!!! (chk chk chk) - Myth Takes

Happy New Year's Eve! Continuing to preview releases coming out in the first quarter of 2007, !!! (chk chk chk) is putting out their next record, Myth Takes, this coming March 4th on Warp Records. Full of big basslines and a funk feel, it has more than a few tracks that will have you shaking your ass.

Warp Records says the album "combines an enhanced focus on incredible song writing with all the intricacy, freedom and shear dance floor swagger that made Louden Up Now such a delight". I say, "Dance Muthafucka, Dance!"

!!! - Myth Takes (re-upped!)

Tracklisting:

1. Myth Takes
2. All My Heroes Are Weirdos
3. Must Be The Moon
4. A New Name
5. Heart of Hearts
6. Sweet Life
7. Yadnus
8. Bend Over Beethoven
9. Break In Case Of Anything
10. Infinifold

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The Besnard Lakes

I talked about Merge, but Secretly Canadian/Jagjaguar arguably had the best catalog of releases in 2006 as well. In February, The Besnard Lakes will release The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse on Jagjaguar. The Besnard Lakes are another large band out of Montreal. The band centers around husband and wife, Jace Lasek and Olga Gorea and the record was recorded at Lasek's own Breakglass Studios, which is the studio of choice for bands like Wolf Parade, Islands and Sunset Rubdown. They'll draw numerous comparisons to the harmonious psych-rock bands of the 60's and 70's (Beach Boys/Mamas & The Papas) as well as contemporaries like Brothers & Sisters and Broken Social Scene. Hear their song, Disaster, at The Besnard Lakes' MySpace

The Besnard Lakes - And You Lied To Me

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Bloc Party - A Weekend In The City

I'm looking forward to Bloc Party's sophomore album, A Weekend In The City, due out early February, so I was listening to these today to tide me over. This demo apparently doesn't have the same "energy and development" that the album version does, but it will be interesting to hear the difference once the album is out. I know the album has hit the torrents, but I haven't downloaded it. I'll buy it, or hope someone sends it to me (hint hint). I did go ahead and grab The Prayer so I could get a taste of the album's sound though.

There is sure to be backlash on this album, but I think it will probably find it's way onto a lot of blogger year-end lists in 2007. 2007 is shaping up to have some great releases, so the blogosphere may be jumping around so much that no album really has time to bombard you readers and listeners so much that you wanna spit on it...well, other than Neon Bible.

Bloc Party - The Prayer
Bloc Party - Hunting For Witches (Demo)

Weekend In The City Tracklisting:

1. Song For Clay (Disappear Here)
2. Hunting For Witches
3. Waiting For The 7.18
4. Prayer
5. Uniform
6. On
7. Where Is Home?
8. Kreuzberg
9. I Still Remember
10. Sunday
11. Srxt

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Amadou & Mariam : Dimanche à Bamako

One of the more underrated albums of 2006 2005 (no wonder I didn't hear much about it in 2006! ah well, it's still worth checking out if you missed it.), at least mostly ignored on the indie music blogs, was Amadou & Mariam's Dimanche à Bamako. Konono No.1's Congotronics did well though, so it's sort of a head-scratcher that it didn't cause more waves on the internerd. It's "world music" so maybe it's expected, so if you missed out on this one, make sure you check it out now. World & Latin music star Manu Chao plays a part on every song, whether it's vocals, guitar or programming, he's there. That alone makes it worthy as well.

Both Amadou and Mariam are blind, they met in their native country's, Mali, Institute for the Young Blind and married in 1980. The duo make a type of music described as "Afro-Blues". They combine traditional Mali sound with modern sounds and musical styles from many other countries around the world. Chao's influence is evident in this area. They mis their sound with just about everything you can think of.

They had a good 2005 year with the U.S. release of this album and then recording the hit theme for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Dimanche à Bamako was actually released way back in 2004, but this last year was it's U.S. release.

Amadou & Mariam - Sénégal Fast Food (highly rec'd!)

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The Laylights

Denver, Colorado band, The Laylights have a U2/Killers crossed with Interpol (and all bands associated/knock-offs - like the Editors) kind of feel to them. Athemic rock that is lush and full, but with a little edge or moodiness. They probably sound like too many other bands, at this point, to make a big splash, but they have a great mastery of the sound and are more than worth checking out. They played some smaller festivals this year, like Midwest Music Summit and the Southpark Music Festival, and were a big hit at both. Devner's scene seems to be producing a lot of talent in recent years. The Laylights' MySpace.

The Laylights - Sparrow

In The Blogs:

Thighs has a great interview with Lily Allen.

Read the whole post...

MOKB on SIRIUS Blog Radio Tonight, Left Of Center - Channel 26

Tune in tonight as MOKB broadcasts it's second Blog Radio show on SIRIUS Satellite Radio's Left Of Center, Channel 26.

The show is at 10pm EST. You can get online at SIRIUS.com and they'll send you a code and you can listen right there at your computer! Tonight I talk to The Black Keys, play both leaked Arcade Fire songs and debut a radio exclusive from Cassettes Won't Listen! Tune in! Here are some other songs I'll be playing...

Scotland Yard Gospel Choir - Then And Not A Moment Before
The Magic Numbers - Take A Chance

Read the whole post...

Busts & Break-ups Of 2006

Well, no other year seemed to focus more on the build up and breakdowns of "blog bands" and any other little thing written about on music blogs. Why don't we run down some of the interesting, funny and polarizing topics and bands that got lots of love, but then didn't quite live up to, in some writer's, critic's and blogger's minds, the hype. Some of MOKB's favorite bloggers have dropped us a line to talk a little bit, but we'd also love if you'd tell us some of the things you felt didn't quite reach iconic status as they were billed to.



What many of you knew would be one of the biggest busts of 2006 turned out to be, at least in this stage of it's life. The Microsoft Zune was met with much rage when posted about on MOKB and other notable blogs. iPod enthusiasts were quick to not only dismiss the Zune, but kill the families of all those associated with it. Sluggish sales after week one have led to the belief that this version of Microsoft's "serious" attempt to enter the mp3 player market is not long for this world. Brown was a bold and interesting choice, but only added to the ammunition that this player was a piece of...

Snakes On A Plane built a huge marketing buzz on the internet through blogs, but the movie only opened to $15.2 million and quickly found it's way out of theatres. It will probably see good rentals as a result of the buzz, but my guess is, Hollywood won't be as apt to use blogs to build movie buzz in 2007.

Cobra Starship - Snakes On A Plane (Bring It)

Birdmonster, while still loved here at MOKB, has receieved some serious blacklash towards the latter half of 2006. The band's live show is still outstanding, but they will want to spend some more time on production for their next album.

Birdmonster - All The Holes In The Walls

Cold War Kids and SOUND Team were also very polarizing "blog bands". MOKB saw Cold War Kids live a few times this year and I will say that their live show improved quite a bit over the course of the year. Their full-length had some gems on it that were previously included on their earlier EPs. None of the new songs had as much "umph". Some bloggers thought the CWK band members were "dicks". I have no first hand knowledge of this though. Anyone?

SOUND Team never really piqued my interest beyond SXSW. Bill Baird is still incredibly cool, creative and interesting, but when joining with the rest of his bandmates, I start to lose interest.

Cold War Kids - Hang Me Up To Dry
SOUND Team - Your Eyes Are Liars

Even the untouchable Tapes N Tapes saw some backlash this year. I mean, come on, these guys were the most talked about band there for like a three month period leading up to SXSW, so it's only natural that some people got sick of them. MOKB is not among those folks.

Tapes N Tapes - Insistor

Gnarls Barkley hype built to unprecedented levels, and Cee-Lo & Dangermouse actually somewhat delivered. Crazy is great no matter how overplayed, and is definitely the most covered song of 2006. Great live performances and Cee-Lo Green is about as likable a guy as you can find, but nearing the end of 2006, many bloggers and fans have either grown weary or just simply chose to distance themselves from Gnarls in thesecond half of '06.

Gnarls Barkley - Crazy

In the wake of the Arctic Monkeys, everyone started trying to hype the Test Icicles are the next big thing. Which was ridiculous considering they were less talented than even their name would suggest. Plus, their lead singer might have been the only man on earth that could make Kele from Bloc Party look like Tupac. When they broke up they might have left 14 fans in their wake, 12 of them bloggers - Jeff from the Passion of the Weiss

Test Icicles - Circle, Triangle, Square

Although it wasn't a complete bust, I think of the Raconteurs. The album was easily one of the most anticipated albums of all year as far as the blogosphere was concerned and when Steady As She Goes came out (Jan. 30th) it was on the top post on every blog I visited. By the time the album came out though no one really cared, and good live shows turned out to be the only redeeming factor of the project. - Taylor, Music For Kids Who Can't Read Good

The Raconteurs - Blue Veins

What about Chinese Democracy? I haven't given a fuck about West Lafayette's native son since I was about 12, but apparently this was SUPPOSED to be the year the braided one and his revolving band of people not named Slash released this thing.

