Check out the Rosebuds interview over at Tiny Mix Tapes.

So many of the songs on Birds Make Good Neighbors seem happy when you first listen to them, but there’s always something about the melodies, or about Ivan’s voice, that seems sad, and full of longing. Is everything alright between you two? And if it is, how were you able to channel such sadness? Or, am I just reading things that aren’t there?

IH: I guess that is the way the songs just come out. Not trying to channel sadness into songs on purpose. I wish I would never write a sad song. That would mean that life was perfect for me I guess.

Stylus Magazine offers their Top Ten Worst Stylus Albums Of The Week.

06. Devendra Banhart – Cripple Crow
Look, it isn’t just me that thinks that if much-loved internet child molestation icon Brian Peppers was to roll up into the studio and lay down some tracks, it would bear an uncanny resemblance to the recorded output of Devendra to date, right?

Frank at Chromewaves has a very interesting look into a recent Best Buy advertisement that is offering a variety of indie music for $7.99. Go here to check it out.

Veritas Lux Mea has a video from the Feist show that took place over the weekend at the High Noon Saloon here in Madison.

Have you heard The Watson Twins new EP? It’s really really good. I listened to it a couple times this weekend. You can buy it here, but if you want to preview a few tracks head over the their Myspace site.

I was lucky enough to have a ticket to the sold out Jason Collett and Feist show at the High Noon Saloon last night. The night was all the better because I got to hang out with the great Goose from Veritas Lux Mea. You can check out his review, with much better pictures right here.
Nothing beats a great bill of artists and a packed venue. It was nice to see such a great turn out. I took a few pictures that I’ve posted below. One of my favorite parts of the evening was when Feist took the stage during Jason Collett’s set for a fantastic performance of “Hangover Days” off of Jason Collett’s new album Idols of Exile, which I am listening to right now, and I think it’s fantastic.

Jason and Feist later collaborated on the Broken Social Scene song Major Label Debut, which is about the closest thing to actually seeing Broken Social Scene since they’ve never played here. I’m hopefull the crowd last night will get that changed. I was informed that Broken Social Scene will be playing Conan O’Brien on Tuesday, the 31st. According to Jason they are planning on playing 7/4 (Shoreline). So make sure to set your VCR, Tivo, or just tune in.

Follow this link to see if the tour will be making a stop near you. I would highly recommend checking them out on this tour, both bands are a lot of fun live.

Jason Collett w/Emily Haines- Hangover Days (MP3)

You can purchase albums by Jason Collett and Feist from the Arts & Crafts website.

UPDATE (1/30/05) - Just Make It Nice and Neat has a couple of MP3’s from the show!
BONUS:

I was able to talk with some of the guys from Jason Collett’s band, and they hooked me up with their new album. They are called Paso Mino, and I’m happy to provide an MP3 of my favorite track at the moment. Checking out their website, I couldn’t help but laugh when I read that, “The title of recording is Good People and some of the song ideas are: brothers, beer, factories, mothers, lovers and auto’s.” Yep, that sums up the album pretty well. That should get you interested enough to download the track below.

Paso Mino - Sports Car (MP3)

I received my copy of The Watson Twins Southern Manners, it’s fantastic just like I expected. You too can order a copy of this beautiful disc for only $8, which is a steal at twice the price. The Watson Twins are hitting the road in support of Jenny Lewis‘ Rabbitt Fur Coat. Follow this link to see if they’ll be at a theatre/club near you.
Head over to Myspace to be The Watson Twins friend.

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Last night I was sitting in the Minneapolis airport and I got an e-mail from Sean Hayes. I had ordered Alabama Chicken and Lunar Lust from CD Baby a few years back, and Sean was writing to inform me of the release of his new album, Big Black Hole and the Little Baby Star.

I was first introduced to Sean Hayes music through his contribution to Mark Farina’s Air Farina. The song that was included on that album was called Dream Machine, and it’s one of my favorite songs. After hearing the Mark Farina album, and the vocals of the unknown Sean Hayes, I searched him out and was able to pick up two of his albums. I’m sorry I don’t have any MP3’s to share, but follow this link and check out the samples of songs off the new album. I can’t say enough good things about this guy.

