October Shows In Chicago

Welcome to the greatest month in rock and roll history. And that's no exaggeration. Look no further than the great Spoon/Ted Leo face-off of October 12 not to mention the month culminating with Art Brut and The Hold Steady at the Metro on Halloween. Costume suggestions are now being accepted. Also, if I missed anyone anywhere or if any info is incorrect please let me know. And now I present to you.....the candy lineup:

Mon 10/1
The Blow, Video Hippos, High Places @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Tues 10/2
Bat For Lashes, Lewis & Clarke @ Empty Bottle 10pm

Matt & Kim, Totally Michael, Dan Deacon @ Logan Square Auditorium @ Logan Square Auditorium 6:30pm*

The Pipettes @ Park West 6pm

Oakley Hall, Tight Phantomz, Box of Baby Birds @ Schubas 9pm^

Wed 10/3
Black Mountain, Cave Singers @ Empty Bottle 8:30pm

Earlimart, Office @ Schubas 9pm

Health, Yea Big/Kid Static, Crime Novels @ Reggie's Rock Club 8pm

Thurs 10/4
Voxtrot, The Little Ones, Sleeping States @ Metro 9pm

Twilight Sad, Thin Hymns @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Jose Gonzalez, James Blackshaw @ Park West 7:30pm

Beirut, Colleen, Alaska In Winter @ Portage Theater 8pm

Magik Markers, Number None @ Schubas 9pm

Hot Hot Heat, Bedouin Soundclash, De Novo Dahl @ Vic Theatre 6pm

Berto Ramon @ Victory Liquors 8pm

Fri 10/5
Electric Six, The Gore Gore Girls, We Are The Fury @ Double Door 8pm

Fujiya & Miyagi, Dirty on Purpose @ Empty Bottle 10pm*

Plastic Crimewave Sound, Tight Phantomz, Fast Product, Sybris, The Thin Man, Grimble Grumble, Titmice, Vibe Central @ Hideout 9:30pm$

The Sea and Cake, Meg Baird @ Metro 8pm

Nina Nastasia, Jim White @ Schubas 10pm

Sat 10/6
The White Stripes, Cold War Kids @ Aragon Ballroom 7:30pm#

John Vanderslice, Bishop Allen @ Empty Bottle 10pm

Of Montreal, Grand Buffet, Mgmt @ Metro 6:30pm*

Howe Gelb, Eleni Mandell @ Old Town School of Folk Music 7:30pm

Murder By Death, Old Canes, Light Pollution @ Reggie's Rock Club 7pm

Dillinger Escape Plan, behold the arctopus, Genghis Tron, A Life Once Lost @ Subterranean 7pm

Klaxons, Shit Disco @ Vic Theatre 7pm

Sun 10/7
The White Stripes, Cold War Kids @ Aragon Ballroom @ Aragon Ballroom 7:30pm&

Matt Pond PA, Jesca Hoop @ Double Door 7pm

The Watson Twins, Ben Weaver, Twilight Revival @ Empty Bottle 9pm!!

Elvis Perkins @ Lakeshore Theater 9pm

Of Montreal, Grand Buffet, Mgmt @ Metro 6:30pm

Califone, The 1900's, Flosstradamus, The Eternals (ex-Trench Mouth), Poster Children, Headache City @ Museum of Contemporary Art 1pm

Tokyo Police Club, White Rabbits, The Virgins @ Schubas 7pm

Elvis Perkins in Dearland, Brighton, MA @ Schubas 9pm*

Saves The Day, Dr. Manhattan, Single File @ Subterranean 7pm

Mon 10/8
The Besnard Lakes, White Williams, Birds and Batteries @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Tokyo Police Club, White Denim, The Virgins @ Schubas 9pm*

Tues 10/9
Dr. Dog, Apollo Sunshine, High Strung @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Patrick Wolf @ Metro 6pm

Bob Mould @ Schubas 9pm

Unique Chique, Division Day, Bailiff @ Subterranean 8pm

Wed 10/10
Grizzly Bear, Beach House @ Park West 6pm

The Draft, Dead To Me, The Gaslight Anthem, The Brokedowns, Off With Their Heads @ Reggie's Rock Club 5pm

Thurs 10/11
Interpol, Liars @ Aragon Ballroom 7:30pm*

The Freewheelin' Yo La Tengo @ Lakeshore Theater 7pm & 10:30 pm (two shows)

