"Join artists, musicians, and local community members for an all-day performance event in support of Occupy Wall Street's re-occupation of space in downtown Manhattan."

Lou Reed & Patti Smith scheduled to play on Saturday, December 17th - the THREE MONTH ANNIVERSARY of Occupy Wall St., the birthday of Bradley Manning, and the 1 year anniversary of the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi - the act that sparked the Arab Spring.

WBAI will broadcast the event that starts at 12 noon EDT. See D17 Re-occupy for the official event. [Occupy Wall Street]

Dean & Britta, Titus Andronicus and others will be performing in the WBAI studios - creating a soundtrack for the protesters to listen to on radios. Full performance schedule below. It's unclear who will actually be performing/speaking at the actual event (Lou Reed at both? Patti Smith at just the actual event?).

Continue reading "Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Dean & Britta, Titus Andronicus & more for D17 Occupy Event today"

Dean (& Britta) at Maxwell's (more by Chris Gersbeck)

Dean Wareham continues his juggling act of playing Galaxie 500 songs one night (like he did at Maxwell's recently) and 13 Most Beautiful... songs the next (both with Britta Philips taking different roles). The pair play Hanover, Germany on Saturday 4/8, and after a couple days in South America, return to Europe before heading back to the US for some dates.

Those US dates include The Bell House on June 17th, where Dean will play the Galaxie 500 set. Tickets are on sale and if you have missed recent Galaxie 500 shows, Wareham suggests you make it this time: "We won't be playing this show of Galaxie 500 songs again soon in the NYC area". All tour dates and some videos below...

Continue reading "Dean Wareham playing one more Galaxie 500 show in NYC (and other dates) "

photos by Chris Gersbeck

Pittsburgh Post Gazette: What made you want to revisit the Galaxie 500 catalog now?

Dean: We did one show of all-Galaxie 500 songs at a Spanish festival about a year ago, and it sounded really good. I came home and the CDs were all being re-released, and I thought now that I have re-learned the songs I might as well go play them -- while I can still hit all the notes. [Critic] Michael Azzerad asked me if I had dropped the key on any of the songs to do that, but I have managed to get there without resorting to that.

Continue reading "Dean Wareham played 'Galaxie 500' @ Maxwell's (pics, setlist)"

Pete's Candy Store photos by Amanda Hatfield, Crash Mansion photos by Jessica Amaya, Pianos & Mercury Lounge photos by Chris La Putt, words by Rachel Kowal

Oh Land @ Rebel NYC (more by David Andrako)

You've been following the CMJ adventures of multiple BV contributors for two weeks now, including the day by day reviews from Rachel Kowal. Before too much more time passes, here is the conclusion of Rachel's week (with the end of day four and all of day five), and assorted pictures from four other shows all rolled into one big post. Check it all out, below....

Continue reading "Rachel's CMJ 2010 recap conclusion w/ lots of pics (Lia Ices, Sarah Jaffe, Ume, Robbers on High Street, Buke & Gass, more) "

Dean Wareham playing Galaxie 500 8/18 (more by Chris Gersbeck)

Damon & Naomi will take the stage of Knitting Factory TONIGHT (10/29) with Magik Markers, supporting Masaki Batoh of Ghost. The show is not the first time that members of Ghost and 2/3 of Galaxie 500 have shared the same stage, and based on their recorded/live history, it most likely will not be the last (especially since they are both scheduled to play Northampton, MA one day later). All dates below.

