Two Shows Tonight: Mobius Band and Hem

This evening, there are two very cool shows going on in Cleveland that Jose and I will be missing out on (b/c we will be at his parents' lovely Clam Bake), that you definitely should not:

Mobius Band at Cambridge Room at House of Blues
(check their myspace)

Hem at The Beachland Ballroom Tavern
(check their myspace)

Before We Go

Prior to us heading over to see The Science of Sleep, we are enjoying some music (and wine!) we recently discovered.

Here are select tracks from the two lovely *new* bands:

[mp3] Jed and Lucia - Off the Ground
[mp3] The Positions - Back to Me

As for the wine, we happened upon a simple (and somewhat obscure) label displaying: 2003 Sauvignon Blanc Wyatt, very much like this:
We would highly recommend this wine, retailing just under $10 and revealing slight fruit flavors and a clean finish.

it's going down!!

Despite this dreary weather there are some fun things going down in C-town tonight.

Today at the Cedar Lee Theatre (finally) the long awaited, "The Science of Sleep" premieres at 2pm for more info check The Cedar Lee.


Also today marks the fall opening for MOCA here in Cleveland. This event is from 7-11pm, free and open to the public. There will be an open bar (featuring Bacardi and Grey Goose) and hors d'oeuvres with music provided by San Francisco DJ Sabrina Tsang (aka Similak Chyld).



Following the opening at MOCA you can head over to the after party @ The B-Side Liquor Lounge in coventry to check out the sounds of the amazingly talented ?uestlove of The Roots. Cocktails will be provided by Hennessey (with a $5 dollar cover) or you can get it for free with your ticket from the opening.


Lastly if wine is your thing head down to Voinovich Park down by Cleveland Browns Stadium and check out the 1st ever Cleveland Wine Festival. The cost is $20 dollars and their will be plenty of wine from local and national wineries, food from great local restaurants : La Dolce Vita, Fahrenheit, Opa! and Saucy Bistro and music. The festival runs today from 4-10pm and tommorow from 2pm -1opm.

You Forgot It In People

Last night we went to go see the flick "The Last Kiss". We are going to post a review about it later today. We also recently saw "Half Nelson" and we will be giving a few thoughts on that thought film as well. Since I watched Half Nelson I have been on a big Broken Social Scene kick since they have 3 songs on the sidetrack. Only a band with a sound as diverse as Broken Social Scence could fit so well on a sidetrack for a movie like Half Nelson. If you have never seen Broken Social Scene's video for Fire Eye'd Boy you should check it out down below because it is good fun. You can buy the Half Nelson soundtrack here and the poster shown above here.






P.S. a couple of people asked me what was the name of the BSS song from Half Nelson when he was dancing with the girls. (mp3) Stars and Sons - Broken Social Scene

Turn Here

A few weeks ago while killing time on google I discovered the site turnhere.com. Turnhere.com is a site that posts 2 minute films that have been shot by local amateur film makers about cool or unique places in their cities. The aim of this sight is to let people know where is a great neighborhood, the best shopping, dining, nightlife and the best tourists attractions are to be found. Their goal is have a collection of these short films from all over the world. They already have a broad range of films on cities from Reykjavik, Iceland to Memphis, TN to Krakow, Poland and in-between. There are even films up for The Nati and C-bus but no Cleveland. So someone here in C-town needs to get with the program and submit a film for something in Cleveland like Tremont, Ohio City, Coventry or even just The Great Lakes Brewery. We need to show the whole world how we do. The next submission period ends on October 31st.

Mmm, Pumpkin Ale

This evening we are sipping on some delicious Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale that we were first introduced to last night while at La Cav du Vin in Coventry (read Cleveland.com's review of our favorite wine bar here). The taste of this beer is great because isn't too pumpkin-y while allowing other flavors, such as cinnamon and nutmeg, to be revealed. Contrary to what one might think, Buffalo Bill's Brewery isn't located in Buffalo, NY -- it is actually near San Francisco, CA where they run a restaurant and brew a variety of wheat beers, pale ales, lagers, and stouts. If you live or visit northern California, you should definitely pay them a visit -- or look for their beer in your local grocery store.

Lazy Saturday

After a highly entertaining Friday evening, Jose and I are going to take it easy this afternoon. Last night was spent at the So You Think You Can Dress? Fashion Show at the Cleveland Playhouse where this season's trends were on display -- not to mention the delicious mojito's and guacamole! Following the show, we went down to Coventry and were pleasantly surprised to see that Jimmy John's had opened :) As well as American Apparel, finally. . .

