photos by Dominick Mastrangelo & Josh Darr

Fleet Foxes / Zola Jesus

Pitchfork Fest day two (7/16) had a pretty great variety of acts. In addition to newer acts like No Age, Zola Jesus and Twin Shadow, day two made way for a number of more classic artists including the recently reunited Dismemberment Plan, hardcore punk 'supergroup' OFF!, and instrumental hip hop vet DJ Shadow. You might include Destroyer and The Radio Dept. in that group too, who both played day two of the fest.

Fleet Foxes, who also played Pitchfork Festival in 2008, headlined. Catch Fleet Foxes in NYC when their tour with The Walkmen hits Williamsburg Waterfront on September 24. Tickets for this great double bill are still on sale.

Gang Gang Dance (pics) and G-Side (pics) played day two also. More pictures from that day below...

Continue reading "pics from Pitchfork Fest 2011 -- Day Two"

Evan Dando at The Bell House (more by Graeme Flegenheimer)

Evan Dando & The Lemonheads have a few random upcoming dates scheduled. The Lemonheads will share a bill with The Canon Logic on April 28th at Maxwell's in Hoboken. Tickets are still available. You can also catch Josh Lattanzi of The Lemonheads at Bowery Ballroom on May 26 & 27 as part of the Bob Dylan tribute that will also include members of the Strokes, Hold Steady, etc, etc.

All other upcoming Evan Dando dates are in other countries at the moment, including a June 16th Evan & Juliana Hatfield show in Toronto for the NXNE festival which, like Brooklyn's own multi-venue festival Northside, recently expanded its lineup. Some of the other bands playing are in the title of this post. The rest are listed below.

All Dando-related dates and some videos below too...

Continue reading "Lemonheads playing shows, NXNE expands lineup (includes Descendents, Stars, Devo, OFF!, Juliana Hatfield, more)"

photos by Bao Nguyen, words by Rachel Kowal

For a sold-out show, the audience was oddly quiet and subdued for much the evening, but the laid back atmosphere was a perfect match for the first band of the evening, MINKS. As the members of MINKS walked on stage, they casually surveyed the crowd and began to play without uttering a single word. At their posts, they stood as still as stick figures, virtually motionless.

For such pleasantly upbeat music, the surprisingly lively "Cemetery Rain" aside, their performance was surprisingly deadpan - even with additional musicians helping out. (Are you really 'happy' to be playing, Sean Kilfoyle? Really?) They were a morose version of the Crayon Fields (but with female vocals added to the mix). Singer Amalie Bruun may be the most listless tambourine player I've ever witnessed, but I found myself oddly drawn to her. (Would she start to dance? Maybe smile a little? Open up between songs? No. Not so much.)

Up next was Abe Vigoda who immediately imbued the room with a bit of life, thanks largely to the poppy keyboard solo in their opening number, "Dream of My Love." Throughout their set, the LA group kept things interesting by switching instruments - often mid song. The drummer was especially good at jumping around on stage from instrument to instrument. The audience, however, remained largely reserved. "What? Are you scared to dance?" asked the keyboard player after a few songs. "It's fun."

As if responding to the challenge, one audience member tried half-heartedly to get a mosh pit going, but the movement didn't catch on. People did at least loosen up a bit though - especially by the time Wild Nothing began to play.

Like MINKS, Wild Nothing is a fun blend of sunny pop and subdued shoegaze, but they were definitely peppier than their opener. They even had girls dancing on stage for the beginning of their set.

"You're very polite and quiet and it freaks me out," admitted front man Jack Tatum. He was right. It was kind of weird. Much of the room seemed to be under a trance. (Maybe it was the combination of it being a Sunday and the night before Valentine's Day.)

After playing a few newer songs and a brief cover (Primal Scream's "Velocity Girl"), Wild Nothing closed their initial set with "Summer Holiday," which actually got more than a few people dancing. Following the warm applause from the crowd, they returned for a quick encore - the song "Bored Game," which seemed appropriate, given the lyrics ("I don't feel right without you") and the number of couples in the room.

--

Abe Vigoda played in Manhattan again last night (Valentine's Day) at Le Poisson Rouge as part of the venue's "Radio Happy Hour" series. Abe and Wild Nothing play a recently-added Brooklyn show at 285 Kent tonight (2/15). Fergus & Geronimo has been added as opener and advanced tickets are on sale at Desert Island Books (540 Metropolitan Ave | 718.388.5087). MINKS' next NYC show is with Dirty Beaches and Dum Dum Girls who they head out on tour with this month. After Brooklyn, Abe and Wild Nothing continue on tour together. All remaining dates and more pictures from Bowery Ballroom, below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda played Bowery w/ MINKS (pics), playing 285 Kent w/ Fergus & Geronimo (tonight)"

Mr. Wild Nothing @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Chris Gersbeck)

Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda are out on tour and playing Bowery Ballroom together on February 13th. That show is now just about sold out (grab a ticket fast if you want one), so they added a 2nd NYC show. The new one is happening two days later, February 15th at 285 Kent Ave in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (right by Glasslands). Abe Vigoda, as previously pointed out, are also playing a show on February 14th (Valentine's Day) at Le Poisson Rouge. Todd P will have more details on the Brooklyn show later. Updated tour dates below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing add 2nd NYC show (for Abe Vigoda that makes 3)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Gross Relations - You Don't Know Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Anika - Yang Yang (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Anika - Terry (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: ARMS - Floaters (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Martial Canterel - You Today (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Martial Canterel - Retrospective (Zip)
DOWNLOAD: The Vacant Lots - Confusion (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Don Giovanni Sampler (Zip)

Gross Relations

In addition to being Black History Month, National Bird Feeding Month and National Sweet Potato Month, February also seems to consistently have a lot of band residencies. You may already be aware of ones by ARMS (who I'll get to shortly) and Yellow Ostrich,  but I'd also like to point out that up-and-coming Brooklyn indie rock band Gross Relations starts a three-week Tuesday residency tonight (2/8) at Bruar Falls.

Gross Relations have been going less than a year, but seem to have a clear idea with what they want to sound like. Like Mr. Dream and Diehard, the band shares a love of '90s indie rock. With the prominent keyboard lead lines (or maybe it's heavily-treated guitar?) on both sides of their "Fuzzy Timelines" 7", it's pretty easy to make comparisons to The Rentals, but the band they really remind me of is Chicago's late, great Number One Cup.

