DOWNLOAD: Surfer Blood - Take it Easy (Red Wax Session) (MP3)

Surfer Blood recording the above track (more by Diana Wong)

"On October 21st, 2010, Insound & Maker's Mark hosted an artist lounge & recording session at Stratosphere Sound in New York City, the likes of which has never been done before. Grammy winning engineer Geoff Sanoff (Nada Surf, Secret Machines, A Camp) took on the insane task of recording eight of indie music's most talked about new bands in eight hours, and the results are nothing but stellar." [Insound]

And speaking of Surfer Blood, they've been added to Bruise Cruise...

Bruise Cruise is a rock 'n' roll music festival aboard the Carnival Imagination, sailing from Miami to Nassau, Bahamas and back February 25-28, 2011. Tickets are on sale now for this exclusive and all-inclusive Caribbean getaway.

Bruise Cruise is pleased to announce West Palm Beach's SURFER BLOOD on the festival line-up. Their "floating vibes" are a welcome addition to the Bruise Cruise party barge as it sails from Miami to the Bahamas over the course of 3 days filled with sun, rock'n'roll and relaxation. SURFER BLOOD recently completed a US tour with The Drums and are preparing for an upcoming European tour with Interpol.

Just a reminder that Bruise Cruise is also excited to announce the launch of Bruise Cruise Records. BCR will be releasing a series of limited edition vinyl. Each performing artist will be featured on one side of a 7" vinyl release over the next few months. The first record will be distributed in the first week of November featuring un-released songs from Ty Segall and Thee Oh Sees. The 7"s will feature artwork by Rob Corradetti [www.radrox.com].

Every Bruiser will receive at least one complimentary record. As the sailing date nears, Bruise Cruise will be gifting the entire box set through a variety of contests that will be announced on our site.
In the midst of attendees' three days at sea, Bruisers will have the pleasure of soaking up the sun experiencing 24 hours in the Bahamas. Bruise Cruise will be announcing a series of events that will occur in Nassau, including the big island party concert at Señor Frog's, which will feature select Bruise Cruise artists and conclude with New York Night Train's Soul Clap and Dance-Off.

Continue reading "Insound releasing free Red Wax Sessions (MP3) w/ Surfer Blood who are playing Bruise Cruise (lineup)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo, words by Bill Pearis

"Welcome," Stephen Malkmus greeted the crowd at Summerstage. "So, these are the real shows. The first shows. The others were just warm-ups."

The two-hour, 27-song set Pavement played did nothing to dispute that statement. It's true what everybody's said about this reunion tour. They were never this good, never this fun during their original '90s incarnation. At least the three times I saw them. The last time -- Irving Plaza, 1999 -- the band were clearly sick of each other and only percussionist Bob Nastanovich, ever the cheerleader, seemed to be carrying the torch.

Not so tonight though, at the first of four consecutive Pavement shows at Summerstage (aka Central Park's Rumsey Playfield). Malkmus, Nastanovich, Scott Kannberg, Mark Ibold and Steve West seemed to be genuinely having a blast. After "Range Life," Malkmus quipped, "That was a really good version of that one, and I've heard them all."

Opening with "Shady Lane," the set ran through most all the hits, with a few surprises like "Infinite Spark" and "Perfect Depth"  -- the latter wasn't on the setlist. (They also swapped out the setlist's "Spizzle Trunk" for "Heaven is a Truck.") "Summer Babe," "Here"  and "Spit on a Stranger" (we got nothing from Terror Twilight) were the only songs notably absent but we got "Shoot the Singer" (one of my favorites), plus "Debris Slide" and "Conduit for Sale" both of which featured Nastanovich on the mic, pacing the stage and working the crowd like one of the Beastie Boys.

You get the feeling that Nastanovich, who comes up with the setlists every night, is probably Pavement's #1 Fan. When he wasn't playing tambourine, keyboards, or the drums, he had the crowd cracking up with a stream of non sequiturs ("Did I ever tell you about the time Sun Ra fixed my car in Lexington, Virginia?"). A giant smile was on his face the entire time.

Mine too. For me at least, tonight's show transcended nostalgia. Ten years is a while to be away, but not too long. The guys somewhat shockingly all still look pretty much the same -- yet are playing better than ever. It's enough time to mellow egos, iron out differences and, you know, get better as musicians.. And make us to realize how much we missed them.

If you've been on the fence about trying to get tickets -- there were no shortage of people selling tickets outside the venue -- you should just go. One of the best times I've had at a show this year.

Thee Oh Sees

Openers Thee Oh Sees aren't really suited to such a big stage but made the most of it by packing into a ten foot square of the stage and treating it like it was Death by Audio. They sounded great for their ripping 30-minute set. "I could tell you a million stories about listening to Pavement," frontman John Dwyer said. "But you've all got 'em. They did save me one time on acid, so thanks for that."

There was lots of good between-song banter. Some highlights:

"Thanks for not losing your tickets over the last year." -- Kannberg

"I hear tickets weren't so hard to get this week, anyway. Face value...that's what we like to hear. Less than that...that's not good." -- Malkmus

"That song always reminds me of fondue." -- Nastanovich on "In the Mouth a Desert."

"'Grounded' is my Dad's favorite song. Couldn't you have picked one of mine?" -- Kannberg, who's dad was in the audience.

"I didn't realize they had such good weed on the Upper East Side" -- Nastanovich

"That was the Superchunk version of 'Gold Soundz.' In a good way, obviously." - Malkmus

"The real truth is 'Babtist Blacktick' is too fast for this age group." -- Nastanovich

Pictures continue, with the full setlist, below...

