words and photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Sigur Ros @ Skyline Stage

For those counting at home, Dana (distortion) Yavin, Amanda Hatfield, David Andrako and Fred Pessaro // BBG have all dropped of their favorite photos that they took in 2012, and now comes a set from another long-time contributor, Dominick Mastrangelo. We'll let him take it from here...

I'm pretty sure everybody who photographs for this site has a list of bands they want to shoot before they hang up their camera or move on to something other than music. I'm no different and 2012 was the year I was able to cross a handful of those bands off my list. All were personal favorites from before I ever picked up a camera; some I had seen a bunch, some I hadn't seen in years and some I had never seen. To have photographed The Afghan Whigs twice, Sigur Rós twice, as well as Wilco, the reunited Ben Folds Five and The Old 97's (a band I saw in countless sweaty venues in my thirteen years in North Texas) over the span of six months, well, I consider myself very fortunate.

Also, Canada was very good to me. I covered Osheaga in August then returned a month later to cover POP Montreal for the second time. The following morning I was on a train to Toronto to cover the Polaris Prize gala. Nearly half of the photos below were taken north of the border and only a desire to not turn this into an all-Canada post kept me from including more.

Of the twelve I've selected, the above shot of Jonsi, the lead-singer of Icelandic band Sigur Rós, taken in Philadelphia at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts is probably my favorite. It was the band's first show in four years, the first time I was getting to photograph one of their shows and my first time seeing them since the last North American show of their Takk tour in February of 2006.

More of my favorite shots from 2012 are below.

Continue reading "Dominick Mastrangelo's favorite Live Music Photos of 2012 ---------(that he took) "

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Win Butler schooling on the bball court

POP Montreal continued on Saturday (9/22) and BV photographer Dominick Mastrangelo was on the scene and got shots of The Sadies, "Shut Up and Eat Your Ballads" (Leif Vollebek and friends Michael Feuerstack, Laurel Sprengelmeyer of Little Scream, and Brad Barr covering Tom Waits), and Rags to Radio. He also stopped by the Pop vs. Jock basketball game which saw members of Arcade Fire and The Strokes playing basketball with other celebrities like actor Martin Starr (Freaks & Geeks, Party Down), pro basketball player Luke Bonner, and more.

David Byrne, who played a POP Montreal show with St. Vincent a day earlier (9/21) (they start their NYC-run of three shows tonight), performed at the game's halftime show. During his set, he was joined by Arcade Fire's Win and Will Butler and The Strokes' Nikolai Fraiture to perform covers of ? and the Mysterians' "96 Tears" and KC and the Sunshine Band's "That's the Way (I Like It)." You can watch a video of the latter below.

More pictures from Friday (9/21) are HERE. Pics from Sunday (9/23) are coming soon and more from Saturday are below.

Continue reading "POP Montreal Saturday pics -- The Sadies, Pop vs Jock (where Arcade Fire & Strokes members & David Byrne played) & more"

The fabulous Fleshtones, NYC's progenitors of "super rock," will release a new EP in August titled Los Fleshtones Quatro x Quatro via Yep Roc records. Maybe they'll play some of it tonight (6/21) at Bowery Electric. The line-up for tonight's show is actually pretty cool all-around, with Steve Wynn & the Miracle Three, former Voidoid Ivan Julian, Swedish garage rockers Stupidity and Palmyra Delran. Tickets are still available.

The EP was recorded while on tour in Gijon, Spain and all four songs are in Spanish, including covers of two songs by Mexican rock band Los Johnny Jets. Says frontman Peter Zaremba:

The story of this record goes way back to our original bass player, Marek Pakulski, finding a bunch of albums including 'Los Johnny Jets A Go Go' in the trash in front of Joey Ramone's Lower Eastside tenement one night in 1977. Johnny Jets were a typical Mexican '60s rock and roll group -covering top-ten hits of the time like 'Wooly Bully' in Spanish with varying degrees of competence -- just the thing to appeal to The Fleshtones. Rather than the Spanish language versions of overly-familiar tunes like 'Hang On Sloopy', what really caught our ears were two more-or-less original tracks 'No Tengo Dinero' and 'Todos Queremos A Lupe' (which seemed to at least be inspired by Johnny Thunder's 1962 hit 'Loop De Loop'). We decided we would record these two songs ourselves as soon as possible. If nothing else, The Fleshtones are good for their word!

