"There is a surprisingly high ratio of Vermonters employed at Blue Man Group, particularly in the cast of Blue Men (three in NYC). When news of Tropical Storm Irene's devastating effect on our homestate, we wanted to rally together and see what we could do to help. We called our sympathetic and wildly talented friends and with the wonderful support of the Brooklyn Bowl put together a night of music, art and, deliciously, maple syrup.

The night will include live music by Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls, long-time friend and artistic collaborator of Zea Barker. Isaac Littlejohn Eddy, in addition to being a Blue Man, is also a published cartoonist for the New Yorker. He got Ed Koren of New Yorker andf Vermont fame on board to create a special poster for the event. The silent auction will include loads of original art, photo prints and a variety of Vermont crafts and services.

Music. Art. Dancing. And to send it all right over the top, there will be a farmers market style stand selling a variety of Vermont maple products right in the club.

All proceeds from the night go to Vermont Disaster Relief Fund and Vermont Farm Disaster Relief Fund."

Tickets for tonight's event, 10/10, at Brooklyn Bowl are still on sale. Amanda confirms this show in her tour dates which also include fall shows in LA, San Francisco, and San Diego.

photos by David Andrako

Prospect Park Bandshell Saturday night

The Heavy, The London Souls and Superhuman Happiness played the free Celebrate Brooklyn show at Prospect Park on Saturday night (6/25). Pictures are in this post.

How many neo-soul fans were able to catch both the earlier Fitz & the Tantrums/Lee Fields show in Central Park and this one later all the way in Park Slope? How many afrobeat fans caught Superhuman Happiness in Prospect Park on Saturday and are continuing the weekend with Zongo Junction and Turkuaz @ Brooklyn Bowl tonight?

A set of pictures from Prospect Park show continues below...

Continue reading "The Heavy, London Souls & Superhuman Happiness @ the Prospect Park Bandshell (Celebrate Brooklyn pics)"

The National show in Prospect Park (more by Amanda Hatfield)

We already knew that 'Celebrate Brooklyn' is hosting an impressive lineup of ticketed Prospect Park Bandshell shows this summer: The Decemberists, Animal Collective, Sufjan Stevens, Bon Iver & Cut Copy. And we knew that the 33rd annual series of free shows would start with an Andrew Bird show on June 10th, and that BRIC is also hosting three free 'dance parties' in Brooklyn Bridge Park this summer too.

Now the entire 2011 lineup of "24 free performances, including 20 music concerts, two dance performances, two film screenings with live music, and a family concert" is here! You can check it all out (The Feelies, Real Estate, The Books, Junip, Doveman, Justin Townes Earle, Punch Brothers, Raekwon, Oumou Sangaré, Times New Viking, Ra Ra Riot, Delicate Steve, Buke & Gass and Hal Willner included), below...

Continue reading "Celebrate Brooklyn - complete 2011 Prospect Park show lineup"

Beach Fossils

Deli Magazine is hosting a "best of NYC" fest at Brooklyn Bowl, Glasslands, the Cameo and Public Assembly Thursday May 13th-Saturday, May 15th.

The BK shows are headlined by Beach Fossils on Thursday, April Smith on Friday and The London Souls on Saturday. Tickets to the Brooklyn Bowl shows are on sale. Other tix are available at the door. The shows are split up roughly by genre, though that doesn't stop Talk Normal, Buke & Gass, Asa Ransom and Miniboone from sharing a bill on Friday night at Glasslands.

Talk Normal also plays Saturday at Knitting Factory with Parts & Labor, Soft Power and Guts For Garters (tickets). (And further in the future with Sonic Youth and Grass Widow at Prospect Park on July 31st.)

Beach Fossils have a short tour with Frog Eyes and Pearly Gate Music planned for this June. All three stop by Mercury Lounge for a show on June 19th. Tickets are on sale.

All of Beach Fossils/Frog Eyes/PGM dates and a flyer for Deli Magazine fest (which has its full schedule) is below...

Continue reading "Deli Magazine 'best of NYC' fest & other Talk Normal & Beach Fossils (+Frog Eyes & Pearly Gate Music) tour dates "

Stella Connelly

"Little 7 yr. old Stella Connelly with the help of songwriter performer "Hoop the Last Folk Singer" is sending an important message to everyone this Earth Day 2010. Earth day is every day! The message is passed along through the new song "Earth Day Everyday". The song was recorded by Stella Connelly and reggae recording artist Carlos Jones and First Light."

I don't fully know what that means, but it's the bio that goes along with Stella Connelly who, along with Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, The London Souls, and many more, are performing as part of the Eary Day celebration at Grand Central in NYC on Friday and Saturday. The full schedule and more details below...

Continue reading "Earth Day EarthFair at Grand Central Friday & Saturday - free music, exhibits, art & more (full schedule) "

Pete Seeger @ Clearwater Festival 2009 (more by Chris La Putt)

Clearwater Festival, the annual benefit for the Hudson River environmental group of the same name, will be happening this year at Croton-on-Hudson's Croton Point Park on June 19th & 20th. Pete Seeger, the non-profit's founder, plays every year - joining him this year will be Steve Earle, Rhett Miller, Joan Osborne, Buckwheat Zydeco, Felice Bros and more. More of the initial lineup is below. Tickets to the fest are on sale (and currently almost half the door price). Pictures from last year's day one are HERE and day two are HERE.

A bit farther Upstate in Hunter, NY, the three-day Mountain Jam will be happening June 4th-6th. The lineup for that includes Gov't Mule, Levon Helm & Friends, Drive-By Truckers, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, The Avett Brothers, Dr. Dog, Les Claypool, Jay Farrar (of Son Volt), These United States, Justin Townes Earle (note dad, playing above) and Tao Rodriguez-Seeger Band (the same, except grandpa). The full current lineup is below, and tickets are on sale.

