ChrisMix 2009 and 2010

If the last post confused you, you've probably known me for less than a year. I put out a yearly mix CD called ChrisMix. CM2010 will be the fifth iteration. You can have a copy if you want one.

FYI there will be 2 editions. CM2010: Rock Out the Old and CM2010 Roll In the New. Rock Out will feature 20 or so new tracks from bands from previous ChrisMixes. Roll In will be the traditional ChrisMix featuring new bands from 2010. You can request Rock Out if you'd like it, but generally I'll be giving out Roll In.

So that's what that's about.

I was going to say that this week was the first time I've gone to see a ChrisMix band, but then I remembered I saw The Fratellis a couple years ago at the Newport. It was awesome. But this week I saw The Thermals, a band from last year's mix, and it was similarly awesome.

A great thing about the show was that it was at The Rhythm Room. It's a tiny venue. The opening acts probably had 50 people watching and the place felt full. The Thermals probably had a little over 100 and it felt packed. We were sitting against the wall and were only 20 feet or so from Kathy Foster. I've never seen a band I really like in a room that small, and it was a lot of fun. If you have a chance to see them, you should. Hutch is a good front man, Kathy brings a lot of personality on stage and Westin really worked the crowd. A great live act all around.

Also of note were the 2 opening bands. One was really horrible, but entertainingly so. The lead singer flailed around spouting simplistic lyrics like "Let's get high. It's fun to get high. Let's get high." He tackled both of his guitarists during the course of the evening. I was enjoying their public failure, but THC (pseudonym of the day) was clearly not impressed. The other band was called Kinch and was actually very enjoyable. I bought their album, but then discovered that all their music is available for free. Oh well. They deserve some extra cash. Check them out, especially if you're a Phoenician as they're a local band.

So yeah, music is good. I might go see The Weepies this week. I'll mail out the ChrisMixes in a couple weeks.