Big night in sports as LeBron and the Cavs try to rebound in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, while Roger Clemens makes his 2007 debut for the New York Yankees. Not so sadly, I'll be doing other things, which you can read about below...
SPORTS
Dethroned?
LeBron will learn, adapt after poor NBA Finals debut
SAN ANTONIO -- Being LeBron James isn't as easy as the Pistons made it look.
So jaded am I by years of endless dial-turning and channel surfing that I can hear the future broadcasts playing in my head. The next 48 hours is vitriolic. "LeBron James, what a disappointment.'' "The whole country was looking forward to these NBA Finals and we were all let down by LeBron.'' "LeBron is no Michael Jordan, let me tell you.'' "The Cavaliers would have been better off without LeBron.'' "Paris Hilton is having a better week than LeBron.'' "We have seen the new Sanjaya and his name is LeBron.''
Already I am sick of hearing these things that haven't even been said yet.
When I look at LeBron's NBA Finals debut line of 14 points, 4-for-16 from the floor, four assists and six turnovers, here's what I think:
It's not so bad.
Maybe I am allergic to talk radio. Maybe I don't want to agree with the electronic voices from the future ringing in my head.
But I can't help but think that this is as bad as it's going to be for James, that he's going to play better in Game 2 on Sunday, and that even with him having one of the worst nights of his career, his Cavaliers went down by the relatively small deficit of 85-76.
"I feel good,'' James said afterwards. "You have one off night, but it's not like the NCAA tournament where you have one game and you're out.''
No, this is more like the opening straw poll in Ames, Iowa, which precede the Iowa caucuses that are followed by the New Hampshire primary and then whatever else comes next. John McCain is down in the polls, but is he guaranteed to lose the election? That's where LeBron stands now...[READ MORE]
MUSIC
Fun night in store for us as we eagerly await seeing The National with Shapes & Sizes and Talkdemonic tonight in Madison at the High Noon Saloon.
If you've been following along this week, we've dished on Shapes & Sizes in anticipation of tonight's show.
You can read up on Talkdemonic at their website, and if you need to know more about The National, then you probably need to know a lot more about music in general.
We've been waiting to see The National for over a year now since we have to forgo our trip to Chicago's Pitchfork Festival last year.
If you're going, we hope to see you there along with a few other friends. If you can pick me out of the crowd, stop by and say hello. I'll be the 5'4, glasses bearing, somewhat bearded fellow in the salmon dress shirt standing next to a pretty lady, looking something like this.
Punk rockers Against Me! set to release New Wave July 10th
Against Me! will release their new album, New Wave, on July 10th via Sire Records. The follow-up to 2005's Searching For A Former Clarity was produced by Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins). The album features a guest appearance from Tegan Quin of Tegan & Sara on the song “Borne On The FM Waves.” You can purchase the single "White People For Peace" and the non-album b-side "Full Sesh" on iTunes. New Wave will be available on CD, a Special Edition CD/DVD, 180 gram yellow vinyl and digital download. You can preview "White People For Peace" below.
The official site for Against Me! was re-launched, www.againstme.net, and the band posted the brand new video for "White People For Peace." The new site includes tons of photos, posters from past shows and a detailed discography with information and lyrics from all of the band's releases. You can also check out the first installment of the "making of the record" series on Youtube. Go behind-the-scenes with Against Me! here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=hd0v4GR5nm0
Quicktime: 128k - Stream "White People for Peace"
Windows Media: 128k - Stream "White People for Peace"
With lyrics like "East and west could not agree. So their generals have a call and gathered at the border. With guns ready, drawn and aimed. Each side was praying to a god to bless them with strength and courage it was in his name that artillery lit the sky on fire the people sang protest songs to try and stop the soldier's gun" from "White People for Peace," Against Me! do not hide their political lines. I had the chance to catch them a couple years ago with Bad Religion and they absolutely rocked. Looking forward to the July release.
Want to know more about Against Me!? Click here.
Against Me at Myspace
Featured Artist: Pela
Pela is an American rock & roll band. At a time when the word ‘America’ has never been more fraught with meaning, songs that speak to our basic feelings and emotions about life could never be more resonant. Lost amongst all the geo-political tumult are the stories of every day America; the aches and pains and the beautiful possibilities. Yet amidst this turmoil and uncertainty, new stories are being written and told by a new generation of American bands. Pela is clearly one of those voices.
Long based in Brooklyn, New York but hailing from the hinterlands of New York state and California, Pela are 4 working class artists who have struggled nobly to pursue their dream of making music, be it busking in the metros of New York and Europe, selling neckties in Times Square, tending dive bars, catering food, doing carpentry, working in the A/V department at a major record label or playing polka at Croatian weddings. Along the way, various members have put themselves through college, learned to play multiple instruments, studied jazz, toured Europe with other bands, lived in Africa, learned other languages, consumed a lot of beer, had some teeth knocked out and knocked out a few of their own.
Guided by the voices of Bruce Springsteen, Hubert Selby, Husker Du, Raymond Carver, The Replacements, Andre Dubus, The Pixies, Wilco, and the Hold Steady, amongst others, Pela’s brand of pastoral punk has been beautifully described as equal parts desperation and inspiration, which they have masterfully crafted into a signature sound. Their upcoming debut album, Anytown Graffiti, is a prism of songs reflecting the broken love, reckless hope, confusion, celebration, isolation, discovery, addiction, loss, small town stares and big city angst of American life through the eyes of 4 young men uncompromisingly living it. Achingly imploring melodies and infectious hooks permeate crowd favorites like “Lost to the Lonesome”, “Tenement Teeth”, and “Waiting on the Stairs”, while the near orchestral grace and detailed narrative of “Cavalry” is as uniquely compelling a composition as the fragile overture “Your Desert’s Not a Desert At All”. These are songs that Pela has spent a lifetime writing, songs for any town in New York, California, everywhere in between and beyond.
Pela is one of the most refreshing rock artists to break out this year. Shunning the plasticized overproduction that befalls most rock bands these days, Pela sticks to the roof of your mouth like good-old fashioned peanut butter with their rock-root riffs punctuated by vocalist Billy McCarthy's emotional outcries and harrowing vocals.
Pela - "Waiting on the Stairs"
Pela - "Lost to the Lonesome"
Purchase Pela music
Stay in touch with the band through their Tour Blog.
Featured Artist: LadybiRdS
LadybiRdS is Teeter Sperber and Tyler Pursel, the keyboard player for Gym Class Heroes. Their debut album comes out late summer 2007 on a rad lil' indie from PA called Creep Records - it's entitled "Regional Community Theater." Handfuls of cool contributors and guest vocalists appear on it.
Max Bemis from Say Anything sings on 2 tracks, Matt Pryor from The Get Up Kids sings on 1 track and another track even has a chorus of spazzy pre-teens singing on it. (Best part of the record ever ever.) There are guest vocals from two other amazing frontmen as well - Justin Johnson from Philly area band called The Danger O's and Neil Sabatino from a Jersey-based band called Fairmont.
LadybiRdS describe their overall sound as such: "Cyndi Lauper superfan meets (a cupcake pop version of) The Postal Service on diet pills (before Ephedra was banned by the FDA.)
Ladybirds - "The Brown and Red Divide"