Posts Tagged ‘concert’
Posted by xneverwherex on October 19, 2011
CMJ – 10/18/11
So many bands, so little time! It seems its the same thing year after year with CMJ. Ive got a complete schedule that ends up useless in the first 5 minutes. Bands either fail to deliver or theyre so great – I end up seeing other bands on the showcase I might have passed up. Unfortunately, there are also times when you’d rather just shoot yourself and call it a night when disappointments continue.
The Good:
The Duke Spirit
The Duke Spirit – technically, they shouldnt even be included in this. Theyre established and damn good! Of course, they were the highlight of the night – and I fear if I continue to see them not much else will compare. Liela looking smokin’ hot as usual is always great fun to watch. She has so much energy when she performs and she commands the stage. Its hard to take your eyes off of her when she moves as she glances around the room. Her voice is perfection as she growls through the songs.
Surprisingly, they played their older songs instead of playing newer songs. Perhaps it was due to a really tight schedule in which they were needing to be in Brooklyn. They played a way too short set of about 8 songs but it couldnt have sounded better. The dirty, muddy sounding guitars were a great complement to Liela’s voice. The garage rock psychedelic sounded great in the posh Bowery Hotel. It couldnt have been a greater set.
Hands, from LA, took the stage prior to The Duke Spirit. They had a pretty big turn out with what seemed to be lots of friends (or maybe girlfriends) from Cali.
Hands
They sounded incredible and much better than I could have expected. The backing of the psychedlic, lush sounding keyboards and guitars filled the air, with a similar sound to Sun Airway. The vocals are strong and it seemed like if Division Day (another LA band) had continued and made their songs a bit more dancey this is what youd get.
The drummer, playing barefoot naturally, keeps the beats going. The keyboards nearly swallowing the lead singers voice on some songs works out beautifully. The music, the vocals and the guitars all blend so perfectly well together it gives such a complete sound. If youre not sure of who to see during CMJ, this band is definitely not to be missed. They have a show on Thurs afternoon at Pianos which should be great.
Alamo Race Track – who I actually saw on Monday (pre-CMJ) are also a band that you dont want to miss. Hailing from The Netherlands, it seemed the Dutch contingency came out in full support for them. I had never seen so many insanely tall people in my life. The band started off a bit shaky, and its hard to say whether or not it was the band
Alamo Race Track
or the actual songs they chose, but as their set continued the music definitely got better. They have some great melodies and their voices play off each other’s quite well.
“The Northern Territory” which they ended with was easily one of their best songs and definitely more popular. A lot of people were singing along and its catchy and fun. It sounds so much better live, that its worth seeing them just to hear that song. Its a punchy, fun toe-tapping awesome song. “Black Cat John Brown” was also another highlight. The other band members broke out with other instruments during the song. It seems they’re all quite talented players going back and forth on instruments.
They’ve got a free showcase on Thurs over at The Delancey with some other Dutch bands. If youre not doing much – its worth checking out.
And the well — not so good and you might walk out on bands.
Marcellus Hall – now if youre quite into country music, youd probably find the band quite good. They had a good sound and the lead singer was pretty amusing – so this alone made it better. As Im not a fan of country music – this was pretty painful and it seemed each song kept getting longer. Thankfully when soon there were only 3 songs, it became 2. And naturally, they’re all about love and relationships. The woman on violin did sound pretty awesome and it was her birthday – so cheers to that!
The Silent Comedy – which has such an awesome band name – so disappointed. I couldnt wait to get out of the show and it couldnt happen fast enough. Sounded like some sorta folky-bluegrass jangly type thing with banjos and all. Maybe they should have played after Marcellus Hall insteaad of spacing it out so oddly. Perhaps that was the original set- but with The Duke Spirit having to be in Brooklyn lots of things were changed. Either way – meant an early night.
And oh New Zealand – I had such high hopes for you. Andrew Keoghan, who was oh so nice to look at, was a little underwhelming. The guitar and drum thing had so much potential, but it was more of just a singer-songwriter act. Not bad sounding all, just a bit boring.
