Snow Day Today!
Something tells me it’s going to be difficult to hail a cab today.
Archive for the ‘photographs’ Category.
Wanda Jackson Rocked and Rolled BK
Last Thursday I had the pleasure of checking out the legendary “Queen of Rock,” Miss Wanda Jackson, as she hit Brooklyn’s Knitting Factory.
Although the evening was supposed to start rather early (with Wanda hitting the stage around 9pm), Snowmageddon caused a delay in her flight, and the 72-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer was coming directly from the airport to the gig. Openers Luster Kings vamped their set with jokes comparing Wanda to Santa Claus (or Waldo), asking the audience “Where’s Wanda?” and giving updates on her current status (“She’s landed! She’s on the ground.”)
I was thinking about how much travel takes out of you and wondering if Miss Wanda would be tired, but as soon as she sauntered onto the stage, there was no doubt — this lil’ lady still had it, and was raring to go!
Dressed in sensible black wedge shoes, black pants, and a sparkly red blouse with a diamante musical note pin, Wanda was ready to rock — thanking the crowd for their enthusiastic welcome. She played the hits — “I Gotta Know,” “Mean, Mean Man,” a cover version of “Hard-Headed Woman” and a rendition of her Japanese number one rock and roll single, “Fujiyama Mama” — putting her famous growl into the sassy pro-female lyrics of the songs.
Wanda was full of stories, narrating the chronology of her career between songs. Mid-way through the set she mentioned her newest single, a cover of “You Know I’m No Good,” released as a 7-inch record out on Jack White’s Third Man Records, and how she wanted to play the song, but didn’t have any time to rehearse for it.
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Julian Casablancas Swaggers, Sings, and Causes Swooning @ Terminal 5
UPDATE: Ok, so in talking about the show with some old Strokes fan friends, people have express surprise at the fact that I enjoyed the show so much because…well, it’s just not the same without all the other Strokes. To that point I say this: No, it’s not The Strokes, but in my opinion, Julian is pretty much one of the best things about the band in the first place, so going to see a Julian Casablancas show is kinda like a Strokes show, but without all the other distractions.
That said, Julian’s music is much different than the regular Strokes fare. I like to think his solo work is more pop-based, and a little bit more carefree than Strokes songs. I also think his lyrics are more playful, the song structure more complicated and interesting, and the imagery more vivid. Perhaps that’s more of a reflection of his maturation as a songwriter than anything else, but any way you slice it, the solo stuff is great and you should be so lucky to see him perform it live.
The show last night wasn’t as elaborate as the ones he did in his LA residency (you know, the one that he felt were a fiasco) which included set pieces, costume changes, and an intermission, but it was polished, smooth, and successful. He truly seemed like he was having fun, and the crowd was enjoying it.
He seemed relaxed and at ease with himself and the songs — a very different energy than the one I remember when he plays with The Strokes. At Strokes shows, so much of the show is propelled by each of the band member’s energy bouncing off and pushing one another forward. At a Julian Casablancas show it seems much more like Julian is puttering along, guiding his backup band, and the pace of the show with the slow and steady push of his own internal performance propeller.
I’ve read in some tweets and reviews that people have been disappointed with Julian’s “lack of energy” on stage and I’d like to address that here: People who have seen The Strokes perform already know that JC doesn’t have that same inclination to roam or run around the stage like a frenetic 5 year old (or people like Chris Martin). He’s always been the kind of performer to stay more stationary.
Nevertheless I have always found him compelling to watch on stage. I think the pro-JC camp would agree with me when I say that it seems as though his energy is more focused on vocal expression than physical expression. He also can give a pretty mean intense stare. But he does have a physicality to his performance. With The Strokes his familiar moves seem to come from a place of internal aggression — the impassioned lapel grab, the back foot stomp, and the hand hitting side of the head move. As a solo artist, he seems to be a lot more fluid — his moves were more likely to swing on the side of a breezy waltz across the stage rather than a storming charge to-and-fro. Relaxed? Yes. Boring? No.
Toward the end of the performance he stepping into the crowd, much to the dismay of the event security staff, and before heading backstage he took the time to walk down the front of the stage and shake the outstretched hands in front of him — like some kind of rock star presidential candidate. All I know is he seemed quite happy — he tweeted “Thank you guys!” to his fans directly after the show — as did the audience, and that’s good enough for me.
RELATED LINKS: Saw my friends at Stereogum at the show, so please check out their review and photos once they’re up! Also check out coverage by Metromix, NY Press, 32f/second, Time Out NY
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Just came back from an awesome show at Terminal 5 courtesy of Mr. Julian Casablancas. Julian seemed overwhelmed by the warm greeting from the audience, thanking the crowd several times throughout the performance.
JC and the band blew through nearly all the songs on Phrazes for the Young, including “11th Dimension”, “Glass”, “Ludlow Street”, “Out of the Blue”, “River Of Brakelights”, and “4 Chords of the Apocalypse.” They also threw in some covers — notably a version of “Velvet Snow” by Kings of Leon and yes — an actual cover version of a Strokes song (albeit a b-side) called “I’ll Do Anything Once” as the encore. (See below.)
