Produced in association with one of Southern California’s premiere rock venues, The Casbah, San Diego heats things up on August 28th & 29th with their 25th Annual Street Scene in the East Village (and adjacent to Petco Park). In essence, it’s the ultimate two-day musical block party and the perfect way to kiss summer goodbye. So drop those world-famous fish tacos, hop in your car or on your surf board and get in on the excitement. Last year they managed to score Beck, TV On The Radio, and Cold War Kids, among others, but it looks like they may have outdone themselves for this year (complete lineup here.). Boasting over 40 bands, the multi-stage street set up features some of the biggest names in indie rock, alternative rock, hip hop and pop today that I’ll probably get into mutliple arguments with myself over which bands to check out. Here’s a little taste of what to expect, if you can handle all the action:
Friday, August 28th Black Eyed Peas, Modest Mouse, Cake, Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band, Band of Horses, Girl Talk, Devendra Banhart, Chromeo, Calexico, Matt & Kim, Deerhunter, Holy Fuck, Anya Marina
Saturday, August 29th M.I.A., Thievery Corporation, The Dead Weather, Silversun Pickups, Of Montreal, The Faint, Busta Rhymes, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, No Age, Ra Ra Riot, Los Campesinos!
The show is rain or shine (who are we kidding, when does it ever rain in beautifully sunny San Diego!?). Doors open: 4pm – midnight, both nights. For $65 bucks, you can see 20+ bands in one day and it’s totally worth it. There are also two-day passes, or the option of VIP treatment if you’re above all that recession talk. For additional ticket information, go here. So, come celebrate the end of summer at this killer rock block party. See you there!
Can’t keep your eyes open past 11PM? No TiVo? Well fear not, YouTube has managed to capture the majesty of Cage The Elephant performing in “Letterman” last week.
Yes ladies and gentlemen, shoegaze is back. And ready to wash all over you like all those washy guitars you remember and worshipped from the late ’80s through the ’90s.
Starting today, August 3, you can listen to a streaming version of the Big Pink’s debut album, A Brief History of Love, on their official website. The London duo (comprised of Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell) recorded and produced the album themselves at Electric Lady Studios in New York earlier this year. The album will be released by 4AD on September 14 in the UK, with the single “Dominos” to be released on September 7. The album will drop in the U.S. on September 22.
Tracklisting: 01. Crystal Visions 02. Too Young to Love 03. Dominos 04. Love in Vain 05. At War With the Sun 06. Velvet 07. Golden Pendulum 08. Frisk 09. A Brief History of Love 10. Tonight 11. Count Backwards from Ten
The Cribs have rush released their new single “Cheat on Me” today, August 3, in an effort to head off illegal downloading of the song. The single was originally scheduled to be released on August 31 in the UK. Visit their official website for more details on the digital download. The new album Ignore the Ignorant from the Wakefield, England band is scheduled for drop in the UK on September 7.
Bloc Party is out with a new single and it’s great, I love it. “One More Chance” is set to release on August 10th, but it's been making its way around UK radio stations and the blogosphere the past few weeks. I'm pretty relieved, nay, simply happy that I love this single because I’ve been slightly disappointed with their last two LPs after the release of their stunning debut, Silent Alarm. It's still clear that Bloc Party remains one of the most intriguing, complex and creative bands in existence.
.Bloc Party – “One More Chance” “One More Chance” is a blend of rock and house, definitely the most house infused track they've released to date. But they mix the styles so well for an incredible dance track that'll have people moving incessantly on the dance floor. The song begins and ends with a hyper active, jangly piano bounce and the drum beat is solid and the guitars run electricity through your body that shakes your soul. Kele’s voice sings with an earnest pleading and yearning, which adds great passion to the track.
.Alex Metric Remix A nice remix here by Alex Metric. It’s a similar affair to the original but just vamped up to be a little more techy and electronic, with fuzzy synthesizers and ethereal keyboards. The intro is nice with Kele’s vocals that fade in from an unclear echo to his sharp voice. The bubbling piano notes are kept alive, the song is less urgent but a beautiful piece in the middle is made when all the music stops and only Kele’s vocals are heard before 90s flavored house rushes back in.
