by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: The Fresh & Onlys - Diamond in the Dark (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Veronica Falls - Found Love in a Graveyard (MP3)

The Fresh and Onlys

Last week, I focused on shows you could get into if you didn't get tickets to the weekend's many, many worthy shows. For this refreshingly informed and enthusiastic edition of TWII, all the exciting stuff (in my opinion) doesn't have advanced tickets. (Only one sold-out exception.) It's a pretty exciting weekend for music, so let's get into it.

San Francisco's fantastic Fresh & Onlys are back in town, playing Friday night (5/14) at Monster Island with Golden Triangle (who headline), The Babies and Coasting (who recently performed at that Chris Knox benefit). They also play Saturday (5/15) at Cake Shop with Liquor Store, Darlings, Girls at Dawn, and Xray Eyeballs (OJ from Golden Triangle's other band). Regular readers of this column, if those exist, know I'm a pretty huge fan of F&Os, but I really do think they're one of the best new bands out of the San Francisco scene. And one of the few bands whose quality nearly matches their hyper-prolific output.

Their latest EP, August in My Mind, is new on Captured Tracks and the band have releases due out this year on Hozac, Sacred Bones and In the Red, who'll be putting out the band's third album (within a year!). The band are already in town -- I ran into bassist Shayde Sartin on the street yesterday and he said the band were hoping to do some recording while here. They are hard workers!

I'm happy to report that singer Tim Cohen's arm has healed after a nasty break last summer that had him switching guitar for keyboards for all of their previous NYC shows. So the axe is back, though I'm gonna guess he'll play a little of both this time out. The MP3 for August in My Mind's "Diamond in the Dark" is at the top of this post. And if you can't see them this weekend, The Fresh & Onlys will be back for the Northside Festival in June.

Veronica Falls

Also this weekend: the American debut of UK band Veronica Falls, who play Glasslands on Saturday (5/15) with Crystal Stilts, Minks and Home Blitz ($12 and you need to RSVP); and then on Sunday (5/16) at Bruar Falls with Frankie Rose & the Outs, German Measles and The Surprisers ($8). Both shows are pretty killer, line-up wise. Veronica Falls are kind like a Fantasy League indiepop band. They met at a Comet Gain show (!), with members culled from short-lived but awesome Glasgow bands The Royal We and Sexy Kids, as well as the excellent-and-still-going Your Twenties. They owe lots to their ancestors -- a song like "Stephen" just has to be about The Pastels -- are mopey without being morose, and are just twee enough to be endearing. It's a delicate line, but Veronica Walls walk it perfectly.

Mind you, they've only released one single so far, the great "Found Love in a Graveyard" (downloadable above) with its killer cover of Roky Erickson's "Starry Eyes" on the flip, but there are few bands recently who've left me so hungry for more. Their second single, the Crystal Stilts-ish "Beachy Head," is pretty good too and due out next week. Hopefully they'll have copies with them at the shows.

If you can't make either show, or you like them so much you want to see them again, by all means come to Cake Shop next Thursday (5/20) when Veronica Falls play NYC Popfest along with Sweden's Leaving Mornington Crescent, the UK's Horowitz, the Sweater Girls from Los Angeles, plus winsome locals Dream Diary and Elephant Parade. We're going to be giving away a NYC Popfest festival pass...stay tuned to this channel for details!

And a few more shows, night by night:

Continue reading "Fresh & Onlys, The Blow, Veronica Falls, Rooftop Films, Eddie Argos, the Lindsay Buckingham Appreciation Society & more in This Week in Indie"

photos by Tim Griffin

With Dyan Valdés on synth and an old British man on drums/guitars, EWITFR is like a lighter, bouncier, popier version of Art Brut. Fans not fear, the cleverness of Eddie Argos lyrics are still there. Announcing this band as a 'concept' band, Eddie delivered introductions to each song, including songs like Billys Jean, which was a response to the Michael Jackson's song Billy Jean. Other songs included Superglue, a response to Elastica's Vaseline and also 'Do Think Twice' a response to Bob Dylan's song Don't Think Twice. You get the idea.