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I’ve been traveling a lot lately, which has allowed me the luxury of reading more. I decided to head to Largehearted Boy to get some recommendations of books that I should pick up. If you’re not familiar, Largehearted Boy each year sets out to read 52 books, and is sponsored by Atomic Books in Baltimore.

After looking at his reviews, I made a short list of books I wanted to read, and just today received my copy of Yoshihiro Tatsumi’s The Push Man and Other Stories as well as McSweeney’s Issue No. 16.

I’m looking forward to checking them out, and thanks to Largehearted Boy for his 52 Books In 52 Weeks feature.

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Big thanks to Pete for letting me know that Centro-Matic/Great Lake Swimmers/Goat Radio will play the King Club in Madison on Sunday, April 9th. The Great Lake Swimmers are absolutely perfect live, and I’ve really been digging Centro-Matic lately. This is a great show for only $8.

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Make sure to head over and see Dodge at My Old Kentucky Blog, he’s got a new design and it is sharp!

My day is full of meetings today, so I won’t be able to post.

You can check back this weekend for reviews of the Freshwater Collins show I’m going to on Friday night with my friend Mullins.  On Saturday, I am heading to the High Noon Saloon to catch Feist and Jason Collett.  I will be meeting up with Goose from Veritas Lux Mea.

Stay tuned for photos, reviews, and interviews from both shows.

In the meantime, you can check out Jake’s new blog side project right here, it’s called Cute Overload.

Here is a trailer for Top Gun 2: Brokeback Squadron.

Also, what is this guy crying about?

Chromewaves links to a new track by Neko Case. Her new album comes out March 7, and will be called “Fox Confessor Brings The Flood.”

Jacob from Cannot Be Trusted is calling it quits from blogging, go wish him well.

Pitchfork reviews the new Arctic Monkey’s release [7.4]

It would be nice to think that a democratized music industry would mean the kids are tossing up alternatives to what they’re already getting, but the Arctic Monkeys are, at their heart, the same sort of meat’n'potatoes guitar rock that has dominated the UK since the emergence of the Strokes, if not Oasis.

I guess Stylus Magazine isn’t feeling the new Arctic Monkey disc either, they give it a C.

The Arctic Monkeys are the most cynical band ever. More cynical than Menudo, S Club Juniors, or Athlete. A band who’ve planned every single gig, press release, hype burst, chart assault, each and every single level has gone through 50 A&R guys and a street team with the manpower and delusion of the Elite Republican Guard.

Stylus does have a new web-design and they give the new Cat Power an A-.

I’ve been fortunate to get a bunch of really great albums and what better time to go through a few of them than in your Washington DC hotel room, going on your second hour wait for a Domino’s pizza.

The first one that I’d like to talk about is Maximo Park’s “Missing Songs.” I enjoyed the 2005 release “A Certain Trigger” quite a bit and I was happy to find this jem in my mailbox.

More a companion piece to A Certain Trigger that a full-fledged Maximo Park album, Missing Songs is meant to act as both a treat for hardcore fans and a welcome addition to the collection of new converts.

Hitting the stores on February 21st, you’ve got some time to wait for this to be available at a record store near you. For those looking to get a sneak preview, Stereogum put up an MP3 and brief review of “Missing Songs” as well.

UPDATE: Take Your Medicine has another track for you to preview!  Oh yeah, their album covers and t-shirts kick ass, see for yourself.

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The fact that $4 gets anyone any enjoyment in the world these days sometimes amazes me. Proof comes in the form of Pet Politics album on Catbird Records, an offshoot of one of my favorite blogs, the Catbirdseat. The “In My Head EP” is only four songs long, but I’ve listened to it at least that many times since I received it yesterday. If my praise doesn’t get you to order the last copy (I’m serious, there’s only one left, go here to get it), I would also like to point out that Pet Politics has gained praise from *Sixeyes and My Old Kentucky Blog.