After we devoured our Turkey Tom and Vegetarian Subs, we headed over to La Cav and enjoyed a couple drinks with Erin. Although the weather was a little chillier than we would have preferred, we were very happy to be welcomed back in Cleveland with an evening such as this.

For now, I am going to finish getting ready so I can meet Jose for the much anticipated matinee showing of Half Nelson. Hope you all enjoy your weekend!

Tonight!

Come join us this evening while we attend a fashion show hosted by Cleveland's 20/30 Club, focusing on business chic. Click here for more details!

No One Can Hear You Giggle

Tommorow evening if you happen to be in Dublin, Ireland you should definitely head over to the Temple Bar area to check out the very first Dublin Culture Night. Dublin, in effort to share its rich cultural offerings to the public, will have nearly 40 of its best museums, galleries and studios open until 9pm for the public to take advantage of them. One of the events that will be going on in conjunction will be the latest edition of the Fast Forward Ireland short film contest. This contest is run by Andrew McAvinchey (the brother of my brother-in-law, Paul, who is married to my sister, Becky -- this is who Kelly and I were just visiting in Dublin). Paul and Becky will be assisting Andrew with his fast forward Ireland contests. In fact all of us (Kelly, myself, Becky, Paul) were partcipants in Andrew's latest film which we shot last weekend while enjoying a few pints.


The lastest offering is called "No One Can Hear You Giggle" where you shoot a 3 minute silent short film and edit it in 24 hours. After this contest, Andrew is taking the show on the road to Portugal for their own very first Fast Forward Portugal event as well (for more info go here). I am looking forward to seeing the finalists for this contest which will be shown on the Fast Forward Ireland site on Monday, September 25th. All of the applicants of this contest will also be shown all weekend long on Curved Street (which is pictured above) in Temple Bar. You may also recall that a few weeks ago we posted Paul's film which was a particpant in another Fast Forward Ireland contest. Here is another one for you to check out.

Lay Lady Lay

So we have finally returned. We got back to the states on monday evening. Since they we have been recooperating and trying to get back into the swing of things. I didn't go to work today but Kelly did. This weather (so gloomy today high of only 60 and rainy) and jet lag won over going into the office. It has now been 1 week since I proposed to Kelly. Last week in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland out on the pier I asked Kelly to be my wife. Lucky for me she said yes.

We have been dating almost 3 years now and when I first started talking to her back then I never thought this would happen. When went on our first date she thought I didn't like her because I could not talk around her and that was certaintly not the case I could not talk around her because I was enamored with her beauty. I might add that we also went to go see Kill Bill: Vol 1 on our first date and that was not a movie that was conducieve to talking. I don't mean to get mushy here but I wanted to add that I love her so much and I am lookin forward to having her as my wife. Tommorow we should get back into the swing of regular posts and share some Ireland pictures very soon. Thanks to all who have expressed congrats thus far and a special thanks to my awesome sister Becky and her equally as great husband Paul for putting us up and showing us the time of our lives. Cheers

Lay Lady Lay - Magnet(Feat. Gemma Hayes) a very nice Bob Dylan cover

Bittersweat

Good morning. It is hard to believe that has been 5 years since the horror of 9/11/01 occured. It seems longer than that but at the same time so recent. I think being an American it is important to not ever forget that this occured. I think most Americans can recall what they were doing on this day and where they were when it happened. I am going to share with you what I was doing. On 09/11/01 I was in a seinor @ Muskingum College in the middle of nowhere ohio. I was really excited that morning because on 09/12 I was suppose to head to New York city to attend the CMJ conference that year. I was in my second year at the radio station of being our music director and really felt that I was headed for a career in that industry. I was set to go and try and meet the contacts I had made as an md, in effort to secure my dream job of working for a promotion company and or a label doing college radio promotion. Needless to say I never got to go. CMJ that year was rescheduled for the middle October I could not go because I had mid terms. I also considered going to SXSW that spring but I ended up going to Italy instead and that is a whole another story. I accepted all of this as a sign that I was not meant to work in radio after all.

As far where I actually was when the first plane hit I was on my way to class. Right before I went to class somebody said something about a plane crashing into the world trade center and I thought that sounded really odd but did not give it much thought and went to class. Then when that class was over at 9:50am I walked into the station just in time to see a replay of the plane that crashed into The Pentagon. I was floored and in complete shock. At that point I said "well I guess I am not going to New York tommorow". It was such a somber and unforgetable feeling.

