Photos from Thrice and Brand New

Here they are! All these shots were taken with a Canon Powershot SD1100 IS, and even if you do know what that means, you probably have a savvy-enough knowledge of photography to know that this is a very mediocre camera. But hey, I'm a blogger, not Annie Leibowitz! Enjoy.

Song of the Day

**11/9/09
Young Soul Rebels - Shot
---------ATTENTION: All fans of The Fratellis, The Hives, The Kinks, The Kooks, you get the idea - Young Soul Rebels is your new, pearly gateway to brit-punk heaven. Young Soul Rebels are a quintet of blokes from Brighton, who brighten up the cloudy and somewhat seriousness of punk with some rascally fun.

Funny story behind this discovery of music, or musicovery. I saw the name Young Soul Rebels on the Billboard charts backing up a remake of War Child's "I Got Soul." When I Googled YSR, I ended up coming across this band. Peculiar how the world wide web can lead you to an entirely different world than what you expected!

In other news, Brand New tonight. It's been on the bucket list of bands for many music lovers around me, and I wish deeply that they could go with me to share in the experience. Take it from me - when you're going to see the right band for the right time in your life, the journey is beyond meaningful. Enjoy Young Soul Rebels, and if you're going, I hope to see you at the show!

Song of the Day

**11/8/09

Eisley - Brightly Wound

------------Why haven't I heard of Eisley before? The four siblings and cousin quintet have been together for about 12 years now, producing ten albums and an enormous amount of righteous dudette indie rock from Tyler, Texas, so I am ashamed that I haven't known of their existence until now. Thank you, Jess!

Eisley is named after the town in the Star Wars trilogy called Mos Eisley, which I only mention because it is fantastically nerdy and appropriately cool. The song "Brightly Wound" dances slowly around a child-like piano and lyrics painted with innocence and Neverland fantasy. Get "Brightly Wound" from Eisley's 2005 album Room Noises.

**If you click on the headline for today's song, it'll take you to a sweet clip of Eisley singing "Brightly Wound" live from Austin, Texas.

Song of the Day

**11/7/09

On Paradise Boulevard - Photographic Memory

------------Searching through my inbox today, I found a message from On Paradise Boulevard. I had never heard of them before, and from their name I assumed they would be another sweet-smiled generic pop punk band that, let's face it, we all love, but have seen before.

On Paradise Boulevard is far from sweet sentiments and mall-rat status. With a new bassist, a handful of five new tracks recently recorded in Ohio, and tour dates lined up through Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama, OPB's schedule is packed as tightly as their melodic hardcore sound.

On Paradise Boulevard describes their musical endeavors as "5 dudes doing what they love most and jamming as hard as shit." Need they, or I, say more? "Photographic Memory" can be heard on OPB's Myspace page along with some pre-production tracks.

http://myspace.com/onparadiseboulevard/

Off and About...

**11/6/09
-----------I hope everyone remembered remembered the fifth of November yesterday. Well, I remembered that, but forgot to mention that I purchased Liz Phair's Exile in Guyville yesterday. I so far like it for it's road trip-esque sound and how Phair's voice is so divinely alto that she sounds like a guy in some songs. Songs like "Fuck and Run," "Mesmerizing" and "Johnny Sunshine" are some key tracks. Have fun getting in touch with your inner 90's she-power rock.

Thursday Night with moe.

AT&T will be contacting me soon about this "Raising the Bar" shot.

An abandoned mic on the soundboard bigger than Buffalo, NY (where moe. was formed in 1990).

Here are some shots from moe., a band I had quite honestly never listened to before tonight when I worked their show. I handled the merch table with a nice chap named John, who's been on tour with the band for the past two years. His brother, Rob Derhak, is John's younger brother and bassist/vocals in the band. Family support never ceases to make me smile.

Given the fact that moe. has produced more than 17 albums in their 20 years, you can bet their shows operate like a well-oiled machine. The show was a fun and smooth bit to work, and I'm glad I found out what moe. actually sounds like.

