everyonelistens

So here it is, the Friday afternoon before a lazy Memorial Day weekend. It's pushing 90 degrees outside, and tomorrow is forecasted to be even hotter. I'm not complaining, though. I have a long weekend ahead of me and a day filled with bar-hopping around Newport to look forward to on Monday. After much teasing, summer is finally here, and I couldn't be happier. I've broken out the shorts and the sandals and sunglasses, and I'm ready to my favorite season by the horns. Oh and my birthday is in two months from yesterday. JUST SAYING. (A wish list is posted on my MySpace page if anyone is interested...k, sorry.)

• Pictures from Cartel's first day in The Bubble have appeared on their Buzznet page. It looks like their really plugging away at that new record! That new song is due in two days, dudes! Anyways, I hope that everyone had a happy Bubble Day yesterday. For those of you that went to the party at A & K, I'm not jealous. It was just as good watching on TV.
  
• The new Circa Survive record is currently streaming from their MySpace page. I've given it a couple listens over the past few hours, and I'm digging it. Granted, it sounds exactly like one would expect it to sound, but I'm really not complaining. I'm a big fan of their sound. From what I can discern from the streaming tracks, the production on this record is far superior to that of Juturna. My one gripe with the first record was the terrible sound on it - I think it really detracted from the record overall. It seems that problem has been remedied, however. The sound is still spacy and ethereal, but it's cleaner and less muddled. I'm in to it.
  
• Absolutepunk has posted the second Bamboozle interview video featuring The Spill Canvas, Plain White T's, Powerspace, The Early November, and Armor For Sleep, among others. You can check that right here.
  
• Paramore was recently interviewed on FUSE's The Sauce. You can view that video here. They answer run-of-the-mill interview questions: Are you excited for the new record? Are you psyched to play Warped Tour? Etc. Nothing groundbreaking, but entertaining nonetheless.
  
• Earlier this week, there was rumor flying around that Fall Out Boy was going to be on the soundtrack for the Simpsons' Movie. Accrding to Pete Wentz, this is false.
  

OK, that's all I've got for now. Have a wonderful weekend. I'm going to go play "Drink The Beer." It's one of my favorite games. I always win!

DJ Rossstar, via Erica, has asked his blog readers to come up with their Top 5 albums of all time. You know, the record you've been listening to straight through since the day you bought it without skipping a single song. The record that, no matter what musical phase you happen to be in, you will always come back to. The record that's been a constant companion, through thick and thin, good times and bad. Here are mine, in order:

Diving on in,<

• We'll begin with a PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT. Parents be warned - there's a phenomenon sweeping the country, and it's known as EMO. It's a subculture where "happiness is a sin," and those who practice it "celebrate sadness and pain." Seriously, this article made me laugh out loud (or "LOL" as the kids say). It astounds me that this kind of shit passes for hard-hitting and insightful journalism these days. I would be embarrased if my name were on that by-line. (It should be noted that the guy who wrote that story is an Emmy-winner. Just throwing that out there...)
• NEWAYZ... The new Dear Hunter record, The Meaning of, & All Things Regarding Ms. Leading came out yesterday. And it's stellar. Nay, it's interstellar. I'd heard some of the Ms. Leading demos last summer, and I was blown away. Since then, it seems that Casey has carefully honed his craft, and the newer recordings of the songs are simply amazing. AMAZING, I say. The album goes from soft piano ballads to zydeco-tinged hoedowns to soaring, epic refrains and back round again. The songs aren't nearly as poppy and sing-alongable, but I think that because of the experimentation and sheer scope of this project, it could quite possibly be the "scene Graceland" I strongly suggest picking this up. Standout tracks: "The Lake And The River","Red Hands", and "Black Sandy Beaches."
• By now we've all seen the intro to FOB's set on the Honda Civic Tour. It's absurd, yet slighly awesome, especially when the d00dz pop out of the stage using pneumatic launch ramps. Well, here's some footage of Victoria from Cobra Starship having some fun with them.
• Here is a list of the best-selling books of all time. There are 6 Harry Potter books in the Top 20. I don't know what that means, but it's pretty impressive.
• Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, and N.W.A. will be featured on the soundtrack for the new Simpsons movie. PSYCHED.COM.
• This isn't a link, but I'm gonna say that Memorial Day is this weekend, and that I am so excited for the following things, all of which happen in Newport post Mmrl Dy: tourists walking down mah street, overnight parking bans for those without stickers, jacked-up booze prices (seriously, it costs more to buy a Miller Lite at One Pelham East in the summer than it does in NYC), tourists clogging my means of egress, douchebag frat asses brawling outside my window, bars filled with shitty cover bands and no-talent "reggae bands" (seriously, if you're going to play reggae, you can't just listen to a bunch of old Sublime and hope for the best), annnnnnd tourists again FTW.
  

