Recently published by ECW Press, this expanded edition of Have Not Been the Same: The Canrock Renaissance 1985-1995 (by Michael Barclay, Ian A.D. Jack, and Jason Schneider) now features a section covering Arcade Fire, The New Pornographers, Neko Case, The Weakerthans and others.

By Randy Harward

Maybe it's American egotism that makes us treat Canada like our toque-sportin' retarded cousin who on occasion says or does something cool or funny. Fact is, if we paid enough attention, we'd see that the poor little hoser has quite a lot to say, and most of it's insightful and stimulating. Hell, the spaz may only have ADD or something.

We bow to Rush as Canada's kickass export next to Moosehead, heckle Ryan Adams about playing Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69," and marvel at the grasp The Daily Show's Samantha Bee and Jason Jones have on the American political zeitgeist. Oh sure, we know all about Broken Social Scene and their various branches and even pre-Grammy The Arcade Fire. Maybe we're just cool enough to have gotten hip to Trailer Park Boys before Netflix, and have seen Fubar at least once. But a lot of us still mistake Neil Young for an American.

There's a wealth of Canadian art that we miss out on, especially music. Originally published in 2001, Have Not Been the Same doesn't aim to right that wrong. Instead, it chronicles a vast, varied music scene that has long existed as if in a parallel dimension to the rest of the world. Over 700+ pages, the authors don't simply profile individual bands (as Michael Azerrad did in Our Band Could Be Your Life); they isolate a decade where Canadian bands began to get their due. We're taken into clubs, arenas and streets of Canada at a time when labels started to mine the frozen tundra, and bands like The Tragically Hip, Lone Justice, The Pursuit of Happiness, NoMeansNo, Voivod, Sloan and Skinny Puppy rose to achieve international acclaim but mostly domestic success.

Barclay, Jack and Schneider don't treat this as a tragedy. At home, many of these bands are arena rock giants - criminally under-appreciated The Tragically Hip being a fine example. Some are more recognizable than ostensible household names and faces like Metallica's James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. In a telling story from the book, producer Bob Rock - whom Americans may know from producing scads of hair metal albums as well as Metallica juggernaut Black Album, relates an instance when a waiter asked for his autograph instead of theirs. And the Hip still packs arenas on their home turf, as opposed to clubs in the States.

Updated with an epilogue that covers a second wave of the Canrock Renaissance, the post-Internet age where BSS, The Arcade Fire, The New Pornographers, Neko Case, The Weakerthans and scores of other bands carry the torch, Have Not Been the Same is a statement of musical patriotism. "This book," state the authors in HNBTS's opening disclaimer, "is dedicated to all the musicians, fans, technicians, engineers, promoters, clubs, journalists, indie labels, campus radio geeks and industry weasels who set these events in motion, put their lives and careers on the line and gave this book a reason to be. It is also for the next generation." Canadians and their bands don't need validation from America or any other country because, as the authors write, "Canadian music is no longer an underdog; it's successful on every level around the world and respected at home as well."

This is true. However, so many of us missed out on the bands from the 1985-1995 era. Do yourself a favor and look ‘em up. It'll open up a whole new world of incredible music, and you'll spend several happy years catching up.

Psychedelic hard rockin' version of "In The Sun".

By Blurt Staff

The tunesmith performed for PJ20 at Alpine Valley on Sept. 4, and for his classic "In The Sun" and "When The Fire Comes" Arthur played with Pearl Jam's Jeff Ament, Matt Cameron and Mike McCready. Check it out below; video by Ehud Lazin.

Tour Dates (Arthur currently on the road behind The Graduation Ceremony):

September 15 - Nashville, TN     Bluebird Café

September 17 - Dallas, TX           Kessler Theater

September 18 - Austin, TX           Austin City Limits

September 22 - Los Angeles, CA  Troubadour

September 23 - San Francisco, CA  Great American Music Hall

September 25 - Portland, OR The Woods

September 26 & 27 - Seattle, WA Triple Door 

October 2 - Morgantown, WV Mountain Stage

October 8 - Westhampton, NY Westhampton Beach PAC

November 11 - New York, NY  Carnegie Hall

November 18 - Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall 

November 19 - Minneapolis, MN

Venerable music publication returns to print after 2-year hiatus.

