photos by Dana (distortion) Yavin

Primus came to town for a pair of intimate shows last week along with an appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Here are pictures from the Brooklyn gig at Music Hall of Williamsburg. More of them with video of the TV appearance (on air and web exclusive songs), below...

Continue reading "Primus played Fallon, Gramercy & Music Hall (pics & video)"

by Bill Pearis

While the rest of the world was asking who the #$%@ Bonny Bear and Paul McCartney were, I was asking that same question of Of Monsters and Men who are playing here in April. They've already sold out their 4/5 show at Music Hall of Williamsburg and 4/6 show at Bowery Ballroom, though the Bowery show was moved to Webster Hall (tickets are still on sale, but maybe not for long). Actually, half their US tour is already sold out (all dates at the bottom of this post).

Then I remembered I had actually seen Of Monsters and Men -- who are from Iceland --  at last year's M for Montreal at teeny tiny club Casa Del Popo. Their name is a bit on the generic side which is why I think I couldn't place it. (You also see a lot of bands at festivals. It's a blur.) Anyway, here's what I wrote then:

The other Icelandic group, Of Monsters and Men, made more of an impression with their stirring folk rock that was augmented by horns and an especially fancy accordion. (It had LED switches on it.) While also similar to a lot of other sweeping ensembles (fill in your favorite here), the songs were memorable and I did wish their set had been a couple songs longer. So it goes with festivals.

They're already huge in Iceland (which is like being huge in Rhode Island, but still), where their debut album, My Head is an Animal, was released last year. Of Monsters and Men signed to Universal who rushed out the Into the Woods EP in America late December, which contains the KEXP hit "Little Talks". The band will be at SXSW too and are surely one of the "Bands to Watch" this year for some folks.

Click through for all Of Monsters and Men tour dates, plus some videos as well.

Continue reading "are Of Monsters and Men Iceland's Mumford & Sons? (MHOW sold out; Bowery moved to Webster Hall) --- 2012 Tour Dates"

Bad Brains will play Boston & Manhattan with H2O and then Brooklyn & Philadelphia with GZA. As you can see in the poster, tickets go on pre-sale Saturday. Lionize also opens the Philly show, and there's a show happening on 4/20 with GZA in a TBA city. Stay tuned for more info. All dates are listed with more info below....

Continue reading "Bad Brains announce East Coast shows with GZA & H2O"

photos by Andrew St. Clair

Shellshag & Screaming Females fans

NJ's Don Giovanni Records held their annual big showcase at Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn on Saturday night (2/11). Were you there? Here are some pictures. They continue below...

Continue reading "Don Giovanni hosted Screaming Females, Shellshag, Laura Stevenson, For Science & Black Wine @ MHOW (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield, words by Bill Pearis

Veronica Falls @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

The last time Veronica Falls were in town, singer Roxanne Clifford was under-the-weather, making for somewhat subdued performances. Thursday (2/9), though, the band were in fine health and form, the best I've seen since Popfest 2010. (Best-sounding too.) Clifford and James Hoare attacked their guitars in a furious jangle -- The Wedding Present by way of New Zealand -- when not producing minor key harmonies, while the rhythm section of drummer Patrick Doyle and bassist Marion Herbain kept the pedal to the medal. There's nothing twee about this sound, loud and fierce, assured and pretty. In addition to most of their debut album -- plus their awesome cover of Roky Erickson's "Starry Eyes" -- we got four new songs, including the Primitives-esque "My Heart Beats" which was the real standout.

Veronica Falls' tour and labelmates Brilliant Colors also played, bashing out scratchy C-86 style indiepop and were fun despite equipment problems. I missed local openers Grooms, as I was seeing Cate Le Bon at Mercury Lounge (sorry guys) but photographer Amanda Hatfield was there for the whole night and you can click through for lots of pics from all three bands.

Veronica Falls tour with Brilliant Colors continues, with Bleached joining as well starting in Minneapolis on 2/17. All tour dates at the bottom of the pictures...

