The Verve Free Download "The Mover"

The Verve released a new tune for free download the next seven days entitled "The Mover," from the album Forth due in August 2008. Get it here.

Brooklyn Record Riot!

Get ready for buying some vinyl! Over forty record dealers plus beer, pierogies, kielbasa and live DJ's will invade Brooklyn this Saturday June 28th! The Brooklyn Record Riot will open its door from 11am-8pm at Warsaw which will supposedly be air-conditioned.

My Bloody Valentine London

I didn’t actually intend on writing a review of My Bloody Valentine’s live return. I was set to see the fourth night of five at the Camden Roundhouse, and I figured by then, the world would be flooded with reviews. As it turned out, I attended both the first and fourth nights but was too excited / couldn’t hold a drink and a pen and notebook at the same time to take notes. So we’re relying on some fuzzy, jet-lagged memories here . . .

Reading through some of the now-published reviews, I’ve learned only two things:

1. The gigs were loud.
2. The 20ish-minute span of noise during “You Made Me Realise” was very loud. (And back in the day, it was called “the Holocaust.”)

These things are true, but nobody is really addressing the big question here: Are My Bloody Valentine still any good?

Forget the naysayers (because there will, undoubtedly, be people cooler than you or I will ever be who say nay). They were fantastic.

This doesn’t mean that they were perfect. Did they make mistakes? Sure. On both nights I saw them, at least one song fell apart nearly completely. Did it matter? God no. The band picked themselves up and got on with it. I’ve seen plenty of reunion tours where every song was pristine—this was far more interesting.

The band kicked off Friday night’s gig with “Only Shallow” before tearing ferociously through the rest of the set. It was everything I ever imagined an MBV gig would be—strobe lights, amorphous, multi-colored visuals, and loud everything except the vocals. In fact, without the vocal melodies as a guide, it was sometimes difficult to know where you were in a song. Only Colm O’Ciosoig’s drums let me know when we’d reached the chorus of “Blown A Wish.”

By Monday night, perhaps fatigue was setting in because the night’s performance was an altogether less frantic affair. Despite being essentially the same setlist played in a different order, it felt like a totally different show. Some of the songs sounded rather different from the way they’d been played two nights before. Hell, some of the songs were barely recognizable. But therein lies the beauty of seeing My Bloody Valentine live. Instead of playing their records verbatim, they explore and expand upon their songs.

Unfortunately, some of the melodies and complexities that make My Bloody Valentine songs so good are exactly what got lost in the loud, muddy sound at the Roundhouse. While frustrating, it wasn’t gig-ruining, and earplugs on the fourth night allowed me to drown out some of the muddiness and pick up the vocals (the band, in fact, recommended earplugs for the gigs).

The first night I experienced the “You Made Me Realise” sonic assault, it was sort of interesting and amusing. Yes, it’s unbelievably loud (according to rumor, it reached 129 decibels—basically like a military jet taking off next to your head). Yes, you could feel the noise vibrating through you. And yes, some people had their hands over their ears / left / threw up. But once you’ve experienced it once, there’s really no need to go through it again. On the fourth night, I ducked out about fifteen minutes into it (only to pass the Klaxons, looking awestruck).

While a reunion like this is bound to be viewed through some rose-tinted glasses, My Bloody Valentine stood on their own as an incredible live band. Each member integral to the whole, the band wove all of their parts together not just to play songs, but to create an immense sonic experience. As an audience member, you can’t help but be drawn in and made a part of that experience, which is exactly as music should be.

Erin Cramer


Friday, June 20th setlist:

Only Shallow
When You Sleep
You Never Should
When You Wake
Lose My Breath
I Only Said
Come In Alone
Thorn
Nothing Much To Lose
To Here Knows When
Slow
Blown A Wish
Soon
Feed Me With Your Kiss
Sueisfine
You Made Me Realise


Monday, June 23rd setlist:

I Only Said
When You Sleep
(When You Wake) You’re Still In A Dream
You Never Should
Lose My Breath
Come In Alone
Only Shallow
Thorn
Nothing Much To Lose
To Here Knows When
Slow
Blown A Wish
Soon
Feed Me With Your Kiss
Sueisfine
You Made Me Realise

Devo, Tom Tom Club & Dan Deacon McCarren Pool 6/26/08

Dan Deacon had the crowd eating out of the palms of his hands. They were dancing and bobbing to his effect pedal controlled electronic music like nobody’s business. Towards the end of his set he picked out a guy from the audience and had the crowd form a very large circle in the pool. The guy he chose started running around the ring of people smacking people’s hands and then picking people to run around with him. (See the video clip below)



