my friends are playing. More than the sum of its parts, it's an awesome lineup of true artists and independents.
Three of the festivals will feature a set by Spoon (I hope they're not burned out by the time they get to Treasure Island) and a couple are even trying to keep it green.
Alas, I'll only be able to go to the Treasure Island Festival on Sunday. Let me know if you'll be there too.
You know that segment on Letterman where they pull the curtains back, show Paul and Dave some sort of object or action, and then they answer the question: "Is this anything?" I ask myself that question from time to time, especially when it comes to music.
.tiff's post reminded me of what's going on at Mezzanine tonight, which includes a screening of Daft Punk's Electroma and a performance by Riot in Belgium (who .tiff recommends). But the subject of this post is another performance on tonight's bill, Dandi Wind, featuring the vocal stylings of Ms. Dandilion Wind Opaine. In my SFist column last week I described her as (pardon the use of the royal "we"):
See what I'm talking about here:a truly unique musician and performing artist. Imagine electro-art-punk delivered by a leotard-clad woman whose moves are equal parts Mick Jagger and Jazzercise. (We'll spare you from our impulse to coin the term Jagger-cise. Or will we?)
My friend and frequent character in this blog Jeff Klein has a nice writeup on Spin.com today.
Go there to listen to the track "Sleepwalking" from his forthcoming digitally-released EP I Sing The Body Electric.
Jeff's doing a residency at the Living Room in NYC this month, so go see him and tell him I sent you.
I missed the Bat For Lashes show Monday night because I was sick, but nothing's stopping me from seeing Hall & Oates tonight. My +1 is already spoken for, so you're out of touch luck.
And now I'll post this video for the fourth time, because it's just that good.
I'm on the list +1 for tonight's all-acoustic Eisley show at Swedish American Hall, and I still haven't found someone to go with me. It shouldn't be this hard to take someone to a free show.
Eisley are a quintet of three sisters and a brother, plus another guy, all in their early 20's and hailing from Tyler, Texas, a small town I know too well. I wrote a lot about their major label debut Room Noises (one of my Top 12 of 2005) and I can't wait to hear their new CD Combinations (out August 14th). What I've heard from their MySpace page so far is the ethereal harmonies and pop melodies we expect (think The Sundays, Sixpence None The Richer) with even more weirdness added in, no doubt developed during their extensive touring over the last few years.
Watch the video for their new single "Invasion". (I'd put it in the post, but Warner Bros. has inexplicably turned off embedding for the video. Why do people do that?)
Or just watch this old video for "Marvelous Things".
The free tickets fairy just granted me a pair to see Ryan Adams at Herbst Theatre on Monday the 23rd. Hooray! You can also catch him in Berkeley on the 24th at the Berkeley Community Theatre. I love a good seated show in a nice, civilized setting. And I'm really liking his new album - the music and the title.