DOWNLOAD: Jennifer O'Connor - "Running Start" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Tim Foljahn - "New Light" (MP3)

Jennifer O'Connor at Maxwell's in 2009 (more by Toby Tenebaum)

Jennifer O'Connor put out her first release since leaving Matador in 2009, I Want What You Want digitally on November 8, 2011 via her own label, Kiam Records, the label that also released her 2002 self-titled debut. According to a press release, the album was recorded with O'Connor's longtime rhythm section of Jon Langmead (drums) and Michael Brodlieb (bass). Select songs feature Tim Foljahn (Two Dollar Guitar, Cat Power, Townes Van Zandt) on guitar, Amy Bezunartea on backing vocals, guitar and harmonica, Richard Baluyut (Versus) on guitar and backing vocals, Kendall Meade (Mascott, Helium, Sparklehorse) on electric piano, Tom Beaujour on guitar and Kirsten McCord on cello. She co-produced it with Tom Beaujour (Nada Surf, The Virgins). Download album track "Running Start" above and stream it below. You can buy the album on eMusic and stream it on Spotify.

The physical version of the album is coming out March 6 via Kiam Records as a CD digipick, white vinyl, and a limited edition hand-stamped CD. The limited edition CD is available now at the Kiam webstore and pre-orders will be available soon for the regular CD/LP.

Jennifer is going on tour in support of the physical release this March with Tim Foljahn, who recorded on her new album, and has his own album coming out on March 6 via Kiam, titled Songs For An Age of Extinction. Download the track "New Light" from that album above and stream it below.

Their tour hits NYC on March 2 at Cake Shop with Ma'am and March 4 at Union Pool, but Tim Foljahn is not listed on the Union Pool date. Kleenex Girl Wonder and Amy Bezunartea, who sang on the new album and will also sing live with Jennifer, open that show instead.

All dates and streams below...

Continue reading "Jennifer O'Connor released an album, announces tour (dates)"

photos by Graeme Flegenheimer

Evan & Juliana @ the Bell House

"Thursday night's sold-out Evan Dando and Juliana Hatfield show [at Maxwell's] was a trip down memory lane. Mostly, though, a testament to the timeless power of great songwriting.

Dando and Hatfield, for the uninitiated, were the king and queen of the 1990s alternative rock prom. They were friends--or more than friends, nobody is really sure--who sang and played on each other's records. They made a handful of really great records that still hold up today.

For someone like myself, who saw The Lemonheads' "It's A Shame About Ray" tour in 1992, (I kept the set list as a souvenir until just a few years ago), and had Juliana Hatfield's 1993 classic, "Become What You Are" stuck in my car cd player for at least a couple of years, Thursday night's show was a real treat.

Armed with only microphones and acoustic guitars, the duo swapped songs back and forth. They played songs from the albums that made them famous, as well as more recent compositions and a few cover songs.... [Jennifer O'Connor for Hoboken Patch]

Read the rest of Jennifer's review at Hoboken Patch, and catch Jennifer herself playing music on February 8th at the Rock Shop as part of her new monthly residency there. Maybe she'll land Evan or Juliana to play with her at a future show (in February she'll be joined by Charles Bissell of The Wrens, Kendall Meade of Mascott, and Richard Baluyut of Versus) (meanwhile catch Charles Bissell at Maxwell's with Cymbals Eat Guitars TONIGHT/SUNDAY).

One night after they played Maxwell's, Evan and Juliana headlined a show at the Bell House. Lady Lamb the Beekeeper opened both shows. More pictures from the Brooklyn show, and a bunch of videos and the setlist from the NJ show, below...

Continue reading "Evan Dando & Juliana Hatfield played shows (Jennifer O'Connor reviewed one of them) -- pics, video & Maxwell's setlist"

Kaia Wilson & Jennifer O'Connor

Move over Palomar, it's singer-songwriter Jennifer O'Connor's turn to start bringing special guests like Charles Bissell to special residency shows at new Brooklyn venue the Rock Shop. Jennifer writes...

"I am going to be hosting and performing in a monthly songwriter's series called Tower of Song that will take place on the second Tuesday of every month in 2011.

Each month I will invite three other songwriter's to join me and we will get together at the Rock Shop and each play a handful of songs and talk about our songwriting processes a little bit and collaborate and maybe play a cover or two. I think it's going to make for a really interesting night of music, especially for those interested in the "song" as an art form and maybe learning about how different folks write. I, for one, am totally excited to see what comes from it."

The first "Tower of Song" show takes place this Tuesday, January 11th, with Chris Brokaw (Come, The New Year), Amy Bezunartea (Clint Michigan), and Tim Foljahn (Two Dollar Guitar, Cat Power) (tickets are on sale). February 8th's show will feature Charles Bissell (The Wrens), Kendall Meade (Mascott), and Richard Baluyut (Versus) (tickets are on sale).

