Troika Music Festival this weekend!

There's so much good stuff on here that it's difficult to know where to begin. I have been advised to check out Future Islands at 9 p.m. at Bull City Headquarters on Thursday. I can also say that Megafaun, who are on the same bill, are worth checking out. And since I have STILL not seen FKON, I might actually have to make it out to Durham on Friday night. Here's the full schedule: The 2007 Troika Music Festival will run November 1st, 2nd and 3rd with an extra special show on November 16th at Duke Coffeehouse. Thursday, November 1 Duke Coffeehouse Crowell Building, Duke's East Campus, Durham, NC All Ages — BYOB/Coffee Bar/Snacks $8.00 • The Dry Heathens 11:15 pm • Shakermaker 10:30 pm • Bull City 9:45 pm • Sleep Sound 9:00 pm James Joyce 912 W. Main Street, Durham, NC 21 and Over — Menu/Bar Free • Hundred Air 10:30 pm • Nathan Oliver 9:45 pm • Regina Hexaphone 9:00 pm Bull City Headquarters 723 N. Mangum Street, Durham, NC All Ages — Alcohol-Free Space Free • Melissa St. Pierre 11:30 pm • Megafaun 11:00 pm • Hazerai 10:30 pm • Push Pull 10:00 pm • Maple Stave 9:30 pm • Future Islands 9:00 pm Broad Street Cafe 1116 Broad Street, Durham, NC All Ages — Food and Bar $8.00 • Malcolm Rollick 10:00 pm • Dom Casual 9:15 pm • Sound of Singles 8:30 pm Marvell Event Center 119 W. Main Street, Durham, NC 18 and Over — Bar and a good time! $8.00 • Quitzow 11:15 pm • Setting Sun 10:30 pm • Can Joann 9:45 pm • Wedlock 9:00 pm Alivia's Durham Bistro 900 W. Main Street, Durham All Ages — Bar and good food! Free • Mingus Young 12:00 am • Resist Not 11:15 pm • Thought Speak 10:30 pm • Ships 9:45 pm • The Busy World 9:00 pm Friday, November 2 Duke Coffeehouse Crowell Building, Duke's East Campus, Durham, NC All Ages — BYOB/Coffee Bar/Snacks $8.00 • Luego 11:30 pm • Fontana 10:45 pm • The Future Kings of Nowhere 10:00 pm • The Lodger 9:15 pm • Gray Young 8:30 pm James Joyce 912 W. Main Street, Durham, NC 21 and Over — Menu/Bar Free • Beloved Binge 10:30 pm • Citified 9:45 pm • Carol Bui 9:00 pm Bull City Headquarters 723 N. Mangum Street, Durham, NC All Ages — Alcohol-Free Space $8.00 • Dirty 5 Thirty 11:00 pm • Kerbloki 10:30 pm • The Scott Waite Debacle 10:00 pm • Lam! Lam! 9:30 pm • Sawteeth McTweety and the Particles 9:00 pm • Nicky Click 8:30 pm • Anaturale 8:00 pm Broad Street Cafe 1116 Broad Street, Durham, NC All Ages — Food and Bar $8.00 • Gambling the Muse 11:30 pm • Soft Company 10:45 pm • Dan Bryk 10:00 • Oscar Begat 9:15 pm • The Pneurotics 8:30 pm Marvell Event Center 119 W. Main Street, Durham, NC 18 and Over — Bar and a good time! $8.00 • Armored Uprise 11:15 pm • Livalie 10:30 pm • Expire 9:45 pm • Glorydive 9:00 pm Alivia's Durham Bistro 900 W. Main Street, Durham All Ages — Bar and good food! Free • Mark Doughtery 12:00 am • Noncanon 11:15 pm • Dylan Gilbert 10:30 pm • Sequoya 9:45 pm • The Watercallers 9:00 pm Ringside 308 Main Street, Durham, NC 18 and Over — Bar $8.00 • Grappling Hook 11:45 pm • Jew(s) and Catholic(s) 11:00 pm • Pulsoptional 10:15 pm • The Late Virginia Summers 9:30 pm Saturday, November 3 Duke Coffeehouse Crowell Building, Duke's East Campus, Durham, NC All Ages — BYOB/Coffee Bar/Snacks $10.00 • David Bazan 11:15 pm • All Smiles 10:30 pm • Plumerai 9:45 pm • David Karsten Daniels 9:00 pm Bull City Headquarters 723 N. Mangum Street, Durham, NC All Ages — Alcohol-Free Space Free $10.00 • The Everybodyfields 11:00 pm • Bodies of Water 10:00 pm • Phosphorescent 9:00 pm • Ben Davis and The Jetts 8:30 pm • Bellafea 8:00 pm • Ex-Members 7:30 pm • Richard Bacchus and The Luckiest Girls 7:00 pm • New Dawn Fades 6:30 pm • On the Take 6:00 pm • Opening Flower Happy Bird 5:30 pm • Midtown Dickens 5:00 pm • (BREAK) 4:00 - 5:00 pm • Eberhardt 3:30 pm • Sweater Weather 3:00 pm • Fan Tan 2:30 pm • Simple 2:00 pm • Betty and The Boys 1:30 pm • The Drowsies 1:00 pm Friday, November 16 Duke Coffeehouse Crowell Building, Duke's East Campus, Durham, NC All Ages — BYOB/Coffee Bar/Snacks $20.00 • Les Savy Fav 11:45 pm • Des Ark 10:30 pm • Boy/Girl 9:45 pm • Veronique Diabolique 9:15 pm • Cantwell Gomez and Jordan 8:30 pm

