Don't make plans this Monday, not unless they involve Brightblack Morning Light, Endless Boogie and the high seas.  Not since David Crosby tried outrunning the FBI in a coke-laden clipper has rock and roll and nautical history intersected with such momentous results.  If there's a Gilligan-style disaster, can you think of any two bands you'd rather be stranded on an island with?  More info is at rocksoffnyc.com, and tickets are at Ticket Web.

…at least there's always the Chuck E. Cheese on the corner of South First and Ben White. Video link swiped from Boing Boing.

The promoters call it "Thrashfest '07", which you have to admit, is way catchier than "Festival Of Many Menacing Fonts"

This weekend, I will embark upon a mini-tour (ok, it's 2 shows) in Massachussetts. First off will be the fantastic-5-band-bill-for-10-bucks PA's Lounge show on Friday August 3. (See totally awesome poster by Ian Adams above).

This show was originally booked as a celebration of the split 7" that I put out with Choo Choo La Rouge (my best pals in band land) - but its blossomed into much more. Make sure you come early to check out my friends Clint, Michigan & Amy Bezunartea. And I can't begin to say how excited I am to be sharing a bill with Chris Brokaw. I've seen him solo a few times (and with Come many times back in the day, including a Nirvana/The Breeders/Come show at The Omni in Atlanta!!!!)

Saturday we venture out to Martha's Vineyard to play at Aboveground Records. It's a very cool record store run by the same folks who run A Whale of a Label.

The JO'C band this weekend will be the duo of me on vox and gtr and Jon on drums.

And just for fun, below is a photo of us playing at the East River Amphitheatre last weekend. Miwa took this from the very top center of the back row.

Have a great week and I hope to see all you New Englanders this weekend.

Love JO'C

Smokin'  TV history in more ways than one, ladies and gentleman, though with all due respect to NBC for compiling the highlights package above, there is some great stuff they missed.

The New Pornographers have just been confirmed to appear on The Late Show with David Letterman on August 20th.  That's the night before they officially unleash "Challengers" on the world (although people hip to BEGN have been enjoying it for weeks already).  Ready, set, Tivos ahoy!

Though this isn't Matador Records & Filmworks related in the slighest, I submit you'll see few videos this year (or any other) as jarringly beard-tastic as Zach Galifianakas and Will Oldham's star turn for Kanye West's "Can't Tell Me Nothing". 

You may not be aware, but we've got a sort-of regular label podcast where we upload music videos, live performances and various other strange collisions of sound and vision.  It's linked from the Matador homepage, and new content is simultaneously posted on our equally mysterious Youtube account.

The latest post is footage of Shearwater performing their song "Seventy Four Seventy Five" at this year's South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas.  The picture may be a little dark, sadly the church that served as the venue was not equipped with klieg lights, but Jonathan Meiburg and company give a characteristically intense performance.

As killer as last Saturday night's Bowery Ballroom Ponys / Jay Reatard show was, it is pretty hard to compete with a bowling alley where the bands play right in the middle of the lanes. With that in mind I had no problem getting in the van for the trip to senic Asbury Park New Jersey.  I picked up Paul Sommerstein, ESQ and we raced, Corzine style, down the Garden State Parkway to the up and coming neighborhood of Asbury Park.  Once there we didn't waste too much time getting down to business on the lanes.

The first game was just me and Jered and we both we're having trouble getting into the zone.  Jered has a great style: launching the ball into the air at first with lots of spin on it producing a killer hook, but he just couldn't get it down and many a ball ended up in the gutter in the first game.  If he had it down I'd of been done for, but my basic style prevailed.  The second game brought Paul and Meslissa into the action and upped the stakes when Paul produced two awesome (and huge) home made buttons.  Aerosmith and Cheap Trick, winner gets to choose their pin. Jered clearly had me beat until the 10th frame when I channelled my love of Aerosmith into two consecutive strikes. Woo-hoo!

In our defense the Asbury Lanes, although totally cool, isn't really conducive to competitive bowling, but it sure was a good time.  And speaking of a good time, althogh these remaining Ponys / Jay Reatard shows are not happening in bowling alleys you should by all means try to attend.

23 Jul 2007  Washington DC,  Black Cat
24 Jul 2007 Columbus, OH  Skully's
25 Jul 2007 Newport, Kentucky, Southgate House