Subliminal Message Attached

(Editor's Note: As inferred by the above headline, Bryan Dondero's ensuing post contains a running subliminal thread. While I won't spoil the fun by revealing exactly what it is, I will tell you that the blatant breach of journalistic ethics — which really do exist, albeit marginally, in the blogosphere, even on this blog — within said subliminal thread is my fault, as I never explicitly explained them to Bryan prior. Under normal circumstances, we wouldn't publish what follows. However, this one time I'm gonna allow it, because 1.) it's a funny post. And B.) it leads into a killer video. Also, I'm waaay too busy to post anything of my own today.

That said, please know that Dondero has been thoroughly scolded for his misdeeds — his punishment may or may not have involved Swine Flu injections and being pelted with disc-golf discs. -DB)

So.

After doing a Facebook test to see what 80s band I was (go see Farm at 242 on Saturday), the result was Journey (Farm). Those who know me (242), know that I have "Separate Ways" as my ringtone (this Saturday). Let me just get this straight, I like Journey. I may even LOVE Journey. I thought that at first my love for Journey was ironic, which made me uber cool. Everyone (Farm) knows that any self-righteous hipster needs at least one ironic guilty pleasure band. Had I come across an old tattered (242) Journey t-shirt at some hip NYC (Sat.) thrift store, I woulda bought it. Hence making me super cool.

But then something unpredictable happened.

Every time my "ironic" ring tone went off, saturating whoever was around me with Steve Perry's searing vocals, I felt something tingle in my spine. His vocals are known to cause that. (And so does Farm) It forced me to face this ironic love of mine, stare it down and say, "What's the deal, man?! Am I going to have to go out and buy all of your albums now or what?!"

(Farm is also at the Vergennes Opera House on Friday night)

What's my point here, other than shameless self-promotion?

It is that you watch this video — and this is one of the greatest rock videos ever made, so buckle the fuck up. And this is in NO WAY meant to flatter myself (Farm rules), in fact it is pretty self deprecating . . .which is not to cause Steve Smith any offense, because he turned out to be one sexy mo fo. It's just that in the era of this video, he was still in that "my hairline is pulling out like the tides, but I'm gonna hang on to my rockin' long hair as long as I can" phase.  And he and I both know, that never works. 

But despite that disturbing hair phase, as it was pointed out to me, I have an uncanny resemblance to drummer Steve Smith in this video. Check it out for yourself.

(andcomecheckoutfarmthisweekendatvergennesoperahousefridayand242mainonsaturdayit'llrockatleastoneofyoursocksrightoff!)

100 Days and Still Barackin'

In honor of President Obama's 100th day in office, I reflected on my own past 100 days. Well let's see how I have been doing . . .

Jan. 27: In New Orleans — was raging drunk on Bourbon St. (go figure).

Jan. 28: Didn't do a heck of a lot. See Jan 27th, above.

Feb. 2: Came home to VT and apologized to girlfriend . . . See Jan 27th.

Feb. 3: Bought some flowers.

Feb. 10: Bought some more flowers, and some nice perfume for V-day.

Feb. 11: Decided to stop drinking and/or doing anything that would cause my liver harm. Also, took up Aikido.

Mar. 13: Made a bold decision which allowed me to spend more time in Vermont. A career change, if you will.

Mar. 18: Wondered what President Obama has been up to lately.

Mar.19: Watched President Obama on The Tonight Show

Mar.22: Lamented the fact that it was still bloody cold in VT?! Also was curious if CEO's at A.I.G. and Rick Wagoner play poker together on Saturday nights.

Apr. 1: Had an awful nightmare that a drunken Dick Cheney shot me in the face with a magical potion that made me sneer uncontrollably at anything that was humane and reasonable.

Apr.11: Got up at 4 a.m. to celebrate the 1st day of trout fishing. Stopped fishing after about an hour because I got tired of clearing the ice off my rod and was beginning to see little pink fairies flying over my head - the 1st sign of hypothermia . . .