Oh shit, my bad... Chinese Democracy WAS released this year... by NYC punk outfit Kitty and the Kowalskis. I guess we can all quit holding our breath now. - MOKB friend and hopefully soon-to-be contributor, B.Chaps

Guns N Roses - Welcome To The Jungle

EZArchive, file host du jour, brought bloggers to their knees with its "upgrade": a transfer of old files (which would have required new URLs within 30 days) and all sorts of restrictions previously unseen in its heyday ("Bandwidth? What the hell is bandwidth?"). Panic ensued.

(For the record, mp3 blog readers were bound to be screwed, too, with downloads at an oh-so crappy 32 kbps.)

So, like scorned lovers, bloggers packed up and left, leaving a wasteland of broken links behind. Oh, EZArchive. We really thought you were The One. - Kevin, So Much Silence

The biggest bust of 2006 was the failure of blogs to unite as one force and take down the neolithic infrastructure of the music industry. To take it down to the lake, depants it, and force it to sit in the cold, cold water of critical democratization. - Eric, Marathonpacks

R.I.P.'s of 2006:

Few bands that disbanded in 2006 caused MOKB a lot of tears, but a couple did. MOKB was more than sad at the demise of Bravo Silva.

Bravo Silva - I Can't Say Goodbye

I think I will miss Grandaddy the most of the bands that called it quits in 2006. Jason Lytle and company were, at one time, "the hot shit" as he put it. Around the time The Sophtware Slump was reaching its peak. However, touring was not something they enjoyed, I talked to Jason in a phone interview once and he said he would love to keep writing and recording music, but touring sucked.

Since Jason was doing most of the work anyway, he did a string of solo dates to support Just Like the Fambly Cat. I was able to catch the first of these, which was amazing here in town. The dude was soooo nervous though, you could tell he really would rather be skateboarding or tipping one back. I guess hes got lots of time for that now as the rumor is that he is kicking it low key in Montana. Heres hoping its not the last we see or hear of Jason. - Joe Long, Each Note Secure

Grandaddy - The Crystal Lake

This break-up was a bowl full of awesome for me, personally, this year: Micah Calabrese’s departure from Giant Drag. I was the first to speculate about the split on my blog and then got Annie Hardy to confirm it, first hand (via e-mail). Then I kinda, mighta, sorta, accidently let the news slip to Stereogum, Dodge here, and Pitchfork (thanks MTV News!). Needless to say, Annie was pissed and although I wouldn’t call her follow-up e-mail to me "mean" – she definitely wasn’t happy. I tried to assure her it wasn’t malicious and I was still a Giant Drag fan but she never responded. Rock stars, what can you do?

Giant Drag - God Only Knows (Beach Boys Cover)

Anyway, the whole situation was kind of a big deal for me – especially to have been the one to break the news – since I’m pretty much a nobody in the music blog scene right now (I drank with Birdmonster once, yeah!). Oh yeah, before I forget: Annie also wants you all to know Giant Drag songs are in standard E tuning, not drop D, despite what anyone tells you. - Chris Walker, Chris Walker Versus


Other bands, according to Wiki, that saw their demise in 2006:

22-20s
Arab Strap
Dead Moon
Death From Above 1979
Out Hud
Rainer Maria
Sleater-Kinney
Test Icicles
The Like Young

Le Tigre, Garbage and Weezer are also on "hiatus".

Group Sounds broke up and some members reformed Generals & Majors.

Generals & Majors - Mother (Live Danzig Cover)

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AOL's The Interface with The Hold Steady

I know most of you are forgiving, but sleep is definitely at a premium in my house these days, so sorry for the late start.



Topping many Year End Best Ofs lists, The Hold Steady dropped by AOL's The Interface this past week. The interview is great and the band played Chips Ahoy, Your Little Hoodrat Friend and You Can Make Him Like You.

Download The Interface with The Hold Steady

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The Broken West - I Can't Go On, I'll Go On

I have enjoyed just about every Merge Records release during the last year and we all know 2007 is going to be a great year for them with the release of the Arcade Fire's Neon Bible.



One of the first Merge releases of 2007, Jan. 23rd, will be the debut from The Broken West. I had to check these guys out after reading that they make "enthusiastic, jangly, upbeat synth-guitar pop that brings to mind the hooks of contemporary artists like Spoon and Teenage Fanclub..." The PR kids also compare The Broken West to Nick Lowe, Big Star and The Byrds.

The Broken West are an L.A. band that formed in 2002 and originally called themselves The Brokedown. After concerns from a Chicago band of the same name, they changed their name. This upcoming release follows their EP The Dutchman’s Gold.

The Broken West's MySpace. You can buy I Can't Go On, I'll Go On here.

The Broken West - Down In The Valley

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Deerhoof - Friend Opportunity

photo courtesy of Brooklyn Vegan

Deerhoof got into the Christmas spirit by releasing their rendition of The Little Drummer Boy. They are also releasing a new album called Friend Opportunity in late January of 2007 on Kill Rock Stars. You can buy Deerhoof goodness here.

They also released this cool, free digital EP of live and cover songs. Deerhoof's MySpace.

Deerhoof - The Perfect Me
Deerhoof - The Little Drummer Boy

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Funky Christmas

Merry Christmas to all my protestant readers! I hope no matter what you consider yourself, you are enjoying time with family and friends this season!

First night home with Lucy was pretty brutal, but last night was easy-peasy, so hopefully we've turned the corner.

Peace the spork out:

To the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. The Godfather and I have some seriously good memories together. Well, he doesn't know about them, but I remember them all. I saw Brown live here in Indianapolis a few years back and he still had the funk, the soul and the rhythm. It was a spectacle to say the least. The Godfather may be responsible for bringing MJ and I together so many years ago...at least laying the groundwork. Thanks for a wonderful life and innumerable contributions to the music community Mr. Brown.

James Brown - Christmas In Heaven
James Brown - Go Power At Christmas Time

In The Blogs:

Scissorkick put up his first podcast or "Scissorkast", you should go check it out.

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Lucy Noel

Wow, she's finally here! No, I didn't borrow a baby and call her my own, but that was a good one - this is my own little girl!

It was amazing, terrifing and the most incredible moment of my life. MJ is a champ man, I mean an absolute all-star. I couldn't even fathom it. Little Lucy Noel was screaming her head off before she was completely out even and I didn't pass out, so both those facts were amazing. She hollered and yelled for her first four hours, but has been an absolute gem since. I have changed approximately 12 dirty diapers so far. Yeah, it's not as bad as they say, but it ain't glamorous either! She's a good eater, but a better pooper. So far she looks more like Rocky or Popeye than MJ or I, but she's beautiful nonetheless. Nobody in my family really thinks it's funny that I think she looks like Rocky or Popeye, so we'll just keep that between us. Mama requested that the pics she was in don't make MOKB - no woman feels too sexy after giving birth I guess ;)

Generals & Majors - Mother (Live Danzig Cover)
O'Death - Only Daughter
Peter, Bjorn & John - Object Of My Affection
Margot & The Nuclear So & Sos - Holy Cow! (Demo)







More here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

OK, well we're all home now, so posting should resume with daily frequency. If I miss a day or two or things are a little late in these next couple weeks, I hope you'll forgive me.

Thanks to all those that tuned in to MOKB's first SIRIUS Satellite Blog Radio show on Left of Center. I guess there was a mixup or two on the production side. They got some songs out of order, but that's not the end of the world. We'll get the bugs all worked out. You can tune in this week on Thursday at 10pm EST, 9pm CST to hear an interview with The Black Keys and loads of great songs! Channel 26 or hop online, get a free code and listen right on your computer.



Find out more about Generals & Majors at their MySpace.

Generals & Majors - Drink From My Cup

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Dodge is now officially "Papa Dodge"

Hey guys, Dodge wanted me to let you guys know that as of about an hour ago, he is now the proud daddy of a beautiful little baby girl! He and his wife MJ welcomed little Lucy Noel into the world at around 1:20 PM EST. Mama and baby are in good health, and little Lucy is 7 lbs., 6 oz. and 20 inches long. Congrats Dodge and MJ! We want pictures!

--chris from gvsb

p.s. Oh yeah, in lieu of flowers and gifts, Dodge would like you to tune into his national radio broadcasting debut tonight on SIRIUS Satellite Radio! Dial into Left of Center channel 26 for MOKB Blog Radio tonight at 10 Eastern, 9 Central. I think Dodge is interviewing the Black Keys, so it should be a good one. A baby and a national radio debut on the same day, the guy is a machine. If you don't have SIRIUS yet, you can listen for free at SIRIUS.com. Do it. And on second thought, you should still probably send flowers and gifts.

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Christmas with The Chipmunks

I'm not normally one for Christmas posts, but I'm in the season. The doctors are gonna force my baby out today. No foolin' this time. I've received Dean Martin's Christmas songs, Charlie Brown's Christmas (which is the best), and this week I received Christmas With The Chipmunks: Alvin, Simon & Theodore with David SeVille. This CD is grating after about two songs, but nothing says Christmas like singing rodents! Britney was hot though...for a cartoon, c'mon! Buy it!