Jennifer, as she explained above, will also be playing at each show. She is also working a new record which she hopes to "have out some time later this year." Flyers, and a video of Jennifer covering "Waterfalls" with Clint Assay, Andrew Singer and Amy Bezbelow at Joe's Pub on December 15th, below...

Continue reading "Jennifer O'Connor starting a monthly series @ the Rock Shop"

DOWNLOAD: Yo La Tengo - Periodically Double Or Triple (MP3)

We have an old saying at Matador HQ, "the only thing predictable about Yo La Tengo albums is their high level of excellence and crazy amount of musical ground covered". Trouble is, even if you believe we really have an old saying that unwieldly, it doesn't really do justice in this instance. The new Yo La Tengo CD/2XLP/digital album 'Popular Songs" (OLE 856-1,2) could be the bravest musical statement to date in a career full of 'em. Recorded in Hoboken and Nashville in early 2009 with longtime associate Roger Mountenot, 'Popular Songs' finds the trio of Georgia Hubley, Ira Kaplan and James McNew at the height of their creative powers, fashioning an epic work that's cooly confident as it is wildly adventurous.

Yo La Tengo have one NYC show coming up. Ira Kaplan's sometimes-band The A-Bones have three. James McNew's band Dump has two - one with Oneida, and one August 22nd at Union Hall with Choo Choo La Rouge, Clint Michigan, and Jennifer O'Connor. That Brooklyn show is a Kiam Records release party. Kiam Records is Jennifer's label and she's released a bunch of 7" splits...

"Our split 7" single is finished and on sale now, alone or as part of a five record subscription series from KIAM Records, featuring collaborations between Jennifer O'Connor and guest artists. We join Jennifer on the A side for "Little Airplane Heart," and we each contribute a song to the flip: "Mostly Air" from our forthcoming album, and "Watching You Go" from Jennifer.

The artists collaborating with Jennifer on the rest of the series are Dump, Jesse Sykes, Mascott, and the Hotel Lights." [Choo Choo La Rouge]

Clint Michigan will be one of her future releases.

New Yo La Tengo song above. Some clips of YLT playing at last week's Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, below...

Continue reading "Yo La Tengo releasing new album 'Popular Songs' (MP3), Dump (James McNew) playing NYC w/ Choo Choo La Rouge "

Semi Precious Weapons & Rachael Ray @ Santos in NYC (Nicky Digital) (thx Krista)

As posted earlier today, Franz Nicolay & Major General will be opening for the Pogues at Roseland Ballroom on March 13th, but that is just one of many shows the Hold Steady's moustached member has coming up. Another one is tonight, March 5th...

3/5 FRANZ NICOLAY @ Small Beast Salon
Guest-hosting & curating.
THIS WEEK: 8:15-8:45 Franz Nicolay
8:55-9:25 Yoni Gordon
9:30-10:05 Serena Jost
10:15-11 Jennifer O'Connor
@ The Delancey - 168 Delancey, NYC

Franz is doing the same thing at the Delancey with a different bill on March 12th too, and he's doing a reading at Bar Matchless on March 14th. He'll have a busy few days which almost immediately then turns into a Hold Steady trip to SXSW that starts with a pitstop in Portland for a March 16th show at the Crystal Ballroom.

At SXSW, Franz is playing one solo/Major General show, and The Hold Steady are playing two. The first HS show is Friday March 20th at Mohawk. That's a public, official SXSW appearance. The second is the next day at Maggie May's for the Tom Jones-and-Semi-Precious Weapons-loving Rachael Ray. And they're not the only ones playing her party. As previously mentioned, The Airborne Toxic Event will be there, and so will New York Dolls, Ra Ra Riot and The Thermals. You can see the whole lineup and more details on the Dunkin Donuts spokesperson's website. The picture above was taken at Rachael's NYC show at Santos last week. See more like it at Nicky Digital's site.

NY Dolls also have an official SXSW show, and Sylvain Sylvain is sitting on a SXSW panel called "The Sound and the Fury". This all in addition to a new record coming out...

After working together on the New York Dolls' influential debut in 1973, the group reunited this winter with producer Todd Rundgren to record their fourth studio album, Cause I Sez So, set for a May 5 release on Atco Records.

Recorded at Utopia Sound Studio in Kauai, Hawaii, the album features 11 original compositions and a new version of "Trash," which was on their 1973 debut album. "It was amazing working with Todd again, and I think we were able to evoke the special sound of our first album and drag it by the hair into the present," says frontman Johansen.