Ok, well, it's only three four things today, but still, I feel the need to post them up:

1. Anyone who's anyone knows I am a huge New Amsterdams fan. I love everything Matt Pryor has ever done, actually. Anyway, MySpace is putting out a tribute to the Smashing Pumpkins that will come in the next issue of Spin, and The New Ams have contributed a stupendous version of "Thirty-Three" to the project. You can check it out on their MySpace page.
2. While you're there, check out "Strangled By The Thought." It's the second song on the player. It's the final track on the second disc of Killed and Cured, which was self released last month. This song is fucking emo-tastic. Seriously, I'm listening to it for the seventh (eighth?) time in a row as I write this. In fact, it's so emo-tastic that as soon as I'm done with this update, I'm going to go write in my ElJay and put on some guyliner while I cry. OK, well I won't do that. But I could. NEWAYZ, just listen to the song, I implore you.
3. The Starting Line posted a brand new song up a few days ago. It's from their upcoming release, Direction. It's called "Island" and I'm digging it.
   
4. Cobra Starship's new video for "Fangs Up, Dancing Shoes On," is fan-fuckingtastic. No wait, it's fang-tastic. Ok I lose. But seriously, the song really makes me want to get up and dance even if my hangover is all "no, no remain seated, it's really okay." There's a sweet Patrick Stump cameo, as well as this:

Last week I posted "Thursday Links," and I was going to make that my Thursday thing: posting links. But then I was like "why should I just post links on Thursdays? Shouldn't I put them up whenever I have a bunch of links that I want to post?" And then I answered myself: "Yes. Yes you should." So I'm gonna.

• Best. Headline. Evar. And the answer is a resounding "yes." (PS - worst rock picture ever taken.)
• Everyone's favorite siren-fronted band, Paramore is a contestant in the latest round of "AOL Breakers." They're up against pop-soaked The Higher and and band called "The Jonas Brothers," which the page describes as "...Hanson...with a bigger dose of punk." Um, OK. Click here to go to the AOL Breakers page, then click on the "ID, Please" category. And vote for Paramore, plz.
• I stumbled across this absolute gem on YouTube. It's The Clash playing a siiiick version of "White Riot" at Victoria Park in 1978. I have seriously watched it seven or eight times since finding it this morning. (I kind of like The Clash juuuuust a little bit.)
• While I am still on my Powerspace kick, I've started to become increasingly obsessed with Rory. (check out "Typical," Ruby Vroomier," and "Nice Planet, We'll Take It!" I saw these guys a few months ago when they came through Providence, and they actually ended up crashing at my house. They are really cool dudes, and they kinda have a Matches-esque thing going for them. I think they are tremendously underrated, and I hate to admit it, but "Deja Vroomier" is slowly creeping up on "Right On, Right Now," as my new jam, especially since the new version of "Right On..." was posted up on MySpace yesterday...
• ...and I don't like it nearly as much. It's a few BPM slower, and the instumentation seems a bit more sparse than the EP version. I really don't think the vocals are as strong, either. Don't get me wrong I'm still hella-excited to hear more than the five P-Space songs I currently own. But I think the new mix is a mistake. Judge for yourself.
• New Sports Guy mailbag. It's been a while since we've seen one of these, since all he's been writing about is fucking basketball for the past few weeks. But this is good. He gives some advice regarding gratuity, choosing a celebrity sugar-mama, and even tackles the issue of Jack Nicholson's testicles. Yep. You read that correctly.
• Absolutepunk has posted a video featuring artists and interviews from Day 1 of Bamboozle, including The Starting Line, Paramore, and Great American Freedom Machine. Watch itHERE!

