Saturday, August 25, 2012

Friday, August 24, 2012

Interview: Dope Body

AN INTERVIEW WITH DOPE BODY

YO! Don't call 'em Bro Rock! Actually go ahead and call 'em Bro Rock, or Dude Rock, or whatever. Dope Body don't care. Just give 'em a nice basement full of sweat and stink and let 'em work it out. (I think that should suffice as an introduction). So, Ladies and Gentlemen Rockers, from the great city of Baltimore Maryland, a.k.a. Charm City, a.k.a. Bodymore, Murderland (Ha!), the noisy, the danceable, the unbeatable bro's of Dope Body! Read the interview.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Savage Boys

FRIDAY 8/24
Suns, Mutts, Savage Boys @ Dragonfly Lounge 401 E. Washington Ave., Madison , WI 53703 

What's in a name? Does a band by any other name still rock as sweet? Don't know much about this new Lonesome Savages off-shoot/new branch/franchise/spin-off, but needless to say the boys are sticking with the theme.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: My Morning Jacket

WEDNESDAY 8/22
My Morning Jacket, Band of Horses @ Pritzker Pavillion, Michigan & Randolph, Chicago, IL

By appearing together, My Morning Jacket and Band of Horses are going to prove once and for all that they are NOT the same band.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Dikes of Holland

TUESDAY 8/21
Magic Milk, The Dikes of Holland, Uh Bones, The Man @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

I wouldn't know a magmatic from a sedimentary dike—or a Holland from a Belgium for that matter. What I do know is no thumb-in-the-dike sticker could stop the The Dikes of Holland from bringing on a flood of rock.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Interview: Comics Artist, Ed Piskor

AN INTERVIEW WITH COMICS ARTIST
 

ED PISKOR

Comics artists are obsessive creatures. When one of these beasts latch onto an idea, they'll hang onto it like a street-fighting pit bull. They'll spend countless hours locked up alone in a room sketching, drawing, inking, tweaking and tinkering like a feral varmint. Take Ed Piskor for example. His Hip Hop Family Tree, as featured on the popular BoingBoing website, promises to be an epic illustrated history of the Hip Hop genre. This is a project that, by Piskor's own estimation, could take him ten years to finish! More recently Ed's semi-true story of quasi-fictional phone phreaker and early computer hacker, Kevin "Boingthump" Phenicle was published by Top Shelf Productions to rounds of enthusiastic accolades. Even more recently, Reglar Wiglar Magazine asked Mr. Piskor some questions about some stuff. Read the interview.

What's the Point, Wasted Plains Rock and Roll Revival?

Periodically, Reglar Wiglar Magazine asks a band, artist or musician: What’s it all about? What's the point and why go on? This week we ask Wasted Plains Organizer, Yes Club Records Director, Chrome Attic Manager and the Santah singer/slinger, Stanton McConnell:   

What's It All About? 

The festival is all about bringing a fully jam-packed day of revelry and quality music to an unorthodox location: the parking lot and confines of the Woodstock VFW.

What's the Point?

We're celebrating Midwestern Rock 'n' Roll. We want the whole community and all the festival goers to be inspired by the music. We'd like everybody to make some new friends, too.

Why Go On?

We'd like to take this year's vibe and extend it to a full weekend affair someday. And throughout the year, we'll continue to throw great events in anticipation of the next Wasted Plains.

What: Wasted Plains Rock & Roll Revival  

When: Saturday, August 25, 2012. $12 Advance / $15 Door (5pm – 2am)

Where: VFW Post 5040, 240 N. Throop St. Woodstock, IL 60098

Transportation: Metra Union Pacific Northwest Line / Public parking available

Bands: Ezra Furman, White Mystery, Santah, Cousin Dud, Elephant Gun, The Heligoats, The Soil & The Sun, Jon Drake & The Shakes, Rabble Rabble, On Again Off Again, Thin Hymns, Jaime Rojo, Barber Greene, Jack Avery’s Kin, Jellybones, Kellen & Me, Kane Place Record Club, The Boombox Face, The Cost of Living.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Muggsy McMurphy's Rock Pick: Tiger Waves

SUNDAY 8/19
Howth, The Rutabega, Tiger Waves @ Schuba's, 3159 N. Southport Ave., Chicago, IL

The Tiger escaped from the Animal Collective and the Waves are from the wake of The Beach Boys. I'm guessing here. Am I right? I'm right, right?

