The Hounds Below (x-Von Bodies) Play Rock Shop Tomorrow (Nov-14) and The Delancey on Friday (Nov-16)

After Detroit garage rockers The Von Bodies broke up last year, vocalist/guitarist Jason Stollsteimer wasted no time in making The Hounds Below his next full-time project. Moving from garage rock to post-punk, All Music called the band's debut disc Light Me Up in the Dark (released last month) "a meeting point between The Cure, early U2, The Pixies and a number of other bands of similar vintage".

Last time through, The Hounds Below were supporting The Cribs so they played the not-so-intimate Bowery Ballroom and Music Hall of Williamsburg. This time around, the band is touring with Pomegranates and you can see them up-close and personal. The tour is stopping at The Rock Shop in Brooklyn tomorrow night (Tickets are $10) and The Delancey on Friday night (Tickets are also $10).



The Hounds Below released their self-produced full-length debut, You Light Me Up In The Dark, on October 9 through Slimstyle Records. Though a debut from a band that only solidified its lineup this January, You Light Me Up In The Dark is a fully-formed record. The Michigan four-piece blends melodic rock, a post-punk sense of urgency and the balladeers of yesterday, mastering the art of mature indie-pop while still winking at youth’s never-ending need to wave a flag of revolt. The result is a modern love letter to the masses that manages to paint a canvas of hope detailing wasted days and blurry nights.

Made up of Jason Stollsteimer (Vocals/Guitar), Skye Thrasher (Guitar), Mathew Hofman (Bass) and Griffin Bastian (drums), The Hounds Below is full of glaring guitars backed by energetic percussion and Stollsteimer’s ability to project Detroit’s unique personality through his lyrics. Initially conceived as a solo project in 2009, Stollsteimer was approached by friends to open as their bands came through the Michigan area. “I love playing live as much as I love writing songs so I would assemble a few friends to back me up and do the show,” says Stollsteimer. This quickly led to high-profile shows through the Midwest with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Airborne Toxic Event, The Heavy, The Black Angels, and The Raveonettes.

“The youthful enthusiasm of the other guys and the power of a full band really left their own creative footprint on the songs,” says Stollsteimer. “It’s updated our sound quite a bit and we’ve written many new songs.” One of the earlier songs that is still in the band’s repertoire is “For You And I,” which Stollsteimer says glibly is about “a general distrust in something larger. You can figure it out from the lyrics.” Playing close to the vest, Stollsteimer’s lyrics are most often inspired by fantasy or from observation of his friends, including their lost loves or their relationships.

Links:
The Hounds Below

First Aid Kit Release Video for "Ghost Town" // CMJ Show on Oct. 21st

First Aid Kit's new video for "Ghost Town," off the duo's debut full-length album The Big Black & The Blue (Wichita), premiered earlier this week on Spin.com. Encapsulating the haunting beauty of the song, the Mats Udd-directed video was filmed earlier this summer in Stockholm, nearby their hometown of Enskede, Sweden.

"We filmed it during a beautiful summer's day at a wheat field and a meadow in Stockholm. Mats Udd and his crew did a fantastic job and really captured the spirit of the song. It's inspired by Picnic At Hanging Rock, among other things," explains First Aid Kit's Klara and Johanna Söderberg. "The shooting was a lot of fun, but we got over 100 mosquito bites each (!!). However, it's all for the art, right?"



A "Ghost Town" single will be released digitally September 28th via Wichita and will include a cover of Fever Ray's "When I Grow Up" as a b-side. The cover is a tribute to First Aid Kit's mentor Karin Dreijer Andersson, of Fever Ray and The Knife, who released the young Swedish sisters' debut EP "Drunken Trees" in 2008 on her label, Rabid. The "Ghost Town" single will also be available as a 7" via the Wichita web store and at First Aid Kit's shows.

Later this month, First Aid Kit will begin their second North American headlining tour on September 30th at The Vera Project in Seattle, WA. Ferraby Lionheart will be opening on all dates of the tour and The Sea Of Cortez are also on the bill for the first three shows. The tour now wraps up with a recently announced New York show on October 21st at The Delancey as part of the Saddle Creek/Wichita showcase during the CMJ Music Marathon.

