TVD | Friday @ Random

So, I heard from Rick over at Orpheus Records this week and despite what that big ol' ad says over there to the left, he'll be open through June but hours during the month will be a little less standard. Give them a call first if you plan to head over there next month. TVD was there last week and grabbed quite a tall stack of LP's for just $114.44. And Rick noted, all but three had just hit the floor over the past few days which bodes well as he sells off all of the good stuff that's been hidden in the back for years. | Watch this space for more ticket giveaways...we've got shows lined up for the Black Cat and 9:30 in the coming weeks--and they're bands you know, TVD reader. | Thanks to everyone who wrote in for Uh Huh Her tickets this week. BYT has an awesome set of photos and a great recap of the show this morning. | For next week's theme week, we've called in an expert on the topic. Quite frankly, I'm looking forward to reading my own blog and grabbing the downloads for myself. Hint: which UK icon turns 50 this month? | Yesterday I was thinking that 'I Ran' was possibly the quintessential New Wave track. But I was wrong. It's 'Turning Japanese'...

The Korgis - Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime (Mp3)
Ultravox - All Stood Still (Mp3)
Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick (Mp3)
The Knack - My Sharona (Mp3)
Billy Idol - Hot In The City (Mp3)
XTC - Dear God (Mp3)
Talking Heads - Slippery People (Live) (Mp3)
The Mobiles - Drowning In Berlin (Mp3)
Thomas Dolby - Hyperactive (Mp3)
The Vapors - Turning Japanese (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax

Regarding A Flock of Seagulls' 'I Ran' posted on Monday, I'm thinking that it is perhaps is THE quintessential New Wave song. All the ingredients are there...a detached, chilly aura, heavy reliance on (simple) keys and the effects-heavy guitar sound, a plastic, spacey alienation, a gem of a hook and a so-bad-it's-good video on nearly constant rotation. Then there's the hair thing. (Ahem.) Is it just me? Are there other candidates?

Penetration - Don't Dictate (Mp3)
A Flock Of Seagulls - Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) (Mp3)
Killing Joke - Love Like Blood (Mp3)
Stiff Little Fingers - Love Of The Common People (Mp3)
Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax

At home he feels like a tourist / At home he feels like a tourist / He fills his head with culture / He gives himself an ulcer / He fills his head with culture / He gives himself an ulcer...

Fra Lippo Lippi - Shouldn't Have To Be Like That (Mp3)
Gang of Four - At Home He's A Tourist (Mp3)
Flying Lizards - Money (Mp3)
Culture Club - Church Of The Poison Mind (Mp3)
Talking Heads - Psycho Killer [Live] (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax

To clarify (after a comment received yesterday) this week's theme really isn't about the bands who went over the top with the hair or makeup or stage persona...but more of a nod to that era in general when much of the aforementioned congealed into 'New Wave' and often 'Post Punk.' And as well, a nod to Springtime in the '80's, where most of these songs were on pretty heavy rotation...

Dwight Twilley - Girls (Mp3)
The Stranglers - Golden Brown (Mp3)
Fun Boy Three - The Telephone Always Rings (Mp3)
Scritti Politti - Asylums In Jeruzalem (Mp3)
The Comsat Angels - Independence Day (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax

No one does anything with their hair anymore. Through the 50's, 60's, 70's and yes, the 80's, one's top topiary was intrinsically wed to a SCENE. Elvis, The Beatles, Led Zep...and yep, Flock of Seagulls (to name a very few) all had some signature hairstyle which fans aped as to be included in the SCENE. The mods, the rockers, the punks, the new wavers, the metal heads, the rockabilly kids ALL paid tribute to their brand via a hair comb.

Yet after the 80's, all of that seems to be history. Try as I might, I can't think of any particular hairstyle that speaks to the 90's or the 00's. The style is almost anti-style -- the lack of style perhaps being the statement. The band on stage looks just like the audience these days. Gone it seems is the line between performer and audience -- and worse; artist and audience. A visit to Pitchfork alone will prove this accurate.

