Tuesday, March 10, 2009

The Points In-store Tonight @ Crooked Beat!

Here’s an easy excuse to hit the record store tonight—a free show! The Points are doing an in-store at Crooked Beat Records. As soon as I think about The Points I see trails, police dogs are barking at me and my shoes are stuck to the floor from all the spilled (and thrown) beer cans.

They’re back home after another tour and probably will have a few good stories to share. It's early so check it out if you can. First person to tap me on the shoulder and mention TVD will win a prize. (NOTE: Prize may cause dizziness, nausea, and an insatiable desire to eat human brains)

From Crooked Beat’s website: “Tuesday, 3/10: The Points
DC-based loudfastandreckless basement punk band The Points will be playing some songs from their self-titled album debut. Released last fall, the album has been one of our top selling Dc area artists over the last few months.

Performances usually start 7-7:30, and are FREE and ALL AGES.”


TVD Victory Lap | XTC

I’d been reading Bob Lefsetz the other day when he pontificated, “Can we bring Todd Rundgren back for a victory lap?”

Fine by me, I thought at the time--the guy really needs to be given his due. (Ever see the (overly long) flash intro to his site displaying the records upon records he’s produced? One word: amazing.)

But at the same time I thought, “Well, there are quite a few others who are due a victory lap...” and just like that I was off on a theme and a graphic. Yes, sometimes these things just write themselves.

XTC! Oh, how long did it take me to embrace your full charms? How long did I wander alone out in the cold purposefully eschewing the warmth of your poppy/hooky/catchy hearth? F’n long I tell you.

Why, I may have even had a disparaging word or seven...’navel-gazing’, ‘too clever by half’, ‘fussy and tiresome’. Wrong I was however--and now in possession of the entire catalog (Thanks Rick!) those years out in the ether have ended.

Yet, MY XTC-switch aside, the band clearly has not garnered the acclaim they’re due. Oh sure, Trouser Press editors and be-specticle’d fan boys have swooned for ages, but today we’re righting a wrong SO wrong that we’re kicking off this week’s series of shout-outs and underscores with the best of the lot.

Ladies and gents: this is pop!


XTC - Making Plans For Nigel [Live on the BBC Dec 1980] (Mp3)
XTC - Generals And Majors (Mp3)
XTC - Senses Working Overtime (Mp3)
XTC - When You're Near Me I Have Difficulty (Mp3)
XTC - This Is Pop (Mp3)