ATTN THIS WEEKEND: WE ARE INSIDE YOU

YUSSS! Just as soon as we finish typing this out and close everything down, we are headed back to the city that we love. The city of our heart. The lion of our loins, blessed H-TOWN! AND NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON, for there is a great weekend in store for all of us, and we look forward to spending it with you. PEEP:

FRIDAY

• Colesium, High on Fire, Mono, Panthers @ The Meridian
• Do May Say Think, The Jonx @ The Engine Room
• Western Civilization, Hollywood Black, Paper Moons, Elbows as Weapons @ Walter’s
• The Midnight Pilots, Gold Sounds @ Scout Bar
• The Factory Party @ Dean's
  

SATURDAY
YOU MUST ATTEND THIS:


TO GET THIS SHIRT:

PLUS - free pizza, koozies, beer at a price we are not aloud to mention, beautiful people and whips! (note that Ty Mahany is no longer going to be the MC, but the party will still rule regardless). We are stoked and have no idea if anything else is going on that night.

WESTERN CIVILIZATION TO GET EXTREMELY ACQUIAINTED WITH THEIR VAN

You know those times when you get up much earlier than you anticipated, and suddenly are in a public place and have to interact with folks? And though you're up and showered and toweled off and even coffeed up, you just can't break the haze/daze? It's sort of like you're drunk on morning and someone has put a three-second live delay between when things happen and when they actually register in your mind. That pretty much sums up the last time we ran into Rachel of the good ship Western Civilization. We didn't know we were going to Guitar Center first thing Labor Day morning until our microphone stopped working the night before and we neglected to turn off our alarm clock. So, there we were, at the early bird sale buying a way more expensive set of mics than we really need, and there she was, working, but we're not really sure what we talked about. Indeed, it may not have even been her at all, it could have just been us deciding it was because the Fog of Morn was too great and it was important to know someone, anyone, there amidst the morning chaos and 7am Metallica wanking.

We think this is what every morning on tour must be like. Total disorientation, absurd mental cobwebs, unfamiliar lights on unfamiliar streets and miles to go before you sleep. Which is why the tour van, musty foil to the chariot of church choirs, must be such a comforting thing. Everything outside this painted-white capsule that Detroit still makes best passes by in a moment, and may never be re-perceived again, but the vinyl of the seats, the carpet of the floor and the steel of the buckles will never change. And thats a comforting thing. Surely it will be for the Western Civilization, who kick of a 21 show tour starting tonight at Walter's on Washington. Fellow Mia Kat rawkers Hollywood Black are there for the sendoff, as are Elbows as Weapons and Papermoons. PEEP WHERE THY VAN SHALL TRAVEL:

Oct 4 - Northgate Tavern - Baton Rouge
Oct 5 - Cups - Madison, Mississippi
Oct 6 - The Nick - Birmingham, Alabama
Oct 7 - Jack Rabbits Jacksonville, Florida
Oct 9 - Tasty World - Athens, Georgia
Oct 10 - Blend - Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Oct 11 - TBA - Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Virginia
Oct 12 - White Hawk Music Cafe - Goochland, Virginia
Oct 13 - Cafe Diem - GRETCHEN SCHMALTZ SHOW Richmond, Virginia
Oct 14 - Grog and Tankered - Washington DC
Oct 15 - TBA - Baltimore / DC, Maryland
Oct 16 - Sidebar - Baltimore, Maryland
Oct 17 - TBA - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Oct 22 - TBA - Cleveland, Ohio
Oct 23 - The Nite Owl - Dayton, Ohio
Oct 26 - MEMORIAL UNION - der Rathskeller (UW Campus) Madison, Wisconsin
Oct 29 - The Way Out - St. Louis, Missouri
Oct 31 - The Gypsy - Fayetteville, Arkansas
Nov 1 - Convergence - Oklahoma City
Nov 3 - Emo’s - Austin

HAVE FUN IN THE VAN KIDS. DRIVE SAFE. DON'T FORGET TO TAKE J RELLI WITH YOU.

