Trying to work on some posts for tomorrow and next week, so I'm going to have to make this short:

Abiku | Girls Rise With Heat | Judascow/ Blonde Girls (1919 Hemphill Ft. Worth)
Want to go to a goddamn noisy rock show tonight? Willing to drive to Ft. Worth? Then 1919 Hemphill is your spot, as hardcore/early industrial machines Abiku sound like they will probably kill you if you show up to their show. I'm not the biggest fan of the screamy punk side of what they do, but I really like the sound of their synths and the rhythm attack.... Check out "Document" on their Myspace page.

Of course, you've also got DJG's 80's night at Hailey's, Zoo Tv videos upstairs at the Cavern, and Hip Hop at the Slip Inn.

We'll have more stuff later today.

AND ALMOST FORGOT (I've been doing that lately)


Mara Lee Miller of Bosque Brown will be playing a solo set for free on the UTD campus. She goes on at 1030, and David Shackelford of Johnny Blackmouth will start things off at 10. The show will take place on the patio outside of the Student Union at UTD in Richardson. I bet this will be a great show, as well as an opportunity to meet some of the cool UTD radio kids.

Hey, did you hear that Sufjan Stevens (link) is playing tonight? And did you hear that it is sold out, so it is probably pointless for me to even mention it unless you are willing to go down to Lakewood Theater and hustle for a ticket that you will probably have to pay at least $50 to get your hands on? Ok. I'm not really a big fan anyway, but I know a lot of you are, so I'll tell you that My Brightest Diamond is opening, and that her slightly dark orchestral pop seems solid if fairly run of the mill. But not bad. Will probably be pretty powerful live.

For those that won't be doing that tonight, I would recommend:

Current Leaves | Backsliders (Dada)
You know the deal. Current Leaves seem to be earning praise from just about everyone in town lately, and their residency is probably a big part of that. People have been loving the shit out of their live shows, and I bet you will too.

or

The Party w/ Dj Nature @ Rubber Gloves. If you're going to be dumb enough to miss the party at zubar on Friday, I would go to this if I were you. Thank god I'm not.

And I almost forgot, you can check the Flashlight Party at Hailey's as well, playing punk, new wave, italo, disco, post punk, funk and whatever else. Bouncing from Haileys to Rubber Gloves is a good way to spend a Wednesday night.

Here is a short list of albums that we have been listening to lately, along with some MP3s we thought you might like:

1. Wooden Wand and the Sky High Band- Second Attention: You can say what you want about the "freakfolk" label that has been plastered on just about every dude with long hair, an acoustic guitar and a record contract over the past couple of years, but it is becoming clear that Wooden Wand (James Toth) is one of the most prolific and consistently excellent artists to have been lumped into that scene. Sure, Devendra has the star power (and some very good songs), Joanna Newsom has the wide eyed mystique (and some very good songs), and Ben Chasny has the amazing versatility (and some very good songs), but Wooden Wand has produced as many "wow" moments as any of the aforementioned artists while failing to gain nearly as much attention. The first song off his latest album with the Sky High Band is one of those moments, and it is truly one of the most immediately gripping songs of 2006. Its not as much freak as it is folk, but the bold guitar chords and haunting vocal reverb work so well that you won't really care that it isn't as risky as much of the rest of Wooden Wand's material. Its an emotionally mature and accessible classic that you will recognize as such almost immediately.

"Crucifixion, Pt.2" MP3

2. Young Marble Giants- Colossal Youth: You probably won't see any resurgence of bands that sound like Young Marble Giants here at the end of the great post punk revival, but the Welsh trio is certainly worth noting as one of the more charming and interesting bands of the late 70's/early 80's Rough Trade scene. Alison Statton's almost spoken word vocals are certainly the first thing you'll notice here, but the barren, minimal synth and guitar are the real mood setters, setting Young Marble Giants far apart from even their Rough Trade contemporaries by allowing the music so much room to breathe that you can almost hear the air. The Young Marble Giants certainly seem to have been a big influence on the lo fi bedroom sound that popped up in the United States in the early 90's, and also on mid 80's pre-twee British bands like Orange Juice, the Raincoats and the Pastels. This track is considered by many to be their best, and it is said that it took them as long to write it as it will for you to listen to it: just less than two minutes. I believe it was recorded during a Peel session.

"Final Day" MP3

3. Human League- Reproduction: Two songs from the band's 1979 debut. The first, "Being Boiled," was their first single, originally released in 1978. You can really hear the influence of Berlin era Bowie on this track, as well as hints of the more chart friendly dancepop direction that the band, albeit under a completely different lineup, would head in the early 80's. However, Bowie is said to have been consistently impressed with Human League's Kraftwerk influenced early material as well (once referring to the band as the "sound of 1980)," and it is apparent that he and the band fed off of one another quite a bit during this brief era. The second track, originally released as the first track on their Dignity of Labour concept EP, leans much more towards Krautrock and Brian Eno's production work on the second half of Bowie's Low and his own Another Green World. If you like it, you should get the rest of the Dignity of Labour EP, as this track is the first in a four movement piece. Fans of later Human League might be pleasantly surprise with these tracks, or might simply say "didn't they do that 'Don't You Want Me' song?"

