Exit Stencil CMJ Showcase: Live Video from Mystery of Two, HotChaCha and The Dreadful Yawns

Cleveland-based record label Exit Stencil Recordings had a showcase at Spike Hill on the first night of CMJ. I missed Spanish Prisoners who opened the show but I was able to film some of Mystery of Two, HotChaCha and The Dreadful Yawns' live set.



All of the bands were great but Mystery of Two's updated take on 70's punk (sort of a Television meets the Talking Heads sound) was the highlight of the evening.

Check out Exit Stencil's website for vinyl and CD releases from all of these bands.

Most of the Exit Stencil bands aren't playing outside of the Cleveland area for the remainder of the year but HotChaCha will be back in NYC this month for a show at Annex on November 21st.

Links:
Mystery of Two
HotChaCha
The Dreadful Yawns

Cleveland's Mystery of Two Play Shows In Brooklyn Tonight and Tomorrow

Cleveland's Mystery of Two is in town this weekend for two shows in Brooklyn. Tonight's show is at Spike Hill (184 Bedford Ave, Williamsburg) and tomorrow night's show is at Tommy's Tavern (1041 Manhattan Ave, Greenpoint).

Mystery of Two has a 70's art-punk feel to their music and the closest points of comparison would be Rocket From the Tombs/early-Pere Ubu or Television. Singer Ryan Weitzel has a similar vocal style to Pere Ubu's David Thomas and the band's music has some of the same free-form, wall-of-sound elements of both Ubu and Television. There are a number of live and studio tracks streaming on the band's MySpace page. All of the tracks are well worth a listen - good starting points are "Desolate", "Corner" and a punked-up cover of Canned Heat's "Going Up The Country".

Links:
Exit Stencil Recordings