W♥M (Archive)

Rocktober: October 17, 2015

Here are some shows taking place in the Minneapolis/St Paul area on October 17, 2015.

Read more Minneapolis Music Guide.

Read More Luna As for Dean & Britta, they were both in Luna, but for this tour, they are playing pre-Luna Dean Wareham's band Galaxie 500. ...

LUNA
at Cedar Cultural Center
Saturday, 10/17/2015, 7pm ($20/Sold Out)
thecedar.org

You know I was pretty excited to see that Luna reformed and touring... that is until I looked over some of their semi-recent setlists and they did not include my favorite "Slash Your Tires" song. That is like if The Smiths reformed and not play "How Soon Is Now?". I wonder if this is a regional thing, perhaps the song was not popular in other countries, etc. Well if you do see them, expect them to cover Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine" for the encore.

Having been following Dean Wareham's whereabouts for a while, the reunion last year wasn't at all a surprise to me. After all, we've seen hints of it when Sean Eden joined a Dean & Britta show in New York a few years ago for a one-off Luna performance. It just made sense for a reunion tour.

Diane Coffee to open. Coffee is actually a guy, he is touring in support of Everybody's a Good Dog.

Tour dates:

10/11/15 Portsmouth, NH 3S Artspace
10/13/15 Toronto, ON The Danforth Music Hall
10/14/15 Pittsburgh, PA Andy Warhol Museum
10/15/15 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall
10/16/15 Chicago, IL House Of Blues
10/17/15 Minneapolis, MN Cedar Cultural Center
10/22/15 Sacramento, CA Harlow's Night Club
10/23/15 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
10/24/15 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
10/25/15 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
11/04/15 Vancouver, BC Biltmore Cabaret
11/05/15 Seattle, WA The Showbox
11/06/15 Portland, OR Aladdin Theater

Read More Rachael Yamagata Rachael Yamagata is back at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis as part of her "Dealbreaker Heart Tour". It was only about six months ago was she just here ...

RACHAEL YAMAGATA
at Triple Rock Social Club
Saturday, 10/17/2015, 8pm ($20)
first-avenue.com

Singer/songwriter Rachael Yamagata will be back in Minneapolis at the Triple Rock Social Club next Saturday. She will be likely previewing some brand new songs, from her forthcoming album, due for early 2016.

The U.S. leg kicks off on October 15th at Club Café in Pittsburgh and wind down on November 17th at Webster Hall in New York City.

My Name is You to open. We previously saw this duo (Brandon Walters and Anne Williamson) with Joshua Radin in 2013. Since the girl is from Scotland, the band came off as a bit of a reverse Swell Season.

Rachael's fall 2015 tour schedule:

10/15 - Pittsburgh, PA - Club Cafe
10/16 - Chicago, IL - Park West
10/17 - Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock Social Club
10/19 - Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater
10/20 -Salt Lake City, UT - State Room
10/22- Seattle, WA - The Crocodile
10/23- Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
10/24- San Fran, CA - The Fillmore
10/26- Napa, CA - City Winery
10/27- LA, CA - Teragram Ballroom
11/01 - Dallas, TX - The Kessler Theater
11/02 - Houston, TX - Warehouse Live
11/03 - New Orleans, LA - Gasa Gasa
11/05 - Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder
11/09 - Atlanta, GA - Vinyl
11/10 - Nashville, TN - City Winery
11/12 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
11/13 - Philly, PA - Union Transfer
11/14 - Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair
11/15 - Northampton, MA - Iron Horse Music
11/17 - NYC, NY - Webster Hall

Read More Owl City Holiday celebrations for the weekend began a little early along the shores of Lake Minnetonka as local favorites, Owl City stopped by to kick off their promotional tour and debut some new … Lyle Lovett Lyle Lovett is still definitely large. The Texas-based singer, composer and actor has released 14 albums to date and has appeared in even more TV series and movies than that. … Zombie Pub Crawl In its tenth year, the Zombie Pub Crawl is at their biggest (and best) lineup so far. Remember the days when you can get into the crawl for free? Kiss that goodbye, because a few years ago, the organizers … 4onthefloor Gabe Douglas, normally the guy in charge of the 4onthefloor. Check out the band on their latest …

VARIOUS ARTISTS
at Various Venues
Saturday, 10/17/2015
news.weheartmusic.com

As usual in Rocktober: there are too many shows.

Below are some shows taking place on October 17:

Los Angeles producer Destructo will be DJing at Rev Ultra Lounge. Note: late start time, ends at 2am (10pm/$20).

Bronze Radio Return are: vocalist Chris Henderson, drummer Rob Griffith, lead guitarist Patrick Fetkowitz, keys player Matthew Warner, bassist Bob Tanen, and harmonica player/banjoist Craig Struble. Celebrating their forthcoming album Light Me Up (DigSin), the band will be arriving at Turf Club in St Paul. Nashville's The Roosevelts to open. (8pm/$10).

The super popular Owl City will sell out the Varsity Theater. Yep, confirmed, sold out. Rozzi Crane to open. (7pm/$25/Sold Out).

Billed as "An Acoustic Evening with Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt", they will perform at The State Theatre . (8pm/$48.50).

Zombie Pub Crawl at Various Venues (Skyway Theatre, Mill City Nights, First Avenue, etc). This thing gets bigger and better deader every year. I remember when this thing was free... now it's just too big and over the top. I once made the mistake of seeing a regular music show in the area and was caught in a slow-moving traffic, no thanks to drunken zombies walking in the middle of the streets. Just some of the artists listed to appear: Girl Talk, Seven Lions, Sum 41, Soulja Boy, Lil' Dicky, Mickey Avalon, The 4onthefloor, Falcons , Outasight, Tickle Torture, Wes Walker, Willy Joy, Mini KISS, Impaler, Witchden, Aaron Carter (whaaaat?), Sonny Digital, Bobby Raps, Free Fallin - Trib. to Tom Petty, and Private Oates (8pm/$31.66).

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ itunes.apple.com

We Built This City

We recently saw Owl City (at Oake on the Water (02 July 2015)) and Motion City Soundtrack (at Basilica Block Party (10 July 2015)) ... so here are some other cities-related bands.

Read More CocoRosie I have good news, the real-life sisters, Sierra and Bianca Casady, will be releasing Tales Of A GrassWidow this May 28th (which is actually quite a long way from now!).…

COCOROSIE
cocorosiemusic.com

CocoRosie (Bianca and Sierra Casady) recently previewed their first track from their forthcoming studio album. The preview song is called "Heartache City". The studio version can be yours on Friday, September 18th as part of the full album.

