Finally! The last in my series on miserable cities and the music that comes from those cities. According to Forbes magazine the two most miserable cities in the US are... 2. Stockton, California Population of around 300,000 with a metro area of around 700,000. Roughly 60 miles east of the San Francisco Bay area. Unemployment rate is a staggering 16.5% as of June 2010 (US national average is 9.5%). Violent crime is the 6th worst in the [...]
In August of 1990 I was 17, getting ready to start my senior year in high school. That summer I attended my first huge concert at Alpine Valley , a rite of passage for kids growing up in Wisconsin. No, I did not attend Stevie Ray Vaughan 's final concert on August 26/27, 1990. I was not a cool kid. I went to a Mötley Crüe -headlined Stars and Guitars tour, which included the likes of Joe Satriani , Tesla , and a few others smaller acts that I don't remember. [...]
The monthly comp from the forum users at AltCountryTab.ca . Download the zipped comp for one week only . 1. Dave Gleason's Wasted Days - Rusty Ol' Halo.mp3 Buy : Just Fall To Pieces (2007) Would love to see this band live. Great at rootsy Americana, straight ahead country, Stones-y rock n roll, they can do it all and do it good. 2. Delbert McClinton [...]
Don't say that I never finish anything! I started this series on Forbes 20 most miserable US cities and the music that spawns from these cities back in March . Then life got into the way of my blogging, other things came up, and I didn't finish the list. And now that we are 3/4 of the way through 2010, the list may be irrelevant. But anyway, to refresh your memory, here are the first 16 of Forbes 20 most miserable US cities: 20. Philadelphia, [...]
This video was floating around twitter this past week. It features the Levon Helm Band performing The Band 's classic " The Weight " with Joe Pug and Elvis Costello in Vancouver on August 10, 2010. Pug is so adorable in this video, so obviously excited to be along these legends. As one commenter on You Tube said, "(Pug) looks like a kid on Christmas morning." Pug (age 23) could easily be Helm's (age 70) grandson. So cool! I also love the tuba solo. If the Levon Helm [...]
Review of the 2010 Hillside Festival, Guelph Conservation Area, Ontario Part three of three. Part one posted on August 16 . Part two posted on August 17 . Perfect day in Guelph, despite the previous day's deluge. Day 3 The weather on the third day of Hillside [...]
Review of the 2010 Hillside Festival, Guelph Conservation Area, Ontario Part two of three. Part one posted August 16 . Mediocre photography by me. Day 2 There was a huge thunderstorm on Saturday, June 24, so I decided to wait out the weather over a breakfast/lunch of bacon sandwiches and [...]
Review of the 2010 Hillside Festival, Guelph Conservation Area, Ontario Part one of three Mediocre photography by me. Background and Day 1 The 27th annual Hillside Festival took place July 23-25 at the Geulph Conservation Area, slightly northeast of the city of Guelph in southern Ontario. I like to refer to [...]
Moved form Kool Haus to The Phoenix (Thank God) You know you are a ridiculous fan-girl of The Hold Steady when you notice that lead singer Craig Finn has a new guitar. If memory serves, this was my fifth Hold Steady show (I think, I was drunk as hell at all of those shows), so I knew what to expect. Rock, jumping around, singalongs, Finn being geeky, Tad Kubler being a guitar god, spilled beer, and more rock. And in short, I got exactly what I expected. However, [...]
Patterson Hood of the Drive-By Truckers wrote a summer tour diary/blog about touring with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers on Flagpole , an entertainment magazine/web site for Athens, Georgia. His most recent entry had a few sentences that killed me: Woke up to the news that Kings of Leon had to cancel the St. Louis venue (that we played last week with Petty) due to a pigeon shitting in the bassist's mouth. I saw Mike Campbell (from The Heartbreakers) collapse on stage in 100 degree heat, [...]
Well folks, I'm on vacation in the Dairyland and haven't updated the old blog in a while. I have tons of stuff to write about, so stay tuned! Here's the July Feel Bad for You comp to tide you over until I get back. I also forgot to post the June FBFY comp. Do you still want me to post it, even if its a few months late? A few months late is the story of my life... From the forum users [...]
