Mark Sultan in Austin (more by Tim Griffin)

Back in October, even before he played the Norton party at The Bell House, Mark Sultan (aka BBQ) told Spinner:

"I understand and appreciate instantaneous music and artforms in general," he maintains. "But I will say a lot of that is so phony to me. To talk about dubstep, for example: Maybe that's cutting edge for the next month in Williamsburg, but the fact is, I call bulls--- and I don't believe you. I think you're doing that just to be part of something that's popular for the moment, and if you want to take art as disposable fashion, that's your business. But I don't."

To be clear, I don't even know dubstep. I am a hypocrite. I also like to lie. Live however you wanna live. I realize it's better to print the worst parts of interviews, but I honestly don't think I am better or worse than anyone - just living my life. I enjoy being facetious and if that gets you to listen to my music, I'm happy, cuz it seems there is no other way.

Xray Eyeballs also play the Cake Shop show tonight, either before or after they play Brooklyn Bowl with the Dum Dum Girls (yes, they play twice tonight). Speaking of, the above picture was actually taken at a show in Austin that Mark played with the Dum Dum Girls.

Mark has a new video for "Graveyard Eyes" that features Jared Swilley of the Black Lips. You can watch it below...

Continue reading "Prince of dubstep Mark Sultan is on tour, back in NYC, plays with Xray Eyeballs (at one of their two shows)"

photos by Jason House

Great Gaylord @ the Bell House

After a raucous, sold-out first night of Norton's 25th Anniversary celebration at the Bell House, the party continued at the Brooklyn venue on Friday (11/11) where once again the night was opened by The Nor-Tones ("Norton's all-employee band includes members of the Little Killers, Daddy Long Legs, Stalkers, Girls At Dawn and LiveFastDie playing the hits of the Norton catalog.")

Night two also featured a set by mysterious cover band the Condo Fucks (aka Yo La Tengo) with Great Gaylord ("the Greatest Lousy Singer of all time"?). For the Condo Fucks it was their second NYC show in a short amount of time, though their first one at Mercury Lounge was sans Gaylord. Yo La Tengo will play eight more sold out shows over Hanukkah at Maxwell's (where Sunday's Norton show headliner The Sonics played on Saturday).

Also on the Friday night bill, some of which fell under the "R&B/Soul revue" umbrella, was Jackie and the Cedrics, a new lineup of Greg Cartwright's band Reigning Sound (featuring members of The Jay Vons), Mark Sultan (aka BBQ whose old partner King Khan played the night before), Lonnie Youngblood and the Bloodhounds with special guest Mick Collins (of the Gories and the Dirtbombs) on guitar, The Mighty Hannibal, Andre Williams (who also stopped by the night before), and Happy Organ man Dave "Baby" Cortez on keys.

More pictures and videos from most of Friday's bash, below...

Continue reading "Norton Records party @ the Bell House - night 2 pics & video (Condo Fucks, Reigning Sound, Mark Sultan, Mighty Hannibal & more)"

photos by Tim Griffin

Mark Sultan @ the Mohawk

Mark Sultan (also known as BBQ) is welcoming three new releases via In The Red in October. Two are vinyl LPs titled Whenever I Want and Whatever I Want, and one is an abridged version called Whatever / Whenever, seven songs from each combined on one CD, due on 10/25. Check out "Song in Grey" from Whatever I Want and the companion CD, below.

Sultan will celebrate with a string of North American dates that will kick off just two days later, heading from coast to coast and including a stop in Puerto Rico. Look for Mark Sultan to hit NYC at The Bell House on November 11 (part of the Norton Records anniversary celebration) and Cake Shop on December 1. All tour dates are below.

In related news, Mark Sultan recently reunited with his former bandmates in Les Sexareenos at Pop Montreal over the weekend. Sultan describes the reunion as "just a bunch of friends playing for kicks" but hints at a possible new single in the works.

Sultan also recently performed his second show ever as The Ding Dongs, his band with Bloodshot Bill (who plays the Norton party at the Bell House with The Sonics). The "newly revamped" Sultan Records will release a four-song EP from The Ding Dongs in the near future, though no definite date has been released.

Sultan recently opened for the Dum Dum Girls at the Mohawk in Austin. A set of unpublished pictures from that show is also in this post. More of them with the song and dates below...

