Gosh, the summer is just flying by! Here are a couple of things that have put a smile on my face so far:
The Radio Dept. and Asobi Seksu @ River to River, South Street Seaport – July 15, 2011
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of re-living the mid-2000s with a performance by Swedish shoegazers The Radio Dept. and NYC’s own Asobi Seksu.
A beautiful night with beautiful music.
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
On Saturday I was lucky enough to be in town for the first ever 4Knots Festival presented by the Village Voice. The 4 Knots fest is the replacement for the now defunct Siren Festival — the VV’s free music event on Coney Island. If memory serves me correct, I had attended each and every Siren Fest during it’s 10 year run. So it was only fitting that I attend the son of Siren.
Trading the tip of Brooklyn for the tip of Manhattan, the 4 Knots fest took place at Pier 17 at the famed South Street Seaport. It was a bit of a relief to find out that 4Knots only had one stage — Siren Fest always had a “Main” stage and a second “Stillwell” stage, which was kind of annoying because you’d find yourself running up and down the boardwalk all day long trying to catch all the different sets — never being able to fully watch all of them.
Butt pirates...hehehe (sorry)
On top of that, the VIP tents were situated behind the stages — which basically made for the most ginormous clusterf*ck toward the end of the night. By the headlining sets you knew that if you dared leave the pit, you might never get back in — and if you never left, you’d probably be surrounded by a bunch of folks who seemed exceedingly more interested in the free Bud Light than they were in the actual music.
4Knots was far more pleasant — VIP folks were sanctioned off on the Peking ship — off to the side of the stage, leaving the pit for people who actually needed to be there.
I suppose there was a “second stage” of sorts — the 4Knots indoor lounge on Front Street — brilliant because it was indoors with air conditioning, as well as the fact that it was open to the public. Fans of acts like Brahms, Yeasayer, and Dan Deacon could come listen to the celeb DJs spin their favorite tunes while taking photos at the Pop Chips booth, or singing karaoke.
But it wasn’t that bad to be outside — the sun was shining, it was pretty damn hot, but not actually that humid. Couldn’t ask for a better day.
Ok, but enough commentary on the setup — let me just give you the low down on the actual event:
Hands down my favorite act of the day was Titus Andronicus. I had seen Titus Andronicus play a couple times before (in the oxygen-deprived basement of Lit, at MHOW for ATJF ), but never have I seen them truly shine in the way I did this weekend.
The energy, enthusiasm, and love that radiated through the band and the crowd during their set absolutely blew me away. I was genuinely excited by their raucous, explosive set filled with their raw, yet poetic tunes. You could see in the faces of the fans that this band truly MEANS something to them. The devotion I saw in these kids was the kind that can produce involuntary body convolutions. The crowd felt like one giant organism, breathing, singing, cheering, and watching in unison. So many of the kids up front had clear eyes that were fixed on the every move of lead singer Patrick Stickles.
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
I probably looked like an idiot today. Not only was I wearing a t-shirt with French words on it (in honor of Bastille Day), but I was also walking around with a sh-t eating grin on my face ALL DAY LONG. “Why?” you may ask? Well it was simply a beautiful, glorious day in NYC. The weather was absolutely perfect — low humidity, sunny, high was in the low 80s, AND there was a delightful breeze. And to top it all off, today was the White Stripes’ birthday!
I couldn’t think of a better way to spend such a wonderful day than heading over to Pier 54 to attend the kick-off show of this year’s River Rocks festival at Hudson River Park. Over the years I’ve attended my fair share of River Rocks summer concerts, and they are always a delight to attend. Free music by the water — you really cannot go wrong, can you?
Yes, it’s true that the show started about 30 minutes after it was supposed to, with synthy Canadian dream pop band Austra taking the stage after 7:30pm. Dressed like a bunch of art school hipsters (high-waisted skirts, lace tops, glitter on their faces, huge glasses, neon hot pants, among other fashion statements that would make an American Apparel clerk blush), it’s a bit hard to take this up-and-coming band seriously at first, but make no mistake, Austra is going places.
Their atmospheric pop is a lovely thing to hear indeed — singer-songwriter Katie Stelmanis‘ voice has the ability to sound strong yet quivering, and dripping with emotion. Music that can equally serve as indie dance music AND the soundtrack to an elegant modern ballet, Austra’s sound is complex and compelling, and I urge you to check them out if you don’t know them already.
Headliners tUnE-yArDs were equally amazing. Merrill Garbus is absolutely captivating to watch as she layers and loops her vocal samples, drum beats, and various other organic sounds to create complex soundscapes that definitely get your body moving.
The perfect set of acts for the carefree, fun-loving spirit that should radiate from a free summer concert event. By the end of the night the crowd’s hands were up in the air, people were happy and dancing their little heart outs. There was a beautiful bright summer moon casting a glow over everyone, and the lights of Manhattan and New Jersey twinkled like jewels in the night. Then to top it all off, celebratory fireworks lit up the sky during tUnE-yArDs’ encore song.
[click to continue…]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Last Thursday I headed over to Castle Clinton at Battery Park to catch the incredible Shara Worden aka My Brightest Diamond.
My first introduction to the seductive stylings of MBD was two years ago at the Dark Was the Night concert at Radio City Music Hall, where I was completely blown away by Shara’s rendition of “Feeling Good.”
Hips don't lie
So it was no surprise that MBD won me over once again at last week’s free show for the River to River festival. Now a resident of Detroit, this show was a bit of a homecoming for Shara, who lived in New York for a number of years.
Backed by the yMusic chamber ensemble, MBD played all songs of her upcoming album, All Things Will Unwind, and featured three interludes starring MBD friend, dancer Jessica Dessner taking the stage as Shara sat quietly with a creepy old lady mask on.
It's a snap
Definitely never a dull moment at a MBD show, eh? Shara introduced many of the songs with details about her new live in The D — with one particularly funny story about a mouse in her house that she found, trapped, and released out into the wild — only to find a defiant pile of mouse poop waiting for her the very next day.
Another tale described a wonderful group of jazz and blues musicians that used to meet every Sunday at a particular house to have a jam session in front of the lawn. But according to Shara, when the owner of the home died, the house was knocked down (apparently commonplace in Detroit), but the musicians still gather in front of the location of the house and perform on blankets they lay out front.
As usual, MBD’s music is a little over the top, but completely original and refreshing. Beautiful lyrics injected with a wry sense of humor, with incredibly melodious accompaniment by yMusic, the songs made the perfect companion to the lovely evening.
Another triumph for the R2R festival at one of my most favorite concert venues for a NYC summer.
[click to continue…]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
Just the thing to brighten up this dreary Friday in NYC — a brand new Strokes video! The music vid is for my favorite song off of Angles, “Taken for a Fool.”
The only way I can think of to describe the video is to call it a Strokes merry-go-round. I never want this ride to end!
Some amazing moments from the video screen capped:
So many Julian Casablancases, so little time.
OMG, Jules killed Fab!
[click to continue…]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