Either way, it's a good thing. Gross Relations write some majorly catchy songs. You can download the b-side to their single at the top of this post. Tonight's residency also features The Toothaches (whose debut album is a free download), Gone Bad, and NT.

ARMS @ Glasslands in December (more by Andrew St. Clair)

I mentioned ARMS briefly above who are on Week Two (2/9) of their February Wednesdays residency at Pianos. Todd Goldstein and the rest of the band are finishing up work on their debut album (Kids Aflame was more of a Todd solo thing) with Shane Stoneback (Vampire Weekend, Sleigh Bells). So expect a lot of new songs, I'd imagine. Todd says of the record, "It's a vast, hi-fi album. We're doing everything we can to take full advantage of the studio... the songs are very poppy and a little weird, there are lots of beautiful/scary textures, copious-but-thoughtful use of reverb... sequenced into a song-cycle, a sort of sci-fi breakup album." ARMS are hoping to have it out by the summer.

This week's residency is especially strong I think. It includes the lovely Hospitality, who finally seem to be getting down to business, having wrapped up their long-gestating debut album (also with Stoneback) which could be out as early as the spring. Let's hope! Singer Amber Papini promises a couple new songs at the show.

Also playing: Radical Dads, whose new single is a free  for you (with email address) via the increasingly popular Download Widget (found below). And Translations (who share a member with ARMS) open who I am super psyched to finally be seeing live after months of digging their debut 7".

Show's eight bucks, will be a good one.

Martial Canterel

Also Wednesday is the record release party for Martial Canterel's You Today which came out today on Wierd Records. The show is part of Wierd's weekly Wednesday night party at Home Sweet Home. The flyer says performance at midnight, but I've never seen a band go on there before 1AM.

Martial Canterel is the non de synth of Sean McBride who is also one half of Xeno & Oaklander. McBride is kind of a luddite, making his records entirely on vintage equipment that was probably cutting-edge technology in 1980. Obviously it sounds very retro, but McBride's way of doing things also gives it a sound -- and authenticity -- you can't quite replicate on a laptop. Check out the title track at the top of this post. And if you dig that, also up there is a free downloadable Martial Canterel retrospective, including some rare songs.

Anika

In town this weekend is Anika whose debut album was a late-breaking entry into my Favorite Albums of 2011. Recorded in 12 days, live with no overdubs, it sounds like the missing link between The Slits and Lilliput. Portishead's Geoff Barrow -- his other band BEAK> is the backing band here -- gets the claustrophobic vibe just right. A lot of people have tried and failed to recreate that Martin Hannett Sound... Barrow nails it. And the material -- a mix of girl group covers and politically-charged originals -- suits Anika's Nico-esque delivery perfectly.

You can download two tracks from the album at the top of this post. "Yang Yang" is a Yoko Ono cover, and "Terry" was originally recorded by Twinkle, who is probably best-known for having made the original version of "Golden Lights" that was later covered by The Smiths. (Many Smiths fans' least favorite track, but not mine. That would be "Never Had No One Ever.") The album sort of snuck out at the end of 2011, so catch up now. So good.

Don't get too excited though, Anika is just over for some DJ gigs -- I'm hearing we'll get her performing in May (and probably later at ATP) -- but I'd recommend checking one of them out nonetheless. Especially as three of them are free: on Thursday (2/10) she'll be at Gallery Bar with Blu Jemz, then  Saturday (2/12) at Trophy Bar and a Valentine's Day set  (2/14) at The Commodore. The remaining three NY DJ appearances are atMercury Lounge tomorrow night (2/9) spinning between sets at the Cubic Zirconia show (tickets), and Glasslands on Friday (2/11) where she'll spin in between sets by Javelin, High Life, & Monster Rally (tickets), and finally Santos Pary House on 2/16 as part of the previously discussed Beans show with Edan, Paten Locke & Bluebird (tickets).

That Javelin show on Friday night should be fun, as Anika's tastes will nicely contrast/compliment the sounds of Javelin (always one of the better live bands saddled with the "chillwave" tag), Highlife and Monster Rally.

That's the big stuff this week. Some more picks, day-by-day, are below.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Gang of Four at Webster Hall, though really it's more like Gang of Two as it's just Jon King and Andy Gill from the original line-up these days. Their new album, Content, isn't bad. But most people will go to hear "To Hell With Poverty," "At Home He's  a Tourist," and other classics. And while Hugo and Dave will be missed, Andy Gill is still amazing to watch spit out those riffs, and Jon King remains possessed on stage -- especially when he's beating the shit out of a microwave on "He'd Send in the Army."

continued below...

Continue reading "Gross Relations, ARMS, Martial Canterel, Anika, Vacant Lots, Javelin, Abe Vigoda, Don Giovanni, more in This Week in Indie"

photos bt Chris La Putt

Ted Leo / Big Freedia

Thanks again to everyone for an amazing extended CMJ 2010 weekend that started Thursday night at Music Hall of Williamsburg, continued Friday afternoon at Public Assembly followed by a loft party followed by the free Converse-presented show at Public Assembly on Saturday afternoon, 10/23 (the subject of this post), and which ended on a high, and heavy, note at Union Pool later that night.

Thanks again to Converse who just opened a big store in SoHo, and to our sponsors V-Spot (go eat there for a great vegan meal in Park Slope), Firefly Vodka + Bourbon, Magic Hat, and Raw Revolution.

This second set of pictures from the event continues below...

Continue reading "BV & Converse day party in pics & video - part 2 (Jamie Lidell, Big Freedia, Ted Leo, Titus Andronicus, Wild Nothing, more)"

Wild Nothing @ Bowery Ballroom during CMJ (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Wild Nothing and Abe Vigoda are going on a co-headlining tour that will hit Bowery Ballroom on 2/13. Tickets for the NYC show go on sale Friday at noon. All dates below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda going on tour (2011 dates) "

Pete's Candy Store photos by Amanda Hatfield, Crash Mansion photos by Jessica Amaya, Pianos & Mercury Lounge photos by Chris La Putt, words by Rachel Kowal

Oh Land @ Rebel NYC (more by David Andrako)

You've been following the CMJ adventures of multiple BV contributors for two weeks now, including the day by day reviews from Rachel Kowal. Before too much more time passes, here is the conclusion of Rachel's week (with the end of day four and all of day five), and assorted pictures from four other shows all rolled into one big post. Check it all out, below....