Apr.15: Tried to think of a job that would make fly fishing tax-deductable.

Apr.20: Tried to see if there was a business market for a roller coaster theme park at Gauntanamo Bay. But then realized that a waterboarding coaster could be a liability.

Apr.22: To celebrate earth day, I wrote to GM to propose the blueprints for a cow shit car in place of the Volt.

Apr.29: Still haven't caught any fish. But I bet neither has Obama . . . well, 'cept for that one old fish.

Herb van der Poll & the BBC

Once upon a time, my dearly departed family band, The Middle 8, was playing a show in the cozy confines of Burlington's 1/2 Lounge — no easy feat for a sextet with an upright bass and accordion. We had a decent crowd that night, certainly befitting our 7D designation as "alt-country darlings" — thank you, Ethan Covey!

In between tunes, our co-front man Dave Stockhausen delivered a wince-inducing one-liner. Though the exact line escapes me, I can tell you that among our finer qualities — hooky twang-pop, sugary four-part harmony, etc. — stage banter was never really our strong suit. After a short, awkward lull — and maybe a passing tumbleweed and chirping crickets — a familiar voice echoed from the back of the room, "You should stick to music!"

Following a pregnant pause, the room erupted in laughter, including the band. Looking out into the crowd, we noticed our old pals, The Jazz Guys, at a booth, yukking it up — there may or may not have been some awkward white guy high-fivin' as well. Without missing a beat, Dave raised his gaze from the guitar tuner on the floor, glared at JG's bassist Herb van der Poll, the speaker of the remark, and coolly offered his retort: "And you should stick to comedy."

Oh. No. He. Didn't!

Actually, he did. The room again exploded at Stockhausen's riposte. Even Herb tipped his hat — I don't think he was actually wearing one, but you get the idea. It may have been the only time The Middle 8 was ever funny.

Herb van der Poll, on the other hand, is consistently funny. Long before The Jazz Guys blossomed into a seriously tight, lean, mean rock machine, their calling card was humor, particularly van der Poll. His "Letters to the Band" shtick is still probably my favorite of their many, many gags.

Though The Jazz Guys are presumably biding their time while guitarist Maarten van der Poll does whatever it is that he's doing in Thailand, it appears they're keeping busy. And still making with the funny. Exhibit A: this new vid from Stuck in Vermont auteur Eva Sollberger, which features Herb in the "role" of a mincing record store clerk, interviewed for the BBC by reporter Henrietta Henspecker. Enjoy.

Just the Facts: Soundbites Addendum

Man, it's a busy week 'round our cozy little music scene. And with my extended riff on soon to be dearly departed Tick Tick booking in today's column, there were a number of things I didn't have room to print. Such is life in 1200 words or less, I suppose. Anyway, here is the stuff I was forced to hold, nuts and bolts style.

Local alt-country supergroup The Lonestar Chain have a show this Friday at Muddy Waters. This is notable for a few reasons. One, it's at Muddy Waters, which is criminally underutilized as a performance space. Two, The Lonestar Chain rock. And three, this will be the band's second performance with pedal steel player Matt Hayes (ex-Chuch).

Thursday night goes to the dogs with a benefit show for Northern New England Dog Rescue at Club Metronome. The lineup features a trio of UVM bands: The Fred, Electric Mandala and Flavor Trio. And local reggae stalwarts Pulse Prophets close out the night.

Speaking of benefits, Olive Ridley's in Plattsburgh is hosting a Sunday matinee fundraiser for Rock Against Rape with Flip the Bus, Elephantbear, Lucid, The Natalie Ward Band and Shameless Strangers.

Greg Davis is at it again. This time around he's presenting a multimedia electronic ambient show at Firehouse Gallery on Thursday night. Slated to appear are Somerville-based sonic soothsayer Brendan Murray and NYC's Corridors, whom Davis describes thusly: Byron Westbrook (b. 1977) is an artist working with the dynamic quality of physical space using multi-channel sound and images. His audio/video performances under the name CORRIDORS involve the distribution of processed instrumental and environmental recordings through a multi-channel environment with a focus on energy distilled from sound and light. Giggity.

