Senator Al Franken

About F'n time.

New Videos

Two bands that seem to make livings writing catchy, scuzzy rock and roll tunes and doing their best to piss off the general public, Wavves and Crocodiles, have each released new videos. While I love both of their latest records, I have to say that seeing each of their sub par sets at the 7th Street Entry (separately) did not do much to help their cause in my book, although the records still get spins around my place. Check out the video for Wavves "No Hope Kids" from Wavvves at Rolling Stone and the video for "Summer of Hate," from the excellent album of the same name by Crocodiles.

Got Nuffin review

My review of the lackluster new Spoon EP Got Nuffin is up over at Culture Bully. It is the first Spoon material I have been disapointed with in a while (maybe ever to this extent), so I hope Britt, Jim and the gang can pull it together for their next release.

Phoenix coming back

(Photo by Jon Behm from Culturebully.com)

Remember when I mentioned Phoenix would be coming back? Well, we got a date. The excellent French pop band will be playing the First Ave Mainroom on Tuesday September 22nd, and will how fast tickets went for the last show, I wouldn't be totally surprised if the show sells out. If you missed their amazing show here last week, check out my review over at Culture Bully with Jon Behm's pics as it was an excellent evening.

Is this more Scary or Funny?

Woods/Blank Dogs show

Two great Brooklyn bands from the great Woodist record label, Woods and Blank Dogs, will be coming to the Turf Club on Saturday September 12th for a show with excellent local groups Leisure Birds and Daughters of the Sun.

(Hat Tip: Kyle)

Gospel Gossip Dreamland review and release show

My review of the new Gospel Gossip EP Dreamland is up over at Culture Bully. The band, which are longtime WHG favorites, will be celebrating the release of the disc tonight at the Turf Club with a great lineup of local bands (well...mostly local) supporting them. The EP is excellent and GG are always great live, so check them both out.

Thee Oh Sees/ The Fresh and Onlys

I did a short review of two really great garage/psychedelic bands, Thee Oh See & The Fresh and Onlys, over at Culture Bully. Both bands have released stellar LP's this year and both have a really cool sound. Check out the post for MP3's for each band.

Got Nuffin

Stereogum reports on a new Spoon EP coming out Tuesday titled Got Nuffin, which continues the bands Prince like assault on the english language. Any new Spoon material is good news, so look for the 3 song EP next week in digital form and in records stores.

Phoenix Review

My review of the amazing Phoenix show Tuesday night is now up over at Culture Bully. Like I said before, it looks like the band will be coming back soon to the 1st Ave Mainroom in the near future, so for anyone who missed out on this extremely sold out show, get tickets early and often as this is a band really hitting their peak and playing some amazing shows.

Sweltering

As an individual who sweats standing still, this story about Minnesota heating up is disheartening to say the least. C'mon people, let's cut out the bullshit and do something to stop Global Warming, if for nothing else other than the fact that I am already sick of sweating through my shirts and it isn't even July yet.

Fuck Knights

Saw a great performance by Fuck Knights last night in Stevens Park as part of the Civics in Cinema series. The bands scuzzy garage rock sound was a great treat for a warm summer night, althought the band was nearly upstage (and molested) by a tweaked out old guy dancing (read: gyrating) in front of the 3 piece band as they were playing. I reviewed the bands stellar live EP from last year, Fukn Live Vol 1, over at Culture Bully a few months back. They play again tonight at the Uptown Bar and are well worth checking out if you have never seen them before.

Busted

Remember yesterday when I posted about Mark Sanford and wondering where the hell he was? Well, I was obviously being naive as the answer turned out to be so obvious....he snuck off to Argentina over Fathers Day weekend to be with his mistress. Duh!

Silly me. Well, this week the Republicans lost two contenders vying for the 2012 Presidential nomination. Those two also happened to be the policy director of the Senate and the head of the Republican Governess Association. Whats next? T-Paw getting caught in his backseat with Palin?