Prior to the album's release, the New York Dolls-David Johansen (vocals); Sylvain Sylvain (guitar); Steve Conte (guitar); Brian Delaney (drums); and Sami Yaffa (bass)-will appear at the South By Southwest (SXSW) music conference and festival in Austin, TX. [as outlined above]

No upcoming Dolls dates in NY, bit Ra Ra Riot are at NYU TONIGHT (3/5), The Hold Steady are at Irving Plaza on March 30th, and The Thermals are playing Bowery Ballroom twice in May.

The NY Times went to RR's SXSW show last year. Video below...

Continue reading "Franz Nicolay, Rachael Ray, NY Dolls, Thermals, NYC, SXSW "

photos by Toby Tenenbaum

As previously noted, Jennifer O'Connor and comedian Jon Benjamin were the openers for Yo La Tengo Hanukkah night four. Jon went by the name Mark Levinsky. According to the show poster, "Jon Glassner" (not to be confused with Jon Glaser) was also supposed to be on the comedy part of the bill, but according to "Mark", Jon had to call out sick. "Mark" then "read out a VERY funny letter from Glassner accompanied by numerous props including a foot long subway hero, a photo of Jon on a jet ski, and randomly distributed free samples of a well known pharmaceutical product." Mixtapes for the evening were provided by Russell Mael of the band Sparks. In honor of the mixtape Yo La Tengo played a Sparks cover. The whole setlist and more pictures below...

Continue reading "Yo La Tengo, Jennifer O'Connor & Jon Benjamin @ Maxwell's (Hanukkah night 4) - pics & setlist"

DOWNLOAD: Jennifer O'Connor - Here with Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Jennifer O'Connor - Valley Road '86 (MP3)

I'm doing pretty good with my guesses so far. Still no Titus Andronicus, but Britt Daniel and Janet Weiss were there on night one, and Jon Benjamin (comedy) and Jennifer O'Connor (music) opened last night, Christmas Eve, December 24th, the fourth night of Hanukkah (there goes the theory that they don't repeat an opener) (btw, good job Anonymous | December 22, 2008 5:58 PM at predicting night three's special guest Yoni Wolf). Pictures of the show are coming soon. There were no other special guests.

That was Christmas Eve and today is Christmas, so what better time to mention the great new Christmas album called Peace on Earth : Vol. II. The charity holiday album features tracks by Jennifer O'Connor, Anathallo, Pattern is Movement, Marla Hansen, Oxford Collapse, Jason Collett, American Analog Set, and many others. Check it out. Jennifer's song is "Deck the Halls". You can hear it at her MySpace.

Jennifer's next NYC show is at Southpaw on February 14th with Mascott. Tickets are on sale. All dates below...

Continue reading "Jennifer O'Connor - opened YLT night 4, sings on Peace On Earth Christmas album, touring in 2009 (dates)"

Canadian folkies Great Lake Swimmers had a busy summer. They've been touring since May, mostly north of the border, including one date when they opened for Robert Plant and Alison Krauss in GLS's hometown of Toronto. They performed at charity concerts and focused on building community. But when Tony Dekker wasn't busy scoring a documentary, paying homeage to Canadian concrete, or playing drill sergeant in folk boot camp, Great Lake Swimmers began creating new material. Nettwerk just announced the anticipated release of the band's fourth album, set for early Spring 2009. [Paste]

Great Lake Swimmers' latest tour hits NYC Friday night and Sunday. Jennifer O'Connor also plays both shows. All dates below...

Continue reading "Great Lake Swimmers - 2008 Tour Dates"

DOWNLOAD: Wallpaper - Evrytm We Do It (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Trifonic - Sooner or Later (featuring Christina Courtin) (MP3)

Extra Golden @ Damrosch Park, 8/20/08 (more by heartonastick)

today in NYC
* DANCE
* FREE STUFF
* comedy @ UCB
* comedy @ Sound Fix
* Huey Lewis in Coney Island
* Insound 20 event @ Fontana's
* Oxford Collapse @ Glasslands
* Agnostic Front @ Knitting Factory
* Dean & Britta @ the Zipper Factory
* Hedwig tribute show at Highline Ballroom
* Jennifer O'Connor & Dump @ Mercury Lounge
* Suzanne Vega & Christina Courtin @ Masonic Temple
* Jon Natchez & Kelly Pratt (Beirut, etc) @ The Stone

Wallpaper (the heavy-on-the vocoder we-are-like-Chromeo dance track above) are playing Hiro Ballroom with LA Riots.

The Trifonic track (the other electro MP3 up there) has its moments. Other moments I don't know about. Anyway, I put it there because it's kind of interesting and features vocals by NYC artist Christina Courtin, who, is opening for Suzanne Vega tonight.

