Nomi, Armen Ra, & High Priest @ Rothko, NYC | pics

October 20, 2005

Nomi blew me (and all the Sunset Park kids) away Saturday night at Rothko in Manhattan (October 15, 2005). Not only did she perform her hip-hop soul with a full band, there was the magic of Armin Ra’s theramin, the skillful scratching by DJ High Priest, AND A PORTISHEAD COVER (theremin included).

Nomi posted this letter on her website: “We want to thank everyone who came out to celebrate the release of Nomi’s debut album ‘Lost In Lust’ this weekend @ Rothko. There was such a beautiful crowd.

In the words of DJ High Priest who blessed us with a brilliant set, “…it reminded me of back in the days when tough rappers would be chillin downtown with the art kids and new kinds of music and art was born.”

Also gracing us with their presence was Joan As Police Woman who’s solo set made the evening that much more special. Kornares kicked off the evening with rhymes and beats straight from Nomi’s hometown Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Nomi performed with a full band that included Joe Pascarell on guitar (The Machine), Jason Di Matea on bass (Chocolate Genius/Reuben Bachart) Todd Cohen on drums (The Machine/Antony & the Johnsons) and the haunting Armen Ra on theramin. Nomi performed 2 new songs during her set and we’ve posted video of these performances in our Media section.”

* Antony, a few of the Johnsons, CocoRosie, and Jason Hart were in the Rothko audience.
* Nomi sang Antony’s part in “Beautiful Boyz” with CocoRosie a day earlier at Tonic and before that at Town Hall. Antony & The Johnsons played Carnegie Hall two days earlier.
* You can listen to clips of Nomi’s new album at her website, but unfortunately the CD doesn’t capture the magic of her live show (which you can watch videos of at her website too). Tiny Mix Tapes gave Lost in Lust a 3/5.