Playing for Change Band: Final Night of the Tour at Highline Ballroom on March 31st

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.

Links:
Playing for Change Foundation
Highline Ballroom

Burke: Video Interview with Jamie Burke & Mikki James + "We Are One" Live (CK One)

Jamie Burke (who is known for both his work with Bloody Social [band] and CK One [modeling]) played Bowery Electric on March 18th with his new band Burke.

With this new project, Jamie is writing and playing with bassist/producer Mikki James and a digital release of Burke's debut EP is due out anytime now. There are a number of tracks from the forthcoming EP streaming on Burke's MySpace profile (link is above).

I had the chance to catch up with Jamie and Mikki prior to the band's set at Bowery Electric (video below). Included on this video is a live performance of the band playing their current single "We Are One".



Right after the Bowery Electric show, Burke played a series of shows at SXSW.

Here is a brief interview and live footage from KXAN Austin News.


Burke's upcoming shows are:
April 6, 2009, 10:00PM, Rose Bar - acoustic show w/ Chris Cornell, New York
April 8, 2009, 8:00PM, Hard Rock Cafe, New York, New York

Win a Les Paul Guitar: Play Fuse Rock Madness

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will air live on Fuse TV this year.

The show will be broadcast live from Cleveland Ohio’s Public Hall on April 4th at 9pm ET/PT. For this year's ceremony, some of the bigger named inductees include Metallica, Run-D.M.C. (who will be inducted by Eminem) and Jeff Beck.

As part of the run-up to the ceremony, Fuse has released a March-madness style game, "Rock Madness". The concept behind the game is that Fuse took "32 legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame artists and paired them up against 32 potential future inductees." Players then vote for which musician in each bracket [matchup] should advance to the next round and ultimately be awarded the title of "greatest artist of all time".

Prizes include a new Les Paul guitar and an iPod Nano.

Links:
Fuse's Rock Madness
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Press Conference

The New York Howl: Live Studio Session Streaming on BreakThru Radio

There is a live studio session currently streaming on BreakThru Radio from garage/blues rockers The New York Howl.

The New York Howl's sound is a solid mix of blues-based garage rock that falls somewhere between The Gun Club and the White Stripes. The band released its first CD, People Will Come To See Us Ride, in 2006 and they are gearing up to release a new EP soon.

The band has scheduled a few shows around the area and here are the upcoming dates:

4/06 – Brooklyn, NY - Zebulon w/ Garrots Suecas
4/16 – Brooklyn, NY – Southpaw w/ JC Brook
4/19 – Brooklyn, NY – Pubblic Assembly
4/21 – Manhattan, NY – The Delancey

Links:
The New York Howl's MySpace Profile

Bonded By Blood Announce Free Thrash Metal Show in Brooklyn (Earache Records)

Pomona, CA thrash metal band Bonded By Blood makes their first NYC appearance at a free show at The Water Grill in Brooklyn on March 28th. Bonded By Blood are currently out on the "Masters of Disaster" tour and tour mates Exmortus and Witchaven will also be playing at the show in Brooklyn.

"We're all real psyched to be playing in NYC for the first time;" said Bonded By Blood vocalist, Jose "Aladdin" Barrales. "A bunch of our favorite thrash bands started there. Spider Man lives there and now we're coming with a gift for all our NY fans who've been dying to see us." That gift is that of a FREE show. With the crowd being able to save money due to no admission fee, Barrales suggests that they instead invest it in pizza. "Everyone should buy pizza. We want to throw the world's largest thrash pizza party."

Bonded By Blood's released their debut CD, Feed the Beast, last year summer on Earache Records. Metal-Observer.com described this disc as "awesome performances and beastly song writing with a very good thrash metal production".

The Brooklyn show is Saturday night (March 28th) and starts at 7PM. The Water Grill is located at 7026 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn, NY.

Links:
Bonded By Blood's MySpace Profile

Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction and Street Sweeper Release Free EP of Unreleased Tracks

Legal, free downloads are always a good thing...

In support of the upcoming NIN|JA 2009 Tour, Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction and Street Sweeper have released a 6-song EP of previously unreleased material as a free download. You have the option of downloading the files as MP3s, Apple Lossless/MP4s, FLAC or WAV files.

I've read that the NIN tracks are from 2005's With Teeth sessions and the Jane's Addiction tracks are new recordings that were done with Trent Reznor. If anyone is as unfamiliar with Street Sweeper as I was, this is the new project by Tom Morello and Boots Riley.