Guitarist John Kasiewicz has a couple of show this week (Friday at Black Door, Saturday at the Bean) with Giovanni Revetto and Gabe Jarrett. That's one serious jazz trio. He's also just released, count 'em, four "debut" albums with his new ambient duo, 5turns25. A couple of questions, though: can you really release four debuts? Aren't you really only allowed one? Isn't that why it's a debut? Anyway, you can download 'em all right here.

And last but not least, erstwhile disc jockey, and all-around nice fella, Mike Luoma is keeping busy, even though he's yet to find a new radio gig. He has a comic-related online column at CosmicBookNews.com and is releasing new epicodes of his own epic comic series Pantea Obscura every Wednesday and Saturday at DrunkDuck.com.

And that's all the news that's fit — or, I guess wouldn't fit — to print.

Bawitahuh?

This just in from the Dept. of Homeland Absurdity: Kid Rock is coming to the Champlain Valley Fair. And I thought Toby Keith was rad last year!

Actually, dude's pretty funny:

This is shaping up to the strangest summer of music in Vermont, maybe ever. I, for one, can't wait.

Rainy Day Music

OK, before we get down to business, I'm just gonna get this out of the way. Did anyone catch the sheer glory that was last night's Celts-Bulls playoff game? Even the most casual fan/non-fan would have been gripped by the last five minutes (which is pretty much all I could catch 'cuz I was buried in the office until about 9pm or so). Ray "Jesus Shuttlesworth" Allen, you are my hero. If there is a better time to be a sports fan than late April, I can't think of it. Moving on . . .

As I was lurking 'round the office last night waiting for the first music section proofs to come down the pipeline, I happened to stumble across what might just be my favorite new(ish) band — for this week, anyway. At the very least, they're the perfect duo for a gloomy, early spring afternoon.

Human Highway is a collaboration between ex-Unicorns front man Nick Thorburn (currently of Montreal pop darlings Islands) and Toronto songwriter Jim Guthrie (occasionally of Montreal pop darlings Islands). And before you ask, the answer is yes. He's Woody's grandson. (Editor's Note: Actually, I'm not 100% sure on that. I can only find one source to corroborate that Guthrie is, in fact a GUTHRIE. For now, let's just say that he is . . .  -DB)

If you were to peruse the interwebs looking for reviews of their debut, Moody Motorcycle, you'll find the band the band described roughly as such: breezy So-Cal bedroom pop with Everly-esque harmonies. My take: yes . . . well, no.

Simply put, invoking the brothers Everly is not to be done lightly. While Human Highway does trade in swooning, often plainly pretty harmonies, there is a ragged quality to their performance that is distinctly, well, non-Everly. And that's not a bad thing. The album's lo-fi sleepiness is undoubtedly part of its charm, and a big reason why I haven't stopped playing it since blowing some eMusic coin on it last night — save for the last five minutes of the Celts game, of course.

Anyway, here's a cool video of the the album's first track, "The Sound." (Note, this isn't the song's official vid, but I actually like it quite a bit more)

Enjoy.

It's So Hard to Say Goodbye

So, yeah . . . no more Tick Tick shows. Ain't that a kick in the head?

In a remarkably short period of time, Tick Tick established themselves as a vital and seemingly indispensable piece of Burlington's music scene. You know you've arrived in the Queen City when people just sort of take you for granted, assuming you'll always be there. And that's the level of admiration — and familiarity — Tick Tick achieved in its all-too-brief two and-a-half year run booking shows around our fair state. I, for one, am really gonna miss them.

