Rock This Town

What they're saying about MMJ's Bonnaroo performance

Joseph Lord — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 15:12:18 GMT

Fresh off the release of a new album made in its old stomping ground of Louisville, My Morning Jacket performed on Saturday at another old stomping ground -- the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival.

With all the buzz surrounding MMJ, the critics who were in attendance were paying close attention to the set. Here are a few of the things that were said:

"Despite the common wisdom that Eminem (who performs tomorrow) is this year’s headliner, My Morning Jacket got what might be the prime spot of the festival: second night, first night of the main stage, sunset. It used the opportunity just about perfectly." - The New York Times' ArtsBeat blog

"In white furry boots, frontman Jim James head-banged, stomped and shredded his way through a two-hour set the band sounded like they were born to play." - RollingStone.com

"The show was undeniably great; it just never hit the legendary status I know they can achieve." - Lexington-based music blog You Ain't No Picasso

"Sound problems marred the early-goings of this set, as Yim’s vocals somehow weren’t beaming out (except from the monitors) for the first few verses of the band’s new blockbuster opener 'Victory Dance.' Despite early issues marring the band’s most important set to date, if there’s any lead singer able to roll with such frustrating problems and find a way to turn things around quick, it’s Yim Yames." - JamBase, for the perspective from Bonnaroo's granola roots

"Bonnaroo was right to trumpet the occasion last year when Nashville rockers Kings of Leon became the first band to 'graduate' from Bonnaroo’s smaller tents to a prime-time spot on the main 'What Stage.' But in my opinion, it was considerably sweeter to see Louisville/Nashville experimental rockers My Morning Jacket do the same in 2011 — and without a Top 40 hit like the Kings’ 'Use Somebody.' - The Tennessean's Bonnaroo blog

See Dawes for free

Joseph Lord — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 14:59:33 GMT

The breezy California folk-rockers Dawes will perform a free in-store concert at 6 p.m.Tuesday at Ear X-tacy, prior to opening for Bright Eyes at the Iroquois Amphitheater, the record shop announced this weekend. The in-store coincides with the release of "Nothing Is Wrong," the follow-up album to 2009's "North Hills."

For more on Dawes, check out this recent piece from Jeffrey Lee Puckett.

Also, you can sample Dawes' new album at Spinner.

A Second Chance for Swift Tix

Joseph Lord — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 20:48:04 GMT

The Taylor Swift concert on July 2 at the KFC Yum! Center sold out, but more tickets have been made available and will go on sale at 5 p.m. Friday. Tickets are available at the KFC Yum! Center, the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center and the convention center ticket office, Ticketmaster locations, at (800) 745-3000 and ticketmaster.com, according to the press release announcing the additional tickets. The tickets are $72.50.

Lucky Pineapple ends

Joseph Lord — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 20:13:28 GMT

Notes just posted on Lucky Pineapple's Facebook page and website say the band has folded. Here's the Facebook note:

After nearly 7 years, Lucky Pineapple has decided to cease to exist… As a band, anyway.

We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who has made the last 6+ years of playing music together far more awesome than any of us ever imagined it would be.

We’re putting together a last show, scheduled for Friday, May 20th, 2011. Details will be available soon and we hope to see you there.

Thanks

Lucky Pineapple's last album, "The Bubble has Burst in Sky City," was released in 2009 via sonaBLAST! Records. Check out songs here.

The Decemberists to play Louisville in April

Joseph Lord — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 17:04:10 GMT

Fresh off the release of their latest album "The King is Dead," The Decemberists will perform on April 26 at the Iroquois Amphitheater. Tickets are $35 and will be made available on Friday via ticketfly.com or at Ear X-tacy. The smart indie folksters from Portland, Ore., scored their first No. 1 record on the Billboard 200 with "The King is Dead," which followed the divisive 2009 concept album "The Hazards of Love." Listen to songs from "The King is Dead" here.

Justin Townes Earle will open.

Jim James, Watson Twins to play Ear X-tacy benefit

Joseph Lord — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 21:26:41 GMT

Jim James, The Watson Twins and others will perform at a benefit concert on Dec. 26 for the record store Ear X-tacy, she shop announced today.