Princess Chelsea was interesting. The women had good voices and the way the band mixed it up on instruments was pretty cool. Their first song, which I knew from online, was very catchy, but then it just sounded like more of the same. It really seemed like 2 girls on their computers, mixing it up with sounds and beats and 2 guitars who added a bit more, with a drummer occasionally filling it in. Not a bad thing, just a bit slow and was near sleep inducing. Prob a great band to end a night with.
Heres to Day/Night 2. Hoping for some great things!
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 10/18, 11, Bowery Hotel, CMJ, concert, dance, festival, Hands, indie, LA, Le Poisson Rouge, live, London, music, New Zealand, NYC, The Duke Spirit, UK | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on October 18, 2011
Mates of State
Mates of State
Other Lives
Yawn
10/12/11
Husband and wife duo – Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel – Mates of State played a really great, fun set on Wed night. In town for their new album Mountaintops, the band played a good chunk of the new material. Theyve also added an additional 2 members to their live set. The guy on the right – drenched in sweat by the end of the night – played his heart out, and worked the stage and delivered on all the instruments.
It was a great addition to the band giving them an even fuller sound. Kori was surrounded by plants/shrubbery which obscured her for those of us in the front. You could make out her blonde hair bouncing around as she jumped and clapped to songs. At one point, the audience wanted to see her and she happily obliged. From much further back, the sound was much better and of course, you had an entire view of the band.
The encore included their more popular ‘My Only Offer’, thank you Gossip Girl, and had the crowd singing and dancing along. Their fans are a great balance between younger and older and everyone seems to just love and adore everything they do. The band also made a point during each of the openers to come out and bring them glasses of tequila. They seemed to really enjoy the openers on tour with them and it was great to see everyone liking each other.
Other Lives, from Stillwater, OK, were a great opener. With a unique sound of folk-indie music, the band nearly outshined the headliners. The band has a great sound with the band members each playing different instruments on the songs. It was great to see the upright bass and violin make appearances on some of the songs. The lush melodies created were just beautiful and filled up the space of Webster Hall. And while there isnt much crowd interaction, the band brings you right in.
It was great to see a lot of people just come out to see them. They have been acquiring quite the fan-base so it was no surprise when people weren’t familiar with Mates of State, but were only there to see Other Lives. Many it seemed, took off soon after MoS took the stage with a pretty different sound and definitely more poppy.
And Yawn – oh why did you come up with such a poorly named band. Sadly, they actually lived up to their band name. They were pretty forgettable and for an opener it actually was close to putting me to sleep. Perhaps its irony at its finest and the band is doing what they set out to do.
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 10/12/11, band, concert, indie, live, Mates of State, NYC, Other Lives, Webster Hall, Yawn | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on September 25, 2011
Ivy
Tahiti 80
Gramercy Theatre
9/24/11
Ivy had finally returned after a 6 year disappearance. It was great that they brought their French counter-parts with them along for the ride (Tahiti 80). While Ivy technically isn’t French, lead singer Dominique Durand most definitely is. She still looked and sounded as great as ever. She did introduce all of the band members, much to the chagrin of husband Andy Chase, who commented cheekily with ‘I guess we need a new singer now’.
The band was definitely having fun on stage. Adam Schlesinger (of Fountains of Wayne fame) said some funny things which Im not remembering. It was great when they played The Go-Betweens lovely song “Through the Streets of Your Town” even announcing it wasnt their song. Very funny esp as the band said how it showed they hadnt been playing in years as no one does that, but actually many times that does happen (just no mention of the original artist – Im looking at you Broken Social Scene). Either way, the song sounded as great as the original. Lots of people were singing and dancing along.
Through The Streets Of Your Town
Their older hits are definitely what the fans wanted to hear. Lots of fans screaming out songs, of which few were played. The band kept it to a fairly short set, barely reaching an hour. It is too bad as there is so much material. But as Dominique said, it was past her bedtime. Their music sounds even more pop-friendly than Tahiti 80 and is always a good time. The crowd was definitely loving “Thinking About You” and everyone sang and moved around to it. The new material of “All Hours” sounds just as great and I definitely need to be getting my hands on it soon.
Hopefully the band will be back around soon with a proper tour for the new album. And just hopefully play a bit longer.
