by Bill Pearis

people at Zebulon for an El Guincho show in 2010 (more by Erez Avissar)

Rumors have been floating around for a while, but now it's official: Williamsburg venue Zebulon, which has always been a great place for world music and jazz, as well as local and touring bands (including being the home of Grizzly Bear's first show in 2004) for about a decade (and almost never charged admission), will be closing its doors for good after their show this Sunday (12/9). The press release (via Zebulon's facebook) reads:

On Sunday, Dec 9 Zebulon will be closing its doors after ten exciting years of pioneering music and arts. Williamsburg has changed significantly since we opened, and unfortunately it is no longer possible today to continue the business in the manner in which it was conceived. Nevertheless, it's been a great run. We are proud to have given many celebrated artists a chance to play in an intimate setting or develop their sound in readiness for a larger audience. Zebulon has employed and supported struggling artists and their families, connected them to a wider musical community in New York and given them a stage on which to experiment. This is our final week so if you haven't been down in a while, please come and say hello/wave goodbye, and pay your respects to this gem of an institution. Thank you for your support and stay tuned for news of our next endeavors and adventures!

Major bummer for the neighborhood. The block Zebulon is on (Wythe between Metropolitan and N. 3rd) has changed drastically in the last two years: the bike club/repair shop, such a fixture for longer than I've lived in the neighborhood ('98),  is now a surf shop, and long-running diner Relish is now an very busy (and overpriced) Mexican place. Zebulon was the last holdout on the block from the early '00s Williamsburg expansion and will be sincerely missed.

The schedule of upcoming shows for Zebulon's final week (including Mike Wexler, Colin Stetson, Hubble and more) is below.

Continue reading "Zebulon closing its doors for good next week"

Blanche Blanche Blanche

Brooklyn label RVNG Intl. is taking part in Bulletin Boards, a group show curated by Matthew Higgs (White Columns Gallery), at Venus Over Manhattan (980 Madison Ave, 3rd Floor) tonight (7/19). Here's what the label has to say about the show:

For this group show, each artist is granted a 3' x 4' bulletin board space. RVNG invited a select group of musicians from different points on the avant spectrum to contribute an object to be used as a percussion arranged and affixed to the bulletin board and "played" by [David] Van Tieghem.

This performance will be multi-tracked in high definition before the opening. We will offer the recorded performance back to the contributing musicians to "re-animate" into original piece / recordings. These recordings will be culled and assembled by Van Tieghem and RVNG / The Sound of White Columns into a limited edition album for the FRKWYS.

Van Teighem will be performing at the opening tonight (7/19) and there wil be DJ sets by Matt from RVNG, Matthew HIggs, and Nick Relph. Participating artists in the show include Blanche Blanche Blanche, DIamond Terrifier, Future Shuttle (in conjunction with Anna Gonick), Hiro Kone, Robert Lange (Helado Negro), Megafortress, and more. Tonight's show starts at 6 PM. More details, the flier, and the full list of participating artists is below.

Speaking of Blanche Blanche Blanche, their new album, Wink With Both Eyes, came out earlier this year. If you've yet to hear it, you can stream the album in full below.

Continue reading "RVNG Intl, Matthew Higgs & David Van Tieghem presenting 'Bulletin Boards' at Venus Over Manhattan tonight "

Prince Rama at Austin's Mohawk in 2011 (more by Tim Griffin)

We just mentioned that Gang Gang Dance are playing a Bandshell-presented show at Public Assembly on September 21 with Sun Araw, and we've realized that they also play another Bandshell-presented show the next day at Cameo Gallery on September 22 with Prince Rama. Tickets for the Cameo show are on sale now, and like the Public Assembly show, they cost $27.

Gang Gang and Prince Rama are both playing Hudson, NY's Basilica Music Festival in August. Since we last spoke, more details for that "festival" have been announced. Pitchfork (who are co-presenting the festival) reports:

In addition to previously announced acts Liturgy, Gang Gang Dance, Prince Rama, Mick Barr, and others, we're happy to add more components to the weekend: Blazer, a New Mexico-based sound system owned and operated by Excepter's Nathan Corbin and specializing in heavy dub, roots, ragga and dancehall, will be featured on Saturday afternoon. "Neidan!" will also feature performances from the Psychic Paramount, Hiro Kone, and Mike Fellows (aka Miighty Flashlight, ex-Rites of Spring). We're also introducing an early-evening sunset cruise on the Hudson on Saturday.

Tickets for Basilica Music Festival are still available.

Updated GGD dates are listed below...

Continue reading "Gang Gang Dance also playing Cameo; more details announced for Basilica Music Festival"

Some of you may remember art installation The Maze which took over Death by Audio back in Fall 2009 and at at Chashama's Visual Arts Space in 2009. Well it's back, as the You Are Here Festival has returned for a month-long residency at Secret Project Robot Gallery in Bushwick (389 Melrose St) from July 12 - Aug 4.

Just like in previous years, the festival will include a "gigantic life size maze", and will host a grip of performers on Thursday - Saturday during their stay at the space. Thursday's kickoff event (7/12) features Miho Hatori's New Optimism, ZS, Bachanalia, Ann Liv Young and DJ JG Thirlwell of various Foetus incarnations. Other performers throughout the month include Xeno and Oaklander, Hubble, Mick Barr, Dan Friel, Zs, VAZ, Amen Dunes, Extra Life, Diamond Terrifier and many many more. Full schedule for "You are Here" is below including details on the art exhibitions at the space.

