by Andrew Sacher

Roomrunner at WBAR-B-Q 2013 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

As mentioned, Baltimore's Roomrunner are releasing their debut LP, Ideal Cities, next week (5/28) via Fan Death, but you can now listen to it ahead of its release date at SPIN. When last writing about the album, I said:

The album has the clearest production of anything the band has put out to date, but it's far from overly polished. Guitar riffs pile on top of each other in a Siamese Dream/In Utero sort of way, putting Roomrunner in a league of other current bands like California X and Milk Music that actually make the term "grunge" sound appealing again.

Updated dates are listed, along with a video of them playing "Bait Car" at Death by Audio, below...

Continue reading "Roomrunner streaming debut LP, reschedule release show"

Mikal Cronin just released his second solo album, MCII, which is a terrific record and a perfect listen for a lovely spring day like today. You can stream the whole thing over at Merge Records. Mikal has just released a video for "Change" and you can watch that below.

As mentioned, Mikal will be on tour this summer, playing NYC at Bowery Ballroom on June 20 with Roomrunner and Shannon & the Clams opening. Tickets (only $10!) are still available. He just expanded his tour as well, and all dates are listed below.

Continue reading "Mikal Cronin made a new video, expands tour (updated dates)"

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)"

by Andrew Sacher

Roomrunner at Bowery Ballroom earlier this month (more by Lukas Hodge)

Baltimore rippers Roomrunner wrapped up their run with Marnie Stern over the weekend. They didn't play her NYC show, but they did play her Chicago show, and instead opened for Pissed Jeans in NYC. Now the band have more dates scheduled, three of which are in NYC.

The first is the previously discussed free WBAR-B-Q at Barnard College on Saturday (4/27) with Waxahatchee, Twin Sister, Swearin', Speedy Ortiz, and more. Then they'll headline a gig at Death by Audio on May 14 (openers TBA, admission is $7 at the door). Finally, in June they'll support a few dates on the previously announced Mikal Cronin and Shannon and the Clams tour, including the NYC show on June 20 at Bowery Ballroom. Tickets for the Bowery Ballroom show are still available.

UPDATE: We've been told that Roomrunner have cancelled the Death by Audio show and pushed back the release date of their album from 5/14 to 5/28.

The Death by Audio show serves as a record release show for the band's debut LP, Ideal Cities, which is due out the day of the show (5/14) 5/28 via Fan Death. The album has the clearest production of anything the band has put out to date, but it's far from overly polished. Guitar riffs pile on top of each other in a Siamese Dream/In Utero sort of way, putting Roomrunner in a league of other current bands like California X and Milk Music that actually make the term "grunge" sound appealing again. But while those bands often channel the swampy sounds of Dinosaur Jr and Meat Puppets, Roomrunner's after something brighter. Singer Denny Bowen sings with a nasally pop punk sneer and the album's got some of the band's biggest hooks yet.

Check out the video for Ideal Cities single, "Weird," along with all tour dates, which are listed below...

Continue reading "Roomrunner playing more shows, including NYC record release show and opening for Mikal Cronin (updated dates)"

photos by Lukas Hodge

Noisy punk team Pissed Jeans are out on the road beating down crowds with the gospel that is Honeys. The Pennsylvania quartet recently crashlanded at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday (4/13) with guests Roomrunner and Yi. Pictures from the show are in this post.

The date was the only show for Roomrunner with PJ, who has since left to catch-up with Marnie Stern as part of her set of dates.

The current Pissed Jeans shows are the band's only scheduled dates until later this summer, when they hit the festival circuit including Pitchfork 2013. All remaining shows and more  are listed, along with more pics from Bowery Ballroom, below.

