Quick jaunt back to the beginning of the year.

Sara Bareilles came to Dallas to (ONLY) play an in-store at Good Records, to promote her record, and support independent records stores. Both excellent reasons to play the best record store in town.

It was a fairly entertaining show - completely packed (hadn't seen the likes of that since Kevin Barnes!) with tonnes of kids jammed into the front row swooning over Sara. I'm fairly certain that the week she played this show was the week that she was the number one download on iTunes and all over VH1 and the radio for Love Song. Since I never listen to the radio I didn't actually know that til I got to the show. The good news is that I check out the Good Records website every week for upcoming shows and check out all the artists MySpace pages, so I know when to show up for something great.

Sara played a great little show - just her and an electric piano playing highlights from her record, Little Voice. Fairly soulful stuff intermixed with stories about what inspired each song. I was surprised at the origin of Love Song - who knew that demands from her record label could lead to semi-angry confessions that turn into number one singles?

She's on tour with Counting Crows and Maroon 5 for a chunk of their summer tour, then moving onto a headlining tour of Europe.

Live MP3 MP3s:
Intro
Bottle It Up
Intro to...
Love Song
Intro to...
Gravity
Fairytale
Outro

Tour Dates:
Thu 07/31/08 Wantagh, NY Nikon At Jones Beach Theater
Fri 08/01/08 Wantagh, NY Nikon At Jones Beach Theater
Sat 08/02/08 Mansfield, MA Comcast Center
Tue 08/05/08 Hershey, PA The Star Pavilion
Thu 08/07/08 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
Fri 08/08/08 Atlantic City, NJ Borgata Hotel
Sat 08/09/08 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center
Tue 08/12/08 Saratoga Springs, NY Performing Arts Center
Wed 08/13/08 Bethel, NY Bethel Woods Center For The Arts
Fri 08/15/08 Hartford, CT New England Dodge Music Center
Sat 08/16/08 Bristow, VA Nissan Pavilion At Stone Ridge
Mon 08/18/08 Darien Center, NY Performing Arts Center
Tue 08/19/08 Toronto, ON The Molson Amphitheatre
Thu 08/21/08 Burgettstown, PA Post-Gazette Pavilion
Fri 08/22/08 Tinley Park, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
Sat 08/23/08 Milwaukee, WI Marcus Amphitheater
Sat 09/20/08 Cologne, GER Luxor
Mon 09/22/08 Hamburg, GER Mandarin Kasino
Tue 09/23/08 Berlin, GER Frannz
Fri 09/26/08 Paris, FRA La Maroquinerie
Sun 09/28/08 London, UK Scala
Sat 10/11/08 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern
Mon 11/10/08 Milan, ITA Magazzini Generali
Tue 11/11/08 Munich, GER 59 to 1
Wed 11/12/08 Vienna, AS Birdland
Fri 11/14/08 Zurich, SWI Kaufleuten
Sun 11/16/08 Amsterdam, NET Melkweg
Fri 11/21/08 Manchester, UK Academy 3
Mon 11/24/08 Dublin, IRE Academy

Labels: dallas, good records, live mp3s, major, soundboard mp3s, tour dates

So if you don't have the new Phantom Planet record, go.. neh RUN to your favorite local/online retailer and get it. Raise the Dead pretty much drop kicks every other rock record I've heard this year - combining equal parts pop melody (ala The Guest) and in-your-face rock n roll (via their self-titled Phantom Planet record).

I picked up the record about a month ago - and have had the first seven tracks on repeat ever since. Especially useful when you need to go for a run, and need something to get your adrenaline pumping.

The guys played at SXSW a few months ago, but unfortunately I didnt have a chance to catch them (didnt have a wristband this year, stuck to the day shows). It was basically the only night show that I wanted to see, and though I was glad I saved $300+ by not buying wrist bands, I was fairly disappointed I didn't get to see them.

I saw them in support of their self-titled record a few years ago, but didn't have a chance to tape the show. It was an incredibly fun and high octane show, and I'd been looking forward to seeing them again in the future.

The GOOD NEWS. They came through town last week and played the Loft, a cozy little downtown venue (basically its above a couple of larger venues - Gilleys (mid size) and the Palladium (bit bigger than mid size). The show was everything I hoped for. Completely rocking. An hour and a half set that seemed like 15 minutes. There were only a couple of hundred people there - but every fan sang along to every sang (Dallas sounds beautiful), called out requests for every b-side, and seemed disappointed that the band didn't play another hour.

Lots of cool songs got played, including the best tracks of the new record, the Radiohead cover "Just" (Alex Greenwald had recorded the cover for Mark Ronson's Versions record), rare b-side "The Galleria" and a made up little ditty that led into their best known track, California.

Here's a sampling of the show for your pleasure (turn it up!). Go buy Raise the Dead, and they're touring for the next three months, if they come to your city I highly recommend going.

