January 2008 Archives

Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks will be hitting the Bowery Ballroom on March 31st and the Music Hall of Williamsburg on April 2nd. Their new album, Real Emotional Trash, drops on March 4th and it's amazing...

DOWNLOAD: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - "Baltimore"

STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS TOUR DATES
03-19 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
03-20 Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theater
03-21 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
03-22 Indianapolis, IN - Vogue Theater
03-23 Newport, KY - Southgate House
03-25 Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge
03-26 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
03-28 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
03-29 Philadelphia, PA - Fillmore
03-31 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
04-02 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
04-03 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
04-04 North Adams, MA - MASS MoCA

Hot Chip are out to make Made In The Dark gigantic. The album, that drops February 5th, will be showcased live at two intimate shows and the group just announced an April U.S. tour that includes an April 12th show at Terminal 5.

Also, in addition to their sold out Highline Ballroom show on February 2nd, Hot Chip will be dj'ing a FIXED-hosted afterparty at Studio B. The Studio B jam will also feature a live set from The Teenagers. $10 advance tickets available at Other Music........

HOT CHIP TOUR DATES
2/02 - New York, NY - Highline Ballroom
2/02 - Brooklyn, NY - Studio B (late night dj set)
2/04 - Los Angeles, CA - El Ray Theatre
4/10 - Philadelphia, PA Starlight Ballroom
4/11 - Washington, DC 9:30 Club
4/12 - New York, NY Terminal 5
4/14 - Boston, MA Paradise
4/17 - Chicago, IL Vic Theatre
4/18 - Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
4/22 - Seattle, WA Showbox
4/23 - Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom
4/24 - San Francisco, CA The Fillmore

Thom Yorke + Bad teeth + terrible laugh + English game show = funniest clip of 2008 (so far).

Also, you can watch Radiohead's new year's eve webcast, Scotch Mist - A Film With Radiohead In It, after the jump......

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds have posted the title track from , Lazarus, Dig!!! on their website. The song reminds me a little bit of the Butthole Surfer's commercial breakthrough "Pepper".........

DOWNLOAD: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!"
DOWNLOAD: Butthole Surfers - "Pepper"

Senator Barack Obama' is the winner of the Democrat Iowa caucus. His $9 million spent in Iowa, the most of any Democrat, got him just above 2/3 of the caucus goers. Edwards and Clinton each still walked away with just below 2/3 of caucus goers, which is good for Edwards and not good for Clinton.

On the Republican side, Governor Mike Huckabee slapped Mitt Romney. Both of them would be horrible Presidents.

Winning Iowa is great, but what's more important come November is the stunning number of Independents and registered Republicans who opted to participate in the Democrat caucus as opposed to the Republican caucus. The last time this happened, President Clinton ended up in the White House.

The last time a Senator was elected President was in 1960.

Past winners in Iowa and the primary election schedule after the jump...........

Does Israel know something about a Led Zeppelin tour in 2008 that the rest of the world doesn't know.......

The Megadeth organized Gigantour is scheduled to kick off mid-April and run through end of May. This year's festival will feature Megadeth, In Flames, Children Of Bodom, Job For A Cowboy, and High On Fire. Tour dates will be announced in the near future........

"None of this worries me -- Sept. 11, there were times I was worried."
-Rudy Giuliani's reaction to placing sixth in the Iowa caucus.

::Joseph Biden and Chris Dodd dropped out of the race for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. This not surprising, as neither of these distinguished Senators were able to rally support.

:: An estimated 67,000 Iowans cast votes for Senator Hillary Clinton. That got her only third place. On the other hand, Republican-winner Mike Huckabee only got a total of 32,000 Iowans to vote for him. That's less than half of the third place Democrat!!! Here's how it looks:
Percentage of total vote
24.5% Obama (D)
20.5% Edwards (D)
19.8% Clinton (D)
11.4% Huckabee (R)
Total Voter Turnout: 356,000

::The youth vote is what lifted Obama to victory. In 2004, only 4% of caucus goers were between the ages of 18-29. This time, it was over 11%. Of 18-29 year-olds, over 57% of them voted for Obama.

Justice at Madison Square Garden! Tuesday, March 11th. Tickets $49.50-$59.50. Sponsored by Myspace, presented by Bowery. Presale password is "edbanger"

Ican't imagine that they'll sell this out. Are they really this big?

As we told you awhile ago, The Black Crowes are doing a club tour in which they'll perform their upcoming studio album, WARPAINT, in its entirity. Tour dates listed below.

You can listen WARPAINT's first single, “Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution," on the Crowes' website here........

THE BLACK CROWES' WARPAINT ONE-NIGHT ONLY TOUR
02-Mar-2008 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom (1/18 @ Noon EST)
04-Mar-2008 New York, NY The Fillmore @ Irving Plaza (1/18 @ Noon EST)
05-Mar-2008 Boston, MA Somerville Theatre (1/18 @ Noon EST)
09-Mar-2008 Atlanta, GA The Tabernacle (1/18 @ 10AM EST)
15-Mar-2008 Austin, TX SXSW @ Stubb's BBQ (SXSW Show)
20-Mar-2008 Los Angeles, CA The Avalon (1/18 @ Noon PST)

Recent Frenchkiss signees The Dodos March jaunt will see them accompanied by fellow Bay Area rockers Thee OhSees, while they’ll be making a stop at Coachella in April to serve as the backing band for Brooklyn avant-jam set Akron/Family. The band will be touring in support of the March 18th release of Visiter, their full-length debut for Frenchkiss.......

DOWNLOAD: The Dodes - "Fools"

THE DODOS TOUR DATES
01-28 Manhattan, NY @ Mercury Lounge
02-02 Brooklyn, NY @ Union Pool
02-15 San Jose, CA @ The Blank Club
02-28 San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord/Noise Pop
03-08 Los Angeles, CA @ The Smell/Los Angeles (all ages) *
03-09 San Diego, CA @ The Elephant Bar/San Diego *
03-11 Juarez, Mexico @ The Line Bar *
03-12 – 03-16 Austin, TX @ SXSW
03-19 Ft. Worth, TX @ Lola’s
03-22 Marfa, TX @ Ballroom
03-23 Houston, TX @ Mink
04-04 Annandale on Hudson, NY @ Bard College
04-19 Bloomington, IN @ Culture Shock Festival
04-20 Lawrence, KS @ Replay Lounge
04-21 Denver, CO @ Hi Dive
04-26 Coachella, CA @ Coachella Festival **
* w/Thee OhSees
** - as part of Akron/Family

Jose Gonzalez’ "Green" Tour of North America. The tour, which starts on February 29th in Miami, FL, is in partnership with Reverb (www.reverbrock.org), a non-profit organization designed to educate and engage music fans and promote environmental sustainability. There will be a 50 cent add on to general ticket purchases that will support Reverb’s greening efforts. Pre-sale ticket purchasers via Ticketstoday (links below) will also have the option to add an additional 50 cents to NativeEnergy's CO2 Offset program. At the shows, fans will have the opportunity to purchase a custom Jose Gonzalez sticker, the money from which will be used to purchase carbon offsets generated from travel to and from the show. Reverb will also have a presence at the merch booth.

Music Today will do pre-sales for Jose’s new tour from Jan 7th-11th. General Sales begin Jan 15.

Tickets Available @
USA PRE-SALES - http://www.josegonzalez.tickets.musictoday.com
CANADIAN PRE-SALES - http://www.josegonzalezIntl.tickets.musictoday.com

JOSE GONZALEZ TOUR DATES
February 29 – Miami, FL: Airtime Theater
March 01 – Orlando, FL – The Social
March 02 – Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
March 03 – Chapel Hill, NC – Great Hall (UNC – Chapel Hill)
March 04 – Asheville, NC – Orange Peel
March 05 – Washington, DC – Sixth & I Historic Synagogue
March 06 – New York, NY – Terminal 5 (Plug Awards)
March 07 – Tarrytown, NY – The Tarrytown Music Hall
March 08 – Philadelphia, PA – World Café
March 09 – Morgantown, WV – WVU Creative Arts Center (Mountain Stage TV Taping)
March 11 – New York, NY – Highline Ballroom
March 12 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Masonic Temple
March 13 – Boston, MA – Paradise
March 14 – Montreal, QB – Musee Juste Pour Rire
March 15 – Toronto, ON – Phoenix
March 17 – Chicago, IL – Lakeshore Theater
March 18 – Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theatre
March 19 – St. Louis, MO – Graham Chapel (Washington University)
March 20 – Omaha, NE – Sokol Underground
March 21 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
March 22 – Salt Lake City, UT – Union Ballroom (University of Utah)
March 24 – San Diego, CA – San Diego Women’s Club
March 25 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
March 27 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore Auditorium
March 28 – Portland, OR – The Aladdin Theatre
March 29 – Seattle, WA – The Triple Door
March 30 – Seattle, WA – The Triple Door
March 31 – Vancouver, ONT – St. Andrew’s Wesley United

Brian Bell of Weezer recently posted an update on the band's upcoming sixth album:

Greetings fellow Weezer-ites. We'd like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and the Happiest of New Years.

And it's going to be a very happy one because album six is finished and personally I think it's our best yet. Never have the four of us worked so hard and passionately on an album and we all look forward to performing this culmination of our talents and combined knowledge in 2008 in a city near you!

If you didn't know, Rivers Cuomo also put out an album of his demos called Alone.

Black Mountain's In The Future comes out on January 22nd and it's pretty fantastic. They're going on a crazy long tour with a rotating crew of acts including Howlin' Rain, Blood on The Wall, Bon Iver and Ladyhawk.

The tour hits the Bowery Ballroom on February 22nd with Bon Iver opening. Ttckets are now on sale........

