cd track length distribution

some time at the band meeting on monday evening, someone said something like "it seems like more people are doing 11 tracks per album these days"

so i looked at the 20 gigs of mp3s i have on this work computer, and said that of the 277 albums total, some 213 of them have 11 or more tracks, and of those 213, 43 of them have exactly 11 songs.

some notable 11 track albums include: Apples In Stereo Velocity of Sound, The Arcade Fire Neon Bible, Beck Midnite Vultures / Mutations / One Foot in the Grave, Ben Folds Five The Unauthorized Biography Of Reinhold Messner, Ben Kweller Sha Sha, Cake Comfort Eagle / Pressure Chief, Death Cab For Cutie Transatlanticism / Plans / Narrow Stairs, The Flaming Lips Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, Foo Fighters There Is Nothing Left To Lose / One By One, Franz Ferdinand [s/t], Islands Return To The Sea, Jaguar Love Take Me To The Sea, Neutral Milk Hotel In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, Ozma Rock And Roll Part Three (hey, at least "three" rhymes with "sea"), Radiohead Amnesiac, The Shins Oh, Inverted World / Wincing The Night Away, Shout Out Louds Howl Howl Gaff Gaff, The Strokes Is This It? / Room On Fire, Tokyo Police Club Elephant Shell, Vampire Weekend [s/t], and of course, Wilco Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

to which eric said "So al, you got a breakdown for of the albums you have, what the track counts are. I'd be curious to see a bar chart or something."

how's this? again, out of 277 albums total...

This Saturday, Beauty Bar with Joanie Mendenhall and Wendy Darling

word. and if you are looking for some tunes in between now and then, i made a mix cd. high fives all around.

last friday, and beyond

Ah, the warmth of wool-knit Ken Clubs. I forgot to bring my camera, but did not forget to bring cash for $3.50 vodka-tonics. And didn't forget to bring my roommates, who conveniently also brought money for more vodka-tonics, or "maybe not the best idea" as nixo called them. anyways, Silverleaf, you all were most excellent. while i'm quoting people, i'll stick with it, and include the recap of eric saying "man why couldn't i have wrote this song?"

and while i am pretty sure "written" is better grammar, it just doesn't fit the memory right, so there. and with the Heavy Love closing out the night? and you know we love any chance to drop in The Holiday Song (our holiday classic off the HTBH-precursor The Michael EP)! am i right?

anyways, speaking of beyond, Joanie Mendenhall is playing with us and Wendy Darling on the 20th at the Beauty Bar, which should also be super excellent. and we are confirmed for our first show of the New Year, 1/16/09 at the Ruby Room, with Swim Party, Team Abraham, and Gamma Gamma, in celebration of Jason's Birthday! booya!

the blizzard man

will the blizzard man make a guest appearance on The Modlins' still-untitled album #3? only time will tell...

... but probably not...

fairwell Muslims, hello Soft Pack, hello Franz Ferdinand

yes yes, its everywhere, the Muslims changed their name to The Soft Pack. and upon closer inspection, they are playing with Franz Ferdinand at Canes Bar & Grill on Monday December 15th, aka 2 weeks from yesterday. the last time I saw Franz Ferdinand was when they were promoting their last album. the former roommate and I were making an IKEA run trying to finish furnishing our previous apartment, and 91x was camped outside and offered free tickets. actually two pairs of tickets, one to the real show at sdsu, which we gave to the Rhanors, and one to a preview at the casbah. i don't think i'll be able to swing free tickets this time, but it should be a good show nonetheless.

with rocks like these

this was my monday afternoon...

speaking of the New Album ....

so since i mentioned yesterday that we've been busy working on the new album, i figured i'd give you all (all 4 of you, hi.) an update so to speak.

The songs themselves have been a mixed bag, ranging from our most downtempo, to our most lively. I personally have been listening to a lot of Neutral Milk Hotel, Arcade Fire and Wilco, while Matt's had The Beatles - Help!, Shout Out Louds, Shins in heavy rotation ... we've also been listening to local favorites The Exfriends and The Donkeys, as well. I think some sort of combination of these has started to shape the songs and sounds of the album while, of course, still staying in the confines of the "modlins sound". In addition, we've unearthed a few songs from the past. I, a song from a prior band, called "Monday Morning" (the song ... not the band) and matt unearthed one of the oldest songs we'd written together. we're talking about before we'd even made our first EP together. whether these songs will make it to the album, we'll wait and see, but they seem VERY promising.

So then, a few weeks back, our friend Mark came down and we headed over to Signature Sound to do yet another marathon recording session. We locked in about 5 more songs and along with the prior Signature Session, a Session in our living room, and one over at Lestat's to take advantage of their piano (it was consensual) ... that brings the working total of album potentials to ... 12?, not including 2 more songs that may or may not make the cut (still some writing and recording to do) .... so we'll see how it goes ...

(the control room)

we've been working fairly regularly at the house on trying different backup harmony ideas, percussion ideas ... most recently, i purchased a nord electro and it's been playing a key role in shaping some of the new material. so expect the keys to play a greater role in this new batch.

("how did that sound?")

if nothing else, we've been taking our time a bit more with this one rather than the previous ones that were more ".. and cut! Print It!" so hopefully it'll shine though. We're shooting for an early '09 release, so expect to see some some new material popping. Until then, we've got 2 more shows to round out the year, one coming up in a couple weeks, so hope to see you all out around the town. And lastly, if you or your loved ones haven't signed up for our mailing list send an e-mail to mailinglist [at] themodlins [dot] com and we'll get you on there. and if you haven't picked up a copy of our now Award Winning "With Friends Like These", you can do so on our website or at M-Theory Records in Mission Hills, Off-The-Record in North Park, or Music Trader in Pacific Beach. Thanks everyone for sticking with us.

(the view from the couch)

Friday Dec. 5th, Ken Club with The Heavy Love

The holidays have been keeping us busy, what with a new album heavily in the works getting much of our precious time. ... so we've slapped together this flyer to remind you all that (1) we are still alive and (2) we've got a show to usher in the holiday season!!!





With our dear friends (and one roommate) The Heavy Love! ... you like motown? (and who doesn't) you gotta hit this show up. The Heavy Love play a great mix of oldies and motown covers and are Always a good time.

Of course, expect us to dust off a few of those seasonal hits (The Holiday Song from the Michael EP, anyone?) and a timely cover or two as well. Don't Miss out! The Modlins are coming ....

Green Flash 30th Street Pale Ale

one more reason to love San Diego. from 6-10pm, free shuttle driving you all around 30th street to hit up bars and taste Green Flash's new brew, 30th Street Pale Ale. From Green Flash Brewing's mailinglist:




30th Street Pale Ale Released on 30th Street - Thursday November 20!!

30th Street Pale Ale was brewed for the Green Flash 6th Anniversary and is now being released on 30th Street. 30th Street Pale Ale was so named to recognized the proprietor’s commitment to local craft beer in this specific part of our fine city.