Continue reading "Pavement & Thee Oh Sees @ Rumsey Playfield (pics & setlist) "

words by Andrew Frisicano, photos by Chris Juarez & Rachel Carr

Local Natives & the crowd @ FYF Fest Saturday

Yesterday was FYF Fest. We know all the problems... The lines... And are addressing them now. In no way are we sleeping on these problems. The bands were amazing and the turn out was unreal. I'm speechless. -Sean Carlson & FYF Fest

The day's short sets kept you wanting more from nearly every act, many of whom played for a half hour or 35 minutes (which expanded in 5 minute increments up to an hour for the headliners). That made for tough decisions between overlapping sets. Ted Leo and band blew through their 45 minutes, and Titus Andronicus could've continued for another 35 at least with the momentum from their Monitor songs. Those two, along with Screaming Females, were part of what Ted Leo termed the "New Jersey Takeover" - three punk bands with Garden State roots who all played great sets at the fest.

Ariel Pink

Los Angeles represented with a number of notable hometown acts. Growlers, in grey facepaint, brought an earthy, ramshackle sound and lots of friends. Best Coast, Abe Vigoda, Local Natives and Ariel Pink also repped their hometown - the latter two with mezmerizing late afternoon sets.

Other acts brought some nice surprises. A chorus of kids, costumed as zombie versions of dead historical figures, backed Dead Man's Bones' Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields. The Blow introduced some of her new songs written for an unnamed celebrity (and played recognizable earlier songs too, including one "written with Sting...when [she] was 7"). And Big Freedia, the fest's only act with any trace of hip-hop, shocked the crowd with a short pre-headerliner dose of "Azz Everywhere."

Big Freedia

There was plenty of garage rock (Thee Oh Sees brought the man responsible for their cover art, William Keihn, to play tambourine), punk and metal. A reunited Sleep, in New York this week, grinded away, as !!! had people shaking their ass on the sister stage. On the fest's third stage, hardcore band 7 Seconds reminisced about their first time in LA almost 30 years ago and lead a spirited circle pit. Add to those bands, breezy folk from AA Bondy, the jams of Warpaint and Delorean to name a few.

If FYF's organizers are a bit defensive above, it may be with good reason: the few critical organizational errors were fairly memorable. A long line at will call (an hour would be a short estimate) kept many waiting in the 90 degree sun while the first bands of the day (Magic Kids, Let's Wrestle and The Goat) could be heard starting in the distance. Water inside was also an issue, with limited access to free drinking water and bottled water at $4 (which, according to Noah Lennox, ran out).

By the end of the night, the two final acts - The Rapture and Panda Bear - set up on competing stages. Panda Bear aka Noah Lennox interspersed his dreamy lullabies with patches of noise and dissonance while videos and images that could be described only as "trippy" played behind him; I think your response to the set depended largely on your state of mind after the long day: exhausted or ready for a patience-testing string of songs and sounds. He and The Rapture provided, alternately, a place to dance or doze.

--

Unsane also played a rare runion set at the festival where Off! shared a bill with Lower Dens. School of Seven Bells, Davila 666, Cults and Ceremony were there too.

Read what Noah thought about his own set, HERE. More pictures from the entire day, below...

Continue reading "FYF Fest 2010 in pics & review "

The Greenhornes 2007

After detours in The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather among other projects, The Greenhornes are back at it and will release their first LP of new material in eight years via Jack White's Third Man imprint. The record, entitled Four Stars, will be proceeded by select east coast dates that will include Mercury Lounge on 9/3 (free with RSVP) and Maxwell's on 9/4 with The Black Hollies (tickets) leading up to their appearance at ATP NY on 9/5 ("full" lineup).

A month later (on 10/2), The Greenhornes are confirmed for Scion Garage Fest 2010 in Lawrence, Kansas alongside a plethora of killer notables including The Oblivians (who recently played Knit), The Gories (who just played Bowery and toured with Oblivians), The Raveonettes (who are playing Bumbershoot), King Khan & The Shrines (who are playing Santos and Bell House), Best Coast (who just played the Seaport and like weed), Tyvek, Thee Oh Sees, Hunx & His Punx, and a ton of others.

Much like Scion Rock Fest, the show will take place across four venues and is FREE, but RSVP is required. Full lineup is below.

Some videos and the full Scion lineup & flyer is below...

Continue reading "The Greenhornes playing shows - ATP, a free one @ Mercury & Scion Garage Fest (full lineup - Oblivians, Gories, more) "

Times New Viking @ Public Assembly in 2009 (more by Ryan Muir)

Pavement's NYC shows (tickets)
Sun Sep 19, 2010 @ Williamsburg Waterfront w/ Jenny and Johnny
Tue Sep 21, 2010 @ Rumsey Playfield w/ Thee Oh Sees
Wed Sep 22, 2010 @ Rumsey Playfield w/ Times New Viking
Thu Sep 23, 2010 @ Rumsey Playfield w/ TBA
Fri Sep 24, 2010 @ Rumsey Playfield w/ TBA

--

Times New Viking hit the opening for classic bands lottery. They open dates on the Guided by Voices tour too.

Thee Oh Sees, who were just in NYC for four shows, will play Santos Party House that same, September 21st, night.

Jenny (Lewis) and Johnny also play one other night with Pavement and a show at Maxwell's as part of their tour.

At least two dates on Pavement's upcoming tour are with Sonic Youth (Matador 21 & Hollywood Bowl). All Pavement dates, with openers, below..