By Fred Mills

For a couple of weeks rumors had been circulating (okay, we knew they weren't rumors; it just hadn't been officially announced) that Magnet Magazine, that tireless supporter and bastion of all things indie rock (and much more), would be returning to the newsstands this fall. Music aficionados with sharp memories will recall that the last issue of Magnet  was issue #80 in the Winter of 2009 - their 15^th anniversary edition featured the mighty Nick Cave on the cover. Since then, though, they've been absent from the stores while maintaining a lively, daily-updated website.

So it was great - not only as a former contributor/editor to the publication, but just as a lover and collector of rock mags since the sixties - to finally get the official word this morning via the weekly Magnet email newsletter:

"We are thrilled to announce that MAGNET will be relaunching as a monthly print magazine the beginning of October. We encourage all existing subscribers and industry people to go to our website to update their current mailing and email addresses ASAP."

You can head over to the Magnet website for more details. Welcome back Eric, Kim and gang. A lot of us have missed you. After all, the idea is to have more voices of music supporters represented at the newsstands, not fewer....

Last weekend, Sept. 8-10, the hills - streets - were alive with the sound of music in Raleigh. Go here to see shutterbug Landa's collection of images from the festival.

By Whitney Ayres Kenerly / Photo By Tony Landa

The Independent Weekly's second annual Hopscotch Music Festival in downtown Raleigh, Carolina attracted over 150 acts over three days and nights for a range of events from club shows to day parties to the large venue stage in City Plaza.  

Hopscotch may attract the same caliber of indie buzz bands and big names as festivals like SXSW and Pitchfork Music Festival, but the feel of the festival seems to be decidedly smaller.  Tickets are limited to prevent to many of the most popular shows from reaching capacity, and there is more of a communal and intimate feel walking around between shows.  Corporate sponsorship is tastefully restrained, and local establishments are featured instead. 

For the city of Raleigh, the festival was an incredible opportunity not only to host a showcase of some of the most interesting and visionary musicians in the country, but to also have a chance to shine as one of the most exciting and creative areas in the country right now.  Out-of-towners loved meeting the locals trying some southern food, and residents had trouble deciding what to see and do among all the enticing options, but with good biscuits, bands, and barbeque - it would have been hard for anyone to go wrong. 

Day Parties:

-          Rosebuds Day Party

Local indie darlings, The Rosebuds, hosted a block party in front of Lincoln Theater with an impressive lineup that included performances by Hammer No More the Fingers, Youth Lagoon, and others, and food from neighborhood celebrity chef, Ashley Christensen, all with the Hepcat Bicycle Race was going on, with proceeds provided to a local no-kill cat shelter.  The party was a highlight of the festival and an opportunity for both local friends to mingle and for out-of-towners to experience the best of Raleigh in music, food, and creative philanthropy. 

-          Pop Music Panel

In addition to watching them perform, music fans were given the opportunity to hear their favorite artists speak about their craft during discussion panels at the Edward McKay Artist & Authors series at the Raleigh City Museum.  Each afternoon featured different writers and musicians with the discourse centered around different themes.  Sam Herring of Future Islands spoke at the discussion about pop music, alongside Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips, and Editor in Chief of Pitchfork Media, Mark Richardson.  Herring was modest in saying, "I was just going to roll in there and assume that nobody was going to ask me any questions because of all these other luminaries on stage," but the lively conversation had a approachable and inspiring cohesive message about the importance of using music to express, connect, and have fun. 

Club Shows:

-          Cold Cave

My prayers for a major energy boost were answered with Cold Cave, the new-wave meets hardcore meets synthpop project of Wesley Eislod.  Dressed in leather jackets and thrashing about on stage with the intensity of caged animals, the band members managed to seem both obsessively passionate and yet too cool to care.  Eislod apparently has a reputation for being a heartbreaker, which became instantly obvious to me.  Tall and brooding, crouching down into the crowd while screaming into the microphone, then erratically whipping around the microphone and circling the stand, occasionally glimpses of his chest tattoo visible through his monochromatic ensemble of black - I started to fall in love with him.  I'm sure in high school he was the weird quiet kid who was either the source of several whispered misnomers of "goth" and "dangerous", or just a fanatic band geek; but there on that stage he was the dark and mysterious God of charisma. 

