I’d intended to go to the protest at the US Consulate this afternoon – at least pass by to show support – but I was tied up on a conference call to Seattle until 5:30 and thus lost the window of opportunity I had to huck a tomato. Something that’s surprised me since the war officially began last night is how jaded everyone seems to be about the whole thing. I’m not sure if this is primarily a defence mechanism people are using to deal with the horrors taking place halfway around the world or if they genuinely can’t see this as anything more than source material for jokes and exercises in irony. Probably a little bit of column A and a little bit of column B. I’m just as guilty of this as anyone, but I know in my case that it’s primarily a coping mechanism. Thinking too hard on all this just turns my stomach.

I’m of many many minds about this whole thing – the war, that is. Optimist Frank wants to believe that global protests will eventually make a difference on a grassroots level. Pessimist Frank believes that the short- and long-term reprecussions from this invasion will be far more fearsome than the powers-that-be imagine and this really is the beginning of the end. Pragmatist Frank believes that nothing he does will really make a difference one way or another. Realist Frank accepts the fact that like it or not (and he does not), this war is happening and isn’t going to stop, and that the best thing to do is to actually pull for Bush (as abhorrent as that thought is) and hope that the American forces are successful and finish this quickly and with a minimum loss of life on all sides (Pessimist Frank overhears this and scoffs, loudly). Attention Deficit Disorder Frank is already bored with the whole shebang. And all Franks are in agreement that if coverage of this war pre-empts any episodes of Buffy, 24 or The West Wing, then someone, somewhere, is going to pay.

Anyway. Back to more music geekery.

The Dismemberment Plan is bringing their farewell tour to Toronto on July 19th, venue to be announced. Do not do not do not miss this show, the Plan are fantastic live. This will be terrific and yet so very sad.

The new Radiohead album is called Moving: Target, released on June 10 in North America. Thanks to Audrey for the news. She’s got the tracklist on her site as well.

np – Whiskeytown / Faithless Street

Sure sign you are getting old – albums you bought new are being reissued in expanded and remastered format. Pavement and Uncle Tupelo have had their kicks at the archival release can, now Liz Phair wants to rerelease Exile In Guyville with remixing, extra demo tracks, big fat liner notes, etc etc. Though how she’s going to top those original pics of herself prancing around in her underwear, I don’t know.

And of course, the new album has been re-titled and delayed. Again. Now it’s just Liz Phair, out on June 24. Full news from Pitchfork.

Jay Farrar’s new one, Terroir Blues, ships on May 20. It’s a good bet that this one will sound like the last one, which sounded like the last Son Volt album, which wasn’t too far off the second Son Volt album, which was in the same vein as the first Son Volt album. But Trace kicked ass, so that’s alright.

So in good news, my brother is no longer amongst the ranks of the unemployed. What this means for yours truly is that my rent is no longer his sole revenue stream and I can again think about moving out on my own. Unless paying off my taxes for last year ruin me, of course.

np – Jay Farrar / Sebastapol

The Postal Service are taking their dog-and-pony show on the road next month, but nothing anywhere near T.O. on a non-weekday night. And so the fallout from our refusal to particpate in the invasion of Iraq begins.

This Broken Social Scene is the first copy-protected CD I’ve ever owned. I had to install all sorts of nefarious codecs on my computer at work to listen to it. I feel vaguely violated by all this.

I have just decided I am naming my first-born “Chachi”.

np – Broken Social Scene / You Forgot it In People

I beefed up on the Can-con in my music collection tonight – got the hotly-tipped (and deservedly so) Broken Social Scene record, Kathleen Edwards’ Failer (on the glowing reviews from many sources, Kyle’s personal thumb’s up and the fact that it was only $7.50) and the new Sadies album, Stories Often Told. I haven’t had time to listen to them all yet, so impressions will be forthcoming over the next few days.

Caught Catch Me If You Can at the Bloor tonight. Spielberg should stick to making light, breezy movies like this one. It was a lot of fun, well-executed and an all-around good time. The only way he could have screwed it up the way he did Minority Report or A.I. would have been to finish it off with a pitched gun battle between Hanks and DiCaprio. Which, now that I think of it, wouldn’t have been too bad either.

The first disc of an Uncle Tupelo live show from October 15, 1993 in Chicago is up for download here. Sound quality is pretty damn good. The second disc will be up next week. They don’t have the tracklist info yet, so if you decide to save it for archival purposes – and why wouldn’t you? – I’ve dug it up myself.

Uncle Tupelo – October 15, 1993; The Vic, Chicago, IL

Fifteen Keys/ Grindstone/ Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down/ True to Life/ Chickamauga/ Watch Me Fall/ Anodyne/ Long Cut/ Slate/ Atomic Power/ New Madrid/ Sandusky/ Acuff-Rose/ Steal the Crumbs/ We’ve Been Had/ Give Back the Key to My Heart/ Looking for a Way Out/ Life Worth Livin’/ Nothing/ Truck Drivin’ Man/ Willin’/ Sin City/ Suzie Q

I have changed my blog links in the sidebar to a Blogrolling model. It’s neat, and easy to add to. Anything that lets me be a little lazier is always a good thing.

Mogwai’s new record will be titled, Happy Songs For Happy People and is modestly described by Mogwai mouthpiece Stuart Brathwaite as, “Forty one minutes fifty seconds of total unadulterated brilliance”. Out sometime this summer, probably July-ish.

The new Grandaddy album Sumday will not be a double as previously reported, but just a single disc. Release date in early June. Full details and tracklisting here.

np – Big Star / Third / Sister Lovers