Here are the current tour dates for NIN|JA 2009:
5.08.09 - w. palm beach, fl [cruzan amphitheatre]
5.09.09 - tampa, fl [ford amphitheatre]
5.10.09 - atlanta, ga [lakewood amphitheatre]
5.12.09 - austin, tx [frank erwin center]
5.14.09 - albuquerque, nm [journal pavilion]
5.15.09 - phoenix, az [cricket wireless pavilion]
5.16.09 - chula vista, ca [cricket wireless amphitheater]
5.18.09 - las vegas, nv [the pearl]
5.20.09 - irvine, ca [verizon wireless amphitheater]
5.22.09 - mountain view, ca [shoreline amphitheatre]
5.24.09 - george, wa [the gorge amphitheater] - sasquatch festival, nin and ja only
5.26.09 - englewood, co [fiddler’s green amphitheatre]
5.27.09 - kansas city, mo [starlight theatre]
5.29.09 - chicago, il [charter one pavilion] - nin only
5.30.09 - noblesville, in [verizon wireless music center]
5.31.09 - clarkston, mi [dte energy music theatre]
6.02.09 - toronto, on [molson amphitheatre]
6.03.09 - mansfield, ma [comcast center]
6.05.09 - camden, nj [susquehanna bank center]
6.06.09 - holmdel, nj [pnc bank arts center]
6.07.09 - wantagh, ny [nikon at jones beach music theater]
6.09.09 - columbia, md [merriweather post pavilion ]
6.10.09 - burgettstown, pa [post-gazette pavilion]
6.12.09 - charlotte, nc [verizon wireless amphitheatre]

Links:
Nine Inch Nail's Website
Jane's Addiction's Website
Street Sweeper's Website

Anvil Discuss Forthcoming Documentary at Q&A Session at Apple Store in NYC on March 25th

"Always a bridesmaid, never a bride"...

Canadian heavy metal band Anvil formed in 1978 and, have spent the last thirty years chugging away and touring the world. Anvil shared the stage with a "who's who" list of top rock acts but never seemed to be able to turn the corner to achieve mass commercial appeal.

Anvil's popularity is (hopefully) on the rise with the release of the documentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil, which will have a limited theatrical run starting April 10th. This documentary is the brain-child of first-time director Sacha Gervasi and the film is described as "a timeless tale of survival and the unadulterated passion it takes to follow your dream, year after year. The story follows Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner and their heavy metal band, Anvil, which released one of the heaviest albums in metal history, 1982’s Metal on Metal. The album influenced an entire generation of rock bands, including Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax, who went on to sell millions of records. Anvil, on the other hand, took a different path -- straight to obscurity."



The film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and clips from the documentary will be shown at the discussion at the Apple Store. Eddie Trunk will be hosting the discussion, which kicks off at 7PM.

The Apple Store is located at:

103 Prince Street
New York City, NY 10012
(212) 226-3126

Anvil will be returning to NYC for a show at Blender Theater on April 6th.

Links:
Anvil's Website

Oceano: "Depths" CD Release Interview, NYC 3-11-09 (Earache Records)

Chicago deathcore band Oceano was in town last week to promote their forthcoming debut CD, Depths. The new CD is coming out April 7th on Earache Records and the first pressing will contain two bonus tracks and a free DVD.

I had the chance to catch up with the band to talk about the new CD, line-up changes, fighting at the band's show, illegal music downloading (a potential cause of fighting at the shows) and more.



Oceano has a couple of tours lined up and plans to be coming through the East Coast in April. Here are Oceano's current East Coast tour dates:

April 3, 2009, 6:00PM, JACKSONVILLE USO W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, JACKSONVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
April 4, 2009, 6:00PM, PLAN B W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, DANVILLE, VIRGINIA
April 5, 2009, 1:00PM, MOJO 13 W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, WILMINGTON, DELAWARE
April 6, 2009, 6:00PM, THE REFUGE W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA
April 7, 2009, 6:00PM, MT. AIRY FIRE CLUB W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, MT. AIRY, MARYLAND
April 8, 2009, 6:00PM, CLUB OCTANE W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, CHARLEROI, PENNSYLVANIA

Here is the trailer from the bonus DVD that comes with Depths:


Links:
Oceano's MySpace Profile

Oceano: "Depths" CD Release Interview, NYC 3-11-09 (Earache Records)

Chicago deathcore band Oceano was in town last week to promote their forthcoming debut CD, Depths. The new CD is coming out April 7th on Earache Records and the first pressing will contain two bonus tracks and a free DVD.

