Stars, the epic melodramatic pop band will be back on the road. I saw these guys last year and enjoyed their howling the phrase “after the war,” which was initially intended to mean the end of the single life on their album, but took on political undertones at the show.

As of now, my personal war is the with the with newspaper industry and it’s complete lack of sense.

7/5/08 – Vieux-Quebec, PQ @ Festival D’ete de Quebec
7/8/08 – Ottawa, ON @ Ottawa Bluesfest
8/24/08 – San Francisco, CA @ Outlands Festival
9/16/08 – Boston, MA @ Wilbur
9/17/08 – Northampton, MA @ Pearl Street
9/19/08 – Philadelphia, PA @ Trocadero
9/20/08 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
9/24/08 – Chicago, IL @ The Riviera
9/25/08 – St. Louis, MO @ The Pagaent
9/26/08 – Lawrence, KS @ The Granada
9/28/08 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/1/08 – Los Angeles, CA @ Avalon
10/2/08 – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
10/4/08 – Santa Cruz, CA @ The Rio Theatre
10/6/08 – San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
10/8/08 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
10/9/08 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox

My good buddy Austria from AZ told me about Black Kids a while back and, as is always the case, whatever band Austria tells me about inevitably becomes one of the “it” bands down the road.

They play some funky, indie-pop goodness and have the special power of stirring people’s racial emotions due to the fact that only two out of the five people in the band are actually (says in whisper) black.

A clever marketing plot or a statement about race in our country? You can decide for yourself when you see them on tour.

Friday 07/25/08 New York, NY @ Santo’s Party House
Friday 09/19/08 Jacksonville, FL @ Freebird
Saturday 09/20/08 Orlando, FL @ The Social
Tuesday 09/23/08 Atlanta, GA @ Earl
Wednesday 09/24/08 Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club
Thursday 09/25/08 Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
Friday 09/26/08 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
Saturday 09/27/08 Washington, D.C. @ Black Cat
Monday 09/29/08 Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
Thursday 10/02/08 Boston, MA @ Paradise
Saturday 10/04/08 Montreal, PQ @ Cabaret Music Hall
Sunday 10/05/08 Toronto, ON @ Mod Club
Monday 10/06/08 Chicago, IL @ Metro
Tuesday 10/07/08 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Friday 10/10/08 Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s
Saturday 10/11/08 Vancouver, BC @ Richards
Sunday 10/12/08 Portland, OR @ Hawthorne
Monday 10/13/08 San Francisco, CA @ Fillmore
Wednesday 10/15/08 Los Angeles, CA @ Mayan

Yes, remember this movie homeslice? The high school story about geeky love in suburbia with a teenager making up her own slang almost at will? Then you no doubt became obsessed with the music behind all those frames of dramedy. And the reason for that is Kimya Dawson, a leader in the revolution that is anti-folk (they find folk artists and beat the shit out of them…ok not really).

But then why did I put a picture of “Juno” on the front of this post? Because if put this picture up, you’d be taking my anti-folk joke seriously and wonder how many folk artists this person trapped in her closet.

Right, the news. Dawson is releasing a new album on Sept. 9 called “Alphabutt,” which is a collection of children’s songs she wrote with friends and their kids (if you’ve heard her music before, then you know this is a perfect fit).

And why is this tour a big deal? Because the dates with the “*” next to it means she’ll be opening for none other than Ani DiFranco, queen of the anti-folk massacre of 1999 (it’s too easy…and too much fun).

Get your tickets early. Ani sells out lightning quick.

July 2nd        Music Hall of Williamsburg        Brooklyn, NY
July 11th       The National                             Richmond, VA *
July 12th       Pines Theater                           Florence, MA *
July 13th       Cape Cod Melody Tent             Hyannis, MA *
July 15th       Ives Concert Park                     Danbury, CT *
July 16th       United Palace                           New York, NY *
July 25th       Capitol Hill Block Party             Seattle, WA

This literally just in.

The Raconteurs to Play Los Angeles Show This Sunday

The Raconteurs have just announced they will be performing at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles, CA this Sunday, May 18th. Tickets go on sale tomorrow at noon PST and will be available at that time by going here.

Apparently, it’s time to get back on heroin.

The 90’s grunge band Stone Tempe Pilots have announced a summer tour and possibly more (their website states that the band returns on April 7).

I remember when I was a kid and I heard about random bands getting back together and thinking “Who the fuck are they?” Even back then, I knew it was all for the sweet dolla dolla bill y’all.

Truthfully, I am excited to hear some of the old favorites from this band like “Plush,” “Creep,” and “Sex Type Thing.”

But it’s hard to ignore that this comes on the heels of Scott Weiland getting tossed from Velvet Revolver. Is this a form of revenge? Will there be a thunderdome fight between STP and VR? Or did Weiland take enough drugs to mentally travel back in time (a la “Lost”) to 1994 when they still had fans?

Anyway, here are the tour dates. If you live in these towns and can’t make the show, you may be able to catch Weiland in your local jail.