Yes, the $4 even includes shipping, and here’s an MP3 from the Catbird Records site:

Pet Politics - The Ghost Mary & Her Friends (MP3)

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Pizza’s here, and it’s free! No big surprise it was a two hour wait. They claimed they tried delivering it once, but a woman in my room said “we didn’t order any pizza.” If there is a woman in my room, it’s news to me. Today’s been a real strange one anway, so if I can step outside the music and just complain for a minute that would be great.

Sometimes, I have obligations that don’t allow me to get flights directly into Regan International Airport in Washington DC, and therefore have to fly into Baltimore and take a taxi into DC. I’ve done it a few times, but tonight was a complete mess. My cab driver had no clue about how to get to DC, made me call the hotel, I got directions, made me write them down, which I did, and then he manages to get us so fricking lost I thought I was going to be late for my 10 am meeting tomorrow. At one point he pulls the car over, and frantically looks at a map next to him, points to 6th street, which I remind him has nothing to do with any directions that I gave him, which he replies that we need to find “R” in order to get to 6th, and again I plead that we are trying to get to “E” street. I remember at one point having one ipod earbud in one ear, talking on my cell phone to the Marriott front desk lady, and reading a map all while this guy is yelling at me about 6th street.

He got so frustrated at one point (after the fare exceeded $60) that he suggested I get out of the cab and find a more knowledgeable local cabbie. I called the hotel a total of 5 times, and each time he grew impatient. I was upset because I really like to catch up on some albums (like the ones above) on these marathon cab rides. Anyway, about an hour and a half later, and $80 lighter, I check into my hotel for the week.

After finishing typing this, I see this article on Yahoo news about a New York city cab driver who is writing a blog about her daily duties. It’s called New York Hack.

Today’s “get to know your blogger” features Justin from Chicago.  Justin runs the Live Music Blog, and does a pretty fine job at doing so.  One of the things that I liked so much about his interview is his first concert answer.  Sometimes, things are so painful that you need someone else to come forward and admit for you to do the same.  I would like to officially thank Justin for admitting the Gin Blossoms were his first concert, mine too!  I guess I don’t have to send that on a postcard to Post Secret anymore, thanks!

Thanks Justin for your time, and check out his site!

Let’s get some general background on you. Where do you live, how long, etc.

Right now, I’m living in Chicago with my wife and my cat. I’ve pretty much lived in Illinois my whole life, and I moved here after attending college downstate.

I want get an idea of your musical taste evolution if you will. What were some of the first albums/tapes/CD’s you bought?

It’s really hard to remember what I actually bought, because I got most of my music from my older brothers or my friend (who’s dad owned a music store). Not a bad way to get started musically, though…

One of the first CDs I remember that I really got interested in was Green Day’s Dookie (and that was before my high school days).

My high school progression was intense, though. If I consider what I listened to from start to finish, it would look something like: Fugazi, The Suicide Machines, The Vandals, The Get Up Kids, Braid, Beastie Boys, Rush, 311, Dave Matthews Band, Santana, Phish. It’s funny to look back on that.

How about some of the more recent CD’s you’ve purchased?

I just recently got Rogue Wave Descended Like Vultures, LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem, Wilco Kicking Television, Phish Live at MSG 1995–I love them all.

Where do you buy the majority of your records? Do you support a particular record store in your area, buy online, and if so, where?

I buy online exclusively now, usually from iTunes. If I can’t download it there, I’ll check to see if Amazon has it. I just find that to be the easiest and the quickest.

When I started listening to music, there were certain musicians that led me in the path of a lot of other bands. Did you have any similar experiences with bands growing up?

I have a profound love and respect for bands that can put out excellent instrumental music, and I think the Beastie Boys were the ones that turned me onto that sound. Of all their albums and all their white-boy rap hits, my favorite is their In Sound from Way Out album, which is just a rehash of all their past instrumental segues.

As of recent and until they broke up, Phish is definitely that band that got me interested in many, many different artists that I probably would have never listened to otherwise. I know a lot of people could say that same thing about them, too.

