Deerhunter at Austin Psych Fest 2013 (more by Tim Griffin)

Governors Ball is less than a month away, and the fest has now released the daily schedule. They've done a pretty good job with not too many giant conflicts -- though there's a few like Grizzly Bear vs Beirut, Bloc Party vs The xx, Erykah Badu vs Beach House, and Nas vs Guns N Roses. Check out the daily line-ups across their four stages below.

Continue reading "Governors Ball announces set times"

Lollapalooza 2012 (more by James Richards IV)

After it was already confirmed that Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, The Postal Service, The National, The Killers, and Mumford and Sons were playing Lollapalooza 2013, a pretty promising leak came which appeared to potentially reveal the rest of the lineup, and it turns out that leak was real.

In addition to the previously mentioned artists, Lollapalooza will include Nine Inch Nails, Queens of the Stone Age, Kendrick Lamar, Grizzly Bear, The Cure, New Order, Baroness, Beach House, Cat Power, Death Grips, Jessie Ware, Father John Misty, DIIV, Wavves, Alt-J, Hot Chip, Disclosure, Baauer, Palma Violets, Angel Haze, Band of Horses, Crystal Castles and many others.

Lollapalooza goes down in Chicago from August 2 - 4 in Grant Park. Single day passes go on sale Wednesday (4/3) at 10 AM.

Full day-by-day lineup below...

Continue reading "Lollapalooza 2013 lineup announced (Nine Inch Nails, Queens of the Stone Age, Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, Postal Service, Cure, New Order, Kendrick Lamar & more)"

Osheaga Festival is returning to Montreal's Parc Jean-Drapeau from August 2-4. This year's lineup includes The Cure, Mumford and Sons, Phoenix, New Order, Vampire Weekend, Kendrick Lamar, Hot Chip, Alt-J, Beach House, Explosions in the Sky, Big Boi, Baauer, Father John Misty, Disclosure, Frightened Rabbit, Angel Haze, Jessie Ware, DIIV, Guards, and many more.

3-Day passes go on sale Friday (3/15) at noon. There are still over 20 artists TBA, but you can browse the complete initial lineup below...

Continue reading "Osheaga Festival 2013 lineup & tickets (The Cure, Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, Kendrick Lamar, New Order and more)"

Eels at Terminal 5 in 2010 (more by Andrew St. Clair)

The Orwells @ BVCMJ 2012 (more by Chris La Putt)

today in NYC
* Boy @ Joe's Pub
* killer BOB @ The Stone
* The Stepfathers @ UCB
* Guerilla Toss @ The Stone
* Ed Kowalczyk @ City Winery
* Pedro Giraudo Sextet @ Barbes
* Las Rubias Del Notre @ Barbes
* Louis CK @ New York City Center
* Samothrace, Pilgrim @ Saint Vitus
* Jim Gaffigan @ The Capitol Theatre
* Eels, Nicole Atkins @ Webster Hall
* Potty Mouth, Aye Nako @ New Museum
* Vacationer, Body Language @ Maxwell's
* Shit Robot, Jacques Renault, EUG @ Le Bain
* The Allman Brothers Band @ Beacon Theatre
* Preservation Hall Jazz Band @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Tin Man, Fred P, Eric Cloutier @ Public Assembly
* The Ruby Suns, Painted Palms @ Mercury Lounge
* Andres, Anthony Naples, Magic Touch @ 285 Kent
* Freshkills, Violent Bullshit, Chron Turbine @ Union Pool
* Soley, Zach Hurd, Jeanne Jolly @ Rockwood Music Hall
* Ski Lodge, Night Panther, Day Joy, Belle Mare @ Pianos
* Bonaparte, Sami.The.Great, Bird Courage @ Glasslands
* B A N A N A S ! ! w/ Oro11, Alex (Lemonade) @ Glasslands
* Great Caesar, Vally Lodge, Laurelin Kruse @ 92YTribeca
* Good Field, Ramesh (of Voxtrot), Matt Bauer @ Union Hall
* The Orwells, The So So Glos, Radkey @ Santos Party House
* Brian Killer, Perdition, In School, Missionary @ Death By Audio
* Isle of Rhodes, The Ugly Club, The Highway @ The Rock Shop
* Dragons of Zynth, The Phantom Family Halo, Lushes, ITEZ @ Big Snow
* The Aye-Ayes, Jolly, OneHundredThousand, Josh Elkes @ Arlene's Grocery
* Mercies, Lily & The Parlour, Tricks, The Hollows, At Sea @ The Knitting Factory
* Mac De Marco, Naomi Punk, Calvin Love, Tonstartsbandht @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* PC Worship, Pop. 1280, Burning Star Core, Diamond Guardian Diffusion, Ducktails (DJ Set) @ Silent Barn

Comedian Dave Hill aka the King of Metal's power pop band Valley Lodge played The Explosion at UCB with him last night. If you missed it, Valley Lodge appear on stage in NYC again tonight at 92YTribeca. Know anyone in Boston? Dave opens for Janeane Garofalo at the Wilbur Theatre on Saturday.

The Orwells, who play a BrooklynVegan party at SXSW this month, are in town to play Santos Party House tonight.

BrooklynVegan Day Parties at SXSW this year will take place at the old Emo's location, and will also feature a set by Empress Of who plays Pianos Tuesday.

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If you're still waiting for Azealia Banks to put out her debut album, but would be okay with hearing her cover The Strokes instead, you're in luck because she recorded a cover of "Barely Legal," which you can listen to below. You may remember she has also once covered Interpol.

Bob Mould was just in town for two shows and while here he stopped by Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to perform "Star Machine," from last year's roaring The SIlver Age. As an online bonus, Bob and the band ripped through Sugar's classic "A Good Idea." Look for comedians Fred Armisen and Jon Glazer watching from the wings. Check out both clips below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Friday?"