Kthxbye.

Friday.
The Receiving End Of Sirens were playing at Lupo's, so Nathan, Tim, and I decided to truck it down to downtown Providence to catch their set. We arrived in time to catch two of the support bands. First was The Sleeping, who were pretty much your run-of-the-mill cookie cutter Victory band - singing/screaming, off time breakdowns, catchy hooks, and mosh parts. They were kind of like Bury Your Dead-meets-Matchbook Romance. To use a term I overuse anyway, they were good at what they did, but my life was not altered in any way. Next plz. After that was Set Your Goals who I had seen late last year when they opened for Paramore at The Living Room last year. Now, anyone who knows me realizes I am gay for pop-punk, but for some reason I just couldn't dig these guys - not then and not now. On the pop-punk scale, they rate somewhere in between All Time Low and Hit The Lights, or any number of the mediocre three named pop punk bands out there. Solid B, but again, meh. Next was TREOS, who I had sadly never seen before. And they did not disappoint. Their songs are so solid through and through, and their live performance simply bolsters my opinion of their skill. They played two new songs off the new record. I was worried about what the new stuff would sound like, as Casey is no longer in the songwriting picture, but me fears were eased once I heard the new stuff. I am officially psyched for the new record, which is due to be released on August 7th.

Saturday.
I have been looking forward to Saturday for several weeks now. For a good few years in the late 90's/early 00's, The Agents were staples of the RI punk/ska scene. They were, for a time, the biggest band from RI, and they were beloved. To this day, 401 remains one of my favorite records. They weren't your average run-of-the-mill ska band - they blended in elements of reggae and punk as well, but tastefully, which is something that 95% of ska-punk bands failed miserably to acheive. Sadly, the band disbanded in 2002 (one of my bands, a to-remain-unnamed garage punk outfit, actually played their last show) with a string of three home shows. The members went their separate ways, moving to Brooklyn and San Francisco, getting married, starting families, etc. Well, on Saturday, they had their official, sold out reunion show. And it was ass if they hadn't missed a beat. They opened with "Long Time," and never looked back. They hit all the classics: "Gratiado," "Superhero," "98," "Sally Brown," "Incident At Franco's," and on and on. They played full on for an hour and a half, and the audience ate up every second of it. It was a special night, and I'm glad I was there.

Sunday.
On Sunday, I decided to drive it on down to New York City to catch Monty Are I at The Knitting Factory. Again, I caught this tour on Tuesday, but I felt like seeing them again. Plus, MAI hangs in NYC never disappoint. Monty played well - there were a few hiccups, as Ryan left his trumpet in the van, which was parked 25 minutes away over the Brooklyn Bridge, so at times he looked slightly lost on stage, which would have been virtually imperceptible to the untrained eye. A face melting set nonetheless, though. I was a little bummed that Powerspace decided it would be a good idea to play three dates with Red Jumpsuit, though, so they weren't able to play. I said boo @ that couple times, but moved on once the epic hangs commenced. After a little pre-gaming in the front bar of The Knitting Factory, Montourage shifted venues to a sweet little bar on Delancey where we proceeded to get silly and dance party it up. It was so so so good to see all of my friends again, and make some new ones. It really was a tremendous weekend, but now it is time to detox and return to real life for a few days. Le siggggh... 

So apparently the band Rednex (the dudes that sang the grating West Warwick wedding/high school roller skating party anthem "Cotton Eye Joe') is for sale. Apparently, you get it all: the music, the trademark, the back catalog, the publishing rights, the record deals, the website....

Oh, and you get this:

• A video featuring a brand new Motion City Soundtrack song, "This Is For Real," has hit the intarwebz. It can be seen here. I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty excited about the new record, but I am slightly bummed out that the release date has been pushed back two months. Originally, Even If It Kills Me was due to hit stores on July 17th, but it was announced yesterday that the new release date will be September 18th.
  
