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GET HIGH & FLY
Kiteboarding is the way to do it, and now Royal Oak has the store to support the habit. Check out the grand opening bash on Thursday, which includes everything from free beer & pizza to live music from Spermwail.

Rag Wrap - June 30, 2004

The White Stripes are trying to stop the showing of an unauthorized documentary on the band.

Fat Possum Records will be releasing a new Nathaniel Mayer album on October 12th. Check out Mr Mayer at Tastefest Friday at 9pm. Also coming out on Fat Possum is a new record from Blues legend R.L. Burnside who gets some help from Kid Rock.

A dinner for 8 at the Detroit Zoo is auctioned off $12,000. That also equals about 12,000 cans of Pabst at the Belmont or about 600 lapdances at the Toy Chest.

The Freep previews that top 10 acts at Tastefest which starts tomorrow.

Bloomfield Hills teens say no to alcohol in a new public serive message that will air this summer. In time peer pressure will take over.

Loretta Lynn has cancelled a few shows due to double pneumonia. In unrelated news, Mr. Gary had double pneumonia last month but didn't miss any work.

CREEM ON THE FIVE
Creem Magazine brings you MC5 live reviews and a review of their new DVD, Sonic Revolution.

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JAWBONE SIGNS TO LOOSE MUSIC
Detroit's one man blues machine Jawbone has signed to the UK's Loose Music label - which is also the UK home of Blanche. Jawbone's album Dang Blues will be re-released on the label as a digipak throughout Europe and Australia. Another Peel Session and tour is in the works.

IT'S FOR THE KIDS!
Rock and roll, that is. The Wall Street Journal checks out Detroit Mom bands The Candy Band and The Mydols. link via rob

THE FAGS SIGN TO SIRE RECORDS!
SPECK!
MCR congratulates the members of The Fags, who recently inked a deal with Sire Records. The band is currently working on its debut major-label full-length at The Loft, with the band’s own bassist, Tim Patalan, handling production duties.

To hear what got The Fags to this point, check out the band's original 5-song EP, available for order at the Idol Records website, or available to download at Audio Galaxy and iTunes.





photo: matt caruana

The Free Press talks with a drawbridge operator who works on the Rouge River. This story contains some priceless quotes.

Album Review: The Dollfaces (Self Titled)

The DollfacesFor the past few months, I’ve been reading a lot about The Dollfaces in the local press – ‘…managed by John Montgomery and Willy Wilson…throwback to the heyday of late 60’s Detroit City rock and roll…live covers of unexpected tracks such as “Blitzkrieg Bop” and “I Wanna Be Your Dog”...’ Between that and all of the hipster buzz surrounding the band’s live performances, I have to be honest - saying that I was interested in hearing The Dollfaces’ material would have been an understatement. Unfortunately, though, I think the word I’d use to describe the self-titled EP would be ‘underwhelming’ (with just cause and justification given at review’s end).

I mean, yeah, I’ll admit that it’s cool as fuck that a bunch of high school kids have started a band that doesn’t sound as bad as Wyld Stallions did before phone booths started flying back and forth throughout history. I’ve seen them play out live by this point, and between that and this disc, I’ll admit that the kids are obviously fairly talented musicians.

However, the concept of ‘talented musicians’ doesn’t always translate into ‘worthwhile listening,’ which is the main downfall of this disc. The two-minutes-and-change of opener “Fallin’ Cassanova” sets a decent enough fuzzy rock vibe, and based on the vocal tone, this one wouldn’t have sounded all that out of place on 89X in the mid 90’s. “Fifteen” is a surprising amalgamation, fusing jazzy verse structures with a chorus straight from the Von Bondies’ Lack of Communication days. “Just As You Are” doubles as the discs most interesting and most perplexing listen, coming off as a less worldly, impatient brethren of Radiohead’s OK Computer-era material.

From there, though, things take a drastic nose-dive. “It’s Not the End” seems like a cut-and-paste collage of four songs the band deemed unworthy of inclusion on this EP. Individually, the pieces sound decent enough, but two minutes into this five-minute track, the song already seems tedious. “Decisions Decisions” befalls the same fate, as halfway through the song, it’s obvious that this is the ‘filler’ song of the EP (though the guitar solo does have a bit of pizzazz to it).