Jennifer O'Connor's new video (a song off her now-out new Matador album) below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's Going on Thursday?"

photos by Ryan Muir

Was Jeff Tweedy on edge last night at McCarren Pool (August 13, 2008)? Did he not like the crowd? I ask because of a few jabs he took during their approximately 2.5 hour mesmerizing (yes, I have a huge crush on them) set. I think he gave me a complex.

There was the "something is missing tonight" comment which after an awkward pause turned out to be about a gong that was on stage at their Cambridge Tanglewood show the night before. Jeff missed the gong, so drummer Glenn Kotche then did his best to recreate the sound of it.

Then there was the part when Jeff said something like, "Matrix [guitar tech] has heard that song we just played a lot of times, and he says we never played it that well. At least that's what I think Matrix meant when he said 'I cant wait to get out of here'. Just Kidding. He said he loved it". I can't remember the exact quote, but it was weird.

Jeff also criticized us for clapping the wrong beat to one song (which was pretty funny actually - not that the other stuff he said wasn't...) - he called the Brooklyn crowd 'free thinkers' - the term his father used for Bob Dylan (who played a show in a different section of Brooklyn one night earlier). Later Jeff told us to scream on his command because it made him feel powerful and helps him affirm what he is doing with his life (or something like that).

And last but not least there was the comment that definitely had only one meaning. That was the one when Jeff straight up dissed Brooklyn for not clapping in unison. He said something like, "Are you all too cool to clap?! Would it be better if we add the "Love Will Tear Us Apart" drum beat to it?!"" I realize Jeff is a comedian, but now there is also one person I know that considers him a mortal enemy for that one. Also, I mean, did he look at the crowd? It wasn't exactly a 'Pool Party'. This Brooklyn McCarren Pool show was definitely filled with the kind of (mostly male) people who like Wilco more than they like Joy Division (at least that's the generalization I'm going to make).

Great, packed show. Great setlist. 'Total Pros' is a good way to describe Wilco. It's also the name of Wilco's backing 3-piece horn/clarinet section that they had on tour and at this show with them. Jeff said Wilco would be back when they finished their next record. I can't wait for them to come back, and for the new record which I hope utilizes the full power of guitarist Nels Cline and drummer Glenn Kotche this time. They're working on the new album in between all this touring (that also included recent stops at the Baltimore Virgin Fest and Lollapalooza). (insert McCarren Car Pool jokes here). The Brooklyn setlist, and more of Ryan's beautiful pics below....

Continue reading "Wilco @ McCarren Pool, Brooklyn, NYC - pics & setlist"

DOWNLOAD: Jennifer O'Connor - Here With Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Jennifer O'Connor - Valley Road 86 (MP3)

Both of the MP3's linked above are off Jennifer O'Connor's new album called 'Here With Me' - out on Matador Records August 19th.

Jennifer recorded her new LP/CD 'Here With Me' (OLE 787-1,2) earlier this year with John Agnello (Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth) at Brooklyn's Headgear Studios....Backed by a crack backing trio of Jon Langmead, Michael Broadlieb and Michael Strandberg (and joined, briefly, by Hold Steady keyboardist Franz Nicolay), O'Connor tackles her most evocative pile of relationship-tunes with something approaching surgical precision...

Jennifer's next NYC show is tonight (August 13) at McCarren Pool. She's opening for Wilco. Her next NYC show after that is August 21st at Mercury Lounge. 'Dump' aka James McNew of Yo La Tengo is opening. Tickets are on sale. She's also doing an instore at Permanent Records in Brooklyn on the 23rd and playing all the places listed below....

Continue reading "Jennifer O'Connor - new album, tour dates (w/ Wilco tonight)"

With JagJaguwar, JagJaguwar, Dead Oceans, Dead Oceans and David Vandervelde's only upcoming tour date after today all on the front page, I was inspired to also post this piece of Secretly Canadian news and that is a new album by Damien Jurado called "Caught in the Trees" (out September 9, 2008 on Secretly Canadian) and a related tour which has him at Mercury Lounge on September 30th and Union Hall one day later. Both NYC shows are with Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson (add them to the list). All dates below...

Continue reading "Damien Jurado - new album, 2008 Tour Dates"

DOWNLOAD: Made out of Babies - Proud to Drown (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Made out of Babies - Fed (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Made Out of Babies - Mr. Prison Shanks (MP3)

Ucoming free shows overlooking the East River

7.28.07 Jennifer O'Connor, Lindsay Anderson, The Rats
8.11.07 Vampire Weekend, Jonathan Kane's February, Meg Baird
9.8.07 Made Out of Babies, Dälek, Clockcleaner, Despot, These Are Powers

The September show is curated by Paper Thin Walls (which was recently purchased by Getty Images). Who are you looking forward to on these bills? More tour dates below...

Continue reading "Getty Images, the East River Music Project & other JENNIFER O'CONNOR & MADE OUT OF BABIES Tour Dates"