.Serotonin Thieves Remix This is a stripped down version of the song with plenty of clicks and a subtle, yet throbbing drum line. It has a club feel to it, but it is hardly dancey by any means. The mix is like a subtle ninja in its methods and effects. And that is the best I can describe it.
With ominous clouds looming overhead and the threat of a tornado, it seemed that only the most dedicated of music fans trekked to Liberty State Park in New Jersey for the second annual All Points West Music and Arts Festival. The festival, organized by the same crew who run Coachella, has struggled to define itself as an East Coast contender, this year boasting a noticeably heavier and more hip-hop inspired lineup.
Fleet Foxes Before the storm hit, Fleet Foxes took the main stage looking gorgeous in full grunge regalia, wizard beards and tattered flannel, and pulling somewhat of a Déjà vu on us as they sweetly echoed the lush harmonies of Crosby Stills and Nash. Some say Beach Boys circa Pet Sounds, some say CSN, either way I was in lust with the ornate detail in their rising, earthen sound; more hopeful than haunting. As the first light drops of rain began to fall and we donned our fancy five-dollar ponchos, the atmospheric, ethereal hymns of Fleet Foxes warmed me despite the murky mud my feet were slowly sinking into.
Ra Ra Riot I was downright giddy when Ra Ra Riot, who have become one of my favorite bands of the past year, hit the stage with their triumphant cover of Kate Bush's “Suspended in Gaffa”. The perfect marriage of quirk and skill, Ra Ra Riot and Kate Bush equal crazy genius. With a fully plugged in string section, Wes Miles' chirping, blue-bird balladry and princely presence, Ra Ra Riot is a kind of modern day band of minstrels, redefining indie-pop as we speak. Was that a bagpipe I saw on stage? Wait, a flageolet?
Interlude 1: Happy Hippy Techno Trance Dance Party All throughout the park there were "Burning man raised" and inspired sculptures that became makeshift rain shelter spots. Hordes of people, including myself a few times, sardined themselves under tiny winged tarps attached to tepees made of glowing branches. Inside one of these pulsing tepees was a DJ spinning a house, trance, pop goulash. It was the dance party that didn't stop. At any point throughout the weekend you could walk by and find hundreds of people giving it all they've got in the mud.
The National My expectations for The National and the gift of Matt Berninger were extremely high. Before Friday, I had never seen them live and I, among many, hold The Boxer near and dear. For years friends have been telling me that live, The National will blow me away. They did not lie. It couldn't have been a more perfect setting to take them in for the first time. Berninger's baritone seemed to call the darkening rain clouds in closer and it began to downpour as the band tore through their set with certainty. The rousing intensity of the music and the heaviness of the rain began to make sense. The whole scene was gritty, rough, and completely anti. There was something romantic about committing oneself to the music despite the threatening sky as Berninger sang apocalyptic melancholy with menace.
Pharcyde I was excited to finally see the complete and original Pharcyde crew performing together after all the breakups and makeups the band has gone through. I have fond memories of listening to “Passin' Me By” while passing a… With my baby bro, once again by my side, we rocked our plastic hoodies with pride as we "raised 'em up" respectfully. The reunion of these hip-hop legends had the boys throwing rhymes in the face of "those who thought we'd never sing together again.”
Interlude 2 As the rain got heavier, bulleting and beating us down, we took refuge in the State Farm tent. While wringing out our socks, Vampire Weekend announced that due to the rain, all Friday ticket holders have a free pass to attend the festival for one more day. All Points West: good peeps.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs A definite highlight and I'll fight you on this if I have to. If you haven't seen Karen O jujitsu posturing, body thrashing, equipment trashing, going completely psychotic, crazy, melt-downing on stage in front of you, well, you just don't have the ammo I'm afraid. Yeah (yeah yeah!) this lady is cra-hazy, but she's nuts in the way that ground breaking, mind-bending, authentic art is conceived. After watching her perform standouts like Heads “Will Roll”, “Zero” and “Maps”, it's clear that she rocks with her heart on her sleeve, in every awkward yet honest moment she's on stage. There's a kind of rawness to both the sound and the performance that is rare. That juiciness is usually tapped by the time artists are throwing giant eyeball balloons off the stage and headlining festivals. My fingers are crossed that this chick stays bananas, for arts, our, sake.
