This weekend: Readin' sci-fi and grillin' foodz

A good show tonight:


A good show tomorrow:


Attend them both and you will see enough bands to qualify for a yellow belt in Detroit indie rock.

Word of advice: Don't drink the 'BP Blast' at Donovan's Pub

Seriously. When I first ordered the drink last night - mostly out of appreciation for the fact they had a BP related drink special - I feared it might be made out of gasoline and dead shrimp. Although I was a little off, I can report with 100% accuracy that it tastes exactly like drinking out of the Gulf of Mexico. I am pretty sure the recipe calls for tequila, oil, salt and blood. This makes it a perfect drink to throw in Tony Hayward's face should you ever have the chance, but not something to actually ingest. Blech.

The one good thing last night was catching the Claps. Not a hodge-podge of sexy-time disease, but an electro-pop three piece from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They were one of two bands (the other was The Funeral and the Twilight) from "MM" (do people call it that? Probably not. And they probably shouldn't.) playing at Donovan's last night. Here's a video of their musics:

CLAPS- Fold from Toast Ghost on Vimeo.

I have not had a chance to listen to their new EP, but it contains a "Sovietpanda" remix of the above track. That's reason enough to like it, yes? They also had little pins (or badges or buttons - whatever you want to call them) and that made me very happy, since collecting these pins is my newest OCD obsession:

See? My collection is fairly small, but if you don't see your band's pin on here I need it please thank you. It has to be this exact size though, or my life will be ruined. I will trade you for something cool.

Wonder Twins: New Grenada @ the Majestic Cafe 7/17/10

Whether you felt a sense of loss or relief at our absence, the Wonder Twins are back in the mix over at the ol' Metro Times. The new issue is out today. In it you'll find our column. Put on your favorite sweat pants and get to reading.

Detroit Bands - you should REALLY consult with me before making these kinds of decisions

So last Saturday was essentially New Grenada's last show, and now Friendly Foes have officially announced their break-up. FML! IRL! The good news is, the Foes are playing a free show at PJ's Lager House tomorrow night. It's one of your last chances to see them, so go do that.

Knowing that the Foes folks all have other cool bands and projects does ease the pain a bit. However, I do believe the folding of the Foes means that a certain Liz Wittman owes me a Lettercamp Erasure cover. Now more than ever.

Speaking of Lettercamp, this Saturday you can hear the whole new record at Atlas Lounge in Hamtramck. That should be fun and may potentially help the grieving process.

This Way Up

For the next in the "Jamie Rides The Hobo Rails" theme mix series, I bring you a mix based on Up. And no, not Up, the-recent-Pixar-movie-that-everybody-loves-but-nobody-tells-you-is- totally-sad-and-you-have-to-find-this-out-yourself-after-a-really-rough-week-when-all-you- need-is-a-breezy-happy-film-so-you-decide-to-watch-because-it's on-Watch-Instantly-and-15- minutes-in-you-have-to-turn-it-off-because-you're-overwhelmed-by-feelings-of- sadness-about-your-own-mortality-and-inevitable-loneliness-and-not-even-changing-gears- and-turning-on-Richard-Pryor's-The-Toy-can-help-you-shake-it. Just the word "up" in the title. (Also confidential to Pixar - you should be forced to pay for at least one of my therapy sessions.)

This Way Up

1. Desktop - Fired Up (Johnny Headband Remix)
2. Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Solly Remix)
3. Girl Talk - Warm It Up
4. Royal Bangs - Waking Up Weird
5. Forest City Lovers - Light You Up
6. The New Pornographers - Up In the Dark
7. The National - Lit Up
8. Johnny Cash - Further On Up The Road
9. Phosphorescent - Pick Up the Tempo
10. Lambchop - Close Up
11. The Theater Fire - Kicking Up the Darkness
12. Ben Kweller - Wake Up Whispering
13. Tom Waits - I Don't Wanna Grow Up
14. BOAT - Illustrate the History -when i grow up-
15. Woods - Pick Up
16. Danielson Famile - We Don't Say Shut Up
17. Ween - Piss Up A Rope
18. Talking Heads - Pulled Up
19. The Cars - Shake It Up
20. YACHT - See A Penny (Pick It Up)

Puppies!!

My Hand In Your Hands

Mix #3 in the "Jamie's Got A Long Drive" series. This time the theme is hands. The only thing I regret is that I didn't have a song called, "Wash Your Hands" to include. Because that's something more people should do, and more frequently. A very lazy attempt at tracking down a song by that name led me to Bill Frisell's "Will Jesus Wash The Bloodstains From Your Hands," which, for name alone I would have loved to include. (And for the record, no. No Jesus will probably not.) But seriously, wash your hands.

My Hand In Your Hands

1. Mayer Hawthorne - Held The Hand
2. The Rosebuds - Hold Hands And Fight
3. Richard Buckner - Hand @ The Helm
4. Jolie Holland - Your Big Hands
5. Okkervil River - A Hand To Take Hold Of The Scene
6. Bodies Of Water - Here Comes My Hand
7. WHY? - These Hands
8. Victor Mourning - Taste My Hand
9. Bowerbirds - Human Hands
10. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Right Out Of Your Hand
11. Calexico - Victor Jara's Hands
12. Josh Small - $5 In Hand
13. Crooked Fingers - Boy With (100) Hands
14. Devendra Banhart - Rejoicing In The Hands
15. Cotton Mouth - Black Hand
16. Portastatic - On Our Hands
17. Tarnation - The Hand
18. Camera Obscura - Hands Up Baby
19. Swan Lake - A Hand At Dusk
20. Damien Jurado - With Lightning In Your Hands

If you have any suggestions for more mix themes, please leave them in the comments. I will attempt them! And as always, if you want a copy of this mix, let me know - we can trade!

Show Your Support for Foreign Lands this Weekend!

Your Independence Day plans are steeped in good ol' fashion American tradition: An Old Navy flag tee, some little stars n' stripes flags to wave with fervor, and of course a giant shrink wrapped package of colorful fireworks that no amount of patriot day drinking could make unsafe to set off on a metal garbage can lid in your backyard. Who cares if all of these things were made in China or Malaysia! As long as they're not made in Mexico by Mexicans right?! USA! USA!

The big attraction this year is the New Center Park Kick Off celebration extraordinaire starting today and going through Monday! It looks like a really nice space - and for a city that can hardly afford to keep any of its parks open, it's something worth supporting. Obviously the added bonus of freeness sweetens the deal. Lots of great bands: Silverghost, Modernlull, Old Empire, The Beggars, The Juliets, etc. Also face painting and BUBBLES! It says these things are for kids, but as long as you're one of those lovable drunk types, you may be able to convince the nice folks to give you a kitty nose and whiskers.

So go have fun outside. In Detroit. For America.