After the sun had set tonight, a spontaneous song broke out in celebration of both the incredible sky and the grilled swordfish. So instead of a Jam of the Day, we offer you an ev2bk first: an original Jam of the Night, recorded live this evening here on Block Island with a group of family and friends (tentative group name: Bear Collective) and posted for your entertainment. We hope it’s as enjoyable to you listening as it was for us making it!
Bear Collective – The Swordfish Song:
-Drew
Filed under Jam of the Day, Music, New
Last week we checked out the CD release party for Las Horas Sin Tiempo, the first LP from latin rock group Los Neuronautas. The band was scheduled to play on the rooftop of the pretentiously swanky Ravel Hotel in Long Island City. However, when hotel security would not allow any of their fans who were wearing sneakers (or Timbs!) upstairs for the show – in a bout of artistic integrity – the band relocated to the Texas Firehouse gallery/loft space, which was convenitently within walking distance down the street. An impressively-sized crowd followed. Leaving the overpriced cocktails (with 20% tip included) behind, most of the crowd stopped in at a nearby deli before heading up to enjoy the BYOB rooftop loft:
Los Neuronautas on the Texas Firehouse Roof
Los Neuronautas
Probably the highlight of the evening, and when the band truly hit their stride, was when they busted into a spirited rendition of “Desvanecer;” in the process, lead singer/lead guitarist David nearly broke his second set of strings that night. Although it doesn’t even come close to replicating the energy level of the live performance, here’s a link to the recorded version:
“Desvanecer”
Los Neuronautas was formed in 2006 by lead singer and lead guitarist David Vanegas, and drummer Jeff Ortiz. Bassist Gabriel Gutierrez joined the band in February, 2009. Their varied influences include the Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana, My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, The Cure and The Doors.
-ev2bk
I hope everyone enjoyed the gorgeous holiday weekend. Now that you’re back in the city, easing into the week (hopefully with a little tan), we here at ev2bk wanted to welcome you back with a free show and a stellar new video. Tonight in the ev, Pianos is hosting the weekly Cross-Pollination show where two local singer-songwriters will each play a 45-minute solo set, followed by a three-song collaborative set where both artists share the stage. The two-hour concert is free and doors open at 7:30, so if you’re in need of your new music fix for the week, go check it out.
Liberated Matter created the Cross-Pollination concert series with the goal of strengthening the local music community and forging bonds between musicians and creating new collaborations. They pair musicians based on the diversity of their music styles as well as the compatibility of their sounds. Cross-Pollination at Pianos has been going on for two years now (since June 2007). They partnered with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, ASCAP, to produce the event.
Tonight’s featured local performers are Alex Drewchin and Louis Schefano (aka Louis) formerly of the mostly one-man-band, Regia. Listen below to get a sample of what you might here tonight from Louis Schefano, from his EP “Louis’s Freak Show Revenge.”
My Brightest Diamond, led by the operatically-trained, Brooklyn-based, singer-songwriter Shara Worden, performed at a past Cross-Pollination concert. The band released their first album, Bring Me the Workhorse, in 2006. Today’s jam comes to you from their 2008 release, A Thousand Shark’s Teeth. The haunting vocals on this track, at times reminiscent of Joni Mitchell, and the Anime-meets-Pixar escape video are definitely worth checking out.
My Brightest Diamond – Inside a Boy:
-Melissa
Filed under Event, Jam of the Day, Local News, Music, New, Performance
At The Bell House last night, Nonesuch Records hosted a CD release party for the new album by the lovable jam rock band Wilco, aptly titled Wilco (The Album). This is the seventh studio album by the Chicago-based sextet, with eleven new songs, including a duet with Leslie Feist. To celebrate the album’s release yesterday, Paste magazine devoted their web site to the new record, calling it Wilco (The Takeover). Rolling Stone gave it four stars (out of five) and called the new album “a triumph of determined simplicity by a band that has been running from the obvious for most of this decade.” The album is getting great reviews so far. Their blend of catchy hooks and thoughtfully crafted lyrics will undoubtedly make it one of the best albums of the summer.