Continue reading "Who is opening for Pavement?"

words by Andrew Frisicano, photos by Marcus Lauer

Thee Oh Sees

Thee Oh Sees' third of four shows while in town was the first edition of Jelly's biweekly Saturday series at the Rock Yard, a new space in a gravel-floored, barbed-wire-surrounded lot. Whatever was there before, it's been cleaned up nicely with walls of Jelly-branded graffiti, vendors selling beer ($4), Jell-O shots, frozen boozy lemonade and hot dogs, and the McCarren relic inflatable slip 'n slide.

Thee Oh Sees played a jammier set than at their Seaport show the night before. One constant was Help's "Enemy Destruct," one of their catchiest tunes, caught on video below. Brigid's light-blue student-model Wurlitzer seemed to konk out during soundcheck, so she stuck to vocals and sleigh bells, while frontman John Dwyer found new destinations for his endless supply of saliva.

Before that, the Beets, X-Ray Eyeballs (featuring members of Golden Triangle, who played two of the other OCS shows), Tough Knuckles and Gun Outfit all played. Music ended a bit before 8pm.

Thee Oh Sees will be back in NYC for a September 21st show at Santos. Tickets are on sale.

The next free Rock Yard show is July 31st with the Skeletons Big Band, Family Band and Priestbird. Skeletons (not big band) play Death By Audio on Wednesday with Peter Evans/Tim Dahl/Mike Pride trio and "Sam Mickens & Darius Jones play the Dead Science."

All Skeletons tour dates and video of the Big Band in action at Roulette, with more Rock Yard pictues and a video, below...

Continue reading "more Rock Yard pics (Thee Oh Sees) & Skeletons dates (DbA)"

photos by Rebecca Smeyne

Golden Triangle

After Thee Oh sees played a Vice party (Thursday), South Steet Seaport Friday, and Rock Yard on Saturday, they completed their NYC stay with a hot and sweaty performance at the 'Bikini Bash' at Bed Stuy's Tip Top (432 Franklin Ave).

The party, were people were literally encouraged to wear bikinis (those in bathing suits paid $5 less) was produced by new party promotion company ABRACADBRA (of which photographer Rebecca Smeyne is a partner in). Golden Triangle (who also played the Seaport on Friday) and Frankie and the Outs (who have performed in bikinis before) were also on the Saturday night bill.

More of Rebecca's pictures from the show, below...

Continue reading "Golden Triangle, Frankie & the Outs & Thee Oh Sees played Bed Stuy in their bathing suits (pics) "

photos by Andrew St. Clair

Jelly's new Saturday series of free summer shows kicked off Saturday afternoon at their new outdoor space they've called Rock Yard. Originally a bit lacking in the exciting lineup department, the show suddenly became much more tempting when they announced the addition of Thee Oh Sees after the Seaport show (which by the way meant that last year Thee Oh Sees played Siren and this year they were coincidentally competing with it). And there was slip 'n slide.....

Continue reading "there was Thee Oh Sees, The Beets, slip 'n slide & more @ the Rock Yard on Saturday (pics)"

photos by Chris La Putt

Golden Triangle @ South Street Seaport

Thee Oh Sees, Golden Triangle and So Cow played the free show at South Street Seaport Friday evening, and every band on the bill also has a NYC show tonight (7/17). Golden Triangle play along with Thee Oh Sees (who also play the Rock Yard today) at the Bed Stuy Bikini Bash, and So Cow plays Death By Audio. Both flyers re-posted, along with more pictures from South Street Seaport below...

Continue reading "Golden Triangle (bikini bash tonight) & So Cow (DBA tonight) played South Street Seaport too (pics) "

photos by Chris La Putt

Thee Oh Sees @ South Street Seaport

Hopefully you got the hint that Thee Oh Sees were playing as Vice's special guest at Party Expo on Thursday night, and you may have even noticed another hint I dropped that the San Francisco band would be playing a show in Bed Stuy tonight (Saturday, 7/17). That show, the "Bed Stuy bikini bash", will also feature sets by Frankie and the Outs and Golden Triangle who Thee Oh Sees played with (along with So Cow) at South Street Seaport Friday night.

But that's not all. Ends up, Thee Oh Sees have also been added to today's free show at the Rock Yard! (not to be confused with the Rock Shop.) That's the new Saturday series of shows Jelly is doing in Williamsburg that The Beets are also playing today. Both of today's flyers and more pictures from South Street Seaport below...

Continue reading "Thee Oh Sees played Party Expo & South Street Seaport (pics), playing a bikini party AND added to the Rock Yard show"

GT photos by Tim Griffin

DOWNLOAD: Thee Oh Sees - I Was Denied (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: So Cow - Start Over (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Golden Triangle - Neon Noose (MP3)

Golden Triangle @ the Spider House in March

As we just pointed out, Friday (7/16) at the Seaport Music Festival it's Thee Oh Sees, Golden Triangle, and So Cow. The free show starts early, with So Cow on at 6:30. (Bill is DJing in between sets, just an FYI.) As two of the three bands are from out of town, there are a few related shows you might want to know about too.

Tonight, 7/15, at Death by Audio, main Oh See John Dwyer is performing with Sam Hilner of Zs. Not sure what this duo is cooking up, but given the rest of the line-up I'd say we're in for an evening of experimental, improvisational noise. The rest of tonight's bill: Charlie Looker of Extra Life, and The Weasel Walter Trio.

Now some of you might be saying: "hold on, aren't So Cow and MINKS were playing Death by Audio tonight?" That was definitely listed in a few different places as such, but that either was never actually the case or has been changed. However, So Cow is playing Death By Audio on Saturday (7/17) with Yvette and the Sundelles. Flyer and other dates below.

