photos by David Andrako

One night before the Strawberry Fest, NYU hosted a Cinco de Mayo concert with Tyvek, Twin Shadow and The Thermals at Le Poisson Rouge. For the Thermals it was a few days after they played Maxwell's. For Twin Shadow it was a day before they opened for The Pains of Being Pure at Heart at Webster Hall and the same night they appeared on Fallon. We missed Tyvek (it was an early show), but more pictures of the other two bands at the NYU show, and the Thermals setlist, below...

Continue reading "The Thermals played an NYU show @ LPR w/ Twin Shadow (pics & setlist)"

The Thermals recently announced an NYC show that's happening July 1st at The Bell House after their tour with Matt & Kim, but no need to wait that long to get a dose of the Portland band. They've announced another PAIR of shows.... and in the next two weeks! Tickets are on sale for both a May 1st appearance at Maxwell's as well as a May 5th show at Le Poisson Rouge, both occurring weeks before their North American tour even begins.

The Thermals are currently touring through Europe with The Coathangers. Updated tour dates are below.

Continue reading "The Thermals add 2 more NYC-area dates to tour!"

"Art is made up of moments. Moments of inspiration. Power. Emotion. Grace. Passion. These moments collided in Paris in 1911 and changed the path of art and conventional creativity. There will be another spectacular convergence exactly 100 years later.

Philadelphia, April 7, 2011 - May 1, 2011. Introducing the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts.

Together we will create a city inspired, featuring artistic expression from across our region and around the world. And the world will be invited to join us in a new moment of innovation, collaboration and creativity."

The Philly show is currently scheduled as a one-off for the Portland band who will have finished a European tour eight days earlier and who don't start their tour with Matt & Kim until after Sasquatch at the end of May. That tour ends in Boston on 6/30, one day after they play a sold out show at Terminal 5. One day later, July 1st, the Thermals return to NYC to play their own headlining show at The Bell House. Tickets are on sale now.

Continue reading "The Thermals add Brooklyn show after Matt & Kim tour, playing Philadelphia Int Festival of the Arts w/ Sharon Jones"

The Thermals @ Irving Plaza in 2010 (more by Alexis Maindrault)

The previously mentioned Thermals/Matt & Kim show at Terminal 5 (tickets on sale now) is actually part of a full blown tour which kicks off after the Sasquatch Festival, and will also include DJ Autobot from Flosstradamus who "will be carrying the nonstop dance party through the evening and between bands".

Before then, the Thermals are heading to Europe, and Matt & Kim are hitting SXSW to play both the Woodie Awards and the Fader Fort (note: they are touring in support of their Sidewalks album which is out on the Fader label). All tour dates below...

Continue reading "The Thermals & Matt & Kim --- 2011 Tour Dates"

Matt & Kim at Webster Hall (more by Jessica Amaya)

Matt & Kim play the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ on March 20th, and the perky (or is that spelled pesky?) duo have added another NYC-area show at Terminal 5 on June 29 and with The Thermals. Tickets go on AMEX presale Wed (3/2) at noon, and regular sale on Friday. All tour dates below.

The Thermals dropped the Not Like Any Other Feeling 7" which is currently available via Kill Rock Stars Records. Their previous Never Listen To Me 7" is also available.

All tour dates, and a recent video for Matt & Kim's "Cameras" below.

Continue reading "Matt & Kim touring, playing T5 w/ the Thermals (dates)"

Tonight, Friday, 1/28, Iron & Wine are playing a free show at the Apple Store in SoHo. On Monday (January 31 at 7pm), Carrie Brownstein & Fred Armisen will discuss their IFC TV show Portlandia, live, at the same location. Meanwhile you can catch Portlandia three times today on IFC, including at 10:30pm.

Carrie Brownstein's band Wild Flag is playing two now-sold-out shows in Brooklyn in March (and other dates). Catch Fred Armisen on SNL this Saturday, 1/29, with musical guest Nicki Minaj (who recently announced a tour with Lil Wayne who was on SNL not that long ago)

That picture above shows Portland band the Thermals (who play a show in Portland tonight) arriving at the Portlandia premiere party in NYC last week. The band performed at the event, though unlike some members of the Decemberists, I'm not sure if the Thermals actually get any screen time in one of the upcoming shows. Carrie Brownstein however, as you might remember, gets some screen time in the recent Thermals video for "I Don't Believe You" which is the same song the Thermals will be performing on February 1st on 'Lopez Tonight'. The song comes from the band's 5th LP Personal Life, as does the song "Never Listen to Me" which now also has a video, which you can watch with other stuff, below...

