Switchblade Comb

From Ramble John’s myspace blog: “Peeling myself away from The Wire, Lost and Prison Break to go out with the band…”

RJD2 2008 Tour Dates:

03.01 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
04.01 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel
04.02 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
04.04 - Austin, TX - Emo’s
04.05 - Dallas, TX - Palladium Loft
04.07 - Tempe, AZ - The Clubhouse
04.08 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
04.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theater
04.10 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent
04.11 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
04.12 - Seattle, WA - Chop Suey
04.14 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
04.15 - Denver, CO - Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom
04.16 - Kansas City, MO - Record Bar
04.17 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
04.18 - Chicago, IL - Abbey Pub
05.01 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
05.02 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
05.03 - Boston, MA - Paradise

RJD2 - “Work It Out”

Update 04.11.08: This is schedule to play at the Uptown Theatre in Minneapolis on June 20.

Up for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards, universally loved at Aint-It-Cool-News‘ 2007 Butt-Numb-A-Thon, and starring one of the greatest actors in the world, Tadanobu Asano, Mongol is essentially, ‘the story that recounts the early life of Genghis Khan who was a slave before going on to conquer half the world including Russia in 1206.’ It’s set for a limited release in America on June 6th.

Mongol - Trailer

Four people involved in the running of file-sharing site The Pirate Bay were indicted in Sweden on Thursday on charges of being accessories to breaking copyright law. Hans Fredrik Neij, Per Svartholm Warg, Peter Kolmisoppi and Carl Lundström, are suspected of organising and running The Pirate Bay, and thus “promoting other people’s infringements of copyright laws,” according to charges filed by senior public prosecutor Håkan Roswall. The prosecutor has called for the accused to pay damages of 1.2 million kronor ($185,000) to the Swedish state. He has also asked for the suspects’ computers to be confiscated.

Magnus Eriksson, a spokesman for pro-file sharing lobby group Piratbyrån, predicts that The Pirate Bay will survive the trial even in the event of a guilty verdict. “The Pirate Bay is not going to be down for a single minute. The Pirate Bay is now established in a number of countries, so there’s no one place in which to push the off button,” he said.

The Emerging Comics of New York awards were announced the other day and here are the winners:

Best Director: Kurt Braunohler; “Penelope: Princess of Pets” (co-directed with Kristen Schaal), “Big Black Ballet”, “Police Procedures” (co-directed with Kevin Scott)
Best Host: Eugene Mirman and Michael Showalter; Tearing the Veil of Maya @ Union Hall
Best Improv Group: I Eat Pandas
Best One Person Show: Nick Kroll; Fabrice Fabrice
Best Short Comedic Film: Elephant Larry; Minesweeper
Best Technician: Pat Baer
Best Variety Show: Greg Johnson and Larry Murphy Show
Best Sketch Comedy Group: Harvard Sailing Team
Best Musical Comedy Act (Group or Solo Performer): The Apple Sisters
Best Female Standup Comedian: Kristen Schaal
Best Male Standup Comedian: John Mulaney
Outstanding Achievement in Flyer or Postcard Design: The Apple Sisters — Matthew C. Johnson, Keith Huang
Emerging Comic Award: Joe Mande
Best Web Site: News or Commentary: The Apiary — Nate X
Best Web Site: Original Comedic Content: The Onion News Network

Fabrice Fabrice interviews Demetri Martin, Lewis Black and Jemaine Clement

Dates TBA

Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend
XL
2008

vampireweekend.com

1. Mansard Roof
2. Oxford Comma
3. A-Punk
4. Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa
5. M79
6. Campus
7. Bryn
8. One (Blake’s Got a New Face)
9. I Stand Corrected
10. Walcott
11. The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance

From All Music Guide: Describing their sound as “Upper West Side Soweto,” New York City’s Vampire Weekend mixes preppy, well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms. Ezra Koenig, Chris Baio, Rostam Batmanglij, and Chris Tomson formed the band early in 2006, when they were finishing up their studies at Columbia University. Taking their name from a movie Koenig made during his freshman year, the band started out by playing gigs at the university’s literary societies and at parties. Word spread about Vampire Weekend’s unique sound and lyrics, buoyed by the band’s self-released EPs, which they recorded in locations spanning their Columbia dorm rooms to a family barn. The buzz around Vampire Weekend reached a peak in 2007: that summer, the band embarked on their biggest tour yet, made several appearances at that year’s CMJ Music Marathon, and signed with XL Records that fall.

