HUFF THIS! has returned to its roots with a new, all-girl line up. It's a performance that lives in the worlds of of both music and dance, born in the basement of The Metropolitan Opera where Alison Clancy and Allison Jones dance together. In the past year, during breaks between opera acts, they started jamming and singing in the ballet studios, and recruiting other Met girls to dance. They recently joined up with impish drummer Erica Mancini and producer Benjamin Ickies and are ready to crash the Highline Ballroom on Sunday.
Clancy, notorious as the wild and emotive front woman for a few bands, leaves you no choice but to get involved in her shows. Her electric singing and dancing shakes the room with feline energy and her crew of seductive creatures weaves back and forth between the stage and crowd, literally consuming the audience. Echoing the raw energy of Patti Smith and PJ Harvey, HUFF THIS! delivers visceral performances of adoration and murderous vengeance.
HUFF THIS! at Highline Ballroom - Sunday July 28th
band: Alison Clancy, Erica Mancini, Allison Jones
dancers: Erin Moore, Lucy Struever, Ali Castro, Kyla Erst-Apler
produced by: Benjamin Ickies tickets: $10 in advance and $12 DOS
Also on the bill: Strip Darling, Eric Dash, The Candy Apples and Colin McShane
Cracker & Camper Van Beethoven's annual year-end California trek is underway and the last night of this run of shows is Dec. 29th in Petaluma. After which, Cracker heads further north to Portland on December 30th for a special one-off with bluegrass jam band Leftover Salmon, where the two bands will perform their highly-lauded 2003 album O Cracker, Where Art Thou? together in its entirety.
The following night, Cracker & CVB will be in Chicago for a celebratory New Year's Eve bash at Chicago's House Of Blues. Camper Van Beethoven will open, followed by Cracker ringing in the new year, and then Big Head Todd & The Monsters playing into the wee hours.
Then Camper Van Beethoven will start off the year with their own headlining shows in Milwaukee, Madison and Iowa City, before hooking up with Cracker again for shows in St. Louis and Minneapolis. The two bands will then head east for their annual winter run through the Northeast. As David Lowery (frontman for both bands) told the Boston Herald earlier this year,"We always do it in January when it’s really cold and not many bands go up to the Northeast. It started from the fact that it was the only time that was slow for the Camper Van Beethoven guys who have real careers. Then we accidentally figured out nobody else is touring, so it’s seen as this mid-winter cabin-fever kind of party."
Both Cracker and CVB will be running through their career-spanning canons of hits and fan favorites, while, perhaps even more exciting, Camper Van Beethoven will be performing a handful of new songs slated for their new studio album - their first in over seven years!
CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN & CRACKER'S WINTER 2011-12 TOUR Thu., Dec. 29 - Mystic Theatre, Petaluma, CA [CRACKER / CVB] Fri., Dec. 30 - The Roseland Theater, Portland, OR [CRACKER & LEFTOVER SALMON perform O Cracker Where Art Thou?album] Sat., Dec. 31 - House Of Blues, Chicago, IL [CVB 8pm / CRACKER 10pm / Big Head Todd & The Monsters 12:30am] Tue., Jan. 3 - Shank Hall. Milwaukee, WI [CVB ONLY] Wed., Jan. 4 - High Noon Saloon, Madison, WI [CVB ONLY] Thu., Jan. 5 - The Mill, Iowa City, IA [CVB ONLY] Fri., Jan. 6 - The Pageant, St Louis, MO [CRACKER / CVB] Sat., Jan. 7 - TBA, Minneapolis, MN [CRACKER / CVB] Fri., Jan. 13 - World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA [CRACKER / CVB] Sat., Jan. 14 - Highline Ballroom, New York, NY [CRACKER / CVB] (Tickets are $22 in advance and $25 DOS) Sun., Jan. 15 - Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge, MA [CRACKER / CVB]
Following last month's two-week tour of the western US, Jim Ward - frontman of Sparta and Sleepercar and founding member of At The Drive-In - will head out on an east coast tour this Sunday, September 18th. The tour launches at The Earl in Atlanta, GA and wraps up on September 27th at The Crofoot in Pontiac, MI. The dates include a full band show supporting Yuck in Boston on the 22nd, a Ward solo acoustic show supporting Rhett Miller in New York on the 24th, and a performance at the POP Montreal festival on the 25th.
