Ladyfriends and dudedudes, I'm pulling the plug on this here bloggy. Traffic to the site is, not surprisingly, way down, seeing as how Scamper's not exactly a band anymore. Weighing more heavily is the sad truth that my little service has been rendered increasingly irrelevant with sites such as tourfilter, iLike, and whatever other "feeds" you may get sent directly into your filthy "inbox." It's just another case of the corporate chains squashing the noble little guy, you Starbucks-swilling, Kabloom-frequenting, social networking douchehammers.

I kid! The truth is that I'm just far too lazy to keep writing this thing when no one really seems to care.

Thanks for indulging me all these years, and for your commentary, your suggestions, your shenanigans, and for letting me call you "biscuit."

Support local music. Except Campaign For Real-Time. Those guys are the worst.

love and squalor,
Nate Diggity

The results are in, and quite to no one's astonishment, my 2008 WBCN Rumble predictions were, how you say, EPIC FAIL. But we're left with some strong semi-finals this coming weekend (details below), and ain't no one complaining about that, no sir no ma'am.

Tomorrow, Tues 4.15, Colin Meloy of the Decemberists brings his solo tour to the Somerville Theatre. I was supposed to go to this show, but now I'm not. True story.

John Powhida of The Rudds is at Toad in Porter Square on Thurs 4.17. Or you can catch Night 3 of the Harris Ape-Ril residency at O'Brien's; I've been to the first two shows, and they have quite lived up to the hype -- not only for the back catalogue stuff we're being treated to, but also for the off-the-wall cover choices they're making. Counting Crows week 1, Queen (featuring Mike Nastri on piano!) week 2... my money's on a Bryan Adams power ballad this week. This Car Up, The Have Mercys, and Ben Karis-Nix support.

This weekend, we head back to the WBCN Rumble (all shows at Harper's Ferry):

Semi-Finals Night 1, Friday 4.18
Girls, Guns + Glory * Andrea Gillis * HUMANWINE * Jason Bennett and The Resistance (wildcard)
Nate's Take: This will likely come down to Andrea Gillis or HUMANWINE; I'll say Andrea FTW, and give the wildcard to HUMANWINE, and the judges will once again make a fool of me.

Semi-Finals Night 2, Sat 4.19
The Great Bandini * A.K.A.C.O.D. * The Men * Clouds
Nate's Take: I'm going to give this one to The Great Bandini, but I wouldn't be remotely surprised to see A.K.A.C.O.D. run with it.

Going head-to-head with the Rumble semi-finals is Piebald's two night Final Farewell extravaganza at the Middle East down. Interestingly, aforementioned Rumble semifinalists Clouds open for them on Friday. Busy weekend for those chaps. The Everyday Visuals take the support role on Saturday. I should mention that both shows are already sold out, so you've got some string-pulling to do if you want to attend.

Let's have a moment of silence for The Paradise Lounge as a venue for local rock; new ownership has decided that Boston desperately needs another Irish bar instead. Scamper had some damn fine times there, particularly our first annual moustache show / farewell to Marc Roderick. Said new management has also unceremoniously shown my door guy ass the door. Boo.

Download now: Nada Surf's new album Lucky. I was fortunate enough to catch them at an acoustic in-store at Newbury Comics last week, and any (mild) reservations I'd had about this new album were blown out the window. It's tremendous. Are you lightning? 'Cause I'm waiting.

While Brendo mulls whether or not he's going to continue posting in his Journal, I should probably step up the posting over here, eh, horsies? How about I help you through the remainder of March and then come back full force next week, with zexxy details on the Harris Ape-ril residency AND my annual disaster of WBCN Rumble predictions! Word.

• Thurs 3.27.2008 @ Great Scott: Valentine's Popfest buddies You Can Be A Wesley, Mike's Cheesecake buddies All These Kings, vanquished Rumble '06 foes Appomattox, and Mike's other Cheesecake buddies The Make
• Fri 3.28.2008 @ TT's: The Shods, The Teenage Prayers, Watts, The Tampoffs
• Sat 3.29.2008 @ O'Brien's: Age Rings, The Sterns
• Mon 3.31.2008 @ TT's Other Side of the Bear: Jake Hall of Self-Righteous Brothers

Also check out:

• OREO Speedwagon (members of Baker and Self-Righteous Brothers)
• The Hard to Get, whose new EP This is the New Business Plan is dope

Smoke 'em if you got 'em.

