Holy Shit! A Solid State Post!?!

Yeah, yeah. I know. It's been a while. I could make excuses for the dearth of posts this past month. I could offer sincere regrets, guarantees it will never happen again, solemn vows to be a more vigilant blurbsmith. But we both know such promises would, while well-intentioned, ring hollow, much like Hank Moody apologizing to his eternally wounded and increasingly jaded daughter, Becca, for the thousandth time: sincerely remorseful, yet fully aware — as she is — that he will inevitably fuck up again, most likely in boozy and spectacular fashion. (Yes, I've been on a "Californication" kick lately.)

Anyway, in the interest of playing catchup/stopping the bleeding/not doing other work, I thought we'd bust out an old fashioned smattering of randomness to get us relatively up to date. Here goes.

- This just in from Higher Ground: LoCash Cowboys have cancelled their appearance at the club scheduled for this Sunday. Figures, the one time I throw airbrushed pop-country a rhinestone-studded bone, I jinx the show. My bad.

- Wanna see some naked musicians? Local videographer Matt Day, on the heels of a successful opening at the BCA Center last month, finally has an online home for his Naked Musicians video project, nakedmusicians.com.  It's an interesting project, showcasing (mostly) local tunesmiths playing (clothed) in casual surroundings. It's also very well done. Plus, bonus points to Day for the lurid website title, which will undoubtedly draw a bazilion extra hits from pervy Googlers. Well played! Anyway, here's a vid from the project featuring Paper Castles.

naked musicians - Paper Castles from Matt Day on Vimeo.

- Any Amerpunkgrassrockjazzicana fans in the house? Go see the Defibulators at Nectar's on Thursday. Trust me.

- Remember back in February of 2010, when Rapper Big Pooh and his crew nearly died on I-89 when their van flipped en route to a show at Club Metronome? No? Well, they did. Not only that, they still played the gig. Anyway, it seems Pooh's group, Little Brother, recently broke up under some unfortunate and convoluted circumstances, as detailed in this excellent article in North Carolina's Independent Weekly by Grayson Currin, which leads with a description of the accident outside Randolph. (Full disclosure: this story is up for an AAN award this year, which is sort of like the Oscars for alt-weekly journalism. A story I wrote is actually nominated in the same category. But were I a betting man, my money would be on Currin. This is a prime example of arts-related alt-journalism at its best.)  

- I was on vacation when this was announced, but I couldn't be happier about Gillian Welch coming to the Flynn in October. As an aside, Welch's Time (the Revelator) remains the only album my dad has ever borrowed from me and never returned. I don't blame him. Tix go on sale Friday.

- Conan O'Brien gave James Kochalka some love recently.

- Burlington's e-sk (Slanted Black Records) was recently featured on Beatport.

- And last but not least, BURNTmd's track "Smuggler's Notch," featuring Keith Murray was just named a "Banger" by noted hip-hop rag XXL Magazine. I believe that's a good thing … (Seriously though, congrats, B)

 

 

Rejected Headlines: Philip Glass

Writing snappy headlines is hard work. No, really. It is. Choosing a handful of words that both grab the reader's attention and impart some clue to what a story is about can be an exercise in madness. And especially in a pun-friendly environment like 7D, there is a fine line between clever and precious.

This week's edition features a story I wrote about composer Philip Glass, an enigmatic and intimidating figure if ever there was one. Given his stature, his body of work and the general direction and tone of our interview, deciding upon a headline that worked was especially challenging. There was a lot of brainstorming involved. And a lot of bad ideas. What follows are some of the best — by which I of course mean the worst. Feel free to add your own in the comments. 

- "The Imaginarium of Dr. Glass"

- "Art of Glass"

- "Breaking Glass"

- "Blowing Glass"

- "Wait … Philip Glass Scored Candyman 2?"

- "Shards of Glass"

- "A Brief Interview with Philip-fucking-Glass"

- "Minimalism: High Art, or Intellectual Masturbation?" 