We got this yesterday and we’re excited for two reasons. One, Aimee Mann kicks ass and two, we’ve finally been respected enough (at least by one agency, thanks Girle Action!) to pass along MP3s.

This is especially exciting since we were recently webslapped by the long arm of the Raconteurs who didn’t want us to stream their song.

Enough anger. Below you will find a new song from Mann titled “Thirty One Today” that will be off her seventh studio album @#%*! Smilers due out on June 3.

And, as you can probably guess, the song is about Mann’s personal best at chicken nugget eating. Don’t buy it? Fine. It’s about the depressive state of aging.

“I thought my life would be different somehow/ I thought my life would be better by now…”

Thanks Mann. Whenever I need a melodic song with depressive undertones, you constantly deliver the goods. In fact, to prepare, I’m going to take your advice and get loaded and watch CNN.

Check out the song below and download at will.

Aimee Mann - Thirty One Today

June 2 Los Angeles, CA Largo
June 6 Anaheim, CA House of Blues
June 10 Los Angeles, CA Largo
June 12 Minneapolis, MN Minneapolis Zoo
June 13 Milwaukee WI Pabst Theater
June 15 Manchester, TN Bonnaroo Music Festival
July 9 Boulder, CO Chautauqua Auditorium
July 11 Denver, CO Denver Botanical Gardens
July 12 Park City, UT Deer Valley Resort
July 14 Saratoga, CA Mountain Winery
July 15 Rosebud, OR Stewart Park
July 16 Seattle, WA Seattle Zoo
July 24 Calgary, Alberta Calgary Music Festival

After a quick and quiet release, (their album was done a couple of weeks ago and they released without any press involvement) the Raconteurs are hitting the road for a cross country tour.

Here’s the thing. I was excited about “Broken Boy Soldiers” but was eventually disappointed with the somewhat non-rocking album.

Their newest effort “Consolers Of The Lonely” delivers the album I wanted two years ago. And the idea that they said “screw you” to the press in terms of marketing is daring, proving that faith in the music industry is being flushed away like a rotten smelling turd filled with corn.

Check out “Five on the Five

OK, so we had that song streaming on the site for about 10 hours before we got an email from the “Web Sheriff” politely threatening us to pull it off. Since we don’t have any lawyers (or any semblance of an actual office), we adhered to the email.

However, since we are trying to promote music rather than steal, we were given a widget that had the new video for “Salute Your Solution.” It wasn’t compatible with Wordpress, which makes sense since it’s one of the widely used programs out there for blogs.

Instead, we present you with silence, which is all we can offer at the moment. If you’re in the mood for it, it’s at the bottom of the page.

04/14/08 Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge
04/15/08 Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge
04/20/08 Vancouver. BC @ Commodore Ballroom*
04/21/08 Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s*
04/22/08 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom*
04/23/08 San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo’s 365 Club*
04/25/08 Indio, CA @ Coachella
04/26/08 Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint*
04/28/08 Denver, CO @ The Fillmore*
04/29/08 Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theatre*
05/1/08 Dallas, Texas @ House of Blues*
05/2/08 and 05/3/08 Austin, Texas @ Stubb’s BBQ*
05/4/08 New Orleans, LA @ New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
05/13/08 Manchester, Tennessee @ Bonnaroo^
05/27/08 Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club^
05/28/08 Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club^
05/30/08 New York, NY @ Terminal 5^
06/3/08 Boston, MA @ Bank of America Pavilion^
06/4/08 Montreal, QUE @ Metropolis^
06/5/08 Toronto, ONT @ Ricoh Coliseum^
06/7/08 Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore^
06/9/08 Columbus, OH @ LC Amphitheater^
06/10/08 Cincinnati, OH @ National City Pavilion^
06/12/08 St. Louis, MO @ Pageant%
06/13/08 Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music Festival

* with Birds of Avalon
^ with Black Lips
% with Fiery Furnaces

Get ready for political statements, some musical craziness, and dark brooding because R.E.M. is hitting the road with Modest Mouse and The National.

My girlfriend heard the news on the radio a couple of days ago and replied “Hey, those are all bands we like.” So true. But if you look at it in terms of demographics, the tour, like certain political candidates, reaches across the board of music fans.

R.E.M.: older, highly educated individuals who enjoy pop music that “says” something

Modest Mouse: stoners who get high enough to be crazy, but not so high as to make them tired/paranoid/out-of-it.

The National: everyone else (but especially for hipsters who enjoy songs about mid-20s confusion, sex and living in apartments).

BTW, I’m listening to R.E.M’s new album “Accelerate” and it pretty much kicks ass (and somehow only 34 minutes long). Get it now.