In other news, The Fleshtones' record label, Yep Roc, turns 15 this year and they're throwing a three-day celebration at The Cat's Cradle in Carboro, NC on October 11, 12 and 13. No word on whether The Fleshtones will go down for it but confirmed YR15 artists include Dave Alvin, Chatham County Line, John Doe, Liam Finn, Fountains Of Wayne, Robyn Hitchcock, Los Straitjackets, Nick Lowe, Chuck Prophet, Eleni Mandell, Mayflies USA, Cheyenne Marie Mize, The Sadies, Sloan, Jim White and Master of Ceremonies John Wesley Harding. While three-day passes are sold out, you can still buy individual tickets to each night.

YR15 Flyer is below, along with a list of Fleshtones tour dates.

Continue reading "The Fleshtones releasing new EP, playing shows (dates); Yep Roc Records throwing 15-year anniversary bash in NC"

POP Montreal is returning to Montreal this year from September 19 - 23. The initial lineup was revealed and it includes Grizzly Bear, Gang Gang Dance, David Byrne, Tim Hecker, Julia Holter, I Break Horses, Hot Snakes, Dirty Three, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, Cate Le Bon, Bertrand Burgulat (!), and more. The full initial lineup is listed below and many more announcements to come. Early Bird tickets are on sale until June 30, when regular sale begins.

Meanwhile, Montreal will be getting the Ohsheaga Festival even sooner.

Initial POP Montreal lineup below...

Continue reading "POP Montreal initial 2012 lineup revealed (Grizzly Bear, Gang Gang Dance, David Byrne, Tim Hecker, Hot Snakes & more)"

The 2012 edition of Calgary, Alberta festival Sled Island is set to take place from June 20-23 at venues throughout the city. This year includes over 200 bands performing at 30 venues plus a large comedy schedule, film screenings, and art shows.

Sled Island 2012 will once again use outdoor venue Olympic Plaza as its main stage, featuring performances by Feist, The Hold Steady, Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, The Dudes, Shabazz Palaces, Parlovr, and others.

Acts including Russian Circles, Hot Snakes, The Antlers, Boris, Thurston Moore, Willis Earl Beal, Trust, Yamantaka // Sonic Titan, Terry Malts, Neil Hamburger, How To Dress Well, The Evaporators (aka Nardwuar's band), DJ Jonathan Toubin, Hannibal Buress, Andrew W.K., Tim Heidecker, Archers of Loaf, and many more will be performing at various bars and venues. Check out the full lineup at the bottom of this post.

Festival passes, individual tickets for some clubs shows, and tickets for the Olympic Plaza events only are all on sale. The full festival schedule iwill be announced in June.

Full lineup and 2012 festival trailer below...

Continue reading "Feist, Stephen Malkmus, The Hold Steady and lots more playing Calgary's Sled Island Festival (full line-up)"

Off! @ NXNE 2011 (more by Natasha Ryan)

The most memorable thing that happened the year I visited Toronto for NXNE was Iggy Pop & The Stooges playing their big, outdoor, free, no-ticket-or-badge-required show downtown at Yonge-Dundas Square. Last year the Descendents did it. This year they've landed the Flaming Lips which should be an amazing spectacle. And:

NXNE Music has confirmed that Bad Religion, Raekwon & Ghostface Killah and Matthew Good will headline free shows at Yonge-Dundas Square (YDS) throughout the seven-day festival. The NXNE Music line-up also includes performances at YDS and in the clubs by Of Montreal, No Use For A Name, Purity Ring, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Death Grips, The Men, Bleached, Good Riddance, METZ, Ceremony, Plants & Animals, The Death Set, The Sadies & Andre Williams, Oberhofer, Reigning Sound, Action Bronson, 2:54, Yamantaka/ /Sonic Titan, The Hundred in The Hands, Rival Schools, Killer Mike, Young Magic, Hayes Carll, Friends, Hollerado, Bran Van 3000, The Black Belles, Doldrums, Odonis Odonis, Mac DeMarco, Bass Drum of Death, Porcelain Raft, Exitmusic, Violens, Grass Widow, Eight and a Half, DZ Deathrays, Jonathan Toubin, Art vs. Science, B L A C K I E, The Nils and Ivan Julian (ex-Richard Hell & The Voidoids).

Jonathan Toubin!!

This year's fest takes place at multiple venues across Toronto from June 11-17, 2012. Tickets are on sale.

Last year BrooklynVegan co-hosted a boat party with M For Montreal and Bruise Cruise.

Jesse Sykes @ Brooklyn Masonic Temple (more by Greg Cristman)

Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter will hit the road for a co-headline tour with The Sadies that will include a stop at Bowery Ballroom on November 15th. Tickets are on sale. All dates are listed below.

The co-headline dates in celebration of Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter's new LP Marble Son released on August 2nd. The LP features the axe-work of one Phil Wandscher, he of Whiskeytown fame. Stream portions of the LP (and their discography) at their website, and catch them on the road at the deates listed below.

Continue reading "Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter touring w/ The Sadies (dates)"

The Black Angels in April (more by Dana (Distortion) Yavin)

"It was a welcome sensory overload, ears full of rapturous music, eyes bright with swirling luminescence, inhaling with every breath the cloying smells of sweat and marijuana, every person crammed together, swaying as if one large amorphous being. They left you feeling lost, adrift in their music, tethered and grounded only by the rattling sensation that vibrated through the floors, walls, and ceiling from the beat. All in all, it was an intense experience that I am very glad to have witnessed." [Julia]

The Black Angels have scheduled a NJ show at Maxwell's on July 15 with The Sadies, the day before the Black Angels play the 4Knots Music Festival at South Street Seaport. Tickets for the Maxwell's show go on sale Friday (6/10) at noon.

The 4Knots lineup will also feature appearances by Davilla 666 and Oberhofer and still has more artists TBA.

The Maxwell's show is also one day before the Sadies play Brooklyn Bowl with Andre Williams. The Sadies then take a break until August when they play some shows with Jesse Sykes. All dates are listed below.

Continue reading "The Black Angels playing NJ before 4Knots, with the Sadies who are touring too (dates)"

Justin Townes Earle @ Governors Island in August (more by Chris La Putt)

Justin Townes Earle has decided to suspend the remaining dates on his tour and enter a rehabilitation facility. Earle is strongly committed to confronting his on-going struggle with addiction and thanks his family, friends and fans for their continued support through this difficult time.

In regards to the misdemeanor charges recently filed in Indianapolis, Earle released the following statement earlier this week: "Unfortunately, reports surfacing online about the incident in Indianapolis are not accurate. I have been advised by counsel that I should not comment on a pending criminal matter, but suffice to say that I am looking forward to having my day in court. I would also like to say that I oppose violence against women in any form."

Earle looks forward to resuming the tour in support of his critically-acclaimed third album, Harlem River Blues, on independent record label Bloodshot Records. The album enters this week at #47 on the Top 200 in overall Soundscan.

The postponed dates include October 19th at Webster Hall in NYC (which also happened to be part of CMJ). Jessica Lea Mayfield and The Sadies were set to open that show, and Bowery Presents says "Refunds are available at point of purchase if requested, but a new date will be announced shortly and all tickets will be honored. We apologize for any inconvenience." All postponed dates below...

Continue reading "Justin Townes Earle postpones tour, enters rehab "

The Sadies

"The Sadies are already well known as 'musician's musicians'--famous for playing with well-known musicians, namely, Neko Case, Jenny Lewis and punk-monolith John Doe. Now, the band has announced that they will be joined onstage during their July 23 show at the Bowery Ballroom by an absolute legend--one whose distinct organ playing helped define one of the world's most treasured bands--Garth Hudson of The Band."

