march 25: dirty on purpose -- up party @ pianos
I think I already told you about this show... but it was loads of fun, and the bands on the bill were amazing... kari and belvy's party on Thursday nights at pianos are always loads of fun with all of the amazing people that show up from week to week. They really have their shit together, and promote some of the coolest bands in the city. We had some problems with the sound at the venue, but overall it was a fun night of hanging with peeps in tow. Dirty on purpose are happy to have them host the cd release party on april 22 at pianos with jasper and audrey sponsoring.
march 26: a place to bury strangers @ pianos
it was tim's birthday, and we celebrated with cake and congratulations. I first saw tim's band, a place to bury strangers, when I was in Austin for sxsw this year, and was impressed by their jesus and mary chain roots. Their music often swerves from subtle romanticism, muscled with a tough masculinity that just pulsates with sex. The droning guitars and bass are a total turn-on, the shirtless drummer is magnificent and sweaty. Can't wait to see them again when they play at the dirty on purpose cd release party!
march 29: paper mag party @ blvd & all night radio @ mercury lounge
I was going to spent the night working on my writing, but carol called me up and invited me to go to paper magazine's party to celebrate the beautiful people issue. So I put on my dirtiest jeans and grabbed my g-fab gold lamee purse and headed over to some club called blvd. On the way over, I walked past mercury lounge and saw the chalkboard say, "all night radio." Wha?? All night radio is playing? Why didn't anyone remind me? You are all officially dorks for not doing this.
I continued on to the club, thinking maybe I could convince carol to come with me after the paper mag party. I got to blvd and carol and I strolled in. That place was massive. We walk in and there are people everywhere drinking skyy vodka and cranberries. Talk about advertising! But the drinks were free, so who were we to complain?
We partied with carol's vidal sassoon peeps and one guy named clint seemed to take to me instantly. He was a white, super fashionable guy who was adorable and bubbly. It made me miss mikey and scotty. Clint works as an asst art director here in new york now, but apparently in Toronto he used to work with a lot of Korean hairstylists who taught him some of the language. It was amazing. He sang me Korean lullabies, songs I haven't thought about since I was like 10 or something. It was wonderful. Then he sorta flipped my hair with his hand and declared that he wanted to cut my hair. I felt like his diva. Mold me! Mold me! My hair has been looking pretty rough!! He gave me his business card, and I was giddy.
Carol agreed to check out all night radio with me. What I love about her is that she's always game for anything. She just moved here from boston, and is one of those smart women in this world I so adore and admire. We zipped on over to mercury lounge and I dragged her to the front of the stage because all night radio is a band that is both a visual and aural spectacle for me. My voice cracks with joy when I'm watching jimmy drum all crazy and sweep the wind chimes connected to his drumset. He's become one of my favorite drummers, aside from Jerry from Knife Skills and Turing Machine. Farmer Dave and Jimmy are from beachwood sparks and they have a new bass player playing with them, this skinny asian dude with googly sunglasses. He is very rad.
As a band they create these fantastical soundscapes that are trippy and weird and wondrous. I adore their song, "oh when," and I have it playing on my ipod all the time. it's a total pick-me-up-from-my-rotten-mood song. The band also has this electronic voiceover that says "all night radio." It's totally tongue in cheek, which is another aspect I adore. They don't take themselves too seriously. That's the trouble with a lot of bands these days. They are waaay too serious... get over it, buddy.
Ran into noah from sam champion outside of the venue and tim from a place to bury strangers. Sam champion is a band I've recently listened to a lot because I love pavement. They are pavement reconstructed or revisited. Whichever is the case. I love the twang and the steve malkmus vocals. I haven't seen them live yet, but definitely want to check them out soon!!
march 30: delightful dinner and mixing at rod's
I had a delicious dinner with deron and anna at angelica kitchen where I scarfed down a marinated tofu sandwich. Yummmmmmmy. And drank apple cider. Yummmmmmy!
Then I ran over to Brooklyn and hung out at rod's while we were doing some more mixes on the upcoming dirty on purpose CD. Watching rod work is like watching Einstein solve complex equations. And then all of a sudden it's like "E=MC2" and you're like, what a total fucking genius! He's the best producer, and just has a natural talent that can't be explained. Email him if you want him to work on your CD, and y'all can discuss rates. This is what he does for a living, folks!
march 31: robbers on high street @ mercury lounge
already I'm beginning to see that I'm hanging out at mercury lounge soooo much. I still think it's one of my favorite venues in the city besides Bowery. The sound is always amazing there, and the people who work there are delightful. In fact one of my fondest show memories is when I saw natural history, panthers and the walkmen play there... And I was a dumbass and didn't stick around for liars. Boy did I regret that.
