Tag Archives: Beachland Ballroom

Ten Things Mike Doughty Would Like You To Know About His New Album

Mike Doughty has a new album coming out on August 30th called Yes And Also Yes.  The man, known for his lead in the now defunct Soul Coughing, continues his quest to entertain the masses one clever song after another.

There is still some time before the album drops, but Doughty wants everyone to know some things about his album.  Ten things to be exact:

TEN THINGS MIKE DOUGHTY WOULD LIKE YOU TO KNOW ABOUT HIS NEW ALBUM…

# 1 “The title, YES AND ALSO YES was the headline of my profile on an online dating site. I improvised it off the top of my head, because they wouldn’t let me post until I wrote a headline. I was unsuccessful at online dating”

# 2 “The first single, “NA NA NOTHING”, was partially stolen from a song written by Nikki Sixx, Dan Wilson (wrote “Closing Time”), and Matt Gerrard (wrote a bunch of tunes in “High School Musical.”) (I got their permission to steal it)”

# 3 “Holiday,” a Christmas song, is a duet with Rosanne Cash. I did a show with her, and she said, onstage, “I feel nervous playing my new songs, because Mike Doughty is here, and he’s such a great songwriter.” That BLEW MY MIND.

# 4 “The song “Into the Un” was written for, and rejected by the Twilight soundtrack. (It’s about goth kids on LSD in a train station)”

# 5 “I recorded it in a studio in Koreatown, Manhattan, from July ’10 to April ’11. Pat Dillett produced. Notable musicians included my trusty factotum Andrew “Scrap” Livingston on bass, and the pianist Thomas Bartlett, aka Doveman, who basically plays with everybody who’s groovy (Justin Bond, Antony and the Johnsons, Glen Hansard, the National, David Byrne, Yoko Ono). I’m releasing it on my own label, SNACK BAR, through Megaforce. I split with Dave Matthews’ label ATO so I could run my own shop and have more control, business-wise.”

# 6 “I wrote most of the songs at the legendary artists’ colony Yaddo, where Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Flannery O’Connor, Carson McCullers, Sylvia Plath, and a lot of other all-time giants worked. It was founded by a railroad tycoon’s wife, in her mansion, built in the 1890s. They put up artists for a month or two, feed them in an opulent dining room, and give them space and time to work.”

# 7 “I used a capsule of the antidepressant duloxetine as a percussion instrument on some tracks. I held the tiny pill between my thumb and forefinger, put it close to the mic and shook it so it made a shcka-shcka-shcka! sound.”

# 8 “I wrote a book about my ugly, drug-doing years called THE BOOK OF DRUGS. It’s coming out in 2012 on Da Capo/Perseus.”

# 9 “The song “Makelloser Mann” is in German”

# 10 “I play a Chinese lute (called a zhong ruan) on the song “Telegenic Exes #1”

# 10.5 “…in the liner notes, I say I exclusively wear Paul Smith suits and Sol Moscot eyeglasses, and eat only gummi bears made by Haribo. I did this because I hope they’ll send me free stuff…”

I have yet to hear anything off his new release (and am very curious to hear the duet with Cash), but if it is any thing like his previous releases, I know it is going to rule.

Look for Doughty to be touring this fall in support of his new release.  He is even making a stop in Cleveland.  Nov. 13th at the Beachland Ballroom.  Get your tickets now!

Announcement: Cleveland screening for The Lemmy Movie – 1/30 at The Beachland Ballroom

Not sure what plans you have on January 30th other than trying to stomach watching the NFL Pro Bowl, so let me throw something out for you to do…

On January 30th there will be a screening of the new Lemmy (you know LEMMY! Motorhead/Hawkwind) documentary properly titled Lemmy: 49% Motherf**Ker, 51% Son Of A Bitch at the Beachland Ballroom. Tickets are $8 and include not only a screening of the highly anticipated rockumentary, but also includes a set by Cleveland’s very own Motorhead cover act Motorhead USA immediately after the flick.

