New Music, Emerging from your Local Scene
Matthew Dear‘s latest audio/video excursion combines the upbeat title track from his new ‘Headcage EP’ with mesmerizing abstraction from London-based director Morgan Beringer. The video looks like vintage footing of the creation of the universe, while the song sounds like early Japan somehow enhanced electronically – very cool indeed. Oh and check out the "wtf" ending! This single is the title-track of Matthew Dear’s upcoming "Headcage" EP, out on January 17.
Post-punk dissidents Virgin Islands will embark on another tour in the New Year, after spending much of 2011 on the road in support of their first full-length release, Ernie Chambers v. God. Singer/guitarist Mike Jaworski, drummer Aaron Ball, guitarist Chris Meyer and bassist Chuck Keller deliver a one-two of rumbling bass lines and searing guitar play that compliments the band’s frequently provocative lyrical bent. Punctuated by Ball’s driving rhythm, Virgin Islands’ first EP lives up to the promise of their four-track 2009 debut, The Age of Anxiety, which turned heads and teased palates eager for a taste of gritty, blistering and most of all, insurgent new music. The band will kick off their next 11-date tour in Seattle early in 2012.
February 17 Neumo’s (with Cursive and Ume)
Doors: 8 p.m.
Tickets: $15
-Kate Shepherd
Up-and-coming indie act Smokey Brights will bring their folky, soul-tinged rock to The Comet Tavern tomorrow night. After releasing their debut album, Can’t Rightly Say, this May, the band garnered the attention of local critics and concertgoers alike. They wrapped their first tour in November, which they documented in a series of postcards from the road, and are once again playing shows in town – including a sold out appearance at The Tractor on Nov. 23. Experimental duo Fort Union, the latest project from Friday Mile founder Jace Krause will also share the stage. Krause and Jake Rohr released Solstice Day Parade, their first single featuring ethereal melodies and rippling guitars, back in March, and have been building a following ever since.
Doors: 9 p.m.
Tickets: $8
-Kate Shepherd
"Resolved dissonance" is one of the very cool things about music – Sonic Youth mastered it to perfection. But honestly I have a hard time thinking about a "clean sounding" band that uses dissonance as purposefully as Brooklyn based super-obscure (but not for long) "The Hot Holy Mess". These guys only have two songs available online at this stage, but they are both satisfying my originality AND poppiness needs at once, which happens very rarely. Most importantly, they don’t sound anything like Animal Collective, which these days is a major plus for any experimental-ish indie band. The song "Focus Focus," streaming here, is some kind of zany experimental psych-pop collage that bounces from a beatles-y verse (circa 1967) to an atmospheric bridge reminiscent of French band Air, to a circusy chorus involving harp, violin stabs and almost comical falsetto parts. What’s hard to convey in writing is the band’s flair and overall smoothness of the operation. Bravo! The second song "Long Ride Down" develops in a folkier and more intimate direction, with acoustic guitars and hand claps. Dissonance again pays visits in the vocals and guitar parts, and later on in super-psychedelic distorted violin solos, adding layers of tension and alienation to an otherwise mellow song. These songs are part of a 7" called "Red Wild Eye", which will be released on 01.26 with a party at Rock Shhop. The songs are available for free download here.
Honky tonk surfers Boom Chick return home to NYC after a three month American tour, playing a homecoming show at Pianos Dec. 9th. This rabble rousing duo plays early 50’s inspired original rock & roll with a primal punk urgency. Lead singer/guitarist Frank Hoier sounds as if John Lennon were born a surfer in the 80s. Moselle Spiller may dress like Loretta Lynn at the Grand Ole Opry, but she’s a wild woman on the drums and will kick Meg White around. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here). The Deli’s NYC Open Blog is powered by The Music Building and APS Mastering.
As an encore to his recent Laid Off Tour across the northeast, Danny Ross along with his 9 piece band and horns will headline Mercury Lounge this Saturday 12/10 at 8pm, followed by NYC favorites The Shake and The Parlor Mob (see following entry). This week’s New Yorker Magazine highlights Saturday’s performance as "a blast of good-time, R. & B.-tinged rock and roll." Ross recently played official CMJ showcases, and was NYC Deli Magazine Artist of the Month this time last year. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here). The Deli’s NYC Open Blog is powered by The Music Building and APS Mastering.
Neo-soul buzz band Pickwick will make their final live appearance in Seattle tomorrow night, before a New Year’s Eve show in Wenatchee and a three-date circuit in Oregon to start 2012. Along with Campfire OK, the band will play to a full house at the Neptune Theater. Coming off a free show at Easy Street Records on Dec. 6, and an a cappella announcement for Thursday’s event, the six-piece former folk band promises to fill the one-time cinema with the moody keyboards, minimalistic guitar and swinging rhythms that have made them one of the city’s bands to watch over the past year. Pickwick is set to head into the studio to record their first full-length album, following a successful year for Myths, a compilation of EPs that helped affirm the band’s growing popularity.