Burial "Untrue" best of the '00s

As part of the ongoing Best of the '00s series at Culture Bully, I profiled the great dubstep crossover album Untrue by Burial. It really is a great album and well worth checking out, even if you don't like dubstep (or know what it is for that matter).

Free Energy @ Triple Rock

(Photo: Rachel Leah Woliansky from groups myspace page)

Free Energy will be playing a show at the Triple Rock Social Club on July 16th. The band, made up of members from the dearly missed MPLS band Hockey Night and newly signed to the hipster mecca DFA label, only have a few scheduled shows this summer, so is one that fans should not miss. Check out their Myspace page to hear some of the their glamed out rock and roll and keep an eye out for tickets, which will be on sale soon for $8.

Cinema and Civics TONIGHT!

Round two of the very cool Cinema and Civics event in the Stevens Square section of Minneapolis. Tonight will feature the excellent garage rock of Fuck Knights and the twisted comedy Harold and Maude, along with a community picnic...assuming it stops raining. Info Below.

June 24th
Picnic in the park!
-Bring your favorite casseroles, finger foods and baked goods to share with your neighbors! Potluck will begin at 7:30.
-Local rockers F Knights will be playing at 8:00.
-The night’s short film will be “Winter Lilacs” by Stephen Guerwitz.
-Harold and Maude will conclude the night… movie begins at dusk.

Dodos at Turf Club

The Dodos, the amazing two piece band behind on of my favorite albums from last year, Visitor, just announced their next tour, which will feature a stop in St. Paul at the Turf Club on October 20th. They will be playing in support of their upcoming 3rd LP titled Time to Die, which is set to drop Sept 15th on French Kiss. Their last show here at the Triple Rock was excellent, so don't miss out on this great show.

What the hell?

Maybe it wasn't ideological purity that caused South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford to try to reject federal stimulus money even though schools in his state desperately needed it(an event that caused the state supreme court to overrule him and make him take the money)....maybe he is just nuts. This last weekend word came out that he went "off the map" and could not be located. No one, not his staff nor his wife and kids, knew where he went, although everyone seemed to think he went hiking in the Appalachian Mountains. For those of you who have short memories....yes, this trip did fall over the Fathers Day holiday.

Now the New York Times is reporting that he actually decided at the last minute to South America but failed to mention it to anyone. Weird.

Classy

So if you cheat on your wife with another women...you get an ovation and open arms, but if you cheat on your wife with a man, you get shunned. That makes sense. Long live the sanctity of marriage and the moral crusaders championing family values. Big Tent indeed.

(Hat Tip: Think Progress)

Grizzly Bear and Phoenix coming back!

Both Grizzly Bear and Phoenix, hot off sold out shows in Minneapolis, will be coming back to town shortly for shows at the bigger First Ave Mainroom, the Strib reports. I had heard rumblings about the Grizzly Bear show, but the Phoenix show I had not, and after tonights amazing show, it comes as a very welcome suprise. If you missed either of these shows, I would say do not miss you chance the next time, these are two very good bands.

Daniel Johnston

Daniel Johnston will be coming back to First Ave on August 13th. His last show here was amazing and I am very much looking to seeing him again. If you have never seen him, do yourself a favor and check out this show.

Kurt Vile

My review of the soon to be next-big-thing, Kurt Vile, is up over at Culture Bully. The write up covers his 2008 disc Constant Hitmaker, but keep your eyes peeled for his upcoming Childish Prodigy, due out this fall. His classic rock under a blanket of fuzz songs sound a lot like his current tour mates (and fellow new Matador artist) Girls, whom I talked about earlier. Now if there tour would just swing through Minneapolis, all would be well.

Please God...if you are out there....

..tell the Varsity Theatre to crank up the AC for Phoenix tonight. Sold out shows there in the dead of winter are heat stroke inducing, so I can't imagine what it will be like on a 90 degree day.

Dinosaur Jr. @ First Ave

Dinosaur Jr return to Minneapolis on Nov 18th at First Ave in support of their latest (excellent) comeback album, Farm. Too bad more great bands can't come back with such vengeance as these guys have. Tickets are $20 for this show, which is 18 +.