Continue reading "Portlandia is coming to the Apple Store, The Thermals have a new video (and are playing "Lopez Tonight")"

Ari Up & the Slits

today in NYC
* Questlove @ Cielo
* ASSSSCAT 3000 @ UCB
* Teddy Thompson @ City Winery
* Daniel Kitson @ St Ann's Warehouse
* Etta Place, Blow, Marra Barr @ Zebulon
* Phillip Greenlief, Jon Raskin @ The Stone
* Connie Crothers, Kevin Norton @ The Stone
* Hannibal Buress & friends @ Knitting Factory
* Moodrings, EULA, Im Turning Into @ Death By Audio
* Stephane Wrembel Presents The Django Experiment @ Barbes
* Right On Dynamite, Le Boum, Hiawatha, Delta Hotel @ Coco 66
* Mister Heavenly, Sun Airway, Little Shalimar @ Bowery Ballroom
* Weasel Walter, Marc Edwards, Goblin War, Fossils @ Silent Barn
* The Toasters, Royal City Riot, The Rudie Crew @ Knitting Factory
* Blitz the Ambassador & the Embassy Ensemble featuring Baloji @ SOB's
* Doris Cellar of Freelance Whales, Mammal of Paradise, Baby Alpaca @ Glasslands
* Tyvek, Fergus & Geronimo, Xray Eyeballs, The Gaming Commission @ Mercury Lounge
* The Beatles Complete on Ukelele w/ Nat & Alex Wolff, Julian Velard, Deni Bonet and Terry Radigan & more @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Neneh Cherry, members of The Slits, members of The Slackers, Brave New Girl, The Band Droidz, Bruce Smith from PiL (Ari Up Birthday Party) @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Just as a reminder, tonight at MHOW:

WHAT: In honor of the memory of the legendary Ari Up a/k/a Ariane Forster, lead singer of the pioneering girl punk band the Slits, True Warriors and more, Dunia Best and Aram Sinnreich (Brave New Girl, Agent 99), NYU Punk Professor Vivien Goldman, Joly MacFie of Punkcast.com and friends are throwing a PUNKY REGGAE PARTY on January 16, 2011 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg.

WHO: Participating artists, led by Musical Director Ira Heaps, include original and current members of the Slits, including Tessa Pollitt, Hollie Cook, Neneh Cherry and AnnA Ozawa; Bruce Smith of PiL and the Slits; members of Brave New Girl; Band Droidz; legendary Beefheart guitarist Gary Lucas; Afrobeat superstar Wunmi Olaiya; Felice Rosser (Faith); Dee Pop (Bush Tetras, Radio I-Ching); Lizzi Bougatsis (Gang Gang Dance); Afro-Punk avatar Tamar-Kali, King Django; Honeychild Coleman; Barbara Gogan (The Passions); Sherleen Nubro; Lisa Samuels and many luminaries from the punk and reggae worlds backed by Ira Heaps and the True Warriors performing classic Slits hits, dancehall and previously unheard originals by Ari Up. Lyrical Readings and Remembrances by Michael Patrick McDonald, Greg Tate, Sara Marcus (Girls To The Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution) and Angela Jaeger (ex-Pigbag).
Plus never before seen video footage and MORE SURPRISE GUESTS.

WHEN:Sunday January 16, 2011
Doors: 7:00 PM / Show: 8:00 PM

Proceeds will benefit the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

And the Golden Globes are tonight.

What else?

DOWNLOAD: The Thermals - I Don't Believe You (MP3)

The Thermals @ Brooklyn Bowl in April (more by Andrew Frisicano)

The Thermals will release a new album entitled "Personal Life" on September 7th via Kill Rock Stars...

"For their upcoming album Personal Life, The Thermals re-teamed with producer Chris Walla (Death Cab For Cutie). Walla and The Thermals have a long history together - Chris mixed the first Thermals LP (More Parts Per Million, 2003) and produced their second LP (Fuckin' A, 2004). Walla brought his signature brand of crisp, shiny pop production to Personal Life, as he has done for records by Tegan and Sara and Telekinesis, to name just a few. Personal Life was recorded to 2" tape and mixed to 1/2" tape, and vinyl enthusiasts will be happy to know the vinyl was mastered straight from tape, with no computers involved.