A few things happening this week

Let's skip over Halloween for the moment, and go on to a few things happening later in the week.

Longtime producer/musician Jeff Carroll is hosting a release party for Have a Holly Raleigh Christmas Vol.II, proceeds from which will benefit the Community Music School. The party is Thursday, Nov. 1, 7 p.m. at Amra's and it's free. So if you're not still hungover from the Motley Crue tribute band at Slim's the night before, come out and celebrate a good cause. But, like I said, I'll get to Halloween in another post.



Also on Thursday is Band of Horses, perhaps my current favorite band, at Lincoln Theatre with The Drones. Band of Horses also includes former Archers of Loaf bass player Matt Gentling. Tickets are $15 in advance, $17 at the door.




Since Friday is First Friday, Lump is showing Teenbeat 432, a retrospective of the design work of Mark Robinson, Teenbeat Records founder and member of the D.C. bands Unrest, Grenadine and Air Miami. The opening reception is from 7 to 11 p.m. on Friday, and the exhibit continues through Dec. 1


Finally, I caught part of Jac and Lutie Cain's wedding party Sunday at the Pour House. Check out the photo of Lutie rockin' in her veil. And check out the video of her band, The T's.

The T's from Mann's World on Vimeo.

Bridges and Powerlines

New York's Bridges and Powerlines, a catchy pop group that also includes former Raleighite Keith Sigel, has just finished recording its first CD and will be in Chapel Hill tonight at The Cave.

Go see Midlake for me

This week Cat's Cradle is hosting two shows I would love to go see -- if I wasn't going to be out of town. You already know about The National (Sept. 7), but you may not be familiar with Midlake, who, honestly, are pretty new to me too. They'll be at the Cradle on Sept. 5. Check them out and let me know what I missed.

Goings-on this weekend ...

And most of it's free! Beginning tonight: Thursday: I have it on good authority that Goner are going to cover AC/DC's "Downpayment Blues" tonight at Tir na nOg. The Loners are also going to be there. No word on whether they'll be doing "Riff Raff." FREE Friday: I've never seen Needham's Neighbor, but they've been talked-up so much to me that I will be there at Sadlack's at 7 p.m. to see them. Also, The Backsliders are playing Saturday along with Nightranger (??) at Moore Square. But if you don't feel like braving that crowd, they will also be at Slim's the night before. Don't know the cover, but not likely to be more than $3. Saturday: The aforementioned Nightranger/Backsliders show at Moore Square. Actually, "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" is one of my favorite songs from the '80s, so I might try to make it out for this one. Nightranger is at 9; Backsliders at 7. Free! If you happen to be over in Chapel Hill this weekend, there are two good shows to catch: John Harrison (North Elementary) Brooklyn's Ghosts I've Met (feat.Margaret White) and Regina Hexaphone are at The Cave and The Comas (whose new album, "Spells," I'm digging) will be at Local 506 with Wembley and Great Northern. Sunday: Free show at The Pour House featuring Shotgun Romance (6pm; Super Secret Special Guests (7:30pm); Olympic Ass Kickin Team (9:30pm); Patty Hurst Shifter (11:30pm). Free!

