Category: Music

Wow, The Diggs AND Midlake on one night for 10 bux?? Boy am I happy. (Unfortunately I missed The 1900s which I heard put on a killer show. The Diggs are a local trio that have been making their rounds in NY for some time now and always seem to impress me. Their songs are a throwback to all that was good in “indie rock” back in the 90’s but giving their songs more dimension and time to develop. Their songs are extremely catchy that go from hypnotic to foot stomping epic. The band and lead singer still reminds me of that great band from Buffalo, Tugboat Annie. Whatever DID happen to them?? Tonight The Diggs out on probably the best show I have ever seen. They debuted 2 new songs that were just as solid as their Orange EP. As usual they ended with “Trouble Everyday” which quite possibly be one the best closing songs ever. Can’t wait for the full length.

Ok, I absolutely LOVE Midlake. Very rarely does a band like this come around that combines so many influences and expressions in music and art. Their debut album Bamnan and Slivercork last year was one of my top 5 albums of the year and it’s one that I return to often. It’s full of beautiful and disturbing soundscapes with lyrics that compliment the dreamy soundtrack from this Texas quintet. Along with the many bodies, the stage was COMLETELY packed with all their varied equipment, including a film projector. I was amazed on how well they performed their psychedelic songs live and I must admit it was strange to hear some of these songs in a live setting. Their songs were complimented with videos projected on the back wall adding to the overall mood of the set. There soon was a long line at the sold out Merc to get a peek of this incredible band. They played their 2 hits “Balloon Maker” and “Roscoe” first which was a quite interesting beginning. “Roscoe” may very well be one of the best crafted songs ever. Their new album “Van Occupanther” holds just as much magic as their first album and it’s expected to be one of the best when it comes out late July. By the 5th song I knew I was experiencing something special at the small club and completely lost myself to the music and imagery. Do yourself a favor and let Midlake take you along on their dreamy journeys.

Pictures from the show.
Young Bride Video from Van Occupanther

Links:
www.thediggs.com/
http://midlake.net

Alright, I’ll be the first to say it. Devin Davis is the new John Vanderslice. Luckily he’s stopped playing solo and brought a band with him to fully capture the simple genius in his songs. His recent album “Lonely People of the World, Unite!” was one of the gems of 2005. Although it may have the assumption an album full of misery and isolation, instead it’s full of intuitive quirky songs that do a great job of telling fantastic stories. At some points becoming exclamations of how wonderful trivial life is. His song titles quickly capture the unique lyrics contained within and sometimes the very surreal journey the song goes to.
Devin Davis live is yet another dimension. He looks exactly what you would think of but his demeanor is a façade for the energetic show he put on. He played his introspective songs delicately and completely rocked out his heavier numbers. Although not that many people were at the show, he played his heart out and I was glad he played his wide range of melodies. Devin Davis is a becoming a distinguishable song writer who can also full realize the sounds floating around his head. He’s also not afraid to experiment and have fun with the indie music, which sometime includes his theremin.

Pictures from the show.

www.devindaviswebsite.com/home.html

Can you dance to distorted experimental 8-bit melodies? YES. Canada’s Holy Fuck combines experimental electronic loops distorted over live drums and guitar. They do NOT use computers or midi sequencing devices and everything is created live in a very chaotic setting. The electronic portion of the sound stems from 2 members surrounded with an abundance of old synthesizers and arrays of pedals. There even was some 35mm film editing contraption that was converted to produce crazy analog sounds. The music is a collection of scattered glitches and beats somehow held together to created melodies that got everybody dancing and yelling “Holy Fuck” throughout the entire set. In the end it sounded like if Einstürzende Neubauten took Nintendo games systems and threw them into a blender. I was completely blown away by their IDM rock n’ roll, dancing wildly as I was no longer in control of my body and wanting to hit my head repeatedly against the wall .

