You know you’re in for an interesting time when the new Oh Sees (Thomas Dolas – synths, John Dwyer – guitar / vocals / synths, Tim Hellman – bass, Paul Quattrone – drums, Dan Rincon – drums) album has a cover featuring airbrushed van art of Frank Frazetta’s “Swamp Demon” and the record is a double-album called Face Stabber.
The album combines psychedelic jams with stoner metal riffs and jazz influences for one of the coolest albums of 2019. The opener, “The Daily Heavy,” begins with toy squeaks and soon morphs into a weird mantra-like jam of double drums and a rolling bass groove from Hellman that doesn’t seem to let up for almost eight minutes. The song seems to be about trying to live in a chaotic world in its final death throes, and maybe it’s about a bad relationship. I’m not sure. It just cooks. “The Experimenter” pokes fun at hipsters (“Everybody’s doing everybody’s else thing. Everybody’s talking about how, how it should be.”). The title track is a fast, furious instrumental jam.
The guitar and synth stabs of “Snickersnee” hit you like a knife as Dwyer sings about the constant barrage of lies from politicians mentally and physically affects us (“Politicians tell you only lies. It possesses every breath you breathe.”). “Fu Xi” brings in some prog rock elements that remind me of some Frank Zappa tracks. “Scutum and Scorpius” is a synthwave mind trip at first and then transforms into a psychedelic lava lamp flow that floats around you for over fourteen glorious minutes. Dwyer stretches his riffs into great Hendrix-like sounds, Quattrone and Rincon keep the song movie with simple, effective beats, Dolas follows Dwyer’s lead, and Hellman grounds the whole track.
Then along comes “Gholu,” an instant mosh pit creator that has Dwyer growling about demonic dinners and bodies in freezers in under two minutes. “Poisoned Stones” chugs along with a heavy weight and more excellent double drumming from Rincon and Quattrone. “Psy-Ops Dispatch” is a cautionary tale about cyber-addiction (“Lock us all together, pulsing low-end sine, image on the screen disrupting a withered broken mind.”).
“S.S. Luker’s Mom” is another groovy instrumental, “Heart Worm” is a raucous punk track, “Together Tomorrow” is a quickie about, I think, quickies, “Captain Loosely” is another instrumental, this one based around spacey synths, and then there’s the closer – “Henchlock.” “Henchlock” is over twenty minutes of psychedelic jazz that brings in dual saxophones, lyrics about the drag of information overload and consumerism, intricate drum patterns, hypnotic bass, groovy synths, and trippy guitar solos. It’s probably my favorite single of the year, and it takes up an entire album side.
Oh Sees are nothing if not prolific, and for them to release a double-album in the same year as another full album (Grave Blockers) is par for the course. Few other bands have as much creative energy, and Face Stabber is another excellent addition to their discography.
It’s impossible to put a label on London’s Fat White Family. Are they a punk band? An art band? A no wave band? A pop band? None? All? Really, why bother trying? Their new album, Serfs Up!, combines all of those elements and more while poking fun at good taste, politics, Kim Jong-un, and a dozen other topics.
Opener “Feet” starts with electro beats and smooth vocals that remind you of some of Moby‘s work from the early 2000’s. The song’s about running from things that can entrap you, like passion, responsibility, and being a wage slave. You can apply the title of “I Believe in Something Better” to nearly anything – the current political climate, the hopes of stopping climate change, universal health care, or even just a better relationship with a lover. The song has all these weird, warping guitars and synths in it that I love.
The cool groove of “Vagina Dentata” instantly brought Gary Wilson to mind. It’s a song about a treacherous woman, which is right up Mr. Wilson’s alley. The jazz lounge piano and saxophone in the song are top notch. “Kim’s Sunsets” is the above-mentioned song about Kim John-un. It’s undeniably catchy and has to be the prettiest song ever written about a modern day Communist.
The wicked bass on “Fringe Runner” will get you dancing. It’s solid disco bass that is probably being sampled by scores of DJ’s even now. “Is there anything more inspiring than a menial job and the pittance it brings?” is the opening lyric of “Oh Sebastian,” a song with orchestral (Yes, orchestral.) touches that will make you grin. “Tastes Good with the Money” follows a similar theme lyrically, with jabs at rich elitists and blown kisses at the working class.