The show, at Headliners Music Hall, will also include Ben Sollee, Cabin, Patrick Hallahan, Scott Carney and possibly more artists.

Last month, Ear X-tacy owner John Timmons said in a web video that the shop was still struggling despite having moved to a smaller location in Douglass Loop, from its long-time spot on Bardstown Road near Eastern Parkway.

“Our little independent record store is up against fierce competition in this day of digital downloading and large corporate box businesses,” Timmons said in the November video. “We’re not taking your business or support for granted, but we’re asking you to spread this message. We realize money’s tight, but we also realize that people are still buying music. We’re simply asking you to choose ear X-tacy as your music source.

“Imagine the Louisville music scene with no ear X-tacy. We’ve supported local artists since day one by selling their music and giving them a venue for performances. Local radio might be affected, and most importantly, there would be less tours and concerts in town without the support of a local record store such as ear X-tacy. We know you have lots of options as to where you buy your music; we really feel that ear X-tacy has so much more to offer.”

The $20 tickets for the benefit concert go on sale Dec. 11 at Ear X-tacy (2226 Bardstown Road), headlinerslouisville.com and etix.com.

Guided By Voices at Headliners

Joseph Lord — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 16:44:53 GMT

Low-fi rock kings Guided By Voices will play on Jan. 15 at Headliners, Production Simple announced this morning. GBV continues with its "classic line-up" jaunt that began last fall, including a sold-out show at the Southgate House in Northern Kentucky. "Classic line-up" ostensibly means band leader Robert Pollard with Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Kevin Fennell and Greg Demos, circa the albums "Bee Thousand" and "Under the Bushes Under the Stars."

Tickets are $27 advance and $30 the day of the show. The tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday at headlinerslouisville.com, Wild & Woolly Video, ear X-tacy and etix.com.

Skull Alley's last run of shows

Joseph Lord — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 21:31:42 GMT

The all-ages music venue Skull Alley on Broadway is closing at the end of the year, but not before hosting a few more shows.

December 8th - Farewell Flight, the Foxery, Young Lions. 7:30pm $5

December 11th - Second Story Man, Supertruck, Bu Hao Ting 8pm $5

December 17th - Louisville Hardcore Showcase: 5pm $6

December 18th - Mountain Asleep (last show), Coliseum, Good Luck, Native, Xerxes, Antilles, 6pm $8

December 20th - Trophy Wife, Resister, Vaderbomb 7:30pm $5

December 21st - Late Ones, Trap Them, Red Light Revival, Mustangs, Skinwalkers, Walkthrough. 7pm $5

December 31st - Lemuria, Reading Group, Black God, Young Lions, The Foxery. 7pm $7

Here's a little from a just-dropped press release about why Skull Alley is closing:

"As of January 1st, 2011, Louisville will be losing another in a long line of all ages venues when Skull Alley closes its doors for the last time. Skull Alley has been home to a variety of independent DIY oriented music since June 2008, and has hosted over 400 events during its tenure including concerts, art showings, poetry events, and workshops, as well as housed a full service screen printing shop to subsidize the project.

The beloved venue began having trouble back in May, when a routine inspection by the fire marshal resulted in the closing of the print shop over a coding violation, causing an overnight loss of 40-percent of the business’ income."

Wu-Tang Clan tickets on sale Saturday

Joseph Lord — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 17:31:12 GMT

Tickets go on sale Saturday for the venerated hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan's Jan. 5 show at Expo Five. Tickets are $35 and will be sold at Ticketweb.com. The group released their fifth album, "8 Diagrams," in 2007, in addition to myriad solo albums from the various members. And, of course, the 1993 classic "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)."

Black Angels are out, show goes on

Joseph Lord — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 01:39:29 GMT

The Black Angels won't perform at Tuesday night's show at Headliners, because of a medical situation, Production Simple said in an e-mail tonight. The show goes on, however, with Black Mountain headlining. Tickets are $15.

From the e-mail: "****We regret to inform you that due to medical reasons, The Black Angels will not be playing the November 9th show***** The show will go on with The David Vandervelde Trio opening for Black Mountain. If you wish to receive a refund please return tickets to the point of purchase."

Girl Talk at ... Expo Five?

