So the funny thing is this blog raved about them a year ago. Now they hate them? I guess the Black Kids are way more derserving.

where in the post does it say they hate them

how can they sign to sony after one album? whatever happened to establishing yourself before selling out?

what did the annuals do to piss you off bv? granted they do kinda suck anyways...

how is signing to Sony selling out? So sorry that more than 3 thousand poeople might like the same band as you. Douche bag. Are you writing form your loft on bedford avenue?

what does "make moves that rub people the wrong way mean?" Who the fuck writes that?

the annuals are the some of the biggest assholes in the indie scene. bv's right, theres a reason why most have turned against them, and it's just their mediocre music.

thankfully now, in another year, when they got dropped from their label, we'll never have to hear of them again.

can someone explain what they have done to piss so many people off?

"Biggest assholes in the indie scene?" Did one of them fuck your ex? Someone here is a little butthurt.

i meant to write, "not just their mediocre music."

i wont get into specifics, but ask anyone who's ever worked with them, and you see why they're so hated.

Aren't music blogs just the worst?

Hahahahah man, you obviously have no Idea what the fuck you're talking about! Name names, WHO SPECIFICALLY should I ask?

boo-fucking hoo, asswipes. hiding behind your thick fake AA glasses, tight vintage jeans, mac laptops and sipping a mocha latte, you know you'd fucking jump at the chance.

what the hell would YOU say to Sony? "nah man, it's all about the music. i want to play solely to pretentious vegans who post on the internet about indie music. i don't care if it's a million bucks a week."

remind me what is the difference between you and some 14 year-old loser who listened to Nirvana in the 80s?

deets. we want deets!

none of the fucks on this site buy records anyway. You all just download. Fuck you all.

its no so much as selling out but a band signing to a major label after having only one record & minor indie success is risky because there will be alot more to lose on their part if they dont sell records. Unlike Modest Mouse or Death Cab For Cutie or Interpol for example who already sold a couple hundred thousand indie records before signing to a major ..those bands were able to transistion pretty easy since their fan base was strong and established and will follow them no matter who puts out their records. A band like the Annuals in some ways has to start over again with much higher stakes.

>>>remind me what is the difference between you and some 14 year-old loser who listened to Nirvana in the 80s? <<<

I'd say you'd be pretty fuckin' hip if you were 14 years old & listening to Nirvana in the 80's

So funny how the hipper than thou blogs love to diss on a band as soon as they have a little bit of success. BV was all over Annuals jock when no one knew who they were. Watch out little bands everywhere... as soon as more than 4 people who work part time at Iona are in to you, your done! By the way, I believe they are signed to a subsidiary of Sony, Canvasback kinda like Astralwerks is a subsidiary of Virgin and Kemado was part of Hollywood Records for a while. Indie label heros. People it happens. Give a band a break for trying to survive.

These people not only don't buy records but never pay for tickets to shows either. They're always mooching on some poor indie bands list. Idiots. Now go fix your hair.

The way to guarantee that you will NOT survive is to sign a dead-end deal with a major label in 2000-fucking-7. These guys may not suck, they may not be assholes, but they sure are retarded. Cue VH-1 "downward spiral" foreboding music.

I think this is one of the few sites that does NOT piss on bands once they are successful.

"the annuals are the some of the biggest assholes in the indie scene."

I third that.

major label does not equal success. just the opposite as someone here pointed out.

Dude everyone calling them assholes, cite sources, I'd really love to hear what you have to back this up with.

Can someone tell me why this band are such assholes? Seems they really pissed some folks off. I'm just wondering what they did?

how do you know what kind of deal they signed? I know for sure what kind of deal they signed and its not what i would call "dead end". i helped negotiate it. Its a deal that committs Canvasback to developing them. Looks like someone doesn't know shit. Just like everyone else who posts on here with the anon title.

odd that the advertisement on the top of this page is an annuals ad. guess brooklyn vegan has no problem taking major label money.

***Its a deal that committs Canvasback to developing them.***

Good luck with that.

rufus = doofus

BAM!

Guess Annuals are no longer the biggest assholes in the indie music scene, now that they've OH MY GOD... SIGNED TO A MAJOR! OHHHHHH NOOOOOO! Guess we'll just have to judge them by their music now rather than their coolness. Oh, and I'm wondering... the dude who's talking about singing to a major too early, do you happen to work in the music industry?

