photos by Benjamin Lozovsky, words by Andrew Frisicano

no babies in sight this time..

Spain's Delorean played a packed, celebratory free set to a crowd of New Yorkers at the Stuy Town Oval on Wednesday (7/7), appropriately, the same day Spain advanced to the World Cup Finals. A vuvuzela sat on stage (and mercifully remained silent) (unlike at the recent Peelander-Z show). Pictures from that show are in this post.

Delorean continues their NYC stay with a DJ set tonight (7/8) at Littlefield with resident DJs Raspberry Jones and Treeboy.

After that, Delorean is playing a sold-out Bowery Ballroom show on Saturday, July 10th. And then they'll be back for the end-of-the-season Pool Party on August 29th (two headliners TBA).

Previously, Delorean kicked off PS1's Warm up series with Janka Nabay, Glasser and others. And Janka played with another Spaniard, El Guincho, at (Le) Poisson Rouge last night (7/7) - which was El Guincho's second show of the night (earlier he played the SummerStage).

Janka continues his own week of busy shows with a rooftop gig in Bushwick (details below) on Friday and a World Cup Finals party at Zebulon on Sunday with Baye Kouyate. Then he's back at Zebulon with Cafe Antarsia Ensemble on July 31st. If you've noticed, Janka has a new band, the Bubu Gang, which features members of Skeletons and Zs.

Another related Zebulon night, its monthly Cool Places Sound System dance party, put together by Tony from Zs/Bubu Gang and Dean from True Panther Sounds (Janka's label), is happening next on July 17th.

Janka Nabay's new video for his new song "Ah Mufan" (which you can buy here), his tour dates, and more pictures of Delorean at the Oval are below...

Continue reading "Delorean played Stuy Town (pics), Spain beat Germany, Janka Nabay played LPR w/ El Guincho (and is playing more dates)"

by Andrew Frisicano

Juana Molina in Stuvesant Town, NYC

Juana Molina played at the Stuy Town Oval on June 23rd (the first of two outdoor summer NYC shows for her). The free concert brought out an family-friendly crowd (lots of kids running around), which Juana treated to her looped, organic-sounding popscapes.

That other outdoor show she has is also free, part of the Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival, and happens on Wednesday, July 28th. She won't play a regular set however - it's a special collaborative evening with string quartet ETHEL.

By persistently exploding the parameters of what a string quartet can be, ETHEL challenges listeners as it bewitches them. This world premiere features the feisty four-piece in collaboration with tunesmiths who've proven just as captivating, whether trafficking in folkish blues (Dayna Kurtz), clever power pop (Fountains of Wayne songwriter Adam Schlesinger with Candy Butchers' Mike Viola), off-kilter post-punk guitar explorations (Tom Verlaine with Patrick Derivaz) or swirling sonic carpentry (Juana Molina). In these new collaborations, ETHEL invigorates each song with arrangements both plush and plucky.
[Lincoln Center]

Last week, Stuy Town featured Marc Ribot with his band Los Cubanos Postizos and sitting in with La Cumbiamba eNeYe (some excellent videos below), and continues with Delorean Wednesday, July 7th.

More Juana Molina pictures are below...

Continue reading "Juana Molina (& Marc Ribot) played Stuy Town (pics, videos, Delorean Wednesday), playing Lincoln Center & other dates"

words & photos by Benjamin Lozovsky

"What we bring is heritage," said a gracious Tony Allen Tuesday night at the Oval in Stuyvesant Town. "Thank you for tripping with us."

Quite a few attendees of the free concert, part of the Music on The Oval performance series and the first of three shows Allen is/was playing in the NYC area, had probably not experienced much or any of the heritage of which Allen spoke.

Fela Kuti's longtime drummer and according to Brian Eno, "perhaps the greatest drummer who has ever lived," played to a munchkin-filled audience that had about as many temper tantrums (but far less chair throwing) as the canceled Drake/Hanson Seaport show that nearly turned into a riot the day before. But age or cultural backgrounds didn't matter as the father of afro-beat percussion illuminated his contributions to the music and cultural landscape to a sea of dads and a new generation of eager ears.

Even as age 70, Allen was effortless in his drumming, launching into understated fills and precise syncopation all while singing lead. A self taught drummer steeped in both western and African percussion, his jazz influences were obvious, categorized by a technical ability and suaveness that has yet to be matched within the Afrobeat genre.

After playing another free show at Metrotech in Brooklyn today (happening as this is being posted), Allen brings his Afrobeat Orchestra to Le Poisson Rouge tonight for a slightly older crowd. Janka Nabay is also on the bill of the show that doesn't get started until 11:30pm (6/17). Tickets are still available.