The sisters commented about the new album, "This will be our sixth record! Like many of our past records, we wrote and gathered much of the material at our farm studio in the south of France with minimal equipment, vintage toys and antique instruments. Going back to a '4-track' style approach, we limited ourselves to essential, acoustic accompaniment, played by us, and select percussion, toys from our old suit cases dating back to the "La Maison" days. Unlike our more psychedelic/electronic explorations of the last two records, our latest songs have a dusty southern feel with old-timey poetry. We ended up in Argentina where we finished the recordings and mixed the record with engineer Nicolas Kalwill with whom we've worked on two previous records. The spirit of Buenos Aires added to our already teen-romance-nostalgic-mood where we spontaneously shot a music video casting over 30 local girls."

CocoRosie tour dates:

07/14 - Tel Aviv, Israel @ Barby
07/16 - Paris, France @ Cabaret Sauvage
07/17 - Dour, Belgium @ Dour Festival
07/18 - Amsterdam, The Netherlands @ Paradiso
09/17-09/20 - Oakdale, CA @ Symbiosis Gathering
09/22 - Solano Beach, CA @ Belly Up Tavern
09/23 - Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco Theater
09/25 - New York, CA @ Webster Hall

Read More KMFDM KMFDM was formed back in 1984. Though the band has been through a few different lineup changes, but KMFDM is still the Kings of Industrial Rock. ..…

KMFDM
kmfdm.net

We are actually pretty excited to see that industrial pioneers KMFDM will be returning to the Twin Cities on August 15 at Mill City Nights in Minneapolis. This headlining date will be supported by Chant and Black December.

You may recall that the last time the German band was in town, it was to promote KUNST, which Sam wrote, "Starting with a rousing take on fan favorite D.I.Y., the band stormed through a collection of 19 songs from their vast discography, five of which came from the excellent new KUNST album."

This time around, KMFDM is touring in support of 2014's Our Time Will Come and the live album We Are KMFDM. If you're a diehard fan and already own those - good news for you, their EP Salvation is coming out this Friday (Friday is the new Tuesday for music releases). The striking cover art looks like a "Crisis #7" pose over a destroyed city... with artwork as always by Brute!

KMFDM on tour:

Jul 18 Showbox Market Seattle, WA
Jul 19 Imperial Vancouver, BC
Jul 20 Star Theater Portland, OR
Jul 22 Mezzanine San Francisco, CA
Jul 23 The Regent Theater Los Angeles, CA
Jul 24 Livewire Scottsdale, AZ
Jul 26 Gas Monkey Live! Dallas, TX
Jul 27 Scout Bar Houston, TX
Jul 28 Civic Theater New Orleans, LA
Jul 29 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA
Jul 30 Lincoln Theater Raleigh, NC
Jul 31 The State Theater Falls Church, VA
Aug 01 The Sinclair Cambridge, MA
Aug 02 Union Transfer Philadelphia, PA
Aug 04 Irving Plaza New York, NY
Aug 05 Water Street Music Hall Rochester, NY
Aug 06 Iron Works Buffalo, NY
Aug 07 Mr. Small’s Theater Pittsburgh, PA
Aug 08 House of Blues Cleveland, OH
Aug 09 The Southgate House Newport, KY
Aug 11 Exit/In Nashville, TN
Aug 12 The Ready Room St. Louis, MO
Aug 13 The Vogue Indianapolis, IN
Aug 14 House of Blues Chicago, IL
Aug 15 Mill City Nights Minneapolis, MN
Aug 16 The Granada Lawrence, KS
Aug 17 The Summit Music Hall Denver, CO
Aug 18 Urban Lounge Salt Lake City, UT
Aug 19 Knitting Factory Boise, ID

Read More Nick Diamonds Opening up the nearly sold out show was Nick Diamonds, from Islands, who played a brief 40 min set, seated. Highlight of his show was his set finale, a cover of Sinead O'Connor's "Red Football," ..…

NICK DIAMONDS
nickdiamonds.bandcamp.com

Canadian Nick Diamonds (no relationship to Neil Diamond), best known for his bands Islands and The Unicorns recently released his solo LP City of Quartz last month on his Manque Music label.

We previously saw Diamonds in 2014 with The Both.

Upcoming Tour Dates:

9/4: Tucson, AZ @ The Flycatcher
9/5: Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge
9/8: Austin, TX @ Holy Mountain
9/9: New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
9/10: Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
9/11: Charlotte, NC @ Snug Harbor
9/13: Washington, DC @ DC9
9/14: Allston, MA @ Great Scott
9/15: Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade
9/16: New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
9/17: Philadelphia, PA @ The Boot & Saddle
9/18: Hudson, NY @ The Half Moon
9/19: Montreal, QC @ Rialto Hall (POP Montreal)
9/20: Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club Theater
9/22: Detroit, MI @ Majestic Cafe
9/23: Fort Wayne, IN @ The Brass Rail
9/24: Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
9/25: Cincinnati, OH @ MidPoint Music Festival
9/26: Pygmalion Festival
9/27: Iowa City, IA @ The Blue Moose Tap
9/29: Denver, CO @ Hi Dive
9/30: Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
10/1: Boise, ID @ The Watercooler
10/2: Seattle, WA @ Barboza
10/3: Portland, OR @ Bunk Bar
10/4: Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt
10/6: San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
10/10: San Diego, CA @ Bar Pink

BRIEFLY:

OBEY CITY facebook.com Brooklyn producer and writer Sam Obey, aka Obey City, will be releasing Merlot Sounds and will be going out on tour with S-Type soon. The latest EP will feature a series of guests - Kelela, 1OAK, Erick Arc Elliott (Flatbush Zombies) and newcomer Anthony Flammia who provided vocals on "Waterbed".

FLUTRONIX flutronix.com Flute duo Flutronix (Nathalie and Allison) is releasing their new EP called City of Breath on August 13th. The EP has several original Flutronix pieces, as well as a minimalist cover of Steve Reich's "Vermont Counterpoint."

R. CITY twitter.com R. City (formerly known as Rock City) recently recruited Maroon 5 frontman, Adam Levine for their new single, "Locked Away." While R. City's name me not be familiar to you - they wrote some of your favorite pop songs, including Miley Cyrus' "We Can’t Stop", Rihanna's "Pour It Up", Nicki Minaj's "Only", etc. Look for their debut EP later this Summer via Kemosabe Records/RCA Records.

SLOW RIOT facebook.com Post-punk trio Slow Riot (singer/bassist Niall Clancy, guitarist Aaron Duff and drummer Paul Cosgrave) recently released their latest single "City of Culture" last Friday, July 10th via Straight Lines Are Fine. The single is taken from their forthcoming EP Cathedral (due out later this year), recorded at the Manic Street Preachers's FASTER studio in Cardiff under the watchful eye of producer Kevin Vanbergen.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ itunes.apple.com

Owl City at 6Smith - Wayzata for Oake on the Water (02 July 2015)

Owl City Setlist Fireflies Verge Unbelievable Shooting Star Good Time Tour Dates 07/14/15 TODAY Show New York, NY 07/24/15 Fuji Rock Nigata, Japan Read More Owl City Owl City is on a tiny promotional tour before his major Fall (September to November) tour for his new album, The Midsummer Station. Part of the mini-tour …

Holiday celebrations for the weekend began a little early along the shores of Lake Minnetonka as local favorites, Owl City stopped by to kick off their promotional tour and debut some new songs in an acoustic mini-concert.