***Its a deal that committs Canvasback to developing them.*** How do you know what kind of deal they have?

olive=doofus

Anonymous = Spineless Buttmunch

i don't care what label they're signed to. i had to sit through these pricks open for band of horses at mccarren and the singer's wannabe-oberst yelp made me want to sever my ears with a machete.

not to mention the hilarious incongruity in their dress sense. it was funny to look over from the slip n' slide occasionally to see the guitarist dressed in cargo shorts, the singer in GQ-emo, the bassist as a member of puddle of mudd, and the girl as the pseudo-indie jenny lewis wannabe. it's *good* they're signed to sony- now less worthwhile/smaller venues will book them, and they can get some style tips from their business manager.

olive eats anonymous spineless buttmunch for breakfast everyday.

lolz @ sony execs + members of annuals posting in the comments here.

"lolz @ sony execs + members of annuals posting in the comments here."

that's exactly what i was thinking. the level of defensiveness involved clearly indicates that they are either sony execs or in fact members of annuals themselves.

I am neither a member of the band nor a record exec. I am an attorney at a leading entertainment lawfurm, and I know more about how to draft a pro-artist contract than any of you morons could ever dream of.

that's cool rufus, but it doesn't change the fact that the band fucking sucks

it doesnt change the fact the rufus fucking sucks too.

"that's exactly what i was thinking. the level of defensiveness involved clearly indicates that they are either sony execs or in fact members of annuals themselves."

well certainly nothing else can explain the fact that this band that has maybe five actual fans at this point suddenly has people courageously leaping to their defense on BV and critiquing the sad state of music journalism on the internet. i didn't know annuals fans were such students of art and culture.

i doubt these people have been reading BV religiously for years, and just now decided to respond to this post with idiotic insults because he (barely even) insulted their shitty band. posts like "aren't music blogs the worst?" are obviously intended to offset any perceived negative effect BV's (rather tame, if even existent, by the way) criticism might have.

courage? please. people are fickle. that's a fact. get over it. next please.

okay guys we get it. you're too cool for annuals. anyone defending them, is not just a fan or objective bystander, but must be a fucking sony executive.

i like annuals. deal with it. im sure you like a band that's on a major label now too. and chances are, i hate that band you like.

but you know what? who gives a flying fuck; i dont wait till BV posts an entry about it to rip on then with fake facts.

arguing on the internet is probably the most pathetic thing in the world, one of the many reasons being that you can just make up any fact you want. so please... read who just wrote this.

come on who cares about all of this really? i personally like their music and i think they're cute.

this is awesome. thanks everyone.

i like them. i think it's some of the most complex writing i've heard from a band in a long time.

but it's cool, i dont care if you disagree, that's just my two cents.

manchester sucks though, and their cover of brother blows.

dudes, i work at a record label and people are on this and other blogs AT ALL TIMES ready to pounce on news about their bands to sway the comments. it really happens. this is what music is reduced to.

Whether a person is pro or anti Annuals, I do think it is true that when a band first comes out and the blogs rave about them, people love that band. After a while, they do seem to toss these aside, for the latest, hot new indie band.

I

"rufus" wrote:
"Its a deal that committs [sic] Canvasback to developing them"
"I am neither a member of the band nor a record exec. I am an attorney at a leading entertainment lawfurm [sic], and I know more about how to draft a pro-artist contract than any of you morons could ever dream of [sic]."

Do those drafts include misspellings and dangling participles? Dude, learn to write the English language before pretending to be an attorney.

This band's sad future has already been written:
http://www.arancidamoeba.com/mrr/problemwithmusic.html

Hey anonymous post at 7:15,
do us ALL a favor-get back to your fuckin slip and slide and sever your FINGERS with a machete so we don't have to read your worthless dribble on fashion sense.

I'm not from the band or the label, but I really do wish that you'd elaborate on how the band rubbed people the wrong way, banished them for the past year, and got them a spot on Canvasback. It just seems like a really odd comment, particularly about a band that you guys used to like and are currently advertising for.

I also wonder if you saw this:

http://www.oxfordamericanmag.com/content.cfm?ArticleID=255&Entry=Extras

Yeah, why is what any band wears so important?

P.S. Rufus is nothing without Chaka Khan.

i am the joe that called the sell outs first. you were all successfully trolled.

i actually like them, but i think it is a stupid move to go to the majors so quick.

the self-righteous poses people are striking about supposed elitism are way more pretentious and hilarious than the people posting about disliking annuals. i do like bands on major labels. that doesn't mean i can't hate annuals for reasons related to what i shall hereby refer to as the "shitty," "bad," or "fucking terrible" quality of their music.

you're right. what they wear isn't important. it's how much their music sucks that counts.

i know this is completely but is all mercury lounge shows +21?

yes, except for annuals for whom the limit is actually 14-, because that's the mental capacity you must possess to seriously enjoy this band

If you don't like it, don't listen to it. And try to keep your ugly negativity and jealousy about someone's creativity and success to yourself.

actually, like the above poster, i was also subjected to them at mccarren, so i had no choice in the matter.

