Entertainment / Edgefest

From the eyes of the money:

Now, every show has their sleeper surprise: a band no one is quite sure what to expect and then hits the stage and just slays beyond comprehension; everyone KNEW IAMX would kill, but who else ??

wellsa--------ENTERTAINMENT was that band on this night ...for The EDGEFEST2008 bill...

At the last minute, days before the show, I decided to move ENTERTAINMENT back in our set list (they originally were scheduled to go on at 7 ), because I had slowly become enamored with their CD ' Gender' and even more so, their tight and pristine, goth/glam masterpiece, that kool-ass single of theirs 'China Walls' ..

however, much of 'GENDER' is kinda raw and a few tracks even fall apart under their own weight--too ambitious to execute--so I had no clue if --live-- these dudes would be tight, or just be a mess and suck ass...

ENTERTAINMENT CAME--and by any one's measure, they DID NOT SUCK ASS !!!! hellsa, I could only smile at how their very stage presence and every move had THE EDGE CLUB-KIDS going -ape shit from their first few notes.. simply put, they rawked ass!

yes my luv---I was back at the BAT-CAVE, SCANDAL'S---circa 1984-1987....and in effin heaven !

my wifey, no huge fan of glam or goth, marveled at how TREY nailed this shit and how he had every glam/goth move ever executed effin down--with the confidence and ease a sick-ass front man must always employ--and with the goth/ glam genre, a strong front man is a must: see BAUHAUS, THE SISTERS OF MERCY, DIARY OF DREAMS, etc..... just like fine wine....

and let me tell ya'll: goth--glam when done ineptly, or without energy and big-time conviction can turn the provocateurs of the genre into jello---into self-parody in a heartbeat...see NOSFERATU later in their days. ..see BELLA MORTE now...just ain't happening like it was....but ENTERTAINMENT is one of the few American glam/goth bands who understands that goth is more than just atmosphere, spooky synths and droning; to be sure, without that Peter Murphy-like arrogance and sneer, without a compelling front man, and without a dash of punk and attitude, the genre can be boring as hell; It appears TREY and the E -gang will have none of that folly-- and/or misanthropic misdirection--- and in the process they nail the genre as good as any fuckers I've seen here recently...

I love ENTERTAINMENT and booking them was my good fortune... 'FLESH' is brilliant...'CHINA WALLS 'is brilliant...'CONFUSION OF SENSES' is brilliant; 'SAFE AT ONE' just makes me weep for back in the day--days !!!!

beyond their stellar, show stealing, surprise performance, talking to these dudes about the art of the post-punk was a marvelous thing; I do not get along with people so easily, but I felt totally at ease and was quite happy talking shop with the fab four from ENTERTAINMENT! It was obvious we all were fighting the same fight, which was very cool cuz here locally, sometimes, that kind of support system is difficult to come by !

oh, and Barry's GF went on a drunk-ass tirade on Chisolm which-- in itself ---was 'entertaining' as hell...!!!! lol...

BTW--ENTERTAINMENT is playing THE SPOT IN ATLANTA OCTOBER 18TH, if I were you, I'd be there; hell, I'm NOT you and I'm going to be there any shit ! :)

- Coyote J

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Entertainment / Notes Unearthed

Barry recently did an interview with Notes Unearthed

They also gave us a review. click the link to check it out:

Notes Unearthed

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Entertainment / Foxy Digitalis

Entertainment "Gender"
Stickfigure

Entertainment is a band from Athens, Georgia, but they have very little to do with the sunny indie pop usually associated with their hometown. The biggest touchstone for the group is clearly early-80s Deathrock. In case you've never heard of it, Deathrock was a small, loosely-defined movement of sorts that might best be described as a mix of punk and post-punk (with a big debt to Joy Division) with big gothic overtones. Some notable bands of the genre include Christian Death, 45 Grave, and Bauhaus, to name a few. Entertainment certainly incorporates the heavy, driving bass lines, angular guitars, wining synths, and moaned vocals associated with those groups (in particular the aforementioned Christian Death). Ultimately, their first full-length "Gender" sounds like an album from a band that knows its roots, but doesn't know how to move beyond them.

Right from the start of the opening track, Entertainment makes a pretty clear case for what to expect on the rest of the album. "Romance in the Rain" supplies a heaping dose of echoing, dissonant guitar, melodic bass, and vintage-sounding keyboards. Singer Trey Ehart adds a layer of affected vocals to the mix, as well. From there on out, the rest of "Gender" features variations on these elements and anyone with a passing familiarity with Entertainment's influences will have a pretty good idea of what to expect. This is quite unfortunate, since the band clearly has the chops to be good or even great, but not the creativity to match.

