photos by Tamara Porras

"Patti Smith was amazing. Excellent crowd. Great energy. Full moon. Fantastic weather. Castle Clinton's 200th anniversary. River 2 River. Ah!" - J.M.F.

Godmother of Punk Patti Smith concluded the free Castle Clinton 2011 season last night (7/14) when she played the outdoor Manhattan venue filled to capacity. Her two hour set opened with the bombastic 1978 single "Because The Night," but dove into a fair amount of her earlier, more adventurous work including favorites like "Ghost Dance," "Pissing in a River," "Land," "Aint It Strange," and a few others. She also played a number of notable covers, including Neil Young's "Helpless," which she recorded for her cover album Twelve, and fellow NYC's alt-scene vet Lou Reed's "Perfect Day," which showed up on the album's accompanying EP. She also tackled Jim Carroll's "People Who Died," and the much more modern Adele's "Rolling in the Deep."

Catch Patti again when she comes to Southampton, NY for Escape to New York.

Patti Smith Group guitarist Lenny Kaye, who was scheduled to also make an appearance at the Johnny Thunders birthday celebration at Bowery Electric after the Castle Clinton show, will be a special guest on Saturday (7/16) at Mercury Lounge with The Fleshtones and The Insomniacs. Tickets are available.

More pictures and setlist from the Castle Clinton show below...

Continue reading "Patti Smith played Castle Clinton (pics & setlist)"

photos by Amanda Hatfield words by Zach Pollack

DOWNLOAD: My Brightest Diamond - "Reaching Through to the Other Side" (Feat. yMusic) (MP3)

Classical, pop-tinged orchestral group yMusic kicked off the second to last concert of the summer season at Castle Clinton in Battery Park as part of the River to River Festival last night (7/7). The six-players rotated on a variety of instruments including trumpet, viola, clarinet, and violin, possibly improvising as they took cues off of each other.

yMusic stuck around to back My Brightest Diamond (aka Shara Worden) as she took the stage around 7:30PM. Initially seeming shy and reserved, those notions of her were immediately shattered as she opened her mouth to sing. With a large vocal range in her arsenal, Shara's voice is as much of an instrument as the ones the orchestra behind her were using.

Breaking out a harpsichord, Shara and yMusic, backed by drummer Brian Wolfe, played a sonically expansive new track titled, "Escape Routes" off MBD's new chamber pop album LP All Things Will Unwind. The LP will arrive on October 18th via her longtime label Asthmatic Kitty, and they played in its entirety at the NYC show according to a note on Shara's website (though not in the album order). This will mark Shara's third LP under the moniker, and from the taste of what we received at Castle Clinton, it draws strong comparisons to Edith Piaf, Joanna Newsom and label-mate/collaborator Sufjan Stevens. Grab a taste via the MP3 from the album above. Check out the whole tracklist and cover art below.

Between performing cuts off of her new album, Shara donned a creepy mask while yMusic performed instrumental pieces that Shara composed for them and dancer Jessica Dessner who was there dancing to them. Late in her hour-long set Shara performed the track "High Low Middle" which had a New Orleans-feel to it, and had the entire audience engaged in endless hand claps. The group closed out their amazing performance at Castle Clinton by playing new song "Everything Is In Line".

My Brightest Diamond has sporadic dates throughout the summer, including an opening slot for Sufjan Stevens at his first of two nights at the Prospect Park Bandshell (August 2nd & 3rd).

Sufjan also has a new video for "Get Real Get Right." Check that out, along with more pictures from the My Brightest Diamond show, and her album artwork below...

Continue reading "My Brightest Diamond & yMusic played their new album @ Castle Clinton (pics, new MP3 & a Sufjan video too)"

Laurie Anderson & Bill Laswell @ Castle Clinton - 6/30/11 (photo by David Godlis)

Laurie Anderson & Bill Laswell played a free show at Castle Clinton in NYC last week (6/30). The free River to River series of concerts in Battery Park continues tonight (7/7) with My Brightest Diamond...

My Brightest Diamond with yMusic
July 7, 2011 - 7:00pm
Castle Clinton

TICKETS AVAILABLE ON A FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED BASIS AT THE GATE AT 5PM. DOORS OPEN AT 6PM. THIS VENUE HAS LIMITED SEATING.

