Caleb: not fucking afraid of those other heatseakers.

DOWNLOAD: Zozobra, "Heavy With Shadows" (mp3)
FRIEND: Zozobra at Myspace

Ed. note: we posted this a couple weeks ago, but then this showed up: apparently Caleb's had a change of heart and will be releasing this under his pre-existing Zozobra moniker instead of as the self-titled debut by a solo band that would've been called Heatseaker. We're just guessing here, but one of the links in the photo caption might've had something to do with it. In any case, the newly-named Zozobra album, Bird of Prey, will be out July 22.

Also, if you post on message boards, please stop typing that Aaron Turner drummed on this record. Read the fucking post. It's Aaron Harris, dudes.

If you ever wondered why Cave-In never sounded the same way twice, take a listen to what its members have released since the breakup: it's a minor miracle these guys ever agreed on anything. Steve Brodsky has pursued his fascinations with classic rock, art-pop, and pyschedelia through three band names (and has another solo joint, The Black Album Award, due this summer). Guitarist Adam McGrath is preparing to release We Are Above You, the second disc by his stoner-metal assault vehicle Clouds. Now bassist Caleb Scofield is unveiling the face-melting, self-titled debut by Heatseeker, the most knee-buckling-heavy record to come out of the Cave-In camp yet. No surprise there: Scofield was Cave-In's designated screamer -- the Newsted to Brodsky's Hetfield -- and Heatseeker is an hour's worth of maximum doomriding, even scarier than Scofield's previous outings with Zozobra and Old Man Gloom. If you were That Guy at Cave In shows yelling for "Crossbearer," here's the proverbial metal shiv up your butt. Translation for the unconverted: this record fucking rules.

Indie-metal geeks will want to note that the album was recorded by Isis's Aaron Harris, who also played drums on it. If we told you the size of the room this behemoth of an album was recorded in, you wouldn't believe us.

Coincidentally, Caleb just moved back to Boston last week with his wife and child -- which means that, for the first time in, like, a long fucking time, all of Cave-In's members are back living in the same city. We have it on good authority that Brodsky just delivered a whopping four discs worth of Cave In rarities to Hydrahead -- supposedly to be whittled down for a future release -- so allow us to be the first to start the reunion rumors: Cave-In's getting back together! Cave-In's getting back together! Well, not really. But maybe. Who knows? In the meantime, keep an eye out for the Heatseeker record in July.

[Um, this is awkward silence where the band links would usually be. Except that we're leaking this so early, Heatseeker doesn't even have a MySpace page yet. And, um, Hydrahead doesn't have a page for them yet either. But maybe they will soon.]

4/30/2008 2:00:00 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Acacia Strain

Behemoth

Dimmu Borgir

Hate Eternal

Kataklysm

Shadows Fall

New England Metal and Hardcore Festival 10th Anniversary
DAY TWO: April 26, 2008 at the Palladium; Worcester, MA
All photos courtesy Carina Mastrocola

4/29/2008 10:03:51 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

VIDEO: Big Digits, "Chairs Electric (Live at Great Scott)"

Digitos Grandes stepped in as last-minute replacements on our last BMP showcase, filling in for Pretty & Nice, who had to cancel due to injury. Was nice to see TD and Mac again in full sweatbox mode -- that's TD in the chain-mail bank-robber mask and the Mickey sweatshirt -- and we finally got a glimpse of DJ Wii-J Mark E. Moon rocking a party with his custom-tweaked Wii controller. BMP results will be announced in a couple weeks, just in time for the annual Best Music Poll Concert at BOA Pavilion on May 10 with Death Cab for Cutie, Amanda Palmer, Bob Mould, POTUSA, Eli "Paperboy" Reed, and more.

RELATED: TD from Big Digits rates the Phoenix's mustaches

4/28/2008 1:27:31 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Kate Nash, "Purple Rain (Live at FNX Coachella House 2008)"

Our bretheren over at WFNX rented a house for Coachella and have been blogging their faces off all weekend. A bunch of people stopped by the house, including MGMT, Vampire Weekend, the National, Black Kids, the Raconteurs, Rogue Wave, Rilo Kiley, and Tegan & Sara. Everyone said Prince was gonna stop by, but somehow that never happened. So instead they had Kate Nash over to play some Prince covers, and were nice enough to record it. Awesomeness:

DOWNLOAD: Kate Nash, "Purple Rain" (mp3) [right-click, save-as]

Oh, and like you haven't heard by now, Prince covered "Creep":

4/28/2008 10:14:37 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

High on Fire

Job for a Cowboy

Children of Bodom

In Flames

Megadeth

10th Anniversary New England Metal and Hardcore Festival, Day One
April 25, 2008
at the Palladium, Worcester

All photos by Carina Mastrocola

4/28/2008 9:10:01 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Who're you callin' al dente?