Ward's debut solo album Quiet In The Valley, On The Shores The End Begins & The Electric Six was released on August 8th via his own Tembloroso Recordings. The album is a compilation of his acoustic solo EP trilogy - 2007's "Quiet", 2009's "In The Valley, On The Shores", 2011's "The End Begins" - paired with an additional disc of select tracks gone electric. To kick off the tour, the electric version of album track "Take It Back" is now available as a free MP3 download (download link above). Ward also made a video for "Broken Songs (electric)" with director Zach Passero.
The ever-busy Ward - who already co-owns a bar, The Hope and Anchor, and recording studio, Clap of Thunder, in his hometown of El Paso - recently opened a new downtown venue, Tricky Falls, which also features a separate bar, Bowie Feathers, on the second floor. Sparta will play their first show since 2008 at the venue on November 17th; tickets for the show are available here.
Jim Ward Tour Dates: SEPT. 18 -- ATLANTA, GA -- THE EARL SEPT. 19 -- CHAPEL HILL, NC -- LOCAL 506 SEPT. 20 -- WASHINGTON, DC -- DC9 SEPT. 21 -- PHILADELPHIA, PA -- MILKBOY SEPT. 22 -- BOSTON, MA -- TT THE BEAR'S# SEPT. 24 -- NEW YORK, NY -- HIGHLINE BALLROOM% SEPT. 25 -- MONTREAL, QC -- LE CAGIBI (POP MONTREAL) SEPT. 26 -- TORONTO, ON -- HORSESHOE TAVERN SEPT. 27 -- PONTIAC, MI -- THE CROFOOT # supporting Yuck % solo show supporting Rhett Miller
Tickets for the Highline Ballroom show are $22 in advance and $25 DOS. At this show, Jim is opening for Rhett Miller who will be playing a full band show.
Following their successful "An Intimate Space" acoustic tour this past spring, The Church return to the USA in February for their "Future Past Perfect" electric tour. This unprecedented touring event continues their 30th Anniversary celebrations by performing three classic albums in their entirety in one night: Untitled #23 (2009), Priest=Aura (1992), and Starfish (1988).
Recently inducted into the Australian Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, the band will begin the night in the present, covering the last decade with the critically acclaimed Untitled #23. Proceeding backwards into the '90s, they will then perform perennial fan favorite, Priest=Aura (an album not supported by a tour when originally released in the USA). And then, what better way to conclude the evening than with a performance of the all-time classic album, Starfish. These three great albums will be played in succession -- live and electric.
"Future Past Perfect" Tour Dates Feb 02 - Los Angeles, CA. - El Rey Theatre Feb 04 - San Francisco, CA. - Great American Music Hall Feb 07 - Seattle, WA. - Triple Door Feb 08 - Seattle, WA. - Triple Door Feb 11 - Chicago, IL. - Park West Feb 13 - Alexandria, VA. - The Birchmere Feb 15 - Philadelphia, PA. - The Trocadero Feb 16 - New York, NY. - Highline Ballroom Feb 17 - New York, NY. - B.B. King's Feb 18 - Foxboro, MA. - Showcase Live
Tickets for the show at Highline Ballroom are $39.50 in advance and $45 (DOS). Doors are at 6PM and the show starts at 8PM. Ticket prices and door/show times are the same for the show at B.B. King's the following night.
Reissues of the band's early albums will finally be available in the USA alongside contemporary releases, all on Second Motion Records. Fully remastered with bonus tracks, the reissues will come in luxurious digi-packs with rare photos and exhaustive sleeve notes written by Marty Willson-Piper. Of Skins and Heart, The Blurred Crusade, Seance, and Heyday are available now along with the comprehensive double CD compilation Deep In the Shallows, which features liner notes from David Fricke of Rolling Stone.