- "The Glass Menagerie"

- "Minimalism: … "

- "Philip Glass: the Polka Years"

 

 

Indecent Proposal

It seems Parmaga's Bryan Parmelee ain't merely one hell of an indie rock songwriter. He also does a pretty good Foghorn Leghorn, as seen in this recent short depicting a pair of local citizens concerned over the recent Lockheed Martin proposal, and Parmelee as a Lockheed snake oil salesman. Enjoy …

 

Rock Madness

The union of music and sports is often imperfect. And in some cases, it is downright ugly. (See: Every Super Bowl halftime show ever, any NBA player turned rapper, and every time I've so much as whispered "Red Sox" on this very blog.)

Part of the issue is that the fundamental cores of each pursuit are diametrically opposed. On a large scale, yes, they are both essentially forms of entertainment. But music is — ideally, at least — rooted in some degree of artistic expression, of intellectual or emotional creation. Conversely, sports are designed around competition, proving physical superiority at the expense of an opponent. 

Combined with a host of other social and cultural roadblocks, meshing sports and music presents a unique, and often insurmountable challenge. Aside from montages in sports movies and the occasional battle of the bands, they just don't fit. But that doesn't mean it's not fun to try.

With March Madness soon to get under way, ESPN Radio host Colin Cowherd has applied the college basketball tourney's bracket system to rock and roll, in an attempt to decide just who is the greatest rock band of all time. It's totally silly. However, while not without flaws, it's actually pretty entertaining.

For the non-sports inclined, here's the gist. 64 prominent bands, roughly spanning the history of rock, are separated into four groups — or, in NCAA tourney lingo, "regions." The bands in each grouping are ranked, 1-16, and then pitted against one another, highest seeds vs. lowest seeds. Winners are determined by fan voting, with the victorious groups moving on to the second round, then a "Sweet 16," "Elite 8," "Final 4" (consisting of the overall winners from each region) and eventually, a championship match.

The highest seeds are rock icons — think the Beatles, the Stones, etc. The mid-to-lower seeds are well known, commerically successful bands that, while perhaps not legendary, have (mostly) left some kind of significant imprint on popular music over the last 50 years. Particularly given the target audience — sports fans first, rock fans second — ESPN did a decent job of selecting and ranking bands. I would have likely come up with a slightly different group. (311 and Nickelback made the tourney and the Beach Boys didn't? U2 as a 1-seed? Seriously?) But whatever. Its close enough for jazz. Or for rock on a sports site.

The matchups between top seeds and bottom seeds are pretty much obvious blowouts — the Stones vs. Blink 182, Zep vs. Creed, etc. Where things get interesting are the middle brackets. Just like in the real tournament, the best chances for upsets are found in the 5-12, 6-11, 7-10 range, where the gap in talent, or at least rock iconography is narrower. Here we find some interesting hypothetical debates. For instance:

Seattle regional: 8-seed Motley Crue vs. 9-seed Weezer.

Based solely on personal taste, I'd vote Weezer 99 out of 100 times — the one exception being if I'm drunk at a bowling alley. But taking their careers as a whole into account, the Crue might actually have an edge. Weezer made two-and-half great albums, and a slew of dreck since. But do two transcendant records (The Blue Album, Pinkerton) beat the Crue's more consistent, but never particularly "great" output? Hard to say. Ultimately, it comes down to which is less wussy: Buddy Holly glasses and cardigans vs. feathered hair and tights. 

London regional: 6-seed Red Hot Chili Peppers vs. 11-seed Black Sabbath

On the surface, it looks like someone should be shot, or at least fired for this seeding. Boil it down, and we're essentially talking Ozzy (OK, and Ronnie James Dio) vs. Anthony Kiedis. It's Ozzy and Dio, and it's not close. But again, taking the scope of each band's career into account, the Chili Peppers are still relevant — at least where modern commerical rock is concerned — and have been through three decades. And it would be a mistake to overlook the contributions of Flea here. Meanwhile, Ozzy is making 4G commericals with Justin Bieber. Still, we're talking about Sabbath, one of the most important metal bands in history. This game is reasonably close in the first half. Then Sabbath pulls away in the second when Ozzy alley-oops Kiedis' severed head on a nice feed from Geezer Butler.