DOWNLOAD: Kid:Nap:Kin, "Heroin Grillz" (mp3)

Like risotto, young rock bands require a lot of time and stirring before their many disparate elements meld into a satisfying and delicious glop. Unlike risotto. . . . well, there are lots of ways that young rock bands aren't like risotto. The point being that Boston's KID:NAP:KIN may need a few more minutes on the heat before their particular mix of post-punk, jazz, and experimental tendencies resolves into a gourmet treat. (Ditto for their website -- Ed.) But "Heroin Grillz," from their debut full-length, Hush, Now (Sidehatch Entertainment), is like a satisfying bite snuck from the stove. Mixing the abrasive charm of '90s guy-girl masters like Jawbox with the thoroughly modern, falsetto-fueled erratic melodicism of the Dirty Projectors is no small feat, and "Grillz" can be taken as a good sign that Boston's most promising trio may soon be Boston's best. Careful, don’t burn yourself. Grab the mpfree above, then get a seat at the table when Kid:Nap:Kin drop Hush, Now tonight at T.T. the Bear's Place.

-- M. Brodeur

4/24/2008 12:36:02 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Dirty Projectors, "Rise Above (Live at Museum of Fine Arts)"


Dirty Projectors, "Gimme Gimme Gimme (Live at the Museum of Fine Arts)"

Few things about Dirty Projectors' Dave Longstreth. One: while he looks tall and remote and Thurston-like from afar, up close, he looks impossibly young and is incredibly friendly. Two: Like the Grizzlies, he's a New Englander moonlighting as a Brooklynite. (Did we really overhear him say he briefly lived in Jamaica Plain?) Three: for a guy who prizes live-show spontaneity, he was awfully eager that we not leak any of the four new songs DPs unveiled last month at the Museum of Fine Arts, on the first night of their tour behind Rise Above. We'll chalk that up to opening-night jitters, since despite the band's protestations that the new shit wasn't ready for prime time yet, we couldn't for the life of us figure out what exactly was so bad about it. So, that said: here's the two "hits," as it were, from an album that (famously, already) doesn't sound shit like Black Flag. His Yale-ness may have been the center of attention for the indie fanboys who seemed to bring Longstreth as many albums as new-converts bought, but like most others we were kinda knocked out by the accompanists, whose eerie birdcall harmonies floated us through Dave's oceans of skronk.

4/24/2008 12:07:16 AM by On the Download | Comments [1] |  

We are thrilled to provide this unprecedented conduit between your girlfriend and Feist.

Feist
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Tuesday, July 8, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Tickets are $25.00 and $35.00*
*plus $5.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00 am

John Mellencamp and Lucinda Williams
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Monday, July 14 and Tuesday, July 15, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Tickets are $35.00, $60.00 and $85.00 and $125.00*
*plus $7.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00 am

Projekt Revolution featuring Linkin Park, Chris Cornell, The Bravery, Ashes Divide, and Atreyu
At the Tweeter Center
Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Tickets are $24.75, $44.75, $54.75, $70.75 and 4-pack lawn tickets for $18.75*
*plus $7.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Saturday, April 26, 2008 at 10:00 am

Sheryl Crow, James Blunt, and Toots & The Maytals
At the Tweeter Center
Wednesday, July 30, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Tickets are $26.00, $36.00, $46.00 and $56.00*
*plus $7.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 25, 2008 at 10:00 am

State Radio
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Saturday, August 2, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Tickets are $20.00 and $25.00*
*plus $5.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00 am

O.A.R. and Ozomatli
At the Tweeter Center
Friday, August 8, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Tickets are $35.00*
*plus $7.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Saturday, April 26, 2008 at 10:00 am

Buddy Guy and George Thorogood & The Destroyers
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Sunday, August 17, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Tickets are $27.50 and $41.00*
*plus $5.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00 am

The Regeneration Tour featuring Human League, Belinda Carlisle, Flock of Seagulls, ABC, and Naked Eyes
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Wednesday, August 20, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Tickets are $25.00, $35.00 and $40.00*
*plus $5.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Monday, April 28, 2008 at 10:00 am

4/22/2008 10:36:08 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Hallelujah the Hills, "Nurses Five Float Past (Live at Great Scott)"

