Yea, you head me. Indie superstar Sufjan Stevens will play House of Blues NOLA Tuesday, September 19. Asthmatic Kitty labelmate My Brightest Diamond will open the show. I didn’t figure I’d ever have an opportunity to see Stevens, and I must confess to being rather elated this show is on the horizon.

Tickets are $24 with a ridiculous $8 service charge. Absurd really, but I guess you have to consider who you’re seeing. It’s not the $24 I have a problem with, it’s the service charge. I reallly hate how they say a ticket costs one price but really it’s nearly $10 more. Sorry for the rant there, but it’s seriously a problem.

It’s raining furiously here in Baton Rouge. I’m sitting in the LSU library, looking out the window, watching the wind whip people’s umbrellas around. Hopefully the weather will clear by this evening when Danielson takes the stage at The Spanish Moon.

Baton Rouge locals Secret Annexe will start the night off. Doors open at 9PM and tickets are $10.

Well I’m going to be in Baton Rouge for most of the week, so I thought I’d give you guys a heads up of what’s to come. And what better way to celebrate the Fourth than with some alt country? Actually I’m sure there are probably gobs of better ways to celebrate anything than with country music, but it’s no ordinary country. That said, The Mendoza Line has quite an appealing twang to them. Subtle beats and inventive lyrics. Good stuff all-in-all.

I have no idea what time this starts or how much it costs. I suspect the show will probably begin around 10:30 and cover will be somewhere around $5. That’s just a guess though.

Fresh off their west coast tour, the 40s reclaim the stage at Jacks. This is actually the release party for their brand new album Ticonderoga. That means they’ll be armed with all new material and will sound spot on.

Doors open at 9PM and tickets are $10.

I’ve always been hesitant to review live shows. Although I might thoroughly recommend a band based on one excellent performance, it’s entirely possible that someone heeding my advice and attending a show elsewhere might have an entirely different experience. Nevertheless, I had the opportunity last weekend to attend a performance by Man Man at The Spanish Moon in Baton Rouge.

That said, let me summarize my experience for all of you: Man Man is the best act I have ever seen perform in a club environment. I am, quite simply, astounded by what I saw. Never before have I so thoroughly enjoyed the performance of any band. I would easily rank them as one of my top five shows ever (club, stadium, whatever). They’re really that good.

You’re probably thinking to yourself, “Alright I get that you liked them, but why are they so good?” The answer I believe is twofold. For starters, their music contains characteristics that transition to the stage impeccably well. Their tracks are energetic and flashy and full of debauchery. Songs like “Engwish Bwudd,” “Spider Cider” and “Zebra” are just meant to be heard live. I think a lot of it has to do with the prevalent infusion of klezmer into their music. It is a genre that is naturally given to foot stomping, dancing and audience participation. This alone is truly enough to make a great show, but that’s not the only thing Man Man has going for them.

Secondly, their showmanship is incredible. They seem so natural in their roles that the audience is easily swept into their energies. Frontman Honus belts forth lyrics with fiery precision as the band alternates wildly between myriad instruments to create something quite unlike anything I’ve ever heard. It’s as if Hell spat them up to lure the horde into assured damnation.

If there is one bad thing I can say about their performance, it’s this: The day after the show I felt as if someone had runover my puppy. Since, however, I don’t have a puppy, this answer clearly wouldn’t do. After raking my mind for awhile I came to the realization that my normal life seemed meek in comparison to the experiences of the previous night. The show had created such a high for me that I actually spent the rest of the weekend visibly depressed. The following evening while watching deadboy & the Elephantmen, several people asked me why I was in such a morose mood. I replied, “If you’d seen Man Man, you’d understand.”

Pitchfork ran a story today about the possible return of Jeff Mangum. It’s not absolutely confirmed or anything, but they seem rather confident about it, which makes it worth mentioning. It basically says that Mangum and pals have been working on new material that may or may not be new Neutral Milk Hotel stuff. I’m not going to leech their story, so I suggest you go check it out for yourselves.

Well I’ve been trying to stay away from basic news lately, but this is pretty big. Indie rockers Sleater-Kinney announced today via the their website that the band is calling it quits:

After eleven years as a band, Sleater-Kinney have decided to go on indefinite hiatus. The upcoming summer shows will be our last. As of now, there are no plans for future tours or recordings.

We feel lucky to have had the support of many wonderful people over the years. We want to thank everyone who has worked with us, written kind words about us, performed with us, and inspired us.

But mostly we want to extend our gratitude to our amazing fans. You have been a part of our story from the beginning. We could not have made our music without your enthusiasm, passion, and loyalty. It is you who have made the entire journey worthwhile.

With love and thanks,
Sleater-Kinney

Here are the above mentioned dates:

07-29 Louisville, KY – Mellwood Arts Center
07-31 Philadelphia, PA – Starlight Ballroom
08-01 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
08-02 New York, NY – Webster Hall
08-04 Chicago, IL – Grant Park (Lollapalooza)

I guess I have to go to Lollapalooza now. Argh.

And this would be the reason I’m in Baton Rouge. Man Man brings their Avant Garde klezmer rock amalgamation to the red stick tonight and I finally get to see them. I’m quite excited.

If you’re in the area, or can make it to the area, this is definitely something to see. As you can see in this self-referential review, I absolutely adored Six Demon Bag. Anyway, hopefully I’ll see you all tonight. Doors open at 9PM and tickets are $10.

Although we’re a music blog, I feel it pertinent to occasionallly delve into the world of comedy. Todd Barry will perform tonight in NOLA as part of his “Cities I’ve Never Performed in Tour.” I very much wish I could catch this show, but I’m in Baton Rouge.

Barry is something of an alt-comic whose subject matter often involves music and fringe issues we’re typically interested in. Doors open at 9PM and cover is $10.

A Band of Horses at House of Blues
Well it’s not blues, but HoB has this show for whatever reason. I’d like to see these guys, but not more than Man Man or Todd Barry. Nevertheless, if you’re in NOLA and in the mood for something more musical, this isn’t a bad choice.

Back in 1987 Taylor Hackford filmed a documentary on rock ‘n’ roll icon Chuck Berry. The film features commentary from Eric Clapton, Keith Richards and about 1000 other notables. The film was aptly titled Chuck Berry – Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll.

One Eyed Jacks played host last night to a special event. Rio Hackford is one of the owners of the club. He’d been on hand for much of the filming of the documentary and wished to do something to commemorate its DVD release. We held a special screening of the film complete with popcorn and $1 PBRs.

It was my first viewing of the film and I have to admit that it’s one of my favorite music documentaries. There are plenty of insights into Berry’s formation that would have been completely unknown to me otherwise. It’s sort of interesting to hear the transition his career went through. He explained that in his early days he received $21 a week for performing. As the story progresses Bruce Springsteen offers a story where his band backed Berry on a performance and the man received $11k for one show.

Where the film really shines, however, is an accompanying tribute concert with myriad guests performing alongside Berry. A significant part of the film is the rehearsal for the tribute. During the rehearsal, we see an amusing Berry yelling at Keith Richards for screwing up guitar licks on “Johnnie B. Good.”

Sadly lacking from the 1987 film is the 2000 litigation between Berry and former collaborator Johnnie Johnson. Johnson was a pianist who developed the foundation for many of Berry’s songs before Berry adapted them to guitar and penned the lyrics. The judge eventually dismissed the case citing that too much time had passed for it to be a viable complaint. Johnson died from pneumonia in 2005.