So, this week, a tribute to the era that begat eyeliner and aerosol and apparently put the last nail in that coffin.

Flock of Seagulls - I Ran (Mp3)
Heaven 17 - Temptation (Mp3)
Frazier Chorus - Dream Kitchen (Mp3)
Martha & The Muffins - Echo Beach (Mp3)
Fischer Z - The Worker (Mp3)

Uh Huh Her and TVD. Now, that's a night out.

And we're giving away two free tickets to this Wednesday's show at the 9:30... Contest info here and check out Uh Huh Her here and here and stream tracks from the forthcoming release 'Common Reaction' here.

TVD's Weekend Shots

A Friday round of shots that foretells next week's theme...
Toyah - I Want To Be Free (Mp3)
Virna Lindt - Attention Stockholm (Mp3)
Southern Death Cult - Fatman (Mp3)
Birthday Party - Release The Bats (Mp3)
The Cramps - Goo Goo Muck (Mp3)
999 - Little Red Riding Hood (Mp3)
Au Pairs - Inconvenience (Mp3)
Dead or Alive - I'm Falling (Mp3)
A Flock of Seagulls - (It's Not Me) Talking (Mp3)
Clock DVA - 4 Hours (Mp3)

TVD | Friday @ Random

OK, so unlike the big-box blogs, we're just a lil mom-and-pop blog--but we still like to give back to the readership and we've got free tickets going unclaimed! Shoot us a note or say hello in the comments and have a night out on TVD! | Steve over at the Rock and Roll Hotel needs some street teamers to hand out flyers locally. Send him a note ( steve@rockandrollhoteldc.com ) and support one of DC's finest live music venues. | Aside from Uh Huh Her next Wednesday at the 9:30, TVD's weekly pick is Snowden at the R&R Hotel Next Tuesday, the 13th. | I know, I know...we said no more theme weeks for a while but we've got two coming up in a row beginning - next week. | More regarding that cassette that I discussed yesterday ...well, there was some room left on side two for:

Roxy Music - Dance Away (Mp3)
The Cure - The Lovecats (Mp3)
Peter Gabriel - I Go Swimming (Mp3)
Fiction Factory - The Warped Wheel (Mp3)
Nomo - Wailing Wall (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Japan "Oil On Canvas"

Believe it or not, this is the soundtrack to hissing summer lawns, kids screeching by on bikes outside as dusk descends, dishes being washed and put away, trains blowing by, sprinklers arching back and forth, screen doors slamming, one (why is it always just ONE?) dog barking in the distance.

Maybe I have a mental problem, but new music forever invokes the time it makes itself known to me -- either at a particular age or a particular time. As I wrote last December, 'Oil On Canvas' was a gift from a pen pal (remember those, internet friends?) who I never actually met but who I owe a large debt to for introducing me not just to Japan but to David Sylvian as well. And that cassette arrived in the mail as Spring slithered into Summer, 1984--rescuing me.

Japan - Sons Of Pioneers [Live] (Mp3)
Japan - Swing [Live] (Mp3)
Japan - Still Life In Mobile Homes [Live] (Mp3)
Japan - Cantonese Boy [Live] (Mp3)
Japan - Gentlemen Take Polaroids [Live] (Mp3)

TVD Free Tix: New York Times/Koko/Nerd Parade

Update: We have a winner!

NYC's New York Times lands on DC's doorstep this Saturday night (5/10) and we've got two tickets to see them along with Koko and Nerd Parade at the Velvet Lounge. Tell us why it's YOU and a guest who should be front and center in the comments section (or via email) and the band themselves will choose the lucky recipient of the free tix. New York Times hold an MFA, a Screen Actor's Guild Card, a Congressional Press Pass, and have illustrated comics for Dark Horse and DC Comics. They are one artist, one reporter, one poet, and one actor...so make it convincing. AND bring your art degree.