BLACK MOUNTAIN TOUR DATES
January 31 Seattle, WA - Neumo's *
February 2 Portland, OR - The Doug Fir *
February 4/08 San Francisco, CA - The Independent *
February 5/08 Los Angeles, CA - The Troubadour *
February 7/08 San Diego, CA - Casbah *
February 8/08 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress !
February 13/08 Birmingham, AL - Bottle Tree !
February 15/08 Atlanta, GA - The EARL !
February 16/08 Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle !
February 17/08 Chapel Hill, NC - The Local 506 !
February 19/08 Washington, DC - The Rock and Roll Hotel #
February 20/08 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's #
February 22/08 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom #
February 24/08 Boston, MA - Middle East Upstairs #
February 25/08 Portland, ME - The Space Gallery #
February 26/08 Muncton, NB - The Manhattan #
February 27/08 Halifax, NS - The Marquee Club #
February 29/08 Montreal, QC - La Sala Rosa #
March 5/08 Toronto, ON - Lee's Palace #
March 7/08 Louisville, KY - Headliners #
March 9/08 Knoxville, TN - The Pilot Light #
March 10/08 Nashville, TN - Exit/In #
March 27/08 Winnipeg, MB - Pyramid Cabaret ^
March 28/08 Regina, SK - The Distrikt ^
March 29/08 Saskatoon, SK - Amigo's ^
March 31/08 Edmonton, AB - Starlite Room ^
April 1/08 Calgary, AB - The Warehouse ^
April 5/08 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom ^
* w/ Howlin' Rain
! w/ Blood on the Wall
# w/ Bon Iver
^ w/ Ladyhawk

Rumor has it that Michael Jackson will do a thirty night stint at London's O2 Arena this Spring.

Prince did a 21-night residency at this venue. The Spice Girls did a 17-night residency. And it's also where Led Zeppelin reunited.

The last live performance Michael made was September 10, 2001, at Madison Square Garden. That show, the second of a two-night not-sold-out stint, featured numerous other artists (Missy E, *NSync, Whitney Houston) covering MJ's music, while he watched them side-stage........

And you thought the RIAA was full of lunatics:

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - What the ...? A St. Louis-area town is considering a bill that would ban swearing in bars, along with table-dancing, drinking contests and profane music.

City officials contend the bill is needed to keep rowdy crowds under control because the historic downtown area gets a little too lively on some nights.

Everybody get footloose.........

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report returned to television last night and it was pretty awful. Both shows spent a majority of their time playing old-clips and talking about the strike. It wasn't really funny and you know that it can only get work.

I kind of wish neithre of them would have returned without their writers, especially considering that they both have two of the best writing staffs on television.........

Senator John McCain slapped Romney down in his own backyard. The Republican party is still a wide-open race, with no clear front-runners.

Senator Hillary Clinton showed her muscles by narrowly winning the popular vote over Senator Barack Obama in the New Hampshire primary, even though both of them walked away with 9 delegates. Sorry Edwards, but this is really a two person race now.

This election is more unpredictable than a Pitchfork review!

DELEGATES DASHBOARD
Democrats: Obama (25) , Clinton (24), Edwards (18)
Republicans: Huckabee (31), Romney (19), McCain (7), Thompson (3), Hunter (1)

PRIMARY ELECTION SCHEDULE
January 3, 2008 Iowa
January 8, 2008 New Hampshire
January 15, 2008 Michigan
January 19, 2008 Nevada
January 26, 2008 South Carolina
January 29, 2008 Florida
February 5, 2008 Super Tuesday

This could be one of the first to make my "Best Shows of 2008" list......

Thursday, January 24 8:00 PM - 11:55 PM ($25 Tix)
Friday, January 25 8:00 PM - 11:55 PM ($25 Tix)
VICE & boomBOOM Presents:
An Evening With Neurosis, special guests Mastodon and US Christmas
BROOKLYN MASONIC TEMPLE
Fort Greene Brooklyn
317 Clermont Ave at Lafayette Ave

Fresh from touring with Maroon 5, The Hives are back for a headlining tour of America. The Donnas support. Tickets for their March 7th show at New York's Terminal 5 go on sale Friday at noon.........

THE HIVES TOUR DATES
Feb 19 The Wiltern Los Angeles, California
Feb 20 The Filmore San Francisco, California
Feb 21 Roseland Theater Portland, Oregon
Feb 22 Commodore Ballroom Vancouver, British Columbia
Feb 23 Showbox SODO Seattle, Washington
Feb 26 Ogden Theatre Denver, Colorado
Feb 28 First Avenue Minneapolis, Minnesota
Feb 29 Riviera Theater Chicago, Illinois
Mar 1 Newport Music Hall Columbus, Ohio
Mar 2 Agora Theater Cleveland, Ohio
Mar 3 Kool Haus Toronto, Ontario
Mar 4 Club Soda Montreal, Quebec
Mar 7 Terminal 5 New York, New York
Mar 8 930 Club Washington DC, Washington DC

With Maxwells, Music Hall of Williamsburg and their February 25th show at the Bowery Ballroom all nearly sold out, Welsh-rockers Super Furry Animals have added a second date at the Bowery Ballroom. Tickets for their newly added February 24th show go on sale this Friday at noon.......

Tickets go on sale today at noon for The Mountain Goats two area shows, March 18th at Webster Hall and March 19th at the Music Hall of Williamsburg.........

DOWNLOAD: The Mountain Goats - "Sax Rohmer #1"

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS TOUR DATES
February 19 - Anchorage, AK
February 22 - Vancouver, BC, Richard's on Richards
February 23 - Seattle, WA, Neumos
February 25 - Portland, OR, Doug Fir
February 26 - Portland, OR, Doug Fir
February 27 - Eugene, OR, WOW Hall
February 29 - San Francisco, CA, Bimbo's
March 1 - San Francisco, CA, the Independent
March 2 - San Francisco, CA, Bottom of the Hill (matinee)
March 4 - Los Angeles, CA, the Troubadour
March 5 - Los Angeles, CA, the Troubadour
March 13 - Northampton, MA, Pearl Street
March 14 - Boston, MA, Museum of Fine Arts
March 15 - Boston, MA, The Middle East
March 18 - New York, NY, Webster Hall
March 19 - Brooklyn, NY, Music Hall of Williamsburg
March 20 - Philadelphia, PA, First Unitarian
March 22 - Washington, DC The Black Cat

Following his defeat in New Hampshire, Senator Barack Obama brings his Presidential campaign to Jersey City this afternoon. You can rsvp here..........

Rally with Barack Obama in Jersey City
Wednesday, January 9th
Doors open at 2:30 p.m.
-------------------------------------
St. Peter's College
Yanitelli Center
2641 John F. Kennedy Boulevard
Jersey City, NJ

Radiohead's In Rainbows is debuts at #1 on The Billboard 200, selling an estimated 122,000 hard-copies. Not bad considering that the album has been available as a download for the last two months.

The band also announced the cities that they'll be touring in this spring/fall. Full release after the jump........

Hot Chip tour presale is going on now. Here's the info.......

HOT CHIP TOUR PRE-SALE
April 10th, Starlight Ballroom, Philadelphia | Password: madeinpa
April 11th, 9:30 Club, Washington | Password: madeindc
April 12th, Terminal 5, New York| Password: madeinny
April 14th, Paradise, Boston| Password: madeinma
April 17th, Vic Theatre, Chicago | Password: madeinil
April 18th, First Avenue, Minneapolis | Password: madeinmn
April 22nd, Showbox, Seattle | Password: madeinwa
April 23rd, Crystal Ballroom, Portland | Password: madeinor
April 24th, The Fillmore, San Francisco | Password: madeinca

Last night at Bowery Ballroom, singer-songwriter Kate Nash drew a diverse crowd to her show: girls who knew all of her lyrics, dudes who either pointed or stared (some prefer baked goods*), and a few shouting idiots. And all of these people managed to make it there before her oddly early 9 PM set.

Kate's show was a looser, stripped-down version of her album, Made of Bricks. Paul Epworth's (Phones) shiny indie-electro production comes out live as folksy piano, guitar, and drums. But Kate's songs really are that simple. She exudes a wholesome girly charm on stage that makes her very likable. Her darker side is in her lyrics about girls wearing all black, drinking, or tagging around with skeletons. Yet everything is so feel-good those stories also appear wrapped in bows or covered in cute stickers. On first listen, Kate Nash seems like a guilty pleasure but actually she makes some very well crafted pop songs and delivers them with a lot of wit and charm.

Wednesday night's show was very similar to the last time she was her at Luna Lounge and Joe's Pub with a few more songs added in and more banging on the piano at the end. She is not quite Regina Spektor or Lily Allen, but Kate Nash could be huge in the US, especially if 13 year-old girls get wind of her music.

*No cookies were exchanged this time, only deep gazes.

We kindly welcomes Chicago's Office as guest bloggers to Product Shop NYC. In 2007, they released the impressive "A Night at the Ritz" on Scratchie Records. While "A Night at the Ritz" was Office's first proper album, it followed four self-semi-released albums that got the band a lot of love in the second city.

Scott Masson of Office writes "A Little Bit of Oldschool, A Little Bit of Newschool, and The Death of Cool"..........

During the 60s, bands would often release 2 albums per year, along with multiple singles (45 rpm records) in-between their full-length efforts. They had radio shows to perform at, TV spots, interviews with magazines, newspapers, grueling tours, etc. These were also the days before "convenient" digital software for musicians and listeners, world-wide piracy, internet promotional campaigns, as well as the notion of being able to record on more than 4 tracks in the studio at the same time. Recordings were done on magnetic tape reels, and mistakes were often repaired by either playing it again from the top, or with scissors and a tape-splicing device. Or, better yet, the producer left the mistakes in to remind the audience that it was, in fact, a human performance. Usually, the recording process required musicians playing together in one room, over and over again, until the right "take" was captured. The idea of musicians and producers being able to record huge, high-quality productions in the comfort of their own homes was still virtually unheard of yet.

With that being said, I often find myself wondering: What went wrong after this era? Why does music sound harsh, even though I can hear it clearer? Even with all of these new modern-day inventions and advantages, why do good artists take even longer in-between their releases? Are artists just lazier now? Is it their fault, or is it the way the industry is working? Why has the quality of song writing gone downhill in pop music? Are things getting too chaotic for us? Why are there so many bands out there right now? Why do so many of them look and sound the same......even in the underground? With all of these so-called technological advantages, why does every great artist I know feel like they were born in the wrong era, especially after their computer or hard-drive crashes?

I could write a dissertation trying answer these questions, but I must refrain during this assignment.

