Portland

Band of the Month Nominee Spotlight: Blue Horns

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2010 is shaping up to be a good year for Blue Horns. In fact, as far as I can tell, they’ve played somewhere around 1,000 shows since January. This is in no small part thanks to the boatloads of talent these fellows possess.

It’s no surprise that the wild, stylish sound of Blue Horns has become so popular in a city where hipsters strive to look like lumberjacks and you’re as likely to party in nature as you are in a nightclub. They make the kind of music that should have accompanied Max Records on the big screen if Max had a leather jacket on and Karen O wasn’t so literal in her translation of "Wild Thing."

The band brings a teenage energy to the music, without letting it become angsty or obnoxious. Their talent lies not just in making raucous, joyous sounds, but in knowing where to bring them back and tone them down before they lose sight of the song. Nowhere is this surprising restraint more obvious than in their new single "Daughters," available on their MySpace page.

Not only can you finally hear what Park is singing, but the sound in general has mellowed and matured. Needless to say you should probably check it out, and if their recent schedule is any indication you will have plenty of chances to.

– Emilie Clark

Philadelphia

Kill You in the Face at KFN Feb. 28

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With a band name like Kill You in the Face, you’d think that you are about to hear some Norwegian black death metal. However, these South Philly self-proclaimed “all around nice guys” write music that seems to match their upbeat, sensitive demeanor. With the release of The Mighty Atlas – a six song EP that comes in the form of a toy ray gun, it’s more likely that these Punk Rock Payroll family members will take aim at your heartstrings than your face. Kill You in the Face will be hosting Twin Thousands (Greta from Cursive’s new band) at Kung Fu Necktie tonight. Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 Front St., 7:30pm, $8, 21+ myspace.com/killfacephilly – H.M Kauffman

 

Philadelphia

The Deli’s Featured Artist(s) of the Month: Controlled Storms

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We caught up with our Featured Artist(s) of the Month and three-headed front Controlled Storms to find out a few facts and future plans for our local shoegazey ambient post rockers.
 
The Deli: When did you start playing together?
 
Controlled Storms: Steve and Brandon started playing together in early 2007, and our first show was in May at the Curiosity Shoppe (bike cops shut us down half-way through!) Ben started playing with us that October, just after we performed as part of Binding Sun at the Fringe Festival.
TD: What are your biggest musical influences, and what artists (local/national/international) are you currently listening to?
 
Our biggest collective influences are Tortoise, Brian Eno, David Byrne, Do Make Say Think, Tom Waits, and a bunch of Blue Note artists (Coltrane, Miles, Ornette Coleman, etc). Some of the Philly bands we’re into are Cloud Minder, Infinien, Pink Skull, Levee Drivers… there are just too many to name. National artists? Tune-Yards is stunning (caught them at the Danger Danger Gallery – tons of soul) and El Ten Eleven (got a chance to play with them last year – one of the tightest live acts you’ll ever see). As for international bands, Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba, Jorge Ben, LITE, Samuel Jackson Five, and Aphex Twin.
TD: What’s the first concert that you ever attended and first album that you ever bought?
 
Brandon – My first concert was Jane’s Addiction with my 8th grade girlfriend. First album: Pink Floyd – Animals (wax), REM – Monster (cd). 
 
Ben – I don’t remember my first album, but my first concert was definitely Tommy James and the Shondells with my Dad.
 
Steve – Oh whatever, I’ll admit it, my first album was an Aerosmith cassette, and my first show was the Rolling Stone’s Voodoo Lounge Tour when I was in 5th grade. Blind Melon opened…we missed ’em, go figure!
 
TD: What’s your take on the Philly music scene?
 
CS: Some people say the only thing Philly has going is freak-folk, but if you look in the right places, there is an eclectic scene here – indie, hip-hop, instrumental, bluegrass, punk. The DIY ethic is thriving in Philadelphia, and it’s the right-sized city to create a sense of community between artists. We love playing NYC, but it’s a huge exhausting place, and we’ve played in cities that were struggling to build a scene because they were so small. In Philly, there’s a lot of opportunity AND a lot of community. It’s a beautiful place to make music.
TD: What are your plans for 2010?
 