I remember being really impressed with how much robbers on high street have improved when I saw them open for the sounds at sxsw. There was this one song they ended with at sxsw that I didn't hear them play at mercury lounge. I was kinda of in a crappy mood at the venue, and I could have definitely benefited from hearing that song. It's ok though. The first thing that someone said to me when the band started playing was, this band sounds exactly like spoon! I was like, yeah they are similar but I think robbers on high street have more lush build-ups in their songs than spoon do. Spoon is more about the sparse, open land of music (at least on Kill the Moonlight), and britt daniel's vocals are a bit more closer to the mic... more intimate with a bit more drawl. Robbers in contrast have good vibes shining out of their prettily constructed guitar lifts and pulls and melodic keyboard parts.
april 1: the walkmen @ irving plaza
there is something terribly incredible that happens to me when I hear the walkmen. My body starts to quiver and I start to full-on dance. It was amazing. I have to thank peter bauer for putting me on the list for this show, and I have to especially thank him for the vip pass, which I didn't know I was getting. It was one of the coolest gestures a band has ever offered me. And I am wholly grateful. I didn't use it very much because I like being up front and center so I can dance with all the other die-hard fans. I danced like crazy!
You know how we are so connected to music and the emotions and experiences and people associated with certain kinds of music? What recently happened to me was that one of my favorite bands was sorta ruined for me because of the fact that they were associated with a certain being. It was insane. Now I feel like I can't listen to that band anymore because it will always make me think of awful emotions!! However, that will never happen to me and my Walkmen music. Why? Because the Walkies only remind me of my exciting entree into the New York music scene. They remind me of times at shows with friends and swaying in front of Hamilton crunched over the microphone. How times have changed! Now Hamilton owns the stage with scary intensity. His in-your-face performance just blows my mind because I saw the band grow so much from their early days. From shy boys to rock stars. The transformation was inevitable, and it is just awesome to witness. I never get sick of seeing them live -- this is a girl who has seen them four nights in a row, and probably could have gone for a fifth. And then went and saw them three times in one night!
I feel like I am a part of history. The walkmen have a special place in my heart that is only associated with me, and for that I am grateful. Currently loving, "Thinking of a Dream I Had"!! But adore "What's In It For Me?" and of course, "The Rat." Angry, vitriolic, bitter, reflective... step off!
Bsiii called me afterwards and we met up at the walkmen afterparty at hi-fi. We hung out for a bit, and I talked to Peter and Hugh for a little while. JoJo and I also hung and partied. I randomly ran into Fiona, one of my former bosses who I am quite fond of. She will forever be 17! I also saw jennifer, preeti, rachel, who I haven't seen in the longest.
april 2: dirty on purpose -- bushwick blast @ asterick art space
I've never really ventured much into bushwick, that place often dubbed these days as "east williamsburg," but I strolled in to see dirty on purpose play the bushwick blast with some of the coolest, noisiest bands out right now. The band was honored and siked to play this festival, which was inaugurated and organized this year from dr.k of the drayton sawyer gang She did a stellar job!
And we all pretty much agreed that the show was the band's best performance ever, so if you missed it, you missed a historic moment. We didn't expect it, but because the band just let loose and experimented with different things on stage for their songs, the creativity just juiced up their performance. They completely changed the end of "mind blindness" and they revamped the beginning of "monument." They also dared to play a quiet song, "cheat death," which is probably my favorite song from the upcoming EP. It is so pure, and george's bowed guitar part makes me weepy and heart-achey. Can't wait for y'all to hear it recorded with the vibraphone parts! So pretty!
We enjoyed the bad-ass antics of the Drayton sawyer gang, and the delicious pancakes produced during the set of tungsten 74, a band who improv'd their album during the recording session and then went back and learned the songs they just made up on the blink. How awesome is that? And having food made in front of the stage while they played definitely made me have pleasant associations... I mean coconut and chocolate silver dollar pancakes are fucking awesome! I also think services (flux information sciences) were banging on their drums and cymbals with knives... fucking hardcore. And scary.
