photos by David Andrako, words by Klaus Kinski

And the winner of the Klaus Kinski Are You Out of Your Fucking Mind? Award goes to Anonymous October 1, 2011 2:53 PM. Congrats! Please enjoy the dramatic eye-roll and annoyed sigh care of yours truly. The reason I am being such a jerk, 2:53PM, is because I am the KING of thinking things are a waste of time. I am a wretch, I am difficult to please, I am fussy, my personal comfort is paramount, and I don't go a single day without saying "This is such a waste of time" at least 10 times by lunchtime. If I am not out of the house and doing something by 8:00pm on a Friday night, the chances of me having the strength to leave my house at 10:30pm to haul my half-asleep ass in the pouring rain to Gowanus for an 11:30pm show where there is no chance my lazy ass will get a seat is about as close to 0% as you can get. Did it suck standing in the rain at the back of a line that wrapped around and up 2nd Ave? Yes. Did it suck to be that far back before someone from the Bell House bothered to announce that we needed to get a hand-stamp inside the venue and then get back in line? Yes. Did it suck that after I got my stamp about 35 more people had gotten in line, pushing me even further back? Yes. Did it suck making my way through the packed front room while drunken revelers shook their booties to an 80s cover band tearing it up on stage? Yes. All that shit totally sucked. And it almost broke me. But, man, the second I had a Red Stripe in my guts and Louis took the stage and the room erupted, I knew all of that prior bullshit wasn't actually such a big deal.

I was able to catch Louis CK's 11:30pm show, the third of three shows performed on Friday September 30th, 2011 at The Bell House. Louis has three shows coming up at the Beacon Theater in NYC on November 10th (two shows) and November 12th. The Beacon Theater shows are part of the New York Comedy Festival and are being taped for a Comedy Central special. The purpose of these three Bell House shows was two fold; to workshop new material and to give Brooklyn three cheap Louis CK shows. He did warn everyone that he'd have his notebook out which he admits is completely rude and inappropriate to do to an audience (sorry Janeane Garofalo). He also started off by explaining that the weird onsale arrangements were an effort to circumvent a whole shitload of scalper nonsense. He also elaborated on the confusing and frustrating economics regarding scalping and how they relate to him. He tries to make all of his huge shows (ie, the Beacon Theater) cheaper than someone like Kathy Griffin or Jim Gaffigan. That way his fans get sort of a break. Unfortunately that means scalpers buy up a ton of tickets because they're a bit inexpensive from the get-go. But then nobody will pay what the scalpers are asking, but the scalpers don't care because they didn't take much of a hit in the first place and the tickets completely go to waste. He says that a sold out Louis CK show is actually a room full of empty seats. It's a very sad scenario.

The room was packed to the gills, but still comfortable to stand and watch in. Louis fan-base has gotten very bro-y, so there were many moments of macho-dude-shouts coming from the audience. Some guy actually agreed with Louis aloud so many times that he had to call the dude out and tell him to shut up. Since this show was comprised of new material drawn straight out of his notebook, it'd be stupid to discuss the specifics of the material. However, he did broach a subject that I always hoped he would; his childhood. A lot of CK's material is drawn from his experiences as a father, a husband, and an ex-husband. For him to come out with 25 solid minutes of his early life that went from the US, to Mexico, and back to the US was a profound look into where this mofo is coming from. It's incredible. Also since he didn't have a show to do after this one, he went on for quite awhile. Since I was double fisting beer (yeah bro!) all night, it was hard to look at my watch but I think the show went well past 1:00am. This is easily one of the funniest comedy shows I have seen in a while, which shouldn't be a stretch considering the guy is a pro, but still. Tickets for upcoming Beacon Theater shows are pretty scarce, but based on what I saw on Friday his new material is some of the best I've seen of his in years. Go. To. It.

More pictures from the late, late show, below...

Continue reading "Louis CK played 3 shows @ The Bell House (pics & review from the late, late show)"

Louis CK's two Bell House shows sold out very quickly this morning. Luckily, not only did he add a third that starts at 11pm tonight after the other two shows, it will be cash only at the box office. $10 each. 2 ticket limit. The bad news is you have to be at the box office between 4-5pm to get them! Get there! (if you can, I'm not sure how you can, but maybe you live near there and are off from work today or something).

(so many places to be at 4pm on a Friday!)

Louis CK @ the Bell House in 2010 (more by David Andrako)

Louis CK will play a 7:00 and 9:00 show at The Bell House in Brooklyn on Friday (9/30). Tickets (at the links) go on sale the same day at 10am.