Interlude 3 The rain is off the charts at this point. People have traded moshing for belly flopping in giant mud puddles. It's a hipster wet tee-shirt contest if I ever did see one.
Jay Z While most performers gave a shout out or two to The Beasties and MCA in particular, no one shouted quite as loud as Hova. By the end of day one, my feet were literal bricks of mud. As the rain subsided a chill moved in. Still soggy and beginning to lose steam, this last set of the night needed to be huge. People bought tickets to see The Beastie Boys and Jay definitely had some super sized Adidas Campus' to fill. With the twinkling Manhattan skyline and Lady Liberty as his backdrop Jay Z stormed the stage and opened his set, a full band behind him including a three-piece horn section and two drummers, with “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”. Exactly. Car alarms, cats, the entire crowd, and pretty much the whole state of Jersey went absolutely feral. MCA, I hope you were watching 'cause we love you. This much I know for sure: Jay Z is a certifiable superstar. With tributes to both Obama and MJ, classics plucked from across his entire catalog, and graphics of autotone machines blowing up on the Jumbotron screen, Hova owned the night.
On a ridiculously hot night in the usually temperate Portland, Oregon, when the venue’s air conditioning got second billing, Japandroids ripped through a fantastic set of distortion-laden garage rock. Japandroids demonstrated that they were a two man wrecking crew, blasting through an album’s worth of songs full of crashing drums and wailing guitar. It’s lo-fi, but exuberant and catchy.
Although Holocene was air conditioned, singer/guitarist Brian King had a fan pointed up on him, which constantly blew his long floppy hair up and around his head like he was in an 80’s hair band, except he sported cutoffs instead of tight leather pants. Midway through the set he was having trouble with his amp and fixed the situation by getting a second fan on stage just for the amp. It seemed to work and I didn’t have a problem with a little extra feedback.
If you like your rock and roll loud and fuzzy, you need to hear the hook-filled “Young Hearts Spark Fire” live. While songs like “The Boys Are Leaving Town” and “Rockers East Vancouver” sound great on Post-Nothing – their new album coming out this week – they only hint at the energy and passion the guys sweat out on the stage. Drummer David Prowse beats the hell out of his cymbals as King jerks around the stage and steps up to the bass drum to face off. My ears were still ringing in the morning.
Tour Dates: Aug 07 – Rickshaw Theatre / Vancouver Aug 08 – KEXP BBQ / Seattle Sep 05 – Lucky Bar / Victoria , BC Sep 07 – Habitat / Keowna, BC Sep 09 - Broken City / Calgary Sep 10 – Amigo’s / Saskatoon Sep 11 – Lo Pub / Winnipeg Sep 12 – Aquarium / Fargo Sep 13 – Turf Club / St. Paul Sep 14 – High Noon Saloon / Madison Sep 16 – Pygmalion Festival / Urbana, Il. Sep 17 – Magic Stick / Detroit Sep 18 – Albion / Guelph, Oh. Sep 19 – Horseshoe Tavern / Toronto Sep 21 – Summit / Columbus Sep 24 – Mercury Lounge / New York City Sep 28 – Big Orbit’s Soundlab / Buffalo Sep 29 – Casbah / Hamilton, Ont. Sep 30 - Montreal House / Peterborough, Ont. Oct 03 – Maverick's / Ottawa Oct 04 – Le Cercle / Quebec City Oct 05 – Great Scott / Boston Oct 06 – The Barbary / Philadelphia Oct 07 – Garfield Artworks / Pittsburgh Oct 08 – Now That’s Class / Cleveland Oct 09 – Schuba’s / Chicago Oct 13 – The Cavern / Dallas Oct 14 – Emo’s / Austin Oct 16 – One Eyed Jack’s / New Orleans Oct 17 – 529 / Atlanta Oct 18 – Local 506 / Chapel Hill Oct 19 – Rock and Roll Hotel / Washington DC Oct 24 – Halifax Pop Explosion / Halifax Oct 27 – Madame Jojo’s (White Heat) / London Oct 29 – Hoxton Square (Moshi Moshi) / London
Saturday night, Philly locals Free Energy took the stage at the TLA supporting super group Tinted Windows. Free Energy started their performance early before 9PM, so when I walked in, the guys were well into rocking out to their synth-sounding riffs and high enery dance rock. The floor was only filled up about one quarter of its capacity, but the small group was definitely feeling Free Energy’s groove.
