Like a lot of bands, I Was Totally Destroying It doubles as an occasional tribute band. But IWTDI's tribute-band alter ego is loads cooler than most. They call themselves I Was Totally Destroying U2, and they've got their target subject down perfectly -- especially frontman John Booker's conjuring of Bono's histrionics.

"I put on that stupid leather jacket and the shades, and it helps get the character going," Booker says. "I have a blast with it, and the whole thing is a lot of fun. It also helps fund I Was Totally Destroying It, which we need. We just had a crazy tour. A window got smashed out in the van."

The next I Was Totally Destroying U2 show is scheduled for Jan. 2 at Raleigh's Tir Na Nog. In the meantime, you really should catch IWTDI's original-band incarnation because the group's new album is fantastic. A fine place would be tonight at Duke Coffeehouse, as part of Durham's Troika Music Festival. See the story in Friday's paper; and for some audiovisual content, check their bit from the 2008 edition of Eight Great Local Acts or their recent Studio B performance.

ADDENDUM (3/10/10): Brazilian spot for Vivo phones.

Congratulations are in order for Chapel Hill's I Was Totally Destroying It, which has acheived a major career milestone -- inclusion in The Onion A.V. Club's annual tribute to bad band names. IWTDI landed in the "First Person" category alongside Carlos I'm Pregnant, [Expletive]...I'm Dead and other questionable monikers, even earning an asterisk (awarded to names the Onion editors liked best).

Natalie Portman's Shaved Head was deemed worst band name of 2008. Other amusing and/or tastless names from this year's list include Funk Shui, Post Mortem Bong Hit, The Self-Congratulatory One-Man Reach-Around and Obstacle Corpse.

Also worth a look -- the same list for 2007 and 2006.

Sadly, local super-fan Cy Rawls is no longer with us after passing away from a brain tumor in October. But bands are paying tribute to his memory (and, not coincidentally, raising money to cover medical costs he left behind) with CyTunes, which goes online Friday at midnight. For a quick Cy primer, check this lovely remembrance by his friend Kerry Cantwell (and some national coverage from Pitchfork).

Red Collar, Dirty Little Heaters, Birds of Avalon, Hammer No More the Fingers, Superchunk and I Was Totally Destroying It are among the contributing music to the cause. There's also a free show/launch party tonight at Chapel Hill's Local 506 with Magic Babies, the Rosebuds-Schooner-Sames supergroup Flute Flies and more.

So this week's James Taylor tour won't be the only get-out-the-vote shows happening here this election season. Coming to UNC-Chapel Hill's Graham Terrace (adjacent to Morehead Planetarium on campus) is a Nov. 1 lineup that offers up a superb slice of local music:

The dB's
Superchunk acoustic (which might be a first)
Ivan Rosebud
Megafaun
I Was Totally Destroying It
Bowerbirds
Greg Humphreys
Regina Hexaphone
Portastatic

It gets going at the rather non-rock-'n'-roll time of 9 a.m., and it's free -- they're even throwing in coffee and doughnuts.

UPDATE: Billy Bragg, who is playing in Durham that night, has been added to the lineup.