30th Street Pale Ale is a fine American Pale Ale that is well hopped while not being overly bitter. This balanced pale ale goes well with food and also drinks nicely a session ale.
To kick off the release of the 30th Street Pale Ale, Green Flash Brewing Co. and the establishments serving this fine ale have hired Brew Tours of San Diego to drive their tour bus up and down 30th Street as a complimentary hop-on/hop-off bus for 4 hours from 6PM to 10PM. Anyone who wishes to hop to another one of the other supporting establishments may hop on/off at any of the stops for the listed locations.

Where to enjoy 30th Street Pale Ale:
Jaynes Gastropub, Ritual Tavern, Toronado, Bar Pink, Urban Solace, The Linkery, Blue Foot Bar, Sea Rocket Bistro, Vagabond, Danger Abbey, Hamilton’s Tavern

Location: 30th Street from Hamilton’s Tavern to Jaynes Gastropub
Starts: 6:00 PM
Ends: 10:00 PM
Contact Email: chuck@greenflashbrew.com
Contact Phone: Chuck Silva - (760) 597-9012 x 302

http://www.greenflashbrew.com/

vampire friday

sure halloween was two weeks ago, but hey, whatever. here's some Vampire Weekend for a weekend that may or may not contain vampires. actually, Twilight comes out in a next week, so i guess maybe i should wait til then, cause this doesn't really have anything to do with James Bond, unless maybe he goes to Cape Cod for the Quantum of Solace... i guess we'll find out tonight. and in the meantime...



i especially like the drum line accompaniment. which reminds me, just to give a quick peek of an update, we are withholding Modlin practice to continue focus on the still-unnamed (unless they named it without me) album #3. so to compensate for lack of real rock and roll, i bought Rock Band on tuesday night, and can now play pretty coherently on Hard Mode. also, i got a blister on my thumb. ooh, since my "Yes We Did" album title got vetoed, maybe The Modlins Blisters On Our Thumbs doesn't have such a bad ring to it...

Free Obama Sticker : Yes We Did

no, not like he is being held captive, and we want him freed. more like, you get a sticker commemorating the W over W (ok, mccain, not dubya, but you get the idea). and the sticker is free.

sticker:



link : https://pol.moveon.org/shepstickers/?id=15080-10376390-oHdB1jx&t=5

my mom ordered one, and so should you.

This Friday, The Whistlestop, with The Donkeys

word

more celebs ripping off The Modlins...

We All Want Someone To Shout For posted a link to a leaked track 'Robocop' off Kanye West's upcoming 808's & Heartbreak, so i had to give it a listen, and even though Kanye himself says its "not even the finished version", i'd just like to point out Kanye's repeated singing "oh--okay, okay okay" clearly indicates Mr West's love of our similarly named track off With Friends Like These. or something.

this wednesday, Commune Wednesday, and yesterday?

First...



The Modlins come to Commune Wednesdays - which bring local artists, designers, DJs, and musicians together on the last Wednesday of every month - and this month's will be at the Bar Pink, this Wednesday, with special guest dj's Buddy Akai. Check out jointhecommune.com for all the info, plus images and music from past months' Communes.

And just to keep all y'all updated, in other Modlins news, while the Chargers could not claim victory over the Saints yesterday, The Modlins CAN and DO claim victory over both another marathon 13 hour recording session, and another 5 songs laid down instrumentally for our next (yet to be named) recording endeavor. Yes, 5 more songs. So even though I grabbed the wrong backup to Steven Jackson at the last minute before running over to the studio, and Stoph looks to take his first L and end his undefeated-ness with Anquan Boldin fully recovered from a concussion but sitting on his bench, the day was still an overall win. Thanks again to Mark for driving down just for us, and as always to Deborah for manning the magic boards. My camera was out of batteries, so no in-studio pictures, but thats ok, right?

Happy Monday.

a Repost for Terrin Durfey

If you don't know Terrin and his story, or even if you do, check out this link to SD:Dialed In for a brief history of Alex (of Swim Party) and his relationship with Terrin Durfey.

then try to make it out to one of these shows this week to help support Terrin:

Monday, Oct 20: The Belly Up, with Jon Foreman (switchfoot), Joanie Mendenhall, Years Around the Sun, Alex Woodward and Ryan Ferguson (ex Noknife), Sean O'Donnell (Reeve Oliver), Rob Machado, Dawn Mitschele, Molly Jenson, and more.

Wednesday, Oct 22: the Casbah, with Pinback and Mr. Tube and the Flying Objects.

Both shows are $25.00 and 21+

and if you can't make it to either show, forgo just 1 late night burrito this week and throw the change here. look at yourself. you don't need the burrito and terrin could use the support.

organic food and being vegetarian

normally i reserve this blog for music items, specifically one's related to the modlins, but i just want to rant real quick, and they i'll get back to forgetting to update this blog. if there's one thing i hate, it's ignorant, close-minded people. just this weekend, i was given the unique privilege of encountering one of these fine folks. Without going into too much detail, this person, while i was buying some organic milk, said "Organic? whenever i see that word i say 'Organic? fuck that! i'm not buying that shit'"

why? honestly, i ask why? if his response was "with the dwindling economy, i can't afford to spend a little extra on a process that is free of pesticides and hormones" i'd say, well that's your choice, and we all have to make cut backs. but if it's because you associate organic with some sort of... of ... i dunno ... i honestly think this guy (and maybe i'm now being the judgemental one) thinks organic just means "health food" and this red-blooded, "meat and potatoes", American (who had just got back from dinner at Hooters, true story) would never be caught dead doing something so reasonable as purchasing, much less consuming, organic food.

That comment just struck a chord in me, so let me also just state for the record that i'm vegetarian. i've been for a few years now and another thing i hate is people who think i'm dumb for being vegetarian. i've come to tolerate the "how can you survive without <fill in favorite meat dish of your choice here>?", people are curious and i understand that. i don't try to force my values on people and really, it's just a personal choice. But some people see it as an attack on them, like i'm doing something wrong. I can't stand people who lecture me on how unhealthy it is and then they go on saying they refuse to eat vegetables cause they are gross. if i'm gonna have a shrunken brain when i'm 70 due to my high soy, b12 deficiency, at least i can laugh at you after your third triple bypass. so can we all agree that it's not wrong to not want to eat a dead animal? not that i'm saying it's wrong to eat one, i'm just saying it's not wrong not to want to.

and lastly, i'm voting for Obama.

Another Mans Treasure : Community Yard Sale

Yes, its a super rad Community Yard Sale at 6th & Laurel in Balboa Park, this Sunday, October 12, from 9am - 4pm, with bands ready to rock you as you shop, brought to you by the most excellent San Diego House Parties girls. What bands, you ask? Oh ho ho! Try this on for size:

12pm : super secret awesome guests TBA
1pm : San Diego Music Awards' Best Hip Hop nominee : M-Double-A-L
2pm : another super secret TBA guest
3pm : The Modlins

and DJ Saul Q on the 1s and 2s (and 3s and 4s) in between the sets.

There's even a whole website for the event, if the flyer isn't enough. Check out www.frontandivy.com for even more info.