Louis also has a show coming up at the Beacon in November.

photos by David Andrako

Jon Glaser as Bobby Tisdale

After kicking off on Thursday, the Eugene Mirman Festival (which ends tonight/Sunday) continued on Friday with two shows, "A Night Of Very Likeable Comedians" at Union Hall and "Invite Them Up" at The Bell House. The Union Hall show featured standup from Tom Allen, Tom Shillue, Kurt Braunohler, Seth Herzog, John Mulaney and Jane Borden. Kurt and John also headed over to The Bell House to perform alongside Eugene Mirman, Slovin and Allen, Janeane Garofalo and Jon Glaser, who filled in as/for Invite Them Up host Bobby Tisdale. A set of pictures from the show at The Bell House continues below...

Continue reading "Eugene Mirman Fest 2011 --- Day 2 @ The Bell House in pics (Jon Glaser as Bobby Tisdale, Janeane Garofalo, more)"

photos by David Andrako

The Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival is underway, and continues tonight (Friday, 9/16) at both Union Hall & the Bell House. Thursday night's show at the Bell House (the only Thursday night show there was) was a live taping of Neil deGrasse Tyson's radio show, Star Talk. Eugene Mirman was a guest as were Kristen Schaal and Scott Adsit. Neil's guest, unannounced, was Alan Alda. They recorded the show for future broadcast and had a lengthy Q&A after the taping (stay tuned). Here are some pictures. They continue below...

Continue reading "Eugene Mirman Fest 2011 --- Day 1 @ The Bell House in pics (Neil deGrasse Tyson and... Alan Alda!)"

photos by Greg Cristman, words by BBG

Thou @ The Bell House

As discussed, Wolves In The Throne Room played their first of two NYC dates with Thou on Monday night (9/12) at The Bell House. Pictures and video from the show are in this post, and the pair do it again TONIGHT (9/14) at Death By Audio with Mutilation Rites. Advance tickets are sold out, but additional tickets will be available at the door.

Krallice supported at The Bell House, and the band will play one of their final dates of the year at Union Pool on Saturday (9/17), when they join Urfaust/Black Anvil as part of a trio of dates.

URFAUST & BLACK ANVIL - 2011 TOUR DATES
9/16 @ Golden West in Baltimore w/ Krallice & Oak (!)
9/17 @ Union Pool in Brooklyn w/ Krallice & Ruin Lust
9/18 @ Kung Fu Necktie in Philadelphia w/ Endless Humiliation

The Urfaust show is one of two BrooklynVegan presented heavy shows taking place this weekend, with 40 Watt Sun hitting Public Assembly on 9/16 with the recently added Woe. In related news, 40 Watt Sun was added to Roadburn Fest 2012 with Agalloch and Sólstafir. The bands join the already confirmed appearances from d.USK (aka diSEMBOWELMENT), Voivod, Sleep, Saviours and Om.

More pictures and video from The Bell House below...

Continue reading "Wolves in the Throne Room, Thou & Krallice @ The Bell House (pics)"

Evacuate to the Bell House tonight (8/26) to catch a show by punk veterans Deniz Tek & Ivan Julian, but then stay away for the rest of the weekend because David Kilgour & Richard Buckner and the rest of Saturday & Sunday's shows at both the Bell House and Union Hall are all cancelled.

With our Ted Leo show cancelled too, there's now a lot less music to see in Park Slope this weekend.

photos by Chris La Putt

Detroit Cobras @ The Bell House

The Detroit Cobras played The Bell House on Friday (8/12) as part of their tour that hit Maxwell's a day earlier (8/11)....

""...Rachel, Mary and crew played a pretty fucking awesome set complete with two encores. During the second encore Rachel pulled a lucky audience member on stage to help her sing "Ya Ya Ya (Looking for My Baby)" it was so beyond!" [Whatever]

Continue reading "The Detroit Cobras played the Bell House (pics, video, setlist)"

"The Sonics? Wow!" - Anonymous | May 15, 2009 9:52 AM

Classic NYC garage rock label Norton Records will celebrate their 25th Anniversary over the course of four nights at The Bell House (Nov 10-13). The shows feature some pretty incredible artists, including most notably The Sonics, whose 1965 garage rock classic Here Are The Sonics is regarded by some as the first punk rock album. Norton Records reissued the album in 1999. The Sonics headline the last night (11/13) of the run. Tickets are on sale now for all four nights.

Tickets are also on sale for a daytime Sonics show happening November 12th at Maxwell's. You can hit this show and still not miss the show later that night at the Bell House. Sunday during the day is the Brooklyn Record Riot at Warsaw.

The Sonics need no introduction, but those not familiar should consider that Kurt Cobain said in a Nardwuar interview that "They got the most amazing drum sound I've ever heard. Still to this day, it's still my favorite drum sound. It sounds like he's hitting harder than anyone I've ever known." The White Stripes call them the "epitome of '60s punk," "harder than The Kinks," and say that "life becomes better after buying a Sonics record." Newer band Japandroids love them too, and say, "When you listen to it, even at low volumes, it sounds like it's blasting. And I like how you can feel they would melt your face if you saw them live." Don't sleep on catching them live. Last time they were in NYC was 2007. Who saw them at Warsaw? How was it? Check out videos from a December 2010 KEXP appearance below.