CS: 2010 is looking like a busy year for us! We’re knee-deep in writing and recording right now, and we’ll soon be deciding how to release this batch of songs. It’s shaping up to be either two full-length albums or multiple EP’s. Either way, we hope to finish it all in time for a few weekend warrior jaunts before touring in August. 
 
TD: What was your most memorable live show?
 
CS: It has to be our Rooftop-Record-Release-End-of-the-Summer-BBQ-Bash on South St. Toy Soldiers, Power Animal and Controlled Storms set up in a circle around the audience and took turns playing one song at a time while the other two joined in with extra percussion and ambience. Later that night, we threw an after-party at the splendid Soul Purl 77 gallery with an even more chaotic set from each band. Philly is lucky to have Power Animal and Toy Soldiers making noise on its streets, and we were psyched to team up with them for our first record release show. It was a blast.
 
TD: What do you like to get at the deli?
 
CS: Three bagels with cream cheese (and a side of nachos).
 
 
(Photo by RA Friedman)
 
– The Deli Staff

 

Philadelphia

Organ Blues and Mirador at North Star Bar Feb. 28

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Organ Blues just came out with a powerful new release This Didn’t Just Happen. The indie grunge three-piece have addictive songs that are reminiscent to Pavement and Modest Mouse, and already have Philadelphia Weekly dubbing them “Fishtown hetero life partners inspired by Philly Grit, who make bluesy, slightly grungy rock for space outs.” Not bad for just a few short months! Although on a different side of the spectrum, the progressive electronica stylings of Mirador have also gained some attention from us lately. The three demos from an upcoming EP collection tentatively titled Chapel all have a worldly and ethereal sound that feel like a walk through a mystical temple. When both bands play tonight’s show at North Star Bar, it should be an interesting ride. North Star Bar, 2639 Poplar St., 9pm, $8, 21+ myspace.com/organblues, myspace.com/echomenopolis – Bill McThrill

 

San Francisco

Noise Pop 2010: Hunx and his Punx

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Midway through the Noise Pop Happy Hour set on Friday, Seth a.k.a Hunx took a second to connect with the audience at Bender’s. "Are you guys having a good time? Yeah? You just came here cuz its free huh? Thats cool, I wouldn’t pay for this shit either."

The funny thing is, with over the top outfits, catchy retro 2 1/2 minute songs and tons of confetti, who wouldn’t pay to see this show? Watching a Hunx and his Punx show is like watching a live action John Waters film that features only the musical numbers. Its highly sexualized, its campy and its meant to either shock or entertain [often times both]. The set consisted of mainly songs from their latest release Gay Singles and included a few new songs towards the end. Hunx’s Punx were dressed as grannies while Hunx himself was dressed in spandex, a frilly shirt and a studded chest harness. While this current project is a slight shift from Seth’s last band Gravy Train!!!, the dancability of the songs remains and there were several times when it was difficult to take photos because all I really wanted to be doing was dance.

After a long week of several 12, 13, 14+ hour days, the energy of this show helped to keep me going on a Friday night. If ever you hear that Hunx and his Punx are playing remember that they’re worth the money and if you find yourself bored at the show, check your pulse becasue you’re probably dead.

-Nicole Leigh
words and photo

San Francisco

Dispatches from Noise Pop: Friday 2/26

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Bolting out the door once again, and heading right out to Benders as the work week ended, I arrived for my third consecutive day of Happy Hour shows (slash fuel up on beer and food music session) this time hosted by our good friends over at the Bay Bridged. Well put together on their part, The Bay Bridged had arranged the Happy Hour show I was most anticipating with a strong line up featuring Hunx and his Punx, Spencey Dude and the Doodles, and Weekend. Sadly, as I would be compelled to leave and skip across town to my next destination, the only band whose set I had enough time to check out was Weekend.

Taking the stage, Weekend started off a bit reserved and trepidatious about their sound as they were unable to use their own amps. Ultimately, that fact was irrelevant and they gained more confidence as their set progressed, but at the beginning they seemed to be holding back. Mustering up some great shrill guitar backed by hard-hitting and up-tempo drumming Weekend filled every empty crevice of the venue with sound. Best as I can say, if My Bloody Valentine went punk rock you’d get Weekend.

