Phosphorescent at Brooklyn Bowl in 2011 (more by Tamara Porras)

As mentioned, the Northside Festival is returning to various Brooklyn venues from June 13 - 16, and like in past years, they'll be doing two free shows in McCarren Park as part of the festival. We already mentioned that The Walkmen are playing one on June 15, and that one just got even better because Phosphorescent (who just played Crossing Brooklyn Ferry) were added! The rest of the bill includes Friend Roulette and Abadabad. The show is free, but tickets are required and still available.

Solange at Bowery Ballroom in 2012 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

The second free McCarren Park show was also just announced. It will be headlined by Solange (who also just played Crossing Brooklyn Ferry) and support comes from Petite Noir, Cable, and My Midnight Heart. Tickets for that one are on sale now too. If you have a Northside bade, you're guaranteed entry for both free shows.

Northside Festival have added other bands, like Braids, too. An updated list of artists playing (and still more TBA) and lists of all Solange and Phosphorescent dates below...

Continue reading "Solange and Phosphorescent playing free McCarren Park shows during Northside (updated lineup & dates)"

photos by David Andrako

Yellow Ostrich's Jon Natchez at Bowery Ballroom - 11/14/12

Yellow Ostrich returned to NYC last night (11/14) for the last club date on their fall tour (they play Bard College tonight (11/15)) at Bowery Ballroom. The tour started in October just a few days after member Jon Natchez returned from his trip around the country with David Byrne and St. Vincent (he plays saxophone, flute, clarinet, and flugelhorn in their band).

Yellow Ostrich's setlist at Bowery was pretty modest in length compared to the amount of material they've released in the three years they've been in a band, but they included material off most of their releases, not sticking to one album in particular. Opener Strand of Oaks (aka Tim Showalter) joined them for "Ghost," the title track on their new EP, and Darby Cicci of The Antlers came out for "Won't Fade Away," off that same EP (Peter from the Antlers will join Sharon Van Etten on stage at Town Hall tonight).

In addition to an opening set by Strand of Oaks, who we also saw opening for The Tallest Man On Earth this year, and whose new self-released album, Dark Shores, has gone undeservedly overlooked, Glass Ghost (who have opened for Sharon Van Etten at the same venue) provided support at the show. More pictures of all three bands and Yellow Ostrich's setlist are below.

Continue reading "Yellow Ostrich, Strand of Oaks & Glass Ghost played Bowery Ballroom (pics & setlist)"

"That's y!" says Snoop Dogg...

Did Snoop Dogg talk much politics at his Wellmont Theater show last week? That picture above, no not the cats, is his Tweeted list of reasons for voting for Obama, and for not voting Romney.

Kanye West has much less to say, for now. All his amazing tweets have been deleted except for one new one that says "BE BACK SOON". UPDATE: Now there are also three tweets about Steve Jobs.

Speaking of Chicago hip hop, Lupe Fiasco and the NY Times have some more to say on the subject (Chief Keef, etc).

Bummed to hear that Big Boi, who recently played Chicago's North Coast Music Fest, replaced Little Dragon with Kelly Rowland on the final version of the song he performed live with Little Dragon in Austin.

The Weeknd, who has three NYC shows coming up, got all emo and wrote a letter to fans promising no dissapointment.

Creed frontman Scott Stapp says T.I. saved his life.

Missy Elliot may actually release an album this year.

YouTube is streaming Obama's bff (see above)Jay-Z's eighth Barclays Center show Saturday night.

Speaking of, Jay-Z is in a new marriage equality ad.

Speaking of, congrats to Kaki King and Jessica King! And to Sam Champion and Rubem Robierb!

NPR is streaming Tori Amos from Le Poisson Rouge tonight. Meanwhile, PopMatters reflects on Tori's relationship to the feminist movement.

Speaking of LPR, Micachu whose Williamsburg Park show tonight is cancelled, is playing there Monday.

Menomena just played Austin and are touring their way towards NYC. Check out their new video for "Plumage" below.

We're giving away two tickets to see Flying Lotus at Terminal 5 via the BrooklynVegan Facebook Page. Meanwhile. meet FlyLo at the Brooklyn Flea Record Fair this weekend.

We're also giving away tickets to Jens Lekman and Taken By Trees' Terminal 5 show (tickets are also still on sale).

more below...

