coldplay in indianapolis 6/5/09

i apologize for the lack of updates; i've been busy in the real world. busy seeing coldplay, for example, who put on a surprisingly good show in indianapolis. chris martin, while a bit awkward and quite a goof, was actually... likable. the set was a mix mostly of viva la vida (ick) or a rush of blood to the head (hellz yeah!). parachutes got slighted except for yellow, and x&y was mostly ignored as well, although fix you was actually one of the highlights of the concert, despite being a song i rarely listen to. that and the scientist almost brought tears to my eyes, i'll admit. not every song at the concert was that emotional, and a few did make me yawn [but much less so than the ever-so-dull opener snow patrol, a band i'll have to endure again when I see U2 in september], but the majority of the set was quite enjoyable. their cover of "i'm a believer" was a bit random and out of place, but the crowd sure loved it, and the band had fun with it. they performed that while on a "c-stage." they had a b-stage going into the audience, which is pretty typical these days [fun fact: U2 invented the b-stage for their ZOOTV tour], but they had ANOTHER stage extending all the way into the lawn seats in the back, which was pretty damn cool.

i had to laugh before coldplay came on stage when they played U2's "magnificent" over the loudspeakers. while coldplay were quite good, they sure have a long way to go before they reach the level of their idols U2. they're far away, but at least they're tryin'.

here is one of my favourite coldplay songs, a beautifully understated b-side to "shiver" from their first album:

careful where you stand

so many dynamos = the loud wars [2009]

i like the name so many dynamos. it's fun, which is fitting for the band. formed in 2002 in illinois [hurrah for midwest bands!], they use poppy dance rock combined with elements of math rock to create a slightly off-kilter yet catchy sound. i dig the interaction between the two guitars, which should appeal to fans of bands like franz ferdinand and arctic monkeys. their third album, the loud wars, is due out june 9th on vagrant records.




the first single is new bones, an eerie indie dance anthem which is less guitar-based and more electronic-sounding than the rest of the album. it's certainly an intriguing track.

new bones


here are my two favourite songs from the album:

artifacts of sound


oh, the devastation!


so many dynamos are currently touring with maps & atlases. their tour dates are on their [myspace]. they're coming to bloomington on the 17th. i'll probably check 'em out.

maserati in xbox project natal video

the future is now.



as revealed at the 2009 e3, [project natal] is microsoft's answer to the wii, and it reminds me of minority report, and i want it. as you can see from the video, it allows you to use your body as a controller. it also uses facial and voice recognition. the video does raise some currently unanswered questions. does it really work as seamlessly as shown? when will it be available? how much will it cost? and how on earth did microsoft find the post-rock band maserati to use in their demo video?

maserati are from athens, ga. they have a unique brand of post-rock with psychedelic and kraut-rock influences. they also list early U2 as an influence on their [myspace], which is probably why i like them so much. some of their songs definitely are reminiscent of unforgettable fire/joshua tree era b-sides.

check out this song from the xbox video posted above, from their 2007 album inventions for the new season:




show me the season


props to microsoft for picking a great [and obscure!] band for their ad. post-rock must be the new in thing... i am reminded of the use of sigur ros's "sæglópur" in a [prince of persia] ad.