Firefly Music Festival 2012 (more by Dana (distortion) Yavin)

Dover, DE festival Firefly Music Festival had a great first year in July of 2012, and afterwards immediately announced it'd return in 2013. The 2013 festival happens from June 21 - 23 at the Dover International Speedway, and the lineup was just announced. It includes Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Passion Pit, Kendrick Lamar, MGMT, Grizzly Bear, Japandroids, The Walkmen, Django Django, Public Enemy, CHVRCHES, Amanda Palmer, Foxygen, Alabama Shakes, Toro y Moi, Dan Deacon, Action Bronson, The Avett Brothers, and more; and the headliners are Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Vampire Weekend, and Foster the People. The full lineup is below and you can watch the announcement video at their website. TIckets go on general sale Thursday (2/21).

Firefly happens a couple weeks after NYC festival Governors Ball, which has some lineup similarities (Kendrick Lamar, Grizzly Bear, Japandroids, Avett Brothers, etc). That one goes down on Randall's Island from June 7 - 9 and tickets are still available.

Firefly lineup below...

Continue reading "Firefly Music Festival announces 2013 lineup (Vampire Weekend, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Passion Pit, Kendrick Lamar, MGMT, Grizzly Bear, Japandroids, Tom Petty, RHCP & more)"

by Andrew Sacher

Back in May 2012, Brooklyn producer Baauer (aka 23-year old Harry Rodrigues) released the single "Harlem Shake" on Mad Decent imprint Jeffree's. It was a solid single and one of the more memorable dance tracks of 2012, but I don't think any of us had any idea that almost a year later, it would become one of the biggest memes on the internet. If you haven't seen it yet (aka if you haven't been on a computer in two weeks), it's a video meme that's been blowing up YouTube (something like, oh you know, 4,000 videos uploaded in a day reaching over 40 million total views) that lasts about 30 seconds and features one person dancing in a crowded room to "Harlem Shake" and then once the bass drops, the whole room joins in. The "Harlem Shake dance" that they do isn't the "Harlem Shake" that the hip hop community knows dates back 30 years, but pretty much just a bunch of people going crazy. And it's been done by everyone from Matt & Kim to The Daily Show to The Today Show. Videos of those three are below, if you wanna see more, try YouTube.

So how did any of this happen anyway? Well FADER has laid out a comprehensive history of the meme, discussing the meme, its inventor, 19-year old film hobbyist Filthy Frank, Baauer, the real "Harlem Shake" dance, how Baauer actually feels about it, and if he's making any money from it.

And the memes are leading to other uses of the song too. Azealia Banks, who was supposed to release her debut full length this week but didn't, decided to record herself rapping over the beat, but Baauer's since had the track removed. Azealia questioned him on Twitter, "@baauer why you coccblockin tho??? Lmaoooooo" to which Baauer simply responded "cause its not ur song lol." Azealia then backfired "you're a pussy. You don't belong in hip hop" and Baauer has yet to respond, but Azealia's old pal Perez Hilton stepped in, causing Azealia to call him a "faggot" again. Perez then tweeted "Ugh. There you go again with the F word. Showing your true colors. You are so parched."

As mentioned, Baauer is on tour with veteran producer Just Blaze (and collaborating with him too) and that tour comes to NYC TONIGHT (2/15) for a show at Webster Hall. Once Baauer's fame picked up, tickets started going fast for that one and now it's sold out, but you might still be able to get VIP tickets.

Videos below...

Continue reading "everyone's doing the "Harlem Shake"; Baauer deleted Azealia Banks' version off soundcloud, sold out Webster Hall"

Says the PR

On the heels of a highly successful, critically acclaimed sold-out 2012 festival, the Sasquatch! Music Festival unveils its 2013 lineup, which once again features 4 days of music. The festival, hailed as "a model of well-paced programming...in a four-day schedule as efficient and natural feeling as an expertly built algorithm" by NPR Music while Wired notes, "leave the landscape out of it and Sasquatch! has a lineup to kill for," runs May 24-27 (Memorial Day Weekend) at The
Gorge, the internationally acclaimed concert venue carved in the basalt cliffs high above the Columbia River Gorge in Quincy, WA.

Continue reading "Sasquatch! Music Festival 2013 lineup is here"

Governors Ball, which started as a small NYC festival on Governors Island and moved to the larger Randall's Island last year, keeps getting bigger and bigger. This year's fest takes place June 7th, 8th & 9th, and tickets go on sale Friday. Check out the full lineup, in list, video and flyer format - one unannounced headliner included, below...

Continue reading "Governors Ball 2013 lineup (Kanye West, Kings of Leon, Grizzly Bear, xx, Cut Copy, Kendrick, Anco, Beach House & MUCH MORE)"

by Andrew Sacher

Not to turn into Perez Hilton or anything, but the same day we get the news that Justin Timberlake, another pop star who actually puts out great music, is releasing new material, Beyonce announced on facebook that Destiny's Child have recorded their first original song in eight years and Pharrell produced it. The song will appear on Love Songs, the upcoming Destiny's Child compilation which is due out on January 29 via Sony Legacy and can be pre-ordered now. The tracklist is below.

In related news, Beyonce, who is about to perform at the Super Bowl on February 3, but not until after she sings the National Anthem at President Obama's inauguration ceremony on January 21, said in an interview with GQ that she'll have her new album out "as early as April" and will go on a world tour in support of it. The album may or may not include her rumored sequel to her collaboration with Lady Gaga, "Telephone." (And that song may or may not also feature Azealia Banks.)

The album will follow 2011's 4, much of which saw Beyonce stripping back her sound and pulling more from '70s soul than contemporary R&B, but it also contained "Countdown," which is up there as one of Beyonce's greatest pop singles, and just one of the greatest pop singles of recent years in general.

The video for "Countdown" and the video for Destiny's Child's "Survivor" below...

Continue reading "Destiny's Child reuniting for a new single; Beyonce will release her new album "as early as April""

by Andrew Sacher

Angel Haze

As you may know, Angel Haze and Azealia Banks got in a Twitter fight yesterday (1/3) which resulted in Angel Haze releasing a diss track aimed at Azealia. Azealia Banks responded today with the Machinedrum-produced "No Problems" and tweeted, "Lol I def used that energy to write a fly new jam tho. It's not even really a diss anymore! Haha !!!"