Cleveland regional: 6-seed Bob Marley & the Wailers vs. 11-seed the Beastie Boys 

Probably my favorite matchup, and one I really struggled with. But it calls into question how we define greatness. Marley is an icon, arguably more synonymous with his genre than any other artist, in any genre in history. On the other hand, I personally just prefer listening to the Beastie Boys. It may sound like blasphemy, but you can make a case that the quality and, perhaps more importantly, the sheer volume of the Beasties' contributions to pop music cumulatively approach those of Marley. At the very least, it isn't as lopsided a match as it might initially seem. Still, much like you wouldn't bet against Jordan or Bird in a big game, you gotta go with the legend. That's Marley.

Cleveland regional: 5-seed Phish vs. 10-seed the Ramones 

Another interesting debate, especially 'round here. I voted for the Ramones, but it wasn't as easy a decision as regular readers probably assume. Phish, no question, are a historically great band. But then, so are the Ramones. The tie-breaker for me wasn't personal preference, but whose historical significance was greater. Phish elevated the game, but will always be viewed as Clyde Drexler to the Dead's Jordan. The Ramones changed the game forever, altering the landscape of rock in way Phish, wile probably more "successful," never did. To hack the basketball metaphor even further, the Ramones would be like Dr. J, a revolutionary player who changed people's perceptions of how basketball could be played. Plus, in a sporting situation, I'll take aggressive vices like booze, coke and cigarettes over weed and hallucinogens any day.

I could go on with stuff for hours. But maybe I should cut to the chase and let y'all decide for yourselves. Here's the link. Feel free to debate in the comments. And go Def Leppard!

 

 

Slay Bells

'Tis the season to jolly. (Fa la la … and so on.) So, in the interest of spreading holiday cheer I present … Slayer, obviously. Thanks to Joe Cleary for passing this along.

 

Happy 9/02/10!

If you didn't grow up in the early 1990s, today's date may not have much significance for you. However, if you're old enough to remember "Beverly Hills 90210" — the original, not the atrocity currently airing — then September 2, 2010 is a glorious day indeed: 9/02/10. So with that in mind, I give you the one, the only, David Silver …

Take This Job And …

Nocturnals Play on Rooftop!

What's crackin', Solid State? I trust you're all enjoying yet another edition of Jazz Fest.

Speaking of which, I caught two pretty killer shows over the weekend. I dig into both shows a little bit in tomorrow's column, but the Parker Shper-led yoUSAy Placate at Radio Bean on Friday with local sax colossus Bryan McNamara sitting in was absolutely scorching. If you've yet to catch them, I'd recommend it if only to witness the sheer awesomeness that is drummer Phil Melanson. Holy hell, that guy is good.

Saturday, I dropped by the alley at American Flatbread for an early evening set by Anna Pardenik and the Holy Smoke-Off, who might just be my current favorite local band. For the uninitiated, the group is kind of a pared down spin-off of the rambling Vermont Joy Parade that made the rounds at Bonnaroo last year. AP&HSO boast a similar vagabond aesthetic and mix vintage jazz tunes with Pardenik's own indie folk(ish) originals. Also, they have a musical saw. (BTW, I'd forgotten how much fun it is to see music at Flatbread. That alley is really cozy. And as a friend pointed out, the stage kinda looks like it belongs in a nativity scene. Nifty.)

Anyway, here's some random stuff for your Tuesday afternoon:

The big news of the day is of course that Grace Potter & the Nocturnals are playing a free show, not on a rooftop, but on the Church Street Marketplace at 5:30 p.m. to celebrate the release of their new self-titled album, which comes out today. Say what you will about GPN — and I have — but giving a free outdoor concert in your hometown is still a pretty swell thing to do for your fans.

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Less swell is how Yeasayer's recent free show at Governor's Island in NYC went. Apparently, the unprecedented deluge of hipsters descending upon the ferry to the island evolved into the seventh circle of hell, leaving those who made it stranded on the island, and thousands who didn't stuck on the shore. On the plus side, it led to this hilarious blog post from Village Voice music ed Rob Harvilla, which chronicles the experience via random Twitter posts. 