Continue reading "Mark Sultan releasing stuff, touring (new song, dates & a set of belated pics from the Mohawk)"

So much shit is coming up for me this year. I am pretty excited. Let's see... By the time anyone reads this, you may know that The King Khan & BBQ Show played a secret (albeit chaotic and disasterous, but FUN) reunion show in Venice, Italy. We are both back to 'normal' and are brothers once more. Expect a new single this fall, I think. We discussed it. Even some Almighty Defenders talk.... Who knows about that one, though. So, ya, I will be playing a few random shows in June in a few US cities and also a couple in Mexico. Two new albums are coming out for me this year on In The Red. The first, 'Whatever I Want', will have 14 songs and come with free download code to side A of my album '$' from last year, which was handled horribly and which I now have back as my own. Maybe people will actually find it when In The Red rereleases the vinyl next year. The second album, 'Whenever I Want', will come out at the end of 2011. It contains 12 songs and has free download codes to side B of '$'. The CD version of it is 14 songs long and will be a mix of stuff from both albums. Guests include: Jared and Cole from Black Lips, Choyce, Erin from The Spits, Danny from The Gories and more! Covers of Ultravox, Four Lords, The Stains, etc..! I'll also be putting songs up online incrementally in the future on my website. Dunno if I'll bother announcing them.
Somewhere in the midst of all of that will be a split 7" on Hozac with Black Lips, as well as a 7" EP on my label! Yes, I have revamped the damn thing - Sultan Records - and will start releasing stuff SOON. First few things: my 7" EP, a Black Lips/ King Khan & The Shrines 7", and hopefully something by Red Mass. Nice! Also this summer, recording a new Dong-Dongs album with Bloodshot Bill, I think. In September, shows in Brazil, Chile and Peru. And then in the Fall, a fullscale US tour, including Alaska and Puerto Rico (hopefully). Lastly, don't forget to get my 'Calloused Hands/Git It' limited, hand screened, coloured vinyl etc 7" OUT NOW here. - Mark Sultan

BBQ also announed a US mini-tour which includes a NYC date at Knitting Factory on June 24th with Bleeding Knees Club, and Daddy Long Legs. Tickets are on sale. All dates and a video below.

King Khan also has some dates coming up though none on the east coast, unless you cound Bruise Cruise 2012 which sails out of Florida. All of his date also below...

Continue reading "BBQ aka Mark Sultan is friends with King Khan again, releasing stuff, playing shows (dates)"

by BBG

Hunx & His Punx shows the crowd what hes made of (more by Jake Forney)

Hunx and His Punx will bring their zebra-stripe undergarments and trouser snake to NYC on Saturday (10/16), where they'll team up with The Babies + K Holes for night of sexy at Cake Shop. The east coast date is their only live date.

Hunx & His Punx's last show on 10/10 was billed as their "last California show of the year" and featured BBQ (Mark Sultan) on the bill. This time Hunx will go head-to-head with the one-man-band who will bless Mercury Lounge that same night with Two Tears (tickets). The Mercury Lounge show is an early one though (show at 8:30), so with some luck you should be able to catch both BBQ and Hunx & His Punx (doors at 8, and three bands). Cake Shop is right around the corner from Mercury Lounge. More BBQ dates HERE and below.

If you do opt for the double-header on Saturday you will most likely miss all of BBQ's ex-partner-in-crime (literally?) King Khan, as King Khan & the Shrines will be playing Bell House with Live Fast Die that same night (tickets). So if you need your dose of turbans and zebra-prints, then at least you can catch King Khan at Santos the night before (Friday, 10/15) (tickets) with Gentleman Jesse & His Men and Golden Triangle. All dates below.

Golden Triangle will be busy in the coming couple of weeks as well, playing two CMJ shows in addition to their previously discussed support appearance with Crocodiles at Maxwell's on 10/29 (tickets). Look for the band to play the Hardly Art show at Shea Stadium on 10/21 with Woven Bones, Circle Pit, La Sera (aka Katy Goodman of Vivian Girls & All Saints Day), and Xray Eyeballs in addition to a 10/22 show at Live With Animals with Human Eye, Greg Ashley Band, and TV Baby. Full Golden Triangle dates are below.

None of these dates will feature Red Mass, who recently played NYC x2 in addition to a string of dates with King Khan. But Red Mass will also be in NYC next week, playing Arlene's Grocery on 10/21 as part of the M for Montreal showcase featuring Random Recipe, The Luyas, Uncle Bad Touch, PS I Love You & Radio Radio. The show is Red Mass's lone US date, and Bill will soon have much more to say about this show (stay tuned).

Full tour dates and some NSFW video is below..

Continue reading "King Khan & BBQ in NYC the same night. Hunx too! ++ Red Mass, Golden Triangle, videos, tour dates & more"

DOWNLOAD: Mark Sultan - The Wind (Nolan Strong cover) (MP3)

Mark Sultan at Bowery Ballroom in 2009 (more by Tim Griffin)

With King Khan and BBQ apparently going their separate ways, BBQ (aka Mark Sultan) has scheduled a one-man-band tour of his own.

King Khan and BBQ were originally scheduled to play shows this month, including one at the Bell House, but those were all cancelled and an October King Khan and the Shrines tour quickly showed up instead.

Now Mark 'BBQ' Sultan, who released his new LP $ via Last Gang Records (Metric's label) earlier this year, has an October tour of his own including an October 16th early show at Mercury Lounge in NYC. Tickets for that show are on sale now. The tour ends with Mark opening a bunch of dates for Deer Tick.