Continue reading "ALSO: why Snoop Dogg isn't voting for Romney, Menomena, Yellow Ostrich, Kanye's Twitter, Nas, Amy Winehouse, more"

Yellow Ostrich at BV-SXSW 2012 (more by Tim Griffin)

Yellow Ostrich, who have been supporting their new album, Strange Land on tour this year and have been making the festival rounds this summer, have announced a fall tour. Those dates include a few with Sharon Van Etten surrounding both artists' appearances at Fun Fun Fun Fest. The tour culminates in NYC for a show at Bowery Ballroom on November 14. Tickets for that show go on sale Thursday (8/30) at noon.

Sharon Van Etten isn't on the NYC show (no one else is at the moment either), but she'll make her way to NYC on her own tour to play Town Hall on November 15. Tickets for that show are still available.

Meanwhile, Yellow Ostrich will release a new six-song EP called Ghost digitally on October 23, which will also be available on vinyl exclusively at the shows on their fall tour. A list of all dates on the tour and the video for "The Shakedown" from Strange Land are below.

Continue reading "Yellow Ostrich touring, releasing new EP (dates)"

After teasing folks with a few names here and there -- like Run DMC most recently -- Austin's annual Fun Fun Fun Fest (Nov 2 - 4) has revealed it's full line-up, including Public Image Ltd, De La Soul, Superchunk, Santigold, Refused, X peforming Los Angeles, and lots, lots more. 3-day passes go on sale at 10AM CST.

Full FFF Fest lineup is below.

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest full lineup (De La Soul, Refused, Fucked Up, Public Image Ltd, Santigold, Sharon Van Etten, Rakim, X, Converge, Japandroids & more)"

photos by Chris Graham and Rae Graham

The four-day Sasquatch Music Festival is currently happening this Memorial Day Weekend out in Gorge, Washington. Check out more photos below from Friday, May 25, including shots of Mark Lanegan, Polica, Pretty Lights, Santigold, and Girl Talk. More Sasquatch photos to come.

Continue reading "Sasquatch 2012 in pics (Day 1)"

"Another Planet Entertainment, Superfly Presents and Starr Hill presents, in a partnership with the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, are proud to announce the lineup for the fifth annual Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival. The world's only gourmet music festival will once again take place in San Francisco's historic Golden Gate Park August 10 - 12, 2012. Tickets will go on sale Thursday April 19 at 12 noon PDT via www.sfoutsidelands.com. A significant portion of every ticket sold will directly benefit San Francisco's Recreation and Park Department."

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2012 lineup (Metallica, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Jack White, Foo Fighters, Beck, Skrillex...)"

Lollapalooza (more by Grant MacAllister)

Chicago Sun Times reports:

Lollapalooza has revealed its official 2012 list of performers -- a typically wide-ranging smorgasbord of genres and styles topped by nearly a dozen mainstage headliners: the Red Hot Chili Peppers, freshly reunited bands Black Sabbath and At the Drive-In, the Black Keys, Jack White, Florence + The Machine, the Shins and Passion Pit, plus spotlighted electronic music including Swedish house titan Avicii, French dance duo Justice and DJ-producer Bassnectar.

The annual music festival is scheduled for Aug. 3-5 in Chicago's Grant Park.

Rumored lineups have circulated widely, as they usually do, and Lollapalooza itself stoked the speculation in recent weeks via a series of CTA and online advertisements that seemed to hint at who would be playing.

The ads featured lyrics from such acts as Sigur Ros, Santigold, Jack White, Kimbra, Twin Shadow, the Weeknd, Bloc Party and more -- all bands that wound up on the bill.

Continue reading "Lollapalooza 2012 lineup (Jack White, At The Drive-In, Sigur Ros, Black Keys, RHCP, Afghan Whigs, M83, Weeknd, SBTRKT, Black Sabbath & more)"

the flyer (with most of the bands playing on it)

BrooklynVegan is proud to team up with M for Montreal again for a FREE Day Party in Austin on Thursday, March 15th from noon-7pm at Hotel Vegan (one of BrooklynVegan's FOUR DAYS in the venue located at 1500 E. 6th St.).

I'll let this full three-stage lineup speak for itself...