Continue reading "Rachel's CMJ 2010 recap conclusion w/ lots of pics (Lia Ices, Sarah Jaffe, Ume, Robbers on High Street, Buke & Gass, more) "

most photos by Andrew St. Clair, Jamie Lidell photos by Leia Jospe
videos by Bleary Eyed Brooklyn

Jamie Lidell / Marnie Stern

"As a sucker for daytime events, I headed to Williamsburg's Public Assembly around noon for a show curated by BrooklynVegan. First up (and by "first", I mean, "the first artist I woke up in time to see") was Ted Leo. Performing skeletal, solo versions of his Pharmacists material, Ted more than compensated for the sparse arrangements with furious strumming and hilarious banter. It was nice to see an older, established artist opening a free show designed to showcase rising stars; it sort of set the tone for the rest of the day. His hit-heavy set spanned the full-duration of career, touching on high-water marks like "The High Party" and "Bottled in Cork", and closing with a cover of Euro-dance phenom Robyn's "With Every Heartbeat". This was a perfect set to open the day, and my only recommendation is that the next synth jam he covers be "Chewing Gum", by Annie...

...Closing the show, metal prodigy Marnie Stern dominated stage two, directly opposite neo-funkster Jamie Lidell headlining the main room. While she reveled in the loose atmosphere, dropping hilariously lewd stage banter and slamming PBR's, Lidell tried a throwback set reflecting his early, robotic Warp Records catalog." [MTV Music Blog]

Hopefully you got there early on Saturday to catch Morning Teleportation who went on when we opened the doors around noon. If so, you may have also grabbed one of the free EarPeace earplugs we gave out, and grabbed a free V-Spot empanada. Hopefully you also had your fill of the free Firefly Vodka + Bourbon and Magic Hat beer we were giving out, snacked on free Raw Revolution bars, bought a free t-shirt or poster for charity (email if you still want one - we have more left). If you weren't there, maybe you caught the live stream (if we can ever make it available for podcast, I will let you know).

Thanks to Line 6 and Vinny's Music for providing gear. Thanks to Vinnie's Pizza for helping feed our bands!

Speaking of the bands, hopefully Titus Andronicus's short set didn't bum you out. And if it did, hopefully Big Freedia cheered you right back up.

Like for the Friday party, there are two sets of pictures for this one. The second one is on its way. The first one, along with a bunch of videos, continues below...

Continue reading "BV Saturday day party in pics & video - part 1 (Marnie Stern, Dominique Young Unique, Heavy Cream, No Joy & more)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

Lia Ices @ Bowery Ballroom

"The sweetest white lie of the CMJ Music Marathon came from the folky songwriter Lia Ices, leading her band at the Lower East Side club Pianos on Thursday night. While half the crowd chatted indifferently, she sang, "For only you I sing, for only you." Yet Ms. Ices, whose debut album is due in January, was playing CMJ, along with more than 1,000 other groups, for precisely the opposite reason. She was seeking a chance to be heard, sooner or later, by a larger audience." [NY Times]

Did you miss Neon Indian too? The next chance to see them is tonight (10/29), at Brooklyn Bowl where they're playing with the buzz-tacular lineup of Prince Rama and Apache Beat. Tickets are still on sale, and I have a pair you can win.

Details on how you can win, with tonight's flyer (under the pics), and more pictures from the Bowery Ballroom show (sans Neon Indian), below...

Continue reading "VFW CMJ showcase in pics (Lia Ices, Braids, Lower Dens & more) ++ Neon Indian tonight w/ Prince Rama (win tix) "

photos by Toby Tenenbaum

Wild Nothing @ Irving Plaza

Way back at the beginning of CMJ, Times New Viking, Happy Birthday and Wild Nothing opened for Jenny and Johnny at Irving Plaza. This post has the pictures of those openers.

Since then Times New Viking played two more shows: Pitchfork's #OFFLINE Fest and our Friday day party.

Wild Nothing played a bunch too, including our Saturday day party (pics coming soon). If you missed them, and Baths who played a bunch of CMJ shows too, you have another chance tonight (10/28), courtesy of NYU. Wild Nothing, Baths, and Julianna Barwick play a show on the 4th floor of the NYU Kimmel Center, in the E&L Auditorium at 7pm. It's $5 for NYU students (who could buy tix in advance) and $7 to the public (who could not).

More pictures from Irving Plaza, and a video of Baths from their show at the Terrorbird show at Cake Shop, below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing played Irving Plaza w/ Times New Viking & Happy Birthday (pics), playing NYU w/ Baths "

by Andrew Sacher

CMJ (pic by thewildhoneypie)

The 2010 CMJ Music Marathon took place in NYC from Tuesday, 10/19 through Saturday, 10/23. Here's what I did, broken down by day...

Tuesday

I started day one of CMJ, my first-ever CMJ, at the 'Future of the Music Business, Really?' panel. It was really interesting and I learned a lot. The panelists discussed potential ways to keep the industry of recorded music alive, and from what I gathered, most of them agreed that if there was some way to pay a fee for unlimited music downloading, it would probably result in the most positive reception.

From there I hit the 'American Hardcore and the Rise of Modern Rock' panel. This was probably the most interesting panel I went to all week. It was moderated by American Hardcore: A Tribal History author Steven Blush and the panelists talked about how so many aspects of modern rock really are directly influenced from the early '80s hardcore scene, especially regarding the relevance of indie record labels, street teams, and samplers.

They also discussed how the American hardcore movement really is an art movement, not just a style of music. Among the panelists were Vic Bondi from Articles of Faith and Jack Rabid from the magazine, The Big Takeover. It was great to hear things about the movement from people who had really been there when it was prevalent. The event was one of many recent promotional appearances for Steven Blush. You can catch him again in NYC at The Strand at 7pm on 12/15.

Then I made my way over to the Ground Control showcase at Irving Plaza which was headlined by Jenny and Johnny (who I couldn't stay for). I really enjoyed Times New Viking - my first time seeing them. The drummer has the band move from one song to the next so quickly. I also enjoyed Wild Nothing's set a lot, especially now that I knew their album. I had actually seen them over the summer open for The Morning Benders but wasn't really familiar with them at the time.

continued below...

Continue reading "a college student @ CMJ (a College Music Jounal journal)"

words by Rachel Kowal, photos by Amanda Hatfield

The Drums @ Santos, late Wednesday night (this photo by Nathan Lee Bush)

When I started to scope out the schedule for Wednesday night, I planned on spending the first part of the night running back and forth between Spike Hill and Bruar Falls, but I decided to head over to Rock Shop instead, comforted by the knowledge that most of the bands I wanted to see (Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., The Magic Bullets, etc.) would be playing more sets later in the week anyway.