Mark also has a track on a new Nolan Strong tribute album. Nolan was a 50's R&B singer, and his fans (other artists who contributed songs to the album) include Lenny Kaye, Reigning Sound, Gentleman Jesse, A-Bones, and the Dirtbombs. Order the album at The Wind Records. Grab Mark's track for free above.

Full comp tracklist, Mark's new NSFW video for "Status", and all tour dates below...

Continue reading "Mark 'BBQ' Sultan plans a tour (dates), makes NSFW video, contributes to Nolan Strong tribute comp (MP3)"

The King Khan & BBQ Show @ Bowery in November (more by Tim Griffin)

It's hard to take any King Khan news 100% serious. And like many dysfunctional couples, just because King Khan and BBQ are "broken up" doesn't mean they might not get back together. That said, here's the story...

Laurie Anderson's concert for dogs in Sydney Australia was part of the Vivid Sydney Festival, which she and Lou Reed curated. Acts they brought included Holly Miranda, Emily Haines, Boris, Doveman, Marc Ribot and Dave Hidalgo, My Brightest Diamond, Melt Banana and, a favorite of Laurie's, the King Khan & BBQ Show, whose two shows at the fest did not go smoothly. What happened at their gigs isn't exactly clear, but it's been all down hill since an argument after the second one. The blog Rockaliser Baby has details on the group's canceled June 19th show in Seoul, where more drama went down. That was to be the last of three shows in South Korea (they "successfully" performed two nights before in Daegu). Between those posts, King Khan's account of their Australian shows and Mark (BBQ) Sultan's version of the story on the band's Facebook, you could spend an afternoon catching up on everything that happened.

Mark Sultan is currently recovering from the disastrous trip in Cambodia, and though no official statement has been made (except maybe by Mark Sultan in a comment hidden far down on his Facebook wall), all signs point to the group being broken up.

The duo are currently still on the schedule for Sled Island in Calgary June 30-July 1, where King Khan is one of the curators, but the band doesn't have any upcoming dates listed and they did officially cancel other dates (like September 28 at Neumos).

It's not the first time the band has had trouble on the road - most recently, in 2009, their tour manager was arrested mid-tour, forcing them to cancel some shows.

And King Khan made news (TMZ included) earlier this year when he showed his ass to Lindsay Lohan after an Almighty Defenders (a group BBQ is also in) show at Cannes.

No video from these shows in Australia or Korea (yet), but clips from their set at Primavera Sound at the end of May is posted below...

Continue reading "King Khan & BBQ broken up for good? "

Christian County, Kentucky court house (Kristin Klein)

On November 16, 2009 Kristin Klein entered a guilty plea to 2nd degree possession of a controlled substance in Christian County, Kentucky. Ms Klein was driving a rental vehicle that was randomly stopped at a safety checkpoint. Officers located a controlled substance in the cab of the vehicle. Ms Klein was unaware of the contraband and the validity of her license was indeterminable at time of arrest. Under KY law a driver of a vehicle is responsible for its contents. Therefore, Ms Klein entered a guilty plea and is scheduled to appear on April 2, 2010 to provide proof of her valid license.

King Khan & BBQ Show are driving through the night to make their Los Angeles show at Troubador tomorrow. Tonight's show in Phoenix is cancelled, but all further west coast dates and will to be honored. Kristin Klein is safe with the band and continuing her tenure as tour manager.

Continue reading "Tour manager pleads guilty, King Khan tour resumes in LA"

"Free at Last" (Nov 13, 2009) (King Kahn w/ Kristin Klein) (via Krisin Klein's phone)

Trooper John Hawkins of the Kentucky State Police says the duo, along with tour manager Kristin Klein, were stopped sometime yesterday afternoon in Oak Grove, Kentucky.

The band was stopped in the one just north of the Tennessee state line, about an hour northwest of Nashville on I-24.

Klein [was] in custody in the Christian County Kentucky jail, charged with driving with a suspended license and possession of a controlled substance. Her bond is $3,000. A sergeant at the jail had no information as to what Klein was allegedly caught with.

Neither the Christian County Jail nor the Kentucky State Police had any records of Arish Khan or Mark Sultan being arrested or charged with a crime. [Riverfront Times]

DOWNLOAD: Deer Tick - Baltimore Blues No.1 (live) (MP3)

King Khan & BBQ @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Tim Griffin)

The rumor started spreading as early as 7 p.m. that Arish "King" Khan and Mark Sultan weren't going to show up for their nearly sold-out show Thursday night at Off Broadway in St. Louis.

The duo that comprises the King Khan & BBQ Show missed its early evening soundcheck and were M.I.A. and incommunicado throughout the night. Even as the eager crowd filed into the packed venue and witnessed a pair of impressive (though clearly stalling) opening acts, the chatter was that the headliners hadn't been heard from since they left Nashville--their previous tour date-- around 11 a.m. Thursday morning.

At approximately 11 p.m., local concert promoter Joey O'Farrell grabbed the mic and sheepishly delivered the news: The King Khan and BBQ would not be performing. No, he didn't know where they were or what had happened. Yes, Off Broadway was offering a full refund to anyone who wanted it.

