Just Like Paradise

Well I returned from Bermuda a day later than expected - the airline bumped us (we volunteered when they made us an offer we couldn't refuse). Then we almost didn't get off the damned island yesterday because of high winds. Perhaps I'll write an entertaining entry about our weekend, but this isn't it. Not much to say about music there, other than the calypso band that greeted us at the airport when we landed.

For the non-NME readers, I found a couple of interesting bits upon my return to the site.

A) Felix DA Housecat may be working with Thom Yorke. We (the royal we of course) dig Mr. Dazzle (he soundtracked a great night in Chicago in the fall) and we kinda dig Mr. Yorke too (but discovered we were a bit burnt out on Radiohead after seeing them 26 times). Thom has turned in powerful collaborative performances, such as "Rabbit in Your Headlights" with Unkle among others. Thom doing a remake of Felix's big cut "Silver Screen Shower Scene" could be pretty interesting. This has the makings of an interesting development.
B) U2 opened their mega mega world tour in San Diego the other night and played "An Cat Dubh" - Fuck Yeah! An over the top 7 minute epic from Boy - this is a brilliant song and it's appearance makes me consider trying to get into one of the 25 shows at MSG in hopes of seeing them pull it out again.

Queens of the Stone Age - Webster Hall, March 24, 2005

I just got home from seeing Queens of the Stone Age at Webster Hall. Normally I would write this after at least a day of contemplation and all that but tomorrow I will be in blog free Bermuda, but this show MUST be discussed. Short description, QOTSA RULED!!! But I better do a little better than that.

Opener Throw Rag was a loud punk-core band with a heavy semi-naked guy who had anything but washboard abs playing a washboard with cowbells attached to it. I think I would have liked them during my Mighty Mighty Bosstones phase, but I am far from 17 now, so it’s rare for the punk to do much for a jaded soul like me these days. They did dedicate one song to Lee "Scratch" Perry for what it was worth. They were very strange – not the least bit of a surprising opener for QOTSA. I am going to guess they have a cult following in California and Josh Homme brought them along for that reason (they did have a bunch of shirts and CDs at the sale rack).

After their set, the stage was draped in a white sheet as they set up for QOTSA – very rock and roll. The intro music was that nursery tune/lullaby “Whose Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?” and when it ended, they dropped the sheet and RIPPED into “Someone’s in the Wolf” from Lullabies to Paralyze. Goddamn – this song is heavy on the album, but live it was demonic as all hell. Each verse heavier than the last. From there, they fired into the two big guns off of Rated R: “Feel Good Hit of the Summer” and “The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret.” A sizeable chunk of the new album was played and they all sounded great: “In My Head,” “Tangled Up in Plaid,” “Burn the Witch,” and “Broken Box” were all tight and energetic. Only song off new album that would have been nice to hear but didn’t was “The Blood is Love.” They played many of Songs for the Deaf as well, such as "First it Giveth," "Go With the Flow," "Song for the Dead" (jeez was that intense), a very different version of "God is on the Radio" and "Song for the Deaf" (which I don't think I heard on the previous tour but was impressed with). Notably absent was “No One Knows” (Peephole was very upset). The band was joined for a bunch of songs in the middle by Mark Lanegan (who they had said was not touring with them anymore – part of me is very suspicious of Lanegan playing with them despite the announcement Final song of the set before the encore was “I Think I Lost My Headache” – serious groovy stoner rock.

Though I have a feeling he is going to be back in QOTSA very soon, the band did not miss Nick Oliveri in the least. Homme is such a charismatic consummate frontman, there is no need for the gonzo bassist (though there are plenty of songs that he sings that it would be fun to see). The line up now has Troy Van Leeuwan on a bunch of instruments, Joey Castillo just destroying the drumset (he was rocking a Buzzcocks shirt tonight), a badass evil looking (in a good way) girl on keyboards (guessing that is Natasha Shneider based on QOTSA website) and I think Alain Johannes now filling in on bass. They were super tight and Homme just shredded on guitar all night.

Finally, to anyone who has problems with Webster Hall as a venue, I am convinced it is all the product of a subconscious animosity towards the venue’s weekend clientele, as it really is fast becoming an excellent midsize venue. The sound was sharp – could hear every part clearly without any muddied sound. The sightlines aren’t bad either and even in the back you are fairly close to the stage.