On a lighter note, Today we are departing for Dublin, Ireland this evening for a litle vacation and to visit my awesome sister Becky and her equally as awesome husband Paul. This is going to be the first time Kelly and I have flown together. I am not a big fan of trans-atlantic flights so hopefully having her long will be alot of fun and help make the time go by faster. I imagine when we return on the 18th we will have some pictures and stories to share. So until the 19th don't expect any more posts from us.

You should check this out if you didn't see it on stereogum the other day. Here is a collage of touring footage made by the Sound TEAM boys with super 8 and 16m cameras.

Top 5 Songs of The Week!! (congrats to Erin and Todd)

Today is the big day. Today in a few hours we will be attending the wedding of Erin (Kelly's sister and Todd. These songs have nothing to do with that but I just wanted to wish the two of them well.

5. (mp3) Hang On, Girl - Favourite Sons these New York cats are dropping their debut album on tuesday check em out.

4.(mp3) When The Week Died - A Weeks Worth - this San Diego band, is starting to make some noise in their city. they say they sound like a happier version of the strokes.

3. (mp3) Christine - Monsters Are Waiting this Echo Park,CA band has a great combination of deep bass lines with great guitar licks on top of sultry vocals.

2. (mp3) No More Birthdays / San Francisco Bay - Sound Team wish i was going to check them out @ the grog on Tuesday with the french kicks and The Twilight (who are local and good)

1. (mp3) (DRAPED UP REMIX) - Bun B vs Bloc Party I have been feeling this track for days, one of my favorite mix of the year.

No time for love Dr.Jones

This weekend we have a full plate. Tonight we have the rehersal dinner for Kelly's sister erin's wedding. Tommorow we have the wedding in the afternoon and then the reception tommorow evening. Also going down tommorow night is the battle we have all been waiting for #1 Ohio State vs #2 Texas down in Austin. Then on Sunday is the Browns (we have the most the loyal fans in the NFL look here) home opener as they take on Reggie Bush and the Saints. Plus in between all that we have to find time to pack because we depart for Ireland on Monday afternoon.

I don't know how much time we will have to post but tommorow I got some good stuff lined up for weekly top 5. Tonight that new Zach Braff movie "The Last Kiss" if anyone goes to see it let us know. I am somewhat interested in seeing it because some of it was shot in Madison, Wisconsin ( i lived there back in 02-03) , hopefully I won't end up hating like I did with Garden State. Here is a little short with Zach Braff talking about the movie and some of the choices he made for the soundtrack.

Four Eyed Monsters

About three months ago on Four Eyed Monsters asked to be my friends on myspace. At first I was like what the hell is this then I decided to check out. It is actually a video pod cast that has been on going for the last year staring Arin Crumley and Susan Buice who met on online while being lonely in two different cities miles apart. They hit off and then they decided to document the formation of their relationship since both them are film makers. As a result of this collaboration they moved to New York to further pursue the project. They decided to use digital video as a medium to tell their story.

I should also mention that these podcasts feature some great indie rock as background music, some of the bands featured are Spinto Band, The Legends, The National Eyes, The Loveninjas, and The Golden Pastime. Over the last year or so hey have been able to get the actual film shown at various indie film festivals including Slamdance but now they want to take it to the people. Now in effort to do so since distributing a film cost a lot of money. They have chosen to distribute the film to the masses that want to see it.

On their website they recently had a contest to get to see it all you had to was vote for it and the cities with 150 votes or more would get chosen. The winning top 6 cities are New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, Chicago and New York (for your own information C-town got 51 votes not great but not terrible). Starting tonight in those 6 cities they are showing the film at local theatres. They want to do the same thing with another group of cities next month all you have to do is get 150 votes for your city for them to show it in your town. Just about anything you could possible want to know about them and their project is on your their site so be their friend on myspace and go check out their unique and original movie.


Four Eyed Monsters - Thursdays in September


Play Invite Watch Trailer See Video Podcast

here is a interview with the Four Eyed Monsters on Binside TV

Born to Quit

Tonight at the Grog shop there is an excellent bill of bands. The lineup consists of local openers The Lovekill (who feature Craig from Bears on drums), The Lovekill's great new record "These Moments Are Momentum") and headliners The Smoking Popes. You may recall them their hit "Need you Around" which was all of the airwaves in 1995.

