» shit, ive been busy at my day job so this week there will be no TSOP entry. thats cool. just check out the ones in the archives. once the semester is officially over [like, in a week] my life can resume on its regular schedule.

» im so busy i dont even have a single thing to say, point out what is noteworthy, etc etc blah blah. sorry kids!

» uh, so this new kinski album, alpine static, is turning me into some kind of monster. i got it in them mail the other day and the next thing i know, my hairs grown all long, im wearing my arthur t-shirt and shit. what next, a beard? OK, im kidding. but seriously, this record shreds like an angry sonic youth. due out in july. until then, just listen to me brag about how awesome this record is.

» speaking of the yoof, friday night’s show was incredible. unfortunately it was chilly and i had worn my Hot Indie Rock Girl clothes to the event and wound up hunched over with my arms crossed like A Penn Girl In Black Ass Pants. [you know what im talking about, those unfortunate sorority girls who traipse and chatter all over olde city in the skimpiest clothes ever.] here’s the setlist:

I Love You Golden Blue / Stones / Pattern Recognition / Unmade Bed / Eric’s Trip / Bull In The Heather / Dude Ranch Nurse / Paper Cup Exit / New Hampshire / Rain On Tin // Teenage Riot

not a lot of oldies but well, thats fine by me. with only 400 people in the audience, sonic youth could have stood around, banging away on their guitars with drumsticks, playing with feedback and i would have still been a happy camper. oh wait, isnt that what they kind of do already?

» cat power was the opener and ill say this then let you decide what my reaction was: she played for over an hour. ive never seen that happen before.

» went to a production of the rocky horror picture show after the show. it was mayhem, not just because of the show, but due to its timing during spring fling weekend. many half naked, drunken college kids around. a beautiful sight!

» M83 & Ulrich Schnauss at the Trocadero: hey look, its a vangelis tour! i mean that in the most loving, wonderful way possible. everyone has hailed M83 as the second coming of shoegaze but man, do their songs ever come off as sounding highly proggy. secret weapon? the drummer. you need to see it to believe.

» beatles vs. stones at silk city: OK, what the fuck? SEVEN DOLLARS? look, i know that everyone in philly is a dj but i’m not going to pay someone seven dollars to play those records. consider this an official complaint.

Pearls and Brass “Stone Leaves”
pearls and brass were a band that would have been doomed to obscurity were it not for slint. somehow, someway, somewhere, one of the band’s members accquired their record [which was pressed in a run of 500] and became so enamored of the band they asked them to perform at all tomorrow’s parties. OK, perhaps its unfair to place all the band’s current wave of success in the hands of post-rock’s greatest monster, i mean, listen to this. its stoner rock 101, executed to a perfect T: dirty arena rock-worthy guitars and pounding riffs running through riffs that would make blue cheer downright jealous. but see, whats compelling here is that the band doesnt sound like they’re aiming for a stoner rock sound; instead their primary idea is to craft traditional blues music but that their choice of instrument happens to be of the electrified variety. (Learn more about Pearls and Brass here.)

Don Argott “Rock School”
also in the completely bad ass rock und roll department is don argott’s documentary about the real school of rock – the paul green school of rock. a hit at sundance and festivals worldwide, its been picked up by newmarket films for national distribution. the trailer looks better than the teaser i saw two years ago, so one can only hope it lives up to not just the trailer but the actual performances ive seen from these kids.

if you couldnt get your hands on tickets for tonight’s sonic youth concert at penn, here’s an interesting option:

Wynn Commons area boasts prime (free) viewing locales

If the Spring Fling concert sells out tonight or if you are desperate to hear Sonic Youth and are strapped for cash, there might be a way out.

With this year’s concert being held in the middle of campus at Wynn Commons, a number of attractive views of the venue might be available from the surrounding academic buildings.

But College senior and Social Planning and Events Committee co-Director Tom Kurland said that the task will not be easy.

“All of Wynn Commons is going to be fenced,” Kurland said. “The stage will be totally invisible from outside of the venue.”

Spectaguards will also be patrolling the buildings, but Kurland did give some hope for interested parties.

“If a couple of kids happen to watch a show from the bathroom window, we don’t care,” he said. “But the reality is that no one is going to be able to crowd in those buildings.”

Prime spots are still available for those seeking adventure.

College Hall has locations looking south onto the concert area. Two bathrooms and the central staircase of the building provide a spacious atmosphere for watching the show from above.

Logan Hall is filled with luxurious lounges on each floor looking out onto the stage-set, so having connections to the Philosophy, Classical Studies or Religious Studies departments can pay dividends.

However, the situation is further complicated by the early closing times of the academic buildings, so enthusiasts might have to camp out early.

That is, unless they are friends with the numerous history professors whose offices look out onto Wynn Commons.

Houston Hall, which features second- and third-floor standing room, is the exception. It is slated to remain open throughout the concert.

But even with these ways of avoiding paying the $20 ticket charge, Kurland said that Wynn Commons was by far the most convenient venue on campus, and in many cases easier to patrol than any previous venues, including Hill Field and Franklin Field.

yesterday’s conference: mind - blown; brain - totally fried. yes, i believe these two things can co-exist. while i catch up, here’s another thing that blows my mind: legalized cat hunting. seriously wisconsin, what the fuck?!

Wis. Residents Seek Legalized Cat Hunting

BY RYAN J. FOLEY
Associated Press Writer

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Although Wisconsin residents have voiced their support for a plan to legalize wild cat hunting, some legislators and cat lovers say they will continue their fight.