When I arrived at the Park Slope venue, Tape Deck Mountain was mid-set. At the time, I was fairly satisfied with the few songs I did catch (including a cover of "Mother" by Danzig) (a theme this week?). The band has decent vocals and execution, but when I later reflected on the bands I had seen, I realized that nothing about their set really stuck with me.

Up next was Cloud Nothings. The energy in the room picked up immediately when the Cleveland group began to play (of course it helped that the crowd had begun to fill out at that point). Possibly propelled by nerves or sheer excitement, the youthful band raced through their set as if competing at a track meet, slowing down just long enough for vocalist Dylan Baldi to entertain the audience with his endearing asides. Baldi may not have what you'd generally consider to be a 'good' voice, but he more than makes up for it in his delivery.

Just when I had begun to get a little sick of all-guy groups, the next two acts on the bill each featured a more even distribution of the sexes. Up first - Blair. Right before she and her backing band began their set, there was a bit of an upset when her acoustic guitar came crashing down, but she didn't let the setback dampen the mood. "I just broke a guitar, but it's ok," she said surprisingly nonchalantly. Thanks to their matching tie die shirts (worn by 3 out of 4 people anyway), sunny indie pop melodies, and Blair's unadulterated voice and accompanying song topics (she sings about things like love, candy, and dancing to Whitney Houston), things suddenly took a turn for twee, but I was totally ok with that.

For what it's worth, it was Blair's upbeat diddy "Hello Halo" that I found stuck in my head at the end of the night, and given the position of her set (right in the middle), that's saying something.

The Rock Shop was treating me well, but sadly, my itinerary called for me to return to Manhattan. I did get to stay just long enough to know what I was missing with Braids though. Their set-up may have been nearly identical to that of Blair, but their sound was much more polished thanks to the many overlapping layers of instrumentation and vocals that they carefully crafted on stage. Though I would have gladly stayed longer, I made my way to the train midway through their set.

When I arrived at Santos Party House for the Stereogum/PopGun show, I was a bit dismayed to see the long line extending down the block, but I somehow managed to get into the venue. I made my way to the smaller downstairs room to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. Just when I was really starting to get upset about the obnoxiously long wait (I could have seen more of Braids set!), I understood the reason for at last part of the hold-up: the group's two main members (Joshua Epstein and Daniel Zott) had run backstage to change into their costumes. Yes, costumes. Head to toe Nascar uniforms to be exact. It's hard to say whether this kind of shtick will hold up in the long run, but it's a pretty good way to stand out on a long list of relatively unknown bands (well that and their ridiculous name).

Whether it's your bag or not, chances are you might end up seeing these guys at some point during the week if you haven't already. They're certainly putting in the time. It was apparently their third show of the day. There wasn't much room for dancing in the packed room, but that didn't stop people from trying, and their light-hearted and energetic set certainly helped propel me through the rest of the night.

To close the evening, I darted upstairs to the main room at Santos to catch (the second half of) Wild Nothing and The Drums. It was kind of a weird succession of moods at that point. After leaving the lively basement room, Wild Nothing seemed even more subdued than I had remembered, but the group (under Jack Tatum's lead) put on a tight set. Considering the next band's laid back, sun-drenched sound, "Summer Holiday" was particularly enjoyable since it was distinctly more upbeat than their other tunes.

Then, finally a bit after 1:00am - The Drums. At this point, I was pretty exhausted, so I was pretty glad when singer Jonathan Pierce announced that they were going to play everything "twice as fast" so we could get home. The Drums seem to have mastered that fine balance of playfulness and artistry. It's hard not to grin at Pierce's over-the-top delivery. With a distinct swagger in his voice and some ridiculously exaggerated dance moves, he's a sight to behold - but so is the rest of the band, swaying in the background. These boys have come a long way since last summer.

I may not have gone to sleep until nearly 4:00am last night, but the constant adrenaline rush from just knowing how many good acts there are tonight should be more than enough to keep me going... that and the knowledge that I'm already planning on taking a personal day tomorrow.

----

Also Wednesday: "Viral sensation" Kyle Andrews, Animal Collective friends Prince Rama, and Minneapolis-based "chamber-folk sextet" Dark Dark Dark played the Terrorbird day party at Cake Shop with Kordan, Botany, Revolver, Baths, Marnie Stern, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. Pics of the first three adorn this post.

Dark Dark Dark are also on board for Supply & Demand/InDigest CMJ Official Showcase at CoCo 66 on Friday 10/22 with Franz Nicolay, Vandaveer, The Lisps, Milageres, and Spirit of the Red City. The band will also then Fontana's during the day on Saturday 10/23 to team up with Swells, Brian Bonz, Fairmont, New Numbers, and Skyler.

Prince Rama have a few dates this week, as discussed, including the Paw Tracks/ Car Park show at Cake Shop tonight (10/21) with Cloud Nothings, and the WFMU Record Fair on Saturday (10/23) with Ted Leo (who will also play the BV Day Party earlier that day).

Cloud Nothings also have shows coming up at the Fader Fort and Don Pedro's.

More pictures from Cake Shop show, with all Cloud Nothings dates, below...

Continue reading "CMJ Day 2 in review & pics (The Drums, Wild Nothing, Cloud Nothings, Prince Rama, Dale again & more)"

For those keeping count, BrooklynVegan will be at Music Hall of Williamsburg Thursday night, Public Assembly on Friday day, and Sunday night at Union Pool. Add to that list (as previously mentioned): Saturday day at Public Assembly. And for this one we teamed up with Converse to bring you the following stellar 100% FREE SHOW....

The date: Saturday, October 23rd, 2010
The time: noon-6pm
The place: Public Assembly (70 North 6th St)
the bands:

STAGE 1
12:00 Morning Teleportation
01:00 Ted Leo (solo)
01:45 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.
02:30 Wild Nothing
03:15 Titus Andronicus
04:15 Big Freedia
05:00 Jamie Lidell
DJ sets by SUNCELEb

STAGE 2
12:15 Evan Voytas
01:00 S. Carey
01:45 The Crayon Fields
02:30 Heavy Cream
03:15 Dominique Young Unique
04:00 No Joy
04:45 Reggie Watts
05:05 Marnie Stern

* free EarPeace (while supplies last)
* free V-Spot breakfast burritos & empanadas (while supplies last)
* free Firefly Vodka + Bourbon (while supplies last)
* free Magic Hat beer (while supplies last)
* free Raw Revolution bars

Can't make it? We'll be streaming select sets live on Converse Radio. Tune in.

