NYC & CMJ (October 23-24, 2010)

  School of Seven Bells @ Santos Party House, NYC: photo by Michael Ligon

For the record, let's wrap up my fifth and final day in NYC and CMJ, which took place over a month ago. Perusing some of the notes I jotted down in my iPhone, time and datestamped 2 am on October 24, I wrote:

"Today it was Broadway and back to Williamsburg, Brooklyn for the Brooklyn Vegan day party and wandering, the back to the Lower East Side to the Cake Shop, a walk on the QueensWilliamsburg Bridge at sunset, picking up dinner at Tiny's Giant Sandwiches ( http://bit.ly/ck3wVL ) then night time at Santos Party House. NYC and CMJ it's been swell."

While the previous four days all had it's high points, the fifth day/night was a near perfect experience to end off my trip. The Brooklyn Vegan day party at Public Assembly in Williamsburg began for me with a satisfying solo set from Ted Leo, with the added bonus of Ted asking me to hand him his drink part way through which I did successfully without dropping it and making a fool of myself. I stayed at Public Assembly for a few more set including a satisying though energetically muted set from Australian indiepop group The Crayon Fields with lead vocalist Geoff O'Connor mentioning that their setlist was written up on napkins then made a humourous remark (in his slightly fey, dry tone) that the set would be 'very clean' (or something along those lines). Injecting the festivities with a good dose of energy was Nashville's Heavy Cream featuring a 3/4 female membership who played a thoroughly enjoyable set of old school punk rock and a snarling female lead vocalist. Met a girl who worked at Criminal Records in Atlanta who I chatted with in between sets and then I headed out to the main room which was packed to catch what I could of Titus Andronicus' set. Back to the Lower East Side and Cake Shop I went to try to catch an afternoon set from A Classic Education who's set I either missed or never happened so I grabbed a beer before heading out to wander the neighbourhood. I took a relaxing walk to the middle of the Williamsburg Bridge as the sun went down, then grabbed a delicious pulled pork sandwich at Tiny's Giant Sandwich Shop part of which I'd scarf down as I waited for the first band to come on at Santos Party House, for The Windish Agency CMJ showcase.

That final night, while featuring some more than decent acts, also included some sporadic socializing and I guess when one's in a strange city all by one's self, it does somehow motivate one to come out of one's shell. So yes, I did get to talking briefly with a cute Asian local girl with a camera and then a lengthier conversation with a bubbly Chicagoan lovely who I was standing beside near the front of the stage. The music was almost an afterthought, but overall the band lineup made for a musically varied and satisfying evening. Although the first band Los Angeles' Superhumanoids I thought had a terrible name, they did prove to be a satisfying musical act with boy-girl vocals and a dreamy pop sound to boot. Knoxville, Tennessee trio Royal Bangs seemed hell-bent on bringing the rock after the first band, and somehow live seemed a little less interesting than what I'd heard on their MySpace. Local up and comers Cults were the first band I was interested (and as it seemed so were many others in the audience also eagerly awaiting them) this night in seeing live and their stripped down brand of Motown-ish indie pop did impress in the end.

Rounding out the night were two Brooklyn acts that really need no introduction to most of you, first with dream-pop shoegazers Asobi Seksu who played a blistering set with the stage enguled in purplish and reddish hues, then rounding out the night was School of Seven Bells(the duo of Alejandra Deheza and Benjamin Curtis, with touring drummer Zachary Saginaw) with their sultry, rhythmic, electro-fied, guitar driven dream pop, who could very well be my new favourite current band if only I ever get around to buying their most recent album, this year's Disconnect From Desires. The occasion was made even more special as the band's drummer Zachary Saginaw announced to the audience that he had something important to ask his girlfriend, and after several tense minutes of waiting for his girlfriend(who was apparently backstage somewhere) to come on to the stage, everyone knew what was about to happen and he asked her to marry him to which she did say yes. The band continued on with an encore, and then it was over. I decided to end things off on that high note, so no late night sets for me since I had to get up the next morning to pack and get to the airport. Much thanks to the random people I met, to all the bands I saw during the festival who put on great sets, and to well the New York City for being it's wonderful, diverse and spectacular self. We shall meet again.