Damon & Naomi, both ex-Galaxie 500, meanwhile have not been participating in the "Dean plays Galaxie 500" shows that their ex-bandmate Dean Wareham has been doing, like at Bowery Ballroom on 10/22 during CMJ:

"Headliner Dean Wareham sat poised to play an exclusive set of music from the Galaxie 500 catalogue, encircling the 90's dream-pop band's fans with memories and treating them to a set of classics like "4th of July", "Flowers", "Blue Thunder" and "When Will You Come Home". Sans original band mates, Wareham invited bassist Britta Phillips (Luna, Dean & Britta), drummer Jason Lawrence (Dean & Britta) and guitarist Matt Sumrow (HeaveN) to play with him for the sold-out stint, which was as warm, subtle and pretty as the band's music".-[Sonic Diet]

"In a Q&A after the show, Dean and Britta explained that with hundreds of tests to choose from they wanted to compose for people who were part of Warhol's daily life -- and not folks who merely stopped in at the Factory once or twice (this is why we don't get any score for Bob Dylan's test, grr). Among the 13 compositions are videos for Billy Name, Lou Reed, Edie Sedgwick, Paul America and Nico.

The songs are dense and beautiful, some have lyrics and some are purely instrumental. It was fascinating to see both product and inspiration at the same time. There was something so raw and almost intrusive about the experience, and I imagine that's just how Andy Warhol would have wanted it."

All dates and some videos below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta played CMJ, Damon & Naomi play tonight "

Dean & Britta played Galaxie 500 in August (more by Chris Gersbeck)

Dean Wareham Plays Galaxie 500 is already happening at Music Hall of Williamsburg in December. Turns out, Dean and friends (Britta, etc.) will be doing the same thing much sooner as part of CMJ. The new show takes place at Bowery Ballroom where they did the Galaxie 500 thing previously, one night after the same show at Rock Shop. Catch them at Bowery Ballroom again on Friday, October 22nd, on an eclectic bill with Crocodiles, Wakey! Wakey!, Brian Bonz & The Major Crimes, James Vincent McMorrow and Young Buffalo. Tickets are on sale now (you can also try and get in with your CMJ badge).

And actually, Dean & Britta do a "13 Most Beautiful...Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" set earlier that same night (10/22) at NYU's Skirball Center. Tickets for that are up too. That makes at least two CMJ shows for Dean and Britta who were part of our own CMJ show at Bowery Ballroom in 2007.

For Crocodiles this gig comes a few days before they kick off a tour with Golden Triangle at Maxwell's.

Recent live videos are below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta playing two CMJ shows, one as Galaxie 500 w/ Crocodiles (dates) "

photos by Chris Gersbeck

"Dean Wareham just played ALL the hits. Perfect set. The Rock Shop is the best new ny show space I have been to in a looong time." - Erik

"Sometimes living in ny rules. Seeing Dean Wareham do Galaxie 500 songs at The Rock Shop to a crowd of under 75 people. This show space rules" - Erik

Dean Wareham (with Britta Phillips) played a secret show at Rock Shop last night (8.18), as a prelude to "the Dean Wareham plays Galaxie 500" series of shows that continue at Bowery Ballroom tonight with Crystal Stilts. Bowery is, much like Rock Shop was, sold out. Pictures and the setlist from the Brooklyn show are in this post.

The pair have quite a few shows on their docket for the coming months, though some fall under the guise of "plays Galaxie 500", others as "13 Most Beautiful..." shows and some under the "regular" Dean & Britta tag. A show that falls under the first category is a recently announced show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Dec 17th. Tickets are currently on AMEX presale, and go on regular sale Friday 8/20 at noon.

Full tour dates for the forthcoming Dean & Britta trek (that extends far into the new year) and what version of Dean & Britta you can expect at the show, as well as a recent video taken of them performing at East Village Radio and another from the Phoenicia porch show, with the setlist and more pictures from Rock Shop, below.

Continue reading "Dean & Britta played Galaxie 500 @ Rock Shop (pics, setlist)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Weekend - End Times (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Weekend - All American (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Procedure Club - Feel Sorry for Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Procedure Club - Rather (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: No Joy - No Joy (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Ceremony - Someday (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Games - Everything is Working (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Family Trees - Dream Talkin (MP3)

Weekend @ Cake Shop

I hope you all survived the insanity that was last week. Thankfully, this week is not quite as action packed but still a lot of cool stuff going on. Let's get to it.