Stage 1 (Hotel Vegas Outside)
12:00 Of Monsters & Men
12:45 Glen Hansard (of Swell Season & the Frames)
1:30 We Are Serenades (formerly Serenades, mem. Shout Out Louds)
2:15 Hospitality
3:00 Korallreven (mem. of the Radio Dept)
3:45 Fanfarlo
4:30 The Drums
5:15 The Wedding Present
6:15 This Will Destroy You

Stage 2 (Hotel Vegas Inside)
12:00 Half Moon Run
12:45 Thus:Owls
1:30 Cold Specks
2:15 Cymbals Eat Guitars
3:00 The Velvet Teen
3:45 Yellow Ostrich
4:30 The Jealous Sound
5:15 Parlovr

Stage 3 (Volstead) (BV Austin stage)
12:15 Love Inks
1:00 Feathers
1:45 Gashcat
2:30 Ringo Deathstarr
3:15 Silent Diane
4:00 The Young
5:00 Ume

In addition to the completely free lineup of 24 bands playing on THREE stages, we will also have complimentary drinks courtesy of HobNob Wines, the official wine parter of our entire week of FREE PARTIES at Hotel Vegan (check out HobNob's Facebook page for free music downloads), and a hosted bar courtesy of Sailor Jerry

We will also have FREE VEGAN TREATS courtesy of NadaMoo! and FREE Honest Tea. AND Supercuts will have a team of stylists on-site the entire day providing FREE haircuts and styling!

Special thanks to all of our partners and sponsors for making this party possible - including Vox, Blackstar and Korg, our official backline partners, as well as ASCAP, HobNob Wines, NadaMoo!, Sailor Jerry and M for Montreal! And special thanks to GBH Design for making our awesome flyer!

--

This is the first full day at Hotel Vegan announced. 2/3 of the Wednesday lineup is HERE. Friday and Saturday coming shortly.

We also have THREE official showcases (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday), and a Saturday metal day party at Lovejoys,

"Following last year's 10th anniversary, which crushed previous attendance records and set a new mark for the speed with which tickets sold out, the Sasquatch! Music Festival unveils its 2012 lineup which once again features 4 days of music. The festival, hailed as "a model of well-paced programming...in a four-day schedule as efficient and natural feeling as an expertly built algorithm" by NPR Music while Wired notes, "leave the landscape out of it and Sasquatch! has a lineup to kill for," runs May 25-28 (Memorial Day Weekend) at The Gorge, the internationally acclaimed concert venue carved in the basalt cliffs high above the Columbia River Gorge in Quincy, WA."

Continue reading "Sasquatch! 2012 lineup announced (Bon Iver, Jack White, Beck, Tenacious D, Shins, Portlandia, Spiritualized & more) "

Yellow Ostrich at MHOW earlier this month (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Yellow Ostrich, who just announced that their next album, Strange Land, will come out March 6 via Barsuk, have scheduled a tour in support of it. The tour kicks off in early March with support from 1,2,3, hits SXSW, then includes a run with Howler, before concluding in a hometown show at NYC's Mercury Lounge on April 12. No opener has been announced for that show yet. Tickets go on sale at noon today (1/20). All dates are listed below.

Speaking of Mercury Lounge shows that go on sale today at noon, Grimes' third NYC show on her upcoming tour with Born Gold does. It's at Mercury Lounge on February 23, an early show before she plays a sold out show at the same venue later that night. Her Glasslands show (3/24) is now also sold out. Tickets for the early Mercury Lounge show (3/23) go on sale today at noon.

Hot Chip/LCD Soundsystem side project New Build also added a second Mercury Lounge show (3/14) happening one day after their sold out one (3/13). Tickets for the 3/14 show go on sale today at noon.

All Yellow Ostrich dates below...

Continue reading "Yellow Ostrich announce tour (dates); Mercury Lounge show on sale at noon (Grimes & New Build too)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield

"Saw Givers last night at Williamsburg Music Hall, so good to hear amazing music live again!!" - Roxy Faridany

Givers @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Givers kicked off a tour at Music Hall of Williamsburg on January 5, two days before they played Carnegie Hall with Preservation Hall Jazz Band, My Morning Jacket, Mos Def, and others. Pictures from the Brooklyn show are in this post.

The Brooklyn show was also with Yellow Ostrich who Free Williamsburg says has the "ability to make a three-piece sound like a thirteen-piece." FW, who were at the show, also wrote Givers "play a version of Louisiana Cajun music if it were shaken inside a Diet Coke with Mentos." The engergetic crowd was loud and dancing.

Givers, now on the road, are part of the recently announced Coachella lineup, and play a string of dates with Dr. Dog in March.