See you on Sunday Sunday Sunday!

makes me feel like it is monday morning

If you didn't catch Saturday Night Live this (past) weekend, with Anne Hathaway, and musical guests The Killers, then you missed seeing San Diego's own Ray Suen hiding back behind bassist Mark Stoermer and a decent-sized wall of amps. I have tried for 20 minutes to find video footage online of them performing on the show, but the 2 clips on YouTube have embedding disabled per notices from NBC themselves, and NBC's inept SNL website only has the actual sketches from the show. So if you want to watch the hour of those clips in order to get the 3 laughs out of it, go for it, but otherwise, just imagine yourself watching The Killers + Ray Suen, and you'll save an hour and a half of your life.

In other Modlin-related celebrity news, Jessica Simpson appears to have stolen one of Matt's song ideas, with her latest single "Come On Over". I'm not saying that there has been a new Modlins song in the works for a few months now, which may or may not have been titled something along the lines of "Won't You Come On Over Here". I'm not saying that Jessica Simpson and Modlins' Matt Sheridan may or may not have some predestined connection, especially after the Chicken of the Sea incident.

All that I am saying is that it is 10 am on Monday Morning.

Do you know where your coffee is?

update: thanks, WeAllWantSomeoneToShoutFor :

killers 2nd song, Spaceman.

oh ben folds

oh ben folds, why must your tour go from Tempe, AZ to SF to LA to wherever "The Haugue" is? i'm pretty sure "The Haugue" is not in San Diego. and while we are at it, why can't you tell me when you are going to be on Conan? totally had time to catch that after catching Secret Apollo at the Ken last night, but no. and so what if i did just repost this video as posted on stereogum. happy friday.



update: here's the text message i just sent to my sister:

Hey did you buy the new Ben Folds album? Also can you tell me how to get to your house? Also, hi!

we're in the reader!

not sure what page of the print version its on, but the article is online here. i don't remember offering to trade cans of PBR in exchange for people carrying our equipment, but then that doesn't sound much like something i wouldn't say, either, so it probably happened.

and just a friendly reminder from your neighborhood modlins : we are playing at the Adams Ave Street Fair, appearing on sunday at 1:15pm at the "Rock Stage" on adams & 33rd. see you there?

Best Pop Album!

It's official! As of about 8:05pm last night, With Friends Like These is officially the Best Pop Album in San Diego. Or, at least, at that time, we won the San Diego Music Award for Best Pop Album released between July 1, 2007, and June 30, 2008. Woohoo!



Just to reiterate some thanks, now that I am more or less finished with my state of shock (there was some stiff competition): we'd like to thank Deborah Reeves for recording the album, Kyle Thompson www.engineerkyle.com for mixing and mastering, Patrick Hruby patariku.deviantart.com for the most excellent artwork, Renny Rhanor for the always wonderful photography, and all the bands we have become great friends with (see our myspace top friends). All of this was only possible... with friends like these?

If you have yet to pick up your own copy of With Friends Like These, never fear! The album is still available through iTunes and PayPal, and at local San Diego Music Trader, mTheory, and Lou's Records (I think)

To think that, earlier yesterday afternoon, Stoph was like "should we even wear the suits if its just the two of us?" to which I replied "if we weren't wearing suits, they might not believe that we are The Modlins." good call on my part? and matt and eric, you picked a heck of a two weeks to vacation.


and as a footnote, watch out for the yet-to-be-titled Modlin Album #3, tentatively due in early '09!

beta lion makes me feel lazy, and then

all we've ever done to promote shows is make posters, and tell people about it, and hold hostage the things they love so they are forced to come to shows. but never have we made a promo video youtube awesome power rangers white ranger spectacular spectacular. you win this round, beta lion. Back II Cool, 4th & B (San Diego), Sept. 20th, 2008, $10 or free if you donate a backpack.

and on a completely unrelated note, i was listening to music at lala.com and stumbled upon this Shine album by Estelle, and just wanted to point out that its funny that she decided through in a few lines covering The Exfriends' "Hey Maria". or something.



if only i had an exfriends Hey Maria video to put up here as well... oh well... see you tonight at the Belly Up?

a picture with 36 words

while updating my 30boxes calendar with as many new upcoming shows and events and goodness that i could find, i stumbled across this picture on The Vision...'s 'space page:



explaining the relationships and interminglings of the Vision / Paddle Boat / Scarlet Symphony / Charles Musket / Black Mamba / Jamuel Saxon / Red Feathers collective, known as Zombies and Pirates.

now if i could get one of those for the Squiddo / Wild Weekend / Like A Bird / Baja Bugs group...

if we were to make a diagram for the Modlins and sideprojects, it might look something like this:



or not. but that picture was taken at the San Diego Sports Club, which is conviently where we'll be playing on thursday night. so it all ties together, right?

fm 94/9 , copying our idea, making me go back to the Belly Up

Ok, maybe not totally copying our idea, because our idea is that on thursday the 4th, 3 bands play their 3 SDMA-nominated albums in their entireties. And the FM 94/9 deal doesn't say anything about album entirety, just a night of friggin sweet rock and roll excellence. yea. what if i were to tell you that on Wednesday September 10th, you could Modlin friends Swim Party (Best Alternative nominee) AND Apes of Wrath (Best Alt Album nominee), plus Arm The Angels (nominated for Best Hard Rock + Best Rock Album), all for just $5? Might that be something you'd be interested in? Word. Get your tickets ahead of time here, and 50 cents of your $5 ticket will go tot he San Diego Music Foundation and the About the Music fund. Double word score. Also keeps up the streak of Alex (me) only goes to the Belly Up when Swim Party plays there. Triple word score. Well done, boys, well done.

3 SDMA nominated BEST POP ALBUMS!!! ONE NIGHT ONLY!!!

if ATP can have their "don't look back" series, well ... san diego can do one for SDMA nominated albums. expect this to be an unforgettable night.

new poster, new word, more shows

first:



thats this upcoming Tuesday, as in a week from today, at Cafe La Maze. as always, expect all your Modlins favorites, plus lesser-played songs as well, that you know and love from the albums, but sometimes don't make it in to live shows otherwise, but you still know and love from the albums, right? or something. also, this time, there just might be a little something something that you've never heard The Modlins do before. will it be a whole set without Eric breaking a string? will Stoph sing the whole set on his own, as the other modlins recover from laringitis? does anyone know how to spell laringitis? who knows. all i can say, is nothing

which brings us to point number two. a new word! when you try and picture something in your mind, without actually seeing it, you visualize it, right? so what about if you try and listen to something, without actually hearing it?

audiolize!

and on that note, more shows! Friday Sept 5th, Modlins have the distinct pleasure of playing with our friends Loverlee at the Knitting Factory in LA, as part of a night of awesome in honor of Justin Riner's Bday.



(i think we're the "& More")

Justin is the drummer from Loverlee, he likes sunsets and long walks in the dark, and he is getting older. i think. the show is ALL AGES, so bring your kid sisters, and your parents, because lets face it, we love you all, but those are some demographics just waiting and ready for a dose of Modlin. right? i think i'm rambling too much. also working out final details for another San Diego show very very soon, so yes.

and if i can figure out how to get pictures off my cell phone (forgot the actual camera at the 12 hour studio session last sunday), we'll get some of that up as well. happy tuesday!

