Friday, March 30, 2007

The Long Winters/The Broken West/Stars of Track and Field @ The Great Scott - Allston, MA

Great show. Long Winters frontman John Roderick never ceases to amaze me and this show was no different. From the first time I heard him belt out "Pushover" at an acoustic set in NYC over the summer, I fell in love and even with a full band, he still brings his A-game. I don't really have time for a full review so here are the photos. Enjoy!

More photos at the flickr page.

Stars of Track and Field




The Broken West




The Long Winters




Thursday, March 29, 2007

Silversun Pickups - Acoustic set @ Newbury Comics - Boston, MA

I guess that a record store would be the perfect place for a concert and the Silversun Pickup's acoustic in-store performance certainly fit the setting. Despite the initial delay of getting everyone inside and setting up, the band's set ran smoothly. I've never seen them live, but they sounded tight and were able to replicate their Smashing Pumpkin's inspired sound to a point, with a nice mix of electronics, acoustic guitar, and a constant, steady drum beat. The lead singer had a mini-Q&A session with the audience in between songs which resulted in some comic banter going back and forth. The set felt subdued but they still proved to be a competent live band, no matter the setting.

Silversun Pickups @ Newbury Comics setlist:

Well Thought out Twinkle
Rusted Wheel
Creation Lake
Future Foe Scenarios
Lazy Eye
Kissing Families
Comeback Kid

As usual, more photos up on the flickr page.

Silversun Pickups





Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Do Make Say Think/The Berg Sans Nipple @ The Middle East - Cambridge, MA

Once again the fine people at Late Night Wallflower hooked me up with a press pass, so my full review is up over there.

However, here's a quick rundown of last night's show:
The Berg Sans Nipple - 2 parts Boards of Canada, 1 part Mum, 3 parts random eclectic instruments. Mix, put in oven for 35 minutes and you will have a nice, finely tuned set of ambient electronica. Highly recommended.

Do Make Say Think - Fantastic musicians playing mostly instrumental songs that range from loud, rock bombast to an almost folk/country, rootsy sound. Great live band who impressed the whole time they were on stage, making it look effortless.

More photos at the flickr page.

The Berg Sans Nipple






Do Make Say Think








Monday, March 26, 2007

SXSW Blog Roundup - Round 2

Links keep surfacing from South by Southwest, despite it's finale last week. Check out part 1 right here. Here's a quick rundown of some stuff I have come across recently.

- MusicPlusTV has over 80s of HD footage from a ton of bands such as Against Me, Aesop Rock, Deerhunter, Riverboat Gamblers, and lots more. Check it all out here.

- The always incredible Largehearted Boy has a full list of downloadable live sets from bands such as 65daysofstatic, Okkervil River, Peter Bjorn & John, along with tons more. You are a fool if you do not download some of them here.

- Fucked Up perform Black Flag's "Nervous Breakdown" with Black Flag/Circle Jerks front man Keith Morris. Watch it on Youtube or check out the downloadable Quicktime version here.

NPR posts live Explosions in the Sky/Paper Chase/Eluvium Sets

In case you haven't experienced the awesomeness that is this tour, NPR has come to your rescue. Besides posting a nice little write-up about each band, which you can find here, the station has posted free live sets from Explosions in the Sky, The Paper Chase, and Eluvium from their appearances last week at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC. The sets can be found on the NPR site at the link previously provided and come highly recommended. Make sure to check them out.

Rock the Bells Official Lineup Announced

The summer festivals just keep getting crazier and crazier. The Rock the Bells tour has announced their official lineup and I really don't feel like typing up the lineup, so here is the flyer detailing the craziness:


Tickets for all three dates (7/28 - Randalls Island, NY, 8/11 - NOS Events Center - San Bernandino, CA, and 8/18 - McCovey Cove Parking Lot - San Francisco, CA) go on sale March 31st on Ticketmaster. General admission for the NY show is $82 and the VIP package cost is $156. The two CA shows are priced at $76 for general admission and $151 for the VIP package. The VIP ticket includes access to the VIP lounge and party, limited edition backpack, souvenir credential, official t-shirt, poster, and access to a full bar with amenities and two drink tickets.

In addition to these three dates, Wu Tang Clan will be doing a 15 date tour with Nas sometime this summer. Stay tuned.

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Mew @ The Paradise/Decemberists @ Avalon

This week was pretty insane for shows and it continued into the weekend with The Decemberists headlining two nights at the Avalon and Mew playing at The Paradise. So let's get this started:

Opening act Oh No! Oh My! had great, catchy pop songs with a dash of synth here and there, but their songs seemed a bit underdeveloped. There was just that extra "something" missing from their songs and they seemed way too short for their own good. I feel like in another album or two they will finally get there, but for now, they're still working on it.