(photo: Jason Thrasher) Camper Van Beethoven & Cracker are playing a short run of East Coast dates as part of their Key Lime & Kerosene Tour, where both bands will be performing their signature albums (CVB's Key Lime Pie and Cracker's Kerosene Hat) in their entireties. The tour stops at Highline Ballroom on Jan. 14th and tickets are $22 in advance and $25 DOS.
David Lowery is apparently not planning on resting this year as he is following this tour with the release of his first solo album, The Palace Guards, on Feb. 1st (429 Records). After years of helping steer the lauded and eclectic careers of both of his bands, Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven, co-founder and frontman David Lowery has seen fit to present a collection of songs recorded apart from those iconic indie & alternative rock entities. Stopping short of calling it a solo record, Lowery has collaborated with a handful of trusted musical cohorts associated with his Richmond, VA-based studio, Sound of Music - an inner circle that Lowery has relied on for over 17 years and who’ve been instrumental in helping create the sounds heard on this album as well as past projects. David recorded and produced The Palace Guards in conjunction with John Morand and Alan Weatherhead. Key players include Miguel Urbiztondo on drums, David Immergluck on guitars and bass, Craig Harmon played organs and Ferd Moyse on upright bass and fiddle. Special guest appearances include Cracker mates Sal Maida and Johnny Hickman, as well as the late Mark Linkous (Sparklehorse) who played keyboards on “Big Life.”
The Palace Guards took David several years to complete. Lowery felt it liberating to write the songs without the constrictions of how they might fit in with the Cracker or Camper canon of songs and performances. The easy rapport and powerful creative chemistry that Lowery shared with his studio pals allowed his introverted musical inclinations to shine through. Apparent in this collection of nine songs is a willingness to push the envelope stylistically—from the Appalachian-woven folk of the album’s first single “Raise ‘em Up on Honey” to the swirling, languid psychedelia of “Deep Oblivion” and eclectic Syd Barrett-inspired title track, to the rocked-out “Baby, All Those Girls Meant Nothing to Me,” Lowery enjoys the freedom to write and record just about anything that pleases him at that moment.
“One of the reasons the album sounds the way it does is that I have pretty strong personalities playing with me,” says Lowery, “guys who I’ve worked with for years, who have done engineering or playing on Camper and Cracker albums. There’s that instant easy rapport that shines through. Working with them brought out the more extreme edges in these songs and amplified them. It was also liberating to start with no preconceived notions of what they would end up sounding like or worrying about how they might sound in a live setting, as I have to do when I write songs for Cracker."
CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN & CRACKER'S KEY LIME & KEROSENE SHOWS Fri., Jan. 14 -- Highline Ballroom / New York, NY Sat., Jan. 15 -- Lee’s Palace / Toronto, ONT Sun., Jan. 16 -- Middle East Downstairs / Cambridge, MA
Cracker came back into the mainstream last year when the first single, "Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out With Me", from their Sunshine in the Land of Milk and Honey CD hit the Billboard charts. This new disc has been called "musically gutsy and lyrically sharp" and "as engaging and enjoyable as anything they have released since Kerosene Hat in 1993."
Cracker features co-founders David Lowery (vocals/ guitar) and Johnny Hickman (lead guitar / vocals), along with bassist Sal Maida (Roxy Music / Sparks) and drummer Frank Funaro (The Dictators / Joey Ramone / Del Lords).
Cracker and the reconvened Camper Van Beethoven played a series of double-bills earlier this year and the band is now back on the road for a national co-headlining tour with Reverend Horton Heat. The tour stops at the Highline Ballroom on May 27th and 28th and tickets for the all-ages show are $30. Doors open at 6PM and the show starts at 8PM.
Sludge-metal band Black Cobra released their third full-length CD, Chronomega, at the end of September and this release marks the band's Southern Lord debut.
As a two-piece band, guitarist/vocalist Jason Landrian and drummer Rafael Martinez make a hell of a lot of noise and producer Billy Anderson (High on Fire, The Melvins, Sleep) gives the band a heavy, brutal sound. Black Cobra's sound fits well with some of the past and current California-based metal bands as they combine Kyuss' stoner groove with the heaviness of High on Fire. While the band is only a two-piece, Jason Landrian's bass-heavy guitar work (similar to Josh Homme's work with Kyuss) more than compensates for any assumed sonic short-comings.
