You want giveaways? We got giveaways.

Because we're always happy to give you more reasons to stop by Decatur CD, listen up, blog buddies. As you can see above, we'll soon be having a drawing for an autographed lithograph from Atlanta's maniacal metal monsters (alliteration, much?), Mastodon. The band's latest album, Blood Mountain - which came out on Sept. 12th - has been finding critical acclaim all over the place, from Pitchfork to the All Music Guide, and everything in between. And with good reason, too. So stop by and sign up.

But that's not all. For anyone who askes for them (while supplies last, naturally), we have a limited number of screening passes for animated flick, Open Season (of which Paul Westerberg did the soundtrack),and Touring the Angel, which is a Depeche Mode live movie filmed in Milan. Both of these screenings are being held Monday night, so you'll have to make a choice. However, the passes are first-come-first-serve, so make that choice quickly if you're interested in either film.

Finally, we also have a couple t-shirts left for anyone who buys Todd Snider's latest, The Devil You Know. Snider has served up a nice mix of rockin' numbers and more traditional songwriter tunes, and we've been playing - and enjoying it - a lot here at the store. Come and get 'em while they last. And if you're bored this evening, catch Snider at the Variety Playhouse as a part of Paste's Rock 'n' Reel festival.

October 3rd is going to be a great day.

First of all, see above! We are very proud to announce that Charlie Sexton and Shannon McNally will be performing live at Decatur CD at 7pm on Tuesday, October 3rd. This is going to be a fantastic event. In fact, this is the only show they're playing in town. Indeed, the pair are playing about half a dozen shows at record stores around the country, so we're honored to be included. Don't miss out on what will be a truly excellent evening.

In case you're unfamiliar, Charlie Sexton's legendary guitar playing history stretches all the way back to 1985 when he released his debut album, Pictures for Pleasure, at the ripe old age of 16. Following a few more records, along with session work for the likes of Keith Richards and Bob Dylan, amongst others, he's hardly had any trouble staying busy over the years. Shannon McNally is a bit newer to the music scene (albeit, with three albums to her name), but her soulful, accomplished vocals draw comparisons to everyone from Emmylou Harris to Sheryl Crow. The two artists recently joined forces on the Southside Sessions EP.

Of course, when Charlie and Shannon are done playing that night, you'll likely need something to do for the rest of the evening, right? Well, we'd like to suggest that you head over to the Red Light Cafe to see Liz Durrett and Smog. In fact, you can buy your tickets here at the store. Come and get 'em while they last!

We'll see you on October 3rd...

Pea Ridge Ramblers photos

On Saturday, the very next day after the jazz sale, we decided to continue the craziness with an afternoon set from the Pea Ridge Ramblers. They played about an hour and a half's worth of most excellent old timey country jams. Awesome stuff:

More Jazz Night photos

Here are a few more shots from Friday night. A great time was had by all. Thanks to everyone who came out to watch Nicole sing. This is certainly something we'll do again.

Fascinating NYT Cat Power article

More than a few of you, our lovely customers, have purchased Cat Power's latest record, The Greatest. For that matter, several of you also mentioned going to see the recent show at Variety Playhouse. It makes sense, then, that you might be interested in this story in the New York Times which details Chan Marshall's recent battles with addiction:
(from Prefixmag.com)

9 Lives and Counting: Cat Power Sobers Up

Talk like a pirate and save on George Harrison!

Although we're hardly tough enough to pull off the mission laid out by it, we'd be foolish not to mention that today marks what is surely the dorkiest "holiday" of them all - Talk Like A Pirate Day. Silly though it may be, we'd like to make an offer to all ye landlubbers out there who are into the pirate spirit. Now, listen up or walk the plank...

Anyone who stops by the store tomorrow (Wednesday, September 20th in this foul year of our lord, 2006) and attempts some pirate-speak can take $10 off the wonderful and above-pictured George Harrison box set that normally retails for $75. Avast, and other various whatnot that spews forth from the mouths of those with patch-covered eyes! Don't miss out on this treasure of a deal!