New York Times - Burn (Mp3)
New York Times - Gotta Know You (Mp3)
New York Times - Monster Eyes (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Led Zeppelin "Physical Graffiti"

Not unlike the gorgeous sunny day that is May 7, 2008 in Washington, DC, there came to pass a very similar day at the Jersey Shore back in 1985 when it seemed like a damn fine idea to ditch school, head to my pal Noel's house, and drink whiskey all morning long. Nothing like being three sheets to the wind, as my dad used to say, at 10 AM. Soon the word spread and a bunch of others followed and a rather impromptu and er, ...spirited day was had. One guy who ditched school that morning with us was Eric, who for some reason was called "Ebo" (pronounced 'e-bow'.) So, 'Down By The Seaside' from this Zep LP comes on, and at the point where Plant sings ' the people turned away' -- we all sang 'Ebo turned away/ Ebo turned away' waving shots of Jack Daniels in the air. F'n brilliant, right? Turns out, I can't hear the song differently all these years on. And now you can't.

Once I stood in front of this exact building at 96 and 98 St. Mark's Place in New York City. Talk about surreal contact high.

Led Zeppelin - In My Time Of Dying (Mp3)
Led Zeppelin - Kashmir (Mp3)
Led Zeppelin - In The Light (Mp3)
Led Zeppelin - Down By The Seaside (Mp3)
Led Zeppelin - Bron-Yr-Aur (Mp3)

Uh Huh Her and TVD. Now, that's a night out.

And we're giving away two free tickets...

The Los Angeles-based Uh Huh Her is the brainchild of musician/actress Leisha Hailey, formerly of alt-pop band The Murmurs who currently appears on Showtime's hit series 'The L Word', and Camila Grey, bassist and keyboardist with lo-fi rock band Mellowdrone, who has also worked with Dr. Dre, Busta Rhymes, Melissa Auf Der Maur, and Kelly Osbourne. Introduced through mutual friends, Hailey and Grey began making music together at the beginning of 2007, writing the emotionally charged electro-pop tunes that make up their debut release 'I See Red.' "Vocals were done in the bathroom," Hailey says. Produced by Grey and mixed by Al Clay (who has worked with the Pixies, Frank Black, and Blur), 'I See Red', with its laser-sharp melodies, ethereal harmonies, lush string arrangements, and muscular drums, is a great introduction to the duo.

Uh Huh Her release their new LP 'Common Reaction' (and yes, it is out on vinyl) on August 19. With 'Common Reaction', Hailey and Grey are looking to a horizon that's as expansive as their sound – which is to say, seemingly infinite. "We're getting a chance that a lot of bands aren't," Hailey says. "It's just about us showing up and proving that we can do it."

Uh Huh Her will indeed be showing up at the 9:30 next Wednesday night--and so will the TVD reader with the most well written plea for two free tickets. Really, it's that simple. Fan of the band or fan of 'The L Word' for that matter? Put pen to pixels and let us know. We'll accept your passionate pleas here in the blog comments section up to next Tuesday (5/13) at noon and notify the winner shortly thereafter.

Check out Uh Huh Her here and here and stream tracks from 'Common Reaction' here.

TVD Radio Hour

Not only do I feel fortunate to have had parents who encouraged my bourgeoning musical tastes as a kid, but I feel damn fortunate to have grown up at a time when those tastes were forged by -- wait for it -- radio. Really, when was the last time you heard a song on the radio and ran right to a store -- not your computer -- to purchase it? It's been some time, huh? Record stores and radio/radio and record stores -- that was the formula. (Insert rant against corporate suits poisoning the well here.)

A poster named Wayne over at the New Wave Outpost Message Board uploaded this radio snippet from 1979 of the WPIX Penthouse Party hosted by Dan Neer. ..and the memories trickled through. As Wayne wrote, "Listen for an early Crazy Eddie commercial, Elvis Costello, Patti Smith, Ian Dury, Joe Jackson, and at the tail end Meg Griffin playing The Stranglers. Plus throughout the clip some good old rock n' roll...."

So here it is, the sound of free form radio out of New York City, circa 1979. Two words: Crazy Eddie.

