Jon Huntsman’s daughters have released the semi-political dance/parody track of the year! This makes Cain Train look like shit.

I . . . I just don’t understand who thought this was a good idea.

I am happy though that with Herman Cain’s campaign exploding more frequently than a fireworks factory with lax fire-safety, there’s somebody else here to pick up the insanely misguided reins.

Also, really Huntsman girls? You exclude Rick Santorum from your diss track? You didn’t have anything to say about the man who compares homosexuality to bestiality, and hates single mothers? Also, Herman Cain’s pizza? THAT is what you sing about. TIGHTEN IT UP, GIRLS!

For those of you who don’t know, I love Damon Albarn. To me, the man can do no wrong, and I will listen to basically anything he puts his hands on. His new band, Rocket Juice and the Moon, is no exception. This time around he’s playing with Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, Flea and the man who created afrobeat, drummer Tony Allen. Name issues aside(he admitted he didn’t pick it, and doesn’t enough care to change it) this is yet another fantastic offering from Albarn. Its exactly what you would expect from him, in that you would never expect it.

You can listen to all the tracks from their live performance now on their YouTube page, but here is the perfect taste:

I’ll admit it, before I googled him, I had no clue who Tony Allen was, but my god is he a fantastic drummer, and definitely the driving force in the band’s sound. I’m also happy to see that despite the fact that The Red Hot Chili Peppers haven’t put out a good album since By The Way in 2002, Flea hasn’t lost his skill as a bassist.

Thoughts? Opinions? Leave ‘em in the comments.

Best New Year’s Song EVER.

All apologies to SSLYBY.

Friends, the day is here. Against the unlikely odds that face poorly written, mean-spirited blogs with extremely low readership, Music for Misanthropes has endured for two years! We’ve had our good times (remember when Jukebox commented?) and our bad (remember when the bartender at Velvet Lounge lost my debit card?). I like to think of this as a chronicle of my transformation into a hipster asshole, and of us as the Gordon Ramsay of music blogs. We’re only assholes because we care so much and want bands to be the best they possibly can! Also, we drop the f-bomb excessively and we have 12 Michelin stars for blogging (100% true). Over these two years, we’ve grown as bloggers and as misanthropes, but we’re still basically the same shmucks. People are still googling puppies and “hipster dating” to find us.

Appropriately, mere days before our anniversary, someone googled “Are all hipsters misanthropes?” and ended up here. To answer that googler’s question: only the coolest ones.

Thanks for reading and commenting–even the people we piss off, we like you the best–and we’ll probably keep at this until prospective employers start googling us or I get so depressed at my site stats that I delete the entire thing and pretend like it never happened, so we hope you’ll stick around and maybe tell your friends if you find us vaguely amusing.

And please enjoy our new layout and my goddamn impressive graphic design skills in that new banner. I just downloaded some open source version of Photoshop so I hope you like looking at terrible banners all the time!

If the mere existence of this blog and my overuse of Twitter aren’t strong enough indicators, I have to break your heart and confess that I’m a bit of a geek. Really, I identify more as a nerd, but I think it’s the geek in me that loves the Internet and biting the heads off of chickens so much. In anticipation of funemployment lethargy, a few months ago I registered for Digital Capital Week. FYI. It started on Friday, but I just got around to making a schedule and registering for a few events today. I don’t like people, so I’m not sad to have missed the parties this weekend. But I am excited for talks about the Media, Government, Nonprofits, and even sustainability experts and social media/the Internet/smartphones/whatever the hell else.

Check me at these events:

Tuesday, and

Wednesday. Geekery will abound!

I’ll also be at the session about sustainable food and social media on Thursday morning. That combines my two favorite things: the internet, and sustainable food systems!

On a related note, if you happen to be in Beltsville, Maryland on Friday, I’ll also be at the Sowing Seeds Here and Now conference, where I’ll learn about urban farming, sustainability, and what Chipotle’s catering tastes like. No idea when I’m going to packet pick-up for Sunday’s DC Triathlon but I’ll figure something out. The rest of my time is reserved for Stroga.

Oh, right, music. Here’s Mason Jennings. You’ll read more about him this week, probably.

PS We have a tag for “geekin’ out”. WHO KNEW?

In honor of its upcoming 30th birthday, here are all the props you need for the 9:30 Club!