The event was one of the Oake on the Water installments for radio station Cities 97, an outdoor music series done every Thursday throughout the summer at various shoreline destinations within the Twin Cities metro; this time at just over a year old 6Smith restaurant, in the western suburb of Wayzata.

Adam Young

After a warmup set earlier in the day by local Tim Mahoney, the crowd crammed in even farther to get a glimpse of bandleader Adam Young and group.  The electronica group started as a solo project for Young in 2007, but after the success of six-times Platinum single ‘Fireflies’ the band really took flight.

With four albums, four Eps, and a fifth full-length, Mobile Orchestra (Republic Records) due out this Friday, Young and co. have established themselves as an electronica pop group to be reckoned with and the band showed their acoustic prowess with a 5-song, 25 min. set.

“You know my favorite thing about Wayzata?” Owatonna, MN native Young said, “…everything!”, getting the crowd on their side right away and opening with biggest hit, ‘Fireflies’. In between songs, Young revealed the new album’s cover to be an homage to Pink Floyd, purposely other-worldly and science fiction-esque.

‘Verge’ was next, the album’s lead single, done on record with singer Aloe Blacc, but stripped for this outdoor version, with U2-like guitar work anchoring the song.  New single, the late 80’s nostalgic  ’Unbelievable’ was next, done on the record with Hanson, and about remembering the small unforgettable moments of childhood- playing video games, riding bikes, and generally just being a kid.

‘Shooting Star’ from 2012, was perfect on a warm sunny afternoon by the lakeshore, its melodies lifting the song over the lake surface itself.  “This is classic Minnesota”, Young said, admiring his surroundings and the large crowd before him, he and his four-piece band finished with radio hit, ‘Good Time’, the studio version done with Canadian, Carly Rae Jepsen.

As far as upcoming live dates, only a few July appearances have been announced, but expect a fall tour announcement once the album is released, including a local stop at likely First Avenue, sometime in October.  In the meantime, look for the album this Friday, with the animated video for ‘Unbelievable’ online now.

Owl City at 6Smith - Wayzata, MN for Oake on the Water (02 July 2015)

john ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ itunes.apple.com

Owl City at the Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (07/13/12)

Tour Dates 07.15.12 Bluebird Theatre in Denver, CO 07.18.12 Greek Theatre in Los Angeles 07.20.12 Power Balance in Sacramento 07.21.12 Slims in San Francisco, CA 07.23.12 Triple Door in Seattle, WA 09.05.12 Nashville, TN @ Cannery 09.06.12 Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage 09.07.12 Orlando, FL @ Beacham Theatre 09.08.12 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution 09.10.12 Washington DC @ 9:30 Club 09.11.12 New York, NY @ Irving Plaza 09.13.12 Boston, MA @ Paradise 09.14.12 Philadelphia @ Theatre of Living 09.15.12 Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert 09.16.12 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music 09.18.12 Houston, TX @ House of Blues 09.19.12 Dallas, TX @ House of Blues 09.20.12 Austin, TX @ La Zona Rosa 09.22.12 San Diego, CA @ House of Blues 09.26.12 San Francisco, CA @ Regency 09.28.12 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore 09.29.12 Seattle, WA @ Neptune 10.01.12 Salt Lake City, UT @ Depot 10.02.12 Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre 10.04.12 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue 10.05.12 Kansas City, MO @ Beaumont 10.06.12 Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre 10.07.12 Detroit, MI @ Crofoot 10.18.12 Paris, France @ Trabendo 10.19.12 Zurich, Switzerland @ Mascotte 10.21.12 Munich, Germany @ Hansa 39 10.22.12 Frankfurt, Ger @ Batschkapp 10.23.12 Hamburg, Germany @ Knust 10.25.12 London, UK @ Forum 10.26.12 Birmingham, UK @ Library/HMV 10.27.12 Dublin, Ireland @ Whelans 10.28.12 Glasgow, UK @ Garage 10.30.12 Manchester, UK @ Academy 3 10.31.12 Oxford, UK @ Academy 2 11.02.12 Gent, Belgium @ Vooruit 11.03.12 Amsterdam, Holland @ Melkweg 11.07.12 Osaka, Japan @ Big Cat 11.08.12 Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Ax 11.12.12 Taipei, Taiwan @ Legacy 11.14.12 Jakarta, Indonesia @ Tennis 11.16.12 Auckland, NZ @ Powerstation 11.18.12 Melbourne, Aus @ Corner Hotel 11.20.12 Sydney, Australia @ The Metro Read More Owl City I've seen Owl City easily sell out larger capacity venues, so it was no surprise me that Owl City sold out the Varsity Theater this Friday, July 13th.

Owl City is on a tiny promotional tour before his major Fall (September to November) tour for his new album, The Midsummer Station. Part of the mini-tour includes last night, July 13th, at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. The Varsity is probably going to be the smallest venue that Owl City, in his current popular status, will likely play.

Jayme Dee

Opening up for Owl City was Jayme Dee, who started as a YouTube star. She quickly shot up to fame, with her song "Rules," being featured in "The Hunger Games" soundtrack, alongside other established acts like Arcade Fire, Neko Case, and Taylor Swift.

She's always writing music, so she unveiled a new songs that she wrote a few days ago called "Keep Away," which she ended her set. Highlight of her show for me was her cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic."

Before we get to Owl City's performance, I have to say that it was really nice to see such a devoted fanbase. The mostly teen girls (some as young as 10 years old, so their parents were acting as chaperone) stood for hours in the pouring rain with homemade T-Shirts and signs with messages like "you inspired me". Also every time the Varsity Theater showed "Owl City at the Varsity, Sold-Out" slideshow, it caused a huge reaction with the crowd. Clearly every single person in the venue was there to see Owl City.

It was also nice to see Breanne Düren, on keys and backup vocals. I didn't know the other band members, but they all seemed seasoned enough, playing and dancing with confidence.

One of the louder rock songs they did on their set was "Dementia," which Adam Young started with him fist-pumping into the air (which caused the entire audience to mimic). It shouldn't be a surprise that it was more upbeat because the song was co-written with Blink-182's Mark Hoppus.

Highlight of his set for me was, of course, his big hit single, "Fireflies." You haven't heard the song until you hear it live, with his ten million fans singing "I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly. It's hard to say that I'd rather stay."

Owl City is currently on tour to promote The Midsummer Station, to be released on August 21st on Universal Republic. If you are kicking yourself for missing Owl City this time around, he's coming back to Minneapolis in October at First Avenue. Although the venue has a larger capacity, I predict it will sell out - so get your tickets now as they just went on sale last night.

