your gonna want to see this

Gnarlemagne- yesterday. oops! you missed it, sorry

funny story-picture yourself ( you are the drummer in this scenario) at a college house party.  You are ballin, drinkin, being the smooth cat that you are. people are in your house dancing the funk, and up comes this lil blonde girl shaking for you. you hit it off and you bring her upstairs.  you ask her to spend the night and she literally says..."only if you tell me what my name is".  fast foward to the girl ticked off and walking out that night, and thus a birth of a song.  listen and love it- these New Hampshire guys have such soul and funk its fantastic.

playing in Portsmouth, NH on Saturday night, played at the Precinct in Somerville last night (sorry again).

All right, son: roll them guns up, count the money, and put your seat belt on.

I have no other advice or concert news for you other then use today as your flashback day and spend it listening to the Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels soundtrack and get down to it. I have been a hermytit and put concerts on the back burner due to lack of funds/bills/booze.



check back for an awesome concert (Local! New Hampshire band! hairy...) coming up on Thursday at the PRECINCT BAR in Union square

cheers

beer to the head/ downstairs with WU LYF

So much to say but can't remember a whole lot of thursday's concert- WU LYF @ the Middle East downstairs- the one i've been talking about endlessly since September. It may be from the massive headache i received at the end of WU LYF- thankfully someone threw a half empty PBR tall boy into the crowd and it enjoying itself all over my head and torso! Even though I spent the last two songs in the porcelain palace, WU LYF @ the Middle East downstairs was such a fantastic trip.

I can be critical of boston crowds because with alot of the smaller shows I go to-energy is weak and no ones dancing like I want them to (just fucking do it already). (side note-this doesn't include house parties, the Paradise or my bedroom-all those places move quite fantastically). Many times its been me in a drunken haze dancing in circles around my friends who stare at me like a fool (truth), and I know that the others in the corners who are doing the exact same thing as me are silently cheering me on. But for the others, the fence posts- I get it, you just want to stand there and not move, not tap your foot or nod your head- I get it. Just don't get in my way right? right?

The middle east downstairs, stuffed like a sausages/inlove every part of it, had a crowd that finally made me eat my words- everyone was in the same mind zone, all in motion and wording the garble that WL is known for.. dancing and jamming and fighting-everything that I wanted I got. Selfish, i know. I was just proud to have these guys in Cambridge-end scene. end hangover-bring em back.

cheers

11/10 @the Middle East downstairs

crystalized my openers-aka the day ive been awaitin.

This thursdays concert at the middle east downstairs is the day i have been talking about (on this tiny imbecile blog) for months. i don't feel like talking about it anymore- because i'm fucking excited and thats about all i can say about it. the openers sound pretty good to me- we'll try to see them but we'll probably be attempting to climb the roof to T.T. The Bears before WU LYF comes on (backside story- a 70 year old basically homeless man told me he used to do this when he was young right before he shattered his beer on the floor and fell over trying to mop it up at Precinct in Union SQ)

I'm attempting to call this my Boston Vs. Brooklyn match up- the first and only show i've seen in new york was WU LYF and it was hell.a.good. The crowd was awesome, and I knew the band actually enjoyed being there. sometimes i get this itchy feeling that the crowds in Boston aren't the most pleeeeasing for up and comers/nobodies/(theonlygoodbandoutthere)- but it can be hard to read the face of the drunks on stage-so what can i really say.  anyways, below is a rough cut from Crystal Antlers-i'll leave the best for thursday

cheers & beers

its like they are too good looking

BAND: U.S. ROYALTY

FROM: DC

what happens when an upcoming band becomes the face of a fashion line? gets more notice for their structured cheeky hairy faces and the designers name pasted along side theirs? I guess i've always thought it goes the other way around...you play dirty music and move like banshees (real nice like) and even the most unattractive member is good  fuckin lookin in someones eye. apparently now i have no god damn idea what comes first- so take a listen for yourself and decide.  I can see a crowd stomping at the Paradise to this jam (just listen to this one and attempt to ignore the visuals-you might toss your afternoon beers)



This legit video/tune below sounds a tad like coldplay to me..but western...? Coldplay would just look ridiculous in cowboy boots. Anyways- cross yer eyes to them coming to Boston in the near future

Cheers

Race cars and brain freezes

WERS turned me on to these guys (this morning oops) and i dig them. I don't quite understand what kind of sound this band is going for, so listen to their album Its a Corporate World and get with me?  I get the instruments & vocal arrangements but each song is too different and i really hope they stay away from creeping in synths and just give me the noise. noise, drums, guitar, bass, real rhythm, solid voices. they could be so much more without covering up