The first three tracks are flawed, but endearing, in that they show great semblances of promise for the future of this young act. My two cents? Sure, I’m an asshole, but I’m not an idiot – I don’t expect these kids to be writing note-perfect material before any of them have even had to opportunity to go to their senior prom, and I don’t think anyone else should be, either. However, I have yet to read anything anywhere that gives The Dollfaces any sort of criticism at all, and that’s just sad. Yeah, the concept of The Dollfaces is great, and admittedly, this city could use a few more bands just like this to lower the median age of the ‘Detroit Rock Scene.’ However, I don’t think it does anyone any good (especially not the band itself) to sit and verbally fellate these kids, when everyone could be doing them a favor by pushing the band to develop, rather than making them complacent to stay who they are musically. Taken as a straight-up listening experience, EP is less-than-stellar; looked upon as a work in progress, it’s actually pretty impressive. Which viewpoint are you gonna take? -Gary Blackwell

MR. GARY, ROCK SCRIBE EXTRAORDINAIRE
911
Benton Harbor, Mich. - An extravagant news conference and press meet & greet was held at an abandoned warehouse on Benton Harbor's east side on June 26 to announce the promotion of Gary Blackwell to motorcityrocks.com Content Editor. A special thanks to the fine editors of Blammo! (America's best rock n' roll magazine) for making the trek in from San Diego and the boys of the Jon Van Oss Band for the providing entertainment (and then some). If you'd like to have your band covered on MCR, feel free to send greetings, burritos or bribes (hookers) to gary@motorcityrocks.com.

HEY BANDS & VENUES
The MCR crew is making an attempt to list more shows. When you've got show information you'd like listed, please send it to this email address: shows@motorcityrocks.com.

WORN DOWN IN WARREN
How Can They Say That When They Haven't Seen Warren?

TONIGHT @ ALVIN'S
I know there are a zillion different things going on in Detroit tonight, so what's a last minute plug for one more social event, right?

Tonight at Alvin's (9:00 p.m. start time):

THE SALT MINERS - (mmmmm, bluegrass)
WHISKEY TENOR - (silky smooth, low-key americana-and-whiskey-drinkin' music)
...along with traveling bands...
GHOST BUFFALO - (mellowness featuring members of Denver's Planes Mistaken for Stars)
CALL SIGN COBRA - (rock-and-rollers featuring members of the Scott Baio Army)

Look for a drunken idiot wearing two Motor City Rocks pins on his preciously thrift-store, button-up, thin blue striped dress shirt - that'll be me. Come say 'Hi' or 'Fuck off' or something to that effect ...

CALL THE DOCTUH, I'VE GOT RADIO FEVUH!
Tune in LIVE 97.1 on Saturday @ 8pm, and you'll get all this:
-Highlights from the "Men in the Parking Lot" interviews from Rock City.
-A lively discussion of the recent East Side/West Side Nontroversy (with accompanying jams)
- New stuff from Human Eye, Dirty Americans, Detroit City Council, El Boxeo and anything else we can get our grubby hands on.
- Two Minute Record review madness involving the unsuspecting lads of Back in Spades
- The Hump it or Dump It segment with a victim, er, suspect, er, outfit of their choosing.

NOW PLAYING
911

DETROIT COUNTRY CITY
Hey you Magic Stick rats, do ya'll got cowboy boots? link via whatevs

SURE, HE MARRIED PAM, BUT...
He Sucked in the Past, He Sucks Now, and He'll Suck in the Future

GOOD LORD, DETROIT
So, as mentioned earlier in the day, I was comfortably seated with cold PBR in hand watching the fireworks on WDIV-TV earlier tonight, having myself a good ole' time (though, admittedly, the TV was on mute and the fireworks were set to the sounds of Detroit's own Uncle Jessie White and the 29th Street Blues Band) ... And yeah, as always, the fireworks show was spectacular, because Windsor and Detroit always give the 2 million plus folks on both sides of the river something worthy of 'ooh and ahhh-ing' about ...