"keep your ugly negativity to yourself"

hahah. welcome to america, mom. and the internet. dry your tears.

as for jealousy, well, i sometimes do wish i could make music that bad and get away with it, but then i remember that i have talent and stop caring.

i'm sorry. seems like Annuals stole someone's puppy. poor puppy.

Mind sharing with us who you are so we can openly judge and comment about your self-proclaimed talent as you are so easily placing judgement on another's talent under an "anonymous" title?

ok, all i have to say is GO TO THIS LINK NOW:
www.myspace.com/sedonamusic

Yeah. That's the shit ass band these ppl were in before Crapuals. Barf.

PS: I'm from their hometown, and this band is complete bullshit. they're a bunch of untalented rich kids from Cary whose parent's gave them endless amounts of high end gear, vans, etc from day 1. Ask anyone from Raleigh or Cary. no i'm not jealous, it's common knowledge. Thank god this will all be over soon. Nauseating.

Annuals are Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's favorite band (after Evanescence).

http://www.myspace.com/sedonamusic

This. is. the. worst. music. ever.
Painful.

Ok, here's the link. For the love of god ppl, take a listen to this garbage, and pull your head out of your asses and stop defending these jerks.
Annual's last band SEDONA

damn that's some laughably awful stuff. but is it any worse than the crap the annuals have been putting out?

how does a band that's been around for over at least year now, who has already gone through the cycle of hype, yet has no real fan base and cant even sell out the bowery ballroom, get a major label record deal?

Ok, that's bad, but how about Timothy's Weekend, eh? Here's another link to a previous solid (no not at all)project resulting from these stellar musical forces:

check this

Thanks Annuals for making beautiful music which I love. Who cares about the haters-you can't please everyone.

Sorry, my links are not showing up. Just copy and paste www.myspace.com/timothysweekend into your browser. not sure what up with the html not showing. and PS- no, you can't please everyone, especially ANYone with a solid ear for music and knowledge of this heinous band's attempts at "art."

annuals who? who gives a flying fuck? can we talk about a band with actually talent. thank you. thank you very much.

Annuals soon to be monthly, soon to be weekly, soon to be daily, soon to be hourly, soon to be absorbed into the cultural ethos of forgotten never neverland. No one cares.

Saw this coming (the comments). Give it a rest, on both sides. At the end of the day, it's a non-issue.

"Annuals are Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's favorite band (after Evanescence)."

hahahahahahhahahahhahahahahahahahahh

"Annuals are Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's favorite band (after Evanescence)."

In the case of either band, he only likes them because he has the hots for the chick.

ive meet and spoken with the members of annuals a couple times and they were the nicest kids. they really put a lot into their shows as well. that sucks that some people have had a negative experience with them. and who cares if their parents are rich? there are a ton of artists, musicians and film makers, etc in the 'indie world' who had the money to focus on their passion and from that achieve success. it doesnt mean (necessarily) that they have no talent to begin with.

Wow. Obviously you can tell for like a stretch of five or six posts it was all one dude ragging on them. What did they do to piss you guys off?

Was it the signing that really rubbed you the wrong way? Pathetic.

"dudes, i work at a record label and people are on this and other blogs AT ALL TIMES ready to pounce on news about their bands to sway the comments. it really happens. this is what music is reduced to."

I stand by my comment. Aren't music blogs the worst?

I'll take it even further: music blogs, such as this one, do more harm than major labels and top 40 radio stations in terms of making music fans into mindless sheep.

On why some people say they are assholes-Adam Baker told some girl to give him a blow job or get out of his house, but I'm sure this happens quite a lot.
I personally love their music though and am going to see them tonight.

Hey, I know how he feels! sometimes if I can't get my dick sucked I'd rather just be alone.

maybe this will be SOUND TEAM: the sequel.
sign to a major label before you have a good sized following, dont sell records, acculumate debt, break up.

The band writes excellent songs. Brother and Fair specifically are some of the best songs I've ever heard. This band deserves to be huge

They are actually really nice people. So are their parents.

This group has talent beyond their years, and they've been working their asses off for longer than you've known about them.

I wish them all the best.

north carolina is destroying the rest of the usa

are you people on crack? this band writes excellent songs. fair and brother are incredible.

annuals rule!

be he me is one of the best albums i've ever heard....

