• cuteweird!

Dog Day dropped another video for your watching pleasure. "Part Girl" might make you feel a) like a fly on the wall, watching all the fun little things people do in the gaps between shows on tour b) like you want to cuddle something (what is the animal at 1:14, please?) c) groovy. Thanks!

If you like what you saw, guitarist Seth Smith is currently making a full-length movie called Lowlife. Learn more here.

• my hair is like eggs.

A former Coast co-worker and reputed Lady Gaga enthusiast Jordan Smith (hi Jordan) posted a link to his Facebook titled "Lady Gaga in Moncton Today??" The blog he linked to features two videos that seem to suggest that Ms. Germanotta herself was strolling through the Moncton airport today with two bodyguards. Our intrepid videographers then followed the Gaga-esque person's to Magnetic Hill. So, the question is - is this even remotely real, or did these dudes prank us all? Either way, it is amusing. I feel like I just saw Bigfoot, tramping through the grainy video murk, if Bigfoot was tiny and wore leopard-print tights.

Videos are below. See the original post here.

EDIT: We got punk'd. Thank you alert Coast commenter ralmn.

• Gil Goode

Big things are happening for the Amherst-based rockabilly band The Shakedown Combo. Next week, the group —guitarist Davey Lee Goode, singer/percussionist Gil Goode and their daughter, upright bassist Kim Goode— will be headed to Jackson, Tennessee to record an album on the JAXON record label with Larry Rogers and extra help from Sun Records recording legend Rayburn Anthony. While in Jackson, the band will also be playing a show at the International Rockabilly Hall of Fame in front of a crowd that will include Scotty Moore and DJ Fontana, who used to play with Elvis. No big deal.
This burst of good fortune came about the old-fashioned way: a talent scout for the JAXON label picked them out at the Viva Las Vegas rockabilly festival earlier this year. Kim Goode says her family is psyched, to say the least. “We'll be meeting some true icons of the rockabilly genre and legends that have been completely influential to us all,” she says. “Davey is very excited to meet with Scotty Moore. In fact, he's jumping off the walls.” I cannot imagine how amazing it would be for a musician to receive this sort of opportunity in Tennessee; just visiting the place creates music-nerd chills that are difficult to shake. The band leaves for Jackson on Friday — follow updates on their Facebook page.

• party like the donnas, ladies

Starting today, the Coast Girl Team (Tara Thorne, Stephanie Johns, Allison Saunders and myself) will be posted up in scenic Yarmouth celebrating Nova Scotia Music Week, along with a sizeable chunk of Halifax’s musicians and music-lovers. I’m fairly sure that the majority of our coterie has never attended this fine event before. I can definitely predict that we’ll be jumping on some hotel beds, because we crazy. Also, check out all that music happening! Stoked. Someone will be blogging the weekend’s events, shows and tomfoolery RIGHT HERE and you can also check out a schedule there to get yourself all nice and pumped. Here are our respective Twitters, also, in case you want to see what kind of disaster we've all become:

Steph - @stephaniejohns

Allison - @alliesaysrelax

Tara - @thorneyhfx

Me - @BritneySneers

See you at the minibar!

• Tupperware Remix Party

Those loveable neon maniacs in Tupperware Remix Party just posted on their Facebook that they'll be hitting the town tonight in their "mobile fun unit", freaking you out and making you dance at various Halloween and non-Halloween-related events. I have a feeling they might show up at Reflections tonight? But who knows? If you're having a private party and want them to drop in, send your address to twrp@groove-station.comtwrp@groove-station.com.

• slam dunk

I watched this crafty video for the song "Bleacher Lovin" by Vancouver hippie-punks Slam Dunk at 2am on a Saturday night and thought it was pretty great. I'm happy to report that it still holds up in the stark and sober light of a Wednesday afternoon. It's a collage cut-up dream: Magazine pyjama men, a dancing Hans Solo, references to Faxe hands and an infectious chorus: "Gonna ride my bike, ride my bike, ride my bike, gonna shoot some cops, ride my bike!" It's oom-pah-oom-pah polka punk. It's what Edward Sharpe would sound like if he was actually good.

Slam Dunk are currently on tour with Babysitter. They play Gus' Thursday night with Scribbler and Quivers (10:30pm) and 1313 Hollis on Friday with Hind Legs and the Cannisters (7pm.) There will be a story on this tour in tomorrow's Coast. In the meantime, watch the video.

Bleacher Lovin' from Zee La Ma Geela on Vimeo.

So, I'm not sure how many of you have been following Ria Mae's Facebook fan page since she and longtime collaborator/buddy Margot Durling went out on a U.S. tour a couple of weeks ago to support Melissa Ferrick - but it's exploding. Every other post is made by a fan mentioning how awesome Mae's show was in Chicago/Austin/Ohio/everywhere, or thanking her for signing CDs, and/or gushing about how beautiful she is, and so on. It's like Elvis!