Anyways- this cover kills it. baby im interested




Cheers~

Saintsenca youngins and Stone churches

 a history tale from me to you

in a little town called Newmarket, NH, the Stone Church reined over all as the best place to see live music in all of the holy land that is the New Hampshire seacoast. The church-converted-to-music hall was a tiny stone structure up on Zion Hill (literal). It was gorgeous, the stage was small and the freedom to smoke whatever you wanted outside brought in all kinds of musicians, people and wandering students. Tuesdays nights were bluegrass night and we would make the trek to the town over to experience drunken bliss and local bluegrass. here we all learned how to really dance (bop man) glazed over and tranquilized.
 ---
This place opened their holy musical doors to all of us and changed us.  It's because of places like this why i cannot bring myself to envision concerts at any other place then festival grounds or tiny dance halls with wooden floors covered in my beer.  It's because of places like this why we frequently are pulled towards the original sounds of folk created by bands younger then us (sad song).  All of this is my introduction to Saintseneca.  just youngin's playing in basements and bars and on trashcans, testing out their sound and making waves towards us.

WHITE DENIM part II i cant stop

 these guys are le awesome. whether they are rocking out vocally in the video from yesterday or just instrumentally jamming and rolling headdds it's impossible not to turn this up and get the fuck out of your seat. so thankful they came across my radar these past few weeks and you should be too. buying my tickets now to white denim at the house of blues 11/12

 

WHITE DENIM.

WHITE DENIM. invite 50 people over and trash your house listening to them all night. wake up 3 hours later and don't regret a single thing (and by house i mean dorm room, tiny busted apartment in somerville, or your basement air mattress in allston...) Supposedly they will be in boston (house of blues) 11/12 opening for hairy manchester orchestra. GET YO TIX like me or watch it sell out like Bassdrum did at the middle east tonight (like i forgot)

cheers

rainy dayz are over

Remember 'Rainy Dayz'? The radiohead remixes done by various hip hop artists for In Rainbows? that was some sweet shit. anything with Del the funky homosapien is sweet shit as well
two of my favorite things- hip hop artists and radiohead. now that the rain is over we can fully discuss that Bass Drum of Death is everywhere.  Well, everywhere that I go.  they are loud fast and dirty awesome. i'll be there at the middle eastiez next thurs the 15th- as they say don't bring yer moms UPDATE SOLD OUT SHIT. cheers


its good to be young

pump this and don't watch it-with Del

i've been thinking about your sister

Check out these dudes..dig? They are playing this sunday funday at Great Scott- 9/4



Blogging comes second when one goes on vacation..and then loses power, and then can't stay awake at work without 4 ice coffees in the belly. my bad. Back in top form with my head on semi-straight... As  mentioned from previous posts (lets just remind each other cause I can't scroll down either) some damn fine shows are coming to town and I can't sit still in anticipation.  As I move back into Somerville tomorrow at midnight everyones thinking this is going to be a fantastic fall to be in Boston. And if your not, well, come bop and bang with me at these shows and let's change your mind

September\\
4 Jeff the Brotherhood @ Great Scott
13 Bass Drum of Death @ Middle east and Grouplove at the Brighton Music Hall
16 Unknown Mortal Orchestra @ the Dise
23 Tapes N' Tapes @ Brighton Music hall

{tickets available on the venues websites..probably}
cheers

I guess its seen the sparks a-flowin, no-one else would know-my radiohead tribute

If a stranger on the street asked my my favorite band, my answer is always Radiohead.  From playing The Bends on repeat for  years straight and spending  too many nights of my sophomore year in college cooped up with friends listening to In Rainbows, everything in between just melts in along side those albums.  In 2008 i went to lollapalooza in chi-town to see Radiohead for the first time. I went expecting my life to be forever changed and while the experience was other-worldly, the concert I more can't get out of my head was Rage Against the Machine from the night before.