Continue reading "Pissed Jeans played Bowery Ballroom with Roomrunner and Yi (pics)"

Waxahatchee @ Permanent Records in Chicago (more by Zach Pollack)

Waxahatchee @ SXSW in Austin (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Brooklyn resident Waxahatchee, who we recently caught in Austin and Chicago, has previously announced shows coming up in Brooklyn (TONIGHT, 4/3, at 285 Kent), Austin, and Chicago. Today we found out about a fourth concert on her/their schedule, and that's the WBAR Barnard College Radio's 20th Annual FREE WBAR-B-Q in NYC with Wax, Twin Sister, Roomrunner, Swearin', Speedy Ortiz, and more. Full lineup and dates below...

Continue reading "WBAR-B-Q 2013 lineup includes Twin Sister, Roomrunner, Swearin' & Waxahatchee (who plays 285 Kent tonight)"

Double Dagger bid the world adieu in 2011, but have left the world with a pair of parting gifts. The Baltimore band will release their final LP 333, on Record Store Day (April 20) in conjunction with a new documentary on the band If We Shout Loud Enough. Also be on the lookout for video from their final live shows featuring appearances from Future Islands, Dan Deacon, Thank You, Wye Oak, and many more.

Meanwhile, Denny from Double Dagger's new band Roomrunner has a debut album and tour on the way and will be in NYC to open for Pissed Jeans at Bowery Ballroom on April 13 (tickets).

Teaser trailer for the documentary below...

Continue reading "Double Dagger to release posthumous LP and accompanying documentary"

by Andrew Sacher

Roomrunner at The Bell House in 2012 (more by Tracy Allison)

Baltimore punks Roomrunner wrapped up a very promising 2012 with the release of their noisy, punchy Super Vague EP, and they're finally ready to release their debut full length, Ideal Cities, which will be out on May 14 via Fan Death. It's first single, "Weird," kicks off with huge riffs and culminates in a chorus which finds Roomrunner at their catchiest but with only more power than we've heard from them before. You can stream that track and check out the album artwork below.

Roomrunner play NYC on Thursday (2/28) at FUZZ NYC with Speedy Ortiz, STATS, and Sea Monsters.

Roomrunner also have a few upcoming shows with Marnie Stern, and though they won't be at her Brooklyn show at Music Hall of Williamsburg (4/11), they will end up in NYC two days after that to open for Pissed Jeans, whose tour hits Bowery Ballroom on April 13. Yi is on that bill as well and tickets for that show are still available.

All Roomrunner dates are listed, along with that song stream and album art, below...

Continue reading "Roomrunner announce debut album, playing NYC this week, opening for Pissed Jeans"

Marnie Stern at Santos in 2011 (more by Andrew St. Clair)

Looks like it's unofficial math rock day on BrooklynVegan. After we just posted that Tera Melos and TTNG are touring together, Marnie Stern (who's also toured with Tera Melos) announced a tour too. Hers is in support of her new album, The Chronicles of Marnia, which is due out on March 19 via Kill Rock Stars. The tour hits NYC on April 11 at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Tickets for that show are not on sale yet but check ticketmaster for updates. The tour also includes a Chicago date, which BrooklynVegan Chicago is presenting. Many of the shows are with Roomrunner, but no opener has been announced for the NYC show yet. All tour dates (via Pitchfork) are listed below.

Marnie also just revealed a third track off of The Chronicles of Marnia called "Nothing is Easy." It starts off with Marnie's trademark math-rock-meets-Van-Halen tapping, but quickly turns into a subtler art rocker. You can stream that song below, and revisit the two previously revealed cuts, "Year of the Glad" and "East Side Glory," HERE.

Continue reading "Marnie Stern announces tour, has a new song (dates, stream)"

Roomrunner at Mercury Lounge in September (more by Tracy Allison)

Baltimore grunge bearers Roomrunner have two solid EPs under their belt -- 2011's self titled EP and 2012's Super Vague EP -- and they're in the process of recording their debut full length. No word on when that will come out, but presumably some time in 2013. The band are playing a few shows this January, including one in Brooklyn on January 18 at Shea Stadium with Bambara, Advaeta (who recently announced a show with with Hilly Eye and Sleepies), and Young Adults. Most of the dates on that run are with Northampton's Speedy Ortiz (who recently played NYC with Thurston Moore) but they're not on the NYC date.

