I've been stuck in NY with no internet hook-up for the last few days, but I'm back in town now, and just in time. Every bar in town has something brewing for the festivities, but only one is worth the price of admission. I wonder who it might be?
ENON / THE NOWHERE SQUARES / WALKER YANCEY @ Bottletree
Admission: $20 in advance / $25 at the door
Go Time: 7PM
Other venues may have good shows on the occasion, but nobody brings consistent boogie-down like Bottletree. Tonight should prove to be exceptionally bad-ass. Veteran Brooklynites ENON join one of my favorite local bands, Nowhere Squares, for a celebratory rock-off. Walker Yancey is 11 years old, and he's already got more street cred than you and me put together. I'll catch you on the flipside of the year! Yamas!
Pick of the Day 12/31/07
Video of the Day 12/31/07
This is another video I discovered long ago, but I'm just getting around to posting it now.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/31/07
Pick of the Day 12/27/07
Yay! Another movie night at Bottletree. Too bad I'm not in town.
Documentary Film Night: The Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars @ Bottletree
Admission: Free
Get There: 8PM
Have fun everybody!
Video of the Day 12/27/07
This is one of the favorite videos, but I'm only just getting around to posting it. Vikings battle each other with the power of rock!
Pick of the Day 12/26/07
First of all, let me sorry for not posting yesterday. It was Christmas after all, and I was just too busy hangin' with the folks. Anyway, here we go again. Today's pick is:
The Big Tasties @ Bailey's Pub
Admission: Free
Go Time: 10 PM
Video of the Day 12/26/07
Snip, snip. I wish I had a a double breasted kick-drum!
Concert Poster of the Day 12/26/07
Neil Young just made it onto my list of artists to exhaustivly explore. Here's to you Neil:
Neil Young (C.W. Mitchell Pavilion '03)Pick of the Day 12/24/07
Today's pick of the day is: Your Family! There's nothing worth leaving them for anyway. Grab a deck of cards and circle the wagons, cause it's countdown to Christmas time.
Merry merry!
Video of the Day
This is one of the best segments from the old Christmas classic "Claymation Christmas". Silly, silly stuff.
Pick of the Day 12/23/07
Hey all! I'm in Pennsylvania with my folks for the holidays, so for the next week or so I'm going to be brief.
Matthew Mayfield / Matthew Perryman Jones / Garrison Starr @ Workplay
Admission: 12$
Go Time: 7PM
Have fun!
Video of the Day 12/23/07
I'm letting my cousin Matt pick the video today, and picked a keeper!! Epileptic feedback noisefest!
Concert Poster of the Day
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The Boredoms (Logan Square Auditorium '05)
Pick of the Day 12/22/07
This one was an easy pick. Workplay is featuring some of the best local bands available, and nobody else tonight even comes close. Tonight is also another benefit show, so you can get that warm fuzzy feeling while you rock out.
Wild Sweet Orange / The Great Book of John / Red Harp @ Workplay
Admission: 12$ ($3 dollars from every ticket will go to CityWorks-Recovery and Restoration for Birmingham's Innercity)
Go Time: 8PM
Wild Sweet Orange and The Great Book of John both feature Taylor Shaw, a guy who's been makin' great music on the Birmingham scene for a long time now, and both bands give good show. Last, but not by any stretch of the imagination least, Red Harp works the large band angle. They've got brass, people! Indie brass!
Video of the Day 12/22/07
I've been avoiding the new Iron and Wine album for a long time, because the last one I listened to made me feel empty inside. Luckily, a copy just crossed my path, and now I'm sad that I haven't had it to listen to for all this time. Here is one of my favorite tracks, live on Letterman.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/22/07
Here's a great gig rag from today's Pick Wild Sweet Orange, from everyone's favorite venue!
