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It’s Such a Perfect Day: Austra and tUnE-yArDs @ Pier 54, July 14, 2011

July 15, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc, photographs

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.
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Tagged as: austra, Katie Stelmanis, tune yards

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My Brightest Diamond Makes Waves at Castle Clinton for R2R

July 13, 2011

in concerts, music, photographs

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

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.

Listen carefully

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.
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Tagged as: my brightest diamond, river to river, shara worden

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The Kooks Make Beautiful Music Once Again @ Bowery Ballroom – 6/27/11

June 28, 2011

in britrock, concerts, music, photographs, the kooks

Wow, it’s been just over three years since the last time I saw the Kooks perform live in concert. So I was pretty darn excited to see the British wunderkids at the intimate setting of the Bowery Ballroom.

Just before 10pm, the guys swaggered onto the stage, and the young ladies (let’s call them “Kookies”) in the front of course went mad — screaming and outstretching their arms before a single note was played. When I looked over at Luke Pritchard, I was pleased to see his burning love of V-neck shirts had not been forgotten after all these years — there he was in all his acute angle-loving glory, sporting a red V-neck shirt (seriously, this man has never met a V-neck he couldn’t love), skinny jeans, and boots (obvs.).

The Kooks hit the stage and the crowd went bezerkies.

I don’t know what it is, but there is something so magical about seeing The Kooks live. Without fail, I always have a great time and leave the venue with a smile on my face — and this time was no exception. I started off the show perched in the balcony, but (as anyone who has ever been to a concert with me) about 4 or 5 songs in I could barely contain myself — so I headed down to the floor to be with the “real” fans, and shake my groove thaannng.

The set was a mix of old favorites, like “Naive,” “Seaside” (encore), “Shine On,” and new songs off their forthcoming album, Junk of the Heart, like Lou Reed “Satellite of Love”-esque piano-based B-side “The Saboteur” and the extremely catchy “How D’Ya Like That“.

Pretty lights.


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Tagged as: bowery ballroom

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Anna Calvi @ Bowery Ballroom – 5/25/11

May 27, 2011

in concerts, music, photographs

With the death of LCD Soundsystem and the re-emergence of The Strokes, of late I’ve been reconnecting/running into a lot of folks from what I like to call “the good ol’ days” — people who I met through going to shows, and being in that whole scene, during the early 2000s. For those of you who are younger, you’re not going to understand this, so let me say this very plainly — when you get old, you don’t go out to parties/concerts as much, so you don’t see people randomly all that often.

In any case, I’ve noticed that a lot of these old time friends have all been mentioning to me that they love that I still have my blog, which strikes me as extremely funny. Because telling me that it’s soooo amazing that I still do my blog is basically the internet equivalent of congratulating me on walking down a flight of stairs or being able to chew solid foods (I can still do both of those things — kinda). So yeah, you definitely realize you’ve been in the game for a long time when several folks start giving you props for doing something you don’t even really consciously think about. Don’t get me wrong, I love every person who tells me that, but it’s definitely a bellweather of my continued descent into the abyss of Old.

So as some feeble attempt to somehow rid myself of that mothball-y, musky “old people smell” I’m sure I reek of at this point, I gathered up all my strength to hobble over to the Bowery Ballroom alongside fellow old timer, Melody Nelson, to check out the hot new UK rock goddess import, Anna Calvi.


Maybe The Rapture was a couple days late?

Sitting downstairs until Anna Calvi’s 11PM set time, we reminisced about how during CMJ 2002 I fell asleep on the very black leather couch upon which we were perched, waiting for the late late show by The Walkmen. As I looked around at the crowd, it was a weird mix of lithe Lissy Trullie-type hipsters, bridge and tunnel-y people, and slightly older people of obviously discerning taste. (All the trendy kids must’ve been at the Friendly Fires show at Webster Hall.) The highest ranking celeb of the night was Mr. David Byrne, who was there with daughter Malu Abeni and some of her friends.

When the time came to head upstairs, for some reason it was impossibly hot and sweaty, despite the fact that the venue was not fully packed. But as soon as the lights went down, and the fog machine kicked in, all was forgotten and I was transported into the glamorous, dramatic, and enchanting world of Anna Calvi.
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Tagged as: anna calvi, bowery ballroom, soledad brothers

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Let’s Juicebox Their Faces Off – The Strokes @ Coachella

April 19, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc bands, the strokes


Video of The Strokes performing “Juicebox” live at Coachella 2011

I kind of want to live by these words.

I wonder what that would look like…

Thnx Julian Casablancas and your wonderful stage banter! What a perfect Casablancasism.

BTW, “Under Control” is pretty much one of my favorite Strokes songs ever:

Tagged as: coachella, julian casablancas

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Win Tickets to Hank & Cupcakes @ The Studio at Webster Hall – 4/9/11

April 5, 2011

in concerts, music

I’m just barely recovering from the Strokes/LCD marathon, but I wanted to surface for air long enough to offer up a chance to win a pair of tickets to this Saturday’s Hank & Cupcakes show at The Studio at Webster Hall.

I caught Hank & Cupcakes in 2009 during CMJ at a show at the Delancey and was totally blown away by this dynamic duo. They’re like the White Stripes meets Elastica.

Want to win this pair of tickets to not only see Hank & Cupcakes but Turkuaz, Navegante, and Dolchnakov Brigade? Email contest @ themodernage.org by 4/7/11, 11pm with your name and email. I’ll notify the winner that same day.

Good luck and keep rockin on!