Openers Tahiti 80 were as fun as ever. A pity their set was quite short as well, as it seems they could have played a lot more. Ah the joys of being an opener. The French group seemed to be having a really great time on stage. Their new material sounds very reminiscent of their first album. Some very catchy, poppy, dance-y songs. It was great hearing a nice mix of new material and their early work. “Heartbeat” still sounds as great as ever and is just beyond super catchy.
The bands definitely were a great fit together. Its no surprise as Andy Chase did produce the bands first 2 albums. Hopefully they will continue a full tour all together. If you like pop bands with great melodies and catchy songs, these are 2 bands that are definitely worth seeing together.
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 9/24/11, concert, France, Gramercy Theatre, indie, Ivy, live, music, NYC, pop, Tahiti 80 | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on August 28, 2011
Dramarama
Wyldlife
8/20/11
Bowery Electric
Dramarama makes for a good night out. Years later, they still make and bring back the best memories. Its hard to complain when they lead to the perfect unplanned date. Now, getting back to the music.
A bit older, but definitely not wearier, Dramarama rocked the club. John Easdale looks exactly the same (perhaps a bit less hair), but still comes out in his trademark sunglasses and cowboy hat. The band which seemingly seemed larger with lots more guitarists, sounded as great as I remembered them in the 90s. It was very awesome that one of the guitarists now has a LA Kings logo on the face of his guitar.
Their set included much of their older songs, and had the mostly older crowd rockin’ out. In prior years, that might have meant a crazy pit, but now people just appreciated it with lots of head bopping and dancing. Their set which never followed a setlist was all about what the band wanted to play. John noted that the prior night that he played very few songs that were written down, and this time he’d try to do better. He continued with his great dance moves and over-the-top choreography which also included a fall into the audience nearly toppling me over. He played it off and never missed a beat.
It was great to hear hits like “Stuck in Wonderamaland” and “Spare Change”. Like shows from the past, sure enough on “Spare Change” a few coins hit the stage. Their fans have definitely not changed. The night ended as John said his voice couldn’t handle much more. “Last Cigarette” had the crowd singing and dancing and cigarettes littered the stage. John picked one up and thankfully one of the guys in the audience gave him a light. The rockstar in him could _not_ be stopped!
It should be noted that instead of drinking a whole lot of alcohol, he drinks _a lot_ of Tab. A drink that some people didn’t even recognize, but it was a cola that was quite popular in the 80s.
The show ended with a 2-second reprieve saying ‘this is the encore.’ The RXP DJ, Rich Russo, who set up the show comes on stage to “introduce” ‘Anything Anything’. It couldnt have been a show without that song, considering the DJs show is called ‘Anything Anything’. And with that, the crowd and band gets the DJ to sing the song. It was pretty awesome when there was a short pause in the song and John tells everyone to start singing. Sure enough everyone starts singing along ‘When I was young I learned a game… I got wasted she got mad…’ No matter how long it had been, everyone still knew the words like any classic rock song!
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Friends, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 8/20/11, Bowery Electric, concert, Dramarama, glam, indie, John Easdale, live show, music, rock, Wyldlife | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on July 18, 2011
Superchunk
Off!
House of Vans (Brooklyn)
July 14, 2011
Well it was nice to be seeing tweets not too long before Superchunk came on to let people know space was still available and to come on down. I showed up pretty late to the warehouse now known as House of Vans. They have a taco truck out back along with free beer and free water. And of course, music, all for free! Its a win/win any way you look at it.
I came in and caught the last few songs of Off! I had no clue who they were aside for the fact that it was _very_ loud and pretty crazy. Later did I come to learn theyre some hardcore punk bank with the former singer of The Circle Jerks/Black Flag (Keith Morris).
Thankfully not long after Superchunk would be hitting the stage. As always it was an awesome show. Bring back the 90s with lots of pogo-ing, hands in the air, some pushing/shoving and an all around great time. It was great to see a good mix of people from the older(ish) fans to the much younger fans with everyone singing along to “My Gap Feels Weird”.
There were some annoying kids (who clearly dont go to concerts) that continued to scream out the same song every 5 seconds and after every song. Some girl finally turned around to tell them to ‘shut up’ and the song they were yelling was on the setlist. That was great for all of 5 seconds till they decided to yell at another song.
