Fake Pink Glasses

Mistletoe

2011-12-03T10:45:00.004-05:00

The first time I heard this song was almost exactly three years ago, take one day. It's been in my head all morning.

But if I was being honest:

Kate

2011-11-12T22:54:00.003-05:00

I was obsessed with this song when I was nine and heard it for the first time in years tonight. Both the cashier and I were singing along.

(No, nine year old me was not cool enough to be into Ben Folds Five. I had no idea who they were. But an odd bit of chance and the TGIF lineup injected my otherwise Oldies and Country music upbringing with some pretty decent indie pop, even if I had no idea.)

Three Years Old

2011-11-09T09:02:00.002-05:00

Dear Blog,

Just when I think you're dead, you turn three years old. Sure, the past year has been rough - the number of posts halved, the shows dropped to almost nothing, and the CD buying dwindled down to barely there.

But here you are, limping along to three years, 54 (chronicled) live shows, 311 posts. The list of artists tagged is too long for me to even consider counting.

I don't know how long you'll last, but considering I thought you were dead and buried last November 9th...

And about those glasses? I might just have to bust them back out tonight.

<3 Alex

The Sounds, after DJs that almost weren't worth it

2011-11-03T19:17:00.007-04:00

The Sounds at Royale in Boston, MA, October 30, 2011

So the tickets said doors at 6, and assuming a 6:30 show we arrived at six. Oh how stupid we were.

The music pouring out of the speakers was already loud, even though the crowd was only twenty people deep. We were only a few feet back from the stage and my friend feared for my ears later in the night as I'd forgotten to bring earplugs.

"Honestly, I've probably done so much damage to them over the past few years, one more night isn't going to hurt."

"That's like saying you've done so much damage to your liver, what's another night of binge drinking?"

So I paid a dollar, bought some earplugs, shoved them in my pocket and never pulled them back out. It's just not the same through little cylinders of foam.

First up, after a full hour of nothing, and oh my god up for too long, Kids at the Bar. Two dudes, two soundboards, one laptop. They DJed for 75minutes. I don't know that it wasn't all preprogrammed - sure they were turning knobs and hitting buttons, but it never correlated with what was coming out of the speakers. One of the guys, Red Plaid Dude, was at least a little excited. Dude in Black just stared at his board and drank a beer the whole time. It might have worked in a club of people looking to dance, but the crowd waiting for a band was... displeased. It would have been fine for 30min, but 45min in and everyone was antsy. After an hour and fifteen we practically applauded that they were leaving.

Next, Natalia Kills. I actually really liked her and her legging clad band. She had a great stage presence, a badass attitude, and the voice to back it up. Her live performance was even better than the recorded music on her site. She seemed a little stiff at the beginning of the set, probably from nerves and wondering how the crowd would react, but by the end she was smiling and captivating. "Free" and "Acid Annie" stood out, as well as her cover of "Fuck You" by Cee Lo Green. I might not go out to see her again, but I'd definitely be happy if she was opening for someone else I was seeing.

Then Kids at the Bar came back! As soon as their little DJ cart came back out the crowd let up a collective groan. This time we only had to put up with them for 30min, but that meant they'd been on stage for almost two hours total. It was brutal.

Then finally The Sounds. We were maybe two feet from the stage and it was loud and intense. We were so close to the guitarist's monitor that the mix was off, but it was still so amazing. The Sounds' songs are meant for crowds to sing out, with repeated verses and lots of yelling. Maja is an amazing front woman, strutting and kicking and singing in five inch heels. She has this aura of complete badassery, while still being gorgeous.

From a stripped down piano and crowd sung "Night After Night" to "Ego" to "Song With a Mission," the crowd and the show both pumped with energy. I'm not sure how to describe how having Maja Ivarsson singing about two feet away from you, staring at you, will make you sing out the words to prove that you can. The whole band was having fun and rocking out, and they're one of only a few bands to whom I'd give the label "rockstars." It's something about the presence and the all consuming energy, as though every point in that room was focused on the stage.

Stumbling out into the cold afterward and onto a broken down Red Line, we ran into other concert goers who shared our sentiments of bad DJing openers, attractive guitarists, and charismatic singers. As soon as it was over, I wanted it to start again.

Snow, Sharks, and Screaming My Heart Out

2011-11-01T20:25:00.004-04:00

Panic! at the Disco at Lupo's in Providence, RI, October 29, 2011

This show started, like almost all Lupo's shows, with a gigantic line snaking around the block. It was pouring rain and the temperature was quickly dropping towards a point where that rain would turn into something else entirely. But then an awesome concert buddy showed up with coffee, and a good line friend returned. There was a discussion of past horrible line friends that, a year later, just made me laugh hysterically. ("As it turns out, 'Player' is bro-speak for 'has a girlfriend'." "Well then what's bro-speak for 'moved to Germany'?")

We finally got inside, only to be accosted by a security guard searching everyone for glow-sticks. I have no idea why, but this one security guard spent the entire night tracking down anyone in the crowd wearing glow-sticks. It was so ridiculous that we stopped a passing security dude later in the night to ask what was going on, and he shrugged and looked confused. We later saw him asking the glow-stick-hater about it, pantomiming in the onslaught of noise, but could not make out what the response was.

First up was The Tower and the Fool. It wasn't bad at first, rocky acoustic with alright lyrics, but then it quickly spiraled towards full on depression. It was past emo, into the "my heart is dead" region of lyric writing, and I spent the entire second half of the set wondering if they all just needed hugs. It was sad.

Now, at about this point, The Shark showed up. The Shark was a five foot tall, completely trashed girl in a felt shark costume. Face visible through the gaping shark teeth, hands covered in light gray fins, she was trying to barrel her way through the crowd. At every sticking point, she would turn to the offending body and scream "I'm a shark!" I'd never seen someone try to start a fight while holding up soft felt fins before. She was loud and screaming and actually really hitting some of the people around her. It was amusing for the first minute or so, but after ten, not so much. Finally some guy came and dragged her out of our portion of the crowd. We saw him later in the night supporting her slumped, obviously sharked-out body. It was ridiculous.

Foxy Shazam. I don't know what the hell that was. I can't even begin to think of how to describe the experience. I was simultaneously terrified and excited. The lead singer looked like a sex offender bull fighter, the keyboardist played with his feet, and the trumpet player spent the night in various states of undress. They were upside down and all over the stage and loud and crazy and... just and. It was kind of awesome. It was every decade that you've ever made fun of crushed into one. You just have to experience it to believe it. This, this doesn't even come close, but maybe it will help:

Then came Panic! at the Disco. We had grabbed spaces by the railing and I swear I spent most of the night with my body flung over it, clutching on and screaming out every word. There was so much energy in that room... new songs and old, everyone was throwing themselves into it. I got that feeling again, the one where I squeezed my eyes shut and gripped tighter around the banister, as though if I just held on tight enough I could stay in that moment forever, with lights flashing on the other side of my lids, bodies pressing in close, my head full of nothing but sound.

I remember old shows where Brendon would move the mic away whenever the song swore, make the crowd fill in. That is no longer the case. Sometime after the split, his dirty mouth found a place on the stage, and it makes for this predatory stage presence. It's mostly sexy but also a little funny, because you know he can't really be taking himself seriously the whole time. It was, however, during "I Write Sins" that I felt something bad happen. The whole crowd was singing out, but out of instinct everyone screams just a little louder on the "whore" that Brendon used to always drop. That's when I felt something in my throat tear or rip or snap. Two days later and it's still not quite happy, especially after a second concert the following night (but more on that in another post).

But was it worth it in that moment? Absolutely.

Their encore included a cover of "I Believe in a Thing Called Love." I love that song, and they did it well, and no way was the girl trying to crowd surf by jumping off of our banister going to prevent me from continuing to enjoy it. Though, fun fact kids, you shouldn't crowd surf on teenage girls. They will always drop you. Always.

The show ended, I parted ways with the concert buddies, and then I wound up in the epic October snowstorm. Being a New Englander, I decided that a little snow was not going to deter me, and that I was going to drive straight through it back to Boston.

After about a mile on 95, I shut the radio off and started talking to my car, God, and myself, assuming that some combination of the three might get me at least to my parents house in one piece. It was the worst thing I have ever driven in and I have never been so terrified while driving. I've driven in snowstorms, driven in really awful weather, but this was out of the blue, two months early, and ridiculous. I couldn't see the lines on the road, the wind was threatening to blow me sideways, and my wipers kept freezing over and smearing the little vision that I had.

But was it worth it for that show? Absolutely.

Dubstep Canadian ElectroPop. Obviously.

2011-10-25T23:12:00.004-04:00

Lights at the Middle East in Cambridge, MA, October 18, 2011.

A frantic phone call last Monday night from a friend looking for a concert buddy lead to yet another Lights concert at the Middle East. It was the first night of her Siberia tour, an album which I just haven't listened to yet. We missed the opening act, as the Middle East set a hard 8:30 curfew in order to get the Throwed crowd in, and there was no way that 6:00 doors could get the full 400 people downstairs before a 6:15 set. I don't understand why they couldn't have just opened the doors a little earlier, but alas.

I've stopped being surprised by the amount of bros at her shows. Not just guys, and not indie guys, but frat bros, dudes who have no place watching a tiny Canadian girl play synth pop. And they're not just standing there with a beer. Oh no, they are belting out every word. I chalk it up to them being able to use her crazy hair and nerd tattoos as a cover for their actual love of tiny pop music.

I'm also a huge fan of loud shows. Sounds that make your sternum shudder and shake, from jet engines to bass lines, are my absolute favorite. But Lights has recently dipped her toes into Dubstep and I thought my eardrums were going to bleed. My sternum was shaking, sure, but so was my clothing and my hair and my throat. Honest to God, the group of people I was standing around with were all marveling to each other about the fact that our throats were shaking. It was uncomfortably loud, and drowned out any hope of music with pure volume and noise.

But it was still fun. Lights is bouncy and has an absolutely amazing voice, so when the set turned down a softer acoustic path we were all immensely happier to be able to hear her voice and the music. The stand out song for me, however, was probably "Toes." The chorus flows down, visually and sonically, gorgeously. The lyrics are pretty key as well. I hadn't connected to it well before seeing it live, but after watching her perform it I've been persuaded to go out and find the album.

So her music's a little (a lot) louder now, with a heavier hip hop and dubstep back, but it's still got her own brand of wit and humor and fun. Sure, I felt the lack of "February Air" in the set, and it was a completely different feel to the last time I saw her at the Middle East, but it's an evolution that I can totally dig.

Bust Your Knee Caps

2011-10-11T21:44:00.000-04:00

A Doo-Wop song about the mafia. Enough said.

Mikey Welsh

2011-10-09T14:11:00.005-04:00

It seems this is just a bad weekend for all of my music.

Mikey Welsh, bassist for Weezer from '98-'01, died in a hotel room in Chicago yesterday. He'd moved on from Rock and Roll to become an artist a while back, and I'd never really gotten into his stuff, but it's still sad to see someone go.

The creepy part was this tweet, from last week:

MikeyWelsh71 Mikey Welsh

dreamt i died in chicago next weekend (heart attack in my sleep). need to write my will today.

The two videos that stuck out in my head whenever he was mentioned:

And:

The Academy Is... No More.

2011-10-08T12:58:00.008-04:00

The Academy Is... has broken up.

It's been coming for a while. They took a break, then people left, and nothing felt the way it used to.

"From this point on, The Academy Is... belongs to you. Feel free to listen. Listen as loud as you'd like."

But this was the music that, three summers ago, got me moving. 2008 is the angriest I've ever been, driving for hours every day to a life I'd decided I didn't want, no idea where I wanted to be except for anywhere else.

Written over and over in black in on journal pages are lyrics and the number 2978, the number of miles to LA.

The Summer of 2008 is forever branded in my mind as The Summer of The Academy Is... They screamed at me through my beat up car's speakers for the entirety of the summer, over hot leather and a broken AC. I pushed my way to the front of a sticky, dusty crowd to see them at Warped Tour, the first time I'd seen them live, skipping classes and lab and responsibilities to do so.

Some bands taught me not to give a fuck, and others taught me to dance, but I felt like TAI was yelling at me, like they knew that I was stagnating and lost. "You've got to find a way before you fold" my speakers shook. "Hold your head high, heavy heart," they continued, "So take a chance and make it big, 'cause it's the last you'll ever get."

I was nineteen and angry, and then I started to do something about it.

The last time I saw them was about a year ago, out in the middle of nowhere Northampton, and I'm glad I didn't know it would be the last. It felt like 2008 again.

This, this is how that summer felt and looked, low res and fast and dark:

With a lot of this thrown on top, just for good measure:

Sleeper Agent

2011-10-05T08:31:00.003-04:00

I'm not usually in the area that 95.5 WBRU out of Providence reaches anymore, but when I am, awesome stuff like this happens.

Get it Daddy - Sleeper Agent

There used to be a stretch of highway, South on 95 from 495 to Pawtucket, that meant getting out and loud music with the windows down. Last night this was North on the same stretch, windows up, wipers against the rain, wondering just where the road lines had gone and where I was going.

Guster and Jukebox, The Alum Show

2011-10-02T13:33:00.004-04:00

You're so dead, old blog friend, that I forgot to write about a show. I used to have a hard and fast limit of 24 hours and this has been... eight days. But, for posterity's sake:

Guster and Jukebox the Ghost at Brandeis University, September 24, 2011.

The first time I heard Jukebox the Ghost, I probably wished they would turn it down. My sophomore year dorm was in the Brandeis castle, two rooms away from the coffee house that hosted small bands. This was great at times when I wanted to watch my friend's comedy clubs perform, or the few times when I performed there myself with the swing dancing troupe, but awful the nights before large organic chem exams when I could not study with reverberating hipster noise bands pounding through the walls.

So the first time I heard a Jukebox show, it was technically at Brandeis. However I did not know who they were until the next night when I escaped campus for the safety of a dark club and guitars. I stumbled upon Jukebox the Ghost completely by accident at the Middle East, and was always a little sad to find that what would become one of my favorite bands had literally played in my dorm. So it was fitting that my ninth Jukebox show was back at Brandeis.