Fri 10/12
Spoon @ Riviera Theatre 8pm

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, The A-Sides, The Eternals (ex-Trench Mouth) @ Metro 6pm

Catfish Haven, Wax Fang @ Double Door 8pm

Final Fantasy, Basia Bulat @ Schubas 10pm

Shannon Wright, Judson Claiborn (of Low Skies) @ Hideout 9:30pm

Sat 10/13
The Go! Team, The Cool Kids @ Double Door 8pm

Shout Out Out Out Out, San Serac, Prairie Cartel @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Superdrag @ Metro 8pm

Saturday Looks Good To Me, Mason Proper @ Hideout 8:30pm

The Plastic Constellations, Building Better Bombs @ Reggie's Rock Club 10pm

Sea Wolf, Retribution Gospel Choir feat. Alan Sparhawk, The Shaky Hands @ Schubas 10pm

Sun 10/14
Pinback @ Metro 9pm*

Damo Suzuki (of Can), Robert AA Lowe, Ben Vida @ Empty Bottle 9pm

The Forecast, Blackpool Lights, Dialogue @ Reggie's Rock Club 5pm

Saturday Looks Good To Me, Mason Proper, Great Lakes Myth Society @ Schubas 7pm

Mon 10/15
Frightened Rabbit, A Tundra, The Sharks @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Tues 10/16
Architecture in Helsinki @ Metro 6pm

Wed 10/17
Justice, Midnight Juggernauts @ Metro 8pm

The Polyphonic Spree, Rooney, The Redwalls @ Vic Theatre 6:30pm

Eleventh Dream Day, Canasta, Lesser Birds of Paradise @ Subterranean 8:30pm

Thurs 10/18

The New Pornographers, Emma Pollock (from The Delgados) @ Metro 8pm

The Mother Hips, Probably Vampires, Pink Nasty @ Schubas 8pm

Mad Happy, Lord of the Yum Yum, Fox Paws, Moon Patrol, We Will Eat Rats To Survive @ Reggie's Rock Club 8pm

ALO @ Double Door 8pm

Adam Franklin (From Swervedriver), Airiel, Apteka @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Fri 10/19

Bright Eyes, Andrew Bird @ Chicago Theater 7:30pm

The New Pornographers, Emma Pollock (from The Delgados) @ Metro 9pm!

Shout Out Louds, Johnossi, Nico Vega @ Logan Square Auditorium 8:30pm

The Raveonettes, Nicole Atkins & The Sea, Gliss @ Empty Bottle 10pm

High on Fire, Mono, Panthers, Coliseum @ Double Door 8pm

Nada Surf @ Schubas 8pm

The Mother Hips, Pink Nasty @ Schubas 10:30pm

Sat 10/20

Ween @ Aragon Ballroom 6:30pm*

Stars of Track & Field, Scout Niblett, Eskimo Joe @ Empty Bottle 10pm

Nada Surf, Sea Wolf @ Schubas 10:30pm

Unkle @ Metro 9pm

Mon 10/22

Drive By Truckers @ Park West 6pm

Atmosphere, Mac Lethal, Grayskul, Luckyiam, Legends @ Metro 6pm

Tues 10/23

We Will Eat Rats To Survive, Perry H Matthews @ Beat Kitchen 6pm

IAMX, Comasoft, Hourly Radio @ Double Door 8pm

Wed 10/24

The Thermals, Chin Up Chin Up, Reporter @ Logan Square Auditorium 8:30pm*

Rogue Wave, Port O'Brien @ Double Door 8pm

Pigeon John, Longshot, Aristacats, Blended Babies @ Abbey Pub 8pm

HelloGoodbye, Say Anything @ Congress Theatre 5pm

Figurines, Dappled Cities, The Dead Trees @ Schubas 9pm

Thurs 10/25

Queens of the Stone Age, The Black Angels, Biffy Clyro @ Riviera Theatre 6:30pm

Josh Rouse @ Park West 6:30pm

Little Brother, Evidence (of Dilated Peoples), Black Milk @ Abbey Pub 8pm

Karl Blau, Your Heart Breaks @ Hideout 11:30pm

The Weakerthans, The Last Town Chorus @ Metro 6:30pm

His Name is Alive, Mira Mira, The Black Swans @ Schubas 9pm

Tiger Army, The Static Age, Street Dogs @ Vic Theatre 7:30pm

Fri 10/26

Minus the Bear, The Helio Sequence, Grand Archives @ Metro 8pm

The Appleseed Cast, Enon, The Octopus Project, Dreamend @ Abbey Pub 8pm

Sat 10/27

Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello @ Chicago Theater 7pm

The Appleseed Cast, Enon, The Octopus Project, Dreamend @ Abbey Pub 8pm

Jesu, Torche, Fog @ Empty Bottle 10pm

Lyrics Born, Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Devin the Dude, The Coughee Brothaz, Bukue One, Junk Science @ Metro 8pm