Thee Oh Sees new EP, Warm Slime, is six more short servings of the band's patented style garage, thick as oatmeal, plus one 13-minute freakout that opens the record. You can download "I Was Denied" at the top of this post. Also up there: a track from So Cow's first official full-length, Meaningless Friendly, and Golden Triangle's "Neon Noose".

Thee Oh Sees flew in just to play the Seaport (sort of), but will tour in September when they return to NYC to play Santos Party House. We know that last bit because tickets are on sale. All dates below.

The only local band in the group, Golden Triangle, play in town rather often (though they have no other shows besides the Seaport listed at the moment), and they were in Austin this past March for SXSW where they played our day party at Spider House (the same party Thee Oh Sees played). Lots of bands played that show actually, but the pictures got lost in a hole until this week when we also posted sets of The Beets and Kid Congo Powers. Now here are the Golden Triangle pictures.

The rest of those pictures and the above-mentioned tour dates, below...

Continue reading "So Cow & Golden Triangle playing the Seaport Friday too ++ DBA shows, Spider House pics & other related stuff"

words by Andrew Frisicano, photos by Tim Griffin

DOWNLOAD: Thee Oh Sees - I Was Denied (MP3)

Thee Oh Sees started out their long Thursday, March 18th (yes, all the way back in March) with BrooklynVegan's day show in the sun at Austin's Spider House. Their set, pictured here, was the first of three that day for the band. The last called on them to haul a PA, gas-powered generator and gear onto the Lamar Pedestrian Bridge, and didn't end till around 4am. Post-SXSW, the road warriors twice tried to make it across the border for a sadly unrealized mountainside set at MtyMx.

Those examples and many others as proof, Thee Oh Sees' slobbery live show is one of the best around. Check out their new EP, Warm Slime, which was released May 11th on In the Red. Download "I Was Denied" from that record above.

Thee Oh Sees are in town to play a free show at the South Street Seaport this Friday, July 16th with Golden Triangle and So Cow. John Dwyer can also be found at Death By Audio tonight (7/15). Also happening in Brooklyn tonight: a Vice party at Party Expo with a secret guest. hmmmm.

The Vice party flyer, the new Oh Sees album and art and tracklist, and a bunch more pictures from our show at Spider House, below...

Continue reading "Thee Oh Sees played Spider House (pics), playing South Street Seaport Friday ++ "Special Guest" playing Vice party tonight"

The NXNE music festival (650 bands, 7 days, 40 films, 50 venues) happens in Toronto from June 14th-20th. The 2010 lineup for that fest so far includes Iggy & the Stooges, X, Les Savy Fav, Sloan, The Raveonettes, De La Soul, Man or Astroman, Thee Oh Sees and many more. The full list is posted below. Tickets are on sale.

Continue reading "NXNE 2010 - initial lineup, dates & tickets"

South Street Seaport (more by Chris La Putt)

South Street Seaport, NYC (part of the River to River Festival)
July 02 - TBA
July 09 - Bear in Heaven & TBA Zola Jesus
July 16 - Thee Oh Sees & Golden Triangle
July 23 - Free Energy & Best Coast & Loose Limbs
July 30 - Avi Buffalo & TBA Chad VanGaalen
Aug 06 - YACHT & TBA

Also, "The annual Children's Day at the Seaport culminates with the spectacular Target Fireworks, featuring a special performance by The Apples in Stereo accompanied by the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. During the day, families can enjoy performances by Gordon from Sesame Street, Angelina Ballerina, and more, while meeting their favorite storybook characters like Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, and Madeline. (June 26) "

And, there will be a July 4th show with the Old 97's.

photos by Tim Griffin

With Dyan Valdés on synth and an old British man on drums/guitars, EWITFR is like a lighter, bouncier, popier version of Art Brut. Fans not fear, the cleverness of Eddie Argos lyrics are still there. Announcing this band as a 'concept' band, Eddie delivered introductions to each song, including songs like Billys Jean, which was a response to the Michael Jackson's song Billy Jean. Other songs included Superglue, a response to Elastica's Vaseline and also 'Do Think Twice' a response to Bob Dylan's song Don't Think Twice. You get the idea.

Because of the small crowd, the show seemed rather intimate. It was made even more intimate when Eddie Argos took the microphone stand directly into the crowd and sang in the middle of the people who were there. At one point, I was looking at my phone to read a text message from Derek or Alli, only to look up to see Eddie singing directly into my face. Slightly embarrassed, I never reached for my phone again - it was that kind of intimate. The show ended with a rant on Avril Lavigne's song Girlfriend, followed by the band covering the original song boyfriend. [Panic Manual]

The group's previously hinted at North American tour kicks off in L.A. on April 23rd and gets to NYC for two shows on May 12th and 13th. Tickets are on sale for the first of those at Mercury Lounge, and the second at Union Hall.

All tour dates, more pictures & a live video are below...

Continue reading "Everybody Was In The French Resistance...NOW! - updated 2010 tour dates & pics from Spider House "

words & photos by Andrew Frisicano

Wednesday - The Middle East @ Club DeVille (more by Tim Griffin)

I started toward MtyMx about 4 hours after my last SXSW show, so I haven't had much time to reflect on what happened in Austin - but before they become too irrelevant, here are some quick pictures and words of my personal highlights at the fest.

