Black Moth Super Rainbow profile at Old Mon Music

Roll on over to Old Mon Music for this week's installment: Black Moth Super Rainbow.

He really makes a blogger like me feel lazy. And rightly so.

Also, "Born On a Day the Sun Didn't Rise" might be in my top three songs of the past summer if I had to think about it.

Notes on inconsequential developments in my current listenings and possibly concerning my recent relationship with blogospheric hype more generally

Less than a week after its actual release, I feel (somewhat) comfortable saying that I am "over" Girls' Album. I bought into the hype, and I was really into a few of the leaked tracks. I continue to really like "Hellhole Ratrace," "Lauren Marie," and a few others. Indeed, the highs are high. But the rest is beginning to seem like fluff. I fear this may be a record which quickly finds its way out of my rotation. Reminds me a bit of VietNam, in whom I also lost interest a few weeks into a short-lived captivation yet still sort of like when I hear them. Maybe all this rain is just getting to me. I did find the tracks to be generally more satisfying while in San Diego last week. Anyway. Moving on.

I am an unabashed fan of M. Ward and My Morning Jacket and was/sometimes think I still might be a(n abashed) fan of Bright Eyes. So obvi I was thrilled that they were finally working on a Monsters of Folk album. But then I was disappointed when I heard the first single, "Say Please." But then I was reinvigorated when I downloaded the full album and dug it straight through. And now I even like "Say Please." (Not sure what happened there.) Highs: All of it. In particular, "Man Named Truth," "The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me," "Magic Marker." But really all of it.

I ignored everything I read about Washed Out. Not sure why. Didn't even give him a listen. So much hype around so many bands in '09, maybe. I've been leaning on some old standards lately: Neil Young, John Prine, Dinosaur Jr., Beatles, others. (Glad U2 played "Ultraviolet" on SNL this weekend.) From the words around the blogs, I assumed Wavves - Rock = Washed Out. I was not interested. Preemptive backlash. Then I gave in. Glad I did. The general impression and resultant formula might be accurate, but I like it no less. For now, anyhow. Like a lo-fi indie poptart.

Maybe I'm just too fickle these days.

New hype preview: 7 Worlds Collide. I've got my eye on you.

Download:
Monsters of Folk - "The Sandman, the Brakeman and Me"

October Preview: Not All Country Sucks, Parts 2-4

If you harbor even a slight suspicion that perhaps--by some twist of circumstance that might have been altogether unforeseeable a decade ago--not all country music sucks, then this Fall will be a good time for you to test that theory in our fair Burgh.

Look forward to Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses at Club Cafe on October 6, followed by Jamey Johnson at Mr. Small's on the 7th, and Shooter Jennings at Small's on the 21st. Tell me that Bingham is more Americana and Shooter is more rock and I won't argue too much. Until then, I'll catch you further on down the trail.

Download/Stream:
Ryan Bingham - "Sunshine"

Shooter Jennings MTV Music

The Flaming Lips are totally sweet

Seriously. And you can hear their entire new album in streaming audio now through Monday night at Colbert Nation (see left side). As expected, I really like what I'm hearing.

They also performed the album's lead track on the Colbert Report last night, and here's the video. Before playing, Wayne Coyne gave a pretty entertaining interview, available on the site.

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Flaming Lips - Convinced of the Hex
http://www.colbertnation.com/
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Protests

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Album Review: Good Night, States' In the Impossible Tension

If it weren't for an omnipresent drum machine and that pesky comma in their name, this EP would be damn near perfect. With that in mind, it's still not far off.

Here's the tracklist:

1. Arsonist's Blues
2. Good Times, So Wearily Desired!
3. River In The Dry
4. Moonlight
5. All On Your Own
6. Neighborhood Roofs

Every song comes equipped with a great melody, and at least five of the six have found themselves stuck in my head over the few weeks I've been listening to it (sorry, "All On Your Own"). Oddly, the album was recorded by only two of the band's five members--Steve Gretz and Joe Tanner--but such is life when your band is split among three cities, as theirs is.

This record is a departure, to be sure. Don't expect to rock out. The album title seems fitting, as even after having listened to the record several times through I still expect tracks 1 and 6 to open up to a flood of distorted guitars. They don't. Yet they're no worse for not giving into my petty desires.

From the top, "Arsonist's Blues" is a great song to start it off and set the tone for the rest of record. Leaning on the vintage keyboards expected of GN,S, Gretz and Tanner manage to maintain their trademark sound without overdoing it on the synth tones. The second track has to be the catchiest, and already has me nostalgic for the summer that's still here. Then the synths fade to welcome some crisp acoustic guitar work that brings a woodsy air of reminiscence to my favorite of the bunch, "River In The Dry."

While the songs are stripped down, they don't feel spare. There's a warmth here that gives the sense of fullness, and a restraint that leaves room for these songs to grow live. Perhaps the fullest on the record is the closer, "Neighborhood Roofs," and it's also one of the strongest.

Obviously the backstory of the writing and recording of this album begs curiosities about how these tunes will translate to the stage, but Hugh assures us they'll do just fine. Here's where you can hear them:

Tonight: Thunderbird Cafe

Tomorrow: Carnegie Arts and Heritage Festival

Next Tuesday: Brillobox

Monday, Sept. 21: William Pitt Student Union

Courtesy of the Trib, here's a video of the full band doing "Arsonist's Blues" which bodes very well for the upcoming shows and the growth of this great band. The vocals are sweet, and that small touch of natural percussion is enough to make me forget about the drum machine in the background.

SITKOT rating: 46 out of 57

ADB's Guide to Pittsburgh

Photo: Sara Flemming (http://saraflemming.com/)

Do yourself a favor this holiday weekend and learn a bit about your city, courtesy of the Angry Drunk Bureaucrat:

The G-20 Visitor's Guide Part 1

The G-20 Visitor's Guide Part 2

The G-20 Visitor's Guide Part 3

makes me feel that way

September mornings still can make me feel that way