Month: October 2011

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Sidewalk Driver @ Radio 10.7.2011

[INTERIOR – SIDEWALK DRIVER PRACTICE SPACE]

KATE: I’ve got this awesome new song I want to teach you guys.

JARED: Remember that time I used Richard Bouchard’s face as a slide? How great was that?!?! And I jumped off of A.J.’s kick drum.

KATE: Speaking of A.J., where is he?

JOHN: He’s going to be a little late. The Rolex folks needed him to swing by the factory so they could set their watches to him.

TAD: Has anyone seen the Sparkle Fairies? I can’t seem to find them.

KATE, JARED, JOHN: Not again!

[LAUGH TRACK]

KATE: Really guys, I’ve got this new song to show-

JOHN [INTERRUPTING]: In the last seven days we’ve opened for the B-52s, rocked the big Township gig at Brighton Music Hall and blown the roof off of Radio on opening night. Not bad.

JARED: And I used Bouchard’s face as a slide!

[TAD RETURNS COVERED IN GLITTER AND CONFETTI]

TAD: I found the Sparkle Fairies, but now the Confetti Monster has gotten loose!

KATE, JARED, JOHN: Oh, Tad!

[LAUGH TRACK]

KATE: You guys aren’t going to learn this song tonight, are you…

JOHN: No. I’m busy learning “Big Bottom”.

JARED: I’m practicing slides on Bouchard’s face.

TAD [OFF SCREEN]: I could use a little help in here!

KATE: Argh! Let’s just watch Maru videos and look at these photos from the Radio gig up on Daykamp Music…

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The Organ Beats @ Radio 10.7.2011

The Organ Beats are lighting up the Radio stage with their bombastic power pop. The band is tight. The crowd is into it. They’ve already forgotten the brief blackout that delayed the start of the set. A good hook will do that.

Two bands into Radio’s existence and I’ve already got a good feeling about this place…

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The Bynars – “Haunted House” Remix Single (2011)


The Bynars
“Haunted House” Remix Single
2011

Let’s pretend you are The Bynars. It’s mid-October. Halloween is right around the corner. You’ve got a hip power pop number called “Haunted House” on your latest album. It’s got a retro-horror keyboard part, a cheap-shot scare hit after the first chorus and a catchy vocal hook. Seems like a good time to make the song available as a free download to drum up a little publicity.

If you’re The Bynars, though, you probably realize you need to up the ante. After all, you’re the band that made an interactive music video. You don’t do things in a small way. So you get Sawtooth to do a hyper remix of the song with enough whirrs and blips and beats to make dance-inclined folks giddy. And you get Chris Piascik to do some amazing artwork. And you put it up on the web. For free. Only until November 1st. Because you’re The Bynars, and it seems like a cool thing to do.

Where to get it:

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The Rationales @ Radio 10.7.2011

The Rationales were the first band to grace the stage of Radio, Somerville’s newest rock club. This honor was not lost on them. The band treated the ever-growing crowd to a tight set of Americana-tinged power pop. The band was even moved to debut a new song. It’s called “Radio”. Nice touch.

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Township @ Brighton Music Hall 10.1.2011

The CD release party for Township’s latest effort, One More Summer, was a nonstop barrage of bitchin’ riffs and man hair.

I’m glad there are bands like Township in 2011. Bands that pay tribute at the altar of Thin Lizzy. Bands that embrace guitarmony. Bands that know some records sound best blasting from a car stereo with the windows down. More power to ’em.

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Sidewalk Driver @ Brighton Music Hall 10.1.2011

I love Sidewalk Driver. I imagine, though, that there are some people out there that hate Sidewalk Diver. Really hate them. That’s the way these things work, right? For every person out there that loves yogurt, there is someone who thinks it tastes like the disgusting thing it is: A dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. Think about that the next time you go to eat yogurt.

I thought it might be fun to play devil’s advocate to my usual Sidewalk Driver-loving self. The problem is, everything I thought of as my alter ego just made Sidewalk Driver sound more awesome. It was an exercise in futility. I mean, telling someone to avoid a band because they have a song about the singer potentially dispensing of his man-parts* to get in good with a girl who may or may not be into said man-parts is like telling a 5 year old boy to put the bug down so he doesn’t squish it. It ain’t gonna happen.

So, I guess it’s OK to listen to and enjoy the music of Sidewalk Driver.** Why not check out their fantastic record, For All The Boys And Girls? But whatever you do, don’t go to their live shows. You might get covered in confetti.

* Be it by scissors or knife.

** I suppose there are still people out there that don’t like Sidewalk Driver. I’m content not to be one of them. I still don’t like yogurt, though.

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Trabants @ Brighton Music Hall 10.1.2011

Trabants opened with Link Wray’s “Rumble” and closed with “Wipeout”. You can probably guess what their originals sound like. These guys have the sound nailed.

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Reverse @ Church 9.29.2011

When my lovely wife (designer extraordinaire at Daykamp Creative) wants to go see Reverse on her birthday, who am I to argue? Ian Kennedy even played “Happy Birthday” for her. More importantly the band played “Victoria”, “Dead Man”, “Fluorescent” and a whole bunch of their other songs. Have I mentioned that these guys are one of the best bands in town? I think I have.