Hallelujah the Hills + Ho-Ag, "Rain Dogs (Tom Waits cover; live at Great Scott)"

It's not like either Hallelujah the Hills or Ho-Ag lack for members; and it's not like they're such natural collaborators that they were bound to appear on the same stage eventually. In fact, we're still not quite steady on why the hell HTH & Ho-Ag keep going all Voltron and forming the Hallelujah the Ho-Ag superband. (While we're on the topic, dudes, we hereby suggest that "Ho-Ag The Hills" rolls off the tongue a little more smoothly.) But all that aside, it's for shizzle that this is a formula for getting really fucking loud and weird, which is why we toted the cams up to Great Scott to capture this strange apparition in all its frazzled majesty. The pairing lost none of its spontanaeity by this being the second time they'd joined up, and it having been HTH's second show that day  (the first having been a rare family matinee and the same venue). Our audio-recording device said fuck it and died at the beginning of the set, so double thanks to HTH for providing us with a backup track. Whew. What you get above: a standout track from HTH's headline set, drawn from their recent 100-percent-free-online-EP Prepare to Qualify, and a tag-team HTH/Ho-Ag pile-up on Tom Waits' "Rain Dogs," Tom Waits being one thing that intellectual folks-rockers and gonzo spazz-punk behemoths can still agree on. Speaking of which, this is probably a good time to suggest a Scar-Jo/Ho-Ag throwdown. Tell us in the comments which name they should go under: Scar-Ho or Jo-Ag?

4/22/2008 4:04:12 PM by On the Download | Comments [1] |  

Faces on Film, "Natalie's Numbers (Live at the Middle East)"

If we had a Best Music Poll category for most-improved, Mike Fiore's FACES ON FILM would've had another notch in their belt, not to mention a pretty-much unimpeded cakewalk to the victory. As it is, he's up for best local singer-songwriter, for which we apologize because we didn't know quite where else to put 'em. The live show has gotten to the level of stunning motherfuckers, and it doesn't seem to matter whether he's onstage by himself, with a stripped down trio (we highly recommend their recent Flophouse Session over at Band In Boston), or -- see above -- with the full band plus friends, recorded live at the Middle East during one of our recent Best Music Poll showcase concerts.

Voting, of course, has ended for this year's BMP. Results will be released May 9, just in time to preview the Best Music Poll Concert at Bank of America Pavlion on May 10 with Death Cab for Cutie, Bob Mould, Amanda Palmer, and a couple of recently-announced BMP winners: Eli "Paperboy" Reed and Passion Pit. Tickets are still available, but not for long.

PREVIOUSLY:

• VIDEO: Tulsa, Live at the Middle East
• VIDEO: Viva Viva, Live at the Middle East

COMING SOON!: Hallelujah the Hills, Big Digits

4/22/2008 10:17:38 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Mylene: Queen of Pop

This week in the fishwrap, Charles Taylor makes the case for French pop, through the lens of the latest Mrs. Johnny Depp album. Below, longtime Phoenix critic Michael Freedberg, whom we consider our resident expert on the topic, provides his own master-class in variete francaise -- one that is necessarily weighted towards Mylene Farmer, who is the Reed to his Bangs, the Kixx to his Eddy. In his commentary on these 17 "best-of-the-best" tracks, Freedberg elaborates on the spirit of liberte that infuses the best of Mylene; teases out the existential bark in Pascal Obispo's bite; and introduces us to a breadth of French pop that swings from the volcanic rock-n-roll swagger of Noir Desir to the tipsy modernist electro of Melissa Mars. It's the depth of feeling that Freedberg responds to in these tracks; at times, when we were recording this session about a week ago, the critic sobbed openly in the studio while the tracks played back.

DOWNLOAD: The Sphere Vol 12: Variete Francaise Part 1 [mp3]
DOWNLOAD: The Sphere Vol 13: Variete Francaise Part 2 [mp3]

Vol 12 Tracklist:

1. Madmoiselle Chang: France Gall
2. Fuck Them All: Mylene
3. Alice et June: Indochine
4. C'est une belle journee: Mylene Farmer
5. Lone Machine: Melissa Mars
6. L'au-de la: Jean Louis Murat
7. Mylene Is Coming: Mylene Farmer
8. Point de mire: Ariane Moffet

Voll 13 Tracklist:

1. Le Pretension de rien: Pascal Obispo
2. Chanson pour hier et demain: Marie Mai
3. L'enfant roi: Noir Desir
4. Raton Laveur: Jean Leloup
5. We'll Never Die: Mylene Farmer
6. Tu me corresponds: Francois Cabrel
7. Lonely: Mitsou
8. le grand incende: Noir Desir
9. Mylenium: Mylene Farmer

4/19/2008 10:51:57 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

As the Rumble heads into the semifinals round this weekend, The Noise editor T-Max -- the Rumble's unofficial historian, having seen more nights of the Rumble's musical combat than perhaps anyone else in Boston -- is questioning the scoring decisions made by the new Rumble regime, which led last weekend to Rumble coordinator Mark Hamtilon singlehandedly overturning a numeric victory by Clouds and instead awarding the victory to the Men. In an email to the Phoenix, T-Max wrote as follows:

[Rumble coordinator] Mark Hamilton interprets the Rumble scoring rules differently than they have been in the past. He doesn't realize it but he is changing the rules that were created with a certain logic in mind. Mark's method does not respect the judges' numerical score. If he claims a band the winner because they have the majority of first place votes, he's disregarding the point system. From what I know of the rules (and I've made a point of following the Rumble rules for the past 26 years), looking at which band has the most first place votes only comes into play when there is a numerical tie. When there is a clear winner in the original score, and that winner is the same when the highs and lows are dropped--they are the winner. No reason to look any further. If there is a numerical tie, then number of first place votes breaks that tie.

As reported in this space last week, Hamilton stepped in to reverse a win by Clouds, who were awarded more points according to the Rumble's longstanding voting system. Despite the fact that Clouds had eked out a narrow victory over runners-up the Men, Hamilton awarded the victory to the Men on the argument that the Men had received more first-place votes. After pointing out the voting discrepancy, OTD demanded that Clouds be immediately awarded a wild-card slot -- a command the Rumble promptly followed. Ironically, the week before the scoring flap, Hamilton was overheard joking that T-Max had been grilling him on the ins and outs of the Rumble's rules and regulations.

Although OTD has received no official response from Hamilton or the Rumble, the issue may well seep into this weekend's semi-final round, in which the Men and Clouds meet in a no-holds-barred rematch at Harpers Ferry on Saturday night. Rumor has it that Clouds have been mulling an onstage response to the controversy.

4/18/2008 3:56:47 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Caleb: not fucking afraid of those other heatseakers.

DOWNLOAD: Heatseeker, "Heavy With Shadows" (mp3)

If you ever wondered why Cave-In never sounded the same way twice, take a listen to what its members have released since the breakup: it's a minor miracle these guys ever agreed on anything. Steve Brodsky has pursued his fascinations with classic rock, art-pop, and pyschedelia through three band names (and has another solo joint, The Black Album Award, due this summer). Guitarist Adam McGrath is preparing to release We Are Above You, the second disc by his stoner-metal assault vehicle Clouds. Now bassist Caleb Scofield is unveiling the face-melting, self-titled debut by Heatseeker, the most knee-buckling-heavy record to come out of the Cave-In camp yet. No surprise there: Scofield was Cave-In's designated screamer -- the Newsted to Brodsky's Hetfield -- and Heatseeker is an hour's worth of maximum doomriding, even scarier than Scofield's previous outings with Zozobra and Old Man Gloom. If you were That Guy at Cave In shows yelling for "Crossbearer," here's the proverbial metal shiv up your butt. Translation for the unconverted: this record fucking rules.

Indie-metal geeks will want to note that the album was recorded by Isis's Aaron Harris, who also played drums on it. If we told you the size of the room this behemoth of an album was recorded in, you wouldn't believe us.

Coincidentally, Caleb just moved back to Boston last week with his wife and child -- which means that, for the first time in, like, a long fucking time, all of Cave-In's members are back living in the same city. We have it on good authority that Brodsky just delivered a whopping four discs worth of Cave In rarities to Hydrahead -- supposedly to be whittled down for a future release -- so allow us to be the first to start the reunion rumors: Cave-In's getting back together! Cave-In's getting back together! Well, not really. But maybe. Who knows? In the meantime, keep an eye out for the Heatseeker record in July.

[Um, this is awkward silence where the band links would usually be. Except that we're leaking this so early, Heatseeker doesn't even have a MySpace page yet. And, um, Hydrahead doesn't have a page for them yet either. But maybe they will soon.]