It was a really great mix of songs and it seems they were trying to play some songs off of every album. They noted that a fan complained about them not playing songs off their 2nd album, so of course they included it this time. As always, their music is super catchy. Lots of people singing along. The bands always seems to be having a great time, bouncing around on the stage, interacting with each other and the crowd. And it was rather funny to see Jack putting a band-aid on Macs forehead at the beginning of the show! Those pesky cuts from guitars or some such thing. And Laura is as awesome as ever jumping around and singing and having a great time.
The encore was really great with the aforementioned Keith Morris joining Superchunk and playing a Misfits and Black Flag song. The warehouse turned into complete chaos at that moment and Im glad I was far enough off to the side.
Setlist:
Slack Motherfucker
Digging for Something
My Gap Feels Weird
Animated Airplanes Over Germany
Skip Steps 1 & 3
Sunshine State
Rosemarie
New Low
Sick to Move
Crossed Wires
Martinis on the Roof
Driveway to Driveway
Detroit Has a Skyline
Throwing Things
Encore:
Cursed Mirror
Learned to Surf
Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie (Black Flag cover with Keith Morris)
Where Eagles Dare (Misfits cover with Keith Morris)
Hyper Enough
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 7/14/11, Brooklyn, Chapel Hill, concert, covers, free, Greenpoint, House of Vans, indie, Keith Morris, live, Misfits, music, NC, Off!, Superchunk | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on June 29, 2011
The Kooks
Smoke Signals
Bowery Ballroom
June 27, 2011
The Kooks finally made it back to this side of the pond after what seemed like a long hiatus. They have a new album coming out in September – Junk of the Heart. From what they played live of their newer stuff, it sounds like it has a lot of promise. Its easily similar to their earlier works and equally poppy.
Luke Pritchard is always quite the front-man. A bit quiet, with guitar in hand, a red tight vneck with tight jeans; he looks every part the rock star. He never has too much to say but it really doesnt matter. The crowd loves him regardless. Anytime he approaches the edge of the stage, people want to pull him to them. Its alike for men and women.
By the time I got there, a bit after the said doortimes, the floor was already half packed. I was quite surprised, but managed to work my way to the front and side. Aside from some pushy guy, who asked way too many questions, the show was good.
I was a bit surprised that the set length is still just a bit over an hour. It hasnt increased much in time even with more songs. Luke did promise to play the favorites and he delivered. A lot of the crowd up front, were singing along to every single song, as Luke pointed out. ‘Do you wanna make love to me?’ was great and had the crowd dancing. He joked about the crowd knowing some of the songs as he broke out into ‘Naive’ and it was a sing-along.
The encore was quite great as Luke came out on his own and did a stripped down version of ‘Seaside’. Im pretty sure this is standard now, as I could have sworn I had seen it before. Either way, still sounds great. The Kooks early stuff still sounds great and its hard to want to hear new stuff when its just as satisfying to hear all of their early music.
Opener Smoke Signals was pretty bad. I was surprised that so many people were so into them. Had a country-ish vibe to them with a pop sensibility. They played for nearly 45 minutes and it was (seemed to be) the longest 45 minutes ever. Wish they had rapped it up sooner and given the Kooks more time. No clue if they might have played longer, but one can hope.
Set List:
Always Where I Need To Be
Eddie’s Gun
See The World
Carried Away
Ooh La
She Moves In Her Own Way
Junk Of The Heart
Is It Me
Do You Wanna
Naive
Saboteur
Eskimo Kiss
Shine On
Stormy Weather
Encore:
Seaside
How D’Ya Like That
Sofa Song
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Friends, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 6/27/11, Bowery Ballroom, britpop, concert, East Sussex, indie, live, Luke Pritchard, music, NYC, The Kooks, UK | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on June 21, 2011
Beirut
Sharon Van Etten
Yellow Ostrich
McCarren Park
6/17/11
What could have turned into a miserable evening, with a huge rainstorm that dampened us all, turned out to be one of the most lovely evenings in Brooklyn. To get it out of the way – yes there was a double rainbow. My friends had been looking for rainbows after the storm had passed and soon enough theyre screaming ‘OH MY GOD. Its.A.Double.Rainbow. Film.It!’ No, there was no way in hell we were recreating that video. But, yes, there was indeed a double rainbow and lots of rain!
