Pitchfork

Photo by Kyle Gustafson

Looks like Dan Deacon has finally made good on his promise to deliver a "round robin" tour brimming over with Baltimore's finest, and, oh lordy, where to begin?

Let's start with the artists: there are a jaw-dropping 29 in all, and Mr. Deacon has done us the service of dividing them into three distinct groups.

"Eyes Night" includes Beach House, Jana Hunter, Wzt Hearts, Nautical Almanac, Lexie Mountain Boys, and more, and puts the focus on "a mixture of folk, noise, theatrics, improvisation-- music that is spiritual, dreamy etc.," according to the press release. "Feet Night", appropriately, brings "music that you dance, thrash, or otherwise move around to" and includes the Death Set, Videohippos, Future Islands, Adventure, Deacon himself, and the one and only DJ Dog Dick.

Finally we have the "Weird Round", an assortment of categorization-flaunting acts that will be "peppered" amid the "Eyes" and "Feet" folk, apparently at random.

Next, the shows themselves: the 14-date, seven-city cavalcade of unorthodox delights kicks off October 2 in Boston with an "Eyes Night", and alternates between those and "Feet Nights" thereafter. Just in case you were concerned, know that the more than 60 people involved in this tour will be traveling about using vehicles that are "veggie powered." Furthermore, quite a few people who come to these shows will probably be mushroom powered.

Last but by no means least, we have the "round robin" concept: at each gig, all of the night's bands will set up their gear simultaneously "along the perimeter of the room, with the audience in the center." Then the round robin part begins, as each band rolls through one song, then passes the spotlight to the next band with nary a moment's break in between. By the end of it, in exchange for a sore neck, you'll be intimately familiar with the musical goods Baltimore has to offer.

So, got all that? Scroll onward, then, for a complete list of participating bands and ports of call for what's sure to be utter insanity.

"Eyes Night":

Beach House
Jana Hunter
Wzt Hearts
Nautical Almanac
Lexie Mountain Boys
Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez
Ed Schrader
Teeth Mountain
Santa Dads
Creepers

"Feet Night":

Dan Deacon
The Death Set
Videohippos
Adventure
Future Islands
Double Dagger
Blood Baby
Height
Lizz King
Nuclear Power Pants
Smart Growth
DJ Dog Dick

"Weird Round":

Mark Brown
Showbeast
Sports Ghosts
Boo Boos
Cornelious and Pitifa
Ram Ones
Funny Clown

Baltimore Round Robin Tour:

10-02 Boston, MA - Massachusetts College of Art and Design ("Eyes Night")
10-03 Boston, MA - Massachusetts College of Art and Design ("Feet Night")
10-04 Montreal, Quebec - Église Saint-Enfant Jésus (Pop Montreal) ("Eyes Night")
10-05 Montreal, Quebec - Église Saint-Enfant Jésus (Pop Montreal) ("Feet Night")
10-08 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art ("Eyes Night")
10-09 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art ("Feet Night")
10-10 Chicago, IL - Epiphany ("Eyes Night")
10-11 Chicago, IL - Epiphany ("Feet Night")
10-13 Oberlin, OH - Oberlin College ("Eyes Night")
10-14 Oberlin, OH - Oberlin College ("Feet Night")
10-15 Philadelphia, PA - Starlight Ballroom ("Eyes Night")
10-16 Philadelphia, PA - Starlight Ballroom ("Feet Night")
10-17 New York, NY - Le Poisson Rouge ("Eyes Night")
10-18 New York, NY - Le Poisson Rouge ("Feet Night")