Chronomega follows in the fuzzy, fast riffs that Black Cobra set down with Feather And Stone but this release shows the band continuing to diversify their sound as their songwriting continues to mature. There are less instrumental interludes and slower moments on this new release and length of the disc has increased by 50% over Feathers And Stone (which clocked in about 25 minutes). Producer Billy Anderson has helped the band sharpen their attack - Landrian's vocals are brought forward in the mix and the band changes up the tempos across the disc and plays with an aggression generally found in the speed metal/splatter genre.
Black Cobra are currently out on tour with Pelican and Disappearer which includes a local tour stop at Highline Ballroom on December 2nd. Here is the band's upcoming tour dates:
Nov. 07, 2009 -- 9:00PM, Rubber Gloves w/ Black Tusk, Denton, Texas Nov. 08, 2009 -- 8:00PM, FUNFUNFUN Fest After Party w/ Black Tusk + Eagle Claw, Austin, Texas Nov. 09, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Rock Bottom Tattoo Bar w/ Black Tusk, San Antonio, Texas Nov. 10, 2009 -- 10:00PM, Hi Ho Lounge w/ Black Tusk, New Orleans, Louisiana Nov. 11, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Newby’s Too w/ Black Tusk + Dreamer’s Disease, Panama City Beach, Florida Nov. 12, 2009 -- 7:00PM, Will’s Pub w/ Black Tusk + Dark Castle + more... (Anti-Pop Music Fest), Orlando, Florida Nov. 13, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Brass Mug w/ Black Tusk, Tampa, Florida Nov. 14, 2009 -- 10:00PM, The Jinx w/ Black Tusk, Savannah, Georgia Nov. 15, 2009 -- 8:00PM, The Milestone w/ Black Tusk, Charlotte, North Carolina Nov. 16, 2009 -- 10:00PM, The Triple w/ Black Tusk, Richmond, Virginia Nov. 17, 2009 -- 9:00PM, Blue Nile w/ Black Tusk, Harrisonburg, Virginia Nov. 19, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Building 16, Providence, Rhode Island Nov. 20, 2009 -- 8:00PM, The Shop w/ Black Tusk, Ithaca, New York Nov. 21, 2009 -- 7:00PM, Monty’s Krown w/ Black Tusk, Rochester, New York Nov. 22, 2009 -- 8:00PM, 31st St. Pub w/ Black Tusk, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Nov. 23, 2009 -- 7:00PM, The Grog Shop w/ Black Tusk, Cleveland, Ohio Nov. 24, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Southgate House w/ Black Tusk, Newport, Kentucky Nov. 27, 2009 -- 8:00PM, V Club w/ Black Tusk, Huntington, West Virginia Nov. 28, 2009 -- 7:30PM, The Shelter w / Pelican + Gods & Queens, Detroit, Michigan Nov. 29, 2009 -- 8:00PM, Soundlab w / Pelican + Gods & Queens, Buffalo, New York Dec. 01, 2009 -- 7:30PM, First Unitarian Church w/ Pelican + Dissappearer, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Dec. 02, 2009 -- 7:00PM, Highline Ballroom w/ Pelican + Disappearer, New York, New York
For anyone who missed Pelican's set the other night at Brooklyn Masonic, the band is coming back through in December for a show at Highline Ballroom.
Pelican is releasing their fourth full-length and Southern Lord debut, What We All Come to Need, on October 27th.
What guitarist Laurent Lebec has dubbed “the most perfect synthesis of everything we’ve done to date, sonically”, this new album is a giant step forward within the complex, intricate, beautiful and crushing sound Pelican is famous for. The album features more guests than have ever appeared on a Pelican album before: Greg Anderson of sunn O))), Aaron Turner of Isis, Ben Verellen of Harkonen and Helms Alee and Allen Epley from The Life & Times and Shiner. Content-wise, Lebec says “there is a current of inspiration that feels particular to each album’s music and titles. Though we lack a singer, the song names are often conceptual. This new album speaks to a rapidly decaying world, the fulfillment we find in each other, as well as the resolve to move beyond disillusionment.” If the recent Ephemeral EP is any indication of what’s to come, we can expect nothing less than the apex of PELICAN’s creative output.
