Hubbard and the Humadors’ influences are apparent on the lengthy, 59-minute album. A little Neil Young, maybe some Gram Parsons and a whole lot of Counting Crows greatly impact the songwriting and the instrumentation. Neil Young’s dynamic vocals and trademark guitar style made his country-oriented albums appealing and rewarding. Gram Parsons’ unique perspective on the archetypal themes of love made his songs compelling and memorable. Counting Crows got by with that dude's crazy hair. Unfortunately, the Humadors lack all of those qualities. Despite some bright points, the record doesn’t really move out of mediocre territory.

The Brother Whys, Dr. Doctor PhD, FIVEOHfirst, Jack Pine Savage, Mark Donnelly, Jonathon Childers, Jake Cooper and Stephanie Swick were all added to the roster. Two of those acts, Jonathon Childers and Jack Pine Savage, were featured at Mike N’ Molly’s Saturday night in the first of this year’s Green Street showcases.

Childers took to the microphone first. Accompanied by only his guitar and the occasional harmonica, Childers’ distinctly deep voice and blues-oriented guitar work managed to fight through the chattering and growing crowd throughout his 40 minute set. He even got a number of the noisy audience members to bob their heads and acknowledge the talent in front of them.

Well, that’s where Smile Politely comes in. The Girl Talk tour was nice enough to invite me onto Gregg Gillis' bus parked outside the Canopy for a recorded audio interview. I asked Gregg about everything from sample compensation in Feed the Animals, to how the words “mash up” are used to describe his music. He was calm, patient, and polite – Jekyll to his on-stage Hyde.

Note: there were a few other members of the tour on the bus, so you will hear from them periodically.

The tour has been video blogging their journey, with the most recent entry showing clips from Girl Talk’s Halloween show in Denver. Watch it before you listen to the interview:

A crisp fall evening seems all too perfect for a warm audience, and a scorching lineup of hip-hop’s best and brightest.

Rhymesayers’ “Paint the Nation” tour hit the Canopy Wednesday evening, in a smattering of off-kilter, boom-bap shades, complete with handshakes, laughs, and infectious head nods. Three of the label’s best, Abstract Rude, Blueprint, and Atmosphere, played out the true meaning of crowd motivators, playing from the old and new ends of their personal histories in hip-hop.

Click the jump to read more and hear the interview

William: Before the show, sitting among the smallest crowd I've ever seen in the Highdive, I wonder how Jonathan Richman would feel about fans like us. We know him as the former bandleader of the original Modern Lovers, a Boston group whose fantastic 1972 demos were released as an album in 1976, by which point the band had split up and Richman had become a California folk singer, considered something of a novelty act. I can't help but wonder if he would resent us. No artist I know of enjoys the implication that their best work is behind them.

As it turns out, while there is no trace of resentment in Richman's heart, he is not interested in living in the past.

A few choice regulars braved the storm Thursday night to see New Ruins, The Championship and Tractor Kings play an intimate show at Mike ‘n Molly’s.

I was branded on the way in as an underage infidel and headed up the treacherous stairs to Mike ‘n Molly’s dimly-lit attic. Caleb Means of New Ruins thanked everyone for braving the elements, and the band began playing their energizing set. Roy Ewing’s lanky arms slammed into the drums, and they played so hard a glass fell off the table. New Ruins played a wide mix of old and new material including a personal favorite “I’ll Sleep in Your House”. Means and Elzie Sexton’s gruff vocals rang through the steamy attic, and they played an extra song at a friend’s request.

The opening band, Post Historic, was okay. They had some very strong points, but it only came every other song. I thought they exhibited talented musicianship and I loved the viola and harmonica in the songs that gave a folksy feel. But, they also had this emo edge that just didn't capture my interest. I thought the lead vocalist had a good voice, but I don't think he sang well with the music. I suppose what I'm trying to get at is they sometimes have two different genres going on that just don't match. In all, they did have songs I genuinely enjoyed, but most I think were, as I said before, just okay.

From Joe Six-pack to Joe the Plumber to Joe Rock-oriented-music-enthusiast, when the term “Jazz” is brought up images are conjured of either 15 minute, unintelligible free form jams or of smooth but insufferably boring elevator music.

The everyday man is content to “not get” Jazz or see it as something from another era. I admit, I more often look back than forward when listening to the genre, but that can only be seen as a fault.

Case in point: local musician and University of Illinois student, Charles Lane’s new album The Price of Air. Released October 9 at Zorba’s on Green Street, Lane’s 50 minute disc retells some tales, featuring three covers, but catches the listener’s attention with his original compositions. Though the seven-track album is a tad longer than the 30-40 minute pop/rock record, it doesn’t suffer by its length and allows for some rewarding moments to burst out of the mix.

From track one, the power poppy, punchy, punky songcraft will get your attention. Snotty, bratty vocals, taut harmonies, and well-oiled guitar parts fit together seamlessly. While the CD doesn’t stray far from straight-ahead rock, there are enough acoustic surprises to keep things interesting.

(Photos by David Cubberly)

Danny, the one and only member of Coco Coca, should have named his new album “Space Country”, the eighth track off of Black, Black, Black. I can’t think of any other music I would prefer over Coco Coca for a spirited romp through the galaxy – except maybe the Metroid Prime score.

Samus Aran only shakes it to one kind of tune; the kind that involves high pitched electronic tones repeated over and over until killing space pirates is second nature. As if written especially for each level of the game, these high frequency tones show up in every song on Black, Black, Black. At times it’s annoying, as at the beginning of “Gusto” and “There’s A Snitch in My House.” They sound like someone’s attempt to recreate a Super Mario Bros. level. It only becomes interesting when the music becomes more complicated, drawing influences from Industrial Rock and Metal. I was often reminded of NIN and Death From Above 1979.

Fast-forward to fall 2008. Browsing through Luna Records in Indianapolis, William and I discovered that Ben Folds’s new album is called Way to Normal. As I scanned the track list, my eyes stopped at "Effington" and practically bugged out of their sockets. “Hey! I think Ben Folds’s CD refers to Normal, Illinois!” I exclaimed to William.

The crowd throbs and vibrates with Kevin Barnes’ tightly packaged package. One shining beam of glitter on my right is dry humping my leg, and the person to my left’s nylon wing is obscuring my view from the hypersexual spectacle on stage. I’m wearing the person behind me like a furry, sweaty coat as the crowd methodically sways and grinds to the prog-pop fury of Of Montreal.

Of Montreal has become synonymous with a musical parade of sparkle, ecstasy and a traveling clan of alien-esque androids. Their newest album Skeletal Lamping , coming out on October 7, doesn’t drop the ball far from their shiny pedestal.

With the possibility that someone who believes dinosaurs and people lived together on Pangaea could vice-lead our nation as well as the questionable use of time travel on the new season of "Heroes," the perception and manipulation of time has become an important issue in our society. Where we currently stand is another interesting one. In one sense, we are on the brink of the next step; be it economic disaster or ruthless robot dictatorship, it seems something is on the way.

But on the other hand, it’s as if we are living in a place where everything has already been done. Our post-modern world merely references or repeats the past. We’ve long moved past supposed apocalyptic dates and the prophesied Ape Rebellion of 1991. So where do we go from here? You can categorize humanity into two major eras – history and prehistory. What will lead to the next inevitability?

I have been to a few Sunset Stallion shows in the past few months since they formed, and although the first and second may have had a few little kinks in the set, they quickly formed into a band that promises a straightforward performance without blips that another band as young as Sunset Stallion may have. Granted, all have either past or current connections to other local performers, I still congratulate this indie-rock band on their rapid ascendance into the Champaign-Urbana music scene.