photos by Tamara Porras

Wild Flag @ Bowery Ballroom

"On Tuesday night, that act vacuuming up all the attention was Wild Flag, a new band comprised of members of old bands that sounds like the mean of those old bands, and also like many recent bands who have looked to those old bands for inspiration. (Got all that?)

The self-titled Wild Flag debut album was released last month on Merge and, in places, it's blistering. But only some of that tension came through during the band's set Tuesday night at the Bowery Ballroom. The singer Carrie Brownstein is still poignant, and still wry, and still handles her guitar authoritatively. While Janet Weiss, the drummer, was firm, she wasn't at her firmest. And sometimes the keyboard lines from Rebecca Cole appeared to have parachuted in from another concert up the block." [NY Times]

Continue reading "Wild Flag played Maxwell's, the Bell House & Bowery Ballroom w/ Eleanor Friedberger (pics)"

The above drawing is a segment of the songsheet Oneida passed out at Sunday night's show at Maxwell's in Hoboken (12/21). It was the first of eight Yo La Tengo Hanukkah parties at the NJ venue this year, and, as promised, the Brooklyn band (Oneida) opened the night. As also promised, comedian Paul F. Tompkins opened with a set of comedy. AND, I'm feeling really good right now because two (sort of) of my guest guesses also came true last night. Both Britt Daniel and Janet Weiss (I guessed Britt and "Quasi") joined Yo La Tengo for some songs. To quote an email I got from Josh,

Oneida opened.
Then Paul F Tompkins.
Then YLT with Janet Weiss
For the encore - Paul F Tomkins joined the band and sang a Hannukah version of [Johnny Cash's] "Ring of Fire"
Then Britt Daniel joined and sang a few songs including "Mother and Child Reunion" [by Paul Simon]

The shows continue tonight (Monday, Hanukkah night two). We now know the openers for night eight, but who will open tonight? Will it be Titus Andronicus? Will it be Antietam? I'm not sure. Post your guesses and facts in the comments.

Download the whole Oneida songsheet (thx Josh) as a PDF HERE. Check out a Yo La Tengo video from last year's Hanukkah run, below...

Continue reading "It's Hanukkah Bitch! Britt Daniel & Janet Weiss joined Yo La Tengo, Oneida & Paul F Tompkins @ Maxwell's last night"

Tonight (Sept 21) The Knitting Factory is hosting a show that is so incredible and so insanely inexpensive that I'm beside myself with joy. The Knit is playing host to the Variety Shac DVD release party. For those who don't know, Variety Shac is a sensational music and comedy shindig featuring Shonali Bhowmik, Heather Lawless, Andrea Rosen and Chelsea Peretti that happens monthly at Galapagos. Not only will this show bring us new sketches and videos c/o Variety Shac, but the bill also includes Zach Galifianakis, Fred Armisen, Eugene Mirman, Michael Showalter and artist Cory Arcangel.. I'm not sure how Cory Arcangel fits into all of the, but as an employee of a museum, I can almost guarantee you it'll involve video projections.....

$8.00 tickets are miraculously still on sale. However, I have 2 PAIRS to give away! TO WIN e-mail BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM (subject: VARIETY SHAC) and tell us your favorite comedian - the first and tenth emails right now WIN. Include your first and last name in the email. Winners will be notified, loser will not.

And speaking of Fred Armisen; remember how I mentioned a few weeks ago that Fred been working on a new short video series called ThunderAnt with ex-Sleater-Kinney guitarist/vocalist Carrie Brownstein? Well they're up and you can see them here.....

Continue reading "Klaus says go to Variety Shac tonight, WIN TIX + new Fred Armisen/Sleater Kinney videos"

Andrew WK, Kurt Braunohler, John Oliver, Leo Allen - Aug 20, 2007 (CRED)

The UCB Theater played host to a freaking stupendous edition of Bro'In Out with Leo and Tony. The show, which featured guests Andrew WK, Jon Oliver, Kurt Braunohler and music by Sam Bisbee, may be the comedy highlight of my summer. The show kicked-off with a sedate and chill Andrew WK discussing his recent lectures and motivational speeches which I found quite interesting. I find his theme of blocking out the bad, letting in the good, and making sure you feel happy and fulfilled all the time a bit unrealistic though - for me at least. WK was followed by Hot Tub Variety co-host Kurt Braunohler who delivered a monologue about fathering thousands of children all over the country. I pretty much laughed throughout the entire monologue and pray he performs it again soon. Up next was Daily Show correspondent Jon Oliver. I should point out that at this point in the show the guests and hosts had just about finished an entire bottle of absinthe, and that the effects were totally dictating the direction of the show. When Jon Oliver hit the stage it was pretty much a free-for-all with guests and hosts talking over each other and just having a blast. One stand-out line occured during a back-and-forth between bartender Jawnee and Jon Oliver when Oliver exclaimed "Giving you alcohol is like giving a child a tambourine." Finally, Sam Bisbee came out to close out the evening with a few songs, one of which was the most touching ode to his little daughter. He was fantastic and brought the energy back down to a normal, non-manic level. I left the show sore. These pics truly capture the essence of the experience.

And speaking of shows, we're giving away a pair of tickets to the next installment of ROFL at Joe's Pub on August 31, 2007. To enter, send us an e-mail at BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM (subject: ROFL), and tell us the last thing that made you ROFL. Include your first and last name. One winner will be picked at random and contacted. ROFL! is high art, low humor, YouTube video, Myspace weirdness, flash animation, web memes, conceptual puzzles, original film and non-sequiturs galore.

A few weeks ago Stephen Colbert broke his wrist. Bid on the actual cast.

NYC comedy staple Variety Shac (featuring Heather Lawless, Chelsea Peretti, Andrea Rosen, and Shonali Bhowmik) is having a monster DVD release party on September 21st at the Knitting Factory. This evening of music, comedy, and shorts will have special guests including Zach Galifianakis, Fred Armisen, and Cory Arcangel. The show is on a Friday and tickets are only $8! Check out the sweet flyer.

Speaking of Fred Armisen.... Fred's been working on a new short video series called ThunderAnt with ex-Sleater-Kinney guitarist/vocalist Carrie Brownstein. A while back Fred and Carrie did a short called Boink! Look for the premiere of the newest video sometime soon on Stereogum.

Keep reading for more upcoming comedy shows, more news, tour dates, and just more stuff....

Continue reading "Klaus Kinski's Comedy Canon (08/24/07)"