popwreckoning

Mad Rad, Das Racist and The Thermals brought the house down at the free Sasquatch Launch Party at the Showbox at the Market last night, where the lineup to the now four-day festival would be announced.

Put on by Livenation and Sasquatch creator Adam Zacks, the launch party was MC’d by Comedian Todd Barry, who kept the crowd entertained between sets with dry wit and some fake teaser headliners.

“If you love me now, you’ll love when I play a set between headliners Elvis Presley and the Beatles, and tickets are only $7!” Barry proclaimed sarcastically to the less-than-attentive crowd. But I guess that’s what you get when you have a free show.

After Mad Rad and Das Racist played their sets, the lineup was announced in a video like previous years, which was played twice over, most likely so people could get a second look because they were freaking out too much over the Flaming Lips.

So far the lineup includes:

Death Cab for Cutie, the Decemberists, Modest Mouse, the Foo Fighters, Robyn, Wilco, Flying Lotus, Bright Eyes, Flogging Molly, Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Das Racist, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, Iron & Wine, The Flaming Lips.Black Mountain, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, the Head and the Heart, Mad Rad, the Moondoggies, Noah & The Whale, Sam Roberts Band, Secret Sisters, Twin Shadow, Wye Oak, Tig Notaro, Smith Westerns, Rival Schools, Foster the People, Alberta Cross, S. Carey, White Denim, Washed Out, Gold Panda, Dan Mangan, Axis of Awesome, The Globes, Cotton Jones, Jaill, Basia Bulat, Other Lives, The Bronx, White Arrows, Pepper Rabbit, Talkdemonic, Rebecca Gates and The Consortium, The Young Evils, Bassnectar, Pink Martini, Cold War Kids, Old 97′s, Ratatat, Wolf Parade, Chromeo, Guided By Voices, Yeasayer, Beach House, Local Natives, Matt & Kim, Deerhunter, Mstrkrft, Trailer Park Boys, Sleigh Bells, Major Lazer, Skrillex, Fitz & The Tantrums, !!!, Archers of Loaf, Against Me!, The Thermals, Best Coast, CSS, Surfer Blood, Jenny & Johnny, Bonobo (DJ Set), City and Colour, Reggie Watts, K-Os, Gayngs, Tim Minchin, The Drums, The Radio Dept., Young the Giant, The Antlers, Sharon Van Etten, Villagers, Stornoway, Aloe Blacc.

Tickets go on sale on Feb. 14th starting at $79.50 per day and $285 for three-day passes.

Go to http://sasquatchfestival.com/ for more information or to purchase tickets.

Alberta Cross will co-headline a nationwide tour with Dead Confederate this September.

The co-headline dates begin September 6 in Portland, just after Alberta Cross plays a few off dates with Dave Matthews Band.

The gritty blues rock bands both are known for their energetic live shows that have a quality of controlled desperation.

Tour Dates:
September 6 Doug Fir Lounge Portland, OR
September 8 Great American Music Hall San Francisco, CA
September 9 SOHO Santa Barbara, CA
September 11 Troubadour Los Angeles, CA
September 12 Belly Up Tavern Solana Beach, CA
September 14 Plush Tucson, AZ
September 15 The Rhythm Room Phoenix, AZ
September 17 Telluride Blues & Brews Festival Telluride, CO
September 17 Sheridan Opera House (Late Night Show) Telluride, CO
September 18 Larimer Lounge Denver, CO
September 19 Fox Theatre Boulder, CO
September 21 The Firebird St. Louis, MO
September 22 Double Door Chicago, IL
September 24 Nor’Easter Festival Lincoln, NE
September 25 The Note West Chester, PA
September 26 The Middle East Boston, MA

*Co-headlining with Dead Confederate

New York good-time rock ‘n’ roll band the Postelles have just released the video for “White Night,” the lead single off their debut album coming out in a couple weeks. Last month the quartet played the famed London club Koko and toured the UK as support for the Futureheads, then returned to our side of the pond for dates with Alberta Cross and an appearance at Bonnaroo.