I had the chance to catch up with the band to talk about the new CD, line-up changes, fighting at the band's show, illegal music downloading (a potential cause of fighting at the shows) and more.



Oceano has a couple of tours lined up and plans to be coming through the East Coast in April. Here are Oceano's current East Coast tour dates:

April 3, 2009, 6:00PM, JACKSONVILLE USO W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, JACKSONVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA
April 4, 2009, 6:00PM, PLAN B W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, DANVILLE, VIRGINIA
April 5, 2009, 1:00PM, MOJO 13 W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, WILMINGTON, DELAWARE
April 6, 2009, 6:00PM, THE REFUGE W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA
April 7, 2009, 6:00PM, MT. AIRY FIRE CLUB W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, MT. AIRY, MARYLAND
April 8, 2009, 6:00PM, CLUB OCTANE W/ ENDWELL & THE MILES BETWEEN, CHARLEROI, PENNSYLVANIA

Here is the trailer from the bonus DVD that comes with Depths:


Links:
Oceano's MySpace Profile

Senses Fail: Backstage Interview with Buddy Nielsen, NYC 3-10-09

Last week, I caught up with Senses Fail vocalist Buddy Nielsen when the band was in town for a show at Irving Plaza on the "Saints & Sinners" tour.



Senses Fail's latest release Life Is Not a Waiting Room was released last October on Vagrant Records. The band is out on the road with the "Saints and Sinners" tour through early April and then head off on a headlining tour of Canada and Europe. Tour dates are at the bottom of this post.

Links:
Senses Fail's MySpace Profile

Senses Fail's Upcoming Tour Date:
March 20, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Beaumont Club, Kansas City, Missouri
March 21, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - The Pageant, St. Louis, Missouri
March 22, 2009, 7:00PM, New Daisy Theater, Memphis, Tennessee
March 23, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - House of Blues, New Orleans, Louisiana
March 24, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - House of Blues, Houston, Texas
March 25, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - House of Blues, Dallas, Texas
March 27, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Gothic Theater, Denver, Colorado
March 28, 2009, 8:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Murray Theatre, Murray, Utah
March 29, 2009, 5:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - House Of Blues, Las Vegas, Nevada
March 30, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Grand Ballroom, San Francisco, California
April 01, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Roseland Theater, Portland, Oregon
April 02, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - Showbox at the Market, Seattle, Washington
April 03, 2009, 7:00PM, Modesto Virtual, Modesto, California
April 04, 2009, 11:30AM, Verizon Wireless Ampitheatre, Irvine, California
April 05, 2009, 6:00PM, Saints and Sinners Tour - House Of Blues, San Diego, California
April 08, 2009, 7:00PM, The Biltmore Cabaret, Vancouver, British Columbia
April 10, 2009, 7:00PM, MacEwan Ballroom, Calgary, Alberta
April 11, 2009, 7:00PM, Starlite Room, Edmonton, Alberta
April 12, 2009, 7:00PM, Odeon Nite Club, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
April 13, 2009, 7:00PM, Garrick Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
April 15, 2009, 7:00PM, Phoenix Theater, Toronto, Ontario
April 17, 2009, 8:00PM, Groezrock Festival, Meerhout, Antwerp
April 18, 2009, 8:00PM, Waterfront, Norwich, East
April 19, 2009, 8:00PM, Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth, London and South East

Prodigy Return to NYC for a Show on March 26th @ Roseland Ballroom

Prodigy are back with their first new studio album in five year, Invaders Must Die. The disc came out in February in Europe and topped both the UK and European charts.

The band is currently touring in Europe but they are playing three US dates this month - Toronto, NYC and Miami. The NYC show is at Roseland Ballroom on March 26th. Tickets are still available and are $42.50 in advance.

Here is a live video of "Breathe" from last year's tour in Japan


and here is the promo video for "Invaders Must Die", which is the first single from the new disc.


Links:
The Prodigy's Website
Invaders Must Die Micro-Site

Sydney, Australia's Red Riders are Playing Four NYC Shows Next Week

DOWNLOAD: Red Riders - "My Love Is Stronger Than Your Love" (MP3)

After a run of shows in both Los Angeles and at SXSW, Sydney Australia's Red Riders are playing a run of four New York City shows next week.