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There hasn't been much written about the eTown Radio Show at the Flynn MainStage tomorrow, which seems odd given that the lineup features Anaïs Mitchell, Allison Moorer and Steve friggin' Earle. In fact, I had a recent email exchange with a pretty savvy local musician who had no idea Earle was even coming to town. In part, I imagine that's because the show's organizers scheduled it smack in the middle of Jazz Fest, making it easy for local press to overlook. Also, I haven't been able to touch the show, press-wise, because my brother, Tyler, is in the house band. Something about conflict of interest. Whatever. I'm pretty sure Ty gets paid the same whether anyone shows up or not. And really, this is all just an opportunity for me to remind you that I interviewed Earle last year. Moving on …   

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BTW, if there's time after the eTown show, I plan to stop by Manhattan Pizza to catch The Persian Claws, The Fatal Flaws, and these guys:

Jacuzzi Boys - Smells Dead from John McSwain on Vimeo.

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Last but not least, here's a shameless plug for a 7D sponsored event, also on Wednesday: The Cooler at the Firehouse Plaza at 6 p.m. The cocktail party will feature music from Queen City indie band Villanelles, who will have just wrapped up their live recording session as part of Burlington City Arts' Jazz Lab project.

     

Thursday Ramblings

A happy Thursday to you, Solid State! Feeling a little scattered today, so bear with me …

Higher Ground delighted aging hipsters (like me) around the region earlier this week by announcing that Broken Social Scene will play the Ballroom on Wednesday September 22. Tickets go on sale Friday at 11 a.m. And if it doesn't sell out by, say 11:03 a.m., I will never give Alex Crothers and Co. a hard about time about booking indie bands ever again.

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Speaking of Higher Ground: Li'l Kim. Wednesday, June 02. Really.

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I'll probably mention this in my column next week, but it never hurts to give new material a dry run, right? Anyway, earlier this week, I was minding my own business, just compiling some club listings for next week's issue when I stumbled across this listing for Thursday, June 20 Langdon Street Café website.

JP and the Tough Choices

J.P. Harris and The Tough Choices play Country-Goddamned-Music. Period. Sick and tired of the modern Pop-Country filth broadcast shamelessly and persistently across our beautiful countrysides, The Tough Choices set out to right the wrongs done to a music so classically and quintessentially American. As we speak, Hank Williams, Buck Owens, Carl Smith, and countless other champions of Honky Tonk are rolling in their graves, groaning with disgust over the watered-down contemporary excuse that Nashville presents us for Country Music. Save a few Randy Travis gems and Alan Jackson hits, this flim-flam is pathetic, at best.

And then, I noticed this curious addition to the band's press blurb …

FREE BEER IF YOUR NAME IS DAN BOLLES.

JP, you had me "country-goddamned music."

(PS- Not that I'm above boozy bribery, ahem, but I'll actually be on my way to Philadelphia that night. Sorry, boys. Another time, perhaps?)

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In the last week or so, I've had three or four separate people — none of whom are not involved with the band or promoting the show, mind you — email about how much they think I would personally like The Barr Brothers. The Slip-offshoot will be at Parima this Saturday. I'm only just digging in this morning, but I'll say this, any band that effectively uses a harp and hammer dulcimer is aces in my book. Here's a clip:

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As it turns out, Thom Yorke is fan of Vermont's own Bill McKibben and his website 350.org. Neat-o.

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Apparently, my column this week stirred up some grumblings in the local comedy community. Take it away, Wacky Pete …

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And last but not least, this week's paper contained an enormous production goof. Long story short, my lead music feature about local hardcore punk band Unrestrained and their upcoming bicycle tour of New England — yes, bicycles — was regrettably omitted from the print edition. Or, at least the first 700-ish words were. Do the band a solid and check out the full story here. And if you really want to help me make it up to them, you could attend their farewell show tonight at 242 Main.