(Hat Tip: Kyle)

Girls

Chalk up another victory for September 22, which already has some great albums being released on that day. The Matador blog released news the other day that the excellent San Fransico band Girls will be releasing their debut album, titled album, on the previously music geek holiday that Sept 22nd is fast becoming. The disc, which features 12 of the bands slow burning pop gems, will feature "Lust for Life" and "Hellhole Ratrace," two of my favorite songs so far to come out this year, so I am more than a little excited to hear the new disc. Check out the video above for "Lust for Life," but be warned that the music doesn't start until about a minute in, but the song is well worth the wait.

Zoo Animal Show

Cool show tonight with WHG favorites Zoo Animal plahying the always free 501 club.

The Almighty Defenders

Well this news is awesome. King Kahn + BBQ Show + Black Lips = The Almight Defenders. New album coming out on Sept 22nd..hopefully some of the songs start leaking out soon, cause I have a good feeling this will be awesome.

New Islands Record

Excellent news from the good folks at the -Anti records announcing that the Islands will be releasing their third album, Vapours, this fall on September 22nd. Resident genius Nick Diamonds will once again be joined with J'aime Tambeur, his running partner from the awesome days when they were still the Unicorns. Should be great.

Don't back down

Battle w/ Police - Tehran, Iran - June 20th 2009
by mightier-than

I wonder if I would be as brave as these people. It is pretty stirring to see the crowd pushing back the security forces at the end of the video.

Pitchfork Set Times

A = Aluminum Stage, B = Balance Stage, C = Connector Stage

Friday, July 17 (Write the Night: Set Lists on Demand)
8:40 (A) Built to Spill
7:20 (C) The Jesus Lizard
6:10 (A) Yo La Tengo
5:00 (C) Tortoise

Saturday, July 18
8:40 (A) The National
8:30 (B) The Black Lips
7:30 (B) Matt and Kim
7:25 (C) Beirut
6:30 (B) Lindstrøm
6:15 (A) Doom
5:30 (B) Wavves
5:15 (C) Yeasayer
4:30 (B) Ponytail
4:15 (A) Final Fantasy
3:35 (B) Bowerbirds
3:20 (C) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
2:40 (B) The Antlers
2:30 (A) Fucked Up
1:45 (C) Plants and Animals
1:45 (B) The Dutchess & the Duke
1:00 (A) Cymbals Eat Guitars
1:00 (B) Disappears

Sunday, July 19
8:40 (A) The Flaming Lips
8:30 (B) The Very Best
7:30 (B) Mew
7:25 (C) Grizzly Bear
6:30 (B) Vivian Girls
6:15 (A) M83
5:30 (B) Japandroids
5:15 (C) The Walkmen
4:30 (B) DJ/Rupture
4:15 (A) The Thermals
3:35 (B) Women
3:20 (C) Pharoahe Monch
2:40 (B) Killer Whales
2:30 (A) Blitzen Trapper
1:45 (C) Frightened Rabbit
1:45 (B) Dianogah
1:00 (A) The Mae Shi
1:00 (B) Michael Columbia

Crazy People Talk

Have you heard of the birther movement? These people (including the nut job who shot up the Holocaust Museum) don't believe Obama was born in the US and therefore shouldn't be allowed to be President. I am sure you are thinking "Fringe Minority"...right? Wrong. They now have the support of a god damn US Senator. The honorable crazy Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla is now trying to introduce a bill that effectively check into peoples stories that they are who they say they are. Nothing like a good old fashioned witch hunt to distract from the fact that your party is shrinking faster than our economy and the loudest voices are scraping the bottle of the barrel to drum up support from the bigots who are their "base." Kudos.

Show Tonight

That was quick

Record Club: Velvet Underground & Nico 'Sunday Morning' from Beck Hansen on Vimeo.