It was awful, however, that it was the year after I graduated. My loyal Jukebox buddy and best friend, whom I had taken to seven shows with me, was across the country in Texas, and I and my friends were those weird kids who graduated and then came back. I've been trying to avoid campus as much as possible, despite the fact that I still know a lot of seniors, but seeing friends and former students made it alright.

I've written about Jukebox and Guster shows multiple times already, and they still rock live, so there's really no point of repeating myself. Jukebox played a few new songs, which were good, but their mix was a little off for such a large crowd and their lack of playing "Victoria" made me a touch disappointed. Their "Power of Love" cover remains fabulous and they had fun and that's really all I require. Guster was also good, music that everyone knows and feels at some point, and included a rap of their perishable food items that they donated to the audience. I've had things thrown at me at concerts before (bottles, clothing, and that one odd toothbrush) but I will admit to having never before been pelted by an avocado.

It was good, it was fun, and though it was hot and the dude in front of me kept throwing his elbows dangerously close to my nose, I had a good time. But it wasn't right, the crowd wasn't right for the music, and what is a Jukebox show without a best friend to laugh with?

Love You Like a Love Song

2011-09-24T23:37:00.001-04:00

I try not to have any guilty pleasures musically. I don't care how lame or nerdy or stupid it is, if I like it then I own up to it. But I just couldn't own up to liking a Selena Gomez song.

But now, TalkToTheWalls has covered it and it's okay for me to publicly like it! Enjoy the pretty, slightly out of sync video below.

This City - Patrick Stump

2011-09-21T18:54:00.005-04:00

I have thoughts.

First, I hate the videography. There's something disorienting and occluding about it. I just want to see, and I feel like there are blinds between me and the video. Second, his hair! I'm not sure why so many dudes have decided to do the short crop on the sides, flat mohawk on top look lately. I started noticing it in the spring and now it's everywhere. I don't disapprove, and I think I might kind of like it, but the sudden adoption of a seemingly awkward haircut has me puzzled.

But the song. I love his new musical direction. I love his voice, I love the freedom that I can feel in his music now, the feeling of release and soaring and happiness. Going solo was such a good thing for him, be it permanent or not. His exploration of other music, this side of him that I feel was always buried underneath trucker hats and Pete Wentz's lyrics, is fantastic and absolutely deserves to see the light.

300

2011-09-12T22:07:00.004-04:00

Three hundred posts. They're a little sparser now, but they're still going.

I haven't posted a 300th yet because what could deserve that spot? I can think of nothing better at the moment than the stream of The Horrible Crowes' new album, "Elsie."

Brain Fallon described it as darker than Gaslight Anthem albums, and he's right, but it's also more soulful. He called for boys in ties and girls in pretty dresses at the shows, and I agree. It makes me want to slow dance in a dark room, heels slowly turning over a wood floor. Hair pulled up and lips a bright red, heavy lids and polka dots. "Last Rites" is a walk on the beach afterwards, shoes hanging from the fingers of one hand, the others twined in someone else's. It's got this old movie feel with that underlying pull of always reaching for something that Fallon's voice and lyrics always carry.

Go give it a spin.

FBR turns 15... and I won't be there

2011-09-08T18:42:00.006-04:00

Tomorrow night in New York City is the show I've always wanted to go to. TAI, Cobra Starship, and Gym Class Heroes all together, meaning the original group singing "Snakes on a Plane" (and I think The Sounds are in town if Maja wanted to reprise her role too.) It will be the last time the Butcher plays with TAI, and I have a feeling it'll be one of the last shows that will really feel the way they used to.

Instead, I'll be at a business meeting in Boston. Because now I'm an adult, and while that means that eating cookies for dinner after a really horrible day is a decision no one can veto, it sometimes means that I can't blow something off to go to a show.

Have fun New York kids. I'll just listen to this on repeat all day.

Hanson Covers Weezer

2011-09-05T16:26:00.002-04:00

Supporting my hypothesis that whether or not I love new Weezer, the fact that they keep making music is important because it keeps inspiring other bands and keeps messing with people. Part of being a Weezer fan has become being confused by their new music, but always forgiving because of Blue and Pinkerton.

Okay, so maybe I just made that hypothesis up on the spot, but I don't think it's untrue. This was one of my favorite tracks off of Red. And something about new Hanson is drawing me in. And I like their explanation afterwards. And I'm big on cover music lately. Just listen to it.

TAI covers P!ATD

2011-09-01T18:16:00.004-04:00

Fueled By Ramen is turning 15, so they're doing all these crossovers between the artists, and this is good, one of my favorite FBR "bands" covering another, but I think my favorite part is that he messes up the lyrics (water-veins instead of weather-vanes).

*EDITED ON SEPT 3rd* He did five of these, the last just posted today, and it's the song that lead me down the rabbit hole of being part of the scene, the song that introduced me to Fall Out Boy, one that holds a special place in my heart. I couldn't not add it to this post.

"Saturday"

Who's Laughing Now

2011-08-22T23:26:00.004-04:00

My love of Jessie J's music and style is not a secret. She writes solid pop hits ("Party in the USA") but keeps a bit of an edge to her own stuff. So in a month where everything has just gone wrong, from accidentally caffeinating a raccoon to a smoking washing machine, you just gotta keep thinking forwards to where you're going and focus on the important stuff. I love the message of "Pricetag," that it isn't about the money, but about making the world dance. Then I found "Who's Laughing Now."

For everyone with a funny voice and awful teeth and bad skin.

For anyone who has ever smashed a red sauce covered piece of pizza into the blonde, blonde hair of the popular girl, making sure to drag it across her stunned face as well. Sometimes even fifth grade Alex had to stand up for herself.

I love that the adults are all played by Jessie. It took me two viewings to catch it, and it's hysterical to me how much hair and makeup can really do. I miss my purple hair and skinny jeans and hoodies. I look like a different person.

Girl at the Rock Show (Number 2!)

2011-08-10T23:04:00.003-04:00

My Chemical Romance and Blink 182 at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA, August 9, 2011.

So, a Megabus and a rainstorm meant that we missed Manchester Orchestra and the first few songs of My Chemical Romance. And the fact that ticket fees have gotten obscene meant that we were on the lawn. In the pouring rain. In tiny little ponchos.

So, we were cold. And we were wet. And the video on the screen didn't match up to the sound quite right and the bands were so far away that they looked like ants. Did I mention that we were standing in the pouring rain?

But these are both good bands to sing along to, and that we did. I felt like I was just watching the concert rather than participating in it though... something about being at the back of 20,000 people just doesn't feel as inclusive. There was no connection made. And ticket prices were so crazy that entire sections of seats were empty.

The bands were good, and I love live music, but I don't even feel like a concert happened.

Video Killed the Radio Star

2011-08-08T22:30:00.002-04:00

I know this video showed up in my "First Four Music Videos" post, but in a tragically ironic sequence of events, MTV no longer hosts its own first video online.

"Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles. One of the first four music videos I remember from my childhood, and MTV's own first, broadcast thirty years ago. I loved it, thought the little girl looked like me, and wanted those strange pixies' hair.

Happy Anniversary MTV, even if I'm a little late. If only you remembered what you once were.

Say It Ain't So

2011-08-03T22:02:00.002-04:00

Funny how things pop up at weird times.

"What? It's Weezer?"

"You do know that song's about alcoholism, right?"

And then, on shuffle, with cherry pits and before a silent GPS.

Hanson

2011-07-25T23:01:00.001-04:00

I discovered the other night that one of my friends doesn't know who Hanson is.

Now, I was never a crazy Hanson fan, but in second grade the girl down the street had her walls covered in magazine cutouts and posters and CD liners. I spent a lot of time listening to "MMMBop". (The date on that says 1997. I cannot believe that sitting around on Alyssa's bed listening to Hanson and The Spice Girls was 14 years ago. So crazy.)

I showed my friend “MMMBop” and she said it sounded familiar but she was convinced the people singing it were young girls. The night progressed and I never got to show her recent Hanson, but I just thought of it now, as I realized I haven’t really listened to anything recent of theirs either. I found “Give a Little” and it is just too cute not to post.

Definitely not girls.

Newermind

2011-07-19T22:19:00.003-04:00

SPIN, for the 20th anniversary of Nirvana's Nevermind, released a cover version of entitled Newermind. The accompanying issue calls it "the album that changed everything" and yeah, it was.

Nevermind came out when I was two, and I had the chorus of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" scrawled on the back of my planner sophomore year of high school. I don't think I own a physical copy of Nevermind because my copy was a burned CD from a friend, songs out of order and interspersed with The Dropkick Murphys. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is one of the first music videos I remember seeing. Nevermind inspired Rivers Cuomo to write The Blue Album, and inspired countless other artists to write songs and pick up guitars.

SPIN is currently giving the album away for download on their facebook page. I don't love all the covers, but they do show how far reaching of an impact the album has had. All of these different bands have been connected somehow by this 20 year old album. My favorite might be “Polly” by Amanda Palmer, as it’s one of my favorite Nirvana songs sung by one of my favorite artists in a creepy lullaby. I will always hold a special place in my heart for Butch Walker as well, and “In Bloom” is great. And I haven’t made it through the whole album yet, but “Breed” has made me admit that maybe Titus Andronicus isn’t all bad.

"Let me essplain...

2011-07-18T20:02:00.005-04:00

No, there is too much. Let me sum up."

- Love in Stockhom at The Middle East on July 8, 2011. They were supported by Tumbleweed Company and Zongo Junction and Turkuaz. The night was defined by tons of people on stage and a tall blonde dude aggressively dance attacking about six or seven different girls. My favorite was Zongo Junction, as they were happy and bouncy and up, even without lyrics. Good stuff.

- Rilo Kiley is officially over, a decision brought about by "deception, disloyalty, and greed." Ouch. That sounds bad. I was never a huge fan, but I did enjoy some of their stuff. I should probably choose to put "Science vs. Romance" or "Never" here, but honestly, this was the song I listened to the most. I don't care if it's not the best.

- I heard "You Make Me Feel" on the radio and it took me a good ten seconds to figure out who it was. Disappointed. A behind the scenes video showed them having a little fun, but it just sucks that the band who had a large part in making me who I am is losing who they are as I trade skinny jeans for dress pants and dye the purple out of my hair.

22

2011-07-03T12:33:00.003-04:00

I saw this on a friend's facebook the other day and there was something about it I loved. I'm not a huge Lily Allen fan, but she drops into my radar every now and then and I love what she does.

I love the concept of the video, the two sides of the mirror, the reality and the dream.

But it's something about the tone of the song, the feel, and the idea. I've had this idea for years, one I'm trying so hard to disavow myself of, that life just ends at 30. If you don't do it before thirty, accomplish it before thirty, make it before thirty, then you never will. Once you're thirty, everything stops and either you've made it or you haven't.

I have just under eight years left.

Where did you go, Cobra?

2011-06-28T20:32:00.004-04:00

New video for Cobra Starship's "You Make Me Feel" and... well...

Tags: Cobra Starship, Music, More Music Videos

It's a generic pop dance hit, but there's nothing super special about it and I don't think it will take off. The band is gone. Sure, Nate and Alex and Ryland and Victoria appear, but mainly towards the end and not much, and the video isn't fun. Cobra was always laughing at something, making a joke, playing on something. That was what they did. There were Spanish lyrics and tongue in cheek moments and ridiculous caricatures to make you laugh. Sure, I saw the Santi reference, and yeah, I saw Guy Ripley, but what happened to them just playing around with their friends? This is polished up to try and be a radio hit with a girl in shorts and flashy lights and it looks just like the video they did for "Good Girls Go Bad" but without the humor and narrative.

I'm afraid they've stopped having fun and along the way lost what made them special. I think they're trying to make what they think will sell, what the radios want to hear. And if this is truly the music they want to be making, then fine, but I don't think that's the case at all. Their music used to be about living however you wanted, doing whatever you wanted and causing a ruckus and dancing and screaming and telling everyone else to fuck off. There were psychedelic snakes and plays on Hollywood and gang signs and synchronized dances. They built a community, a family, and they were just friends hanging out and leading the way.

Dear Cobra, go back to writing songs that you love and not giving a shit. Please.

The Horrible Crowes

2011-06-22T14:03:00.003-04:00

After months of waiting, we get a first taste of Brian Fallon's new project with Ian Perkins: The Horrible Crowes. Just a snippet of a song, "Black Betty and the Moon."

I like it, but from the build up I'd been expecting something deeper and slower and darker. The lyrics are there but the music is lighter than I expected. I'm really intrigued as to what the rest of the album is going to sound like.

Always

2011-06-17T13:03:00.004-04:00

Panic! At the Disco and I have a history. They always put out the music that I need when I need it, but there's something about this latest album that I'm resisting and though I love it, and listen to it a lot, I always do it out of order. I listened to it in the correct order only twice.

Each album has had a freaky way of mirroring events in my life, and maybe, like those seven months when songs about locked hospital wings kept me from listening to "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out", I just don't want to face this one right now.

But this is one of my favorite songs from the album. It's pretty and soft and I'd be lying if I said I haven't been trying to pick it out on my guitar, singing along in the house when no one's home.

Still a little crushed that this tour came to Boston on the night of my graduation.

Foo Fighters Tour Rider

2011-06-16T00:27:00.003-04:00

I love reading tour riders. What do musicians demand on tour, which foods do they abhor and which ones must poor venue assistants scour the town looking for? I understand the desire for something not out of a vending machine when you're living on the road, but demanding all of the brown M&Ms to be removed from the bowl?

The Smoking Gun just published the Foo Fighters 2011 Tour Rider. Well, they published a part of it, the ten page guide to appropriately feeding four grungy dudes. It's done as a coloring book, with activity pages and helpful illustrations, and is worth a look for the chuckle. I can just imagine some poor venue staffer circling words in the crossword, probably torn between laughter and tears. Sure, it's a change of pace from the normal list of groceries, but at what point do you step back and realize that your career choice has rockers forcing you to color in appropriate salad accoutrements?

I'm not sure if I'd qualify that as the best job ever or the worst.

PS The "No Brown M&Ms"? An easy way for Van Halen to check if someone had actually read the rider. A brown free bowl meant everything else was probably all set too.