Monday, March 23rd – Live Nation Showcase @ Blender Theater

Tuesday, March 24th – Fontana’s (11PM)

Wednesday, March 25th – Club NME @ The Annex

Thursday, March 26th – Bell House, Brooklyn, 6pm -1am with Youth Group, The Grates, Infusion, The Fumes, The Boat People, The Art, The Resignators

Red Riders have been getting a lot of positive press in Australia these last few years and they describe themselves as "charged by anybody who pursues creative ventures with little regard for their future health or wealth. Their inspirations draw from the wide open sounds of mid-late 80s Australian bands like The Go-Betweens, The Triffids, some Icehouse, The Church and the bombast of early 90s baggy. A love/hate relationship with Sydney and living in a haunted country that's always doing its best to get rid of you also plays a role in what you will hear and see."

Here is the video for "Slide In Next To Me" from Red Riders' debut CD Replica Replica.



Links:
Red Riders' MySpace Profile
Red Riders' Website

Brown Shoe Are Playing Fontana's on March 29th (shoegazer alt-rock)

Folsom, California alt-rock shoegazers Brown Shoe are playing a show at Fontana's on March 29th. The band is touring behind their third release Jackalope which came out toward the end of last year.

Here is how the Times-Delphic (which is the Drake University student paper) describes Brown Shoe:

Although the hint of different bands can be heard here and there, Brown Shoe's songs have their own unique flavor. They don't hit you with a lot of guitar right off the bat but, instead, build each song into its own musical story. Each note and chorus builds to end with a pleasant sound of soothing vocals and what Baggaley labels "tribal drums."

"Our sound is influenced by all of the current bands, but we try to separate ourselves from the music we enjoy in order to come up with our sound," said Aaron Baggaley, the band's guitarist.

Tickets for the show are $8.00 and the show starts at 8PM.

Check out "Aquarium" - the first video from Jackalope.


Links:
Brown Shoe's MySpace Profile

Burke (featuring Jamie Burke from Bloody Social) is Playing a SXSW Warm-Up Show on Mar. 18th at Bowery Electric

DOWNLOAD: Burke - "We Are One" (MP3)

Jamie Burke and Mikki James (from Bloody Social) have a new project entitled "Burke". The band made its debut last month at Arlene's Grocery and they are playing a show this Wednesday at Bowery Electric before heading off to SXSW.

Here is a video from the band's debut at Arlene's:



SXSW Shows:
March 20, 2009, 2:00PM, Stubbs
March 20, 2009, 5:00PM, AAM
March 20, 2009, 11:00PM, Red Bull Moon Tower Party
March 21, 2009, 4:00PM, Spin and Myspace Acoustic Showcase

Links:
Burke's MySpace Profile

Throbbing Gristle - Tickets for a Second Show in Brooklyn Go On Sale Tomorrow (March 16th)

Throbbing Gristle have added one more show in Brooklyn on April 28th. Tickets for the show go onsale via TicketWeb tomorrow at Noon. Throbbing Gristle's first night in Brooklyn sold out fairly quickly so I wouldn't expect tickets for the second show to last long. The openers for this show are Alan Vega (Suicide) and Emeralds.

Here is the description of "Night One" from Throbbing Gristle's website and I would assume that the second night will follow a similar set.

"TG will play TWO sets: A new live soundtrack to Derek Jarman’s 60min alchemical film 'In The Shadow of The Sun' ( filmwork 1974, TG soundtrack 1980 & 2006) PLUS a second set of material from across TG’s history. There willl also be included in the event a TG signing: to which you are welcome to bring along ONE ITEM from your collection for them to sign. There will also be for sale special 'TG USA 2009' merchandising(all new TG CD album, TG T-shirt specific to this event, TG Tour Enamel Badge, TG Tour Embroidered Patch)"

Throwing Color: Interview with BrooklynRocks, NYC 3-5-09

Last week, I had the chance to talk with New Jersey alt-rockers Throwing Color. The band formed last year and have recently finished recording their debut EP, "The Static Seas", which will be digitally released (available on iTunes, Amazon, Napster, etc.) on April 14th, 2009.