Shara Worden is the granddaughter of an Epiphone-strumming traveling evangelist, her father an accomplished accordionist and her mother a classical organist. As a young person, Worden sang in church with her family and competed internationally with her high school chamber choir. She received a BA in Opera from the University of North Texas and studied composition with Padma Newsome. Her band, My Brightest Diamond, has released Bring Me The Workhorse (2006) and A Thousand Shark's Teeth (2008) on Asthmatic Kitty Records. In addition to her own songwriting endeavors (a new album is imminent), she has recently collaborated with myriad artists, including The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, David Byrne, Matthew Barney and Sarah Kirkland Snider. On this night she will join forces with a young but sophisticatedly scrappy group of players called yMusic who have backed the likes of Antony and The Johnsons, Arcade Fire, Beth Orton and Spoon to name a few. A night of incredible versatility in a place called home, Shara and her musical wanderers will leave you in a beautiful daze.

Check out the video of The Hold Steady playing the national monument in 2006, below...

Continue reading "Castle Clinton concert reminder"

St. Vincent @ Castle Clinton in 2008 (more by Kyle Dean Reinford)

Like at South Street Seaport, the River to River Fesival hosts free shows at Castle Clinton National Monument in Battery Park each year, and though more may still be announed, here is their initial 2011 lineup:

June 23: Vijay Iyer
June 30: Laurie Anderson with Bill Laswell
July 07: My Brightest Diamond with yMusic
July 14: Patti Smith

people watching Sonic Youth in Battery Park (more by Jason Bergman)

The 2010 River to River series of free summer shows in NYC is slowly being announced. As previously mentioned, Genesis member Steve Hackett is playing Rockefeller Park, the Bang on a Can Marathon returns to the World Financial Center in June, kids will be crowding into Battery Park on 4th of July, The Old 97s play South Street Seaport the same day, and other bands play South Street Seaport on other days. Rockfeller Park is located at the north end of Battery Park City, and will also host free shows by Beth Orton and Burning Spear this summer. Castle Clinton, also located in Battery Park, has so far announced Antibalas. Free movies on "The Elevated Acre" at 55 Water Street so far this year include "The Muppets Take Manhattan". Those and other free Battery Park events announced so far, below...

Continue reading "free shows in Battery Park - intitial summer 2010 schedule (Beth Orton, Burning Spear, Antibalas & more) "

Martha Wainwright singing Edith Piaf @ Spiegeltent (more by Chris La Putt)

Martha Wainwright has sung the songs of Edith Piaf in the past, and she'll do it again for three shows on Sunday, June 14th and Monday, June 15th at Dixon Place Theater (161 Chrystie St). Tickets are still on sale for the Monday 10pm show.

She'll be recording the sets with producer Hal Willner for a live record; her band will include electric guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Doug Wieselman, bassist Brad Albetta and pianist Thomas Bartlett (aka Doveman - who's got his own show Thurday, June 18th at Le Poisson Rouge with Sam Amidon and members of the National).

Just a few days later, on Wednesday, June 17th, some other Wainwrights (Loudon Wainwright III, Sloan Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche) will perform a free "Wainwright Family Concert" at the Madison Square Park Oval. Martha and Rufus are not on that bill, but they are playing the "Not So Silent Night" show set for December at London's Royal Albert Hall with the McGarrigle side of their family (Martha + Rufus = children of Louden + Kate McGarrigle). Tickets are on sale. Poster below.

Martha will also play two free outdoor NYC shows of her own this summer. She's appearing at part of the Tribute to Sly and the Family Stone at Castle Clinton on Thursday, July 16th. Then on August 14th and 15th, she'll play Central Park Summerstage with Morphoses and the Wheeldon Company. That night is billed as...

A very special evening of dance and music that will feature a world premiere by choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, set to new music by Martha Wainwright, both commissioned by City Parks Foundation.

Videos of Martha doing her Edith Piaf thing, with all tour dates and "A Not So Silent Night" poster, below...

Continue reading "Martha Wainwright - 3 Edith Piaf shows, Castle Clinton, Summerstage, Watermill & other 2009 tour dates "

Four free shows at Castle Clinton in NYC this summer...