-          Diamond Rings

I had high expectations for Diamond Rings.  Specifically, I wanted to see just how glam of a look John O'Regan would rock on stage during his electro-pop set at Five Star.  Walking out in white jeans, white nail polish, white sunglasses and a bleached blonde high top with geisha red lipstick - he did not disappoint.  He seemed incredibly happy - like he was having fun and enjoying every minute of his set - even starting to dance just while he was setting up his equipment and "Rude Boy" was playing. 

O'Regan is clearly someone who loves music and is passionate about everything he does, down to expressing himself as an artist through a colorful signature look.  His music is playful and coy, and he smiled along with the audience during dance songs like "Wait and See" and "Someone Else".  He was engaged with the crowd and excited to be there, complimenting Raleigh on being "Way cooler than Baltimore".  There was even a small surprise when he removed his big white glasses to reveal a white-banded stripe of make-up across his eyes. 

Diamond Rings is definitely more than just a look.  As O'Regan switched between playing keyboards, drums, and guitar, it was obvious that he is talented, committed, and has some of the best showmanship I've seen in a long time. He started his set with the exclamation, "Let's have some fun tonight!" and he delivered.   

-          Twin Shadow

Not many men could pull off a denim jacket unbuttoned to their navel with jeans, a long pendant necklace, a slightly off-centered jockey cap, and a Freddie Gibbs mustache.  But lead singer, George Lewis Jr., of Twin Shadow practically conjured the spirit and sex appeal of Prince. 

And if you had to describe his 2010 debut album in one word, it would be "sex".  The album combines R&B, New-Wave, and intimate lyrics, as if The Cure somehow collaborated with How To Dress Well.

Performing the songs live in Lincoln Theater, Lewis and his band gave the songs more of a rock edge.  It gave sultry songs like, "Castles in the Snow" more of a fullness and noise that added movement to sensuality. 

-          Japandroids

There's a refreshing simplicity to Japandroids.  It's just basically a drummer and guitarist, fresh out of their teenage years in Vancouver, singing and shouting along to straightforward garage pop songs about road trips and girls with wet hair.  The Pour House was crammed to capacity with people eager to see these skinny guys with shaggy hair and a wind machine play some of their favorite songs from the 2009 debut album, Post-Nothing. 

They played a few new songs, but people got really amped for the classics like "Rockers East Vancouver" and "Young Hearts Spark Fire".  A lame mosh pit started to form dangerously close to where I was standing, causing me and the few other girls at the show to squeeze out and away.  As someone who doesn't like to be touched by strangers, getting pushed around by a bunch of drunk dudes just isn't my thing.  If I wanted to get in on that sort of thing, I would have been at Warp Tour in high school.  There's no need for violence at Japandroids.  I'm just trying to enjoy the chance to hear one of my favorite songs, Sovereignty" performed live.

I think my ears are still ringing, but it was the perfect way to close around and all-around great night of amazing shows. 

-          All Tiny Creatures

Wisconsin natives and Volcano Choir and Collections of Colonies of Bees collaborators, All Tiny Creatures, had one of the best sounding shows of the night.  The pouring of tings and dings in their music rang out with a swelling crispness.  The metallic airiness of their songs sliced and glided through Lincoln Theater like ice skates.  Their intricate arrangements brimmed with the dizziness of instruments orbiting and weaving through loops, as Thomas Wincek's strained and whispered lyrics acted as the pressure point pulling at the center of the chaos.   

-          Bombadil

Bombadil temporarily served as the main ambassadors of the North Carolina music scene after the success of Tarpits and Canyonlands in 2009.  The folk-pop quartet from Durham has a widespread appeal, in part due to the accessibility of their quirky lyrics and catchy melodies.  Dressed in various vintage styles of blazers and singing songs that seem to embrace youth's awkward encounters with love and affections, the band is decidedly a bit dorky - they did name themselves after one of the most eccentric characters in Lord of The Rings.  The proficient execution with which they play their pianos, drums, and guitars has always been their shining point.  The audience at Fletcher Opera House delighted in watching their skills, giggled along with the humor in some of the lyrics, and gave the group a standing ovation.