It's been special guest week at Bowery Ballroom. Amanda Palmer made a surprise appearance on stage with Steel Train last night, and David Byrne joined Crowded House on stage the night before that. Amanda joined Steel Train on "Behavior" and also performed Radiohead's Creep. Videos below

Garth and Maud Hudson and Chicken Snake are the openers at tonight's Sadies show. Tickets are still available and probably will be at the door. All Sadies dates below...

Continue reading "Amanda Palmer played w/ Steel Train @ Bowery Ballroom last night, Garth Hudson plays w/ The Sadies (dates) "

The Besnard Lakes @ Bowery Ballroom in March (more by Andrew St Clair)

The short list for the 2010 Polaris Prize has been announced. The ten nominees are below...

Continue reading "2010 Polaris Music Prize short list announced (includes Caribou who will DJ Glasslands after the Governors Island show) "

The Sadies...

Truck America is a 3day festival (april 30-may 2) held up in the catskill mountains @ the full moon resort in big indian, ny. the truck family has been putting on festivals and gatherings in the UK for the past 13 years and have just made the jump to the american market. mercury rev (with a full orchestra), white rabbits, here we go magic, ida, the joy formidable and neil halstead are just a few of the confirmed live performances. in addition to lots of live music, they're also going to have handfuls of workshops, kids activities and late night campfire singalongs. weekend pass is only $120 and includes 3 nights of campsite access and parking (day tickets also available). if camping isn't your thing, accommodations are also available at the resort as well as meal packages.

The full lineup is below and tickets are on sale.

Before then there are a pair of "warm up shows" happening in NYC. The first is tonight (4/21) at The Bell House and features all bands also playing the festival: Atlantic/Pacific (ex-Texas is the Reason), Dusty & The Dreaming Spires (Robin & Joe from Goldrush/Truck), Oxygen Ponies and Cat Martino. The second happens April 26th at Matchless, with The Caulfield Sisters and the Truck Family All Stars (members of Common Prayer, Dusty & The Dreaming Spires & Hopewell).

Sixties-style rockers The Sadies will be one of the bands at Truck America. They also have a new album, Darker Circles, out May 18th at Yep Roc. Their tour dates take them across Canada and down the West Coast, where they play a few shows with Kurt Vile. Back east, Vile plays a release show for his new 12" EP Square Shells, which comes out at the end of May on Matador, at Union Pool on June 18th. Joining him will be Meg Baird and Mad Scene.

The full lineup for Truck America and other tour dates are below...

Continue reading "Truck America's full lineup, NYC warm-up shows, new Sadies album & tour dates, a Kurt Vile EP & show & stuff"

Truck America, the first US version of the 13-years-running UK fest, will take place Friday, April 30th to Sunday, May 2nd at The Full Moon Resort in Big Indian, NY (map), a little less than three hours from NYC. Confirmed bands include White Rabbits, Hopewell, Tim Easton, The Sadies, Ida, The Joy Formidable, Neil Halstead, The Silent League, Cat Martino, Common Prayer, Oxygen Ponies, Brandon Patton, Atlantic/Pacific, Dusty & The Dreaming Spires, The Shoestring Band and headliner Mercury Rev. Tickets are on sale now online (and details on where to get tickets in person are below).

The three-day, three-stage fest will have on-site accomodations, workshops and more. Details and poster are below...

Continue reading "Truck America comes to Big Indian, NY in 2010 - lineup includes Mercury Rev, White Rabbits, Neil Halstead, more"

Jason Collett, Zeus and Bahamas have announced a North American revue tour featuring all three artists performing together and alone. The three acts have a long history of collaboration, as intertwined as their musical lineage. Instead of the typical show in which each act plays its own set, Collett, Zeus and Bahamas will all take the stage together, playing songs by all three. The tour comes on the heels of new albums for Collett (Rat A Tat Tat, March 9) and Zeus (Say Us, February 23), and songs from both will be featured throughout the evening. [Arts & Crafts]

Zeus initially formed to play as Collett's backing band in 2008, and the group will be in NYC for two shows before the joint tour starts. On February 26th, they'll open for Franz Nicolay (doing one of his first NY shows since his departure from the Hold Steady was made official) and Tim Fite at Knitting Factory (tickets are on sale). They're also playing with The Sadies and People of the North on February 27th at Mercury Lounge. Tickets to that are available as well.

