by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Title Tracks - Every Little Bit Hurts (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Pretty & Nice - Tora Tora Tora (MP3)

John Davis of Title Tracks (by Shervin Lainez)

In early 2008, after several years spent in Washington D.C. bands like Q And Not U and Georgie James, John Davis decided he was ready to go out and start writing and recording albums on his own. John began work on the songs that were to become the first Title Tracks album in January 2008, as the unhappy fate of Georgie James became clear. By the time that Georgie James officially split up in the summer of 2008, John had an album's worth of songs ready to go and began playing shows with a new group behind him by the end of that summer. It Was Easy is the debut full-length from Title Tracks, John's solo project

Title Tracks' debut comes out February 23rd on Ernest Jenning Record Co. On the album, John Davis plays every instrument himself (minus guest sax by Kriston Capps and two vocal contributions by Tracyanne Campbell of Camera Obscura). Live he'll be accompanied by a band. The album's first song, "Every Little Bit Hurts" posted above, is an upbeat power-pop number in the vein of Police/Elvis Costello/Ted Leo, the latter of which they'll be touring with this March. They open the first leg of Ted's tour, not the later dates that include an Irving Plaza show on April 9th. (Tickets for that are on sale.)

Before the Ted Leo dates, Title Tracks go on tour with peppy indie-pop band Pretty and Nice from Boston. Both bands play Union Hall on March 6th with Gary B & the Notions (tickets are on sale) and Cake Shop on March 7th. Title Tracks will also be at SXSW.

Pretty & Nice, a Hardly Art-signed band whose past credits include a BV day party at CMJ 2008 and opening for the Thermals, happen to also play tonight (1/26) at The Cameo with Drunken Sufis. Their "Tora Tora Tora" is above. More tour dates are below.

Ted Leo performs at the Bell House's stacked Haiti benefit on Wednesday, January 27th.

All tour dates and tracklist/album art for Title Tracks' debut are below...

Continue reading "Title Tracks (John Davis of Q And Not U) - debut album, MP3, tour dates w/ Ted Leo & Pretty & Nice "

Suckers @ Prospect Park earlier this month (more by Natasha Ryan)

tonight in NYC
* DANCE
* Maluca @ Santos
* Zé Luis Quartet @ MoMA
* Todd Barry @ Carolines
* Megafaun @ Monkey Town
* MC Lyte @ Von King Park
* Dark Dark Dark @ Sycamore
* Dwele, Leela James @ BB Kings
*I Need That Record (film) @ 92YTribeca
* The Click Five @ Rocks Off Boat Cruise
* Bonnie Baxter, Beloved Rogue @ Shea Stadium
* Titus Andronicus, The So-So Glos @ Glasslands
* PG Six, Zachary Cale, Rachel Mason @ Union Pool
* Matisyahu, Umphrey's McGee @ Central Park Summerstage
* Title Tracks, The Nouvellas, Charles Burst @ The Cameo
* The Drums, Living Days, Zambri, Kordan @ Public Assembly
* Chris Garneau, The Lisps, Scary Mansion @ (Le) Poisson Rouge
* Suckers, The Octagon, Hearts of Darknesses, Etta Place @ Pianos
* Midsummer Night Swing w/ Woody Herman Orchestra @ Lincoln Center
* GrandWizzard Theodore, PopMaster Fabel, Biz Markie @ Crotona Park
* Matt & Kim, Flosstradamus, Team Robespierre @ Hudson River Rocks Pier 54
* Jon Wiley Benefit w/ Chairlift, Adam Green, Lightspeed Champion @ The Shank
* Those Darlins, Heavy Trash, Shilpa Ray & Her Happy Hookers @ Mercury Lounge
* Mia Riddle, Bon Savants, Patrick Bower & The World Without Magic @ The Bell House
* NY Ear & Eye Fest w/ Nymph, Religious To Damn, Hunters, Dinowalrus, more @ Knitting Factory
* Latin Alternative Music Conference w/ Leon Polar, Natalia Lafourcade, more @ Bowery Ballroom
* Mewithoutyou, The Dear Hunter, Kay Kay & His Weathered Underground @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Free Brooklyn Lager from 7:30- 8:30 at the Bell House.