Then Deer Tick singer John McCauley took the stage and delivered an impromptu set of classic rock and roll covers...

According to O'Farrell and Off Broadway owner Steve Pohlman, Khan and Sultan were arrested somewhere between Nashville and St. Louis. The charge is rumored to be drug possession, but neither party could offer any specifics. [St Louis Riverfront Times]

Those Darlins & BBQ & King Khan running (from the law)

King Khan & BBQ were last in NYC for two end-of-October shows. From there they hit the road and played shows along the way to Austin where they were scheduled to play Fun Fun Fun Fest on Sunday. That show didn't go as planned either. The rain that plagued the 2nd day of the outdoor festival caused the stage they were supposed to play on to get super wet (The Strange Boys who played before them mentioned the possibility of getting electrocuted while they were playing). King Khan didn't want to play on the wet stage, so the festival staff quickly dried it, but not in enough time. Instead the duo played a free show that night at the venue Red 7. I went to that, partly because they played right before forgetters (who were awesome) at the same venue (though in a different room). King Khan and BBQ was fun though I could barely hear them because I was deaf from just having seen Danzig.

@ Red 7 on 11/8: seconds earlier KK asked someone to stick their fist in this girl....

No word on whether King Khan & BBQ are actually in jail or whether they'll be at their show in Lawrence, KS tonight (11/13). Hopefully they're OK. Stay tuned. All dates below.

UPDATE (12:30pm): King Khan & BBQ definitely were in jail. They have been released, but their tour manager is still behind bars. The KS show is cancelled.

UPDATE (1:00pm): the KS show isn't completely cancelled! King Khan & BBQ just won't be there. Jessi Darlin says "we're still planning on playin' the craziest fuckin' show in hopes of lifting any KKBBQ fans spirits and keepin' this badass tour on the move. We are so proud to be playing with this band and just want to keep the tour rollin'."

UPDATE (7:00pm): Tour manager Kristin Klein has been released from jail and charged with driving with a suspended license and possession of a controlled substance, possibly mushrooms.

In related news, Deer Tick is releasing an iTunes Exclusive, four-song EP called "More Fuel For The Fire" on December 1st. The above free MP3 (which was also just released by the band) is not on it. The track list, cover art, and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "King Khan & BBQ in jail - Deer Tick replaced them @ Those Darlins show in St Louis last night ++ releasing EP, MP3"

photos by Tim Griffin, words by Andrew Frisicano

King Khan & BBQ Show headlined two NYC shows on their brief tour with Dum Dum Girls. Those shows happened Friday, Oct. 30th at Bowery Ballroom, and Halloween night at the Bell House. (Dum Dum Girls also played Saturday, Oct. 24th for CMJ, and Monday, Oct. 26th at Bruar Falls.)

The King Khan & BBQ Show - the two-man-band of King Khan and singer/drummer/rhythm guitarist Mark Sultan - were also in town to play their parts in Almighty Defenders, who performed at the Root Studio on Saturday, October 24th. Even though they were joined on stage by the energetic Black Lips at that show, the Bowery show with the duo alone was the grimier, rawer affair. That's where the pictures in this post were taken.

At the Bowery, King Khan, in a turquoise, fringed dress, and Mark Sultan, in a turban and cloak, swarmed the stage to the opening riff of "Johnny B Goode." People danced (got kicked out), cups flew out of the crowd, King Khan did his rounds and then settled into a sitar-position at the foot of the stage, and Mark Sultan laid out rhythm guitar, kick drum and dulcet tones.

A homespun aesthetic was central to the set - the pair played through tiny Vox Pathfinder amps more suited to a bedroom practice session, and sported an attractively handcrafted backdrop. They exchanged cues with telepathic charm and made a whole lot of noise playing from records old and new (including their newest LP, Invisible Girl). There was even some overlap with the Almighty Defenders set; the song "Too Much in Love", for one, done in shambolic, backyard fashion. The band paused on a serious note to give a dedication to musician and one-time Black Lip Bobby Ubangi, who passed earlier this year.

Earlier in the show, opener Lover (not to be confused with Lovvers) kicked things off with melodic garage punk that worked best played fast and harmonized. In the same vein, Dum Dum Girls (they played right before King Khan and BBQ) benefited from the emphatic desperation of songs like their closer, "Jail La La." Its pitiful cry of "Someone took my baby" put an emotional angle on their detached, vintage-reverb sound.

Dum Dum Girls' cover of GG Allin's "Don't Talk to Me" and another song from their Bruar Falls show are posted below.

The King Khan & BBQ Show have North American shows scheduled into December. Those dates and more pictures are below too...

Continue reading "King Khan & BBQ Show, Dum Dum Girls & Lover played Bowery Ballroom & The Bell House (pics)"

photo by Tim Griffin

The above shot was taken on the street shortly after Darren Mabee was forced to leave Bowery Ballroom Friday night during The King Khan and the BBQ show. That's the security guard he's staring at.