The Middle East covered the stage with an arsenal of instruments and percussion, bringing out a flute, a banjo, keys, an accordion, and a rain stick covered in bottle caps. Their set kicked off with a wobbling country-western number. "The Darkest Part" was a solemn, two-member affair, with the others jumping in as it progressed. And the barn-burning jams that built up to their finale, "Blood," brought to mind the more unhinged tunes Mumford & Sons (it clicked a moment later that they're touring together this May). Overall: a tight, short set (with a few nervous slips) in front of Club DeVille's cave-wall backdrop, which hopefully will lead into an engaging debut and tour.

Thursday - Thee Oh Sees @ (Spider House &) Lamar Pedestrian Bridge

I caught Thee Oh Sees twice on Thursday - once on the gorgeously sunny garden stage of the Spider House; once on a footbridge over Austin's Lady Bird Lake at 2am - and they played other shows as well. On the bridge the band traded songs with Home Blitz, who looked not-exactly-pleased to be standing in the freezing wind at 3am. Amps, a PA and a few worklights ran through a generator, and the assembled equipment threatened to topple over from the surging crowd. The band stretched out into extended jams that made the bridge literally shake. After a more than generous set, the crowd still prodded Dwyer and Co. for more, which they gave.

Friday - Billy Bragg @ MWTX Festival

Billy Bragg's set, to the wristbandless masses of MWTX (formerly Mess with Texas) focused nearly as much on politics as it did on music. He buttered up the crowd with "Help Save the Youth of America" and "To Have and Have Not" before speaking about healthcare reform, defeating the BNP and the ubiquity of corporations at SXSW ("This set is brought to you by my sponsor: Woody Guthrie."). His inspiring asides were genuine and welcome, and they lead into the crowd-pleasing closer, "A New England." He played again later on Friday night with a ton of guests.

Friday - Man or Astroman? @ MWTX Festival

On a completely different note, Man or Astroman? (back after a bit of a hiatus) headlined MWTX's south stage in full space regalia, with video flashing in the background and a pre-recorded narrator between songs. Their short burst of mostly instrumental surf-rock was anything but boring, and they closed it out by flicking on a huge Tesla coil.

Saturday - Major Lazer @ Carniville

My expectations were pretty low for Major Lazer, who were playing to an iced-over crowd on the massive, corporated-out stage at the Mexican-American Cultural Center (aka the Mad Decent/Iheartcomix/Jelly-presented Carniville for the fest), but they proved me wrong. The antics of hypeman Skerrit Bwoy and dancer Mimi made the frozen crowd erupt (the free T-shirts and foam guns being thrown off the stage helped too) - they mounted and humped everything in sight including crowdmembers, the rigging for the lights, and a ladder, which they used to dive onto each other for more dryhumping. Diplo got through most of Guns Don't Kill People, Lazers Do, with a brief assist from Ninjasonik. Did I mention the huge pink, furry monster on stage? He got some too.

Saturday - The Very Best (and then Freddie Gibbs) @ Scoot Inn

At Scoot Inn, the frigid evening grew on and most of the crowd there for the Pitchfork showcase stayed huddled around a campfire or in the bar's sauna-like interior - until The Very Best (who I missed opening for Major Lazer a few hours earlier). Esau, with a huge grin on his face, his co-mic-man (whose name I can't remember), a pair of dancers and DJ Johan Hugo all made good use of the short set. Their energy passed through the mic into crowd members for songs like "Julia" and "Warm Heart of Africa," which finished with plenty of the crowd on stage.

Freddie Gibbs, who I had never really gotten into before, was up next and seemed similarly unfazed by the cold as he rapped confidently about gangsta life. A handful of friends passed around a blunt and ceded the floor to Gibbs, who cooly made converts with his laid-back approach.

Saturday - Sleigh Bells @ Scoot Inn

Sleigh Bells brought the energy back up for the last set of the night (and for some, of SXSW). Despite being a relatively new commodity, both the band's halves, Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller, are assured, polished performers, and they made their appreciation for the crowd clear with their faultless set.

My many other highlights (bands I'll definitely be catching again in the future) included Califone (in NYC 3/30 & 3/31), La Strada, The Sandwitches, Kid Congo Powers, Private Life/Katie Stelmanis, Happy Birthday, Avi Buffalo, Man Man (who I've seen before, but seem to have a new thing going on) and Think About Life.

More pictures from all the sets above (and a ML video), are below...

Continue reading "SXSW 2010 highlights by AF (Thee Oh Sees on a bridge, Man or Astroman?, Major Lazer, Sleigh Bells, Billy Bragg, more) - pics"

As anyone following along on @bvSXSW knows, after some serious transportation issues, Andrew Frisicano eventually made his way down to Monterrey, Mexico from Austin, TX (counting waiting for the bus to show up, it took him something like 18 hours which was 4 hours shorter than it took Ryan Muir) in time for a bit of the 2nd night and all of the third day (aka today, 3/22). Here is some of his story so far...

The Coathangers @ MtyMX (by TiTa_Elizondo)

"You Will Remember Tonight" was the song that stuck out in Andrew WK's headlining set at MtyMx Festival last night in Monterrey, Mexico. It was the second night of the fest, and the only set I saw because of a lengthy, complicated bus trip that started much earlier in the day.

There were a lot of questions coming down to Mexico: transportation, accommodations and food were mostly left in the hands of the festival, and at MtyMx now (5pm Monterrey time), most of those continue to be issues, sadly distracting from the bands who did make it. For some bands and showgoers the trip took 20+ hours of waiting and riding on buses, but if one thing has been consistent, it has been that no two MtyMx trips have been the same.

