Butch Walker to Rescue Indie Rock from American Apparel

Just as indie rockstar wanna-be's rip off Butch Walker's songwriting style (and fail miserably), they too often steal his style.

Let's not forget it was Walker, in his Marvlous 3 days, who first wore the skinny tie. Of course, at this point, the wanna-be rockstar local band boys were still a little slow. It took a few years for them to dig this trend into the ground.

Then it was the bandanna. I remember the first time I saw Butch perform solo, he had one of the red rags flowing from his pocket. About a year later, the emo kids once again have killed the bandanna (RIP.)



Last night, at Webster Hall, Butch Walker And His Gang of Merry Musical Melodymakers took a stand against all the girl-pants-wearing boys, whether you realized it or not. Walker and co. took the stage in plaid shirts. Ok, minus Randy Michael, who always looks so dapper in his suits and fedoras and new hot dude Chris, who has a tattoo of a pin-up girl on a tiger (two of my favorite things), so that should not be covered up.




The subliminal message was evident.

Attn.Those who worship Butch Walker so much that you steal his style musically and fashionably:

Don't fall any further!

VICTIM.

Give your girlfriend her jeans back!

DO NOT PUT ON THE SPANDEX!

V-Neck shirts are only sexy if you have cleavage! We don't want to see curly chest hair strands sticking out!

Dress like a man!



On another note...

VENUES: Please note....

When you are fortunate enough to have Butch Walker grace your stage, DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT disrespect the man by pumping god-awful techo (described by Walker as "the devil's music) on the floor below!

* By Joelle, who along with Jess, escorted their friend Nicole to her first BW show last night. Nicole left saying "That man has so much talent it should be illegal."


Go here:

www.savethetigerfund.org

The Sounds at Webster Hall Hot beats, hot Sweds and hot pants

Thursday night started off with a bang. Unfortunately, the bang was more of a thump when Morningwood's guitarist fell off the stage right before doors. No one is really sure exactly how it happened, but it was a show-stopper for the band as the guitarist had to be rushed to the ER. Morningwood tried to make amends with the crowd, giving away a few dozen t-shirts.

The Sounds took the stage a bit earlier and treated the audience to a sexy, spitting, new wave rock n' roll romp, more than making up for the crowd's earlier disappointment. Their energy immediately took over and, in seconds, everyone was having an undeniably amazing time.



For the first few songs we couldn't help but notice lead-singer Maja's barely-there short shorts. It's possible that my friend Sonia and I were even more intrigued by the shorts than guys at the show. Sonia commented that perhaps Maja shouldn't be rocking the shorts quite that short. At first, I agreed, but as the show went on, I realized the shorts epitomized a fuck-you-cool attitude that is so apparent when you listen and especially when you see The Sounds perform. I envied Maja for her explosiveness on stage - squatting, jumping, pulsating, dancing atop the drum set and her sexy fellow Swed band mates. Maja's absolute confidence was captivating and unequivocally sexy.





See The Sounds. 'Hot and sweaty (they) just do it, do it, do it real good and give it all to you.'





*by Jordana (who is breaking out her Sounds tunes for some cardio-kickboxing inspiration)

Silverchair Leave Webster Hall in AWE

"I can't even speak right now." That's what my friend Adam (you all know and love his band PERFUMA, right?) said to me after Silverchair finished their encore at Webster Hall in New York City. This show, like the night before at Bowery Ballroom, sold out in five minutes. Not bad for an Australian band that gets zero promotion in this country and was recently dropped by their record label, eh?

The night included mostly songs off of their last release, Diorama. No complaints- that's my favorite album. Refreshingly, the band premiered about five new songs, including the new single, "Straight Lines." All the new songs are super catchy and have SINGLE written on them. I can't wait to hear the album. Once they self-release it, I'll have my New Zealand friends mail me a copy ASAP. No word on a US release date, of course.

As for the good 'ol grunge days of Silverchair, which I'm sure are the ones most everyone remembers... they played "The Door" and "Freak." I was craving "Isreal's Son," and "My Favorite Thing," but that didn't happen. Not that anything was missing from the show. It was perfect. Every note, each vocal breath. And form, well Daniel Johns is looking healthy, totally recovered from anorexia, and has a built bod, which he proved by playing the encore shirtless.

Oh what a night! Let's just hope I don't have to wait another seven years to see them!

WATCH MY FOOTAGE:


The Lever


Ana's Song


Without You



PS--sorry if you hear some annoying girl behind me singing!

Love,
Joelle, who battled a near blizzard to go to this show.