-          Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Unknown Mortal Orchestra has been a big buzz band this year, shrouded in a bit of mystery.  Singles like "Ffunny Ffriends" and "How Can You Luv Me?" appeared on music blogs with high praise but little biographical information.  Their self-titled debut album has a weird alien-like building on it that appears to be in the middle of nowhere, and their songs seem to come from places even more remote and strange (Portland, Oregon). 

I even thought that I had somehow confused the time and place of the show when I didn't see any females in the group as the band was setting up.  I could have sworn that it had been a woman's voice on some of those songs.  I was wrong, and the male lead singer used a microphone that looked like a copper tin can with marble-sized holes at the top.  Even with that strange equipment clue, I'm still not entirely sure how the band is able to create so much distortion, and sound as if they as playing from across a field, and yet simultaneously right next to your ears.  The show made me love and appreciate the album even more, and was one of my favorites of the whole festival. 

-          Yelawolf

Before Yelawolf stepped out onto Lincoln Theater's stage with an immediate and perfectly timed assault of fast paced and high-energy rap, I hadn't realized how much I had been missing rap-rave at Hopscotch.  It was impossible to fight the impulse to bounce, grind, and grimace along with the beats and verses. 

The comparisons to bands like Die Antwoord and Eminem (who signed Yelawolf to his own Shady Records) are inevitable, but Yelawolf's ability to shoot out phrases like a Tommy gun and yo-yo yank them around is almost mechanical.  I felt like Uma Thurman with an adrenaline needle in my heart. It triggered something deep inside of me from when I first fell in love with music through hip-hop albums - stolen from my older sister.

Headliners:

-          Dreamers of the Ghetto

One of the biggest pleasant surprises at Hopscotch was the performance by Dreamers of the Ghetto when they opened for Superchunk and The Flaming Lips on Saturday night.  Lead singer, Luke Jones, has warm and raspy voice that is both familiar and refreshing.  Mostly, there is just a compelling rawness to it, and the force of it hits you like the punch of a perfect tennis backhand. Ballads like the song "Always" - a highlight from Enemy/Lover and written about his wife and fellow bandmate - are powerfully stirring.

The Indiana natives certainly made quite a splash  in Raleigh, and I have a feeling they will be garnering throngs of other fans from around the country over the next year. 

-          The Flaming Lips

The Flaming Lips were arguably the biggest act and most anticipated show at Hopscotch, and City Plaza was filled with an all-inclusive eclectic mix of people ranging from die hard indie music lovers, to Greek Life collegiate couples, to culturally savvy retirees.  The psychedelic alt-rockers are icons of the 1990s, and famous for over-the-top live shows.

Lead singer, Wayne Coyne' made a couple of pre-show warnings about what to do if the strobe lights caused audience members to have seizures (his advice was simply "look away") before returning by bursting out into the crowd in a giant plastic bubble that skimmed the top of the audience like an airy hamster wheel.  With the first loud, lurching guitar riffs, confetti cannons exploded and colored paper, giant bouncy balloons, and the faint scent of weed filled the air.  The projection screen behind the band flashed between images from epileptic acid trips to extreme close-ups of Coyne's face - his wild shaggy hair encircling his head and a fur stole around his neck.

Coyne, with his chorus of young girls in Sailor Moon inspired outfits, encouraged the audience to sing along to "She Don't Use Jelly" and  "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots" while seeming positively giddy about shooting lasers into the capital building. 

It was clear that we were all witnessing a legendary performer, even though Coyne doesn't seem to age.  His creative energy allows him to outperform musicians generations younger than him, and he seems to keep up with, if not ahead of, all the technology trends in indie music.  He's been tweeting throughout the festival (@waynecoyne) and confessed to the audience, "I love my fucking phone!"

Even those who did not get to witness The Flaming Lips in-person were still treated to the echoing of their songs throughout downtown Raleigh.  As I walked to another show later in the night, I heard a cover from "Dark Side of the Moon" resonating down the street to the roaring approval of the crowd, and smiled.  

Last weekend, Sept. 8-10, the hills - streets - were alive with the sound of music in Raleigh. Go here to read contributor Whitney Ayres Kenerly's report on the festival.