Suck It Up, Buttercup

It's been like pulling teeth to get some blogging done around here lately. Sorry 'bout that. I could make excuses. But really, I just need to suck it up and make with the typing. So here 'goes, in rapid-fire, I'm playin' catch-up fashion.

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If you haven't submitted your application to take part in this year's Burlington City Arts JAZZLAB Studio Sessions during Jazz Fest … get on it already. The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, fer crying out loud. And just what the hell is JAZZLAB? Great question.

In official BDJF lingo, "JAZZLAB is an experiment in the effect of community energy and other organically developing factors on the [music] being created." In layman's terms, it's a chance for your band to jam at the Firehouse Center and work with JAZZLAB's engineers-in-residence Ben Collette and Rob O'Dea while people watch.

Sounds pretty cool, right? If you're interested in applying, email [email protected]

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Semi-regular 7D music section contributor Matt Bushlow has a new-ish gig working with VPR. His last bit was a nifty little farewell to The Cush. Check it out here.

By the way, I mention this now because I just received a nice email from Gabby Douglas, who says she and Burette are settling in nicely, deep in the heart of Texas.

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While perusing the Twitterverse this morning, I stumbled upon an interesting (and welcome) new addition to the local music blogosphere, On Permanant Rotation, written by Burlington web-builder and music nut, Brendan Bush. Today's post concern's this evening's Drunk Up Buttercup show at the Monkey House and includes the attached video from IndieATL.com.

Handling opening duties tonight is the Seth Gallant-led side project The Dirty Watts. In an email sent earlier today, the In Memory of Pluto front man writes that the band is "for fans of bad bar rock," adding "I may be kidding … then again, maybe not." How mysterious! Gallant adds that the band, which also includes members of Cannon Fodder and "a dude that works at City Market," are finishing up a debut EP which should be released … sometime. Rock and roll. And welcome to the fray, Brendan.

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Last but not least, and unrelated to music, this blog post by Village Voice editor Tony Ortega is exactly why I work for an alt-weekly newspaper (and hopefully why you read 'em).

Tune in tomorrow when we take a look at a new wine documentary starring Maynard from Tool. Really.

Pixel Dust

Ever wonder what would happen if Michael Bay did mushrooms while playing Atari?

PIXELS by PATRICK JEAN.
Uploaded by onemoreprod. - Watch original web videos.

New Hampshire: Just Like Vermont, Only Backwards

If the Midd Kid vid taught us what $50K a year buys you at Middlebury College, I guess this must be what half that — one-third if you're in-state — gets you at Keene State. Not a bad deal, all things considered. Anyway, here is "Granite State of Mind," a clever little spoof of Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind," from Boston-based satirists The Super Secret Project. Enjoy! (And note the nod to VT about midway through.)

Tuesday Link Dump: The Best Show I Never Saw

Word to the wise, if you ever check out a show at the new House of Blues (formerly Avalon) on Lansdowne Street in Boston, don't buy tickets for the Mezzanine. The mammoth nightclub's second floor balcony wraps around the sides and rear of room but has seriously limited sight lines. Unless you are among the first, say, fifty or so people there lucky enough to get a spot along the railing, there is literally no vantage point to actually, y'know, see the show.

So it was that I experienced Spoon at HOB this past Saturday, alternately trying to hop above the four and five deep rows of almost comically tall people in front of me for a glimpse of the stage, and craning my neck at a projection screen simulcasting the concert that was just delayed enough to be annoying. It was sort of like watching a Red Sox home game on TV at the Cask and Flagon, the famed Lansdowne Street bar that is literally twenty feet from Fenway Park — if you've never done this, imagine hearing a David Ortiz home run thirty seconds before you see it. I'm exagerrating a bit. But you get the idea. Thank God for the surprisingly reasonable Narragansett tall boys. And the sound. Good lord, the sound.

I honestly can't remember the last time I saw, er, heard a show with sound so crystalline and balanced. I've long thought that Spoon's Jim Eno (drums) and Rob Pope (bass) form rock and roll's coolest rhythm section. But I have a profound new appreciation for their work having heard them like that. It was electrifying. The same goes for keyboardist/percussionist Ed Harvey. As for lead singer Britt Daniel? Well, I still want to be him when I grow up. All in all, it was the best show I never saw.