The Postelles’ self-titled debut album will be released in America on Oct 12 on Capitol/Astralwerks.

Tour Dates
Jul 28 – Bowery Ballroom / New York City (CD release party)
Jul 30 – Great Scott / Allston, MA
Sept 18 – DC9 / Washington, DC

The Postelles: website | myspace | interview with | @ Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel

Photo: Mary Chang

What is there to say about Day 2 of ACL? After such a beautiful Day 1, the rain came and stuck around for the most part of Day 2. When I realized this rain was not going to pass anytime soon, I invested in a poncho. The beautiful Zilker Park was left a muddy mess in mere hours, but festival goers embraced the rain and mud, most opting for bare foot and whatever plastic they could find to shield themselves from the elements.

Starting off my day was Deer Tick who I had heard such good things from coworkers, but I was left underwhelmed, perhaps due to the dreary weather. I made my way to the Livestrong stage to see Alberta Cross (who later received a shout out from Mr. Dave Matthews during his headlining set). The rained eased up as they made their way through their bluesy set, but I had other places to be so I made my way to the Felice Brothers to get a good spot for Grizzly Bear as well and that’s unfortunately when the skies opened and the downpour began. Grizzly Bear pushed themselves rather far back in the stage and didn’t move or interact all that much. So while I appreciate the songs, I left feeling a little mixed on their set.

With a quick jaunt to the media to load up on free snacks on my mind, I made my way back in the rain. Once I was full of Coca Cola and all natural snacks, I braved the elements to see my personal highlight of the day and that was Bon Iver. I had not heard much about his shows, but I was floored at his soulful vocals and haunting harmonies with his backing band, making the rain feel insignificant. After Vernon’s wonderful set on steel guitar, I made my way through the mud to Mos Def. While I was initially disappointed by his tardiness and hiding behind a drum kit for the first two songs, the showman Mos Def I have come to love and respect graced the front of the stage mic in hand working the rain shocked crowd into a frenzy.

After enjoying the wonderful catered BBQ in the media area, I made my way to Dave Matthews Band. Now while I’m not what I’d consider a fan, I do have an appreciation for the sheer musicianship Matthews and gang demonstrate on a nightly basis; I also have to appreciate a cover of Talking Heads “Burning Down The House” While nothing can live up to David Bryne’s vocals on the track, DMB’s version was rather lively and Dave’s dance moves worked the mud-covered fans into hysteria. After their set, I decided to call it a night and waited for my free shuttle back to my hotel to rest up, clean off my shoes (remember, ALWAYS pack more than one pair of shoes) and rest up for Day 3.

Austin City Limits: website | day 1

As Fuse TV continues their extensive summer music festival coverage, Fuse TV has announced that they will be airing all of the highlights from this year’s Lollapalooza festival, which starts today!, on August 15th.

This year’s lineup promises to ensure a continuation of the legendary festival’s cutting edge acts with Kings of Leon, Jane’s Addiction, Rise Against, Depeche Mode, the Killers, Tool + MANY more, including our personal favorites like Kevin Devine and the Goddamn Band, scheduled to perform.

Additionally, Fuse is helping music fans stay connected to all of this year’s  Lollapalooza ’09 artists with Twt-a-palooza, a centralized online hub that lets you find, filter, and interact with thousands of tweets from the musical acts playing this year’s fest! Log in with you Facebook or Twitter account to ensure that you don’t miss a beat from one of this summer’s hottest musical gatherings: http://fusefest.fuse.tv/a/home

Wait, it gets even better… like free music? Well, Fuse has over 50 Lollapalooza ’09 artist tracks up for FREE download now on their site! Free tracks from Animal Collective, Alberta Cross, Neko Case, Band of Horses, Deerhunter, No Age, Santigold and MUCH more can be found right here: http://fuse.tv/tours/lollapalooza2009/downloads.html

Enjoy, and be sure to tune-in to Fuse on August 15th @ 9pm/8c for Fuse Fest: The Best of Lollapalooza ’09.

Fuse’s Best of Lollapalooza: website | twt-a-palooza | find Fuse in your area