The Run Down - Thursday January 10 ,2008

As the week goes on, the shows keep getting better and better. If you're in Philly you might have a tough decision on what show to attend. It will probably come down to what mood you're in. If you missed Wu-Tang in Baltimore last night, you can check them out tonight at the Trocadero. Or if you fancy indie pop rock, there's the dynamite line-up of New Motels, Long Walk Home, The Bye Byes, and Swivel Chairs at the Khyber. Or perhaps you crave the alt-blues-folk-rock genre. In that case head on down to the Ottobar in Baltimore to check out the MacGregor Burns Band playing with Mason Dixon and Good Guise.

mp3: Ghostface Killah - Underwater
mp3: GZA/Genius - Fame
mp3: New Motels - Modern Thinker --> website
mp3: Long Walk Home - Living In My Sleep --> website --> buy
mp3: The Bye Byes - Brass Tracks --> website
mp3: Swivel Chairs - Calloused Hands --> website --> buy
mp3: MacGregor Burns Band - Drink Anything --> website --> buy

The Run Down - Saturday December 15, 2007

It's Saturday and many glorious shows await you! First off why not take a drive up to the city of brotherly love to see Illinois rock your screendoor off with Ian Hunter at the Trocadero. There's a great hip hop act with Flex Mathews at the Velvet Lounge in DC. Finally there's the mega Washington Social Christmas show at the 9:30 club sponsored by SPIN and BrightestYoungThings.com. The line up includes Laura Burhenn of Georgie James, Jukebox The Ghost, Caverns, The Dance Party, Exit Clov, and more!

mp3: Illinois - Nosebleed --> website --> buy
mp3: Flex Mathews - B.P.M. --> website --> buy
mp3: Exit Clov - Violent Berries --> website --> buy
mp3: Georgie James - Long Week --> website --> buy
mp3: Jukebox The Ghost - Good Day (Andrew Maury Remix) --> website --> buy

Stars at the Trocadero - Show Review

Stars brought their unique blend of indie pop all the way from their native Montreal to the lovely Trocadero theater in Philadelphia on October 24th, and Evil Homer was there with his pitchfork.
Stars released their fourth full length album, entitled In Our Bedroom After The War, on September 25th of this year. It's a good listen, blending vocal harmonies of Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan, over always unpredictable changes in tempo and speed. The album flows between the dark feel of "Personal," to the epic and powerful closing track, which is the title track. Anywho, on to the show.

After a somewhat forgettable opening performance by New Buffalo, I made my way to the main fllor to get a good spot. The stage was decorated with bouquets of flowers seemingly everywhere, and artwork in gallery frames that remained lit throughout the show. The house was near capacity with a crowd quite diverse in style and age. After the cursory wait, Stars took the stage. Campell's and Millan's presence on stage quickly focused the crowd on their interaction, starting with Take Me To The Riot. The band was in sync, making transition smoothly. Overall sound quality was good, but both lead vocals were a bit buried in the mix, making it quite difficult to totally enjoy, and near impossible to understand what Campbell said between songs. Throughout the show, various flowers were tossed to the crowd, making for a great visual of the crowd as a garden.

The highlight of the show for me included Reunion, chronicling being reintroduced to an ex-lover. Amy Millan really grabs the crowd, with her smooth and silky vocal skills. The song caries a lot of emotional lyrics, and the live version didn't leave you feeling let down. My other favorite was Bedroom. The song builds so slowly from just keys and vocals that by the time Stars have reached the climax, with Campbell repeating "After the war," and the band full out rockin', that you don't realize you've been loudly signing along. Bedroom ended the main set in style, and solidly put the show into the category of rockin'. I give it seven Homers.

Set List:

Take Me to the Riot
Set Yourself on Fire
Elevator Love Letter
Genova Heights
Bitches in Tokyo
One More Night
Personal
Look Up
Soft Revy
Midnight Coward
Window Bird
You're Ex-Lover is Dead
Reunion
What I'm Trying to Say
Sleep Tonight
Ageless
In Our Bedroom After the War


Song that I don't know and wasn't on the setlist
My Favourite Book
Celebration Guns
Calendar Girl

P.S. RATM tonight. Holla.

P.P.S. Thanx to Katherine for jogging my memory that they did close with Calendar Girl. They didn't include the encore on the setlist, and I'm a crack baby.

She's got a cool blog. You should read it.