Indiana alt-rockers Murder By Death got their name from a 1976 film, so I wasn't surprised when their list of influences came back and it was all movies. While their name may evoke images of something that sounds torturous, Murder By Death are nothing of the sort. Their Cash-twinged songs are catchy as hell and always a pleasure (not a pain). They just released their latest album, Good Morning, Magpie, on April 6 -- it's a gooder -- and they'll be playing the Casbah on April 11.
Missouri's Ha Ha Tonka will open the show, and if it's anything like when I saw them a few years ago, they'll threaten to upstage the already awesome Murder By Death. Linfinity will also play, and with their reputation as some of the most talented and ambitious musicians to come out of Brooklyn lately, April 11 promises to be a great night.
Murder By Death's Top 10 Van-Viewing Selections for Long and/or Night Drives:
1. Big Trouble In Little China: Best van movie ever. Wizards, monsters, babes, one-liners -- it has everything you could want
2. Anchorman: Always hilarious, always quotable, never a bad decision
3. Total Recall: If you didn't think you could love this movie any more than you already did, watch it with the commentary by Arnold Schwarzenegger and director Paul Verhoeven. Mind=blown
4. The Simpsons: Kind of a no-brainer here. It doesn't require a long attention span and is always fun
5. Pootie Tang: Umm ... if you've seen it, you know
6. Predator: Excellent one-liners, big guns, an alien hunter, and the soulful eyes of Carl Weathers. Need we say more?
7. Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey: Wildly hilarious and one of the only times Keanu Reeves is a convincing actor. Plus, there are cameos from Pam Grier and Faith No More's Jim Martin
8. The Big Lebowski: Ever had a moment where you wished you hadn't just watched this movie? Neither have we
9. East Bound and Down: Inappropriate and crammed with one-liners. It's kind of perfect for our purposes
10. Lethal Weapon 2: Bullets, boobs, car chases, stuff blowing up, and the first appearance of Joe Pesci as Leo Getz. How can you go wrong?
T. Loper is a writer for the San Diego music blog Owl and Bear.