...well Angel Haze thinks it's still a diss because she already responded with a second diss track called "Shut the Fuck Up" and the message, "you get an unmastered diss...you aint worth my studio time." Choice lyric: "How much twitter feed does it take to wanna make you get into the studio and come up with a different flow, not try to recreate '212,' the only shit you know." Damn.

Listen to both tracks below...

Continue reading "Azealia Banks responds to Angel Haze's diss track (and Angel Haze responds right back)"

Things move quick on the internet, including fights. It was just this morning that Azealia Banks tweeted, "Seriously, if you were not born and raised in NY.... DON'T CLAIM NY. YOU ARE NOT A NEW YORKER." Angel Haze apparently took this to be a direct shot at her and her track "New York" and a Twitter fight ensued. (Some of the exchange was deleted, but Complex has the whole thing here.) Angel Haze posted a new track at 4PM on her SoundCloud called "On the Edge," a dis track absolutely pointed at Azelea, following up by saying she banged it out in, "20 minutes. It took me nothing but a hairflip...a real one." Zing! You can stream it below. A comeback track by Banks seems likely, no?

Meanwhile, Azealia Banks recently released a new track, "BBD," from her oft-delayed debut album Broke with Expensive Taste (currently due out February 12), and you can stream that below too.

Continue reading "Angel Haze and Azealia Banks get in Twitter fight; Haze cranks out a Banks diss track (stream)"

Love it or loathe it, New Year's Eve is coming. Here are some of this year's NYC concert options, of which there are many.

One of the biggest shows of the night is Coldplay and Jay-Z at Barclays Center. If you've seen pictures of Coldplay's tour this year, you know they have this bluetooth controlled, light-up wristbands that (no matter how you feel about their music) makes for a spectacular interactive experience. And certainly Jay-Z will throw a good party at his own house.

Jay-Z's pal Kanye West is doing a three-night run in Atlantic City right before NYE (12/28-30) at Revel. Tickets for those shows are still available.

Another hip hop option includes Nas at Radio City Music Hall that also features Elle Varner. Tickets are still available.

Azealia Banks is playing a black tie party on top of The Standard Hotel (aka Boom Boom Room). More info is at the facebook event. You can RSVP for tickets ($250 minimum) by emailing unifiedpromo@unifiedpromo.com.

Also in the biggest NYE show race there is also Phish's sold-out night at MSG, part of a four night run at the venue.

If jam bands are your thing, you might also want to catch The Disco Biscuits, who kick off their four-night run at Best Buy Theater tonight (12/26) and then play NYE at The Theatre at MSG (tickets).

Another jammy option is Gov't Mule's two-night run at Beacon Theatre (12/30-31). Tickets for both nights are on sale.

If you're more into dancing, RJD2 will be DJing at Gramercy Theater with Com Truise and Chrome Sparks; and Moby and many others will be DJing at an as-yet undisclosed location (tickets).

Pretty Lights is also doing two sold nights at Roseland Ballroom (12/30-31). Another dance option that you might want to avoid is Afrojack is playing two nights on Pier 94 (12/30-31), but it's worth mentioning that if you get there early on night 1, you can catch opening sets by Diplo and Rusko. Night 2 (aka NYE) is sold out but night 1 is still on sale.

Brooklyn dance party The Bunker is throwing an event at the 70 N 6 St loft (above Public Assembly) with John Roberts, Mike Parker, Bryan Kasenic, and Mike Servito. Tickets for that party are on sale now.

Downstairs at the actual Public Assembly, Gaze 4 Daze is throwing two queer parties. Room 1 has DJ sets by Rizzla, Sebastian, and D'Hana, along with Emcee Ryann Supamakenzi and host Cherlyn. In room 2, they've got MIchael Magnan, Amber Valentine, Telfar, Mursi Layne, host Helen Harris, and live performances by House of Ladosha, Cakes Da Killa, and Abdu Ali. $10 at the door gets you into both parties.

Brooklyn warehouse party group Rubulad is presenting "Party-Go-Round" in three separate secret Bushwick locations near the Jefferson L stop. There will be live music by Friend Roulette, Not Waving but Drowning, Viva, and more; dance parties with music by DJ Shakey, Ol' Stark, DJ Mojo, $mall ¢hange and more; a puppet show, a midnight champagne toast, and more. Admission is $20, the events start at 9 PM, and there will be a party bus to navigate between the three locations.

Matthew Dear and Superpitcher are at Le Bain (tix); Ian Pooley, Pat Mahoney and more at Cameo; Onra, Nick Catchdubs, and Samo Sound Boy are at Williamsburg's Villian (tickets).

Holy Ghost! and Midnight Magic are at Brooklyn Bowl (sold out) and after that, Holy Ghost!'s DFA labelmate Juan Maclean will DJ an afterparty at the same venue (tickets).

Chris Keating of Yeasayer is DJing a BangOn!NYC-presented party at a secret warehouse location in Williamsburg near the Montrose L stop with Felix Cartal, Chordashian, Alex English, Sean Glass, and many others. There will also be live music by Carousel, Suntalk, and more TBA, art installations, an inflatable obstacle course, food trucks, and more. Tickets (more info at that link) are on sale and RSVP is open. Location will be revealed with the purchase of tickets or an RSVP.

If you'd rather dance to classic soul and R&B, there's New York Night Train Annual Dusk Till Dawn New Year's Ball at Home Sweet Home featuring a live performance from Kid Congo and the K-Holes, plus Jonathan Toubin and a crew of DJs.

For the indie rock inclined, you could go see Titus Andronicus at Glasslands which is a pretty small venue for them these days. While So So Glos were originally on the bill for this, they have since dropped off. Dapwell, formerly of Das Racist, is your MC for the evening and tickets are still available.

Right next door at 285 Kent, Florida's (awesomely) mopey Merchandise will visit,  plus Blanche Blanche Blanche, Tonstartssbandht and "speciial guests" (note the two ii's is "speciial") will surely be a wild night. Dive in, tickets ($20) are on sale now.

After that, DJ Rashad, DJ Manny, Sasha Go Hard, and others will play an afterparty at 285 Kent (tickets).