Bahamas is songwriter Afie Jurvanen, and he has backing-band bonafides too. As documented on Alfie's Myspace, "for the last many years he's been playing other people's music-- PasoMino, Great Lake Swimmers, The Stills, Howie Beck, Amy Millan, Jason Collett, Hayden and zeus. He's spent the last few years playing piano and guitar with Feist." Later in February, he'll be opening some Canadian dates for Wilco, who kick off a tour very soon.

The three-band tour starts in earnest this March, and includes SXSW. They'll play across the US and Canada before ending up in NYC near the end of April. There's a Union Hall show in Brooklyn on April 24th (tickets TBA), and one the night before, Friday, April 23rd, at Mercury Lounge (though that one lists "Jason Collett only" for some odd reason). Tickets for the Manhattan show are on AmEx presale now. General sale starts Friday at noon.

Jason Collett's other band, Broken Social Scene, are touring and releasing a new album this summer.

Full tour dates, Zeus' new stop-motion video for "Through Your Head" (and it's making-of), and a free Jazon Collett track are below...

Continue reading "Jason Collett & his band Zeus both releasing albums, playing together & separately, touring w/ Bahamas (2010 dates)"

Ludacris is playing the Apollo Theater on December 28th. Tickets are now on presale (password = ALIST).

Tickets are on sale (@ noon) for the Beach House show happening at Webster Hall.

Tickets are on sale (@ noon) for the Yeasayer show happening at Webster Hall.

Tickets are on sale (@ noon) for the two upcoming Rogue Wave shows in NYC.

The Sadies are playing Mercury Lounge on February 27th. Tickets are on sale
(@ noon).

A whole bunch of other tickets just went on sale too.

"In true honky tonk style, Country Club is the bastard child of a drunken promise. A post show hang-out between X & the Knitters' [John] Doe and The Sadies produced the idea to join forces to a make an album of country songs. Both rock n' roll and country music are littered with the ghosts of broken promises but this one was destined to become reality. Timeless sounds abound on Country Club, driven by Doe's gorgeous vocals, the dueling thousand pound chops of the guitar-wielding Good brothers and The Sadies' world class rhythm section of Mike Belitsky and Sean Dean. Here, the Countrypolitan sound of late 1960s Nashville is filtered through the telecaster-based tonk of Bakersfield, CA and the results are simply stunning." [Yep Roc]

Country Club is out now on Yep Roc Records and streaming at Reverb Nation.

John Doe and The Sadies are playing several May dates as a combo. Those include a show at NYC's City Winery on Wednesday, May 6th. Tickets are on sale now. All dates below.

John Doe also has scattered tour dates with X from now till June. As part of their Total Request Live tour, which will feature set lists picked online by fans, X is playing three nights at the Bowery Ballroom. Tickets are still on sale for all three dates: May 29, May 30, May 31, and the three day pass

The Sadies are opening dates for Jenny Lewis from May 27th to June 4th. Lewis continues on tour without the Sadies through July 9th which is exactly a month after she plays Music Hall of Williamsburg with Deer Tick (sold out).

The Sadies are also featured on Neko Case's new album Middle Cyclone. Neko is in NYC for two shows at the Nokia Theatre as I write this.

All John Doe & The Sadies tour dates below...

Continue reading "John Doe (of X) & The Sadies - an album & 2009 tour dates"

Jenny Lewis @ the Apollo Theater (more by Chris La Putt)

The previously announced Brooklyn show is just one date on a much larger tour Jenny Lewis will be undertaking this spring and summer.

