The band’s bassist Paul ‘Miser’ Werkmeister was cool enough to drop me a line inviting me to the show. I had a fairly packed schedule but was able to end the night down at the Southside. The enticement of my boys Triggers opening up surely help persuade me to stay up past my bedtime…

My favorite album of 2009 and I got the setlist from the CD release show. MOIP never, ever wrote setlists back then. This was the first time I ever saw one on stage. They always played it by ear but for some reason this night Jeff needed the list. It was on his keyboard. My score. It was written on the back of an envelope addressed to Danielle M. from the New York Times and is still sealed. The band is raising money to make their next album here.

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I consider myself so lucky to be in the very dubious position I am in to be on the receiving end of publicists, record labels, or musician’s email lists. I get a ton of requests to showcase a band that’s coming through Pittsburgh to maybe preview, shoot or mention the gig. I don’t think I have ever been publicly jaded about it. Frankly…

As much as I dig The Wreckids and as much as I know very little about Jaymay, I wanted to trek out last night for one reason only. I had never seen a solo set by Lohio’s main man Greg. He mainly played new tunes (here’s hoping some of it will be recorded/released soon!) and although the band’s future is somewhat up in the air(?), it was reassuring to see no less than three of his Lohio mates in the room for support. Hmmm…who’s down for helping start a “We want more Dutton!” campaign…

This was the second stop of the night and I would have caught first opener Daryl Hance but as I was in line to get into the sold out gig, I realized I left my phone in my car so I had to sludge back through the snow to get it. Yet another hassle to shoot in the pit was resolved in time to catch JC, who I featured on the blog the last time he was here. He had an Otis Redding vibe with whiffs of ’80’s synth, weed and Wilco as influences. This was the last stop on their tour and they pretty much tried to tear up the joint. I was nestled in the back kind of getting too tired to notice if they accomplished it. From my vantage point they sure came close. Very fun band…

The band is preparing to release their debut LP (on vinyl, no less) at The Shop on February 11. They were cool enough to send me a preview and I have been cranking it for over a week now. I wanted to hear this live and it worked out I could ‘sit in’ on one of their practices. I’ve said this before, there’s nothing like a ‘personal’ concert as a band plays to a room of…me. So great. I have to warn those of you attending the gig, this band is LOUD! Imagine being surrounded by the band as I was in that little room? It was awesome! As I went to leave, the band kept roaring on downstairs and I couldn’t believe that the dishes in the kitchen cupboard were actually rattling. Yeah, bring some earplugs to The Shop. I’ll have more on the band before the show…

As I seemingly went a tad overboard last week gushing about seeing this band, I have to say they met my expectations and then some. This was one hell of a fun show. Maybe because it took place at the casino, there was a ‘Vegas-revue’ style atmosphere to the show right from the start. The band sounded really good and they totally engaged the overly ecstatic crowd, even coming off the stage posing for pictures and giving kisses and hugs DURING the song! It’s no easy feat selling out two 500 seat shows but Air Supply did just that. I suppose after touring for 35 years it shouldn’t come as any surprise….

Mindfish are a four piece self proclaimed ‘Nerd-Rock’ band from Toledo, OH. They are releasing their new album ‘Watch Out!’ this month and are celebrating with a tour that includes a stop at the Thunderbird tonight. Also on the bill are Pittsburgh bands White Like Fire and SleepyV. I want to thank Mind Fish’s lead vocalist Dean Tartaglia for taking a few minutes to participate in this edition of First/Last…

Billed as a ‘Marah Hot Metal Christmas’, it was a two night stand organized by fans turned friends turned supporters Dr. Mike and Jimmy. The dedication these guys have towards the band is nothing like I have ever seen in music and although the band plays regular gigs in the city, these are always something special indeed. Scroll down for a nice writeup of the shows here…

Wikipedia defines ‘guilty pleasure’ as…wait…take two. Hi everyone, my name is Hugh T. and, ahem, I am an Air Supply fan. As any music blogger knows, his or her tastes define a lot about what they listen to and write about and eventually who follows their online presence. Admittedly, to be able to sustain some sort of ‘indie cred’ could end up being difficult to maintain with a statement I just made. But guess what? I could care less. I have always done what I wanted and saw who I wanted with nobody telling me different. The most incredible facet of music blogging in Pittsburgh is I am my own boss when it comes down to it, and I was way excited to find out that the band was coming to play the casino.

I was a lean (read:skinny), somewhat intelligent (read:nerd) teenager discovering strange feelings for the opposite sex in 1980 and I will forever remember the soundtrack to those times which included bands like Journey, Little River Band, and Air Supply. Yeah, I admit they were somewhat cheesy but did you ever try playing “Lost in Love” on an acoustic guitar to swoon a girl? Believe me, it works! Seriously, give me a couple beers and I’ll slay a roomful of people with my ‘hillbilly>rap>goth metal’ version of “Making Love Out of Nothing At All”. No joke…

I was surprised to see that this show sold out. I like my white boy rappin’ blues as much as anyone else (well, not really) but filling Smalls on a Thursday night? Dude must be doing something right. Maybe it was the promise of a ‘meet-n-greet’ to the first 75 fans who bought merch? Why all musicians don’t go that route is beyond me. As an added bonus they were giving away cassettes with every purchase. Cassettes? Really? That’s an issue for a future post. Check out some more images from the night here.

Of all the bands I have covered in Pittsburgh, I have easily photographed Meeting of Important People more than any other. Since seeing them for the first time in 2008, they quickly became one of my favorite bands, local or otherwise. Their debut album was my favorite of 2009 and now they working on their third release which is where you, Joe Public music fan, come in. They are going the Kickstarter route which enables you to secure a copy of the album, and a host of other incentives, by donating now to assist in funding the album making process. For all the info go here…

The Winter Sounds Brillobox
Friday, January 13, 2012 Larryville…

Admittedly, I was only vaguely familiar with Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter and their music. What really made me stand up and notice the band was the release their fourth full length album, Marble Son, this past August. I describe it as dark, psychedelic twang. Right up my alley. It’s an amazing album full of terrific music anchored by Jesse’s haunting vocals. The band toured hard this fall and winter promoting the album and as they rest up before a spring sojourn, Jesse was kind enough to take some time to participate in this edition of First/Last…

I love being at a show and recognizing a song that the band is playing from someplace deep in my memory. I cannot tell you where I heard the tune before but it becomes instantly familiar. That was the case as Ra Ra Riot performed their third song of the night. I never saw them play and I don’t know their music all that well, but I have heard and liked ‘Too Dramatic’ and it becomes a sweet little moment for me. You can check out more of my photos from the show here…

Only the second time I have seen the band but have been digging their debut release for awhile so it’s always nice to hear live arrangements of familiar tunes. Strange venue for the band though. The austerity of lecture hall has the audience ‘sitting on their hands’ for every show I have seen there. The band seemed a bit taken aback from the drop dead silence in between songs. Regardless, they soldiered through with a terrific set. I am sure the vibe was quite different at the sold out Brillobox gig this past weekend…

As a longtime fan of the band Marah, I was saddened to hear of the devastating house fire yesterday of guitarist Serge Bielanko and his young family. I never met his wife Monica in person, but have been internet ‘friends’ with her for years through social media sites. The good news is that they and their children escaped unharmed. A fellow blogger has set up a fund page for the family here. Please consider donating and spread the word…

As I have done for the past several years, I close out the musical year Downtown with WYEP’s artists of the year. Can’t think of a better way to celebrate…