Lovers of shoegazy noisepop will want to be at Silent Barn tonight (8/18) for a pretty killer quadruple bill at which earplugs are definitely recommended. San Francisco's Weekend and New Haven, CT's Procedure Club are both signed to Slumberland Records. Weekend are pretty clean-cut looking dudes who make a dark-edged squall that shows a direct through-line from Joy Division to Jesus and Mary Chain to Ride and beyond. I caught them last night at Cake Shop and despite a few microphone problems I thought they were pretty good. Loud. Really loud. The band have already released singles on Transparent and Mexican Summer -- download tracks from those at the top of this post -- and the Slumberland album, Sports (is the title perhaps a tip of a hit to fellow Bay Area musician Huey Lewis?), is out in November. Weekend also play Death by Audio tomorrow (8/19) tomorrow night with sonic compatriots A Place to Bury Strangers.

Procedure Club

Procedure Club, meanwhile, are more on the bedroom pop side of things. Their album, Doomed Forever, came out in June and is a pretty low fi affair, but the songwriting begins to shine through the cacophony on repeated listens. Check out two tracks from the album above, and there's a video for "Rather" at the bottom of this post.

As for the rest of the Silent Barn bill, there's LA/Montreal duo No Joy who I've written about before (but still haven't seen) and are possibly the loudest band on a very loud night. The band's debut 7" is out now on Mexican Summer (grab the b-side above) and is recommended to those whose taste leans towards the sludgy side of things. No Joy are also playing the Death by Audio show with APTBS and Weekend tomorrow night, and will then head out on tour with Dungen, and those tour dates are at the bottom of this post.

Rounding out the show are Fredericksburg, VA's Ceremony who crib more than a little from JAMC (and Medicine and The Radio Dept.), though their album, Rocket Fire, has some nice moments on it -- you can download an MP3 of "Someday" at the top of this post.

Dean and Britta

Dean Wareham kicks off his "Plays Galaxie 500" tour tonight at the Rock Shop, and he'll do it again tomorrow night at Bowery Ballroom with Crystal Stilts opening. Both shows are sold out so I won't go on and on here, but I'm looking forward to this trip down Memory Lane. Hopefully he'll pull out some of my favorites ("Strange," "Parking Lot," "Oblivious"). Dean talked to the AV Club about the difficulties of rearranging the songs for his current band:

AVC: You play with four people now instead of three.

DW: We like four people, because I listen to the records, and there's generally two guitars, because there's an overdub on each track. Or sometimes Matt [Sumrow] plays keyboards; he switches back and forth. I think it sounds fuller with the live guitar. When I go back and look at the old Galaxie 500 live recordings, sometimes Kramer would get onstage with us and play a few songs. It sounded a little fuller. There are times when it works great as a three-piece, too.

AVC: Does touring the Galaxie songs as a four-piece involve some rearranging?

DW: It involves some rehearsing. The songs are more difficult to play than I remember. I listened to the live Galaxie 500 album from Copenhagen, and I realized that's at the end of a tour, after we had been touring for a couple of months and had gotten pretty good at it. In terms of chord structure, the songs are incredibly simple. For example, a song like "Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste" is only one chord, but there's a whole lot going on in it.

AVC: Peter Buck talks about how hard it was late in R.E.M.'s career to relearn some of their early songs. Because they didn't know what they were doing at first, it's incredibly difficult to replicate.

DW: On "Don't Let Our Youth Go To Waste," when I was going over my guitar solo, I had no idea what I was doing and I was completely lost. Then I'm like, "How did I do that?"

AVC: It's hard to stumble into the same thing twice.

DW: Well, obviously I don't have to replicate it note-for-note. Mind you, I've got fans who get mad if I play "Snowstorm" and I do the solo with the fuzz pedal instead of the wah-wah. "What! How could he do that?"

Deva

And a few more picks, day-by-day of shows that weren't covered above.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 18

Family Trees, who probably own a Galaxie 500 record or two, play their dreamy folk pop to Pianos tonight opening for Julian Lynch and Family Portrait. Check out Family Tree's lovely "Dream Talkin'" at the top of this post.