Musically, Throwing Color plays Warped-tour style alt-pop. You can check out a couple of tracks from the forthcoming EP which are streaming on the band's Myspace page. You can also check out some live tracks from the band on Throwing Color's JamNow page.

In a recent interview with The Daily Rock, vocalist Drew Duddy describes the lyrical themes on "The Static Seas" as "deal[ing] with a lot of issues that I was facing at the time of our writing process...[o]ne thing that we tried to accomplish with these songs is to look at these issues in a positive light and let others know that they can break free from any negative life-style, no matter how difficult it may be."

NYC Press Interview with BrooklynRocks


"How To Feed a Skeleton" (First video from "The Static Seas")


Throwing Color are in Austin this week (like the rest of the music world) for SXSW and the band has a couple local area shows scheduled in April.

Here is their complete list of tour dates:

SWSX:
March 18, 2009, 1:00PM, RedGorilla Music Fest @ The Chuggin’ Monkey
March 19, 2009, 12:00PM, The Bayou
March 21, 2009, 2:30PM, RollingStone.com SXSW Showcase @ Peckerheads w/Lady Sovereign
March 21, 2009, 7:30PM, Seven Starr Management SXSW Showcase @ The Bayou w/ TV/TV, The Summer Set, and Big Surrender

(Mostly) Area Shows
March 28, 2009, 8:00PM, Loyola College Relay For LIfe, Baltimore, Maryland
April 5, 2009, 6:00PM, WSOU Juvenile Diabetes Benefit@ Dingbatz, Clifton, New Jersey
April 11, 2009, 7:00PM, Holmdel Firehouse(Moving Mountains, Bears and Bright Lights), Holmdel, New Jersey
April 17, 2009, 7:00PM, 7 @ 7 Club, Cherry Hill, NJ
April 25, 2009, 8:00PM, United Methodist Church, New Providence, New Jersey

The Wildhearts Play Maxwell's and Bowery Ballroom This Weekend

DOWNLOAD: The Wildhearts - "Borderline" (MP3)

The Wildhearts are taking a break from recording their 10th full-length album (tentatively entitled Chutzpah) in Copenhagen and are playing two shows in the area this weekend.

The first show is Friday night (March 13th) at Maxwell's in Hoboken. The Wildhearts are playing with The Dirty Pearls, Sorry and The Sinatras and The Breakers. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.

The second show is at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday March 14th. Tickets are $20 and The Wildhearts are playing with J-Roddy Walston and The Business, Sorry and the Sinatras and Russo.

The Wildhearts were formed by x-(London) Quireboy Ginger and "[t]he band's sound is a mixture of hard rock and melodic pop music, often described in the music press as combining influences as diverse as The Beatles and 1980s-era Metallica."

Links:
The Wildhearts' MySpace Profile
The Wildhearts' Website

Phish: The Clifford Ball CD Boxset, Hampton, VA Show + More

I've been reading all the buzz about the Phish shows at Hampton Coliseum this past weekend. Evidently, the $49.50 tickets were being scalped for over $1,000 each. For anyone who missed the shows, high-quality MP3s of the complete shows from all three nights are available from LivePhish.Com. I got a good chuckle seeing how these free downloads fly in the face of all the 'screaming' that the RIAA has done about illegal downloading. Phish's site gives you the option to buy FLAC (for $12.95) or CD (for $23.00) versions of the show.

Last week, Rhino Records released a 7-disc DVD set of Phish performing live at The Clifford Ball, which took place in Plattsburgh, NY on August 16-17, 1997. Rhino was kind enough to send me a couple video clips from the show:

Phish - "Fluffhead"


Phish - "Bathtub Gin"


Phish - "Slave to the Traffic Light"


The Clifford Ball is available from Rhino Records' web store.

Phish is playing Jones Beach on June 4-5 and all of the band's summer concert dates are listed on Phish.com.

Wolves in the Throne Room: An Exclusive Interview with Aaron Weaver (Southern Lord)

Last week, I had the chance to talk with Aaron Weaver - drummer for Wolves in the Throne Room (Southern Lord). Aaron and I talked about the band's forthcoming CD, the ties between black metal and eco-spiritual awareness, alleged eco-terrorism in the Pacific Northwest and more.

Wolves in the Throne Room's music mixes ambience with aggressive black metal. The band describes their music as merging "Cascadian eco-spiritual awareness with the misanthropic Norwegian eruptions of the 90's". The band is about to release a new CD, Black Cascade, on Southern Lord in April.