Alvin & The Chipmunks w/ Dave SeVille - The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late

My baby is late, but Christmas won't be! Things will probably be a little sporadic over the next couple days, but tune in soon for gushing and baby kissing!


Oh Yeah!

I finally checked out Lupe Fiasco and all you guys that told me to were right - HOT! Food & Liquor does get nominated for worst and best album cover of 2006 too. Will Lupe ascend to Kanye-like (the guy who gave him his break) levels?



Lupe Fiasco - Kick, Push


In The Blogs:

Yo, check out Rachel's Christmas Podcast!

REMINDER!

MOKB joins Gorilla Vs. Bear, Brooklyn Vegan & Productshop NYC as the next blog in SIRIUS Satellite Radio's Blog Radio series. MOKB debuts this Thursday, 12/21! Check it out on Left Of Center (Channel 26) at 10pm EST. You can get online at SIRIUS.com and they'll send you a code and you can listen right there at your computer!



I interviewed The Black Keys this past weekend, so be sure to tune in on the 28th as well for that interview!

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Via Audio

Via Audio has some decent sized names in indie music in their corner. Chris Walla from Death Cab For Cutie stumbled across their MySpace site and ended up writing about his "new favorite band" in Under The Radar magazine. Then, after a band member, Jessica Martins, slipped a copy of their EP to Jim Eno from Spoon at one of their shows in Boston, Eno ended up liking it so much that he invited the band down to Austin this past summer to produce their new record, Say Something. You've heard the term "pop gems"? Yeah, the is one of those bands that epitomizes that term. Four-part harmonies...yum! Via Audio's MySpace.

Via Audio - Modern Day Saint

"There are three distinct songwriting personalities in the initial songwriting stages. Vocalist Jessica Martins brings a cast of frustrated lovers to the table. Bassist David Lizmi takes a more cryptic route, creating story songs that are missing just enough puzzle pieces to make them mysterious, yet decipherable upon repeated listens. While Dies' guitar technique echoes craftier players such as the Edge, Summers and Howe, his songwriting reflects his love of morose 90s grunge. If a character in a Via Audio song exhibits a Layne Staley moment, Dies is probably responsible." - jezebel music



Indiana band New Harbour stopped by 91.7 WEEM for an in-studio performance. New Harbour's MySpace.

New Harbour - Chasing Love (Live @ WEEM)
New Harbour - I Want You This Christmas (Live @ WEEM)

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Coolzey - He Did EP

You're guaranteed a good time with Coolzey. Intelligent, goofy, nerd rap is always a good time. He's back with a new EP called He Did, and it's worth checking out if you like indie nerd-rap. Coolzey is a quality guy and emcee who actually finds his roots in bands like Lynard Skynard, AC/DC, Built To Spill and Sebadoh. You can read and listen to more at MOKB's last post about Coolzey.

Coolzey - He Did

Coolzey gives away most of his last album, Akstoopid, and many others for free download here. You can also use some of your 25 free downloads from eMusic to check out some of the work Coolzey has done with The Sucka MCs.

Local News : Verizon Wireless Music Center, Noblesville IN - For Sale

Fuck you Live Nation.

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Great Live Ryan Adams

Image courtesy of watercoolergossip.net

Ryan Adams played Das Haus in Ludwigshafen, Germany on October 17, 2006. Mr. Garrison pointed me to this one. It's a great show. Sebastian Boschert (sebastian@2007.org) taped it and we thank him for sharing.

Disc One:

01. Intro
02. Magnolia Mountain
03. Hallelujah
04. Blue Hotel
05. To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)
06. New York, New York
07. She Wants to Play Hearts
08. Chin Up, Cheer Up
09. Freeway to the Canyon
10. Harder Now That It's Over
11. [Fade Out]

Disc Two:

01. [Fade In]
02. Damn Sam (I Love a Woman That Rains)
03. Easy Plateau
04. Peaceful Valley
05. Trouble On Wheels
06. Firecracker
07. Why Do They Leave?
08. A Kiss Before I Go
09. Dear John
10. Cold Roses
11. Bird Song (Jerry Garcia cover)
12. Wild Flowers
13. Let It Ride

Download the whole show in a .zip

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The Acorn - Tin Fist EP

photo by: amfraser.com

Ottawa, ON band The Acorn is releasing a new EP entitled Tin Fist. MOKB is a fan, so we're happy to hear it! Full of fantastic melodies, earnest and yearning vocals and layered guitars. There is more and continued experimentation this time around and this band continues to show great promise and growth. Add this one to the best EPs of 2006 for sure - a must have. You can buy it from Kelp Records. The Acorn's MySpace.

The Acorn - Spring Thaw

Older Works:

The Acorn - Blankets
The Acorn - Evidence

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The Perfect Christmas Gift : My Dick In A Box

For the unedited version, go here.



Thanks Wendy!

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The Postmarks - S/T

The Postmarks are releasing their self-titled debut on January 1st, 2007 on Unfiltered Records. It's filled with smokey, blissful pop lullabyes perfect for a Sunday morning. The Postmarks' MySpace.





You can hear more and some earlier work at World's Fair.

The Postmarks - Let Go
The Postmarks - You Drift Away

Bonus:

The Postmarks - Everyday Is Halloween (Ministry Cover)

In The Blogs:

Passion Of The Weiss is quickly becoming one of my favorite blogs. You must check The 5 Words White People Must Stop Using, Best Live Performances of 2006 (w/mp3s), Most Disappointing Album of 2006, Best Hip-Hop of 2006, Haikus about 2006's Over-hyped Albums...hell they're all great posts. I've got blog envy! Seriously, you must check it daily.

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Great Live My Morning Jacket - 12/1/06

MOKB hometomwn boys, My Morning Jacket, played The Electric Factory in Philly on December 1st of this year. The show was taped by Craig Taraszki, so we thank him.



01. It Beats For You
02. Gideon
03. Wonderful Man
04. One Big Holiday
05. Lay Low
06. Phone
07. Dondante
08. I Needed It Most
09. At Dawn
10. Golden
11. Lowdown

Disc 2:

01. Way That He Sings
02. Dancefloors
03. Mahgeetah
04. They Ran
05. Wordless Chorus
06. Off The Record
07. I Will Sing
08. Run Thru
09. Anytime

Download it all in a .zip file

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The Black Angels on AOL's The Interface

The Black Angels dropped by AOL's The Interface this week. The band performed Empire, Better Off Alone, Mistress Brown and My Boat is Sinking.

Download The Podcast

The Five Facts about The Black Angels you might not have known (from AOL):

1. Took their name from the Velvet Underground's The Black Angel's Death Song
2. Formed only 2 years ago in Austin, TX.
3. Once acted as the backing band for the Brian Jonestown Massacre's Anton Newcombe
4. Several members of the Black Angels are multi-instrumentalists which allows them to swap instruments throughout their live sets.
5. Lead singer Alex Maas sometimes sports an Electric Sitar , which has been described by some as 'the defining sound of the '60's.'

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My Best Work Of 2006

EDIT: Duoh! Hold your well-wishes, but thank you so much for them. We arrived at the doctor's office this morning, adrenaline pumping and bursting with fear and excitement, only to be put off until early next week. MJ's amniotic fluid was supposedly getting low, so that's why they wanted to induce, but apparently today after being tested, it's actually increased somewhat. Soooo, no baby today. MJ hopes to go into labor naturally, so the doc wants to wait in see if that happens before Monday. Sorry to get everyone, and myself!, all keyed up with anticipation. I do really, really appreciate the well wishes though and will probably wait until after the baby comes to post on it. Again, sorry!

Well, I'm off to become a dad - well, when I wake up this morning that is. The doctor is inducing MJ, my Lovely Wife, today! Don't know if it's gonna be a boy or a girl, but if all goes well this chili bean will be here today!

The Little Ones - Oh, MJ!
Stephen Marley - Hey Baby

In The Blogs:

Headless Ponch says you can "possibly" hear a new Arcade Fire song by following directions.

Upcoming Local Shows: Mark this one down

ANDREW BIRD with BOBBY BARE JR. supporting
Sunday, January 14 2007 at The Music Mill - Doors: 7:30pm, Show: 8:30
Tickets:$16.00 in advance, $18.00 day of show

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Field Music

Here are a couple new songs from Field Music's new album Tones Of Town. The album comes out in the US on February 20th, 2007 on Memphis Industries. Field Music's MySpace.

Field Music - Sit Tight
Field Music - Give It, Lose It, Take It

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AXE Goes Indie

Everybody knows indie is the new mainstream. AXE Shower Gel is going indie too. They've created the AXE Recovery Room to tie in with their new shower gel. It features hangover songs to aid you on the tough days after the good nights.