Scuttling across town, I headed over to The Independent for my Friday night respite from all things Indie Rock and settled in for an evening of electronic flavor. First up were the duo NewVillager. Mixing both synthesizers and live instruments NewVillager, played for something of a sparse crowd, that had yet to fully flush out to the sold out statues the venue had promised. If you took Prince’s falsetto and epic lyrical style subtracted the guitar shredding and added electronic beats then surely you’d have the recipe for their sound. Continuing with the food analogy, NewVillager were a lovely down-tempo appetizer for the bands to come.

Taking something from the Fiery Furnaces circa Biter Tea (only less experimental, to use that poisoned word) Rainbow Arabia, up from LA, took the stage second to a more densely crowd populated, peppered with several hardcore fans. Much like the band before, Rainbow Arabia implored a mix of live instruments and synths to create their fairly unique sound. Tiffany Preston could easily be compared to Eleanor Friedberger of the Fiery Furnaces, who in turn has been compared to Pattie Smith in her presence as a front woman. Prancing around the stage, sometimes with a hyper sense of sexual tension, Preston’s performance was a joy to watch.

The first of the two British electronic musicians to take the stage, Nathan Fake prepped the crowd’s electronic pallet for the evening. Pairing glitchy electronic sounds with dance beats, Nathan Fake set down the path of electronic music that interests me. I can get bored with the merciless mundane thudding that many electronic musicians are want to do, but this wasn’t the case with Nathan Fake. His arrangements were intricate and complex and I must admit I caught myself sheepishly dancing along to them at several times. Of course I’d be remiss not to point out that if this electronic road is one you like to journey down on a regular basis do check out these local artists at your next convenient opportunity: The Luxury Tax and Business 80.

Nestled up in the Independent’s balcony area, far from the fully fleshed out crowd and amidst clouds of something very skunky smelling that had gathered in the rafters from said crowd, I found myself a nice perch to listen to Four Tet. I’ve always found his brand of electronic music to be much more cerebral than dancy so I spaced out (perhaps with a contact high) and explored the music as he spent the next hour or so arranging and composing his intricate soundscape. With the faintest of touches he delicately placed his fastidiously mixed sounds together for a beautifully sounding, near seamless set. It was quite the show to be a part of.

Past the halfway point now through this year’s Noise Pop, I wait with baited breath for the last of the Bender’s Happy Hour shows tonight followed by personal favorites Maus Haus and !!! at the Mezzanine.

 

–Words and Photos by Ada Lann

NYC

Last days to submit to DIY Bushwick Fest!

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NYC Bands and artists,

DIY space and event organizers Bushwick Music Studios along with support from Arts in Bushwick and The Deli Magazine are pleased to announce the first annual DIY Bushwick, A Music Festival, which will take place March 24-27th 2010 at various DIY venues spaces, studios, bars and galleries throughout the Brooklyn neighborhood. In recent years Bushwick’s industrial setting has proved a perfect breeding ground for new music and grassroots art spaces. The goal of the Festival is to highlight the positive work ethic and communal spirit of Bushwick artists and provide a platform that unifies the local business community, residents, and artists in support of this musical renaissance happening in the warehouses, community gardens, and lofts throughout the neighborhood.

A significant number of artists playing this Festival will be booked by the organizers through The Deli – to apply to play all you need to do fill in this form HERE and click on the confirmation email you’ll receive (this will simply add you to our mailing list and enter your band in our fabulous NYC charts organized by genre and region – one day we’ll also create band profiles!).

This particular opportunity is reserved to NYC based artists only, good luck!

The Deli’s Staff

Philadelphia

Arc in Round Get Dreamy at JB’s Feb. 27

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Formerly known as Relay, Philly outfit Arc in Round’s name change last winter marked a new chapter for the band. Fronted by indie sound engineer extraordinaire Jeff Zeigler (Uniform Recording), this dream pop four-piece is a delightful mix of shoegaze and lo-fi experimentalism. Juxtaposing pop construction with at times swirling abstraction, Zeigler and his bandmates’ well-crafted collection of songs are all things transcendent without laying it on too thick. Somehow recreating the familiar post-rock vibe, Arc in Round’s sound is indicative of evolution, enticing listeners with subdued innovation. Cross your fingers hard enough and maybe they’ll play “Spirit”. Arc in Round will also be joined by Busses, whose upcoming debut release was produced by Zeigler. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave, 9pm, $10, 21+ myspace.com/arcinround – Dianca Potts

