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recommended boston area events

thursday, september 2nd

lou barlow + the missingmen

wye oak

the unfamiliars

@ the middle east upstairs


saturday, september 4th

mg lederman (ex-victory at sea)

cd release show with

the wrong reasons

the beat awfuls

brant deatley

@ the plough & stars


sunday, september 5th

sweet apple

(w/j mascis on drums)

black helicopter

zombie radio

@ the middle east downstairs


sunday, september 5th

the milling gowns

what time is it, mr. fox?

faux ox

jaggery

@ harper's ferry


monday, september 6th

wallcreeper

@ charlie's kitchen


monday, september 6th

shellac

helen money

@ the middle east downstairs


tuesday, september 7th

tortoise

greg davis

ben vidas

@ the paradise


tuesday, september 7th

someone still loves you boris yeltsin

telekinesis

golden bloom

@ tt the bears


tuesday, september 7th

kele (from bloc party)

does it offend you, yeah?

@ the royale boston


wednesday, september 8th

hot hot heat

22-20s

hey rosetta!

@ the middle east downstairs


wednesday, september 8th

airborne toxic event (acoustic)

with the calder string quartet

@ the somerville theatre


thursday, september 9th

apple betty

this blue heaven

the backup factor

apollo run

@ tt the bears


friday, september 10th

i, pistol

black fortress of opium

the crushing low

@ precinct


friday, september 10th

the charlatans uk

sherlock's daughter

@ the royale boston


saturday, september 11th

school of seven bells

active child

@ the middle east downstairs


saturday, september 11th

neutral uke hotel (nmh covers on ukelele)

the michael j. epstein memorial library

@ cafe 939, berklee


saturday, september 11th

28 degrees taurus

magic shoppe (record release!)

@ the rosebud


saturday, september 11th

jamie lidell

@ the royale boston


friday + saturday

september 11th + 12th

the life is good festival

lots of bands, raising money for kids

over 2 days in canton, ma


sunday, september 12th

jarrod gorbel

(of the honorary title)

air traffic controller

@ great scott


sunday, september 12th

blondie

@ the house of blues


sunday, september 12th

vampire weekend

beach house

dum dum girls

@ the boa pavilion


monday, september 13th

dirty projectors

owen pallett (final fantasy)

@ the wilbur theatre


monday, september 13th

isobel campbell

mark lanegan

willy mason

@ the middle east downstairs


tuesday, september 14th

rush

@ the td garden


wednesday, september 15th

laura veirs + the hall of flames

the watson twins

led to sea

@ tt the bears


thursday, september 16th

of montreal

janelle monae

@ the house of blues boston


friday, september 17th

one happy island

kevin dunn

cotton candy

7:30pm @ the lily pad, cambridge


friday, september 17th

broken social scene

@ the house of blues


friday & saturday

september 17th & 18th

the 5th annual

viva la vinal festival!

with live performances from

audrey ryan, kingsley flood,

this blue heaven, bridget + the squares,

the international string trio, & justin shorey

6-10pm on friday + 12-9 on saturday

@ somerville community growing center

on vinal ave. in somerville's union square


saturday, september 18th

pavement

jenny (lewis) + johnny (rice)

@ agganis arena


saturday, september 18th

wavves

@ brandeis university, waltham


sunday, september 19th

thee oh sees

the human tail

thick shakes

@ the magic room gallery, brighton


sunday, september 19th

caribou

holy fuck

emeralds

@ the paradise


monday, september 20th

girlfriends

carnivores

weekend dads

@ o'brien's


tuesday, september 21st

superchunk

versus

@ royale boston


tuesday, september 21st

basia bulat

the acorn

john shade

@ tt the bears


tuesday, september 21st

sea wolf (alex acoustic)

sera cahoone

patrick park

@ the middle east upstairs


wednesday, september 22nd

phantogram

railbird

@ the paradise


wednesday, september 22nd

david bazan

the mynabirds

@ tt the bears


wednesday, september 22nd

field music

@ great scott


thursday, september 23rd

aloud (album release party!)

st. claire

old jack

with special emcee

poet/author james caroline

@ church of boston


thursday, september 23rd

stars

wild nothing

@ the house of blues


thursday, september 23rd

!!! (chk chk chk)

fol chen

@ the royale boston


thursday, september 23rd

bettie serveert

meandjoancollins

the painted lights

@ tt the bears


friday, september 24th

eels

@ the royale boston


saturday, september 25th

teenage fanclub

@ the royale boston


saturday, september 25th

james

ed harcourt

@ the paradise


sunday, september 26th

come (reunited!)