What's shakin', Better Cheddars? I'm back just in time to dye everything green and act like a retarded gorilla.

No St. Pat's plans yet? If you want to brave the sea of idiots, my top two recommendations are Great Scott for the tremendous bill of Baker, The Luxury, The Bleedin' Bleedins, and the Animal Closet, or, if you prefer your Irish shenanigans more early, more intimate and more Irish-ish, Jon Gorey will be holding down the Sweetwater Cafe from 4-7pm.

This Thursday is a bear. How dare The Rationales and Aloud go up against the LOST mini-finale? But, like a good scenester, I'll rely on someone else's DVR to meet Kevin Johnson, and I'm gonna hit BOTH shows. Because I'm a champ. The Rationales (who, by the by, sound transcendent and incendiary -- transcendiary! -- in their newest lineup) and Dan Cray open things up at Church (formerly the Linwood), and then I'll zoom zoom zoom over to Allston for Aloud's release of Fan the Fury at Great Scott. By the way, the album is already available on iTunes, if you're jonesin' wicked hard. I think they screwed up and were trying to keep it quiet, but you can count on Nate Diggity for the sweet scoop. (Actually, you can thank the keen eye of Rachel Cooper, who pointed it out to me).

Friday, Drug Rug is at the big room at the Paradise, The Gentlemen and Downbeat 5 are at the Abbey, and Hot Box is at PA's Lounge. I haven't actually seen Hot Box since some acoustic show at TT's but I promote them anyway! What a guy.

Saturday we'll be bringing our unique brand of post-Scamper funk to O'Brien's in the form of the Brendan Boogie Band (now with shitty MP3s available on the Myspace page!). Opening are the frightening prodigies of rock known as the Mystery Tramps, and Soap Stars close out the night.

Finally, The Luxury has put together a little video for their tune "Malcontent," featuring sock puppets and what I am told was an "inadvertant" scene of a sparkly sperm-covered female dancing inside an oversized pink vagina. Mm hmm. See for yourself.

Now be gone with you.

Your entertainment for the next couple of weeks, beanie weenies:

• Weds 2.20.2008 @ Great Scott: The Organ Beats
• Sat 2.23.2008 @ PA's Lounge: Ryan Lee Crosby
  or @ TT the Bear's: The Everyday Visuals, The Sterns, Thick As Thieves
• Sun 2.24.2008 @ Great Scott: Bon Savants and Wonderful Spells (all ages; 3pm)
• Mon 2.25.2008 @ TT the Bear's: Thom Moran of Bon Savants (acoustic)
  or @ Great Scott: Robby Roadsteamer and Casey Desmond (I can't make sense of this bill at all)
• Tues 2.26.2008 @ Harpers Ferry: French Kicks, Bon Savants, and Harris (FREE by RSVPing here)
  
• Weds 2.27.2008 @ O'Brien's: The Dead Trees (formerly Furvis)
• Thurs 2.28.2008 @ Middle East up: Baker w/Limbeck, John Ralston, House of Fools
  or @ Middle East down: Campaign For Real Time (heads up: they're opening for some big deal hotshot band and it costs 20 bucks)
• Leap Day! Fri 2.29.2008@ Middle East down: Hooray for Earth (EP release), Caspian, Age Rings (single release), Zambri
• Sat 3.1.2008 @ the Framingham Civic League: Nightmare of You with Harris (!). I'm so creamy about this bill that I don't even care that it's in Framingham.
• Mon 3.3.2008 @ the Abbey Lounge (pub stage): Me. Featuring an acoustic guitar, a giant beard, and a tall glass of Jameson's. Old Scamper songs (now certified "retro") and new songs. With members of Baker opening and Jon Gorey closing. FREE!

Also. Go visit the MySpace of She and Him and download "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" That's the one and only Zooey Deschanel, of Almost Famous, The Good Girl, and, um, Elf. It's kick-awesome.

