by charles poladian
Memorial Day is coming up. Ready for that three day weekend? The summer is fast approaching; I can’t believe how quickly the days go by. I hope everyone takes time off of worrying about the little things and live life. All the shows are wrapping up; we’re going to need another way to pass some time. Maybe some music?
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Festivals Get Bigger, Make Interesting Additions
As if the chance to see Built to Spill and The Ravonettes for free at Siren Festival on July 17th along with Frightened Rabbit, Monotonix, Grand Duchy and Micachu & The Shapes was not enough to get you going to Coney Island, Spank Rock, Future of the Left, Japandroids and Bear Hands have been added. Expect even more artists to get added before the show.
Also adding to their roster is the Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco. Along with headliners Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band and Beastie Boys, Lucinda Williams, Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band, The Avett Brothers, Bat for Lashes and Los Campensinos! and local bands Tea Leaf Green, Zion I, Big Light, Darondo with Nino Moschella and Groundation join the roster. Looks like San Fran is in for a treat from August 28-30.
Astronaut Thinks Echo And the Bunnymen are Out of This World
Pretty cool news coming from NASA. I mean, I think astronauts are already pretty cool, who wouldn’t want to go to outer space? You could be the coolest person on the moon based on your cool indie music cred. So why all this space talk? Well, cool Colonel Timothy L. Korpa is bringing the classic album Ocean Rain into space with him. Pretty sweet deal considering being in a band is the fallback plan once you realize how hard it is to actually become an astronaut. Echo and The Bunnymen are planning to release their tenth album The Fountain later in the year.
Suckers Look Relaxed in Their “Easy Chairs”
You may have heard some of the press on Suckers of late. From their residency at Pianos in July and their catchy as hell “It Gets Your Body Movin”, the band is poised on a breakout year. “Easy Chairs” is off of their EP, out now via IAMSOUND. The video is a bizarre weaving of landscapes, objects, colors and the band. Surreal and disjointed compliments the song’s haunting yet joyous rhythms.
Free Shows Around Town
One of the cool things about being in the big city is all the free stuff. Sometimes it is not what you wanted, but you have to take what you can, right? Well, luckily for us this is the good kind of free. July 11th head over to Stuyvesant Cove Park to enjoy 2009’s iteration of Citysol. Shilpa and Her Happy Hookers, Love Like Deloreans, Hi Red Center, and Schwervon! are on the bill.
If you can’t wait for some freeness, RSVP at tuxwithchucks@dt-mag.com for a “Tux with Chucks” party at Studio B sponsored by Converse and Death+Taxes this Friday 5/22. Japanese Motors and Crocodiles are on the bill. Did I mention open bar?
ThinkIndie.Com Brings DIY to the Record Store
We all have our favorite places to get music. It’s a honed down science, after hours spent meticulously detailing pros and cons and creating formulas and adding variables that would make your high school math teacher impressed. Well, get back to the drawing board. ThinkIndie.com is a new online record store that is right up our alley. Providing a great range of music, competitive pricing, MP3’s at 320 kb and genres like “Freak Folk” and “Bedroom Superstars”, it is well worth a visit. Also, they have a pretty cool free section as well with labels like Vice, XL Recordings and Matador lending their support.
The Libertines Make Up, Maybe 2010 Reunion
The Libertines reunited over the weekend at a benefit for concert promoter Johnny Sedassy. The band seems ramshackle and a bit rough around the edges, but it’s good to see the energy that made this band so memorable. Although Carl Barat is still planning on doing his solo stuff this year, 2010 seems open for a full blown tour.
Check out their video – “Can’t Stand Me Now”
