After a hard year of acing chemistry, we’re gearing up for summer, digging through our drawers for that bikini we bought last August, maybe a little white lipstick, and our ancient tube of Bain du Soleil. Nothing says summer like kicking back and sipping warm PBR on a blanket while picking sand out of your sandwich. Yeah, that does sound nice… Too bad nine days out of ten this summer we’ll be freezing our asses off, wrapped in six layers, knowing there’s no way in hell we’re going to stick one toe in the water at Ocean Beach. But it’s not a total loss — bands like The SHE’S are writing songs that are so perfect for summer, they’ll keep us warm while we’re holed up in our apartments, fighting back the fog.

Summer vacation is nice and all, but it’s not the only thing on The SHE’S minds. In part 2 of episode 11, The SHE’S discuss braces, Yoda, and their fans. The also wanted us to tell you that they’ll play your quinceañera… just don’t bring up the word queso, okay?

In case you missed it (where the hell were you, at prom or something lame like that?), you can watch part 1 of episode 11 here. And don’t forget to check out the full video of The SHE’S playing “Picture of Houses,” their homage to San Francisco’s Victorian and stucco-studded hills. Trust us—a little electric mandolin will do a fog-chilled body good.

The SHE’S
http://myspace.com/theshesmusic

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Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier

Now, we don’t know about you, but back in high school we didn’t have a lot of experience with filled-out rich bitch popularity queens, jocks in corvettes, or vaguely racist portrayals of exchange students. When we were 16, our main priorities in life were pretending we already knew how to smoke cigarettes and trying to seduce our  junior year crush with some strategically requested Color Me Badd at our birthday party. We just kind of figured everyone’s high school experience was like that, until we heard that not only have The SHE’S already played the same crappy dive bars we’ve played, and not only have they already played venues we could only dream about playing, like the Fillmore, but that they’re also only 16, for chrissakes.

Sitting back and watching The SHE’S tear it up for us—cool, talented, nailing their performance like a bunch of old pros—it was impossible to think that these girls are actually in high school the same way that we were once in high school. They seemed more like those larger-than-life teens in every John Hughes movie (never mind that the Brat Pack were all actually in their 20s, headed for NA, and had divorced their parents). It was a complete head trip. When you interview Watts, you don’t expect her to say she’s kind of shy in school and that she digs watching Star Trek with her mom after doing her math homework.

So what if The SHE’S are skipping their prom? Somebody’s gotta kick ass at the battle of the bands, wiping the floor with peachfuzz-toting wannabe rockers who think owning a sparkly instrument means you can’t play it. Hey jerk, haven’t you seen Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains? I didn’t think so. It was only five years ago that The SHE’S were microwaving gummi worms at slumber parties for fun. We can only imagine what the next five years will bring. Hey ladies, maybe you can buy us a drink then.

The SHE’S
http://myspace.com/theshesmusic

Do we have to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier

Backseat Beat Episode 10: Hate Factory, part 2 from Brad Robertson on Vimeo.

Hate Factory is like that pajama party gone bad — you know the one. It starts out innocently enough, with hair braiding and prank calls. And then few hours after the lights go out, your underwear is in the freezer, your hand is in a glass of warm water, and the pizza delivery guy’s been duct-taped to your dad’s La-Z-Boy. And while you may end up spending your next month’s allowance on a cleaning service and tips for the pizza guy, you’re happy as hell to be invited just the same.

Backseat Beat Exclusive: Hate Factory perform “Fall Through the Night” from Brad Robertson on Vimeo.

Part 2 of our episode finds the ladies of Hate Factory… well, you’re going to have to read between the lines on this one. Something about boogers, platonic licking, and an impromptu Malvina Reynolds tribute. Sweet, messy, and not entirely devoid of nutritional value. Hate Factory is like a batch of backroom, bathtub-brewed hooch organic chocolates — dangerously addictive.

Want info on Hate Factory’s killer EP, Tecatepocalypse? Yep, we thought so.

Hate Factory
http://hatefactoryband.blogspot.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier
http://zillafilms.com

A pair of lady roommates strumming ukuleles and harmonizing sweetly on neo-thirties love songs — what could be more innocent than that? As it turns out, pretty much anything. Don’t be fooled by the doe eyes. Hate Factory turned out to be our girls-gone-wildest ride yet. But then again what do you expect from a back seat full of girls who subscribe to the bonobo school of conflict resolution?

