by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Braids - Lemonade (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: No Joy - No Joy (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Psychobuildings - Birds of Prey (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: North Highlands - Sugar Lips (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Besnard Lakes - Albatross (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Land of Talk - May You Never (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Cheap Time - Woodland Drive (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Bad Sports -On Video (MP3)

Owen Pallett playing w/ the Luyas @ Webster Hall (more by Sarahana)

It's Memorial Day Weekend which used to mean, if you stayed in town, there was nothing to do except go see whatever piece of crap Hollywood was foisting upon us, hang out at backyard BBQs (not a bad thing at all), and enjoy a relatively emptied-out city. Not so much anymore. I mean, there's still Hollywood crap -- take your pick of sand-n-sandals epics SATC2 or Prince of Persia if you must -- but people stick around more, and there's clearly more options for the music fan. Lots of good stuff this weekend, most of which you can still get tickets.

Also: lots of Montreal action this weekend. Starting tonight (5/27) with an early show at Mercury Lounge with The Luyas and Braids. If you check in with BV fairly often you already know we're pretty big fans of the former. It took them a while to finally come play NYC but now that they have, they seem to be coming back weekly. It's not the most straightforward music, but there's a magical quality about The Luyas that worms its way under your skin.

Braids are doing a similar thing but with a different sonic palette, more electronic, more trancey. As I wrote before, I was impressed when I saw them on Tuesday at Knitting Factory. I wish they spent as much time on the songs as the soundscape-ish arrangements, but there's a lot of promise in their best songs (like "Lemonade" which you can download above) and they're definitely worth checking out. Like I said, it's an early show -- Luyas open at 7:30 -- which leaves most of your evening open. If you can't make it tonight, Braids also play Rooftop Films tomorrow, where they're paired with a collection of "Dark Toons," which sounds like a good match to me.

No Joy

If you wanted to keep the MTL thing going after the early Luyas/Braids, you could then head over to Cameo Gallery to see No Joy who split their time between that city and Los Angeles. I don't know a whole lot about these two girls but I really dig the two songs that have been floating around which were produced by Think About Life/Miracle Fortress whiz kid Graham Van Pelt. I've seen some people call their sound shoegaze, but it's more in that Dinosaur Jr. kind of way than a Ride/Slowdive kind of way. Thick, sludgy and rockin'. Look out for an EP on Mexican Summer sometime soon. They played last night at Shea Stadium and apparently blew everyone's eardrums out. You are warned.

Also on this eclectic bill: the paranoid postpunk/electropop of Psychobuildings (check out "Birds of Prey" at the top of this post) who kind of remind me of The Pop Group; The Surprisers (another band featuring German Measles/Cause Co-motion/etc etc dudes); and the gentle orch-pop of North Highlands who I've written about before a few times.

And am writing about again right here. Shameless plug time. As you may have seen, I'm working with the Seaport Music folks to put on a series of lunchtime shows every Wednesday in June down at Pier 17 (the Seaport Stage). The shows are in conjunction with the Fulton Stall Markets, a farmers market in the old Fulton Fish Market stalls across the street from the Seaport. The market opens on Sunday and we're doing a kickoff show with North Highlands. I DJ at noon and then the band is on at 1PM. I'm super happy to have North Highlands play the first show, they were the first band I thought of for this, and think they're easily one of the most promising new bands in NYC. Anyway, come down if you can. The rest of the Sound Bites Lunchtime Series schedule (including The Beets, Ribbons and more) can be found here.

Besnard Lakes @ SXSW (more by Tim Griffin)

Okay, back to Montreal. Friday night (5/28) The Besnard Lakes are playing Bowery Ballroom with Land of Talk. People overuse the word "epic" but the Besnard Lakes make music that deserves that description. And epic doesn't necessarily mean "overblown." Take, for example, "Like the Ocean, Like the Innocent" which opens their new album Are the Roaring Night. It's an amazing slow build that explodes (in slo-mo, yet not in a Michael Bay way) in the chorus with a giant wave of guitars. One of my favorite songs of the year, and it crushed at the Brooklyn Vegan day party during this year's SXSW. I've never seen a bad Besnard Lakes show. I highly, highly recommend you go.

