photos by David Andrako

Simone & Tift @ Merkin Hall, 3/21/2013

The 2013 Ecstatic Music Festival came to a close last night (3/21) with a performance by Tift Merritt and Simone Dinnerstein at the Kaufman Center's Merkin Hall. The two played most of their just-released collaborative album, Night, which includes new songs by Brad Mehldau and Patty Griffin, Tift's own songs, selections by Bach and Schubert, and The Cohen Variations by Daniel Felsenfeld. With a stage set up to look like someone's living room, it was a relaxed, great way to end the fest.

You can stream Night and check out more pics from last night's Ecstatic Music Festival finale below...

Continue reading "Tift Merritt and Simone Dinnerstein played the Ecstatic Music Festival finale (pics)"

photos by David Andrako

Last night's installment  (3/14) of the 2013 Ecstatic Music Festival was the the Bang on a Can People's Commissioning Fund Concert which saw the Bang on a Can All-Stars performing world premieres of new commissions by Anna Clyne, Dan Deacon, Tyondai Braxton, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Paula Matthusen, and Fay Kueen Wang's Weltinseln.

Dan Deacon's piece made use of his flashing iPhone/Android app, which was certainly a first at The Kaufman Center's Merkin Concert Hall. Deacon and Braxton were on hand for show and were interviewed by WNYC's John Schaefer for the station's New Sounds Live.

The fest rolls on this weekend on  Saturday (3/16), composer Imani Uzuri joins Numinous ensemble founder Joseph C. Phillips, Jr. Tickets to that show are still available. More pics from last night's Ecstatic Music Fest performance are below.

Continue reading "Bang on a Can All-Stars performed works by Dan Deacon, Tyondai Braxton and more at Ecstatic Music Fest (pics)"

Wohl, Halo, & Holter @ Ecstatic Fest 2013 (more by David Andrako)

As mentioned, Laurel Halo and Julia Holter played the Ecstatic Music Festival over the weekend (2/23). The performance, a collaboration with Daniel Wohl's new-music ensemble Transit, featured new compostions from Halo and Holter. The show was broadcast by WQXR and that stream has just been put online. Listen below.

The Ecstatic Music Festival continues Wednesday night (2/27) with a collaborative performance from Arnold Dreyblatt and Megafaun. Tickets are still available.

Continue reading "listen to Laurel Halo, Julia Holter and Daniel Wohl's Ecstatic Music Fest performance"

photos by David Andrako, words by Andrew Sacher

Daniel Wohl, Laurel Halo, and Julia Holter

"So you were there in a car and the windshield shattered," are the first words you heard at Laurel Halo and Julia Holter's collaborative set with electroacoustic composer Daniel Wohl and his TRANSIT orchestra at the Merkin Concert Hall on Saturday night (2/23), as part of the ongoing indie-classical Ecstatic Music Festival. The line was quietly sung by Laurel, only to be sung by Julia the second time around, and finally for a third "verse," the two singers harmonized in unison, and their voices sound great together. The lyric was sung during a piece titled "Enter the Void," the first of three original pieces composed by Laurel, Julia, and Daniel played during the first set of Saturday's concert. The setup primarily featured Laurel and Daniel on electronics, as Daniel led his orchestra, and Laurel and Julia on vocals. All three musicians also had keyboards.

The pieces were heavy on vibes, never fully committing to drone, ambient IDM, modern classical or avant-garde, but pulling characteristics from all of those things to create drifting, floating atmospheres that were entirely their own. Vocally, the deliveries were bold and kind of the one thing that kept you grounded on earth. Both Julia and Laurel sang in similar styles to their respective 2012 albums, Ekstasis and Quarantine, restoring a sense of familiarity each time they chimed in over the electronics and orchestra swells' ability to emerge the listener into the unknown. One of the pieces was written on the setlist as "Corps Remix," and presumably has its roots in Laurel Halo's remix of Daniel Wohl's "323," from his Corps Exquis project (who Laurel once shared a bill with in Brooklyn).