Apparently the Downer Party’s Sierra Frost doesn’t just have a knack for crafting sick band names, she also has a gift for routinely attracting ass-kicking bandmates. She and Katelyn Sullivan are like the angelic babysitters you’re happy to leave your kids with, only to come home at midnight to find they’ve relieved your medicine cabinet of that expired bottle of Tylenol with codeine, helped themselves to the dusty bottle of brandy hidden behind the cereal boxes in the pantry, and racked up your cable bill watching the Jenna Jameson retrospective on demand after tucking the rugrats into bed.

Hanging out with Hate Factory was a little like drinking in the gutter on Tin Pan Alley, chugging a concoction of equal parts 1970s women’s consciousness raising group and friendship bracelets, with a stiff shot of Howard Stern. By the end of our shoot not only were we willing to overlook that cable bill, but Brad was menstruating. We don’t like you, Hate Factory. We love you.

Hate Factory
http://hatefactoryband.blogspot.com/

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier
http://zillafilms.com

The smell emanating from the back of the van, the bitching and moaning about how your stash of expired Slim Jims has mysteriously disappeared, playing the license-plate game for the nth fucking time, passing the last rest stop for 150 miles just before that last beer hits your bladder… It’s like Vacation all over again. The real question on our minds here at Backseat Beat headquarters is not which member of Social Studies would play Clark Griswold, but rather, what the hell did happen to that stack of nudie books this high?

In this week’s installment of Backseat Beat, our favorite juvenile delinquents practice their back seat singalong technique in preparation for hitting the road for SXSW. Not content to feel up every state in the union, Social Studies skipped town and parked it in Texas recently to enlighten the visiting hordes (and the few Austin natives that actually remain in Austin during SXSW) with their moody, mathy brand of indie pop. We’re hoping they kept their pants on this time around but we aren’t holding our breath.

So enjoy the episode (if you missed part 1, you can watch it here), and be sure to check out the full video for Social Studies’ unreleased new song, You Still Laughing. Oh — and don’t forget to pick out something nice for the band from their Canadian wedding registry. What does America’s first four-way-married rock band really need, anyway? They have each other and the B-52s, and that should be enough for any family.

Social Studies
http://www.socialstudiesband.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier
http://zillafilms.com

Everyone knows that senior prom is basically a bunch of horny build up followed by dashed hopes, drunken disappointment and, if you’re one of the lucky ones, bad sex and a not-too-exorbitant dry cleaning bill. We’d been trying to get Social Studies to the prom — um, into the back seat — for months. It turned out to be nearly as tough as convincing your date to wriggle out of that Jessica McClintock taffeta nightmare, but far, far more satisfying.

Then again, the good ones never come easy. You want an example? Social Studies obliged us with a testy Casio that got all shy right before the cameras started rolling. Luckily for the band, nearly a decade before donning an electric blue cummerbund in the hopes of getting laid, we convinced our mom that if she didn’t buy us that Casio keyboard* from the Sharper Image, we’d just die. As we discovered on our shoot, that Casio sounds as good today as it did when we were pounding out hits from our Asia songbook in 1983. But it sounds even better layered into Social Studies’ dark, sexy, cerebral indie rock, perched high above the Cow Palace in a sun-soaked location worthy of the Von Trapp family. (Be sure to check out the full music video for “Delicate Hands” to get the full Kodachrome effect.)

Yep, panties, Peaches, and existentially bereft sorority girls—sounds just like high school, right? No? Oh. I guess not everyone can go to a French high school. Anyway, the band couldn’t have been nicer or funnier (or raunchier). And to think, we used to sleep through social studies in high school. You should be so lucky.

* You know, the one with the cool analog filter? And the patented Casio BRC breath control that you can’t even find on eBay anymore? Yeah, that one.

Social Studies
http://socialstudiesband.com/

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Produced by Brad Robertson & Dana Goldberg
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier

http://zillafilms.com

Everyone knows what happens at the end of Revenge of the Nerds. The Tri-Lambs mop the floor with the Alpha Betas during the Greek Games, using their big brains and a Vader mask to demolish the meatheads in competition and score with the hot Pi Delts. The lesson of the movie is plain — the geek shall inherit the Earth.

In part 2 of episode 8, the Definite Articles don’t have revenge on their minds. They also don’t have nautical fire cannons, vegan donuts, brand-name vibrators, or apocalyptic weather on the brain, either. What they do have, however, are Wrath of Khan, phones that do tricks, and a human digeridoo (digeri-don’t?). Thanks to their ingenuity and intellect, we’ve been pondering the Big Questions. Like what kinds of flavored vodka would be more disgustingly awesome: Twizzlers or (ew) organic fruit?

