Ten more of my favorite songs from ’08 …
As mentioned in today’s column, I’m starting a new tradition of re-examining my favorite albums list, a year removed. And there aren’t the same sorts of glaring discs that I missed like in ’06, when I totally slept on The Hold Steady’s “Boys & Girls in America,” C.S.S.’s wildly fun “Cansei de Ser Sexy” and Meshuggah’s “Catch Thirty-Three.” Notably, Brandi Carlile’s sophomore effort really grew on me, jumping several spots, as did John Vanderslice’s “Emerald City” album, which cracked the top 10 as my appreciation for “Central Booking” and other cuts from disc grew.
Amended favorite albums of…
The year’s coming to a close. And for ’08, I thought I’d be ambitious and post the biggest installments of Critic’s iPod ever, featuring 50 of my favorite songs from this year, from 50 different artists. I’ll post 10 a day for the next five days, and here’s the first batch.
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"Business Time" Flight of the Conchords
"Oxford Comma" Vampire Weekend
"Let’s Reggae All Night" CSS
"Halfway Home" TV on the Radio
"Say Aha" Santogold
Just got word of another rock show for early ’09. Disturbed will headline Comcast Arena at the Everett Events Center on Jan. 23, organizers announced today. They’ll get support from opening acts Sevendust and Skindred. Tickets go on sale at noon on Friday, Dec. 19. And you’ll find more details here.
Buckcherry and Avenged Sevenfold will co-headline a Feb. 7 show at the Tacoma Dome, organizers at the Dome announced today. The show is slated for a 6:30 p.m. start and will also feature guests Papa Roach and Saving Abel. (Maybe you caught half of that lineup in August when Motley Crue’s Crue Fest brought Buckcherry and Papa Roach to Auburn’s White River Amphitheatre.)
Tickets are set at $39.75, and will go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday through Ticketmaster.
The Dave Matthews Band will return with its first studio album in four years on April 14, the band’s publicist announced today. The as yet untitled follow-up to 2005′s “Stand Up” will be produced by Rob Cavallo (Green Day, My Chemical Romance), according to a related press release.
The band will also take the new songs on the road next spring. The band — Matthews, drummer Carter Beauford, bassist Stefan Lessard, and violinist Boyd Tinsley — will have support on the road from Tim Reynolds on guitar, Rashawn Ross on trumpet and Jeff Coffin, filling on saxophone for
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‘Twas a few nights before Christmas, when all through Grit City
Were Santas pub crawling, the sight was not pretty …
After a hard day’s work, perhaps you decided to unwind with a relaxing happy hour at your favorite local watering hole last Friday. Then, suddenly, your peaceful ale-sipping experience was demolished by the cacophony of dozens of rowdy Santas whooping it up as they invaded your establishment of choice. They came, they saw, they made people go, “What that heck was that?” And then, just as suddenly as they showed
…Just in case eggnog and spending yourself into debut don’t get you in the Christmas spirit, KPLU-FM (88.5) just released it’s Christmas and Christmas Eve lineup, with a Hanukkah special thrown in for good measure, too. Here’s the lineup they sent over today:
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KPLU holiday schedule
Christmas Eve
8 to 9 p.m.: 12th Annual KPLU Christmas Jam live concert (re-broadcast) featuring jazz vocalist Sara Gazarek and Pacific Lutheran University’s Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Dr. David Joyner. You can also watch the concert at www.kplu.org.
Christmas
9 to
You’ve seen Bill Engvall on "The Blue Collar Comedy Tour" and "The Bill Engvall Show." And Saturday, the Texas-bred funny man will headline the Tacoma Dome with a set of homespun humor. Recently, I caught up with the guy for a phone interview, and here are a few clips:
Part 1: Getting in trouble for jokes about his family, his ties to Grit City
Part 2: His new material, empty nesting
Part 3: The complex he developed from Blue Collar Comedy
The other day, I posted an earlier version of my story on the Tacoma Police Department and Pantages Theater getting sued over that E-40 concert in today’s paper. And it didn’t have this info from South Sound about the Tacoma Hip-Hop Coalition and Broadway Center’s hip-hop outreach forums. Thought a few of you might be interested:
…Local hip-hop fans picketed Broadway Center in the immediate aftermath of the E-40 show being called off, saying they were unfairly profiled and stereotyped by police and local venue owners.
In response, Broadway Center has hosted a series