Benefit For Leukemia and Lymphoma Society

So our friends are doing Team In Training and will be running a full marathon in October to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We're trying to help them raise money, so we've organized a special show next saturday (8/16) at The Radio Room (ex-Zombie Lounge). Our good friends, The Roman Spring, along with the amazing alt-folk band Hellow Sunshine (feat. members of Crash Encore) will be playing. it's only $5 to get in and all proceeds from the door go to benefit this cause. in addition, there will be a raffle, and plenty of other good greatness (or is it great goodness?) It all goes down Saturday August 16th, at 9pm. So please come out to support their cause and catch a great show.

Friends Like These .... the FM 94/9 Recommended!!!

remember all those CD release shows we were telling you about? well, looks like our good friend Tim Pyles at 94/9 dug them too ... dug them so much in fact that EVERY SINGLE ALBUM is an FM 94/9 Recommended! and 3 out of 4 of these albums are nominated for best album awards!! (i'm guessing secret apollo didn't make the 6/30 deadline.... expect to see it next year for an SDMA though)

Let's Recap:

Matt Curreri and The Exfriends - "Joy of Life"
- 2008 SDMA "Best Pop Album" Nominee

Joanie Mendenhall - "On a String"
- 2008 SDMA "Best Pop Album" Nominee

Swim Party - "Pixie Dust on the Blood Range"
- 2008 SDMA "Best Alternative Album" Nominee

Secret Apollo - "Hiding Something Great"
- 2009 SDMA "Album of the Year" Nominee*

*this hasn't been confirmed, but i'm sure it'll be true in a year.

what does this mean? well sheesh. if you haven't already, you should be "doing the right thing" and be picking up a copy of each of these albums online or through your local independent record store. And of course picking up a copy of SDMA "best pop album" nominee With Friends Like These from our website.

Also, props to Apes of Wrath's "Plastic Fake and Frozen" for a 2008 SDMA "Best Alternative Album" Nomination. we played their CD release show for this record back in March. We were excited to have been a part of that day, and now continuing to see this bad boy succeed.

so what should you keep your precious eyes peeled for next? keep em tuned to the whistlestop for a double-header of release shows:

Aug 22nd - The Donkeys "Living on the Other Side" CD Release show - check it!
Aug 29th - Writer "Blood Drops" CD Release Show - 2008 SDMA "Best New Artist" Nominee

yeah, you bet those are going to KILL!!! damn, i love san diego!

SDMA nod, album number three ...

what a great weekend .... on saturday the nominees for the 2008 San Diego Music Awards were announced, and the "little-engine-that-could" album "With Friends Like These" was nominated for Best Pop Album. Two for Two! if you forgot, "Here's To Being Happy" (our first album) was nominated for Best Pop Album in 2007 (side note: though both came out in 2007, HTBH came out in early 07 and WFLT came out in late 07 so they were in different groups. cut off each award group is the end of june)

We're really honored to be choosen and even more honored considering the competition (i mean, Exfriends "Joy of Life" and Joanie's "On a String" sheesh ... stiff competition) the complete list can be found at Street. congrats also to Swim Party for "best Alternative album." ... they've got some damn tough competition too.

so, how does a band celebrate releasing two albums last year, both being nominated for SDMAs in their respective years? with our first recording session for the as-yet-untitled follow-up to WFLT (aka Album #3). our dear friend and sound engineer for our last album, Deborah Reeves, came over to house for a more "D.I.Y." approach to everything. we ran through 4 new songs which may or may not make the final cut. it was a fun and long day filled with plenty of music, friends, bbqing and beer. i would include a few pictures, but blogger is being difficult, so looks like they'll have to wait.

instead, i'll remind you that if you haven't already picked up a copy of "With Friends Like These" you can do so by following the "buy now" link on our website: http://www.themodlins.com/ or at M-Theory Records in Mission Hills, Music Trader in PB, or Off The Record in North Park.

here's a link to the official SDMA site, you know, just cause: http://www.sandiegomusicawards.com/



UPDATE!! here's those pictures i was talking about:

You Said on YouTube!

oh yes! today is the day! our first ever official Modlins' Music Video, for the track 'You Said' off our latest With Friends Like These, is aliiiive, on YouTube. Extra super special thanks to the one and only Adam Shaw for directing, lighting, filming, editing, and all other types of -ing's as well. Not that you don't already know, but still, he is (at least?) 1/3rd of Secret Apollo, and they are playing the Whistlestop tonight for the CD Release for their new album, Hiding Something Great. but we are done hiding this music video (wow that transition was rougher than i thought it would be), so check it out, tell your friends, tell your enemies, tell your frienemies, The Modlins, You Said

update : eric was like "isn't vimeo better quality? how do we get it on that?" so here it is from there as well. overkill? maybe. happy friday!


The Modlins - You Said (Official Video)

91x Loudspeaker : vote for Frantic Romantic?

taking my 5 minute break from the office whip, i wound up at 91x Loudspeaker's page, and saw that our buddies in The Frantic Romantic are up for the Showcase Of The Month voting, for their song Back Again, which you can listen to on that Loudspeaker page. they are competing against Problems by Buddy Akai, and Size Matters by Stripes and Lines, so go vote for them, because if anything, it'll waste 2 minutes (91 seconds? (eh? eh?)) of your day, as well.

with shakes like these

no, not milkshakes. although that does sound good right now. maybe i should go eat lunch before blog posting... anyways, 5.4 outside of Chino, good times. almost rocked me as hard as The Casbah last night. yea, you like that transition? i thought so. pictures, and possibly video evidence, to come later this evening, but in the meantime, just a quick shoutout thanks to everyone who came to see us last night, which included, but was not limited to, all the guys from Swim Party, Roxy Jones, Joanie Mendenhall, the most excellent Cafe La Maze crew, Stoph's brother Tom (visiting from the ILLinois), and 4 out of the 5 irish guys who are spending their summer living in the apartment next to mine. and a huge thanks to Apes of Wrath, The Happy Hollows, Eef Barzelay, Tim Pyles the maxmister master of ceremonies, my roommates who got home from Vegas at 3am Monday morning but still stuck it out, all the other ladies, and everyone else who stayed through the whole show. It was a bit of a late Monday night, but what a great one!

We're getting ready to log a few more hours in various studios, as we are jealous of all these other bands with their CD Release shows left and right, but in the meantime, see you Friday at the Whistlestop, and hopefully, at the Ken Club later that night!

Anti-Monday League @ Casbah, July 28th

UPDATE: looks like this will be our 100th show as the 4 piece modlins you've come to know and love so well!!! come out and wish us well!!!

we've got a casbah show next week. it's really good.




w/
Apes of Wrath (SD)
- www.apesofwrathmusic.com/

The Happy Hollows (LA)
- http://thehappyhollows.blogspot.com/
- http://www.myspace.com/thehappyhollows

Eef Barzlay (formerly of Clem Snide - Nashville/Brooklyn)
- http://hypem.com/search/eef%20barzelay/1/
- http://www.myspace.com/eefbarzelay

party like a superhero

You, your super friends, and even your arch-villains are all invited to attend the “SuperHero” Exhibit! Party along with us during San Diego’s International ComicCon! Live music [The Modlins], DJs [SSI], and great finger foods and sushi will be featured along with Effen Vodka drinks, spicy house guests, and overall good times.