Due to spotty bus service from Austin, shaken confidence in the festival and scheduling issues, a number of the bands on the bill have canceled or been unable to make it down. Those bands (editor's note: which Todd P sarcastically addresses in a video below) include Washed Out, Small Black, Tanlines, No Age, Lucky Dragons, Anamanaguchi, Pocahaunted, Beach Fossils, MNDR, Sun Araw, Total Abuse, Talk Normal, The Wave Pictures, Fucked Up, The Sandwitches and Liturgy. On the festival's last day, arranging transportation back to Austin or elsewhere has been an overriding theme.

story continued below with video & more pics...

Continue reading "Andrew Frisicano reports from MtyMx (which he had much trouble getting to, and he's not sure how he's getting back) "

DOWNLOAD: That Ghost - The Red Bow (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Odawas - Harmless Lover's Discourse (MP3)

Thee Oh... Thanks

"...And keeping the mock-Velvets tradition intact, here are The Baths equipped with a Moe Tucker gal on the essential floor tom, stand up snare, single cymbal and tambourine. This possibly accounted for an amazing rhythm set-up that had me tapping a toe or two in place. The distortion didn't deliver initially, but with some obligatory "bah bah bahs," the guitar ruckus evolved into something Thurston wouldn't mind having perform at one of his "All Tomorrows Parties" um, you know, parties.

Third up is Odawas. And wait, what's this? A pedal steel, Dylan harmonica-headset and double stacked keyboards? This ought to be a hoot! Somehow the keyboards take on that eerie whirling effect that made Grandaddy's "The Software Slump" so otherworldly and compelling. It was refreshing to hear the steel being taken to task by letting the twang serve as a trippy sound composite amid the keyboards." [Impose]

Also luckily all three of them are heading to Austin for SXSW (where I actually will be), and one of them (Odawas) is even playing another BV party: the free BrooklynVegan/AnSo day show at Spider House on Thursday, March 18th. There's 19 bands total on that bill including Thee Oh Sees who kick off a tour with fellow Bay Area band The Baths on March 10th. All dates for all bands, and those videos below...

Continue reading "The Baths played Noise Pop w/ That Ghost & Odawas (video), touring w/ Thee Oh Sees, playing SXSW (dates) "

yes we've lost our minds...

BrooklynVegan & AnSo Present:
A Day Party in Austin, TX!
@ Spider House (2908 Fruth St @ Guadalupe)
Thursday March 18, 2010
Noon-7pm

ALL AGES-FREE [No badges, wristbands or RSVP necessary]
19 bands on 3 stages (1 indoor and 2 outdoor)
Full bar w/ Drink Specials. In house restaurant & backyard BBQ.

Stage #1
6:00 Human Eye
5:00 Tyvek
4:00 Thee Oh Sees
3:00 Golden Triangle
2:00 Lovvers
1:00 The Beets

Stage #2
6:00 Cheeseburger
5:00 Jim Jones Revue
4:00 Slim Cessna's Auto Club
3:00 Kid Congo Powers
2:00 Carletta Sue Kay
1:00 Or, The Whale
12:00 La Strada

Stage #3
5:30 UUVVWWZ
4:30 Everybody Was In the French Resistance Now (w/ Eddie Argos of Art Brut)
3:30 DM Stith
2:30 Odawas
1:30 A Sunny Day in Glasgow
12:30 The Sandwitches

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan & AnSo Present a kick-ass & free Austin 2010 Thursday Day Party (with a zillion bands)"

DOWNLOAD: That Ghost - The Red Bow (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Odawas - Harmless Lover's Discourse (MP3)

The Baths...

We've been very busy around putting together live shows in our spare non-blogging moments. It's especially obvious today as we continue to announce show after show - SXSW day parties, official showcases & a pre-SXSW show in NYC included. Next up, and even sooner....

BrooklynVegan will be hosting a happy hour event at this year's Noise Pop 2010 (in San Francisco from February 23rd to March 1st) on Saturday, February 27th at Benders Bar (806 South Van Ness Ave). For this show we decided to go with three local San Francisco Bay Area bands who we've been curious to check out and who were not already playing any other shows at the festival. The result: Odawas, The Baths and That Ghost. The three bands will play the free afternoon show on 2/27 from 4-7pm (21+) (thanks to Panache for their help with the booking!).

Odawas...

Odawas are a hazy folk-garage band on Jagjaguwar - their "Harmless Lover's Discourse" off last year's The Blue Depths is above.

The Baths do Kinks-style rock that gets both dirty and acoustic; they're appropriately touring with Thee Oh Sees this March (both bands will be at SXSW and MtyMx).

That Ghost, one Ryan Schmale who hails from Sonoma County, CA (north of SF), hides his vocals behind a wall of fog. His tune "The Red Bow" is above; other material from him is available from Twosyllable Records.

All three bands, like Noise Pop, are local to the San Francisco Bay Area. Yes, even Odawas...

MOKB: How is California treating you? Have you noticed any difference in the way that people respond to your music there, in comparison to your time spent in Chicago and/or Bloomington?

Michael Tapscott of Odawas: It's been fantastic here. There seems to be a lot of local support for what we are doing, and an abundance of supportive, creative people around. We left good friends in Chicago at our jobs and in musical friends, but we never quite caught on there. It was a transitional year when we were there anyway. Bloomington is a paradise. I miss it everyday. But when we left, it was time to go.

Will you be there? We also have a bunch of free tickets to giveaway to other Noise Pop shows. Details on those contests, videos and all Baths tour dates are below...

Continue reading "The Baths, Odawas & That Ghost playing BV Happy Hour @ Noise Pop - full schedule, MP3s, contests, tour dates & more"

the concert site...

==BIG NEWS!==

It is my pleasure to announce the inaugural MtyMx All-Ages Festival of Art and Music!