All photos by Tony Landa

(above) J Mascis at Fletcher Opera Hall 9-8

The Dodos at Raleigh City Plaza 9-9

Drive-By Truckers at Raleigh City Plaza 9-9

Guided By Voices at Raleigh City Plaza 9-9

Annuals at Lincoln Theatre 9-9

Vivian Girls at Slim's 9-9

Twin Shadow at Lincoln Theatre 9-9

The Foreign Exchange at Lincoln Theatre 9-9

Royal Bangs at White Collar Crime 9-9

Superchunk at Raleigh City Plaza 9-10

The Flaming Lips at Raleigh City Plaza 9-10

Toro Y Moi at Lincoln Theatre 9-10

Beach Fossils at Tir Na Nog 9-10

Future Islands at Lincoln Theatre 9-10

Titus Andronicus at Tir Na Nog 9-10

Lost In The Trees at Fletcher Opera Hall 9-10

Yelawolf at Lincoln Theatre 9-10

Eleanor Friedberger of the Fiery Furnaces turns up the heat under the Kills at Oakland's Fox Theater on Sept. 9.

By Jud Cost

I gotta tellya - using the ominous introductory parlance Tony Soprano would employ when certain unexpected events have taken place in the New Jersey waste-management bi z- Eleanor Friedberger, as the support act tonight at Oakland's Fox Theater, pulled off something unexpected. Without even intending to do it, she's whacked the Kills at their own headline gig.

I haven't seen anything quite like this since 1976 when opening act Dr. Feelgood, featuring high-strutting guitarist Wilko Johnson and gruff vocalist Lee Brilleaux, made Bad Company, the headliner at San Francisco's Winterland auditorium, look like yesterday's newspapers. If the Kills react the way the Monkees did during an early-1967 tour that included the then-unknown Jimi Hendrix Experience as the support act, they'll tie the can to this Friedberger person and her band post haste. The Kills are getting upstaged.

Eleanor has already put together a solid, 10-year indie-rock resumé as one-half of the Fiery Furnaces with her brother, the guitar-playing Matthew Friedberger. And now, backed by a terrific trio composed of guitarist John Eatherly, bassist Matt Asti and drummer James Canty, she's managed to summon up the sound and (with her blunt-cut bangs and faded-denim shirt and pants) even the look of Chrissie Hynde's brilliant original set of Pretenders before they started dropping like flies in the early '80s.

Friedberger's band makes the Kills' ultra-loud show seem like so much cake decoration consisting mostly of hyperactive strobes and flashy mirrors. She also now shares the rare Bay Area distinction of an early career arc that resembles something launched by NASA. From the humble beginnings of her solo show just two months ago at San Francisco's modest Hotel Utah (capacity of about 65) she's skyrocketed to playing her second local solo gig at the magnificent Fox Theater which holds about three thousand patrons. What's next in this series, the 50 thousand-seat home of the S.F. Giants at AT&T Park?

When I told Friedberger before the Hotel Utah show in July that I was going to review her performance that night, she seemed alarmed. "Oh no, really?" she said. "Why don't you come back in September instead? I'll have the whole band here with me then." I disobeyed orders that night and gave her solo set a glowing assessment. But now I know why she requested the delay. This band is truly something special. No doubt, they played most of her recently-released first solo album, Last Summer (Merge), but the songs sounded somehow different, delivered by this band.

Compared to her chatty between-songs patter at the Utah, where she seemed, in a good way, to have been vaccinated with a phonograph needle, she says little tonight. Only a brief remark or two, something like, "Hey, it's Friday night. Why isn't everybody drinking?" deters her from an all-business approach. She introduces the next-to-last song as "something new." Of course, they're all new to most of this crowd, who give Friedberger a very decent response after each number. Who knows, a year from now she just might be headlining the joint, herself.

Loving the alien(s), redux!

By Blurt Staff

Long-suffering Man or Astroman? fans needing a regular fix just got great news: the band's classic Your Weight On The Moon is coming out as a deluxe, expanded reissue on Sept. 27 via Britain's Overground label. Vinyl freaks, rejoice: it'll also be available as a limited edition picture disc, no doubt a nod to the original version's luminous color vinyl motif.

The band  always claimed to be not the space-music surf-rockers they appear, but instead, unlikely emissaries from another galaxy who accidentally crashed their spaceship near Auburn, Alabama. Uh-huh. Well, their music was alien enough, and since that day in 1992, Man or Astroman? have released over two dozen seven-inch singles and seven full-length albums of dizzying, instrumental guitar virtuosity wedded to sounds derived from the quasi-modern technology of a Hammond organ or Theremin.

