Impulse Buy

I really, really, really need some more iTunes money now. Just got 3 free songs from getting Vampire Weekend tickets on ticketmaster, so that's a start.

So who are the quirky bros over there? They're my impulse buy, as well as the London indie band Bombay Bicycle Club! Sure, they look like the Harry Potter characters had kids with Kurt Cobain, but the music is super catchy, especially their sorta new single Evening/Morning.

Here's the video of the single. Kanye-ish, yes, but download the song.
Listen for the Albert Hammond Jr. Rocket (song) bass line.
Too bad they won't cross the pond to play in New York.
BBC Myspace

Fall and Winter Gig Lineup

As of right now, I've put 3 concerts on the calendar.

The Postelles @ the Rugby Store (Union Square-ish), September 19, 7pm.
I don't know if I'm going to go to this one or the 16+ Highline Ballroom show on October 2nd. I'd like to see them again though.

Born Ruffians @ Sound Fix in Brooklyn, October 28, 7-8pm.
I am so glad they put in an all ages show before they play Union Hall (Brooklyn) 21+ right after. Since Roger's Picnic and Summerstage, I've been listening to The BR nonstop! One of my favorite bands.

Vampire Weekend @ Terminal 5, December 4, 8pm.
Yay! I'm going with my friend that missed out on VW the first time at Summerstage because of the rain. It's going to be so much fun...but packed. It's GA floor and they sold out the December 3rd show.

VMAs and MVAs (my video awards)

The MTV Video Music Awards Sucked! The best part of the whole thing was when 1000s upon 1000s of crazed Jonas Brother fans clad in neon American Appy v-necks rushed the stage on the backlot for some intense song about love and bugs. That was almost as funny as the acting on last night's finale of Secret Life (of the American Teenager) . Watch this. It's hilarious..I love it. Shawn Johnson! And then forward to an officer with the best name ever at 8:57.


You know who should have won a VMA? Kanye. I'm not really into the rap scene but I did see Kanye with Rhianna, Lupe Fiasco and NERD at MSG on May 13, 2008. I had a headache for days. That never happens. I don't get headaches.

Anyway all the embeded HTML thingies are disabled for the Kanye Vid.
Watch it here.

Do you realize that you are champion in their eyes?

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IndieClick

I've come across a few more good bands this past week. One being a random German indie called Bodhi Trees. I found them via what I call 'indieclick'. In reality, this is an ad site or something, but I think when bands go FREE EP FREE EP FREE EP all down another's bands myspace, it's an indieclick if someone clicks on it to listen. But for indie bands only!

So Bodhi Trees. They're totally unknown and I'm not sure if the music is in German or English most of the time. But the catchy 5 song (free) EP clocks in at about 22 minutes and is definitely worth a listen. I hear another band in 'Captured in Isolation', but I'm just not sure who to tag them with.

Download the EP here.

The Ting Tings are the other band I finally gave into for no real reason. I downloaded 'We Started Nothing', their new LP from June of this year. The thing is loaded with singles. But the other songs are just as good. If you like British rock pop more on the mainsteam side of the spectrum (thank you iTunes commercial with their music) then just go for the whole album.
Ting Tings Myspace

Understanding the Quarter Hour

I was browsing The Strokes' forums the other day when a post came up about the underlying theme of 15 Minutes/the album First Impressions of Earth. Now, 15 happens to be among my least favorite Strokes songs, but it was interesting.

The poster suggested that it was a reference to Andy Warhol's famous quote: "In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes."

Being the Andy Fan that I am, realizing that this was probably true was awesome.

So anyway, poor Strokes and their backlash. But they had their 15 minutes for sure.

"This whole life, is it a dream? <--unreal amount of hype
I can't tell. I got up, <--next 2 lines: actual 15 minutes of fame
Then I waved,
Then I fell." <--Backlash

This part of the song is actually in the quicker, non-folksy part and the lines are very blunt sounding, paralleling how fast the whole hype to backlash process was.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jvSU-ibG7Q&feature=related
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/strokes/15minutes.html

I couldn't find a sound clip >:(
But there are cues to this theme throughout

<3 lyrics analysis <3

1:00am [unpopcult] Mix!!