And of course, I made the mistake of leaving the TV on just long enough to have to un-mute the sound to hear about some dumb ass who was involved in an 'altercation' before deciding to open fire on an unsuspecting portion of the Detroit crowd during the fireworks display ... Eight people were wounded when an as-yet unidentified-male started pointing and shooting randomly into the mass of people, apparently actually turning in circles as he shot. My journalistic nature had me intrigued, but even I couldn't watch anymore when a WDIV reporter caught up with a relative of one of the victims, who relayed that said 'altercation' was apparently a dispute over a pair of Cartier eyeglasses.

Nice one, Fucko - way to shoot up Hart Plaza because you had beef about a pair of stupid designer glasses. What a great job you did, as now attention's been shifted nationally from, "Hey, the Pistons are the NBA champs!" to, "Oh, look, they're back to shooting people in Detroit already." High ranking NFL officials were in town for the fireworks to watch how the city handled the glut of people, as a precursor to the Super Bowl in a few years - so much for that good impression.

Seriously - here at MCR (as well as throughout the city of Detroit and it's suburbs), are we all expecting too much when we hope for the day that dumb shit like this doesn't happen in Detroit anymore?

Godspeed and safe travel to anyone with the courage and patience to weather trying to get downtown for the big fireworks display tonight. I'll raise a PBR to y'all while I'm watching the light show from my road-closure-and-traffic-free couch.

DAVID BOWIE: "PASS ON THAT LOVESTICK"
Bowie was pelted in the eye by a lollipop in Oslo, Norway last Friday. It was likely a sign of affection, since Norwegians refer to lollipops as "love on a stick." Apparently Norwegian lovin' is a little on the rough side for Bowie's taste.

THE FCC WON'T LET ME BE...
Well Fucking Fuck that Fucking Cocksucking Motherfucking Shiteating Shit -
We're Fucking Well Glad The Fuck We 're Fucking on the Web, You Fuckers.

LAME-A-PA-LOSAH FESTIVAL
Cancelled due to poor ticket sales.

The Von Bondies will be appearing Wednesday night on Letterman. Other guests scheduled for the show are David Alan Grier and mountain climber Britton Keeshan.

In case anyone's looking for more Tuesday Night Music Club options, Ryan Allen (of Thunderbirds Are Now! and Tiny Steps) will be playing a solo opening set tonight at Club Bart in Ferndale - the show should kick off at around 9:30 p.m.

DETROIT ROCK CITY
rock city
MCR presents a fairly incomprehensive report on Detroit's first annual Rock City Festival. Unfortunately, the entire MCR crew found themselves previously committed on Sunday, so we missed many of the best acts. But hey, we hope you've learned not to expect too much!

"I'M STUCK IN THE GARAGE!"
out of the garage fest

AS THE LIGHTS DIM
dfc
Cruise over to the Detroit Film Center this Friday for a benefit screening to support the DFC. As The Lights Dim is a three-short episode soap opera parody by Kristine Trever. Friday, June 25, 7pm. The DFC is located at 1227 Washington Blvd in the Book Building

SCHOOL OF DETROIT ROCK
Brian McCollum breaks down Motor City rock n' roll. The complete story. The breakdown.

ESTHER FROM DETROIT
Watch out Nestor, the artist formerly known as Madonna is mackin' on your style. No buzz. None. While there probably is a legitimate arguement to be made for this case, I wouldn't go around calling other people names if I just changed my own to Esther.

ART, LOVES & DEMONS
A new book on Marvin Gaye.

ROCK CITY SCHEDULE
rock cityHere it is kids. This weekend, at the Majestic Theatre Complex parking lot. It's free and all ages.

Saturday June 19
10:00 p.m. The Dirtbombs
9:10 p.m. Detroit Cobras
8:20 p.m. The Sights
7:40 p.m. The Greenhornes
7:10 p.m. The Sirens
6:35 p.m. The Go
6:05 p.m. esQuire
5:35 p.m. Easy Action
5:10 p.m. Human Eye
4:45 p.m. Nice Device
4:30 p.m. Grande Nationals
4:10 p.m. Thread Counts
3:50 p.m. The Rants
3:30 p.m. Southpaw
3:00 p.m. The Witches
2:00 p.m. Audra Kubat

Majestic Theatre Afterparty (free)
12:30 a.m. Bulldog
11:20 p.m. Man, Inc.