Fellow '60s garage rock vets ? and the Mysterians, best known for their 1966 single "96 Tears," headline the night before them. Other noteworthy bands include The Real Kids, led by John Felice of the The Modern Lovers, and The Randy Fuller Four. Randy Fuller was part of his brother's group The Bobby Fuller Four in the 1960s, who recorded the first successful version of the single "I Fought the Law," popularly covered by The Clash. Folllowing Bobby's untimely death in 1966 at age 23, Randy took over the group, which he renamed The Randy Fuller Four.

Reigning Sound, Mark Sultan (BBQ), The Condo Fucks, A-Bones, Flamin Groovies.... there are so many people on these bills, it's too much to list. Full lineup and some videos, below...

Continue reading "Norton Records anniversary shows happening at the Bell House, two Sonics shows too!"

photos by Ryan Barkan

DOWNLOAD: The Old 97s - Live at Cicero's, St. Louis, MO, 4-19-96 (zipped MP3s)

Old 97's @ BV-SXSW @ Barbarella

Old 97s "are proud to release The Grand Theatre Vol. 2, their ninth studio album, [July 5th] via New West Records. TGTV2 features 13 brand new songs and is once again produced by Salim Nourallah (The Grand Theatre Volume One and Blame It On Gravity.) Rolling Stone said:

"On their 2010 album, The Grand Theatre Vol. 1, the Old 97's per- formed new material live at a Dallas theater, then took the songs that went over best and recorded them in an Austin studio. Consisting of songs left over from Vol. 1, this second installment places Rhett Miller's articulate, off-the-cuff songs right between the composure of the control room and the looseness of the barroom. Miller savors lines like "He said, 'Can I buy a drink?'/What he meant was, 'Can I buy you?' " over his bandmates' proudly ordinary punky-tonk. But Miller is no roots reactionary: "Manhattan (I'm Done)" is the rare country dig at New York where it actually sounds like the singer gave the big city a fighting chance."

The band will kick off a new tour this Thursday (7/7), again returning to NYC, but maybe they are done with Manhattan. The Old 97's will instead play The Bell House in Brooklyn on July 13 and 14 . Tickets are on sale for both dates (7/13, 7/14).

Most July dates, including the Brooklyn shows, will be opened by Robert Ellis who released a new album this week too.

One of the few sets The Old 97's played during SXSW 2011 was (a great one at) the BrooklynVegan/Partisan/KF Records day party that Deer Tick, Middle Brother, Jonny Corndawg, Jason Isbell and many others also played. A belated set of pictures from the Austin show is in this post.

More of those pics, with videos from Webster Hall, the setlist to the 1996 live set you can download above, and all tour dates below...

Continue reading "Old 97's released their 9th studio album, heading out on tour -- 2011 dates & belated SXSW pics too"

PFT @ 92YTribeca in 2009 (more by Chris La Putt)

Marc Maron hosts and curates WTF with Marc Maron at The Bell House tonight (6/1). An early show starts at 7 PM with Jonathan Katz, Will Arnett, Judy Gold, Marina Franklin, and Keith Robinson. The late show starts at 9 PM with Wyatt Cenac, Sam Lipsyte, Tom Scharpling, Horatio Sanz, and Kevin Allison. Both shows are sold out.

You can still get tickets however for the two Paul F. Tompkins shows happening at the same venue on October 22 and 23. Both nights will have completely different sets, and be recorded for a new comedy album. To quote Paul, "Be there, and be a part of history!*

* Once the show is over, it will be in the past and considered, technically, history."

Meanwhile catch Paul every month at the Largo in LA.

Christie Front Drive was an American Emo/Indie band formed in Denver in 1993. Citing influences such as Superchunk, Jawbox, Buffalo Tom and Drive Like Jehu, the lineup consisted of Ron Marschall (drums), Jason Begin (guitar), Kerry McDonald (bass) and Eric Richter (guitar and vocals)...

Despite their short tenure [1993-1997], Christie Front Drive became a major influence on emo music in the 90's. Richter resurfaced in the bands Antarctica, The 101, and Golden City, and both Marschall and Begin went on to form The Blue Ontario. Marschall was also credited as an engineer on the The Apples in Stereo's album, The Discovery of a World Inside the Moone. Jason Begin is currently performing under the name This Body as well as the Portland based band Pireate Radio Deluxe and the random appearance with Modernstate. Bassist Kerry McDonald would go on to form The Mighty Rime, who released a self-titled record on Caulfield Records in 2002. -[Wiki]

Continue reading "Christie Front Drive reuniting, reissuing stuff (tickets on presale now for a Brooklyn show)"

photos by Kellyann Petry, Feelies review by Andrew Sacher

The Feelies @ Purchase

Without any openers on the bill (they reportedly will play two sets with a break in the middle), The Feelies sold out their show happening at the Bell House in Brooklyn tonight (5/13). That's a good sign since next time they hit Brooklyn, they'll be tasked with headlining Celebrate Brooklyn's massive space in Prospect Park. Of course it helps that they'll be supported at that July 23rd show by both Real Estate (who also have some May shows coming up) and Times New Viking, and that it's FREE.