Rodrigo y Gabriela @ Riviera Theatre 7:30pm

Chuck Prophet, Luke Temple @ Schubas 10pm

Sun 10/28

Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello @ Chicago Theater 7pm

The Decemberists, Laura Veirs & The Saltbreakers @ Vic Theatre 7pm

Great Lake Swimmers, Tiny Vipers @ Schubas 9pm

Mon 10/29

Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello @ Chicago Theater 7pm

The Decemberists, Laura Veirs & The Saltbreakers @ Vic Theatre 7pm

Tunng, Castanets, Deer Tick @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Tues 10/30

The Hold Steady, Art Brut, Federale @ Metro 7pm

Mobius Band, Tigercity @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Wed 10/31

The Hold Steady, Art Brut, Federale @ Metro 7pm!

The Fiery Furnaces, Pit Er Pat @ Logan Square Auditorium 8:30pm

Mucca Pazza, Detholz!, Lord of the Yum Yum @ Empty Bottle 9pm

Film School, Land of Talk, Eulogies @ Schubas 9pm

*Hooray!

!Hooray! I say HOORAY!

^Drop it Yoni, no one is going.

$Is anyone as happy as I am that there's a band named Titmice running around?

#Cancelled because of the fake Meg White sex tape.

& Cancelled because Phil Spector might get away with murder.

!!Unfortunately, looks like Jenny Lewis won't be there. The good news is neither will Blake Sennett.

Ode To Playlists

(This is the first ever guest blog on this site. Enjoy).

by Jessica Gordon

I’m basically incredibly lazy when it comes to music. I love music, I really do. And I think over the years I’ve managed to acquire some abbreviated musical knowledge, and I certainly know what I like when I hear it. But I don’t generally seek out new artists on my own. I don’t troll bands’ online sites looking for free downloads from their new albums, and I don’t read Rolling Stone or Wired much, and when I do it’s usually to look at the pictures and maybe read a few stories. Instead, I rely on my friends to send good music my way. One friend in particular, the author of this very blog, actually, has been sending good music my way for many years now. He’s turned me on to artists like Modest Mouse, Neko Case, Broken Social Scene and many, many more. He likes to tell me that he made me cool, at least musically speaking, because when we met I was listening to the Dixie Chicks and I think Janet Jackson (for the record, still not bad music, just not all there is…). It’s funny, though, because technically I know more about music than he does. I read music, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t; I can tell if someone is off-key or on, and he can’t all the time; I know if something is dissonant or melodic, or if it’s a tight harmony; I know if, unexpectedly, the lower voice is taking the melody and the higher one the harmony. I am not sure he knows what any of this means. Though maybe he does, I’m just not sure. The point is, though, he has an ear for quality music that I don’t. Books? Sure. I’ll read reviews or dip into stacks unknown at the library or the bookstore and come up with some real gems. Movies? Certainly. I’ll read reviews and analyses and find out about directors. I like art-house films and well-made action movies. I’m discerning, I’d say. With books and movies, I know exactly how to recommend the right thing to a person so that he or she will really enjoy it, even if the person doesn’t generally read lots of books or watch lots of movies. I can determine a good fit for those things. But not so with music. In that medium, I have to rely on others.