Wild Sweet Orange (Bottletree '06)Pick of the Day 12/21/07
Talk about bang for your buck! For a measly 8$, you get a veritable feast of music and activity tonight at Bottletree. Rock Paper Rock is holding their First Annual "Bah Humbug" Christmas Party, and they've front-loaded the evening with awesome. Get your picture taken with Asshole Santa, get up on the mic for some Holiday Karaoke, or just kick back with a High-Life and enjoy the bevy of local acts.
ROCK PAPER ROCK PRESENTS: THE FIRST ANNUAL "BAH HUMBUG" CHRISTMAS PARTY @ Bottletree
featuring
JANET SIMPSON (with members of Teen Getaway and Delicate Cutters) / VULTURE WHALE / LOUIS SCHEFANO / JODY NELSON (of Through the Sparks) / KATE TAYLOR
and
ASSHOLE SANTA!!!
Admission: 8$
Go Time: 8PM
Ho Ho Ho, you merry mofo's!
Video of the Day 12/21/07
In honor of James Brown, who passed away last year on Christmas Day, here is a video of him performing some of his patented dance moves during a concert in 1968 set to one of his Christmas songs.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/21/07
Here's another little tribute to the Godfather of Soul. The world misses you Mr. Brown!
James Brown (Winstar Casinos '06)Pick of the Day 12/20/07
This fella's production is a bit slick for my taste, but MAN the guy can sing to the ends! He's got vocals for miles. He's got a little Adam Levine going on, but he kicks Al Green grooves around like it ain't no thang. Britten's a white boy, but the soul is spilling out of him like he's full up.
Britten / Golden @ The Nick
Admission: 7$
Go Time: 10PM
I was unable to find any info on Golden, which is too bad, because now I'm curious.
Video of the Day 12/20/07
Here we have two of the greats, Miles Davis and John Coltrane, performing one of the most popular jazz tunes of all time: Miles' "So What" from Kind of Blue.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/20/07
Here's to you Bob! Sorry about not picking you yesterday, but it needed to be done.
Bob Schneider Bob Schneider (Belly Up '07)Pick of the Day 12/19/07
The fates are unkind to me. I woke up knowing today was going to be an easy pick. Bob Schneider, who's playing at Workplay tonight, is one of my favorite songwriters and so it's gotta be him, right? Wrong. With typical stubborn brilliance, The Bottletree has answered back with a salvo of local and regional bands that have made my morning a living hell...in a good way. How to choose? Do I take old favorites over new discoveries? The sure thing over the possibility of unknown delights? I'm underwhelmed by Bob's opening act, but that's not going to make his show bad. In the end, I'm going with local bands, a cheaper ticket price, and a cooler venue, though I wish I had a cloner so I could attend both shows.
Death On Two Wheels / Taylor Hollingsworth / Duquette Johnston @ Bottletree
Admission: 7$
Go Time: 9PM
Step 1: Take two fingers and place them on your jugular.
Step 2: Feel for a pulse.
If you've got one, than you need to be at this show tonight. If not, then climb back in the grave gramma.
Video of the Day 12/19/07
Here's one of my picks for today Taylor Hollingsworth and his band The Spider Eaters. Rock lobster!
Concert Poster of the Day 12/19/07
Of the three bands I picked for today, Death On Two Wheels is the one I'm most excited about and, frustratingly, also the band about which there is the least amount of information. They only have three songs available, but all of them rock really hard. Their myspace page and various other social networking sites all have a proffessional gloss to them, yet they apparently aren't signed by anyone. MTVU has a page for them, but it contains NO information whatsoever. I think we may be dealing with an independantly wealthy band of web-designing CIA agents. Here is their tour poster, which I'm sure contains subliminal messages that make you want to do dirty, dirty things.
Death On Two Wheels (Tour '07)Pick of the Day 12/18/07
The landscape is fairly barren today, unless you feel like a little open mic. There is one show that's worth a look see:
Eric McGinty @ Bailey's
Admission: Free
Go Time: 10PM
Eric's a multi-instrumentalist who's style ranges from soaring classic rock tinged with metal to quick fingered latin music dripping with horns.