Owl City at the Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (07/13/12)

vu () ♥ owlcitymusic.com ♥ jaymedee.com

Birds of a Feather IV

Read More Owl City Owl City is the stage name of Adam Young.... and his certified "Gold" album is called Ocean Eyes.

See also Birds of a Feather III, Birds of a Feather II, Birds of a Feather, and Birds Fly Into My Windshield.

OWL CITY
owlcitymusic.com

I've seen Owl City easily sell out larger capacity venues, so it was no surprise me that Owl City sold out the Varsity Theater this Friday, July 13th. If you don't have a ticket to Owl City, your other alternative is buy tickets for Owl City's return to Minneapolis (First Avenue) show on October 4 (tickets goes on sale July 13th at noon).

So what's new with Owl City? He's just announced a world tour this fall in support of his new studio album, The Midsummer Station (to be released on August 21st on Universal Republic). The tour officially starts this September 5th, but fans who are seeing him in July will probably be previewed to his new songs (including "Good Time", the pre-album single).

If you really love Owl City, I do suggest buying your tickets early as his shows has a tendency to sell out. Be on the lookout for The Midsummer Station in August.

07.10.12 Bowery Ballroom in New York, NY 07.12.12 Bottom Lounge in Chicago, IL 07.13.12 Varsity Theatre in Minneapolis, MN 07.15.12 Bluebird Theatre in Denver, CO 07.18.12 Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, CA 07.20.12 Power Balance in Sacramento, CA 07.21.12 Slims in San Francisco, CA 07.23.12 Triple Door in Seattle, WA 09.05.12 Nashville, TN @ Cannery 09.06.12 Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage 09.07.12 Orlando, FL @ Beacham Theatre 09.08.12 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution 09.10.12 Washington DC @ 9:30 Club 09.11.12 New York, NY @ Irving Plaza 09.13.12 Boston, MA @ Paradise 09.14.12 Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts 09.15.12 Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Hall 09.16.12 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall 09.18.12 Houston, TX @ House of Blues 09.19.12 Dallas, TX @ House of Blues 09.20.12 Austin, TX @ La Zona Rosa 09.22.12 San Diego, CA @ House of Blues 09.26.12 San Francisco, CA @ Regency 09.28.12 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom 09.29.12 Seattle, WA @ Neptune 10.01.12 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot

10.02.12 Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre 10.04.12 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue 10.05.12 Kansas City, MO @ Beaumont 10.06.12 Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre 10.07.12 Detroit, MI @ Crofoot 10.18.12 Paris, France @ Trabendo 10.19.12 Zurich, Switzerland @ Mascotte 10.21.12 Munich, Germany @ Hansa 39 10.22.12 Frankfurt, Germany @ Batschkapp 10.23.12 Hamburg, Germany @ Knust 10.25.12 London, UK @ Forum 10.26.12 Birmingham, UK @ Library/HMV Institute 10.27.12 Dublin, Ireland @ Whelans 10.28.12 Glasgow, UK @ Garage 10.30.12 Manchester, UK @ Academy 3 10.31.12 Oxford, UK @ Academy 2 11.02.12 Gent, Belgium @ Vooruit 11.03.12 Amsterdam, Holland @ Melkweg 11.07.12 Osaka, Japan @ Big Cat 11.08.12 Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Ax 11.12.12 Taipei, Taiwan @ Legacy 11.14.12 Jakarta, Indonesia @ Tennis Indoor 11.16.12 Auckland, NZ @ Powerstation 11.18.12 Melbourne, Australia @ Corner Hotel 11.20.12 Sydney, Australia @ The Metro

ANDREW BIRD
andrewbird.net

We've written about Andrew Bird, a few times.

Anyway, critics are raving about Andrew Bird's latest release, Break It Yourself. NPR called it "something beautiful", TIME called "delightful pop songs", and Newsweek puts it best with "perfect for the sensitive souls".

He's been on somewhat of a media blitz, appearing on "The Colbert Report", "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon", "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and NPR's "Weekend Edition".

If you haven't picked up Break It Yourself, you can hear him playing those new songs on his tour. He's recently added some new dates, including Austin City Limits Festival.

07/08/12 Fifth Third Bank Ballpark Geneva, IL* 07/10/12 North Carolina Museum of Art Raleigh, NC† 07/11/12 Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Richmond, VA† 07/13/12 Stage AE Pittsburgh, PA‡ 07/14/12 Forecastle Festival Louisville, KY 07/15/12 Frederik Meijer Gardens Grand Rapids, MI 07/16/12 Artpark Lewiston, NY 07/18/12 Theatre De Verdure Montreal, QC 07/19/12 Echo Beach Toronto, ON 07/20/12 Higher Ground Shelburne, VT 07/21/12 Hope Artiste Village Courtyard Pawtucket, RI 07/27/12 Soundtown Festival Somerset, WI 08/10/12 Outside Lands San Francisco, CA 08/11/12 The Spreckels Theatre San Diego, CA 08/12/12 The Greek Theatre Los Angeles, CA 08/14/12 Red Butte Garden Salt Lake City, UT 08/15 /12 Chautauqua Auditorium Boulder, CO 08/17 /12 Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre Denver, CO 08/18/12 Jackson Hole Center for the Arts Jackson, WY 08/20/12 Peter Kiewit Concert Hall Omaha, NE

08/21/12 Simon Estes Amphitheatre Des Moines, IA 09/26/12 Overture Hall Madison, WI§ 09/27/12 Midpoint Music Festival Cincinnati, OH§ 09/29/12 Singletary Center Lexington, KY§ 09/30/12 Murat Theatre Indianapolis, IN§ 10/01/12 Orange Peel Asheville, NC§ 10/02/12 Neighborhood Theatre Charlotte, NC§ 10/04/12 Tennessee Theater Knoxville, TN§ 10/05/12 Georgia Theater Athens, GA§ 10/06/12 Charleston Music Hall Charleston, SC§ 10/08/12 Fillmore at Jackie Gleason Miami Beach, FL§ 10/09/12 Ferguson Hall Tampa, FL§ 10/10/12 House of Blues Orlando, FL§ 10/12/12 House of Blues Houston, TX§ 10/13/12 Austin City Limits Festival Austin, TX * with Wilco † with Mavis Staples ‡ with Death Cab For Cutie § with Here We Go Magic

BLUE BIRD
www.bluebirdlovesyou.com

I mentioned Blue Bird last year.

It looks like they are back with a debut self-titled full length album. Don't bother searching for it on amazon, I can tell you that it's not searchable.

