popwreckoning

Lollapalooza is celebrating its 20th anniversary and as promised, the recently announced delivers some pretty hefty acts. 

Eminem, Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Muse, My Morning Jacket, Deadmau5 and A Perfect Circle will headline the annual event in Grant Park from August 5-7, 2011.

If you missed Death From Above 1979‘s Coachella reunion, Lolla gives fans another chance. There’s also many other classic acts such as The Cars to up and comers The Naked and Famous. You can see the rest of the announced lineup below:

Eminem, Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Muse, My Morning Jacket, Deadmau5, A Perfect Circle, Cee Lo Green, Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley & Nas, the Cars, Ween, Bright Eyes, Arctic Monkeys, Big Audio Dynamite, Deftones, Beirut, Explosions in the Sky, Death From Above 1979, Ratatat, Crystal Castles, Flogging Molly, Atmosphere, Cold War Kids, Lykke Li, Cage the Elephant, OK GO, Local Natives, The Kills, White Lies, Portugal. The Man, Two Door Cinema Club, Ellie Goulding, Delta Spirit, Beats Antique, Mountain Goats, Sleigh Bells, Manchester Orchestra, Smith Westerns, Best Coast, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, The Drums, Black Lips, Fitz & the Tantrums, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, City and Colour, Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses, Cults, Noah and the Whale, Sam Adams, J. Roddy Walston and the Business, Tinie Tempah, Lissie, Dom, The Vaccines, Foster the People, Titus Andronicus, Mayer Hawthorne and the County, Chico Trujillo, The Naked and Famous, Phantogram, Rival Schools, Friendly Fires, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., Reptar, Maps & Atlases, Fences, Tennis, An Horse, Young the Giant, Los Bunkers, Imelda May, Grouplove, Wye Oak, The Joy Formidable, Lord Huron, Disappears, Walk the Moon, Gold Motel, Iration, Ryan Leslie, Tab the Band, Skylar Grey, Christina Perri, Black Cards, The Pretty Reckless, Boy and Bear, Patrick Stump, Kids These Days, Young Man, The Kingston Springs, Lia Ices, The Chain Gang of 1974, Ximena Sarinana, Typhoon, Electric Touch, Kerli, Ruby Jane, Julia Easterlin, and DJ Mel.

On Perry’s Stage:

Girl Talk, Pretty Lights, Kid Cudi, the Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77, AfroJack, Modeselektor, Skrillex, Perryetty vs. Chris Cox, Chuckie, The Glitch MOb, Busy P, Joachim Garraud, Super Mash Bros., Jay Electronica, 12th Planet, Daedulus, Feed Me, JackMaster, Collie Buddz, Savoy, Kyle Lucas and Captain Midnite, Ana Tijouxana, Midnight Conspiracy, L1ght, and Lady D.

Early Bird tickets have already sold out, but you can now buy regular priced tickets for $215 while supplies last. VIP Passes and Travel Packages are also available. A limited number of
Single Day tickets will go on sale June 7. Go here to buy tickets.

Organizers are expecting over 240,000 people.

Valentine’s Day is today kids, and while other music blogs seem to be in a holiday-inspired quasi-posting frenzy offering countless “Best Of” lists that make you question your taste in music, I offer you dear readers, just one, single song to nurse your dark heart back to life.

Ween is a band I discovered in junior high school. I won’t mention how long ago that was, but I will say that at the time I was rocking quite a bit of M.C. Hammer and Bel Biv Devoe on my Casio Walkman. You can do the math. I clearly remember my brother and his best friend anxiously awaiting the 1992 Christmastime release of Ween’s Pure Guava. Big box retailers at the time didn’t carry music like that—hard, foul and birthed via four-track—with no internet to speak of, we had to get our music on from the little lone record store on Main Street, Downtown Sounds, I can still smell the dusty wood paneling and discontent festering behind the counter. The album had to be special ordered, that’s just how remote music like Ween was at the time. My brother and his buddy Kevin each bought a copy and then exchanged them with each other for Christmas. They thought that was pretty slick. When the shipment finally arrived at the store, weeks after Christmas, the boys couldn’t get their grubby paws on the genius quick enough. I remember they came home and locked themselves in my brother’s tiny bedroom, just big enough for a twin bed and a bong made out of an Abdow’s Big Boy plastic penny bank and listened to the album on repeat. A few days later Kevin’s mom called wondering where the hell he was. To be honest, neither one of them were the same after they discovered Ween and Downtown Sounds had just as much to do with that as the album itself. I soon ditched the bolo tie and patent leather oxfords in exchange for a flannel and something a bit more rugged on my feet and let the alternative side of life in.