They asked me to share with them a good hangover song and I contributed Ben Kweller's Wasted And Ready, but they didn't use it. I think they already had some others songs in mind which you can hear within their Recovery Mix at the site. You'll have to give your email address to do so though. I'm not sure if you can download it or not. If you check it, you can tell me.

Ben Kweller - Wasted & Ready

I've actually always liked those AXE Body Spray commercials where hot coeds tackle some guy and each other. I've never actually smelled the stuff though, but hey, appealing to my sex drive, my fantasies and my ego? Winna winna, chicken dinna.

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Beck on Beck Contest

GvB just ran this contest and announced a winner a bit ago, so MOKB will offer you another chance to win. Beck Wheeler, a Melbourne based artist, has created a handful of custom designed toys and, of course, they've been tied to Beck, the music artist, to help promote his 2006 album The Information - one of my favorite albums this year. You can win both the toy and a copy of Beck's The Information.

We'll just follow Chris' lead and have you leave your favorite Beck song AND your favorite toy in the comments. We'll pick one winner randomly some time next week.

Beck - Nausea

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Editors Remix EP : Bonus Remix Track

The Editors are making a cash grab with their new remix EP. They've made a new remix, not on the EP, available to help get the word out. Camera is remixed by Rubber Bullets, who is DJ Dave Nada and Ris Richards who are from the Baltimore/DC area.

Editors - Camera (Rubber Bullets Remix)
Editors - All Sparks (Phones Remix)

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Archaeology

Thug Factory is a new label and the first signing is Chicago band Archaeology. The first full-length offering is entitled Chant Chant Camp. Archaeology has been dubbed math-rock, but I'm not really even smart enough to know what that means. Wiki says it refers to "complex, atypical rhythmic structures, stop/start dynamics and angular, dissonant riffs." OK, we're all smarter now. At least I am. So this, post-punk/rock driving, yet echoing and atmospheric guitars and precision drumming crossed with dub-inspired grooves will give you Archaeology's sound. These guys are obviously talented and technical musicians, so if these songs are any indication, the band and new label are off to a pretty great start.


Archaeology - Abricka Bradaptah (higher rec)
Archaeology - Water In The Boat

Buy Archaeology's Chant Chant Camp. Archaeology's MySpace.

Noms...

Well, Conner & Nathaniel's lead looks insurmountable in the vote for the 2006 Weblog Best Music Blog race, but voting ends this Friday and if you like me more than those twiggy bastards, go vote. I'm just kidding about the twiggy bastards part...they're actually just a-holes. I keed! I keed!

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Best Gift of 2006 : The Sex, The City, The Music

Petrol Records is releasing a 15-disc set in which each CD represents a different "hot and sexy" city of the world. I almost choked myself with laughter when I read this to MJ in my sexiest voice...

"A journey like no other, this music compilation series with its jet set style, pure sex appeal and sultry sounds will romance and dance you through the hottest and most happening cities our world has to offer! Paris, Istanbul, New York, Shanghai, Las Vegas, St. Tropez, Mexico City, Moscow, Barcelona, Tokyo, Berlin - these cities are the hubs of the universe that bring us the height of fashion, sex and most importantly music that soothes your soul and fills your mind with a freedom that only swinging from a chandelier can offer!

Just some of their influences in putting together the music for The City Series: "Momentary Desires, High Fashion, Individuality, Modernity, Pin-up girls, Love at the lights, Calamity, Pole Dancing, Strangers in the night, The moment between thunder and lightning, Soft Porn, Palm trees, Manolo Blahniks, Pumas, pedicures, Private jets, Attitude, Succulent lips and wearing nothing but a Rolex.

Warning: "The City Series is only for the street conscious, trend-savvy, tastemakers that are seeking to explore cutting-edge sounds. Oh yes, you have been warned."

Whoa! Sign me up! Hahahahahahaha! Seriously?! Whooooh...OK, I'm laughing so hard as I re-wrote that (you just will have to imagine my best Christopher Walken "Glass of Sham-pag-na" voice reading it to you). Anyway, the covers are actually pretty damn sexy and most importantly, they do back up the shizz they're spreading. These discs are full of music from artist, mostly native to these cities/countries, who I have never heard of, even the New York and Las Vegas discs. MF Doom and Spank Rock may be the most notable ones I recognized, but this lack of obvious artists was a plus not a minus for sure.

The CD booklets feature the "hotspots" each city has to offer, from boutique hotels and the best places to grab a drink.

By themselves, the discs aren't cheap, running $30 a piece. I believe you can get 5 discs for $50 though right now at Petrol. The entire set runs for $150.

I guess the rips were bad, so I've re-ripped & re-upped:

King Geedorah ft. MF Doom & Mr. Fantastik - Anti-Matter (from the New York disc) (highest rec!)
Oneself - Bluebird (from the New York disc)
Gaudi ft. Ojos De Brujo - Babylon Flamenco (from the Barcelona disc)

What are you asking for this Chrismahanukwanzakah season?

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NFL Week 14

Pittsburgh 27, Cleveland 7

I don't like these Thursday night games. I'm sorry, but Thursday is the best night of television and I don't need one more thing messing with my TV show decision making. Willie Parker, despite a fumble, ran all over Cleveland and put together a 223 yard showing with a touchdown. Parker is the first player in Steelers history to have two 200-yard games in a season. Ben Roethcheesburger threw for a touch and ran one in as well. Cleveland has only managed one touchdown in it's last two games. Derek Anderson made his first NFL start in place of the injured Charlie Frye, but only mustered a 45-yard TD pass to Braylon Edwards at the end of the game to help Cleveland avoid their second shutout loss.

Des Ark - Lord Of The Rings

Tennessee 26, Houston 20, OT

Vince Young returned home to Texas and showed the Texans what they were missing out on. Young ran for a 39-yard touchdown in overtime to give the Titan the win over Houston. It was the Titans third straight comeback victory and fourth win in a row.

"You don't say it's personal, but this was kind of personal because the team went out and went against everyone and got the defensive player (in the draft)," said Texans defensive end N.D. Kalu. "This was our chance to prove to the city that we made the right choice."

Vince has twice showed the Texans that maybe they didn't.

Eric Bachmann - Lonesome Warrior

Philadelphia 21, Washington 19

Jeff Garcia is making Philly fans think "Donavan who?". OK, probably not, but he's filling in quite nicely. Garcia managed the game well and threw two more touchdown passes this week. Garcia got some help this week from his defensive mates. Rookie linebacker Omar Gaither got his first interception, Michael Lewis returned an interception 84 yards for a touchdown, and Brian Dawkins made a crucial fourth-quarter sack. The Eagles are now a game above .500 at 7-6 and tied with Atlanta and the Giants for the NFC's two wild-card spots.

Calla - Bronson

Cincinnati 27, Oakland 10

According to Chad Johnson, Cincinnati is "peaking". Great, they play the Colts this coming week. Anyhoo, Carson Palmer threw two touchdown passes. Rudi Johnson ran for two to go along with his 117 rushing yards, and both Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh had over 100 yards receiving. The Bengals have rebounded from their 4-5 start to now be 8-5 and looking good heading into the crunch-time stretch. The Raiders are battling it out for worst in the league with the Lions in the Brady Quinn race for first overall pick.

The Saturdays - Comb Over

NY Giants 27, Carolina 13

Chris Weinke threw for 423 yards this week, but only one touchdown. He was picked off three times this game. 423 yards is solid, but did anyone even know this guy was still in the league? How is he starting a game? Carolina had no running game. Their leading rusher only managed 23 yards. For the Giants, Eli Manning threw three TDs and Tiki Barber ran for 112 yards. Their efforts helped put the Giants over and back into the playoff hunt.

Pinebender - Polly Gray

Miami 21, New England 0

Man, Tom Brady and the Patriots blanked?! Nick Saban has turned these Dolphins around for sure. The Miami defense sacked Tom Brady four times, forced him to fumble twice and limited him to just 78 yards passing. New England only managed totaltwelve first downs and 189 yards, both season lows. Three lost three fumbles, giving them 11 turnovers in the past three games, and nine penalties didn't help matters either. Key stat: Brady fell to 7-5 against the Dolphins, compared with 70-20 against the rest of the NFL. This was the Patriots first road loss this season. They still lead their division by two games, but fall back in the overall AFC race for a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Subjects - I Could Never Tune

Minnesota 30, Detroit 20

University of Kentucky represented in this one. Former UK and Lions running back Artose Pinner rack up three touchdowns and 125 yards rushing to help get the win against his former team whom he was cut by only a short three months ago. The Lions, now 2-11, are still in prime position for the number one overall pick in the 2007 NFL and will surely take Brady Quinn as well, if they can. The Lions present quarterback, John Kitna, was 28-of-41 for 294 yards with a TD, three interceptions and a fumble. Kitna entered the game tied for the NFL lead with 22 turnovers.