wussy

@ tt the bears


sunday, september 26th

mr. sister (debut album release!)

coyote kolb

tallahassee

@ great scott


sunday, september 26th

mates of state

@ the paradise


monday, september 27th

rogue wave

midlake

peter wolf crier

@ royale boston


tuesday, september 28th

lcd soundsystem

sleigh bells

@ the orpheum


tuesday, september 28th

best coast

male bonding

@ the middle east downstairs


wednesday, september 29th

quilt

paper castles

toothache

@ the lilypad


wednesday, september 29th

foals

esben + the witch

@ the paradise


thursday, september 30th

mc frontalot

@ tt the bears


thursday, september 30th

menomena

suckers

@ the royale boston


thursday + friday

sept 30th + oct 1st

built to spill

revolt revolt

pretty & nice

@ the paradise


friday, october 1st

the tallest man on earth

s. carey (of bon iver's band)

@ the somerville theatre


friday, october 1st

ra ra riot

chikita violenta

we barbarians

@ the royale boston


saturday, october 2nd

gayngs

(with bon iver's justin vernon)

glasser

@ the paradise


saturday, october 2nd

film school

the depreciation guild

static of the gods

night fruit

@ tt the bears


sunday, october 3rd

the xx

@ the orpheum


sunday, october 3rd

tom tom club

caravan of thieves

tony castles

@ the paradise


sunday, october 3rd

lost in the trees

@ tt the bears


tuesday, october 5th

the vaselines

jeffrey lewis

@ the paradise


tuesday, october 5th

chapterhouse

ulrich schnauss

@ the middle east downstairs


tuesday, october 5th

ratatat

dom

@ the house of blues boston


wednesday, october 6th

gorillaz

@ agganis arena


wednesday, october 6th

the hold steady

wintersleep

@ the royale boston


thursday, october 7th

the walkmen

a.a. bondy

blood feathers

@ the royale boston


friday, october 8th

death

@ the middle east downstairs


friday, october 8th

fountains of wayne

marshall crenshaw (solo)

@ the paradise


friday, october 8th

bell x1 (acoustic)

@ the brattle theatre


saturday, october 9th

paul f. tompkins

@ the brattle theatre


sunday, october 10th

deerhoof

xiu xiu

father murphy

first show @ the paramount!


sunday, october 10th

miike snow

@ the house of blues


sunday, october 10th

primus

mucca pazza

@ the orpheum


tuesday, october 12th

ingrid michaelson

@ the house of blues


wednesday, october 13th

dead kennedys

@ the paradise


thursday, october 14th

the thermals

cymbals eat guitars

@ the paradise


thursday, october 14th

the morning after girls

the lovetones

the december sound

ghost box orchestra

@ tt the bears


friday, october 15th

nick lowe + his band

graham parker (solo acoustic)

@ the somerville theatre


friday, october 15th

jimmy eat world

@ the house of blues


friday, october 15th

bowerbirds

death vessel

@ tt the bears


friday, october 15th

belle + sebastian

@ the wang theatre / citi center


saturday, october 16th

deerhunter

real estate

casino vs. japan

@ royale boston


sunday, october 17th

the henry clay people

the dig

@ tt the bears


monday, october 18th

greg dulli

(afghan whigs/twilight singers)

first-ever solo tour

with opener craig wedren

(of shudder to think)

@ the brattle theatre


monday, october 18th

bad religion

the bouncing souls

@ the house of blues


monday, october 18th

the drums

the hairs

@ the paradise


monday, october 18th

phoenix

two door cinema club

wavves

@ agganis arena


tuesday, october 19th

massive attack

thievery corporation

@ the orpheum


wednesday, october 20th

the pains of being pure at heart

yuck

eternal summers

@ the paradise


wednesday, october 20th

helmet

@ the middle east downstairs


sunday, october 22nd

gary numan

rasputina

playing 'the pleasure principle'

@ the paradise


saturday, october 23rd

local natives

the ruby suns

union line

@ the house of blues


sunday, october 24th

woven bones

frankie rose & the outs

@ tt the bears


monday, october 25th

the corin tucker band

hungry ghost

darren hanlon

@ the paradise


wednesday, october 27th

a sunny day in glasgow

candy claws

@ great scott


wednesday, october 27th

black prairie

(members of the decemberists)

sarah jarosz

@ the middle east upstairs


thursday, october 28th

the tt's halloween bash

with members of mean creek + campaign

for real time (as talking heads)

john powhida (as todd rundgren)

preacher roe (as guided by voices)

