photos by Vincent Cornelli, words by Bill Pearis

Austra played twice this past weekend: Friday night at Santos (which these pictures are from) and Saturday night at Glasslands. I caught the Glasslands show and, despite some truly horrible sound that buried the vocals for the first half the set, I left really impressed. Anyone who's seen Katie Stelmanis before knows her powerhouse pipes are a big part of the appeal, which she now augments in Austra with two additional singers, and the rest of the band (guitar, bass, keyboards). This was the first most of us got to hear Austra songs other than "The Beat and the Pulse" and their short set (seven songs?) highlighted the dancier numbers from their debut, Feel it Break, which is out May 17 on Domino. When sound issues were fixed, Austra really soared.

Of the newer material I really liked "Lose It" which seems likely to be the second single from the album, and the anthemic "Spellwork." But "The Beat and the Pulse," which has been all over the internet, was the crowd favorite. While that song does recall The Knife, those comparisons kind of melt away when you hear the rest of Austra's songs. It's not that far from what Stelmanis did as a solo artist, just more dancefloor-friendly. (There are a couple piano ballads as well, which is more in line with her solo work.) And when people get to hear more of the album, look out.

Domino has put a couple new, non-LP Austra songs on their Soundcloud page, which you can stream below. If you're going to SXSW, Austra will be all over the place down there (official Domino showcase and BrooklynVegan Saturday day party included) and I highly recommend you put them on your must-see list.

Video from Austra's Glasslands show, plus more pictures of Austra and opener Arpline at Santos, and the setlist, are below.

Continue reading "Austra played 2 NY shows (pics, video), streaming new songs"

Ted Leo @ Siren Fest (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

So the rumored headliner for the Sunday, August 1st Pool Party at Brooklyn Bowl isn't a rumor any more. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists will be headlining the free show - their second in Brooklyn in as many weeks. Also on the bill are two of Brooklyn's own, Darlings and ArpLine. The venue reports that doors are at noon, show at 6pm. It's not clear if the show is taking place outside, but it has been billed as a "block party" up until now.

Jelly also has music at the Rock Yard the day before, with Skeletons Big Band, Priestbird (do you remember what they used to be called?), Family Band and PC Worship.

Future Pavement opener Thee Oh Sees opened the bi-weekly venue on Saturday, July 17th. Download their set, recorded by Newtown Radio, here.

Ted Leo videos and the flyer for Saturday's Rock Yard show, and the flyer for the block party happening in Philly this weekend, are below...

Continue reading "Ted Leo confirmed for 'Pool Party' (1 of 2 weekend Jelly gigs)"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Oh No Ono @ Mercury Lounge

To quote Bill Pearis, "Bear in Heaven were pretty great...insane drummer. Impressed. On No Ono were good. They did a radical cover of Radiohead's 'Weird Fishes' - the singer's vocals will be a dealbreaker for some." His review is from last night's show at Mercury Lounge that ArpLine (formerly The Kiss Off) also played (1/27).

Oh No Ono, in town from Denmark, continue on to Union Hall tonight (1/28) with The Depreciation Guild and Hooray for Earth.

Bear in Heaven were joined on stage by Zambri. More pictures from Mercury Lounge below...

Continue reading "Bear in Heaven, Oh No Ono & ArpLine @ Mercury Lounge in NYC - pics "

Tickets are still on sale for the July 16th Dead Weather show at Terminal 5. Tickets are on presale and AmEx presale for the July 17th Dead Weather show at the same venue.

The Hip Hop Legends Series continues at BB King's on June 17th. Tickets are on sale for a show that will feature performances by Naughty By Nature, Nice & Smooth, Black Moon, Smif-N-Wesson, MC Lyte, Raekwon, Show Biz & AG, Lord Finesse, Das Efx and DJ's Funkmaster Flex & Chuck Chillout. Almost everyone on this bill also has shows coming up that are either free in a NYC park, part of the Brooklyn hip hop festival, or at Southpaw.

KRS One DJ Kool Herc (and friends) are playing Santos Party House on May 30th. Tickets are on sale. KRS One has a free show coming up too.

The Cult will perform "Love" in its entirety at Terminal 5 in NYC on September 11th. Tickets are on AmEx presale.

Vieux Farka Toure, son of Ali Farka, is playing Highline Ballroom on June 20th. Tickets are on sale.

The Roots keep adding shows at Highline Ballroom. Tickets are on sale for dates as far out as November.

Dredg and RX Bandits are touring and playing Irving Plaza on July 30th (tickets) and Bowery Ballroom on July 31st (tickets)

The Kiss Off changed their name to Arpline, and they're also on the bill with Crocodiles at Mercury Lounge on June 20th. Tickets are now on sale. Crocodiles' video for 'Neon Jesus' below...

Continue reading "Dead Weather, Vieux Farka Toure, The Cult, Raekwon, KRS One, The Roots, Dredg & other tickets"