Converse is doing a lot lately to help support music, and has especially hooked up Brooklyn. You might have heard about this:

"Converse announced details for an unprecedented initiative that directly supports artistic creativity and the music community in a unique way through the opening of a new, state-of-the-art recording studio in Brooklyn, NY later this year. Converse Rubber Tracks will provide emerging artists with the incredible opportunity to record music in a high-quality studio alongside a team of experienced local engineers at no cost. Converse Rubber Tracks will provide a platform for new musicians and directly help them overcome one of the biggest hurdles in their career-affording studio time."

Stay tuned to @bvCMJ for even more CMJ news and updates than you'll find on BrooklynVegan.com.

Oh, and if you oversleep, you can also catch Ted Leo later that day at the WFMU Record Fair or in December at Terminal 5 with the New Pornographers.

Thanks to: Zach Jaeger of Tonally Dude Productions for the sweet flyer you see above, and to Vinny's Music for providing us with some sweet gear, and to Underground Press (who have their own day party on Thursday) for getting us some merch printed to help raise money for charity including screenprinted versions of the above poster that we'll have available at the show.

Some videos below...

Continue reading "free BrooklynVegan & Converse Saturday day party @ Public Assembly -- lineup (15 bands, free drinks, food & more)"

This year's FADER Fort is located at 38 Delancey Street at Forsyth and runs from 2-9PM on Friday and Saturday (10/22-10/23). Full lineups have yet to be announced, but some of the artists playing there are Jamaica, Zowie, Cloud Nothings, Wild Nothing, and The Knux. You can RSVP (though admission is still based on capacity). "CMJ Music Marathon registrants will receive expedited admission into The FADER Fort. Registrants must also RSVP to this invitation and pick up FADER credentials/wristbands for admission."

Pitchfork's events are at Brooklyn Bowl Thursday-Saturday, and those now also include Surfer Blood (one more on their growing list of CMJ shows) on Thursday.

Our BrooklynVegan events are at MHOW Thursday, and Public Assembly Friday & Saturday (and Union Pool Saturday night).

The Apple store doesn't have much going on. The short list of events happening there, and all Glasser dates below...

Continue reading "Glasser dates, Fader Fort, #OFFLINE fest & the Apple Store "

by Andrew Sacher

DOWNLOAD: The So So Glos - "Lindy Hop" (MP3)

So So Glos Fans (more by Zach Stern)

The lineup has been announced for this year's SUNY Purchase Fall Fest, an annual one-day, students-only festival which will take place on November 5th in the SUNY Purchase Student Center (The Stood). Fall Fest '10 (aka Halloween 2) will be headlined by Raekwon, and features a very varied lineup of other acts including Death who just announced a NEW album...

BASEMENT OF WHAT WAS ONCE KNOWN AS GROOVESVILLE STUDIOS - DETROIT, MI - May 7th, 2010

"After searching for almost eight hours, I removed a box with a Master in it and vaguely saw some big red letters on the box below it. I shinned the light on this box to clearly see the writing in big red letters DEATH. I screamed with excitement DEATH!!, DEATH!!, DEATH!! Everyone in the building starting to scream and wildly cheer and applause. Upon seeing those tapes, it brought it all back, David had written those big red letters on the tape. Engineer Jim Vitti had jokingly drew a skull and crossbones on the box after the name to which David did not like telling him "We are not that kind of Death". I was full of emotion, I cried. We were all elated, Jacque was elated, I called up Dannis who was in Vermont and he began to joyfully celebrate. I thought about David. If David were here with us all that has happened to Death up to this point would pale in comparison to what we found today. The tapes were right where Brian said they were sitting there awaiting us for 34 years." - Bobby Hackney

Spiritual, Mental, Physical is the new Death CD/LP and it will be released 01/25/11.

The So So Glos will also be performing at SUNY, and are about to embark on a Five Borough NYC tour to celebrate the release of their new EP, Low Back Chain Shift, which came out Tuesday, October 12. The NYC tour happens to take place during CMJ, kicks off in Staten Island, includes a Queens BBQ with Patrick Stickles of Titus Andronicus, and a showcase at Pianos...

Friday, Oct. 22
at Pianos
158 Ludlow St

Force Field PR Official CMJ Showcase
08pm - Lord Huron
09pm - La Sera
10pm - Violens
11pm - Woven Bones
12am - Wild Nothing
01am - The So So Glos

FREE w/ CMJ Badge
or $10 advance / $12 at door

Omar Souleyman will be performing at SUNY as the concluding date on his current tour, which also includes a November 2nd show at MHOW. Updated dates below.

Fucked Up is also returning to Purchase after getting their set cut short by the police at their 2008 Culture Shock Performance.

Full Purchase lineup, videos, and other tour dates below...

Continue reading "Purchase Fall Fest, new Death, So So Glos dates, Omar Souleyman's updated schedule & stuff"

Matthew Dear @ MHOW in 2008 (more by Bao Nguyen)

As mentioned, Pitchfork will be hosting three days of shows at Brooklyn Bowl during, but-it-looks-like/probably completely unaffiliated with, CMJ this year (Thursday/Friday/Saturday CMJ week). "Brooklyn Bowl is located at 61 Wythe Avenue between N. 11th and N. 12th streets. The festival starts at 2 p.m. each day, with doors opening at 1 p.m. Tickets are $10, both in advance and day of the show." They're calling it the #OFFLINE Festival.

Based on the lineups and start time, it looks like each #OFFLINE day will be about a 12 hour show. No set times yet though, but the full lineups and ticket links are below...

Matthew Dear is one of the biggest names on the list (he plays Saturday), and it will be one of three CMJ week shows for Matthew. His first is Friday night at Webster Hall with Jamaica and Dominique Young Unique. His third is later on Saturday at Public Assembly for the FIXED/Making Time Party with Matthew Dear, Crocodiles, Holy Ghost!, Javelin, Gold Panda, Jamaica, and Kisses.

