one of the freaks

The Notwist is a really really good band, the kinda good that mixes heavy guitar riffs with computers. It's loud, dreamy and melodic all at the same time. I was so out of it last night, that i could hardly stay up on my feet. I hope to see them again soon and really enjoy the performance. They're playing tonight again at the knitting factory, and just added a new date on the 8th. Go see them, you'll like it.

If you want to spend quality time reading about music, spend it on the 4th issue of Let Them Eat Lead.

From the Pol:
"The video for Obstacle 1 will be premiering on MTV.com on April 7. The video was shot in LA by James Hawkinson and directed by Floria Sigismondi."
People in the know told me the video is so damn good, it will hurt your eyes.

date with the night

If i'm starting to look like a zombie, it's because i'm turning into one!

With that said, i did find energy last night to dance, jump, scream, do cartwheels at the Yeah Yeah Yeahs show. It'd been a while since i last saw them, i had almost forgotten how good they are live. But they were better than good.
First off, their debut album has far surpassed my expectations, it's becoming a daily listen at this point. And the songs translate so well on stage, especially when the guitar picks up and it all goes crazy, or when Karen O moans and screams at the mic. Karen did her usual thing but it wasn't too over the top, and yes there was beer all over. Her posse was there, as always, up front screaming all the songs. Let's see, i remember they played (not in this order): Date with the night, Cold light, Mystery Girl, Rich, Art star, Black tongue, Pin, Machine, Miles Away, and a very heartfelt Maps that Karen dedicated to her love Angus and to a few dozen friends. They came back for an encore and finished the night with Our Time and my favorite Tick.
The Kills were, as expected, much better than the other night at the mercury lounge. The sound was way superior, and the two birds really got into it... so much so that during the last song miss Alison VV Kills started tripping, and ended playing dead on the floor... someone gives me what she's having!

While we were shaking our stuff at the YYYs, miss jinners attended the super secret Walkmen show at Sin-e, check out her photos! By the way, is Sin-e now the official place for secret shows? Who's next? The Strokes?*

*disclaimer: i, melody nelson, do not know of any secret Strokes show at Sin-e or any other nyc location.

school ya

Miss modernage was right, the Carson Daly show is the new bowery ballroom... all the cool bands play and all the cool people attend.
So yesterday when we went to cheer for Stellastarr*'s debut TV appearance, lots of usual suspects were there... miss modernage, 2/3 of the divestar girls, ultragrrrl and her ultrabrrro, Nina and her girls wearing super cool homemade Stellastarr* tees. We even noticed Nick Mark watch the performance like a proud older brother... i felt right at home.
Just before finding our seats inside the studio, our pal Jonny Kaps came over and asked me "do you remember how people find out about the yeah yeah yeahs?" and so i replied "well yeah, Albert wore one of their pins and everyone was like "who's that?"" to which Jonny responded "watch tonight"... yes people, to my enormous surprise, Shawn Stellstarr* wore one of my melody nelson pins on fucking national TV!! Does that mean that after next week, i'm gonna become all famous and shit!? Oh wait, no one watches the Carson "i'm a tool" Daly show, nevermind!
But let's talk about the real stars here... they absolutely rocked the studio with no weather, sound was great, the boys got all rock crazy-insane on us and Mandy Stellastarr* looked and sounded fabulous. Let's hope the cameras captured the hotness. And you all should watch it when it airs on april 10th.

We later went to celebrate the whole TV weirdness at Elefant's release album party at joe's pub, which was fun. Elefant is a band who's growing on me slowly but surely. One day i will find out what is up with singer Diego's hand movements. That's what happens when you don't play an instrument on stage, you don't just don't know what to do with yourself!

It was quite surreal seeing Stellastarr* taping a national TV show at this stage of their career, but if anyone deserves it right now, it's them. And whether you like their music or not, just be ready to see and hear a lot more of the Stella* in the future, says melody nelson.
OH-MY-LORD!!

fuck the people

Just to clarify something quickly - Stellastarr* is taping Last Call with Carson Daly today but it won't air until thursday april 10.

Last night's show was a bit disappointing, i have to admit. First, we missed The Thermals, then we sat through Dead Combo, who in theory should have been fun (two guys, two guitars and a drum machine) but ended up being a bit on the repetitive side.
Then The Fiery Furnaces came on, i'd seen them before so i knew what to expect. Though some of the songs were interesting in an old-vintage rock kinda way, i wish their stage presence were more engaging. Also i've been mis-pronouncing their name for the past few months, so last night i decided to rename them The Fury, that's much easier for me to remember.
Finally, the sexy duo known as The Kills graced the stage. My last live memory of them was great, which placed my expectation level quite high. Last night something was off. For one, the audience was dead, not a move, perhaps a little frustrated from the new non-smoking law? Ok fine, but didn't we learn from the morning news that it's quite ok to show signs of life at gigs?
No doubt that VV Kills is a natural born stage performer. The girl looks like she came straight out of a scene from Girl, Interrupted... it's all there, the epileptic body movements, the messy hair, the fingers in the mouth, the spitting. You could spend an entire evening watching her stand on stage, and still be in awe of her disturbed ways. The best parts of the show were when VV and Hotel would sing facing one another, sending those provocative looks at each other. Bottom line, it wasn't a bad show, i just didn't feel it. I still have faith in them and hope their thursday's night opening slot for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs will be more electrifying.

the hardest button to button

I'm on a mission, i must find a guitarist and bassist for my cousin Doug's band - this is very important. Read and pass on to your musical friends:
Bassist and Rhythm Guitarist wanted for Brit-influenced original rock band. Infl.: Oasis, The Verve, The Charlatans, Embrace, Stone Roses, etc. Under 30, serious only. Email Doug at sisao23@hotmail.com.

************

Today is Elephant day! What do we predict for the first week? I don't think top 10, maybe top 20? It's a tough one to guess...

tick

3 AM Magazine reviews Radio 4 in London.

Tony Flecther interviews 2 Many DJs.

The morning news gives us the ultimate guide to rock show behavior... my favorite:
"The days of hipper-than-thou have mercifully passed and it is not only okay, it is downright polite to show the band you appreciate their performance by acting as if you are alive."

In case you missed Six Feet Under last night, the episode featured two Interpol songs (Obstacle 2 and Roland) during the record store scene. look out for the replays.

First The Walkmen, now Brendan Benson is selling his soul to a Saturn commercial, the song of choice: Tiny Spark.

hail to the thief

The news of the day is that the new Radiohead album has surfaced on the internet, as you probably already know. i'm debating whether i want to wait until the release to listen to it or not, hmm...

Maxime photographed The Kills during their recent Black Sessions in paris.
Jenik, a cool site with lots of cool live photos. [link from Laura].