The Feelies, touring in support of their new album of all new material, Here Before, will also play shows in MA, PA and DC over the next few days, AND they will return to their favorite venue (my assumption) Maxwell's in Hoboken on July 1st and July 2nd. Tickets are now on sale for both (at the links). Last year they also played a show there on the 4th.

Back in April The Feelies co-headlined SUNY Purchase's annual Culture Shock Fest (that Real Estate also played), and Andrew Sacher reports:

As typical as it is to talk about 'saving the best for last,' that's exactly what happened at Culture Shock 2011. Twenty minutes before the entire festival was supposed to end, post-punk legends The Feelies launched into the first song off their hour and a half long set. Their immediately dancey songs sent the frenzied audience stage diving and moshing like nothing that has ever been seen at a Feelies show. They played a large range of material, including tracks off the immortal 1980 debut Crazy Rhythms as well the newly released Here Before, and everything in between. A few shouts were heard in between songs for "Fa Ce-La," and although The Feelies consistently responded to the shouts with a different song, there wasn't a second in their set to complain about. After just over an hour of jangly masterpieces, The Feelies left the stage. Although an encore has become something you can almost always expect from a headlining band, this was one of those situations where even if The Feelies didn't plan on coming back, they couldn't have deserved it more. They did of course return, and roused the crowd with three more songs, culminating in the immensely anticipated "Fa Ce-La." Despite the expectations that come along with an encore, The Feelies still found a way to surprise us even more when they came back out for a second one.

Continue reading "The Feelies played Culture Shock (pics), kicking off short tour, add Maxwell's show & a big free one in Brooklyn (dates)"

Chris Thile on stage with Punch Brothers (more by Winnie Cheung)

Tickets are still available (back on sale) for tonight's Chris Thile/Michael Daves show at Rockwood Music Hall, day three of their three day stint at the venue in celebration of their debut duo record Sleep with One Eye Open. Out now via Nonesuch Records, it was "recorded live to tape over four days at Jack White's Third Man studio in Nashville, is a collection of 16 traditional tunes by bluegrass legends like The Monroe Brothers, The Louvin Brothers, Jimmy Martin, and Flatt & Scruggs." You can watch and listen to them discuss the record in one of the videos below. The others are them performing songs from it.

If you miss these shows, don't fear. Chris Thile will team with Michael Daves for another NYC show at The Bell House on July 20th. Tickets are on sale now. That's one new date added to the always-expanding intinerary of Chris Thile whose Punch Brothers project was also just announced on the lineup of this summer's free Celebrate Brooklyn concert series. They play June 30th with Justin Townes Earle and The Hackensaw Boys.

P.S. if you're going to Rockwood tonight, consider making it a double header, as Ben Sollee plays a show at the venue tonight too, his first of two nights in a row. Tickets are still available for that too.

All dates and videos below...

Continue reading "Chris Thile & Michael Daves released an LP, ending 3-night run @ Rockwood, add Brooklyn shows (dates)"

On one of the sunniest day of the year so far, Hobokenites came out in droves to eat, see local art and hear live music at the Hoboken Arts and Music Festival on Sunday afternoon...

The Baseball Project... proceeded to rip a hole through the afternoon with the sheer power of their rocking and songwriting prowess. Highlights (and there were many) included Wynn's ode to Detroit Tiger's pitcher Mark Fidrych entitled '1976', McCaughey's wordtastic 'Panda and The Freak,' and the ridiculously talented rhythm section of Buck and Pitmon.

Craig Finn (of the Hold Steady) made a truly electric guest appearance on a tune for which he penned the lyrics called, 'Please Don't Call Them Twinkies.'" He was entirely captivating and having never heard/seen him sing live before, I think I fully understand now why his band is so popular. -[Patch]

And with those triumphant dates in their rearview, The Baseball Project has announced their return to NYC with a date at City Winery on June 5th. Tickets are on sale. The NYC date is part of a larger string of mostly Northeastern dates that will also include a stop in Baseball Hall of Fame home Cooperstown on June 3rd (they play a brewery there).

All of this touring is in support of their second album, Volume Two: High and Inside, which was released March 1 on Yep Roc and includes guest appearances from Craig Finn, Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie, Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan, and Chris Funk and John Moen of The Decemberists.

All tour dates, a video of the band on "Extra" (where they play "Fair Weather Fan" and talk about being accepted by the baseball community), and the above-mentioned videos, below....