The screening event was brought together by Addicted To Vinyl whose words appear below:

For rock and metal fans alike, Lemmy: 49% Motherf**Ker, 51% Son Of A Bitch is one of the most anticipated film releases of 2011.  And as it happens, co-director Wes Orshoski (who helped to produce and direct the new film with Greg Olliver) is a Cleveland native.

A mutual friend put us in touch with Wes to help arrange a hometown screening for the flick and with the help of some good friends, we’re pleased to announce a Cleveland date for the Lemmy movie which will screen on Sunday, January 30th at the Beachland Ballroom at 8pm.

Admission is $8 and the evening will feature a special introduction by Orshoski prior to the start of the film and music from Cleveland tribute band Motorhead USA to close out the night!

Here’s some info taken from a press release in regards to the flick as well:

Over four decades, Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister has registered an immeasurable impact on music history. Nearly 65, he remains the living embodiment of the rock and roll lifestyle, and this feature-length documentary tells his story, one of a hard-living rock icon who continues to enjoy the life of a man half his age.

Shot on a combination of High Definition and Super 16mm film, “Lemmy” (directed by Greg Olliver and Wes Orshoski) includes interviews with friends, family, bandmates past and present and such admirers/peers as Metallica, Slash, Dave Grohl (Nirvana/Foo Fighters), Ozzy Osbourne, Peter Hook (Joy Division/New Order), actor Billy Bob Thornton, wrestling superstar Triple H, Alice Cooper, Mick Jones of The Clash, and many more.

Called “pure gold” by WIRED, “Lemmy” made its world premiere in March 2010 at the South by Southwest Film and Music Festival, and has since collected rave reviews at film festivals around the globe. Variety remarked “‘Lemmy’ rocks,” and The Hollywood Reporter noted, “You don’t have to be a metalhead to love ‘Lemmy.'”

Help spread the word of the event if you can!  I will be there that night as I am helping ATV with the event so I hope you see you all there!!!

Disappointed is a 12 letter word.

disappointed [dis-a-point-ted]

adj – saddened by the failure of an expectation, etc.

Last night was the first time in a long time where I was disappointed, not just a little bit, but a whole lot.

I was not the only one in my group of three either who had this unbearable feeling occur.  It’s happened before, and I am sure it will happen again, but last night was not the night for it to happen.

Why so disappointed you ask?

Well, in a nutshell, last night was the J. Roddy Waltson & The Business / Shooter Jennings show at the Beachland Ballroom.  I, and two of my closest friends, have been looking forward to this show since we first caught wind of it a couple months back.  We were not excited for Shooter, but rather, J Roddy.

My friends had seen J. Roddy a couple of times but I had not.

Last night around 8pm we left my homestead and made the 45+ minute trip to Cleveland to hit up the show.  We were all smiles during the rainy drive up there and anticipated a killer show.

Arriving we hung outside the venue for a moment as a female Chris Farley looking cop (seriously, just like Airheads Farley) chased a seemingly drunk patron down the sidewalk with her trusty stun-gun in hand.  She was pissed about something he did, maybe asking her how it felt to be a Farley…

Anyways, we walked inside, and realized something was terribly wrong.  There was music playing and it sounded like J. Roddy.

Wait – it WAS J. Roddy.

We ran inside the ballroom literally to J. Roddy stating that they were playing one more song, “Used To Did”.  The song was amazing live and for a brief moment I was in a music bliss like none other enjoying the song and then it happened.

J. Roddy Waltson & The Business finished their set.

Disappointment took over.  I wanted to crawl in a dark corner and cry.  One song was not enough for me at all.  I wanted more and I could not have any.  We arrived 1 hour late thinking the show started at 9 p.m.

The three of us stood there.  Depressed, pissed off for not rushing one another to get there and most of all disappointed as hell.

I honestly thought there was a local opening act and what band starts on time anyways???

A very friendly J. Roddy greeted us and was bummed to hear we missed his set but did give us a heads up that they just wrapped up a new Daytrotter session.  That was cool to hear.

Still, we were not satisfied at all.  We did not know if we wanted to stay or not so we sulked over a cold one and felt sorry for ourselves.