“Show the other kids how the other kids live,” they suggest on “Rock Fishes,” which almost has a reggae feel to it in its rhythm, but also has spaghetti western score flavorings that take it to another level. Those Morricone guitars drift into the slick “When I Leave,” a dark song that practically demands you enjoy it with a stiff drink. “Bobby’s boyfriend is a prostitute, and so is mine,” is the theme of the tick-tocking trippy tune “Bobby’s Boyfriend.” It’s a neat way to end the record, sending it out on a euphoric mind warp. The band does have an admitted history with heroin and booze, so you can’t help but wonder if the closer is something they concocted after a long day of chemical excess.
The title of the album suggests a revolution of sorts. Serfs worked farms for the lords that owned the land. Nowadays, most of us work for a tiny fraction of the world’s population who own practically everything. Fat White Family are telling us to put down our carts and pick up our torches and pitchforks (literal or metaphorical).
Keep your mind open.
[Surf over to the subscription box while you’re here.]
It was the first of two sold-out shows at Chicago’s Thalia Hall for Thee Oh Sees and Prettiest Eyes. Joining them was Chicago’s Jimmy Whispers. I had yet to see Mr. Whispers, and I hadn’t seen Oh Sees since Levitation Austin last year in a small outdoor venue and Prettiest Eyes since Levitation France last year win a multi-purpose performance center.
Jimmy Whispers played a quirky set of bedroom / lounge rock that had one guy behind me saying, “I feel like I’m in a John Hughes movie.” Mr. Whispers sang songs about love and making love, taking on a sound and groove not unlike a Gary Wilson show.
Jimmy Whispers (center) and crew
Prettiest Eyes were up next and a complete switch from Jimmy Whispers’ set. They unleashed controlled chaos with wild tracks off their new album, Volume 3. Keyboards shrieked, bass thundered, and drums crashed. The Latino psych-rockers sang most of their tunes in English, unlike when we saw them in France and they kept the lyrics in Spanish for the most part. The songs are good either way, and they’re always energetic performers.
Prettiest Eyes
Speaking of energy, there’s always plenty of it during an Oh Sees show. You could probably power the air conditioning system in a Tucson ice cream parlor with the energy they create. They played a great mix of older and new material from their current album, Face Stabber. The mosh pit erupted immediately with “The Static God” and rarely stopped after that.
Oh Sees
Other highlights included “The Dream,” “Tidal Wave,” “I Come from the Mountain,” and “Animated Violence.”
A treat and a surprise for me was when they played all twenty-plus minutes of “Henchlock” from the new album. It was even better than I hoped it would be.
It was another excellent performance. Both drummers played in unison and in different time signatures without tripping over each other. Frontman John Dwyer shredded the whole set. Beer was thrown, a lost shoe was held up by someone in the pit, I found an Oh Sees shirt that no one claimed as I held it up (and it was even my size), and I returned a man’s house keys to him I found in the pit during a brief break in the action.
As I said after I first saw them, everything you’ve heard about an Oh Sees show is 100% true. Don’t miss this tour.
Nashvilly psych-rockers All Them Witcheshave released a new single, “1×1,” ahead of a European tour with Ghost and Tribulation and well as three shows to finish the year at Nashville’s Exit/In. Tour dates are below.
The new single is almost doom metal in its weight and is available on most streaming services. Give it a listen. It’s great.
NOV 16 – Motorpoint Arena – Nottingham, United Kingdom NOV 17 – Motorpoint Arena – Cardiff, United Kingdom NOV 18 – SSE Hydro – Glasgow, United Kingdom NOV 20 – 3Arena – Dublin, Ireland NOV 22 – The SSE Arena, Wembley – London, United Kingdom NOV 23 – First Direct Arena – Leeds, United Kingdom NOV 25 – Black Box Pangea – Kobenhavn, Denmark NOV 28 – Hartwall Arena – Helsinki, Finland NOV 30 – Spodek – Katowice, Poland DEC 1 – Universum – Prague, Czech Republic DEC 3 – BSA – Budapest, Hungary DEC 4 – Močvara – Zagreb, Croatia DEC 5 – Palabam – Mantova, Italy DEC 6 – Halle 622 – Zürich, Switzerland DEC 8 – Palau Sant Jordi – Barcelona, Spain DEC 10 – Altice Arena – Lisboa, Portugal DEC 11 – WiZink Center – Madrid, Spain DEC 13 – Zenith Of Strasbourg – Strasbourg, France DEC 14 – Stattbahnhof – Schweinfurt, Germany DEC 15 – Zenith – München, Germany DEC 17 – Rockhal – Esch Sur Alzette, Luxembourg DEC 18 – Zenith Nantes Metropole – Saint-herblain, France DEC 19 – Zénith de Toulouse – Toulouse, France DEC 27 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN DEC 28 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN DEC 29 – Exit/In – Nashville, TN
Sleater-Kinney‘s newest record, The Center Won’t Hold, is, unsurprisingly, a wallop to the senses. It covers anger over the current political climate, the never-ending onslaughts of media and advertising, and the often fragile nature of relationships.