In a digital age where prolific artists are finding themselves in the ironic predicament of not being able to release their music quickly enough, I feel we must look to the past and future simultaneously to address a lot of these questions, re-assess our musical purpose, maintain our artistic control, create a better business strategy, develop more hybrid techniques, encourage better songs and production, encourage better communication, and get sounds into circulation upon their completion, so listeners can experience music's development and relevancy firsthand as it goes.

We discover, however, that a lot of major label bands and labels are too busy studying haircut styles and marketing trends these days, rather than focussing on the power of a good record. Indie bands and taste-makers fear a decent melody because they somehow mean "commercialism", which goes against everything that's "cool". As a result, originality is thrown out the window, money that could've been spent elsewhere is being spent on a lot of future failures, paranoia in the business runs amok, and some boyish-looking man with face plugs, frosted tips, and a fashion line becomes the poster child for musical achievement.

Most of us in this band are vinyl hounds, or analog freaks, and we don't really like to think about the stuff above, but we have to be aware of its existence. We came up with an idea recently, and pitched it to our label, Scratchie / New Line, and they agreed to let us try it out. The idea of hybrid communication has always interested us. We love the combinations of analog tape or vinyl, and the convenience of the digital realm. There was a decision to apply the same approach to how we release our music for awhile. Every three months until we record our next album, OFFICE will release a limited edition 45 rpm record containing both an A-side "single", and a B-side support track. Two weeks later, it will be released digitally. What this accomplishes: 1) It satisfies our thirst for creativity. 2) Allows us to stay actively involved with our listeners in-between full-length releases. 3) It helps us pay off our debts. 4) It helps keep momentum going within our group. 5) Keeps us from getting lazy in-between touring. 6) Allows us to share music directly with our listeners the moment it's completed, for relevancy purposes.

Digi-vinyl is the future.

S. Masson

Tickets sold out immediately for the Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks two NYC area shows, so they've added an April Fools Day show at the Bowery Ballroom. Those tickets go on sale Monday at noon.......

Earth Crisis, the influential straight-edge vegan hardcore band, played some reunion shows in 2006. They've announce a full reunion tour for 2008 with a five-band support line-up that includes Down To Nothing, Recon, Shai Hulud, Sworn Enemy, and Terror.

The tour hits the Blender Theatre in New York City on March 1st. Tickets go on sale Wednesday, January 16th, at noon.......

DOWNLOAD: Earth Crisis - "End Begins"
DOWNLOAD: Earth Crisis - "Deliverance"

EARTH CRISIS TOUR DATES
February 29, 2008 Worcester, MA The Palladium
March 1, 2008 New York, NY Gramercy Theatre
March 2, 2008 Pittsburgh, PA The School
March 3, 2008 Detroit, MI Magic Stick
March 4, 2008 Chicago, IL Logan Square Auditorium
March 5, 2008 Omaha, NE Sokol Underground
March 6, 2008 Denver, CO Marquis Theater
March 7, 2008 Logan, UT Club NVO
March 8, 2008 Boise, ID The Boise
March 9, 2008 Seattle, WA Studio Seven
March 10, 2008 Portland, OR Hawthorne Theater
March 11, 2008 San Francisco, CA The Boardwalk
March 12, 2008 Hollywood, CA The Knitting Factory
March 13, 2008 Long Beach, CA The Vault
March 15, 2008 El Paso, TX Chic's
March 16, 2008 San Antonio, TX White Rabbit
March 17, 2008 New Orleans, LA The High Ground
March 18, 2008 Orlando, FL Backbooth
March 19, 2008 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
March 20, 2008 Richmond, VA Alley Katz
March 22, 2008 Cleveland, OH Peabodys
March 23, 2008 Albany, NY Northern Lights

One of the best shows/parties of last year was New York Magazine's Karaoke Shindig with Of Montreal.

It seems that New York Magazine agrees and will host a "New York by " party on January 31st at Studio B, only this time the backing band will be The Thermals! Tickets are $20 and now on sale......

OF MONTREAL | Live Karaoke at Studio B, Michael Showalter as Alan Shemper, Paul Rudd & David Wain

Once again we check in with guest blogger Office. This time they talk about some tour experiences. They spent almost all of 2007 on the road with bands like Earlimart and Tigercity, which included great sold out shows at Brooklyn's Studio B and Manhattan's Mercury Lounge. The band is currently planning extensive touring for 2008......

It's very difficult to get on a good tour these days. Up-and-comers are put on a waiting list, so they can be added onto campaigns with bigger bands, gas prices soar, car troubles ensue, tour support funding is heavily guarded, and money from the promoter is scarce for each opening act....even if they are performing onstage right before a huge band. It's more about promotion at that point. "You should be thankful that your opening for us!", type of thing. A business game of leverage and experience.

Ironically, fans and friends will write us on the internet, asking our band basic questions like: "When are you coming to my town?" It gets awkward for us at this juncture, because most bands would love to perform anywhere, at any given moment.

Money really is the root of all evil, it seems.

As we approach a new era of gasoline prices and music business politics, bands need to plow through the chaos more than ever before, and really take the approach that "every show counts", no matter how many people are in the audience. The days of partying every night, trashing hotel rooms, riding around in a giant tour bus, and hooking up with groupies are over. New bands come and go on a daily basis. Live performance becomes the only legit way of creating a dialogue with your audience. One minute, you're a "buzz band", and the next minute, taste-makers and blog-core critics are hammering away at your measly existence in the musical landscape. It's very difficult, so taking the job seriously is the only approach that works. If you're energetic and inspired onstage, you'll be fine.

We offer a little touring list for 2008:

1. Drink as little alcohol as possible. If you're going to "party", make sure you don't have anything to do the next day. When you're drunk, you might think you're brilliant, but you're not. Just keep your celebration and performance separate. People don't pay money to see you fall apart onstage. I learned this in Denver a few weeks ago, when I mixed my medicine with a few beers. (Sorry, Denver!).
2. Get a GPS system for your car. It's totally worth the $250. It cuts down on the travel time, takes you right to your destination, helps you navigate throughout the night when you're tired, zoned out, and the rest of the band is asleep. It also prevents you from getting lost in a storm, and the tight clutches of mountain driving.
3. Don't call attention to yourself on the road (666 bumper stickers, Grateful Dead banners on the side of the van, or anything else that screams: "This vehicle is full of musicians!").
4. Sleep in as often as possible. Take "cat naps" before shows, or on the road.
5. Stop at a grocery store, if you can, and make sure you have fruit and healthy snacks in the van. Once you get pulled into the gas station diet, it becomes a difficult habit to break. That food is garbage, and loaded with chemicals, salt, and sugar. Your performances will suffer if you don't feed your body with real food. If there are no other options, buy bottled water and nuts, or granola bars. Cheetos and candy will ruin your music career!
6. If the band is tense, close your mouth, and don't add any more to the stress. Wait it out. I guarantee you will get better in a few hours.
7. Spend some quality time by yourself every day. Go for a walk after sound check, or when you wake up. Take some time to reflect, and not fill every minute of your day with talking to band mates, fans, friends, cell phone calls, or to people in other bands.
8. If an argument happens with somebody in the band, address it immediately. If they are stressed or hormonal, just accept it, and close your mouth.
9. Put your iPod on shuffle mode, and use all that time in the automobile to discover new music you don't normally listen to.
10. Get two hotel rooms, if you can afford it. One will be for the people who want to stay awake after a show. The other one will for those who want to sleep, or read.

S. Masson

Another excellent track has leaked from the upcoming Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks album, Real Emotional Truth. This disc is shaping up to be an early contender for a disc of the year....

DOWNLOAD: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - "Gardenia"
(via Julio Enriquez)

Once again we check in with guest blogger Office.......

Why Chicago?

Being heavily immersed in the Chicago music scene, we've had the luxury of performing and collaborating with some great bands since our inception. It's been my belief that for the last couple of years this city has slowly become the epicenter of new American music, due to it's manageable economy, geography, and camaraderie between the artists.

Economics is just one important issue to factor in while attempting to create a new movement in music. Artists need to have the ability to work freely and efficiently, and all great music requires a decent amount of time and resources. One of the reasons I came to Chicago in 2002 was because it was cheaper than living in LA or NYC. I knew it was possible for me to hold down an apartment within a vital neighborhood, take care of my living expenses, and still have the time and space necessary to work on song-writing. The rent is cheaper in Chicago compared to other major cities, and the musical and cultural history travels deep. This was crucial in my decision to move here.

I could have made the choice to move to Detroit after college. There I could live cheap, and be close to my family and the town I grew up in, while also contributing to Detroit's rock and roll renaissance. For some reason, however, I knew the garage rock crowd would hate my song-writing, especially since it relies more on melody and lyrics, as opposed to volume and pentatonic swagger. New York seemed enticing as well, and it, too, was having its own rebirth as well. After a little research, I realized that I'd never be able to survive with one job in New York, let alone have enough room in a closet-sized apartment for all of my equipment. Plus, its size and pace are not conducive to sharing with a lot of people. LA never appealed to me in the first place, so that wasn't an issue.

Kanye West and Common were just getting their feet wet within the national landscape when I moved to this city. The biggest artist around here was probably R. Kelly, and I wasn't about to follow his lead. All of my favorite Chicago rock bands from the 90s were either washed-up, split up, or involved in various recording projects. Depending on your perspective, the scene at that moment was "dead", or quite possibly just "fertile". For some people, this was a very difficult time to be a Chicago musician, but for me as a transplant, it was perfect. There was no rush to be a part of anything, because nothing was happening yet. I could work my day job, come home, write songs, record in my apartment, and meet new people. There was this feeling around Chicago that "anything could happen", and it took a lot of the pressure off.

Around 2004, OFFICE started to play more shows in the area, and people were starting to talk about our bizarre antics onstage. Great bands seemed to be forming everywhere, and the energy and pace of the music scene was gaining momentum. Pitchfork Media was becoming a near-household name, and festivals like Intonation, Pitchfork Festival, Mobfest, Tomorrow Never Knows, and Lollapalooza were bringing in people from all over the world. A year later, we released our demo album, Q&A, and ended up getting involved with these festivals. Our shows were getting bigger, and more money started coming in. Club owners and booking people knew us by name, bands we once felt intimidated by, were now asking us to play, and it seemed like you couldn't step into a bar or boutique without hearing OFFICE on the speakers. Even walking down the street, or sitting in a restaurant, I would see people reading newspapers with our picture in them. It was a bizarre time for us, but also very exciting. Our visibility in the market brought us to other bands, and we have had the unique opportunity of meeting some wonderfully talented individuals backstage.

