iPod Touch

Well, Apple really went the extra mile today announcing a whole new line of products. They indeed announced the release of the iPod Touch that has similar functions as the iPhone. The only downside is the 8GB and 16GB small storage but it is still better than no iPod Touch.

Exclusive Sherwood Track

Altpress.com has a stream of "Best In Me (Electro Mix)", a brand new Sherwood track that's not available anywhere else.

New iPods!!!

Apple has announced several new items today. Including custom ring tones for the iPhone, a brand new iPod Nano (with video), and brand new "Classic" iPods.

Its a bummer the new "Classic" iPods are not full screen like the iPhones, as rumored. However the new iPod will hold either 80GBs or 160GBs and the battery life is supposed to be far superior. The new iPods should be hitting stores by the weekend.




For more information visit engadget.com

Mixed Feelings

NBC announced the return of American Gladiators to prime-time television. They are holding open casting calls for both gladiators and contestants.

It will be pretty comical for the first few episodes but I can't see it being entertaining for a full season. It will be interesting to see what they do with it. The old episodes are some of the best comedy of the 90s.

David Bazan Tour

David Bazan (of Pedro The Lion)started a 50 city tour today. Advanced tickets are available at http://www.davidbazan.com/shows.php. Dates are Listed below.

09/04 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry
09/05 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
09/06 - Milwaukee, WI - Shank Hall
09/07 - Chicago, IL - Beat Kitchen
09/08 - Champaign, IL - High Dive
09/10 - Bloomington, IN - Waldron Arts Center
09/11 - Saint Louis, MO - The Billiken Club
09/12 - Springfield, MO - Randy Bacon Gallery
09/13 - Memphis, TN - Hi Tone Cafe
09/14 - Little Rock, AR - Sticky Fingerz
09/15 - Denton, TX - Dan's Silverleaf
09/16 - Houston, TX - Walter's On Washigton
09/17 - Austin, TX - Emo's Lounge
09/19 - Lubbock, TX - Jake's
09/20 - Lawrence, KS - Jackpot
09/21 - Norman, OK - The Opolis
09/22 - Iowa City, IA - The Picador
09/23 - Omaha, NE - The Slowdown
10/23 - Pontiac, MI - The Pike Room
10/24 - Cleveland OH - The Grog Shop
10/25 - Pittsburgh PA - Garfield Artworks
10/26 - Buffalo NY - Mohawk Place
10/27 - Cambridge MA - T.T. the Bear's
10/29 - New York NY - Mercury Lounge
10/30 - Brooklyn NY - Southpaw
10/31 - Philadelphia PA - Johnny Brenda's
11/01 - Washington DC - Black Cat
11/03 - Durham NC - Duke Coffeehouse
11/04 - Asheville, NC - The Grey Eagle
11/05 - West Columbia SC - New Brookland Tavern
11/06 - St. Augustine FL - Cafe Eleven
11/07 - Orlando FL - The Social
11/08 - Tallahassee FL - The Moon (with Spoon)
11/09 - Birmingham AL - BottleTree Cafe
11/10 - Atlanta GA - The Earl
11/12 - Nashville TN - Exit In
11/13 - Newport KY - Southgate House
12/02 - Spokane, WA - Empyrean
12/03 - Boise, ID - Neurolux
12/04 - Salt Lake City, UT - In The Venue
12/05 - Denver, CO - Hi-Dive
12/06 - Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad
12/07 - Tuscon, AZ - Solar Culture
12/08 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
12/10 - Pomona, CA - Glass House
12/11 - Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
12/12 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
12/13 - EugeneE, OR - Indigo District
12/14 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
12/15 - Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe

Bands on TV for this Week

9/3 - Grinderman on David Letterman [CBS]
9/3 - Feist on Conan O'Brien [RR - NBC]
9/3 - Jesse Malin on Jay Leno [RR - NBC]
9/3 - El-P on Jimmy Kimmel [RR - ABC]
9/3 - Lily Allen on Craig Ferguson [RR - CBS]
9/4 - Hellogoodbye on Carson Daly [NBC]
9/4 - Gogol Bordello on Jimmy Kimmel [ABC]
9/4 - Every Time I Die on Steven's Untitled Rock Show [FUSE]
9/4 - The Starting Line on The Sauce [FUSE]
9/5 - Mat Kearney on Carson Daly [NBC]
9/5 - Dinosaur Jr. on Conan O'Brien [NBC]
9/5 - Rilo Kiley on Jimmy Kimmel [ABC]
9/5 - Boys Like Girls on Steven's Untitled Rock Show [FUSE]
9/5 - Avril Lavigne on TRL [MTV]
9/5 - Fall Out Boy on The Sauce [FUSE]
9/5 - Gym Class Heroes on Ellen DeGeneres [RR - OXY]
9/5 - The Receiving End Of Sirens on The Daily Habit [FUEL]
9/5 - Avril Lavigne on David Letterman [CBS]
9/6 - The Honorary Title on Carson Daly [NBC]
9/6 - Blaqk Audio on The Sauce [FUSE]
9/6 - Kanye West on The Today Show [NBC]
9/6 - Kings Of Leon on Jay Leno [NBC]
9/6 - Goo Goo Dolls on Craig Ferguson [RR - CBS]
9/6 - Manchester Orchestra on David Letterman [CBS]
9/7 - Hot Hot Heat on Conan O'Brien [NBC]
9/7 - Arctic Monkeys on David Letterman [CBS]
9/7 - Avril Lavigne on Regis And Kelly [SYN]
9/7 - Maroon 5 on The Early Show [CBS]

New Website for Jacks Mannequin

Jacks Mannequin has redesigned their website and myspace.

Andrew has also updated his blog.

NFG Covers Hype

New Found Glory have posted exclusive streams of songs from their upcoming cover album, From the Screen to Your Stereo pt 2, on various websites.

"Iris" NFG Myspace
"Head over Heels" Alt Press
"Don't You Forget About Me" Fuse
"Crazy for You" Artist Direct

The album is set to be released Sept. 18th. If you preorder the album you will receive an autographed album, and a t-shirt all for $15.

New Spill Canvas Song

The Spill Canvas have posted a new song from their album, No Really I'm Fine, on their myspace page. The new album will be released on October 2nd.

Review - Minus the Bear

Band: Minus The Bear
Album: Planet of Ice
Label: Suicide Squeeze Records
Score: 5 out of 5

Last Friday I traveled down to Long Beach (that's in California) to an indie record store named Fingerprints. If you were savvy enough to preorder the new Minus the Bear album, Planet of Ice, you were treated to a nice in-store concert. The line to get in went for blocks and my guesstimate would be that about one hundred lucky fans made it into the record store. Being able to see Minus the Bear in this intimate setting was a real treat and an experience I will never forget. The set list consisted mainly of songs from Planet of Ice and a couple of the band's classics. If you're dying to know the set list looked like this: Knights, Burying Luck, Ice Monster, Fix, White Mystery, Throwin' Shapes, Pachuca Sunrise, and Lotus. At the end of the night it was clear that Minus the Bear is nothing short of genius.

Planet of Ice seems to be a very appropriate title for this album because the music is cool, smooth, chill, and refreshing. Minus the Bear doesn't rock as straightforward as they did with their previous releases Menos el Oso and Highly Refined Pirates. Their latest release really lets guitarist Dave Knudson explore his unique playing style. Knudson could be the most creative and unique guitar player on the indie market right now. Another noticeable difference is the increased importance of keyboard/synth with newcomer Alex Rose. Old keyboardist Matt Bayles, who left the band to concentrate solely on producing, produced the album. This made for a nice team and it will be interesting to see if Matt Bayles becomes Minus the Bear's go-to producer. I sure hope he is.

With the more relaxed and experimental approach of Planet of Ice, Minus the Bear was still able to write some really catchy songs. They accomplish sucking the listener in with the first track "Burying Luck." It's sure to leave the listener singing the lyrics "what have you done" and nodding their heads with acceptance. My personal favorite track on the album is "Ice Monster" which is a great representation of what Minus the Bear is all about.

An interesting tidbit of information that people who haven't seen the band live might not realize is that Knudson is responsible for a lot of the psychedelic sounds that might be confused for keyboardist/synth work. For example, the intro of "Knights" is all Knudson working his pedals.

What makes this album such a huge success is the fact that it's catchy, enjoyable to listen to, experimental, and musically complicated all at the same time. You can either just enjoy the catchy tunes or you can listen to each track for hours in awe of its musicianship. Minus the Bear's latest release should please old fans and help build an even bigger fan base for the band. Planet of Ice should definitely be a candidate for indie album of the year.

Suggested tracks: Ice Monster, Knights, Dr. L'Ling and Lotus.