DOWNLOAD: Matters and Dunaway, "Control the Night" (mp3)

Although Matters and Dunaway have never had much of a profile in Boston, where no one's ever got famous playing minimal techno and Boards of Canada-esque rocktronica, the laptop/bass duo's three mostly-instrumental albums have inspired a small, rabid following among electronic music fans and DJs across the country.

We're glad to see that the Bang Camaro dudes managed to keep their clothes on for their 15 minutes with RollingStone.com, which has a spiffy new video rehashing the band's well-documented creation story. Just like we've always said: a thrash-pop band with 17 lead singers is just impossible for magazine editors to pass up.

Can YOU tell them apart?

King mixes up his Beatles

We know that keeping band members straight can be challenging, but it gets a lot easier when several people in the band are dead, and the band is, you know, the most famous bands in rock history. In possibly The World’s Worst Interview Flub, Larry King mixed up his Beatles last night on live television.

MYSPACE: Hello?

CHILI'S: HI IT'S CHILI'S.

MYSPACE: How can we help you?

CHILI'S: WE WANT TO EAT THE KIDS. GIVE THEM TO US NOW.

MYSPACE: I'm sorry, we don't sell children as food. We just let them put up naked pictures of themselves. It's sort of a self-serve model. Like a buffet.

CHILI'S: WANT TO EAT THE KIDS! WANT TO EAT THE KIDS!

The Racketeers may not have been single-handedly responsible for Boston's mid-'90s roots-rockabilly revival -- back then, the guy everyone curtsied to was Cranky Frankie -- but they were damn well sure the motorvatin' engine that threw the whole thing into third gear. Wild, unhinged, and repping the ghosts of Scollay Square, these guys were mad for a racket that implied punk rock's primal steez but stuck to the '50s r&r script with an ear for the kind of stylistic nuances that made record collectors sweat motor oil.

From the inbox, via the Beastie Boys' mailing list. More on the Beasties' instrumental album here. And yes, August 5 is Adam's real birthday:

A Boston Gala Event

On Sunday, August 5th, we will be performing a very exclusive and explicit, once in a lifetime GALA EVENT show to celebrate Adam Yauch's 43rd birthday @ the Boston Opera House! This goes above and beyond our usual already formal gala event.

Wilco
June 24 at Pines Theatre in Florence, MA
All photos by Caitlin E. Curran

And we thought the MFA’s Calderwood Courtyard was a sublime spot to see a rock show. We made our first trip to the Pines Theatre at Look Park in the Florence section of Northampton to see Wilco last night and wowza.

The National
June 21 at the Middle East Downstairs
All photos by Matt Teuten

It was difficult not to root for the National at the start of last night’s show, when six scruffy, average-looking dudes walked onstage, shyly and graciously, without a trace of hipster-ness - perhaps a sign of their Cincinnati roots, though they now reside in Brooklyn

Straight from the Internet's mouth, here's today's music buzz:

The Smashing Pumpkins, who are already on our shit list for scheduling shows in San Francisco, North Carolina, and Europe (everywhere BUT Boston basically), were slightly redeemed by their newest single "Tarantula," which combines everything awesome about Smashing Pumpkins - the thrashing guitars, the "Drown"-style contemplativeness - although not everyone liked it.

Our dude Chris Rucker was up in Gary's Liquors over on VFW Parkway in West Roxbury on Wednesday, looked up, and saw . . . Motley Crue's Vince Neil. WTF? Turns out El Slobbo was in town talking up his new tequila brand. The local townie fishwrap stopped by to grill Vince about it, and did the good civic deed of wondering whether this wasn't poor form for a dude who back in the day was the drunk driver in an accident that killed Hanoi Rocks singer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley.

DOWNLOAD: 27, "Brighter Days" (mp3)

The hirsute, godless followers of the Pennsylvania-based underground metal label Relapse have by now gotten over the aural blasphemy of having a quiet, pretty (we'll say it: heavenly) girl-led trio on the roster. So you can too. The latest disc by Boston's 27, Holding On For Brighter Days (out this Tuesday), congeals around Maria Christopher's voice -- dreamy, breathy, brooding -- and her chiming, distant strumming.

The Bravery, Satellite Party (feat. Perry Farrell), Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and more
At The Bank of America Pavilion
Sunday, August 12, 2007 at 5:00 pm
Tickets are $38.50*
*plus $5.00 venue charge and applicable convenience fees
Tickets go on-sale Saturday, June 23, 2007 at 10:00 am

Gov’t Mule, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Earl Greyhound

The matted wig has been replaced by a natty bowler, and the stick-on mustache has been lost to the ages. More startlingly, that galaxy of hairy, multicolor tattoos lies hidden beneath a sharp and sober suit. But Robby Roadsteamer is still a rock and roll godhead, a barrel-chested power-ballad belter with an ego as big as his machismo.

Our sister mag Stuff at Night commissioned a summer house-party mixtape from Charlie and the Soul Clap crew, and those dudes came back with the classics. No hipster crap, just the solid stuff. Read more here, or download below.

Tracklist:

1. Rolling Stones – Miss You (Disco Mix)
2. Depeche Mode – Enjoy The Silence

Massachusetts emo heroes the Receiving End of Sirens today leaked the first track off their forthcoming album The Earth Sings Mi Fa Mi (Triple Crown, out in August), and announced plans for an international headlining tour that'll keep them busy through early fall -- their web site has the tour closing September 15 at Avalon with Envy on the Coast and Emanuel, although from what we've heard Avalon will be a big pile of rubble by then