Maybe Darren will try again tonight at the Bell House! More to come.

Golden Triangle @ the Sub Pop/Hardly Art CMJ show (more by Jake Forney)

SATURDAY OCTOBER 31ST
Braholoween 5 + After Party
Dirty Faces
Sightings
Big Bear
Red Dawn II
The White Deer (membs of Neptune)

After Party
Golden Triangle
Cry Try Cry
Knyfe Hyts 81
Insane Secret Performance from BBQ of hell!

Opening the KK/BBQ Bell House and Bowery shows are Dum Dum Girls who played Bruar Falls on Monday after a two-show Saturday at CMJ, the last of which was the Sub Pop / Hardly Art show that Golden Triangle also played with Obits, Pissed Jeans and others.

Obits also plays a show tonight (10/30). They open for Pinback at Irving Plaza.

Pissed Jeans play tonight too. They headline a very cheap show at Le Poisson Rouge.

Continue reading "Obits, Pissed Jeans, Dum Dum Girls, Golden Triangle, & an Insane Secret Performance from BBQ of hell"

DOWNLOAD: Cale Parks - One at a Time (MP3)

photos by Andrew Frisciano, words by Benjamin Lozovsky

On Saturday October 24, a night full of swirling electronica, booze-soaked theatrics, and plenty of limey-infused glamour came together at the Topman CMJ Party at Roots Studios. The British urban fashion superstore hosted an RSVP only show at the massive studio space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which included performances by The Almighty Defenders, Neon Indian, and Cale Parks, along with DJ sets by X-Wife, Finger on the Pulse, NROTB, and Designer Drugs.

To the dismay of some concert-going hopefuls waiting in the rain outside the venue, CMJ badges weren't accepted at the event. That didn't stop the cavernous white rooms of Roots Studios from filling up to capacity with an eager, talkative, and ultra-fashionable crowd. Their anticipation was rewarded with a uniquely curated event that had free drinks spilling forward everywhere from the Svedka-sponsored open bar to the front of the stage.

The first performance was by Cale Parks, an indie scene veteran better known for his role as a multi-instrumentalist in Aloha and as a the drummer for Brooklyn-based electronic musician White Williams. His own music expands on the styles of his other gigs, melding a tightly controlled, polyrhythmic, shadowy electro experience with an undeniable layer of heart-felt sincerity. Performed songs like We Can Feel It and One At A Time demonstrated his prowess for accentuating the emotional quality of his music over a layer of hard-hitting percussion and rising and falling synth stabs. Parks' direct and plaintive vocal lines seem to balance perfectly between cozy and unsettled, as they found their place amongst the subtly subversive electronic textures he and his band construed.

continued below....

Continue reading "Neon Indian, The Almighty Defenders & Cale Park @ Roots Studios during CMJ - review, pics & video "

Woodsist pic by Tim Griffin, CMJ pics by Ryan Muir (for Metromix)

THEN...

July 2009 - Dum Dum Girls @ Woodsist Fest in Brooklyn (more by Tim Griffin)

AND NOW...

October 2009 - Dum Dum Girls @ AAM CMJ party in Brooklyn

"Dum Dum Girls = West coast Vivian Girls with a tighter beat, black mini-dresses & lacey tights. Total girl-crush." So Melena Ryzik posted to Twitter Saturday night from the Mercury Lounge as I looked over her shoulder.

Totally true, of course. The tights, in particular.

Dum Dum Girls, from Los Angeles, is the project of singer Kristin Gundred, who goes here by Dee Dee, and who sings tart lyrics in a sweet tone buried beneath layers of haze. She has a knack for flawless song construction, her rigor dating somewhere to the late 1950s. And unlike the Vivian Girls, who manage to muster a slight optimism with a similar toolbox, Dum Dum Girls never appear happy, almost gothically gloomy. "Blissed out buzzsaw" is the descriptor on the group's MySpace page.
[Jon Caramanica @ The NY Times]

According to their MySpace, the Sub Pop-signed band's full member list is Dee Dee, Jules, Frankie Rose, and Bambi. And though I'm pretty sure Frankie will continue to play with the band for their upcoming short tour with King Khan and BBQ (including at Bowery Ballroom and The Bell House), and at their Monday (10/26) Brooklyn show at Bruar Falls (with The Girls at Dawn), it is unclear if Frankie will continue with them after that. As you can see above, the band has already gone through one major change since their first-ever show at the Woodsist Festival, and Frankie (ex-Vivian Girl, ex-Crystal Stilt) may be looking to just focus on her own new band (who play the Woodser on November 7th).

More AAM party pics and all Dum Dum Girls dates below...