Stream: Western Civilization - Various Tracks

REVIEW: SOMETHING FIERCE/THE HANGOUTS SPLIT

SIR! I must insist that you not stand there with disdaining faces next to us in the elevator. We are both in suits dubiously labeled as 'designed' and not 'made' in Italy, and though the candy-apple punk of Something Fierce is pouring out of my earbuds so loud that it causes you to pretend not to look, I must note that this is my sonic equivalent of your non-fat vanilla grande latte. Its gets me going in the morning and kicks the sleep right out of the corner of my eyes. You see this - the sprite in my step and the pepsi in my perk? I am attempting to meet up with Peter Pan as often as possible, oh Mr. Graying Capitan Hook of the Marriott express elevator, and to do this I need to dyke out the bleakness of what otherwise would be another day far from friends and family and close only to the hearth of Willie Lowman. THESE TWO SONGS are primary in the elixir for numbing the shouting priority of tasks that require my shoes be shined this morning as there is no time to buy their much needed replacements. I cannot go jogging. I will not use the health and fitness center. But if I did, you would hear this outpouring again. It has been a long time since I spent any time with Teenage Ruins, but you are On Your Own, just as I am, and there is no damn good reason why we shouldn't be sharing these headphones and vigor together. We both need it my friend, we both need. DING! DOOR OPEN! Go kick the shit out of that meeting, friend. Be fierce.

Stream: Something Fierce - Various Tracks

NEW SATIN HOOKS VIDEO - KEVLAR

STOP THE BLACK ON BROWN ON BLACK ON PLUSH MANNEQUIN VIOLENCE!


Also, way to go Mark Armes, music videographer of the scene!

THEIVES LIKE US CHANGE NAME TO CLARIFY AFFINITY FOR ALL THINGS TONY WILSON

Man. Thieves Like Us is a confusing band name. First, we totally get distracted into thinking about Spies Like Us every time we hear their name. Second, we kept having trouble remembering which Thieves Like Us they were referencing: was it the Edward Anderson Novel? The Robert Altman Film? The British Sitcom? The New Order Song? Totally important and totally impossible to recall. And let's face facts, in these days, with the events of 9/29 crowding our minds, it's important to know where someone is coming from, if only to know where they are going. Also, there are a few other bands with this name, double confusing things - what if some of them reference the book and some the video. AK! HORROR!

Well DA TA DA DAH! to the sound of trumpets and fanfare for our local Orville's of the Reddenbacher, who have gone and pulled a Warsaw, changing their name to The Factory Party, and clarifying once and for all that they are big fans of Robert Altman and that anyone who partied at the Hacienda can go suck it.

We jokes because we loves. F'real we dig on this trio, and you should prolly do likewise. You've got two chances to catch them this weekend - Friday night at Dean's (which is a video shoot, no less), and Saturday at The White Swan. Check out the whole schebang of shows they have coming up on that pesky MySpace page thingey. TRANSMISSION!

Stream: The Factory Party - Various Tracks

RIP: NASTY NATION

LET THE BRAIN AND BEAUTY DRAIN CONTINUE! You gotta know something is up when you write a band over and over and over again about playing a show and you never hear back from them. It’s one thing if it’s the perennially non-performing Black Congress, but quite a different script if you’re attempting to get the reply-all from a duo who in the past was eager beaver for shows like they were made of tofu hoagies. Yep. Sadly, prematurely, alas-fully, if you didn’t catch Nasty Nation’s recent Rock Box performance, you missed their last show. We were at Buffalo Fred’s Ice House throwing up one of those Bud Light Clamato disaster into our mouths – what were you doing?

One we finally got the holla-back, we were informed that scandalizing vocalist Brandon is relocating to Chicago, wicked mustache and all. And while we can only hope that the reason behind the up-and-out is to start a new project with fellow Windy City playboy Joey Promahoney, this sadly leaves local Butch Cassidy DJ Quinn without his yanging Sundance Kid. Quinn sounds like he’ll be picking up the occasional run of the decks around town, so be sure to ask nice if he’ll drop the occasional Nation join just for old times sake.

