RX BANDITS FAREWELL SUMMER TOUR 2011

May 14 – San Diego, CA @ Mariners Point OMBAC Coming Out Party
Jun 26 – Tempe, AZ @ Marquee *
Jun 28 – Dallas, TX @ Granada *
Jun 29 – Austin, TX @ Emo’s *
Jun 30 – San Antonio, TX @ White Rabbit *
July 01 – Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s *
July 03 – New Orleans, LA @ Howlin’ Wolf *
July 05 – Orlando, FL @ The Social *
July 06 – Orland, FL @ The Social *
July 07 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room *
July 08 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade *
July 09 – Washington DC @ 9:30 Club *
July 10 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theater of Living Arts TLA *
July 12 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza *
July 14 – Cambridge, MA @ The Middle East *
July 15 – Cambridge, MA @ The Middle East
July 16 – Portland, ME @ Port City Music Hall
July 17 – Montreal, Quebec, Canada @ Cafe Campus *
July 18 – Toronto, Ontario, Canada @ Mod Club *
July 20 – Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick *
July 21 – Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
July 22 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall *
July 23 – Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck *
July 24 – Denver, CO @ The Summit *
July 25 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Complex *
July 27 – Seattle, WA @ El Corazon *
July 28 – Portland, OR @ The Hawthorne *
July 30 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Catalyst *
July 31 – Sacramento, CA @ Ace Of Spades *
Aug 03 – Long Beach, CA @ Long Beach Performing Arts Center
Aug 04 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Mayan
Aug 06 – Pomona, CA @ Glasshouse
Aug 07 – San Francisco, CA @ Regency Ballroom

Read The Official Announcement On Sargent House’s Blog
MP3 // Mastering The List

Don’t be fooled, they aren’t going balls to the wall for TV, this is how these guys play every night. If you haven’t caught em, it’s only your fault but you should still getMandala in the bag if you haven’t already.

So without further ado, here are the 10 albums that made my year. These are the top 10 reasons I keep doing this. Let me know what you think!

10
As Cities Burn // Hell or High Water
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.0 of 5 // review
The last album in the short-lived legacy of As Cities Burn, Hell or High Water hinted at the same brooding and dissonant songwriting of it’s predecessor featuring vocalist Cody Bonnette shining in some of his brightest moments. Although Hell or High Water will not go down as their best release, it’s an applauded effort by a band that went away all too soon.
mp3// pirate blues

****

09
Monsters of Folk // Monsters of Folk
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.0 of 5
The collaboration between M. Ward, Jim James and Conor Oberst birthed an album that was diversified enough to keep everybody happy, while staying true to each artists character. The hype that surrounded Monsters of Folk at it’s announcement usually stunts such supergroups, but Monsters of Folk lived up to the hype, creating an album that is impossible to find something that you don’t like.
mp3// say please

****

08
Freelance Whales // Weathervanes
Bedwetters Rating //4.0 of 5 // full review
The thing that makes Weathervanes so good is it’s unexplainable ability to combine the immediacy of it’s songs with a depth of songwriting that is unmatched by too many. The first week after being introduced to Weathervanes, it was the only thing I listened to. I took it with me wherever I went, all the while waiting for the eventual crash that accompanies a record that favors instant appeal instead of good songwriting. I thought this was THAT record, but I was wrong. Weathervanes is the best of both worlds; instantly addicting and positively refreshing with each listen.
mp3// starring

****

07
Atlas Sound // Logos
Bedwetter’s Rating //4.0 of 5 // full review
It seems that with Logo’s, Bradford Cox has finally left the confines of his bedroom to give his work the cliche’d “breath of fresh air”. The sound heard throughout Logos is both consistent and addicting, compounding soaring soundscapes with conservative whispers making Logos not only one of the shining moments of 2009, but arguably Cox’s best work to date.
mp3// shelia

****

06
Brand New // Daisy
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.0 of 5 // full review
From the opening wounded shrieking to the delirious and maniacal chanting of it’s imploding end, Daisy instantly became the most polarizing album in Brand New’s prolific catalog. While naysayers cite sloppy songwriting and questionable quality behind Daisy’s lyricism, Jesse Lacey and Co. still pushed the boundaries into depths few, if any knew they were capable of.
mp3// gasoline

