12/12/09 at Brooklyn Bowl. There was bowling, drinking, Santacon (which I missed but there were still a few stray Santas when I arrived) music and merrymaking.

To see complete gallery click here.

To listen to a recording of O’Death’s set on NYC Taper click here.

If you’re in New York for Halloween, here are some events where you’ll find originally hip people doing originally hip things. In other words, this ain’t your Williamsburg Halloween party. Oh, and did we mention they’re all cheaper than a pair of pants from American Apparel?

Justin Bond at Joe’s Pub – “Justin Bond is Scary, Mary!! A Halloween extravaganza!”
From the website: “Tonight we celebrate Persephone-Queen of the Underworld, a fair young thing who went out one day to pick some flowers and ended up the sex slave of SATAN!” Expect fabulousness.

The Renaldo the Ensemble at The Living Room – CD Release party and concert (photo)
The self-described absurdist collective  celebrates the release of their new album Why Are You? (It’s great, by the way.) The Renaldo takes the stage around 11 p.m., but if you get there early, you can enjoy performances by members of the Uke Salon. Never heard of the cult-like Uke Salon? Check out my “Uke Odyssey” podcast, here.

World/Inferno Friendship Society at the Grand Ballroom, Manhattan Center (with O’Death)
The Bowery takes a huge liability and fire code risk by presenting the annual World/Inferno Hallowmas show. What’s the danger, you ask? Read for yourself: last year I followed the band and their maniacal fans through the Halloween parade and into the Hallowmas ritual concert in Brooklyn. I still haven’t recovered from the mayhem. Word to the wise: do not wear glasses to this event.

The Lily’s Revenge at the HERE Arts Center
A five-hour epic musical extravaganza with a distinct downtown vibe. Playwright Taylor Mac performs, along with 40-plus New York artists. OH note: I sat in on one of the rehearsals. The show is terrific! Hilarious, wacky, smart, poignant. If you don’t see it on Halloween, see it before it closes on November 22. (And look for my article about it in the November issue of the Brooklyn Rail.)

It Might Get Loud at Cinema Village 12th Street
For a (slightly) more subdued evening, see Jack White, The Edge, and Jimmy Page in a documentary about the electric guitar. On 10/31, the film starts at 10:55 p.m.

Kerend Tij

Ik ruim de glazen
van het laatste zomerfeest
De ochtend ademt stilte
Is er ooit iemand geweest?

De stank van sigaretten
En doodgeslagen bier
Kan ‘t verlangen niet onderdrukken:
Ach lief, was jij maar hier

Maar zoals de vloed steeds de sporen
van zomers strandpret wist
Zo ook verdwijnt jouw herinnering
In de prille najaarsmist

Na eb zal straks toch de vloed weer komen
Dat is hoe het altijd gaat
Het water zal nieuw zand doen stromen
Waar nu nog jouw afdruk staat

Er zal een nieuwe zomer komen
Zo is het altijd al gegaan
Met ongetwijfeld nieuwe dromen
Maar dan is jouw afdruk lang vergaan

- Marc, september 2009 -

Roger Waters – The Tide Is Turning

Fleetwood Mac – Man of the World
Shall I tell you about my life?
They say I’m a man of the world
I’ve flown across every tide

O’Death – Lowtide

OK.   I have been meaning to start this blog  since December, But like everything post-tick tick I have been procrastinating!  I think I have commitment issues?  I think I just need something to start with that has nothing to do with me…Like this awesome show!!!!! and I needed a place to post info, so you could be in the know and come?!

My good friends at the Fifth Element are hosting a show this Monday (august 24th) at their space.  Info is as follows then I’ll dish all the cool info about the peeps playing:

Angioplasty Media Presents:

Blood Warrior (Featuring Greg Jamie from o’death!)

Brett Hughes (Burlington’s finest man about town!)

Shawn Grady (Burlington’s nomad beauty!)

Monday, August 24th

8ish till latish

a small donation will be expected! (like $5 tops!)

At the Fifth Element (Go to the bottom of Battery St and Maple St around and behind the diving store)

The 5th hasn’t hosted a show since the second to last tick tick show in April, which was an amazing time!  If you have’nt been there is a hugh basemnt space that lends it self to DIY events extremely well.

Blood Warrior is the new project from o’death front man Greg Jaime featuring our good friend Matt Berger from Portland, OR on drums. Matt has been through town a few times with his band Musee Mecanique and he attended UVM as a younger man for a semester or two.  Blood Warrior is less feisty then o’death but rooted in Americana just the same, the result is haunting beauty! If you like o’death, Viking Moses, The Castanets, or Beirut be there! (especially if you like O’death!)

They have nothing released yet but you can check out the link above for their myspace that has a couple of awesome tunes on it!

Check out this O’Death Video to get an idea!

Check out this Musee video because it rules!

Come and have one last summer blast at the fifth element!

if you have any ? you can email me at dale@ticktick.org

luv,

dale

from Broken Hymns, Limbs, and Skin, 2008

Hailing from New York, New York, psychedelic pop/punk band KISS KISS released their sophomore effort The Meek Shall Inherit What’s Left July 7, 2009.   Courtesy of Eyeball Records, …What’s Left is an eclectic blend of psychedelic tendancies, infectious pop melodies, and intense hardcore energy that’s virtually impossible to ignore.  There’s a definite macabre edge to this quirky compilation, no doubt as a result of the hardships the band has recently been through–more than 17 line-up changes, bouts of depression, and serious health problems to name a few–but instead of transferring that dark energy onto the listener, KISS KISS manages to spin it into a positive ear worm of a record.

