by Bill Pearis

still from "Rapid Reality" video

As mentioned, Brooklyn indie rock trio Radical Dads' second album, Rapid Reality, is out May 21 on Uninhabitable Mansions. The band have made a video for the album's title track which makes its premiere in this post. The clip, directed by Katie Armstrong, features impressionistic watercolor-style animation and is, well, pretty rad. Watch it below.

Radical Dads have a few local shows coming up, including tonight (4/10) at Death by Audio with Little Gold, Todd Killings, and Heaven's Jail Band; and April 19 at Pianos with Kleenex Girl Wonder, Overlord, and Ma'am (tickets). The band also have a few dates with Total Babes in May and all are listed below.

Continue reading "Radical Dads made a new video, playing shows (dates)"

Radical Dads, who made one of my favorite albums of 2011, will release their second album, Rapid Reality, on May 21. Cover art, which you can see above, is by Brooklyn artist Dana Schutz. The album is a second helping of ultra-catchy, wide-eyed indie rock and you can stream its ripper of a lead track, "Mountain Town," below or download it from their Bandcamp.

Radical Dads have a few tour dates coming up, including a couple here in NYC: Cake Shop on March 30 with Takka Takka, Plates of Cake and Pre War; and April 10 at Death by Audio with Little Gold, Todd Killings and Heaven's Jail Band. All upcoming dates are listed below.

Continue reading "Radical Dads releasing new LP, playing shows (dates, streams)"

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When underrated Brooklyn indie rock outfit Conversion Party disbanded last year, some of the members soldiered on to form Pre War who have been gigging and working on their debut album for most of 2013. Not dissimilar to their old band, Pre War's slack but groovy style will draw comparisons to various New Zealand bands and probably Pavement too ("On the Decline" it's hard to deny). While not groundbreaking, they are good songwriters which certainly counts for a lot. You can stream a few tracks below.

Pre War play tonight (11/13) at Cake Shop with Doron Sadja as part of the band's Tuesdays in November Residency at the Ludlow St venue. On November 20, they'll play with Little Gold and New Colossus; and on November 27 they'll share the bill with Plates of Cake.

Song streams and a video are below

Continue reading "Pre War (ex-Conversion Party) recording debut LP, playing November residency at Cake Shop"

Teenage Cool Kids

Denton, TX indie punk outfit Teenage Cool Kids, whose members include Andrew Savage of Fergus & Geronimo, kick off a Northeast tour with their first show in the last year and a half TONIGHT (2/22) at Cake Shop in NYC. The show is part of Old Monk's residency at the venue and Little Gold is also the on the bill. The tour also includes a Brooklyn show happening on Friday (2/24) at Death by Audio with Mannequin Pussy, NT, and Priests.

All dates, tour flier, and a live video of the band from SXSW 2010 below...

Continue reading "Teenage Cool Kids begin short tour in NYC tonight, playing Cake Shop, Wesleyan & Death By Audio (dates)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: BNLX - Living in Exile (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: BNLX - Vaporize (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: BNLX - Dance Dance Dance (on the Radio) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks - Senator (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks - Tigers (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Male Bonding - "Bones" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Male Bonding - Tame the Sun (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights - Diamond Mine (MP3)

I guess we'll start this week with Stephen Malkmus who is doing two in stores on Thursday: Academy Records in Williamsburg at 6pm and then Other Music at 9PM. His new album Mirror Traffic, as you may know, was produced by Beck. I'm not sure what that was supposed to connote (more acoustic guitars? L. Ron Hubbard references?) but it's a pretty typical Malkmus solo album with some tight pop songs ("Tigers," downloadable above, and "Stick Figures in Love") and maybe a little more focused and less jammy than he's been in a while. But not much less jammy.

I'm the guy that thought his first solo album was a step in the right direction and has been somewhat ambivalent by what's followed since. But they're always worth hearing. Malkmus and the now Weiss-less Jicks are on tour next month and all upcoming tour dates are at the bottom of this post, along with the video for "No One Is (As I Are Be)."

