ask not for whom the van rolls, it rolls for thee

what's going on with vans these days? first heiru flips theirs (okay, i guess technically they flipped theirs second, but i heard about it first) and now this. what counts, though, is the pulling together in the name of tour.

Drive 105 saves the day – Rock n’ Roll is played

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Minneapoils, December 14th, 2005 – When the 2024 Records van was unexpectedly sidelined for repairs, Drive 105 stepped in and answered the call for help getting The Hopefuls to the gig on time.

After a spinout in Eau Claire on the way back from Chicago on the 4th of Dec., the van that has come to be affectionately known as Big Red was declared unfit for safe transport. Facing a busy week of shows (including a key trip to New York for Romantica this week to open for The Damnwells), the label and bands flew into action. Everything was covered except for Hopefuls Dec. 10th trip to Duluth for performances at The Electric Fetus and Pizza Luce.

When the team at Drive 105 heard about The Hopefuls plight, they generously offered their services in the name of rock n’ roll. The show must go on! Not only did Drive deliver in the form of one of their station vehicles, but they provided an intern to pilot the vehicle, help load and unload, and sell the merch.

The trip went as planned and the band made it both shows on time. Drive intern Josh snapped some photos and they are available for viewing on the Drive 105 website or at the following address:
http://www.drive105.com/PhotoWall.asp?id=18871

doomtree blowout

congrats, doomtree, on really packing 'em in at the varsity. boo to the varsity for not being able to get people in the damned door in a timely fashion. i got there at 9:45 p.m. (doors were at 9:30 p.m.) and then waited for 45 minutes, came near to getting frostbite in my toes, and eventually abandoned the line when i was still some thirty people away from the entrance. seriously, folks, figure this the hell out. this isn't southern california and it's simply inexcusable to leave people out in the cold for that long.

hope the show went well.

CBGB's protracted battle with life-threatening illness near an end

this comes from pitchfork, and frankly, i think it's about time. cbgb's is a cramped, unpleasant place that's filled with history, so i have no problem with it going gently into that dark night. it's a shitty place to see a show, and the very fact that the owner is thinking about opening a cb's in las vegas indicates to me that whatever punk spirit was there has long since departed for more friendly climes. how long until we get a hard rock-esque chain of cbgbs cafes? i mean, it's already a brand worn by everybody who goes to urban outfitters who may or may not have ever been there. so mourn its passing, but don't be sad it's gone.

CBGB to Close on Halloween 2006

Kati Llewellyn reports:
It looks like the CBGB saga is finally coming to an end. Regardless of your feelings for the legendary downtown New York City venue, the long, drawn out battle between the club and its landlord, the Bowery Residents' Committee, has been painful to follow. But come October 31, 2006, CBGB will close its current location’s doors for good.

The BRC is a nonprofit organization that houses 250 homeless New Yorkers in the building at 315 Bowery where CBGB is located. As previously reported, the club’s lease with the BRC expired on August 31, and Hilly Kristal, owner of the bar since 1973, was presented with an eviction notice after much fighting.

Both sides went to court and a new agreement was reached, requiring Kristal to vacate by next Halloween. According to Billboard.com, Kristal has been scoping out new sites in lower Manhattan, and is considering opening another CBGB in Las Vegas.

And punks around the world hang their heads in shame.

* Pitchfork News: CBGB: The End Is Nigh
* CBGB: http://www.cbgb.com/

flawless top ten

you guys on myspace? i saw this posted as a bulletin and i began to get excited, because a flawless top ten list is different than just a top ten of all time or something, because a great album can have lulls and problems and still be great, but there's something i truly value about an album that's a front-to-backer, an album you can put on and listen to all the way through and feel like you've gone someplace. so rather than bothering with doing it on myspace, i'm starting it here. so reply with your own top ten flawless front-to-backers:

1. jimi hendrix :: electric ladyland
2. boards of canada :: music has the right to children
3. jeff buckley :: grace
4. d'angelo :: voodoo
5. radiohead :: the bends
6. deftones :: white pony
7. dj shadow :: endtroducing
8. death cab for cutie :: the photo album
9. spoon :: a series of sneaks
10. miles davis :: porgy and bess

note: these are not in any order, really, and how could they be? how can you order ten flawless things?

random.

leather pants on ebay

part of the joy of a blog is posting things for no real reason at all. i get this regular e-mail missive from somebody at badmash crew and i have no idea what it's supposed to accomplish, other than making me laugh. so here's the funniest thing they've sent recently.

the rotating quote

i change up that quote up there every so often to keep things from smelling stale around here, but i wanted to draw particular attention to that there nugget of discontent by p.o.s.

"we don't 'throw our hands up like we don't care' anymore
we throw our hands up like we don't care anymore."

what a great little bit of tautological taunting.

Protest music today?

Does anyone want to weigh in on this interesting Talking Points Memo Cafe commentary/discussion on protest music today, that includes the likes of Bright Eyes, the Decemberists, Sleater-Kinney, Dylan and hip-hop? I'm curious about what people here would say.

The point of discussion begins: "Jason Zengerle's attack on Conor Oberst's pretensions to be doing good political music is welcome and correct, but in a tragic case of thesis inflation, Zengerle seems to be arguing not merely that "When the President Talks to God" is bad but that quality political tunes are impossible under present social conditions. That's a clear error.

Consider "Combat Rock" and "Entertain" by Sleater-Kinney, the Decemberists' "Sixteen Military Wives", "Monster Hospital" and "Succexxy" from Metric, or even Le Tigre's charmingly didactic "New Kicks"."