• Let's get our emo on! Fearless Records released Punk Goes Acoustic 2 this week. The record delivers some of the finest heart-on-your-sleeve crooning the scene has to offer, and it's sure to make your guyliner streak your pillowcase. I listened to it in its' entirety yesterday, and there are definitely some standout tracks - +44's "Baby Come On," Sherwood's "The Only Song," Jack's Mannequin's version of "Bruised," and "Jasey Rae" by All Time Low. Some of the tracks are completely uninspired, though, like The Spill Canvas' "Staplegunned," which sounds exactly like the album track, only without the drums, while others just plain suck (Anti-Flag, I'm looking in your direction). Pound for pound, though, it's definitely worth a listen.
• The new Paramore music video is up and just begging to be viewed. I can't help but love this band, and from all that I've heard, they're way more mature musically on the new record. Which is saying a lot, as All We Know Is Falling was tremendous. The new record is scheduled to be released on June 12th.
• Anyone who considers themselves even remotely scene should pick up Everybody Hurts: An Essential Guide To Emo Culture. It's a witty look at all things scene, including fashion, history, hairstyling, movies, and obviously, music. It's an easy, informative read, and it's tone edges on sarcasm at times, which I think is splendid. There will be a longer review of it sometime later in the week, so look for that soon, but in the meantime, go pick it up!
  
• I just can't write a post without mentioning Powerspace, can I? Apparently not. So here goes! Powerspace posted a video up on Purevolume yesterday documenting the tomfoolery they are partaking in while on tour with my friends in Monty Are I. The karaoke scene is definitely clutch, and dudebroguy singing System Of A Down made me LOL like whoa. (PS - It was Tom from Powerspace's 21st birthday on Tuesday. We got him drunk and then cut a rug at the club. Send him birthday wishes.)
  
• Apparently, Jared the Subway guy ran a two-bit pornography rental business out of his dorm room during college. That kinda creeps me out. I'm just saying....
• This weekend, Roger Clemens announced his return to my beloved New York Yankees. Hopefully, he will add some stability to the decimated starting pitching rotation, and maybe give the bullpen a little break. NEWAYZ - notorious Yankee-hater Jim Caple, one of my favorite sportswriters, wrote a great little satirical speech about the whole debacle. It can be read here.

So I'm pretty exhausted. I'm a little sunburned in the face. I've got a few blisters from my new Vans slip-ons. And my Rory hoodie kind of smells like beer. But overall, I would call this weekend a success.

Although the 'boozle was a two-day festival, we weren't able to make it for day one. There were a few bands I really wanted to see (Cartel, NFG, Paramore, TREOS, Saves The Day, and Motion City Soundtrack [who blew me away last year]) but somehow, I think I'll manage. We actually ended up rolling into NYC at around 9pm on Saturday night. There was an afterparty at the new Wentz/McCoy venture, Angels and Kings, so we headed on over there for some free Dos Equis, hangs, and a bunch of waiting in line for the bathroom. It's a pretty cool little place - small, intimate, a dive-ish vibe without actually being a dive. Also, I forgot just how expensive booze in the city is. Apparently, price didn't stop me though (or so I've been told) and I proceeded to get very, very nice before we made our way home at 3:30 in the morning, as evidenced by the fact that there are about 10 pictures on my camera that I have no recollection of taking.

I woke up around 8AM completely disoriented and still pretty drunk. We showered, made our way to the car, and drove to Giants Stadium. After meeting up with the Monty Are I boys, we made our way inside the gates. I had made a schedule up on Thursday, and I was pretty intent on sticking to it. So I did. And here's the recap:

• Brand New. This set is the talk of the AP.net community right now. I thought it was all right. I have never seen BN before, and were I scene n00b, I would have been put off immediately by Jesse Lacey's on-stage anti-charisma, but luckily, I've seen sets way more pretentious than this, so I was ok with it. They opened with "Degausser," then played "Sowing Season" and "Luca." Then Lacey decided he wanted to play "Degausser" again. So they did so, changing the lyrics a bit, then "You Won't Know," "Welcome To Bangkok," and then a really terrible version of "Seventy Times Seven." Grade: B-
  
