Dumbek's Random Stuff

Last weekend's Bob Mould show was great. "I Hate Alternative Rock" was just insane. "Divide and Conquer"??? Are you kidding me? Bob brought the rock. And about an hour later he was up in the DJ platform, spinning for Blowoff. What a fun night.

Friday I went to The Black Cat for Bernie's farewell party. I was pleasantly surprised at Pup Tent, who were playing when I walked in. I need to pay more attention to them. I almost feel bad for ignoring their MySpace friend requests. The Shirks were pretty decent, too. Loud and fast, with a bit of old-school vibe to them. Not related to either band...but I can now say I've seen a naked man on stage at The Black Cat. A rare trip to Ben's Chili Bowl followed. mmmm. Good times.

Did I tell you that my girlfriend is coming to town? Yes, my beloved Cindy Wilson is coming to the 9:30 Club to see me. The B-52's are playing at 9:30 on 4/26. They've got a new record out next week. I can't believe it's not sold-out yet. What's wrong with you people?

On a similar note - Lou Reed is also coming to 9:30. I haven't seen him in over 20 years. Back then I didn't even know who The Velvet Underground were. Should be swell.

I forgot to review the Black Mountain/Bon Iver show. Oops. I'll just say that Black Mountain is going to be big. Count on it. Bon Iver sounded ok, from what I could hear. Too much chatter drowned him/them out. Very, very quiet stuff. I never really even got a good look at the singer, since he was sitting down on a stage that's about 6" high. Maybe next time. NPR was there recording. You can listen to both sets here.

I'm kind of excited about tonight's show at the Rock and Roll Hotel. Sons and Daughters/Holy F*ck/A Place To Bury Strangers. I'm totally digging the APTBS disc. Loud, droney, fuzzy, feedback-laden, rock-o-rific goodness. Holy F*ck ain't bad either. I want to call them dance-punk, but that doesn't quite grab their vibe. They're very electronic, but they're pretty rockin', too. It's like if Kraftwerk were a little more badass. I don't know anything about Sons And Daughters, but I think they're actually headlining. Maybe that means I can get home and get to bed at a reasonable hour for a change. I still haven't quite recovered from the Mould/Blowoff double-header on Saturday.

After a slow start, the concert season is picking up. Bring it on.