Speaking of Shea Stadium and the Baltimore scene, Dope Body will be playing a show at the Brooklyn venue on December 28 with PC Worship, Osekre & the Lucky Bastards, Kntrlr, and Beach Cops.

That's one day before another Baltimore band, Ed Schrader's Music Beat (who topped Dan Deacon's Best LPs of 2012 list) plays Shea (12/29) with AMi DAng, Eola, and Psychobuildings. Ed Schrader's Music Beat also plays a Brooklyn show on January 26 at Death by Audio with Bambara and more TBA.

Streams/videos and lists of dates for all three bands below...

Continue reading "Baltimore bands Roomrunner, Dope Body, & Ed Schrader's Music Beat playing Bklyn shows (separately) (dates/streams)"

pictures by Caroline Harrison; words by Doug Moore

Future of the Left @ Knitting Factory, 11/27/2012

Future of the Left wrapped up their US tour with a triumphant BK set at the Knitting Factory on Tuesday (11/27). Baltimore's Roomrunner, NY's own Chron Turbine, and bicoastal act The Simpsons provided support.

The Simpsons features Bomb the Music Industry! main man Jeff Rosenstock (and an utterly un-Google-able band name). The band has evidently existed for a year, but this show marked their first live appearance. Like most debuts, The Simpsons' set had its share of hiccups -- clumsy songs, off-key vocals, and awkward between-song pauses. Still, a small collection of BTMI! fans responded to The Simpsons with visible enthusiasm.

Chron Turbine's set was considerably tighter and more rehearsed. Their staccato clatter is visibly primitive: their drummer led with his left on a right-handed kit, and guitarist Chris Turco seemed to have only a passing familiarity with the notion of upstrokes. Despite some technical difficulties, Chron Turbine retained a sense of levity. "Hear that?" asked Turco over his amp's drone. "We're a buzz band."

Roomrunner's tagline is "death to false grunge." They're not exaggerating. The band has more similarities to Nirvana than they do differences - -battered Fender Jaguars, quiet/LOUD songs, two and three-chord riffs, horizontal stripes, button-up sweaters, homemade band shirts, and oodles of feedback. (They deviate with their four-person lineup and their fondness for funky time signatures.) The style has aged well, and Roomrunner has the charisma to carry off the pastiche.

Future of the Left has played six shows in the New York area since June of this year. Their set has changed little over this period, aside from the slamming new tune "Future Child Embarrassment Matrix." Still, they remain endlessly entertaining. Frontman Andy Falkous is preternaturally witty between songs, and the performances themselves more than do the records justice. Here's hoping that they play six more NYC gigs next year.

More pictures from FoTL at Knitting Factory are below.

Continue reading "Future of the Left played Knitting Factory with Roomrunner, Chron Turbine & The Simpsons (pics)"

Future of the Left at Maxwell's - 11/26/12 (via @smashleyzombie)

Future of the Left have been on a North American tour which hit Hoboken's Maxwell's last night (11/26) and wraps up TONIGHT (11/27) at Knitting Factory Brooklyn with Roomrunner, Chron Turbine, and The Simpsons. Tickets for tonight's show are still available and we're also giving away a couple pairs. Details on how to enter to win tix to tonight's show are below.

Before coming to the NYC area, the band played Buffalo, NY on Sunday (11/25) and you can check out a video of them playing "Adeadenemyalwayssmellsgood" from that show and the setlist from their recent Dallas show (11/21), below.

Continue reading "Future of the Left played Maxwell's, playing Knitting Factory w/ Roomrunner tonight (win tix!)"

