Pete Seeger at Clearwater 2009 (more by )

The 2011 edition of the Clearwater Festival boasts some big names over its two days, June 18th and 19th, in Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson, NY. Founder Pete Seeger will be joined by Drive-By Truckers, Martin Sexton, Indigo Girls, Josh Ritter, Arlo Guthrie, Suzanne Vega, Billy Bragg (who plays NYCx3 a month later), and man other artists who are listed elow. Tickets are still available.

In related news, Martin Sexton will play four NYC shows before that Clearwater appearance, as part of a residency at City Winery. Tickets are sold-out for Martin Sexton on June 2nd, 3rd, & 4th at the venue but he just added a fourth late show on 6/4, and tickets are still available.

All Martin Sexton tour dates and the full Clearwater lineup is below.

Continue reading "Clearwater Fest 2011 lineup & other Martin Sexton dates"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

DOWNLOAD: Daniel Martin Moore - Dark Road (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Daniel Martin Moore - In the Cool of the Day (MP3)

Jessica Lea Mayfield @ SXSW

Jessica Lea Mayfield's new Dan Auerbach-produced album, Tell Me, was released by Nonesuch Records on February 8, and since then she's tourned with Justin Townes Earle, and the Avett Brothers, and played a few shows in Austin for SXSW, one of which was an American Songwriter showcase which is where the pictures in this post come from. Another one of her sets from SXSW is for sale on iTunes, and another is streaming at KEXP. I wanted to book her on one of the many BrooklynVegan parties as well, but it ended up not working out.

She is currently back out on the road, but this time as a headliner, with Daniel Martin Moore. They play Glasslands on March 30th (AKA TONIGHT) (tickets are still available) and, after a stop in Philly, Bowery Ballroom on April 1st (tickets available too). All tour dates are listed below

Daniel Martin Moore recently dropped In The Cool Of The Day via Sub Pop in January. Two MP3s from that record are above, and the title track is also below.

Moore's companion on the recent, um, Dear Companion LP has been at work too. Ben Sollee has a new LP, Inclusions, due in May and was SUPPOSED to support Billy Bragg on his cancelled tour that was supposed to be at City Winery this week, but instead will play City Winery as part of a Japan benefit on March 31st with Rachael Yamagata, Tift Merritt, Marshall Crenshaw, Dar Williams, Lucy Wainwright Roche, Nicole Atkins, classic pianist Taka Kigawa, and the New York based big band Morning Musuko. Ben will also play with Tracy Bonham at Cameo in Brooklyn one day later.

All Jessica Lee Mayfield and Daniel Martin Moore, tour dates, some videos and more SXSW pictures, below...

Continue reading "Jessica Lea Mayfield played SXSW (pics), on tour w/ Daniel Martin Moore ++ Ben Sollee playing shows, a Japan Benefit"

"An exciting mix of folk music's founding voices and modern favorites highlights the 52nd edition of the Newport Folk Festival® when it returns to Newport's Fort Adams State Park July 30-31, it was announced today by the Newport Festivals Foundation, the recently-formed 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization which produces the event.

Tickets go on sale worldwide on Thursday, March 31, at 10:00 am at www.newportfolkfest.net.

This year's lineup will bring lots of great artists to Rhode Island in July. The Decemberists (who play Brooklyn 1.5 months earlier), Gillian Welch, Tegan & Sara, Delta Spirit, Mavis Staples, Wanda Jackson, Emmylou Harris, M Ward, Elvis Costello, Middle Brother (proof that the supergroup is not done yet) and even the PS22 chorus are on the list which you can see in full below...

Continue reading "Newport Folk Festival 2011 lineup announced, tickets too"

