Philadelphia

Weekend Warrior, October 14 – 16

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rjd2 is opening tonight at Union Transfer for, well…himself. Actually, he’s paired up with Aaron Livingston (The Mean) for his latest soulful project Icebird, and this evening will be their Philly live performance debut. Icebird just dropped their new full-length album The Abandoned Lullaby earlier this week, and have been on a mini-tour as a five-piece band testing out the material. But rjd2 will also be throwing down for his fans to close out the evening. You should definitely get there early to catch show opener and another brilliant hometown sound artist Lushlife (a.k.a. Raj Haldar). Things are goin’ to be poppin’ at UT so be prepared to boogie! Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden Street, $15 – $17, 8:30 pm, All Ages – Brandi Lukas

 
The nice weather is slowly fading in Philly so take advantage of it while you can…
 
Johnny Brenda’s (1201 N. Frankford Ave.) FRI The Heat Run and Up The Chain, SAT Slo Mo feat. Mic Wrecka, Weird Hot, The Donuts
 
Kung Fu Necktie (1250 N. Front St.) FRI The Fleeting Ends and She Came Crashing, SAT Slutever and Break it Up, SUN Venice Sunlight
 
North Star Bar (2639 Poplar St.) SAT Levee Drivers
 
The Fire (412 W. Girard Ave.) FRI (All Ages) Da$h, FRI (Late) I Yahn I Arkestra and Calico Fields, SAT (All Ages) AM Analog and Strange Seasons, (Late) Shortbread and Musicbox Dynamo, SUN 20 Minute Tango and East AM
 
Tritone (1508 South St.) FRI Cosmic Vortex w/G. Calvin Weston, SAT Buddhafest 47 & Bloktoberfest, SUN Kelly Ruth and Thank You Rosekind
 
The Trocadero (1003 Arch St.) SUN Find Vienna, June Divided, The New Connection
 
The Blockley (3801 Chestnut St.) SAT Damn Right, SUN Slow Dance Chubby
 
The Legendary Dobbs (304 South St.) FRI John the Conqueror and Carmen Magro, SAT The Miners, Leiana, The Exchange, SUN Platinum Mustache
 
Millcreek Tavern (4200 Chester Ave.) FRI Split Red
 
PhilaMOCA (531 N. 12th St. Philadelphia) FRI Arrah & The Ferns EP Release w/Univox and Conversations with Enemies
 
Ellen Powell Tiberino Museum (3819 Hamilton St.) FRI Carnivolution
 
Pterodactyl (3237 Amber St., 5th FL) SAT Little Light, Eric N’ Eric, Old Bat
 
Magic Gardens (1020 South St.) SAT Conjunto Philadelphia
 
Strange Brew Coffee (1321 S. 2nd St.) FRI Elizabeth Pugh
 
The Station (1550 McKean St.) FRI Mount Joy and Bobby Keys, SAT St. James & The Apostles and Second Storey Man
 
MilkBoy Philly (1100 Chestnut St.) FRI Illinois, SAT It’s A King Thing and Catnaps
 
Little Bar (738 S. 8th St.) SAT Void Vision, SUN Swimmers Ear and L.U.N.A.R. Revolt
 
Indpendence Mall (Liberty Bell) SAT Philly Against War Rally w/ Conversations with Enemies and Algernon Cadwallader
 
Bloktoberfest 2011 (South Street) SAT The Walkmen, Cheers Elephant, Kuf Knotz, Toy Soldiers, Cozy Galaxies, and More
 
NYC

EULA plays Tommy’s Tavern on 10.21 + gets video projected at Deli CMJ shows

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In Eula’s "Maurice Narcisse" video, Ninjas in animal masks can’t compete with the band’s punk rock princess/lead singer. The noisy bunch will be participating to CMJ with a performance at Tommy’s Tavern on Friday October 21st with Wild Yaks, Ferocious Fucking Teeth and Ritz Riot – sounds like an insane party… This video was selected to be projected in between bands at The Deli/INDMUSIC CMJ Music Marathon Shows.

NYC

Weekly Features: Shenandoah & The Night play Deli Rootsy CMJ Stage on 10.19 at Living Room

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Shenandoah Ableman has the rare ability to turn any genre into a voluptuous experience. Comfortable singing in front of styles ranging from German cabaret to doo wop, her quintet Shenandoah and the Night creates sultry, decadent torch songs that work as well on the stage as they do in the bedroom – in particular when you are NOT alone in there. The band’s self-titled debut EP showcases this sensuality with deep confidence through a series of songs steeped in the tradition of American folk, but featuring a very un-American, almost overwhelming, nostalgic power – in the most literal and decadent definition of "romanticism". These songs ("So Fine" and "All The Beautiful Ladies" deserve a honorable mention) make us flirt with "dangerous" thoughts like the fragility of love, the desire for the lost past, the unreachability of perfect happiness, our vain but primary quest for beauty. They might not make us jump or feel happy – but they do make us feel alive. Can you afford to ignore it? – Shenandoah and the Night will be playing The Deli’s Deli Rootsy CMJ Stage on 10.19 at Living Room with Lucius, Sydney Wayser, Reverend John Delore, Ursa Minor and mony others. Full lineup here.