Quality indie rockers Diehard highlight a fun bill at Bruar Falls that also has The Vandelles and The Sanctuaries.

Air Waves, The Beets, Easter Vomit and Rifle Recoil play a benefit for Yellow Fever's Jennifer Moore at Death by Audio.

continued below...

Continue reading "Weekend, APTBS, Procedure Club, Galaxie 500, Games, No Joy, Ceremony, Family Trees & more in This Week in Indie"

Sunday in Phoenicia, NY

Dean Wareham (with help from Britta) is about to kick off the first dates of his upcoming sorta-tour where he'll be "playing Galaxie 500". The August 19th Bowery Ballroom show, and the secret show at The Rock Shop on August 18th, have both sold out, but Dean has added yet another NYC show happening on December 17th at Music Hall of Williamsburg (four months after the Bowery show for those counting). It's also billed as "Dean Wareham plays Galaxie 500" and Tickets go on sale Friday, August 20th at noon.

Updated tour dates, and a video from Sunday's free porch show in Phoenecia (where Dean & Britta performed with Jonathan Donahue & Grasshopper of Mercury Rev), below...

Continue reading "Dean Wareham adds more Galaxie 500 shows, played a porch in Phoenicia w/ Mercury Rev members (video) "

We're not 100% who's playing The Rock Shop on August 18, but I couldn't help notice that the date is the day before Dean Wareham plays Galaxie 500 songs at Bowery Ballroom and that opener Tyburn Saints recently posted a Galaxie 500 video to their facebook page. $5 Tickets are on sale now.

Meanwhile, Dean & Britta play a free show this Sunday in Phoenicia, NY.

Dean, Naomi & Damon (Galaxie 500)

Following the re-release of Galaxie 500's three classic albums on Domino and 20-20-20, Dean Wareham will perform a set of Galaxie 500 songs, backed by the Dean & Britta band (featuring Britta Phillips, drummer Anthony LaMarca and guitarist Matt Sumrow). Galaxie 500 formed in Cambridge, MA in 1987 and recorded three studio albums (Today, On Fire and This Is Our Music). They met with much acclaim in their short time together but disbanded in 1991. Wareham went on to form Luna.

The Bowery Ballroom show is one of two Dean and Britta have scheduled in NYC at the moment. The other is the previously mentioned "13 Most Beautiful...Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" show happening at NYU on October 22nd. They also have other Andy Warhol tour dates scheduled in support of the July 2th release of that CD too. More info and all dates below...

Continue reading "Dean Wareham (and Britta) releasing & performing Galaxie 500 songs & their Andy Warhol album "

DOWNLOAD: Dean & Britta - Making Me Smile (MP3)

"Sing Me To Sleep" is a really fun compilation of lullabies and popular songs re-imagined as lullabies by some of today's best indie artists including: Dean & Britta, Tanya Donelly, The Leisure Society, The Rest, Telekinesis, Jenny Owen Youngs, The Real Tuesday Weld, Snowbird, Neil Halstead, and many more. All proceeds from this wonderful album are donated to The Valerie Fund, a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization that provides support for the comprehensive health care of children with cancer and blood disorders. It's a beautifully produced album for indie-hipsters young and old.

Coming up, Joe's Pub will be hosting a June 13th show for the album with contributors Tanya Donelly, backed by a jazz ensemble, Jenny Owen Youngs and Julie Peel. This all-ages, kid-friendly (with face painting, free souvenirs and door prizes) starts at noon. Tickets are on sale.

Songs from the record (including Stars cover of the Smith's "Asleep") are streaming, and the Dean & Britta track is available above. Tracklist for the CD and show flyer are below...