Continue reading "Veronica Falls, Brilliant Colors & Grooms played Music Hall of Williamsburg (pics, review)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Dum Dum Girls @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

After playing a secret show at Cake Shop one night earlier Widowspeak, The Babies, and Punks on Mars played a much larger and public show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Tuesday (2/7), but this time Dum Dum Girls were dressed all in white!! Proof is in this post.

Dum Dum Girls (usually all in black) and Windowspeak with continue their joint tour with another area show at Maxwell's this Saturday (2/11). Tickets are still available.

Widowspeak have also announced a Glasslands show with Mac DeMarco who is signed to Captured Tracks whose SXSW showcase Widowspeak is also playing.

More pictures from MHOW, including a shot of the headliner's setlist, below...

Continue reading " Dum Dum Girls wore WHITE at Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Widowspeak & Punks on Mars (pics)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Aimee Mann @ MHOW

Aimee Mann's concert at Carnegie Hall in New York on Saturday night (Jan. 28) was for the birds. Or, at least, birdcalls.

The singer/songwriter has humbly admitted in the past that crafting small talk on stage between songs is slightly beyond her comfort zone. How far so? On her 2006 holiday tour, she outsourced the job to such comedians as Patton Oswalt and Paul F. Tompkins.

The audience assumed the responsibilities Saturday, as Mann invited the crowd to fill the spaces between tracks with birdcalls, a running gag that humorously linked her stellar 18-song set.

Backed by her three-piece band, Mann's adult alternative rock was a natural at Carnegie Hall's prestigious Zankel Hall. She joked that she'd do her best to adjust to the fairly formal setting, as she had played the more casual Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, N.Y. (with its smells of "beer and bleach," she ribbed), the previous night.[Billboard]

Continue reading "Aimee Mann & John Roderick ended their tour in NYC (pics)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Initially announced in November with more dates added in January, Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein have been bringing their funny/offensive IFC show Portlandia to live stages across the country over the past month. They started at the end of December with shows in Portland, Seattle and San Francisco (where Thao & Mirah joined them for a song). January's run started in LA, continued to Chicago (where guests included Jeff Tweedy's kids), and then hit NYC for two shows: 1/20 @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (pictures in this post) and 1/21 @ Bowery Ballroom (pictures HERE).

The Brooklyn show, pictured here, included special guests Adam Horovitz (aka Beastie Boy Ad-Rock) and Hugh Cornwell. The live band included Carrie's Wild Flag bandmate Rebecca Cole.

Wild Flag were all in the audience at the same venue just over a month earlier to see Eleanor Friendberger perform. Eleanor opened for Wild Flag on their October tour, and is joining Portlandia on their February run of dates that kick off 2/19 at the Trocadero in Philadelphia. All dates and more pictures from the Brooklyn Portlandia show, below...

Continue reading "Portlandia hit MHOW w/ Ad-Rock & Hugh Cornwell (pics), bringing Eleanor Friedberger on tour (dates)"

Primus at Roseland (more by Kurt Christensen)

Ahoy there all,
I just wanted to thank everyone for the support my nephew Mathew has received over the last year. It has been amazing how many folks have put forth the effort to help my brother and his family. Unfortunately, just at a time when he's learning to walk, little Matthew has had a major relapse and is back at Stanford Medical Center for treatment. To see what this little guy has gone through these last twelve months has been heart wrenching and to think he has to go through it again is just beyond comprehension.
Matthew will undergo an intense round of chemotherapy this month in the hope of getting his blood levels back to a status where he can receive a bone marrow transplant. As far as a donor, we have decent options within the family but there could potentially be a better match out there somewhere. If anyone is inclined, check out: www.marrow.org for information on how to see if they are good match for Little Matthew or others in the same terrible situation. It is a simple procedure to test and the program has saved a lot of lives.

Thanks again for the support,
Les Claypool

In the meantime, Primus will try and move toward a sense of normalcy with a string of European dates what will take place after a smaller-than-usual-show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on 2/8. Tickets for the Brooklyn show go on AMEX presale on 1/11 at noon and regular sale on Friday.