Then he had a few people create a human archway that people would dance through. Once they reached the end, they would add themselves to the length and the archway would self perpetuate as the line of dancers then peeled itself through, creating a black hole like effect. (See the video clip below)





Next up was Tom Tom Club. Drummer Chris Frantz bassist Tina Weymouth both originally from Talking Heads took the stage for their musical side project. The Connecticut couple was accompanied on stage by a DJ, a keyboardist, a guitarist and two vocalists. They performed an hour-long set as Tina dedicated the song “She's Dangerous” to Condoleezza Rice. It was a mixed crowd: teens and an older set who first witnessed these bands back in the day at CBGB’s. The band was very tight as they ripped through “L’Elephant,” "Wordy Rappinghood” and their cover of Hot Chocolate’s “You Sexy Thing.” The crowd went wild when they performed "Genius of Love," the most sampled song in show biz. At the end of their set they covered “Take Me To The River” from their former band Talking Heads. They band took a huge bow and left the stage. (Check out Amy Wagner's video of the entire song “Genius of Love.”)



Devo was up next, tons of lights were added and a drummer riser was set out front stage left. A film started in the back of the stage (See the video clip above) and the crowd went wild chanting “Devo!” over and over. The band took the stage by storm, in yellow jump suits and red energy dome hats. They performed classic songs like “Whip It,” “Girl U Want” and also their more art-punk songs such as “Mongoloid” and the radical cover of the Rolling Stones “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.” They also played their great cover of P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri’s “Secret Agent Man.” The gray haired Devo leader Mark Mothersbaugh kept the crowd entertained with youthful energy, running all over the stage singing and playing his Moog keyboard. Lead guitarist Bob Mothersbaugh played some epic guitar solos, completely breaking all the strings off his guitar during one tune. Gerald Casale donned his headless left-handed bass as his brother Bob kept the rhythm guitar in tune with Josh Freese’s phenomenal drumming. Devo are a band that ages well. I could see them old and gray in walkers or in wheel chairs and it still would be a Devolution! The band came out for an encore of “Freedom of Choice” and “Gut Feeling!” and was ready to dive into another song when the show promoters said “no more”. The band left the stage and the lights came on but a large crowd of Devo lovers stood strong chanting for more even as the roadies were disassembling their gear.



All three bands gave it their all. It was an amazing new-wave show, which has set a pretty high mark for summer concert expectations. The only thing better would be to have had more people experience the show by offering a more reasonable price of admission.

The Dutchess & the Duke Mp3

The Dutchess & the Duke are on tour with the Fleet Foxes this summer. The Dutchess is Kimberly Morrison and the Duke is Jesse Lortz together the duo spin out some good music. The two have known each other for a long time and have played together in bands including the Flying Dutchmen and the Sultanas. Listen to the track below off their debut album entitled She's the Dutchess, He's the Duke which drops July 8th on Hardly Art.

The Dutchess & the Duke - Reservoir Park.Mp3

06.26.08 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill #
06.27.08 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah #
06.28.08 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo #
06.29.08 - Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland #
06.30.08 - Tucson, AZ - Solar Culture #
07.02.08 - Austin, TX - The Mohawk #
07.03.08 - Dallas, TX - The Loft #
07.04.08 - Memphis, TN - Pop Dungeon
07.05.08 - Atlanta, GA - Criminal Records @
07.05.08 - Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn #
07.06.08 - Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 #
07.07.08 - Washington, DC - Black Cat Backstage #
07.08.08 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church #
07.09.08 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom #
07.10.08 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Hall #
07.11.08 - Brooklyn, NY - Academy Records in-store
07.12.08 - New York, NY - TBA
07.13.08 - Brooklyn, NY - Charleston Bar & Grill $
07.14.08 - Cambridge, MA - The Middle East Upstairs #
07.16.08 - Cleveland, OH - Now That's Class
07.17.08 - Lafayette, IN - Zoolegger's ^
07.18.08 - Rock Island, IL - Huckleberry's Pizza Parlor
07.19.08 - Chicago, IL - Cobra Lounge %
07.20.08 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry #
07.22.08 - Denver, CO - Hi-Dive #
07.23.08 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court #
07.25.08 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir #
08.09.08 - Seattle, WA - Sonic Boom (Capitol Hill)
08.09.08 - Seattle, WA - Wild Rose

# - w/ Fleet Foxes
@ - Free in-store, kids! w/ Bobby & the Soft Spots, 5pm
$ - w/ Pink Reason. I hear you get a free slice of pizza when you buy a beer there.
^ - w/ The Mans, Big Willie & Lil' Suzie
% - w/ Sang des Loups
* - Free in-store! More details TBA

Radiohead release "From the Basement" videos on iTunes

Radiohead have released ten live performance videos recorded at The Hospital studio in Covent Garden with the team from the band's longtime producer Nigel Godrich's 'From the Basement' TV show.