Friday, August 17, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Tiny Riots

FRIDAY, 8/17
Tiny Riots, The Sleepwalkers, Haunted Heads, Omninaut @ The Frequency, 121 W. Main St., Madison , WI

Statistics show that there is a tiny riot every day somewhere in the world. Well, maybe that's true and maybe it ain't. What I do know is, this is the last Tiny Riot Madison, Wisconsin is going to see for awhile. Maybe.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Child Bite

More beard in the monitor!
THURSDAY 8/16
Child Bite, Lamb's Legs, Fahri @ Cactus Club, 2496 S. Wentworth Ave., Milwaukee. WI

Imagine Pere Ubu on crank and you'll only be a little closer to figuring out what Child Bite is all about.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Tina and Her Pony

WEDNESDAY 8/15
Yid Vicious, Tina and Her Pony @ The Frequency, 121 W. Main St. , Madison , WI

Tina is Tina so I guess that makes Quetzal her Pony just like Hootie had his Blowfish, except Hootie was Darius and this has absolutely nothing to do with that anyway. Sorry I even mentioned it.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Book Review: Hurt; Notes on Torture in a Modern Democracy

HURT
Notes on Torture in a Modern Democracy
By Kristian Williams (Microcosm)
Hurt is a collection of writings by, and interviews with, Kristian Williams, a Portland based activist who is the author of two books on state-sponsored violence; Our Enemies in Blue and American Methods: Torture and the Logic of Domination. The essays, interviews and observations in this book were written and published during, or shortly after, the Bush Administration’s turn at the War on Terror and the subject matter was not something that I was necessarily anxious to revisit. Torture is a topic that has mostly dropped off the radar of many Americans and the ordeal of the Bush Era has left a lot of us mentally fatigued even to this day. No doubt these abuses are still occuring under the current administration and torture certainly continues at home in our prisons and abroad in secret holding cells all over the globe. There is an acknowledgement in the book's introduction of the failures of the Obama Administration to, among other things, close Gitmo, but more insight about where we are in 2012 would have been appreciated. I'm sure Williams continues to think and write about the subject and that work with be forthcoming in the months and years ahead. That said, these writings are the result of well-reasoned and researched thinking and go a long way in educating the reader on the causes and underlying factors of torture in the 21st centuryChris Auman

Read more reviews, and always...always read Reglar Wiglar!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Estrogen High

TUESDAY 8/14
The Estrogen Highs, Bomb Banks, House Sounds, @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

When Muggsy's old lady gets on an estrogen high, it makes him want to bomb banks.

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Jayne Wayne's Press Release Round Up

TOP SHELF GOES DIGITAL CRAZY

Digital does a comic good

Thanks to a team up with Retrofit Comics, Top Shelf continues to cook things up in their digital kitchen with a savory serving of new electronically delivered releases. Priced from $1.99, comics fans can now download releases by the likes of James Kochalka (American Elf, Fungus), Kevin and Zander Cannon's Double Barrel Magazine, Patty Kelly's What Am I Going to Do Without You? and many more. Check out Top Shelf's website for details and downloads.







MASSIVE MOOG MASH-UP

Moog enthusiasts enjoy each others company

Tickets are now on sale for the third annual Moog Fest in Asheville, NC. Held in honor of His Moogness, Robert Moog, inventer of the Moog synthesizer, the festival showcases the talents of bands and musicians who would be nowhere with out Moog. No. Where. 