Lewis is also proud to announce the forthcoming film "Welcome to Van Nuys." The documentary film records the making of Acid Tongue and features the live tracking of several songs from the record as well as behind-the-scenes, candid footage from the recording at Sound City Studio in Van Nuys, CA. The film will be released soon with screenings to be announced shortly.

In addition to her headline tour, Jenny will also be performing at this year's Coachella and Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festivals, as well as the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. She will also be playing her first-ever show in Hawaii on April 10th and will be playing several Australian dates beginning with this coming weekend's V Festival.

Tour openers include Deer Tick, Heartless Bastards and The Sadies. As mentioned, the only NYC date on the tour gets Deer Tick.

Tickets for all North American shows go on presale Wednesday, April 1st, and then regular sale Friday April 3rd. All dates below...

Continue reading "Jenny Lewis - 2009 Tour Dates & a documentary"

The Sadies @ the Big Apple BBQ 2008 (more by Chris La Putt)

The band consists of Dallas Good (also of Phono-Comb), Travis Good, Sean Dean and Mike Belitsky. Dallas and Travis Good are the sons of Bruce Good, a member of the Canadian country group The Good Brothers.

In addition to their own recordings, the Sadies often collaborate with other country-rock artists, such as Blue Rodeo, Jon Langford, The Tragically Hip, Andre Williams (on the 1999 country-influenced Red Dirt), and are [occasionaly the] live backing band of singer Neko Case. The Sadies are also featured in Adult Swim's 12 oz. mouse. An instrumental performed by the band can be heard during the scene in which Rhoda the bartender is murdered. [Wikipedia]

The Sadies are going on a short West Coast tour with Black Mountain in March, but first the Toronto band is going to come visit NYC in February for a one-off show (for now anyway) at the intimate Mercury Lounge. Tickets are on sale.

The Sadies are one of the many contributors to Neko Case's new album. Grab the first officially released track from that record HERE. All Sadies dates below...

Continue reading "The Sadies - 2009 Tour Dates (some w/ Black Mountain)"

Neko Case @ ACL 2008 (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

AC Newman's new solo album is out in January on Matador. Fellow Pornographer Neko Case's album "Middle Cyclone" will be released on March 3rd on Anti. Lots of special guests, etc. - all details abelow...

Continue reading "new Neko Case album - Middle Cyclone - out in March"

words & photos by Chris La Putt

Alex Battles and the Whiskey Rebellion, Eli "Paperboy" Reed & the True Loves, and The Sadies were the free entertainment at the second day of the Big Apple BBQ in Madison Square Park on Sunday (June 8, 2008). Yes, the main focus at the "block party" was food, but we were there for the music.

Alex Battles and the Whiskey Rebellion (pictured above) played first, and they showed Manhattan some impressive Brooklyn country music with a tinge of humor. They were clever enough to write a song about bbq and tea in just a day, and ballsy enough to pull it off on stage. Sadly, this was my first time seeing this band, but it will definitely be not the last. Check them out on Friday as they record a live show at Hill Country.

Continue reading "The Sadies, Eli Paperboy Reed & Alex Battles in a park - pics"

Continue reading "The Sadies - 2008 Tour Dates (Maxwells, Madison SQ Park)"

Although I can't endorse the BBQ aspect of this thing, there's no denying that this looks like a great lineup of free music at Madison Square Park in NYC this weekend...

Saturday, June 7
1:00PM - 2:15PM THE DEFIBULATORS
2:45PM - 4:00PM THE SWEET DIVINES
4:30PM - 5:45PM THE WILD MAGNOLIAS

Sunday, June 8
1:00PM - 2:15PM ALEX BATTLES & THE WHISKEY REBELLION
2:45PM - 4:00PM ELI "PAPER BOY" REED & THE TRUE LOVES
4:30PM - 5:45PM THE SADIES

Check out the rest of the free shows happening in Madison Square Park this summer (and even more NYC free shows listed HERE).

Video of Eli Reed below....

Continue reading "free music @ the Big Apple BBQ in NYC this weekend "