In other news, Yellow Ostrich will release the followup to 2010's The Mistress with Strange Land on March 6 via Barsuk. Like The Mistress, the new album was self-produced by the band, but unlike that album, which was recorded entirely by frontman Alex Schaaf, Strange Land also features the work of multi-instrumentalist Jon Natchez (Beirut) and drummer Michael Tapper (Bishop Allen, We Are Scientists) and was engineered by Beau Sorensen (Death Cab for Cutie, Sparklehorse). The album art and tracklist for this album is below.

More pictures and video from the MHOW show, and Yellow Ostrich album info below too...

Continue reading "Givers played MHOW w/ Yellow Ostrich (who announced a new album) -- pics & video"

Yellow Ostrich @ Northside 2011 (more by Amanda Hatfield)

today in NYC
* Dayna Kurtz @ Barbes
* Daniel Kitson @ St Ann's
* Van Halen @ Cafe Wha?
* Questlove @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Rachelle Garniez @ Barbes
* Herb Robertson @ The Stone
* Theophilus London @ Le Bain
* Smokey's Secret Family @ Barbes
* Midnight Masses, Smoota @ Zebulon
* Rhett Miller, Adam Levy @ City Winery
* Theo Bleckmann does Kate Bush @ Lincoln Center
* Endless Boogie, The Complete Faggots @ Union Pool
* Bebel Gilberto, Gregory Porter @ Highline Ballroom
* Givers, Yellow Ostrich @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Snowmine, Conveyor, Illuminator, Teletextile @ Glasslands
* Marika Hughes, Seabrook Power Plant, Bassoon @ The Rock Shop
* Nicos Gun, The Click Clack Boom, The Canon Logic @ Brooklyn Bowl
* The Wellington Papers, Drgn King, The Suzan, Ed Vallance @ Pianos
* Beach Arabs, Island Twins, The Gytters, The Gray Pages @ Cameo Gallery
* Flock of Dimes, Lexie Mountain, Alex Drewchin, GDFX (DJ) @ Shea Stadium
* Chris Speed, Oscar Noriega, Brad Shepik, Trevor Dunn, Jim Black @ The Stone
* Sean Noonan's Brewed by Noon, Mike Pride's From Bacteria to Boys @ Cake Shop
* Candy, Mr. Transylvania, Guerrilla Toss, Hunnie Bunnies, Marc Edwards/Weasel Walter Group @ Death By Audio
* Medeski / Skerik / Deitch, Red Baraat, Marc Ribot's Young Philadelphians, Jessica Lurie Ensemble @ Le Poisson Rouge

Tonight's show at LPR is the Winter Jazz Fest kickoff.

like BrooklynVegan on Facebook.

WU LYF played Letterman. Video below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Thursday?"

photos by Bryan Bruchman

Yellow Ostrich @ Knitting Factory

As far as BrooklynVegan shows were concerned, we started out this year's CMJ in a lowkey manner with a free Thursday day show at Knitting Factory in Brooklyn. We Were Promised Jetpacks, announced that same day, headlined the show that began with a set by Yellow Ostrich at 12:30pm.

Though they didn't play acoustic like they did the night before at the FatCat CMJ showcase at Mercury Lounge, WWPJ mixed it up by performing as a three-piece since one of their members wasn't in town yet. Expect a four-piece at Webster Hall and other dates of their tour. Austin's Hundred Visions played their 2pm set despite their 15 passenger van being stolen from its parking spot in Williamsburg the night before. Luckily most of their gear was not in it at the time.

The whole day looked like this:

12:30 Yellow Ostrich (Barsuk)
1:15 Still Corners (Sub Pop)
2:00 Hundred Visions (unsigned)
2:45 Forest Fire (FatCat)
3:15 BOBBY (Partisan)
4:00 Main Attrakionz (Mishka)
5:00 We Were Promised Jetpacks (FatCat)

Thanks everyone who stopped by. Here are some pictures. More below...

Continue reading "BV Thursday Day Party @ KF in pics (Main Attrakionz, We Were Promised Jetpacks ,Yellow Ostrich, Still Corners & more)"

We Were Promised Jetpacks @ Southpaw in 2009 (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

12:30 Yellow Ostrich (Barsuk)
1:15 Still Corners (Sub Pop)
2:00 Hundred Visions (unsigned)
2:45 Forest Fire (FatCat)
3:15 BOBBY (Partisan)
4:00 Main Attrakionz (Mishka)
5:00 We Were Promised Jetpacks (FatCat)

Maybe you caught WWPJ play an acoustic set alongside Forest Fire last night at Mercury Lounge? How was it? They kick off a tour with Bear Hands that includes a HEADLINING show at Webster Hall (!) in less than a week (Webster tickets are still on sale).