After leaving the stage for a short intermission, the musicians returned for a second set, which featured three songs performed as one continuous piece. It began with Julia literally whispering spoken word into the mic and Laurel eventually joining her on contrasting parts. The whispering was followed by some sparse moments of singing into more depths of weirdness. But as a finale to the medley, they brought everything back home with a cover of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David-penned tune, Don't Make Me Over," ending with Julia and Laurel powerfully chanted in unison, "Accept me for who I am, accept me for the things that I do."

An archived recording of the show will eventually be available at WQXR. More pictures (including one of the setlist) below...

Continue reading "Laurel Halo, Julia Holter, and Daniel Wohl collaborated at Ecstatic Music Festival (pics, review)"

photos by David Andrako

Deerhoof @ Ecstatic Music Festival, 2/20/2013

The Ecstatic Music Festival, which has been happening at Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufman Center, continued last night (2/22) with one of the more anticipated of this year's season: Deerhoof with Chicago ensemble Dal Niente, including new work by Brazilian-born composer Marcos Balter. This was the first time in NYC for this pairing that  made it's debut last summer as part of Chicago's Wordless Music series. You can check out more photos and the program from the concert below.

Next up at the Ecstatic Music Fest on Saturday (2/23): Laurel Halo, Julia Holter and Daniel Wohl combine forces with Wohl's TRANSIT ensemble, performing commissioned works as well as their previous works performed in new configurations. Tickets are still available.

Continue reading "Deerhoof with Ensemble Dal Niente played the Ecstatic Music Festival (pics)"

photos by David Andrako

Shara Worden & The Orchestra for the Next Century, Ecstatic Music Fest 2013

As you may know, the Ecstatic Music Festival is underway in NYC with concerts happening now through March 21 at Merkin Concert Hall in the Kaufman Music Center. Last night (2/6) featured a performance by Clogs and Sarah Kirkland Snider & Orchestra for the Next Century. The latter was presenting the world premiere of Unremembered, a 13-song cycle set to poetry and artwork by New-York-based poet/writer Nathaniel Bellows. DM Stith, My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden (who performed the opening night) and Clogs' Padma Newsome. sang as part of it. Pictures from the evening, as well as setlist and program notes,  are in this post.

The next EMF performance happens February 20 featuring a collaboration between Deerhoof and Chicago ensemble Dal Niente, including new work by Brazilian-born composer Marcos Balter. Deerhoof and Dal Niente previously collaborated last summer as part of Chicago's Wordless Music series. Tickets to the event are still available.

More pics from last night's Ecstatic Music Festival performance are below...

Continue reading "Clogs, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Shara Worden and more played Ecstatic Music Festival (pics, setlist)"

photos by David Andrako

DJ /Rupture @ Ecstatic Music Fest, 2/2/2013

"There's nothing you can do to avoid a museum-ification of your own work when you put out a retrospective box set, but we're doing everything we can to keep it fresh," said [Zs' saxophonist Sam] Hillmer, a thoughtful and passionate performer for whom Zs ("It just means us.") has always held a firm creative perspective.

Influenced by overlapping currents of radical sound--free jazz, the 20th century classical avant-garde, punk rock and underground noise--the musicians applied rigorous technique to embrace its enthusiasms without cliché. "One thing that was really prevalent at the time was this kind of salad-bar approach to creating innovative music," Mr. Hillmer said later, flashing back to the early 2000s, when a certain canned hybridization was in vogue. "'Classical music that rocks!' That's a view of music that tacitly renders styles as alienated from one another. We find that to be philosophically untenable and untrue." - [Wall Street Journal]

The Ecstatic Music Fest continues on Wednesday (2/6) with Clogs and Sarah Kirkland Snider & Orchestra for the Next Century. Snider will be presenting Unremembered, a "13-song cycle set to poetry (and with accompanying projected artwork) by New-York-based poet/writer Nathaniel Bellows," and features vocal performances by DM Stith, My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden (who performed the opening night) and Padma Newsome. The latter will also appear with band/chamber ensemble Clogs. More info is here and tickets are still available.

Clogs (which also features Bryce Dessner) have a new EP out titled The Sundown Song and you can check out the video for the title track below.

More pics from the 2/2 performance below...

