The Dodos, my favorite musical guest the BPP ever had, have just announced a US/Canada tour. Dates are on their Myspace page. They include (yay!) a Boston stop, at (double yay!) the Museum of Fine Arts. I love that the MFA has started booking bands I like, in large part because...well, I'm 39 years old. My ass wants to sit down at a gig. I am no longer into standing in one spot for several hours while some drunk BU freshman pours her beer on me while gabbing on her cellphone.
Yes, the MFA is a GREAT place to see a band! I saw The Sea and Cake there a few months ago and loved the space, acoustics, green upholstery on the seats, everything. I was at the museum on Sunday and thought wistfully of that evening when I walked by the auditorium. (Although that's largely because I heart the Sea and Cake so much.)
Have you been to any of the courtyard concerts yet? Pistolera and Dengue Fever were supposed to be in the courtyard, but it was raining, so they moved it into the Remis. But we saw Erin McKeown there last summer and it was just a blast. A really nice space for a concert.
Also last summer, we saw Lavender Diamond at the MFA. They were great, but the three opening acts were all really impressive in the way they all sucked in entirely separate ways. The worst was the first act, whose entire set was just him standing in front of a homemade noise generator flipping switches at excruciating volume for about 15 minutes. I told him at the merch table later, "You know, next time you should just go onstage and masturbate. It'll be just as unpleasant and self-indulgent, but it'll be way less annoying."
No, I didn't know they had concerts out there, but it does seem like it would be a good spot for it. I live a couple of hours away, so I don't get there very often, but you've just reminded me to keep an eye on their schedule - thanks!
As the year and the decade draw to a close, lists are everywhere. We're asking why we love them so much and what the proliferation of lists says about us a culture.
This week's demonstrations in Iran have shown that the opposition "Green Movement" is gaining political strength. But Ayatollah Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard aren't giving up power without a fight. We'll assess the strength of each side and look at where the battle is heading.
Women have fought to legitimize their work as housewives, but now more men are assuming these roles and taking on the battle themselvs. As part of our Work in Progress series, The Current is taking a look at stay-at-home Dads.
We get the latest on the negotiations to release Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier who was captured by Hamas in June of 2006. And we look at why Israel has a policy of negotiating with groups that it considers terrorists when so many other countries refuse.