Sunday, June 20
10:10 p.m. Brendan Benson
9:25 p.m. The Paybacks
8:40 p.m. Blanche
7:55 p.m. Hentchmen
7:25 p.m. Pas/Cal
6:55 p.m. The Fondas
6:25 p.m. Saturday Looks Good to Me
5:55 p.m. Outrageous Cherry
5:30 p.m. Detroit City Council
5:05 p.m. Back in Spades
4:40 p.m. Valentinos
4:15 p.m. Gold Cash Gold
3:55 p.m. The Avatars
3:30 p.m. Tiny Steps
3:00 p.m. The Elevations

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THEY GIVE YOU WINGS
waxwingsThe Waxwings have a new record coming out on the Rainbow Quartz label. Let’s Make Our Descent was recorded by Brendan Benson at Grand Studios in Detroit and is set to be released on July 13. A U.S. tour will follow. You can check out a sample here.

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WHEN THE GARAGE IS A-ROCKIN'...
Detroiters that will be competing in Little Steven's Rockin' Garage Battle of the Bands include The Mydols, The Basements and The Betty Fords. They'll be performing at Cleveland's Beachland Ballroom on June 17-19. Winners will have a chance to advance to the final round at NYC's Irving Plaza, to be held July 23.

DIAMOND DOGG
JD ain't the only one watchin' Soul Train on a Friday night.

JUST A MINUTE, SAY WATT?
wattCreem tips us off that there are some new Stooges songs in the works, including one called "A Horse With No Brain." Boy Howdy heard it straight from Mike Watt, who's currently jamming on bass with the Stooges. Photo: Robert Matheu

Concert Review: MC5/DKT @ Majestic Theatre

MCR/DKT Live In Detroit
MCR/DKT Live In DetroitBefore actually attending the DKT/MC5 show on June 10, 2004 I really planned on having a million different courses of discussion to pick from when it came time to do this very write-up. Leading up to the event, I had a billion arguments going both for and against the show, and I figured that the performance itself would pick which way my words took them.

Imagine my surprise when I found ALL of those arguments slowly dissipating through the first few songs. When Wayne Kramer’s guitar started to kick out the riff to “Tonight,” a light bulb went on in my head as the crowd got loud. Watching guest guitarist Marshall Crenshaw (performing in place of the late, great Fred “Sonic” Smith) rail out solid rhythms behind Kramer’s leads made me realize that, despite all the bickering, discussions and arguments, the DKT event most certainly wasn’t actually about who it was on stage performing; this night was actually about the music of the MC5, and having it interpreted by musicians who felt it and understood it. No, hearing Crenshaw and Kramer singing the opening lyric to “Ramblin’ Rose” wasn’t the same as hearing the late Rob Tyner’s unusual falsetto on the Kick Out the Jams album, but seeing them playing it alongside Michael Davis and Dennis Thompson (all smiles, of course) was satisfying in its own little way.

I kept trying to recap the arguments in my head, trying to remember the various moot points and little things I was looking for to nitpick at … but when Mark Arm first stepped onto the stage and let loose with his trademark wail set to an MC5 backing, those arguments faded even further into obscurity. I was mystified – I was briefly worried about the addition of a two-person horn section to certain songs, but even that worked out far better than could have been expected.

Now, sure, Evan Dando came out and generally made an ass of himself throughout the night, but – well, this is Evan Dando that I’m talking about, and I’m sure that anyone who knew anything about him beforehand wasn’t expecting anything less than what Detroit got from him. I know it would kill his ego to read this, but Evan Dando didn’t even matter by that point (not that he ever did, but that’s another story altogether).

What mattered was energy and raw, unbridled passion for the songs of the MC5, something that totally came to a head for the first time when a denim-clad Mick Collins waltzed on stage and led a furiously sloppy rendition of “Looking at You” that raised the hair on the back of my neck during Kramer’s guitar solos. Collins disappeared for most of the night after adding a few harmonica breaks to “Sister Anne,” but that feeling I got while he was on stage didn’t leave me for the rest of the night.

The crowd bopped and sang along to “Teenage Lust” and “Shakin’ Street,” and clapped along to “Call Me Animal” like it was 1970 all over again. It was surreal -- folks like me that weren’t born until well after the lifespan of the band were jumping and singing along side-by-side with people that had lived the original MC5 live experience many years ago. It literally seemed like everyone in the crowd was smiling and having a good time, paying tribute to these songs from an era long since past. Hell, during an admittedly slightly over-dramatic version of “Let Me Try,” at least one audience member faithfully held a lighter up in the air.

