Period. End of discussion.

I have seen the band at least 10 times, maybe more, since catching them at a Call The Doctor -era show at The (old) Black Cat in Washington, D.C. Every time they come to wherever I am, I go see them. I run to see them. They put on a ferocious live performance, their records, when blasted into my headphones, have helped me dance my way through countless public transportation fiascos, and somehow, their songwriting gets better and better over time.

Their latest record, The Woods, is due in a month or so, and having seen their recent performance of the material at The Mercury Lounge, this one promises to be heavy, dark, and full of great songs.

Since this is a film blog, how about a short film? The new video for Entertain, the album's first single. Remember music videos? While we all await the new record*, a sample of delights to come....

*As I get older, I get excited less frequently about records being released. When I was a teenager in Flint, I would run down to my favorite record store, Wyatt Earp Records(1) every Tuesday and rummage through all of the new releases, but I invariably had my eyes on the calendar of release dates for records I was dying to have... The new R.E.M. album. The new Hüsker Dü record. It is so rare to feel that anymore, but there are FINALLY two records I am eager to purchase, The Woods and Bob Mould's new solo record Body Of Song. Bob will be going back on the road in full-on power trio mode, with Brendan Canty from Fugazi on drums. All signs point to genius. This is shaping up to be one rocking summer.

(1) I just heard the owner of Wyatt Earp Records, Doug Earp, has passed away. This is terrible news... I will always remember him. As a rabid buyer of vinyl records from 1983-89, Earp was basically my dealer/pusher. Didn't have it? He'd get it for you. In a post-internet world, this seems like no big deal, but when you were isolated in a Midwestern working class town in the 1980's and wanted to get your hands on independent music, people like Doug literally meant the difference between celebration and the silence of an otherwise indifferent marketplace. He made the scene in Flint possible, and he will be sorely missed.