The show at Highline Ballroom is December 2nd and Pelican is playing with recent Southern Lord signee Black Cobra and Disappearer. Tickets are $13 in advance and $15 DOS.
LFO (best known for their 1999 #1 chart hit ‘Summer Girls’) has reunited after a seven year hiatus and just finished up a cross-country tour with Rookie of the Year, Go Crash Audio and Kiernan McMullan.
I had the chance to catch up with Brad Fischetti while the band was traveling down the southern part of the East Coast.
BrooklynRocks: What’s been going on with LFO over the last few years? It seems like the last time I remember hearing about the band was 2001 – 02.
Brad: In 2002, we took a hiatus. At that point in time, we were several months into the promotion of our second record (Life Is Good). The second album was successful but not like the first – shortly after its release 9/11 happened, Napster came about and people were getting music for free. For a variety of reasons, the band just couldn’t stay working together. We worked together for so many years and it was time for a break.
I started making plans for a record label (111 Records) which I still own today. Devin spent five years holed up in his apartment reading, writing and recording music. Devin came out of this an extraordinary musician. I put out his solo disc, Devin Lima and the Cadbury Diesel, on my label. Rich was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after our break and was given a 50%/50% chance to live. He was given chemo and went into remission. The leukemia came back and Rich was given a stem cell transplant, after which he started the Rich Cronin Hope Foundation to help bring awareness to stem cell treatments. Shortly after that, he went into remission again. A further complication happened though - on a routine hospital visit, medication was administered incorrectly which caused Rich to have a stroke. He wasn’t expected to live and, if he did, he would be a vegetable. The hospital tried an experimental treatment and Rich woke up but he is still feeling the after-effects of the stroke. It takes every ounce of energy he has to get on stage but he is passionate and dedicated to making this reunion work.
Last year, I approached the guys about the concept of a reunion. The timing seemed right in both our lives and with the music. Our original plans were to put together a couple new songs and go out on the road. It has come together so well, God willing, we will continue this comeback with more touring.
BrooklynRocks: I saw that your new single “Summer of My Life” is streaming on your MySpace profile. Are there other new songs that you are putting in the set?
Brad: We have two new songs “Summer of My Life” and “Hey Radio” in the set. Devin also performs one of his solo songs called “Hanging with You” and Rich performs his solo song “Story of My Life”, which is a powerful song that recaps the last ten years of his life.
BrooklynRocks: When you look back into the 90’s/early 2000, do you ever shake your head and say “I can’t believe I wore that or did that?”
Brad: (Brad laughs) A lot – specifically in video footage that came from 1996 – 98. I can’t believe some of the things we wore but guess it was kind of cool at the time. We also didn’t have creative control at that time and were following the direction of the record company. If you look back at the career of just about anybody who has had some success, everybody has something wacky in their early days. Kid Rock’s first album was laughable and he is a mega-star now.
BrooklynRocks: I know that you have only played one date so far (The Masquerade in Atlanta) but what sort of crowd are you drawing?
Brad: Probably 15 – 35 years old with the majority of the crowd in their mid-20’s.
BrooklynRocks: Did I read correctly that you are doing meet-and-greets with everyone who buys a ticket?
Brad: We are trying to give people an experience. We are trying to play smaller places that give as many people who are interested the opportunity to come to the show. I think there is tremendous impact that you can have in meeting people personally. I know this is the case for me – I ran into a baseball player once in a chance meeting and I’ll never forget that. We are trying to make our shows ‘An Evening with LFO’ rather than ‘come see our show, drive an hour each way and then go home’. We have VIP passes where you essentially get to spend the whole day with us. At the Atlanta show, I had a couple fans tell me it was the best night they ever had. We’re not touring to make money and bring home a check but rather to rebuild the LFO ‘brand’, reconnect with the fans and have some fun.
