So as far as the whole Napster controversy goes, I've never given it much thought, mostly because I know my learning-deficit disorder concerning computers (Hey Erin! How do you make an umlaut again?) ensures that I will never understand how to download any music whatsoever.

That said, I got pissed the other day when I asked a friend if he wanted to borrow the new Modest Mouse release. He quickly declined, saying he would download it via Napster. "Fuck the RIAA!" he exclaimed. "I'm a bootlegger, baby!"

I shit a brick! Not Modest Mouse, our favorite band! A band that only just now is about to release its first major-label album, and, more importantly, a band that has seen our friendship through several ups and downs. We'd saved each other's lives by quoting a single line spun from Isaac Brock's cryptic, yet eerily prophetic mind.

As much as it infuriated me, it also broke my heart that this person, whom I thought held Modest Mouse as firmly in his soul as I did, was going to steal from them via the godforsaken, unfeeling Internet. So I began, gingerly, to think about Napster, and silly Metallica at the center of the controversy, who would be nowhere if it weren't for bootleggers trading tapes early in the band's career. I was thinking that there needs to be some sort of moral code that must be strictly adhered to when it comes to, well, stealing from musical artists. Like, no stealing from bands who paid their indie dues and are just about to release their first major-label album. Or, no stealing from bands who have put you on a guest list. How about no stealing from a band who wrote even one song that you've included on a mix tape carefully made for someone you love? Or this: No stealing from a band whose ego has never overshadowed its talent. Steal all you want from Sugar Ray, Blink 182, Limp Bizkit, and Mary Lou Lord, but don't swindle Elliott Smith or Built to Spill.

I'm not talking about poor-quality MP3s of live material or one-off songs that don't have a chance of hitting the shelves until after the band has broken up. I'm talking the good stuff. The stuff you've looked forward to. The stuff friendships are cemented in. The stuff that might someday save your life.

***

Happy birthday to Sit & Spin booker Dave Meinert, who celebrated his milestone in grand style at the Bad Juju Lounge with entertainment provided by the Catheters and the Romanes--a Ramones cover band, complete with wigs, otherwise known as the Surf Trio. Though they were super-great, the birthday boy pelted the band with everything that wasn't nailed down, including drinks and snacks formerly held by Kim Warnick, Kelly Canary, Kerri Harrop, Sean Haskins, and several other local rock-industry types who dropped by on a Sunday night to wish Meinert well.

***

Speaking of my favorite teen dream band, the Catheters headed down to L.A. on May 16 to ride around in limos and meet with DreamWorks honchos and their lawyers about a possible contract. Recently, The Rocket's Johnny Renton incorrectly reported that a possible Catheters/DreamWorks hook-up was just a rumor, and that the band had made it up in order to get Sub Pop to offer more dough in their frantic quest to sign the band. Care to check your "source" again, Johnny?

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And now for round four of rash Sub Pop firings: Say hello and wave goodbye to David Wentworth, Tammy Watson, Dan Traeger--and probably a few more, considering the label's new offices are soooo leeeetle.