GW Hatchet Blogs » Backstage

Amanda to GW: This is probably your only chance to be in the same room as Chuck D

Amanda Pacitti — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 20:33:28 +0000

Truth: Your favorite police-hatin’ legend Chuck D of Public Enemy will be moderating National Geographic’s presentation of Hip Hop in the City of God this Friday. Student tix are $20, and probably going like, um, hotcakes.

Got 5+ hours? Into Andy Warhol?

Amanda Pacitti — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 19:42:36 +0000

Kick it (like, all day) at the Hishorn this Saturday to watch Andy Warhol’s “Sleep,” (1963) - essentially, five hours of Warhol’s then-lover, um, sleeping.

And hey, hip kid, no need to stay awake. Napping during flicks is, like, so artsy. Seriously. Mister Warhol wouldn’t want it any other way.

Mos Def to play Chuck Berry in upcoming film

Amanda Pacitti — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:30:14 +0000

The upcoming film “Cadillac Records,” recounting the history of Chess Records, is set to feature Mos Def as Chuck Berry. Apparently, the film will also feature Beyonce as Etta James, Adrien Brody as Leonard Chess and Jeffrey Wright as Muddy Waters. Apparently.

Oasis to play with Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, acoustic kids to fall in love, get drunk

Amanda Pacitti — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:15:14 +0000

Drunk dudes Oasis are slotted to play a liquor-spewing slew of Canadian tourdates with Mr. Rock-and-Roll-Means-Sloppy-Drunk-Love Ryan Adams (& The Cardinals).

Surprising partnership. Really.

Don’t fret non-Canadians! The first gig is set to go off in ye olde U.S. of A. on August 26 at the WaMu Theater in Seattle, WA.

Get your:
1. Tickets!
2. Glory!
3. Fix!

Best Band Names of SXSW 2008

Brendan Polmer — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 19:03:34 +0000

Annihilation Time
A Thousand Knives of Fire
Awesome Cool Dudes
Best Fwends
Black Moth Super Rainbow
Care Bears on Fire
Death Sentence: Panda!
Die! Die! Die!
DJ Pube$
El Jesus de Magico
The Sleepover Disaster
Steve E Nix & the Cute Lepers
Tragedy, A Metal Tribute to the Bee Gees
Army of Freshmen
Does It Offend You, Yeah?
The Homosexuals
43 Songs about 43 Presidencies
Free the Robots
Hello Seahorse!
Mostly Bears
Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man
17 Hippies
$hit and $hine
Sissy Wish
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
What Laura Says Thinks and Feels

Meet our SXSW neighbors: The Skybombers

Brendan Polmer — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 00:25:56 +0000

These are the crazy kids we were telling you about. Meet the Skybombers from Melbourne, Australia. They’re in the middle of their big US tour right now. The best thing they love about America thus far? PBR. That’s right. Pabst Blue Ribbon. Check out their showcase footage below.

Click To Play

SXSW Day 4: A Place to Bury Strangers x2, Tokyo Police Club, British Sea Power

Ben Doak — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 23:05:24 +0000

After the band name bonanza, I decided to see A Place to Bury Strangers again… this time making sure to arrive early enough for a good spot. They played in the Cedar Street Courtyard, where Islands performed a couple days earlier. There I saw one of greatest moments of the festival (in my humble opinion). Having broken a string, guitarist Oliver Ackermann started slinging his guitar to the floor. Check it out:

Tokyo Police Club and British Sea Power both put on great sets. I wasn’t much of a British Sea Power fan before, but after hearing a good majority of their new album Do You Like Rock Music? live, I was impressed. It’s definitely an album to check out.

Click ‘more’ for more pictures and video

A Place To Bury Strangers

Goodbye SouthBy(SouthWest)

Ben Doak — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 14:08:03 +0000

After almost a week of waking up to throbbing ears and worse, throbbing headaches, it’s time for some hardcore hibernation.But first, a final list: Things I Learned.1) Count on lines. There’s a rough equivalency of people in line to quality… of anything. Bands, food, even taxi cabs (too few when you want them)… that is unless you, like some people we saw, jump into the middle of the road. Note: their plan was successful.2) Plan what shows you want to see, and have an ordered list of backup plans. This includes having a map at all times and a general idea of where each venue is located.3) Get started early. It’s the one thing I regret, but hey, that’s a tough one. That’s it. It was an amazing four days. BE SURE to check out The Hatchet after break for final coverage.

Lyrics Born Interview

Brendan Polmer — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 02:01:08 +0000

Watch my interview and SXSW showcase footage with Bay Area hip-hop artist Lyrics Born, and look out for the accompanying print coverage coming to The Scene in our special SXSW issue on March 27.

Click To Play

The Homosexuals, The Bloody Beetroots, Hello Seahorse!

Ben Doak — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 23:04:45 +0000

After Okkervil River, we headed to see The Raveonettes. The line at the venue was enormous, at least 100 people waiting. Luckily there was a sort of back door entrance. Unluckily only one of us made it. So while Brendan got through, I tried “plan b”: running to see random bands with totally awesome names. Heading to The Beauty Bar to see The Homosexuals, I expected a show of fabulous proportions. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The Homosexuals, as it turns out, were a British punk band from the late 70s. Apparently hugely influential at the time, they fell into obscurity over the years, having built themselves almost entirely on the strength of their live performances. Their one LP was released 12 years after they formed. Now rediscovered cult favorites, they’ve reformed and put on a blistering set. Even at 57, frontman Bruno Wizard channeled Johnny Rotten, giving the whole show a sense of it being a living, cultural artifact.

Next, I saw The Bloody Beetroots… a band name I couldn’t pass on. Turns out they were an Italian electro-punk duo. Dressed in WWF-style masks, they got the place hopping. But to be honest, I was a little disappointed by their flirtation with techno cliches, but then again maybe my ignorance of the genre just kept me from appreciating what subtleties they may have had. I ended the spree with Mexican indie pop group Hello Seahorse!, since I’m a firm believer that exclamation marks in a band name and good music go hand-in-hand. Hello Seahorse! was, of course, no exception. The one big shock: they closed with a cover of the Pixies’ “Where Is My Mind,” ending when they forgot the lyrics… at the chorus! I didn’t know that was possible.

Click ‘more’ for photos!

Hello Seahorse!

The Bloody Beetroots

The Homosexuals