BrooklynRocks: What was it likely in 1999/2000, headlining large auditoriums and playing with Britney?
Brad: One of the coolest tours we did was this tour of amphitheatres with Nickelodeon. We were playing to 5,000 – 25,000 a night. I have some extraordinary video footage from those days. Our fans continue have such passion.
BrooklynRocks: Thanks for the time today. As a wrap-up is there anything that you want people to know about you, the band, the shows?
Brad: Check us out on our social networking sites – we are very active and always try to respond to people. We are on MySpace, Twitter and we have been posting some YouTube “shout out” videos to try and respond to all of the tweets that we have been getting.
Playing For Change is a movement to connect the world through music.
"The act of playing music with people of different cultures, religions, economics and politics is a powerful statement. It shows that we can find ways of working together and sharing our experiences with one another in a positive way. Music has the power to break down the walls between cultures, to raise the level of human understanding." ~ Mark Johnson, founder, Playing for Change
The whole "playing for change" concept didn't come together for me until I watched the videos. It is both heart-warming and fascinating to watch the performance of each song seamlessly flow around the world. Grammy winning producer/engineer Mark Johnson and his Playing For Change team traveled for a decade with a single minded passion to connect the world though music.
The Playing for Change videos document local and street musicians in locations that range from the Santa Monica streets to post-apartheid South Africa, to the ancient sites of the Middle East, the Himalayas and beyond.
The show tomorrow night should be special as the Playing for Change band are only playing six dates and tomorrow night is the last show of the tour.
Tickets are $20.00 -- doors are at 7PM and the show starts at 9PM.
Update: The show at the Mercury Lounge has been moved to August 14th and the band will be playing with the always fabulous Second Dan.
The London Souls have been around the scene for a while but I hadn't caught their live show prior to seeing them open for Kirsten Price at the Highline Ballroom. Even though the band is fairly young, they have a raw blues-rock sound that dates back to the late 60's sounds of Cream, Jimi Hendrix and the MC5.
The band is currently unsigned (though that won't last for long) and will be releasing their debut CD later this year. The band has just one track streaming on their MySpace page and they also have a (different) track on the recently released Green Owl Records charity compilation.
Here are some pictures from the band's set at the Highline Ballroom
...and here is a live video from one of the band's SxSw performances.
The band has a couple shows coming up: August 9 @ Mercury Lounge w/Francis and the Lights (Tickets are $10) August 14th @ Mercury Lounge w/Second Dan (Tickets are $10) August 29 @ RocksOff Cruise on The Temptress w/Fishbone (Tickets are $25)
Kirsten Price had a CD release party for her debut CD, Guts & Garbage, last Friday night at the Highline Ballroom. I had a chance to catch up with Kirsten before the show and we talked about the new CD, the upcoming tour and some of her recent blog posts (Kirsten's blog is on her MySpace page - link below. Check out the post 'Kirsten With Her Knickers Down')
Kirsten's next shows in the area are: JULY 27 2008 @ WORLD CAFE LIVE, PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA AUG 7 2008 @ JOE’S PUB, NEW YORK, NEW YORK (Don't snooze on tickets - this one will sell out)
Last night, Lou Reed played the one-year anniversary show at Highline Ballroom. After the negative reviews on Reed's show at Highline Ballroom last year (see previous post), I skipped last night's show.
It sounds as though I missed a good show as Reed was described as being in reasonable spirits and good form. Here is the set list (taken from the Highline Ballroom blog) for the show:
01) Mad 02) Sweet Jane 03) I'm Set Free 04) Ectasy 05) I'm Sticking With You 06) Power of the Heart 07) I Wanna Know 08) Halloween Parade 09) Video Violence 10) Guaridian Angel 11) Magic and Loss 12) Pale Blues Eyes 13) Perfect Day 14) Satellite of Love 15) Walk on the Wild Side
This is an infinitely better set list than the prior year's show and it sounds like one of the highlights of the show was a 15 minute version of "Ectasy" with John Zorn.
