It was announced today that The Feelies will be playing a free concert this Fourth of July in NYC. Opening for Sonic Youth at a Battery Park show, the beloved New Jersey group--missing for more than a decade-and-a-half-- has warmed the hearts of Luna fans across the tri-state area. On their official website, they attest that their early albums were influential to then emerging bands such as R.E.M. They were arguably the first rocking American guitar band to be signed to a major label with two prominent members defiantly wearing glasses on stage and in promotional photographs.
Overshadowing this Independence Day entertainment news was presidential hopeful John McCain's campaign stop in Bogata. Elsewhere in Colombia, 15 captives were freed from FARK insurgents. Former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and others had been held in the jungle for more than six years. ''God, this is a miracle,'' she said to the press through a CNN translator. McCain's position on free trade policy was barely addressed where 40 trade unionists were murdered this year, down from 197 last year.
Penn Jillette, former president of The Velvet Underground Appreciation Society could not be reached for comment .
