ROAD ROCK INTERNATIONAL

There's no reason we can't experience the show of our dreams overseas. My suggestion to fellow Road Rockers would be to book a trip to Europe last minute in the winter. You can take trips for around $700 as one of my friends did to see the Black Keys in Amsterdam. The airfare goes down to $500 and you only need a few hundred for tickets and food if you find a good couch to crash on. January-March are the premeir times to head to Europe. For now, I'm taking babysteps with my international rocking and will head to Toronto or London in Ontario.

A note on Dip it

I'm considering changing my gradings system or at least taking "dip it" out of the equation. Whenever I grade a show "dip it" I often feel like I'm filling out the "Sometimes" bubble in a behavioral study survey. "Dip it" also means to actually see the full show, yet its implication is negative since people use the term "dipping" as a polite way to say they are leaving a party after being there only a brief period of time. To grade a show "dip it" it means that you should still see them but not feel as compelled, or go through as much effort to go as a "trip it" show. I want to know what you think. Should I stick to my puny grading system and let my audience hear the catchy three levels: "trip it, dip it, or skip it", or should  I drop "dip it" and avoid risking further confusion, while reducing my grading to what is a basically a pass fail system?

Please vote.

Black Keys + Arctic Monkeys = Trip it

Soon the electricity that this very site was set up to hunt for will be basqued in. The Black Keys are a band whose energy keeps building by the tour and with a full band backing them on an arena tour will show great promise. With the Arctic Monkeys joining them, and finally getting some of the arena attention they've long waited for in the states but managed to get in Europe is fanally here. When I saw the Arctic Monkeys two years ago I was apprehensive about the Lollapalooza set they played. My conclusion about them is that Alex Turner is lacking in personality on stage sometimes and will drunkenly hide his face under his hair. The meshing of those sounds on that night wil fill the air with a great electricity and I fully intend on feeding on it. Pack up the car and hire a babysitter, this show is going to be an overall "Trip It"

Radiohead Revised

Here are some reasons why I might consider this show a "Dip It". Radiohead announced that on their tour they will be focusing the set on their newer material. The King of limbs is only eight songs but the record deserves to be drawn out. I'm still probably going to try and make it down there crossing my fingers that the song "There There" will be kept on the bill. If it doesn't show up on the set lists of the first few shows in the south I may just skip it.

Vote

To all of my Chicago Friends here are a list of venues, please grade appopriatley-

Trip It, Dip It or Skip It.


Venue:
Aragon

Abby Pub

Bottom Lounge

Cubby Bear

Congress

Double Door

Empty Bottle

Hide Out

Lincoln Hall

Metro

Park West

Riviera

Subterranian

Vic

Couch Surfing

Couch Surfing is the premier way have a place to stay when road triping.You make great friends and its always a good way to find a plus one for a show incase your hometown roadwarriors are too lame to get off their own couch. Make friends in likely cities and for each city we make a post about a venue, be sure to link a few likley couchsurfing profiles. I saw Lupe Fiasco last spring thanks to my CS friend Miranda, and she has yet to stay with me in Chicago.

Radiohead

The St. Louis Radiohead show still has tickets available. There is a God.