Continue reading "DJ /Rupture & Zs played Ecstatic Music Fest (pics); Clogs & Sarah Kirkland Snider (w/ Shara Worden) play this week"

photos by David Andrako

Carla Kihlstedt @ Ecstatic Music Festival, 1/26/2013

We are currently in the midst of NYC's Ecstatic Music Festival which is running now through March 21 at Merkin Concert Hall. This past weekend was the fest's kickoff with My Brightest Diamond's Sharon Worden performing on Friday (1/25) and Carla Kihlstedt premiering her ICElab-commissioned song cycle, At Night We Walk in Circles and Are Consumed by Fire on Saturday (1/26). Written for nine members of ICE plus Kihlstedt, the song cycle is based on images, impressions and textures taken from dreams from various sources, including the players themselves. Additionally, Kihlstedt's band, Causing a Tiger, and teen alt-classical ensemble Face the Music played too. Pictures from Saturday's performance are in this post.

The Ecstatic Music Festival continues on Saturday (2/2) with a collaborative performance from DJ /Rupture and Zs, a show that was originally supposed to happen on February 9 but was moved to this week. Tickets are still available.

More pics from Saturday's EMF performance are below.

Continue reading "Carla Kihlstedt played Ecstatic Music Fest's first weekend (pics); DJ /Rupture & Zs' performance moved up to this week"

Ecstatic Music Festival 2012 (more by David Andrako)

As discussed, the indie/classical Ecstatic Music Festival is returning to the Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center this year and it begins Friday (1/25) with a show from My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. The festival also includes shows with Clogs, Laurel Halo and Julia Holter, Deerhoof, Megafaun, and more. The full schedule is below and tickets for select shows are still available.

However, you've also got a chance to attend for free because we're giving away a pair of tickets to a show of your choice. Contest details and the Ecstatic Music Festival schedule, below...

Continue reading "Ecstatic Music Fest kicking off (win tix to show of your choice!)"

Julia Holter at Bowery Ballroom in August (more by Amanda Hatfield)

The Ecstatic Music Festival is returning to the Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center in 2013 from January 25 to March 21, where it's happened in past years. Over the course of the approximately two month-long period, the festival will be presenting eleven shows, with multiple collaborations between artists that blur the lines between indie and modern classical. The collaborations include Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond) with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus; Sarah Kirkland Snider with vocalists DM Stith, Padma Newsome (of Clogs), and Shara Worden; DJ / rupture and Zs; Deerhoof with Dal Niente and Marcos Balter; Laurel Halo and Julia Holter with Daniel Wohl; Arnold Dreyblatt with Megafaun; Simone Dinnerstein with Tift Merritt; a Bang on a Can concert, and more.

Individual tickets and festival passes go on sale today (11/27).

Full schedule is below.

Continue reading "Ecstatic Music Festival 2013 announced 2013 (Julia Holter, My Brightest Diamond, Laurel Halo, Megafaun, Deerhoof & more)"

photos by David Andrako

When not inciting mass hysteria in children, Dan Deacon keeps it fancy, and that was the vibe last night at Merkin Concert Hall, his first of two fancy NYC shows this week. Tuesday's show was part of the Ecstatic Music Festival which continues with a show Saturday featuring John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats (which will stream live). Dan was joined by Mark Dancigers, Daniel Wohl, and new music groups NOW ensemble and Calder Quartet on a bill which featured a series of new works (setlist below). if you missed it, WQXR will have an archived stream, and here are some pictures.

The Ecstatic show before Dan's was with Oneida and Rhys Chatham, and that show is now able to be streamed.

This Monday (3/26), Dan plays another classical show, but this time at Carnegie Hall as part of a Celebration of composer John Cage.

More pictures from Dan's show below...

Continue reading "Dan Deacon played Merkin w/ NOW Ensemble & Calder Quartet (pics, setlist, streams), playing Carnegie Hall (Monday)"

photos by David Andrako

Rhys & Oneida

Composer/guitarist Rhys Chatham collaborated with Brooklyn band Oneida for a set of new compositions they played together at Merkin Concert Hall in NYC on Saturday night (3/17). "Fucking amazing," said one BV contributor in attendance. Here are some pictures from the Ecstatic Music Festival show.

