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The Matches @ Knitting Factory, NYC July 23, 2006
Epitaph Records continues to have some of the most interesting artists on its label. I went to The Matches' show Sunday night expecting the music to be stereotypical So. California skate punk. The Matches have taken the skate punk sound as a jumping off point and have created a sound that is much more unique. The band's live show is extremely powerful and crowd alternated between moshing and pogoing. 
The Matches @ Knitting Factory, NYC July 23, 2006
The crowd was interesting as there appeared to be a fair number of underage attendees and a small cluster of parents at the back of the room. I was quite amused that some of the parents looked fairly traumatized when the pit broke out close to them.
I have a number of additional picture of the band, along with some pictures of Action Action who opened, posted on Flickr.
Here is a link to purchase The Matches first CD which I just picked up and is great.
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
The Matches @ Knitting Factory, July 23, 2006
Monday, July 24, 2006
Action Action @ Knitting Factory, July 23, 2006
I wasn't that familar with Action Action before catching their show at the Knitting Factory last night. I was very impressed -- very few bands can play every song with the passion and intensity that most bands play their encore and pull it off. Action Action pulled it off, sounded great and a very full Knitting Factory main floor loved it.
For those who haven't seen the band before, I would describe their sound as the rythms of PiL or Gang of 4 combined with the goth-synth keyboards and vocals of Joy Division. The band has been playing around New York for the last two years and is touring behind their recently released CD "An Army of Shapes Between Wars", which is out on Victory Records. If the CD sounds anything like the band's live show, this would be a great CD to pick up.
Anyway, back to the beginning of the night...I haven't been to the Knitting Factory in years. I think the last time I was there was for The Chameleons reunion, which shows just many years ago this was. I assumed that an 8:00PM show time meant that the first band would take the stage about 9:00PM. When I got to the club just before 9:00PM, I had already missed the first two bands and Action Action was just about to go on. Who knew that there was a club in this town that actually keeps to the scheduled set times??
I have some additional pictures of the band posted on Flickr. There are also a couple bootleg Action Action video clips up on YouTube that capture the band's live show instensity. While the clip below is very brief, it is one of my favorites.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Tokyo Police Club @ Mercury Lounge, June 27, 2006
I have been hearing the hype about Tokyo Police Club for some time so I was glad that I finally got a chance to see the band play live. My opinion -- while TPC is solid musically, they aren't "there" yet. They are certainly a band to watch though as I would expect that they will get better with time. My biggest complaint is that TPC simply lacked the energy and conviction of the bands that followed them. This review shouldn't scare anyone away from seeing them live as I'd see TPC again. I would just wait 6 months or so to give some time for their sound and live show to evolve.
Tokyo Police Club @ Mercury Lounge, NYC June 27, 2006 
Saturday, July 15, 2006
GSX on Q104.3's "Out of the Box" Show Tomorrow (Sunday) @ 9PM
Jonathan Clarke will be debuting "Too Far" from GSX's Manifest CD on "Out of the Box" tomorrow night at 9PM. For those not familiar with the show, "Out of the Box" is a great program where every Sunday night, Clarke plays artists that you know and introduces you to artists that you should know. If you you like what you hear, call the station at (888) 872-1043 to request more GSX.
For those outside of the NY area (or simply don't have a radio handy), you can stream "Out of the Box" from the Q104 website.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
GSX @ CBGB, June 7, 2006
I saw GSX live for the first time opening for Joan Jett at her June CBGB show. Sarah Greenwood, GSX front-person, is an impressive performer and the rest of the band is top-notch. The band's sound was unique but reminicent of the original Pretenders.
GSX @ CBGB, NYC June 7, 2006
One of my regrets is not picking up GSX's CD "Manifest". I would be very interested to hear how the band's live performance intensity translates to the studio.
GSX @ CBGB, NYC June 7, 2006
I have a few more pictures of the band posted @ my Flickr site.
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Dinah Cancer / 45 Grave - Back From the Dead
45 Grave @ CBGB, NYC March 5, 2006
Today I have going through pictures from shows I attended earlier this year and found my pictures from 45 Grave's show at CBGB this past March. I saw 45 Grave last year at one of the "Save CBGB" benefit shows when the band had recently reformed.
Dinah Cancer & 45 Grave @ CBGB, NYC March 5, 2006
The only original member of the band is Dinah Cancer . At last year's show, the guitarist was Rikk Agnew (x-Christian Death, Adolsecent) but this year, Dinah's band appears to be unknowns. The shows were a lot of fun if you want to relive the 80's death rock era but these shows won't convert new fans. There were no new songs and, while the backing band was competent, they didn't have the musical chops of Don Bolles, Rob Graves/Ritter or Paul Cuttler.
As a side note, I had a chance to talk with Don Bolles a few months back and told him that I had seen the reunited 45 Grave at a "Save CBGB" show. His immediate comment was "I'm sure they sucked".
45 Grave @ CBGB, NYC March 5, 2006
What was fairly interesting is that the band had some of their original CDs for sale which have been long out of print and have just been reissued. As titles like "Sleep In Safety" and "Only the Good Die Young" have been long out of print (and going for too much on eBay), I was glad to be able to pick up both of these CDs at an affordable price. Both CDs are great and highly recommended.
If you are a fan of early Christian Death, Sisters of Mercy, The Misfits and the like, 45 Grave are certainly worth catching live.
UPDATE:
I was surfing YouTube and ran across a video of the original 45 Grave.
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45 Grave - Live on New Wave Theater
Lauren Harris - MySpace URL and Final Pictures from Don Hill's
I was cleaning up my hard drive this afternoon and didn't realize that I had a number of unposted pictures from Lauren Harris' show @ Don Hill's in May. I just added the remaining pictures to Flickr.
Lauren Harris @ Don Hill's, NYC May 12, 2006
While I previously posted Lauren's management company website and MySpace site, she also has a MySpace site that has one additional song posted.