When is this you ask? Thursday, July 24, 7 P.M. to Midnight. This is a great way to start off the ComicCon for what is certain to be a super weekend of art, movies, Godzilla, costumes, gaming, amine, and even more parties.

“SuperHero” is a celebration of the popular arts, great friends, and creative opportunities, brought to you by your pals here at Ninthlink and Murphy Design. Numerous artists who have traveled from around the globe to attend the ComicCon will be in the spotlight at “SuperHero,” along with many, many fans of pop art and culture.

Featured artworks will celebrate the theme of the “SuperHero.” Attending guests may commemorate the theme in costume if they wish.

We’d love to see what superhero and popular character costumes and outfits you have!

Where is this happening, you ask? Only one mile away from the San Diego Convention Center, at the Warehouse Space located at 1616 National Avenue, San Diego 92113.

There is no cost for this event—yes, that means FREE! Cash bars will be available.
Live Music from The Modlins and SSI. 21 and over please! Sorry, no small children with the folks permitted due to the serving of spirits during this event.

Featured Artists will Include:
Anthony Lister + Jeff Soto + Joel Nakamura + Jen Lobo + Matt Stallings + Luke Chueh + Mark Todd + Esther Pearl Watson + Martha Rich + R.G. + Peter Taylor (Handmade Feet) + Andy Howell + Kathie Olivas + Chris Ryniak + Lola + Germs + Marco Wagner + Mark Murphy and many more. All artwork is available for acquisition!

Directions from the Convention Center:
Start by going SOUTHEAST on WEST HARBOR DRIVE toward SALIDA LOOP.
Turn LEFT onto SIGSBEE ST.
Turn LEFT onto NATIONAL AVENUE.
End at 1616 National Ave San Diego, CA 92113.

Sponsored by Effen Vodka, HiFructose, Ninthlink, Murphy Art Books.

North By North Park (NXNP)

Year in and year out it seems the same gripe: lack of a solid san diego music scene or some other nonsense. but anyone who goes out knows that's not the case. Case in point, NXNP Festival on Sat Aug 2nd. A single day of workshops and local showcases that truly gives all those other "something by something" festivals a run for their money.

first off, if you buy your ticket today it's only $12.50 (goes up to $15 tomorrow, and $20 day of). compare that to travel costs and festival tickets of say, SXSW ... well ... it's not even the same ballpark.

second, the workshops. They've lined up an impressive list of workshops covering everything from touring and record deals to marketing and music licenses. check out the full list here.

third, the showcases. over a 100 acts at 14 venues around uptown San diego. it's an insanely good local lineup featuring many great bands and friends. And to top it all off, they are offering a shuttle service! check out the full list of bands and venues here.

I just picked up a ticket and i highly recommend you should as well. if you have any interest in music, you should go here to register. see you at the registration table!

Cafe La Maze, Tomorrow Night!!!

after the success of the last couple shows down at Cafe La Maze, we've going to be doing a once-a-month "residency" down there as part of their live music tuesday nights. the next date happens to be tomorrow (tues july 15th), so roll on down to national city tomorrow night and catch the mods in action.

we've also been getting some feedback saying "oh that's cool, but i'm not really big into steaks." or "we don't really go out to eat much" ... well fret not my dears, for th' Maze has much more to offer than good grub. ever heard of alcohol? they've got it. and cheap too. it's a nice place to sit down, kick back, and enjoy the sweet tunes while sippin' on the sweet nectar of the gods. would we lie?

if case you forgot about cafe la maze and our past shows there check out here, here, here and here.

from yelp, photo by merrily c.

the double double

looks like friday just got more complicated as well : already mentioned Vision of a Dying World / Scarlet Symphony / Thin Man casbah , but didn't know about Writer / The Howls / Lisa The Lush ken club free show. well, not really free because you know you're gonna buy at least a couple PBRs. or maybe thats just me. what to do, what to do...

with weeks like these

sd: dialed in has the massive listings for this week, but since matt called me yesterday as i was in the frozen aisle of vons (ben n jerry's Neopolitan Dynamite is like Half Baked 2.awesome), i figured i'd post the ones i had picked out, and make the claim that this is a highly Modlin-recommended week.

wed 7/9 : Exfriends CD Release @ the Belly Up w/ Escalera, Stripes and Lines
thur 7/10 : by now you should be able to be in two places at once (sidenote, not sure if that sounds more like an album name, or a shoegaze-y band) : Sayvinyl / Swedish Models (cd release) / sideproject from Apes of Wrath @ the Beauty Bar, and Calico Horse / Silverbird / Japanese Sunday / The Focus Group - fundraiser for Demetrius Antuna @ the Casbah
fri 7/11 : Vision of a Dying World / Scarlet Symphony / Thin Man @ casbah
sat 7/12 : maybe not 4 out of 4 modlin recommended, but hey, i'll be there: Stay Classy tailgate gets you into the padres game as well. gotta do what you gotta do.
sun 7/13 : Red Pony Clock / The Donkeys / Shearwater @ the casbah
mon 7/14 : Joanie Mendenhall CD Release anti monday league + The Fascination, The Feeling's Mutual, The Valley Arena @ the casbah
tues 7/15 : The Modlins @ Cafe La Maze . word.
wed 7/16 : Frantic Romantic + more @ u31 ?

grand total : 8 days, 8 concerts. as eric said last practice, maybe we can just get some sort of week-long pass for the casbah...

pop arazzi

Her Political Heart @ the Beauty Bar 06.20.08, posted by youtuber "sknook". whoever you are, rock, rock on

the ratatat cometh

new album LP3 out on the 8th, same day as Beck's Modern Guilt, same day as Best Buy beats me in the Battle of who gets to keep my $20. but also, friday september 12th, which just might be the anniversary of one of the Modlins entering this world (which, you ask? all i'll say is, when he greeted the doctors for the first time, they had never seen a more glorious beard) ... ack, now i lost my train of thought. anyways, friday september 12th, ratatat, house of blues downtown san diego. and now, some Mirando:

great success

ah cafe la maze, you have yet to disappoint. granted the waiter wasn't too excited when i tried to order the "la maze cut", but mispronounced it, and, well, yea. and the two stone ipa's there, plus the two from downtown bareback grill happy hour after they evacuated my building ( you hear sirens coming down Broadway, and then the loudspeaker comes on saying "this is not a drill. evacuate now. only use the stairs on the west side of the building" ) , made for even more of a good time. and i was passed out within minutes of getting home. thanks to everyone who came down to national city on a tuesday night. look for more modlins ala la maze in upcoming months!

and now, for your wednesday pleasure, an arm :

tomorrow : cafe la maze : 103 vs 98

i wish i had some fancy flier to post, but i am swamped elsewhere, so this is it for now. maybe we can throw together a very modlins photoshoot (whatever that means) in between sets tomorrow night at cafe la maze. which is a great segue for me to talk about that : tomorrow night : modlins : cafe la maze. i don't even have time to do more than repost how solid the place is, but what i can do is give a little glimpse of what goes on in the land of daily modlin email chains...