In hopes of holding onto the last bits of summer, I've decided to stay up really late and play with the random 25 smart playlists on my iTunes! Here's my first one (of many). I messed with it quite a bit to get it close to something I would put together and not something that was randomized. Haha...

Lisa- Albert Hammond Jr.
Call an Ambulance- Albert Hammond Jr.
I Am The Walrus- The Beatles
Strawberry Fields Forever- The Beatles
Jamming-Bob Marley
Barnacle Goose-Born Ruffians
Kurt Vonnegut-Born Ruffians
Just What I Needed-The Cars
Rock The Casbah-The Clash
Railway-Dispatch
Bold as Love-John Mayer
Genius-Kings of Leon
Modern World-Modern Lovers
Gouge Away-The Pixies
123 Stop-The Postelles
Weird Fishes/Arpeggi-Radiohead
21st Century-RHCP
Love Underground-Robbers on High Street
Girl Sailor-The Shins
Razorblade-The Strokes
Barley Legal-The Strokes
Ladies of Cambridge-Vampire Weekend
Campus-Vampire Weekend
Figures-The Whitest Boy Alive
School Uniforms-The Wombats

Some old, mostly new. Got the classic rockers- Beatles, Clash, and Cars and a John Mayer Hendrix cover. I used to be a freaking huge John Mayer fan (post first album). So I'm really paying homage to my music tastes; past and present.

Cultural Offerings; August 16, 2008

I saw an cool indie movie today: American Teen. It's basically just a documentary about these kids in their senior year of high school in Nowhere (aka Warsaw), Indiana. But seriously, I was sitting in the theater, jaw dropped at these kids and their incredible dysfunction. All of the kids they followed gravitated towards other people who would just hurt them. The movie subliminally bashed the clique scene, but there were no 'American teens' in the theater to make an impression on...

A Helping of Indie Brit Pop

Recently I've been browsing the indie back roads of band myspaces. Lucky for me (and you), I've come across a band called The Wombats. So I downloaded their LP:
"A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation."

Warning: The songs are tragically catchy.

I have yet to listen to the full album but so far what I've heard in terms of a hybrid of some of my favorite bands is:

→"if Bloc Party sounded friendly" vocals

→Born Ruffian riffs, back up and repetition
→The Postelles' rhymed but not annoying lyrics and guitar progressions

Like what you read? They're on a [MEGATOUR] right now! Check them out if you can.

The Wombats Myspace

Last Night: The Postelles

So I ended up seeing The Postelles open up for The Subways at Blender Theater last Friday the 25th. Not in this order they played White Night, 123 Stop, Mr. Used to Be, She She, Boy's Best Friend, Stella, Hey Little Sister and a new song they didn't give a title to. Sadly, they didn't play my personal favorite off the EP- Blue Room. They played their whole (small!) catalog except my favorite song of their's! What?! Anyway they were really great and I was standing in the front row on the GA floor. Probably would've had some better pictures if I sucked it up and used the flash but I felt bad because they were too close!

Hopefully I'll be seeing another one of their shows soon.
And they will play Blue Room.

But this video is of White Night.

Gig Book: Roger's Picnic

I think that Vampire Weekend hates me. It rained like HELL at Roger's Picnic, which was last Sunday, July 20 in Toronto. The music was really great though and all the people who went were exactly the same as the alt ones here in the city. I left pretty early, but I did see the following acts: Born Ruffians, Dizzee Rascal, Vampire Weekend and some Chromeo. In addition, I got an awesome Roger's Picnic Tee that has all of the bands on it (the Canadians seriously manufacture the softest concert tees!)


That's Vampire Weekend on the top and the Born Ruffians below. Both great live performers.