To truly experience KISS KISS for yourself, you have to listen to …What’s Left first hand.  Luckily, you can preview the entire album THIS WEEK ONLY via AOL’a Spinner here.  This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, people so don’t miss out.  KISS KISS will take you on a journey through their collective, demented psyche and spit you out on the other end with a new found appreciation for avante garde musical styles.

If you’re looking for a new favorite band, or just a departure from the monotony of TOP 40 radio KISS KISS may just do the trick.  Check them out if you’re a fan of The Dear Hunter, O’Death, or Murder By Death, investigating KISS KISS should be on the top of your to-do list.  For additional information on the band, including upcoming tour and release dates visit the band’s MySpace today!

The third day of the festival. All I have to say is that taking 3 trains to Williamsburg and back home each day is exhausting me more quickly than running from venue to venue.

The Extraordinairesat MHOW (Kemado Records Showcase)

O’Death at MHOW (Kemado Records Showcase) – Lots more photos of O’Death in the full gallery. I really enjoyed their performance – wish they had started 10 minutes earlier so that I could have stayed for more.

Appomattox at Bar Matchless (Battering Room Showcase)

unknown – corner of North 7th and Bedford Ave.

Motel Motelat Public Assembly (Gothamist Showcase)

Knight Bridge – North 6th and Berry.

Ces shoots Jesus

Savoir Adore

To see complete set of photos click here

by featured contributor, Troy Farmer

Being from the south originally, there are a number of things I miss, now living in the big Yankee city. There’s the random, and now sometimes unsettling friendliness of strangers (seriously—on a trip last summer, this woman passing by said ‘hi’ to us in the friendliest manner and, I’m sad to say, it freaked us out.) There’s the slow, easy, nearly-foreign-now calm to almost everything. And then there are the impromptu, unassuming means of entertaining—swimming holes, house parties, garage shows… Obviously I need a vacation. But, point being, the thing I miss most of all is the food. Being vegan, a lot of that food’s totally out of reach. But, having grown up around it and having those tastes imbedded into my gustatory memory, they’re foods I’m constantly trying to replicate and improve upon, vegan-style, yo.

One of those foods is buttermilk biscuits. These warm, savory, buttery blocks of awesomeness were a mainstay of my extended family from Virginia and something that could be found on the table every Sunday and holiday. Being the transplant that I am, though, this particular recipe is an adaptation of a recipe from the Waverly Inn + Garden in the West Village.

These biscuits bring to mind slow, winding mornings with strong coffee, sleepy cats, and folksy southern tunes. I’ve never been much for a lot of the actual southern-rock-alt-country-whathaveyou, but, thankfully, much like the northerner’s take on biscuits, there are a bevy of excellent northerner bands right now who seem to be yearning for this same, rootsy, easy sound that traditionally came from the south. Call them phony hipsters-turned-hayseeds if you like, but I love their take on the genre and how it’s now been pulled into it’s own world. Bands like Seattle’s The Cave Singers (ex-Pretty Girls Make Graves, and Cobra High) and NYC’s O’Death bring their new world talents and takes on traditional music and transform it into something else altogether. And it’s excellent.

One of the more recent finds for me in this category is Providence, Rhode Island’s John McCauley, who plays under the moniker, Deer Tick. McCauley started out at the age of 18 making home recordings on his nylon string guitar and giving them out at shows. Five years later, he’s toured extensively, firmed up a once rotating cast of supporting band members, worked up a pretty devoted following, and released his first “official” album, “War Elephant,” on Partisan Records. With McCauley’s cool, rough, howl of a voice and the rolling push of the music, there’s a definite feeling of looking back at what’s come before these songs, be it the southern rock of Creedence<!–, or the high hills music of Appalachia, but, again, with the cast of it being played by people almost foreign to the original thought that gave birth to that sort of music. It almost feels like Deer Tick and these other bands are reaching back to the nostalgic, romanticized world of our parents and childhood—for many of us, the simplified and sadly beautiful 70s, mustaches and all. Whatever the reason, the resulting music is excellent. And goes superbly with south-by-north biscuits on slow, warm mornings. Check them out –

These Old Shoes

The biscuits are best right out of the oven, with maybe a little vegan margarine on them and some preserves. They’re also excellent with a vegan sausage gravy. Or, if you want to get fancy, mix some maple syrup with cold margarine to make a vegan maple butter. The trick with cooking these is to keep them as cold as possible when missing them and to touch them (warm hands) as little as possible too, so the pieces of margarine—which make them flakey—don’t melt. Make the whole batch and them freeze what you won’t eat for later. They make for great Tofurkey sandwiches and BBQ pulled seitan sandwiches (still refining that recipe….) And this recipe can be doubled if you’re cooking for some sort of vegan army.

• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour (we like King Arthur brand)
• 1/2 Tbsp Sea Salt
• 1/8 Tsp Baking Soda
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Sugar
• 1/4 Lb. (about 1/2 Cup) Cold Vegan Margarine (non-hydrogenated)
• 3/4 Cup Oat Milk (you can use Soy Milk if you prefer)
• 1/3 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
• Egg Replacer equal to One Egg (we like Bob’s Red Mill brand)

Like most things, I like to make these biscuits completely by hand, though many prefer to use a heavy-duty mixer. I like to try to keep them as old-world as possible. You know, without the lard and dairy-based butter.

1. First, combine the dry ingredients in a large, preferably metal bowl.
2. On a cutting board, dice the margarine into small cubes, about one inch square. Really try to touch them as little as possible, using a utensil to slide the cubes off the knife, and toss a little flour onto the pieces as you add them to the bowl of dry ingredients so they don’t stick together.
3. Take a stiff rubber spatula and mix the dry ingredients into the margarine, using the spatula to firmly break the cubes into smaller, pea-sized pieces, cutting the margarine into the flour mix. Be very thorough with this part, making sure you break up all the cubes into tiny pieces. This is what makes the biscuits flakey.
4. In a measuring cup, mix the oat milk and vinegar together to simulate a buttermilk. If you’re not a huge buttermilk fan, use less or no vinegar, compensating with the oat milk so the total mixture equals one cup. Slowly add this to the flour-margarine mixture as you stir with the spatula. Once it’s mixed together, the dough will look pretty wet, which is a good thing with this recipe.
5. Now, flour a clean counter-top and turn the dough out onto it. Sprinkle some flour on top of the dough and, using your hands, gently fold the dough over itself three or four times, evening it out and flattening it down a bit each time.
6. Using a rolling pin, gently roll the dough out so it’s about 3/4 to 1 inch thick. You can form an oval or keep the edges rough, for an old-world, uneven look.
7. Using a knife, cut the biscuits into rough squares a little smaller than the size of the desired finished biscuits. I usually make mine a little big—about 4 inches square.
8. Put these on a cookie sheet and refrigerate them until you’re ready to bake at 375 degrees. They should only take 7-10 minutes, so watch them carefully, waiting until they get a golden brown look.
9. Take ‘em out and eat ‘em up. Have a warm and flakey weekend!

——-

learn more about Troy Farmer

I’ve been in the midst of one of those beautiful periods recently when the discovery of one band leads to another then another. My infatuation with Murder by Death prompted me to dig into two of their recent opening bands; The Builders and the Butchers, and O’Death. There’s nothing better than discovering someone new that you know no one else has heard of. I love paying it forward and handing my new discoveries off to everyone I know, and these are a couple of gems.

Both bands belong in the same genre; trouble is I’m not sure what genre it is. It’s punk rock-Americana-bluegrass-murder-ballad-mariachi-Eastern-European-etc-etc-etc. You get the picture. Totally uncatagorizable. Think the Violent Femmes with Jello Biafra on vocals; or Social Distortion with fiddles and banjos. How the Hell do you put a label on something like that? And why would you want to? That’s half the fun!

If Murder by Death is the modern incarnation of Johnny Cash, then the Builders and the Butchers are the same, but of Jimmy Rodgers. I was immediately reminded of the first time I heard the Violent Femme’s Country Death Song. I had to stop and reassess everything that I thought I knew about my tastes in music. Their style takes Appalachian mountain music, and combines it with New Orleans funeral march, and layers on a cool modern edge.These songs about floods and coal mines could have been written at the turn of the last century, but at the same time sound totally relevant right now.

I wrote briefly about O’Death some months ago but let me recap. Here’s the visual; fronted by a lead singer that could be a missionary from a Russian Orthodox church and a fiddle player that’s straight out of Deliverance, and the rhythm section is comprised of 2 guys from an Iron Maiden tribute band. Here again; like nothing I’ve ever seen before. They have a similar mix of influences, but O’Death throws in a whopping helping of Eastern European folk music for good measure.

Banjos, fiddles, mandolins, accordions, trumpets, tambourines; they’re both like a middle-school music class from Hell. They’ll play any damn thing you put in front of them. Much of the drumming sounds like someone wrapped a piece of leather around a cardboard box. The high-hat and tambourines sound more like someone rattling a pile of rusty chains. When I close my eyes sometimes I see bearded men, dressed in black home-made suits, sitting around someones living room making music. Sometimes I see a bunch of shit-kickers in the back of a pick-up truck, in the middle of a field. Sometimes I see the house-band in a dusty western saloon. There are just too many influences to count or keep track of. They all crash together in a beautiful mess.

Crappy cell phone photo, but this is how close we were. I took some pictures before getting "spoken to," so stay tuned.

Les Claypool performed at the House of Blues in Boston last Thursday and it was the closest thing to a religious experience I’ve ever had.

Sober as a bird*, packed into the front row of the recently redone HOB (right across from Fenway), Ivan and I rocked OUT.

The concert, billed as The Oddity Faire: A Mutated Mini Fest, featured artists O’Death, Secret Chief 3 and Saul Williams. And of course, Lessy poo. All for 25 bucks!

Ivan and I got there at the beginning of O’Death’s set. They kept me pretty interested. More specifically, the violin and the banjo kept me interested. During the show I took notes on my cell phone because I forgot a pad and pen, and I typed that the beginning of one of their songs sounded like “Satin in a Coffin” by Modest Mouse. The band had a lot of energy, but the shirtless bassist was going nuts. As the set went on the songs seemed to get more intense, and it was as if the band was fighting each other with their instruments. “Can rock as hard as they want because the banjo keeps it bluegrass” – direct quote from my cell phone draft.

