The Dig Headline Mercury Lounge on Nov. 19th; Pictures and Video Interview from Oct. Show at Maxwells

DOWNLOAD: The Dig - Three Song Demo

The Dig have been gaining a lot of attention on the local rock scene and have been playing some high profile shows with both The Walkmen and White Rabbits. The Dig released an EP ("Good Luck and Games") in 2007 which one reviewer described as "short, sweet and eminently satisfying". The band just finished up their full-length debut which is due out early next year.

The band often gets compared to The Beatles crossed with one of many recent alt-rock bands (Jet and Radiohead are two of the more popular). I'm going to go in a different direction though as I was thinking more of later-day T. Rex (right around the period where Marc started embracing 'Class of '77' punk) after watching the band perform live. Whatever the comparison - The Dig's music certainly stands out from the crowd.

Here is an interview that I did with the band prior to their show with White Rabbits last month at Maxwell's.



The Dig are currently finishing some show with White Rabbits and then are back home for a headlining show at Mercury Lounge on Nov. 19th. Here is the upcoming tour dates:

Nov. 09 2009 -- 8:00PM, Cedar C.C. w/ White Rabbits, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Nov. 10 2009 -- 8:00PM, Turner Hall w/ White Rabbits, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Nov. 13 2009 -- 9:00PM, Lincoln Hall w/ The Walkmen, Chicago, Illinois
Nov. 14 2009 -- 8:00PM, University of Illinois w/ The Walkmen, Urbana, Illinois
Nov. 15 2009 -- 8:00PM, The Basement , Nashville, Tennessee
Nov. 16 2009 -- 8:00PM, Local 506 w/ The XX, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Nov. 17 2009 -- 8:00PM, DC9, Washington, DC
Nov. 19 2009 -- 10:00PM, Mercury Lounge, New York

Here are more of the pictures that I took at Maxwell's...









Links:
The Dig's MySpace Profile

White Rabbits are Playing All Points West on Saturday Afternoon / Listen to Recent Live Studios Sessions

In advance of White Rabbits performance this Saturday at All Points West (1:10PM set time), I wanted to post some recent live sessions by the band.

The streaming audio (above) is from 89.3 FM Minneapolis Public Radio and it includes live versions of "The Saleman," "Percussion Gun," "Rudie Fails," and "The Lady Vanishes".

The videos below are from the band's recent KEXP session.

White Rabbits - "The Salesman"


White Rabbits - "Percussion Gun"


White Rabbits - "Foxhunting"


Links:
White Rabbits' Website

White Rabbits Play Free Show Tomorrow Night (Saturday, Feb 16th) at BAM Cafe

This is pretty exciting...White Rabbits are playing for free tomorrow night at BAM Cafe. My problem is that I already made arrangement for a bunch of people to come over tomorrow and I don't think they would be too hip if I told them after they came over that we were all going to BAM. I'm thinking the Webster Hall show with The Walkmen may be the next time that I catch the Rabbits.

Anyway, White Rabbits are playing with Miss Fairchild and EFFI BRIEST with DJ Mikey Palms (who I assume is Mikey from the Southpaw family). The show starts at 10PM.

White Rabbits just released a new single, Cotillion Blues, which is streaming on the RCRD LBL site.



Links:
White Rabbits' MySpace page
White Rabbits' Website

White Rabbits Tour with Kaiser Chiefs and Release Video for "The Plot"

White Rabbits seem to be the band everyone is talking about these days.

I missed the band's set on Friday night at Sound Fix - hopefully the band will be doing more shows in the area soon.

The band starts a tour with the Kaiser Chiefs on September 18th and there is one stop in the area: 9.29 NYC Beacon Theater w/ Kaiser Chiefs. After this, the band is off on a mid-October tour of the West Coast with Tokyo Police Club.

The band just released their debut studio video (there are many live videos floating around) for "The Plot" (link). The band's performance of "The Plot" on Letterman is probably old news but if anyone missed it...



Links:
White Rabbits' Website

White Rabbits - Fort Nightly CD Review

This is an amazing debut CD and the band has set the bar pretty high for other local bands.

While White Rabbits reside in Brooklyn, their sound dates back to the late-70's British mod revival. The closest points of comparison are Adam & the Ants, Madness, The Specials and (early) Squeeze. It is amazing the energy that the band plays with. The band plays with an intensity that so few bands capture while recording (think anything by The Jam or Adam Ant's Prince Charming CD). You can quickly tell that this band is likely to be a fabulous live act.

The band has a unique musical style that is tough to pin down. They use two drummers (like the early Ants) and heavy keys (like The Specials) but the White Rabbits only use elements from these bands and clearly are not derivatives of either act. Simply put -- this is great indie dance music. The CD production is also stellar as the vocals are clear and distinct and complement the music without overpowering it. As you can hear the lyrics, they are a bit dark but the melodies are insanely catchy.

The band is playing the David Letterman show next Thursday (July 19th) and are playing the main stage at the Siren Festival in Coney Island on July 21st. For the Siren Fest, the band is scheduled to take the stage at 1:30PM. The band is touring in August with The Cribs and here are the upcoming tour dates:

7-21 BROOKLYN SIREN FEST
7-31 MADISON, WI HIGH NOON SALOON
8-1 MINNEAPOLIS, MN 7TH STREET ENTRY W/ THE CRIBS
8-2 MILWAUKEE, WI PABST THEATER W/ THE CRIBS
8-4 CHICAGO, IL EMPTY BOTTLE W/ THE CRIBS
8-6 DETROIT, MI THE MAGIC STICK W/ THE CRIBS
8-9 NYC BOWERY W/ THE CRIBS
8-10 PHILADELPHIA, PA JOHNNY BRENDA'S W/ THE CRIBS
8-11 WASHINGTON DC BLACK CAT W/ THE CRIBS
8-18 AUSTIN, TX EMO'S

I ran across a White Rabbits video on YouTube that VBS.TV filmed at the band's practice/living space in Bushwick that is pretty cool. It also includes a killer rehearsal version of Fort Nightly. I was also looking at some of the band's live footage on YouTube and it really looks like this band is a "must see" act.



Links:
White Rabbits MySpace page (link)
White Rabbits Website (link)