Background: The 9:30 Club, located at 815 V St NW, is DC’s most renowned venue. With a capacity of 1200, give or take, it is an intimate performance space with room for the many fans of the nationally touring (and, increasingly, popular local) bands who pass through DC. The Washington Post ran a sweet profile a few weeks ago; you should read it and hear about Dave Grohl sneaking into the old 9:30 club and what have you. It’s cool that the club is still pretty punk-rock while hosting rock, pop, hip-hop, and r&b performances, holding dance parties, and (most awesome of all) donating the venue and volunteering staff to host the annual Girls Rock! DC camper showcase.

Fun to be Had: Ten of your Favorite Songs. For whatever reason, I don’t usually get hammered before shows here. Is it because it costs more than eight bucks to get into the shows? Is it that the bands are entertaining enough that I can fully appreciate them sober? Is it because I inevitably find myself here on weeknights? Maybe it’s all of these. Even when I see bands I’m not particularly familiar with, or those whose musical style I like, I can appreciate the skill and entertainment value of all the bands.

Also, I’m told the 9:30 Club cupcakes are delicious. (They serve other food here, but I’ve never been inclined to try it.)

Surliness of Staff: Two Surly Duffs, max. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered any 9:30 staff who were explicitly rude, although last week the woman searching my purse got really intense when she thought my baggie of ear plugs was… drugs? I guess. But she was poking around in a frenzy with that little wooden dowel and it was mostly comical.

Quality of Sound: Eight angels humming in your ears. Sometimes, there’s an off night, but the club isn’t nationally recognized as awesome because it has a shit PA. The sound here is better than anywhere else in the city. The only room that comes close is the basement of Ebeneezer’s Coffee House by Union Station. But that’s another post.

Likelihood of Getting a High-Five From a Band Member: 30-70. Sorry. These are legit rock stars. Sometimes the openers will come hang out, and one time some guy I didn’t realize was in an opening band (because we didn’t see them) complimented my dress and gave me a hug (?????) but otherwise, yeah, sorry.

Ease of Getting Home: Easy as Knowing Which Direction Your House Is Actually In. For Liz, this is a challenge. For everyone else, it’s pretty much the same as getting home from any other U Street venue.

Greetings one and all, I return to the world of blogging, and you will all soon wish I had not, for here is the most disturbing video I have seen in a long time (or is this one more disturbing? . . . We will save that debater for another time).  Either way, please enjoy:

I have been in a pretty big British band kick recently, and is it just me, or do all english singers sound like Morrissey?

You guys, there are so many festivals every spring through fall that I’ve never even heard of, including The Hangout Music and Arts Festival May 14–16, 2010 in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

Believe me, I have never had any interest in going to Alabama, but I do have an interest in listening to music and kicking it at the beach. So much of an interest, in fact, that I’m promoting a festival *in Alabama* whose headliners are Trey Anastasio, the Zac Brown Band, and John Legend. Aside from probably accidentally encountering a John Legend song somewhere in my life, I’ve never listened to any of them! Worth seeing there?

• Ben Harper (from what I’m told. Liz and Wes have matching Relentless 7 t-shirts and they like to wear them on the same day)
• The Flaming Lips
• Ray Lamontagne
• Jakob Dylan (for his backup singers—Neko Case and Kelly Hogan! I have no idea how Dylan’s non-Wallflowers work is)
• Michael Franti and Spearhead
• Girl Talk (not clear on how this guy got into this otherwise very laid-back lineup, but I assure you: YOU WILL DANCE YOUR FACE OFF)
• Brett Dennen (probably!)
• A.A. Bondy (the only name on the little stage list I recognize)

There we have it: the only reason to go to Alabama ever!

This week needs to die already. Here are some links to tide you over.

• Download Phoenix Live in Sydney. It’s free! Then miss France, if you’re me. (Rhyming!)
• Download the Das Racist mixtape, Shut Up, Dude, on Stereogum. Go to the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.
• Read Manic Pixie Songwriting Dreamgirls, a History in Youtube and Published Slur on Feministe. Promise yourself that, despite actually being about 8 feet taller than most of the female artists you admire, you will emphasize their badassness over their smallness.
• Read about how Kate Bush inspires female artists. Think about how awesome Kate Bush is. Have it all. Add Deborah Withers’ book to your reading list.
• Ogle the Lollapalooza lineup. Be like, “Not bad!”