Stream: Nasty Nation - Various Tracks

ATTN THIS WEEKEND: WE ARE LATE TO WORK

We gotta jet! Why would it ever seem like a good idea to do last call at Coyote Ugly? I guess because its the only place open. Here's what happenin!

FRIDAY

• Benefit for St. Jude's with Fire Team Charlie, Elaine Greer, Mitch (Mooney Monday) Paula May and Danny Red @Notsuoh
• Bloc Party, Deerhoof @ Warehouse Live
• Sleeping in the Avairy, Fired for Walking, Novox @ Rudyards

SATURDAY

• The Sea and Cake @ Warehouse Live
• VHS or Beta, Walter Meego @ The Mink

SUNDAY

• Tokyo Electron, Born Liars, The Monocles @ Rudyard's

HEY DO YOU WANT THIS T-SHIRT?

WELL THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO GET IT!

We're pretty stoked to finally be getting around to making some t-shirts. And, since The Proletariat is dishing out some thanks to us at their upcoming 5th Anniversary party (Saturday September 29th), we thought it would be fun to chip in a bit and give you a new shirt for your back. At the very least, it's nice to have something disposable you can lend out for the walk of shame. But if you like the layout (the front is above), and you can see yourself wearing one in black with white lettering, then be sure to show up - we'll be giving em out all night. OH YEAH - NOT ENOUGH? There also will be:

• Keg o Beer at a price that we aren't allowed to talk about.
• FREE PIZZA from the notorious Hot Fresh Five Dollar Pizza Guy you see around town.
• KOOZIES!
• Free Red Bull from the Red Bull Girls
• WHIPS live sets from Paris Falls, Wicked Poseur and (You)genious
• NON STOP UNSTOPABLE record playing by DJ Melodic, Witness and Paramour

PLUS - SHIRTS! YOU WANT ONE! SHOW UP! WHOO!

NEW VIDEO: THE DIMES - WESTERN

HALLO. How's your Thursday? Need a break - maybe a trip to the park and a roll down the hill and maybe, just maybe, some quality time at the petting zoo? TADAH! All this and more is yours to enjoy in the latest video from The Dimes. It's their track 'Western', though the Mark Armes video uses a rough (phew - ROUGH) mix of the song, with some scratch vocals thrown in there that aren't even the actual lyrics. So yeah - video before the song is done. We don't care what order the Dimes do things in, just keep doing em. enjoy.



The dimes are touring about the state somewhat this month, and with their next local gig being at the Proletariat October 5th as part of an anti-death penalty benefit (we're told). We know Wicked Poseur is on this bill, and you'll read it here first (or perhaps second or third) when the rest of the lineup gets worked out. PET! ZOO!

TODAY IS THE DAY: BASSES LOADED PREMIERE

C! A! T! S! CATS! CATS CATS! OOOOOOH! C! A! T! S! CATS! CATS! CATS! WOOOOOOH! Oh. You'll have to excuse us. You see we're in Lexington, Kentucky at the moment and are still very much caught up in the general jubilation regarding UK's stunning last-minute by the skin of their teeth football victory over arch rivals, the top-ten ranked Louisville Cardinals. BLUUUUE! WHIIIITE! BLUUUUE! WHIIIIITE! Sadly, though we may be steeped up to our local-blurbon enjoying necks in newfound knowledge of local athletic cheers, we are not in our beloved 713 in order to take in another exciting event sure to be part of ESPN Classic fodder for decades to come - the debut outing of Basses Loaded.

Yep, after some lineup changes, the 3/4 bass foursome we first told you about back in May is set to drop all manner of brown-notes on those of you whips enough to spend your tonight at Boondocks. As was the case before, not a single known recording exists of this act, but given the premise and their pedigree (members of The Fcking Transmissions, The Kants and American Sharks) we're way into hearing this all in action. SO! We have an assignment for you - go check it out and share your thoughts in the comments. They're opening up a free bill that includes Zookeeper, the latest project from Chris Simpson of Mineral. The whole thing is sponsored by Soap Box Magazine, a new pub that is supposed to start publishing this month, and promises a critical look at local music, among other things. Killer. ON! ON! U OF K! WE ARE RIGHT TO FIGHT TODAY!

