From the inbox:

The Weathered Underground is a film. And a game. And an amalgam of really great bands from the Pacific Northwest (The Lashes, The Blakes, Saturna, Sirens Sister, etc.) It¬πs a little of all three, but more than anything it’s the finished product to exemplify the goals of an LA based new media company called Choose Interactive. CI is picking up where “Choose Your Own Adventure” books from decades ago left off, using web 2.0 technology to allow people to watch a film and determine its outcome at the same time.

Whereas Choose Interactive is the company and the pioneering force behind this very unique mixture of film, music, and gaming technology in the indie world, The Weathered Underground is the golden child of its progress so far.

Having premiered at this year¬πs SXSW festival, The Weathered Underground is now viewable/playable here.

From the inbox:

Brooklyn-based DEAR TONIGHT’s debut full-length We’re Not Men will see a July 3rd release from Red Leader Records, but anxious fans of riotous

hardcore punk and frenetic post-whatever can order it now from Interpunk or Smartpunk. Recorded by Dean Baltulonis (The Hold Steady, Paint It Black,

Piebald, This is Hell) at Atomic Studios, DEAR TONIGHT’s debut full-length is the follow up to their 2005 EP These Are Wires available from Slave Union and

Dark City Records. To check out songs from the album, head here.

JUL 06 – Brooklyn, NY @ Lost and Found

JUL 07 – Richmond, VA @ Nara

JUL 08 – Charlotte, NC @ Lunchbox Records w/ Benard, Bear Organs Hymn

JUL 09 – Atlanta, GA @ 141 Moreland Ave w/ Benard

JUL 10 – Tampa, FL @ Transitions Art Gallery w/ Lock And Key

JUL 11 – Tallahassee, FL @ TBA

JUL 12 – New Orleans, LA @ Tulane’s Der Rathskeller w/ Crotch on Fire, Monarcs

JUL 13 – Jonesboro, AR @ TBA

JUL 14 – Louisville, KY @ TBA

JUL 15 – Madison, IN @ The Old Fizz’s Bike Shop w/ Nakatomi Plaza, Terranauts

JUL 16 – Chicago, IL @ The Note w. Nakatomi Plaza

JUL 18 – Cleveland, OH @ The Davenport w/ Nakatomi Plaza

JUL 19 – Doylestown, PA @ Siren Records w/ Nakatomi Plaza, Ultra Dolphins

JUL 21 – New Castle, DE @ 107 Kings Way (BBQ Show)

JUL 22 – New Brunswick, NJ @ TBA w/ Mother Night

Via MySpace:

“We are very proud to announce that on July 28th we will be returning to Phil “Latterman” Douglas at Burnitdown/REBUILD to begin recording for our debut full length entitled Behind Every Mind which will be released by Connecticut based Detonate Records. The record will be 9 songs and the projected release date is fall 2007. We are extremely happy to be working with a DIY label and send our sincerest gratitude to Paul at Detonate for the support he’s shown this band over the past year.”

UP THE FURY released an EP (Modern Culture) earlier this year on the German label, Blacktop Records.

link: detonaterecords.com

There is a comraderie between both bands that is absolutely spellbinding. From the first notes of LOOK MEXICO’s set (which, by the way, started an hour and a half late, in what I’ll politely desribe as a hole in the wall grown, tumor like attached to a bar…) to the end of FAKE PROBLEMS’, the two bands were in each others face, helping out on vocals, drums or whatever else could be found.

LOOK MEXICO’s set, did indeed sound like AMERICAN FOOTBALL mixed iwth a dash of EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY, but they took themselves far less seriously. Perhaps it was the beards, male tank tops and shouts of “chesse” in between songs, but when the band sat down during an instrumental, the crowd looked around, smiled and did as well. I whispered over to one of my friends “dude, I feel like I’m watching AMERICAN FOOTBALL back in the day.” He agreed.

FAKE PROBLEMS, for many, may perhaps never live outside of AGAINST ME!’s early shadow. I can’t say I wasn’t going back to that Florida four piece in my attempt to pin their sound down, but the guitarrist’s voice seem to echo CHUCK RAGAN more than anyone else from the state who comes quickly to mind. Super fast Gainesville punk rock, mixed with just a hint of southern twang sounds about right, and the veiled reference to REHASHER should give you an idea of exactly how fast the group was playing. However, FAKE PROBLEMS songs are meant to be sung with a bunch of people at a show, and at least for “To Repel Ghosts”, that mantra was done perfectly.

So, FAKE PROBLEMS, now shirtless and exhausted, finishes SRQ on their setlist, and for a brief moment, everything looks like it’s winding down.

That is, until LOOK MEXICO comes onstage, and the drummer announces “we’ve got one more special one”, and picks up a guitar and mic or two. What were they going to sing? Two of the LOOK MEXICO guys had microphones, one was on the guitar, and another was rocking the drums. What were they planning?

Apparently, they were planning “No Sleep Till Brooklyn” by THE BEASTIE BOYS. Members got on each others shoulders, singing, passing out the microphone to cap off what had to be one of the best performances I’ve seen all year.

The time was now around 11, and local band VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL watched helplessly as FAKE PROBLEMS’ fans lined up and walked out the door, turning what was a packed offshoot of a bar into like 10 or 12 people in an offshoot of a bar. Truth is, VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL could have played like GREEN DAY, and they still would have been blown off the stage. But, for a Chicago pop-punk band, they were fairly good, with more than a few SCREECHING WEASEL overtones. Fun, hooky and as honest as can be, had it not been 11, and the two bands before them absolutely on the top of their respective games, I would have said I was impressed. The truth is, I was still in shock from FAKE PROBLEMS…

- Seriously, I leave for one night, THURSDAY goes back to Victory, VAUX breaks up and Trustkill signs another crappy faux-emo band…what is wrong with this world?