Maybe you can pick up the album when you see this Omaha band live:

July 10 New York, NY Pianos
July 11 PIttsburgh, PA Howler's Coyote Cafe
July 12 Louisville, KY The Bard's Town
July 13 Nashville, TN The National Underground
July 14 Columbia, MO The Bridge
July 28 Omaha, NE The Sydney
Sept 22 Laramie, WY Gryphon Theater

BLACK SWANS
theblackswans.com

The Black Swans are from Columbus, Ohio, and they have a new album, Occasion for Song, out on July 31st via Misra Records. Fans might want to pre-order the album now, as you do get a little discount.

The album, I have read, is in memory of death of their founding member and violinist Noel Sayre, who drowned in a swimming accident in 2008.

Frontman Jerry DeCicca described the album as "about a loved one's absence, how death affects the emotional lives of the living, and how their absence affects memory."

Is it morbid to feature the swimming pool where the accident occurred? No, it is just a location, but what's more fascinating is the meaning and feeling associated with it by the band members.

THE LONE CROWS
thelonecrows.bandcamp.com

Formerly known as Heart of Bristol, this local Minneapolis band, The Lone Crows, are playing the 400 Bar this Thursday, July 11th with guest special guest Kelcy Mae from New Orleans. They are hoping you'll come to their show and keep them company so they won't feel so lonely.

The Lone Crows are a bluesy rock band, so it should be interesting to see how they will play with acoustic alt-folk styling of Mae.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

Breanne Düren at 7th Street Entry, Minneapolis (05/20/11)

Read More Breanne Düren Her songs are introspective, so it's kind of weird to hear such upbeat songs from her debut solo five-track EP called Sparks, out on May 3rd.

Prior to last night's all-ages show at the 7th Street Entry, I got a press release stating that Breanne Düren's debut EP, Sparks, was on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart at #5 (#3 on the iTunes Pop Charts), and she'll be hitting the road with her pal, Owl City, to play some massive stadiums (even as support band on some of the dates). I'm glad I got a chance to catch her at such a small and intimate setting as the 7th Street before she blows up.

HILLARY HOWARD

DUSTIN HATZENBUHLER

Starting off the early evening was Hillary Howard, with her dad on acoustic guitar. She played a few new songs, including "Creep" and a yet-to-be-titled song that she just wrote a few days ago (the lyrics were written on her arm). She ended her set with "Miss World". Apologies for the dark photo, I believe the 7th Street's center lights are broken. It was as dark on stage as it was off the stage.

Dustin Hatzenbuhler spent most of his set behind his keyboard, except for two songs on his ukulele (I believe they were for his ex-band Ferris' song, "I Don't", and Sam Cooke's "A Change is Gonna Come" - which many folky artists have covered, including Ben Sollee). He ended his set with "Love Me Until Tomorrow".

So, you know the story, I saw Breanne Düren play support for Passenger at the Hollow in 2008, so I was eager to see how far she's come since then. The big change is, of course, the full backing band she has on stage. They played with her until "Lenses" and "Black Cofee", which saw Düren by herself on the keyboard.

Highlight from her show was a cover of Jamie Lidell's "Another Day". As you can see from her cute notes, written on the setlist (see scan), she tried to get people in New York dancing, but all they could muster was the shoulder shuffle.

Basically all five tracks from her Sparks EP, plus a few old songs were played. She didn't have too many songs under her belt, but that's okay, she's still young.

BREANNE DUREN

Now, for some tour announcements - these are dates with Owl City, (*) will indicate that Breanne will open these shows for Owl City. I would like to see them at The Roy Wilkins Auditorium, but since I criticized Owl City for overusing autotune in my review, I don't think they like me very much.

06/13/11 Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium 06/14/11 Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle 06/16/11 Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of Blues 06/17/11 Charlotte, NC - Fillmore Charlotte 06/18/11 Baltimore, MD - Pier Six Pavilion 06/20/11 Montreal, QUE - Olympia de Montreal 06/21/11 Toronto, ONT - Kool Haus 06/23/11 New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom* 06/25/11 Philadelphia, PA - Mann Center 06/26/11 Boston, MA - House of Blues 06/28/11 Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room 06/29/11 Detroit, MI - The Fillmore Detroit 06/30/11 Milwaukee, WI - Henry Maier Festival 07/01/11 Columbus, OH - Lifestyle Communities 07/02/11 Shirleysburg, PA - Agape Farm 07/11/11 Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theatre 07/12/11 Detroit, MI - The Fillmore Detroit 07/13/11 Orem, UT - UCCU Center 07/15/11 Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre 07/16/11 Vancouver, BC - Centre In 07/17/11 Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre 07/19/11 San Francisco, CA - Warfield Theatre 07/21/11 Los Angeles, CA - Club Nokia* 07/23/11 Pomona, CA - Fox Theatre Pomona 07/25/11 Houston, TX - Verizon Wireless Theatre 07/26/11 Grand Prairie, TX - Verizon Theatre 07/27/11 Austin, TX - The Moody Theatre 07/29/11 Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom 07/30/11 St. Paul, MN Roy Wilkins Auditorium 08/12/11 Auckland, NZ - Auckland Town Hall		08/15/11 Brisbane, AU - The Tivoli 08/16/11 Sydney, AU - Metro Theatre 08/17/11 Melbourne, AU - Billboard The Venue 08/18/11 Melbourne, AU - Billboard The Venue 09/05/11 Dublin, IE - The Academy 09/07/11 Glasgow, UK - ABC 09/08/11 Manchester, UK - Manchester Academy 09/09/11 London, UK - Shepherd's Bush Empire* 09/12/11 Leeds, UK - Leeds Academy 09/13/11 Birmingham, UK - HMV Institute 09/15/11 Tilburg, NL - O13 09/16/11 Brussels, BE - Ancienne Belgique 09/17/11 Paris, FR - Bataclan* 09/19/11 Madrid, ES - Ramdall 09/20/11 Lisbon, PT - Campo Pequeño 09/22/11 Barcelona, ES - Apolo 2 09/24/11 Milan, IT - Milano Magazzini Generali 09/26/11 Zurich, CH - Abart 09/27/11 Munich, DE - Theatrefabrik 09/28/11 Vienna, AT - Arena Vienna 09/30/11 Berlin, DE - Postbahnhof 10/01/11 Cologne, DE - Gloria 10/02/11 Hamburg, DE - Gruenspan* 10/04/11 - Copenhagen, DK - Vega 10/05/11 Stockholm, SE - Berns 10/21/11 Nagoya, JP - Club Quattro 10/22/11 Tokyo, JP - Stellar Ball* 10/24/11 Seoul, KR - AX Hall 10/26/11 Manila, Philippines - Trinoma Hall 10/28/11 Jakarta, ID - Tennis Indoor Senayan*

vu () ♥ breannedurenmusic.com

When Animals Goes On Tour

Two

The Antlers

I do this semi-regular When Animals Attack series, because I find that there is a ridiculous amount of bands with animal names and/or themes. So, with that, here are some "animals" on tour:

ANTLERS
antlersmusic.com ♥ myspace

The Antlers announced their Spring touring schedules, including dates with Phantogram and "the most blogged band" The National. I do like Phantogram and have seen The National play before, so Antlers are going to be in good company.