Continue reading "Sing Me to Sleep - indie lullabies out now + an MP3 & NY show"

"Played the Simon & Garfunkel tribute in Central Park last night. John Roderick brought it! Ben Gibbard's psych jam ruled..." - Aimee Mann

Holmes Brothers (Sherman, Popsy and Wendell) & Mayor Bloomberg (WFUV)

Ben Gibbard & St. Vincent play "Fakin it" (WFUV)

Paul Simon & WFUV Music Director Rita Houston (WFUV)

SummerStage hosted a pricey benefit for its free programming last night (June 8) in Central Park. The show was a tribute to the songs of Simon & Garfunkel, and musicians covered the pair mostly as duos. St. Vincent and Ben Gibbard teamed up for "Fakin' It," Dean & Britta played "Homeward Bound," Alejandro Escovedo and Willie Nile played "The Boxer," Aimee Mann and John Roderick did "Only Living Boy in New York," Loudon Wainwright III and Lucy Wainwright Roche sang "Bleecker Street" and lots more. Both Simon and Garfunkel were there, but didn't perform. The full performer+set list is posted below.

How did the new speakers at Central Park sound? The SummerStage series continues through August. Celebrate Brooklyn kicks off TONIGHT (6/9).

No videos from the show at the moment, but someone posted some from the show's rehearsal that took place one night earlier at City Winery. Those with the Central Park setlist, below...

Continue reading "Simon & Garfunkel were honored at Summerstage, Ben Gibbard performed w/ St. Vincent & much more"

photos by Lori Baily

An excellent show! Silver Apples was just Simeon with oscillators and synths and beats and it was incredible. -justinpaszul

Oneida jamming with Silver Apples. Lower East Side is ready for liftoff. -MaxBurke

Silver Apples @ Abrons Arts Center

It's not every day you have the opportunity to step into the 5th dimension (and hitting up one of those smokey Chinatown mall raves that are all the rage lately doesn't count.) However, if you happened to find yourself at Brooklyn's Coco66 last night to see electronic-psych pioneers the SILVER APPLES, chances are you felt like you were visiting the other side...

Before a fawning and awe-inspired crowd, esteemed godfather of experimental electronics and surviving member of legendary psych duo Silver Apples, Simeon Coxe III greeted us with waves and smiles. And then came the oscillations we had all been waiting for! Promptly making the magic happen on his historic, eponymously named, personally devised synthesizer, The Simeon, Coxe performed a handful of Silver Apples/Contact-era favorites ("A Pox on You," "Seagreen Serenades," "Oscillations"), as well as a healthy dose of newer, nerve-perking vibrations. Transcendental, dance-inducing, and euphoric, last night's mystical Silver Apples set truly had us seeing stars. [Opening Ceremony]

Other bands that played the four-night Joshua Light Show fest at Abrons included Dean & Britta (video below), Steve Moore (video below), Woods (NYC Taper taped it) and MV & EE (NYC Taper taped it).

Pictures and video below...

Continue reading "Silver Apples played Coco66 & the Joshua Light Fest @ Abrons Arts Center - pics & video (and live Woods recording)"

Dean @ LPR (more by Chris La Putt)

Abrons Art Center hosts The Joshua Light Show In Residence May 12 - 15, 2010: Four evenings of live music and visuals featuring Spectrum, Dean & Britta, Silver Apples, Oneida, Woods, MV & EE, Steve Moore, and itsnotyouitsme. Tickets $15 advance/$20 door.

Silver Apples will also play a 2nd show in Brooklyn on May 16th.

Dean & Britta also play as part of an expensive benefit at Central Park Summerstage on June 8th (which Ben Gibbard & St Vincent have since been added to), and they'll be doing a "13 Most Beautiful...Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" show at NYU's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts on October 22nd (possibly part of CMJ).

Spectrum also plays Knitting Factory on May 19th.