Openers Land of Talk are no slouches in the live department either. The band's second album, Cloak and Cipher, is due out August 24 on Saddle Creek, and we should get a nice preview of it tomorrow night.

A few more weekend picks, day by day (and tour dates below):

Continue reading "No Joy, North Highlands, Besnard Lakes, Luyas, Eternal Summers, Twin Sister & more in This Week in Indie"

Atlas Sound @ ATP NY 2009 (more by Ryan Muir)

tonight in NYC
* Aziz Ansari @ Comix
* Mick Barr @ The Stone
* Dinosaur Feathers @ Fort Useless
* Sarah Silverman @ Apple Store Soho
* Motion City Soundtrack @ Irving Plaza
* Big Teriffic w/ Max Silvestri @ The Cameo
* Ladysmith Black Mambazo @ Highline Ballroom
* Atlas Sound, Memory Tapes @ The Bell House
* Those Darlins, Pine Hill Haints @ Maxwell's
* The Constellations, Brian Bonz @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Weasel Walter & BJ Rubin Variety Show @ Death By Audio
* Midnight Masses, Borrowed Eyes, Submarine Bells @ Union Pool
* Miniboone, Pet Ghost Project, I'm Turning Into, Shark? @ Glasslands
* Jimmy Gnecco, Static, Papercranes, Adam Kowalczyk, Starbolt @ Mercury Lounge
* Adam Franklin (Swervedriver), Bolts of Melody, Hopewell, Soren Well @ Southpaw
* Nate Wooley/Peter Evans Duo, Travis Laplante, Gerald Cleaver, Mike Formanek @ Zebulon
* Stories in High Fidelity w/ Nicole Atkins, Echoecho, stories from David Byrne, Alan Light, Dan Kennedy & Jason Gordon @ Bowery Ballroom

The Max Silvesti-hosted free comedy show at the Cameo tonight will includes sets by Kristen Schaal (flight Of The Conchords), Julian Mccullough (comedy Central Presents), Joe Randazzo (editor, The Onion) and Edith Zimmerman (the Awl, Nymag.Com).

Atlas Sound (Bradford) play The Bell House with Memory Tapes tonight, and then NYU with Neon Indian tomorrow. Both are sold out. A live video of Atlas Sound performing "Cold as Ice" in Georgia in 2008, below...

Tickets are now on AmEx & "Apollo Theater" presale ( password = ALIST ) for the Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings show coming to the Apollo Theater.

Death By Audio's avant-jazz/improv music variety show

.puttin' on the ritz
.bj rubin & walter weasel
.peter evans
.matt mottel [of talibam!]
.cat tyc
.moppa elliot
.michael gallope
.odysseus
.tim dahl [of child abuse]
.sarah lipstate & caroline contillo
.sexy thoughts [aka kevin shea]

Video of Fanfarlo performing "I'm a Pilot" live on KEXP, below...

Punkcast video of The Octagon playing "(Save your Body for) Revolution" at Bruar Falls on January 22nd below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Wednesday?"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: The Octagon - Suicide Kings (MP3)

The Octagon

I wrote at length already about this week's Serena Maneesh shows. Now here are some other daily picks to take you through the weekend...

Continue reading "The Octagon, Free Energy & more in This Week in Indie "

photos by Maryanne Ventrice

Neon Indian Kidrocking it on October 25th...

Real Estate and Neon Indian played a kids- and guardians-only show at The Living Room on October 25th, one day after CMJ. The pictures here are from that (including ones of hosts Seth Herzog and Carlos Jordan).

Neon Indian have three NYC shows coming up for December 15th-17th.

Real Estate are currently on the road - their homecoming will be a Decemeber 4th show at Market Hotel with Woods and Cloud Nothings.

There's another Kidrockers coming up, with Right on Dynamite and Freestyle Love Supreme (and Djs Seth Herzog and Craig Baldo), at The Winter's Eve Festival in Lincoln Square on Monday, November 30th. The event starts at 6pm after Dante Park's tree lighting and takes place at the The American Bible Society (1865 Broadway @ 61st St). It's free; more info here.