I don't think anyone expected Evan Dando to reform The Lemonheads after an eight year absence. Last year's self-titled CD (on Vagrant) was a surprising return to the clear-headed power punk sound of the early 90's Lemonheads' lineup.
Drummer Bill Stevenson and bassist Karl Alvarez played on last year's CD and this tour (which started 11/30) marks the first time the trio has played together live. Both musicians are perfect foils for Dando's powerpunk sound given that they both spent years honing their chops in The Descendent and All.
The Lemonheads were in town at the beginning of the year and their February show at Southpaw was filmed by Baeble Music.
The band is at the Highline Ballroom in NYC on December 21st and at Maxwell's in Hoboken on December 23rd. Surprisingly, there are still tickets available for both shows.
One of my favorite NYC bands, The Kin, just finished their tour with Josh Kelley and Pat McGee and are headlining a show at Highline Ballroom on November 21st.
It is great to see the band's popularity soar as they are great guys who put on a phenominal live show. The band is playing with Wakey Wakey and Dan Torres. Tickets are only $12 in advance and $15 day of show.
The band was supposed to be playing a live set at Vintage Vinyl record store in Fords, NJ on November 20th. I am wondering if this show is now off as The Kin are no longer listed on the Vintage Vinyl site and Sebastian Bach is now doing an autograph signing at Vintage Vinyl the same night.
It has to be hard to be a second-stage band on OzzFest and play a 20-30 minute set in the middle of the day. Daath and Devildrvier are taking a night off from OzzFest and are playing full sets tonight at the Highline Ballroom.
Devildriver is touring behind their new CD, Last Kind Word, which was released at the end of July. The CD has gotten solid reviews (link) and the band is a force to be reckoned with live. Daath is touring behind their Roadrunner debut, The Hinders, which was released back in March. I am not at all familiar with Daath so I can't comment on the band but here is a link to the Blabbermouth review of their new CD.
Ticket are $20 and are still available for tonight's show. Doors are at 7PM and the concert starts at 8PM.
For anyone who hasn't heard the new Devildriver CD, Roadrunner has a downloadable mp3 posted of "Not All That Wander Are Lost". It is kind of cool to compare the studio version of this song to the live version (which was filmed at the New England Metal Fest earlier this year).
Danish duo, Junior Senior are playing the Highline Ballroom next Monday, Aug 13th and their new CD Hey Hey My My Yo Yo will be released the next day. Hey Hey My My Yo Yo was released in Japan in 2005 but this new US edition contains a limited edition 7-song EP of new material entitled “Say Hello, Wave Goodbye". Jeppe (Senior) Laursen comments on the new recording, “We wanted to dance this summer, so we went into the studio. Four days. Wham-bam! I hope people will want to dance to it too.”
In other Junior Senior news, the ‘80s rap-influenced song “Hip Hop A Lula” has been running in the trailers for the new “Rush Hour 3” movie due out this summer. The album’s first single, “Can I Get Get Get”, was recently featured in an episode of the ABC series, “Ugly Betty.” The song will also be featured in Logo’s Summer Supertease promo campaign and “Itch U Can’t Skratch” has already been used in a previous Logo campaign. Additionally, the track “Take My Time” has been used in the PSP game “Lumines 2.”
The video for the first single, “Can I Get Get Get,” features fan-submitted video footage and appearances by JD of Le Tigre and Peaches, amongst other surprise guests.
Hey Hey My My Yo Yo sees Junior (aka Jesper Mortensen) Senior (aka Jeppe Laursen) return in top, feel-good form, mashing-up their one of a kind Mamas & the Papas-meets-Sugarhill Gang sound with the manic, party energy that they’re known for. The sweet sounding ‘60s pop, ‘70s funk and ‘80s hip-hop inspired album features such notable guest artists as Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson of the B-52’s, Le Tigre, and legendary Motown girl group the Velvelettes, as well as Spooner Oldham, the Alabama born organist (and Neil Young keyboardist) behind classics like “When a Man Loves a Woman,” and “Mustang Sally.”
The album was produced by Junior, co-produced by Thomas Troelsen, and mixed by David Leonard in Nashville.