The FIXED/Making Time party starts after the BrooklynVegan party which is also happening at Public Assembly that same day. Just to be clear:

SATURDAY OCTOBER 23RD
* BrooklynVegan @ Public Assembly 12-6pm (free - more details TBA)
* FIXED/Making Time @ Public Assembly 9pm-late (tickets)
* Pitchfork @ Brooklyn Bowl 2pm-late (tickets)
* BrooklynVegan metal @ Union Pool 7pm-late ($5.00 or CMJ badge at the door)

We (BrooklynVegan) will also be at Public Assembly all day on Friday, October 22nd (details TBA), and at Music Hall of Williamsburg on the Thursday night.

All Matthew Dear tour dates (many of which we previously posted including a November show at MHoW), and the Pitchfork #OFFLINE Fest info, below...

Continue reading "Pitchfork announces #OFFLINE not-CMJ parties, Matthew Dear also playing Making Time & Girls & Boys parties (lineups) "

Dom @ Governors Island (more by Chris La Putt)

If you haven't heard, Dom, the ginger-fronted guys from Worcester, Mass., recently signed a deal to release an EP on Virgin/EMI label Astralwerks (release date TBA). The band will be opening for Ratatat at Terminal 5 on October 8th and 9th (Bobby Birdman also play). Both of those are sold out, but there are other chances to catch the band.

In addition to those, Dom has a CMJ show at Bowery Ballroom set for October 23rd. That's the same CMJ show that Neon Indian is playing, now with venue revealed. The killer "VFW Group Presents" CMJ bill also includes Wild Nothing, Lower Dens, Lia Ices, Fake Problems, Lord Huron and The Static Jacks. Tickets go on sale Thursday at noon.

And in addition to those gigs, Dom headliners a pre-Halloween (Mischief Night) show at 171 Lombardy (502 Varick Ave @ Lombardy St), along with Smith Westerns, Yellow Fever, Total Slacker and Sweet Bulbs. That's one night after Neon Indian plays Brooklyn Bowl.

Dom, Wild Nothing and Lower Dens are all also on board for a Stereogum CMJ party happening at Santos Party House on October 20th. And I guess I might as well point out that Dom, Wild Nothing and Lower Dens are all booked for TBA BrooklynVegan parties happening during CMJ too. Stay tuned for more details.

Dale Einhardt Jr. Jr. plays that Stereogum party too. It's one of at least six upcoming NYC shows for that band including one with Nada Surf at Mercury Lounge.

All current Dom tour dates are below...

Continue reading "Astralwerks-signed Dom playing shows, including that now-announced Neon Indian CMJ one w/ Wild Nothing "

words and photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Montreal's Stars and Virginia's Wild Nothing are the latest casualties of the hit or miss sound at Terminal 5. To be fair, Stars are just as culpable for the uneven show Friday night (9/24), especially considering their familiarity with the venue (they played there in 2008).

If you're going to play T5 then you need to play as many upbeat songs as possible. After starting well, Stars' first misstep was bringing out a bench to perform one of their fastest numbers, "Ageless Beauty", stripped down. Way down. The stripped down versions should be saved for intimate shows (like the one happening at Littlefield TONIGHT, Sunday, 9/26). Any momentum built to that point was gone and didn't return until a singalong of "Your Ex-Lover is Dead" which was the highlight of the show.

That was followed by a confusing and rambling pre-encore lecture about the use of the military, coming out over the PA. Then Amy Millan came out alone to start the 5-song encore with "Celebration Guns." Songs like "Big Fight" and "Going, Going, Gone" never made it into the 23-song set which was dissapointing since the dynamic between the soft-around the edges Millan and the ever-intense, way-over-the-top Torq Campbell is the centerpiece for Stars. They closed the show with "Changes". A picture of the full setlist is below.

Stars are a good band and spent a good part of the night thanking the appreciative crowd, tossing roses and petals into the crowd. Campbell reminded everyone that they were a New York band first. Hopefully on their subsequent trips "home" they opt for playing the cozier Bowery Ballroom and Music Hall of Williamsburg on consecutive nights.

Wild Nothing opened the show, delivering a solid and business-like performance, though it was to a one-third capacity crowd in the echoey venue. More dates, including Littlefield tonight, HERE. More pictures and the setlist from the Terminal 5 show are below...

Continue reading "Stars & Wild Nothing @ Terminal 5 (pics & setlist) "

photos by Chris Gersbeck

"Superchunk top their pulverizing MHOW set with a Misfits cover for their encore. #horrorbusiness" - mike spinella

"i really wish superchunk would tour more often. one of the best shows of the year tonight at mhow." - jarid maged

"It was unclear just who was throwing the water balloons at last night's Superchunk show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg, but the band, back in town with Majesty Shredding, their ninth full-length record and first since 2001, were clearly tickled that their fans still had it in them.

"You guys are rowdy tonight," singer-guitarist Mac McCaughan told the packed house of former teenagers halfway through the set, by way of congratulations. "Good for you."" [Capital]

Superchunk started their NYC run at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday, also played a free in-store at Other Music earlier on Sunday and will play Late Night with Jimmy Fallon TONIGHT (9/20), so set your DVRs if you'll be out too late dancing to tunes chosen by Pavement's Bob Nastanovich at the Living Room. Set Colbert to tape too because that's the TV show Pavement will be on tonight.

Comedian and Music Hall opener Todd Barry, who took part in the Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest earlier in the weekend (and later Sunday night), sat in on drums with Superchunk for a Misfits song. Pics and video of that below.

Wild Nothing will be back in NYC in just 4 short days, as the band is scheduled to support Stars at Terminal 5 on 9/24 as part of a larger tour between the two. Tickets are still available.

More pictures, the Superchunk setlist, and video from both OM and MHOW (including one of Todd Barry playing "Horror Business" with the band), below...

Continue reading "Superchunk played Bowery, Other Music & coverd Misfits @ MHOW w/ Todd Barry & Wild Nothing (pics, video, setlist) "

Stereogum listed the "40 Best New Bands of 2010". They have a lot more detail, but you can also check out their list, alphabetically, below...

Continue reading "Stereogum lists the "40 Best New Bands of 2010" "

photos by Chris Gersbeck

Cosmetics @ Bowery Ballroom

Wild Nothing headlined/co-headlined the show Saturday night at Bowery Ballroom, but there were also sets by Blank Dogs, MINKS, and Cosmetics (who play Pendu Disco at Glasslands tonight/Tuesday). Pictures from the rest of the sold out NYC show (where 100 lucky people who made it to the merch table in time got an exclusive CD-R/tape), below...

