Thursday, April 28, 2005

Out of the Trashcan

Been lying low, due to no show this week, but it more than compensated by getting to interview Trashcan Sinatras, the exceptional Scottish band who also played at Milestones last night. Not too often you get to sit in the middle of one of your favorite bands ("Cake", from 1990, was one of those sum-up-the-moment records) while they play around you, but then we got to see them play at Lakeshore Records and at Milestones and hang out afterwards as well. A truly magical 24 hours-plus.

Katrina stepped in to the Review this week, but when I finally got to see what she played, she already had taken two of the ones I'm doing this Monday. Ah well, time for an Ebert and Roeper thingy perhaps. To wit, the again-revised playlist for a month or so:

5/2: New Order, Go-Betweens, Pearl Jam
5/9: Mercury Rev, Robbie Fulks?, Trevor Horn
5/16: The Kills, Dead Meadow, Bread tribute
5/23: Bloc Party, House of Love?
5/30: Sleater-Kinney!

Always subject to change depending on what lands in the ever-growing pile.
BTW, photos of the WBER appearance appear thisaway. That's the back of yours truly's head by Bugs.

It's off to the Wayzgoose Book Arts fair in Grimsby with my favorite traveling companion, my wife, this Saturday. here's hoping the weather holds. More as always.

Saturday, April 23, 2005

Generic post

I love music, I love books, and I love my wife.





Now go update your lj with a generic post that fits the tenor of your journal.

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

April is the busiest month

Some say it's the cruelest but so far I've been having fun. Last night we played Mylo, Daft Punk, and Fuzzbox, and got a few calls but they were largely of the rambling kind...

I think, if you just happen to be in a local band, you should head over to the lovely Katrina's web page and get the details for the WBER local show's Battle of the Bands, which promises to be a wonderfully cool thing. And please, follow the rules carefully!

No show next week, so that I can relax and prepare for the Trash Can Sinatras interview Tuesday 4/26 at 9 PM. Did I already mention that an entry or two ago? Doesn't hurt to keep the masses informed. This seems to be a good time for mature alternative pop music that TCS among others is purveying. For such an example, I just got an advance of the new Go-Betweens CD, which is as wonderful as I'm sure everybody hoped. A big round of applause as usual goes to Yep Roc, the little label that could, for keeping some of the past few decades' best artists in the public eye. I'm sure there's a churl or two out there that would think that it's some kind of resting place for has-beens, but there's been nothing has-been about any of the fine music coming off that label.

As such, slightly revised playlist:
5/2: Go-Betweens, the Kills, Pearl Jam
5/9: New Order?, Great Lake Swimmers?

More...

Saturday, April 16, 2005

Random 2

Isn't there a way to make larger posts?

My wife and I (isn't it great that she's doing all this stuff with me?) are also going to the Glenn Tilbrook show tonight at Milestones as well. If anybody out there is catching this (and I have a funny feeling more people are than I realize) then come on out and have fun with us.

More to come, including some comments on a whole bunch of comics (ya know, those things that they now call graphic novels) that I've been meaning to get around to for a few months now.

Random

Now I know why people get frustrated with Blogger. Actually went to write a post in some rare motivation and it wouldn't let me in for a spell. Grrrr...really not much to report, though I hope my friends Kate & Jessica are tearing up NYC (mentioned here for their benefit in case they land near a stray terminal). My wife and I went to see the selection of "Blue Shorts" at the Dryden Theatre last night, rare and archival pornography that amused more than titillated, but really, where else can you get such stuff? The Eastman House here in Rochester is one of the several reasons that make me glad to be living in our fair city (the garbage plate at Nick's that I had yesterday for the first time in a few months is another). And the salt & pepper squid at Esan's on Park Ave last night was another. For once, I asked a Thai restaurant to make it nuclear and they actually complied without telling me I couldn't handle it. I wept tears of joy.

There will be a Review Monday, but I might take the following week off so I can get ready for (get ready for it..) my interview with the Trash Can Sinatras on the station, Tuesday 4/26 at 9 PM. Little nervous, but I seem to have been handling myself well in recent interview situations of late, so this should be fun. And since I can't say it on the air, they will be doing an in-show at Lakeshore Record Exchange at 6 PM the next day (and of course the Milestones show that night). Should be good stuff from a band that has deserved more attention.

Right now in the middle of reading this. And why have I run out of room?

Tuesday, April 12, 2005

4/12/05

Feeling decidedly lazy when it comes to blogging lately, but we'll give it the college try. Last night we played the great Republic of Safety, which one listener called up to say sounded like 45 Grave; the Verve and the wonderful Out Hud, whose song "It's For You" would make a great summer single.

Here's a revised list of playlists:
4/18: Mylo, Fuzzbox, Daft Punk
4/25: The Kills, Pearl Jam, ?
5/2: New Order, Trevor Horn, ?

Found a whole bunch of odd new stuff in the station's freebie box like Balenescu Quartet and Deadman and Ariel Pink and Half-Handed Cloud from the great Asthmatic Kitty label, and I'm expecting the new British Sea Power and a bunch of stuff from Badman any second, so all of the above may change. Hope to get to Hamlet, vintage porn, and Glenn Tilbrook this coming week too, in that order. That should keep everybody guessing.

Books, I need to read more books! Reading the rest of the Hugo nominees that I had missed right now and just about finished with John Crowley's great "Lord Byron's Novel" out in July. Hopefully things will pick up once this season's appointment TV comes to a halt (24, Lost, Veronica Mars, Deadwood, .....)

Gotta run, work calls. I'll be back.

Tuesday, April 05, 2005

Updates

The new playlist is up at the usual spot, pretty much what you see in the last post. Middling week, I'm afraid. Here's some stuff coming up, and anybody who's paying attention can see how I revise the stuff I'm going to be playing all the time:

4/11: Out Hud, Republic of Safety, the Verve
(Quick note: Out Hud will be playing the Horseshoe in Toronto on 4/10. Little off in the timing on my part. Heads up, though: they're excellent)
4/18: The Kills, Daft Punk(?), Pearl Jam
4/25: Go-Betweens(?), Fuzzbox, ?
5/2: Trevor Horn, New Order, ?

Made it to Toronto this weekend, saw some long lost good friends, and had a great and always-too-short time. Got to re-meet one of my favorite authors, who has a rudimentary homepage right here. His new book, Spin, now out in stores (and hopefully libraries) is typically superb.

Speaking of books, I notice how other blogs are always reporting on their reading, and I had promised to keep tabs on mine, so here's some books I've read so far this year:
Bob Dylan--Chronicles
Eileen Gunn--Stable Strategies and Others
Carol Emshwiller--Mister Boots
Robert Charles Wilson--Spin
I really should be reading much more, but this doesn't take into account the comics and short stories that are slipped in between. Definitely going to get on the stick, though.

BTW, mentioned a link for a very cool Jon Spencer remix on the show last night. Check this out, courtesy of Fluxblog, who doesn't know me from Adam, but has one of the most consistently entertaining of the MP3 blogs out there.

Have fun, enjoy Spring, talk soon.