4/16/2008 11:48:22 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Ian MacKaye: from "Waiting Room" to the classroom

Having Ian MacKaye show up as the surprise guest for your intro-to-punk-rock class is, as Will Spitz writes in this week's fishwrap, "sorta like Darwin showing up for your Biology 101 lecture." Except that Darwin would probably end up talking Biology. Not that Ian didn't talk punk when he showed up in Medford last week, a couple days before his bigger, public lecture at Brandeis. But the Conscience Of Punk Incarnate also threw down on all sorts of stuff: including how Ted Nugent is actually kind of an animal-rights activist, if you really, really, really think about it. Yes, it's true what they say: Ian always shows up to be interviewed in a hoodie and a black beanie. But we bet you never thought you'd hear the Elder Statesman of Hardcore earnestly, unironically, and unintentionally hilariously credit a fatally drunkaholic hippie woman with inspiring the singing style of America's foremost straightedge punkman. And that's not even the most interesting part of this lecture/Q&A. We tried to have a couple of interns transcribe this, but their fingers turned to bloody stubs. Maybe you can keep up with the mp3:

DOWNLOAD: Ian MacKaye Schools Tufts Students In Punk Rock (mp3) <-- Removed at the request of the legendary Mr. MacKaye. Ian Sez No Taping. Maybe go watch this instead.

4/16/2008 11:28:10 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

No Request Zone: Real Talk from Boston's DJ Elite 

Not long ago, we teamed up with our sister mag Stuff at Night to bring together eight of Boston's finest DJs to shoot the shit about the state of dance music in our fair city. It turned out to be far more interesting than we had any right to expect it would be, and may even have squashed some beef in the process. Was kinda awesome to see the youngbloods pay respects to a 20-year vet like Bruno, who sat at the head of the table and dispensed knowledge like the Godfather. And it was also awesome to be able to make what we hope will be some lasting introductions. The conversation meandered from practical advice -- like how to handle obnoxious requests -- to big-picture shit, like Bruno and the Soul Clap dudes talking about the evolution of tastes and audiences, Baltimoroder dropping ready-for-dissertation paragraphs on the effects of technology on the profession, and DJ Knife lamenting his switchover to Serrato. You can watch the trailer above, and read the whole article over at StuffAtNight as part of their annual music issue.

But the best thing to come out of this whole meeting was a commitment to actually get everyone in the room on the same bill -- no small feat, and in our minds kinda historic in terms of bringing together a bunch of different scenes. Tonight, all eight DJs from the roundtable will be taking turns on the turntables at the Good Life, launching what we hope will become a regular everyone-and-the-kitchen-sink event. But on the off chance that never happens, you might want to stop by. It's free, with complimentary PBR for the early birds: but it's also list-only, so make sure to rsvp to RSVP@stuffatnight.com.

4/14/2008 10:18:20 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

It's a staple of message-board griping during Rumble season that the city's oldest and most prestigious battle of the bands is somehow rigged, though in our experience -- going back nearly a decade -- the Rumble has always been conducted in complete fairness, following a tried-and-true system by which five judges rate each evening's bands according to a meticulous point system. In fact, if the judges have ever had a complaint, it's that the Rumble system is almost too rigorous. But it's nothing if not fair and balanced: the Rumble bylaws even attempt to deal with the discrepancy between judges who give higher-than-normal or lower-than-normal scores by stipulating that the single-highest and single-lowest scores are thrown out before calculating the final tally. Fans can argue about whether the "best" band won, but in terms of the actual judges' votes, the Rumble priovides a scrupulous framework that has produced definitive and incontrovertible results for two decades.

At least they did until last night, when the Men were declared the winners of the fourth (of six) preliminary-round matchups.

On Thursday night, when the judges' votes were counted, Clouds were ahead by one point. (They were ahead by slightly more before the high and low votes were discarded, per Rumble rules.) When WBCN's Mark Hamilton (who is in his first year as Rumble guru, having taken over from longtime Rumble kingpin Shred) announced the final tally in the voting room, three of the five judges said that they thought the Men should've won. A fourth judge had the Men and Clouds tied on his individual ballot. (That judge said he would've voted for Clouds to win, but hadn't realized until after he'd handed in his ballot that he'd had Clouds tied with the Men in points. Hamilton didn't let that judge adjust his ballot -- and on that particular point, at least, Hamilton was operating correctly under the Rumble's rules.) After a quick discussion, Hamtilon then decided that since a majority of the judges thought the Men should win, he would declare them the winner -- which is what happened.