My Heart's a Stereo

2011-06-15T09:19:00.005-04:00

Travie McCoy's album was my summer jam last year, and after a friend dragged me down to Connecticut to see Maroon 5 last August I remembered why I'd loved them way back when. So a collaboration between Gym Class Heroes and Adam Levine was definitely on my radar. The song is not quite as much of a jam as I'd hoped, and it's a much softer sound than Gym Class used to have, but I'm sure it'll still get stuck in my head.

I love the new trend of making lyric videos before the official is released. I used to spend hours watching typography videos, have always found them super cool, and I appreciate this new wave done by the bands and record companies themselves. It's smart for them, a way to push the song before they spend the money on a true video, I just wish the internet wasn't stripping down the fan videos as well. People used to make some really interesting ones but alas, copyrights and all that jazz.

After spending much of last night playing with After Effects myself, though, I feel even happier about this than I would have normally. Dear typography, I will master you myself soon enough.

No Regrets

2011-06-04T21:51:00.002-04:00

I have no regrets.

Everything, every decision and choice and path has brought me right here. Here might not always be paradise, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. And right now, it's perfect.

"You can dream a little dream or you can live a little dream, I'd rather live it, 'cause dreamers always chase but never get it."

Let it Go, Let it Go

2011-05-14T17:49:00.006-04:00

Fake Problems at the Middle East, Cambridge, MA - May 11, 2011

I missed Fake Problems when they came through the area with Tim Barry a couple of months ago, and had decided to go see them when they came through this time, but then the end of my senior year got in the way and I never bought tickets. But when a friend called with an extra ticket and a need for a concert buddy, I couldn't turn it down.

First up was Into It. Over It. Just a guy and his acoustic and I loved it. he talked to the crowd and described the stories that formed the songs and it was great. The crowd was also the most silent crowd I have ever heard, politely and raptly paying attention. Good stuff.

Next up, Pomegranates. The music was cute and they were kind of bouncy but the vocals were just okay and everything was distorted to the point of sounding watery.

Laura Stevenson and the Cans. I think she might have been having an off night. She sounded good but she was obviously unhappy with it and they were having trouble with getting their monitors right and it was just a bit off. But the accordion backed guitars were very pretty and her songs were sweet. I didn't realize until she was playing that I'd actually heard her before, in the following video. It's not really my style, but it's kinda cute indie.

And finally, Fake Problems. They bounced out onto stage and launched into "Soulless" with so much energy that even though I'd been falling asleep on my feet I had to dance and bounce and sing along. Most of what they played was super upbeat, so I was afraid they wouldn't add "Songs for Teenagers" in, but they ended the set with it and I couldn't have been happier. It wasn't a huge crowd, didn't even fill upstairs, but they were screaming along and loving it. The energy was overwhelming and I do not understand why these boys aren't bigger.

This kind of energy and feel on a tiny live stage:

Fake Problems - Music - More Music Videos

Loved it.

I'm Who I've Got to Be

2011-05-07T23:41:00.006-04:00

My Chemical Romance at the House of Blues Boston, May 5, 2011

Last Friday was my thesis defense, my last hurdle of college and arguably the day that I had spent the past two years working towards. This meant that I spent most of last Thursday panicked, chest tight and heart racing. So I went out to a concert.

The Architects and Thursday were first and they were good but I was still trying to calm down here and find my place in the crowd. My brain was not in that club. Springfest, the annual University concert, had been the weekend before and some friends and I had been pretty close to the stage when the crowd started to press in before the final band. Surrounded by bodies and jumping and movement I was ready for music, but my friends were uncomfortable and dragged us out of the crush. Out in the open, the music didn’t feel right.

So on Thursday, I slowly pressed my way into the crowd before My Chemical Romance took the stage. I moved up slowly, politely, but wound up surrounded by people who were screaming along and jumping and moving and not caring about looking like fools. Some of them were teenage girls, but the chunk I wound up in was mostly kids in their 20s. It makes sense, I guess, that all of us who started off listening to this stuff as teenagers are growing up.

They started the set with music from the new album, and I forgot everything outside the venue. Sure, it tried to sneak its way in, but the music and the crowd were overwhelming. These are songs that the entire audience had screamed along to in cars and bedrooms, and now they were pouring their hearts out together. It was the kids upstairs, the ones leaning over the balcony with open mouths and pounding fists, clutching onto the railing with their hands and the music with their hearts who got my attention, whose faces were scattered with happiness, release, and anger.

Down on the floor, it was as though we were of one collective mind. Conducted by Gerard, we simultaneously jumped and waved and pounded our fists, sang and danced and moved. But even without his direction, there were points in the songs where our fists would all rise, where our hands would open on cymbal crashes, or entire sections of the crowd would just start jumping. This sounds a little crazy, but it’s no exaggeration that we had sacrificed our minds to the music.

And up on stage, the first band I have seen that might actually deserve the title “rockstars.” I know they used to dress in black, in uniforms and makeup and bulletproof vests, but this was the first time I’ve seen them live and their outfits will probably be stuck in my head as a violent mix of punk glam forever. Gerard practically pranced about the stage, growling and smiling and conducting, while the other three focused on pure rocking out. Gerard seemed a little meaner than I’d seen in interviews, though his mid show blown kisses to a family member and heart hands make me think it’s for the benefit of an intense show experience.

His words to us throughout the show were interesting too. He asked who in the crowd had never been to an MCR show before, and there was a huge emphasis on the “old kids” always helping out the “new kids.” It’s a great point to make, especially at shows where fans have been sticking around forever, to avoid the stupid hipster bullshit of “well, I liked them before you did.”

There was also one great line thrown at the crowd. “Belief in Rock and Roll is a smell, and I can smell it on you.”

Sure, a lot of their songs are about vampires and death and wreaking havoc, but there are also a lot of songs about not giving a fuck and believing in yourself. Stupid as it may sound, a crowd of one thousand people singing about holding on and fighting back renewed my confidence in my thesis presentation. “Girl, you’ve got to be what tomorrow needs.”

They played old and new songs, and they were fantastic. The crowd screamed just as much for “Vampire Money” as “Helena.” And of course, they played my favorite, and I started laughing.

Because three years ago, I had decided to quit science. Frustrated and angry, I even skipped a physics lab to go to a “funeral.” That funeral was Warped Tour, a celebration of the death of my science career. I spent a lot of that summer listening My Chemical Romance, but it wasn’t until about August that I bought physical copies of the CDs. When I finally did, I was not expecting the uncensored version of “I’m Not Okay.” I have a vivid memory of having headphones on in the heat of summer and dissolving into laughter, feeling like I was falling into the mattress when “I’m not o-fucking-kay” hit me out of nowhere. It was, at the time, so true that it shocked me. So last Thursday, steeped in genetics and neuroscience and confidence in my strength as a researcher, I couldn’t help but laugh at how far I’ve come in two years. “I’m Not Okay” felt like some sort of weird closure to this portion of my science career. Grad school will need a new anthem.

"Your dreams and your hopeless hair."

Perfect, Part 2

2011-05-03T21:14:00.003-04:00

Jukebox the Ghost at the Middle East, Cambridge, MA - May 2, 2011

This night lives on as the very best night of college. It was only my third semester, fooling my bio lab partner into staying out late with me the night before our final and spending the night laughing and giggling and dancing to good music. That post, of course, leaves out the details that don't translate well into blog posts, the fact that we were such good kids at the time that we stopped breathing in panic when we thought our TA had just walked in, the fact that it was the night we decided my superpower was making guitars and cute boys appear, and the fact that I will always be ridiculously awkward and lame, throwing double thumbs up at people then giggling the whole ride home. It was our first Jukebox the Ghost show.

So last night, before that bio lab partner (now roommate and best friend) moves across the country, we went to our seventh (my eighth) Jukebox show. It was, in a way no other between has been, just as perfect as the first.

Pretty & Nice opened the show and I was hit by how much I missed indie rock. They were really good and quickly landed themselves into my "Yeah, if they're playing with someone else I want to see I'll be pumped to watch them again" category. It's no surprise to me that the most listened song on their myspace is "Tora Tora Tora" because it was cute and really indicative of their sound. They really were good, but they were just overshadowed by the awesome that was the rest of the night. For that I felt bad.

Wakey!Wakey! wound up in my "I will absolutely want to see them the next time they come through Boston" list almost immediately. Violin and keyboard and bass and drums and synth and great lyrics and good voices and it was the total package of awesome.

I have to pause though and mention the crowd. The crowd was in love and screaming and the band was obviously a little shocked by how loud and responsive we were. The crowd was full of energy and love and that always makes such a difference in how the band plays. And it was so easy to get swept up in the enthusiasm that everyone was dancing and singing and cheering and it made the whole show amazing.

But back to Wakey!Wakey! who was certainly inspiring some of this reaction. All their music was great, the lyrics were perfect, but there were a few shining moments even better than the rest. Though their stripped down piano version of "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" inspired the most giggles, "Light Outside" was one of the ones that stirred the greatest emotion. "Dance so Good" was also fantastic, as was "Car Crash." Okay, honestly, it was all amazing. They also did a stripped down version of "Got It All Wrong" that I fell in love with, just an acoustic and a violin. I can't find a version of it online so it's just going to have to live in memory.

Finally, Jukebox the Ghost. There's nothing I can say about their live show that I haven't said already. The crowd was in love, we were screaming and dancing and the band literally looked blown away a couple of times. They played two new songs and old and recent songs and filled in the middle with banter and smiles and tambourines. The reason I dragged my bio lab partner out that first night was because the very first time I saw them I realized I'd never seen anyone play the way they did and I had to share it with someone else. They play their instruments perfectly, with bouncing and crazy eyes and silly dance moves.

Fueled by memories of past shows, onstage discussions of the relative locations of Boston and Cleveland, and an adoring crowd who could not keep a clap beat to save their lives, we spent much of the night not breathing because we were laughing so hard. The crowd barely let the band leave the stage before the encore we screamed so loud, and though they told us to choose one song to play they ended up playing both to appease us. Their music is happy, heartbreaking, apocalyptic, and epic.

Perfect bookends to three years of indie concerts.

Musical Squares Flash Game

2011-05-02T17:55:00.002-04:00

I don't know where this is originally from (I'd love to know) but you absolutely must play with this. It's a flash animation that generates notes based on what squares you hit. I've had a ton of fun making sequences and patterns and "songs" but it's also great to just press a random set and listen to what happens.

Seriously, this is one of the coolest things I've played with in a while. Click!!

I am a Pine Tree

2011-05-01T17:54:00.001-04:00

I am a pine tree. I am a wildflower.

My Roots Go Down - The Seedy Seeds. Just a cute song on a sunny day.

Don't Blame the World It's the DJ's Fault

2011-04-28T20:38:00.003-04:00

New Cobra posted by Pete Wentz. It's fun and I love that lyric but it doesn't really make me feel anything. Now, I was suspicious about Hot Mess at first too, but ended up really liking some of the songs on it. I never loved it as much as the first albums though.

I am all about bands growing and maturing, they can't keep making the same records or it would get boring. But this just makes me want to dance. And dancing is great, I love dancing, but their songs also used to make me want to scream at the top of my lungs and drive too fast and wreak havoc. Cobra songs were for driving and hanging and rocking out, for letting loose and telling the world to fuck off.

This just makes me want to dance.

Cat on the Town

2011-04-16T18:01:00.003-04:00

I remember when the video this is spoofing came out, a video diary of cats. It was actually pretty cute, done by a cat food brand I think, and it was just cute kitty things - small cameras filming everywhere the cats went, from gardens to spots full of sun to food dishes.

This is not that.

Crossed Wires by Superchunk, featuring one badass cat and a song I kind of like. Who knows what our pets do when we're not watching...

(Also, I desperately want that kitchen!)

Summer Sun

2011-04-06T17:12:00.003-04:00

One of those pesky smiles that you don't even realize is creeping up on you until it's taken over your face and you can't help but try and hide it behind your hands as you wait for students to show up to office hours because you can't stop grinning at the music.

JUKEBOX THE GHOST - Summer Sun from Mitch Fillion (southernsouls.ca) on Vimeo.

Be Your Own Spotlight

2011-04-05T22:50:00.009-04:00

Patrick Stump at Great Scott in Allston, MA - April 5, 2011

I hadn't been out since December. Thesis and responsibilities and life. So when they released more tickets for Patrick Stump's show, I was honestly torn. I'd have to cancel my office hour, I'd lose precious hours when I could be working, and I'd have to drive to Allston, which honestly induces more anxiety in me than anything else I can think of, including needles and public speaking, but maybe not bees.

But then I hit purchase and had to go.

The opener was Mystery Roar, and... well... I did not like it. Combine some disco, too much synth, and vocals from the villain from a public high school theater production and you're just about there. Add lots of hip thrusting to complete.

After their set and some stage setting up, the side door to the venue opened and a bunch of dudes carrying instruments walked in through the crowd.

Matt Rubano is a tiny dude.

The set up on stage and Rubano ended up being about four feet in front of me. The girls behind me were chattering about how he looked like a Pete Wentz body double.

"That's Matt Rubano," I turned and mentioned.
"Who?" one of the girls asked.
"Matt Rubano, of Taking Back Sunday."
"Oh," she said with a shake of her head, "I've never heard of them."

I think my jaw just about hit the floor. What rock have you been under? Regardless, he chatted with us for a bit about how they had gotten to Boston hours ago but couldn't get to the venue because everywhere is one way streets and no left turns and their GPS doesn't talk. This is why I hate Allston shows! They tuned their instruments and then things got a bit awkward. Rubano looked at the rest of the band members and asked if they knew where Patrick was. They didn't. He tried to subtly ask the sound dude, who wasn't getting it, so he asked right into the mic if he knew where Patrick was. The sound dude was not happy that he had just announced that to the crowd, but a few minutes later Stump made his entrance to an already rocking band.

Dressed in a suit and moon boots, I'm not sure I've seen anyone bounce so much on stage. That was one happy, excited dude. He started off with a small chunk of "Spotlight" before launching into "Porcelain" and it's a good sign when the crowd doesn't know many of the words but they're dancing along anyways. The energy was infectious, and his between song jokes and chatter were actually really funny. The thing about a venue that small, and a crowd that calm, is that you can literally just talk to the band between songs. People were asking questions, there was a small "that's what she said" break, and Patrick kept saying over and over how happy he was that we were there, how thankful he was that we were supporting his own music. It's a little R&B, a little funk, but mostly just him pouring himself out through held notes and crazy guitars, drums and keys and dancing. He literally put everything he has into this music and it's like his heart is flooding out over the edges of the stage.