Joseph Lord — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 17:43:14 GMT

Mash-upy/DJ-ishy/dance-pop-whatever Girl Talk will perform on Jan. 8 at Expo Five, according to Pitchfork.com. Girl Talk is the stage name of Gregg Gillis, who's oeuvre is to take snippets of popular songs to make all new dance tunes. Expo Five is usually the venue of top metal acts or nostalgia acts, most of which also are metal. But, hey, why not?

Girl Talk has seven album, most recently 2008's "Feed the Animals." Girl Talk was also a headliner at Forecastle in 2007.

Here's a piece I wrote about Gillis in advance of that performance:

Gregg Gillis is a scavenger artist.

His latest record, "Night Ripper," has 16 tracks, and none feature sounds — vocal or instrumental — made by him.

Nirvana, KRS-One, the Beatles and Yin Yang Twins, among scores of musicians, are responsible for the sounds Gillis sampled for "Night Ripper" and released under the name Girl Talk.

Gillis, of Pittsburgh, isn't quite a mash-up artist, where the vocals of one song and the music of another are forged into a new song. Girl Talk is more of a hyper-DJ mix, a complex assortment of samples ranging from '70s rock to contemporary hip-hop.

"It's a never-ending process of finding the perfect songs," Gillis said.

The album's songs use about 20 recognizable samples per three-minute track, not to mention an assortment of nameless beats and sounds. Typically, Girl Talk songs mix a dozen rappers over an ever-changing array of rock. Gillis' mixing of Biggie's "Juicy" over Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" is brilliant, but it's just one of a dozen parts in the song. Consider also the improbable mix of lyrics from Paul Wall's "Sittin' Sidewayz" with instrumentals from Phantom Planet's "California" (a.k.a. "The O.C." song).

Gillis used perhaps 300 recognizable samples for "Night Ripper."

"I'm a pop music fan," he said.

Clearly.

Gillis started Girl Talk after high school and a rock band called the Joysticks. Girl Talk's first record came out in 2002, but until last month, Gillis by day worked in biomedical engineering. He would routinely leave the office on Friday to play out-of-town shows, then return to work on Monday as if he'd had a laid-back weekend.

"None of the people at my work were aware of the Girl Talk thing," Gillis said.

Girl Talk has since become Gillis' full-time gig, and he has also started a new project doing mash-ups and remixes for traditional bands. He has an impending project with Of Montreal, and Peter Bjorn and John were pleased enough with his remix of "Let's Call It Off" to serve up the song this spring on their MySpace page.

Gillis' only instruments are laptops, which he uses to mix songs for albums and to perform.

Really, his live shows consist only of him and a laptop. If it doesn't sound inspired, Gillis tries his damnedest to give fans a good show. This almost always includes Gillis peeling off his clothes.

"I come from a background of playing with bands and rap groups, so I always try to make it entertaining, interesting for the crowd," he said. "It would be my crutch. If the crowd wasn't listening, I'd have to strip off my clothes."

His audience has become more engaged as Gillis' live performances improved, but he said he still gets hot performing on stage sometimes and starts taking off some articles, here and there.

Gillis has another potential source of heat — the prospect of lawsuits.

He invokes the fair use doctrine when asked about the legalities of his work. Of the 300 recognizable samples used on "Night Ripper," Gillis paid no royalties to artists or record labels.

"I don't feel morally that I'm outside the law," he said. The fair use doctrine lists a handful of reasons copyrighted material can be used without paying royalties, among them that the work be transformative or not impact sales.

Gillis said he doubts Girl Talk takes sales from artists he samples — the samples are brief, rarely more than a minute apiece.

He hasn't yet been sued or served a cease-and-desist order.

Meanwhile, mash-ups are becoming more common, and Gillis realizes soon someone else will get into his game, whatever it's called.

"I think it's awesome," he said. "It's a way for people who don't have traditional musical training to get into making music."