By far, the best part of this whole experience was being able to establish connections and relationships with some of Chicago's finest: Devin Davis, The 1900s, The Changes, The Redwalls, My Were They, Mannequin Men, The Narrator, Star, Wilco, James Iha (now in NYC), Matt Roan, Kid Sister, and a host of writers, artists, musicians, clubs, bloggers, and people doing their part for the Chicago scene.

It's my belief that Chicago's spot on the map is just now getting noticed. We are the cosmopolitan pit stop for all bands on tour through the country, heading coast-to-coast. We hear everything from blues to jazz, R&B to hip hop, rock to punk, electronic to classical, avant garde to pop, and back again. Our geography, cheap rent, diverse culture, and transportation system keeps us grounded so we are still interested in what other people are doing. This is essential to any cultural movement.

I'm sure you'll hear about Chicago sooner or later. Until then....keep your ears to the ground.

S. Masson

DOWNLOAD: Devin Davis - "Iron Woman"
DOWNLOAD: Devin Davis - "Turtle & The Flightless Bird"
DOWNLOAD: Mannequin Men - "The Boys"
DOWNLOAD: My They Were - "Afterglow"

Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood and conductor Brad Lubman will lead a 50-piece Wordless Music Orchestra through a program that will include the American premiere of Greenwood’s Popcorn Superhet Receiver, better known as the Oscar-favorite score to Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood.

The performances will happen on January 16th & 17th at St. Paul the Apostle in New York.

If classical-noise isn't your speed, you may be interested in seeing if Radiohead-coverband The Karma Police at BB King Blues Club on Friday, January 18th, when they attempt to perform In Rainbows in its entirity. http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=30992211">You can hear them perform "All I Need" and "Bodysnatchers" on their myspace page......

Win Butler and the Arcade Fire crew are no strangers to talking politics. The Texas born-Montreal resident posted a piece in his "Scrapbook" section about watching Hillary Clinton win the New Hampshire primary.

I am watching Hillary Clinton in her victory speech in new Hampshire...they just threw a bunch of college kids behind her, and had her talk about student loans, and had her daughter come out for a long awkward hug...does anyone actually buy it? Surely young people are too media savvy to be fooled by this kind of shit.
do we live in a democracy so we can just keep electing the same families?
Barack is the first candidate in my lifetime to strip some of this bullshit away, and I just hope we don't blow this chance.
man if we miss this opportunity we don't deserve it...how bad does it have to get?

fuck!!!!!!!!!

So Win is supporting Barack Obama. So is Jeff Tweedy and Conor Oberst, both of whom have played benifits for the Chicago Junior Senator.

Personally, I'm not supporting Hillary in the primaries, but I don't think she deserves the vitrol hate that she gets. If anything else, it's one of the reasons she shouldn't be the Democrat nomination.

Also, when was the last time that the New York State primary mattered! How exciting....

My Morning Jacket join the list of confirmed bands for the 2008 editions of the Coachella and Bonnaroo festivals.

In addition, they also have announced a June 20th date at Radio City Music Hall. The pre-sale for this show - that is six months away!!! - goes on presale this Friday, June 18th, at 10am.

Here's the list of acts "supposedly confirmed" for Coachella 2008: Tegan & Sara, Portishead, The Verve, Battles, Dan Deacon, My Morning Jacket, The Breeders, Death Cab for Cutie, Goldfrapp, Spiritualized, Cold War Kids, Kid Sister, Sia, Hot Chip, VHS or Beta, Rabbit in the Moon, Heidi Vogel & The Cinematic Orchestra, Autolux, Markus Schulz, Simian Mobile Disco, Austin TV, Chromeo, Dredg, Kavinsky, Islands, Sons & Daughters.......

Here's some more guest blogging from Office........

Over the weekend, OFFICE played a benefit for Chicago Public Schools (CPS) with rapper extraordinaire, Common. The event took place at House of Blues in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 2,000 people, spanning the ages of 16 through 70.

Normally, we are very selective about the benefits we perform at, since there are so many issues in our society, and so many organizations trying to get their name established. If we played them all, our own organization would sink. In the case of the CPS benefit, the cause was something we all believe in. Public education, we feel, is an essential ingredient in any democracy. Conservative programs like No Child Left Behind attempt to pull funding from inner-city schools, create a standardized "cookie cutter" learning environment, prevent teachers from using their creativity in the classroom, and hold teachers accountable based on a curriculum that was developed by corporate hedgehogs who've never spent a day in front of a diverse group of students.

To me, I've always felt that standardized testing was a horrible idea, especially if it means that funding to a particular school is cut when that particular school doesn't meet the status quo. There is an insidious racism involved with this political practice, and it's also impossible to judge an entire classroom based the average score of one test, given on one day, in any given year. Every classroom consists of students from diverse backgrounds, various learning abilities, and customized needs. It's my belief that America should celebrate this diversity, especially when these kids are learning. Not only that, but lower the classroom size, so teachers are more able to pin-point problems in a student's ability, and develop strategies that will help this student grow. Ironically, this will also create more jobs in the school system.

For photos of the event, go to www.unratedmagazine.com

Here's a photo I took backstage of Erica and Jessica in a cage:

S. Masson

Tegan and Sara, who performed with a crazy puppet on "Pancake Mountain," posted a nice update on their myspace blog that attacks Facebook, talks about their new places in Vancouver (Tegan) and Montreal (Sara), and a bunch of new U.S. tour dates. You can read the full post after the jump.

The tour hits New York City's Terminal 5 on May 12th. Tickets go on sale Friday, January 18th. A pre-sale starts tomorrow, January 16th, at 10am..........

That high energy monster duo Free Blood will be rocking Death By Audio (49 South 2nd, Brooklyn) tonight at 9pm with Future Islands, Dard Bop, and DJ Dre Skull......

Governor Mitt Romney took his first official primary in Michigan (Sorry, the Wyoming Republican primary didn't count) and it couldn't have come at a better time for him.

If Romney lost this contest, it would likely have put him as a second-tier candidate, which more-or-less would have lost him any chance of getting the nomination.

Romney now leads the GOP delegate race. It looks like February 5th's super-duper Tuesday is going to be a very intense day for both parties.

The Democrats stripped Michigan of their delegates after the moved their primary date up...........

Have you bought Office's "Night at the Ritz"? You should. Now here's more from PSNYC guest bloggers.......

I used to feel pressure to succeed in pop music, but as I get older, I find myself caring less and less about how many people can "sing along", or how many people will relate to a particular piece of music.

In the 90s, my musical collaborators and I would structure mini rock and roll epics in the recording studio, complete with legatos, accelerandos, dissonance, and ornamentation...and compile these ideas with unconventional instrumentation in the hopes of making an impact within our immediate surroundings. That's always been the goal, and not much has changed since those days, apart from the length of the songs, and how they are performed. This ideology worked quite well for our creative spirit and learning curve back then, since none of us had any inclination of pursuing music as a career. Music was a dream. It wasn't until years later, however, where I found myself in the unique position of having thousands of people listening to the music I was taking part in. Some of these people were critics, and were judging it on regular basis, calling it "new wave" and "power pop". I don't know what these terms mean, since I prefer to describe it as "rock and ROLL". A big emphasis on the "roll".

From firsthand experience, it's a lot more difficult writing a 2 minute single like "Oh My" than writing a 10 minute piece that would take the listener on a musical journey. Neither of these perspectives hold any more musical merit than the next, since both of them are trying to achieve something entirely different. Making "hits" is something I've always had a sick fascination with, but we must first attempt to define what a "hit" really is.

What is a hit?

I used to think that a hit was a short piece of music that made an impact. To answer my own question now: I don't know. I don't even think I want to know what a "hit" is anymore. The songs that ingrain themselves into the psyche of the American public no longer speak to me. In my ears, Phil Spector's "Be My Baby" and Brian Wilson's "Good Vibrations" ring truer than anything Fall Out Boy or My Chemical Romance has written, or any song constructed by so-called "cool" bands found in the trenches of the taste-makers' cache.

Where's the love in pop?

I've never had one of our songs reach the Billboard Top 10, and part of me wants to avoid that situation at all costs, as long as the current state of affairs persists. As a veteran song-writer, I don't even think the majority of the American public are ready or willing to accept conclusive melodies in this day and age, let alone lyrics that actually say something outside the usual "I want you, baby" mentality. Production values and song-writing have simply travelled to a less-than-mediocre level, and I don't want to take part in the direction pop music is going anymore. I hear the phrase "industry standards" a lot, and I often find myself cringing at what these standards actually sound like. OFFICE has never been a part of this scene, but especially at this juncture in our career, we simply cannot bend over and succumb to any standardized way of making music.

Simply put, I've done all that I can do working within a simple pop formula, and to avoid being trapped by the confines of my own inventions and methods, I must move our project forward, and develop a new approach towards our structure of composition, lyrical voice, production methods, and visual aesthetic.

Here's a little glimpse of the past. This song is called "Sleep in Slow Motion", and it was recorded 10 years ago by Jeremy Freer and myself. The hipsters would be all over this if it came out today.

DOWNLOAD: Masson & Freer - "Sleep in Slow Motion"

S. Masson

Radiohead have made it a habbit to try and play every festival at least once. This year, the one-time Coachella headliners are strongly rumored to headline the first East Coast installment of Coachella that will happen at New Jersey's beautiful Liberty State Park. Uunfortunately, Coachella East Coast mat take place the same weekend that the new Vineland Music Festival is scheduled to take place.

Here's how the New York Times reports it:

The concert promoters behind the popular Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California will stage a three-day event in Liberty State Park, according to people briefed on the plans. The new festival, tentatively scheduled for Aug. 8 through Aug. 10, is to be presented by the promoter AEG and its Goldenvoice subsidiary. A competing event, the Vineland Music Festival, held by C3 Presents and Festival Republic, a unit of the concert giant Live Nation, is scheduled from Aug. 8 to Aug. 10 in Vineland, N.J. The band Radiohead and the singer-songwriter Jack Johnson have been mentioned as headliners at the Liberty State Park event, though a lineup has not been announced.