@ tt the bears


friday, october 29th

frightened rabbit

plants and animals

the phantom band

@ the paradise


saturday, october 30th

hallelujah the hills

magic magic

boy without god

@ great scott


sunday, october 31st

florence and the machine

the smith westerns

@ the house of blues


monday, november 1st

blonde redhead

pantha du prince

@ the paradise


monday, november 1st

social distortion

lucero

frank turner

@ the house of blues boston


tuesday, november 2nd

junip (jose gonzales)

sharon van etten

@ the royale boston


tuesday, november 2nd

black mountain

the black angels

@ the paradise


wednesday, november 3rd

the dandy warhols

blue giant

@ tt the bears


wednesday, november 3rd

land of talk

suuns

little scream

@ tt the bears


thursday, november 4th

through sunday, november 7th

the international pop overthrow

4 nights @ pa's lounge


thursday, november 4th

matt + kim

javelin

@ the house of blues


thursday, november 4th

blitzen trapper

@ the paradise


friday, november 5th

guided by voices

blitzen trapper

@ the paradise


sunday, november 7th

drivin 'n cryin

@ tt the bears


monday, november 8th

clinic

the fresh & onlys

@ the paradise


tuesday, november 9th

the morning benders

@ the paradise


thursday + friday

november 11th + 12th

sufjan stevens

@ the orpheum


thursday, november 11th

shearwater

horse feathers

damien jurado

anais mitchell

@ the house of blues


thursday, november 11th

deer tick

@ the royale boston


thursday, november 11th

mumford & sons

cadillac sky

king charles

@ the house of blues


friday, november 12th

bottomless pit

black helicopter

chris brokaw

@ the middle east downstairs


saturday, november 13th

roky erickson

@ the royale boston


saturday, november 13th

grinderman

(nick cave, warren ellis, + more)

@ the house of blues


sunday, november 14th

elizabeth mitchell (of ida)

and friends

(a children's show!)

4:30pm @ club passim


sunday, november 14th

man or astro-man?

@ the middle east downstairs


monday, november 15th

la roux

@ the house of blues


tuesday, november 16th

a night of springsteen covers

with chris keene (mean creek),

corin ashley, dave aaronoff,

brendan little, hilken mancini,

the dirty truckers, drew o'doherty,

and more to be announced

marking the release of the new

6-disk 'darkness on the edge of town'

box set @ tt the bears


tuesday, november 16th

the posies

brendan benson

aqueduct

@ the royale boston


wednesday, november 17th

cornershop

@ the middle east downstairs


thursday, november 18th

kate nash

@ the paradise


thursday, november 18th

bear in heaven

@ the middle east downstairs


friday, november 19th

township

the lights out

the organ beats

@ tt the bears


saturday, november 20th

delorean

lemonade

@ the middle east downstairs


wednesday, november 24th

idlewild

happy hollows

@ the middle east downstairs


thursday, december 2nd

director/actor kevin smith

@ the house of blues


saturday, december 4th

peter hook + the light

play joy division's "unknown pleasures"

@ the royale boston


saturday, december 4th

killing joke

@ the paradise


visit tourfilter for more shows






Monday, February 11, 2008

Some Boston Faves: Band Plans for 2008
Now that we're a month or so into the year (and barely into the Year of the Rat), I thought I'd share some of what my favorite Boston-area performers have planned for the rest of 2008. A few of those below put out great albums last year, others have new releases on deck, and most are hitting venues near or far in the coming months. This is by no means a list of all the nearby artists that count me as a fan, and once again, one of my resolutions was to spend more time digging up the unheard future faves making sounds in my musical backyard. So far, so good.

In no order whatsoever...

Hallelujah the Hills
Regarding a follow-up to last year's excellent Misra-released debut disc, "Collective Psychosis Begone", HtH's Ryan Walsh says: "I'm hoping we record the 2nd album this spring, which would slate it for a fall or winter release. About 3/4ths of the songs are written so far". No pressure, Ryan, but I hope so, too.

Next show: Saturday, February 16th at the Middle East Downstairs in Cambridge with Beat Circus, Humanwine, and O'Death.