april 3: coney island at 2 a.m. is a ghost town
we spent another night finishing up the mixes for the upcoming dirty on purpose EP. Yes, you've heard me say that a million times, but this time it was for real and we worked on it until midnight. Then spontaneously we decided to drive down to coney island like we were high school kids driving down to the beach for a picnic. Except it was 2 a.m. and freezing, so we just drove there and came back. Good times! Dirty on Purpose and Rod are like my second family. Good brothers and sisters, like I've always kinda wanted. I'm lucky to have befriended them all.
april 4: dennis cahlo and hightower @ pianos & the sleepy jackson -- shout @ bar 13
dennis started his residency last weekend at pianos. That kid's songs break my heart. I was yearning to hear me some more dennis cahlo. So I went over to pianos to check him out. He played with a guitarist who was a lil' too loud, but I liked the dynamic element he added to dennis' purely beautiful songs. Truth be told, I prefer the stripped down dennis, but that's because the bare essence and power of his music is in his angelic, tear-inducing vocals and those wonderful constructed lyrics about love and heartache. I'm a sucka for a beautiful love song.
Then we went to see the sleepy Jackson at the shout party at bar 13. I didn't know what to expect really. At that point, I had listened to their CD twice, and each time I kept thinking, this is NOT sleepy. I want sleepy.
But they amazed me at Shout. Their music was rollicking and playful. They were earnest and down-to-earth. There were no antics (well not too many anyways). I wish I had listened to the CD more to sing along to the smooth melodies. It was a mad-house free party. I was kinda feeling intensely anti-social though so jo and I jetted on outta there real fast. I've been kinda anti-social lately. I'm sorry if you think I'm ignoring you or hating you. I'm just not feeling very well. So stressed and incredibly ill. There will be no other apologies.
april 6: passion of the chris: thermals, say hi to your mom, dirty on purpose @ north six
this night is one of the finer moments in new york city rock, where three incredibly awesome bands in their own right came together and totally rawked Brooklyn like there was no death cab for cutie show going on at irving. Haha.
Dirty on Purpose played another stellar set, filled with old and new songs. They are constantly writing new music, which is exciting for me, a person who's seen them a thousand times now. I still get chills when I listen to them.
Say Hi To Your Mom started with Eric playing two songs on acoustic by himself. I love him for his sarcasm and smart lyrics. He and I are like the same person in that way. We like to make fun of a situation that pains us, rather than deal with the harsher reality where humor turns into hurt instead. His songs might sound happy and poppy (though not all the time), but the underlying message is that of confusion and sadness. Dude is mad-talented. I still love "Hooplas Involving Circus Tricks" and "Super." I also adore the other members of the band, who I got to know better during the night... I think at one point I tackled the drummer while Dan from SHTYM tickled him. They all rock personally and musically, and it's nice to keep company with such awe-inspiring talent.
The Thermals fucking WOWED the shit out of me. One of the most amazing surprises of the evening. They RAWKED hard. So much energy and sound spouting forth from this three-piece, and Cameron and I were dancing like mad with a few handfuls of other people who were equally as rawked as I was. Holy mother of god. Lordy Lordy Lordy. I took loads of photos. Hopefully one day I'll be able to post some. I'm updating this blog from Alt Cafe. So East Village of me, I know!
Big love to Chris Newmyer, the coolest, nicest jesus look-alike I know. I totally adore him!!! Passion of the chris forever!
april 7: the pleased @ mercury lounge & detachment kit @ north six
then I went to see the pleased, a band from san francisco that draws comparisons to echo and the bunnymen and u2. I got to interview noah the lead singer right before their set. Noah was a sweetheart. His powerful vocal abilities kill me. He gets to into his performance, arching and swiveling the mic stand around with passionate gusto. I met the rest of the band after their set, and they were the nicest peeps. I love when bands are like that. They just want to chill and hang with peeps. They aren't snobby or up-in-their-britches. They are basically a DIY band, and I dig that down-to-earth approach to music. Don't be cold and distant, working through however many layers of publicists, managers, agents and whatnots. Be warm and into creating a community.
Then I met up with my DoP peeps at the Detachment Kit show, another night celebrating Chris Newmyer's birthday. I saw Detachment Kit at SXSW and loved them so much. Their music has so many shifts and turns, my head was dizzy with delight. I love the way they sort of arch forward as the music makes a dramatic shift. I love how they clatter around the stage like it's some playroom with plenty of disposable toys to kick around. But it was late night and I had to get to bed. Thus now I am sick with a terrible feverish cold.
But I like to support my friends despite my illness. So I'm going to see Au Revoir Simone at Pianos tonight. They go on at 10:30. Then off to see JoJo Dancer deejay at Misshapes. 11:30. Cutting it close, I know.