Ultimately, listening to Entertainment lends itself an overwhelming sense of déjà vu. I'm sure everyone has had moments listening to certain songs or bands when they think, "This is OK, but what I'd really like to hear is ____." For me, this is one of those moments. In short, Entertainment reminds me of other music that I'd rather listen to, which I can't imagine is the aim of any band. All in all, Entertainment isn't bad, but based on their material on "Gender," they don't have much new to offer to a style of music that first broke almost thirty years ago. Entertainment manage to put forth a spirited effort, but in the end, I'd rather give my copy of "Hell Comes to Your House" another spin instead. 3/10 -- Matt Blackall

Foxy Digitalis

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BUY EDGEFEST TICKETS NOW +++

Buy Edgefest Tickets to see us play with IAMX:

BUY TICKETS HERE

@ matthew's Bar and Grill
2208 Morris Avenue
Birmingham, AL

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$34 each online

Proudly Featuring:
IAMX
KRISTEENYOUNG
Black Tie Dynasty
Feeding Fingers
& Entertainment

Also Featuring Pre-Party Guest Bands:
MISFORTUNE500 (Athens, GA)
www. myspace. com/misfortune500
SYNICAL DELIVERANCE (Birmingham, AL)
www. myspace. com/synicaldeliverance
& THE RED MACHINES (Birmingham, AL)
www. myspace. com/theredmachines


And don't miss the Edgefest guest dj, Geno!
www. myspace. com/genotx


PRE-PARTY BANDS START AT 5 P.M.

HEADLINERS START AT 7:30 P.M.


First 75 people get a free Edge-worthy CD!

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Entertainment / Dry Ink

That's Entertainment!
They're New Wave, and that's a good thing
By Tom Cheshire Published Aug. 1, 2008

Goth, metal, opera, Brian Eno, disco, fetish, German, silent movie… These are a few descriptions I've heard about the band Entertainment. I'm getting old and I hate descriptions. All I know is that their music reminds me of being a teenager in New York City in 1989. That's a good thing. Nineteen was hands down my favorite age. I'll just say they're New Wave and it's good.

Interview here.

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Steal Our Image

Shaliza makes us look good in NY.

XO Shaliza!

Pictures here.

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Entertainment / Deaf Sparrow

A new review of Gender from Deaf Sparrow:

I would like to start this review with an apology to Pete, the PR person in charge of handling this release. It took me way too long to get to it. And more importantly, now that I've had a chance to check it out five times front to back, I realize it was my loss. Totally. I wasn't really sure why Pete kept on going about it, you see. Judging by the name of the band I wasn't sure Gender would fit within the range that I like Deaf Sparrow to cover. And I had disregarded the press clip that came with the CD as mere hype. That's what the stuff usually is anyway; always bloated, inaccurate quotes, descriptions that are meant to impress what usually ends up being deflated music in the face of expectations.

Then it also took me a while to find the record. I have them all promos in piles inside a trunk and it is a little hard to keep them organized. Plus, with the name Entertainment featured in a much smaller font than the album's name, Gender, and the cover artwork looking way more obscure than I had expected I ended up shuffling right by it a few times before finally locating it.

But this is it. Pete, you rule. This record is excellent. Flawless. Dark. Truculent. Caustic. This is post punk of the highest order. With a couple of spoonfuls of gothic coloring, Gender rocks like I haven't heard a record in over two years. And we ain't talking heavy music here. I've been on a Joy Division kick for like the last two and a half years, so that helps. I guess it prepared me for material of this type. It's all in its place; from the bare, yet charged, yet fully organic sound, to the monochromatic artwork, to the sparse guitar playing and the non-conforming drumming, Entertainment gets absolutely everything right.

Gender sounds like something that came out of London or Glasgow back in '84. Instead, I think it was recorded right up my street in hot as hell Atlanta. It's great. A little scary too; the vocals for instance have some sort of phantasmagoric aspect to them, they emit this short wave echo that is a bit spooky in the most respectful sense of the word. It's the perfect way to carry the tunes; unorthodox singing on top of unorthodox music. Atonal playing, awkward melodies only topped by a vocalist more preoccupied with creating an atmosphere than walking us through the lyrics. So Pete, once again sorry, do you have any more records as good as this one?

Deaf Sparrow

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Entertainment / Erba Della Strega (Interview)

You read Italian? we did an interview..

Erba Della Strega (Interview)

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PLEASE HELP THE PRIDS!!! TERRIBLE ACCIDENT

our friends and former labelmates, The Prids were in an car accident while on tour in Ca.

the van blew a tire and they rolled 5 times.

joey posted pictures...







There were 6 of them in the van (the 4 bandmembers + their 2 friends). Everyone except their friend Chris has been released from the hospital.

David has 6 staples in his head, a broken collar bone and broken ribs.

Mistina suffered a concussion.

Joey broke his ribs.

Maile has a broken vertebra and toe and stitches in her knee.

Chris has a broken wrist and possible spinal injury

Kristen came out with the least injuries but is pretty banged up.

As of late last night, everyone but Chris had been released from the hospital, and they are staying at a hotel in Fresno..

A special paypal account has been set up to help out and donate directly to The Prids. They need help getting home and paying their hospital bills. If you can't help out monetarily, please repost this info on your blogs, etc. Thanks

you can send them money here via paypal at donate at theprids.com

Please help them if you can!

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EDGEFEST TICKETS ON SALE NOW ++++

Buy Them!

CLICK HERE

After twenty years of Coyote J's legendary alternative radio show, "The Edge,"
Coyote J is celebrating with Edgefest 2008 -
for his "loyal EDGE children..."

Featuring: IAMX, KRISTEENYOUNG,
Black Tie Dynasty, Feeding Fingers,
and Entertainment

Matthew's Bar & Grill
2208 Morris Avenue
Birmingham, AL

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