Secret Chief 3 was on next (I was surprised all evening at how quick the set changes were), donning their dark blue, Merlin-esque, creepy, cape-y uniforms. The singer had a long beard and was very tall and unsettling. Nice! Their music had a dark, somewhat satanic tone. It reminded me of what would would be playing during the last level of an RPG game. The music was so hard and driving that it was literally making my jeans vibrate against my body. Around the fourth song in the band busted into some amazing violin. I gotta give that lovely stringed instrument props, because it was so essential to the sound of both O’ Death and Secret Chief 3. In this case, the violin lightened up the music of SC3 and added this weird (read: awesome) dance-y element to it.

Next on the bill was Saul Williams. At this point Ivan and I met up with some friends and we hung out for most of the band’s (err, Saul’s?) set. I wasn’t paying too much attention, but he was rapping and rocking and talking about Obama. From what I watched, the set seemed pretty high energy and Saul was really going for it… I don’t know, I’m sorry Saul. That was pretty weak.

Ivan and I had already made our way back into the crowd when Les Claypool came on. He opened the set with “Buzzards of Green Hill” and the two of us sat there with our mouth’s hanging open. Everybody in the audience started grooving (and Ivan and I started grooving our way closer and closer to the front.) Les played a few more tunes before addressing the audience. He sounded just like the live recording I had of him from when I first saw his band at Gathering of the Vibes two years ago. At that festival I stood about a mile away from him in a huge field, and while I was feeling the hell out of the music I was somewhat disconnected. At this show I got to see every clothing change, instrument change, and every mask change. Yes, he wore the pig mask. (I would be remiss not to mention that during one of these outfit changes the rest of the band had an amazing jam session that totally blew the crowd away.)

I didn’t have much concept of time (because Les’s whamola had launched me into an alternate reality) but a little over halfway through his set he started reflecting on being back in Boston. He said something about having a lot of old friends here, and revealed to the audience that Boston-based band Morphine was there to play a song with him. After they finished, Les tells the audience that playing the song was a very big moment for him. Everybody cheered, and I remember thinking that the fans were being so kind to him and showing him so much support. Les returns the favor when he busts into “One Better” and jams to it for about 15 minutes.

I couldn’t. Dance. Hard. Enough.

Les Claypool is the Tantric God of music making. The way he structures and executes his songs makes you want to pull your hair out with pleasure and frustration–get to the chorus already! Somebody in the audience even referred to him as a “cock tease.” You catch my drift?

I hate to end this review by talking about the guy that threw a water bottle onstage during the last song, causing Les to stop performing and instead discuss with the audience what a small penis this man must have, so I won’t. Instead I will say that listening to Les Claypool is like getting hit in the face with a musical frying pan, and that for 25 bucks you would be a total newb to not check out this tour. (But the tour is over, so you are a newb.)

*This was a very refreshing experience to me. My roommates and I recently went to Northampton to see The New Deal, and I was extremely disheartened by the scene. I understand letting loose at a concert. Whether it’s weed, booze, hallucinogens, whatever, I don’t care- do your thing. But this show was filled with tweakers. Tweakers as in, Buntology staffer Christina saw a group of girls smoking crack on the dance floor (allegedly). When I looked around Pearl Street that night I wondered what the purpose was. Why are we here, people? Are we here for the music, or are we here to bug ourselves out on drugs? That night it was apparent that the latter was the truth.

Ein Konzert München ist schon etwas besonderes! Zumindest arbeiten die Münchner selbst hart an diesem Ruf. Bisher ist es uns tatsächlich erst einmal gelungen, die bayerische Landeshauptstadt musikalisch zu bereisen. Man kommt scheinbar als Band nicht so leicht ran an die Münchner Bühnen, allein daraus entsteht schon ein gewisser Ehrgeiz. Ein etwas paradoxer Ehrgeiz, eilt doch dem Münchener Konzertpublikum der eher schwierige Ruf voraus, sich nicht besonders leicht aus der Reserve locken zu lassen. Die kühlen Hauptstädter also! Beim Konzert am vergangenen Freitag im Orangehouse des Feierwerks stand uns internationale Verstärkung in Form der New Yorker Band O’Death zur Seite (oder umgekehrt). Ihre eigene MySpace-Seite beschreibt ihre Musik kurz als “Folk / Metal”, diese Bezeichnung ist (meiner Meinung nach) aber zum Glück eher unzutreffend. Freilich ist beides vorhanden, aber der charakteristische schräge Charme kommt aus anderen Ecken! Live eine echte Erfahrung!

Gemeinsam sollte also wenn nicht ganz München, dann doch zumindest der Stadtteil Sendling in Wallung gebracht werden. Ich will gar nicht lange um den heißen Brei herum reden: natürlich ist es der ungarisch-amerikanischen Kooperation gelungen die Anwesenden zu spontaner Ausgelassenheit zu bewegen. Zugegeben, es hat etwas gedauert – insofern wurde das oben erwähnte Gerücht zumindest nicht widerlegt – aber am Ende hatten alle sichtbar großen Spaß am transkontinentalen Konzertabend! Die eine oder andere Schweißperle wurde vergossen! Und das mitten in München! Bzw. Sendling…

Und es nimmt weiterhin kein Ende, das nächste Konzert befindet sich bereits in Reichweite. Am kommenden Mittwoch (dem 11.3.) ist der Nürnberger MUZclub Ort des Geschehens. Wir hoffen wiedermal auf viele bekannte Gesichter!

