Tokyo Police Club New Album and North American Tour - February 19, 2008

The waiting is over. Rock the Rabbit band Tokyo Police Club -- Ontario's hottest combo -- will debut their album, Elephant Shell, April 22nd on Saddle Creek records. They've also announced a big tour -- for dates in your town, check below.

Mar. 18  2008 Call The Office - London, ON
Mar. 19, 2008 Birdy's Bar and Grill - Indianapolis, IN
Mar. 20, 2008 Jackpot Saloon - Lawrence, KS
Mar. 22, 2008 Kilby Court - Salt Lake City, UT
Mar. 24, 2008 The Independent - San Francisco, CA
Mar. 25, 2008 The Glass House - Pomona, CA
Mar. 26, 2008 Troubadour - Hollywood, CA
Mar. 27, 2008 Troubadour - Hollywood, CA (new date)
Mar. 28, 2008 Soma - San Diego, CA
Mar. 29, 2008 The Clubhouse - Tempe, AZ
Mar. 31, 2008 Meridian Red Room - Houston, TX
Apr. 1, 2008 House of Blues - Dallas, TX
Apr. 3, 2008 Club Downunder - Tallahassee, FL
Apr. 4, 2008 Studio A - Miami, FL
Apr. 5, 2008 Backbooth - Orlando, FL
Apr. 8, 2008 Exit/In - Nashville, TN
Apr. 9, 2008 The Spot - Cleveland, OH
Apr. 18, 2008 Barrymore's Music Hall - Ottawa, ON
Apr. 19, 2008 Cabaret du Musee Juste Pour Rire - Montreal, QC
Apr. 20, 2008 Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY
Apr. 21, 2008 Music Hall of Williamsburg - Brooklyn, NY
Apr. 22, 2008 Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY (new date)
Apr. 24, 2008 Paradise Rock Club - Boston, MA
Apr. 26, 2008 Pearl Street Night Club - Northampton, MA
Apr. 28, 2008 First Unitarian Church - Philadelphia, PA
Apr. 29, 2008 Black Cat - Washington, DC
Apr. 30, 2008 Big Orbit's Soundlab - Buffalo, NY
May 4, 2008 Magic Stick - Detroit, MI
May 5, 2008 Metro - Chicago, IL
May 6, 2008 Varsity Theatre - Minneapolis, MN
May 8, 2008 Garrick Theatre - Winnipeg, MB
May 9, 2008 Louis' Pub - Saskatoon, SK
May 10, 2008 The Warehouse - Calgary, AB
May 11, 2008 The Warehouse - Calgary, AB
May 12, 2008 Starlite Room - Edmonton, AB
May 16, 2008 Plaza Club - Vancouver, BC
May 17, 2008 Sugar Nightclub - Victoria, BC
May 18, 2008 Neumos - Seattle, WA
May 19, 2008 Hawthorne Theatre - Portland, OR
May 22, 2008 Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO
May 23, 2008 Slowdown - Omaha, NE

Beasts of Eden set at Playboy - January 25, 2008, New York

We had been hearing good things about this local Brooklyn band called Beasts of Eden. They take an indie platform and tart it up with nice bright production, a bit of guitar crunch here and there, soaring harmonies and plenty of "ooh" and "ah" background vocals. But in the end, of course, it's about the songs -- so we had them drop by and play some for us. Be sure to check out the box being used as a percussion instrument in the acoustic set -- that's a trick straight out of the Andes, where local acoustic acts use boxes instead of drum kits. And the box makes a surprisingly wide range of sounds, able to stand in both for snares and other drums.

A lot of people ask how we choose the bands for Rock the Rabbit. Well, the starting point...

The starting point for everything I do at the magazine is to figure out how the Playboy philosophy applies to the project. To an outsider, the way that philosophy works in the context of lifestyle interests such as music may not be immediately intuitive. But here's how it works for me: I always envision our readers listening to music together with women. This is as true for Rock the Rabbit as it is for the choices I make every month on the music page.

