My first live Menomena experience couldn’t have gone any better. We arrived during Field Music’s set, I got a 312 for my fiance and myself, and we chilled with the rest of our group while the band kept moving things along. I hate to say it, but Field Music’s performance was not very impressive. Nothing bad, but absolutely nothing that would grab one’s attention.

The inside of the Empty Bottle was a great venue for Menomena. A small place with just enough character to put the band in a familiar looking environment. Menomena really knew how to rock it, switching instruments all the while, they never let things get boring.

first time I’ve ever been to a sold out show at the Empty Bottle, so this was packed to the brim. I’ve seen Voxtrot and Architecture in Helsinki here before, but it didn’t even come close to how packed this place got last night for Menomena.

With stars and saxophones hanging all over the place, Menomena also shined as they delivered songs from Fun Blame Monster and Friend and Foe with raw creative muscle. They played two extra songs for an encore, but even after an hour of the rock, we all wished that it would never have ended.

The new video for Menomena’s Wet and Rusting is a must-see. Their creativity makes one glad to be alive. I’ll be at the Sold Out show next week at the Empty Bottle, and I haven’t seen them before, so I’m really pumped for it. I’ll let everyone know how it goes, and I’ll take pictures too.

other things worth mentioning…

I experienced some great shows at Cornerstone last year. Rosie Thomas blew me away with her jaw-dropping voice and silly-as-can-be stage presence. Unwed Sailor backed her up while Denison Witmer occasionally lent his talent to a few of her songs. Denison put on a great show himself, being back by Saxon Shore, who also put on the loudest set I’d ever heard at Cornerstone. Other great acts came by way of mewithoutyou, Ester Drang, and Over the Rhine. So with such a great time last year, I had high hopes for ‘07.

I’ve been attending the Cornerstone Music Festival for eight years straight now, and I was wondering if a ninth consecutive run would take place this year due to the poor artist lineup. But one band has locked me in. Page France will be making their first Cornerstone appearance and I just can’t miss it.
hat and rabbit

you will have to look hard, but there is some other good stuff amidst this lineup. (mewithoutyou, over the rhine, pigeon john, etc.)

-Pitchfork Music Festival & All Tomorrow’s Parties Presents:
Don’t Look Back

Saturday, July 14

Cat Power
Clipse
Iron & Wine
Girl Talk
Grizzly Bear
Professor Murder

Sunday, July 15

Of Montreal
Jamie Lidell
Ken Vandermark’s Powerhouse Sound

So tickets have been available for a week or so, and the three day passes have already SOLD OUT. Now, it did sell out last year, but it took a good couple of months before that happened. This, well, this is just crazy. If Indie music isn’t as big as it gets right now, well I’ll just stop there. Indie music is big.

But is that lineup even that appealing? I suppose I’ll appreciate Iron and Wine, hearing those new tunes from Mr. Beam. But so far this lineup pales in comparison to the last two years (Jens Lekman, Andrew Bird, Danielson, the Decemberists, etc.). I’m just not drawn to a Cat Power show, and I don’t feel bad at all about it.

But it’ll be fun anyway I’m sure, and I’ll take pictures when I’m there and I’ll post them here at the perch for all to see.

Here’s some songs from some of these bands:

Cat Power - The Greatest

More Cat Power at Matador Records

Iron and Wine mp3’s

Grizzly Bear mp3’s 

Greetings from Chicago. I’m more than pleased to be making my first post on perchmusic.com, and I hope that my contributions find themselves well-suited along with Kevin’s already impassioned dedication to sharing good music with the people.
Since this is new to me, let me begin by plugging my own weekly podcast, the Moody Indie Review. If you’re interested in an album or artist but haven’t found the time to listen to more than a song or read many reviews, the Moody Indie Review allows you to hear a good portion of an album while it is simultaneously being critiqued.

and subscribing to the podcast is free, so do that if you’d rather not check back at the website every week to see what’s been reviewed next.
speaking of which, the next review will be of Neon Bible, the latest from the Arcade Fire.
Pitchfork has already gotten a head start on this one, but it comes out tomorrow, and it’s definitely worth checking out.

Check the proof (Black Mirror):