Catch Oneida again when they headline NYC Taper's 5th anniversary show at 285 Kent in Brooklyn on May 12.

More pictures from the Manhattan show below...

Continue reading "Oneida played Ecstatic Music Fest w/ Rhys Chatham (pics), playing NYC Taper anniversary show"

photos by David Andrako

ACME is Nadia Sirota (viola), Clarice Jensen (cello), Chihiro Shibayama (percussion), Andrew Rehrig (flutes), and Alicia Lee (clarinets). On March 1st, ACME performed with Mariam Wallentin and Mikael Karlsson at Merkin Concert Hall as part of the ongoing Ecstatic Music Festival (which continues on March 17th with Oneida and Rhys Chatham). The show was described like this:

Mariam Wallentin, hailed for her "beyond gorgeous" voice in the band Wildbirds & Peacedrums, teams up with acclaimed composer Mikael Karlsson to create a new song cycle, The Spirit & the Cloud, performed with the American Contemporary Music Ensemble ("some of New York's brightest, busiest players." The evening will also include a selection of Karlsson's instrumental compositions and arrangements of Wildbirds & Peacedrums songs for Wallentin and ACME.

Continue reading "Mariam Wallentin of Wildbirds & Peacedrums played w/ Mikael Karlsson & ACME @ the Ecstatic Music Festival (pics)"

photos by David Andrako

Glasser

Two days after Nick Zammuto played the ongoing Ecstatic Music Festival, eight piece vocal group Roomful of Teeth collaborated with Glasser on 2/25 at Merkin Concert Hall. The full setlist, which you can see below, included works by Merrill Garbus (aka tUnE-yArDs), Sarah Kirkland Snyder, Caroline Shaw, Rinde Eckert, Judd Greenstein and Cameron Mesirow (Glasser). You can listen to the whole show at WQXR. More pictures and the setlist below...

Continue reading "Glasser and Roomful of Teeth collaborated at Merkin Hall (stream, pics & setlist)"

photos by David Andrako

Zammuto @ Ecstatic Music Fest

Ecstatic Music Festival continues on, and welcomed a performance from Nick Zammuto (formerly of The Books) & Jason Treuting (So Percussion, Janus Trio) with appearances from janus, Eric Beach, Daisy Press & Grey McMurray at Merkin Concert Hall on 2/23 . A full set of pictures, and a video which gives a sense of what the performance was all about, are in this post.

Zammuto will hit the road for a string of Midwest dates supporting Explosions In The Sky, though Zammuto won't be on hand when the Texas quartet play Governors Ball in June.

All tour dates, pictures, and a brand new song off Zammuto's forthcoming self-titled album, below...

Continue reading "Zammuto streaming a new track, played the Ecstatic Music Fest w/ Jason Treuting & more (pics)"

photos by David Andrako

This Will Destroy You @ Merkin Concert Hall

This Will Destroy You are really mixing it up on this tour. Last night they played the fancy Merkin Concert Hall on 67th Street as part of the ongoing Ecstatic Music Festival, and on Saturday (2/11) they'll play a just-announced show at DIY space 285 Kent in Brooklyn with Wires Under Tension. Tickets are on sale for the show which happens the same day they play Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken with their tour-mate Amen Dunes (who they also played Lincoln Hall in Chicago with). Pictures from the Ecstatic gig are in this post

Last night (2/9)'s show was split into three acts:

Act 1:
A Far Cry - Steve Reich "Triple Quartet"
A Far Cry and Christopher Tignor - Christopher Tignor "Thunder Lay Down In The Heart"

Act 2:
Slow Six with A Far Cry

Act 3:
This Will Destroy You with A Far Cry

Continue reading "This Will Destroy You played the Ecstatic Music Fest (pics), playing 285 Kent Saturday (on sale)"

photos by David Andrako

Ecstatic Music Festival Day 3 -- 02/08/12

The 2012 Ecstatic Music Festival, which hosted Sxip Shirey and friends one night earlier, continued at Merkin Hall last night with performances by Richard Reed Parry (of the Arcade Fire and Bell Orchestre), Son Lux (aka Ryan Lott), and yMusic, along with special guests Bryce and Aaron Dessner (of the National). As advertised, this happened:

"[Richard Reed Parry] takes on the role of composer, presenting a series of works for yMusic and its members utilizing the organic processes of the human body -- heartbeats and breathing -- to articulate the works' progress. Son Lux will likewise have his yMusic compositions (from their debut album, Beautiful Mechanical) performed, and will also present new arrangements from his album We Are Rising ("shamefully good," Seattle Post-Intelligencer), which used yMusic as source material for its electronic compositions. Parry and Lott will also each write new works that incorporate each other into the process, as vocalists, instrumentalists, or even as providers of source material for the new compositions.

