All posts by G. Gordon Gritty

King Khan & BBQ Come To Mid-East Downstairs!

Ohhhh snap! Invisible Girl tour!

10-17 Portland, OR – Vice Garage Festival
10-28 Northampton, MA – Pearl Street Nightclub
10-29 Cambridge, MA – Middle East Downstairs
10-30 New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
10-31 Brooklyn, NY – The Bell House
11-01 Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
11-02 Washington, DC – Rock and Roll Hotel
11-04 Atlanta, GA – Lennys
11-05 Birmingham, AL – Bottletree
11-08 Austin, TX – Fun Fun Fun Fest
11-10 Memphis, TN – Hi-Tone Cafe
11-11 Nashville, TN – Exit In
11-12 St. Louis, MO – Off Broadway
11-13 Lawrence, KS – The Jackpot Saloon
11-14 Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater
11-16 Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room
11-17 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour
11-18 San Francisco, CA – The Independent
11-20 Portland, OR – Dantes
11-21 Seattle, WA – Chop Suey
11-23 Vancouver, British Columbia – The Red Room
11-25 Calgary, Alberta – The Warehouse
11-26 Edmonton, Alberta – Pawn Shop
11-27 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – Amigos
11-28 Winnipeg, Manitoba – Royal Albert Arms
11-29 Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock Social Club
12-01 Milwaukee, WI – Mad Planet
12-02 Chicago, IL – Logan Square Auditorium
12-03 Cincinnati, OH – Northside Tavern
12-04 Toronto, Ontario – Lees Palace
12-05 Ottawa, Ontario – Babylon

Unfortunately an Almighty Defenders show is not possible. The Black Lips will be in Nashville playing at the Mercy Lounge on October 29. Poor timing, but I wouldn’t rule out an early 2010 Almighty Defenders gig. I’m pumped!

Refrigerator Rebates!

A $300 million cash-for-clunkers-type federal program to boost sales of energy-efficient home appliances, washing machines, and dishwashers, but it’s probably not enough to lift companies such as Whirlpool (NYSE:WHRNews) and Electrolux out of the worst down cycle in the sector’s history.

Beginning late this fall, the program authorizes rebates of $50 to $200 for purchases of high-efficiency household appliances. The money is part of the broader economic stimulus bill passed earlier this year. Program details will vary by state, and the Energy Dept. has set a deadline of Oct. 15 for states to file formal applications. The Energy Dept. expects the bulk of the $300 million to be awarded by the end of November. (Unlike the clunkers auto program, consumers won’t have to trade in their old appliances.)

…okay!

New Editors Track On BBC Radio

Editors Facebook:
Zane Lowe will be playing Editors’ new single, ‘Papillon’ on his show tonight (Monday, 24th August), which starts at 7.00pm. He will also be speaking to Tom about the new record. Make sure you let Zane know what you think about ‘Papillon’ by texting in on 81199!

I, for one, am really digging this very danceable, very ’80s post-punk…sort of like a more advanced versions of Handsome Furs’ Face Control:

Red Sox Suck

For anyone who cares…the Boston Red Sox are having issues:

MLB.com
BOSTON — When his opportunity came to make the slow walk to the center of Fenway Park, CC Sabathia had the luxury of looking out to left field and seeing a run already on the board. It was pleasant, but certainly no surprise.

The Yankees made sure to give their left-handed ace all the support he needed to become the Major Leagues’ first 15-game winner, belting a career-high five home runs off Josh Beckett in an 8-4 victory over the Red Sox on Sunday.

Derek Jeter deposited Beckett’s first offering over the wall in right field for the 2,700th hit of his career, and Hideki Matsui crushed a pair of round-trippers as New York wrapped up a 10-game road trip with its seventh victory and the Bombers’ 15th series win in 17 tries.

Upcoming Album Releases/Reviews

Look for these albums to be reviewed on here in the coming months:

BandTitle Release
The Thermals – Now We Can SeeApril 7, 2009
Sufjan Stevens – Rub Rabbit Run – October 6, 2009
Julian Casablancas – Phrazes for the Young – September 2009
Stellastarr – Civilized – July 7, 2009
The Raveonettes – In and Out of Control – October 6, 2009
Cotton Jones – Paranoid Cocoon – January 27, 2009
Muse – The Resistance – September 14, 2009
Mission of Burma – The Sound, The Speed, The Light – October 6, 2009
Lupe Fiasco – Lasers – December 2009
King Khan & BBQ Show – Invisible Girl – November 2009
Kasabian – West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum – June 6, 2009
The Horrors – Primary Colours – May 4, 2009
Franz Ferdinand – Tonight: Franz Ferdinand – January 26, 2009
Editors – In This Light and On This Evening – October 12, 2009
Regina Spektor – Far – June 23, 2009
Devendra Banhart – What Will We Be – October 2009
Alec Ounsworth – Mo Beauty – October 20, 2009
Almighty Defenders – Almighty Defenders – November 2009

CD Review: Lessons in the Woods or a City

Band: Talbot Tagora
Label: Hardly Art
Release: 2009

1. “Mixed Signals Through Miles of Pilgrimage” – 9.2
2. “Ichthus Hop” – 9.0
3. “Bounty Hunter” – 8.7
4. “Solar Puppets” – 8.9
5. “Hunger Strike” – 8.7
6. “Black Ice” – 8.2
7. “Mouth Rainboy” – 9.1
8. “Hidden Note” – 9.0
9. “Hairspray” – 8.8
10. “Johnny Lazor” – 8.6
11. “Replacing the Northwest” – 8.7
12. “Perception Stick” – 9.0
13. “Belt of Cancer” – 8.4
14. “Ephemeral Summer” – 8.9

Comments: You’re going be like “whoa this is Wavves” (or better yet an incredibly unpolished No Age influenced trio) while listening. There’s really nothing revolutionary going on on this album besides a lot of experimenting with guitars and drum beats that scream, intentionally or otherwise, lo-fi surf-punk. Somewhere and somehow, at least on some of the songs, sense can be made. Noise rock making sense! That’s the No Age comparison. Most of the tracks don’t have an overly catchy flair — they are more like sophisticated jams. So say, for instance, you went to a Talbot Tagora concert for the first time without ever listening to them before. You’re going to have a good time rocking out. And if you have listened to them before, you are going to have a bitch of a time deciphering songs. Admittedly I got a little bored with this after a while. I kind of just wanted to change it up and get my noise fix from the Losing Feeling EP…or the Talking Heads (alphabetically next on my playlist).

Grade: 8.3 (I haven’t done this yet, but I have to take off .5 points because it lacks originality to a sad point.)