What are some of your favorite records of all time?

I have to include live albums and really just about anything that I’ve overplayed so many times that I can hardly listen to them anymore.

The Vandals Sweatin’ to the Oldies, Phish Rift, Heroic Doses Heroic Doses, Santana Live at the Fillmore ‘68, Rush, Exit…Stage Left, Digable Planets Blowout Comb, Talking Heads Stop Making Sense, The Secret Machines Now Here is Nowhere, The White Stripes Elephant.

Any idea how many albums are in your collection?

I’d say about a good 1,000 or so plus plenty of live shows. My 80GB hard drive is about full right now, so I’m taking inventory of the collection to see what might need to get cleared out. I’ll probably just buy a bigger hard drive.

If you could spend time with 3 musicians, who would you choose?

Trey Anastasio, Jack White, Les Claypool…

I’m sure you’ve seen some great concerts. Can you tell me what the first concert you saw was and when? To follow that up, are there any particular shows that stand out in terms of being favorites?

My first concert ever was The Gin Blossoms opening up for UB40. I think I was about 12 or something like that; I can still laugh when I think about it. I remember thinking it sucked when the lead singer of the Gin Blossoms announced “a double-guitar solo” and both guitarists just went nuts. In hindsight, I bet it was pretty cool. That’s why it’s funny to me. Also, I remembered it smelled like Otto’s jacket once UB40 came on. Yeah, and it was in the Chicago suburbs, so that’s cool too.

I had seen six Phish shows before it, but all four that I saw on Phish’s 2004 summer tour were beyond amazing for me. We ended up seeing the two nights at Deer Creek and then the next two nights at Alpine Valley, and a friend of ours got us up close and personal for three of those nights. We were fifth row at Alpine Valley and it makes all the difference compared to back up on the 45-degree-angle lawn section. It was my own personal “Goodbye, Phish. Thanks for the tunes!” and it was really just great.

I just have to list this show as well, because it stands out as something emotional for me. I saw Sound Tribe Sector 9 (STS9) at The Vic (Chicago) back in early 2004, and we had one of those perfect concert moments where you’re literally finding your seat while the house lights cut out and the band takes the stage. The first song they played, Squares and Cubes, was one they had on one of their first albums and they hardly played it ever. They completely reworked the song, and it completely reworked my down-trodden spirit by the time they got halfway through it. I didn’t even realize how low I felt until they played that song, and I probably could have started crying once they got into the song. It was incredible–definitely once in a lifetime.

What are some bands that you haven’t gotten the chance to see live, but would really like to?

We just did a post about this the other day, and I’ve got a couple in mind already: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band (I saw Bruce solo last October), Toubab Krewe (new band to me), Rogue Wave, Wilco, The Shins, Broken Social Scene…I could probably go on and on here.

How did you choose the name of your blog?

This one’s easy. I like live music a lot. It’s what really interests me about music, the live setting, improvisation, powerful/intense/quiet shows, everything about live music. Hence, Live Music Blog.

Can you tell me what got you into blogging, and are you surprised by the popularity your blog has attained?

I started to read blogs and I knew I wanted to start one myself. I literally just thought, “I want to make a blog that I would want to read myself,” and that’s what I try to do. I think it’s working out.

So far, yes, I have been pleasantly surprised with the popularity that the blog has gotten. I hope it continues–I’m having a lot of fun.

What are some of your favorite blogs? Music or otherwise.

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of Lifehacker.com and stuff like that, Lifehack.org. Those sites are cool to me. They can take even the most mundane life chore and make you think about it in a totally different way. At least, that’s what it does for me…

Some cool other blogs I’ve been enjoying are: i guess i’m floating, Hits from the Blog, Who’s Driving the Bus?, BurningOak.com…

How important do you think music blogs are in general? Do you think they will continue to be as popular as they are today?

I don’t know, I actually think they’re really important. I think they serve as equalizer–another spot to make sure those artists that we love are getting recognized for their talents. That’s important to me and it’s something we need to support. As long as they continue to offer info and downloads without completely over-the-top over-writing, I think they’ll serve as a nice alternative to over-produced self-promotion press releases.