Slint gets the "33 1/3" treatment

Joseph Lord — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 21:14:18 GMT

The book series "33 1/3" will have an edition dedicated to the Louisville band Slint's seminal 1991 album "Spiderland." (Here's the announcement.) The "33 1/3" series are in-depth explorations of great albums. If you love an album, a "33 1/3" book is a good place to learn the trivia and insights that will make your dinner party guests say, "Man, she knows a heck of a lot about '69 Love Songs' -- like, so much that it's weird." Past "33 1/3" installments include The Smiths' "Meat Is Murder," Sonic Youth's "Daydream Nation" and Public Enemy's "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back," among about 71 others. Scott Tennent will write the "Spiderland" edition. The bio on Tennent's blog, Pretty Goes with Pretty, says he is a "writer and editor at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art."

Cheyenne Marie Mize covers Neutral Milk Hotel

Joseph Lord — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 17:06:38 GMT

Louisville musician Cheyenne Marie Mize's debut solo album "Before Lately" will be released tomorrow on Louisville-based SonaBLAST! Records. Best known for collaborating with Will Oldham and touring with Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore, Mize is starting to get her own time in the spotlight this week. The album was reviewed in The New York Times this weekend, and the website Mixtape Muse just posted video of Mize covering "Oh Comely" from Neutral Milk Hotel's great album "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea."

Check out Mize's version of the NMH classic here.

Here's a long profile from this spring. And you can check out "Before Lately" here. She'll play a record release show at 8 p.m. Saturday at Christ Evangelical United Church, 1228 E. Breckinridge St. Cover is $10.

Maiden Radio album release show

Joseph Lord — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 21:09:00 GMT

Maiden Radio -- the ridiculously folksy collaboration of Cheyenne Marie Mize, Julia Purcell and Joan Shelley -- will have a record release show at 7 p.m. Sept. 26 at Christ Evangelical United Church, 1228 E. Breckinridge St. The Obscure Handsome Brothers (Joe Manning, Glen Dentinger and Nathan Salzburg) open. Cover is $5.

Preview new Superchunk, Jukebox The Ghost, Of Montreal and others

Joseph Lord — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:34:04 GMT

Plenty of good albums are out now or are coming out soon, and many of them are being streamed for free on NPR and AOL Spinner. Here's a handy run-down, if you're in the album-purchasing market:

Jukebox The Ghost, "Everything Under the Sun" (Featuring Ben Thornewill, a Louisvillian)

The Walkmen, "Lisbon"

Superchunk, "Majesty Shredding"

"False Priest," Of Montreal

Interpol, "Interpol"

Blonde Redhead, "Penny Sparkle"

Justin Townes Earle, "Harlem River Blues"

"Album of the Year," Black Milk

Chromeo, "Business Casual"

Phantogram to play Sept. 26

Joseph Lord — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 21:30:22 GMT

Phantogram -- a New York state-based electronic-pop duo -- will play Sept. 26 at Zanzabar. The band features the sweet singing of Sarah Barthel or the subtle singing of Joshua Carter over electronic sounds, interesting beats and a a few "real" sounds from guitars and whatnot. It's sort of like the XX, but not as over-hyped. Check out their songs here.

Review: "The Suburbs"

Joseph Lord — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 21:14:56 GMT

Here's my review of the new Arcade Fire album...

"The Suburbs"

Arcade Fire

It's rare these days for an album — indie rock or otherwise — to be the subject of so much anticipation as the Arcade Fire's third release. The Montreal-based band has built a glimmering indie-rock reputation for being epic, and that includes building epic anticipation. The 2004 debut, "Funeral," was ambitious, and the 2007 follow-up, "Neon Bible," was darker and even grander. "The Suburbs" begins with a hint that Arcade Fire might scale back — the first (and title) track is absent the tension of the first two album-openers; it's the appropriately titled second song, "Ready to Start," that gives this album a proper Arcade Fire jolt, with a quick pace and Win Butler's perfectly melodramatic singing. This speaks to the faultiness of this album: 16 tracks and about 60 minutes is too much. Most of the songs are grand, moving and smart, but not all of them; that's not the standard for every band, but it is for a band that benefits from so much hype. Arcade Fire does drama better than most bands, but good drama requires editing. Cutting "Deep Blue," "Wasted Hours" and even the title track could have put "The Suburbs" on the same top shelf as its predecessors.