Dan Neer's WPIX Penthouse Party (1979) (Mp3 - 41MGs)

Down, Not Out: Orpheus Records Open Through May

Rick Carlisle at Orpheus Records in Clarendon. (Photo by John Mcdonnell)

Direct from the source: "I know, how can you miss us if we won't go away! No we're not following the example of rug merchants everywhere, we're not making it all up, we really did lose our lease. However, the original deal our landlord had with a local bar/restaurant fell through. That means, we get to stay while they continue the search & negotiations with whomever. The good news: we get to continue selling records at tremendous savings to you. The bad news: lots of uncertainty for everyone, a declining customer base as people assume we're closed, or spent all their money or think they purchased everything we had of interest to them. The reality: We are still open for business, we still have a lot of lps, and we are putting out more records as quickly as possible, many for the first time AND we are still ordering and stocking new releases & reissues.. I would like to sincerely thank all of you who have purchased a WHOLE LOT OF VINYL these last 15 weeks. The response has been overwhelming, quite literally. Our daily operating systems were not designed for the volume of business we've experienced recently, nor do we have the staff to keep up efficiently. I appreciate everyone's patience and diligence. Things have settled down and we are doing our best to restock so that we may continue to offer quality lps to you and get them out of here. I hope this clarifies some of the questions in peoples minds, now get down here and buy records.....Please,.... Thank you!!!."

Crowded House, Upbeat and Unpredictable

Crowded House lived up to its name literally on Friday night, as a wall-to-wall throng packed the 9:30 club to see the headlining group. And for good reason. Having reconvened last year after splitting up at the peak of its powers in 1996, it's got everything you could want in a band: an embarrassment of superb material, a charismatic frontman, a set list that's rewritten nightly, a tolerance for -- nay, encouragement of -- spontaneity and, most important, that palpable love of performing that can't be faked.

Led by underrated singer-guitarist Neil Finn -- who's revered as a songwriter of Lennonesque lyrical gifts and McCartneyesque melodic talent -- Crowded House has overcome every obstacle with grace: from the devastating (the 2005 suicide of drummer Paul Hester) to the merely annoying (the impudence of some of their own alleged fans, who welcomed the band to its first D.C. gig in more than a decade by yapping throughout the 130-minute concert). Fortunately, the reverent outnumbered the rude: "You're in very fine voice tonight, Washington," Finn gushed, deputizing 1,200 backup singers to fill out the soaring "World Where You Live." Read the rest here.
(Via The Washington Post. Image courtesy Baby, You Got a Stew Goin'!)

Crowded House set list - 9:30 Club, 5/2/08
Everything is Good For You / World Where You Live / Isolation? (new) / Bangin’ the Dust? (new) / Distant Sun / Whispers & Moans / Cinematic 9? (new) / Either Side of the World (new) / English Trees / Nails in My Feet / Don’t Dream It's Over / Four Seasons In One Day / Twice If You’re Lucky / Weather With You / Encore One / Locked Out / Something So Strong / Private Universe / Encore Two / Into Temptation / Pineapple Head / Improv song w/ crowd / Mansion In The Slums / She Goes On / Better Be Home Soon

TVD's Daily Wax | Better Than Ezra "How Does Your Garden Grow?"

College rock. Just those two words together in a sentence make me want to hurl. REM, Camper Van Beethoven, They Might be Giants, 10,000 Maniacs, Cracker, Blind Melon, Pearl Jam, et al...keep it. Keep all of it.

But how then to justify my BTE love? It's impossible - but there it is. OK, maybe it's not impossible. This could be the best LP of that loathsome era of 90's godawful "alternative" radio...and that's not damning with faint praise.

As I wrote at Fun and Heartbreak and referenced last Friday, I was out of town at the New Orleans Jazz Fest when I got the news that my friend Anne had killed herself. If there's ever a reason to jump on a plane and get home, that was it...but I was convinced to stay in town and that night was persuaded that seeing BTE at Tip's was probably the better idea than just sitting in the hotel room drinking. A lot. So, BTE takes the stage on a sticky, humid New Orleans night and opens with a loopy, slow and mournful "Live Again." And that was sweat streaming down my face just then. Really.