Let’s get away from music for a bit. What are some of your favorite movies and television shows?

My favorite movies are probably some of the usuals but I really have way too many to list. The Big Lebowski, Austin Powers, Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Matrix 1 and 2 (NOT 3), Twister–I’m not actually that kidding about Twister. That movie cracks me up.

As for TV, I’m into Lost hard right now. I mean, bad. I love the show. I also like the My Name is Earl / The Office combo that NBC has. I’m a big Jason Lee fan way back from his pro skateboarder days, and you’ve got to love Steve Carrell.

Outside of music do you have any other interests or projects?

I really enjoy camping and usually hope it goes side-by-side with a nice music festival attached. I really don’t go as much as I should, though.

Otherwise, I’d say I’m a decent computer nerd, a fair-weather Cubs fan, a huge fan of microbrews, and a work-from-home enthusiast.

A lot of people have a favorite concert t-shirt, do you have one?

It’s not even mine. My wife’s old concert t-shirts are the best, though. She was hardcore alternative back in the day, so I wear this green Ned’s Atomic Dustbin t-shift all the time. It has this funky x-ray spec ad as the graphic, something you’d see in the back of a comic book. It’s starting to wear out, though.

In your opinion, what’s the best place to eat on your city?

In Chicago, it has to be Tecalitlan near Chicago and Ashland–the best Mexican food that I’ve had in the city. My mouth waters just thinking about going there.

Animals dressed as humans. Funny or not?

Actually, humans dressed as animals is funny; animals dressed as humans is cute.

Like Chromewaves, Bradley’s Almanac was one of the very first blogs I read and got me thinking about starting my own blog. You can always count on great concert reviews that usually include some great MP3’s of select songs, if not the entire performance. Today, you can find a really great review of the Editors performance in Boston complete with photos and MP3’s. It takes a lot of time and effort to tape live shows, and get them out to the masses, and I really respect the dedication that is put into Bradley’s Almanac.

I was on my way to see Crooked Fingers at the High Noon Saloon, and a couple days prior to seeing the show, Brad posted this review of the Boston Crooked Fingers show. On the way into the venue, a friend and I were talking about the post, and we didn’t realize that we were right next to the band as we were walking in. It turns out that the guys from Crooked Fingers had read the post as well, and went on about how great they felt the Boston show went over, and how happy they were to see someone like Brad post such a great review. I thought that was pretty neat.

I’m really happy that Brad took the time to answer my questions. He gave really well thought out answers. If you haven’t familiarized yourself with his blog, please head there now. Thanks for your time Brad.

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Let’s get some general background on you. Where do you live, how long, etc.

I’ve been here in Boston since 1998, after growing up in Essex Junction and Burlington, Vermont. As glad as I was to leave my hometown behind at the time, I’ll always consider myself a Vermonter, and doubt I’ll ever be too far away from there. Definitely can’t imagine being anything other than a northern boy.

I want get an idea of your musical taste evolution if you will. What were some of the first albums/tapes/CD’s you bought?

Oh man. My 7” record obsession started pretty early… as an 11 year-old, I remember regular visits to a store up in Essex Jct. called Kinney Drugs. I’d buy pretty much any top forty 45s they had in stock… Queen, Rick Springfield, Men at Work. Duran Duran was a major obsession for awhile… I think I got ‘Seven and the Ragged Tiger’ for Christmas in ‘83. I was also big into those K-Tel compilations… I’ll never forget the first time I heard The Ramones on that ‘Rock 80′ collection.

Over the rest of that decade, my musical tastes traveled a very random road: From U.S. top forty straight on to a bunch of Brits (Beatles, Kinks, Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson), then headlong into a major U2-REM-Cure-Smiths phase. In college I got all 4AD, shoegazey, britpoppy, and even dove into Industrial (RevCo, Ministry, KMFDM, Skinny Puppy, Pigface, etc) for awhile. From there it was mostly indie-pop-rock-whatever… I remember the SpinART records compilation ‘One Last Kiss’ really opened my ears to a ton of great indie bands.