Video of the Day 12/18/07
The Beastie Boys have always been able to rustle up a great video, and this one is no exception. It's not as quirky as some of the greats, but that's appropriate for the groove album that this track is from.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/18/07
Another fabulous Fillmore rag, and one of the best Wolfmother posters I've seen.
Wolfmother (Fillmore '06)Pick of the Day 12/17/07
Today's Pick of the Day is: ME!
Sam George (aka Sebastian Jacks) @ Marty's Bar
Admission: FREE!!
Go time: 10PM
Come on down! Great burgers, cheap beer and good music, all for no cover. You can't beat that with a bat.
Video of the Day 12/17/07
In honor of my first real show here in Birmingham, I am posting this video of my old band Dick Richard playing at Arlene's Grocery in NYC. It's candid, and it's a little raw, but it still rawks.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/17/07
Awwww...look at the little Weezer creatures. They's all gussied up for a gig.
Weezer (Selland Arena '05)Pick of the Day 12/16/07
I had an interesting conversation with a Cave 9 regular recently, and it turns out my perception of it as being predominantly hardcore / punk may have been premature. I may have been a bit prejudiced, because the first time I wandered by Cave 9, the sustained yowling that was emanating from the stairwell was enough to raise the hair on your neck. Well, no sooner spoken...
The So-So Glows / The Ackleys / Spells / Photonicas / Backseat Virgins @ Cave 9
Admission: 5$
Get Down: 7PM
Lot's of lean, muscular rock with a little indie sprinkled in for good measure. Backseat Virgins dole out a heaping portion of bubble-gum punk and The Ackleys can sure break it down when the mood strikes.
Video of the Day 12/16/07
Well, I had always intended to have this video be today's pick, and I'm not gonna let the fact that it spent most of yesterday up by accident stop me from posting it again. Yesterdays post now contains the correct video.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/16/07
I'm real tired, so I'm just gonna put this one up. There's nothing I could say about Tom Waits that would do him any justice anyway. Just listen to the man.
Tom Waits (House of Blues '06)Video Mishap
The Video for today is now the correct one, and not the Ann Peebles video I accidentally used.
Pick of the Day 12/15/07
Today's pick is another benefit, but this one hits a little closer to home. Bottletree has lined up four bands and and art auction to help Wes Frazer, a local photographer who was recently the victim of a home robbery and lost ALL of his equipment. This is win - win folks. See a great show, help a guy out, and pick up some art (it is Christmas time after all -- and why not get a gift that means something instead of some compromise they already know they're getting).
Broken Letters / Sworn Enemies / Slow Masters / Lee Bains @ The Bottletree
Admission: 10$
Get down there: 7PM
Let's call tonight's bands "Music To Burn A Barn Down To". Broken Letters for the preparation. Sworn Enemies for the perspiration. Slow Masters for the annihilation. Lee Bains for the desolation.
Video of the Day 12/15/07
Here's Ella, singin' up some Cream. Mmm mmm good! She can tear it up with the best of 'em, and that's the truth, though for a little while I thought she was gonna have a breakdown right in the middle of the number.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/15/07
The lizard said "Let there be excellent concert posters!", and lo, the Fillmore series was born and it was good. There was much rejoicing.
Phish (Fillmore '98)Pick of the Day 12/14/07
Bottletree is serving up a smorgasbord tonight. On the menu: retro latex, glitter glam, chick-punk, and that's just the first band:
GORE GORE GIRLS / THE RECOGNITION / SILVER LIONS 20-20 / SEX DRAGON @ The Bottletree
Admission: 12$
Lift Off: 8PM
It's possible Silver Lions 20/20 and Sex Dragon are the same band, but I can't be sure. It can only add to the mystery of the evening! Which band will show? If both come, will they form some sort of mutant hybrid super group? Will our faces melt? Only YOU* can discover the answer, at Bottletree tonight!
