Top 5 Songs Of The Week (Hello October)

It is a beautiful Sunday morning here in C-town and we hope to see a victory on the gridiron this afternoon from The Browns against the dreaded Ravens. Congrats to C.C. Sabathia on his career victory 100 this week -- we are looking forward to next week's American League Division Series Playoffs (!!) with the Tribe squaring away against the most unholy of franchises. . .the Yankees (beh).

Not much else to report for now. . .HOWEVER, some super good shows coming this week at The Grog: Bishop Allen with John Vanderslice , Bears with Jesca Hoop and Matt Pond PA, Earlimart and The Office. Sadly, no Pipettes because their show at The Beachland was postponed due to VISA problems :(

Speaking of The Beachland, definitely check out this inspiring article (as well as the gallery of awesome photography, including the above picture) in the Cleveland Plain Dealer outlining the revival of the arts in Cleveland's North Collinwood neighborhood (ie - Music Saves, Grovewood Tavern, etc.)

For now, enjoy the tunes:

5. (mp3) Syme - Get & Forget Hailing from Bergen, Norway the same place as such diverse artists as Annie, Kings of Convenience, and Datarock. This band who make great psychedelic rock and combine it with lush harmonies and synths. It reminds us of Mogwai meets Stereolab.

4. (mp3) Cassette's Won't Listen - Cut Your Hair (Pavement Cover) Yet another great cover from Jason Drake who is a very talented producer, re-mixer and multi-instrumentalists. He has a new album duo out soon.

3. (mp3) Plus Move - Boss This Boston duo, ever since they had an unlicensed remix of D.A.N.C.E leaked by the BBC. They have been tearing up the blogs. Check out this track of dirty dance rock in the vein of Ed Banger type sh*t. You can check out one of their mixes here

2. (mp3) Division Day - Enjoy The Silence (Depeche Mode cover) Each Tuesday they have been releasing covers for free in anticipation of their new album due out next month.

1. (mp3) Maximo Park - Apply Some Pressure Jose was pleasantly surprised to hear this song at B&N the other day and it was the first time either of us had heard it in over a year.

American Gangster

Last week at work, while taking a break, I was reading on p-dork (Kelly thinks it is funny because I have constantly ridiculed that site yet continue to read it weekly) how Jay-Z is working on an album inspired by the film, American Gangster. Which stars Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe and is directed by Sir Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Alien, etc). Prior to reading this particular article on Pitchfork, I had never heard of the subject of the film, which is based on the true story of heroin dealer and bad-ass, Frank Lucas (who is considered the original "OG").

So naturally of course I looked up Frank Lucas on wikipedia and that led me to this interview, conducted originally in 2000, which inspired the movie. It is a very interesting story of how a boy from rural North Carolina came to Harlem and would become the most powerful heroin dealer in New York in the late 60 thru early 70's. He used to brag that he would make a million dollars per day while selling smack on the streets of New York. I normally do not get this excited about action movies (although I am sucker for gangster movies), but upon reading this interview, I already really want to see this film without ever having viewed its trailer until today.


American Gangster Trailer:



Bonus: (mp3) Jay Z - Heart Of The City (Ain't No Love)

Top 5 Songs Of The Week (First Day of Fall Edition )

Fall has arrived here in C-town, and like much of the Midwest that means a return to cooler temperatures and the sights and smell of the beautiful foliage. Lucky for us, looks like it is going to be a good start to fall with the temperature near 80. That being said it is a great day for football or baseball. We are hoping to see The Browns win again (they have not won two in a row in who know's how long?) and The Tribe clinch the 2007 Central Division title today (first time since 2001 they will be going back to the playoffs!).


5. (mp3) Innerpartysystem - Don't Stop These guys are on the Stolen Tranmission Label which was started by Ultragrrrl, they are kind of more a guilty pleasure sounding like a cross between a pissed off electro/rock version of The Killers meets The All American Rejects.

4. (mp3) Tiny Masters of Today - Hey Mr. DJ (CSS Remix) This duo of teenage sisters from Brooklyn who play lo-fi indie rock are the hottest thing these days opening for the likes of The Yeah Yeah Yeah's and getting signed to Mute Records.

3. (mp3) The Valley Arena - Kick at The Ceiling These Guys hail from Long Beach, California but sound like they should be from D.C. because their music brings to mind an awesome combination of Fugazi meets and Jawbox but with sexier basslines.

2. (mp3) The Hussy's - Rock Steady This group comprised of British girls, sounds like a cross between The Donna's and The Police (because of the dub bassline)

1. (mp3) 1900's - When I say Go This Chicago based band not to be confused with The Scottish band The 1990's make pretty twee pop in the vein of Camera Obscura and Belle & Sebastian

Be a Woman. Be a Fan.