Joshua Light Show behind Yo La Tengo @ Roseland Ballroom last September

The iconic Joshua Light Show, led by multimedia artist Josh White, remains one of the most visible proponents of the psychedelic lightshow discipline popularized in the 1960s as a means to enliven the experience of live music -- an experimental cinematic medium that is also essential to the visual culture of rock. Artist and curator Nick Hallett has selected four evenings of incredible musical artists, including Silver Apples aka Simeon Coxe (who performed with the original Joshua Light Show at Bill Graham's Fillmore East on a bill with no less than The Fugs and Norman Mailer) and pioneering English electronic musician Sonic Boom and his band Spectrum, sharing an evening with Dean & Britta. Younger talent, culled mainly from Brooklyn's ultravivid music scene, rounds out this mini-festival, focusing on visionary, visual music.

Tickets to all four shows are on sale.

A video of Joshua Light show at work and the schedule are below...

Continue reading "Joshua Light Show in residence - 4 NYC nights w/ Oneida, Silver Apples, Steve Moore, Dean & Britta, Woods & more "

If you've been wondering what Charlotte Gainsbourg's new album and Beck collaboration IRM sounds like, the full thing is now streaming on NPR.

Gainsbourg is playing two nights at Brooklyn's Bell House tonight (1/19) and tomorrow (1/20). Both are sold out. The opener for the first night is pop duo Dean and Britta; the second night's is Francophilic Brooklyn band Dinosaur Feathers (who have other dates, below, and their debut due this March). She plays Philadelphia's Theater of Living Arts on Friday, January 22nd, and then NYC's Hiro Ballroom (with no opener announced) on Saturday, January 23rd. Tickets for the Hiro show are still on sale.

Gainsbourg is on the lineup for Coachella in April. She recently cancelled some of her non-NYC shows (like Montreal and Toronto scheduled for the end of the month) due to scheduling conflicts. Those are expected to be rescheduled.

Charlotte isn't the only member of the Gainsbourg/Birkin family in the news. As previously mentioned, Jane Birkin (her mother) is playing in NYC in February. And a biopic about her father Serge, titled Serge Gainsbourg, vie héroïque, comes out tomorrow in France (no US screenings scheduled as of yet, though it screens in the UK in September). The trailer for that (NSFW) and all Charlotte Gainsbourg and Dinosaur Feathers tour dates are below...

Continue reading "Charlotte Gainsbourg is here (openers), playing Coachella - new album streaming ++ Serge film out in France (trailer)"

Field Music didn't make it, but there was a special reunion set by Pulsars, followed by the super duper Wye Oak who played before special guest Rumours last night at The Bell House in Brooklyn (12/3).

As advertised (at the last minute anyway), Rumours was a Fleetwood Mac cover band. Cover song experts Loser's Lounge made up the band and a rotating cast of singers came to the stage to play individual tunes. Those vocalists included Dave Hill dueting with Erika from Au Revoir Simone, Will Sheff dueting with Beth Wawerna, Matthew Caws, Britta, Sharon Van Etten, Wye Oak, and many more. The show was in honor of Bell House booker Skippy. Well, it was his birthday party, and he even came out to help perform "I Don't Wanna Know" with Mia Riddle. The full setlist (which did not include AC Newman or Eugene Mirman - both must be out of town) with a couple of videos below...

Continue reading "Rumours (indie all-star Fleetwood Mac band) played the Bell House w/ Wye Oak & Pulsars - video & setlist"

DOWNLOAD: My Robot Friend - Misfits Fight Song (MP3)

My Robot Friend...

Double Feature Records presents Soft-Core, the first US release by My Robot Friend. My Robot Friend is a musical and performance art project born from the ashes of the late '90s NYC band Princess, which almost signed on to the legendary label Too Pure (P.J. Harvey, Stereolab) but broke up just in time. My Robot Friend performs in an elaborate light-up suit while interacting with illuminated objects, wireless video cameras and pyrotechnics. Think lovechild of a three way between Devo, Laurie Anderson....and a robot.