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CMJ 2009: Music for the Thinking Man
Yes, I’m JUST getting caught up with CMJ right now as I’m sitting here watching the World Series (no, I’m not sure why I’m watching).
Here are a few photos from the excellent After the Jump showcase that we held at the beautiful Brooklyn Bowl on Oct 24th. Seriously, if you have not been to Brooklyn Bowl yet, run don’t walk.
It’s such a great space — you can tell the owners really took the time to get things right. Not only is there one of the most classy looking bowling alleys you’ll ever see, there is a bar with local beer, a delicious Blue Ribbon restaurant, AND a kick-butt stage for bands to play, adjacent to the lanes.
Enough gushing! On to the photos.
Harlem (from Austin, TX) drew a great crowd with their fun and quirky rock songs. Not hard to understand why Matador Records recently signed these guys up:
CMJ 2009: Boys Who Make Dancey Music
Catching up from last weekend — so many activities!
OCTOBER 22nd
Started the evening at the SPIN offices for a special rooftop performance by Portland, Oregon’s Hockey. Like The Rapture and The Virgins before them, these boys know how to get girls dancing. Love love love them. Find songs like “Work,” totally irresistible.
CMJ 2009: Ladies Rule the Night of Oct 21st
Yup yup, dab smack in the middle of this year’s CMJ. Music I saw on Day 2:
OCTOBER 21st
Hank and Cupcakes @ the Deli Magazine party at the Delancey
Thoroughly enjoyed this Brooklyn-based duo. Dancey rock, and a great cover version of Joy Division’s “Control.”
Screaming Females @ Mercury Lounge
There’s no doubt that the Screaming Females know how to rock out. The trio from New Brunswick, New Jersey, is fronted by the unstoppable Marissa Paternoster. The 22-year-old Paternoster has a distinctively ambiguous look. You can hardly tell if she’s 18 years old or 40 years old — a young boy or an old lady. I like to think of her as a mix of both Harold and Maude — a baby face with a boyish shaggy bowl haircut + an old lady chic wardrobe.
All looks aside, Paternoster can roll out some incredibly mean guitar solos, her small finger fingers flying up and down the fret boards with impressive speed. When she wails into her microphone, you can’t help but think that this little lady is a star.
More on Ryan Adams and Mary-Louise Parker Talk Poetry @ NYPL Live
To pick up where I left off, the Ryan Adams + Mary-Louise Parker talk at the NYPL on Friday was pretty great. Structured as a casual conversation between the two poetry lovers, NYPL’s Paul Holdengraber gave a very brief intro before handing the stage over to the old friends (for three years they were neighbors).
Much of the first half of the discussion was peppered with references to Mary-Louise’s friend, poet and Columbia University professor Mark Strand, who both credited with widening their horizons and understanding of poetry.
Ryan spoke at length about how he imagines a big gang of people with “unhappy face shirts on” just waiting to tear him down. On putting his work and himself out in the world for public consumption, Ryan commented that when something is seeing as being “too artistic” people tend to paint it as coming form a place of “self-entitlement,” for Ryan it’s more of an opportunity for pure expression, that in general he feels his work doesn’t always stimulate the intellect, but does stimulate emotion.
Mary-Louise elaborated on the discussion of the mob mentality of critics by saying that for people who are the the public eye, there is very real hurt that comes with hearing criticism. Talking about anonymous internet commentators, Mary-Louise commented that “the voice that’s going to be heard is the meanest voice in the room.”
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PHOTOS: Ryan Adams and Mary-Louise Parker Talk Poetry @ NYPL Live
Some photos just for now of the nearly two hour talk that Ryan Adams did on Friday with Mary-Louise Parker at the Celeste Bartos Forum at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building of the New York Public Library for NYPL Live.
The charming twosome chatted about Ginsberg, Frederick Seidel, the mob mentality of Internet haters, Ryan’s writer’s remorse about his first book of poetry, vitamin A salad, battles with addiction and alcoholism, and much much more. Updates to come!
The Aftermath of “After Miss Julie”
After hitting up an amazing party for the opening of the new Sassoon Salon at 7 West 56th Street, I went to go see Sienna Miller and Jonny Lee Miller in the new staging of the Patrick Marber play, After Miss Julie.
Joc pretty much summed it up with her review, “I’m not sure whether the play was bad, or the acting was bad.”
Ouch.
PHOTOS: David Ryan Adams Morrison Hotel Gallery Show
On the way home tonight I walked by David Ryan Adams’s opening party for his solo show on auction for Housing Works at Morrison Hotel Gallery on the Bowery.
Characters with tongue-in-cheek signs stating things like “The Bowery Is for Bums, Not Art,” “Joey Ramone Is Turning Over In His Grave,” and “Not Funny Mr. Adams.” Inside, the artwork was displayed on the walls and the room was decked out with the strings of the multicolor balloons cascading from the ceiling. Buddy Jessie Malin served as auctioneer of the paintings.
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