Psychic Ills and Herb Craft are playing Saint Vitus. Tickets for that show are on sale.

Also happening in Williamsburg, They Might be Giants play a sold-out show at Music Hall of Williamsburg (one of three shows there that week; Reverend Vince Anderson and His Love Choir will be at Union Pool (free); and at Knitting Factory it's a night of cabaret hosted by the great Murray Hill (tix).

More indie rock: Blonde Redhead and Beach Fossils are at Irving Plaza. Tickets are still available and you can also win a pair from us.

Swimming Cities and Gowanus Ballroom (55 9th St) are presenting The First Party Ever: Primal Reset for the Year Zero with dance parties by Barney Iller, DJ Shakey, and DJ Tinseltown; live music at midnight by Stumblebum Brass Band; an open bar from 11:30-12:30; visuals; "Serret's patented coal fire hot tub time machine"; "Live birth of the antichrist, according to Doctor Adventure"; and more. $15 tickets are on sale now (or $20 at the door, cash only) and all proceeds go to recovery at Serret Metal Works and the "BOATEL" art hotel project in Far Rockaway that were damaged during Hurricane Sandy.

Meanwhile across the Hudson, The Hold Steady will ring in 2013 with Lucero at The Wellmont Theatre in NJ. Tickets are still available.

Before that, Lucero will do a two-night run at Brooklyn Bowl (12/28-29) with Nude Beach supporting on night 1 and Hollis Brown on night 2. Tickets for night 1, night 2, or both are still available.

Amanda Palmer will be at Terminal 5, playing Prince's Purple Rain in its entirety which will surely be a spectacle. She'll play a set of originals too. Tickets are still available.

If you'd like to party like it's 1929, Spirit Family Reunion are bringing the old time religion to Pianos. Tickets are still available, includes a champagne toast.

More rootsy options include The Punch Brothers and Michael Daves at Bowery Ballroom (sold out); and The Felice Brothers, Yellowbirds, and Mail the Horse at Mercury Lounge (sold out).

The Felice Brothers also play Maxwell's (12/30) a day earlier (sold out), and on New Year's Eve, the Hoboken venue will host "Maxwell's Rockin' & Rollin' Ass Kickin' New Year's Eve Dance Party feat. The Two Giants: Todd-O-Phonic Todd & Mono-O-Phonic Matt Porter." They get their name from being big San Francisco Giants fans, and they'll be spinning "some of the greatest soul, r'n'b, garage, rock'n'rol etc" all night. Admission is totally free, no cover.

My Morning Jacket is doing a sold out pre-New Year's Eve three-night run (12/27-29) at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester.

After that, Capitol Theatre will host Steve Miller Band on 12/30 (tickets) and funky METERS with Dumpstaphunk on NYE (tickets).

For some old school punk, Manitoba (the project of Dictators frontman Dick Manitoba) and Sylvain Sylvain (of New York Dolls) will play Bowery Electric with The A-Bones and Daddy Long Legs. Tickets for that show are on sale.

To keep the party going the next day, head to SOB's for Questlove's holiday party.

Whatever you end up doing, be safe!.

What did we miss?

Heading to Austin? We have a list of shows happening there too. Update: And Chicago too.

Continue reading "A guide to New Year's Eve shows and parties in NYC"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Ex Cops - Wonderful Christmas Time (MP3)

photo by Nanci Sarrouf

Admission. Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmas Time" is easily my most-hated holiday pop song. Repetive, grating, plodding, and seemingly recorded by accident, the song makes me want to suck a candycane into a point and gouge out my eardrums. (Unlike, say, The Waitresses' "Christmas Wrapping" which I can listen to ad infinitum.) So it's a Christmas miracle that Ex Cops have taken this unfortunate Macca yuletide perennial and sped it up, turned it up and transformed it into a rough-hewn little indiepop charmer. We've got the premiere of the song right here in the post to download above or stream below. Merry Ex-mas.

Another present you're going to have to wait a bit for is Ex Cops terrific debut album, True Hallucinations, which hits January 22 via Other Music Recording Company. The band are playing a record release show at Glasslands that same day with Hunters also on the bill (tickets). After that, Ex Cops play Mercury Lounge on February 15 and tickets to that show are on sale at noon. You can see them sooner than that, though, as they were just added to tonight's Paul Banks show at Webster Hall (12/14) and tickets are still available.

Meanwhile Ex Cops' Brian Harding and Amalie Bruun have each submitted lists of their favorite songs from 2012. In a bit of daring, they both include their own single "You Are a Lion, I Am a Lamb" on their respective lists. Check them out below.

Continue reading "Ex Cops cover Paul McCartney, list Top 10 Songs of 2012, opening for Paul Banks + more NYC shows (dates, streams)"

by Andrew Sacher

More of the big 2012 year-end lists have been rolling in, with NPR and SPIN recently revealing theirs, and now Rolling Stone have unleashed theirs. Similarly to Uncut, the expected albums from older artists are there, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Leonard Cohen, Dr. John, and the number one slot going to Bruuuuuuuuuuuce. It's got huge albums like Mumford and Sons, Taylor Swift, and fun., as well as the token high ranking indie album (Japandroids at #9), the token washed up band who was once classic (Green Day), things you knew you'd see on Rolling Stone's list like Jack White and Alabama Shakes, and... Grimes!

You can read the whole list below...

