Since the first time I caught jangly surf-rock band Fort Lean live, about two years ago when I didn’t know anything about them up to now, they’ve really started to emerge as one of those aspiring bands in Brooklyn. Not only have they been more talked about, musically they’ve begun carving a more meaningful niche
Thursday night was a trip of the musically-induced variety, when The Fresh & Onlys and Quilt played Music Hall of Williamsburg. The Fresh & Onlys are one of those bands where it’s easy not to realize exactly how good they are until experienced live. With introspective lyrics set to heavily hazy psych pop jams, they
Saturday night was the finale for CMJ 2012, five days jam-packed (literally) with panels, shows, powwows, and late nights. It was like cramming a month into a week. The final show that I was not mad about at all was Wild Nothing, BRAIDS, and Weekend at Bowery Ballroom. In a way, this show summed up
Friday night was the Panache Showcase at Public Assembly, with their fun and eccentric roster of bands ranging from Dent May to Violent Bullshit. I ended up only seeing enough of the latter to see front man Jayson Green getting in a heckling war with a dudebro. After realizing the futility of what was becoming
Thursday night of CMJ ended up being good for sweat and beer at Knitting Factory, but it didn’t start out that way. The first musician I caught there was Daughn Gibson. who paired some dark country croonin’ with electronic beats. He was joined by a librarian-esque keyboard player, who added an extra layer of dusty
I’m just going to go ahead and say the NPR/WNYC Soundcheck showcase at Le Poisson Rouge was the hottest showcase of CMJ this year. Just about every media outlet was there, and it was broadcast live. Ali Shaheed Muhammad from A Tribe Called Quest DJ’d in between sets, remarking that we were a tough crowd.
After the first day of CMJ panels and wrapping my head around the overly ambitious music schedule I had created (as well as juuuusst missing last call for the open bar at the press mixer), I decided a pizza party at L’asso should be my first stop. That’s where I ran into the congenial guys
This is one of the things that I love about Brooklyn – amazing art spaces hide in plain sight. During the day, it’s easy to pass what looks like another abandoned, empty warehouse with a garage door rolled down. Who knows what’s in there, if anything. Then at night, the door rolls up, a line
Treasure Island Festival is this weekend – October 13 and 14, on the man-made Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay. It’s a great lineup and there are lots of other activities besides the concerts, like a whole silent disco lineup, separate nights shows, local bands on the new Porch Stage in the Cove, and a
Django Django just sounds musical, even if you didn’t know that was the name of an eclectic experimental psychedelic band from London. The term “psychedelic” is used broadly here, more in the way that Django Django creates unique musical paths that make take a few listens to wrap your mind around, instead of just wah