Buy your tickets here, then get in your vehicle and drive to Asheville in time for the fest held Friday, October 26 and Saturday, October 27, 2012. The line-up this year features Moogs like Primus 3D, Orbital, Squarepusher, Explosions in the Sky, The Magnetic Fields, Four Tet, Thomas Dolby, Black Moth Super Rainbow, EL-P, Mouse on Mars and more. As for me, I hate Moogs! Yay!

MICROCOSM BOOK DISTRIBUTION TO TAKE OVER WORLD

Micro Distro Adds a Micro Distro

One-time Microcosm Publishing co-owner Jessie Duke and writer/musician/dude-about-town, Adam Gnade have split off a book distro from venerable Microcosm Publishing. This new project, in addition to books and zines, will also be moving patches, pins, t-shirts, stickers, and posters—now that's punk rock! Check out their site here.

THE COMICS JOURNAL PRESERVED FOR PROSPERITY

TCJ gets all archived 'n' shit

The great compendium of comics criticism The Comics Journal will join the archives of Alexander Street Press thanks to a partnership with TCJ publisher Fantagraphic Books. Thirty-five years and more than 25,000 pages of the Journal will be available for future generations of comics scholars. The Library of Congress, Harvard, Yale, Columbia and Notre Dame have already signed on which will surely pave the way for more reputable institutions to follow. 

Muggsy's Rock Pick: NĂ¼ Sensae

Lost in the supermarket
SUNDAY 8/12
Nu Sensae, Bike Cops, Slag @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

NĂ¼ Sensae sound like the band that used to practice directly below Muggy's apartment on Belmont in 1993. Muggsy hated that band, but now he understands.

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Friday, August 10, 2012

Video: Black Moth Super Rainbow

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Windhand

Windhand enjoy relaxing in wooded areas.
FRIDAY 8/10
Windhand, No Future, Iron Rain @ Cactus Club, 2496 S. Wentworth Ave., Milwaukee. WI

Muggsy likes his Sabbath. He likes his Sabbath really, really slow, so he likes his Windhand. Windhand likes their Sabbath. Let the circle be unbroken.

Thursday, August 09, 2012

Derf Reads Dahmer @ Quimby's

Derf Backderf has been creating the weekly comic strip "The City" since 1990. In that time he has added Graphic Novelist to his rĂ©sumĂ© with three full-length books under his belt. The film rights to his recent work about his high school friend, Jeffrey Dahmer, were recently picked up by Ibid Filmworks. Don't miss Derf reading from My Friend Dahmer tonight at Quimby's in Chicago.

THURSDAY 8/8 @ 7PM
@ Quimby's, 1854 W. North Ave, Chicago, IL

Read the Reglar Wigar interview with Derf!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Helmet

THURSDAY 8/9
Toadies, Helmet, Ume @ House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, IL

Imagine me seeing the H.O.B. listing for Toadies playing with Helmet, taking off my spectacles, rubbing my eyes with two closed fists, putting my spectacles back on, checking the listing again and then a giant exclamation point shooting straight outa my forehead... 'cause that's what happened.

Wednesday, August 08, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Dum Dum Girls

WEDNESDAY 8/8
Dum Dum Girls, Teenage Moods, L'Assassins @ Triple Rock Social Club, 629 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN

If these girls are dum dums, then I'm a real ninny—a lackwit, a lamebrain, a noddy, a real jabbernowl.

Tuesday, August 07, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Garbage

TUESDAY 8/7
Garbage, White Mystery @ Metro, 3730 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL

I just need to verify something real quick—did anybody actually like Garbage in the 90s? I didn't think so. Oh well, if you think thirty-eight bucks is garbage, here's a chance to throw it away.

Monday, August 06, 2012

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Russian Circles

MONDAY 8/6
Russian Circles, Chelsea Wolfe, Marriages @ Cactus Club, 2496 S. Wentworth Ave.
Milwaukee. WI

Speaking of Russian Circles, the U.S. Olympic women's gymnastics team really had those Ruskies runnin' 'round in circles last week, didn't they? Eh? What? Oh, I see, you don't like mixing your sports with your instru-metal bands. Got it.