My Robot Friend (who has been known to cover Luna's "23 Minutes In Brussels") is appearing Friday, October 2nd show at 92YTribeca. Also on the bill are Cheval Sombre (with special guests), and DJing by Dean Wareham, who started the new Double Feature label with partner Britta Phillips. It makes one curious about the "special guests" that'll be appearing (yes, Dean & Britta will be there). Tickets are on sale.

Cheval Sombre, also on their label, opened for the Dean & Britta at LPR in June. At that show, the pair announced that it'd be their last non-Warhol show in the US for the year, but they played a regular set in Rochester last weekend (and will do one in San Francisco in October). Plus their New Years Eve show at Southpaw is still technically in 2009...

A My Robot Friend video below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta's label Double Feature Records releasing My Robot Friend - catch them all at 92yTribeca -- MP3"

DOWNLOAD: The Felice Brothers - Run Chicken Run (MP3)

Dean & Britta

Southpaw is hosting two New Year's Eve shows this year. The first (7pm doors) will be Dean & Britta with special guests. The second (10pm doors) is An Evening with the Felice Brothers. Tickets for both the early and late shows are on sale now.

Dean & Britta's upcoming dates are a mix of "13 Most Beautiful...Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" gigs (like they did at Prospect Park in August) and regular shows. Between their pair of upstate New York shows this weekend (9/25 and 9/26) you can catch both versions.

The Felice Brothers came through NYC in August too, on their Big Surprise Tour with Old Crow Medicine Show, Dave Rawlings Machine (feat. Gillian Welch) and Justin Townes Earle...

The Felice Brothers honed their brand of urban country-rock busking in the New York City subway but they performed [at the Beacon Theatre] like true Yankee bleacher creatures. Riling up the crowd with songs like "Run Chicken Run" and "Whiskey in My Whiskey", their songs adhered to a hard-nosed insight, that's only gained through country experience, while leaving ample room for rural romanticism. Oddly enough some members seemed to effuse hip-hop onstage: Chains, flat-brimmed Yankee caps, hands pumping the rhythm, even bumping and grinding a washboard. [Pop Matters]

Continue reading "Dean & Britta & The Felice Brothers playing New Years Eve @ Southpaw (not together) ++ other 2009 Tour Dates"

Dean & Britta Celebrating Brooklyn, Prospect Park - Aug 1, 2009 (pic by Paul Shin)

Dean and Britta launched their set and the film series in understated fashion with the "Richard Rheem Theme," a discofied electro composition as sleek as the coolly handsome Rheem, a wealthy Warhol hanger-on, himself. Things moved into high gear, however, with "Teenage Lightning (and Lonely Highways," D&B's jangly guitar-pop evocation of the equally handsome Paul Johnson, a speed-freak hustler and sometime Edie Sedgwick BF who practically commanded the camera with scowling bravado. (It bears mentioning that Johnson, who was struck by a car in 1982, was one of four screen testees in 13 Most Beautiful who came to an untimely end.) As for the Factory Girl herself, her slightly stunned onscreen affect (she was recuperating from a car crash at the time) juxtaposed hauntingly with the swooshing synthesizer flourishes of "It Don't Rain in Beverly Hills." Equally arresting: a tweedy pre-Easy Rider Dennis Hopper, nodding and laughing over a blues-rock instrumental; and future cult-film queen Mary Woronov, as severely beautiful as Rock 'n' Roll High School's Miss Togar yet with a glint of wry amusement.

Notwithstanding Dean and Britta's precisely tailored compositions, their most memorable musical selections were two covers: For Nico, Britta's folk-rock rendering of Dylan's "I'll Keep It With Mine" offered a honeyed counterpoint to the German chanteuse's almost-robotic version (not to mention Nico's fidgety, restless screen presence). And as Lou Reed in sunglasses nonchalantly chugged a Coke on screen, Dean shed his vocal reserve to growl out the great, obscure VU raver "I'm Not a Young Man Anymore." [EW.com]

Dean & Britta's upcoming schedule of "Warhol" shows includes a number of not-to-far dates at places that include Philadelphia, Providence and Ithaca.

