San Francisco – Nuptial Denver indie pop duo Tennis delighted a sold-out crowd at Great American Music Hall with a solid set consisting of old favorites and new classics. The band—whose principal members consist of married couple Alaina Moore (vocals, keys) and guitarist Patrick Riley—took to the stage at one of San Francisco’s most beloved
New York – English-American indie rockers CYMBALS brought a high-energy set to Cake Shop this week as part of this year’s CMJ Music Marathon. The band played the concert hall hidden under a coffee shop, battling minor technical difficulties and ultimately coming out on top. It was a rough start, with the band desperately trying
New York – CMJ Music Marathon marches sleeplessly on in Gotham, and on Wednesday hit what was possibly the extravaganza’s pinnacle performance. Event organizers had preempted the Webster Hall concert with caution, a sort of this-night-will-be-packed-so-don’t-expect-entrance-is-a-given kind of mentality. And though they said it couldn’t be done, CMJ badge holders turned out in droves to
Chicago – Grizfolk brought their sweet folktronica to the Windy City. The LA band was excited to be playing the Aragon for the first time in their careers and it showed! The stage and the audience buzzed with electricity throughout the set, making it clear why Grizfolk was handpicked by Bastille to open on select dates for
New York – Being the opening act can be a difficult role. Whether you’re a singer songwriter taking the stage alone with an acoustic guitar or an indie band the size of a pit orchestra, playing the first slot can mean playing to either an empty house or, if there is an audience, playing before
Brooklyn – We’re in the heart of CMJ Music Marathon here in the city that never sleeps, and as up-and-coming musicians flock to the metropolis in droves, the volume of shows on deck is preposterous. So, to apply an imagined filter of intimacy to this massive and sprawling extravaganza, Best New Bands caught a quieter
Los Angeles – Watching Hozier perform at Immanuel Presbyterian Church on a recent night was divine. The sound that spilled from his unassuming persona was like a holy adventure on its own, but the addition of his thoughtful lyrics, cellist, and old-school back-up singers got the audience to their feet in awe. With the help
Austin – This headline guarantees Charli XCX a spot on a pink card in some future edition of Trivial Pursuit. More immediately, it seems like a looming, hilarious instance of the career-launching/overshadowing single—“Creep” and “Smells Like Teen Spirit” come to mind. Before “Boom Clap” and the Icona Pop collaboration “I Love It,” British pop singer
San Francisco – This year’s Treasure Island Music Festival boasted one of the most interesting lineups of the year, promising sets from a lot of seasoned veterans across a multitude of genres, including OutKast, Massive Attack, TV on the Radio, and The New Pornographers, just to name a few. The festival’s two stages—named the Bridge
Chicago – Last week Foxygen took the Windy City by storm. The LA psychedelic rockers sold out two shows at Lincoln Hall, and their performance on Chicago’s WGN Morning News was the talk of the town. Even English rockers Temples swung by Lincoln Park to watch frontman Sam France put “the LA in Chicago.” With