Continue reading "Dum Dum Girls played CMJ - all girls, all in black (pics) ++ playing Bruar Falls Monday before King Khan & BBQ tour"

DOWNLOAD: Almighty Defenders - Cone Of Light (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Almighty Defenders - Bow Down And Die (MP3)

"The Almighty Defenders self-titled debut will be widely available on September 22nd at your favorite independent record store and digital service provider. But for all you awesome people/Black Lips/King Khan & BBQ fans you can pre-order it now off the Vice Records store. As reward for your undying loyalty to Vice we are throwing in a bonus track, "Ghost With The Most" (recorded live at the Practice Space) when you pre-order the album off us.

Like winning? New Practice Space, new album, and bonus track? Whose Tuesday just stopped sucking? Oh, we will send you "Ghost With The Most" as soon as your order goes through!" [VICE]

Tickets are now on sale for a live Almighty Defenders show at Maxwell's on October 25th. The NJ date is right before King Khan and BBQ head out on a short tour with the Dum Dum Girls which brings them into NYC on October 30th and 31st. The Black Lips will be in NYC, opening for Yo La Tengo at Roseland, this Friday night (September 25th).

The above-referenced episode of VBS.TV Practice Space, can be watched below...

Continue reading "Almighty Defenders out Tuesday - MAXWELL'S SHOW on sale"

DOWNLOAD: The Grates - Burn Bridges (MP3)

The Grates @ Pianos in July (more by Chris La Putt)

"I can't even tell you how psyched we are for this tour. I have listened to Those Darlins self titled debut more times than I can remember. Plus look at those places. Albuquerque? Where the F is that? I don't know but I am busting at the seems to find out. If you know anyone in Albuquerque please forward on this mailout and tell them to come. Tell them to bring local delights." [The Grates]

Those Darlins will not be at Mercury Lounge tonight (9/4) though. That show is just The Grates with Tigercity, Pearl & The Beard and Psychic. Tickets are still on sale.

Those Darlins (who now feature one engaged member) don't actually hook up with The Grates until October. Before then they're almost constantly on tour, and then they leave the Grates right before Halloween and keep playing more shows. On Halloween they play a show in Houston, Texas with The Meat Puppets.

Meanwhile in NYC, King Khan & the BBQ show are playing a Halloween show (and a Mischief night show) with Dum Dum Girls (who also play a few more dates with KK & BBQ). Then Those Darlins and King Khan hook up for another 11 shows. King Khan & BBQ also now have a ton of other 2009 shows scheduled with any girls as well.

All dates, and the new Grates album artwork, below...

Continue reading "The Grates (in NYC tonight) touring w/ Those Darlins (who are touring w/ King Khan & BBQ) - all 2009 Tour Dates"

August 25th, 2009 (Austin, TX) - Transmission Entertainment is pleased to announce the lineup for the 2009 Fun Fun Fun Fest, taking place on November 7th and 8th at Waterloo Park in Austin. Fun Fun Fun Fest made its first appearance on a cold Friday evening in 2006, offering a unique approach to festival booking, filling stages with talent bubbling from the underground: what sounded great, and what was making an impact, regardless of what mainstream media said was cool. What started out as a show for a few touring acts and local favorites has become a movement -- a festival that fans and bands alike realize needs to be experienced year after year.

Now in its fourth year, Fun Fun Fun Fest has made a significant impact on the country's winter calendar, successfully combining the vast worlds of indie, punk, rap, electronica and comedy while showcasing some of the city's most unique local businesses.

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2009 lineup (Jesus Lizard, Of Montreal, Gorilla Biscuits, LSF, 7 Seconds, D.R.I. & DANZIG!! & more)"

Junior Boys @ Webster Hall - July 23, 2009 (sneuffer)

As previously posted, The King Khan & BBQ Show are playing two shows in NYC on October. They'll be at Bowery Ballroom on the 30th, and at The Bell House in Brooklyn one day later (Halloween). Dum Dum Girls, who last played their first and only show in NYC during the Woodsist Festival (and have since signed to Sub Pop) will open both dates.

The Bell House show is an early one - it'll be over by 10:30 so that doors can open for the late show which it can now be revealed will be a performance by the Junior Boys (who were last here when they played a rescheduled date at Webster Hall in July). Tickets for the late show will be on sale soon. Tickets for the early show are still on sale now (and no tickets for Bowery yet).

By the way, Dungen and Woods play the Bell House this Friday night (8/14). $15 tickets are still on sale, and you can get in (capacity permitting) for $10 at the door with your stub from the Animal Collective show happening in Prospect Park the same evening. All JB dates below...

Continue reading "Junior Boys playing after King Khan & BBQ @ Bell House on Halloween, Dum Dum Girls playing before (& at Bowery too)"

King Khan & the Shrines @ Sasquatch 2009 (more by Chris Graham)

The Almighty Defenders CD, out September 22nd on Vice, brings together the Black Lips, King Khan and Mark Sultan. The latter two make up King Khan & the BBQ Show, which is the band that'll be playing Brooklyn's Bell House this Halloween (its an early show - 7:30pm doors / over by 10:30pm) (there's a TBA late show at the same venue). Prizes for best costume. As you can see above, King Khan already has some ideas in mind. Tickets are on sale now.