Band members Starcrunch (guitar), Birdstuff (drums), Coco the Electronic Monkey Wizard (bass and a battery of electronic gear), joined forces in Auburn, Alabama, in 1992 at a time when half of the band was underage and couldn't get into their own shows except through the stage door. John Peel played their debut EP and a highly impressed One Louder approached the band and in December 1993 released the ‘Mission Into Chaos' 7". The band toured the UK and their outrageous live show which included flaming computer headpieces, ‘50s b-movie graphics and tesla coils won them a legion of fans.

Next up in August 1994 came the genre-defining ‘Your Weight On The Moon' 10-track mini-album. John Peel, Marc Radcliffe, the music press and live audiences couldn't get enough of them and the album entered the independent charts at No. 7. May 1995 the ‘Return To Chaos' EP was released, packaged in a top secret dossier format and with a track so secretive its name was classified. The EP charted at No. 4 in the top 10 independent singles chart.

Man or Astroman? would continue to release many more records on One Louder, Touch & Go and Epitaph, but it is for this period that a majority of their fans will most fondly remember them. The new reissue compiles ‘Your Weight On The Moon'  with the two EPs in a 16-page booklet. It is the first time that some of the tracks have appeared on CD.

TRACK LISTING:

Rocketship XL-3/ Secret Agent Conrad Uno/ Electrostatic Brain Field/ Shockwave/ Taser Guns Mean Big Fun/ F=GmM(moon)/ Space Patrol/ Happy Fingers/ Destination Venus/ Polaris/ Name of Numbers/ Of Sex and Demise/ Madness in the Streets/ Within a Martian Heart/ Point Blank/ Classified/ Secret Agent Conrad Uno/ Point Blank/ Goldfinger

Someone needs to invent a 10-tape cassette changer for this.


By Fred Mills


Pitchfork is reporting intriguing Of Montreal news this morning: the band is planning on releasing an elaborately packaged wooden box set containing 10 cassettes - essentially the group's full long-playing back catalog all at once, from Cherry Peel (1997) through False Priest (2010).


That's a photo of it, above. The screen-printed box was designed by David Barnes, brother of OM leader Kevin Barnes. It will be released by the Joyful Noise label n a limited, hand-numbered edition of 500.


Speaking to Pitchfork, Barnes also added that there might be more of this coming: "When I first started recording, I used a four-track and I've got an incredible collection of cassettes in boxes that I don't want to get rid of-- especially from when I was living at my parents' house and doing nothing but recording songs. I have tons of early recordings that I haven't listened to in forever. At some point, I'll pull them out and listen to them and cringe. I think that could be really cool to release them at some point, though."


Read the whole interview at the Pitchfork site. Barnes also talks a little about the forthcoming OM album Paralytic Stalks, due in 2012.

Held Sept. 7 thru 11 in Portland, Ore., it was a humbucking humdinger.

By Tim Hinely

Thursday- 9/8/11

So MFNW is now in its 11^th year, hard to believe huh? I dunno...it went a few years ago from being a little festival to being, well, like a real one. They're getting lots of big names and seem to expand a bit each year. There's always plenty I want to see and this year was no different so let's get started, shall we.

Ok, so I wanted to go to the SEBADOH/ARCHERS OF LOAF gig at the Crystal (to see the former, not really the latter) but a scheduling snafu with my wife prevented that so instead I met my pal Matt at a restaurant for some pre gig chow before seeing the BUTTHOLE SURFERS at Roseland. I can't remember the last time I saw the Buttholes but it was most likely in the late 80's when they were still putting on life-changing sets complete with everything. The set was mostly early stuff and included  "Cowboy Bob", "Suicide", "Negro Observer", "BBQ Pope", "Creep", "Hey, Ladysniff" where they played a middle part that included "Pepper' and then they went back to "Ladysniff., "Graveyard", "Gary Floyd" and "Jesus Built My Hot Rod. The band played as a regular four piece with only one drummer (King) and he was sitting down. Paul Leary on guitar and Jeff Pinkus on bass and of course Gibby on vocals and bullhorn. The films playing behind them were still demented and again, it wasn't necessarily bad, but not classic.