Paste's Rock 'n' Reel Festival

Honestly, you have no good reason for missing out on Paste's 2nd Annual Rock 'n' Reel Festival. This year's lineup is just ridiculous, with shows this week from the likes of the Modern Skirts, The Wrens, Bain Mattox, Magnolia Electric Co., Sufjan Stevens, Todd Snider, Beirut, Ollabelle, Jim White and many more. All this without mentioning all the great short films that will be shown. Yeah. You need to go. See below for more info, and we'll see you there!

Official site:
Rock 'n' Reel

Do us a favor and leave tales in the comments about any shows or films you take in. It's going to be impossible for us to see them all. Thanks...

New release Tuesday! (9/19/06)

As you can see from the above photo of our easternmost wall, we have a new addition amidst all the blue. Indeed, the Indigo Girls have a new album (in both regular and deluxe versions, no less) out tomorrow (September 19th), and Decatur CD is celebrating it with some giant cover art. Here are a few other artists that will have new releases on our shelves Tuesday:

Elton John
Lupe Fiasco
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy (watch him Tuesday night on Conan as well!)
DJ Shadow
The Hidden Cameras
Ben Kweller
Mosquitos
Joseph Arthur
The Cardigans
Lou Reed (reissue)
Jonny Lang
Anne McCue
Jesse McCartney
Employee of the Month (soundtrack)
Kasabian
North Mississippi All-Stars
Chris Difford
Fergie
KT Tunstall (deluxe reissue)

Of course, you still have time to request a pre-order on any of these. Hit us up in the comments!

Jazz Night photos (Nicole Chillemi and friends)

As you've probably already seen here on ye olde blog, Friday night was a lot of fun. But beyond the miles of cash register tape, it should be said that Atlanta singer Nicole Chillemi put on quite a show. The above photo is one of many that we'll post here once Blogger stops being difficult.

Jazz Night was a success.

And the above photo is just one reason why. More photos from the weekend coming soon...

Huge weekend @ Decatur CD!

Do you like jazz, beer, country, folk, sales or good people? If you answer "yes" to any of those, well, we have one crazy weekend for you...

FRIDAY (that's tomorrow): Starting at 7pm, the entire jazz section (both new and used) will be on sale for 20% off. At around 7:30pm, local artist Nicole Chillemi and friends will perform jazz standards to the delight of one and all. Additionally, we will be serving some delicious, high-gravity beer (Brother Thelonious is what they call it) to all who are of the legal drinking age. We'll also be doing a drawing for a Monk/Coltrane poster autographed by producer Orrin Keepnews, so make sure you stop by and sign up that night. We'll be staying open until 10pm.

SATURDAY: When we open at 11am, the entire country/folk section (again, both new and used) will be on sale for 20% off. And starting at 1pm, we'll have the fantastic, old timey country sounds of the Pea Ridge Ramblers. This is the same band that will be playing the wedding of Lance and April of Dust-to-Digital (the folks who brought you the Fonotone box and the Goodbye Babylon gospel box set), so you can bet your banjos that the Ramblers are the real deal.

SUNDAY: No performances on this day, but both of the sales will continue until we close the store at 6pm. Don't miss out on all the fun!

See you this weekend!

New release Tuesday! (9/12/06)

Wow. This could be the best release day of 2006 thus far. Just look at all the crazy stuff we have in the store today! New releases from all of the following:

Yo La Tengo (more like, Yo La Awesome...it's so good)
TV on the Radio (domestic version with bonus tracks, see below)
Black Keys (see below)
Los Lobos
John Mayer (he covers a Hendrix track)
Shawn Colvin
The Rapture
Justin Timberlake (don't make fun of this until you hear it)
Xiu Xiu
Barenaked Ladies
The Mars Volta
Mastodon (Atlanta's kings of metal are back)
Bob Seger (new studio album)
Kasey Chambers
The Duhks
Dead Moon
Madeleine Peyroux
Brazilian Girls
Pat Metheny
Junior Boys (quite good, and performing tonight at The Earl)
Magnolia Electric Co.
Viva Voce
Hella
Basement Jaxx
Norm MacDonald
Richard Buckner
Now It's Overhead
Electric Six
Wovenhand
OOIOO
Citizen Cope
Everclear