• Anberlin. I have seen these guys three times before, but I had yet to see them play any of the songs off so I was pretty excited for their set. I can't recall what their exact set was, but the did play "Time and Confusion," "A Day Late," "Adelaide," "Dismantle Repair," and "Never Take Friendship Personal" (not necessarily in that order) before closing with "Godspeed." They had the crowd entirely under their spell, and as I looked around, I could see everyone from little scene girlies to dudes wearing Birkenstocks and Hollister hoodies screaming along to "Dismantle Repar." As always, a tremendous stage show. These guys continue to impress me, and I'm glad the general public is beginning to take notice.Grade: A
• The Early November. This was TEN's last show ever. I have never really been a huge fan of theirs, and the last record they released really put me off. But I figured that I should at least be there for that moment of scene history (?) so I stood and watched a couple of their songs. They played some older stuff, mostly off . They were pretty good, but I didn't watch enough of the set to be able to fully grade them. Some girls were crying, though, so I assume the did pretty well. Grade: INC
• Powerspace. I have been so hyped to see these guys all week. They were/are my new "gay-for" band. And they didn't disappoint. Unfortunately, they were constrained to the tiny confines of the shitty, shitty "Pass The Mic" stage, but they made the best of it. They played five songs in total, each one was pretty tight and right along with all the samples they were using considering the seeimingly poor monitor mix every band on that stage was getting. The closed with "Right On, Right Now." I was happy. I've been listening to that t00n fir like the past week and a half straight. On repeat. Because, yes, I am awesome. And I got to see it live. Oh, and backflips, too. Grade: A
  
• Monty Are I. Is this even worth reviewing? I have seen these guys, no word of a lie, over 50 times in the past two years. This is one of the few shows I actually got to see from the front of the stage, though, and it's a very different experience, especially being in the middle of the crowd, singing along the whole time. (Run on sentences FTW, BTDubbs) The set was great obviously, and they played all the crowd faves - "Castlebound," Dublin Waltz," and "In This Legacy." Some one correct me if I'm mistaken, but during "Anchor and Hope," Tom from Powerspace relieved Ryan of his guitar playing duties and proceeded to shred. Obvously, they closed with "Between The Sheets." Ryan climbed up on top of the speaker stack a few times, too. Knowing his penchant for disaster and clumsiness, I was pretty sure both attempts would end badly, but he made it through unscathed. Overall, I was extremely impressed, per usual. They played well, and made it through the set incident-free. I also noticed that they are seemingly more confident on stage as of late than they have ever been - their poise on stage seems to much more professional, and at times it borders on a confident swagger. But not in a bad way (see: Jesse Lacey). Grade: A
  
• RX Bandits. The first time I ever saw RX live in November, I made the call that they were the best live band I had ever seen. (They knocked Elvis Costello out of the top slot, a position he had ocupied since July of '03) I was hoping and praying that they would not disappoint me. And they didn't. Not one bit. They were just as tremendous as usual, and their version of "...And The Battle Begun," was . They ended their set a little early, then were told they had time for one more (which the crowd was fervently demanding). I crossed my fingers for "Decrescendo." And they delivered. And fucking killed it. I can't even say anything else about their set except - Grade: A+
  
• Thrice. These guys are always just tremendous. I have been following their updates for their new record, and I am pretty amped for it. They played two newer songs, and I liked both very much. They were a bit more classic-rocky than their previous material, but they seemed like a logical evolution from . They also played the crowd faves: "Artist In The Ambulance," "Stare At The Sun," "The Earth Will Shake," etc. Overall, they played a solid set. Grade: B+
  
• Jack's Mannequin. This was the last set I ended up catching. I was tired and sunburned, and I was ready to go home. But I needed to see Jack's first. So I did. I hadn't seen them perform for almost a year, so I was really looking forward to the set. They opened up with "Holiday From Real," which included an new, a capella introduction to the song. They proceeded to play most of the stock favorites off - "Dark Blue," "The Mixed Tape," "La La Lie," and "Kill The Messenger." "Bruised" was particularly good that night - the best I had seen them ever play it, and as the sun set to the west, Jack's played a great extended version of "Made For Each Other." Grade: A

That was it for me. We packed up, said our goodbyes, and drove to our hotel where we promptly rockstarred it by watching some TV and passing out at 11:00.