Beck has already delivered the first song from his new "classic album" series that I posted about earlier today. Check out the video above for the very cool cover of The Velvet Underground and Nico track "Sunday Morning." Hopefully the rest of the songs and videos are as cool as this one as Mr. Hansen and friends continue to reinterpret a truly seminal album.

Future Lowry Ave Bridge Drawing

A little nicer looking than the current bridge, huh?

Girls "Hellhole Ratrace"

The great folks at Gorilla vs Bear have just posted the official video the excellent Girls song "Hellhole Ratrace," which I kind of wrote about HERE. While the song is not as good as "Lust for Life" (still one of my favorite tracks of this year), it still is a great song from a band who I am highly looking forward to seeing live and finally hearing their upcoming LP.

Check out the video HERE.

Even the losers.....

If getting beat like a mule in the last two elections wasn't enough, the congressional Dems beat the Repubs 15-10 last night in their annual charity baseball game. It was the Dems first win since 2000, so having your party's president in the big house apparently has more benefits than people even realize. To be fair to the Republicans, their pitching ace was laying low in light of the fact that he recently got caught nailing his staff members wife.

Classic Albums

While I wouldn't list Beck, MGMT or Devendra as my favorite artists (in fact I kind of dislike all of them), Beck and his friends idea to jam to and record classic albums is pretty cool. With the musical market saturated with "Best New Music" and leaked records, it is easy to forget why "classic" albums became classic and neglect listening to the legends because you are consumed with all the new bands out there.

This project will start with a day spent playing and recording the seminal Velvet Underground debut The Velvet Underground and Nico, which is a pretty awesome album to start with. The results will be posted on Beck's website when they are finished.

(Hat Tip: pitchspoon)

Wish I was in Brooklyn....

...for this awesome fest put on by the amazing Woodist record label collective. Check out the lineup for this fest over the 4th of July. Lots of really great bands.

Friday
9:45pm : CRYSTAL STILTS
9:00pm :: Blank Dogs
8:15pm ::: Psychedelic Horseshit
7:30pm :::: caUSE co-MOTION!
6:45pm ::::: the Mayfair Set

Saturday
9:45pm : THEE OH SEES
9:00pm :: VIVIAN GIRLS
8:15pm ::: Kurt Vile
7:30pm :::: Woods
6:45pm ::::: Tyvek
6:00pm :::::: Dum Dum Girls
5:15pm ::::::: the Fresh & Onlys
4:30pm :::::::: Brilliant Colors
3:45pm ::::::::: Ganglians
3:15pm :::::::::: the Great Excape -- reunion, pre-Home Blitz
2:45pm ::::::::::: the Beets
2:15pm :::::::::::: Real Estate
1:45pm ::::::::::::: German Measles
1:15pm :::::::::::::: Beach Fossils

Black Francis @ Triple Rock Social Club

The Triple Rock scored an awesome show by getting the Black Francis (Frank Black from the Pixies) acoustic show they recently announced. The show will be on July 10th and is an 18 + event. My friend Erik from Culture Bully recently had the chance to interview Black about the upcoming massive Pixies box set, and you can read/listen to the interview HERE.

Passion Pit @ the Triple Rock Social Club

Passion Pit have just announced they will be playing a show in Minneapolis on August 7th at the Triple Rock Social Club. While I have heard mixed reviews about their live show, their debut LP, Manners, has lived up to the hype and is a strong record from start to end. Even if Manners was complete trash, I would go see them just to see "Sleepyhead", which is one of my favorite songs of the last year.

SHOW UPDATE FOR THURSDAY NIGHT

I mentioned this show earlier this week..but I just found some more info about the cause and some set times for what should be an amazing event over at Switchblade Comb. See you all there!

Thursday, June 18 331 Club 7pm – Silent Auction 9pm – Music $5.00 Suggested Donation

JUSTIN LYNCH (tent.): 9:00-9:15
THE EVENING RIG: 9:15-10:15pm
THE DYNAMITERS: 10:15-11:00pm
THE MILLIONTH WORD: 11:15-11:45pm
GAY WITCH ABORTION: 12 – ?

