I'll freely admit the schedule around here on the NXT Desk has been a little off for a few weeks. But it looks like we're getting back to normal, and there's no better normal than the weekly Scanner.
On tap today: Nerd Merit Badges, Bacon Camp, Segway races and unicorns.

Thank you Internets. Thank you.

Guest Blogger Lauren Wayne is local music fan, a marketer for Live Nation, on the Board of Directors of the Portland Music Foundation, is a Civil War buff, likes adobe bricks and is a hard-hitting journalist on the blog, Karma Beat Down.

We're going to kick the weekend off a little early since, um, well, I always kick my weekend off on a Wednesday.

Wednesday

• Spencer Albee and the School Spirit Mafia perform The Beatles' 'White Album' in its entirety at The Asylum tonight. This is a 21+ show and you get $2 off the door cover if you wear white, which is awesome because everyone knows you shouldn't wear white after Labor Day.

• An Evening With is a band. They are playing with The McCarthys at Empire Dine and Dance. An evening with An Evening With with The McCarthys. Whatever. All you need to know is that you should only go to this show if you like good, honest music.

• Milled Pavement hosts its monthly at The White Heart with Jonecat and Moshe dropping some dubstep and down-tempo.

• You know what impresses me? Yes, being able to eat an industrial-sized container of cheese balls in one sitting. Do you know what else? A band who knows how to market themselves online and who tours regionally. Lady Lamb The Beekeeper do both well. Go hear them at Flask Lounge. Their music is even better than their new media skills.

Thursday

After you cram your gut full of Tofurkey and tempeh stuffing, but right before you hit your brother over the head with a PBR empty, you should get out of the house to dance:

• Styxx is open from 9pm # 1am with DJ Rob.

• A Band Beyond Description plays all your Grateful Dead favorites at The Big Easy.

• Or, just put this band on your ipod at home and drink some whiskey in your underwear: The Pine Hill Haints

Friday

• The The Mystix kick it roots-style down at One Longfellow Square. This band has an impressive history of performing and recording with some of the country's top artists including Taj Mahal, John Hammond and, um, Mary J. Blige, of course.

• You know what you need more of in your life? Music of the Southern Appalachians and the deep South played on the fiddle, guitar, banjo and mandolin. Well, what a coincidence # OLD RED is playing at the Blue tonight.

SATURDAY

• Tree by Leaf plays the Dogfish Bar and Grill tonight.

• Three local bands + one alternative arts gallery + 67 cases of PBR for the crowd = Metal Feathers CD release show at SPACE Gallery with Gully and Brenda.

• It's a down and out Tarpigh music festival at the Meg Perry Center for Peace tonight with Crank Sturgeon, Big Blood, Micah Blue Smaldone, Chriss Sutherland, Michael Gallant, Amos Libby, Longfellow Kucz, Vince Nez, Karl Greenwood and George and Mary.

SUNDAY

• And my finally, Huak, Cougars Kill Cobras and Cinema Cinema end the weekend right at Geno's Rock Club.

MONDAY

• The return of Justin Ellis! Parades and speeches will ensue.

You thought the Scanner had disappeared, hadn't you? Be honest. I know I've been an absent minded professor around these parts with the election, but the good news is the election is over! There is some slightly less than good news, but we'll get into that soon enough.

In the meantime, let us wander through the dangerous and hilarious fields of the Interwebs.

For a while now I've been pondering some sort of Monday blog that looks at a few events or news that broke over the weekend. Sure, we'd all like to say we're just as plugged in on Saturday and Sunday as we are the rest of the week, but the fact is - weekends are for relaxin'.

So maybe The Monday Fix will become a permanent staple.

Luckily Sen. John McCain came through and agreed to appear at tonight's presidential debate, thus avoiding the ruination of thousands of debate parties tonight.
The Republican presidential candidate changed his mind, thus all the planning, all the the Barachos (Democrat themed nachos) and Raisin McCain cakes won't go to waste.

What could have been a disastrous start to the weekend looks - for now - to be in the clear.

Remember, people, Parties First.

It's been a while since we've had news in the ongoing battle over illegal file sharing between the music industry and its fans.

The Recording Industry Association of America has been on course to wipe-out illegal music downloading by suing alleged file traders for large sums of money.

It's worked well so far, but last week things took a turn.

We here at NXT firmly believe in the adoption of advanced technologies and using them to our own nefarious ends. We're very much like a Bond villian in that regard. Let's hope we never get hold of that weather controlling device they have at the Gulf of Maine Institute, or Bowdoin's time machine.

And with that completely odd non-sequitur, readers, commentheads and innocent bystanders alike, behold, we have made a Podcast.

I spent a good portion of this morning trying to figure out how many blogs I was going to post today, a task made more difficult thanks to cold medication (thanks a lot fall, your creepy seesaw weather patterns are making me ill.).

In the end, I went for quality (in theory) over quantity. This is a long one, we got Halo 3, local music and youth radio on tap.

Though sheer coincidence, both today's column and iHerald are focused on the world of music. But really, the bigger theme seems to be the future of music and the industry that has built itself around it.

When someone says "the dude abides," what exactly comes to your mind? Do you scratch your head, look at them strange, or perhaps say back "the Dude abides."

What? A day without some sort of skateboarding news? For a guy who didn’t skateboard growing up, I seem to be talking about it a lot lately.

It’s a Friday in July, I don’t know how things can get better than that. Of course, if you were one of the few who took the week off (or could afford to take it off) for the holiday, then this whole week’s been a party.
Here’s to you, week-long vacation guy.

I figured I'd try my best to distract all of the nation from Hilton Jail Watch Day 1 (or is it Day 2?) for as long as possible, which I suppose means as long as it takes you to read this blog.

For several years now the League of Young Voters has been doing the best it can to crash the traditional political scene by bringing a bunch of young people with them.

This wet, dreary, overcast and overall morose weather is rough. Seriously, I look out the window here at Press Herald Plaza and want to put on some Ben Folds and crawl under my desk.

Today’s gotta be quick, deliberate and dirty as I am still recovering from the Phoenix’s Best Music Poll awards last night, too many Appletinis with Shannon Moss and the guys from Dead Season.

Holy freakin’ crap, there’s a lot going on this weekend! If I was an anchorman I might say something like, “Better super-size your weekend because there’s a lot going on around town! Let’s send it to Tom for the fast-cast!”

We’re getting into the final hours of a very brutal campaign season, and it’s becoming clear that every vote is going to count.

No I’m not talking about the 2008 presidential campaign, but instead the Phoenix’s annual Best Music Poll.

I think Talib Kweli was on the front page of the newspaper this morning, but it looks like he fell into Photoshop along the way.

There’s also a non-Monday column sighting too, summing up the shows hitting town this weekend.

I think Talib Kweli was on the front page of the newspaper this morning, but it looks like he fell into Photoshop along the way.

There’s also a non-Monday column sighting too, summing up the shows hitting town this weekend.

Attention music-stealing college students: Find another way to get your fix.

Why? Because the recording industry has plenty of lawyers, and they intend to use them.