The collection is now available exclusively through iTunes. The videos feature live renditions of songs from 'In Rainbows' and the bonus CD included in its deluxe discbox edition.

The full track listing of video performances is:
Bodysnatchers
House of Cards
Nude
Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
15 Step
Reckoner
Go Slowly
Videotape
Bangers & Mash
All I Need

Captured in a day, with direction by David Barnard and sound by Nigel Godrich, the videos represent the best recorded representation of Radiohead's live performance to date.

Bowie-tronic? Life Beyond Mars?

Rapster Records had the honor of assembling a collection of exclusive covers of David Bowie performed by top-tier electronic musicians. The selected artists could choose any track from his catalogue and create their own fresh interpretation, however faithful to, or different from the original. The result is a fascinating range of interpretations by some of the leading players in today’s electronic music from Detroit’s Matthew Dear and Carl Craig to Joakim and Au Revoir Simone, all tapping into the cryptic, expressionist core of Bowie’s originals. Click here to stream the album before it drops on July 8th.

Hercules and Love Affair You Belong video

Prefuse 73 - Wordless Music @ Whitney Museum

Ronen Givony hosted one of his Wordless Music shows tonight at the Whitney Museum featuring Scott Herren (of Savath & Savalas, Delarosa and Asora and Piano Overlord) most known as Prefuse 73, percussionist Michael Caterisano and ACME (American Contemporary Music Ensemble).

First up was ACME armed with a viola, cellos and violins who performed some beautiful yet frantic music that could have fit well as the score to a modern adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. They performed a Chen Yi piece with rich Chinese melodic forms.

Next up was Michael Caterisano whose only instrument was a small drum kit. He performed a piece by Kevin Volan with eclectic African drum beats which varied in volume from extremely quiet taps to very loud bangs.

The shy mix master Scott Herren then took the stage and sent the packed museum basement on a melodic and dreamy IDM sound tour. With his back to the audience, he started with his guitar, manipulating the sounds from his DJ set up. He then played his samples, keyboard and drum loops and twisted lots of knobs and pedals making tons of unique sounds. Having seen DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist, and Fourtet perform live prior . . . I'd have to say Scott Herren is my new favorite DJ!

Hercules and Love Affair Tour Dates

Hercules and Love Affair announce US live dates in support of their eagerly anticipated self-titled debut album (out June 24 on Mute/DFA). Their sold-out US live debut at Brooklyn’s Studio B was met with stellar reviews and a rapturous audience.

The live show includes Andy manning keyboards, a horn section, drum machines and providing backing vocals, Kim Ann and Nomi on lead vocals, live drums, live bass and even more keyboards.

The album and lead single, “Blind”, debuted in the UK Top 40 and were ranked #1 and “Track of the Week” by the NME respectively. Hercules & Love Affair is 2008's most exciting dancefloor concoction, an arthouse vision of pure pop by way of futuristic electronica and classic dance music, where beautiful, bruising harmonies and tensile rhythms collide in resurgent soundscapes and emotive disco workouts.

Hercules and Love Affair live is Andrew, Kim Ann, Nomi, Morgan, Jason, Carter, Guy, and Andy.

July 23 Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
July 25 San Diego, CA @ Casbah
July 26 San Francisco CA @ Mezzanine
August 8 New York NY @ The Fillmore at Irving Plaza

Hercules & Love Affair - Blind

1am Modest Mouse Show Tonight in Brooklyn!

Tonight Friday, June 20th after Modest Mouse open for REM at Madison Square Gardens the band will cross over to Brooklyn to play a show at Music Hall of Williamsburg at 1am! The tickets go on sale at noon at Ticket Master.

Prefuse 73 & ACME at Whitney Museum

Herren, best known as Prefuse 73, boasts a beat-centric, genre-splicing style. ACME (American Contemporary Music Ensemble) will perform Chen Yi's Sound of Five and Kevin Volans’s She Who Sleeps.

Both artists will be performing live this Friday, June 20th at The Whitney Museum at 7pm on a first come first served basis.

Bonnaroo - Sigur Ros

A clip of Sigur Ros playing "All Alright" the last track off their new album Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust which is out on 23rd June or you can stream it here.

Despite their 1-3am time slot, Sigur Ros attracted a huge crowd. Everyone (except the girl right next to me, evidently) treated them with a real reverence and listened with close attention. They had a big line-up of musicians so that sometimes it seemed more like you were at a classical music concert. The applause at the end was so enthusiastic that all the performers came out for three sets of bows. Best quote I heard from a young man in the media area: "It made me hug my guy friend."