Back in high school and college I loved this band to no end. I only managed to see them once at the old grog shop (rip). Now these guys from the windy city have reunited and are even going to put a new record. Which is great they make some of catchiest punk pop songs I have ever heard. Speaking of their music on their myspace page they have some new songs you can check out. Here is a recent interview they did with The Freetimes here in town. Doors open @ 8pm the show is $10.

Here is the video for the classic Smoking Popes song "Ruebella"

Fionn Regan

A few months ago, we posted a couple songs by Fionn Regan where we felt as though the songs had something about them that were familiar and had a tendency to stay with us. After hearing those songs, were definitely looking forward to his full length. We have actually had it for a few weeks now, but were procrastinating as we often do. So here is a long overdue post about Mr. Fionn Regan. . .

Fionn Regan is a singer song writer from Dublin, Ireland. As Americans, we both have a natural tendancy to compare any Irish singer song writer to the two most famous in recent years -- and those would be David Gray and Damien Rice. Mr. Regan sounds somewhat like those two but even more so reminding us of an Elliot Smith or a Nick Drake singing more upbeat songs with a voice that sounds like John K. Samson of The Weakerthans or that of a young Donovan. However anyone sees fit to interpret what he sounds like, what remains true is he very talented. He has the ability to draw you in and make you listen to him more. These songs sound simplistic yet beautiful with their great folk melodies and his soothing smooth voice.

His debut album titled "The End of History" came out August 7th in the U.K. on Bella Union records. This label is home to some great artists like: The Dears, Laura, Veirs, Explosions in the Sky and The Dirty Three. Being on a label with artists of that caliber will hopefully give him the exposure he deserves. The album, produced and written by Fionn himself, can be purchased here. Definitely take a moment to sample some of the goods below:

(mp3) Put a Penny in the Slot - Fionn Regan (very catchy first single)

(mp3) Hunters Map - Fionn Regan

(mp3) The Cowshed - Fionn Regan

Bonus: Video for Put a Penny in the Slot

Top 5 songs of the week

On this rainy Saturday morning here in September I can't help but smile because today means football is back, there is no work on Monday and Bears are playing tonight!


5. (mp3) Cinematic - The A-Sides these boys from philly make pop that sounds like the kinks, the zombies but also reminds me of psych pop bands like the oliva tremor control.

4. (mp3) Daily Sketches - Bastard Boy this San Diego native has vocals that remind me of Damon Gough (badly drawn boy) doing lo fi electronic indie pop.

3. (mp3) Atomic - Sleeper an oldie but a goodie. We saw the very end of Trainspotting last night while channel surfing, hence why I am including this.

2. (mp3) Julie's Story- TRS-80 This Chicago trio has had their music used by Nike and and Coca Cola in ads. they make music that sounds like... DJ Shadow, Fischerspooner and The Orb.

1. (mp3) Search Party - So Many Dynamos Pitchfork said these Missouri boys might be the next Dismemberment Plan, but they remind me more of MTB though. I put a song of their's on a mix for Kelly over a year ago.

extended weekend

This weekend is going to be pretty tame but it is just what we need. Next weekend is going to be the opposite it will be rather hectic for us because Erin who is Kelly's sister has her rehersal dinner next Friday and then next Saturday she is getting married. Then on Sunday is the first Browns game of the season and on Monday we leave for Ireland so we got alot going on.



Tonight be sure to check out Bears on 89.3 FM WCSB(here in c-town) or online. They will be guests tonight on the "Elixir is Zog" radio show from 11pm - 1am playing a special set of mostly accoustic versions of their songs. Also tonight if you are looking for a show in Kent head to The ECC @ 10pm to check out Nicholas Megalis doing a solo set. (see our top 5 from last week for info on him)


Tommorow if you are looking for something to do head down to the tavern in The Beachaland Ballroom and check out Bears first ever headling show. The openers will be Friend and Trouble Books. The show starts @ 9pm and costs only 2$ thanks to the awesome people at your favorite local indie record store Music Saves.

(mp3) Bears - Still Alright

Lastly tonight "Factotum" the movie based on the novel of the same name by acclaimed author Charles Bukowksi opens @ The Cedar Lee. People are saying Matt Dillion's performance of Henry Chinaski in this film is his best performance of his career. An interesting side note Sean Penn was their first choice for the role not Matt Dillion.

Trailer for Factotum