My main sentiment about Mew's live show is "good, not great" and I found that my feelings were confirmed by others around me who said the same thing. Overall, the band put on an entertaining show, with a mix of lights and a video screen with creepy images playing behind them. However, I thought the lead singer's trademark ethereal vocals got lost in the sound of the rest of the band and the drums had way too much echo on them, making it sound like they were playing in a cave. Maybe Mew have too big of a sound for the small Paradise, or maybe the sound was just off that night, but it definitely impacted their set. Regardless, they played a great mix of stuff off their new album And The Glass Handed Kites and their recently released in the U.S. title Frengers (a mix of friends and strangers, get it? I didn't). Highlights included "Snow Bridge" and "156" off Frengers, two personal favorites, as well as "Apocalypso" and "Zookeeper's Boy" from Kites. I feel like they would be suited towards a larger venue like the Avalon, and I certainly hope they come back to the States soon.

--------------

For some reason I was not excited about seeing The Decemberists for what would be my fourth (or fifth? who knows) time, but after I heard the first notes being played by Mr. Colin Meloy, my mind had changed. Opening act My Brightest Diamond put on a solid set of country-inspired rock. She has a great, anguished voice that really goes well with her songs and I can't wait to check out her album.

Despite my dissatisfaction with The Crane Wife, and their set at The Orpheum back in November that left me underwhelmed, I still remain a fan of The Decemberists. I missed their show the night before since I was seeing Mew, but apparently they played a lot of older stuff. Their set on Saturday night consisted of mostly Crane Wife material like "Sons and Daughters", "The Perfect Crime", "Yankee Bayonet", but the group did interject with some older material, although NOTHING off of Her Majesty, arguably their best album. During "16 Military Wives", Colin split the crowd and made us participate in a shouting match with one another, which made for some fun sing-alongs. As usual, the band was engaged with the audience the whole time and it's impossible to get through a Decemberists set without laughing a whole hell of a lot. The group brought back fan favorite "The Mariner's Revenge Song" for the end of their set, featuring a new whale prop, as well as the expected sounds of the audience being swallowed by a whale. Despite the lack of older material (and b-side "Culling of the Fold", which you can watch on YouTube here. We seriously got screwed compared to Friday's show!), the Decemberists continually put on a solid live act that only gets better.

Pictures from The Decemberists on Friday March 23 (credit: Marybeth Miller, a hardcore Decemberists fan who was lucky enough to meet Colin and Chris Funk. I'm jealous.) Click for a bigger image:








Decemberists set list from Saturday March 24 @ Avalon (sadly, they didn't play "Eli" due to time constraints, since Avalon turns into a nightclub so they can actually make money)

Anti-War Rally in Boston Common - 3/24/07

March24.org held a rally in the Commons yesterday to protest the War in Iraq that has been dragging on for four years now. Thousands showed up and speakers such as Cindy Sheehan and Howard Zinn made appearances. More photos here on my flickr page.











Read Yellow/Planes Mistaken for Stars/Lock and Key @ The Middle East Upstairs

Sadly I had only gotten into Read Yellow recently, when I saw them open for Hot Cross back in February, but I was definitely not going to miss their last show ever as a band. Lock & Key started off the night and I don't really remember much honestly, but I got a nice Hot Water Music vibe from them, which is absolutely A-OK in my book. I remember checking them out a while ago and being impressed and I am excited to hear what they come out with next.

Honestly, Planes Mistaken for Stars are fuckin' loud. Simply put, that is the best way to describe them. In between head banging like it was no one's business, the band played a great set full of their trademark gruff vocals and thrashy guitar parts, while the singer still found time to occasionally stick his hands down his pants (no joke). It's a shame this band is not bigger, since it seems like they have been around forever, but hopefully the upcoming Mastodon tour will help.

Read Yellow hit the stage while "End" by The Doors blasted over the sound system. It really doesn't even matter what the group sounded like or whether you could even hear them, since everyone in the audience was clearly their to support a band that has clearly meant a lot to them. There were sing alongs, stage dives, crowd surfers, instruments tossed all over the place, and just general mayhem during the band's last song ever. About 30 people stormed the stage and a impromptu dance party took place, while the lead singer spazzed out all over the venue and everyone on stage yelled along. Even though it was sad to see them go, Read Yellow certainly went out with a bang and put on a show that myself or anyone else in attendance won't be forgetting any time soon.

As usual, tons of photos up on the flickr page.

Lock & Key




Planes Mistaken for Stars








Read Yellow