The band announced at their June LPR show that they wouldn't have any more non-"Warhol" shows (at least in the US) this year. One place you cans see Dean Wareham though, is at Union Hall, tonight (August 4th) for the venue's Stories in High Fidelity. He'll be reading with Village Voice music editor Rob Harvilla, and McSweeney's Dan Kennedy, and special guests. Tickets are still on sale.

Dean's writing credits (besides lots of song lyrics) include his memoir Black Postcards, which came out last year. Galaxie 500, which, with Luna, is one of Dean's former bands, recently remastered and re-released parts of their back catalog on vinyl.

A flyer for the Union Hall reading and all Dean & Britta tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta played Prospect Park --- Dean reading tonight"

photos by Chris La Putt

"Wednesday [April 29th] we played another show, sitting in with Cheval Sombre at Death By Audio in Williamsburg, a club that reminded me of 8BC in years gone by. Once again I watched the first three songs from the audience before getting on stage, and Cheval Sombre played a hypnotizing set." [Dean Wareham]

More pictures of Cheval & D & B from LPR, and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta & Cheval Sombre - LPR pics & 2009 tour dates "

A performing arts program of BRIC Arts | Media | Bklyn, Celebrate Brooklyn! is one of New York City's longest running, free, outdoor performing arts festivals. Launched in 1979, as a catalyst for a Brooklyn performing arts scene and to bring people back into Prospect Park after years of neglect, Celebrate Brooklyn has been an anchor in the park's revitalization and has become one of the city's foremost summer cultural attractions. Over the course of its history Celebrate Brooklyn has presented over 1,700 artists and ensembles reflective of the borough's diversity, ranging from internationally acclaimed performers to emerging, cutting-edge artists. All Celebrate Brooklyn performances are free. The festival attracts upwards of 250,000 attendees from across New York City to the Prospect Park Bandshell each summer.

Continue reading "Celebrate Brooklyn! 2009 Prospect Park concert schedule "

by Andrew Frisicano

Dean & Britta @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Chris La Putt)

We [Double Feature Records] are releasing the debut by Cheval Sombre, produced by Sonic Boom, with musical contributions from Britta and myself. This CD contains tracks from his out-of-print 7" singles (issued on the UK label, Static Caravan), and a whole lot more. [Dean Wareham]

This Saturday (3/28), Dean & Britta's "13 Most Beautiful...songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" show visits Boston. They did the same show in NYC in January. Dean & Britta, who were commissioned to write pieces for the collection of Warhol's silent films, have been out performing their original songs live, "beneath projections of Warhol's film portraits of his Silver Factory Superstars [who included Nico, Lou Reed, Edie Sedgwick, Dennis Hopper, and more]." Plexifilm just released a DVD version of the show on March 24th.

In April, Cheval Sombre is playing a few US dates with Dean & Britta's friend, and his record producer, Sonic Boom aka Spectrum. That includes the presviously announced April 26th show at Mercury Lounge (tix), as well as an April 29th show at Death By Audio in Brooklyn. Appropriately enough, a third date is at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, PA.

All tour dates and a video of Dean & Britta performing at NYC's Zipper Factory last September, below...

Continue reading "Dean & Britta releasing Warhol DVD & album by Cheval Sombre - 2009 Tour Dates (for all of them & Spectrum) "

Dean & Britta @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Chris La Putt)

As previously posted, Dean & Britta are going on tour with Mercury Rev in early December - tickets are still on sale for the NYC show at Highline Ballroom. Tickets are also now on sale for this show at Lincoln Center:

13 Most Beautiful...Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests, Composed by Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips
Saturday, January 17, 2009 8:30 PM
The Allen Room

American Songbook
A selection of Andy Warhol's Screen Tests, the late pop-artist's fascinating film-portraits of visitors to his studio, is set to music by former members of the alt-rock outfit Luna, Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips.

Continue reading "Dean & Britta - Tour Dates (Andy Warhol @ the Allen room)"