Since the advent of iTunes and iPods, of shared music libraries, and with how easy it is for anyone with a computer and a CD drive to burn CDs, playlists have become, for me, the ultimate in finding new good music. I love getting a burned CD full of twelve or twenty songs I’ve never heard, by artists I may or may not know. And I love that the list was made (usually) with me in mind, so it’s full of stuff someone who knows me thinks I will like. Some of my favorite songs right now are off of playlists people have made for me. Like “The Swimming Song,” by Loudon Wainwright III. I had never heard of Loudon Wainwright III. (Well, except for last year I saw The Squid and the Whale, so I do recognize his name because he did a lot of the soundtrack for that film.) But the point is, the playlist is perfect for someone like me because I get to sample a little of this and a little of that without spending hours browsing in a music store or listening to tons of music, even. I get to skip right to the good stuff. I know music mixes have been around for ages, way back to the famed mixed tape, but I guess I sort of missed out on that. Maybe it’s because my generation came of age right during the switch from tapes to CDs. Since the technology was new, no one had the right recording devices to burn CDs (remember, if you possibly can, this was at a time when—gasp—a family might have only one computer that all the members had to share, and we used floppy disks…remember those??), but people were no longer really buying or listening to tapes, either. So it is with some contentedness that I am just now fully discovering the wonder of playlists in my late twenties (ugh, how did I get to the “thin side of thirty,” as my friend put it so depressingly the other night, so fast?). Listening to a playlist someone else made for you is like going with a good friend to a restaurant you’ve never been to before, but that your friend knows you’ll love. It’s like going to that little hole-in-the-wall bookstore when you visit a new city because someone who shares your love of books said you’d love it. Someone making you a playlist is intimate, at least on some level, because it implies a friendship or a relationship of some sort. When you listen to it, you go into the experience expecting to like what you hear, and for the most part, I, at least, have not been disappointed.

Now I have playlists to run with, playlists to sit and wait in the airport with, playlists to put in the CD player and turn up loud when I’m cleaning my apartment on a Saturday morning and playlists to put on for that treacherous section of I-74 between Cincinnati and Indianapolis that’s so boring it almost puts me to sleep every time (not to mention that radio reception goes out through a portion of it). One of the best things about playlists is that when you get to know them well, they become like old friends. I have two favorite running playlists at this moment. When I slide on my armband and pop in my earbuds and step out into the day in my running shoes, when I hear the bum-bum-bum-bum-bum-bum-bum….beat-beat-beat-beat-beat… “Cheated by the opposite of love…held on high from up-up-up above…” everything just feels right. My feet start hitting the pavement in a good, solid rhythm. I feel like singing aloud, but refrain (usually) so people don’t think I’m crazy. For a very long time I resisted running with an iPod. I can be a bit of a purist about some things, and one of the things I like about running outside is being such a part of the world, feeling the wind and the air, smelling the smells, hearing the…traffic…ok, maybe I over-romanticized it—I do live in the city, after all. I still don’t run with my iPod all the time, particularly not when I’m running with a group (come on, that’s just rude), but on more than one occasion, I do feel like the iPod—and playlists—have saved my life, or at least my run. The other day I was forced to run on the treadmill due to the prolonged heatwave we’re having here in Cincinnati in late September, which I hate, and the iPod totally saved the day. As it was, I barely made it 3.5 miles, which is normally a piece of cake for me. Without the iPod, I’m not sure I would have even made it two miles.

So next time I step out the door for a run, and I start to hear strumming that makes me want to shake my shoulders followed by the familiar, peppy chorus of “Let’s Go” by The Feelies, I’ll say a little thanks in my head to the makers of my precious playlists. And remember, all you music taste-makers, keep burning thoughtful playlists for those of us less blessed with a nose for music.

Okkervil River--Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, IL

(This site is not exclusively an Okkervil River blog.....it just sort of seems that way right now).

For what I believe was my sixth time (and second in ten days), I took in Austin-based Okkervil River last Tuesday night at the Logan Square Auditorium. If you've never been there just picture the high school from the movie Hoosiers converted into a concert venue. I think I saw Jimmy Chitwood checking ID's. Once inside I went to the bar and noticed drummer Travis Nelsen wearing a Ride the Lightning-era Metallica t-shirt; and 83 hipsters drinking PBR. Sometimes I wonder if Pabst went out of business if hipsters would become extinct or just move along to another blue-collar beer to completely ruin. Probably the latter. This phenomenon is even more prevalent in Portland which I read spear-headed this PBR renaissance. When I was there a girl dressed me down for drinking a Bud Light. I was so taken aback that I didn't even know how to respond....the fact that Bud was cheaper seemed completely beside the point. Anyways.....