In my perch as 7D music dude, I deal with artists, promoters, club owners, fans, non-fans and an otherwise comprehensive assortment of music-related folks from all levels of the PR spectrum on a daily basis. And in my almost two years in this chair, I have never had more pleasurable professional interactions than I had with Tick Tick. Amid the typical din of over-hyped, hyperbolic PR nonsense that floods my inbox every day, their genuine affection for the shows they put together was simply refreshing. They had no ulterior motives beyond sharing great music. And their enthusiasm was nothing short of infectious, which is a big reason I wrote about them as often as I did. Well, that, and the music was almost always top notch.

I'm sensing this is quickly turning into a eulogy, which wasn't my intent — what can I say? I'm bummed. Rather, I'd just like to take a moment to sincerely thank Tick Tick for everything they've done for Burlington music. It's been fun, guys. Thank you.

The End of an Era: Tick Tick Booking Calls it Quits

Words can't convey — at least at the moment — how unhappy I am to have to report this, but Tick Tick has just announced they are ending their booking operations, effective pretty much immediately. They will have one final show, Monday, April 27 at The Monkey House. Once I've had a few minutes to wrap my head around this, I'll try and weigh in with some parting thoughts later this afternoon. But for now . . . sigh.

Here is the farewell letter, in its entirety, that they posted this morning on their website:

Dear everyone,

Tick Tick Booking is officially entering retirement. 

Please join us on Monday, April 27 at the Monkey House for our final show and going away party, featuring Son of Salami, Black Feelings, Ponytail, Think About Life, and DJs Drew Stock and Mike Device. 

When we started booking bands in Burlington three years ago, our vision was to bring the music we wanted to see and the city we love together.  Burlington’s location in the northeast made it seem sensible to ask our favorite bands to stop here.  And they did, and people started showing up to see them, and we kept asking bands that said yes, and so we asked our dream bands, and they said yes too. 

We are proud to have connected Vermont to so many other places through our shows, and we are grateful that we’ve been able to experience so many wonderful happenings with you all, as Burlington develops a fuller and more viable underground music scene.   

The three of us are looking forward to relaxing and moving on to other projects.  Nick Mavadones will continue to be the lighthouse of Burlington music on his blog, (AngioplastyMedia.wordpress.com) and will try to maintain regular sleeping hours.  Julia Lewandoski is ghost-writing a novel and gardening.  Dale Donaldson II is drawing and giving drawing lessons to a nine-year-old, and considering art school.  Graham Keegan will continue to run Tick Tick Printing as a business and is thinking of moving to La-La-Land. 

We consider everyone that has played music, designed something, done a thankless job, hung posters, told someone to come, carried a PA, let us borrow stuff, promoted us on the radio, let us use their space, hosted a band, never came but said something nice, paid extra at the door, paid at the door, bought t-shirts, or just showed up, a part of Tick Tick.  So thank you.   

We would like to thank, first, EVERYONE, and then this short list:

Jazzercise!

Just got back from the annual Burlington Discover Jazz Festival Press Conference. And as was mentioned roughly 72 times throughout the hour-long affair — with thanks to our presenting sponsors! And our co-sponsors! And our sponsor-sponsoring sponsors! Have a cookie! — there can be no surer sign of spring than . . . well, you know. All that jazz. After 26 years, couldn't we come up with another, perhaps non-weather related way of getting psyched about Jazz Fest? But I digress.

While this year's lineup doesn't quite boast the same jaw-dropping marquee pedigree of last year's 25th anniversary hootenanny, from top to bottom it is a pretty solid list of performers. You already know the headliners: Diana Krall, Branford Marsalis, Pink Martini. But for my money the real strength of this year's fest are the artists on the undercard — Belizbeha, Esperanza Spaulding, Yusef Lateef, to name a few.

Starting next week, we'll be digging in to many of these artists in greater detail in the paper. So for now, I'll just pass along the link to the full schedule. And before I forget, tix are on sale . . . right . . . now.

Damon Brink Leaves Nectar's

As he states in a lengthy, and at times emotional, farewell letter posted last night on his blog, Damon; Whirled!, neo-Nectar's architect Damon Brink has left the building.