The title track starts off the record with slinking industrial beats before erupting into fiery anger and Carrie Brownstein‘s vocals reaching shriek levels. “Hurry On Home” is a sexy tune accentuated by electro beats about missing a lover and wanting something real and tangible in a world of fake social media profiles and Second Life avatars. The electro touches continue on “Reach Out.” They’re peppy and then the lyrics of “When I looked down, I was a mess.” reach you, making you wonder what’s coming. The song is another about wanting to find a human connection amid internal and external chaos. “With one sharp breath, my chest expands. My body is my own again,” Corin Tucker sings the joy of finding that connection.
“Everyone I know is tired, and everyone I know is wired to machines. I just scream ’til it don’t hurt anymore,” Brownstein sings on the excellent “Can I Go On” – a song about how easy it is to get down in this day and age. “Restless” has brutal lyrics about love like “My heart wants the ugliest things, but I’ve learned to love the ugliest things like you and me.” “Do you feast on nostalgia? Take please from pain?” Brownstein asks in “RUINS” – a near-industrial track that explores a crumbled relationship. “LOVE” starts with video game beats before Janet Weiss puts down a wicked drum groove and Brownstein sings about embracing the adventure that love can be.
“We’ve been rehearsing our whole lives,” Brownstein says on “Bad Dance.” It’s a song about the seductive worlds pushed on us by mass advertising and the idea of pushing back against them. “The Future Is Here” has Tucker wishing for a human connection in a world of online relationships. “I met my date on a tiny screen. I reach for you in the empty sheets,” she sings. Anyone who resists her is a fool. The snappy bass on “The Dog / The Body” roots the song as it swells back and forth between soft verses and big choruses.
“But I’m breaking in two, ’cause I’m broken inside.” are the last lyrics of “Broken,” which is the last song on the album. It’s a sad song about the loss of a relationship or at least a human connection in our increasingly digital world. The song and the lyrics (and the album’s title) are even more poignant now due to drummer Janet Weiss leaving the band not long after the album was released and before Sleater-Kinney started their current tour. Brownstein has said the band will continue with her and Tucker, who started the band without Weiss. At least Weiss left on a good album. She didn’t phone in anything on it, and neither did her former bandmates.
Keep your mind open.
[Can you go on to the subscription box? Yes, you can!]
“Please call us to your party. Riding on a bison’s back, singing Flying Jelly Attack. We’ll be there,” lead guitarist Naoko of Shonen Knifesings on the first track, “Party,” of their new album – Sweet Candy Power.
It’s a perfect opening for a fun record of power hooks, punk rock drumming, and good time grooves. Any Shonen Knife album is a breath of fresh air and a vacation from the blues and bad news of the world, and this one is no exception.
“Dizzy” is a garage rocker about not feeling well to the point of putting on your pajamas wrong, but it’s nothing that a good night’s sleep and a cup of coffee can’t cure. The title track is already a crowd favorite at their live shows, and it’s no surprise. It has a great shouting chorus and chugging riffs that get you moving like you just ate a handful of Pop Rocks.
“My Independent Country” encourages all of us to take care of ourselves and stand for our beliefs. It’s a heavy rocker with hits of British metal with Naoko singing lyrics like “There are no rules. I make laws by myself. I’m a ruler and loser. Everything is in my hands.” “Wave Rock” brings in some surf riffs, which makes you think it would be a song about the ocean but it’s actually a song about desert rock formations.
The band’s drummer, Risa, takes over lead vocals on “Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches” – a song about her two favorite foods coming together to create the greatest culinary treat on Earth (to her at least). It’s as fun a song as the name implies. On “Never Never Land,” Naoko sings about losing her sunglasses on a Disney park ride. It has a bit of a Green Day vibe to it with its slow groove and synths.
