Austin, Texas, twosome Yellow Fever had little control over the dwindling crowd at Nick’s Night Club in Chico, California this week. The headliner had canceled, and the band was forced to bear the brunt of being a foreign act…in a foreign town…at a foreboding hour of the night.

With a simple setup of a drum kit, a keyboard atop it (manned by drummer/keyboardist Adam Jones) and a guitar and bass leaned lazily on a stand (to be plucked by vocalist/bassist/guitarist Jennifer Moore), the duo persevered and parlayed a slacker-rock Blitzkrieg that included rudimentary single-string plunks and contrasting busy drum work/key work from Jones. Their music is a hybrid of late ’80s indie punk and ’00s garage rock revivalism - awkward and frail, but potent enough melody-wise to hold my attention for the majority of their performance. Highlights include Moore’s simultaneous guitar/drum performance, with Jones on bass in one of their poppier tunes (don’t ask me the name, they never said…)

The band is currently on a US tour. I suggest you give them a look-see…

You could give your money to Psychostick to have your name immortalized in a song!

Comedy/metal band Psychostick has launched a new way to help raise recording money for their next album: in exchange for a $50 donation, Psychostick will use their fans’ names as a lyric in their new and unwritten song, “400 Thank Yous” (working title). The band plans to start recording in August with a spring 2009 release via Rock Ridge Music.

“Our fans have been asking more and more frequently about when we’re going to record our next album. The problem has not been a lack of songs - we have enough songs to record two new albums. We simply haven’t been able to afford to stop touring and record it. Finally, something had to be done. This was our solution,” says guitarist Josh “The J” Key.

From July 14th through September 30th, Psychostick will be accepting the $50 donations (limited to only 380) through their website, www.psychostick.com. Businesses will have the opportunity to name drop in one of only 20 places for $250.

OR drop some cash our way! Synthesis will gladly post praises of you and kiss your proverbial ass on this highly-trafficked blog here for a mere $25 dollars donation to our paypal. Want to get back at your ex? Propose marriage? Declare your birthday wish list? Hit us up, yo!

Its so smokey here (and not in the good way) even Smokey The Bear is over it!

The Nintendo Wii now has a beer pong game. That’s the greatest thing I’ve heard in awhile. College boys everywhere must be crapping their pants. JV Games is trying to clean up the game by changing the title to “Pong Toss” so they can market it to younger kids. This is pretty funny: it was produced by JV’s Frat Party games line. How douchey! It is rated “T” and is the first drinking game of its kind. Reviews all say it sucks badly but oh well. I already hate people who take beer pong too seriously and now mix that with hardcore video gamers and all hell will break loose.

While his brother Jimmy is busy quitting their band and enjoying the smoke-filled bullshit air of Chico, Brighten frontman and sex god Justin Richards is in NYC rocking MTV’s TRL with his homie A Rocket to the Moon. ULTIMATE FAME! That shit airs tomorrow at 3 PM so don’t blow it.

Breath easy internet, I have returned to my blogging post. Over the last week and a half I’ve been journeying up the Pacific Coast with Bear Hunter . As it turns out, when I try and write on my laptop while in the van I start to puke all over my band mates — hence, my absence from Synthesis Blog. Over the next few days I will be recounting my harrowing journey (in between fascinating posts about pop stars getting busted for drugs, children with weird growths on their bodies and general paranoid-paranormal fodder). Get ready, dear readers. Get your asses ready.