Cursive - Bad Sects

Jacksonville 44, Indianapolis 17



Oh the humanity! Humiliation, embarrassment, total debachal. Those were just a few of the things I was thinking and feeling while I was sitting in the bar watching every Jacksonville running back plow over, around and through the Colts defense. The Colts have been exposed and no way they win against any team with a bigger offensive line and a great running back. L.T. and the Chargers, if the Colts make it that far, will seriously humiliate the Colts if drastic changes aren't made. Those changes don't seem possible because the problem is with the personel. The Colts are too small to condend with big running teams.

Fred Taylor ran for 131 yards and a touchdown. Maurice Jones-Drew ran for 166 yards and two touchdowns, and then third-stringer Alvin Pearman came in and ran for 71 yards and a touchdown. The Jags totalled 375 yards rushing as a team against the Colts! On the bright side, Indianapolis receiver Marvin Harrison became the fourth player in NFL history with 1,000 receptions. He joins only Jerry Rice, Tim Brown and Cris Carter.

Besnard Lakes - And You Lied To Me
Amy Winehouse - Rehab (Hot Chip Remix)

Baltimore 20, Kansas City 10

As usual Larry Johnson showed up for the Chiefs, but that was about it this week. Trent Green threw two interceptions, lost a fumble and was sacked four times. Ed Reed had both interceptions for Baltimore. Key stat: Baltimore is 4-0 when Reed gets at least two interceptions. Steve McNair, who was was 21-for-27 for 283 yards, threw an 87-yard touchdown strike to Mark Clayton, and a 33-yarder to Demetrius Williams.

The Photo Atlas - Handshake Heart Attack

Atlanta 17, Tampa Bay 6



Atlanta suffered some tough losses in this game, but their backups stepped up to the challenge. Fullback Justin Griffith had to step in once Atlanta lost both Warrick Dunn and Jerious Norwood, but the Falcons didn't miss a beat. Griffith jumped in and busted out a 21-yard TD run to end a drive that saw both of those key losses. The Falcons D recovered and fumble and returned it for a touchdown as well. Atlanta had lost four straight but has battled back to win their last two. Vick wasn't particularly stellar. He threw for 155 yards and an interception.

The Hypertonics - Future Shock

Amy Winehouse - You Know I'm No Good (ft. Ghostface Killah)

Green Bay 30, San Francisco 19

The Brett Favre of old decided to show up this week, not the old Brett Favre. Favre tossed a couple TDs and surpassed 3,000 yards passing for the 15th straight season to extend his own NFL record. Frank Gore was again strong for the 49ers, rushing for 130 yards and a touch. Alex Smith was picked twice for the 49ers this game, but did get some help from rookie tight end Vernon Davis. Davis turned a short pass into a late 52-yard touchdown, but San Francisco lost again - three straigh now.

Cursive - Dorthy At Forty

Arizona 27, Seattle 21

Seattle could've locked up the NFC West this week, but let it slip away. Matt Hasselbeck threw three touchdown passes, but Seattle also lost three of their four fumbles and that's gonna kill you every time. Edgerrin James is starting to look like The Edge of old, again rushing for over 100 yards. Matt Leinart is getting better each week. He threw two touchdowns to only one interception.

Buffalo 31, NY Jets 13

J.P. Losman ain't pretty, but he's getting the job done. This week, he got it done well. Losman only amassed 157 yard passing, and half of those came on one play - a 77-yard TD strike to Lee Evans, but he threw two touchdowns and managed the game well. The Bills defense added a touchdown to help the effort, intercepting a Chad Pennington pass and returning it for a touchdown. Willis McGahee also busted loose a 57-yard touchdown run to help the Bills to victory. The Bills are only one game below .500 now and still in the mix for the AFC Wild Card playoff race.

Kama Aina - Hotaru

San Diego 48, Denver 20



Shanahan might have thrown away any hope Denver had to reach the playoffs this year, but no one really believed they had a shot in this game anyway. Broncos rookie QB Jay Cutler didn't play badly in this game, in fact he threw two touchdowns and no interceptions. But, in the world of pro football, LaDainian Tomlinson is the way, the truth and the light. In my opinion, and I never saw Jim Brown play in person, but I did watch Barry Sanders, and L.T. is better than both. L.T. broke the single season touchdown mark by putting the ball in the endzone three times this week.

The Editors - All Sparks (Phones Remix)

New Orleans 42, Dallas 17

Wow. At least the Colts weren't the only front-runner that was dismantled this week. Drew Brees threw for 384 yards and five touchdowns and helped his coach beat his former boss and mentor. Saints coach Sean Payton wanted this win bad and his troops knew it. Payton pulled out all the stops and help lead coach his guys into sole possession of the second-best record in the NFC. Reverses on fourth down, onside kicks, everything was working for the Saints. Cowboys QB, Tony Romo finally struggled, throwing two picks to only one touchdown.

Terry Diabolik - And I'm Feeling Good Mix

Chicago 42, St. Louis 27

Bears rookie Devin Hester set a league record with his fifth return for a TD. I didn't see much of this game last night, so you'll have to forgive. Maybe you guys can give me the update. Obviously the Bears dominated and St. Louis continues to faulter. How did Rex look? 13-20 for 200 yards and two scores. Marc Bulger finished 34-for-55 for 356 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Steven Jackson, the NFC leader in yards from scrimmage, gained 139 against Chicago, giving him 1,789 for the season.

Joemca - Strangers

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MOKB on SIRIUS : Bumped to next week : 12/21

MOKB is set to join Gorilla Vs. Bear, Brooklyn Vegan & Productshop NYC as the next blog in SIRIUS Satellite Radio's Blog Radio series. MOKB was all set to debut this Thursday 12/14, but due to some production backups I've been bumped to start next week 12/21. Sorry to those that had their hopes of hearing the show this week dashed, but don't worry, the 21st isn't that far away!



I'll be interviewing The Black Keys this weekend, so be sure to tune in on the 28th as well for that interview!

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The Mooney Suzuki - The Maximum Black EP

Not too long ago V2 rereleased The Mooney Susuki's rare/out-of-print Black EP. I don't ever claim to be an expert and one of the perks of this deal is discovering great music from the past that I missed out on the first time around. This is one of those great cases-in-point.

I popped this sucker in yesterday and MJ and I were rocking out to it all day long. Retitled The Maximum Black EP it has been reissued with five previously unreleased tracks from the original sessions.

It's classic garage mod-punk rock that pulls from the 60's and it has a great frantic yet controlled feeling. Loose, but not so wild you lose it. Buy it now.

The Mooney Suzuki - Half Of My Heart
The Mooney Suzuki - I Can Only Give You Everything

Thank You!

USA Today's Pop Candy Top 100 People of 2006. I made #92!

Grammy Nominations:

Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Raconteurs, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan and Neil Young earned nominations in the Rock Field. Vying for Best Rock Album are the John Mayer Trio's Try!; Tom Petty's Highway Companion; the Raconteurs' Broken Boy Soldiers; Red Hot Chili Peppers' Stadium Arcadium; and Neil Young's Living With War. Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal nominees are Coldplay with "Talk," the Fray for "How To Save A Life," the Raconteurs for "Steady, As She Goes," Red Hot Chili Peppers for "Dani California" and U2 & Green Day for "The Saints Are Coming." And Best Rock Solo Vocal Performance nominees are Beck ("Nausea"), Bob Dylan ("Someday Baby"), John Mayer ("Route 66"), Tom Petty ("Saving Grace") and Neil Young ("Lookin' For A Leader").

In the Rap Field, Missy Elliott competes with male rappers in the Best Rap Solo Performance category with "We Run This." Other nominations in this category are "Touch It" by Busta Rhymes, "Kick, Push" by Lupe Fiasco, "Undeniable" by Mos Def and "What You Know" by T.I. In the Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, nominations go to Akon featuring Eminem ("Smack That"), Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z ("Deja Vu"), Eminem featuring Nate Dogg ("Shake That"), Jamie Foxx featuring Ludacris ("Unpredictable") and Justin Timberlake featuring T.I. ("My Love").

Borat earned a spot on the qualifiers' list with its mock national anthem "O Kazakhstan."

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Best EPs of 2006

1. Devotchka - Curse Your Little Heart
You can find DeVotchKa at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
DeVotchKa - Curse Your Little Heart



2. Tacks, The Boy Disaster - Oh, Beatrice
Tacks, The Boy Disaster - Frozen Feet




3. Voxtrot - Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives
You can find Voxtrot at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Voxtrot - Mothers, Sisters, Daughters & Wives



4. Scissors For Lefty - S/T EP
You can find Scissors For Lefty at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Scissors For Lefty - Ghetto Ways
Scissors For Lefty - Christmas Intentions Mix


5. Klaxons - Xan Valleys
You can find the Klaxon's Xan Valleys at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Klaxons - Gravity's Rainbow (YouTube)
Klaxons - Atlantis To Interzone (YouTube)


6. The Black Keys - Chulahoma: The Songs Of Junior Kimbrough
You can find The Black Keys at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
The Black Keys - Meet Me In The City


7. Beach House - S/T
You can find Beach House at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Beach House - Master Of None



8. Early Day Miners - Offshore
You can find Early Day Miners at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Early Day Miners - Return Of The Native


9. Gillemots - From The Cliffs
Guillemots - Trains To Brazil




10. The Mountain Goats - Babylon Springs
You can find The Mountain Goats at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.