From the same band that has blessed us with righteous tracks like, “Put Your Boobs On,” “Wavin’ My Dick In The Wind,” “Baby Bitch” and “Pinkeye (On My Leg),” I want to share with you one of my most favorite love song of all, a twangy, country-infused, simple little lick called, “Stay Forever” by Gene and Dean Ween. On Valentine’s Day, I dedicate this song to remembering how I first fell in love with the discovery of music. Eighteen years later and I’m still smitten.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all of my kindred dark horses out there.

.“Stay Forever”

With the summer fog and windy chill separating the locals from the ill-prepared tourists, day 3 of the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park had both moments of brilliance and powerful performances across the festival’s seven stages. If you missed day 1 or day 2, check them out now!

Matt & Kim
Almost too happy for their own good, the duo of Matt and Kim bounced through their Casio-infused set including “Daylight” and “I Wanna.”

The Dead Weather
All of the elements were in place for The Dead Weather’s mid-tempo performance on Sunday afternoon. The weather was indeed dead and gloomy and The Kills’ Alison Mosshart’s vocals were bluesy, primal and raw. While Jack White, pulling double-duty on drums and vocals, fits the personality of the band perfectly, he was overshadowed by Alison’s powerful onstage presence.

Modest Mouse
Proving that plaid may just be the new black, Modest Mouse played their set, curiously skipping their most radio-friendly tune “Float On.” While the show was enjoyable, I found that I would rather have a Modest Mouse experience which includes a comfy chair, good headphones and a copy of The Moon & Antarctica.

Loop!Station
Performing their third brilliant set in three days, Loop!Station shared part of their show with performers from the Vau de Vire Society.

Ween
Ween’s hard-core fans were out in large numbers to see the free-spirited absurdist-rockers on Sunday. Filling the spot occupied by Primus at last year’s fest, Dean Ween and Gene Ween (Mickey Melchiondo and Aaron Freeman) showed their cred as gifted guitarists.

M.I.A.
After her bratty reaction to the announcement of Tenacious D as replacement headliners for the Beastie Boys on the final day of festivities, M.I.A.’s performance did little to improve her image. M.I.A. (Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam) failed to generate much enthusiasm from the crowd, even after passing out hundreds of annoying toy horns which, coincidentally, sounded just like “boo” when played en masse. It was quite fitting that Street Sweeper Social Club’s version of M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” was more inspired than her own.

Band of Horses
Shimmering with reverb, the Southern-tinged rock of Band of Horses was filled with warm and moving moments. Song such as “The Funeral” and “Ode to LRC” were part of a well-crafted and rousing set.

Tenacious D
Bringing skits, stunt doubles and shtick-heavy rock, Jack Black and Kyle Gass closed out the final night of the festival. After being named as replacements for Beastie Boys who dropped out due to the throat cancer diagnosis of Beastie’s Adam “MCA” Yauch, The D unleashed their “earthquake of rock” on the Bay Area.

We wish you the best, MCA!

You may know her better as “Agent M” from the modern legendary punk outfit Tsunami Bomb, but Emily Whitehurst hasn’t slowed down despite the demise of her first act in 2005. Fellow ex-Tsunami Bomber Matt Mckenzie joined Whitehurst in the 2006 creation of The Action Design, which nods to the pair’s punk rock roots but infuses hooky bass lines and powerful rhythms to create a catchy dance rock sound.