Was Hamilton correct to award the night to the Men? It's reasonable to ask what the response would've been if he'd made the opposite decision and awarded the night to Clouds, despite the fact that a majority of the judges felt that the Men were the better band. And it's worth pointing out here that if, after discarding the high and low scores, the Men and Clouds had been tied, then Rumble tradition has it that the judges are polled to declare a winner -- in which case, by rights, the Men would've been fairly awarded the night by a tie-breaking vote of 3-2. One can only assume that the oh-so-close factor -- but for a point -- contributed to Hamilton's reversal of the decision.

Reasonable people will disagree about what Hamilton should've done on Thursday night: but that's precisely the point of the Rumble's meticulous voting structure, which for 20 years has provided an unambiguous method for determining the winners. To the best of our knowledge -- and we'll update if someone has better information -- a band that's won on points has never had their victory overturned, even in a case where the winning band had fewer "first-place" votes (i.e., the highest score on a judge's ballot) than a losing band. The problem with allowing the Men to "win" on Thursday night is not so much that they don't deserve to move on in the competition -- it's that the Rumble has now set a precedent that introduces a giant question mark into what has always been a cut-and-dried vote. The thing the Rumble had going for it was that even when message-board whiners cried foul because their favorite bands didn't win, the judges and the bands could back up the iron-clad integrity of the process. After Thursday night, that may no longer be the case.

At the very least, the right thing for the Rumble to do would be to immediately name Clouds to one of the wild-card slots -- it wouldn't seem fair to strip the Men of a victory that they had no hand in rigging. And going forward, the Rumble could re-assess its voting rules: if "first-place" votes should trump total points, there's nothing wrong with instituting a rule that says so -- just as long as everyone plays by the same rule.

4/11/2008 3:22:45 PM by On the Download | Comments [2] |  

Radio, Radio: You'll hear her on your speakers everywhere you go

DOWNLOAD: Kate Radio, "Drive Me Crazy" (mp3)

About ten seconds into "Drive Me Crazy," the debut offering from Waltham's Kate Radio, we were MySpace-messaging Dave Pino to find out if he was behind it. Pino, formerly of Waltham, Damone, and Seemless, was reached in the midst of writing songs with Powerman 5000 and riding every ride at Universal Studios, which is his version of heaven on earth. "Drive Me Crazy" has all the hallmarks of his best pop songs: Top-40 hummability, numerous "whoa-ohh"s, some well-shredded guitar harmonies, and an appearance of the lyric "Baby, you're the one." Sure enough, Pino had written "Drive Me Crazy" for another girl group -- Waltham's the Andwutz, who never got around to recording it. (Note to aspiring girl rockers: Dave says there's three more where this came from.) Kate Radio, late of Waltham's My Little Radio, teamed up with producer Adam Rourke to cut a new version: with Andrew WK-worthy piano arpeggios rippling through the verses, and Kate's breathy, teen-idol delivery, it's got smash hit written all over it. Crazy? Not so much. The last time a girl singer met a leftover Pino song under Rourke's production, the result was Damone signing to a major label. But Kate's no one-trick pony: her next track is a collabo with Best Music Poll nominee DJ Die Young, who says he's modeling their song after that Robyn/Kleerup joint "With Every Heartbeat."

4/10/2008 10:09:40 AM by On the Download | Comments [1] |  

The last time we tried to shoot Viva Viva, we made an ill-fated foray into infrared photography. This time, with the addition of actual lights, you may even be able to make out more than a Sasquatch-like outline. Which is good, because we love these dudes. Forget that VV grew out of two of our favorite early-00s bands -- the Lot Six and Officer May -- or that they've got this awesome Mutt-and-Jeff thing going on. Since the dissolution of those bands, their respective frontmen have taken their rock-and-roll hearts back to the classic shit: one second they sound like the Doors doing Beatles-in-Hamburg material, the next they're hybriding Stones/Stooges raveups in the manner of the first Verbena album. Here's the set opener, recorded March 29 at the Middle East as part of our Best Music Poll showcase:

COMING SOON: Faces on Film Live at the Middle East

4/7/2008 9:57:00 PM by On the Download | Comments [2] |  

Last week we scooped the news about Radiohead’s August 13 concert date at Tweeter Center (tickets go on sale this Saturday at 10 a.m.) and set the music blogs abuzz. Today word from ye olde Inbox, via our friends at LiveNation, is that opening duties will be divvied amongst Grizzly Bear, whom Radiohead covered at their recent top-secret London gig, and Liars, who Thom Yorke raved about when he guess DJ’ed NPR’s All Songs Considered in February. So who’ll be gracing Mansfield with their Yorke-approved presence this summer? Grizzly Bear, those Brooklynite kings of fuzzy, buzzing, eerily quiet, then extremely loud indie rock. Their Friend EP was firmly lodged at the top of our "Most Played" list for a solid chunk of 2007, along with In Rainbows, to the point where we thought our iTunes might protest and throw whatever's at the top of their "Most Purchased" list at us instead. Which means that we’ve now progressed from excited about the show, to high on summer concert plans, Fitter Happier, Everything In It’s Right Place, shaking in our desk chairs excited. It’s notable that Pitchfork.tv launched today and, in a perhaps serendipitous, or perhaps expertly calculated move, posted some excellent live footage of Radiohead performing Disc Two’s "Bangers & Mash" in Nigel Godrich’s basement (that’s infinity times cooler than our basement, which mainly just has spiders and an old ping pong table). Of course that shit’s already on You Tube, so here you go:





And, to get you all in the Radiohead/Grizzly Bear combo mood, here's the video for Grizzly Bear's "Knife," made by the San Francisco-based duo Encyclopedia Pictura, who also just released Bjork's astoundingly trippy/picturesque video for "Wanderlust":




--Caitlin E. Curran

4/7/2008 6:02:02 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Voting has officially ended for this year's Best Music Poll: results will be announced in May, a few days before our annual BMP Concert extravaganza (bands: Death Cab, POTUSA, Amanda Palmer, Bob Mould, and two of the winners from the Poll.) To tide you over, we'll be rolling out live video of some of our fave BMP acts, taken from a couple of Best Music Poll showcase concerts. (Next BMP showcase: Hallelujah the Hills and Pretty & Nice, April 12 at Great Scott.)

We're kicking these off with Tulsa's epic cover of Don Gibson's "Oh Lonesome Me," recorded last weekend at the Middle East downstairs. Truth be told, we didn't know it was a cover until we Google'd the lyrics. Having YouTube'd the original, we can say that this practically qualifies as a brand-new song: they've retained the lyrics and the broad outlines of the structure but stretched the original's Bakersfield/honky-tonk rampage into a smoldering, autumnal rave-up that sounds as if it could've come from the Magnolia Electric Co. songbook:

Tulsa, "Oh Lonesome Me (Don Gibson cover; live at the Middle East)"

COMING SOON: Viva Viva live at the Middle East

4/4/2008 3:06:24 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

Now that the long-awaited NKOTB reunion has been confirmed -- with new Interscope album, TV show, fall tour, and townie-girl mayhem to follow -- we suspect that some revisionist history will begin to set in, and as a matter of natural course, people will find themselves happy to like the New Kids again. Not to spoil the love-fest, but here are five cringe-worthy things you'd probably forgotten about "The Block," as they're apparently calling themselves now ....

5. NKOTB were not anywhere near as good as the black Boston-based act they ripped off were modeled after:

4. The enduring, vomit-inducing fecundity of NKOTB's debut single, "Be My Girl":

3. Jordan Knight's hair circa 1988:

2. The New Kids on the Block Cartoon. In this episode, "Sheikh of My Dreams," Jordan falls for an Arab girl. Word up!

1. "Funky, Funky Christmas," the least funky Christmas song ever performed on the Arsenio Hall show (or anywhere else, for that matter). From their acclaimed "rap" period:

4/3/2008 11:49:12 PM by On the Download | Comments [1] |  

What do these two have in common? $$$$$$$$$$$

As you may have heard by now, today's New York Times reports that Jay-Z is "on the verge" of closing a multi-million dollar deal with Live Nation, which would tie albums, concerts, and any other business ventures that Jay-Z has the slightest desire to carry out into one neat, Live Nation-financed package (“I’ve turned into the Rolling Stones of hip-hop,” Jay-Z says). Now, we're all for Jay-Z, especially now that he's in cahoots with his old pal Mary J, on a tour that hits TD Banknorth tonight, but his tone in the article is borderline annoying. From the article:

"The overall package for Jay-Z also includes an upfront payment of $25 million, a general advance of $25 million that includes fees for his current tour, and advance payment of $10 million an album for a minimum of three albums during the deal’s 10-year term, these people said. A series of other payments adding up to about $20 million is included in exchange for certain publishing, licensing and other rights. Jay-Z said Live Nation’s consolidated approach was in sync with the emerging potential 'to reach the consumer in so many different ways right now.'"