The proposal would allow licensed hunters to kill free-roaming cats, including any domestic cat that isn’t under the owner’s direct control or any cat without a collar, just like skunks or gophers - something the Humane Society of the United States has described as cruel and archaic.

Outdoor enthusiasts approved the proposal 6,830 to 5,201 at Monday’s spring hearings of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, a citizens’ advisory group.

The results, released Tuesday by the state, get forwarded to the Natural Resources Board for its consideration. Ultimately, though, any measure would have to be passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Jim Doyle.

Already, two state senators - Scott Fitzgerald and Neil Kedzie - are promising they’ll do everything they can to keep the plan from becoming law.

Kedzie, who chairs the Natural Resources and Transportation Committee, called the issue “a distraction from the main tasks we have at hand.”

“I don’t see a whole lot of momentum for it,” Kedzie said. “It’s not the responsibility of the DNR to regulate cats.”

Fitzgerald, co-chairman of the Legislature’s powerful Joint Finance Committee, said he will “work against any proposed legislation to legalize the shooting of feral cats.”

At least two other upper Midwestern states, South Dakota and Minnesota, allow wild cats to be shot - and have for decades.

Every year in Wisconsin alone, an estimated 2 million wild cats kill 47 million to 139 million songbirds, according to state officials. Despite the astounding numbers, the proposal has been met with fierce opposition from cat lovers such as Ted O’Donnell.

O’Donnell, who gathered more than 17,000 signatures in an online petition to oppose the plan, was joined at Monday’s meetings by scores of other animal lovers who held pictures of cats, clutched stuffed animals and wore whiskers.

Even Karen Hale, the head of the Madison Audobon Society, one of the largest pro-bird groups in the country with 2,500 members, voted no. She said the proposal was just too controversial, even though wild cats have reduced the state’s bird population.

ill post an mp3 on wednesday, when i return from the FMC DC policy day.

instead, enjoy these two brand new television personalities songs:

“I Hope He’s Everything You Wanted Me To Be”
“My Dark Places”

and the photograph of clockcleaner, which i took over the weekend.

» were we punk’d when the anonymous fellow who wrote this letter shoved it into our hands and ran away into the night? who knows. what i do know that its kind of crappy to demand for drink tickets in addition to a trade. remember this in the future: it costs money to provide complimentary drink tickets. i cant even remember the last time i let a significant other have a free drink on the house — hell, i cant remember the last time i had a boyfriend…!

» you know, i try not to bitch about pitchfork but good lord, couldnt they have picked someone who actually wanted to review the new mary timony? or better yet, had something to say about the record? there’s so much more to talk about besides this album being D&D-free. “women in rock” have been pretty disappointing the last few years [few exceptions withstanding] and continues to worsen as the new weird america trend spreads across this land like a flesh-eating virus, leaving women incapacitated except in the ever-exploding empire of crafts [look, fine, i get it: you know how to knit and decoupage, as a means of rebelling against corporate america. great. leave me alone.] — a smarter person would stop for a closer look. i’d hate to dub this album “complaint rock” but it seems like mary’s dealing with demons more powerful than her skills can handle: drunks ["on the floor"], backstabbing friends ["in the grass", "hard times are hard"] are just a few of the characters that the D&D rulebook doesnt account for; she doesnt really complain about these characters as much as confront them with a combatative musical style that is more reminiscient of autoclave than her other project, helium.

the other striking thing about this record is that it made me think about how there’s fewer women guitar players that i really appreciate. [short list of people i do like: mary, sleater-kinney, heather of bellafea, anita of viva voce, kathy of the thermals] and while im happy that women continue to be involved with music, could the bulk of them please stop playing the keyboards in shitty new wave bands? since the world exists merely to please me, do this and oh, thank you. i mean, for the bulk of the complaining that goes on about women being given the short end of the stick in terms of rock music, so few of them actually bother to step up to the plate.

getting back to bellafea, id like to say how completely blown away i was by heathers noisy and agressive but minimalistic approach to this thing we call Rock saturday night at silk city. the packed room stood there, silently, their breath caught by every lick.

» behold! philadelphia’s trendy new music scene! im not even complaining about plain parade being ignored here [because really, thats fine] but listing three events/venues is ridiculous. last i checked, if only three things are happening in town, thats a crying shame.

» less me, more you: ive been posting these mp3s on the site every week and no one’s bothered to comment. i mean, do you like them? do you not really care? what? as a product of art school, i’ve become trained to fear a lack of commentary. reaction, be it positive or negative, is good because somehow you’re reaching the audience. and lord knows you cant be agreeing with me on everything.

you should totally pick this up because it’s got my first real published column in it (”pop on trial”) and a pretty awesome photograph of my co-writer and me, sara sherr.

National Eye “Juno3″ (from the forthcoming Roomful of Lions)

what would happen if the beatles went electronica? i can imagine you balking at the mere mention of the two. i highly doubt it would be jungle beats mixed over rollicking basslines – perhaps something closer to brian eno or, at its very worst, ELO’s contributions to the xanadu soundtrack. or maybe wings. its up to you. so when i say that “juno3″ reminds me of that, worry not; these soft rock renegades craft something beautiful here. the ebb and flow of concepts is akin to robert pollard’s finest moments – from a warbly hummable prog rock opening to bubbly, pogo-worthy pop to maxxxium guitar floorstomping riffage that fades out into a dreamy acoustic guitar – but lacking the egotistical, drunken demeanor of that artist. if i was a woman of lesser morals, id post this whole record – its fantastic. someone get this band a label, like, now, so the rest of the world can see what i mean.

(Check out more about the National Eye here.)