Your Vegas : "In My Head" (mp3)

By Greg Swan, on February 29th, 2008%

UK New Universal Republic band Your Vegas have released a track of their forthcoming debut, A Town And Two Cities, which hits stores April 22nd.

A cross between Coldplay and The Killers, Iâ€™m guessing everything you hear stays in Your Vegas.

Your Vegas : “In My . . . → Read More: Your Vegas : "In My Head" (mp3)

AX MEN Contest : History

By Greg Swan, on February 27th, 2008%

Trees are crops. I have a friend who hates it when I say it, but it’s true. Cut down a tree, replant a tree, wait 25 years, cut it down — repeat. But if a tree falls in the woods with 30 loggers and a TV camera around, can you win a prize?

The first ever non-fiction series about the “treacherous” life of Pacific Northwest timber cutters, AX MEN debuts Sunday, March 9 at 9 p.m. CST on History.

The series looks at the legacy that the pioneers of our country laid for the present and future generations of loggers, . . . → Read More: AX MEN Contest : History

Sunny Day Sets Fire : Stranger Remix EP

By Greg Swan, on February 26th, 2008%

Sunny Day Sets Fire‘s Stranger Remix EP is not a Sunny Day Real Estate remix album. I just assumed, which was stupid, but you can understand why.

So after I got over that initial disappointment, I really did give the album a chance and can recommend it.

Group members hail from Italy, Hong Kong, UK and Canada, aligning their influences to create catchy experimental pop, as evidenced by the title track:

Sunny Day Sets Fire : “Stranger” (mp3)

In addition to this track, which will appear on upcoming album Summer Palace (May 6), the EP features remixes by CSS, XXXChange . . . → Read More: Sunny Day Sets Fire : Stranger Remix EP

Middlepicker : Seymore Saves the World : Parts for All Makes : Collapsticator, Sound Gallery, Minneapolis, Mn, 2/22/08

By Greg Swan, on February 25th, 2008%

Saturday’s Royalty, Etc. 2nd Anniversary bash at Minneapolis warehouse venue Sound Gallery was packed. By the time Parts for All Makes took the makeshift stage, the majority of the crowd was drunk, loud and/or in line for the bathroom.

Fantastic night, and congrats to Ty Morse (pictured above with Collapsticator) and company for tackling the 2 year milestone with a vengeance. Some photos below, although my new Nikon SLR was acting up a bit. Still need to read the manual.

Middlepicker

Seymore Saves the World

Parts for All Makes

. . . → Read More: Middlepicker : Seymore Saves the World : Parts for All Makes : Collapsticator, Sound Gallery, Minneapolis, Mn, 2/22/08

The Afters : Never Going Back to OK

By Greg Swan, on February 25th, 2008%

The Afters release their new album, Never Going Back to OK, this Tuesday, Feb. 26.

What’s really pushing the group these days is their MySpace Girl video.

“ â€œMySpace Girlâ€ tells the real-life story of how The Afters bassist used the popular social networking site to covertly gather intelligence about a young woman he admired from afar at a burger joint. Â Not only was he able to find her and contact her, but the couple eventually married.” — hear the whole story here (mp3)

Honestly, beyond the happy PR spin in their press release, I couldn’t get through the whole . . . → Read More: The Afters : Never Going Back to OK

State Bird : Mostly Ghostly : mp3

By Greg Swan, on February 24th, 2008%

State Birdâ€™s sophomore collab between Coby Hartzler and Jared Riblet, Mostly Ghostly, is a frenzied indie-folk masterpiece.

I really like this album, but it’s short short short — 35 minutes. Seems like I hit PLAY, and then it’s over.

State Bird : “The Golden Glowing Mask” (mp3)

The frantic call and response, energetic clapping and horn charts make me want to jump on stage and rock out. Unfortunately I’m sitting in a cube with headphones on scaring . . . → Read More: State Bird : Mostly Ghostly : mp3

Stone Arch Festival Seeking Bands

By Greg Swan, on February 22nd, 2008%

The Stone Arch Festival of the Arts is now taking band applications for their outdoor festival June 14/15, 2008.

Over 100,000 people attended last year’s festival, and this year features five (5!) performance stages showcasing local and regional acts. Definitely a key venue for your band to get local and regional recognition this summer.

Last year’s bands included Romantica, The Alarmists, Jeremy Messersmith, The Mood Swings, and Martin Devaney.

Contact Stacy Schwartz for more information. Applications (pdf) are due March 15, 2008. But don’t procrastinate. You know what they say about the Ides of March, people.

. . . → Read More: Stone Arch Festival Seeking Bands

Royalty Etc. Gets Two Spankings (and One to Grown On)

By Greg Swan, on February 21st, 2008%

Minneapolis Saint Paul has a thriving, vibrant music scene. It’s not a secret if you’re paying attention.

Compelling, talented bands aren’t hard to seek out any day of the week in the metro area. Area clubs are accessible to the 18+ set and most shows pull a fair to SRO crowd on a given weekend.

Adding to that is a camaraderie among most local groups that makes all of us proud to say we’re from Minneapolis — especially the bands starting to get moderate mainstream attention. Then you add in music enthusiasts like local label Royalty, Etc.’s co-founder Ty . . . → Read More: Royalty Etc. Gets Two Spankings (and One to Grown On)

Downtown Harvest : Golden Dragon

By Greg Swan, on February 21st, 2008%

Downtown HarvestÂ
Golden Dragon

Philly band Downtown Harvest are calling their sound “comic-book punk rock” and draw influence from funk, hip-hop and grunge.

A veritable party in a box, Golden Dragon goes from sublime soiree “Killer Queen Bee” to the zombie freakout “Napier” to the postmodern spacejam “Slow Dive” to the horn-laden swing track “Four Hundo.”

I love this record. And it just gets better the more I listen to it.

Stream tracks on their Web site . . . → Read More: Downtown Harvest : Golden Dragon