2008 : The Year Of The Rat

February 8, 2008 by · 1 Comment
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Starting the Chinese new year today for “The Year Of The Rat”
Those born in the “Year of the Rat” are clever, ambitious, creative, hard-working, fastidious, charming and sociable, but can be a bit stingy when it comes to sharing their wealth or possessions. [SOURCE]

MP3 : The Slip – Even Rats
Buy Eisenhower

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From The Mailbag : Somme, Awesome Color, and more

February 4, 2007 by · Leave a Comment
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Somme

The two piece band has already become almost cliche in today’s indie rock scene. Well, The Somme are not just another White Stripes or Black Keys wannabe peddling rough and raunchy blues based tunes. They go for a more epic wall of sonics in their purely instrumental songs. There’s enough intricacy going on that you’ll forget you’re just listening to one guitar and drums.

In their own words from their myspace:

THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME

The 1916 Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of the First World War. With more than one million casualties it was also one of the bloodiest battles in human history.

2007. Nearly half a decade has passed now since the mighty duo Somme first emerged from a
Chicago basement, endlessly cultivating, refining and rebuilding the ferocious guitar/drum offensive that’s since become their signature sound. Their debut EP, Weight, recorded in one day at Steve Albini’s legendary Electrical Audio Studios with revered engineer Greg Norman (High on Fire, Pelican, Mclusky, Magnolia Electric Co.), is a massive battle cry, at once reflecting the bloodsoaked triumphs of the allied forces and the thousands floating dead in the crimson River Somme on the day that remains, 87 years later, the British Army’s goriest onslaught in history.

Somme is guitarist Daniel Medina, a 20 year-old chemical worker who spends his afternoons in a gas mask at a nearby plant hauling hazardous and contaminated materials, and drummer Kenny Preski whose mammoth drum sound is the explosive foundation and structural framework of
Somme’s epic colossus.

Laid to tape in January 2007, with Norman at the decks, Weight is the first of a two-part series of sister recordings, the second of which is planned for release later this year. Due to the band’s intense working dynamic, it was essential that their music be captured live to analog equipment. The result is a spectacularly ambitious sonic marvel, owing as much to key influences Spacemen 3, Jesus and Mary Chain, and Slow Riot-era Godspeed You Black Emperor as to the spectres of that brutal 1916 holocaust.

Upcoming Shows
March 4 2007 8:00P The Canopy Club Urbana, IL

MP3: Somme – Massless
MP3: Somme – Forge

[MYSPACE]

Awesome Color
Thanks to Adam for the tip-off on these guys. Awesome Color is a New York City via Ann Arbor, MI trio that blends the raw power of Iggy and The Stooges with Goo-era Sonic Youth. It’s pretty obvious why Thurston Moore signed them to his Ecstatic Peace label and partly produced their self titled debut disc.
Check out this video for the cooking garage rocker Free Man.

Awesome Color is:

Derek Stanton – Guitar, Vocals
Michael Troutman – Bass
Allison Busch – Drums

Upcoming Shows
02/11/2007 09:00 PM – BAR New Haven, CT w/ Calla
02/12/2007 08:00 PM – Glasslands Brooklyn, New York w/ Demons and Religious Knives
02/14/2007 08:00 PM – Academy of Music Northampton, Massachusetts W/ Sonic Youth and Wooden Wand
[BUY IT] [iTUNES] [WEBSITE] [MYSPACE] [HYPE]

Some other things you’ll want to check out this week:

The Slip is making their live performance debut on network television this coming Monday on NBC’s Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
[BUY IT] [iTUNES] [WEBSITE] [MYSPACE] [HYPE]

At the Blue Bar and Rack Room in Nashville, Me and the Machine Records is holding its very first album release party. Josh Preston, Nick Shelton and Brad Sweitzer will each perform. And it’s FREE so get on down there.