Wow, that's, like, a mind-boggling amount of money. Then, flip to page two for these follow-up statement:

"In a way I want to operate like an indie band," [Of course you do! Indie bands are SO HOT right now. -Ed.] he said. "Play the music on tour instead of relying on radio. Hopefully we’ll get some hits out of there and radio will pick it up, but we won’t make it with that in mind."...Jay-Z, for his part, suggested that the string of stars to exit the major-label system would also signal to younger acts how to plot their careers.

Oh, okay. So, hey, all of you struggling indie bands out there! You've been going about this all wrong! Follow in Jay-Z's steps! Just pick up the phone and give a concert promoter behemoth a call, and boom! you'll be on your way.

-Caitlin E. Curran

4/3/2008 11:31:03 AM by On the Download | Comments [1] |  

We waited until after April Fools to post this so you know it ain't a joke. To celebrate, we're hastily assembling our Nude remixes. You? Oh, right, REM and Pearl Jam just announced shows, too, if anyone cares...

Radiohead
August 13 at the Tweeter Center, Mansfield
Tickets on-sale April 12

Crowded House
At the Somerville Theatre
Monday, May 5, 2008 at 7:30 pm and Tuesday, May 6, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Tickets are $42
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 4, 2008 at 10:00 am

R.E.M., Modest Mouse, and the National
At the Tweeter Center
Friday, June 13, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Tickets are $25.00, $35.00, $50.00 and $75.00*
*plus $7.00 venue charge and applicable convenience fees per ticket
Tickets go on-sale Saturday, April 5, 2008 at 10:00 am

Phil Lesh & Friends and the Levon Helm Band
At the Bank of America Pavilion
Saturday, June 21, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Tickets are $25.00, $45.00 and $50.00*
*plus $5.00 venue and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Thursday, April 3, 2008 at 10:00 am 

Yael Naim
At the Berklee Performance Center
Saturday, June 21, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Tickets are $25.00
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 4, 2008 at 10:00 am 

Pearl Jam and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
At the Tweeter Center
Monday, June 30, 2008 at 7:30 pm
Tickets are $40.00 and $60.00*
*plus $7.00 venue charge and applicable convenience fees per ticket
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 4, 2008 at 10:00 am 

Warped Tour
At the Tweeter Center
Wednesday, July 23, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Tickets are $26.00 and $29.00*
*plus $6.00 venue charge and applicable convenience fees per ticket
Tickets go on-sale Saturday, April 5, 2008 at 10:00 am 

An Evening with George Michael
At the TD Banknorth Garden
Sunday, July 27, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Tickets are $47.50, $67.50, $97.50 and $152.50
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 4, 2008 at 10:00 am 

Maroon 5, Counting Crows, and Sara Bareilles
At the Tweeter Center
Saturday, August 2, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Tickets are $25.00, $35.00, $55.00, $65.00, $125.00 and 4 pack lawn ticket special for $75.00*
*plus $7.00 venue charge and applicable convenience fees per ticket
Tickets go on-sale Friday, April 4, 2008 at 10:00 am

4/2/2008 11:32:52 AM by On the Download | Comments [0] |  

 
Xiu Xiu, "Clown Town (Live at Museum of Fine Arts)"


Xiu Xiu, "FTW (Live at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston)"

If Jamie Stewart (who for all intents and purposes is Xiu Xiu) is playing with a full deck of cards, it’s not a deck you’d find on Planet Earth. So, not to judge or anything, but maybe before you go to a concert, you should at least listen to one song by that artist. Or learn anything about them at all. A lot of these MFA shows have a similarly accessible indie rock vibe, but come on: for at least the first half of Xiu Xiu's MFA show last week, peope were fleeing between songs like the place was on fire. This was surprising because Xiu Xiu are actually more straightforward live than on record, though that may not be saying much. Their rhythms are tighter and the instrumentation is often fuller; however, things definitely got trademark Xiu Xiu super uncomfortable when Stewart played alone on the acoustic guitar, as evidenced (above) by "F.T.W. and "Clowne Town": the songs were hanging on by a thread, and I curled up nervously in my seat hoping he wouldn’t chuck the guitar on the floor and run out of the room. Once the wusses were weeded out and the show ended, the once-sold out but now half empty Remis Auditorium gave the band a solid 10 minute standing ovation -- which continued even when the lights came on. Alas, and weirdly, we were not rewarded with another song. After such an emotionally (and vocally) draining performance, we can only imagine Stewart was either drinking heavily or passed out in the tour bus. A friend said after the show, "It was like walking in on someone who was masturbating and crying at the same time." Does that make us creepy voyeurs for enjoying ourselves?

-- Megan Bell

4/1/2008 2:33:15 PM by On the Download | Comments [0] |