In a related story, Radiohead are playing a special live in-store at Rough Trade East in Brick Lane in the UK. Capacity at the store is 250 (if that). Yowza..............

Following two shows in Israel, Joe Jackson will be heading out on a major U.S. tour that includes a show Town Hall and the legendary Apollo Theatre. An internet pre-sale is now going on and the password is "Davidian".

JOE JACKSON TOUR DATES
Tue 03/25/08 Tel Aviv, ISR Zappa Club
Wed 03/26/08 Tel Aviv, ISR Hangar 11
Tue 04/01/08 Toronto, ON Music Hall Theatre
Wed 04/02/08 Montreal, QC Metropolis
Fri 04/04/08 Glenside, PA Keswick Theatre
Sat 04/05/08 Northampton, MA Calvin Theater
Mon 04/07/08 Somerville, MA Somerville Theatre
Wed 04/09/08 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie Theatre
Thu 04/10/08 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Sat 04/12/08 Kingston, NY Ulster Performing Arts Center
Tue 04/15/08 New York, NY Apollo Theater
Wed 04/16/08 New York, NY Town Hall
Sat 04/19/08 Homestead, PA Carnegie Library Music Hall
Sun 04/20/08 Ann Arbor, MI Michigan Theater
Mon 04/21/08 Milwaukee, WI Pabst Theater
Wed 04/23/08 Chicago, IL Vic Theatre
Thu 04/24/08 Chicago, IL Vic Theatre
Sat 04/26/08 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse
Mon 04/28/08 Austin, TX Paramount Theatre
Tue 04/29/08 Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom
Thu 05/01/08 Boulder, CO E-Town @ Boulder Th.
Sun 05/04/08 Seattle, WA Moore Theatre
Mon 05/05/08 Vancouver, BC Chan Centre For The Perf. Arts
Tue 05/06/08 Portland, OR Aladdin Theater
Sat 05/10/08 Redwood City, CA Fox Theatre
Sun 05/11/08 San Diego, CA Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay
Tue 05/13/08 Los Angeles, CA Orpheum Theatre

So tonight is the first of Wordless Music performances of Jonny Greenwood's Popcorn Superhet Receiver at The Church of St. Paul the Apostle in New York City.

Radiohead fans were very excited, especially because it would be a chance to see Jonny!

But how is Jonny performing in New York City if Radiohead is doing an In-store performance in England tonight?

I love the World Music Series, but they really, really, really misled people into believing that their event would feature Jonny............

The 2008 GIGANTOUR will feature the excellent line-up of Megadeth, In Flames, Children of Bodom, Job For a Cowboy and High on Fire. The tour hits New York City's Hammerstein Ballroom on April 22nd. Tickets are $41.50 and go on sale Friday at 10am.

A presale to Megadeth fan club members is now going on. The password is "SLEEPWALKER"...........

GIGANTOUR TOUR DATES
Sat 4/12 Denver, CO The Fillmore
Sun 4/13 Albuquerque, NM Journal Pavilion
Tue 4/15 Dallas, TX Nokia Theatre
Wed 4/16 Corpus Christi, TX Concrete Street Pavilion
Thu 4/17 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theatre
Sat 4/19 Louisville, KY Louisville Gardens
Sun 4/20 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle
Tue 4/22 New York, NY Hammerstein Ballroom
Thu 4/24 Worcester, MA Palladium
Sat 4/26 Baltimore, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion
Mon 4/28 Quebec City, QC Pavilion De La Jeunesse
Tue 4/29 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
Wed 4/30 Toronto, ON Arrow Hall
Thu 5/1 London, ON John Labatt Centre
Sat 5/3 Detroit, MI DTE Music Center
Sun 5/4 Cleveland, OH Time Warner Cable Amphitheater
Tue 5/6 Chicago, IL Aragon
Wed 5/7 Milwaukee, WI Eagles Ballroom
Fri 5/9 Minneapolis, MN Myth
Sat 5/10 Winnipeg, MB Convention Center
Sun 5/11 Saskatoon, SK Prairieland Exhibition Hall
Mon 5/12 Edmonton, AB Shaw Conference Center
Wed 5/14 Calgary, AB The Corral
Fri 5/16 Vancouver, BC Pacific Coliseum
Sat 5/17 Salem, OR Salem Armory
Mon 5/19 San Jose, CA Event Center @ San Jose State
Tue 5/20 San Diego, CA Cox Arena
Wed 5/21 Los Angeles, CA Long Beach Arena
Thu 5/22 Phoenix, AZ Mesa Amphitheatre

Our remix-happy friends at Streetlab sent three new jams our way. The first is an original composition, the second is a remix of Thieves Like Us, a Swedish American trio based in NYC. And the third is a funky little remix of INXS's "Need You Tonight," which reminds me of Dr Dre's remix of the Rolling Stones' "Miss You." Enjoy..........

DOWNLOAD: Streetlab - "NYSound"
DOWNLOAD: Thieves Likes Us - "Drugs In My Body (streetlab mix)"
DOWNLOAD: INXS - "Need You Tonight (streetlab '08 mix)"

Radiohead played a in-store-turned-tiny-club show in London. The show was webcasted on Radiohead.tv for all to see. It sounded amazing. It looked amazing. It was amazing. They played "In Rainbows" straight through at a club no bigger than the Mercury Lounge. Then they did an amazing five-song encore. I'm sure clips will be everywhere soon.

And hello Jonny..........

RADIOHEAD | 93 FEET EAST | 1-16-2008:
15 Steps / Bodysnatchers / Nude / Weird Fish/Arpeggi / All I Need / Fast Arp / Reckoner / House of Cards / Jigsaw Falling To Place / Videotape // Up A Ladder (Thom Solo Acoustic) // You and Whose Army // The National Anthem // My Iron Lung // The Bends

Will Ferrell's Funny or Die Tour Featuring Zach Galifianakis, Nick Swardson and Demetri Martin is coming to Radio CIty Music Hall on February 24th. The tour is all a big promotion for Will's upcoming flick, Semi-Pro, which opens February 29th.......

WILL FERRELL'S FUNNY OR DIE TOUR
Feb 4 Bramlage Coliseum / Kansas State / Manhattan, KS
Feb 5 Breslin Events Center / Michigan State / E. Lansing, MI
Feb 6 Schottenstein Center / Ohio State / Columbus, OH
Feb 11 Bryce Jordan Center / Penn State / State College, PA
Feb 12 Ryan Center / Univ. Rhode Island / Kingston, RI
Feb 13 Conte Forum / Boston College / Boston, MA
Feb 22 Dean Smith Ctr / UNC Chapel Hill / Chapel Hill, NC
Feb 24 Radio City Music Hall / New York City, NY

I hope you've been enjoying these Office guest blog posts.........

I highly recommend everything on this list. OFFICE-approved for January, 2008!

1. Book: Tearing Down The Wall of Sound: The Rise And Fall of Phil Spector by Mick Brown
2. Television show: Deal Or No Deal (not really!)
3. Movie: Superbad
4. YouTube video: "Worst Halftime Show Ever" (posted after the jump).
5. Song: You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' - Phil Spector and the Righteous Brothers - a true work of art.
6. Album: Bill Hick's Philosophy - Bill Hicks
7. Food: Saag Paneer
8. Magazine: TapeOp, and also CMYK.
9. Website: www.msnbc.com........of course!
10. Word: "redeem"
11. Person: Dr. Lynch
12. Drug: Lithium
13. Cocktail: Mojitos with lemon and lime.
14. Pastime: Cleaning
15. Candidate: Barack Obama

S.Masson

The buzz is building for the Brooklyn-based The Big Sleep's sophomore lp, Sleep Forever, which drops on February 19th from Frenchkiss.

On February 21st, The Big Sleep will play a killer record release party at the Mercury Lounge in New York City with Sian Alice Group, Priestbird and Heavy Creatures. Tickets are $10 and now on sale........

DOWNLOAD: The Big Sleep - "Bad Blood"

"Girls in Their Summer Clothes" is the best song that Bruce Springsteen and the E Street band have written since 1982's Nebraska sessions. Yeah, it's that good of a song and it's no surprise that it's the second single to be released from Magic. A digital EP is now available at iTunes that includes the new "Winter Mix" (a subtly tweaked mix from Brendan O'Brien) and a live version of the song.

On Saturday at 10am, tickets go on sale for Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band at Nassau Coliseum on March 10th.

While I love the live version posted above, you can watch the official video after the jump........

Wow. Road trip from Dollywood to Dr. Feelgood's Rock Bar & Grill? Who's in?

MOTLEY CRUE's VINCE NEIL Opens Dr. Feelgood's Rock Bar And Grill - Jan. 4, 2008

To celebrate the grand opening of the much-anticipated Dr. Feelgood's Rock Bar and Grill, the owners are inviting the public to a free street party and concert by rock legend, Vince Neil, MOTLEY CRUE's famous front man and a co-owner of the project. The celebration is scheduled to start on Saturday, January 19 at 7:30 p.m. and will take over the 200 block of Clematis Street in Downtown West Palm Beach where fans and Downtown patrons are expected to see Neil and his band perform some of MOTLEY CRUE's most famous tracks. The concert will be followed by a rock-inspired ceremonial ribbon cutting to officially open the new venue.

Named after MOTLEY CRUE's best-selling album, Dr. Feelgood's will be an attention-grabbing, rock n' roll-themed restaurant and nightclub located at 219 Clematis Street. The venue, which will initially be open from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. from Tuesday to Thursday and 5 p.m. to 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, is a creative collaboration between Neil, Washington Redskins offensive tackle Todd Wade, former University of Florida quarterback Bob Hewko, and South Florida nightlife visionaries Cleve Mash and Rodney Mayo.

If that doesn't kickstart your heart (hardy har har), then maybe this will. The Motley Cruise! A four day cruise that hits Key West, Miami and Mexico, and features performances by Vince Neil, Slaughter, Ratt, Skid Row, Endever After and Lynam. Does that sound like a nightmare or what..............