Later this summer (in July), Camp Bisco will be in Mariaville, NY.

Lineups so far for both fests are below...

Continue reading "Mountain Jam (6/4-6) the Clearwater Festival (6/19-20) have announced initial 2010 NY concert lineups & tickets "

photos by Erez Avissar

"Damon "Dame" Dash co-founded Roc-a-Fella Records, helped launch the career of Jay-Z and discovered Kanye West. He's produced or executive-produced about a dozen films, including the well-received 2002 urban flick "Paid in Full" and the 2004 movie "The Woodsman," starring Kevin Bacon. And he started lucrative apparel lines like Rocawear and Rachel Roy, of which he is still part owner with his wife, the company's namesake.

But the 37-year-old Dash still says he gets snubbed by the music industry. Media reports last year about his alleged financial difficulties and legal problems probably didn't help. "My mistake was watching everyone else's careers and not watching mine,'' he says.

More important was his acrimonious split a few years ago with his old friend and business partner Jay-Z. "It was like, either you are on his side or on mine," he says. "And because of all that, there's resistance on every level with me and the shit just bugs me out." [Billboard]

New venue Under 100 (located in the basement of the Tribeca building where Damon Dash's office is located) is quickly becoming famous, after just two shows. The first, in November, featured sets by Sleigh Bells, Javelin & Knyfe Hyts 81 with help from Mos Def, Curren$y, and others. The second, just two nights ago (12/8), was rumored to include a performance by Blakroc (featuring Mos Def) who were on Letterman that same night. That didn't happen, but The Cool Kids, The London Souls, Curren$y (again), and some others did play. Mos Def and Damon Dash (again) were just hanging out. The third show is....

TONIGHT (12/10):

RSVP @ Lessartistsmorecondos@gmail.com
-- DARLINGS /// THESE ARE POWERS --
$ 7 bucks
09:00 pm Doors
09:30 pm DARLINGS
10:30 pm THESE ARE POWERS

More pictures from the last event, below...

Continue reading "The Cool Kids, London Souls, Curren$y & friends (but not Blakroc) played Under 100 (pics) ++ a show there tonight"

photos by Tim Griffin

"I went to Pettyfest 2009 at Bowery Ballroom [Thursday] night, which was sick. Lots of drunk and stoned people shouting along to the hits and some great performers-- Nicole Atkins, Adam Green, Steve Schiltz, Antony Ellis, members of The Strokes and The Killers.

One of my favorite performances-- and this took me by surprise -- was the dude from Augustana singing "You Got Lucky." They're not a band I generally have a strong opinion about one way or another, but his voice was sick and he had a commanding presence-- like a subdued Mick Jagger with the wrist at the hips with a dash of Joe Cocker in the vocal tone." [EYTAN]

Jesse Malin, Hymns, Teenage Prayers, The Pierces, and members of Little Joy, Love as Laughter, Longwave (Steve) and Five O'clock Heroes (Anthony) were also among those who performed Tom Petty songs at the show. Most of the Killers were there. It was a night off on their current tour with Wolfmother (who used the evening to play a show at Bowery Electric right down the avenue). Kid Rock was there too (are you scared yet?), but didn't perform. He was in town to play a benefit at Terminal 5 one night earlier. More pictures and some pictures of the setlist below...

Continue reading "PettyFest @ Bowery Ballroom - setlist & pics (Adam Green, Strokes & Killers members, Nicole Atkins, Kid Rock, more)"

In the same vein as last year's Dylan Fest at the Mercury Lounge (and with much of the same cast), the Bowery Ballroom is hosting "Petty Fest" on Thursday, September 3rd. The opening band is The London Souls. A house band, called "Cabin Down Below Band," will be joined for the main act by guests that include Hymns, The Pierces, Jesse Malin, Adam Green, Matt Romano & Rodrigo Amarante of Little Joy, and Fabrizio Moretti of Little Joy/The Strokes. Tickets are on sale. Full lineup and flyer (and videos) below...

Continue reading "Petty Fest this week at Bowery Ballroom"

Janelle Monae @ MHOW in April (more by Tim Griffin)

This summer Afro-Punk, BAMcinematek and Toyota will present the 5th annual Afro-Punk Festival, taking place July 3rd - July 8th, 2009 in the heart of Brooklyn, NY. The festival is the definitive destination for the global Afro-Punk community and audiences yearning to experience true AP culture!

Headliners at this year's fest include Pure Hell and Whole Wheat Bread on July 4th, Living Colour and Earl Greyhound on July 5th, and Saul Williams and Janelle Monae on July 6th.

Schedule and more info, below...

Continue reading "Afro-Punk - 2009 Brooklyn festival dates & lineup (Janelle Monae, Living Colour, Earl Greyhound, Saul Williams...) "

A performing arts program of BRIC Arts | Media | Bklyn, Celebrate Brooklyn! is one of New York City's longest running, free, outdoor performing arts festivals. Launched in 1979, as a catalyst for a Brooklyn performing arts scene and to bring people back into Prospect Park after years of neglect, Celebrate Brooklyn has been an anchor in the park's revitalization and has become one of the city's foremost summer cultural attractions. Over the course of its history Celebrate Brooklyn has presented over 1,700 artists and ensembles reflective of the borough's diversity, ranging from internationally acclaimed performers to emerging, cutting-edge artists. All Celebrate Brooklyn performances are free. The festival attracts upwards of 250,000 attendees from across New York City to the Prospect Park Bandshell each summer.

All performances except Benefit Concerts are free with a $3 suggested contribution. They are listed below...

Continue reading "Celebrate Brooklyn! 2009 Prospect Park concert schedule "