Remember, Hospice is their latest album from Frenchkiss Records. Read my handy review of the album from this "mysterious" band.

US Tour Dates With Phantogram Fri-Apr-16 - Columbus, OH - The Basement Sat-Apr-17 - Urbana, IL - Canopy Club Sun-Apr-18 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon Tue-Apr-20 - Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theatre Wed-Apr-21 - Iowa City, IA - The Blue Moose Thu-Apr-22 - Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall Fri-Apr-23 - Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig Wed-Apr-28 - San Diego, CA - Casbah Thurs-Apr-29-Costa Mesa, CA - Detroit Bar Fri-Apr-30 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour Sat-May-01 - San Francisco, CA - Independent

Mon-May-03 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge Tue-May-04 - Vancouver, BC - Biltmore Cabaret Wed-May-05 - Seattle, WA - Neumo's US Dates With The National Wed-Jun-02 - Boston, MA - House of Blues Thu-Jun-03 - Boston, MA - House of Blues Fri-Jun-04 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory Sat-Jun-05 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory Sun-Jun-06 - Washington, DC - Constitution Hall Tue-Jun-08 - Toronto, ON - Massey Hall Wed-Jun-09 - Toronto, ON - Massey Hall Wed-Jun-16 - New York - Radio City Music Hall

DEER TICK
deertickmusic.com ♥ myspace ♥ twitter.com

Deer Tick is a band out of Rhode Island, they've already have two albums under the Partisan Record Label, and they already have a third one called The Black Dirt Sessions, coming out June 8^th, 2010. Not surprisingly, recorded at the Black Dirt Studios in upstate New York.

If you've never heard of them, Partisan Records has a free digital sampler, which has two songs from Deer Tick (a demo version of "Art Isn't Real (City of Sin)" and "Smith Hill").

If you're already a fan and can't wait for the album to come out, the good news is that they're on tour, and possibly will be playing some of those newer songs. I will be at the Triple Rock on Friday to check them out. Although, I will have to admit that they have a tough act to follow up, as Those Darlins are the opening act.

04/04 Portland, ME Space Gallery # 04/05 Montreal, QC Il Motore # 04/06 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern # 04/07 Detroit, MI Magic Stick # 04/08 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge # 04/09 Minneapolis, MN Triple Rock Social Club # 04/10 Iowa City, IA The Mill # 04/11 Lawrence, KS Jackpot Music Hall # 04/12 Oklahoma City, OK Conservatory 04/14 Phoenix, AZ The Trunkspace 04/16 Indio, CA Coachella 04/20 Portland, OR Crystal Ballroom % 04/21 Vancouver, BC Biltmore Cabaret % 04/22 Seattle, WA Tractor Tavern % 04/24 Santa Cruz, CA Crepe Place 04/25 San Francisco, CA Great American Hall * 04/27 Los Angeles, CA Henry Fonda Theatre * 04/28 Las Vegas, NV Beauty Bar 04/29 NM Sante Fe Brewing Company * 04/30 Dallas, TX The Loft *

05/01 Austin, TX Emo's * 05/02 Houston, TX Warehouse Live Studio * 05/03 Fayetteville, AR Majestic Lounge * 05/04 Little Rock, AR Sticky Fingerz 05/05 Birmingham, AL Workplay * 05/06 Nashville, TN Cannery Ballroom * 05/07 Louisville, KY Headliners * 05/08 Cleveland, OH Beachland Tavern 05/09 Ithaca, NY Castaway's 05/10 Albany, NY Valentines 05/11 Boston, MA Paradise * 05/12 Boston, MA Paradise * 05/13 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory * 05/14 Washington, DC 9:30 Club * 05/15 New York, NY Terminal 5 * * = w/ Dr. Dog # = w/ Those Darlins % = w/ Holy Sons

TRAMPLED BY TURTLES
trampledbyturtles.com ♥ myspace

I've always liked their name, it's just a funny image of these slow-moving creatures, slowly killing you. This Duluth, Minnesota, band are playing some dates in support of their upcoming album, Palomino, to be released April 13^th, on on Thirty Tigers/RED.

I am told that this "local" band is amazing to see live. So, tour dates below:

TH Apr 8 | Double Door | Chicago, IL FR Apr 9 | First Avenue | Minneapolis, MN SA Apr 10 | First Avenue | Minneapolis, MN SU Apr 11 | High Noon| Madison, WI WE Apr 14 | Filling Station | Bozeman, MT TH Apr 15 | Elks Ballroom | Missoula, MT FR Apr 16 | Wonder Ballroom | Portland, OR SA Apr 17 | Tractor Tavern | Seattle, WA SU Apr 18 | WOW Hall | Eugene, OR MO Apr 19 | Humboldt Brewery | Arcata, CA TU Apr 20 | Independent | San Francisco, CA WE Apr 21 | Moe's Alley | Santa Cruz, CA TH Apr 22 | The Mint | Los Angeles, CA SA Apr 24 |Stagecoach Festival | Indio, CA WE May 12 | Hodi's Halfnote | Fort Collins, CO

TH May 13 | Belly Up | Aspen, CO FR May 14 | Ogden Theatre | Denver, CO MO May 24 | Beachland Ballroom | Cleveland, OH WE May 26 | Mercury Lounge | New York City TH May 27 | Middle East | Boston, MA FR May 28 | Delfest | Cumberland, MD SA May 29 | Delfest | Cumberland, MD MO May 31 | Pour House Music Hall | Raleigh, NC TU Jun 1 | The Grey Eagle | Asheville, NC WE Jun 2 | Atlanta, GA | Smith’s Olde Bar TH Jun 3 | Levitt Shell  | Memphis, TN FR Jun 4 | Wakarusa Festival | Ozark, AR SA Jun 5 | Wakarusa Festival | Ozark, AR SA Jul 3 | High Sierra Music Fest | Quincy, CA SU Jul 4 | High Sierra Music Fest | Quincy, CA

OWL CITY
owlcitymusic.com ♥ myspace

Speaking of Minnesota, I've previously mentioned that I did not understand why he's so popular. He continues to confuse me with his album Ocean Eyes scoring platinum status and 80% of his shows are sold out, and/or selling out fast.