Listen to most of the bands playing this party via our Spotify Playlist. Get there early for Yellow Ostrich who reportedly killed it at Brooklyn Bowl last night.

Listen to a song by Hundred Visions below...

Continue reading "We Were Promised Jetpacks playing FREE BV SHOW TODAY (Main Attrakionz, BOBBY, Still Corners & more too!)"

Yellow Ostrich @ Barsuk show in August (more by David Andrako)

Yellow Ostrich head out on tour with Ra Ra Riot and Delicate Steve later this month, but first CMJ! You can catch them tonight (10/19) at Brooklyn Bowl, a free-with-RSVP show with Ted Leo and... Royce Da 5'9.

Thursday (10/20) they'll play a 12:30pm set at Knitting Factory in Brooklyn as part of the free BrooklynVegan party. They weren't on the lineup we announced yesterday. That's because they're stepping in to replace The Phantom Family Halo who sadly had to cancel due to a family emergency. They also play three more CMJ shows after that. All their dates are listed, along with a video, below...

Continue reading "Yellow Ostrich playing CMJ shows, tonight w/ Ted Leo, Thursday @ BV party (instead of Phantom Family Halo)"

Nothing like waiting for the last minute! Please join us for a somewhat low key affair this Thursday (10/20) afternoon at Knitting Factory in Brooklyn for an all ages, FREE, afternoon show featuring:

12:30 Yellow Ostrich (Barsuk)
1:15 Still Corners (Sub Pop)
2:00 Hundred Visions (unsigned)
2:45 Forest Fire (FatCat)
3:15 BOBBY (Partisan)
4:00 Main Attrakionz (Mishka)

UPDATE: The Phantom Family Halo has sadly cancelled due to a family emergency. Yellow Ostrich has stepped in to take their place though!

AND to sweeten the deal (literally), we'll be serving free wine to those 21-and-over courtesy of HobNob Wines (who give away free MP3s on their Facebook page).

Prefer beer? We'll also have free PBR while supplies last.

You'll also be able to snack on free popchips and Raw Revolution bars while you watch the show or hang out in the venue's front bar.

Get there early because first 25 people in the door will also receive a rare BrooklynVegan t-shirt! (not many of these exist - we sold them for charity at CMJ last year).

We're getting a little techie this year too and have partnered with Spotify (our official official digital music service partner) and Sony Bloggie (our official video partner) for all BV CMJ events including the two TBA ones happening at Public Assembly on Friday & Saturday. Stay tuned for a BV video series coming after CMJ with highlights, interviews and special performances from the week (all filmed on a Bloggie). Listen to a playlist that contains four of of the six artists playing this show on Spotify now (Phantom Family Halo's recently-released four-song EP they did with Bonnie 'Prince' Billy included). .Stay tuned for more Spotify playlists throughout the week too.

Thanks also to Knitting Factory Records & Partisan Records for helping make this happen, and thanks to Zach Jaeger (Tonally Dude) for the flyer you see above. See you Thursday! Meanwhile check out Still Corners' video for "Wish" below...

Continue reading "BV Presents a Thursday FREE not-CMJ day party (lineup) -------- free bands, free drinks, free willie"

DOWNLOAD: WATERS - "O Holy Break Of Day" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: WATERS - "For the One" (MP3)

WATERS at Brooklyn Bowl in June (more by Jessica Amaya)

As mentioned, WATERS is currently on a tour that will bring the band to NYC for CMJ. We've previously discussed the Fenway Recordings showcase at The Studio at Webster Hall on October 20, which tickets are still on sale for. They'll also play the Wonder Twins CMJ showcase at Union Hall on October 21 with Boy & Bear, Conversion Party, and Prussia (tickets) and a free Distiller Promo day party at Knitting Factory on October 21 with Yellow Ostrich, The R's, Pujol, Superhuman Happiness, and more (flyer below).

Before CMJ, WATERS will play another NYC show tonight, October 17 at Mercury Lounge with MiniBoone and Cuckoo Chaos. Tickets are still on sale and we're also giving away a pair. Details on how to win are below.

WATERS' debut LP, Out in the Light was released last month on TBD Records. You can download two MP3s from that album at the top of this post and watch the video for "For the One," along with an acoustic video of the same track below.

Updated dates, videos, and contest details below...