I am having trouble being as articulate about the show as I would like. It was absolutely asskicking good. QOTSA makes me feel young and stupid again – I can’t explain why they are the hardest rock band now that I get all fist pumping about, but they are. Perhaps it is because they simultaneously are hard but don’t take themselves too seriously. How many other proper rock bands could get away with writing a song that is a derivative wok of Bjork (“Better Living Through Chemistry” is a reworking of one of the songs on Debut). It may also be because they are able to channel the early 90s feel in a very contemporary way - grunge rock but not stale. At any rate, Lullabies to Paralyze has taken on a new meaning with a live viewing and I am very curious to see how it will end up against the heavyweight champ, Songs for the Deaf.

Everybody Knows That Your Insane

If I wasn't smarting over being the butt of an office prank this morning (and to all you cunts at work reading this - go fuck yourselves with an abnormally large cucumber!), or trying to finish off a sizeable chunk of work with a finite amount of time to do it, I would be in a frenzied state about my upcoming excellent weekend. Queens of the Stone Age at Webster Hall (which I learned from comments at OL used to be The Ritz and is where G'n'R did that MTV club concert from the Appetite for Destruction era) tonight. And tomorrow, I leave for Bermuda for the weekend - here's to mopeds, pink sand beaches, Anglophilic hedonism (I swear I didn't make that up - it's in the ad campaign for Bermuda Tourism) and golfing on a par 3 course on Saturday.

I hope to report back about QOTSA tonight. I hope I am able to tell you that they played "Better Living Through Chemistry" - a good song, a good Fatboy Slim album, and a good M.O.

9 Songs

Michael Winterbottom, director of the excellent 24 Hour Party People, has made another movie about music and decadence and I might be in it! It's called 9 Songs and from what I have read about it, it sounds very conceptual. The movie is about a couple that go to concerts together and then have very explicit sex (apparently that is all there is to it). The movie was filmed at real concerts of bands such as Primal Scream, Super Furry Animals, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Franz Ferdinand, and The Dandy Warhols. I was at the Warhols show (London Forum in December of 2003) when this was shot - so perhaps my grill will end up on the big screen in sensible movie theaters like the Angelika and the Sunshine this summer. 9 Songs is getting a "limited release" according to IMDB, on July 22, 2005

I am certainly looking forward to this. Good bands, dirty sex - what is not to love?

NB: the movie's official webpage - how cool that it has that adult threshold thing going on? Looks pretty randy!

Broken Box

Today is a big release day - Coolfer believes the "adventurous record stores" are going to be busy. M.I.A., Moby, Out Hud, Bloc Party, a Yo La Tengo best of, Prefuse 73, Louis XIV (a band that has gotten the One Louder hype stamp), and most importantly, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE!!! I have already heard QOTSA, love it (more on it further down), so I will certainly buy that one, Out Hud and perhaps even the Yo La compilation.

QOTSA's new disc, their first with gonzo bassist Nick Oliveri, Lullabies to Paralyze, got a write up on Pitchfork yesterday. I think it is official - Pitchfork's 7 range is the equivalent of the Rolling Stone 3.5 stars. That score is being tossed out a lot these days - even the new Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol mix CD got it, as did Doves, and tons more. Every now and then they are ripping an easy target a new one, like Moby, to keep their cred, but the way they review albums now, in my opinion, reflects the impact of getting bigger. I think the writing is still sharp and usually quite accurate (though I am not in complete agreement with the QOTSA review).

Anyone else think they are getting soft and are caving into the pressures of business?

As for Lullabies to Paralyze, it is just as sick as I hoped it would be. I am seeing them on Thursday night at Webster Hall and very much looking forward to that show. Rich, full-bodied guitar hooks; snarling, sardonic vocals from Josh Homme - the coolest rocker on the block; a sharp sense of humor; and great pop/rock songs is why QOTSA is so damn good. Losing Oliveri has not hurt the sound - the vocals may not be as across the board as they were on Songs for the Deaf, but Lullabies doesn't suffer because of it. The album plays out, not unlike LCD Soundsystem, with a bit of a Side A/Side B feel. The first half are the shorter, poppier songs, whereas the second half is where the dronier rock kicks in (with "Broken Box" being the big exception - but it fits very nicely near the end of the album) "In My Head" should be as big "No One Knows" and "Tangled Up in Plaid" could also be this album's "Go With the Flow." The first single, "Little Sister," may not have been the optimal first single, as it is nowhere near the best song on the album, but the next single is "Someone's in the Wolf," which is a stoner rock anthem meets a Grimm Brothers tale, with a massive horn section sensibly mixed in at the song's climax. Cheddar.