July 16 - Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra Plays the Music of Sly & the Family Stone: "It's a Family Affair"

July 23 - Richie Havens

July 30 - Arlo Guthrie

Aug 06 - John Kelly Sings The Joni Mitchell Songbook: "Songs for a Shiny Hot Night"

Sly and the Family Stone @ Woodstock

July 16, 2009 7:00pm
FOUR NIGHTS OF PEACE, LOVE & MUSIC: A CASTLE CLINTON TRIBUTE TO WOODSTOCK - "IT'S A FAMILY AFFAIR" STEVEN BERNSTEIN'S MILLENNIAL TERRITORY ORCHESTRA PLAYS THE MUSIC OF SLY & THE FAMILY STONE

Castle Clinton National Monument, Battery Park at State Street Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra creates an evening that features the music of Sly & the Family Stone with special guests that include legendary Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell, and an array of vocalists including Sandra Saint Victor, Shilpa Ray and others. Steven Bernstein is a trumpeter, bandleader, arranger and composer who lives outside of musical convention. Join us for this one-of-a-kind show that pays homage to Woodstock's 40th anniversary year. Tickets will be distributed 2 per person, outside Castle Clinton on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00PM on the day of the show.

Another, much bigger Woodstock 40th Anniversary concert is hoping to happen in Prospect Park this summer.

Shilpa Ray also has many other shows coming up.

Conor Oberst and Jenny Lewis are also playing a free show in Battery Park this summer.

Continue reading "a tribute to Woodstock & Sly Stone @ Castle Clinton in 2009"

photos by Bryan Bruchman, words by Andrew Frisicano

For others, the concerns are more about day-to-day practicalities. As South by Southwest has grown bigger and more decentralized - this year it has twice as many acts as in 2003 - bands have been adding more and more performances to their itineraries, hoping to register the most impressions on the crowd. Shilpa Ray, an unsigned Brooklyn singer with a powerfully raw voice and a fierce technique on the harmonium, has eight showcases lined up, and for her the big question is simply endurance.

"It's a challenge: how good of a musician are you?" she said. "I wonder if I can do it, if I can sustain my voice for so long and stay consistent."

For her showcase at Club de Ville on Wednesday night, the audience included at least one record executive who said he was competing with another label to sign her. But Ms. Ray, who canceled a tour to make it to Austin, said she knew that even with a record contract success was far from guaranteed. And besides, she added, she is fine with roughing it at South by Southwest.

"Maybe in the past there were your pampered rock stars hanging out," she said. "But then there's the people like us who climb out of clown cars and try to make things work." [NY Times]

Shilpa has a short spring tour scheduled for April. That includes two hometown shows: on Wednesday, April 8th, Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers play Death By Audio (tonight) with Coin Under Tongue, My Education and Guisante. Then, they'll perform at a Benefit Concert For The Hearing Impaired at the Bell House on Wednesday, April 22nd with Depreciation Guild, Hooray for Earth, and Kino.

Shilpa also has a May Pianos residency on her schedule. She'll perform Wednesdays at the NYC venue, starting May 13th with Drink Up Buttercup, Wild Yaks & more.

Shilpa Ray is *also* on the bill for a Sly Stone Tribute Concert taking place July 16th at Castle Clinton. Presumably that will be a free show with a large cast of characters performing. Stay tuned for more details. All tour dates and more SXSW photos below...

Continue reading "Shilpa Ray - SXSW pics & 2009 tour dates (tonight @ DBA, a Pianos residency, CASTLE CLINTON & more) "

by Andrew Frisicano

Mirah & Spectratone International @ Castle Clinton (cred)

Coming off her May Castle Clinton gig with Spectratone International, Mirah will return to NYC to play Highline Ballroom on Wed, Oct 22 with and No Kids and Tara Jane O'Neil ($15 tix onsale now). The show is one of nine dates Mirah is playing with No Kids, in support of her new rarities and B-sides record, The Old Days Feeling, out on Modern Radio..

After leaving Mirah, No Kids then meet up with Casiotone For the Painfully Alone (as he swings back from a September European tour) to play another area show at Maxwell's on Oct 26. No tickets for that yet.