First Aid Kit tour dates:

SEPT. 30 -- SEATTLE, WA, THE VERA PROJECT+*
OCT. 01 -- PORTLAND, OR, DOUG FIR LOUNGE+*
OCT. 03 -- SAN FRANCISCO, CA, BOTTOM OF THE HILL+*
OCT. 04 -- LOS ANGELES, CA, LARGO AT THE CORONET+
OCT. 05 -- LOS ANGELES, CA, ECHO+
OCT. 07 -- AUSTIN, TX, STUBBS JR.+ (Official ACL Pre-party)
OCT. 09 -- AUSTIN, TX, AUSTIN CITY LIMITS FESTIVAL
OCT. 11 -- NASHVILLE, TN, THE END+
OCT. 13 -- CHICAGO, IL, LINCOLN HALL+
OCT. 15 -- TORONTO, ON, EL MOCAMBO+
OCT. 16 -- MONTREAL, QC, LE DIVAN ORANGE+
OCT. 17 -- BOSTON, MA, GREAT SCOTT+
OCT. 19 -- PHILADELPHIA, PA, JOHNNY BRENDA'S+
OCT. 20 -- WASHINGTON, DC, DC9+
OCT. 21 -- NEW YORK, NY, THE DELANCEY (Saddle Creek/Wichita CMJ showcase; 10:15pm set time)

+ Ferraby Lionheart supporting
* The Sea Of Cortez supporting

Links:
First Aid Kit

Coyote Eyes Plays A Fundraise Show at The Delancey on Aug. 6th

Help Coyote Eyes raise funds to finish the recording of their new EP!

"This post-punk, art rock trio has already drawn comparisons to Sonic Youth. But Coyote Eyes is no cheap indie rock knock-off. Yes, like Kim Gordon, band member Marta DeLeon plays bass and sings, but her high, bird-like voice is more energetic than Gordon's. DeLeon shares vocal duty with Manny Nomikos, who matches her sprightliness with yearning, and introduces a subtle, clever dissonance with his guitar. And drummer Jeremiah McVay gives the song a sense of urgency with frenetic yet controlled percussion." -- WNYC

Here is what the band posted regarding their fund raising show and Kickstart project:

"We were recently lucky enough to find ourselves in the position of being offered financial backing by a small label to record and promote an album. This was both very flattering and humbling and we went about planning production and eventually started to record. Unfortunately, after a few days in the studio, we got word that the label had folded and not only would they not be able to cover the cost of finishing recording, but they also wouldn't be able to cover any of the costs we'd already incurred. This left us in quite a financial bind as none of us had planned for the costs of recording since, you know, that was supposed to be covered by someone else.

But here's the thing: We think what we've done so far has come out extremely well and we think it would be a shame not to finish it. Because of the circumstances of how this happened, we can't really afford what we've already been left to pay, let alone the costs to finish. So, we decided to do two things: start a Kickstarter Project and organize a fundraising show.

We hope that you'll be kind enough to help us raise the money needed to pay for both what's been done and what's left to do. And we hope you'll see financial backing for finishing this recording not as charity, but as a pre-order of the eventual EP."

Here are the incentives for the Kickstart project:

PLEDGE $5 OR MORE
-- free download of the album, once completed

PLEDGE $10 OR MORE
-- free CD of the album, once completed

PLEDGE $25 OR MORE
-- free T-shirt + album download
-- this one has been quite popular

PLEDGE $50 OR MORE
-- We will learn a cover of your choosing and shoot a live video of it for you.
-- (this is currently sold out, but we're planning to add a couple of more of these this wek)

PLEDGE $100 OR MORE
-- free CD and we'll have you over for dinner, which we'll make.

PLEDGE $175 OR MORE
-- free CD and we'll play a show or party for you of your choosing anywhere in the 5 boroughs

If I wasn't spending all the money I have moving this weekend, I'd be looking at either having Coyote Eyes learn a bizarre cover (how about Miley Cyrus' "Can't Be Tamed") or having the band play a party as they are a phenomenal live act.

Admission to Friday night's show is $8 and Coyote Eyes plays at 11:30PM.

Links:
Coyote Eyes

RockItOut! Blog Hosts a Concert Tomorrow Night at The Delancey w/ Jody Porter (Fountains of Wayne)

Former Fuse TV host and 23 to Sparta vocalist Sami Jarroush hosts the first RockItOut! Concert tomorrow night at The Delancey.

The show starts around 7PM and cover is $7.00. The bands playing are:

7pm - The Ambassadors
8pm - The Narrative (featuring members of Taking Back Sunday & Straylight Run)
9pm – Aliens
10pm - The Orion Experience
11pm - Jody Porter (from Fountains of Wayne)



Links:
RockItOut! Blog

Bugs In The Dark Play The Delancey Tomorrow Night (Dec. 13th)

Art-punks, Bugs in the Dark are headlining a show tomorrow night at The Delancey. Bugs have been playing shows in support of their full-length debut CD, Grand Avenue, which was released earlier this year.

In a recent review, Impose Magazine said "Bugs in the Dark can do what all those post-punk revivalists did five years ago by prettying up the raw material of their era of choice, which for these guys is early 90s alternative/noise."

Tickets for tomorrow night's show are $7 and the band takes the stage at 11:30PM.