*everyone
Video of the Day 12/14/07
I give you the incomperable Mr. Stevie Wonder -- LIVE on Sesame Street in 1973! Brought to you by the letter S and the number 7.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/14/07
Tenacious D (Vista Theatre '06)Pick of the Day 12/13/07
Workplay is holding a benefit / awareness shindig tonight and they've cooked up a trio of top-tier local bands for y'all. If you like music, you should be there tonight. You get to see a kick-ass concert in the name of charity. Helping and rocking!
Deliver Darfur: Through the Sparks / The Triceratops / Monarchs @ Workplay
Admission: 12$ (all ticket sales benefit "The Darfur Association")
Be There: 8PM
Darfuri Speaker Tahir Hassan will be featured, so the evening is sure to educational to boot.
Video of the Day 12/13/07
I just finished listening chronologically through Bob Dylan's entire discography and am about to do the same thing with The Rolling Stones. To mark the occasion, today's video is The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan performing Dylan's song "Like A Rolling Stone".
Concert Poster of the Day 12/13/07
I wanted to throw a little more lovin' at these guys, and I've never had a local bands poster as CPOTD, so here we are:
Through The Sparks (Bottletree '07)Pick of the Day 12/12/07
Get ready for a show loaded down with fat, juicy horns from a New Orleans institution that's recorded and toured with Dizzy Gillespie, Elvis Costello and The Blind Boys of Alabama to name but a few.
Dirty Dozen Brass Band / Honeybaked @ Zydeco
Admission: 15$
Go Time: 9PM
These guys are full to the brim with funk and soul. Unless you're a long deceased corpse of some kind you are gonna get your toes tapping tonight, I have no doubt in my mind. Local jam-jazz group Honeybaked pick up the slack, and that's a good thing.
Video of the Day 12/12/07
Hot damn, another long video today! Every moment is worth the watch, so don't you fret. This is a full set of today's pick, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and they don't let it rest for a second.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/12/07
Oh my, Dirty Dozen Brass Band score the r3vrb Holy Trifecta: Pick, Video, and Concert Poster of the Day. I actually avoid doing this, in name of variety, but when I saw this poster, I knew it was in.
Dirty Dozen Brass Band (Troubador '07)Pick of the Day 12/11/07
Tired of all the namby car-commercial music in the ether these days? I've got the antidote for you right here:
Rick Brantley @ The Nick
Admission: 7$
Zero Hour: 10PM
Rick's an honest to goodness rock star of the ancient ilk. Which isn't to say the man is old, 'cause this cat is only 21, but he's got the whiskey soaked voice of a guy who's toured to within an inch of his life. This ain't no cookie-cutter Clearchannel drivel either. It's genuine, bona fide, soulful rock n' roll. Still feel like sitting home and watching re-runs of The Colbert Report?
Video of the Day 12/11/07
The Black Keys: Great guitar/drum duo, or greatest guitar/drum duo? I think The White Stripes might have something to say on the subject, but I didn't ask them.
Concert Poster of the Day 12/11/07
Ya gotta love old Pulp stuff, and ya gotta love The Black Keys, so you gotta love this poster. Actually, you don't gotta do anything but sit on your ass and feel your DNA slowly decay. Have fun with that.
The Black Keys (Nashville City Hall '07) Pick of the Day 12/10/07
Time for another installment in The Bottletree's ongoing free documentary series. Tonight's film is a look into the portrayal of Hunter S. Thompson in the cinema. There's a great deal of footage culled from Gilliam's Fear & Loathing, as well as from a magnificent British documentary from 1978 called "Fear and Loathing in Gonzovision". Be prepared to sit through a lot of commentary by celebrities about their favorite portrayals of Thompson in order to get to the stuff about the man himself.
Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride @ The Bottletree
Admission: Free
Start: 8PM
Look at this guy! He's an insane badass, and you should seek out knowledge of him at The Bottletree post-haste.
