This past weekend I had to drive way thefugout to the suburbs during a gigantic storm which made a 30 minute trip take about 80. Thankfully, I had the peace of mind to allow myself a cocktail as soon as I got to dinner and also the luck of finding some old mix CDs I had made for car trips.

On one said CD, is one of my very favorite Bonnie "Prince" Billy songs, "Aint You Wealthy, Aint You Wise". It was perfect for feeling lonely in the car on a rainy summer night and made me crave a dimly lit room with only candlelight, a glass of shiraz, a blanket and comfy pants. Of course, none of that could happen because I had to meet my family in suburbia for a pleasantly awkward dinner.

Anywho, it ended up being oddly great timing to be thinking of the great bearded one because he just put out a new EP with Cheyenne Marie Mize called Among The Gold and you can have it FOR FREE!

About the album:

“In the summer of 2008,” describes Mize, “there was a place called Funtown where about 300 lucky folks saw the first official coming-together of The Picket Line, Bonnie "Prince" Billy, and myself. In preparation for this little event, I met and began rehearsing with Will. After our first rehearsal together he asked me to join his touring band for the following Spring.

I had had the idea behind Among the Gold brewing for some time- originally thinking it was going to be me alone- to take some of my favorite very, very old tunes and record them. I offered the idea to Will, needing only a mic and a good room for recording, and he offered me a mic and a good room for recording. I asked him to sing a couple of the songs as duets as well. In the process we very much enjoyed singing together and we decided that they would all make great duets so it became more of a collaborative effort, with him helping me to decide on the rest of the tunes we would record, and helping me with instrumentation and arrangement decisions. And then it was.”

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? No wait, I mean, am I kidding you? NO I AM NOT! Legendary producer, musician and Guiness Book of World Records holder for longest solo concert performed, Chilly Gonzales, has now written, produced and directed a film. But wait, it gets better...

Written and produced by Gonzales, Ivory Tower stars Tiga and Peaches and Gonzo himself. The story centers around two champion chess-playing brothers, Hershell (Gonzales) and Tiga (Thadeus) who share a love for the same girl Marsha (Peaches), and confirms Gonzales as the musical prodigy and legendary all-round entertainer he’s always claimed to be. The film is supported by an album of the same by Chilly, produced by Boy Noize, being released September 14th on Arts & Crafts, and the film will be hitting the festival circuit before getting theatrical release later this year. And check out the music video for the track “I Am Europe” which serves as an unofficial trailer for the video, and brace yourself for some comic genius and amazing music!

I mean, you pretty much just have to say the magical word, "Peaches", and I'm completely sold. I'm not a chess fan, but I am HUGE fan of Jewish-sounding names like Hershell. It's already an award-winner in my book.

Check out the Music Video/Film Trailer here:

When I was in college, there was this awesome club in Cambridge, Mass called ManRay. I'd go for gay night and occasionally goth/industrial night (mostly because there was this hot goth chick who I had a huge crush on). I'm sure I set off all the nerd alerts as soon as I walked into the dance space - I mean, hell, I didn't own any black clothing at the time eventhough it's supposed to be a slimming color. While I was far from being goth, I ended up really liking the music being played. Between electro-industrial like Siouxsie Sioux, the emo-tones of The Cure or the more hardcore shouts of Nitzer Ebb, I was a music nerd in paradise.

Fast forward ten a few years and there's a young Chicago band bringing me back to some of my most awkward glory days.

To me, White Car sounds a bit like Nitzer Ebb and Joy Division blended together. Their four-song No Better EP could use a little polishing but the duo is on the right track and I hope they get busy working on a full-length soon.

For those of you in Chicago, they've got a few shows coming up - for anyone who has spent a good amount of time at Exit, this should be right up your alley.

Jul 31 2010 9:00P Pilsen Music Festival Chicago, IL

Aug 1 2010 9:00P @ Empty Bottle

Aug 6 2010 9:00P @ The Hideout Chicago, IL

Sep 25 2010 9:00P @ Secret Robot Project NYC