Primus are also scheduled to play Summer Camp Music Festival (not to be confused with Summer Camp the band who just announed some shows) in Chillicothe, IL from May-25th-27th. The three day festival will feature a bevy of jammy all-stars (moe., Umphrey's Mcgee, etc) as well as an appearance from Gogol Bordello who recently played NYC twice: Dec 30th and Dec 31st. Primus played their own pair of New Year's Eve shows in San Francisco.

All tour dates and some song streams are below.

Continue reading "Primus schedule initmate Brooklyn show, asking for more help for Les's nephew Mathew"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Eleanor Friedberger @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

You saw one set of pictures from this BrooklynVegan Holiday Party. Here's a second. More shots of Anna Calvi, Eleanor Friedberger & New Moods @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, below...

Continue reading "Anna Calvi, Eleanor Friedberger & New Moods @ Music Hall of Williamsburg -- (pics part 2)"

photos by Chris La Putt

Anna Calvi @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Anna Calvi, visiting Brooklyn from the UK, headlined the BrooklynVegan Holiday Party at Music Hall of Williamsburg on 12/13. According 2 G was there and he (G) listed his ten reasons why you should always see Anna live, which you can read at his site. Anna played every song on her debut album which came out earlier this year and covered Edith Piaf and TV on the Radio. She definitely rocked the house (and played one of Bill Pearis's favorite shows of the year). One person is now wondering who is better at shredding, Anna or Annie Clark?

Eleanor Friedberger (who plays the venue again soon) and New Moods (who told us her favorite things from 2011) both opened the Tuesday night show and tore it up as well.

Thanks to all who came - $1.00 of your ticket was donated to Toys for Tots, and we raised even more from the raffle we were running in the lobby (thanks to Domino Records, Merge Records, Frenchkiss Rercords, Partisan Records, Beggars/Matador, Bowery Presents, Rocks Off, Brooklyn Bowl, Live Nation, Vice, and more).

More pictures and videos from the show HERE, and below...

Continue reading "BV Holiday party pics: Anna Calvi, Eleanor Friedberger & New Moods (part 1)"

words by Christopher Paragraph, photos by Dana (distortion) Yavin

DOWNLOAD: Bird of Youth - Bombs Away, She Is Here to Stay (MP3)

Sondre Lerche looking sexy as usual @ MHOW Friday night

The Friday night show at Music Hall of Williamsburg featured three very different songwriters who all happen to live within a few blocks of the venue. The same is true for me so, in terms of proximity, the night was a success before it even began.

Bird Of Youth opened with a couple songs from their self-released album "Defender," breezing through them with ease and on-stage confidence that one would usually expect from a more seasoned band. This helped to counteract the darker themes of the songs, perhaps the best example of which was a song that lead singer Beth Wawerna wrote for her father. The unforgettable closing lines, "you watched me as I watched you watch me cry," caught more than a few off-guard. The songs are unique in terms of Wawerna's vocal phrasing. Rather than writing melodies over single chords, the melodies seem to form themselves over the chord changes. It feels like she allows the phrases to emerge from the song, instead of constructing a song around a pre-conceived melody. As a songwriter, Wawerna is doing something special and distinct. Unlike many female-fronted bands of their ilk, the songs don't hide behind her voice; her voice seems to be dragged along by the force of each song. This may present a problem for a pop singer, but for a band like Bird Of Youth, it proves to be a perfect way to articulate emotional, expressive songs. The last song of their short set took a different turn, however, and was significantly more poppy and conventionally structured. Working in a Nada Surf-esque style, the song succeeds in a way that runs counter the aforementioned thoughts in this review. An interesting way to end the set, leaving the audience pleased but just unsure enough to want to hear more.

