August 2009 Archives

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Deer Tick Enter the S.S.

August 25, 2009 10:29 AM

We were absolutely thrilled when the dudes from Deer Tick recently dropped by the S.S. The quartet from Providence, Rhode Island -- led by John McCauley -- released Born On Flag Day in June, and it's definitely one of our favorite records of the year.

For your pleasure they treated us to a cover of Eddie Cochran's '58 classic, "Summertime Blues."

Then, McCauley duetted with his touring buddy Liz Isenberg, on the Flag Day cut "Friday the 13th."

Please to enjoy.

Deer Tick - "Summertime Blues" [Video: Matthew Murphy/Eric Helton; Editing by Matthew Murphy]

Deer Tick - "Friday the 13th" [Video:Matthew Murphy/Eric Helton; Editing by Matthew Murphy]

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More: S.S. Live Performance

Them Crooked Vultures Are Born

August 9, 2009 11:16 PM

Photograph by Dustin Rabin

During Lollapalooza weekend in Chicago, most of the hottest shows in Chicago haven't been in Grant Park, but rather in the Chi-town clubs.

Like Saturday night, when we made our maiden voyage to Schuba's Tavern, where Black Keys singer-guitarist Dan Auerbach slayed a lucky crowd with tunes from his solo debut, Keep It Hid.

But last night's show at the Metro was truly special: the debut of the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures -- featuring Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones.

We were tipped off last week when Grohl texted us to make sure we'd be in town on Sunday night. Without spoiling the surprise, he told us to come to the Metro on Sunday at midnight. Then we saw the ad that appeared on the Metro site, featuring the logos of the Foo Fighters, Zeppelin and Queens of the Stone Age. Holy shit, we thought.

But nobody had any idea what to expect at the gig. The trio, joined by QOTSA guitarist Alain Johannes, walked onstage to the tune of Chuck Berry's "No Particular Place To Go." Then they slayed the crowd for 75-minutes -- no encores -- with songs nobody's ever heard. Homme sang, Grohl played drums, and JPJ stuck mostly to the bass -- a couple times he jumped on keyboards, keytar, or picked up a crazy, futuristic slide guitar.

Here's the set list:

Elephant

New Fang

Scumbag Blues

Dead End Friends

Bandolier

Mind Eraser (No Chaser)

Gunman

Daffodils

Caligulove

Warsaw

Nobody Loves Me

Never has a supergroup sounded more like the sum of its parts. Grohl never spoke to the crowd, but his galloping drums recalled both Nirvana and the Foos. Homme's vocals (and songwriting, we would guess) were dark and heavy, with those crazy melodic and rhythmic shifts. And JPJ, who was sripping with sweat by the end of it, thumped along like he was onstage again with Zep.

After the show everyone partied backstage. We had a shot of Crown Royal with Grohl, who was totally exhausted after the gig (and the five hour rehearsal the day before.) We learned that Them Crooked Vultures have been kicking around for six months. The idea began with Grohl and JPJ (who have been buddies for a while now) and then they recruited Homme. There will be an album AND a U.S. tour. Believe it!

The show is insane! And the boys were so stoked. To quantify how excited they were, let us share with you a texting exchange that went down yesterday afternoon..

S.S.: Hey Dave, I just got my first boner about the show tonight!

Grohl: I've had one of those everlasting boners that they warn you about on the Viagra commercials for the past 6 months.

S.S.: You should notify your physician

Grohl: No worries. It'll go down once I blow my load all over the Metro.

Last night, everyone at the Metro blew their proverbial load.

See photos of more supergroups, from Cream to Audioslave, here.

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Smoking Section Presents: Petty Fest 2009!!!

August 4, 2009 1:56 PM

Poster by Joe Newton

We are so goddam psyched to officially announce PETTYFEST '09!!!

It's coming on September 3rd!!!

This is our second annual PettyFest, which we added last year to compliment our annual DylanFest. In 2008, the inaugural PettyFest performance at Mercury Lounge was such a spectacle that this year we've been upgraded to Manhattan's greatest venue, the Bowery Ballroom!!!

We have an unbelievable line-up of New York musicians and friends who will be singing and playing Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers classics all night!!! This is your chance to get totally drunk and sing along! You will know the words to every single song.

This gig is going to be off the hook, we promise. (You might be amazed at who shows up.)

And we want our faithful S.S. readers to have first dibs.

So click here and get tix before they run out!

Only $12!

Yes!!!

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