If you live in the greater North East, you know we are being attacked by snow right now. At least it is a good excuse to stay in and listen to some good music, right?  The crew here at Modern Mystery has put a little mix together for your wintery snow day. We hope you enjoy it.

Matt Pond PA- Snow Day
Elk City- Cherries in the Snow
The Secret Life of Sofia- Snow Room
Elf Power- The Winter is Coming
Fleet Foxes- White Winter Hymnal
Olivia Tremor Control- Frosted Ambassador
Ben Weaver- White Snow
The Leisure Society- On the Last of the Melting Snow
Snow in Mexico- You and My Winter
Otter Petter- Winter Days
The Lisps- The Winter That I Missed
The Arcade Fire- No Winter for a Year
Harlem Shakes- Winter Water
O’Death-Crawl Through Snow (Live)

Rock – Folk – Pop / 16-24 février 2009

Quatrième édition d’un petit festival hivernal qui ne fait pas de mal, permettant de découvrir en live plusieurs sensations attendues. Décevantes ou convaincantes, voilà quelques impressions pour pouvoir défricher le terrain.

Lundi 16 février (folk)

Lonely Driften Karen : un univers tout en douceur et légèreté pour un trio qui avait la lourde tâche d’envoyer les premières notes de huit jours de festival. Une chanteuse autrichienne pleine de charisme malgré son petit corps frêle, un batteur italien bourré d’humour et un pianiste espagnol possédant un certain bagout… et pourtant on les croirait tout droit sortis de la campagne anglaise… (7,5/10)

Mariée Sioux : Erreur de programmation d’avoir placé Mariée Sioux au milieu d’une soirée qui avait bien commencé. Guitariste seule sur scène qui vous fait un peu trop sentir à chaque morceau qu’elle est de Californie, embarquée dans un trip mystique un peu lourd, tout autant que son corps et son chant peuvent l’être. En première partie ce serait mieux passé (5,5/10)

Emily Jane White : elle a beau être jeune, le chant et les compositions d’Emily Jane White traduisent une grande maturité. Sa voix est claire, maitrisée avec délicatesse. Les Violoncelliste, batteur et pianiste accompagnent très bien Emily et forment l’écrin mettant en valeur toutes les facettes de cette artiste précieuse. (8,5/10)

Mercredi 18 février (rock)

O’Death : deux torses nus décorés de tatouages, deux barbus à lunettes habillés comme des bucherons et un violoniste tout droit sorti… de nulle part. On ne donnerait pas cher de leur peau à première vue. Et pourtant, O’Death jongle avec dextérité entre les différentes sonorités  morbides : voix caverneuses et nasillardes, blues country… on peine qu’ils viennent de New York plutôt que du fin fond du Michigan (7/10)

Jim Jones Revue : très attendus (salle comble), les drôles de londoniens ont la réputation de jouer très fort. Pari raté ce soir là car le chanteur n’a plus de voix et les musiciens jouent approximativement… je ne m’attendais pas à mieux, un buzz construit trop vite et reparti aussi sec. (7/10)

Jeudi 19 février (pop, folk)

Xavier Plumas : de bons musiciens qui accompagnent un chanteur médiocre et des textes en français ridicules à mourir… kaï kaï, attendons de voir comment les choses évoluent… (3/10)

Dear Reader : après des problèmes techniques qui ne leur étaient pas vraiment imputables, l’ex duo Harris Tweed d’Afrique du Sud s’est mué en trio et livre une folk-pop tout en douceur. La voix de Cherilyn, sucrée et envoutante, nous transporte dans un univers onirique fait d’ours polaires et vilains prétendants qui ne sont plus certains de la trouver jolie (ils ont mal regardé visiblement car elle est à croquer). Piano-guitare-basse-batterie et sampler pour la voix, la simplicité a parfois du bon. Le charme et le romantisme anglais de Jane Austen avec une pointe plus chaude… (8,5/10)

Vetiver : bon, décidemment le chant n’était pas le fort des hommes ce soir là, une musique pas transcendante, un chant rédhibitoire, au revoir… (6,5/10)

Dimanche 22 février (pop, electro aérienne)

Women : Ils sont quatre, ils sont canadiens, les homme de Women livre une pop acidulée avec digression noisy. Régulièrement ils chantent faux et curieusement, cela passe très bien. Mi-foutraque, mi-structuré, ceux dont l’album était déjà surprenant ne perdent rien de leur charme sur scène… (7,5/10)

Chairlift : le trio de Chairlift a produit un tube, Bruises, mais à part cela ? L’album sonnait très inégal, le show sur scène est tout autant bancal. Musicalement capable du meilleur (leur dernier titre où la voix claire de Caroline Polachek est livrée sans effets de reverb) comme du pire (certains morceaux ne volent pas plus haut que la musique d’accompagnement de stretching d’une salle de sport), le groupe est également insupportable scéniquement. Effets de chevelure, déhanché totalement en inadéquation avec la rythmique, seul le batteur ne semble pas atteint de nombrilisme… bof bof (6/10)

