THE M:M MUSIC TEAM (LOTR): Crystal Ann Lea, Meg MacDonald, Rene Magallon
FEATURED ARTISTS
Old 97's
"Turn Off The TV"
Toots and The Maytals
"Got To Be Tough"
Bright Eyes
"Mariana Trench"
Phoebe Bridgers
"Kyoto" #1 Alternative Album Sales!
Kacey Musgraves
"Oh, What A World 2.0"
Shannon LaBrie
"Firewalker"
This year, America’s birthday falls on a Saturday, which made the days all of you would be taking off a bit more complicated. When it lands on a Friday or Monday, it’s a clear three-day weekend. When it lands on a weekend, it’s a bit more tricky, and also a complete rip off. 2020 continues to thwart.
So, do we close all day Thursday and Friday and come back hungover nursing our sparkler burns on Monday or on Tuesday? Or, do we work Friday and then take off Monday?
I cracked the code by checking with BDS and Mediabase finding out the charts are open Monday, July 6, and when I began getting your “auto-response” emails last Friday. Those, combined with my finely tuned detective skills had me surmise that most of you are already on stay-cation, taking the week off and substituting planes, trains and inner-tubes for kiddie pools, slip & slides and burning burgers in your own backyards. We will help to hold down your respective forts and shut down early on Friday.
I love this holiday, not only for a little extra time off, but the awesomely tacky clothes. I personally own a red, white and blue cowboy hat. I also love it because it means I get to hone the safety tips from my annual 4th of July column.
These are tips that I’ve picked up over the years from trial and error (mostly error) that might help you have a slightly more fun and safe holiday.
Here it is with a few updates from last year. Enjoy your vacation week/weekend!
Rules of Survival:
1). Don’t leave town. Sitting in six hours of traffic bound in a mask going someplace where you’ll need to stay 6 feet apart from everyone is not the ideal way to celebrate your freedom. This irony will be funny for about a mile (or 90 minutes, whichever comes first). You’ll end up watching your Facebook and Instagram accounts for other people’s uploaded fireworks pictures.
2). Don’t upload fireworks pictures. It’s an iPhone, not the Hubble Telescope.
3). Make sure that your July 4th fireworks cause less personal injury than your July 4th alcohol consumption. Hangovers go away with Advil and a lot of water. Burns go away with a hospital visit and a lot of fees.
4). If you’ve never enjoyed Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, don’t make that one of the 70 million cases purchased every 4th. The draw of the red, white and blue packaging fades as soon as you taste it.
5). In spite of there being no age-limit on purchasing fireworks, resist the urge to stick sparklers in your kids hands to update your profile pictures. If a box of Legos says, “For Ages 5 and Up,” then assume that putting fire in your four-year-old’s hand isn’t a good idea.
6). If you barbeque, don’t pour lighter fluid on top of coals. Covering flammable stuff in more flammable stuff means you’re skimming this column and did not take tip #3 seriously.
Have a happy (and safe) Fourth of July weekend!
Happy National 'Hear Fireworks All Day And Night Being Set Off By Drunk People You Wouldn't Trust With A Glow Stick' Day!
-Anonymous
HAIM
“The ladies of the Valley meet ‘Ladies of the Canyon’ on their strongest, wisest album yet” -Rolling Stone
"The production…is brilliant, weaving together an array of styles and sonic textures into a seamless whole.” –The Wall Street Journal
Old 97's
“A well-loved pioneering force in the alt-country movement… [they’ve] still got the same raucous, sweaty energy that's made [them] so beloved all this time.” -NPR
“Blistered, blasted, and brilliant.” -The New Yorker
Chelsea Williams
“The very first song on this record is ‘Wasted’ and it will get a hook stuck in your head in 30 seconds” –Stephen Thompson, NPR Music
“It’s complexion in disguise, perfectly aligning dynamic layers of guitar chords and a simple backbeat. It periodically sneaks in other subtle instruments, jovial and innocent, never once letting you escape its irresistible charm.”
-Earmilk
Bright Eyes
“Bright Eyes’ first new music in nine years…sees the band maintain the sage-like, cryptic feel of their latter-day records. Yet it also returns to the intimacy and immediacy of their early material.”
-NME
"...a bundle of nervy anxiety, possibly even a bit too well-suited to the current moment." -NPR
Mondo Cozmo"Upside Down" Live on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