Reported by: Dru

Bonnaroo - Ghostland Observatory

Austin's Ghostland Observatory played a furious set-- this vocalist rocked it, as shown here. They began at 2:30 am, and would have drawn even a larger crowds, but many festival-goers were waiting for Kanye West to start on the What Stage (main stage).

Reported by: Dru

Bonnaroo - Amy Lavere Interview

I met up with songwriter, upright bass player and actress (Walk the Line, Black Snake Moans) Amy LaVere outside the media tent and we went under one of the canopies in the cool, green shaded area that is dotted with Adirondack chairs and hammocks strung up between trees.

Reported by: Dru

Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band

Conor Oberst is now working with The Mystic Valley Band (his friends). Together they're releasing an album this August on Merge Records. The band holed up January and February of this year in a mountain villa studio in Tepoztlán, Morelos, México to record the album. It was produced by Conor Oberst with much help from engineer and long time associate Andy LeMaster. Click here to stream a few tracks "Danny Callahan" and "Souled Out!!!," and check out the bands tour dates in July thru October.

Adam Franklin (Swervedriver) covers Wolf Parade

White Whale Records are very proud to be releasing the Shine A Light 7″ with Handsome Furs (Dan Boeckner of Wolf Parade) and Adam Franklin (Swervedriver) covering a track by each others “other” band. Listen Here!

Dan has just finished recording the sophomore Wolf Parade record and Handsome Furs are currently working on their follow-up record. Dan and Alexei of Handsome Furs are covering a yet to be announced Swervedriver track and the 2 tracks will be available as a limited edition 7” on colored vinyl as well as digitally.

Adam Franklin’s cover of Shine A Light is available on iTunes now! The Handsome Furs track will be available once the 7″ is ready, later summer '08.

Priscilla Ahn- Joes Pub 6.16.2008

Standing backstage at Joe’s Pub on Monday night, Priscilla Ahn appeared relaxed and friendly, but once she set foot on stage the intimate sold out crowd was immediately awed by her serene sound and playful melodies. Her hauntingly dreamlike voice was startling to behold and totally effecting. Priscilla and her four member band were in New York celebrating the release of her first album, A Good Day, on Blue Note Records and they proved themselves quickly with their polished, tight set. The songs were wonderfully varied in terms of content, something of a rarity today, but all unified by Priscilla’s caressing resonance.

After a humble welcome she began performing a few of the tracks off her new album such as “Wallflower” and “Better Listen Close” but it was the refreshingly natural “Leave the Light On” that really showed her true potential. A song written about her experiences living in “nowhere” Pennsylvania (better known as Bernville), the song showcases her soft controlled voice and seemingly effortless delivery, which draws comparisons to Gillian Welsh and Norah Jones. She followed soon after with “Dream,” a song that every high school girl should know by heart by the end of next year. Priscilla and her band then lightened the mood with the quirky track “Astronaut,” which was dedicated to all the woodland and sea creatures (because they need love too). As the show was coming to a close Priscilla performed a terrific cover of Willie Nelson’s “Opportunity to Cry” and broke out a ukulele for a gorgeous solo rendition of “Find My Way Back Home.”

The show ended with another beautiful song, “Lullaby,” which was followed by a short encore. Priscilla has a world of potential ahead of her and the show was a glimpse into a great future talent. Nowhere, Pennsylvania is suddenly much more interesting.

Photos & Review By Tim Needles

Croquet at the Club

Another great film by kevchino headquarters neighbor!

Byrne-ing Down the House by Playing the Building

This Saturday we stopped by Playing the Building: An Installation by David Byrne. Playing the Building is a sound installation in which the infrastructure—the physical plant of the building—is converted into a giant musical instrument. This installation was originally commissioned in Stolkholm in 2005 but this summer it resides in The Battery Maritime Building in New York, which is located between the Staten Island & Governor’s Island ferry landings.

Devices are attached to the building structure—to the metal beams and pillars, the heating pipes, the water pipes—and are used to make these things produce sound from the organ pictured above. The activations are of three key types: wind, vibration and striking. The devices do not produce sound themselves, but they cause the building elements to vibrate, resonate and oscillate so that the building itself becomes a very large musical instrument.

To get a better feel for the installation, take a gander at the video below and be sure to make your way down this summer on the way to a picnic on Governor’s Island, a show at Battery Park, or picking up some summer clothes at Century 21.

Playing the Building is open 31 May – 10 August 2008 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday: from Noon – 6PM) and is located at 10 South Street, New York, NY