— Joseph Lord

Reviews: "There Will Be No Miracles Here"

Joseph Lord — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 21:06:41 GMT

Here are a few recent album reviews:

"There Will Be No Miracles Here"

Frontier(s)

In the early '90s, Frontier(s) singer-guitarist Chris Higdon sang sensitive lyrics over aggressive hardcore punk in Falling Forward before trading brute force for the alluring beauty of Elliott's pretty songs and ambient noises. In the debut of his new project, Higdon taps into the aggressive singing style that he had left behind. That said, Frontier(s) is no return to hardcore punk. "Abul Abbas" recalls "U.S. Songs," Elliott's debut album that retained many of the guitar-rock elements of Falling Forward, delivered with a softer touch. And yet the "Marching Line" teeters on the edge of post-punk legends Fugazi. There's the only problem with this otherwise compelling release — much of "There Will Be No Miracles Here" feels like a dated throwback to mid-'90s Fugazi-style rock. Then again, the desperate mood better reflects a more desperate period in history.

"The Mystic Sessions"

CheKane

The tone of "The Mystic Sessions" is set with the first song, "Houston." A simple rhythm lifted by the constant plucking of a banjo and Doug Slaughter's melodramatic singing. These country/southern rockers' subtle rhythms and soaring leads — on guitar, banjo, whatever — routinely find the elusive, appropriate spot between too-much and not-enough. Still, the album could do without the falsetto singing at the close of "Houston"— or any of the dramatic flourishes Slaughter tosses onto his singing. The vocals are too slick for styles of music that sound better loose — still, CheKane gets more right than they get wrong.

"Handsome Death"

Douglas Lucas

It's uncommon for Sylvia Plath to be mentioned in a song that also includes a dulcimer, as happens on "360," the third track on singer/songwriter Douglas Lucas' sophomore album. Lucas' subtle songs were recorded in Nashville, and "Handsome Death" carries the marks of Music City — particularly "Hello," about as much a contemporary country tune as the singer/songwriter genre can produce. The album has moments of intelligence, but Lucas' voice has limited range. Meanwhile, all but the last of these nine songs are played mid-tempo. None of this is wretched, but only selected moments are interesting. Those moments cost 99 cents on iTunes, you know.

OK Go to play at UofL's campus

Joseph Lord — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:30:28 GMT

Chicago pop-rockers OK Go will play a free concert on Oct. 12 on the campus of the University of Louisville. The show will take place on the oval (where the Thinker statue is, near the Speed Museum). It's part of UofL's Discover Louisville Festival, which will include booths from Louisville businesses.

OK Go released its third album, "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky," in January to good reviews. And, of course, there was this video in 2006.

For more info on the concert, go here.

Review: J.Roddy Walston and The Business

Joseph Lord — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 19:27:44 GMT

Baltimore-based J.Roddy Walston and The Business have a loyal following in Louisville, built on playing three or four shows in town each of the past several years. The quartet's second album comes out tomorrow. You can sample it for free via AOL Spinner's Listening Party. Here's my review that ran on July 21 in Velocity.

"J.Roddy Walston and The Business," J.Roddy Walston and The Business

In the three years since the self-produced debut album "Hail Megaboys," Walston and crew have been consummate road warriors, which has paid off in a proper studio release on Fairfax/Vagrant. The immense challenge laid before them was to meet the expectations of a simple album beloved by a small core of fans while simultaneously earning new fans with an even better work. The sophomore album had to soar — and it does. Walston, a product of rural Tennessee, beats the rock 'n' roll out of the keyboards and belts in the grand tradition of Southern rock singers. Behind him is a series of rousing, intense and booze-drenched songs. "Don't Break the Needle" lures you in with Walston singing aggressively over rock piano before the heavy guitars emerge, sudden and impactful. Before long, Walston is screaming indecipherably. "Brave Man's Death" is buoyed by a catchy riff and even more aggressive singing and guitars. J. Roddy Walston and The Business don't offer many perspectives here, but there's no need to reinvent rock 'n' roll when it's true.

— Joseph Lord

DMB fans love "Dave"

Joseph Lord — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 02:45:20 GMT

Dave Matthews Band has some of the most loyalest fans around. That means something. The show is vivid; alluring to fans and at least entertaining to non-fans. I'm standing in Section 323, with a bunch of screaming fans. Interesting, but not so great for blogging. Let's meet again tomorrow to consider this whole Hullabalou thing.

