Let's see how fast I can crank through this one. Compulsive spellcheckers, enjoy...


In case you hadn't heard 'em, I snagged the audio from a these two recent live television appearances. Great performances, all...

Mp3: Explosions In The Sky - "Welcome, Ghosts" (live on Conan O'Brien)

Mp3: Arcade Fire - "Intervention" (live on SNL)

Mp3: Arcade Fire - "Keep the Car Running" (live on SNL)

Whitney over at Pop Candy was in the Saturday Night Live audience and wrote up her experience. Y'know, Win Butler's guitar-smashing didn't bother me a bit, but I am just glad he didn't start kicking things with his gigantic feet. Now that would have been some serious destruction.

Starting this morning, you can stream the entirety of Arcade Fire's slightly-hyped new album, "Neon Bible", thanks to NME...

Album Stream: Arcade Fire - "Neon Bible"

You'll have to register for an NME account, but that's a small price to pay. I've been holding off listening to any leaked tracks (aside from the live SNL cuts, of course) so I could get the full-on experience, and let's just say I 'm glad I did.

Tickets for Arcade Fire's only Boston date, on May 10th at the Orpheum, went on sale Friday and promptly sold out, no surprise there. My fast-clickin' fingers treated me well. The Craigslist madness has already begun, drowning out the pleas for extra tix to next month's long-since-sold-out Explosions in the Sky show. I swear, if I lacked a music-fan's conscience, I could make a killing on the Craigslist ticket speculation market.


Out tomorrow is "Back Numbers", the second full-lengther from former Luna and Galaxie 500 frontman Dean Wareham and his musical companion Britta Phillips. I've spent a lot of time with it over the past few weeks, and while I sometimes miss the full-band-feel of Luna, it's a welcome addition to the Dean-involved discography. Here's the second track from the disc, courtesy of Rounder Records imprint Zoe...

Mp3: Dean & Britta - "Words You Used To Say"

Don't forget that Dean & Britta are playing at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston on Friday, March 9th. Tickets are still available here.
While the headlines exclaimed that "Sonic Youth, Slint to play classic albums" as part of this year's "Don't Look Back" concert series, I was far more excited by the fact that the House of Love will be performing the entirety of their 1988 self-titled debut. Yeah, wrong continent, but I can still hope a recording gets out there, either officially or through some industrious taper. Even better, let's see the band make its way to American shores. Can someone get on that for me?


So I've been waiting patiently for this show to get scheduled, and it finally appeared: Kristin Hersh returns to the Boston area in support of her fantastic new disc, "Learn To Sing Like A Star" on Saturday, April 21st. She's hitting the Regent Theater in Arlington, and it won't be your run-of-the-mill solo acoustic performance... this time around not only will she have a full band, but string accompaniment as well (who I can only assume will be the brilliant McCarricks). As a sucker for string work, and especially their brand of it, I couldn't be more excited. Tickets go on sale this Saturday, March 3rd, through Ticket#$!@*, the Middle East box office, and hopefully, Virtuous.

Kristin recently played three songs from the new album ("In Shock", "Winter", and "Under The Gun") on WXPN's World Cafe, and you can listen to them at NPR's website right here.


Also just announced: A Boston-area stop for the Ben Gibbard (DCFC) / David Bazan (PTL) solo troubadour tour. The two are teaming up for dates this Spring, and they'll be hitting our Somerville Theater on the 7th of May with Johnathan Rice. Tickets go on sale this Friday morning, March 2nd, at 10am right here.


The official site for the Poster Children has received a spiffy redesign thanks to singer/guitarist Rick's web skillz, and the band has just started a feature called the "Single of the Moment" through their 12 Inch Records imprint. I'll let Rick's words explain...

"There's a lot of nattering about 'The Future of Music' but what people are really talking about is 'The Future of the Music Business', and as a music fan and music maker I don't really care how or if Sony, Time Warner, Rupert Murdoch or Apple will be able to make millions of dollars off of other people's creativity in the next few years- I'm interested in hearing the next song or band that will make my day. The future of music is what it has always been: the future of music is musicians.