This Will Destroy You play the Ecstatic show tonight (2/9), or more specifically:

"The unique, "brilliant" (Boston Globe), self-conducted string orchestra A Far Cry joins forces with post-rock powerhouse This Will Destroy You and renowned composer Christopher Tignor, with his band, Slow Six, for an evening of music that is large-scale in every sense."

Pictures from last night with a video that was made before the show, below...

Continue reading "Richard Reed Parry, Son Lux, yMusic & Dessners got 'Ecstatic' @ Merkin Concert Hall (pics) "

photos by David Andrako

Sxip Shirey & Angelica Negron @ Merkin Concert Hall - 2/7/2012

"The “mesmerizing” (New Yorker) multi-instrumentalist and composer Sxip Shirey (pictured) teams up with Angélica Negrón, composer of “wistfully idiosyncratic and contemplative” (WQXR) music for an evening of fabulously eclectic and sonically wide-ranging collaboration. In addition to working together, they will be joined by a slate of special guests, including violinist/composer/Ableton master Todd Reynolds, guitar sound-architect Noveller (“simultaneously soothing and mind-wrecking,” NY Press), the wine-glass/guitar marvel Jonny Rodgers (“beautiful, fragile and consistently challenging,” New Haven Register). The teen alt-classical sensations Face the Music (“stunning,” “polished, exuberant,” New York Times) will give the world premiere of Angélica Negrón’s El Gran Caleidoscopio."

The festival continues tonight (2/8) at the same venue with the Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry along with Son Lux and yMusic. Bryce and Aaron Dessner of the National have also been announced as special guests on the show. Tickets are still available, and we're giving away a pair on Facebook.

Tickets are also still available for Thursday's show with This Will Destroy You (who are on tour).

More pictures from Tuesday's show, below...

Continue reading "Ecstatic Music Fest 2012 -- show 2 in pics (Sxip Shirey, Angelica Negron, Noveller, more); Dessners play tonight"

photos by David Andrako, words by Andrew Frisicano

Jherek Bischoff & some of his guests

It wasn't the marathon that opened the inaugural Ecstatic Music Fest in 2011, but this year's opening show on Saturday (2/4) had some of that same collaborative energy, focusing on the compositions and arrangements of Jherek Bischoff, a musician known for his work primarily with The Dead Science, Parenthetical Girls and The Degenerate Art Ensemble. For the show, billed as a preview of Bischoff's forthcoming CD from Brassland ("composed"), the composer got help from the Wordless Music Orchestra and nine guest vocalists.

After a too-brief instrumental opening, David Byrne came out to sing a swaying Afro-Cuban-tinged piece. In what would be a recurring theme, Bischoff's composition wasn't entirely different than the type of song Byrne might sing at one of his own shows. Next up, Charlie Looker intoned through "The Secret Life of Machines" (which you can find an instrumental version of at WNYC) in a style that'd be a close fit to his Extra Life material. Mirah's voice sounded as warm and honeyed as always. Parenthetical Girls's Zac Pennington sang a duet with Sam Mickens, both of them playing up their own strengths, Pennington the animated, Wildean dandy and Mickens the snazzily dressed crooner. The other singers, Craig Wedren from Shudder to Think, Carla Bozulich of Evangelista, and Steven Reker and Jen Goma, were idiosyncratic in their own ways, and Bischoff's string-laden avant-pop tunes bent to their strengths. Deerhoof's Greg Saunier stood out with a few good improvisatory fills but mostly hung back in the ensemble. For his part, Bischoff played ukelele, guitar, bass and sang a song. His young cousin came out to hit a gong at the end of one tune.