ATTN THIS WEEKEND: YOU WILL BE OVER IN A HUMBERTO

Man. It’s gotta suck to be named Humberto right now. Suddenly your name is synonymous with morbid excitement that comes out of nowhere, promises a low-impact thrill-ride, and then in the end changes its mind and kills some poor old man standing under a carpark and is over as quickly as it began. This is why we feel strongly that storms should only be named after things that always suck – like Hurricane Gear Thief of Tropical Storm Big Brother Season Finale. Regardless, this weekend is going to be over before you know it. If you’re not headed up to ACL, here’s what is in your cone of uncertainty (thanks to Jordan Graber for reminding us of this whips term).

FRIDAY

• Rosebuds @ The Proletariat (Happy Hour Show)

SATUDAY

• Reverend Horton Heat, Gore Gore Girls @ The Meridian
• Sideshow Tramps, American Sharks, 500 Megatons of Boogie @ The Proletariat
• Talib Kwali @ Warehouse Live
• The Killers, Louis XIV @ Reliant Center

SUNDAY

• Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, David Brazen @ Walter's on Washington
• Magnolia Electric Co., Golden Boots, Bright Men of Learning @ Rudyard's

Speaking of ACL - there is a littany of good shows coming up the next few weeks, in no small part thanks to PBS! Check out our upcoming shows calendar for all the deets. (gCal users - add it to you calendar).

REVIEW: O PIONEERS!!! / THE MEASURE [SA] SPLIT

The laundromat can not be overstated in terms of its importance to enjoying music. It’s not just a place where the detergenty task unfolds (before the folding), it’s a place of focus. Of stasis, as the chore at hand really is that – a chore – and it's nearly always a place where one goes prepared for the time to be spent. It’s also one of the few remaining chambers of cyclic white noise in this, the age after the factory. Spins. Rinses. Washes. Soaks. Drys. Washers stammering forward with hectic shifts as the final moments of their task centrifuges wet drum innards. Competing cycles and sounds as rivets protest how their denim drags them around and small flotillas of change try endlessly to ride the conveyor humps into loop-de-loop.

In this environment there is a palette of patterns to sample and tune in and out – nearly enough to find a new rhythm section for any recording. So too, does the shortness of the loops encourage the dedication to a single track to see how it will react with each additional washer and dryer you let into the metal mix. Now empty. Now switch loads. Now suddenly folding, and everything is tuned out. Nothing but you and O Pioneers!!! as socks are matched, undershirts lamented for their ever enlarging pit stains, treasured tees folded and jeans given a second run for added fiber tightness.

Now out of the noise entirely, where not even tuning out is necessary. Spare change in your pocket and Pepsi on the mind, it can’t help but be noticed how much sugar there really is in the guitars, nearly as much as hoarse rallying in the throat. Outside. Soda Jerks visible in the window. Someone else’s afternoon mix leaking out the weather stripping into your repeat-one. Maybe another walk around the block, one more cycle, before you head in. Ride that sad pony one more time. Recommended.

(note: the other side isn't a local jammah, but we're pretty sure it's still good).

Stream: O Pioneers!!! - Various Tracks

DUMB QUESTIONS/SMART ANSWERS: THE MONOCLES

NEARLY ONE IN THREE THURSDAYS we fire off a set of hum drum questions to an unsuspecting regent of the rock, demanding the questions WE MUST KNOW THE RESPONSES TO, some of which you make likewise care about. THIS DAY you are in for a dash of the gentlemanly one-eyed direct to you from Jeff, drummer of The Monocles. LET THE REGAL RETORTS RESONATE:

What are some of your favorite records lately?
Jonny actually just recently got me into King Khan and BBQ. They're really great. And I have a cd of a live American Sharks set that I've been jamming the shit out of. The latest Bronx record, the Marked Men's "Fix My Brain." And then there's the tried & true classics: the Drive Like Jehu records and Rocket from the Crypt stuff I can never get sick of.