Lastly, the new video for "Warm Out" by Hooray For Earth. Campy!

Post-script! For anyone who actually reads this and gives a damn, the request line is NOW OPEN for my March 3 solo show. Forgotten Scamper / Puzzlebusters / Playfair Roland / Combat Shock / Who-Patties songs? Nelson covers? Richard Marx / Five For Fighting medleys? Give me your best. And seriously, don't be lame and suggest, like, "Needless to Say." Come on, cub scouts. You can do better than that. If I actually get good suggestions here, I promise you that I'll actually do at least one of them.

Ready set go.

So, evidently people still play shows, even after Scamper has pulled the plug. I'm aghast and/or outraged.

First things first. Kate of My Little Radio just posted the best emotronic 80s synth pop tune ever. I'm in middle school, moussed hair, popped collar, pegged jeans heaven: Drive Me Crazy

Anyway. I'm not really in a snarky/clever place right now, so I'ma just cut and paste right out of my tourfilter and tell you to hit this shiz up.

Weds and Thurs Feb 13-14, Okay Thursday presents (and Great Scott hosts) the Pop! goes the Cupid Valentine's Day love-hate-fest. I don't really know what any of that means, but I know I'm playing on Wednesday (as is new daddy Joe Welsh of Fooled by April), and there's candy hearts to spare, and that if a band is gonna call themselves You Can Be A Wesley, they sure as hell better cover the Mr. Belvedere theme song.

Weds 2/13: You Can Be A Wesley, The Brendan Boogie Band, Ben Pilgrim, Dig in The Dirt
Thurs 2/14: This is How Rumors Get Started, Okay Thursday, The Toothaches, The Piddly Kids

On Friday 2/15, The Luxury brings the goodies to TT's. What goodies? I'm not allowed to tell.

Sunday 2/17, Middle East up, all ages, 1pm: The Appreciation Post, Math The Band, The Mystery Tramps, and more. Nicely. Sunday night, back to Great Scott for Drug Rug. Because you have Monday off.

Okbye.

Thank you for an amazing ride and the perfect send-off.

I'm still choked up, and I think I will be for awhile.

To the fans.

So, the running gag has been that I was going to confound all your expectations and show up today with pages of praise about Marc Roderick. And then follow that up on Friday with an entry about Tom Polce. And spend the next couple of weeks running through Kay Hanley, Alena, Mike Nastri, Mark Bates, Nicole Anguish, Doug the Penguin, Robby Roadsteamer, Scher, Tina Cervasio, Pete Stone, Pete Galea, Pete Weiss, Pete the Greek, and Halogen before finally, begrudgingly, getting around to Brendo. Since he's such a joker and all.

But I'll be nice.

Brendan

I think it's a bit unusual for a late addition to a band -- and a bassist, at that -- not only to have a noticeable impact, but to actually be the missing piece that finally gets a band to where they always wanted to be. But Brendan was exactly that.

Before his Scamper days, Brendan (known then as Brendo Frendo) was known to us simply as a Fooled by April superfan who looked a lot like Mike and occasionally showed up at a Scamper show, drunk and heckly. In 2004, as we were parting ways with Marc Roderick, we hatched the idea of the Rotating Bassist Show: instead of tedious, traditional auditions, we'd have a whole army of bassists learn two songs apiece. We'd display our revolving crew of bassists at a live show, and at the end of the night, would unveil the newest Scamp. Brendo heard the idea at a party and wanted in. We all thought he was kidding, and that he just wanted to get on stage for a laugh and a lark. Which was fine by us.

To our complete and utter astonishment, not only could the guy play bass, he played our songs really damn well. And he immediately -- and spontaneously -- launched into third-part high harmonies, which really opened our eyes. This guy could bring something to the band above and beyond filling Roderick's Chuck Taylors. And the real kicker was that he was already our friend, and really and truly fit in seamlessly.

We scheduled a meeting at the Tin Tin Buffet (exciting Brendan so much that he forgot to bring his bass) and offered him the gig. With apologies to Chuck Young (dude, seriously, you were this close), it was a no-brainer.