More pictures from Stuy Town below...

Continue reading "Tony Allen played Stuy Town (pics), plays LPR late tonight"

Music on the Oval w/ Kaki King in '09 (more by Tim Griffin)

Music on the Oval, another free series of NYC shows, happens this summer every Wednesday night from June 16-July 21 at Stuyvesant Town Oval. The shows are at 7pm with a 6pm warm-up DJ set, and are located between 16th and 18th Sts and Avenues A & B (entrance off First Ave and 16th St).

Acts this year include Delorean (the poppy Barcelona dance band with lots of shows this summer), reggae band Easy Star All-Stars (who play every year), soul and funk from Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens and Tony Allen (both at Metrotech Commons/BAM Rhythm & Blues Fest afternoon series too), Juana Molina (who's also appearing at Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival, and downtown guitar fixture Marc Ribot with his band Los Cubanos Postizos (Marc plays the Stone Thursday, May 6th, with May's co-curator Henry Kaiser - one of the sets includes John Zorn).

The full Stuy Town schedule is below...

Continue reading "free shows in Stuy Town - Music on the Oval's 2010 schedule (includes Delorean, Marc Ribot & more) "

photos by Tim Griffin

Kaki King in Stuy Town

Hey everyone!

I set up this page as a forum for everyone to witness and provide (helpful) commentary on this art project I had in mind.

What I want to do is to meet twelve amazing artists, give them each a blank guitar, and let them go wild creating anything their heart desires. The theme of each piece would be the title of one of my songs, and my only artistic contribution would be to paint my fingers and 'play' the fretboard (wherever it ends up) as I would during the song so as to create a visual representation of where my hands travel.

Everyone tells me that my playing is best witnessed visually--so this is one interpretation of that statement. At the end of this project we're going to display all of the guitars in a gallery and throw a party with performances and perhaps the finalization of the last guitar.

Right now I'm extending an open call for artists to submit their websites/jpegs/etc. and ideas about how they could redesign/paint/burn/disembody/what have you a guitar. Those who have experience working with mixed media and found objects will probably do best with this. I will be honest--artists in the NYC area will be considered slightly more favorably due to the expense of shipping costs (and the fact that I like meeting people face to face), but I felt that it was unfair to limit the submissions to just my hometown.

If this is a project for you or anyone you know then please email kakiguitarart@gmail.com. Send any relevant links or materials, your basic bio, and if possible a song title that you'd be interested in. I will answer every single email personally and provide you with all of the relevant details that aren't already here.

For those non-visual artists, feel free to comment about the project, favorite song titles, and any other feedback you feel is relevant. I'll be updating this site and my own as the project progresses. And please, no haters. This is just supposed to be good creative fun.

Thanks for reading! Can't wait to see what y'all got!

love, kaki

That Facebook-based project will come to life on August 7th at the new venue Littlefield in Brooklyn. Last night (7/15), like Jay Reatard before her, Kaki King played a free NYC show in Stuy Town. More pictures from that show, and all tour dates below...

Continue reading "Kaki King played Stuy Town (pics), making guitar art (show)"

photos by Tim Griffin

Jay Reatard on at 7:15 over by 7:40 - Jim | July 1, 2009 8:30 PM

"Jay reatard shows are usually around 35 minutes played ramones 123 style. they sounded amazing and the scene was hilarious with all the kids... he even played "greed, money, useless children" and pointed to the playground during every chorus... pretty funny.

on my bike ride home cut thru prospect park, there was some wishy washy music, tons of 'hippies' and the sweeet smell of marijuana(right near all the cops). kinda reminded me of a Dead show parking lot. thanks to this post i now know that was MGMT. Next! [the truth | July 2, 2009 10:57 AM]

Catch Jay Reatard again, tonight (7/2) at Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn with TV Smith and Screaming Females. More pictures from yesterday's show in Stuyvesant Town, below...

Continue reading "Jay Reatard @ the Stuy Town Oval in NYC - pics "

T.V. Smith (born Tim Smith, 5 April 1956, in Romford, Essex, England) is a British punk rock singer songwriter, who was part of the band The Adverts in the late 1970s. Since then, he has played with other bands, as well as pursuing solo work. - Wikipedia

Thursday, June 25, 2009 - US Tour problems
I'm sorry to have to report that due to problems with US immigration I'm unable to come over for the tour with Jay Reatard due to start today. Despite having my visa approved, delays at the US embassy in London mean it couldn't be ratified in time. I've had quite a lot of feedback from people looking forward to seeing me, so I'm bitterly disappointed to miss the gigs in Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and my first ever Canadian gigs in Toronto and Montreal. I hope to come back soon and play for you. The good new is, the way things are looking I'll be seeing the embassy next week and hope to rejoin the tour in Brooklyn on the 2nd July. Keep your fingers crossed...!
Best wishes,
TV

---

Wednesday, July 01, 2009 - US Tour back on
....five hours to go before I need to leave for the airport for my re-booked flight to the USA, and my passport and approved visa are couriered back to me from the US embassy. Talk about a cliffhanger! So, the good news is I'm able to join the Jay Reatard tour from the Brooklyn date on July 2nd onwards. Hope to see some of you there!