Photos: NYC & CMJ (October 23-24, 2010)
MySpace: Ted Leo
MySpace: The Crayon Fields
MySpace: Heavy Cream
MySpace: Superhumanoids
MySpace: Royal Bangs
MySpace: Asobi Seksu
MySpace: School of Seven Bells

NYC & CMJ (October 22, 2010)

  Braids @ Cake Shop, NYC: photo by Michael Ligon

Ok it's been about a month since coming back from my 5-day long stay in New York City and I still have a couple of days to cover, so I do apologize if these next few posts seem rushed, because well they are. Day four started out with me packing as I unfortunately I had to check out of the Jane Hotel as I was unable to book it for the next few nights, but before checking out I took it as an opportunity to stroll and bike around area which later I'd find out is called the Meatpacking District given its origins at the beginning of last century as home to 250 slaughterhouses and packing plants and nowadays gentrified with boutiques, restaurants, lounges and even an Apple Store. I also got to stroll through the High Line. Other areas of NYC explored this day included Washington Square Park and Greenwich Village, the Kimmel Center at NYU, the Broadway shopping district including the Strand Bookstore (which bills itself as "Home of 18 miles of New, Used, Rare and Out of Print Books"), Union Square (which itself has a history as a site of political activism and on this day the site of the "October 22 Coalition to Stop Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation") and then it was back to Brooklyn to take in part of the day show at the Knitting Factory. Later I'd trek back to the Jane Hotel to pick up my luggage, head over to the Chinatown hotel where I'd been staying for the next few nights, grab some Chinatown eats and then head out for night four of CMJ. And I stil had one more day/night of NYC/CMJ to do.

And at this point I guess I should run down my CMJ happenings on this day but I'll keep it brief since I really I don't have the strength to do do an in depth review. Back in Brooklyn late afternoon, my first stop was Knitting Factory to catch Diamond Rings' set, this being the second time I'd catch Jon live during CMJ. Without the technical difficulties which plagued him during his set at Cake Shop a few days earlier, it was a much more fluid but still brief set. Sporting a Toronto Blue Jay Cap this time around, Jon alternated between keyboards, and guitar, and occasionally busted some enthusiatic, spastic dance moves. Although, the response was appreciative in the spacious(compared to Cake Shop), though only partially filled venue, I still wished the crowd had shown a little more energy.

I decided to stick around for a few more acts, with local Knitting Factory roster band Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers up next. The least 'indie rock' of the bands / artists I saw during the festival, while there were signs of some fans in the crowd, they didn't seem to correct with much of the crowd. I'll admit they do possess some musical merits, especially in the full-throttled vocals of Ms. Shilpa Ray. Instrumentally, Ms. Ray's harmonium playing lays a foundation for the rest of the band who competently contributed guitar, drums and bass. Elements of blues, folk and rock weaved their way through the band's songs so I'm hard-pressed to really categorize them. They weren't really up my alley but if it means anything to you, Nick Cave is a fan, so much so that he invited her and her band to join his band Grinderman for a few recent tour dates. Toronto wasn't one of them, but Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers will be in Toronto in the new year for a set at El Mocambo on April 8 according to The Windish Agency.

With still a little light out this early evening in Brooklyn, I decided to stay for one more act at Knitting Factory which was Wisconsin's Cotton Jones. Forming the core of the band is Page France alum Michael Nau and Whitney McGraw. Nau's and McGraw's vocals melded nicely, with the latter's sweet vocals adding a nice contrast to the former's laidback drawl. The band did have a nice, rustic, indie-folk quality, embellishing their tunes with, instruments like banjo and glockenspiel. The band's current album "Tall Hours in the Glowstream" is out through Suicide Squeeze and the band will be in Toronto for a show at the Horseshoe Tavern on February 26 opening for Nicole Atkins and The Black Sea.