My tastes now are a mix of all those influences, although I still see the early 90s shoegaze & American-indie scenes as my musical heydey. Not sure I’ve ever been as excited about music as I was back then, but there’s alway’s hope.

How about some of the more recent CD’s you’ve purchased?

New Radiant Storm King’s brilliant new one, ‘The Steady Hand’. I actually bought that one twice, once on iTunes thanks to total impatience and a bonus track, and once straight from Darla Records for the ace packaging and lyrics. Such an amazing disc. Other than that, I haven’t bought much lately… sort of promised myself I’d get through a stack of promo-discs I’ve been sent through the Almanac before I buy more new stuff. That’s gonna be tough, because there are a bunch of promising albums coming out soon. Just got the new Ester Drang in the mail, so I’m pretty excited to listen to that one.

Where do you buy the majority of your records? Do you support a particular record store in your area, buy online, and if so, where?

When I can, I try to buy straight from labels, from bands at shows if the timing is right, or from Insound. I’m also a big fan of CDBaby.com… their customer service rules. If online shipping is too pricey, I’ll head to the nearest Newbury Comics… their new releases are usually pretty cheap during the first week.

When I started listening to music, there were certain musicians that led me in the path of a lot of other bands. Did you have any similar experiences with bands growing up?

Yeah, definitely. My whole shift into the U2-REM-Cure-Smiths phase led to discovering tons of other bands, and changed my listening habits completely. I’d religiously track down NME or Melody Maker (not an easy task up in Vermont, believe me) to read about those ‘big four’, and would discover new bands or older ones I’d missed. That’s how I came upon stuff like the Replacements, the Housemartins, all the early 4AD & Factory stuff… Joy Division was such a major revelation for me. But really, my best resource for finding new music was UVM’s independent radio station, WRUV, and all the other people who worked there. I was a DJ there all through college, and I really hold that place responsible for making me as open minded about music as (I hope) I am today.

What are some of your favorite records of all time?

Ride’s ‘Nowhere’ was a life-changing album, The Wedding Present’s ‘Seamonsters’, too. I’ll always have a gloomy place in my heart for The Cure’s ‘Disintegration’ & ‘Pornography’. Let’s see, I’m just gonna rattle some off here… Throwing Muses ‘The Real Ramona’, My Bloody Valentine’s ‘Loveless’, Slowdive’s ‘Pygmalion’, Elliott Smith’s ‘Either/Or’, Sebadoh’s ‘Bakesale’, Seam’s ‘The Problem With Me’, Fugazi’s ‘Repeater’, Quicksand’s ‘Slip’, Jesus Lizard’s ‘Puss’, Joe Jackson’s ‘Look Sharp’ & ‘I’m The Man’, Joy Division’s ‘Unknown Pleasures’, Spent’s ‘Songs of Drinking & Rebellion’, all 3 Pond albums, Pixies’ ‘Doolittle’, Afghan Whig’s ‘Gentlemen’, American Analog Set’s ‘Fun of Watching Fireworks’, Bedhead’s ‘Beheaded’, Pedro the Lion’s ‘It’s Hard to Find a Friend’ & ‘Control’, Low’s ‘I Could Live in Hope’, Ida’s ‘I Know About You’. Alright, I’ll stop. I could go on and on… fortunately I have my blog for that.

Oh, and someone out there needs to compile a ‘Best of Guppyboy’ disc… that’ll end up on my list for sure. And if anyone else out there has heard of Guppyboy, give yourself a cookie. The rest of you, get searching.

Any idea how many albums are in your collection?

I’ve got about 400 seven inches, maybe 1700 CDs, but not as many LPs as I used to… a fire back in ‘92 took all of my old vinyl, including tons of rare imports and bootlegs. They were all fused together into these very large crusty blocks of black wax. Artistically very cool, but emotionally pretty painful.

If you could spend time with 3 musicians, who would you choose?