Live MP3 MP3s:
Intro to...
Just (Radiohead Cover)
Do The Panic
Dropped
Boobies
California
The Galleria

Live Shows:
Fri 08/01/08 San Diego, CA Qualcomm Stadium
Sat 08/02/08 Mesa, AZ Mesa Amphitheatre
Sun 08/03/08 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre
Tue 08/05/08 Little Rock, AR Riverfest Amphitheatre
Wed 08/06/08 New Orleans, LA The Sugar Mill
Thu 08/07/08 Memphis, TN Mud Island Amphitheatre
Fri 08/08/08 Cincinnati, OH Bogart's
Sun 08/10/08 Saint Louis, MO The Pageant
Tue 08/12/08 Chicago, IL Congress Theater
Wed 08/13/08 Sterling Heights, MI Freedom Hill Amphitheatre
Fri 08/15/08 Philadelphia, PA Festival Pier At Penn's Landing
Sat 08/16/08 Asbury Park, NJ Convention Hall
Sun 08/17/08 Providence, RI Providence Pier
Tue 08/19/08 Allentown, PA Crocodile Rock Cafe
Wed 08/20/08 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom
Fri 08/22/08 Montreal, QC Metropolis
Sat 08/23/08 Toronto, ON Kool Haus
Sun 08/24/08 Cleveland, OH Time Warner Cable Amph.
Tue 08/26/08 Saint Paul, MN Minnesota State Fair Grandstand
Fri 08/29/08 Portsmouth, VA Ntelos Wireless Pavilion
Sat 08/30/08 Wallingford, CT Chevrolet Theatre
Tue 09/09/08 Tempe, AZ The Marquee
Wed 09/10/08 Las Vegas, NV Jillian's Las Vegas
Thu 09/11/08 Anaheim, CA Grove Of Anaheim
Fri 09/12/08 San Diego, CA SOMA San Diego
Sat 09/13/08 Los Angeles, CA Music Box @ Fonda
Sun 09/14/08 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
Tue 09/16/08 Portland, OR Hawthorne Theatre
Wed 09/17/08 Seattle, WA El Corazon
Fri 09/19/08 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue
Sat 09/20/08 Englewood, CO Gothic Theatre
Mon 09/22/08 Lawrence, KS Granada Theatre
Tue 09/23/08 Saint Paul, MN Station 4
Wed 09/24/08 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club
Thu 09/25/08 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar
Fri 09/26/08 Pontiac, MI The Crofoot
Sat 09/27/08 Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theatre
Sun 09/28/08 Buffalo, NY Club Infinity
Tue 09/30/08 Worcester, MA The Palladium
Wed 10/01/08 Philadelphia, PA Theatre Of The Living Arts
Thu 10/02/08 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Fri 10/03/08 New York, NY Webster Hall
Sat 10/04/08 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom
Sun 10/05/08 Norfolk, VA NorVa
Tue 10/07/08 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
Wed 10/08/08 Saint Petersburg, FL Jannus Landing
Thu 10/09/08 Fort Lauderdale, FL Revolution
Fri 10/10/08 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues
Mon 10/13/08 Houston, TX House Of Blues
Tue 10/14/08 San Antonio, TX Scout Bar
Wed 10/15/08 Austin, TX Emo's
Sat 10/18/08 Dallas, TX House Of Blues

Heard any cool songs in commercials, TV shows or movies lately and had to go straight to Google to try and figure out who the artist was who sang the song that won't get out of your head? Chances were at least one of those times, the track was from Bitter:Sweet.

Featuring some of the sweetest cross genre production and most sultry vocals you've ever heard, Los Angeles duo Bitter:Sweet has managed to find themselves featured behind more video clips that you can imagine. Songs from their debut album The Mating Game appear on Greys Anatomy, Nip/Tuck, Desperate Housewives, Entourage, Smallville and films including The Devil Wears Prada and Shoot Em Up.

The good news is that the band isn't just for marketer's - after getting hooked a year or so ago through a commercial, I picked up their first record - The Mating Game. Fairly stunning stuff - imagine the stylings of Zero 7 or Portishead and mix in even sexier vocals and you have Bitter:Sweet. My iPod is currently filled with a couple of thousand songs, but The Mating Game is one of only 5 records that's on my iPod in its entirety.

Their new record, Drama, dropped a few weeks ago and the bands heading out across country in support. Now I've always wandered if the duo could pull off the sheer density of their records in a live setting, but after hearing their KCRW Morning Becomes Electric Session (link below) with a full band I'm convinced that the live show is going to be something special (especially since the Dallas show is at the smaller House of Blues room which has a fairly sweet sound set up.)

Check out the alternate version of the title track from their new record below (featuring System of a Down's Serj Tankian), then head over to their MySpace and check out Dirty Laundry from The Mating Game. These two should get you hooked for more. Be sure to check them out if they come to a town near you, tour dates below!

Studio MP3 MP3s:
Drama (Serj Tankian Version)

More Bitter:Sweet:
MySpace
KCRW

Tour Dates:
7/25/08 North Beach Jazz Festival San Francisco CA
7/27/08 Catalyst Atrium Santa Cruz CA
7/28/08 Six Rivers Brewery McKinleyville CA
7/30/08 Berbati’s Pan Portland OR
7/31/08 The Triple Door Seattle WA
8/1/08 Neurolux Boise ID
8/2/08 Urban Lounge Salt Lake City UT
8/3/08 The Marquis Theatre Denver CO
8/5/08 Varsity Theatre Minneapolis MN
8/6/08 Subterranean Chicago IL
8/8/08 Revolution Hall Troy NY
8/9/08 Blender Theatre at Gramercy New York NY
8/10/08 World Café Live Philadelphia PA
8/11/08 Middle East Underground Cambridge MA
8/12/08 DC9 Night Club Washington, DC
8/14/08 Vinyl Atlanta GA
8/15/08 House of Blues New Orleans LA
8/16/08 Meridian Houston TX
8/17/08 House of Blues Dallas TX
8/18/08 The Parish Room Austin TX
8/20/08 Hotel Congress Tuscon AZ