Some ballin' trainers

Saturday morning, I awoke the ungodly hour of 8:15 to get to the Adidas Store on Wooster Street shortly before 9. There were already 15 or so people in front of me (turned out the first three guys in line had camped out from the night before - intense!) What were we all doing outside of a Soho boutique on an early weekend morning? Purchasing the Adidas 35th Anniversary Superstar Music Series sneakers, which were being released that morning. Among the artists that contributed to the series included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Missy Elliot, Bad Boy, Run DMC (naturally), Rocafella Records, Ian Brown and Underworld.

Next to me on line I met John (buying Underworld and Red Hot Chili Pepper shoes), a guy that works on building props for SNL (and operating the puppets when they have them), and Nick, a Londoner on holiday in New York this week whose only goal for the week seemed to be drinking (respect). Of course Nick was there for the Ian Brown shoes. Nick had a rough night before the early Saturday morning and attempted to cure himself with a little hair of the dog, a can of Sapporo in the pocket of his completely British parka. Nick quickly learned about the open container laws of New York (and most of the US in general) and kept the beer in his pocket for the most part. How English can you get? The anticipation on the line grew as we neared 11 o'clock - people got calls from friends saying the Soho Bloomingdale's had the Music Series on sale for 100 bucks (they were 150 (!) at the Adidas Store) and groups on line sent representatives to check it out. One guy came back with the DMCs but most were disappointed.

At 10:45, they opened the store a bit early and at that point there may have been 100 people on line - a crazy scene for a Saturday morning. I got the last pair of 10.5's (my size) and a pair of 11's. Apologies for sounding like a stoner but I think the best way to describe these shoes is that they are a total trip! Depending how light hits them, their color changes from crème to white. Hours of entertainment just by shining different lights at your feet. Clearly my 10.5's got worn on Saturday night.

Here are a couple of links to photos to demonstrate what they look like.

http://img199.exs.cx/img199/37/ss35underworld6xb.jpg

http://individual.utoronto.ca/julianc/UND1.jpg

NP: Zoot Woman - Zoot Woman (one sentence blurb: a more dynamic sounding Junior Boys [that doesn't mean better necessarily - this is purely a first impression])

DFA remixing who?!?

According to the DFA website, they have two new remixes on the way:

1) "Mars Arizona" by the Blues Explosion - this is a quality, stomping cut that Optimo played at the Tribeca Grand 2 weekends ago.

2) "The Hand That Feeds" by Nine Inch Nails (!) - huh? When DFA remixed UNKLE, it didn't make immediate sense but then I remembered the connection between Tim Goldsworthy and UNKLE (namely he was a member - this useful bit of information got me into Crobar to see Sasha for free), but Trent?!? Maybe Trent got a couple cowbell crazy or something, but the sound of industrial pathos has never struck me as the perfect candidate for a disco-punk reworking. Have to see it (or hear it) to believe it.

Among the Thugs...

One day I will learn not to draft a blog entry in the Blogger program - I haven't figured this out yet, so my punishment is the occasional lost of a substantial length post. This happened this morning - doh!To satiate the massive public demand while I try to recovery from my crestfallen state and rewrite the thing (a write-up of the movie Kung Fu Hustle and Ulrich Schnauss's show at Rothko last night), here is some interesting movie news:

Eli-JAH Wood's new film, Hooligans, is getting all kinds of positive hype from its screening at SxSW festival in Austin (not just an overblogged about music festival). The movie is about an American journalist that moves to England and becomes caught up in hooligan soccer culture. F-f-f-fresh... This plot sounds a bit like the incredible book, Among the Thugs, which is a non-fiction disputation on both the positive and negative elements of being a hooligan, from the perspective of a New Yorker editor. Claire Forlani plays Jah's sister that lives in England (my sister will be living in England next year too - nice one!). She is high on the list of foxiest of them all, and I just learned thanks to IMDB that she is English - even sexier! This movie has some serious potential...

