Bushwick Open Studios happens this weekend (May 31 - June 2) and is "a three day arts and culture festival that celebrates the community's vibrant arts scene with the goal of fostering dialogue and collaboration between local artists and residents." You can wander around the Brooklyn neighborhood and check out local artists' works where they made it. It's free and open to the public. Full artist listings are here.

There is also lots of music going on with BOS as well, which begins with an Official Launch Party at Shea Stadium on Friday (5/31) with Darlings, LODRO, Air Waves, and EULA. Tickets are $10 at the door and includes a Brooklyn Brewery open bar from 8 - 9 PM. More info at the facebook event.

There is also the BOS Music Festival which happens Saturday (6/1) at Don Pedro with The Othermen, Twin Guns and more; and Sunday (6/2) at Lone Wolf with Ken South Rock, Sorceress and more. Full line-ups are below and more info on the event flyer, which is also pictured below.

There's still more. The BOS '13 Electronic Music Showcase happens Saturday night at the Bossa Nova Civics Club with Octo Octa, Datalog, Tomeeo, Nanohumans, and Stephane Bonefant. More info at the facebook event.

On Sunday at Brooklyn Fire Proof East is "Moving On," a "fringe concert series" hosted by composer and performer Ian M. Colletti, (Vaudeville/ Vaudeville Park) and includes performances from Sam Mickens, Yeah Yeah Yeahs' drummer Brian Chase, Deerhoof's Greg Saunier, Dysrythmia's Kevin Hufnagel, Au Revoir Simone's Erika Spring, Sophia Knapp, and lots more. Line-up for that is below and more info at the facebook event.

Line-ups for BOS Music Festival and "Moving On" and that flyer below...

Continue reading "Bushwick Open Studios happens this weekend: music includes Greg Saunier, LODRO, Erika Spring, YYY's Brian Chase & more "

photos by Greg Cristman

"A night of Round Robin improvs and Julia Holter just adjusted her sheet music??? #undeadjazz #redmusicacademy" - Bill Bragin

"James Chance. You too with the sheet music?" - Bill Bragin

Andrew Bird & Joe Lavano / Kim Gordon / Julia Holter & Thundercat

The Red Bull Music Academy NYC residency continued last night (5/1) with the sold-out Night Of Improvised Round Robin Duets, which went down at the Brooklyn Masonic Temple. The night featured a ton of incredible performers, including (in order of appearance) Jameszoo, Questlove, Matana Roberts, Mary Halvorson, Thundercat, Julia Holter, Kim Gordon, Dosh, Roy Hargrove, James Chance, Kim Gordon, Andrew WK, Bernie Worrell, Glenn Gotche, Erik Friedlander, Vijay Iyer, Robert Glasper, DJ Spinna, Don Byron, Andrew Bird, and Joe Lovano. Pictures from that night are in this post.

Many of the performers have other upcoming Red Bull Music Academy events (or non-RBMA shows) in NYC too. Kim Gordon plays tonight (5/2) at Knockdown Center in Queens as one half of the duo Body/Head with Bill Nace. Other artists on the bill include Stephen O'Malley, Prurient, Vatican Shadow, Hunter Hunt-Hendrix, Noveller, Mick Barr, Pharmakon, Pete Swanson and many more. That show appears sold out is back on sale.

Thundercat, who has a new album on the way, plays with Flying Lotus on May 5 and 6 at Terminal 5. Tickets for both nights are still available, and we're also giving away a pair to each night.

After the RBMA residency is over, Julia Holter plays Le Poisson Rouge on July 12 with Jessica Pratt. Tickets for that show are still available.

The "Night of Improvised Round Robin Duets" also doubled as part of the Undead Music Festival, which includes another Andrew Bird and Martin Dosh show on Saturday (5/4) at Shapeshifter Lab, where he'll be playing as a duo with Martin Dosh. The rest of that bill includes Jeremy Ylvisaker and Todd Sickafoose. Tickets for that are still available.

Andrew WK is touring as a the singer of Marky Ramone's band, and that tour hits NYC on Friday (5/3) at Santos (tickets) and October 3 at Irving (tickets).

More pictures from the "Night of Improvised Round Robin Duets" below...

Continue reading "Andrew Bird, Questlove, Thundercat, Kim Gordon and others played the 'Night of Improvised Round Robin Duets' (pics)"

Mykki Blanco at BV-SXSW 2013 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Andrew Bird w/ Yo La Tengo on Hanukkah 2012 (more by PSquared Photography)

The Red Bull Music Academy already announced a huge NYC residency which includes a number of great shows at multiple venues, and this thing just keeps getting bigger and better. RBMA has now announced some new shows and updates to previously-announced ones. For example, the "Night Of Improvised Round Robin Duets" that's happening on May 1 at Brooklyn Masonic Temple has added Andrew Bird, Robert Glasper, Vijay Iyer and Roy Hargrove to the mix that already included Questlove, Andrew WK, James Chance, Julia Holter, Kim Gordon, Thundercat, and others. Tickets for that show are still available. The full lineup is below.