Continue reading "Blank Dogs, Cosmetics & Minks played Bowery Ballroom (pics) (Cosmetics play again tonight)"

photos by Chris Gersbeck

DOWNLOAD: Wild Nothing - Golden Haze (MP3)

There's a lot going on in Wild Nothing's world. The band, who hail from Blacksburg, VA, are packing their bags and moving to Brooklyn. Not really surprising, except that it took this long. They also have a new EP, Golden Haze, coming out on Captured Tracks sometime in the near future. Apart from the title cut (which you can download above), tracklistings on the CD, 12" and digital versions will vary, which reminds me of the way they used to release multiple versions of UK CD singles in the '90s to get a higher chart position. Fun with formats, or milking the fans? I guess if all the songs are worth hearing it won't matter.

No matter which one you buy, "Golden Haze" is another sparkler from these guys who have been playing a lot of new songs at their shows. And if you haven't picked up their debut Gemini yet, I think it's one of the year's best. And with a permanent line-up (and a new, really solid drummer), Wild Nothing have been a really good live band too. [Bill]

On September 22nd Wild Nothing will leave on a tour with Stars who they'll support through October 9th in Detroit. That trip includes the September 24th show at Terminal 5 in NYC (tickets still on sale), which will actually be Wild Nothing's 2nd NYC show after today because they also open for Superchunk at Music Hall of Williamsburg on September 19th (Todd Barry is also on that sold out bill).

All WN dates and more Bowery pics, below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing played Bowery Ballroom (pics), touring w/ Stars, opening for Superchunk (dates)"

Negative Approach in Austin 2009 (more)

Bad Brilliance at Santos in 2009 (more by Andrew Frisicano)

today in NYC
* daytime stuff
* Si*Se @ The Bell House
* Matt Welch @ The Stone
* Chi-Chi Glass @ Barbes
* Dub Is A Weapon @ Zebulon
* Cynthia Hopkins @ Barbes
* Rock the Bells @ Governors Island
* Mister Saturday Night w/ Theo Parrish
* Rangda, Major Stars, Meg Baird @ Cake Shop
* Dean Parrish, The Black Hollies @ Southpaw
* Orphan, Eric Copeland, Bad Dream @ Union Pool
* Classixx, Punches, Eli Escobar @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Hahn Rowe, Roger Kleier, Annie Gosfield @ The Stone
* These United States, Roadside Graves @ Mercury Lounge
* Jones Street Station, Last Good Tooth @ Mercury Lounge
* Big Freedia, DJ Rusty Lazer, House of Ladosha @ Coco 66
* Data Dog, Lost Boy?, Food Stamps, Villanelles @ Don Pedro
* Robbers On High Street, Only Son, New Numbers @ The Rock Shop
* Wild Nothing, Blank Dogs, Cosmetics, MINKS @ Bowery Ballroom
* Magic Bullets, Blood Orange, The Cinnamon Band, Beach Combers @ Pianos
* Starkweather, Raw Radar War, The Communion, PanzerBastard @ The Acheron
* The Specific Heats, Knight School, Moonmen On The Moon, Man @ Glasslands
* Raw Radar War, Starkweather, The Communion, Panzerbastard @ The Acheron
* Dinosaur Feathers, Lonnie Walker, The Fatty Acids, Hospitality @ Littlefield
* Exodus, Malevolent Creation, Holy Grail, Bonded By Blood @ Gramercy Theatre
* Autolux, This Will Destroy You, Light Pollution @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* The Jaguar Club, The Cloud Room, The Vita Ruins, Gold Streets @ Union Hall
* Quilt, Sweet Bulbs, Red Romans (of Beach Fossils), Total Slacker @ Silent Barn
* Bare Wires, Unnatural Helpers, Library on Fire, Violent Soho @ Dead Herring (moved from Bruar)
* Hello Nurse, Left Me Bashful, Dead Stars, Morning Fuzz, The Twees @ The Studio at Webster Hall
* Birthday Cake, X-Stina Ballerina, GOJOE, Bad Brilliance, The Penniless Loafers @ Santos Party House
* White Out w/ Thurston Moore, Carlos Giffoni and C Spencer Yeh Duo, Fat Worm of Error @ Knitting Factory
* Negative Approach, Tesco Vee, Pissed Jeans, Hellmouth, Mind Eraser, New Lows ('Why be Something You're Not'/Touch And Go Fanzine' Release Party) @ Santos Party House

This is part 2 of What's Going On Saturday, Check out Part One too.

Soul party Dig Deeper hosts Dean Parrish and The Black Hollies at Southpaw tonight. Dig Deeper is also responsible for the upcoming Brooklyn Soul Festival at the Bell House featuring, among others, Eli Paperboy Reed who also plays a free show at the J&R MusicFest today.

When I mentioned Thurston Moore had been added to ATP NY, I forgot to post a reminder that Thurston was also making an appearance at Knitting Factory tonight.

Bad Brilliance will reveal himself. or so he says, tonight at Santos, which is unrelated to the Negative Approach/Tesco Vee show also happening at Santos tonight. A Bad Brilliance video promo for the show (not for children) below...

"Due to issues beyond my control, we had to move the show from Bruar Falls to Dead Herring"

Hello Nurse play The Studio on the same night The Cloud Room play Union Hall. The fact that neither venue existed back then aside, it's a 2006 flashback.

THE FIRST 100 PEOPLE TO THE MERCH BOOTH AT BOWERY TONIGHT:

CT-78: Bowery Ballroom free giveaway.
A tape and CD-R (both with the same tracks on it)
100% exclusive to this release. It will not be available digital.
Only 100 are being made, all numbered.
First 100 people to the merch table get one. Limit one per ticketholder.
1. Wild Nothing "Introduction"
2. Blank Dogs "Floorboards"
3. Zodiacs "Black Dreams"

What else?

Continue reading "What's Going on Saturday? (part 2)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Wild Nothing - Golden Haze (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Cosmetics - Sleepwalking (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Magic Bullets - Lying Around (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Stereo Total - Baby Ouh (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Unnatural Helpers - Sunshine/Pretty Girls (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Unnatural Helpers - Girl in the Window (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Bare Wires - Seeking Love (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Sundelles - Gold (MP3)

Wild Nothing

It's another Double Issue sized column this week with a lot of exciting stuff this week. We'll start with a contest. Wild Nothing headline an all-Captured Tracks bill at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday night (8/28) with Cosmetics, MINKS, and Blank Dogs...and we're giving away a pair of tickets to the show. Just send an email to BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM with the subject line "Wild Nothing" and we'll pick a winner at random.