Next was Will Sheff, frontman for the successful Okkervil River, a solo set sandwiched between two bands. It was informative and interesting to see Sheff perform solo. Over the years, Okkervil River has come to be known for their energetic, literate folk pop anthems. But most hear them as simply "a rock band." Sheff's folk influences shined through in this set, making the DNA of Okkervil River more apparent. Hearing these songs strummed and picked on an acoustic guitar made clear the influences of British folk songwriters like Roy Harper and Bill Fay. For audience members not interested in the musical roots behind Okkervil River (which many Sondre Lerche fans probably are not) Sheff provided an honest and emphatic set of complex, lyric-driven songs. It was clear form the entranced crowd that Sheff won over a bunch of new fans. Or at least hooked their curiosity. Sheff's lyrics beg the listener to re-listen. As opposed to the chordally-led phrasing of Beth Wawerna, Sheff's songs are driven by lyrics and melodies that command the chords. It was interesting to see songwriting approached from such different angles back-to-back. It is worth noting at this point that there were many people in the far back of the room who seemed intent on talking louder than the music. One can only assume they were attending to "see" Sondre Lerche and felt completely justified in talking over any other artist performing. Sheff took a moment to point out these people (which of course went right over their heads). This resulted in supportive applause from the majority, who were clearly distracted and annoyed by the loud group in the back.

SIDE NOTE: this raises a question, or at least an interesting debate: Is it "OK" to talk loudly at a concert? If someone pays $15 to see a show, isn't it reasonable to expect them to listen to the songs? And even if they aren't interested in a certain artist, isn't it reasonable to expect the respect and courtesy of keeping one's voice quiet, both in regards to the artists themselves and the fans who might actually be trying to listen? In the event that this occurs, should the artist take the initiative to shush them, or should a fellow audience member? Both? Neither? Discuss.

Back to the show. When Sondre Lerche took the stage, a young cavalcade of girls had pushed their way to the front. As he stepped to the mic the screams were shrill and unexpectedly loud. Lerche introduced himself with a solo number before bringing out the band. Although the synth player and bassist had apparently just joined the band a couple weeks earlier, they played tight and confidently, each member brimming with excitement about the songs, not just following charts. The drummer's incredible precision almost stole the show - he brought the energy of the songs out in ways drummers rarely can, and was single-handedly responsible for many "jaw-drop" moments. The only real way to describe it is that it's fueled by real passion for the songs. It's that special intangible thing you can't fake, and this guy clearly has it. Lerche fired off short gems from throughout his career, never letting go of the stranglehold he had on the crowd from the moment he stepped out. On one level his songs are complex, melding jazz chords with pop melodies a la Steely Dan. On another, he's able to perform simple, quiet ballads, which he did at one point, stepping away and unplugging, treating the silent room to an acoustic rendition of "Dear Laughing Doubters."



There were a handful of particularly special moments, including a performance of "When The River," a song about homesickness featuring a choir of the "people he misses most when he's away." This group included his wife, local songwriter JBM, and actor Christopher Abbott. Will Sheff and Beth Wawerna also joined Sondre on stage to trade verses on a cover of Steely Dan's "Dirty Work."

By the time the show was over, it truly felt like Lerche had turned the room into his own house full of friends. He stood atop a monitor wedge and performed the final encore, harmonizing to the 600+ people taking the lead vocal on "Modern Nature." Lerche has toured for years as a solo artist but seeing him with a band showed that he's not just a one-man show. His music is big and the full-band show proved him to be a full fledged rock n roll guy.

More pictures from the show, setlists included, and a video of Sondre and band on Letterman (from 11/22), below...

Continue reading "Sondre Lerche, Will Sheff & Bird of Youth @ Music Hall of Williamsburg (pics, review, setlist)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Raphaelle Standell-Preston of Braids/Blue Hawaii @ MHoW

Like she was when in February, Canada's Raphaelle Standell-Preston was fighting a cold when she returned to NYC to play the BrooklynVegan CMJ showcase at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday night (10/21). That didn't stop her from performing at the show twice though! Her electronic and atmospheric duo project Blue Hawaii bravely opened the show to the smallest audience of the night at 7pm (less than one hour after the BV day party at Public Assembly ended right next door). She then sang again at 10pm in Braids, but this time to the largest audience of the night. The room was packed to capacity as Braids performed their "absolutely beautiful" music. Seeming overwhelmed by their grand reception, Raphaelle thanked the crowd over and over as they ended their set and their tour with Pepper Rabbit who played at 8.