SOUND TEAM?!?!?! no way. sound team couldn't write songs and Annuals can. no comparison.

annuals are really good. and the fact they somehow create 85 response flame-wars means they're probably doing something right.
awesome.

you guys are so ridiculous. Adam Baker is one of he most talented people I know. And as for that stupid sucking dick story.. come on guys.. you can come up with something better then that. Everyne knows he has a girlfriend of 6 years. grow up guys. Theres more important things in life then to fight about a band. Its pretty obvious that you guys don't truly dont understand or get music. get a life.. write your own goddamn music and try to get it signed.

bbnb

hey guys- I played a show with these guys a while back, before they were really being hotly talked about. Their bass player was the only guy I talked to and he was a swell fellow and he seemed like a good guy every other time I've seen him in person. I didn't check them out that night, opting to take a smoke break at the time. My band mates were mostly very enthusiastic about them, and when I saw them w/ BOH at McCarren pool, I thought they were pretty okay. Regardless of whether or not you like them or their music (I'm personally not crazy about it), you have to admit that these guys have oodles of (questionably focused) talent and it's pretty respectable that they are trying to make something that is creatively outside-the-box.

I think it's a true shame that they opted to get so hooked into the system so early in their career, before their musicianship matured. Their first signing put them on the map, which is fair- but imho it's not really fair that their second signing would put them in danger of being wiped off the map, but it's their choice to put themselves out there in such a major way. Hopefully they really will take some time to mature, not rest on the back catalog of one songwriter's material, and produce an album that reflects a lot of growth.

The alternative is that they will become even more manicured, slick and adaptive to whatever someone else's idea of cool is. I wonder how many records they've signed on for- it's gonna be a risky proposition if there's a ton riding on just the next record considering the indie fans/writers- who did in many ways put them where they are through vouching their faith- seem to be a bit pissed off by the group. Their last record was at least interesting as a case study in the mentality of a young indie band, and I bet the next one will be too.

WOW, I CAN'T BELIEVE ALL THIS NEGATIVE NONSENSE ABOUT THIS BAND. I KNOW THEM VERY WELL, AND I TOO LIVE IN THEIR HOMETOWN. I ALSO KNOW SOME OF THEIR PARENTS. FYI- NONE OF THEM ARE "RICH", AND THEIR PARENTS DIDN'T GIVE THEM EVERYTHING. AND SINCE WHEN DID WHAT PARENTS GIVE THEIR KIDS EARN THEM A PLACE ON EITHER AN INDIE LABEL OR A MAJOR LABEL?

THIS BAND HAS WORKED VERY HARD FOR WHAT THEY HAVE ACCOMPLISHED. PERHAPS IF YOU KNEW A LITTLE MORE ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO DO A USA TOUR, IN A DILAPIDATED VAN, WITH NO BUDGET, WORKING IN A DIFFERENT CITY EVERY NIGHT, GETTING MINIMAL SLEEP BEFORE DRIVING TO THE NEXT CITY TO PERFORM AGAIN, YOU MIGHT THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU SPEAK OUT.

IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THE PERSON WHO WROTE ALL THESE NEGATIVE COMMENTS, (AND ALSO COMES FROM THEIR HOME TOWN), IS SIMPLY VERY JEALOUS OF THEIR SUCCESS. IT TAKES A LOT OF HARD WORK AS WELL AS TALENT TO MAKE IT AS FAR AS ANNUALS HAS GONE. IF YOU DON'T LIKE THEIR MUSIC, THAT IS FINE, BUT STOP WRITING SUCH CRAP.

AS FAR AS "SELLING OUT", LET ME ASK YOU THIS. DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE THAT ANNUALS COULD MAKE MORE MONEY ON AN INDIE LABEL? ALL LABELS SUCK THEIR MUSICIANS DRY, TAKING WHATEVER MONEY THE BAND CAN MAKE FOR THEMSELVES. DO YOU TRULY ENJOY MUSIC LESS IF IT IS ON A MAJOR LABEL VERSUS AN INDIE LABEL? DON'T YOU THINK THAT THE BAND MIGHT ACTUALLY ENJOY HAVING SOME MONEY TO LIVE OFF, SO THEY DON'T SPONGE OFF OF THEIR "RICH" PARENTS FOREVER?

I SUGGEST YOU GET A LIFE. STOP BITCHING ABOUT THIS BAND. AS SOME OF THE OTHERS WROTE, WHAT EXACTLY DID THIS BAND DO TO YOU TO MAKE YOU SO ANGRY WITH THEM? IF YOU DON'T LIKE THEM, YOU DON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO THEIR MUSIC. ENOUGH SAID.

Anna Spence replies to this topic:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2008/07/interview_anna.php