Are there any Houston bands who you've been digging lately?
The American Sharks are straight-up my favorite band in town right now. But there are SO many. I get really, really tired of people talking shit on the Houston scene. There are so many good bands here and I cannot figure out why so many people are down on this place! BTEOT, the Dimes, Paper Moons, Hollywood Black, Something Fierce, Dizzy Pilot, Jonbenet, Bring Back the Guns, Sharks & Sailors, Goldenaxe, the Guilloteens......I could go on for days.

What's your secret Houston place?
I'm not very good at being in secret places. No one ever tells me where they are. The Spaghetti Western in the Heights is a delicious Italian restaurant that is rarely crowded, so maybe that place is a secret that I just didn't know was a secret. I know of a couple nice caves. A couple hovels.

What is the first sentence of the page you are on in a book you are reading right now?
"Unrhythmic script does not flow; it is unsteady, stagnant, and has singular and uneven spots that catch and jar the eye."

What's the best thing you have spent money on in the last year?
I bought a stuffed jaguar head out of the back of this dude's truck on Washington Ave, like, 2 months ago. He wouldn't tell me where he got it from. Its mounted really badly, too. All the teeth are kinda broken off and mangled, and the fur is all matted and fucked up. But the guy only wanted 15 bucks for it, so now its sitting in my living room and I don't know what to do with it.

What is the best thing you got for free in the last year?
I'm assuming that physical acts of affection don't count, right? In which case, I'd have to say the entire Mexican Cheerleader discography from my friend Justin from Underground Communique in Chicago. Or Dancing Outlaw 1 & 2 with outtakes on DVD.

What is your ringtone?
My phone is a hand-me-down from a friend of mine, so all the ringtones originated from him. He had some hip-hop song loaded in that goes "Roll around the corner, what do I see? Po-po's followin' me." I don't know who its by. I probably should.

What should we ask the band next week?
"What is the strangest, naturally-occurring physical oddity that you have ever seen firsthand? And did it make you nauseous?"

What doe The Monocles have going on right now?
We're doing a little 3 day thing around Texas (Sept 13 here in town at Rudz, the 14th in San Antonio at Jigger's, and the 15th in College Station at the Roasted Bean cafe) with Something Fierce. We have shows on Sept 23rd at Rudz, Oct 12th at Jet Lounge, and we're on the GarageFest at Rudz on December 14th. As far as releases go, we have a 7" coming out next month (October) on Loose Recs and we have a live in-studio radio set that Loose helped us put out that we've been kinda hawking around. We have about 10 songs done right now, so we're gonna probably write a couple more and then we'll be recording the full-length at Pigeon Eater Studios before too long that should be done and out sometime around the 1st of the year. And, of course, we're gonna be playing around town a lot in between all that other stuff. Busy busy.

BUSY INDEED, O SIDEKICK TO THE TOP-HAT! Catch the Monocles tonight at Rudyard's with The Soda Pop Kids and Urgencies.

UPDATE: Pansies that they are, The Soda Pop Kids and Urgencies were afraid of wind damage from THE TERROR OF HUMBERTO and canceled. Today. Ok, we have no idea, but canceling day-of is weaksauce. Fortunately, the show is still on and Something Fierce and iAlarma! are filling in. Hawt.

Stream: The Monocles - Out of Your Mind

STOLEN GEAR: THE MATHLETES

People who scour the craigslist, the ebay and the pawn shops for gear take note, a bunch of gear was stolen from Joe Mathlete's car last evening. The worst people in the world, whoever they are may they rot and be forgotten, made off with the following, as posted on hands_up:

• Guitar - Fender Strat, made in Mexico, cream colored, has three Cat Power stickers on it and one of Stuart Little (shaddup)
• Bass amp - Ampeg, BA112 or BA115 I think... the kind without wheels that you can sorta tilt back. The mid-tone/"style" knob is broken off.
• Guitar amp - dunno who made it (Crate?). One of those dumb modeling amps with the effects and such built in. Green and yellow light-up buttons on the front when turned on.
• Pedals (all in a blue duffel bag that also contained a buncha cables and a stuffed toy duck):
• Boss Digital Delay, cream
• Big Muff Fuzz, green, missing battery holder inner
• DigiTech Multi Chorus, blue
• Danelectro Pepperoni Phaser, blue, speed knob broken off
• Boss Chromatic Tuner, white

The Mathletes have a show this evening at The Proletariat, and it sounds like they're going to be able to borrow the gear to make it happen. If you want to buy a man a drink or pass out some hugs, tonight be the time to do it.

REVIEW: COP WARMTH - CENTAUR COP TOP EP

Cop Warmth is one of those bands that has a distinct live and on-record experience. Their live shows are ridiculously sloppy affairs, where descriptions that would encompass ‘masterful and crystal clear live sound’ would occur just as infrequently as ‘wore matching uniforms’ or ‘kept pants on for entirety of performance.’ So fuzzingly energetic are their shows, however, that it's hard not to get carried away in their cranky and catchy tide of hidden-in-the-backpack Natural Light fueled hardcore. But it’s totally doublemint if one actually knows the songs, which is why we’re so chelada on both their first CDr giveaway, and the new Centaur Cop Top ep.

Picking the nose of the same pleasure synapse as the early recordings of another whips set of local prunks from beyond the beltway, these John Sears-produced tracks tap into the final stiffie and oxy shared life experience that we all pretty much have in our list of mental scars – high school. That the (typically) bonks and dumbs lyrics of opener 'Ankstiyeti' (Angsty Yeti?) are as appealing to those way past the 10 year reunion as they are to kids still needing to remember to turn to the left, past zero, to the second number says something about those of us who might not have picked a duet by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes as their senior class song. Observe:

I HATE KIDS! DON’T STOP PLEASE STOP DON’T STOP LOOKING AT ME! HIGH SCHOOL HALLS! YOU’RE TOO PACKED! HIGH SCHOOL HALLS! FILLED WITH RATS!

Remember that? Or how about the lyrical entirety of 'Dancing is My Bad,' which we are going to assume is a succinct and brilliant incitement of the Coke-n Apparel explosion that’s taken the city by hold as of late:

DANCE CRAZE(?)! NEW WAVE! GOLD CHAINS! HEADACHES!

You see, without Centaur Cop Top, you wouldn’t get this. It would just be slamming around to whatever the hell they were singing and wondering if that was actually how things were supposed to sound. Think of it as a tourist brochure to the real experience – a narration to the rawness of the live experience, and a reminder that the primacy and takes-you-back of the experience is multifaceted. Though the recent departure of original bassist Nate (FTDHD) might change lord knows what about them, we remain pretty assured with this recording that Cop Warmth isn’t just a cute band that people like cause they are so young. If they stick it out, and we hope they do, we’re pretty stoked about the one-minute acts of vinegar snakes pissing pepper sauce that they come up with next. Recommended.

(Note that the Centaur Cop Top EP was a Grey Ghost release, and therefore may only be available in very limited numbers directly from the band itself).

Stream: Cop Warmth – Various Tracks

OVER SEA, UNDER STONE RELEASE EP, TOUR

We’ve pretty much gotten not writing about Over Sea, Under Stone down to an art-form. It’s not that we ain’t diggs on what they do or have some beef with one of them or something. Nah. But for whatever reason “talk about how whips Over Sea, Under Stone is” was petrified wood on the Skyline Newsroom Office Jumbotron To-Do list. WELL THANKS BILL ALLEN, THIS IS ONE LOOP WE CAN CLOSE! That’s right, we’re taking in all the best that evenings at the Wichita Airport Hilton has to offer, and then snuggling up with a copy of the organizational brianiac’s Getting Things Done. AND GETTING THEM DONE WE ARE!