The MtyMx festival will happen on March 20th, 21st, and 22nd at Autocinema Las Torres in Monterrey, Mexico

The MtyMx festival is a collaboration between Yo Garage and Todd P and will feature up to 25 bands a day for three days, playing outdoors on two stages in a beautiful drive-in movie theater on the side of a mountain in the Sierra Madre Oriental. Over one third of the bands playing are from Mexico!

Tickets are $30 for a three day pass. 75 bands!

Confirmed bands include: Dan Deacon, Neon Indian, Washed Out, Thee Oh Sees, Pocahaunted, Indian Jewelry, Male Bonding, Best Fwends, Banjo or Freakout and many many more, along with Mexican groups Los Fancy Free, Los Margaritos, and more to be announced in the coming days. -Todd P

The only bad news (for SXSWers) is that Todd will not be bringing his multi-day fest of day shows to Ms. Bea's again this year, though he doesn't seem to be ruling out doing at least something in Austin before Mexico.

Scared of Mexico? In an e-mail, Todd P told us, "Monterrey has a lower violent crime rate than NYC, Dallas, or Houston, even accounting for international drug trade violence. A major goal of the festival is to dispel US misconceptions that Mexico is the 3rd world, uneducated, dangerous and backwards. Mexico is a modern country with a surging middle class and a vibrant, plugged in 1st world art and music community. Another major goal is to correct the disenfranchisement of Mexican artists and bands caused by strict US visa restrictions on Mexicans. In short: these bands and fans can't go to SxSW."

Details and reservations for Austin-to-Monterrey round-trip bus service, hotel options and onsite camping are forthcoming. More info on MtyMx is below...

Continue reading "Todd P officially announces MtyMx Fest (March 20-22) in Monterrey, Mexico (expanded lineup - No Age & more)"

by Bill Pearis

The Beets @ Death by Audio in August (more by Leia Jospe)

As mentioned earlier, Thee Oh Sees are playing a late show at Death by Audio, now thankfully Maze-free (I was scared of the minotaur), with The Fresh & Onlys and The Beets (who also play with Monotonix at Santos tonight). They're listed as "The Ghosties" but in case you're still in doubt, at Mercury Lounge last night John Dwyer said onstage "if you wanna see the Oh Sees in a sweaty, shitty little room, come to Death by Audio tomorrow night" so the cat is officially out of the bag.

So basically you have two chances to see Thee Oh Sees and Fresh & Onlys tonight -- earlier at The Bell House (with Golden Triangle) or super late (Beets are on at 11PM supposedly) at Death by Audio. The adventurous might go to both. They were both great last night at Mercury Lounge: The Fresh & Onlys' low-fi recordings disguise their impressive musicality a bit, they are a seriously good band; and Thee Oh Sees are just one of the best live bands out there right now. Whichever show you go to, get as close to the action as you can. Seeing John Dwyer's demented facial expressions is half the fun.

Turbo Fruits @ Death By Audio (more by Leia Jospe)

Also on that Monotonix bill tonight at Santos -- and at their show tomorrow (10/10) at Market Hotel -- are Nashville's Turbo Fruits whose new album on Fat Possum, Echo Kid, is a lot of fun. With a slight rockabilly influence (they do live in Music City), it's party rock in the best sense of the term, super-catchy and danceable, with a nice swagger to it. Check out "Mama's Mad Cause I Fried My Brain" at the top of this post. If you can't see them this weekend, Turbo Fruits will be back for CMJ in two weeks (two weeks!), playing Union Pool on Saturday October 24, with Lovvers (with whom their touring) and hometown pals JEFF the Brotherhood.

Lovvers are also on the bill of the TBA BrooklynVegan day show at Pianos on October 22nd that Speech Debelle isn't playing.

Timber Timbre

Timber Timbre (aka Toronto resident Taylor Kirk) is town for two shows: tonight (10/9) at Union Hall and tomorrow at Mercury Lounge. Like fellow Torontonians Still Life Still, who were here the last two nights, Timber Timbre is on the Arts & Crafts label who released his third album over the summer. The most obvious comparison, and one that is hard not to make, is Devendra Banhart. (Bon Iver is not entirely inappropriate, either.) I think it's the quivery element in his voice more than the music, which has a spooky Tom Waits-ish vibe to it at times. It's a nice record. He'll be back for CMJ too if you can't make this weekend's shows.

On somewhat related notes, Still Life Still were just added to the other TBA BrooklynVegan day party happening at Pianos during CMJ (10/24), and tickets went on sale today for Devendra Banhart's upcoming show at Town Hall.

Valleys @ Pop Montreal (more by Ryan Muir)

And finally, there's a massive show tonight (10/9) at Shea Stadium (the Williamsburg DIY venue, not the home of the Mets) tonight featuring Blue Jungle, Valleys, Scotland's Waters Wolves, Gary B & the Notions, German Measles, Young Boys, Le Rug, and Effing. A weird line-up, due to two shows being sort of crammed together (some of it was supposed to be at Silent Barn where the TV Ghost show is happening instead), but it's nights like this that you might just discover your new favorite band.

Tour dates, videos, blah blah blah after the jump..

Continue reading "Turbo Fruits, Timber Timbre, Shea Stadium, The Ghosties & more in This Week in Indie (part 2.5)"

Thee Oh Sees in Kansas in September (by Bond Natalya)

10.9 @ death by audio

.special guests "the ghosties"
..the fresh and onlys [san francisco]
...the beets

For The Beets, DBA is also one of two shows tonight. Their first is with Monotonix at Santos Party House. Monotonix also play Market Hotel on Saturday.