That’s a tough one… I’ve met enough people I admire that the novelty of that has sort of worn off, and a lot of the artists I’m really into now are so easily accessible. Still, I’d have to grab a beer with Robert Smith if I had the chance… the younger me requires that I say that. David Gedge, maybe Greg Dulli. But all I’d really want to say to those guys is “thanks for everything.” Elliott Smith, if only he were still here. Still hard to believe that he’s not.

I’m sure you’ve seen some great concerts. Can you tell me what the first concert you saw was and when? To follow that up, are there any particular shows that stand out in terms of being favorites?

Ok, I’ll have to qualify this one. First concert that I ever went to, but only because it was a mile from my house at the Champlain Valley Fair, was The Charlie Daniels Band. Yeeee-haw. The first one I went to that involved actual enthusiasm and intent was the one-two-punch of Foreigner with Loverboy in 1982. The “Foreigner 4” tour, I was 12 years old, and I’ll never ever forget the gigantic inflatable jukebox that appeared behind them during ‘Jukebox Hero’. And yes, Loverboy’s Mike Reno wore the headband, and they closed with “Working For The Weekend”.

As for live experiences that really stand out, off the top of my head… a couple of late-80s U2 concerts, before the suckage. Midnight Oil in Boston, on the ‘Diesel & Dust’ tour 1988. Fugazi in Burlington, VT in ‘93. Lots of shows in the early 90s up in Montreal, which was a short drive over the border from Burlington: Curve, Lush, Pigface, and Consolidated all put on amazing shows up there. Nine Inch Nails at Foufounes in 1990, too. Ride & the Pale Saints in Boston 1993. Ride & Slowdive in Seattle 1992. Catherine Wheel & Slowdive in Boston. My Bloody Valentine in Boston 1994. Bedhead in Bennington, VT in 1998, one of their last shows. Low at the Elvis Room in Portsmouth, NH, also in ‘98. Elliott Smith & Quasi at the Paradise in Boston 1998. Throwing Muses Boston reunion in 2000. Silkworm in Boston & NYC 2002. Twilight Singers at TT the Bears in 2003. Kristin Hersh & Tanya Donelly acoustic in the Rockingham, Vermont Meeting House in 2003. Arcade Fire at TTs in 2004… that was just before they took off, and I had no idea what I was in for in that tiny room. Just amazing.

There are just so many, I know I’m missing a ton. No way to narrow down.

What are some bands that you haven’t gotten the chance to see live, but would really like to?

I missed seeing the Smiths live, which bums me out. They actually played in Vermont in August of 1986 on ‘The Queen Is Dead’ tour, only weeks before I got into them. That just kills me. I never got to see the Afghan Whigs, either, although the Twilight Singers makes that a little easier to stomach. And whining about never being able to see Joy Division seems silly, considering no one in the U.S. ever got that chance. Besides, I was like 11 years old, and listening to top 40. But give me a time machine, and I’m there.

How did you choose the name of your blog?

Some friends of mine had a band called the Madelines up in Burlington, and Colin Clary was their lead singer/guitarist. They wrote a song called “Bradley’s Almanac”, which allegedly quotes some silly things I’d said. Lucky for me, it’s a great song. You can actually grab it at the clubfub section of the Almanac.

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Can you tell me what got you into blogging, and are you surprised by the popularity your blog has attained?

I think boredom got me into it, mostly. Years ago, I had a job that provided me with lots of downtime between projects, especially during the whole dot-com crash and slow burn. So I built the Almanac to stay sane. And also as a way to help me fill in the blanks in my increasingly-faulty memory. Being able to go back and read what I was into, what albums I loved, what I was reading years before… that’s one of the main reasons I do it. Digital posterity. A place for the older me to read later on. I kept journals when I was younger, but stopped after they all burned, so the blog was a way to get that back.

Am I surprised by the Almanac’s (marginal) popularity? Every single day. It still shocks me that more than my parents and a few friends read the thing. I get a little thrill from each emailed compliment, every post comment, every time someone tells me they found a band they love thanks to something I linked. That’ll never get old.

What are some of your favorite blogs? Music or otherwise.

