Wow, I picked the wrong couple of days to be way too busy to keep up with 
Audities.  Just made my way through a few hundred messages.  Maybe I should 
number this . . .

1. Thursday night, the Ben Kweller/Brendan Benson show came to 
Lawrence.  I'd like to thank Steve Durben for mentioning that the show in 
Minneapolis sold out, because that made me get an advance ticket instead of 
trying to buy one at the door--and it sold out.  And maybe this can serve 
as a warning for anyone else planning to see this tour: get an advance ticket!

2. As an added bonus, the Belles opened this show.  They sounded really 
good and went over well with the crowd, despite offering generally quieter 
material than the other two bands.  Benson and His Well-Fed Boys (is this 
still the Mood Elevator in disguise?  I don't know what they look like) 
were more animated than their last appearance in Lawrence, at the tiny 
Replay Lounge.  And Kweller--well, I wouldn't rave as much as Steve did, 
but it was a good show.

3. Question: How did Kweller get so popular without my noticing?  Has he 
been on TRL or something?  The crowd was very young (which I think is 
positive).  I'm accustomed to emo  and mall-punk bands getting big without 
my noticing, but not the pop guys so much.  I haven't seen much press on 
him, either.  I'm far more familiar with Brendan Benson, but it's clear 
that Kweller is the draw.  The sellout just made me wonder.

4. Last night I saw Cheap Trick.  They sound as great as ever, though 
they're doing some pretty short sets these days.  I was happy to hear two 
*new* songs (in the past few years I've wished they would touch their '97 
album more) and glad to hear Rick announce that their new album is due in 
late March or early April.  He didn't mention a label.  But after six 
years, it's about time!

5. For Kansas City area folks, Fools Face have a tentative date of April 5 
at the Uptown for their annual gig here.  Just saw this at 
www.foolsface.com.  Typically they do two nice, long sets--it'll be great 
to see them again!

Randy