Also, a sidenote about his absolutely gorgeous guitar. A white Gretsch with small silver stripes and details, and "Stumpomatic" printed on the head. As soon as it was put down on stage I wanted it. I love just about every Gretsch I've seen and this might even top Michael Guy Chislett's silver glitter Gretsch. They're just gorgeous.

He played a couple of covers too, including "Cupid's Chokehold" and "Kiss my Sass." The second, obviously, put a huge smile on my face, as I haven't been to a Cobra show in almost a year. The funny thing is that I have some sort of Pavlovian response to that song live: when the chorus of "Ohs" hits, everyone at a Cobra show throws an arm in the air and bounces it along with the beat. So the "Oh's" hit and the girl next to me and I threw our arms up before realizing that there were maybe only five people in the crowd grooving along with us.

He also did a cover of "Nothing Compares to You" which held the most uncomfortable crowd interaction I've felt in a long time. With just a piano and his voice, everyone was super quiet to politely listen along. Except for one girl, who was literally screaming at another girl in the crowd so hard that she was louder than the sound coming out of the speakers. Grow up.

More new music and an encore later, we were told to sing along to "Spotlight." The crowd knew the words, the bands was smiling and dancing and bouncing, and it was pretty fantastic.

"They might try to tell you how you can live your life, but don't forget it's your right to do whatever you like, 'cause you could be your own spotlight."

After months, my body wanted louder bass lines and rushing crowds and harder guitars. It wasn't the show I was craving, but it was good and fun and reminded me why I used to go out all the time, why I used to never hesitate over buying tickets or venturing out, and why even when the rest of the world's getting me down, there's a reason to just remember and believe in who I am.

Cardiac Arrest

2011-03-15T14:41:00.003-04:00

New Teddybears (with bonus Robyn)!

Oh, my favorite Swedish ex-death metal turned electro pop band. Not quite as much fun as some of the old stuff, but still good.

What happened?

2011-03-12T09:00:00.003-05:00

I haven't been to a concert since December.

I haven't bought music since November.

I have a list of shows in the area and I'm just not going. I have a concert ticket for May and that's it.

I have a stack of unopened, unlistened CDs from the winter. My proper listening pile is usually a little backlogged but this is in a league of its own.

I'm stuck. I'm just stuck and I'm trying to listen to new things and remember why I used to love old things and I just don't have the effort to try.

And, no lie, "Only in Dreams" just started playing on my computer. Okay. Alright. I hear you, music. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong. I miss you.

Panic! at the Disco - The Overture

2011-03-09T16:07:00.003-05:00

I love it, but they're not even trying at subtle.

"They have to save themselves."
"I guess it's just us then."
"It always has been."

Huh. I wonder who THAT could be about.

But besides that, it's super pretty. A+ Shane Drake. And A+ to leaving it all behind and carrying on on your own, how you are, how you're meant to be.

You Can Be Your Own Spotlight

2011-02-28T15:28:00.002-05:00

Just people doing what they do.

It's a pretty clear message, and I love it and believe it one hundred percent.

Arcade Fire by the Music Fan Numbers

2011-02-14T23:29:00.004-05:00

My thoughts on their Grammys win, after a full day of mulling over it.

First, I believe they deserved it based on musical merit, no question. I'm glad they won, and think it was the right choice. Not one bit of this post is arguing that they shouldn't have won, just why I think they didn't win for the reason they should have.

Album sales and popular influence, they were far out of their league, and "Album of the Year" never specifies that it is necessarily the best album musically. You could argue that highest selling, most well known, most influential album should be the album of the year, and I feel that's usually how the Grammys chooses to define it. So why did they go for musicality this year?

Because indie is where the music world is at right now. Choosing an indie artist just took an award show that no one I knew cared about and made it today's most talked about subject by "music kids." They chose one of "our" bands. I think the music industry has realized that it's not the pop music eaters but the "indie" and "alternative" music kids who matter. I use matter loosely as I don't really mean this as praise. I mean it as money.

Take Lady Gaga, who sold millions of albums this year and probably should have been the Grammy pick. Her record was heard by everyone with a radio and almost everyone with an internet connection, TV, or mp3 player has seen one of her videos. Her album took the music world by storm.

Take the average Lady Gaga fan: they'll spend maybe $150 on a ticket to see her once a year, and another $50 on merch and CDs. Give them another estimated $50 of music purchases over the course of the year and you have a $250 fan.

Now take the average Arcade Fire fan: $50 on merch/CDs, $50 on a ticket. That's $100 for Arcade Fire. But the kind of person listening to Arcade fire isn't just going to Arcade Fire shows. They're also going to music festivals (say $200 for the year, low end), buying at least a CD a month for assorted bands ($150 low end) and going to local indie shows ($15 x 25 a year = $375). Throw in a couple more $50 tickets to see their favorite touring acts, and you're quickly approaching $1000 a year in music, per person, based on low estimates.

I know these people. I'm one of them. I had a thought to add up my music spendings last year, and realized I spent over $300 in December alone. I got scared and stopped counting.

So why do I think the music industry gave Arcade Fire a Grammy? Not because they deserved it (which they did) but because they realized where the money's at right now. They're betting that there are fewer than 1 million $250 fans and more than 250,000 $1000 fans. They're just figuring out how to get at us. Fingers crossed that they'll never succeed and that the indie musicians will keep getting our money, not the labels and executives.

Vices and Virtues, or I Write Sins Part Two?

2011-02-04T17:37:00.007-05:00

This has been out for a while now and I've been listening to it every now and then but it didn't click until just right now.

Panic! at the Disco has always released the music that I needed when I needed it. From angry teenager dealing with a "therapeutic chain of events" to realizing that "things have changed" it was always right for the time. Maybe this one will be too.

Also, I love that "Nearly Witches" has reappeared. There was a 30 second demo of it on a mixtape that came out in 2008 and you can hear the crowd sing along for a few lines. It's really interesting that this version of Panic has been floating around for a while, that the split is something that had probably been building for a long while. I'd always guessed this song had been a clip from the abandoned album between AFYCSO and Pretty.Odd. but it seems I was wrong. This was Brendon all along, even through the paisley and flowers.

Also, the last time I saw them perform, Brendon spent the entire show looking angry. Live videos spent a while looking like he simultaneously wanted to murder the music. This seems less violent, which is a fantastic thing.

And this next one? It sounds like so much fun. And it sounds familiar, like another band, and I can't put my finger on it but I LOVE it.

"Let's Kill Tonight." And Ian is killing that guitar. I've always thought he was the only worthwhile thing about The Cab and he's one of the most amazing guitarists I've seen. Something about the guitars in the chorus from 0:58 to 1:02 remind me of a very specific classic rock song and I have spent the past 30min trying to figure it out and I can't get more than ten seconds of the song playing in my head and I've gone through The Who and Blue Oyster Cult and Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd and Aerosmith and I can't find the song. It's driving me nuts.

(*EDIT* "November Rain" by Guns & Roses. My father with the save.)

But I like it.

The White Stripes

2011-02-02T14:35:00.004-05:00

The White Stripes are over. No new recordings, no live performances, done. The announcement is on their website and begins with:

The White Stripes would like to announce that today, February 2nd, 2011,
their band has officially ended and will make no further new recordings or perform live. The reason is not due to artistic differences or lack of wanting to continue, nor any health issues as both Meg and Jack are feeling fine and in good health. It is for a myriad of reasons, but mostly to preserve What is beautiful and special about
the band and have it stay that way.

I really wish I had had the chance to see them live. Their parting words:

The White Stripes do not belong to Meg and Jack anymore. The White Stripes belong to you now and you can do with it whatever you want. The beauty of art and music is that it can last forever if people want it to. Thank you for sharing this experience. Your involvement will never be lost on us and we are truly grateful.

I'd rather be working for a paycheck.

2011-01-27T23:33:00.002-05:00

I cannot listen to Bright Eyes without spending the next few days being sad/happy. This week was all about "Lua" but I've just been listening to "First Day of my Life" over and over and over again.

I'm sorry blog. I think you're dying.

Thoughts

2011-01-22T09:08:00.004-05:00

The rest of the new Panic! at the Disco song "The Ballad of Mona Lisa" leaked yesterday. I'm cautiously optimistic for the rest of the album. It seems a little safe, very pop rock, with lyrics that just barely press at something deeper or darker. It's a cautious first single, and I'm not really moved by it, but at least I don't think the album is going to be completely awful. I don't really know if it will sell though, past the old fans. Each new album a band puts out should pull in more people than the last and create new fans, and judging by this song I don't know if it will. We'll see. But goddamn I still love that kid's voice and the song is actually starting to grow on me after repeated listening.

Also, Brian Fallon has started a side project with Ian Perkins called The Horrible Crowes. Musically, I think Brian Fallon can do no wrong. There's more info on his personal blog which describes it as "the darker side of soul music, it's slow, it slithers, and it's raw. At the same time, the melodies and pianos are a juxtaposition to the topic material because it's eerily soothing." Excited? Definitely.

New Panic! At the Disco - The Ballad of Mona Lisa

2011-01-17T20:39:00.004-05:00

A new clip of P!ATD's (the ! is back) new single was posted on youtube.

It's pretty guitar heavy, definitely a more pop rock direction than anything they've done before. It's hard to judge from thirty seconds, but it sounds good, clear, and reaching.

I don't know if they can pull it off. I really hope they can, I'm honestly rooting for them with everything I've got, but Ryan Ross' lyrics are what made P!ATD different. I think Brendon and Spencer's music will be awesome, I have no doubt about that, but there is going to be, for better or for worse, a difference in the lyrics. It could be bad or good. I don't know.

Looking at this clip, at "New Perspective," and at The Young Veins Album, there's no doubt that the two halves of the band were going in completely different music directions. One flew east, one flew west. They could not have worked together, and a split was going to happen.

But I don't think that Panic! at the Disco can be Panic! at the Disco without Ross.

LCD Soundsystem, Powered by MTV

2011-01-14T23:14:00.005-05:00

It seems MTV has decided to start funding music videos, an interesting choice as they don't show many of them anymore. LCD Soundsystem's video for "Pow Pow" is the first MTV funded video.

It's interesting to think about. MTV (or the concept of what MTV was and should be) distributes music videos. Historically, it should know more about music videos than anyone else. And if it was ten years ago, we probably should be worried that the channel that controls the distribution could also control the content.

But nobody watches MTV for music videos anymore. MTV programming is based on reality TV now, and they keep adding more and more channels (VH1, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, mtvU) which keep showing videos for a while until they too fill with reality tv and require even more channels (MTV Hits, MTV Jams, etc). They no longer control music videos: artists and the internet do.

You no longer need a production crew and tons of money to make a video. All you need is a camera and some editing software. Sure, pop stars need polished videos, but the internet is flooded with bands like OK Go who take the reins on their own projects and create unique entities that may never see the TV waves, but still get millions of views. Even those pop princesses get more views online than they're probably getting on TV.

Music no longer needs MTV, and the video that they funded ended up being kind of boring. I think maybe they're trying to be edgy (or sadly ironic) with all the masonic imagery. They've gone from being the place to discover music to a channel about pregnant teens and dating shows.

MTV is completely out of touch.

Keep Your Hopes Up High and Your Head Down Low

2011-01-08T23:10:00.002-05:00

I've never been a huge A Day to Remember fan, but I've always found them listenable and interesting. I like the new single but the video is even more fun. It's a sort of guessing game: see how many bands you can name.

A Day to Remember - New Music - More Music Videos

"All I Want" - A Day to Remember

17

2010-12-29T12:42:00.003-05:00

I knew almost nothing about Sky Ferreira until this morning. I don't think this should matter.

There's so much focus among music kids that if you like an artist, you need to know their history and their biography, why they write and where they're from and what they like to do in their spare time. I don't think any of this matters. What matters is the music. What matters is how it makes you feel. What matters is how it sounds and how it affects you.

With that in mind, sometimes when you love music you want to go and find more, and maybe you get curious about who they are and whether it was genuine and if it meant something to the artist too. So I spent five minutes, googled "Sky Ferreira interview" and found out who she was and what she does and whether or not it was genuine. But this didn't mean I liked the song any more, didn't impact how much I'd been in love with this song before this morning.

What did I find out? That' she's been self promoting in the club scene since she was 14, doing what she's singing about for years, and trying to get out of LA, marketing herself and driving her own career (despite recent EMI trouble). I fully support carving out your own career, fighting for yourself, getting what you need to do what you want.

But that doesn't mean the blend of soft intros with electronic chorus doesn't feel right. The drop in the first line in the chorus versus a forced rise is perfect. The music, not who she is, is why I care.

United State of Pop 2010

2010-12-28T23:18:00.004-05:00

Don't Stop the Pop - DJ Earworm's Mashup of the top 25 Songs of 2010

I think he focused a bit too hard on lyrics this year, at the expense of some coherence and an even more dimensional beat. That said, I think it's fun and a great representation of where Pop was this year - it was about dancing, clubs, forgetting yourself in the beat, and being young forever. Going all night, partying, and throwing your hands in the air. And as much as music snobs will try, you really can't stop the pop.

The Yule Ball 2010

2010-12-26T16:02:00.015-05:00

The Yule Ball 2010 - Middle East in Cambridge, MA, December 19, 2010

At the beginning of the show, one of the DeGeorges got up on stage and asked anyone if it was their first Yule Ball. Second? Third? My hand was still up for fourth, but there were some up for fifth and sixth too. That's dedication, man.

Jason Anderson was up first. (I just accidentally typed "best" instead of "first." Both are true.) I still love Jason Anderson, but he didn't sing any of his own songs, opting to instead jump into the crowd and sing Christmas carols with everyone. It was a room full of maybe 400 people singing Christmas songs at the top of their lungs in the glow of multicolored strands of lights and it was the first time all season that it really felt like Christmas.

Next up was The Whomping Willows. It was just the singer alone on an acoustic and it was his 500th show, his first being at the first Yule Ball. It was a special night and he sang his first song "Seasonal Depression" which I'm not ashamed to say I own on CD. He's a great performer, if self-deprecating and maybe in need of a hug. "Could have been a wizard rock heart throb..."