No Kids released a split 7" EP with Mirah collaborator Mount Eerie last May on Caff/Flick. (Both also appeared on the Worried Noodles comp and played its release party last December.)

Casiotone is set to release an expanded CD edition of his Town Topic EP on Worried Noodles' label Tomlab. The EP also acts as the soundtrack for the film Stay the Same Never Change.

Look for more Casiotone tour dates in October and November and a new album in early 2009. All Mirah & No Kids dates below...

Continue reading "Mirah & No Kids - 2008 Tour Dates (Casiotone FTPA too)"

photos by Elizabeth Weinberg

The Long Winters played a free show yesterday in NYC (July 31, 2008). Their last album, "Putting the Days to Bed", came out on Barsuk two full years earlier. And although they're in the process of recording a new album (they said 6 songs are already complete), they didn't actually play any at this show (they don't know how yet). The set was 90 minutes. They don't believe in encores. "Trust Me on This" adds,

It turned out to be a great idea, with optimal conditions -- I arrived 15 minutes before the show and got a free ticket and sat (sat! There were seats!) in the second row. The air was cool, mostly because we were so close to the water (right next to the Staten Island Ferry) and the sun set during the show. The light was great at the beginning of the show so I managed to take decent photos, though the sun was shining right at the band and they were all wearing sunglasses at the beginning of the show.

Continue reading "The Long Winters @ Castle Clinton, NYC - pics"

DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Pushover (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Stupid (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Blue Diamonds (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Carparts (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Long Winters - Scent of Lime (MP3)

For the last few years the beard has surged in popularity, first among indie-rockers in denim-rock bands, and now increasingly among the general population. I see them sprouting on faces everywhere, and I've noticed that I'm asked about my beard more and more all the time. It occurs to me that today's young men, and the young women and men who love them, may be as confused about the care and maintenance of beards as I was at their age, so they keep bringing the topic up in the hope that someone will offer some encouraging words of advice. I remember asking my Dad, who wore a moustache for thirty-five years, how he kept it trimmed so perfectly. He explained by taking out the scissors on his Swiss-Army knife and making a snipping motion while looking at me like I was retarded. This is the way men in my family explain things to each other. I used to surreptitiously examine older men's beards in the hopes of divining their secrets, but had to be very careful not to get caught staring too intently, especially in my old Pike/Pine neighborhood around the corner from the old Spar, where altogether too many men would have been HAPPY to show me how they trimmed their beards... [John Roderick of the Long Winters]

Tickets are required and space is limited. Two free tickets per person will be distributed at the Castle on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00PM on the day of the show.

"The Grand Opening," middle section of a Nathaniel Currier lithograph (later Currier and Ives) celebrating Jenny Lind's first U.S. appearance at New York's Castle Garden on September 11, 1850. Her last U.S. Concert was also at Castle Garden on May 24, 1852. She left for Europe on May 29, 1852. [Wikipedia]

Tickets are required and space is limited. Two free tickets per person will be distributed at the Castle on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00PM on the day of the show.

Continue reading "Jenny Lind played Castle Clinton, Akron/Family free tonight"

Ted Leo @ Castle Clinton - July 17, 2008 (The What-If Waltz )

DJ Ted Leo @ Siren Fest - July 19, 2008 (sokane1)

The ArT of DissenT
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
7:00-10:00 P.m.
MoMA
Theater 2, The roy AnD niuTA TiTus TheATer 2

For many artists, politics are an essential component of both their art and their interactions with community and commerce. In this panel, artists and musicians discuss how politics and art mix in their work and working processes.

Justseeds was founded in 1998 by artist and editor Josh MacPhee, who reached out to like-minded artists to create the Justseeds/Visual Resistance Artists' Cooperative. Since 1981, PAPER TIGER (PTTV) has combined media art and activism to create an alternative spin on the traditional television format. Musician Ted Leo has released five politically charged--and critically acclaimed--albums with his band the Pharmacists.

Following presentations by the artists, Gretchen Wagner, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Prints & Illustrated Books, The Museum of Modern Art, moderates a discussion.

A reception follows the event.