There's a rumor that the BV showcase may have been Pepper Rabbit's last show ever. Hopefully that's not true. To quote Hannah Angst, "Pepper Rabbit puts on an amazing show- I love when so few people can make that much noise." Maria Sherman said that, "the best part of [the] pepper rabbit show [was] John Norris screaming every lyric."

After Pepper Rabbit and before Braids, came Active Child. Elizabeth Rowe of the Examiner says:

Active Child stole the show with their 9pm set. Pat Grossi, the mastermind of the Active Child project, juxtaposes his chilling, choral falsetto and delicate harp-playing with the sonic intensity of electronic drums and keyboards. Reminiscent of How to Dress Well's deconstructed R&B with thundering electronic percussion, the band is ultimately difficult to categorize -- Active Child is an experiment in sonic contradiction as much as anything, and a compelling one at that. Songs were expansive, even grandiose affairs with the air of traditional choral music. The performance was finely-tuned, down to the apparent decision on the part of the band to wear matching scoop-neck t-shirts in slightly different neutral shades.

After Braids came the final set of the night, and that was from the great San Francisco post-punk band Weekend (I feel like it doesn't need to be written anymore that Weekend is not to be confused with The Weeknd or Weekends, but at least one person asked me to clarify this weekend, so I think I should keep writing it). Metro.us saw Weekend and says:

Bringing your own lights is an effective move that makes you stand out from the thousand other bands. You can better capture what you know as the es-sence of your own music. Weekend brought three long red tube lights to put beside their instruments, evoking electric heaters, warming up their icy goth rock sound.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by. Sorry if for some reason you couldn't get in! More pictures below...

Continue reading "BV CMJ 2011 showcase @ MHOW w/ Braids, Active Child, Weekend, Pepper Rabbit & Blue Hawaii (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Like he did on Friday, Geoffrey O'Connor opened for Jens Lekman at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Sunday night (10/9). Here are some pictures from that 2nd show. The third, with Luke Temple opening, was last night (10/10). Pictures from that one coming. More pics from Sunday, and a video by Ian Perlman from Friday, below...

Continue reading "Jens Lekman completed his 3 night run @ MHOW (night 2 pics, night 1 video) "

Braids @ Mercury Lounge (more by Andrew St. Clair)

Though you may have noticed it on Music Hall's site already, I'm excited to announce the lineup of the 2011 BrooklynVegan official CMJ showcase, happening at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday, October 21st. It looks like this:

7pm Blue Hawaii
8pm Pepper Rabbit
9pm Active Child
10pm Braids
11pm Weekend

Montreal's Braids (not to be confused with Braid), covered countless times on this site also played a BV-SXSW 2011 party and are currently nominated for the Polaris Award. I'm honored to host them twice in one year.

Blue Hawaii, more of a rarity, is Braids front-woman Raphaelle's solo project. You don't see Blue Hawaii's name on a bill very often, though maybe you just caught them when they opened for Braids at Mercury Lounge on September 6th. Get there early! Raphaelle on stage once is something not to be missed, let alone twice in one night!

Active Child @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Active Child, whose last NYC was a sold out one at Bowery Ballroom just last week, will play an early 9pm set even though they could probably be headlining the night themselves. No lack of BV Active Child posts too if you want to find out more about the LA-based ex-choir boy harp playing artist (Active Child also played a BV SXSW party in March 2010).

Pepper Rabbit also recently shared bills with Braids, though not in NYC where Pepper Rabbit also just headlined their own Mercury Lounge show. Grab the Freelance Whales remix of of their song "Rose Mary Stetch" HERE if you don't have it yet.

Weekend @ BV-SXSW 2010 (more by Tim Griffin)

Last but far from least is Weekend (not to be confused with The Weeknd or Weekends) who also played the same BV SXSW party in 2011 that Braids did (Malajube, who are in NYC now, played that show too). I'm excited to have them back too! To quote one BV contributor who I think speaks for most of us, "Weekend are one of my favorite new bands of the last year." Maybe you just caught them at one of their two packed NYC shows earlier this month. They played both Mercury Lounge and Glasslands with Talk Normal. Download/listen to their new track "Hazel" below.