UK DFA-signed dance trio Factory Floor will be joining their labelmates at the massive 12 Years of DFA Records, which takes place at Brooklyn's dazzling Grand Prospect Hall on May 25 (tickets). They were also added as DJs to the recently discussed Evian Christ and Oneohtrix Point Never show happening at Saint Vitus on May 26 (tickets).

Rapper Mykki Blanco, who just headlined Bowery Ballroom, and who was recently announced for this weekend's (4/5-7) Blues for Smoke festival at the Whitney Museum with Le1f, has also been added to Le1f's RBMA show. That show happens on May 7 at Glasslands with Laurel Halo, Venus X, Spank DJs, and others (tickets).

And UK bass/house producer Mosca and Mathew Jonson have been added to the closing night party on May 31 at 74 Wythe Ave that also features L.I.E.S. feat. Legowelt, Beautiful Swimmers, Marcos Cabral, Willie Burns, Bookworms, Professor Genius, Jahiliyya Fields, Shawn O'Sullivan + Kerri Chandler, and Red Bull Music Academy Allstars. Tickets are still available.

Updated Red Bull Music Academy schedule HERE. The full list of lineup additions for the residency and the full lineup for the "Night of Improvised Round Robin Duets" show below...

Continue reading "Mykki Blanco, Factory Floor, Andrew Bird and more added to Red Bull Music Academy shows"

"On May 1 the Brooklyn Masonic Temple will welcome a host of artists to participate in a unique evening of live improvisation. No Wave pioneer James Chance, Wilco's Glenn Kotche, ?uestlove of The Roots, Grammy Award-winning jazz saxophonist Joe Lovano, Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth fame, and Parliament Funkadelic founding member Bernie Worrell are among the more than 20 artists slated to perform together on stage. The show is part of the 2013 Red Bull Music Academy festival that will touch down in New York from April 28 to May 31 with an unprecedented series of 37 concerts, club nights and special events in 34 venues around town."

Continue reading "Kim Gordon, James Chance, Questlove, Andrew WK, Glenn Kotche & more in for big Red Bull improv jam"

The second-annual Spy Music Festival happens June 29th through July 15th, featuring "46 sets of music at 7 venues in Manhattan and Brooklyn." That's a big expansion from last year when it took place on two nights at Shea Stadium and Zebulon. This year's fest, run by the folks at Northern Spy Records, will happen at Union Pool, the Issue Project Room, The Stone, Vaudeville Park, 285 Kent, Death by Audio and Roulette. Amongst the artists performing are Rhys Chatham, Matthew Shipp, Dustin Wong, Arthur Doyle, Eugene Chadbourne, PG Six, Guardian Alien and Magik Markers.

The full Spy Music Festival schedule -- bands, venues, prices -- is below. There's no all-inclusive festival pass, but tickets to all the shows are available here. And the fest organizers have also made a sampler featuring the artists performing this year and you can stream that below as well.

Continue reading "Magik Markers, Dustin Wong, Eugene Chadbourne, Matthew Shipp and more playing NYC's Spy Music Festival"

by Andrew Sacher

Buke and Gase at Prospect Park in 2011 (more by Toby Tenebaum)

Buke and Gase will be curating The Stone from tonight (5/1) to May 15. The curation kicks off tonight with Father Murphy at 8 PM and Les Bonhommes at 10 PM.

After tonight's show, Father Murphy, who are here from Italy, head out on tour with Xiu Xiu and Dirty Beaches (which hits Bowery Ballroom this Friday 5/4). Their album was mixed by Deerhoof's Greg Saunier who is one third of, but not the drummer of, Les Bonhommes (that also features William Kuehn from Rainer Maria).

Other performances throughout the week include former Parts & Labor noisemaker Dan Friel and Bunnybrains on 5/4; a Tonic reunion featuring Mephista with John Zorn, Steve Bernstein's MTO and more; Extra Life's Charlie Looker, Greg Fox, & Jamie Saft and Glass Ghost on 5/11, gonzo drummer Greg Fox and Hubble on 5/12, a powerhouse grouping of Ryan Sawyer, Colin Stetson, Nate Wooley, C. Spencer Yeh Quartet on 5/13, and Matana Roberts and Ches Smith on 5/15, among others.

Buke & Gase don't actually play any of the shows they curated but they do play the Dessner-curated Crossing Brooklyn Ferry fest on May 4 at BAM.

The second half of May at the Stone is curated by Gyan Riley.

Check out the full schedule below...

Continue reading "Buke & Gase curating The Stone's first two week's in May"