Continue reading "The Baseball Project played Hoboken & Brooklyn w/ Craig Finn (and Drew's House too), announce more dates (City Winery)"

photos by Winnie Cheung

YLT @ the Bell House - 5/10/11

"For their current U.S. tour, the band has embraced the indie-rock equivalent of "Wheel of Fortune," a large wheel divided into several categories, including songs beginning with the letter S or an entire instrumental film score written by the band. A spin by a guest lands on an imperative that sets the performance for the first set.

That wheel [was] with them Tuesday when they [began] a sold-out, two-night stint at the Bell House in Brooklyn.

"The less information we give people about what's going to happen, the better," Kaplan, now 54 years old, said in a recent interview.

The concept revitalizes Yo La Tengo's back catalog by stepping outside the common practices fueling the music industry's nostalgia boom. But it's also a lot of work.

"It calls upon us to be familiar with a lot of songs that, until we did it, we weren't familiar with at all," Kaplan said. "A couple of songs we'd never played [live] before -- some songs we'd never played in years."

For Kaplan, the notion of touring behind one of the group's classic albums holds little interest. "That was one of the things," he said. "Do we put records on [the wheel]? But we didn't want to."

The second set features songs of the band's choosing, a safeguard for the crowd should the wheel stop at one of the more esoteric options, such as "Sitcom Theater," which requires the members of Yo La Tango to act out an episode of a sitcom of their choosing." [WSJ]

The next Bell House show goes down this evening (5/11), with The Baxx Sisis opening. More pictures from last night's show which was opened by Antietam, and more tour dates too, below...

Continue reading "Yo La Tengo spun the wheel @ the Bell House w/ Antietam (pics), do it again tonight w/ The Baxx Sisis (dates)"

setlist photo courtesy of Mark Cyst

Seaweed played their first NYC show in over a decade at the Bell House in Brooklyn on Friday, April 22, 2011. One fan wrote,

"...Needless to say the show was one for the ages. Honestly there was not a sad face in the entire crowd. Complete strangers became best friends while packed in front of the stage like sardines..."

Continue reading "Seaweed reunited, played the Bell House (setlist & video)"

Ra Ra Riot @ MHOW in 2010 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Speaking of Japan benefits, The Bell House has two special ones scheduled....

Continue reading "Ra Ra Riot, Wyatt Cenac, Tim Harrington, Todd Barry & many, many more playing Japan benefits @ the Bell House "

review & photos by Chris Gersbeck

Mission of Burma @ Maxwell's

I don't think I've missed more than a couple of New York City area Mission of Burma shows since I accidentally caught them at the Stillwell Stage at Siren Fest in '04. At that point in the band's history, they were still a somewhat recently reunited group, but clearly devoted to something more than just a few reunion performances. This was a group that was not so much reunited as they were picking up where they left off in 1983, anxious to write and record groundbreaking music yet again. Seven years and three (fantastic) full-length albums later, Mission of Burma have even further embedded their place in music history, a sort of indie music myth for our times.

So it goes without saying that these two shows, at Maxwell's on 1/28 and Bell House on 1/29 (both of which sold out) were met with excitement from the most devoted of Burma's fans. The band has become known for hand picking their opening acts, and in the case of these shows, they did an excellent job with both. New York City's Grandfather (not to be confused with Grandchildren) opened the Maxwell's show on Friday, a threesome with clear inspiration from Mission of Burma's unique timing and song structure. Their songs were dark, but meticulously written, with a heavy emphasis on rhythm. Grandfather's drummer, a highly energetic and precise musician, took on lead vocal duties as their guitarist and bassist flung themselves around on stage throughout their set. In hindsight, it made perfect sense when their guitarist told me before the show that Bob Weston and Steve Albini were behind their debut record. Check this band out (their next show is at Party Expo in Brooklyn 2/7/11).

Though I missed most of Buke & Gass's set at the Bell House on Saturday due to problems at the door, what I heard was great. A male-female duo from Brooklyn, both played seated, the percussion coming from a single kick drum stuffed with tambourines and a set of bells wrapped around the guitarist's ankle. Though highly melodic in contrast to Grandfather's set, you could tell why MoB tapped them to open, and they definitely had their share of fans in the crowd. Their next show is opening for Deerhoof at Europa, and then for Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson at the Stone.

Due to MoB's practice of choosing their setlists by committee just before hitting the stage meant getting two completely different sets between the two nights. The intimate (yet utterly explosive) Maxwell's performance initially consisted of later period Burma songs, opening with the Obliterati's "Donna Sumeria" and eventually hitting the Sound, the Speed, the Light's "1, 2, 3 Party!" and ONoffON's "the Setup". Smattered among the set was a slew of new material too, which is shaping to be yet another great set of songs from the band.