Rehearsals in the fall of 2004 took on a whole new life. Brendan infused Scamper with an energy and lifeblood that had petered out in what was, behind the scenes, a rather tumultuous period for us. With our newfound ability to construct three-part harmonies in our tunes, Scamper had finally completed the puzzle. We began to take on what has become our signature sound, and his presence in the band absolutely propelled us to the next level. Suddenly, you couldn't read a review of us without a mention of harmony -- and while it obviously referred to our voices, I think the double meaning rings just as true.

Brendan's first real gig with us (outside of Rotating Bassists and some shit gig in Worcester) was our CD Release show for Leave Your Glasses On. He got to walk out to an enormous, adoring crowd, and he absolutely shined. And when he experienced first-hand exactly what it meant to be in Scamper -- spotlights, photos, synchronized jumps -- how did he respond? By losing 75 pounds in a matter of months, because he wanted -- needed -- to be in shape and look good for the band. That, my friends, is what you call dedication.

And Brendan's ability to hit those high notes meant more than just three-part harmonies; it also, finally, afforded us the opportunity to do Def Leppard and Journey covers. (He also relieved Keith and myself of stage banter duty, which has led to some of our more legendary, if not especially proud, stage moments.)

Finally, it cannot be underestimated how much Brendan has contributed to the Scamper marketing machine. He has tirelessly posted to his journal almost every day for over three years, finally giving Keith the "sticky web content" that had so eluded us. (Does anyone out there remember the MadLibs, or that original "message board" that looked like a clunky Facebook wall?) And he took the reins on the podcast, writing all of the skits (Nate Sets U Str8? Completely Brendan material.), producing and directing each episode, and editing them all together every week. It's probably the most work anyone not named Keith has ever done for the band. The podcast was not only one of the most fun (and ambitious, honestly) projects on which the band has ever embarked, but it expanded Scamper Nation into an untapped world community. Sales of our records actually skyrocketed, and that's not exaggeration for the sake of sentiment. (Make a note, bands: sexually-charged fairy tales featuring gingerbread men and faux-English accents will MOVE YOUR RECORDS.) He's also been the impetus behind so much of the little stuff: the coordinated outfits, the choreography (from the shared mics to the kicks to the sexy robot dance) -- all the little things that get people to take notice.

Behind all the dick jokes, Brendan is a tremendously sensitive guy, who really and truly cares about everyone in the band. If any one of us is acting a little out of sorts at rehearsal, he wants to pull you aside and talk it out. He's made us all into more honest and open people, he's helped us keep our priorities in check, and, more than anything, he constantly reminds us to enjoy every goddamn second of being in the band -- as he has, without pretense, since 2004. Brendan has said many times that his favorite part of being in Scamper isn't the swooning ladyfans or radio interviews or the Mtv auditions (what, you don't know that story?); no, his favorite part is the downtime between a soundcheck and a show, when the four of us simply get to hang out together. A lot of bands kind of hate each other; we've been extremely fortunate to be each other's best friends, and I think that bond is evident in our music and our stage show. Brendan has really helped us appreciate everything that we have, and in return, I hope he knows how much we appreciate him.

I can't express how pleased I am to be part of his new project, because -- we now find out -- he's also one hell of a songwriter. He calls the Brendan Boogie Band his vanity project, but you know what? He deserves that chance to hog the spotlight. He's absolutely earned it.

Mike

Ah, the thankless life of a rock drummer. You have, far and away, more gear than anyone else in the band, and no one ever helps you carry any of it. You're stuck on the back end of the stage behind a bunch of cymbals. You're never in any of the pictures.

And if you're Mike, people constantly mistake you for Brendan.

So let's give the poor guy some love.

I can't say that my first interaction with Mike Mirabella was rife with promise. Picture it: Houlihan's Restaurant, summer 2001. Nate, a rather miserable server, is introduced to the new restaurant manager by the boss, who says "Hey, Nate, you're looking for a drummer, right? Mike plays drums!" Nate looks Mike up and down, scowls, and says "Yeah, great," and walks away. Mike's first thought: "What a dick."

