One positive thing about rising gas prices, more bands are making Madison a priority stop as they cross the country trying to make a living. This summer was busier than usual for our music venues when it comes to touring national (and international) acts. August is no different as the summer fades into the always busy Autumn music season. I've tried to compile a list of touring acts coming through the city in August. I've likely missed some, so if there is a touring act you think should be on this list don't be shy and add them in the comments section.

August 3: If you are looking for a show that will literally rock your face off, I mean, seriously to the point where you will be calling the venue the next morning and asking “hey, did you find my face while cleaning up last night?” then you need not look much farther then this show at the High Noon. Not only do you get the Melvins, one of the most influential post-punk bands in the history of post punkedness, but you also receive an unhealthy dose of Big Business featuring bassist Jared Warren, formerly of Karp, and drummer Coady Willis, formerly of the Murder City Devils.

August 5: I don’t know if it was their intention, but the Majestic Theatre has become the greatest resource in the region for seeing some of the best guitar players in the world. They keep up a solid trend this night when Malian musician Habib Koite fills the space with his enchanting and unique style of playing.

August 6: Geek-Kon may not be for two more months, but We Are Scientists are a good way to whet your appetite with a torrent of dance rockery. The big question is when do we get to see We Are Scientists face off against the Mathematicians? Maybe some day, but until then Oxford Collapse, with their ivy league name, will suffice until that time. At the High Noon.

August 8: She & Him are M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel who met on the set of the film Go-Getter. According to legend director Martin Hynes asked the actress and the troubadour to sing a duet together and the rest is musical history. Now they tour together under the moniker of She & Him and, before Deschanel has to report to her next film location, will be making a stop in Madison at the Barrymore Theatre.

August 9: It isn't often that Madison to Portland transplant Krist Krueger performs the songs of his band Southerly in his hometown. This night he will be doing just that with an intimate show at the Project Lodge.

August 9: The Supersuckers are at the High Noon and the Supersuckers super suck. ‘Nuff said.

August 9: All the way from Wales People in Planes land in Madison. The band, notorious for their love of traveling and incorporating a theme of travel through all of their albums and songs, will fill up the Majestic with robotically laced lush sounds capes that border on a new age of progressive rock.

August 10: Egypt Central’s sonic assault has received the endorsement of the WWE. The band will have two tracks featured on the upcoming WWE Smackdown vs. Raw video game to be released in September. Before they reach video game glory, you can still catch them in their rock star glory at the Majestic.

August 12: The Hieroglyphics have spawned a large number of hip hop acts that have gone out and carved up their own unique slice of the underground hip-hop pie. Chief among them is Del the Funky Homosapien, who along with the rest of the ’glyphs, cultivated their battle rhyme technique into a finely tuned machine. Along list of other hip hop artists will be joining on stage including; Blue Scholars, Knobody, Musab, and Tanya Morgan. At the High Noon.

August 14: At the end of the third episode of the first season of Lost there is a memorable scene of Hurley sitting amongst the plane wreckage listening to “Wash Away” by Joe Purdy. It is an important episode, because it shows that although crashed on an island with dead bodies and a strange gigantic monster in the jungle, the Survivors still show signs of hope and collaboration. It also ends with an attempt to mislead the audience into thinking John Locke may actually be a child molester as he stares creepily at Michael’s son, Walt. Lost aside, Purdy we know exactly where Purdy will be this night, at the High Noon with a long slate of other talented singer songwriters including, Meiko, Jay Nash, and Chris Seefried (of Low Stars).

August 15: Tapes ‘n Tapes, from Minneapolis, haven’t hit Madison since Karl Schweitz left the band and…well…moved to Madison . They hit our fine city following the release of their sophomore release Walk It Off. The question of the night: will Schweitz sit in during any of this show?

August 16: Sunny and embracing, Festival, will fill the Project Lodge will prepare us for our dance with the Horned God of the Forest as faerie folk and will-o'-the-wisp dance between our toes. They'll be joined by freak folk songstress Sharon Van Etten.

August 16: In a time when you can compare every band to every other band, Califone is a relief. Over the bands career since Tim Rutili broke off from Red, Red Meat Califone has become an entity onto itself with every album building on the previous and meeting or over coming expectations. They’ve visited Madison several times in the past few years and each time have impressed. This time they are at the High Noon.

August 19: One of Madison’s handful of musical success story’s, God-Des and She, make a return to Madison this night. The lesbian hip hop duo has a new album out called “Stand Up” which features the Capitol dome on the cover. They’ve also been touring all over the world including stops in Australia, Asia and Europe. They come home and we plan to embrace them in the only way Madison can.

August 21: Toronto’s Great Lake Swimmers are one of those bands that should have broken to the point where they fill venues the size of the Barrymore years ago, but somehow keep on flying right under the radar. They masterfully take what should be pop songs, but wear them down until they become melancholy gems. Plus, they use a harmonium. Can’t go wrong with a harmonium. They return to Madison for a show at the High Noon with Laura Gibson.

August 25: Lee “Scratch” Perry plays his rescheduled show at the Majestic this night. Dane101 wrote all there is that needs to be said about Perry when he canceled his show in early July.