****

05
Thrice // Beggars
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.5 of 5 // full review
Beggars is not the most intricate record, nor the most experimental release in Thrice’s impressive discography. However, the solidified composition and reserved greatness in every song on the album makes it easy to listen to and nearly impossible to forget. The masterful musicianship displayed by guitarist Teppei Teranishi is perfectly balanced in every aspect, lending way for the Breckenridge brother’s flawless percussion section. Combined with Dustin Kensrue’s career defining performance both lyrically and vocally, it’s hard to think of a time when the songwriting prowess of Thrice was more evident than now.
mp3// doublespeak

****

04
Rx Bandits // Mandala
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.5 of 5 // full review
While Mandala might not take the giant leap of progression found on …And The Battle Begun, it still finds the band in a place of steady contentment. The energy and the flow is all we have come to expect from a band of such stature, and it does well serving as the next chapter in Rx Bandit’s already impressive story.

mp3// bring our children home or everything is nothing

****

03
mewithoutYou // it’s all crazy! it’s all false! it’s all a dream! it’s alright
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.5 of 5 // full review
Although it may be mewithoutYou’s worst acclaimed release, I can’t fault them for making an album that they wanted to make. Gone is everything that made this band recognizable, but they still made it work. From the opening happy keys of “every thought a thought of You” to the campfire acoustics of “Allah, Allah, Allah” Aaron Weiss cements himself among the greatest lyricists of my time. If you don’t get this album, keep listening. It will come
mp3// cattail down

****

02
Grizzly Bear // Veckatimest
Bedwetter’s Rating // 4.5 of 5 // full review
Capitalizing on everything that makes Grizzly Bear such a widely admired band, Veckatimest is a true rarity. Gushing to the brim with dazzling and addicting psychedelia tinged chamber pop and methodically sparse folk, these four men from Brooklyn have made a masterpiece that is both insatiably deep as it is instantly gratifying.
mp3// ready, able

****

01
Manchester Orchestra // Mean Everything To Nothing
Bedwetter’s Rating // 5 of 5 //full review
It is apparent that when Manchester Orchestra set out to write this album, they went with clear intentions to make a masterpiece, and a masterpiece is exactly what they have delivered. In an industry where we are constantly being subjected to bands intent on selling us an image rather than a song, it’s refreshing to see a band come along and create something so naturally beautiful and unforced. And for that, Manchester Orchestra deserve all the acclaim in the world.
mp3// everything to nothing

A quick tour recap from the RX Bandits camp. This was honestly one of the best shows I had the privilege of attending this summer. If you haven’t copped Mandala get on it now.

One of the better labels out there have teamed up with Amazon to post a free music sampler from bands on their roster. Don’t miss out on this. There is a ton of great tracks from awesome bands. Hit it up here ITS FREE, and you might just discover your new favorite band

1. Looking For Shelter -Good Old War
2. My Lonesome Only Friend -Rx Bandits
3. Ted Zancha -Maps & Atlases
4. Click On That (Smash The Plastic death) -bygones
5. Chinchilla -This Town Needs Guns
6. A Spoonful Of Slurry -Tera Melos
7. Vlad -Fang Island
8. Ride The Tide -Native
9. Sharks -Red Fang
10. David’s Birthday -Love You Moon
11. Glamorous Glowing -Cast Spells
12. The Fear Is Excruiating, But Therein Lies the Answer -Red Sparowes

as always, if you dig the song, support the artist!

the picture is of my brother getting punched in the face. i stole it from my good friend’s expansive collection of photography. his name is trevor christensen , do him a favor, hit him up and show him some love.

download:: best of the decade pt 1 (songs 1-25)
download:: best of the decade pt 2 (songs 26-50)

#50
wild orchid children – ahead of us the secret
from elephant ep (2007) ::purchase

#49
city and colour – as much as i ever could
from bring me your love (2008) ::purchase

#48
blood brothers – trash flavored trash
from crimes (2004) ::purchase

#47
forget cassettes – quiero, quieres
from salt (2006) ::purchase

#46
straylight run – big shot (hands in the sky)
from prepare to be wrong ep (2005)::purchase