Matt & Kim play a free outdoor show tonight, the first of this summer's HudsonRiverRocks series. That'll bring Ted Leo and Yeasayer in the coming weeks. Opening tonight's show are Team Robespierre and Flosstradamus (whose remix of Matt & Kim's "Yea Yeah" is below with other, revealing M&K vidoes).

GrandWizzard Theodore, PopMaster Fabel and Biz Markie play a free Park Jams show
at Crotona Park in the Bronx. Luminescent Orchestrii performs a free River to River set at World Financial Center Plaza. MC Lyte plays in Von King Park. At the Central Park Summerstage, Matisyahu and Umphrey's McGee play a ticketed show.

"Four cemetery workers have been charged with dismembering bodies after police found what they called "startling and revolting" conditions at a historic cemetery near Chicago." [AP]

Titus Andronicus and The So So Glos play a free-with-RSVP, limited-capacity show hosted by Colt 45 & Vice at Glasslands tonight. See a video of Titus "Shotgunnin' Burrs" with The Soft Pack on their UK tour together, below.

The Drums, who will be gigging in NYC a lot this summer, play Public Assembly tonight with Living Days, Zambri and Kordan.

Suckers begin their four-Thursday Pianos residency with guests The Octagon, Hearts of Darknesses and Etta Place.

Chairlift, Adam Green, Lightspeed Champion and others play a benefit for local musician Jon Wiley at The Shank.

In a nice triple bill, Those Darlins, Heavy Trash and Shilpa Ray & Her Happy Hookers all perform at the Mercury Lounge tonight.

Megafaun, who opened for Bowerbirds last night, plays Monkey Town tonight with a "special guest."

The NY Ear & Eye Fest II kicks off tonight at the Knitting Factory. The fest includes a record fair/concert at the 92YTribeca on Saturday and a closing party at Death By Audio Sunday night. 92Y is sceening record store doc I Need That Record tonight with filmmaker Brendan Toller in attendance.

"Google says that its forthcoming Chrome operating system will be so secure that "users don't have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates." But Google's claim is being met with skepticism within the Internet security world." [PC World]

The Lincoln Center's Midsummer Night Swing fest continues tonight with the Woody Herman Orchestra directed by Frank Tiberi at Damrosch Park.

10 bands play for $10 tomorrow at Terminal 5.

The first free Williamsburg Waterfront show is this Sunday.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart plays South Street Seaport on Friday.

Title Tracks, which is John Davis formerly of Q and Not U, plays the Cameo Gallery with The Nouvellas and Charles Burst.

Blitzen Trapper's new video for "Black River Killer", below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Thursday?"

With his former Q and Not U bandmate Chris Richards making plenty of noise as Ris Paul Ric and ex-Q stickman John Davis turning into George James, Harris Klahr went for some serious oneupsmanship: he named his new project President, and named his debut record Take Music. [P4K]

* President plays Knitting Factory tonight (Feb 18)

* Georgie James plays Union Hall on Feb 28th

* above photos by shawn brackbill

DOWNLOAD: The Good Life - Heartbroke (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Good Life - You Don't Feel Like Home to Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Georgie James - Need Your Needs (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Georgie James - Cake Parade (MP3)

Georgie James

At the very least you should know Georgie James as the Saddle Creek band that features John Davis from the disbanded Q and Not U, and at the very least you should also know The Good Life as the Saddle Creek band that features Tim Kasher from Cursive.

Both of these poppy indie rock bands make songs that you can sing along to, and both have new albums. The Good Life's Help Wanted Nights is out today (Sept 11) (stream it here), and Georgie James' Places is out September 25th. Both of these bands are also going on tour - somethimes together, and sometimes not. Some of their shows will include Le Loup (who was great at Pianos the other night) and Luke Temple, and others will not.

Tickets are on sale for Luke Temple, Erie Choir and The Good Life at Bowery Ballroom on October 4th, and tickets are on sale for a show by Georgie James one day eariler at Europa in Brooklyn. CMJ dates TBA? All tour dates below...

Continue reading "Georgie James & The Good Life -- new Saddle Creek albums, MP3s & 2007 Tour Dates"