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Speaking of Britt Daniel, did you know that he used to be this guy?

And speaking of assumed names, Stephen King's kid might just be, well, the next Stephen King. Or would that be the next Richard Bachman?

Are you a local musician wondering how Obamacare will affect you? Our old friend Casey Rae-Hunter at the Future of Music Coalition is here to help.

Your pledge dollars at work! NPR currently has Dr. Dog's new album, Shame, Shame — the band's first for Anti- — available for your perusal here. The record hits shelves, real and electronic, on April 6. And here's an interview I did with bassist Toby Leaman about the record in January.

Finally! The guy responsible for Battlefield Earth apologizes.

The old gray lady of rock ’n’ roll rags, Rolling Stone, unveils its list of "Best New Bands of 2010" this Thursday. Chief among them are none other than our own Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, who got their start in, um, 2002. Nice that someone is finally paying attention to them. (BTW, it's just a coincidence that Thursday is April Fools Day, right?) Anyway, here's a new video for "Tiny Songs," from their forthcoming self-titled album, which is scheduled for release on June 6.

Last but not least, the Montreal Jazz Fest has just announced another slew of concerts for this year's edition. They have also apparently adjusted the scope of the term "jazz" to include the likes of Andrew Bird, Lou Reed, Lionel Ritchie and Steve Miller. On a related note, the Burlington Discover Jazz Fest now has a Twitter feed where they are soliciting suggestions for this year's lineup. I mean seriously, who wouldn't want to see Lionel Ritchie at the Flynn? 

Apropos of Nothing

Sorry for the lack of postings this week. Lots on the ol' plate. Hows about I make it up to you with a link dump? And maybe an ice cream cone? Moving on …

First up, James Kochalka raised enough money for his Glorkian Warrior project. I'm guessing he's pretty, um, wired about that.

Our old pal, and former 7D intern, Tyler Machado, has a new music blog. He even beat me to the punch breaking the news about Marco Benevento playing a couple of shows at Parima. Do that again and see what happens, Machado. (Just kidding, Tyler … or am I?)

How's your bracket? Probably not as good as this kid's. His is quite possibly the only perfect March Madness bracket remaining in the country. Oh, and did I mention he's autistic?

Speaking of sports, ever wonder how your salary compares to, say, stupidly rich pro athletes? According to this nifty little time waster from ESPN, Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer — newly signed to an unfathomably huge contract — makes my annual salary for every 1/3 of an at bat. Or put another way, after every strike. I knew I should have paid more attention in Little League. 

Burlington-based songwriter Anders Parker (will I ever get tired of writing that?) has a new album of guitar instrumentals called Cross Latitudes. It is available only via download. Check it out here.

Congrats to Waylon Speed, who were just added to this year's Gathering of the Vibes fest. They are also releasing a sweet little debut album this weekend, which you can read about here.

For yet another year, I couldn't go, but here's the best piece about SXSW I've read so far, from the New York Times' Jon Pareles.  

Feels more like March today, doesn't it? Honestly, I'm a little relieved. St. Patrick's Day was way too early for signs of spring like Sun Dress Day, geese flying north or the Beansie's Bus pulling into Battery Park. Anyway, for some reason dreary March weather always puts me in the mood for Sufjan Stevens. That's not a bad thing.

Last but not least, I hope to hell this trailer is real.

"Weird: The Al Yankovic Story" from Aaron Paul

Tuesday Link Dump

It's Tuesday morning, it's bright and sunny outside and I'm stuck inside waiting for a repairman to show up. Sounds like a recipe for a link dump.

Today marks two months to the day since I quit smoking. Here's yet another reason why I'm glad I did.

I can't remember the last time I read the Sunday comics. I'm guessing it would be the last time I read a physical daily newspaper … on a Sunday … that had comics. Anyway, this past Sunday, local harmonica player Mark Lavoie snuck his way into this week's full color installment of Hi & Lois. I was always more of a Bloom County/Outland guy, myself. But this is pretty neat. In the strip, Ditto thinks he has the "Annoying Sister Blues" so he learns to play his brother Chip's harmonica by listening to old blues records — including one by Lavoie. By the way, you can catch Mark at 51 Main in Middlebury this Thursday.

