we have six interns at my office and they're always too busy to help me.

why, god, why?

this blog has really been suffering lately, mostly because i took on a huge extra project at work that has been consuming my entire life for the past few months. thankfully, it's almost over! we ship the whole thing out today. i don't think i've ever been so relieved. finally i can get back to the business of searching for open bars and free shows and telling the whole world about them. with pictures.

a few things for now...
local singer-songwriter kevin devine, who i think is pretty great, just signed a deal with capitol records. go team! it's so awesome when good things happen to nice, normal guys who don't wear mascara or get gushing endorsements from the tasteless blogosphere (yeah, yeah, i know...). i'm just saying.

what else. death cab is coming to the hammerstein ballroom in october. and the secret machines will be streaming their forthcoming baltimore show live on npr on august 11th. everybody grab your granola and we'll have ourselves a listen.

and in unrelated news, pitchfork is so dumb. and i'm really starting to wonder why they don't bother keeping their writers a little more in check, especially since half of the reviews on their site (such as this one) seem to be based on personal beefs with various bands and record labels and have nothing to do with their music. not to mention the fact that they give practically any hip hop release at least a 7 out of 10, since they want to cover their nerdy white asses in case people who actually know about hip hop think it's any good. lame. perhaps i'll stop reading as an act of protest—oh wait! that would actually require my having read any of their rambling, incoherent reviews in their entirety at some point. my bad.

anyway, enough ranting for a monday. some parties!

GO BANG!
MONDAY AUGUST 8TH
W/ ULYSSES (DJ) & G.RIZO (Live)
Guests
SYLVIA GORDON (LIVE)
TRENT WOLBE (DJ)
COCOA CRACKER BROWN (DJ)
10pm - til
Live Sets start at 10:30pm @ 6's & 8's
205 Chrystie St. corner of Stanton
F train to 2nd Ave./JMZ to Bowery
FREE
$3 BUDS"

and tonight there is an afterparty for the kings of leon/secret machines show that may or may not be good. i can't upload the flyer for some reason, but it's outside at the soho grand from 12 to 3. . .rsvp to 212-626-3929.

Comments

[lewis]

kevin devine is exactly what you say he is - NORMAL. and who wants to watch someone on stage who is normal??? the stage is not for normal people or else we'd all be up there entertaining the fuck out of everyone, except no one would be paying attention because we'd all be doing our own thing on stage... so paying attenetion to the normalcy of kevin devine is one thing i cannot do nor plan to now that he is on a major label, as if that matters.

[Jackson]

Normal doesn't necessarily equal average or everyday. And not that I'm some sort of expert, but I caught Kevin Devine play on a bill at Maxwell's about a year and a half ago, and while "normal" might be a good description of his persona, he is an exceptional songwriter and performer, and well, he's quite entertaining. In fact, it's actually quite refreshing to see that major labels aren't just interested in putting out acts that sport whatever image performers are supposed to be sporting this week. Image, after all, isn't everything.

[sara]

i also said he was "great"! and i really do think that. and also talented and entertaining and all the other good stuff that jackson said above.

but to each his own.

[lewis]

i disagree with the word great being associated with kevin devine. 5 years ago i saw john mayer play alittle bar in mississippi. i had heard good things, but left there with the impression that he was slightly better than any random college dorm buddy learning cover songs to get chicks. less than 2 months later, he's on a major label and blowing up... grammy's, etc. and i still have the same impression of him now as i did then. and i forsee the same thing with kevin devine. his lyrics were embarrassing and his stage presence severely lacking. but yes, to each there own. watch this dude hit trl like a turd on steroids.

i do like the rest of this blog, however.

[trousermouse]

Here's an example of an overhyped, mascara wearing songwriter on war(he's paraphrasing Ghandi):

"So we take eye for an eye and eye until no one can see. We must stumble blindly forward repeating history." -Bright Eyes

And here's normal guy Kevin Devine on the same subject(paraphrasing a bumper sticker).

"I know we really messed up in Iraq. You say 'support the troops' I say 'I do, let's bring 'em back!'"

He better watch that inflammatory rhetoric if he's wants to ship more units than Mraz.

[jadabird]

normal or not, kevin devine doesn't do much for me, though everyone should check out micah p. hinson. from texas, somehow connected to the earlies. blew me away at sxsw. also, the secret machines baltimore show might be worth checking out. i was totally prepared to be bored when i saw them on monday and instead got crazy loud, dissonant, strobe-lit, equipment-smashing jams. way more interesting than the headliners, the kings of leon, who wail on guitar but just look ridiculous. they're rocking these ponytailed mullets straight out of the toy division at the westminster dog show and their jeans are so tight i'm sure they're all sterile.

[sara]

"like a turd on steroids." hilarious!

and as i said, to each his own. i like kevin. and i'm pleased that this post has provoked some debate.

by the way, bright eyes is totally NOT who i was talking about w/r/t the mascara-wearing masses. i dig bright eyes. i was thinking more of this character (http://www.bbc.co.uk/nottingham/content/images/2005/03/14/bravery6_400_400x300.jpg) and these guys (http://wmg.jp/artist/mychemicalromance/images/mid/WA_327222.jpg) . just saying...