NOTE: This is one of two official BrooklynVegan CMJ showcases. The other is much heavier and on a boat. Stay tuned for free day party announcements too.

Continue reading "BV-CMJ 2011 official showcase @ Music Hall of Williamsburg -- lineup & tickets"

Anna Calvi @ SPIN House (more by David Andrako)

We're throwing a BrooklynVegan Holiday Party at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Tuesday, December 13, 2011! What does that mean? Well, so far it means a set of music by Mercury Prize nominee Anna Calvi (she lost to PJ Harvey) and a low ticket price of $8.00 with $1.00 from every ticket going to to Toys For Tots! Stay tuned for more details, including lineup additions, but tickets go on sale next Friday, September 16th (which is one day before another BrooklynVegan event takes place). Tickets will be on ticketmaster, but you can also get them without a fee at the Mercury Lounge box office, or at the MHOW box office on Saturdays.

For Anna it's one of four North American dates in December. They're all listed below...

Continue reading "Anna Calvi playing BV Holiday Party @ MHOW (& other dates)"

DOWNLOAD: Oberhofer - "Gotta Go" (MP3)

photos by Bryan Bruchman

A Les Savy Fav show is a parade of ridiculousity mixed in with taut post-hardcore/punk. They're the perfect mix of seriously good band and seriously fun - a perfect band to have playing on the occasion of a four-year anniversary celebration. Brooklyn venue Music Hall of Williamsburg blew out the candles on four years last night (9/6) with the sometimes-scantily-clad-but-always-zany antics of LSF vocalist Tim Harrington, whose band headlined the rainy evening with cheery Brooklyn band Oberhofer and opener Chron Turbine. Pictures from the show are in this post.

The show was one of only two US dates scheduled for LSF in 2011 (10/7 in DC is the other), and one of only three total shows scheduled for LSF if you include their upcoming appearance/curatorial duties at ATP's Nightmare Before Christmas in Minehead in December (featuring the return of Hot Snakes and Bitch Magnet, along with appearances from Battles, Sun Ra Arkestra and many esteemed others).

For Oberhofer, their appearance at MHOW was the second in the past few weeks including their appearance at the Spotify show at Mercury Lounge on August 25th with The Suzan and Exitmusic. Oberhofer recently dropped a new song "Gotta Go" due on their upcoming debut full-length for Glassnote (who, after a long label bidding war, Oberhofer recently announced they signed to). Download it above.

More pictures from the show below...

Continue reading "Les Savy Fav, the Glassnote-signed Oberhofer & Chron Turbine played MHOW's 4th birthday (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield and Bao Nguyen

Little Dragon @ MHOW (by Amanda)

After a tight opening DJ set and great band introduction by Rich Medina, Sweden's Little Dragon played a set of vocal-driven live dance music to a sold out crowd last night (8/16) at Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn. It was a BV-presented show in honor of the release of their great new LP Ritual Union which they played many tracks from - most notably for me, the title track, which sent shivers down my spine when they played it early on.

Little Dragon @ MHOW (by Bao)

The four-piece band's approx-100 minute set included a mix of old and new and two encores, which even if planned, felt fan-driven. The room was going nuts - cheering as the band entered the stage, cheering even louder when otherworldly frontwoman Yukimi got on stage, and continued loud cheering throughout the show. Yukimi returned the love, letting us know multiple times how happy she was to be back in Brooklyn, and saying the crowd inspired her. People danced and sang along, and we all were brought to another place (the early 90s) when Little Dragon ended the first encore with a spot-on cover of Crystal Waters' "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)", mixed with a bit of the instrumental parts of Robin S's "Show Me Love".

If you missed,the band will be back as part of a tour before the end of the year. We have two sets of pictures from the Brooklyn show. Bao was backstage and on the stage while Amanda covered the front of the stage and balcony. Check 'em out, below...

