Sound Forged Like Spine

In addition to having one of the best titles for a song I've heard in a long time (re: the blog post title), The Winter Sounds are one of those bands that hold the coveted spot in my library of "repeat player." Seldom few albums make it to this spot and the ones that do are in good company--"Destroyer's Rubies" by Destroyer, "Fort Recovery" by Centro-matic, "Blue Screen Life" by Pinback, etc. The Winter Sounds' debut full length, "Porcelain Empire" has that brilliant quality of suiting every mood during any given week of the year. I'm not sure what a sound forged like (out of?) spine would sound like, but I bet The Winter Sounds' know exactly what it is. And they know how to recreate it from scratch every night.

I was fortunate enough to catch them at Charleston's latest (and so far divey-ist, in a good way) bar, The Tin Roof. For a Monday night, these guys and gal weren't phoning it in and I enjoyed every minute of it--from the $1.50 PBRs to the stage left exit at around midnight. I'll definitely be back...especially now that The Map Room has closed its doors. (Sniff.)

It would be easy to dismiss The Winter Sounds as just another pop band from Athens, GA but there is so much more to discover with this band. And you can almost rest assured they will come play a city near you.

Check out their MySpace page and listen to samples.
The Winter Sounds website.




More photos of the band at my Flickr site

Visit The Tin Roof's MySpace page to see upcoming shows.

The Blind Pig

Photos are up from the Man Man show at the Village Tavern that I was at on March 7. I think they are some of my better photos--mostly because I used a flash and had some decent equipment. Follow this link to see them.

I'll be back in town this Friday from Waldorf, MD. Monday, April 28 I'll be at The Tin Roof taking pics of Athens, GA's The Winter Sounds.
I love this band and you should too. I'll post the interview I did with singer/bassist Patrick Kennan about a year ago for the now-defunct free weekly The Beat.

Thanks much to You Ain't No Picasso who has posted a free download of the entire Man Man show at The Blind Pig in Michigan. Good sound quality, too! Follow this link for all the goodness.
Note that the files are in M4A format, so get out your converters or drop them into iTunes.

Additionally, Sixeyes (have I mentioned how much I love this guy?) has reposted a free Radiohead concert, Live from BBC Radio. As the man says, get 'em while they're hot. Again, amazing sound quality. Here's the link to the goodness.

On Record Store Day I bought the new Helio Sequence album, but haven't had a chance to listen to it, yet. There's something about Maryland that makes one lethargic against all the things we should love. (They're playing the Village Tavern on May 30.) And I managed to snag a copy of Bob Marley, Legend and The Stone Roses, The Complete Stone Roses on the $1 table. I put Nirvana, Unplugged back, though now I wish I hadn't. I've got a fever for some grunge lately.