Those messages are from TV Smith, who though cutting it close, is still scheduled to appear Thursday night (7/2) at Music Hall of Williamasburg with Jay Reatard and Screaming Females (tickets). From there he'll stay on the road with Jay though Saturday, July 11th when they play Proud Larry's in Oxford, MS (home of Fat Possum Records).

TV was supposed to play some earlier dates on Jay's tour, but those obviously didn't happen. And TV was scheduled to play Mercury Lounge tonight (7/1, no longer happening) while Jay plays his free show in Stuyvesant Town (still happening, though maybe in the rain?). All TV Smith dates and some videos below...

Continue reading "TV Smith had visa trouble, isn't playing Merc, but will tour w/ Jay Reatard (who plays Stuy Town TONIGHT)"

DOWNLOAD: Budos Band - The Proposition (MP3)

Daptone 11-piece Budos Band has an EP coming out in a couple of weeks, called, appropriately, The Budos Band EP. It's a collection of unreleased tracks from recorded between The Budos Band I and II sessions. It'll be out on vinyl and mp3 on June 23.

Grab one MP3 from it above. Catch the Budos Band live, tonight, June 10th, for free in Stuy Town. The show marks the start of Music on the Oval's 2009 season, and it's one of four upcoming shows for the Budos Band. All dates and the EP tracklist, below...

Continue reading "Stuy Town music series kicks off ++ new Budos Band (MP3)"

DOWNLOAD: Box Elders - Hole in My Head (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Jay Reatard - Always Wanting More (MP3)

As previously reported Jay Reatard's Shattered Records imprint is coming back into active duty. Among the imprint's planned releases are " six 7"s from artists hand-picked by Jay including "Jeffrey Novak (from Cheap Time), Nobunny, Hunx, Useless Eaters, Box Elders, Earthmen & Strangers, and legendary New Zealand lo-fi songwriter Chris Knox."

Nobunny happens to be in NYC for two shows starting TONIGHT (4/13)

Shattered Records also announced it will release "all 20 of Jay Reatard's albums" digitally, plus a new singles series and subscription club. The new site is offering new Reatard single "You're Gonna Lose" free to those who sign up for its mailing list. Full info below.

Jay Reatard is going on tour in June and July. That includes two NYC shows. The first, on Wednesday, July 1st, will take place in Stuyvesent Town! That one, billed as a "Stuytown Oval Concert", will presumably be free, outdoors, and have a mosh pit full of babies. The second will happen at Brooklyn's Music Hall of Williamsburg, one day later, on Thursday, July 2nd . Tickets for that go on sale Wednesday, April 12th at noon. TV Smith opens both NY dates.

Box Elders have two NYC dates scheduled - April 24th and 25th.

Jay will also play a show on Record Store Day (at Goner Records). On that day, April 18th, you will also be able to pick up his Record Store Day 7" split with Sonic Youth (being released by Matador).

Full Shattered Records press release, and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Jay Reatard - 2009 Tour Dates (STUY TOWN & MHOW), full Shattered Records announcement (includes Nobunny) "

Memorial Day Weekend Sunday in The Stuyvesant Town Oval (Marianne O'Leary)

Music on the Oval, a unique outdoor summer concert series, will bring the sweet sounds of samba, rock, funk, jazz, and reggae to Stuyvesant Town on Wednesday evenings beginning at 6:00 p.m. at the Stuyvesant Town Oval, between 16th and 18th Sts and Avenues A & B, Manhattan. Prior to the concerts, the crowd will enjoy an upbeat DJ set and free giveaways. During the pre-show, Verizon will host a "moto hero" competition where individuals can test out their 'air' guitar skills in a week-to-week musical challenge.

July 2 - DJ Pocketknife, High Places (TONIGHT)
July 9 - DJ Busquelo, Slavic Soul Party
July 16 - DJ Duane Harriott, Easy Star All-Stars

More events like this in our FREE NYC SHOW CALENDAR

High Places are also playing The Yard on July 12th and all the shows listed below...

Continue reading "free Stuyvesant Town shows, High Places tonight, tour dates"