Rumors of his impending departure had been swirling for weeks. Actually, speculation concerning the future of The House That Phish Built had been rampant pretty much since Brink and Co. purchased the downtown landmark six-and-a-half years ago. In that time, the club has undergone a near total — and frequently controversial — face lift from divey juke joint to upscale(ish) nightclub.

Gone is the narrow stage along the northern wall. Ditto the cafeteria-style kitchen by the front window and with it the homey diner feel of the restaurant. The original circular bar was moved from the center of the room to allow space for the new circular stage in the opposite corner. They put in real bathrooms. The list goes on and on — and that's to say nothing of the work done upstairs.

Like many locals, I've viewed most of the renovations with a fair degree of skepticism. Largely out of nostalgia, I originally mourned the loss of the old stage setup and the bar's bluesy roadhouse atmosphere — to borrow a line from "The Simpsons," "Aw, Moe. Not the dank!" But after playing on the new stage and spending some time in the crowd, there's no question that it is now a vastly superior room for live music. Although I have to admit, I'm still not sold on the stainless steel sterility of restaurant side. Perhaps in time.

Regardless of how you feel about the changes, one thing is certain: Damon Brink left his mark. Moving forward, it will be interesting to see how the new management leaves theirs. And though we haven't always seen eye to eye, I wish Damon nothing but the best in this next stage of his life.

 

The Penis Mightier: Asher Roth UPDATE

Yes, that's two SNL "Jeopardy!" skit references in as many days. Thanks, Hulu!

As 7D What's Good blogger Tyler Machado reports this morning, Asher Roth has been uninvited to perform at SMC's spring concert next week. Further proof that a little bitchin' goes a long way.

Cheers to the SMC Student Association for manning up and rectifying an unfortunate situation. Kudos as well to the SMC student body for rejecting the stereotype that college is a "Girls Gone Wild" video. Because everyone knows it's really more like Animal House.

And on that note, I present the innermost secret desire of music critics across the globe:

Dino Jr. on Daytrotter

If you missed Saturday's Dinosaur Jr. throwdown at Higher Ground . . . what the hell? Seriously. It's not like you didn't know it was coming. Bryan Dondero wrote about the show on this very blog when it was announced. I interviewed Lou freakin' Barlow last week. I even mentioned the show again in a blog post last Thursday. You have no excuse.

Except maybe that it looked to be sold out. Still, I imagine you could have hung out at Quizno's that night and gotten the gist. It was pretty loud. (Although, honestly, I was expecting a little bit more. I even discarded my plugs about midway through, with only a modicum of tinnunitis afterwards.)

Anyway, if you missed the show, Daytrotter has just announced they'll be featuring Dino Jr. live in the studio within the next couple of weeks. So be sure to keep an eye (ear?) out for that. Based on the unbridled awesomeness that was Saturday's show, it should be a good one.

Since Marc Scarano did a pretty decent job summing up the show in his last post, and there's nothing especially pressing on the docket today, I will forgo a straight up review in favor of some random thoughts that crossed my mind that night, Twitter-feed style. Buckle up.

J. Mascis is one badass guitar player. He's also a really strange lookin' fella.

For the first time I can remember in a while, HG really smells like a Rock club (capital "R"). Lots of big, sweaty dudes about. Kind of a swordfight, actually.

My girlfriend points out that if Legolas, the archer elf from Lord of the Rings, had an out-of-shape, guitar-playing, half-human brother, he might look alot like Mascis.

Man, I'd forgotten how much I love "Out There." Where You Been was my first Dinosaur Jr. album. I bought a cutout cassette at a Providence record store when I was about 14 and completely wore it out. Same with the CD that replaced it. It's probably still my favorite.

He also kind of reminds me of the Albino from the "Pit of Despair" scenes in The Princess Bride.

There is a noticeable lack of hipsterly presence, which is alternately refreshing and disappointing. Don't they know?

Was that a crowd surfer? My God, I do believe it was! And a faux pit to boot. Ah, memories!