Editor in Chief Jessica caught up with Emily prior to the Philadelphia leg of their national tour with friends Killola. Rather discuss Whitehurst’s previous outfit, they talked about touring, tribute albums and Santogold.

Jessica, PopWreckoning: I can’t believe it’s already almost September 23rd! Your album comes out next week.
Emily Whitehurst, The Action Design: Yeah.
PW: That’s exciting. Would you talk about it a little bit. What went into making your debut album?
EW: We would come to practice with a basic guitar part or a bass part and then we all build on it from there, basically. Then I take the song home and work on it as far as vocals and melody. Then we get back together again and rearrange it. We do it over and over again as far as arranging goes, so each song is really process. We want to make sure that we’re happy with everything about it. And we are.

PW: How long did it take to actually get the album to where you were happy with it?
EW: I think we started writing the songs maybe 6 months in advance. We weren’t on a super strict schedule so we just wrote when we felt like it. We didn’t have the contrary much which was good.
The recording, I believe, it was kind of sporadic, too. It was recorded by the label owner; he owns his own studio as well. It wasn’t super spread out, but I think it took longer than it normally would have. Overall was the mixing and everything that took six weeks or so.
PW: How did The Action Design get involved with Pop Smear?
EW: We released our first EP (listen) with them before this, which was an introduction to The Action Design in the summer of 2007.

PW: You guys are part of a Seaweed compilation called Hours and Hours. How did you get involved with that?
EW: Some of the guys in the band love Seaweed and are really influence by them. Unfortunately, I am not one of them. I mean, I like Seaweed, but a couple of our guys are in love with Seaweed. Our bass player Matt [Mckenzie] heard about the comp and wrote to the label that was putting it out, KOI Records, and said, “We wanna be on this comp. We love Seaweed! Please let us be on it!” They said OK so we did the cover of “Kid Candy” and we were really happy with that. It’s really different from the original, which is what we wanted.
PW: So you guys got to choose that song or did they ask you to do something that hadn’t already been taken?
EW: Well, they told us what was already taken and then we went through the whole catalog and figured out which song we could translate best. And “Kid Candy” wasn’t taken, so it worked out.

PW: In support of the album that comes out next week, you are currently co-headlining a tour with Killola.
EW: Killola, yeah.
PW: How long have you been on the road already?
EW: I guess about two weeks.
PW: How has the tour been?
EW: It’s going great! We’re heading to Vienna, Virginia right now.
PW: What’s been the best stop on the tour so far?
EW: The show was surprisingly good in Baton Rouge. We weren’t sure if we were going to be able to because of the hurricane and neither band had ever played there before. It was a really great crowd that just danced all night. It was pretty awesome. The show in Atlanta was in a really cool spot. It looked like Georgia architecture is a lot of brick buildings, it was a really cool area.
PW: Yeah, Atlanta is cool. The tour goes through the beginning of October, which is rapidly approaching, I’ll see the Philadelphia show on Friday. What can the crowd expect?
EW: Well every night we try and put all of our energy into the show, and we haven’t gotten tired yet. So hopefully we’ll still have that energy at the end of the tour.
PW: I’m sure you will. It’s a really cool place that you guys are going to playing. They have a really great sound system. It’s a bar so you think it’s going to be bar acoustics, but they have a really great sound system.
EW: Nice.

PW: Over the summer, you played on a bunch of Warped Tour dates. What was it like playing at Warped?
EW: It was really hot! [laughs] Our air conditioner broke in our van, so it was a very hot tour. Aside from that, it was pretty cool. There are like a 100 bands on everyday at Warped Tour, so we got to see a bunch of really cool bands and meet some great people. We made some good friends.

PW: How did you end up on Warped Tour?
EW: We played 5 dates last year, so this year. We were on the Kevin Says Stage. You submit for it through Kevin [Lyman] and he picks the bands. We were received pretty well last year so he gave us more dates this year.

PW: Cool. Were there any bands that you played Warped with last year that you got to see or hang with again?
EW: I think for the most part it was all different bands. Usually they switch it up every year, so I don’t think there were any bands that we played with both years.