11. Matt Bauer - Wasps & White Roses
You can find Matt Bauer at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Matt Bauer - Carve It Out (ft. Jolie Holland)



12. Cold War Kids - Up In Rags
You can find Cold War Kids at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Cold War Kids - Hang Me Up To Dry



13. Voxtrot - Your Biggest Fan
You can find Voxtrot at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
Voxtrot -- Trouble



14. Robbers On High Street - The Fatalist & Friends
Robbers On High Street - The Fatalist




15. The Books - Music For A French Elevator and Other Short Format Oddities
You can find The Books at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.




16. The Little Ones - Sing Song
You can find The Little Ones and Sing Song at eMusic and get 25 Free MP3s.
The Little Ones - Cha Cha Cha



Because It Would Be Cool To Kick Scott & Amrit's Asses:

1. For the 2006 Weblog Awards. MOKB is a nominee, but vote for your favorite.
2. Voting for The Plug Awards is still open as well. MOKB is also an nominee with a bunch of other amazing blogs .
3. MOKB is nominated for a FreeIndie.com Award.

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The Ponys & Kill Rock Stars Winter Holiday Album

Chicago band, The Ponys will have a new release, called Turn The Lights Out, on Matador this coming year. They've already made a song available to get wet my lips with anticipation. The album will be released March 20th, 2007.

The Ponys - Double Vision

Kill Rock Stars Winter Holiday Album

Here's a holiday album to keep the good times rolling. Kill Rock Stars is a great label, full of great artists. Other than the three below, MOKB fav Thao Nyguyen makes an appearnce as well.

The Robot Ate Me - Wonderland
Imaad Wasif - The New Year
Mary Timony Band - Hapi Holidaze

from "Kill Rock Stars Winter Holiday Album"
by Various Artists. Buy This Album

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Daniel Hutchens : Love Songs For Losers

Well, collusion can be called here, but once you're past that, you should give it a listen. Great friend of and to MOKB, and hopefully you too, Justin Gage aka Aquarium Drunkard, started a record label last year called Autumn Tone. His first signing was Daniel Hutchens and the newest release is Love Songs For Losers. I was snagged when I saw Hutchens had a song called Red Velvet Cake. If you ever want to endear yourself to my family, red velvet cake is the way to go. A staple at just about every birthday. It's always been Pops' favorite and has seeped down the lineage to his boys. Momma makes a killer red velvet cake.

You can buy the new release here. Daniel Hutchens' MySpace.

Daniel Hutchens - Red Velvet Cake
Daniel Hutchens - Blood From The Rock

Daniel Hutchens’ tales of southern gothic noir continue to unfurl on this, his second collection of solo material apart from his long-running work with Athens, GA rock & roll stalwarts, Bloodkin. Drawing from the same well as the likes of Flannery O’Connor and William Faulkner, Hutchens grasps the duality of the American South and it’s denizens -- the good, the bad and the ugly. His sixth LP working with veteran producer David Barbe (Drive By Truckers/Son Volt), “Love Songs For Losers” opens itself up a little more with each listen exposing the undertones of a larger story. - From Autumn Tone

Voting Is Open:

For the 2006 Weblog Awards. MOKB is a nominee, but vote for your favorite.

Voting for The Plug Awards is still open as well. MOKB is also an nominee with a bunch of other amazing blogs and like Chris says, be sure to vote for SIRIUS' Blog Radio. MOKB will be joining SIRIUS Blog Radio, with it's own continuing show, next week on December 14th. More to come on that next week.

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Munch Munch

Give a kid a laptop and they can be a superstar...or at least get featured on a music blog. Munch Munch is a band from Bristol, UK made up of Thomas Carrell and Richard Manber. They make lo-fi bedroom recordings with all sorts of instruments and, as mentioned, their laptop. They both play keyboards, ukulele, drums, percussion, melodica, glock, and contribute vocally.

They say they are influenced by the day, the night, Enya, Deerhoof, Man Man, Liars, The Microphones, Magnetic Fields, My Bloody Valentine, Animal Collective, Black Eyes, Gang Gang Dance and Cocteau Twins.

If you like some of the more off-kilter, you may find this appeals to your tastes.

Thomas is also in a "freakoid shit-polka collective" called Adelina Poerio, and Richard is also in a "pseudo copy-cat hair metal outfit" called Go! Team! Go!

Munch Munch - Meetings With Remar...(?)
Munch Munch - Grrrrrrrrrl
Munch Munch - Flash Bang Microwave Story
Munch Munch - Jesus Sex Party
Munch Munch - Celebrity Engine

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The Best Rap/Hip-Hop of 2006

Oh the slippery slope of ranking rap & hip-hop on indie music blogs. Not that I totally consider MOKB an indie music blog though. Well, these are the rap/hip-hop albums I listened to and liked most this year. You may not agree and that's a-okay with me. Please feel free to point me towards others. In fact I encourage and appreciate it.

Here is the listing. Reminder: DJ albums will have their own list later in the week. DERT's Sometimes I Rhyme Slow maybe should have been on that list, but whatever. You can see the album covers, with other's ratings and a track or two from each below it...

1. Clipse - Hell Hath No Fury
2. The Roots - Game Theory
3. Ghostface - Fishscale
4. T.I. - King
5. Cadence Weapon - Breaking Kayfabe
6. Hi-Tek - Hi-Teknology Vol. 2: The Chip
7. Birdman & Lil' Wayne - Like Father, Like Son
8. Rhymefest - Blue Collar
9. The Coup - Pick A Bigger Weapon
10. The Game - Doctor's Advocate
11. J Dilla - Donuts
12. Mr. Lif - Mo'Mega
13. DERT - Sometimes I Rhyme Slow
14. Masta Killa - Made In Brooklyn
15. Jedi Mind Tricks - Servants In Heaven, Kings In Hell
16. OutKast - Idlewild
17. Ghostface - More Fish
18. 7L & Esoteric - A New Dope
19. Apathy - Eastern Philosophy

Reviewer's Note: I haven't yet listened to Lil' Wayne & DJ Drama's Dedication Mixtape 2 or the new Lupe Fiasco (as mentioned in the initial comments), but I hear they're great and should be high on everyone's lists. I'll be checking into them.

Also, Spank Rock should be in there somewhere. I just plain forgot about him when I was putting this list together.

Clipse - Hell Hath No Fury
P'Fork Rating: 9.1
Stylus Grade: A-

Clipse - Keys Open Door




The Roots - Game Theory
P'Fork Rating: 7.7
Stylus Grade: A

The Roots - Game Theory (ft. Malik)




Ghostface - Fishscale
P'Fork Rating: 9.0
Stylus Grade: A-

Ghostface Killah - Shakey Dog



T.I. - King
P'Fork Rating: 8.4
Stylus Grade: B+

T.I. - What You Know




Cadence Weapon - Breaking Kayfabe
P'Fork Rating: 8.0
Stylus Grade: B

Cadence Weapon - Black Hand



Hi-Tek - Hi-Teknology, Vol. 2: The Chip
P'Fork Rating: 6.8

Hi-Tek - Music For Life (ft. J. Dilla, Nas, Common, Busta Rhymes & Marsha Ambrossius of Floetry)
Hi-Tek - Josephine (ft. Ghostface, Pretty Ugly & The Willie Cottrell Band)



Birdman & Lil' Wayne - Like Father, Like Son
Stylus Grade: C

Birdman & Lil' Wayne - Over Here Hustlin'




Rhymefest - Blue Collar
P'Fork Rating: 8.0
Stylus Grade: B

Rhymefest - Brand New (ft. Kanye West)



The Coup - Pick A Bigger Weapon
P'Fork Rating: 7.9
Stylus Grade: C

The Coup - My Favorite Mutiny (ft. Black Thought & Talib Kweli)



The Game - Doctor's Advocate
P'Fork Rating: 8.1
Stylus Grade: B+

The Game - Doctor's Advocate (ft. Busta Rhymes)



J.Dilla - Donuts
P'Fork Rating: 7.9
Stylus Grade: B

J Dilla - Workonit



Mr. Lif - Mo' Mega
P'Fork Rating: 7.9

Mr. Lif - Mo' Mega (ft. Akrobatik & Blueprint)




DERT - Sometimes I Rhyme Slow

DERT - 2 Words/Slow Moves (Kanye West/Jose Gonzalez Mix)




Masta Killa - Made In Brooklyn
P'Fork Rating: 7.2
Stylus Grade: C

Masta Killa - It Is What It Is



Jedi Mind Tricks - Servants In Heaven, Kings In Hell
P'Fork track review of Razorblade Salvation

Jedi Mind Tricks - Put Em In The Grave




OutKast - Idlewild
P'fork Rating: 6.7
Stylus Grade: C

OutKast - PJ & The Rooster



Ghostface - More Fish

Ghostface Killah - Outta Town Shit





7L & Esoteric - A New Dope

7L & Esoteric - Daisycutta (ft. Kool Kieth)





Apathy - Eastern Philosophy









Horn Tootin': Weblog Awards & Plug Awards:

MOKB nominated for a 2006 Weblog Award
MOKB nominated for a 2006 Plug Award

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The Best Television Soundtracks Of 2006

So, I've decided to break this year's Best Of's into categories. We'll start small and work our way to the year-end Best of Indie Pop/Rock/Folk list. We'll give Rap/Hip-Hop it's own list this year as well as Dance/Electronica/DJ. We'll also touch on EPs, Live Albums and Best Ofs.