We are throwing a party for our dear friend KELLEY LYNCH whom passed away from traumatic brain trauma on Sunday, May 24th.With his passing, he gave an incredible gift as a donor to over 60 people, including a 17 year old girl (kidney), a older woman (kidney) and a 56 year old man (liver).

In Kelley’s spirit of giving, the money generated from the Silent Auction will go to the Kelley Lynch Eternal Optimist Scholarship Fund at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (TAX EXEMPT). We will be consulting the family on any other outstanding need fulfillment as well.
SILENT AUCTION ITEMS We will be accepting, Credit Cards and Checks (we will also accept cash but prefer another method for accounting reasons). If you are the lucky winner of any of these amazing items- you will receive a receipt for tax purposes.

I’ve heard that Chris Mars has donated some art, and Atmosphere & Doomtree have donated some rare stuff as well. I invite you all to come out.

(Hat Tip: Switchblade Comb)

Dead Weather Horehound

Jack White just seems to jump from strength to strength in whatever he does these days. His latest group is Dead Weather with Alison Mosshart from the Kills, Jack Lawrence from the Raconteurs and the Greenhornes and Dean Fertita from Queens of the Stone Age.

The group will release their debut album Horehound on July 14th. The first single from the album, "Treat Me Like Your Mother," is below to let you judge if this collection of big names live up to its hype. They will make their Minneapolis debut on July 27th at First Ave.

Dead Weather- Treat Me Like Your Mother (MP3)

No matter how good the side projects are, they always remind me how much I like Jack backed by the kindergarten drumming of Meg White and I hope the rumored in the works White Stripes album will see the light of day very soon.

Mind on my money

Maybe this is beyond me, but if the Secretary of Defense says that planes that will cost our country $369 million are not needed (and in fact have not been used in either war we are currently in)....it makes sense for legislators to override him so their home states can make money, right?

Both Democrats and Republicans are responsible for the fear mongering that has ballooned our defense budget to the point where it is nearly equal to the rest of the world combined...thank goodness we are not in a recession, right? Wait a minute.....

(Hat Tip: TP)

Natty Ice

Watching the Daily Show tonight I saw a commercial for Natty Ice, which made me wonder to myself....why the fuck are they advertising? Isn't being dirt cheap enough for people any more?

Police in English

If you have been following the Iran situation as closely as I have, you probably have noticed that the Iranian police have the English word "police" on their uniforms instead of words written in Farsi (the main language spoken in Iran). While I hadn't thought twice about it, apparently other people had. There is a pretty interesting piece up over at Slate about why this situation is and it really sheds light on how universal the English language (like the American dollar) has become.

Read the whole story HERE.

Cinema and Civics

Round two of the SSCO's cool Cinema and Civics series in the Stevens Square Park in South Minneapolis. Don't miss the great local band Absent Arch and some interesting speakers/movies. FREE EVENT!

Tonight we’ll be celebrating music!
The Absent Arch will be playing at 8:15, followed by the movie A Mighty Wind at dusk.
-Robert Lilligren, City Council Vice President, will be speaking before the film.
-The evening’s short films will be “Hey Lynda Barry” by Beth Peloff, “Street Cellist Profile: David Mcgee” by Jesse Roesler, and a music video by Sam Thompson of SBT Films.
-Fill out a survey to win a free music lesson from Twin Town Guitars!

Ty Segall "Lemons"

Just got a copy of the latest Ty Segall disc, Lemons, and am really enjoying it. While it is a little more pulled together than his record, the excellent self titled disc from 2008 , it still features his jagged edge take on garage rock and is a rough and tumble mess of a great record. I will hopefully be putting together a full length review for Culture Bully in the coming days...so keep your eyes peeled.