Roomrunner at Mercury Lounge in September (more by Tracy Allison)

Baltimore noise punks Roomrunner, who were just in NYC for a few CMJ shows, including one with their sonic brethren METZ, will kick off a tour in NYC at Death by Audio tonight (11/11) with Sleepies and Eula (both of who teamed up as the Pixies for the Halloween covers show at DBA last night), and Big Ups. Roomrunner will return to NYC to open for Future of the Left when their tour hits Knitting Factory on November 27.

A list of all Roomrunner dates, a video of them at Paper Box during CMJ, and a stream of their Super Vague EP, which came out this past May, are below.

Continue reading "Roomrunner kicking off tour in NYC tonight, opening for Future of the Left at Knitting Factory (dates, stream, video)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: METZ - Wet Blanket (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: METZ - Headache (MP3)

METZ at Metro, August 2012 (more by Grant MacAllister)

Toronto's sonic sandblasters METZ are in NYC for CMJ and will play four times while here, including the free BV day party on Friday (10/19) at Public Assembly. METZ play the front room at 3 PM, shortly after Deap Vally and Murals. We swear we'll post the whole line-up soon!

METZ's ripper of a debut album came out last week on Sub Pop and is highly recommended. You can download "Wet Blanket" and "Headache" above and you stream the whole album and watch the just-released video for "Wet Blanket" below.

METZ's additional CMJ shows include the official Oh My Rockness CMJ showcase on Tuesday (10/19) at Cameo that also features Chrome Canyon (who just played 285 Kent), Roomrunner, Moon King, Mood Rings, and Heavenly Beat. OMR, which is celebrating its eighth birthday, is throwing a CMJ Kickoff party tonight (10/15) at Pianos. METZ then plays Thursday (10/18) at Knitting Factory for the Sub Pop showcase; and the Pitchfork showcase at Villain on Friday night (10/19).

If you can't make the CMJ week shows, METZ will be back in November for two more NYC shows. All dates are listed below, along with the new video, album stream and show flyers.

Continue reading "METZ released debut album, new video & are in NYC for CMJ including BV day party on Friday (updated dates, streams)"

Laura Stevenson @ MHOW in June (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Laura Stevenson and the Cans have a short run of dates this month which kicks off in NYC for CMJ and then makes its way south, culminating in Gainesville's The Fest. During CMJ the band will play the Deli showcase at The Delancey on October 16 with Blonds, Shakey Graves, XNY, Backwords, Swear and Shake, and more. Then after that, they'll play the Let's Get Messy showcase at The Rock Shop on October 17 with Roomrunner, Archie Powel & The Exports, Twin Tigers, Pretty & Nice, and more. Advance tickets for the Rock Shop show are available and you can also try to get into both of those shows with your CMJ badge.

As mentioned, when the band returns home after their October run, they'll play a local show in Brooklyn at Public Assembly on November 11 with The Shondes, Leda, and ADVAITA. Tickets for that show are still available.

In related news, The Mountain Goats' 2002 LP, Tallahasse, celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, and in honor of that, Crooked Neighbor is releasing a tribute album called Tallahasee Turns Ten, out digitally on November 5 and physically in January, 2013. The album features covers by Laura Stevenson, Kimya Dawson, Jeffrey Lewis, Miracles of Modern Science, Andrew Jackson Jihad, Bomb the Music Industry! and others. You can stream Laura Stevenson's take on "No Children," and check out a list of all upcoming LSATC dates below.

Continue reading "Laura Stevenson playing CMJ before The Fest, covered Mountain Goats for 'Tallahassee' tribute LP (dates & stream)"

photos by Tracy Allison

Turbo Fruits at Mercury Lounge - 9/13/12

Nashville garage rockers Turbo Fruits, who released their new Jim Eno (of Spoon)-produced album, Butter, this past Tuesday (9/11), are on tour in support of it now and came to NYC for a show two days after the album's release (9/13) at Mercury Lounge with Baltimore's Roomrunner.

Both Turbo Fruits and Roomrunner will be back in NYC for CMJ. Turbo Fruits will play the Panache showcase at Public Assembly on October 19 with Dent May, Twerps, Dignan Porch, Mac DeMarco, and Vockah Redu. Roomrunner will play The Paper Box on October 20. Stay tuned for more CMJ show announcements.

