DOWNLOAD: Round Table Knights - End of Winter Mix (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Leif - Timbs (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Leif - Timbs (Ian Johnson Remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Leif - Timbs Neon Coyote Slow Jam (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Leif - Black Magic (MP3)

words by Showtrotta, Presets photos by Faith-Ann Young

The Presets @ Webster Hall - Apr 3, 2009

I had known for a while that I was going to be out of town last weekend, but decided to stick around an extra day (Friday) just to see the Whip and Late of the Pier at Studio B. After witnessing both bands get people moving at Bowery last Wednesday I was really looking forward to seeing the crowd's reaction at the more dance-friendly Studio B on Friday.

I made it over to the B in time to catch the Whip's entire set. The sparsely filled dancefloor became more concentrated with people (though full would be an overstatement) once the Whip took the stage. The band opened with "Muzzle #1" (full setlist below) and the crowd didn't really react much. There were a few people nodding their heads, vaguely moving, and so began the Whip's fight to get the crowd going.

continued...

Continue reading "the week in Dance w/ Showtrotta (part 1) (w/ Presets pics)"

The Presets @ Webster Hall (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

tonight in NYC
* DANCE
* La Roux @ Studio B
* Kaiju Big Battel @ Warsaw
* The Presets @ Webster Hall
* Late Of The Pier, The Whip @ Studio B
* Cold War Kids, Amazing Baby @ Terminal 5
* Preservation Hall Jazz Band @ The Blue Note
* MSTRKRFT, The Bloody Beetroots @ Webster Hall
* Gomez, Alberta Cross @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Kurt Vile, Gary War, US Girls, Birds of Maya @ Silent Barn
* Still Flyin', Folklore, In Interview (ex-Toulouse) @ Union Hall
* Langhorne Slim, Jason Trachetenburg, The Woes, Sam Lowry @ The Bell House
* K.I.M. (of The Presets), The Golden Filter (DJ Set), DJ Cat @ (le) poisson rouge
* Themselves, Stabbing Eastward (feat. Tunde Adibempe), Zizek @ Union Pool
* Dr. Octagon, Dr. Dooom, Kutmasta Kurt, Hopson @ Gramercy Theatre
* Jennifer O'Connor, Choo Choo La Rouge, Antietam, Tim Bracy & the Collection Agency @ Cake Shop

Duchess Says had to cancel all appearances, including Bruar Falls tonight.

What else?

The Presets @ Webster Hall another time (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

I never saw all this success for The Presets coming ("my how you've grown"). The Australian dancey band is going on a North American tour in March and April, and that includes a headlining stop at Webster Hall in NYC on April 3rd. Tickets go on Am Ex presale on Wednesday and then regular sale on Friday. All tour dates below...

Continue reading "The Presets - 2009 Tour Dates (Webster Hall)"

DOWNLOAD: Tittsworth - WTF (Nadastrom remix - Stretch Armstrong Edit) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Tittsworth - WTF (Eli Escobar remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Presets - This Boy's In Love (Lifelike remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Runaway - Use Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Midnight Juggernauts - Into the Galaxy (Grandmaster Flash remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Daisy O'Dell - (3 live mixes): Electro Bounce, Groovy Disco Breaks, and Boogie Hits (yousendit MP3 link)
DOWNLOAD: Mikix The Cat - Freeze (Kanji Kinetic remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Captain's Holiday Mix '08 (Mediafire MP3 link)
DOWNLOAD: Evil Nine - All the Cash (Glitch Mob Remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: John Acquaviva - November '08 Mix (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Drlkt Freddie - Airtight (MP3)

Fake Blood is not Soulwax

I took two nights off after my early start Wednesday night, leaving me eager to hit the B Saturday night for a party that featured a nice mix of deejays that were both familiar and new (to me). I arrived in time to catch the tail end of Van Scott's set which featured a dancey Lykke Li remix, a super-voded mix of Little Boots' "Meddle" (which I later found out was by Treasure Fingers), and lots of other recent tracks.

Franki Chan followed with an excellent mix of some tracks I didn't recognize along with some new favorites including Whomadewho's "TV Friend" (one of the remixes that just came out at the end of last month) and a lovely hybrid version of the Soulwax remix of the Chemical Brothers' "Hey Boy, Hey Girl" that featured the original "super star deejays" vocal sample instead of "2manydj's" but as far as I could tell, retained all the instrumental parts from the Soulwax remix.

Princess Superstar took the evening in a highly dancey meets retro direction, dropping some current stuff mixed with some updated, oldie but goodie classic 90's tracks. Her set segued into Larry Tee's with the pair performing a live version of their hit "Licky" that's had dancefloors freaking out since last winter. Larry's set had everyone getting down and remembering what an innovator the pioneer of electroclash was and continues to be.