Downtown Records is getting set to release Carla Bruni's second album, No Promises, which sets poems by Yeats, Emily Dickinson, Auden, Dorothy Parker, Walter de la Mare and Christina Rosetti to music,.

Who is Carla Bruni? She is a former lover of Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Kevin Costner, Vincent Perez, Donald Trump and former French Prime Minister Laurent Fabius. Under much controversy, she is currently dating French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

And here's her take on W.B. Yeat's "Those Dancing Days Are Gone".........

DOWNLOAD: Carla Bruni - "Those Dancing Days Are Gone" (YSI)

If I were to describe our band in food terms, I would just shove a spoonful of this soup down your throat.

Here's the recipe. It's for vegetarian fans of Indian cuisine, and anybody else who likes their food spicy. It's absolutely delicious, easy, and incredibly healthy. Enjoy!

Arhar Daal (soup)
recipe by Kurma Dasa (used frequently by OFFICE)

Ingredients:
8 cups of water
1 1/2 cups toor daal
1 1/2 tsp salt
5 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp fresh ?nely minced ginger root
1 tsp fresh ?nely minced chilies or red chili paste
1 tsp tumeric powder
4 bay leaves
1 tbsp ghee

2 tsp black mustard seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp fenugreek powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida powder (hing)
4 tsp honey
3 tbsp ghee (clari?ed butter)

Method:

Cooking the Daal:
Sift & wash the daal thoroughly. Soak the daal overnight for a creamier soup.
Bring water and daal to a boil, add the salt, lemon juice, ginger, chilies, tumeric,
bay leaves, and 1 tbsp of ghee.

Cover and simmer for at least one hour, periodically stirring the soup.
Remove the bay leaves from the soup. Whisk the soup vigorously to break up the daal.

Frying the spices- the chaunk:
->Place the rest of the ghee (3 tbsp) in a small sauce pan. Heat the ghee in the pan until it is melted and hot.
->Add the black mustard seeds into the ghee. Once they begin to pop, add the cumin seeds and fry until they go brown.
->Add the fenugreek, asafoetida, and honey. Pour the chaunk directly into the soup. The soup should react violently.
->Cook the soup down or add water until the desired consistency is reached.

S. Masson

It's always sad to hear news like this about anyone.........

Allen’s spokesman said: "We can confirm that Lily Allen has suffered a miscarriage. She and her partner [Chemical Brothers'] Ed Simons will be making no further comment and we ask that their privacy be respected during this difficult time."

I fell into the music industry back in 2005. Here's what I've learned thus far:

1. Bands should never take promotional photos in front of a brick wall, or in a desolate industrial yard.

2. Be extremely nice and patient with the sound technician at every radio show, club performance, tv spot, etc.

3. Stay away from cocaine, if you want to make relevant music in your 30s and 40s.

4. Rehearse at least 3 times every week. Once = hobby. Twice = amateur. Three times = hungry professional.

5. Do not listen to FM radio.......ever!

6. Stay away from people who use the phrase "this is industry standard".

7. When a potential licensing gig comes through, high-ball the company. This lets them know that you aren't a chump. They will meet you half-way.

8. When you "finish" a song in the recording studio, spend another week on it. It can always get better. Play it for your friends before you sell it to the public. Keep track of their reactions.

9. A good font is crucial.

10. Don't sign anything with any manager ever. Find somebody who will work with you, and just pay them their 15-20% share. Both parties should be able to move on when they want to. Once he/she makes you $100,000 in a year, definitely keep them. Give this person a raise while you're at!

11. Never be a part of any genre or trend.

12. Listen to Motown.

13. Don't talk between songs while you're onstage, unless you have something entertaining to say.

14. Never believe your own hype.

15. Be nice. Always.

16. Treat your band well, even if you are the "lead friggin' singer".

17. Make sure everybody is paid equally for performances, merchandise, royalties, etc. If you wrote the song, keep your publishing rights. You'll make your cash there.

18. Talk to the fans, but don't get too close.

19. Be nice to interviewers and people writing about your band. Don't give them too much information either.

20. Sometimes......just lie!

When it came to chess, there is no doubt that Bobby Fischer was a naturally gifted player. One of the best, if not the best. Sadly, he lived a very troubled life, which some would say was his own fault and others would blame on him being mentally unstable. I don't know enough about him to judge. I only know him as an anti-American chess genius.........

Bobby Fischer, the reclusive chess genius who became a Cold War hero by dethroning the Soviet world champion in 1972 and later renounced his American citizenship, has died. He was 64.

Fisher died in a Reykjavik hospital on Thursday of kidney failure after a long illness, his spokesman, Gardar Sverrisson, said Friday.

Born in Chicago and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Fischer faced criminal charges in the United States for playing a 1992 rematch against Boris Spassky in Yugoslavia in defiance of international sanctions. In 2005, he moved to Iceland, a chess-mad nation and site of his greatest triumph.

The only good thing about Facebook is that you can play other people in chess or scrabble for free........

This sounds so awesome.........

Four giant waterfalls will be erected in New York for three months this summer in a public art project city officials hope will create $55 million in extra tourism revenue for the Big Apple.

The waterfalls, including one that will fall from the famed Brooklyn Bridge, are the brainchild of Danish artist Olafur Eliasson. Installation will cost $15 million, funded by private donations to New York's Public Art Fund.

"It's about seeing water in a different way," Eliasson told a news conference on Wednesday, unveiling plans for the waterfalls, which will range in height from 90 to 120 feet -- around the same as the Statue of Liberty from head to toe.

Three of the waterfalls will cascade into the East River and New York Harbor from free-standing scaffolding towers that Eliasson said were part of his artistic vision, mirroring the scaffolding towers that sprout up throughout New York. The falls will be in place from mid-July to mid-October.

City officials are hoping to emulate the success of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's project, "The Gates," which drew around 1.5 million visitors to the city in February 2005 to view about 7,500 saffron panels draped through Central Park

American Idol began a new season. Does anyone care? I'm waiting for Vote For The Worst campaign to start again so we can find the next Sanjaya!

Here's some interesting stories about season seven contestants:

The biggest offender by far is Irish singer Carly Hennessy. During season 5, Carly was pimped by Simon Cowell before the show even started as “the only person I can genuinely remember from the auditions.” Carly was fortunately dropped from the ranks for not having a visa. Nigel Lythgoe, one of the obnoxious executive producers of Idol, is already back to hinting about her even though she’s never said a word on the show. So why is Carly getting so much hype, and what happened in her past?

Carly Hennessy is the epitome of a record industry failure. She was brought to America by MCA Records and recorded a bland pop album [that was pushed with a $2 million publicity and marketing campaign] that sold only 300 copies (that’s not a typo). Then she faded into obscurity. Now, a mastermind behind the scenes at Idol has decided that instead of just signing Carly to an Idol-affiliated record label, she should be pushed down America’s throats as a contestant on American Idol. Back with brand new tattoos and an "edgier" sound, the record execs connected to Idol are probably hoping that Carly will finally catch on when she’s featured on the #1 TV show in the country. To make things even messier, one of the songwriters for Carly's album also wrote songs for the debut albums of Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, and Kimberley Locke. There's a definite Idol connection here, folks.

The sad part is that Carly is not an exception this year. There are many, many more contestants who are supposedly in the top 50 and have failed careers. Michael Johns is another notable contestant. An Australian import, he was formerly the lead singer of a band called The Rising and changed his name from Michael Lee. Michael was signed to Maverick Records and was supposed to release a debut album in 2003 after allegedly screwing over The Rising by leaving the band.

Kristy Lee Cook was signed to Arista Nashville, had Britney Spears lined up to appear in her debut video in 2001, and is managed by Marty Rendleman, who previously managed Leann Rimes. She also apparently loves to alienate most of America by singing in front of a Confederate flag in a video.

You can read more here...............

Have I mentioned how much I love Nick Cave.........

To promote their prominent role in the hit movie Juno, The Moldy Peaches will be reuniting on The View on January 21st!

They were supposed to reunite last week on Late Night With Conan O'Brien but opted to cancel that performance in order to support the writer's strike.........

Moby has a new album called Last Night coming out on March 31st. The first single is "Alice" and the video is posted above.......

THe officiall Coachella line-up is expected to be released later this afternoon, but until then, we've heard lots of rumors. Among the names we've heard floated around as headliners are Peter Gabriel and Foo Fighters. We love the idea of Peter and are lukewarm on the Foo's. Who knows if those are true or not.

Here are some acts that we're 98% certain have been confirmed: Portishead, The Raconteurs, My Morning Jacket, The Verve, Spiritualized, Les Savy Fav, Goldfrapp, The Breeders, The Bird & The Bee, Akron/Family, Animal Collective, Rilo Kiley, Sons & Daughters, Sia, Simian Mobile Disco.

Not a bad list, but lacking HEADLINERS. Anyway, the truth will come shortly...............

This could either be really fun or a disaster.......

ROCKS OFF Presents A Chuck Klosterman Conversation: The Fiction of Criticism, and Vice Versa
--------------------------
March 6,2008
Highline Ballroom
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Concert starts @ 8PM / Doors open @ 7 PM / Tickets $12.00 / General Admission Seated Show / First come, first seated / All Ages / $10 min at tables
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It was only a matter of time, really: Chuck Klosterman in the venue he's always belonged in - a rock club. The high priest of pop culture himself will be on hand to read from & discuss his forthcoming debut novel, Downtown Owl. He'll also be DJing from his vast trove of rock&roll before and after his "set," signing books, and just generally kicking ass as only he can.

Get tickets here..........

David Sedaris will be publishing his next collection of essays, Indefinite Leave to Remain, on June 3rd, 2008. His promotional tour will be in-store short readings followed by a book signing. Space at each event will be limited..........