I was slightly apprehensive about going to the Gaslight Anthem gig on Wed., July 14, because the hype surrounding these boys from Jersey has been crazy. They were featured on the cover of Exclaim! , and had feature articles on them in both the Toronto Star and the National Post . Would they live up to the hype, or are they just another bunch of tattooed pretty boys that the kids are think are cool? And the show was at the friggin' Sound Academy, one of my least favorite venues in Toronto. [...]
I'm still on a Hillside high, and a bunch of the bands I saw over the weekend are continuing their tours through Toronto. If you are in or around Toronto this week, check out these gigs: Monday, July 26 1. Scott H. Biram , Horseshoe Tavern (368 Queen Street West), $9 I mentioned this show last week, but seriously people, you should go to it. Bad-ass southern blues rock! Scott H. Biram - Blood, Sweat, and Murder.mp3 [...]
James McMurtry is surly, grumpy, and intense, which is why I love him and his music. He played to a criminally small crowd at Lee's Palace last Tuesday, July 13. When I arrived there were about 60 people in the audience, and by show time there were maybe 100 people. Not a great turnout for a place with a capacity of 500. Although there was a lot happening in Toronto that night, including an Old Crow Medicine Show gig at the Phoenix, which may have pulled some people from the McMurtry show. If you went to [...]
Gigs in the Toronto area you should check out this week! Wednesday, July 21 1. Langhorne Slim with Ha Ha Tonka , Horseshoe Tavern (368 Queen Street West), $15 I've seen both of these artists before, and I highly recommend them. I've only see Langhorne Slim as an opener, so I am looking very forward to his full set. Ha Ha Tonka - Hold My Feet to the Fire.mp3 Buy : Novel [...]
Our friends at Suburban Home Records are offering another killer mix tape for Free ! This is good stuff people! Thirty songs and over 135 minutes of excellent tunes. Suburban Home is one of the best indie record labels going. After you download this comp, peruse their fine catalog and pick yourself up records form a few of my favorite artists like Two Cow Garage , Drag the River , and Tim Barry . Download zipped mix tape here (via YouSendIt). 1. I Can Lick Any [...]
My Aimz is True turns TWO today. Happy birthday to me! Thank you to all of the readers who indulge in my vanity and actually read the crap that I post. I will always celebrate my blog anniversary by posting some Pavement and Stephen Malkmus . Today I hit shuffle on Media Monkey, and these were the first two Pavement/SM tracks to pop up. Cheers! Pavement - Yeah Baby (Live).mp3 Buy : Slanted & Enchanted: Luxe & Reduxe (2002 deluxe edition) [...]
Sweet merciful crap, there are so many good gigs in Toronto this month that I could go to one every day of the week, and still miss out on some. Someone needs to get on cloning, pronto, cause I need to be in two, sometimes three, shows at once. If you are in or around Toronto this week here are the shows which I think you should see. Tuesday, July 13 1. James McMurtry - Lee's Palace (529 Bloor) It was a toss up between JM and [...]
Above: the disaster I found on my condo terrace the morning of June 18. First three photos by Jason Verwey , last two photos by Steffan Paulus . I'm a few weeks (months?) late and several hundred dollars short on my reviews lately. But in my defense, in the words of the late Kurt Vonnegut, the "the excrement has hit the air-conditioning big time, big time." Here is what I have had to put up with lately: G20 lockdown and ensuing chaos in my 'hood, trying to navigate the [...]
As you all have probably heard by now, some shithead pinched Phosphorescent's touring van after their New York show on June 8. Inside of this van was an enormous amount of equipment, plus a bunch of merch they were going to sell during their six week US Tour. They have subsequently canceled tonight's Toronto gig at the Horseshoe, which will probably be rescheduled for the near future. You can get your ticket refunded at the point of purchase. Most indie bands make their income from touring and selling merch at the shows. [...]
Rockstar Aimz
Azealia Banks - '1991' [Listen]
Metric Debuts Album via Synthetica Hide+Seek, Tickets On Sale Now For Fall Tour
THE MASTERSONS — BIRDS FLY SOUTH