MCR/DKT Live In DetroitHowever, it wasn’t just the audience having fun. Davis was grinning ear to ear watching Mick Collins bust out his harmonica solos, and quite the sly little smirk crept across Kramer’s visage when he motioned to the crowd to, “Kick out the jams, motherfuckers” to kick off what was arguably (and not surprisingly) the best received performance of the night. Arm’s eyes were beaming as he stood on stage leading a surprisingly terrifying version of “I Want You” with his cavernous yells; the smiles he flashed at Kramer during the vicious guitar leads were priceless. The band as a whole got way into the racket of a whacked-out “Starship,” and everyone got involved with a Kramer-led audience participation vocal round during “Rocket Reducer No. 62” (cheesy, yes, but on this night, also an effective tactic used to further bond with an already rabid crowd).

It was apparent that the night was winding down when Arm paid homage to Smith and Tyner before breaking into the night’s only real political rant. On a night where fun was the operative word, Arm made a quick allusion to the fact that it was scary that songs written in the late 60’s can still be relevant in 2004, which led to a tight performance of “The American Ruse.”

It was obvious the crew was relishing being in Detroit for what basically amounted to a homecoming show of sorts. After two encores, the house lights came up and the sound system blared, though Kramer eventually led the band out for one more number – a third encore consisting of a take on “Motor City’s Burnin’” so unexpectedly crazy that even Dando’s off-key warbling (devoid of even the most remote sense of lyrical melody) couldn’t ruin the moment (and by the way, Dando - that was real classy, the way you flung that full water bottle into the crowd at someone because you couldn’t handle your obviously sub-par performance getting heckled by the Detroit audience).

Was it a historical moment in musical history? No, probably not. Was it blasphemous, watching DKT perform without Smith and Tyner? Well, that answer depends on who you’re asking, I suppose. Was it fun? In my personal opinion, hell yes, and it seemed like a majority of the folks at The Majestic that night would have to agree with me. Large quantities of beer were consumed; smiles abounded; sloppy rock songs were played loudly by a group of folks who quite obviously loved what they were doing, and about 1,000 folks sang along, danced around and generally enjoyed themselves. Who the hell am I to say that there’s anything at all wrong with that? -Gary Blackwell

Labels:

SCHMEARS!!!

Last night out at the Palace the Pistons put the beatdown on the Lakers. 2 more wins for the Pistons and the rioting begins.

Is that Tracee Miller of Blanche sitting next to Renee at the game?

The Free Press gives us a list of hot spots where Metro Detroiters have been watching all the playoff action.

The Freep takes a look at Riot in Progress. The band will be having a cd release party for thier new record "Incoming From the Airwaves" at the Emerald Theatre on Wednesday at 7 pm.

The Detroit Festival of Arts takes place this weekend.

Soul and R&B legend Ray Charles passed away yesterday at the age of 73.

The Elbow Room is holding the 2nd annual (un)LadylikeFest this weekend which features many girls playing loud guitars, hot.

"I'm through with white girls"

Jack White hates the word celebrity.

Cancel your Saturday plans and head out to Freedom Hill to see Tom Jones, buzz

Power pop band Go To Zero is profiled today in the News. Catch the band at thier cd release party on June 19th at the Magic Bag.


THE LAW
Howard Hertz, Detroit music lawyer and manager of The Go, is profiled over at Music Connection.

WHEW!!!
dpollen
The MCR crew has finally recovered from the rock n' roll marathon known as D-Pollen. If you're thinking it took us forever, yeah... I guess you're right. But we also had to move the MCR offices, so cut us a break, eh? Here's Mr. Gary's report.

BOY HOWDY!
Check out Letterman tonight and you'll see Kid Rock's Kenny Olsen sporting a Boy Howdy tee!

JUST WHEN WE'VE BEEN DE-CREED
Is punk rock the new Christian rock, and thus, no longer cool? link via datawhat

HERE YA GO
a fan's notes on the go

BUTT WAIT, MTV
We might get to see a few stars onstage at the MTV Music Awards, but they won't let Em show us the moon.