PW: Do you like shows like Warped Tour, big festivals or do you prefer what you’re doing right now with headlining a show in smaller clubs?
EW: I think there are advantages of both types of touring. I think festival shows are really good for the band as a method of gaining new fans since the draw is not primarily The Action Design. We meet a lot of new people, which is really great.
When we’re on our own, regular tour, the attention is a lot more focused. At Warped Tour it’s hard because there are a hundred bands playing so it’s difficult to obtain those new fans. It’s like a double-sided thing.
PW: Festivals can definitely be overwhelming with so much going on at once. A lot of festivals now have competition from non-musical acts, too, so even for the music lovers in attendance, it’s hard to try to fit everything in. And the schedule always overlaps so you can never see a full set of half the bands you’re there for.

PW: If you and the guys were able to set up your dream tour, you could share the stage with anybody you wanted, who would you want to play on the same bill with?
EW: Oh, that’s one of the hardest questions ever!
PW: It’s become one of PopWreckoning‘s signature questions and everyone says that. [laughs] It doesn’t even have to make sense as far as a cohesive tour, though. It could totally be crazy. Just whomever you want to play with.
EW: We all have really different tastes in the band as far as our favorite bands. One favorite band that we all have in common is Bloc Party. Who are still around, so it could be possible! Maybe Ween or somebody like that. Yeah, why not? Oh, and then a band that we met on Warped Tour that we’re all super good friends with now and that we hope we can play with again is called Beat Union.
PW: Where are they from?
EW: The UK.
PW: Sweet, I’ll have to check them out.
EW: Yeah, they’re really good!

PW: What kind of music are you listening to now?
EW: Well, Beat Union, for one. [laughs] I’ve also been listening to Santogold a lot. Have you heard of her?
PW: Yeah, absolutely, she’s great! Totally blowing up all over the place in TV and film and commercials.
EW: She’s just now starting to reach the West Coast.
PW: Oh, OK. Well she’s originally from Philadelphia, which is where I’m from, and she was in a punk band around her for a while. Now she’s off doing this totally different thing with is taking off like crazy.
EW: Oh, that’s awesome. I just heard about her a few months ago and I love it. So I guess maybe I don’t have anything new to tell you about. [laughs]
PW: Oh, no, that’s cool. Sorry to burst your bubble! [laughs] Beat Union is new to me, though, so they’re new to me.
EW: Phew!

PW: Thanks so much for taking the time to chat. I’m looking forward to the show on Friday!
EW: Yeah, we have you on our list so you should come up and say hi!
PW: Absolutely! Thanks again, see you soon.

The Action Design: website | myspace | live review

It’s not often that a band moves me. Most that I encounter, I probably play their CD a couple times, learn the words and then add them to the collection and move on. Sure, there are some regulars in my CD player, but only a small handful that I call my absolute favorites. From the first time I heard them, aderbat immediately made it to that list.

aderbat, is the brain child of Doylestown, PA native (and current Brooklynite) Matt Taylor. Taylor originally started out as a solo musician playing coffee shops and open mics before cobbling together an amazing band consisting of Chris Covatta, Todd Schied, Brad Kunkle and Craig Hendrix. We Belong To The Sea is their first full length release. The amazing backstory to the CD is that Andrew Weiss (Ween, Rollins Band, Cafe Tacuba) along the way became a fan of the band and offered to produce the album.

We Belong To The Sea is an exercise in everything that is good with this band. The first track, “Don’t Lock Me Up,” starts the listener in gently with a simple piano riff and Taylor’s signature raspy voice. Real stand out “Busted Cars” kicks off at only the second track. Driven by drummer Schied’s echoey beats, you’re both swaying and serenaded by Taylor’s vocal talents.

It’s hard to pick a favorite out of an album by such a great band, but if I had to I would say it’s “Pilgrim.” Taylor mixes in guitar sounds fans of the earlier stuff may appreciate, and a rhythm section that builds and builds in a nice crescendo, and ends with loud tape echo feedback.