There's a lot going on in Wild Nothing's world. The band, who hail from Blacksburg, VA, are packing their bags and moving Brooklyn. Not really surprising, except that it took this long. They also have a new EP, Golden Haze, coming out on Captured Tracks sometime in the near future. Apart from the title cut (which you can download above), tracklistings on the CD, 12" and digital versions will vary, which reminds me of the way they used to release multiple versions of UK CD singles in the '90s to get a higher chart position. Fun with formats, or milking the fans? I guess if all the songs are worth hearing it won't matter.

No matter which one you buy, "Golden Haze" is another sparkler from these guys who have been playing a lot of new songs at their shows. And if you haven't picked up their debut Gemini yet, I think it's one of the year's best. And with a permanent line-up (and a new, really solid drummer), Wild Nothing have been a really good live band too.

P.S. Captured Tracks will be giving out free mixtapes at the Bowery Ballroom merch table

Cosmetics

Also on that Bowery bill are Vancouver synthpop duo Cosmetics who are playing a string of NYC shows in this week: tonight (8/25) at the Wierd party at Home Sweet Home, then the Bowery show on Saturday, and finally at Glasslands for Pendu Disco on Tuesday (8/31) with Cult of Youth and Seattle's King Dude. Cosmetics only have two singles out at the moment, though both are pretty good shavings of retro-futuristic minimal disco. (Not too far off from what Glass Candy does.) You can download the A-side of their current single, "Sleepwalking," at the top of this post.

Stereo Total

If you want more minimal beats but with an angular, more arty bent, Stereo Total are playing tonight (8/25) at Le Poisson Rouge. The veteran French-German duo have been supercolliding styles for nearly 20 years. Krautrock, chanson, new wave, punk, garage...Stereo Total make it their own. They were the first band I ever saw at Bowery Ballroom, sometime in 1998, and I still remember a medley they did that featured covers of Salt n' Peppa's "Push it" and Hot Butter's "Popcorn." That's sort of Stereo Total in a nutshell. Their eighth album, Baby Ouh!, is a lot of fun. Check out the album's title track at the top of this post.  The band are just getting started on their North American tour, and all dates are at the bottom of this post.

Magic Bullets

If you're going to see Tennis at Glasslands on Thursday, make sure you get there in time to see San Francisco's Magic Bullets. The band's debut album, just out on Mon Amie Records, recalls the early '80s days of Orange Juice, Aztec Camera, Haircut 100 and The Style Council, with a little C-86 in there as well. (That's basically the formula to get me to come see your band. Well, one of them.) In addition to drawing from a bunch of influences dear to me, they write some fantastically catchy songs. Download one of them, "Lying Around," at the top of this post.

If you can't make the Glasslands show, Magic Bullets are also doing an in-store at Permanent Records in Greenpoint on Friday (8/27) afternoon and then play Pianos Saturday night with Blood Orange (aka Dev Hynes aka Lightspeed Champion) and Staunton, VA's Cinnamon Band.

Unnatural Helpers

Still more! Seattle's Unnatural Helpers released one of my favorite songs of Summer 2010, the addiction-loving "Sunshine/Pretty Girls," which can be found on the band's Hardly Art debut, Cracked Love and Other Drugs. It can also be found at the top of this post in MP3 form. Download it right now. If there's nothing else quite as glorious on the rest of the album, that makes the rest of it merely very good.  Frontman Dean Whitmore plays drums in The Intelligence (whose forthcoming new album is pretty fab) but where that band is making cerebral garage, Unnatural Helpers punkish driving force is man's other frontal lobe. If you know what I'm saying.

Unnatural Helpers are in the area for four shows. They play Bruar Falls Dead Herring (it moved from Bruar Falls) on Saturday (8/28) with Bare Wires (more on them in just a sec), Shea Stadium on Monday (8/30) with the Babies, Maxwell's on Wednesday, September 1st, and then Cake Shop on Thursday, September 2. The band are then going on tour with Mudhoney, and those dates are at the bottom of this post.

Bare Wires

As mentioned above, the Saturday show at Bruar Falls Dead Herring is with Bare Wires whose new album (their second) just came out on John Dwyer's Castle Face Records, a label that only seems to spring to life when the Ohsees frontman finds a band he likes. (Previous Castle Face releases include debuts from Ty Segall and the Fresh & Onlys.) Though the two previous sentences might lead you to believe Bare Wires to be blown-out low-fi garage. They are in fact a really great power pop band in the tradition of The Nerves or even The Sweet,  and the album, Seeking Love, is decidedly mid-fi. Don't believe me? There's an MP3 of the album's title track up there amongst all the others. These guys know their way around a hook.

In addition to the Bruar Falls show on Sunday (a kind of don't miss in my book if you can tear yourself away from Mad Men and True Blood), Bare Wires also play Friday (8/27) at Monster Island Basement with Xray Eyeballs and Liquor Store.

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And finally, Montreal's incredible Think About Life were supposed to play two shows/cruises on The Boat on Friday (8/27) but the concerts struck a metaphorical iceberg and sunk. (It got canceled.) Luckily, Think About Life abandoned ship and are now playing Santos Party House instead. I've said it a zillion times in the last year, TAL are one of my favorite live bands of the moment and they'll be one of yours too if you go see them. No matter how bad a mood you're in, you'll leave smiling. Don't be dumb...go to this show!

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And a few more recommended shows not covered above.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25

Florida's awesome Jacuzzi Boys are playing Knitting Factory tonight for another of those Scion Garage shows, this time with Nobunny headlining. Free with RSVP. I'm not sure what it is about their sound -- the singer's voice, the more garagey Feelies-esque jangle -- but I just love them. Nobunny is fun too, of course, but I kind of wish he'd spring for a new bunny mask. It's getting really, really creepy.

Austin's TV Torso play Death By Audio tonight. Their new EP, Status Quo Vadis, is darkly romantic, atmospheric, and rockin'. It's also a free download via their bandcamp site. I dig it. Also playing: Juston Stens & Get the Real Gang, and Slow Animal.

Tennis play the first of their NYC shows at Cake Shop.

continued below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing, Cosmetics, Stereo Total, Magic Bullets, Unnatural Helpers, Bare Wires, Jacuzzi Boys & more in This Week in Indie"