NYC

Weekly Feature: Invisible Days play CMJ at Lit on 10.19

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Invisible Days blend gentle atmospherics, FX laden guitars, slithering basslines and appropriate rackety-tackety percussion with a vocal harmony that sets them apart from many other bands devoted to the shoegazer genre. Combining that with confident songwriting that shows thought and precision, and it becomes clear (or less invisible) as to why they’ve grabbed The Deli’s attention soon after releasing their debut single. – See the band live at Lit on 10.19, and read Dave Cromwell‘s interview with the band here.

Philadelphia

Where Is My Mind?: Arrah & the Ferns’ Arrah Fisher

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Arrah & the Ferns are digitally releasing a new 6-song EP entitled Soldier Ghost. The band has gone through many changes since their humble beginnings in Muncie, Indiana (HUDSUCKER PROXY!), but what has remained constant are their infectiously fun, upbeat tunes and the truly charming vocals of the former Midwestern Christian turned Philly agnostic songstress, Ms. Arrah Fisher. And though she was welcomed to our City of Brotherly Love with a mugging at gunpoint, her songwriting still remains hopeful. Arrah & the Ferns will be celebrating their release tonight at PhilaMOCA with other Deli faves Univox and Conversations with Enemies (who will also be performing for free tomorrow at noon with Algernon Cadwallader for Philly Against War at Independence Mall), but before this party gets started, we had chance to get a little more personal with Arrah HERE.

Pumpkin by Arrah & the Ferns

NYC

NYC Electro artists on the rise: Bikini plays CMJ on October 19-20

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Bikini is an electronic collective originally from British Columbia, formed in Montreal, and now largely rooted in New York City. In the wake of their 2010 EP RIPJDS, band members converged from four points of the continent to write and direct their first music video, prep their live show and tour it in select cities. The band is in the midst of finalizing their next LP, which has been built between Aujla’s New York City studio and the forests of northern British Columbia where Magzul summers as a tree planter. The band will play a series of shows next week, see here for details.

Austin

Featured Artist: Wild Child

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Here’s to setting the scene: Two new friends sit in the back of a tour van, sharing bottles of cheap red wine and holding deep conversations of hearts broken and loves lost. A year later, these two friends, Alexander Beggins (lead vocals, baritone ukulele) and Kelsey Wilson (lead vocals, violin), would help form six-piece folk band Wild Child. With the release of their debut album Pillow Talk right around the corner, Wild Child has been busy mastering tracks and organizing album material. Pillow Talk carries dreamy, atmospheric compositions that hold steadfast to the themes of love and loss. “[We focus] mainly on being as honest as we can about the trials and tribulations that come with a bad breakup and the conflicting, sometimes confusing, emotions that lead up to it,” says Beggins.

Since their coincidental meeting, Alexander and Kelsey have linked with current members Evan Magers (keys, vocals), Carey McGraw (drums, vocals), Sadie Wolfe (cello) and Matthew Mares (banjo, percussion). Beggins knows that the addition of a full band has been beneficial to Wild Child: “Our shows have grown into so much more than what [Kelsey and I] could accomplish as just a duo. We’ve grown into such a close-knit team that it’s hard to imagine playing a show without everybody now.” Since their debut, Wild Child consistently plays around Austin, naming venues like The Parish and Stubb’s as favored stomping grounds. “We’ve [also] played a lot of fun shows at Beauty Bar, which has become sort of our home base. It’s always nice to play a show with a familiar stage and sound team.”

Layered with warm, welcoming harmonization, there are several available singles that will debut with Pillow Talk’s release. Among them, “That’s What She Say,” co-written with Magers, fronts female vocals while playing on island-oriented rhythm and doo-wop verses. The airy harmonies of “Darling Divine” create a flowing melody through simplicity; the void of percussion makes the song trancelike and intimate. Keys give the song “The Escape” a heavy, brooding melody, yet the instrumentation never wanders far from Wild Child’s signature sound. While the band will be hosting their CD release party at The Parish on October 27th, Pillow Talk will be available on October 25th. Conveying a delicate yet driven combination of acoustic pop riffs and classical folk flair, Wild Child proves one of the more renowned acts evolving from the Austin indie music scene. –Whitney LeFevre

NYC

Experimental NYC: Vaudeville Park’s 3 nights at CMJ

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NYC is architecturally grounded on hidden marvels – the solidarity and suspense echoing over the course of chaos, daily. As though the city hides magical abodes from itself to be rediscovered in fits of refurbishment like that 50 bucks you stashed in a French dictionary. With this in mind, I present to you Vaudeville Park.