Continue reading "Rolling Stone's Top 50 Albums of 2012"

Soundgarden in Atlantic City in 2011 (more by Dana (distortion) Yavin)

Death Grips @ LPR 10/17/2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

today in NYC
* Whiplash @ UCB
* Gaucho @ Barbes
* Pinback @ Irving Plaza
* Henry Rollins @ Joe's Pub
* Justin Bieber @ Barclays Center
* Jim Campilongo @ Living Room
* Madonna @ Madison Square Garden
* Chris Cornell @ Bowery Ballroom
* MillionYoung, Cameron McGill @ Pianos
* Phil Lesh & Friends @ Roseland Ballroom
* My Jerusalem, Dead Heart Bloom @ Mercury Lounge
* Fins, Ghost of a Chance, ZZZ's @ Death By Audio
* Angel Olsen, Magmana, Bird Call @ Glasslands Gallery
* Death Grips, Mykki Blanco @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Red Fang, Black Tusk, Indian Handcrafts @ Saint Vitus
* The Big Sleep, The Denzels, Life Size Maps @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Ed Askew, Yva Las Vegas, Supercute!, Pull My Daisy @ Zebulon
* Tristan Perich, Lesley Flanigan, Raft, Ben Sisto @ Public Assembly
* Wyatt Cenac, Gary Gulman, Jerrod Carmichael, Seaton Smith, Erin Judge @ Littlefield
* Revocation Plus a Life Once Lost, Ken Mode, Meek Is Murder @ Studio at Webster Hall
* Jonathan Ames, Henry Alford, Charles Star, Dan Wilbur, Amy Sohn + more @ Union Hall
* Brendan Kelly (The Lawrence Arms), Dave Hause (The Loved Ones/Paint in Black), Jenny Owen Youngs, Kyle Kinane @ Knitting Factory

Hurricane Sandy relief benefits tonight include Chris Cornell's solo show tonight Bowery Ballroom (he plays with Soundgarden tomorrow and Live on Letterman tonight, the latter of which streams live on CBS and VEVO); the Jonathan Ames, Amy Sohn, Henry Alford and more will be at Union Hall for a night of "words music and comedy"; and MillionYoung and Cameron McGill at Pianos.

Tonight's show at Public Assembly is an interesting one. The space used to be a mayonaise factory and two of the giant 20,000 gallong tanks remain perched in the ceiling of the main room. Tristan Perich, Lesley Flanigan, RAFT, and Ben Sisto will make music within those tanks with the audience below watching via projections. Should be quite a racket. The show is free, though a $5 donation is suggested. 8 PM, more info here.

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Azealia Banks just released a new video for her song "Atlantis" and you can watch that below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Monday?"

photos by Amanda Hatfield; words by Bill Pearis

Azealia Banks / Hunters at Wythe Hotel 9/5/2012

At yay high, Azealia Banks is a tiny little thing, about 50% weave and 50% moxie. I didn't really have much expectation for her live show, especially given the setting -- a blingy Fashion Week party thrown by SPIN and fashion website Refinery29 -- but she definitely brought it last night (9/5) Flanked by two black-clad dancers (evoking early '90s club music more than anything hip-hop), Banks worked the floor and oozed charisma for her short but energized set. The crowd even stopped snapping pics on their phones (and in a couple cases, iPads) to dance to "212" which explosively closed her set. I don't know what it's like seeing her in a real venue (I personally missed her Bowery Ballroom performance, one of the very few live shows she's played to date), but in an intimate setting like the hype is understandable.

Azealia is on the cover of the new issue of SPIN which is rumored to be its last print edition. "Thanks to SPIN," Banks said in between songs. "I believe this is your last visible cover and I'm glad to be on it." From Madonna in 1985 to Azealia Banks in 2012. She's performing again tonight (9/6), a free and open-to-the-public show at M.A.C. Soho (506 Broadway) as part of Fashion's Night Out. She's on at 7:30 (but get there early).

Banks wasn't the only performer at this Virgin Mobile-sponsored party, held at swanky boho Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg. Danceable punks Hunters put on another great set, despite most party attendees elbowing their way to the bar unaware a band was playing. As at our 480 Pixels party, platinum-pink-haired singer Isabel Almeida commanded attention, be it belting it out or writhing on the floor tangled in her mic cord.

In related news, Azealia Banks recently confirmed that she worked on a song with Lady Gaga, but is still not sure if it will end up on Gaga's upcoming album, ARTPOP (due out in 2013), which is "not just an album", but also an iPad/iPhone/mobile app (looks like someone's been listening to Bjork). That announcement comes only two weeks after Gaga confirmed she'd be recording a song with her friend Kendrick Lamar for his new album, good kid, m.A.A.d. city, which has been pushed back from its original release date of October 2 to October 22.

Meanwhile, Lady Gaga also has a huge international tour in the works in support of ARTPOP. She's on tour in Europe with The Darkness as we speak, and she'll return to our shores in 2013. While she's here, she'll hit NYC on February 22 at Madison Square Garden and March 6 at Barclays Center (which opens this month with eight shows by venue director Jay-Z). Tickets for those shows are not on sale yet, but check ticketmaster for updates.

All Lady Gaga tour dates and more pictures from the Azealia Banks and Hunters show are below.

Continue reading "Azealia Banks and Hunters played a Fashion Week party at the Wythe Hotel (pics); Lady Gaga announces tour (dates)"

UPDATE: We found even MORE

As mentioned, Thursday (9/5) is Fashion's Night Out. Basically another excuse to throw a party (in the name of bringing money and attention to fashion), the evening has become music-oriented in the last few years with bands playing stores all over New York City. There's a lot of stuff going on, including the Azealia Banks / DJ Cosmo performance at M.A.C. Soho we already told you about; plus Icona Pop and Maria Minerva at Urban Outfitters; Matchbox Twenty (!?!) at Bloomingdales; Haim at Topshop; La Sera at Helmut Lang; We Were Promised Jetpacks at Rockefeller Center; and Cyndi Lauper at Manolo Blahnik, just to name a few.

Below is a list of all the shows we could find with basic details and links where applicable/helpful. All shows are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. Many have free food and booze as well. For more into visit the Fashion's Night Out website. Let us know what we missed, in the comments.

Continue reading "Fashion's Night Out is Thursday -- a list of musical goings on (Chairlift, La Sera, Icona Pop, Haim, Maxwell, Cyndi Lauper & more)"

Tonight (9/5), Azealia Banks and Hunters are performing at an "invite-only", "entrance subject to capacity" party at the very-hot Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg which is being thrown by SPIN and fashion website Refinery29. The Virgin Mobile-sponsored show serves dual purposes, as Azealia is on the cover of the new print issue of SPIN and it's also a kickoff to Fashion Week here in NYC which, if you live here, you have probably already been hit over the head by media coverage (to which we're adding more). SPIN is going gaga for Fashion Week this year with a dedicated site that will offer video coverage with MNDR as one of their corespondents. The flyer for tonight's show is below.