Continue reading "Little Dragon played Music Hall of Williamsburg (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield, words by Andrew Sacher

After an opening set by recent Domino signees Ducktails, Panda Bear came on stage with Tomboy-producer Sonic Boom (Peter Kember of Spacemen 3) to perform the recently released album in its entirety at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Sunday night (7/3). The sold out venue came off as a bit of an underplay for Panda Bear, whose last NYC show was headlining Governor's Island, though the intimacy made for the perfect setting. Panda Bear spent most of his time on guitar and vocals as Sonic Boom handled the knob-turning duties. Together, they took psychedelia to an entirely different level. Audience members' senses were blurred as the venue was filled with excruciating volume, while smoke machine smoke sifted through the air and trippy visuals swirled on screen. The hazy atmosphere was even more obscured by lights and colors shooting over the audience from projectors. I found myself needing periodic reality checks to remember I was at a Panda Bear show and not in some other weird dimension.

The delivery of the album was spot-on, and in typical Panda Bear/AnCo fashion, he ditched song breaks for droney interludes, extended passages, and trancelike repetition, adding at least 20 more minutes to the 50-minute album. The drone parts especially came through live. They added breathing room into the intense set that you didn't realize you were getting until the songs picked up again.

After one other non-Tomboy track ("Ponytail"?), he ended the show with Person Pitch-favorite "Comfy in Nautica" to much excitement from the crowd. And while I was equally excited to hear that song, it helped further illustrate how cohesive Tomboy is. The album's unlikely marriage of drone and Beach Boys-y psych pop is like no other. Tomboy lacks the immediate standouts like "Comfy in Nautica," and performing the album from start to finish showed how well it works as a continuous piece of art, and not a collection of singles. Panda Bear chose not to do an encore, which was fitting. The Person Pitch tracks, although great, already felt a little tacked on to what was a very complete set.

More pictures, the setlist and some videos from the show below...

Continue reading "Panda Bear played Music Hall of Williamsburg (pics, setlist)"

Frightened Rabbit at Terminal 5 in November (more by Lionel Bergeron)

As mentioned, Frightened Rabbit are touring with Death Cab For Cutie. That tour brings them to Williamsburg Waterfront in Brooklyn on August 2, one night before Frightened Rabbit will headliner their own show at Music Hall of Williamsburg (8/3) with Right On Dynamite! Tickets are on sale now for the more intimate show, and are still on sale for the Waterfront show too. FR continue their tour with Death Cab on August 5 in Philly. It runs through August 25.

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Art Brut @ Music Hall of Williamsgburg

"...So here was Art Brut, on a Friday night [in Toronto for NXNE], playing to a two-thirds full Mod Club. And from the outset, it was rough. "Formed a Band" sounded like "Formed a Band," but something was off. It was a bit of a rush job and the energy felt fake. Rolling straight into "My Little Brother," it seemed as though there was an acknowledgment that Art Brut's "hits" were all anyone wanted to see, and this would be a middling trip down nostalgia lane. And that is when things took an unbelievably meta turn and Art Brut saved the day.

Midway through that second track, Argos admitted that his "little brother" was now 29, and a school teacher. And when he got to the line about how all songs have the same message -- "why don't our parents care about us" -- he went on a longer tangent, basically explaining the brief success and slow decline of Art Brut. It was stunningly honest, endearing and hilarious. And at the end of it, the entire room was in Art Brut's corner.

A little later, a long comedic digression in "Modern Art" finished with the bulk of the crowd sitting on the floor with Argos at the middle, telling a (mostly?) fictional story about a trip to the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. I can't do any of it justice, but I can tell you it ended with the entire audience jumping full bore around the singer at the song's climax." [National Post]

Continue reading "Art Brut played NXNE, Maxwell's & Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Reptar & Mini-Boone (pics & setlist)"

words by Andrew Sacher, most photos by Jessica Amaya

After watching Deervana at Brooklyn Bowl on Sunday (6/19), I ran over to Music Hall of Williamsburg to catch whatever I could of YACHT's set, which had already begun. I ended up being able to see the last 45 minutes or so of the Northside Festival show. They played a ton of material off the new album which vocalist Claire Evans mentioned was not out yet (it came out today, June 21) but admitted that many of us had probably heard it already. Being that she was very right in her assumption, the new material made for some of the most exciting moments of the night.