Friday- 9/9/11

I was going to catch THE MINDERS as part of the Elephant 6 night at the Someday Lounge but opted instead to go there later (I've seen The Minders recently) and instead head to the Aladdin Theatre to catch Chicago's Joe Pug (who I've wanted to see but have missed several times the past few years). Pug played acoustic guitar and had a stand-up bassist and electric guitarist flanking him on either side and while I was hoping to hear a few songs off his terrific MESSENGER record it was not to be as Pug played mostly new songs. On stage I noticed some real Dylan-isms that don't come out on record. Nice set. From there headed downtown to the Someday Lounge to catch Brooklyn, NY's LADYBUG TRANSISTOR who played a terrific set replete with mostly newer stuff off their latest Clutching Stems record. They opened with the title track off the nee record and played mostly new stuff but also snuck in their Trader Horne cover of  "Here Comes the Rain" (off  the 4-spng ep of the same name) and "Today Knows" , one of the finest songs of their The Albermarle Sound record.  The band sounded terrific and leader Gary Olson's voice is still smooth as silk (as is his trumpet playing).  After their set I snuck next door to Backspace and caught the last few songs by THE THERMALS who sounded on fire and had the packed-house going bonkers.  I went back to the Someday and caught a few songs by the newly reformed OLIVIA TREMOR CONTROL who sounded fine be my bed was calling me so I headed on home.

Saturday- 9/10/11

There were lots of bands I could have seen on this Saturday night: THE SOFT MOON, REBECCA GATES, TED LEO, TY SEGALL, AVI BUFALLO, but I opted to do punk rock night at the Hawthorne Theatre and catch Off! The fairly new punk rock bad with Circle Jerk Keith Morris with members of Redd Kross and Rocket from the Crypt. I was hoping to get there early enough to catch the Mean Jeans (Dirtnap Records) but was not able to make it though I did make it early enough to catch Portland's own punk rock institution Poison Idea. These days the band is vocalist Jerry A. and 4 others, none of whom I could name. They played some newer stuff that sounded fierce and ended the set with two bona fide P.I. classics:' "Just to Get Away" and "Plastic Bomb." Still heavy after all these years.

Off! hit the stage at 11:00 PM as expected and proceeded to tear the place apart. Keith Morris has to be pushing 60 but he ran around the stage like a guy half that age, strutting, spouting, sneering and chatting up the crowd in between songs. They played everything off their ep and included a tribute to the Gun Club's Jeffrey Lee Pierce. The guitarist, Dimitri, rips, oh heck, the whole band (including Redd Kross's Steve McDonald on bass and Mario Rubalcaba drums) tears it up. I heard that Off! were gonna play another set later at the East End but it was after midnight and that's my witching hour folks.

Sunday- 9/11/11

The final show of the festival (not counting Quasi's late night set at Bunk Bar) was held downtown in Pioneer Courthouse Square and included Bobby Bare Jr., Morning Teleportation, the Cass McCombs band and headliners Band of Horses. We got there late (babysitter issues) and missed the first two (both of whom I wanted to see) and only caught the end of Cass McCombs' set. I though this guy was some gentle folkie but with a full band they turned his gentle songs into rip roaring rockers. Good stuff for sure and will catch him next time he's in town.

The last Band of Horses show I tried to catch (Memorial Day weekend 2010 in Bend, Oregon) got rained out...well, rained out by my wife and I who sat through soggy sets by Dawes and She and Him and decided to head out before B.O.H. came on so the set on this beautiful Portland evening more than made up for it. Hitting the stage at half hour late at 8:00 PM they opened with " Factory" and continued to play a beautifully  inspired set with a nice mix of songs off all three of their records (and even a few new ones, too) "Laredo", Ode to LRC", "Wicked Gil", "Is There a Ghost", "The Great Salt Lake" and too many others. Leader Ben Bridwell was friendly and chatty, dedicating one song to his child who he said he had received the info that his wife was pregnant the last time they played Portland. This band is firing on all cylinders and is not to be missed. We headed back to the car on this lovely full moon night as the band's sound began to slowly waft away. What a night.

Oh MFNW, what surprises will you have in store for us in 2012?