Song of the Day

**11/4/09

Pearl Jam - Army Reserve

--------------What glorious and strange wonders befell me in my music world today! The tone of this post is going to be rather bipolar, and you'll definitely understand with the information I have to share.

First of all - got my Brand New ticket! They'll be coming through Charlotte this coming Monday with Thrice and Crime in Stereo. Too bad I'm poor and can't see them with Glassjaw in New York. But still - I'm definitely not embarassed to geek out about this show.

Second of all - and here's the bad news - due to a family circumstance beyond their control, Dashboard Confessional have cancelled the remainder of their fall tour. I'm sadder than a hipster who spilled java on their Moleskine (oh, wait...that was me).

I was given a list of bands to look through, and if I have to hear another jam or ambient electronica band, I'm pretty confident I'll turn into a robot. Therefore, I turned to a group that takes me back to, well, the first PJ album I ever bought, their self-titled 2006 album with the Avacado against a deep blue background.

"Army Reserve" was never hyped like the not-so-fantastic anti-establishment "World Wide Suicide," but it's got a haunting attitude towards what is service and sacrifice. Vedder's unmistakable straining voice against spooky guitars...the "Jeremy" effect that I'm looking for today.

Song of the Day

**11/3/09
Four Year Strong - Heroes Are Remembered, But Legends Never Die
--------------- You might think that for my blog, I slouch over Billboard charts and scour Myspace pages for hours out of the day in search for the perfect tune. Well, it is actually not always that noble of a quest. I was sitting around my favorite home away from home coffee place and heard a couple of punk bro-ish dudes name drop Four Year Strong, and I jumped onto their website to check them out.

Four Year Strong explains it all, they didn't have to do much explaining to have me hooked onto their magnetically attractive pop punk/hardcore music. "Heroes..." stuck out to me as the perfect song for kids who are too tough for The Maine but aren't too hardcore dig a decent head-shaking beat.

Fun fact! Four Year Strong receives a lot of cred in the punk and hardcore scene for re-popularizing synthesizer laden tracks with their 2004 demo release. "Heroes Are Remembered, But Legends Never Die" is from Four Year Strong 2007 album Rise or Die Trying.

Song of the Day

**11/2/09

Fatal Bazooka feat. Yelle - Parle a ma main

----------------What's better than bratty girl power techno? Bratty girl power techno in French!I'll be up front on this one, this probably isn't a post for the male followers of this blog, unless you're into cross dressing disturbingly feminine dudes who can rock a pair of heels better than half the mademoiselles who don them. Fatal Bazooka is a parodic rap group from France, much like Monsieur Samberg and The Lonely Island from the states. Yelle's Euro-Benetar spunk and uninhibited lyrics are tart and sweet, the French "Hollaback Girl," but almost *gasp!* better! Featured in the hilarious five-minute video is a breakdown of the European dance craze, tecktonik, a 2009 version of an A.D.D. robot. Get "Parle a ma main" (translated "Talk to the Hand") from Fatal Bazooka's album, T'as Vu?

Song of the Day

**11/1/09

Cheryl Cole - Fight For This Love

-------------I am endlessly intrigued by the dynamics of pop music, who really writes the music, how much is altered, and basically, how much producers are trying to fool you. It's not necessarily a negative thing, but I can see why many believe that all pop music sounds the same. Brit pop singer Cheryl Cole is a multi-threat in the entertainment biz, and her October release 3 Words gave listeners "Fight For This Love," the techno tank that turns a dance floor into a battlefield for love.

It is a perfectly lively and earnest pop song, but every time I listen to it, I can't help but think Mary J. Blige would bring this song that level. The "Fight" writers Wayne Wilkins and Steve Kipner should have passed this one on to Blige, who could pack more soul into this than any other diva behind a mic. Sure Cole's got the pipes and the Maxim Hot 100 status to make her perfectly attractive to her audience, but her presence in "Fight For This Love" fits like a hand in a sock.