Put your Finger on the Map, Who Cares Where it Lands - Doves @ The Bowery Ballroom, March 15, 2005

Last night, the usual suspects (Peephole, both halves of One Louder, Frauds, and a few others) and I went to see Doves at the Bowery Ballroom. This was a major show; I am usually happy to be at a concert, but Doves being near the top of the proverbial list and with a very good new album in tow, plus having not seen them since Benicassim in 2002, and not at a small venue since 2001, created substantial anticipation. I have rambled about my first Doves concert in the past, so I will take off my rosy-framed glasses and not talk about it.

The openers were a "hotly tipped" group called The Magic Numbers. They sing on the new Chems album on a track called "Close Your Eyes" - my feelings about this song have improved from antipathy to indifference as I have become more enamored with Push the Button (one of these days I'll share my .02). I enjoyed them well enough live but am probably not running out to buy the album; decent melodies and intricate song structures, with a throwback to 60's California pop aesthetic.

Doves took the stage a few minutes after 10 cut right into "Pounding" off The Last Broadcast - as tight as ever but opening the show with a song from an old album should have been a sign of things to come. Next came an excellent version of "Words" - this was the norm for the night, as they played everything on The Last Broadcast except for "M62 Song," "Friday's Dust," and "The Sulphur Man." While they played a good 100 minutes or so, playing almost all of TLB only allowed for 6 tracks on their new album, Some Cities, and a paltry 3 cuts off the debut, Lost Souls ("Sea Song" - thank God, "The Cedar Room" and "Here it Comes" - but unfortunately no footage from northern soul club nights accompanying as it had in the past).

Even though it might have gotten too much attention, TLB sounded great. They played "Where We're Calling From" (which sounded quite like The Verve - I don't remember them playing this on the TLB tour) and segued into "N.Y." like on the album, which was a brilliant one-two. I even enjoyed "Satellites," which I have always thought of as being a bit schmaltzy.

The new album sounded energetic and dynamic; as blown away as I was by the absolutely swinging "Black and White Town" (Frauds' accurate description), it rocked even harder live. "Snowden" and "One of These Days" also were great. I was very much hoping to see "The Storm" with Andy singing, but all we got with him on the mic was "Here it Comes." It should be said that Andy might be the secret weapon in the band. He is a razor sharp drummer who is also a very entertaining performer to watch live (his facial expressions reveal that his inner 6 year old loves playing drums in Doves), plus when he steps out from behind the kit to sing, his voice isn't professional, but it completely works for its emotional content.

The coolest couple on earth, Dennis and Lois, was at the show last night, and Jimi (who was battling a cold but still managed to find his wonderfully brusque yet emotive voice) dedicated "The Cedar Room" to them.

The show ended with the "There Goes the Fear" and while I wanted to hear them pull out the song "Spaceface" (which is from when they were an electronic act called Sub Sub), this was an ideal ending for the show. "There Goes the Fear" is a perfect song; big whooshing strokes of melodies with a freaky dancin' Stone Roses' rhythm. One thing that stuck out about the track last night was the live ending they do where Jimi pounds on the timbales for the last minute while guitarist Jez (Andy's twin brother) is working a double headed cowbell. Alongside the South American flavor, did it ever sound like a polyrhythmic disco punk flourish (the double headed cowbell is very DFA) - who knew somber boys from Salford had predicted the impact of the cowbell on the hipster circuit?

A great rock band, tight execution, good sound - what was not to love about Doves @ The Bowery Ballroom? There could have been a bit more love shown to albums other than TLB, and hopefully the setlist will change when they play 2 shows on May 18 and 19 at Webster Hall with Mercury Rev.

I am sure the usual suspects will have write-ups later on, so look for them. Peephole's review is already up.

Songlink'd

Coolfer had an understated link today to the exciting news that Songlink'd is coming. Songlink'd is a new technology that if you call them and play a song for them for at least 15 seconds, will tell you the name of the song for 99 cents.

As usual, somehow the freedom loving, superior in every way possible, United States of America lags behind the rest of the world on the technology front. They had the same excellent gimmick going on in that 3rd world county, England, for well over a year. In fact, perhaps a week ago, I was thinking that this program needs get here soon as it is a very clever idea, even considering abandoning my budding career as a lawyer to be the business man that brings it over. Too late. Looks like I need to go to my fall back plan: bring The Bagel Store of Williamsburg to London.

