Efterklang @ The Met, 9/24/2012 (more by Toby Tenenbaum)

Jacco Gardner @ BVSXSW (photo by Amanda Hatfield)

today in NYC
* DJ Spooky @ The Met
* Jose Conde @ Barbes
* Yuki Numata @ The Stone
* Erik Satie Quartet @ Barbes
* Justin Vivian Bond @ Joe's Pub
* Jacco Gardner, Mmoss @ Mercury Lounge
* Zs, Mivos Quartet @ Issue Project Room
* Efterklang, Nightlands @ Bowery Ballroom
* Dennis Sullivan & Levy Lorenzo @ The Stone
* Hundred Waters, Salt Cathedral @ Glasslands
* Les Sans Culottes, Kenny Warren @ Spike Hill
* Chalk & Numbers, Deidre & The Dark, The Hairs
* Moon Hooch, Dubious Luxury @ Knitting Factory
* NinjaSonik, DJ Dirty Finger @ Bushwick Church
* Dumpstaphunk, The London Souls @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Free Time, White Bike, Liam Betson @ 252 Norman
* Tyler, The Creator @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* FELL VOICES, Ashencult, Anicon @ Saint Vitus Bar
* Brandi Carlile, The Lone Bellow @ Beacon Theater
* Esben And The Witch, Heliotropes @ Knitting Factory
* Something in Spanish, Tippy Toes, Robert Cop @ Cameo Gallery
* Black Marble, Weeknight, LODRO, Night Visions @ Shea Stadium
* Sinkane, Higgins Waterproof Black Magic Band @ Mercury Lounge
* Planetarium (Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner, Nico Murphy) @ BAM
* House Party, Internet Xplorer, Rud Dudley @ Glasslands Gallery
* Samora Pinderhughes presents The Transformations Suite @ Joe's Pub
* Caitlin Marie Bell, Rue Snider, Jenna Smith @ Pete's Candy Store
* Doc Daneeka, Arca, M.E.S.H., Terekke, Doctor Jeep @ Ran Tea House
* Bad Religion, Against Me!, Polar Bear Club @ The Wellmont Theatre
* EULA, Squarehead, Krill, Shark?, Butter The Children @ Silent Barn
* Incendiary, Bottom Out, White Widows, Skullshitter, Hasj @ The Acheron
* Black Wine, Hilly Eye, Nuclear Santa Claust, Lauren Measure @ Cake Shop
* K-X-P, The Funeral Suits, Dalton, Starnes & Shah, Mike McFadden @ Pianos
* The Weird Fantasy Band, Mannequin Pussy, Marvin Berry and The New Sound, Chandeli'ers @ Death By Audio

Toronto's Beliefs would have been at Shea Stadium tonight but cancelled due to illness. The full bill is now Black Marble, Weeknight, Lodro, and Night Visions.

Brooklyn's Chalk and Numbers headline a solid night of indiepop at Union Pool this evening that also features The Hairs and Deidre & the Dark. It's the record release party for Chalk & Numbers' charming new EP, Parade, and you can stream the whole thing below.

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Philly punks Paint It Black are releasing a new EP, Invisible, on April 2 via No Idea. Check out the first single, "Greetings, Fellow Insomniacs," below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Saturday?"

A$AP Rocky @ FFF Fest 2012 (more by Tim Griffin)

Jim James @ The Cap, Dec. 2012 (more by PSquared Photography)

today in NYC
* Slap @ Barbes
* Henry Butler @ The Stone
* Jim James @ McKittrick Hotel
* Tegan & Sara @ Beacon Theater
* Solange Knowles @ Webster Hall
* SKYE (of Morcheeba) @ Joe's Pub
* Jonathan Richman @ The Bell House
* Alexa Wilding @ Rockwood Music Hall
* Prince Rama @ Three Legged Dog
* The Mandingo Ambassadors @ Barbes
* Caterwaul of Sound, Deadzone @ Grand Victory
* Gia, Tin Oak, grinning, Freecare @ Muchmore's
* Bonaparte, Tim Fite, .357 Lover @ Knitting Factory
* LORDO, Advaeta, Night Visions, Spires @ Big Snow
* Atlas Genius, Gospels @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Nick Turner, Wyatt Cenac, Nikki Glaser @ Union Hall
* Weeknight, Riverwild, The Never Evers @ Union Pool
* Vandana Jain, Brother Tiger, Sparxx @ The Rock Shop
* A$AP Rocky, A$AP Ferg, Bodega Bamz @ Public Assembly
* Deerhoof, Dal Niente, Marcos Balter @ Merkin Concert Hall
* Sheng Wang, Ross Parsons, Mike Lawrence @ Shea Stadium
* Earthy Babes, The Suzan, Chalk and Numbers @ Mercury Lounge
* Graham Brice and The Hidden Wool, Bliss Blood @ Pete's Candy Store
* Silent Drape Runners (DJ Set), Butter Team (DJ Set) @ Cameo Gallery
* Norman Vladimir, Chris Riffle, The Ballroom Thieves @ The Living Room
* WIERD w/ Genesis Breyer P-Orridge with Aaron Dilloway @ Home Sweet Home
* My Midnight Heart, Sky White Tiger, Railbird, Desert Stars @ Glasslands
* The Mary Onettes, The Hairs, TSINGTAO, Little Band of Sailors @ Cake Shop
* Alan Merrill Trio, Sean Yox & The Streamers, Kath Buckell @ Le Poisson Rouge
* Ludwig Persik, The Drowners, King Holliday, Cascading Slopes @ Pianos
* Big Terrific w/ Mike Lawrence, Seth Herzog, James Adomian, Adam Newman @ Cameo
* Bad Books w/ Kevin Devine &amp Manchester Orchestra, The Front Bottoms, Weatherbox @ Bowery Ballroom