Beirut (Zach Condon and Co.) played an amazing set. Not playing with a full orchestra (oh how I miss your church shows), he did have 4-5 other guys playing with him doing double duty on the instruments. Playing in the outside, facing the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building, their sounds filled the nighttime air. People living nearby came out to listen to the show from their roofdecks. Their new songs sound so beautiful, that I had forgotten how much I had loved their music.
People were in good spirits, but I was surprised that more people werent dancing at all. A lot of people just stood with their arms crossed looking bored out of their minds. The setlist contained many of their staples with “Postcards From Italy,” “Sunday Smile”, “Elephant Gun,” “Nantes,” “Scenic World,” and “Mount Wroclai”. Their indie/gypsy/balkan/romanian sound makes for a good change from the many same-sounding bands in Brooklyn. The horns are always such a great addition for most bands. They played for about an hour and 15 minutes and had an encore with just Zach Condon playing “The Escape” which he noted he hadnt played in a very long time. It was a beautiful way to end the night.
Sharon Van Etten was an incredible opener. I had only known her by name, but a friend had told me her voice is amazing. That cant even possibly describe her strong vocal performance. She hurried her way through a set which seemed like it was over way too soon. She thanked her Dad (it was Fathers Day that Sunday) for coming all the way out from New Jersey. And along the way thanked her other family members for coming out to support her. Towards the end of her set she brought out Ben Lanz and Aaron Dessner of The National. He is producing her latest album and he added some guitar to her songs.
Yellow Ostrich started out the show and I must have had them confused with another similar sounding band name. I was pretty sure it was just one person, but turns out it was a full band. They were really good and had some really catchy songs. They seemed excited to be playing towards a bigger audience.
It was a great combination of bands. All of them were really good and it was definitely a show where you would not want to have missed any of them. I will definitely be checking out Sharon Van Etten again soon. Ive seen her name all over the place, but after hearing that, she is fully worthy of the hype.
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Blogroll, Friends, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 6/17/11, Aaron Dessner, balkan, beirut, Brooklyn, concert, double rainbow, gypsy, indie, live, McCarren Park, music, Sharon Van Etten, The National, Yellow Ostrich, Zach Condon | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on May 24, 2011
White Lies
Asobi Seksu
Sun Airway
May 20, 2011
9:30 Club
Oh DC. How sometimes I love you so much, and other times I dont. The 9:30 Club tends to be a great venue, but after Friday nights show I was left feeling a bit disappointed. Ive gone there enough times, and to be asked to take out almost everything your purse, including keys was a bit odd. Then I was asked to unzip random things on my bag that were clearly decorational. C’mon its a woman’s purse – what do you expect. The woman was just left baffled. I dont know what she was looking for – drugs, alcohol, my camera, iphone … hell Im guessing it was the camera as she pretty much did the same to my friend who had a much smaller bag (read: only holds pretty much id and lipstick). I was going to ask if she wanted to strip search me too, but I figured Id rather not get ejected from the club.
Sun Airway opened up the night and it was already not looking good. Plagued with sound problems they could barely get through the first song. Way too much feedback, everything sounded off and it sounds like the keyboards were causing lots of problems. Sadly, on a 30 minute set this did not help them much. But, by the time they were finishing up their set the sound was perfect and their last song – lots of loud guitars and a big soaring feel – was awesome! I wanted more. Sadly, not going to happen.
Instead of another night of School of Seven Bells – we got Asobi Seksu instead. Now I cant tell if she was having sound problems as well as her vocals were pretty much indeciperhable. It sounded ok enough, but something was lacking. It didnt seem there was much enjoyment and maybe at 25 minutes they were onto the last song. I dont know if that was the club’s doing – but it seems that their sets have become quite short. At least ‘Thursday’ was played and sounded good.
White Lies came on with their same big sound from the previous night. They started again with ‘A Place To Hide’. It sounded as great as the night before. Harry was talkative again, but not nearly as talkative as he was in New York City. He did make the comment about how they just got to DC from the UK and were so happy to be there. It was a bit odd hearing that, as Im sure a lot of people knew they were actually just in NYC. So that huge long trip over – heh – not so much.
