by Ben Lozovsky

Caribou makes luxurious music for unflappable spirits. At the first of two area sold out shows Friday, they laid a heavy blanket of pounding kraut and sumptuous new disco over at Music Hall of Williamsburg (they played Bowery Ballroom on Saturday) with a technical wizardry that not only felt comforting, but truly enveloping for the senses.

Even as the members, led by Daniel Snaith, remained stoically tethered to their respective corners in a tight square setup on stage, often obscured behind mounds of equipment and wild projections, Caribou never hid their intentions. The music was always burning with an anonymous, or rather all-inclusive, emotional base - it didn't boast any distinct nationality or heritage, instead speaking a collective modern language in electronic, jazz-scented and prog-driven words.

In fact, the diverse group of songs performed from Caribou's (formally Manitoba) wide catalog, often as stylistically distinct as each passing record, felt like one long flowing conversation. Each number would churn and wobble until a glowing boiling point, like the rapturous ending of "Melody Day," only to be circumvented by the slow ascent of the next one.

Opener Toro y Moi took some cues from Caribou's textural playbook, as Chazwick Bundick' enhanced his more melodically driven chillwave with backing musicians this time around. The results of the full band addition might have been unpolished at brief moments, but was nonetheless rich with detail and tension, a positive sign that Chazwick's obvious promise was on the way to being more fully realized.

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Hounds of Hate were first of third on the bill, but Ben missed them. More pictures from the music Hall show with some videos from Bowery, below...

Continue reading "Caribou & Toro y Moi played Music Hall & Bowery (pics, video) "

by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Laurel Halo - Embassy (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Laurel Halo - Metal Confection (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Hounds of Hate - Head Anthem (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Hounds of Hate - I Like Triangles (MP3)

Hounds of Hate

Todd Pendu's "Tuesday Night Disco" brings a noteworthy lineup to Glasslands tonight (5/4). The headliner, Hounds of Hate, uses synths and samples to make goth-inspired dance music and are here all the way from the UK. If you miss it though, don't worry they'll be around for a little while. Wednesday night they play Coco 66 with Dead Stars, The Hidden Ratio and New Yoga (an NYC band who are also on the Glasslands show and on tour with Hounds).

After that, Hounds of Hate play house parties the next two nights (Thursday, 5/6 & Friday, 5/7 - details below), which is a notable jump from their other shows this weekend - opening for Caribou and Toro y Moi at their sold-out Music Hall of Williamsburg and Bowery Ballroom shows. They then tour around the East Coast and Canada through May. Hear their cover of Snoop Dogg's "Sensual Seduction" and more below.

Laurel Halo

Laurel Halo, also on the bill at Glasslands tonight, plays dark, intricately arranged electronic pop. Her King Felix EP is free online. Get it while you can. If you miss her tonight, she plays NY Eye & Ear Fest's second day (also a Pendu production) on May 23rd at Knitting Factory.

A flyer, videos and all tour dates are below...

Continue reading "Hounds of Hate are here - MP3s, video & dates w/ New Yoga, Caribou & Laurel Halo (download her free EP)"

Caribou, the musical project/band of Dan Snaith, is coming out with a new record, Swim, April 20th on Merge. The dancey, dubby, disco-influenced first single, "Odessa," is available for free, and its video is posted below.

The band hits the road with concerts around the world this April, May and June. They play two nights in NYC - May 7th at Music Hall of Williamsburg and May 8th at Bowery Ballroom. Toro Y Moi (who has his own SXSW and other NYC tour dates coming up) and London's Hounds Of Hate open. Tickets for the NY shows go on AmEx presale Wednesday, March 10th at noon. General sale starts Friday, March 12th at noon.

For a while now, Caribou's live show has mixed music and visuals, which is something that'll continue on this tour.

This year will also see a dramatic difference in the Caribou live performance. Now that technology has finally caught up to Dans ambitions for the bands show, while it will still be four musicians on stage, the dynamic interplay between visuals, electronics and the live sound is totally pliable.

[Snaith says] "Now we can play the mix onstage like a dub mixer would - but even moreso than a Lee Perry because almost everything can be manipulated - not just the things that are controlled on a recording studio mixing desk. We can get that washing-around feeling and the unpredictability of sounds undergoing changes all the time. They say it takes a few years for the new century to kick in here we go."

Continue reading "Caribou - new album & 2010 tour dates w/ Toro y Moi"