Pitchfork Media is looking for interns in Brooklyn.

Came across this funny Wikipedia entry for "Music of Vermont" while reviewing the new Lady Lioness album last week. Gotta love Wikipedia.

This Boston Globe article makes the case for professional tribute bands. My one-word rebuttal: no.

Speaking of tributes, with Rough Francis set to release their debut EP of original songs this Friday, feels like a good time to revisit the story of Death. I think Jeff Howlett would agree.

Pure Pop was burglarized last week. According to police, the suspect is tall, male, white and still listens to CDs.

T-minus 19 days until Opening Day.

And last but not least, my current favorite band that I just discovered yesterday, Larry and His Flask, who will be at 242 Main this Thursday.

Tuesday Link Dump

Just noticed a serious backlog of bloggerly stuff on the menu. So in the interest of cleaning my plate for dessert, here's a good old-fashioned link dump.

First up, James Kochalka has the opportunity to live out a lifelong (8-bit) dream, but he needs our help.

Ditto our pals at Big Heavy World, who could use a kickstart in their efforts for a new server.

Higher Ground just announced a Flynn MainStage show with Rodrigo Y Gabriela. Tix go on sale this Friday.

Though it doesn't come out for another week, the studio recording of Anaïs Mitchell's folk opera Hadestown has already been garnering some strong buzz. And the nice folks at Brooklyn Vegan have three tracks available for download, including my current favorite cut, "Wait for Me" with The Low Anthem's Ben Knox Miller and Justin "BonfuckingIver" Vernon. Be sure to scroll to the end of that post for a lovely YouTube clip of Mitchell and Bon Iver performing "Lovin's for Fools" in Paris in 2008.

BURNTmd's new single, "Let's Get Ill" hit the streets today and is available on iTunes.

File under "Just Because" … hipster puppies!

When I spoke with her last week, Neko Case didn't know that Matador had posted this awesome advance track from the forthcoming New Pornographers record. (And yes, I totally just name dropped Neko Case right there. But how awesome is it that this loosely qualifies as local music news?)

Speaking of music news that loosely qualifies as being local, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals have a track on Almost Alice, a compilation of music inspired by or thematically related to Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland." GPN are in select company. Others appearing on the comp include Robert Smith, Franz Ferdinand, Avril Lavigne, Wolfmother and Plain White T's. Here's a video of the band performing their contribution to the comp, Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit." Gotta say, Grace's performance is pretty slick. (Rimshot!)

I almost feel guilty about it, but I'm loving this new video from Mayer Hawthorne which pays tribute to my all-time favorite Temptations song. (On a personal note, as a young buck songwriter, I totally cribbed the lyrics from "I Wish it Would Rain" in a song myself.)

And last but not least, the Planning Commissioners Journal wants to know your thoughts on cell phones and driving. No, it's not a local poll. And there's no music hook here either. But since I've nearly been run over twice this week by chatty motorists in Burlington, I figured I'd pass it along anyway. Hang up and drive, dammit. And then go vote.

Just Because …

Thanks to my kid sis, Ari, and the wonders of Facebook. Enjoy the snow day, Vermont.

’Tis the Season: Vol. 2

On the heels of yesterday's feel-good Muppets X-mas post, I thought I'd pass along a link that exposes a more unseemly — and friggin' hilarious — side of the holiday season, SketchySantas.com.

The website is, well, pretty much exactly what the  picture to the right suggests. It's like the Santa scene from "A Christmas Story," only much, much creepier.

Anyhoo. Here's the link. Enjoy.

Finger Follies

I am almost embarrassed that I find this as funny as I do. But if you're having the kind of day where you just need a (really) cheap laugh — as I am — just click here.

Maybe I'll Break Down And Get An iPhone After All

iPhone Commercial for Ex-Boyfriends - Watch more Funny Videos