tonight in NYC
* Passion Pit in Tribeca
* Laura Marling @ City Winery
* The Figgs, more @ Fontana's
* The Saw Doctors @ Irving Plaza
* Neon Indian (DJ) @ Shea Stadium
* Small Brown Bike @ Generation Records
* The Hold Steady @ The Greene Space
* TBA @ The National's High Violet Annex
* Moby (DJ), Neon Indian (DJ) @ Webster Hall
* Passion Pit (DJ) @ Museum of Natural History
* PG Six, Christy & Emily, Meridians @ Union Pool
* Rooftop Films w/ Twin Sister @ Open Road Rooftop
* PC Worship, Ashcan Orchestra, The Dreebs @ Zebulon
* Leslie & The Badgers, Ferraby Lionheart @ Maxwell's
* Vic Thrill, Morgan O'Kane, Phillip Roebuck @ Bruar Falls
* The King Left, Drink Up Buttercup (early) @ Mercury Lounge
* My Pet Dragon, Papa, Your Nature, Grand Rapids @ The Cameo
* Aerial East, Last Good Tooth, The New Jerk Times @ 92YTribeca
* The Golden Filter, Hundred In The Hands (late) @ Mercury Lounge
* The Mother Hips, These United States, The Loom @ Bowery Ballroom
* Jessica Lea Mayfield, The Futurebirds, Jonny Corndawg @ Southpaw
* Mussels, Appomattox, The Press, I'm Turning Into @ The Bell House
* Night of a Thousand Stevies 20: Sisters of the Moon @ Highline Ballroom
* Silver Apples, Oneida (Joshua Light Show fest) @ Abrons Art Center
* Gary Louris, Kraig Johnson, Joseph Arthur @ (Le) Poisson Rouge
* Karma To Burn, Year Long Disaster, Naam, Hull @ Knitting Factory Brooklyn
* Small Brown Bike, Bridge and Tunnel, My Skull Your Closet, Let Me Run @ Cake Shop
* Wolff, Stuart Bogie's Superhuman Hapiness, Thought, Awesome New Republic and a secret guest @ Pianos
* Golden Triangle, The Fresh & Onlys, The Babies, Coasting @ Monster Island Basement
* Darcy James Argue's Secret Society, Todd Sickafoose's Tiny Resistors @ 45 Bleecker
* April Smith, Motel Motel, Shayna Zaid and The Catch (The Deli's Best of NYC Fest) @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Ala Muerte, The Psychic Paramount, Terminal Lovers, Aun, Destructo Swarmbots, Microkingdom @ Party Expo
* Streetlab, Gordon Voidwell, Glass Ghost, Talk Normal, Asa Ransom, Buke and Gass, miniboone (The Deli's Best of NYC Fest) @ Glasslands
* Team Robespierre, Prizzy Prizzy Please, The Pharmacy, Sensual Harassment, No One and the Somebodies @ Death By Audio
* Abominable Iron Sloth, Tiger Flowers, Chambers, Divider, Beauty Apes @ Party Expo
* Kyklooppien Sukupuutto, Dry Spell, The Ominous Order of Flithy Mongrels, & Pollution @ The Charleston

BP image via epkes.com/

Laura Marling plays her 2nd NYC show in a row tonight.

Party Expo hosts shows on multiple floors.

The Deli' Best of NYC Fest continues at multiple venues.

The Fresh & Onlys play their first of 2 NYC shows tonight.

Small Brown Bike play an in-store before Cake Shop.

Neon Indian members DJ at Webster Hall and Shea Stadium.

Passion Pit members DJ at a museum and then play a Kin Party (or the other way around or something). The free show info: ":The wait is over! New York, Passion Pit is going to be performing a FREE LIVE SHOW tonight at the Classic Car Club at 250 Hudson Street."

Silver Apples play their/his first of 2 NYC shows, but tonight is the only one with the Joshua Light Show.

Tonight is the King Left's last show ever.

Dar Williams and Joseph Arthur are performing with Gary Louris at LPR tonight.

Twin Sister help kick off Rooftop Films. Mahogany were supposed to play one this weekend too, but they cancelled and were replaced by DeLeon.

MillionYoung is the secret guest at Pianos tonight.

Video of Skeletons performing "Barack Obama Blues" at a recent Death By Audio show below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Friday?"

"The pivotal scene in Dumbo (1941), for instance, is the transformation of consciousness and augmentation of capacity -- in this case, the big-eared elephant's motor skills -- via a hallucinatory delirium brought on when the dejected pachyderm drinks a barrel full of water into which, unbeknownst to him, a bottle of spirits had been accidentally spilled. To the foreboding lyrics and serpentine melody of "Pink Elephants on Parade," Dumbo begins seeing things "you know that ain't" (a succession of fractals and geometrical patterns, forms morphing into new ones, and scenes of Oriental mystery and erotica), then passes into oblivion, from which he wakes up in the highest branches of a tree. Thus Dumbo earns his wings not through an act of obeisance to the Ten Commandments but in the throes of a psychotropic-induced visionary state." [psychadelicAdventures.com]

Grand Central Station in NYC is celebrating Earth Day today (4/24) and Saturday. There's food, face painting, yoga, recycling, live music and much more. Dar Williams will be there today at 5:45. Full schedule below.

Strangely, today's Grand Central schedule also includes a "BREAK" due to "Noise Ordinance" today from 2-5pm. This is fueling rumors that The Dead, who are in town (again) to play Nassau Coliseum tonight (4/24) and MSG tomorrow (4/25) will show up for a secret show (again). It's probably not true, but if you have nothing better to do and want to head over there based on that, at least there are plenty of other eco-friendly diversions to keep you busy.

The Dead played Letterman last night. Video of that, and full Grand Central music schedule below...

Continue reading "It's Earth Day @ Grand Central - live music included + the Dead played Letterman - Nassau tonight, MSG Saturday"