He also kind of looks like SNL's Horatio Sanz playing Ozzy Osbourne.

I'm starting to develop an affinity for drinking Guinness out of a keg cup. At least the HG bartenders roughly know how to pour it, unlike most bars in town — including many of the supposedly Irish joints. There really is an art to the perfect pint.

There's also an art to the perfect rock show. And this was as close as I've seen in a while.

I Love College (Scandals)

Ah, the rites of spring! April showers. May flowers. Birds. Bees. Date rape.

On April 17, St. Michael's College will celebrate its annual spring concert with performances by Grammy-nominated rapper Lupe Fiasco, up-and-coming opening act Asher Roth and, apparently, a little controversy.

For the uninitiated, Roth is the proud owner of the current #12 Billboard single for his pandering, sophomoric anthem "I Love College," which espouses the many-splendored virtues of higher education, such as drinking, boozing, gettin' wasted and . . . um, more drinking. There are also numerous references to that most time-honored of ivy-walled traditions, the drunken hookup. Though to his his credit, Roth does caution, "But not if she's too far gone." And they say chivalry is dead.

That Roth has been invited to perform at the college has, perhaps predictably, invited a veritable shit storm of criticism upon the event's organizers, the Student Association Executive Board. In a scathing editorial published in the school's online Arts & Culture journal The Naked Opinion, editor and 7D What's Good blogger, Tyler Machado offers this succinct summation, "I'm disappointed that the S.A. thought that this was the best act to bring to campus. Roth's persona confirms all the worst stereotypes about college students and their childish obsession with partying."

He goes on to state that, "I don't despise Roth's hit song because of some moral objection to drinking, smoking marijuana or partying. I despise the song because it's incredibly stupid." Point, Machado. Roth's single is a classic example of pop music pandering to the lowest common denominator. Not to mention that it's the most blatant stylistic ripoff of Eminem since . . . well, maybe ever.

In a campus-wide letter from the S.A., they attempt to deflect blame, inferring that the decision to book Roth as the opening act rested with Fiasco's agent, whose "first recommendation" was the PA-based emcee. They correctly note that opening act preference is often deferred to the headliner in rider negotiations. But doesn't the word "first" imply there may be a "second" choice? The organization goes on to essentially plead the fifth, writing that they "had no idea this would become such a controversial issue."

Really? In the age of PCU — and at a Catholic school, no less — SA really expects us to believe that they didn't realize Roth's misogynistic portrayal of student life just might rile up the natives?

If that's the case, SA may be guiltier of something far beyond poor decision making. Based on the Billboard chart statistics they cite in the opening paragraph of their letter, SA is clearly aware of who Roth is. But if they really didn't believe students would object to his performance, then they either didn't take the time to investigate his music or worse, they did investigate, and simply didn't care.

So, SA, in case you haven't seen the video for "I Love College" yet, check it out here.

Louder Than God

If Eric Clapton is God, then what does that make J Mascis? I'm pretty sure he's not Satan. Much too humble to be the Prince of Darkness. Zeus? Nah, he's just a guy. A guy who fronts one of the loudest bands on the planet, Dinosaur Jr. His band returned to Higher Ground Saturday night and delivered a hits-heavy performance that shook the place to the rafters.

Dinosaur Jr is back to its original lineup of Mascis on guitar and vocals, Lou Barlow on bass and Murph on drums. Yes, they're a little older; J's hair is grey, Murph's hair is gone, and the tempo on some of the songs is a little slower, but they can still bring it like its 1987.

The secret to their success is J's guitar playing. In contrast to his mellow stage presence, Mascis attacks his instrument with passion, spitting out deafening leads and massive riffage. His tools of trade are his signature Fender Jazzmaster, three ginormous Marshall stacks, and a phase pedal.