Continue reading "WATERS are here -- updated NYC dates, a new video (and a chance to win tickets to tonight's show)"

photos by Tim Griffin

Arcade Fire / The Walkmen

The 10th annual Austin City Limits festival came to a close on Sunday with a headlining set by Arcade Fire (who also taped an edition of Austin City Limits the TV show one day earlier). It was a rough year for some attendees. I'm talking about smokers. Austin Statesman posted the following before the weekend:

We welcome all the people and music artists attending this year's Austin City Limits Music Festival. It's a special year for the music festival, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. The talent this year is incredible, with headliners Kanye West, Stevie Wonder and Arcade Fire, as well as local favorites such as Asleep at the Wheel.

Before we get this party started, we must advise attendees that the Austin Parks Department has banned smoking at all Austin parks, greenbelts, trails and golf courses. That includes Zilker Park, site of the festival.

We realize that a smoking ban might be an inconvenience for some. But it is necessary to keep everyone safe. So please have fun at the events, which run today through Sunday, but leave the cigarettes, cigars, pipes -- or whatever else one might be smoking -- behind. (The ban also prohibits wood or charcoal grilling in Zilker and other parks.)

Smoking was allowed at previous ACL festivals, but this year is different. This year, Central Texas is dealing with wildfires that have killed two people, destroyed about 1,500 homes and burned tens of thousands of acres in Bastrop County, Steiner Ranch, Pflugerville and other Central Texas communities. In Austin, city firefighters responded to 469 brush fires from January through July. Cigarettes caused about a fourth of those fires, officials said. [Austin Statesman]

Continue reading "Austin City Limits 2011 -- Day 3 in pics (Arcade Fire, Walkmen, DFA1979, Manu Chao & more)"

photos by David Andrako

Mates of State

Mates of State (who head out on a big tour in September), Cymbals Eat Guitars (ditto), and Yellow Ostrich (October & November) played a private Barsuk Records showcase at Mercury Lounge in NYC last night (8/24). Here are some pictures from the show. They continue below...

Continue reading "Mates of State, Cymbals Eat Guitars & Yellow Ostrich played a Barsuk Records showcase (pics)"

DOWNLOAD: Yellow Ostrich - "Mary" (Alternate) (MP3)

Yellow Ostrich at McCarren Park (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Yellow Ostrich will share dates with Ra Ra Riot and Delicate Steve in the coming months, and though they aren't on board to join the pair at Prospect Park on August 5th, the band will play an upcoming show at Glasslands on August 19th. Tickets are on sale though the rest of the Brooklyn bill is still TBA.

Just three days before that Glasslands appearance, Yellow Ostrich will welcome The Mistress on August 16th via Barsuk Records. Check out a new track from that LP, an alternate version of "Mary" (the original appears on the record as well), available above and streaming below alongside the cover art, full tracklist and all tour dates...

Continue reading "a new song from Yellow Ostrich's Barsuk debut (MP3 premiere, cover art & tour dates too)"

DOWNLOAD: Ra Ra Riot - "Too Dramatic" (Anamanaguchi Remix) (MP3)

Ra Ra Riot at MHOW last year (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Ra Ra Riot play Seattle's Capital Hill Block Party on Friday (7/22) to kick off a round of dates that include Fuji Rock in Japan before skipping to the East Coast for a string of dates that will include August 5th at Prospect Park Bandshell with Delicate Steve and Buke & Gass (FREE with suggested donation). The band will then prepare for additional dates across the US and in Canada that will stretch them into middle November with openers like Delicate Steve and Yellow Ostrich (who are also signed to Barsuk). Full tour schedule is below.

Ra Ra Riot recently had their track "Too Dramatic" given the 8-bit treatment by Anamanaguchi. Check out the remix (which makes its debut here) above and streamable below. Anamanaguchi play Music Hall of Williamsburg on 7/22 (Friday) with MATH The Band and Talk To Animals. Tickets are still available.

Yellow Ostrich has their own show coming up at Glasslands on August 19th.

All tour dates, the song stream and the video for the original is below.

Continue reading "Ra Ra Riot expand tour, got remixed by Anamanaguchi (MP3 premiere & updated tour dates)"

photos by Jessica Amaya

Beirut @ Northside Festival

Beirut is currently on tour in support of the release of the upcoming album The Rip Tide (album art below), which is available for pre-order. That tour has been expanded and now includes two NYC dates at Terminal 5 on September 21 and 22. Tickets go on sale Friday (7/8) at noon.

Beirut's last NYC show was in McCarren Park with Sharon Van Etten and Yellow Ostrich as part of the Northside Festival. We already talked about that, but here's a second set of pictures from the event in this post.