“Peppermint Attack” has a wicked bass grove by Atsuko and her sister, Naoko, singing about being attacked by mosquitos and engaging in a “great battle” with them using peppermint spray, alcohol, and water. Atsuko sings lead on the bright, sunny “California Lemon Trees,” which I imagine was inspired by the trees in her backyard in Los Angeles. The final song on the album is “Match 3” – a salute to games like Candy Crush and Bejeweled, to which Naoko is hopelessly addicted (“Match 3 in my brain, Match 3 in my mind, Match 3 in a train, Match 3 in my bed.”).
There’s nothing to not like about this record. It’s fun from beginning to end and just what everyone needs right now.
I’m still a bit stunned that I was able to conduct an e-mail interview with pop-punk legends Shonen Knife this week, especially with them finishing their North American tour and about to embark on their Australia / New Zealand tour. Many thanks to them for taking the time to answer this humble writer’s questions, and to Andrew Scott for setting up this treat.
7th Level Music: First, I want to say thanks for stopping by Chicago’s Subterranean during your “Sweet Candy Power” tour. It was a fun show. I read your blog posts about the tour and also wanted to thank you for writing about the Mitsuwa Market. I didn’t know about it until I read your blog. Do you always stop there when you play Chicago?
Naoko: Yes, we do. There are some Japanese supermarkets in the U.S. When we have time, we try to stop there and eat lunch and buy Japanese food. I love Japanese bakery. I often buy Japanese pastries there.
7LM: I also read how the night before the show at Subterranean that you played the stage at a Hardee’s restaurant parking lot in Springfield, Illinois. I saw photos from the show and it looked like you had a great time and there was a big crowd. Were you surprised by the size of the crowd?
Naoko: I was very surprised and glad for the big crowd. It is the only restaurant which has a stage in a big parking lot. People there made lots of effort to make a fun event. The audience was very positive. They came to the venue to have fun. The atmosphere was very peaceful and happy. It was a great event.
7LM: Were there any other shows during the tour that were especially fun or surprising?
Naoko: We had very good reaction in all cities in Canada. It was the first time after a few years to come to Canada. The audience seemed to be enjoying our show a lot and I was happy, too.
7LM: I know you’re off to Australia and New Zealand next. Do you have any favorite venues there?
Naoko: I love all venues but especially I like to play at music festivals. We’ll play at The Lost Lands festival this time. I’m looking forward to playing there. I also like to play in New Zealand. It will be a rare chance to play there for us. Our audience in Australia and New Zealand are very cheerful and friendly like people in North America.
7LM: The new Sweet Candy Power album is very good. The title track got a big cheer from the Chicago crowd, and I wondered if there are American candies that you love that you take back with you to Japan? Also, are there any Japanese candies you wish you could get while you tour the United States? I, for one, love Japanese green tea candy and buy it whenever I can find it.
Naoko: I bought Halls throat candies during the tour. “Candy” we say “amé” in Japanese means “hard candy” in Japan. We have various kind of hard candies in Japan. I don’t have any special brand but love natural mint candy which doesn’t use artificial sugar. Green tea candy is good, too.
7LM: One thing I noticed on the new album is that it has a lot of different rock influences – punk, pop, garage, British metal, and more. Did you decide to play the different styles before recording began or was it something that you explored as you worked on the record?
Naoko: I wrote all the songs in [the last] 10 years. I listen to various kinds of rock and am inspired. I especially like 1970’s and 60’s rock and R&B, funk, disco music. Everything began from when I write songs.
7LM: The Subterranean show was the second time I’ve seen you live. The first was in Tucson, Arizona during the Ramen Adventure tour in 2017. I remember Risa saying during that show it was only her second time in the U.S. I’ve never been able to learn how you met Risa. She is a beast behind the drum kit. How did all of you meet? Risa, how did you start drumming and who are some of your drumming influences. Do you have any thoughts on the passing of Ginger Baker?
Naoko: Risa plays the drums in her family band called Brinky. Her father plays the bass and her sister play the guitar and vocal. They covered Shonen Knife songs. Our manager and I found them playing our songs through YouTube. Risa was a high school student at that time. Then there was an opportunity that Brinky opened for our show. We got to know each other.
Risa: When I was 14 years old, I started to form a band with my friends. I was asked to be a drummer from my friends. Then I started to play the drums.