Here is a direct link to the MP3 of the interview with Aaron Weaver and here is a link to the .

Wolves in the Throne Room are predominately touring around the West Coast this month before playing the Roadburn Festival in Holland next month. Here are the band's upcoming tour dates:

March 16, 2009 8:00PM, The Oak Street Speakeasy, Eugene, Oregon
March 19, 2009 8:00PM, Vino’s, Little Rock, Arkansas
March 22, 2009 8:00PM, Red 7, Austin, Texas
March 25, 2009 8:00PM, The Sets, Tempe, Arizona
March 26, 2009 8:00PM, Casbah, San Diego, California
March 27, 2009 8:00PM, The Troubador, Los Angeles, California
March 28, 2009 8:00PM, Slim’s, San Francisco, California
March 29, 2009 8:00PM, Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon
March 30, 2009 8:00PM, The Nightlight, Bellingham, Washington
March 31, 2009 8:00PM, Neumo’s, Seattle, Washington
April 23, 2009 8:00PM, Roadburn 013, Tilburg

Links:
Wolves in the Throne Room's MySpace Profile

As Blood Runs Black: Pictures from Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09 (Mediaskare)

I went to Saturday's show at Blender Theater not really knowing what to expect as I wasn't that familiar with any of the bands. I watched each of the bands looking to see whether I would hunt down their music after the show and/or see them again next time they came through.

I got to the venue a little before 8PM and Impending Doom were playing their last couple songs. Who would have thought that a concert would start on time in NYC? The songs that I heard from Impending Doom didn't strike me. It seemed a bit too stereotypical "grunt and growl". I have nothing against Christian metal but I was probably happier not knowing that the band calls its style of music "goreship". According to UrbanDictionary.com, goreship is "worshipping the god of the christian religion through the brutal music of Impending Doom." I'll pass on seeing these guys again.

I'm a fan of melodic death metal so As Blood Runs Black really caught my attention. The band's sound is comparable to At The Gates and Black Dahlia Murder and they have a strong live show that got the crowd and the pit moving. Not knowing their material, I couldn't put together a set list but I did recognize "Hester Prynne" (from As Blood Runs Black's 2006 debut CD), which got a strong reception, and a couple songs were introduced as being on the band's forthcoming second album (due out on Mediaskare later this year).

From As Blood Runs Black - Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09

From As Blood Runs Black - Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09

From As Blood Runs Black - Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09

From As Blood Runs Black - Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09

From As Blood Runs Black - Blender Theater, NYC 3-7-09

As Blood Runs Black is in the midst of a tour with Impending Doom, Arcadia Strain and Bleeding Through that runs through the end of March.

Upcoming tour dates are:

March 09, 2009 6:00PM, The Station, Portland, Maine
March 11, 2009 6:00PM, Le National, Montreal, Quebec
March 12, 2009 6:00PM, Reverb, Toronto, Ontario
March 13, 2009 6:00PM, Xtreme Wheelz, Buffalo, New York
March 14, 2009 6:00PM, Diesel, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
March 15, 2009 6:00PM, Peabody’s Downunder, Cleveland, Ohio
March 17, 2009 6:00PM, Majestic Theatre, Detroit, Michigan
March 18, 2009 6:00PM, House Of Blues, Chicago, Illinois
March 19, 2009 6:00PM, Eagles II, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
March 20, 2009 6:00PM, Station 4, St. Paul, Minnesota
March 21, 2009, 6:00PM, The Picador, Iowa City, Iowa
March 22, 2009, 6:00PM, The Marquis Theater, Denver, Colorado
March 24, 2009, 6:00PM, The Venue, Boise, Idaho
March 25, 2009, 7:00PM, Neumo’s, Seattle, Washington
March 26, 2009, 7:00PM, Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon
March 27, 2009, 7:00PM, DNA Lounge, San Francisco, California
March 28, 2009, 6:30PM, Key Club, West Hollywood, California

Links:
As Blood Runs Black's MySpace Profile

Hollywood Undead are Making an In-Store Appearance at Looney Tunes in Long Island Tomorrow (March 7th)

The Saints & Sinners Tour (Hollywood Undead, Haste the Day and Senses Fail) hits Long Island tomorrow. Hollywood Undead are spending their afternoon at Looney Tunes Records for their first ever in-store appearance. The meet & great/signing runs from 2PM - 5PM and there will be a Play Station 3 giveaway.

