daft punk

fresh

Dr Dog

Dr Dog had me hooked since We All Belong, which was an absolutely amazing record, the track My Old Ways is haunting and so well written that I almost hate myself that I'm not that talented.  And then this new record comes out, Be The Void, and I begin to spiral out of control at the sheer mediocrity of my life.  Dr Dog is so unique, spanning so many genres from college radio to the delta blues and making it rock and roll for sure.  Lonesome is my favorite track from the record and I think it should be listened to loud, and probably alone, because when I listen to it I get into a trance like state, drumming on my thighs and nodding my head.  I dig it a ton.

The Flaming Lips

In recent years, I haven't been going to as many shows as I'd like.  Having kids and a job and house in the suburbs make it difficult to really get out to the small clubs and see cool new bands and keep my finger on the pulse.  When I lived in NYC, and before I was married I would go out constantly to check out new bands at small clubs, some of which are no longer in existence, like CBGB and Brownies, but there are other places that are fun to see live music like Arlene's Grocery and Mercury Lounge to name a few.  So far this year I have seen 3 (three) bands live.  It's a source of great shame.  Not only have I only seen three bands live, they were all at large venues with almost zero intimacy, and they were all bands with long and impressive histories.  Dinosaur Jr, the Who and The Flaming Lips.  The most recent was The Flaming Lips, and it was at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, CT.  The show was amazing.  The stage design was elaborate and interesting, and the light show was absolutely mind blowing!  But take away the theatrics, and the righteous light show, the band was spot on.  Wayne Coyne is perhaps at the pinnacle of his game.  To be honest, I probably hadn't listened to them since around 2002 when Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (brilliant record by the way) was released, and I can't be sure whether or not I have seen them live, I suppose it's possible I saw them in '94 at Lollapalooza, but that would be the only time.
But ultimately I was blown away by the show, and while it wasn't really the intimate encounter I had hoped for, the Oakdale was a decent venue to see a show of this magnitude.  And The Flaming Lips Were amazing.  It's inspired me to dig back into their catalog, and I've been addicted ever since.  Killer show, and a killer band.  The new record The Terror is some of the bands best work, and I can't wait until I get a chance to see them again.