Hey.

Kablow! Kablammo!

The first was the sound of the Bon Savants in NYC this Friday, Feb 18, @
Crash Mansion. Look at all these damn details for that show! Don't
like ellipses? Proceed with great care:

"The party is called *Between (a Rock and a Hard Place)* and is free to
get in on the UNDERBELLY list from 9-11, reduced to $10 admission
afterwards. We also get OPEN BAR from 9-10 so your guests probably want
to get there early to have a few freebies... From 10 pm til 1 am we have
some drink specials so it's not hard to hang out... We can go ALL
NIGHT here - no club kids annoying you out the door - so stay, drink
and rock out....*Crash Mansion is at 199 Bowery at Spring St.* . . . get
on the guest list by emailing rsvp@newyorkunderbelly.com or going to the
website at http://www.newyorkunderbelly.com
<http://www.newyorkunderbelly.com/> ..."
*
9:00 pm the Fire Ups*
*9:45 pm Burnin Thousands*
*10:30 pm BonSavants*
*11:15 pm Up the Empire*
*After Midnight - Special show - Amsterband*


Kablammo! is the sound we make when playing in Boston on Saturday, Feb
18, @ the Plan. Most of you know the routine there, so fewer details,
but no less enthusiasm, if you please:
DJs Carl and Victoria spin new and tested indie rock
Location :: Great Scott (www.greatscottboston.com)
1222 Commonwealth Ave. Allston, MA (Corner of Harvard & Comm.)
B-Line to the Harvard Ave. stop
9pm 'til 2am $7 cover 21+

The Beatings (12:30), The Hold Steady (French Kiss Records) (11:30), and
Bon Savants (10:30)

This particular lineup was the product of our new great night booking
algorithms, which are estimated to have a failure rate of less than
0.1% We'd appreciate your feedback on the product so we can make our
decision whether to go Beta with the code.

Informatively,
The Bon Savants
www.bonsavants.com

i got the up the empire mailing list version of this email the other day. sounds like a good time. who are the beatings and why are they headlining over the hold steady?

long story and technically, the Bon Savs should be headlining...but it comes down to this: the "prime" slot in Boston tends to be the middle or 3rd band, unless there's an obvious headliner. i wanted more people to see the Hold Steady and they were down with taking that slot, so...we ended up volunteering to take the opening slot out of deference to our friends in the Beatings.

cultural aside thing - the line-ups at Plan nights tend to be less about traditional headliners, support acts, strict set times, etc. it's about having the most fun for everyone involved.

KPH

so who are the beatings? what do they sound like?

they sound like their influences: pixies/superchunk guitar sounds, some bob mould, archers of loaf, etc. 3 singers trade off lead duties and they all have a very distinct vocal approach, which makes for an interesting presentation.

www.thebeatings.com has a slew of MP3s...

KPH

I hear GBV when the big guy sings. "Radiation is being released underground, animating the recently deceased when you're around..."

The Hold Steady isn't an obvious headliner? Blasphemy!


Anyway, just wanted to pitch in that the Beatings are pretty damn good. I picked up their first ep, I think after KPH posted an .mp3 back on CMJ, and I think it's great. The full length isn't quite as good, and has crappier production, but it's still quite nice.

Yeah, the full length was an experiment of sorts for them. Although I think the songwriting is clearly more refined, the production values varied drastically, to the detriment of the album's overall sound. They were being deliberate about that - by recording it in series at 3 different studios - but it could've used a more refined standard to my ears.

On that note, I've heard a lot of the new record and it is a much more accomplished offering - they just need to find the right label and PR firm.

KPH