The band seemed a little less energetic than the night before, but unless you could compare the two, it definitely wasnt too noticeable. They played the same setlist which is a nice balance of the new and the old. The newer stuff is growing on me more and more and seems to have a more electronic feel to it. Some of the songs “Bigger Than Love” feel like they should have been on the prior album. It fits right in. Live it sounds awesome and its a perfect encore.
The crowd was interesting. Most people stood there with their hands to their side, feigning interest, while a few were really into it – making up for the others. For a non-crowded- show (ie not sold out), the crowd was typical with pushing directly into you when there was no need. People felt entitled to push into you – even tho they had plenty of space to dance in. Ill never fully understand a DC crowd. It really didnt matter tho. I had an awesome time, singing along, dancing and enjoying it. They definitely know how to put on a great show and their music is not to be missed live. The whole chatty, happy thing might not totally work for their music, but the music does speak for itself.
Set List:
1.A Place To Hide
2.Holy Ghost
3.To Lose My Life
4.E.S.T.
5.Is Love
6.The Price Of Love
7.Streetlights
8.Farewell To The Fairground
9.Peace & Quiet
10.Bad Love
11.Death
Encore:
12.Unfinished Business
13.Power & Glory
14.Bigger Than Us
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, DC, Random Ramblings | Tagged: "9:30 Club", "White Lies", 2011, Asobi Seksu, britrock, concert, DC, indie, live, London, May 20, NYC, Philadelphia, shoegaze, Sun Airway, UK, Washington DC | 1 Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on May 24, 2011
White Lies
School of Seven Bells
Sun Airway
May 19, 2011
Terminal 5
White Lies, hailing from London, finally made it back to this side of the pond and couldnt have been more excited. I hadnt seen the band in a couple years and I wasnt sure how it would be in a big club. But the times are a-changing and more importantly so is lead singer Harry. Trading in his dark clothes and gold nikes – hes now donning a suit. I might have thought for an instant they were going down the Interpol lane, but that is definitely not the case. Harry was more talkative than I had ever seen him before. I think he spoke more in 5 minutes than he had in any other prior show. He was happy to back in New York, one of his favorite cities ever. He was glad that more people showed up than he had anticipated – he wanted us to sing along, clap along, make more noise. It didnt stop. And the smile was HUGE! I guess success has hit him big time.
The band has now added yet another band member to tour with. They were always noted as a 3-piece band, yet from the moment I saw them on their first trip to the States, there was always 4. At this point, they have added another guitarist/keyboardist/singer. The guy is quite talented and seems to be doing it all. Jack seemed farther back and I really missed all the interactions that used to go on between the band and him. But Jack was still as awesome as ever and still looking ever-so-cool. Charlie’s bass lines still sound as great as ever – and loving him singing backup on what felt like more songs.
The band opened up with ‘A Place To Hide’ and its a great opener. The bass lines are instantly recognizable and it had the crowd singing along in no time. The crowd was loving every minute of every song. Guys were going crazy – and I would have thought it was the second coming of Jesus err The Beatles. Everyone wanted to be up close and was pushing – which is expected of the girls – but was more surprising with the guys. They followed it up with ‘Holy Ghost’ off of the new album. And then they went back into the older songs with ‘To Lose My Life’ which everyone knew and had Harry happy that we were all singing along. Was pleasantly surprised that right after that ‘EST’ would still be played. One of my favorite songs.
This was an excellent show. The band sounded awesome but its hard to get used to this new happy version of White Lies. Their music and lyrics definitely feels like a much darker band – but apparently they might be going to a happier version of themselves.
New York’s own School of Seven Bells were nice to have around. It was interesting to see them as a 2-piece. I definitely missed having the other sister there who left the band in October due to personal reasons. It seems their music isnt quite as interesting as it was, but regardless they still sounded great. They still had the same dark sound and vocals that arent that easy to understand, but that doesnt matter. Its this beautiful sound and it makes you just want to close your eyes and enjoy it and feel it. There wasnt much interaction – but a band who zipped through a 30 minute set trying to play as much as they could.
Sun Airway – one of my favorite new bands – from Philadephia benefited from playing such a huge venue. The soaring vocals were perfect in Terminal 5. Their songs sounded even bigger and darker and the guitars were sounding even fuzzier. A perfect shoegaze band complete with images shown on a white curtain behind them. It felt like they could have just kept playing and playing, but soon their 30 minutes were up too.