But their encore at Maxwell's is what made the crowd just completely lose themselves. As soon as Roger Miller began strumming the opening chords of "This Is Not A Photograph", the entire front of the stage became a group of pogo-ing lunatics. I don't think I've ever seen crowd surfing at a Burma show, and if you know the small space at Maxwell's you know there isn't much room to surf, but as soon as Clint Conley said, "That's How I Escaped My Certain Fate" a rather enthusiastic fan catapulted from the stage into the crowd and somehow remained elevated for much longer than gravity should have allowed. Following with B-side "Max Ernst" and closing with the anthemic "Academy Fight Song" left everyone wanting more; in fact most people refused to leave until the house lights came on.

Luckily another Burma performance was just around the corner. Their set at the Bell House on Saturday was filled with just as much energy as the night before, but relied more heavily on material from their 1981 EP Signals, Calls & Marches and their only proper full length before their breakup, Vs. Pete Prescott's shouts from behind the drumkit sounded just as aggressive as ever, while Clint Conley's overdriven bass made older songs like "Mica" and "Fame & Fortune" sound even more furious than their studio counterparts. As much as I believe "underrated" describes Mission of Burma on a number of levels, one of the greatest aspects of MoB that goes unnoticed may be Roger Miller's unique slide guitar technique, particularly when soloing on songs like "Spider's Web". Bob Weston on tape loops provided those iconic swirls of noise during and between songs, reminding you that the band's fourth member is just as important to the Burma sound as any of the members on stage. And how great is it that when they launched into their most well known song, "That's When I Reach For My Revolver" during the first encore, I hadn't even considered that it wasn't played in the set yet, or at all the night before. Overwhelming response demanded a second encore, which consisted of the opening track from Vs., "Secrets", and again ending with "Academy Fight Song". Something tells me that if Roger Miller hadn't jokingly said, "Thanks, please go home, now," the crowd would have stuck around for even more.

--

For more Roger, check out Chris's recent interview and check out Alloy Orchestra in NYC on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. For more Bob, don't miss Shellac at ATP's I'll Be Your Mirror in Asbury Park. For more Mission of Burma, check out NYC Taper's recording of the Brooklyn show, and the rest of our pictures from both NYC-area shows with setlists, below...

Continue reading "Mission of Burma played Maxwell's w/ Grandfather, and the Bell House w/ Buke & Gass (pics, setlists & a live recording)"

photos by Jason House

If physical contact with the audience was on your agenda as a show goer, you just had to hold on till O'Death took the stage. Very early on in the set the mosh pit began. As mosh pits often do, it grew. No one was hurt, it was all in good fun. It was hot and smelly. Some band members started to disrobe. Shirts flew off and the energy fueled an encore. -[musicmattersman]

For The Goddamn Rattlesnake, The Bell House doubled as a record release party. J. Rattlesnake released the new LP via Bandcamp at the start of the year. Stream the LP in full. More pictures from The Bell House are below.

Continue reading "O'Death, Tim Fite & the Goddamn Rattlesnake played the Bell House (pics)"

Come at TT Bear's in September 2010 (photo by lumpBoston)

Come eased into the gleaming gun-metal-colored chords of "Submerge,'' from the band's '92 bracing full-length debut, "Eleven: Eleven,'' and we were off.

They played all of that album, in fact, starting with the dank, slide guitar-soaked "Off to One Side'' and ending with an IV-drip slow, charred cover of the Stones' "I Got the Blues'' for the encore. In between were scarred expositions ("Sad Eyes''), blistering burns ("Dead Molly''), and always, the intuitively interlocking interplay between Zedek and Brokaw. If there was any rust on bassist Sean O'Brien and drummer Arthur Johnson, it had been quickly scraped off by the gashes of guitar and the churning roil of a sound that, for one night at least, transcended decades and discographies. -[Boston]

Come's Chris Brokaw was one of the special guests scheduled to play with Jennifer O'Connor at the Rock Shop last night (1/11). If you braved the snow to see that, how was it?

Some video from Come's recent reunion appearances are below.

Continue reading "Come are playing a NYC reunion show w/ Eleventh Dream Day"

words & photos by Benjamin Lozovsky

Conor Oberst and crew might have co-opted the Monsters of Folk moniker, but they've only grown to their current size by standing on the shoulders of even larger mythical beings. Two more likely candidates for that title, Bert Jansch and Neil Young, graced the Bell House Wednesday night. The two didn't perform together, but the long-standing connection between the six-string English Scottish troubadour and the American Canadian highwayman was noticeably present through their music.

Young made the surprise guest appearance as part of his wife Pegi's backing band, the opening act, and kept to the shadows most of the night. Bathed in dark crimson light, he filled in his wife's rollicking, twangy sound with subdued yet accented guitar licks, that unmistakable gritty rhythm style, and on one occasion harmonica. Even in just a supporting role, his focus was impenetrable. When Neil Young raises his guitar neck and dons that irascible stare, it commands attention like a force of nature. Pegi finished off her set with a version of Neil outtake "Doghouse," graciously letting her man share the spotlight as he sang backup and finally splayed out a solo.

