photos by Sarahana

Future Islands @ Bowery Ballroom

Released in October, Future Islands' third album, "On the Water," features cellos, violins and acoustic percussion -- along with background sounds captured outdoors at a North Carolina waterfront. The natural world also features heavily in the album's song titles, including "The Great Fire," "Give Us the Wind" and the title track.

Add to that songs such as "Before the Bridge" and "Tybee Island," and there seems to be an elemental theme. But Cashion says "On the Water" is not a concept record.

"This is a group of songs that work well together as an album," he says. "But there was no underlying concept we were discussing when we wrote it. I feel like it takes a certain kind of band to make a true concept record. I'm not sure we're that kind of band." [expressnightout]

Future Islands are officially in their native Baltimore after concluding their US tour in support of Over The Water over the weekend. Falling toward the end of those dates was Bowery Ballroom on 12/1 which also featured tourmates Ed Schrader's Music Beat as well as Zomes. Pictures from that show are in this post.

Future Islands' US tour kicked off in late October and also included stops at Hopscotch, FYFest, and Fun Fun Fun Fest. The band has a couple days off now, but will play a pair of UK dates at the end of this week including ATP's Nightmare before Christmas. They'll then return to tour Europe in Feb/March next year.

In related news, Doe Paoro released a cover of Future Islands' "Little Dreamer" which you can stream, with all dates and more pics from Bowery, below...

Continue reading "Future Islands, Ed Schrader's Music Beat & Zomes @ Bowery Ballroom (pics)"

Amen Dunes at Glasslands (more by Benjamin Lozovsky)

Amen Dunes will rev up the reverb at Saint Vitus on August 26th with Bobb Trimble's Flying Spiders, Zomes, and GDFX as part of their record release celebration for the new and haunting psychedelic garage LP Through Donkey Jaw. Tickets are on sale.

Through Donkey Jaw was released via Sacred Bones last week and features "Christopher" (video below) and "Not A Slave" (stream below).

Bobb Trimble recently welcomed the new LP The Crippled Dog Band via Yoga Records. The release compiles long-lost material from the outsider folk musician's aborted LP...

The year was 1983, and Bobb Trimble had two then-unrecognized masterpieces to his credit and a lot of confusion and indifference from his fellow travelers in the Worcester, MA "Wormtown" scene. Never one to worry much about appearances, Bobb accepted an invitation to join a group of teenage boys who called themselves The Crippled Dog Band ...and led the Band on enthusiastically received gigs throughout the region. Unbeknownst to almost anyone, they completed a raucous album full of addictive hooks, feedback, teen chatter and video game noises. But soon the Band splintered and Bobb decided to forget about the whole thing, disposing of the entire 500-count LP pressing in an .office park dumpster.

Stream one track, "Live Wire", alongside a video from 1983 (!) for "You Should See My Girl" below. If you aren't familiar with the Bobb Trimble "legend" catch up with an interesting Guardian article.

Zomes is nom de plume of Asa Osborne (Lungfish), who released Earth Grid via Thrill Jockey in April. Check out "Openings" streaming below.

GDFX is Greg Fox of Liturgy, who recently released a new LP via Impose Records entitled One Thing. You can listen to "Pipedream" below. Liturgy play Irving Plaza with Asobi Seksu and Boris on 10/27 as part of Boris's US tour. Tickets are still available.

All song streams and videos are below.

Continue reading "Amen Dunes released 'Through Donkey Jaw', celebrating @ Saint Vitus w/ Bobb Trimble, Zomes & GDFX"

"For 4 years now Wham City has been organizing the WHARTSCAPE. What started as a summer warehouse party turned into a much bigger, multi-day outdoor festival with thousands of bands, performers, and folks traveling to Baltimore from all across the US and Europe.
Since, we organize this festival out of pocket and in our spare time, it is important for us to keep it comfortable and enjoyable for us to do. One thing we talked about at the end of last year's festival was shrinking it down slightly and having it feel more community based and familiar.

This year isn't focused around headliners, but mainly performers and friends that make up the community we tour, work and live in.
We are also greatly reducing the number of MEGA-PASSES (the 3 day pass ticket that grants you entry to every show and every day).
ONLY 300 Mega-Passes will be sold; this is the only guarantee that you can see all the shows.

Tickets will be sold to the individual shows, but it is strongly suggested that you buy a Mega-Pass, as it saves you money and assures you take in the entire poo-poo.
Whartscape will take place July 10-11-12 at the Baltimore Museum of Art, Maryland Institute College of Art Studio Center Parking Lot, and Load of Fun.
We will begin selling tickets at 12 Noon, Monday, June 29th.

More info and full, 140 band lineup below...

Continue reading "Whartscape - 2009 Wham City festival dates & lineup "

DOWNLOAD: Brightblack Morning Light - Oppressions Each (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Brightblack Morning Light - Hologram Buffalo (MP3)

Brightblack Morning Light @ (Le) Poisson Rouge (more by Toby Tenenbaum)

Brightblack Morning Light have a set of Arizona/California dates and two NYC shows planned for May and June. The group plays The Studio at Webster Hall on Wednesday, June 10th (tickets) and Brooklyn's Studio B on Thursday, June 11th. Zomes, the project of Lungfish guitarist Asa Osborne, opens both. No general admission ticket info for the Studio B show yet, but we think it's safe to say that it is part of the Northside Festival (4-day festival passes are still on sale). Stay tuned for more details as we get them.

BBML's latest record, Motion To Rejoin, came out in September 2008 on Matador. The MP3s above are two tracks from that disc. The group most recently visited NYC on January 21st, as part of the Laurie & Friends show at BAM featuring Laurie Anderson, Dirty Projectors and others.

All tour dates, with a pair of videos from the band's fall tour, below...

Continue reading "Brightblack Morning Light - 2009 Tour Dates (2 NYC shows, 1 for the Northside Festival) "

DOWNLOAD: FADER 57 podcast w/ TVOTR & BBML (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Brightblack Morning Light - Hologram Buffalo (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Brightblack Morning Light - Oppressions Each (MP3)

As previously noted, Brightblack Morning Light play Le Poisson Rouge tonight/Monday and then again in NYC on Tuesday at Southpaw. Their new album, Motion To Rejoin, is out now on Matador (2 songs for download above) and you might have seen them on one side of the cover of the new FADER (if not, the picture is right up there too with the same issue's podcast). Cokemachineglow says,

The criticisms leveled against Brightblack Morning Light are so obvious that they seem almost underhanded: yes, Nabob Shineywater and Rachael Hughes create ridiculous myths about themselves; yes, they're obsessed with crystals and rainbows and every new age/hippie cliche out there; yes, they only play one speed and it's really really slow. Every review seems to start with the backstory, mention offhand the band's extraordinary ability to incorporate soul and blues into a gorgeous syrupy drone, then attach a 3/5 or something as if they're obliged as perceptive critics to dock marks due to all the bullshit...

All dates and a video below...

Continue reading "Brightblack Morning Light are here - some MP3s & stuff"