This is an amazing debut CD and the band has set the bar pretty high for other local bands.
While White Rabbits reside in Brooklyn, their sound dates back to the late-70's British mod revival. The closest points of comparison are Adam & the Ants, Madness, The Specials and (early) Squeeze. It is amazing the energy that the band plays with. The band plays with an intensity that so few bands capture while recording (think anything by The Jam or Adam Ant's Prince Charming CD). You can quickly tell that this band is likely to be a fabulous live act.
The band has a unique musical style that is tough to pin down. They use two drummers (like the early Ants) and heavy keys (like The Specials) but the White Rabbits only use elements from these bands and clearly are not derivatives of either act. Simply put -- this is great indie dance music. The CD production is also stellar as the vocals are clear and distinct and complement the music without overpowering it. As you can hear the lyrics, they are a bit dark but the melodies are insanely catchy.
The band is playing the David Letterman show next Thursday (July 19th) and are playing the main stage at the Siren Festival in Coney Island on July 21st. For the Siren Fest, the band is scheduled to take the stage at 1:30PM. The band is touring in August with The Cribs and here are the upcoming tour dates:
7-21 BROOKLYN SIREN FEST 7-31 MADISON, WI HIGH NOON SALOON 8-1 MINNEAPOLIS, MN 7TH STREET ENTRY W/ THE CRIBS 8-2 MILWAUKEE, WI PABST THEATER W/ THE CRIBS 8-4 CHICAGO, IL EMPTY BOTTLE W/ THE CRIBS 8-6 DETROIT, MI THE MAGIC STICK W/ THE CRIBS 8-9 NYC BOWERY W/ THE CRIBS 8-10 PHILADELPHIA, PA JOHNNY BRENDA'S W/ THE CRIBS 8-11 WASHINGTON DC BLACK CAT W/ THE CRIBS 8-18 AUSTIN, TX EMO'S
I ran across a White Rabbits video on YouTube that VBS.TV filmed at the band's practice/living space in Bushwick that is pretty cool. It also includes a killer rehearsal version of Fort Nightly. I was also looking at some of the band's live footage on YouTube and it really looks like this band is a "must see" act.
Links: White Rabbits MySpace page (link) White Rabbits Website (link)
The new CD, It's A Bit Complicated, has been out for about two weeks now and Art Brut is back in town next Monday night for a show at the Highline Ballroom. I haven't yet caught the band in concert but I have heard great things about their live performances. The opener at the Highline Ballroom show is Brooklyn's White Rabbits (who also have a great new CD Fort Nightly).
Tickets are still available and are only $18.
The band is continuing to stream tracks from the new CD and just released a new video for Direct Hit. If you haven't picked up the new CD yet, give these tracks a listen and check out Eddie in a toga in the Direct Hit video.
The Pipettes and Monster Bobby are playing an acoustic set at Other Music on June 5th before The Pipettes show at the Highline Ballroom that night. The Pipettes' MySpace page states that the Other Music performance is at 7PM but that doesn't seem to allow a lot of time for two bands (Pipettes and Monster Bobby) to perform and sign autographs prior to the Highline Ballroom show. No information is posted to Other Music's site at the present.
This show marks Monster Bobby's NYC solo debut. For those who don't know, according to Wikipedia...Monster Bobby is one of the principal songwriters for the Pipettes, and is the guitarist for The Cassettes, their all-boy back-up musicians. He is frequently credited by the Pipettes both with developing the idea of a modern girl group, and with introducing the members of Pipettes to one another. He has been described as the group's "Concept Engineer" (to use Kodwo Eshun's terminology), but rejects any notion of "individual genius" in his role with the Pipettes, stating that "most of the most interesting music is made in such a collective fashion that it is very hard to assign individual responsibility".
Monster Bobby has opened for the Pipettes countless times on a fairly casual basis in England and throughout Europe but for the very first time, he is actually receiving proper billing at venues throughout North America in advance of the mid-July release of his album Gaps, on the Hypnote label.
There are a couple advance mp3s from Monster Bobby's forthcoming CD posted to the Internet:
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