 
The sheer madness of every song, every person and every mosh pit I went through is unreal. The crowd formed into literal whirlpools, where every pit was its own separate entity. We were in the front, of course, bone crushing dancing drunk and laughing our heads off 

You feel invincible, you feel like you could live forever.

adam and friend post rage

The next night was Radiohead, and my friend Adam and I camped out for hours beforehand. It's a complete different experience being in the front then the back, for all I could see was the hundred people infront of me and then the stage.  From the back all you can see is 100,000 people and the mere  glimpse of the dancing man.

jigsaws

 Whats funny about this show is that I honestly can't remember too much about it.  I  was there, I was sober, I was less then 10 rows of human bodies away from Thom Yorke. I was  in another world inside my head... it was one of those perfect shows and that i live to tell about  every second.

hey

I know that bands evolve and as time changes they lose those aspects of their music that you fell in love or obsession with. At this time of my life I am busy discovering new bands that get to me the same way that Radiohead used to.  Its an uphill battle and most times it seems like I can't keep up and nothing fits. it just doesn't fit in me. I have to tell myself that it's not worth losing my head over, tell myself...

idiot, slow down, slow down.

Sometimes I get overcharged,that’s when you see sparks.
They ask me where the hell I’m going?
At a 1000 feet per second

cheers
p.s his face gets me..check out his freak out at the end

bad rabbits

his voice kills me i love it. All i want to do is light up and dance all night with these guys

hometown dudes Bad Rabbits from Boston
gots ter check em out when they come back around east coast

cheers

pitchforked & fat guys

I've always been wary and  kept me distance of Pitchfork Media, but ever since they had the balls to give the Felice Brothers (among other awesome and innovative bands)  low 'ratings' on their new album a while back my distance turned to disgust. I may be superficial, yes, but that's just how I roll.  The site just seems so..square. So white (not in the color scheme..but yes if you want to be literal then that too).  If your looking for 50 of the same bands all playing the same exact music, throw in some 'rap' and all getting incredibly high 'ratings' then pitchfork is the site for you.  I also greatly love the way 'quoting' things makes me feel.
 ---
I went to a Felice Brothers show a few months ago at the Brighton Music Hall.   most definitely under heavy influences (as all should be at a Felice brothers concert) to completely grasp, things.  More then halfway through, as I was knee deep in bopping about like i always do, This large 20-something man in front of me turns around to me, during the best part of the show, and exclaims,

"These guys are fucking awesome..how did you hear about them?" Hmm..seriously? What is this, NYC? are you asking me what broker I work for and who my father is? No? fuck you- I'm bopping.
So I told him, "..well, fat guy, I saw them three years ago in Portsmouth, New Hampshire opening for bright eyes."
Fat guy: " Pshh..hmm..seriously? pshh. right."
Fat guy didn't believe me.


I still haven't forgotten that moment. Yes fat guy, bands existed before being panned on Pitchfork.


UPDATE: Literal tweets I discovered today in regards to the fork:

RT @THEFLYMAGAZINE @E_E_: TONIGHTS GIG IS CANCELLED BECAUSE WE GOT 3.8 ON PITCHFORK. THIS ISN'T A JOKE.

bassdrumofdeath BASS DRUM OF DEATH

Pitchfork is E! News. But with ugly ppl. I mean forreal, that lead dude from tune-yards? Yammers. I wonder where john maus is vacationing...

The Felice Brothers - White Limo (live) from Ravenhouse LTD. on Vimeo.

If I ever leave this world alive

The summer after I graduated college I moved to Atlanta to work for a festival promotions company- one who promoted shows through grassroots marketing as well as ran the volunteer programs at numerous music festivals around the country.  These guys work festivals  from ones such as Bonnaroo, to Rothbury (now Electric Forest), all the way down to City Stages (Birmingham, AL, now gone). As of today they are working over dozens of festivals all over the country each summer.

Up in the crows nest over  STS9

I spent this summer driving and flying to Wakarusa Festival in Arkansas, All Good Festival in West Virginia, down to Birmingham, and up to New Jersey for the sloppy All Points West. In between travels I stayed at the office in Atlanta, exploring the city and working local shows. At the festivals we organized and transported volunteers all over to their designated sites. We would arrive days before the fest, set up camp, drink all night, and scramble every day as hundreds upon hundreds of people flooded our tents trying to sign in, sign out, or just sign up to get free shit

The Gorgeous All Good Festival

The first festival I worked was Wakarusa-back then it was around 12,000 of the backhill hippies you only read about. At Wakarusa I worked with the production company who basically organized the festival and ran bands to and from catering, the stages, etc.  My least hazy memory from that week was driving Les Claypool back from dinner; wasted, he says to me.."What does a mexican weather man say? Cold today..Hot Tamale!" Legit..I can't even make that up.

