I don't even wanna hear it. Everyone's using the heat as an excuse these days. Granted, it's been off the charts, but there's still a whole world of activity happening in the Classic City. So, devour this page, and then go see some bands this week. At the very least, you'll get some exercise, and you might wind up with a new favorite group. Positive reinforcement, people. Work with me…

Read a Book: Vanessa Briscoe Hay (Pylon, Supercluster) has a short piece of writing included in the newly released e-book The First Time I Heard David Bowie. It's the third in a themed series about different people's first impressions of a specific artist or group (the two previous books were on Joy Division and Cocteau Twins) and was coordinated by author Scott Heim (Mysterious Skin, We Disappear). For more information, please see heim.etherweave.com.

Should We Talk About the Feather?: Remember local band Misfortune 500? Well, don't call it that anymore, because it now answers to the name Feather Trade. The band is now a three-piece, after the departure of Pascal Cureton, and it appears that all it's done thus far is re-brand its existing material with the Feather Trade tag. No local gigs are slated at this time. Probably a good thing, too, because there's no way frontman Chisolm Thompson could handle wearing all his scarves in this weather. If you want to keep up with the trio, please see facebook.com/FeatherTrade and twitter.com/feathertrade.

Akron/Family

Yo, DJ…: After lying fallow for several years, Team Clermont's annual Summer Showcase & Prom returns, celebrating the group's 15 years in the business. Normaltown Records is the presenting sponsor of this year's event, and it all takes place next week, July 26–28. Featured live acts include The Olivia Tremor Control, Akron/Family, Dent May, Wild Moccasins, Pattern Is Movement, Astronautalis, Crooked Fingers, Bear in Heaven, DJ Mahogany and Yacht Rock Revue. Three-day passes, which include admission to the Back to the Future-themed prom, are $25. For more information, please see teamclermont.com.

Summer Stream: Old Smokey has a pile of new tracks available. The band went into Gypsy Farm Studios to cut them, and the leader of the pack is “Lazy Eye.” It's a slow-burner—a dark, rootsy thing. Give it the full two minutes and 44 seconds it needs to complete. You'll be glad you did. Especially when it totally kicks in around 1:32. Yow! Listen to them all over at soundcloud.com/gypsy-farm-records/tracks.

Shinin' On: The new album from Radiolucent came out a few weeks ago, but the boys in the band have been pretty quiet on the promotion tip. So, I'm telling you about it now. It's titled Turn Me On & Turn Me Loose, and it features 11 tracks of gospel-tinged, rock-and-blues music. That's a whole lot of descriptors, isn't it? Go figure out your own adjectives at reverbnation.com/radiolucent.

Triple Play: The Shadow Executives will play five Saturday nights in a row beginning July 28 at The Grotto. Instead of having things be wide-open, whereby anyone can show up and jam (à la the group's regular Thursday night event at the Office Lounge), they'll only be inviting a select few folks to join them. In related news, Shadow Executives member Paul Scales has teamed up with drummer Randy Durham, bassist John Straw and guitarists Dave Herndon and Scott Sanders for a series of Sunday performances at Ten Pins Tavern. The event itself is named "Sunday Night Bowling and Blues," and the group will perform as the Sunday Night at the Bowling Alley Blues Band. This free weekly event is already underway and begins at 7:30 p.m. So, what have we learned here? That there are some musicians who just love to play for the mere joy of it. Kinda makes complaining about having practice twice a week and a show once a month seem pretty pitiful, doesn't it?

We're Wired In!: For those who haven't been to our website, Flagpole.com, in a while, we're in the process of revamping our online coverage something fierce. In advance of our website redesign, you can follow the haps on our music blog, Homedrone. Plus, check out our frequently updated record reviews. That's not all! We're @FlagpoleMusic on Twitter, and FlagpoleMagazine on the ol' Facebook. Follow and like us. You know you wanna. [Gabe Vodicka]