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I love seeing Konono No 1 live, but felt awkward having to sit down during their upbeat rhythmic music. It was cool to hear their Congo drumming and finger pianos through their lo-fi speaker system, amplified inside the famous Music Hall.

Seeing Björk always gives me chills and everyone must see her perform live. The crowd erupted as soon as the 10 piece Icelandic Women’s Brass Ensemble ran across the stage in their fluorescent garments. She started the evening with “Earth Intruders” with Konono No 1 accompanying her. The stage even had some pyrotechnics which made the stage erupt with fire. She had many surprise guests including Min Xiao-Fen for the song “I See Who You Are” and my personal highlight when Antony Hegerty joined her to sing duet on “Dull Flame of Desire”. He actually jumped up and down in pure excitement. The stage was beautiful and good pacing throughout the show. I’m glad she played a bunch of Vespertine songs, (which is my favorite album) and even played “Army of Me” which blew me away. The laser light show that accompanied some of the songs were quite spectacular to see at the venue. The sound wasn’t perfect and the Medulla tracks were slow, and the set was short, but at least she came out for 2 songs for the encore. It was also cool to see the reactor instrument being used live.

Set list:
Earth Intruders 
/ Venus as a Boy
 / Aurora
 / I See Who You Are
/ Oceania
/ Dull Flame of Desire
 / All is Full of Love
 / The Pleasure is All Mine
/ Pagan Poetry
 / Jóga / 
Where is the Line
 / Army of Me
 / Innocence
 / Wanderlust / 
Pluto
 ==
= The Anchor Song / Declare Independence

Pictures and videos from the show.
Pagan Poetry (live from the show)

Links
http://www.bjork.com/
Reactable Instrument (scroll down for Bjork clips)

After a 3 year hiatus, Wheat comes back to NY and with a new album. Everyone thought they broke up and I had totally forgotten about them. Last time I saw them was at the same venue in 2003 and they played a great set. Their previous album “Per Second, Per Second, Per Second…Every Second” is very addicting and I highly recommend it. You’ll be singing along to all of their songs, especially “I Met a Girl”.

The Yarrows opened up and I thought they were pretty good, but I kept trying to figure out what a Yarrow was….
Considering the show was not promoted, Wheat took the stage with the emptiest crowd (maybe 20-30 people) I have ever seen at Mercury Lounge. In short, the show sucked sucked sucked. Unfortunately they only played new material which is absolutely terrible and lacked any of the poppy dreamy quality of their past albums. They didn’t even play any of their hits, which could have helped the show. The band clearly needed practice and had zero energy. Waste of time.

Pictures from the show.  (coming soon)
http://www.wheatmusic.com/

Luckily I have already seen Professor Murder several months back, so I wasn’t that bummed that I missed the majority of their set. Although many people came to see them, the space filled up again to catch the bouncy synth pop of Matt & Kim. This duo was all smiles when they played and they put out one of the most enjoyable videos for their song “Yea Yea”. The crowd was young and energetic and the band set up their gear right to edge of the stage (probably to mimic their cramped Brooklyn loft shows). Kim was possessed pounding away on her drums while Matt played his pulsating keys. The crowd went nuts, dancing, crowd surfing, stage diving, speaker diving. Everyone was having FUN and especially the band, which just added to the overall vibe of the show. One of the funnier moments was when Matt pressed one of the default rhythm keys on his new keyboard which made Kim spontaneously get up and dance to the cheesy loop. The show was only 8 dollars which the band ensured would happen as they stated they wouldn’t charge any amount that they wouldn’t pay for themselves.

So the music isn’t all that original or even ground-breaking, but the band’s DIY attitude towards music and handle of pulsating bubbly synth music is either brilliant or absurd. But that’s not the point. Their music is fun, and their live shows are even better and it’s hard not to be infected by their joy and arresting music. We all left very sweaty and with huge smiles.

Pictures from the show.

http://www.mattandkimmusic.com/

This show sold out pretty quickly. The big sound of The Big Sleep would finally get a bigger stage. They came out pretty strong playing some of my favorite songs but very few new ones. Although I’m eager to hear some new material, it’s always great to experience this band live. I felt the sound wasn’t perfect at Bowery, and as usual the vocals suffered the most. Regardless, they added more fans to their base. Congratulations on the birth of the twins.

The crowd was anxious for The Thermals, and I couldn’t blame them. Their new album was really good and they have developed their sound into a slightly new direction. And the songs “Pillar of Salt” and “Here’s Your Future” was a recurring anthem for me the previous year. The band was pure energy, playing one song right after another. They never took a break, and either did the crowd. The fans were moving, dancing, singing to every song and really elevated the show. Although I felt the set of songs became a bit monotonous, they would sprinkle in some of their more guitar catchy ones to maintain the momentum. The lead singer and bassist constantly moved around the stage and kathy’s hair was always bopping back and forth to the songs. It was a genuine fun night and the Thermals made sure of that.
Links:
Pictures from the show.

http://thebigsleep.net/
http://www.thethermals.com/
Pillar of salt video