It was my first time seeing YACHT, and given that I hadn't heard too much about their live show, I wasn't expecting anything like the performance they gave. Not only was the music spot on, but the band's image really added to the entire show. Claire provocatively pranced around stage in all white with a white microphone/mic cable, while the rest of the band, Bobby Birdman included, stayed a bit stiller at their instruments in Devo-esque matching suits. On the few songs that Jona Bechtolt sang lead vocals, he was actually as animated as Claire, but in a manner that was more goofy than sexy. Jona jumped into the crowd where he sang the majority of one number. Both frontpeople had choreographed complementary dance moves, including one which crossed between the macarena and hear no evil/see no evil/speak no evil.

Midnight Magic and The Miracles Club both opened the show, but I obviously missed them, as did Jessica who was at Deervana too. More pictures of YACHT below...

Continue reading "YACHT played MHOW (pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Mirah & Thao

"Thao is a raw and bombastic performer, while Mirah has a strong, guileless voice befitting her emotional and introspective tunes. Their performance Thursday night was a delicate blend of both performers' sensibilities: more sedate than a typical Thao and the Get Down Stay Down concert, but more upbeat and vivacious than a Mirah show. Along with three backing musicians (one of whom opened the bill as Led to Sea, performing live-looping solo viola tunes), Thao and Mirah went through nearly the entire album, throwing in some of their solo work for good measure and frequently singing each other's material." [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Continue reading "Thao & Mirah played Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Led to Sea (pics)"

photos by Andrew St. Clair

Femi @ MHOW

Chicago Sun-Times: You're always discussed in relation to your father's musical legacy. What does that mean to you? What was his musical legacy?

Femi Kuti: It's one that started within our family, creating a music that was unique. Folks in Lagos and Africa can identify. It's very homely for us. It's like funk is to America, or rock. It's a distillation of the native sounds made into something a wider audience can appreciate...

Chicago Sun-Times Is it a burden to carry your father's legacy?

Femi Kuti: No, because I understand what I am doing. I enjoy doing the music myself. People want to know about him and I'm obliged to answer. I love my father. Some people are not close to their parents, they grow up and don't want to be identified with them. It's not a problem for me.

Femi is out on tour supporting his new album 'Africa for Africa.'

More pictures from Music Hall of Williamsburg and some recent video of both bands in action, including video from Highline Ballroom, below.

Continue reading "Femi Kuti played Highline Ballroom & then Music Hall of Williamsburg w/ Lord Huron (pics & video)"

by BBG

Floor @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

A shade more than a year after their return which has included a Brooklyn show at Europa, Floor made their way back to Brooklyn to play Music Hall of Williamsburg last night (4/14) (the same venue that TV On the Radio, who were headlining Radio City at the time, played one night earlier). The Floor show was part of a tour with Hawks that hits Philly tonight.

Floor's genetic makeup last night was the same as their recent touring lineup (Steve, Anthony, Henry), and the band played a similarly crushing setlist comprised of faves like "Scimitar", "Trangle Song", "Tales of Lolita", and "Iron Girl" among countless others. The reunited Floor-ida band was supported by Atlanta's Hawks (not the basketball team), who churned out Am-Rep-faithful noise rock that featured a David Yow-sound-alike in front who took cues from Eugene Robinson in the wardrobe department... slowly, but surely stripping down to his underwear.

Magrudergrind opened the show to a meager crowd, and dependably delivered their grind-y hardcore with vigor. Small crowd or no, you can't keep some kids from going apeshit during songs like "Heaviest Bombing".

Floor's Steve Brooks will be back in NYC and at Music Hall of Williamsburg on July 20th with Torche, who will be on the road as part of a string of dates with Big Business and Helms Alee. Tickets are currently on AmEx presale and go on regular sale Friday (4/15).

And, heavy music invaded the whole block on N6th lastt night, as right next door The Ocean was teaming up with East Of The Wall and Flourishing at Public Assembly. Those pictures are on the way. Check out more pictures from Music Hall of Williamsburg below.

Continue reading "Floor, Hawks & Magrudergrind played MHOW (pics)"