You can stream Butter in its entirety at Spotify and check out more pics from the Mercury Lounge show, plus a list of all remaining Turbo Fruits and Roomrunner dates below.

Continue reading "Turbo Fruits and Roomrunner played Mercury Lounge, returning to NYC for CMJ (pics and dates)"

The full list of artists confirmed for the 2012 CMJ Music Marathon so far is below...

Continue reading "CMJ 2012 initial lineup announced"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

"Dan Deacon rockin Pier 84...this ain't no Bon Iver!" - BonIverBlows

Dan Deacon's dance-off pit

The Hudson River Rocks series began last night (7/12) on Pier 84 with sets from Dan Deacon, John Maus, and Roomrunner. The new location is a lot nicer than Pier 54, where River Rocks was held in previous years. Where Pier 54 is pretty much just a straight line of pavement, at Pier 84 you're standing on outdoor tiles, the pier is broken up by some evergreen trees towards the back, and they create shade over stone wall-lined grassy area where you can sit between bands.

Roomrunner opened the show, unfortunately with a bit of technical problems hindering their set. Up next was John Maus, crazy as usual, taking over the stage with just a microphone as his beats played through the PA and he screamed without his mic, punched himself in the head, and gradually spilled more and more water over himself throughout the show. Dan Deacon closed out the show, also crazy as usual, with all of his regular antics like forming a giant pit in the middle of the crowd for a dance-off. If you made it out to the free show, what did you think?

River Rocks continues with two more free shows on Pier 84 this summer. On July 26 it's Oberhofer and The Soft Pack, and on August 9 it's Grimes (who has four not-free sold out NYC shows coming up), Wild Nothing, and DIIV (who played two NYC shows last night).

More pictures from last night's show at Pier 84 are below...

Continue reading "Dan Deacon, John Maus & Roomrunner played Pier 84 (pics)"

As discussed, the first Hudson River Park River Rocks (as they're calling it now) concert of the season happens tonight (7/13) with Dan Deacon, John Maus and Roomrunner. The show, which is now at Pier 84 (entrances on W43rd and W44th Sts) and starts at 7PM (doors at 6PM). Songs from all three bands playing tonight can be found on the free River Rocks mixtape which is downloable over at Insound. It's also got tracks by Grimes, DIIV (who plays 2 NYC shows tonight) and Wild Nothing, all of whom play River Rocks on August 9.

Dan Deacon is just about ready to drop his new album, America, on the world -- specifically August 28. It'll be his first for Domino Records. You may have already heard album's "Lots" and now he's unleashed a second America single, "True Thrush," which you can stream that below alongside the artwork to both the single and the album.

The River Rocks show also kicks off a fairly massive tour for Deacon, who will hit most of North America before the year's over, with time for Europe as well. All Dan Deacon tour dates are listed below.

Continue reading "River Rocks begins tonight (download the mixtape) w/ Dan Deacon (who has a new song), John Maus & Roomrunner"

by Fred Pessaro / BBG (not vegan)

There is a risk of locally damaging thunderstorms Tuesday evening and again on Independence Day, which could not only impact daytime picnics and festivals, but also evening fireworks in the Northeast.
Just about every major city and small community has some sort of fireworks display on or around the Fourth of July in the Northeast (many displays have been canceled elsewhere, due to dry conditions). However, storms erupting in over a dozen states could impact activities and have some folks running for cover.
Another surge of humid air and a warm front/cool front combination could have the atmospheric volatility index on the rise for July Fourth from the Ohio Valley states to the mid-Atlantic and New England. [Accuweather.com]

A good friend of mine once said "Who cares what's going on outside? Make your own fireworks." Here's a primer to figuratively do that on Independence Day 2012, all while avoiding any pesky arson indictments.