The Saints & Sinners tour plays the Crazy Donkey tomorrow. The show starts at 8PM (doors at 6PM) and Hollywood Undead hit the stage at 10PM. Tickets are $20.00.

Links:
Hollywood Undead's MySpace Profile
The Crazy Donkey
Looney Tunes CDs

Reckless Sons: Live Photos from John Varvatos Show, NYC 3-5-09

Last night, the Reckless Sons played the John Vervatos' Thursday Night Live show. It was a bit bittersweet as this was my first time being back in the old CBGB space. I probably should have taken some photos of the walls as the store tries to retain some of CB's seediness (perhaps the right word is "Bowery credibility") and it falls a bit short.

I can't complain too much though with free music and free beer - it isn't the store's fault that Muzzy pushed the club out. For anyone who hasn't caught a show at John Vervatos, the stage is on the right side of the room (I think it is right where the bar ended in the old CB's) which means that you can get caught on one side of the stage or the other and the sight lines aren't the greatest.

Reckless Sons went on promptly at 9PM and played a solid 30+ minute set, mixing new new tunes with old favorites. The room was full when the band went on and those in the front (who had a little room to move around) spent the time dancing. I didn't keep a set list but remember the band playing "Gimme A Sign" and a lengthy finale of "Blood".



Reckless Sons just finished a new EP, "Everybody Knows", which is scheduled for a May release.

Links:
Reckless Sons Website

Cursive Releases Discounted Digital Download of "Mama, I'm Swollen" (CD Release Date is March 10th)

DOWNLOAD: Cursive - "From The Hips" (MP3)

Cursive is selling advance digital copies of their soon-to-be-released disc Mama, I'm Swollen through Saddle Creek's website. This is kind of a neat promotion as the band starting selling the download for $1.00 and are raising the price a dollar a day (currently the price is $4.00). The price for the download will max out at $9.00.

Cursive is playing a handful of warm-up shows prior to heading out to SXSW. Local dates are March 9th at MHOW and March 10th at Bowery Ballroom. Both shows are sold out but there always seems to be someone selling tickets on the corner.

In addition to this run of tour dates, Cursive will be making their network television debut on the David Letterman Show on March 13th.

Links:
Cursive's MySpace Profile

Bad Flirt (Canadian Indie/Power-Pop) Plays Santos Party House on March 11th

DOWNLOAD: Bad Flirt - Mad, Mad, Madeleine World (MP3)

I love this quote: "Bad Flirt’s Virgin Talk is sort of like a kitten with rabies — cute yet vicious. The Montreal band’s second full-length release has all of the raw components of full-scale pop: hooks, harmonies and Jasamine White-Gluz’s sugar-sweet voice" -Exclaim

Bad Flirt spent a number of years on the DIY circuit and released their first full-length, Virgin Talk, last year on Kartel/Universal. The band is currently on a full US tour which includes a stop in NYC at Santos Party House on March 11th. This is an early show - 7PM doors - and tickets are $8.00.

Links:
Bad Flirt's MySpace Profile

New Art Brut Track, "Just Desserts", Available as a Free Download

DOWNLOAD: Art Brut - "Just Desserts" (MP3)

RCRD LBL is exclusively hosting a non-LP track from Art Brut, "Just Desserts", which was recorded at the Frank Black produced sessions for Art Brut vs. Satan.

From anyone who needs more Art brut - here is the video for "Alcoholics Unanimous", which is the first single from the forthcoming disc.


Links:
Art Brut's Website

Sam Bisbee - Son of a Math Teacher CD Review (le Grand Magistery)

DOWNLOAD: Sam Bisbee - "Never Fall In Love" w/ Leona Naess (MP3)

Sam Bisbee is a singer/songwriter with a solid power-pop bent whose songs are comparable to the works of Tommy Keene, Freedy Johnston and Paul Westerberg. Sam recently released his fourth CD, Son of a Math Teacher on the le Grand Magistery label.

Sam must have terrible luck with women as love and broken romances are a consistent theme across this disc. Each song tells a vignette of lives, relationships and open emotions which Sam wraps with some wonderfully melodic hooks. There are some moments of real brilliance on this disc where Sam sings ethereal Stars-like duets with Leona Naess ("Never Fall in Love") and Lucie Wainwright Roche ("Close to Me"). The Replacements-like rockers ("Parachute" and "Ringtone") are also quite tasty. Sam embraces a wide range of styles on this disc and the most diverse is that he sounds somewhat like Roger Waters on "Curves of Your Body". Try listening to this track and not thinking about The Wall.