Films this fall in the r/ock & reel series to include treatments of Pearl Jam, Bob Dylan, My Morning Jacket A Tribe Called Quest (read Blurt story here), Tom Petty, Tom Dowd, Lee "Scratch" Perry (Blurt story here),  Rolling Stones and more. View our special Dylan-inspired promo trailer, below.

What do A Tribe Called Quest, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and Pearl Jam have in common?

All are subjects of films scheduled for r/ock & reel, a new music-focused documentary film series presented by a/perture cinema and Blurt Magazine, from September 16 through November 19, 2011.

"Showcasing the best in independent and arthouse film is our passion at a/perture," says Lawren Desai, a/perture's owner. "Documentary films have always been a special interest of ours, and we believe there is a unique audience for music-focused documentaries specifically. We had amazing success with our 2010 sold-out screening of The Secret to A Happy Ending, a film on the Drive-By Truckers and just couldn't resist the opportunity to create an entire series, appropriately named r/ock & reel. We've got some exciting films and filmmakers to bring to Winston-Salem this fall."

r/ock and reel from a/perture cinema on Vimeo.

Whether your concert t-shirts are gathering dust or you're heavily dialed into today's music scene, r/ock & reel has something for you. Featuring films on The Rolling Stones to The Swell Season, Lee Scratch Perry to My Morning Jacket, r/ock & reel endeavors to present films that offer insight into music's more iconic and eccentric stars.

"Any festival whose opening weekend features films on A Tribe Called Quest and Tom Petty is good in my book," says Andy Tennille, co-founder and associate editor at Blurt. "Coincidentally, r/ock & reel opens the night before Rock the Block, providing a nice complement to the city's largest music event of the year. We've still got a few tricks up our sleeve, so stay tuned."

Tickets for all r/ock & reel films are available now at www.aperturecinema.com, or by calling 336-722-8148. In addition to individual tickets, r/ock & reel is offering VIP all-access passes for sale for $100, which includes priority access to all r/ock and reel screenings, discounts with our sponsors and partners and more. For more information on our VIP all-access passes, visit www.aperturecinema.com.

 "r/ock and reel would be nowhere without our incredible partners," Desai says. "We'd like to thank the good people at Single Brothers, Kyle Webster Design, The Garage, Earshot, Camino Bakery and Excalibur Direct Mail & Marketing for their amazing support in bringing this series to life."

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About r/ock & reel

When:

Friday, September 16 - Saturday, November 19, 2011

Where:

a/perture cinema

311 West Fourth St.

Winston-Salem, NC

Tickets:

Tickets can be purchased online at www.aperturecinema.com, or by calling 336-722-8148.

Schedule:

Beats, Rhymes, and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest

Friday, September 16-Thursday, September 22

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down A Dream

Sunday, September 18

Pearl Jam Twenty

Tuesday, September 20 (part of the national premiere)

Tom Dowd & The Language of Music    

Friday, September 23 & Saturday, September 24

The Upsetter: The Life and Music of Lee Scratch Perry

Friday, September 30 & Saturday, October 1

Don't Look Back

(Bob Dylan)

Friday, October 7 & Saturday, October 8

The Wonder Year

(9^th Wonder)

Friday, October 14 & Saturday, October 15

Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone

Friday, October 21 & Saturday, October 22

Standing in the Shadows of Motown

Friday, October 28 & Saturday, October 29

Shine A Light

(The Rolling Stones)

Friday, November 11 & Saturday, November 12

The Swell Season

Friday, November 18 & Saturday, November 19

About a/perture

a/perture cinema is an independent, locally-owned movie theater in the heart of downtown Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Screening a mix of independent, foreign, documentary, local, and festival films in two 80-seat theaters, a/perture has evening screenings seven days a week with additional matinees on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In addition to the traditional freshly popped popcorn, candy and coca-cola beverages, a/perture also offers a wide selection of beer and wine, healthy snacks and special treats made by local bakeries.  Plenty of parking is available in the surrounding downtown area, both on street and in the Cherry/Marshall parking deck adjacent to the cinema.  a/perture brings back the intimate movie-going experience of yesteryear and serves as a modern, unique alternative to giant chain cineplexes. For more information, please visit http://www.aperturecinema.com/.