Standout tracks on the album include, “Wilco (The Song),” which they dedicated to their fans, the rollicking jam “I’ll Fight,” and the aforementioned duet with Leslie Feist, “You and I,” a light and dreamy track that I’m sure we can expect to hear in some upcoming movies. I just hope it’s not playing over a horribly cheesy montage (try not to imagine it…)
Wilco feat. Feist – You and I:
-Melissa
Filed under Jam of the Day, New
Wednesday night we checked out the fifth-ever show by Florida’s “The Drums.” Going into the show, I was intrigued by one band member’s description of their sound to ev2bk as being “like, 50’s surf pop, combined with electro pop, a little indie rock… It’s very cool.” And I have to say we were not disappointed.
The 50’s surf sound is light-hearted, refreshing, and really fun when combined with the post-punk undertones of the drums and guitar. Everyone at the Annex that night was having a blast, though there were a few technical issues with the sound, and the back-up vocalists were lost in the louder moments. The show we saw was only their fifth performance ever and they already have a residency at the Annex this month, playing every Wednesday night throughout June. The bands frontmen are singer Jonathan Pierce, formerly of Elkland, and guitarist Jacob Graham, formerly of Horse Shoes. Pierce and Graham had been planning on starting a band together for a while, but it took Pierce’s move to Florida to really get things going. They are joined by Adam Kessler on guitar and Connor Hanwick on drums, with Erin Berkey and Ruthy Mirsky as their aptly costumed back-up singers (Berkey designs and makes the costumes). Their sound is as if the Beach Boys were crossed with your favorite 80’s pop band and Ra Ra Riot. They note that their chief influence was The Wake.
They are working on their first EP now, Summertime, and their next show is this Tuesday at the Bell House, opening for The Legends. They are most definitely worth checking out!
You can listen to my favorite track of the evening, “I Felt Stupid,” right here.
The Drums – I Felt Stupid:
-Melissa
Passion Pit wasn’t really supposed to be a band. Back in 2008, Michael Angelakos made a bunch of songs as a Valentine’s Day gift to his ex-girlfriend, which eventually wound up as the six song Chunk of Change EP (released in Sept. 2008). By then word started to spread about the Boston band’s falsetto crooning, clean synth-driven dance pop tracks, and Passion Pit began playing shows all around the Northeast.
My first encounter with the band was at the Mercury Lounge during the CMJ Festival last year, when I tried to ask my sister a question at the bar and she got pissed at me for ruining her conversation with “the lead singer of Passion Pit.” Oops! I quickly checked them out on Myspace and became briefly obsessed with uber-danceable “Sleepyhead:”
Then this February I happened to be in London and managed to catch them playing at Cargo, since our good friends Bear Hands were also on the bill (and are definitely also worth checking out!). The show was sold out and the venue was absolutely packed, but this didn’t stop anyone from getting down with some serious booty shaking/sing alongs, and the entire set was really high-energy and enjoyable:
Passion Pit @ Cargo, London - Feb 09
Passion Pit @ Cargo, London - Feb 09
Passion Pit @ Cargo, London - Feb 09
After the European jaunt, the band hit up a little U.S. tour, including some dates at SXSW, which leads us up to this week and the release of their first full length album, Manners (Frenchkiss Records). To celebrate, on Tuesday the boys played what looks to have been a raucous and celebratory show on a boat cruise in the Hudson. Apparently, the band has really tightened up over the past few months, especially on the new tracks from the LP. Even MTV was there filming! Val Loper, the bassist from Bear Hands, was at the boat show and told me last night that they were “fucking amazing.”
To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Manners, especially after “The Reeling,” the album’s first single, sounded hella over-produced. After the first listen I was thinking I was maybe right. But so far each listen has only made me get more into this expanded sonic repertoire. Sure, the lead singer’s voice can get a little grating/distracting sometimes, like in the chorus of “Folds in Your Hands,” interrupting an otherwise charging opening. But there are lot of nice surprising touches that I guess come from working with a big label producer, like the funky baritone sax at the end of “To Kingdom Come,” or the kid choruses (in “The Reeling” and “Little Sectrets”) ala Pink Floyd.
The standout tracks for me were “Little Secrets,” “Swimming in the Flood,” and – even though the LP version seems to me to be essentially unchanged from the EP – “Sleepyhead” is still a dope song. A lot of the other joints seem to me to suffer from too much ambition or good beginnings gone awry into spacey-synth jams and too-high vocal flights. But overall I’d say that the disc is pretty solid and worth more than a few spins.
-Drew
East Village to Brooklyn 