ROCK CITY BUZZ
The upcoming Rock City Festival found some ink in Spin as well as USA Today, who counted it as one of this summer's "10 GREAT PLACES FOR HARMONIC CONVERENGES" and went on to crown the Dirtbombs as "possibly America's best live band."

Robert Quine Found Dead

DANNY DOLL... I MEAN RAMROD
detroit rock n' roll
For one night only, two generations of Detroit Rock N'Roll will share the Magic Stick stage. MCR has learned that Danny Dollrod (aka Dan Kroha), of the highly influential Gories and Demolition Dollrods, will play bass with legendary 70's punk act The Ramrods. On May 17 Kroha came to a Ramrod rehearsal on Detroit's southwest side and jammed on bass (above photo). He's agreed to be a Ramrod for a night and play with the band on August 14 at the Magic Stick. The Go and Cinecyde are slated to open the show.

Labels: ,

"YOU SHOULD BE SHOT"
YES says NO to tearing down Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens in an interview with Creem. More from the Toronto Star.

RANT/RAVE
If you're an 18-30 year old, you can get your voice heard in the Detroit News. Rant/Rave on DetNews.com gives you chance to share opinions on various topics like tv shows, movies, fast food, etc. Plus, signing up may include some free stuff like CDs and movie passes from time to time. Check it out here.

NAY DOG ON THE PROWL
Nathaniel Mayer & the Fabulous Shanks will be performing tonight at the Village Idiot on the east side (15421 Mack Avenue, across from Grosse Pointe Park). He'll be playing some of the old favs as well as some new material that will be released this summer on the Fat Possum label. With special guests The Boomerangs featuring Dan "The Crawdaddy". $7 8pm doors.

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Let Me Take You Higher........

Make sure you are sitting down for this... Creed has broken up. Link via Retrobuzz.

"I got 2 turntables and a microphone".This Saturday at St. Andrews is the Kool Mixx 2004 DJ Competition, which is going to be judged by Kayne West.

NBC is creating a 12-hour miniseries about Motown which will be based on Berry Gordy's autobiography.

The News takes a look at The Hard Lessons. Catch the band on Saturday at the Magic Stick opening up for the Paybacks.

T-Mobile may be placing a cell tower inside a Livonia cemetary.

Call your friends and get out your old rifles, there is a Civil War
re-enactment going down at Detroit's Ft. Wayne on Saturday and Sunday. I call Abe Lincoln.

The Pistons take on the L.A. Lakers this sunday in game 1 of the NBA Finals. Go Pistons.



Welcome to Detroit
People are now actually choosing Detroit as a place to move from out of state, who knew.Link via Whatevs.

THIS ONE'S LOOOOONG GONE
If you like interesting reads, this one is a must. Sympathy Records founder Long Gone John's response to Ben Blackwell. Click the "To Osama Ben Blackwell" link in the top right corner. Apparently, he didn't take kindly to be slated number one on Ben Blackwell's Assholes Across America.

"IS IT GOOD TO BE BEAUTIFUL?"

MOORE'S WAR
Michael Moore's Cannes-winning film Fahrenheit 911 will open on 1000 screens on June 25. You can view the trailer here. links via dave @ amg

Just You Wait..

Real D sits down with Wendy Case of The Paybacks, while the News previews the band's show this Saturday at the Magic Stick. The show is a cd release party for the groups 2nd album, "Harder and Harder". Hard Lessons and Back and Spades will open the show.

"Guess his stint with Goober & the Peas paid off."
Creem takes a look at Van Lear Rose, as well as new records from the Demolition Doll Rods, Patti Smith and many more artists you dig.

OH, HOW LOVELY
welcome to the D
Courtney Love's rolling her train wreck across the States and will hit Clutch Cargo's in the first week of July. Thanks to Leasha for the date correction.

TAKE A XANAX, DUDE
What kind of a guy is opposed to a bar full of women consuming alcoholic beverages??

Attention kids, leave the mall now......

Fairlane Mall is now going to boot anyone from the mall who is younger than 18, unless they are with someone 21 or older starting at 5 pm everyday.

TASTY
This summer's Tastefest lineup.

"It's just for you, ya know."
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