a. This was one of the best Kickstarter rewards that I’ve ever seen: a private show for people above a certain donation level, and a free download card for a new release with it. I would never have thought of it for a reward, but it was a great one. I was delighted that Dan invited me to go with him as his guest. Thanks, Dan; thanks, folks in the Toddlers.

b. I always joke with my out of town friends that there’s no one in the Triangle scene it should surprise you to see playing; everyone’s primary project is someone else’s side project. Toddlers, whose members I was unfamiliar with before last night, save one, might be exactly that way; I know Missy Thangs from her time playing with the Love Language, which was Stu McLamb’s primary and her side, and now this is her primary project. Toddlers describe their music as “post-punk Americana”, but it’s a little more complex than that. It’s smoky hazy keyboard pop with Grateful Dead guitars tone and Tom Waits half his life ago vocals, and perfectly sharp and clever songwriting. I am really looking forward to seeing them again in the future, and to checking out their new EP.

c. I uttered a deeply, deeply North Carolinian statement last night, one that might require a dictionary of names and a history of the scene to understand if you didn’t speak Triangle shorthand. The sentiment in question: “Oh, this is the Mike Garrigan cover of ‘Seems’ from 65 Roses. It’s my favorite Zeke Hutchins song. It’s from the first Queen Sarah Saturday record.” Mike Garrigan is a long-time Triangle songwriter; Zeke Hutchins is now nationally probably better known as Mr. Tift Merritt, and the first Queen Sarah Saturday record, Weave, is probably close to 20 years old and still a college rock power pop early ’90s Chapel hill gem.

d. The second most North Carolinian statement I made was, “We’re watching the guy who made the Wall Street Journal’s best record of 2012 cover Peter Gabriel. This is awesome.” Aside from our crappy Republican state government, where I live is cooler than where you live.

e. Full set is here.