Twins

Saw my second twins game of the season last night and they rewarded me with a solid 8-2 win. Led by Mauer's 4-4 night, the Twins scored in almost every inning and Glen Perkins, while looking a little shaky, only gave up two runs in six innings, which was enough for the win. They are now at .500 and hopefully will sweep the Pirates (who haven't had a winning season since '92!!!) and stay above the .500 mark the rest of the way.

We will see.

The Hangover

Saw this movie the other night and it was pretty funny. Not life changing or anything, but solid funny movie without dumbing things down too much or relying too heavily on the lowest common denominator.

Nevada's distinguished senator John Ensign

Nothing screams "Party of family values" and "don't let gays marry, they will ruin the sanctity of marriage" like screwing a friend (now most likely ex-friend) and staff members wife. Classy.

Here are some quotes from today's hero:

“The effort to pass a constitutional amendment reaffirming marriage as being between a man and a woman only is being undertaken strictly as a defense of marriage against the attempt to redefine it and, in the process, weaken it,” Ensign said. “Marriage is an extremely important institution in this country and protecting it is, in my mind, worth the extraordinary step of amending our constitution.”

and this gem was about Clinton during the Lewinsky trials:

“I came to that conclusion recently, and frankly it’s because of what he put his whole Cabinet through and what he has put the country through,” Ensign said Thursday, becoming the first member of the Nevada delegation to call for Clinton to quit. “He has no credibility left.”

(Hat Tip: Think Progress)

T-Paw Lays Down the Hammer

Apparently having your eyes on the brass ring impedes you from seeing how you are royally screwing over lots of people who need help most of all. I guess he figures he won't have to run into the people he is cutting off health insurance when he is jettisoning to Iowa and New Hampshire. Details HERE.

Wilco (The Album)

My review of the new Wilco disc, titled Wilco (The Album), is now up over at Culture Bully. The disc, which is neither their best nor their worst, comes out June 30th.

Sadness

If this massively disturbing video doesn't turn your stomach over.....

Check out Andrew Sullivan's amazing coverage of the events unfolding in Iran at his blog The Daily Dish. My heart goes out to the people standing up for what they believe in and I really hope it doesn't end up being in vain.

Happy Bloomsday

Buddy and Julie Miller "Ellis County"

My write up of the amazing song "Ellis County" from Buddie and Julie Miller's great Written in Chalk album is up over at Culture Bully, so check our the review and give the song a listen.

Levon Helm

My review, along with some great photos by Jon Behm, of the amazing Levon Helm show last week is up over at Culture Bully.

Great show at 331

Here is a show I had not seen an announcement for that should be really great.

331 Club 6/18/2009
Kelley=Mischief!
In remembrance of Little Loud
1976-2009
7pm - Silent Auction
9pm - music
The Evening Rig
The Millionth Word
Gay Witch Abortion
The Dirty Hits
The Dynamiter's

Grand Old Day

My write up, along with some excellent photos from Jon Behm (including the one above), are up covering last weekends Grand Old Day in St. Paul. While the weather was pretty shitty most of the weekend, at least the rain stayed away to see four really excellent local bands, highlighted by an amazing set by Private Dancer. Check it out HERE.

The Teeth "Ball of the Dead Rat"

As part of our Best of the 90's series, I recently did a little write up on the vastly underrated song "Ball of the Dead Rat" but the now deceased Philly based band The Teeth. Check it out, with a MP3 of the song, HERE.

Woods "To Clean"

Woods, a great band that also run the amazing Woodist record label, have recently released their great new full length titled Songs of Shame. Above is the video for the latest song, "To Clean," to be released from the record.

Best of May

I'm a little (read: a lot) behind, but here is the Culture Bully Retroselective featuring what we thought was the best of the very entertaining month of May in the music scene.

No Age for free at 501

Cool news...The 501 Club, the sister location to the aways great 331 Club, has scored a pretty sweet show for next month. LA noise punks No Age will be playing a free show (all shows at the 501 are free) on July 8th.

Check out the trippy video for the great song "Eraser" from last years excellent Nouns.