I was influenced by Atsuko because she is the original drummer of Shonen Knife because I’m a fan of Shonen Knife. I set cymbals and tom toms like her. Other than her, I like John Bonham, Taylor Howkins, and Chad Smith.
I was listening to Cream a lot when I was a child because my father liked them. I’ve never seen Ginger Baker’s drumming. If I go to heaven someday, I would like to see him playing the drums directly.
7LM: I know Atsuko makes your show outfits. Atsuko, do you design the tour shirts as well? You were all out of my size (medium) by the time you got to Chicago, but I’m glad you sold many of them.
Atsuko: I’m inspired by 60’s and 70’s fashion. Naoko designs some T-shirts in these days and for [our 2019] U.S. tour T-shirts, Miyoko from Good Charamel Records, which release our albums, designed it.
Naoko: I’m sorry that we had many sold out sizes. We will prepare enough next time.
7LM: I always like to ask bands this: Are there any bands back home that you think more people should know? Are there any other bands from Osaka or elsewhere in Japan you think your fans would like? I recently discovered High Rise and Bo Ningen in the last few years and think both are great.
Naoko: I like Extruders and Convex Level. Extruders is a very unique band. Their music is one and only, I think. From Osaka, Yellow Machinegun is cool. They are all female band of 3 pieces and play hardcore.
7LM: Lastly, outside of music (and candy and ice cream and capybaras), what else do you love to talk about or what other hobbies do you enjoy?
Naoko: I like to play tennis and watching men’s pro tennis matches. Atsuko also likes it and we have matches when she comes to Osaka or I go to Los Angeles where she lives.
This was a fun lineup that combined post-punk, queer core punk, and pop-punk in one show in a small venue in downtown Chicago. When I saw that Japan’s now-legendary Shonen Knifewere playing alongside Chicago’s Bev Rage and the Drinks, I knew this would be a show to see.
Opening the show was another Chicago band – Clickbait. I hadn’t heard them before, but they put on a fun set of no wave post-punk that combined slick bass lines, precision drumming, and quirky guitar riffs with plenty of snarky attitude (in the best possible sense). They were intriguing and are definitely a band to watch. I have a feeling they could be going places soon.
Clickbait
Following them were fellow Chicagoans Bev Rage and the Drinks, who I’ve wanted to catch since hearing their first full-length album, Cockeyed, last year. It was a fun set, complete with free snacks, that tore through a lot of material. The guitarist mentioned they were too old to play songs longer than two minutes, but I suspect the truth is that Ms. Rage and her band are having so much fun and bringing so much fury that they don’t care if the audience can’t keep up with them. They also put out a lot of sound – there were three guitars, bass, and drums all going at once on multiple tunes while Ms. Rage raged about her dating life. They’re a must-see band if they’re near you.
Bev Rage and the Drinks
I hadn’t seen Shonen Knife since I happened to be in Tucson the same night they were playing at 191 Toole. It was a blast to see them again. They came out shredding with “Konnichiwa” and then tore through new and classic material that covered some of their favorite subjects – candy, ice cream, furry animals, classic rock.
Shonen Knife were having a good time, as was the crowd. I’ve mentioned this many times to many people, but I believe it’s physically impossible to be blue when hearing a Shonen Knife song, and that’s certainly the case when seeing them live. They played at least four tracks from their new album, Sweet Candy Power (review coming soon), and all of them are good – especially the title track. Oh yeah, they played a Hardee’s in Springfield, Illinois the previous night and packed the parking lot and even scored free milkshakes after the show.
Sisters Atsuko (bass) and Naoko (guitar) always put out a stunning amount of power while singing songs about banana chips and capybaras, and their drummer Rosa is a powerhouse. It’s easy to get caught up in her adorable nature while she’s singing songs about cookie ice cream sandwiches, but she is a beast behind the kit.
Shredding Knife
They haven’t lost a step after so many tours and albums. Don’t miss them.
Keep your mind open.
[Don’t miss your chance to subscribe while you’re here.]
Always one to follow their creative whims, Partner (multi-instrumentalists Josee Caron and Lucy Niles) released Saturday the 14th earlier this year. It’s a five-song EP that lets them stretch their creative muscles and embrace multiple influences.
“Fun for Everyone (Minions)” is an electro-laced dance tune that has Caron and Niles telling everyone to “dance like a Minion and not give a care about anyone’s opinion.” It’s a shame if this hasn’t been remixed by multiple DJs by now, and it will be an even bigger shame if the next Despicable Me film doesn’t feature it on the soundtrack.