Bamboozle '08? Yes plz. 

The Bamboozle weekend (Cute Is What We Aim For Is What I Aim For '07 [CIWWAFIWIAF7]) countdown is officially on. We're t-minus 28 hours until we depart for the isle of Manhattan. Unfortunately i'm not going both days. I was incredibly productive the other day, though, when I spent about an hour checking set times for Sunday and making a little schedule to make sure I could see every band I wanted. I'm going to miss a couple, but here's my tentative intinerary (definites in bold, maybes in italics, Powerspace in bold and with an asterisk*)

12:05-12:45 Brand New
1:20-1:50     Anberlin
1:50-2:20     The Matches
2:40-3:00     Powerspace*
3:15-3:45     Mae
4:10-4:35     Monty Are I (obvsly)
   **rides**
5:20-5:50     RX Bandits
6:15-6:50     Thrice
6:50-7:25     Jack's Mannequin
7:25-8:05     Taking Back Sunday
8:05-8:50     Weird Al FTW

I can't wait to scene like whoa this weekend.

I'll be giving out free high-fives all weekend, too.

Yeah, so, I'm switching over to Buzznet. Officially. I've been celebrating LiveJournal for a few months now, but I've weighed the all the pros and cons, and I've decided I just like the Buzznet better. Sorry, El-Jay, you're just not cutting it for me anymore. Buzznet is younger and hotter, and that's what I'm in the market for. It's been a good run. Farewell...

NEWAYZ...

Here are some things that are currently exciting me:

1. Bamboozle. I'm pretty sure this weekend will rank up there the best weekends ever. I've spent the week hyping myself up for this extravaganza. The only work I've actually done this week has all had something to do with Bamboozle. I've made my schedule for Sunday up. In a stroke of sheer luck, most of the sets I want to catch do not overlap (save for Anberlin/The Dear Hunter). But now I need determine where the free rides fit in to that timetable. So yeah: bands, drinks, parties, rides, sunburn, hangs, celebrity stalking.... SAY WHAT?

2. Monty Are I/The Coming Weak. Bamboozle is on May 6th. Hangover recover/drive back to RI day is May 7th. May 8th is the Monty Are I homeshow. And my band is opening. I'm pretty stoked.com about it. This will be the first MAI show in like two years that I haven't worked at. It'll be fun to actually be able to play with them. For 50+ shows, I've been on the sidelines, and now I get to be a part of it musically instead of just technically. We're playing with Amber Pacific, Melee, and Powerspace...

3. Speaking of Powerspace. Go to their MySpace page right now and make "Right On, Right Now" happen. You just might find yourself dancing up a storm once you begin to listen. Their record comes out on July 31st. I hope to have procured myself a copy by then, but I will purchase it nonetheless. They have an EP out right now, but I'm thirsty for more. My first glimpse of them will be at Bamboozle. I'm pretty sure it will be a highlight.

4. Inkwell. I think that Inkwell is one of the most underrated bands going right now. It's just two dudes, I guess, and from what I hear, they don't like to tour much. Bummer. Anyway, my friend Stacy introduced them to me a little under a year ago. I didn't really actually listen to them all that much until a few months ago, when I popped in the CD she had burned me on a whim. And I went gay for them in like .02 seconds - I have not been able to stop listening to Inkwell in like three months. They have two records out, Chaos Reveals Rhyme, which is the debut, and These Stars Are Monsters, released in July of last year. The sound between the two albums are pretty consistent, and heavily recommended by yours truly. Listen to "Jazzercise In A Tie" and "The Tragedy Of David Gribble." Seriously. Do it.

OK, that's it. Three days to Bamboozle. Sick.