Homeward Bound

I've been meaning to update here for a while. I even started a few entries, and then something came up so I closed them down. Who has time for blogging when Hook in on TV!?

Answer: No one, that's who.

I'm going home to New York this weekend for a few reasons. One of them being the Across the Narrows Festival. I'm going to the Sunday, Oct. 2nd show in Brooklyn's Keyspan Park on Coney Island. Check out this lineup they've booked:


The only bands I'm bummed about missing are Pixies and Rilo Kiley the day before, but expense and time have prohibited my attendance. I'm also pretty excited about New Year's Eve. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah will be playing Irving Plaza, and I've already snatched up two tickets. This will definitely be a hot ticket. I went to a New Year's concert last year as well -- Wilco & The Flaming Lips at Madison Square Garden. This will surely be a very different atmosphere, but just as awesome I'm sure, and I'm super excited.


As I said recently, New York City isn't the only place to find great indie rock shows. Check out all these acts that are coming to Northampton, Massachusetts:

• Rhett Miller (of The Old 97s)
  
• Stars
• The UCB TourCo (anybody who reads this know who's performing up here on Oct. 20th?)
  
• The Mountain Goats
• The Prayers & Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers
• Jeff Tweedy (of Wilco)
• OK Go
• Rufus Wainwright
• Doves
• VHS or Beta
• The Decemberists
• Nada Surf
• Say Hi To Your Mom
• Broken Social Scene
• Spoon

In related news, Of Montreal put on a great show in Northampton two weeks ago, and said (along with The Decemberists and bunch of other indie bands) said they would love to perform on The OC. FYI, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah said no. That new OC Mix #5 looks pretty nice too. They just keep getting better at this stuff.

OH! Congrats to Aziz Ansari, Charlie Todd, and Chris Kula for being named New York Magazine's #2, #5, and #11 funniest New Yorkers you've got no clue about. Know who's got a clue? Cue thumb to chest. This guy.

Aziz and Charlie were also featured Rolling Stone magazine's "Hot List 2005" issue. Kula is still making funny clip-art captions. Which, by the way, are so funny that I have a copy of them hanging up in my dorm room that I took from UCBT.

I'd like to leave you with this bit of New York Mets news, as even though they are now officially mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, I love them more than ever. You see, the Mets decided to travel to Philadelphia for the season's second-to-last series by choo-choo train. Here's what Mike Piazza, who might be spending his last few days with the Mets, had to say about it:

"I've never gone by train as a player," said Piazza. "But I've been on them, and I thought it would have been cool if we all dressed for it -- you know, wear fedoras and everything."