Nicole Atkins and the Sea - Neptune City

Nicole Atkins and the Sea opened for The Pipettes at Lee's Palace in Toronto this past Sunday. This was their third time in Toronto in recent months and the touring seems to be paying off. By the end of their set, the stage area had filled up and the band seemed to have gained quite a few fans. It was a terrific set. They won me and all of my friends over. And it didn't hurt that one of the band members is from Toronto.

Nicole Atkins' debut album, Neptune City, was released about two weeks ago. This was preceded by the EP Bleeding Diamonds in 2006. Atkins' 'sound' is best described as folk-pop, but with a dark edge to it. Expect to hear a lot more about her in the near future. At least that's my prediction.

FYI: Nicole Atkins and the Sea appeared on the Late Night Show with David Letterman around the same time as the album release date, performing the track 'The Way It Is'. You can view their performance at the band's MySpace page.

Download: Nicole Atkins and the Sea - The Way It Is [mp3]

MySpace: Nicole Atkins

Nicole Atkins: Official Website

Buy Neptune City

The Pipettes @ Lee's Palace, Toronto (18-11-07)

I finally got the chance to check out The Pipettes at Lee's Palace in Toronto last night. I should probably start off by telling you that I've been obsessed with this group for a while now, so the chances of me not liking their show were slim to none. However, I was still slightly nervous about how it would all turn out. Maybe it was because I was dragging my friends with me, the majority of whom have never heard The Pipettes before. I mean, I've seen a lot of live clips of their shows and have quite a few mp3's of their concerts but you just don't know until you experience it for yourself right (Smashing Pumpkins, anyone?)

Anyways, none of this matters because The Pipettes were fantastic. The Cassettes sounded great and the girls sang and danced their way through a short but sweet set. The Pipettes have been touring this album for a while now and have played so many shows that I'm sure I don't really have any new information to enlighten you with. Well, before they played 'Pull Shapes' the girls taught the crowd some dance moves but I refrained from doing it myself cause if I did I probably would have pulled some muscles instead. Is that introduction new? No. Ok.

I can't remember the exact set list but I know that they started with the new track 'Catch and Boogie' and went straight into 'Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me.' Everything after that is pretty much a blur but they did manage to play the majority of their debut album and some 'new' songs they have been playing live for a while now.

But I gotta tell you, I think the Toronto audience was pretty awesome. I know I'm biased but the crowd was very receptive in my opinion. They danced and clapped along to the songs and seemed to really appreciate what The Pipettes are doing. This in turn created a great atmosphere and is probably what made the show so great, except for The Pipettes, of course.

I don't know if The Pipettes are coming this way anytime in the near future (I would say it's highly unlikely), but if you ever get the chance you need to go see them.

FYI: I'll post some pictures as soon as I can.

Buy We Are The Pipettes

The Pipettes: Rescheduled Tour Dates

Late last week The Pipettes were forced to cancel the first three weeks of their North American tour. It was set to begin yesterday and since I listed the now canceled dates, I feel like it is my civic duty to post the newly rescheduled ones. The first six remain unchanged and a date for Philadelphia should be announced soon:

10/25 Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
10/29 San Francisco, CA @ Bimbo's 365 Club
10/31 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
11/1 Seattle, WA @ Crocodile Cafe
11/2 Eugene, OR @ John Henry's
11/3 Vancouver, BC @ The Plaza Club
11/5 Denver, CO @ The Walnut Room
11/7 Austin, TX @ The Parish
11/9 Atlanta, GA @ Vinyl
11/11 Baltimore, MD @ Sonar Club Stage
11/12 New York, NY @ Blender Theater @ Gramercy
11/15 Boston, MA @ Great Scott
11/16 Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
11/18 Toronto, ON @ Lee's Place
11/19 Pittsburgh, PA @ Diesel
11/20 Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom Tavern
11/21 Chicago, IL @ Double Door

MySpace: The Pipettes
The Pipettes: Official Webpage

Album of the Month: THE PIPETTES - WE ARE THE PIPETTES

The album has been out for well over a year in other parts of the world but tomorrow, The Pipettes' We Are the Pipettes, will finally be released in North America. It's taken too long, I think I've been listening to it for six months now. However, since many international artists are not getting a proper release here nowadays, let's just be grateful that The Pipettes are.

And that's because their debut album is FANTASTIC! Really. I don't have a bad thing to say about it or them. I also don't have anything new to say about their music that has not been said before. Yes, they are a throwback to the 60's girl-group pop era. Yes, the album has a retro sound. Yes, it has all been done before. Yet, We Are the Pipettes is still a modern indie pop album. It's lively and spirited and refreshing. You'll listen to it, quickly learn the lyrics to it, sing-along to it and probably have a dance to it (In the privacy of your own room, of course. Not me though, I'll probably pull a muscle or something).

The North American version has been slightly tweaked. Besides the new album cover, there are two new tracks that are not available anywhere else. Sadly, the older songs have been remastered for some reason. I'm not sure why. I mean, why change a good thing? But I've heard the 'newer' versions and it's not a big deal, especially if this is your first time hearing their songs.