In the flesh, Vaudeville Park’s a storefront on the corner of Bushwick and Devoe. White walls alternately adorned with art or vivified with the quintessential light of vehicles passing by night. A succulent baby grand in the corner.

Vaudeville Park is the frenetic Ian Colletti. A labor of love and oracular insight into the future of musical presentation. What transpires here self sustains: artistry is the powerful currency, which is to say, it’s not for profit. Reciprocation between artists, organizers, audience in the name of sublime intervention and community involvement, which is to say, contact between these parties is direct, via a collaborative desire to preserve creative constitution.

The artists and curators working within this space are spectral in a way that only develops inside the rushing core of art for art, even if it requires eating icing in a spacesuit. Art for the sake of not only art but the complications of survival, the revelry of urban stenography, the urgency of creating in the moment. Also, this is happening as part of CMJ. Find a list of contributing artists spanning the gamut of classical composition to room-scale installation to hysterical theatrics, on VP’s website.- Valerie Kuehne

NYC

Caged Animals and Computer Magic headline FREE Deli Electronic Stage at CMJ on Tuesday 10.18

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Caged Animals, a relatively new project by Soft Black frontman Vincent Cacchione, creates music that is poppy and infectious, yet slightly unsettling under the surface. The songs weave atmospheric flourishes with electronic quirks, pitch-shifted and distorted vocals, and catchy hooks. Although Caged Animals could easily be described as “chill-wave” for its bedroom-recording aesthetic and penchant for synth lines and electronic drums, there’s more to the music then that. Cacchione isn’t afraid to venture into the odd psychedelic landscape here and there, and some of the songs sound almost alien, haunting the listener with otherworldly vocals and odd, discordant bits of noise. Check out “The Way It Feels to Be Hunted” (embedded here) to get an idea. Caged Animals create some forward-thinking pop music, and will hopefully be released into the wild to find a wider audience in the near future. –Bill Dvorak

Caged Animals will headline at The Deli’s CMJ electronic stage at The Delancey on Tuesday October 18 with Computer Magic, Psychobuildings, Pretty Good Dance Moves, and other awesome NYC electronic artists – full lineup here.

 

L.A.

Whitton Wants You to “Turn Off The Light”

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Whitton’s sweet-sassy single, “Turn Off The Light”, showcases the doe-eyed songstress as a 1940s housewife begging her aloof, lazy husband for some sexy time. The single is from her new album, “Rare Bird”, which honors the mid-20th century Americana sound. Whitton is currently touring about the Westcoast to promote the release. See her live at Villain’s Tavern, every Tuesday beginning November 1st. – Nicole Dawley

NYC

Motopony Tour

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Kicking off their tour with Viva Brother on Oct. 13, glitch folk band Motopony will have their song "Seer" make its TV debut on  HBO’s "How To Make It In America" this Sunday at 10:30pm.  The Seattle-based group has quickly gained momentum since they debuted their self-titled LP in May,  which is available now on tinyOGRE Entertainment.

MOTOPONY TOUR DATES

October 13        The Horseshoe Tavern          Toronto, ON*
October 14        Le Petit Campus                    Montreal, QC*
October 15        DeLuna Fest                          Pensacola Beach, FL
October 16        Johnny Brenda’s (21+)          Philadelphia, PA*
October 17        The Middle East (21+)           Cambridge, MA*
October 18        The Met                                 Pawtucket, RI*
October 19         Bowery Ballroom (19+)         New York, NY*
October 21         Rock and Roll Hotel               Washington, DC
October 22         The Club at Water Street       Rochester, NY*
October 24          The Basement                       Columbus, OH*
October 25          Lincoln Hall                           Chicago, IL*
October 26          Triple Rock                           Minneapolis, MN*
October 31          Turner Hall Ballroom             Milwaukee, WI?
November 9         Marquis Theatre                   Denver, CO?
November 10       The Black Sheep                 Colorado Springs, CO?
November 14       Café du Nord                        San Francisco, CA?
November 15        Belly Up Tavern                   Solana Beach, CA?
November 16        Bootleg Theater                     Los Angeles, CA?
November 19        Aladdin Theater                      Portland, OR?