Continue reading “This Week In Shows That We Think You Will Enjoy”
This Week In Shows That We Think You Will Enjoy
Author: Dakin Hardwick
TV On The Radio w/The Dirty Projectors at The Fox Oakland, 5/22/09
The old story is that whenever The Velvet Underground came to town, everyone at the show started a band. On the contrary, whenever TV On The Radio come to town, everyone gives up. Few bands seem to set the bar as high as these gentlemen from New York.
Continue reading “TV On The Radio w/The Dirty Projectors at The Fox Oakland, 5/22/09”
The Leaky Faucet: Mika – Songs For Sorrow
Retail Release Date: June 8th, 2009 (only available on mikasounds.com)
Leaky Faucet Acquisition Date: May 15h, 2009
Mika is a singer-songwriter from Lebanon via England. He released a record in 2007 called Life In Cartoon Motion, a glorious pop record that was equal parts Donna Summer, Queen, Rufus Wainwright, and Erasure. He also writes songs that tell stories so vividly that one could call him the Bruce Springsteen of disco.
On May 15th, he’s releasing an EP of acoustic songs to tide people over until his next full length record, due out next year. He also enlisted some of his favorite artists to make original works to help tell the stories on this EP. Continue reading “The Leaky Faucet: Mika — Songs For Sorrow”
Shows This Week That Probably Won’t Suck
Every Monday, I am going to post a quick list of shows this week in the bay area that won’t be a waste of time. I won’t necessarily be at all of them, because I don’t have infinite wealth and time, but you can use this as a handy guide when looking for something to do!
10 Quick Questions For Ponytail
Ponytail are a band from Maryland, and they are currently on tour. Guitarist Ken Seeno has offered to answer a few questions by e-mail from their travels, so here are his answers.
Throbbing Gristle/Erika Andersson at The Grand Ballroom, 4/23/09
Throbbing Gristle are an early industrial band that formed in the early 70’s. They were known for both electronic experimentalism, and blatant shock value. I probably have read more about this band than any other band that I have never heard before. In fact, this show at The Grand in San Francisco will in fact be the very first time I actually will get to hear this band that has followed me for years as nothing but academic text.
Continue reading “Throbbing Gristle/Erika Andersson at The Grand Ballroom, 4/23/09”
Britney Spears/Pussycat Dolls Oracle Arena, 4/22/09: An Unrepentant Fans Thoughts
I go to a lot of shows. And I get excited about them. Very excited about them. But few shows have I anticipated as greatly as this one. I love the bubble gum pop, and there is just something about her that has drawn me in from day one. I think she always has reminded me of the person that I had always dreamt of being when I was younger. I really like the idea of being a child star, then becoming a pop star, followed by making some very poor decisions in public, leading to heavy scrutiny from the media. I really enjoy the idea of fame at all costs, and Britney has lived that dream. She lives her life as if every day was her big return to the spotlight.
But I digress; you want to hear about the show. Just to answer a few of the questions that you may have before reading on-
No, she did not refer to Oakland as Seattle, or Santa Barbara, or Sunol, or any other town she may have been thinking about that day. In fact, she did not address us by name of our city at all.
She did not storm off the stage because of pot smoke.
She did not fake a knee injury to get out of performing.
She did not sing live.
That being said, on with the review: Continue reading “Britney Spears/Pussycat Dolls Oracle Arena, 4/22/09: An Unrepentant Fans Thoughts”
Outside Lands Festival Lineup Analysis
They released the initial line-up for this year’s Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival, and if you haven’t already seen it on the 20,000 other sites that are posting it, here it is…
Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, Beastie Boys, Incubus, Black Eyed Peas, MIA, Jason Mraz, Ween, Band Of Horses, TV On The Radio, The Dead Weather, Atmosphere, The Mars Volta, Thievery Corporation, Modest Mouse, Tom Jones, Silversun Pickups, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, The National, Q-Tip, Brett Dennen, Built To Spill, Mastodon, Raphael Saadiq, Calexico, Os Mutantes, Midnite, JJ Grey & Mofro, Kinky, Deerhunter, Lila Downs, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave, The Dodos, Betty Lavette, Dengue Fever, Heartless Bastards, The Dirtbombs, Lenka, Akron/Family, John Vanderslice, Matt & Kim, Portugal. The Man, The Morning Benders, The Duke Spirit, Zee Avi, Blind Pilot, Sambada, Ryan Bingham, West Indian Girl, Extra Golden…
Now, I think it looks pretty good, and I can discuss all the bands at length if you wish, but I am a bit more worried about all of the things that can go wrong with this show. Continue reading “Outside Lands Festival Lineup Analysis”
Dakin’s SXSW Diary, Part Two
On to the more of my SXSW thoughts…
Back to Wednesday Night! Continue reading “Dakin’s SXSW Diary, Part Two”
Dakin’s SXSW Diary, Part One
SXSW thoughts before the memories fade away…
So, I made the trek to Austin, TX for the South By Southwest Festival for the 2nd year in a row. I am pretty sure that I will be heading down there every year I can for the foreseeable future. I’m going to try to hit up a few words about everything with out looking at notes, but that might prove to be a futile operation. Continue reading “Dakin’s SXSW Diary, Part One”