The Armintrouts are at it again. That’s right, folks—everyone’s favorite married-couple-turned-rock-band, Mike and Heather Armintrout, will reunite the band that has one show on the books (at the Armintrout Holiday Spectacular-Spectacular). “Loaded was the best band of its time,” (columnist’s note: which was Thursday, Dec. 27, 2007) says lead singer Mike Armintrout. “We shook hands with so many record label reps that night.” The band decided to retire instead of signing a lucrative deal — a move that left fans out in the cold. But now they’re ready to come out of retirement.
“It’s time,” says drummer Heather Armintrout. “So many bands wait a few weeks and then they’re all, ‘Let’s reunite!’ I mean, look at Hum. So we held off for three months.” Catch the rock duo while you still can: tonight at the Canopy Club at 9 p.m. The pair will share the stage with Vvvvv (the only CU band with Michael Jackson’s seal of approval — but it was ’80s Jackson, so it’s still respectable) and Tatertot. This show is free, but with a suggested donation of $5. Alternately, you could buy some shots for the band.
Sadly set up to fail against the crushing weight that is a Loaded show, another loaded (with talent!) show is set to take place tonight. Eeesh, what an awful “joke.” The juggernaut that is Cameron McGill and What Army will make a stop at the Highdive with tourmates Great Lakes Myth Society, both on the way home from SXSW. Ann Arbor’s Great Lakes Myth Society fit nicely in the “quirky indie-pop” genre and will be a nice compliment to McGill & Co’s fleshed out sound. The show will kick off at 9 p.m. with Darling Disarm (featuring Larry Gates playing acoustic guitar for Kayla Brown, who has been seen around town in a stylish arm sling following shoulder surgery). Seven dollars gets you in, another $10 gets you drunk.
Of course, everyone that would care already knows that British Sea Power is coming to the Canopy Club this Saturday, following months of being critical darlings and performing on shows like Late Night with David Letterman. They will share the stage with Chicago outfit The 1900s (one of a handful of shared dates), who have also enjoyed much critical success in the last year. Make sure to arrive early, though, to stake your claim on a prime spot, and to see one of the area’s best new bands, Common Loon. You can check them out at myspace.com/commonloon, or pick up their new 7” at Exile On Main St. Tickets are $8 in advance.
A new project has leapt forth from the minds of Adam Fein (Absinthe Blind, Cortisol) and Jeff Dimpsey (Hum, National Skyline), and it has been dubbed Gazelle. Already signed to Hidden Agenda Records, the project will have its first release in June. Lucky listeners can get a preview at myspace.com/sunblown, where four tracks are already posted. Stop by at least to see the sweet profile picture. Headlights vocalist (and Adam’s little sister) Erin Fein is featured on the album. And speaking of Absinthe Blind…
Dipping once again back into the portion of the column where I highlight favorite local songs of the past (which has given bumps in play counts for Colonel Rhodes and Adam Wolfe thanks to my tens of readers), this week I turn to Absinthe Blind. Now, you might say that the band got plenty of recognition and, having morphed into Headlights, are now receiving tons of local love. And you would have a point. One thing a lot of people don’t know, though, is that a year after the demise of the band, lead singer Adam Fein decided to release a B-sides/rarities compilation from the vast Absinthe Blind vault. And so, Winning Is Our Business and Business Is Good was born. Some tracks are clunkers that only diehard fans could love, but some stand out as phenomenal songs that sadly never made it to an album. One such song is “Screens,” which is basically just an amazing Erin Fein vocal over a great Brett Sanderson programming track. For those who like to compare Fein to Bjork, this might be the closest it gets. She effortlessly harmonizes with herself over strings and keys and beat that teeters on the edge of electronica. Check out the track for yourself at myspace.com/absintheblind, where you can also order a copy of the band’s final show or this B-sides comp, which features some of the best drum work from former buzz sniffer Seth Fein on “So You’re the Hero” and “The Truth That Paints Your Eyes.”
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