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

"Clark's adorable. Too flat-out charming to ever come off pretentious, even when the tunes err that way. She can't read music! I really liked her record, then loved it, then just liked it again. Tonight [June 10, 2008] at Castle Clinton she had some new songs, which were okay. One was inspired, she said, by listening to a lot of Prince. One of us (or both of us, or everyone) should probably listen to a little more Prince." [Heartonastick]

Continue reading "St. Vincent @ Castle Clinton, NYC - pics"

Castle Clinton was built in anticipation of the War of 1812. A decade later it was renamed Castle Garden and was transformed into the City's premier cultural center. By 1855, successive landfills had enlarged the Park to encompass Castle Garden and the structure became America's first immigrant receiving center, welcoming 8.5 million people before it was succeeded by Ellis Island. In 1896, the Castle was transformed into the beloved New York Aquarium, one of the nation's first public aquariums. [The Battery Connservany]

Abigail Washburn and the Sparrow Quartet featuring Béla Fleck/Mirah and Spectratone International
May 29, 7:00pm - Castle Clinton National Monument/Battery Park RAIN LOCATION: Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts at Pace University, Spruce Street entrance

Tickets are required and space is limited. Two free tickets per person will be distributed at the Castle on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00PM on the day of the show.

Continue reading "1st Castle Clinton show today + Abigail Washburn tour dates"

DOWNLOAD: Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Colleen (MP3)

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Mirah, The Long Winters, Akron/Family, St Vincent and a few more people are playing free shows at Castle Clinton National Monument in Battery Park in NYC this Summer......

Continue reading "Castle Clinton 2008: Ted Leo, Mirah, Long Winters...."

Continue reading "St. Vincent playing Castle Clinton & Coachella & other places"

In October of 2007, it was announced that original member, Ryan Vanderhoof, departed the group "amicably sometime between the completion of (2007 release) Love Is Simple and the start of the band's U.S. tour" according to Akron/Family's publicist. The reasoning behind his departure was that "he went to live in a Buddhist Dharma center in the Midwest."

Nu Music presents "Family Matters" with...

Akron/Family & Megafaun

Thursday, March 6th, Doors @ 8:30
All ages, open to the public

NYU's E&L Auditorium (60 Washington Sq. S.)

$4 NYU, $5 non-NYU
Must buy tickets at ticket central: 212 998 4941

Continue reading "Akron/Family tour - NYU/Maxwells/SXSW/Castle Clinton"

the Budos Band @ Citysol, NYC - July 14, 2007

Tonight (July 26, 2007) is the free Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings concert in Castle Clinton - a seated outdoor venue (where Drive by Truckers just played), but I doubt many people will be staying in their seats - well, actually I don't know. It will definitely be weird if security trys to keep it a truly seated concert. What do you think? Note: "Two free tickets per person will be distributed at the Castle on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 5:00pm on the day of the show."

And as I've said many times, Sharon's backing band The Dap Kings also now back Amy Winehouse, and share members (and a label) with The Budos Band. The Budos Band played the free BrooklynVegan/Solar One Citysol concert a few weekends ago - the one Les Savy Fav headlined. And as previously mentioned, despite not a ton of people showing up for their early set time (relatively speaking), the show was a funky good time. The Budos Band's next show is at Joe's Pub on August 9th - I hope they can all fit on the stage. More photos & tour dates, below...

Continue reading "SHARON JONES & the Dap Kings tonight, BUDOS BAND, Citysol pics, 2007 Tour Dates (Joe's Pub)"

DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - I Can't Wait (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - An Accident (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - Room For Mistakes (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - Seventy-four, Seventy-five (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - White Waves (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Shearwater - Red Sea, Black Sea (MP3)

Last night's free, outdoor Shearwater show was moved inside due to inclement weather. More specifically, it was moved to The Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts at Pace University - the home of Inside the Actors Studio. It all worked out just fine.

Continue reading "Shearwater (not) @ Castle Clinton, NYC - pics + MP3s"

Alejandro Escovedo @ Castle Clinton, NYC - June 2, 2007 (CRED)

Tickets are on sale for an August 3rd Alejandro Escovedo Orchestra show at Mercury Lounge in NYC. Alejandro played a free show with Roky Erickson in NYC this past weekend.. I wished I could have been there. How was it?

Tour Dates below....

Continue reading "ALEJANDRO ESCOVEDO played Castle Clinton, playing Mercury Lounge - Tour Dates"