“The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance (Take Away Show)”

“A-Punk (Live on Letterman)”

“Oxford Comma (Live on MTV)”

“Mansard Roof (Take Away Show)”

“Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Live on MTV)”

Beloved pop punkers Face To Face have announced that they will be reuniting this spring to play the Bamboozle Left Festival on April 5. More shows are expected to be announced but don’t go expecting a full on tour or new recordings. Said mainman Trevor Keith: “We miss playing these songs live. That’s the only reason. We don’t plan on writing any new material or releasing new records as Face to Face, but we are looking forward to getting out there and playing for people. The live shows have always been the best part of this band so why not continue to do something we love to do?”

Face To Face broke up in 2004 after a twelve year career that saw them release seven full length records on a number of labels.

Face To Face - “Disconnected” (from the classic LP Don’t Turn Away, arguably the bands best record)

Here are the cultural events happening in the Twin Cities this week that Switchblade Comb gives it’s seal of approval to. Click on the links to bring you to the event or venue webpage for more info.

Spacewolf
Wednesday, Jan. 30th
Uptown Bar
9pm | Free | 21+

Bob Flom Benefit: The Dynamiters + Gay Witch Abortion
Thursday, Jan. 31st
Hexagon Bar
9pm | Free | 21+

Crispin Glover
Fri-Sun, Feb. 1st-3rd
Oak Street Cinema
7pm | $20 | 17+

1st Annual MPLS Drunken Spelling Bee
Saturday, Feb. 2nd
331 Club
7pm | Free | 21+

DJ Shadow + Kid Koala + Cut Chemist
Monday, Feb. 4th
First Avenue
8pm | $20 | 18+

Update 04.11.08: This is scheduled for the Uptown Theatre in Minneapolis on May 9.

Fantastic. This baby hits limited theaters on May 2nd.

Will, who isn’t allowed to watch TV or go to the movies, expresses himself through his drawings and illustrations until he finds himself caught up in the extraordinary world of Lee Carter, the school terror and crafter of bizarre home movies. Carter exposes Will to a pirated copy of the first Rambo film, First Blood, which blows his mind wide open. Against his family’s orders, his imaginative little brain begins to flower in the world of filmmaking. Will and Lee become popular at school through their films, but when a French exchange student, Didier Revol, arrives on the scene, their unique friendship and precious film are pushed to the breaking point.

(Thanks to More Cowbell for the tip off.)

Update (2/2/08): Even though the band’s website still says they’ll be in Minneapolis on April 8th, Ticketmaster and the Fine Line both say Monday, April 7th so I’m gonna change it to the latter for now.

04.04 - WOW Hall - Eugene, OR
04.05 - Neumo’s - Seattle, WA
04.07 - Fine Line Music Cafe - Minneapolis, MN
04.11 - Paradise Rock Club - Boston, MA
04.12 - Irving Plaza - New York, NY
04.15 - First Unitarian Church - Philadelphia, PA
04.18 - Schubas Tavern - Chicago, IL
04.19 - Schubas Tavern - Chicago, IL
04.20 - The Gargoyle Club - St. Louis, MO
04.22 - Fox Theatre - Boulder, CO
04.25 - Coachella - Indio, CA
05.03 - The Fillmore - San Francisco, CA

Rogue Wave - “Eyes” (Fan Video)

(via The Playlst)

“Oooo rock me Amadeus!”

Comes out Feb. 7th in Austria. According to IMDb No U.S. release is planned as of yet.

Awesome. People in unique poses with record covers. Genius.

SEE MORE HERE

04.16 - Minneapolis, MN - 400 Bar
04.17 - Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium
04.18 - Detroit, MI - Pike Room
04.19 - Toronto, Ontario - Lee’s Palace
04.20 - Montreal, Quebec - Club Lambi
04.22 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
04.23 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
04.24 - Philadelphia, PA - North Star Bar
04.25 - Washington, DC - The Black Cat
04.26 - Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle
04.27 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle
04.28 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl
04.29 - Nashville, TN - The Mercy Lounge
04.30 - St. Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill Duck Room
05.01 - Kansas City, MO - Record Bar
05.02 - Omaha, NE - Waiting Room
05.03 - Denver, CO - The Walnut Room
05.13 - Edmonton, Alberta - Starlight
05.14 - Calgary, Alberta - #1 Royal Canadian Legion Hall
05.16 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
05.18 - Phoenix, AZ - Rhythm Room
05.19 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
05.20 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
05.21 - San Francisco, CA - Independent
05.23 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
05.31 - Vancouver, British Columbia - The Commodore

MP3: Destroyer - “Foam Hands”
(From Trouble in Dreams which is due out March 18th via Merge)

(via Pitchfork)

Produced by Kanye West.

MP3: Talib Kweli - “Mama Can You Hear Me”