Mp3: "Hallelujah the Hills"

Travels
Since putting out their mesmerizing self-released (and hand-designed) debut disc last year, the duo of Mona Elliott (ex-Victory at Sea) and Anar Badalov (ex-Metal Hearts) continues to generously share demos on their MySpace page (the latest: an ace Elvis cover), and this new year will finally bring the pair out of their apartment and onto stages to play those songs for us. Yes, in March they head to Europe for a score of shows (their very first live appearance will be just outside Amsterdam) before returning for a single date in their hometown of Somerville. More U.S. dates will no doubt follow, but there's no solid stateside tour plans yet. Beyond that, they're well into work on their next record, which should be out late this year or early next, depending on any label involvement. 'Til then, keep an eye on that MySpace page for additional tourdates and demos.

First show: Sunday, March 9th, 2008 at Patronaat in Haarlem, Netherlands.

Debut U.S. show: Saturday, April 5th at PA's Lounge in Somerville, MA with Red Tag Rummage Sale and White Horses.

Mp3: "The Smell Of Kerosene"

Caspian
Last year this instrumental Beverly quartet gave us their first mighty full-length cd, "The Four Trees" (which was closely followed by some limited edition vinyl), and next month will bring a new song on a split 7" with Constants, courtesy of Radar Recordings. Meanwhile, writing and recording continues for a hopeful EP release this year, and they'll no doubt play some of that new stuff on a string of March dates, which wraps up with a stop at South by Southwest on March 16th.

Next show: Friday, February 22nd, 2008 at The Space Gallery in Portland, Maine, with Sumner McKane.

Mp3: "Asa"

Chris Brokaw
As always, Mr. Brokaw is a busy man, writing and recording his own songs, collaborating with friends, lending his guitar skills to touring bands, and occasionally getting behind the drum kit. Last year he was one of many drummers who took part in the Boredoms 77 BOADRUM live rhythmic experiment, spent some time touring in the Thurston Moore Band (he's on the new iTunes only "Live from SoHo" EP), and near the end of the year, shared the stage with former bandmate Thalia Zedek for a couple Come songs. 2008 has already seen a release from a new project called Dirtmusic, on which Brokaw plays with Chris Eckman (the Walkabouts) and Hugo Race (ex-Bad Seed), and last month the trio visited Mali, Africa and played at the Festival au Desert near Timbuktu. Unfortunately the Dirtmusic disc is import only for now, available from German label Glitterhouse. Well worth paying a bit extra if you like what you hear at the MySpace page, or the Brokaw-penned track below.

As usual, Chris will be spending a bunch of time on the road in the near future, playing with in Thurston's band, as a duo with Geoff Farina (Glorytellers/ex-Karate/Secret Stars), European shows with Dirtmusic, and random solo dates. He's got another solo album in the works, which will hopefully join an almost-finished album of traditional front-porch covers with Farina as 2008 releases. In September we'll definitely get to hear Chris' drumming on a third album from The New Year (I get excited just typing that), followed in the fall by a book of his photography on Black Arrow Press. Further solidifying his classification as a true renaissance man.

Next solo show: Saturday, February 16th at the Minifestival at Les Basses in Barcelona, Spain.

Next U.S. solo show: Wednesday, February 20th at the Knitting Factory Tap Bar in NYC with Underground Railroad and Black Helicopter.

Next duo show (with Geoff Farina): Saturday, February 23rd at PA's Lounge in Somerville, MA with Adam Arcuragi and Ryan Lee Crosby.

Mp3: Dirtmusic - "Face of Evil"

Seana Carmody
It's been six long years since this former Swirlies/Syrup USA singer/guitarist's solo debut, 2002's "Struts & Shocks", but a couple months back we quietly saw the arrival, at least digitally, of a follow-up: "Not Foolin' You" is now available for per-song-payment at her MySpace page, and it's a stripped down affair, mostly Seana and her guitar, with musical assistance from The Curtain Society's Roger Lavallee, who recorded the album at the Tremolo Lounge. A Hank Williams Jr. cover, and a beautiful rendition of Chris Bell's "You and Your Sister, join a dozen Seana-penned originals.

Next show: Thursday, February 14th, 2008 at PA’s Lounge in Somerville, MA with Don Lennon and Vox Humana.

Mp3: "Cemetery Party"

The Broken River Prophet
In the summer of 2005, after her first time seeing the BRP on stage, Amie turned to me and said "I need an album of this stuff now." Well, three years later and that need remains unfulfilled, but the wait is almost over. Primary prophet Adam says we're in for a spring or summer release of their debut full-length, "With Infinite Arms To Cradle The Flames". Limited edition, with letter-press covers, and some artwork from the aforementioned Seana Carmody. Along with the Mp3 below, you can get a taste of what we're in for from the BRP's recent Flophouse Session for Band in Boston, or grab more Mp3s at the band's audio page.

