Playing with Muler at the Bug Jar. The Legendary Muler. I first crossed paths with them in the late 90’s Things were happening musically in Albany thanks in part to Dominick Campana and his Paint Chip Records label. I think at the time they had a few songs on a Paint Chip compilation, and Dominick would frequently set up shows with different bands from the label.

Sometimes they were bombed. Sometimes they looked ready to fight you. But they were always, always entertaining. David in the middle of it all, hanging from the rafters, reminding the audience they were at a proper rock show or singing with abandon, hands in his pants. They have a new record out – looking forward to hitting Rochester and seeing the songs played live.

I’m not sure about Joe & Seth, but this will be only my second time playing at The Bug Jar. Has the furniture remained stuck to the ceiling after all these years?

Look no further.  Our pals Super 400 have invited us to join the bill at McGeary’s block party this Thursday, July 7th.

That means you can hit Albany’s Alive at Five and keep the party going into the night.  We will provide your power pop soundtrack.  Should be a big, sweaty, rock and roll blast.

How does that one go again? Oh yeah.

Winter. Blecchh.

We’ve been laying somewhat low, not making it out to the clubs as much as we might like. However, the time spent indoors has yielded a fistful of new songs and a mound of 3/4 finished ideas. Some of the more promising ones include:

Safe From Change
Bottom
Captain Action
Carrie Mason

It’s looking like we will finish them up in the next few weeks and head back into the studio. It’s safe to say we’re all really excited about the prospect. Ironicallly, a few of the songs have a summer vibe to them – anthemic, sing-a-longy, etc. Seems like that would be a good time to put out a new record.

Oh wait, that’s Thunder Dome, not the Exit Dome (IV) which is where we will be this weekend.

It’s a great benefit for WEXT, who have been wicked cool to us, playing our songs and having us at the studio and whatnot.  Plus, there’s like a gazillion bands playing on it including Bryan Thomas and Phantogram, who are on the cusp of becoming huge.

Seriously, it will be a good time for a good reason.  And that’s tough to beat.

Related show

• Artist: The Charlie Watts Riots
• Date: Friday, January 29th 2010
• Time: 8:00pm
• City: The Charlie Watts Riots in Rensselaer, NY
• Venue: WEXT/WMHT Studios
• Country: US
• Admission: $60.00
• Age restrictions: All Ages
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Taking time out to trim the tree

2010 was a great year for us and it wouldn’t have happened without the support of our friends and fans, so thank you.

We got to play some great shows with a bunch of cool bands.   We released our debut cd, Long Story Short. We got some love from local print and radio.  We played some more shows.

We hope you had as much fun as we did and look forward to seeing you in 2011!

One of the national acts had to bag, so we’ve been asked to play at this year’s LarkFest.  At noon on the Madison Avenue stage, we’ll bring the powerpop to the funnel cake eating masses.

Related show

• Artist: The Charlie Watts Riots
• Date: Saturday, September 25th 2010
• Time: 12:00pm
• City: The Charlie Watts Riots in Albany, NY
• Venue: LarkFest
• Address: Lark St.
• Country: US
• Admission: Free
• Age restrictions: All Ages
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

Hey, big ups to Metroland Magazine for bestowing upon us the honor of “Best Pop Band.”

“A long line of great power-pop bands runs through the history of the Albany music scene, and the Charlie Watts Riots are keeping the torch bright. The Riots are everything we look for in a guitar-pop band: Big choruses with melody to spare, guitars that sound like jet engines, a whip-tight rhythm section, and suits fresh from the cleaners. Their Long Story Short album is, like many works of this style, equal parts homage and mission statement—practiced, polished, and with a lot of punch. Just the way we like it.”

Sweet!  Come see what the fuss is about as we share the stage with The Figgs.

Still not convinced? Jeez, you’re a tough customer.  Check out the rock for yourself on iTunes.