Azealia will also be performing at a show you have a better shot of getting into, as part of Fashion's Night Out which happens Thursday (9/6) all over the city. (This, as you all know, is the only night of the year Fashion is allowed out in public in NYC.) Azealia and DJ Cosmo will perform at M.A.C. Soho (506 Broadway) at 7:45 PM though you'd do well to show up earlier than that if you want to get in.

There are dozens of FNO shows Thursday night and we'll have more on those very soon. Meanwhile, you can watch (or rewatch) Azealia's new video, "1991," below along with the flyer for tonight's soiree...

Continue reading "it's Fashion Week and Azealia Banks is performing twice (starting with a show tonight at the Wythe Hotel)"

today in NYC
* Joe Budden @ SOB's
* Willie Nile @ Joe's Pub
* Odd Future @ The Paramount
* Michael McNeill @ Barbes
* Holograms, Eraas @ Mercury Lounge
* The Mandingo Ambassadors @ Barbes
* Comic Book Club Live @ Fontana's
* The Noisy Toy Piano Orchestra @ The Stone
* Companion, Brazos, Pocket @ Knitting Factory
* Wifey, Kwame and the Uptown Shakedown @ Mercury Lounge
* Icewater, Strange Shapes, Wet, Sam Buck Rosen @ Big Snow
* Alvarius B, Samara Lubelski, Marcia Bassett @ Union Pool
* Mail The Horse, Everest Cale, Giving Up, Meah! @ Death By Audio
* Blag Dhalia (The Dwarves), Turbo AC's, The Threads @ The Bowery Electric
* Bob Dylan @ The Capitol Theatre (Port Chester)
* Diamond Terrifier, Future Shuttle, Okkyung Lee, Aaron Rosenblum @ Zebulon
* The Loom, Group of Altos, Death Blues, Christopher Paul Stelling @ Glasslands
* Gregory Pepper & His Problems, Cars & Trains, David Ramos, King of Spain @ Pianos

Tonight's the first show at the newly-renovated Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY. Bob Dylan will break the place in.

BrooklynVegan photo show '480 Pixels' is still available to see at 92YTrbeca until Thursday, but not today. Wed and Thurs. hours are noon-7pm.

Sweden's Holograms are in town, playing their first NYC show at Mercury Lounge tonight. We like their debut album a lot which you can stream via Spotify.

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You can stream the new xx album, Coexist, at NPR; and you can stream the new Raveonettes' album, Observator, at Rolling Stone.

Azealia Banks debuted her new video, "1991," over Labor Day weekend. You can watch it below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday?"

Kreayshawn is set to release her debut album, Somethin 'Bout Kreay, on September 18, instead of August 14 as originally planned, via Columbia and it will feature guest spots from 2 Chainz, Diplo, Sissy Nobby, Kid Cudi, and others. That's the cover art above and you can check out the tracklist below. In support of it she'll be going on the ALL GIRL aka GROUP HUG TOUR with Rye Rye, Honey Cocaine, and Chippy Nonstop. That tour hits NYC on November 15 at Irving Plaza. Tickets for that show are on sale now. The full list of dates is still TBA.

In related news, Azealia Banks, who dissed Kreayshawn on twitter earlier this year, recently apologized, tweeting, "I apologize for coming down on you so hard earlier this year," and Kreayshawn responded, "It's all G! I fux with you music above all!" Kreayshawn then spoke to MTV about the apology:

"I went to her Mermaid Ball show in LA because a lot of my homegirls were performing," Kreayshawn said. "She ended up hitting me up a couple of weeks after and said, 'I really wanna publicly apologize,' and I [thought that was] really dope."

"I think it's cool because there's so many girls looking up to everyone that all the beef tears our fans apart," the rapper continued. People feel like, 'I have to be this person's fan and hate on this person.' So I think it shows that you can forgive people, you can apologize to people, you can realize you're wrong and it shows camaraderie for all girls. It's for girl power."

Angel Haze, like Azealia Banks, got her start in NYC on a Beggars-related label (Azealia on XL, Angel on True Panther), and she recently announced that she has signed to major label, Universal (Island in the UK), making her labelmates with Azealia Banks. As mentioned, Angel Haze's next NYC show happens on August 29 at SOB's. Tickets for that show are on sale now.

Meanwhile, Azealia Banks' debut LP for Universal, Broke With Expensive Taste, which was supposed to come out this fall, has been pushed back to February, 2013. Check out her recent video for "Van Vogue" off the 1991 EP, which was released in June, below.

Azealia Banks has also recently made a fan out of Shirley Manson of Garbage (who are reunited with a new album and have been touring all year). In an interview with IFC, Shirley was asked about her opinion on the rise of female rappers:

My favorite out of those is Azealia Banks. The first time I heard "212? I almost died. It felt dangerous and exciting and really fresh and I have a little crush on Kreayshawn, too. But I don't know if those girls are getting time on the radio. It's great that they are getting played via YouTube or Tumblr, but I want them on the radio. Like in the 90s when Missy Elliott was getting played. You know, it's hard out there right now for women with attitude.

Speaking of rappers getting played via YouTube or Tumblr, Kitty Pryde (pictured with Doom above) is on tour and she plays NYC TONIGHT (8/22) at Santos Party House (she hears Andrew WK owns it). Since we last spoke, Lakutis (who also plays as part of a stacked lineup at Glasslands in September) was added to tonight's bill. Tickets for the show are still available.

Also, next week at Santos (8/30) is the next Shortcuts party with Kreayshawn collaborator Riff Raff and Meyhem Lauren (Angel Haze played the last one). Tickets for that show are still available.

Speaking of Meyhem Lauren (a man) and rappers signing to major labels (Action Bronson), Action Bronson, Meyhem Lauren, and Tanya Morgan (a group of men) play a free NYC show this week and we're giving away VIP tickets.

House of Ladosha, who play 285 Kent on Saturday (8/25), also play Santos next month (9/20) with SSION and TEETH (tickets).