"Being Boiled (fast version)" MP3

"The Dignity of Labour pt. 1" MP3

4. Oh No! Oh My!- s/t: I've lately developed a bad habit: I tend to discount many of the things I see on MP3 blogs simply because they are, um, on MP3 blogs. At first I thought that it was just because rock music has been sucking lately, but then I realized that it is logical to feel a bit skeptical when you're dealing with a thousand mini NMEs telling you about the next band to "save rock," only to find out that, um, they aren't going to. But I think I got this MP3 from Gorilla vs Bear, which in my opinion is becoming one of the better and more challenging MP3 blogs around, at least compared to the other indie blog powerhouses. I'm not sure that I care for this record as a whole, but I've really enjoyed this song all summer long, and if you're like me, I figure there is a good chance you haven't checked these guys out. You should.

"I Have No Sister" MP3

(If bands, labels or management would like us to take down these tracks, please email us at weshotjr@yahoo.com and we will do so immediately.)

1. The Polyphonic Spree - Wait
2. Midlake - The Trials of Van Occupanther
3. Bob Dylan - Modern Times
4. Chad Vangaalen - Skelliconnection
5. Ratatat - Classics
6. Grizzly Bear - Yellow House
7. Red Monroe - Red Monroe
8. M. Ward - Post-War
9. Sorta - Strange and Sad But True
10. Beirut - Gulag Orkestar
11. Ray Lamontagne - Till the Sun Turns Black
12. Heartless Bastards - All This Time
13. Nobody & Mystic Chords of Memory - Tree Colored See
14. The Hourly Radio - History Will Never Hold Me
15. What Made Milwaukee Famous - Trying To Never Catch Up
16. Sufjan Stevens - The Avalanche
17. The Theater Fire - Everybody Has a Dark Side
18. Tunng - Mother's Daughter & Other Songs
19. Cursive - Happy Hollow2
0. Pegasus Now - Careless Loveseeds

What Made Milwaukee Famous- The Who Fucking Cares Band of the Month

First of all, I have a question for the readers: Is anyone out there old enough to be familiar with the mid 80's club scene in Dallas and Austin? If not, does anyone know someone who is? Specifically, I'm trying to get in touch with people that have some information on the Austin clubs Halls, Stephanie's and 606, as well as the Dallas club Starck. I'm pretty positive that none of these clubs have existed for a long time, but I would really like to talk to someone that might know the people that ran them, or just has some information that they could share about their experiences at those places. If anyone knows anything, I would appreciate it if you could email me at Weshotjr@yahoo.com and let me know. Thanks.

For tonight:

ADD: Easily the best show to see tonight will be Chief Death Rage playing for free at J&Js. There is another band on the bill and I'm not sure who they are, but you can catch CDR if you get there by 9pm. They're really good live, even when you have to pay. Looking forward to the release of their record later this year.

Wanz is doing his Lost Generation show over at the Cavern (upstairs), where he says he'll be focusing on some more obscure tracks (both old and new) in his set tonight. He didn't give us much detail other than that, so go see for yourself. Hopefully he'll bust out some of the Laptop Deathmatch stuff that so many people are talking about these days. There are some really great musicians involved in that project, so you might want to start paying attention.

Also, Mad Scientists are playing over at Dada with Boston's Constants and Ft. Worth's Okay James. You've already read DL's writings on Mad Scientists' slightly pysche influenced noisy prog metal, and I kind of dig it too. Unfortunately, I can't say many good things about the other bands on the bill. Yes, Constants sort of have a prog influenced spacemetal vibe to them, and I guess they can create some interesting textures, but I've just found myself pretty bored with the several tracks I've heard. The same basic thing can be said about Okay James: it sounds like they are trying to do some interseting things, but I'm just, um, not that interested. They certainly seem to have some talent, and might be interesting in a live setting. I'm just not feeling the recorded material I've heard. I think post rock fans (especially Mogwai people) might dig it however, so give them a listen if thats your thing.

Or you could just save your money in anticipation of the number of good shows coming up in Denton and Dallas the rest of this week.

Just to let everyone know: the first We Shot J.R. Mix CD, which we are currently putting together with the Dconstruction guys, will be released as a free download on both sites next week. I've been listening to it for a while now, and it sounds really great. Hope everyone digs it.

Work issues made me miss an It List Post today... but thats ok, because there isn't a lot going on this Monday night, except for a really solid little jazz night going on at the Amsterdam bar. We've been hitting this up on and off for a long time, and the musicians that come in and out of the place on this night are almost all very solid and quite entertaining. Always a good time.