The best television compilation this year has to be The O.C. Mix Vol. 6. I mean, you know I heart covers, so I have a predisposition to this comp anyway. This is a great album though and it's not often you get a so many modern artists covering modern songs in one place at once. Buy it here.

For the counterpoint, Pitchfork absolutely hated this album. 1.8

Spoon - I Turn My Camera On
Rock Kills Kid - I Turn My Camera On

Runners Up:

Rescue Me
Weeds Vol. 2
The L Word Season 3 Soundtrack
Grey's Anatomy Vol. 2
Scrubs: Original Soundtrack Vol. 2
One Tree Hill Vol. 2

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What I Was Listening To 5 Years Ago

Preston School of Industry - All This Sounds Gas - 2001 - Released on Matador Records



In 1999, in the wake of the end of Pavement, Scott Kannberg (a.k.a. Sprial Stairs) formed Preston School of Industry. I was never a huge Pavement buff, only recently have I started really delving into their albums with any conviction. I did, however, pick up All This Sounds Gas, off Napster or Morpheus honestly, at the recommendation of a friend from college.

The album is said to be comprised of the songs that were rejected by Pavement on their final album, Terror Twilight. My memory of All This Sounds Gas was jogged when I recently borrowed a small crate of Pavement albums from my buddy B.Chaps. The Japanese import version of All This Sounds Gas, with bonus tracks I hadn't heard was shoved in with the others.

Kannberg and friends released a second album, Monsoon, in 2004, but I've yet to pick that up. Any good? Apparently they are recording new material, but no release is planned in the near future.

Preston School of Industry - Falling Away
Preston School of Industry - Whalebones

Tech:

It will probably be impossible (based on the fact that I hate how any other controller feels) to get me away from the PlayStation 2 or 3 to convert to an XBOX 360 or Nintendo Wii, but I'm down with Wii. A video game system that gets the kids off their overfed, overhormoned, overstimulated asses and forcing some physical activity. A-Okay with me. When my kid is old enough to waste too much life away in front of a TV playing video games, the equivalent of this system at the time will be the only one I allow. The end of this Wii video makes me laugh.

In The Blogs:

Best Blogs you may not know about - Congrats to Whitney! I agree.

Top 10 Albums you never listen too at Floodwatch Music.

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NFL Week 13

Cincinnati 13, Baltimore 7

Houshamazilli ("Championship!" - Sorry, that just doesn't get old for me.) came up big on a 40-yard flea flicker trick play and helped get the Bengals back into their divisional playoff mix. The Bengals O did just enough against the tough Baltimore D and the Bengals defense has also been pretty great of late. They've allowed only seven points in their last two games. Baltimore better be able to generate more offense against teams like the Bengals, Chargers & Colts or they won't make it far in the AFC playoffs. Added note: Another Bengal is in trouble with the law. Cincinnati rookie receiver, and former Texas A&M QB, Reggie McNeal was arrested for causing some ruckus after he was denied entry to a Houston nightclub on Sunday. I believe he is the seventh (!) Bengal to run into trouble with the law this season.

Sloan - Who Taught You To Live Like That

Chicago 23, Minnesota 13

Devin Hester punt return for TD. Bears clinched the NFC North and a playoff spot. Grossman threw three interceptions again. He said postgame that he's thinking too much. I'm thinking too much about kicking him off my fantasy football team...time to stop thinking and act. Grossman...OUT! Lovie Smith says he won't ditch Rex though. Man, to be 10-2 with a QB that throws only interceptions now? That's one hell of a defense.

The Trucks - Titties

New England 28, Detroit 21

Dillon had three TDs and I had him on the fantasy bench. Lions led for much of this game, but let it slip away again. The Lions turned the ball over every time during their last three drives of the game. Both Tom Brady and John Kitna threw for over 300 yards, but both turned the ball over more than they scored with it. Underrated WR of the year might be the Lions' Mike Furrey though. The kid has had a pretty solid season on a team already filled with wide receivers who were supposed to be better than he. Asante Samuel, of the Patriots, had another interception this game, his seventh of the year, and his fourth in the last two games!

Andy Partridge - Sonic Boom

Arizona 34, St. Louis 20



Marcel Shipp had 3 rushing TDs for Arizona. Edge who? Actually, Edge pulled 115 rushing yards as well. St. Louis has had their train derail in recent weeks, and look to be quickly falling out of the playoff hunt. Marc Bulger is pissed! That's pretty funny actually. Can you see Bulger pissed? He looks like your geeky next door neighbor. How is this guy a pro QB? He looks like an accountant or something else geeky. He's geeky, sorry. No offense accountants - be happy, you look like a pro QB. Bulger called some of his teammates out after the loss saying some of them just don't care.

The Earlies - No Love In Your Heart

NY Jets 38, Green Bay 10

Penny continued on his success last week and the Jets roll to another win. I know everyone in Green Bay want Favre to return. Hell, I want Favre to return, but not this Favre. This guys is old and throws as many interceptions as Rex Grossman. I know he'd old in reality, but he's lost that thing that makes old guys fun to watch. That savvy veteran know-how that pulls victory out of the shitter when all looks lost. Seriously, as long as Brett is at the helm in Green Bay, all is lost.

Antlers - It Seems Easy

Dallas 23, NY Giants 20

Gramatica hits the game winner after missing his first attempt of the game. Dallas wins. Jerry Jones thought Vanderjerk couldn't come through in the clutch, so he brought in Gramatica. He looks like a genius this week. Tony Romo was again big during clutch time and the love fest continues. National media can't get enough of Tony Romo. Dallas has two strong running back in Jones and Barber as well. Marion Barber is finishing the games as the clutch back for Dallas. Michael Strahan couldn't go for this game, but Eli Manning and Jeremy Shockey played well. Four personal foul penalties in this game also really hurt the Giants.

Luz Mob - The Selecter

Tennessee 20, Indianapolis 17

Colts lose again. Turnovers and poor tackling led to their demise. Marvin Harrison had a big day, but he's turned the ball over each of the last three weeks I think. Colts can't hang their heads too low on this one though. Rob Bironas hit a 60-yard field goal with only seconds remaining to give the Titans the win. Vince Young again proves me wrong as he frustrated the Colts D all day, running and passing for first down conversions on third and long.

The Ponys - Double Vision

New Orleans 34, San Francisco 10

Reggie Bush, with his parents on hand to watch, had 4 TDs for the Saints and finally showed, for a full game, why he should have been the overall number one pick in this year's draft. Drew Brees took the day off, tossing only one TD pass to Reggie Bush of course, and 49er QB Alex Smith threw three picks to help the Saints stay on top in the NFC South. Bush said after the game that his motivation was that his former teammates at USC had choked away their chance of playing for the national championship the night before so he wanted to take his anger out on the 49ers.

Serengeti - Lineage

Atlanta 24, Washington 14

Mike Vick got the ship turned around on the road this weekend. He said in the postgame interviews that they know they have the talent, but they must have the consistancy from the entire team in order to have any hope. Vick called a team meeting, a "pep rally" he called it, to get everyone on the same page going into this game. The Falcons got big days from both Warrick Dunn and rookie running back Jerious Norwood. They even got their first interception in the last seven games to help put them over. They're still in the mix in a tough division.

Seán O'Donnell - Mr. Miyagi's Hoedown At The Pigfarm

San Diego 24, Buffalo 21

LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 178 yard and two TDs. L.T. needs only three more touchdowns to become the record holder for most touchdowns in a single season. At this pace he'll shatter the mark. The Chargers are now tied with the Colts for top seed in the AFC. ESPN's analylsts are spooging over each other to pick the Chargers to win the Super Bowl now. The Bills were game this weekend in seriously adverse game conditions. They are a team on the rise of J.P. Losman can be consistant. He threw two TDs, but also detracted from them with two interceptions. The Bills mustered no running game against San Diego's stout run defense.

Haiku - Public Announcement

Cleveland 31, Kansas City 28, OT



Seldom has there been a week where Pops is happy and I'm not. Charlie Frye is out with a broken right wrist, which also made Pops happy. Backup QB, Derek Anderson led the Browns on the game-winning drive in overtime. Before this Anderson threw two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to tight end Steve Heiden to take the game into OT. This kid has some wheels actually for a QB as well. He scrambled 33 yards to set up the game winning field goal kick. KC put up some huge numbers though in this game. Green threw four TD passes, L.J. rushed for 110 yards, Tony Gonzalez caught 105 yards and two TDs and Eddie Kennison had 117 receiving yards and a TD as well.