Mae's profile was raised even higher last week when she was named Regional Winner of the Mountain Stage New Song Contest. Along with five other finalists, she'll be competing for the top prize - a chance to perform on NPR's Mountain Stage and record an EP with producer Mikal Blue, who has also worked with James Blunt, Jason Mraz and Serena Ryder. The live performance round will take place Thursday October 20 in New York.

None of this is that surprising after you hear the single from her debut album Under Your Skin. I am not hugely familiar with the realm of female singer-songwriters, but I'm also not an idiot. Mae's voice is emotive, honest and painfully lovely, and she's a mesmerizing performer. She's the real deal, and will go far. Check out the album's title track below.

• Minus World

Everything's coming up Minus World these days. The cute orchestral synth pop outfit with a heart like a blinking Nintendo has been nominated for a Music Nova Scotia award for Electronic Recording of the Year- AND they're embarking on a tour. Holy schnikers. Dates and tunage below.

Thursday, Sept. 22nd - Plan B, Moncton NB w/ The Caravan

Saturday, Oct. 1st - Release Party at The Company House, Halifax NS
w/ The Caravan, Whale Skin & DJ Wiley Kyoto

• Ian Chiasson
• Sato Yuki and Kinki Iori (foreground)

Last Sunday (May 29) South Korean noise fans got a wee taste of Halifax when Torso (aka Sandy Saunders) played a show at a bar called Strange Fruit (love that) in Seoul (he was in the city to visit some friends). He was joined on the bill by Sato Yukie, a fellow noise musician also based in Seoul.

Yukie also runs a noise night called Bulgasari, described on his website, and rather than paraphrase it, I thought I would re-post it in its entirety here. It's pretty wonderful - and in my mind it's a very accurate and honest summation of why any musician seeks to reach new audiences.

"'Bulgasari' is small live concert that Yukie Sato, who lives in Seoul, plans and holds. In Korea we could not find any underground scene of improvised music, noise music, and so on...And here are no shops that sell CDs & records of that kind of music now. It is important cause people have no chance to listen to that kind of music, and musicians and artists have no chance to play.

I thought..truly are here no musicians? There must be potential artists, must not? Of course, we, a few improvisers in Korea, have no place to play here. And I wanted to find new generation, new young artists. So I have started live series of 'Bulgasari'. I want to make some special stages beyond genres, not jazz, not rock, not academic...Don't you want to listen to the music nobody heard before?"

Yukie was accompanied by a Butoh dancer from Japan named Kinki Iori (pictured above.) Coast contributor Mark Black is currently teaching in Korea - he organized the show and kindly sent us a few pics, pasted below. Scroll to the bottom for a video of Torso's performance.

• Mark Black
• Torso

• Ian Chiasson
• Torse

The closing keynote at this year's National Campus and Community Radio Conference (happening this year in Halifax, don't cha know!) will be delivered by Rich Terfry/Buck 65.
It's sort of fitting because according to popular lore, Terfry grew up on CKDU and apparently used to climb trees in his Mount Uniacke yard with radio in hand in order to get a signal. Later he actually got a couple of shows on CKDU as Stinkin' Rich - The Bassment and The Treatment Program. And now, of course, he is on the CBC, hosting Drive. No doubt he'll have some interesting and valuable observations. The keynote will be delivered on June 10 and it will be open to the public. More details are forthcoming.

NCRC runs from June 6 - 10. You can learn more about the conference here.

HERE IS EVERYTHING, RIGHT NOW

1. Detroit Cobras - "I Wanna Holler (But the Town's Too Small)"

The Detroit Cobras and their brand of soul classics/garage moxie are coming back into my life in a big way recently. You can listen to them every day, regardless of mood, locale or sobriety, and the music is bound to make you feel pretty good. Also, new album soon!

In the meantime, I listen to this song, which to me sounds like it could track the opening credits to the as-of-yet-unmade film version of John Steinbeck's Cannery Row - scored to the gritty sundowns in Monterey, where everything is covered in dirt and still seems to glitter with epic promise.

2. Knee Socks

This morning I was like, "I don't even care if it's supposed to be cold today and I don't care if I'm too old to dress like I attend a boarding school for anxious British girls - these legs are going KNEE SOCKS. These legs are going almost BARE NAKED." You know sometimes when you dress like you're forcing warmer weather to happen? It seems to have worked - hello sunshine, wha?

• Note: not my actual legs

3. Drinking and Gardening

This is a thing, right?

3.5. Dogs Dressed As Hot Dogs

Nothing says springtime like a dog dressed as a hot dog.

4. Using Record Store Day as An Excuse to Buy New Records for Once

Gonna try to catch No Flyers Please at Taz (2 for 1 on used records, eee) and Dance Movie and Cursed Arrows at Obsolete. This Exclaim! guide helpfully lists some of the special releases that you can pick up tomorrow. That Ty Segall one looks pretty durn good.

5. Planning Ugly Tattoos that I Will Regret When I'm Older

Like Storm from X-Men as a punk:

Or this stupid thing:

Happy Weekend!!!