stoph commented that he counted up our shows, and the Chasers' show was our 100th show. being the way i am, i had to go count for myself, and pointed out that, while Chasers' is indeed the 100th show posted there, The Modlins were not the 4 piece we are today until i joined up with the other 3 at the Whistlestop 05/15/05 show. so while tomorrow is the 103rd show Matt & Eric have played together, it is only our 98th show as the four Modlins, making the Casbah Anti-Monday League awesomeness at the end of July our 99th, and leaving Show #100 TBD, most likely sometime in August. maybe a birthday present to me? who knows.

islands today, modlins tomorrow!

yes, tonight, at least 50% of the modlins will most likely be in mira mesa, at the epicentre, to see The Islands. Arm's Way, and their first Return To The Sea, have both been Modlins' listening choices of the past, and i, for one, am excited.

and speaking of excitement...



of all the shows going on tomorrow night, i personally guarantee that this one will be THE one ... at the beauty bar ... with us, and some other people (Lemon Sun before and Get Back Loretta after, i think) who aren't us. which is all you can really ask for, these days. and i mean, at the Death Cab show, are you going to be able to hear such Modlin classics as "Matt and Alex lovingly insult each other" , or the latest single, "Alex attempts awkward smalltalk while Matt and Eric tune their guitars" ? yea, i didn't think so. we've really been practicing that last one too, so you know this'll be a good one.

and now, i think i'm going to go get a haircut, and maybe, a sandwich!

wolf parade!

if you haven't read / heard / whatever already, wolf parade's new album, At Mount Zoomer, which comes out tomorrow, is all up on their myspace page. which might mean absolutely nothing to you if your place of work blocks such things (sorry eric), or generally frowns upon listening to music off myspace pages (sorry matt and stoph and roommie zak). and might mean very little if you are in the education field and already on summer vacation and, as such, not stuck in front of a computer for the remaining 6 hours of today (sorry arlene, and sisters). but to the rest of us, monday just got a lot better. so there.

Septh 19th-21st weekend ....

here's looking at the short list of your options.

- Street Scene (SD), Sept 19th & 20th -

Beck, The Black Crowes, Justice, Sound Tribe Sector 9, Michael Franti & Spearhead, The National, Nortec Collective presents Bostich + Fussible, Spoon, TV on The Radio, Cat Power, Hot Chip, Tegan and Sara, The New Pornographers, X, Vampire Weekend, The Hives, Atmosphere, Cold War Kids, Ghostland Observatory, Spiritualized, Antibalas, Man Man, The Mother Hips, Tokyo Police Club, DeVotchKa, The Night Marchers, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, Del The Funky Homosapien, Eagles of Death Metal, Foals, The Muslims, Dengue Fever, MGMT, Sea Wolf, West Indian Girl, Chester French

pros: $75 for two days, that's pretty damn good.
cons: if you've been hitting up these artist shows that have been coming around, and have hit up a festival or two, you've probably seen 95% of these bands. so really, you're going to this show to the The Black Crowes and Atmosphere.

--------------

- Treasure Islands Festival (SF), Sept 20th & 21st -

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 20
Justice, TV on the Radio, Goldfrapp, Hot Chip, CSS, Antibalas, Aesop Rock, Amon Tobin, Foals, Mike Relm,Nortec Collective: Bostich + Fussible, Chester French

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 21
The Raconteurs, Tegan & Sara, Vampire Weekend, Spiritualized, Okkervil River, Tokyo Police Club, The Kills, Dr. Dog, John Vanderslice, The Dodos, Fleet Foxes

con: $115 - limited number of two days. $40 more, for less bands ... but they did some pretty nice work with Dr. Dog and Okkervil river, no surprise hometown favs the dodos are playing. i really like them, but does it bother anyone else that their song "winter" is a complete rip off of the magnetic fields "born on a train"?
pros:at least these guys had this lineup secured (or at least posted) well in advance ... perhaps the Street Scene folks saw this lineup, just booked all the same people they could, and then just added a few more they'd read about in blogs? or as catdirt put it... the hype machine top 20.

-----------------------------

and hopefully you weren't lured in by the "shiny ball" that is the hollywood bowl for the:

Sept 17th - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Spiritualized, Cat Power (cause you're seeing Nick Cave at 4th and B right?)
Sept 20th - Beck, Spoon, MGMT (ouch! sorry Al)

-----------

as previously stated, i'll be headed to upstate NY for ....

- All Tomorrow's Parties, NY 2008, Sept 19th-21st -

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 19TH - DON'T LOOK BACK
THURSTON MOORE PERFORMING PSYCHIC HEARTS »
TORTOISE PERFORMING MILLIONS NOW LIVING WILL NEVER DIE »
MEAT PUPPETS PERFORMING MEAT PUPPETS II »
BUILT TO SPILL PERFORMING PERFECT FROM NOW ON »

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 20TH - CHOSEN BY ATP
FUCK BUTTONS »
LOW »
GROWING »
EDAN WITH GUEST DAGHA »
SHELLAC »
THEE SILVER MOUNT ZION ORCHESTRA »
THE DRONES »
POLVO »
WOODEN SHJIPS »
HARMONIA »
OM »
AUTOLUX »
APSE »

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 21ST - CHOSEN BY MY BLOODY VALENTINE
MY BLOODY VALENTINE
DINOSAUR JR. »
LILYS »
YO LA TENGO »
MERCURY REV »
MOGWAI »
LE VOLUME COURBE »

and still more to be announced!! i'm also hoping that Sigur Ros will be joining this bills. check it:

they are in NY the 17th and 18th, boston the 19th, montreal the 20th. nothing set for the 21st, on my bloody valentine's day, they'll be kicking it around the upperwest of north america, and they ain't going to far cuase they've got chicago on the 24th. come on guys, take one for the team.
so in short, local bands - "don't book anything over this weekend. it's a lost cause."

SD Album Release Shows acomin' ...

albums are like babies to musicians ... one passionate night of writing and there's no turning back, a few weeks thinking about what you've done, fear of things going wrong, the hard work, preparing for it's arrival ...

i don't have a baby, so it's probably nothing like it, but it's as close as i can get right now (kinda like passing a kidney stone is the closest i could come to giving birth) ... but it's an important time for us. and we want to share what we've done with everyone.

there's been quite a few albums i've been anticipating, and it appears they're all gonna get dropped on our collective laps in a whirlwind of release shows. ready?