From the inbox:

Friends!!!

We have some exciting news!!! We know that everyone is wondering what is next for us (New Label? New Record? Touring? Breaking up?). We’re proud to announce that we will be releasing a DVD/CD on our former label, Victory Records. Surprise! A lot of the footage from this DVD was taken during the time we spent on Victory and we thought it was appropriate to release it with them. On a more personal note, many of you know that our parting with Victory was bitter on both sides and we’re taking this chance to put that behind us. That label really helped us get to where we are and we helped them to establish themselves as well… “coming full circle” and “making amends” are some of the phrases that we could throw around here but we think you get the picture already. Tony’s passion for this project and his continued support of the band after all these years has helped to make this an easy decision.

We’re really looking forward to this release. The DVD will be a retrospective of our band‚Äôs career so far (footage from the last nine years) with a ton of live stuff. Everyone always says we’re much better live than on record — now you can decide. The CD will have several new tracks(!) and some alternate versions and demos of older songs.

Once the DVD and CD are complete, we will be starting work on a new album soon after and the home for that has yet to be determined.

– THURSDAY

From Victory:

“Words cannot describe how excited I am to have the opportunity to work with THURSDAY again. THURSDAY is a band that people believe in. They are innovators. They are the voice of a generation. Some bands simply make songs that people like. Other bands thrive on gimmicks. The true artists create something that changes people’s lives. Thursday are true artists. They have a very special and unique magnetism. They are a band that you can believe in at a time when there is not a surplus of bands with any real substance or meaning. Full Collapse is an album that has influenced so many bands as well as spearheading an entire musical movement. Working with the band on that pivotal and significant album was magical. THURSDAY and Victory have done great things together. I am so happy and honored that tradition will continue. Some people might want to call this a sort of homecoming. I simply see it as a reunion of passionate people that have done great things in the past getting the opportunity to do them again. This is something that people can feel good about. And to me, that is the best karma for any relationship,” said Victory Owner Tony Brummel.

The release, as of yet untitled, will consist of a full length feature DVD and a full length Album. The DVD will tell Thursday’s 10 year career story from the beginning to the present. It will contain interviews with the band and their team, archived show and behind the scenes footage spanning the band’s career to date and hints to the band’s future. The DVD will feature enhanced menus, a “Making of the song” and “The Making of Full Collapse” featurettes, the original version of “How Long Is The Night” with visuals, an audio-enhanced photo gallery, laminate gallery and more. The CD will contain three, brand new and unreleased songs along with a collection of live tracks and b-sides.

The band‚Äôs long time manager Dave ‚ÄúRev‚Äù Ciancio had the following to say, ‚ÄúFebruary 9th, 2001 – A date that changed my life. It was the first time I ever saw Thursday perform live. I had never seen anything like it. Raw, intense, sincere, driven rock music rooted deep in hardcore but with progressive song structures and melodies. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and hearing. I grabbed the band as they walked off stage and begged them to let me and my company, The Syndicate, professionally manage their career. Thankfully, they did take the meeting and I learned what an intelligent, passionate and innovative group of guys were behind the music. It’s been six some years since then and a lot of crazy things have happened. And now – three labels, two publishers, several world tours and three records later – the guys are going back to Victory Records. I thought it would never happen but to be honest, Tony and the Victory staff have proven time and time again that they care about music; They are more concerned with what the fan wants and less concerned about the bottom line or the constraints of the modern day music business. I speak for everyone at The Syndicate when I say we are honored to be working with the band and excited about working again with Victory on this DVD/CD.‚Äù

The DVD/Album package will be in stores October 30, 2007.

- Short of THE OFFSPRING returning to Epitaph (which I still think may happen at some point in the future), this is incredibly unexpected given how ugly the split was between THURSDAY and Victory in 2002/2003. In business however, few wounds are incapable of healing…

It appears that mid 90s based Richmond screamo act ACTION PATROL are going to take another shot in the live setting later this year. Here’s the dispatch from a MySpace bulletin:

So it’s 99% certain that in a couple months four guys in their mid-thirties will be wearing coordinated orange suits and getting on stage to try and act like it’s 1995. As of now the first and only ACTION PATROL reunion show is set for Saturday September 29, 2007 in Richmond VA. It’s all part of a big festival of Richmond music, past and present. We’ll know the official lineup and ticket info soon, and will get it to you as soon as we know.

Thanks to a No Idea Records sampler from a long time ago, I was pretty into these guys when I was in high school. You can find all sorts of information about them on their myspace page, including a link to download mp3s of their entire discography.

You can stream the song “Situations” from NEW FOUND GLORY on Absolutepunk’s Warped Tour 2007 page. You can also download the song here for a limited time. According to my in-depth Jordan Pundik Nasalometer, the song appears to have been recorded during the Coming Home studio sessions.

Here’s something you probably haven’t thought about much – what is your favorite CD booklet design company going to do when the primary medium in which they work with becomes obsolete? IndieHQ talks to design and illustration company Invisible Creature to get their spin on the future of their jobs and relevance of graphic design as the music industry marches towards an almost all-digital future. You can read the enlightening interview here.