In my defense, up to this point Keith and I had only ever played with one rhythm section -- the illustrious and legendary Scher and Joe from upstate NY -- and we weren't at all comfortable with the idea of anyone else. (And, let's be honest, I am kind of a dick.) But in June 2001, we swallowed hard, rented out the rehearsal space in the back of Mars Music, and invited Mike down for an audition. (Mike, of course, brought along an uninvited Marc Roderick, but that's a different story for a different day.) We struggled our way through a bunch of old Scamper originals ("Caramel," "Rockette," "Lucy," and the completely forgotten, and forgettable, "Let Me Down"), and while it all went okay, nothing exactly felt like magic.

And then we played "El Scorcho" by Weezer, and everything fell into place.

It would be dishonest of me to sit here and pretend that it's all been hearts and rainbows with Mike. While he and I have had relatively few issues (it helps that we go out and drink beer all the time), he and Keith butted heads incessantly for the first few years, and he and Brendan have had more than their share of intra-rhythm section battles. Mike is stubborn, and opinionated, and argumentative. But it's because he's so goddamned determined not only to to play everything as well as he possibly can, but because he wants the songs to sound the best that they possibly can. Some might say that he's passionate to a fault -- but when it comes to your band, I'd counter that by saying that you can never be "too" passionate. Everything he argues, deep down he is arguing for the good of the band, which is a lot more selfless than you'll find in a lot of musicians.

I suspect that Mike, much like Keith and myself, sometimes doesn't think of himself as a great musician. (We're a bunch of walking inferiority complexes, us Scamper boys.) He sets his standards really damn high, and when he doesn't live up to them, he gets upset, if not downright angry. But he's improved tremendously since 2001, particularly once Tom Polce got his hands on him and started whipping him into shape. Mirabella pre- and post- Leave Your Glasses On is a real lesson in becoming a monster drummer.

This quote, pulled from a review by the venerable Steve Gisselbrecht, says it all: "My one quibble is that the drummer actually makes mistakes. Not many: maybe three or four audible errors in a 45 minute set. It's a good performance. It's just that he's usually perfect, so any error really stands out." [Emphasis mine.] Steve doesn't lie, ladies and gents, and we've been blessed to work with a drummer who knows how to play to the song, not to his ego -- and to do it really fucking well.

And then in 2003, Mike put a whole new twist into our relationship with him, and really made us open our eyes and see a previously untapped talent: he showed up at rehearsal near giddy with pride about a tune he'd written. We begrudgingly handed him a guitar and let him play it for us (let's be honest here, folks; when your drummer starts writing songs, it's usually time to fire your drummer) -- and we were bowled over. That song was "Wait Wait," and it has proven to be one of our most popular and enduring songs. It was an immediate crowd favorite, and we haven't left it out of a setlist since. Keith and I didn't have a stellar record of opening up songwriting to our bandmates, but I'm excited, in this brave post-Scamper world, to hand Mike the keys and really see where he can go.

To that end, it speaks volumes that when Brendan and I started brainstorming on our new projects, we never for a second hesitated to build our plans around Mike. He's been our backbone for nearly seven years, and we wouldn't -- and won't -- have it any other way.

Lastly, Mike deserves some props for being my sidekick in schmoozing, and hitting up rock shows, and getting shithoused at parties. I know that, at a glance, that isn't exactly as heartwarming as what I said about Keith yesterday. But, while Keith has been my best friend in many of the traditional senses, he's definitely not the kind of guy with whom you go out to drink whiskey and talk about the dames. And Brendan -- well, Brendan kind of hates local rock, and he sure as hell hates "the Scene." And it is here more than anywhere else that Mike has stepped up and really proven invaluable to me, and, by extension, to Scamper. Because, do you know how a band works its way up the ladder and really gets anywhere? Sure, some of it comes down to having good songs and playing well and putting on a good show. But, for better or worse, a lot of it quite simply comes down to being at the right parties and getting drunk with the right people. (That's right, Will Dailey, I'm lookin' at you.) That would have been hard to do alone. Bands need bonds like this if they're to have any chance at longevity.

It wouldn't be wrong of you to think of Scamper as, first and foremost, a Nate and Keith project. But Mike's been on board from day one in June 2001, and he has loved this band with everything he has. My friendship with him has proven to be much more than just a convenient outgrowth of the band; it has, in fact, cemented the whole thing together.