The 2012 edition of Calgary, Alberta festival Sled Island is set to take place from June 20-23 at venues throughout the city. This year includes over 200 bands performing at 30 venues plus a large comedy schedule, film screenings, and art shows.

Sled Island 2012 will once again use outdoor venue Olympic Plaza as its main stage, featuring performances by Feist, The Hold Steady, Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, The Dudes, Shabazz Palaces, Parlovr, and others.

Acts including Russian Circles, Hot Snakes, The Antlers, Boris, Thurston Moore, Willis Earl Beal, Trust, Yamantaka // Sonic Titan, Terry Malts, Neil Hamburger, How To Dress Well, The Evaporators (aka Nardwuar's band), DJ Jonathan Toubin, Hannibal Buress, Andrew W.K., Tim Heidecker, Archers of Loaf, and many more will be performing at various bars and venues. Check out the full lineup at the bottom of this post.

Festival passes, individual tickets for some clubs shows, and tickets for the Olympic Plaza events only are all on sale. The full festival schedule iwill be announced in June.

Full lineup and 2012 festival trailer below...

Continue reading "Feist, Stephen Malkmus, The Hold Steady and lots more playing Calgary's Sled Island Festival (full line-up)"

photos by Chris Doss

DOWNLOAD: Dominique Young Unique - Show My Ass (MP3)

"Jelly pool party was historic/epic. DMC + Andrew WK + Les Savy Fav+Doug E Fresh : unforgettable. Gucci mane is the gertrude stein of hip hop" -erikhinton

Gucci Mane @ Williamsburg Waterfront Sunday

When they said "surprise" they meant it, though as rumored (and here), Gucci Mane was on the lineup of the final Jelly Pool Party on Sunday, August 29th, at Williamsburg Waterfront. Andrew WK hinted at his participation the night before, but for the most part, the lineup remained a rumor until the artists hit the stage. Featuring DJ sets by The Rub and Smalltown DJs, Sunday's Pool Party-that-almost-didn't-happen featured performances from DMC (of Run DMC), Andrew WK (and Cherie Lilly), Doug E Fresh, Doug's son's group, Big Freedia (and dancer), The Cool Kids, Tim Harrington (of Les Savy Fav), and Atlanta MC Gucci Mane in addition to the previously announced Dominique Young Unique and Delorean.

Unlike Run, Andrew WK and Tim Harrington helped DMC perform "It's Tricky" and "Walk this Way". Delorean, already headlining multiple nights at 600+ capacity venues in NYC, played 2nd on the bill after an opening set by Dominique Young Unique who was busting out of her top as she played songs like "Show My Ass" (download that song above).

Dominique Young Unique

But Dominique's outfit was nothing compared to the stage show of New Orleans's Big Freedia who brought "Ass Everywhere" to a NYC crowd for the third time in two days (Freedia also performed at PS1 on Saturday and at Coco66 later that night) (Dominique also played again later Sunday night at Brooklyn Bowl).

So was it the final pool party ever?

...Series' co-founder, Sarah Hooper, has said that she "hates" what the beloved Pool Parties have become: lame concerts with muted speakers, too many security guards and too much oversight from the state and its patron, Open Space Alliance. She even hinted that Jelly's current side-project, a six-show free series called "Rock Yard" on Wythe Avenue, could replace the Pool Parties (so named because they began at the McCarren Park pool).

Hooper didn't fork over any of the juicy details when she took the stage on Sunday to give a crammed park its final farewell.

"Thank you so much, we love being in Brooklyn," she said to a roaring crowd. "Don't ever let anybody tell you that you can't be yourself." -[Brooklyn Paper]

More pictures and some videos from the whole day, below...

Continue reading "Gucci Mane, Doug E Fresh, Dominique Young Unique & the Cool Kids played the final Pool Party too (pics) "