Mardi 24 février (country rock)

Elliott Brood : des canadiens dont on n’avait pas vu venir le troisième album. Enjoués et passionnés par ce qu’ils font, leur musique est tout aussi pleine de vie. Le chanteur est dynamique, son acolyte au banjo est zinzin et le batteur jovial. Oscillant entre country, western spaghetti, rock endiablé et folk épurée, on se dit qu’Elliott Brood n’est décidément pas un nom adapté à ce groupe, bien trop smart pour avoir un nom de bûcheron. (8/10)

War on drugs : eux-aussi ont un nom plutôt disgracieux… Et après Elliott Brood, ils ont beau avoir des trouvailles intéressantes, on n’a plus envie de les écouter…

Un bilan tout à fait honorable pour cette nouvelle édition du festival Alligator à qui l’on souhaite longue vie !

Een portie gezonde gekheid is nooit weg. En als de ondertoon dan ook nog eens ernstig is, kan het al helemaal niet meer stuk. De gekheid van O’Death zit hem eerder in de vorm terwijl de ernst voor de inhoud wordt bewaard. Wie met een open geest de zaal betrad, zag in elk geval een concert van een jonge band die zich voor één keer eens niet tooide met eenvormige indierock, maar zich een jasje aanmat van countrymuziek voorzien van eigen stiksels en franjes.

Lees hier verder.
Foto : wannabes

I kind of like Valentine’s Day.  I don’t think I’ve ever actually had a date for Valentine’s Day, but I like the fact that everyone gives each other cards.  Plus, it’s a good excuse to eat cookies with pink frosting.  It’s an a-okay day by me.  Sometimes I think those, “Where To Take Your Date” features are kind of lame, but now that it’s my turn to write one, I think it’s kind of fun.  Thus, I’m suggesting four shows based on the kind of date you have.

1) First Date. If you’re trying to impress someone on a first date, take them to Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. This is the ideal first date.  First, it shows your date that you have indie cred, but that you don’t just listen to indie rock.  You’re open and interesting.  Plus, Sharon Jones is a world-class entertainer and the Dap-Kings are one of the best funk bands in the world.  If your date can’t have fun at this show, then you know you’ve found a real dud.  This show will be a V-Day treat for anyone.

2) Lovey-Dovey Date. KaiserCartel at Pete’s Candy Store is a safe bet for any couples who are already into each other.  I think it’s fairly self-explanatory.  A couple singing love songs to each other at a hip Brooklyn location?  Great date.  Enough said.

3) Crazy/Sexy Date. Are you not quite sure about your date?  Do they dislike Valentine’s Day schlock?  Are they a little bit on the wild side?  Alt-Country rockers O’Death are the best bet for you.  First, you have to adventure out to New Jersey to get to Maxwell’s, and then you can go crazy to O’Death’s back-mountain rocking.  The perfect anti-date date.

4) Friend Date. Don’t have a date, but looking for a fun night out?  Then Harlem Shakes, Shilpa Ray, and Phil and the Osophers is the show for you!  I, personally, will be attending this show.  They’re just three really fun indie rock bands, and should make for a typically good Saturday night out, Valentine’s Day or not.

Znów zapomniałam, ile mam lat, znów zapomniałam, że tak nie można.Na szczęście po używkach bywam podobno rozkoszna, czy jest to jednak dostateczne pocieszenie, kiedy umieram następnego dnia? Nie jest. Pozostaje śmiać się z nieudanych prób otwierania otwartych drzwi, przechodzenia przez lustro oraz wspominać niewątpliwy zaszczyt, jakim był uścisk prawicy samego Lewara. A na ewentualne umieranie mam dla Was to:

O’Death – Down To Rest

Nie wiem, jak na używki zapatrują się członkowie tego kilkuletniego zespołu. Wiem tylko, że perkusista lubi łańcuchy oraz myśli tak:

I think Tom Waits puts all the kids to shame. That guy’s more relevant now than he was 30 years ago. Shit man. That blows my mind. And I think people should quit hating Michael Jackson, I can’t wait for his next record to drop.

Amen.

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oficjalna strona |   MySpace |  Last.fm

Qualche mese fa gli O’Death mi hanno regalato il cd “At Rear House” degli Woods, dicendomi: “oh ascoltalo, ti piacerà di brutto, è robba n’sacco bbona” (in dialetto new yorkese of course). Avevano ragione, più che piacermi mi ha completamente stregata. A dire il vero è un album del 2007 e loro sono già pronti per il nuovo “Family Creeps” che dovrebbe uscire nella prossima primavera. Quello che vedete qui sopra è il video dello splendido brano di apertura “Don’t Pass on Me”, andrebbe ascoltato a palla sullo stereo per apprezzarne ogni minimo suono, sì perché dentro, ce ne sono nascosti tanti. Gli Woods non sono ancora sbarcati qui in UK ma mi auguro che succederà presto.

