Vote here!

And just for fun: what should your state’s official rock song be? I’m thinking My Morning Jacket’s “One Big Holiday” for Kentucky.

Thanks to Muzzle of Bees for this one.

Still gotta say that I prefer “Sunny Feelings” as far as their new ones go.

Guys, this is the most NSFW thing I’ll probably ever post. So NSFW that I’m going to say that NSFW stands for Not Safe For Work.

Zach and Miri Make a Porno is Kevin Smith’s newest movie where the title characters… well, make a porno. Seth Rogan’s in it, as is about a third of the Apatow gang, but he’s playing somewhat un-Apatowian character. He’s still a lovable loser, but you’ll just have to watch.

My favorite bit from the trailer: “This is the worst porno I’ve ever seen…” Craig Robinson’s so great.

Photo by Danielle

Yessss. It’s getting to the point where I’m just praying everything that happens today has a Lexington connection. Now with the official announcement that the Music Tapes will be playing Lex, I think it’s safe to call it as such.

The Music Tapes will be bringing a traveling crew of quite a few members in order to play their songs and the songs of the Olivia Tremor Control (yay!), Elf Power, Circulatory System and more. Confirmed for the tour are Will Cullen Hart of the Olivia Tremor Control, Scott Spillane of the Gerbils and NMH, Laura Carter of Elf Power, Eric Harris of OTC and Circulatory System and I was told that Bill Doss (OTC, Apples in Stereo) might be making the journey as well. And hey, who says Robert Schneider won’t pop up at the Lexington show? Not me.

The Music Tapes’ “Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise” Tour Dates
10-09 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506
10-11 New York, NY - Knitting Factory
10-12 Boston, MA - The Church
10-14 Portland, ME - Space Gallery
10-15 New Haven, CT - The Space
10-16 Purchase, NY - SUNY Purchase
10-17 Rochester, NY- The Bug Jar
10-18 Pittsburgh, PA - Brillobox
10-19 Columbus, OH - Wexner Center
10-20 Pontiac, MI - Crofoot Pike Room
10-21 Chicago, IL - Bottom Lounge
10-22 Bloomington, IN - Cinemat
10-23 Lexington, KY - University of Kentucky

OK, I can totally connect this one to Lexington too. Though neither Casper and the Cookies or Dressy Bessy are from Lexington, Jim from CATC is from here and John from DB is in the Apples in Stereo with Robert Schneider who lives in Lexington. Yeah, that was a bit of a stretch, but if you’ve accidently discovered a theme for the day, you’ve got to stick with it.

Anyway, Casper and the Cookies will be joining Dressy Bessy on a bit of their tour. This is good news, as I like both bands, however, I’m not sure if they’ll be playing with them on Dressy Bessy’s upcoming Lexington gig… which I have not yet finished booking.

Thanks to Optical Atlas for all the info.

Dressy Bessy’s new record HOLLERandSTOMP comes out September 16.

Dressy Bessy Tour Dates
9/13- Monolith Festival, Morrison, CO
9/19- Replay Lounge, Lawrence, KS
9/20- Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines IA
9/21- The Picador, Iowa City, IA
9/22- Bottom Lounge, Chicago, IL
9/23- Grog Shop, Cleveland, OH
9/24- Club Cafe, Pittsburgh, PA
9/25- Arlene’s Grocery, NY, NY
9/26- Union Hall, NY, NY
9/27- Talking Head, Baltimore, MD
9/28- T.T. The Bear’s Place, Cambridge, MA
9/30- Black Cat (Backstage), Washington, DC
10/2- The Fire, Philadelphia, PA
10/3- Gravity Lounge, Charlottesville, VA
10/4- Tin Roof, Charleston, SC
10/5- Pirate’s Cove, Myrtle Beach, SC
10/7- Smith’s Olde Bar, Atlanta, GA *
10/9- 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA *
10/10- The Nick, Birmingham, AL *
10/11- The End, Nashville, TN *
10/12- Young Avenue Deli, Memphis, TN *
10/17- Opolis, Norman, OK
10/18- Bluebird Theater, Denver, CO
10/24- The Whole Music Club, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
10/25- The Cave, Carleton College, Northfield, MN
10/29- The Turf Club, St. Paul, MN
10/30- University of Wisconsin, Stout, Menomonie, WI
10/31- The Duck Room, St. Louis, MO

Additional Casper & the Cookies dates:

09/05- Caledonia Lounge, Athens, GA
09/20- Star Bar, Atlanta, GA
09/27- Flicker, Athens, GA

Man, I’m just keeping the Lexington stuff going today. Our one-time neighbor and still favorite Lexington emigrant Vandaveer recorded an appearance at a Take Away Show party in May and the results are online now.

Vandaveer on Take Away Show

I was waiting for the right time to post this second Scourge of the Sea song. I figure today’s really as good as any. If nothing else, it makes two posts in a row where I talk about Lexington friends — first the RNC photographers’ arrests and now Lexington’s Scourge of the Sea.

MP3: Scourge of the Sea - Under the Lights
I’ve been listening to a lot of Big Star lately, so maybe that’s why I’m hearing a lot of their influence rattling around in here. It’s a very visual song, filled with some of their best lyrics. My personal favorite is probably “I kissed you in the violence, and we fainted under the lights.” (At least I think that’s the line). I feel like a lot of light pop steps somewhat softly, but Scourge of the Sea really have their feet planted strongly here.

Scourge of the Sea on Myspace

Image used totally without permission. Sorry. Photo by Matt Rourke of the AP

UPDATE: Both Ed and Britney are out of jail now. Charges on them are still pending, but at least they’re not behind bars any more.

MP3: Dirty Projectors - Police Story

YANP is almost exclusively a music blog, but I just had to throw a little light on this. For the full story, go here.

The above photo is a picture of my friend Ed being sprayed with mace while photographing the protesters at the Republican National Convention today. He and my friend Britney, both photographers for the University of Kentucky’s paper the Kentucky Kernel, went to St. Paul to photograph the events there. I received a text just now that said that they were maced, arrested on charges of felony rioting and held in jail. As of right now, they’re still waiting in jail.

Personal connection put mostly aside (Ed and Britney are two of the nicest people you could hope to meet), this is just absurd. I thought the insanity had maxed out when they arrested Amy Goodman, host of the nationally syndicated program Democracy Now!, but apparently they’re just getting started. According to the Kentucky Kernel story, if convicted, they would face a minimum year in jail and $3000 fine.

Crazy.

Anyone with friends in a similar situation should probably direct them to Cold Snap Legal, who I’m told are handling a lot of these cases right now.