Doors: 7 p.m.
Tickets: SOLD OUT
-Kate Shepherd
The Crocodile will play host to a benefit for Northwest Center Kids tomorrow night, featuring a handful of local acts. Colonies, the Icarus Kid, Ghost Town Riot and Smile for Diamonds will take the stage in support of the center’s child development program, which helps kids between six weeks to 12 years old, both with and without developmental disabilities. Relative newcomers Ghost Town Riot, who are currently in the process of recording a new full-length album, and the Icarus Kid, who released his self-titled debut album in September, will be joined by established indie rockers, Colonies. The mix of electronic and instrumental artists should ensure that concertgoers with varied tastes can have a great time while supporting an even better cause.
Doors: 8 pm
Tickets: $10
21+
-Kate Shepherd
Expect a guitar-solo-scorched face or two at the Mercury Lounge this Saturday night, as Jersey’s hard rockers The Parlor Mob treat their New York City fans to a much needed return appearance. Currently touring in support of their sophomore album "Dogs," which was released this past October through Roadrunner Records, and anchored by the first single, "Into The Sun," this is a record without fillers. On that single, the lyrical subject matter combines both defiance and hope, while the muscularly heavy sound of the band leads you into a chorus that’s as catchy as hell. "Fall Back" comes complete with brilliant start/stop breaks that underscore the fluid rhythm section. "Practice in Patience" shows the gentler side of the band, with emotionally strong vocals paired against an uncommon piano sound. "American Dream" chugs forward on heavy twin-tandem guitar riffing, as the lyrics express this current generations confusion about "who to trust" in the government. "I Want To See You" finds the band exploring more exotic rhythms, as a slightly jazzy, latin-tinged undercurrent propels it all towards a bolder, more rock heavy chorus. A blistering guitar solo elevates everything that much higher. "Hard Enough" takes on those gut-wrenching feelings of loss, as the lyrics state that "it’s hard enough to walk this loney road without you – to miss everything about you." While "Take What’s Mine" playfully references Jimi Hendrix’s "Foxy Lady," the track remains true to an originalty – within the classic hard rock formula – that is woven through the entire album. – Dave Cromwell
Is and of The is the DC-based project of Drew Bandos, a Philly native, who’s third installment of recordings/first official album, Heads Phased For Dreamless Sleep, soars to a new level of organic shoegaze blended with electronic bits and echoing whispers. Experimental may be an understatement as each of the 11 tracks have the ability to capture your subconscious attention and cause a drift into daydream world. Gorgeous.
"I Used to Swim in Seas Outside Of Me" is exactly how it sounds. An out of body experience in sound. "Interlude" blasts a deep drone over reversed strings, a sweet transition from one of the many standout’s on the record "Sleepless Dream" where warbling keys bloom before Bandos bursts into a melancholic chorus. And "Litost" sneaks in a bit of trip hop, adding a welcomed groove to a haunting melody. Love.
The album is available now via Mush Records/iTunes/Amazon. –Dawn
I guess today we are in the mood for melodic folk! 10-15 years ago we would have never guessed this development in our lives, when we (read: I) almost dispised anything lacking a distorted instrument of any kind… It must be said though that it seems like – for some obscure reason – your average roosty band is MUCH better than your average indie or modern rock band, and this is probably why we end up reviewing many folky album from the ones bands submit digitally here.
But we digress… Mahoney & The Moment is a boy girl duo that’s so friggin’ new they haven’t even been together for a year yet. Oh, and they are talented, young, and, from what we hear, in love. Yeah, sometimes you can hear "real" love in a song (not pretended love), and although many W’burg hipsters might find this entire concept supremely cheesy, it’s actually a truly beautiful and somehow contagious thing (and yes, my inner 18 years old can’t believe what I just said…) The band has already a full length out, played The National Underground a few days ago, and – according to their Facebook notes – are planning to tour the US and Europe in 2012!
This Old Ghost, who submitted their music for consideration digitally here a few weeks ago, plays Americana tinged, pleasantly melodic folk-rock featuring harmonized boy/girl vocals and sudden heavy openings, like in their latest EP "Island of Violent lovers" first track "This Lifeboat", where the pretty atmosphere of the verse gets almost "violated" by a chorus that flirts with prog-rock. Being the indie maniacs we are, we prefer the less prog-rocky tracks like the traditional folk rock tune "Attack on the Settlers Cabin" (streaming below), which slowly builds in tension and brings back some good 90s rock vibes. This is a group of guys who can write good songs and, judging from their busy live schedule, also know how to entertain when on stage. Check them out at Pianos on 12.07 or at Rockwood on 12.16.