The next event after that will be on Sunday, December 13th (1pm) with The Octagon and Saadi at The Living Room. Tickets are on sale. "Adults must be accompanied by a kid and vice versa."

More pictures from the post-CMJ edition, below...

Continue reading "Kidrockers hosted Neon Indian & Real Estate (pics) -- upcoming shows include Right on Dynamite & The Octagon"

photos by Lori Baily, words by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Carsick Cars - You Can Listen You Can Talk (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Carsick Cars - Zhong Nan Hai (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: PK-14 - Behind All Ruptures (MP3)

PK-14 @ Glasslands

Arriving late [to powerHouse Arena on November 5th] I found the place packed, but I was just able to set up in time to get Xiao He's last tune. This piece was a lengthy improv involving electronic looping, acoustic guitar, and Mongolian style throat-singing - all to bewitching effect. Next up were the catchily named Carsick Cars, a young and winsome trio who played just three songs, opening with the liberating 'You Can Listen You Can Talk' and closing with - reportedly a Chinese underground anthem - Zhong Nan Hai - a silly song about a popular cigarette brand that just happens to be named after the seat of Chinese Government. The point being, as I understand it, that being punk is being beyond politics. Lastly came P.K.14, apparently elder statesmen of the movement. Sporting a tight Swedish drummer, and singing in pure mandarin, one could discern a wide mix of influences from pop to punk, to post-punk, to freak-out rock. I've picked two tunes from them - the more melodic 'Eden' and the wild closer 'Some Surprises Happen Too Soon'. [Punkcast]

Punkcast was at the "China Underground Invasion" tour's kick off show on November 5th at powerHouse Arena. It was one of the four NYC shows for the tour that've already happened. Another was the next night (11/6) at Glasslands with These are Powers and Soft Circle. Pictures from the Glasslands show are above and below.

The trio of acts return to NYC on Friday, November 20th (TONIGHT) for a gig with The Octagon at UWS club Ding Dong Lounge with The Octagon. They follow that up with a tour-ending show at Secret Project Robot (NOT Monster Island Basement as originally listed in their dates) with Knyfe Hyts 81 and Aa on Saturday (Nov. 21). Knyfe Hyts 81 also have a show booked tonight in Manhattan with Sleigh Bells and Javelin.

Their label, Maybe Mars, lists one more stop for the gang. Guitarist Zhang Shouwang (from Carsick Cars) and Xiao He are slated to appear at the closing Performa 09 event, Scratch the Grand Finale at (Le) Poisson Rouge on November 22nd. But that isn't quite a conventional show - the fest writes that "invited artists will be asked to present a five to ten minute work responding to the following subtitles: Dining on Radio Waves; Lust is a Force; Between Noise & Silence; Songs for Architects; and Motion & Magic. The stage will be set with a arrangement of musical and Futurist inspired instrumentation and means from record decks, green light to perfume and the bassoon." Tickets are on sale.

Speaking of unconventional gigs, These Are Powers' next performance will be November 21st at Galapagos for a free edition (RSVP) of Cinema 16 (silent film+live band). For their set, the group will be scoring a pair of PSAs and one educational video from the '60s and '70s. Included in those will be "One Got Fat: Bicycle Safety" from 1963, summarized as such: "A group of children, wearing ape masks, the dangers of biking the hard way in this strange and dark PSA."

More pictures from the Glasslands show, videos via Punkcast from the powerHouse Arena gig, and more details on the upcoming shows are below...

Continue reading "Carsick Cars, PK-14, Xiao He played powerhouse Arena (videos) & Glasslands (pics), playing more shows this week"

Arrow Bar, 85 Avenue A (basement), betw 5 & 6

I found this out last night...

First-time bar owner Zachary Waldman, a talent booker at Lower East Side nightspot Pianos, tries his luck at the booze biz in the space that briefly housed the Rook. Here, cocktails are the specialty: Concoctions include the Wysteria (champagne with lavender liqueur and peach bitters) and the potent Vesper (gin, vodka, Lillet Blanc and Cointreau). Drinks are two for one during happy hour, from 4 to 9pm daily, and DJs spin most nights; upcoming artists include Sweatshop Labor and Lauren Flax. [Time Out]

Support bars with cool owners (who are also in bands)!