Franz Ferdinand played an amazing set at Roseland Ballroom - exactly what you'd expect from a band so deservedly huge and critically acclaimed. My apologies for this hasty recap - my photos aren't very good, but I wanted to post the set list before my final exams begin tomorrow morning. Opening for FF were Born Ruffians, a quartet of skinny Canadians who take heavy cues from world music. For a postpunk band, they did a surprising amount of yodeling. In perhaps the most exciting moment during their set, Paul from Franz Ferdinand scurried onstage to drum on the [...]
(Full photoset here .) It's been a couple of months since I've gone to a rock show, and it's been too long. It's been a year and a half since I last went to a show at Webster Hall, and I can only hope that I don't go there for another year and a half at least 1 . Despite the venue, Ra Ra Riot put on a spectacular show - nonetheless, I didn't think it was possible to dislike a venue more than I dislike Terminal 5, but there you have it. [...]
Various sources have been reporting the engagement of Ryan Adams and Mandy Moore . I'm flabbergasted, mostly because though Mandy Moore's cinematic missteps are frequent ( License to Wed comes to mind - it was appallingly awful, even with John Krasinski), I've always viewed loved her work in Saved! ... but I've mentally shelved it far, far away from the high points of Ryan Adams' ("Night Birds" is my favorite out of the extensive discography of this guy, who isn't Bryan Adams). In other news, Spoon is back in the studio [...]
Today marks the U.S. release of Franz Ferdinand's third studio album, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand , which was released yesterday in the UK. It's no secret that I'm a huge Franz Ferdinand fan, and the new Scottish gentry have never disappointed me. Tonight is a masterpiece of British postpunk, and marks another reinvention of FF's distinctive sound and signature danceable rock. A few brief comments, track-by-track: I'm actually a little surprised that "Ulysses" is the single and the centerpiece of the album - it's a strong song, but I would have selected "Lucid Dreams" [...]
Now that 2009 is upon us, it's time to take a look at some of the most promising upcoming new releases: Noble Beast by Andrew Bird (January 20, Fat Possum) Andrew Bird's music is always a lovely combination of whistling, violin and voice. The unmistakable influence of Chicago leaves a distinct impression on his music as much as it does on Wilco's or Sufjan Stevens' music (in different ways, of course). "Oh No," which you can hear on Andrew's Myspace , is superb. Pre-order it on [...]
Here are a dozen outtakes from my recap of 2008 , in no particular order. Some of the albums herein are promising debuts from new bands or lovely follow-ups from old ones, and others are disappointments from bands that I'm fond of. First Frost by the Lucksmiths (November 4, Matinee) The first Lucksmiths song that I ever heard was "From Macaulay Station," and it inspired me to write a short story (at this time I was a writer and not a mere music blogger). Just saying that kind of [...]
2008 was a very eventful year for indie rock. If you're reluctant to read through the archives of TRUST ME ON THIS, this year-end retrospective is a crash course in some of my favorite bands. I'll take you month by month through twelve stellar releases in 2008 by bands both new and old, along with some highlights from my concert photography adventures in the last year: janvier: Field Manual by Chris Walla (January 29, Barsuk) (download "Sing Again" ) [...]
Last April, when I still lived just above City Hall downtown, I took a late-night walk to the Bowery Ballroom for the Tokyo Police Club show. Some hours later, as I returned to my apartment, I found myself wondering why I was walking down the deserted Bowery alone in the dead of night - and here is the long answer. Back in 2006, I started hearing about an EP called A Lesson in Crime by a postpunk band named Tokyo Police Club. I don't remember ever hearing any stories about the origins of the band's name, [...]
I was fourteen when I first heard "My Favourite Chords" by the Weakerthans. I can't remember how I came across them, but I don't believe that anyone recommended them to me, and I don't think that any of my friends or acquaintances have heard of them. This is not to say that they're the most obscure band that I could dig up - quite the opposite. The Weakerthans have won been critically acclaimed, mostly in their native Canada, and most recently won the Echo Prize and a handful of Western Canadian Music Awards in 2008. "Civil Twilight" from Reunion [...]
Last fall, flush with the glory of having seen the adorable Bishop Allen a mere two days hence, I trekked to Baruch College in Gramercy for a small radio station festival featuring We Are Scientist. I sat through all of the opening bands, discovering a couple of really terrible bands as well as the pretty awesome Robbers on High Street. Ben Trokan of Robbers on High Street sets up gear: Pre-gig tuning: Bass player: Ben seems very tall while onstage, [...]
I'll do a very brief concert recap since I'm exhausted and did a fairly thorough job last night. Tonight's show was miles ahead of last night's show in Williamsburg - at this rate, if I go to see We Are Scientists for a fourth time (yes, I will), it's going to be exponentially even more mind-blowing. Keith and Chris were in fine form tonight, and the stage banter was superbly witty - sharper than last night - with references to James Joyce, repeated wisecracks about the Killers. The crowd was better, more willing to start dancing or clapping [...]
After catching the Long Winters show in Battery Park earlier in the evening, I headed over to my favorite venue, the Music Hall of Williamsburg, to see We Are Scientists for the second time. The last time I saw them was at Baruch College in September, and it was a "festival" with four opening bands (as you might remember, that night was when I encountered Robbers on High Street). I picked the raised platform on stage right for the simple fact that I had been on the left, dead center, at the last show. I caught the entire [...]
Trust Me on This
James Blake – Live Album
Childish Gambino - "Heartbeat" (Official Music Video)
Gang Colours – Fancy Restaurant