Sonically, Personal Life continues the Thermals tradition of high-energy punk/power/pop while also exploring darker, more introspective territory. Lyrically, Personal Life obsesses over love and lies with the same passion The Thermals have reserved for politics and death in the past.

The lead-off single from Personal Life, "I Don't Believe You" will be released as a 7" and digitally by Kill Rock Stars on August 10th, 2010."

September is also when the Portland band will start playing shows again including a pre-tour performance at the Bumbershoot Festival, and a during-tour show at Irving Plaza in NYC on October 13th. That show, like many on the tour, is with Cymbals Eat Guitars who just played Siren Fest and Irving Plaza before that (weird for an "indie" band to play there even once these days). Tickets for the NYC show go on sale Monday at noon.

All dates below....

Continue reading "Thermals touring w/ Cymbals Eat Guitars - dates & a new MP3 "

also, we are mixing our record in TWO WEEKS with CHRIS WALLA! the new working title is "personal life" -The Thermals

The Thermals @ Pitchfork Fest 2k9 (more by Joseph Xu)

The Thermals have announced an April tour with Past Lives which includes a return to NYC. They'll play a show at Brooklyn Bowl on Tuesday, April 20th show (ahem, 4/20), almost a year after their last New York gigs in May '09. Tickets go on sale Friday, January 15th at noon.

Before then, the band has some West Coast dates lined up for February with their Kill Rock Star labelmates Thao & The Get Down Stay Down. "We will be playing all the hits, plus a few songs from our next LP, coming later this year," writes Hutch. As it says above, Death Can's Chris Walla is mixing the new album.

Walla and The Thermals have a long history together. Chris mixed The Thermals 1st LP More Parts Per Million (Sub Pop, 2003) and produced their 2nd LP, Fuckin' A (Sub Pop, 2004). The Thermals also supported Death Cab For Cutie on a few tours in 2003 and 2004.

The Thermals are no stranger to cover songs - they've long worked Built to Spill's "Big Dipper" into their sets, and the band's festival circuit shows last summer extended their covers repertoire to include songs like Green Day's "Basket Case" (video below). The Thermals aren't immune from the cover treatment either. Seattle's School of Rock band played their song "When I Died" at a January 9th concert. That spirited rendition, the Thermals' own cover-band antics and all tour dates are below...

Continue reading "The Thermals - new album almost done, covered by School of Rock, 2010 Tour Dates (Brooklyn Bowl) "

photos by Joseph Xu

Happy Holidays! I take on more than I can handle. That results in a lot of unposted content. In the name of catching up, while also taking it easy during this final week of the year, here's some of that lost material.

More pictures from the 2009 Pitchfork Music Festival, below...

Continue reading "pictures from the 2009 Pitchfork Festival "

The Thermals @ the Bell House (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

Tickets are on Am Ex presale for all three Mogwai shows happening at Music Hall of Williamsburg.

Tickets are on Am Ex pesale for both Thermals shows happening at Bowery Ballroom.

WKYK @ Obama Benefit, Knitting Factory - Jan 29, 2008 (Anya Garrett)

* The Thermals @ Studio B
* Benevento @ Sullivan Room
* The Teenagers play Hiro Ballroom
* Toumani Diabate @ Bowery Ballroom
* Joanna Newsom & an orchestra do BAM
* Ambulance LTD & Violens @ Union Hall
* The Olsen Twins are Violens fans?
* Zombieville @ Knitting Factory
* Dub Trio, Foreign Islands & Goes Cube @ Luna Lounge
* Spanish Prisoners, The Lisps & Antlers @ Knitting Factory

Things are still kind of a mess around here. sorry.

I'm being told that $20 tickets, NY Mag subscription included, will be available at the door of Thermals karaoke tonight. The Whitest Kids You Know do comedy before The Thermals. Whitest Kids also performed Tuesday night at Knitting Factory (see picture above). What else?

Jefferson stopped by the Thermals and Ted Leo & The Pharmacists show at McCarren Pool on Sunday (while I was in a plane on my way home from Oslo) (Aug 12, 2007). More Ted photos below....

Continue reading "Ted Leo & The Pharmacists @ McCarren Pool, Brooklyn, NY"