Voluminous and enigmatic Minneapolis duo BNLX are visiting this week, playing The Rock Shop tonight (8/24) and Pianos on Thursday (8/25). This is their third trip to NYC, and the first since releasing the 6th release in their quarterly EP series. It's description in typical BNLX corporate-speak:

BNLX commences the next phase in the BNLX First One Year Plan (extension two) with its sixth consecutive quarterly EP release of "music." These compositions combine rhythmically-expressed poetry in popular idiomatic vernacular ("rhymes") with pulsating percussive elements ("beats") and harmonic modulations/variations/transpositions (melody). The resulting unique juxtaposition of auditory and narrative elements can only be described as "music". Thematic topics on this release include IED's, event horizons, beards and banjos, and deposed royalty. "Vaporize" leads off the EP with a high-energy blast of high velocity psychedelic noise pop.

Three of the four EP tracks are available to download at the top of this post. What I really like about BNLX is that they seem to be doing this for fun and it really translates to the songs, and to the listener. This is well-tread territory, but it's a pleasure to crank up loud. Or to go see live. BNLX are an aural (LOUD) and visual (strobes, smoke machines) assault in concert and it works. Go see 'em.

The Rock Shop show is with Delaware's Sky Drops; the Pianos show also has Jeane (who I finally saw last week, liked 'em), Phone Home and Ventilader.

Speaking of regimented release schedules, Violens have been releasing a digital single every month this year, the latest of which, "Through the Window," is my favorite so far. With a skittering drumbeat and delay-drenched arpeggiated guitars, it sounds a little like Kitchens of Distinction (if you remember that early '90s band). Violens will be playing a lot of their new material tonight (8/24) at Glasslands.

The rest of tonight's bill is also worth checking out. Dive is the new band from Zachary Cole Smith who used to play drums (and wear mom jeans) in Beach Fossils. (He's also played in Soft Black and with Darwin Deez.) The one track I've heard is definitely a bit Fossil-ized, but am curious to hear more and see what they're like live. Dive play again on September 1 at Shea Stadium with Caged Animals and Forest Fire.

Opening the Glasslands show is Philadelphia's psych-shoegazers Arc in Round. whose most recent EP is cacauphonous and captivating...and sound like they might be very good live.

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Personal and the Pizzas are delivering in our area this weekend: Friday (8/26) at Maxwell's and Saturday (8/27) at Death by Audio. If you like good time Ramones style rock n' roll, and pizza (with extra cheese) you're gonna have a good time. I don't know what else to tell ya. There's video at the bottom of this post.

Lastly, we've got Male Bonding rolling into town: Glasslands on Saturday (8/27) and Mercury Lounge on Monday (8/29). The UK band's new album, Endless Now, is out next week and as mentioned before it moves away from the swampy sound of their debut into defiant mid-fi. Any more fidelity with melodic punk like this and you might start getting into Blink-182 territory. This album is as produced as it needs to be and is a pretty fun listen with just enough shoegaze nods to keep old guys like me interested. You can download two songs off it at the top of this post.

The band are on tour with Austin's Love Inks who are 180 degrees from Male Bonding's sound: gentle, minimal, croony. The jury is still out on their live show (my jury at least) but I do really like their album.

That's the main stuff I'm talking about this week. A few more worthy picks -- day by day -- are below.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 24

Head to Pianos to catch dark and sexy ZAZA,  who play with Australian group Sherlock's Daughter who are on an extended New York holiday, as well as My Best Fiend, Our Mountain, and Alak.

continued below...

Continue reading "Stephen Malkmus, BNLX, Male Bonding, Violens, David Kilgour, Dive, Joe Pernice & more in This Week in Indie"

Sunday June 14th @ FORT TILDEN BEACH
:: FREE ALL AGES UNAMPLIFIED ACOUSTIC BBQ 2009
:: each year we throw an informal, quiet party in a beautiful public place, w/
:: many diverse musicians playing two or three songs w/ no amplification
:: this year, it's on Fort Tilden Beach in the Rockways! best beach in NYC! [Todd P]

Schedule (subject to change) below...

Continue reading "Todd P's UNAMPLIFIED ACOUSTIC BBQ 2009 (at Fort Tilden)"