The second part of the program, only five songs long, consisted of Bischoff's arrangements of the singers' own material. Craig Wedren, Zac Pennington, Mirah and Carla Bozulich all returned. (In particular, Mirah's vibrant Latin number, "The Country of the Future," was great). For the finale, David Byrne premiered a new song, which he sang with Reker. It took a few verses, but eventually I worked out that "The Fat Man's Comin'" was a song about Santa Claus. As a closer, it was a small gesture where I would have preferred a grand finale, but it seemed to fit with Bischoff's humble collaborator-focused ambitions.

While in town, Mirah plays tonight (Monday) at Glasslands, where she'll be accompanied by cellist Lori Goldston and percussionist Geo Wyeth (Mirah's Facebook says they'll be "performing songs seldom heard from [her] repertoire"). The Ecstatic series continues with three more shows this week. The full schedule is here.

More pictures from Saturday's show at Merkin Concert Hall,below...

Continue reading "Jherek Bischoff, Wordless Orchestra, David Byrne, Mirah & more guests opened the Ecstatic Music Festival (pics, review)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

DOWNLOAD: Sharon Van Etten @ The Greene Space (MP3)

Sharon Van Etten @ the Greene Space

As you know, Sharon Van Etten played a show at WNYC's Greene Space in Tribeca back on 1/17 (with Audra McDonald & Norm Lewis), one day before she played her entire new album in full at Mercury Lounge. Not only do we have some pictures of that show, you can listen to and download the whole thing too. MP3 above. More pictures and the embedded audio player below.

We recently posted a reminder that the 2012 Ecstatic Music Festival is beginning in NYC on 2/4, but what we didn't mention was that a festival preview event was going down at the Greene Space on 2/1:

Hosted by WQXR's Terrance McKnight, Q2 Music's preview concert features music and conversation with Ecstatic Music Festival composer-performers Jason Treuting, Angélica Negrón, and Jherek Bischoff as well as a conversation with composer and festival founder and curator, Judd Greenstein.

Jherek Bischoff's actual Ecstatic Fest show happens on 2/4 with the Wordless Music Orchestra and special guests David Byrne, Craig Wedren, Greg Saunier, Mirah, Zac Pennington, Carla Bozulich, Charlie Looker & Sam Mickens.

WQXR has also announced that they'll be streaming and archiving select Ecstatic shows as part of their Q2 Music series.

Greene Space pics & audio and contest details below...

Continue reading "Sharon Van Etten played the Greene Space (pics & audio); Ecstatic Music Fest hosting a show there (WIN TIX!)"

Robert Sirota

As BroadwayWorld.com writes (which may or may not be a press release):

"The world premiere performances of composer Robert Sirota's opera, ISCARIOT, which were previously announced as being presented at Trinity Wall Street's St. Paul's Chapel as part of the Festival of New Music this spring, have been canceled as part of the institution's cutbacks to its arts programming which were announced earlier this month. The opera had been scheduled for three performances on May 25, 26, and 27, 2012. The performers were to have included members of the Trinity Choir with the American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME). ISCARIOT was to have been produced by Beth Morrison Projects."

Robert Sirota's chamber opera The Clever Mistress, based upon a story from The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio, will have its New York premiere performances on April 23 and 30, 2012 as part of The Cutting Edge Concerts New Music Festival at Symphony Space. On May 2, Victoria Sirota will give the world premiere of his new organ work, holy ghosts, commissioned to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the installation of the historic Appleton Organ at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Upcoming performances for ACME include the Ecstatic Music Festival at Merkin Hall in New York, NY (March 1), Stanford Lively Arts in Palo Alto, CA (March 4), the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts in Burlington, VT (March 23), and at The Kitchen in New York in May.

Mirah

Mirah has two NYC shows coming up this February. First, she'll play as part of the Ecstatic Music Festival as one of the guest vocalists performing with Jherek Bischoff, which also includes David Byrne, Craig Wedren, Greg Saunier, and Zac Pennington. That show takes place on February 4 at Merkin Concert Hall and tickets are still on sale.

Two days later, she'll play her own show at Glasslands (2/6). Tickets for that show are on sale now.