As discussed, the NYC fireworks are in the Hudson River this year, which means you can see them fine on the West Side Highway or in NJ or on your TV, but not very well from most of Brooklyn.

Spend the wee, early hours of July 4th (meaning, starting TONIGHT, July 3rd) getting down with the undead at the Zombie Rave at Webster Hall. DJs Alex English and Jess x Mischief will man the tables for the evening.

If you do choose the West Side Highway for viewing the fireworks, you won't need to go very far for a party right afterwards thanks to Pictureplane who is hosting a free July 4th bash at Westway (75 Clarkson in Manhattan) with DJ sets from himself, Physical Therapy, Heems (Das Racist) and a live show from Mykki Blanco. The event kicks off at 10PM, runs until 4AM and features free Budweiser for the first hour. More details can be found at the FB event page, and the flyer is below. Pictureplane no longer playing Cheap Storage and/or 285 Kent on the 4th.

As recently mentioned, Francois K, King Britt, FaltyDL and Infinity take over the daylight hours at Dekalb Market Brooklyn.

DIY Brooklyn venue Shea Stadium will celebrate their fourth anniversary with another July 4th blowout! The venue will host Afu Ra & The Shea Stadium All Stars, Dope Body, Roomrunner, Fuckton, Alan Watts, Ami Dang, Eleven Swords (mems. GDFX/Extreme Animals), Smhoak & Pals and The Jazz Massagers along with DJ sets from Beachballs, Magic Dan and the Impose DJs for the budget friendly price of $10.

In the spirit of summer, you can head to Secret Project Robot (389 Melrose Street, Brooklyn) for a "Sounds of Jamaica" dance party. The daytime event will last from 3PM until 9PM, and your vinyl "selectahs" will be Queen Majesty, Grace of Spades and Sweet V. Food and drink will be on hand and it'll only set you back a cool four bones. Details are at the FB event page.

If you aren't in the mood for a bit of reggae but still are in the mood to shake it, head to LP 'n Harmony (683 Grand Street) for a day-time-until-evening event (3-11PM) called "Beats & BBQ". For every drink you are entitled to a plate of BBQ (whaaaat) and tunage will be supplied by a bevy of DJs including Jose G (Face The Bass Radio), Ali Coleman (Voice of Voices NYC), Siren (Save the Robots), Ruby Red (Velvet Factory Production), Kyle McNeil (WBAI Pacifica Radio), Pinkie Tuscadero (Memoirs of a Party Girl), Ras (Hotter than July BK), and Herb Martin (Amadi). More details are available HERE.

I won't be anywhere near there (obviously), but you could spend tomorrow (or tonight) at Jones Beach with Phish. (both sold out)

July 4th is always a good day to fire up the grill and crank up some old tunes over a few cold ones. If you dont have/can't grill, accomplish two of those three at Mercury Lounge with Led Blimpie (Zeppelin cover band), AC/DC Done Dirt Cheap (wild guess?), and Guns N Hoses. Tickets are still available.

Brown Sugar lead a benefit at Acheron (57 Waterbury St, Bushwick) along with Creem, Deformity, Death Camp and Altered Boys.

The Spy Music Festival is still going and July 4th it's happening at The Stone with performances fromn John Blum (8PM) and Trevor Watts + Veryan Weston (10PM).

Wyclef (who may or may not also be playing the CBGB Festival later in the week) & Lil Jon will play the waterfront at Pier 92 on the Hudson (52nd and 11th Ave) as part of a day-long celebration (noon - midnight). Tickets are on sale, and pimp cups are optional.

Feeling anti-social? Trying to escape any impending rain? Stream all of The Roots's Philly 4th of July Jam featuring performances from the Philly Crew, as well as Queen Latifah, Common, Daryl Hall and Joe Jonas. You could also just go see it live in Philadelphia. Or watch the annual Twilight Zone marathon on SyFy.

Of course you can always count on the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island at noon, but did you know that there is the Crif Dog Classic at Roberta's that day too? (and it's going to stream at Sports Illustrated).

