The Triumph of Tired Eyes

It was a special treat to see Marta Topferova again at such a small venue. She played 2 sets and a few new songs I haven’t heard before. Very good show, despite having a new bassist. She’ll be playing Joe’s Pub later in the year.

This was a jam packed show of great bands playing for a good cause. Richard Buckner, They Might Be Giants, The Wrens, acoustic Nada Surf, and Sam Champion. Everyone played great. The show was sold out but mainly due to the TMBG fans. As soon as they were done, Southpaw was empty, which I was shocked because there were 3 more great bands left! Weird. Wrens played a few songs off Meadowlands and Matthew & Ira tested out their new material acoustically. I was bummed cuz there was only 15 people there to listen. By the time Sam Champion took the stage the crowd dwindled to about 5. I’m glad I stayed cuz they played a decent set. Their music is better live than on disc.

Saw no good shows today. And the frustration led me to miss Make Believe at the 169 bar. Oh well, I heard the place was packed and couldn’t get in anyway. Ok, time for sleep.

Chin Up Chin Up

Ok, no chance to get into the SubPop show at Bowery Ballroom, but Mercury Lounge had a great lineup. 8 bands starting at 6:30. I unfortunately missed Dressy Bessy but caught Amusement Park on Fire. I thought the name was cool but kinda reminded me of Arcade Fire. The music was this spacey gothic mixture and I liked them. Chin Up Chin Up was up next and I was eager to check these guys out. They just released an album off Flame shovel reecords (my new favorite record company). They are from Chicago and I am just crazy about their EP. Although I am not a big fan of what is coming out of the windy city these days, Chin Up Chin Up is breaking the mold. They had a good live act and I got a few songs off their new album and it’s really good. Dirty on Purpose was up next and it was my second time seeing them. They were much better this time around and felt they were playing more cohesively. They debut their new female singer who held up very well, and complimented their songs nicely. Youth Group is an Australian Quartet with a bit of buzz behind them. I thought they played well but I wasn’t blown away. Their songs were catchy but they seem very formulaic and they played their set in the same fashion. They are a young band so they have potential. The Upwelling was up next but I was catching them next week so I bailed. It was nearing 2:30 AM. Now THAT’S a marathon! 🙂

Chin Up Chin Up – “Fuck You, Elton John” mp3

So I was excited for CMJ, considering last year’s was um,.. terrible. The first night of CMJ was action packed and I had a good game plan to hit all the shows I wanted to hit. First stop was Mercury Lounge to see the much over-hyped Clap Your Hands and Say Yea. I could not believe the line to get in. It streteched down the block, and people were waiting for an hour and CYHASY weren’t to be on till another hour. I was shocked to see such a crowd for a band that plays practically every other weekend in NY and honestly isn’t that good and are getting way too much press than they deserve. No really, listen to the album, really listen to the album and disregard the hype and you’ll see it’s not that fantastic.

The line at Mercury Lounge

OK, plan B, go check out Coco Rosie. Finding out the venue was cross town and they were starting in 15 minutes and afraid of a sold out show, we decide somewhere closer. Ok, plan C. Stiff Little Fingers at Rothko. Also a line to ge in and an hour wait. Are you kidding me?!! Plan D, Lucero at Crash Mansion. Never been there but at this point I just needed to see some freiking live music!!! We were surprised to also see a line to get in, but luckliy we got in pretty quick. Cool venue, although the space made it seem claustrophobic. The opening band was too drunk to give notice. It was my first time seeing Lucero live and they were very good. Many fans came out to see them and they played for over an hour. At least my night wasn’t a complete waste.

Ok, I’ll admit I was excited to see Arcade Fire again. However, seems like every time I see them they are playing bigger and bigger venues. It’s been quite a journey since the Mercury Lounge days. The show was sold out but the crowd was kinda lame despite being into the music. There was no energy in the crowd and Win Butler even commented on it. The music was great and they played from all their albums and I loved it every time Régine did her robot dance. She’s so cute. However, the combination of being outside in a large space affected the sound and mood. That all changed when during the encore they announce that they’ll be doing a David Bowie song and David Bowie steps onstage!!! I couldn’t believe it. He was like an apparition all dressed in white. I was truly in shock and realized that I was jumping up and down like a little kid. The place erupted and finally there was energy in Central Park. The band proceeds to play Queen Bitch with Win singing and David playing guitar. Bowie then sings the next song Wake Up by The Arcade Fire, and he was flawless. Although overall the concert was a dud, seeing Bowie preform made up for the previous 2 hours.

Here’s an mp3 of the song done at the Fashion Rocks event.