The second to last track, “No One Would Notice,” has probably one of the best endings that literally has to be heard to be believed: Taylor works some guitar magic that is so cool it’s a shame to give it away. So get out and see them, at one of their upcoming CD release shows. And definitely pick up this album. I’m pretty sure once you do it’ll be added to your regular playlist as well.

aderbat will host a CD Release party this Thursday, July 24th at Philadelphia’s Johnny Brenda’s before making a few other stops around the Northeast (dates below).

Tracklisting:
01. Don’t Lock Me Up
02. Busted Cars
03. Eyeballs
04. Make You Run
05. Mastodon
06. Recycled Language
07. Pilgrim
08. Sick Delight
09. Up on the Hangers
10. No One Would Notice
11. We Belong to the Sea

Tour Dates:
Jul 24 – Johnny Brenda’s / Philadelphia (CD Release Party!)
Jul 25 – The Factory - Benefit for Siren Records / Doylestown, Pa.
Jul 26 – Lo-Fi Social Club / Baltimore
Jul 27 – The Annex / New York City

aderbat: website | myspace

Photos: Ed Roper

It’s only appropriate that a show as hip as Showtime‘s “Weeds” would feature some of today’s hippest artists on its soundtrack. Boasting talent such as Beirut, the Dresden Dolls, Ween, Illinois and Oh No! Oh My has Weeds: Music from the Series Vol. 3 acting as any indie kid’s dream.

It’s even got the perfect amount of kitsch factor for the hipper than thou, featuring Randy Newman‘s rendition of theme song “Little Boxes,” originally by Malvina Reynolds, and a song performed by the hysterically funny Kevin Nealon, who plays hilarious and egocentric CPA Doug Wilson.

Part of “Weeds” underground music tastes have to do with its limited budget: the show can’t necessarily afford hit songs, and are therefore forced to seek out the relatively unknown and obscure. Regardless, “Weeds” music supervisor Christoper Noxon has proven that he’s got his finger on the independent music pulse with an ear for up and coming talent. The show’s writers are constantly swapping mix CD as they plot each season’s story arc and one writer is known for building an entire plotline around a single lyric. The actors on “Weeds” also get into the music mania by playing their favorite songs on set.

Limited resources and the constant search for that perfect song that’s still unknown has lead to many of the cast and crew discovering new favorite music on a constant basis. “Weeds” favorites include Man Man (a favorite of ours, too!), Sufjan Stevens and Page France. These are the only three acts that the show has licensed more than once.

A great deal of thought goes into the placement of each song in every episode and Noxon and crew always manage to hit the nail on the head. The best example of spot on music occurs with Ween’s “You F**cked Up,” appearing in season three’s premiere episode, “Doing the Backstroke.” The song’s ripping riff intro begins as Nancy Botwin (Mary Louise Parker) walks into her backyard to find neighbor Celia Hodes (Elizabeth Perkins). Hodes tells Botwin, “I did this for your own good,” and the camera pans out to show thousands of dollars of weed floating in the pool as Ween front man Mickey Melchiondo screams, “YOU FUCKED UP!” The camera immediately closes in on Botwin’s horrified expression as Melchiondo continues, “You bitch! / You really fucked up!” Absolutely spot on.

Definitely a soundtrack to get your hands on. You can score a copy of this digital-only indie gem on June 3rd, same day as the third season DVD set lands in stores.

Tracklisting:
01. Little Boxes (Randy Newman)
02. Chariot (Page France)
03. Buttmachine (That 1 Guy)
04. Scenic World (Beirut)
05. Girl Anachronism (The Dresden Dolls)
06. You F**cked Up (Ween)
07. Walk In The Park (Oh No! Oh My!)
08. Nosebleed (Illinois)
09. Your Rocky Spine (Great Lake Swimmers)
10. The Earth Keeps Turning On (Mr. Smolin)
11. Just Like The Superdome (Kevin Nealon)
12. Keep Sake (State Radio)
13. Let’s Drive Away (Eleni Mandell)

“Weeds”: website | Music from the Series, vol. 3 | order the soundtrack, season 3 on DVD