Show Tonight Wednesday October 19, 2011

Tonight at Now That's Class come rock out with Village Bicycle, Afternoon Naps, and Red Pony Clock. It's going to be twee as french toast. See you there around 9pm. Bring $5.

Tournament Edition

Nick Kastner and I have been talking about our new band Tournament Edition for a while now. We mostly talk to each other about it while disc golfing. Hence, little progress. (a.k.a. A lot of talk and a whole lot less rock) However, before Nick moved to North Carolina a few weeks ago we practiced twice and worked on some songs. We then recorded three songs at the (in)famous Believeland Studios. Nick wrote all the lyrics and composed the bulk of the music for these songs. I spent most of my time figuring out what guitar parts Nick was playing when he demoed these songs and I added a guitar lick or two where appropriate. I'd really like to put these out as a 7", but we'd need to book some shows first. These were mixed, produced, recorded, and engineered by Mr. Eric Schulte between the hours of 11pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011 and 3am Friday, September 16. He did us a solid. Thanks Eric. We're really happy we recorded these and they actually sound pretty good.

Tournament Edition on SoundCloud

Show Reviews 9/29/2011 - 10/7/2011

9/29/2011 @ The Happy Dog

Herzog / Dirty Beaches / Frankie Rose and the Outs

Herzog was great. They opened with "Publishing" and hits just kept on coming. Look for Cartoon Violence to be out soon. Then the night took a 180 degree emotional ollie with Dirty Beaches. I guess there's a chance that the songs would sound a lot better live if they hand some more band members and less pre-recorded stuff, but in their present state the live show was awful. Of course, it's really hard to follow Herzog. Frankie Rose and her band were pretty solid, but I remember them being a lot more enthusiastic when I saw them this past January. Since then they've been through a line-up change and penned a new batch of tunes of which they played with more gusto than the rest of their set. Perhaps everyone was too blown away by the awesomeness of Herzog or the complete crap in a hat of Dirty Beaches that there was just not enough energy left in the room for Frankie Rose and the Outs. It's interesting how shows can have their ups and downs. This one certainly did.

9/30/2011 @ Bela Dubby

Cassius Blair / Extra Medium Pony / No Pony

Cassius Blair played cute little songs on his ukulele. It was good. I like the basslines of No Pony's songs. Extra Medium Pony are for real.

10/7/2011 @ Happy Dog

Extra Medium Pony / 28 Degrees Taurus / Village Bicycle

Extra Medium Pony killed it again. I hope their full-length surfaces sooner rather than later. 28 Degrees Taurus make me think of my first car, a royal blue 1994 Ford Taurus featuring a classic Stop 'n Shop Cleveland Indians bumper sticker. The band is from Boston and they had a few really solid tunes. I would bet they sound pretty good recorded and perhaps being familiar with those recordings would make the live show more interesting. Though they had a few stand out tracks, the others seemed to blend together into one reoccurring song. My first show with Village Bicycle was a shit load of fun. For those unfamiliar with the term "shit load" its nearly equivalent to eight times the size of a "whole bunch."

The Black Keys New Album Out Dec 6, 2011

El Camino Track-Listing

1. Lonely Boy

2. Dead and Gone

3. Gold on the Ceiling

4. Little Black Submarines

5. Money Maker

6. Run Right Back

7. Sister

8. Hell of a Season

9. Stop Stop

10. Nova Baby

11. Mind Eraser

The Black Keys never disappoint in the album art department. I love this cover, but I'm a little confused. The vehicle pictured on the cover is a mid to late 1980s Chrysler van. My aunt and uncle had an nearly identical white with wood paneling Chrysler van in the early 1990s. I'm sure the Black Keys have a good explanation for this and it makes me want to have the album in my hands even more.

Dan Auerbach has said that the songs on El Camino are the fastest they've ever written citing The Cramps and early garage rock as influences. Did I mention I'm excited for this? El Camino will be available in your local record store December 6, 2011.