Better Than Ezra - Je Ne M'en Souviens Pas (Mp3)
Better Than Ezra - One More Murder (Mp3)
Better Than Ezra - At The Stars (Mp3)
Better Than Ezra - Live Again (Mp3)
Better Than Ezra - Everything In 2's (Mp3)

Doesn't do 'em justice, but...

...from last night:

TVD's Weekend Shots

The hand-wringing...the tears...the sleepless nights--all to conjure up this list o' TVD's Top Ten Crowded House Tunes in preparation for tonight's 9:30 show. And if anyone REALLY cares, this wasn't all that easy -- so many great songs, so small a list. And they're more of the darker variety (TVD = miserable f'er.) and not ONE from 'Woodface.' Go figure. So, we'll count them down all Casey Casem Top 40-like...cue jingle! (Towels at the ready...)

10. I Feel Possessed (Mp3)
...we are one person not two of a kind...
9. Black And White Boy (Mp3)
..and you run like a cat to the cream / and you're acting so nice it's obscene...
8. Don't Dream It's Over (Mp3)
...try to catch the deluge in a paper cup...
7. In My Command (Mp3)
desolate in anger and safe in isolation / you're about to be the victim of a holy visitation...
6. Kare Kare (Mp3)
..i've got my senses on / and this is the only place that I always run from...
5. Fingers Of Love (Mp3)
i hear the endless murmur / every blade of grass that shivers in the breeze...
4. Walking On The Spot (Mp3)
the odd times we slip / and slither down the dark hall / fingers point from old windows / an eerie shadow falls...
3. Private Universe (Mp3)
no time, no place to talk about the weather / the promise of love is hard to ignore / who said the chance wasn't getting any better / the labor of love is ours to endure...
2. Into Temptation (Mp3)
...as I turned to go / you looked at me for half a second...
1. Not the Girl You Think You Are (Mp3)
...and all the people that you know / will turn their heads as you go by / but you'll be hard to recognize / with the top down and the wind blowing, blowing...

TVD | Friday @ Random

Eight years ago this weekend, my friend Anne put a gun to her head and killed herself. I wrote a little bit about it here not too long ago.

Last winter as I stood waiting to get the bartender's attention at the Friday Night Haunt, I looked to my left and spotted a friend of hers and with more than a few in me I said, "Hey, didn't you used to be the drummer in so-and-so band? I think we have a friend in common." "Oh yea," he says as his date begins to gush at him having been recognized as this drummer that people know or something. I say, "Anne"...and it was like...a...light...went...off -- not on. "Don't bring her up, man..." he starts stammering and begins to physically back out of the conversation. "She should be remembered, you know" I press on. He's shaking his head, "No man, no." I'm not sure if it was too painful or just something else entirely.

I suppose I could do this post on Halloween because that was her birthday, but I often recall the goodbyes much more than the hellos.

Steely Dan - Rikki Don't Lose That Number (Mp3)
Edwyn Collins - A Girl Like You (Mp3)
The Posies - Fall Apart With Me (Mp3)
Silver Sun - This 'n' That (Mp3)
Longpigs - On & On (Mix) (Mp3)
Bernard Butler - Stay (Mp3)

TVD's Daily Wax | Crowded House "Time on Earth"

It's just not lived in enough I think to have its tracks considered for tomorrow's Crowded House Top Ten. It's a fine return to form and I'm sure after a few more bottles of wine and some late night spins it'll walk its way into the favourites lane. But for now, it's merely a wonderful and welcome return. And as tomorrow's list will reveal, Finn & Co. aren't the sunny and breezy little outfit that much of the first LP and 'Woodface' lead one to believe...there are some seriously dark undercurrents at work texturally, sonically, and lyrically--and after the death of original drummer Paul Hester, that tone is front and center here. Absences do indeed have shapes.

Crowded House - Don't Stop Now (Mp3)
Crowded House - Heaven That I'm Making (Mp3)
Crowded House - People Are Like Suns (Mp3)
Crowded House - Silent House (Mp3)
Crowded House - You Are The Only One To Make Me Cry (Mp3)