.....As I downed a PBR (hey, it was the cheapest beer there) opening act and labelmate Damien Jurado put the final touches on a rather sleepy collection of songs. Twenty minutes later the six piece Okkervil River were clad out in suits and on stage playing songs from their latest album The Stage Names. That's a great album. I seem to recall everyone getting excited during "Unless It's Kicks", which is a departure from Okkervil's earlier sound, the song is more Rolling Stones than say Jeff Mangum. Travis seemed to be hitting the drums a little harder than usual which I was pretty certain had something to do with the Metallica shirt on underneath his suit. Nothing like a little insider's info. Later they played current hit "Our Life is Not a Movie, Or Maybe" and immediately segued into "For Real"--the spooky ballad from 2005's unbelievable Black Sheep Boy. Logan Square isn't the easiest part of town to get to but I think I would have walked there just to have seen that. And before the encore, they left the stage after nearly bringing the place down with a rousing version of "John Allyn Smith Sails"--the most recent take in indie circles on the tragic life of poet John Berryman which channels the bands' inner-most Brian Wilson. They re-emerged and played a long and appreciative encore topped off with "Westfall" and that was that.

I'm really happy this band is starting to get some press beyond the run-of-the-mill indie websites that have been covering them for a couple years now. And they deserve it after touring incessantly on the strength of a large catalog of introspective and fabled songs. I like to tell people when I saw them in 2005 at Subterranean that it felt like a musical epiphany....it seemed this was the band I had been waiting for a long time. Fast-forward to today and seeing them live no longer has such a profound effect but I always leave nothing short of blown away. If they soon come to a town near you (and they probably will) do what you can and go check them out. As strongs as their albums are, their music manages to resonate even better live. Oh, and after we left I twisted my ankle when I clumsily stepped off the curb on Fullerton. I was in a lot of pain until my friend Val pulled out a PBR and poured it on my ankle. I ran the final 2.5 miles home.

White Stripes Canceled Tour Emergency Plan

The White Stripes have cancelled their upcoming tour (w/ Cold War Kids).....it has something to do with Meg suffering from anxiety issues. Wait, what's that? You had tickets to one of the shows at the Aragon? Yeah, me too. Don't fret though, I'm here to help. For those that had tickets to the Saturday show (Oct. 6), after TicketMaster refunds your money, head over to the Metro to see Of Montreal (w/ Grand Buffet) for half the price. Those that had tickets for Sunday, Elvis Perkins in Dearland is playing at the Lake Shore Theater for $14. And for good measure here are the other concerts taking place on those nights:

Sat 10/6
John Vanderslice, Bishop Allen @ Empty Bottle

Dillinger Escape Plan, behold the arctopus, Genghis Tron, A Life Once Lost @ Subterranean

Klaxons, Shit Disco @ Vic Theatre

Sun 10/7
Matt Pond PA, Jesca Hoop @ Double Door

The Watson Twins, Ben Weaver, Twilight Revival @ Empty Bottle

Of Montreal, Grand Buffet, Mgmt @ Metro

Califone, The 1900's, Flosstradamus, The Eternals, Poster Children, Headache City @ Museum of Contemporary Art

Tokyo Police Club, The Virgins @ Schubas

See.....there you go, it's all good, we have plenty of options. Get well soon, Meg!

Musicfest NW--Portland, OR (In Pictures)

I was off in Portland this past week for Musicfest NW. Portland is one of those cities I've been to only once very briefly but just seems to be a very likeable place. Visiting my friends Travis and Jill with a camera in hand, this is pretty much what I saw:

Cat Power @ Audio Cinema
Hmmm, I'm not so sure about this. The way this festival worked was you purchased a wristband which gave you access to every show that was going on throughout the week. Since many shows were occurring simultaneously, a small place like the Audio Cinema couldn't sustain that many people. Right now we're standing in line as they're doing the "one out/one in" thing. Cat Power hasn't taken the stage yet, but since I don't see many people deciding to head for the exits before the headliner my confidence level isn't high. Our only hope is that opening act Bobby Bare, Jr. travels with a large family.

To keep the suckers in line happy, this guy started handing out free ice cream. The girl reaching into the box took the last ice cream sandwich, meanwhile I was stuck with some terrible stawberry nut concoction. I really laid into her for doing this........it was supposed to be flirtatious but turned mean-spirited rather quickly.

Travis told me that Portland is unofficially known as the "bridge city" for all the immaculate bridges crossing the Willamette and Columbia River. This is the bridge the Cat Power line was under and the first one I saw. As you can see, she's a real beauty.

Nike was one of the main sponsors for this event. I wonder if this had anything to do with the three 9-year old Vietnamese kids I saw unloading equipment out of Cat Power's van?


We didn't get in. Neither did those other kids hanging around the place. I suspect they had nothing else to do......

.......but we did. Sayonara Cat Power.