Add insult to injury, Lady Chris Farley super-cop pushed us aside in the bar to make way for Shooter Jennings and his band so they could hit the stage.

Screw you super-cop.

A few songs into Shooter’s set we decided to bail.  We were not feeling it.

Jumping in the car we decided to play a fine mix of J. Roddy songs all the way home.  We sang the songs at the top of our lungs, almost making up for the live show we missed.

Good friends and great friends mix so well especially when you need a pick-me-up.

So, I guess I wait till next time J. Roddy makes his way back to Ohio to check him out.  I can wait, and I know he will be back, and it is going to be amazing…

Pittsburgh Punkers Anti-Flag Post A New Video Today


Pittsburgh punkers Anti-Flag just released a new video today for their song “The Economy Is Suffering…Let It Die” that appears on their 2009 album entitled The People Or The Gun.  Not a bad song although I find it a little heavy on the pop punk side.  Overall it is a good jam and these boys still have not changed their political views on the US one bit.

On Saturday January 30th Anti-Flag will be playing the Beachland Ballroom (in conjunction with the Grog Shop) with special guests Aiden, The Cancer Bats, Star F*cking Hipsters, and The Devildolls Rock-n-Roll Street Gang. The show is scheduled to start at 7:30pm so make sure you get there in time for a punk rock fulfilled evening.

Babble Blog: The Weekend TX Invaded OH

The internet is a crazy thing and of course we have Al Gore to thank for it…

Within the last couple months a friendship was created between a guy in Ohio who likes to blog and a girl in TX who found his blog through Twitter.  Small talk started and things slowly progressed to the point where phone conversations started.  Music taste was shared as well as appreciation for literature, art, and history.  It was clear that these two people had a lot in common.

Weeks later a plane ticket was purchased and TX invaded OH.

If you have not figured this out yet, I am OH and TX is my pal Jenn who I am more than thrilled to have started a friendship with.  Last weekend she visited me and I thought I would re-cap some of the fun we had.

Friday was one of those work days I wanted to hit fast-forward on until the shift was over.  It was a long day because in my mind I was trying to figure out all the things I wanted to show Jenn.  As soon as 2:30 hit the clock I was out of the building and off to the Akron / Canton airport to pick up Jenn.

After the initial meeting he hopped on Route 8 and searched for something to eat.  I immediately thought of an Akron staple and headed to Luigi’s Pizza where we caught up face to face and lunched on some great food.  After lunch we headed to Highland Square as I wanted to show her one of my favorite Akron music stores, Square Records.  We checked out some other shops in the area and decided to head back to my pad to hang out as Saturday was going to be a busy day.

Saturday was one of those days that I had been planning in advance for weeks upon hearing Jenn confirm she was going to visit OH.  We started the day by heading out to Lakewood to eat an early lunch at one of my favorite restaurants in Cleveland, Melt Bat & Grilled.  I called the ever cool Matt from Addicted To Vinyl as he agreed to meet up with us to see if he was awake or passed out in a ditch somewhere.  Surprisingly he was not only awake but waiting for us to arrive at Melt.  He even put his name in for a table and stated we only had to wait 30 minutes!

I actually had something to take care of upon entering the Melt establishment that i had been meaning to do for quite some time.  So the moment I walked in and was greeted I rolled up my sleeves looking for a staff member…and showed them my Melt tattoo.

Yes, a Melt tattoo.

Melt Bar & Grilled started a tattoo promotion recently where if a loyal fan of the establishment gets the Melt logo or a variance of it they will receive 25% off their sandwich, FOR LIFE.  As a grilled cheese fanatic I could not pass this up so I had my tattoo artist Ronnie Castro tattoo the permanent coupon on my arm in November.

Now that I was standing there in Melt it was time to get into the gang of loyal grilled cheese lovers.  After some appreciated compliments, photos, and the ever important “Tattoo Family Member” card I joined Matt and Jenn at a table for some grilled goodness.

