A few brief notes to pass along from another torrid Friday in the deep South at REMHQ:
The Baseball Project, with special pinch-hitter Mike Mills guaranteed a spot in the starting rotation in place of the normally Cal Ripken-like Peter Buck, will play two huge shows next week. Get out and support Steve, Scott, Linda, and Mike if you’re in the area at the following locales:
Maxwell’s, Hoboken, NJ Aug. 12
Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival, North Adams MA Aug. 14
Here’s a taste of what you to expect at Maxwell’s and in North Adams:
ATHENS POPFEST RETURNS NEXT WEEK
Starting next Tuesday, August 10th, Athens will play host to a truly stellar bunch of bands as the Athens Popfest returns to town after a brief year’s hiatus. Popfest will feature 60 bands on three stages over the course of five days. Some of the standouts include Mission of Burma, The Apples in Stereo, The Wedding Present, The Circulatory System, our good friend Mitch Easter, not to mention a reunited Oh OK opening up for Mission of Burma on Saturday!. For more information about Popfest read this article in the Athens Marquee in which festival organizers Gordon Lamb, Mike Turner, and Len Neighbors discuss the return of the Athens Popfest.
In celebration of Popfest, here’s a double dose of Mission of Burma, the seminal post-punk Boston band the guys have known and appreciated since the early days. Song one is their classic “That’s When I Reach for My Revolver” and song two is an R.E.M. cover of “Academy Fight Song” from the 1989 Fan Club single:
NET NEUTRALITY
Last week, our friend and hero Al Franken launched a petition to protect net neutrality and stop the corporate takeover of media in the United States. And already, more than 55,000 people have signed.
Franken noted in a recent post on his website: “We may be up against some corporate Goliaths in this fight, but we’re starting to build some real momentum. Now it’s time to kick it up a notch.” “As I told you last week,” he added, “we’re underdogs in this fight. Comcast and NBC are already trying to merge. If that domino falls, we could see a wave of consolidation, leaving us with a few giant corporations in control of our media and, if we don’t pass net neutrality, the Internet. Corporate control of the Internet could make grassroots online organizing like the kind we’re using here impossible. So, to save it, we’re using it to fight back.”
Be sure to check out Al’s Netroots Nation speech, in which he lays out the dangers of corporate control of our media and our Internet:
Finally, visit Public Knowledge.org for more information on the attempted corporate takeover of the media and how you can get involved to stop it.