MP3: Japandroids – Art Czars I had been really talking up Japandroids’ live show to my friend all day Wednesday. When I saw them at Pitchfork, they practically tore the stage down with their energy. But I gotta say, I was pretty let down with the 15 or so minutes of their Emo’s set. Their [...]

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MP3: The Morning Benders – Promises The award for Most Improved (and I mean that in a good way) goes to the Morning Benders! When I saw them in 2008 they were a fun pop group that put on a good show. Now in 2010 they’re rocking out with the big boys and putting on [...]

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Rural Alberta Advantage were one of my big take aways from last year’s SXSW. I caught them at a show in a church and was really blown away. Since then they’ve secured a wide release for their record and only managed to get better at performing live. And I guess it helps that they were [...]

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Jonsi just posted his solo tour dates to his web site. Chances are good that you live within reasonable driving distance from one of these shows, so go check ‘em out! Check out Jonsi’s world tour at his web site

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Yesterday at dinner a friend told me she didn’t care who she saw at SXSW as long as she was there for Big Star on Saturday. Five minutes later I checked my twitter feed and saw the jaw-dropping news that Alex Chilton had died of a heart attack. There’s no convenient time to lose a [...]

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My SXSW 2010 started off with a set by a band I’d never heard before landing in Austin, YellowFever. Since this seems to be the year I spend my time checking out smaller bands rather than seeing old favorites for the 6th time, I guess that’s an appropriate way to begin. YellowFever are a two-piece [...]

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Life’s unpredictable. Sometimes you wake up in the middle of the night only to find that Jack White and Jay-Z have recorded a song together. “I just did a record with Jay-Z,” White told GQ. “We did a song together a few weeks ago. It was incredible. I played him something that I’ve been kicking [...]

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OK, if I’m posting on Ariel Pink then you know he’s really got something worth talking about. This is, after all, the guy who put on one of the least enjoyable shows I’ve ever seen opening for Animal Collective in 2005. But even though I dragged my feet checking this one out, it’s still something [...]

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The Black Keys tore it up at last year’s Forecastle Festival Louisville’s Forecastle festival decided to pull a Bonnaroo this year and post some clues as to what their summer lineup will be. The only difference is that if you’re the best guesser, you’ll take home two VIP passes to see the show. The clues [...]

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