photos by David Andrako

Mikal Cronin / Shannon & the Clams @ Silver Dollar Room 6/14/2013

But the afternoon, and perhaps NXNE as a whole belonged to recent Merge Records signing Mikal Cronin. This was his third of four shows at the fest and while he appeared rushed due to time constraints, Cronin sounded exactly as you'd hope he would: poppy but scrappy, daring but focused and completely engaging.

Later that evening, the Silver Dollar Room swelled in anticipation of Shannon and the Clams, the Oakland act that's often difficult to label, but impossible not to enjoy wholeheartedly. Shannon Shaw displayed effortless grace and a somewhat seductive snarl throughout their buoyant set, which eventually had the floor of the Silver Dollar Room shaking in total agreement with their pungent garage pop ditties. Shannon and the Clams have been garnering acclaim for their recent Hardly Art full-length Dreams in the Rat House, and they're very well deserved. - [Popmatters]

After spending Thursday night (6/13) of Toronto fest NXNE seeing Nu Sensae, Merchandise, and more and then on Friday hitting The National in Yonge-Dundas Square and the M for Montreal showcase at Sneaky Dee's on Friday (6/14), we spent our Saturday (6/15) of NXNE at the Silver Dollar Room to catch Mikal Cronin whose new record on Merge, MCII, is one of the best guitar pop albums of the year. Also on the bill were tourmates Shannon & the Clams whose new album on Hardly Art is album pretty fun. The show was great and as you can see from the pictures in this post, a pretty wild time. Toronto's Chico No Face were on the bill too.

Unfortunately, this show is going to be one the final shows at the Silver Dollar Room, because the venue will soon be demolished to build more student buildings in Toronto.

Mikal Cronin and Shannon & the Clams' tour hits NYC later this week for a sold-out show at Bowery Ballroom on Thursday (6/20) with Roomrunner (who also have a show with Speedy Ortiz and California X soon).

Shannon & the Clams, meanhile, have another show while here, playing Death by Audio on Wednesday (6/19) with Hector's Pets, Las Rosas, and The Foxx. $10 at the door. Mikal will be back next month MoMA Nights on July 18.

Updated Shannon & the Clams dates are listed, along with pictures from NXNE, below...

Continue reading "Mikal Cronin and Shannon & the Clams played NXNE (pics); NYC show is this week; Shannon playing DbA first"

Bushwick Open Studios happens this weekend (May 31 - June 2) and is "a three day arts and culture festival that celebrates the community's vibrant arts scene with the goal of fostering dialogue and collaboration between local artists and residents." You can wander around the Brooklyn neighborhood and check out local artists' works where they made it. It's free and open to the public. Full artist listings are here.

There is also lots of music going on with BOS as well, which begins with an Official Launch Party at Shea Stadium on Friday (5/31) with Darlings, LODRO, Air Waves, and EULA. Tickets are $10 at the door and includes a Brooklyn Brewery open bar from 8 - 9 PM. More info at the facebook event.

There is also the BOS Music Festival which happens Saturday (6/1) at Don Pedro with The Othermen, Twin Guns and more; and Sunday (6/2) at Lone Wolf with Ken South Rock, Sorceress and more. Full line-ups are below and more info on the event flyer, which is also pictured below.

There's still more. The BOS '13 Electronic Music Showcase happens Saturday night at the Bossa Nova Civics Club with Octo Octa, Datalog, Tomeeo, Nanohumans, and Stephane Bonefant. More info at the facebook event.

On Sunday at Brooklyn Fire Proof East is "Moving On," a "fringe concert series" hosted by composer and performer Ian M. Colletti, (Vaudeville/ Vaudeville Park) and includes performances from Sam Mickens, Yeah Yeah Yeahs' drummer Brian Chase, Deerhoof's Greg Saunier, Dysrythmia's Kevin Hufnagel, Au Revoir Simone's Erika Spring, Sophia Knapp, and lots more. Line-up for that is below and more info at the facebook event.

Line-ups for BOS Music Festival and "Moving On" and that flyer below...

Continue reading "Bushwick Open Studios happens this weekend: music includes Greg Saunier, LODRO, Erika Spring, YYY's Brian Chase & more "

photos by Devan Council

Natural Child at Death by Audio - 6/16/12

Nashville rockers Natural Child were just in the NYC area to open for King Tuff at Maxwell's last Thursday (6/14), and while they were here, they stuck around for a Brooklyn show at Death by Audio on Saturday (6/16) with The Foxx, Liquor Store, and Philly's The Tough Shits. More pictures from that show are below.

Continue reading "Natural Child, The Foxx, Liquor Store & The Tough Shits played Death by Audio (pics)"

words by Andrew Frisicano, photos by Chris La Putt

Hunx & friend @ Cake Shop, 4/20/2011

Davila 666 might have been the headliner, but it was Hunx's show Wednesday night at Cake Shop. Their set had the biggest, most amped-up crowd in the sweaty space, with plenty of dancing and shoving around. It started out with a bit of coy deception: a shirtless, fake Hunx (pencil thin mustache, biker hat and mop of black hair) in leopard print tights took the stage first, before introducing the real thing: Seth Bogart, wearing a similar costume--pink leggings and a biker jacket. Despite touring on Too Young To Be in Love, it was the songs from 2010's Gay Singles that were the real party-starters: "Good Kisser," "You Don't Like Rock & Roll" and others. It seemed like lead backup singer Shannon did some damage to her voice in the time since SXSW. During the opening Shannon and the Clams set, the pipes were stressed just enough, fuzzing through the Cake Shop's feeble speakers with a bit of grime, but during Hunx's set that turned into croaky warble. Not that Hunx's music really requires pin-point precision, but it seemed like she could use a bit of rest.

All of this isn't to say that Davila 666 was a let-down: the guys are pros at the beer-fueled throw-down. They tone it down a bit, and get into a whole range of weirder garage sounds, on their excellent new Tan Bajo, which is worth a listen.

I also caught a few songs by The Foxx, the glammy, power-pop project fronted by the Rondelles' Juliet Swango. It's not exactly a new group, but it seems like they've been making a push to play more shows lately (and Wikipedia says they're at work on an album). I've been enjoying the clips on their Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/thefoxx), so hopefully more are on the way.

The Hunx/Shannon tour continues and hits Glasslands on April 23rd. Davila 666 play Knitting Factory that same night. Pictures from Davila's Cake Shop set are HERE. Pictures from the rest of the show are below...

Continue reading "Hunx & his Punx & Shannon & the Clams @ Cake Shop (pics)"