LE1F has been added to the upcoming Big Freedia show on a boat. Tickets are still on sale and stay tuned for a ticket contest for this show coming later in another BrooklynVegan post.

Kreayshawn tracklist and Azealia Banks video below...

Continue reading "Kreayshawn, Azealia Banks, Angel Haze, Kitty Pryde & friends -- signing deals, playing shows"

by Andrew Sacher

Araabmuzik at Pitchfork Fest 2012 (more by James Richards IV)

Summerstage hooked up with Red Bull Music Academy to add a last minute (and really great) show to their 2012 schedule. On August 20 at East River Park they'll be presenting a free show with Araabmuzik, Flosstradamus, Teengirl Fantasy, and Nick Hook (of Cubic Zirconia). The show goes from 6 to 9 PM.

You may remember that Araabmuzik was supposed to play a Summerstage show back in June but cancelled. Hopefully everything goes as planned for this one. Araabmuzik just lent his production to Azealia Banks for her new song, "Succubi," which you can stream below.

For Teengirl Fantasy, the show is part of a tour they're on now and happens three days before the album release party for their new record, Tracer, aboard a Rocks Off Cruise (8/23) with Lemonade (tickets). Tracer drops next week (8/21), but NPR is streaming it in full a week ahead of its release. As mentioned, four of the ten tracks feature guest vocals (from Kelela, Panda Bear, Laurel Halo, and Romanthanony [the voice of Daft Punk's "One More Time"]) and those are balanced out by some pretty great instrumentals. The whole thing is really cohesive and has more of an album flow than their debut. Check it out for yourself.

Meanwhile, you can also catch Flosstradamus in NYC when they play with Rustie at the previously discussed Webster Hall show on September 7. Tickets for that show are still available.

All lists of updated dates and the new Azealia Banks song are below...

Continue reading "Araabmuzik, Teengirl Fantasy, Flosstradamus and Nick Hook playing free show in East River Park (updated dates & streams)"

Cloud Nothings at Central Park last Saturday (more by Chris La Putt)

today in NYC
* DIIV @ The Hester
* Andy Statman @ Barbes
* Guards (DJ) @ Ace Hotel
* Questlove @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Charles Perry @ Joe's Pub
* The Spanish Donkey @ The Stone
* Stevie Nicks @ Mohegan Sun (CT)
* Erika Spring @ Ivana Helsinki
* Cloud Nothings, DIIV @ 285 Kent
* The English Beat @ The Bell House
* Dusted, Happy New Year @ Cake Shop
* Booga Sugar @ Rocks Off Concert Cruise
* Loser's Lounge @ Midsummer Night Swing
* H2O, 7 Seconds, Tournament @ House of Vans
* Dan Deacon, John Maus, Roomrunner @ Pier 84
* Shemekia Copeland, NRBQ @ MetroTech Commons
* Young Empires, The Suzan, Humans @ Glasslands
* New York Philharmonic @ Cunningham Park in Queens
* Matt Darriau's Yo Lateef meets Nigun @ Barbes
* Filter, Fuel, Slunt, Static Summer @ Irving Plaza
* Start Making Sense (Talking Heads cover band) @ Rocks Off Concert Cruise
* Steve Baczkowski, Bill Nace, Chris Corsano @ The Stone
* Chicha Libre, Karikatura, People's Champs @ SOB'S
* Spoek Mathambo, Pegasus Warning @ Le Poisson Rouge
* Nouvellas, Fletcher C. Johnson, The Waivers @ Union Pool
* George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic @ Rockefeller Park
* Paperhead, D. Watusi, Turnip King, Strip Mall @ Death By Audio
* Five O'Clock Heroes, Eytan & The Embassy, Basik @ Bowery Electric
* Hop Along, Norwegian Arms, Savages (NYC) @ Big Snow Buffalo Lodge
* DJ Chuck Chillout, DJ Uncle Ralph, DJ Sucio Smash @ Public Assembly
* Grandfather, The Hobs, Chumps, Man Made Sun, Mandy Lee, Ashtree @ Pianos
* Steve Earle, Rachael Yamagata, The Wood Brothers, Allen Toussaint @ City Winery
* Neko Case, Charles Bradley, He's My Brother She's My Sister @ World Financial Center
* Gloria Gaynor, The Village People, The Trammps, Rose Royce @ Seaside Summer Concerts
* Vast Aire, OutofaWhole, Kenyattah Black, Kev Bars, Warlock Asylum @ The Studio at Webster Hall
* Island Twins, Scott & Charlene's Wedding, Alex Bleeker & The Freaks, Pale Lights @ Shea Stadium
* Madam Robot and the Lust Brigade, Pants Velour, Your 33 Black Angels, The Sanctuaries @ The Paper Box
* Miho Hatori's New Optimism, Zs, Bachanalia, JG Thirlwell (DJ), Ann Liv Young @ Secret Project Robot
* The Bj Rubin Show, American Liberty League, Sexy Thoughts, Moppa Elliott's Tragedy and Statistics @ Zebulon
* Seth Faergolzia, Berth Control, Alyson Greenfield, You Scream I Scream, NYBD (New York Bike Dance) @ Knitting Factory

"To Kill a Mockingbird" screens in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

"Fantastic Mr. Fox" screens for free in Tompkins Square Park.

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A few weeks back, Chief Keef made his NYC debut at SOB's. While he was here, he made a video of his promo run through the city. Check it out below.

Mariachi El Bronx covered The Decemberists' "Los Angeles, I'm Yours" for AV Undercover. Watch the video of that below.

Check out a video below of Aziz Ansari, Reggie Watts, Nick Kroll, Jason Woliner, and more discussing LCD Soundsystem for LCD + THE HITS, the second in a four-part series surrounding LCD's new documentary, Shut Up and Play the Hits, which premiered in NYC this past Tuesday (7/10), and gets a national premiere on Wednesday, July 18.

In related news, LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy was on 'Fallon' last night to talk about the documentary, jam with The Roots and more. Watch a video of that below.

Azealia Banks' Fantasea mixtape is out now. Download it for free at her twitter.

