photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Phoenix @ The Apollo, 5/13/2013

While Phoenix prepare for a much bigger tour that will include a stop at Brooklyn's Barclays Center in October (tickets), the French band wrapped up their post-Coachella tour of smaller North American venues at Harlem's historic Apollo Theatre last night (5/13). The band played a slightly longer set than their Sirius-sponsored show at Music Hall of Williamsburg last month, adding "Too Young" from their first album and "Fences" from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix to the mix. And like at MHOW, frontman Thomas Mars got into the crowd to sing as well.

Opening was Blood Orange, an increasingly rare sight from Dev Hynes who is spending more and more time in the producer's chair these days. Photos from the Apollo are in this post.

In other news, Phoenix's next single from Bankrupt! is "Trying to Be Cool" and the band have released the individual "stems" from the track so that anyone can have a go at remixing it. You can download them here and check out a Silver Swans remix below.

Continue reading "Phoenix played The Apollo with Blood Orange (pics, setlist)"

photos by Lukas Hodge

Mission of Burma @ Strawberry Festival, 5/10/2013

Mission of Burma and Merchandise joined Library Time to play Strawberry Fest off of NYU's campus during the day on Friday (May 10th). The free show was one of two scheduled for the Merchandise guys, who performed solo sets at 285 Kent later that night.

Though Mission of Burma currently have no plans to return to NYC, Merchandise do, and with Milk Music and Destruction Unit to play Northside on June 15 at 285 Kent (tickets).

More pictures of MoB and Merchandise from NYU's Strawberry Festival are below.

Continue reading "Mission of Burma & Merchandise played Strawberry Fest (pics)"

photos by Lukas Hodge

Ghost B.C. @ Webster Hall, 5/11/2013

Costumed occult-rockers Ghost headlined a sold-out Webster Hall on Saturday (5/11), joined by their touring partners Ides of Gemini (members of Black Math Horseman). Pictures from their set are in this post, with another set of pictures over at InvisibleOranges.

The Webster Hall show was the only NYC show on their itinerary, which started Coachella and end next week in Pittsburgh, PA. Updated dates are listed below.

Continue reading "Ghost B.C. and Ides of Gemini played Webster Hall (pics)"

Woe at Acheron on Friday (more by Fred Pessaro)

Philadelphia's Woe kicked off their string of dates with a show in NYC at Acheron on Friday (May 10). There, the band joined a pair of local favorites in Mutilation Rites and Mortals. Pictures of both bands -- plus video -- are available at InvisibleOranges.

photos by Chris Gersbeck

Trash Talk / Cities Aviv @ Cake Shop, 5/11/2013

Trash Talk did their part to bring chaos to the Downtown Music Festival, crowdsurfing the low-ceilings of Cake Shop on Saturday (5/11) as part of a show with Cities Aviv, Low Fat Getting High and The Shackletons. The show was rather pricey for a typical Trash Talk gig ($25) but nonetheless brought out the die-hards to catch the band in such a tight space.

Saturday night's Downtown fest also featured DIIV at Mercury Lounge and Purity Ring at Bowery Ballroom. Pictures from Cake Shop are below...

Continue reading "Trash Talk played Cake Shop with Cities Aviv, Low Fat Getting High and The Shackletons (pics)"

photos by Jonathon Bernstein; words by Bill Pearis

DIIV / LODRO @ Mercury Lounge, 5/11/2013

It was the kind of line-up you might see at Shea Stadium or 285 Kent, but Brooklyn crossed the bridge on Saturday night for the Downtown Music Festival on Saturday night (5/11). Well some of its bands did at least, specifically DIIV, LODRO, Xray Eyeballs and DJ Dog Dick -- for a show at Mercury Lounge. Fresh off their tour with How to destroy angels_, DIIV played the small-for-them Houston venue, cranking out their well-honed whirling sound. The band have a few festival dates lined up and those are listed below.