Charming Brooklyn indiepop band Chalk & Numbers play Mercury Lounge tonight with The Suzan and Earthy Babes. The band has a new EP, Parade, on the way and you can stream its first single, "Boy," below.

SXSW is coming. Follow @BVSXSW on Twitter.

Follow @BrooklynVegan on Twitter.
Follow @bvChicago for just Chicago stuff.
Also follow @bvAustin for just Austin stuff.

Be our friend on Facebook too, and BV Austin's friend on Facebook and BV Chicago's friend on Facebook.

Follow BrooklynVegan on instagram.

Portland band Eat Skull have a new album, III, out now and you can check out the video for album track "How Do I Know When to Say Goodnight" below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Wednesday?"

by Bill Pearis

Tunabunny

Atlanta's Tunabunny will release their third album, Genius Fatigue, on October 23 via Happy Happy Birthday to Me. Like last year's Minima Moralia (when they also played CMJ), the new LP is loaded with shambolic, angsty pop goodness. You can stream the album's opening cut, "Duchess for Nothing," at the bottom of this post.

The band will be in NYC this week for CMJ, playing the HHBTM/NYC Popfest showcase on Saturday (10/20) at Public Assembly that also features fellow Athens band Eureka California, Seattle's great Orca Team, winsome Brooklynites Chalk and Numbers, Florida's Beach Day, and Bay area duo Bam!Bam!. Tunabunny will also play a record release show in their hometown on October 25 at New Earth Music Hall that also has Bam!Bam!, Eureka California, Orca Team on the bill plus Muuy Biien. Not much else on Tunabunny's tour horizon as grad school and other life things are keeping them in Athens till next spring.

Bam!Bam! are on the East Coast touring with Eureka California, the latter of whom released their debut, Big Cats Can Swim, last month on HHBTM. It's a rager, bashing out 11 garage pop blasts in less than half an hour. If you liked Nude Beach or Paws recent output, give these folks a shot. You can stream "Bite By the Sand" below.

Orca Team, meanwhile, will also play Muchmore's on Thursday (10/18) with Joywave, Brainstorm, Mean Lady, Osekre n The Lucky Bastards, Honduras, Life Size Maps, and The Dearloves. Advance tickets are available.

As for Chalk and Numbers, the duo have been busy crossing the I's and dotting the T's on a new EP. They don't play live very often, so don't miss this chance.

Tour dates for Tunabunny and Eureka California are listed below, along with those streams.

Continue reading "Tunabunny and Eureka California have new albums, touring, playing CMJ (dates, streams)"

Beach Day at Knitting Factory, June 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Hollywood, Florida's Beach Day are visiting NYC again, playing two shows: tonight (7/25) at Public Assembly with The Babies (of a few shows the Babies have going on), Wild Yaks and Daytona; and Cake Shop Thursday (7/26) with charming local indie poppers Chalk & Numbers, and Island Twins. All Beach Day tour dates are listed below.

As mentioned before, Beach Day have signed with Kanine Records who just released the band's debut 7". Echoing early '60s pop, it's custom-made for sunny weather and comes on white vinyl, to match your jeans. You can stream both sides of the single below.

Continue reading "Beach Day playing 2 NYC shows this week; stream their new 7""

by Bill Pearis

There are so many good shows happening tomorrow (2/16) this column could be renamed This Thursday in Indie. But I won't because that would be dumb. What about next week? And the week after? Thursday might be totally dead those weeks and then look what I'm stuck with.

But I digress. Basically everything covered below (apart from the daily picks section) is happening tomorrow. Such as Australia's Woollen Kits who are wrapping up a North American tour, pulling into Brooklyn for a show at Death By Audio. Not unlike fellow countrymen The Twerps (who play Mercury Lounge on 3/30), Woollen Kits play the kind of stripped down guitar rock that can be traced back through Flying Nun and K Recs, Jonathan Richman and the Velvet Underground. When guitarist Thomas Hardisty sings baritone, the band veers towards Beat Happening; when drummer Tom Ridgewell takes the mike, Woollen Kits are more Clean-like. The band just released their debut album on R.I.P Society records and it's quite good.