Though it is surely off-putting to some, we’ve always rather enjoyed vocalist Kegan Heiss’ particular tonal and caedential approach to vocals. He is not the knight in armor, rather the squire in amour who toils behind and sings his subversion to the bursting bodices of the tray carriers and they who his lord would have eminent domain over. (Cursed evil lords!) He has no fife and drums to war, but an (though with rhythm) ensemble that sometimes woos you, sometimes whirls you and occasionally has you marching in place with nuanced and decidedly dragon-riff avoiding melodies (plus, he shares vocal duets with the spritey Stacey Tucker).

And, they just put out an EP, their third, the six track sporting Five Songs is Not Enough (jackasses). It’s currently onsale at Sound Exchange, and we hope to get out our thoughts on it soon. We would need to have a copy of it, though. ADD TO TICKLER FILE! AND SPEAKING OF ORGANIZATION APPROACHES: OSUS heads out on tour – where shall thy Franklin Plan, oh trubadors:

Sep 14: Rikenjaks - Lake Charles, LA
Sep 15: Meridian Underground Music Exchange - Meridian, MS
Sep 17: Ground Zero - Spartanburg, SC
Sep 18: Downtown Underground – Marion, SC
Sep 19: TBA – Columbus, VA
Sep 20: Two Art Chicks – Greensboro, NC
Sep 21: Lit Lounge - New York, NY
Sep 22: Larry’s – Danbury, CT
Sep 23: Brenda and Jerry’s – Bath, PA
Sep 24: The Monster House – Columbus, OH
Sep 25: The Nite Owl – Dayton, OH
Sep 26: TBA – Kentucky
Sep 27: TBA – Fulton, TN
Sep 28: TBA – Alabama
Sep 29: The Darkroom – Baton Rouge, LA

Stream: Over Sea, Under Stone – Various Tracks

SPAIN COLORED ORANGE CLONE BASSIST, REVEAL ALBUM DETAILS

Hello Thar! Before we get to the real news, are we the only person that thinks SCO’s new bassist, Steve, could pass in certain lighting situations for their former thumper of the fours, Steven. Go ahead, take a look:


Can you figure out which is which? It’s like having Bloody Marys with the Walker twins while Sam and George are working the bar. Ridiculous. This joke is going nowhere.

ANYWHOO. We are all frosting-in-the-middle to be able to announce, however, the latest deets on SCO’s long anticipated Bill Racine-produced released. Sneaky Like a Villain is now set to come out December 11th on Lucid Records. Along with the CD release, there’ll be a limited run of 500 on orange vinyl with a different set of artwork (all the artwork, btw, is being done by local cool cat Rene Cruz, who we think also did the cover for the forthcoming Bring Back the Guns release. What a guy). SHALL WE EXAMINE THY TRACK LISTING, OH VILLAIN:

1. Intro "The Radio's On Again"
2. Who Am I?
3. Hide
4. Cheap Thrills
5. Music Box
6. Better Left Alone
7. Uh Oh, Trouble
8. I Remember It Was Christmas Time
9. One Million Reasons
10. You Think You Know
11. Birds and the Bees

The skin-saving quintet will also be working with Jared Paul Boulanger (Slaovak Republic) to make a video for 'I Remember It Was Christmas Time,' which they’ll be unveiling at their CD release party. Awe. What a nice stocking stuffer.

SCO will also have a new track, 'Give me a Minute,' in the January issue of Harp Magazine. So, ya know. Time for someone to open a Hudson News franchise or something. Course, you don’t have to wait long to be at the mercy of the lovely orange rein: SCO will be headlining the Proletariat’s 5th birthday party on the 29th. Krakatoa!

Stream: Spain Colored Orange - Who Am I

ATTN THE NEXT TWO MONTHS: YOU ARE FREQUENT FLYERY

Dearest loyal local readers. You are the Jaeger that sustains us. You are the very Axe body spray beneath our wings. We do not know what we would do without you. And we are very sad to tell you that, pretty much until the end of October, we are going to be out of town. Yes, a fun series of cities with names like Wichita, Lexington, San Antonio, Snowbird, Corpus Christi, Midland, Denver and others are soon to be stickered all over our collective steamer trunks. No, sadly, we are not out on the road as the new drummer for By The End of Tonight, but rather our day jobs compel us thus.