Next show: A 7:30 show on Friday, April 4th, 2008, at The Annex in NYC.

Mp3: "Burned In Place"

Geoff Farina / Glorytellers
Another busy Boston-based singer/songwriter, Geoff does the solo thing, the duo thing (with Chris Brokaw), and the trio thing. That trio, Glorytellers, releases their debut album next week on Southern Records, with two U.S. tours to follow, the north in March and the south in April, and a likely European tour in the fall. As mentioned in the Brokaw bit above, their duo record should be out later this year, and Geoff also has an import-only collaborative affair (with Massimo Pupillo and Michael Zerant) out in Italy in May.

Next solo show: Thursday, February 21st, 2008 at the Philadelphia Ethical Society in Philadelphia, PA with Adam Arcuragi.

Next duo show (with Chris Brokaw): Saturday, February 23rd, 2008 at PA's Lounge in Somerville with Adam Arcuragi and Ryan Lee Crosby.

Mp3: Glorytellers - "Awake at the Wheel"

The Soft Drugs
TW Walsh's relocation from West Coast to East was less than a year ago, but the Boston-area full-band incarnation of his Soft Drugs already has live shows under their belt, and recording plans for this April. A summer-released full-lengther should result, but before that, we'll get to hear TW's contribution to "February Album Writing Month", where participants write 14 songs during those 29 days. So it'll be a busy musical month for him, writing an entire album while doing the day-job thing and running his cd mastering business.

Soft Drugs guitarist Michael Murray should have a solo album out soon that TW worked on, and bassist Ken Maiuri also spends time in Northampton's senior citizens choir The Young At Heart Chorus. Keep an eye out for a Fox Searchlight documentary about the chorus titled "Young@Heart" this spring, followed by both U.S. and European tours later this year.

Next Soft Drugs show: Saturday, March 8th, 2008 at PJ Ryan's in Somerville, MA.

Next TW Walsh solo show: Monday, March 17th, 2008 at The Red Door in Portsmouth, NH.

Mp3: The Soft Drugs - "Family of Four"

Charlene
Redefining the phrase "long-awaited follow-up" is Charlene, whose self-titled debut disc was released in 2002. Well, 2008 will see that sophomore album become a reality rather than a promise. Details are still being finalized, but we'll either see a series of digital EPs eventually compiled onto disc, or the full-on full-length all at once. Look for news at their site soon (and hopefully they won't also try redefining the word 'soon'),. A track that should be on the EPs/album is below, and you can hear another at their MySpace page.

Mp3: "Oh Hey"

Tom Thumb
Andy Arch, under his nom de song of Tom Thumb, will soon follow-up 2006's excellent Kindermusik EP (recorded with his former backing band, the Latter Day Saints) with a full-length, and when I say soon, I mean very, very soon. Yes, later this week his self-released album "The Taxidermist" will arrive, available digitally via MySpace, or as a hand-made limited-to-200 physical disc straight from Andy himself. And no doubt you'll be able to grab one from him at the merch table during a planned spring solo tour.

While Andy is no longer backed by the Latter Day Saints (the new album does feature some musical guests), there's a real treat below in the form of "Steal Away", a non-album song recorded with the full LDS during a session last year. And while you can (and should) buy it through MySpace, he's allowed me to share the track here as a free download. It's quickly become one of my favorite songs of the year so far, so enjoy.

Next show: Thursday, February 14th, 2008 at Brown University's Hourglass Cafe in Providence, RI with Deer Tick.

Mp3: "Steal Away"

Chris Pearson / Ekranoplan
When guests are involved, former Green Magnet School frontman Chris Pearson's forays into "Organosynthetic Primitivism" go under the name Ekranoplan, and the first official release is now available in the form of the "Soundtracks" EP. Courtesy of Chris, the first song from the EP is below, and you can contact him through his MySpace page for ordering info. A couple weeks back, CP appeared on the now-sadly-defunct "Rock Around Boston" show at WBOS, and you can still download the entire in-studio visit right here, which features songs from throughout Chris' musical history, in addition to cuts off of the EP. Little did he and host Frank know that they were taking part in what would become the show's grand finale. Hopefully the Noise-sponsored program will continue somewhere else in some form.

Next Ekranoplan show: Someday soon at PA's Lounge.

Mp3: Ekranoplan - "Slabbath (radio edit)"











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arcade fire
live at the boa pavilion
in boston, mass.
on sunday, august 1st, 2010

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