The night ended with a bang that unfortunately, hardly anyone was left to see: Nadastrom absolutely killed it. I'm not sure what specifically was great about their set ...it might have been the song selection, excellent mixing, just the right amount of wobbly bass...but one of the most satisfying elements of their set was the enthusiasm the pair maintained as the not too big to begin with, Studio B crowd dwindled down to a few handfuls of people:

Continue reading "the week in Dance w/ Showtrotta (Fake Blood, Lifelike, Larry Tee, Tittsworth, Moby, Evil Nine & more)"

by Showtrotta

Cut Copy @ Webster Hall - September 21, 2008 (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

Thursday I hit Santos for one of the Ete d'Amour parties I'd been looking forward to since the initial schedule was announced - Busy P & DJ Mehdi. Having seen Busy P and DJ Mehdi spin on multiple occasions, plus months of anticipation, still did not prepare me for Thursday night. Their sets crushed my expectations, going far beyond what I imagined. From the super fresh, to 'oldies but goodies', their individual sets had it all, but the real magic happened when the pair shared deejay duties - trading off every other track for one of the most unique, highly danceable, fun sets I've experienced this year. You can read more about the night here.

I really didn't want to do it (especially with Sinden deejaying at Love on Saturday - anyone go? how was it?), but I took the next two nights off from dancing. Then Sunday night I ventured out earlier than I've gotten used to, to see the Presets and Cut Copy at Webster Hall. The Presets took the stage around 9, beginning their set with "Talk Like That" with Kim's thunderous drumming reminding me of Soulwax's show at Irving Plaza last month for just a fleeting second. Much to the crowd's delight, he and Julian delivered about an hour of pounding (in a good way) dance music, most of which even I (not the biggest Presets fan) was able to enjoy.

Around 10:30 Cut Copy began what was to be an hour long, electrifying set with "Visions" followed by "Nobody Lost, Nobody Found" - the two songs that begin their most recent album In Ghost Colours. From there they played plenty of material from both that album as well as Bright Like Neon Love, whipping the crowd into a frenzy that resulted in happy faces and a bouncy Webster Hall floor as everyone jumped with glee to the Australian trio's upbeat tracks. You can check out the rest of what they played as well as some more great photos here.

As great as I always feel after dancing around at a Cut Copy show, there is something really beautiful and poignant about some of their lyrics that always seem to make the experience more emotionally involving than a straight-up, banging deejay set. One very poignant moment during the show, probably lost to those unaware of her passing, was the band's dedication of their last song, "Hearts on Fire" to Nagi (Noda), the young Japanese director responsible for the music video (the last she worked on) for that song. While I only recently became familiar with her work, it's always sad to see someone so young and creative leave our world so quickly...

As is basically the norm at this point, we're in for another very eventful weekend dance-wise in New York. Things get started tonight (Thursday, Sept 25th), with quite a bit going on from which to choose:

Continue reading "a Cut Copy/Presets review & the Thursday night in Dance"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Cut Copy

The Presets

Cut Copy & the Presets played their first of two shows at Webster Hall in NYC Sunday night (Sept 21). The second show is Monday (tonight) and the afterparty is at Santos Party House. This afternoon they'll be deejaying the Apple Store. More pictures from last night below....

Continue reading "Cut Copy & the Presets @ Webster Hall, NYC - pics"

by Showtrotta

Cut Copy in Mexico

If you're still standing after the past few crazy days & nights of dancing there is still plenty happening Sunday and heading into the beginning of next week.

Continue reading "Cut Copy are here & other upcoming 'Dance' events"

Bon Iver in the crowd in Maine - July 26, 2008 (Bryan Bruchman)

today in NYC
* FREE STUFF
* Takka Takka @ Pianos
* Earlimart @ Sound Fix (free)
* The Killers @ Highline Ballroom
* Max Richter @ (le) poisson rouge
* The Submarines @ Mercury Lounge
* Butthole Surfers @ Webster Hall
* Yellow Fever in New Brunswick, NJ
* Bon Iver & Bowerbirds @ Bowery Ballroom
* Foo Fighters & Supergrass @ the Izod Center
* Extra Golden & Icy Demons @ Knitting Factory
* Crosby, Stills and Nash @ Central Park Summerstage
* Tilly & The Wall, The Ruby Suns & Vivian Girls @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Takka Takka's record is out today. The album is streaming at AOL along w/ new albums by The Walkmen, Dr. Dog, and others.

Soon you'll be able to hear "BrooklynVegan blog radio" on XM (or not at all...).