Most of the sounds I've loved over the past 20+ years have required some extra effort to find- commercial radio, chain stores and major labels rarely provided anything of interest; it was word of mouth channeled through friends, fanzines, college radio, independent record labels and independent record stores that gave me what I wanted. Now with the web, word of mouth is hyperlinked- it's easier than ever to find music that is in line with your specific tastes and there's no reason to spend any time or money supporting the major media companies' DRM infested business model that benefits neither the creator nor the consumer.

So we're going to try out an alternative way of doing things this year: The Single of the Moment. We've adopted the name of a series of 7" singles we put out in the early nineties but things are a bit different this time around. Once a month a new song featuring some or all of Poster Children will be posted on the Twelve Inch Records site. You may freely download, listen to and distribute the song, all we ask is that if you really like it, consider dropping a dollar in 'the hat'"

Love it. Head over to the site to listen to the first song, "Machines (Take Good Care Of The)", and drop a buck or two in the PKids hat. Put your money behind the true believers. And don't forget to tune in to Rick and Rose's Radiozero podcast.


Fellow Bostonian Chris Brokaw is heading out to Chicago this weekend to play "Molto Amore: A Salut! To Silkworm" on Saturday, and I only wish I could make the trip as well. Read an interview with organizer Joe Sepi on Glorious Noise.


According to Centro-matic's MySpace page, they'll have a new EP titled "Operation Motorcide" out this Spring courtesy of Houston Party Records. Tracks include "All This Fresh Mutiny", "Atlanta", "Operation Motorcide", "A Celebrated Grime", "Blood On The Floor", "Daggers Sharp Enough", "Circuits to Circuses", and "74 Cuts 74 Scars". Eight songs? That's a mighty generous EP, it is.


The weekly sharing of the Touch & Go Records 25th Anniversary video featurettes continues apace, with a new clip appearing every Monday morning like well-calibrated clockwork. So far we've got interviews and concert footage from Shipping News, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Calexico, Didjits, and this morning, a brand new clip from Quasi. It's overall amazing footage, the perfect compliment to last September's live experience, and I damn well hope it all ends up compiled on a DVD (with bonus live songs, perhaps?).


Ok, so the coolest part about the Jesus and Mary Chain reuniting (well, aside from the fact that the Jesus and Mary Chain are reuniting) is that their rhythm section is Ride drummer Loz Colbert and Lush bass player Phil King. Can you say "shoegaze soopergroop"? Actually, don't say it. It just sounds silly.


It's a crazy week for shows here in Boston... there's just far too much to choose from...


Tonight over at the Paradise we've got Sparklehorse in the main room and Catherine Wheel frontman Rob Dickinson right there in the Lounge. A painful coincidence, to have to choose between shows that are separated by a couple of walls. This morning's post over at Chromewaves has me leaning even more towards Sparklehorse... I've always wanted to see them/him live, and knowing that Mark Linkous and his band will be playing lots of old stuff kinda seals the deal. But if there's any possible way to sneak up for some of Rob's songs either before or after, I'm there.


And tomorrow, if I wasn't going to see a live staging of This American Life (with lots of great guests, including Mates of State and Sarah Vowell) at the Opera House, I'd probably be over at Great Scott checking out another Fenway Recordings Session. This one's got Elvis Perkins (fresh off some dates with Okkervil River) playing with Patrick Watson. If you haven't heard Perkins, check out his recent live Daytrotter Session.


Wednesday, yet another serious conundrum: Do I check out Pinback's Rob Crow doing a solo show at TT the Bears, or Asobi Seksu next door at the Middle East Downstairs. I'm digging Rob Crow's new solo album, but I love the Asobi Seksu disc. I prefer TTs as a live venue, and that show has the added benefit of the wonderful Geoff Farina opening up. But I feel like I need to make up for bailing on Asobi Seksu when they played a tiny room at Tufts and I couldn't deal with the jammed-in crowd. Hmmm. I suppose it'd be asking too much for the set-timing to allow me to see both? Yeah, probably would.

Back tomorrow with a great post I've been working on for awhile, and a new shared live set. Until then...

Labels: music