Welcome back BBs, we sure did miss ya. As a Music Fan, we’re confident you’re either counting your personal piles of ill-gotten gains before heading off to SXSW or sneering at all the Coachella hat wearing condo dwellers who’re blowing tug boats full of cash to jam into sweaty shows. Just imagine them dripping in perspiration whilst wobbling on sneaker platforms or shifting uncomfortably in Docs desperately trying to catch a glimpse of cool. But hey, as the thinking goes, these people will be amongst the Music Professionals and are paying good money for perceived authenticity when they recount their trip down to “South By” (again) this year and lament that, wow it’s so much more commercial than it used to be. Or perhaps you’re a band heading south to play some shows at SXSW in which case, good luck– the only SXSW stories I’ve heard involve depraved benders and near death experiences. But if you’re lucky, you might get to shake it with Big Freedia and her crew in a Texaco parking lot while gobbling down Popeyes. True story, not me of course but this guy I know.
So unless you’re a band with dreams of riches and recognition lodged in your pupils (go girl!) or a human with actual riches, (in which case help a girl out) you’ll be staying right here at home amongst the slowly dying snow mounds. In that case, we highly recommend you get your show on before SXSW starts because things might get pretty deserted around here. But check back with us next week just to be sure, eh?
Punk Night
Pox, Gowanus Mutant Kommandos, Pawns, Slav, Deli Girls
Saturday March 14th, 8 pm at Palisades: $8 at the door
A night of non-stop nasty at Palisades is just what the doctor ordered this week, and this show will definitely get you warmed up for annual punk fest New York’s Alright happening next month. A mystery band is headlining. The invite offers few clues as to who or what is behind this act, save for one titillating hint: “NYC punk ultra group.” No links, no nothing. But based on the rest of the lineup, we’re putting our bets on awesome. Also on the bill are Gowanus Mutant Kommandos, these guys truly put the “anus” in Gowanus with their organ fueled, ’70s nostalgia punk (i.e. sporting an actual mohawk). Their get-ups can make you feel like you’ve walked into a wax museum but when it comes down to it they rip, and that’s all that matters.
Once again Pawns (post-punk, Ian Curtis worshippers) are making an appearance. This band has been absolutely everywhere the past two weeks, and by everywhere I mean playing several places located within a few mile radius. Joining them is Slav–merciless, raw as hell hardcore. No gimmicks, not now and probably not ever. Check out their requisite fuck-the-police song, “Yes, officer.” Deli Girls are a relatively new project–two ladies still in demo mode, but they’ve already got a pretty twisted sound going for them. Brutal vocals with a dry as desert roar over stripped, industrial synth beats. [ND]
Old Reliable
Mystery Lights, Cool Ghouls, Surfbort, Acid Dad
Wednesday March 11th, 8 pm at Union Pool: $10 at the door
True to name, members of Mystery Lights bring something mysteriously cinematic to their set: the intrigue of noir, the lonesome soul-searching of westerns, and the melodrama of pulp. It’s not groundbreaking garage psych to be sure, but it’s fun stuff loaded with good-time potential. Leave it to San Fran to deliver the dreamier, hazier side of garage repped this evening by Cool Ghouls. Surfbort bring transplant odes to adolescent suburban days of yore. Acid Dad opens, setting the tone for absolutely nothing to follow. Just playin’! They’ll probably just play more Ty Segall-inspired psych stuff. But hey, it’s cool– what’s not to love? [ND]
Distant Crooners and Local Darlings
Krill, Frankie Cosmos, Cloud Becomes Your Hand, LVL Up
Saturday March 14th, 8 pm at Silence Barn: $8 at the door
Massachusetts band Krill is celebrating the release of their new album A Distant Fist Unclenching this weekend at Silent Barn. That title has got to be either a cliché Hunter S. Thompson reference or a metaphor for sex. For Krill’s sake, I’ll assume it’s the latter. Their heartfelt, exasperated indie rock is a clear indication that love and lust and not politics are at play here. A few local bands that seem to be everywhere right now will play sing-a-long: Frankie Cosmos (who performed in our humble office back in December), Cloud Becomes Your Hand (whimsical, burbly, starry-eyed psych pop), and LVL Up. [ND]
No Two Alike
Sleepies, LODRO, Mexican Slang, Crosss, BBIGPIGG
Wednesday March 11th, 8pm at Shea Stadium: $8
Sleepies is probably the perfect name for a band as speedy as this– even if the references are inconsistent (punk? post-punk? grunge? indie? Dave Grohl? ugh) some things are always present, powerful drums, a runaway tempo. And better to have a sound that defies labels than one that can be easily pigeonholed.
LODRO isn’t just Lorde spelled incorrectly (thank your lucky stars people, not sure what the appeal of that is beyond watching a teenager make hilariously predictable teenage statements like not understanding the whole music criticism thing). Nay, this is some sooth swaying opium desert rock from… surprise! Brooklyn! Not that these tunes should be confined to just outside of Marfa or something, but closing your eyes and drifting away from the borough for a moment is strongly advised. Opening acts include visitors from our northern neighbors, Mexican Slang (dreamy lo-fi pop) and Crosss (fuzzy sludge garage), bands that couldn’t be more different, and finally local devilish, discordants BBIGPIGG. [ND]
Ice May Melt, a Cold World Remains
Lust For Youth, SØREN at Nothing Changes
Wednesday March 11th, 10 pm at Home Sweet Home: $8 at the door
Hey it’s been a while since these guys have played New York following the release of their new album last June. If you missed this Swedish post-punk dance wave act, you most certainly missed out. They’ve got that New Order passion, the endearing side of the ’80s, rather than heart-of-darkness coldness, it’s a heartbroken, hungover, hungry sort of cold. This (and a show at Baby’s All Right on Saturday) is your last chance to make like the cool kids and go check this band out before they take off for SXSW, the West Coast, and Japan– all places that are definitely not Brooklyn or even New York and therefore don’t really exist. SØREN bring a more distant, dark electronic vibe to the show. You will be given to fits of vibration. Very Ascetic House, very much we like. And because this is the second anniversary of Nothing Changes, shit’s bound to get cray. What else are birthdays for? [ND]
Oddly Correct
Show Me The Body, Hunnie Bunnies, KTB, Video Daughters, I Am Not A Sound
Saturday March 14, 9pm, 8 pm at Nola Darling: $8
What a wild but oddly correct mixture of bands and sounds. Show Me The Body is a sludgy rock trio led by a guy rapping and playing a banjo. There is absolutely no theorem to explain why this works. Think along the lines of Rat King and the Beastie Boys. KTB is a most welcome collaboration from Guerilla Toss and Bugs and Rats. Together, they create a towering sound that creeps in all directions. The shrill vocals are the absolute creep icing on this delicious creep cake.
I heard that the Hunnie Bunnies existed years ago somewhere in subterranean Boston. A cacophonous mix of paint, yelling, fuzz, throbbing, and nudity. The duo reigned over Gay Gardens and the Whitehaus on the wildest nights wearing as much as nightgowns and as little as boxer briefs. Don’t let underwear fool you though, these are well constructed songs with danceable beats and a premeditated collection of sounds. They now live in Philly, but fortunately it’s not too far.
Video Daughters remind me of a Kansas Storm. It happens fast. Suddenly, you are surrounded in a blur of thrashing noise and psychedelia. It’s frantic and consuming, until the moment where it lifts and you are looking at something crystal clear. In this case, meticulously hypnotic rhythms and, if you listen closely, cleverly acerbic lyrics.
I Am Not A Sound is the young and ambitious Jake Saunders. Tell us more Jake. [Sarah Lutkenhaus]