Looking for something in the "free" range? Noam Pikelny and Friends, The Sweetback Sisters, and Spuyten Duyvil will head to Madison Square Park as part of the Oval Lawn Series.

BBC DJ Benji B brings Deviation to Le Poisson Rouge at 10PM with Kode9, Lunice, and more

What did we miss?

Flyers below...

Continue reading "a 4th of July NYC event guide (fireworks, Pictureplane, a zombie rave, the Roots, Shea Stadium anniversary & much more)"

photos by Tracy Allison

Diamond Rugs at The Bell House, 6/22/2012

Diamond Rugs, the latest hard-rocking, boot-stomping supergroup to hit the Mason-Dixon line between indie rock and alt-country, played a surprise show at Brooklyn's Bell House on Friday night. Featuring John McCauley and Robbie Cowell of Deer Tick, Black Lips' Ian Saint Pe (who apparently tied up the last Billboard reporter who interviewed him and was hoping I would let him do the same), Hardy Morris of Dead Confederate, Bryan Dufresne of Six Finger Satellite, and Los Lobos' Steve Berlin, D. Rugs played their self-titled debut front to back in front of a small but enthusiastic audience who requested an encore even though "that's all the songs we have," as McCauley reminded them.

The somewhat impromptu set served as an unveiling of sorts for the band before their Sunday concert at Central Park Summerstage with Alabama Shakes and Robert Ellis, which was originally supposed to be their New York debut before their appearance tonight on The Late Show with David Letterman. After replenishing their onstage bin of Tecate, the band's central six members were joined by "some trombone player" and Diamond Rugs producers Adam Landry and Justin Collins of Nashville's Playground Sound Studios. The production team, who has also worked with Deer Tick and Sally Ford and the Sound Outside, contributed percussion and surprisingly deep baritone, respectively. [Billboard]

Diamond Rugs made their network television debut last night (6/25) on The Late Show with David Letterman and you can watch that performance of "Blue Mountains" below and check out more pictures from the Bell House show as well.

Continue reading "Diamond Rugs played the Bell House (pics); appeared on Letterman (video) "

Doldrums at NXNE last week (more by David Andrako)

As mentioned, Austra scheduled a few North American shows later this year including a NYC show on September 19 at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Tickets for that show are still available. All dates are listed below.

Since we last spoke, fellow Canadians Doldrums and Brooklyn's Zambri (who joined Bear In Heaven on stage last month at a MHOW show which Doldrums opened) were added as openers to Austra's MHOW show. The connections don't stop there though. Main Doldrums guy, Airick Woodhead, and his brother Daniel who sometimes drums live for Doldrums and has his own project called Moon King, were both members of the band Spiral Beach, whose lineup also included current Austra bassist Dorian Wolf.

Speaking of bands that include Austra members, TRUST (featuring Austra drummer Maya Postepski) have upcoming dates with Light Asylum, including two in NYC: Warm Up at PS1 on 7/7 with Nguzunguzu, Arca, and Todd Terry (tickets), and MHOW on 7/8 (tickets). All dates are listed below.

Doldrums is also a Grimes collaborator, has toured with her multiple times, and it looks like they're probably also good friends. Daniel Woodhead, in addition to sometimes drumming for Doldrums, drummed for Grimes too sometimes on her recent tour. Grimes has a lot of NYC shows coming up, including four sold out shows and a free one at River Rocks on Pier 84 on August 9 with Wild Nothing and DIIV.

Doldrums will also be in NYC next month for 4Knots Music Festival.

Daniel Woodhead's Moon King project does not have any upcoming NYC appearances at the moment, but he was here a good amount of times last year, including when he played with Dope Body and Hume last summer. Hume just played the official BV Northside showcase. Hume and Dope Body's friends Roomrunner just played Cake Shop and have other NYC shows coming up including one this Friday (6/22) at the Bell House with Diamond Rugs and Richard Buckner, and a free show with Dan Deacon and John Maus at Pier 84 on July 12.