A video of The Intelligence covering Thee Oh Sees' "Block of Ice" in Dallas on October 3rd, below...

Continue reading "Thee Oh Sees & The Fresh & Onlys played Mercury Lounge, playing Death by Audio w/ The Beets after the Bell House"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: The Fresh & Onlys - Dude's Got a Tender Heart (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Fresh & Onlys - Invisible Forces (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Blue Jungle - Here We Go Again (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Valleys - Silent Woods (MP3)

Thee Oh Sees @ 2009 Siren Fest (more by Chris La Putt)

Why oh why are there so many shows I want to see all happening on the same night? Tonight is jam-packed. Top of my list is the return of San Francisco's Thee Oh Sees and The Fresh & Onlys who play tonight (10/8) at Mercury Lounge and tomorrow (10/9) at the Bell House. Thee Oh Sees also play Maxwell's on Saturday (10/10) without the F&Os (but with Pierced Arrows).

Both last played NYC together at the Woodsist / Captured Tracks Festival on July 4. They also both just released their second of two albums this year, and weirdly enough, The Fresh & Onlys' Grey Eyed Girls is on Woodsist, and Thee Oh Sees' Dog Poison is on Captured Tracks. (More crossover trivia: Captured Tracks' honcho Mike Sniper did the art for Grey Eyed Girls.) I like both albums a lot. Grey Eyed Girls is darker than the F&O's self-titled album from the spring, at times (like on "Invisible Forces" which is downloadable above) a bit like early Echo & the Bunnymen. Elsewhere it's pretty and sweet ("Dude's Got a Tender Heart," also downloadable). The new Oh Sees album is rather different for John Dwyer and company, trading sonic assault for acoustic guitars and the occasional flute. It's still perfect beach music, but this is more sundown than shooting the curl. In addition to new albums, both have released something like 23 new 7"s between them since the summer, so look out for all that stuff at the merch table.

Both bands really bring it live. John Dwyer beats the crap out of his guitars, while shoving his microphone all the mouth for maximum distortion. His eyes bug out a little. The dude gives 110%. If that were possible. And The Fresh & Onlys are great too, though I hear singer Tim Cohen's wrist is still in a cast (bassist Shayde Sartin shoved him down some stairs during some spirited horseplay) so he'll be on keyboard duty, but they managed to whip up a storm back in July -- none of the band seem to be able to stand still.

The Girls at Dawn

Opening bands are worth seeing too. At Mercury Lounge, it's Toronto's Still Life Still, who also opened for Kurt Vile at the same venue last night, as well as locals The Girls at Dawn. The latter are an all-girl trio who draw influence from both Phil Spector and C-86, and if that sounds like something you're heard before (Brilliant Colors, Liechtenstein, a certain other bunch of Brooklynites), I'll say Girls at Dawn do it pretty well and manage to carve out their own little corner of a crowded market. I like what's on their MySpace and tonight's show is a record release party for their debut 7" on HoZac, and they'll soon have records out on Tic Tac Totally and Captured Tracks, so expect to hear their name (and their music) more often in the coming months.

At the Bell House, Fresh & Onlys are on first, and then it's the wild world of Golden Triangle whose debut album is due out early next year on Hardly Art (whose CMJ showcase they're also playing). Their live performances are usually pretty fun, ranging from the somewhat chaotic to completely out of control, but I'd say it'll be the former given your average Bell House crowd. But then again, this may not be your average Bell House crowd.

All dates and flyers below...

Continue reading "The Fresh & Onlys and Thee Oh Sees are touring & in NYC -- The Girls at Dawn play Mercury Lounge + other show dates "

by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Kurt Vile - Overnite Religion (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Kurt Vile - Hunchback (MP3)

Canada's Still Life Still (pictured above) just released their debut, Girls Come Too, in August on Arts & Crafts. Behind the controls for the record were Broken Social Scene's Martin Davis Kinack and Kevin Drew, so it's no surprise that the band takes some sonic cues from the influential collective. Still Life Still impart their BSS-style dense arrangements with lyrics and energy that seem rooted in '90s-era pop-punk. Check it out on their MySpace.

They're in town for two stacked shows at Mercury Lounge on October 7th and 8th. On Wednesday, October 7th they play with Kurt Vile & the Violators, Birds of Maya and Coconuts. Then on October 8th they join a bill with Thee Oh Sees and The Fresh & Onlys (on tour together and playing the next night at the Bell House) and Girls At Dawn. Tickets for both the Oct. 7th and Oct. 8th shows are still on sale.

Still Life Still are also playing a CMJ show October 22nd at Union Pool. It's an Arts & Crafts showcase and they'll be joined by Timbre Timbre, Hollerago, Zues and others.

Kurt Vile's Matador debut, Childish Prodigy, finally comes out October 6th and the Mercury Lounge show is just one of the dates he's playing to support it. Two tracks from that record are posted above ("Hunchback" is especially recommended).

While in town, Thee Oh Sees are also opening for Pierced Arrows at Maxwell's on October 10th (the night before, 10/9, Pierced Arrows play Mercury Lounge). Thee Oh Sees have a new record out (or out soon) called Dog Poison on Captured Tracks (information is somewhat scarce). The new LP takes the band in a slightly more acoustic, less straight-ahead-rock direction (at least compared to their early '09 release Help). Its cover is below.

Still Life Still's album art, tracklist and tour dates are also, below...

Continue reading "Still Life Still on Arts & Crafts - opening for Kurt Vile & Thee Oh Sees (both w/ new records) in NYC this week + CMJ"