DAVID SEDARIS TOUR DATES (FREE UNLESS NOTED)
June 4, 2008: New York , NY , Barnes & Noble, Union Square
June 5, 2008: Ridgewood , NJ , Bookends
June 6, 2008: Boston , MA , Harvard Bookstore
June 7, 2008: Philadelphia , PA , Joseph-Fox
June 8, 2008: Pittsburgh , PA , Joseph-Beth
June 9, 2008: Ann Arbor , MI , Borders
June 10, 2008: Indianapolis , IN , Big Hat Books
June 11, 2008: Evanston , IL , Borders
June 12, 2008: Chicago , IL Unabridged
June 13, 2008: Minneapolis , MN , University of Minnesota Bookstore
June 14, 2008: St. Paul , MN , Borders
June 15, 2008: Omaha , NE , Bookworm
June 16, 2008: Kansas City , KS , Rainy Day Books
June 17, 2008: St. Louis, MO, Left Bank Books
June 18, 2008: Baton Rouge , LA , Barnes & Noble
June 19, 2008: Austin , TX , Book People
June 20, 2008: Tulsa , OK , Barnes & Noble
June 21, 2008: Oklahoma City , OK , Hastings
June 22, 2008: Denver , CO , Tattered Cover
June 23, 2008: Seattle , WA , Elliott Bay
June 24, 2008: Seattle , WA , Third Place Books
June 25, 2008: Boise , ID , Hastings
June 26, 2008: San Francisco, CA, Books, Inc
June 27, 2008: Berkeley , CA , Diesel Bookstore
June 28, 2008: UCLA Royce Hall For tickets please call 310-825-2101 or visit www.uclalive.org
June 29, 2008: Pasadena , CA , Vromans
June 30, 2008: San Diego , CA – UCSD Copley Symphony Hall. Evening Reading and signing. For further info, go to: http://www.artpower.ucsd.edu/art_pwr/index.html or call ArtPower! at UC San Diego Box Office at 858-534-TIXS
July 1, 2008: Tucson , AZ : University of Arizona
July 2, 2008: Albuquerque , NM , Barnes & Noble

If anyone knows how to do website coding or development, is interested in writing or editing, or wants to help with some behind the blog duties (i.e. party planning, etc), please email us at productshopnyc@gmail.com with the subject "PSNYC". Thanks and we look forward to hearing from you...........

The second New York Magazine Karaoke Party will be hosted by Whitest Kids U'Know and feature the music of The Thermals. As we told you earlier, The Thermals will also be the karaoke backing band. Thos who arrive early will be able to sign up to perform any of the songs on the following list. Enjoy..............

THE THERMALS KARAOKE SELECTIONS
The Thermals: "No Culture Icons", "A Pillar of Salt", "Returning to the Fold", "How We Know", "It's Trivia", "Here's Your Future"
The Troggs: "Wild Thing"
The Who: "I Can't Explain"
The Ramones: "I Wanna Be Sedated"
David Bowie: "Rebel Rebel"
The Clash: "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?"
The Beatles: "I Wanna Hold Your Hand"
The Rolling Stones: "Start Me Up"
Sex Pistols: "God Save the Queen"
The Kinks: "You Really Got Me"
Built to Spill: "Big Dipper"
Buzzcocks: "Ever Fallen in Love"
The Angels: "My Boyfriend's Back"
The Supremes: "You Can't Hurry Love"
Devo: "Girl U Want"
Pat Benatar: "Hit Me With Your Best Shot"
Queen: "Another One Bites the Dust"
The Romantics: "What I Like About You"

While this year's Coachella has a few excellent surprise acts (Madness, The Verve, Kraftwerk, The Breeders, Love & Rockets) it also has its worst headliners ever. Roger Waters is a constantly touring legend and nothing feels special about him being a headliner. Jack Johnson will surely attract the West Coast hippies, but he's horrible. And while I love Portishead, I wouldn't consider them to be headliners.

The undercard for all three days, which is far better than the headliners, is filled with acts that already have announced east coast tour dates or are expected to very shortly.

It's a good year, but absolutely nothing special. It certainly doesn't make me want to get on a plane...........

Friday April 25th
Jack Johnson, the Verve, the Raconteurs, the Breeders, Fatboy Slim, Tegan & Sara, Madness, the Swell Season, the National, Animal Collective, Slightly Stoopid, Mum, Pendulum, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Stars, Battles, Aesop Rock, Midnight Juggernauts, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, Minus The Bear, Spank Rock, dan le sac VS Scroobius Pip, Diplo, Adam Freeland, Santogold, Jens Lekman, John Butler Trio, Vampire Weekend, Dan Deacon, Architecture In Helsinki, Sandra Collins, Busy P, Cut Copy, Black Lips, Datarock, Professor Murder, Reverend & the Makers, the Bees, Porter, Rogue Wave, Modeselektor, American Bang, Lucky I Am.[2]

Saturday April 26th
Portishead, Kraftwerk, Death Cab for Cutie, Cafe Tacuba, Sasha & Digweed, Rilo Kiley, Dwight Yoakam, M.I.A., Hot Chip, Cold War Kids, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, DeVotchKa, Flogging Molly, Mark Ronson, Turbonegro, Scars On Broadway, Islands, Enter Shikari, Calvin Harris, Boys Noize, Junkie XL, Cinematic Orchestra, Jamie T, the Teenagers, VHS or Beta, Carbon/Silicon, Erol Alkin, Yo Majesty!, Little Brother, Bonde Do Role, St. Vincent, Akron Family, MGMT, Institubes djs, Surkin Para One and Orgasmic, James Zabiela, Kavinsky, Dredg, the Bird and the Bee, Grand Ole Party, New Young Pony Club, 120 Days, Yoav, Electric Touch, Uffie.

Sunday April 27th
Roger Waters ("Dark Side of the Moon"), Love and Rockets, My Morning Jacket, Spiritualized, Justice, Gogol Bordello, Chromeo, The Streets, Metric, Danny Tenaglia, Simian Mobile Disco, Booka Shade, Murs, Dmitri From Paris, Autolux, The Field, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Les Savy Fav, The Cool Kids, Sons & Daughters, Sia, Holy Fuck, Black Kids, Black Mountain, The Annuals, Kid Sister with A-Trak, Man Man, Duffy, I'm From Barcelona, Manchester Orchestra, Deadmau5, The Horrors, Austin TV, Shout Out Louds, Platiscenes, Brett Dennen.

The 2008 Academy Award nominations have been announced. "Juno" and "Michael Clayton" were the big surprises, both getting nominations in almost every major category.

Meanwhile, Jonny Greenwood's score for "There Will Be Blood" and Eddie Vedder's score for "Into The Wild" were both denied Oscar nods. In fact, "Into The Wild" was totally shut out of any major nods. Also coming off with barely any love were "Sweeney Todd," "I'm Not There," and, shockingly, "Alvin & The Chipmunks." And it looks like Angelina Jolie's massive campaign for her role in A Mighty Heart failed.

The big question for Hollywood is if the show will even take place with the writers strike still happening. I really hope that nominees won't cross any picket lines.

Anyway, the nominees are after the jump...........

Bill Maher is back on the air and one of the first things he did was send gay sex columnist Dan Savage to South Carolina to hang with Huckabee's supporters.

Anyway, the South Carolina Democrat primary are this Saturday, followed on Tuesday by the Florida primaries for the Dems and Republicans.

For the Democrats, I have to sadly say that it's time for Edwards and Kucinich to drop out of the race. Edwards and Kucinich voters would likely go to Obama, which he needs to beat Hillary and I really want to see Obama beat Hillary.

On Sunday, Dave Eggers wrote an interesting op-ed in the New York Times. The piece quoted a former 826 student as making the observation, “Hillary’s always talking about how she can take a punch, how she’s been fighting for decades. But that’s the problem with her message. It’s about her, her wounds and scars. Obama talks about us, about we.”...........

Tapes 'N Tapes will release their second album, "Walk It Off", on April 8th. The tapers will hit SXSW in March and then head on a gigantic US tour starting in april. No word if a video game will be sponsoring the tour.

I'm looking forward to hearing the track "George Michael," which I hope is either about gay sex or Arrested Development. The album tracklisting is after the jump.........

This is soooooooooo surreal..........

In the post performance interview, Adam mentions that his new album, "Sixes & Sevens", comes out in March and that he'll be playing Town Hall in NYC in April. Kimya says she's putting out a children's record called Alphabutts. Cute.........

Our friends at WOXY have announced their answer to Sirius' Blog Radio.......

I’m pretty excited to announce a new show we are toying with a bit here at WOXY.com, and it should be no surprise that I’m excited. The show will be tentatively called the WOXY.com Music Blogger Hour and will feature a different music blogger for each episode.

The guest and I will sit for an hour and go through a playlist of songs that they choose. We will play music and also chat about the tunes and talk a bit about the guests blog in the process as well. Afterwards, this show will be available on demand to stream.

I am not sure how often we are going to do this yet, but I do have the first episode lined up for next Tuesday, January 22nd at 8pm. Our first blogger will be Matt Jordan of the Lexington, KY based blog, You Ain’t No Picasso.

Should be alot of fun, so join us next week for the very first episode. And please help me think of something better to call it than Music Blogger Hour.

Hillary gets booed at last evening's South Carolina Dem debate......

Mitt Romey on "Who Let The Dogs Out?".........

Mitt Romney gets angry.....

McCain sings about his desire to bomb Iran.......

Giuliani, who's best finish is 5th place, says his strategy is working......

While out campaigning for Hillary, Bill Clinton falls asleep at a MLK event.......

Obama's powerful MLK day speech.....

Much like he did for Science of Sleep, Michel Gondry will once again stage an art show at the Deitch.Projects. Here's the release..........

February 16, 2008 — March 15, 2008
18 Wooster Street, New York

Be Kind Rewind, an exhibition of new work by Michel Gondry, opens at Deitch Projects on February 16, 2008, shortly before his identically titled film is released in theaters.

Be Kind Rewind is a film about two childhood friends living in Pasaic, New Jersey, trying to make ends meet. After one of the characters accidentally gets his brain magnetized by trying to sabotage a local power plant, he visits the video store his friend is taking care of while the owner is away and unknowingly erases all of the video tapes in the store’s inventory. The characters decide to make their own homemade versions of popular films in a junkyard behind the store. These new “sweded” films—recreations using commonly available, everyday materials—prove more popular with the customers than the originals, making the two friends local celebrities.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah are lending their ever-diminishing drawing power to a good cause tonight when they headline Planned Parenthood of NYC's annual fundraising benefit at the Bowery Ballroom.