Math the Band was next and I can't for the life of me figure out where I've heard of them before. They were not a Wizard rock band, but were a chiptune band. I like chiptune, but I'll admit to being a little distracted by the boy that the girls behind us nicknamed "Sasquatch." He was about six feet tall, hadn't showered thoroughly in a few days, and decided to mosh next to the small girls. Being the tallest of anyone around, I took the protective role of "wall," stepped between him and the 4 foot eleven and 5 foot two girls I was with, and stood my ground. The girls to his left looked frightened and the girls beside us were pissed. He was having fun, but he was all elbows and flailing and this just wasn't the crowd for that. The band itself was... loud. But fun. But loud, and a bit on the "noise" side of the noise vs music scale. But fun, just a guitar some beats and a keyboard.

Next was Draco and the Malfoys. I've seen them an embarrassing amount of times. I was happy to see that they were back to being a wizard rock band versus a wizard bluegrass band. They set an ipod up to play drums (the younger brother drums for some of the other bands at the Yule Balls, so I'm guessing he is the infamous "Crabbe" playing on the track) and rock out on a couple of guitars. They are a lot of fun, and probably the only band that can get away with gleefully singing about people's dead fathers. I think they're a little bit awesome.

Potter Puppet Pals rounded out the openers with a Hogwarts beauty pageant. Neil Cicierega is funny, though some of his short films are often of the dry, bland humor variety, the sort of punchline free, odd comedy. That's not a criticism, really, but an observation that the Puppet Pals don't seem to be much like his other work. The pageant was fun, with people pulled from the crowd as judges, and it was an interesting interlude. The Ron puppet was completely covered in Christmas lights for an outfit. Go big or go home, Ron Weasley.

Finally, Harry and the Potters. The first, the best, the pinnacle of silly wizard rock. There were some choreographed dance moves, a guitar shaped like a broom, santa hats and tinsel. They play silly songs and the crowd screams along and it's about the best book geek moment ever. There is nothing that can describe how two boys in their twenties dressed up like a fictional boy wizard can make a crowd dance like they can. This year the crowd was packed, a sold out show of teenagers, college kids, and a few scattered adults. It was a good crowd with some fun bands, and it was a fantastic way to start the Christmas week.

Spotlight

2010-12-20T20:55:00.004-05:00

I was going to post about this year's Yule Ball, but it seems the past two years those have gone up on Christmas Eve. So instead, you get Patrick Stump playing his new song "Spotlight" all by himself.

It's not as good as the other recorded versions, but it's impressive that he's playing it alone. I love the theme of the song: "They might try to tell you how you can live your life, but don't forget it's your right to do whatever you like, because you could be your own spotlight." I'm a huge believer in the idea that to get what you want, it's got to be DIY, you've got to hustle, you've got to take opportunities and make it happen for yourself. I'm a big fan of musicians, dancers, writers, artists, people who just put themselves out there and work and work and work to get to their goals.

I recently read Keltie Colleen's book Rockettes, Rockstars, and Rockbottom, and while it might get its own post later (that rockstar portion getting it a music nod) it's her work ethic and her spirit that I love, and that have kept me reading her blog for over a year now. Her mantra is "Courage, Passion, Hard Work" and that's what you really do need. You have to be fearless enough to put yourself out there, want it enough to live your life for it, and be willing to work yourself to the bone to get it.

You can be your own spotlight.

Weezer Double Feature

2010-12-16T18:56:00.006-05:00

The Memories Tour (aka Blinkerton) at the Orpheum Boston, MA - December 14 & 15, 2010

Night one began with $5 bills for taking a survey and a freezing cold theater. The Orpheum likes to keep its doors open until the headliner begins and with the weather below 20 that meant that most of the theater had their jackets on through most of both nights. Many people also had hats. Some had scarves and mittens. It was ridiculous.

Free Energy opened both nights, and though I'd seen them once before they started to grow on me by the end of night three. The poor lead singer was trying so hard to get people to stand up and dance, as that's what their music is really made for, but the crowd was frozen solid to their seats. I hate seated shows. They danced and sang and grooved anyways, and at the end of the second night hadn't moved themselves into my "I'll buy a ticket the next time they're in the city" pile, but they'd made it onto the "I might like to see them play again" list.

Weezer night one was a greatest hits set followed by the Blue Album, with a slideshow by Karl in between. The greatest hits set ran backwards through the albums starting with Hurley and skipping Maladroit. They played the obvious hits off of each one but stopped before they hit the Blue Album. They raced through the songs, Rivers gingerly climbing onto the balcony and jumping off of amps. He ran around in the crowd as well and traded a few vocals with Brian.

I'll admit that I mostly just wanted this set to be over, as what I was really waiting for was The Blue Album. It is hands down my favorite album, and from the first opening notes of "My Name is Jonas" nothing else existed but that music. I know every note on that CD by heart and they hit everyone, ending the night with "Only in Dreams." It's the concert I've wanted since I was 14, and I think I got it.

I paid a little more attention to the hits set from night two, and they threw in some B sides as well. I've never had more than a passing interest in "You Gave Your Love to Me Softly" but I love "Suzanne" and the rest of the crowd did too. I would have loved to hear "Lullaby for Wayne" but I think "Suzanne" is the Weezer fan song. You haven't heard it on the radio, it's not on the albums, but it's not a super rare B side either. It's one of the songs that should have been on an album but just didn't quite make it, but we all love it anyways.

The ended the hits set with "Only in Dreams" again instead of some of the more obvious choices from Blue, and I could not have been happier.

The Pinkerton set was great. I've never loved Pinkerton like some people do,and the first four songs have never really done it for me, but I love the back half of that CD. "The Good Life" and "El Scorcho" are just fantastic and are beyond fun live. It's an album that critics panned at first, but fans knew had something good hidden on it. I love songs more live and that was still true here, being made to listen to the whole album through with intent and a crowd behind it.

Kind of awesome.

Little Girls - Say Anything

2010-12-13T20:59:00.004-05:00

Oh man, the problem with a "musical diary" is that when stuff gets loud and angry, so does it.

I put this song on repeat a few days ago and listened to it all day. I actually think it would be kind of awesome reinvented as a duet, one person singing girls, the other singing boys, trading the chorus lines back and forth, yelling out each other's flaws through the musical intro.

I kill, kill, kill little boys.

Rebel Girl

2010-12-09T23:14:00.002-05:00

This kind of mood, maybe.

I love that she's not singing about being the rebel girl, but about wanting to be her friend. We've all had that person who was so much cooler that you wanted to follow them around and try on their clothes and not just be them but be their best friend. Bring back the riot grrl, the girl who didn't care what other people thought. I used to love this song in high school, though I knew nothing else by Bikini Kill. It didn't matter because for just a few seconds of my life I wanted to be Kathleen Hanna's best friend.

Baking

2010-12-09T09:30:00.003-05:00

I wrote a blog post yesterday for my school's admissions blog (I've taken over the science column) about stress baking. My last post about women in science had garnered emails from the department, requests to talk from the school magazine, and a comment from some PhD student at Purdue. Not quite the undergraduate admissions blog demographic. So while I started a few very interesting conversations with people in and around my department, I thought yesterday's post should be a little more fun. Hence, stress baking and some of the science behind it.

It just so happened that Charlieissocoollike made a video about baking the other day as well that made me smile as I stressed over my thesis in the science center. It didn't quite belong on the other blog, so you'll get the fun right here:

New Cobra... Kinda.

2010-12-04T15:47:00.004-05:00

Alexandra Burke featuring Cobra Starship, although there's a bit more of Gabe than there is of Alexandra. I wonder if the rest of the band played the music? I mean they've transferred to a very electronic sound anyways, they could be doing the beats.

"What happens on the Dancefloor stays on the Dancefloor. " Yes, yes it does.

I think I've realized another thing that really bothered me about the last Cobra album. Not only were the guitars few and far between but there wasn't a word of Spanish. The music industry cleaned away a few of the beauty marks that made the band what they were. I loved "Viva la Cobra" era shows. I loved the way the band and the music felt in 2008, and I loved their badass disregard in 2007. I loved 2009 and 2010 as well, understood that bands change and was happy that they were getting noticed by the mainstream, but I wondered if anyone remembered their original goal from Gabe's mythos of the band: "To teach hipsters not to take themselves so seriously and emo kids to stop being pussies."

They always said they'd keep touring and performing and making music until it wasn't fun anymore.

I don't think they're coming back from this tour break.

Fuck You

2010-12-03T18:42:00.003-05:00

End of fall semester and I used "She's Gonna Break Soon" last year.

And on top of that, there have been more than a few moments lately where I really just wanted to yell "Bitch, step off!"

This is not, of course, what I did. In true Alex form I smiled and nodded and wished the best, then pouted and ranted to my best friend. But sometimes I truly feel the world just calls for a good "Fuck you."

Cee Lo is pop, sure, but also kind of a musical genius. He's got great beats and knows how to push the limits just a little bit to make it fresh but still Glee-able. And I love typography videos, and am excited that this is starting to become a trend.

"Oh I really hate your ass right now."

Weezer and My Chemical Romace - My Name is Jonas

2010-11-26T18:42:00.005-05:00

So this is old, I know, but I currently only have tickets to see two bands: two nights of Weezer in December, and MCR at the House of Blues in May.

It's really awesome, with two amazing singers with such vastly different styles on stage together singing from my favorite album. But what's better than that is the warm up video that came out a few weeks after:

It's the way that Weezer is almost surprised that MCR knows the song so well, that MCR is proud to impress them like a couple of fans. It's the broken down version of the song and the way Rivers and Gerard smile at each other at the end, one flattered and the other mildly starstruck. It's this great interaction between the two bands, as though MCR isn't a huge rock band and Weezer doesn't know that they're cited as an influence by almost every rock band out there at the moment. It's Patrick Wilson pondering that their guests could be "zany." It's this great, great meeting and it's these sorts of videos that I wish I could capture at some point.

Playing God

2010-11-17T22:20:00.003-05:00

Remember, back before I saw Paramore live, when I ragged on them for ripping off No Doubt? The cover of Rock Steady and the cover of Riot! are almost identical, especially for two loud girl fronted bands, but I forgave them once I saw them rock.

However, this hair has been done before. By Gwen Stefani. So...

The video is an interesting concept, but it's the style I'm more in love with. I love her hair, even though it's too reminiscent of No Doubt, probably because Gwen is the reason I started dying my hair five or six years ago, back when No Doubt was one of my favorite bands. I've always wanted to be able to pull off a full head of bright color like this, but I tend to settle for stripes. And one of my very favorite things to pair ridiculously colored hair with is classy clothing.

I like the filming and the colors of the overall video as well. This was my late night driving album this summer and the songs remind me of backroads in Connecticut with sleeping passengers and highways in Western Massachusetts with no other cars and the scent of a show clinging to my hair.

"After All, It's Rock and Roll."

2010-11-16T13:45:00.006-05:00

It's super cheesy, and I hate using it, but the "uniting power of music" has always amazed me. From standing at the front of a crowd of 20,000 people screaming along with Blink-182 to a tiny crowd silently focused on Amanda Palmer pouring her heart out through her keyboard, the sense of togetherness that comes from a music crowd is overwhelming. It was one thing I really did love about the scene at it's height, that it took in everyone, no matter your gender or race or orientation or viewpoints or hair color or style, and united them all around a chorus and a beat.

And the fact that Rock and Roll, the love of music and the belief in it's power, caused someone in New York to send me music and a message to keep believing? That's what makes music fucking awesome.

The lyrics are an exact description of what I'm looking for in music right now. "Remember folks we're not just saving lives we're saving souls, we're having fun."

Right now, I want to listen to Brian Fallon and Frank Turner and Jason Lancaster and Tim Barry. I want to listen to the people who understand, who believe, and who can feel.

It'll take work, I think. I'll admit that so much of the pop-punk scene was fed to us by Fueled by Ramen and Alternative Press and Pete Wentz that I never had to hunt down a show or a scene. This, however, will take just that, with a little help along the way from the other Rock and Roll souls whose paths I cross.

Two Years

2010-11-09T14:35:00.003-05:00

Two years of Fake Pink Glasses. 248 Posts. Band interviews, concert reports, cd reviews, music videos, and love of sound.

The scene is gone and I'm here, two years later, searching for something new.

OK Go has always made brilliant videos, and here's the newest one, released today, for "Last Leaf."

Last Leaf

OK Go | Myspace Music Videos

Maybe I'll take those glasses out for a spin to my last class of the day.

A Song With no Singer

2010-11-07T22:30:00.005-05:00

Motion City Soundtrack and Say Anything at Lupo's in Providence, RI November 6, 2010

A Great Big Pile of Leaves opened the show and they were a decent little rock opener on their first tour. After their set, the thirty something dude next to us leaned over. "Have you guys ever heard of Saves The Day?" he asked. "Of course!" I replied. "Good!" he said, turning to his wife. "My wife and I were wondering if anyone here would. They're more our generation..." He explained that he'd seen them ten years ago at URI and I had a brief moment of wonder as to who I would still be seeing in ten years.

Saves the Day played a lot of newer songs, much to the dude's disappointment. They used to be huge, but I only recognized a few. It really was his generation, not ours. One of the friends I was with knew more than I and loved it, and they were a good punk rock band. That sort of lasting power is hard to come by.

I've been meaning to see Say Anything for a couple of years now and they did not disappoint. They rock the whole crowd. I haven't seen a crowd move like that in a while and it was refreshing. We were all singing out hearts out to songs from all of the albums, though I was surprised they didn't play "Hate Everyone." "Do Better" was a crowd favorite, though "Woe" and "Baby Girl, I'm a Blur" and "Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too" followed close behind. The crowd loved them and they played hard and loud.

Poor Motion City Soundtrack. More specifically, poor Justin Pierre. He lost his voice, and squeaked and mouthed his way through the set. The crowd picked up some of the slack, but there was only so much we could do. We sang along, we proved that we loved them still, but it wasn't their best night. They were trying so very hard, but it's not easy to pull off a set with a singer with no voice. They played all the hits and the crowd held their own but some of the smaller songs they struggled with. It was still fun, we still danced and had a good time, but a night of vocal rest might also have been a better option in the long run. God bless him, though, for thanking us over and over and coming out at the beginning and squeaking "I'll try so so hard."