Can't make it Halloween? King Khan and BBQ are also playing Bowery Ballroom one night earlier (10/30). Ticket info TBA. Full tour dates are still forthcoming, but there are a few more below (including November 1st in Philly). They'll be touring in support of the new King Khan & the BBQ Show album, Invisible Girl, out November 3rd on In the Red.

Another Halloween NYC gig happening in Brooklyn is the Mount Eerie metal show at the Market Hotel. His tourmates, No Kids and Tara Jane O'Neil, will also be his backing band for a set that promises "2 drummers, some gongs and a wall of amps." Liturgy is one of the bands on the bill. Another will be Malkuth. That tour formerly had a TBA for another NYC show. That will happen (with No Kids & TJO playing sets too) on Sunday, November 1st at (Le) Poisson Rouge. Tickets for that Manhattan show (which does not include Liturgy or Malkuth) are on sale (Market Hotel doesn't have advanced tickets).

The LPR show is put on by Wordless Music, who has a bunch of big shows coming up (not the least Rhys Chatham's A Crimson Grail on Saturday). There's also Warp20NYC, the Wordless series at Columbia's Miller Theatre, Deefhoof and Why?.

The Market Hotel show is curated by Brandon Stosuy - music writer and organizer of Show No Mercy (that Black Bubblegum co-curated this past Sunday). Tonight (August 5th) Brandon will be be presenting from his "in-progress oral history of American black metal [briefly excerpted at Believer] joined by Matt Luem for "Joe's Pub's Happy Ending Reading & Music Series. Also at the event will be "Rachel Cohen reading from her book A Chance Meeting: Intertwined Lives of American Writers and Artists. And Lawrence Weschler reading from his work on the visual artists David Hockney and Robert Irwin. And Colin Stetson delivering an opening invocation on saxophone. And Buke & Gass playing a short set of clear voiced yet fuzzed out pop experiments on homemade instruments." Tickets are still on sale.

Videos, new KK&BBQ album tracklist and tour dates from King Khan & the BBQ Show, below...

Continue reading "King Khan & BBQ Show's new album, tour dates, NYC shows, Halloween in Brooklyn, Malkuth, Mt Eerie, Joe's Pub & stuff "

We already know the lineup for Austin's 4th annual Fun Fun Fun Fest on November 7th and 8th will include 7 Seconds, The Jesus Lizard, Red Sparrowes, and Atlas Sound and Broadcast.

FFF's own "Lineup Leaks" page expands upon that list with Why? (whose tour is coming to NYC), GZA, Melt Banana, King Khan & BBQ Show and comedian Todd Barry.

BV would like to further leak that our most-favorite weekend in Austin will also feature sets by Alaska in Winter, Les Savy Fav, comedians Jake Flores, Joe Staats & JT Habersaat, VEGA, Lucero, Metallagher, The Night Marchers (they played Mess With Texas last year at the same venue), and Shonen Knife (part of their large upcoming tour).

Speaking of the Hot Snakes, Obits are scheculed to play the South Street Seaport in NYC tonight (7/31).

The official FFFFest "leak" page includes stage assignments, which are below. We have 2008's FFF Fest in pictures (day one & day two), and you can check out recap videos from 2006 and 2007, also below...

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest - initial 2009 lineup (includes Les Savy Fav)"

by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: The Almighty Defenders - Bow Down and Die (MP3)

It's supergroup day on BrooklynVegan. Some of it is catch up news. We have a new MP3 and tour dates from the new Black Keys-related Drummer band, and then there's the signing of Dum Dum Girls whose first live show over the weekend brought together member of four other bands. Jack White's new supergroup The Dead Weather is streaming their new album today, and we finally did a post on the Monsters of Folk album (Bright Eyes+My Morning Jacket+M Ward). Supergroups are not to be confused with side projects which were sort of a theme today too - first with Wolf Parade-related Handsome Furs, and then the Mazzy Star/My Bloody Valentine-related Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions (which I guess could be considered a supergroup too). Next up....

The Almighty Defenders (Black Lips + King Khan + BBQ)

The Almighty Defenders, a meeting of might between Atlanta garage goblins The Black Lips, Berlin-based soul punker King Khan, and Mr. BBQ himself, Mark Sultan. Conceived during the Lips' Berlin exile (after their VBS-documented ejection from India), the band's self-titled debut is a madcap, liquor-drenched revival, a blissfully fucked up realization of one of garage rock's most fitting collaborations. "Bow Down And Die," the "booming, chivalrous third song," is an off kilter, beer-swilling chant-along that borrows just as much from choral church music as it does from skuzzball rock n roll.

No tour dates for the Almighty Defenders yet, but The Black Lips will be at the July 26th Williamsburg Waterfront Pool Party, playing with Health, Grupo Fantasma and Trail of Dead. The Black Lips are actually one of the only artists to play a 'Pool Party' two years in a row. Ironically(?), when they played last year, it was on the same bill as King Khan. Maybe they'll bring him along again, or maybe they should just make an Almighty Defenders show which would be cool.