But the highlight of the show was Jansch; his complex acoustic ruminations sprang to life like a Celtic fable, and his vocals, softer with age, tranquilly voiced stories that were equally anguished and joyous. For the most part Jansch's newer work blended seamlessly with his old material as one singular vision. The wistful classic "Rosemary Lane" from his eponymous 1971 album never felt out of touch with more recent songs like "My Donald," from 2001's Crimson Moon. That song was about his departed friend, the "hardest man in Scotland" who was both a failed lumberjack and a real whaler. As he told the stories behind his numbers in between songs, he sounded like Michael Caine with a guitar; understated, satirical, and spotlessly adorable. One song he wrote after a series of gigs with maligned rock star Pete Doherty. With deadpan wit, he noted, "I don't think he's allowed in your country."

Bert and Pegi finish their rescueduled tour together Friday night in Pittsburgh, and then Bert returns for two shows at Iridium Jazz on Monday night.

More pictures from the Bell House show below...

Continue reading "Neil Young played the Bell House w/ Pegi Young & headliner Bert Jansch (pics) "

words by Rachel Kowal, photo by Cienna Wills

Ornate blue and white paper snowflakes dangled from the ceiling of the Bell House on Saturday night (12/11), announcing the unofficial onset of winter and appropriately setting the stage for the sparse, introspective music of Atlas Sound. Following Lyonnais' early performance (which I inadvertently missed), Bradford Cox walked on stage alone and began with a bit of an awkward intro. "How you doing? Can you guys hear this?" He took a seat on the stool. "Oh, it's soft," he admitted with surprise. He hadn't even begun to play, but he already held the audience's full attention. With a harmonica strapped around his neck and a guitar in his lap, Cox kicked off his show with a string of newer songs, beginning with the excellent "Terrarium."

After a few songs, Cox addressed the crowd, his voice comically laden with reverb. "It's great to be here," he began. "I figure [he reached to turn off the effect] I figure I came here in the winter last time and played and had such a good time. Why not repeat the experience? I really like this place a lot. The people are awesome, and I really like the sound. And I think I'm going to come here every year. In the wintertime.... like a Christmas tradition... or Hanukkah tradition...or Kwanzaa - whatever it is you choose. A holiday tradition. What do you think?" The crowd cheered enthusiastically in response.

Though Cox played a few songs from his studio recordings (like "Shelia" and a toned down version of "Walkabout"), much of his set contained songs he self-released on his website in recent weeks. "I hope some of you have heard these," Cox announced mid set. "I got off tour with Deerhunter, and I went home and didn't have anything to do. I started feeling pretty wild. Like cabin fever, you know? I watched two seasons of Law and Order: Criminal Intent in like 52 hours, and I wasn't returning phone calls. It was dark. So I got out my little recording machine and made some recordings and then I decided to play them."

As per usual, the lyrics in Cox's new repertoire were often on the bleak side, making them well-suited for the winter show format. But to counteract the foreboding sense of gloom that pervaded his lyrics, Cox warmly interacted with the cordial, sold-out audience throughout the evening.

After capping off his set with a few longer, more meandering songs, Cox thanked the crowd and announced that there was another event scheduled, so he had to wrap up his set. As he walked off stage, the lights to the venue came back on, but it wasn't enough to deter the crowd from cheering for an encore. Cox soon returned with a big grin plastered on his face.

"I'll remember this. That was a nice feeling. I really didn't think I'd have time, then they told me to come back." He fumbled around for a moment, trying to figure out what to play. "Would anyone be mad if I played 'The Screens'? You guys are actually making me nervous. You're so nice." "You're nicer!" came a gruff male voice in response. Cox began to play the harmonica, then stopped abruptly to shake the spit from it. "Let's see if I can't fuck this up."

Despite his low estimation of his talent (or perhaps because of it?), his brief encore was the perfect end to the evening, and I eagerly await next year's winter show, as promised.

Atlas Sound also played Maxwell's in Hoboken one night earlier. The approximate setlist from The Bell House and a video from the show, below...

Continue reading "Bradford Cox (Atlas Sound) played his (annual?) show @ The Bell House (and one at Maxwell's)"

words & photos by David Andrako

Daniel Kitson / Jim Gaffigan

The 2nd night of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival (read about the first here) featured two shows: "Montreal Callbacks" and a super sized "Invite Them Up."

The first show of the evening was held at Union Hall and was billed as "Montreal Callbacks" - a reference to the Montreal Comedy Festival. Kurt Braunohler began the show with a brief set before he assumed the role of host for the evening. The night featured young stand-ups many of whom can be found performing weekly at clubs in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Mike Lawrence, Greg Johnson, Max Silvestri, Andrea Rosen, Ken Reid, Dan St. Germain and Hannibal Buress.