The rest of those pictures, all tour dates and Rip Tide album art below...

Continue reading "Beirut announces tour, two nights at Terminal 5 (updated dates, new LP art & another set of Northside show pics)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield, words by Rachel Kowal

Thirty minutes before showtime, the forecast wasn't looking good. What started as a small shower soon escalated into a near downpour, sending a patchwork of different colored umbrellas springing up at McCarren Park Friday night.

Then it happened: the event that nearly broke Twitter. It began with a low rumble that quickly rippled through the crowd. Then, "OH MY GOD! DOUBLE RAINBOW!" Within seconds, every smartphone was tracked on the sky, and cries of jubilation and cheap sarcasm rang out. If you think Sharon Van Etten is a tough act to follow, try a double rainbow. But Yellow Ostrich was up for trying.

Soon after the buzz died down, the newly signed Barsuk trio took the stage. Somehow despite all the weather-related chaos that had transpired over the past 30 minutes subsided just in time for the show. A Northside miracle.

Recorded, Yellow Ostrich is a fine-tuned, feel-good indie machine, but in a live setting, front man Alex Schaaf and company aren't afraid to let down their hair a bit. Sure, you still get the carefully looped harmonies - a delight to hear in the excellent "Whale" - but the music also takes on a more desperate and raucous tone, especially on new songs like "The Shake Down."

As I watched the stage transform for Sharon Van Etten's set, my excitement grew - especially when I spied Aaron Dessner of The National fiddling around with wires. "Hello, everybody. Thanks for bearing the rain," Van Etten said by way of introduction. She began her set with "Peace Signs."

With her honest lyrics and down-to-earth demeanor, and soul-soothing voice, Sharon Van Etten makes quick work of winning over the crowd. (I mean the woman dedicated a song to her dad in honor of Father's Day. How nice, right?)

As an added bonus, the last three songs of her set featured two additional musicians - Ben Lanz (on trombone) and Aaron Dessner (guitar) who is apparently producing Van Etten's next record.

Then, after a brief interlude from our sponsor, Zach Condon and company emerged to a round of applause that almost seemed more fitting for a Justin Bieber show than for Beirut.

Though Condon composed much of his newer music with a 17-piece mariachi band in mind, the six people on stage impressively flushed out the sound by constantly rotating through an assortment of instruments, including: French horn, tuba, drums, trombone, trumpet, accordion, and piano. But it was the ukulele - the crux to much of his earlier catalog - that seemed to garner the most applause.

After two short sets, it was nice to see Beirut take their time on stage. The band enthusiastically played through their set - no doubt inspired not only by the dedication of the rain-braving crowd but also by the stunning scenery in the distance. "It's nice to be playing for the Chrysler and the Empire State Building," Condon remarked. Of course with such a healthy play time (19 songs, by my count), they covered both the standards ("Postcards From Italy," "Elephant Gun," "Nantes," "Scenic World," and "Mount Wroclai" to name a few) and a handful of newer songs.

Though I was tempted to stay longer, if there was an encore, I didn't see it. After missing out on Seapony twice last week, I dashed out of the park and over to Pianos, where I made it in time to hear the last five songs from the delightful Seattle group. For the record, it was totally worth it.

More pictures from the Beirut show below...

Continue reading "Beirut, Sharon Van Etten, Aaron Dessner, Yellow Ostrich & a double rainbow in McCarren Park (pics & review)"

Wildbirds & Peacedrums @ the Bell House in 2009 (more by Ryan Muir)