Quite a list, eh? And if you made it this far, it's probably because you're following our instructions to "see below." Good for you. Now, your reward... With each purchase of the new Black Keys album, Magic Potion, comes an excellent t-shirt (while supplies last, naturally). Witness:
But that's not all! With a purchase of the new TV on the Radio album, Return to Cookie Mountain, customers receive a nifty poster (also while supplies last) designed by the band's lead singer, Tunde Adebimpe. Check it out:
Phew. That's enough blogging for today. Stop by the store and get some of all this goodness!

Go on, take a guess.

Being The Security Chicken and all, I see a lot of interesting things around the store. However, just today, something large came through the door. As you can see from the above photo, it was packaged in cardboard and covered in bright orange "FRAGILE" stickers. Austin placed a copy of the latest Flagpole on it before taking the photo so that everyone could understand the scale of its size. Pretty big, huh?

Well, we just wanted to let you know that what was in the cardboard packaging is a surprise that will soon hang on the wall of the building, facing our parking lot. Got any ideas what it might be? Leave your guess in the comments. The person who gets it right (or perhaps even gets it wrong in the most creative fashion) will get $2 off their next CD purchase. Good luck...

We buy CDs too.

Just thought we'd throw that out there. Quite a few people have been bringing in batches of good stuff, and we want to encourage you to do the same. Looking to unload some stuff you don't listen to anymore? Bring it by! We're especially looking for collections, but we'll take smaller amounts as well. However, please note that we guarantee every used CD we buy, so the discs have to be in great (like, near perfect) condition. Other than that, bring 'em in by the bag, box and truckload. Much appreciation.

PS - Although we're not doing many sales in the vinyl world just yet, if you have jazz LPs you're no long interested in, we'd be happy to take a look at them. Thanks!

MySpace photos like whoa

We've got some new photos up on the Space. Check 'em out and be sure to add us as a friend if you haven't already! Thanks:

Decatur CD

Yo La Tengo wants to beat your ass

That title is not exactly true. While the humble, New Jersey trio would much rather play music for you than harm you in any way, we can say this: The band's new album, I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass, is fantastic. We've been playing it every day in the store, and we love it. It seems like Yo La Tengo is choosing to perform myriad styles across one record, and we just happen to think those styles come off most excellently on the new release.

Luckily, the kind folks at Matador Records are offering a great deal to any of our customers who pre-order the album. Those who do get to stream the album online for free until it comes out, and also get access to some bonus mp3's that won't be on the album. All you have to do is let us know you're interested, and give us your email address. But you only have a few days left, since the album comes out this coming Tuesday, September 12th. If you're interested in this awesome deal, all you have to do is send us an email. To top it all off, we reward all pre-orderers with $2 off the CD. What are you waiting for? Send us an email!!!

Oh, and check out the season pass official site to look at the Decatur CD logo. You can see it here. Rock on...

Meet the Flaming Lips!

Check out the above photo, fair Flaming Lips fanatics, for we have quite an exciting deal for you. Stop by the store and drop your name in the ballot box to be entered to meet Wayne Coyne and Co. on September 13th when the band plays the Tabernacle here in Atlanta. The winner gets to meet the Flaming Lips and watch their soundcheck. No tickets for the show included in the deal, but this is a great prize nonetheless. Now hurry in and sign up, because the concert is a week from today!

Happy Labor Day!

Decatur CD sends warm wishes to one and all today. We spent our day sighing audibly with the greenest of envy at the folks across the street drinking beer and enjoying themselves on porches. Then, we turned the Prince up louder. How did you spend the holiday? Leave us a tale in the comments...