A Concert from Miles Away

2010-11-03T22:33:00.006-04:00

The Dresden Dolls played two headlining shows last night and tonight at the Wilbur Theatre in Boston.

That's actually the incorrect tense. They're playing right now and I'm watching them live online. They just finished the entirety of "Yes, Virginia" with "Sing." Amanda read the "Yes, Virginia" letter before starting the song and I had one of those holding on moments, from miles and miles away, wishing I was there to sing along.

When I went to AFP's Twitter show last summer, I noted that I would go and watch her just talk for a night, no music necessary. I love the way she sees the world, and she explains it during her sets both through music and speaking. She interacts with the crowd and opens up and I love it.

The encore's starting. I so love that they're the kind of band who will livestream a concert. Not the same, and I can't imagine who utterly awesome it would be to be there right now. They're not just good musicians, they're also great, funny, personable performers. I've never heard Brian speak before these past two nights and he is just as amazing and funny as Amanda. Love, love it.

UPDATE: Amanda is running through the balcony singing "Mein Herr." I can't describe how much they perform.

PostSecret

2010-10-31T14:01:00.003-04:00

This is not my PostSecret, but it could have been. I saw it this morning and it's true. At dinner before the concert last night my roommate was talking about how music magnifies emotions. "Sometimes I think I feel too much," she said.

"I don't feel much," I replied. That's why I need music, to let me feel.

"Concerts for me are like meds for all of you."

I don't know who you are, but I know exactly what you mean.

Just Hold On

2010-10-31T13:37:00.006-04:00

Because of that one moment when you hold your breath and hold on to whatever's around you with the crazy hope that if you just hold onto that moment tight enough it will never go away.

Guster at Lupos in Providence, October 30, 2010

I'd forgotten those moments, when you remember that there's a world outside of the engulfing wave of sound you're currently drowning in, and you clutch onto that moment and try not to let go.

We were a little late last night, walking into Lupo's as Jukebox the Ghost was about halfway through "Schizophrenia." They were fabulous, as usual, and it was some point during their set when I just wanted to hold on and it surprised me. It was a feeling I'd forgotten, but one I used to have at every concert I went to. I don't know when that disappeared.

Lupo's was decked out for Halloween and many people came in costumes. There was this one couple dressed as Legos and they danced holding hands the entire night. It was one of the cutest things I have ever, ever seen.

Guster gets better every time I see them. They were absolutely amazing last night. They played a full, fun set, and the crowd loved them. I really love their drummer. He is so into it and I love that he hand drums and makes these amazing faces while he does it. While watching him I realized that the playful drumming is another thing I love about Jukebox the Ghost. I really appreciate a good drummer, but one who's good and having fun is even better.

Of course everyone always expects the first encore, but we made more noise than I'd heard in a while. Then after that we kept cheering and they came back again. They'd commented before that their most watched Youtube video was from an acoustic set at Lupo's forever ago, so they came out, Adam shirtless, and reenacted this. The crowd went silent to hear the acoustic, save for an almost whispered, reverent singalong. It was amazing.

I'll Take What I Want From Your Heart and I'll Keep It

2010-10-28T22:50:00.004-04:00

Today was long and tiring and stressful. Music also used to make me feel better.

This:

Put it in HD and blow it up to full screen. I'm in love with this.

I hear some people day dream about their weddings or foreign locations or puppies and rainbows or... something. But if you see me staring off into space, I'm probably kicking some bad guy ass in a ridiculous outfit and a fast car. Not a superhero, no special powers, just a badass with intelligence and hellacious hair. It's like they found their way into my brain.

My Boots

2010-10-26T13:54:00.002-04:00

It doesn't always have to be so serious. I loved music because it was fun too, because it made me want to conquer the world. I'm grabbing that back, with headphones and a new pair of boots.

Towards the End, Unless a New Beginning Finds Me

2010-10-23T00:03:00.005-04:00

For the first time in two years, I didn't write a post about a show I went to.

I went to the Mayday Parade Fearless Friends show last Sunday at Paradise. The parts I saw of it were fun, but I went mainly to do interviews. There were communication issues and the night was a little bit of a mess, but I ended up not only seeing all of Go Radio's set but also sitting down and talking with Jason Lancaster. I've been thinking a lot lately about the musical portion of my life, about my disappointment in the scene, and about what I'm really looking for in music these days. Go Radio's set was the only one that really meant anything to me that night, and though the full interview will be posted elsewhere later, Jason talked about honesty in music. He said a few things that made me realize he was the first person I'd talked to in a while who truly believed in music and wanted something more from being a musician than a touring lifestyle and a crowd of fans.

That's what I'm looking for right now and I'm just not getting it out of this scene. I thought about the shows that I truly enjoyed lately and they weren't the ones with the pretty boys playing pop riffs on stage while teenage girls texted and took pictures from the front rows. They were the ones with the older guys pouring their hearts out, the crowds of punks and solid people who care that they're getting a show full of meaning. The Gaslight Anthem sticks out in my head, the two shows this summer that felt like the men on stage were there because they loved music, not because they loved being rockstars.

I don't know where that leaves me. I've got tickets for a few more shows this fall, some that I'm really excited about, but I've crossed a few off my list too. I'm not going to see 3Oh!3 tomorrow night because I'm not sure what I'll get out of it right now. I've lost that need to buy every CD by every band I know, to go see every show that comes to the East Coast. I'm just not feeling it.

I've wondered why. I've thought maybe I'm busy, maybe I'm growing up, maybe I'm demanding more from my music, a higher quality. I don't know what the answer is.

The tag line of this blog used to be something like "Music, Videos, and Scene Kids." I was asked a few weeks ago in my MATM interview whether or not I'd continue this blog through grad school, and I'd replied with a resounding yes, fully believing it. But only a little while later I'm not even sure this blog will make it far past its second birthday.

Unless I find a new scene that convinces me that musicians who still believe in music are out there, I might be closing in on the end of a fantastic musical run. I'm over the scene and I just can't get in to the indie hipster crowd. I'm not a punk and I can't do metal. I don't have the patience anymore to wade through five bad local rock shows to find one good band.

Prove me wrong, world. Please, before a part of my life shrivels and dies.

The Scene is Dead

2010-10-16T12:41:00.006-04:00

Black Cards at Club Hell, Providence RI, October 15, 2010

It died last summer and I knew it. I've been watching it die, watching crowds get smaller, waiting for something to rise from the ashes. I thought maybe last night it would, maybe last night would start the rise of something new. It didn't.

The crowd didn't even fill Club Hell and that's saying something. We wound up against the front railing without any struggle. There was a swarm of fans behind us, and I heard one of them talking about being a "crew." I wondered if maybe they were OCC (the Original Cobra Crew, from so long ago), so I turned and asked what she meant. She seemed a little embarrassed by it at first, and replied that they were "part of Icecreamhdaches, it's this thing on livejournal."

IceCreamHdaches (their username is actually missing the letters, it's not a typo) was what introduced me to really being a fan of a band. Back in 2007, when I was just starting to break into the scene and the bands held within, I checked ICH everyday. They knew what was going on with FOB within seconds of something happening, they were faster than FOBR, and I had never realized that there was this intense group of fans both online and at shows. I didn't even know that a "scene" existed before them. I mentioned to the girl last night a little of this, that I had been an almost constant lurker, but that I had never posted myself. She was excited, however, and they gave me an ICH pin with the motto "we stalk so you don't have to."

I found out about the scene through ICH. I finally met them at a show. Maybe that really does mean it's the end. It'd certainly be a poetic bookend.

Hey Champ opened the show and they were bouncy but their drums were too loud and I couldn't hear the vocals. This seems to be a constant problem at Club Hell. They were fun and I danced a little, but the crowd was dead. They were barely moving and there was always this half second pause of silence between the song ending and the clapping starting, awkward enough that the singer commented on it and no one laughed.

Black Cards. I wanted this music in a tiny club, but I wanted it polished and clean to a crowd of club dancers, not to the scene's leftovers. I'll admit to being one of that crowd, but the constant cameras flashing at Pete, the lack of dancing, the horrible sound through the speakers... it just wasn't there. The beat was going, and on the familiar songs people were singing along and moving, but it wasn't quite right. I think these songs were designed for 20 somethings, I think that's where this band should have been, but all they got were teenagers looking for the last lost bits of Fall Out Boy.

I swear it wasn't all bad. Bebe looked nervous at first, and it sounded as if they were tweaking her voice on one of the early songs to make it sound "old-timey" but she soon loosened up and started performing instead of just singing. She's gorgeous and has a pretty cool stage presence once she's going, but it was Pete everyone was really watching, which must suck a little for Bebe. She talked to the crowd a tiny bit, but Pete did most of it. And, as is only fitting of the nominal leader of that crowd, everyone shut up as soon as he did. He was speaking softly into the mic and I've never, ever heard a club that quiet to cling onto his every word. I had a thought, at the first FOB show I saw, that the moving mass of kids, at the time in the thousands, would do whatever that man said. I still believe that crowd last night would have. The charismatic leader of a scene that's no longer around.

The ICH crowd had been to the show the night before, and was planning on going to the show tonight, so they played an extra song out of appreciation. They hung out after, signed autographs and took pictures. I recognized a few of the guys surrounding the band, probably mangers or security, from other bands and other shows, and it was just a little odd.

The night ended with burgers and coffee with concert buddies at a roaming diner in Providence, and it was a delicious, but the drive home gave me a little too much time to think. I'm quickly becoming one of the oldest people at these shows and I'm feeling more and more like a teenager when I go to them. The crowds are getting smaller, but they're not getting older. Scene kids are still 13-18, and it seems that once they hit adulthood they just leave. But shows with people my own age are often indie shows, hipster filled crowds, and I don't feel right their either. I've been waiting for a new scene to arise and it hasn't yet, and I'm losing faith that it's coming.

The scene is dead. Long live the scene.

The Triple Rainbow Awesome Tour

2010-10-10T21:32:00.003-04:00

ALL CAPS at The Lilypad in Cambridge, October 9, 2010

Can we just take a moment to appreciate that tour name. Have you taken your moment? Okay then, moving on.

I hate parking in Cambridge. Hate it and so I normally take the T in, but I had to bring my roommate to the hospital (hearing a knock on the door and then a "Can you take me to the urgent care center?" is not the way to start your Saturday morning) so I was running late and I had to drive and I drove around for, no lie, 45 minutes before I found someplace to park. It was ridiculous.

So I missed the first act, Skyway Flyer, but I found Luke and Kristina of ALL CAPS and they asked if I minded doing the interview after. I said no, so I stuck around for the rest of the show.

Oh geek rock. I kind of love you. Mike Lombardo played a song about how "piano don't get chicks" and Alex Carpenter played songs about Harry Potter and the Hunger Games. It was awesome.

ALL CAPS is a fun live bit, and while the crowd of mainly preteen girls loved everyone they screamed and danced the most for ALL CAPS. They're dancy and fun and bouncy and everything you'd want out of an afternoon show. I was sad, however, that I had to go and put more quarters in the parking meter (damn you meters!) and so missed the last five minutes of their set, including "Don't Unplug Me." However some wonderful person uploaded it to YouTube. It's a great example of not just ALL CAPS, but the feel of the whole show.

After they'd taken pictures and signed things for every fan that waited, I got to sit down with Luke and Kristina. They're super nice and wonderful to all of their fans. Look for a link to my interview with them soon!

Gimme Sympathy

2010-10-09T12:04:00.004-04:00

I absolutely love the first few lines of this song:

"Get hot, get too close to the flame, wild open space. Talk like an open book. Sign me up."

Metric - Gimme Sympathy (Official Video) from Metric Music on Vimeo.

I also love the video. I'll always have a soft spot for one shot videos, as it takes a massive amount of work to get one shot to be perfect. The added effect of having them all switch places and the amount of coordination that must have gone into it are also things that I can appreciate. I love videos that are simple but interesting, and this is both of those.

Blinded Me With Science

2010-10-08T22:07:00.002-04:00

The radio has been spot on lately.

Mix was having a "Back to the 80s" night as I drove home tonight, and this showed up as I spun the dial.

I did not win Month at the Museum, but I met four amazing people, explored one of the coolest museums I've ever seen, and sent my goal out there into the world. It was an amazing ride, one I'll edit into something exciting in the near future. Until then, take my word that science is just damn cool!

That's Not My Name

2010-10-04T21:54:00.002-04:00

Brandeis is unable to spell my name.

The school paper spelled it Dainin, then Danin. The Student Union announcements spelled it Dianis.

Someone in admissions sent me a message congratulation my on finalist slot, and started off with "Hello Sophie."

Sophie. Sophie? That's not my name!

A Veritable Confetti Hurricane

2010-10-03T22:54:00.005-04:00

I spent most of last night at a quinceanera. I was working, serving food and cleaning dishes and making coffee and cutting cake and cleaning frosting off of pretty much every surface, but there were bubble machines and songs I hadn't heard in years and I don't think you've ever seen anyone dance so much while drying dishes.

I managed to get out in time to run home, trade frosting covered tights for jeans under my dress, and catch just the last song of The Postelles set at Brandeis. I was absolutely convinced that I'd seen them before, but I can't find them anywhere in this blog and I think maybe I'm getting them confused with someone else. I could have sworn I saw them at the Middle East and didn't like them, but I did like the one song I caught last night. I wish I could have gotten there sooner.

Ok Go was why I was there. They played an expanded version of the set they played a few weeks ago at the Life is Good Festival, and some parts were better and some parts were worse. The hand bell choir was worse, because this time the crowd was drunk and loud and the sound didn't work well in the gym. I think the general crowd knew only two songs.

Actually, other than that, I think everything else was better.

The kid they pulled up to play on stage to play guitar with them knew what he was doing. They played an encore complete with furry guitars and light up jackets. "This Too Shall Pass" sounded amazing inside. They played more songs and they were wearing brightly colored suits and they were having fun. I love fun sets.

And the confetti. I've seen confetti used at the ends of concerts before, maybe for two songs, but they had confetti at the beginning, during the middle, and at the end. I wish we'd been closer so that I would have been within the confetti storm. I love confetti.