The new Presets video below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday?"

Cut Copy @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Bao Nguyen)

Those mysterious dates are now officially announced. All of them below...

Continue reading "Cut Copy & The Presets - 2008 Tour Dates"

Cut Copy @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Bao Nguyen)

The official release of the Cut Copy single 'Hearts on Fire', taken from their sophomore record, In Ghost Colours, is out this week in the USA. As for remixes, we [Modular] asked The Midnight Juggernauts, Knightlife, Calvin Harris, Holy Ghost! and former touring bassist, JP Shilo to rework the track, and they all came back with thumping throwdowns.

The latest eye-widening and mind-altering single from The Presets, "This Boy's In Love" will be release digitally Stateside this Summer with remixes from the workshops of Jori Hulkkonen, Zombie Nation, Lifelike, Kevin Saunderson and a rerub by The Presets' K.I.M himself.

Continue reading "Cut Copy & The Presets - some 2008 Tour Dates & stuff"

by Showtrotta

m83 @ Bowery Ballroom - June 4, 2008 (more by Bao)

I caught an amazing set from m83 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg Tuesday night (who also played Bowery last night). Anthony Gonzalez creates interesting, thoughtful, atmospheric music whose heavier rock elements are greatly emphasized during live performance. His ability to do this while still allowing all the beautiful subtleties of the music to shine through makes for an excellent live experience. Despite being one of my favorite bands, M83 fell off of my increasingly electro-oriented listening radar. I'd only heard a handful of tracks from Digital Shades Vol. 1 and Saturdays = Youth. I was afraid I was going to get to the show and have no idea what was going on. After M83 opened with a track I hadn't heard before (but that definitely had the M83 sound I know and love), they quelled my worries by going straight into "Run Into Flowers" from their 2003 release Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts. Thankfully this wasn't the only flashback. The entire set alternated new, catchier, lyrics-based songs from Saturdays = Youth such as "Graveyard Girl" and "Kim & Jessie" with great older tracks like "Don't Save Us From the Flames".

Thursday night (June 5) things get dancey, but more on the rock side with a bunch of bands including Radio 4, The Cloud Room, Cassettes Won't Listen, and Foreign Islands kicking off the night at 8. From 12-4 Steve Aoki, DJ Cat and others are on deejay duty...

Continue reading "from m83 to the Presets (the Thursday night in Dance)"

by Finger on the Pulse

DOWNLOAD: The Presets - This Boy's in Love (LifeLike Rmx) (Sendspace MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Presets - Are You The One? (LifeLike Rmx) (MP3 in a ZIP)

The Presets new album Apocalypso is out in the U.S. on May 13th. In celebration of this (and to get you on the mailing list), they are giving away an exclusive track called "My People".

We're also giving away two of our favorite Preset remixes - both of them by Lifelike who we were just talking about. Download those above.

The Presets play Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn on June 4th, and then Bowery Ballroom in Manhattan the next day. Tickets are still on sale for those dates and others. All the tour dates are listed HERE. We (Finger on the Pulse) will also be hosting an album release party at Royal Oak this Friday (May 9). We'll be giving away free posters, stickers and a couple copies of the record. The flyer for Friday, and the video for "This Boy's In Love", below....

Continue reading "The Presets - remixes & other MP3's & stuff"

DOWNLOAD: KIM - By The Time They Reach You (The Bagraiders Would Have Stolen Your Wallet And Changed All Your Money To Euros And Gone Shopping In Paris Remix) (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Presets ~ My People (MP3)

K.I.M. (Or Kimberley Isaac Moyes as his mother calls him) is erstwhile producer/drummer/programmer and one half of THE PRESETS, Australia's foremost proponents of dashing pop/dance (non) sense and (not so) sensibility.

The entire Presets album "APOCALYPSO" is out May 13th on Modular. K.I.M.'s "Fistrogram" single was digitally releaed on January 29th, and Modular was nice enough to give us two copies of a limited edition 'Fistogram (D.I.M remix)' 12" to give away.

We've also got two pairs of tickets to the Modular Monthly happening this Saturday night (Feb 9) at Studio B in Brooklyn. Joakim is playing with "His Ectoplasmic Band", and Juan Maclean is DJing. To win, e-mail BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM (subject: KIM record OR Modular tickets). Include your first and last name in the email. Two winners will be picked today randomly, and contacted.

The Presets are visiting North America in May and June. They'll play Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn on June 4th, and Bowery Ballroom in Manhattan one day later. Tickets for both shows go on sale Wednesday. All tour dates, the "My People" video, and the Modular Monthly flyer, below...

Continue reading "KIM & The Presets, Tour Dates & a Modular Monthly"