The festival is also readying a limited mixtape, featuring unheard/rare tracks from many of the performers scheduled for the event. Get a copy at the shows and at the You Are Here site, and check out "Hubble Potatoes" by Hubble which appears on said comp below.

In related news, both Diamond Terrifier and Hubble will perform at Zebulon tonight (7/10), joining Excepter and Hagfish & Poet Lounge. The show is part of a month-long residency durated by Diamond Terrifier (Sam Hillmer of Zs) on Tuesdays at the venue. The remainder of shows will feature a Patrick Higgins electro-acoustic set with Sleng Teng, and Tetryl Red on 7/17, ATM, with Psychic Reality, and Chuck Bettis on 7/24, and the final show on 7/31 with Talibam!, Violet Raid, Sun Watchers, and GADDFJXR.

Full details on the fest are below. The group is currently seeking funding for a Berlin edition in September 2012, contribute if you can.

Continue reading "The You Are Here Festival (aka The Maze) is coming to Secret Project Robot"

by Andrew Sacher

Mike Wexler

Brooklyn's Mike Wexler released his sophomore LP, Dispossession, earlier this month via Mexican Summer. The album follows his debut LP, Sun Wheel, which arrived five years earlier and in that time he's been honing his brand of psychedelic folk and making it sound even starker than it does on his debut. Dispossession recalls the loner folk of late '60s/early '70s artists like Gary Higgins and Mark Fry, and also the plodding songwriting of more contemporary artists like Will Oldham and Phil Elvrum. Like those artists, Mike Wexler takes his time with every track on the album, more than half of which is made up of 6-9 minute songs. This gives him plenty of space to work in subtle embellishments like backgrounded hand drumming patterns, scattered guitar effects, and airy horn lines. Stream two tracks from the album below or listen to the entire album on Spotify. The artwork and tracklist are also below.

Mike Wexler is playing a record release party for the album TONIGHT (3/30) at Zebulon with Amen Dunes and Hiro Kone. If you miss tonight's show, Mike will play another local show at Glasslands on May 9 with Future Shuttle. Tickets for the Glasslands show are on sale now.

You can also catch another local Amen Dunes show at The Stone on April 17, the same day that Guardian Alien (Greg Fox) plays.

All dates, streams, album artwork and tracklist below...

Continue reading "Mike Wexler released 'Dispossession', playing shows (one with Amen Dunes tonight)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Deradoorian @ Union Pool - 5/10/11

Deradoorian aka Angel Deradoorian of Dirty Projectors played a show with Hiro Kone at Union Pool in Brooklyn Tuesday night (5/10)...

"Deradoorian has just one five-song EP to her credit thus far, 2009's entrancing Mind Raft, plus a split single from earlier this year and some stray tracks (apparently the Dirty Projectors have been busy?). But her sound has evolved, and she has a sharp trio that's headed to the Animal Collective-curated ATP in England in a few days. They took the stage and played "Moon," the circular, hypnotic song that closes Mind Raft, and this completely fucked me up. At the end of that EP, "Moon" somehow bears witness to the four songs that precede it, focusing their most affecting traits into one six-minute spell. It is an end song. What's it doing at the beginning of the set? But when the full band blew in at a dramatic moment halfway through the song, all complaints were forgotten." [Village Voice]

Deradoorian's Brooklyn setlist is below. Deradoorian play the AC ATP in Minehead on Sunday which is the same day Tony Conrad plays the UK shindig. For a second I thought that was a lot of last minute traveling for Tony, but then I remembered he's not actually playing the Table of the Elements Fest in NYC this weekend - they're just showing a video of a show he played in 1996.

Hiro Kone next plays a show at Cake Shop on June 4th, with (her old band) Effi Briest and Pillars and Tongues.

In barely related news, Dirty Projectors' & Animal Collective's Domino label-mate Cass McCombs is currently on the road and plays a tour-ending show at Bowery Ballroom tonight (5/12) with Jana Hunter. Tickets are still available.

More pictures from Union Pool, below...

Continue reading "Deradoorian played Union Pool w/ Hiro Kone (pics & setlist), Cass McCombs plays Bowery Ballroom tonight"

Angel, Nate and Dave of Dirty Projectors at Fun Fun Fun Fest (more by Tim Griffin)

Angel Deradoorian (of Dirty Projectors) will headline a show at Brooklyn's Union Pool on Tuesday, May 10th with Hiro Kone on for support. Advanced tickets are on sale for the 9PM show. Deradoorian recently released a split 7" with Albert McCloud on Lovepump United.

Projector Nat Baldwin has a new LP due on May 24th entitled People Changes and he'll play NYC twice this weekend (May 7th & 8th at Zebulon). He'll also join David Longstreth & Brian McOmber to perform Black Flag material at Bowery Ballroom on 5/22 as part of the sold-out celebration of Our Band Could Be Your Life.

Stream some Hiro Kone (Nicky Mao of Up Died Sound, ex-Effi Briest) material below.

Continue reading "Deradoorian playing w/ Hiro Kone + Nat Baldwin gigs soon too"