They opened on the softer side with "Severed Lips," off their 1985 debut album Dinosaur. It's as if they were trying to build up the audience's tolerance before ripping out their eardrums. Next was "The Lung" from You're Living All Over Me, their second and arguably best record. They played several more songs from both these albums during the rest of the set, along with a couple new tunes from the forthcoming Farm and a generous smattering of crowd-pleasers like "Freak Scene," "Out There" and "Feel The Pain." Barlow provided the between song chatter and took lead vocals for "Back To The Heart" and the classic "Forget The Swan." The show ended triumphantly with the one-two punch of "Kracked" and "Sludgefeast."

Dino Jr. was by far the loudest band I have heard at Higher Ground. Not only was my chest pounding to the rhythm, I could feel it in my feet through the floor. The house was a rockin', and the audience loved every minute of it. At times the sound verged on breaking up into so much white noise. This is all by design, of course. I mean, how many other bands sell earplugs at the merch table? (Editor's note: HG always has earplugs available -DB)  I brought my own plugs, but my ears were still ringing when I got home.

Randomization

It's maybe the most beautiful day of the year so far. I'm stuck behind my desk, at least for another hour. A desk I'll be chained to for most of what promises to be a stellar live music weekend. Sounds like a recipe for a randomized scattershot blog post. Let's do this.

The new Akron/Family disc landed on my desk today. Three words: sofa king good.

A long time ago, I promised my half-crazy, half-pit bull, Buckley that I'd never make him wear a sweater, a spiked collar or booties. Last week, he hurt his paw and had been limping pretty badly. The pain didn't seem to be going away, so I took him to the vet yesterday and they gave me some powder to put on his pads to ease the inflammation. They then informed me that he would have to wear a bootie over the paw to protect it and keep him from licking the wound. And also one on the opposite paw for balance/fashionable symmetry. You know that herky-jerky sort of way the Muppets walk when you can see their legs? That's Buck at the moment. With purple booties. I'm so, so sorry, little buddy.

I probably shouldn't go because I'm writing next week's cover story, but I'm unusually excited for Dinosaur Jr. on Saturday. Couldn't tell you why, exactly. I just am.

Though I know I won't, I should also probably remain inside Friday night, which might be the most jam-packed evening of local music in recent memory. I wrote about Nose Bleed Island's CD release at The Bakery in my column this week. And there's been plenty o' Farm love in the paper lately too — they're at The Monkey House with Lendway and Dark Nights of Camelot. (Note: Farm plays FIRST. You've been warned.) What I didn't tell you about was that Activists/Dictators are making a "surprise" appearance at the Bean following Blowtorch.

Speaking of Blowtorch, they finally have a MySpace page, and only 27 years after they got together!

So does this Bill Mullins project.

And this one. Can a Twitter feed be far behind?

Yes.

Also on Friday night are The Smittens — complete with Max Smitten! — at Parima. They'll be shooting footage for a Rob Hoier directed video for "100 Roses"  that night. As if that weren't enough, they'll be welcoming their good friends from Beantown, One Happy Island, with whom they'll be touring the UK this summer. I told you it was a busy night. To borrow a phrase, yow!

Did you know there is actually an article of clothing called the "Smitten?" It's like a Snuggie for your hands, but waaaay creepier. Check it out. I think we should take up a collection and donate a few to the band. Who's with me?

I want to start an acoustic ska/rocksteady band. I'm taking suggestions for names, ska puns strongly encouraged. Although I'll never actually name my band with a ska pun . . . again.

Unless it's REALLY funny.

Haven't confirmed this yet, but it comes from a reliable source: Liggy, the lighting dude from HG, has been hired to do lights for Wilco's summer tour. I knew I should have done stage crew instead of drama in high school.

Baseball starts in t-minus 3 days . . .

And finally, in regards to my last post, Starfucker is booked on 4/20!

But not in Burlington. They have an unpublicized college gig that night . . . damn. However, huge thanks to both Monkey House booking mogul Paddy Reagan and Tick Tick's Nick Mavadones for taking me seriously and actually looking into it, which I never, EVER imagined anyone would do on this one. Sometimes, I really do love this town.

And on that note, it's beer time.