There are a few duds like "Letter B" where Sam pulls words the start with "B" around a breakup song but these slow moments are few are far between.

Here is the first video "Oxygen" from the new disc:


Sam has been keeping busy outside of making CDs as he scored the film Paper Cover Rock which is (of course) about troubled relationships. The film was shown last year at the SXSW Film Festival. Sam also produced and arranged Cat Power's version of The Nerves' "Hanging on the Telephone" for a Cingular commercial.



Links:
Sam Bisbee's MySpace Profile

Graham Nash - "Reflections" CD Boxset Review (Rhino Entertainment)

STREAM: Graham Nash - Selected Tracks from Reflections

With the 'death' of the LP, most record companies seem to have forgotten the importance of the album cover art, lyrics that can be read without a magnifying glass and innovative packaging. Rhino obviously hasn't forgotten this as the packaging alone on Graham Nash's 3-CD retrospective is impressive. Reflections is designed to look like a weathered and well-loved book and this book folds open to reveal the three CDs nestled in full color art. The discs are accompanied by a 150-page book of photos and Graham's notes about each track.

The sixty-four tracks on this set follows Graham's career chronologically from The Hollies to Crosby, Stills and Nash (and C,S,N&Y) to Graham's solo recordings and his work with David Crosby. This is an impressive collection and die-hard Graham Nash fan who already own Graham's prior releases will likely want to pick up this box set as thirty-two of the sixty-four tracks are previously unreleased. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Graham said “I went through 44 versions of the set before I settled on this one...It was painful for me because I’m not for introspection or resting on my laurels. A lot of the musical soundtrack to my life is on this box set.”

While most of the unreleased tracks are alternate mixes or unreleased versions of familiar songs, one of the highlights of this box set is six previously unreleased songs. One of these songs includes an unreleased Crosby, Stills & Nash song from 1984 called "Lonely Man". Some of the other highlights include a new mix of "Cathedral" (originally on the 1977 "CSN" LP) and a solo version of the little heard "Right Between the Eyes" (originally on the 1971 live LP "4 Way Street").

This isn't just a greatest hits collection as all of Graham's work is given equal attention. Disc One serves as a "greatest hits" collection with songs from the original CSN(&Y) lineup and Graham's first two solo discs. Disc Two takes the listener through the Crosby/Nash partnership, various CSN reunions (and "almost" reunions - check out the track notes for "Mutiny") and tracks from Graham's two solo discs from the 80's, Earth & Sky and Innocent Eyes. The third disc brings the listener to the present and covers the more recent CSN work along with Graham's 2004 outing with with David Crosby. There are a number of unreleased Nash tunes on this last disc and the disc closes with the poignant "In Your Name". For this last song, Graham writes in the track notes "[t]he killing of human beings by other human beings in the name of their respective "God" has always seemed most unholy to me...this song is a small prayer."

Links:
Graham Nash

Reckless Sons Play Free Show at John Varvatos Store (former CBGB space) on Thurs, March 5th

Reckless Sons are playing a show this Thursday at the John Vervatos store on the Bowery (this is the old CBGB space). This is part of the store's Thursday Night Live series and both admission and beer (PBR) are free. You just need to RSVP to recklesssonsband@gmail.com. Doors are at 8PM and the show starts at 9PM.

Reckless Sons play high-energy rock that sort of reminds me of the early Dream Syndicate. BlackBook Magazine USA said "With his grainy voice and dirty hair, frontman Matt Butler is more Pete Doherty than Pete Wentz, and the band’s stripped-down sound makes for a good time (even if they’ve yet to knock up a Simpson). Despite their tender age (Butler is only 21, though his haunting voice and stage swagger suggest slightly more grizzling), the Sons have been rocking New York city clubs and bars”

Reckless Sons - CMJ Show, Lion's Den, Oct. 20, 2007


Reckless Sons released their latest EP, "Don't You Dare", last summer. You can check out some of these tracks along with new recordings for a forthcoming EP on the Reckless Sons' MySpace page.

Here is the video for the song "Blood" (from the "Don't You Dare" EP).


Links:
Reckless Sons' Website