The Black Lips are also playing a few other festivals this summer, including Pitchfork Fest and Seattle's Capitol Hill Block Party. The band was recently featured on the soundtrack of the Gael Garcia Bernal & Diego Luna film Rudo Y Cursi, which came out in May. That disc includes contributions by Devendra Banhart, Juana Molina (who's playing tonight, July 8th, in Central Park) and even Bernal himself. Album art and tracklist for that below.

Bernal is hardly the only actor getting into music these days. Dead Man's Bones, the combo of actors Zach Shields and Ryan Gosling, is set to release a self-titled album, produced by Tim Anderson of I'm A Robot, October 6th on Anti-. Silverlake Conservatory Children's Choir, who you can see below, also pitched in vocals. Two videos of the band are below.

You can catch a different kind of supergroup in NYC at the Bowery Ballroom on August 1st. Dangerous, an "All Metal Tribute To Michael Jackson," features members of Tragedy (the "Heavy Metal Tribute to the Bee Gees" who are playing the Beach at Governors Island this summer) and the 2 Skinnee Js. Tickets to that are on sale now.

And if that's not enough...

Members of Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age are working together on a new project...The as-yet-unnamed supergroup unites Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme, and lead Foo Fighter (né Nirvana drummer) Dave Grohl. The trio are presently in Los Angeles, recording their debut album.[Guardian UK]

Check out Almighty Defenders videos, album art and tracklist, with Rudo Y Cursi album info and Dead Man's Bones videos, below...

Continue reading "Supergroup day continues: Zeppelin/Grohl/QOTSA, Almighty Defenders (Black Lips+King Khan), Dead Man's Bones, more"

a shot from Sled Island 2008 (more by Rae Holtsabum)

The Sled Island Music and Arts Festival -- taking place at various venues in Calgary, Alberta from June 24 to June 27 -- is pleased to announce the initial line-up and the inclusion of Olympic Plaza as the main venue on Friday, June 26. This year will include over 200 bands performing at 23 venues plus art shows, film screenings, and a comedy component at the Sled Island Music and Arts Festival.

Sled Island 2009 will feature performances by the influential indie rock darlings The Breeders (featuring Kim Deal of the Pixies) making their first Calgary performance, NYC post-punk revivalists Liars bringing the noise, the legendary Canadian metal band Anvil the recent subjects of the critically acclaimed documentary Anvil: The Story of Anvil and the garage rock assault of Tel Aviv's Monotonix known for their incredible live show. New Orleans-based musician and mad genius inventor of the 'drum buddy' Quintron & Ms. Pussycat will bring the party along with blood-soaked party rocker Andrew W.K. and Toronto-based electro tour-de-force Holy Fuck on the more 'offensive' front. Phil Elverum's (of The Microphones) latest moniker Mount Eerie will deliver a symbiotic balance of fuzz and folk matched by Owen Pallett's Final Fantasy surrealist violin stage performance. Calgary-based experimental icons Azeda Booth aim to mystify crowds along with their all-male psychedelic pop counterparts Women making their second festival appearance...The complete festival line-up and schedule will be revealed on June 1. [pr]

As previously reported, Colin Newman, vocalist and guitarist for Wire, will be guest curating this year's festival. Full lineup below...

Continue reading "Sled Island - 2009 fest lineup (Breeders, Liars, Anvil & more) "

King Khan & Darren Mabee & the Shrines @ MHOW (EssG)

King Khan and the Shrines played Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn last night (5/1), and as if King Khan doesn't already provide enough eye candy, the one and only Darren Mabee showed up to make things even more interesting. According to one message I got, there was a "naked fat bearded guy onstage wearing nothing but a cape." which was followed by "He's actually wearimg a leopard speedo thong, but appeared nude bc the fat rolled over the speedo! He has girls lathering him w baby oil also."

You can catch King Khan again tonight (5/2) at Maxwell's, and Sunday (5/3) at Santos Party House. All dates HERE. A video from last night's show below...

Continue reading "King Khan vs. Darren Mabee (last night @ MHOW)"

photos by Jacob Blickenstaff

Those Darlins & Deer Tick @ the BV SXSW showcase - Mar 18, 2009

"In a world of emo-boys and reluctant band leaders, Those Darlins, country-punk pals from Murfreesboro, Tenn., had a comically leering sexuality and the kind of abandon that seems scarce these days. Their punk hootenanny sensibility reminds us that you don't have to act serious to be taken seriously. South by Southwest, with its quick set ups and tear downs, is always technically challenged, but when these girls blew an amp, they vamped with the kind of jokes and entreaties that can't be rendered here..... After they borrowed an amp from their friends and tour mates in Deer Tick, they borrowed the whole band as well, with the boys serving as accessories as the girls sang a kind of homage to a bird..."
[NY Times]

Continue reading "SXSW 2009 - Day 1 in photos by Jacob"