Well, last week's string of 4 rock shows in 4 days took a toll, and I've been pretty much out of commission since. The ol' constitution she ain't what she used to be, so lack of sleep and exposure to hundreds of fellow music fans left me with a nasty virus that I've been trying hard to kick. And I'd better kick it soon, because tonight is the big Sleepyhead / Thalia Zedek Band / Retribution Gospel Choir show. And tomorrow night: the return of a reunited Polvo. With the added bonus of some New Radiant Storm King and Birds of Avalon. Boosh.


Tickets for a couple of gonna-be-great Boston-area autumn shows go on sale tomorrow morning, so prick up your ears:

Built to Spill will be performing the entirety of their "Perfect From Now On" album at the seated Orpheum Theatre on Saturday, September 27th (a week after I see them do that in the Catskills). And for openers? Howzabout Dinosaur Jr. and the Meat Puppets? A pre-sale is happening right now (password: owl, until 10pm 6/19), and the rest will be available here at 10am tomorrow.

Billy Bragg has booked two nights at the Somerville Theatre on October 21st and 22nd, and tickets should be available here tomorrow morning as well.

And while you won't need to buy tickets for this one, you'd do well to RSVP soon-ish for the just-announced free Hold Steady at the Paradise next week. On Thursday night the 26th the band will play one of those gratis Miller Lite-sponsored Going.com promo events, and joining them will be local gents Aberdeen City. Head here to sign up and add yourself to the guest list, and I'd show up early that night to make sure you get in. The H.S. could sell out the place on their own, but with free admission and A.C. on the bill, it's gonna be super-crammed. Stop back here tomorrow when I'll be doing a giveaway for some special passes to the thing as well.

As I mentioned, I'll finally be seeing the now-active Sleepyhead tonight when they open for Alan Sparkhawk's Retribution Gospel Choir, and sandwiched between 'em will be the excellent Thalia Zedek and her band. Check out a recent interview with Thalia on on Well-Rounded Radio (Mp3). Thalia & Co. are on a tour that stops at the Mercury Lounge in NYC tonight, hits our Middle East show tomorrow, and heads to Canada for a couple dates before ending in Chicago on Sunday. Word is that West coast shows and some European dates are also in the works, so keep an eye peeled here for updates.


Bottomless Pit comes back to Boston next month (with the Kadane Bros.) for the first time since their September 2006 set at the Middle East. The band will be bringing their new "Congress" EP, four songs on vinyl (with a CD included) that make a relatively quick follow-up to their debut full-length last year. You can get the EP tracks digitally right now at the Comedy Minus One label site, or pre-order the vinyl here or straight from the band. It ships in mid-July, but for an advance taste, grab the Mp3 of the track "Fish Eyes" right here. More BP goodness: Watch this video of the band performing the excellent "Cardinal Movements" at the 2008 Villette Sonique Festival in Paris.


Congrats to reader Jeff from Cambridge, who won the 'Nac ticket giveaway for tomorrow night's Shearwater show at TT the Bears. I'll be next door at the Middle East, but I'm hoping to be able to skip over to TTs pre-Polvo. Hopefully the timing will work out. If you haven't been fortunate enough to hear the gorgeous voice of Shearwater's Jonathan Meiburg in person, this might do: NPR streamed the band's recent appearance at the Black Cat in DC, and you can listen to the whole show here.


Another broadcast you should bookmark for later listening: Elbow will be performing at the Paradiso in Amsterdam next Wednesday night, June 25th, and Fabchannel will be delivering the whole show live. The site's audio (and yes, video) quality is usually top-notch, so jot down that date.


Buffalo Tom's Bill Janovitz is in the middle of a weekly (and month-long) residency at the tiny Toad in Cambridge, MA. These free Thursday night shows are typically rollicking affairs (he calls it a "shambolic hootenanny"), with random cover songs scattered among Bill's solo, Buffalo Tom, and Crown Victoria material, with random guests possibly partaking as well. The second installment of the residency is tonight from 9pm to close, the third next Thursday, and the last one on July 3rd.

Bill has also announced that he'll be playing a set before a Regent Theatre screening of the locally produced film "On Broadway" (which I caught at the 2007 IFFB) on Friday night, June 27th. He provided the score for the film, and has shared one of the songs on his blog. If you recognize it, that's because it's a gorgeously slowed-down instrumental version of the Buffalo Tom song "You'll Never Catch Him", which was my favorite track off last year's "Three Easy Pieces" album. Stream it here.


Here's a bit of bittersweetness: While the release party for Sanguine Drone's debut album "Terrafracture" is tonight, it will also be their last show for the foreseeable future, and possibly forever. But at least they leave us with something to listen to, right? Check out some songs from the limited edition 8-track disc at their MySpace page, and if you can, pick up your own discounted copy at O'Briens in Allston tonight when they play with The Crushing Low, 28 Degrees Taurus, and Chris Pearson's Ekranoplan.


Back in February I pre-ordered my own copy of Wheat's limited edition two-disc "Move=Move" mini-album, which was to include new tracks, instrumentals, and videos, but there's been a bit of a delay that was explained by the Empyrean label thusly:

"In short, due to other opportunities for the band with the upcoming full length, "Move=Move" will never be released into stores - this was a mutual decision between Wheat and the label. The good news is that the record will be a very limited edition package and will be for fans that have already ordered it from the Empyrean site ONLY. To apologize for the delay we want to offer the record to you free of charge."

Well, I'll accept pretty much any apology that saves me twenty bucks, but I am still itching to hear some new Wheat songs. That message sounds to me like the band may have struck some kind of deal for the next album's release (title: "White Ink, Black Ink"), a deal that might include songs from the EP? If so, that's surely good news for them and for us fans, especially after the mess they went through playing with the majors for while.


Next week, Ontario band A Northern Chorus says farewell to the world with two final Canadian shows: Toronto on the 27th and Hamilton, ON on the 28th. I only wish I'd known that the most recent time I saw them would be the last, so I could thank them for making the trip down to the Boston area so many times. I was fortunate enough to catch them on least three or four occasions during their eight year existence, and even luckier to have shared the bill with them a couple of those times. I truly thought they'd hit a creative peak with their latest (and now final) album, "The Millions Too Many", so for me they're certainly going out on top. Thanks for the musical memories, ANC, especially that remarkable set you played at the Lizard Lounge while a torrential downpour soaked the streets outside. The open LL door let the cracking thunder be perfect accompaniment to your gorgeous set.


Ok, Almanac readers, face forward and pay close attention: I don't ask you for much, but when I do, know that it matters much to me...

A longtime friend from my Vermont days, musician and recording engineer Daryl Rabidoux, was in a terrible car accident in his adopted home of Providence, Rhode Island last week. Just look at this list of injuries: Two punctured lungs, a bunch of broken ribs, a torn liver, fractured sternum, and head trauma. One thing's for sure, in addition to being one of the nicest guys I know, Daryl is apparently one tough customah.


Now, if you know how these things usually are for working musicians, Daryl is without health insurance (thanks, country!), and a two-week stint in the hospital will leave him hurting financially along with physically. So I'm askin', for no other reason than he needs and deserves it, that you consider sending a couple bucks his way via the paypal button below to help cover his medical costs. Because he shouldn't have to deal with digging himself out of a monetary hole while he tries to get his health back.

And if you dug his excellent band The Cancer Conspiracy, then give a little bit extra. His friend and former Rocketsled bandmate Casey writes about Daryl, and shares information for musicians in need of insurance, here. Visit the Strangeways Recording MySpace page for updates from Daryl's studio partner Mike, and keep an eye out for benefit shows in Providence, Boston, and Burlington.