Tagged as: hank and cupcakes

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Greatest Week in NYC: The Strokes Return and LCD Soundsystem Say Goodbye @ MSG – 4/1/11 and 4/2/11

April 4, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc bands, photographs, the strokes, video

This week has been completely insane — I witnessed over 9 hours of LCD Soundsystem (yup, I was at the LCD MSG show as well), and one glorious night of The Strokes all in one week. I think I sweated off my body weight about three times over, dancing myself clean, moshing in multiple pits, and just freaking out in anticipation.

I’ll admit, it’s hard for me to try to figure out what to say that hasn’t already been said. Probably by now you hard core fans have already read all the reviews, you know the set list, you’ve heard what happened at the show.


I love how happy Julian looks in this photo. He’s stoked he’s singing with Elvis Costello!

Yes, Elvis Costello opened up for The Strokes with a surprise 15-minute set playing “Pump It Up,” “Radio Radio,” and “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace Love And Understanding.” And yes, before playing “Taken for a Fool,” Julian mentioned the song’s chorus had an Elvis Costello-quality to it, and that he should probably just come out and sing it — then immediately defusing any expectation of him making a second April Fools’ appearance by laughing and saying “April Fools’! I’m kidding, he’s not doing it, but he should have. Next time.”

Then of course the joke was on all of us when Elvis DID actually come out and perform the song with the band! So crazy!

Rolling Stone video

Seriously, how FUN was that?
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Tagged as: james murphy, julian casablancas, lcd soundsystem, madison square garden

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The Strokes Return to NYC @ Madison Square Garden (MSG) – 4/1/11

April 2, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc bands, photographs, the strokes, video

So there’s the band called The Strokes. They are originally from right here in New York City, and you may have figured it out by now, but I really like them.

They played their first public hometown gig in over five years and this was definitely a heroes welcome. The guys were in fine form and everyone (the crowd and the band) was pretty freaking pumped up after the show. Smiles all around.

I had an amazing time/night, and it truly felt like old times. Never have I thought I could recreate those feelings and memories of 2001-2003, but tonight certainly came close. I saw so many old friends, sang along to so many classic tunes, fantastic all the way around.

I want to thank YOU GUYS for making it such a fun show – so many of the faces I saw were of young folks — kids who weren’t old enough to even ride a two-wheeler when Is This It came out, but there you all were up in the front, smiling, so happy, and enthusiastic about seeing The Strokes. You kids are so awesome. You totally rock!

The birds are tweeting outside and the sun is coming up, so I’ll try to jot down some stuff before my eyes fall out of my head:

I’ll start with the end — The very last song, in typical Strokes fashion, was “Take It Or Leave It” — but this time singer Julian Casablancas took it upon himself to bring the music to the people – well, specifically to the people in the seated section stage left. Climbing up on the stage left speakers, and then grabbing onto the side railing, Julian positioned himself in the midst of the raised seated floor section, where upon everyone started grabbing on to him from behind.

At one point, Julian jumped down to the floor, and the barricade felt as if it were going to tip over — terrifying me because that’s where the handicapped folks were sitting. Luckily, Julian moved back up and further over into the crowd, bringing the rest of the song to the front section of the room, and a bit to stage right at the end, finally finishing on the stage.

You can check out the entire song below — excuse the sort of crazy Cloverfield-style look of the middle — I could never be a war correspondent with that kind of sloppy camera work, but the beginning is pretty awesome if I do say so myself:

VIDEO: “Take It Or Leave It” – The Strokes @ MSG – 4/1/11

The tone of the night was set when “mystery” guest Elvis Costello performed a 15-minute set as an April Fools’ joke on all of us. Julian had been tweeting about “accidentally” running into Elvis three times that week, so it was a semi-surprise to see the man himself get on stage and actually start singing. What a great way to start the show!
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LCD Soundsystem Blow My Mind with a Harry Nilsson Cover – 3/30/11

March 31, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc bands, video

Wow. My second LCD Soundsystem farewell show @ Terminal 5. Definitely way crazier than the first night’s gig.

I nearly DIED when they broke into my absolute favorite Harry Nilsson song, “Jump Into the Fire,” during their encore. Check out Bromander-in-Chief James Murphy totally killing it in this video I took of the song:

VIDEO: “Jump Into the Fire” by LCD Soundsystem (Nilsson cover)


“I love you New York, but you’re bringing me down.”

Some random observations:

I kinda love LCD shows because it totally brings out the most ridiculously outfitted men:

  • So MANY freaking dudes in white shirts and black ties. I call it the “broniform.”
  • One dude wore a leather jacket the entire time while in the pit. Necessary.
  • Two guys behind me had homemade “DANCE YRSELF CLEAN” t-shirts (Hanes tees with Sharpie writing on them). I’m going to assume they came together…and that they went to braid each other’s hair and talk about James Murphy after the show.

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Tagged as: harry nilsson, james murphy, lcd soundsystem, terminal 5

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March Madness: The Strokes at the Theater at Madison Square Garden

March 30, 2011

in concerts, music, nyc bands, the strokes

I thought it would only be appropriate to revisit The Strokes‘ previous set of shows at the sister venue to Madison Square Garden — the Theater at MSG.

In 2003, the band did three sold out shows to promote their newly released second album, Room on Fire.

I distinctly remembering complaining about having to watch Regina Spektor, who I was not enamored with at the time (think I called her a Tori Amos wannabe), three nights in a row.

Kings of Leon were the second openers, and although I did like some of their songs, never again did I ever want to see them three nights in a row — especially with their ridiculous Stillwater hair and mustaches.

During this time period Julian had a preference for gas attendant shirts.

The second night was chock-full-o’ celebs: Drew, Liv, Mos Def, David Cross, and Julian jumped into the audience.

By the third night I’d lost my steam, choosing to hang back in the surprisingly roomy back area of the GA pit.

Tagged as: kings of leon, regina spektor, strokes march madness

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