Apr 5 2010 The Fillmore^ San Francisco, CA Apr 6 2010 The Fillmore^ San Francisco, CA Apr 7 2010 The Fox Theater^ Pomona, CA Apr 8 2010 Soma^ San Diego, CA Apr 9 2010 Club Nokia^ Los Angeles, CA Apr 10 2010 Marquee Theatre^ Tempe, AZ Apr 12 2010 Salt Air Theater Magna, UT Apr 13 2010 Ogden Theatre^ Denver, CO Apr 15 2010 Stubb’s Waller Creek Austin, TX Apr 16 2010 Verizon Wireless  Houston, TX Apr 17 2010 Nokia Theatre Dallas, TX Apr 19 2010 War Memorial ^ Nasvhille, TN Apr 20 2010 The Tabernacle^ Atlanta, GA Apr 22 2010 Constitution Hall^ Washington DC Apr 23 2010 House of Blues^ Boston, MA Apr 24 2010 Terminal 5 Matinee^ New York Apr 24 2010 Terminal 5^ New York Apr 25 2010 Electric Factory^ Philadelphia, PA Apr 27 2010 Sound Academy^ Toronto, Ontario Apr 28 2010 House of Blues^ Cleveland Apr 29 2010 Royal Oak Music ^ Detroit, MI Apr 30 2010 Aragon Ballroom^ Chicago, IL May 1 2010 State Theater^ Minneapolis, MN

May 1 2010 State Theatre^ Minneapolis, MN May 2 2010 Eagles Ballroom Milwaukee, WI May 4 2010 Val Air Ballroom Des Moines, IA May 5 2010 The Pageant St. Louis, MO May 8 2010 Barrowlands Glasgow May 9 2010 O2 Sheperds Bush Empire London May 11 2010 Elysee Montmartre Paris May 12 2010 E-Werk Cologne Aug 18 2010 Cricket Pavilion * Phoenix, Arizona Aug 20 2010 Shoreline * Mountain View, CA Aug 21 2010 Sleep Train * Wheatland, CA Aug 22 2010 Hollywood Bowl * Los Angeles, CA Aug 24 2010 Verizon Wireless  * Irvine, CA Aug 25 2010 Cricket Wireless * Chula Vista Sep 1 2010 Red Rocks  * Morrison, CO Sep 5 2010 Cynthia Woods * Houston, TX Sep 6 2010 Amph at Wharf * Orange Beach, AL Sep 8 2010 Aarons Amphitheatre  * Atlanta, GA Sep 10 2010 Ford Amphitheatre * Tampa, FL Sep 11 2010 Cruzan * West Palm Beach, FL ^ SOLD-OUT * with John Mayer

Megafaun - the Fade

Megafaun

MEGAFAUN
megafaun.com ♥ myspace ♥ twitter.com

Technically, not really an animal, a faun is a mythical creature of half man and half goat. Recently fauns are getting some attention in the Percy Jackson books. Anyway, I've previously wrote that the band had a "strange mixture of sound" and that I really like "The Fade" from their album, Gather, Form & Fly.

It looks like Megafaun's just come off an extensive European tour and is now in the middle of their US tour. Catch this mythical creature if you can:

04.04 • La Sala Rossa (Montreal, QC) 04.05 • Horseshoe Tavern (Toronto, ON) 04.07 • Beachland Tavern (Cleveland, OH) 04.08 • Empty Bottle (Chicago, IL) 04.09 • Cedar Cultural Center (Minneapolis, MN) 04.10 • The Waiting Room (Omaha, NE) 04.11 • Replay Lounge (Lawrence, KS) 04.12 • Larimer Lounge (Denver, CO) 04.13 • Kilby Court (Salt Lake City, UT) 04.15 • Tractor Tavern (Seattle, WA) 04.16 • The Media Club (Vancouver, BC) 04.17 • Mississippi Studios (Portland, OR) 04.18 • Sam Bond's Garage (Eugene, OR)

04.19 • Sophia's Thai Kitchen (Davis, CA) 04.20 • The Independent (San Francisco, CA) 04.21 • The Echo (Los Angeles, CA) 04.22 • Hotel Congress (Tucson, AZ) 04.23 • The Sail Inn (Tempe, AZ) 04.24 • Low Spirits (Albuquerque, NM) 04.26 • Hailey’s (Denton, TX) 04.27 • Emo’s Inside (Austin, TX) 04.28 • Rudyards (Houston, TX) 04.30 • Bottletree (Birmingham, AL) 05.01 • The Earl (Atlanta, GA) 05.07 • Cats Cradle (Carrboro, NC)

 04/04/2010 11:57:00 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com

Land, Sea, and Air

Panda Transport - Monorail Panda Transport Discography [2007] Panda Transport [Jun 2009] Plush Mechanique [Dec 2009] Monorail

Land, air, and ocean ... today's theme is about that and also about vessels of transportation.

PANDA TRANSPORT
pandatransport.com ♥ myspace.com

According to Panda Transport's biography, they are a Frenchman (Ti) and an American woman (Kat). They play a sort of low-fi indiepop music. Their EP, Monorail was released last month.

What I immediately like about the duo is that Kat's sweltering vocals sometime makes their music sound like a lazy evening at a jazz club. However, the upbeat music can be as fun as on "Monorail" to somewhat silly "Freakshow" (complete with doo-doo-scat).

The one non-Kat song, "Cicadas in Stereo" definitely stands out. I'm also not certain what is being sung on this line: "I want to ____ every single butterfly"? Did I just hear that right?

You can hear their entire EP streaming at their official website.

I will say this, they're cute, and their songs reminds me of one of my favorite band the Would-Be-Goods if they were to go jazz lounge. You can pick up Monorail digitally at usual (itunes, le amazon). Physical CD list can be found here (available last Tuesday?).

Tour Dates   01/23/10 Borders  Charlotte, NC 01/30/10 Borders  Apex, NC 01/21/10 Paris-Mann  Grill Canton, GA Discography [Oct 2006] End of the Ride [Nov 2009] End of the Ride Revisited

PARIS KEELING
pariskeeling.com ♥ myspace.com

I will admit that what made Paris Keeling's CD packaging for End Of Ride Revisited memorable was that it came with this cardboard plastic airplane. Which I did put together and had a twirl (it took a nose-dive and crashed).

Paris Keeling's moniker should be obvious when you hear that it's from their two main songwriters, Marty Paris and Kelly Keeling's name. You can deduce this from hearing the introduction on their live track "Head Straight". Speaking of which, I kind of wish there were more live tracks on this album. I think this is the band's strong point, jamming and playing to an audience. You pick up the energy in the vocals, while their studio tracks seems too well-polished and produced.

As suggested by "Revisited", this is the second release of End Of Ride. Based on seeing the tracklisting for the original release, this new version comes with a different track order and contain new songs (mostly at the end of the track order). Two songs were left out of the revisited album, "Welcome" and "Middle of the Road", so I suspect due to the time limitation of the CD format.

It seems obvious to me that singer Paris Keeling's been singing and playing for most of his adult life (a quick biography check tells me that he's played on Alice Cooper's Hey Stoopid, so the guy's been around!).

The new revisited songs started with an aggressive guitar song, "Don't Disturb The Occupants", so I thought the band's new direction would be more hard-rock ... but I was quickly corrected with a 'sensitive'-type song, "Feel", and acoustic-ish "Alive".