The Black Crowes at Wakarusa

It's that kind of summer where you can never fully explain to people the experiences you had. At All Points West we magically had VIP access for the week and spent every night in the artist's lounge drinking and watching bands get hit on by numerous hotties. The Arctic Monkeys played football while the Black Keys stayed in the corners.  This kind of shit is what I miss.

Building Art Installations pre All Points West

Tool @ APW

VIP ing things

Cheers

How can you luv me

two thoughts

I have fully arrived at the realization that some people stay strangers no matter how long you know them. I've always enjoyed watching people change and evolve through the years we spend together; rubbing off on each other and growing stupid and awesome. At some point though when you notice people stop growing and refuse to change, well then I think we have a problem.
 ---
 Spent a glorious weekend in the rain and sunshine of the white mountains in New Hampshire.  Busted up a mountain, sat in a river, ate our faces off, drank with some bugs.  One word of advice-I recommend not attempting to get cozy on top of a bed of rocks.

---
upcoming shows
Unknown Mortal Orchestra

and come party with me here:
September 16th @ the Paradise

Cheers


Yourstru.ly Presents: UMO "How Can You Luv Me" from Yours Truly on Vimeo.

How rude of me

I realized that my decision to start this blog was to share the things I do; the concerts I see, the places I've been and the people we meet along the way. The underlying theme is the idea of strangers; how they are apart of us everyday if only for a fleeting second. I have always had a fascination with strangers and sometimes I get this overwhelming feeling that I will never know them or their story. It's fascinating, daunting, and at times depressing (however I promise not to dwell ever on the philosophical sense of how small we all really are- such bullshit if i've ever heard any).

I don't plan on turning this into a sociological theory or a photo diary of people I pass on the street. My intentions are to chronicle my past and present; to laugh at ourselves and to remember the moments in our lives that deserve more then a passing thought. Hopefully I remember a camera once or twice..moments get pretty boring when all I do is write about them.

After all those words... I realized how rude it is of me not to introduce myself! There is a story behind every picture-some of them I will surely bring up, others are just important pieces of my life that make it into something worth telling.

College loves at Graduation- UNH '09

My hometown kids

Festival Promotions Internship after college-All Good 2009

 Cambridge, Ma

we tailgate... alot

Returning to college to make a mess of ourselves

Boston living

and today

upcoming musiks

Upcoming shows in and around Boston that I, myself and my drunken self (well not alone..I do have friends) will be at in the following months..and you should be there too. Prepare for some trouble eh? Also..for all those concerts that I dropped the ball and forgot to get tixs AND/OR could not shell out the money..i spill my beers on strangers in your honor (mainly Galactic and Mogwai..head hung in shame).

September:
Bass Drum of Death 9/13 @ the Middle East
GroupLove  9/13 @ Brighton Music Hall
 (Don't know how i'm magically gonna see two shows at once..)
Unknown Mortal Orchestra 9/16 @ Paradise
Lotus 9/22  @ Paradise
Tapes N' Tapes 9/23 @ Brighton Music Hall

October:
 RJD2 10/10 @ the 'Dise
Iration 10/19 Brighton Music Hall
We Were Promised Jet packs w/ Royal Bangs 10/28 @... I won't even be around Boston for this concert..which I am highly dissapointed in.  WWPJ is tomfoolery awesome scots and Royal Bangs just fell into my lap and are on constant replay..sound in and out wildly like a few bands I know meshed together..can you place it?

November:
WU LYF 11/3 @ The Middle East (this show will probably be moved to a larger venue..watch me be right)

If you need to edit down the list (which I probably will come Sept 1st and my hugely increasing Somerville rent falls upon me) then please just see the following: Bass Drum of Death; WU LYF; and I don't give a shit what else just do it and let me know how it goes

Cheers

LYF in NYC

I've been waiting almost 4 months waiting to go to New York City this past weekend to see WU LYF in concert. World United Lucifer Youth Foundation. 4 guys, fucking dirty and awesome. One of those bands that you know is going to dig their heels into the ground to keep themselves low and under the radar..but to no avail. They will be in Boston come November 10th- I wanted to buy tickets today (day they came on sale) but I need to contain myself and wait at least til the weekend..aka tomorrow ha

After a weekend in new york city all i want to do is go crazy here in Boston. I want to continuously meet more people and stay out til 5am. Boston doesn't give you that same feeling..for now I will be like a stranded fish on land.. flopping every which way trying to get my full of muzik (air..duh).  I'm not sure where the fish comparison came from..all I had to eat today was a salad and I'm literally going nutzo looking for my hidden stash of chocolate bars.

we shall see eh?
Cheers