Mirah, along with Thao, who she released a collaborative album with in 2011, recently performed Salt-N-Pepa's "Push It" with Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen on the Portlandia Tour (which was just expanded) when it stopped at San Francisco's Mezzanine on December 30. A video of that, along with all dates below...

Continue reading "Mirah played 'Push It' w/ Thao, Carrie Brownstein & Fred Armisen (video), playing Brooklyn after Ecstatic show (dates)"

This Will Destroy You at Emos last month (more by Tim Griffin)

This Will Destroy You will team with Amen Dunes (who played 285 Kent last night) for a set of dates in late January and into February. The trek, which charts a path most through the Midwest, East Coast, and into the South, will include a stop in NYC at the Kaufman Center at NYU on 2/9 with A Far Cry and Slow Six. The show is part of the previously discussed Ecstatic Music Festival and tickets are still on sale for the invidiual show or the entire festival.

This Will Destroy You recently released the "Black Dunes" single, which features the album track and a remix. Stream that, as well as their recent LP Tunnel Blanket below. The band also recently scored The Deep Field.

All dates below...

Continue reading "This Will Destroy You release single, announce tour (dates)"

yMusic at Castle Clinton in July (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Six-piece ensemble yMusic released their debut LP this past September, Beautiful Mechanical, with compositions by Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond (whose new album yMusic played on), Annie Clark, Son Lux, and others. They'll celebrate the album with a record release show in NYC on Sunday (12/4) at Rockwood Music Hall. Tickets are on sale now.

They'll perform in NYC again with My Brightest Diamond when they open for The National at Beacon Theater (12/16). Tickets for that show are still on sale.

yMusic are also play the Ecstatic Music Festival with album collaborator Son Lux (Ryan Lott) and Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry on February 8 at Merkin Concert Hall. Tickets are still available. Stream the Son Lux-composed track "Beautiful Mechanical" off yMusic's album here.

Speaking of Richard Parry, he was spotted in the audience of the Little Scream show the other day at Pianos. He also happened to co-produce the new Little Scream record (which he also contributed to musically). Maybe he'll be there at The Rock Shop in Brooklyn tonight (12/2) too.

My Brightest Diamond also has an upcoming show at Merkin Concert Hall, but hers is part of New York Guitar Festival. She plays on January 17, performing an original score for Buster Keaton's silent film Balloonatic, aliong with Keller WilliamsRedhooker, who will both also be performing scores of Keaton films. Tickets are still available. Shara is also one of the performers for David Lang's Making Music piece, along with Bryce Dessner of The National, Owen Pallett, Nico Muhly and others, which is being presented at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall on January 27. Tickets are on sale now.

All dates below...

Continue reading "yMusic playing Rockwood & other dates w/ My Brightest Diamond, Richard Reed Parry, Son Lux, The National & others"

Jherek Bischoff

As mentioned, the Ecstatic Music Festival kicks off on February 4 at Merkin Concert Hall with Jherek Bischoff, who plays with Parenthetical Girls and The Dead Science. He's teaming up with Wordless Music Orchestra and an incredible list of guest vocalists from his upcoming album, which comes out this February, including David Byrne, Craig Wedren (Shudder To Think), Greg Saunier (Deerhoof), Mirah, and Zac Pennington (Parenthetical Girls. Tickets are still on sale now.

Speaking of Parenthetical Girls, their tour began last night (12/1) at Glasslands with Gauntlet Hair, Dinowalrus, and Eraas. If you missed it, they'll also be in NYC this Friday (12/3) at Santos Party House with YACHT and Midnight Magic (tickets).

As previously mentioned, Brassland Records is celebrating its 10th anniversary as a label and debuted a new/old track every day of November via various methods including Soundcloud. None of those tracks can be heard in the player that's embedded below. Those include "Spinney" by This is the Kit (who are opening for the National at Beacon Theater on 12/17) and "Secret of the Machines (instrumental)" by Jherek Bischoff. The latter also features drums by Greg Saunier (Deerhoof), and will have vocals by Caetano Veloso in its album version.

Continue reading "Jherek Bischoff releasing an album & playing a show -- both with many extra special guests (like David Byrne)"