The Ladybug Transistor - Splendor In The Grass

Jacksonville 24, Miami 10

Even with a Colts loss, all Indianapolis needed to clinch the AFC South was a Jacksonville loss. No such luck. David Garrard managed two passing TDs and that is pretty much guaranteed to be more than Joey Harrington and the Miami offense is going to be able to generate. Jacksonville took away the Dolphins' running game and made Joey win the game for Miami. We all know that wasn't going to happen. Jacksonville snapped Miami's four game winning streak and stay in the mix for the AFC Wild Card.

Antlers - Keys

Houston 23, Oakland 14

The Texans became the first team in 25 years to win a game with negative yards passing. How does that happen?! Carr looked good last week and lost, but looked horrific this week and won. The Raiders turned the ball over five different times and their kicker, Sebastian "Fatty" Janikowski, missed three field goals. In his defense, he sat out practice all week with a bad back. Carr and his O-line tried to give this one away though. In the first half, the Houston QB had a run of three straight offensive series where he was sacked and fumbled the ball. Carr lost the first two fumbles, including one returned 35 yards for a score by Kirk Morrison.

The Early Years - All Ones & Zeros

Pittsburgh 20, Tampa Bay 3

Pittsburg busted up Bucs QB Bruce Gradkowski. They forced him to throw three picks and recovered a fumble. The Bucs couldn't run or pass, so Ben Rothsleezbooger didn't have to do much to help the Steelers get the win. Added Note: The Steelers cut Duce Staley loose finally. A humane thing to do actually because the running back will probably be picked up by a playoff team to help out in the postseason. There is probably still a bit of life left in those legs.

Martin Sexton - Holly Jolly Christmas

Seattle 23, Denver 20



How many games can Josh Brown win for the Seahawks?! Jay Cutler looked like exactly what he is in his first NFL start, a rookie. Cutler completed less that half of his passes, threw two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions. Denver ran well. Tatum Bell amassed 133 yards, but Jay Cutler was supposed to provide the deep ball for Denver and that just didn't happen. The offense seemed to struggle despite the change at quarterback. Good news is, this was Cutler's first start, so he'll get better. He's a native Hoosier and went to an SEC school, so I'm pulling for him.

Rafter - Encouragement

Philadelphia 27, Carolina 24



Carolina loses a step in the playoff hunt with this loss. Jake Delhomme threw three touchdowns, but also threw two key picks. He knew it too, as soon as the ball left his hands on one of them. His job is in serious jeopardy. If Carolina had a backup or young talent worth a damn, you can bet they'd be starting him. They don't, so expect them to draft one or bring in a veteran to compete with Jake at the start of next season. Jake pretty much started bawling in the postgame press conference. Big baby, suck it up! Jeff Garcia, on the other hand, looked great. He threw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns. Oh yeah, MeShawn Johnson? Still an A-HOLE.

Jay Bennett - Replace You

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AOL The Interface with Mojave 3

I forgot to mention that Neil Halstead of Mojave 3 dropped by AOL's The Interface this past week. He performed Who Do You Love, Trying To Reach You, Hummingbird Song (Most Days), High, Low and In Between and Puzzles Like You

Download the Podcast

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Phil & The Osophers

Phil & The Osophers is actually a solo artist from Brooklyn, NY and has been writing songs for about 5 years now. Phil considers his songs to be in indie-pop or folk rock, but his best interpretation of them he classifies as "foreign americana". He just self-released a new album, his fourth, entitled French Tickle. Phil just recently played the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City and finished a small European tour. If you like this you can find more here or at Phil & The Osophers' MySpace.

Phil & The Osophers - Pretend Psalm

Reminder:

You can buy each of the EPs from Bishop Allen's year-long monthly EP project. If you don't want to, you can still get ten free mp3s.

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Sparklehorse - Dreamt For Light Years In The Belly Of A Mountain

One album I haven't mentioned yet this year that is sure to end up pretty high in my and hopefully other's year end lists is Sparklehorse's Dreamt For Light Years In The Belly Of A Mountain. The fuzzy melodies have been bringing me joy since this album came out on Capitol in September of this year.

For those unfamiliar, Sparklehorse is mainly singer/songwriter Mark Linkous, a musician filled with as much sadness as beauty. Linkous suffers from a lifelong battle with bipolar disorder, and it's been five years between this album and his last. Linkous revealed that three of these year were mainly speant crying. His music often conveys these feeling in tone and mood but, like his daily life, there is always a sweetness to go along with the sadness. The album is mostly downtempo guitar-driven melodies that pull equally as strong of emotions from the listener as they convey. At times though Linkous reveals the frantic, like in the song It's Not So Hard.

Sparklehorse - Don't Take My Sunshine Away
Sparklehorse - It's Not So Hard

Linkous gets help on this album from Scott Minor, who has also worked with Emily Haines on her latest solo album. Tom Waits fills in on piano on a track and Dangermouse produced the track Mountains and handled some sampling and musical work on Getting It Wrong.

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Ultramagnetic MCs - The Best Kept Secret

Not such a secret anymore I guess. It's actually been known since Kool Keith revealed it in a 2005 interview on a Houston radio show, the Ultramagnetic MCs have reformed and recorded a new album.

Founding Ultramagnetic MCs member Ced Gee set up Factshen Records to release a new Ultramagnetic MCs LP, Back To The Future — The Bronx Kings Are Back. It was scheduled to be released in 2006. It didn't happen, but we now know that The Best Kept Secret is the new effort and is due out January 2007.

It features the original line-up of Kool Keith, Ced Gee, Moe Love, TR Love, plus Tim Dog and newcomer Grafiq Malachi Sebek.

Ultramagnetic MCs - Mechanism Nice (Born Twice)

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The Earlies & Friday Round Up...

The Earlies have a new release on Secretly Canadian entitled The Enemy Chorus coming out in January '07. Early buzz is already going hot and heavy in the blogosphere. This will be their second full-length and I've been digging on it since I received it this week. It's prog heavy, krautrock influenced, which is not normally my style, but this one is hitting all the right notes...The Earlies MySpace.

The Earlies - Enemy Chorus

On The Radio:

The Rosewood Theives played a set at KEXP at the end of October. They covered Bob Dylan's Tonight Ill Be Staying Here With You...

The Rosewood Thieves - Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You (Dylan Cover)

In The Blogs:

One of the best hip-hop albums of 2006 has a sequel. Gorilla Vs. Bear has a track from Ghostface Killah's next effort More Fish. A cool cat was nice enough to send it over to me too. I actually wish Ghostface would've waited until next year to put this out. Sounds like he could've made it better...Is it rushed?

Ghostface - Outta Town Shit (via Idolator)

Happy Girl-On-Girl Friday from Cooter Punch!


In The Mags:

Time Magazine released it's list of the 100 Greatest Albums of all-time. It's not ranked, just broken into decades. Initial thoughts: They are kinda clueless since the turn of the new century and skew more towards their demographic and mainstream radio.

On The Tube:

Silversun Pickups are on David Letterman tonight.
Mute Math is on Jimmy Kimmel tonight.

Possibly Of Note: Stream Nas' Black Republican featuring Jay-Z...

Nas ft. Jay-Z - Black Republican (Windows media high)
Nas ft. Jay-Z - Black Republican (Windows media low)
Nas ft. Jay-Z - Black Republican (Real media high)

Local MFT Shows This Week:

Jorma Whittaker, Resting Rooster, Odawas and Christian Taylor from America Owns The Moon
When: 9:00pm Friday, Dec 1st
Where: Radio Radio
Phone: 955-0995
Address: 1119 Prospect St.
$5. Secretly Canadian artist Jorma Whittaker, formerly of Indy's Marmoset, plays lo-fi bedroom rock. -LB

Everthus the Deadbeats CD Release Party w/ Arrah and the Ferns & The Peggy Sues
When: 7:00pm Saturday, Dec 2nd
Where: Indy CD & Vinyl
Address: 808 Broad Ripple Ave.
Free.

Voltaire, Harley Poe, Everthus the Deadbeats, Everything, Now!, Mason Proper, Kid Primitive
When: 7:00pm Wednesday, Dec 6th
Where: Ball State University Student Center Ballroom
Address: 2000 University Ave.
$8 or free with proof of December blood donation. Goth comedian and singer/songwriter Voltaire performs in the Concert From Hell II: Hell Freezes Over with additional performances by the Blue Monkey Sideshow and Section 8 Circus. This 18 and older gig will continue at Doc’s Music Hall for the after-party with Indy’s Mister E DJ. —LB

Ambullete, Brando, Lying Dying Liars, Hey Hey Melodica!
When: Thursday, Dec 7th
Where: Locals Only
Phone: 255-4013
Address: 2449 E. 56th St.

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