Partner having a song called “Stoned Thought” shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who’s a fan of the band, since they have openly sang of their love of the herb (i.e., “Hot Knives,” “Everybody Knows You’re High”). It’s a witty song about cool things they thought of (song ideas, high philosophy, etc.) while high and now can’t remember.
“Tell You Off” is a tongue-in-cheek country tune complete with dobro and Niles rocking a harmonica solo in-between lyrics about chewing out a neighbor over their bad behavior. “Long & McQuade” is a salute to the band’s favorite music equipment store in Canada. Caron’s solo on it is outstanding.
The album ends with the downright beautiful “Les Ailes d’un Ange” (“The Wings of an Angel”) – a French vocal ballad that Partner have admitted is their attempt to write a song that fellow Canadian Celine Dion might sing.
It’s a fun EP that is a welcome appetizer for their next full-length album (which they have claimed will be a rocker. I have no doubt of this.).If you’re feeling down and need your luck to change, try Saturday the 14th.
Keep your mind open.
[Increase your luck of discovering your new favorite band by subscribing.]
Clutch announce the release of “Electric Worry.” The single is the third in a series of new studio recordings that comprise the newly launched Weathermaker Vault Series and the first new official music Clutch is making available since the release of their critically acclaimed album, Book Of Bad Decisions.
The new live video uses footage from various 2019 European Summer festivals and can be seen at https://youtu.be/mtuVGOnX868
When “Electric Worry” was released in 2007 on the album From Beale Street to Oblivion nobody knew that this track would turn into one of Clutch’s most recognizable songs. It is a fan favorite and a staple at live shows. Over the course of time, the song went through changes. What you are listening to here is a brand new studio recording of the 2019 live version of the song without the keyboards and harmonica that are on the 2007 rendition. This is “Electric Worry” in its purest form.
“Electric Worry” was mixed by 6X Grammy Award winner and Clutch collaborator, Vance Powell (Wolfmother, The Raconteurs, Arctic Monkeys).
“All in all it’s just a leaner, meaner song” states vocalist Neil Fallon. “We wanted to put something out there that was representative of what we do these days since it happens to be one of our most popular songs.”
Clutch has curated their own Spotify playlist “Clutch’s Heavy Rotation”: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3NlZsjNNOoCvwjCv58mcNR
On Friday, September 20th, Clutch will embark on a Fall tour of the US with Dropkick Murphys along with metalcore veterans Hatebreed as direct support.
Clutch Fall Tour with Dropkick Murphys: Tickets available here. (headline** and festival* dates) = no Dropkick Murphys Fri/Sep-20 Springfield, MA MassMutual @ Center Arena Sat/Sep-21 Erie, PA Erie @ Insurance Arena **Sun/Sep-22 Wilmington, DE @ The Queen (support: Lionize, Kingsnake) Tue/Sep-24 Raleigh, NC @ Red Hat Amphitheatre Wed/Sep-25 Charlotte, NC Charlotte @ Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre Thu/Sep-26 Birmingham, AL @ Avondale Brewery **Fri/Sep-27 Clarksville, TN O’Connors Outdoor Stage (support: Hatebreed, Cane Hill) Sun/Sep-29 Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple Theatre Mon/Sep-30 Chicago, IL @ Aragon Tue/Oct-01 Minneapolis, MN @ The Myth Thu/Oct-03 Moorhead, MN @ Bluestem Center For The Arts Fri/Oct-04 Council Bluffs, IA @ Westfair Amphitheatre Sat/Oct-05 Broomfield, CO @ FirstBank Center Sun/Oct-06 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union Tue/Oct-08 Los Angeles, CA @ The Palladium Wed/Oct-09 San Diego, CA @ Park at the Park *Fri/Oct-11 Sacramento, CA @ Aftershock Festival **Sat/Oct-12 Bend, OR @ Midtown Theater (support: Red Fang, Mos Generator) **Sun/Oct-13 Eugene, OR @ McDonald Theater (support: Red Fang, Mos Generator) Mon/Oct-14 Boise, ID @ Outlaw Field at Idaho Botanic Gardens Tue/Oct-15 Seattle, WA @ WAMU Theatre ** = HEADLINE SHOW * = FESTIVAL