The Talking Head is kinda sorta going away. Booker-in-chief Adam Savage assures us, however, that "Talking Head will never die." The Live Entertainment Bill passes a City Council vote; formerly hysterical DIY folks sleep in. The ever-prolific MC Wordsmith is circulating a new single, "Braggin' Rights." Grab it here. [Government Names] The forthcoming Beach House album on Sub Pop, Teen Dreams, is coming with a DVD of videos for each song, a la Liars' Drums Not Dead. Here's a preview (pictured ... [MORE]

Apologies for not getting this in the print edition of City Paper, but there's an especially notable show Saturday night, Nov. 7. Ecstatic Sunshine, now a rotating cast revolving around co-founder Matt Papich, releases its first full-length record, Yesterday's Work (Hoss)—a set of sunny, pastoral electronically reimagined psychedelic folk—since early 2007 next week, with an unveiling/performance at Remington's Open Space. Cex (erstwhile CP contributor Rjyan Kidwell), Shave, Bear and ... [MORE]

Despite the economic downturn that has taken the life of several local restaurants (RIP Bicycle and Brass Elephant), brave souls continue to join Baltimore's culinary landscape. Milan, which promises "eclectic Italian/Mediterranean cuisine," is set to open in the coming months. Located at the corner of Eastern Avenue and Exeter Street, it has the benefit of being adjacent to both Little Italy and Harbor East. We're a bit nervous about the "Italian-inspired sushi" it plans to offer, though. Don't ... [MORE]

This past July, Las Vegas tight-pants rock quartet the Killers sold out two nights at London's Royal Albert Hall, evenings recorded for the upcoming The Killers Live from the Royal Albert Hall CD/DVD/Blu-ray, due out Nov. 10. Tonight through Nov. 11, the Senator Theatre offers a sneak peak of that concert film (this limited-engagement release was confirmed too late to make yesterday's edition of the paper). ... [MORE]

Saturday's forecast calls for sunny skies, just in time for Let's Eat Charles Street, a Mount Vernon street festival sponsored by the Historic Charles Street Association. From noon to 6 p.m., folks can stroll the length of Read Street between Charles and Cathedral sampling foods from local restaurants such as the Helmand, Marie Louise Bistro, Sascha's, and Cazbar, and beverages from the Brewer's Art and Spirits of Mt Vernon. Live entertainment. Food prices vary. Call (410) 332-4144 for more info ... [MORE]

Two tech-minded stories fill the feature hole this week: Steve Perry's "Y2K: Endgames and Entropy Curves: Notes on the shape of things to come" ("Y2K problems, on the whole, are far likelier to be chronic and nagging than acute and short-lived, and more likely to result in economic than civil upheaval.") and Lee Gardner's "Station Break: Will low-power FM change the face of radio? Not if the broadcasting industry can help it" ("Corporate radio has gotten bigger while small, locally focused radio ... [MORE]

When Will-e Robo took the stage Oct. 22 at the Baltimore Comedy Factory, he had a lot working against him. The joint was less than half full and the audience was lethargic. To warm himself up, Robo drew inspiration from the crowd in front of him. No one was safe from his blunt opinions and twisted imagination, as he systematically dismantled the audience's comfort zone. First, he belittled a "premature laugher" in the front row, and sarcastically asked a man in a wheel chair if he "needed a seat ... [MORE]

In the wake of Hamid Karzai’s fraud-fueled resumption of power in Afghanistan, reported diplomatic overtures to the Taliban, and numerous other odd coincidences, we hereby present this handy comparison of Omar Little of ‘The Wire’ to Mullah Omar of ‘The Taliban.’ Omar Little Fictional legend of Baltimore, a violent, impoverished and corrupt city economically dominated by heroin Lived by a strict code of honor Gay; robs and kills drug dealers Orphaned ... [MORE]

For four years and two albums Nashville's Be Your Own Pet tore through garage punk with the sort of brashness that only teenagers can deliver. The quartet delivered everything at the frenetic clip of young people trying to live before they got old or the Jolt cola ran out—whichever came first. The blonde-haired personality at the eye of this tornado was the howling Jemina Pearl, 200 lbs. of don't-give-a-shit strained into what looked like a 90-lbs. soaking-wet package of flailing energy. S ... [MORE]

When we chewed the fat with sonic collagist James "Twig" Harper about his latest compositions recently, the Nautical Almanac co-captain and HereSee co-operator had a great deal to tell us-more than we could cram into the print version of our recent story. In the full-length interview below, Harper clues us in on his unusual recording methodology, the state of Nautical Almanac, an unlikely inspiration, what Max Eisenberg is up to these days, and much, much more. City Paper: In an earlier e-mail, ... [MORE]

The Wall Street Journal has an interesting story today explaining that AIG has gotten back several billion dollars in collateral it posted last year against losses in the credit-default swap market. But, most of the "bad" contracts, which now look not-so-bad, were "closed out" by the government bailout, meaning that AIG lost that money forever, which means that the taxpayers have lost that money forever, which means that AIG's counterparties have gained that money forever. As the WSJ reports: ... [MORE]

The Greenmount Avenue building that houses both Normals Books and Records and the Red Room performance space was sold at auction earlier today, but it looks like business as usual for both establishments. Details on the deal are still sketchy; Steph Campfield, the sale agent for former owner Property Homes LLC, has yet to return a message left on his cell phone. But Normals co-proprietor (and occasional City Paper contributor) Rupert Wondolowski says he's met the as-yet-unidentified new owner a ... [MORE]