It was a fun set. That's all I wanted last night, and I got it.

This Week in Music

2010-10-02T14:54:00.004-04:00

I went to Newbury Comics with the intention of only buying hair dye. Somehow I wound up with some new CDs too. You're not even a little surprised, I know.

It's been a slow music news week, But:

- New My Chemical Romance. This almost got its own post, and would have, if there were not already two MCR posts on the front page. It's so good. I love the direction this new album is taking and I love the energy and I love the line "Shut up and let me see your jazz hands." I love so many things about this. Throw on a pair of headphones and tell me this doesn't make you want to move.

-I bought tickets this morning for both nights of Weezer in Boston. Blue/Pinkerton in full. I've wanted to hear "Only in Dreams" live for about seven years now. I could not be more excited.

-New Weezer album has been essentially on repeat for the past week. I love parts of it, but then forget them when not listening. Then I love them again. I think my review is going to be positive, but it's still going to take more listens. I can't decide if this is because I'm still on the fence or I just want to listen more.

-I've also been listening to a lot of Say Anything lately, especially "Hate Everyone" and "Do Better." I don't care what the old fans say, I think last November's self titled release is their best album.

-Rumor has it Harper's Ferry in Allston, MA is closing. I've never actually made it to a show there, though I did try desperately to get to the secret Fall Out Boy show two years ago. That's the night that made me absolutely despise parking and driving in Allston. I then outright refused to go to a show there because I hate driving there so much. That's how bad Allston is. But it's still sad to see a local venue close, and that little paranoid part of my brain is still afraid some record company somewhere is going to realize they can severely cut costs if they just prerecord concerts and play them on screens in stadiums and theaters. I mean if you're sitting way in the back you're essentially just watching it on a screen anyway, and the moment some executive who's never been in a crowd of screaming, jumping, moving, loving fans realizes that a part of my world is going to collapse. *shudder*

I'm a Month at the Museum Finalist

2010-09-27T16:50:00.009-04:00

Sometimes, awesome things happen.

I've talked before on this blog about what I want to do with my life, my goal of changing the way the world looks at science. I posted the following paragraph here back in January:

"Hi, World. You and I need to have a chat. I mean, I know that I've told you that I want to be a thousand different things. I guess that can be confusing. I've settled, I think, on having my own show on the Discovery Channel, a research science based hour that takes the wicked awesome science happening all over the world and translates it into a medium that everyone can understand, no PhD required. It even has the added goal of making the point that science isn't just done by balding old men in lab coats, and that science is cool. Science is awesome. I will show the world that science can be done by girls with purple hair in skinny jeans and band tees, and I will pave the way for thousands of girls after me who will realize that they can both be their own awesome selves AND be science nerds, that the two things aren't mutually exclusive. I'm going to change the way this country views science. I'm going to usher in a new generation that wants to grow up to be scientists AND rockstars."

Over the summer, I stumbled across the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry's Month at the Museum Program. I fell in love. It was everything I wanted to do distilled down into a one month period, a chance to have fun and show the world how amazing science was all at the same time. I submitted an application, made a wish at 11:11, and hoped for the best.

You're here for the music blog, not a story of my life, and so I'll refrain from giving you the details of the phone interview and my trip to Chicago (so much fun!). However music is tied to everything I do and when I couldn't tell the world about the amazing things I was doing (the museum wanted to keep everything under wraps) I had to let out the awesome vibes I was feeling somehow. Cryptic lyrics popped up on my facebook and twitter, most from songs like "The Future Freaks Me Out" and "The Phrase the Pays," songs that were about busting out and taking chances. I linked to videos that make me want to go out and change the world, and listened to a short ton of Chicago bands.

"The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World came on the radio as soon as I hopped in the car today and it was one of the songs I'd listened to this past month, along with things like "Cobrastyle" and "Sleeping with Giants" and "Kiss my Sass." They're songs that make me want to go out and conquer the world. And I think, with a little help from you, I can do that. I can change the way the world looks at science, change what being a scientist means.

You can vote for me here: http://www.msichicago.org/matm/finalists/alex-dainis/

I'd appreciate it greatly and I promise I won't ever lose that drive and desire. The experience thus far, the amazing things I've already gotten to do, and the huge outpouring of love and support everyone has shown me today have already made this experience worthwhile.

I'm not sure I've ever fully introduced myself on this blog, as some amount of internet anonymity is always valued, but I've now thrown myself out there for everyone to see. So, hi. My name is Alex Dainis, and I want to teach you science.

Just a Girl

2010-09-24T22:24:00.001-04:00

When I was 14 and 15, No Doubt and Weezer were my two favorite bands. They both still hold very special places in my heart. This song came on the radio tonight while I was driving and it kind of encompasses this moment.

They Just Keep Getting Better

2010-09-20T18:08:00.002-04:00

First they coordinated people. Then they coordinated inanimate objects and physics. Now they've moved to something even more difficult.

Dear Ok Go, you're awesome.

OK Go - White Knuckles

(Did you see the goat?!)

Life is Good

2010-09-17T21:01:00.004-04:00

Life is Good Festival Day 2 - September 12, 2010 Canton, MA

This is the latest a concert post has ever been. This week has been crazy.

We arrived at the festival and made a beeline for the kids tent. That's right, we were going to see They Might Be Giants. A kids band. An awesome kids band. There were small children everywhere and it made me happy that there were little children being introduced to the amazing world of concerts. They sang "The Sun" (my favorite) and "Istanbul not Constantinople" (my concert buddy's favorite). I was also really intrigued by the sign language interpreter they had at the side of the stage. I can understand a little sign language, so I was trying to pull out the words while listening to the song, but she was also trying to sign the music and the beats as well. It was really cool.

We then ventured to get food. The festival was full of hippies. Seriously, it was this huge dust filled field full of people who were very happy and very natural, which meant they needed vegan/vegetarian options. So for festival food, it was amazing. I got some samosas from The Samosaman and they were great. Best concert food ever. We wandered around the booths for a while, then settled down on the ground to hang. I blew a lot of bubbles (bubble soap makes festivals better, always) and made some small children very happy.

We saw OK Go next. They played "Get Over It" and that made it worth it for me, really. They also sang one song a capella... and with a bell choir. It was amazing. The lead singer got out into the crowd and played a song on an acoustic, and he pulled a very embarrassed Brazilian girl up on stage to dance because she had been waving a Brazil flag. Also, a large crowd singing "This Too Shall Pass" is kind of awesome.

We trooped over to the main stage to settle in for the night. And by settle in I mean stand for four hours and claim a dusty patch of ground as our own. Guster was up next, and they were even better than they were last month. Good feeling music and a hippie crowd work well together.

Then we stood and stood and waited for Jason Mraz. He was also rather awesome. I'd never seen him live and I only knew the singles, but he's an amazing performer. He was engaging and funny and his voice is just gorgeous. He had a big band too, complete with a brass section. He danced and he pulled fans on stage to dance and he was an all around great entertainer. Also, the crowd worshiped him and I always love huge choruses of vocals when artists ask for them. We left the show covered in dirt, sun, rain, and bubble soap, but with gigantic smiles on our faces.

Danger Days - The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys

2010-09-17T18:50:00.003-04:00

My Chemical Romance - Art is the Weapon

My thoughts, in order:

-YES!
-Drummer?
-Hair!
-The music! The music is so awesome!
-Colors!
-...Didn't they say last summer that this wasn't going to be a concept album? Oh Gerard Way, you don't know how to write an album without some huge concept. I am so excited for the direction this is going in. There are colors, guys. My Chemical Romance has discovered color. And this looks fun. And loud. I love fun and loud. MCR's love of comic books has finally been realized in an album.

So who's going to be the new drummer? When is soon? When is the tour and when can I listen to the full thing. Tease, it's all a tease.

*EDIT* This used to feature the typography video "Art is the Weapon" for the same song, but they seem to have replaced it with the official music video. This is unfortunate, as I liked the first one a lot.

Jukebox the Ghost - Schizophrenic Music Video

2010-09-13T13:01:00.004-04:00

I went to the Life is Good Festival yesterday and came back covered in dirt and music, but that'll be a longer post coming soon. In the meantime, and as a start to your week, Jukebox the Ghost's brand new video for "Schizophrenic." Again directed by Shervin Lainez, though this time with the addition of Dylan Steinberg, it's more visually crisp than their past videos but lacks a plot. It does capture the frantic essence of the song, and I like the play with the old televisions, but there's just a little something missing.

Still not a bad thing to stumble upon on a gray and dreary morning. You've got to love the music.

Weezer - Memories

2010-09-11T21:38:00.003-04:00

I'm not usually a fan of talking to store employees. I've worked in customer service and I understand that you have to approach people, but if I wanted your help I would ask.

However I wound up in a conversation with some guy who worked at Newbury Comics the other day. He noted that he was excited about the new Weezer album. I replied that I wasn't and answered his shocked face with the fact that I didn't really enjoy their last album.

"Yeah, me neither, but they're saying it'll be more in line with Pinkerton..."

I then mentioned the rumored Blue/Pinkerton tour and he agreed that it was an amazing idea. It is.

But this new album? I just don't know. This doesn't sound very much like Pinkerton to me.

Weezer - New Music - More Music Videos

Now, I don't want another Pinkerton. We already have one of those and musicians making the same music over and over is boring. But I think they're just pushing music out too fast. Just take a moment to step back and reflect and edit, Weezer. This song isn't bad, but it's not a killer either. And if this album is anything like the last, there will be maybe three good songs and a lot of weird filler.

Dear Weezer, please prove me wrong. Love, a huge fan.

My Chemical Romance and the Mystery TV

2010-09-03T19:37:00.008-04:00

My Chemical Romance has done something to their website! Finally! A tweet leading there said "stay tuned" and the site now has an old school TV graphic. Turning knobs and choosing channels lead to stations featuring "A Horse With No Name" or TV test bars or beeping and static and... stuff. There are six clocks counting up at different speeds. Each station is labeled with four letters, maybe standing for song titles: "RFDD BLND WKIL KLSK HRBT."

I don't know what it means.

Something is happening. Check it out here. What do you think?

Jukebox the Ghost - Everything Under the Sun

2010-09-02T22:19:00.007-04:00

I don't know where to begin, so I guess the beginning is the best place to start.

I got my preorder of Jukebox the Ghost's new album, Everything Under the Sun, in the mail yesterday. I've listened to nothing else since.

Part of it is that these are songs I have been in love with for over a year and haven't been able to listen to outside of a live show. It is so very, very frustrating to love a song but not be able to buy it anywhere. Unreleased music is just... unreleased. So of the 12 tracks on the album, I had been anxiously, conciously awaiting four of them. But it turns out I know more of them, turns out I've heard almost all of them. The only thing that makes "new" music better is when you've heard that new music before, and you already have an emotion attached to it. I'm going to go track by track, because I love it so much, but it's still so Jukebox all over. Tommy Seigel is still writing songs about the apocalypse and Ben Thornewill is still writing songs about love and somehow the two form this amazing cohesive unit (and recent interviews attribute this to Jesse Kristin's influence and editing).

Schizophrenia is, well, schizophrenic. They performed it live on David Letterman last night, and I think hearing it is the only way to appreciate its beautiful oscillation.

Half Crazy gets stuck in my head all the time and I love that I now have a recorded version of it. This is a song written by Seigel, and though it's not about the apocalypse and though it's written like an upbeat dance song, it's about disintegrating in your room and going crazy. And I love it.

Empire is another one I've been listening to in my head for a while. Classic piano driven Jukebox song about love. "I've got my knives and my heart up my sleeves."

Summer Sun is one that I didn't think I'd recognize, but I did. I can't accurately describe how the song fits together in two parts, the classic Jukebox sounding part and the more mature Jukebox second half. The first uses onomatopoeia of a beating heart while the second is a more searching, reaching, almost rock vibe. Almost.

I heard Mistletoe at the second live show of theirs I saw, back in 2008. It was on their myspace for a while and then disappeared, and it was missed. It's bouncy but about a serial heartbreaker. And it's very, very pretty.

The Sun is another one I didn't expect to recognize. Seigel is back to the apocalypse and questioning God, both constant themes for him. The lyrics are dark and almost angry, but the music is so upbeat and beautiful that you want to dance to lines like "big bags of blood, or by inference big bags of water, stitched tightly at the seams like packaging are hurtling through busy city streets" and "what if it's all just a black abyss." One of the best things about JTG is their ability to back dark lines with joyous music and connect the two seamlessly.

So Let Us Create is my least favorite song on the album. I think it's because Thornewill's voice sounds distorted in the chorus, like it's been run through a vocoder. There's something unsettling about it. It's wrong.

Carrying hit me out of nowhere. This is one I've heard live but didn't remember until I was a few lines in. It's again super peppy music, but cowritten by Thornewill and Seigel, meaning it's half a love song and half a depressing question of God. And one of the lines in the song is a slight rearrangement of a self realization I had almost seven months ago, a line I dug up in my journal because it unnerved me so much that someone else had put it into poetic words. I love when music makes me feel, and I love it more when it can put into words or sounds something I've been feeling already but couldn't properly voice.

Here we hit an interlude, a reprise of The Sun, before we launch into The Stars, this album's "Where are all the Scientists Now?." This is Seigel's giant apocalypse plot, a narrative about a giant wave overtaking a city and questioning our part in the end, and what one would do in the face of imminent destruction. It's good, and it reminds me why I love his voice and his writing style. I feel like their "singles," as much as a indie band can have singles, have all been Thornewill's songs, and I wonder if maybe that's a little unfair. Don't get me wrong, Thornewill's writing and piano just about tear my heart out, but Seigel's music is this whole other side of the band that deserves just as much of a spotlight.

The Popular Thing. It is utterly impossible for me to listen to this song without some sort of ridiculous dancing involved. The lyrics are scathing, really, condemning people moving out west and getting tattoos and having sex just because everybody else is doing it, but the music is so god damned peppy that you've just gotta dance. It's their poppiest sounding song, but that is beyond appropriate. It's all hand claps and bright piano keys and condemnation. I'm in love.