July 9th, The Belly Up - Matt Curreri and The Exfriends - "Joy of Life"
July 14th, Casbah - Joanie Mendenhall - "On a String"
July 25th, Whistlestop - Swim Party - "Pixie Dust on the Blood Range"
Aug 1st, Whistlestop - Secret Apollo - ... i dunno what it's titled, but it'll be good, promise

damn. and i know the guys in Writer are putting the finishing touches on their new one, and i hear The Donkeys have an album in the works as well .... so i'm really glad we don't have all that to compete with. and thank you to all of them for coordinating so we could actually catch each show. that makes it easier.

brought to you by the letter B

i'm not sure why, but in followup to my apparently-letter-A-sponsored Art Around Adams post, this one is brought to you by the letter B. seems like the letter B is, um, the bee's knees right about now. Beer starts with the letter B. Beards start with the letter B, and even though eric shaved his a bit ago, i'd say that the ghost of it still lingers (ha). at the Beauty Bar last thursday, following our Frantic Romantic buddies, Sayvinyl was sporting at least a couple of nice beards themselves, even if they only got 5 songs before Marshall made them clear out to keep the Annuals on schedule. but thats another story, one in which i got their God Forbid and am not regretting that purchase, but still, back to the letter B.

while eric has a few posts for the beloved Broken Social Scene, i'll attempt to hold my own with the B's. First: Beck! If you haven't heard/seen/read, there is a July 8th release date for Modern Guilt, and still lots of anticipation (by me) for him at SF Outside Lands (with tons more awesome) and the Hollywood Bowl (with Spoon and MGMT) in the upcoming months. useless me trivia : Beck, on his Midnite Vultures -era tour, was the first show i saw in ucsd's RIMAC arena, 8 years ago, two years prior to my move down to America's Finest City.

and more letter B news : tonight, our Boyish Charms friends are set to play back to back nights, tonight at the Beauty Bar, opening for The Submarines, and tomorrow at the Habitat, with Manuok, which could make for one heck of a double-header, with Apes of Wrath and Scarlet Symphony also at the Beauty Bar later tomorrow night.

and, speaking of the Apes of Wrath, and not the letter B, but now, the letter C, i'll take this time to announce the exciting Modlins news : mark your calendars : Monday July 28th : The Modlins return to The Casbah as part of Tim Pyles' Anti-Monday League, along with The Apes of Wrath, and our friends in The Happy Hollows. word.

Broken Social Scene, HOB - Friday, Aug 22nd

okay.... looks like Cali's got a weekend of BSS on there hands. which starts in our city!! i'm probably bailing on the sunset junction show now (but you LA folks best not miss it) ... but Broken Social Scene is playing the House of Blues (HOB presented by the Casbah) on Friday August 22nd. tickets go on sale tomorrow morning here (or drive down to the venue to avoid some of the service charges) ... more details here.

Broken Social Scene playing Sunset Junction, Aug 23rd

i make it known that Broken Social Scene is one of my favorite bands. last time i saw them was with the Spirit If ... tour under the watchful eye of pseudo-leader Kevin Drew back in Oct in LA. well, it's already been too long, and when the SF date was announced for OutsidelandsFest, i jumped on ... (how could you not with a bill that also had Wilco, Andrew Bird, Bon Iver, etc)

well, looks like BSS got the best of me, as they are now also playing Sunset Junction up in LA on August 23rd (the day before) check out the schedule here. tickets are only $15!!!! pick up some on ticketweb. also playing that day, Happy Hollows, Castledoor, Radars to the Sky ... all hip bands from the LA scene ....

we're working on remedying Happy Hollows getting bumped off our Beauty Bar bill w/ Get Back Loretta .... so look for an upcoming show with us and them in the near future.

and if you haven't heard ... some unmastered version of the new BSS album "something for all of us...", fronted by Brendan Canning, was leaked and he was bummed about that, so you can now purchase the whole album for download on their website, just go here.

art around adams

another post mostly for my own good, but

http://www.artaroundadams.org/performance.htm

if you haven't seen it, some good stuff on there. apes of wrath @ the ken @ 2:10pm, with echo revolution thereafter, and team abraham after them. predicates @ "smitty's service" at 4:35. anna troy band at lestats around 6pm, and the might that can only be described as Secret Apollo back at the ken at 6:30pm. what a saturday. wham bam bamina. just hoping i can recover from the casbah night tonight early enough to get to my grandparents' house early enough tomorrow AM to eat lunch quick enough to get to adams ave by 2... keeping fingers crossed...

where i'm going this week

oh, i know what you are thinking. can it be true? a whole week without any modlins shows? i know, i know. i'd claim time off for good behavior, but it's more that eric has had to put overtime in on work behavior, shipped up to the bay area. anyways, with no shows from us to you, it leaves plenty of opportunity for me to plug other shows featuring great friends of ours, that you should go to, because that's where i'm going, and it will undoubtedly be a most excellent thursday-friday 1-2 punch. or something. anyways, with friends like these, your weeknights need not remain un-rocked:

thursday @ the beauty bar : the annuals / sayvinyl / the frantic romantic . i can't remember if ryan still has his mustache, but either way, yes. also, a reminder mostly only to myself, if you don't smoke cigarettes, don't wear clothes to the beauty bar with the intention of wearing them the next day as well, because they will smell as though you personally chain-smoked a pack and a half while watching the bands. i wonder if that is like a well-known rule anyways : don't wear clothes to the beauty bar that you plan on wearing the next day as well?

and, friday @ the casbah : calico horse has a cd release party (flyer) to kick off their 2-week loop through most major cities west of the mississippi, joined by swim party and the donkeys.
also, the red feathers' 'space picture is a flyer for their LAST SHOW (ever?), with a vision of a dying world and the growlers @ the tower bar. last show?! i wonder if i can be at two places at once...

update: reposting from show details off the vision's page :
Marco (of Red Feathers) is moving to New York so this will be his farewell show! Please come out and help us send him off right!

Okkervil River coming to the Belly Up, Sept 24th!!

i first heard about okkervil river 2 years ago from our friend Patrick (guy who's been doing all the modlins cover art since forever). he was talking about his favorite bands, and when he said that one my reply was "who?" ... oh how little i knew. since then, they've become one of my favorite bands, one of which i haven't been able to see as of yet (i was out of town for work the last time they came through) ..... so i'm ecstatic about this show. and it's 2 days after i come back from ATP ....

anyway, you should really check them out if you haven't heard them already. but the details for the show. Belly Up, Sept 24th

head here: http://okkervilriver.frontgatetickets.com/

To purchase tickets, you must first create an account and become a registered member of The Okkervil River Fan Community by entering in your email address, name, and phone number.
Immediately after registration, you will receive an email with your password. Use the password provided to access pre-sale tickets with reduced service charges as well as get the latest Okkervil River updates, contests, and special fan community extras. There is no fee to join. Each customer must have his/her own account.

full details of their tour and their new album "The Stand Ins" (an accompanying/2nd disc to a psuedo double album with "The Stage names"): http://www.okkervilriver.com/index.php

Plan B!!!

friday's show has been dubbed "Plan B" by CityBeat, so unless you're seeing the French Kicks at the Casbah, you have no excuse not coming out:

PLAN B: The Apple Miner Colony, The Modlins @ Chasers. It’s never really a good idea to have 20-plus members in a band, let alone a band that plays self-described “friend rock.” But, at least in the case of AMC, it sure is entertaining.

okay, sure they have the old touring act listed (sorry Apple Miner Colony, we really want you guys to come through, we'll hook something up at the Che next time, we didn't know!!!) but Mount Righteous treks some similar musical territory as Apple Miner Colony and though they are a 20+, Mt. Righteous is a 14+, and they didn't list Red Pony Clock who is what, a 11+ peice, so we're talking a full 5+ more!!!

so come on out, for a full night of pop goodness!!! need the details? look down two posts or just click here.