Frank at Chromewaves.net is my blogging hero. Seriously, the discipline (or insanity) it must take him to write something every damn day, and almost always something worth reading… it’s just mind-blowing. The guy’s a music-loving machine with really good taste, and just a hell of a writer. Other regular music stops are a long list of usual suspects: Largehearted Boy, Information Leafblower, More Cowbell, BrooklynVegan, Torr, Stereogum, Coolfer, Yeti Don’t Dance, Muzzle of Bees (not just sayin’), Donewaiting, Angry Robot, For The Records,The Big Ticket, You Ain’t No Picasso, World Of Sound, Gorilla vs. Bear, False 45 ^th, so many, many more. My blogroll is just burstin’. As for non-music stops: BoingBoing, Engadget & Gizmodo, Newsarama, Slashdot, BrianWood.com, Off On A Tangent, BuzzMachine.

How important do you think music blogs are in general? Do you think they will continue to be as popular as they are today?

I’m a terrible judge of such things… I’m not entirely convinced of their importance, at least beyond how hugely important they are to me personally. But given the ever-increasing flood of music-promo email and packages I get every day, clearly lots of publicity people think they’re valuable.

Since blogging has become so easy, so commonplace, the number of places to read about new bands and find new music is multiplying daily. And just as the ease of self-production and home recording in the 90s resulted in lots of mediocre bands releasing mediocre music, the ease of blogging is creating an infinite number of mp3s to wade through before uncovering something special. Whatever perceived influence the handful of really good independent music blogs have right now will probably become diluted by sheer numbers of other places to scan… we only have so much time in the day to surf, even with an RSS reader. Just like there’s always a new favorite band waiting out there undiscovered, there’s a new favorite blog writing about that same new favorite band. The search never ends.

Since we’re relatively early on in the evolution of the music blog whatever-sphere, it’ll be interesting to see which ones have staying power, since so many are run by just one or two people. Interest and enthusiasm wanes, people get older, priorities shift… our favorites may disappear, but hopefully those new ones will rise up to take their place.

Let’s get away from music for a bit. What are some of your favorite movies and television shows?

Movies: Wings of Desire, Lone Star, Wild At Heart, Time Bandits, Being There, City of Lost Children, The Ice Storm

TV: Twin Peaks, Sports Night, Buffy, Sealab 2021, Veronica Mars, The Wire, Carnivale (dammit), Battlestar Galactica (the new one, duh)

… and I’ll throw in Comics, because they mean as much to me: Preacher, Queen & Country, Planetary, Powers, Y the Last Man, The Walking Dead, Watchmen, Hellboy, Transmetropolitan, and my daily fix of Kochalka’s American Elf.

Outside of music do you have any other interests or projects?

Aside from listening to and blogging about music, I hit the drums sometimes as well. I’ve been playing off and on since 1991 in the bands listed here. Right now I’m playing with the guys in Charlene, and sometimes with the Broken River Prophet.

My free moments are best spent with my little family… my better-half Amie, our cutest-dog-ever Nina (whose head is resting on my lap as I type this), and our two cats, Hazel & Rammy. Amie and I fill our time together with TV, movies, books, comics, eating out, taking Nina for walks, and exploring Boston. We’ve got a nice little life in our Lower Allston pad.

My weekdays are spent in a cube, clinging to what’s left of my soul as it slowly withers away, and trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up.

A lot of people have a favorite concert t-shirt, do you have one?

I’ve got dozens, but I’ve never thought about picking a favorite. I treasure my Spent t-shirt, but it’s nearly disintegrated. My Vermonstress t-shirt fell apart, but an Almanac reader kindly sent me an unworn replacement. How cool is that?

In your opinion, what’s the best place to eat on your city?

For the best damn fries, music, and a pretty comfy atmosphere, I’m gonna go with River Gods in Cambridge. For a pricier dinner for two, we like seafood at Skipjacks in Copley Square. Their gingered calamari is super-delicious.

Animals dressed as humans. Funny or not?

Lemme ask Nina … … nope, clearly not funny. Seriously, don’t even think about it.