LODRO are are starting to rival DIIV for sheer number of locals shows played in a given week, and its clearly working as their claustrophobic blues has already come into its own a mere four months since the band's first live show. (And as DIIV showed, playing all the time helps.) You can catch them tonight (5/13) at Knitting Factory as part of the BV-curated Red Bull Sound Select show with headliners Foxygen as well as Amen Dunes and Prince Rupert's Drops. That show is only $3 at the door (no advance tickets) and doors are at 7 PM (which is what time I start DJing). I you haven't seen their new video, which we premiered on Friday, you can watch that below.

The night started with sets from Xray Eyeballs and DJ Dog Dick. Saturday night's other DTF offerings included Purity Ring at Bowery Ballroom and we've got more coverage of the fest's maiden voyage still to come. For now, check out more Mercury Lounge pics below.

Continue reading "DIIV, LODRO, Xray Eyeballs and DJ Dog Dick played Mercury Lounge (pics)"

photos by Jonathon Bernstein

Shout Out Louds @ Webster Hall, 5/10/2013

Shout Out Louds played their second NYC show in two months on Friday night (5/10) at Webster Hall. The poppy Swedes -- who also played one of the BV day parties at SXSW this year -- are in the midst of a North American tour supporting their tuneful new album, Optica, but made time for older favorites like "Impossible," "Tonight I Have to Leave It" and "Very Loud" as well. Opening the night was New York quintet HAERTS. More pics from Webster Hall are below.

Continue reading "Shout Out Louds and HAERTS played Webster Hall (pics)"

by Toby Tenenbaum

Purity Ring @ Bowery Ballroom, 5/11/2013

Still flying on the fuel of their acclaimed debut, Montreal's Purity Ring delivered a memorable 50 minute performance for the Downtown Music Festival) crowd at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday. (The fest's shirts just called it "DTF.") The Canadian synthpop duo played the majority of the tracklist off of 2012 release Shrines. The double encore featured their cover of Soulja Boy's "Grammy" and finished with "Fineshrine."

Thumping bass-lines were transmitted directly from the band's custom-built, tree-shaped percussive light show (that we've been familiar with for nearly a year), through three cubed speakers which doubled as protruding stage extensions. Wedding-dressed singer Megan James waved a construction torch around closer while sharing the intimacy of the crowd.

Fellow Albertan, the barefooted Thomas Arsenault (who goes by the name of Mas Ysa) warmed the crowd up with some of his own beat heavy knob-twiddling.

You can also read about Black Hippy, Earl Sweatshirt and other Downtown Music Fest shows from Friday HERE with additional coverage on the way. More pictures from Saturday's Bowery show show are below...

Continue reading "Purity Ring played Bowery Ballroom with Mas Ysa (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

"I am in a band with my sister called CocoRosie. We sing and dance and play instruments. In one sentence I can't seem to sum up anything. We are about to release our fifth album. We have been a band for 10 years." [Bianca to The Independent]

Continue reading "Cocorosie played new songs @ Paper Box (pics, setlist, video)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

messy Palma Violets craziness

Brit rockers Palma Violets brought their tour with Guards to NYC for their first of two shows here last night (5/9) at Music Hall of Williamsburg. The Orwells, who also open for that same lineup at Bowery Ballroom tonight (5/10), opened the show. Pictures of all three bands from the Brooklyn show are in this post.

Both Palma Violets and Guards are out supporting their respective debut albums, 180 and In Guards We Trust, and have been playing much of the material from those releases on this tour. The Orwells, meanwhile, have a new EP on the way, which includes the new Dave Sitek-produced title track, "Other Voices."

Tonight's Bowery Ballroom show is part of the Downtown Music Festival, and festival tickets that will get you into the show are still available. You can also catch Guards in NYC for free in June.

More pictures from MHOW below..

Continue reading "Palma Violets, Guards & The Orwells @ MHOW (pics)"