All lists of dates below...

Continue reading "Doldrums & Zambri opening for Austra & other stuff"

Diamond Rugs @ Hotel Vegan (SXSW 2012) (more by Tim Griffin)

Diamond Rugs, who were set to make their NYC debut at Central Park Summerstage with Alabama Shakes on Sunday, June 24, will now headline their own NYC show even sooner at the Bell House in Brooklyn on Friday, June 22 with Richard Buckner and Roomrunner. Tickets are on sale now.

Diamond Rugs, one of the many bands who played Hotel Vegan at SXSW this year, is a supergroup-of-sorts. To quote ourselves:

Diamond Rugs is its name (Damn I Am On Drugs), and its members include Ian from Black Lips, Hardy from Dead Confederate, Bryan Dufresne from Six Finger Satellite, Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, and John & Robbie from Deer Tick.

Deer Tick, who recently played Sasquatch and just played Clearwater Fest over the weekend, also play a free outdoor show in Red Hook Park on Thursday (6/21) with Jonny Corndawg who recently played Mercury Lounge with Robert Ellis who opens for Diamond Rugs and Alabama Shakes in Central Park on Sunday.

Roomrunner, who are also on the Bell House bill, just played Cake Shop and will be back in NYC again this summer to open for Dan Deacon and John Maus on Pier 84. Bell House flyer below...

Continue reading "Diamond Rugs making NYC debut at the Bell House before Summerstage (with Richard Buckner & Roomrunner)"

Dan Deacon at Ecstatic Music Fest (more by David Andrako)

Dan Deacon has released "Lots", the first single from the Baltimore-an's debut LP for Domino Records America, due on August 27/28. In preparation, Deacon has will play a few dates around the states as well as in Europe, including a stop at River Rocks at Pier 84 on July 12th for a FREE show with John Maus and recently added opener Roomrunner. All Dan Deacon dates are listed below. All River Rocks shows are listed HERE.

If you can't wait to get your fix of the noisy-skronk of Roomrunner then head by Cake Shop on June 15th. There the ex-Double Dagger band will team with the also great Dope Body, Zulus, Guardian Alien and Lushes. Full set of Roomrunner dates are listed below along with a stream of their recent EP.

Speaking of John Maus, he's preparing to release A Collection of Rarities and Previously Unreleased Material on July 13th via Ribbon Music. The record features tracks that date back as far as 1999, and you can check out one track "Mental Breakdown" below. Order your copy via the label. the first 500 come in a rare translucent pink.

A listing of all tour dates and some streams are below.

Continue reading "Dan Deacon & John Maus prepping LPs; Roomrunner opening their big free show (and playing other dates too)"

Built to Spill at BV SXSW 2012 (more by Ryan Barkan)

The Hopscotch festival in Raleigh, North Carolina will celebrate its third year from Sept. 6-8, 2012 in downtown Raleigh, with 175 bands in 15 venues. The initial lineup, released today, runs the gamut from traditional indie favorites to punk to noise music to hip hop to noisy black metal and all stops in between, featuring performances from Built to Spill, sunn 0))), The Roots, The Jesus & Mary Chain (who played SXSW), Liars (who have a show coming up at Webster Hall), Baroness, Deerhoof, Death Grips (who play NYC soon and have new material on the way), Danny Brown (who was at Coachella and plays Prospect Park soon), Pallbearer (who play an exclusive East Coast Show soon), Screaming Females (who recently played NYC and are on tour now), Thee Oh Sees, The Spits (who just played NYC twice), Tenement, The Mountain Goats (two sets, one of which will be an all metal-covers set!) and so many more.

(and now we know the Jesus & Mary Chain are coming back soon)

Tickets are on sale. The full lineup and flyer (update: and a few more announced J&MC dates) are below...

Continue reading "Hopscotch lineup announced; Jesus & Mary Chain will be in NC in September; John Darnielle to do metal covers set "