Songs titles and lyrics based of numbers? ¡Forward Russia! formed in 2004 in the U.K. and has been getting a ton of buzz considering they were everywhere at SXSW. It was their first time in NY and they played to a very eager NY audience. The music was intense and emotional involving screaming nonsensical lyrics over pounding beats coming from Katie, their incredible drummer. The lead singer was completely spastic onstage getting entangled with the microphone cord to the point of strangulation. The band created these intense walls of noise to just be destroyed by the wailing voice of Tom as he frantically jumped across the stage. The last song was a culmination of energy and Tom jumped into the crowd nearly knocking me over in the front row. I was captivated by the sound of hardcore music combined with experimental melodies. This band is drop-kicking the stagnant music of ’06 and just got signed to Mute records so expect your eardrums to reverberate some more in the future. These guys kept partying at the after concert party despite having to get on a plane at 9AM to kick ass in San Francisco. An incredible evening.

I didn’t take any pictures because EVERYONE was taking a ton of pictures with their damn flash. Soon concerts will be ruined by all these stupid amateur photographer blogger peoples like me. Why do you have to take over 200 pictures in one set???

Here’s a round up of the best shots.
source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/freekorps/

Links:
www.holyfuckmusic.com/
www.forwardrussia.com/
Rough mashing of the audio of ¡Forward, Russia! “Twelve” with the Sesame Street Pinball Video.

I was lucky to get here early to catch Cold War Kids which is a great band name. They brought their jangly guitar rock from California which at times is minimal indie to intense primal rock when they play live. Their music is much like their website, capturing human experiences from the outside and giving it back to the audience. A great live act. They play again at the end of July with Sound Team.

Figurines were terrible and should have played first to not disrupt the vibe of the show. I left after the 3rd song to do multiple tequila shots to cleanse my eardrums.

OK, I know all the bloggers like Tapes N’ Tapes. I found out about the band via gorillavsbear and it seemed within days the band was all over the internet, to the point where I stopped reading the music blogs cuz it got to be silly. They weren’t signed and the music I got from them was quirky and interesting indie rock. Nothing THAT amazing but yet something about them made their sound really unique. So I finally get to catch them live, along with a sold out crowd that sang along to many of their songs. And you know what… they were really great. Halfway through their set they got their groove and played the hit cowbell to their devoted fans. With a sparse stage and simple structures the band created a great sound. I loved it when the tuba came out. The band earned its hype. Great show.

Pictures from the show.

Links:
www.tapesntapes.com/
www.coldwarkids.com/

Spencer Krug sure is a busy man. Not only is he the co-vocalist of Montreal’s mighty Wolf Parade. he also has a solo effort called Sunset Rubdown and plays keys in his old band Frog Eyes. With 2 sold out shows at Mercury Lounge, it was to be a very anticipated performance. Bedroom Walls opened up, but they were just terrible. That’s all you need to know.

Spencer took the stage with members from Pony Up! to help realize the full sound of Sunset Rubdown. Unfortunately he and the keyboardist got food poisoning from a local restaurant and were not feeling well at all. He was even too sick to drink, and stated that he wasn’t used to playing sober. They opened the set with Sinead O Conner’s “Nothing Compares To You” and then continued to play these strange and wonderful pop melodies with Spencer’s Boey-esqe distorted vocals. The songs were dense and a bit psychedelic and always interesting. I felt bad for Spencer who became more and more pale as the set went on, but he closed the set with 2 powerful songs with his accordion.

Despite the “bad” press Frog Eyes was getting from their previous shows, I was eager to catch this band live. The band was tucked neatly to one side of the stage and I was surprised to see Spencer again to play the keyboards for the band. He was not looking good at all. For the next 40 minutes or so I was absolutely mesmerized by the front-man Carey Mercer. I couldn’t understand a word he said between and during songs, but whatever was coming from his mouth, it was crazy and genius. He seemed to gain more energy as the night went on and became enraged at the microphone. I was front and center and could feel his energy as he vibrated on stage. The music that was created was so strange and powerful and would love to see them again.

Pictures from the show.

Links:
http://www.myspace.com/sunestrubdown
http://www.myspace.com/frogeyes