08/15/08 Deer Tick & others (Paradosaurus Wreck) @ Dilboy VFW Hall, Somerville, MA

Having avoided Boston for nearly the entirety of several friends' collegiate careers, my brilliant and talented friend finally cajoled me into a weekend there.

The lure of an art happening thrown by nerdy hipster weirdos was too tempting to pass up. Deer Tick was just beginning to make waves on the national scene with the gritty country fried twang of their debut album War Elephant, although given the group's New England roots, their inclusion in this DIY event was not entirely surprising. They were icing on the cake.

Deer Tick went on early and played most of the album including my favorite track "These Old Shoes". Echoes crashed around the low ceilings and slate tiled floors. The rest of the music varied between utterly forgettable and disturbingly strange.

The art element involved projections on catwalk models clad entirely in white. It worked better in concept than in practice.

The event ended, as things in Boston are wont to do, a little after midnight, which was just as well, since we had a bus back to NYC Saturday morning for an incredibly packed day.

08/08/08 88boadrum w/Gang Gang Dance @ East River State Park, Brooklyn, NY

The original boadrum took place in Brooklyn Bridge Park at exactly 7:07pm on the 7th day of the 7th month in the 2007th year after jeebus. A concept of the Japanese noise psych freak whatever rockers The Boredoms, the boadrum incorporated 77 drums and a sort of composed accompaniment by the band. The spectacle drew unforeseen crowds, and many were relegated to bird's eye views from the Brooklyn Bridge walkway. Not wanting to fight the masses, we wandered elsewhere and stumbled upon a Korean gallery opening with a delicious buffet.

By 2008, the trinumeral event was a bi-coastal, Nike-sponsored affair. The Boredoms held down Los Angeles and enlisted local noiseniks Gang Gang Dance to conduct the concurrent New York performance. In order to stem the crowds of 2007, the New York event was moved to the larger East River State Park and employed a free ticketing system.

Forecast rains never materialized, but Nike was kind enough to provide 88boadrum ponchos, a unique memento. As for the music, the band seemed nearly inconsequential anchoring a cacophonous rumble of 88 drum kits spiraling outward across the East River under a perfect July night sky. It stands as one of my most memorable musical experiences.

08/07/08 Chromeo DJ set @ warehouse, Brooklyn, NY

This otherwise nondescript warehouse throwdown, complete with an unnecessarily lengthy entry line, inadequate bathrooms, and all the Colt '45 cans we could carry home, was made memorable by the left-field appearance of costume-clad members of Kaiju Big Battel on the dance floor, which erupted when Chromeo dropped "Killing In The Name".

08/06/08 Soulwax/Dave P./JDH/Alex English @ Irving Plaza, New York, NY

Soulwax is the live band project of Belgian DJ mash-up duo 2 Many DJs. Here, their explosive live set was paired with local DJs about town Dave P. and JDH of Fixed.

08/05/08 Strawberry Fields (Beatles tribute) @ BB King's Blues Club, New York, NY

This "Ultimate Beatles Tribute Band" features members of the Broadway show Beatlemania and performs the Fab Four's chronologically, complete with era-appropriate costume changes from mop tops to Sgt. Pepper.

08/01/08 Booka Shade/Michna @ Irving Plaza, New York, NY

This German electronic duo's live act is way more energetic than their borderline ambient recorded material, and that's not bad.

07/??/08 Consider the Source @ Mehanata, New York, NY

At some point during CtS's weekly residency at the L.E.S. Bulgarian bar, Mehanata, we caught up with our Baller BBQ buddies. A sign at the downstairs bar promised a free shot to those willing to disrobe (and a bottle for a couple willing to partake in coitus on the spot).