Highlights of the show included Ken Reid's set, which featured stories of his "white trash" childhood growing up in Massachusetts, Dan St. Germain's self depreciating tales of living in Brooklyn and Andrea Rosen recounting awkward encounters with celebrities and long lost friends. I caught the first few minutes of always great Hannibal Buress's set before heading off to The Bell House for the second show of the night.

Invite Them Up, the much beloved weekly comedy show that Eugene was involved with from 2005-2008 returned for a sold out performance at The Bell House. The show was again hosted by Bobby Tisdale, and featured performances by ITU co-host (and the host of the night) Eugene Mirman, A.D. Miles, , Maeve Higgins, Morgan Murphy, Reggie Watts, Daniel Kitson and special guest, Jim Gaffigan.

Jim Gaffigan, who headlines SIX shows at the Best Buy (formerly Nokia) Theater in December, was greeted with some of the loudest cheers of the evening and the fact that the comics from the earlier show had made their way down to The Bell House to watch his set from the back of the room speaks to his status as a massively respected comedian. His unannounced appearance strengthened an already packed show.

Daniel Kitson, the British stand-up and storyteller, ended the show with an hour long set that featured some impressive crowd work and allowed him to display his razor sharp commentary and lightning fast wit. After admitting that he "didn't have the professionalism to be a middle act," Kitson launched into quizzing audience members on their names and occupations only to later weave them all together in a freestyle rant comparing audience members to each other. In addition to his biting commentary, he wasn't afraid to display his vulnerability explaining that, "I'm quite lonely and I live alone. This is my chance to chat." He also addressed his stutter, which was apparent during his performance. At the age of 33, his stand-up act is impressive and made even more impressive by the fact that Kitson has turned down most television work in the US and Britain. He has performed both story shows and stand-up at the past eleven Edinburgh Fringe Festivals.

The 2010 Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival concludes Sunday night. Read about Thursday night HERE. More pictures from Friday below...

Continue reading "Jim Gaffigan showed up & Daniel Kitson was there at night 2 of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest (pics & review) "

words & photos by David Andrako

"I will erase all of the fun that you've had tonight. You didn't pay to see me. I should do 40 minutes of broken jokes." Surprise headliner Louis CK

The first night of the 3rd Annual Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival was billed as "An Evening of Comedy from 1986" and featured sets from Emo Phillips, Tony V, Larry Murphy, Ron Lynch and Jon Glaser. As mentioned above, Louis CK was the unannounced headliner and he worked out some new material in a 45 minute plus set. Eugene Mirman acted as emcee, dj and Teddy Ruxpin operator.

During the 10 minute walk from my apartment to The Bell House I surveyed the damage caused by the fast moving storms that tore through Brooklyn and Queens several hours before the show began. Downed trees, crushed cars and closed streets were rampant as residents were returning home to a neighborhood that was affected by one of the most powerful storms in recent history.

Eugene Mirman kicked off the evening with a 3D film that he made, offered the audience duck (which he'd ordered from a local Chinese restaurant) and directed everyone towards the merch tables which featured everything from festival posters to personal items that Eugene brought from his apartment and had priced "a little high, so that no one would buy them." Tony V, a Boston comedian whom Eugene admired as a young comedian, followed with a tight set that set the mood for the evening. Larry Murphy, another Boston comedian best know for his work on Adult Swim's "Delocated" and "Assy Mcgee", performed as "Sandy Gorbin" the world's greatest impressionist.

Ron Lynch, yet another Boston comic and one who was a working comedian in 1986 turned in a varied set that featured jokes from his 1986 set, slight of hand magic and the playing of Louis CK's 1986 audition tape that Louie recorded in an attempt to be booked at Ron's comedy club. Louie interrupted Ron's set and chastised him for playing the tape and retreated backstage. Dr. Attitude aka Jon Glaser (aka the creator of Delocated) appeared on stage in doctor's scrubs with FUCK YOU spelled out in electrical tape and Van Halen's "Panama" as his intro song. Glaser's attitude heavy set ended with him mocking the audience and interrupting Eugene as he introduced Emo Phillips, the much beloved comedian. Emo, making his first appearance at the festival, was a ball of manic energy that worked his way through topics including religion, greeting cards and marriage. His 20-minute set was punctuated by biting social commentary mixed in with clever wordplay and a stage presence that could best be described as elastic.

Louis CK, one of the most respected working stand-ups today, closed the show with a set of new material that was both familiar and fresh. Unafraid to attack the audience Louie pointed out that "You all hate everything real. You're a bunch of meta motherfuckers" as he worked through material as varied as the origins of the Roman calendar and back to school clothes shopping with his daughters.

The Festival continues through Sunday, the 19th with 8 additional shows at The Bell House, The Rock Shop and Union Hall. Some shows are sold out, but others still have limited tickets available.

More pictures from last night, below...

Continue reading "Louis CK showed up & it was 1986 again at night 1 of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest (pics & review ) "