On Sunday while we watching the Browns unbelievable win over the Bengals we kept on seeing this Reebok commercial below. We both think it is a great commercial and it is very encouraging to see the NFL looking to sell merchandise to women, since it is an under appreciated and untaped demographic of football fan.




Speaking of commercials we also heard/saw these songs a lot this weekend while watching the game


(mp3) Hum - Stars this is the song at the end of the new Cadillac ads.It shocked the hell out of us to hear this song because this was one of his Jose's favorite songs when he was a junior in High School.

(mp3) ELO - Hold On Tight this is the song in the new Honda ads. We both were clueless as to who sang this song. Kelly thought maybe it was Of Montreal but I did not have any better ideas. Kelly claims she used to listen to ELO's greatest hits as a child but I am skeptical.

Top 5 Songs Of The Week (Post Osheaga Edition)

Today there is a lot going on:

This morning there is the Susan G Komen Race for The Cure (Kelly's is there right now :) )

Today and Tomorow throughout the city there is the Sparx in The City - Gallery Hop which is the largest gallery hop in the state.

Today WRUW 91.1 FM is having their annual Studio-A-Rama with Enon headling

Tonight @ Square Records down in Akron, Little Jacket is having a Gig Poster Show

Tonight @ Touch they are having an Anniversary party with DJ's Mick Boogie, Terry Urban, Jugoe & MisterBradleyP on the bill.

Tonight @ The Beachland Ballroom in the Tavern, Shapes and Sizes will be playing with openers Yeasayer & The Pianos (This Oberlin based band will be making their C-town debut)

and now on to the tunes...

5. (mp3) Santogold - Creator vs Freq Nasty is a Brooklyn based project that blends 80's new wave, with 90's hip hop and Dub. We were not familiar with them prior to seeing their set but after seeing them live we are now fans.

4. (mp3) The Veils - State Trooper These New Zealanders combine the sounds of The Birthday Party, The Smiths and Jeff Buckley to make something their own. @ Osheaga they owned during their set with a performance that featured so much energy and soul.

3. Gotan Project we don't have any of their mp3's. This French group plays Tango music mixed with breaks and beats. They were great @ Osheaga. check out their video below for their song Santa Maria (Del Buen Ayre)


2. (mp3) Harvee - Father Was A Gambler they hands down had one of the best sets we saw @ Osheaga, it was just so much FUN! Their recordings don't do them justice this band is awesome live. They are from Montreal and are kind of like a cross between wolf parade, arcade fire and polyphonic spree.

1. (mp3) Ohbijou - Misty Eyes are a group out of Toronto who play beautiful lush indie pop We saw them @ Osheaga and really enjoyed their set. Kelly said they remind her of when Mirah used to be good.

Tonight: Feist*

Who: Feist!!!!

What: Super talented Canadian singer songwriter w/ cute dance moves :)

When: Tonight at 8pm

Where: Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh

Why: Check out this adorable performance on The David Letterman Show below (also featuring members of Broken Social Scene, The New Pornographers, The National, Grizzly Bear, and Mates of State)

Tonight: Midlake (w/ Opener, Dawn Landes)

Who: Midlake and Dawn Landes

What: Slightly twangy vocals complimented by cascading sonic landscapes

When: Tonight at 9pm

Where: The Grog Shop in Coventry

Why: Because we know you're in the mood for a low-key Tuesday evening, drinking a couple drinks while listening to some excellent music. . .

Check out what you shouldn't be missing out on!

[Mp3] Midlake - Young Bride Highly Recommended*
[Mp3] Midlake - Head Home
[Mp3] Dawn Landes - Young Folks (Peter, Bjorn and John cover) Highly Recommended*
[Mp3] Dawn Landes - Suspicion

Osheaga Day 2

Sadly now Osheaga is over, however it was a real blast. Yesterday, before the show we walked about town and visited a few boutiques including: Preloved. Kelly had wanted to go there ever since she was exposed to it via Refinery 29. The staff were very friendly and helpful so we wanted to make a special shout out to them, including the nice girl who helped us in the store and then later said "hello" inbetween sets @ Osheaga.

Onto the music, yesterday after 3 years of waiting. . .we finally had the opportunity to see Bloc Party -- they have never come to C-town but it was well worth the wait. Other performances of note were MIA (that shit was off the chain!), Gotan Project (great French group who combine Argentine tango music with electronica), Harvee (these guys sent us their record last year and we feel bad that we never wrote about them b/c they were so awesome), Pony Up! (they didn't play their song we love by them, Matthew Modine, but they were still good), Au Revoir Simone (even though we only go to see a few songs, they sounded fabulous), Artic Monkeys (our first time seeing these bloakes -- not our speed, but quite good), and You Say Party! We Say Die! (were very fun and soo much energy!). Last, but certainly not least, IT DID NOT RAIN AT ALL!!! :)

Bon Appetite!

Where we had our delicious lunch

Au revior Simone

Pony Up!

mmm corn!