With the day's light now dissipating, I headed back into Manhattan to check in to my hotel in Chinatown, grab a quick bite and then head out again for the night portion of CMJ, which I kept decidely low-key (ie. no club hopping this night. I planted myself at Cake Shop for the night (which was hosting a showcase for local Williamsburg, Brooklyn indie record label Kanine Records), getting there before 10 pm and catching only a bit of Pepper Rabbit's set and would catch only two full sets for the rest of the night before calling it quits. Having multiple opportunities during the festival to catch Montreal's Braids and with nothing else that night really interesting me at that time, seeing Braids was a no-brainer. I hadn't heard a note of them prior to that show, but I was quite aware of how keen some of you are of them, so that was my primary motivation to check them out. Combining an experimental approach with more conventional pop and anthemic qualities, think a marriage between Bjork and Arcade Fire. Definitely on the artier side of my musical tastes - if they ever play The Music Gallery in Toronto, I am there. A video of one of the band's performances at Cake Shop during CMJ surfaced on YouTube - really good stuff. They will be playing Toronto in the new year at El Mocambo on February 19 and I very possibly will be there.

And rounding out the night for me was a shoegaze band from San Francisco called Young Prisms. A genre band to the hilt, as shoegaze bands (or bands for that matter) go, they weren't particularly innovative, but their dreaminess was effective nonetheless. Immersed onstage in light and shadow with a video projection playing out against the band for most of the show, these were particularly fitting visuals for the band's hazy, shoegazey, guitar-drenched, pop music. Similarly, the band's vocals, alternating usualy between band member Stefanie Hodapp bassist Giovanni Betteo, were buried beneath the sonic mix, contributing to the overall dreamy, hazy quality of the music. The perfect soundtrack to play in my head as I left the venue to wander the streets of NYC before heading back to my hotel for a good night's sleep.

Photos: NYC & CMJ (October 22, 2010)
MySpace: Diamond Rings
MySpace: Shilpa Ray and Her Happy Hookers
MySpace: Cotton Jones
MySpace: Pepper Rabbit
MySpace: Braids
MySpace: Young Prisms

NYC & CMJ (October 21, 2010)

  No Joy @ Knitting Factory, NYC: photo by Michael Ligon

Update [Nov 5/2010, 12:18 am]: Review now up for day 3 of my NYC and CMJ trip. Day 4 and 5 still to come and apologies for the delay.

Day three of five in NYC started out on a bit of a goose chase with me planning on checking out the the vinyl records overflowing thrift store The Thing. The only problem was that after googling its Manhattan Ave address I inadvertently pulled up the Manhattan Ave address in Harlem just south of 125th Ave not realizing that the Manhattan Ave I wanted was actually in Brooklyn. So while in Harlem I strolled along 125th Ave taking in some of the sights like Apollo Theater, and the Adam Clayton Powell State Building Plaza, checking out H & M, buying counterfeit Casio G-Shock watch on the street for $10, and stumbling upon some street art just south of 125th Ave which looked like a Banksy but apparently isn't. Subsequently I did venture out into Brooklyn and found The Thing and while there is a tremendous amount of vinyl in it, a lot of it was inaccessible, dusty and or damaged, nothing was in order, and much of it was garbage - still worth it just to see that much vinyl in one thrift store. Quaint part of town Manhattan Ave was as I hopped on the bus to explore the street by transit rather than foot and ended up getting off at a stop near McCarren Park[I didn't see the pool though] before getting back to the subway to catch the L train back to Manhattan. Time to hit a day show.

While I was running a bit late, I was fortunate that the NYCTaper CMJ Day Party at Cake Shop in the Lower East Side was running a little off schedule and therefore I was able to get to the venue before Toronto's own Diamond Rings started his set. On the other hand, because things were running late, apparently due to some technical difficulties with Mr. O'Regan setting up his equipment, he only got to perform four songs[which NYCTaper recorded the set and is offering for download]. A surprisingly full crown was on-hand for the day set and the all-too brief set went over well, but it would not be the last time I saw him during CMJ.

Cake Shop is located on Ludlow St. in Lower East Side, with a variely of restaurants, shops, bars and venues nestled in this hip neighbourhood and as such, another venue Pianos which I wanted to visit was only steps down the street from Cake Shop. Next up on the agenda was to catch Silver Lake, California pysch pop trio Pepper Rabbit at Pianos playing the second floor stage of the I Guess I'm Floating CMJ Day Party. Half the time I hear the term 'psych-pop' and I'm hoping it's not too dated-sounding, but thankfully Pepper Rabbit weren't of that ilk, instead reminding of a band like The Shins who play pop music that's at least subtlely infused with psychedlic or folkier elements. Pepper Rabbit utilized drums, keyboards, and bass and at times used ukelele and clarinet. The band had apparently played Toronto at The Drake Underground earlier in October so I hope to catch them if and when they come back to town.