#45
the arcade fire – wake up
from funeral (2004)::purchase

#44
arctic monkeys – fluorescent adolescent
from favourite worst nightmare (2007)::purchase

#43
moving mountains – 8105
from pneuma (2008)::purchase

#42
manchester orchestra – i can barely breathe
from i’m like a virgin losing a child (2006)::purchase

#41
underoath – everyone looks so good from here
from define the great line (2006)::purchase

#40
kevin devine – time to burn (another bag of bones)
from brother’s blood (2009)::purchase

#39
parallax – the romance
from mediums and messages(2006) unavailable for purchase

#38
explosions in the sky – greet death
from those who tell the truth shall die, those who tell the truth shall live forever (2001)::purchase

#37
death from above 1979 – romantic rights
from you’re a woman, i’m a machine (2004)::purchase

#36
gym class heroes – everydays forecast
from the papercut chronicles (2005)::purchase

#35
mgmt – time to pretend
from oracular spectacular (2008)::purchase

#34
manchester orchestra – i was a lid
from let my pride be what’s left behind (2008)::purchase

#33
david bazan – cold beer and cigarettes
from fewer moving parts ep (2006)::purchase

#32
evangelicals – midnight vignette
from the evening descends (2008)::purchase

#31
the strokes – you only live once
from first impressions of earth (2006)::purchase

#30
animal collective – the purple bottle
from feels (2005)::purchase

#29
conor oberst – milk thistle
from conor oberst (2008)::purchase

#28
aesop rock – daylight
from labor days (2001)::purchase

#27
the sound of animals fighting – act IV – you don’t need a witness
from tiger & the duke (2005)::purchase

#26
bloc party – positive tension
from silent alarm (2005)::purchase

#25
colour revolt – swamp
from plunder, beg, and curse (2008)::purchase

#24
brand new – untitled 05
from leaked demos (2006) unavailable for purchase

#23
the good life – inmates
from album of the year (2004)::purchase

#22
la dispute – damaged goods
from somewhere at the bottom between vega and altair(2008)::purchase

#21
circle takes the square – kill the switch
from as the roots undo(2003)::purchase

#20
mewithoutYou – four word letter pt. 2
from catch for us the foxes(2004)::purchase

#19
modest mouse – night on the sun
from everywhere and his nasty parlour tricks (2001)::purchase

#18
grizzly bear – ready, able
from veckatimest (2009)::purchase

#17
cursive – staying alive
from the ugly organ (2003)::purchase

#16
glassjaw- two tabs of mescaline
from worship and tribute (2002)::purchase

#15
bright eyes – lets not shit ourselves (to love and to be loved)
from lifted: or the story is in the soil, keep your ear to the ground (2002)::purchase

#14
the strokes – is this it
from is this it (2001)::purchase

#13
bright eyes – hit the switch
from digital ash in a digital urn (2006)::purchase

#12
brand new – limousine (ms rebridge)
from the devil and god are raging inside me (2006)::purchase

#11
manchester orchestra – pride
from mean everything to nothing (2009)::purchase

#10
emily haines – winning
from knives don’t have your back (2006)::purchase

#9
brand new – okay i believe you, but my tommy gun don’t
from deja entendu (2003)::purchase

#8
portugal. the man – telling tellers telling me
from church mouth (2007)::purchase

#7
la dispute – new storms for older lovers
from somewhere at the bottom between vega and altair (2008)::purchase

#6
right away, great captain! – right ahead, young sailor
from the bitter end (2007)::purchase

#5
rx bandits – tainted wheat
from …and the battle begun (2006)::purchase

#4
the sound of animals fighting – this heat
from lover the lord has left us (2006)::purchase

#3
as cities burn – timothy
from come now sleep (2006)::purchase

#2
mewithoutYou – o porcupine
from brother, sister(2006)::purchase

#1
bright eyes – loose leaves
from brother, sister(2006)::purchase

download:: best of the decade pt 1 (songs 1-25)
download:: best of the decade pt 2 (songs 26-50)