Loxley played second and from the cheers they received, it was obvious that a good portion of the now half-filled room was there for them. I’d never heard of Loxley before this, but a majority of the other women in the room had, apparent from their screams each time a band member walked out onto the stage during set up and then as the band broke into each song throughout their set.
I was less impressed than the dozens of screaming fans up front. I found Loxley’s brand of power pop unoffensive and catchy, but song after song blurred together and sounded the same, chock full of lyrical filler. It’s clear that the fellas of Loxley have a great passion for music made obvious by their exuberance on stage, but musically, they’re not breaking any boundaries, which means they’re sure to find great commercial success. And best of luck to them with that.
Believe it or not, I’ve never owned a record by Smashing Pumpkins, Cheap Trick, Fountains of Wayne, Ivy, A Perfect Circle or Hanson, yet I was stoked to catch Tinted Windows. The super group, comprised of front man Taylor Hanson (whom, it must be noted, was rocking a wicked porn ’stache), guitarist James Iha, bassist Adam Schlesinger and drummer Bun E. Carlos, stopped by the TLA on Saturday to make up a previous show they had to cancel. The crowd roared as the four, accompanied by touring guitarist Josh Lattanzi, took to the stage against a backdrop of epic entrance music and flashing lights.
Tinted Windows opened a solid set with “Take Me Back” from their self-titled debut that dropped earlier this year. It seems ridiculous to say how great of a drummer Bun E. Carlos is, so I’ll just say that I’m really glad he took some time off from the Cheap Trick arena tour to play a string of East Coast dates with Tinted Windows. His enthusiasm for playing that night was simply infectious.
Hanson was really the only band member to chat with and engage the audience, aside from a brief dialogue between Schlesinger and Iha about a fan telling them that neither smiles enough; Iha protested that he smiles and proved it by flashing a grin a few times throughout the set. During “Back With You”, Hanson encouraged the audience to pull out their lighters and cell phones to light up the crowd as the band’s tour manager filmed from on stage for a video the band was making for themselves.
After a lively set, the five some returned for a quick two song encore before thanking the audience for bearing with the rescheduling and hoping the see us next time. I was wholly won over by the super group, exemplified by my non-stop dancing during their set. I definitely own Tinted Windows and suggest you do the same.
Set List: Take Me Back Can’t Get A Read On You Dead Serious Messing With My Head Make A Sound Back With You Cha Cha We Got Something The Dirt Kind of A Girl Doncha Wanna Let Me Out (The Knack)
Tour Dates: Aug 03 – Paradise Rock Club / Boston Aug 04 – Mohegan Sun / Uncasville, Ct. Aug 05 – Black Cat / Washington DC Sep 04 – Great American Music Hall / San Francisco
This week I got a little behind so I decided to dedicate one entry to this week in St. Louis concert coverage so below shall include a few words and photos about Josh Ritter, Guster and Lupe Fiasco.
On Tuesday night, a sold out Off Broadway was packed as Josh Ritter and his band dedicated songs to the Jonas Brothers who were in town the same night and raved about St. Louis' rather wonderful City Museum. The set ranged from his later full band material in addition to his early solo work, both working rather well with fans eating up every second of his over two hour set.
Stand out songs from the night:
"Good Man", "Girl in The War", "To The Dogs or Whoever"
Guster graced the Live on The Levee stage on Friday night showcasing their rhythmic abilities as they covered their catalog of classics such as "Fa Fa", "Amsterdam", "Satellite" and even adding a new song into the mix from an album they are due to finish after this current tour.
While Guster served as headliner for the last weekend of Live on The Levee, Lupe Fiasco closed down the series with a sea of fans blanketing the stairs under the Arch. Lupe energetically, if not crazily, commanded every inch of that stage as he ran from side to side, working the crowd as he rhymed his way through cuts off Lupe Fiasco's Food and Liquor and The Cool.
Yes ladies and gentlemen, shoegaze is back. And ready to wash all over you like all those washy guitars you remember and worshipped from the late ’80s through the ’90s.