Hullabathoughts, DMB-style

Joseph Lord — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 23:36:24 GMT

Note: Try reading this in Dave Matthews' voice. You won't regret it.

-The Black Crowes' audience was the biggest I've witnessed besides the main stage. They sounded sharp, and "Hard to Handle" had the usual effect of igniting the crowd. Not to belabor the point, but Black Crowes easily could've been on the main stage. I was surprised they weren't.

-I'm catching Zac Brown Band on the main stage, but I can see Steve Miller Band from the balcony--huge crowd for them, too. Loretta Lynn's set also was packed.

-Here's a thought: Is it worth hauling around a foldable chair so you can sit with a totally obstructed view for an hour, before packing up to the next stage? I'm sure this has been debated...

- The crowd for the Avett Brothers looked small in front of the stage -- and in the sun. I was in the shaded general admission seating, and it was packed. Apparently, people like shade and seats.

-No rain. Still hot. Ugh.

Why Rain Wouldn't Bother Me

Joseph Lord — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 22:00:57 GMT

There's a 40 percent chance of precipitation today, the National Weather Service website days. I'm fine with that. First off, I'd welcome anything that might reduce the tyrannical heat. Besides, messy mud mixes well with old-school rockers like Steve Miller Band or the hippie-friendly Dave Matthews Band. (Loretta Lynn might not be as fun in the rain, though...) But the biggest reason I'm okay with rain comes from my experience this spring covering the Kentucky Derby infield in the rain. Now that was some rock 'n' roll stuff.

Oddball odds, Take 2

Joseph Lord — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 21:10:43 GMT

We had some fun yesterday with making odds on things that would happen during the second day of Hullabalou. Well, I had fun. They were the first bets I'd picked correctly at Churchill Downs in two years. (My Kentucky Derby pick is still running, and was just outpaced by Michael McDonald.) Let's do it again!

Here are the (totally not serious) odds that:

-The young harmony-loving indie group Avett Brothers will give a shout out to their Kentuckian forerunners the Everly Brothers. 15-1

-Most Avett fans who hear said Everly shout-out will not know who they're talking about. 5-1

-The number of beards at the Avetts' set will be proportional to the number of polo shirts at the Steve Miller Band's set. 2-1

-Most three-day pass holders will not complain about rain, should it rain. 5-1

-Dave Matthews Band fans will refer to the band simply as "Dave," e.g., "I'll be so stoked if Dave plays 'Ants Marching.'" EVEN

-Fewer tailgaters than yesterday, but at least one adult with a hula-hoop. 5-1

Interesting Conflicts: Sunday

Joseph Lord — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 19:27:01 GMT

In the rare instance where a horse racing metaphor might be appropriate, we are in the homestretch of Hullabalou. The line-up on Sunday has a couple of interesting conflicts, but nothing that can't be worked out.

-Southern rockers The Black Crowes at 4:15 p.m. on the Kroger Stage battle country newcomer Justin Moore at 4:10 on the Fleur de Lis Stage and '90s alt-rock staples Tonic at 4:25 on the Budweiser Stage. The Black Crowes probably belong on the main stage -- their set might be packed. Justin Moore has the disadvantage of playing country the day after Saturday's more country-centric line-up. Tonic should have a decent crowd, though. It depends on your preference of Southern rock or country or alt-rock, and how close you want to get to the stage. My guess is The Black Crowes' set will be rowdy good fun.

-Zac Brown Band at 6:30 on the main stage or Steve Miller Band at 6:15 on the Kroger Stage. This is could be settled simply by asking yourself whether you like country or classic rock ("Fried Chicken" or "The Joker") and, if you're still undecided, looking at the age on your driver's license.

-Dave Matthews Band at 8:30 p.m. or "True Blood" (HBO) at 9 p.m/"Mad Men" (AMC) at 10 p.m. Kidding! Well, sort of. Even if you're not a DMB fan, you've got to appreciate any performer with such a loyal audience. My wife is a DMB veteran and has nothing but praise for the band's vivid shows, so I'll check it out for the first time. Why not? Oh, and I'm DVRing the TV shows and watching them when I get home late tonight. Sookie! Don Draper! Dave Matthews! Steve Miller?