Thurs May 29th!!! The Modlins return to Los Angeles!!!

we know it's been far too long. what can we say? we've been busy. regardless, we're heading back up to LA and joining our Spanish Archer friends The Hard To Get for an ALC Scholarship benefit show at The Scene Bar in Glendale next Thurs, May 29th. also on the bill is The Black Kites, a LA band who's been getting quite the buzz surrounding them. check out some reviews and interviews here, here and here. also on the bill closing out the night is our good friend Mark and his amazing pop outfit, Hot TV. here's the lineup:

-9pm The Black Kites
-10pm The Hard To Get
-11pm The Modlins
-12pm Hot TV

Friday!!! Chaser's w/ Red Pony Clock and Mount Righteous (TX)!!!

Extra Extra!!~!

This Friday, may 23rd, the Modlins take to the Chasers stage with the great Red Pony Clock (you may have heard of them) and Mount Righteous, from Texas, who appear to be getting a bit of blog love lately as well. They remind me of Red Pony Clock if they started to head in the Polyphonic Spree direction ... it's good stuff. in short, come to this show, starts around 9pm ... goes until our hearts can beat no more.

raconteurs @ the henry fonda (LA) sunday!

i got my info via text message as i was trying to eat some $5 ... $5 ... $5 footlong action, but i also found this Indie Schmarm post to verify - tickets go on sale tomorrow (Friday) at noon to see The Raconteurs at the Henry Fonda in LA on sunday, this sunday, for $25. there are many places you can find people telling you how you should already know how awesome Consolers of the Lonely is, so all i'm gonna say is, i was a weekend too late to catch them at the new orleans jazz fest, and opted for taking it easy in (hopefully) sunny san diego on saturday rather than drop the $55+ for kroq's metalli-weenie roast, so sunday sunday sunday, henry fonda here i come.

more ambitions

i've been harassed because my previous q2 ambitions post got pretty flaky around these dates, so here's what i have on the calendar for the next month and a half. which might be helpful if, say, you were looking to book some time to, maybe, get away from it all. maybe go to the east coast. or something. anyways...

today, 5/13 : new death cab album is out. also, modlins @ cafe la maze. eat dinner, and watch us entertain from 8:30pm until whenever we get tired and go home.
fri 5/16 : ucsd sungod 08 : full list of bands here
mon 5/19 : roxy jones @ casbah w/ the childballads & the kills
tues 5/20 : both the islands & mates of state release new albums. also, word on the street is i am going to the padres game.
thu 5/22 : red feathers @ beauty bar w/ scarlet symphony and the jamuel saxon experience
fri 5/23 : modlins @ chasers w/ red pony clock & friends
mon 5/26 : memorial day. i am not going to work.
wed 5/28 : the national @ HoB downtown sd?! thats what their 'space says...
thu 5/29 : the national @ hollywood bowl w/ REM & modest mouse
thu 6/5 : frantic romantic @ beauty bar w/ annuals & the day after
fri 6/6 : calico horse cd release @ the casbah, w/ swim party, the donkeys, and joey barro. two words : heck yes
thu 6/12 : boyish charms @ the beauty bar
fri 6/13 : boyish charms @ habitat (early), and then? apes of wrath @ beauty bar w/ scarlet symphony
sat 6/14 : apes of wrath @ che cafe all ages w/ blues ruby
sun 6/15 : fathers day
tue 6/17 : new Wolf Parade album
thu 6/19 : The Islands @ epicentre. word.
fri 6/20 : modlins & get back loretta @ beauty bar. w/ super special guests TBA
sat 6/21 : frantic romantic @ lestats w/ irradio
sun 6/22 : secret apollo @ zombie lounge
wed 6/25 : roman spring @ beauty bar
fri 6/27 : frantic romantic zombie lounge ryan's bday krunkfest 08. also, 311 + s n double o p d o double g @ cricket wireless amphitheater, if you are into that sort of thing.
mon 6/30 : swim party @ the casbah anti-monday league w/ the henry clay people.

and thats all you get. now, its lunchtime. ok i lied, coworkers taking longer to get ready than i thought, so just a few more longer-distance july-ish dates:

fri 7/4 : the 4th of july. duh.
wed 7/16 : frantic romantic @ u31
fri 7/18 : vision of a dying world @ beauty bar w/ the sess & christmas island
tues 7/22 : feist @ humphreys by the bay. worth $45/ticket ? meh. worth stealing a boat and seeing for $0/ticket ? yar.
fri 7/25 : swim party CD RELEASE w/ writer @ the whistlestop. o m g.
tue 7/29 : less than jake & goldfinger @ HoB. yay 1996!
fri 8/1 : secret apollo CD RELEASE w/ alpha channel @ the whistlestop. back to back whistlestop cd release parties? oh yea.

if you were me ... casbah tonight, cafe la maze tomorrow

if you were me, you'd be pulling your moves right out of the catdirt playbook. tonight, muslims take to the casbah stage for a show ArtFag is recording .... the muslims are the next grand ole party which is the next .. i dunno. they're all getting huge. don't miss it.

but i'm almost more excited about the supporting bands tonight, Fantastic Magic (which based on the description i read sound pretty cool) and The Carrots, a band from austin that's 50s doo-wop ish .... very modlins friendly.

and of course, tomorrow night, cafe la maze goes off with us playing a set or two. i think we're set to play around 8:30, but i'll correct this tomorrow if that's not the case. anyway, you don't want to miss either.

if you're a staple around ucsd, you've probably heard of both bands (the modlins/the muslims) as both will be playing the awesome north stage for friday's Sungod Festival along with the likes of Lady Dottie and the Diamonds, Frantic Romantic, The Drowning Men and many more.

To UCSD & Beyond

While the Celtics trounce King James in the East semi-finals, the Modlins receive semi-final official word on Sungod 08 plans : we are set to rock the North Stage at 4pm, next Friday, May 16th. So if, like me, you weren't too excited about dropping $60 to see the Offspring XFest, maybe this will excite you: Modlins @ 4pm, Frantic Romantic earlier in the day (1pm-ish), fellow SDiegans The Drowning Men, The Muslims, Lady Dottie & The Diamonds, plus Matt Costa, The Aquabats, Say Anything, Sean Kingston (you're way too beautiful, girl) (just as long as you stand, stand by me), and Coheed & Cambria. Just to name a few...

And in anticipation of that, we Modlins will play a few songs for all of you, on UCSD's own KSDT radio station, tonight at 8pm. And if you say "but I'm not going to go to KSDT to watch you play, and I don't even know if they broadcast..." then to that, we say this: you will (in theory) also be able to stream Modlins, live, to the living/dining/family/computer/bath -room of your choice, just by going to

ksdt.ucsd.edu

at 8pm tonight.

And in case after reading all that, you are now thinking "man, this is weird, but now I am thinking I could really stand to have a nice dinner next Tuesday evening, maybe with some good background music...", well then boy are you in luck. Because in between all this UCSD madness, The Modlins are also coming to Cafe La Maze, in National City, to entertain the dinner guests therein, next Tuesday (May 13th). Word on the CatDirt street is that it is, in fact, a "totally awesome place to hang out". So there.