Matt the trendsetter ordered a “Mighty Mac Melt”, the sandwich of the month and as a huge fan of mac & cheese I had to order the same.  Jenn had to be a rebel and ordered an Italian grilled cheese.  The three of us chatted so much that it seemed like only moments passed until we were served our sandwiches.  That meal was a highlight of my year!  No joke…  My sandwich was a giant friend mac & cheese nugget snug in a grilled cheese.  My arteries clogged and I only ate half (don’t worry I saved the rest for dinner, as did Jenn) but it was worth it.

After we stuffed ourselves silly Jenn and I said by to Matt and I decided to take Jenn to the park down the street to see the Cleveland skyline.  I do not care how cold it is outside, there is something about the Cleveland skyline I think everyone needs to see from Lakewood Park.  She really enjoyed it a lot as did I.

Once our fingers turned blue we decided to pack it up and head downtown.  I drove up and down the streets and gave Jenn a mobile tour of one of my favorite cities.  We really did not make any stops as I wanted to get to Collinwood before it started to get dark so Jenn could see Waterloo during the daylight.

After a couple of laps through the city we hopped back on the highway and headed out to the artsy district of Cleveland also known as Collinwood.

Stopping at Music Saves and Blue Arrow Records were on my agenda while out there but much to my surprise I was informed while at Music Saves that there was a Rock N Roll flea market going on at the Beachland Ballroom.  With plenty of time we headed down there and checked out what was good.  I really wanted to buy stuff there but money is tight these days on the BHP ranch so I was a good boy and looked with my eyes and kept the $1.27 I had in my wallet.

I plan on checking that out again one day when I have a couple bucks to spend.  There was a guy there who’s name escapes me but he had this box full of CDs from local Cleveland bands of the 90’s.  There were a few bands in there I remembered hearing about or even seeing live as a young music lover.  If I had it my way I would have grabbed a bunch just for the memory.  The guy said he had vinyl too but left it at home so I am hoping next time he is there.  We shall see.

Merchants were starting to pack up so I headed down to see Pete at Blue Arrow Records to see what was good.  I love that store and I had to show it off to Jenn.  While there I flipped through endless vinyl and found a Pacific Gas & Electric LP I had been looking for so you could say I was excited.

As we headed back to good ol’ Akron, OH it started to snow ever so slightly.  It was a nice end to a long day.  Once home we just kicked it and geeked out (relaxed) for the duration of the evening.

Sunday morning I did my best to make a breakfast of sorts and was pleased with the outcome. I cubed up some potatoes and fried them up as well as made eggs and refried beans.  I then fried up (with Jenn’s help) some corn tortillas and make tacos.  The outcome was an OH take on a Tex-Mex staple breakfast meal and I was thrilled.

I scored major brownie points there.  Speaking of brownies, the night before while we were geeking out I snuck in the kitchen and made brownies with chopped up Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.  Yeah, they were amazing.  I pride myself on those.

Sunday morning I did not want to do much of anything but relax and Jenn was ok with that.  Suddenly I came up with the great idea of taking the pups up to Front Street in Cuyahoga Falls to show Jenn the fun little area as well as the Cuyahoga River.  While walking around she took tons of pictures and I just soaked in the beauty of the river and surroundings.  I love having that place just down the street from me.  The pups had fun dragging me all over the place.

Right before heading back home I noticed that the open light was on at Metropolis Popcorn so we picked up some snacks for afternoon football watching.  I got my favorite Chicago style popcorn (cheddar mixed with caramel) and Jenn chose the dill popcorn.  Both were amazing.

The rest of Sunday was chill and of course the Browns lost but at this time it does not bother me anymore.  There is always next year – and a hopeful first round draft pick.

Monday was departure day.  I know Jenn had fun because she thanked me multiple times throughout the morning.  I thanked her as well for coming up.  Not only was it a pleasure to have met her face to face but it was also awesome just to show her around Cleveland/Akron at the places I love.  Had we more time I would have taken her to many more places but I think I did good with what was shown.  Still, I wish I would have dropped by Cleveland Hts. and showed her Coventry.  Oh well, next time right?

Jenn is back in TX and I am sure she left OH with a good idea of how fun our city is, well at least I hope she did.  Upon exiting my car at the airport she reminded me that I was always welcome to visit her in TX and I hope to do that one day very soon.