photos by Chris La Putt

"Wow - thanks to everyone who stuck it out - I was a little disombobulated, and I'm truly sorry the R4 & XtraGolden didn't play... ...but we all made the best of it, right? Thanks again for braving it with us!" - Ted Leo

Hundreds of people braved the rain to see Ted Leo & the Pharamacists play a tight set with no set list on Pier 54 in NYC (part of the RiverRocks summer series). After a slight delay and the cancellation of both openers (Radio 4 and Extra Golden), Ted and band played for about an hour and 20 minutes of relatively rain-free music. They went on around 7:50. The above picture was taken around 6:30. To quote a friend, "all in all another memorable night in the eight year saga of Ted vs the Environment. Ted and his diehard fans always win." More pictures and some video below...

Continue reading "Ted Leo & the Pharmacists @ Pier 54 in NYC in the rain - pics "

Ted Leo writes...

THURSDAY - JULY 23, 2009 - ANNUAL FREE OUTDOOR NYC SHOW @ PIER 54 - RAIN OR SHINE?

It IS, as I said on Twitter, "complicated." My understanding is that it's a call that kind of has to be made on the spot if it's storming - basically, they try to do everything they can to make as much of a show as can happen happen. So if it's raining hard, they might just wait a while to see if it lets up, etc., but if it's only threatening, even if it's threats are extremely frightening, they won't call it off unless there's danger (REALLY bad rain or too much lightening).
As you may or may not know, we've snatched victory from the jaws of the most intense potential defeat with these things a few times before, including being pretty much the only musical event to actually HAPPEN during the blackout a few years ago, and skating in the rain with the kids (I couldn't find a picture of that, so I gave you Jesus riding a dinosaur instead) while we waited to know if we were canceled or not another year, etc., so you can count on us to try and make the best of it, no matter what happens...
I hope that helps!
And in the words of Sweet Sugar Slam, woo-woot!!

Woah - scratch that - FOUND ONE! Thanks to Hope for sending it... [Ted Leo]

The pic of Ted Leo skateboarding in the rain is above. Last year's Blonde Redhead show at the same location was infamously cancelled at the last minute. Tonight's show starts (hopefully) at 7pm:

6 p.m. - doors
7 p.m. - Radio 4
7:45 p.m. - Extra Golden
8:30 - Ted Leo & the Pharmacists

A video of Ted playing "Dancing in the Dark" solo for a segment about Bruce Springsteen, and all tour dates (including some with JEFF the Brotherhood), below...

Continue reading "Ted Leo's free NYC show tonight @ Pier 54 -- rain or shine?"

Yeasayer in the woods (via their recording blog)

"Three of the best established indie bands in the New York City music scene - two relatively newcomers, Matt & Kim and Yeasayer, and one perennial favorite Ted Leo & The Pharmacists -- are scheduled to headline the 11th annual RiverRocks music series of free outdoor concerts at Hudson River Park's Pier 54 this summer.

With the Hudson River and the setting sun as the backdrop of its Pier 54 stage (at 14th Street), RiverRocks kicks off its three-date series Thursday, July 9 featuring Brooklyn's Matt & Kim with the Chicago-based electronic team Flosstradamus opening the evening....

RiverRocks is Hudson River Park's signature concert series staged on the Pier 54 waterfront adjacent to New York City's Meatpacking District (at 14th Street). Gates open at 6 p.m. for all RiverRocks shows, which are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

I've been waiting for Ted Leo to announce a summer show. The dates of the three free, outdoor concerts is below...

Continue reading "Hudson RiverRocks' 2009 lineup - Yeasayer, Ted Leo, Matt & Kim, Radio 4, Extra Golden (3 free NYC shows!)"

on the way home from the head automatica show in philadelphia-we flipped our van, and all our equipment was destroyed. after the van flipped and we scrambled out through broken windows, a car hit the van destroying all the gear. no one was really hurt but we are in tremendous pain today, as well as being seriously shaken up. we have to cancel boston tonite... [Radio 4]

It sounds like they're lucky they only lost their gear. The show they won't make it to is Saturday night (1/10) at Great Scott in Boston. They and Head Automatica played Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn on Thursday.

by Showtrotta

DOWNLOAD: Whitest Boy Alive - Golden Cage (Fred Falke Rmx) (Sendspace MP3)

Sinden at Hiro Ballroom, NYC - April 10, 2008 (Nicky Digital)

Lately I've hit a spell where deejays I am really looking forward to seeing are very disappointing. Last weekend the spell continued...

