The Presets returned to Webster Hall on Friday night (4/3) armed with an impressive light show and a set of songs that had the venues booming sound system flexing its muscles. With more than twenty moving lights on stage going full-tilt, the Aussie duo knocked out one electro-dance tune after another and got steadily stronger throughout the night with whipcrack beats that worked the crowd into a frenzy by the end of the set. The two most interesting parts of the night had the band showing their range - first, on a downtempo, heady instrumental that had the drummer (Kim [...]
Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears is an 8-piece soul/blues band out of Austin that will kick your ass with hi-octane tunes reminiscent of Little Richard and James Brown. Joe Lewis attacks the mic with fits of urgency and The Honeybears bring it with a tight horn section, janglin' guitars and nimble, prominent bass lines. Think Daptones on a coke binge. A total throwback. Their current tour skips New York (?) but I've got a feeling they'll be here before long. Don't [...]
The Golden Filter is an NYC based trio that pairs breathy vocals with synth and drums. It's reminiscent of Little Boots , an artist they've already remixed despite being relatively new to the scene. They've intentionally kept their identity a bit clouded but still managed to grab the attention of The Presets who they're currently touring with. That tour hits Webster Hall this Friday (4/3). Tickets here . The last time I saw The Presets was at Webster Hall opening for Cut Copy and the general consensus among the crew I was [...]
Hailing from Seattle, The Cave Singers are a folk band that evoke the sense of being outdoors. The acoustic finger-picking (Derek Fudesco), nasal vocals (Pete Quirk) and soft, rolling drums (Marty Lund) play like a soundtrack to a cold day in the country, splitting wood. Check out "Dancing on our Graves" below. They kick off their tour tomorrow night (4/1) at Union Hall in Brooklyn. All tour dates after the jump. Buy their album here and check out their blog over here . DOWNLOAD: The Cave Singers - [...]
Back in early January, a friend of mine emailed me asking if I could help her get tickets to see Frightened Rabbit at Bowery Ballroom. I knew she would only ask for help if the show was already sold out and I knew she has good taste in music, so I was embarrassed that I'd never heard of the band (in my defense I was out on tour when it was released). Anyway, I helped her get tickets and then picked up the album. It took a little while to grow on me, but over the past few [...]
Four years since their last release, Metric returns with their fourth full length, Fantasies, due on April 14th. The band delivers with fuzzy guitars, pulsing synths and the sexually charged vocals of Emily Haines. While the first single, "Help I'm Alive" is a bit disappointing, songs like "Gimme Sympathy" and "Gold Guns Girls" are loaded with hooks and are meant to be played loud and often. When the remixes begin to surface we could be hearing some of these tracks all summer long at the clubs. The band has promised tour dates in support of [...]
One of my favorite shows all-time was The Knife at Webster Hall during CMJ 2006. I couldn't stop listening to their latest release, Silent Shout , and this would be their first ever US show (and only their 12th anywhere). The heavy electro and groundbreaking visuals were mind-blowing. The brother-sister duo from Sweden hasn't returned to the US since and all had been quiet from their camp...until the female half, Karin Dreijar Andersson, emerged with a solo-project called Fever Ray . [...]
What initially was announced as 10 shows at London's O2 Arena quickly turned into an unprecedented 50 show run. 50 arena shows! That's 750,000 tickets. What makes it even more mind-boggling is that they all sold-out in a matter of hours. The first thought on my mind was, "How is Jacko going to be able to perform 50 shows?" Now granted, there is at least a day off scheduled between each show and in some cases several days. Then, after the first 30 shows, he takes 3 months off before starting up again. [...]
Say what!?? According to Upcoming Film Scores , Daft Punk has signed a deal with Disney to score the sequel to Tron, the animated film from 1982 (thx Stephen). While the film is slated for release in 2011, I'm hoping we don't have to wait that long for Daft Punk's next tour.
Matt Joynt of Anathallo opened their show last night (3/4) at Mercury Lounge with a little banter about John Schaefer from WNYC ( where they performed earlier in the day ) calling them "dorks" and saying their sound wasn't very "rock and roll." These were premonitions of what was to come: 1. Matt Joynt loves to banter. He chatted up the crowd about the bands breakfast that morning, about Finnish shock-metal, about his love for the opening bands, about his record label (Anticon), about anything that seemed to cross his mind. It was charming [...]
Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes , returns with her sophomore effort, Two Suns , due on April 6 (Astralwerks). The following day she'll set out on a world tour beginning in her homeland (the UK) and continuing thru the US and Europe in support of the album. The new music is dreamy, yet haunting, with lush vocals and tribal beats, thanks to a collaboration with Brooklyn's Yeasayer . The first single to be released is "Daniel" which Thom Yorke, who took Bat For Lashes on tour with Radiohead in '06, described [...]
Having not played (or rehearsed) together since November, Tippy Toes took the stage at Coco66 on Saturday night and hit it out of the park. Bombing space bass from Andrew Raposo provided a steady platform for the full room to dance on throughout the set...and dance they did. It was jammed out disco at it's finest with Reggie Watts adding soulful hip-hop vocals that were run thru a synth board of loops and effects. Solid work from guitarist Abe Seiferth, drummer Guy Licata, and keyboardist Morgan Wiley rounded out the strong line-up. A grooving [...]
I have a soft spot for Lily Allen . I like her music. I like her attitude. She says what's on her mind without much of a barrier. It's refreshing for someone to be real in a world where 'media training' has rock stars, athletes and actors always saying the polite and safe thing. The New York Times recently ran a profile piece on Lily which ran the day after her latest album was released. While the New York Times is generally considered one of the classiest news organizations [...]
Tippy Toes is a nu-disco collaboration featuring vocalist Reggie Watts (Soulive, Maktub), members of Hercules & Love Affair and the guitarist from Phonograph . They tore up Lucky Cat last time I saw them and I've been looking forward to their return. Saturday night, 2/28 at Coco66 . $3. Not to be missed.
As reported by Rolling Stone's Smoking Section blog, Wilco will release a new album in June. That means we'll hear some of the new tracks on their spring tour that takes them through the midwest and southeast on their way to their Jazz Fest appearance on April 25th. All Wilco (and Tweedy solo) dates here .
Electro-remix junkies MSTRKRFT will hit the road thru Mexico, the US and Canada in March/April in support of their upcoming release Fist of God (March 17, Dim Mak/Downtown). They'll include stops at SXSW, NYC (Webster Hall) and Coachella . All tour dates below... 3/05/09 CHOLULA, MX ANIVERSIO BOMBAY (w/FELIX CARTAL) 3/06/09 MONTERREY, MX NUEVA LEON (w/FELIX CARTAL) 3/07/09 MEXICO CITY, MX PLAZA CONDESA (w/ FELIX CARTAL) 3/13/09 PHOENIX, AZ MYST (w/BIRD PETERSON) 3/14/09 DENVER, CO OGDEN THEATER (w/FELIX CARTAL, BIRD [...]
My review is posted at BrooklynVegan . Setlist, 2/19 at Town Hall, NYC: Where is My Power Her Eyes are Underneath the Ground Epilepsy is Dancing One Dove For Today I Am a Boy Kiss My Name Everglade Another World Shake that Devil The Crying Light Crazy in Love Fist Full of Love You are My Sister Twilight Aeon Encore: Cripple and the Starfish Hope There's Someone
LPR was packed last night for a double-bill of Fujiya & Miyagi and School of Seven Bells . Having seen them play the room a month earlier, I had high expectations for School of Seven Bells but was disappointed. The mix was muddy from the outset and the set was uninspired. While the vocal harmonies of identical twin sisters Alejandra and Claudia Deheza were beautiful, the lyrics were undeterminable and they basically stood motionless (and emotionless) throughout the entire set. I hadn't seen Fujiya & Miyagi before and didn't know [...]
My review is posted at BrooklynVegan .
Fan Death , a three piece from Vancouver, BC, played their first ever New York show last night at Le Royale and tore through their set in just over thirty minutes. When they announced to the fired-up crowd that the next song would be their last, the response was a disappointed "Awwwww." Dandi Wind, the raven haired lead singer asked the crowd with a smile, "Did someone just say 'Fuck you assholes?' We only have this many songs." They then broke into their finale We'll Be Back When the Money's Right, which was not only their [...]
Blackraptor.
Avicii – Two Million
Beck – I Just Started Hating Some People Today
iamamiwhoami: kin - Teaser
