[transmission from... Tyler Sonnichsen]

You know, every now and then a man must take a moment, take a breath, and simply admire all that is going on around him. These next few weeks are going to be ridiculous, and this past week has been ridiculous enough. For a prime example of it, I highly suggest you check out this tribute to one of the most incredible and disturbing email exchanges of all time, from none other than our friend Ryan Conner. I'm serious. It's...beyond words.

Now that that's been mentioned, I highly suggest you mark your calendars for this Tuesday night for one of two things. First, we've got this...

Be Your Own Pet and Pash are two bands definitely worth a trip uptown (or down if you live north of there in DC). And Mudsugar's making it all happen.
And second, some great local comics (including this site's own Tyler Richardson and that young buck Keith the Comedian!) are participating in a big showcase at the DC Improv. Check this out for more information! Best of luck to everyone participating!

So what else is there, beyond plugs and shameless self-promotion? I've been running in circles organizing the first BIG TAKE-OVER comedy/music showcase, which will be dropping at Alexandria's own Laughing Lizard on Saturday, March 4th. Doors are around 10, the comedy and music will be rocking past 1, and fine beers on tap will be flowing. (Sorry, this place is 21+). We're all really excited for this, and I'll be getting more information out soon. For now, I've still got a bunch of events listed in the TAP Wire on the right.

Alright, seeing as how I've already basically burned this post on current, topical issues, I'll get something better enriched going on next time. For now, here are a few pieces of music I've gotten my paws on recently:

Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit (2006)
I wasn't expecting a whole lot, considering how "Funny Little Frog" wasn't exactly a killer first single, and I wasn't crazy about Dear Catastrophe Waitress. But, I picked this up the second day it was out up at Revolution Records, and fortunately they had the special DVD edition for only a couple bucks extra. I watched the DVD (which is undeniably worth the few extra bucks) of their outstanding BBC performances of some new songs, and a few things hit me. First, why the hell did Stuart Murdoch remind me so much of Barry Manilow? Frightening. Second, this band is so ridiculously wonderful. I know that sounds very "cliched," and very "gay," but it is very true. Murdoch, Stevie Jackson, Mick Cooke, and their friends are still really tight, having a great time, and still making hearts bleed somehow. And The Life Pursuit, surprisingly, is very great. "Another Sunny Day," "Dress Up in You," and "Song for Sunshine" are all on par with that If You're Feeling Sinister gold, "Sukie in the Graveyard" and "Mornington Crescent" are priceless stylistic left hooks, and even "Funny Little Frog" sounds great in the context of the album.

Jimmy Cliff, et. al. - The Harder They Come (1972)
I'd been meaning to get my hands on a copy of this for as long as I could remember, and then I found it at Second Story Books in Bethesda for about $5. Waiting sometimes can pay off. What a great set of songs. I've never considered myself a huge reggae or dub fan, but these are all standards, especially the title track, which shows up as a 'Humdinger' in the board game Cranium. If that isn't the pantheon of awesomeness, I don't know what is. You can't beat Jimmy Cliff wailing to "Many Rivers to Cross," either. The only bad thing about this record and its accompanying movie's influence is the army of dreadlocked white kids in the US today, but I think we can overlook that for Cliff, Toots, et. al's sake.

The Nation of Ulysses - Plays Pretty for Baby (1992)
I read about these guys in the book Dance of Days, and, intrigued by the near-universal praise they got back in the day and how they're all but forgotten today under a pile of less interesting bands, I picked up their second and final album. I found it to be what I'd expected. Very over the top, but not bad. To me, they sound like Rites of Spring, only more ironic/pretentious. Ian Svenonius had a voice not that far from Guy Piccioto's, and their relatively hook-free but powerful songs didn't completely offset their avant-garde hyper-political themes. It feels like an album that will grow on me. For now, I'll just settle on calling it "cool" and acknowledge what a great influence they obviously were on bands like Refused.

Sick of It All - Blood, Sweat, and No Tears (1989)
Oh, man. This band is so great, I can't even fairly put it into words. This was their first full-length album. 'Nuff said. Just like, well, most of their catalogue, it will kick you square in the ass. "My Life" is such a goddamn great song, and it's criminally short at about :43. The most amazing accomplishment, though: their bassist here, Rich Cipriano, has a mustache and a mullet, worn unironically, and still fits in perfectly. Then again, it was 1989. Either way, as Blastmaster KRS-1 randomly appears to declare at the beginning of "Clobberin' Time," this is the real deal.

The Vandals - Fear of a Punk Planet (1991)
Here's another great band who didn't get their due for a couple of (understandable) reasons. Their SoCal Pop-Punk sound, while pretty solid, isn't as good as the Descendents', and in terms of sophomoric humor, they were great but couldn't measure up to The Dead Milkmen when it came to sincere laughs. So what did they do? They just didn't give a crap and made a disturbingly endearing album. Disturbingly because among the twelve songs (I found the original version in the used rack at Crooked Beat, which is odd, since they tweaked half the titles when they reissued it on Restless) are wonderful ditties like "The Day Farrah Fawcett Died," "Kill My Tenant," the glorious "Girls Turn 18 Every Day," and their hilarious mash-up of "Summer Lovin'".