Uh-oh, you have company Brit Daniel, look who else is in town! Oh yes, JT was there bringing sexy back to Portland. And trust me, this town needs it. I ran into a bearded lady at a used cd store--and not just any beard, a real Jerry Garcia-like beard. Yikes! I'm still having trouble sleeping. For the record, Justin wasn't on the Musicfest NW bill but was playing Friday night at the Rose Garden.

Spoon @ the Crystal BallroomI was excited to go to the Crystal Ballroom........seems to be a place that gets great shows.

Unfortunately the Crystal Ballroom kind of sucks. The sound quality is poor, it's way too crowded (the fact that I was standing on my tip-toes during Spoon just to breathe decent air tells you there might be a problem), and it's divided right down the middle by a steel barrier for those under 21 and the drinkers. How Travis and I ended up on the side with the non-drinking, good-for-nothing high school kids still baffles me. Whose decision was that?! Let's blame him. Whatever, we made executive decisions not to see Rilo Kiley or Wolf Parade partly because of the Crystal Ballroom factor.

Spoon was good but we expected that.

This is the third time I have seen Spoon and they are just a solid band. The played nearly every song from Ga to the fifth power. A pretty rocking version of "The Beast and Dragon, Adored" was thrown in somewhere in the middle as well. We left early because neither of us could breathe. I like to breathe at concerts.



That's the actual jersey that Greg Oden plans on wearing this year. (He's tall).

Pizza.

Okkervil River @ Berbati's PanThis was kind of the show we had been waiting the entire week for. I first discovered Okkervil River about two and a half years ago when Travis dragged me to one of their shows at Subterranean and they have been one of my favorite bands since. The Berbati's Pan was great, too. Small, but not too small. It kind of reminded me of the Double Door.

Aside from Okkervil River, there was also a beard contest.

20 minutes to showtime. Oh boy.......

Just before Okkervil River came out, Travis and I tried to look tough while Jill attempted to take a decently centered picture. We all failed.

Okkervil River emerged and opened with "Plus Ones" from new album The Stage Names. Yee-owww!

Will Sheff: Always a pair of glasses and wand away from doing battle with He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named.

I'm of average height but always seem to stand behind the tallest guy in the room. This is a picture of the back of that guy's head. He's actually on tour this year........I looked at his schedule and it currently consists of every damn show I'm at.

I slithered around the tall guy to get this picture of Jonathan Meinburg during "Black".

Not sure why, but drummer Travis Nelsen reminds me of Animal from the Muppets.


Time to leave. Okkervil River was amazing as usual. Notables included "Our Life is Not a Movie...", "The President's Dead", "For Real" and a face-melting "Westfall". They closed with the obligatory "Okkervil River Song" and we left pretty happy. Happy but hungry.....and it being nearly 2:30 am, it's time to get some food.........

.......whereas most cities consider pizza, burritos, etc. to be the ideal late-night snack, Portland considers donuts a perfectly viable (and only) option. As bad as it sounds, it was worse. This is us standing in line. And I think I realized while standing in line that if it's ever 3am and you're waiting for donuts, it might be time for some serious life changes.

Mmmmmmm............

There you have it, there's the week. A great week too, catching up with old friends and taking in some music. Portland really is a beautiful city. Parks are plentiful and the culture is great. It's immersed with not only a top notch music scene but also great restaurants and bars, and is very biking/walking friendly. Missing Cat Power was unfortunate but both Spoon and Okkervil River were fantastic (both will be in Chicago soon) and made the trip well worth it. Bearded lady, tall guy, 3am donuts.....you won't stop me, I'll be back next year. So long great Northwest....

Some House Cleaning Before Portland....

Couple of things....
If I could go back and see the Beastie Boys in concert I would probably pick circa 1985 when they were just a bunch of punk kids and had no idea who the Dalai Lama even was so mad props to ManicMom. Although Paul's Boutique era would be pretty nice as well.

I received an inquiry about putting up a schedule for shows in Louisville, after some research I found that there will be a homeless guy that resembles Will Oldham banging on a garbage can outside the Brown Theater this Saturday night. I heard he puts on a great show so do not miss.

Thanks for the All Smiles tip, it has been added and I will be there.

I'm heading to Portland tomorrow so the site probably won't be updated for a couple of days. However, I'm seeing several good shows out there (Spoon, Okkervil River to name a few) so will have plenty of good fodder when I get back. Later.