Category: Music

Starting the night on a great note catching Dan Mangan. Recently signed to the Arts & Crafts label this impressive song-writer plays some really great alt-country tunes. Of course he ended the show singing into the crowd as every Canadian musician seems to do.

Had no intention to see John Vanderslice on next as I think his new stuff is kinda boring, but NYCTaper was there so listen here. We bolted to the Delancey to catch a band on my radar called Sky Larkin. This trio from the UK played a great collection of songs full of hooks and chiming guitar melodies. During their song Still Windmills, Katie sang “I know there’s potential” which I believe this band surely has.

Ran back to Mercury Lounge to catch The Extra Lens comprising of John Darnielle (the Mountain Goats) and Franklin Bruno (Nothing Painted Blue, the Human Hearts). Although I’m not a fan of the tunes of this collaboration, I’ll never pass down a chance to see John in such an intimate setting. They were extremely comfortable on stage and John was quite chatty between songs. Franklin had to constantly persuade him to tune his guitar and stop talking. For the encore he jumped off stage to sing from the back of the crowd.

Went back to the Delancey to catch First Aid Kit but the set times were running late and unfortunately Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson was performing who I can not stand seeing live and has a knack of ruining my CMJ experiences.

http://www.danmanganmusic.com/site/
http://www.weareskylarkin.com/

my CMJ photos.

My plans to take it easy this year for CMJ backfired when the marathon finally posted their lineup of bands. I was very excited to catch Ume from Austin play a free Relix Mag show at some store in soho. Weird setting for their post punk guitar driven sound. I was hooked after the first song and slightly in love. Highly recommend. A great start to CMJ.

Then ran to Santos Party house for the Stereogum Party. Came in for the Tamaryn set. This band from San Francisco played their drony shoe gaze music in complete darkness. Nothing new here that you couldn’t get from the Cure and Siousie.

The buzz around DOM was already pretty heavy so I was excited. These guys came strong with their energized arena rock. With 3 guitars shredding the tunes it was full of sound and excitement and they hooked a good crowd. Heavy layered sounds but I’d rather catch Free Energy.

The highlight was Marnie Stern, armed with a charming yet biting stage presence. Very impressive on the guitar with finger tapping and jumping into elaborate and jarring guitar melodies. It’s hard not to be impressed or at least intrigued by her. Her banter was great saying things like “We’ve got two more, and then Wild Nothings are up. I wish it were Wild Somethings!” as she gyrated her hips to the crowd. Marnie, you are a rock gem. Please call me…..

http://www.myspace.com/umemusic
http://www.myspace.com/imagesmusic
http://www.myspace.com/imfur
http://www.myspace.com/marniestern1 (awesome media)

my CMJ photos.

It’s amazing to see this band go from Mercury Lounge to SXSW to selling out The United Palace Theater. The venue was a perfect spot for this very young band to go from sexy whispers to angst pop. They had an effective yet simple stage design with long fluorescent tube lights that changed colors throughout the night. It wound up being a very magical night.

When I saw Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s open up for Cloud Cult, they warranted another live visit. Although this band has some solid tunes, they had an underwhelming crowd meet them tonight. The recent band restructuring may have lost them a few fans and although a few were overzealous, overall the night was a drain. The band had their usual ensemble of multi instruments but without the their horn and strings along with the absence of Emily Watkins, really hurt the sound.
http://margotandthenuclearsoandsos.net/

When I heard that they would be releasing 10 tickets to The Posies at the tiny Rock Shop, you know that I was at the front of the line. Tonight they played from their 7th studio album Blood/Candy. The record is slower and more melodic than in previous releases. It unfortunately falls victim to the same problem as their last one where there are 2-3 great hits surrounded by a lot of fluff. However, they played the album with tight precision, and it’s always a pleasure to see Jon Auer and Ken Sttringfellow show off their musical skills. Ken mentioned that his father despite working in NYC was in brooklyn for the first time. “This morning, he had to look up ‘Brooklyn’ and ‘vegan’ in the dictionary,'” Stringfellow said.

http://theposies.net/