The Sammies @ MHOW (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)


The Sammies are back in NYC today/Sunday to record a "Groupee Session" during the day and to play Mercury Lounge at night. The Shackletons have the same exact itinerary. All Sammies dates below...

Continue reading "The Sammies - 2008/09 Tour Dates (Mercury Lounge)"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

the sammies

Thanks all for a great night. I'm really sorry if anyone was disappointed at all, especially in the "singing DJ" Jens Lekman. I do admit that during Jens' set I thought, "why won't he sing more!?", but then that was neutralized by watching the entire Music Hall room, still full at 12:30am, dancing to his fairly well-mixed picks that included Mariah Carey's "Fantasy". Jens opened by singing a song, DJ'd and danced around, and then made up for the lack of singing by closing with a few of his hits (that he sang). All in all I loved it considering he was just one of the seven, very diverse bands on the bill... and it was Jens!

Thanks, for Emmy the Great, to everyone who showed up early to see her. She played a great set, with full band, to a decent-sized crowd for the beginning of a 6 hour show at 7pm. Happy hour was in effect (sorry if anybody was told otherwise by some security who didn't realize it due to the strange CMJ schedule). CMJ was already off to a good start. Emmy has six more NYC shows while she's here from the UK.

The Sammies came up next and they were the most WTF choice on the bill (at least that's what I gathered from the look people gave me whenever I brought them up). I wish they were playing more than one show while they were here, but they literally drove up from North Carolina to Brooklyn yesterday and were driving right back this morning. To quote Bill (who hasn't listened to their new album) (like I have many times), "they were fun and unpretentious and offered a constant stream of photo-ops".

More pictures below...

Continue reading "Emmy the Great & the Sammies @ MHOW (BV CMJ) - pics"

today in NYC (a few more, of the millions)
* BV official CMJ showcase @ MHOW
* Walter Meego @ Ben Sherman Store
* Deerhoof, Fat Worm of Error, Nymph @ Spiegeltent
* The London Souls, The So So Glos @ Santos Party House
* The Poison Control Center, Army Navy, Phil and the Osophers @ Union Pool
* Vivian Girls, Cheeseburger, Wild Light, Gringo Star @ Red Bull Space

THE REST:
* your guide to CMJ, Tuesday October 21, 2008
* more (popular, previously posted) CMJ show reminders
* http://www.brooklynvegan.com/tag/CMJ

Phenomenal Handclap Band: free at midnight

Feist's (new?) video for "Honey Honey" below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday? (CMJ day 1)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: The Sammies - Sleep in My Clothes (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Ponytail - Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came From An Angel) (MP3)

Ponytail

Even if you don't have a badge, CMJ (Oct 21-25 in NYC) can be overwhelming... especially these days with the proliferation of day parties, unofficial showcases and afterparties. Running around like a crazy person trying to catch everyone you want to see can be fun, but sometimes it's not such a bad idea just to pick one place and stay there. With that in mind, I've picked one day party and one evening showcase for each of the five days, as well as late night parties where applicable. The guide to Tuesday (10/21) is below...

Continue reading "your guide to CMJ, Tuesday October 21, 2008"

DOWNLOAD: The Sammies - Glisten (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Phenomenal Handclap Band - Testimony (MP3)

Tuesday, October 21, 2008. Doors at 6 PM. Show at 7 PM, (18+)
the lineup...
* Emmy the Great
* The Sammies
* Secret Guest
* Ponytail
* Passion Pit
* singing DJ Jens Lekman
  and a special late-night (midnight) set by:
* The Phenomenal Handclap Band

BrooklynVegan is finally (well, it's been a while) doing a show in Brooklyn. After a successful try at throwing an official CMJ showcase last year at Bowery Ballroom, I'll be doing it again this year, but this time at Bowery's sister venue Music Hall of Williamsburg. I couldn't be more excited about the lineup. $15 tickets go on sale Tuesday at noon. A limited number of CMJ badgeholders will also be admitted to this show on a first come, first served basis.

The Sammies are a North Carolina band whose new album Sandwich became a slight obsession recently. I'm glad I didn't judge the book by its cover and that they said yes to coming up and playing the show.

Emmy the Great is coming all the way from the UK, and bravely, like Bon Iver before her, holds the opening slot on the seven-artist bill. Stay late. Show up early. We'll have drink specials (TBA).

More about the artists on this bill as the show gets closer. In the meantime, check out the video Joly took at the recent Phenomenal Handclap Band show at Tribeca Grand, below...

Continue reading "official 2008 BrooklynVegan CMJ showcase announcement"