Check out Bugs in the Dark's latest video, "Paranoia", (from Grand Avenue).


Bugs In the Dark - Paranoia from Alex Terrazas on Vimeo.

Links:
Bugs In The Dark's MySpace Profile

The Modern Society Play The Delancey on December 8th

Download: The Modern Society - Promise Land (mp3)

The Modern Society are playing a number of East Coast dates this month, which includes a stop at The Delancey next Monday (Dec. 8th).

This should be a fun show as The Modern Society's sound is comparable to Tom Petty, Oasis and The Strokes. The band is finalizing their second album, The Beat Goes On, which will be released on Feb. 10th on Original Signal Recordings.

The first single from The Beat Goes On, "Paper Moon", is available on iTunes as has gotten consistent 5-star reviews.

Links:
The Modern Society's MySpace Profile

John Joseph: Book Release Party Interview, NYC, 6/19/08 (Cro-Mags, F.V.K., Bloodclot)

Last Thursday, John Joseph, vocalist for many of the great NYHC bands (Cro-Mags, F.V.K., Bad Brains, Bloodclot, etc.), had a book release party for his new book at The Delancey. John's new book is an autobiography entitled "The Evolution of a Cro-Magnon" and is available from www.punkhouse.org.

I had a chance to catch up with John at the beginning of the night and talked with him about the new book, his new band Bloodclot, his views on the current musical and cultural scene and his plans for the future.



John also did a book reading this night (second video to follow) and played a full Cro-Mags set.

Links:
PunkHouse.Org
John Joseph's MySpace Profile
Bloodclot's MySpace Profile

John Joseph (Cro-Mags) Schedules Book Release Party and Live Show

Former Cro-Mag and current Bloodclot vocalist John Joseph has scheduled a book release party and live show on Thursday, June 19th at The Delancey. John is going to be reading from his recently published auto-biography "The Evolution of a Cro-Magnon" (Punk House Books)and playing a live set of Cro-Mags and Fearless Vampire Killers tunes with an 'all star band'. (It would be great to see some of the Bad Brains turn up for this)

The reading and vegeterian food (from John's Krishna Temple) are free but it is a $5.00 donation to see the band play. All proceeds are going to Food Relief for the Homeless.

Links:
John Joseph's MySpace profile
The Delancey

The Kin @ The Delancey, July 18, 2007

The Kin headlined Barons Beer's AusFest show last Wednesday at The Delancey.


The band was coming off a sold-out show at Joe's Pub and, as always, sounded great. It really says something for The Kin's musicianship that they could hold the audience AFTER the free beer ran out.

Isaac made a comment about the large number of palettes of beer were drunk that night. (I am not sure how much beer is on a palettes but there seemed to be dozens of cases that were consumed).

Isaac opened the show playing the didgeridoo
Thorry/The Kin
Thorry Singing Through His Guitar/The Kin
Isaac & Thorry/The Kin
The Kin are playing this Saturday night at the Gramercy Theatre with Lez Zeppelin (the all-female Zeppelin cover band). This show is Lez Zeppelin's CD release party and their new CD was recorded with Zeppelin engineer Eddie Kramer.

This should be a fun show. As both The Kin and Lez Zeppelin have individually sold out the Bowery Ballroom this year, there is a good chance that this show will sell out. Don't wait to get tickets!

The Gramercy Theatre is at 127 E. 23rd Street(between Lexington and Park Ave. South). The show starts at 9PM and tickets are $20 in advance and $25 day of show.

Links:
The Kin's MySpace Page
Lez Zeppelin's MySpace Page

Second Dan @ The Delancey, July 18, 2007

Second Dan was the second band to play at the Barons Beer sponsored AusFest and I really enjoyed their sound. The band's bio describes their music as "combining the pop sensibilities of Foo Fighters and Janes Addiction with the passion and world-view of U2 and countrymen Midnight Oil" and this is a pretty accurate description. The band is currently finishing their debut CD, "Bring Down Goliath", which is due to be released later this year and their are a couple tracks from this release streaming on the band's MySpace page (link below).


The band has a show this Friday (July 27) at Crash Mansion and are scheduled to take the stage at 10PM.


Links:
Second Dan's MySpace page

Tamarama @ The Delancey, NYC, July 18, 2007

Barons Beer hosted AusFest this past Wednesday to celebrate the launch of their new craft beers. Aside for free beer and meat pies, three great Aussie bands played.

Tamarama opened the show and played a very enjoyable mellow set. I hadn't seen the band before but was reading that they just released a new EP, Wonderland City, earlier this year. Tamarama is playing the Gramercy on August 1st with Ryan Cabrara and Pianos on September 12th.



Links:
Tamarama's MySpace page