It was time to start the evening portion of the evening which meant back to Brooklyn for me to catch No Joy at the Knitting Factory where the band would be kicking off the Brooklyn indie record label, Mexican Summer, showcase. This 200-person capacity venue at once felt spacious and intimate. Spacious it was prior to No Joy kicking off their set because there weren't that many people there yet, but it filled up just a tad by the time the band quickly strolled onto the stage and launched into their setlist. Bathed in blue light, No Joy's Jasmine White-Gluz and Laura Lloyd were joined by two guys on drums and bass respectively, and proceeded into a set of tunes which have been described as 'doomgaze', merging the hazey, melodic sensibilities of shoegaze bands like My Bloody Valentine with perhaps a tad sludgier touch. The vocals were virtually buried beyond recognition and while I could discern the vocals enough I wished they'd push the vocals higher up into the mix. It was a set made for earplugs which I thankfully had and I'm looking forward to catching them live another time, the soonest opportunity which will be November 17 in Toronto at Parts & Labor. I haven't been to that venue yet but I've heard it's small.

The walk from Knitting Factory to my next stop Music Hall of Williamsburg(for a CMJ Brooklyn Vegan showcase) turned out not to be too bad nor long, and although I'd been on my feet for much of the last few days, I soldiered on and got to the venue as Montreal outfit Suuns were already a little into their set. Previously known as Zeroes, a band I'd first seen live at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto in January 2009, I honestly don't remember what they sounded like back then although I'm reminded after reading my old review that the band reminded me of Clinic. That's probably not an accurate comparison but in any case Suuns do seems to have a somewhat proggrish approach to their indie rock, with melodies not quite so obvious, occasionally droning keyboards, a rhythmic quality, and a bit of discordance at times. The band's most recent album "Zeroes QC" was released through Secretly Canadian.

Jersey's Screaming Females were up next and seemed to be the first act that the crowd were really interested in seeing. The band name is somewhat of a misnomer given that the trio only features one female but at least that female is the frontperson, the pint-sized Marissa Paternoster on guitar and vocals. Marissa was a double threat proving the band's name in spades as her somewhat Janis Joplin-esque vocals assaulted the audience while at the same time Marissa shredded licks on her guitar. Musically, there was a little bit of a riot-grrl influence mixed with some garage-y punk attitude but there were also poppier moments as well. Of all the bands of the night they(well Marissa) definitely gave the best photo opps with her expressive, explosive vocals.

The Blow were up next. Previously a duo but now only featuring vocalist Khaela Maricich, I'd heard very little of this project's music in the past but was quickly won over by the minimalist beats and girlpop vocals. With a good arsenal of playful tunes, several which were as Khaela described were about her experience with a one unnamed lesbian Hollywood celebrity (which many of us had guessed was Lindsay Lohan although Khaela confirmed it with us), khaela danced around somewhat ironically, bantered humourously with the audience and ultimately won us over with her songs. I was particularly fond of the lilting "Come On Petunia" and the way she integrated part of The Police's "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" into it. A very entertaining set in deed, if not for the music, but at least for her humourous, storytelling. The Blow will be in Toronto for a show at the Horseshoe on November 17 so check it out, which I may just do again.

Rounding out the showcase was Brooklyn's own Pains of Being Pure At Heart. It's been almost 14 months since I'd last seen them live when they played the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto on September 7, 2009. Simply, the band excel in what they do which is sublime guy/girl sung indie pop such as the most excellent "Young Adult Friction" which is very well the best indiepop song of the last 10 years. Outside of that, the band don't have much presence although as a guy I must comment that lone female member keyboardist Peggy Wang has an infectious smile and is cute as a button. As difficult it might have been to get anyone to dance, I must say that Pains Of Being Pure At Heart definitely got the audience to at least crack a smile.

Brooklyn Vegan covered its own showcase and has two photosets to share.

