So live my life for me while I'm away, will you? Thanks.

The unforseen trip to obligation to be in Boston seems to have produced some unfavorable schedule conflicts. Yes, I will be on mandatory leave to Boston tomorrow, where I am to be detained for several days. It's less of a vacation than it is a.. "hostage situation", as I've described to several people. I'll try not to sulk too hard. Although being in a town where nobody thinks I'm a nutjob seems a good opportunity to clear my head. Plus, I get a chance to enjoy the finer things in life: roadside fast food restaurants, spontaneity, hours of driving, hanging out on hotel lobby furniture... who doesn't appreciate a car trip?
I'm gone for Tuesday, Wednesday, and (most of?) Thursday. Thought I'd tend to my last order of business and leave you all with a request: attend my pre-empted engagements for me.

Tues.
Sufjan Stevens @ Bowery (given you were lucky enough to secure a ticket.. I just sold mine on CL.)

Wed.
Hula @ Tonic

Thurs.
The Diggs @ Sin-e

Especially that last one -- if for no other reason, because Autodrone is also on the bill and because it doesn't conflict with another DCFC show. (pshhhh. DCFC. mumblemumble groangroan.) They played a couple of songs I didn't recognize at last week's show: "You Don’t Listen to Music" and "Everyone’s Starting Over" -- they may be new, but I'm not sure. In any case, you haven't heard The Diggs until you've heard The Diggs on Sin-e's sound system. If you missed the one last week, they played with a band called Beat Radio -- who sounded like they could easily have been one of the early Matador bands -- and The Octagon, beloved within the elite inner circle of this city's bloggeratti, but I didn't care for them too much. (Sidenote, they look like a bizarre offshoot of The Fame, which I found amusing.) I left two or three songs in. Whoops.

Back on Friday -- maybe Thursday night... we'll see. Until then, miss me.

So this is what you're going to do on Thursday:


Rumor has it they will debut new songs.

Other bands scheduled to perform are as follows:
Thurs. 8/18 Beat Radio, The Octagon
Thurs. 8/25 Autodrone, COMA
Thurs. 9/1
Fri. 9/9 Joy Zipper

I'll keep you posted. WATCH THIS SPACE.

Say.. is it just me or has Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah been blowing up these past few months? I don't remember them being this big earlier in the year.... Have you been watching? Watch, my dears, be witness to the wonders of acclaim and publicity. As with the great Rilo Kiley phenomenon, Jenyk anticipated it. And as with Rilo Kiley, they're moving at a frantic pace. I, being a former Rilo Kiley devotee, should know.

Their September Bowery Ballroom show is sold out. Tickets to their September Warsaw show are selling at $13.50. (Not even Soft is gaining momentum this rapidly!) Let it be a preview (warning?) of things to come. I've seen them only a handful of times, but if I had forseen this at all, I would have made it a priority not to miss a single show. Long gone are the days of CYHSY at Pianos and Maxwell's... Best catch them on their fall tour even if it means $13.50 at the Warsaw. After all, the next time they play in New York, they could very likely grace the Roseland stage. And you'd probably rather not be stuck fuming about $30 tickets... while you're sitting on the entrance line outside Roseland at 4pm waiting for doors.... next to some 15-year-old girls... with big lame holes in the knees of their Mudd jeans... who've written and doodled on the rubber toe caps of their shoes... from places called huntington, westchester, and scarsdale... girls who turn to you and ask you such things as "so what are you, do you go to high school?"
The demographic of their fanbase may shift, their ticket prices may increase exponentially. They might take on diva-esque demeanors. Your devotion might waver.
...Just seems like the natural progression.

You could also catch them for free this upcoming Wednesday at South Street Seaport. I probably will.

Hey, you know what's funny? I just figured this out.. the photographer who took my picture at Siren (and then was seen photographing Ambulance Ltd. on the beach) was Dustin fuckin' Pittman. THE Dustin Pittman.

But you know what's even funnier? Actually, I'm not going to say. If you ask me though, I might tell you... (I like gettting e-mail, anyway.)