Odds and ends

Michael writes to tell me about his indie label Fractured Discs, and about the following shows:

*SONS will be playing at the 506 on the 18th as part of the north elementary cd release party (Note from Karen -- N.E.'s new CD "Berandals" is excellent) and work clothes will be playing at the cat's cradle on the 26th with portastatic, des ark and the strugglers- this show is a darfur benefit.

According to the label's Myspace, they feature the following bands/releases: Hundred Air (Sept '07) / *SONS / Work Clothes / Robert Deeble / The Winter Blanket / Alina Simone / V/A We Could Live in Hope – A Tribute to Low (Mark Kozelek, HNIA, Jessica Bailiff, more) / V/A Preserve, Volume One (M. Ward, Shearwater, the Decemberists, more). Definitely check it out.


ALSO: Thanks to Alex for posting this. If you've ever sold CDs at Schoolkids for beer money, that source of income may soon be in danger -- and already is in Utah and Florida.

NOW LISTENING TO: Midtown Dickens, "Oh Yell"

Wow. I can honestly say I haven't been totally blown away by a local CD in a long time. Kym Register and Catherine Edgerton create the sweetest, most heart-rending anti-folk, using guitars, their winsome harmonies, and a slew of unusual and found instruments, from banjos to bottlecaps. I can't listen to this CD without stopping and repeating "Airplane" about five or six times. For what it's worth, Edgerton's father is novelist/bluegrass musician Clyde. I can honestly say I've never liked his books, but I think his daughter's music is awesome. DO NOT FORGET to check out the Midtown Dickens Get Down Showdown this Saturday at 305 South in Durham

The Annuals playing tomorrow night ... kind of

Repost from Myspace:

Sedona show tommorow at bickette gallery in raleigh!
Body: come see us play as sedona tommorow night in raleigh!!

If I didn't have to work that weekend I would go to this ...

Since techno is the national anthem of Germany, it only makes sense that Monty's latest party is called "Berlin." Tschüß!

The show of the week

Assuming we're not all snowed in, will be Wee Willie, Little Cash Friday at The Hideaway. I don't think there's anything I can say about this show that hasn't been said by the man himself: What do you get when you take a Virginia Redneck boy that likes Rock N Roll and Country, dress him up, send him to school mix a little booze and weed in there and watch him only grow to be 4 ft 6 inches tall ,,,,,,,,,The only known Little Persons tribute to Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash. Standing only 4 ft 6 inches and dressed to the "T" this Willie Nelson impersonator known as "WEE WILLIE" will serve your party or special event needs 100%. Apparently it's one guy doing both, and he also used to be in Midget KISS. I'm really looking forward to this show because I haven't been to the Hideaway to see live music (but I have eaten some delicious ribs there).Saturday's must-see show won't be quite as surreal. Annuals (I've been corrected -- there's no "the") and Greensboro's Tiger Bear Wolf are among those performing for night two of WKNC's Double-Barrel benefit at Kings. Night one features Old Ceremony, Mountain Goats and The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers, but I don't think that can top a midget dressed as Johnny Cash.

Ear Farm sponsored show Wednesday at Bickett

Repost from the guy who blogs at Ear Farm. He's an N.C. native now living in New York.



Hello Raleigh-area friends of Ear Farm -

'Tis the season for holiday festivities and what better way to spend
the down time between Christmas (or Hanukkah) and New Year's than to
do it with drinks and good friends and live music and art? I'll tell
you what - there IS no better way and so I've decided to set up an
EAR FARM sponsored holiday show in my hometown over the holiday
break. The show is going to be an intimate one with three great
bands surrounded by the original art @ Bickett Gallery. Details
below - I hope to see everyone there and I hope all of you have an
excellent holiday season.

EAR FARM Presents... @ Bickett Gallery (http://
www.bickettgallery.com/) in Raleigh (209 Bickett Blvd. in Five Points)
Wednesday December 27th 2006

8pm - Erie Choir (http://www.eriechoir.com/)
9pm - Schooner (http://www.schoonermusic.com/)
10pm - Monologue Bombs (http://www.myspace.com/themonologuebombs)

Best,
Matt


*be sure to ask me for an Ear Farm magnet at the show.



--
EAR FARM
http://earfarm.com/