Razzmatazz DJs Amanda Carroll and William Alberque played a terrific mix of indie pop at Razzmatazz on Saturday night. NM and I had a lot of fun dancing and checking out the costumes. Here are a few pics from the evening:














  ¶ 2:39 AM

  Pop-up Black Cat Looks like the Black Cat schedule page has taken its technology one step further with the addition of pop-up windows for a few of the upcoming shows. If you've never heard of XYZ band/dance party/random event, you can read a blurb about the show to help you decide whether or not further research is necessary. This will make planning my concert calendar a more efficient process. Yay.  ¶ 10:49 PM

  Free Drinks Looks like free drinks on Thursday nights at Tapatinis will be a regular thing. Stop by tomorrow evening for free cocktails and martinis made from Giori Lemoncillo Liqueur and Cream Liqueur, Amaretto and Sambuca. Tapatinis is located at 711 8th Street SE.

   ¶ 3:24 PM

  It's a Canadian thing. I wouldn't understand. Canadians from the greater Baltimore area went crazy for the Tragically Hip last night at Recher Theatre. I was a little scared when the audience started chanting "Hip! Hip! Hip!" a few minutes before the band walked on stage. The people there were really, really into the band. Random people listed songs to one another that they hoped the Hip would play. I can't remember the last time I was at a show with that kind of following. Fortunately, the Hip lived up to expectations. They truly are great performers--lots of energy and charisma. They played for an hour and a half--with two encores. I'm not going to put them on my list of favorite bands, but I can definitely see how Canadian teenagers got excited about the group 15 or so years ago.

Here are a couple of pics from the show (with my new digital camera--woo hoo!)

I wish that 9:30 Club had a marquee





3/5 of the Tragically Hip





Gordon Downie, lead vocals and guitar





Jesus, er, I mean Bobby Baker, guitar





Gord Sinclair, bass



  ¶ 1:22 PM

  Music I was starting to get a little disappointed at the lack of interesting shows over the next few weeks. However, looks like I needn't feel that way any longer. Mates of State will play at Black Cat on Monday night. I just got their new EP, All Day, and like it. The tracks are cheerful with lots of synth. I've never seen them live and, unfortunately, will not get to do so on Monday as I made a previous commitment to accompany a friend to the Tragically Hip show in Towson. Other upcoming shows of note that I intend to attend are Washington Social Club, Juliette & The Licks, Donnas, Von Bondies and Ted Leo/Rx (see side bar for details). I'm very interested in the Juliette & The Licks show because Juliette Lewis scares me when I see her in films. I'm hoping that seeing her at Black Cat will cure me of my fear. Of course, there's a good chance that my fear will only intensify after the show.   ¶ 10:47 PM

  Board games or free wine? Provisions Library hosts its monthly International Board Game Night tonight. Light snacks and a wide selection of board games provided. If you're up for something slightly less wholesome, Tapatinis is giving away free drinks again tonight. They have a case of Luna di Luna wine that they will start giving out by the glass at 8:00pm.  ¶ 11:48 AM

  Pod Power While I was a little bit disappointed with the vibe at Saint-Ex on Wednesday night, I enjoyed participating in iPod Jukebox. The activity started an hour late due to that silly presidential debate. Check out the tunes played here. I decided to go with a woman power theme. The second choice was a DC bands theme. That just didn't seem like very much fun at the time. Congrats to KG for setting a new record of eight songs within 12 minutes. What will he do next month???

Good crowd for the Channels and Mission of Burma show last night. Both bands were fine.  ¶ 5:48 PM

  Pods, Channels, Vodka Check out iPod jukebox at Cafe Saint-Ex Wednesday night. As long as my courage holds, I'll sign up to contribute a play list.

The Channels (a DC/Baltimore band) are playing at Black Cat on Thursday night with Mission of Burma. Support local music by checking out the show. Listen to one of their tracks, "Chivaree," here.

Looking for free drinks this Friday night? Head over to Tapatinis (711 8th St. SE) for complimentary drinks made with Kutskova vodka--8pm until the bottles are empty. There's no catch. The owner of this new restaurant got half a case of vodka for free and is looking to share it with the masses. What a great guy.  ¶ 9:20 PM

  Thanks! Thanks to all who came out for Crafty Bastards on Saturday! City Paper did a great job with the fair. I realy enjoyed checking out all the cool stuff for sale and talking to people who stopped by my table. Check out these vendors if you're in the market for unique and interesting gifts for yourself or others: Eric Gordon, ilikeseamonsters and Pixie Fashions. I also really like Sarah Stella's aluminum can flower pins, but can't find Web info for her.

A special thanks to my crafty bastard little helpers, NM, Ms. B and Ms. W. And thanks to ZK, JF, T&M, RJ, CS, Rob and Sarah for stopping by the table.  ¶ 11:05 PM

  You know you heart LL Listen to Lindsay Lohan's "Rumors" here (Real Player) or here (Windows Media Player). She "just want[s] a little room to breathe." She's "tired of rumors startin'." Why can't you people let her "dance and have a good time"?  ¶ 10:45 PM