Nobody sounds more like Thornewill's solo music than a general Jukebox song. I think I've effused over his solo stuff enough here before, so I'll refrain. But I've been falling asleep to music lately, picking a CD and lying upside down on my bed until I start to fade in and out of dreams. This was obviously last night's album choice, and this is the perfect song to end an album, the perfect song to end a day, the perfect song to fall asleep to.

Everything Under the Sun gets five ghosts out of five. It's happy and gorgeous and perfect. That's all you need.

Mrs. Robinson

2010-08-30T22:00:00.003-04:00

Pomplamoose covers Simon and Garfunkel. A classic song, a clear voice, and gorgeous and simple instrumentation. I love this so much, and saying anything more would ruin it.

Last Minute Show

2010-08-29T17:08:00.004-04:00

Does it count as a show if I walked less than a quarter mile to get there? Does it count if we got there late (my fault) and left early (friend's fault)?

Freshman orientation ends this weekend and there was a free concert on campus to celebrate. I weighed my options of "hanging out with scared freshmen" and "free music." A friend wanted to go and so free music won.

However I've made the comment before that I feel like I live a double life. There's one me that goes out to shows and stays out late and lives and breathes by music. Then there's the other me that is a complete workaholic and studies hard and is a gigantic science nerd. Neither one is a "fake" me, and neither one is a "real" me. They're both just me in different situations, but it means that I am uncomfortable merging the two into one person. So a show at school... is not really my cup of tea.

Despite the large amounts of awkward from being confused at which me I was and at being in a crowd of people I knew from school but don't really know, the show was good.

Dear Havanah played first. They were sort of a clean version of Sublime. Their guitarist was great, and their drummer was awesome, but that's unfair to the bassist and vocalist who were also very good. Not my style, but I understand why I see them on local lineups all the time.

Bad Rabbits played second and they had an amazing amount of energy. They were fun and tight. I loved "Stick Up Kids." I see why they're on lineups all the time too. The charisma and the music were both great. There were a few points where I forgot where I was and could have been at the Middle East, and it was a good solid set. They played a few covers scattered throughout but they bled so nicely into their set that I can't even remember what they were.

I'd give the show an A, and the crowd a C. Orientation leaders are programmed to be obnoxiously energetic, and my college is just full of awkward kids. It made for a weird night.

Cobrastyle

2010-08-26T21:11:00.010-04:00

Biology Major. Film Major. Fruit Fly Wrangler. Coffee Slinger. Teaching Assistant. Concert Goer. Music Blogger. Babysitter. Thesis Writer. Stress Baker.

College Senior.

Bring it, world. I'm going to kick your ass, and you're going to like it.

This is one of my absolute favorite songs. It's in the top three. I discovered it years ago in this fabulous commercial for Tab. Not only did I love the sentiment of the commercial (that being a hardcore woman takes a lot of energy, a notion I fully support), but I also fell in love with the song. It made it onto every party mix in high school and I forced everyone I knew to listen to it. There was, at one point, a choreographed dance.

This song always makes me happy, and makes me want to conquer whatever life throws at me. I just wish that I could understand what in the world he was saying...

The Venetia Fair

2010-08-25T23:00:00.003-04:00

The semester is starting and the weather is horrible and I don't feel good and all I want is a loud rock show and a good crowd and a charismatic frontman. However Massachusetts is devoid of this kind of show. I have one lined up for November... in Rhode Island. I don't know how my concert schedule incinerated down to nothing. I want a rock show.

I think these boys would provide the kind of show I'm looking for.

They're called The Venetia Fair and they're from MA. I found out about them because they started following me on twitter, and they're not bad. They look like they'd put on a killer live show. However they have no shows scheduled.

Also on my "Want to See Live" list is My Chemical Romance. They need to get their acts together and put out their new album. So should Panic! at the Disco. And local bands should play some shows.

Give me live music.

Brighten - Love Me Honestly

2010-08-24T22:37:00.004-04:00

I listen to a lot of music. I mean a LOT of music. That's why this blog is helpful, so that when I see that a band is playing at a local club, and I recognize their name, I can go back and see if I've seen them before. (The answer was yes, and I will not be going to see them again, based on my own review. That seems silly to me...) But it is impossible for me to blog about every song I listen to, and every myspace I run across.

Tonight, I was stranded. There was a song that I knew I liked about a year ago, maybe more, but I could not remember who it was by or what it even sounded like. I just recalled that it existed. I had very limited information to go on:

-It was by that band...
-Their album cover might have had a crown on it...
-The song was about love...
-I heard it on their myspace.

That describes 99% of the songs out there. None of this was helpful information. Trying to come up with any clue, I thought "Well, the band was kind of like A Cursive Memory." So I started at their myspace and low and behold, who was in their top friends: Brighten.

That was them, and this was the song. Funny how sometimes stuff actually works. I'm putting it here this time, so that I don't ever lose it again. I like it quite a bit.

Designer Shades Just to Hide Your Face

2010-08-22T19:21:00.005-04:00

I've been driving a lot lately, meaning that a lot of radio listening has happened.

So Kiss 108 in Boston plays these commercials that show they have "variety." They go something like this: "We play everything from dance (Lady Gaga) to pop (Usher) and everything in between (Ke$ha)."

Dear Kiss 108,
That's not variety. Those are three top 40 artists, and the beats all sound the same. I don't mind that you're a top 40 station - you're on my presets for those times when I just want to tune out and not listen. Stop billing yourself as variety and sell yourself for what you're good at. You play pop music, just admit it.
Love, Alex

Anyways, this means my life has been invaded by some pop lately, except in Western Massachusetts, where 107.9 becomes what sounds like a prerecorded Spanish station...

I kind of can't stand most of it, but I'm in love with that song by Mike Posner, "Cooler Than Me." It's my new pop music groove and I love, love, love it.

"You've got designer shades just to hide your face and you wear them around like you're cooler than me." Love it.

And Ke$ha's new song "Take it Off" has been on the radio. Don't care for it much, but look at the video! She brushed her hair! She looks kind of hot and there's glitter everywhere. Better than that, they have a holi powder fight. Holi is one of my favorite parts of the spring, and I just love that it's in a music video, even for Ke$ha.

The Pretty Reckless - Miss Nothing

2010-08-15T07:56:00.005-04:00

So I have a lot of issues with this video and the band in general.

We can start with the fact that Taylor Momsen is 16! Only 16 and she is parading around in lingerie looking like a raccoon. A band member at Warped Tour, after seeing that Pretty Reckless was on my list of things to see ("I want to see if it's as much of a train wreck as everyone says it is") told me that every time he saw Miss Momsen, she was drunk and smoking, being held up either by body guards or the side of her bus. I want to hand her over to another Taylor, Miss Swift, for a day and hope that some sort good influence happens.

Also, Courtney Love already exists! You can't be Courtney Love, not even if you change your name to Taylor Love and marry a grunge rock star. The men in your band seem to be twice your age! Where are your parents? You're wearing lucite stripper heels with built in tip jars! Why is no one stopping you?

But I love this.

I love the sound breakdown for the bridge. I kind of love the lyrics and the rock. I love that she's a badass. It's so wrong, and I hate so many things about it, but I also love it.

What am I going to do with you, Miss Momsen? I feel like an intervention is in order, and I'm going to have to stock up on makeup remover and actual pants.

The Academy Is... - Pearl Street

2010-08-11T20:21:00.003-04:00

The Academy Is… at The Pearl Street Nightclub in Northampton, MA – August 10, 2010

I’d forget everything in my life without my planner. Sure the back cover fell off months ago, but I have my life scheduled down to the minute in that thing. Which is why when I opened it Monday morning to look at the week ahead, I noticed the show I’d completely forgotten about scheduled for Tuesday night.

Northampton is in the middle of nowhere Massachusetts, about 2 hours away, so I snuck out of work early (justified by my 50 hours last week) and stayed straight on the Mass Pike for 77 miles. I met up with a girl I’d met at a Cobra Starship show almost a year ago, we made some new line friends, and we ended up standing about two feet from the stage.

The show felt like a VFW hall show. The upstairs room is a cavernous space with a horrible soundboard, and the small crowd was full of local kids. Combine that with the fact that the three openers were local rock and I would have sworn I was watching a high school show.

The first band up, The Smokey Wambas, practically bled Massachusetts rock. Not Boston rock, not Jersey rock, but Massachusetts local rock. I can’t describe the sound, but two songs in and I’d bet money those boys either shared a stage with Four Year Strong or spent a ton of time going to their shows. There’s just a sound and a feel intrinsic to suburban Mass. They weren’t bad, but they weren’t helped by the soundboard.

Us Against the Archers were my favorite of the openers. They were fun and they got me moving, and that’s what an opener is there for. Their guitarist was great and he reminded me of someone I know, though I just can’t put my finger on who.

Gone by Daylight was the last opener and they were also good, standard local rock. They had a bunch of fans in the crowd (as did the others) and they played a fast, hard set. Too bad they had tech problems, from a broken E string (oh that’s not important at all) to a broken bass strap (because you can play while supporting the guitar with your knee, right?) They handled it well, especially when the lead singer had to dash and find a new guitar, by jamming on stage. A+ boys.

Finally, The Academy Is… It was my fourth time seeing them and the sound was by far the worst, but I had the most fun. Give me dark clubs and music so loud that I can’t think and I’ll be happy. We were super close to the stage, but all the way to the right, so there was breathing and moving room around us. The sound was muddy and I couldn’t hear a word William Beckett sang for the first three songs, but both the crowd and the band were having fun. They played a good mix from the three full lengths and it was the first time I really appreciated anything off of Fast Times at Barrington High. I’m usually more of a Santi and Almost Here girl, but I was feeling it last night. Though they missed some good songs, they played “Checkmarks” and “The Phrase that Pays,” two of my absolute favorites. I was disappointed that they didn't play anything off of the Lost in Pacific time EP, as I'd hoped live versions would let me love those songs too.

The show ended on “Big Mess,” they walked off stage, and the crowd died. No calling for an encore, no clapping, no nothing. Strangest thing I’ve ever seen. My friend and I tried but everyone was just walking out. The lights came on and that was that. I haven’t seen an encore-less show without an explanation in a very, very long time, maybe ever. I bought a t-shirt, because it had cupcakes, and it’s the first piece of merch I’ve bought at a show since 2008. I seriously think I was transported back to a local high school show. Awesome, but out of place.

I love late night driving and so powered by caffeine and the buzz of the show in my head I drove the 77 straight miles back with a smile on my face, searching FM for voices talking on the radio.

Weezer

2010-08-09T20:07:00.004-04:00

I don't know where to begin.

When people ask what my favorite band is, I reply Weezer. Always. The Blue Album is my favorite album and it probably always will be. That album hit me around 14, the time when an album can truly change how you view the world, and it did.

But. Lately. Look, Weezer, I will always love you. Honest and forever. But the past few years.

I loved The Red Album when it came out, I did, but then it faded off my playlist a bit. Then Raditude came, and I loved the first five songs, I really did, but the rest of it didn't really stick with me. The cover was a picture of a dog jumping over a coffee table. I think there was too much weed involved in that decision.

Your next album is called Hurley, and has a picture of Jorge Garcia on it. I don't know what to say, Weezer. I don't get it.

The first single is good, though. You can listen to "Memories" here. And this is what it's all about, the music. I don't care what it looks like, as long as the music is good.

I'm just saying I don't get it, and that I think you may have become the poster band for why weed is bad for your brain.

Sucking Too Hard On Your Lollipop

2010-08-06T20:26:00.002-04:00

I'm three years late on this, but one of my roommates was playing this before we left for work last week, and I swear I danced the whole way there. (Really, it's like a three minute walk, and I shimmied and swayed up the street, much to my roommates' amusements.) It put me into such a good mood and it's so damn catchy. Be prepared to shake your shoulders.

Lollipop - Mika

"Brian Fallon is a God"

2010-08-04T23:07:00.009-04:00

The Gaslight Anthem at the House of Blues Boston – August 2, 2010

The first part of this story is here. I went to two shows on the same tour, to compare and to revel in music.

So here’s the thing about the openers the second time around. I was singing along with Tim Barry, and his songs have been stuck in my head ever since. I couldn’t tell you a thing Chamberlain sang.

This time, Tim Barry had a girl named Liz come out and play the violin with some of his songs and it added a great feeling and dimension to it. The crowd loved him. The girls next to me were going crazy over him, to the point where a woman behind me asked who he was. I was a little curious too, because even though I liked him, I couldn’t understand how so many people knew all the words to the songs by some dude with an acoustic. The drunk flailing girl informed us that he used to be in Avail. Oh. It makes so much more sense now.

Chamberlain was Chamberlain. Brian Fallon came out to sing with them at one point, a slow song with soul that sounded nothing like the rest of their music. When he came out he turned to the drummer and said “Hey Curtis, it’s a blues riff in B, watch me for the changes and try to keep up.” I love that the references and integration are a part of who he is, not just a gimmick for the albums.

And The Gaslight Anthem was amazing again. This was the show where “Great Expectations” began to mean something to me.

Brian talked a lot about Boston. I’d heard him comment on how we’re a tough city before, and he always give props to The Might Mighty Bosstones, but I thought maybe he did that to every city. He certainly didn’t to Providence, so his praise of Fenway Park and our tough, upstanding citizens made me smile even bigger.

I love them live. But here’s where my story of Gaslight picks back up. I’d seen the video for the “‘59 Sound” a few times on SURS way back when, but it took a while for it to stick. When it did, I bought the CD and listened to it. I didn’t love it at first, and put it aside, but kept coming back to it. By the time it had engrained itself into my bones I’d missed Brian Fallon’s acoustic show at the Middle East.

I’ve only found one other person who has heard of The Gaslight Anthem, outside of Steven Smith, music magazines, and people at shows. The same acquaintance from high school who recognized my “Paperface” quote on facebook had the line “You were gonna be my Judy Garland, We were gonna share your tin man heart” as his facebook status one day. He’s someone I took almost all of my classes with, but barely talked to, someone I think I could have been friends with had I been the same person then that I am now. I commented that I loved The Gaslight Anthem. He wrote back “Brian Fallon is a god.”

True. I keep coming back to the phrase “soul and story.” I’ve never heard so much of both in music before, such honesty and openness.

Do yourself a favor, and catch them live. It’s the best show of the moment and you will not regret it.