This week is going to be rough one: I am seeing Doves at the Bowery Ballroom tomorrow night, then a double feature on Wednesday night that includes the movie Kung Fu Hustle at the Tribeca Grand Hotel, followed by Ulrich Schnauss at Rothko, with my week concluding with some Texas Hold 'Em on Thursday. I would catch up on sleep this weekend, but I need to get up at the crack of dawn to buy these. All this while my day job of saving New Jersey from the forces of evil is keeping me very busy this week.

If You Don't Want Me to Destroy You (fold and forget about seeing the river card)

Let me tell you people - buying property is no joke! It's a very tiring process. Today, I spent my 3rd Sunday in row wandering around Brooklyn looking for that perfect 1BR with Peephole. Our target neighborhood is Brooklyn Heights. Today we saw several things we liked (not sure if that is good or bad - but I think it is good) but perhaps best of all was the Henry Street Ale House. How can you beat a bar with Fuller's ESB on tap, along with a bunch of other good beers, and some sensible rock on the hi-fi, including one of my guilty pleasures, Manic Street Preachers' "You Stole the Sun From my Heart" (at the V Festival in 1999, as MSP performed, they sold shirts that said "V Festival - You Stole the Sun From Our Heart" - pretty rediculous and I am sure Richey would have never approved). At any rate, I recommend the song and the bar. Hopefully it will be the local watering hole in a few months' time.

Some news:

The Super Furry Animals (SFA) will have five of their albums reissued on March 21 on XL/Beggars Group. They will all include a bunch of extra stuff not on the original releases (of course). While I am glad that I own these albums (instead of having never owned them), it would be nice to get these comprehensive versions that are coming out. Here's hoping the co-workers that I have leant Rings Around the World and Phantom Power to decide to catch up on the back catalog.

Finally, I will admit it - I am the latest sucker for Texas Hold 'Em. I know it is so fashionable to like poker these days, but damn it's fun and addictive. My Friday night devolved into a game of low stakes poker instead of a night at the bars. At least I was up a few bucks, but I am not sure if this a healthy development.

Funeral song...

A recent poll in the UK and Europe of what song would someone most want to hear at their funeral has revealed some interesting results. In the UK, Robbie Williams' "Angels" took the top spot, with others in the top 10 included Mozart's "Requiem," Sinatra's "My Way" (sadly not Limp Bizkit's cut), and Monty Python's "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life." On the contintent, Queen's "The Show Must Go On," was the top song for soundtracking a funeral, with some Zep and AC/DC thrown in the mix of the top 10.

This is a good question - when I was in middle school, I would have picked "In My Life" by The Beatles. I recognize that this choice would be a little cliche. Peephole once mentioned that Brian Molko of Placebo said he would have "Lay Back in the Sun" by Spiritualized would be his choice (I can see the throngs weeping through the lyric "good dope, good fun"). Spiritualized seems like a good band to soundtrack an occasion like that - perhaps "Won't Get to Heaven (The State I'm In)." Then again, that song just feels like you are intentionally trying to squeeze every tear out of the mourners' eyes that you can and I, unlike Bono, am not going to consciously make any choices in life to perpetuate weeping at my farewell...

Anyone else have any ideas for a funeral song? (This does sound a little High Fidelity I know)

Call me The Cruise

I feel like everytime there is a lull at MMM, I come back and sound like Jim "The Cruise" Anchower coming up with excuses for the quiet - and sadly if I told you what I did with my life, you would probably think I was Anchower.

My weekend was chocked full of culture - 2 nights of quality entertainment.

Friday - Susie Essman and Richard Lewis at the Community Theater of New Jersey in Morristown. It was a Curb Your Enthusiasm affiliated stand up comedy night - if you watch Curb, you know Susie as agent Jeff Greene's foul-mouthed wife. Jeff Garlin (who plays Greene) was supposed to perform but he had to cancel and Susie was the last minute replacement.

It wouldn't be particularly difficult to guess the nature of the crowd at a New Jersey comedy night involving Curb characters - middle aged Jews! With the suburban semites ready for a verbal beating, Susie took the stage and engaged in interactive stand up comedy technique. I am hit and miss when it comes to comedians that work with their crowd - some suck, but those that are quick on their feet are great. Susie was the latter, ripping everyone in the first row a new one with her obscenity-laden razor wit (she asked a woman in the front what she taught, the woman responded something like domestic engineering, to which Suzie yelled "go fuck yourself - in my time we called it home ec"). I won't say she didn't rely on some very easy jokes ("all men lie when they have an erection" and "Jews are very loud") but with her distinctive persona and taught delivery, even the familiar jokes worked.

