My friend Aimee uttered the best phrase this weekend – “sparkly girly mania.” Wouldn’t that be the best band name ever? Or maybe “sparkle girl mania.” Either way, I think we’re on to something.

I spent the weekend traveling with Aimee’s cover band, engineering – we did one proper club date and two private parties. It was so much fun – the band are all such nice people, and they’re great at what they do. Mixing disco music all weekend has cleansed my palate for the upcoming indie-rock onslaught. I took my new FOH rack out for the trip, which was sweet – although, I don’t have most of my gear in it yet, so it was essentially a 60-pound tap delay. Like they used to have in the 30s! But, the hell with efficiency. I can’t wait until the other $700 of gear is in it!

On the drive home, Rob and I were listening to Mitch Hedberg. Wow :-)

Last night I mixed The Sounds! Surprisingly, I hadn’t heard them before. This made me feel pretty lame, because a) they’re brilliant, and b) they’re the kind of band I love. Dancy, punky, tons of attitude, great songs. The singer is a little spitfire, and, man, can she sing. Their manager mentioned that they’re looking for a FOH/TM. Hm :-)

I just got my weekly email from iTunes, and was thrilled to learn that R. Kelly has just released the second installment in his Trapped In The Closet series of music video mini-dramas! Trapped In The Closet may be the best music video mini-drama ever. It may also be the only music video mini-drama ever, but that doesn’t take away from its sheer brilliance. You haven’t fully experienced music video mini-drama until you’ve heard the word “spatula” crooned over a dark R&B beat, as the nosy neighbor opens the door to find R. Kelly, his cheating wife, and her jailbird brother heavily armed in a blood-spattered hallway. Awesome! Highly recommended.

The Thieves were back last night, for another maddeningly underattended show. The ten people who were there were privy to one of the better three-piece rock bands currently touring. These guys have gotten so tight! They’re out in support of a new album, and the new material seems a bit groovier, a bit more laid back in the pocket. These guys kick ass.

I’ve been listening obsessively to the new Black Rebel Motorcycle Club record. It’s so good, it’s almost intimidating. Country roots meets Appalachia meets gospel meets symphonic pop. Can’t … stop … listening … wow!

The Rogue Wave tour preparations are well underfoot. It’s astonishing how much minutiae there is. It will be so nice to get off the computer and into the van :-)

Tonight was a three-band bill at the Red Devil. The opening and headlining acts were unremarkable — the former simply wasn’t very good, and the latter had a huge album in the nineties that I didn’t buy. The middle act was Peluka, and they stole the night. They sound like Interpol, if Interpol were less into Joy Division and more into Echo and the Bunnymen. The singer has a fantastic voice, naturally a baritone but with the upper range of a tenor, rich and resonant. The lead guitarist has a gorgeous, shimmery tone, and the rhythm section pushes back against the songs in an almost frictive way. I think that, with a bit of managerial direction, these guys could find an audience much larger than maybe they know right now. I’m eager to hear their next EP, which they’re apparently finishing in LA at the moment with Mark Needham. Check ’em out …