MIA that sh*t was BANANAS!

Harvee!

Donnie Darko?

For now, we are going to get out and enjoy our last day here via shopping and eating some more good food ;)

Osheaga Day 1

Bonjour! We are here in Montreal in our lovely hotel getting ready for Day 2 of the Osheaga Festival. Yesterday the weather was perfect blue skies sunny and in the 80s. Unfortunately today the weather is not cooperating it is in the 60's and chance of precipitation @ 50% so wish us luck. Yesterday we did not get to the festival till about 3:30pm. When we walked in Editors were playing we did not get to see any of their set. We however did get to see some or all of the sets from : Blonde Redhead, The Veils, Santogold, Feist, Stars, Damien Rice, Ohblijou, Xavier Cafeine, Patrick Watson, CLAASS, Justin Nokuza, Dumas, Smashing Pumpkins and Explosions in The Sky (who asbsolutely KILLED!)

Today is when the bulk of the heavy hitters come to bat. Among others, we are really looking forward to: Bloc Party, Interpol, MIA, Arctic Monkeys, Au Revoir Simone, Pony Up!, Voxtrot, You Say Party We Say Die!, Harvee, and of course Macy Gray ;) Yeah, she took the irreplaceable slot of Amy Winehouse :(

As for now, check out the below pictures displaying just a small sample of what we experienced throughout our very pleasant Day One:

Super-talented Artists

Random Artwork

People in Line for the Vice Corn Roast

Discovering Excellent New Music

The Veils

Ohbijou

Cherishing some coveted performances

Feist

Explosions in the Sky

While Soaking up the absolutely beautiful view of the St. Laurent*

PS - We would like to send out a Special 26th Birthday Wish to Sarah Roos and a Very Happy One Year Wedding Anniversary to Erin and Todd Van Dyke!!!!

T-minus 24 hours til Montréal!!

Tomorrow at this time we will be in Montréal, CA. As of now, we are packing while watching Killing Zoe with Eric Stoltz and Julie Delpy. Speaking of films and Ms. Delpy -- this past Saturday, we had the pleasure of taking in her most recent film (which she directed, produced, and starred in) with Adam Goldberg: Two Days in Paris. We definitely recommend you do the same and check it out if it's being shown near you. And, while we are on the topic of The French and Film. . .in Montréal we are going to attend the Osheaga Music and Art Festival (see Kelly's previous post) and some of the things we are looking fwd to experiencing are: the Daft Punk film Electrorama, the bands (Feist, Damien Rice, Pony Up!, Explosions in The Sky, MIA, Bloc Party, etc etc) and, last but certainly not least, The VICE Magazine Corn Roast!!

Au revoir*

Bonus: Check out the preview for Daft Punk's Film, Electrorama (we'll let you know how it turns out!)

Eternal Sunshine :)

Along with lounging around and doing absolutely nothing. . .we are enjoying one of our most beloved movies, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, which we happened to see in the theater back when we first started dating. It was difficult to choose, but our favorite scene is the one below where Joel and Clementine are little kids. Also, if you are a fan of Michel Gondry -- be sure to check out this trailer for his upcoming film, Be Kind Rewind, which continues to showcase Gondry's ability to introduce intriguing concepts (starring the likes of Jack Black and Mos Def).



Bonus: [Mp3] ELO - Mr. Blue Sky

Top 5 Songs: Get Outside and Enjoy*

Today is way too nice to be inside because here in c-town it is 75 degrees, sunny, and not a cloud in the sky. We are just about to getting going soon as we head out and enjoy this beautiful weather but here are some tunes to help you appreciate this day. And later on, if you are looking for the beautiful people this evening -- they are going to be @ Touch because that is where it is going DOWN!!!


Hope you enjoy The Top Five Songs of the Week and have a wonderful Saturday*

5. (mp3) The Flaming Lips - W.A.N.D. This is their song from their album, At War With the Mystics, and the most recent Dell commercial. If it hasn't been yet, download the song because it's about time for you to have it stuck in your head just like it has been stuck in ours.

4. (mp3) Walter Meego - Through A Keyhole These Chicago cats are opening for VHS Or Beta tomorrow @ The Grog Shop. They mesh techno, funk and electro music into a blend that makes you want to dance.

3. (mp3) New Pornographers - Challengers This is Kelly's favorite track on their new album of the same name. Kelly says that this song has the innate power to make you stop whatever you're doing and listen to the beauty of Neko Case's voice.

2. (mp3) Montag - Mechanical Kids We just saw him open for The One AM Radio this week and really enjoyed his performance -- definitely catch this tour if it comes to your town. He is kind of like Postal Service with Sufjan on vocals.

1. (mp3) The Pipettes - Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me Their North American Fall Tour Dates were just announced this week and on OCTOBER 4TH they are coming to The Beachland Tavern. When Kelly found this out she just about jumped out of her skin with joy :)