Photos: NYC & CMJ (October 21, 2010)
MySpace: Diamond Rings
MySpace: Pepper Rabbit
MySpace: No Joy
MySpace: Suuns
MySpace: Screaming Females
MySpace: The Blow
MySpace: Pains of Being Pure at Heart

NYC & CMJ (October 20, 2010)

  The Drums @ Santos Party House, NYC: photo by Michael Ligon

If you look at my photoset for my second day in NYC, you'll see I had a fixation on one aspect of NYC, namely Times Square. As visually spectacular as it was, it's not so much what it was but what it represented for me, namely the diversity and energy that is New York City. I spent a good four hours in the area first taking in a late morning coffee & breakfast at Starbucks and using the free WI-FI there then sauntering around the Square taking photos and absorbing the vibe. Damn, there's a lot of tourists there. If people watching is your thing and your in NYC, you must go to Times Square. Back to the West Village for some exploring, then to the hotel for a late afternoon nap, and later off I was for my second night of CMJ.

One of my favourite new discoveries was Bologna, Italy band A Classic Education playing at Lower East Side venue The Delancey located just shy of the Williamsburg Bridge. Online research has revealed to me that lead vocalist Jonathan Clancy is Canadian born may explain to me why he didn't seem to have an Italian accent when he spoke or sung. There was a sparkling tone to their indie guitar-pop, reminding me a bit of a band like Echo and The Bunnymen. Unfortunatley, I'd only caught about three songs although it was enough for me to make my one and only purchase of the entire festival, their 5-song First EP, in a hand-made cloth CD sleeve.

After a short stop at Other Music, I headed just down the street to get to Ace of Clubs where Canadian electro-act New Look were just about to start. I was impressed by the duo when they played Canadian Musicfest in Toronto this past March, with the irresistibly cool vocals of Sarah Ruba, her subtly effective keyboard arrangements and her cohort Adam Pavao's sumptuous programming and beats. Playing against a white screen backdrop which showed a continual stream of colourful geometric patterns, it was a alot more satisfying visually though harder to photograph, but overall made it a more enjoyable experience. The strapped keyboard slung over Ruba's shoulder while she coyly sung, is one of the sexier things I've seen in a long time. Yes, sometimes music needs to be sexier.

As it turns out, I would spend the rest of the night a bit more Uptown at Santos Party House, a lot of it waiting in line trying to get in to the venue as it was at capacity. As it turns out, I was fortunate enough to get near the front of the CMJ badges line and though they were at that point making even badgeholders pay, I gladly forked over $5[as I'd RSVP before, or else I'd have to pay $10] and got it to catch a few songs of local indie notable Marnie Stern. She definitely had a garage vibe but more often than not expressed a willingness to experiment with vocal phrasing and dynamics. Yes, she is from New York but had I not known that I'd still have thought she felt very NYC - gritty, creative and bursting with energy.

During Marnie's set, she bantered jokingly along the lines about Wild Nothing being up next and hoping for the crowd that they were something rather than nothing. Well, Wild Nothing were definitely something; maybe they should change their name. An unknown entity to me prior, there seemed to be a good number of people in the audience looking forward to them. Wild Nothing, the project of a one Jack Tatum, turned out to be fairly entertaining. They sounded like they came from the same indiepop-school as Brooklynites Pains of Being Pure At Heart, though favouring a slighter cleaner guitar sound most of the time and displaying a slicker level of musicianship. For that latter factor, I sometimes wished the band would loosen up a bit, play rawer, but still they had some great melodies.

For the time I'd been in Santos Party House, I'd never even ventured to the second stage in the basement of the venue, instead sticking it out for the secret headliners of the mainstage who turned out to be buzzy locals The Drums. Caught up in a tremendous amount of press since the beginning of the year, the band had recently played The Mod Club in Toronto which I didn't make it to so to catch them in NYC was a real treat. I'd only previously heard their infectious, though polite-sounding single "Let's Go Surfing" so when the band proceed to turn up the notch during this live set several levels, I was pleasantly surprised. Melodies galore, and tantalizingly succinct guitar lines are the band's main strengths, the band oft compared to The Smiths and Joy Division. As I said, the band really turned it up, seemingly upping the tempos and infusing everything with a good dose of energy. I can't describe lead vocalist Jonathan Pierce's dancing as anything better than prancing; it had a fey quality and felt somewhat affected but hey if that's the way he felt like moving, how can I fault him. At the very least, it expressed how deeply in the moment he was and it really rubbed off on the audience who seemed as energetic as the band were. Excellent way to close off day two of CMJ.