I cannot recommend The Pipettes enough. Pick up the album and if you get a chance, get a hold of some of their B-sides like, 'Really That Bad' and 'Guess Who Ran Off With the Milkman'. Both of those can be found on the 5 track EP, Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me but there are lots more floating around the web that are worth checking out.

Download [mp3]: The Pipettes- Judy
MySpace: The Pipettes
The Pipettes: Official Webpage

Buy We Are The Pipettes

Band of Horses Tour Dates

Band of Horses are touring in support of their forthcoming album Cease To Begin. If you have been to this site before, you will probably know that after The Pipettes (whose album 'We Are the Pipettes' is released on October 2 in North America, just thought I'd throw that in there), Band of Horses' Cease to Begin is the album that I am most excited about this fall. It's really good, so you should definitely check it out. It is out a week after The Pipettes, on October 9th.

Hear are their tour dates and another song of their new album called 'Lamb of the Lam (In the City)'.

10/30 Charlottesville, VA @ Satellite Ballroom

11/1 Raleigh, NC @ Lincoln Theatre

11/2 Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club

11/3 Providence, RI @ Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel

11/4 New York, NY @ Terminal 5

11/6 New Haven, CT @ Toad's Place

11/7 Northampton, MA @ Pearl Street

11/8 Montreal, QC @ La Tulipe

11/9 Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theatre

11/10 Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom

11/12 Chicago, IL @ Metro

11/14 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue

11/15 Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium/Dempsey's Upstairs

11/17 Bozeman, MT @ The Filling Station

11/18 Boise, ID @ Neurolux

11/19 Seattle, WA @ Showbox

11/20 Seattle, WA @ Showbox

11/21 Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom

11/23 San Francisco, CA @ Mezzanine

11/24 Los Angeles, CA @ Avalon LA

11/26 Pomona, CA @ Glass House

Download[mp3]: Band of Horses - Lamb of the Lam (In the City)

MySpace: Band of Horses

Band of Horses: Official Webpage

Buy Cease To Begin

Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong - The Next Big Thing?

Well the NME seem to think so and why not? The songs that I've heard, so far, have been pretty good. And they have a memorable name. Try saying it three times really quickly.

I don't know too much about this group yet, but I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot about them in the near future. There are also some obvious comparisons. But I'm not going to make them here. It's good music and that's all that matters.

FYI - 'Joe Lean' (which I'm pretty sure is a stage name) was the drummer for The Pipettes. I love the Pipettes. So should you! By the way, The Pipettes are releasing their debut album in Canada on October 2, 2007. I will take every opportunity to remind you of this in the weeks to come. Shamelessly. But I don't care.

Download (mp3): Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong - Lucio Starts Fires
MySpace: Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong

The Pipettes Announce North American Album Release + Tour Dates

The Pipettes have announced the North American release date of their debut album We Are the Pipettes. It was originally suppose to be stores this week but we can now expect the album on October 2, 2007 on the Cherrytree/Interscope label. On a side note, the cover for the US release is different than the UK. I'm not sure why, the other one was ten times better. Oh well.

I'm pretty excited about this album and I will be writing a lot about it (and the band) in the weeks to come but if you're a Pipette fan living in North America, such as me, you've probably already found a way of getting your hands on a copy or downloaded the 2006 UK release. So you might not be extremely psyched. But what if I told you that there are two new tracks on their US debut? Well there are! The songs are entitled 'Catch and Boogie' and 'Baby, Just Be Yourself .' Both were being streamed on the band's MySpace page. However, the songs seem to have mysteriously disappeared. Not sure why but both are provided below.

The Pipettes will also be touring North America in October and the beginning of November. I've never seen them play but most show reviews that I've read have been positive and I've heard that they are a live band more than anything and should therefore not be missed. So, if their coming to your city make sure to check them out.

The Pipettes North American Tour

02/10/07 Chicago, IL@ Park West

03/10/07 Detroit, MI@ Magic Stick

04/10/07 Cleveland, OH@ Beachland Tavern

05/10/07 Toronto, ON@ Opera House

06/10/07 Montreal, QC@ Petit Campus

08/10/07 New York, NY@ The Fillmore @ Irving Plaza

09/10/07 Boston, MA@ Paradise Rock Club

10/10/07 Washington, DC@ 9.30 Club

11/10/07 Philadelphia, PA@ First Unitarian Church

13/10/07 Pittsburgh, PA@ TBC

15/10/07 Nashville, TN@ Exit/In

16/10/07 Atlanta, GA@ Vinyl

17/10/07 Birmingham, AL@ WorkPlay Theater

18/10/07 New Orleans, LA@ The Parish @ House of Blues

19/10/07 Austin, TX@ The Parish

20/10/07 San Antonio, TX@ TBC

21/10/07 Dallas, TX - Cambridge Room @ House of Blues

23/10/07 Denver, CO@ Bluebird Theatre

25/10/07 Los Angeles, CA@ Avalon

29/10/07 San Francisco, CA@ Bimbo's 365 Club

31/10/07 Portland, OR@ Wonder Ballroom

01/11/07 Seattle, WA@ Crocodile Cafe

02/11/07 Vancouver, BC@ TBC

Download (mp3): The Pipettes - Catch and Boogie

Download (mp3): The Pipettes - Just Be Yourself, Baby

MySpace: The Pipettes

The Pipettes: Official Site