shiny toy guns

Sometimes you just need to rock out. I'd been waiting years for the chance to see Shiny Toy Guns perform, so I wasn't gonna let a little hurricane stop me from catching them at the Brighton Music Hall in Allston on October 28th.

The skinny: STG hails from LA. You might've seen them in a car commercial; that's how I discovered them several years ago, with their epic remake of Peter Schilling's 80s hit, "Major Tom (Coming Home)." Their tunes span in style from classic pop to electro dance to ethereal Peter Gabrielesque to wannabe Fleetwood Mac to 90s wall of sound to hardcore, no-holds-barred rokkk.

The band has gone through some significant lineup changes in its 10-year history, which is probably one of the reasons they didn't play some of my favorites at the show. Still, it was a truly energetic and gratifying night. Enjoy the pics (more on Flickr), and here's my Shiny Toy Guns supermix, if you'd like to give 'em a listen. ∞

noel, noel

So I'm now in my fourth year of releasing a holiday music mix. (For your listening pleasure, please to check out the 2010, 2009, and 2007 playlists, plus a nice little GeekDad review dating back to last winter.) As in years past, I've included something for everyone... folk, alternative, indie pop, electronic, a cappella, soul, classic rock, and whatever you wanna call Beck's 7-minute spoken-word foray into the Jewish traditions ("spin around and around like a dreidel; kind of science that puts you back in the cradle"). For good measure, I even threw in a poignant protest song from the talented Brett Dennen, who I'm sure would encourage us to #OccupyChristmas. Oh, and please note that the last song is very much NSFW... Happy holidays, everyone! &infin

Cambridge Xmas mix | Listen on Spotify | YouTube Playlist
Merry Christmas, Baby (Please Don't Die) - Crocodiles & Dum Dum Girls
Joy To the World - Future of Forestry
Hazy Shade of Winter - The Bangles
Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto - James Brown
Valley Winter Song - Fountains of Wayne
The Little Drum Machine Boy - Beck
Coventry Carol - Sonos
Silent Night - Boys II Men
Lux Aurumque - Eric Whitacre
The Atheist Christmas Carol - Vienna Teng
Christmas in Prison - John Prine
Christmas Day (I Wish I Was Surfing) - Emmy the Great & Tim Wheeler
The Holidays Are Here (And We're Still At War) - Brett Dennen
Little Drummer Boy / Silent Night / Auld Lang Syne - Jimi Hendrix
Did I Make You Cry on Christmas Day? (Well, You Deserved It!) - Sufjan Stevens
Have Yourself a Bitter Little Christmas - David Ford
A Christmas Duel - The Hives & Cyndi Lauper