Really, you can’t ask for more from a seven piece orchestral pop band. Enjoy part 2 of episode 8, and if you missed part 1 of the Definite Articles, you can check it out here. Be sure also to check out the full video for Gestalt — Shawn sets his cello aside for a Telecaster to fine effect.

The Definite Articles
http://www.thedefinitearticles.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier
http://zillafilms.com

It’s a damn shame my public high school didn’t have an orchestra. No orchestra means those kids contentedly playing D&D in a corner while everyone else was busy pretending to get laid before their 17th birthday were denied achieving their full nerd potential. In addition to reaching Level 10 wizarding status, they could have been honing their skills on classical instruments that would someday result in them rocking the panties off a crowd of adoring indie pop fans. I have seen this alternative reality, and it looks a hell of a lot like The Definite Articles. They collectively prove that you can love Star Trek, attend ComicCon, and be effing hilarious to hang out with while completely shredding the bow of your instrument.

Geekdom has its privileges. Not only do you end up inventing things like candy corn infused vodka (hello!), but you also figure out how to seamlessly incorporate an entire string section into your indie pop band. What’s even more impressive is when the music is so good it makes a bunch of middle schoolers hop on their bikes and zip down from the projects to headbang along with your drummer’s crazy math rock signatures.

The music speaks for itself; we promise it will make your jaded little jaw drop. But it’s the taxonomy of wide-ranging backseat nerd-dom that made this episode as hot as an nebula imploding next to your basestar in the Alpha Six quadrant. (FYI, that’s pretty hot.) Incidentally, the original Justice League included seven DC superheros—Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter (yeah, we’d never heard of him either), and Wonder Woman. The Definite Articles have seven core members. Coincidence? Yeah, right. Just ask the Green Lantern how long he’s been playing violin.

The Definite Articles
http://www.thedefinitearticles.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier
http://zillafilms.com

Maybe you happened to catch Magic Bullets on our last episode of Backseat Beat, in which these charming men chatted us up about vibrators, Spam burritos (not a euphemism) and cock with wine (we’ll let you decide if that’s a euphemism). Their interview left us with some steamy windows and way more naughty bits than we could fit into one episode, as you can see in the reel of choice outtakes above.

Then again, maybe you missed the episode because your stupid family forgot your 16th birthday because your older sister was getting married on the same day and you were too mopey to spend any time on the interwebs. Well, lucky for you, you can still watch it here:

Backseat Beat Episode 7: Magic Bullets

And since it’s a given that the world would be a much better place if we could all teleport back to the heyday of sparkling 80s guitar pop, here’s the complete video of Magic Bullets’ seriously infectious song “A Day Not So Far Off.” Enjoy.

Magic Bullets
myspace.com/magicbullets
mbullets.blogspot.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier

Backseat Beat Episode 7: Magic Bullets from Brad Robertson on Vimeo.

When it sometimes feels like every other band in our fair foggy town is doing their best to mine obscure 60s garage nuggets in a bald attempt to please the PBR-toting scenester crowds, it’s more than a little refreshing to find a band that draws its influences from an entirely different era. And if that band rocks the dirty, striped athletic socks off the same crowds with, of all things, witty and infectiously danceable, new-wave influenced pop music, well then, it’s even more impressive.

The MTV golden age may have missed its chance to include Magic Bullets as part of the first wave of eyelined, mousse-headed pop stars, but the band is using their significant chops to make the kids sweat out a few pounds on the dance floor with songs that are somehow 80s-Manchester-moody and insanely sunny at the same time. They play the kind of music that makes you want to put down your Tecate, pick up a Bartles & Jaymes, and crash Jake Ryan’s birthday party. (Ok. So the 80s had some great music, great parties, and a booming economy. But what better way to begin the systematic dismantling of the New Deal than to tell teenagers that the answer to their problems lies in choosing the hot jock with a Porsche? Actually, music aside, the 80s are probably why we’re so fucked right now.)

But we digress. Magic Bullets isn’t about to start any bar fights, but they might have turned you into a giggly mess if you bumped into any of them at a record shop back in high school. They’re also the happiest band of back seat bullshitters you’ll ever meet. When we get a band in the back seat, we like a little sweet to go along with the salty talk. And with Magic Bullets we got a whole lot of both. Kind of like your garden variety Mountain Dew marinated Spam burrito… WTF, you say? Watch, and all will be revealed.

Magic Bullets
http://myspace.com/magicbullets
http://mbullets.blogspot.com

Do we need to remind you to like us on Facebook? Or follow us on Twitter? Alrighty then.

Backseat Beat
Created by Brad Robertson
Produced by Dana Goldberg & Brad Robertson
Hosted by Jaime Lee Currier