Lewis' delivery was about as taught as Kaz Matsui's fielding last year. This guy needed ritalin more than I do! He started the same joke 5 or 6 times before he would actually get around to telling it. But that is Lewis' shtick - he paces the stage contorted like Quasimoto while neurosis of the n'th degree pours out of him. He must have reminded the audience 15 times that he was a recovering drug addict and I shudder to think what he must have been like when he performed on a pile of blow.

Overall, Susie was the better comedian, but an all around entertaining night in Morristown.

Saturday night must be discussed. A pair of Scottish DJs that go by Optimo spun at the Tribeca Grand Hotel. Better detailed descriptions are available at One Louder and Peephole - I'll just say that Saturday night showed me that the Tribeca can be an excellent venue for the right party. We got there early and had a couch which made a huge difference, but between reasonably priced Red Stripes (5 bucks) great music throughout (openers JDH and Dave P I believe, as well as Optimo), it was a quality debauched affair.

Supposedly this Saturday the Underworld sneakers go on sale at the Adidas store. I will be there early with bells on and a book to read on line. There is a chance that they will be put on sale next week - will find out tomorrow.

Again, apologies for MMM slowing down this week - justice has called a bit harder this week but that is not a particularly good excuse.

UW hype starts.....now!

MMM, obviously, loves Underworld - so of course if there is something to report, you will get it here.

Yesterday at Dirty (the unofficial site that acts more like a .5 official site along with Underworldlive), the first batch of summer festival appearances for Karl and Rick (though it should be mentioned that there are rumors that occassional contributor Darren Price is going to become a third member soon). There are only a few (hopefully more comin) and they are not in the most exciting places - again I emplore the UW booking agency to consider the south of Spain! This clearly signals that the new album will be out sooner rather than later though and that is a good sign. Here are the dates.

7 July 2005 Novi Sad Exit Festival 05 Serbia
9 July 2005 Gdynia Heineken Open'er Festival Poland
12 July 2005 Montreaux Montreux Jazz Festival @ Miles Davis Hall Switzerland
13 July 2005 Prague T Mobile Park Czech Republic
15 July 2005 Gelsenkiirchen (nr essen) Electronic Festival @ Amphitheater Germany
16 July 2005 Grafenhainichen (nr Lepzig) Melt Festival @ Ferropolis Germany
17 July 2005 Amsterdam 5 days of @ Heineken Music Hall Holland


On an unrelated UW note, I learned that the UW Adidas shoes will be available at the Adidas shop on Saturday March 12.

The girls are moshing...

Here is a posting from underworldlive.com the other that I thought was worth posting - as you can see this building is where Karl wrote "Moaner" and it's on the corner of Bond and Lafayette. I particularly like the GTA: San Andreas poster on the wall. Also worth noting that the daily link (accessible by clicking on the word [click]) was to a web page for the Rock Steady Crew - the breakdancing collective. Word.

Honey, do you think this moustache is too much?

Things have been a bit quiet on this front last few days - apologies to the loyal fan base. Things will pick up again soon (promiso). A couple of bits in the pipework that need to be written about - my weekend of Stop Making Sense (the Talking Heads concert flick) at the Sunshine and Ian Brown at Webster Hall, though you can read Peephole's impression of the two events if you can't wait.

A little live news: Yeah, we all know that Coachella will be wicked, etc., but damnit, but is the Golden State really entitled to great analog (relating to, not undigital) concerts for the bands to warm up at as well?!? According to the Chemical Brothers website, they are playing with New Order in San Francisco on April 29 at the Harvey J Kaiser arena. Perhaps "Out of Control" will get aired live - the Chems never play their songs with actual live singers, with the glorious exception being Tim Burgess joining Tom and Ed at Benicassim in August '04 to sing "Life is Sweet" (and so is seeing a Chem Bros spectacle that hasn't occurred in 10 years!) Or perhaps their collaboration on "Here to Stay" from the t-t-t-24 Hour Party People soundtrack will be performed. A couple years back, the Chems and Underworld played together to warm up for Coachella. Pretty good...pretty good.

Weekend updates and the location of where Karl Hyde wrote the lyrics to "Moaner" will be with you soon...