The one stand-out track for me is the all-guitar song "I Learned from the Inside", which demonstrate what an excellent guitar player Marty Paris is. As I previously mentioned, I think this band will be at their best by playing live to an audience. They are doing some instores and appearing live at the end of January, check them out if you're in the area.

Tour Dates   01/21/10 Beaumont Club - SOLD OUT!! Kansas City, Missouri 01/22/10 Diamond Ballroom - SOLD OUT!! Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 01/23/10 The Pageant- SOLD OUT!! St. Louis, Missouri 01/24/10 Egyptian Room at Murat Center - SOLD OUT!! Indianapolis, Indiana 01/26/10 Majestic Theatre - SOLD OUT!! Madison, Wisconsin 01/27/10 Madison Theatre - SOLD OUT!! Covington, Kentucky 01/28/10 Lifestyle Communities Pavilion- SOLD OUT!! Columbus, Ohio 01/29/10 Ram’s Head Live - SOLD OUT!! Baltimore, Maryland 01/30/10 Norva Theater - SOLD OUT!! Norfolk, Virginia 02/01/10 Music Farm - SOLD OUT!! Charleston, South Carolina 02/02/10 Freebird Live - SOLD OUT!! Jacksonville Beach, Florida 02/03/10 The Ritz Ybor - SOLD OUT!! Tampa, Florida 02/04/10 Culture Room - SOLD OUT!! Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 02/05/10 House of Blues - SOLD OUT!! Orlando, Florida 02/06/10 The Melting Point - SOLD OUT!! Athens, Georgia 02/08/10 WorkPlay Theatre - SOLD OUT!! Birmingham, Alabama 02/09/10 Varsity Theatre - SOLD OUT!! Baton Rouge, Louisiana 02/10/10 Revolution Music Room - SOLD OUT!! Little Rock, Arkansas 02/17/10 Komedia Theatre Brighton, UK 02/18/10 Electric Ballroom **VENUE CHANGED** London, UK 02/19/10 O2 Academy Oxford Oxford, UK 02/20/10 O2 Academy 2 Newcastle Newcastle, UK 02/21/10 O2 Academy 2 Birmingham Birmingham, UK 02/22/10 Manchester Academy 2 Manchester, UK 02/24/10 Melkweg - SOLD OUT!! Amsterdam, Netherlands 02/25/10 Orangerie - Botanique Brussels, Belgium 02/26/10 Le Nouveau Casino Paris, France 02/27/10 Die Werkstatt Cologne, Germany 02/28/10 59 to 1 Munich, Germany 03/01/10 Magnet Berlin, Germany 03/02/10 Amager Bio Copenhagen 03/12/10 Great Hall, Auckland Town Hall (w/ Cobra Starship) Auckland, Auckland 03/14/10 SMX Convention Center, Hall 1 & 2 Manila 03/16/10 University of NSW Roundhouse (w/ Cobra Starship) Sydney, New South Wales 03/17/10 The Tivoli (w/ Cobra Starship) Brisbane, Queensland 03/19/10 The Hi-fi (w/ Cobra Starship) Melbourne, Victoria 03/20/10 The Hi-fi (w/ Cobra Starship) Melbourne, Victoria 03/21/10 Metro City (w/ Cobra Starship) Perth, Western Australia 03/30/10 Knitting Factory Boise, Idaho 03/31/10 Knitting Factory Spokane, Washington 04/01/10 Paramount Theatre Seattle, Washington 04/02/10 Vogue Theatre Vancouver, British Columbia 04/03/10 Roseland Theatre Portland, Oregon 04/05/10 The Fillmore San Francisco, California 04/06/10 The Fillmore San Francisco, California 04/07/10 The Fox Theater Pomona, California 04/08/10 Soma San Diego, California 04/09/10 Club Nokia Los Angeles, California 04/10/10 Marquee Theatre Tempe, Arizona 04/12/10 Salt Air Theater Magna, Utah 04/13/10 Ogden Theatre Denver, Colorado 04/15/10 Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheatre Austin, Texas 04/16/10 Verizon Wireless Theater Houston, Texas 04/17/10 Nokia Theatre Dallas, Texas 04/19/10 War Memorial Auditorium Nasvhille, Tennessee 04/20/10 The Tabernacle Atlanta, Georgia 04/22/10 Constitution Hall WASHINGTON, Washington DC 04/23/10 House of Blues Boston, Massachusetts 04/24/10 Terminal 5 **MATINEE ADDED!** New York, New York 04/24/10 Terminal 5 - SOLD OUT!! New York City, New York 04/25/10 Electric Factory Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 04/27/10 Sound Academy Toronto, Ontario 04/28/10 House of Blues Cleveland 04/29/10 Royal Oak Music Theatre Detroit, Michigan 04/30/10 Aragon Ballroom **VENUE CHANGED** Chicago, Illinois 05/01/10 State Theater **MATINEE ADDED!** Minneapolis, Minnesota 05/01/10 State Theatre Minneapolis, Minnesota 05/02/10 Eagles Ballroom Milwaukee, Wisconsin Discography [2008] Maybe I'm Dreaming [2009] Ocean Eyes

OWL CITY
owlcitymusic.com ♥ myspace.com

Universal Records sent me this promo to listen to last year. At first, I didn't know why they'd do such a thing, I'm actually not a big fan of pop music. And I loathe autotune. But then, as I found out talking to a local blogger at a concert last year that I was told that Owl City is some dude in his basement who lives in Minnesota. We thought that was so weird, considering that Owl City is the hottest/best-selling on the Billboard Top 100 (for "Fireflies"). As it is, Owl City is the stage name of Adam Young.... and his certified "Gold" album is called Ocean Eyes.

So. All of Owl City's songs are autotuned (with the exception of "Vanilla Twilight"?). I guess this is just the state of modern pop music. Just check out all the top forty bands and they're using it. I guess I don't really get it. Of course, I also don't understand the Lady Gaga, who every young person I know is in love with her.

Anyway, I even made a point to listen to Owl City's hit song, "Fireflies". It was OK. I can see why people would like this song about being an insomniac, especially that line "I'd like to make myself believe that planet Earth turns slowly".

If I were to pick some good songs, I did like "Umbrella Beach", "The Tip Of The Iceberg" (for the fading in and out) and "The Saltwater Room" (mostly for the duet with Breanne Duren). Duren's vocals was a nice change of pace, and incidentally I saw last year. I described her as a quiet girl with her Casio keyboard.

Well despite my not-so-fondness of Owl City, it looks like he's doing quite well for himself. He's playing to a bunch of sold-out shows, so if you are a fan, I suggest picking up tickets before they sell out. I am definitely not the demographic for Owl City, but I'm happy to see this Minnesotan doing so extraordinary well.

PS, if you were wondering what's on the cover, it is the hotel Burj Al Arab

 01/08/2010 00:51:38 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com