(Hat Tip: Kyle)

Saved By The Bell "Friends Forever"

I will redily admit that I remember this song....this show still cracks me up whenever I see it.

Mill City Lineup

2009 Mill City Live line-up:

July 9 - Jeremy Messersmith

July 16 - Gospel Gossip

July 23 - Caroline Smith and the Good Night Sleeps

July 30 - Charanga Tropical

August 6 - First Communion Afterparty

August 13 - The Butanes

All shows are on Thursdays from 6:00-8:00pm in the Mill City Museum ruin courtyard. They are charging a fee this year ($5.00), but that also includes museum admission.

Roadside Graves

Check out my write up on the excellent new Roadside Graves album My Son's Home up over at Culture Bully. The preview focuses on and features an MP3 of the track "My Father Sat Me Down," so check it out.

Religulous

Finally saw this movie and it is awesome. Highly Recommended.

St. Vincent Set Times

First Ave didn't have exact set times, but they were thinking something along these lines:

7:00 Pattern is Movement
8 or 8:30 St. Vincent

Video is from her great set a few years back at the 7th Street Entry.

Holy Fuck/Crocodiles @ 7th Street Entry

My review of the awesome Holy Fuck show (with a lackluster/disapointing Crocodiles set) last Sunday at the Entry is up over at Culture Bully.

Doves/Wild Light Review

This past Thursday evening, 5/28, I attended the Doves show at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis with eight of my 30- and 40-something pals at The Varsity Theatre, which is by far my favorite music venue in the Twin Cites. The lower east side of Manhattan wishes it had a music venue half as hip as the Varsity. Is there another venue with open-air uni-sex restrooms?

The Manchester, England-based Doves played to a sold-out show that started with opening band Wild Light. Both bands were promoting new albums. “Sold out” means about 650 at the Varsity, but even with this max crowd you can easily maneuver the premises to get a drink. Cool.

Wild Light was entirely unimpressive. Rolling Stone named them a band to keep an eye on after this year’s SXSW (does anybody really care what RS says?). I don’t see it, and look what the same designation did for Pete Yorn. The four pretty boys of “Wilde Lite” (the new name suggested by my friend Stefan) sounded like 80’s pop rather than innovative indie-rock. That sound is why I skipped all music in the 80’s, listening exclusively to Zappa. Two songs into the Doves set I could not remember much about Wild Light, except that the volume was far too loud for the Varsity. Check out Wild Light’s acoustic version of “California on My Mind” (http://www.rollingstone.com/videos/player/26444800) a possible hit from their new album, Adult Nights. Do what to California?

Doves opened with the song “Jetstream” the tune they pre-released on the web as a teaser for the new record, Kingdom of Rust. After having their previous album, Some Cities, in my car CD changer for the last couple of years, I was skeptical that KoR could ever match what I consider to be a perfect album. After seeing Thursday show, I am convinced that KoR may be the sign of a band on the downhill side of artistic success. Although they did a great job of mixing the new material with the old, including at least one song each from Lost Souls and The Last Broadcast that I could recognize (“Words” from the latter album). I can’t pinpoint exactly why I don’t like the new material as much as any of their first three recordings – either it sounds too much like or too different from. They are half way through their American tour supporting KoR, so the audience was well familiar with the album, but they too responded loudly to the older material, and not so to KoR. In addition, lead vocalist Jimi Goodwin’s beautiful voice was often lost in the over amped system that, like for Wild Light, I thought was just plain too loud. Despite my disappointment in their new material, the mixed-age crowd of adoring fans was thrilled with the 17 or so song set, and were rewarded with a five or six song encore, including a couple of acoustic ditties by Goodwin. I can’t help but compare fellow Manchester area band Elbow and the Doves, the former who pulled off an amazing performance of their fourth recording last year at the Fine Line in Minneapolis.

The bottom line is that it was great to see the Doves (at the Varsity, wahoo!), but the live show just does not shine like their records. And for now Some Cities is going to remain a staple in my car CD player, and my favorite Doves record.

(review written by Ed Dillion)