Beyond that foundation, I'm looking for an interesting mix. We always want some iconic bands -- Iggy Pop and Duran Duran play that role this year -- whose aesthetic sensibilities work with ours, and who will pique the curiosity of readers who don't necessarily have a trainspotting interest in new music. There are other qualities in these legendary artists which also mesh well with our core Playboy values. As a monthly magazine, we have to reinvent ourselves every 30 days. With that in mind, one of the most appealing things about Duran Duran, for instance, is their ability to evolve -- they always retain a distinctive essence of Duran Duran, but they never sound the way they did on their last record. This is something we can definitely appreciate.

Of course, I'm also committed to exposing readers to the best new sounds and the bands making them. That's the other key ingredient in the mix. After all, this is a unique moment in music history: technological changes have reduced nearly all the barriers to producing, recording and distributing songs. This radical democratization has obviously opened the gates to a flood of amazing new rock, but it's also created a challenge for bands seeking to find an audience and for fans trying to figure out how to distinguish things they'll dig. We're in the unique situation of being able to facilitate that mutual process of discovery, and Rock the Rabbit (particularly the online portion) is an important way we can serve both our readers -- by exposing them to a handpicked group of up-and-coming acts we're into -- and the music community -- by harnessing the power of our brand to help them reach potential fans.

Timing also plays a role. For the most part, we're hoping to find bands who will be releasing new music in the timeframe of the March music issue. We don't want last year's flash-in-the-pan Internet-hype band, and we don't want to lavish attention on a group our readers won't be able to hear for another six months.

Finally, I hope it goes without saying that choosing the bands for Rock the Rabbit is perhaps first and foremost about fun. Daft Punk is a perfect example of this principle at work. When I saw them play Coney Island last summer, I was blown away by the way they were innovatively mashing up their own music, by their paradigm-changing stage set, and most of all by the euphoric atmosphere -- I just knew we had to work with them. And the same is true of the rest of the Rock the Rabbit bands: If you stumbled upon a venue where any of these acts were playing, you'd want to stay and party. And when it comes to music, that's really what it's all about.

Duran Duran at The Box - November 13, 2007, New York

Playboy teamed up with Duran Duran the other night to celebrate their album release at NYC’s steamy, decadent cabaret party-den The Box.

The burlesque entertainment of The Box was the perfect accompaniment for toasts to Red Carpet Massacre, an album pulsing with sexually charged energy. Check out the title track or “Tempted” for an idea of how well the boys have translated their signature style for today’s dance floor. Simon and the rest of the band have clearly been listening to the right stuff of late, and the buzzing electro tones that propel a lot of these tracks are surprisingly well-fitted to carry their melodies.

Guests congratulating Duran Duran included Ice-T, Dita Von Teese and Roger Waters, and the massacre -- in this case, the killing of a huge quantity of liquor and champagne bottles -- continued full-blast until sunup. One highlight? Mickey Avalon himself performed "My Dick" between segments of the show that, if you can believe it, made his raunchy bragging seem tame by comparison. As for the rest of the particulars of the party, our lips are sealed; but for an objective report, you can read an MTV News story here.

Dinner with Gogol Bordello - October 28, 2007, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas.

On the Sunday after the Vegoose festival, a Playboy crew had arranged to meet up with Eugene Hutz, the frontman from Gogol Bordello, and his girlfriend, for dinner at the Hard Rock casino. Eugene showed up in a headband, white military jacket (more on that later), three-quarter-length pants and black sneakers, looking conspicuously rock and roll, as you'll notice in the shot here of Hutz with fashion assistant Conor Hogan. Glancing at the menu, the spindly Hutz declared himself "fully committed -- red meat, red wine, the darkest, richest chocolate dessert..." And indeed he was. He had a filet mignon, goblets of cabernet and a chocolate pudding cake to finish. He also explained some interesting facts about the eastern European sounds his band is so famous for pumping out at their legendarily crazed, everybody-in-the-house-dancing shows. Check back for a complete interview with him for those tidbits.