Definitely a show not to have missed – I was just happy that I managed to win tix to it and was able to appreciate it, not just once, but twice!
White Lies Setlist:
A Place To Hide
Holy Ghost
To Lose My Life
E.S.T.
Is Love
Price of Love
Streetlights
Farewell to the Fairground
Peace & Quiet
Bad Love
Death
Encore:
Unfinished Business
Power & Glory
Bigger Than Us
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: "School of Seven Bells", "White Lies", britpop, concert, Hells Kitchen, indie, live, London, music, NYC, Philadephia, psychedelic, shoegaze, Sun Airway, Terminal 5, UK | Leave a Comment »
Posted by xneverwherex on May 6, 2011
Plan B
Faith SFX (beatboxer)
DJs
@ Music Hall of Williamsburg
5/5/11
I went into this show knowing two things – a) Plan B is/was a rapper and b) end credits (w/Chase & Status). So I wasn’t sure much about his new concept album – The Defamation of Strickland Banks. I knew it was a departure from the rap side of things but didnt realize it was a whole story on some artist getting thrown into jail for a rape he didnt commit. The story is insane and as he gets thrown into jail and writes about hell and whats going on- the music really stands out.
The evening began with bass pouring out of the doors and it turns out a DJ was spinning to an empty crowd. Finally a crowd exists but 90 minutes later no one cared. We were all ready for the evening to _really_ begin. First came the beatboxer who was sick! Based on videos Id take a guess that it was Faith SFX who can pretty much imitate any sound and was great at getting the crowd revved up.
Finally Ben Drew (Plan B) comes out with a 7 piece band backing him. Everyone looks incredibly stylish with the men in 3 piece suits and shiny shoes. Women in all black standing on the side giving the music a gospel feel. The band is excited. Its one of their few solo shows, as theyre currently on tour opening for Adele. Plan B jumps right in with the album. They open up with ‘The Writings on the Wall’ and the crowd starts dancing. A couple behind me starts doing their own dance to the music. Plan B’s soulful voice takes you away as he sounds as great as any other 70s soul artist.
The band gets really into the music. A guitarist on stage right comes to the edge of the stage and is dancing as hes playing. The other guitarist on the other side of Plan B – with dark shades – starts dancing as much and they both bring out the great rhythms in the songs. ‘Welcome 2 Hell’ and ‘The Recluse’ are much more energetic and people all around are singing along to all the songs. He breaks out into raps during the songs and it works seamlessly.
About an hour later theyre saying how its the end of the show. Its hard to believe they flew through just one album. They come back out for an encore that is pure medleys. Full of dubstep beats and mixing up a bunch of oldies. The arrangements are awesome and theyve turned ‘My Girl’ into a brand new song. How ‘A Kiss From a Rose’ ever ended up that popular always boggles my mind. But that was another remix complete with a crowd sing-along. As Faith SFX comes back out to infuse beatbox into the songs it gets rowdy on stage. Somehow it turns into punk on stage and the band is creating their own circle pushing into each other which of course leads the crowd to follow suit. By the end of the show – the band is on the floor of the stage, instruments thrown everywhere and people on top of each other.
If youre seeing Adele – you owe it to yourself to check out Plan B. Im not sure any other artist could blend the rap into soul songs that seamlessly. The band is awesome and is thoroughly having a great time. Hopefully theyll be back here sometime soon as Ill definitely be seeing them again.
Setlist:
Writings on the Wall
Free
Welcome 2 Hell
The Recluse
Love Goes Down
Coming Up Easy
Hard Times/Runaway
Praying
What You Gonna Do
She Said
Encore:
Who’s Loving You. Tracks of My Tears/Lean on Me/ My Girl/Stand By Me (an awesome video from another show)
Dubstep Medly: Kiss From a Rose/Forgot about Dre (B)
Pieces
Stay Too Long
Posted in Adventures in the Big City, Live Music, Random Ramblings | Tagged: 5/5/11, beatbox, Ben Drew, Brooklyn, concept album, concert, Faith SFX, live, music, Music Hall of Williamsburg, NYC, Plan B, rapper, soul, Williamsburg | Leave a Comment »
Ramblings of a Redhead Music Snob 