Me and the Machine Records First Album Release Party
Tuesday February, 6 2007 6pm Blue Bar and Rack Room 1911 Broadway, Nashville, Tennessee
[BUY IT] [WEBSITE] [MYSPACE]

Bag Of Songs favorite the lovely and talented Chelsea Elizabeth Taube plays
Tuesday February, 6 2007 at The Modern Exchange Southgate, Michigan
[MYSPACE]

For the East Coasters, another Bag Of Songs favorite The Shrinking Islands also play their smart jangly pop this week
Tuesday February, 6 2007 at Bullfinch Yacht Club w/ Tom Thumb & The Latter Day Saints Boston, Massachusetts
[BUY IT] [iTUNES] [WEBSITE] [MYSPACE]

The Swimmers start the first night of their every Wednesday in February residency at The Khyber in Philadelphia. It’s still early in the year but I’m going to make a bold statement and say their new record Fighting Trees is pretty much a shoo-in to make many best of 2007 lists at the end of the year. Check out a few songs on their myspace or stream the whole thing at their website.
[WEBSITE] [MYSPACE] [HYPE]

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LIVE : 12.01.06 The Slip at The Electric Factory

December 2, 2006 by · Leave a Comment
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The Slip have an excellent new disc out entitled Eisenhower (read about it here) and their live show is every bit as engaging if not more so. They are currently on tour with My Morning Jacket and played a special noon show for WXPN today prior to their opening set for MMJ in the evening at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia. Here’s a few of my pictures from the show.

Friday December 1st 2006
The Slip at The Electric Factory Philadelphia PA
WXPN Friday at Noon Concert Series

Setlist:
If One of Us Should Fall
Airplane/Primitive
Even Rats
Children of December
The Original Blue Air
Paper Birds

Listen to the archived live stream of the show on NPR.org here
Note : The sound on the stream is a bit sketchy for the first minute or so but gets much better.




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Give ‘Em The Slip

November 8, 2006 by · Leave a Comment
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Okay, while everyone ws out voting and changing the world yesterday, The Slip was busy and kicking off a North American fall tour and inaugurating their own Eisenhower . A masterful blend of beatlesque pop songs and indie rock psychedelia, think Death Cab for Cutie meets Pink Floyd and you’ll start to get the idea. But don’t just take my word for it give it a listen.

MP3: The Slip – Mothwing Bite
MP3: The Slip – Even Rats

The Slip On Myspace http://www.myspace.com/theslipmusic
Official Website http://www.theslip.com/

Jim James of My Morning Jacket fell in love with their fresh exciting, sound and they will be opening a number of MMJ’s fall shows

The Slip Tour Dates

NOVEMBER
07 – Seattle, WA – Crocodile Café #
09 – Portland, OR – Dante’s #
10 – Ashland, OR – The Mobius #
11 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent #
12 – Los Angeles, CA – Knitting Factory #
15 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre #
16 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theatre #
17 – Ft. Collins, CO – Aggie Theatre #
18 – Omaha, NE – Sokol Underground # ^
20 – Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall #
21 – Madison, WI – Cafe Montmartre # ^
22 – Minneapolis, MN – First Ave & 7th Street Entry # ^
24 – Chicago, IL – Riviera Theatre * !
25 – Indianapolis, IN – Clowes Memorial Hall *
27 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club *
28 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club *
29 – Harrisburg, PA – Appalachian Brewing Company
30 – New York, NY – Roseland Ballroom *

DECEMBER
01 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory * $
02 – Boston, MA – Avalon Ballroom *
04 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues *
05 – Champaign, IL – Univ. of Illinois *
07 – Guelph, ON – Club Vinyl # % +
08 – Hamilton, ON – Pepperjack’s # % +
09 – Toronto, ON – El Mocamo (Downstairs) %
14 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground #
15 – Ottawa, ON – Barrymore’s # +
16 – Montreal, QC – TBA % +

* Opening for My Morning Jacket
# with The Lovely Feathers
^ with Bon Savants
+ with Land of Talk
% with Kill The Lights
! with Catfish Haven
$ with Benevento/Russo Duo

A special bonus studio track (Lonely Boy) available along with the album on iTunes.

BUY IT : the slip itunes (bonus track)

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