Saturday I was quite excited to see Justice's Xavier de Rosnay deejay at Le Royale. I'd had a great time hearing him drop a mix of very current dance music with tons of unexpected pop and classics at Studio B following the Oct. 20th Justice show at Terminal 5. Unfortunately something was missing at Le Royale on Saturday. For the most part his set can be broken down like this - the first hour was mainly electro tracks, the second was mainly pop. Things could have been a lot better if more of the electro and pop were played together, and if more new electro tracks were played - I still love the Soulwax remix of Justice's Phantom Part II, but I remember first getting really excited about that track last April.

Thursday night saw the same problem with Steve Aoki dropping all the standard electro fare, heard over and over for the past year. I left mid-set which I am pretty reluctant to do, but it honestly was that bad. Thankfully the night wasn't a complete wash as Sinden spun an intensely banging set of grimey, UK-styled tunes that had everybody losing it. A-trak's set that followed was good as well, but a little less intense. For me the highlight of his set was when he dropped the Fred Falke Remix of Golden Cage by The Whitest Boy Alive (download it above).

much more below....

Continue reading "the week in Dance w/ Showtrotta (part 1 - Thursday stuff)"

DOWNLOAD: Pylon - Cool (live @ Little Kings - Apr 4, 2007) (MP3) (via)

Pylon @ Earl Club, Atlanta, GA - Nov 1, 2007 (CRED)

Oxford Collapse sent out this message about tonight's Brooklyn show...

Subject: we play with PYLON!

dudez,

normally we're not all like, "come to our show" but this one is different, tomorrow, Thursday, Nov - 8, we play with one of our all time favorite bands, Athens GA's own PYLON! We're psyched to be sharing the stage with these sweet southern folks! It should be an all around awesome night, Free Blood is playing and Hugo from Gang of 4 is going to play records!

DO NOT MISS!

THURSDAY, NOV. 8TH
WILLIAMSBURG MUSIC HALL (????? - VOMIT) (OLD NORTH SIX)

PYLON
OXFORD COLLAPSE
FREE BLOOD
DJS ANDREW BUTLER AND HUGO BURNHAM
9PM, $12/$14 DAY OF SHOW

PS. dont forget your snapcase tixxxxxx!

Pylon played Mercury Lounge last night. Sound Bites was there,

...Pylon may not have made an album since 1990's Chain, but it was apparent they've still got the chops. Drummer Curtis Crowe and bassist Michael Lachowski, in particular, don't seem to have missed in beat -- nothing sluggish or sloppy about their playing. And Randall Bewley's wiry guitar lines still sound fresh. In fact, Pylon felt more of the moment than nine-tenths of the bands who have been aping post punk sounds since it came back in fashion five years ago.... [Sound Bites]

Pylon also played Atlanta on November 1st (the picture above), Brooklyn tonight (see above also), and have one more scheduled show at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia on November 10th.

Before there was the "next Seattle" craze that led the music industry drooling in the direction of Chapel Hill, there was Athens, Ga. And before Athens' R.E.M. became a household acronym, there was R.E.M.'s favorite band, Pylon. [Independent Weekly]

Download Pylon's whole April 4th show @ Southern Shelter. Gyrate (the DFA reissue) ("on CD for the first time") is out now.

DOWNLOAD: Radio 4 - Packing Things Up On The Scene (The Loving Hand Dub Remix) (MP3)

Radio 4 @ Mercury Lounge, NYC | DEC 31, 2006 (VIA)

Radio 4, the same band that headlined Mercury Lounge on New Years Eve, are now scheduled to play the last-ever show at Northsix in Brooklyn on January 31st. By "last-ever show" I mean as "Northsix", because, as previously reported, the club will be remodeled, and then re-open a few months later as "the Music Hall of Williamsburg".

Other notable shows coming up at Northsix include Fiery Furnaces this Friday and Lightning Bolt on January 21st.