Short week this week thanks to a Monday holiday, but what a great week it's going to be.

The NFL season opens up Thursday night with a great showdown between the Colts and Saints before kicking off opening weekend with a bunch of great games. Unfortunately, the Packers are playing the Eagles in Game 1, which could go really, really bad depending on how good the Eagles are at this point in the season.

Need something to do until Thursday? Luckily, we've got suggestions.

Stop by The Wildbirds website and check out this Fox Valley, Wisconsin based rock band. If you dig bands like The Black Crows, Jet or The Strokes, you'll appreciate what The Wildbirds are putting out. They've got their obvious 70's rock influences, but with a sound that appeals to rock fans of today and tomorrow alike.


PRESS RELEASES

"Golden Daze is...the sound of beer, groupies, and roadhouses that serve sloppy, BBQ-sauce covered ribs."- Spin.com

“It’s a fabulous mix of music echoing of the past, but more importantly The Wildbirds evokes the swagger of yore. Their songs are wildly contagious, plumped up with exultant melodies, sing-along choruses, bruising rhythms, and the kind of splendid musicianship that will send thousands of listeners into an air-guitar frenzy. All told this is an album for the ages.” – Billboard.com

"All told, these Wisconsin Wildbirds have the energy, chops, hooks and looks to blow up—or at least score a lot of 'tang on tour." -OC WEEKLY

Catch them on tour in Wisconsin:
09.02 Milwaukee, WI @ Mad Planet
10.04 Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave

The Wildbirds - "421 (Everybody Loves You)"
The Wildbirds - "Way Down Low"


Head over the The Mugs website and stream their album "Here Tomorrow" for free. You can read about the Brooklyn indie band at their Myspace site.

Check out Against Me! as they head out on tour this fall. This week they've got stops in New York, Massachusetts, and Ohio:


September 4th Poughkeepsie, NY - The Chance
September 5th Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
September 6th Northampton, MA - Pearl Street
September 7th Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
September 8th Toledo, OH - Headliner's

For more Against Me! dates, check out their website.

Or, if you're feeling really ambitious (or just live in Austin, TX) and want to plan ahead for next month, you can jot down to the Fun Fun Fun Fest at Waterloo Park November 3 and 4 and catch a host of fantastic live acts:

STAGE 1:
Explosions in the Sky (Austin, TX)
Cat Power and the Dirty Delta Blues (NY)
New Pornographers (Vancouver, Canada)
Of Montreal (athens, GA)
Okkervil River (austin, tx)
Battles (NY)
Mates of State (SF,CA)
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists (NJ)
I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness (austin, tx)
Final Fantasy (Toronto, Canada)
White Denim (Austin, TX)
Brothes and Sisters (Austin)
Zykos (austin, tx)
Emma Pollock (of the delgados) (Scottland)
Headlights (IL)
Cave Singers (Seattle)
Celebration (Baltimore)
The Cribs (UK)
Birds of Avalon (Raleigh, NC)

STAGE 2:
Murder City Devils (Seattle, WA)
Neurosis (Oakland, CA)
The Sword (Austin, TX)
Battalion of Saints (CA)
Sick of It All (NY)
Madball (NY)
Angry Samoans (CA)
Against Me! (Gainesville, FL)
Lifetime (NJ)
Riverboat Gamblers (austin, tx)
Poison Idea (Portlan, OR)
CH3 (CA)
The Saints (Australia)
Riverboat Gamblers (Austin, tx)
Youth Brigade (CA)
Complete Control (Austin, TX)
Suntrash (CA)
Witchcraft (sweden)
Saviours (Oakland)
Modern Life Is War (Iowa)
Iron Age (Austin, tx)
Viva Hate (CA)
Sinking Ships (Seattle, WA)
The Heart Attacks (Atlanta, GA)

STAGE 3
Girl Talk (Pittsburgh, PA )
Cadence Weapon (CA)
Busdriver (CA)
Diplo (philidelphia, PA)
Car Stereo Wars (Austin)
Grand Buffet (Pittsburgh, PA )
DJ Jester (austin)
Prince Klassen (austin)
MGMT (NY)
MC Chris (NY)
Ocelot (Austin and UK)
Brownout! (austin)
Small Sin (canada)
Clap! Clap! (Austin)

Look for 2 day passes, available through www.ticketweb.com.
www.funfunfunfest.com
www.myspace.com/funfunfunfest