Hutz grew up behind the Iron Curtain in Ukraine, where he learned gypsy music from his immediate community and family and friends. But he was a punk as well, making Gogol Bordello a sort of Roma analogue to the Pogues, who applied a punk aesthetic to traditional Irish music. At the bar after dinner, a huge guy came up to Eugene, obviously upset, suggesting that it was clear from his look he wasn't displaying the proper reverence for one of the military badges or pins on his jacket. Eugene said he'd bought all the items at flea markets -- the one in question he thought was from Montréal -- and he had no idea what most of them signified. Just before it seemed inevitable the guy was going to try to duke it out with him right there at the bar, another guy walked up and recognized Eugene from his aftershow DJ gig the previous night. "Hey man, this guy's a rock star!" he said. Suddenly, rather than punch Eugene, the muscle-bound dude wanted to do shots with him...

Vegoose Festival - October 27, 2007, Las Vegas

What could be better than Halloween in Vegas? Halloween in Vegas with a bunch of the best bands playing for two days straight, that's what. This festival has been running for four years now, and seems to be growing by leaps and bounds. With Daft Punk and Rage Against the Machine headlining this year, we decided there was no time like the present to check it out. The rest of the bill was amazing as well: Iggy and the Stooges, the Shins, Ghostland Observatory, Muse, Cypress Hill, Thievery Corporation (who were part of Rock the Rabbit last year), M.I.A., Battles, Queens of the Stone Age (2005 Rock the Rabbit veterans), and on and on. Plus loads of the audience members (and, as it turned out, bands) dressed up. The highlights included another killer set from Daft Punk, the Shins in crazy chess-themed costumes and speaking only in alien voices throughout their show, Iggy inviting the entire backstage area onstage to sing and dance to "No Fun," and the stalls selling amazing original concert-bill prints. (I came home with a Biz Markie print the artist had layered with other layers subsequent to the show.) And then of course there were the latenight aftershows-Eugene Hutz from Gogol Bordello deejaying at the Beauty Bar, Daft Punk's aftershow at the Luxor with DJs from Ed Banger label, the Shins late gig at the Hard Rock... we'll be back at this festival for sure.

Eskimo Joe set at Playboy - October 16, 2007, New York

This Australian combo has gone multi-platinum down under, where they first caught our attention. Of course, any band that has Ed Buller produce its debut (he helmed some of the best recordings by Suede and Pulp) is worth checking out; the fact that they also recorded a version of the Pixies "Hey" as a b-side doesn't hurt, either. But still, over here the band remains a bit of a mystery. So when we heard they'd be in the States in advance of releasing Black Fingernails, Red Wine in the US, we asked them to drop by with their guitars. As you'll see in the video of their acoustic mini-set, they are all they are cracked up to be.

Jamie T Acoustic set at Playboy - September 14, 2007, New York

This 21-year-old Wimbledon native says he started playing music because his home, a suburb of London, was so boring he had to make his own fun. Since beginning to strum his acoustic bass for friends a few years ago, he's come a long way. In 2007 he beat out people like Thom Yorke and Jarvis Cocker in the UK to garner many solo artist of the year awards. No wonder-he's become a grassroots favorite since his homemade folk-hop creations started to fly around the web. On record, Jamie combines his acoustic chops with cool beats and samples, sounding like a cross between the Streets and Billie Bragg. And those recordings are incredible. But we wanted to hear him in his original form-just Jamie and his bass-and invited him round to the New York editorial offices to hear him play. He did not disappoint, as you can see in the video we shot of his visit.

Daft Punk at Coney Island - August 9, 2007

I've seen a few transcendent rock concerts over the years, but they are sufficiently few and far between to warrant mention whenever they occur. And last night, for the first time in several years, I was blown away: Daft Punk, playing the beach-front minor league baseball stadium in Brooklyn's famous Coney Island, put on one the greatest shows I've ever seen.

Check out this Youtube clip for the opening portion of the set, raising from the start the band's perennial lyrical dilemma-human or robot?

With this year marking the 10th anniversary of their landmark Homework LP, the French duo is aptly demonstrating how they achieved icon status. And even as a host of homages to that album (check out the sick new Justice album for the best) show the viability of the Homework sound for a new generation of bands, Daft Punk is also proving they are still the masters of noisy, robotic rock, putting the punk back into the funk on stages all over the world.