• Obsydian play Coconut Grove this Saturday.

Can’t make it down to Charlottetown next week for the East Coast Music Awards? Don’t fret, you sad bastard — you can watch the ECMA Awards Gala in the comfort of your own home via live stream at bellaliant.net/ecma starting at 8pm on Sunday April 17. You can also watch “A Sound Celebration” — a concert featuring Symphony Nova Scotia and PEI artists Jenn Grant, Meaghan Blanchard, Paper Lions, Richard Wood and Vishtèn — via live stream on April 14 at 7:30pm.

If you’re feeling even more participatory, you can vote for the Bell Aliant Fan’s Choice “Entertainer of the Year” and the Bell Aliant Fan's Choice ‘Video of the Year Award’ at bellaliant.net/ecma or ecma.com. The deadline is Thursday April 16 at midnight.

Finally, if you're still like "Yeah, well, this is all really nice, but what I really want is METALLLL GRRRRR" the East Coast Loud Tour (featuring the Fed Pennies, Last Call Chernobyl, Orchid's Curse, Obsydian, Soul Seeker and Tempting Tragedy) will be touching down in Halifax this Saturday April 9 at Coconut Grove. The ECMA Loud Showcase takes place April 15/April 16th at Ise's Bar in Charlottetown, featuring the aforementioned bands as well as Nerd Army, Black Moor, the Motorleague and others.

Play safe. Have fun.

It’s pretty impressive when your band embarks on a cross-Canada tour after barely a year of existence. When one of your bandmates bows out at the last minute and your basement gets flooded with sewage right before the trip, as was the case with Moncton’s Cop Shades, the situation grows slightly hairier. But somehow, everything worked out swimmingly for the tenacious psych-rockers. . Bassist and Moncton recording legend Kyle McDonald is still flying high from the trip, which took the trio from Halifax to Victoria last summer. (He’s currently joined by Remi Cormier on vocals and machines and Matt Hogg on drums.) “I can’t even express how incredible it went,” he says. “Sometimes you just have to put your money where your mouth is. It’s so easy to slip into this lull of overthinking everything. We wanted to be doers.” Micro Organs’ Matt Blanchard sat in on drums during the tour, which featured plenty of rad bands like Shearing Pinx and Bad Vibrations (playing with Cop Shades, the Deadly Hearts and Mean Mug Friday at the Seahorse) and at least a few disgustingly delicious McGangBangs.

• give me my delicious death now!!!!

The band will be heading out across the country again in August and plan to work on new material before then.

McDonald is a busy dude - when he's not playing in Cop Shades or the increasingly busy Red Rum, doing sound at shows and/or recording bands, he puts out a weekly webisode called The McDon's House. Each episode features taped footage of bands stopping by and playing songs in McDonald's basement, along with segments featuring McDonald's brother Ryan espousing on a number of wild subjects and Eric's Trip drummer Marc Gaudet sharing his "Best Albums in the History of the Human Being." It's pretty funny stuff and all the bands sound great. You can check out the latest episode featuring the perfect Billy Ray Cyborg below. All episodes are available to watch here.

THE MCDONS HOUSE // Season 1 - Episode 6 from Superbob Records on Vimeo.

• SCREAMS WITH LUST

Today's entry in the 30 Day Song Challenge: a song that reminds you of someone. This Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds epic will forever remind me of my friend, the lovely Shelley Scoger (nee Goldschlager, and yes that used to be her actual last name) who introduced me to Mr. Cave's music and mythos when I was but a wee squirt of 18....and CHANGED MY LIFE.

When this album came out - Nocturama, and the rest of the songs were terrible, as I recall - we would watch the video, smoke menthols, drink pink wine and then play the video again and try to dance like Nick (we couldn't, really.) The minute I hear that opening bassline, I can taste menthol cigarettes. Oh Hell!
Anyway, nostalgia aside, this is an unusual Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds video because everyone actually seems to be having a good time. If you have a good 15 minutes to kill, it's worth a watch.

Coast Listings Editor, music aficionado and fellow Tall Woman Allison Saunders has kindly chimed in with her own personal entry for today's 30 Day Song Challenge posting; a song that makes you sad. She picked Feist - "Let It Die."
She explains:

This was the theme song to a very sad August in a shitty, dark and damp basement apartment on Jubilee Road many moons ago. My two roommates renamed our seasonal-affective-disorder-inducing home the Heartbreak Hotel and healed their wounds with this track, booze and junior bacon cheeseburgers. And while I wasn't heartbroken at the time...for some reason this song had the ability to make me sad enough to join in on their sorrow. There's just something about "Let it Die" that makes me want to curl up in the fetal position and have myself a good old fashioned pity party.

Incidentally, I have also lived in a shitty home affectionately dubbed "The Heartbreak Hotel." I don't remember why we gave the house that particular name, but giant squirrels used to jump onto our window screens from the branches and have sex.