Because of the small crowd, the show seemed rather intimate. It was made even more intimate when Eddie Argos took the microphone stand directly into the crowd and sang in the middle of the people who were there. At one point, I was looking at my phone to read a text message from Derek or Alli, only to look up to see Eddie singing directly into my face. Slightly embarrassed, I never reached for my phone again - it was that kind of intimate. The show ended with a rant on Avril Lavigne's song Girlfriend, followed by the band covering the original song boyfriend. [Panic Manual]

Everybody Was In The French Resistance...NOW!'s SXSW included the above-reviewed late night set at Galaxy Room, and the BrooklynVegan & Anso day show on Thursday, March 18th at the Spider House. The pictures and video here are from the latter.

The group's previously hinted at North American tour kicks off in L.A. on April 23rd and gets to NYC for two shows on May 12th and 13th. Tickets are on sale for the first of those at Mercury Lounge, and the second at Union Hall.

All tour dates, more pictures & a live video are below...

Continue reading "Everybody Was In The French Resistance...NOW! - updated 2010 tour dates & pics from Spider House "

by Andrew Frisicano

Everybody Was In The French Resistance....Now, the project of Art Brut's Eddie Argos and Dyan Valdés from The Blood Arm, put out Fixing the Charts, Volume One, a collection of 12 poppy, parodic songs on Cooking Vinyl earlier this year.

"Argos employs much irony and humour in his songs but there's often a kernel of truth at the heart of the situation he portrays. Although the track which uses the band name as a hook ('Creeque Allies') takes an 'Allo 'Allo approach to history ("the Nazi occupation/ was an awkward situation"), the lyrics also work as a tribute of sorts to the French resistance, while 'G.I.R.L.F.R.E.N (You Know I've Got a)') is a funny but biting response to Avril Lavigne's concept of sisterhood." [SoundsXP]

Videos of some of those ditties live are posted below.

No US tour dates yet, but they'll play five shows at SXSW this year, and then UPDATE: do a proper tour of the US in May. On the afternoon of Thursday, March 18th, they play the BrooklynVegan/AnSo day party at Spider House. Also at the show will be 19 bands including Cheeseburger, A Sunny Day in Glasgow, Tyvek, Thee Oh Sees, Golden Triangle, Kid Congo Powers and Jim Jones Revue.

Tickets are on sale for a May 12th show at Mercury Lounge and a May 13th show at Union Hall in Brooklyn. All dates TBA.

Videos and their full SXSW schedule are below...

Continue reading "Eddie Argos's band Everybody Was In The French Resistance....Now - album out, videos, SXSW/NYC dates"

yes we've lost our minds...

BrooklynVegan & AnSo Present:
A Day Party in Austin, TX!
@ Spider House (2908 Fruth St @ Guadalupe)
Thursday March 18, 2010
Noon-7pm

ALL AGES-FREE [No badges, wristbands or RSVP necessary]
19 bands on 3 stages (1 indoor and 2 outdoor)
Full bar w/ Drink Specials. In house restaurant & backyard BBQ.

Stage #1
6:00 Human Eye
5:00 Tyvek
4:00 Thee Oh Sees
3:00 Golden Triangle
2:00 Lovvers
1:00 The Beets

Stage #2
6:00 Cheeseburger
5:00 Jim Jones Revue
4:00 Slim Cessna's Auto Club
3:00 Kid Congo Powers
2:00 Carletta Sue Kay
1:00 Or, The Whale
12:00 La Strada

Stage #3
5:30 UUVVWWZ
4:30 Everybody Was In the French Resistance Now (w/ Eddie Argos of Art Brut)
3:30 DM Stith
2:30 Odawas
1:30 A Sunny Day in Glasgow
12:30 The Sandwitches

Thank you to Annie Southworth of Panache Booking aka AnSo for partnering with us on this amazing party. More info on the bands and stuff as we find time. In the meantime, happy to get this (yet another BrooklynVegan party at SXSW this year) announced!

P.S. Odawas is also on the bill of the free BrooklynVegan Happy Hour show happening at Noise Pop in San Francisco this Saturday (2/27)

UPDATE: SXSW flyer below...

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan & AnSo Present a kick-ass & free Austin 2010 Thursday Day Party (with a zillion bands)"