May 23: Vancouver (Deer Lake Park)
May 29: Los Angeles (Hollywood Bowl)
May 31: Berkeley, Calif. (Greek Theatre)
June 3: Denver, Colo. (Red Rocks)
June 6: Chicago (United Center)
June 8: Toronto (Molson Amphitheatre)
June 10: Raleigh, N.C. (Walnut Creek)
June 11: Washington DC, Md. (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
June 13: Boston, Mass. (Tweeter Center)
June 14: Long Island, N.Y. (Jones Beach)
June 18: Philadelphia (Mann Center)
June 19: New York (Madison Square Garden)
June 21: Atlanta (Lakewood Amphitheatre)

Apparently, throughout the history of hard rock, the one thing that’s been missing on stage was an electric cello. It makes sense. They look like guitars and when you smash one on stage, it’s so much more impressive.

This new venture into the world of rock comes courtesy of Apocalyptica, a Finnish band (made up of three cellists and a drummer) that has been rocking like classical musician students on acid (which explains why they enjoy covering Metallica). Their upcoming album “Worlds Collide” will be their sixth studio album and features people like Corey Taylor and Hotel Tomoyasu (who did that song in “Kill Bill” when Uma is on the yellow crotch rocket) joining the band on various songs.

We got the album at the office a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been surprised by it ever since. Sometimes I forget there are cellos involved because it sounds so much like rock. Actually, the drums help a great deal, which I understand was incorporated into the band in 2005 (they formed as three cellists in 1993).

Some people will say that the band is doing wonders to expose a new generation to the classic arts, just because there’s a cello on stage. I don’t buy that. People don’t see something like Apocalyptica and suddenly think “hey, I should skip that punk show and check out the symphony tomorrow.”

Instead, people (like me) will see this and only thing “when are they gonna light that thing on FIRE?” I think I’ll start a band like this and call it Bach Rawk. I can see the t-shirts now….

Apocalyptica “Worlds Collide”

And here’s their current single (and probably the band’s motto) “I’m Not Jesus”

Tour Dates:

4/11 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues

4/12 San Diego, CA House of Blues

4/13 Orangevale, CA The Boardwalk

4/14 West Hollywood, CA The Roxy

4/16 San Francisco, CA Slim’s

4/17 Portland, OR Roseland Theatre

4/18 Seattle, WA El Corazon

4/21 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue

4/22 Englewood, CO Gothic Theatre

4/23 Kansas City, MO Beaumont Club

4/24 Sauget, IL Pop’s

4/26 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Cafe

4/27 Chicago, IL House of Blues

4/28 Cleveland, OH House of Blues

4/29 Pontiac, MI The Crofoot

5/2 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club

5/4 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre

5/5 New York, NY The Fillmore @ Irving Plaza

5/7 Washington, DC 9:30 Club

5/9 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

5/10 New Orleans, LA Parish at House of Blues

5/11 Houston, TX Warehouse Live

5/12 Dallas, TX House of Blues

5/14 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre

5/15 Tempe, AZ Marquee Theatre

Thanks to this upcoming Rilo Kiley tour, Jenny Lewis and I will finally be able to rekindle our love. It’s a love that has existed for years and been kept apart by distance and the evil soul of “the industry.” And it exists solely in my mind.

Don’t understand my fascination? Check out Rilo Kiley’s “Moneymaker” video and just try not to get all riled up (and yes, those are real porn stars).

04.17.08 - San Francisco, CA Concourse (SF Design Center)
04.19.08 - Portland, OR (Roseland )
04.20.08 - Seattle, WA (Showbox SoDo)
04.23.08 - Santa Cruz, CA (Rio Theatre)
04.24.08 - Pomona, CA (The Glasshouse)
04.26.08 - Indio, CA (Coachella Arts & Music Festival)
05.15.08 - San Diego, CA (Concerts in the Park)
05.19.08 - Denver, CO (Ogden Theatre)
05.20.08 - Omaha, NE (Slowdown)
05.21.08 - Omaha, NE (Slowdown)
05.22.08 - Minneapolis, MN (First Avenue)
05.23.08 - Milwaukee, WI (Pabst Theatre)
05.24.28 - Chicago, IL (The Riviera)
05.25.08 - Royal Oak, MI (Royal Oak Music Theatre)
05.26.08 - Cleveland, OH (House of Blues)
05.28.08 - Toronto, ON (Phoenix Theatre)
05.30.08 - Worcester, MA (Palladium)
05.31.08 - Providence, RI (Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel)
06.01.08 - Northampton, MA (Calvin Theater)
06.02.08 - New York, NY (Terminal 5)
06.05.08 - Philadelphia, PA (Electric Factory)
06.06.08 - Washington, DC (9:30 Club)
06.07.08 - Baltimore, MD (Rams Head Live)
06.08.08 - Richmond, CA (Toads Place)
06.10.08 - Norfolk, VA (The Norva)
06.11.08 - Asheville, NC (Orange Peel)
06.12.08 - Charleston, SC (Charleston Music Farm)
06.13.08 - Manchester, TN (Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival)
06.15.08 - Dallas, TX (Palladium)
06.16.08 - Austin, TX (Stubbs BBQ)