Photos: NYC & CMJ (October 20, 2010)
MySpace: A Classic Education
MySpace: New Look
MySpace: Marnie Stern
MySpace: Wild Nothing
MySpace: The Drums

NYC & CMJ (October 19, 2010)

  Surfer Blood @ The Studio at Webster Hall, NYC: photo by Michael Ligon

I didn't realize that my trip to New York City and CMJ last week would have taken such a toll on me this week because outside of work I've been downright pooped so apologies for the delayed NYC / CMJ content. New York City has been on my travel destination list for the last decade but somehow I didn't pull it together until now. It's a spectacular city, full of diversity, culture and history and for the five day and nights that I was there I was intent on absorbing as much as I could, not that it was ever possible to take in everything. But I tried. Day One, NYC started out relatively easy, navigating the transit system (both bus and subway), checking into my hotel, wandering around the West Village, going to pick up my press badge, and strolling through the Washington Square / NYU area of the city. My first CMJ stop wasn't even one that required the press badge or a ticket as it was a FREE CMJ party hosted by MTV and MTVU featuring a four-artist bill down at The Studio @ Webster Hall, an intimate, underground venue.

Opening the night was young Floridian outfit Fake Problems with their spunky brand of power pop. The intimate-sized venue had yet to fill up by then but the band energetically performed nonetheless and the small crowd on hand were appreciative. They sounded like a band that's still in the process of working out their songwriting chops; yes there were melodies, but nothing that ever really stood out as exceptional. And their sonic influences sometimes veered a little too close to punk-pop for my tastes. Not my cup of tea, but with the crowd leaning more towards the young 'uns at least they were liking it.

Up next was the genre-hopping, electro-hip hop diva Dominique Young Unique from Tampa, Florida. With a duo of gents manning keyboard and programming duties, Dominique traversed the small stage from side to side, displaying some decent rapping technique over the disco-y, electro beats that propelled the songs. To Torontonians the best comparison I could make would be to Toronto's Thunderheist. It was a fun set although not entirely unfamiliar given my past concert experiences with Thunderheist (who in my opinion are better, and not because they're the hometown team.) In any case, Dominque and her keyboard / programming pals did work up up sweat onstage and wonders will never cease how more people weren't dancing [at the very least I had the head-bobbing, leg-shaking thing going on). It's not just Torontonians after all.

At this point, it was an interesting trio, local act Francis and The Lights that were up next. With lead vocalist Francis Farewell Starlite looking a little like Afghan Whigs Greg Dulli and acting every bit as soulful and suave onstage, the band have an interesting minimalist approach to funk and soul. There was a restraint on the instrumental side with the approach of the guitarist and a keyboardist who also handled the programmed beats. Beats were simple but effective and even though the guitarist did display some decent guitar work he did it with a Kraftwerk-ian stage presence that left the spotlight firmly on vocalist Starlite who sung and danced and worked up the crowd. Starlite came off vocally sounding like he was trying to emulate Prince and to my surprise rather than sounding awkward or like a joke it sounded good. A very nice surprise.

Rounding out my first evening of CMJ was West Palm Beach buzz band Surfer Blood. Having not played NYC in a long time [I believe they said the last time was at last year's CMJ), the capacity crowd was fully pumped, and the band delivered. I'd been quite taken with their debut single "Swim" a reverb-filled, exhilirating surf-pop tune and their set just confirmed that they do definitely have more than just that first single. To my ear, they're of the alt-pop school, but most definitely sounding like a reverbed-drenched Weezer, influenced by the Beach Boys. I'd read reviews of their past shows being a little lacklustre and I don't totally disagree that this show wasn't exactly visually spectacular but there was something about lead vocalist John Paul Pitts' whole preppy, somewhat geeky garb and his slightly fey stage presence(especially when he was guitarless) that drew out a bit of his personality. "Swim" didn't make an appearance until after the band concluded their set then came back and apologized to the crowd that they forgot to play one more song, the aforementioned one of course. For my first night in NYC, let's say it was just a bit magical, and even moreso when the bubble machine was started up during "Swim".

Photos: NYC & CMJ (October 19, 2010)
MySpace: Fake Problems
MySpace: Dominique Young Unique
MySpace: Francis and The Lights
MySpace: Surfer Blood