NEVER FEAR! We’re heading out on the road with a mad stack of records to spend our lonely hotel nights reviewing for you. FOR YOU, BRAH. Yep, so while you won’t see us leering blearily out on the town, you will be hearing all about our thoughts on recent and forthcoming releases by tons of local kids including Brokenhearted, Cop Warmth, O Pioneers!!!, Something Fierce, Blades, Punkin Pie, Fatal Flying Guilloteens, Paris Falls, Bring Back the Guns, Tame.. Tame and Quiet, Black Math Experiment, Rustler, By the End of Tonight, Linus Pauling Quartet – even that scene-deserting Judas Jana Hunter has something out soon. Plus, all the news and gossip that people are kind enough to leak to us. Let’s face it – this is a good deal for you, brah, as we will have little else to do.

Does your band have a release coming out this fall? Do we have a copy of it? Did you answer no? YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG! Hopefully your record blows and so no one is missing anything. IF IT DOESN'T - THEN TITE BRAH, GET US A COPY!

Also, a quick preview while the details are being finalized, but we’re pretty aw-shucks to be able to announce that, for their 5th anniversary party, none other than The Proletariat is going to be honoring us and the work we allegedly do for the scene. For you, brah. The lineup for the night is still being finalized, but we can say this: bands will be setting up two at a time onstage and duking it out to demonstrate who loves you more; there will be dancing boxer hotties; there will be whip ass DJs; there will be ZERO DOLLAR PIZZA – HOT FRESH; and the list of confirmed-to-date live acts includes Wicked Poseur, Ugenius Yougenius, Cliché and Spain Colored Orange. Three more to be announced soon. Put September 29th on your calendar brah, we’re coming back for it. For you Brah.

REVIEW: PARIS FALLS - VOLUME ONE

The West as it Was. A Landscape of awe, where only surroundings surround you – nothing that is made, only that which exists as God deposited it there. Mocha mud rivers cut the land, not the paths of men; wind folds the dirt-cum-dust, not the plow and the ox. Roasted red pepper soil courts patches of shade beneath the sage and her skeletons. Things that breathe and scuttle make violence on the beating heart; the fang of the rattlesnake, the mace of the scorpion; the tear of the tarantula. Men and families, prepared and horesdrawn, bring leather and burlap and iron and waste into this desert. A crucible to purify away the weak and unlucky from the caustic powdered success.

And a century and a half later, we sat, riveted, in front of Apple Computers and are enterstructed with glee about the Oregon Trail. And though they have nothing to do with one another, Paris Falls keeps bringing us back, mentally, to a place straddled by the very real blacksmiths and horseshoes of destiny manifesting and the 8-bit typhoid deaths of our youth. It’s as though the entire west needs to be discovered again, with loss, with heartbreak and with struggle, and this is the band that is playing in the wagon behind you. You’re upbeat, but you know that dysentery is killing a child at the trailing end of the caravan. You hear the music and fear in secret that their modest plateau of uplift might be the greatest steppe of joy that life, real deal life, can ever really spit up. You wear their dirges with heavy hooks in the ventricle. What if there is no Kublai Kahn at the end of the forded river? What if you never live to find out?

Nearly every review you will read of this record, Paris Fall’s first, will mention the Beatles. And why not, as there is more than a little rubber in their soul. Indeed, earlier tangents of examination focused particularly on this website’s fondness for Ringo Starr’s drumming, and the similar back-beating pleasure we encounter when listening to PF on record (work handled live until recently by Mikey DeLeon - Matt Tantillo is now filling his kicks and fills). However, a recent discussion on another blog rendered that line of thinking to the day late/dollar short bin. But to us. more than Fab, Volume One sounds dry, and deserting. Of a time when all the psychotrops have long given way to the cracked lake-bed beneath them. Metal hoops sinking into earth not ready to be tamed, but still turning. Forward. Reccomended.

Stream: Paris Falls - Various Tracks