You can stream the single "Out of Whack" at the bottom of this post and watch its video. The DBA show is with Home Blitz, Harpoon Fever and Parquet Courts. The band have a few more shows before heading home to where it's currently warm, and all Woollen Kits dates are at the bottom of this post.

Slow Club

Also on Thursday (2/17)  is the return of Slow Club who play The Bell House. It's their first show in NYC since September when the duo's second album, Paradise, was released. The record expands greatly upon the folk-pop of their debut, Yeah, So, giving them a much bigger sound, perhaps due in part to producer Luke Smith (who was in short-lived but great mid-'00s band Clor). It still sounds like Slow Club, mind you: winsome, charming, joyous. You can stream the whole thing via Spotify if you haven't heard it yet.  The band are even more charming and joyous live.

The undercard for the Bell House show is pretty strong as well: Air Waves, who are back in Brooklyn where they belong after a stint in Austin, and Chalk & Numbers who I don't think have played live since last year's NYC Popfest.

Eleven Pond (in the '80s)

If the thought of something winsome, charming and joyous makes you want to puke, you might do better at Glasslands which is hosting the first show in 23 years by Eleven Pond. The Rochester, NY band's sole album, 1986's Bas Relief, is considered a lost classic by darkwave aficionados and was reissued a couple years ago by Dark Entries records. (You can stream it here.) Showing respect to their elders will be two bands from Wierd's roster:  Frank (Just Frank) and Plastic Flowers. Expect Glasslands' smoke machine to be turned to the Peter Murphy setting for this show.

Palomar

And finally, Palomar, who recently opened for Nada Surf at Bowery Ballroom, are having the record release party for their new album, Sense & Antisense, at Littlefield Thursday night. These three ladies and one dude have been together for over ten years, outlasting all sorts of other more hyped Brooklyn bands and scenes, putting out quality indie rock LP after quality indie rock LP. Their sticktoitiveness is as strong as their ability to write catchy tunes and harmonize.  Sense & Antisense, the band's fifth, is a keeper.

You can stream the LP on Spotify and purchase it directly from the band, either at their website or at tomorrow's show. Also playing are Jaabs (feat. Roman of the Oranges Band) and Art Con. The Wrens' Charles Bissell is also performing Palomar covers, so I'm told.

OK, that's the main stuff for me this week. There are some good non-Thursday shows this week and my other picks are listed day-by-day below.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15

It's a night of quality local bands at Pianos, with High Highs, Phonetag, Ski Lodge, and Field Mouse. That's a good show! (and if you miss it, High Highs also play Pianos on 2/29).

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16

Didn't I give you enough Thursday options above?

continued below...

Continue reading "Woollen Kits, Slow Club, Eleven Pond, Palomar, Natural Child & more in This Week in Indie"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: NYC Popfest Mix (Zip)
DOWNLOAD: Pet Milk - Cherry Outline (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Gold-Bears - Record Store (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Sea Lions - All Right (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Go Sailor - Windy (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Soda Shop - Farewell (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Days - Simple Thing (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Days - Downhill (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fan Modine - Julu Road (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Kids on a Crime Spree - Sweet Tooth (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Silver Swans - Secrets (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Silver Swans - Anyone's Ghost (the National) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Silver Swans - Mother of Pearl (MP3)

Go Sailor

This week is the fifth-annual NYC Popfest which happens Thursday - Sunday (May 19 - 22) at a variety of NYC and Brooklyn venues, playing host to around 30 bands from around the world. Previous years have seen the likes of The Radio Dept, Pelle Carlberg, The Drums, Love is All, Allo Darlin' and more.

Festival passes are sold out at this point -- as are tickets to Thursday's show at Cake Shop with Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Gold-Bears -- but you can still get tickets to any of the other individual events.

We're also giving away pairs of tickets to the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday shows. Line-ups for each night are at the bottom of this post. We've got:

1 pair of tickets for Friday night at Cameo
3 pais of tickets for Saturday night at Santos
5 pairs of tickets for the all-day Sunday show at The Rock Shop.

To enter, just send an email to BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM with the subject line "POPFEST" and the day you want tickets for, aka "POPFEST FRIDAY." We'll pick winners at random. Please note many of these shows are 21+.

This year's Popfest is a nice mix of new and old, jangly and loud. Every year at Popfest I've discovered at least two bands I'd never heard of before who've gone on to be favorites. I imagine this year will be no different. There are some MP3s above, plus a swell 24-song mix the Popfest folks made for your downloadable enjoyment. For this year's preview I'm just going to go through the events day-by-day. Keep reading below...

Continue reading "a guide to NYC Popfest 2011 (with lots of MP3s, day by day analysis & chances to win free tickets too)"