Faith No More covered Jay-Z and Kanye West's "Niggas in Paris" at a recent live show. A video of that is below.

tUnE-yArDs made a mix for okayafrica of primarily East African music which has influenced her own. You can stream it or download it for free below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Thursday?"

by Andrew Sacher

Nicki MInaj, who was scheduled to headline Hot 97 Summer Jam at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ last night (6/3), cancelled her performance due to a diss made by Hot 97 DJ Peter Rosenberg, while he was introducing Kendrick Lamar's set at the pre-show. Rosenberg said, "I know there are some chicks in here waiting to sing along with 'Starships' later. I'm not talking to y'all right now. Fuck that bullshit. I'm here to talk about real hip hop shit." Video footage of that is below.

Not long after that diss, Lil Wayne took to twitter, saying "Young Money ain't doing summer jam." Nicki then followed with "Wow. U niggaz just fucked up history. But the President has spoken. ‪#YMCMB‬" and "I go above and beyond for my fans. But won't ever go against wayne's word. What he says, goes." Young Money rapper Tyga went through with his performance, but Nicki refused to take the stage.

Needless to say, Nicki was given immediate backlash. Funkmaster Flex dissed her, saying "we ain't fucking with commercial rappers no more" (video below) and a PIX11 news report has footage of fans who came from Georgia lashing out too (video below). Maybe Rosenberg should have thought twice before dissing the headliner of his own radio station's show, but he made the comment at the pre-show, which hosted less commercial rappers like Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q, ASAP Rocky, Azealia Banks, and Big KRIT, where a comment like that isn't so out of line. Plus, was that diss really grounds for canceling an entire performance, especially one that thousands of fans probably dropped a good chunk of their paycheck on?

Nicki's set was reportedly supposed to include a number of guest appearances including veterans Nas and Lauryn Hill (who played HIghline Ballroom the night before). Nas and Lauryn took Nicki's place and delivered a performance of their own at the festival, which you can watch video of below. With all the positive reactions to her Highline show and the Summer Jam performance, Lauryn Hill seems to have had one hell of a weekend in NYC.

Azealia Banks at Bowery Ballroom (via)

In related news, Azealia Banks played Bowery Ballroom at night after her set at the Summer Jam pre-show. Though doors were at 7PM, she didn't take the stage until 1 AM. (Though that set time was pretty well known in advance.) If you were at the show, was her set worth the wait? From the looks of the YouTube videos, the crowd was into it. Those Bowery performance videos are below.

Videos below...

Continue reading "Nicki Minaj canceled Summer Jam because of a diss; Nas and Lauryn Hill played instead +++ Azealia Banks played Bowery Ballroom after pre-show (videos)"

today in NYC
* ASSSSCAT 3000 @ UCB
* Raskolnikov @ Barbes
* Liz Phillips @ Roulette
* Alan Doyle @ City Winery
* Fiona Silver @ Ace Hotel
* Stephanie Wrembel @ Barbes
* Brooklyn Open Studios Weekend
* Songwriters Salon @ Fort Useless
* Pretty Good Friends @ Union Hall
* Hannibal Buress @ Knitting Factory
* Larry G(ee), Recess @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Aabaraki, Emily King @ Mercury Lounge
* Hot 97 Summer Jam @ MetLife Stadium
* Chris Forsyth, The AM Group @ Union Pool
* Great Caesar, Art Decade @ Mercury Lounge
* David Garland, Joshua Stamper @ Joe's Pub
* Forrester/Johnston Duo @ The Manhattan Inn
* Omar Lords, Blushing, Body Parts @ Zebulon
* The Divorce, 6 & 7, We Are The Wilderness @ Cake Shop
* Eamon Harkin, Justin Carter, Jacob Korn @ Gowanus Grove
* Kopecky Family Band, MyNameIsJohnMichael @ The Rock Shop
* Endless Boogie, Learner Dancer, Dharana, Vacation Club @ Littlefield
* The Teetotallers, Martin Hayes, John Doyle, Kevin Crawford @ Joe's Pub
* Blondes, Holy Ghost! (DJ set), JDH & Dave P, Paul Raffaele @ Dekalb Market
* Marduk, 1349, Withered, Weapon, Mutant Supremacy @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Life Size Maps, Mala Strana, Future Twin, Weird Rivers @ Big Snow Buffalo Lodge
* Killer Bob, Gym, Deer, Jonah Parzen-Johnson, The Due Diligence @ Death By Audio
* Minor Arcana, Shivering Brigade, Mindtroll, Ross Bellenoit and the Goods @ Glasslands
* Dan Neustadt plays Weezer ("Blue Album") and Radiohead's OK Computer @ Le Poisson Rouge
* Joseph Keckler, Bambi, The Idiot, Trystan Trazon, Melaena Cadiz, B0DY H1GH @ Cameo Gallery
* Knife Party, Alex English, Hellfire Machina, Nick Catchdubs, Sazon Booya @ Beekman Beer Garden
* Phill Niblock, Bonnie Jones & Jason Lescaleet, David First, Michael Waller, David Watson @ Pianos
* Azealia Banks, Cosmo, Maluca, Tigga Calore, WcKids (DJ set), House of Ladosha, Roxy Cottontail (DJ set) @ Bowery Ballroom

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Azealia Banks, who plays the Hot 97 Summer Jam pre-show today, and Bowery Ballroom at night, released the 1991 EP last week. Stream it in full at Hypetrak.

It's also the Season 2 finale of HBO's Game of Thrones. Will heads roll?

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Sunday?"

As mentioned, Azealia Banks revealed on twitter that she will play a show at Bowery Ballroom on June 3 after playing Hot 97 Summer Jam earlier that day. Bowery Ballroom confirmed the show soon after, and now the full lineup for that show, billed as "Mermaid Ball," has been revealed. As seen in the picture above, it includes Maluca, Wckids, Tigga Calore, House of Ladosha, special guest Leiomy of Vogue Revolution, plus styling by Cuntmafia, narration by Jack Mizrahi, and host Roxy Cottontail. There will also be a $1,000 cash giveaway to the person with the best mermaid costume (should make up for those scalper prices).

Tickets go on sale today (5/24) at noon. Good luck.