 

Chicago

Joe Pug on Daytrotter

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Yesterday, Daytrotter posted their session with Joe Pug. Joe performed one track from his first ep, Nation of Heat, and three songs from his new album Messengers. My favorite line from the Daytrotter write-up is as follows, "It’s like reaching for a cup of coffee, intent of enjoying a small and toasty sip, believing that you’re going to have to take it slow or risk burning your tongue out of your mouth, only to find that the liquid in the cup has gone disgustingly cold in the span between sips." Joe Pug’s music is filled with continual sense that live is out to get you, but he delivers with a warm and understanding of a veteran bar-hand after close.

Philadelphia

The 2nd Annual PBR Craft Challenge at 2424 Studios Feb. 27

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This looks like a hella lot of fun! If you ever walked into Bob & Barbara’s and wished that you could have some (if not all) of the cool Pabst shit everywhere, then “The 2nd Annual PBR Craft Challenge” might be a good place to start your collection. You’ll also be treated to performances by Univox, The Homophones, Chang Chang and TJ Kong & the Atomic Bomb as well as FREE PBR so how can you go wrong! 2424 Studios, 2424 E. York St., 3pm – 10pm, $8 donation – H.M. Kauffman

 

San Francisco

Noise Pop 2010: Love Is Chemicals

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Love Is Chemicals as a band name is something I, well, love. The name is catchy, honest and even a bit dismal which is a pretty fair way to describe thier music.  Love is Chemicals play fairly basic, straight forward rock songs that are moody at times and have the occasional male/female voice harmony thrown in. The quartet headlined Wednesdays Noise Pop Happy Hour set at Bender’s. Their set consisted primarily of material from their 2008 release, Song of the Summer Death Brigade, the most impressive track of which is below for your listening pleasure.

 Our Darkest Days and Nights

-Nicole Leigh
words and photo

San Francisco

Montana Slim String Band at Freight & Salvage

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Friday, February 19, 2010
The first thing I noticed when Montana Slim String Band took the stage was the imposing statue of their rhythm guitar player. At well over six feet tall, Jesse is impossible to ignore, until the music starts. The only thing bigger then Jesse is MSSB’s sound. Their sound immediately filled the room at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley and put a death grip on your senses. The band began playing with no discussion and Brent quickly focused attention on his nimble fingers tearing up the fretboard on his mandolin while Dave, and his bass called Trumptet, held down the bottom end with spot on timing. Dave breaks out his bow on one occasion to provide an eerie, haunting sound. Most of the band shares vocal duties, blending subtle harmonies into a full-bodied sound that fills out their music and consumes the audience. I was initially skeptical when I first saw Turi setting up the effects peddles for her fiddle, but she, and the rest of the band, use them judiciously to ad a depth to their sound that gives them a refined, modern edge. Their style of music most certainly falls into the Newgrass or Jamgrass territory, but with Brent’s smoking mandolin and Sean’s unearthly flat-pickin’ breaks, they pay due homage to the masters. When I heard Sean’s first break I expected to see smoking frets, but his calm stage presence and smooth, relaxed pick hand belies his intricate melodies and break neck speed. His use of the entire fret board makes me think that there’s a rocker somewhere inside that wants to get out, but just can’t overcome the bluegrass.

The band also managed to provide a musical marathon, blending one song into another, lulling you into a sense of contentment that makes you forget that you’ve been listening for over ten minutes. They kept the audience connected with their honest lyrics that provide a vehicle for the band to display their emotional connection to the music. Their extended jams were highlighted by Brent and Turi’s instruments occasional back and forth arguments. Though, neither mandolin or fiddle were ever able to claim dominance, they did manage to push each other to greater levels of virtuosity.

The most difficult thing about seeing Montana Slim String Band is catching them in town. In Jesse’s words they tour, “pretty much all the time”, but they are more than worth the effort. They put on a show that will be sure to get you toes tappin’ and you neighbors dancin’; even at a seated venue like the Freight. To take some of their music home you can find their LP Slim Pickin’s at either iTunes or CDBaby and they will be back in town for a major show at the Independent in San Francisco on March 25th. These guys are sure to deliver.

-Jonathon Miller