The show will also feature sets from future Bowery headliners Ra Ra Riot and just recent Bowery headliners Au Revoir Simone.

The show takes place on the 35th anniversary of the Supreme Court declaring that most laws against abortion were unconstitutional. Roe v Wade was never the strongest legal case, it's actually a rather weak decision, but the implications of the decision have obviously had a profound effect on politics at a variety of levels, but more importantly, it had an effect on people -- millions of people who, before their rights were recognized, could or would have been forced by the government to give up control over a choice that is among the most important, personal, and private in all of life. It is one of the most important rights a person has (and should have) in this country, and it is in constant danger of being abrogated.

This is why Presidential elections are so important. It is the President's job to appoint justices to the Supreme Court. Justices who we can only hope would uphold laws like Roe v Wade. President Bush was able to slant the court to the right with his two appointments ano now women's health rights are in danger. Think about that when you go to vote.........

Former Tennessee Senator and Law & Order actor Fred Thompson has quit the Republican presidential race after a string of poor finishes in early primary and caucus states.

Thompson ran one of the most lackluster campaigns I've ever seen. It's as if he never really wanted to be President and only threw his hat in the ring because some advisors - or maybe his agent - told him it could up his profile.

So that leaves McCain, Huckabee and Romney fighting for the Republican nomination. I know Rudy and Ron Paul are still officially on the ballot, but you know that neither of them is going to get the nomination.

On the Democrat side, it looks like a two person race. Let's check in with Christopher Hitchens to see what he has to say in a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed :

Here again, the problem is that Sen. Obama wants us to transcend something at the same time he implicitly asks us to give that same something as a reason to vote for him. I must say that the lyricism with which he does this has double and triple the charm of Mrs. Clinton's heavily-scripted trudge through the landscape, but the irony is still the same.

What are we trying to "get over" here? We are trying to get over the hideous legacy of slavery and segregation. But Mr. Obama is not a part of this legacy. His father was a citizen of Kenya, an independent African country, and his mother was a "white" American. He is as distant from the real "plantation" as I am. How -- unless one thinks obsessively about color while affecting not to do so -- does this make him "black"?

I wonder how sloshed he was when he penned that gem..........

He was great in Brokeback Mountain and I'm Not There and looked poised for stardom in this summer's The Dark Knight as The Joker. Sad news.

Actor Heath Ledger, 28, was found dead at a Manhattan residence Tuesday. Police told ABC News' Richard Esposito that prescription drugs including sleeping pills and two anti-anxiety medications likely played a part, and the death appeared to be accidental.

At 3:31 p.m., a masseuse arrived at the apartment in Manhattan's downtown SoHo neighborhood for an appointment with Ledger, police sources said. The masseuse was let in by a housekeeper, who then knocked on the door of Ledger's bedroom.

When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found the actor unconscious at the foot of the bed, naked and face-down. Police told ABC News they found bottles of Diazepam and Alprazolam, two anti-anxiety drugs, prescribed in Ledger's name.

What's truly disgusting is that the paparazzi felt the need to photograph his body being taken taken out of his Manhattan residence by paramedics. What's even more disgusting is that so many paparazzi knew about this supposed accident overdose as quick as they did and where on the scene before paramedics could even remove the body from the residence. That is so fucked up! That mean some douchebag tipped the media. What sick voyeuristic fucks. Seriously, whoever leaked this info to the media needs to be exposed and publicly embarassed.......

Good for Ringo. Sadly, the song is horrible........

Ringo Starr is known for being the amiable Beatle, but the rock star showed his tough side Tuesday when he walked off the set of “Live With Regis and Kelly” rather than cut short one of his songs.

Starr, who is promoting his new album, “Liverpool 8,” planned to perform the title song with fellow rocker Dave Stewart. However, due to miscommunication between his publicist, Elizabeth Freund, and the musical director, Starr didn’t realize the performance had to be 2 1/2 minutes or less, Freund told The Associated Press.

When told Tuesday morning that the performance had to be shortened, Freund said Starr tried to cut about a minute of the song’s 4 minute, 15 second length, down to 3 minutes and 30 seconds. However, according to Freund, producer Michael Gelman said it had to be less than 3 minutes.

“We offered to cut back our chat time and asked them to fade or go to commercial. They were not willing to do that and Ringo was not willing to cut it further, so without a compromise we were not able to stay,” Freund said in a statement to The Associated Press. “Ringo left saying, ‘God bless and goodbye. We still love Regis.”’

Harley-Davidson's 105th Anniversary summerfest happens over four main stages at Milwaukee’s Summerfest Grounds, as well as the nearby Roadhouse at the Lakefront, onAugust 29th and 30th

This year's line-up includes full sets from Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, ZZ Top, The Black Crowes, Peter Frampton, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and tons of other acts.

Not friggin bad......

Following his raved about - but not sold out - new years eve performance at Madison Square Garden, Chris Rock has announced three shows at the smaller, but still big, WAMU Theatre at Madison Square Garden on April 30th, May 1st and 2nd.

He's also added dates in Reno, Atlantic City, and DC. All tour dates after the jump........

Absolutely no surprise that Justice shouldn't have booked into Madison Square Garden's main room. I'm guessing they sold less than 1,000 of those $59.50 (+ ticketmaster fees) tickets.

Anyway, the show has now been moved to the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden, which is still the wrong room for a dance act to be booked into........

Hey everyone!

The venue has changed for New York City. It is now at the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden with doors at 7pm and the show at 8pm. Chromeo is on the New York show only - if you are missing them at the Bowery Ballroom this weekend, then come see them in March.

IMPORTANT - Tickets purchased for the Madison Square Garden will be exchanged for the WaMu show. If you purchased tickets with a credit card will have the new ticket mailed to you. If you purchased through an outlet with cash you will have your tickets exchanged at the door the night of the show.

See you at the show. If you haven't bought tickets for NY do it now before they sell out!!

Barely legal noisepopsters Be Your Own PET will release Get Awkward on March 17 on XL in the UK and March 18 in the States on Thurston Moore's Ecstatic Peace. They'll be touring with The Raveonettes on almost all their dates except in the tri-state area.

One of my favorite songs on the new disc is "The Kelly Affair," which was also the name of a great band from Manhattan that, unfortunately, broke up in 2006.........

DOWNLOAD: Be Your Own PET - "Super Soaked" (YSI)
DOWNLOAD: Be Your Own PET - "The Kelly Affair" (YSI)
DOWNLOAD: The Kelly Affair - "Break My Heart"
DOWNLOAD: The Kelly Affair - "With A Knife"
DOWNLOAD: The Kelly Affair - "Love Letter"

BE YOUR OWN PET TOUR DATES
02-20 New York, NY - The Mercury Lounge
02-21 Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell's
02-29 San Diego, CA - The Casbah *
03-01 Pomona, CA - Glasshouse *
03-02 Costa Mesa, CA - The Detroit Bar *
03-04 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
03-05 San Francisco, CA - The Indepdent *
03-07 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge *
03-08 Vancouver, British Columbia - The Plaza Niteclub *
03-09 Seattle, WA - Neumos *
* with the Raveonettes

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are now playing more than just the Super Bowl. The super awesome rock n' roller is touring the states, which includes a June 17th show scheduled for Madison Square Garden. And unlike Justice, he'll sell the show out. Tickets go on sale January 30th to fanclub members and February 4th to the general public.

Sadly, this tour won't feature opening sets from Pearl Jam or The Strokes. Instead, Steve Winwood is booked to open.

Tour dates after the jump...........

No real theme for this week's show, but it's still an awesome show. We highly recommend you tune in to the midnight replay if you missed and wait around to hear the new Black Crowes and Michael Jackson tracks. We also do a little medley of Laura Marling, Noah & The Whale and Lucinda Black Bear that will blow your mind.

Check out the playlist after the jump........

First off, a presale for the 2008 Coachella festrval begins Thursday, January 24th at 10AM PTand ends the same ay at 10PM PT. The password is "DESERT".

Now the other day, when we revealed the line-up, we mentioned who underwhelmed we were by this year's festival. So it's a been a couple days. Let's look at the good, the alright and the bad. Bad news first:

THE BAD (These are bands that, in my judgement, were poor selections, not to my taste or don't fit the vibe of my past Coachella experiences): Roger Waters performing Dark Side of the Moon, Jack Johnson, Dwight Yokam, Slightly Stoopid, The Horrors, Death Cab For Cutie, Justice, Sasha & Digweed, Fatboy Slim......

THE ALRIGHT (Bands that I'm happy to see on the bill and would definitely check out if I went to this years fest, but that I wouldn't travel across the country to see. This list may include bands that I'm going to see or have just recently seen in much more intimate settings): Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, The Raconteurs, Kraftwerk, Hot Chip, Santagold, Jens Lenkman, Vampire Weekend, Tegan & Sara, Spiritualized, Black Kids, I'm From Barcelona, Black Mountain, My Morning Jacket, Love & Rockets, M.I.A., The Streets, Animal Collective, Professor Murder, Les Savy Fav, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings........

THE EXCELLENT (This is a list of bands that make this year's line-up traveling worthwhile): Madness, Portishead, The Verve.......

Arcade Fire sure make music videos fun. They've just lost their second interactive film clip over at rorrimkcalb.com, for the single "Black Mirror." This follows bonlineb.com, which where you can find the interactive video for "Neon Bible."......

Vineland Festival is not happening. Here's the story:

The inaugural Vineland Festival originally scheduled for August 8-10 in Vineland, N.J., has been moved to early summer 2009, promoters announced January 25th.

Promoters Festival Republic and C3 Presents decided to back away from the initial time frame because of overall festival traffic in the northeast and big bands touring through the area at the same time, the promoters said in a statement.

After Festival Republic (Melvin Benn’s company and a division of Live Nation) and C3 announced Vineland, the promoters of Coachella announced a festival in the same market on the same weekend. Virgin Festival is also planned for that weekend.

Would it really have been that hard for these three festivals to try and do them on different weekends?

Eugene Mirman was really funny at last night's Tearin The Veil of Maya show at Union Hall. The next time Eugene will be at Park Slope's Union Hall will be on Friday, February 1st at 8:30pm, for a FREE celebration of the debut of his Comedy Central special.