Suoni psichedelici, registrati con attrezzature rudimentali, falsetto, testi lisergici ma intelligenti, chitarre acustiche, elettroniche, rumori improbabili, come l’accompagnamento fatto di gatti che si lamentano con sopra le voci di loro bambini (su “Woods Children, Pt. 2″). Ma vi garantisco, tranne qualche pezzo strampalato da ascoltare in momenti rigorosamente non sobri, il disco è accessibile, a tratti orecchiabile, con canzoni quasi ipnotiche e destinate a rimanervi in testa a lungo. Loro sono in due, Jeremy Earl e Christian DeRoeck. Earl sta a capo della Fuck It Tapes e della Woodsist label, produce musica lo-fi, talmente lo-fi da registrala ancora su  musicassette! Ascoltatevi anche questa “Night Creature” a volume più alto che potete, magari di notte, quando il cervello gira veloce e a vuoto. Su Myspace purtroppo c’è solo un brano tratto dal fantastico “At Rear House” ma se vi ho incuriosito abbastanza basta fare un salto ad Amazonlandia… 

this song comes from their latest album broken hymns, limbs, and skin. this video was filmed at the bowery ballroom in new york city. video directed by autopilot.

o’death’s myspace

One dark, spooky night, in the backwoods of Tennessee, the organic melodies of bluegrass kings The Aavett Brothers and the wicked energy of powerhouse punks Flogging Molly had a wild fling.  The result of their unlikely union spawned the Brooklyn, New York 5-piece known simply as O’Death.  Without the means or desire to leave the nest, O’Death thrived off its surroundings, and ultimately emerged as the jester of bluegrass with a psychedelic gospel flare. 

As a special treat to the folks of Nashville, O’Death resurrected their unique sound Monday night at The Exit/In, along with queens of the rural experience, Those Darlins.  Those Darlins opened the floor for a good ole’ deliverance-style hoedown wailing, “I got drunk and I ate a chicken/I ate a chicken I found in my kitchen/not just the leg and not just the wing/I’d like to let you know that I ate/the whole damn thing!”

When their June Carter Cash-inspired set came to a close the real show began.  Five scruffy looking country boys took their places on stage.  Complete with an electric fiddle, banjo, and scrap-metal-modified drum kit, O’Death proceeded to shake the rafters off the small venue.  The intensity with which O’Death performed was unlike any I’ve seen in a long while.  Drummer David Rb attacked each down beat with the savagery of a rabid pit bull, often climbing onto his stool and raising his sticks into the air with a devilish grin on his face.  He was also the fist to go shirtless, followed by bassist “Othar The Tool Collector.”

The most entertaining of the group to watch was the slender, bearded gentleman stage right playing the electric fiddle.  In fact, without the melancholy timbre of the fiddle, the entire outfit risked sounding like a random jam session.  However, the technical skill and explosive emotion with which Bob Pycoir joined bow and string acted as the driving force of the show. 

In the middle of the set O’Death invited everyone in the house to hike their heels on stage and experience the excitement of the show “from the other side of the stage.”  The entire venue climbed into the limelight and joined the group as they sang, “Baby/lay me/down and rest.”  The whole scene was a testament to the power of music and emotion to bring people together.  Like a backward family reunion the stage came alive with performers and audience members moving to the infectious rhythm of O’Death’s irresistible country charm.

After an eleven-song-set O’Death called it quits with the same reunion-style celebration.  The song escalated into a scream fest, complete with coonskin caps and fiery fiddle runs.  By the end of the night O’Death had successfully converted the entire room to goth-country fanatics with their unprecedented energy and obvious technical skill.  It might take a minute, but when the clouds of dust finally settle over Nashville, Tenn., it’s safe to say music city will never be the same.

E se ancora non si era capito che fossi una fan sfegatata degli O’Death ecco l’ennesima riprova! 

Qui sopra il nuovo video del singolo Lowtide, bel pezzo anche se il nuovo “Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin” contiene ben altre perle. L’accostamento tra immagini e musica mi sembra però fantastico. Enjoy!

So, we are getting tired of all this new music, and starting to listen to some old stuff again. But that doesn’t stop me from guiding you through my 50 best records of this year. The sequel, starting with number 40

40. Turner Cody - First Light (B.Y Records)

Sounds Like: Born too late, but okay, we can still sing along with your (anti)folk songs; Benji Cossa

Turner Cody brings really quirky folkpop songs, which sound as if they could be on a 60’s British sunday afternoon radio show. I see those British school children eat a red apple, dad tunes in the radio, a radio voice says: “and now the delicately charming Turner Cody”, and then he starts singing.

Turner Cody – My Baby’s Been Away

39. O’death – Broken Hymns, Limbs And Skin ( City Slang)

Sounds Like: Absolutely Wrecked Bluegrass Appalachian Folk, Tom Waits, Captain Beefheart, 16 Horsepower

O’death is the first band in this list that also was in my list of last year. For I am a hobo in heart and soul, I thoroughly enjoy this hilbilly music, which includes fiddles, banjo’s and probably even blow bottles! now all get up and do the devil’s honky Tonky!

O’Death – Low Tide

38.  Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson (Say Hey Records)

Sounds Like: Well, mr. Micah P. Hinson, it seems you’ve got some competition there.

Micah P. Hinson was a young guy, who used to be in jail, was addicted to some pills. Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson is 24 and has been homeless. They should start a band together, or keep on releasing amazing indie-singersongwriter albums like the one by MBAR. This is a genuine amazing album, that you’ll like if you like Hinson’s work. Lots of layers, with a lot of voices, and stuff like that going on. Ah man, forget it. Listen instead of reading this. I’m not here to fool you!

Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson – Buriedfed

37. Castanets - City of Refuge (Asthmatic Kitty)

Sounds Like: There is a town where all people died, and then they ressurected.

If some Kazakh freedom fighters would have kidnapped me, and made me listen to some albums without me telling who i was listening to, iI would have said that no one else but Castanets could have made this record. It’s desolate big city folk, apocalyptic in every way. Tech-folk, Country Noir… all these genre descriptions have been used to describe Castanets, but it’s just truly unique. All his albums would be in the lists of their release year.

Castanets – Glory B

36. Grampall Jookabox – Ropechain/ Rill Bruh EP (Asthmatic Kitty)

Sounds Like: too much acid, an acoustic guitar, a fourtrack, and a lot of samples. The Muppet Show of the 21st Century, Man Man

Grampall Jookabox is genuinely weird. It’s deconstructed acid-tripping.. folk? Can you call this folk? or hilbilly Hiphop? Or something else? You take some people in a madhouse, musical ones, give them some instruments and leave them there for 3 weeks without food or water. This is what you’ll get. I like the EP a bit more than the full album, also because i’m all funked up by Bad Wis My Sploder. Best song is for later on though. You can download the entire EP for free.

Grampall Jookabox – Bad Wis My Sploder

35. Human Highway – Moody Motorcycle (Suicide Squeeze)

Sounds like: Sixties summer pop, Neil Young’s bastard Kids

If there is one guy that let me down a bit this year, it’s Nick Thornburn from Islands. The New Islands records sucks and lacked some cool songs. Luckily he made this album, so I’m not entirely mad at him. This is a Collaboration with Jim Guthrie (From Royal City-fame). The result are some nice harmonic songs, which you can sing along during summer camp. (Thornburn also recorded a hiphop-esque album with the alias Reefer, and quite enjoyable too)

Human Highway – The Sound

34. Dr. Dog - Fate (Park The Van)

Sounds Like: 60’s lo-fi, though less lo-fi than they used to be

Dr. Dog have always been like the cool Beatles to me. The Beatles that stayed in their garage and just made noisy 60’s songs. On their new album they’ve become a bit cleaner, but that doesn’t mean they’re less good. They also released a compilation of old stuff this year, which is great. I’ll add a song of that too. While listening, i think they could be higher on the list. great Band that hasn’t let me down up until now!

Dr. Dog – The Rabbit, The Bat & The Reindeer

Dr. Dog –  Me & My Girl

33. The Whiskers – The Distorted Historian (Self-released)

Sounds Like: The Cheap version of Wolf Parade (and i mean that literally)

Free albums that are great! hooray! the Whiskers’ lead singer sounds like a moderate version of the voice at Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown, Handsome Furs or Frog Eyes. A sound which i can’t seem not to enjoy. So, why do I call them cheap? Because they offer their album completely for free on their website, which we greatly appreciate. Fans of everything Canadian and weird voices, try this.

The Whiskers – U-92

32. James Yorkston - When The Haar Rolls In (Domino Records)

Sounds like: your late-night soothing troubadour

James Yorkston comforts.  he’s your big musical teddybear, with warm well orchestrated folk songs, and his calm voice singing over it. It’s not weird, it’s not creepy, it’s not lo-fi, but god, i like this. Findlay brown or Bowerbirds-fans, come and see this.

James Yorkston – Queen of Spain

31. No Age - Nouns (Sub Pop)

Sounds like: Mom, can you please turn of that vacuum cleaner, we’re trying to make some popsongs here!

Lo-fi is back! I already talked about Wavves, but there is also Times new viking and eh…other dudes. We’re back to four tracks, noise, a lot of feedback, combined with funky funny sing along teenage sjillamee sjellikers! I missed their free show last year, because i didn’t know them (and didn’t ahve a driver’s license), but if i would have a time machine, i’d so be there! lo-fi pop, for all the happy kids. Buy the cd by the way, cause the booklet looks great

No Age – Eraser

I’ve got some friends with shows coming up in December! Check them out if you can

December 1st:
Tell Your Friends @ Lolita Bar

December 2nd:
Peasant @ Public Assembly

December 4th
Sweet Paprika @ D-Lounge

December 5th:
Thank Cock It’s Friday @ Pianos
O’Death and Wye Oak @ The Bowery Ballroom
Matt Jones @ Think Coffee

December 6th:
Lil Seany Boy Show @ Ochi’s Loung
Family Hour With Auntie Sara @ Ochi’s Lounge
The Party Faithfull @ The Delancey

December 9th:
Auction! @ Ochi’s Lounge
Fish & Chips @ Ochi’s Lounge
December 12th
TAKKA TAKKA and also ALINA SIMONE @ The Bell House
Locksley (with Ray Davies!) @ The Hammerstein Ballroom

December 13th:
Drink Up Buttercup @ Cake Shop

December 14th:
Drink Up Buttercup @ Union Hall

December 17th:
Adult Education @ Union Hall CES IS ON THIS SHOW!!!!
Up The Empire @ Mercury Lounge

December 19th:
Project Jenny/Project Jan @ JezebelMusic Annual Benefit Show – Music Hall Of Williamsburg

Party ’til you drop!

If I have forgotten anyone – forgive me – you know I love you but am old and forgetful