photos by Amanda Hatfield

Waxahatchee / Speedy Ortiz

Barnard College's 20th annual free WBAR-B-B-Q day-long festival went down this past Saturday (4/27) on the Lehman Lawn. The show included sets by Twin Sister, Roomrunner, Waxahatchee (who had the biggest crowd of the day), Speedy Ortiz, and others. It was an outdoor show, and a pretty relaxing one, with much of the crowd lounging on the grass for a lot of the show. But riff rockers Speedy Ortiz and Roomrunner did manage to get people on their feet. And if you were there early on, they had free vegan food. Pictures from WBAR-B-Q are in this post.

You'll have other chances to catch Speedy Ortiz in NYC when their tour brings them to Silent Barn on May 17, Cake Shop on May 31 with Sleepies, and June 15 at Big Snow.

Roomrunner has other upcoming dates too, including a show on JUne 20 at Bowery Ballroom with Shannon and the Clams and Mikal Cronin (whose new album is streaming on NPR). Tickets for that show are still on sale.

And Waxahatchee's next NYC show is a free one, opening for Generationals and Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside on July 11 on Pier 84 as part of the River Rocks series.

More pictures from WBAR-B-Q below...

Continue reading "Waxahatchee, Speedy Ortiz, Twin Sister, Roomrunner & others played the WBAR-B-Q (pics)"

Speedy Ortiz

Northampton, MA rockers Speedy Ortiz, who we profiled back in January, and who will have a new 7" out next week (4/30), have just announced that they've signed to Carpark Records (Cloud Nothings, Toro y Moi) for their debut album (congrats guys!). The album is called Major Arcana, and it will be out July 9. Check out the album art and tracklist for the new album below.

Speedy Ortiz have a number of upcoming dates, including previously announced NYC shows on April 27 at Shea Stadium with Aye Nako, Butter the Children, and Advaeta, plus WBAR-B-Q that same day, Silent Barn on May 17, and Cake Shop on May 31 with Sleepies. They've also just added another show happening on June 15 at Big Snow Buffalo Lodge.

The WBAR-B-Q happens at Barnard College (4/27) and is free, all ages, and open to the public. As mentioned, the lineup also includes Waxahatchee, Twin Sister, Roomrunner, Scott & Charlene's Wedding, and more. And though Swearin' were initially on the lineup, they've since dropped off and have been replaced by Krill. Krill are releasing their new album, Lucky Leaves, which was recorded by Carlos and Julian from Ava Luna at the Silent Barn, on June 25. You can stream a track from that album, "Never A Joke," below.

All Speedy Ortiz dates are listed, along with album art, tracklist, and song streams, below...

Continue reading "Speedy Ortiz sign to Carpark, announce debut album, schedule more shows; Krill replaces Swearin' on WBAR-B-Q lineup"

by Andrew Sacher

LVL UP is an indie rock four-piece, who notably shares two members with Spook Houses, and one with Sirs. Their debut full length, Space Brothers, came out in early 2012 via Evil Weevil and they're set to follow that with the Extra Worlds 7", which is due out on April 6 via Double Double Whammy. You can stream the scrappy rocker, "Graveyard," which will appear on that 7", at the bottom of this post. Meanwhile, we've also got the premiere of the video for "Nightshade" off of Space Brothers, a slow-burner that sees co-frontman Nick Corbo howling like Jeff Mangum over chords that sound better fit for a Built to Spill record. It's a solid cut and you can watch the video below.

Last Friday (2/8) during the snow storm, I wandered into a Purchase College apartment (which the members attend/attended) to catch LVL UP packing in some kid's living room, with about 90% of the crowd moshing and shouting the words. They'll be taking that raucous live show on the road this month for a few Northeast dates, including one in Brooklyn on February 23 at Shea Stadium with Krill, Porches, Butter the Children, and High Pop. A list of all dates, which includes shows with Waxahatchee, Eternal Summers, Joyce Manor, and others, is below.

Continue reading "LVL UP releasing 7", playing shows (watch a new video)"

West Coast janglers Craft Spells are heading East next month to play Cincinatti's Midpoint Music Festival (September 27 - 29) which also features the likes of Grizzly Bear, The Walkmen, Dirty Projectors, Sleigh Bells and many more. Tickets for the fest are still available and the whole line-up is at the bottom of this post.

Before the festival, Craft Spells will be in NYC for a show at Glasslands on September 24 with new new romantics Ice Choir. Tickets for that show are on sale now.

You can stream Craft Spells' new-ish EP, Gallery, plus check out the whole Midpoint Music Fest line-up, below.

Continue reading "Craft Spells playing NYC before Midpoint Music Festival (2012 line-up)"