today in NYC
* Howl Fest
* Evillive
* Red Hook Fest
* Chola @ Barbes
* Sima Bina @ Town Hall
* Bushwick Open Studios
* Thierry Stremler @ Barbes
* Larry Polansky @ The Stone
* Christian Wolff @ The Stone
* Atlantic Avenue Artwalk
* Hillstock @ 106 Emerson Place
* Martin Sexton @ City Winery
* Hallucinogen @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Network Awesome @ 92Y Tribeca
* Mike Birbiglia @ Barrow Street Theatre
* Delexilio @ Brooklyn Academy of Music
* School of Seven Bells @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Stepdad, Sunset Victim @ Cameo Gallery
* Banda Sinaloense de los Muertos @ Barbes
* Pollyester, My Favourite Things @ The Gutter
* Saadi, Janka Nabay, Jogyo @ Le Poisson Rouge
* Captain Beefheart tribute @ Bowery Poetry Club
* Effi Briest, Pillars and Tongues, Hiro Kone @ Cake Shop
* Wolvserpent, A Story of Rats, Ruin Lust @ The Acheron
* Black Label Society, Anchored, Hourcast @ Irving Plaza
* Weston, Morning, Communication Redlight @ Maxwell's
* Joshua Light Show @ American Museum of Natural History
* Sondre Lerche, Nightlands, Kishi Bashi @ Bowery Ballroom
* Jimmy Eat World, Civil Twilight @ The Wellmont Theatre
* Big White Clouds, Amory Sivertson, Commerce @ Sycamore
* Rifle Recoil, My Favourite Things, Pollyester @ The Gutter
* The Machine (Pink Floyd tribute) @ Rocks Off Concert Cruise
* Dennis Coffey, The Dirtbombs, The Stepkids @ The Bell House
* All Tiny Creatures, More Humans, The Caribbean @ Sycamore
* Meta and the Cornerstones, DJ Spinach, Veronica @ 92YTribeca
* The Woes, Elk City, Old Monk, Royal American @ The Rock Shop
* Bella Boys, Milly Beau, The Durians, Ben Arsenal @ Shea Stadium
* Psychic Friend, Dangerous Ponies, Mystery Roar @ Public Assembly
* Richard Pinhas, Mountains, Forma, Carlos Giffoni @ The Schoolhouse
* The Sun Araw Band, Matthewdavid, D'eon, M Geddes Gengras @ 285 Kent
* Red Wire Black Wire, Dinosaur Bones, Steel Phantoms, Santah @ Pianos
* Wildbirds & Peacedrums, Yellow Ostrich, Callers @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* Blitz the Ambassador, DJ Spinna & more @ Target Free Saturday @ Brooklyn Museum
* D. Charles Speer & The Helix, Spider Bags, John Wesley Coleman @ Bruar Falls
* Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Balkans, Fort Lean, Headless Horseman @ Glasslands
* Ken South Rock, Unstoppable Death Machines, Ritz Riot, Filthy Savage @ Silent Barn
* Reverend John DeLore, Doran Danoff, Scott Metzger, Trina Hamlin @ Bowery Electric
* Teenage Angst (Nirvana tribute), MIck's Jaguar (Rolling Stones) @ Mercury Lounge
* Black Dog (Led Zeppelin Tribute), Sabbra Cadabra (Black Sabbath) @ Mercury Lounge
* Bad Manners, The Scofflaws, The Forthrights, The Grace Of Spades @ The Studio
* Unstoppable Death Machines, GDFX, DJ Teenwolf, DJ Jimmy C @ Tortilleria Chinantla (new location)
* Richard Lloyd (of Television), The Bamboo Kids, Heap, Jukebox Zeros, All In Your Mind @ Trash Bar
* Hooray For Goodbye, Clinical Trials, Aggie Doone, Circadian Clock @ Public Assembly (day show)

The schedule for Hillstock keeps changing. Today's up to date schedule is below.

The Captain Beefheart tribute at Bowery Poetry Club is:

Gary Lucas (Beefheart alumni, Jeff Buckley), Nona Hendryx (Labelle, Talking Heads), Nina Persson (The Cardigans), Nathan Larson (Shudder To Think), Cynthia Sley (Bush Tetras), Doug Gillard (Guided By Voices), Eric Slick (Dr. Dog), & Weasel Walter (Behold The Arctopus), will be joined by musicians from the rock, jazz, metal, progressive, blues, experimental, & classical worlds to perform faithful and interpretive versions of songs from Beefheart's entire catalog, from his 1966 debut "Safe As Milk" to his final record "Ice Cream For Crow", released in 1982.

Wildbirds & Peacedrums are on tour and play MHOW with Yellow Ostrich and Callers tonight.

All Tiny Creatures are here for two nights of shows.

Mike Birbiglia's show keeps getting extended. More chances to catch it!

Check out This Week in Indie.

My Morning Jacket VH1 Storytellers premiered on TV last night. Look for a repeat.

My Morning Jacket play Mountain Jam is this weekend.

The Roots Picnic is today and streaming.

Mutek is this weekend.

Chaos in Tejas is this weekend.

We're giving away a pair of passes to Internet Week.

DJ Shadow 'Gotta Rokk'. Video below...

New Tyler the Creator/Frank Ocean video, below...

Wu Lyf's new video for "Dirt" below....

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Saturday?"