Category: Music

I am very lucky to have been introduced to this amazing artist. She is originally from the Czech Republic but now lives in NY. She sings in fluent Czech and Spanish. Her songs are beautiful and relaxing with a hint of Bossa Nova. She has a broad range of styles and with only a trio creates a bold sound. She has a sweet but sad voice and her latest album has more mystery in it than her last. Being only 29 (and very beautiful I might add) she has emerged as strong songwriter who can also sing with intense emotion. A must see live performance.
http://www.martatopferova.com/

Here’s an mp3 from her 1st album Sueño Verde.
Vuelo De Cigüeña

I’m sad to post that Satalla and Kavehaz will be closing by the end of the year. With all these amazing venues closing for the construction of luxury condos is yet another reason why New York will no longer be the haven for artsist and musicans to live and perform.

So I don’t know too much about this band other than it’s an offshoot of Godspeed You Black Emperor!, which I am a big fan of. They are a much smaller ensemble than Godspeed, although over the years that number has grown and fluctuated. Their songs are clearly politically fueled and tend to have a shorter dynamic lifespan than of Godspeed. I was very excited to see them live because it was the first ever show in America, and Brooklyn no less. It was an intimate show and I was lucky enough to be in the front row. Efrim started the show explaining why there hasn’t bean any recent news of Godspeed because they turned into The Arcade Fire. That got a good chuckle from the audience. The songs were heavy and dark but the show grabbed momentum as the night progressed. With many jabs about our failing government and the war in Iraq mixed with the foreboding music, I started to feel quite charged, angry, pissed off, and yelling inside. It reminded me of my NY hardcore days but with completely different music. Leaving the show I was sure that the band was successful in what they came here to do. All music and art should be more like that.

Got tickets to listen to some Mozart at the newly rearranged Lincoln Center. They pulled the stage down a bit and placed seating around the orchestra. Interesting idea to get the people closer to the music which I think is desperately needed in the classical music scene. There needs ot be a broader and younger audience for this incredible music which is always impressive live. Needless to say, the music was great and Lincoln Center is one of the best places in the world to listen to music. Teatre Colon in Buenos Aires is considered one of the best as well and hope ot catch a show there next year.

I didn’t know much about this artist until Katherine mentioned the show to me, and boy does she has impeccable taste in music. Daniel Lanois plays pedal steel (a personal favorite) and the guitar equally as good. His songs have an openness about them that borderline ambient. I could see his songs being used for serious and melancholy films. He seems very spiritual but with a very dark past and it emanates through his music. I really enjoyed the textures he created fusing blues, country, and folk music.

http://www.daniellanois.com/

To celebrate Tom’s birthday we surprised him by showing up on the boat where the Slackers would be playing that evening. The boat set off and took us back and forth along the Hudson River. It was a neat grungy boat and the trip was really nice. The Slackers played 2 upbeat sets inside the main deck. The crowd was fun and the band was energized. Jesse even got one of the band members to wish Tom a happy birthday. It was really neat to have the boat sway back and forth as we danced to the music. Afterwards we tossed a Frisbee back and forth across the West Side Highway. Jesse even through a hammer. Yea, we were drunk.

I just love New York in the summertime. The heat, the girls in cute skirts, outdoor eating and drinking, and of course the free concerts. This was one of the highlights of Summerstage and my first time seeing Femi Kuti.

This day was hot hot hot. The air was thick and menacing and an impending rain loomed but never came. Lower East Siders The Brazillian Girls opened up and it was my 1st time seeing them as well. They had garnered a lot of hype this year so I was excited to see what they were all about because I really wasn’t impressed with their recordings. And well, the hype is for their live shows, as that’s where the energy and sexiness comes out. Sabina is a great performer and singer. She has a deep warm voice and sings in various languages. Their songs are hard to describe as they go from sleepy summer songs to electro dance jams. When they started to play their song “Pussy, Pussy, Marijuana” the rain finally came down, and it came down hard. The crowd went nuts and it helped everyone cool off. Overall, I enjoyed the mix of live instruments and electronic sounds, but it’s Sabine that ties it altogether.

Femi Kuti up next and we were sure to be in the front row for him. Femi is the son of legendary Nigerian music pioneer Fela Kuti, and he is worthy of following in his footsteps. He’s added another dimension to the music that his father has made famous and popular to the rest of the world. He brought a very large ensemble with him including his dancers that never stopped gyrating. I loved all the polyrhythmic sounds coming from the stage. The mix of jazz, afro beat, and strong lyrics got the whole crowd dancing. Femi was nonstop action. Constantly running back and forth on stage. Singing, playing sax, dancing. He was dripping with sweat and the heat never seemed to affect him. He played for over an hour and a half and wanted to keep going but the Summerstage folks discreetly booted him off. BLAH! During the performance he even brought out his son to play a few songs on his sax. It’s good to know that the legacy and the power of his dad’s music will be continued on.